Baozi Xishi's Struggle

Chapter 424 It’s snowing today, let’s eat hotpot

The days are short in winter. When Shen Yu fell into a deep sleep, he turned around to look at the window paper, and it had already gotten dark.

She turned over in bed, stretched, and felt relaxed all over. Her hands and feet, which had been a little cold these days, were now warm, and she felt light and energetic.

When Shen Yu got up, he saw that it was time for the market to close and the shops to shut down.

Li and the others were busy tidying up the tables and chairs. When they saw Shen Yu get up, several people gathered around him and looked him up and down.

Shen Yu was surrounded by the ladies and stared at him non-stop. He couldn't help but touch his face and smiled, "I washed my face after I got up."

Jiang lovingly tucked a strand of hair by Shen Yu's cheek behind her ear and said with a smile, "Look, Miss Yuzhi looks much more energetic after this sleep."

Li also nodded and said, "No matter how warmly you dress, you will still be frozen if you sit in the cart every day."

"Fortunately, the construction work was completed early. I estimate that with this weather, it will snow heavily in the next two days."

Then he told Shen Yu: "Don't go anywhere else these days, stay at home and take good care of yourself."

"Girls can't catch a cold. Yutao said that when she touched your hands these days, they were always cold."

Zheng Sanniang also said, "Miss, the lady is right. Girls should dress warmly and avoid getting cold, so as not to be overwhelmed by their old age."

Li said, "That's right. It's been cloudy these past two days and I always feel uncomfortable in my waist."

"It was the same in the past. Whenever my waist felt uncomfortable, it would either rain or snow."

"You and Yutao should be careful not to end up like your mother, who gets uncomfortable when it rains."

Only then did Shen Yu realize that Li's back injury had recurred. He couldn't help but feel a little anxious. He agreed to the instructions of several people without thinking and asked Li how she felt now.

Li waved her hands and said hurriedly, "Don't worry, don't worry, I just feel a little pain, it's nothing serious."

"It's been like this in previous years. It's easy to get sick in winter."

"I made a thick cotton-padded jacket this year, and I always stay by the fire, so it only hurts a little bit, it's okay."

As Li spoke, she stretched her waist, swung her arms, and said with a smile, "Look, I'm fine."

Shen Yu felt relieved to see that she was moving normally, but he secretly made a note to go to the pharmacy in the next two days to ask the doctor if there was any way to cure the disease.

Shen Yu felt refreshed at this time, so he went to get an apron and put it on, and then worked with everyone.

Li originally wanted to persuade her to take a rest, but Shen Yu insisted.

Seeing that her face was flushed and her hands were warm, Li had no choice but to give up and let her do her work.

With Shen Yu's joining, things were done much faster than usual.

In the evening, after everyone had prepared dinner, they sat down and chatted while waiting for the soup and vegetables to cook.

Shen Yu told everyone that the inn could be completed before Laba Festival and that the road to the market would be built. Everyone was very happy to hear that.

The topic of dinner was all about how to renovate the inn after it was built, what kind of beds to buy, and what kind of bedding to make.

There are so many things to do, and you need to be prepared for everything.

Because of these things, the meal took a long time to finish. Even Yucheng and Dundun listened with great interest and were unwilling to go back to study or write.

The next morning, before Shen Yu opened her eyes, she heard someone knocking on the door. She heard Yu Cheng shouting excitedly at the door: "Big sister, second sister, get up quickly, it's snowing, it's snowing."

Shen Yu and Yutao rolled over, put on their clothes and opened the door to look.

Sure enough, sporadic snowflakes began to fall from the still dark sky.

The ground temperature was still warm, so the snow melted as soon as it fell to the ground, leaving damp marks on the ground.

When Shen Yu saw the snow, he thought of what Lu Lang said yesterday, that if it snowed, he would invite classmates to hold a poetry reading. He thought, "I wonder if the snow will be heavy."

"If it continues like this, there will be no poetry or scenery, only cold wind and muddy water."

The snow in early winter really didn't have much power. It only snowed sporadically for half an hour, then gradually stopped, and then the north wind slowly started to blow.

Li and the others all said, "When the north wind blows, it's going to be really cold."

Shen Yu looked at the sky and thought that this snow would just be like this and would not get heavy, so he stopped taking it to heart and started busying himself with the things in the restaurant.

She also planned to wait until the evening when the craftsmen at the inn finished their work and then go and take a look secretly to see if the inn was built as she had imagined.

The power of the north wind was enormous. The sky was gloomy throughout the day, and the cold wind made the temperature much colder.

Because of the snow and wind, there were no pedestrians on the roads. Those who had to go out held their hats and clothes tightly, and finished their work in the wind and went home as quickly as possible.

By the afternoon, there was almost no one on the street. People in the shops were huddled around a charcoal brazier to keep warm, with some cut chestnuts thrown into it, waiting for them to be roasted and pop.

Everyone said that when the north wind blew, everyone went home and there would be no guests coming in today.

Shen Yu discussed with everyone and decided to have hotpot in the evening and invite Madam Cui and Xiaobao to join them.

In such cold weather, the most comfortable thing is to make a spicy soup base and eat hotpot.

After hearing this, Yu Tao took Shen Yu's arm and begged softly, "Sister, can you please not make it so spicy?"

"It's so spicy and tastes delicious, but after a few bites my mouth starts to hurt. I can't stand it."

Li smiled and said, "You two sisters have very different tastes. Yuzhi likes spicy food, but Yutao can't stand even a little bit of spiciness. On the other hand, Yucheng and Dundun enjoy eating everything."

Shen Yu teased Yu Tao, "Okay, then you have to help me. I'll give you a little bit before the dogwood oil is added."

As he spoke, he pinched his fingertips with his thumb and little finger and gestured.

"If I were to make it alone, I would make it extra spicy so that it would be more satisfying to eat."

When Yutao heard this, she stood up and rolled up her sleeves and said, "Of course, dear sister, please give me more."

Shen Yu smiled and pulled her to sit down: "I'm just teasing you. Since you can't eat spicy food, I'll naturally make a special soup base for you."

"I'll use the largest casserole to make one portion for you. Is that enough?"

Seeing Yutao nodding, Shen Yu continued, "It would be nice to have a double pot. One pot is enough. Two pots would be too crowded on the table."

Everyone asked curiously: "What is a yucca pot? It's an interesting name."

Shen Yu smiled and said, "It's the kind of pot that has a partition in it so the soup bases on both sides won't mix together."

"Half of the soup is white and not spicy, and half of the soup is red and spicy."

"It looks like a Tai Chi diagram, one red and one white, or a pair of mandarin ducks, so it's called a mandarin duck pot."