Lu Yanzhao reluctantly returned to his room and put on the ready-made clothes that Gu Nanjiao had used to showcase on New Year's Eve.

It must be said that Lu Yanzhao looked really good in it, and his handsome face was made even more radiant and charming.

Lu Yanzhao took out a small wooden box from behind his back. Inside was a wooden comb, which was quite unique. Its intricate openwork design gave it a rustic and dignified feel.

"A gift for me?"

Gu Nanjiao took it, somewhat incredulous. A while ago, when she was combing her hair, two teeth of the comb broke off, and she hadn't had time to buy a new one. She hadn't expected this guy to be so thoughtful.

"Thank you." Gu Nanjiao forced a smile, though she felt a little awkward.

In ancient times, giving a hair comb as a gift meant a lifelong entanglement, carrying a profound connotation, signifying tying the knot or a private engagement for life.

She didn't know if Lu Yanzhao was simply being kind by giving her a new comb because it was broken, or if he had other intentions.

Lu Yanzhao glanced at Gu Nan's blushing face, his dark eyes flashing.

"Brother, you only bought it for your wife, not for me and Mom."

Lu Xiaomei ran over, wearing the red jacket that Gu Nanjiao had bought for her, and her hair was styled in two buns, which looked very pretty.

“Three sets in total, how could there be no sets for Mother and you?” Lu Yanzhao magically produced a small cloth bag from behind his back, inside which were two wooden combs, exactly the same as Gu Nanjiao’s.

"Wow, it's exactly the same as my sister-in-law's! I'll show it to Mom." Lu Xiaomei was very happy and skipped off to find her mother with the wooden comb.

Gu Nanjiao felt a wave of embarrassment. It turned out she had been overthinking things. The other person had simply given her a comb; perhaps she had just done it as a side effect.

She glanced at Lu Yanzhao, her eyes filled with resentment. Lu Yanzhao, you deserve to be single forever.

...

Gu Nanjiao and Lu's mother spent the whole morning preparing a large New Year's Eve dinner.

This was Gu Nanjiao's first time celebrating the New Year in another world, and it was quite lively. Lu Yanzhao picked up a plate of firecrackers and lit them when the dumplings were put into the pot. Crackling and popping! It symbolized bidding farewell to the old year and welcoming the new.

Gu Nanjiao prepared her signature dishes from her previous life, with Lu's mother helping by frying meatballs. The first dish was steamed shrimp with eggs, symbolizing a prosperous future. The meat dishes included sweet and sour pork ribs, braised crucian carp, spicy diced chicken, and boiled beef. The vegetarian dishes included stir-fried bamboo shoots, spicy diced radish, stir-fried shredded potatoes, stuffed tofu, and finally, a meatball soup symbolizing reunion. In total, there were ten dishes, representing perfection.

A large table of dishes was laid out, their colors enticing and their aroma irresistible. Lu Xiaomei, sitting to the side, couldn't help but swallow her saliva. She had never seen such a sumptuous New Year's Eve dinner before, with a full ten dishes, most of which were meat. In the past, she would only have dumplings for the New Year at most. But since her sister-in-law came to her house, every day felt like New Year's Day, and New Year's Day felt like a dream, a blissful, dizzying experience.

After the New Year's Eve dinner, the family stayed up late to welcome the new year. They sat in Lu's mother's room, eating melon seeds, chatting, and planning for a wonderful new year.

The ancestral worship ceremony begins on the first day of the Lunar New Year.

With Lu Yanzhao's father gone, Lu Lao Er became the leader who guided the younger generation to participate in the ancestral worship ceremony.

Early in the morning, Lu Lao Er and Lu Yanping each came over with a bag of paper money. As soon as they entered, they began to apologize:

"Yanzhao, your second uncle really didn't know what your second aunt and Yanping did. After I heard about it, I immediately reprimanded them, and they didn't dare to do it again. Such a thing will definitely not happen again."

Lu Yanzhao gave them a cold look, and Lu Yanping shrank behind his father in fright, leaving the second son of the Lu family feeling embarrassed.

He cursed Lu Yanping inwardly for being useless.

The previous theft incident made Gu Nanjiao unable to look Lu Yanping in the eye.

Lu Lao Er forced a smile: "Yan Zhao, no matter what, we are all family. Now that the ancestral worship is about to begin, it's not good for our ancestors to see us as enemies. You are still studying, and if the clan finds out, it might affect your reputation."

