Chapter 48

January 30, 2014 – New Year’s Eve.

Every household was preparing for the New Year.

Father Lin and Uncle Lin thought it would be livelier to celebrate together, so both families decided to spend the New Year together. On the 29th, the four of them went out to buy various New Year’s goods.

Lin Nanzhi and Mother Lin had the day off yesterday and returned home today to help out.

They weren’t needed in the kitchen since Father Lin was the head chef, with Uncle Lin assisting in preparing the ingredients.

During the New Year, houses needed to be cleaned. In many places, this was done on the 24th, but here, the custom was to clean on New Year’s Eve. So, Mother Lin, Aunt Lin, and Lin Nanxuan were responsible for cleaning the three households.

Lin Nanye and Lin Nanzhi, along with Uncle Lin’s children, Lin Nanmeng and Lin Nanting, decorated the house by putting up “Fu” characters, couplets, and hanging red lanterns, while Lin Nanxun looked after the children.

Paper-cut decorations were pasted on doors and windows, large red lanterns were hung at the entrance, and small red lanterns adorned the trees, making the entire scene festive and vibrant.

Father Lin and Uncle Lin prepared a table full of food. Father Lin then went outside to set off a string of firecrackers. As soon as the firecrackers stopped, Lin Nanxun and Lin Nanting rushed over to find any unburned firecrackers to play with later.

According to Wumeng traditions, from New Year’s Eve to the seventh day of the new year, meals had to be offered to both the gods and ancestors.

For the gods, only a few offerings were needed: a bowl of rice, a portion of pork, a cup of tea, a cup of wine, and a plate of fruit. The ritual involved three kneelings and nine bows, sending off the gods at night and welcoming them back in the morning.

For the ancestors, the meal had to be fully prepared before anyone could eat. The ancestral table was set with bowls, chopsticks, and chairs, and Father Lin murmured a few words before waiting for about ten seconds. Only then could the offerings be put away, and the family could begin eating.

The New Year’s Eve dinner had to be eaten early to be the first family to finish, symbolizing a good start for the new year. It also had to be eaten slowly, implying that there would be plenty to eat throughout the year.

—-

The Lin family’s meal lasted from 5:30 PM to past 7 PM. Father Lin and Uncle Lin chatted away, each holding a bottle of beer, discussing various families in the neighborhood. Mother Lin and Aunt Lin sat together, exchanging family gossip. Meanwhile, the children couldn’t sit still and went off to play with fireworks and firecrackers.

Lin Nanzhi held a sparkler in her hand and took a photo, sending it to Wen Jiunian. He didn’t reply.

Once Father Lin and Uncle Lin finished eating, they began setting off fireworks.

Perhaps because the Lin family started, several other households also set off fireworks. The sky was soon filled with bursts of color, the loud cracks and pops echoing endlessly. Lin Nanzhi aimed her phone at the fireworks and recorded a short video, sending it to Wen Jiunian.

This time, Wen Jiunian replied instantly.

Wen Jiunian: “So pretty! It’s snowing!”

Lin Nanzhi hadn’t noticed. She looked up after seeing his message and saw white snowflakes falling clearly against the dark sky.

So… that was what he was paying attention to?

Wen Jiunian: “It rarely snows in the capital, so I hardly ever see snow. You’re lucky.”

Lin Nanzhi suddenly remembered—it was true.

At this time, the internet wasn’t as advanced yet. In a couple of years, when the internet boomed, people would be able to see different parts of the country without leaving their homes. Discussions about regional differences would become common, especially when it came to snow.

In the north, snow was abundant, but in the south, people got overly excited when they saw even a little.

Lin Nanzhi’s home was in the southern province, located in the southwest. They saw snow every year, but in recent years, the snowfall had become less frequent, likely due to global warming. She remembered when she was little, the snow would reach her waist, rooftops would be covered in ice, and icicles could grow several meters long and as thick as a wrist.

Nowadays, it still snowed, but only around the New Year, and it wasn’t heavy. At most, the ground would be covered in white for a few days before melting. Snow could still be seen falling, but there wasn’t enough to build snowmen anymore.

Lin: “You should visit sometime.”

Wen: “I will.”

Wen: “[Picture] / New Year’s Eve dinner”

Lin: “Looks delicious! And you look handsome!”

Wen: “Of course! Don’t you know who I am?”

Lin: “Narcissist / Dog head disapproval GIF.”

Wen: “SpongeBob crying GIF.”

Lin Nanzhi couldn’t help but chuckle. She put away her phone and looked at the sparkler in her hand, lost in thought.

Ding ding…

QQ notifications started flooding in with all kinds of New Year’s wishes. She opened them and found that most were mass messages, with many people sending the exact same text.

Shaking her head, she saw QQ’s built-in group message feature. After some thought, she deleted the default message and wrote a personalized greeting instead. Then she selected up to 200 people at a time and sent different messages in three batches, covering all her friends.

Everyone was mass-sending greetings, so no one would mind!

After finishing, she put her phone away and went to take a shower.

When she came back downstairs, Uncle Lin’s family was still there, sitting around eating nuts while staying up late. Seeing her come down, several people handed her red envelopes.

She pretended to decline a few times before happily stuffing them into her pocket.

She didn’t have to give out red envelopes yet—after all, she was still a minor.

The whole family stayed up together. Lin Nanzhi wasn’t sure if the others made it through the night, but she spent the entire night writing her novel.

She originally planned to sleep, but when she saw the sky starting to brighten, she remembered that she couldn’t sleep in today. So, she didn’t bother lying down and simply washed up before heading downstairs.

—-

In the living room, Aunt Lin and the younger cousins were gone. Lin Nanxun and Lin Nanxuan weren’t there either—one was taking care of kids, and the other was only ten years old, so it was normal for them not to stay up.

Mother Lin wasn’t there either, likely having gone next door.

Only Father Lin and Uncle Lin remained, sprawled on the sofa with their slippers scattered and the blanket fallen to the floor. Fortunately, the house wasn’t too cold.

She tiptoed over, picked up the blanket, and covered them. But the floor was covered in nut shells and fruit peels, making the blanket dirty. She set it aside, turned on the heater, and went to the kitchen to make breakfast.

She wasn’t good at making complex dishes, so she simply cooked eight-treasure porridge, fried eggs and sausages, toasted some bread, and heated up milk. She also added a few drops of spring water to the milk and porridge to boost energy.

Then she suddenly remembered something.

—-

On New Year’s Day, there were many taboos. In the morning, sweeping the floor and pouring out water were forbidden, as it symbolized sweeping away wealth. Using knives was also a bad omen, as it meant the new year would be full of hardships.

It was also customary to avoid eating meat, as a day of vegetarianism was believed to accumulate merit.

So, she put the eggs and sausages aside and only served porridge and milk. It was a bit plain, but there was no choice.

Just as she sat down, Mother Lin and Aunt Lin returned. Hearing their voices, Father Lin and Uncle Lin also woke up, and the two families sat together for breakfast.

After eating, Lin Nanzhi returned to her room and saw that it was snowing outside.

She opened the balcony door and found the entire mountain covered in white. The ground was blanketed in snow.

A gust of cold wind made her shiver, so she quickly put on her newly bought bright red down jacket, grabbed a matching knitted hat, and headed downstairs with a small shovel to build a snowman.