The Chinese New Year's Eve quickly passed, and it was soon the first day of the Lunar New Year. We had to get up early to pay respects to our elders, wishing them good health, longevity, and all the best!
The lively sound of firecrackers and the greetings of people visiting each other could be heard outside the house, truly echoing the poetic line: "Amidst the firecrackers, the old year departs; the spring breeze brings warmth and celebrates the new."
Chen Lan thought to herself, this must be the so-called "full house of red"! It was truly an auspicious start to the new year. Setting off firecrackers first was called "opening the door," and after the firecrackers exploded, the ground covered in red scraps was called "full house of red."
Chen Lan wasted no more time and quickly got up. After tidying herself up, she coaxed the twin siblings out of their warm beds. Jia Hui, who initially had morning grumbles, immediately settled down when she saw the new clothes Chen Lan brought out.
Chen Lan asked softly with a smile, "Jia Hui, look, aren't the new clothes beautiful? So pretty! Our Jia Hui will look even more beautiful wearing them, don't you think?"
Jia Hui, who had been dozing off and was groggy, perked up immediately upon hearing her mother say she would look even more beautiful. She smiled, her eyes crinkling, and mumbled indistinctly, "Beautiful, beautiful."
Chen Lan couldn't help but chuckle. She turned to look at Jia Yao, who had fallen asleep again, his body leaning against the quilt. Chen Lan figured that new clothes held no appeal for Jia Yao.
With no other options, she had to wake him up. After paying respects to her mother-in-law and her own mother, she could let him go back to sleep.
After getting the twins ready, Chen Lan carried them downstairs. Hu Tou and Xiao Shi Tou were already kowtowing to their grandmother and mother-in-law to pay their New Year's respects, and each received a large red envelope. Chen Lan first placed the twins on the sofa. Jia Yao was still fast asleep, but Jia Hui was quite spirited at this moment!
Chen Lan first kowtowed to her mother-in-law and her own mother to pay her New Year's respects, then stood up and exchanged greetings and blessings with everyone. She then held the twins and had them kowtow to her mother-in-law and her own mother, who each gave them a large red envelope. Jia Hui's little hands clutched the big red envelope, her eyes smiling like crescent moons.
Chen Lan thought to herself, she didn't expect Jia Hui to be such a little money-grubber!
When they were kowtowing, Jia Yao hadn't woken up yet. After they finished, Jia Yao woke up and was stunned, looking at the large red envelope in his little hand. He then looked at Jia Hui, then at Hu Tou and Xiao Shi Tou, and saw that they also had large red envelopes in their hands and were smiling happily. He, too, grinned widely and started laughing.
Chen Lan couldn't quite fathom what little Jia Yao was thinking. Seeing that he was completely awake, she carefully wrapped up the two little ones and placed them in the stroller, preparing to go out to pay New Year's respects to everyone.
After going out to pay our respects to everyone and coming home to eat and drink, the first day of the Lunar New Year passed in a blur.
Chen Lan now lived with her mother-in-law and her own mother, so there was no matter of returning to her maiden home. Thus, the second day of the Lunar New Year also passed quickly amidst casual chatter.
The third day of the Lunar New Year was the day the kindergarten reopened, and also the day of the Yangge dance competition. Everyone brought their children early. When Chen Lan came downstairs with the twins, she saw that all the children had arrived. She figured the adults and younger brothers of the family had already gone out.
She saw her own mother tending to the freshly arrived little pumpkin, removing its thick cotton coat and pants. The little one was truly adorable, kicking his chubby legs back and forth, waving his little arms. He was quite busy himself.
Her mother quickly wiped his bottom, applied talcum powder, put on a diaper, and then placed him in the cradle, her movements fluid and seamless.
Chen Lan thought to herself, her mother had truly mastered the task of changing diapers for babies.
Looking up, she saw Tie Dan and Xiao Dou Zi playing on the seesaw, Hu Tou and Xiao Shi Tou playing on the carousel, and Xiao He Hua riding a small wooden horse.
So, Chen Lan lowered her head and softly asked the twins, "Jia Yao, Jia Hui, shall we look at the cloth books first?"
Jia Yao nodded obediently. Jia Hui frowned and was about to open her mouth to cry out, when she suddenly heard the lively sound of gongs and drums from outside. Jia Hui immediately shifted her attention, pointing outside with her little finger and saying, "Mom, look, look."
At this moment, Xiao He Hua, who was riding the wooden horse, quickly dismounted and ran to the floor-to-ceiling window. Xiao Dou Zi and Tie Tou, who were having a blast on the seesaw, also shouted that they wanted to get down.
Her mother picked up both of them and led them by their little hands to the floor-to-ceiling window.
By this time, the sound of gongs and drums outside had become even louder. It was truly a cacophony of gongs and drums, with firecrackers blaring, making it all very lively.
Chen Lan thought the Yangge dance competition must have begun, so she hurried with the twins to the floor-to-ceiling window as well.
She saw the vibrantly colored Yangge dance troupe marching towards them in a grand procession. She saw her mother-in-law, Cui Mama, and Liu Mama among the Yangge dancers. Her mother-in-law was wearing a bright red padded jacket with green trousers and holding a fan. Su Dan Novel Network.
Cui Mama was wearing a green padded jacket with red trousers and holding a large red handkerchief. Liu Mama was wearing a bright red Yangge costume and holding a green handkerchief. Each of them had a large red flower on their head, looking exceptionally spirited.
Although they were not young anymore, they danced the Yangge with coordinated movements, light steps, and graceful postures! Especially their fan and handkerchief dances, which were performed with consummate skill.
As the Yangge dance troupe gradually approached, Chen Lan saw Chun Cao, Ru Yi, Xiao Xue, and Cui Qiao all within the troupe. The several of them were also dancing quite skillfully.
Ming Wei and Ming Zhe, along with the children, were surrounding the troupe, watching the excitement, clapping and cheering, and even joining in the dance.
The male Yangge troupe was led by Grandpa Li. He held a folding fan and made a gesture, and all the trumpet and drum sounds immediately stopped. Chen Lan glanced at the trumpet and drum players and was quite surprised! It turned out to be Xu Hao, Zhao Tie, and a few others. Xu Hao and Li Da Qiang were playing the small suonas, Zhao Tie and Zhou Si Xi were playing the large suonas, and Zhou Da Shi and Chen Er Lin were beating the big drums.
At this moment, Chen Lan had to admire her mother-in-law. She never expected her mother-in-law to be so capable, managing to mobilize all of them to participate in the Yangge dance team.
Then, Grandpa Li raised his folding fan forward again, and then quickly flicked it to the side. The Yangge formation "swished" and changed its shape.
Chen Lan couldn't quite figure out the intricacies. It was said that the Grand Yangge dance had specific formations, with the simplest ones being the "One-Line Snake Formation," "Dragon's Tail," and "Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl," and so on.
And so, the adults had Yangge dances every day, and the children had lively spectacles to watch every day. Many red lanterns were distributed to the children. Even Jia Hui and Jia Yao's little red lanterns were distributed by Chen Lan.
This truly lived up to the saying, "Play in the first month, make merry in the second, and dawdle until the third."