When he woke up in the morning, the snow had already stopped, and everything was white. The snow that was about half a foot thick pressed against the dark branches, making it look especially solemn. The surroundings were terrifyingly quiet. Suddenly, a few birds flew up and brought down a string of snow.
The temperature was also very low, and clouds of white fog could be seen in between breaths. The dumplings that were wrapped last night were already frozen hard. When Yang Ping rushed to the kitchen, the Wang family's mother-in-law and daughter-in-law had already boiled the water. When Old Lady Wang saw her enter, she called out to her daughter-in-law who was picking up dumplings at the side and said," Ping Ya is up too. Let's go!"
After saying that, he looked at Yang Ping with a smile."Don't get your hands wet. It's cold. Eat more. It's cold on the mountain!”
Yang Ping walked to the stove and squatted down to hold Old Lady Wang's hand that was burning the fire.""Why is Grandma Wang up so early again? It's cold, you should sleep more. We have breakfast! Did Aunty Jin go to shovel the snow?"
"If you don't want to go, you have to go. That's true. Your Auntie Jin's skills can't even be compared to two or three good young men!”，Old Lady Wang patted her hand, and her smile was full of fire."What's cold? It's not cold.”
Aunt Wang also laughed. As she stirred the dumplings in the pot with a spoon, she interrupted,"Mother, you're used to it!"
" Yeah, I'm just used to it. I can't sleep when it's time, haha…" Old Lady Wang lowered her head and moved the firewood in her hand to make the fire bigger."Osmanthus, you don't have to say. These kids can't make dumplings, but the firewood is good. It has corners and edges, so it's easy to burn!”
The group went out. When they reached the foot of the mountain, they also met villagers who were carrying baskets and offerings up the mountain in twos and threes. On special occasions, everyone did not say much and went their separate ways. Yang Ping's parents 'graves were on the mountainside facing the sun. After a heavy snow, even the gravel on both sides of the stone steps was particularly warm.
Yang Ping and her brother walked in front of the group. They didn't say anything along the way. When they were about to reach the cemetery, they saw a series of footprints extending into the mountains. They knew that Yang Zhong and the others who lived in the mountains had come here before dawn.
The simple and plain tombstone did not even leave a name. Only the words " First Venerable " and " First Mercy " were written on it. The siblings stood there for a long time, suppressing the sorrow in their hearts. Their fingers were cold.
Xiao Fei knew that his sister had not shed a single tear since she buried her father. She had suppressed all the pain in her heart. Even if her heart was sad and her limbs were cold, she still tried her best to take care of herself and her sister as usual after she went down the mountain and returned home. He reached out and held his sister's hand tightly until his palm felt warm. Only then did the two of them walk forward step by step.
Uncle Cheng and Mr. Feng had already set up the offerings. Jin spread out a straw mat. The two of them burned incense and kowtowed before inserting it into the incense burner. They watched as the green smoke ignited. The mountain wind swirled past, bringing with it a handful of paper ashes. It spiraled out and landed on the white snow. It was a glaring contrast between black and white.
After a long time, they were about to leave the mountain when Uncle Wang's family of four came over. The cotton boots on their feet were filled with snow water. It was obvious that they had come directly from their ancestral grave. Wang Maocai and his son also came.
Xiao Fei wanted to go over and say a few words, but Wang Maocai waved his hand at him in advance to indicate that there was no need to say anything more. He burned the paper and incense, and kowtowed a few more times before the group walked down the mountain.
Since this year's welcoming winter banquet was held together with the ceremony to celebrate the completion of the village school and the enrollment of students, it was naturally much more grand and lively than in previous years. In previous years, everyone gathered the sacrifices that had been withdrawn from the ancestral worship together and the whole village began to eat happily. Even if it was called an offering, it was just a bowl of vegetarian meatballs and a piece of frozen tofu from the west. Only a few families in the village were willing to take out the rare meat and fish.
This year, Jin asked Uncle Wang to order a pig and a lamb for the Yang family's banquet. Although Uncle Wang's family ate with the Yang family, they also bought ten chickens. Wang Maocai was the chief of the village, and there were several people in his family who took on jobs at Yang Ping's house. Naturally, he did not want to be at a disadvantage. He also sent a lamb, ten chickens, and a flatbed cart of potatoes and cabbage.
The rest of the villagers had either two fish, a piece of meat, or a basket of steamed buns. At the very least, they had a basket of potatoes. Just like that, in the middle of the afternoon yesterday, all kinds of food and vegetables had piled up into a small mountain in the backyard of the newly completed school. Wang Maocai had also arranged for people to stand guard there. The woman who had returned from worshipping the ancestors quickly got busy according to the arrangements.
