A ragged cub at the beginning

"Xiao Yun, your face has been so red since you came back in the afternoon. Do you have a fever?" Old Madam Du looked at her son with some worry. It is the most difficult to recover from a cold in winter.

"No, no." Du Yun touched his face. The heat spread from the corner of his lips that had been kissed to his entire face, but he had a silly smile on his face.

"Yuwen, do you think this child is a little strange today?" Old Madam Du said to the old sister who had been with her all her life.

"The young master went to the Tang family in the afternoon, and he was like this when he came back." Yu Wen covered his mouth with a handkerchief and smiled, "You are young, it's not strange."

"Yes, yes, look at me. Oh, this stupid head has finally come to his senses." Old Madam Du slapped her thigh with joy. "I wonder if Taoist Feiyun has come back? I'm just waiting for him to calculate an auspicious day."

Tang family.

Tang Xu's face also turned red, but she recovered after a while, except that she couldn't press the corners of her mouth.

Tang Ling looked at her a few times and felt extremely disgusted. This girl was becoming more and more stupid.

Everyone present knew it tacitly. Qiyue didn't understand it. He only knew that when his mother was happy, he was happy. When his mother laughed, he laughed too. The two mother and son had the same smile, and everyone who saw it began to feel helpless.

As night fell, Yu Xiaotao finally called for dinner.

Tang Xu rushed into the kitchen with the children to help serve the dishes. There were braised fish, lion's head, roasted spare ribs, braised pig's trotters, four-happiness meatballs, chicken stewed with mushrooms, stir-fried bamboo shoots with sausage, braised pork with potatoes, braised cabbage with tofu, and fish ball soup. The table was filled with them.

"Wow, it smells so good! Mom! Isn't this mouth-watering!" July turned her head to Tang Xu, but her eyes were glued to the dish.

Tang Xu laughed out loud, "You are indeed drooling."

"It's time to eat!" Zhao Yunniang was also greedy. She swallowed her saliva and set the table with Yu Xiaotao.

Tang Qing no longer put on a stern face and pretended to be an adult. He walked around the table with sparkling eyes, as if he was anxious.

"Hurry up and sit down and eat, eat quickly!" Yu Xiaotao greeted everyone.

"Come, come, come!" Tang Xu first pushed Tang Ling to sit down, and then he sat on Tang Ling's left, next to Qiyue and Yunniang. Tang Yao sat on Tang Ling's right, Tang Qing sat next to him, and finally it was Yu Xiaotao. An An was held in her arms, babbling and stretching out her little hands, trying to grab the bowl on the table.

Tang Xu took out a bottle of plum wine from somewhere and poured a glass for each of the adults present. The children drank honey water. "I hope everyone will be happy and smooth in the new year! The children will be healthy and happy!"

The adults understood and raised their glasses, but the children couldn't reach them, so they stood up and stood on tiptoe to clink glasses with the people next to them.

"It's sweet." Qiyue said, "It's different from sugar water."

"It's honey water." Tang Qing took another sip and found it delicious.

"It smells a bit nice." Zhao Yunniang said happily, "Mother, give it to my sister."

"No, no, my sister is too young. She can't eat honey before she is two years old." Tang Xu quickly stopped her.

"Ah? There is such a saying?" Yu Xiaotao looked at the water that was almost fed to her little daughter, "Why?"

"I can't remember clearly. I don't know who talked to me. If a child eats honey, he will get seriously ill and it may not be cured." Tang Xu had watched too many short videos before and forgot the specific reason. He just remembered that he couldn't drink it.

"I don't want to drink anymore." Zhao Yunniang was frightened and took back her cup. "Sister, rice porridge is also delicious."

"Okay, An An, eat the rice porridge." Yu Xiaotao smiled and touched An An's fair and chubby face. Who wouldn't praise her for her blessed face?

"Let's eat!" Tang Xu waved the hand holding the chopsticks with the momentum of commanding thousands of troops.

The children cheered and picked up their chopsticks for the dishes they wanted most.

Tang Ling took a sip of wine and smiled. She had a cool temperament and always gave people a feeling of being difficult to approach. At this moment, under the dim light, her face with a calm smile seemed like melted snow, stained with the smell of fireworks in the world.

