Chapter 92

Early in the morning on New Year's Eve, Ayan and Juejue got up.

On the last day of the year, they still had a lot to do according to their tradition.

Ayan and Juejue wrote Spring Festival couplets and Chinese characters for "Fu" and posted them on the door, and tidied things at home.

In fact, after several days of cleaning, and with many people at home, we clean up every day and prepare today's fruits, nuts and snacks.

The adults are responsible for preparing the lunch, while the children need to be smart in doing the odd jobs.

However, for Ayan and his friends, the New Year’s Eve process is the same every year, but they are still excited. They are one year older and have become older adults!

Ayan's family still maintains the Northeastern custom during the New Year. The lunch on New Year's Eve is the "New Year's Eve dinner", the most sumptuous meal. After lunch, adults and children can move around freely, and then in the evening they can make dumplings together while complaining about the Spring Festival Gala.

So, Chu Shen, who came to have a free meal today, arrived at A Yan's house very early.

In the past few days, he has been repeatedly warned by his uncles and aunts not to bring anything to their home. Ayan's house is almost full of things.

Chu Shen...Chu Shen still brought some things.

How can you go to someone else's house to celebrate New Year's Eve with nothing in your hands?

Besides, he is staying in the hotel alone now, so whatever he brings with him won’t be thrown away, right?

However, Chu Shen was still very smart, because he knew that the young couple received excessive gifts from the big sister yesterday, so he did not bring any gift boxes or anything, and if he brought expensive things, he would definitely not accept them.

so--

Ah Yan, who had just been directing the people pasting blessing characters at the door of his home, suddenly opened his mouth wide when he saw Chu Shen carrying a large bag of different candied haws.

"Why are you buying so much so early in the morning?"

"What more?" Chu Shen opened the bag. This was made by the restaurant in the high-end hotel where he was staying. The fruits and other things used were also better than those sold in the stalls outside.

Bringing some food, especially food that must be eaten immediately, will never be rejected, so Chu Shen prepared to do the same.

"There are five uncles and aunts, and five of us, so I bought twelve. The extra ones are for us to try the flavors." Chu Shen said.

“This is the last time I’ll eat this year.”

Zhu Jue laughed when he heard this: "Whatever we do today, it will be the last time this year."

He and A Yan were still wearing their homely clothes. Chu Shen brought some candied haws into the house and greeted them politely: uncle and aunt.

When Ms. Yu saw Ah Yan chewing on a candied strawberry, she immediately opened her mouth and said, "Eating something so cold so early in the morning."

"Chu Shen bought it, and there's a share for you guys." Ah Yan decisively threw the pot away.

Ms. Yu's expression suddenly changed 180 degrees, and she looked at Chu Shen, "Little Chu, you kid, you brought gifts when you came home during the New Year, why are you being so polite to your uncle and aunt?"

"Hey kid, you should just sleep at home tonight. Why would you stay in a hotel during the New Year? You two should go and bring his luggage here this afternoon."

The young couple who were chewing candied haws on the sofa nodded silently and looked at Chu Shen at the same time: "After lunch, let's go to your hotel together to move the luggage."

Chu Shen:!!!

What is this called? Is a bag of candied haws causing trouble?

Chu Shen only heard Ah Yan whisper beside him: "If you don't come, we will have to go to the hotel tonight."

"My parents may suspect that our relationship is not good enough." Zhu Jue continued.

Chu Shen:......

Okay, we have the right relationship, so let’s stay here!

"But will this delay you?" Chu Shen scratched his head. Maybe every family has different New Year's customs. When grandpa and grandma were still alive, their family of three would have the rare opportunity to relax and avoid the crowds of tourists during the New Year to go and see the lake view of Bincheng together.

"It's not a delay. We are supposed to have free time after lunch." A Yan said.

"My parents may go to visit neighbors in the afternoon. Dabao, Xiaobao and Auntie Tan will also go to visit the elders. Juejue and I also go out to play every year on the afternoon of the 30th."

Chu Shen was stunned for a moment: "You two are still going out to play on New Year's Eve?"

Zhu Jue nodded and said, "That's why I asked you to come at this time. There will be more tourists starting from the first day of the new year. There will be no one around when we go out today."

The national statutory holidays start on the first day of the Lunar New Year, so many scenic spots are still open on New Year's Eve. Coming at this time is completely off-peak travel and you can enjoy the beautiful scenery alone.

"It's an annual commemoration." Ah Yan smiled.

"Juejue and I are going to Jingshan Park to watch the last sunset of the year. You're joining us today, so we have an extra photographer."

"Okay." Chu Shen agreed readily.

The last time I went to the Forbidden City, I was originally planning to go to Jingshan Park, but because I ran into Yuan Ye and it became a hot topic, we didn’t move after dinner. Today I can just go and see a panoramic view of the Forbidden City.

