Liu was secretly delighted. She had always disliked Yunling, that troublemaker. If it weren't for that wretched woman stirring up trouble, her family would have been living a good life long ago.
They've caused their family so much misery, and they still have the nerve to come knocking on their door asking for red paper money. They even have to repeat Yun Chu's words of blessing and flattery. They're utterly useless.
If it weren't for the fact that she was an elder and it wasn't appropriate to argue with a junior, she wouldn't have given her a single copper coin. Anyway, on this auspicious day of the New Year, she figured that Madam Pan wouldn't dare to come knocking, let alone the spineless Madam Zhang. Since that was the case, she could do whatever she wanted.
The more Liu thought about it, the better she felt. She thought she had turned the tables, but she never expected that the soft-hearted Yun Chu would come to her door and say that she had done something wrong.
"Chu-jie, what are you saying?"
“Grandma, you gave me eight copper coins, but only gave Lingniang one copper coin. That’s not proper.”
Now Liu finally realized that Yun Chu was a simpleton. He should have kept his eight copper coins to himself instead of telling others. Was he stupid?
"How I give you money is my business. How dare you, a brat who just asks for money, talk back to your elders?"
“I didn’t mean to talk back to Grandma, it was just impolite. Grandma should treat me and Lingniang equally.”
Liu was furious at Yun Chu's constant "improper manners." If it weren't for the New Year celebrations, she would have kicked her out.
"Grandma has no money. Should Grandma steal or rob to give Ling-jie money?"
Yun Chu took out seven copper coins from her red paper and placed them on the table. Then she went into the house to retrieve seven melon seeds. "Grandma has no money, so we dare not take it. Lingniang, let's go."
Yunling felt that Yun Chu was amazing, just like a big tree that made people feel safe. She couldn't help but sprout branches from her head and secretly try to flirt with Yun Chu.
When Yun Ruoxia went back to look for the person behind her and found Yun Ling and Yun Chu with red paper full of melon seeds, she was so angry that she spat at the door and then spread Liu's power.
As the saying goes, good news doesn't travel far, but bad news can spread throughout the village in an instant. When the villagers saw Yun Xiaoliu and his friends coming over to collect red paper, they originally thought of giving them a penny or two to share in the good fortune. After all, collecting red paper is just a matter of giving it out with one hand and taking it back with the other, and their own children would collect it back on their own.
But now that they know that Liu only gives melon seeds to her own granddaughter, let alone other people's children, who know how many melon seeds could be bought with just a few coins, why should they give them a cheap gift? So they just give them melon seeds or sour fruit candy and stop there, even saving the red paper.
When the three wives of the eldest son saw that their son had brought a bag of melon seeds and candy, and combined with the gossip they had heard outside, they were furious. In previous years, in addition to what the third wife's family gave them, each of them could bring in over a hundred coins. As for the little boys who came to ask for favors, they would give them some or not, and naturally they would make some money so that they could have an easier time when they went back to their parents' home.
But now that things have turned out this way, there's no way to gain any advantage. So everyone sighed and complained, and Liu naturally heard it too.
But Liu didn't think she had done anything wrong. Instead, she resented Yun Chu for being ungrateful and made up the seven copper coins to make twelve, giving each of her grandsons two extra copper coins and that was the end of it.
The three daughters-in-law dared not speak out in anger, but had to force a smile to please Liu, hoping to bring more things back to their parents' home the next day so as to save face.
Zhang didn't have this problem.
Instead, Grandma Yun smiled and told her to take back more good stuff, such as cured duck legs, pork hind legs, flavored dried fish, fine rice, black mushrooms, flower mushrooms, and two bolts of fine cloth.
According to Old Lady Yun, Zhang was her only daughter-in-law. If she didn't treat her well, who would she treat well? Besides, when Old Man Yun's life was uncertain, leaving only her and her children, Zhang married into the family without saying anything. She was definitely a very good person.
Yunling didn't understand any of this. When she got on the donkey cart, her mind was still a bit foggy. She just followed the donkey cart, swaying back and forth, not knowing how many villages they passed or how much road they traveled. She only saw that there were many persimmon trees on the opposite mountain peak. Then the original owner's memories came back. This was the road to her grandmother's house. And these mountains, weren't they her new paradise?
Yunling stood up happily and waved, startling Zhang Shi, but also attracting the attention of her uncles, cousins, and other relatives who had been waiting at the door.
"They're here, Father, Mother, and my sister are back."
Old Man Zhang and Old Woman Zhang also rushed out the door. When they saw Zhang Shi, they smiled, but their eyes were already filled with tears.
Many people said that their daughters would suffer if they married into the family, as the widow and her two sisters-in-law were not as numerous or capable as the other two families. They felt uncomfortable hearing this and couldn't sleep for several nights.
Later, her father-in-law turned out to be a lucky man, and Shenghua found a good job. Now, she brings back a truckload of good goods every year. She looks much more plump than when she got married, and everyone who sees her is envious.
The donkey cart stopped in front of the door. Zhang Shi, Zhang Laodi, and Zhang Laoniang embraced each other. Yun Shenghua greeted his eldest and second uncles, and Yun Ling naturally followed Yun Chu in greeting them one by one.
"Alright, stop standing there at the door and come inside."
Yunling followed them inside and saw that on the bamboo poles in the yard hung milky white, round, cake-like objects, while on a shelf to the side were a few winnowing baskets containing small pieces of the same milky white substance. In the corner was a pot.
"You're all here! Come in and have a seat, the food will be ready soon."
"Sister-in-law, let me help."
"We don't need you. If they eat what you make, they'll start to complain about what we make."
Standing next to Zhang were Zhang's two daughters-in-law. After Yunling greeted them as "eldest aunt" and "second aunt," she ran back to the stove. She felt that her second aunt was strange, and the aura emanating from her made her uncomfortable.
"Lingniang, do you still remember what these are called?"
Yunling scratched her temples, shook her head, and didn't know, which made Zhang Xiao laugh.
"You're always busy eating, and you know nothing when you ask a question. Isn't that just being a vegetarian?"
"Zhai film?"
Seeing her expression, Zhang Xiao knew that she had completely forgotten about this item. So he opened the bag, poured some of the white sand into the pot, heated it up, and then added the vegetarian slices.
As Yunling watched those pieces gradually expand and even bulge into the shape of a flower bud, with many small holes appearing on their surface, she couldn't help but be amazed.
Zhang Xiao moved a piece of the hot vegetarian dish aside to cool. Yun Ling couldn't wait and reached for it. It was so hot that she shook her hands back and forth, then hurriedly put it in her mouth. A crunching sound came from her mouth. She was extremely happy.
These vegetarian slices are tasteless, but they leave a slightly sweet aftertaste. If they were made into a snack, they would probably be quite good.
**
After the meal, the adults had their own things to talk about. Yun Chu and her cousin had similar personalities and chatted happily. Her other little cousin was only three years old and only liked to follow her mother. Her second and third cousins stayed by the adults' side to listen to their teachings.
Yunling looked around and found it uninteresting, so she went outside to find her cousin Zhang Xiao, who was selling hot pot.
"Big cousin, let's go into the mountains."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
