Three or Two Things about Rebirth

"The first one is it! You are so lucky!" Qiu Luming snorted, "It must be that the sister-in-law marked you, playing dirty tricks!"

Liu Xiaomei yelled in the kitchen, "I don't have it!"

When Qiu Luming heard his sister-in-law scooping out dumplings, he stood up with a smile to serve them, and Qiu Moshi followed suit. Liu Xiaomei also served each of them a small bowl of dumpling soup. The three of them brought the plates and bowls to the table and sat down. They found that the table was still full of dumplings, obviously waiting for them to eat together.

Liu Xiaomei smiled and said, "We are a family, what are we waiting for? The dumplings are ready." She patted Qiu Huaixin's shoulder again and smiled at him with her head tilted, "I heard that you were the first one to eat the money. This year's luck is unstoppable!"

Qiu Huaixin curled his lips and said in a muffled voice, "I ate early."

"That's just good luck! Come on, come on, let's eat together, eat as much as you can!"

Everyone was watching TV and eating dumplings in a happy mood. No one mentioned Qiu Jiashu, as if this person did not exist in the family, and as if the previous quarrels and unpleasantness had never happened.

He Manshu only ate one dumpling, then she picked up each plate and shook it a few times to prevent the dumplings from sticking together. After all the dumplings were shaken off, she picked up a dumpling and put it on Dabao's plate.

Dabao took a careful bite, looked at the dumpling happily and shouted, "Ah!"

"What's wrong? Did you eat money again?" Qiu Moshi cooperated in a surprised manner.

Dabao held up the dumpling and showed it to everyone. Only the edge of a coin with dumpling filling sticking out of half of the dumpling was visible.

"Ah, Dabao is so lucky!" Liu Xiaomei clapped her hands.

Everyone applauds.

Dabao narrowed his eyes and smiled.

One cent, with good wishes, wrapped in dumplings, brings happiness that is priceless.

One after another, Qiu Moshi and Qiu Luming each ate a coin. Every time they ate a coin, everyone smiled and said auspicious words as usual.

Dabao's coin looked like cheating, but Qiu Luming earned it based on his real ability.

She was not full after dinner, and now she especially wanted to eat money, so she lowered her head and ate the first plate of dumplings. Unfortunately, she didn't get any money. Not discouraged, she started the second plate of dumplings. Finally, when she ate the sixteenth one, her teeth bit into a flat hard object. She said "Hmm!" happily, pinched out a coin with her left hand, and threw it on the dining table. She heard the crisp sound and was very happy.

Qiu Jiye smiled and said, "Yoyo is also lucky!"

Liu Xiaomei said, "The last coin is the lucky one, the luckiest one!"

Who doesn't like to hear nice words? Qiu Luming happily ate half of the dumpling, drank two mouthfuls of the dumpling soup, and then put down his chopsticks.

She felt a little bloated. How could she sleep if she couldn't digest the food so late? She was afraid of being laughed at, but she didn't dare to say it out loud. She rubbed her stomach quietly and said, "The dumpling fillings made by my sister-in-law are delicious!"

She noticed that only after all four coins came out did her parents and sister-in-law start eating dumplings. Each of them ate four or five and then put down their chopsticks.

The host was counting down excitedly, and the New Year's Eve bell rang.

Qiu Jiashu still hadn't come back, and most of the dumplings were left on the table. The skins were already a little taut, so there was no need to worry about them sticking together.

Liu Xiaomei stood up and folded the dumplings into two large plates. She also put one of the plates on the tray of the stew pot, covered it with a lid, and left it for Qiu Jiashu.

Dabao had already fallen asleep in the south bedroom. The little guy was able to hold on until the time to eat dumplings purely because he was attracted by the part about eating the money. Once he ate the money, he immediately felt sleepy, put down his chopsticks, climbed onto the kang and fell asleep.

After packing up, Qiu Huaixin and Liu Xiaomei put on their coats, hats and gloves and prepared to go home.

During the Chinese New Year, families with large populations usually don’t care about those things. Some play mahjong until dawn, while others squeeze on one kang with many relatives and friends and stay up until dawn.

But it’s not like that for the Qiu family. Every Chinese New Year, the couple would go back to their own home and come over for dinner early the next morning.

Liu Xiaomei said, "Mom and Dad, we're going home first to wish you a happy new year. Dad! Mom! Happy New Year!" Then she bowed.

At this moment, Qiu Huaixin seemed to have lost some of his pride, and even felt a little guilty towards his mother. He bowed and said, "Dad! Mom! Happy New Year!"

"Okay! Ride slowly on the road."

