Chapter 727 - 375: Grandma Liu

Chapter 727: Chapter 375: Grandma Liu

Huai Zi happily thanked Grandma Liu, taking the hat and unfolding it. It was a simple, round style, but soft to the touch with a layer of cotton padding inside. He placed it on Banli’s head—it was a perfect fit. The vibrant red color, under the lamplight, made Banli’s little face glow with a pinkish luster. His dark eyes sparkled, and when he broke into a toothless grin, he looked just like one of the babies from a New Year’s painting.

The room immediately filled with praise and thanks. He and Zhang Dashuan were grinning from ear to ear. Huai Zi happily took a pair of small shoes and put them on Banli’s feet. Seeing this, Zhang Yang hurried over to try a hat on Cong.

Why were the Zhang family so happy? It was because items from an elderly person were believed to carry blessings, and what’s more, Grandma Liu had made this hat and these shoes with her own hands.

According to village customs, if someone died after the age of eighty, their funeral would be a grand, celebratory affair. Their belongings would naturally be divided among their children and grandchildren, and even the bowls and chopsticks from the funeral banquet would be secretly taken home by guests. The host family wouldn’t get angry; in fact, they would prepare extra bowls and chopsticks for people to take, as everyone wanted to share in the good fortune and longevity.

Liu Heizi’s mother was already eighty-three, an age considered advanced longevity. According to Yun Ying, her hearing and eyesight were still sharp, she was healthy, and in good spirits—she still had many years ahead of her. She had given birth late in life, being over forty when Liu Heizi was born.

Grandma Liu was all smiles. Seeing the Zhang family’s delight, she wasn’t particularly smug, as if she had expected this reaction all along. She was perfectly at ease, as serene as any neighborhood grandmother, unlike her son and daughter-in-law, who always looked fearful and grateful in front of their employers.

She carefully looked over Banli and Cong, patting their little heads and nodding continuously. "Good children, very sturdy," she praised. "No wonder he’s called Banli. The little girl is lovely, too, just like a spring onion. Both names are very good. They’re close to us farming folk and sound affectionate when you say them."

Juhua was delighted to hear this and said with a smile, "Grandma Liu, you probably can’t chew other things, so once the dumplings are wrapped, we’ll boil a couple for you to eat. You can also take some home to cook for breakfast tomorrow. The meat in the filling is all minced, mixed with some egg and spinach. It’s very soft and not greasy, so it’s fine for the elderly to eat."

After hearing her, Grandma Liu got up and went to the table to look at the dumpling filling. Bright green spinach was mixed with pink minced meat and golden egg—it was indeed beautiful to look at. She praised it for a moment, then said, "We poor folk aren’t so particular, even when we get old. We eat anything; we’re tough. Even those acorns from the back mountain, in past years we’d often boil and eat them. Boiled and then steamed, they weren’t terribly hard to eat, but it was nothing like the acorn flour you can wash out these days. It wasn’t as fine and smooth, and it was hard to digest. You’d get constipated."

Aunt Liu laughed. "Listen to you, Grandma. How could they not be hard to eat? If they were tasty, why wouldn’t people gather them, as long as they had other food at home? We only ate them when we were so hungry we had no other choice. Of course, it’s different now—that stuff has become a treasure."

After a while of joking and laughing, Grandma Liu noticed Juhua expertly wrapping dumplings, smiling as she listened to their conversation without saying much herself. She sized Juhua up for a moment and said to He, "This daughter-in-law of yours is blessed with great fortune."

He’s grin stretched wide when she heard this. She said humbly, "How could a young thing like her have any fortune? You’re the one who’s truly blessed, Grandma."

Grandma Liu said slowly and deliberately, "Mm, I’m not mistaken. She is blessed with great fortune. She can endure hardship and also enjoy prosperity!"

He was even happier. Seeing that Juhua was just smiling, not taking the words to heart and probably thinking Grandma Liu was just flattering her, she explained, "Grandma Liu isn’t just saying things. People think that being rich and powerful means you’re blessed, but that’s not it at all. Whether you’re rich or poor, you’ll go through things—who doesn’t face hurdles in life? Someone who can’t endure hardship won’t easily overcome those hurdles. And someone who can’t handle prosperity will be overwhelmed by it, grow arrogant, and squander even the greatest family fortune. Grandma Liu is praising you for being able to withstand poverty and handle wealth."

Juhua was taken aback for a moment, then smiled. "Grandma Liu, you’re praising me too much. I’m not that capable. I get flustered when things happen, too."

Grandma Liu smiled. "The Young Madam has a calm temperament, but she’s not without a strong will. A person like that can adapt to high or low circumstances, regardless of wealth. When faced with problems, she doesn’t get bogged down in trivialities. She has a broad heart."

Juhua was truly surprised now. ’Grandma Liu has lived a long life and seen so much of the world; her eyes are sharp indeed.’ Aside from her naturally easy-going disposition, in her previous life she had loved reading Zhuangzi. She approached matters with the principle of "do your best and leave the rest to fate," so she really didn’t like to get bogged down in things. ’The old woman’s words are simple, but each one is full of meaning.’

’She didn’t really care whether she was blessed or not. People have their own ideas about fortune; it all depends on how you think about it. To some, what she’d gone through—transmigrating—would seem like the worst possible fate. But just as Grandma Liu had said, she truly felt she was blessed and was completely content with her life now, even more so than her life before.’

He was filled with joy. She had chosen Juhua, having taken a liking to her even before Huai Zi did, so of course she was happy. What she was most proud of was that her relationship with Juhua wasn’t like that of a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law at all; they were like mother and daughter. Liu Yunlan also respected the Yang Family, but their relationship was still like that of a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.

