’But then again,’ she thought, ’isn’t working elsewhere just as unstable? You have a job this year, but who knows where you’ll be next year? Getting laid off or quitting happens all the time.’

At least this was close to home.

’Besides, doesn’t Li Xiang have a girlfriend yet? If we work together in the future, the one in a favorable position gets the prize. Maybe there’s still a chance?’

"Xueqing," Zhao Xueqing’s mother said, pulling her daughter aside and whispering instructions, "when you start working with Li Xiang, you should observe him closely. If he’s not the scumbag the rumors make him out to be, you can be a little more proactive. That vixen from the Yao Family is obviously not a decent person. If it really comes to a competition, how could she ever win against you?"

"Mom, let’s talk about this later. I’m not that old anyway, there’s no rush to get married."

"Not old? You’re already 20!"

"I only graduated from high school a little over a year ago!" Zhao Xueqing protested.

Actually, Yao Yao didn’t want to get married so early either. She had also graduated from high school not long ago.

...

Li Xiang went to see off his Little Aunt and cousin. His Little Aunt and grandmother were reluctant to part. Li Xiang invited them to come over for New Year’s Eve dinner, and his Little Aunt happily agreed.

It would be too much trouble for his Little Aunt and cousin, just the two of them, to prepare a New Year’s Eve dinner. It was better for them to come to his place so everyone could celebrate together. It would be too quiet for just him and his grandmother to eat alone, so it was a perfect arrangement.

"Little Aunt, come early the day after tomorrow. Be safe on the road!"

Watching his Little Aunt and cousin ride away on their electric scooter, Li Xiang turned around to see off his maternal grandparents and their family.

Shen Wenqian and Shen Zimo had to go back with them. The day after tomorrow was New Year’s Eve, so of course, they had to return to their own home.

Li Xiang took out three large red envelopes he had prepared in advance and stuffed one into the hands of his grandpa, Shen Wenqian, and Shen Zimo, respectively.

His grandpa refused, but Li Xiang said, "This is the performance fee for tonight. Everyone’s getting one, how could our own family not?"

"You silly kid. Grandpa just came over to help, and I had fun myself. I can’t take money for that..."

"Please take it, please. If you don’t accept it, my cousins won’t dare to take theirs either." Under Li Xiang’s persuasion, his grandpa finally accepted it, his heart filled with gratification.

Shen Zimo got his red envelope and couldn’t wait to tear it open. His face lit up with surprise. "Whoa, this is so much! Cousin, you’re way too generous! These past few days at your house have been the happiest of my life."

Shen Wenqian pursed her lips and smiled, in deep agreement.

His aunt chided them with a laugh, "Of course you’re happy! Feasting on rich food every day, getting such expensive clothes and shoes, and now such a thick red envelope. You won’t be used to being back home!"

Everyone laughed.

Li Xiang said, "If you had a good time, come back for a few days during the New Year holiday if you’re free. Once school starts, you won’t have the chance!"

Meanwhile, Jiang Cai’Er was saying goodbye to her own classmates and relatives—her grandparents, uncles, and aunts. Then, she went to help her father, Jiang Jianguo, haul the furnace and bellows.

The equipment for the molten iron performance tonight had all come from Jiang Jianguo’s blacksmith shop, hauled over on a small cart. It was a long way, so of course, it had to be transported back. Li Xiang happened to run into them and came over to help.

After they arrived at the blacksmith shop, Li Xiang transferred 10,000 yuan to Jiang Jianguo.

"Why so much?" Jiang Jianguo was stunned.

"Five thousand for you, and five thousand for Cai’Er. It covers the cost of the molten iron performance and her fee. Cai’Er was both the host and a performer, so she’s earned it," Li Xiang said.

He inevitably had to explain again that everyone else was getting paid, so it wouldn’t be right for his own people to get less. Jiang Jianguo then accepted the money.

As for Jiang Cai’Er, it was useless to give it to her directly. She didn’t even have her own bank card.

Besides, even if he gave it to her, she would just hand it over to her parents.

Similarly, as expected, Shen Wenqian’s and Shen Zimo’s red envelopes were probably confiscated by their parents right away.

After returning, Li Xiang patrolled the area for safety and also took the opportunity to pay everyone’s performance fees so they could all have a good New Year. Everyone had phones now anyway, making transfers convenient. He had a lot to do tomorrow and wouldn’t have time for this.

