《Miss Yu Decides To Change Her Fate After Being Reborn!》 Chapter 1 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations ¡°She¡¯s my sister. How can my heart not ache for her? But the dead have to make way for the living. It¡¯s not easy for us to have a joyous occasion at home. We can¡¯t let her death ruin our life!¡± Thinking back to his life, Yu Bing immediately felt that it was ridiculous, and resentment arose in her heart. When the familiar words sounded in her ears again, Yu Bing tried her best to open her eyes. Suddenly, her closed eyes opened with a cold look. Yu Bing looked at the corridor in front of her and was stunned for a long time. Didn¡¯t she die in the hospital? Why would she be in an old house that had been demolished? Yu Bing walked to her house in confusion. The door was not closed tightly, and there was a gap. They were having a loud argument about building a village. Yu Bing realized that she had transmigrated to the period when her family was choosing people to go to the countryside to do rural construction. Through the crack in the door, she saw the family talking in the living room. Yu Pan raised her head and said hatefully, ¡°I won¡¯t go to the countryside to do construction. Either your precious son will go, or that sickly person will go.¡± ¡°Do you think I don¡¯t feel sorry for you? I asked long ago. The factory said that Yu Bing is weak. If she goes to the countryside, she can¡¯t help them. She would even cause trouble for them. They don¡¯t want her!¡± As Mrs. Yu spoke, she tapped Yu Pan¡¯s head with her hand. Although the Yu family favored boys over girls, the eldest daughter was their first child. Comparatively, the parents still doted on her more. ¡°I don¡¯t care. Think of a way yourself.¡± Yu Pan sat on the sofa. Mr. Yu and Mrs. Yu looked at each other helplessly. Yu Wu knew that it was impossible for his parents to send their only child to the countryside. He calmly nestled on the sofa and thought about how he would ask Mrs. Yu for 50 cents to watch a movie with Tan Datou and the others later. When Yu Bing saw this scene, she couldn¡¯t help but sneer. She pushed open the door and pretended not to know anything. She greeted her family and entered Yu Pan¡¯s room. Yu Pan¡¯s eyes darted around before she stood up and entered the room. Yu Pan held Yu Bing¡¯s hand and forcefully squeezed out a few drops of tears. ¡°Xiao Bing, our family has to send someone to the countryside to do construction. I have a hard life. I stopped studying in my teens and came out to work to support everyone.¡± In reality, Yu Pan didn¡¯t want to study anymore after graduating from primary school. She stayed at home for a few years. At that time, her grandfather, who worked in a supply company for supermarkets, died. Mrs. Yu was the only daughter, so the vacant position was naturally taken by Yu Pan. In this era where supplies were scarce, it was an impressive thing to be able to work in a supply company. Yu Pan showed off in the neighborhood for a long time. After Yu Pan was done acting pitiful, she said, ¡°You¡¯re young and weak. If you go, after your brother and I marry in two years, our parents can use this reason to transfer you back. At that time, our family of five can stay.¡± Yu Bing was born sickly, so she was a burden at home. In her previous life, Yu Pan had also used this reason to let Yu Bing go to the countryside. After Yu Bing refused because of her ill health, Yu Pan immediately married her pursuer in order to avoid going to the countryside to do construction. Her parents refused to let their son go to the countryside to suffer, so the burden fell on Yu Bing. Yu Pan also blamed Yu Bing for her misfortune after marriage. Yu Pan believed that it was because Yu Bing didn¡¯t agree to go to the countryside that Yu Pan had no choice but to get married in a hurry. In the end, she met a bad person. ¡°I¡¯m not in good health. I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t be able to survive until the day I return to the city,¡± Yu Bing said slowly with her head lowered. How could it be that easy to return? Not to mention the lack of government policy dictating the return to the city in recent years, even if there was later, how could those local people who determined whether or not they returned release them without obtaining enough benefits? How many girls had to sell their bodies to get a spot? Although Yu Bing had already made up her mind to go to the countryside, she didn¡¯t intend to agree so easily. Yu Pan continued to persuade her, ¡°You used to sit around all day without exercising when you were studying. Coincidentally, you don¡¯t need to study anymore after high school. You might get better after working there.¡± ¡°But I heard from Auntie Jiang that Jiang Yuan sent a letter back saying that farm work is especially heavy there and that he doesn¡¯t eat well. I can at least eat until I¡¯m half-full at home. He¡¯s such a healthy person, but he¡¯s already tired and sick after only two months. I don¡¯t want to delay your marriage either. I¡¯m not even afraid of being tired. I¡¯m just afraid that I won¡¯t be able to eat my fill and have enough clothes to wear. If I go, I won¡¯t even be able to work. I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t be able to survive.¡± With that said, Yu Bing raised her head and looked at Yu Pan with her usual timid gaze. When Yu Pan heard that Yu Bing seemed to have wavered, she immediately expressed her stance. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. As long as you agree, I¡¯ll tell Dad and Mom to bring more food stamps for you.¡± In this era, money was not the only thing that mattered when buying things. One also had to have the corresponding food stamps and clothing stamps before others would sell them to them. Yu Bing lowered her head and tugged at the corner of her shirt with both hands. ¡°I have to take 30 pound food stamps, 20 feet clothing stamps, and 70 yuan. I might never come back. I have to take more money as backup.¡± Yu Bing had already planned it all out. In her previous life, because the Yu family only gave her a few food stamps and five yuan, in order to save money, she couldn¡¯t even afford eggs. With her already weak body, she collapsed from exhaustion after harvesting crops in the countryside. After that, she developed the syndrome of panting after taking only a few steps. After that, every time her family sent a letter asking her to send food, she would obediently send food back at the expense of scrimping and saving herself. Once, she was so famished that she almost died. Chapter 2 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Later, she found out that the Yu family had no problem eating their fill. In this life, she would no longer live for these people. She would live for herself. At this moment, Yu Pan wanted to jump up and curse when she heard that she wanted 70 yuan. However, she thought about it and immediately stopped herself. After all, 70 yuan was only two months of her salary. It was still very worth it for her to continue being a city girl! Her mother had always safekept her salary. After Yu Pan understood, she immediately left the room to ask Mrs. Yu. The mother and daughter fought in the living room over this matter. In the end, as expected, it ended in Yu Pan¡¯s victory. Mr. Yu and Mrs. Yu called Yu Bing out of the living room. Yu Bing knew that her parents wanted her to express her stance clearly. ¡°Dad, Mom, as long as you give me enough stamps and money, I can go to the countryside to do construction.¡± Yu Pan pulled Yu Bing to his side with a smile. ¡°Little Bing is knowledgeable and sensible. The elders say that there is much to be done in the world. I definitely won¡¯t be able to do much there with my primary school educational level. Only you intellectuals can help build the country.¡± Mr. Yu and Mrs. Yu were very happy to see their youngest daughter take the initiative to go to the countryside. Although the factory had objections, it couldn¡¯t stop people from voluntarily answering to the country¡¯s call. This would lessen their trouble greatly. Thus, the two of them hurriedly ran to find someone to let Yu Bing take Yu Wu¡¯s place. When they were preparing dinner, Yu Bing suggested that Mrs. Yu take out the food stamps and money for her so that she could set off directly in a few days. Mrs. Yu stammered as she changed the topic. ¡°Let¡¯s eat first.¡± Yu Bing stood at the door and watched coldly. sHe said calmly, ¡°Mom, if you don¡¯t give it to me now, I¡¯ll go upstairs and tell factory manager Mr. Qian that my body suddenly can¡¯t take it and I can¡¯t go.¡± ¡°You d*mn girl! How much money do I usually spend on your medicine? You¡¯re already at this age, but you still have to ask for money from your family when you go to the countryside to work.¡± Mrs. Yu scolded sternly as she served the dishes. In fact, Yu Bing¡¯s body was weak and needed supplements. However, during that era, it was difficult to buy nutritional supplements even if one had money. Every family ate the same food. It didn¡¯t cost any money to go to the bathroom in the factory. Moreover, the factory had subsidies for such situations. Yu Bing didn¡¯t need to spend much money on medicine. Seeing that the matter was settled, Mrs. Yu started to feel distress over the 70 yuan. The family had been saving for half a year and planned to find a girlfriend for their son. Yu Pan was afraid that Yu Bing would change her mind, so she immediately added, ¡°Mom, didn¡¯t we agree? If you¡¯re unwilling, I¡¯ll get married immediately and let your precious son go. Let¡¯s see if you¡¯re still unwilling to part with that 70 yuan.¡± When Mrs. Yu saw that her elder daughter was throwing a tantrum and that her younger daughter¡¯s attitude was firm, she could only angrily take out the money and food stamps from her room and throw them at Yu Bing. ¡°What a debt collector!¡± Yu Bing squatted down and picked up the money and food stamps one by one with a cold gaze. In the next few days, Yu Bing jogged in the courtyard for half an hour every morning and night. During the day, she looked forward to going to work. She practiced yoga in her room for an hour every day in preparation for going to the countryside. The night before they set off, the Yu family had just finished eating when they heard a knock on the door. Yu Bing got up to open the door and realized that it was her best friend, Jiang Chun. This was the first time the two of them had met in their lives. Yu Bing suddenly felt a lump in her throat and her eyes was a little blurry. Seeing this, Jiang Chun immediately pulled Yu Bing under the tree downstairs. ¡°Don¡¯t cry, Little Bing. We¡¯re going to the same place. I¡¯ll take care of you. Don¡¯t be afraid.¡± Jiang Chun comforted Yu Bing while wiping her tears with a handkerchief. Yu Bing could no longer control her emotions. She hugged the person in front of her and thought to herself that in her previous life, it was Jiang Chun who protected her. In this life, it was her turn to protect Jiang Chun. Jiang Chun didn¡¯t know that the reborn Yu Bing only wanted to stay away from her family. She thought that she was afraid of leaving her family and going to the countryside alone, so she comforted her gently. It took Yu Bing a long time to control her emotions. Seeing that Yu Bing had calmed down, Jiang Chun said with heartache, ¡°Your brother is strong enough to kill a cow. You¡¯ve never been in good health since you were young. I didn¡¯t expect your parents to be so heartless as to let you replace him. But don¡¯t worry, I can protect you even in the countryside!¡± Jiang Chun¡¯s words warmed Yu Bing¡¯s heart. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll take care of my body. I¡¯ll be fine.¡± As the two of them were talking, they saw Yao Nian walking past them angrily. Jiang Chun bumped Yu Bing¡¯s shoulder and whispered, ¡°Do you know? Yao Nian is coming with us.¡± Yu Bing looked at Yao Nian¡¯s back coldly and didn¡¯t speak. In her previous life, Yao Nian had indeed gone to the countryside. This fianc¨¦ who claimed to be her childhood friend had even set a trap for her with that person. In her previous life, she didn¡¯t have the time to settle this score. In this life, she had to settle it properly! Jiang Chun continued to tell her what she knew. ¡°I heard that it¡¯s because Yao Ling is preparing to get married. She works in the Food Bureau and her parents are both supervisors. Otherwise, the Yao family wouldn¡¯t have let Yao Nian go to the countryside.¡± After Yu Bing heard this, the corners of her mouth curled up into a cold smile. As expected, it was the same as in her previous life. These days, there were a few families that didn¡¯t favor boys over girls. Only when they obtained enough benefits from their daughters would there be the situation of favoring girls over boys. However, Yao Nian¡¯s unhappiness was her source of joy. Yu Bing looked forward to seeing if Yao Nian could withstand her revenge in this lifetime. Chapter 3 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Because they were leaving early tomorrow morning, the two of them still had to pack their luggage, so they didn¡¯t talk much and returned home. As soon as Yu Bing entered, he realized that there were only Mrs. Yu and Yu Pan in the living room. The atmosphere was a little off. Mrs. Yu leaned against the sofa and crossed her arms in front of her chest with anger in her eyes. ¡°Yu Bing, you slut! I was wondering why you were so proactive in volunteering to build the village. So you only took the initiative to mention it because you knew that Yao Nian would also go! To think that I even gave you so much money and stamps since I was afraid that you would suffer. Take out half of all the stamps and leave them at home. You can only bring five yuan with you!¡± Mrs. Yu sat up straight and pointed at Yu Bing. Yu Bing looked at Yu Pan, who was sitting beside Mrs. Yu with her legs crossed while munching on melon seeds, as if she was watching a good show. She understood that Yu Pan must have started to sow discord again. Although Yu Pan was just over 20 years old, she was famous for being a gossipy woman in the neighborhood. Yu Bing had died once before, so how could she be afraid of Mrs. Yu¡¯s threat? He said helplessly, ¡°Since Mom thinks that my motive for going to the countryside is not pure, I won¡¯t go. I¡¯ll take out the money and food stamps later.¡± Mrs. Yu froze, and Yu Pan, who was eating melon seeds, also stopped. In fact, this was indeed Yu Pan¡¯s doing. She just felt that if Yu Bing left home, there would be no one for her to bully anymore. She just made up some lies in front of her mother in order to see Yu Bing being scolded. Mrs. Yu wanted to use this as an excuse to deduct more money and stamps. Unfortunately, what they didn¡¯t know was that the Yu Bing in front of them was no longer the person they were familiar with. She wasn¡¯t someone who the Yu family could make suffer and mercilessly exploit. She was no longer someone who silently endured and didn¡¯t dare to resist. Mrs. Yu slammed the table and roared, ¡°You wretched girl! Are you threatening me?!¡± Yu Bing walked to the armchair and sat down. She held her chest and said with an uncomfortable expression, ¡°Mom, I haven¡¯t gone to the countryside yet. It¡¯s not too late for me to give up the spot now. I suddenly feel a little pain in my chest.¡± Yu Pan widened her eyes. From the looks of it, the situation was a little out of control. She was afraid that something unexpected would happen. Yu Wu definitely wouldn¡¯t go. In the end, it would be over for her if she went. Yu Pan hurriedly held Mrs. Yu¡¯s arm and whispered into her ear, ¡°Mom, she might not be able to return for the rest of her life. She¡¯s a sickly person. Our family won¡¯t have to pay for her food anymore. No matter what, these stamps and money are worth it!¡± Mrs. Yu was also scheming. In this era, it was indeed difficult to find a job through connections. Her son had yet to find a job. This time, she could send off this sickly person with an excuse. Not only could she fill the spot, but this could also save them money. It was indeed a profitable deal. ¡°Yu Bing, don¡¯t think that we can¡¯t control you. If you dare to do anything embarrassing, I¡¯ll break your legs! I¡¯ll sever all ties with you!¡± Mrs. Yu threatened. In the past, Yu Bing would panic and be afraid that her parents would be angry. However, at this moment, she only felt calm and didn¡¯t want to pretend to be polite with them anymore. She only said calmly, ¡°I¡¯m setting off tomorrow. I¡¯ll pack my things first.¡± With that, she returned to her room, leaving the two of them looking at each other. The next morning, just after seven o¡¯clock, Yu Bing took two large bags containing clothes, a net bag containing a hot water bottle, a basin, a lunch box, and some food that she had fought for from her mother in the morning. She set off alone on the journey to build the village. The train station. The train station was bustling. They were all parents who were sending their children off. The Yu family was still angry about what happened last night and morning, so they didn¡¯t send her off. Yu Bing squeezed into the car with all his might and looked for her seat. She saw that Jiang Chun, who wasn¡¯t far away, had already seen her. Afraid that Jiang Chun wouldn¡¯t see her, Yu Bing stood up and waved her hands vigorously. Yu Bing smiled for the first time today. ¡°Chun Chun!¡± ¡°Come, give me the heavy one.¡± Jiang Chun took a few steps forward and brought the clothes to the seat. She turned around and took the net before placing it under the seat. She pulled Yu Bing to sit in the inner seat. Chapter 4 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Clang! Clang! Clang! Accompanied by the rhythmic sound of the train, Jiang Chun and Yu Bing, who had been sitting on the train for a long time, fell asleep. When Yu Bing woke up, it was already evening. Jiang Chun, who was sitting on the outside and leaning on her shoulder, hadn¡¯t changed her posture from the time she fell asleep to the time she woke up. She only tilted her head and listened to the people in the neighboring seats tell stories with relish. Yu Bing was moved when she saw this scene, so she massaged Jiang Chun¡¯s stiff shoulders. Jiang Chun noticed and turned around. ¡°Xiao Bing, you¡¯re awake. You don¡¯t have to massage me. I¡¯ll just stand up and move around a little!¡± ¡°Just sit tight. I¡¯ve enjoyed the afternoon nap. Now, it¡¯s your turn to enjoy it.¡± Yu Bing smiled. Jiang Chun smiled. ¡°Alright, then just massage me for a few minutes. Massage is a tiring task.¡± Yu Bing looked at the girl who was always smiling, and couldn¡¯t help but think of Jiang Chun, who had always smiled and encouraged her no matter how difficult things were in her previous life. Therefore, when she returned there this time, she had to plan thoroughly before that time. She couldn¡¯t let Jiang Chun be schemed against. Jiang Chun looked at the person sitting next to her and licked her lips. She touched her stomach and turned to look at Yu Bing. ¡°Bing, let¡¯s eat now. To save food, we didn¡¯t even eat lunch. I¡¯m starving.¡± Yu Bing was also hungry and nodded vigorously. The two of them took out food from the net under their seats. Yu Bing took out a white steamed bun and two eggs, then handed an egg to Jiang Chun. As Jiang Chun took out her home-made pickled vegetables as she rejected Yu Bing, ¡°Little Bing, I brought food. Keep it for yourself.¡± Yu Bing shook her head helplessly and stuffed the egg into Jiang Chun¡¯s hand. ¡°Eat it. I brought more. Your pickled vegetables are delicious. I want to take a few more bites. Take it as me exchanging with you.¡± Jiang Chun knew that Yu Bing was only finding an excuse to let her accept the egg. She lowered her head and looked at the egg in her hand. She thought to herself that she must help Yu Bing work more when she reached the countryside! At this moment, the train stopped. The words ¡°Linshui City¡± were written on the platform. Yu Bing¡¯s pupils dilated as she looked at the familiar figure on the platform. Then, she leaned against the car window and turned her body to face Jiang Chun while eating the last bite of dinner. She then pretended to listen to everyone¡¯s conversation carefully. When the train started again, she silently straightened her body. In her previous life, she had also sat by the car window. When Yu Yan passed by the car window and saw her, she took the initiative to talk to her. The two of them started to interact after that. But now that she had ruined this opportunity, Yu Bing wanted to see if the Wheel of Destiny would change. After the train traveled for a while, everyone found their seats and chatted with the people they sat with. Just as Yu Bing thought that this person would disappear from her life, a tall woman with a round face and almond-shaped eyes appeared in front of her again. Yu Yan was wearing a fashionable polyester plaid shirt, fitting green military pants, and a military kettle on her back. Her outfit was very chic in this era, and it made everyone¡¯s eyes light up. Then, she smiled and introduced herself generously. ¡°Hello, everyone. My name is Yu Yan. You¡¯re all going to the countryside, right? Can I sit here with you? A couple went to visit their relatives with a few children. I saw that it was inconvenient, so I took the initiative to find another seat.¡± In this era, most people were simple-minded, passionate, and kind. Yu Yan¡¯s actions indeed made these teenagers have a good impression of her. One by one, they hurriedly squeezed out seats for her. A man even took the initiative to take the bamboo rattan box containing the clothes and helped place it on the iron shelf above the seat. Yu Bing sneered. She was certain that Yu Yan had always been prepared for her. The train had been driving for so long, so she must have passed by so many seats, but none of them were suitable for her, and their place, which was fully packed, was suitable for her. ¡°You look so familiar! What¡¯s your name?¡± Yu Bing looked up. Yu Yan was sitting at the outermost side of the row opposite Yu Bing and smiling at her. ¡°My name is Yu Bing. Perhaps it¡¯s because of my average-looking face, but people often say that I look familiar to someone they know,¡± Yu Bing replied with a smile. Yu Yan paused slightly. This answer was beyond her expectations and she didn¡¯t know how to answer. She looked at her third sister, who had an oval face and almond-shaped eyes like her, and suppressed the urge to lambaste her. After all, it wasn¡¯t time yet. Country life was too boring. She had a third sister to pass the time with. She wanted the Yu family to know how outstanding she was! They had chosen the wrong daughter to give away. At the same time, Yu Yan was very curious. Between the two of them, did one look more like their father and one look more like their mother? Hence, she continued to smile and said, ¡°You must be joking. I didn¡¯t expect us to have the same surname. What a coincidence. I keep feeling that you seem familiar and I can¡¯t help but want to get close to you.