"Of course not, Mom said it's just a legend, something that happened a long time ago."
Shen Suisui gently comforted her younger brother, holding his hand. The man in the outer room was slightly taken aback when he heard Shen Suisui call the woman "Mom," and then looked at the situation inside the room with disbelief.
Clearly, he was the unwanted one in the family.
After cleaning up, most of the New Year's customs were done. Shen Ying sat by the window with the children, answering their endless questions. Jiang Yu was in the outer room preparing dumpling filling, occasionally adding soy sauce and salt to taste.
This was her first time trying to make dumplings, and her movements were a bit clumsy.
After wrapping a blanket, while the water was boiling, she brought a bowl of fried food into the house.
"Comrade Shen Ying, isn't this a bit too little for tomb sweeping? If you think it's not enough, I'll add some more."
Jiang Yu's words served as a timely reminder to the man. His expression changed slightly, and he managed to squeeze out a "thank you."
In some rural areas, there is a custom of sweeping tombs on New Year's Eve. Men take cooked food from home to the cemetery and set off a string of firecrackers by the tomb, so as to bring some fun to the people on the other side.
Shen Ying was the second oldest child in his family, with an older brother and a younger sister. His father had passed away long ago, and his mother had raised them all alone. Because the family was too poor to afford a wife, his older brother had become a live-in son-in-law in a neighboring village, a situation that made him ashamed in the village. When it came to Shen Ying, his mother, fearing a repeat of her eldest son's fate, said she would borrow money to bring a wife to the family and ensure the Shen family line continued.
Later, the youngest sister also went to the city to work in order to pay off the family's debts. The three siblings were all ambitious and joined the army, which improved the family's situation.
Unfortunately, the whole family never expected that all their sacrifices would result in marrying the original owner's heartless wife. Not only did she fight with her mother-in-law every day at home, but she also wouldn't let her sister-in-law and older brother come home. In order to prevent her from stopping her from finding Lu Yi, she even scolded her mother-in-law to go and squeeze into her daughter's dormitory. After she gave birth to Shen Niannian and her mother-in-law took care of her until the end of her postpartum period, she never came back.
Sometimes Shen Ying would secretly visit his mother at the factory, bringing her some things and giving her some living expenses. Otherwise, if the original owner found out, she would cause a huge scene, the worst being that she threatened to report him to the Discipline Inspection Commission. The reasons she gave were all fabricated by Lu Yi.
Not only that, but the food brought to the graves on New Year's Eve was something even Xiao Hei wouldn't eat. Once, he secretly took two pieces of meat and hid them in his pocket, but the original owner found them by smelling the aroma and took two bites. She couldn't stop him, and she was so angry that she didn't give him a kind look before returning to the army, and didn't even cook for him.
The original owner of this body was shameless. She took a bowl to Wang Cuihua's house next door and begged for food in front of the men.
Therefore, in Shen Ying's opinion, it's already quite good that she was able to think of her father this year. At least she can bring ingredients to sweep the tomb openly without having so many worries.
"I haven't heard from my younger sister and mother for a while. How about we take some time after the New Year to go and see if there's anything we can do to help?"
When it came to her mother-in-law and sister-in-law, Jiang Yu didn't have much of an impression. The original owner had already gone too far, so she might as well not even mention asking her mother-in-law to come back. Besides, there was only one bedroom in the house, and she had to wear clothes to avoid men every time she slept, which was incredibly awkward.
Let's talk about it after we've made enough money and bought a house. That day will come eventually.
Jiang Yu wasn't just pretending to be 'filial,' because in her memory, her mother-in-law was genuinely kind. She not only helped with chores wholeheartedly but also contributed her meager savings to the household expenses. During her postpartum period, she also took care of the baby, did laundry, and cooked, allowing the original owner to rest properly.
She's old, and she walks two hours to town just to get some free-range eggs for her daughter-in-law who's in postpartum confinement.
The original owner of this body had no conscience, but she did.
"Um."
Shen Ying nodded slightly in surprise, staring at Jiang Yu for a long time. A couple of days ago, when he went to visit his younger sister's grandmother, she said she missed her grandchildren. Because of the tight schedule, he didn't take the two children with him.
"Is that Grandma?"
Chen Niannian scratched his face and asked softly. Sometimes his father would take him and his sister to their aunt's house. That kind grandmother would always give them the best things. Things like peach shortbread and honey-glazed pastries, they were incredibly delicious.
Two seconds after asking the question, he suddenly remembered that his father always told them not to tell anyone about meeting his grandmother, otherwise his mother would be angry and would never let them go out again.
He glanced helplessly at Chen Ying, then lowered his head and whispered:
"I didn't mean to."
Seeing the awkward expressions on the faces of the three men, Jiang Yu said in an extremely gentle manner:
"How about you and your sister go with Dad after the New Year? Grandma must miss you."
Hearing her mother say this, Shen Niannian let out a deep breath. She knew it! Her mother was the most amazing mother in the world; not only could she cook, but she could also protect her. How could she be angry?
......
When Shen Ying returned from sweeping the tombs, it was already dark. The air outside was filled with the sounds of firecrackers and fireworks. The crackling sounds were a sight that would not be seen forty years later.
The noise was too loud and startled Xiao Hei. Jiang Yu found some tattered felt and covered the doghouse with it so the noise wouldn't be so loud.
It was so lively outside that Jiang Yu felt itchy to go out and dragged Shen Suisui out to watch the fireworks.
Shen Sui Sui held her mother's hand and followed obediently behind her.
"Sui Sui, look! That firecracker is so beautiful! It exploded in the sky with a bang!"
Dongdong saw Shen Suisui at his doorstep and happily greeted her. At this moment, Wang Cuihua was still immersed in the fireworks. Hearing Dongdong's shout, she quickly came over to chat.
"Hey girl, the news about you and Brother Shen Ying putting up couplets together this afternoon has spread throughout the village. How was it? It strengthened your relationship, wasn't it?"
Wang Cuihua winked and made Jiang Yu blush. She explained, quite embarrassed:
"No, I'm short, so I asked him for help because I couldn't reach it."
"Look at you, you two are working together and you're still so polite, it's really too formal."
It has to be said, Wang Cuihua knows how to ship couples. No, what couple? They're clearly a legally married couple.
As the two were talking, Shen Ying brought Shen Niannian back via a longer route. Along the way, many children were setting off firecrackers, which frightened Shen Niannian so much that she asked her father to hold her in his arms. She only got up after seeing Jiang Yu.
In his mother's eyes, he should be a little man, so how could he be afraid of just firecrackers?
"Mom, let me tell you, there are so many people setting off firecrackers, and they're so loud, but I'm never scared at all every year."
Jiang Yu glanced at Shen Ying, and the man turned his head away somewhat awkwardly, pretending to watch the fireworks.
"You're really amazing."
As soon as she finished speaking, firecrackers went off at her feet, and all the mental preparation that Shen Niannian had worked so hard to do vanished in the sound.
Turning around, they saw it was Chen Bo and his children, who were deliberately trying to scare them.
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