When Jiayin saw Dongmei waving her hand, she hugged her grandmother and said, "Grandma, you can keep these things. You can give them away or let our family eat them. It's up to you. I'm going to play in my godfather's yard for a while."
After saying that, she turned and ran to the next room.
The Marquis has been in the city these past few days, and the courtyard is very quiet.
Dongmei put the account books and small box in the side room and went to get busy.
Jiayin opened the box; the golden light was dazzling, yet tears streamed from the corner of her mouth…
I definitely want to visit Zhengjiazhuang sometime!
What an amazing estate! Its annual profits are almost comparable to those of the Hot Spring Valley, a full four hundred taels of gold!
They were already skilled craftsmen; if you added her "ingenious ideas," wouldn't that be a powerful alliance, making them incredibly wealthy?
Hahaha, I'm rich! I'm rich!
Not to mention Jiayin rolling around on the kang (heated brick bed) next door with joy, even Grandma Li and the others couldn't stop smiling at the huge pile of New Year's goods.
"Third son's wife, take Wenjuan and pickle some duck and goose eggs. Take some with you when you go back to Luo'an after the New Year. If you don't have time to cook lunch, make some porridge for the boys and give each of them a salted egg."
Grandma Li chuckled as she assigned tasks to her daughter-in-law, adding, "Hongying, distribute more wild boar meat to the villagers later. We'll keep one venison for our family, and give the other to the Liu and Peng families. Mr. Wen and Jinrou don't need any; they've already said they'd come to our house for the New Year."
"Give some dried mushrooms to every household in the village. Add a handful when stewing chicken; it makes the flavor so good. It's a pity that mushrooms don't grow on these two hills in Suijintan!"
As they were talking, the Marquis and Li Laosi returned from the city.
Seeing that all the women in the family were busy tidying up, the Marquis smiled and asked, "Have Ye Shan and Dong Mei returned?"
"Yes, my lord, they've sent quite a lot of things to the estate. I wonder if the farmers have kept any for themselves? They've been busy all year, they deserve a proper New Year." Old Lady Li was kind-hearted and felt bad about taking from people who had worked hard all year.
The Marquis waved his hand, "Don't worry, Aunt. The estate has been sending me the same thing for the past few years. They know what they're doing, and it's enough for the New Year."
After saying that, he changed the subject and said, "I asked the Emperor for leave. During the New Year, you and Fu Niu'er don't need to attend the palace banquet, and you don't need to go to the palace to kowtow on the first day of the New Year. Just stay at home and enjoy the New Year."
As expected, Old Madam Li was even happier. "Really? That's wonderful! It's not that we don't respect the Emperor, it's just that we don't know the rules and are afraid of making mistakes. After the New Year, let Granny He teach us properly. We really need to learn the rules."
After exchanging a few more casual words, Jiayin heard the news and ran back from next door. She threw herself into the Marquis's arms and asked repeatedly, "Father, Father, have you sent the New Year's gifts to Uncle the Emperor?"
"He gave it to you, and your royal uncle was very happy." The Marquis held the chubby girl on his lap and laughed. "He also said that all those good things he gave me before weren't for nothing, and that your little niece knows how to remember him."
"And then, and then?" Jiayin blinked her big eyes, glancing left and right, but couldn't see what good things her godfather was holding, so she hung her head in disappointment.
The Marquis laughed heartily and took out a pair of mutton-fat jade ruyi from his bosom. Each one was the size of a palm, milky white all over, with only the peony flowers carved on the heads of the ruyi having a light red tinge.
Sunlight streamed through the window cracks, casting a dazzling and beautiful glow on the Ruyi.
"Oh my, is this for me?" Jiayin perked up immediately, like a seedling that had received sweet dew.
She hugged the jade ruyi and jumped for joy, which made Old Lady Li catch her with her hands while scolding her, "My little darling, be careful, don't break such a good thing!"
Jiayin held a jade ruyi in each hand, as if lifting dumbbells, and danced a chaotic dance, shaking her head and wagging her tail, before running away.
Needless to say, they went and hid it secretly.
Everyone laughed heartily, but no one suggested asking for the jade ruyi.
Wenjuan saw this and once again gained a clear understanding of how much her sister-in-law was favored.
The Marquis glanced at her and saw that her eyes were full of envy and curiosity, but not jealousy, so he was relieved.
Before they knew it, it was New Year's Eve. Since the Marquis, Li Lao Er, and Mr. Wen were all going to the palace for a banquet that evening, the Li family's reunion dinner was set for midday.
As planned beforehand, the village chief and Aunt Wu were also eating with the Li family this time, so they arrived early.
Including Uncle Zhao and others, Mr. Jiang brought Gu Li, Mr. Wen brought Wen Hai, Mrs. Cui brought Sister Qiong, and there was also Doctor Zhang and Li Yong's family of four, making a total of nearly forty people.
Only Liu the镖头's family didn't come, because they had a new baby boy and wanted to have a family reunion.
The Li family set up four tables for the banquet. Two tables were in the east room, where the women and children sat, and two tables were in the west room and the main room, which were given to the men, young and old, who liked to drink.
Tao Hongying and Jia Huan used all their skills, cooking all their signature dishes, and even some new dishes that had never been offered at Xiankelai.
Everyone ate to their heart's content, especially the old men, who were all slightly drunk, their faces flushed, and extremely happy.
Looking back on the hard work and busyness of the past year, and looking forward to the prospects of the new year, everyone raised their bowls of wine even more frequently.
Considering that the Marquis and his entourage were going to the palace, the banquet ended before dark; otherwise, they probably could have continued drinking until midnight.
The men, young and old, found a large kang (heated brick bed) and fell fast asleep to sober up.
The women would keep an eye on the naughty boys while making dumplings and chatting.
Jiayin ate her fill and was inevitably sleepy, so she lay down on the kang (a heated brick bed) and fell asleep. It seemed like only a short while later, her grandmother woke her up.
They eat dumplings on New Year's Eve, a custom they brought from the north.
My family prefers meat fillings, but Jiayin has her eye on chive and egg fillings, which are especially delicious on a winter night like this.
Jiayin ate more than a dozen in one go and was completely refreshed.
In the latter half of the night, when everyone was asleep, she tossed and turned, her big eyes wide open like copper bells.
So she quietly got up, leaned against the windowsill, listened to the wind and firecrackers outside, and sighed in secret.
Another year older, now a five-year-old big kid!
If she could, she would rather never grow up.
They don't have to face the hardships of this world, they don't have to face the intrigues and backstabbing, they don't have to face hypocrisy and evil.
She just wanted to stay with her family, be a little source of joy, and live a warm and happy life.
Unfortunately, time will not stop for anyone.
As dawn breaks, the new year arrives, and a new year begins.
The mischievous boys, Jia'an and Jiaxi, had no idea what their little sister was struggling with; they had been eagerly anticipating this day.
Early in the morning, after changing into their clean clothes, they would start kowtowing to the old men and uncles to wish them a Happy New Year, and then collect "lucky money" from them.
Jiayin followed behind, and was helped up before she could kneel down.
She was a princess, who would dare accept her courtesy? Besides, no one wanted to see her knees touch the cold ground.
As a result, Jiayin's wallet swelled up again, and she finally smiled.
Unfortunately, she became listless again after the Marquis and Li Lao Er returned from the palace!
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