In Chen Xuan's opinion, although Wei Nian was a little conceited, he was a very good person. Later, when she took them to the woolen shop, Wei Nian paid for everything. Chen Xuan was a decent person. She felt that it had already cost Wei Nian a lot to knit a woolen sweater for her. Besides, she would have to pay Wei Nian back in the future, so she refused to choose more. Wei Yin and Li had also made plans early on. They told the shopkeeper the size of the clothes they wanted to knit and asked about the amount of wool used. They bought as much as they needed. Wei Jin was different. It was not that she didn't care about her own money. She was really generous when it came to buying. Wei Yin advised her, "Whether it's wool or fabric, if you can't use it this year, it won't be fresh next year. Sister, can you finish knitting all these?"
Wei Jin said, "Of course we can finish knitting. Think about it, I, your eldest brother-in-law, and your two nephews, each with two sets for autumn and winter, so there is no way we can't use them all up."
Even a kind-hearted person like Chen Xuan couldn't help but complain in her heart. Now that the Double Ninth Festival has passed, autumn is over and only winter is left. But Wei Jin is just like that. Wei Nian looked at the large pile of things that Wei Jin had picked, thinking about the children and the fact that they were outside, so he just glanced at them and said nothing.
Chen Xuan was mainly worried about how to carry all the yarn back home. However, in Wei Nian's eyes, this was not a big deal at all, and he just asked the clerk to deliver it home in the evening.
The Wei family was a big customer, so Wei Yin asked the store to give away three knitting books and four knitting bamboo needles for free. Chen Xuan was really enlightened. It turned out that there were books to teach knitting sweaters. Chen Xuan stroked the book and carefully wrapped it up for Wei Yin, thinking that Wei Yin was the most skillful in the family, so if she showed him, he would definitely learn it.
As it was almost noon, Chen Xuan said, "Let's go home now. Even though it's a little late, it won't delay our dinner."
Wei Jin sneered, "You finally get out, why do you want to go home to eat? Ask Ah Nian to treat us! Let's go to Bian Yi Fang. The roast duck there is the most delicious in Beijing!"
Wei Nian looked at Wei Jin and said, "I'm not treating you, I'm treating my nephews."
"Okay, okay, I'll take advantage of your nephew." Wei Jin smiled happily, feeling that his brothers from his natal family were giving him face.
Wei Nian called a few rickshaws, and everyone took the rickshaws to the Bian Yi Fang in Xianyukou. Chen Xuan was really amazed, especially the ready-made fat ducks, which were slaughtered cleanly and hung in front of the hall one by one, and the guests picked and roasted them. Wei Nian picked two fat ducks, and Wei Jin was not very satisfied, "With so many people, how can two be enough? I have to eat one by myself. Your nephews are also old enough to eat."
"Sister, let's order some other dishes." Wei Nian has always been generous and he is not afraid of spending money, but when he goes to a restaurant, he can't just eat roast duck.
Wei Jin and Wei Nian have very different personalities. Wei Jin said to Wei Nian, "Are you stupid? It's so hard to come to the restaurant, why do you order other dishes but roast duck? Roast duck is the best. If you want to order other vegetables and tofu, order them for your wife. I don't eat that." He picked two more fat ducks and asked the waiter to add them to the order, making a total of four ducks.
Okay, why order something else? I can't eat the duck.
Wei Nian felt embarrassed to bring his elder sister out for dinner. Wei Jin ignored Wei Nian's expression and told the waiter, "You don't have to make soup for the duck bones. Wrap them up for us to take away."
Wei Nian had no choice but to say to the waiter, "Steam a few bowls of egg custard with duck oil. Also, one each of mustard dumplings, cucumber strips, red and white kidney beans, and tofu shreds. Also, a bowl of vegetarian vegetable soup." Roast duck couldn't be eaten alone either, as it was too greasy.
The guy responded promptly.
This was the first time Chen Xuan had seen this roast duck being eaten. When the roast duck was roasted to a golden color, it was so fragrant. Then, the waiter sliced the duck on the spot. The slices were very thin. First, there was a plate with skin. Every time you looked at this plate, you could see skin, oil, and meat. The next plate was all lean meat. The lean meat was also very fragrant. It was wrapped with lotus leaf pancakes and scallion sauce. The taste in her mouth made Chen Xuan sure that it was the first time in her two lives that she had eaten something so delicious.
