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It was clear on the last day of the year. The sky was a white expanse and only white clouds could be seen. A faint white smoke blew up from all the houses. The mountains in the distance were continuous. The fields were empty. There were occasionally a few haystacks piles around, and the leaves from the jujube trees had fallen by the front door. The few remaining pieces looked very pitiful. Fiery red lanterns hung all over the tree.
The yard was full of red lanterns made by Ger Yu. Some were big, some were small, but all the festival decorations in the yard were extraordinary. In addition to the round lanterns, there were also square, diamond and fish shaped ones. After selling lanterns for over half a year, Ger Yu’s craftsmanship had greatly improved.
In front of the vegetable field, there were verdant cabbed, spinach, cauliflower, etc. These vegetables were still growing. When you pinched each of the leaves, there was still juice leftover.
This year was warmer than last year. Even the little ice beans hadn’t fallen yet. Only the gust of cold wind over the roof signified that it was winter.
When the white sky was covered in a dark veil, the remnants of the dead branches fell on the vegetable patch. Whether it was bright or dark, winter nights were the most peaceful.
The old houses were cast in more shadow as the night continued. The red couplets were pasted on the gate, but the inky black handwritten characters were hard to read in the dark. The big square blessing characters were pasted in front of each door, giving off a very festive feeling.
The room was filled in red. The wooden table was also covered in a red tablecloth. It was filled with sumptuous dishes. There was yellow-skinned Cantonese poached chicken and fat, fan-shaped egg dumplings that were as fat as gold ingots.
Rabbit, fish, ribs… Ger Yu had never eaten this much meat all at once. He was overjoyed beyond words. Everyone could see the smile he couldn’t hide.
The four of them filled the square table. Four pairs of chopsticks moved to grab the dishes. “What are you guys wishing for next year? …I’ll speak about mine first. I hope the lychee trees will grow lychee next year.”
Lin Lixuan was suddenly curious about the wishes the other three had for the new year.
“I hope to earn 35 taels of silver next year.” This was Ger Yu’s wish.
“I wish I could hold my grandson.” This was Zhao Liniang’s wish. She glanced between Lin Lixuan and Ger Yan.
“…I-I don’t wish for anything… It’ll be good as long as our family can eat together again. Oh right. I hope that next year’s meal will be even more abundant.”
Lin Lixuan picked a piece of meat for Ger Yan and said, “Ger Yan’s wish is so small. Such a small wish, I will fulfill it for you. The meal will be even more sumptuous. Right, I’ll satisfy you now.”
“Then when will you fulfill my wish?” Zhao Liniang put her chopsticks down and looked at her son angrily. They had been together for a year, but Ger Yan’s stomach hadn’t grown. It was impossible to say that she wasn’t anxious.
Lin Lixuan snorted. “Mother, you should change your wish. This wish won’t come true. I say you postpone it for three years, then I will fulfill it for you.”
“You should have more children while you and Ger Yan are young.”
“Why have so many? Everyone in the family is busy, so who will take care of all these children? Mother, you have fun raising these chickens first. Raising chickens and raising children is almost the same. Look, you’ve raised hundreds of chickens this year, so hasn’t your wish of raising grandchildren already been fulfilled?” 。”
“Blah! How can raising something for food be the same as raising children?” Hearing what her son said really pissed her off.
“Let’s focus on the process rather than the result. Alright, Ger Yu, let’s talk about your wish. How much silver is in your small treasury?”
“18 taels of silver.”
“Ger Yu will definitely be able to save enough next year, and when the time comes, you will start saving for your dowry.”
Ger Yu was a bit embarrassed, “Brother-in-law, I don’t want to marry into someone else’s family.”
“Then save a betrothal gift and when the time comes, our Ger Yu will marry a husband home.”
Zhao Liniang picked up a piece of chicken and gave it to Lin Lixuan while scolding, “Just eat. Don’t speak nonsense and teach children bad things. Ger Yu, don’t listen to him.”
On the morning of the first day of the new year, Ger Yan opened his eyes in a daze. Lin Lixuan, who was a little drunk after drinking yesterday, made him reminisce about the past. He recalled the day last year, so they made a fuss most of the night under the guise of “sweet remembrance.”
Yesterday, the four of them drank wine. Even little Ger Yu hadn’t been spared. He curiously tasted a cup. His face was like rubbing rouge. He was dizzy after eating and fell asleep against the table. Ger Yan hurriedly carried him to bed.
Zhao Liniang was also half drunk but not completely. She chattered endlessly in front of Old Man Lin’s ancestral tablet. She held the wine and said she wanted to pour a glass for Old Man Lin, but the wine spilled on the ground instead.
