Shen Zijing was incredibly clever; he immediately guessed the truth of the matter.
After all, given how terrified his mother was yesterday, how could she possibly have the guts to go looking for trouble today?
So he asked bluntly, "Dad, was it you who asked Mom to go over there?"
Upon hearing this, Shen Chen's face darkened, and he replied in a sullen voice, "Alright, let's not talk about these troublesome things. From now on, I'll pretend that I never had such a disobedient son!" After saying that, he turned his back to the crowd, unwilling to say another word.
Seeing his father's resolute attitude, Shen Zijing knew that further words would be useless, so he wisely kept quiet. After a moment of silence, he softly comforted his father, "Father and Mother, don't take it too seriously. Get some rest. When it's noon, I'll have my wife slaughter a chicken for you to nourish your bodies."
As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Zijing turned to his wife beside him and gently instructed, "Wife, go and prepare quickly. Catch the fattest hen and slaughter it."
Qian Danu was about to refuse, but then she remembered that the old man had vomited so much blood, and it was only right to help him recover, so she kept quiet.
The Ma Aning family had returned home early, completely unaware of what was about to happen. Of course, even if they had known, they wouldn't have taken it seriously.
"We're going to visit your mother-in-law tomorrow for the New Year. Have you prepared everything?" Shen Zishan asked Ma Aning impatiently as soon as he stepped into the house, without even taking off his shoes.
Ma Aning replied with a smile, "Don't worry, I've already bought everything! I specially bought a whole pound of peach shortbread; the old lady will definitely like it."
"I also picked a big, fresh, and plump fish that was jumping around; in addition, I took the opportunity to buy two pounds of brown sugar a few days ago when there were tickets available, and we will take one pound of it to them later."
As Shen Zishan listened to Ma Aning's words, he nodded slightly in satisfaction. But after thinking for a moment, he suddenly said, "Hmm... how about this, let's add another ten yuan!"
“My parents-in-law have been a great help to our little family, always contributing money and effort. Now that it’s the New Year, we should show them our appreciation,” he said, taking out a ten-yuan note from his pocket and handing it to Ma Aning.
Ma Aning looked troubled and hesitated before replying, "Brother Shan, isn't this too much? These gifts are already generous enough. If we add this ten yuan, the gift will be too heavy. I'm worried that my parents won't accept it."
Shen Zishan patted Ma Aning on the shoulder and comforted her firmly, "Don't worry, wife. This is all out of filial piety from us children. What parents would refuse their children's sincere respect? Believe me, they will happily accept this gift."
"Alright then, you can give it to me tomorrow. I dare not give it to you. If something goes wrong, I'll definitely get a good scolding."
Ma Aning blinked her bright, lively eyes and said with a mischievous smile.
Her charming and adorable appearance makes one want to pinch her rosy cheeks.
"Hmph, I'll give it to you, what's there to be afraid of! My parents will definitely praise me for being filial, and they might even reward me handsomely! You can just stand by and watch, but don't get jealous!"
Shen Zishan raised his chin and responded with an arrogant expression. His confident demeanor suggested that he already anticipated the enthusiastic praise and commendation he would receive.
"Okay, okay, I promise I won't be jealous!" Ma Aning quickly raised her hands in a gesture of surrender, smiling as she assured her husband.
The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, the couple got up early.
After hurriedly finishing their breakfast, they carefully tied the young child to their chest with soft strips of cloth.
With everything ready, the family of four set off for Majiazhuang as the sun rose.
The couple chatted and laughed along the way, and before they knew it, they had been walking for more than half an hour. Finally, the outline of a familiar village appeared in the distance—Majiazhuang.
At this moment, Wenli was standing anxiously looking around at her front door.
When she saw her daughter and son-in-law getting closer and closer in the distance, a joyful smile immediately bloomed on her face.
She turned around excitedly and shouted into the house, "Old man, come out and see! Our daughter, son-in-law and nephew have arrived!" Wenli shouted as she walked.
At this moment, the kitchen was filled with a delicious aroma. Ma Quan, wearing an apron and with his hands covered in flour, was busy working at the stove.
Upon hearing the call, Ma Quan immediately stopped what he was doing, quickly wiped his hands, and hurriedly left the kitchen.
He jogged to the door and saw a string of bright red firecrackers on the ground.
Ma Quan took a deep breath, carefully picked up the match, and gently struck it. The match head instantly ignited with an orange-red flame.
He quickly brought the flame close to the fuse of the firecracker, and with a "whoosh," sparks flew everywhere, followed by a series of crackling explosions.
Upon seeing this, Mr. and Mrs. Shen Zishan quickly and gently reached out their hands to cover the child's delicate little ears, fearing that the deafening firecrackers would frighten the child.
The couple waited quietly for the firecrackers to finish.
As the last cannon shot faded into the air, the festive atmosphere remained undiminished.
Ma Quan looked at everything before him with a broad smile, his heart filled with joy.
Shen Zishan and his wife stepped forward, their faces beaming with happiness, and said in unison, "Happy New Year, Father, Mother, Elder Brother, Second Brother!"
"Happy New Year!" Accompanied by cheerful greetings, the family walked happily into their home.
Everyone's face was beaming with happiness and joy.
Wenli quickly stepped forward, took the large and small bags from Shen Zishan's hands, and her lips were always upturned, her bright smile never faltering.
"Oh dear, you're here already, why did you bring so much stuff? Your dad and I don't need anything. Keep these for yourselves or take them back for the kids to eat slowly," Wenli said reproachfully as she placed the things on the table beside her.
Standing to the side, Ma Aning quickly stepped forward, took her mother's hand, and explained softly, "Mother, please don't say that. These are all specially brought for you to eat."
"Besides, the children are still too young to eat many things. This was specially bought by Brother Shan to show his respect to you and Dad."
Then, Ma Aning leaned close to Wenli's ear and whispered, "Mom, there's another red envelope here with 10 yuan in it. It's a token of Shan Ge's affection; he said he wants to properly show respect to you two elders."
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