On the morning of New Year's Eve, the whole family put on new clothes, even the steward and servants; no one was left out.

Mu Zhizhi also made new cotton-padded clothes for the two aunts next door. Even Shen Xingmian did not expect that the one who interacted most with the neighbors was actually her aunt.

She gets along very well with her great-aunt, and she likes to go over and sit there whenever she has free time, sometimes for quite a while.

Since someone in the family started cooking, Mu Zhizhi has had a lot of free time.

She initially thought it unnecessary to hire someone, but Shen Xingmian persuaded her to agree.

Cooking can be an occasional hobby, but she shouldn't become the family's cook. Now that we can afford to hire someone, there's no need for her to cook every day.

Mu Zhizhi was eventually persuaded, and she also felt that there was some truth to it.

With plenty of free time, she would go next door every day to embroider with Liang Yueran, whose eyesight had completely recovered. Many of the new cotton-padded clothes were also made by them together.

Looking at the happy family, Shen Xingmian felt like she was dreaming. She never even dared to dream that such a day would come.

The house is decorated with many red lanterns, creating a strong festive atmosphere. In the kitchen, they've already started frying meatballs and spring rolls, foods that are only made during the Lunar New Year.

The people of the North used to suffer greatly and could hardly afford fried food. This year, things are much better. A fried food stall has even opened on the street, so those who crave it can finally satisfy their cravings during the New Year.

This shop was opened by Wanrong's husband, Wanquan, after Shen Xingmian taught her how to make the recipe. It's considered a family business.

She found a method for traditionally pressing soybean oil in a video, which is why she had the idea of ​​letting them start a small business.

Otherwise, if there's no income for a long time, people might start to panic.

I feel at ease when I have something to do.

Xu Ce also went to the Northern Border with the steward and the others. After arriving, he didn't really want to go to the army. He just wanted to stay by the side of his young master, Xiao Yanyue. But Xiao Yanyue didn't need anyone to serve her at all.

So he went next door to take care of the young master's family.

Now he's joined Wan Quan in starting a small fried food business, and he's quite happy with it every day.

After weathering life's storms, everyone cherishes the peace they have when they finally have it again, and Xu Ce is a prime example of that.

On New Year's Eve, everyone was given a holiday. Even Shen Zhiheng went home to have a reunion dinner before going to the military camp.

This year, there were many more people gathered together, making the atmosphere very lively. We also bought more firecrackers than last year, making the New Year's spirit even stronger.

The children ran around inside and outside, sneaking into the kitchen to steal a bite whenever they had a spare moment. Their mouths were greasy, and they were overjoyed.

Shen Jun, in particular, fell in love with sports after experiencing the feeling of being able to run and jump freely, and would pester Xiao Yanyue to teach him martial arts whenever he had free time.

Xiao Yanyue also liked him very much and took him with her all the time, of course, when Shen Xingmian was busy.

Once she has free time, Xiao Yanyue will clearly want to stay by her side more.

However, the two of them were on different paths, and staying with Shen Xingmian was actually slowing down his progress.

Shen Xingmian knew he didn't like being apart from her, so she could only accommodate him a little. Whenever she had free time, she would accompany him to the martial arts arena, where they would practice their special abilities while watching him wield various weapons with great skill.

Well, it is indeed quite pleasing to the eye.

As she watched, it gradually became a habit.

On New Year's Eve, a holiday, Shen Jun, who had nowhere to vent his energy, ran around the house until he was covered in sweat.

As soon as you step outside, you start steaming from your body; it's quite funny to see.

In the afternoon, the food was finally ready. This time, thanks to the professional chef, the dishes were prepared quickly and were still hot when served.

There were too many people to sit together, so everyone found a spot they liked and sat next to the person they wanted to sit next to.

Xiao Yanyue did not force herself to sit next to Shen Xingmian in front of everyone, but instead obediently sat next to her grandmother, though she would occasionally glance at Shen Xingmian.

That slightly intense gaze is really hard to ignore.

Shen Xingmian involuntarily turned her head to look a few times and saw him turn back with a slightly flustered expression.

She couldn't help but sigh inwardly, thinking that if things didn't go as he wished in the future, the child would probably hide away and cry for ten days or half a month.

She felt like an adult toying with a child's feelings, even though she hadn't done anything wrong...

Forget it, it's the Lunar New Year, don't think about nonsense.

She quickly recovered and continued eating with everyone in a lively atmosphere.

After the family reunion dinner, Shen Zhiheng was to go to the military camp, while the others stayed at home and would go to the military camp to have some fun in a few days.

During the Lunar New Year, the house shouldn't be quiet and deserted.

The people here attach great importance to the Chinese New Year. Shen Xingmian guessed that it might be because of the scarcity of material resources. Many things they want and want to eat can only be obtained during the Chinese New Year, which is why they attach such great importance to it.

Unlike in modern times, where new clothes can be bought anytime and snacks are always readily available at home, and material desires are fully satisfied, people lose interest in things like the New Year.

She quite likes it the way it is now.

Looking at the smiling faces around her, Shen Xingmian felt very calm and didn't have many expectations for the future, because this was already good enough.

*

Time flew by, and Shen Xingmian's coming-of-age ceremony arrived sooner than she had anticipated.

In the past two years, her spatial abilities have been upgraded once again, and all her superpowers have advanced, greatly increasing her strength. However, she has very few opportunities to use them.

After controlling both seeds and ironware, other countries dared not act recklessly, and the Emperor of Lin Yue dared not provoke them at all, making them seem to have no presence.

Shen Xingmian even felt that the Shen family was already the uncrowned kings of the Northern Territory.

Although he did not establish an independent small country, his position in the hearts of the people was no less than that of any other country's emperor.

Her status as a "goddess" rose accordingly, and she gained an excellent reputation among outsiders.

After learning that she was about to come of age, several countries extended marriage proposals with extremely friendly attitudes, but Shen Yunting rejected them all without hesitation.

Even knowing that her daughter wouldn't be mistreated after marrying so far away, she still couldn't bear to let her go.

Because of this, she found Xiao Yanyue even more pleasing to the eye, and several times she helped create opportunities for the two of them to be alone. When she left, she had a mother-in-law's smile on her face.

Although no one has explicitly stated it, their relationship has been basically accepted by both sets of parents.

Shen Xingmian also got used to her little tail gradually growing up, and that awkward feeling of oppression gradually disappeared.

Well, apart from her maternal grandfather and parents, it seems that no one in the world is closer to her than Xiao Yanyue.

Including the older sister and younger brother.

They would cling more to their mother than to her, their younger sister (older sister), while only Xiao Yanyue would keep her eyes on her.

At first she was a little resistant, but she gradually got used to it.

She would sometimes find it strange if she didn't see anyone for half a day.