Going home for the Chinese New Year with a year-end bonus of 100 million

New Year's Day.

This is the most lively and peaceful day of the year in the countryside.

At 10 a.m., Wang Xiuying pushed open Yang Fan's door.

"Xiao Fan, Xiao Ya, get up! Look at the time!" Wang Xiuying's voice wasn't loud, but it carried a hint of urging and barely suppressed laughter.

"We have guests over, and you two are still sleeping like logs!"

Yang Fan rolled over in bed, pulled the blanket over his head, and mumbled indistinctly:

"Mom, it's the first day of the Lunar New Year, who would come to our house... Let me sleep for five more minutes..."

From the next room, Yang Ya also let out a dreamlike murmur:

"Yes, Mom...it must be Uncle and the others. Tell them to wait a little longer..."

"It's not your third uncle!" Wang Xiuying walked to Yang Fan's bedside and patted his blanket.

"This is a guest you wouldn't expect! Get up quickly, don't keep the young lady waiting!"

"girl?"

These two words seemed to have a magical power; Yang Fan and Yang Ya almost simultaneously sat up in bed, their sleepiness instantly dissipating by more than half.

"Brother, is it another one that Aunt introduced?" Yang Ya's voice came from the inner room.

Yang Fan's face fell as well. The thought of that girl named Lingling gave him a headache.

"It shouldn't be that bad, right? Coming to our door on the first day of the Lunar New Year, that's too shameless." He said this, but his heart was pounding.

"Stop guessing! Hurry up and get dressed and come out!" Wang Xiuying said, then turned and went back into the main room with a mysterious smile, closing the door behind her.

Now the brother and sister were even more curious.

They dressed and washed up as quickly as possible, not even having time to tidy their hair, and rushed into the main room one after the other.

Then, they all froze on the spot.

Beside the fireplace in the main room, a girl dressed in a clean white down jacket sat somewhat awkwardly on a small stool.

She held a steaming cup of tea in both hands, her cheeks flushed red from the firelight, like a ripe apple.

She had her head down, seemingly examining the enamel mug in her hand, and only timidly raised her head when she heard a noise.

When those clear eyes saw them, a hint of nervousness flashed across them at first, then curved into beautiful crescent moons.

It was none other than Lin Xiaoyu.

"Xiaoyu?" Yang Ya was the first to react, exclaiming in surprise and running over in a few strides.

"Oh my god, it really is you! What brings you here!"

When Lin Xiaoyu saw them, she quickly stood up, still holding the cup of hot tea in both hands, looking somewhat at a loss.

She whispered, "Brother, Xiaoya, Happy New Year."

Her voice was soft, but it reached Yang Fan's ears clearly amidst the sounds of firecrackers filling the room.

"Happy New Year, Happy New Year." Yang Fan also came over, his surprise no less than that of his sister.

He carefully examined the girl in front of him.

Lin Xiaoyu's hair was carefully combed and tied into a simple ponytail, revealing her smooth forehead.

Although the white down jacket wasn't a designer brand and even had some wear marks on the cuffs, it was spotless and without a single stain.

"Please sit down, please sit down. What are you standing there for?" Wang Xiuying came out of the kitchen with a plate of freshly fried eggs and greeted her warmly. "Xiaoyu, don't be shy. Make yourself at home here."

"Thank you, Auntie," Lin Xiaoyu replied softly, then sat down again, but with her back ramrod straight, still holding the cup of tea in her hands, as if she didn't know where to put it.

Yang Ya sat down next to her, took her hand, and realized that her palm was ice cold.

"My goodness, your hands are so cold!" Yang Ya exclaimed with concern. "Xiao Yu, how did you get here? Your home isn't close to here, and there are no minibuses today."

Lin Xiaoyu's face turned even redder, as if it could drip water. She glanced at Yang Fan shyly, then explained softly, "I... I walked over."

"What? They walked over?" Yang Ya's voice changed in surprise.

It would take an adult man more than an hour to walk from Lin Xiaoyu's house to here, let alone a girl like her, especially on the morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year.

"Aren't you cold? Are you scared to be out alone?" Yang Ya asked in rapid succession.

Lin Xiaoyu quickly waved her hand, as if afraid they would misunderstand something, and hurriedly picked up a faded cloth bag from beside her feet and carefully placed it on the table.

"Auntie, Uncle, Brother, Xiaoya." She stood up, looked at the family, and said very seriously, "Thank you so much for the past few days. You took me home and brought so many things for my family, especially those cherries. My parents have never eaten such delicious fruit in their lives."

"My parents have been talking about it for days, saying they've received such a great favor and insisted that I come here to thank you in person. These are rice cakes made from rice we ground ourselves, and tofu that we just made yesterday. This piece of cured meat was also smoked by us. These things aren't expensive, they're just a small token of our family's appreciation, please don't find them offensive."

She finished speaking in one breath, as if she had completed a major task. She was slightly out of breath, and her eyes were full of sincerity and a little bit of expectation for acceptance.

Wang Xiuying and Yang Jianguo exchanged a glance, both seeing a deep emotion in each other's eyes.

This girl is so honest and sensible.

For this little thing, on the first day of the Lunar New Year, I got up early and walked for more than an hour just to deliver this "worthless" gift and to say thank you in person.

The scales in Wang Xiuying's heart tipped instantly.

The more she looked at the girl, the more she liked her, and the smile on her face became more genuine and loving.

"Oh, you're too kind, child! It's enough that you came; you didn't need to bring anything!"

She made polite remarks, but her hands had already deftly taken the bag, weighed it in her hand, and muttered to herself:

"Homemade is always the best! It's all-natural! Auntie loves your handmade rice cakes the most; they're so chewy!"

Yang Jianguo, who had been silently smoking, unusually stubbed out his cigarette, revealed a kind smile, and said to Lin Xiaoyu:

"Xiaoyu, sit down and eat. You must be starving after walking such a long way. Your auntie specially fried some eggs for you."

"Thank you, Uncle." Lin Xiaoyu finally breathed a sigh of relief and sat down again.

Soon, a sumptuous breakfast was laid out on the square table in the main room.

Steaming dumplings, two golden fried eggs in each person's bowl, a plate of stir-fried cured meat, a dish of peanuts, and of course, the rice cakes that Lin Xiaoyu brought, which Wang Xiuying sliced ​​and lightly fried in oil, filling the air with fragrance.

The sound of firecrackers outside continued unabated, but inside the house, everything was warm and peaceful.

Wang Xiuying treated Lin Xiaoyu as if she were her future daughter-in-law, constantly serving her food.

"Xiaoyu, come on, try this fried rice cake, eat more!"

"Thank you, Auntie."

"Xiaoyu, is your dad's leg feeling any better? What did the doctor say?"

"Much better, Auntie, thank you for your concern. I can now walk a few steps in the yard with my cane. The doctor said I'm recovering well and told me to come back for a check-up in the spring."

"That's good, that's good. Young people recover quickly. How's everything at home for the New Year?"

"Everything is fine, and my mother is in good health. It's just... she keeps saying that your family is blessed."

Although Lin Xiaoyu was a little reserved, she always answered questions in a logical and clear manner. Her voice was not loud, but it was very clear and pleasant to listen to.

Yang Ya then completely transformed into the leader of the atmosphere-building team, chattering away with her about interesting things at school, complaining about which teacher's hairline, and sharing the battle of grabbing red envelopes during the Lunar New Year, which quickly made Lin Xiaoyu relax.