Chapter 339: An Unexpected Red Envelope

On the early morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year, Zheng Tan heard the voices of Grandfather Jiao and Grandmother Jiao; the elders are always accustomed to rising early, and during the New Year they are especially diligent.

No one slept in today, and Xiao Youzi and Jiao Yuan soon got up; there were many tasks and visiting guests for New Year greetings. However, when Xiao Youzi and Jiao Yuan awoke, their vision was still blurry, they were not fully alert, and as they yawned they smelled the scent of braised pork.

Breakfast is usually light, so the two children wondered whether breakfast had switched to braised pork today; only when they got dressed did they notice a red envelope placed at the bedside.

When they picked it up, the red envelope was noticeably thicker than usual, and on the back a greasy cat‑paw imprint scented with braised pork marked it—no need to think further to know whose it was.

What surprised Jiao Yuan and Xiao Youzi even more was the five hundred yuan inside the envelope.

Zheng Tan has a decent stash of private money, which Jiao Yuan and Xiao Youzi have long known; Jiao Yuan has even borrowed from Zheng Tan before. Borrowing is one thing, receiving a "lucky‑money" red envelope is another, and their feelings were quite strange and complicated. After all, in their eyes Zheng Tan's cat age is far younger than theirs, and the envelope contained five hundred yuan! For students, that amount is already substantial.

Jiao Yuan stared at the envelope with a conflicted expression; he really wanted to shout "damn it" aloud to relieve the shock, but obviously he couldn't—if he shouted, the four elders at home would scold him, and he didn't want a lecture on the first day of the New Year.

Grandfather Jiao and Grandmother Jiao saw Jiao Yuan and Xiao Youzi emerge from their rooms, their eyes crinkling with smiles. Before the two children could say anything, they hurriedly reached into their pockets and handed over the prepared lucky‑money envelopes.

Just as Zheng Tan had expected, the elders gave each a hundred yuan; the thickness alone showed it. Zheng Tan couldn't help but feel smug beside them, thinking they gave less than he did.

"Ah, Hei Tan, and yours too."

The old man and old lady reached into their pockets again, just as in previous years: one of Zheng Tan's envelopes contained pork jerky, the other contained dried fish slices. However, this year they gave a bit more. Previously each envelope held a single bag; now they contain two bags, doubled.

The reason Zheng Tan's envelopes were doubled in weight stemmed from the events of the day before yesterday, for which Zheng Tan earned the greatest credit. Although many people attribute the credit to Jiao Yuan and Xiao Youzi, the old man and old lady knew that Zheng Tan played the pivotal role. Because of this, several village officials came specifically to thank Grandfather Jiao, and even two town officials came to speak with him. This gave Grandfather Jiao a lot of face; when he used to chat with Elder Gu from Grandmother Jiao's side, Elder Gu would often brag, and Grandfather Jiao's reputation relied on such displays. Now Grandfather Jiao feels that the next time he meets Elder Gu, he can show off even more.

Jiao Yuan and Xiao Youzi didn't tell the two elders about the "huge" red envelope Zheng Tan gave them, fearing it would frighten the elders. When Grandfather Jiao was free, Jiao Yuan pulled him into a room and, with a face that read "what a mess," explained the red‑envelope incident to Grandfather Jiao.

Jiao Ba thought for a moment, then said: "Then accept it. By converting cat age to human age, Hei Tan is already middle‑aged, while you are still a youth; it probably sees you as a junior."

Jiao Yuan: "…Don't calculate it that way."

"That's also Hei Tan's goodwill. Moreover, Hei Tan is now a high‑salary professional with several years of work; you're just a middle‑schooler, and his monthly salary equals half a year's living expenses for you. Oh, and his fee for filming a documentary at the end of the year is even higher."

Jiao Yuan: "…" How demoralizing.

Other households' cats also give gifts—such as a dead mouse, a crippled grasshopper, or other "little trinkets"—but being given lucky‑money by one's own cat is an experience probably only Jiao Yuan and Xiao Youzi have, and only they can truly feel that complex, tangled sensation.

After returning from the morning cemetery visit, Zheng Tan found a person sitting in the old house: Song Ting. Grandfather Jiao smiled broadly, calling out enthusiastically, "Song the expert!"

Compared with when he was bound, Song Ting now looks much better; the bruises around his eyes have faded considerably. Fortunately the robbers didn't strip away his down jacket, otherwise he might not have survived until rescue. Song Ting hasn't become despondent from that day's ordeal; he appears energetic and his complexion is much healthier.

When Song Ting arrived, Grandfather Jiao had just left with Jiao Yuan and the others. Since Grandfather Jiao said he wouldn't be long, Song Ting stayed seated waiting. When Grandfather Jiao's party returned, a smile flickered in Song Ting's eyes; his gaze first landed on Zheng Tan in a vest, then on Jiao Yuan and Xiao Youzi, and finally on Grandfather Jiao and Grandmother Jiao behind them.

After the New‑Year greetings were finished, Song Ting reached into his pocket.

Zheng Tan felt an inexplicable jolt in his heart, a sense of impending misfortune.

Sure enough, the next moment Song Ting pulled out two finely crafted red envelopes, each about twice the size of Zheng Tan's, and they were thick.

Grandfather Jiao and Grandfather Jiao couldn't sit still; they rose to try to refuse, but unable to withstand Song Ting's insistence, they finally nodded and let the two children accept them.