¡± Chapter 5 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations In her previous life, Yu Bing was happy when she heard Yu Yan¡¯s words. She wasn¡¯t in good health and rarely went out to play. She only had Jiang Chun, her best friend. Therefore, in her previous life, she rushed to befriend her. Every time Yu Yan needed something, she would look for her. Yu Yan would coax her with sweet words and Yu Bing be willing to help her do anything after hearing them. Yu Yan would even frame Yu Bing time and time again. Now that she thought about it, Yu Bing wished she could slap herself! Yu Bing recalled her previous life experience, but she didn¡¯t show it on her face. She pretended to be confused and said, ¡°Is that so? If we have the same surname, then we might really have been a family five hundred years ago.¡± She pretended to recall for a few seconds and said seriously, ¡°I¡¯m sure my family doesn¡¯t have any relatives in Linshui City. Moreover, my parents said that I always look silly and non-threatening, so many people want to get close to me. This time, they even reminded me to be careful when I¡¯m out.¡± Jiang Chun knew about the Yu family¡¯s situation and didn¡¯t understand why Yu Bing said the exact opposite. However, she believed that Yu Bing must have a reason for doing this, so she sat at the side without saying anything. When Yu Yan heard this, the smile on her face froze. Yu Bing looked at Yu Yan¡¯s expression and covered her mouth. ¡°Miss Yu, don¡¯t misunderstand. My parents aren¡¯t talking about you. They¡¯re talking about those bad people. You don¡¯t look like a bad person.¡± Yu Bing knew too well what kind of words could make Yu Yan uncomfortable! At this moment, Yu Yan was indeed feeling worse than if she had swallowed a fly. If she had seen that Yu Bing wasn¡¯t favored in the family, she would have felt better. However, Yu Bing¡¯s words had clearly indicated that the Yu family protected her. Yu Yan only felt that Yu Bing had snatched the happiness that should have belonged to her. She even thought that her parents were targeting her. What did they mean by wanting to get close to her and being more careful?! Who were they guarding against?! At this moment, Yu Yan no longer had the urge to continue talking. She only sat quietly in her seat. A girl sitting beside her felt the awkwardness and quickly tried to smooth things over. ¡°We are good young people who support the country¡¯s construction. We¡¯re all good people.¡± Then, the others changed the topic, and the atmosphere slowly returned to normal. Unknowingly, everyone chatted until late at night before falling asleep. Just as the sun rose from the ground in the east, the train arrived at the station. A few young people who had the same destination alighted with their luggage. Yu Bing watched as Yu Yan took the car to the Fengtou Mountain Commune in Jiangning County. After arriving at the Commune, they took an ox cart to the He Mountain Brigade. The car swayed and smelled of gasoline. Yu Bing resisted the urge to vomit and finally got out of the car. Looking at the sunroof car ox cart in front of her, Yu Bing felt alive again when she smelled the fresh air. The ox cart had pulled people and things. It had basically pulled everything. The driver had even specifically washed it last night before picking them up. However, it still looked dirty after so many years of usage. Although Yu Yan lived with her adoptive parents, she had been doted on by her family since she was young and had never suffered much. She looked at the ox cart in front of her with disdain. ¡°Can¡¯t you change it? It¡¯s so dirty and it smells! My clothes and pants are stained from it.¡± The old man was a straightforward person and couldn¡¯t stand such pampered behavior. He said angrily, ¡°If you don¡¯t want to sit in it, you can walk back to the village!¡± Although the other threes who supported the construction of the village also despised the ox cart, they knew that the village didn¡¯t have anything better. It was better than walking, so they naturally wouldn¡¯t complain. Jiang Chun wasn¡¯t a high-maintenance person. After seeing Yu Bing put down her luggage and step into the ox cart, she followed him into the cart. The old man driving the cart didn¡¯t expect this thin young lady to lead the way into the car. He originally thought that she was a pampered young lady, but who knew that the one complaining was the tall and muscular young lady? He thought to himself that one really couldn¡¯t judge a book by its cover. After Yu Yan saw everyone get into the carriage, she stomped her feet and followed them into the ox cart. She felt a little resentful that Yu Bing, who had taken the lead to get into the car, was deliberately going against her to embarrass her. She wanted to use the soft approach to approach Yu Bing, but now, she couldn¡¯t help but say, ¡°Little Bing, I heard that farming is quite tiring. What if you faint since you¡¯re so frail? Wouldn¡¯t this implicate everyone¡¯s progress?¡± She was undoubtedly insulting Yu Bing in front of this group of companions who had come to the countryside to build. After all, no one wanted a burden in their team. Before Yu Bing could speak, Jiang Chun was so angry that she contorted, ¡°Who are you trying to slander? According to what you¡¯re saying, you¡¯re so burly, so you should be dispatched to the wilderness!¡± Yu Yan had heard praises since she was young. When Jiang Chun suddenly said this, she immediately lost her temper. ¡°Who are you calling burly?! I¡¯m just healthy!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll scold whoever looks for trouble!¡± Jiang Chun turned around and glared at Yu Yan with anger. Yu Yan was someone who bullied the weak and feared the strong. When she saw that Jiang Chun wasn¡¯t to be trifled with, she calmed down and sat at the side gloomily. Chapter 6 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations The ox cart drove on the yellow dirt road in the field. The villagers in the paddy fields on both sides were working hard. The scene gave off a sense of vitality. The old man drove the car to the entrance of the village and stopped. He pointed at the bungalow not far away and said, ¡°The village has arranged a temporary dormitory for you all. You can reach it after walking straight for a few hundred meters. It¡¯s a three-bedroom apartment. It¡¯s very easy to recognize. The village chief is waiting for you guys there. I still have to rush to the field to work. Get off the cart and walk over.¡± Yu Bing knew that it was the harvest season. If the harvest was reduced late in the season, the already tight supply of food would be even more insufficient. This was a matter of life and death. Although she was weak and her body was already a little tired from the long ride, she could still slowly walk a few hundred meters. When the others heard the old man¡¯s words, they all understood. Only Yu Yan was dissatisfied. However, when she saw that everyone had gotten out of the car to get their luggage, she couldn¡¯t say anything else. She only muttered indignantly as she got out of the car, ¡°I¡¯m already exhausted from sitting in the car for so long. I still have to walk with so many things. He¡¯s not even willing to send us for a few hundred meters more. People say that villagers are compassionate, but they can¡¯t even do this simple task.¡± The old man couldn¡¯t stand Yu Yan to begin with. In order to pick them up, he had already delayed half a day¡¯s work. Now that he was being complained about, he became angry and shouted, ¡°Young lady, do you think I can¡¯t hear you muttering behind my back? If you have any objections, say it loudly. You¡¯re so fussy and high-maintenance. You guys haven¡¯t even started working, but you¡¯re already accusing others for being weak and about to faint. She took a long bus here just like you, but she didn¡¯t say that she couldn¡¯t walk a few hundred meters. You¡¯re so burly, yet you still talk so much nonsense! I think you just look burly. That little girl might even be stronger than you, yet you say that she¡¯s weak.¡± Seeing that they had already taken their things out of the car, the old man didn¡¯t give Yu Yan a chance to retort. He directly chased the ox head straight to the field, leaving Yu Yan fuming. When Yu Bing saw this, she pursed her lips and chuckled. In her previous life, she was stupid and was instigated by Yu Yan to discuss it with him. He pitied her for her poor health and sent them to a place. However, it was also because of this that Yu Yan used this as an excuse to say that she was weak and sickly, causing her to be ostracized the moment she arrived in the village. After all, no one wanted to have another burden in their team. Later, she coaxed her into thinking she was doing this to help her get an easy job. In this life, if she didn¡¯t take her bait and no one helped Yu Yan, her plans would indeed be disrupted. The six of them walked to the temporary shelter under the scorching sun and saw a burly man standing in the courtyard. He was about 40 years old and his patched clothes and pants were stained with mud. He seemed to have just rushed over from the ground. When he saw them, he smiled and shook hands with them one by one. ¡°Comrades, it¡¯s been hard on you! I¡¯m the village chief of Heshan Village, Sun Wang.¡± Only then did everyone officially introduce themselves. The bespectacled and scholarly boy was called Liu Ming. The tall and thin boy beside him was called Qian Hao, and the smiling boy was called Li Zhen. Yu Yan, Yu Bing, and Jiang Chun also gave their names and hometowns. Sun Wang looked at the names on the list in his hand one by one. After confirming that there was no problem, he looked up and said, ¡°The dormitory is full now, but every year, there are people who get married and move out, or befriend other villagers and move in. So every year, the young people who participate in the construction will stay here for a few months first. The conditions are bad, so you guys should tolerate it.¡± Everyone expressed their understanding. In order to gain favor with the village chief, Yu Yan raised her head and said, ¡°Village Chief Mr. Sun, we came here to contribute and are prepared to work hard. Don¡¯t worry, this bit of difficulty is nothing!¡± Sun Wang saw Yu Yan¡¯s proactive attitude and nodded in satisfaction. ¡°Then rest well today. We¡¯ll start work tomorrow.¡± Sun Wang said the arrangements and went to work again. Yu Bing looked at the familiar house and sighed with emotion. She was back again! Everyone looked at the three rooms. One was the kitchen, and among the remaining two rooms, one was for men and one was for women. There was also a bathroom at the back. Seeing that everyone had been assigned, Yu Bing said, ¡°The boys are in charge of filling the water tank and chopping wood. Yu Yan, you clean the kitchen. Jiang Chun and I will wash the pot and start a fire to cook.¡± The three boys were worried that no one would cook, so when they heard this arrangement, they readily accepted the task they were responsible for, took their tools, and left. Only Yu Yan walked up to her with an indignant expression. She glared at her and said, ¡°Why should you assign the tasks?!¡± Chapter 7 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Bing turned to look at Yu Yan with a smile as she said indifferently, ¡°Then you can assign the tasks.¡± Yu Yan looked at Yu Bing and turned around proudly to size up the kitchen. She thought about what simple work she wanted to do. However, when she looked at the earthen stove and the few large pots in the kitchen, then at the rice in everyone¡¯s lunch boxes on the table and the vegetables and oil the village had prepared for their lunch, she felt that she could only clean up. Thus, she rolled her eyes at Yu Bing and started to clean with the broom made of straw placed on the stove. The current Yu Yan no longer hid her dissatisfaction with Yu Bing. Her hatred for her sister made her give up on her plan to be gentle at first. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t be bothered to argue with Yu Yan, but Jiang Chun didn¡¯t want to indulge her, so she specifically walked to Yu Yan and rolled her eyes. Yu Yan pouted as she watched the two of them go against her. She chose to remain silent and only secretly stared at the rice in her lunch box to see if they had transferred it to Yu Bing¡¯s lunch box. In order to eat early, Yu Yan didn¡¯t play tricks when she cleaned. She obediently cleaned the stove, swept the floor, and swept the spider webs in the corners. With everyone working together, they finally had lunch an hour later. After the meal, everyone gathered under the eaves to chat. There were only a few families in front of the temporary residence. They could see the fields directly in front of the house. The villagers had all gone home to eat. They could only see the rice, which had been mostly harvested already, in the field. The few of them drank warm water and looked at the scene that they could only see in textbooks when they were studying in the city. At this moment, a breeze happened to blow in their faces, making everyone temporarily forget their fatigue from long-distance travel. The scenery in front of them seemed quite unique. Li Zhen rubbed his hands. Under the other two¡¯s signaling, he said, ¡°Yu Bing, the three of us don¡¯t know how to cook. Can we eat with you?¡± The other two boys also expressed that they would be in charge of fetching firewood and water. Yu Bing agreed readily. ¡°Alright, then Jiang Chun and I will be in charge of cooking in the future.¡± Yu Bing looked at the silent Yu Yan and took the initiative to ask, ¡°Yu Yan, if you want to join us, you can be in charge of cleaning our room and courtyard every day.¡± Yu Yan raised her head proudly and said, ¡°I plan to move in with the villagers tomorrow, but I¡¯ll still eat with you guys tonight. Yu Bing, your culinary skills are really not that good.¡± After saying that, she even shook her head in disdain. Everyone couldn¡¯t help but think of how tasty the food Yu Yan had cooked was during lunch just now. They didn¡¯t think it wasn¡¯t good. If it was anyone else asking this question, Yu Yan might have agreed. However, it was Yu Bing who asked this question. Yu Yan was even more determined to go against her. She decided to go to the village later to see if there were any families who could cooperate. Before she came, Yu Yan had already found out that people like them who came to the city to the countryside to support the rural construction could use their rations to go to the villagers¡¯ houses. The villagers¡¯ families usually raised chickens, and the children at home sometimes went to the river to fish. The people who cooperated with them could occasionally eat meat. When Yu Yan, who was originally hesitating, heard that Yu Bing wanted her to clean the room and courtyard, she was even more unhappy. Yu Bing didn¡¯t know how to cook when she first arrived in the countryside in her previous life. Yu Yan chose to go to the villagers¡¯ house. However, when she thought of what happened later, Yu Bing secretly chuckled. This time, she took the initiative to lure her into saying that she wouldn¡¯t eat with them anymore. The boys could also tell that although there were three girls, there were two camps. However, they had come all the way here together. Everyone saw Yu Yan¡¯s actions towards Yu Bing. They were a little unhappy with Yan Yan¡¯s provocative actions and secretly heaved a sigh of relief that they learned that they didn¡¯t have to eat together with Yu Yan anymore. After discussing, everyone returned to their rooms to take a nap. An hour later, everyone got up one after another. This was because the village chief had arranged for everyone to be given 30 pounds of rice and 2 taels of oil per month. However, they could think of ways to buy vegetables from the local villagers, or exchange them with stamps and items that the villagers needed. Of course, they could also plant them themselves. Yu Bing planned to exchange for some vegetables, eggs, and vegetable seeds. The boys also took the initiative to pay for the food. After all, they could pay for the rice themselves, but Yu Bing couldn¡¯t use her own stamps and money to exchange for the vegetables. After some discussion, they handed them over to Yu Bing for exchange. Yu Bing brought Jiang Chun to a family not far from the resettlement point. This family had a lame widow and two sons. The eldest son sacrificed himself for the country during war, and the youngest son was a soldier in the army. Chapter 8 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations The village took good care of her and assigned her the job of raising pigs. She just had to take good care of the pigs. Therefore, although there were no men at home, no one dared to look for trouble. In addition, she was a generous person and had always been popular in the village. When Yu Bing saw the door open, she shouted, ¡°Hello, is anyone home?¡± ¡°I¡¯m coming.¡± A middle-aged woman wearing a dark scarf was limping, but she looked energetic. Auntie Zhao looked at the two young ladies in front of her and knew that they must be the group of young people who had just arrived at the village today. She smiled and said, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± Yu Bing smiled and replied, ¡°Hello, Madam. We¡¯re here to build a village. My name is Yu Bing, and her name is Jiang Chun. We want to buy some vegetables, eggs, and seeds from you.¡± Auntie Zhao said cheerfully, ¡°Sure, I can¡¯t finish them alone anyway. My surname is Zhao. You can call me Auntie Zhao from now on.¡± As she spoke, she led the two of them to the vegetable field in her backyard. She took a large bunch of each vegetable from the bamboo basket at the side and took some vegetable seeds. ¡°Fortunately, you came quickly. Otherwise, I would have had to pick pig grass later.¡± With that, she quickly turned into the house and started picking eggs from the bamboo basket beside the bed. ¡°Young lady, how many eggs do you want?¡± Yu Bing hurriedly replied, ¡°Madam, I want six. I¡¯ll come back after finishing them.¡± Auntie Zhao chose six of the biggest eggs from the dozen eggs. ¡°No problem. You can come to visit me when you¡¯re free.¡± Yu Bing knew from her previous life that many people from the construction village would come here to exchange things. This was because Auntie Zhao was warm and easygoing, and the prices of the items she exchanged were very fair. However, in her previous life, because she was focused on saving money and sending food home, she couldn¡¯t bear to eat eggs. It was because of a serious illness that she bought two eggs from Auntie Zhao to replenish her nutrition. This was the only time they interacted. Jiang Chun took the bamboo basket from Auntie Zhao. Yu Bing replied mischievously, ¡°As long as you don¡¯t find us annoying, Auntie, how much are these veggies and eggs?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t mind. Just give me one cent for these veggies. Five cents for one egg. I don¡¯t need money for the vegetable seeds. I¡¯ll give them to you guys.¡± Yu Bing and Jiang Chun looked at the smiling Auntie Zhao and then at each other in embarrassment. If they were to find someone else to exchange this basket of vegetables, they would have had to pay at least two cents. As for the eggs, they could only buy them in the city¡¯s supply company when they had time off work. One egg would cost seven cents, and they had to buy them with stamps. This was because in this era, each family could only raise two chickens at most. Their own families didn¡¯t even have enough to eat. Due to Auntie Zhao¡¯s special situation, the village had discussed and allowed them to raise two more. In addition, Auntie Zhao usually lived alone and ate little, so she could sell them to who needed eggs. Yu Bing knew that the old lady wanted people to come and go for the sake of liveliness and didn¡¯t care about this bit of money, so she didn¡¯t refuse anymore. She only made up her mind to come more often in the future and help the old lady do some work. ¡°Then I won¡¯t stand on ceremony. Thank you!¡± After paying, Yu Bing carefully transferred the vegetables in the basket into the bag she brought. After saying goodbye to the woman, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun walked back. Jiang Chun asked curiously, ¡°Little Bing, how did you know that this woman would exchange veggies with us?¡± After all, there were a few families nearby, but Yu Bing walked straight to Auntie Zhao¡¯s house. Yu Bing¡¯s eyes flickered. She pretended to be calm and said, ¡°I chose her randomly. Anyway, I could ask the next family if she didn¡¯t exchange with us.¡± Jiang Chun nodded without thinking much about it. Then, she suddenly thought of something and asked, ¡°By the way, why did you say that to Yu Yan on the train?¡± Yu Bing calmly said the answer she had long prepared, ¡°I just felt that she was deliberately trying to get close to me. It seemed strange, so I was on guard. I want others to think that my family is constantly paying attention to my safety, so they won¡¯t dare to bully me.¡± When Jiang Chun heard this, her eyes widened in agreement. ¡°At that time, I felt that her smile was a little fake, especially when she said those words to you. I knew that my intuition was right!¡± The two of them chatted for a while before returning to the location. They placed the vegetables in the kitchen. Yu Bing took her eggs and temporarily placed them in the pocket of her bag. Yu Yan was writing a letter on the wooden table. Jiang Chun also took out a pen and paper. ¡°I have to write a letter to report my safety to my parents.¡± Yu Bing finally left the Yu family and didn¡¯t want to write to contact the Yu family anymore. However, when she saw Yu Yan, she changed her mind and took out her stationery. ¡°Me too. Otherwise, my parents would be worried.