In one morning, Chu Shen wanted to go into the kitchen to help several times but was chased out every time. It was not until he asked if there was any staple food for lunch that an electric rice cooker for cooking rice suddenly appeared in the living room.

Egg fried rice tastes better when made with cold rice. Stew the rice quickly and then let it cool.

"Sister~~~"

Before lunch time, Tan Xiaobao was pestering A Yan.

She had already changed into the new clothes they had bought when they went shopping together, and was now sitting in front of Ah Yan's desk, poking at the little gadgets in her dressing table.

"Sister, does this color look good on me? I want something shiny and sparkly."

Tan Xiaobao took lip glosses one by one and observed the color numbers.

"Sure." Ah Yan said as she was braiding Xiao Bao's hair while he was sitting on a chair.

Even though Dabao and Xiaobao have entered university ahead of time and become college students, they are only seventeen years old after the Chinese New Year this year.

Although the discipline at home is not very strict, what they have been taught since childhood in the orphanage is that students should behave like students and adults should behave like adults.

Although their net worth can buy out countless cosmetics counters, Tan Xiaobao usually washes her face with water and then applies a layer of baby cream, and at most a simple lip balm. However, Xiaobao is still curious about makeup.

I have watched makeup videos before, and I know how to do it in my head, but I don't like to move my hands. It's okay if someone else does my makeup for me, but if I need to do it myself... forget it. I can only do a few questions with this time.

Ayan and Xiaobao dyed each other's nails cream-colored and looked very happy after they dried.

"Not bad, not bad, I save some money on manicure." A Yan said.

"It saves at least an hour." Xiaobao said.

"Sister, a female classmate asked me to go get a manicure, but it turned out that a manicure requires an appointment. We went there on short notice, and it took a total of three hours including the wait. If I had eyelashes or something, they would have been longer."

"Beauty really consumes time, money and energy." Xiaobao sighed while holding his face.

"Of course, beauty is a scarce resource, but doing it a few times during festivals is still acceptable." A Yan said.

"That's right. I heard that all good manicurists are fully booked during the Chinese New Year. The same goes for barber shops. Dabao went to get his hair cut by Uncle Huangmao near the community, but the shop was packed with people and he couldn't get a number at all." Xiaobao muttered.

"It is rumored that it is not easy to get a haircut in the first month of the lunar year, so there must be a lot of people. Although we know that it is for reminiscing about the past, most people still believe the version that 'getting a haircut in the first month of the lunar year will kill your uncle', and seriously suspect that this is a conspiracy of the barbers in the past." Ah Yan said with a smile.

While talking, Xiaobao's braid had been completed. Ah Yan didn't tie it too tight to avoid discomfort.

Xiao Bao looked at his new look in the mirror and gave his sister a thumbs up: "Sister, your skills have improved again."

Because early tomorrow morning on the first day of the new year, Dabao and Xiaobao will go to other districts with their mother to visit the elders, so they have to prepare their looks in advance.

Even if these thin braids are a little frizzy when you wake up tomorrow morning, you can untie the rubber band and turn them into cute little curls.

Ayan also used a curling iron to curl her hair. She went to Jingshan to take beautiful photos today. After a night’s sleep tonight, her hair will be more natural tomorrow.

After the two girls came out of the room, I stayed in the living room, smelling the constant smell coming from the kitchen, my stomach rumbling.

"I'm already dizzy from the smell before I even eat it." Xiaobao said while touching his belly.

As far as I can remember, this is how Dabao and Xiaobao spent their first year when their mother brought them to the Ning family home.

They only found out later that it was the first time that the Yan and Zhu families celebrated the New Year together, but it was mainly because of Xiao Tan, who had to take care of the baby alone, that they were afraid she would feel embarrassed, so they found a reason to get together. From then on, the three families had had New Year's Eve dinners together for more than ten years.

This world is strange and warm. People of the same blood are full of calculations and intrigues, but strangers who have no blood relationship can become real relatives over a long period of time.

Xiaobao walked back and forth between the two open doors of the two opposite houses. The smells from the two kitchens danced on his nose, and every household in the corridor was filled with the festive atmosphere of the New Year.

More than a dozen dishes were served one after another. Chu Shen was the last one to walk into the kitchen to contribute his meager strength to this large New Year's Eve dinner.

On a large round table, there were Zhu's father's specialty pickled fresh vegetables and tofu soup, Yan's father's signature dishes pan-fried saury and chicken stewed with mushrooms, and seafood steamed in the simplest way... Aunt Tan's unique pickled cucumber and Ms. Yu's pot of dipping sauce were the most satisfying for the whole table. Ah Yan patted the bottom of the bottle with his own hands, and the can of yellow peaches that he opened felt like an old actor who had not changed for more than a decade.

