The group entered the house, greeted each other, and then Wu Yucheng and Jiang Yanbin took out a stack of red envelopes and gave New Year's money to their nephews one by one.

Earlier at the train station, Sheng Xiping and the others hadn't had a chance to spend money, but now they each took out a red envelope and stuffed it into Wu Peng and Wu Hao's hands.

The children were overjoyed and jumped for joy.

Actually, there wasn't much money in the red envelope, just three or five yuan. It's Chinese New Year, it's all about having a festive atmosphere and making the kids happy.

"Alright, put your New Year's money away, go wash your hands and come back for dinner." Sheng Liancheng looked at the room full of grandchildren and his face was so happy that his wrinkles deepened.

Upon hearing this, the children quickly put the red envelopes in their pockets, then washed their hands and went to help serve the food.

The food was already prepared and kept warm in the pot. Soon it was all brought out, one table on the kang (heated brick bed) and another on the floor.

Zhang Shuzhen and Aunt Li were on the kang (heated brick bed).

This table is for feeding the children, while the others sit at the table on the floor.

It just so happened that Sheng Xiping and his brothers were with Wu Yucheng and Jiang Yanbin.

"Hey, let's wait a bit before we eat. Let me take a picture of everyone. This year, our family is the most complete one yet."

Sheng Xiping suddenly remembered something, hurriedly grabbed his camera, had everyone sit together, took several pictures, and then sat down to eat.

Family reunion and joyful celebration—on such a happy day, we definitely need to have a couple of drinks.

Sheng Xiping poured wine for his two brothers-in-law. The brothers drank a few cups with Wu Yucheng and Jiang Yanbin. Sheng Liancheng was happy and also drank a little.

On the kang (heated brick bed), Sheng Xinyao and Sheng Xinze were already able to eat by themselves, and with Sheng Xinhua and a few others taking care of them, there was no need to worry at all.

Wu Peng and Wu Hao, on the other hand, were very mischievous, insisting on grabbing things with their hands and putting them in their mouths.

Zhang Shuzhen and Aunt Li each held one of them, stuffed a chicken leg into their hands, and let them do whatever they wanted.

Kids love meat, and with a chicken leg in hand, the two kids quieted down and stopped climbing on the table and causing all sorts of trouble.

Zhang Shuzhen and Aunt Li also took the opportunity to feed the child some food.

These two little guys have big appetites; they'll eat anything you give them, and they finished almost everything in no time.

Wu Yucheng and Jiang Yanbin both have average alcohol tolerance.

Even though it's the Lunar New Year, Sheng Xiping and his brothers can't just keep drinking.

Everyone just had a few drinks, but the main thing was chatting and eating.

After finishing their meal and cleaning up, the men sat on the sofa drinking tea and chatting, while the women sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) to soothe the children and chat.

"Fourth son, how have you been at the Jiang family's these past few days? Are Yanbin's parents treating you well?" Zhang Shuzhen asked softly, holding her daughter's hand.

“My parents-in-law treat me well. My brother and sister-in-law don’t live together, but we spend New Year’s Eve together.”

My sister-in-law is a nice person, easy to talk to, but her son is quite mischievous; he can search through a mouse hole.

"But that child is quite nice to me, calling me 'little aunt' all the time, and he's quite happy to play with me." Sheng Yunfang told her mother with a smile about her in-laws' family.

"Well, as long as your in-laws are easy to get along with, that's fine."

Anyway, you only go back to stay for a few days a year, so it's acceptable as long as it's not too bad.

"Be observant in your in-laws' house. If your mother-in-law is cooking, help out if you can. Don't take on everything yourself; just make sure things look presentable."

Zhang Shuzhen nodded and whispered tips on how to get along with her in-laws.

"I know, Mom, don't worry." Sheng Yunfang wasn't a pushover; on the contrary, she was quite assertive and wouldn't let herself be bullied.

The mother and daughter huddled together, whispering to each other. Sheng Yunfei also came over and clung to her mother's arm, acting spoiled.

Zhang Shuzhen hugged her two daughters and couldn't help but sigh at how fast time had passed. In the blink of an eye, both of her daughters had gotten married and become someone else's wives.

"Neither of you has a good temper. When you get along with your son-in-law in the future, you can't be too strong-willed, you know?"

Between husband and wife, every argument weakens their relationship.

These family matters are inherently a mess; there's no clear right or wrong, so don't take them too seriously. It's pretty much the same old story.

Zhang Shuzhen, speaking from experience, offered her daughter some advice.

Sheng Yunfang and Sheng Yunfei exchanged a glance and smiled. "Mom, we understand. Don't worry, we'll live a good life."

During the Spring Festival, when the family is reunited, especially with the arrival of Jiang Yanbin, the new son-in-law, they can't just sit there and chat all the time.

Zhou Qinglan washed a lot of fruit, put it on the coffee table, and invited Wu Yucheng and Jiang Yanbin to eat.

Over there, Sheng Xitai pulled out two decks of cards and invited Jiang Yanbin and Wu Yucheng to play cards.

The point of celebrating the Chinese New Year is to have fun, and since his brother-in-law had invited them, Wu Yucheng and Jiang Yanbin felt embarrassed to refuse.

So they pulled Sheng Xikang along, moved two small stools, and the four of them started playing cards at the coffee table.

Sheng Xikang and the others all have jobs, and they took their annual leave to come back this year specifically for Sheng Yunfang's wedding.

Now that the New Year is over, they should head back to work.

So, after a day of excitement, on the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, Sheng Xi'an, Sheng Xikang, Sheng Yunfang and others boarded the train back home.

Wu Yucheng and Sheng Yunfei work at their own company, so they're not in a hurry to go back and can stay for a few more days.

Sheng Xitai is now a graduate student, so he doesn't have as many holidays as he did during his undergraduate years. He usually returns to school around the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.

After discussing it, everyone decided to take the children back to the forest farm for a few days before school started.

So, on the morning of the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, after seeing off Sheng Xikang and the others, Sheng Xiping and his brother filled the trunk with delicious food and then sent Sheng Liancheng and his wife, as well as Sheng Xinhua and the others, back to the forest farm.

Sheng Liancheng and his wife hadn't been home for a long time. Even if there were people at home to look after them and help with the fire, they still had to go back to tidy up and make sure to start a fire.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!