Rebirth 78: Hunting for Treasure in the Mountains, Spoiling My Wife and Daughter to the Heavens

The long streets and alleys were bustling with activity.

Pushing my bicycle inside, I saw that every household was decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations.

It's as if this is the only day I'll decorate my home so brightly and beautifully.

That means the whole year wasn't wasted.

Red couplets and colorful flags.

Red lanterns hang high.

When they arrived at Wu Guifen's house, the entire courtyard was deserted and quiet.

The Spring Festival couplets are the same as last year's.

The "福" (good fortune) character on the door was half torn off; it wasn't torn off, and no one has reattached it.

Li Xiuhe and Li Xiulian walked to the door and felt a strange pang of sadness.

But when I think about the decision Lu Weiguo made this year, my heart warms up a lot.

"Jiacheng, go inside, put on your little red hat, and call your grandparents out."

Lu Weiguo took Lu Jiacheng out of the soil basket.

I parked the bicycle and tidied up his clothes.

"Received!!" Lu Jiacheng didn't understand so much, he only knew that when he arrived at his grandmother's house, he would have delicious medicine to eat again.

Holding a rattle drum, he shook his head and jumped around.

He pushed open the door and rushed inside.

The bell on the gate swayed and rattled, its sound dull and weak.

"Who is it?"

A lifeless sound echoed from inside the room.

"It's me!!"

Lu Jiacheng tiptoed and pulled open the door, instantly illuminating the gray house.

"Ah? My grandson!! What brings you here!!"

"Glory, turn on the light! Check if the calendar has the date wrong!"

Wu Guifen immediately perked up, her voice like a bugle call, instantly making Li Guangrong crawl out from under the quilt.

"New Year's Eve, it's New Year's Eve!!!"

Li Guangrong looked at the calendar several times, rubbed his eyes, and checked it again.

"Oh, my grandson, what brings you here?"

"Mom and Dad, Auntie is here! She's right at the door!! Come out quickly and see what we brought you."

Li Guangrong and Wu Guifen rushed out without even putting on their coats, carrying their beloved grandson.

"Mom and Dad! Happy New Year!"

"Wishing you prosperity and good fortune! Give me a red envelope! I'm practically an unmarried daughter this year, so you have to give me a red envelope!!"

Li Xiuhe's words further stirred up emotions.

Upon hearing this, Wu Guifen burst into tears.

"Oh dear, why are you back? You didn't even tell us beforehand. We didn't prepare anything, what are we going to do?"

Wu Guifen was unusually flustered, and kept slapping her thigh.

"Whether you're here to go to the market or just passing through, let's go inside and warm up first."

Li Guangrong looked at the three of them and stepped forward to ask.

"Mom and Dad, what do you mean by passing by? We're just back for the New Year. We'll be spending New Year's Eve at home this year, so we don't need to prepare anything. Weiguo has already made everything."

Li Xiulian stepped forward and took Wu Guifen's arm: "Mom, come inside first. Weiguo brought all the paste, wrapped it in a quilt, and we'll put up our Spring Festival couplets first."

Is Wei ready?

Spending the Lunar New Year here?

The elderly couple didn't react for a moment.

But the neighbors nearby, seeing the newly pasted Spring Festival couplets and the lively scene, all stood on tiptoe to look over.

"What's going on with Guifen? Why is it so lively?"

"Old Li, are you still playing chess? I don't think I'll be able to win any money from you this year."

"..."

"What's going on! I have a great son-in-law! He's coming to my house for Chinese New Year this year!!" Wu Guifen was unusually upright today.

"What the hell? Nothing is more important than spending time with my grandson!! Oh, look how cold my granddaughter's face is, let Grandpa carry you inside."

It's said that daughters give birth to grandsons, but today, the two of them were calling their grandson with great pleasure.

"Haha, alright, fourth sister married into a good family. Hurry up and get busy, I'll take the kids to pay New Year's visits later! Give them lots of red envelopes, you can't escape them this year."

The entire street was filled with former veterans and former colleagues from the school.

They all have the custom of visiting each other's homes during the Chinese New Year.

In the past, everyone knew that Wu Guifen's family had no son and no one to keep her company, so they would deliberately avoid her house during the Spring Festival.

But this year is different. The fourth daughter found a good husband who is actually willing to spend New Year's Eve at her parents' home!

"Alright, alright, come on over!"

The elderly couple hadn't been happier than they were today in most of their lives.

The smile never faded all day.

When she arrived at the Li family, Li Xiuhe no longer considered herself a concubine.

She took the initiative to help Lu Weiguo with his tasks.

Paste Spring Festival couplets and set off firecrackers.

After a thorough cleaning of the whole house, the entire place looked completely different in less than a morning.

Li Guangrong took his two little ones to the street to buy food, and also bought a pair of the largest lanterns in the entire supply and marketing cooperative.

It was hung high on their own door.

Before nightfall, the electricity was already connected with wires.

"Weiguo, I'm sorry to have troubled you. Did you already discuss this with my in-laws?"

"Mom, what's there to feel wronged about? It doesn't matter whose house we spend the New Year at. My dad even said that our family won't fight for a whole year from now on."

"Who says daughters aren't children? If I wasn't worried you wouldn't be comfortable staying here, I was thinking of taking you all to the village for the New Year."

"Good, good, good!!" Wu Guifen waved her hands in the air.

Looking at the atmosphere at home, I felt helpless, yet also a little flustered and excited.

According to local customs.

Two meals a day, plus dumplings made in the early morning.

In the morning, everyone ate some pastries to tide them over.

But the lunch at 2 PM is truly sumptuous.

Lu Weiguo had prepared smoked meat and smoked chicken in advance, all of which were neatly arranged on the table.

Not cutting or tearing it symbolizes family reunion.

A fresh braised fish, its head facing Li Guangrong.

Before the food was even served, the old man excitedly downed two ounces of baijiu (Chinese liquor).

Of all the people, Lu Jiacheng was the happiest.

The candies and pastries were all high-end goods that Li Guangrong bought.

The old man spent all his savings today, buying whatever he could get his hands on.

They even bought two large plates of braised vegetables and braised meat, which they usually wouldn't eat.

"Come on, let's give out red envelopes before dinner. Everyone gets one, but let's not fight!"

Wu Guifen took out five large red envelopes from the small house.

"And mine?" Li Xiulian accepted the red envelope, knelt down, and kowtowed three times to her parents.

Lu Jiacheng followed suit, but instead of kowtowing three times, he kowtowed more than ten times.

In his mind, three heads meant one red envelope, so bowing more would definitely mean more.

It made the whole family burst into laughter.

Lu Weiguo accepted the red envelope, but then immediately took out something from his pocket in a plastic bag.

"Mom and Dad, you've worked so hard these past few years. This is the retirement money that Xiulian and I discussed for you."

We don't have the custom of raising children here, but you've been taking care of me for years. Now that I'm better off, I should try my best to be filial.

Judging from the shape of that plastic bag, this wad of money must be worth over a thousand.

The two elderly people in the Li family were not in a position to accept the money.

The traditional Northeastern activity, Siba, has begun again.

"Mom, please accept this; it's a token of my filial piety."

"Yes! Guifen, accept them. Save them for our grandchildren!"

"Good, good, good," Wu Guifen said three times. "Who says a son-in-law is inferior to a son?!"