The one who drank the most was Lin Lixuan. He held Ger Yan and refused to let him go. Ger Yan actually drank a lot, but he was also the most sober out of the four of them. He helped Lin Lixuan into the room, then was tossed and turned by the other party all night. At that moment, he wished he could sleep by himself. It would be better if he hadn’t known anything.
Ger Yan blinked. His memory gradually returned, and the scene before him became clearer and clearer. He was lying on the bed. He turned his head sideways, and the person beside him had already gotten up. It was strange, because the person beside him had obviously been more drunk than him, but the next day, he (Ger Yan) was the one who couldn’t get up. Could it be that he secretly transferred the alcohol to him overnight?
He sat up but found that there seemed to be some type of money bag beside him. Ger Yan was curious and picked it up to take a look. It was a red money bag, otherwise known as a bag of money. The front was embroidered with two lovely patterns. It looked like tiny versions of Lin Lixuan and himself. The two small people sat back to back. looking very sweet and happy.
The two tiny people had chubby cheeks with chubby limbs. They were dressed in red clothes that looked like the wedding clothes they wore.
How did Ger Yan think these two tiny people were like them? It was because one of the people had to be Lin-dage. With that expression and posture, he would definitely recognize him even if it was a drawing of a tiny person.
This must have been drawn by Lin-dage. Ger Yan wouldn’t have recognized it wrongly.
Lin-dage, who didn’t even know how to use a needle and thread, was able to make such a cute money bag? This money bag was also given to him. Was this to make up for the unsuccessful clothes?
Although Ger Yan didn’t care about whether or not he could wear the clothes Lin-dage made, he was still looking forward to Lin-dage’s success.
Ger Yan happily held the red money bag in his hand. Although the money bag couldn’t hold many coins, he was still extremely happy. A sweet smile lingered on his lips.
Ger Yan hung the bag on his waist for the entire day. When Lin Lixuan saw this, he exchanged a knowing look with him, and they both smiled sweetly.
While Ger Yan was steaming food, Ger Yu sneaked in front behind and saw the money bag on his brother’s waist. The money bag was red and very eye-catching. He pointed at it and said, “Ge, Ge, did you make this for yourself? It looks so good.”
Ger Yu liked these kinds of cute and small things. He used his little hand to pick up the money bag and carefully looked at the pattern on it. The pattern was cute and pleasing. He liked it very much.
Ger Yan smiled quietly and a wave of embarrassment rose in his heart. He didn’t want to tell his brother the truth, so when Ger Yu asked, “Did you make it yourself,” he silently admitted it was.
“Ge, can you make one for me too?” Ger Yu pestered his brother.
Ger Yan’s face began to flush slightly. He whispered to his younger brother, “You…make one for yourself.”
Ger Yu was disappointed. “All right…” His brother was so stingy. He wouldn’t make one for him. He’d look at the finished product then. Looking at the bag, he saw the two small people. Ger Yu pushed his hand inside the bag and rummaged around. He then suddenly said, “Ge…this bag was made by my brother-in-law, wasn’t it?”
Ger Yan’s hand twitched. “I made it.”
“Impossible,” Ger Yu said firmly. He turned the money bag inside out, revealing the back of the cute pattern. It was full of all kinds of threads and knots. Who knew that behind this exquisite pattern, there would be such a mess.
It definitely wasn’t made by his brother.
“…” Ger Yan had nothing to say. His cheeks were red. Ger Yu pulled a face at him, then ran away with a smile.
On the seventh day of the new year, the store in the county town was about to open again. Fortunately, Ger Qiu returned at this time. After the new year, a conclusion finally came about toward his and Du Feibai’s relationship. The Du family finally agreed to the two of them being together.
“Ger Qiu and I will get married this March. I hope you guys will attend and drink some celebratory wine.” When Young Master Du arrived at their shop, he was tall and proud. His face was expressionless, and even when he gave out the invitation, there was no color on his face.
This Young Master Du had been a loyal customer of Lin’s Restaurant for over a year. He was very loyal, but his real goal was…
When Lin Lixuan received the invitation, he suddenly realized that Young Master Du had been in and out of his store for over a year, but they didn’t seem to have communicated much. It was usually:
“Boss, I want XXX.”
Except for this sentence, nothing else much came from his mouth. This young master was quiet and didn’t really know how to communicate with others.
This Young Master Du had a bit of face blindness. He couldn’t even recognize Lin Lixuan, who was the owner of Lin’s Restaurant. It was only after Ger Qiu reminded him that he awkwardly realized who Lin Lixuan was.
He was such a stranger character!
“Ger Qiu, I’m leaving.”
“Go ahead.”
Although this pair of lovers would eventually become married, Lin Lixuan thought it was a bit hard on the eyes. This Young Master Du looked cold, and when he was with Ger Qiu, he looked like he should be the wife. It was very out of sorts.
