Free Web NovelChapter 639: Chapter 639: New Year’s Formal Salutations
In the evening, a carriage stopped at Tong Huaqiong’s doorstep.
Gu Dahuan and others were puzzled about who would visit relatives on the first day of the New Year, but the call of "Godmother" solved the mystery.
Liu Yanhong, the son of County Magistrate Liu, had arrived.
Tong Huaqiong greeted him.
Liu Yanhong had grown taller in the past two years, and his baby fat had disappeared, giving him the look of an emerging young man.
But his carefree nature was still unchangeable.
"Godmother, I’ve come to wish you a Happy New Year."
Liu Yanhong ran towards Tong Huaqiong, but accidentally slipped and fell to his knees directly in front of her.
Tong Huaqiong’s mouth twitched; such a grand gesture on the New Year.
Liu Yanhong decided to make the best out of a bad situation and kowtowed twice to her.
After all, it’s customary to kowtow to elders during New Year.
Anyway, since Godmother is wealthy now, she’d give him a big red packet, so he wouldn’t be at a loss.
Tong Huaqiong pulled Liu Yanhong up, patted the snow off him, and said, "Careless, aren’t you hurt?"
Liu Yanhong stretched out his hand and said, "Not hurt at all. So, um, I’ve kowtowed to Godmother, where’s my red packet?"
Mrs. Hong chimed in, "How could Young Master Liu miss out on his red packet?"
Tong Huaqiong led Liu Yanhong inside and had the maid serve his favorite pastries, then gave him a big red packet. Liu Yanhong smiled broadly as he felt the silver inside.
"Coming here, did your parents and grandma know about it?" Tong Huaqiong asked.
Liu Yanhong replied, "It was my grandma who sent someone to bring me here to hide for a few days."
Tong Huaqiong speechlessly replied, "Did you cause trouble again?"
Liu Yanhong laughed and said, "Before the New Year, the Lian Family invited us over and offered my dad two concubines shamelessly. Luckily, my dad didn’t accept. Young Master Lian wanted to lure my dad with beauty, which made me furious. Yesterday, I sneaked into the Lian Family’s place and blew up the outhouse when Young Master Lian went in. He fell into the muck and broke his arm."
Tong Huaqiong and Mrs. Hong laughed heartily.
"This morning, Mr. Lian came to my dad’s place to complain, but my mom blocked him at the door. Grandma was afraid my dad would hit me, so she sent me to hide at your place," Liu Yanhong said while eating pastries.
Tong Huaqiong tapped Liu Yanhong’s head and said, "You’re a clever little rascal."
Blowing up the outhouse, he sure could think of that.
"By the way, where has Man Er gone?" Liu Yanhong asked.
"He’s with the village chief’s youngest son by the river, using firecrackers to blow up ice," Su Qing came in smiling, "They say they want to blow up a bucket of fish."
Tong Huaqiong told Su Qing, "Take Yanhong to find them."
And reminded Liu Yanhong, "No blowing up people. If you cause trouble in Qinghe Bay, I’ll hit you, and you won’t have a place to hide."
Liu Yanhong stood up and nodded obediently, then followed Su Qing out.
Once Liu Yanhong left, the room quieted down.
No events during the New Year.
Just eating and drinking.
Previously, Tong Huaqiong would have Gu Dashu, Gu Taohua, and the shopkeepers invite the staff from the shop for New Year’s banquets. But this year, she spared them from those formalities, opting to give them sufficient bonuses instead, allowing everyone to rest properly.
"Mom, there’s a theater troupe performing in the village tonight; we’re all going to watch,"
Liu Yue Er walked in, clutching some melon seeds, her face full of excitement.
This Year’s festivities in Qinghe Bay were livelier than usual.
Since everyone made money from planting cotton with Tong Huaqiong and many earned extra from the Weaving Workshop, every household pooled some money to have the village head invite a popular theater troupe from town to perform in the village.
The plan was to have performances throughout the entire New Year.
Liu Yue Er had already seen the theater troupe arrive in the village after a stroll outside.
Apart from Tong Huaqiong, everyone in Qinghe Bay loved to watch plays.
Tong Huaqiong understood, since there were limited entertainment options in this era.
Having experienced the vibrant world with various entertainments, she wasn’t interested in plays. Moreover, her limited artistic taste rendered the opera singing a torture.