According to local custom, neither married women nor daughters-in-law can participate in ancestral worship ceremonies. Only the men of the family can participate. If there is disharmony within the family, participating in ancestral worship is believed to negatively impact one's fortune. Filial piety and ancestral worship are fundamental to family prosperity.

Lu's mother had a strong sense of clan and was superstitious, so she was very afraid of diminishing Lu Yanzhao's good fortune in his studies.

"Yanzhao, it's the New Year, let's put everything else aside for now. Ancestor worship is the most important thing. You should go with your second uncle."

Since it was the Lunar New Year, Lu Yanzhao didn't want to make a fuss, so he went with Lu Lao Er and the others.

The men went to pay respects to their ancestors, and the women, having nothing else to do, began visiting each other's homes to exchange New Year's greetings.

Before Gu Nanjiao and the others had even left the house, Liu arrived with Zhang Xiaohu.

As soon as Zhang Xiaohu entered the door, he called out to Gu Nanjiao, "Aunt Lu, your nephew has come to wish you a Happy New Year."

Zhang Xiaohu was wearing a traditional Chinese jacket with a front opening and a tiger-head hat with a lifelike little tiger on it.

Gu Nanjiao patted Zhang Xiaohu's chubby head: "Good boy, here, Auntie's giving you a red envelope."

Zhang Xiaohu accepted it and bowed respectfully: "Your kindness and generosity are beyond words, thank you so much."

Gu Nanjiao was immediately amused and looked at Liu Shi: "This little person, so pedantic."

Liu covered her mouth and laughed, "Look, she hasn't even started school yet, but she's already learned a few lines from the article and is starting to sound all literary."

"Xiao Hu is really smart; he's got the makings of a scholar. Sister-in-law Meihua, you'd better nurture him well."

Hearing Gu Nanjiao's praise, Liu Shi immediately beamed with joy: "After hearing what you said, I really feel that I made the right decision. No matter how hard it is, I will let Xiaohu study. Look at Manager Lü, she is also a woman raising a child, and she is able to stand on her own."

Speaking of Lü Siniang, Gu Nanjiao remembered that Lü Siniang had asked her to design a long gown for a middle-aged man, but she didn't know who to give it to. Women love to gossip, so Gu Nanjiao quietly asked Liu Shi:

"Sister-in-law Meihua, do you know who Manager Lü gave the clothes he made to?"

After thinking for a moment, Liu said, "It seems to be Wen Zhang's teacher. She said she was grateful to him for taking care of Wen Zhang for a while. She doesn't know what to give him. Since I own a clothing shop, I might as well make a garment to express my gratitude."

Gu Nanjiao became interested, her face full of gossip: "I think she's a little interested in Wenzhang's teacher, what do you think?"

Liu also became interested, and the two of them lowered their heads to gossip together: "I think so too. Let me tell you, that day I saw..."

While at home, Lü Siniang sneezed and rubbed her nose. Wen Zhang, who was beside her, said with concern, "Mother, it's very cold outside. You should put on more clothes and make sure you get well!"

Lu Siniang slapped Wenzhang on the head: "Don't use fancy words when you talk to your mother. I don't understand. Speak plainly."

Wen Zhang straightened his expression and said, "Mother, please put on another layer of clothing; you'll catch a cold. It pains me to see you like this."

“My dear son, I know you’re filial. Your mother is dressed warmly; it won’t be a cold. But…” Thinking of the clothes she had sent and the satisfied look in Master Gu’s eyes, a hint of shyness flashed in Lü Siniang’s eyes: “Perhaps someone is talking about your mother?”

"Mother, who will miss you? For so many years, it's just the two of us during the New Year, all alone." Wen Zhang lowered his eyes, a little disappointed.

Suddenly, as if remembering something, Wenzhang exclaimed excitedly, "Maybe Aunt Liu and Xiaohu are talking about you. Xiaohu doesn't have a father either, so they spend the New Year alone. Mom, shall we go to Xiaohu's house tomorrow?"

Lu Siniang patted Xiaohu's head, her eyes a little sore: "Yes, your Aunt Liu and Xiaohu are also spending the New Year alone. However, your Aunt Liu will be coming over tomorrow. Today, your Aunt Liu went back home with Xiaohu to burn paper money for his father."

“Let’s go, let’s send some paper money to your father so he can have a good New Year in the afterlife.”