Hard work after winning the lottery

Zhou Yinchuan laughed heartily, "Good! I knew my granddaughter-in-law was blessed!"

Si Tao's mouth was stuffed full of dumplings, his cheeks puffed out like a little hamster. Seeing the copper coin in his mother's hand, he immediately cheered incoherently and raised both hands:

"Wow! Mommy is amazing! Mommy found money in her food! Mommy, may you have good luck every day next year! May you make a fortune! Buy Tao Tao lots and lots of Ultraman toys!"

Children's words are innocent and uninhibited, yet they are the most heartwarming.

Looking at her son's excited little face, Hua Yun felt a surge of warmth in her heart. She smiled and touched her belly, saying, "Thanks to Tao Tao's auspicious words, I hope my little brother and sister will also share in the joy."

Immediately afterwards, Zhou Yanjin ate the second copper coin.

He expressionlessly spat out the copper coin and calmly placed it beside Hua Yun: "My luck is yours too."

This display of affection made Hua An on the other side lose interest in his pork and scallion dumplings.

As for the third copper coin...

"Clang!"

Hua An clutched his cheek, his face contorted in pain: "Holy crap... my teeth..."

Li Guifen slapped him on the back of the head: "You've gained good fortune from eating this, so what are you yelling about! Quickly spit it out and keep it safe, so that you can bring a girlfriend home next year!"

Hua An looked at the copper coin in his hand, tears welling up in his eyes: "Mom, I'm still young."

Li Guifen almost rolled her eyes to the sky.

"Young my foot! If it weren't for the fact that big kids aren't allowed to have children during the Lunar New Year, she would have slapped him long ago."

The laughter that filled the room, along with the steam from the dumplings, drifted into the cold night air of Baixi Village.

Unlike cities, rural areas don't have firework bans, so New Year's Eve in Baixi Village is a carnival filled with the smells of gunpowder and sulfur.

Zhou Yanjin had already had a truckload of fireworks and firecrackers brought from the city, which filled a corner of the yard.

"Let's set off fireworks!"

Hua An and Hua Shu helped move the huge fireworks box to the open space outside the yard.

With a loud "whoosh—pop!", the first dazzling firework exploded in the night sky, illuminating the entire Baixi Village.

Multicolored light reflected on the snow, creating a breathtakingly beautiful scene.

Hua Yun, wrapped in a thick down jacket and wearing a woolen hat, stood like a penguin under the corridor. Zhou Yanjin hugged her from behind, wrapping her up tightly in his coat.

"Are you cold?" he whispered in her ear, his warm breath brushing against her neck.

"It's not cold, it's quite warm." Hua Yun looked up at the dazzling lights filling the sky, her eyes reflecting the glittering starlight. "It's wonderful, Yan Jin. I didn't expect it to be so lively this year."

Zhou Yanjin tightened her arms around him: "It will be just as lively every year from now on."

The three little ones were already having a blast.

Sitao held a fairy wand and drew circles in the snow while shouting "Transform!"

Although Si'an was a little reserved, she still carried a small firecracker and would throw one on the ground every now and then to hear the sound.

Sile was the only one who didn't go to play with fireworks.

He was clutching the latest smartphone Zhou Yanjin had just bought for him, with the recording function on the screen.

The little guy, with his short legs, ran up to Hua Yun.

"Mom, squat down for a moment." Sile tugged at Huayun's sleeve.

Hua Yun was a little confused, but she still took Zhou Yanjin's hand and slowly squatted down: "What's wrong, Lele?"

With a serious expression, Sile gently placed the microphone end of her phone against Huayun's protruding belly.

Just then, a huge golden peony firework exploded in the sky, deafeningly loud.

Sile spoke to her belly in a childish but incredibly devout voice:

"Little sister, can you hear that? It's Chinese New Year!"

"That's the sound of fireworks, it's beautiful. When you come out, your brother will take you to see them."

"Don't be afraid of the noise, everyone is welcoming you."

In that instant, the surrounding noise seemed to stand still.

Hua Yun's tears streamed down her face.

