Ch. 24 Part 2

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The holidays continued and soon it was the last day in the last month on the lunar calendar which was the Eve of the New Year. In ancient times, there was a custom of keeping the year old on New Year's Eve. It is said that older people staying up late on New Year's Eve means bidding farewell to the old year, which means cherishing time. Young people staying up late on New Year's Eve are meant to prolong the life of their parents. The Lu's were all together in the hall with the elders. Until it was around almost middle of si shi that they couldn't hold on anymore, they were coaxed to bed by the elders leaving old man Lu along with his sons Lu Chen and Lu Wen sitting in the hall and talking about random things as they wait for the beginning of the new year whiles his wife, Lu Chen's wife, Lu Wen's wife went to bed with the children.