Meng Yan's Transformation

When the two sisters were busy having fun, Yunqing came back from helping others cut clothes.

"Zhan Yingying! Why did you peel off all the candy wrappers? Where did you get so much candy? Hey, Zhan Mengyan, where did you get those washed hawthorns?"

Yunqing looked at the two of them in surprise as she spoke.

Zhan Mengyan looked at Zhan Yingying with wide eyes. "Yeah, she was also curious about how her sister Yingying could conjure up so many red and green candies, and ruby-red hawthorns, like a magic trick. Would the unit performing the performance give her so many candies as a reward? And why hawthorns as a reward?"

"Mom, don't make a fuss. I didn't steal these candies and hawthorns, and I didn't rob them. Guess where we went to perform today?"

When Zhan Yingying spoke, the corners of her mouth were raised high, stretched to her ears, her eyes narrowed into crescents, and complacency was revealed in the corners of her eyes and eyebrows. Her high spirits, the twitching of her eyebrows, the slightly raised chin, her hands on her hips, and her head held high and chest puffed out showed her arrogance.

"Zhan Yingying, look at how proud you are! Did you go to the Heavenly Palace today?—danced with Chang'e, defeated her, and won the right to dance for the Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother. At the Yaochi Banquet, you drank immortal wine and listened to the graceful dances of the fairies. Did you enjoy all the bliss in heaven?"

As Yunqing spoke, she looked at Zhan Yingying jokingly.

"Mom, you didn't teach me how to fly, so how could I possibly go to the Heavenly Palace? But today I'm happier than even going to the Heavenly Palace. Today our yangko team performed at the supply and marketing cooperative and the township government. We first performed at the supply and marketing cooperative and received many awards. Each member of the yangko team received a bag of candy, weighing over a pound. I also met Uncle Dong, who gave me hawthorns so I could go home and make candied haws for my sister Mengyan. I thought we wouldn't get any awards performing at the township government, but the township government leaders came to inspect our yangko team's rehearsal results. They were so moved by our performance that they rewarded each member with a pound of candy. They also let us compete with yangko teams from neighboring townships. Our performance received recognition, praise, and awards from the township government leaders, which made us all so happy that we were all dancing and some even hugged each other in excitement, shedding tears of joy!"

When Zhan Yingying spoke, she seemed to be still immersed in the joy of receiving the reward after the performance.

"Wow! That's great! Zhan Yingying, you've been practicing gaoqiao (stepping on stilts) day and night these days, and it's all worth it! You've received so many rewards before the New Year even begins! Zhan Yingying, you're amazing. But you can't waste all the candies just because you got so many. You've peeled off the wrappers from the candies, but you can't eat that much at once, right? Candies without wrappers are neither pretty nor easy to store."

As Yunqing spoke, she rewrapped the candy in its wrapping paper.

"Mom, why did you wrap the candy wrappers again after I finally peeled them off? I want to melt these candies and make candied haws for my sister Meng Yan."

While Zhan Yingying was speaking, she peeled off the candy wrapper on Yunqing's bag.

"What are you doing, kid? You have to use granulated sugar or cotton sugar to make candied haws. How can you use these pieces of candy? Isn't that a waste? It's such a shame to let such good candy melt!"

While Yunqing was talking, she continued to wrap candies.

"Mom, if you won't let me melt these candies, what am I going to use to make candied haws for my sister? Where can I get granulated sugar or cotton sugar? Dad has granulated sugar in his cupboard, but it's locked and we can't get it out. If we ask Dad for some, will he give it to us?"