Chapter 140: The Thing I Feared Most Still Happened

When the letter from Shang Gu arrived, the Cheng Family was gathered together making dumplings.

Flour dusted on his forehead and the tip of his nose, Yu'an stood on a chair like a little calico cat.

His small hands picked up a ball of dough, and with both hands he pressed hard on the rolling pin, rolling it back and forth over the dough.

The little fellow pressed his small mouth shut, his chubby little face written all over with seriousness, his big eyes fixed intently on... the dough that was slowly flattening out.

If it weren't for that little face dusted with flour, one would think he was doing something earth-shatteringly important.

The women of the Cheng Family laughed and shook their heads, letting him be.

Wang Shi said as she mixed the filling.

"That Shang Gu does have a few tricks. In just a few days, he's won over the Imperial Officials."

Meng Shi added from the side.

"What else could those Imperial Officials do? They can't exactly have no National Lord and end up with Muyuan splitting into pieces, leading to the ruin of the nation, can they?"

"If it really came to that, it wouldn't do them a bit of good."

Wang Shi thought for a moment, then nodded.

"True enough."

Yu'an, off to the side, was facing a dilemma. The little fellow scrunched up his little face, glanced at the dumpling wrapper his mother had rolled out—round, thin, and just the right thickness—

then looked down at his own.

It couldn't be said to be unrelated to a shoe sole—in fact, it was an exact match.

Small Dumpling scratched his little cheek in distress.

In his tiny head was a huge question mark.

They were all the same dough—how did he end up rolling it into this ugly thing?

The little fellow's big eyes rolled around. The Ancestor were all busy, and since no one was watching...

The moment An Luo came in, she saw this scene:

Yu'an gently set down the rolling pin in his hands, his small hands quickly grabbed the shoe sole—no, the dumpling wrapper—off the board.

His two little hands quietly kneaded and kneaded, rolling it back into a ball of dough.

Hmm, once more!

This time it would definitely be rolled nice and round!

Having watched the whole thing from the corner of their eye, seeing the little fellow rolling away with a "heh-heh," the others all laughed silently.

"Grandmother, Mother, look! Yu'an rolled this one!"

Soon, the little fellow's joyful little milk-voiced cry reached their ears.

Cheng Qiuyun played along and clapped her hands.

"Wow! Rolling it so well on your first try—Yu'an is amazing!"

Cheng Qiuruo chimed in from the side.

"Yes, unlike your little Aunt, who on her first try stuck it right to the board and couldn't even peel it off."

Hearing this, Cheng Qiuluo retorted.

"That's still better than you rolling it into a shoe sole!"

Listening to his three aunts, Small Dumpling's face quietly turned red, and he secretly stuck out his tongue.

So everyone rolled badly their first time too.

At this moment, Cheng Jiuling came trotting up to the door.

"Lady Da, Second Madam, my mother says the water's ready, we can put the dumplings in!"

Hearing this, Tian Qin nimbly picked up the dumpling wrapper Yu'an had just rolled, placed filling on it, her fingertips moving deftly as she pinched it into the shape of a little rabbit.

Yu'an opened his little mouth in amazement.

"Wow! It's a little rabbit!"

"This one was rolled by Yu'an, so it's for Yu'an to eat, okay?"

The little fellow nodded like a chick pecking at grain, smiling obediently.

"Okay! Yu'an will eat the little rabbit dumpling!"

Meng Shi and Wang Shi carried the dumplings off to Chu Fang, and Yu'an hopped down from his chair, obediently running off on his own to wash his hands and wipe his face.

An Luo, off-screen, quickly sent the things she'd bought to Zaituan.

How could New Year be complete without firecrackers?

"Yu'an, see that paper box in the Treasure Chest? Inside there's a roll of red stuff—that's firecrackers. Have your little Uncle help you light them. And those little sticks are sparklers. Be careful when you play with them, okay?"

Fun!

The little fellow's big eyes lit up, and he nodded.

"Okay! Yu'an knows!"

Having said that, the little fellow marched out on his short little legs, pattering into the courtyard to find his little Uncle.

"Little Uncle!"

Cheng Chengxuan had just released the Carrier Pigeon when he heard that soft, glutinous little milk voice.

He bent down and scooped the little fellow into his arms.

"What's up, Yu'an?"

The moment he finished asking, he felt something extra in his arms.

He looked down—it was a roll of some unknown red item.

"What is this?"

Yu'an recalled what Fairy Sister had said earlier, and repeated it like a parrot.

"They're firecrackers! You light them with fire, and they go bang—crackle-pop!"

It's probably about the same as when they burn bamboo?

Cheng Chengxuan nodded in understanding and set the little one down.

"Alright, let's give it a try."

He first unfolded it and inspected it once over, his nose twitching slightly as he caught a familiar scent.

Why is there a smell of gunpowder?

