The Farmer's Daughter is the Favorite of the Family

After the New Year's Eve dinner, Mrs. Wang brought her servants to clean the table.

The old man remarked: "We have so many people staying up this year—it's much livelier than before."

Old Man Lin suggested: "Why don't we play a few games of Go? It's been ages since I've played—perfect way to pass the time."

Qibao's eyes darted about as she called over some brothers for help. They found some wooden boards, cutting them into small squares. Following the size and design from her previous life, Qibao had her eldest brother write numbers one through nine on each suit, totaling 108 tiles.

Mrs. Wang noticed her granddaughter leading several of her grandsons in their project and asked: "Qibao, what are you making with these wood pieces?"

"These are mahjong tiles." Qibao explained. "I'll teach you how to play tonight when we stay up for the New Year."

It was the first time Mrs. Wang heard of 'mahjong,' but since it came from her granddaughter, she didn't doubt its existence.

With the written mahjong tiles laid out to dry, they'd be ready once the ink dried completely.

Everyone sat around the main hall, chatting by the fireplace while children played together—a scene of peaceful contentment.

The sky gradually darkened completely: "Sister." Xiaoliu asked: "Didn't you say we could play with these firecrackers once it got dark? How do we play them now that it's night?"

Qibao replied: "Come on, let's go outside and have some fun."

All the children eagerly followed her into the yard.

Mrs. Zhang smiled: "These firecrackers aren't cheap. I wonder what they're planning to do with all that black powder."

Mrs. Li said: "Children love New Year's most of all. They spend their days at school and even have homework at night. It's rare for them to have such carefree time. As long as they don't blow off the roof, let them enjoy themselves."

Uncle Xu was a bit curious, so he followed the children out as well.

Mrs. chuckled and said: "This second child, is he still playing with the children? He is already so old."

"Regardless of his age, he's still our elder sister's child, just like any other kid." Mrs. Sun remarked.

A total of more than twenty children, all gathered together, watching Qibao tinkering, not knowing how to play this thing.

Qibao said: "I'll show you first. Everyone, step back a bit."

They moved aside as instructed. Qibao took out a prepared firestarter and lit one end of the homemade firework.

At first, only the outer paper burned. But when the fire reached the black powder inside, colorful sparks started shooting out with a hiss, lighting up Qibao's face.

"Wow! How pretty! Look at all the colors!" Yue Wu clapped excitedly.

Qibao held a sparkler in each hand, waving them around in circles. Her smile grew bigger and bigger.

In her previous life, she'd seen all kinds of fireworks—many more impressive than these. But she'd only ever watched others set them off. She'd never gotten to try one herself. So this is my first time playing with real fireworks? she thought. It felt pretty awesome.

"Sister, I want to play too!" Xiaowu and Xiaoliu exclaimed eagerly.

They grabbed two sparklers each, lit them up, and ran around the yard, overjoyed.

Qibao warned: "Be careful, don't burn yourselves."

Xu Zhiyong asked quietly: "Sister, did you learn this from your immortal master?"

Qibao replied: "I suppose so, there are even better fireworks out there—big ones that fly high into the sky before they explode. They're really beautiful."

When Second Uncle Xu came outside, he saw the children playing with sparklers in the yard. Curious, he asked: "Qibao, is this what you made with that black powder today?"

Qibao replied: "Now it's called a firework stick. Do you like it, Second Uncle?"

Second Uncle Xu replied: "It looks good, I'll try to see if it's any good."

This was Yaya's first time seeing fireworks. The bright colors were the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. She raised her hand and shouted loudly for the first time: "Miss, I want to play too!"

The children's excited cries caught the attention of everyone inside the house.

Worried about accidents, the adults stepped outside into the yard. They saw the kids waving their firework sticks in the air.

Mrs. Zhang exclaimed: "Wow! How pretty!"

Mrs. Li agreed: "Yes! I didn't expect these things made by the kids to look so nice. How do they have different colors?"

Afraid that Yaya might get hurt if she played with it carelessly, Qibao held onto her hand tightly, keeping some distance from the firework.

"Giggles!" Yaya laughed happily, imitating the older kids by spinning around with her little hands holding the firework.

After finishing one, Qibao gave each adult another one. At first, they seemed embarrassed but then decided to join in, thinking it would be fun to play with the children.

The next scene showed adults and children waving sparklers together until they'd used up all they had. The kids still seemed to want more.

Xiaowu said: "Sister, let's make some more tomorrow, okay? This is so much fun."

Qibao replied: "You'll have to ask Grandpa. We're saving the leftover fireworks for later!"

Xiaowu knew if he asked his grandfather himself, he'd probably get scolded again. He quickly thought of a plan and said: "Little Sister, why don't you talk to Grandpa about it? You know how much he dotes on you. I'm sure he'll say yes."

Qibao gave her brother a sideways glance and said: "It's you who wants to play, not me. No way am I asking."

Xu Wenwu chimed in: "Fifth Brother, as a grown man, shouldn't you do things yourself instead of always relying on your sister? Are you really acting like an older brother or a proper man?"

Xiaowu retorted: "Eldest Brother! Who are you looking down on?! Fine, I'll go myself. I may be small, but I'm a real man!"

With that, he ran over to their grandfather and made his request. As expected, Xiaowu succeeded... in getting two hard knocks on the head from their grandfather. He sheepishly returned to his siblings.

Seeing his brother trying not to laugh, Xiaowu exclaimed angrily: "Hmph! Don't tell me none of you want to play too! It was for all of us that I got smacked by Grandpa, yet here you are laughing at me."

Qibao said: "Alright, Fifth Brother, don't be mad now. You can play tomorrow."

Xiaowu's eyes lit up: "Great! I knew it—my sister is always the best. More reliable than those older brothers of mine. You really care about your fifth brother!"

The group returned inside, munching on melon seeds and pastries with smiles on their faces as they discussed the fireworks show.

Madam Qian asked: "Qibao, how did you know firecrackers could do tricks like that?"

Grandpa explained: "You might not know this, but our Qibao has a teacher—a very skilled one who knows a lot. He taught her many things, and even gave us the seeds for our vegetable greenhouse."

Mr. Qian remarked: "No wonder! I always said Qibao was different from other girls her age. Having such a great teacher makes sense now!"

"Yes" Grandpa agreed: "But this master keeps himself hidden. Even we haven't seen what he looks like, we only know Qibao caught his eye."

Mr. Qian marveled: "Qibao truly is blessed with such an extraordinary mentor. She'll surely grow up to be remarkable!"

Grandpa waved his hand modestly: "We just want Qibao to have a safe and happy life. That's all we wish for—as long as she's content."

Mr. Qian chuckled: "Indeed, indeed! My wife and I have two sons, and I must say, having a daughter like Qibao would certainly make me feel fulfilled."

Hearing this, Grandpa thought to himself: A girl like Qibao? You can dream, my friend. Our Qibao is one-of-a-kind.