Chapter 106 Spring Festival Couplets
The oil in the pot was boiling. A half-bone carp was picked up and placed in the boiling oil. There was a "swish" sound and oil smoke rose. The young man beside the pot quickly moved aside, which made the woman at the door laugh.

"You have thick skin and are afraid of a little oil? You look so impressive when you fight with others outside."

Apart from Yu Qing, no one else in the house could say such sarcastic words. This woman knew how to laugh at a joke. She was holding a plate of pumpkin seeds, cracking them while watching his show, looking very leisurely.

"You can either come in and help me light the fire, or help my master clean the house. You are the most idle person in the house, but you can sit still."

Hearing his complaints, Yu Qing, who was dressed brightly and charmingly, raised her eyebrows and said, "You see my butt is idle and you are busy using your strength. Do you think I don't want to breastfeed my child at my age?"

"..."

Ever since this woman came back, she has been speaking more and more recklessly.

"The surname is Wei!"

Wei Mingqi had just finished cooking a dish of braised carp when Shi Fengguan poked his head in from the doorway and asked, "Can you write Spring Festival couplets?"

Spring Festival couplets...

Before he could express his opinion, Yu Qing, who was sitting at the door cracking melon seeds, chuckled and said, "You want him to write Spring Festival couplets? It's unclear whether he can hold a brush or not."

Wei Mingqi glared at him: "Can you?"

"nonsense."

Mei Xing patted the residue on her palms, stood up and said proudly: "Your aunt, I was also a lady from a wealthy family when I was young."

Wei Mingqi was suddenly speechless.

Seeing her weird behavior every day, I almost forgot that she was once the eldest daughter of the Yu family, a real noble lady.

Just then the pot was empty, and Wei Mingqi, who wanted to see Yu Qing's "literary beauty", wiped his hands curiously and followed him out.

"Come on! Give me the pen—"

Several family members gathered around the table set up in the yard. Seeing the way Yu Qing held the pen, Shi Fengque next to him couldn't help but nodded.

"She has a good penmanship, and her mother Yu has a profound family background."

"Hmph, watch out."

After Yu Qing hummed with pride, she picked up the pen and stared at the paper for a long while. Finally, the ink dripped from the tip of the pen. She suddenly looked at Wei Mingqi and said coquettishly:

"Mingqi - I haven't written for so long that I even forgot how to write."

"..."

Wei Mingqi endured his twitching face, looked at Xie Beiling who was holding a broom and said, "Master, you write it."

"By the way, Daoshou Xie is the head of the family."

Yu Qing's eyes lit up, like a water ghost who had found a scapegoat, and he reached out to grab Xie Beiling: "The boss, write it, the boss, write it—"

Xie Beiling tried to dodge: "I only know how to draw talismans."

"That's perfect. I'll follow the method of drawing the talisman. It's good for blessing the family. Is there anyone who wants to have many children and good fortune? Draw a picture for me to post on my door."

"..."

There was no way Xie Beiling was willing to join her in making trouble, but Yu Qing kept pestering her. It was New Year's Day and she couldn't get angry, so the role of her apprentice at home was revealed.

"Mingqi."

The second water ghost pushed the young man to the table and said in a commanding tone: "You are the only man in the family, you must come to celebrate the Spring Festival couplets."

"..."

Wei Mingqi was okay with swords, guns, sticks and clubs, but the old man had never taught him how to use a brush. It was so awkward to hold the light pen in his hand, and he was afraid that if he used too much force, the brush would break.

"My handwriting is very ugly. If I post it, people will definitely laugh at me."

After Wei Mingqi finished speaking, he looked at Er Feng and said, "Do you two treat me as outsiders? Why don't you come out to help at this time?"

"My handwriting is not much better..." Shi Fengguan looked embarrassed. Her situation when she was young was not much different from Yu Qing's. They were both wealthy, but their families fell into poverty later. She had limited opportunities to hold a brush in recent years, and her childhood foundation had long been rusty.

Instead...

"Oh, right! My aunt's handwriting is beautiful!"

Shi Fengguan looked at the woman beside him excitedly and said, "She is not only good at weaving, but also good at playing the piano, chess, calligraphy and painting. Many great scholars have been my aunt's teachers."

Sensing that everyone was looking at him, Shi Fengque suppressed his panic and said with a wry smile, "Don't listen to Feng'er's nonsense. It's been so many years, we are already too unfamiliar with each other..."

The custom of pasting Spring Festival couplets during the New Year in Daqian has a long history. Ordinary people who cannot read and write will go to the streets to find poor scholars to write for them. Richer families will specially visit some famous scholars and pay a large sum of money to ask for calligraphy.

In wealthy or cultured families, this kind of work is usually done by the man of the house every year, or by elders or close nephews and nieces.

Therefore, it is most legitimate for Wei Mingqi to write it himself, and it is also reasonable for his wife and elders such as Yu Qing and Xie Beiling to write on his behalf.

And she...

At present, she is just a guest. Writing Spring Festival couplets for the Wei family would not only be inappropriate, but also easily make the man lose face.

Unfortunately, when Shi Fengque thought about all this, he completely forgot about the Wei family's tradition. Not to mention that Wei Mingqi didn't know the so-called rules, even if he knew, he wouldn't care.

It’s just a fucking couplet for the door, whoever writes it differently?
"We are all family, Aunt Shi, why are you being so modest?"

Wei Mingqi was just worried that no one would give him a chance to show off his skills, so he grabbed Shi Fengque's sleeve and pulled her to the table: "Write it! If it looks good, stick it on the door this year."

Seeing him being as arrogant as a bandit, Shi Fengque looked at his niece with tears in his eyes, but he forgot that "a niece who is married off is like water spilled", and at this moment he was hit hard by the outward arm.

"What the surnamed Wei said is right. You can just write it. You are his elder. How can it be a loss of face for him to put these words on his door?"

"..."

Feng'er! The problem is that you haven't married yet!
Shi Fengque, the elder, felt guilty, and her hand holding the pen was shaking. Wei Mingqi saw her nervousness and tempted her:

"Aunt, please write well. I will return the bracelet to you when you are done."

"really!"

Seeing her subconsciously asking back without shaking her hands, Wei Mingqi didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and said, "You are my aunt, how can I lie to you?"

"..."

Shi Fengque moved his lips, but finally held back and didn't say that he had told a lot of lies.

It is said that there must be a brave man under a heavy reward.

For my mother's bracelet...

Shi Fengque took a deep breath and even forgot to solicit opinions on what to write for the Spring Festival couplets. He just picked up the pen and finished it in one go.

'Spring always stays in the sunny house'

'A family that accumulates good deeds will have more celebrations'

'Harmony and harmony'

'...'

After concentrating and calming down to finish writing, Shi Fengque slowly exhaled. Seeing that the strength of her pen on the paper did not seem to have declined much, she was secretly delighted in her heart, but suddenly she noticed that there was no movement beside her.

"ah!"

Shi Fengque blushed and reached out to grab the Spring Festival couplets: "I forgot to ask you how to write it, you guys discuss it first--"

"What are you discussing?"

A big hand took the couplet and put it in front of his eyes. Shi Fengque was just getting nervous when the young man in front of him let out a long sigh and said:
“I don’t understand it, but I feel like it’s written really well.”

(End of this chapter)