¡± Chapter 9 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations From the corner of Yu Bing¡¯s eye, she saw Yu Yan stop writing for a moment. Then, when she wrote again, she could see that she was holding the pen even tighter. A smile appeared on Yu Bing¡¯s lips. She treated it as collecting some interest from Yu Yan for setting her up in her previous life. Then, she sat at the square table in the middle of the room and started writing something with a pen. After thinking for a moment, she had an idea. She first described the tough life in the countryside in detail. The farming work was heavy, and at the end, she even wrote that her body was even weaker after the journey. She wrote that if she didn¡¯t have enough money to go to the doctor, she hoped that her family could support her with more money and stamps. Yu Bing smiled and looked at her preemptive letter in satisfaction. She would kill the Yu family¡¯s intention to exploit her in advance. However, in Yu Yan¡¯s eyes, Yu Bing was happily telling her family that she had arrived safely. She felt indignant again. She looked at Yu Bing as if she was looking at a thief who had stolen her family and happiness. Yu Bing ignored Yu Yan¡¯s gaze and placed the letter into her luggage. She leaned closer to Jiang Chun, who was still writing, and whispered a few words into her ear. Then, she went out to discuss planting vegetables with Liu Ming and the others. Yu Bing knocked twice on the boys¡¯ room¡¯s open door and said gently, ¡°Jiang Chun and I asked for some vegetable seeds. After all, it¡¯s not sustainable to keep buying vegetables.¡± Speaking of which, Yu Bing was the youngest among them. Originally, the three of them thought that with Yu Bing¡¯s gentle and frail appearance, she would definitely be a sensitive young lady. Who knew that after interacting with her for a day, they discovered that she was efficient, meticulous, generous, and cheerful? On the other hand, the tall and fit Yu Yan was the fussy troublemaker. The older Liu Ming immediately replied, ¡°I think it¡¯s feasible. Since we¡¯re here to build a village, we have to be prepared in the long-term.¡± The other two agreed and turned over half of the land that the young man who had previously lived here had reclaimed. Considering that it was only for a month or two, they decided to only turn over half an acre of land and sprinkle some water on the seeds. After they were done, it was already evening. Only then did Yu Yan slowly return to the resettlement point. Seeing everyone return from planting vegetables in their own land in exhaustion, she felt that she had made a wise decision by joining forces with the villagers. Then, Yu Yan and everyone handed the lunch box containing the rice to Yu Bing and steamed it in the pot. After eating, Yu Yan ran out again. Yu Bing, Jiang Chun, and three boys carried firewood and water to fill the two large pots that were used for cooking with water to boil water and shower. One pot was used to heat up the boy¡¯s bath, while the other pot was used to boil water. Half of it was boiled to drink, and the other half was used for the two girls¡¯ bathe. Seeing that both pots of hot water had been used up, Qian Hao was thinking about what Yu Yan would do and was hesitating about whether to help her boil a pot. Liu Ming saw through Qian Hao¡¯s thoughts and whispered, ¡°Let¡¯s go back to our room. Just now, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun were in charge of boiling water together, but in order to let everyone rest early after showering, they also took a basin to fetch water. Yu Bing almost fell. But what about Yu Yan? She left after eating and didn¡¯t do anything. Why do you still care about her?¡± On the other side of the room, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun were lying comfortably on the bed and talking after taking a hot shower. Bang! The door was pushed open and hit the wall beside it. Yu Yan pushed the door open angrily. ¡°Why isn¡¯t there hot water for me?!¡± Yu Bing sneered. Seeing this, Jiang Chun immediately turned around and sat on the bed. ¡°What do you mean by hot water for you? Did you fetch the water? Or did you pick the firewood? Or did you help boil the water?¡± Yu Yan replied indignantly, ¡°I was assigned to clean the kitchen previously. I¡¯ve already done it. Why can¡¯t I have a share of the hot water?!¡± Yu Bing stood up and looked at Yu Yan as she said softly, ¡°Are you planning to reap all the benefits after cleaning the kitchen only once?¡± ¡°Everyone except you picked water together. Don¡¯t take advantage of others¡¯ hard work. We¡¯re not your parents, so we have no obligation to spoil you.¡± Yu Yan didn¡¯t think that there was anything wrong with her not working. She only felt that Yu Bing was taking the lead in targeting her. ¡°You guys are bullying me together!¡± After saying that, she rushed out of the door and walked to the kitchen. She saw that there was still half of cold water in the tub. Fortunately, it was midsummer, so Yu Yan could take a simple cold shower. She felt hatred. Mr. Yu and Mrs. Yu, who she had been looking forward to seeing, were also resented at this moment. She hated them for giving birth to Yu Bing, who always went against her! The two people in the room were also talking about Yu Yan. Chapter 10 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Jiang Chun said in confusion, ¡°You asked me not to leave the room before Yu Yan left today. Then, I slowly wrote the letter and saw that she had been secretly looking at the bag you put the letter in. However, because I deliberately slowed down, she couldn¡¯t wait anymore and left. Little Bing, why do I feel that she really wants to see what you wrote?¡± Yu Bing also pretended to be puzzled and replied, ¡°I don¡¯t know. When I wrote the letter, I felt that she kept peeking, so I specifically told you that.¡± Jiang Chun couldn¡¯t figure it out, so she changed the topic. Because they had to start working in the fields the next day, everyone chose to sleep early. The next day, just as the sky lit up, they heard the crowing of a rooster in the village. Yu Bing immediately got up and cooked the rice that everyone had given her last night. She steamed two eggplants and picked a little chili sauce from the chili sauce jar she had brought to smear on the cut eggplants. She poured a little soy sauce and cooked two eggs for herself and Jiang Chun. Yu Bing looked at the breakfast she had prepared with satisfaction. It looked, smelled, and tasted good! When Jiang Chun saw the egg Yu Bing handed her, she said, ¡°Little Bing, stop cooking eggs for me. You bought this. I can¡¯t eat your food for free every time!¡± Yu Bing knew that Jiang Chun¡¯s kindness towards her was pure, and she also knew that Jiang Chun wasn¡¯t greedy. She wanted to treat whoever treated her well ten times better. Hence, she could only agree. ¡°Alright, I won¡¯t prepare it next time. It¡¯s already cooked. Eat this first. If you don¡¯t want to eat it, I¡¯ll prepare yours again next time.¡± Jiang Chun looked at Yu Bing¡¯s cheeky smile and nodded helplessly. At this moment, the three boys entered the kitchen. The three of them drank plain porridge and ate eggplants mixed with chili. This was their first day of work. After dinner, they went to the field early to wait for arrangements. In this era, there was a work score system. The village chief would customize the score according to the amount of work done. For example, the highest score for farming was 10 points. This was because farming was very difficult. If one completed their work on time that day and didn¡¯t slack off, the team leader would get a full score of 10 points after reporting to the scorekeeper. If one was late, left early, or was caught slacking, the corresponding score would be deducted. Another example was that one could get three points for chasing the sheep raised in the village. This was a simple job. It only took one to two hours a day. Generally, teenagers would be responsible for it and the corresponding score would be given according to the child¡¯s performance. Similarly, the highest score for this job was only three points. These work points would affect the food, stamps, and money that everyone would eventually get, so everyone worked hard. This time, Yu Bing was assigned to pull the seedlings. She washed the soil on the seedlings and tied them into a bunch before throwing them to the person who inserted the seedlings. With the experience from her previous life, Yu Bing led Jiang Chun to make various protective measures in advance, like wearing hats and long-sleeve clothes. They were assigned to different groups. At this moment, Yu Yan rushed over. She left the house a little late in the morning. When she arrived at the villager¡¯s house, she only saw the child watching the house. Only then did she know that the villagers ate two meals a day. She could only come to work on an empty stomach. However, the villager¡¯s house she worked with was a little far from the field, so she was late. On the first day of work, she was late. Sun Wang looked at Yu Yan in dissatisfaction and arranged for her to be in the planting team, which planted the seeds into the field. Planting seedlings was more tiring than pulling seedlings, and she had to bend down. Yu Yan walked to the planting team and saw that everyone had been working at a 90-degree angle. She then looked at Yu Bing and understood that Yu Bing¡¯s job was easier than hers. She thought about how to swap jobs with her. She came up with an idea and started walking towards Yu Bing. At this moment, Yu Bing was learning from her team leader. Although she had done it in her previous life, there was no harm in learning it again. The team leader saw that Yu Bing¡¯s speed was neither fast nor slow, but her posture was standard. She was very surprised by the learning ability of this young lady from the city. She didn¡¯t know that the girl in front of her had already done farm work for a few years in her previous life. ¡°Yu Bing.¡± Yu Bing turned around and saw Yu Yan looking at her with a smile. She was secretly amazed. The two of them had already had such a tense fight yesterday, yet she still came to look for her. Yu Bing smiled and replied, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± Yu Yan immediately pretended to be pitiful. ¡°I want to apologize to you. This is the first time I left home, so I wasn¡¯t in a good mood. I treated you badly yesterday. I hope you can forgive me.¡± In her previous life, Yu Yan had always been tough in front of her. Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect her to act pitiful. She pretended not to care and said generously, ¡°It¡¯s okay, I don¡¯t blame you. Don¡¯t take it to heart.¡± When Yu Yan wanted to reply, she said seriously, ¡°But Yu Yan, it¡¯s work time now. If you want to talk, let¡¯s talk when we get back. Work is more important now.¡± Chapter 11 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations After Yu Bing finished speaking, she turned around and continued working. She snickered to herself. In her previous life, she had fallen for Yu Yan¡¯s trap and changed jobs with her. If she didn¡¯t know Yu Yan¡¯s purpose, then she would have let down the heavens for giving her this chance to be reborn. Yu Yan was instantly speechless. She looked at Yu Bing, whose back was facing her, and her expression was very ugly. At this moment, when the team members beside Yu Bing heard their conversation, they stared at Yu Yan as if they knew that she wanted to slack off. Yu Yan could only reluctantly turn around and leave before returning to the field she was responsible for. Yu Bing¡¯s team leader was a middle-aged woman called Zhao Gui. She hated people who played tricks and slacked off the most. After witnessing the scene just now, her impression of Yu Bing improved. She was smart and diligent. The sun in July and August was especially scorching. Yu Bing was scorched by the summer heat. Her face was pale and large beads of sweat were flowing down. However, compared to her previous life, when she felt dizzy on the first day of going to the lower field, she was already doing much better than before. With previous experience, Yu Bing naturally knew how to work more efficiently. Moreover, the exercise she had done before coming to the countryside had indeed made her stronger. In the distance, Jiang Chun was working as quickly as possible. She wanted to finish what she was responsible for as soon as possible and rush over to help Yu Bing. Therefore, although it was her first day of work, she was only slightly slower than the veteran team members. Yu Yan, who was in the same group as Jiang Chun, was much slower. Because she hadn¡¯t eaten breakfast in the morning, Yu Yan, who hadn¡¯t done much work when back at home, felt exhausted. In addition, without the cover of a hat and under the scorching sun, Yu Yan suddenly felt a little dizzy and fell down. Before she could catch her breath, she was called on by the team leader Li Ping. In fact, for some of the city people who had never worked at home, it was their first time doing such high-intensity labor. Yu Yan¡¯s situation was very normal. Although Jiang Chun was an only daughter, her family wasn¡¯t rich. She had suffered a lot since she was young. However, they were from the same batch. They were also in the same group. With this comparison, Li Ping was naturally a little dissatisfied with Yan, so she kept a closer eye on her. After about half an hour, Jiang Chun finished her work and walked towards Yu Bing. ¡°I¡¯ll help you. Go back and cook first.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine. I can hold on!¡± Yu Bing panted slightly. Yu Bing hadn¡¯t stopped to rest for the entire morning except for drinking water. Others occasionally slacked off, so their progress wasn¡¯t much worse than the others. Zhao Gui saw all of this, and at this moment, Yu Bing¡¯s face was even paler than before. She said amiably, ¡°Since someone is helping you and you¡¯re in charge of cooking, you can go back first.¡± Jiang Chun said jokingly, ¡°Go back. We want to eat as soon as we get home.¡± Yu Bing saw that there wasn¡¯t much left of her portion, so she nodded and went back first. When Yu Yan saw that Yu Bing had left early, she felt excited. She felt that she had caught her red-handed. However, she didn¡¯t choose to complain immediately. Instead, she made a mental note. After she reached home, Yu Bing steamed the rice and made cucumber salad, stir-fried zucchini, and loofah egg soup. After everyone arrived home, they ate their lunch with relish. Because their clothes were already drenched in sweat, everyone prepared to take a bath before resting. The boys weren¡¯t that high maintenance. They took a cold shower and went to rest. On the other hand, Yu Bing had used two basins to hold water and placed them on the empty space in front of the house to dry. The temperature of the water was just right after dinner. Jiang Chun touched the water in the basin. ¡°Little Bing, your idea is really brilliant. The temperature is just right. Not only can we take a warm bath, but we can also save a lot of firewood.¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°I learned it from the villagers.¡± The two of them had just finished showering and changed into dry clothes to lie down when Yu Yan returned from the villagers¡¯ home to rest. When she entered the kitchen, she didn¡¯t see any hot water. She thought that everyone had boiled it and didn¡¯t leave any for her. Even the water in the tub was empty, and there was only enough water to fill the kettle she drank from. Yu Yan was already filled with anger when she ate at the villager¡¯s house today. Not only did she not eat breakfast, but she also didn¡¯t wash the rice for lunch properly, causing her to accidentally bite into small stones twice. The plates still had grease that hadn¡¯t been washed clean, and the food weren¡¯t as tasty as the food Yu Bing cooked. Thus, she threw the pot lid onto the iron pot with a bang. She took the empty bucket and planned to get water from the well one kilometer away from the dormitory. Chapter 12 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Beside the dormitory, there was the village¡¯s warehouse for storing food. In front of it, there was a very large place for drying rice. The children in the village liked to come here to play. A 10-year-old girl saw Yu Yan running up with a bucket. ¡°Are you here to get water to take a bath?¡± Yu Yan looked at the little girl in front of her. She had two braids and her big eyes were widened. She was very cute. Because she thought that she was just an ordinary child from the village, she didn¡¯t speak and only nodded. The girl smiled warmly again. ¡°Although the weather is hot, be careful of catching a cold with the water from the well. You can go to the pool to get water. The water temperature there is higher.¡± The mud on the villagers¡¯ hands and feet, as well as the water spiders, flying animals, and other plankton immediately appeared in Yu Yan¡¯s mind. She pursed her lips and rolled her eyes. She felt that the people in the village were really slobs. So she left with the bucket. However, when she found out that this little girl was the daughter of the village¡¯s female director, Wang Xia, she regretted it so much that she wanted to bang her head against the wall. At this moment, Wang Xia looked at Yu Yan¡¯s back. She realized that she was a city person who looked down on villagers. She went to her best friend¡¯s house angrily. Wang Xia¡¯s best friend, Xiao Li, lived at the end of the village, very close to the foot of the mountain. There were only a few families living there. ¡°Xiao Li¡­ Xiao Li¡­¡± Before Wang Xia arrived, Xiao Li heard her loud voice from the main room. A happy smile appeared on her face, and even her unfocused eyes were filled with mirth. The moment Wang Xia entered, she saw a 20-year-old man weaving a bamboo basket in the courtyard. She smiled and shouted, ¡°Brother Xiao Sheng!¡± Xiao Sheng raised his head and replied. Then, he lowered his head and continued what he was doing. Wang Xia jogged into the house and sat on the stool beside Xiao Li while talking about what had just happened. Xiao Sheng, who was outside the house, heard all of this. The scene he saw at the village entrance yesterday surfaced in his mind. Wang Xia¡¯s description made him think of Yu Yan, whose face was filled with anger. However, what left the deepest impression on Xiao Sheng was the thin girl carrying the luggage. Her face was pale and her footsteps were weak. It could be seen that she was very tired at that time, but she still rejected the help of another girl and followed closely behind everyone. However, Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t care about this. The scene from yesterday flashed past his mind, and his attention returned to his own business. To Xiao Sheng, finding a way to earn enough money to treat his sister¡¯s eyes was what he was most concerned about. On the other side, Yu Yan finally carried half a bucket of water back and took a bath. Just as she laid down and fell asleep, she heard the announcement for work in the afternoon. She could only wake up with a tired expression. The large tank was filled with water by the boys who had already woken up. Because the weather was hot at noon, the boys were strong enough to take a cold shower. However, the temperature in the village was a little low at night, so it was best to take a warm shower. In order to conserve firewood, everyone placed their basins and buckets in the open space to sunbathe. Yu Yan hurriedly followed suit. Seeing this, Yu Bing said, ¡°Yu Yan, if you need water in the future, you¡¯ll be in charge of cleaning the dormitory¡¯s courtyard and kitchen every day.¡± Yu Yan immediately acted pitiful and said softly, ¡°I actually don¡¯t need much water myself. Besides, you didn¡¯t fetch the water. The boys did.¡± Liu Ming and Qian Hao looked at Yu Yan¡¯s pitiful expression and felt that it was inappropriate to argue with a girl. Just as they were about to let it go, they heard Li Zhen¡¯s words. ¡°Everyone is currently staying in this dormitory together. Everyone should contribute. In order to enjoy benefits, you should naturally have the obligation to contribute.¡± Li Zhen was the kind of person who didn¡¯t like to fuss over petty things, but that didn¡¯t mean that he would tolerate everything. The problem of using water would always exist. It was unfair to others if Yu Yan kept using water for free. He was very much in favor of Yu Bing asking questions from the start. He wanted to be polite first before being blunt. Otherwise, as time passed, everyone would definitely have resentment in their hearts. Why should they work hard while others enjoyed the results of their hard work? Yu Yan looked at Li Zhen with a gentle smile. The other boys were silent and could only nod in agreement. Chapter 13 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Everyone arrived at the field together. Everyone continued to work according to the division of labor in the morning. Because Yu Yan didn¡¯t rest well, she felt even more tired, and her performance was worse than in the morning. With this contrast, Li Ping looked at Jiang Chun, who was still working hard. She thought of the news she had heard in the afternoon and felt tempted. She planted seedlings with Jiang Chun. ¡°Jiang Chun, I heard that you and the Yu Bing family¡¯s work in the same factory?¡± Jiang Chun subconsciously replied, ¡°Yes.¡± Li Ping pretended to be nonchalant and continued to ask, ¡°Then what other siblings do you have?¡± Jiang Chun didn¡¯t think much of it and replied honestly, ¡°I¡¯m an only child. I don¡¯t have any siblings.¡± Li Ping¡¯s eyes lit up when she heard this. Being an only daughter meant that everything in the Jiang family would be left to Jiang Chun in the future. Moreover, without the support of her siblings, if she married into their family, she would be at her mercy. She immediately thought about how to matchmake Jiang Chun and her son. On the other side, Yu Bing was much better after her nap. However, her body couldn¡¯t withstand continuing to work in such a high-intensity field, so she thought about her future as she worked. In her previous life, after returning to the city due to policy reasons, Yu Bing had never done farm work again. Therefore, when she first started working in the morning, her hands were still a little rusty. However, after half a day, Yu Bing¡¯s speed gradually increased. Pulling the seeds were a little easier than planting them. Yu Bing finished work faster than Jiang Chun in the afternoon, so she told Jiang Chun and decided to go back to cook first. Li Zhen, who was passing by with a tired look on his face, instantly perked up. ¡°What are we eating tonight? I feel like I¡¯m about to collapse after working all day. If a big pot of rice appeared now, I could finish it immediately!¡± During the harvesting and planting period, the farming tasks were more important than usual. During this period of time, everyone would eat well and nourish themselves. Otherwise, many farmers wouldn¡¯t be able to withstand the intense labor. Yu Bing thought for a while and said, ¡°I still have three eggs left from yesterday. I¡¯ll stir-fry some chives with eggs, carrots, beans, and vegetables.