As Xu Qiuniang was talking, she saw a large bamboo basket full of gifts on the floor of the house, and her heart ached. "Eldest sister must have really made a fortune. She brought so many things back to her parents' home this time. Alas, we can't compare to her."
Mrs. Xu said angrily, "What are you talking about? These are for your uncle's family."
Xu Lao Niang's two brothers lived in the next village. Every year, Chun Niang would go to pay New Year's greetings to her two uncles and give them some small gifts as a token of her appreciation.
"It's no use making a fortune, but it's enough to have enough to eat." Chunniang pulled her daughter and son over and said, "Give your aunt a happy new year."
Yingbao stepped forward and saluted: "Happy New Year, Auntie."
Xiaojie and Xiaowu followed closely behind: "Happy New Year, auntie."
"All is well, all is well." Xu Qiuniang took out two coins from her sleeve, gave one to Xiaojie and one to Xiaowu, "Use it to buy some candy. Don't think it's too little, your aunt is no match for your mother now."
Chunniang was unhappy when she saw that her sister did not give her daughter any New Year's money, but she did not say anything.
Mrs. Xu was embarrassed and quickly took out twenty cents and gave it to Yingbao, "Be good, this is the New Year's money your grandma gives you." She also gave Xiaojie and Xiaowu twenty cents each.
Xu Qiuniang raised her eyebrows and asked in surprise, "Mother, why do you give so much to a child? I gave you two hundred coins as a filial gift, you wouldn't give it all to your eldest sister, would you?"
Old Lady Xu ignored her second daughter and pulled Yingbao to sit on the kang. "Good girl, it's warm on the kang."
The two younger brothers also climbed onto the kang and sat with their sister.
Seeing that her mother ignored her, Xu Qiuniang left the house angrily and shouted outside: "Jin'er! Yu'er! Come over here quickly and kowtow to grandma and wish her a happy new year! Grandma is going to give you lucky money!"
After a while, two children ran in. The boy, about eight or nine years old, was Qian Jin, and the girl, about six years old, was Qian Yu.
Xu Qiuniang pushed the two children and said, "Ask your great aunt for New Year's money, and your grandmother will also give you New Year's money."
Qian Jin was puzzled: "Didn't grandma give me New Year's money?"
"What are you giving me? Grandma gave you ten cents this morning, and you still need ten cents." Xu Qiuniang said.
Mrs. Xu was so angry when she heard this, but she was wrong in the matter, so she didn't say anything.
Chunniang was unhappy, but she couldn't get angry with the child, so she took out twenty cents and gave them to Qian Jinqianyu.
Qian Jinqianyu was quite sensible and bowed to her aunt. "Aunt, may you have a prosperous New Year."
Then he said to his grandmother, "Grandma, you still need ten cents for our New Year's gift."
What else could Mrs. Xu do? She could only take out twenty cents and share them with them.
The second daughter has been spoiled by her father since she was young. Not only is she willful, but she is also extremely selfish and always competes with her eldest sister for everything.
Xu Qiuniang was satisfied when she saw that her mother had given her children New Year's money. She said to Chunniang, "Sister, your family has grown some golden ears and made a fortune, but why don't you help your parents? It's ok for me, your sister, but you don't help your brother either. Girls are really outgoing. After you get married, you don't care about your parents' well-being."
Chunniang didn't want to pay attention to her sister, so she didn't respond to her at all.
I told my eldest brother and sister-in-law last year to plant some golden ears, but my eldest brother is a dull person. He only focuses on the fields and has no interest in planting golden ears.
What can Chunniang do? She can't just give him money directly.
"What are you talking about!" If it wasn't New Year's Day, Old Lady Xu would have wanted to scold her second daughter.
"Why didn't your elder sister help your elder brother? Last time when Daniu got engaged, your elder sister gave him five taels of silver. What did you give?"
"Oh, look at what you said, my family is poor, how can I not give it if I have money?" Xu Qiuniang pouted. "If I had money, I wouldn't give only five taels, I would give at least fifty taels."
