The two chatted until midnight, and when they heard the crackling of firecrackers outside, they quickly fell silent, not daring to make a sound, for fear of waking their young lady.
However, with such a commotion outside, even a deafened pig would be woken up, let alone Fu Xin Ci.
She rubbed her eyes, sat up, casually threw on a jacket, and went out of the room.
"Young lady, you're awake." Chun Yu was surprised, and what they feared had come to pass.
"Mhm, it's late. After this round of firecrackers, you should go to sleep too."
"Yes."
After speaking, Fu Xin Ci walked to the table and poured herself a cup of water.
The water was still warm, just right.
"Young lady." Chun Yu worried the water might be too cold for her liking.
"It's perfect," Fu Xin Ci said, then put down the cup and returned to her room.
Fu Xin Ci had no desire to sleep and was contemplating how to pass the time.
"Squeak squeak." Handstand.
"Squeak squeak." The splits.
Looking at the smug little white creature, Fu Xin Ci said, "Little White, Happy New Year, new year, new beginnings."
"Squeak squeak." Little White clasped its tiny paws together in a New Year's greeting gesture, bowed twice, then extended its chubby paws, demanding a red envelope.
Fu Xin Ci was surprised by Little White's antics and burst into laughter.
"Squeak squeak." Red envelope, now.
"Alright, here's a big one for you." Fu Xin Ci said, handing Little White a bag of crispy fish.
"Squeak." Little White was excited and wiggled its plump, chubby behind as it ran over.
The next moment, it was in human hands.
The world spun.
"Squeak squeak." The human is unfair.
"Didn't you suggest it? Let's do handstands together."
Little White, head down, looked at the bag of crispy fish inches away, wishing it could cry.
Fu Xin Ci felt cruel, but when her playful mood took over, all her conscience vanished.
She tirelessly put Little White through various poses, "Heh heh, Little White, I still think you look the most handsome doing the splits."
Little White: What sin did it commit in its past life to meet this "villain."
Fu Xin Ci, however, was thoroughly entertained. Only when the firecrackers outside gradually faded into silence did she yawn, shrug off her jacket, and crawl into bed.
Her dark hair fanned out on the pillow, and a faint smile graced her porcelain-white, tender face.
Little White felt dejected. Was tormenting it what made this human so happy? Even in her sleep, a smile lingered on her face.
Unbeknownst to her, the little white creature was contemplating running away.
When the rooster crowed three times, most women in every household were already up preparing to make dumplings.
Fu Xin Ci also rose. After washing up, she felt something was missing in the room. However, after looking around, she couldn't pinpoint what was gone and, with her two maids, hurried to the front yard.
In the kitchen, Mama Yang and Zhang were chopping the vegetables, meat, and shrimp prepared the night before, while Fang and Granny Han were kneading dough.
When the kitchen curtain was lifted, everyone looked over. Seeing Fu Xin Ci enter, they all smiled.
Fang was even more concerned for her daughter, "It's still early, why didn't you sleep in longer?"
"Mother, I was afraid of being woken up by the firecrackers again if I slept any longer."
Fang listened to her daughter's words and smiled helplessly.
Her daughter was right. These few days were the happiest for the children in town. Regardless of wealth, every household bought firecrackers to set off, hoping for prosperity in the new year.
As the dumplings finally went into the pot, Grandpa Meng immediately led his sons and grandsons to set off firecrackers at the main gate.
The Qi family father and son also set off firecrackers and double-crackers in front of their own small courtyard gate.
Upon hearing the firecrackers from the Meng family's courtyard, Qi Yuanshan, while locking his courtyard gate, said to his son with longing, "Next year, we'll be able to eat dumplings in our own home. The year after, I'll be holding my grandson."
"Father, don't you like granddaughters?"
"I do. As long as it's your child, Father will love them."
Hearing his father's words, Qi He's face broke into a series of smiles.
He kept urging his father, "Heh heh, Father, let's hurry. We're about to eat dumplings."
"Alright."
The father and son, both tall and long-legged, soon arrived at the back door of the Meng family compound.
At the dinner table, Fu Yu first picked up a dumpling filled with chives, eggs, and shrimp from the large porcelain plate and placed it on the small dish near his elderly father, then another on Brother Yuanshan's dish.
When the elder took a bite of the dumpling and nodded, saying, "Delicious," everyone else started eating.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, almost every household in Qingxi Town was eating dumplings.
Wealthy families ate meat-filled dumplings with various fillings, while those with less money, even if it was just vegetable filling, would cook a pot. This was a custom passed down from their ancestors.
Before the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, Grandpa Meng had assigned each household in the town a task: to make a lantern, which would be hung outside their door on the evening of the fifteenth.
The old man was considerate of less affluent families, and for those who couldn't afford red paper and bamboo strips, he had these materials prepared and distributed.
The children in the entire town were thrilled. They ran around spreading the word, excited that they could make their own lanterns.
For these days, the children in town were in high spirits, not mischievous at all, and each day they focused on creating a lantern for their own family.
Finally, it was the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, and a red lantern of various shapes and sizes hung at the entrance of every household.
The children gathered together, going from house to house to admire the lanterns, chattering and commenting on whose lantern looked the best.
Today, Grandpa Meng had assigned them another task: to select the best-looking lantern.
The top three would receive rewards: five catties of pork belly for first place, three catties for second, and one catty for third.
Hearing that there was meat for the top three, many children began to regret not putting in more effort.
On the sixteenth, the top three were announced.
First place went to the Tiger Head siblings from the bun shop; their large fish lantern received unanimous praise.
Tiger Head's mother even boasted, "We don't need to buy meat for making buns today."
Tiger Head, overhearing this, was unhappy. He clung to his father's leg and wailed, "That meat was earned by my sister and me. Why should Mother use it for buns? She should let us eat it."
Seeing his son crying sadly, Tiger Head's father quickly agreed, "We won't listen to your mother's nonsense. We'll stew that meat for dinner tonight."
"Really?"
"Really." Tiger Head's father then glared fiercely at Tiger Head's mother. "Wasteful woman, always teasing the child until he cries."
Tiger Head's mother: Who was she doing all this for?