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After the meal, the siblings solemnly kowtowed to the elderly men to offer New Year’s greetings. This gesture was voluntary, as these men had a special relationship with them, and the children of these elderly men were not around. The siblings considered it as a way to pay respects on behalf of their absent grandchildren.
The elderly men graciously accepted the greetings with smiles. “Children, get up. Grandpa will also give you red envelopes today.”
Each of the elderly men handed the children two yuan. Zhang Lan noticed the amount and wanted to decline, but Hao Lianchun stopped her. “Lan, this is the elders’ goodwill. It’s not too much. Let them keep their goodwill. We all understand each other. Besides, the children won’t spend the money recklessly. They are sensible kids.”
The siblings received the slightly heavy red envelopes, but all four of them, including Zuo He, handed the two yuan back to Zhang Lan. “Aunt, you keep this money. Use it to buy something delicious for Grandpa and the others in the future.”
Although it was only two yuan, it was a heartfelt gesture from the children. Under the encouraging gaze of the elderly lady, Zhang Lan accepted the money somewhat awkwardly.
The elderly men went for a walk, while Mingcheng led the siblings and the other children to join the group. They went from house to house to offer New Year’s greetings. Before leaving, Mingyuan asked Zhang Lan to clean his little school bag. He wanted to carry it while visiting others.
Zuo He was initially puzzled by Mingyuan’s behavior, but as they visited more houses, he understood. At each house, the children were given sunflower seeds, peanuts, and sugar cubes. It was a sweet treat at every stop.
Only the families with whom Zhang Lan and Wang Zhenhe had a good relationship gave the children lucky money, including Zuo He. Everyone knew that this little boy lived with Zhang Lan’s family, and they didn’t consider him an outsider. In the village, everyone was treated equally, and the amount of money given was not a big concern.
The festive atmosphere of the New Year was not affected by the fire last night. They could work a bit harder and gather more hay after the New Year.
After walking around for a while, Mingcheng’s backpack was already full. “Brother, wait for me. I’ll take this stuff home and come back. Don’t go anywhere,” Mingyuan said as he dashed home.
Wang Qian smiled as she watched Mingyuan. Her little brother was so interesting and never wanted to be left behind. He was truly a good kid.
While Mingyuan was away, Mingcheng and the others went to visit Zhao Xia. “Sister-in-law, Happy New Year. Brother, Happy New Year,” they greeted.
Zhao Xia hadn’t finished tidying up early in the morning, and the bedding in the house had just been arranged when the visitors arrived.
“Ha ha, Mingcheng, Happy New Year to all of you. Here, have some candy,” Zhao Xia said, handing a handful of candy to the siblings. “Xiao Li, aren’t you going out?”
Wang Qian asked Zhao Xia’s little girl casually.
Liu Li pinched her nose. “I haven’t had my meal yet. You go ahead. I’ll come find you with my brother later.”
“Brother, where are you?” Mingyuan’s voice came from the street. The siblings quickly excused themselves and left. Zuo He even wrinkled his nose. “Sister, did you also smell a strange odor just now?”
Actually, as soon as Wang Qian entered the house, she noticed the odor. However, she felt it was important to show some courtesy to the host. It would be impolite to cover her nose as soon as she entered the house. So, she refrained from mentioning it until Zuo He brought it up. “Yes, the cleanliness at Sister-in-law’s house isn’t very good. I reckon the chamber pot from last night was just taken out, and with no ventilation, it’s no wonder it doesn’t smell good.”
In rural areas during the winter, households usually have a chamber pot. It allows adults and children to relieve themselves at night without having to go outside, which helps prevent colds. The Wang family also had one. However, Zuo He didn’t notice any unpleasant odors. This was because Zhang Lan kept the house clean, and the couple would empty the chamber pot in the morning and ventilate the house regularly. Therefore, they didn’t experience the nauseating odor that was present at Zhao Xia’s house.
“Zuo He, are you feeling better now?” Wang Qian knew that the little guy valued cleanliness and probably couldn’t bear it any longer, which prompted him to speak up.
Zuo He took a deep breath. “Much better. It didn’t choke me just now. Luckily, I managed to endure it.”
Mingyuan emptied his backpack and came back out. Excitedly, he walked over to his older brother after seeing him come out of Zhao Xia’s house. “Brother, I saw Xiao Zhang and the others. He said that Teacher Liu’s house had the most candy. Let’s go there later.”
Wang Qian couldn’t help but marvel at the children’s happiness. Whenever there’s something delicious, everyone shows such expressions. It’s true, during the New Year, these kids are just looking for something tasty and fun, along with new clothes. Perhaps, simple joy is the most fulfilling.
