Zhang Hongyan took out two red envelopes that she had prepared in advance from her cotton-padded coat pocket.

She handed one of them to Xia Qingqing first: "Qingqing, this is yours. I hope you are happy every day and that everything goes well for you in the new year."

"Thank you, Mom," Xia Qingqing said with a smile as she accepted the red envelope and gave Zhang Hongyan a big hug.

Then Zhang Hongyan handed another red envelope to Gou Dan: "Gou Dan, this is your New Year's red envelope. I hope you will be healthy and grow up happily in the new year."

After receiving the red envelope, Gou Dan, imitating his older sister, gave his mother a hug: "Hehe, thank you, Mom, you are the best mom in the world~".

"You'll be a year older today, so you need to be more sensible like a big kid, understand?" Zhang Hongyan affectionately patted Gou Dan's short hair.

"I understand. I will be good in the new year and make my parents worry less about me," Gou Dan solemnly promised.

Regardless of whether what he said was true or not, Zhang Hongyan felt very relieved to hear these words.

“After your mom gives out the red envelopes, it’s my turn next,” Xia Heping said with a smile.

Xia Heping handed the red envelopes from his pocket to his daughter and son: "Dad has no other expectations, I just hope that you two siblings can be healthy and happy in the new year, and I will be satisfied."

"Thank you, Dad," Xia Qingqing and Gou Dan said in unison.

Dog Egg happily put the red envelopes his parents gave him into his pocket, then reached out to Xia Qingqing: "Sister, where's the New Year's red envelope we promised this morning?"

Xia Qingqing curled her lips and teased him deliberately, "Then say a few nice things to me first. The happier you make me, the bigger the red envelope will be."

"Sister, I'm the most beautiful sister in the whole world. I wish you become more and more beautiful in the new year, have a better and better figure, never gain weight, and always be a fairy." Gou Dan blinked his big eyes and said nice things as if they were free.

Zhang Hongyan and Xia Heping couldn't bear to watch his fawning manner.

Xia Qingqing was quite pleased to hear this, and took out a red envelope to hand to Gou Dan: "You're right, here, take this big red envelope."

Dog Egg immediately opened the red envelope after receiving it, and there was actually two yuan inside!

"Ah, there are actually two yuan! Sister, you are my fairy sister!" Gou Dan looked at his sister with shining eyes.

He thought the big red envelope his sister mentioned would only contain a dollar at most. You have to understand that for kids like them, even a few cents is a huge sum of money, and their allowance is calculated in cents.

Zhang Hongyan was also a little surprised: "Qingqing, why are you giving him so much money? He'll just buy snacks every day and won't want to eat his meals anymore."

"It's alright, I believe Gou Dan won't squander it, he'll definitely save it carefully," Xia Qingqing said, glancing at Gou Dan and giving him a meaningful look.

Upon receiving his sister's signal, Gou Dan immediately nodded and said, "Yes, I won't spend this money recklessly; I'll save it all."

Gou Dan put the two yuan into his pocket and then opened the red envelopes his parents had given him; both envelopes contained one yuan.

He happily put it into his cotton-padded coat pocket, and didn't forget to pat it afterward.

Hehe, the New Year is really great! He'll have an extra four yuan after the New Year. Let him think about how to spend this money.

“Alright, you two siblings can play here. Your dad and I will clean up the table and wash the dishes,” Zhang Hongyan said, standing up.

Upon hearing this, Xia Qingqing immediately stood up and said, "Mom, you and Dad have both had a long day. Now you should rest. Gou Dan and I will take care of things here."

Zhang Hongyan snatched the bowl and chopsticks from her daughter's hands and said with a smile, "You don't need to do it. It's not a tiring thing. You two don't need to get your new clothes dirty."

Before going to bed that night, Gou Dan sneaked into Xia Qingqing's room just to ask how much money was in the red envelope her parents had given her.

"Well, it's the same as yours, right?" Xia Qingqing replied casually.

Zhang Hongyan and Xia Heping gave her brand new ten-yuan bills as New Year's money. Although it wasn't much, she still didn't tell them the truth, lest Gou Dan feel resentful if he found out.

Dog Egg looked at her suspiciously: "Really? There's only one yuan in my red envelope, and your parents only gave you one yuan too?"

"Of course, this New Year's money is a symbol of good fortune, it has nothing to do with how much money it is. Besides, if I wanted money, my parents would give me a hundred yuan, let alone one yuan," Xia Qingqing continued to deceive.

"Okay, I thought your parents would give you more New Year's money, but it's only one yuan."

It has to be said that after learning the result, Gou Dan not only had his curiosity satisfied, but also felt a little happy.

He wouldn't mind if his parents treated his older sister better, because she was indeed more capable than him, but he would be happier if his parents treated them both the same.

Xia Qingqing could easily see through his little scheme. She smiled and pinched his cheek, saying, "Go to sleep now. Didn't you say you wanted to visit the Red Army's family for the New Year tomorrow?"

"Okay, goodnight, sister."

——

On the first day of the new year, Xia Qingqing, unusually, did not stay in bed and got up early to wish her parents a Happy New Year.

After having breakfast, Gou Dan went to Tian Hongjun's house. He and Tian Hongjun had agreed to visit each other's homes to wish each other a Happy New Year.

When Gou Dan arrived at the Tian family's house, he was surprised to find the entire Tian family at home.

"Uncle Tian, ​​Aunt Tian, ​​Happy New Year! We wish you a Happy New Year."

"Oh, it's Jiale here! Come and have some candy!" Tian's mother immediately went back into the house and brought out the candy, giving Gou Dan a handful and stuffing it into his pocket.

Tian Hongjun was very excited to see Gou Dan coming over: "Gou Dan, you're here! I was just about to go to your house."

"I came right after breakfast. Let's go to my house together later," Gou Dan said with a smile.

Aunt Tian went into the lower bedroom and came out with a small red envelope in her hand: "Jiale, this is a New Year's red envelope from Aunt Tian for you, please accept it."

"Auntie...no need," Gou Dan tried to refuse, but Tian's mother forcefully stuffed it into his pocket.

Aunt Tian patted Gou Dan's shoulder with a smile: "Don't be so polite with Auntie, it's just a small red envelope to add to the festive atmosphere."

"Okay, thank you, Auntie."

After playing at Tian's house for a while, Gou Dan took Tian Hongjun back to his own home.

As soon as Tian Hongjun entered the door, he wished Zhang Hongyan and Xia Heping a Happy New Year and received a red envelope in return.

The two little ones smiled at each other. This was completely unexpected. They thought that they would be happy to receive some candy when they visited each other's homes for the New Year, but they never expected to receive a red envelope.

Actually, this is because both sets of parents know that the two little ones get along very well, which is why they give New Year's red envelopes.

Otherwise, we'd just give red envelopes to any little kid who comes to our house. Even though the amount in the red envelopes isn't big, we don't have that much money to give out.