¡± Although there was no meat, Yu Bing planned to make up for it with quantity. Moreover, eggs were nutritious and could at least nourish everyone¡¯s bodies. After the heavy labor, Li Zhen and Jiang Chun felt motivated when they thought of what they would eat for dinner. When Yu Yan heard their conversation, she couldn¡¯t help but feel proud of the small piece of fish she had eaten this afternoon. Although it was only a small piece, it was still fish. Moreover, she didn¡¯t have to cook herself. Seeing that Yu Bing still had to go back and cook after a day of farm work, she felt very happy. ¡°Yu Yan!¡± Li Ping¡¯s voice sounded again. Yu Yan bent down and resigned herself to work. Seeing that there was still a small half of the field that hadn¡¯t been planted with seedlings, her mood plummeted again. On the way home, Yu Bing met two children who were roasting mudfish by the stream. There were more than ten swimming in the shallow water in the wooden basin beside them. She had an idea. Yu Bing smiled as she quickly walked over and said with a smile, ¡°Can I use candy to exchange for loaches?¡± When the two seven and eight-year-old children heard that they could get candy, they immediately agreed happily. In this era, unless it was a wedding or the new year, children wouldn¡¯t be able to eat candy. On the other hand, loaches could be caught by rural children with little effort. Moreover, because it tasted muddy, no one liked to eat it. Only children who were very hungry would catch it and roast it. Because Yu Bing had slight hypoglycemia, she had the habit of carrying candy with her. She took out the two candies from her pocket and exchanged them with loaches. She watched as the two children immediately stuffed the candies into their mouths and instructed the children to go to the temporary dormitory to look for her to get the wooden basin after dinner. Yu Bing carried the wooden basin towards the dormitory with a smile. After all, even if there was little meat, it was still meat. She had a way to solve the problem of the heavy muddy taste. At that moment, a 10-year-old boy suddenly ran to Yu Bing¡¯s side. ¡°My name is Xiao Lin. I can catch loaches for you. I only want one candy in exchange for 10 loaches. Can you look for me to help you catch them in the future?¡± Yu Bing looked at the dark-eyed boy and thought that he might have seen the scene just now. She was impressed with this child for being so smart and knowing how to do long-term business. Yu Bing pretended to hesitate in order to tease him. She didn¡¯t expect him to look at her calmly. At that moment, Xiao Lin was actually very worried that Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t agree, but he thought of his brother¡¯s words: When negotiating with others, the more hesitant they appear, the calmer he had to appear. Once others knew that he was more anxious, the initiative would be in their hands. They could demand whatever conditions they wanted. Chapter 14 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Bing burst out laughing and was amused by Xiao Lin¡¯s serious look. ¡°No problem, but you can¡¯t eat it every day. You can just send it to the temporary dormitory once every three days. I¡¯ll take conchs too.¡± conchs tasted even muddier. It tasted worse than a loach if one didn¡¯t know how to cook it, so not many people ate it. Although Xiao Lin didn¡¯t know why Yu Bing was even willing to accept conchs, he felt that the group of youths who came to build the village were all greedy for meat. They were willing to eat any sort of meat, so he rolled his eyes and said, ¡°No problem, 10 loaches for 1 piece of candy. Is 50 conchs for a piece of candy okay?¡± Yu Bing thought about it and agreed. Xiao Lin decided to act immediately and ran home to get his tools. Yu Bing smiled and shook her head. She continued walking forward. When she was about to reach the dormitory with the wooden basin in her hand, she didn¡¯t notice the small pit under her feet. She lost her balance and fell forward. Just as Yu Bing thought that she was screwed, a strong arm supported her. A few loaches jumped out of the basin due to inertia, but most of them were still in the basin. After Yu Bing stabilized herself, she turned to look at the man in front of her. He had healthy tan skin and well-defined features. He was handsome, but tough-looking. The white coat that had some abrasion at the corners couldn¡¯t hide his muscular body. Yu Bing recognized the young man as Xiao Sheng. The two of them had never interacted in her previous life, but she had heard that the Xiao family¡¯s parents had died early, leaving the three siblings to rely on each other. There were also some girls in the village who liked Xiao Sheng¡¯s looks. They didn¡¯t mind marrying Xiao Sheng and supporting his siblings, but for some reason, Xiao Sheng had always rejected them. Even until she returned to the city, she didn¡¯t see Xiao Sheng get married. At this moment, Xiao Sheng was carrying a pole with empty baskets hanging on both sides. Seeing that Yu Bing had stabilized herself, he retracted his hand and walked in the opposite direction. The other party did a good deed without leaving his name. Yu Bing raised her eyebrows helplessly and squatted down to pick up the loaches that had fallen out. On the way back to the dormitory, she thought about where she had seen Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes before and suddenly smiled. He looked exactly the same as the little boy who had stopped him just now. Xiao Lin was probably Xiao Sheng¡¯s younger brother. When Yu Bing returned to the dormitory, she quickly removed the loaches¡¯ stomach and internal organs. Usually, when cooking, a tiny amount of oil would be smeared onto the pan with a cloth, but this time, she extravagantly poured a little oil into the pot and simply fried the loach with salt. The ginger was cut into pieces, and a few onions were thrown into the pot as well. The water began to boil slowly. After the soup was boiled to a milky white color, small pieces of mustard were placed into the pot. Everyone returned one after another and entered the kitchen. Yu Bing picked out the bundle of onions and placed them aside before putting in the chopped fresh onions. Everyone drooled. Because there was loach mustard soup, she didn¡¯t cook green vegetables anymore. Before the meal, everyone drank a large bowl of soup. Everyone got three loaches and the remaining one was given to Yu Bing. After everyone was full, the usually calm Liu Ming couldn¡¯t help but praise, ¡°Yu Bing, your culinary skills are superb!¡± Qian Hao also smiled and said, ¡°That¡¯s right. I didn¡¯t see much oil in the soup, but it didn¡¯t taste fishy at all. In the past, my mother made it a few times at home. She used a lot of oil to fry it. It tasted crispy.¡± Seeing that everyone was satisfied, Yu Bing was happy. In her previous life, after she returned to the city, in order to earn money, she went to a restaurant to work as a chef. Later, she opened a small restaurant on her own, so she developed good culinary skills. At that moment, Xiao Lin also carried a wooden basin to the temporary dormitory and shouted outside the kitchen, ¡°I¡¯m here with the loaches.¡± Everyone walked out when they heard the sound. Yu Bing took out a wooden basin from the kitchen and transferred the loach conchs in the basin while counting. In the end, she counted 18 loaches, 2 eel, and 100 conchs. Yu Bing took out a bag of candy from the room. The mints with frosting looked tasty. Xiao Lin didn¡¯t eat them immediately. Instead, he took out a small handkerchief and wiped his hand on his clothes twice. He reached out and carefully took four mints, then placed them in his handkerchief before wrapping them. When Yu Bing saw this, she felt pity for him. A penny could buy five mint candies, so giving one more was nothing to her. She smiled and said, ¡°You can take one more. By the way, my surname is Yu. You can call me Sister Yu.¡± Xiao Lin hurriedly shook his head. ¡°Sister Yu, the number I caught is only enough to exchange for four. The rest don¡¯t belong to me.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take my leave first. I¡¯ll come back in three days.¡± With that, he ran off with his basin and candy. Chapter 15 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Xiao Lin ran home with the candy and saw his brother weaving a bamboo basket in the courtyard under the moonlight. His sister was looking ahead while rubbing the hemp rope skillfully. ¡°Sister, open your mouth.¡± Xiao Li smiled and opened her mouth obediently. Xiao Lin opened his handkerchief and put a mint into Xiao Li¡¯s mouth. Then, he quickly sealed his sister¡¯s mouth with his hand. He smiled and asked, ¡°Is it sweet? You¡¯re not allowed to spit it out, or I¡¯ll ignore you.¡± Xiao Li felt the candy slowly melting on the tip of her tongue and nodded. Then, she took her hand off her mouth. ¡°Brother, did you give it all to me again?¡± Although it was a question, Xiao Li knew that Xiao Lin definitely didn¡¯t eat it. Xiao Lin quickly replied, ¡°I did. I couldn¡¯t help but eat one on the way.¡± Xiao Li looked suspicious. Xiao Sheng looked at the handkerchief and asked Xiao Lin how he got it. Xiao Lin told him the whole story. Hearing that Yu Bing had given him four candies, Xiao Li asked Xiao Lin for them. Xiao Lin handed them over without thinking much about it. Xiao Li felt that there were still three candies in her handkerchief and felt a little touched. She took out one and said sternly, ¡°Second Brother, you lied to me again. Come over and I¡¯ll feed you.¡± Xiao Lin slapped his forehead and realized that he had been seen through by Xiao Li. He didn¡¯t want to make his sister sad, so he obediently opened his mouth and ate the candy in Xiao Li¡¯s hand. He felt the unique coolness and sweetness of the mint candy and smiled. Xiao Li took out another one and said, ¡°I¡¯ll feed you.¡± Xiao Sheng looked at Xiao Li¡¯s serious expression. He could only helplessly extend his head and open his mouth to eat it. After confirming that both of them had eaten it, Xiao Li savored the candy in her mouth and felt extremely happy. Seeing how happy his siblings were, Xiao Sheng couldn¡¯t help but smile. His hands kept weaving as he said gently, ¡°I¡¯ll be back late tonight. Sleep early and leave the door open for me.¡± Xiao Lin¡¯s eyes lit up as he looked at Xiao Sheng. Xiao Sheng had inherited his father¡¯s hunting skills and often went up the mountain to secretly dig traps. Most of the prey he hunted was exchanged for money in the county¡¯s black market. In this era, there was public ownership and a centralized system. Private transactions were not allowed, but things were in short supply. The stamps obtained by people working in the city were limited every month, so there were often cases of people with money but no stamps, or people with money and stamps but no supplies in the supply companies! Thus, the black market appeared. Many people with connections found things that were difficult to buy from supply companies and looked for buyers to exchange for stamps or money, such as Xiao Sheng. However, the risk of black market transactions were very high. Once they were caught, they would be charged with speculation. At best, they would be criticized by everyone at the village meeting. In other words, they would be beaten and insulted. At worst, they would go to jail. Therefore, many people wouldn¡¯t go to the black market unless they had no choice. However, this phenomenon slowly disappeared after the reform. The planned economy turned into a market economy, and the entire country began to allow free trade. Xiao Lin knew that this was money to treat his sister¡¯s eyes. If not for the fact that he was worried about his sister being at home alone, he would have entered the mountain to help his brother dig a few more traps. Xiao Sheng guessed that most of the families in the village were asleep by now. He carried two empty baskets from the back of his house and went up the mountain. After walking for about half an hour, he stopped at a fork completely covered by tall weeds. After pushing aside the grass, Xiao Sheng carefully stepped over. He even turned his head to observe carefully. He only continued forward after seeing that there were no signs of anyone walking past. After walking for more than ten minutes, he first went to the place where the trap was dug. The trap caught a pheasant and a wild rabbit. He placed them in the basket. He continued walking for a while and entered a low-lying valley. Xiao Sheng had plowed two acres and planted many vegetables. Xiao Sheng quickly harvested them into the wicker basket and covered them with the tattered linen cloth he had prepared. After taking the things down the mountain, he made some turns before going into a hidden cave. He took out a dilapidated bicycle from a pile of weeds and placed the wicker basket on both sides. He rode towards the county in the darkness. Chapter 16 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations After Xiao Lin left, everyone surrounded the wooden basin excitedly. The eyes of the little fellows, who had just eaten the tasty loach mustard soup, lit up. These were all tasty meat! They could be exchanged for a few candy that cost less than a cent! After Yu Yan finished her meal, she returned to the dormitory. She saw everyone standing in the middle of the courtyard chatting and laughing, but no one saw her return. She was very angry. Yu Yan had been tall and beautiful since she was young. Because she was good at acting and was always polite in front of others, she was very well liked by her elders and was used to being the center of attention wherever she went. However, ever since she came to the countryside, she no longer had these privileges. She felt very indignant. When she got closer, she heard everyone discussing the loaches and eels in the wooden basin. Yu Yan¡¯s desire to cause trouble began to stir again. ¡°These things are very oily. Be careful, or you guys won¡¯t have any oil to cook with after half a month.¡± After saying that, Yu Yan looked like she was saying this for everyone¡¯s good. This sentence was like pouring a bucket of cold water on everyone¡¯s heads. The monthly ration of oil for the five people in the dormitory was only a catty of soybean oil. It was fine to eat lavishly once in a while like today, but with so much loaches and conchs, it was indeed unsustainable to eat them every day. In this era, oil was precious. Yu Yan wanted to use this to sow discord between everyone and Yu Bing. Yu Bing saw through Yu Yan¡¯s plan and sneered to herself. However, on the surface, she said with a kind expression, ¡°I saw that everyone was working so hard and wanted everyone to eat something good.¡± When Yu Yan heard Yu Bing¡¯s words, she thought that she had caught Yu Bing¡¯s weakness. She gloated and said, ¡°Everyone believed you since you were in charge! Sigh, now, these things have been exchanged for nothing.¡± When everyone heard this, they didn¡¯t blame Yu Bing. Everyone believed that she had good intentions, but when they looked at the wooden basin on the ground, they couldn¡¯t help but reveal worried expressions. When Yu Yan saw this, she was even happier and looked at Yu Bing provocatively. The anxiety on Yu Bing¡¯s face disappeared, and she smiled. Since Yu Bing dared to accept them, how could she not have thought of a way to solve the problem regarding oil? She said softly, ¡°I¡¯ve thought of a good idea. We can use it to make porridge in the morning. Loach and eel nourish the body and blood. Although it¡¯s more prickly than meat, it¡¯s at least more nutritious than eating plain porridge. We won¡¯t need much oil.¡± ¡°There¡¯s not much meat in conchs. We can save up a few times and pick out the conch meat together to stir-fry. It¡¯s okay to stir-fry oil-consuming vegetables once every half a month. That¡¯s an entire plate of meat! Moreover, conch meat is rich in protein and is very nutritious.¡± These words made everyone relax and smile. ¡°Yu Bing is so smart!¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that so? I couldn¡¯t think of this idea!¡± ¡°You only know how to eat. It would be strange if you could think of something.¡± Everyone laughed and praised Yu Bing¡¯s good idea. When Yu Yan saw that Yu Bing had turned the situation around, her expression instantly darkened. She glared at Yu Bing but was helpless. She rolled her eyes and entered the room. Yu Bing revealed a smile. After all, how could someone who had died once already be plotted against by Yu Yan so easily?! For the next few days, everyone was exhausted from working during the day. When they returned to the dormitory, they only wanted to sleep, so Yu Yan didn¡¯t have the strength to cause trouble anymore. On the evening of the third day, Xiao Lin took a large basin to exchange for candies. There were 20 loaches, 10 eels, and 150 conchs. He had caught them over the past two days. Yu Bing had used a total of six fish to cook the porridge in the past few mornings. She cooked loach mustard soup once every three days. Tonight, she used the remaining 12 fish to cook soup. Everyone had two fish. The extra two loaches were left for Xiao Lin after everyone agreed. Everyone was a little embarrassed that they had exchanged so much meat for less than a cent. So when she brought out the candies, she even brought out a bowl of loach mustard soup. Xiao Lin rejected her as usual. Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°You¡¯re quite principled. Isn¡¯t it normal for neighbors to give each other food? If you feel bad, catch two more loaches for me next time.¡± Xiao Lin¡¯s nose twitched a few times. He was tempted by the aroma of the soup. Yu Bing felt that Xiao Lin was too cute, so she smiled and instigated, ¡°Smell this loach soup. It¡¯s tasty and nutritious!¡± When Xiao Lin heard the word nutrition, he thought of his thin sister, so he took the bowl. ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll catch a few more eels for you next time!¡± After saying that, Xiao Lin placed the basin upside down on his head and carefully walked home with the soup. Chapter 17 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations When Xiao Lin arrived home, the Xiao family was about to eat when the door shouted, ¡°Brother, sister, look, this is loach soup. It¡¯s smells so good!¡± Xiao Sheng took the bowl and placed it on the table. He asked curiously, ¡°Didn¡¯t you go to exchange candies? Did someone from the dormitory give it to you?¡± ¡°Yes, Sister Yu gave it to me.¡± Xiao Li was fed a mouthful and said in surprise, ¡°It¡¯s so tasty! Brother, Second Brother, try it.¡± The two of them took turns drinking it and realized that it was indeed tasty. The families that were slightly more well-off would occasionally fry them to eat. There were once people who wanted to make soup, but there were too many bones and too little meat, and the fishy taste was too strong. Other than during the famine in the past, no one would take the initiative to eat it if they had a choice. Xiao Sheng suddenly had a thought and asked, ¡°Do you know who made this loach soup?¡± Xiao Lin stuffed sweet potatoes into his mouth and replied, ¡°Sister Yu made it. She¡¯s in charge of cooking in the dormitory.¡± Xiao Sheng immediately thought of the girl he had met twice. ¡°Is it the girl who is a little pale and very thin?¡± Xiao Lin nodded. Xiao Sheng thought about his plan and decided to observe first. After another 10 days, the harvesting finally ended. The village gave everyone two days of leave. The few people in the dormitory couldn¡¯t help but rejoice. When they came, they had already reached the latter half of the harvesting process. If they participated the entire time, they would probably shed a few layers of skin. However, because Yu Bing fed them a healthy diet and her culinary skills were good, although everyone felt tired, they were still in good spirits. At this moment, there was already a large basin of conchs that had been saved for half a month. The soil in the conchs had also been spat out. Yu Bing suggested that while they were resting tomorrow, everyone should go to the back of the mountain to take a walk. They would pluck some purple conch leaves to stir-fry the meat and see what food there was in the forest. The next day, everyone woke up naturally. Because Yu Yan had left early in the morning, everyone was happy that they didn¡¯t have to travel with her. After everyone in the dormitory woke up, they ate some sweet potatoes together and set off for the mountain. The bottled up emotions from when they were busy for half a month were vented during the climb. Yu Bing had seen people from the village picking purple root leaves on the mountain, so she suggested it. However, after everyone walked around for more than half an hour, they didn¡¯t see any. Instead, they harvested some wild apples that were sour and sweet. After everyone picked dozens of apples, they accidentally discovered a huge hornet¡¯s nest on another tree branch. They were instantly excited. In this era, sugar was valuable, and honey was even more valuable. Those who had honey couldn¡¯t bear to eat it themselves. They would only take it out to brew a cup of honey water for their guests when there were guests at home. Therefore, even though they knew that it was very dangerous to poke a hornet¡¯s nest, they still didn¡¯t want to give up. Yu Bing felt that it was too dangerous, but she couldn¡¯t dissuade everyone, so she let them fiddle around while she walked around to see if she could find purple leaves. Yu Bing walked further and further away and discovered a small patch of purple perilla. She pulled out a large bunch of it by the roots and planned to transplant it into the ground of the dormitory. However, when she walked back, she realized that she was lost. After wandering around for more than ten minutes, she still couldn¡¯t find her way back. She felt a little flustered. At this moment, there was a rustle not far away. Yu Bing followed the sound and walked over. She didn¡¯t expect to meet Xiao Sheng, who was untying a rabbit. The two of them looked at each other. Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes flashed, and when Yu Bing saw the rabbit in Xiao Sheng¡¯s hand, she couldn¡¯t help but lament her bad luck. In the era of collectiveism, prey could be eaten or sold by one¡¯s own family. The premise was that they weren¡¯t discovered. Once they were discovered and reported, they would be captured, beaten, and insulted at the village meeting. The person who reported them would be honored for his glorious deed. At this moment, many thoughts flashed across Xiao Sheng¡¯s mind. Would this girl who had just arrived in the countryside report him for meritorious service? However, he couldn¡¯t be arrested. Otherwise, what would happen to his siblings? Would he have to kill her to silence her or frame her? Yu Bing looked at Xiao Sheng¡¯s sharp gaze and felt a little afraid. The difference in strength between the two was too great. There was definitely no need to think about fighting. She immediately made her intentions clear. She had to make the other party believe that she wouldn¡¯t report him for so-called meritorious service. Yu Bing forced a smile on her stiff face. ¡°Hello, I almost fell a while ago. Thank you for helping me. I didn¡¯t have the time to thank you last time.