Siheyuan: Happy Life of Jia Zhang Family

Zhang Dabao and others returned home, and as soon as they entered the house, they were hit by the fragrant smell. "Shouyong, get some more potatoes from the kitchen, cut them and put them in," Zhang Dabao said to his nephew after looking at the pheasant in the pot.

"Second sister, you can live in the east room. Light up the stove first. If the kang is not heated well, it will be unbearable to live in it. No one has lived here for a long time, so it's a little damp." Zhang Dabao and Zhang Lianhua went to the east room to put her things away and lit the stove.

He took another pot from the kitchen and cooked meat and cabbage stew.

"Shouyong, would you like to have a drink with Shouqian today?" Zhang Dabao asked his nephew.

After Zhang Dabao returned to his room, he took down the pot of chicken and potatoes, scooped out the food and put it into several bowls, heated up some steamed buns made from two grains of flour, and took out two bottles of wine from the kitchen.

"I've never drunk alcohol," Zhang Shouyong answered while looking at his father Zhang Daliu.

"Third brother, the children are not young anymore. One is seventeen and the other fifteen. In two years, they will have to get married. They can drink now." Zhang Dabao understood what his nephew meant and wanted to drink, but was afraid that his father would not let him.

"Let's have a drink," Zhang Daliu said to his son, then turned to his younger brother and asked, "Da Biao, what kind of wine is this? I've never seen it before."

"Third brother, this is Kweichow Moutai, the representative of sauce-flavored liquor and one of the top ten famous liquors in the country. I brought it from Yunnan," Zhang Dabao said to Zhang Daliu, pointing at the bottle.

"Is it expensive?" Zhang Daliu asked.

"Five dollars and sixty cents a bottle, and you need a ticket," said Zhang Dabao.

"It's too expensive. It's a waste for us to drink it. Let's have a guest come and drink first." Zhang Daliu pushed the wine back when he heard it was so expensive.

"Third brother, good things are for our family to drink," Zhang Dabao opened it.

"Second sister, eat first," Zhang Dabao called out to Zhang Lianhua and poured wine for his three brothers and two nephews. He served a bowl of food to his niece Jia Jingshu. Zhang Lianhua also came in and sat down to eat without any formalities.

"Have a big bowl for each of you. I've also made stewed cabbage with meat in your second sister's room. After you finish eating, have another bowl for each of you." Seeing that his three brothers were embarrassed to eat the food, Zhang Dabao hurriedly persuaded them.

"Da Biao, you can't eat good things like this. Even landlords in the past didn't dare to cook two meat dishes." Upon hearing this, Zhang Daliu hurriedly persuaded his brother.

"Third brother, just this time. Aren't we going to pick up our second sister today? I don't eat like this every day. Have a bite." Zhang Dabao picked up the wine glass.

It seemed that Zhang Shoucheng and Zhang Shouqian had never drunk alcohol before. They drank half a cup in one gulp. "It's too spicy, not tasty at all," Zhang Shouqian stuck out his tongue repeatedly.

Zhang Dabao and others burst out laughing, "You bastard, how can you drink like that? Drinking it in small sips, it's such a waste," Zhang Daliu criticized his son.

"Don't you say drink it in one gulp and then pour another glass? I drank it all and almost couldn't swallow it," said Zhang Shouyong.

"You are really good. You listened to your father and drank it in small sips." Zhang Dasen burst out laughing.

After the food was finished, Zhang Dabao brought over another pot and served everyone a bowl of food. Zhang Shouyong and Zhang Shouqian did not eat the second bowl of food because halfway through their meal, they started to get drunk. The two poor children got drunk on their first try of drinking and were put on Zhang Dabao's bed. After everyone finished their meal, Zhang Daliu and the other two sent the two boys home.

"Dad, what happened to the child? Did you hit him?" Zhang Daliu asked when he saw his two sons unconscious and put on the bed by their two uncles.

"Yes, they did fight. It was Da Biao who beat them up. These two bastards got drunk at Da Biao's house," said Zhang Daliu with a burp.

"You were drunk and scared me. Da Biao invited you. What good things does he have?" Zhang Daliu's wife became curious.

"What a delicious dish! A big bowl of pheasant meat stewed with potatoes for each person." Zhang Daliu paused.