Tang Xu and the three children started fighting over the food at the table. It was as if there were four children at the table, and they all insisted on picking up the food from each other's chopsticks.

Yu Xiaotao prepared rice porridge for An An, and dipped her chopsticks in some chicken soup for her to taste. An An squinted her eyes while eating, and opened her mouth for more.

Is this the life of ordinary people? It's great. Tang Yao thought. He looked at the smile on Tang Ling's face that he had never seen before, and then looked at his brother who was eating heartily. All the unbearable memories faded away at this moment, and his heart was calm and peaceful.

The years are peaceful and smooth. I hope the people I care about will always be in the bright hall, untainted by snow and frost.

When the meal was almost over, Tang Xu took out four big red lucky bags from her bosom. "Here comes the New Year's money! I hope each of our babies is safe and sound!" She said as she gave them to the four children. In each bag there were two silver peanuts, also known as longevity nuts, which were very suitable for giving to children.

"Come! Our great treasure Tang Qing."

Tang Qing stared at the purse in a daze, then turned to look at his brother. This was the first time he had received New Year's money.

Tang Yao was also stunned. He was an orphan, and Tang Qing was his adopted brother. He himself had never received any New Year's money, but he did not expect Tang Xu to have prepared everything. He looked at Tang Xu with gratitude and patted his brother's head, "Thank you, sister."

"Thank you, Sister Xu." Tang Qing held the purse tightly, not caring how much money was in it. But the words "big treasure" made his eyes warm. It turned out that the New Year's Day should have delicious food and blessings from adults. He thought, this is his happiest day, he loves the New Year.

"Come, our little Princess Yunniang's!"

"Thank you, Aunt Xu!" Zhao Yunniang touched the lucky bag but didn't open it. Although she was a little reluctant, she still handed it to her mother.

Yu Xiaotao shook her head, stepped back and said softly, "Keep it for yourself. This is a gift from your aunt Xu."

"Come, our July baby!"

"Thank you, mother! Is this my private money?" Qiyue hugged her mother and kissed her on the face. She opened the purse and took a look. "Wow, it's peanuts made of silver. I can't bear to use it to buy snacks."

"You don't have to buy snacks! Aunt Xiaotao will make them for you!" Yu Xiaotao continued.

"Great." July took out the peanuts and held them in her hand. She took a bite of the vegetable and looked at the peanuts, obviously liking them very much.

After seeing this, Zhao Yunniang secretly took out a peanut and held it in her hand. It was a really beautiful peanut.

"It belongs to our little baby An An."

Yu Xiaotao hesitated for a moment, took it, and thanked An An with a smile.

"Mom, I like this so much." Qiyue pinched the peanuts in her little hands, "So bright and round."

"Like this? Mom will buy you a rope to string it up and hang it around your neck, okay? This is also called the longevity fruit, and I hope our July will live a long life." Tang Xu rubbed his head. He had never thought of it before. Most children seem to bring some gold and silver, longevity locks, gourds, lucky bags, etc., mainly for good luck. Of course, July must have some too. Gold is too conspicuous and easy to be noticed. Silver should be made smaller and put inside clothes so that people won't be afraid of seeing it.

"I prepared it, too." Tang Ling's lucky bag was given by Tang Xu, and it also contained silver peanuts. Tang Ling was not satisfied, so she added some silver ingots to it, which made the lucky bag heavy. In fact, if the lucky bag was not small, she would have put more in it. Tang Xu only gave her four lucky bags, and Tang Ling directly stuffed a silver note into her hand.

"Wow! Thank you, sister!" Tang Ling put it away happily.

"Thank you, Auntie!" the four children said in unison. "Wow, it's so heavy and there are so many!"

Tang Qing frowned and slapped his lips. How could he call her aunt? He said again, "Thank you, Sister Ling." He pretended that he had not said the previous sentence.

"Buy some candy." Tang Ling said.

Tang Yao began to feel annoyed at this moment. He didn't know about this custom and didn't prepare a lucky bag. He only had a few pieces of silver on him, so he took them all out and distributed them to the children.

