The next morning, when I got up, the snow outside had stopped and there was more than ten centimeters of snow on the ground, which meant that the snow stopped very early last night.
After breakfast, Lin Heng brought milk to his parents, and then began to sweep the snow in the yard. He and the children built two huge snowmen with the snow.
Everything was normal in the bluestone-paved yard, and the vegetables in the four vegetable plots against the wall were also growing vigorously. The main crops grown here were onions, garlic sprouts, coriander, and spinach and cabbage.
The land where strawberries are planted has long been turned into a small greenhouse and covered with film, so that we can eat strawberries earlier next year.
Going out hunting in this kind of weather is a good choice, but Lin Heng didn't go. It was almost the New Year and he wanted to stay at home and enjoy life.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, Tian Yan came over with a letter in her hand: "Xiu Lan, your parents sent you a letter. They left it at the village committee and I picked it up on the way."
"My letter."
Xiulan took it curiously, opened it and took a look.
After reading the letter, she handed it to Lin Heng with a smile and said, "Mom and Dad said we don't need to go over to pay them New Year's greetings this year. They want to come over to our place to play."
"That's fine." Lin Heng nodded after reading it. It's convenient for him to go there now that he has a car, but it's also fine if his parents-in-law want to come over to visit. They have a lot of houses here that can accommodate them, but there are very few places to stay at his parents-in-law's place.
"I guess they won't be here until the fourth or fifth day of the New Year," said Xiulan.
Lin Heng said, "Wait for them to come over and stay to play for a while. When they have had enough fun, I will drive them back."
Xiulan nodded, made a cup of honey tea for Tian Yan, and asked with a smile, "Have you and Lin Hai decided on the wedding date?"
"It's settled. We'll get married on the tenth day of the first lunar month. You guys have to come and help then." Tian Yan took the milk tea and said with a smile.
Xiulan smiled and nodded: "Of course, our whole family will go over to help when the time comes."
Then they chatted for a few more sentences and decided that Tian Yan and Lin Hai would temporarily get married in Lin Hai's mud house. When they had enough money in the future they would build a building directly and keep the money for business for the time being.
The last few days of the Chinese New Year passed quickly. Lin Heng stayed at home to take care of the children, while Xiulan and Tian Yancaiyun would go out to play from time to time.
Lin Heng had nothing to do at home, so he cleaned up the house inside and outside, and trimmed the flowers, plants and trees in the backyard to make it look neater and more beautiful.
He also went to Shimen Village with two wooden carts pulled behind a tricycle, picked up a lot of bluestone from Qingshi Mountain and brought it home, and paved the area outside his yard with bluestone.
From his house to his eldest brother's house and then to the old house, all the way to the road, it is all paved with stones, so it won't be too muddy when it rains or snows.
The aisle area at the back mountain is also paved with stone slabs. No cement mortar is needed, just level the ground and then pave the slabs. After completion, it becomes much more convenient to walk, and the whole house becomes more beautiful.
Soon it was the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month, the last market day. Lin Heng drove a truck to take his family to the town market that day, and a truckload of people picked up one after another on the way.
Some people were carrying various goods such as charcoal and lotus roots to sell. Since the car was empty, Lin Heng took them all away.
When they arrived in the town, Lin Heng and his father took the children, Xiulan, Lin's mother, Tian Yan, Caiyun and others went shopping.
It was the last rally of the 86th year of the lunar calendar. The prices of many items began to drop and it was very lively with many people coming.
Lin Heng helped out in the store, selling some things at low prices to clear out the inventory.
By noon, the street was gradually becoming deserted. Lin Heng put Xiaoxia down in his arms and said to Li Shiwei, "Let's go, let's settle the bill, and then we'll close the store."
"I wonder how much we can earn this year?" Father Lin asked curiously while taking care of the three children.
Grandpa Gao smiled and said, "Xiao Lin's store is very prosperous this year. It is estimated that it will make more money than last year."
"That's because of the good location. Otherwise, the effect wouldn't be so good." Father Lin said with a simple smile.
While they were chatting, Lin Heng was also calculating the specific accounts. It took him more than an hour to sort out all the accounts.
After calculating it clearly, Li Shiwei smiled and congratulated: "Brother Lin, this income is very good."
"Yes, not bad." Lin Heng nodded with a smile. This year's net profit reached 5,100 yuan.
It’s not that he suppressed the prices of medicinal materials and furs, but that he drove many of the goods from Ancheng himself, so the purchase price was lower and the profit was naturally higher.
Purchasing medicinal materials is a long-term business. Unless there are any major accidents, it can be carried out for a long time. When the market economy comes, it can even be expanded into a specialized medicinal materials purchasing company.
