Chapter 409: Chapter 212 Buying New Year’s Goods_1
At the second watch, a request for pink firecrackers.
**...*****
"Ouch," Lian Shouxin was hugged by his youngest son and felt his heart soften. "If Xiao Qi wants it, then let’s buy another pack."
Xiao Qi was happy.
"No way." Lian Manman’s face set sternly, "There’s still so much to buy, and our family has already spent quite a bit this month. Just one pack of firecrackers, no more."
"Dad," Xiao Qi didn’t plead with Lian Manman but clung to Lian Shouxin’s thigh, "Dad, I want firecrackers, I want firecrackers."
"Then we won’t use the public funds, deduct it from my wages," Lian Shouxin said, with no other choice but to pat his youngest son’s head and smile.
Lian Manman chuckled secretly, relieved to hear those words, but she pouted on the surface.
"Dad, you always spend money on Xiao Qi. What about me?" Lian Manman said, "Dad, you’re biased. You only dote on Xiao Qi."
"That’s not true," Lian Shouxin, equally defenseless against his little daughter’s whining and his youngest son’s leg-hugging, said, "Manman, whatever you want to buy, Dad will pay for it."
"Really? Then you can’t go back on your word, Dad," Lian Manman’s mouth immediately curled into a smile.
"I won’t go back on my word, definitely not," Lian Shouxin said.
Lady Zhang, Wu Lang, and Lian Zhizhi watched from the side, laughing as Lian Manman and Xiao Qi dug into Lian Shouxin’s purse, not for the first time.
"What should I buy..." Lian Manman murmured to herself, "Can’t spend too much of Dad’s money, something around a dozen coins would be okay."
Lian Manman calculated the extra money for Xiao Qi’s firecrackers and her own expenses, then wrote down two amounts in the account book and handed it to Lian Shouxin.
Lian Shouxin took the account book and drew circles under the two new entries to indicate that he had approved the expenses.
"We have chicken, we have meat, but for New Year’s we need fish, right?" The topic went back to the New Year’s grocery list.
Farmstead families, no matter how frugal their daily lives, always have a fish in their New Year’s meal, embodying the wish for surplus every year.
"Of course, we need it, let’s buy a big carp," Lady Zhang said.
"Let’s get some more rice and white flour as well, indulge in some finer meals over the New Year," Lian Shouxin said.
"We have peanuts and sunflower seeds at home, and there’s still brown and white sugar, so let’s buy some rock sugar," Lian Zhizhi suggested.
"Get some more brown and white sugar too, I’m afraid we might run out during the New Year," Lian Manman said.
"Then let’s buy some of that," Lady Zhang said.
"Brother, why aren’t you saying anything?" Lian Manman asked Wu Lang.
"Everything I wanted to say, you all have said already," Wu Lang said.
"Bro, don’t you want to buy something for yourself?" Lian Manman asked.
"I can’t think of anything I need," Wu Lang said, then after a thought, added, "Actually, I do need more paper."
Wu Lang, diligent in his studies, used more paper than Lian Manman and the other siblings.
"I’ll pay for it myself," Wu Lang said, "Manman, hand me some money later."
"Dad, you’ve already bought things for me and Xiao Qi, you can’t not buy something for my brother. Dad, you should cover the cost of the paper for him," Lian Manman immediately said to Lian Shouxin with a smile.
What could Lian Shouxin say? He could only nod.
"Now that you three have your things, we can’t neglect my eldest daughter," Lian Shouxin said, "Zhizhi, whatever you want to buy, Dad will pay for it."
Lian Zhizhi just smiled.
"I know what my sister wants to buy," Lian Manman wrote down two more amounts on the New Year’s shopping list and the account book, once again having Lian Shouxin draw circles to approve them.
"Thank you, Dad," Lian Zhizhi and Wu Lang said to Lian Shouxin.
Lian Shouxin felt moved, his eldest son and daughter were sensible, not asking for things and saying thank you when they received them, as opposed to the younger son and daughter, who were like two little bandits, taking it for granted and boldly demanding.
But to him, their father, all of them were endearing in their own way.
"We also need couplets, for the main house, the outer rooms, and the shop, we should put up a few, and the New Year paintings on the wall are old, let’s get two new ones..." Lady Zhang said.
The family tossed ideas back and forth, adding quite a few more items to the New Year’s shopping list.
Lian Manman calculated that the various small items added up to a considerable sum, but it was well within their family’s means.
"We’ll bring a bit more money when the time comes, in case we see something else we want to buy," Lian Shouxin said. After a pause, he added, "This year, we’ll celebrate the New Year by ourselves."
All the siblings nodded; it was a matter of course.
"About Dad and Mom, we should buy something to show our filial respect for the New Year, right?" Lian Shouxin said, with a tone of suggestion, "Now that we have some money, it wouldn’t be right if we had none."
