At breakfast in the morning, Changzhong, the little uncle, completely lost face. Everyone knew that Changzhong had drawn a picture of mountains and rivers on his quilt. The little guy was so angry that he didn't even eat breakfast and took out all his resentment on his biological father.
Zhulan held her chubby son in her arms and glared at Zhou Shuren, who was smiling apologetically. "You are going too far. You know how much our son cares about his reputation."
Zhou Shuren was overly happy, but he felt guilty when his son ignored him. "He hasn't wet the bed in a long time. Who knew it would be such a coincidence?"
Changzhong covered his ears, "Mom, mom."
Zhu Lan's eyes were full of smiles as she stared at Zhou Shuren, "What else do you want to say?"
"Okay, okay, I won't tell you, son. It was Dad's fault today. What do I have to do for you to forgive me?"
Changzhong didn't listen. What he didn't want to hear the most right now was his father's voice. All he could hear in his mind was the laughter of his little nieces and nephews. Woohoo, he is the uncle.
Zhulan looked down and started crying. She pulled her husband's clothes and motioned for him to look.
Zhou Shuren touched his nose and said, "Dad will tell your nephews that no one is allowed to laugh at you. If anyone laughs at you, Dad will punish them."
Changzhong moved his ears, but still nothing happened.
Zhou Shuren continued, "Dad will give you a big New Year's red envelope tomorrow."
Changzhong then started to speak, tears still in his eyes, "How big is it?"
Zhou Shuren choked, "Two golden peanuts?"
Changzhong stretched out his two fat hands, then flipped them over again, "These!"
Zhou Shuren glared, "Hey, kid, you are too greedy."
He thought it was ten, but the boy flipped his hand, meaning double it.
Tears fell from Changzhong's eyes again, "Mom, Mom."
Zhulan patted her son on the back and said that she would not interfere. This was all Zhou Shuren's own fault.
Zhou Shuren felt bitter. Twenty golden peanuts were a lot of silver. How much silver did he have in his purse? "Twenty is too much. Fifteen."
"make a deal."
Zhulan listened to her son's crisp voice and burst out laughing.
Zhou Shuren was also amused. This kid was trying to trick him. He pinched his son's face and said, "Okay, Dad will take you to paste the Spring Festival couplets."
Changzhong was still willing to play. Now that he had his father's support, no one would dare to laugh at him. He silently remembered his nephew Mingteng in his heart. The one who laughed the happiest just now was his nephew Mingteng!
As the Zhou family has more and more children, the yard becomes extremely lively. Although the little girl is small, she can be quite noisy.
This year is the first New Year in the capital, which has a different meaning for the Zhou family. As they have settled down in the capital for a year, it is natural to celebrate it in a big way.
The kitchen was busy early in the morning, and various snacks were served out one by one.
Zhulan sat on the edge of the kang, looking at the twins, a boy and a girl, who could already crawl. The two little ones were dressed like dolls in New Year pictures, which was very festive. Both their father and mother were good-looking, and the two children were very good-looking.
Su Xuan looked at the children and said, "Next year, there will be a new addition to the family. I think Third Sister-in-law is pregnant with a son."
Dong Chuchu touched her belly. It was different from when she was pregnant with Yuyi. She was sure it was a son. "Thanks for your good wishes, sister-in-law."
Zhulan didn't take it to heart, but asked Zhao, "You have been recuperating, how do you feel now?"
Mrs. Zhao curved her eyes and said, "Old Doctor Liu examined my daughter-in-law again. She is recovering well, but she still needs to continue nursing."
Zhulan nodded. Ever since the Zhou family came to Beijing, Old Doctor Liu has not only been polite to the Zhou family because of Su Xuan, but now she is very enthusiastic towards the Zhou family.
At noon, we had hotpot as in previous years, but this year it was seafood hotpot, with lots of fish, shrimp and other seafood, as well as shellfish. All kinds of fish balls were handmade, and they tasted great and were very chewy.
The kids loved it the most, the adults loved the fish fillet etc.
Now the Zhou family’s two tables can’t accommodate everyone, they need three tables.
Boss Zhou raised his glass and said, "Dad, I'll give you a toast. You've been protecting our family from the wind and rain all these years, and that's why the Zhou family has been able to take root in the capital. Dad, you've worked hard."
Boss Zhou felt a lot of emotion in his heart, especially when he saw the white hair on his father's head.
Zhou Shuren felt his eldest son's frank feelings and drank the wine in his glass. "You have traveled a lot in the past few years. You have worked hard."
Boss Zhou felt a little sad because his father remembered everything he had done.
Zhou Laoer stood up and said, "Dad, I will go out to sea with the Xu family tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. I can't be at home to honor you and mom. You and mom must take good care of yourselves."
Zhou Shuren poured himself a glass of wine. "When you go out, listen more and talk less. Especially when you don't speak the language, don't walk around randomly. It's better to be safe than sorry. Remember that."
The closer Zhou Laoer got to leaving, the more excited he became. It was a place he had never been to before. Although it was dangerous, it also represented opportunities. His heart was wild and he longed to explore. "My son, I've made a note of it."
Chang Lian waited for his second brother to sit down and said, "Dad, you hold up the sky for your son, so that your son can thrive in the Hanlin Academy. Your son respects you."
Zhou Shuren took the wine glass but didn't rush to drink. "You have grown the most this year. I am very pleased. I hope you will continue to work hard and live up to such a good environment."
Chang Lian saw that his father had drunk some wine, so he drank too.
Changzhi looked at his brothers. Well, they all shared the burden for their father, but it seemed that he was the only one who could not help. His ears turned red. "Dad, I will earn you a top scholar."
Changzhi suddenly shouted and the room fell silent.
Changzhi blushed, "Son will definitely work hard."
Zhou Shuren smiled, "I've made a note of it."
What an ambition! The Zhou family has a runner-up in the imperial examination, and the third place in the imperial examination is their son-in-law. If their own son could win the first place in the imperial examination, it would be wonderful just to think about it!
Mingyun and the others looked at each other. They were all frightened by their fourth uncle's words. He was the top scholar, and it was not something that could be passed just by talking.
Su Xuan's eyes lit up. She liked the title of "Wife of the Number One Scholar".
Changzhong is young, but he is older than his father. He sits with his brothers. Changzhong motions to his elder brother to pour him some tea. He holds the bowl with a particularly generous attitude and says, "Dad, if Fourth Brother fails the exam, I will earn some for you."
Chang Zhi was speechless. What did the little guy mean? What did he mean that he couldn’t pass the exam
Changzhong didn't care what his fourth brother was thinking and just looked at his father eagerly.
Zhou Shuren grinned, his son was so ambitious, "Okay, you and your fourth brother are both good, Dad will wait for you to come back after you pass the imperial examination."
Changzhi pinched his younger brother's face, and only let go when the kid was about to get angry, letting the kid say that he couldn't pass the exam. "Dad, my younger brother is very smart. I want to personally take care of my younger brother to study in the future. What do you think?"
Zhou Shuren looked at his youngest son's eyes widening and waved his hands, "He is still too young. Just follow the teacher and learn now."
Changzhi felt very sorry, but Changzhong was happy. He didn't want to study alone with his fourth brother. It would be more interesting for him to study with his nephew Minghui.
After lunch, everyone in the room went to rest and kept watch at night. Zhulan and Zhou Shuren went to bed first, and the grandchildren were said to have gone to bed in the second half of the night.