Chen Xuan felt that it was no wonder that Wei Jin had directly requested to eat the roast duck at this restaurant. It was indeed very delicious. It turned out that in addition to stewing duck, duck can also be roasted like this. It was really fragrant and delicious. Chen Xuan was lucky enough to try the egg custard steamed with duck fat. Then, this bowl of egg custard became the most delicious egg custard in Chen Xuan's memory. There were also a few side dishes and vegetarian soups, which tasted very good. But when it came time to pay the bill, Chen Xuan felt very distressed. Although she didn't spend money, she spent so much money on this meal. Chen Xuan has always been frugal. She thought to herself that she was poor now. If she had the opportunity and money in the future, she would also treat Wei Nian to a good meal. It's not possible to let Wei Nian spend money just because he is rich.
So, everyone had a meal of roast duck and took back four duck racks.
Wei Nian wanted to save face when he was outside, so he didn't mention these four duck racks. But the two children, Zhao Feng and Zhao Yu, were very discerning. They took the packed duck racks from the waiter, and Wei Jin burped and said, "Just ask your second aunt to mention it."
Wei Nian was really fed up, so he first praised his nephews for their good eyesight and said to Wei Jin, "I won't bring you out next time."
Wei Jin smiled and said, "Okay, that's just a joke, let the kids bring it up. These things are just small matters, you younger generations can handle them, you need to have such foresight." The latter words were said to his two sons.
Zhao Feng and Zhao Yu agreed obediently. Wei Nian thought to himself that he was only doing this for the sake of his nephews!
After returning home, Wei Jin still instructed how to cook the duck rack, "Chop two cabbages and cook them in the evening. It's delicious."
Wei Nian was too lazy to pay attention to Wei Jin and went back to his room to drink tea. He didn't plan to go to the shop in the afternoon, so he asked Chen Xuan to make a cup of strong tea. After drinking two cups, he went out. Before leaving, he said to Wei Jin, "Don't stew duck bones with cabbage. The soup is watery and tastes bad."
"So how do we do that?"
Wei Nian said to Chen Xuan, "You can roll noodles and eat noodles with gravy tonight. Use the duck bones to make the soup, and don't add anything else. Use the ground duck you bought from Zhangjiakou to make the gravy. When the gravy is ready, pour a spoonful of fried pepper oil over it."
Chen Xuan heard that this method was not troublesome and nodded, "Okay. I understand."
Wei Nian went out with satisfaction.
When cooking in the evening, Chen Xuan did as Wei Nian said, and the food tasted very good.
Even Old Master Wei ate half an extra bowl of noodles. If there was anyone who was still dissatisfied, it was Wei Jin. Wei Jin handed the empty bowl to Chen Xuan, who hurried to pick up another bowl of boiled noodles for Wei Jin. Wei Jin added two spoonfuls of broth himself, "I said I was going to use duck bones to stew the cabbage, but why did it end up being a broth."
Chen Xuan said honestly, "Brother Anian wants to eat noodles with gravy."
Wei Jin mixed the braised noodles in two moves and glanced at Chen Xuan, "Brother Nian, Brother Nian, you just listen to him."
Wei Nian put his chopsticks on the bowl, stood up after finishing his meal, and said to Wei Jin, "Just shut up. It's your second bowl, and you're not full yet? I advise you to eat less. You look so fat."
Wei Jin was angry, "I'm just fat, what's wrong?!"
"It's okay, it's okay, just get fat. Just get fat, big sister, two bowls are not enough for you, there are still plenty of noodles in the pot, three or four bowls are also available." Wei Nian raised the corner of his lips and ridiculed Wei Jin, "Luckily you got married early, otherwise, if you were to go on a blind date with your brother-in-law like this today, he would be scared of you."
Wei Jin laughed angrily, "Go away, you never say anything nice to make people happy."
Indeed, although it was not boiled cabbage, Wei Jin ate a lot of it. He ate two and a half bowls of noodles with gravy. That night, he even skipped his favorite mutton pie. You can see how full he was for dinner. Chen Xuan knew that Wei Jin was just mean and liked to pick fights.
Wei Jin not only likes to provoke people, but if she thinks you are easy to bully, she will bully you.
