Large fireworks are suitable for viewing, while small fireworks are more fun.

Large fireworks are too far away and, although ceremonious, they lack a sense of participation. Small fireworks are different since everyone can set them off and watch them bloom up close, leisurely taking pictures to record the event and still see each other's faces through the fireworks.

The most beautiful were the cylindrical 'Sparkling Silver Flower Fireworks,' bursting with sparks that filled the courtyard, colorful and crackling.

In Zheng Zhilan's eyes, everything was a flickering play of light and shadows, which she used to imagine their forms while attentively listening to the sounds. When she heard Zhou Li or Huai Xu laughing and talking beside her, she also chuckled lightly.

Zhou Li remembered that he had only bought four barrels of 'Sparkling Silver Flower Fireworks,' but for some reason, one barrel after another kept being set off.

The other small fireworks also seemed never-ending.

Zheng Zhilan favored a type of small firework that spun around when lit and thrown on the ground. Averaging five mao each, they would burst into colorful, bright lights. She would set one off and stand quietly by, watching it burn and glow until the light went out before setting off another.

This might have been the clearest fireworks display she had ever seen.

"It's really beautiful," she said.

"It's almost ten o'clock," Zhou Li said.

"Yeah, time to sleep." Zheng Zhilan threw her last spinner firework and watched it intently as it burned.

"Do you want to keep playing?" Zhou Li asked, his head aching a little. "If you keep going, Huai Xu is going to empty the supermarket."

"No more playing," she replied.

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Huai Xu, even amidst the noise, clearly caught the unfavorable comment about him. "I only took a little from each store!"

"..."

Even the most beautiful fireworks eventually go out, and soon the yard returned to darkness and silence. With the creaking sound of the gate, the patch of brightness at the doorway quickly narrowed and disappeared.

After wishing each other goodnight, Zhou Li went back to his room. Zheng Zhilan took out some money and asked Huai Xu to deliver it to the supermarkets he had 'visited.'

Huai Xu was clearly reluctant—he was a habitual thief, after all—but he agreed. He didn't take Zheng Zhilan's money, solemnly promising to secretly run out in the middle of the night and make the payments by scanning their QR codes.

He didn't say how much he would pay.

When returning to his room, the old monster was still not satisfied and repeatedly said to Zhou Li, "Tomorrow when we go back to Yan City, can we set off some more? I think those large fireworks are awfully expensive and not as fun as the small ones. We should just buy small fireworks..."

Zhou Li didn't answer, focusing on trying to fall asleep.

「The next day, New Year's Eve.」

Zheng Zhilan got up early to make Tang Yuan. Zhou Li needed to leave early to catch lunch back home. Traffic during the New Year could be heavy, and he certainly didn't have Brother Nan's courage to drive on the highway. But when he got up, Zheng Zhilan was already boiling water.

"Why didn't you wake me?" Zhou Li approached the stove.

"I woke up early; I'm used to it." Zheng Zhilan readily got up to give him her spot by the fire. "Is it cold?"

"A bit. Aren't you going to sit here and warm up?" he asked.

"I'm about to cook the Tang Yuan."

The sweet fermented rice Tang Yuan, served in a bowl with two poached eggs, had just the right amount of sweetness. One bite warmed the whole body, dispelling the early morning chill.

After eating, Zhou Li went back to his room to tidy up, then grabbed his backpack and went downstairs.

Zheng Zhilan was waiting for him in the main hall.

"Happy New Year," she said.

"Happy New Year," Zhou Li echoed.

"I've prepared a jar of pickles for you all; I noticed you liked them. It's well-sealed and won't spill." The exchange of New Year greetings brought a faint smile to the young girl's face, but she grew a little embarrassed as she continued, "I don't have much here to offer. I think things like sausages and cured meats aren't very special, so please don't mind."

"Thank you so much," Zhou Li said after a moment's thought. "I guess this will become the most popular dish on our family table over the next few days of the New Year."

"Thanks a lot," Huai Xu repeated with a laugh. "I guess I'll only get to sneak a piece or two, and I'll have to do it secretly."

"How about you ride down the mountain? Big Yellow will bring the horse back," the smile on the young girl's face grew a little brighter, almost imperceptibly.

"No need, it's faster if I go down by myself."

"Okay."

Zheng Zhilan waved her hand at him.

Zhou Li also waved back, then turned and stepped out of the small courtyard. The village houses were scattered irregularly. He followed the winding, damp path between them and disappeared from Zheng Zhilan's sight after just one turn.

...

「Xiaoping Town.」

Surprisingly, there were still quite a few people at the market. Most of the shops and restaurants along the streets were open, with people sitting inside. What Old Zhou had said a few days earlier seemed to have come true, yet many people appeared not to have realized it yet.

The maocai shop, however, was closed.

Zhou Li looked at Huai Xu, who seemed to have suffered a heavy blow, and gloated, "You can't blame me for this—it's fate!"

Huai Xu kept silent, sulking.

As expected, the road was jammed with traffic, especially through the villages along the way. On New Year's Eve, it was market day, so the already narrow streets were further blocked by stalls and motorcycles.

It was noon by the time they reached Yan City.

Zhou Li took over driving from Huai Xu and drove the car straight to their family's other apartment in the city center, though not just for parking. Since yesterday, the other three members of Old Zhou's family had already returned to this apartment. According to the agreement between Aunt Jiang and her ex-husband, this year Zhu Shuang's twin sister would come to Aunt Jiang's place for the New Year. Last year, it was Zhu Shuang's turn to go to his sister's. The two siblings took turns.

This apartment was bigger than the one next to the school, and it had an extra room.

As for Zhu Shuang's sister... He really wasn't familiar with her. On average, he only saw her once every two years. Each visit lasted at least two days, or at most four to five, before she would return to Jin Palace. Usually, Aunt Jiang took Zhu Shuang to Jin Palace to visit her. He had even forgotten her name. Her name definitely wasn't something like Zhu 'Two,' Zhu 'Pair,' Zhu 'Couple,' or Zhu 'Also Two.' She seemed to have a nickname… what was it again?

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.

With a click, the door opened.

Aunt Jiang, her face lit with a radiant smile, said to him, "You're back! Was the traffic bad on the way?"

"A bit."

"Your sister is also here!" Aunt Jiang then called to the girl, "Your brother is back!"

A pretty, well-mannered little girl came out and called him "brother." Zhou Li nodded and said, "Hello." He recalled that this was how they had greeted each other every year for the past few years.

Zhou Li put down his bag and took out a jar of pickled vegetables. "These are from a friend's home. They're really tasty, so I brought some back."

"Pickles?"

"Yes." Zhou Li thought for a moment and then added seriously, "They are really tasty and help cut through greasy food."

"We should have some pickles for the New Year."

"Right."

"Dinner's almost ready. Let's eat."

"Okay."

In previous years, their family's New Year's Eve dinner had usually been at a restaurant. Back then, Aunt Jiang was still working, and her cooking skills weren't as good. However, over the past two years, with Zhou Li and Zhu Shuang both in their final year of high school, she had quit her job to look after them. Consequently, her cooking skills had improved by leaps and bounds.

Zhou Li felt that having New Year's Eve dinner at home was more heartwarming than at a restaurant, even if the food at home might not taste quite as good.

While they were eating, Huai Xu wandered around the apartment, muttering to himself about how this apartment was more luxurious, wondering what Zhou Li would do since there was only one bed in his room, and how the residential complex's environment was better...

Actually, Zhou Li still preferred the old house. It had more of a lived-in feel, perhaps because he had lived there longer.

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