Guan Yu didn’t know why his older brother was laughing, but that didn’t stop him from clutching his new shoes and laughing along senselessly.
"As long as we adults are around, all you kids need to do is focus on studying hard and improving each day. Don’t worry about anything else!" Feng Qingxue patted Guan Cheng, who had grown significantly taller in just six months, on the shoulder. She then turned to seek out her uncle to sort out the household registration for her siblings.
Lu Jiang’s household registration was separate from his father’s, a decision made after a discussion between his father and Wang Zhengguo.
Lu Jiang’s father wasn’t from a good social standing and he was afraid that this could possibly hinder the prospects of his descendants. As a loophole, Wang Zhenguo decided to separately register the household and included Lu Tianjun and Guan Cheng’s registrations as his nephews under Lu Jiang’s name. Only him, Lu’s father, and now Feng Qingxue and Feng Qingyun knew about this arrangement.
Since Lu Jiang was enlisted in the military and his residency was based with his unit, his spouse, Feng Qingxue, ended up being the head of the household on paper.
With the completion of the household registration, their lives began to settle into a routine.
The next morning, Feng Qingxue woke up to find Lu Jiang exercising in the courtyard. She busied herself in the kitchen, preparing a large pot of corn and coarse rice porridge. They had run out of eggs, so she kneaded some dough and baked about twenty black dough onion pastries. She then stir-fried a large bowl of pickled vegetables, filling the house with a delicious aroma.
"Ajiang, I’ll wake Xiaoyun up while you go call your father and Tianjun for breakfast!"
"Got it!" Lu Jiang answered, wheeling his chair to the door and shouting towards the west room, "Tianjun, take your grandpa with you and come have breakfast, I won’t come to fetch you!"
His voice was loud and resonant, reaching far away.
Lu Tianjun replied promptly, "Uncle, I heard you! Coming right away!"
And so Lu Jiang was able to save much time and energy by heading back into the main room.
Feng Qingxue smiled faintly and unbuckling her black apron, she moved towards the west room to wake her sister, only to find her already dressed and standing by the bed. Due to the hot weather, only a thin blanket was laid on the bed and no bedding needed to be tidied up.
"Wash your hands and let’s eat!" Feng Qingxue took her outside.
By the time they had brushed their teeth and washed their faces, Lu’s father and his grandson were coming in chatting and laughing merrily.
The table was full of people, each having a bowl of porridge and eating it with onion pastries and pickled vegetables. The food tasted absolutely delicious.
The pickled vegetables, made from mustard greens, weren’t particularly tasty. But when cut into small pieces and fried with lard, it was especially good with rice. They all had big appetites and finished everything - the porridge, onion pastries, and pickled vegetables - cleanly as well.
"Auntie, are we eating too much?" Guan Cheng worried while washing the dishes, concerned that there may not be enough food at home.
The black dough onion pastries, made from pure black flour with no coarse grains and cooked with lard, were so aromatic that he almost swallowed his tongue, feeling that this was a delicacy one might not even get in someone else’s house during the New Year.
Feng Qingxue let her two nephews help her clean the pots and dishes and tidy up the kitchen. She used the time to take a black slab of smoked meat out from the cabinet, washed it with hot water, and started boiling it. She laughed and said, "As I said to you before, as children, all you need to do is study hard and keep improving. Let us adults worry about food and clothing."
The smoked meat was cooked until a chopstick would easily go through the pork skin. She then removed the meat and the water in the pot with a layer of fat was poured into a bowl for future use in cooking, making sure not a bit was wasted.
The smell had the children drooling who were gathered around the stove.
Despite being nearly grown, Lu Tianjun and Guan Cheng were sensible but had no defense against the aroma of the meat.
Feng Qingxue cut five thin slices of reddish lean meat and transparent fatty meat from the smoked meat, giving each child a piece, "Finish eating then go out and play. The rest will be used for a braised eggplant dish at noon. I guarantee everyone will get a share!"
Cheers erupted all around and the regret over not having eight full bowls suddenly flew out the window.