Tokyo: A leisurely life starting from the countryside

Early in the morning.

Yuuki Shigeki was pulled up from the bed by Kinoshita Yurei.

Kinoshita Hanako had already prepared breakfast and was wearing an old gray dress and a headscarf. At first glance, I thought I had met an old lady from northern Shaanxi.

"Hurry up and eat breakfast. We have a lot to do today."

Kinoshita Hanako urged Yuuki Tsukasa to take a seat, and then began to announce today's arrangements.

"Can you please help me draw cute pictures on each of the greeting cards?"

"Okay, mom." Kinoshita Yurei loves painting, so she naturally wouldn't refuse.

The Japanese New Year is now on January 1st of the Gregorian calendar. It used to be the lunar calendar, but it was changed to the Gregorian calendar mainly to cater to Western countries.

But no matter how it changes, some necessary customs are still retained.

New Year's cards are one of the customs. They are usually sent between relatives and friends. The host writes some blessings and the cards are sent by the postman. They are usually delivered to the other party before the New Year.

Almost all the relatives of the Kinoshita family and the Yuki family have died. Now there are only some relatively good friends, and they are all on the island, so the Kinoshita family only started preparing today.

Arrange tasks for Yurei Kinoshita.

Kinoshita Hanako looked at Yuuki Nozomi again and said softly:

"Xiao Si's task is more complicated. You need to help me hang up the shimenawa first, and then sort out some bamboo. The kadomatsu in the store is not enough. If there is still time, you can try to help me make some materials for the mirror cakes.

Is that ok? Do you think it's too much? Actually, if you are too busy, it's okay. You can do it yourself after I clean the house."

Hanako Kinoshita was a little worried that Yuuki Osamu had never done this before and it would be difficult for him to do it.

Shimenawa ropes, kadomatsu, and kagami-mochi are all decorative items.

Shimeline is a decoration hung on the door. Shimeline is like the thick rope seen in shrines. It is a "barrier" that distinguishes the human world from the gods and can block disasters and bad luck. Hanging shimeline on the door during the New Year represents the good wish of welcoming the gods and ushering in good luck.

Some are paired with "imperial coins" with red and white square paper ribbons, which have the function of purifying filth; some are paired with kelp, which can be associated with the meaning of joy and happiness; some are also added with an orange, which means prosperity for generations.

Some, like the Spring Festival couplets and door gods of Longguo, are for praying and blessing.

The same goes for kadomatsu, which are all decorations, usually made of pine and bamboo, and placed in pairs on both sides of the gate, representing the hero and heroine welcoming the gods at the door.

The main material of Kadomatsu is usually three bamboos of different lengths as the center, representing the positions of "heaven, earth, and man". The bamboos are surrounded by pine branches and tied together with straw mats or straw ropes. The bamboos represent the strong power that can overcome difficulties and obstacles and climb up step by step; the pine branches represent the evergreen trees that can gain strength and luck even in adversity.

As for Kagami Mochi, most of them are two white round rice cakes, one large and one small, stacked together, with an orange on top. Although they are actually rice cakes, they are called "kagami mochi" in Japan. The stacked shape represents rising; the Japanese pronunciation of orange implies prosperity from generation to generation.

All three types of decorations are sold in stores. As a grocery store, Hanako Kinoshita's store happens to sell these things.

In the past, Hanako Kinoshita made them herself.

Business is good today, and we have almost sold out, but it is not New Year yet.

So Hanako Kinoshita wants to make another batch, so it’s not too urgent.

She assigned these tasks to Yuuki Tsukasa, which were not difficult, but also very time-consuming.

If Yuuki Tsukasa can do it, that would definitely be the best. If she can't do it, she can do it herself later.

Yuki Si quite liked this kind of thing, so he nodded and accepted the task.

"Received, guaranteed to complete the task."

Looking at Yuki Tsukasa's serious expression, Kinoshita Hanako couldn't help but burst out laughing, and she felt very happy.

Apart from anything else, with Yuuki Si around, the atmosphere at home is much better and not as depressing as before.

Seeing his mother laughing, Kinoshita Yurei followed his brother's example and shouted in a baby voice:

"I have received your gift, and I promise to complete my mother's mission."

Yuuki Shigeko and Kinoshita Hanako were stunned for a moment, then smiled at each other, and their mood became much better.

After finishing the meal and cleaning up.

The three of them began to divide the work and get busy.

In fact, Hanako Kinoshita was the most tired. She had to sweep the entire house and do a thorough cleaning.

The Kinoshita family's house is quite large, with the first and second floors combined, but it's usually filled with clutter, making the rooms look very small.