Qiu Moshi and Qiu Luming also came to wish their parents a happy new year, and then to wish their eldest brother and sister-in-law a happy new year. The eldest sister-in-law quickly took out the New Year's money.

Qiu Moshi is still studying for his master's degree and has no job, so his sister-in-law gave him and Qiu Luming ten yuan each as New Year's money.

He Manshu said, "Yoyo is already working, why does she need New Year's money? She should give it to her nephew!"

Liu Xiaomei stuffed the red envelope into Qiu Luming's hand and said, "Youngest sister, even if you are getting married, you still have to give it to me!"

Qiu Moshi blushed, "How old am I?"

"If you're not married and not working, you're just a child!" The eldest sister-in-law also stuffed the red envelope into his hand. Then she walked up to He Manshu and whispered, "We're going back and passing by Yuanfang Hotel. I'll bring some dumplings to Comrade Xiao Zhou."

He Manshu nodded with satisfaction, "Okay."

At almost one o'clock, Qiu Luming was half asleep when he heard a noise from the side of the room.

It’s Qiu Jiashu who is back.

The mother beside me moved a little, but ultimately did not stand up.

Qiu Luming heard his second brother tiptoe to put down his lunch box, take off his shoes, and lie down on the bed that had been made for him in the living room without even washing his face.

She turned over with her eyes closed, and seemed to hear her mother sighing in a daze.

***

Feeling her mother getting up, Qiu Luming glanced at the alarm clock on the desk with sleepy eyes. It was not yet six o'clock. She muttered a few words and pulled her mother's quilt over to cover Dabao. The boy crawled into her bed while he was sleeping, and she kicked and pushed him out, but he came back again after a while.

The bed was getting hotter and hotter. Qiu Luming was sleeping soundly when he suddenly yelled and sat up, scaring Dabao awake. He Manshu came in quickly, "What happened?"

"Ah! It hurts so much!" Qiu Luming rubbed the inside of his thigh and complained, "Mom! Your eldest grandson showed off his strength and circled his heel on my thigh in a full circle!"

Dabao stared blankly, "I didn't."

He Manshu laughed, "Okay, get up now that you're awake. People will be here to pay New Year's greetings soon!"

"No, I want to sleep for another fifteen minutes. Dabao is so annoying. He keeps rolling around and it makes it difficult for me to sleep well."

He Manshu didn't care and patted her grandson on the butt. Dabao lay down and fell asleep in seconds.

Qiu Luming also fell asleep to the sound of pots and pans in the kitchen. It was a sweet nap.

I vaguely heard a low voice saying, "......I was wrong. I will never drink again. Xiaomei said that I was drunk last night and ruined everyone's New Year. Mom, if I said something inappropriate, please don't get angry. You will hurt your health if you get angry." The voice was hoarse at first, more laborious than squeezing toothpaste, but it became smoother later.

"Oh, boss, you said something soft to me on New Year's Day. Did the sun rise from the north this year?" He Manshu said with a smile, "Let's talk about everything after the New Year. There must be a lot of customers today, so don't affect my mood. Also, I'm not angry at all. Being angry on New Year's Day will affect your luck for the whole year. Besides, that happened last year, why should I still be upset about it?"

"mom......."

"Stop it, go fetch a bucket of coal!"

"Mom! On New Year's Day, the first thing you want me to do is carry coal?"

"Haha, are you afraid of bad luck? It doesn't matter, aren't you the first one to get the lucky money? Your luck is so good that nothing can suppress it! Don't dawdle, go quickly!" Qiu Luming heard a snapping sound, and he didn't know where he hit it.

"Mom, I'm going!"

"Xiao Mei, don't go! I'll let the boss go!"

"Oh my god..." The voice was already outside.

"You just found a good wife!"

"Ouch! Mom, mom! I'm already thirty and you're still twisting my ears!"

"Even if you are eighty, let me see if I can beat you up!"

“Yes…Yes!”

Qiu Luming stretched, covered Dabao, whose head had turned to the kang, with a quilt, took out clothes from the box, and changed them from head to toe. However, his socks were a bit rustic, red, with a little man on the soles.

This was given by my sister-in-law. To be honest, I won't get into trouble with anyone for the whole year.

Qiu Luming went to the kitchen door to wash his face. His eldest brother was already in the living room with his father watching the news.

The door opened and Qiu Jiashu came in with a cold look on his face.

"Happy New Year, second brother!" Qiu Luming said with a smile, "Did you just get home?"

Qiu Jiashu's face changed, and he argued excitedly, "Nonsense! I swept all the snow in and outside the yard, and you are just a lazy cat who just got up!"