Republic of China: Guandong Ginseng King

Chapter 133 Chinese New Year
Qu Shaoyang and Doctor Chen talked alone in the room for a while, then they came out and Qu Shaoyang said goodbye to the Chen family.

All the New Year's goods have been purchased. The return journey is uphill all the way, so it is slower than the way here.

It is now the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month, and it won't be long until the Chinese New Year. We can't delay any longer.

Doctor Chen and his wife had no choice but to ask Qu Shaoyang to be careful on his way back, and they also brought Qu Shaoyang a lot of gifts in return.

Chen Yunhan was good at writing calligraphy, and he specially wrote several couplets for Qu Shaoyang. Qu Shaoyang was not polite and accepted them all.

"Brother Shaoyang, you must remember to come and see me after the New Year."

Chen Xiuyun followed him out the door, giving him some reluctant instructions, hoping to see Qu Shaoyang again as soon as possible.

In front of the Chen family, Qu Shaoyang couldn't do anything. He just smiled and nodded, "Well, I will definitely come after the New Year."

After saying goodbye to everyone in the Chen family, Qu Shaoyang turned around and left, returning to the inn.

Early the next morning, the three of them drove the horse-drawn sleigh back.

The return journey was slower than the going journey. It was almost midnight on the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month when we finally arrived back at Maoer Mountain.

It was late at night and it was not a good idea to disturb Liu Dongshan, so Qu Shaoyang put all his things in his yard and went back to his room to rest.

The next morning, Qu Shaoyang delivered the purchased items to the East Courtyard.

Liu Dongshan and his wife breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Qu Shaoyang return safely.

Liu Dongshan hurriedly inquired about how the trip went, especially about the Chen family. Liu Dongshan asked in great detail.

"Master, I know what you want to ask."

Qu Shaoyang couldn't help laughing as he looked at his master who was caring like an old father.

"After the Chinese New Year, I will have to trouble Master to accompany me to Kuandian to propose marriage to the Chen family."

When Liu Dongshan heard this, he slapped his thigh happily and said, "That's right, that's right.

As a real man, if you like something, then you like it. What is there to be afraid of admitting?
I just said that the girl from the Chen family is very nice and she is interested in you. Since you like her, you should hurry up and decide on her.

I can tell you, in Guandong Mountain, it’s not easy to find a wife. If you meet a good girl, you must not hesitate and must seize the opportunity to marry her. "

"You don't know, these days, your master and I have been worrying about your marriage so much that our hair has almost turned white.

You said that so many people have come to inquire about your marriage. We can't make the decision for you, so we can only refuse.

If you don't get engaged, we will offend everyone in Maoer Mountain." Lin Ruolan said with a smile while coaxing the child.

"Thank you, Master and Madam, for thinking of me. I'm sorry for the trouble you two have taken." Qu Shaoyang stood up and bowed respectfully.

Liu Dongshan and his wife treated him like their own son. How could Qu Shaoyang not be moved by such affection?
"We are family, what are you thanking me for? Please sit down.

As long as you are well, can marry a wife that suits your heart, and live a good life in the future, your master's wife and I will be relieved."

Liu Dongshan waved his hand, motioning Qu Shaoyang to sit down and talk.

It was the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month, and the Chinese New Year was coming soon. The family was very busy, so the three of them chatted for a while and then began to discuss preparations for the New Year.

Since Qu Shaoyang is not married, he will definitely spend the New Year with Liu Dongshan and his wife this year.

As for the servants at home, there are too many of them and Lin Ruolan is too busy to handle it. She will just pass all kinds of food over to them and let them cook for themselves.

Anyway, our family conditions are pretty good now, with enough food and daily necessities. I'll let my friends have something good to eat during the New Year and have a couple of days' rest.

The next day, it was the 30th day of the twelfth lunar month.

Early in the morning, every household was busy cleaning the yard, erecting lantern poles, hanging lanterns, pasting up couplets, window decorations, and door gods.

"Wow, the calligraphy on this couplet is really beautiful, Shaoyang, where did you buy it? The calligraphy is nice."

Liu Dongshan was about to smear paste on the couplet, when he saw the handwriting on it, he couldn't help but praise it. "Oh, that was written by Xiuyun's elder brother. Master, I don't understand much, but don't you think the handwriting is very good?"

Since he said he couldn't read, Qu Shaoyang had to put on a good show, so he deliberately asked Liu Dongshan.

"Well, this word is really good, and has some style.

Judging from this character, the eldest son of the Chen family should be well educated, and it is only a matter of time before he passes the imperial examination."

Liu Dongshan looked at the words on the couplet and praised Chen Yunhan a lot.

"I heard from Xiuyun's elder brother that after the Chinese New Year he plans to go out and study under a teacher.

It seems that he heard about a great scholar giving a lecture somewhere, and he wanted to go and learn from him to see if he could pass the examination and become a scholar next year."

That day at the Chen family, Qu Shaoyang chatted a lot with the Chen brothers and happened to hear what Chen Yunhan said.

"Yes, yes, that's what I should do. Studying is not easy. It's not possible without the guidance of a famous teacher." Liu Dongshan nodded repeatedly when he heard this.

The master and the apprentice pasted the couplets, blessing characters, and window decorations as they talked.

You know what, with this, the courtyard inside and outside suddenly became different, and it was extremely festive and prosperous.

Most families have the custom of visiting the graves and worshipping their ancestors on the morning of New Year’s Eve.

But Liu Dongshan's parents were buried in Guanli and he couldn't go back at all.

As for Qu Shaoyang, he came through alone.

As for the original owner's parents, they seemed to be still there in his memory, and he seemed to have brothers and sisters in his hometown.

Now that the core has been replaced, Qu Shaoyang has no contact with those people and doesn't think much about them.

Therefore, the procedure of visiting the graves and worshipping ancestors was omitted.

When it gets dark, Liu Dongshan goes to a crossroads and burns some paper money, and that's it.

After finishing the work outside, the master and apprentice went back to the house. Liu Dongshan helped to coax the two children, while Lin Ruolan took Qu Shaoyang and Xiaozhi to fry, stir-fry and cook delicious food in the kitchen.

The two children of the Liu family are now more than seven months old. They can already sit but cannot crawl very well, so the fence on the kang can still contain them.

This big baby, after two months of fussing and teething, is now easy to coax. As long as he is full of milk during the day, he can sit on the kang and play for a long time.

Liu Dongshan had two children when he was old, and he loved them very much.

So he brought the two kids over, put one on each lap, and then held a rattle in his hand to play with the two children.

The two little kids smiled cutely, giggled when they were tickled, and waved their chubby little hands, trying to grab the rattle.

Liu Dongshan was so happy playing with the two kids in the house that he forgot to change their diaper.

As a result, Xiao Shuanzhu urinated on Liu Dongshan's leg without mercy.

Liu Dongshan was still teasing his daughter when he suddenly felt his left leg getting warm.

When I looked again, I saw that my son's cotton pants were all wet.

"Oh my god, you are really good. You peed all over me without saying a word."

Seeing this, Liu Dongshan quickly took his son aside, found a blanket to cushion his son's condition, and did not even bother to wipe his cotton pants. He took his daughter to help her urinate.

After he came back from peeing, he found another pair of cotton pants and changed them for his son. He also took off his pants and changed into a clean pair.

"You little rascal, you only know how to cause trouble for your father."

Liu Dongshan tapped his son's forehead with his finger, and the little guy didn't know what happened, but his eyes suddenly lit up, and he lay back and started giggling.

(End of this chapter)