¡± Seeing that Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t speak and only stared at her as he walked over, Yu Bing hurriedly said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m very tight-lipped. This time, just take it as¡­ take it as me repaying you for saving my life last time.¡± Chapter 18 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations ¡°To thank you for the loach soup you gave my brother Xiao Lin last time, come home with me later and try a bowl of rabbit meat.¡± Xiao Sheng used a threatening tone to invite her, and the smile on his face didn¡¯t reach his eyes. Xiao Sheng thought that instead of killing and framing her, it was better to turn both sides into grasshoppers tied by one string. It was safest when their interests were mutual. As long as Yu Bing ate a piece of this rabbit, he wasn¡¯t afraid that she would dare to say anything. Yu Bing naturally understood the other party¡¯s worries. In order to reassure Xiao Sheng, she immediately nodded. She thought of her companions at the foot of the mountain and said, ¡°I can go home with you, but I came with my roommates. I have to find an excuse to tell them.¡± Xiao Sheng agreed after thinking for a moment. He asked Yu Bing for the cloth bag in her hand and placed the rabbit under the apple and purple soda to cover it before handing it back to Yu Bing. This way, Xiao Sheng wasn¡¯t afraid that Yu Bing would spout nonsense when she saw her roommates later. Otherwise, he would be the unlucky one. Yu Bing took the cloth bag and muttered softly, ¡°You¡¯re really careful.¡± Xiao Sheng chuckled and said, ¡°Better safe than sorry.¡± With that, he carried two loads of firewood and led the way. When Xiao Sheng found out that the others were at the apple tree, he quickly calculated the route and circled around his vegetable field. He brought Yu Bing and arrived after about 20 minutes. When Yu Bing returned to the apple tree, she realized that everyone had just chased the hornets away. Li Zhen was climbing onto the tree to take out the honeycomb. After Li Zhen came down, his roommates, who had been paying attention to the hornet¡¯s nest, realized that Yu Bing had returned and looked at the man beside Yu Bing curiously. After everyone introduced themselves, they found out that Yu Bing had just gotten lost and was brought down the mountain by Xiao Sheng, who happened to be chopping wood. After chatting for a while, they found out that Xiao Sheng was the brother of Xiao Lin, who often sent loaches. They immediately felt a sense of intimacy with him. Then, everyone laughed and talked about how to outsmart the bees all the way down the mountain. Yu Bing found an excuse to part with everyone at the foot of the mountain. Before Jiang Chun left, he saw that the cloth bag Yu Bing held was a little heavy and reached out to help her bring it back to the dormitory. When Xiao Sheng saw this, his heart almost jumped out of his throat. He saw Yu Bing calmly stop Jiang Chun¡¯s hand and say with a smile, ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s just a few apples. I plan to give some to Xiao Lin to thank him later. This little fellow always picks the biggest loaches and eels for us.¡± After everyone left, Xiao Sheng led Yu Bing home. Yu Bing entered the courtyard and saw a listless young lady sitting on the ground of the central room. When Xiao Li heard footsteps, she turned to look at the door with a sweet smile on her lips. ¡°Brother, you have a guest?¡± In her previous life, Yu Bing only knew that there were three siblings in the Xiao family. She had never specifically inquired about the others. She didn¡¯t know that the youngest of the Xiao family was blind, nor did she expect that she would meet all of them in this life. Yu Bing went forward and squatted in front of Xiao Li. She said gently, ¡°Hello, my name is Yu Bing. I just came to the He Mountain Brigade to support the construction of the village. I came to your house as a guest today.¡± Usually, very few people came to her house. When she found out that the girl in front of her had come to visit, Xiao Li was very happy. ¡°Sister Yu, you¡¯re welcome to come to my house to play. Are you the Sister Yu that my second brother often says he gets candy from?¡± Yu Bing looked at the cute little girl in front of her and stroked her little head. She praised, ¡°How smart. You guessed correctly.¡± Yu Bing looked around and realized that there were more than ten mats in the central room. ¡°You made these mats? Are you planning to go to the county to sell them to the supply company?¡± In this era, selling handmade products to the supply company was the only way for families to increase their side income. Moreover, it was legal and compliant, but the price wasn¡¯t high. If they hunted animals and wanted to take the legal route, they had to get approval from the village they belonged to and sell them to the supply company in the name of the village. Only then would the other party be willing to accept them. The income would naturally belong to everyone. The village chief might even give some money to the people who hunted as encouragement for the construction of the village. Otherwise, all the money would be collected by the group. It was common for the money to be used to buy fertilizer. Although Xiao Li was talking, her hands didn¡¯t stop moving. She said proudly, ¡°I made this.¡± Yu Bing touched the mat and realized that it was very sturdy. ¡°You made it so well. I¡¯ll buy two. I originally planned to go to the county city tomorrow, but this saved me a lot of trouble.¡± Xiao Li hurriedly smiled and said, ¡°Sister Yu, I¡¯ll give you two. I don¡¯t want your money.¡± Chapter 19 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Although Xiao Li was blind, she could feel this world more acutely. Other than Wang Xia, no one in the village was willing to play with a blind person like her. Xiao Sheng and Xiao Lin all had their own work to do and couldn¡¯t accompany Xiao Li at all times. Xiao Li could only stay at home all day. Yu Bing¡¯s arrival made her feel the exciting life outside. Xiao Li secretly considered Yu Bing her friend. She could feel the kindness of the person in front of her. Xiao Sheng closed the courtyard door and killed the rabbit in front of the central room. When he heard the conversation in the room, he felt a little sad. He understood the meaning of Xiao Li¡¯s actions, so he said, ¡°Miss Yu, please accept it. You¡¯re welcome to come to my house when you¡¯re free.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she understood what he meant. She took out half a bottle of apples from the cloth bag and placed it on the table beside her. ¡°Then I won¡¯t stand on ceremony. I picked a lot of apples today. Take them as a gift. In a few days, I¡¯ll make another bottle of jam for you guys to try.¡± The two of them chatted happily in the hall. Soon, the rabbit meat was ready. When it was almost time to eat, Xiao Lin ran back from outside. Seeing Yu Bing, he was a little surprised. ¡°Sister Yu! Are you here for me?¡± Xiao Sheng immediately locked the courtyard door after his brother entered the house. Xiao Lin was a little puzzled when he saw this. It would only be like this when the family wanted to eat meat, but Sister Yu was still here. They wouldn¡¯t dare to take it out even if they had meat. Xiao Sheng said, ¡°Eat and talk less.¡± After that, Xiao Lin was even more surprised to find that Yu Bing was eating meat with his family. Yu Bing ate a piece of rabbit meat with a stiff expression. She lamented to herself that Xiao Sheng was a talent for making meat taste so bad. She slowly took a sip of the sweet potato mixed grain porridge. Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing¡¯s reaction and felt a little embarrassed. ¡°Ahem, my cooking isn¡¯t very good. Just make do with it.¡± Yu Bing looked at Xiao Sheng¡¯s slightly red ears and pursed her lips to hold back her laughter. She didn¡¯t expect that the aloof young man who had terrified her in the mountain had a bashful side to him. After finishing the bowl of rabbit meat, Yu Bing returned with two mats. When she returned to the dormitory, she saw Sun Wang and her roommates talking under the roof. When Sun Wang saw Yu Bing, he hurriedly shouted, ¡°Little Yu, you¡¯re the only one left.¡± Seeing this, Yu Bing hurriedly placed the mat on the wall and walked over. Seeing that everyone was here, Sun Wang began to speak. ¡°It¡¯s like this. There are empty seats at the youth dormitory in the construction village. Two boys were transferred to another brigade, and a girl got married.¡± ¡°But now, the adobe on the boys¡¯ side can squeeze three people. However, there¡¯s only one empty spot on the girls¡¯ side. The remaining two girls can only stay in the villagers¡¯ houses.¡± Yu Yan was afraid that she would be assigned to the villagers¡¯ house. During this period of time, when she ate at the villagers¡¯ house, she realized that they were too unhygienic. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that she couldn¡¯t bring herself to come back and eat out of pride, she wouldn¡¯t have endured it until now. Moreover, Yu Yan had been going to the youth dormitory every day recently to build a good relationship with those people in advance. She wanted to move over so that she could ostracize Yu Bing. In any case, she couldn¡¯t let her have a good time. Although this plan couldn¡¯t be carried out for the time being, it was impossible for her to not be able to move in after all her efforts. Moreover, the conditions of the younth dormitory were good. Yu Yan definitely couldn¡¯t accept living in a villager¡¯s house. Thus, Yu Yan took the initiative to suggest, ¡°Village Chief, I¡¯m from the same city as Xu Ling, who lives in the youth dormitory. I heard that the empty bed is in her dormitory. Can I stay there?¡± In her previous life, something happened to Jiang Chun when she lived in a villager¡¯s house. In this life, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t let her live there anymore. Therefore, when Yu Bing heard that there was only one empty spot in the female dormitory, she wanted to help Jiang Chun get this opportunity. ¡°The country¡¯s leaders have said that we came from all over the world for the same goal. We came together to the He Mountain Brigade to support the countryside. How can you choose based on whether we are from the same city or not? Everyone should have a chance.¡± Yu Yan was instantly stunned when she heard this. After all, she could refute the words of the nation¡¯s leaders. Jiang Chun, on the other hand, wanted Yu Bing to stay in the dormitory. This was because the conditions of the dormitory were generally better than those of the villagers. Yu Bing was frail, so it was better for her to stay in the dormitory. Hence, she moved closer to Yu Bing and whispered, ¡°Little Bing, I suggest raising our hands to vote later. I¡¯ll help you get this spot.¡± Yu Bing was surprised. ¡°I¡¯m not going. I want to help you get it.¡± Only then did the two of them know what the other was thinking, but neither could convince the other. Chapter 20 - Clean Up Chapter 20 Clean Up Sun Wang saw the stalemate and was about to suggest drawing lots. Yu Bing stood up and said emotionally, ¡°Village Chief, since we can¡¯t stay in the dormitory anymore, Yu Yan can stay in the dormitory if she wants. Then can Jiang Chun and I stay alone? It¡¯s mainly because we don¡¯t want to cause trouble for the villagers.¡± Sun Wang scratched his bald head. ¡°Little Yu, your idea is good, but there¡¯s no room in the village.¡± A few days ago, Yu Bing found out that Jiang Chun¡¯s team leader, Li Ping, had always advised Jiang Chun to stay in her house on the grounds that she didn¡¯t have a daughter. Yu Bing had been worried that Jiang Chun would agree. In her previous life, because there weren¡¯t enough beds, Jiang Chun stayed in Li Ping¡¯s house. Later, for some reason, she married Li Ping¡¯s son. At that time, Yu Bing was framed by Yu Yan and was sentenced to go to another farm to undergo labor reform. She couldn¡¯t take care of Jiang Chun. Later, when she returned to the He Mountain Brigade, she realized that Jiang Chun, who was in her early twenties, looked like she was in her thirties. Yu Bing was worried that Yu Yan would enter the dormitory this time, so she had prepared a backup plan in advance. A few days ago, she had been deliberately asking about the empty rooms in the village, and she found out there really was one. It was quite close to Xiao Sheng¡¯s house. Today, when she returned from the Xiao family¡¯s house, she specifically went to take a few glances. ¡°Village Chief, isn¡¯t there an empty place at the end of the village? Jiang Chun and I will both have company.¡± Sun Wang knew that most of the villagers didn¡¯t like to accept these young people who came to build the countryside to live together. They felt that the people in the city had many bad habits and looked down on them, unless they had other intentions. Howevera€ Sun Wang advised again, ¡°Little Yu, that place is too dilapidated. No one has lived in it for more than ten years. It probably leaks on rainy days.¡± Jiang Chun was also worried about Yu Bing living alone. It was best if the two of them could take care of each other, so she also advised, ¡°Village Chief, can you find a few people to help us repair it? If it¡¯s repaired, it¡¯s still the village¡¯s collective property. If there¡¯s an empty space in the dormitory in the future, Yu Bing and I will go over to stay. It¡¯s good if this house can be vacated for the village.¡± In the end, Yu Yan and the three boys stayed in the dormitory while Jiang Chun and Yu Bing stayed alone in the empty place at the end of the village. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun took advantage of their break to clean the house in the afternoon. When Xiao Lin, who was passing by, found out that they were moving in next door, he was so happy that he insisted on helping The village chief arranged for five young men who were good at making mud tiles to help. The boys in the dormitory also came to help. Although Yu Yan was unwilling, she still had to put on a show. This was also beneficial for her in establishing the image of being beautiful and kind. One of the young men who knew how to build houses looked at the house and determined that the framework of the house was fine. It was just that the walls had fallen in a few places and the roof was leaking. It was livable after repair. Yu Yan looked at the three rooms in the courtyard in front of her. To be precise, there was one room and one living room. There was a small kitchen on the right and a toilet by the kitchen. It was even more shabby than the toilet in the dormitory. She felt that Yu Bing was crazy to take the initiative to stay here. Three young men were in charge of repairing the courtyard wall and two were in charge of repairing the leaking roof. Liu Ming, Qian Hao, and Li Zhen planned to turn the ground in the courtyard upside down so that it would be convenient for Yu Bing and Jiang Chun to plant vegetables in the future. Xiao Lin helped clean the kitchen while Yu Bing and Jiang Chun cleaned the house. Only Yu Yan strolled around the room and commented on how dilapidated this place was from time to time. Yu Bing was in a hurry to tidy up the house and wanted to move in tomorrow, so she endured her anger and ignored her. Yu Yan watched as Yu Bing threw the mat on the bed onto the ground and prepared to burn it. Her heart ached. ¡°This mat is quite good. It¡¯s just a little gray. It can still be used after washing it. Yu Bing, you can¡¯t throw things around after buying a new mat. It¡¯s too wasteful to throw it away.¡± Yu Bing revealed a faint smile. ¡°Yu Yan, I already have a new mat. I remember that you haven¡¯t had the time to buy one, right? I¡¯ll spread it on your bed later.¡± Yu Yan had fought with Yu Bing so many times that she knew that Yu Bing really dared to throw it on her bed. Hence, she immediately said, ¡°This mat has been there for so many years. Even if you wash it, it probably won¡¯t be used. Just throw it away.¡± Yu Bing couldn¡¯t help but roll her eyes when she heard this. She didn¡¯t understand Yu Yan¡¯s persistence. Yu Bing suspected that she would feel uncomfortable if she wasn¡¯t snubbed. There was strength in numbers. In the afternoon, the house was almost cleaned up, and only the walls and roof outside were left. Yu Bing boiled hot water in the kitchen that had just been tidied up. The honey that Jiang Chun and the other boys had picked on the mountain in the morning had already been evenly distributed. Jiang Chun took out his share and poured some out. After filling it with water, he made some honey water for the people who came to help. The young men, who had some complaints about being assigned to work on their day off, felt better. The sky gradually darkened. After discussing, everyone decided to clean up the rest tomorrow. Chapter 21 - Impulse Chapter 21 Impulse At night, Yu Bing stir-fried a full plate of conch meat that she had been saving for half a month. She even mixed green melon, eggplant, and stir-fried green vegetables. One meat dish and three vegetable dishes made a very sumptuous meal, so everyone was full. It was their last dinner together before leaving the dormitory. Other than the first day in the countryside, it was only during today¡¯s break that everyone was in the mood to relax. After dinner, they sat in front of the house and chatted. Everyone talked about the specialties of their city and joked around. The atmosphere was very harmonious. On the other hand, Yu Yan, who was eating at the villager¡¯s house, was the complete opposite. She looked at the food in the bag in her hand and could not help but feel enraged. Because Yu Yan was moving to the youth dormitory tomorrow, she planned to eat in the dormitory with her new roommates. Tonight, she would come to the villagers¡¯ house to eat and tell them to bring back her remaining oil and rice. At this moment, Yu Yan held the bag containing her food and argued loudly, ¡°I brought 30 pounds of food for a month. I¡¯ve only been eating at your house for half a month. The amount in this bag can be eaten for another five days at most.¡± An old lady sat cross-legged on the brick bed. She looked at Yu Yan and smiled disdainfully. ¡°Young lady, you can¡¯t say that. You only brought rice and oil to my house, but you didn¡¯t give me the money for the vegetables. Isn¡¯t it reasonable for me to use some food to pay for the vegetables?¡± Yu Yan knew that this villager was treating her like a fool. How much were the vegetables she had eaten these days worth? The rice that had been deducted was at least 10 pounds. According to the current market value, it was worth 1.4 yuan. Yu Yan naturally had to fight to the end. ¡°The vegetables I¡¯ve eaten these days add up to less than five cents. Madam Li, you¡¯re bullying me. I¡¯m going to the village to report you!¡± Madam Li was famous in the village for being feisty. ¡°I¡¯m not afraid of anyone!¡± Madam Li¡¯s eldest daughter-in-law, who was the strongest, also stood at the side and added, ¡°Miss, you say that the vegetables don¡¯t cost cents, but didn¡¯t our family pick the firewood and water? Don¡¯t condiments like soy sauce, vinegar, and salt cost money? You¡¯ve eaten my family¡¯s meat before, right?! Why, do you want to eat it for free?¡± When Yu Yan heard about eating meat, she was even more angry. She had only eaten it twice in total, and she only got a small piece each time. Even the most unloved little girl in this family got a bigger piece than her. At that time, she thought that she could eat it for free without paying, so she was so happy that she didn¡¯t say anything. She didn¡¯t expect that she would pay for it in this way. ¡°Previously, when we came to your house to eat together, you guys were the ones who said that we could bring rice and oil. Now, you guys are going back on your words!¡± The second daughter-in-law did not want the limelight to be snatched away by the eldest, so she also mocked her. She wanted to show off in front of her mother-in-law. ¡°You say that you¡¯re from the city, but you don¡¯t know the rules. At that time, I thought that a young lady like you would be sensible. I didn¡¯t expect that you would play dumb if our family didn¡¯t say anything.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine if you come to someone else¡¯s house to eat, but you come when it¡¯s time to eat and leave after eating. You didn¡¯t even help when the broom fell. Our family deserves to be your slave and serve you.¡± In an era where the country called for equality every day, anyone who dared to let others serve them as slaves would be criticized. Yu Yan was so anxious that she hurriedly replied, ¡°Don¡¯t accuse me! Your family is the one who is scamming people now!¡± Madam Li snorted and directly revealed her purpose. ¡°Alright, young lady, we don¡¯t have time to waste with you. Either you give us two yuan as food expenses for the next few days and take back 10 pounds of rice, take the rest of the rice and leave quickly!¡± Yu Yan was furious, so she turned around and looked for the village supervisor to be the judge. However, it was difficult for an upright official to resolve a family matter. Under the mediation of the village, Yu Yan finally paid one yuan for food before getting back the 10 pounds of rice. Yu Yan could only return to the dormitory angrily. In the dead of the night, everyone had already fallen asleep. Only Yu Yan was still angry about what happened tonight. She wanted to eat at the villagers¡¯ house and secretly take advantage of them, but she didn¡¯t expect to encounter Old Madam Li¡¯s family. Yu Yan was so annoyed that she couldn¡¯t sleep, so she sat up and looked at the calm Yu Bing. She couldn¡¯t help but feel mischevious. Thinking of the fruit knife in her rattan box, she suddenly had the urge to take it out and stab it into Yu Bing¡¯s heart, like the goldfish that she had secretly dissected when she was young Yu Yan, who was recalling that pleasure, could not help but shudder. Because she was afraid of being discovered later on, she had always stopped herself from killing small animals. Now, she was somewhat puzzled as to why she had such an urge again, so she laid down and slowly fell asleep. Chapter 22 - Moving Chapter 22 Moving The next day, Yu Bing rejected her roommates¡¯ help. After all, they had to move their things to the youth dormitory, and there was not much work left in the small courtyard. Yu Yan happily packed her luggage to go to the youth dormitory. Because the journey from the head of the village to the end of the village was still a little far, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun borrowed a small cart to put their luggage in the cart and push it over. When they arrived at the small courtyard, they realized that the young men had already started working. Yu Bing entered the kitchen and made a pot of sweet potato syrup with a small piece of brown sugar to replenish the strength of the boys who came to help. The young men felt grateful. In order not to delay Yu Bing and Jiang Chuny today, they sped up. The project that should have taken more than half a day was completed in half a day, and the wall and roof were built very firmly. After sending away the person who had come to help, Yu Bingxin was very excited. In her previous life, she and Jiang Chun had both stayed in the villagers¡¯ houses. Now, she had relied on her own efforts to stay in this independent small courtyard with Jiang Chun. This also symbolized that this lifetime of rural life would welcome a brand new life. Yu Bing said happily, ¡°Chun Chun, let¡¯s close the door and window. The wormwood we picked in the morning is burning in the room. Otherwise, the room will be too damp. I¡¯ll bring you to the Xiao family¡¯s house to buy some bamboo baskets.