As darkness fell, people who had been out were hurrying home.

Xia Jianguo took out the brazier in his house and lit charcoal in the main room. The charcoal would burn until dawn, symbolizing a prosperous and thriving year ahead.

Xia Minmin saw Li Chunmei carrying a box and placing it on the table. "Mom, what's this?"

"This is a mahjong set. Mom will teach you how to play mahjong tonight, okay?"

"Grandma said that playing mahjong is gambling, which is a bad thing."

"It's okay, just don't fight with others."

Xia Jianguo and Xia Xiaomei went to move the large table where the offerings were placed. Xia Xiaomei knew exactly where everything in the house was kept.

Li Chunmei filled the folding table with snacks; after all, the New Year is all about eating and drinking.

"Have you and your siblings found a table yet?" Li Chunmei asked, standing at the entrance of the warehouse.

"We've found my sister-in-law. She needs to be washed; she's covered in dust."

Xia Minmin sat alone in the main room, eating, drinking, and warming herself by the fire, thoroughly enjoying herself.

Li Chunmei was cooking dinner in the kitchen. She planned to eat something simple for the night. There were no elderly people in the family, and the young people were bound to be a bit careless during the New Year and didn't pay much attention to the rules.

Xia Minmin remembers that for several years during the Spring Festival, she would go with Li Qing to her maternal grandmother's house to set off firecrackers on New Year's Eve. The elders had many more customs and traditions, and the whole ceremony would take one or two hours to complete. Each village also had its own variations.

Young people mostly simplify the ceremony; later on, even setting off a string of firecrackers was considered elaborate.

The offering table was finally washed and placed in the main room. After it dried, cooked pig's head, chicken, and carp would be placed on it that evening.

After a busy afternoon, the three adults were finally able to sit down and rest.

"Second brother, should we go call eldest brother?" Xia Xiaomei murmured.

Xia Jianguo said impatiently, "If you want to call him, then call him. He's not a child. If he wants to come out, he'll come out on his own. I'm not going to give him a way out. Chen Chunhua scolded her parents and he didn't say anything. How am I supposed to forgive him?"

"Auntie, they're hungry, they'll come out on their own, don't worry."

Li Chunmei never expressed her opinion on these matters; after all, she was their own sister, and she would be blamed if she said anything wrong.

"Mom, can I have a small piece of sugarcane?"

"Dinner is coming soon, we'll eat sugarcane after dinner."

"Okay, when is Mom going to have dinner?"

"I'll go take a look." Li Chunmei got up and went to the kitchen.

"Jianguo, tidy up the folding table, it's time for dinner."

Xia Minmin ran to close the door to prepare for dinner. The main door of the main room was directly in the wind. The wind was much stronger tonight than in the past few days, and the temperature had dropped considerably. It might snow tonight.

"Chunmei, let's set off firecrackers early today. The sky looks a bit strange; it might snow."

"I'll flip through the perpetual calendar after I finish eating."

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Chen Chunhua looked at the electricity and said, "Jianshe, what's wrong with your brother? He doesn't invite us to dinner. You have that ungrateful little sister of yours, and she doesn't invite us either."

"Chen Chunhua, don't you understand? You've brought up my parents and angered them. They're not even willing to maintain a semblance of civility."

"I didn't mean it!" Chen Chunhua explained.

"Then don't insult the phrase 'speaking without thinking'."

"Jianshe, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to."

Xia Jianshe muttered to himself, "You're not wrong, I'm the one who's wrong. I shouldn't have married you against my parents' wishes."

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Everyone in the village was talking about the latest gossip about Chen Chunhua, who cursed her deceased parents-in-law on New Year's Eve, a rare sight in this simple rural village.

If it weren't for the Lunar New Year, the elders who were still alive would come over to lecture Xia Jianshe and Chen Chunhua. Although their brother was gone, they still had to take good care of his descendants.

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"Chunmei, have you checked the perpetual calendar yet?"

"What time is it now?"

"Eight o'clock!"

"Then let's hurry, it's auspicious time at eight o'clock, before anyone sets off firecrackers."

Li Chunmei quickly brought out the offerings from the kitchen and placed them on the altar. She lit incense and candles on the altar and respectfully bowed three times.

The rest of the family also bowed three times.

Xia Jianguo walked out of his house carrying incense and candles and a string of firecrackers.

Li Chunmei lit incense and candles on the east side of the house and pulled Xia Minmin, who was standing at the door, to pray to the lit incense and candles.

After all the women in the family had finished their prayers, Xia Jianguo lit the firecrackers.

"Happy New Year, Mom and Dad! May the new year bring you good fortune, peace, and prosperity."

Li Chunmei and Xia Jianguo each took out a red envelope and said, "Xiaomin, Happy New Year! We wish you a healthy and happy growth next year."

"Happy New Year, Second Brother and Second Sister-in-law!"

"Little sister, may the new year bring you all the best and good fortune." Li Chunmei and Xia Jianguo handed her a red envelope.

The neighbor next door heard them setting off firecrackers and said, "Jianguo, Happy New Year! Why are you setting off firecrackers so early this year?"

"I noticed the sky looked a bit off, like it was going to snow, so I decided to finish the fire early and go inside to warm up by the fire."

“It does look a bit off. I’ll go fix it too. I have elderly people at home, so the ceremony is much more complicated than yours. If you ask me, the simplest thing is to set off a string of firecrackers.” After saying that, the neighbor went into his house.

Xia Jianguo tidied up briefly and closed the door.

Xia Jianshe, who hadn't shown up for a long time, finally came out of his room and went to the kitchen to cook. No one spoke to him.

Chen Chunhua stood at the door holding her youngest son. The child reached out his hands, begging for a hug, and called out, "Auntie, Auntie!"

Xia Xiaomei couldn't bear it, after all, it was a child she had raised herself.

Xia Xiaomei got up and took the child from her. "Xiaobao, are you hungry?"

"Hungry!"

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