Zhou Yanjin was also moved. He squatted down, placed his large hand over Si Le's small hand, and said in a slightly hoarse voice, "Lele is so great. Your little sister must have heard it; she's dancing in my belly."

Sile looked up, her eyes sparkling: "Really? Then my little sister must like my big brother!"

"Yes, my little sister loves her brothers the most."

In the distance, Hua Shu and Zhou Ye were lighting a string of 5,000 firecrackers.

Amidst the crackling of firecrackers, the new year has arrived.

In this small mountain village courtyard, two families, three generations living together, ignited the warmest flame in this cold winter for the sake of the new life that was about to arrive.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, we pay our respects to the deceased.

The custom in Baixi Village is to get up early to pay New Year's visits.

Just as dawn broke, there was a knock on the Hua family's door.

Hua An, being the strongest man in the family, was responsible for opening the door and welcoming guests.

This day is destined to be a day when red envelopes fly everywhere.

Zhou Ye and Lin Yi were well-prepared, with a thick stack of red envelopes in their pockets, ready to hand them out to everyone they met.

The village children, being the most well-informed, knew that a wealthy and generous boss had come to the Hua family, and they all came in droves to kowtow to him.

"Happy Chinese New Year, Grandpa! Happy Chinese New Year, Grandma!"

"Oh, good, good!" Lin Yi smiled from ear to ear, handing over a red envelope containing several real red bills.

The children were ecstatic; it was a huge sum of money!

The main room of the Hua family's house was packed with people. Village Party Secretary Zhang, along with several village committee cadres, also came, ostensibly to offer New Year's greetings, but in reality, they wanted to get closer to Zhou Yanjin and see if they could attract some more investment to the village.

Zhou Yanjin was dressed casually today, not in a suit, but her aura of authority was still undeniable.

He sat in the main seat and offered Secretary Zhang a cigarette.

"General Manager Zhou, look at this road in our village, if only it could be repaired..." Secretary Zhang rubbed his hands together, his face full of anticipation.

Zhou Yanjin smiled faintly and glanced at Hua Yun, who was eating sunflower seeds next to him: "Listen to my father-in-law on this matter. As long as Dad is happy, we can build a highway."

Hua Shu was pouring tea for the guests when he heard this. He straightened up instantly, and his face glowed brighter than the lanterns outside the door.

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, I went back to my wife's parents' home.

Although Hua Yun was staying at her parents' home, according to custom, she still had to visit the elders in the village.

The main target was Uncle Huashi's house.

The Hua family home was bustling today, as their daughter and son-in-law had both returned.

Hua Yun, arm in arm with Zhou Yanjin, followed by three little boys dressed in festive Tang suits, entered Hua Shi's courtyard in a grand procession.

"Oh my, Yunyun's here! Yanjin's here too!" Hua Shi's honest face was beaming with smiles as he hurriedly greeted them, "Please sit down, please sit down! Auntie, pour some tea!"

There were a few distant relatives in the courtyard who weren't very familiar with her, and they were asking Hua Yun all sorts of questions.

One of the plump women, dressed in a flamboyant manner, curled her lip and glanced at Hua Yun, who had just entered. She feigned surprise: "Oh, this must be Old Hua's daughter, right? I heard she married a big boss? It's the New Year, why aren't you wearing any jewelry? Is the boss too busy to buy you any?"

Hua Yun looked quite plain today; apart from her wedding ring, her neck and wrists were bare. Because of pregnancy-related swelling, she found those things too constricting.

Before Hua Yun could speak, Zhou Yanjin, who was fighting with Si Tao for candy, looked up.

He glanced casually at the plump woman's wrist and said in a flat tone, "That's placer gold, not very valuable, maybe worth two or three hundred yuan."

The plump aunt's face stiffened: "You, what nonsense are you talking about! This was bought from the mall!"

Zhou Yanjin ignored her; it wasn't a good day to embarrass her during the New Year.

Outside the window, snowflakes began to fall again.

Inside, it was warm and cozy.

This year's Spring Festival was truly:

Drink your fill of chicken soup and receive so many red envelopes you won't know what to do with them.

The whole room was overflowing with the scent of happiness.