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"Master, happy 28th birthday!" As soon as Yezhi opened her eyes, Xiao Fang's cheerful and soft voice rang in her ears. Happy? She would feel happier if she didn't have to think about her age.
In fact, after turning 25, the joy of birthdays decreased year by year, while her wallet suffered more each time. Today, there was no time for a birthday celebration at home; there was a big event in the village—Uncle Zhou's family was getting married.
Yezhi had attended many weddings and had given out plenty of red envelopes. She remembered that two years ago, many friends and classmates got married during the May Day and National Day holidays, making those two months feel like wasted time for her. Last night, when she asked Aunt Zhou how much to give as a gift, Aunt Zhou replied that it was usually two yuan, while the village chief and wealthier families would give three. Yezhi felt like crying; if everyone got married in the 1980s, it would be so economical, and they could even go on a honeymoon to reminisce about the past.
"Bark bark! Bark!" Niu Niu's shiny black curls had been colored with chalk by Wolf Child. This happened because Niu Niu had fought with Big Wolf, shocking him and turning his once-glossy fur into a charred mess. In this cold weather, without a hairdryer available, Yezhi really didn't dare to give him a bath. Pressing the Pet Communicator revealed that Niu Niu was actually wishing her a happy birthday. Touched, Yezhi decided to have Xiao Fang buy a hairdryer to restore Niu Niu's original appearance.
"Daughter, hurry up and eat these eggs and dumplings!" Aunt Zhou entered with a bowl of steaming white dumplings and Yezhi's favorite sweet eggs. Yezhi smiled as she took them. "Daughter, eating dumplings and eggs on your birthday will ensure you have no illnesses or disasters and that everything goes smoothly every day!" Aunt Zhou's beautiful wishes were etched in Yezhi's heart. Little Fan climbed onto the bed and kissed her cheek. "Sister Yezi, happy birthday!" Wolf Child shyly gave her a quick peck on the left cheek, while Black Treasure didn’t understand what a birthday was but still climbed onto the bed to snuggle with Yezhi. After finishing all the dumplings and swallowing the egg, Yezhi happily patted her belly. "So full, thank you, Aunt!"
"Silly girl, why are you thanking me?" Aunt Zhou lightly tapped her forehead.
Yezhi arrived early at Uncle Zhou's house with her family. As soon as she entered the yard, she was warmly greeted by Cart Master. Yezhi found it strange; wasn't it Uncle Zhou's family getting married? Why did Cart Master seem busier than the host? "Aunt, did I remember wrong? Isn't it Uncle Zhou's family getting married? Is it Cart Master's family instead?" It wasn't surprising that Yezhi looked confused; she had no idea that rural weddings required several days of preparation. There needed to be someone in charge—commonly known as the "head busybody," similar to an emcee who coordinated various tasks for the wedding banquet such as borrowing tables and chairs, pots and pans, assigning people for different duties like lighting fires or serving food.
In Zhoujiatun village with few residents, there was only one head busybody—Cart Master.
Wolf Child, Little Fan, Black Treasure, along with Niu Niu hiding shyly in Black Treasure’s neck pouch, followed Zhou Xiaomu and One Egg to find some fun while Yezhi and Aunt Zhou were led into the east courtyard. In the corner of the yard stood a wooden table with a small red paper-covered book on it alongside a brush and ink.
Sitting at the table were the respected Grandpa Zhou and Big Zhu. Grandpa Zhou was the eldest at seventy-eight years old; his hearing was sharp and his eyesight clear. Thanks to Yezhi’s ginseng treatment, he was quite healthy. He held a cloth bag in his arms that clearly contained money for gifts while Big Zhu was responsible for keeping track of accounts—one collected money while the other wrote down records for double assurance.
"Yezhi, I heard from Da Zhu that today is your birthday; take this to play!" Grandpa Zhou said kindly as he pulled out a silver dollar from his pocket.
"Grandpa Zhou, I'm not a little kid anymore; I don't want it!" Yezhi wasn’t sure how much that small silver coin was worth in 2012 but knew it couldn’t be less than several hundred yuan.
Grandpa Zhou huffed in mock anger, "In front of grandpa, you're still a little kid! Just take it!" Aunt Zhou helped her accept it. "Take it; he likes you so he gave it to you!" Thinking of Grandpa's kind intentions, Yezhi stopped refusing.
Yezhi presented the red envelope filled with money with both hands. Grandpa Zhou casually opened it and exclaimed, "Yezhi's family, Five Yuan!" After reading it, he smiled at Yezhi. What? That's too little! It can't be, Aunt Zhou said she would give two or three yuan. Yezhi thought that combining Aunt Zhou's contribution with her own five yuan seemed just right—not too much and not too little. Looking at Big Zhu's red ledger, she felt disheartened; Uncle Che's family only gave three yuan, and Aunt Ren Er's family two. Her five yuan stood out like a crane among chickens.
As more people arrived, Yezhi was quite amazed to see someone even asking for change. She and Aunt Zhou wandered into the kitchen and saw a group of little gluttons staring at the fried meatballs and drooling over the cold dishes.
It was only today that Yezhi learned there were skilled cooks in the village. Uncle Zhou Quan truly impressed her; the way he fried those doughy treats made her mouth water, and she couldn't wait for the feast to begin.
Finally, the wedding party returned. Firecrackers were set off in front of Uncle Zhou's house, crackling loudly, with light blue smoke dancing alongside red paper scraps.
Once the firecrackers stopped, villagers surged toward the entrance—Aunt Ren Er, Aunt Zhou... along with some curious kids holding grains and colorful confetti, ready to shower the groom and bride. Wolf Child watched the amusing scene with sparkling eyes while Zhou Xiaomu and Xiao Fan held hands and squeezed into the crowd, enjoying themselves.
