My game even includes ancient times

The group sat around a square table by the fire, drinking tea and chatting. Before they knew it, it was already 11:45 AM.

Chu Zheng smiled, put down his teacup, clapped his hands, and stood up: "Disciples, let's go watch the fireworks."

As soon as he finished speaking, footsteps and voices could be heard outside the courtyard.

Chu Zheng led a few young people to push open the courtyard gate, with He Shi following at the back, craning his neck to look outside with some curiosity.

The people from the New Year's Eve banquet were standing not far away, chatting and laughing in twos and threes. Two young villagers were hanging firecrackers on tree branches. When they saw Chu Zheng and his group come out, the two villagers lit several strings of firecrackers together.

As the fuse burned out, a loud crackling sound, accompanied by dazzling flashes of light, exploded among the crowd. He Shi was startled, but quickly calmed down and looked up at the red firecracker paper flying everywhere.

Suddenly, a piece of red paper wrapped with unburnt gunpowder fell from the sky, heading straight for He Shi's face.

He Shi blinked subconsciously, and was about to reach out to block it when he saw the red paper suddenly change direction in mid-air, fly horizontally, glide over his head, and fall to the side.

He Shi was stunned. He subconsciously glanced around to see if the people around him had noticed what was happening. When he saw Chu Zheng and the others watching people set off firecrackers with smiles, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Thankfully, no one saw it.

Speaking of which, was the deity by my side all night, keeping me company on New Year's Eve? Ever since I gave him the gift...

No, perhaps even earlier.

Was it when you were figuring out how to wear those complicated layers of clothing?

Or perhaps it was when I was dressed and discussing with my third senior brother in the courtyard whether my clothes looked good or not?

Or perhaps it was when you followed these adults, who were much taller than you, into the dining hall?

He Shi thought about many things, but it was all in a fleeting moment.

He stood beside Bai Yushen, whose tall and imposing figure blocked half of his face. So He Shi slightly raised the corners of his mouth, his bright and clear eyes gently turning as he searched for something in the air filled with the smell of gunpowder.

Just then, the firecrackers finished, and the two villagers lit the fireworks they had prepared in advance.

With a loud bang, the fireworks shot into the sky and burst into brilliant bloom in the next instant.

As everyone looked up, He Yu looked down at He Shi and caught the reflection of the fireworks in his eyes—it was unbelievably beautiful.

He Yu couldn't help but smile, a bittersweet feeling welling up inside her, her eyes and nose also stinging slightly.

At that moment, she truly felt the happiness of spending the Lunar New Year with her family, a feeling she hadn't experienced in many years.

He Yu raised her right hand and gently placed it on the top of He Shitou, rubbing it tenderly.

Huge fireworks burst overhead, and in front of this exquisite little courtyard, everyone looked up with smiles at the dazzling display of light that filled the night sky.

The Chu family was truly wealthy and powerful; they set off such a large and varied fireworks display for a full quarter of an hour.

After the fireworks ended and everyone dispersed, thick smoke lingered over the open space, refusing to dissipate for a long time.

Chu Zheng watched the others walk away, then turned to his disciples and clapped his hands: "Disciples, you can all go home and rest. Come back early tomorrow morning to offer New Year's greetings, and the red envelopes will be big!"

Xia Yuan laughed and said, "Master is so generous."

Bai Yushen continued, "Then I'll have to choose carefully tomorrow and try to pick the biggest one."

Chu He also had a faint smile on his face: "I will go there before dawn tomorrow."

Chu Yunsi: "Hey? Junior brother, why is your face so red?"

The group of people all looked down at He Shi in unison.

He Shi: "Blown by the wind."

He grinned as he spoke, but when he saw everyone staring at him, he forced a smile and said, "Really, it's probably because it's the first time I've seen such beautiful fireworks, and I got a little excited."

Chu Zheng patted him on the shoulder: "Alright, go back with your third senior brother and get some rest. Come to Master's place first thing tomorrow morning. Master has prepared a big red envelope for you."

Chu Yunsi protested, "Father, what about me?"

Chu Zheng laughed heartily: "You have one too, and they're all bigger than theirs."

The group chatted and laughed for a while before dispersing.

He Shi returned to the room and immediately lit a candle. After thinking for a moment, he lit another one and placed it on the desk by the window, making the whole room even brighter.

He Yu leaned against the wardrobe, quietly watching him jog around busily, the smile in her eyes never fading.

He Shi lit the candles, took out the note from his pocket, unfolded it, and looked at it in the candlelight.

These characters are square and neat, they look really good.

Even though he didn't recognize the note, He Shi looked at it with great interest for a long time. Just as he was about to put the note away and go to sleep, a soft, gentle, and smiling female voice suddenly sounded behind him.

"It says 'Happy Lunar New Year's Eve, may you grow up healthy'."

He Shi jumped up from the chair with a "whoosh" and turned around sharply to look behind him.

There was nothing behind me.

He froze on the spot, and after a long while, he cautiously asked, "Immortal... are you?"

The pleasant voice stopped, and He Shi seemed to sense something. He turned around and saw that there was something new on the table—

A bright yellow cornbread sat there quietly.

He Shi stared blankly at the steamed buns that hadn't appeared in a long time, his thoughts instantly wandering, and the image of Shuozhou in the midst of heavy snow seemed to reappear before his eyes.

He thought he was already used to the cold, hunger, pain and loneliness, but for the first time he touched that soft cornbread on the haystack.

At the time, he thought it was something that some careless passerby had accidentally lost, but little did he know that it was the only time fate had ever given him, and a generous gift that would warm his entire life.

He Shi stepped forward, picked up the cornbread, and took a small bite.

The familiar taste filled his mouth, and tears quickly welled up in He Shi's eyes, turning into large drops that rolled down his cheeks.

He Yu originally just wanted to use a steamed bun that only the two of them knew about to prove his identity, but he never expected to make He Shi cry.

Seeing him cry harder and harder, with glistening tears rolling down his face like they were free, He Yu panicked and quickly went around to him, half-squatting down to wipe his tears.

Feeling the warm, soft touch on his cheek, He Shi cried even harder.

He had a piece of cornbread in his mouth, and he was crying so hard he could barely breathe, his whole body trembling with sobs.

In the end, He Shi was just a child who had just turned twelve. He had suffered for the previous eleven years. Now that the suffering was over, he faced the person he trusted and relied on the most. All the grievances he had accumulated for so long surged up at once, and his shallow eyes could not hold them all. They turned into tears that rolled down his cheeks.