Xia Youyou stood worriedly on the side of the road for a while. Cao An was afraid that she would be cold, so he pushed her shoulders, forced her to turn around, and took her home.
"You can't help. This is something she has to handle on her own. Outsiders can't interfere."
Cao An also feels somewhat powerless. Current laws aren't comprehensive enough to address such parental orders. I hope she can seek help from the Women's Federation and escape this den of wolves as soon as possible.
"Brother, tell me, Liu Daya was also oppressed by her family before. Did she ever think about resisting?"
"Don't think too much. Liu Daya is you now. Will you resist?"
The answer is yes, she is not someone who will just accept things as they come.
The two returned home and ate hot dumplings. New Year's Eve passed just like that. The first day of the new year was the New Year, which was also Xia Youyou's seventeenth birthday.
Facing the morning sun, Liu Hui began to busy herself in the kitchen. Cao An wanted to wake Xia Youyou up, but when she got to her door, she opened it.
"Brother! Happy New Year!"
Cao An pursed his lips and smiled innocently, then took out the red envelope he had prepared and gave it to her. "Here, this is yours!"
"Huh? Didn't I give out New Year's money last night?"
"This is a New Year's red envelope. Happy birthday, this is your birthday red envelope!" Cao An handed her a bigger red envelope.
Xia Youyou was so happy, "Why are you giving me so much?"
"I still think it's not enough. I wanted to ask mom for some money, but then I thought it wouldn't be right. Please don't despise me."
"Thank you, brother!" Back when she was at the base, she'd always celebrated Chinese New Year alone, in a cold and lonely atmosphere. No lucky money, no birthday red envelopes. Her parents were busy saving more people, too busy to care for her. Her friends and classmates were celebrating with their families, leaving her all alone.
"Wait, I'll prepare some hot water for you to wash up. I didn't expect you to not sleep in today."
"Don't tease me!"
After washing up, the two surrounded Liu Hui in the kitchen, attacking her from both sides, "Happy New Year, Mom!"
Liu Hui picked up the bowl and began to pour noodles into it. "Okay, Happy New Year everyone! I'll give you red envelopes later. Let's have breakfast first. Today is Youyou's birthday, and we're having eggs!"
"Why?"
Liu Hui couldn't explain it clearly. "Anyway, that's what my mother told me before. I don't know why. I know noodles. Noodles represent longevity."
After breakfast, Liu Hui put the prepared melon seeds and peanuts on the table and waited for the neighbors to come and visit.
The door to the Cao family's house was open, and the neighboring aunts came to visit with their children. Liu Hui warmly entertained them, stuffing candy and sunflower seeds into the children's pockets. The aunts were all very happy, and they sighed in their hearts that this widow had raised her son well and that their lives were getting better and better. They grabbed handfuls of candy and stuffed the children's pockets full of sunflower seeds.
Neighbors came in groups, and Xia Youyou helped make tea. Only when most of them left could they sit down and rest for a while.
"So this is what Chinese New Year is like."
Liu Hui poked her head and said, "Little girl, what's the connection? The New Year celebrations in the past were much more lively. It's only because we don't have any relatives visiting that it seems a little quiet."
"Is it still quiet?" I've seen about a hundred people today.
"Okay, now let's go visit some friends."
Liu Hui left Cao An at home to prevent others from being turned away if they came, and took Xia Youyou to visit the neighbors who had just visited.
After walking around, Xia Youyou was exhausted, but she still had to keep smiling and calling uncle and aunt.
"It's lively, but I'm a little tired." She got up early and went to bed late last night because of excitement, so she felt exhausted now.
"Then go home. Today is the first day of the new year. You should cheer up, otherwise this whole year will be unlucky."
"Is there such a saying?"
"Now we are just not allowed to talk about these things, but there were many more things to pay attention to in the past." The "Four Olds" campaign was aimed at destroying feudal superstitions, and this traditional custom was one of them.
Xia Youyou was actually still a little worried about He Mei, but today was the first day of the new year, and she didn't want to make her mother and brother worry, so she gave up the idea of going to her house to see her.
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