Chapter 42: Roasting Chestnuts

Zhou Yimin made a few suggestions, such as enlarging the windows. Poor lighting is bad for children’s eyesight. Of course, bigger windows would make it colder in winter, but they could figure out a solution later.

The blackboard, desks, and other teaching facilities should also be improved.

Additionally, he noticed that there was no restroom and suggested building one. At the very least, the children shouldn’t have to run into the wild to relieve themselves after every class—it was unseemly!

All these matters could be discussed with the village’s old party secretary.

The school was beneficial to the entire village. After all, which family didn’t have children? Even if they didn’t now, they eventually would.

So, everyone in the village should contribute in whatever way they could.

Zhou Yimin didn’t linger too long and returned home.

Not long after he arrived, Dachun showed up. His hair, which had always been a mess, was now slicked down like a dog had licked it. He was wearing clothes with fewer patches than usual and had a beaming smile on his face.

It was obvious something good had happened.

“Getting married?” Zhou Yimin asked.

Zhou Dachun grinned foolishly. “Not yet, but I’m planning to. So, I came to borrow your bicycle, Sixteenth Uncle. Can I?”

He had already taken grain to Xiaofang’s house and received approval. Next, both families would issue introduction letters in their respective villages, and then they would go register the marriage.

Zhou Dachun remembered that Sixteenth Uncle had a bicycle. If he could ride it to pick up his bride, it would bring honor to both Xiaofang’s family and his own.

“When?” Zhou Yimin asked.

“This afternoon!”

Whoa! That fast?

People in this era really didn’t waste time getting married. If they liked each other, they might register the marriage on the same day. Unlike in later generations, where some women insisted on dating for years, dragging things out without committing.

“It’s over there, go ahead and take it,” Zhou Yimin pointed.

“Thanks, Sixteenth Uncle! I’ll bring you wedding candy when I get back!” Zhou Dachun said excitedly.

Zhou Yimin just smiled. He didn’t really care about the candy—he wasn’t fond of sweets, nor was he lacking them.

“Wait a moment!” He suddenly called out.

Zhou Yimin went inside and quickly returned with two brand-new towels. He handed them to Zhou Dachun. “Since you call me Sixteenth Uncle, consider this my wedding gift to you.”

Dachun’s face lit up. He had been short on new towels!

In the countryside, a wedding gift set typically included a pair of new towels, an enamel washbasin, and a thermos flask. Having these items was already considered quite prestigious.

Unlike in the city, where people demanded the “Three Big Items”—a sewing machine, a wristwatch, and a bicycle—each of which was out of reach for most rural families, let alone getting all three.

His father had already bought an enamel washbasin, a thermos flask, and wedding candy from the supply and marketing cooperative. But towels had been out of stock.

Now, Sixteenth Uncle’s gift was a lifesaver, completing his rural “Three Big Items.”

Plus, borrowing a bicycle to pick up his bride made for an especially grand occasion.

“Thanks, Sixteenth Uncle! Come by later with my Great Uncle for a drink at my house.”

Even though times were tough, he still planned to set up two tables and invite the village elders, including the old party secretary, to share a drink.

Zhou Yimin nodded. “Alright, I’ll drop by later. Oh, and take this.”

He pulled out a fresh pack of Da Qianmen cigarettes, so Dachun could present a better image when fetching his bride.

Dachun was deeply moved and reached into his pocket to take out some money.

Zhou Yimin’s face darkened. “Don’t make me scold you on your wedding day.”

Zhou Dachun scratched his head sheepishly and had no choice but to accept it. Then, he went to push the bicycle away.

Soon, Zhou Yimin noticed something odd. Why wasn’t he riding it? He was pushing it the whole way.

Zhou Zhiming, who was working on a house, laughed and said, “He doesn’t know how to ride a bicycle. He’ll probably push the bride home too.”

Zhou Yimin: “…!”

He clicked his tongue.

Well, he couldn’t blame Zhou Dachun. Their village had never even owned a bicycle before, so who would’ve had the chance to learn how to ride? It was perfectly normal that he didn’t know how. At most, they had managed to handle a tricycle in the past.

—

Zhou Yimin returned inside and saw Laifu and his younger siblings watching over the well-fed and sleeping Qianqian. Feeling pleased, he decided to reward them with some delicious food.

Then, he suddenly remembered the 20 pounds of chestnuts in the kitchen.

Sugar-roasted chestnuts? He wanted some himself now.

So, Zhou Yimin carried the 20 pounds of chestnuts over and poured them into a bucket to wash.

Laifu and his siblings, who had been watching over Qianqian, quickly gathered around.

“Big Brother, what are you doing?”

Zhou Yimin smiled. “Making something delicious. You go wash some sand—get the coarse kind from the top layer, like rinsing rice. Got it?”

A few days ago, he had used some sand to sprout beans, and there was still plenty left. Fortunately, he had set aside the coarser sand at the time; the finer sand had been used up.

“Okay!” Laifu didn’t ask any more questions.

Even though he was puzzled about why making food required sand, he followed orders.

“Big Brother, I want to help too!” Laicai eagerly volunteered, afraid he’d miss out on contributing.

Zhou Yimin instructed him, “You don’t need to. You’ll be in charge of the fire later.”

He was worried Laicai would accidentally add some “extra ingredients” with his runny nose, so he quickly assigned him a different task—stoking the fire, which didn’t require clean hands.

“Big Brother! Big Brother! What about me?” Laifang anxiously raised her hand.

“You watch over your sister and make sure no mosquitoes bite her, okay?”

“Okay!” Laifang immediately returned to Qianqian’s side, scanning the area like a little scout, keeping an eye out for flies and mosquitoes.

Once the chestnuts were washed and drained, Zhou Yimin used a knife to carve a cross-shaped slit into each one. This step was crucial—the cut needed to reach the nut inside.

By the time he finished, Laifu had washed the coarse sand twice and left it to dry.

“Alright, Laicai, start the fire,” Zhou Yimin directed.

Laicai rushed off to the kitchen. Starting fires was a basic skill for rural kids, and he was even faster at it than Zhou Yimin.

Zhou Yimin poured the sand into the wok and began stirring, then added some syrup.

He had bought the syrup from the store in his mind space, not bothering to make it himself. The kids wouldn’t question it as long as he didn’t “magically produce” it in front of them.

The syrup served two purposes: coating the sand for better heat distribution and enhancing the sweetness.

Once the sand was evenly coated and glistening, Zhou Yimin added the chestnuts and continued stirring.

“Not too much fire,” he reminded Laicai.

Laicai pulled out a piece of firewood.

As the chestnuts turned fully golden, Zhou Yimin added another round of syrup. By now, the aroma of sugar and roasted chestnuts had begun to spread. Laifu and Laicai sniffed the air hungrily.

Even Laifang, who was guarding Qianqian, kept glancing toward the kitchen. If not for her duty, she would have run over already.

The fragrance wafted out of the house and into the yard.

“Is Yimin roasting chestnuts? My goodness, it smells incredible!”

Even the adults working outside, including Zhou Zhiming, found it hard to resist, let alone the kids, who came running in groups, following the scent.

Just then, Grandpa and Grandma returned from outside. The moment they smelled it, they knew—it was roasted chestnuts.

Ever since their grandson came back, the house had never lacked delicious food.