However, Xia Daohua noticed with keen eyes that among those large and small packages, there were several items that were clearly luggage, bedding, and the like. And her aunt Liu actually smiled and shouted to the villagers that those were all things they had brought as a gift to the old couple...
Xia Daohua's impression of Dafang suddenly dropped to freezing point.
The old couple either didn't notice it, or they did notice it and didn't mind. They blatantly turned a blind eye to it, came out cheerfully and told them to come into the house and warm up.
Second aunt Sun and third aunt Wu came over enthusiastically, holding the hands of eldest aunt Liu and asking about her well-being.
Jiang didn't say anything, and Fifth Aunt Cheng also walked forward a few steps and greeted Dalang's wife with a smile.
"Hey, Dalang's wife, come in quickly! Sit down quickly! It's too hard to stand with such a big belly."
"Why……"
Faced with such enthusiasm, Zhu was a little overwhelmed. She looked at her mother-in-law Liu for help.
Liu nodded to her and let go of her hand. She then held onto Cheng's outstretched arm, staggered along, and slowly moved her somewhat clumsy body into the house.
The men rushed forward and surrounded Xia Dalang:
"Da Lang, you said you haven't come back for such a long time, this time you have to stay two more days! Come to your third uncle's house and have a few drinks with him! Let your third aunt make you meat patties and chive dumplings!"
"Da Lang, your Third Uncle is too stingy. If you come to Second Uncle's house more often, Second Uncle will ask Second Aunt to fry quail for you!"
"Da Lang, your Fifth Aunt brought back two pounds of dried rabbit meat from her parents' home a few days ago. Your Fifth Aunt and I couldn't bear to eat them together, so we saved it all for you!"
Even Xia Youtian cheerfully chimed in, "Da Lang, come and sit with your fourth uncle whenever you're free. The tofu stew your fourth aunt makes is delicious!"
Xia Daohua could tell that everyone's enthusiasm for Xia Dalang was genuine. Their bright smiles were sincere and came from the bottom of their hearts.
Maybe this is the charm of "reading seeds"!
Xia Dalang had a smile on his face and responded to the uncles' enthusiasm gracefully and appropriately, but Xia Daohua keenly noticed his well-concealed arrogance and a bit of impatience.
Everyone gathered around Xia Dalang and talked for a while, then each of them picked up one thing and quickly helped the eldest son move all the things into the house.
The old couple had already been busy heating the kangs and ventilating the rooms in the main house, and by now both kangs were already burning brightly. As soon as I entered the house, I felt a wave of heat rushing towards me, and the frost on the walls, doors and windows melted away.
After the greetings, everyone came in a mighty procession, surrounded by the eldest family, and came to the main landlord's room where the old couple lived.
The old couple sat upright on the kang with their legs crossed. Old man Xia Ping'an kept stroking the boxwood pipe in his hand, but did not light a cigarette.
The eldest brother's family knelt on the ground in a row and kowtowed to the old couple. The whole family said in unison:
"Father, Mother, thank you for your hard work! Your unfilial son (daughter-in-law/grandson/granddaughter-in-law) kowtows to you!"
Even Dalang's pregnant wife Zhu was no exception.
The old couple hurriedly asked them to get up: "Hey, what are you doing? What are you doing? The ground is cold, hurry up, hurry up!"
Amidst the clamor and tears, Xia Daohua heard her second uncle's wife, Sun, whisper in his ear:
"Look at your big brother, he's so good at making things happen! Why don't you learn from him?"
Xia Daohua used a lot of strength to hold back and not burst out laughing.
After bowing, the eldest brother’s family gave the old couple New Year gifts.
The gifts given to the old man and the old lady were two pieces of silk fabric, two boxes of snacks, and a jar of liquor, and an extra piece of satin fabric was also brought for Xia Yujiao.
The silk fabric was fine, and aside from the color being a bit old-fashioned, there didn't seem to be anything wrong with it. But the satin fabric given to Xia Yujiao had clearly been soaked in water, faded, and then re-dyed, and it was obvious that the dyeing wasn't very even.
Xia Daohua thought Xia Yujiao would be angry, but unexpectedly, Xia Yujiao thanked her with a look of joy and took it. That smile didn't seem fake at all.
Xia Youcai smiled and said:
"I bought this material from the silk shop in town. Although it's a little soaked in water, it's actually just as good as new, undamaged silk, and the price is at least half as much!
We are not a wealthy family, so there is no need to be so particular.
Besides, isn't this fine material with a few flaws better than the coarse cloth? Aren't they both the same to wear?"
Zhou laughed, and the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes deepened a little. It was obvious that Xia Youcai's words had touched her heart:
"The boss is indeed smart and capable. His journey outside has not been in vain."
The New Year gifts for the brothers were a bag of fruit and a piece of woolen cloth for each family.
The eldest brother has a face full of brotherly love:
"On weekdays, your sister-in-law and I are in town, taking care of Dalang's studies and can't take care of the family. You have worked hard on weekdays. This little gift is just a token of my appreciation. Please don't despise it, my brothers."
"Hey, what are you talking about, brother?"
"We're all family, why be so polite? Our parents aren't just yours, they're ours too, right? Isn't it our responsibility to take care of them?"
"That's right, that's right. Big brother, are you treating us like outsiders when you say that? We are all brothers who came from the same mother!"
It was another noisy and lively occasion.
Xia Daohua felt that she probably had not yet fully adapted to this new identity.
So when others were happily reminiscing about the past and exchanging greetings enthusiastically, she seemed like an indifferent spectator watching a TV series that she was not very interested in through the screen.
Although I was clearly there, it felt like my soul had flown away thousands of miles away.
A lonely expression appeared on Xia Daohua's little face, which was extremely disproportionate to her age.
Seeing Xia Daohua raising and lowering her head, Jiang thought she was probably sleepy. She quietly walked over and told old lady Zhou something, and said a few words to Xia Youtian. Then she picked up Xia Daohua and sent her back to the house.
When Lihua, Goro and Linghua saw this, they all tiptoed back.
Seeing that all the fourth brother's family except Xia Youtian had left, Xia Youcai and Liu were a little dissatisfied: "Oh, fourth brother, it's been a while since we last met. Your temper has improved!"
Xia Youtian rubbed his hands embarrassedly and explained a little awkwardly:
"Hey, brother and sister-in-law, didn't Daohua hurt her head a few days ago?
Just now, this child's head was nodding and her face was a little pale, so I asked Jiang to send her back.
The children were inevitably a little worried, so they all went to take a look."
After hearing this, Xia Youcai's expression eased a little, but Liu became more uncomfortable.
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