Tong Huaqiong spoke to Liu Yue Er with rare gentleness, "You all go tonight; I don’t like the noises."
Liu Yue Er and Chen Sufen, the two sisters-in-law, were surprised.
Back then, Tong Dajiao loved watching operas the most. Qinghe Bay was poor, and they couldn’t hire a troupe during New Year, so she often went to the neighboring village or the town to watch them despite the snow.
Now with the troupe right at her doorstep, she no longer wants to watch.
Chen Sufen, slightly anxious, said, "If Mom doesn’t go, I won’t go either."
Liu Yue Er wanted to roll her eyes; her sister-in-law just couldn’t shake off her habit of flattering their mother-in-law.
If her mother-in-law asked her to face east, she wouldn’t dare face west; if told to shoo chickens, she wouldn’t dare chase dogs.
Tong Huaqiong told Chen Sufen, "You enjoy yourself, don’t mind me. On the sixth, I plan to visit the Government City Lu Family to discuss your third brother’s marriage. We need to settle the date and prepare well before I go."
Liu Yue Er asked, "Third Brother and Zhaozhao are getting married?"
The mother-in-law really kept it under wraps.
Chen Sufen beamed and said, "That’s wonderful; another happy event for our family."
Liu Yue Er thought her sister-in-law was a simpleton.
She and Chen Sufen’s families for eight generations back were commoners, far below the background of Lu Zhaozhao.
Lu Zhaozhao coming with the considerable assets of the Lu Family to marry Gu Jingzhe was personally chosen by Tong Huaqiong, unlike her and her sister-in-law—one had eloped, the other was married off for a dowry. Once Lu Zhaozhao joined, she feared they’d look even more shabby in comparison.
Liu Yue Er asked, "Mom, where will Zhaozhao live after she gets married?"
Tong Huaqiong replied, "She’ll live in the Government City. But not for long, as she and your third brother will go to Shengjing."
Liu Yue Er, for once, wasn’t envious.
Lu Zhaozhao better not live with their mother-in-law, or it would make her seem foolish. Before long, Lu Zhaozhao could charm their mother-in-law, leaving her with only one daughter-in-law in her eyes.
"By the way, Mom, when I was at the Pingchuan Jufu Restaurant, Mrs. Chen, Mrs. Zhao, and Mrs. Li kept inquiring about Taohua’s marriage. Mrs. Zhao even wanted to match her nephew with Taohua. I told them that Taohua’s marriage is not for others to meddle with, so they stopped and asked what kind of person you’re looking for, offering to keep an eye out."
Gu Jingzhe and Gu Taohua were twins; with Gu Jingzhe about to marry, there wasn’t a peep about Gu Taohua’s prospects.
If it dragged on, Gu Taohua would become an old maid in Qinghe Bay.
Yet their mother-in-law wasn’t anxious at all.
Liu Yue Er was always asked in Pingchuan County, and she thought the marriage prospects from these big families weren’t bad. It wouldn’t be right to block a good match just because they hoped someone would marry in.
Tong Huaqiong said, aware of Liu Yue Er’s concerns yet knowing she meant no harm, "You did right in refusing. Taohua’s marriage isn’t something to rush; it should depend on what she likes. She’s my only daughter, and I won’t follow those blind marriages."
Although Tong Huaqiong told others she was reluctant to part with her daughter and wanted Taohua to stay a few more years, no one believed it, and marriage proposals for Gu Taohua kept coming, all of which Tong Huaqiong refused.
Despite being known for doting on her daughter and intending to leave her an inheritance, many were eager.
Especially poor scholars, who, when in Yan Guan Town or Pingchuan County, often tried to casually encounter or strike up conversations with Gu Taohua.
Tong Huaqiong saw through their intentions—they sought to marry into wealth, having a wife toil and bear children for them, while bringing in a significant dowry to support their studies.
Draining a wealthy woman’s dowry dry.
Fortunately, Gu Taohua was wiser in this life, thanks to Tong Huaqiong’s guidance, focusing solely on making money and ignoring these predators.
If she and Su Chengmin had a genuine connection, Tong Huaqiong wouldn’t interfere.
The prerequisite, however, is for Su Chengmin to stand openly, not remain like a "dead man," hiding his identity.
As the leading male’s nominal "uncle," Su Chengmin should have a bright future, with the protagonist’s aura protecting him.
Gu Taohua and Su Chengmin together would be a formidable match.
