| TBBOTOF | 247
Wei Zhonghong hugged the two kids who rushed toward her and said, "Oh my, your auntie has missed you two so much!"
"Happy New Year, auntie! May everything for you be as sweet as us," The chubby boy said with a grin, then turned to his younger brother. "Say something!"
Er Bao looked up at Wei Zhonghong, seeming a bit stunned for a moment. After a pause, he grinned and blurted out, "Happy New Year! I hope... lots of red envelopes mu-mmm-mmm..." before his older brother quickly covered his mouth.
The chubby boy chuckled while holding his younger brother’s mouth and looked at Wei Zhonghong, saying, "My little brother said, 'Happy New Year, auntie! May everyday be as prosperous and bright as can be!'"
Wei Zhonghong laughed heartily, giving them both a little shake as she hugged them. "Good, good, may everything be prosperous and bright!"
Then she reached into her sleeve and pulled out two red envelopes, slipping one into each child’s hand.
The chubby boy let go of his brother's mouth, patted him, and said, "Say thank you!"
Er Bao, clutching his red envelope with both hands, sweetly said to Wei Zhonghong, "Thank you, Auntie~~"
The chubby boy nodded in satisfaction, then nudged his younger brother to bow to Wei Zhonghong. He bent down himself and expressed his thanks, "Thank you, Auntie! May you always stay young, beautiful, and full of energy!"
Wei Zhonghong laughed heartily, her laughter ringing loud and joyful. Then she looked over at Xiao Bao, who was being held by Tang Xu, and waved a smaller red envelope in her hand to get his attention. "Xiao Bao, come down and give your auntie New Year's greetings. Auntie has a red envelope for you," she said, waving the red envelope. "It’s your New Year's money!"
Xiao Bao looked at Wei Zhonghong, then turned his head to glance at Tang Xu.
Tang Xu quickly set him down so he could stand on his own.
Once Xiao Bao found his footing, he clasped his hands in a respectful gesture and said to Wei Zhonghong in his little voice, "Auntie~~ I wish you a good year~~ health~~ and happiness~~!"
Wei Zhonghong bent down to give him a hug and a cheek-to-cheek nuzzle. "Our Xiao Bao is getting cuter and cuter!"
Xiao Bao accepted the red envelope, thanked her, and turned to run back to Tang Xu. Raising the small red envelope, he held it out to him, "Here, Dad~"
"You keep it, it’s from your Auntie," Tang Xu replied, giving his chubby little cheeks a gentle pinch.
Xiao Bao blinked his big eyes and said, "Dad, you take it; I don’t have any pockets."
Tang Xu chuckled. "I told you to wear that red cotton jacket Grandma made, but you insisted on wearing this one. Now look, no pockets!"
Even though both jackets were red, the one Wang Cuicui made was a short, front-buttoned style, while this one had a diagonal front and gold frog closures. It was a longer style, made by a county tailor at Wei Dong’s request just before the New Year.
Each of the three brothers received one, with specially embroidered designs.
No wonder Xiao Bao, who loved beautiful things, was so captivated with it—anyone who saw it would have complimented him on how good it looked.
Ever since he saw the jacket yesterday, Xiao Bao had adored it, touching it, looking at it, eagerly waiting to wear it for the New Year. And once he put it on, he refused to take it off, even though it didn’t have pockets to hold all the little treats his father made him. He didn’t mind the inconvenience at all.
His older brothers, on the other hand, had chosen jackets with pockets, where they could store snacks and red envelopes. Da Bao had even tried to convince Xiao Bao to follow suit, but Xiao Bao wouldn’t listen—style over pockets!
Now, left without a pocket for his red envelope, he had to ask his dad for help.
Tang Xu smiled, took the little red envelope from him, and tucked it into his own pocket, patting it gently. "I’ve put it right here for you. Remember where it is, okay?"
Xiao Bao stood on tiptoe, peeking to make sure it was safely tucked away, then thanked him sweetly.
Tang Xu and Wei Dong gave New Year’s greetings to Wei Zhonghong, then led the three kids into the room.
Inside, all the other kids gave them New Year’s greetings as well, and Tang Xu handed out three red envelopes in return.
Upon seeing Wei Dong enter, Wu Shouye and Wu Shouxin, the two brothers, immediately straightened their previously relaxed posture. Meanwhile, Wu Hong jumped off the kang bed, greeting them cheerfully, "Happy New Year, Brother Dong! Happy New Year, Brother Xu!"
