The Top Fishing
Chapter 41 - 040: Relatives Gather

Chapter 41: Chapter 040: Relatives Gather

Uncle’s home was just in the next village over from Lin Yang’s, a half-hour bike ride away.

When Lin Yang arrived outside Uncle’s courtyard and parked his bike, he heard a burst of joyful laughter and chatter coming from inside, lively and bustling.

Such scenes were quite common in the countryside. In the past, those who went out to work or do business would only come back close to the New Year.

But now things were different. With the diversification of transportation and the prevalence of private cars, people visited each other more frequently on important days.

Arriving at Uncle’s gate, Lin Yang saw a few electric scooters parked there, and there were also two sedans to the side.

A white, older model Golf was recognizable to Lin Yang—it belonged to his little aunt, Xiao Peng’s mother.

The little aunt could be considered a strong woman; she owned a clothing store in the city and had become wealthy relatively early, so she was the first among the sisters to drive a private car.

As for the brand-new white A4 parked on the other side, Lin Yang had no idea who it belonged to, but judging by the red ribbon tied to the rearview mirror, it must have been a new purchase.

Lin Yang was merely curious, and then he walked into the yard.

"Yo, Xiao Yang’s here. I just called and heard from your mom that you went fishing and hadn’t come back yet."

The little aunt speaking appeared almost forty years old but was well maintained, looking quite a bit younger than Lin Yang’s mother, who had always lived in the countryside.

Lin Yang felt very close to this little aunt, who had married locally, so he often visited.

"Little aunt, big aunt...."

Lin Yang looked around at the relatives in the courtyard, greeting each of them in turn.

"Cousin."

A young guy with a face covered in acne stepped forward and greeted Lin Yang.

"Haha, Xiao Peng, you’ve grown so tall after not seeing you for two years," Lin Yang fondly said to the tall boy in front of him.

"Cousin."

Another sweet female voice rang out, and as soon as it finished, a fragrant breeze hit him, and a delicate figure threw herself into Lin Yang’s arms.

"Get down, what’s a big girl like you doing not feeling embarrassed?" The little aunt scolded the young girl who had flung herself into Lin Yang’s embrace.

Lin Yang was also somewhat embarrassed; he had forgotten about this little girl.

The young girl’s name was Xiao Han, Xiao Peng’s twin sister, and compared to Xiao Peng with his acne-filled face, Xiao Han looked much more delicate.

Under five feet tall, her doll-like face made her look adorable, though her makeup was a bit too heavy.

In the past, whenever cousin Xiao Peng came over to play, this little girl would invariably follow behind him, impossible to shake off.

Moreover, whenever her brother got up to mischief, this little girl would be the first to snitch about it.

"Ah, Mom! I haven’t seen cousin for such a long time, is even a hug not allowed?" Xiao Han pouted and let go of Lin Yang’s arm.

"Bro, give me a smoke," Xiao Peng said as he took two Yunyan cigarettes out of his pocket and offered one.

"Wow, you’re smoking now too?" Lin Yang waved it off and glanced at the little aunt.

Little Aunt: "He is just a hooligan now. He’s finished high school and won’t study anymore, just loafing around at home, and I can’t control him."

Lin Yang looked at Xiao Peng in surprise, not expecting him to have dropped out of school before even turning twenty.

"Cousin, don’t listen to my mom’s nonsense. I’m starting a business at home, look, I’m also a big streamer now," Li Xiaopeng said after lighting his cigarette and taking out his phone.

"Look, Douyu platform, a contracted streamer."

Lin Yang almost laughed out loud looking at the barely over five thousand followers displayed on his phone.

"What do you stream about?"

"Eating, drinking, playing, fishing, walking dogs. Oh right, bro, last time I hooked a black fish over four jins at Chen Family Pond, a fan sent me a rocket right away, and I got three hundred bucks! Here’s the screenshot."

"Cousin, don’t listen to my brother bragging. He tells this story to anyone who will listen," Xiao Han said with a dismissive look at her brother.

"Don’t just talk about your brother. Aren’t you too proud of yourself for just getting into a polytechnic?"

The little aunt gave her two kids a look and turned to Lin Yang, "Right, Xiao Yang, I heard you’re also starting a business at home. What exactly are you doing?"

Upon hearing his aunt ask this, Lin Yang’s face showed embarrassment: "Ah, this... I’m also doing livestreaming at home."

This cousin was just scorned by his mom and sister for streaming at home, and now it was his turn to feel embarrassed.

"Yo, cousin, weren’t you a university graduate with a bachelor’s degree? Why not get a proper job?"

The speaker was a long-haired woman sitting on a stool with a face full of heavier makeup than Xiao Han’s.

She was Lin Yang’s cousin from his big aunt’s side, four or five years older than him—almost thirty now.

Lin Yang and this cousin weren’t very close since his big aunt had married far away, and they only saw each other during holidays.

"Sister Qing, it’s not easy to find a suitable job nowadays with so many university graduates. That’s why I’m staying at home for now."

"Xiao Yang, no offense from your big aunt, but a young man without a good job isn’t ideal. You might even have trouble finding a wife later on," said the big aunt wearing a bright red dress, clinking her large gold bracelets while talking to Lin Yang.

Lin Yang listened to his big aunt and cousin’s lecture and inwardly scoffed, thinking, "Cousin is at that age and still hasn’t found a husband, and you’re worried about me?"

After the big aunt made her remark, the little aunt also grew displeased; her own son, Xiao Peng, was in the same boat.

"Big sister, you just don’t understand. Young people have their own ideas now. Livestreaming is an emerging industry. Who knows, maybe Xiao Yang will become famous in the future, right Xiao Yang?"

