Liang Xiu also poured a bowl of water for Wang Xianghua and said, "Sister-in-law, slow down. It's cold and the ground is frozen solid. What if you trip and fall?"
Wang Xianghua took the water with trembling hands, too excited and having run too fast.
After drinking two sips of water, Wang Xianghua finally caught her breath.
"Auntie, I miss you!"
Su Xiaotian was nestled in the quilt, not wanting to get out at all, but she didn't forget to flatter Wang Xianghua with her words.
Wang Xianghua immediately broke into a big smile, casting a reproachful glance at her sons.
Why was her life so unfortunate? She hadn't given birth to a pretty little girl. Look at these brats, what expressions were they wearing?
"My darling, I've missed you so much. I'll kill a chicken and stew some soup for you later," Wang Xianghua said gleefully.
"Auntie, I also brought you gifts from the capital. It's just too cold right now. I'll give them to you when they've warmed up," Su Xiaotian remembered the gifts she had specially bought and quickly added.
Hearing this, Wang Xianghua became even happier, wishing she could hug the precious little girl and kiss her.
"Oh, it's good that I doted on you. You even thought of bringing gifts for Auntie. Auntie is an adult, what gifts do you need to bring? With this money, wouldn't it be better to buy yourself a hair tie?"
Wang Xianghua was happy in her heart, but she kept complaining verbally.
Su Xiaotian didn't mind, as this was a common practice among adults of that era.
When they received gifts from their children, although they were happy, they would always say things like it was a waste of money.
Su Xiaotian had indeed prepared gifts for her eldest uncle and aunt, and her second uncle and aunt, who had not gone to the capital, on this trip back.
Each person received a set of clothes, in blue, which was the color generally favored by people of this era, with no particularly novel styles.
However, the Su family members did not get to see their respective gifts anytime soon.
This was because guests soon arrived at the Su family's home.
The first to arrive were Li Zhuzi and his wife, along with their two children.
The two sturdy boys were adorable to look at.
Grandma Su quickly found some melon seeds and peanuts prepared for the New Year, and also took out a packet of pastries.
"Here, have some, Da Wa and Er Wa," Grandma Su put a handful of peanuts in Da Wa's pocket and placed two soft pieces of pastry in each of the boys' hands.
Er Wa was still young, and peanuts could easily get stuck in his throat, so Grandma Su only gave him pastries.
"Auntie, aren't these the pastries you brought from the capital? They're too precious, why are you giving them to them!" Li Zhuzi's wife quickly declined.
"What, you're not even allowed to give the children a pastry?" Grandma Su said with a stern face. "Weren't the pastries bought to be eaten?"
Li Zhuzi's wife smiled and said nothing, but her worried heart was somewhat eased.
She was actually worried that the two families would drift apart due to the distance.
Now it seemed that was not the case; the Su family still treated them the same as before.
In the years since she married into the family, Li Zhuzi's wife had realized that the Su family possessed great abilities. With just a little guidance, they could live a good life.
Before, they had been advised to collect eggs, and just by doing that, her husband Li Zhuzi had earned a lot of money.
She used to give them to Grandma Su, and after Grandma Su went to the capital, Li Zhuzi developed several more clients, and now his business was growing.
"Thank you, Auntie. It's kind of you to care for them."
"When you go back later, pack some more pastries for the two boys to take home, so your father can try them too."
Li Zhuzi's wife smiled and thanked her again, "Then I won't be polite. Thank you, Auntie. My father will surely be happy to taste pastries from the capital in his lifetime!"
While they were talking, more people arrived.
Soon, many people from the production team came.
The main hall was quickly filled with people, and the original chill seemed to dissipate considerably with the arrival of so many guests.
At such a time, Liu Xiuying was naturally indispensable.
Liu Xiuying received the news late and hurried over, but she was still late, and the main hall was already crowded.
She looked at these people reproachfully, thinking that with so many people, she wouldn't get any of the good things.
Being the kind of person she was, Liu Xiuying assumed everyone else was like her.
She didn't consider that when these people arrived, they had actually brought gifts.
Many people in the production team were very simple. Thinking that the old Su family had just returned and were lacking winter vegetables and dried goods, they came with dried vegetables from Zhang San, a radish from Li Si, and a cabbage from Wang Wu.
Even Granny Chang came with her hands full, holding a string of garlic with about twenty cloves.
Liu Xiuying, on the other hand, entered with a grandson in each hand.
Jin Wa and Yin Wa were both around ten years old, and by rights, they should have been sensible. However, given Liu Xiuying's upbringing, one could imagine what kind of children they would be.
As soon as the two brothers entered the main hall and saw the melon seeds, peanuts, and candies on the table, they rushed over like little cannonballs and started grabbing.
If they had just grabbed a handful to eat themselves, it would have been fine.
However, these two brothers intended to empty the plates.
Fortunately, their pockets were not large enough.
Seeing her grandsons behaving like this, Liu Xiuying couldn't help but scold, "Why are you two so stupid?"
When others heard Liu Xiuying scolding her grandsons, they thought she had finally become sensible.
However, they were stunned by what she said next.
"Can't you just take the plates home with you?"
Everyone was speechless.
The younger brothers, Xiao Ba and Xiao Jiu, who had been playing nearby, exchanged glances and instantly rushed over to block the doorway, effectively stopping Jin Wa and Yin Wa, each carrying two plates.
"What, are you trying to bully people?"
Liu Xiuying immediately became indignant when she saw Xiao Ba and Xiao Jiu blocking Jin Wa and Yin Wa.
"Who's bullying whom? We just don't want to see our family's things being snatched away," Xiao Ba said matter-of-factly.
Xiao Jiu, on the other hand, snatched the plate from Yin Wa's hand.
At this moment, Xiao Qi also arrived. While Jin Wa was stunned, his plate was also taken away.
Looking at their empty hands, the two brothers immediately started crying and making a fuss.
Liu Xiuying, being the kind of person she was, felt that since her grandsons were crying, she must be in the right.
"You went to the capital and now you don't recognize your own relatives! Jin Wa and Yin Wa are just children, how can you treat them like this?"
Xiao Ba said coldly, "We are also children. So what? You can let your children snatch things from our house, but we can't let our children protect our own things?"
"Brother Ba, I heard that robbery is punishable by law. I wonder if the police station is still open. Shall we go to the police station to report it!"
Xiao Jiu said matter-of-factly, looking as if he wasn't joking at all.
Liu Xiuying was startled by Su Xiaojiu's mention of calling the police.
"Why call the police? It's just a few melon seeds and peanuts," Liu Xiuying's voice weakened slightly, but she still refused to back down.
"We don't mind you eating them, but snatching our plates and things is not right," Su Xiaojiu said with a smile, but his words were far from polite.