"Alas, Song the expert, you're being far too courteous!" Grandfather Jiao felt a bit pressured; their village has never had a lucky‑money envelope of a thousand yuan directly.

Earlier, after receiving the envelope, Jiao Yuan went back to his room to look, then covertly signaled to Grandfather Jiao and Grandfather Jiao, indicating how much was inside, giving them a sense of the amount.

In fact, among Song Ting's many relatives, giving children red envelopes of one or two thousand yuan is commonplace; giving less feels like a loss of face. Yet this is also a reciprocal process: the amount you give his children, he later gives to yours; the envelopes are exchanged, and if lucky‑money can't be sent, it's recorded in other matters and later added to contribution money for return.

Song Ting dislikes the so‑called "reciprocal gifting"; previously his wife handled it, but now his wife is abroad pursuing a doctorate, and the elders are not around to advise, so he finally decided to follow the traditional relative‑to‑relative method, preparing a big red envelope of one thousand yuan for each of the two children.

Song Ting originally wanted to give even more; he sincerely thanks the two children, as this was his first encounter with such a situation in many years, and thanks to their help and the cat's, the outcome would have been unpredictable. Giving a larger envelope would have been fine, but his friends urged him to scale back; in a typical village, giving too much creates pressure on the recipients. Other ways of showing gratitude are acceptable. Thus, the one thousand yuan was reduced considerably after his friends' persuasion.

Meanwhile, at Zheng Tan's side, when Jiao Yuan returned to his room to examine the envelope, Zheng Tan quickly followed. Upon seeing it, countless expletives surged through his mind like a stampede of alpacas, and Song Ting's stare was far from pleasant. He had originally intended to give the highest red envelope this year, but after less than two hours, it was shattered.

Zheng Tan was so depressed he wanted to flip the table, and he also mulled over saving more cash next year to give again—then he could make an even larger, more finely crafted, beautiful red envelope!

Someone came looking for Grandfather Jiao, so he asked Grandfather Jiao to stay and chat longer with Song the expert. After Grandmother Jiao called away Jiao Yuan and Xiao Youzi, only Grandfather Jiao and Song Ting remained. Both are professors of similar age; although their fields differ, they share some overlap and can discuss common topics. The scholarly subjects were so deep that Zheng Tan felt sleepy listening.

When Zheng Tan briefly dozed off and woke up, the conversation between Grandfather Jiao and Song Ting had shifted to the fruit‑orchard losses after this year's snow disaster, and they mentioned plans to donate funds.

Zheng Tan has always been carefree and has no interest in donating; he doesn't think his earnings should go to strangers, nor does he need to build a reputation by giving money. He would rather give more to the Jiao family and his acquaintances, so when Grandfather Jiao and Song Ting discussed donations, Zheng Tan slipped out, intending to wander outside.

This year's New‑Year festive atmosphere in the village was not as strong, because the snow disaster left many land‑based livelihoods in distress; farmers and breeders faced the same bleak situation, only hoping to salvage whatever losses they could.

Fewer children were out playing firecrackers; most helped with household chores, since family income directly affects their future schooling and marriage prospects, so they gave up firecracker play to work.

Zheng Tan crouched on a large stone beside the dirt road, watching villagers scurrying nearby.

Two elders walked past on the dirt road ahead, chatting, and did not notice Zheng Tan.

From their conversation it seemed they were discussing pooling money to donate to a household whose conditions were poor; their thatched house had many structural issues, was unstable, and half collapsed after the snow disaster. Fortunately no one was injured, and the New Year's Eve was barely endured thanks to some people's assistance; otherwise they would have faced cold and hunger.

According to the two elders, their own family's conditions weren't great either—just manageable. Their son and daughter‑in‑law were not keen on donating, but the elders thought that doing good deeds would accrue virtue for their son and grandchildren, ensuring a smoother path later.

Many people, as they age, increasingly believe in mystical notions like doing good and accumulating virtue.

It is said that good people receive good rewards and evildoers are punished by heaven; Zheng Tan once scoffed at this, noting that in society, swindlers, fraudsters, murderers, traffickers, and lecherous thieves live in mansions, drive luxury cars, and date high‑quality women, living better than anyone, while some good people suffer hardship.

The failure of education, the mounting pressures of daily life, and the widening wealth gap suffocate people; doing good and accumulating virtue? No, they increasingly believe money is supreme, and the moral quality of the process seems irrelevant.

Nevertheless, Zheng Tan suddenly felt confused again; he wondered whether doing too many unvirtuous deeds had turned him into a cat.

Across the dirt road was a vegetable garden; many crops had frozen to death, but near a fence some were still alive, their stalks bearing small yellow flowers that rose high and swayed gently in the wind, adding a touch of vitality and hope.

Zheng Tan stared at those stalks, becoming absorbed, until a donkey face suddenly appeared, accompanied by a sudden braying "hee‑hee", startling Zheng Tan nearly to the point of jumping. The donkey then turned its head, flicked its tail, and followed Wu Ye Ye away.

Watching the man and the donkey walk away, Zheng Tan stretched lazily and headed back to the old house.

After seeing Song Ting off, Grandfather Jiao entered the house for water; upon entering he found Zheng Tan crouched on the table, head down in a "thinking" pose, a bank card beneath his cat paw. (To be continued…)

PS: I came back at night, took a nap, overslept; sorry for the late update.

A new month begins; August will bring a major site‑wide push, and Chen Ci will try to post more. I can't promise daily double updates, but the schedule will definitely improve over July. I'm going to sleep now. Good night, everyone.