"You've done a very good job this year. Here's your pay slip. Please sign it."
After the accounts were settled, Lin Heng paid Li Shiwei Lin Yue's last month's salary and year-end bonus. Although he had only worked in the store for three months, his total income this year was 120 yuan.
Compared to Lin Heng's profit, this salary was very small, but it was equivalent to his family's income for half a year. It was hard to make money in the countryside, so this salary made Li Shiwei very satisfied and grateful to Lin Heng.
After the salary was settled, Lin Heng went to the credit union and took out 5,000 yuan in profit and deposited it into another passbook. With this 5,000 yuan, the money in his large passbook had reached 70,000 yuan.
Then he deposited the cash in the store into a special passbook for the store, and would withdraw it when the store opened next year.
"This cash will definitely be enough for next year." Lin Heng thought to himself after saving the money.
This is certainly not all of his money. He still has many silver dollars, gold stamps and other items at home, but he would not sell those items, including antiques, unless it was absolutely necessary. They were all things that could protect the house and would appreciate in value over time.
When Lin Heng returned to the store, Xiulan and her friends also came back from shopping and they sat together around the fire.
Lin Heng looked at them and said, "You have finished shopping, right? Let's go home after that."
"It's all done, let's go back." Xiulan nodded.
Lin Heng nodded, said goodbye to Grandpa Gao, and then left with everyone. Grandpa Gao would not be spending the New Year in town, as he would be taken to the city.
On the way back, I inevitably picked up a lot of people from the same village. The car was empty anyway, so doing some good deeds to gain some favor was just a side job.
At the same time, Lin Heng and others also noticed that Zhao Hu and others had also returned, driving tractors and pulling a lot of people back to the village, but neither side paid any attention to each other.
Lin Heng didn't want to show off, and being strong for a short time was not his style. The real crushing was to continue to grow and develop, and finally make it out of reach.
Moreover, he learned that Zhao Hu and Jin Yan would get married on the eighth day of the first lunar month after the New Year, and he was also looking forward to Zhao Hu falling into this big pit.
“It’s Chinese New Year again!”
After returning home, Lin Heng sighed and added some firewood to the fireplace. With coal in it, the fireplace kept burning and did not go out.
"Happy New Year! I love Chinese New Year the most!" Xiaoxia said jumping up and down.
"Yes!" Lin Heng touched her head. He just felt that time passed too quickly and a year went by in a flash.
"Dad, should I set off firecrackers?" Lu Ming ran over and hugged Lin Heng's arm.
"I want my daddy too." Du Heng was also shaking his arm and acting coquettishly.
The two sons are ten thousand times more enthusiastic about firecrackers than their sister. If the firecrackers bought at home are not locked up, they will secretly take them and set them off.
"Just play with one box." Lin Heng took out a box of firecrackers and gave them to them. The two of them immediately ran to the yard happily to set off firecrackers.
In the blink of an eye, it was the next morning. As soon as Xiulan got up in the morning, she started to prepare the reunion dinner. Here, the noon on New Year’s Eve is called the reunion dinner, and the dinner is called the New Year’s Eve dinner.
Caiyun came early in the morning, and Lin Heng went to Hongfeng Mountain to help his parents paste Spring Festival couplets and door paintings. Since he wrote the couplets himself, he also posted them in the livestock pen.
"Let's go and catch a big plum fish." Father Lin said with a smile after pasting the couplet.
The plum fish was caught from the reservoir two days ago and is kept in the pool below the waterfall. The grass carp and silver carp in the pool are too big, so the fish for the reunion dinner must be whole, with a complete head and tail, and a round reunion.
The two of them caught two plum fish. After they killed the fish, Lin's mother also cleaned up the mess, and the three of them returned to the village together.
"This stone is laid well. It won't rot when it rains." Lin's mother said with a smile as they arrived at the door of the house.
Lin Heng smiled and said, "That's why I laid this."
When they entered the house, Xiulan had almost prepared the meal. Lin Heng and his father went to paste couplets and door paintings, Lin's mother took care of the children, and Caiyun and Xiulan cooked.
Because this year's duets were written with golden ink, it looks more festive. We also made our own bamboo lanterns and Chinese knots, and after they were hung up, the festive feeling came out.
The reunion dinner was ready in a short while. A large round table was used and a total of eighteen dishes were prepared. Except for eight regular cold dishes, the rest were all main dishes.
This year, the Lin family was richer than last year, and they had also hunted takin, so the dishes were naturally richer. Lin Heng went to the yard to set off firecrackers, and the family happily started eating.
Needless to say, the food on the table was delicious; they were all carefully prepared and were loved by everyone.