¡± Jiang Chun looked around the room and said, ¡°We still have to buy a wooden bucket and basin.¡± Yu Bing went to the kitchen to fill a box of sweet potato syrup and brought Jiang Chun to the Xiao family¡¯s home. It was already afternoon. The Xiao family¡¯s door was open, and Yu Bing walked in directly. Xiao Li was still sitting on the ground of the main room and making a mat. When Xiao Li heard the sound, she smiled. ¡°Sister Yu, you¡¯re here?¡± Yu Bing was surprised. ¡°Your ears are so sharp. I¡¯ve only been to your house once, but you already remember my footsteps.¡± A smug expression appeared on Xiao Li¡¯s face. ¡°I can even tell that you brought someone. She¡¯s probably a girl.¡± ¡°Hello, Xiao Li. My name is Jiang Chun.¡± Before Jiang Chun came, Yu Bing had told her about Xiao Li¡¯s situation. Xiao Li was as friendly as ever. ¡°Hello, Sister Jiang. Welcome to my neighborhood. You can come often in the future.¡± Jiang Chun replied readily, ¡°No problem!¡± Yu Bing went to the kitchen and took a large porcelain bowl. She poured the sugar water in and carried it into the central room. ¡°Xiao Li, we brewed some sweet potato sugar water and specifically brought a bowl over. Do you want to try it now?¡± ¡°Thank you. I¡¯m not hungry now. I¡¯ll eat later.¡± Actually, Xiao Li wanted to wait for her brothers to come back before eating. Yu Bing looked at the bamboo basket hanging under the roof and said, ¡°Xiao Li, we just moved here and are short of many things. We want to buy two bamboo baskets, one wooden bucket, and one wooden basin from your family. We won¡¯t take them for free! Otherwise, I¡¯ll buy them from someone else.¡± Xiao Li could only smile helplessly and say, ¡°Alright, but I don¡¯t know how much it will sell for. I have to wait for my brother to come back.¡± At this moment, Xiao Sheng was stopped by Yu Yan. Yu Yan raised her head and smiled at Xiao Sheng, who was a head taller than her. ¡°Hello, I just came to the village. Your name is Xiao Sheng, right?¡± Xiao Sheng looked at the girl in front of him and replied calmly, ¡°Yes.¡± Yu Yan continued to ask, ¡°Do you still remember that I was in the same team as you during the planting?¡± Xiao Sheng did not want to have too much interaction with these young women who came to support the construction, so his answer was a little perfunctory. ¡°I didn¡¯t notice. What¡¯s the matter?¡± Ever since Yu Yan saw Xiao Sheng when she was doing farm work, she had been thinking about him. In her entire life, she had never seen anyone more handsome than Xiao Sheng. However, she was busy preparing to move into the youth dormitory, so she did not find the opportunity to talk to Xiao Sheng. ¡°Nothing much. I just happened to meet you, so I greeted you.¡± Seeing this, Xiao Sheng said, ¡°You¡¯ve greeted me now. Since there¡¯s nothing else, I¡¯ll take my leave first.¡± ¡°Hey!¡± Yu Yan looked at Xiao Sheng¡¯s back and stomped her feet. However, the colder Xiao Sheng was, the more Yu Yan wanted to win over this man. Xu Ling, who was sweeping the floor at the entrance of the dormitory, walked forward when she saw him. ¡°Yu Yan, don¡¯t tell me you like him. He¡¯s indeed good-looking, but his family¡­¡± Xu Ling told her about the Xiao family¡¯s situation. When Yu Yan found out that his family was poor and he had a blind sister, she was indeed dismayed, but she was unwilling to give up. Xu Ling looked at the hesitation on Yu Yan¡¯s face and thought that since she had already stopped her, if Yu Yan insisted on pursuing him, it would be none of her business. Chapter 23 - Chance Encounter with Yao Nian Chapter 23 Chance Encounter with Yao Nian Wang Tian, who had been in the village for the longest time, was the current dormitory head of the youth dormitory. When he saw Yu Yan when he went out, he reminded her, ¡°Yu Yan, it¡¯s your turn to cook tomorrow. Remember to collect rice with everyone in advance at night.¡± The younth dormitory operated on rotation. Everyone was on rotation, which meant that on the day of rotation, other than doing farm work, they were also responsible for cooking three meals a day. The rice was also collected by the people on duty the next night. Yu Yan didn¡¯t want to cook, so she held Xu Ling¡¯s hand and said intimately, ¡°Xu Ling, my cooking isn¡¯t good. Can you help me cook? Of course, I won¡¯t let you work for nothing. The rice you eat tomorrow will come from me.¡± As she spoke, she took out the fruit candies she had bought from the supply company this morning and stuffed a few into Xu Ling¡¯s hand. Xu Ling smiled and said with the candies in her hand, ¡°No problem. We hit it off so well. It¡¯s only right that I take care of your when you¡¯re younger than me.¡± ca Of course, Yu Yan knew that this was just superficial talk. If she didn¡¯t contribute a day¡¯s worth of rice, even if she was Xu Ling¡¯s biological sister, she might not be able to get her to work for her. In the past half a month, she had used the candies and pastries that she had brought from home to get on the good side of the people in the youth dormitory. Everyone fawned over her. Yu Yan enjoyed this feeling very much. vas To Yu Yan, it was very worth it to spend some money in exchange for ease. In any case, her parents were afraid that she would suffer, so they would send money and stamps every month. Just as Yu Bing was about to leave impatiently, Xiao Sheng returned. After knowing Yu Bing¡¯s intentions, Xiao Sheng sold it to Yu Bing at the price he sold it to the supply company. A basket that could hold more than twenty apples cost 0.22 yuan each, a wooden basin cost 1 yuan, and a wooden bucket cost 1.5 yuan each. Yu Bing was very satisfied. The supply company was in the county city, and she had to carry so many heavy things back. The price would definitely be more expensive as well. After all, the supply company had to earn money. After Yu Bing and Jiang Chun returned home and had just settled their things, Xiao Lin sent a large basket of vegetables over. He said that he was celebrating their move-in. This happened to provide them enough vegetables for the next few days. The new batch of youths who were building the village settled down in the He Mountain Brigade. After harvesting, the difficulty of farming wasn¡¯t as high. Yu Bing began to run again every night to exercise. However, she didn¡¯t run far and just ran in circles at the end of the village. During the harvesting period, people in the countryside worked for six days and rested for one day. After enduring for a week, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun went to the county city to buy some supplies on this week¡¯s day off. Yu Bing bought many condiments at the supply company. She bought 2 pounds of white sugar, 2 empty glass bottles, 1 jar of pickled vegetables, and 500 grams of fruit candy. She spent 3.5 yuan, which was quite a lot to Yu Bingxin. Jiang Chun didn¡¯t buy anything. She only spent 4 taels of meat stamps and 0.35 yuan to buy a pound of pork bones to make soup. When the two of them turned around and were about to leave, they saw Yao Nian queuing up behind them to buy meat. Actually, Yao Nian had already discovered Yu Bing. When Yao Nian saw Yu Bing looking at him, he raised his head slightly and waited proudly for Yu Bing to greet him. Back then, when the two of them were still in their mother¡¯s womb, their parents had verbally arranged a betrothal. However, the Yao family later discovered that Yu Bing wasn¡¯t in good health, so they treated the betrothal as a joke. For the sake of their reputation, the Yu family didn¡¯t insist on clinging to the Yao family, so the two families treated it as nothing. However, from then on, the relationship between the two families was only superficial. In Yao Nian¡¯s opinion, how could a sickly person like Yu Bing marry into a good family? He was certain that Yu Bing would definitely come forward to talk to him when she saw him. However, Yao Nian also made up his mind that he couldn¡¯t talk to Yu Bing when she came up later. Otherwise, it would be bad if the surrounding people misunderstood. However, if Yu Bing planned to give him the food in her hands, he could say a word or two to her and treat it as him being kind enough to relieve her yearning for him. However, Yao Nian thought about how Yu Bing was indeed quite good-looking and was a little tempted. In the end, he hesitated and decided that he couldn¡¯t marry a scrawny and sickly person to drag him down. After all, he was so outstanding. Only a beautiful wife with a good family background was worthy of him. In fact, Yu Bing didn¡¯t even look at Yao Nian. She walked out of the supply company with Jiang Chun. Yao Nian waited for a minute but no one called him. Only then did he realize that Yu Bing had long disappeared. Chapter 24 - Opportunity Chapter 24 Opportunity Yu Bing and Jiang Chun had just arrived home and placed their things when a guest arrived. Li Ping carried a bamboo basket into the courtyard. When she saw Yu Bing and Jiang Chun busy in the kitchen, she smiled and said, ¡°Jiang Chun, I¡¯ve been busy before and didn¡¯t have the time to come to your place to see you. I happened to be on break today and specifically came over.¡± Jiang Chun was very surprised and hurriedly came out to welcome her. ¡°Auntie Li, there¡¯s no need to come and see me. I just changed places. Come in and sit for a while.¡± When Yu Bing saw that it was Li Ping, she immediately followed her to the central room. However, Li Ping acted as if she had not seen Yu Bing and only said to Jiang Chun, ¡°There¡¯s nothing much to bring since it¡¯s my first time here. I know that your land has just been sown and won¡¯t bear fruit so quickly, so I brought some vegetables over.¡± Jiang Chun looked at the vegetables on the table and felt a little embarrassed. ¡°Auntie Li, you¡¯re too polite.¡± Li Ping looked around the house and said, ¡°It¡¯s only right. It¡¯s not easy for a little girl like you to come and build the village. I treat you as my daughter. If I don¡¯t help you, who will? Oh my! This house used to be dilapidated, but now, it¡¯s so clean. You¡¯re really capable.¡± Jiang Chun hurriedly said, ¡°It¡¯s everyone¡¯s credit. Yu Bing and the village chief arranged it¡­¡± Li Ping didn¡¯t really want to know this and interrupted her directly. ¡°Don¡¯t be humble. I can tell that you tidied it up! Although this house has been tidied up, I¡¯m still worried about you staying here. There aren¡¯t many families at the end of the village that aren¡¯t safe. Why don¡¯t you stay at my house?¡± Yu Bing looked at her coldly. Knowing Li Ping¡¯s intentions, how could she not interfere? She directly retorted Li Ping, ¡°Auntie Li, this house used to be so dilapidated, but it was tidied up so well. What are you worried about?!¡±. Jiang Chun hurriedly replied, ¡°Yes, Auntie Li. We¡¯re living quite well here. We¡¯re used to everything.¡± Li Ping still refused to give up and continued to persuade her, but she was stopped by Yu Bing. After a few rounds, Li Ping knew that she couldn¡¯t achieve her goal today, so she could only leave resentfully. On the way back, Li Ping was still thinking that if Yu Bing hadn¡¯t been in the way, she definitely would have succeeded. In fact, Li Ping was so anxious because her son had taken a fancy to Yu Yan. Perhaps mother-in-laws and daughter-in-laws were natural enemies, but the more her son liked a woman, the more Li Ping hated her. After all, she had lived for more than half her life. Li Ping could tell at a glance that a high and mighty person like Yu Yan wouldn¡¯t marry her son and live in peace. That was why she wanted to coax Jiang Chun to her house and think of a way to let Jiang Chun and her son get married quickly. On the other hand, Jiang Chun was also very puzzled. The two of them had not known each other for long, but Auntie Li was really too good to her. Yu Bing looked at Jiang Chun, who had a puzzled expression. She raised her eyebrows and smiled. ¡°Are you wondering why Auntie Li treats you so well?¡± Jiang Chun asked in confusion, ¡°Don¡¯t you find it strange? This is the third time she¡¯s invited me to stay at her house.¡± Yu Bing replied, ¡°It¡¯s not strange. Auntie Li has a son called Sun Yu. He¡¯s 25 years old this year and is unmarried!¡± Jiang Chun turned to look at Yu Bing and couldn¡¯t help but raise her voice. ¡°You mean Auntie Li wants me to marry her son?!¡± Yu Bing nodded affirmatively. ¡°You think Auntie Li really likes girls?¡±. Jiang Chun recalled and shook her head. She said with certainty, ¡°I¡¯ve seen Auntie Li¡¯s attitude towards her relative¡¯s daughter a few times. Moreover, I think she favors boys over girls!¡± Yu Bing asked Jiang Chun, ¡°So, do you still think that she really likes girls and wants you to stay at her house as her daughter?¡± Jiang Chun was so frightened that she hurriedly shook his head. Yu Bing nodded in satisfaction when she saw Jiang Chun¡¯s reaction. Li Ping¡¯s visit gave Yu Bing a chance to expose her. Now that Jiang Chun was on guard, with her help, she definitely wouldn¡¯t fall into her trap again. ¡°Stay away from her in the future. I¡¯m afraid she won¡¯t give up and will cause trouble for you.¡± Jiang Chun repeatedly promised that she would be careful in the future. Yu Bing saw the bottle of honey in the corner of the kitchen and said to Jiang Chun, ¡°By the way, I didn¡¯t touch the honey last week. Send it back to Uncle Jiang some other day. Uncle Jiang isn¡¯t in good health.¡± Jiang Chun¡¯s father had asthma and couldn¡¯t do much work. The entire family relied on Mrs. Jiang alone. Yu Bing knew that the Jiang family couldn¡¯t buy anything expensive like honey and needed other channels. Moreover, eating honey had an alleviating effect on asthma, so she wanted Jiang Chun to send the honey home to her parents. As for the Yu family, they could forget about even dipping the tip of their chopsticks in her honey! Considering her father¡¯s health, Jiang Chun didn¡¯t refuse. She only silently noted Yu Bing¡¯s kindness. Chapter 25 - Probe Chapter 25 Probe Yu Bing had promised Xiao Li that she would give her a bottle of apple sauce. Now that she had bought the white sugar, she could start making it. First, she would peel the apple, remove the core, and cut it into small pieces. Then, she would put it in light salt water and soak it for 15 minutes. After fishing it out, she would throw it into the pot. Then, she would put in a suitable amount of white sugar and turn on the low heat to stir. When the apple was translucent, a little white vinegar was added. Because there was no lemon, it could only be substituted with white vinegar. After being brewed for about an hour, the apple was pressed into mush with a big spoon. Then, the pot could be lifted and the apple sauce could be bottled. Yu Bing looked at the golden and alluring apple sauce in the glass bottle, then gave it to Xiao Li in satisfaction. During dinner, Xiao Sheng saw the apple sauce on the table and knew that it was made by Yu Bing. He dug out a spoonful and soaked it in water. The fruity taste was rich and pure, and it was sweet and sour. It was very appetizing Xiao Sheng¡¯s previous thoughts surfaced again. He recalled the details of his time with Yu Bing and looked at his sister again. He decided to take the risk and test Yu Bing. After all, his sister¡¯s eyes couldn¡¯t continue like this. After dinner, Xiao Sheng specially waited at the entrance for Yu Bing, who was running past. After about ten minutes, Yu Bing was about to pass by the Xiao family when she saw Xiao Sheng at the door, so she raised her hand to greet him. Xiao Sheng hurriedly went forward to stop her. ¡°Yu Bing, I have something to talk to you about alone.¡± Yu Bing saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s serious expression and stopped in her tracks. She followed Xiao Sheng into the Xiao family home. ¡°Yu Bing, what do you think of the last time I secretly went up the mountain to hunt rabbits?¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she rolled her eyes. ¡°Bro, are you still worried about me reporting you? I¡¯ve already eaten it with you. Should I report you or me?¡± Xiao Sheng said seriously, ¡°Answer me first.¡± ¡°Alright, we¡¯ve already eaten meat together. I¡¯ll say whatever I have to say. I know it¡¯s not easy for you to support your siblings alone. Who doesn¡¯t want to eat meat these days? At least half the people in the village have such an experience.¡± Yu Bing was telling the truth. She was someone who had experienced the future. The meat was what she had earned with her own abilities. She didn¡¯t steal or snatch it. It was just that due to the current policies implemented by the country, what was originally fine became a problem. However, such things would slowly disappear in a few years. Yu Bing thought that Xiao Sheng¡¯s thoughts only applied to the current times and not the long-term, but she couldn¡¯t say it too clearly. Political issues had always been a sensitive topic these days. Yu Bing comforted him. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not interested in reporting this at all. Moreover, I believe that such an era will eventually pass. Everything will return to how it was before the planned economy was implemented.¡± Xiao Sheng heard Yu Bing¡¯s judgment of the future and understood that she wasn¡¯t a fan of the current policy. He felt relieved. Xiao Sheng probed again, ¡°Yu Bing, do you want to eat meat often?¡± When Yu Bing heard Xiao Sheng¡¯s words, she felt that Xiao Sheng¡¯s words didn¡¯t seem like what they meant on the surface. After all, Xiao Sheng couldn¡¯t possibly want to drag her to the forest to hunt, right? If she went, she would only drag him down. Yu Bing rubbed her chin and thought for a moment. She had a bold idea, so she asked softly, ¡°How can we eat it often?¡± Xiao Sheng said firmly, ¡°Use money and stamps to buy food!¡± Yu Bing blinked quickly and knew that her guess was right. Most of the prey Xiao Sheng caught was probably to be sold on the black market. Although they were not as strict as they were two years ago, the consequences would still be unimaginable if they were discovered. However, since Yu Bing knew about the development of the future, she naturally didn¡¯t want to give up the opportunity to accumulate early wealth. Otherwise, after the reform and opening up, what capital would she use to make money?! Moreover, her body was indeed short of nutrition. Yu Bingxin made up her mind and looked into Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes. ¡°How do you want to cooperate?¡± Xiao Sheng, who had been nervous all night, finally relaxed. ¡°Make loach mustard soup and jam. I¡¯ll be in charge of selling them.¡± Yu Bing had guessed that Xiao Sheng wanted to sell jam. After all, it was easier to sell it in jars. However, she didn¡¯t expect that he even wanted to sell loach mustard soup. However, there was no disposable packaging these days. They couldn¡¯t possibly sell it on the spot. Yu Bing frowned and asked in confusion, ¡°How will you sell the loach soup?¡± Chapter 26 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Xiao Sheng replied, ¡°We¡¯ll pack the soup and meat separately. This way, the loach won¡¯t be affected by the taste because it¡¯s been soaked in the soup for a long time, but it can also keep it warm. The meat and vegetables will be stored in rice boxes. A pot of soup can be filled with two hot water bottles. When we reach the place, when someone takes a bowl to buy, they will put a portion into the other party¡¯s bowl.¡± Yu Bing nodded in agreement and asked about the price and share. Xiao Sheng glanced at Yu Bing and said, ¡°A bowl costs 0.15 yuan, 20: 80. You take 20% and I¡¯ll take 80%. After all, I¡¯m the one who¡¯s in charge of the raw materials, transportation, and sales. You just have to cook.¡± Yu Bing definitely couldn¡¯t agree. ¡°No, this is too low. Although I won¡¯t take as much risk as you, I still have risks. Moreover, you know my culinary skills. I know more than these two types of food. Besides, others can taste whether the apple sauce is special or not with one bite. If there are better choices, other sellers will replace you at any time. If you want to sell them, you have to constantly improve them. Do you know how to improve them?¡± In fact, this was also what Xiao Sheng was worried about. If he sold ordinary things, he would still ask that person to sell them on the black market. He could get more money if sold at a single price, but he couldn¡¯t sell a large amount. However, if he could do it alone, Xiao Sheng could try to do it through the person above. He could sell a large amount and it would be safer. For the long-term benefits, Xiao Sheng decided to compromise. ¡°Then we¡¯ll split it 30-70.¡± Yu Bing quickly said, ¡°Deal!¡± Xiao Sheng suddenly thought of Yu Bing¡¯s roommate. ¡°By the way, come to my house tonight to cook soup. I¡¯m a little worried that Jiang Chun will find out. What should we do?¡± In her previous life, if Jiang Chun hadn¡¯t gone around looking for someone to help Yu Bing seek justice, Yu Bing would have already died on that farm. Jiang Chun was the only person Yu Bing believed in now. However, she couldn¡¯t tell Xiao Sheng this. Yu Bing could only say firmly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I will handle this. Now, we are in the same boat. For my own sake, I have to ensure that this matter is carried out safely.