Cheng Xu laughed at Zhu Yanyi’s words. Cheng Chen and Zhu Yanli didn’t fully understand, but seeing Cheng Xu smile, they assumed it wasn’t bad and joined in. Their laughter made Jia Yao feel even more wronged. She didn’t know what "three cries and three laughs" meant, but she was certain Zhu Yanyi was speaking ill of her.
"You are so bad for being so young," Jia Yao complained.
Zhu Yanyi looked hurt. "How am I bad? I didn’t say anything wrong." She turned to Jia Yao. "Can you deny that you didn’t just cry?"
"I did cry," Jia Yao admitted. She couldn’t deny it; tears were still on her face.
Zhu Yanyi nodded, looking satisfied. "Then tell me, why did you cry?"
Jia Yao paused. She had cried out of jealousy, remembering her mother’s advice that crying children get milk. But she couldn’t put that into words, so she stood there, confused.
Zhu Yanyi saw right through her but didn’t reveal it. "See? You can’t even say why you cried. You just cry when you want to. That is a great skill, just like actors on TV. They can laugh or cry whenever they want. I can’t do that. I can smile, but if you ask me to cry for no reason, I really can’t. So, you are better than me." She gave Jia Yao a look of admiration.
The others didn’t understand this comparison. Cheng Xu understood but stayed silent, watching to see what Zhu Yanyi would say next.
"I didn’t just cry because I wanted to," Jia Yao insisted, feeling wronged.
"So, you had a reason?" Zhu Yanyi gave her a pitying look. "Don’t you know it is the twentieth day of the year? Even though it isn’t Little New Year yet, it is close. The closer it gets to New Year, the less you should cry. Even if you are upset, you should wait until after the first lunar month. Besides, is this your home?"
"No, her home is next door," Cheng Chen answered quickly.
"See? That makes it even worse. You are crying in someone else’s house. Don’t you know that crying randomly brings bad luck? Even though it is a new era, we should avoid bad things. I think if you want to cry, you should hold it in, go home, and cry in your blanket. Never cry in front of people, or everyone will go to your parents to settle the score." Zhu Yanyi didn’t explain why. Children feared being told on to their parents before school, and to teachers after. Threatening to tell her parents was very serious.
Jia Yao was truly scared. If her parents found out, she would be beaten. She shook her head, not wanting to be hit, and looked at Zhu Yanyi with a pitiful expression.
Zhu Yanyi shrugged. "Don’t look at me like that. I didn’t bully you. Do you want to cry now?"
Jia Yao nodded. She really wanted to cry and felt very wronged, though she couldn’t explain why.
"Then go home quickly. Hide in your blanket and cry. After you finish, wash your face and come out. Your parents won’t know, so they won’t punish you. We didn’t see anything, so we won’t gossip. Don’t worry. Even though it is near the end of the year, we won’t spread rumors. Go home and cry now." Zhu Yanyi looked at her with an expression of doing her a favor.