Marry the NPC with Money, Wife Comes Knocking - Chapter 96

Chapter 96

Ye-Hua’s First New Year’s Vigil (Side Story)
(Note: This is unrelated to the main plot)

It was a day off, and Hua Suihe took Ye Susheng out shopping. The streets were decorated with lanterns and streamers, teeming with people, as street vendors laid out all sorts of specialty goods for the Lunar New Year.

Hua Suihe held Ye Susheng’s hand firmly, weaving through the crowd with great enthusiasm. Before long, she was carrying a stack of exquisitely designed red gift boxes.

The people around them couldn’t see Ye Susheng, but she could see them. Consequently, she had to expend a great deal of energy to avoid them, not wanting to get too close. Even so, it was unavoidable that her body would occasionally pass directly through some humans.

Unable to dodge in time, she was pulled into another thicket of people by Hua Suihe. She couldn’t help but speak up, “Hua Hua, there are so many people today.”

“Yes, because it’s almost the New Year!” Hua Suihe replied casually. She immediately called out to a vendor writing couplets, “Boss, how much for the couplets?”

“Different paper, different price; different length, different price. Custom-written and pre-made are also different prices. Depends on what you need.”

Hua Suihe asked, “I want a set of gold-flecked couplet paper. Can I write them myself here?”

The boss found this hard to believe and finally looked her in the eye. “Yo, a young lady who knows how to write couplets? That’s a rarity. Go ahead then-just 200 for the paper.”

“Come, come, over here. Write them here.” The boss led her to the writing table and had his assistant prepare the brush and ink and lay out the paper.

Ye Susheng was bewildered by everything. She followed Hua Suihe and watched her contemplate the red paper. Surrounding customers were passionately reciting the verses on the red scrolls, cheering before paying and taking them away.

Ye Susheng’s gaze drifted as she silently read the contents of the couplets in her mind.

“Spring fills the land, flowers bloom like brocade; the age is peaceful, prosperity flows like a tide. Fortune, Longevity, Health, and Peace.” Ye Susheng read the couplet aloud. Her eyes suddenly lit up, and she grabbed Hua Suihe’s arm, interrupting her thoughts.

“Hua Hua, Hua Hua! Let’s get this one!” Ye Susheng pointed at the couplet joyfully. “It has Hua Hua’s name on it!”

Hua Suihe read the couplet, and a spark of inspiration struck her. She dipped the brush in ink and began to write with clean, decisive strokes.

“Spring arrives with fortune, flowers bloom like brocade; the age is peaceful and happy, dedicated to Ye Susheng. Horizontal Scroll: Fortune Welcomes the New Spring.”

Ye Susheng held her breath, waiting intently until Hua Hua finished her final stroke. Only then did she gasp and clap. “Hua Hua, you’re amazing!”

The boss helped dry the ink with a machine, and they were able to take them away in a few minutes.

“Hua Hua loves me so much… she even added my name. Thank you, Hua Hua~”

“Mhm, mhm. Since that’s the case, we’ll leave tonight’s New Year’s Eve dinner to Ye Zi’s wife.”

“What is New Year’s Eve dinner?”

“New Year’s Eve dinner is a very sumptuous feast. After we eat, we keep a vigil together until midnight, which marks the start of the New Year.” Hua Suihe explained the Spring Festival to her: “This festival falls at the turn of the year, bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new. People project their ideals and wishes onto the coming year and have a reunion dinner with their family.”

After saying this, she met Ye Susheng’s half-comprehending gaze and patted her head, her tone gentle. “We are family, so we also have to eat a reunion dinner and keep the vigil.”

Ye Susheng took the words to heart, her attitude instantly becoming serious. “Then I must keep the vigil with Hua Hua.”

They bought many ingredients-chicken, duck, fish, meat, as well as crabs and lobsters-cooking a meal that bordered on extravagant.

They celebrated the New Year in their secluded cabin.

There were no other grand ancestral rites. Hua Suihe hung a string of firecrackers at the door. Having spent many years alone, she was well-practiced in lighting them.

When the crackers went off, however, it gave Ye Susheng quite a fright. Her black mist form immediately wrapped around Hua Suihe, pulling her into an embrace. Behind them, smoke filled the air as the sound of firecrackers echoed through the sky.

Ye Susheng held back her tears for a long time only because Hua Hua had said it was bad luck to cry on New Year’s. Her voice trembled as she spoke: “Hua Hua, it’s too dangerous, too dangerous…”

She wasn’t afraid of the noise; she was afraid Hua Suihe would blow herself up.

Hua Suihe kissed Ye Susheng’s chin and moved her hands to the back of her neck to soothe her tension. “I’ve set them off many times myself. It’s not dangerous.”

“Let me do it from now on. Hua Hua isn’t allowed to touch them anymore.”

Hua Suihe gave her repeated assurances before they went to eat.

After the New Year’s Eve dinner was finished…

Hua Hua took Ye Susheng to experience various small fireworks-sparklers, ground spinners, confetti cannons… all sorts of things. Ye Susheng found everything novel.

Ye Susheng was a natural-born Anomaly, unlike those who had undergone Anomalization midway. Therefore, she knew nothing of human customs and festivals.

If she were to learn about them alone, she would find it boring; even if she learned to say ‘Happy New Year’s Eve,’ she would have no one to say it to.

Having Hua Hua there was just right. She could say ‘Happy New Year’s Eve’ to Hua Hua a hundred times, offering different New Year’s blessings. Every beautiful wish was meant for Hua Hua.

When midnight arrived, Ye Susheng lit the prepared fireworks. They blossomed in the night sky as the two embraced in the romance, sharing a kiss on the first day of the New Year.

After their lingering moment, Hua Suihe tucked a stiff red envelope into her hand.

“This is a red envelope blessing. I wish Ye Susheng peace year after year and a smile that’s always on her face.”

Holding the red envelope, Ye Susheng felt her palm grow warm. She looked down and gently opened the folded envelope, seeing it stuffed full of cash. After the initial joy, she felt at a loss. “Hua Hua, I don’t have any money…”

She wanted to give Hua Hua a red envelope blessing too, but she had handed over her salary card and usually had no use for money. She had no spare cash on hand.

Hua Suihe knew what she was thinking and let out a soft laugh. “It’s okay. A sincere verbal blessing will also come true.”

“Then I wish Hua Hua good health and a life free of worries. I hope Hua Hua stays with me year after year.”

“Happy New Year~”