This was the first time that Chu Shen had seen such a mixed New Year's Eve dinner. His pot of egg fried rice made the sumptuous meal even more unique in a strange way.

Chu Shen originally thought that for a family like that of the young couple, it would be fine at ordinary times, but wouldn’t they have to make a few concluding speeches during the New Year’s Eve dinner?

As a result, I saw Ah Yan's mother, Aunt Yu, saying two sentences: "Every year, I think about four words: safe and healthy. We should eat and drink as we should, and don't take anything to heart. Okay, let's eat!"

The adults drank a little wine, and on Chu Shen's desk were soup bowls, vegetable bowls, bone plates, and rice bowls... He was still a little embarrassed at first, but was inexplicably moved by the moment and ate everything that was passed to him.

He had originally prepared to spend the New Year alone at home, but this year, having such a New Year's Eve dinner was a wonderful experience.

After dinner, Ayan and Juejue first went to Chu Shen’s hotel to pick up his luggage and delivered it to his home, and then set off for Jingshan Park together.

They arrived at the foot of Jingshan Mountain and looked at the people coming out of the Forbidden City and the streets which were sparsely populated. Chu Shen was stunned.

"Oh my god, there's really no one here. It's so different from the last time I came." He sighed.

The famous milk tea and coffee shop near Jingshan was closed for the holiday, and Ah Yan felt a little regretful.

She saw this milk tea shop online. You can raise a milk tea cup that says "Toast to the Forbidden City" and it's great for taking photos. @無限好文，盡在

It was already past one in the afternoon when they started to have lunch. After finishing their meal and packing up, they went back and forth to the hotel at three o'clock. It was already past four o'clock and the sun had not yet set.

Ayan and Juejue led Chu Shen to climb up, with no one in front or behind them.

"There is really no one here." Chu Shen sighed. This was the first time he encountered so few people in Ningcheng.

"There are fewer people today, and there were fewer people in the past few years. You can bump into them after walking for a while." A Yan said.

But the higher they went, the less they saw anyone along the way. Ayan and Zhu Jue were extremely surprised.

"This is a good time this year." Ah Yan affirmed.

In winter, it gets dark early. I guess many families have the habit of having New Year’s Eve dinner at night, so they stay at home at this time. After all, as her mother said, “It’s New Year’s Day, why go out?”

At the same time, Yuanye also sneaked out of his hotel and just arrived at the foot of Jingshan Park.

Today is the last day of the mission to pretend to be a hanged ghost. After much deliberation, Yuanye decided to come over and take a look.

There's no way, this PK mission gives too much.

Another thing is that this task has been hanging there, and it makes me feel uncomfortable whether I have completed it or not.

Yuanye thought to himself that during the Chinese New Year, even the locals of Ningcheng should be celebrating the New Year at home, so it would be feasible for him to wait until night when there were few people on Jingshan Mountain and then carry out the mission.

In order to hide in the dark today and not scare other tourists if they come, Yuanye had come to Jingshan Park to investigate the location before.

At 4:40 in the afternoon, Yuanye arrived at Jingshan. He was very satisfied with the deserted environment and went to find the crooked tree, the mission location.

The sunset time on New Year's Eve is 5:40 pm. The temperature will drop significantly after sunset, so Ayan had already put on a circle of hot packs in advance.

Although she didn’t know why there were no other tourists in Jingshan except them today, Ah Yan was very satisfied with it. This meant that no one was competing with her for the camera spot today, haha!

Jingshan Mountain is very small. Ayan and his two companions reached the top in ten minutes. Their backpacks were filled with cameras, thermoses, and baby warmers. Everything was ready. They just had to wait for the sunset.

What they didn't know was that at 4:50 p.m., signs announcing the closure of Jingshan Park were posted at the east and west gates.

Five o'clock in the afternoon.

Ding Ling followed the large group to the entrance of Jingshan. In one hand she was carrying a large bag containing two top-grade magical bells that she had borrowed from A Yan.

Today, New Year's Eve, will be the highlight of this Shengxuan Meeting.

Starting from sunset, they will spend the entire night on Jingshan until sunrise, which is why they have to coordinate with the park in advance.

Or in other words, the tests of the Xuanmen in the past few days were just so-so, and only tonight was the real "ascension to the Xuanmen".

Ding Ling looked at these young disciples of the Xuanmen sect, some with excitement or nervousness on their faces, while others looked calm and composed. She didn't know whether they were truly wise or fearless.

Ding Ling looked around, but due to the special nature of Jingshan, she couldn't let go of her mind and explore thoroughly.

She looked around but didn't see any new faces. The team leader had mentioned to her before that there would be a mysterious master at the entry level in this Shengxuan meeting, but Ding Ling hadn't sensed any trace of him until now.

Ding Ling murmured in his heart: "A Taoist master... I don't know who he is?"