Lei Jiaming and Lei Xiaohui had just gotten home when they received the transfer from Li Xiang, and they couldn’t help but grin.

The young people from Lei Family Gully who were in the band were also ecstatic, feeling that their efforts over the past few days had been well worth it!

Later that night, Li Xiang also edited some videos—quite a few of them, in fact. He edited the entire village gala, each individual performance, and some highlight reels, then posted them to his own account, tagging the relevant "co-creators."

When the others saw the posts, they all shared them on their own accounts as well.

The next day, Jiang Cai’Er woke up to find that her performance of "Forest Rhapsody" had gone viral. It was all over the internet.

Li Xiang’s three performances had also blown up, with official accounts from the local culture and tourism bureau, television stations, and news media outlets all sharing and promoting them.

Zhao Xueqing was amazed to discover that her follower count, originally just over 3,000, had shot up to over 30,000 overnight. She was in a very cheerful mood.

Yao Yao was so thrilled she leaped out of bed and shrieked with joy. Yesterday, she only had 20,000 followers, but she woke up to over 60,000, and the number might still be climbing! She had gained so many followers after just one night of working with Li Xiang. If they collaborated in the future, maybe she could break 500,000, or even 800,000.

That, she felt, was the goal she had always dreamed of. If she could reach 800,000... she would be willing to give herself to him!

Although she worked in the nightlife scene, she hadn’t been there long. She was still naive, and a virgin.

Of course, she wouldn’t be willing if Li Xiang were some decrepit old man. The main thing was that Li Xiang was so handsome and strong. She had seen the videos of him catching the wild boar and tackling that person—he was devastatingly cool!

It wasn’t just the most eye-catching performers like them; Li Jinyu, Lei Jiaming, and Lei Xiaohui also gained a decent number of followers.

Jiang Cai’Er had her own account too, but her teachers were strict, so she rarely posted anything. Still, after hanging around Li Xiang for so long, her follower count had already surpassed 300,000.

Her main focus was still on her studies; she didn’t plan on actively managing the account.

...

「The twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month: time to go to town for wine.」

In addition, Li Xiang also purchased many other New Year’s goods. In short, it was a shopping spree.

He also made a special trip to buy larger calligraphy brushes, gold ink, and blank red paper for couplets, planning to write the Spring Festival couplets himself when he got back.

For the New Year, gold ink was more festive, though of course, he had black ink at home as well.

His calligraphy was quite remarkable and had a very unique style. He wrote couplets not only for his own home but also for some of the families in the village he was close with, like Jiang Jianguo, Third Granny, and Li Yucheng.

Some people saw them and, thinking they were well-written, came over specifically to ask for a set. Li Xiang naturally gifted them his calligraphy as well.

At Li Xiang’s house, he wrote couplets for the front door, the back door, the kitchen, the corridors, the cellar, the doghouse, the cat’s nest, the chicken coop, and the duck shed. The ones for the pets were correspondingly smaller, a mini version.

For the cat’s nest, for example, the cat carrier was only so big, so it was impossible to put up a large couplet.

But he wouldn’t put them up today. He would wait until tomorrow morning. New Year’s Eve was the proper time to cast out the old and welcome the new.

In the afternoon, Li Xiang and his grandmother cooked a sumptuous feast. They poured wine, burned incense and paper offerings, and invited their ancestors, his grandfather, and his parents to come and dine with them.

Then, Li Xiang packed a small basket with dishes, wine, fruit, incense, candles, and paper money, and went up the mountain to pay respects at the graves of his grandfather and parents, taking the opportunity to clear away the weeds on the tombs.

The customs for ancestor worship during the Spring Festival vary from place to place. It’s usually done on New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day. But in many places, it starts as early as the Little New Year, with people just picking a day when they are free and feel it’s appropriate.

Li Xiang’s family had always done it on the afternoon of the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month.

Li Xiang said a lot in front of his parents’ grave, but it was only a cenotaph. He didn’t know if they could hear him down below.

Li Xiang never used to believe in ghosts or gods. But having experienced the Apocalypse, he knew that "gods" did exist in the world, and he himself had a chance of becoming one.

Although he had never seen a ghost, he had heard that neutrinos had now been discovered seven hundred meters underground. Perhaps his future underground base would also reach that depth.

’I’m overthinking this,’ Li Xiang thought. Weak spirits couldn’t exist for very long. ’Even if they did, they’d probably just be unconscious neutrinos.’