With the arrival of the New Year, the streets were filled with a festive atmosphere. Every household had upside down Fu characters pasted on their doors and windows, and everyone was brimming with anticipation.
Wen Niao stood on an automatic step ladder.
“Brother Jin, is the couplet I pasted straight? Do I need to adjust it?”
“It is a little bit tilted to the right. Move it a little to the left. Alright, it is straight now.”
“Got it.”
Confirming that the couplet wasn’t crooked, Wen Niao began hanging red lanterns on both sides of the villa’s main gate, adding a strong festive touch with their bright color.
Several upside down Fu characters also appeared on the villa’s walls. With the characters inverted, good fortune had arrived.
The silent arrival of the New Year was about to unfold.
That night, Wen Niao’s family gathered together to eat the New Year’s Eve dinner, surrounded by a joyful and festive atmosphere.
The New Year’s Eve dinner featured not only delicious dishes but also traditional dumplings.
Tang Miao had initiated a family dumpling making session. The fillings included shiitake mushroom and beef, shrimp, chive and pork, and tofu with vermicelli. Tang Miao pulled out four copper coins, planning to secretly slip them into the fillings while wrapping.
Tang Miao’s dumplings were round and beautiful with plenty of creative folds. Although Wen Jingyu didn’t know many fancy designs, his technique was steady, and he could wrap a plump meat dumpling in just eight seconds.
At first, Luo Jin struggled to keep up with Tang Miao’s speed, but after watching a few times, he managed to form a basic shape. Through continuous practice, his technique became much more proficient, and his speed picked up significantly.
Wen Niao stared at the dumpling wrapper in his hand with a troubled expression. Although he used to make dumplings with his grandmother during the New Year in his past life, after her health began to decline, he hadn’t made them in a long time, and his once fluent technique had grown rusty.
Helpless, he could only watch the others wrap dumplings while silently drooling on the side.
So fragrant, I want to eat.
Wen Niao: Weak, helpless, and a huge foodie.
Once the dumplings were wrapped and the water brought to a boiling point, they were ready to go straight into the pot, and then it was just a matter of waiting patiently.
Everyone tasted the fruits of their labor, hoping to bite into a dumpling containing a copper coin.
Eating a dumpling with a copper coin carried a wonderful blessing: the person would enjoy boundless wealth and continuous good fortune in the coming year.
While it might seem a bit superstitious today, the custom was preserved for the sake of festive luck.
As the others ate, they all coincidentally bit into dumplings with copper coins, and Luo Jin even used his chopsticks to fish out two. Wen Niao finished an entire bowl of dumplings without encountering a single one.
He couldn’t help feeling a little wronged.
“Mommy, why isn’t there a single one in my bowl? There’s no love left. Brother Jin got two. Mommy, did you give him special treatment? If you keep this up, you’re going to lose your precious baby.”
Seeing that Wen Niao was genuinely upset, Luo Jin proactively washed off his copper coins, handed them to Wen Niao, and coaxed him gently:
“Niao Niao, don’t cry, it’s fine. I’ll pass my good fortune on to you, wishing you endless luck in the new year.”
Wen Niao had only been a little bit unhappy anyway, and he didn’t really believe in superstitions.
Seeing Luo Jin hand over his copper coins with such sincerity, Wen Niao earnestly accepted them and solemnly promised to keep them safe.
Everything eventually came to a close, and a new day quietly arrived. The old faded away and the new took its place, but what remained unchanged were the memories of the past.
When Luo Jin woke up in the morning, a set consisting of a red down jacket and black outer cotton trousers was placed by his bed.
Luo Jin got up and curiously unfolded them to take a look.
The red white duck down jacket felt very soft to the touch, feeling like holding a cloud of cotton in one’s arms.
Although the black cotton trousers were a bit thin, wearing them kept the wind out effectively without feeling cold.
Luo Jin went to the bathroom to change into the clothes.
Wen Niao, who was outside planning to wake Luo Jin up to set off firecrackers, knocked on the door for a long time without getting a response, so he simply pushed it open and walked in.
As soon as he stepped into the room, he saw Luo Jin in his new clothes, and his eyes lit up.
The red down jacket made Luo Jin’s skin look even fairer, and the red tear mole at the corner of his eye added a touch of allure.
The black cotton trousers made Luo Jin’s figure look even taller and sleeker.
In his new clothes, Luo Jin looked much more spirited, carrying the refined air of a young master from a wealthy family.
Wen Niao: Isn’t a wealthy young master my setting?
Luo Jin noticed Wen Niao standing frozen at the door and asked in confusion:
“Wen Niao, what’s wrong? Is there something you need this early?”
“Brother Jin, you look so good in new clothes. By the way, the reason I woke you up so early is because today is the first day of the new year, a fresh start, and we need to set off firecrackers in the morning.”
After offering his sincere compliment, Wen Niao got straight to the point.
“Alright, let’s head down together.”
The two of them went downstairs, retrieved the firecrackers, and set them up in an open space in the backyard. Wen Niao handed Luo Jin a pack of matches.
“Brother Jin, in a moment, take out a match, strike it, light the fuse, and run away quickly. Don’t get hurt, and remember to cover your ears when you run, okay?”
Luo Jin obediently listened to Wen Niao’s instructions and nodded to show he understood.
They each took out a match, struck it, lit the fuses of their respective firecrackers, and covered their ears as they retreated to a safe distance.
The crackling sounds pushed the festive atmosphere to its peak. Each burst of fireworks carried people’s hopeful wishes of driving away evil, avoiding disasters, and praying for blessings.
After the firecrackers finished popping, the two of them swept up the remaining paper scraps and returned to the villa for breakfast.
“Niao Niao, Xiao Jin, you two can play freely these past few days of the New Year, but I’ve hired a tutor for you. In four days, you’ll need to put away your playful mind and devote yourselves entirely to your studies, understood?”
Tang Miao dropped this news with an uncompromising tone.
Since his foundation had fallen far behind others, Luo Jin naturally needed to spend more time catching up. He didn’t oppose tutoring and actually welcomed it gladly.
For Wen Niao, however, this was a devastating blow.
“No, I don’t want tutoring. I haven’t enjoyed my wonderful holiday enough yet, Mommy.”
“Stop right there, acting cute won’t work. When the time comes, you’ll just obediently listen to the teacher and properly improve your humanities grades.”
Having said that, Tang Miao didn’t want her resolve to soften, so she finished her breakfast and headed out.
Wen Niao slumped limply in his chair, listless, as even his beloved meat buns failed to arouse his appetite. He kept poking at a meat bun in his bowl, turning the once plump dumpling into a mess of holes.
Meat Bun: What did I do wrong, I am still just a child!
There was no escaping it, so after pulling himself together and adjusting his mindset, Wen Niao returned to his carefree self.
It was too cold outside, so going out to play was out of the question. They would have to stay indoors.
As for indoor entertainment, what was fun?
There was a brand new set of soft and cute panda jigsaw puzzles. Thinking of this, Wen Niao excitedly turned to Luo Jin with a suggestion:
“Brother Jin, let’s do a puzzle later. It’s the newest version, which not only exercises the mind but is also a great way to pass the time.”
“Whatever you want.”
Though Luo Jin wasn’t particularly interested in entertainment, he figured that since Wen Niao liked it, he should accompany him.