I Awakened to a Farming TALENT

**Chapter 93: The Perfect New Year‘s Eve Feast (Part 1)**

“Sweep away the dust from the old cottage.”

On New Year’s Eve, the Qionghua Restaurant crew got up early and started cleaning.

Some wiped windows, some mopped the floor — everyone worked hard to get the house spotless before the new year arrived.

Though deep down, they all missed Teacher Liu. If he were here, they wouldn‘t have to do any of this work.

While everyone was busy, Jiang Tingyun hopped on her electric tricycle and headed to the market.

Sure, they’d agreed to have hotpot for New Year‘s Eve dinner, but just one hotpot wasn’t nearly enough. Besides, they still had to make offerings to the ancestors.

After parking at the market, Jiang Tingyun went straight to the live poultry stall. Even though ingredient prices had soared for the holiday, she didn‘t hesitate to buy a plump chicken and a duck. When it came to food, she never skimped.

Besides the poultry, she also cut several slabs of pork belly and bought beef, tripe, and other hotpot ingredients, filling her basket to the brim.

Even after all that, she still felt it wasn’t enough. She headed to the seafood section and bought a lively, jumping sea bass.

“A chicken in my left hand, a duck in my right, and a plump baby on my back~”

Humming a little tune, Jiang Tingyun walked breezily through the bustling market stalls toward where she‘d parked her tricycle.

Then, at the market entrance, she spotted a familiar figure.

A little girl wearing a bright red cotton jacket, dressed like a New Year’s painting doll, was sitting on a small stool selling paper window decorations and “Fu” characters.

Wasn‘t that Xiaoqiu from Guihua Alley?

“Big sister!” The little girl had sharp eyes. She spotted Jiang Tingyun and jumped up excitedly. “Are you grocery shopping? That’s so much food!”

Jiang Tingyun laughed. “This is just a snack. Xiaoqiu, you‘re out doing business again? Have your parents come back yet?”

As she spoke, she squatted down to look at the paper cuttings. They were exquisitely crafted and adorable, with rich designs — they didn’t look like factory-made goods. They seemed handmade.

“They‘re back. They’re preparing the ancestor offerings at home, so I came out to sell window decorations,” Xiaoqiu said with a grin. “Look — I cut these ‘Fu‘ characters myself, and I carved these window decorations with a little knife.”

“Amazing! You’ve got such clever hands!” Jiang Tingyun gave her a thumbs-up and said generously, “Wrap them all up for me. I‘ll take everything.”

Xiaoqiu’s face lit up with joy, but then she refused to take any money, insisting on giving them as a gift.

Jiang Tingyun wasn‘t about to take advantage of a child. She pulled out a red envelope and stuffed it into Xiaoqiu’s hand.

“No arguing. This is a red envelope. Put it under your pillow, and it‘ll keep you safe!”

Then, without waiting for the girl to react, she grabbed her purchases and hurried off.

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When Jiang Tingyun returned to Qionghua Restaurant laden with bags and bundles, everyone had nearly finished cleaning.

Thanks to Teacher Liu’s daily tidying, there wasn‘t any stubborn grime buildup anywhere.

“Boss, what do we do next?” Jin Feifan asked obsequiously, helping unload the ingredients while eyeing the chicken, duck, and fish hungrily.

Jiang Tingyun smiled. “Lots to do today. Everyone, pitch in.”

“Uncle Liu, see those yellow paper and tin foil sheets? You’re in charge of folding them into gold ingots for the ancestor offerings later. Xiao Pei, you‘re good with a sword — handle the chicken, duck, and fish.”

Pei Jingmo started to speak.

Jiang Tingyun quickly cut him off. “Don’t say you can‘t. I know you can. Those fish bones by the creek at the foot of the mountain — you left them, didn’t you? I‘ve already found out.”

“...”

Jin Feifan and Zhu Lili immediately shot accusatory looks at their senior brother. “You’ve been eating alone again!”

Pretending nothing had happened, Pei Jingmo picked up the plump chicken, duck, and big fish and headed to the sink.

Satisfied, Jiang Tingyun clapped her hands. “Everyone else, come to the kitchen and help me prep. Let‘s work fast — aim to finish the dishes before noon!”

Local custom called for the ancestor offerings to be held at noon on New Year’s Eve.

Luckily, there was still plenty of time, and the requirements for the offering dishes weren‘t complicated.

Typically, they included chicken, duck, fish, and pork, generally in even numbers — eight or ten dishes.

Jiang Tingyun was the chef of a small restaurant, after all. She figured she should show off some skill and let her ancestors taste her cooking.

The main poultry dishes were still being slaughtered, so she started prepping other ingredients first.

How could New Year’s be without braised pork? Even if she wasn‘t a huge fan, her ancestors would love it.

Every family had their own secret method for braised pork. Jiang Tingyun singed the hairs off the skin-on pork belly over an open flame to remove any gamey smell, then blanched it with scallions, ginger, Sichuan peppercorns, and cooking wine.

After skimming off the foam and waiting for the meat to change color, she took it out and cut it into small pieces for later.

She started by making caramelized sugar coating in advance. She remembered when she first came to Qionghua Restaurant — she could cook, but she wasn’t as skilled as now. She used to be afraid of burning the sugar and making it bitter, so she‘d add the meat too early, making the dish overly sweet.

Now she knew: the sugar coating had to turn a deep jujube red — not sweet, not bitter, with an even, beautiful color.

After making the caramel, she set it aside in a small bowl. Then she fried the pork belly pieces until both sides were golden, rendering out the excess fat.

She poured the excess fat into a separate container. Once solidified, it would become white lard, perfect for stir-frying other dishes.

Then she added the caramelized sugar coating, crushed scallion knots, ginger chunks, star anise, and other seasonings into the pot, stir-frying everything evenly before pouring in a whole can of beer.

*Gurgle, gurgle* — the liquid began to bubble under high heat. The unique fragrance of pork belly fat wafted through the air. Jiang Tingyun quickly turned down the heat and let the meat simmer slowly.

While that was going, she started preparing the steamed dishes.

She sliced ham and winter bamboo shoots, laid cabbage at the bottom of a dish, added quail eggs and pre-made egg dumplings, and arranged everything into the shape of a mountain peak. All it needed was a trip to the steamer. This traditional New Year‘s Eve dish — “Gold and Silver Mountain” — would be ready.

The gold referred to the egg dumplings, the silver to the quail eggs. Paired with the winter delicacies of ham and bamboo shoots for extra flavor, this dish was not only auspicious but also incredibly delicious.

Just as she finished arranging the plate, Pei Jingmo brought in the cleaned chicken and duck. His speed was truly astonishing.

The chicken preparation was simple. Jiang Tingyun planned to cut it into pieces and stew it with potatoes. She’d call this dish “Great Luck and Great Fortune.”

The duck was another matter — she rarely cooked duck.

Duck had a stronger flavor than chicken. To make it taste good, the seasonings needed more care.

Then it hit her.

She remembered the salted lemons she‘d preserved earlier. Today, she’d make a tangy, spicy, appetizing salted lemon duck (yan ningmeng ya).