The crowd all scrambled and vied to receive gifts, leaving Yang Chengbin dizzy with promises, not even sure how much he had committed to.

After the laughter and teasing, the other six brothers took turns presenting their New Year's gifts to their sister. Seeing her face light up with joy made them very happy as well.

Nangong Lingfei and his two sisters also gave New Year's gifts.

Yang Mengchen did not play coy and accepted each one with a smile.

Next, Old Master Yang, on behalf of the Yang family, distributed red envelopes to every servant and a few Youming Palace People, which brought smiles to the faces of all the servants.

After setting off the fireworks brought by Nangong Lingfei, everyone stayed in the garden to see the New Year in.

Considering that staying up for the New Year would last until the next day, and persistently eating or making small talk would certainly become boring, Yang Mengchen instructed Shao Yao and Wu Tong to bring some stiff paper, cut it into fifty-six cards, and mark them accordingly.

Nangong Lingfei asked curiously, "What is Jiujiu planning to do with these?"

"Playing cards," Yang Mengchen continued working with her hands, "I came across this entertainment method in a miscellaneous book. Found it quite novel, so I learned more about it. Since we are sitting around bored, let's all play together, just to pass the time." She briefly explained the rules of 'Doubling Up' and 'Fighting the Landlord'.

"There is such a way to play?" Everyone was astonished as they listened.

Suddenly, Nangong Lingyan said, "When I used to travel with my adoptive father, I saw the latter method in the north. Northerners call it 'Da Gunzi', but they use bamboo slips and the rules are somewhat different from what Jiu Mei described."

Yang Mengchen's study was filled with bookcases of books, encompassing a wide array of subjects. Besides those she had purchased from the bookstore, there were also gifts from Long Xuanmo and others. Furthermore, after hearing what Nangong Lingyan said, no one doubted her claim. Instead, it piqued their interest, and they all helped make the playing cards—with the servants offering assistance.

Once the playing cards were ready, Yang Mengchen first taught Nangong Lingfei, Yang Chengrong, and the other five brothers at one table how to play 'Fighting the Landlord'. The others watched from the side.

In the beginning, the six of them were very unfamiliar with the game and caused many humorous mistakes. After several rounds, they all got the hang of it and became more and more addicted to playing.

The onlookers were eager to try for themselves. Yang Mengchen taught the rest how to play 'Doubling Up' and 'Fighting the Landlord', and then joined Madam Yang Zhou, Liu Xiuyun, and Shen Qiulan at a table, while the servants not on duty also gathered round to play.

In no time, the garden was filled with laughter and cheerful voices rising and falling, lasting until the early hours, with everyone remaining in high spirits.

As dawn approached, everyone went back to their rooms to freshen up, then returned to the garden, where Qiao Niangzi had already arranged for the servants to serve steaming hot glutinous rice balls.

After eating the rice balls, Nangong Lingfei, his siblings, Weichi Kong, and Old Master Shao and others stayed in the garden.

Meanwhile, the Yang family members went to the front courtyard.

Soon, villagers came by to extend New Year's greetings, and the Yang family welcomed them warmly, giving each child ten wen money as a New Year's gift. In the past, when the household was poor, only two wen money was given to their own children. Since the villagers knew the Yang family's hardships, they typically did not bring their kids over.

In the afternoon, Yang Mengchen and her nine siblings first visited the Clan Leader, the village head, and Lizheng's house to give their New Year's greetings, then went to the hinterland of the Dayang Mountain to visit the Elite Guards.

The second day of the new year was reserved for visiting one's parental home, but Madam Yang Zhou's family was long gone, and ever since Yang Mengchen was born, the Wu, Liu, and Shen families had all grown very fond of her.

The four families discussed and decided that from the second to the fifth day of the new year, Yang Chaowen and the other three couples would take turns bringing her and her brothers to visit these three families.

Having had dinner at the Wu family's home and returned, Yang Mengchen had the elder members of the family try the peanut and date cakes Grandma Zhang had made (she had bought Grandma Zhang's recipe and agreed to a contract where they would split the sales revenue fifty-fifty), and after chatting with the elders for a while, she finally went back to the study.

At the same time, she instructed Sister Jin and the other four to rest.

"Miss, an urgent report from The Capital." Hai Tang handed over the newly received secret report to Yang Mengchen.

After reading it, Yang Mengchen burned the secret report in candle fire, her expression calm, but the darkness in her eyes was devoid of any light, giving one the sensation of flames blazing fiercely, resembling the ghostly fires of the netherworld, both intense and icy, involuntarily making one's heart grow cold.

Although she had arranged for the Elite Guards to protect Uncle Xiao and his family and also asked Long Xuan Mo to take extra care of them, she still felt somewhat uneasy. Therefore, she had also had Hai Tang assign Youming Palace People to secretly protect them.

It was fortunate that she had made multiple preparations; otherwise, Uncle Xiao and his family would have hardly escaped the poison of Old Lady Xiao several times.

A glint of ferocity flashed in Hai Tang's eyes, "Miss, I will send a message right away for our men to annihilate the Xiao family!" Those who dared to anger the miss did not deserve to live.

Giving Hai Tang a sidelong glance, Yang Mengchen held her forehead, speechless.

This Hai Tang honestly thought killing people was as easy as slicing a watermelon? Moreover, the intricate relationships within the Xiao family were deeply entangled, not something that could be eradicated on a whim.

"No need! Inform your people and Bing Mo's team of five to protect Uncle Xiao and his family well, and additionally, secretly gather evidence of the Xiao family's crimes. I have my uses for it."

Hai Tang sighed inwardly, thinking the Miss was too soft-hearted, but still replied respectfully, "Yes, Miss!"

"Wait a moment." Yang Mengchen called out to Hai Tang, who was about to leave, "You mention a method that would allow us to vent our anger for Uncle Xiao's family without implicating them, what is it?"

Hai Tang looked at Yang Mengchen, "Miss, I know you disdain those despicable methods, but many times, those despicable methods are most effective. As long as the Miss is willing, I will make Old Lady Xiao pay a painful price."

"Good, but it needs to be clean and tidy, and do not let her die. Besides, wait until after Uncle Xiao's family has left before you take action."

Hai Tang really did not understand, "Miss, wouldn't it be better to just kill that poisonous woman and spare Sir Xiao's family any future harm?"

"The time is not right yet," a clear and cold determination filled Yang Mengchen's eyes.

Old Lady Xiao had attempted time and again to murder Uncle Xiao and his family, and to simply kill her would be letting her off too easily. Yang Mengchen insisted on making her live, live to see Uncle Xiao achieve success and family bliss, while her own sons were trampled underfoot; for Old Lady Xiao, that would be the deepest punishment.

Hai Tang said no more.

On the eighth day, the workers returned to start work, and the shops in the town reopened for business. Yang Mengchen allowed the craftsmen to return after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month to commence work.

Yang Mengchen visited the factories, herb bases, and greenhouses before she had just returned home when she heard from Jiang Quan that Uncle Xiao's family had come back.

Still in the second entrance, she heard the loud cries of Pingping and Anan coming from the garden, and Yang Mengchen's heart ached. She quickened her pace and went in, only to see Aunty Xiao and Sister Ke trying to comfort Pingping and Anan, who were crying while their black eyes rolled around as if searching for something.

"Pingping and Anan, don't cry, Mengchen sister has come back." Suddenly seeing Yang Mengchen, Lady Xiao let out a long sigh of relief and stepped forward to hand over Pingping in her arms to Yang Mengchen, "Pingping and Anan started crying non-stop upon not seeing you when they came back, and none of us could console them."

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