After breakfast the next day, Wei Jin sat on the old lady's kang, propped up his legs and wound a ball of wool.
Well, the store delivered the wool yesterday evening, and everyone was winding the wool balls this morning, except Chen Xuan, who was making a cotton-padded jacket for Wei Nian. She just couldn't believe it. Beijing was so cold in winter, and a woolen sweater was enough to survive the winter? Chen Xuan planned to make Wei Nian's cotton-padded jacket and then knit her own woolen sweater.
Wei Yin was a very clever and skillful girl. She read a book and learned to knit in the afternoon. Wei Jin and Li Shi both learned from Wei Yin. They both learned very fast and learned it in an afternoon. While Wei Jin was knitting a sweater, she saw Chen Xuan was the only one making cotton-padded clothes. She said to Chen Xuan, "I have a few cotton-padded clothes and cotton-padded shoes. I need to knit this sweater now. Can you help me, my second brother and sister-in-law?"
Chen Xuan hated Wei Jin the most. She would always find fault with her for no reason. Chen Xuan shook her head and said, "No way."
"Nothing?" Wei Jin raised his two curved thin eyebrows, and his wide eyes showed some fierceness.
Chen Xuan said honestly, "Sister, the cotton-padded clothes and cotton-padded shoes you mentioned are all sewing for my brother-in-law, right? I don't do it. It's my duty to sew for Brother Anian. It's my filial piety as a younger generation to sew for my father-in-law. I don't sew for my brother-in-law."
Wei Jin was so choked up by Chen Xuan that Old Lady Wei naturally sided with her eldest daughter and said to Chen Xuan, "Come on, we don't have so many reasons."
"Isn't it?! Aren't all the clothes, shoes and socks on the closet made by you?" Wei Jin was not easy to deal with either.
Chen Xuan said, "That's to save money for the family." No matter what Wei Jin said, Chen Xuan refused to help Wei Jin with sewing, which made Wei Jin very angry. When Wei Jin wanted to assign the sewing for his two sons to Chen Xuan, Chen Xuan said, "I still have a lot of sewing from Brother Anian." This really made Wei Jin very angry.
Seeing that Old Mrs. Wei was not very happy either, Chen Xuan tactfully went back to her room to do needlework.
Wei Yin was worried that Chen Xuan was upset, so he went to comfort her, "Don't pay attention to your elder sister. She sews all day long. She went back to her husband's house in mid-July and made winter clothes and shoes for her brother-in-law and nephews. Now she's making clothes for next year. I don't know what she's doing with all these clothes. Good clothes won't be fresh after a year. And cotton-padded clothes, this year's cotton-padded clothes will not be as warm as freshly made ones next year. Your elder sister is like this. She wishes she could have made all the needlework for the next twenty years in advance."
Chen Xuan smiled, "Sister Yin, I'm fine." Seeing that Wei Yin had knitted a half-foot long scarf in half a day, she put down the needle and thread in her hand, touched the soft scarf knitted with wool thread, and couldn't help but praise Wei Yin for her ability and dexterity.
Wei Yin worked non-stop, moving the two bamboo needles deftly back and forth, saying to Chen Xuan, "This scarf is made with a flat stitch, which is very simple. I'll practice first, and when I'm familiar with it, there are many more patterns in the book that can be knitted. Second sister-in-law, have you decided what kind of scarf you want to knit?"
"Not yet. I'll finish making this cotton-padded jacket before I start knitting the woolen sweater."
Wei Yin said, "There are many styles in the book. When the time comes, you can choose a style first, and then I will teach you how to knit."
"Okay." Chen Xuan whispered to Wei Yin, "Sister Yin, I'm not that busy. If you need needlework, just tell me. I just don't want to help my elder sister-in-law. She always bullies me."
Wei Yin wanted to laugh, thinking that her second sister-in-law was really true, and her eldest sister deserved it. Wei Yin was in the mood of knitting wool, and discussed with Chen Xuan, "I also want to make a winter coat, second sister-in-law, your woolen sweater, when the time comes, you can choose the style, and I will help you knit it, and you can help me make this coat, how about it?"
"No need, it's just a coat, right? I can make it quickly, why would I need you to help me knit a sweater?"