"Is there pheasant meat?" Zhang Daliu's wife looked envious.

"There is also meat stewed with cabbage. There is a big piece of fat meat, one inch long. Each person has a big bowl of it. It's full of oil when you take a bite. But I didn't get to eat the fat meat. I got drunk as soon as it was served. The wine is five dollars and sixty dollars a bottle, and a glass is more than one dollar. It's a waste of these two bad things," said Zhang Daliu with a look of regret.

"Really? Da Biao is so generous. His family should have some vegetables. Can I go to Lao Qi's house and bring a bowl over?" Zhang Daliu's wife stood up immediately when she heard this.

"Do you have any ambition at all? You are eating and taking things at the same time? Do you have any shame?" Zhang Daliu criticized his wife.

"You're so proud to be able to eat the fat meat. Old Seven is not an outsider," Zhang Daliu's wife said in a low voice.

"Don't go. Da Biao said that he would treat our whole family to a meal before and after the New Year. Except for our eldest brother's family, all our brothers' families will attend. He found a wild boar in the mountains and he will definitely be able to kill one. Then he will treat us to meat, all meat, without any vegetables." Zhang Daliu almost drooled when he said this.

"Really?" Zhang Daliu's wife also wiped her back and mouth when she heard it.

"I'm not drunk. Dalin and Dasen have also heard it. You also know that Dabiao never talks about anything unreliable. Wait, let's go to sleep." Zhang Daliu blew out the light.

When Zhang Dabao came back from Jiajia Village today, he thought about the current society. In our country, we still have to rely on the family when something happens, especially when something happens in the village, he can't be too stiff with his brothers. He has severed his relationship with Zhang Dasong's family, so he should get along well with the brothers in his second uncle's family, go to the mountains to catch a wild boar, and use the New Year time to have a meal with his family to enhance their feelings. Then he can call Zhang Dayang and Zhang Dabai, and Zhang Zhiling and others. After all, he is the elder and a close relative, and he and his father are brothers of the same grandfather.

Thinking of this, Zhang Dabao suggested to his three brothers and two nephews that they have dinner together while drinking.

The next morning, when Zhang Dabao got up, his second sister Zhang Lianhua had already prepared breakfast. They ate the leftovers from the previous night. After breakfast, Zhang Dabao went to the west room, found the bow and arrow that his father had used, lubricated it with grease, and then went into the mountains with the bow and arrow on his back and a long knife in his hand.

The snow on the mountain has not melted yet. Zhang Dabao came to the place where the wild boar was caught and observed the wild boar's footprints on the ground. The mountain is now covered with heavy snow. In order to find food, the wild boars have to walk more distance, but the route they take is basically the same and will not change easily.

After observing the wild boars' movement route, Zhang Dabao ambushed on a nearby tree and waited for nearly an hour. The wild boars finally came and arrived under the tree. Zhang Dabao quickly shot the five arrows in his hand at two wild boars. The other wild boars fled in all directions, and the two wild boars that were hit by arrows fell down after running for a while.

Zhang Dabao put one of the wild boars into the space, then cut a few branches to make a sled, and put the wild boars outside on it. Zhang Dabao used a branch with a hook to pull it in front. When he arrived at the village entrance, Zhang Dabao saw Zhang Lanfang, the eldest daughter of his sixth brother Zhang Dasen, "Lanfang, go call your father to help me carry the pigs back."

"Uncle Seventh, did you kill this?" ten-year-old Zhang Lanfang asked happily, because Zhang Dasen had told them yesterday that Uncle Seventh was going to go up the mountain to catch a wild boar, and if he caught one, he would treat their whole family to a meal of meat.

"It wasn't me who hit him, was it you? Go quickly, after I kill the pig, I'll give you the pig piss to play with," said Zhang Dabao.

"Seventh Uncle, we agreed that you can't give it to anyone else." Zhang Lanfang ran away happily.

Ten minutes later, Zhang Dasen and Zhang Dalin rushed over and said, "Dabao, you are amazing. You said yesterday that we would catch it in the mountains today. Shall we go to your house to kill it?" Zhang Dalin was also very happy.

"Okay, Lanxiang, make another trip and ask your aunt to boil water in a big pot," Zhang Dabao instructed his niece again.