Yun Xiaoxiao didn’t bother with the little ones.
Mrs. Zhao quickly brought out some New Year’s goods, candies, melon seeds, peanuts, and other snacks.
"Xiaoxiao, you eat, I’ll go help."
"Qingqing, who is this?"
"This is my little aunt’s brother, my little aunt studies at university in Capital City."
The little boy noticed that Da Bao and Xiao Bao wore down jackets, corduroy pants, and a pair of small leather shoes on their feet.
Children wearing leather shoes were few and far between in their yard.
Most importantly, the skin of these two children was fairer than some of the girls, much whiter than their own skin.
"This is Da Bao, this is Xiao Bao."
"Is the Capital City very big?"
This question instantly opened the floodgates of conversation, and since Da Bao and Xiao Bao had stayed in Capital City for so long, their Mandarin was very standard.
They started to talk about some interesting things in Capital City.
It attracted quite a few children to listen; after all, they were curious about Capital City, having never been there, but they all knew it was the nation’s capital.
"We climbed the Great Wall, but it was too far, so halfway, we chose to come back."
"I’ve been to the zoo, ice skated, and even visited places where the Emperor used to live..."
Some parents wanted to call their children when they heard a clear, childlike voice talking about Capital City.
Let alone the children, even the adults longed for Capital City.
Who wouldn’t yearn for a place they’d never visited?
Not until a shout came from upstairs, "Qingqing, Tingting, Liangliang, Da Bao, Xiao Bao, come back for lunch."
"We have to go home for lunch, we’ll play again in the afternoon."
No matter how reluctant they were, Uncle Yun was urging them, as were their grandparents and parents to come home for lunch.
As the eldest among the five children, Qingqing quickly called her siblings upstairs for lunch.
Chef Zhao was at the state-run restaurant, which was at its busiest at this time.
Yun Er and her family at the department store were still busy; even on New Year’s Day, they rotated shifts to take holidays.
"Little sister, brother-in-law, Da Bao, Xiao Bao, you must try this."
Second Brother Yun’s cooking was quite good, after all, his master was his father-in-law, family, sparing no secrets.
"Second Brother, your cooking skills are even better than some of the old masters in Capital City."
This compliment brought contentment to Second Brother Yun’s heart.
After all, Capital City was the capital, where many capable people lived.
There were even more chefs in the state-run restaurants.
There might even be descendants of the imperial cooks.
"Then you must eat more."
Every chef hopes their dishes will be popular.
After eating their fill, Second Brother Yun was not idle; he went back to the kitchen to busily fry meatballs, crispy pork, twisted dough sticks, and more.
Yun Xiaoxiao took a look; she wasn’t handy, but she had tasted plenty of delicious food; by adding some seasonings, the fried food would taste better. For instance, twisted dough sticks didn’t only come in the original flavor; you could add chopped green onions or chili peppers, of course, the twisted dough sticks had to be exceptionally small.
Innovation and improvement were possible.
The little ones ate contentedly, savoring each bite.
Finally, after finishing the frying, Second Brother Yun quickly freshened up, told his mother-in-law, and then took the three little ones with some New Year’s goods, joining Yun Xiaoxiao and her family to the Yun Family home.
On New Year’s Eve, the festive atmosphere was strong; one could say that every household was wafting fragrant smells.
You could buy meat without meat tickets.
During the New Year, even the most frugal would buy a few pounds of meat to ensure their family had a good celebration.