"Little Uncle?"

Seeing that her little uncle had been squatting in place for quite a while without moving, the little one got a little anxious and urged him on in a soft voice.

After finishing his inspection, Cheng Chengxuan looked at Yu'an.

"Yu'an, stand a little farther away."

After that, he also had Cheng Feng go tell everyone else, so they wouldn't be startled by the noise later.

The little one obediently nodded and walked to stand at the door of the main hall.

An Luo also gave a gentle reminder.

"Yu'an, remember to cover your ears later, okay?"

The little one hurriedly reached up to cover her little ears.

Meanwhile, Cheng Old Madam and the busy womenfolk in the kitchen, upon hearing Cheng Feng's words, all temporarily set down what they were doing and walked out into the courtyard to watch.

Cheng Chengxuan took out the Fire Folder from his robes, held it to the fuse, and the fuse was instantly lit. He quickly ran a few steps to Yu'an's side.

Before he could even turn around, a burst of crackling, popping explosions rang out, the sound lasting for quite a while.

Everyone present was utterly stunned.

Yu'an's eyes went even wider, her little mouth gaping open.

"Wow! That sound is just as loud as Little Auntie's bang-bang!"

Hearing this childish comparison, everyone laughed and shook their heads.

But Cheng Qiuruo wore a thoughtful expression. Suddenly, she clenched her fist and punched the air.

That's it!

Nowadays, during New Year, they burn bamboo to make noise.

If they reduced the amount of gunpowder, could they also make these firecrackers?

Another source of income!

Thinking of this, she couldn't care about anything else and hurried back to her room to study it.

Meanwhile, Cheng Qiuluo came running over two steps at a time, her gaze fixed intently on Yu'an.

"Yu'an, do you have any more? Can Little Auntie light one this time?"

Cheng Qiuluo rubbed her hands together in anticipation.

This thing called a firecracker is way too fun!

Yu'an tucked her little hands behind her back, opened and closed her palms, and a small handful of colorful little sticks, each as long as an adult's forearm, appeared.

"No more firecrackers, but there are still sparkler sticks!"

Cheng Qiuluo was a little disappointed.

But the next moment, seeing Yu'an light a little wooden stick with her second brother's help—the stick spitting out sparks, then bursting into brilliant, dazzling fireworks—her eyes instantly lit up.

"Wow!"

Seeing the sparkler stick in her little uncle's hand, Yu'an clapped her little hands and hopped up and down cheering.

"So pretty!"

Soon, the sparks died out, leaving only a small wooden stick.

Cheng Chengxuan felt a bit unsatisfied. Just as he was about to light another one, he felt two burning gazes land on him.

Facing the eager looks of his little nephew and little sister, he, as a grown man, felt too embarrassed to keep playing.

Cheng Chengxuan cleared his throat lightly twice.

"Yu'an is still too young to hold this. Let Little Auntie take you to play together."

Saying so, he handed all the rest over to Qiuluo.

"Wuhu!"

"Hahaha…"

Cheng Qiuluo cheered, waving the lit sparkler stick around in the courtyard.

Yu'an reached out her little hands, hopping along as she chased after her, little sparks reflected in the little one's eyes, as if her eyes were filled with stars.

"Little Auntie, wait for Yu'an, okay? Give Yu'an one to hold, please? Just one!"

The aunt and niece were having the time of their lives; the courtyard was filled with the joyful laughter of the big one and the little one.

Seeing them having so much fun, everyone exchanged knowing smiles.

An Luo, quick-handed, took several screenshots. After thinking for a moment, she sent a copy to Cheng Sitao.

……

In the Cheng Family villa.

Cheng Sitao heard the message notification sound. The moment he opened it, he saw Yu'an's little face, beaming like a little sun.

Before he could even tap to enlarge and look closely, he received another short video of a dozen or so seconds.

Inside was exactly the scene of the Cheng Family gathered together for the New Year's Eve dinner. Looking at the familiar relatives inside, his eyes couldn't help but redden.

Grandmother, Mother, A Qin…

"Huh? Isn't that my little nephew?"

Cheng Ruonan leaned over.

"This setting—period drama? What's going on? Did sister-in-law take the little nephew to film a show?"

Cheng Sitao looked at her with a solemn face.

"I've told you many times—stop calling her that. I have nothing to do with her."

Cheng Ruonan planted her hands on her hips and stared at him with the look one gives a scumbag.

"Don't give me that nonsense. I'll ask you one thing—is Yu'an your son?"

Cheng Sitao nodded helplessly.

"Of course he is, but…"

Suddenly, Cheng Sitao's hand went empty—his phone had been snatched away.

Immediately, a puzzled voice reached both their ears.

"What son? Whose son?"

Hearing his mother's voice, Cheng Sitao helplessly pressed a hand to his forehead.

Damn it—the thing he'd feared most had still happened…