"It's okay. I tell you, knitting a woolen sweater also has to start from the simplest to the most difficult. Look at me, I'm knitting a small piece first, just to practice, and when I'm familiar with it, I can knit a big piece. You can knit a scarf for your second brother. I promised your second brother that you knit this for me and I'll help you knit a woolen sweater."
"A scarf is only a small thing, but a woolen sweater is much harder to knit. You still have to knit for yourself, I'm afraid you won't be able to handle it."
"Come here if you are busy. My coat was made for me by my second sister-in-law."
Chen Xuan said, "Okay, if you are too busy, just tell me."
"Don't worry, I know." Wei Yin always felt that Chen Xuan was both kind and enterprising, and she liked dealing with Chen Xuan very much.
Wei Jin was not willing to give up after hitting a snag with Chen Xuan. When Wei Nian returned home at night, he heard Wei Jin tell him many things about Chen Xuan. When Wei Nian returned to his room, he asked Chen Xuan, "How did you offend the elder sister? She kept nagging me."
Chen Xuan told Wei Nian everything. Wei Nian was very happy and said to Chen Xuan, "You are quite good at talking."
Chen Xuan said, "My elder sister-in-law treats me badly, so I won't do it for her."
Wei Nian didn't care about women's affairs, and waved his hand, "If you don't want to do it, then don't do it. I haven't offended you. Why do I have no water to drink when I come back?"
Chen Xuan hurried to pour some water for Wei Nian and said with a smile, "I was worried that you, An Nian, would be biased towards my elder sister-in-law and would be unhappy."
"My eldest sister is just like that. I don't even bother to say anything to her. It's better for you to be like this, so that she won't think you're easy to bully. She's always pushing things to the limit. She looks smart, but she's actually stupid." Wei Nian shook his head. "In my opinion, it's good to have the time to learn to read and learn some foreign languages like you. But she's not like that. She just concentrates on sewing for her husband's family. I think the sewing she makes can't be used up in 20 years. What's the point of doing that?"
Chen Xuan understood Wei Jin's needlework, "You can put it aside and thread it slowly."
"Don't you see the world nowadays? It changes every day, and everything is new. As for the old-fashioned shoes and clothes she made, only my brother-in-law and nephews have no choice but to wear them. If you meet someone who is a little bit particular, who will wear these?"
Hearing Wei Nian talking about old-style clothes and old-style shoes with disdain, Chen Xuan felt a little uncomfortable and couldn't help but say, "That's true. Not only are old-style clothes and old-style shoes no longer fashionable, but even old-style people make people feel that they are not progressive and are quite backward, right?"
Wei Nian has always been smart, so how could he not see that Chen Xuan was upset? However, he did not comfort her, but said, "Premier Sun of the Kuomintang once said something. Although I don't know much about these revolutionary parties, his words are very reasonable. It says that the world trend is mighty and powerful. Those who follow it will prosper, and those who go against it will perish."
"People like us are neither high-ranking government officials nor cultural celebrities, so I don't know what the world trends are. But I think things are indeed different now than they were before. We must at least keep up with the outside world so as not to be left behind and live a comfortable life."
After Wei Nian taught Chen Xuan foreign language, he fell asleep. Chen Xuan recited the foreign language she learned today hundreds of times, and she memorized it by heart, but she still couldn't fall asleep. She thought about Wei Nian's words, and she couldn't understand them for a while, but she felt that these words were very important.
The world trend is powerful and those who follow it will prosper, and those who go against it will perish.
As she was thinking, Chen Xuan didn't know when she fell asleep. When she woke up early in the morning, she saw Wei Jin. Wei Jin snorted and turned away without paying attention to Chen Xuan. Chen Xuan didn't take it to heart. Chen Xuan's mind was full of world trends. Compared with the importance of world trends, Wei Jin's attitude towards her was really not worth mentioning.
But what is the world trend like
It's hazy, and I always feel like there's a layer of mist in front of my eyes. It's vague, I can feel it, but I can't see it clearly or understand it.
The author has something to say: ps: I thought I would update it in the evening, but I didn't expect it to be coded in advance. Good night, everyone~~~~~~~~~ I know everyone is anxious, thinking that Axuan will be independent and make progress soon, but, this is not something that can be achieved overnight, so please be patient~~~~