After transmigrating into the body of a widow, I became the richest man in the capital.

Chapter 88 No Spicy Food, No Life
This honey was something Su Xiaoxiao casually picked from a tree when she went up the mountain.

Su Xiaoxiao then prepared some ice cubes, crushed them, and poured the orange juice into a bowl.

A bowl of beautifully presented ice jelly was ready. She brought it to Sanlang and the children, and the two children stared in amazement.

"This looks nice, what is it, Mother?"

Actually, Sanlang didn't know what this thing was either. He was mainly wondering what kind of good stuff Su Xiaoxiao could make with the ice and snow outside. In fact, he didn't know the specifics, so he was too hesitant to come and eat it.

"It's delicious, come and try it. This is called ice jelly, or you could say shaved ice."

After Su Xiaoxiao took a bite first, she turned to the other two children and asked, "Do you want to try a bite?"

The two children were quite happy. Seeing that Sanlang had taken a bite and looked very satisfied, they also came over and reached out to Su Xiaoxiao for some ice jelly.

Snowflakes were falling softly outside. They were eating shaved ice in the warm house, but Su Xiaoxiao's mind was elsewhere. She suddenly started to miss home.

At this time, everyone in the family was preparing for the New Year. Thinking of how busy and nervous everyone was, this was Su Xiaoxiao's first New Year since she transmigrated. She was both nervous and a little excited.

On New Year's Day morning, Su Xiaoxiao woke up Sanlang, Dabao, and Xiaobao early from their bed.

Su Xiaoxiao took the new clothes and walked into the house. She looked at Da Bao and Xiao Bao and said, "It's New Year's Day today. Come on, try on the new clothes that Mom made for you."

Su Xiaoxiao took out new clothes for Da Bao and Xiao Bao to change into, and also very considerately helped the two children get dressed.

Xiao Bao also had a pretty pink bow tied in her hair.

When Sanlang saw this, he also pleaded with Su Xiaoxiao for new clothes. Su Xiaoxiao smiled and said, "It's New Year's Day today, so everyone gets something. I've prepared them for you, and they're right next to you. Didn't you see them?"

Sanlang was pleasantly surprised. He quickly looked to the side and sure enough, there was a beautiful dress there. It was a new dress made by Su Xiaoxiao and it looked pretty good.

Everyone looks very energetic today. Su Xiaoxiao said that she will be cooking the New Year's Eve dinner, so everyone can just wait and enjoy the delicious food.

She arrived at the kitchen early in the morning and started working. Today, she planned to make a dish called Yu Xiang Rou Si (Fish-Fragrant Shredded Pork). This dish requires green peppers and carrots as side dishes. She first cut the pork into shreds, then coated the shredded pork with soy sauce, sugar, and starch. This is the soul of making Yu Xiang Rou Si.

Of course, there is no oyster sauce in this era; if there were, it would be even more perfect.

Su Xiaoxiao heated oil in a wok, first sautéing scallions, ginger, and garlic until fragrant, then adding shredded meat and other side dishes. Once all the ingredients were cooked through, the aroma wafted far and wide.

Su Xiaoxiao saw that Da Bao and Xiao Bao were drooling with envy. They gathered around Su Xiaoxiao and asked, "Mommy, what kind of dish is this? It smells so good!"

Su Xiaoxiao quickly replied, "This dish is called Yu Xiang Rou Si (Fish-flavored Shredded Pork). Look how bright the color is, and it will taste even better."

Su Xiaoxiao made another serving of fish-fragrant eggplant, and luckily the sauce was still left over, which was quite economical.

Then she thought that the New Year should have some festive atmosphere. In her hometown, they eat sweet and sour pork and braised pork slices during the New Year. There is no shortage of meat at home now, so she can make a portion.

After making the two meat dishes, Su Xiaoxiao made another pork stew with vermicelli, which is a common dish in her hometown and a must-have for the family during the Chinese New Year.

Su Xiaoxiao also made a soup for Sanlang, a stewed chicken soup with a pure chicken flavor. No other seasonings were added, just an old hen.

Half an hour later, Su Xiaoxiao saw that the chicken soup was ready and announced that dinner was served.

After all the dishes were served, Su Xiaoxiao asked Sanlang and the others to help carry them up.

The family enjoyed their New Year's Eve dinner together. Su Xiaoxiao noticed that Sanlang also loved sweet and sour pork, a trait he shared with her.

Su Xiaoxiao thought about how she had received a lot of care from her neighbors over the past year, and of course, not all of these neighbors and villagers were bad.

In particular, Su Xiaoxiao decided to invite the Sun family over for dinner on the second day of the Lunar New Year.

The second day of the Lunar New Year is a traditional day for visiting one's maternal family. Since Su Xiaoxiao didn't have any relatives, she decided to invite Sun Shi and the others over for a meal. But what should they eat?
Su Xiaoxiao really racked her brains, thinking that eating a warm pot of mutton hot pot in winter would be quite comforting.

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, Su Xiaoxiao got up early and went to the Sun family's house to invite them to have a meal together.

Sun happily accepted the invitation, and Su Xiaoxiao cooked braised pork and shredded pork with garlic sauce for the family. None of them had ever tried this dish before, and the sweet, sour, and spicy flavor of the shredded pork with garlic sauce was very much to their liking.

Mrs. Sun couldn't help but start praising Su Xiaoxiao, and her two children exclaimed even more happily, "This dish is so delicious!"

Su Xiaoxiao said, "I've also prepared a mutton hot pot for you all. Come and take a look. It's made with mutton and vermicelli. Let's drink it while it's hot."

Sun and Wang Er couldn't help but admire Su Xiaoxiao greatly, praising her for being good at everything, cooking such delicious food, and being so beautiful, which was truly enviable.

When Sanlang saw this, he felt proud to see his wife being praised so much. Of course, Su Xiaoxiao wasn't his wife yet.

But he wasn't willing to fall behind and wanted to show off his skills, so he said, "I'll make you something delicious that you've probably never had before, right?"

Sanlang acted immediately, asking Su Xiaoxiao, "Do we still have any mutton at home?"

Su Xiaoxiao replied, "Yes, I'll make you a Western dish called grilled lamb skewers."

After Saburo stoked the fire on the stove, he skewered several pieces of meat on bamboo sticks and then put them on the stove to roast.

Since I didn't have any seasonings like five-spice powder, I only added salt, and it turned out to be very delicious. The main selling point is that it's natural and healthy.

You have to admit, this kind of natural barbecue has a unique flavor.

Sanlang quickly grilled more than a dozen skewers and placed them on a plate. He picked up a skewer and gave it to Su Xiaoxiao to try first, because he guessed that Su Xiaoxiao must have never eaten such delicious grilled meat before.

Su Xiaoxiao blew on the steam rising from the meat, carefully took a bite, and then said, "This barbecue is really delicious. It would be even better if it had chili powder."

Su Xiaoxiao then asked Wang Er and Sun Shi, "What do you think?"

Unexpectedly, the two people also loved spicy food and hurriedly said, "Yes, that's exactly what we were thinking too."

(End of this chapter)