Chapter 160: Chinese New Year (4)
Butler Liu smiled helplessly and said gently, “Miss won’t let me say it, so I don’t dare tell you!”
Upon hearing this, Tong Shenqiās face showed a look of great pity as she sluggishly dragged her feet back to her Jiaozi-wrapping position.
While absentmindedly fiddling with the dumpling skins and filling, she turned her gaze toward the ingredients for the Tangyuan.
In that pile of ingredients, sesame and peanuts emitted an enticing aroma, and the snow-white glutinous rice flour lay there quietly.
Suddenly, a thought flashed through Tong Shenqiās mind like lightningādoesn’t New Year’s Eve in Xia Country have the legend of driving away the Nian beast? And she had heard that glutinous rice has the magical effect of “exorcising evil”!
Thinking of this, Tong Shenqiās eyes lit up. An involuntary smug smile appeared on her face as she shouted excitedly, “To ward off evil, right, Miss?”
She even hummed proudly a few times, thinking to herself: Even without Sister Liuās hint, I can guess this!
Hearing Tong Shenqiās imaginative guess, the busy group first froze, then couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Gu Wanrong, in particular, laughed so hard she doubled over, her laughter ringing out like silver bells.
Even the usually steady Butler Liu was highly amused, leaning back against her chair with her body trembling slightly.
After finally stopping her laughter, Gu Wanrong took a deep breath to calm her emotions before explaining to the others, “Actually, there’s a saying: ‘Eat Tangyuan on the first day of the year, and youāll roll smoothly through the whole year.’ The hope is that after eating Tangyuan, the new year will be smooth and everything will go as one wishes.”
Once Gu Wanrong finished explaining the meaning behind eating Tangyuan, the atmosphere became even more relaxed and pleasant. Everyone began to discuss the topic enthusiastically, with constant laughter.
Someone brought up Jiaozi, so the conversation naturally shifted to that.
Amidst the joyful chatter and the background noise of “Let’s wrap dumplings together,” time passed extremely quickly.
Immersed in the lively atmosphere, Gu Wanrong didn’t notice that Butler Liu had quietly led Tong Shenyi and Tong Shen’er out of the house.
They moved lightly to the open space outside the villa, tinkering with something there.
Time seemed to be gently pushed by an invisible hand. The clock hands rotated slowly, the New Year’s footsteps drew closer, and the long-awaited bell was about to ring.
At the same time, the exciting voices of the CCTV hosts came from the television in the living room as they began the countdown to welcome the New Year. Every number was like a pulsing musical note, playing the prelude to the New Year:
“Ten, nine… two, one!”
When the last “one” fell, the entire world seemed to boil over.
“Happy New Year!”
People cheered and jumped, sending their most sincere blessings to each other.
On the stage, colorful ribbons flew everywhere, swaying and fluttering to their heart’s content at this moment. They wove a brilliant and colorful picture in the air, transmitting joy and hope to every person present.
[Respected Host, Happy New Year.]
In her mind, the System’s blessing also rang out just as the clock struck 12:00.
“System, the same to you.”
Crackle, popā
The sound of firecrackers outside reached the heavens.
Boom!
Boom!
Continuous firework displays echoed amidst the firecrackers. In the sky above, colorful fireworks bloomed in an instant of brilliance.
Gu Wanrong stood by the window; the magnificent fireworks seemed within reach.
Faint white smoke lingered as blazing fires rose into the night sky, and the smell of gunpowder filled the air. It swayed in the wind, darted through the gaps in the doors and windows, and fell into the mortal world.
This was the “flavor of the New Year.”
A long, long time passed.
At the beginning of the New Year, time seemed to be stretched out, with every minute and second becoming warm and long.
The brilliant fireworks, blooming in full glory, rippled out circle by circle like waves in a lake, decorating the entire night sky like a dream. They illuminated the cold sky before the curtain finally fell.
In the kitchen, the cooked Tangyuan and Jiaozi lay quietly in bowls and plates, emitting billowing steam.
Beneath the rising white mist were round and chubby Tangyuan of various sizes, as well as Jiaozi of different shapes, resembling crescent moons or gold ingots.
Ding-dong.
The notification sounds for WeChat messages rose and fell.
Zhou Siyin, Wu Aiai, Yu Yingying… celebratory blessings arrived one after another.
“Come out and play with fairy sticks!” Outside, the several people who had finished the fireworks called for the people inside to come out, waving sparklers in their hands.
Dreamy.
That was Gu Wanrongās impression of “fairy sticks.”
She hadn’t played with them yet.
Taking the sparkler handed to her, Gu Wanrong happily swung her arm, drawing patterns in the air. One sparkler after another was lit, shining beneath the night sky, while fireworks still bloomed in the distant sky.
“Yuanyuan, Iām playing too.”
“Downstairs in the neighborhood, so many people are using fairy sticks.”
Zhou Siyin and Wu Aiai, who were on a video call with Gu Wanrong, showed off the sparklers in their hands to the screen. Everyone was immersed in the beauty of the fireworks.
The group video call with Zhou Siyin and Wu Aiai soon ended.
Butler Liu held a Polaroid camera and called out gently to Gu Wanrong, “Miss, look over here.”
As a top-tier butler, photography skills could not be overlooked. Butler Liuās photography level might not be “world-class,” but it was completely capable of merging the person, scenery, objects, and emotions into one.
She wasn’t just capturing photos for Gu Wanrong now; the previous group photos were also taken by Butler Liu.
On the quick-drying photo, the sparks jumping and splashing as the sparkler burned blurred the contours of Gu Wanrongās face. Beneath the hazy glow, she looked like a celestial maiden who had accidentally wandered into the mortal world.
“Butler Liu, isn’t there a ban on fireworks and firecrackers now?” Gu Wanrong asked curiously while holding a sparkler.
“The application was passed,” Butler Liu said lightheartedly, completely omitting how much work and energy she had spent preparing this surprise.
This private firework show could completely rival the one at the finals of the talent show Yi Shang had held before. Gu Wanrong knew about the application process for that occasion, so she could imagine what Butler Liu hadn’t said.
Gu Wanrong smiled with emotion, feeling her heart warm.
Discarding the sparkler that had just finished burning, Gu Wanrong affectionately hugged Butler Liuās arm, rubbing against her shoulder like Milk Tea, and said indistinctly, “How are you so good to me!”
Butler Liu stroked Gu Wanrongās head.
Translator’s Note: “Fairy sticks” (ä»å„³ę£ – XiÄnnĒ bĆ ng) is the Chinese term for sparklers. “One roll is one year” (äøę»å°±ęÆäø幓) is a play on the word “roll” (ę» – gĒn), which is how Tangyuan move, and also sounds like “passing” time smoothly.
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