“Mingyuan, let’s visit Uncle and Second Uncle first, and then we’ll go to Teacher Liu’s house to offer New Year’s greetings,” Mingcheng, being the eldest, knew how to handle the situation. He led the siblings to Uncle’s house. Wang Juan had been waiting for them. “Uncle, Aunt, Happy New Year. Brother, Sister, Happy New Year.”
Upon entering, they exchanged the same auspicious greetings. Wang Juan saw her nieces and nephews in new clothes and warmly invited them to sit by the kang. She noticed Mingyuan carrying a small backpack and couldn’t help but smile. “Our Mingyuan is clever. Here, let me pack some treats for you to take home and enjoy later.” She then handed each of the siblings two mao as lucky money, tucking it into their pockets.
After the three siblings met with their cousins, they all went together to Wang Zhenjiang’s house. However, when they arrived, Han Cui gave each of them a piece of candy and one mao as lucky money. Wang Qian and the others accepted it, as they didn’t want to offend their uncle’s family. Even though they were children, everyone had their own thoughts and feelings.
After leaving Han Cui’s house, Wang Minglin expressed his dissatisfaction. “Mingcheng, don’t you think Second Aunt is too stingy? Couldn’t she have given us more candy? She’s not as generous as the neighbors. I don’t really want to eat their candy, but I just feel that she’s not a good person.”
Listening to her second cousin’s comments on Han Cui’s behavior, Wang Qian couldn’t help but sigh. Although the children were young, each of them had their own judgment. They were clear-minded, as some people had already stopped pretending in front of children.
“Second Brother, come to our house later. This year, my mom bought a lot of candy, much better than what Second Aunt has. After we finish offering New Year’s greetings, you can come back with us,” Wang Mingyuan said, planning to visit his maternal grandmother’s house with his siblings. However, Wang Qian and the others were not very keen on going. After some consideration, Wang Qian pulled Mingcheng aside and said, “Brother, let’s go in and offer New Year’s greetings and then leave. Even if we don’t want to admit it, that’s still our father’s birth mother. Let’s show our faces, so people won’t say that our mom doesn’t know how to discipline her children.”
After Wang Qian’s reminder, Mingcheng also realized the situation. He nodded in agreement. Wang Mingyuan and the others didn’t have a good impression of their grandmother, so they went in with their siblings to offer New Year’s greetings. Zhu Qiyu didn’t react much, but her gaze towards Wang Qian was particularly unkind. Faced with such an elderly person, Wang Qian didn’t know what to say. She realized that they had failed to reflect on their own actions, and had come to view her as an enemy.
“Grandma, it’s the New Year. You should have a good mood. Don’t look at me like that. It’s scary. People might think I’m your enemy,” Wang Qian said seemingly casually, causing Zhu Qiyu to withdraw her hostile gaze. Wang Deshan, with an unpleasant expression, glanced at his wife, who didn’t know how to behave.
“Qianqian, your grandma didn’t sleep well last night. She didn’t mean to look at you like that. Here, let me give you lucky money,” Wang Deshan said, taking out money from his pocket and giving each of them fifty cents. Zhu Qiyu’s eyes widened at the sight of the money. It was a considerable amount. She couldn’t help but curse silently. Why did he give such a large denomination instead of just one mao?
The grandchildren happily accepted the money, and Wang Qian glanced at the old lady. Seeing her look so distressed made her feel as if she had just tasted sweet osmanthus honey. She, too, had moments of distress.
After leaving their grandfather’s house, the eldest cousin led them straight to Teacher Liu’s house to offer New Year’s greetings. Liu Bing had a vivid memory of this little girl who often sold scrap metal. Upon seeing them, he warmly welcomed them and handed each of them a handful of candy.
After leaving Teacher Liu’s house, Mingyuan felt grateful to Xiao Zhang for informing them about the candy. If it weren’t for him, they wouldn’t have received so much.
With the New Year’s greetings in the village coming to an end, they didn’t visit the remaining families, as they weren’t familiar with them. Groups of people were still going door to door on the street to offer New Year’s greetings. Mingcheng led his cousins back home.
Mingyuan held up his small backpack and said to Zhang Lan, “Mom, we got a lot of candy today. You can have some when you eat sea cucumber. Otherwise, that stuff is too hard to eat.”
She couldn’t help but feel moved. The little children were already beginning to understand the importance of filial piety.
When the nieces and nephews came to offer New Year’s greetings, Zhang Lan also had to give them lucky money. Wang Qian pulled her mother aside and reported the specific amount of money they had received from each family, so that the adults at home would have an idea.
Seeing her spirited little daughter, Zhang Lan couldn’t help but lovingly embrace her. This little girl was also quite capable in life, already having a good understanding of things at such a young age.