"Haha..." Zhou Xingxing didn't want to get herself into trouble at all. She was now focused on developing the farming business for the live-streaming kids. "Well, you go ahead and do your work. I just remembered I haven't called my mom back yet."
After saying that, he made a hasty escape.
Gu Miaomiao said, "Mom, you're so resourceful. Otherwise, she would definitely have tried to trick me into telling me something."
Su Yunzhi was exasperated: "You just let them try to trick you into revealing information? You're stupid!"
Gu Miaomiao remained silent.
Su Yunzhi paused, glanced back, and saw no one else, but still deliberately lowered her voice: "However, now that you're living separately, it is indeed much more convenient, but you still have to be careful."
"What's become much more convenient?"
Su Yunzhi glared at her: "What do you think?"
Gu Miaomiao immediately understood after being scolded by her, and quickly lowered her head, "Mm."
“I don’t know if this will affect you, but it can be harmful to our health as women. Please take care of Qiuqiu and make sure she gets enough rest.”
"Yes, I know."
Su Yunzhi said that this matter was quite awkward, mainly because the cat seemed too childish, and Qiuqiu was at the age where she was as wild as a wolf. If no one were to keep them in check, who knew what they would do?
"Don't just agree verbally, you have to do it." Su Yunzhi thought for a moment, cleared her throat, and asked again, "Then let me ask you, you... don't do that kind of thing every night, do you?"
"No." Gu Miaomiao replied obediently.
"That's good." Su Yunzhi was also quite embarrassed. "So what time did you go to sleep last night?" Seeing that people were looking over, she quickly added, "I'm not curious, I just wanted to see. Wuqiu is very self-disciplined and rarely sleeps in, let alone with these elders and guests at home."
The implication is that the two of them went too far last night.
Gu Miaomiao glanced at her cautiously, bit her lip, and said, "I got up not long after Qiuqiu fell asleep."
"..." Su Yunzhi was speechless for several seconds before blinking, "You guys are really amazing."
Gu Miaomiao's earlobes turned slightly red.
Su Yunzhi was speechless.
Fortunately, the dozen or so dishes were washed quickly, otherwise the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law would have been extremely embarrassed.
Shen Wuqiu didn't turn over until lunchtime, because she was hungry.
It must be said that building a harmonious society is a very physically demanding task.
After she got up, none of the elders said anything, but she felt a little embarrassed, so she took it out on Gu Miaomiao: "You really are something, why didn't you call me?"
Grandpa was very understanding: "They're just worried about you, saying you were tired yesterday."
Tired—in this situation, this word inexplicably makes one feel ashamed.
Shen Wuqiu didn't dare to look directly at everyone, and said, "Mom always helps me with all the chores, but now I realize how exhausting these little things are..."
“Now that you’re in charge, there’s a lot to do.” Grandma gently followed her words, glanced at her, and said, “However, your health is the most important thing. You young people shouldn’t just do things for the sake of immediate gratification. A steady and long-term approach is the way to make a good living.”
"Yes, you're right." Grandma said it subtly, but Shen Wuqiu felt it was too blunt and secretly glared at the cat.
What's the use of good soundproofing if the whole family still knows?
The cat felt a little wronged; she really hadn't said anything.
Fortunately, Grandma only touched on the point briefly and didn't say anything more.
After lunch, Grandpa was already thinking about going back home.
Shen Wuqiu politely tried to persuade them to stay for a while, but considering the children, he didn't insist. Zhao Jiujiu and her husband then took the two elderly people back with them.
A new house is believed to have a lot of people around it. According to local customs, the homeowner must spend the Lunar New Year in the new house during the first year of moving, and the more elders who spend the Lunar New Year in the new house, the better, as it is believed that more blessings will be accumulated.
However, with several kittens around, it wasn't very convenient, and Shen Wuqiu ultimately felt more sorry for her own little one.
As soon as Zhao Jiujiu and her family left, Shen Wuqiu had each of the children transform.
Meow~
Human cubs are so clumsy and weak, they can't do anything, it's so frustrating!
After being cooped up for several days, the kids were like birds released from their cages, running wild all over the house. After running around the new house, they eventually stuck to Shen Wuqiu's side.
These days, they're all incredibly agile, easily jumping onto that half-meter-high sofa.
Sanmao was the fastest runner. As soon as she jumped up, she started tugging at Shen Wuqiu for a hug. The best hug was taken by her younger sister first. Ermao, who was a step behind, was not willing to give up and kept tugging at Sanmao.
Sanmao refused to give up her place and clung tightly to her mother.
Shen Wuqiu also wanted to test her temper, so he deliberately ignored her and didn't even touch her when she came closer.
Er Mao, unable to do anything with her younger sister, started using her newly learned skill: rolling around next to Shen Wuqiu. After rolling around twice, she lay on her back with her head turned towards Shen Wuqiu, humming and meowing softly.
The little lion turned into a sick kitten, it's so heartbreaking.
Shen Wuqiu was amused by her and her heart softened. She reached out and pinched her belly twice.
Er Mao was still a little shy, pressing her hand down with his front paws, "Meow~"
Mommy, hug me~
"Tsk, our little lion has learned to be affectionate too." Shen Wuqiu picked her up with one hand and hugged her with Sanmao. "Playing around is fine, but you can't show your claws."
Er Mao silently pulled his little feet back and put them to his mouth, pretending to lick them.