It was already afternoon when they finished their meal. Lin Heng lit the fireplace very brightly and also used a brazier to burn charcoal. Even with the door half open, the temperature in the room could still be around 15 or 16 degrees.
The children were playing with firecrackers in the yard. The three nephews also came over and used bubbles to blow up the snow and the dog bowl, having a lot of fun.
In the room, Lin Heng took out a set of exquisite bamboo mahjong, and the adults gathered together to play. They only played this game among themselves during the Chinese New Year, and never played it at other times.
Time passed quickly and soon it was dark. Every household lit up lanterns and all the lights in the rooms were turned off. Only then was the night in the mountain village bright.
After eating the New Year's Eve dinner, Xiaoxia ran over and pulled Lin Heng and said, "Dad, it's getting dark, let's set off fireworks!"
"Okay, okay, let me show you some fireworks."
Lin Heng smiled and nodded. He had a lot of fireworks at home. He took a few out and lit them. Soon, beautiful fireworks appeared in the sky.
After watching the fireworks, the children ran around in the yard playing with sparklers, while the adults and I played cards and chatted at home, staying up together until the new year arrived.
The morning of the first day of the new year was the same as usual. Everyone got up early and changed into new clothes. Lin Heng and Xiulan gave red envelopes to each other, and then gave red envelopes to the children.
The parents came early and prepared red envelopes for all the younger generations. The children were the happiest and greeted their elders with auspicious words. Xiaoxia was the best at this. She not only kowtowed actively, but also kept saying auspicious words, as if she had memorized them in advance.
After the Tianxing Festival, their family and their eldest brother's family went to the temple of Guanyin Bodhisattva to burn incense and pay New Year's greetings, seeking blessings. This activity has never changed every year.
Because there was no snow, it was much easier to walk this year than last year.
After returning from praying at the temple, Lin Heng's family went to his eldest uncle's house together. Since they no longer had any contact with his eldest uncle and grandmother's family, the places they visited on New Year's Day to pay New Year's greetings were either his grandmother's or his parents-in-law's house.
Not long after they walked up the mountain, they heard a shout from behind: "Oh, wait for us!"
"It's your aunt." Mother Lin looked back and smiled. Not far behind them, Aunt Lin Heng and Li Shiwei's family were waving at them.
When they arrived and greeted each other with auspicious words, Lin Heng asked again: "Where is my uncle-in-law? Why didn't he come?"
"He and Shi Lei went to his uncle's house to pay New Year's greetings." Li Shiwei said with a smile. His family was different this year as they had become much richer and could move around more.
"Oh, come to my house and play later." Lin Heng nodded.
After a few words, everyone went to grandma's house together. A dog started barking in the distance, and then his eldest uncle and third uncle came out to greet them with a smile. They beat the dog that didn't recognize its own people and barked at it, and then warmly welcomed everyone into their home.
"Happy New Year, uncle and uncle number three. I wish you good health, good luck and prosperity every year..."
As soon as Xiaoxia entered the house, she started her auspicious words. She greeted every elder with a smile. Her two younger brothers couldn't learn how to do it, so they just kowtowed continuously.
Lin Heng and other adults were watching the fun on the side. This is how Chinese New Year is celebrated. They bring gifts to visit the elders and they give them red envelopes. The relationship deepens as they give each other red envelopes.
Grandma was still in good health, and she even took out her own money to give red envelopes to everyone. Then everyone started the usual New Year's routine of playing cards and chatting, and had a great time.
The third uncle chatted with Lin Heng and others. He planned to build one next year. Now that he had money and saw the hope of getting married, he wanted to build a house first.
But after discussion, Lin Heng signaled him not to be anxious. Building a mud house might not necessarily help him find a wife, but paying a high price for the bride price would definitely help. In the past two years, his mother has also been looking for someone to take care of this matter, but there are no suitable candidates in the two nearby villages.
They plan to find some people next year to see if there are any suitable people in the villages farther away. Marriage is the last thing you should rush. Once you find the wrong marriage partner, even if you have children, it will ruin several generations.
They played at grandma's house until the afternoon before going back, and then she invited them to come over and play in a few days.
During the Chinese New Year, relatives and friends come to visit each other. After returning home, Lin Heng took Xiulan to visit all the important relatives and friends in the next few days, and many relatives also came to his house one after another.
The Lin family has been developing continuously in the past two years and has become a famous family in the countryside. Everyone is envious of them. Relatives are also moving closer to them. After suffering for half a lifetime, Lin's father and mother can finally hold their heads up and live a normal life. They are smiling more and more.
Before I knew it, it was already the fourth day of the Lunar New Year. On this morning, snowflakes began to fall from the sky again. (End of this chapter)
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