Chapter 1135: Chapter 1135: Extra—Retirement Arc
Nian Shutong, who had been busy all afternoon, closed the shop and quickly returned to the backyard.
As soon as she entered the courtyard, she could see Fu Yunhe cooking through the kitchen window.
She simply went outside the window, leaned on the windowsill, and watched Fu Yunhe cook.
"Open your mouth."
Nian Shutong obediently opened her mouth, and a crispy fried radish and meatball was fed to her.
"Crunch, crunch."
"Delicious."
After finishing one, Nian Shutong opened her mouth again with a sound, and Fu Yunhe used chopsticks to pick up another for her.
Nian Shutong, after eating, opened her mouth once more.
Fu Yunhe simply placed the bowl on the windowsill and gave her a pair of chopsticks.
"Eat."
Nian Shutong cheerfully took the chopsticks and started eating by herself.
After eating several, the bowl of meatballs in front of her suddenly disappeared, and she watched as Fu Yunhe took it away again.
"Can you take back what you’ve given?"
"If I made it, then yes."
Fu Yunhe glanced sideways at Nian Shutong and said, "Eat a little less, there are other dishes to eat, I made the braised lamb ribs you love."
"Really?" Nian Shutong leaned forward, trying to peek at the pot on the stove, but all were tightly covered, so she couldn’t see clearly.
"Why can’t I smell anything?"
"It’s covered tight."
Nian Shutong stopped eating and moved a small chair to sit outside the kitchen, chatting with Fu Yunhe about the Day of the Dead.
"It feels like they really value this festival, they’re all scrambling to buy flowers, which they normally wouldn’t indulge in, my flower shop is sold out."
"Respecting ancestors, a traditional virtue."
"True, but it seems more like we don’t have much ourselves," Nian Shutong said, shaking her head, "No, wait, we do have some, just not much emotion involved, and some even have grudges."
"It’s okay, we just join in the fun."
While they chatted and cooked, time flew by, and it was soon time to eat.
Lamb soup, braised lamb ribs, fried meatballs, and a refreshing cucumber salad.
The braised lamb ribs, bright red rib by rib, fell completely off the bone, incredibly tender, the sauce mingling with the soft lamb, the white rice stained a meaty color, a bite was heavenly.
If feeling overly full, one could enjoy the refreshing side dish, along with the bowl of creamy white lamb soup, warming you from the inside out.
After the meal, Nian Shutong ate three bowls of rice, left no ribs, and finished all the lamb soup.
"It was so good."
"I’ll make it for you next time too."
Stuffed and satisfied, Nian Shutong leaned comfortably in her chair, unwilling to move.
Fu Yunhe wasn’t in a hurry, and stayed with Nian Shutong for a while before getting up to tidy up the dishes.
After cleaning up, Fu Yunhe noticed Nian Shutong still lounging around, went and grabbed her hand, saying, "Alright, if you don’t get up, you’ll be the first Immortal to get chubby from eating."
"That’s okay. I’ve realized that being a bit chubby is not so bad after all; good food should never be missed."
Nian Shutong followed Fu Yunhe’s lead and got up, and the two of them went out for a walk.
Once outside, they immediately noticed something different.
Every household’s front doors and the windowsills were filled or adorned with flowers.
Each household had its own ideas; some preferred the vibrant red of good fortune, others opting for fresh and natural color schemes, simple yet elegant, or noble and sophisticated, offering a dazzling display of varied arrangements.
Not only that, but there were hung banners in every courtyard, made up of long cut-paper art.
They varied in color and design, decorating the entire courtyard.
Very beautiful, truly stunning.
"Even though I took it seriously, I still greatly underestimated it,"
Nian Shutong glanced back at their own home, which had nothing.
"Fu Yunhe, let’s also go buy some of those banners to decorate a bit."
"Sure."
The two of them set off to buy some but had only walked a little way when the first family they encountered gifted them with a banner from their household.
"This is our tradition here, to receive banners from different people, used for blessing. Ours is unique too."
"Thank you."
Nian Shutong thanked them sincerely, realizing the uniqueness of each banner’s origin.
Walking along the way, they received many banners from different households until Nian Shutong felt they had enough and quickly dragged Fu Yunhe home. They then ordered lots of materials online from the Star Network, and Nian Shutong embarked on the great journey of paper cutting.
Outside in the courtyard, Nian Shutong sat under the light at the door, cutting paper while directing Fu Yunhe to hang the banners they had received.
"A little higher over there, good, good."
"Not bad, hang this one on the tree."
"Too low, too low."
"Mix the colors a bit."
By the end of the night, the banners were hung up, and given they had no shortage of flowers, Nian Shutong also cut many banners as gifts to their neighbors, to reciprocate the gesture.
This was the first time they participated in such a festival, and they felt a little excited.
The next day, Nian Shutong got up very early, cut some more banners, and had to open the flower shop early as well.
Nian Shutong was busy in the flower shop all morning, and by noon, nearly all the flowers were sold.
When the little girl who always bought sunflowers came by, she found the flower shop empty, her eyes brimming with tears. She hung her head, ready to leave.
"Wait."
Nian Shutong called to the little girl, who quickly wiped her tears and turned around, "Sister———"
In front of the little girl was a bouquet of nine sunflowers, just like the ones she bought every day.
She couldn’t hold back any longer, tears streamed down her face as she took the flowers, gratefully thanking Nian Shutong.
"Thank you, sister, thank you so much."
"No need, go on."
The little girl didn’t forget to leave the money for the flowers, walking away with the sunflowers, her figure looking quite happy.
Nian Shutong stood at the door for a while, not seeing the man who usually bought lilies; she had saved one specially for him. But since he didn’t show up, she prepared to close the shop.
After closing the shop, Nian Shutong took the banners she had cut and went to deliver them to the neighboring households. When she returned, she saw the man who usually bought lilies standing at the door, though he looked different today.
His hair was shorter, his face clean, but there was a noticeable limp in his walk.
"Boss, I’m here to buy lilies, I’d like to purchase a few more today."
"Alright, but you’ll need to wait a bit."
Nian Shutong opened the florist’s door, contacted Blue Star, first receiving the lilies, and others were coming in gradually.
"How many flowers do you want?"
"Ten stems."
"Okay."
Nian Shutong prepared a bouquet of lilies and handed it to the man.
"You’ve given too much."
The man had given a hundred Star Coins.
"It’s not too much, thank you, boss."
The man, with his limp, took the lilies and returned to the same door.
Nian Shutong watched the man’s back, feeling that today, something different might happen.