"Ah, yes, yes." Lin Yang, listening to his aunt’s words, could only stand by and grin awkwardly.

"You guys stop chatting for a bit, Xiao Yang, come and help, bring the drinks and beverages inside."

At that moment, Uncle, who had yet to make an appearance, arrived in his car from outside.

"Alright, Uncle." Seeing Uncle calling for him, Lin Yang quickly went over to help.

....

It was Grandpa’s seventieth birthday, which was quite a festive occasion, so dinner was particularly lavish, prepared with two tables, each with more than a dozen dishes.

The entire afternoon was spent busily preparing the feast.

By a little after five in the afternoon, almost everyone had arrived, and all the dishes were ready.

Aside from Uncle’s family, those who came included my aunt’s family of three, my elder aunty with her two children, and then there was Lin Yang’s family of three.

Of course, there were also some descendants of Grandpa’s siblings, though they were seated at the table in the main hall.

Due to the large number of guests, the younger generation from Lin Yang’s side could only sit at the corner of the table.

After the birthday celebration, everyone began to eat.

"Xiao Peng, pour some wine for your uncle."

Urged by his aunt, Li Xiaopeng, being the youngest among the younger generation, stood up, took a bottle of white spirit, and filled Uncle’s cup, followed by his elder aunty and Lin Yang’s mother.

Except for Lin Yang’s father, who had to drive, a bit of alcohol was poured for everyone else who could drink.

When it came to his older cousin, she politely declined, "I’m sorry, I have to drive later, I can’t drink."

Hearing this, Lin Yang realized who the a4 parked outside belonged to.

"What about you, cousin, are you drinking?"

Lin Yang: "I’m not good at this, haha, just pour yourself a little to accompany Uncle for a drink."

Xiao Han, holding her chopsticks, curled her lip, "With all the acne on my brother’s face, he wouldn’t dare to drink."

Xiao Peng: "....."

Uncle: "Alright, if he’s not drinking then pour some juice, no need to be polite everyone, let’s start eating."

With Uncle’s concession, everyone then started to eat enthusiastically.

.....

Uncle: "By the way, elder sister, I heard you mention that Qing’er has found a husband."

Elder aunty, picking up a piece of pork belly, said, "Haha, yes, Qing’er is really fortunate. She went to work away from home at the beginning of the year, and in just a few days, she brought back a boyfriend."

"Oh, and that young man, his character is impeccable, calls me ’auntie’ this and ’auntie’ that, and his family is wealthy too. The car Qing’er drives was bought by him, nearly three hundred thousand!"

"Not only did he buy Qing’er a car, but he also bought me a bracelet, look." As she spoke, she extended her hand, showing off the gold bracelet on her wrist.

"And the wedding date has been set too, for May. You all must come to the wedding banquet."

Elder aunty spoke cheerfully, lifted the wine glass in front of her, and gulped it down. "Cough cough, um... Xiao Peng, pour your elder aunty another."

Lin Yang’s mother also smiled and said, "Elder sister, you are really lucky, another worry taken care of."

Elder aunty: "Hey, it’s all thanks to the child’s good fortune, finding such a good family. By the way, Xiao Yang is not young anymore, is anything decided yet? Weren’t you busy trying to set him up for a blind date?"

Lin Yang’s mother: "Haha, there is a prospect now, it shouldn’t be too long before it’s settled."

Elder aunty: "Really? But getting married for a boy is different from a girl, it costs a lot of money, and which marriage doesn’t require buying a house in the city nowadays?"

"Qing’er’s in-laws are very generous. Before we even mentioned anything, they bought an apartment in our county, just under a million! They said to live there for now, and later they’d buy another one in the city, haha."

As she said this, a certain elder woman, whom Lin Yang wasn’t sure how to address, interjected, "Wow, a million, you’d have to save for many years to afford that, we are fortunate that our eldest married early, otherwise it would kill us, the old couple, because we simply couldn’t afford it now."

Hearing this, Lin Yang’s mother paused with her chopsticks and chuckled nervously, "Mmm, Qing’er has indeed found a good family."

Old Lin then took a sip from his glass and said, "Elder sister, you are worrying about nothing. I and Xiao Yang’s mother have already discussed the house matter. We’ll make a down payment for one in the city, and he can slowly repay the mortgage himself."

At that moment, his older cousin also spoke up, "Uncle, maybe you don’t realize how big the pressure of installment payments is. Each month, a chunk of money goes to interest, and besides, my cousin hasn’t secured a stable job yet, he’s still young, waiting a few more years to get married wouldn’t be too late. Look at me, I’ve just turned thirty and only recently got engaged."

Old Lin: "No problem, the kid is earning quite a bit these days..."

But before he could finish, he was cut short by a foot stomp from Lin Yang’s mother sitting beside him.

Uncle: "Enough, can’t you all shut up about houses while eating? What is this, getting married has to involve a house now?"

With that, he looked at elder aunty and said, "The way I see it, this trend is fueled by you mothers-in-law. It’s like you’re selling daughters, demanding a house the moment you open your mouth, I didn’t have a house when I got married, and I’m still living well..."

After Uncle finished speaking, he scanned the people around the table, raised his glass, and emptied it in one gulp: "Alright, let’s eat!"

Elder aunty also wore an embarrassed face: "Let’s eat, let’s eat..."

At this moment, Lin Yang had a new understanding of his elder aunty.

In his memory, although his elder aunty was a bit of a chatterbox, she hadn’t been so openly money-focused and opportunistic as she had been today.

Perhaps being opportunistic their whole lives, people like her get a little inflated on the inside once they’ve snagged a wealthy son-in-law, always wanting to show off wherever they go.

Ah, his elder aunty.

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