"This, this is too much." Silver peanuts are already very valuable, and ordinary people put copper coins. Yu Xiaotao even went to the silver shop to exchange for silver melon seeds, which seemed a bit shabby compared to the Tang family's. She felt a little embarrassed.

Tang Xu saw her embarrassment and said mischievously, "Sister Xiao Tao, didn't you prepare anything for the children? Is there anything for me? I want some too."

"Yes, yes." Yu Xiaotao took out a bunch, and everyone present had one.

Tang Yao was flattered, "Me, me too?"

"Of course, there are unmarried ones!" Yu Xiaotao saw that they were not disgusted and didn't control her mouth for a moment, "You are not married yet, right? What kind of girl do you like? Sister will help you find one."

Tang Yao was silent, thinking that he should be older than Yu Xiaotao. Yu Xiaotao had given birth to two children and suffered a lot afterwards, so she looked a little old, but in fact she was only 24 years old. But it was inappropriate to say this at the moment, so he thanked her softly, put away his New Year's money, and did not respond to the topic of the little girl. The person he liked was right beside him.

"Put it under your pillow when you go to bed at night, okay?" Tang Xu instructed.

"Okay, Mom!" July raised her little hand and responded positively.

Yunniang and Tang Qing also nodded to show that they understood.

When everyone had almost finished eating, they chatted and laughed together while they cleared the table and washed the dishes.

Tang Yao took the initiative to send Yu Xiaotao and her daughter home. After a walk around Yu's house, he returned to Tang's house. The cold wind was biting, but he held the small lucky bag, but felt a hint of warmth spreading from his heart.

Lights were on in every room, and it was normal for them to keep watch. Qiyue was too young to endure it, and Tang Xu yawned and felt very sleepy. Tang Ling could endure it, but she didn't think it was necessary. Tang Qing didn't know at all, and Tang Yao sat on the roof and sighed.

The whole family slept separately and no one stayed up to celebrate the New Year.

Just after midnight, there was a sudden explosion of firecrackers and fireworks outside. Tang Xu squinted his eyes and glanced at the window, then hugged Qiyue and continued to sleep.

Tang Yao walked out of the house, looking at the fireworks shining in the sky. There was a strong smell of gunpowder in the air. When it was not used to make a killing weapon, it was so beautiful. He turned around and looked at Tang Ling who followed him out, "A Ling, I'm starting to like this place too."

"Ah."

The next morning, Tang Xu woke up and shouted excitedly, "Get up and put on new clothes!"

Everyone put on their new clothes. Tang Yao's pink dress was as dazzling as July's yellow. Tang Xu smiled secretly and hung a cloth bag on July and Tang Qing, "Okay, go and pay New Year's greetings!"

"Aunt Xu! Brother July! Are you awake?" Fang Zijun started paying attention to the movements in the Tang family as soon as he woke up and was knocking on the door.

"Get up, get up!" Tang Xu opened the gate. It was customary here to greet neighbors on the first day of the new year. The children of the neighboring families would get together and visit every household to greet the new year, and the adults would give them all kinds of candies and snacks.

"Come on, brother Qiyue, is brother Tangqing okay?" Fang Zijun was also dressed in yellow, and his winter clothes were thick. The two children standing together looked like two chubby little chicks, so cute.

Tang Qing was dressed in bright red. He had a heroic appearance, and there was always a hint of arrogance between his eyebrows. He was definitely a young master from a wealthy family. He rode a horse and dressed in fine clothes, enjoying the world.

"I haven't eaten yet." Tang Xu said.

"You won't be able to eat soon! Don't eat! Believe me!" Fang Zijun pulled one in each hand and ran away happily.

The four people from Qi Qing's side came over to wish Tang Xu a happy new year. They were about to kowtow, but Tang Xu stopped them. "It's the New Year, we are of the same generation, this shouldn't happen."

"Miss, you haven't had breakfast yet, right? We steamed some buns this morning and brought them to you?" Qi Qing said with a smile.

"Okay, thank you." Tang Xu was happy that she didn't have to cook. Qi Qing knew Tang Ling and Tang Yao's appetite, so she took all the remaining buns and went to the kitchen to make a pot of noodle soup.