¡± After the two of them finished discussing, they decided to start tomorrow morning. In the future, they would do it every three days. Yu Bing had to prepare the things before four o¡¯clock that morning. It would take Xiao Sheng about three hours to go back and forth. Only then could he return to the village quietly before dawn. Ever since Yu Bing and the others moved to the back mountain, the amount of loaches they asked for had decreased. They only accepted ten loaches and an eel each time. They still accepted the conchs as usual, so the current stock wasn¡¯t enough. After Xiao Sheng sent Yu Bing away, he made Xiao Lin catch loaches. Yu Bing would make six portions at once, and each portion had five loaches, so Xiao Lin had to catch 30. 3:00 A.M. When Yu Bing was half-asleep, she heard a meow and immediately woke up. This was the secret signal she had agreed on with Xiao Sheng. Yu Bing immediately put on her clothes and quietly closed the door. When she walked out of the door, she saw Xiao Sheng hiding in the shadow of the tree in front of the door. The two of them went straight to the Xiao family¡¯s home when they met. Yu Bing was busy in the kitchen while Xiao Sheng was keeping watch in the courtyard. More than half an hour later, Yu Bing packed the food and handed it to Xiao Sheng before returning to catch up on her sleep. The two families lived more than ten meters apart and were separated by the Xiao family¡¯s vegetable garden. Xiao Sheng watched Yu Bing enter the house before turning around to get the carriage from the cave. He tied two baskets of vegetables and rushed all the way to the county city. During the day, Yu Bing gave another bottle of jam to Liu Ming, Qian Hao, and Li Zhen. Previously, she didn¡¯t participate in poking the hornet¡¯s nest, but they still gave her a portion of honey. This jam was her return gift. After the three of them expressed their gratitude, they said to Yu Bing, ¡°By the way, Yu Bing, the courier came to the village yesterday to deliver a gift. When I took the letter, I saw your and Jiang Chun¡¯s letter. Remember to go to the village committee¡¯s office to get it.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect the Yu family to respond to her letter after she expressed how broke she was and asked for things. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll get it at noon.¡± After work at noon, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun went to the office to get the letter before returning home. Jiang Chun couldn¡¯t wait to open the letter. When she read about her parents¡¯ concern in the letter, her heart warmed. Beside her, Yu Bing opened it unhurriedly. There were five pieces of paper inside. Rather than saying that this letter was written to her by the Yu family, it was better to say that it was written to her by Yu Pan. The Yu family didn¡¯t care about her recent situation at all. Although she was exaggerating, it was a true portrayal of her when she first arrived in the countryside in her previous life. The letter said that Yao Ling had been dumped. Yu Bing noticed the gloating tone and sneered. Actually, it was Yao Ling who had asked her classmate to pretend to date her. Moreover, Yao Ling had married a boy with better conditions after that. Yu Bing could imagine how angry Yu Ling would be when she found out. Chapter 27 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Bing threw the letter aside and began to think about how to improve the jam recipe. Considering the cost, it was best if the ingredients could be obtained from the mountain for free. As she thought about it, her eyes suddenly lit up. Yu Bing recalled that there was a small area of dragon fruits at the place where she saw Xiao Sheng that day. Not much were grown, but it was enough as a supplementary ingredient to add color and flavor. At night, Yu Bing ran past the Xiao family¡¯s home and went in. Fortunately, they all lived at the end of the village and there were only a few families. Otherwise, if people found out that she went to the Xiao family¡¯s house all the time, who knew what gossip would spread in such an era? After Xiao Sheng learned of Yu Bing¡¯s thoughts, he promised to prepare the ingredients tomorrow and make two bottles of samples first. After lunch the next day, a portion of the jam that Yu Bing had made earlier was stored in the glass bottle that she had brought out of the house. Yu Bing decided to give it to Auntie Zhao and exchange it for some eggs and vegetables. After all, the new home¡¯s vegetable field had just been sown and there was still some time before they could eat it. Jiang Chun, on the other hand, went to the dormitory to transplant the sprouting seedlings to the new home¡¯s vegetable field. After everyone moved out of the temporary dormitory, Jiang Chun had been watering and fertilizing them. Many of the seeds that had been sown previously were slowly growing. During the day in the countryside, the door usually wouldn¡¯t be closed when there were people at home. Yu Bing walked into the courtyard without any obstructions. ¡°Auntie Zhao, I¡¯m here to exchange things with you again.¡± Auntie Zhao walked out of the room and saw Yu Bing. She smiled and said, ¡°I was thinking about how you hadn¡¯t been here for a while. Did you find someone else to change it?¡± Auntie Zhao liked the little girl in front of her very much. Every time she came, she had to help her do some work. She also remembered to give her a portion of the apples she picked on the mountain. Many young people who came to support the construction left after exchanging the veggies. It wasn¡¯t that Auntie Zhao wanted to take advantage of them, but Yu Bing¡¯s actions warmed her heart and she couldn¡¯t help but want to treat her better. Yu Bing explained with a smile, ¡°Previously, the neighbor who moved in gave me some vegetables, so I wasn¡¯t in a hurry to exchange things. This time, I want to exchange more mustard vegetables with you.¡± ¡°By the way, Madam, this is the apple sauce I made. When you drink water, put a spoonful or two in it to replenish your body¡¯s vitamins.¡± Auntie Zhao took the jam from Yu Bing and said, ¡°Okay, okay, okay. You little girl, you¡¯re so considerate.¡± Although she didn¡¯t know what vitamins were, she knew that jam was a high-end product in the supply company. It was rare and expensive. Looking at Yu Bing¡¯s slightly pale face, she thought about giving Yu Bing some of the red dates and cinnamon that her youngest son had sent her some time ago. These were all things that could replenish blood and suitable for Yu Bing. Yu Bing deliberately pouted and said, ¡°Who asked you to treat me so well?! If you treat me even slightly worse, I won¡¯t bring you anything next time.¡± Auntie Zhao was amused by Yu Bing¡¯s cute appearance. Then, she entered the room and took out the red dates and cinnamon from the iron box from the wooden cabinet at the end of the bed. Unable to refuse, Yu Bing could only accept it. She tidied up the house again before returning home with a basket of vegetables and 10 eggs. Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect to meet Yu Yan halfway. She hadn¡¯t seen Yu Yan in the farmland for a period of time. She heard that Yu Yan had given a lot of good things to the scorers and her roommates, who helped her work and earn work points. In fact, Yu Yan had planned to look for Yu Bing this time. Thinking that she hadn¡¯t heard about Yu Bing for a long time, she wanted to see how miserable Yu Bing¡¯s shabby house at the foot of the mountain was. Otherwise, she would feel uncomfortable. Yu Yan looked at the eggs in Yu Bing¡¯s bamboo basket and was a little stunned. The cheapest egg in the village was exchanged for five cents each from Auntie Zhao. Many people only bought two to three eggs. The more generous ones only bought five eggs at a time. Yu Bing actually bought ten eggs at once. Needless to say, the Yu family must have given Yu Bing the money to buy eggs. Yu Yan thought that since Yu Bing could buy so many eggs at once, the Yu family must have given her a lot of money. The jealousy in her heart grew. If she hadn¡¯t been sent away, all of this would have been hers! Yu Yan clenched and unclenched her fists. She decided to think of a way to get close to Yu Bing first. She forced herself to smile and say, ¡°Yu Bing, long time no see. I was just about to visit you.¡± Yu Bing frowned and deliberately asked, ¡°You still have work in the afternoon. Aren¡¯t you going to rest at noon?¡± Chapter 28 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Yan didn¡¯t go to work today, so she was so free at noon. She thought of Yu Bing and came over. However, Yu Yan definitely wouldn¡¯t foolishly say this. ¡°I¡¯ll rest later. I just heard that the back mountain has been haunted, so I came in a hurry to tell you. You should move to a villager¡¯s house closest to the youth dormitory. We¡¯re all people who support rural construction. If we¡¯re closer, we can take care of each other.¡± The ghost haunting the back mountain was indeed a rumor in the village, so everyone cut firewood on the mountain during the day. As long as it got a little late, they would hurry down the mountain. They didn¡¯t dare to stay any longer. This wasn¡¯t new. Yu Yan only wanted to use this as an excuse to coax Yu Bing to move closer to her. She could only control Yu Bing when she was under her watch. Yu Bing had been reborn. Moreover, she didn¡¯t go up the mountain at night. Yu Yan¡¯s abnormal actions made Yu Bing even more wary. After all, sometimes, human evil was more terrifying than a ghost. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t be bothered to beat around the bush with Yu Yan. She stared into Yu Yan¡¯s eyes and said, ¡°Yu Yan, are you superstitious?¡± Yu Yan retorted loudly, ¡°Don¡¯t talk nonsense!¡± Many people in the countryside still believed in ghosts and gods, but they wouldn¡¯t say this on the surface. After all, the country advocated believing in science. Yu Bing deliberately angered Yu Yan because she didn¡¯t want to waste any more time with her. She planned to end things quickly and go back to sleep. Yu Yan didn¡¯t have to work in the afternoon, but she still had to work. At this moment, Yu Yan suddenly acted out of character. She tugged at the corner of her shirt and looked very aggrieved. She said with tears in her eyes, ¡°Yu Bing, I¡¯m just reminding you out of kindness. It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t appreciate it, but how can you falsely accuse me? I¡¯m just worried about your safety.¡± Yu Bing was shocked by Yu Yan¡¯s sudden pitiful act and looked at her in confusion. At this moment, she heard a low and magnetic voice beside her. ¡°Please make way.¡± Yu Bing and Yu Yan stood opposite each other in the middle of the road. Yu Bing turned around and saw Xiao Sheng carrying the basket while trying to pass by. However, it wasn¡¯t convenient to walk towards the middle or behind them, so he spoke. Yu Bing hurriedly walked to the side and said, ¡°Sorry!¡± Xiao Sheng walked over without looking at the two of them. Previously, Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing had discussed that when there were people around, the two of them would try their best to avoid contact with each other lest they attracted attention. When Yu Yan saw that Yu Bing was treated coldly by Xiao Sheng just like her, she knew that Xiao Sheng wasn¡¯t always aloof because he didn¡¯t like her. She was a little happy and was even a little mesmerized by Xiao Sheng¡¯s cold personality. Yu Bing was very surprised when she saw Yu Yan looking at Xiao Sheng¡¯s back in a daze. According to what she knew, Yu Yan and Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t have much interaction in her previous life. However, she couldn¡¯t be bothered with this. She prepared to leave while Yu Yan was staring at his back in a daze. Just as she was about to go home, she was shouted at by Sun Wang, who was passing by. ¡°Yu Bing, I happened to meet you. After you¡¯re done with work this afternoon, go clean the cowshed.¡± After Sun Wang finished speaking, he left expressionlessly. As for Yu Yan, she looked like she was full of schadenfreude. The cowshed was filled with cow dung. After entering for 10 minutes, one would smell like cow dung. This place was usually for the Black Five, those who were sent to the countryside to do labor reform. They were usually the ones who cleaned it. Occasionally, there would be villagers punished by the village chief to clean the cowshed. The Black Five referred to farmers, traitors, criminals, and people who opposed the country¡¯s policies. Most of them weren¡¯t bad people, and there was no lack of intellectuals and knowledgeable people among them. They should have contributed more to the country in their respective positions, but now, they could only appear in cowsheds and farms to do manual labor. It was the bad policies of this era that caused the current situation. Yu Bing could guess why Sun Wang did this today. Li Ping was Sun Wang¡¯s sister-in-law. Li Ping hated Yu Bing for causing trouble and stopping Jiang Chun from staying in her house. Two days ago, she told Sun Wang that Yu Bing had offended her and asked him to arrange something for Yu Bing to do. This wasn¡¯t a big deal. Moreover, they were family. Sun Wang couldn¡¯t reject her. Therefore, when he saw Yu Bing today, Sun Wang arranged for her to do some dirty work. This way, he would have an explanation for his sister-in-law. Yu Bing had done all kinds of dirty and tiring work in her previous life. She picked up feces and fertilized it, repaired roads and river embankments, and once, she was working while she was sick and almost died. What was the big deal? Yu Bing ignored the gleeful Yu Yan and directly went home. Although Yu Yan didn¡¯t successfully change Yu Bing¡¯s mind, Xiao Sheng¡¯s performance and Yu Bing being called to clean the cowshed made her feel that this afternoon trip wasn¡¯t in vain. She returned to the dormitory in satisfaction. Chapter 29 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations After work in the afternoon, Jiang Chun found out that Yu Bing had been called to clean the cowshed. When she thought of Sun Wang and Li Ping¡¯s relationship, she knew that this matter must have started because of her. She felt very sad and wanted to go do it for Yu Bing. Yu Bing said, ¡°Please don¡¯t. If I don¡¯t go this time, who knows what I¡¯ll do next time?¡± Jiang Chun felt a little uncomfortable. ¡°But if it weren¡¯t for me, you wouldn¡¯t have encountered this.¡± Yu Bing knew that her comforting words would only make Jiang Chun continue to insist, so she changed the topic and said with a smile, ¡°Then you should go back and cook immediately. I¡¯m starving now. You have to let me eat when I get home later.¡± Jiang Chun knew his best friend¡¯s good intentions and didn¡¯t beat around the bush. He planned to use his remaining egg to steam a hibiscus egg for Yu Bing. As soon as Yu Bing arrived at the cowshed, she saw an old lady in her sixties bending down and shoveling cow feces with great effort. A cow¡¯s feces weighed more than twenty pounds. The ground was covered with grass, and it was very difficult to shovel cow feces mixed with cow urine. This old lady was probably a person who was sent to the He Mountain Brigade and lived in a simple house surrounded by wooden boards beside the cowshed. Yu Bing glanced at the dark house outside and couldn¡¯t see anything. The wooden house didn¡¯t even have a window, and there were some gaps between the wooden boards. No light could enter a house like this, but the winter wind could. Yu Bing walked forward and said, ¡°Grandma, rest for a while. I was sent by the village chief to clean the cowshed.¡± The old lady¡¯s hand stopped for a moment. She glanced at Yu Bing and continued working without saying anything. Seeing this, Yu Bing didn¡¯t say anything further. She took the tools and started to work. Just as she cleaned a place and piled the cow dung together, she straightened her back and wanted to stand up straight for a while. Then, she saw Xiao Sheng walk out of the wooden house with a jar. Yu Bing stared in shock as Xiao Sheng placed the jar on the ground and took the old lady¡¯s shovel. The old lady didn¡¯t let go and secretly gestured to Yu Bing with her eyes. Xiao Sheng said softly, ¡°Grandma, I know her. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll clean up. You can go in first.¡± The old lady looked at the two of them and entered the wooden house uneasily. Yu Bing, who was cleaning beside Xiao Sheng, couldn¡¯t help but tease softly, ¡°Xiao Sheng, not bad. You can go wherever there¡¯s danger.¡± In this era, people who were associated with the Black Five would be ostracized. Once they were discovered, it would be considered light punishment if they only had to reflect on themselves in front of the entire village. In the future, they wouldn¡¯t get any share of the good government policies. Xiao Sheng ignored Yu Bing¡¯s words and asked, ¡°Were you punished by the Sun family?¡± This matter involved Jiang Chun, so Yu Bing naturally wouldn¡¯t reveal anything. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Perhaps.¡± Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t ask further. With a strong labor force like Xiao Sheng, they finished the work that would have took them two hours in half an hour. The two of them returned home one after another. When Yu Bing reached the door of the house, she deliberately waited for Xiao Sheng. When Xiao Sheng walked to her side, she said, ¡°Thank you, although you didn¡¯t specifically help me.¡± Yu Bing could tell that Xiao Sheng was very familiar with the person living in the wooden house. She guessed that Xiao Sheng often went to help out. ¡°It¡¯s nothing. Come to my house tonight after it gets dark.¡± After saying that, he walked straight to his house. After showering at night, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun marinated the mustard vegetables that had been washed and dried in the kitchen at noon. Yu Bing placed the mustard vegetables into the boiled rice water and when it was hot enough, she fished it out and placed it in the jar she had bought. Yu Bing sprinkled the salt into the rice water and said with feigned nonchalance, ¡°Chun Chun, I have something to tell you.¡± Jiang Chun, who was helping, replied, ¡°Go ahead.¡± Yu Bing leaned close to Jiang Chun¡¯s ear and whispered, ¡°Xiao Sheng and I are going to make jam and sell it.¡± When Jiang Chun heard this, her eyes widened instantly. She hurriedly moved to the kitchen window and looked out. Although she knew that there was a wall outside the house, such a big matter made Jiang Chun feel that it wasn¡¯t safe to say it no matter where they were. She turned around and said anxiously, ¡°You¡¯re crazy! If you get caught, being punished with labor reform is already considered light punishment!¡± Yu Bing said softly, ¡°Don¡¯t be nervous. I¡¯m only responsible for making it. Xiao Sheng is responsible for the rest. After you fell asleep last night, I secretly went to his house to make loach mustard soup and asked him to sell it.¡± Jiang Chun pressed her hand to her chest to calm herself down. In her eyes, Yu Bing had always been an introverted and well-behaved girl. However, she also realized that ever since she left the Yu family, Yu Bing had completely changed. Yu Bing decided to take advantage of this matter to rationalize her abnormality after her rebirth. Otherwise, as time passed, Jiang Chun would definitely become more suspicious. However, she didn¡¯t intend to let anyone know this secret. So she looked at Jiang Chun and said slowly, ¡°Do you think I¡¯m different from before?¡± Chapter 30 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Jiang Chun nodded vigorously a few times. Yu Bing said, ¡°Because I understand that being weak will only force me into a corner. Do you know that? If it wasn¡¯t for my stiff attitude, my mother would have only given me 10 pounds of food stamps and 5 yuan.¡± It turned out that Mrs. Yu had planned to give food stamp for 15 pounds of grain and some clothing stamps, but Yu Bing had deliberately exaggerated it. Jiang Chun said angrily, ¡°What?! They¡¯re too much. Are they trying to force you to death?! It¡¯s not like they don¡¯t know what your health is like!¡± Yu Bing pretended to be sad again. ¡°No matter how obedient I was in the past, I was always the one who was beaten the most. I was always the one who took the blame for my sister and brother¡¯s mistakes. Even if my parents knew the truth and knew that I didn¡¯t do it, so what? They couldn¡¯t bear to beat up the one who made a mistake, but they needed to vent, and I was the ideal punching bag.¡± Yu Bing was indeed telling the truth. Her poor health was sinful in their eyes. Even if she got first place on the exams, in the eyes of her parents, she couldn¡¯t contribute to the family like her elder sister, Yu Pan. She wasn¡¯t be a boy like her second brother, Yu Wu, so she should suffer such harsh treatment. Such relationships should exist among outsiders. Family members should have a sense of kinship, but Yu Bing couldn¡¯t feel it at all. Jiang Chun and Yu Bing had played together since they were young, Jiang Chun naturally knew Yu Bing¡¯s situation. Jiang Chun went forward and silently gave Yu Bing a hug. Yu Bing continued, ¡°So after I came out of the Yu family, I decided to live for myself. They don¡¯t care about me, but I can¡¯t neglect myself. I want to earn money to recuperate. I want to live a life better than theirs!¡± These words weren¡¯t only direct at Jiang Chun, but also to her reborn self. Jiang Chun looked at Yu Bing and said seriously, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll cover for you. If there¡¯s anything you need my help with, just ask.¡± Yu Bing had no intention of letting Jiang Chun miss out on such a profitable business. However, she had to ensure that Xiao Sheng was safe enough. She couldn¡¯t harm Jiang Chun. Yu Bing looked at the sky outside and turned to Jiang Chun. ¡°It¡¯s late now. Everyone is basically at home at this time. I¡¯ll go to Xiao Sheng¡¯s house first. Help me pour the water in the pot into the jar and cover it later.¡± Jiang Chun nodded and replied, ¡°No problem. Go quickly and come back early.¡± Yu Bing went straight to Xiao Sheng¡¯s house and pushed open the closed door. Xiao Lin and Xiao Li had already returned to their rooms to sleep, and only Xiao Sheng was waiting in the courtyard. Xiao Sheng went forward and whispered, ¡°Let¡¯s go somewhere else.¡± Yu Bing was somewhat puzzled. ¡°We won¡¯t do it at your house?¡± Xiao Sheng replied softly, ¡°I¡¯ll bring you to a safer place. We¡¯ve moved our things over in advance. Although we live at the end of the village, if the families nearby get up at night and smell the scent, we¡¯re doomed.¡± Xiao Sheng brought Yu Bing out quietly. Yu Bing realized that it was the way up the mountain. After entering the mountain, Xiao Sheng lit the kerosene lamp he brought with him. He turned around and said to Yu Bing before leading the way. ¡°Follow me closely. It will be troublesome if you lose your way at night.