Today's spring cleaning will start with turning everything over and cleaning it up, and the workload is enormous.

Yurei Kinoshita is holding a greeting card with a paintbrush in his hand, and various pictures are drawn on the card.

In the past, she painted kittens and puppies, but this year, when Yurei Kinoshita picked up the paintbrush, she didn't want to paint those.

She hummed, looked at her mother who was mopping the floor with her butt sticking out, and her elder brother who was carrying a bunch of things outside, and suddenly smiled.

The brush fell, and soon three abstract figures appeared on the greeting card.

Although the painting is not very beautiful, you can still see that it is a scene of a man and a woman holding a little girl for a walk on the road, and all three of them are smiling happily.

After drawing one, Kinoshita Yurei excitedly ran to Yuki Tsukasa with the greeting card.

"Ouni-san, do you think Yuri's painting is good?"

Yuki Shi was helping Kinoshita Hanako move things when he heard Kinoshita Yurei's voice. He looked down and saw Kinoshita Yurei holding a greeting card and looking at him happily.

I looked carefully at the words on the greeting card. There were no words, only pictures.

"Who is this painting of, Yuri?"

"Yurei's mother, Oni-san, and Yurei-oh."

"Really? It's a beautiful painting."

"Do you think it's okay, Oni-san?"

Yuuki Shi groaned. Most New Year cards are sent to relatives and friends. Kinoshita Hanako didn't let Kinoshita Yurei write anything. She probably wanted to write the blessing herself later. But the picture Kinoshita Yurei drew...

They look somewhat like a family of three. When the time comes to send them away, I'm afraid it won't have a very good impact on Hanako Kinoshita.

Kinoshita Hanako just happened to walk over, and Kinoshita Yurei immediately took out a greeting card to take credit.

Kinoshita Hanako took a look and surprisingly did not curse. Instead, she smiled and touched Kinoshita Yurei's head.

"Youli draws very well."

"Then mom, can I just draw these?"

"of course can."

After getting her mother's approval, Kinoshita Yurei became even happier and skipped back to her drawing table.

Seeing Yuki Shima's puzzled expression, Kinoshita Hanako said calmly:

"Youli's grandparents have passed away, and his uncle doesn't want to associate with us. There aren't many families on the island that have good relationships, so it doesn't matter how he draws."

Yuki Si's expression changed slightly. He hummed without saying anything and turned around to continue his work.

After helping Kinoshita Hanako move most of the heavy objects, Yuki Tsutomu started to do his own task.

I went outside with a knife and went up the mountain to cut some bamboo.

This was not the first time he had made these things. He had done them at home with Yuuki Jūshita before.

So it can be considered that I am familiar with it.

He quickly brought back the bamboo needed for the gate pine, and in no time he made a pot of gate pine.

It's still pretty.

Then we started making mirror cakes, which are actually rice cakes. It is a physical job.

bang bang bang~

With a sound, Yuki Shimada's first New Year's Eve in Neon arrived.

Chapter 203 My Tanaka family has a successor!

December 12st is a dark day.

New Year's Eve in Neon.

"Hahaha……"

Early in the morning.

Yuki Tsukasa looked at Kinoshita Hanako's outfit and laughed unabashedly.

Kinoshita Hanako looked down at her clothes and glared at Yuki Si unhappily.

"what's so funny?"

Yukishi snorted, shook his head and said seriously:

"Aunt, I'm not laughing at you. Really, I swear."

Kinoshita Hanako didn't want to pay any attention to Yuki Shi, and she staggered into the room in her Donald Duck pajamas.

This was bought by Yuuki Tsukasa at the request of Kinoshita Yurei when we were in Tokyo last time.

Hanako Kinoshita actually likes this pajamas very much.

But it does look a little weird when worn on the body, especially with the big butt shaking, it's just hilarious.

Unsurprisingly.

After a while, Kinoshita Yurei's laughter was heard in the room.

"Hahaha mommy is so cute!"

"Stop pretending and get up to eat."

Yuki Si was outside, smiling softly, his eyes looking through the window into the distance.

The New Year is coming to an end, and so are his three months in this world.

I've been through a lot, but overall it's been pretty good.

A few days ago, he received New Year's cards from Mika Mizuno and Masami Takizawa.

Mizuno Mika told him that she would be back after the New Year, but she did not tell Yuuki Tsukasa where she was going specifically.

Takizawa Masami briefly explained why she hadn't come to see him during this period, saying that there were some problems at home and she was very busy and hadn't dealt with them.

Yuki Shiya also wrote a few New Year's cards and sent them out.