Chapter 397: To Have Such a Dream (2)_1
Pei Qin had completely forgotten about last night’s incident and asked her in response, "All you did was sleep on the roof?" You didn’t do anything else, did you?
Seeing that she truly didn’t remember, the light in Lu Hai’s eyes flickered slightly as he adamantly said, "No."
Pei Qin felt a momentary suspicion, but she still quite trusted what Lu Hai said. So she drank the hangover soup and began preparing for the New Year’s celebration.
Her and her brother were still observing the mourning period, so they didn’t have to get up early to join the festive rush. They lingered over making dumplings and only when the day got a bit brighter, did they gather their things and went to Lady Fang’s grave to offer incense, burn paper, and pay their New Year respects.
Old Pei’s House was adorned with red lanterns, still lit as dawn broke, looking festive even against the rest of the village houses. And why shouldn’t it be festive? Old Pei’s House had added members this year. Pei Wenli had become a Scholar, received the Imperial Court’s reward, and held in his hand a hundred taels of gold, which could be exchanged for more than a thousand pieces of silver. Pei Zongli had also regained his scholarly title, so the future for Old Pei’s House looked immensely promising!
Quite a few villagers scoffed and scorned, but they were still envious and green with jealousy. They uttered plenty of sour remarks, yet the reward and the hundred taels of gold belonged to Old Pei’s House, all the benefits were theirs!
Looking at Pei Qin and her brother, everyone felt they were pitiable. With Landlord Chang’s house and the Wang family to lean on, they should have picked a fight with Old Pei’s House, made a big fuss. Instead, they swallowed their pride silently, choking down their grievance.
Old Pei didn’t think for a moment that Pei Qin would swallow her pride. The more festive and lively his house became during New Year’s, the more worried he was inside.
However, Pei Qin remained completely untroubled, peacefully celebrating the New Year and dutifully paying visits to relatives with her gifts.
This year, the Feng family had a new bride, and she returned to her parents’ home on the second day of the New Year. Therefore, Old Scholar Fang arranged for all of them to visit on the third day, leaving the second day for Fang Li, Lady Yu, and Lady Ruan to visit their maternal relatives.