Tang Xu smiled at him. "Happy New Year to you too."
He also handed Wu Hong a red envelope, as it’s customary to share good fortune to the younger generation.
Wu Qiang, seated on the kang with a teapot on the small table in front of him, saw them come in and invited them to sit up on the kang.
The three little ones hadn’t seen the other three kids in the room very often and felt a bit shy at first. But with the sociable older brother among them, it didn’t take long for all the kids to warm up to each other and start playing comfortably together.
“Kids, go play in the side room,” Tang Xu said, gesturing toward the adjacent room. The children were so noisy that it was hard for the adults to hear each other.
The chubby boy had already taken out several of his little snacks from his pockets, but upon hearing this, he quickly stuffed them back. "Come on, let’s go play in the other room! My brother even has some stone marbles!"
The stone marbles were made by Wei Dong for the boys. His strength made it easy for him to grind them quickly, and although they weren’t perfectly smooth, they were just fine for tossing around and playing with.
Once the kids had gone off, the adults sipped tea and chatted, mostly listening to Wu Hong, who kept talking away.
One moment he’d ask when they’d go out again, the next he was talking about how they’d prepared plenty of braised duck and chicken at home, convinced they’d make a good profit on their next trip.
After listening to him, Wei Dong thought for a moment and asked, "How about you team up with Zhao Ming for the next trip? Think you can manage?"
Wu Hong was initially taken aback, but then his face lit up with excitement—only for that excitement to shift into worry. He shook his head vigorously. "No, no, Brother Dong, I don’t think I can handle it. Can’t you come with us one more time?"
Wei Dong sighed. "Last time I took you both, you handled everything well. You’ve learned the routine, and Zhao Ming’s steady by nature. I’d trust the two of you together, and besides, Fourth Brother Pan will be there with you."
Wu Hong continued shaking his head. "No, I really can’t, Brother Dong. I’d be too nervous!"
Tang Xu patted Wei Dong on the shoulder and chimed in, "If you spring the idea of him leading the team on him all of a sudden, he’s bound to feel unsure. Take him along one more time, then next time let him try on his own."
He had another idea in mind—maybe they could set up a shop there. Now that they had reached Dazhou City, opening a store would give them a foothold in the area.
Wei Dong glanced over at Tang Xu, who gave him a knowing look.
Turning back to Wu Hong, Wei Dong said, “Alright, I’ll take you guys along one more time.”
Just then, Wei Zhonghong came in from outside carrying a large tray filled with fried snacks. She set it down on the table and asked with a smile, "What are you all talking about?"
“Brother Dong suggested I lead the next trip myself, but there’s no way I’m ready for that!” Wu Hong scratched his head, glancing at his mother.
Wei Zhonghong gave him a sharp look, clearly disappointed, and gave his head a few light smacks. Then she turned to Wei Dong. "Dongzi, you’d better take him along again. He’s too impulsive; I’d worry if he went alone."
Wei Dong nodded in agreement.
With a warm smile, Wei Zhonghong said, "Dinner will be ready soon. In the meantime, have some meatballs to eat."
Tang Xu followed Wei Zhonghong out and said, "Auntie, let me help you with something."
"No need, you just rest," Wei Zhonghong replied, gently pushing his hand away.
"Rest? I’ve already had a good nap! I got up, freshened up, and came over." Tang Xu affectionately looped his arm around hers and quietly asked, "Are they still giving you trouble lately?"
Wei Zhonghong smiled and shook her head, but before she could reply, the kitchen door curtain was lifted, and her eldest daughter-in-law, Liu Shi, appeared with a wide, overly sweet smile on her face.
“Brother Xu, come in and have a taste of my chicken stew! If you think it’s missing something, help me adjust the seasoning!” she called out, voice dripping with enthusiasm.
Tang Xu reflexively shuddered and turned to look at Wei Zhonghong.
Wei Zhonghong gritted her teeth, muttering a silent curse in her heart.
3 Comments
Thanks for the chapter!
ReplyDeleteXiao Bao is really sooo cute! Thank you for the translation
ReplyDeleteShe's plotting something hmm?thank you for the update.. ❤️🐾
ReplyDeletePost a Comment