Tang Xu was full after two buns and half a bowl of noodle soup. Tang Ling wanted five buns and a bowl of soup. The remaining seven buns and half a pot of soup were all eaten by Tang Yao, but no one knew whether he was full or not.

Tang Xu bought a lot of New Year's goods, including dried fruits, snacks and candies. He now filled the table with them, waiting for the children from the neighborhood to come.

With nothing to do and no need to take care of the children, Tang Xu spread out a piece of drawing paper and took out the pen Du Yun gave him. He played with it for a while before grinding ink and starting to paint.

"What do you want to draw?" Tang Ling walked to the window and asked.

"Draw a family portrait." Tang Xu hesitated before he started writing without even looking up. He took out a small piece of paper and made a rough draft. After he was sure, he drew it on a large piece of paper. He would send it for framing! And then he would hang it at home!

"Am I included?" Tang Yao asked.

"It's up to you." Tang Xu grinned and glanced at Tang Ling.

Because Tang Xu was very friendly to the children, everyone had a good impression of her family. Qiyue and Tang Qing were treated almost the same as the children who grew up here, and each of them had a lot of food stuffed in their pockets. They ate as they walked, and their cloth bags became fuller and fuller. When the children passed by their own homes, they would empty their bags.

Du Jiarui waited eagerly at the door, and finally waited for his friends. "Come quickly! My grandma prepared sweet-scented osmanthus rice wine dumplings, they are delicious! Come to my house and eat!"

Housekeeper Qi smiled and welcomed the children into the house. The cook quickly served the glutinous rice balls in small bowls. The children loved going to the Du family. They always prepared some hot sweet soup, which was rarely eaten on weekdays. The children didn't care and could eat it while standing or squatting. Some even ate it by sitting on the floor.

Turning to Jiang's house, Jiang's father came back. Wang Yan restrained herself a lot. Jiang Xiaodong took his sister to play. After the stepmother came, the children were told not to visit their family within two years. In fact, when Jiang Xiaodong's mother was still alive, everyone had a good relationship with their family. Children often came to play during the New Year and other holidays. Although Jiang's father was puzzled, he didn't like children making noises, and he was not familiar with the neighbors because he was away all year round, so he didn't pay much attention.

Wang Yan didn't care even more. It was better if no one came to her house. She saved a lot of trouble. Although she didn't want others to come to her house, she encouraged Jiang Xiaobei to go and pay New Year's greetings. Jiang Xiaobei was reluctant. He could feel that everyone didn't like him. When they saw other children, they all smiled and grabbed a handful of dried fruits when they saw him, but they just ignored him.

Jiang Xiaodong was treated differently from him, but he was too embarrassed to go.

July had just arrived and didn't know the rules. When she saw Jiang Xiaodong passing by Jiang's house, she rushed in happily. "Brother Xiaodong! Happy New Year! Wish you good fortune!"

"Whose child is so rude? Who is he wishing New Year's to? Can't you see the adults are here?" Wang Yan scolded with a stern face.

Qiyue was stunned and whispered, "I'm sorry!"

Tang Qing pulled him behind him and said, "Why are you being so mean to my brother?"

"Why are you arguing with a child? You feel uncomfortable during the New Year, right?" Jiang's father was a burly man and spoke in a very loud voice.

Wang Yan shrank her neck and didn't say anything. Fang Zijun rushed in and pulled Qiyue out, "Qiyue, brother, hurry up, there's a tigress in this house! She'll scold and beat you up!"

"Brother Xiaodong, Sister Xiaonan." July turned around and shouted.

"What tigress?" Father Jiang narrowed his eyes and looked at Wang Yan. Wang Yan shuddered and shook her head desperately, "I don't know, the child is just talking nonsense."

"Dad, I'm going out to play." Jiang Xiaodong said.

"Go." Father Jiang looked at Wang Yan again.

"I want to go too! Otherwise you are not allowed to go!" Jiang Xiaobei blocked the way.

Jiang Xiaodong ignored him, pulled his sister aside and followed July and the others.

Jiang Xiaobei snorted and fell behind.

All the children were warmly welcomed. There is a folk saying that more children will bring good fortune to the family. Except for Jiang Xiaobei, no one cared to pay attention to him. They just symbolically grabbed two melon seeds and that was it.