Siheyuan: Steel Mill Engineer

Chapter 102 Vigil
After lunch, there is still work to do in the afternoon, such as preparing the New Year’s Eve dinner and stewing meat.

Yang Zhenyu and Yi Zhonghai were stewing meat in a big pot outside, while Auntie and Zhou Qianqian were making dumplings inside.

"Why is the Jia family so quiet?" Yi Zhonghai said after taking a look at Qin Huairu's house.

"I don't know. Logically speaking, it shouldn't be so quiet now that Jia Zhang is here." Yang Zhenyu also found it very strange.

"Yes, even if there is no fuss, it is time to prepare the New Year's Eve dinner. Qin Huairu is almost out of confinement and it is time to clean up the mess at home." Yi Zhonghai nodded.

"It's weird. I don't understand this family." Yang Zhenyu shook his head.

"Look at Sha Zhu's house. Sha Meifeng is making dumplings with Yu Shui, and Sha Zhu is also preparing meat. I guess he will have to come out and stew it soon." Yi Zhonghai said.

"Hehe, Brother Zhuzi is having a really good life this year. He really needs a woman to take care of him, otherwise he wouldn't even know his last name." Yang Zhenyu said with a smile.

"How dare you laugh? You're talking as if you're not the one. Isn't this household run by your aunt and your two aunts?" Yi Zhonghai glared at Yang Zhenyu and said.

"Hehe, of course not. It is said that having an old person in the family is like having a treasure. If I hadn't listened to you, how could this be happening now?"

"Do you know now? Who said it at the beginning, that you are still young and not in a hurry? Aren't you afraid that Xixi will beat you up?" Yi Zhonghai glared at Yang Zhenyu and said.

"Okay, you better hurry up and don't leave it too late." He Yuzhu nodded.

Yang Zhenyu went back to the cellar and cleaned up the shellfish under the freezer. These things were difficult to clean up, so it would be best to take them to He Yuzhu and hand them over to a professional chef.

"Let me take a look... Oh, spare ribs, big meat buns, all good stuff." He Yuzhu said.

"Look at what you said. This thing is not valuable. I got two bunches. I'll give you one when it's done marinating. Your brother's cooking skills are absolutely top-notch." He Yuzhu waved his hand and said.

Bring some side dishes, such as vermicelli, bean curd, and black fungus, and send them to He Yuzhu's home.

"Brother Zhuzi, I'll leave the rest to you. This thing is hard for ordinary people to get." Yang Zhenyu said.

After the food is put into the pot, Yi Zhonghai just needs to watch the fire, and it will be simmered slowly on two stoves, one large and one small.

"Well, isn't it New Year's Day? It's also the first year my wife has been here, so I prepared more things this year. It's not too late to stew them now." He Yuzhu said nonchalantly.

"Hey, uncle, Zhenyu, are you stewing meat too? Do you want my help?" He Yuzhu walked into the house, looked at the actions of Yi Zhonghai and the other man, and said happily.

"Don't worry, I'm quick." Yang Zhenyu said.

To stew the meat, you just need to put it on the fire and stew it slowly. The rest of the fish, shrimp and other ingredients must also be cooked well, which is what takes time.

"I didn't have any experience then, but now I'm an experienced person and I have the experience," said Yang Zhenyu.

"Brother Zhuzi, when your brine is ready, you have to give me some. I don't know how to make it, otherwise I would have messed it up." Yang Zhenyu said.

"That's great. I'll bring the shellfish to your place later and you can clean them up. We'll eat them tonight." Yang Zhenyu said.

Yang Zhenyu is not a fool, he naturally knows what to say and when, especially now when he needs to coax Yi Zhonghai, he will definitely coax him.

"Shazhu, you are slow today. In previous years, you would have stewed the meat early." Yi Zhonghai glanced at He Yuzhu and said.

"Okay, just leave it to me. This requires a craft." He Yuzhu smiled and said without hesitation.

Although Yang Zhenyu did not explain anything, He Yuzhu knew that it was impossible for Yang Zhenyu to take away all of the food. They could not eat so much either. He could take away half at most, and the rest would be theirs.

He knew in his heart that sometimes he seemed to suffer a loss from Yang Zhenyu, but he didn't know when he would get several times the return. Today, the main feature of this compound was the word "fragrant", because every household had some meat to stew.

This year, every household in the compound has workers from the factory, and they all have some surplus food on hand, so there is still hope for the future.

"Silly pillar, silly pillar!"

"Oh, Aunt Zhang, what happened?" He Yuzhu looked at Jia Zhang and asked curiously.

"What's the matter? I've only been gone for a few days, and you've changed? You used to call me Aunt Jia, but now you call me Aunt Zhang?" Jia Zhang looked at He Yuzhu teasingly.

"No, no, I'm just excited at the moment. What's the matter?" He Yuzhu quickly changed the subject.

"I'm back to see my grandson today. I got two pounds of meat. You can go over and help stew it. There's also a chicken. Let's stew it together." Jia Zhang said.

"So many sex tickets?" He Yuzhu said in surprise.

"Of course. The factory distributed welfare this year, 2 kilograms of meat coupons for each person. I carried them from over ten miles away." Jia Zhang said proudly.

"What? The branch factory only distributed 2 kilograms? Damn it, the main factory only distributed half a kilogram. This is so infuriating." He Yuzhu couldn't help but yelled.

"Shh, don't make it known. If this gets out, it will have a bad impact." Jia Zhang quickly made a gesture to keep quiet.

"Okay, after I finish these, I'll come over and take care of the work on hand." He Yuzhu had no choice but to say.

"Okay, you'd better hurry up, it will be dark soon." Jia Zhang nodded.

"Don't worry, it will be over in a moment." He Yuzhu said.

"Zhu Zi, our compound is so nice. During the New Year, the fragrance fills the whole yard. Every household is preparing delicious food." Sha Meifeng said as she smelled the fragrance in the air.

"That's right. This year, every family in the compound has workers from the factory. With an extra income, life will naturally be a little better. It's also because Zhenyu is capable that he has arranged for almost everyone in the compound to work there." He Yuzhu said.

"Well, it's really amazing. This kind of character is really needed." Sha Meifeng nodded.

"My cooking skills are still the best. It smells different." He Yuzhu said as he smelled the aroma in the pot with intoxication.

"De Xing, everyone knows you're a cook?" Sha Meifeng said, rolling her eyes.

"Hey, okay, I'll go to the Jia family and help them stew the meat. When I come back we'll start preparing the New Year's Eve dinner." He Yuzhu said, wiping his hands.

On the morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year, Yang Zhenyu and his wife went to bed as soon as they got home because they had to stay up all night and go to pay New Year's greetings.

However, it wasn't long before I was awakened by the noise outside.

"What's going on? Why is it so noisy? Logically speaking, everyone should be sleeping at this time." Zhou Qianqian said, rubbing her eyes.

It is indeed very tiring to keep watch all night. How can I not be sleepy after enduring this whole night and having to go to pay New Year’s greetings early?

"I guess something weird has happened in the compound again. We can't sleep anyway because of all the noise, so let's go and see what's going on." Yang Zhenyu said.

"I'm not going. I want to sleep a little longer." Zhou Qianqian turned over and covered her head with the quilt.

"Okay, then I'll go and take a look. Maybe it's a big show." Yang Zhenyu said with a smile.

(End of this chapter)