Because Nan Feng was worried about the crowd of people returning, she specifically hired a mule cart for her trip back to the village.
However, as soon as the father and daughter arrived at the village entrance, they heard the long, booming sound of firecrackers.
Without a doubt, these fireworks must have been set off by the village head to celebrate Mo Wenxuan’s achievement of becoming a scholar.
The sound of the fireworks attracted a crowd of villagers, crowding the village entrance, and Nan Feng’s mule cart couldn’t get in. She had no choice but to ask the driver to stop at the entrance.
A thousand swear words flashed across her mind.
Becoming a scholar is just that – why was it necessary to block the village roads? She was carrying jars of wine and bags of peanuts and melon seeds, bringing all these home was quite a chore.
She tried hard to push through the crowd, constantly saying, “Excuse me, excuse me!”
However, everyone’s attention seemed to be on Mo Wenxuan’s achievement.
Someone said, “Let’s all wait. I heard Wenxuan is coming back in a horse carriage, with a big red flower on his chest. How majestic!”
“The village head is also giving out candies later.”
“Really?”
“Let’s wait and see.”
Nan Feng finally managed to squeeze through the crowd with Nan Quanyou.
Just as they were about to head home, she heard a deep, rough voice calling her, “Nan Feng?”
Upon hearing this voice, a shiver ran through Nan Feng.
Before she knew it, Ye Ge was already by her side. “Did you go to buy New Year’s goods?”
“Yeah, how about you? Have you bought it yet?” Nan Feng asked.
“Not yet, I’ll go to town to buy it in a couple of days.”
“Is it because you haven’t had enough sleep?” Nan Feng teased.
“Yes, I was sleeping and got woken up by the sound of firecrackers,” Ye Ge said casually, taking over the two jars of wine and the bags of peanuts and firecrackers from Nan Feng’s hands. “I’ll help you carry these, they are too heavy.”
“Thank… thank you,” Nan Feng said.
“You’re welcome.”
Just as Ye Ge was about to ask Nan Feng if she wanted to wait to see the scholar, someone in the crowd suddenly shrieked, “Look, the scholar is back!”
“True indeed!”
“Riding on a horse, he indeed looks very majestic!”
“…”
Nan Feng also curiously looked over, and indeed saw Mo Wenxuan riding back on a tall horse adorned with red ribbons.
So this was the grandiosity of becoming a scholar in ancient times, Nan Feng thought to herself.
At this moment, the village head ordered, “Set off the firecrackers, another two rolls of firecrackers.”
Then, another round of deafening firecracker noise ensued…
Amidst the sounds of firecrackers, the village head began to distribute candies, and then, everyone started to scramble for the candies.
Complete chaos.
Mo Wenxuan rode on his horse, looking at the villagers who had come to welcome him from afar.
Including that slim figure.
However, while everyone looked delighted, eating candies and setting off firecrackers, why was she alone looked irritated?
Then, Mo Wenxuan saw Ye Ge next to her.
He had no idea what Ye Ge had said to Nan Feng, but she turned around and walked away with him.
Mo Wenxuan felt a pang of disappointment.
There was a dull ache in his heart.
The closer it got to New Year’s Eve, the busier things got.
On the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month, the house and yard had to be cleaned, ancestors had to be worshiped, and couplets had to be put up.
The process of ancestor worship was quite complicated. First, you had to lay out a feast of cooked chicken and pork in the yard, and then burn incense and paper offerings to invite the immortals from all directions for a feast.
While worshiping the gods in the yard, Nan Quanyou continuously muttered prayers, “The Tathāgata Buddha, Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, Erlang God, Laozi… It’s New Year’s time again. During the year, I might not have provided proper offerings to you, but now we have meat and wine, so please enjoy the feast. When you’re done, remember to bless our family with peace, safety, and unexpected wealth…”