country bumpkin

Chapter 340 It Snowed Again

The car stopped, and Li Fugui's wife and children got out.

A beautiful woman with delicate features and exquisite eyes walked down the aisle. She wore a bright red woolen coat and high boots, her hair was styled in wavy curls, and she exuded an air of nobility.

Also getting off the bus was a little boy, about three years old, with fair and tender skin, who looked very cute.

He was dressed in a traditional Chinese suit, with a round face that looked very festive, like a New Year's picture doll that had stepped out of a painting.

Fang Jinxiu and Li Weixiu were so adoring of their eldest grandson that they rushed over to hug him.

The little boy was very shy and hid behind the woman, making the elderly couple very embarrassed.

Li Fugui quickly explained, afraid that his parents would overthink things.

"Dad, Mom, Xiao Bao is shy and hasn't seen you much. He'll get used to you over time."

After he finished speaking, the old couple's expressions improved considerably.

Then there's the wealthy wives who call their parents "Dad" and "Mom," which is how they do it in the city, while the older generation in the countryside calls their parents "Father" and "Mother."

The elderly couple didn't dwell on these trivial matters; after all, it was their parents' decision.

When my son got married, the wedding was held in the city, and all the relatives from the countryside went to the big hotel in the city for the banquet.

The day after the wedding, the elderly couple returned to their village; they weren't used to living in the city.

They said that living upstairs felt oppressive and suffocating, and that houses with yards were much better—bright and comfortable.

The old lady wanted to help her daughter-in-law during her postpartum confinement, but she wasn't used to living in an apartment building, which was also a problem. Later, the daughter-in-law said that her mother should come and take care of her herself. Naturally, Fang Jinxiu didn't need to go.

Before you know it, the child has grown up so much. When the child was younger, Li Fugui would never come back for the New Year, saying that it was cold in the rural house and he was afraid the child would get cold.

Now that my child is three years old and has grown strong, I feel relieved enough to take him back to the countryside for the Chinese New Year.

Li Fugui named his son Li Fubao, with the nicknames Bao'er and Xiaobao. His wife's name is Bai Hui, and he usually calls her Huihui or Xiaohui.

The group entered the room one after another. Little Bao was surrounded by the adults, treated like a precious treasure, weaving through the crowd.

Once inside, the old lady quickly turned the stove upside down, and the room gradually became warm.

Xiang Hong was busy pouring tea, while her brother-in-law and sister prepared the ingredients for lunch.

The elderly couple kept their eyes glued to their eldest grandson, not daring to let their guard down for fear he might bump into something.

Bai Hui, however, felt much more relaxed, happy to have someone help look after the children. She sat on the sofa, drinking tea and eating sunflower seeds.

Li Fugui chatted with his parents while keeping an eye on his son, also to prevent him from getting hurt.

After Xiaobao warmed up inside, he started running around the house. He ran from the east room to the west room, and then from the west room to the living room.

He stopped in the living room and rummaged through drawers and cabinets looking for toys. Xiangyang took out his own toys for him to play with, and when he saw the older boy, he happily chased after Xiangyang and played with him.

The room immediately became lively, filled with laughter, and everyone was happy and joyful.

Just as things were getting lively, Li Chunmei's voice came from the kitchen: "Dinner's ready!" Everyone rushed towards the kitchen.

The table was covered with steaming dishes, including stewed pork ribs, stir-fried vegetables, braised pork belly, and a pot of fragrant chicken soup.

Xiao Bao's eyes lit up when he smelled the aroma, and he broke free from his parents' hands and ran to the dining table.

Everyone sat together and began to enjoy the sumptuous dinner.

Xiao Bao was full of curiosity about the dishes on the table. He would try this and then pick up that, his mouth full of oil.

Fang Jinxiu watched her eldest grandson eat happily, her face beaming with joy, and she kept piling food into Xiaobao's bowl.

Li Fugui and Li Weixiu opened a bottle of wine, took a sip, and chatted about their lives over the years.

Bai Hui also let go of her reserve in the city and chatted and laughed with everyone.

Halfway through the meal, Xiao Bao suddenly pointed out the window and excitedly shouted, "It's snowing!" Everyone looked out the window and saw pure white snowflakes fluttering down, covering the entire village in a silvery coat.

This snowfall made the festive atmosphere even stronger, and the whole family sat together, enjoying this warm and wonderful moment.

Meanwhile, Kong Xiangwei woke up at midnight. He looked around and saw that the room was pitch black, while snowflakes were already falling outside the window.

He pressed his forehead against the windowpane, looking at the ground outside, which was already covered in a layer of white snow, and thought to himself that there was a lot of snow this year!

After sitting back on the bed, I sneezed from the cold. I pulled the blanket up tighter around myself, lay back down, and went back to sleep.

His head was still a little sore, but the symptoms had lessened considerably. Thinking back to when he went to deliver New Year's gifts, he realized he'd gotten drunk and had to be brought back by his girlfriend, and he felt incredibly embarrassed.

Feeling embarrassed and sleepy, I slowly fell asleep again.

The snowflakes outside the window grew larger and larger. At first, there were only a few scattered snowflakes, like grains of salt crushed by the wind, which gently landed on the windowpane and melted.

Later, the wind picked up, and the snowflakes began to flutter and surge in, weaving a hazy white net around the world outside the window.

In the city, the streetlights cast an orange glow through the snow, like amber soaked in milk.

Whether in the city or the countryside, everything is surrounded by this beautiful white snow.

In a cozy coffee shop in the city, couples sat by the window, staying up late to admire the beautiful snow scene outside and sharing their innermost feelings.

The next morning, the moment people opened their doors, they held their breath. The snowstorm of the previous night had secretly created a grand sculpture.

The curves of the opposite rooftops were gently enveloped by snow, and transparent icicles hung from the eaves, shattering into tiny specks of light when the sunlight shone on them.

Fang Jinxiu breathed in the fresh air and exclaimed, "A timely snow promises a bumper harvest!"

The familiar bushes along the roadside have turned into round snow mushrooms, with a few stubborn holly leaves peeking out from the snowdrifts, each topped with a small handful of glistening snow.

The zebra crossings on the road have disappeared, replaced by a flat snowfield, with only the fine footprints left by early-rising sparrows, like someone accidentally scattering a handful of black sesame seeds.

The most wonderful thing is the row of old poplar trees in the village. Their bare branches are covered with snow, and from a distance, they look like they are covered with white flowers.

A gust of wind blows, and fine snowflakes fall softly, landing in the hair and around the neck, cool and refreshing.

A few teenagers couldn't resist running over and shaking the tree trunk, causing the snow to fall with a crash, eliciting laughter and startling the sparrows that were hiding among the branches.

The children played and frolicked. Li Fubao had never seen such a snowy scene before. He happily chased after his older brother Nie Xiangyang and ran with his older sister Nie Xianghong.

He slipped and fell on his bottom without paying attention, and adults and children alike rushed over to check on him anxiously.

The little guy acted as if nothing had happened, got up, and continued chasing his older brother and sister. Nie Xianghong deliberately let him catch her, and Xiao Bao grinned smugly.

The other family members watched this scene with broad smiles. Laughter echoed through the woods.

Winter is never bleak; it simply hides all its warmth beneath its pristine whiteness.

It waits for the moment the door is opened, to unfold the gentleness of the whole world before your eyes.