Yang Ping and the rest of them stayed on the mountain for a bit longer. When they arrived at the school, it was already very lively. A path was swept out of the gate. There were also strong men clearing the snow in the front and back courtyards and the east and west courtyards. Hard-working women were cutting vegetables and chopping meat. Qing Song led a group of naughty boys to light a fire in the open space in the front yard and roast some chestnuts, sweet potatoes and other things inside. Seeing Xiao Fei come in, she happily waved him over. Xiao Fei did not refuse and went over with Wang Qi.
Yang Ping wanted to go to the back to help, but before she could roll up her sleeves, she was pushed out by Mrs. Yuan and the others. The wife of the Li Zheng, Mrs. Sun, took out two small chopsticks and gave them to her and Mrs. Jin. She said,"Your clothes are wet. Hurry up and sit here to dry them!”
As she spoke, she turned her head to look at Aunt Wang." Lian 'er's mother, you still have to work today. When it comes to stewing chicken, you're the best. You don't have to do anything today. Just stand by the side and give some pointers to your niece-in-law!"”
Aunt Wang took it with a smile." That's good. When niece-in-law has learned it, I'll eat ready-made food when we eat next year!"”
"That's right. In the future, the cooking will be done by these little wives!”
Yang Ping did not decline and sat down beside Jin Shi to warm herself by the fire while listening to their conversation.
Immediately after, a young wife came over with peeled garlic in her hand to ask about the school's enrollment. Yang Ping raised her head and said in detail,... The Yang family had paid for all the money and chairs for the teacher. The children who came to study in the village did not need to pay any more money except for their own brush, ink, paper, and inkstone. However, the villagers were still responsible for the usual sweeping and the firewood for heating in the winter...
After hearing this, the crowd cheered after a moment of incredible silence. When they heard that in addition to reading and learning calligraphy, they also taught martial arts and recruited a group of girls to teach needlework and reading in the cross-campus, they were even more overjoyed.
For a moment, the discussions here rose and fell. This person said that he wanted to send the two boys from his family over. Even if they couldn't get an official rank, they had to recognize a few words. They really weren't cut out for studying. The one who said she would send her daughter here to learn needlework and become an embroiderer in Yang Ping's shop when she was older…There were also people who asked if the children of relatives in the neighboring villages could come to study, and there were also people who were worried that those who did not have children or were unwilling to send their children would say sarcastic things behind their backs…
The notice was posted outside. The red color of the paper was particularly eye-catching in the silver. A group of people, old and young, surrounded the place and listened to the explanation over and over again. From time to time, a servant girl or boy would sneak over to the side of the woman cooking in the backyard, trying to sound out her mother.
Madam Sun stood at the door with a spatula and shouted,"Little things, you're not allowed to run here. If you want to go to school, go and pester your father first. There's meat stewed here. Do you still want to eat in the morning?!”
"I want to-"
The group of children sniffed the fragrance of meat in the snow. They poked each other and pushed each other. They laughed and ran away.
Yang Ping also found an excuse to go home first.
There was no need for bowls and plates for the Winter Feast. There were pots of " potted vegetables ". The two of them carried large wooden pots and placed them on the table that they had gathered at the last minute. In the pots, braised meat, roast chicken, roast fish, and various vegetables were placed layer by layer. Then, they used a large spoon to pour hot broth into it and sprinkled it with garlic sprouts and coriander that had just been plucked from the straw. The fragrance that assailed their noses spread in the steaming fog, causing them to swallow their saliva.
More than a dozen people formed a circle. More than 300 people from the Great King Village had opened more than 20 tables, filling the front yard of the school. There were not that many stools. The newly made tables and chairs for the students were not willing to be used. They were all cleaned and placed in the house. The people in the mountains did not pay attention to standing and eating without stools, especially children. They could eat more if they stood.
It was the first time that Old Li and Young Li had seen such a scene. They were excited and deeply felt the enthusiasm and honesty of the people in the mountains, as well as their respect for scholars and their desire to study. Just the men who rushed over to toast them were enough to make them unable to withstand it.
This one said," I'll leave my boy to you. If he doesn't study hard, you can beat him up. The ferule is too small. Tomorrow, I'll go to the mountains and chop a stick for you. The jujube wood is the strongest!”
That one said,"Third brother is right. I'll leave my kid to you to clean up as you please. We'll take care of all the work of sweeping and chopping firewood in the school!"”
……
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。