Zhou Xiaowu looked quite dapper today as he carried the shy bride, slowly moving toward the house amidst the villagers' warm welcome. The groom and bride were bombarded by eager kids throwing grains and confetti at them. Yezhi found it hilarious and burst into laughter. As they stepped over a fire basin, Zhou Xiaowu gently placed his new wife onto the bright red kang.
The bride's family was invited inside, but Yezhi found it too crowded and decided to step outside. She could hear Aunt Ren Er singing a joyful song: "Scatter dates, welcome a son; scatter chestnuts, welcome a daughter; a handful of chestnuts, a handful of dates, let the little ones follow the big ones..."
After all necessary rituals were completed, Cart Master called for everyone to take their seats. Yezhi held Xiao Fan while Wolf Child excitedly shared stories about human customs as they sat down for the meal.
At this point, there were already eight cold dishes on the table, indicating that Uncle Zhou had really put in effort; there were many dishes Yezhi had never tried before. One dish was braised with a golden color and rich aroma; it was chewy when eaten. She picked up a piece with her chopsticks—tender meat strips that were pink and transparent rice grains—delicious and visually appealing. However, Wolf Child preferred the fried meatballs that were crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, infused with a subtle bean flavor. Yezhi didn't want to spoil Wolf Child's fun but reminded herself that she needed to stick to her diet starting tomorrow; she couldn't afford to mess things up today. So she served a bowl of radishes and cabbage in front of Wolf Child, signaling that this was all she could eat. Having spent enough time with Yezhi, Wolf Child knew resistance was futile; she puffed her cheeks in reluctance as she chewed on radishes. Everyone at the table was familiar with one another, so no one held back; they quickly devoured all the dishes.
After spending an entire day eating and drinking, Yezhi playfully insisted that Zhou Xiaowu drink two shots of liquor. She herself ended up with rosy cheeks, completely forgetting her earlier promise of "no more drinking."
Zhou San envied Zhou Xiaowu for marrying today; in fact, all the single men in the village were urging him to drink more. Someone even lamented sourly, "When will I ever hold my own wife?" A tipsy Yezhi pounded her chest confidently and declared, "Next year! There will be plenty of girls willing to marry into our village; I guarantee you hungry wolves will find beautiful brides!" The single men became excited and replied eagerly, "Really? Yezhi, you better keep your word!"
"Of course! When have I ever gone back on my word?" The single men realized that Yezhi had never made empty promises before, so they fawned over her like stars around the moon.
"Isn't Yezhi drinking too much?" Village Uncle asked Da Zhu. Big Zhu nodded and called Mei Zi to help support Yezhi as he said, "Yezhi, it's time to go home!"
Yezi chuckled, "Not going back, I haven't had my wedding night yet!" Meizi's face turned red; was this something a young lady should be involved in?
Having fun during the wedding night was something Yezi didn't want to miss, so she insisted on staying. Big Zhu and Meizi felt they couldn't let Leaf Sister embarrass herself and forcibly dragged her home.
Yezi truly didn't think she was drunk. As she was pulled home against her will, she complained to Big Wolf about having nothing to do, and before long, she fell asleep on the kang in a daze.
...
"Master, the Cosmic Express has arrived! Master..." Xiao Fang's voice rang out like a death knell. Yezi had a bit of a headache; she rubbed her temples and ran to the backyard to collect the package. She expected something gruesome but found only a transparent bottle inside the Express Box, filled with red, active cells.
"Xiao Fang, is this the spleen?" It was too expensive; hospitals really were money traps.
Yezi woke up the groggy Wolf Child. With bedhead and impatience in his round eyes, he said, "Drink it!" Without hesitation, Wolf Child gulped it down and then turned over to sleep again. Yezi thought she would have to persuade him, but he cooperated unexpectedly.
"Master, Wolf Child has to eat vegetarian for the next two days!" Xiao Fang reminded her. Bidefo said these two days were crucial; if there was no rejection, everything would be fine.
Worried that Wolf Child might sneak some meat, Yezi resigned herself to making various delicious sweet soups and desserts. She also warned Xiao Fang and Aunt Zhou that Big Wolf wasn't allowed to share food with Wolf Child. Finally, they got through those two worrying days.
With the Spring Festival approaching, essential foods like cured meat and sausages still needed to be smoked. Yezi anxiously searched the mountains for cypress branches. Xiao Fang, being an alien, didn't know what cypress looked like. Relying on her memory, Yezi thought it resembled pine trees quite a bit. Without further ado, she took Black Treasure and Niu Niu to chop a basket of Red Pine branches to bring home. Of course, Niu Niu also managed to catch two mountain chickens and two gray rabbits along the way.
Having eaten through all the fatty pigs in Zhoujiatun, Yezi bought a lot of pork from various families. Fresh meat was frozen in the snow while cured meat hung under the eaves, almost ready. There were only about ten sausages; it couldn't be helped as pig intestines were in short supply—she had even had to ask for them with some embarrassment. She also put considerable effort into sourcing Sichuan pepper for the sausages; at that time, Sichuan pepper hadn't flourished across Shenzhou yet. Unable to find any locally, she resorted to online shopping—a small packet of Sichuan pepper cost her 500,000 tons. The difference made even the frugal Xiao Fang jump up in shock; it wasn't surprising considering Xiao Fang had just paid off its mortgage and settled bills for oil extraction equipment—leaving only 2 million tons in its pocket. Recently, business for Earth's Rarity had plummeted without delicious exotic fruits; sales of pencils had only yielded one sale. Yezi's recorded songs received no response either, leaving Xiao Fang nearly distraught while its master continued to indulge in food.
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