She beamed at Grandma Liu and said, "What you said, Grandma, really warms my heart."

Huai Zi, holding Banli, also came over to watch them wrap dumplings. Hearing what Grandma Liu said about Juhua, he glanced at her with a slight smile. He bounced his son in his arms and said, "Grandma Liu, look here. We’re blessed with good fortune too, aren’t we? Of course we are. Right?"

His answering his own question earned him an eye-roll from He. "There you go, blowing your own horn again!"

Grandma Liu looked at him and smiled meaningfully. "You married the Young Madam, so of course you are a man of good fortune. But you must cherish that fortune. Those who don’t, lose it very quickly."

Huai Zi was stunned for a moment, then laughed. "Don’t worry. I’m a frugal person. I only gather fortune, I don’t squander it." ’He suspected the old woman had probably heard the gossip going around outside and was intentionally giving him a pointer, which made him feel quite grateful.’

As they talked, they wrapped a great number of dumplings, arranging them neatly in gauze-lined sieves. Two sieves weren’t enough, so they cleared two wooden lids from the pickle jars to hold the rest.

The little ones finally couldn’t stay awake any longer, their eyelids drooping. After putting the three of them to bed, Qingmu and Liu Yunlan came over. Seeing the scene in the main room, Qingmu smiled. "Are the dumplings all wrapped? Yunlan said she wanted to come help. Where’s Hulu?"

Huai Zi laughed. "He’s asleep. He said he wanted to wait for his mom and dad, but he couldn’t stay up. Juhua let him sleep here." While he gestured for them to sit, He offered them tea and snacks.

Zhang Dashuan stretched his arms and laughed. "Finally done with the work. Now all that’s left is to eat, drink, and chat. You young ones can have your fun here. I’m going to find your father."

Qingmu smiled slightly. "Go on, Uncle Zhang. Uncle Shorty just went over."

Zhang Dashuan said hurriedly, "Then I’d better hurry!" As he spoke, he was already out the door.

Zhang Yang complained to Qingmu, "Now that the little ones are asleep, it’s not as fun anymore. We don’t want to read on New Year’s Eve, and sigh... it seems a little too early to go to sleep."

Qingmu couldn’t help but laugh. "Are you using them for entertainment?"

It was New Year’s Eve, so Juhua and Liu Yunlan had naturally put away their needlework. They were cracking melon seeds and listening to Grandma Liu tell old stories. Hearing Zhang Yang’s words, they couldn’t help but find it a little funny.

It was no wonder Zhang Yang felt that way. Now that their generation of boys and girls were all married with children, it wasn’t as easy to gather for fun and games as they used to a few years ago. Everyone had their own responsibilities. Take Meizi, for example. She always wanted to come chat with Juhua, but her two children kept her tied down, and it was even less likely she could come out on New Year’s Eve. The rest of the young men also had families of their own. If they visited, it was usually just with neighbors. Juhua, for her part, mostly just visited with her own family.

Huai Zi suddenly grinned at his brother. "Here comes the entertainment."

Everyone stopped talking and looked at him, puzzled. He just smiled, his eyes on the doorway. Sure enough, the courtyard gate creaked open with a SQUEAK. From the west wing, Heipi called out alertly, "Who’s there?"

He chuckled. "Look at that boy, so sharp. He can hear from so far away."

Grandma Liu continued to smile kindly.

Two figures emerged from the shadows. Walking toward the house in the narrow beam of light streaming from the main door, one of them called out, "It’s us, Little Shitou from the Zhao family."

Hearing this, Heipi hurriedly said, "It’s Little Scholar Zhao! Our Second Young Master isn’t asleep yet. You go on in, I’ll close the gate."

Little Shitou was about the same age as him but was already a scholar. Heipi admired him from the bottom of his heart. Hearing he had arrived, Heipi followed them to the main house after closing the courtyard gate, eager to hear some news from the outside world.

As soon as Little Shitou and Zhao Qing sat down in the room, the atmosphere changed completely. Little Shitou squeezed in with Zhang Yang, Qingmu, and the others, and they were soon talking and laughing loudly. Zhao Qing sweetly greeted everyone in the room before sitting down next to Juhua, her ears perked to listen to the conversation.

Even though she had her own children now, Juhua was still fondest of Zhao Qing. She was naturally happy to see her and couldn’t resist pulling her into a hug, asking her one question after another.

He, meanwhile, busied herself with getting the two newcomers to eat some snacks. Then, she and Grandma Liu watched the room full of ’children’ big and small, laughing happily and chiming in with a few words here and there. Elderly people love to see such joyous scenes.

Zhang Yang laughed and asked Shi Tou, "How come you have time to visit? You didn’t bring that little troublemaker with you?"

Shi Tou glanced around the room and chuckled. "Aren’t all the little ones in your family asleep, too? Otherwise, how could you all be so relaxed? I, of course, waited for my little brother to fall asleep before bringing Qing’er out."

Huai Zi laughed. "Shi Tou, my Banli and Cong are much better behaved than Zhao Feng. They’re always smiling and never cry. Hulu is especially good. Even if they weren’t asleep, we wouldn’t mind. Just now, Yangzi was saying it got boring after they fell asleep. It’s a good thing you two came."

Little Shitou raised an eyebrow at Zhang Yang. "So you’re using us for entertainment?"

Zhang Yang shot him a sideways glance. "Why else would you come here if not for some fun? Wouldn’t it be better to be at home sleeping?"

Shi Tou grinned playfully. "I came out to accompany my little sister. As an older brother, isn’t it my job to take my younger siblings out to play?"