Yingbao, who was sitting on the kang, couldn't stand it any longer.
It seems that whoever is poor is right. In the previous life, this aunt often ridiculed my mother, saying that my mother was poor because she picked up a useless girl and raised a child for someone else. If it were her, she would have sold her feet long ago and could have gotten more than ten taels of silver.
Seeing that her elder sister and mother were silent, Xu Qiuniang became even more excited and pointed at Yingbao: "Your elder brother doesn't help you, but raises a bastard who doesn't know his parents. You really have a lot of money but nowhere to spend it..."
Before she could finish her words, Xu Qiuniang received a big slap in the face from Chunniang.
Chunniang's face was as cold as frost, and she said coldly: "Qiuniang, I tell you, if you dare to say this or that about my Bao'er again, our two families will no longer have any contact with each other!"
"You hit me?" Xu Qiuniang covered half of her face and stared at her elder sister in disbelief. "Just for a wild... girl you picked up, you dare to hit me?"
"Let me say one more thing, Yingbao is my own daughter. If you scold her, you are scolding me. How can I not hit you?" Chunniang has always tolerated her only sister, but she didn't expect that she would take her, the eldest sister, less and less seriously.
In the past few years, she ridiculed herself for being unable to have children, saying that she must have done something wrong in her previous life and was therefore destined to be childless in this life.
Now that she has nothing to say, she attacks herself verbally to show her superiority.
Chunniang didn't understand what she had done to make her only sister treat her like this.
Xu Qiuniang covered her face and looked at her mother. Seeing that her mother turned her head away and didn't look at her, she couldn't help but burst into tears and ran out of the house.
Old Lady Xu gritted her teeth in anger, "This damn girl has a foul mouth, she will never change in her lifetime!"
Chunniang was also very upset. The two sisters were making such a fuss during the New Year's Day and they should not be laughed at by others.
Jiang Sanlang came in through the curtain and asked, "What's going on?"
"Nothing." Chunniang didn't dare to mention this in front of her husband, so she said, "It's a good thing that you're here. Divide the things in the basket and we'll send them to my uncle right away."
"Oh." Jiang Sanlang agreed, divided the gifts with his wife, and took Yingbao and his two sons to his two uncles' homes to say hello and celebrate the New Year.
The two uncles’ homes are not far from Xu’s, and only a quarter of an hour’s walk away.
After bidding farewell to the old man and celebrating the New Year, the two uncles wanted to stay for dinner, but Chunniang politely declined, so the family of five returned to Brother Xu's house.
Xu Qiuniang didn't leave either, but sat at the big table with a sullen face.
"Daya, set the table." When Mrs. Xu saw her sister-in-law and her family coming back, she asked her daughter to clear the table and put the dishes on it in the kitchen.
Daya responded and put a pile of bowls and chopsticks on the table.
Xu Dala invited Jiang Sanlang to the table, and then asked his second brother-in-law Qian Jiu to come and sit down.
Qian Jiu had a very sour look on his face and glanced at Jiang Sanlang with an unfriendly look.
The meal was depressing. Jiang Sanlang drank two cups with his brother-in-law and refused to drink any more.
Qian Jiu, however, kept drinking until his face turned red and white foam appeared at the corners of his mouth.
"You! Dare to look down on... me?"
Qian Jiu suddenly slammed the table, pointed at Jiang Sanlang and started to curse, "No... it's just... I have some filthy money! How dare you... look down on me?"
Jiang Sanlang ignored the man, finished his meal, stood up, and said to Chunniang, "Let's go back."
Chunniang nodded and held the hands of her children who had already finished their meal.
Qian Jiu also stood up and walked over crookedly, but was grabbed by Xu Da, "Second brother-in-law, what are you doing?"
"Don't...care about me!" Qian Jiu pushed his brother-in-law away and pointed at Jiang Sanlang, saying, "If it weren't for...you! Chunniang and I..."
"Shut up!" Jiang Sanlang couldn't bear it anymore and punched Qian Jiu in the face.