Shen Wuqiu saw through Er Mao's little trick and poked his forehead, saying, "You're not even allowed to play around with your mother."
Meow~
[Mom is biased~]
Shen Wuqiu gave a muffled "hmm," patted their heads, and stopped playing with them. She got up, teased Da Mao and A Shu, picked up Simao who was sleeping under the coffee table, and carried him upstairs. "Mom and Dad, Xingxing, you two chat first. I'll go upstairs to tidy up."
"You go about your business, we don't need your help." Su Yunzhi also called on Gu Miaomiao, "We'll look after the child, and you can go help Qiuqiu too."
Gu Miaomiao couldn't have wanted this more; she just wanted to be inseparable from her partner, Cheng.
******
The New Year is just around the corner. Although Mr. Shen plans to spend the New Year with Shen Wuqiu and the others in Huashan this year, he has many social obligations. At the end of the year, there will be many people coming and going to give and receive New Year's gifts. There will be many people at home, and it would be inconvenient for the kittens at home to come. In addition, Huashan is far from the village, which is a bit troublesome.
As for Zhou Xingxing, she didn't take the Lunar New Year holiday too seriously and hadn't planned to go home. However, she couldn't resist her parents' constant phone calls, so she went back the day before Lunar New Year's Eve.
Once everyone left, only Shen Wuqiu and a few cats remained in the big house on Huashan Mountain. The family occupied such a large hilltop, and their lives couldn't be more comfortable.
On New Year's Eve, the sky, which had been ravaged by cold air for several days, finally welcomed a flurry of snow.
Although Jingrong Village is located in the south, it is not warm in winter. The damp and cold air in winter is bone-chilling, and snow is rare.
In the past decade, this snow seems to be the only one that's actually quite decent.
Even Shen Wuqiu couldn't hide the joy on her face when she saw the heavy snow falling outside. "It's been so long since I've seen such heavy snow."
"It has indeed been many years."
"I saw in the weather forecast that the snow will continue until the fifth day of the new year."
"Let it snow, let it snow. A timely snow promises a good harvest, which means next year will be a good year."
"Luckily we prepared our New Year's goods early, otherwise the road in Huashan would definitely be too difficult for cars to make."
"You're worrying too much. There's so little snow, and you think we can't get up here?"
"I'm not going to talk to you."
"Fine, I won't say it then..."
Outside, snow was falling heavily, but the family sat together, enjoying each other's company even when they were just joking around.
People probably like winter because they enjoy the feeling of warmth that comes out of the cold.
The heavy snow continued until evening before subsiding, and the outside world was covered in a blanket of white, looking incredibly clean.
After finishing his New Year's Eve dinner, Shen Wujun couldn't wait to take a stroll in the snow in the yard. Finally, feeling that walking on the ground wasn't enough, he rolled around on a whole patch of snow.
This excited the few furry kids in the house, and they all insisted on squeezing out through the crack in the door.
Shen Wuqiu felt the weather was too cold and was worried that the babies would catch a cold, so she wanted to keep them at home. However, she managed to stop one but not the other, so in the end she simply let them be.
"Meow~" Just like their uncle who had never seen the world before, the little ones jumped onto the snow and rolled around.
Especially Sanmao, that white fluffy ball, once she runs a little further away, she blends into the snow. But she seems to do it on purpose, burying her whole head into the grass every now and then. If it weren't for her tail wagging a couple of times outside, you really wouldn't be able to find her.
Watching the kids having so much fun in the snow, even Dad Shen felt a surge of childlike joy. Taking advantage of Su Yunzhi's inattention, he grabbed a small snowball from the ground and hit Su Yunzhi's thigh.
"You old hag," Su Yunzhi said with a laugh, then immediately picked up a snowball and retaliated.
Since the two "old folks" were so restless, Gu Miaomiao followed suit and picked up a snowball, gently throwing it at Shen Wuqiu.
After she made such a fuss, Shen Wuqiu stopped being reserved.
Snowballs flew back and forth, and even Gu Junshan, who didn't want to join in the fun, was forced to participate in the snow battle.
The little ones were even more mischievous. After rolling around in the snow for a while, they started to destroy the snow that had just been picked from the saplings. Whoever ran down to the bottom of a tree, they would shake it and scatter the snow all over them.
The cub's little pranks aren't annoying; they just make you laugh.
Instantly, the entire courtyard was filled with everyone's laughter and cheerful chatter.
A note from the author:
I caught a cold after returning home before the Lunar New Year, and have been visiting relatives and friends ever since. Sorry to have kept everyone waiting.
And then, I wish everyone a Happy New Year.
Chapter 141
As the old saying goes: "Play in the first month, have fun in the second month, and then come the third month; make money in the twelfth month."
Compared to the fast pace of urban life, rural life is much more leisurely and slow, and this leisurely lifestyle makes festivals like the Spring Festival more ceremonial.
In the village, people generally don't go to work in the fields until after the Lantern Festival.
In the words of Mr. Shen and his family, "We work ourselves to the bone all year round just to have a good New Year. If we don't have a good time during the first month of the lunar year, what's the point of working so hard?"
After the joyous Lantern Festival, the New Year celebrations were finally over. The younger generation in the village gradually returned to work, and the children were about to start school.
The lively festive atmosphere quickly returned to its usual tranquility.