¡± It was a little windy at night, and the mountain¡¯s atmosphere seemed a little gloomy. Yu Bing wasn¡¯t afraid that wild beasts would suddenly appear, because in her previous life, she had never heard of large animals appearing on this mountain. However, she couldn¡¯t help but think of what Yu Yan had said in the afternoon. There were ghosts in the back mountain. Under the sunlight in the day, Yu Bing still felt that she wouldn¡¯t be afraid of these things, but when she was really there, she couldn¡¯t help but feel a little afraid. After all, even such a freaky thing like rebirth had happened to her. It was hard to say whether or not there were ghosts and gods in the world. However, when she thought about how she had never done anything wrong, she felt relieved and only followed closely behind Xiao Sheng, who was leading the way. After following Xiao Sheng around, she arrived at a small wooden hut. Yu Bing looked at the distant fields filled with vegetables and raised her eyebrows. She sighed with emotion. Xiao Sheng¡¯s stall was really big. The wooden house looked very dilapidated from the outside. When she entered, she found that it was relatively clean. There was a wooden table in the middle, and everything needed was prepared. Chapter 31 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Bing first boiled the glass bottle with hot water and placed it aside to dry. The improved apple sauce method was slightly different. Yu Bing peeled the apple and removed the core. After the skin was cooked into a light red color in the pot, she fished it out. The apple skin was actually very nutritious. Since no one was using pesticides on the fruit trees in the mountain, it was naturally edible. Xiao Sheng took out a small dragon fruit and pressed it into a bowl before squeezing the juice out of it with a cloth. Yu Bing freed her hands and began to cut the apple into small pieces. Then, she poured the apple pieces into the water brewed from the apple skin and repeated the first cooking step. When it was cooked to a transparent color, she pressed the apple into a mud shape. Before lifting the pot, she added the fire dragon fruit juice. After she stirred it evenly, the color became extremely bright. Then, she waited for the jam to cool. Why did Yu Bing dare to make jam in front of Xiao Sheng? Wasn¡¯t she afraid that he would steal the recipe and make it himself? Firstly, since the two of them had confirmed their cooperative relationship, they naturally had to trust each other. Moreover, this was considered a life-and-death cooperation in this era. No matter how dishonest they were with each other, it would be meaningless if they had their own plans. Secondly, it was because Xiao Sheng knew about Yu Bing¡¯s good skills and wanted Yu Bing to produce more new products for him to sell. Third, Yu Bing knew about Xiao Sheng¡¯s craftsmanship skills, and Xiao Sheng knew his own strength very well. Xiao Sheng couldn¡¯t wait to taste it with his chopsticks. His eyes lit up. ¡°It¡¯s sweet and sour. I can tell that it¡¯s apple sauce, but it doesn¡¯t completely taste like apples. The taste of the dragon fruit is very light. After it¡¯s mixed together, it¡¯s not easy to taste it. This taste is definitely unique!¡± Yu Bing said with some regret, ¡°Moreover, this color is bright red. The only downside is that we only have an iron pot. No matter how we avoid it, the jam cooked will have some impurities.¡± Xiao Sheng hurriedly asked, ¡°Then what should we use to avoid it?¡± Yu Bing turned to look at Xiao Sheng and frowned. ¡°A casserole or stainless steel pot.¡± Xiao Sheng remained silent after hearing this. These two things were not easy to get. At this stage, they could only make do with the iron pot. The two of them waited for the jam to cool down before immediately putting it into a glass bottle. They carried the oil lamp and walked down the path for half an hour before reaching the foot of the mountain. There wasn¡¯t much farm work recently. Xiao Sheng sped up and finished his morning work before running to the county city with two bottles of jam samples. Xiao Sheng walked to an alley that extended in all directions. There were two sentries at the foot of a tree not far away, and Xiao Sheng was looking for their boss. At this time, there were two types of black markets. Some people got customers from the streets. This method was very unsafe. If inexperienced buyers asked people who wanted to report them for meritorious service, they could only run for dear life. Some of them had to be charged. For example, the place where Xiao Sheng came to was free when he went in to buy things. However, the seller had to pay a venue fee of 0.05 to 0.2 yuan every day. The price was decided by the goods sold. Agricultural products were cheap and meat was expensive. If he sold the food he made, he would be charged a corresponding price according to the value of the item. Because someone was keeping watch outside, if they saw a suspicious person, they would immediately inform the people in the alley. Everyone would skillfully turn into various small roads. If they were still caught, they could only blame their bad luck. Xiao Sheng entered the black market first and found the person who asked him for the loach mustard soup and vegetables. ¡°Brother Quan.¡± Brother Quan¡¯s full name was Zhao Quan. He was shrewd and gregarious. He specialized in reselling and selling to earn a profit. Zhao Quan had just sent off a guest when he heard a voice and turned around. He saw Xiao Sheng holding a vegetable basket that was half filled with vegetables and asked curiously, ¡°Ah Sheng? Isn¡¯t today the delivery day? Why are you here?¡± Seeing Zhao Quan take the initiative to walk towards him, Xiao Sheng was slightly nervous and held the vegetable basket tightly. Xiao Sheng said slowly, ¡°Brother Quan, I came here today to ask you for a favor, just a small favor.¡± After Xiao Sheng finished speaking, he stared at Zhao Quan carefully, afraid that he would be angry or reject him directly. Zhao Quan said straightforwardly, ¡°There¡¯s no need to mention favors between us buddies. As long as I can, I¡¯ll help.¡± ¡°Brother Quan, I made some jam myself. The amount isn¡¯t small, and it¡¯s convenient to store. I want to sell them in large quantities. I came this time to trouble you to introduce me to Brother Qiang.¡± With that, Xiao Sheng pushed the vegetables in the basket to the side and revealed a jar of jam. Zhao Quan took a look. Although he didn¡¯t show it on his face, he was shocked. Jam was considered a nutritional product in the supply company. It was small in quantity, but it was expensive and required stamps to buy. To be able to establish a connection with Brother Qiang, even if he chose the path of making smaller profits in order to sell more in terms of quantity, he could still obtain considerable profits. Chapter 32 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Zhao Quan raised his eyebrows and said softly, ¡°You¡¯re quite something. We¡¯ve known each other for so many years, but I didn¡¯t know that you had such skills.¡± A bitter smile appeared on Xiao Sheng¡¯s lips as he replied, ¡°I only made it recently. If I had made it earlier, I would have sold it long ago. Don¡¯t you know how short of money I am?¡± Zhao Quan placed his arm on Xiao Sheng¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Why not sell them in single quantities? The selling price will be higher.¡± Jam was a hot commodity. Xiao Sheng had thought that Zhao Quan would stop him from making it. Usually, for safety reasons, Xiao Sheng would sell his goods to Zhao Quan and didn¡¯t dare to find other ways. Moreover, Zhao Quan had been selling things here since the beginning of this black market. He knew the complicated relationships the best. He could definitely be considered a senior figure in the black market. This was also one of the reasons Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t dare to bypass him. Although Zhao Quan seemed easygoing, Xiao Sheng believed that he seemed easygoing because it didn¡¯t involve his personal interests yet. As long as it involved his personal interests, he wouldn¡¯t be that easygoing. Xiao Sheng lowered his head slightly. A moment later, he raised his head and looked into Zhao Quan¡¯s eyes. He said, ¡°I thought about it for a long time before making this decision. Brother Quan, you also know that someone in my family needs to undergo surgery. I really can¡¯t afford to delay it, so I wanted to sell things in larger quantities!¡± ¡°Brother Quan, to be honest, if it wasn¡¯t for your help these past few years, my family probably wouldn¡¯t even have been able to eat. I, Xiao Sheng, am not someone who will burn bridges after crossing them. If there are any new things to sell in the future, I will definitely be give them to you first!¡± Zhao Quan looked at Xiao Sheng¡¯s nervous expression and thought for a moment. ¡°Alright, I didn¡¯t befriend you for nothing! Wait here, I¡¯ll test the waters for you.¡± Zhao Quan indeed wanted to stop Xiao Sheng and do this business himself, but he knew that he didn¡¯t have enough connections and that he couldn¡¯t afford it. In addition, Xiao Sheng had clearly expressed that he would prioritize Zhao Quan in the future. He had worked with him for a few years and knew about his family¡¯s situation. He also sincerely wanted to help him. Seeing that Zhao Quan had agreed, Xiao Sheng finally felt relieved. He revealed a relieved smile and said sincerely, ¡°Thank you, Brother Quan!¡± Xiao Sheng waited on the spot for about an hour before Zhao Quan returned with a smile. ¡°Brother Qiang is willing to see you. Be on your best performance later. Zhao Quan packed his things and placed them in a hidden corner. He asked his acquaintances to keep an eye on them before bringing Xiao Sheng to a residential building. There were three people in the room, and only a slightly plump middle-aged man was sitting on the sofa in the middle while smoking. Zhao Quan took a step forward and bent down slightly. He said respectfully to the man sitting there, ¡°Brother Qiang.¡± Brother Qiang pointed at the stool beside him and said to Zhao Quan, ¡°Sit.¡± Zhao Quan quickly walked to the stool and sat down. He smiled with a respectful expression. ¡°Brother Qiang, this is Xiao Sheng. He made a kind of jam a few days ago and wants you to try it.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard his name, he immediately imitated Zhao Quan. He took a step forward and bowed slightly while greeting respectfully, ¡°Hello, Brother Qiang.¡± Qiang glanced at Xiao Sheng, then exhaled a mouthful of smoke and nodded. Seeing this, Zhao Quan gave Xiao Sheng a look. Xiao Sheng hurriedly took out a bottle of jam from the basket and placed it on the table. The person standing beside him immediately went to the kitchen to take out a pair of chopsticks. Brother Qiang smoked the cigarette in his hand slowly and slowly drank a cup of water. From the corner of his eye, he saw Xiao Sheng standing calmly. He nodded with approval. Brother Qiang opened the lid and took a sniff. Then, he picked up a piece of jam and placed it in his mouth. He could taste the apple, but there was also a refreshing sweetness that didn¡¯t belong to the apple. Brother Qiang couldn¡¯t guess what fruit it was. Moreover, normal apple jam was golden yellow, but this bottle of jam was a bright rose red. Although there were some impurities, it was still bright red and beautiful. The sweetness was moderate. The key was that the refreshing sweetness of the apple and the unknown fruit was somewhat unique. At this moment, how could Xiao Sheng not be nervous? Brother Qiang was expressionless the entire time. Xiao Sheng couldn¡¯t tell if Brother Qiang was satisfied or not. Chapter 33 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Brother Qiang put down his chopsticks and sized up Xiao Sheng. ¡°The taste is average, but we can sell it if you want to. How much are you planning to sell it for?¡± Xiao Sheng understood that Brother Qiang¡¯s motive for saying this was to lower the price, but he knew how unique the taste of this jam was. He decided to tell him the price he had originally set. ¡°0.7 yuan per bottle.¡± The jam sold by the county¡¯s supply company cost 0.85 yuan if there were stamps. The wholesale price he set was considered moderate. Brother Qiang was in no hurry to lower the price. ¡°If you supply it once every seven days, how much can you supply at once?¡± Xiao Sheng quickly calculated. ¡°100 grams per bottle. There¡¯s no problem with 100 bottles every seven days.¡± Brother Qiang lowered his head and thought for a moment. He said in a low voice, ¡°55 cents a bottle. If it works, bring 100 bottles over in seven days.¡± This price was about the same as Xiao Sheng¡¯s estimate, but he still put on a troubled expression. After a while, he frowned and said, ¡°Brother Qiang, I can¡¯t earn much at this price. I only hope that you can help me when I make other sorts of jam.¡± Brother Qiang readily agreed. After the discussion, Xiao Sheng followed Zhao Quan out of the residential building. When the two of them returned to the street, Xiao Sheng took out another bottle of jam from under the basket. ¡°Brother Quan, I left this for you. Take it back for your wife and the child to try.¡± Zhao Quan accepted it without hesitation. ¡°Alright, I won¡¯t stand on ceremony with you.¡± At this moment, Yu Bing was worried about how to get a spot as a tow truck driver. Because she couldn¡¯t do high-intensity farm work over a long period, she had been thinking about how to change the situation. On the road that day, she bumped into Sun Yu boasting to Yu Yan that he was going to the county city to study for a period of time. Although Sun Yu didn¡¯t say it out loud, it reminded Yu Bing of the reason Sun Yu had disappeared from the village for more than ten days and learned to drive a tractor! In response to the country¡¯s request to speed up agricultural modernization, the leaders of Jiangning County spent a lot of effort to apply for 20 tractors from the city. Jiangning County had five communes, each managing four villages. Every village had a spot for a tractor driver. It was very honorable to be chosen as a tractor driver these days. Moreover, you could be considered a public servant. In the village, others would look at you with more respect. The candidate would be chosen by the village¡¯s authorities after a meeting. However, Sun Yu wasn¡¯t chosen at all. Sun Yu was the nephew of the village chief, Sun Wang. After Sun Wang went to a meeting a few days ago and found out about this, he lied to the commune that Sun Yu was the candidate chosen by the authorities. Without informing anyone, he used his power for personal gain and gave the spot to his biological nephew. Yu Bing planned to write an anonymous report letter at night to report this matter to the commune. Yu Bing had learned how to drive tractors in her previous life. She had an advantage in this aspect and was confident that she could get a spot in a fair election. Moreover, even if she didn¡¯t succeed, she couldn¡¯t let a jerk like Sun Yu, who ran someone over in his previous life, get a spot! After making up her mind, Yu Bing went to the commune at around 10 am the next morning. Looking at the commune in the distance, Yu Bing was thinking about how to quietly throw the anonymous letter into the report box on the left of the door. Suddenly, she heard someone moaning beside her. Yu Bing looked over and saw a pregnant woman holding her stomach while sitting against the wall. Yu Bing hurriedly went forward. ¡°Are you going to give birth?¡± The pregnant woman nodded. ¡°Miss, my house is in the courtyard behind the commune. Can you help me call my family to send me to the medical center? I don¡¯t have the strength to walk at all.¡± ¡°Alright, what¡¯s your family member¡¯s name?¡± The pregnant woman frowned in pain. ¡°My husband¡¯s name is Song Jian.¡± ¡°Then hold on. I¡¯ll go to your house immediately to call for help!¡± After Yu Bing finished speaking, she ran all the way to the courtyard. When she saw an woman passing by in the courtyard, she immediately went forward and asked, ¡°Hello, I want to look for Song Jian. His wife is about to give birth and needs him to send her to the medical center.¡± The woman panicked when she heard that. She pointed at the building in front and said, ¡°We have to hurry. His house is on the second floor, Room 205.¡± Yu Bing thanked her and rushed to the Song family¡¯s house. She hurriedly knocked on the door. When the door opened, she saw a girl about her age. She hurriedly asked, ¡°Is this Song Jian¡¯s family? His wife is giving birth and has to be sent to the medical center immediately.¡± Song Jian¡¯s sister, Song Li, was shocked. ¡°My brother is still working in the commune. I¡¯ll go find him now!¡± Chapter 34 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Bing stopped Song Li, who was about to run out. ¡°Later, bring the things your sister-in-law needs for hospitalization.¡± Song Li looked confused. ¡°What does she need? I don¡¯t know.¡± Yu Bing recalled what others had to bring when they went to the hospital to give birth. ¡°An enamel basin, a thermal water bottle, and a child¡¯s change of clothes.¡± Song Li finished picking up the things. Because Yu Bing still had to lead the way to the wife, she asked Yu Bing to go to the commune to look for her brother. Yu Bing agreed without hesitation. At this moment, she couldn¡¯t care less about sending her anonymous letter. She only wanted the pregnant woman to give birth safely. After the two of them successfully found Song Jian, they prepared to go to the commune canteen to borrow a wooden cart to pull the pregnant woman to the medical center. Song Li suddenly thought of something and said loudly, ¡°I had diarrhea today and went to the medical center to get medicine. I happened to see Doctor Li, who helps people give birth in the medical center, heading out to the countryside to treat people!¡± Song Jian panicked when he heard this. Director Chang, who was about to return to the county, saw Song Jian and asked in confusion, ¡°Little Song, isn¡¯t your wife about to give birth? Why are you still standing here?¡± Song Jian explained the situation. Director Chang hurriedly said, ¡°Then what are we waiting for? Hurry up and go to the county hospital!¡± Song Li said in despair, ¡°But the bus to the county just passed by. The next bus will come at 2 PM.¡± Yu Bing looked at the tractor parked in the courtyard and had an idea. ¡°I know how to drive a tractor. I can drive this to the hospital.¡± Song Hui replied, ¡°The key to this car is with Officer Huang, who is in charge of the cars. Because the students are still training, Mr. Huang went to the county city to see the students¡¯ training situation these two days.¡± Director Chang also said helplessly, ¡°Sigh! At critical moments, it¡¯s easy for an accident to happen. My driver also took leave today! Otherwise, your commune still has an empty car that can drive to the county.¡± Yu Bing hurriedly said, ¡°I know how to drive a car too!¡± Everyone¡¯s gazes instantly gathered on Yu Bing. Director Chang said in surprise, ¡°Then hurry up. Little Song, I happen to be going back to the county to do something. Use my name to borrow a car from Officer Li, who is in charge of the cars in your commune. Bring the key over.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Song Jian smiled and replied loudly. He immediately ran towards the logistics department on the first floor. Yu Bing waited for everyone to sit down before immediately starting the car to pick up Wang Yun. Song Jian carried Wang Yun, who was in so much pain that she was exhausted, to the back seat. Fortunately, there were not many cars on the road these days. Yu Bing drove quickly and steadily, reducing the time from the commune to the county city by half. When they arrived at the hospital, everyone rushed to send Wang Yun to the operating theater. Only then did Yu Bing relax. After all, two lives were at stake. It was impossible for Yu Bing not to panic. Fortunately, Yu Bing had driven this type of car in her previous life. Otherwise, she might not have gotten the hang of it. Her speed definitely wouldn¡¯t have been as fast as it was now. After Yu Bing parked the car, she also entered the hospital. When Song Jian and Song Li saw Yu Bing, they went forward excitedly. Song Jian was very excited and his eyes were red. ¡°Thank you so much! I don¡¯t know what to say. If it weren¡¯t for you, my wifea€|¡± Yu Bing hurriedly waved her hand and said, ¡°You¡¯re welcome. I happened to be passing by. Anyone who sees this will help if they can. Don¡¯t worry, she will be fine.¡± Song Li asked, ¡°Miss, you¡¯ve helped us so much, but we still don¡¯t know your name.¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°My name is Yu Bing. I was assigned to the He Mountain Brigade to support the construction of the village after graduating from high school this year.¡± Chang Hong nodded in admiration. ¡°Young lady, you drive quite well at such a young age! With outstanding skills like yours, I believe you will be very promising in the future.¡± Chang Hong felt that Yu Bing driving skills were really good. She was even better than his driver, Little Gu. If not for the fact that there were no spots, he really would have arranged for her to join the convoy. Yu Bing had heard Song Jian call him Director Chang, so she said, ¡°Thank you for your praise, Director Chang!¡± When Chang Hong heard this address, he smiled and said, ¡°You¡¯re quite quick-witted. I¡¯m going to a few places later. Can you send me off?¡± When Yu Bing heard this request, she hurriedly said, ¡°Director Chang, no problem.¡± Then, Chang Hong and Yu Bing said goodbye to the Song family¡¯s siblings. Chapter 35 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Bing drove Chang Hong to a few places for work. When she finally finished and sent Chang Hong to his office, it was already evening. Therefore, Chang Hong took out a stamp and let Yu Bing go to the canteen to eat before returning. Yu Bing didn¡¯t stand on ceremony. After all, she was really hungry after not eating lunch. After being Chang Hong¡¯s driver for a long time, it was only right to be treated to a meal. With Chang Hong¡¯s status, many people usually kissed up to him, but Yu Bing was very frank. In addition, after half a day of interaction, Yu Bing¡¯s neither servile nor overbearing attitude made Chang Hong admire her even more. Yu Bing took the meal stamp and asked someone for directions to the canteen. Looking at the more than half of the braised pork in her bowl, she couldn¡¯t help but sigh with emotion. The food in the government office was indeed good! However, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t bear to finish it. She packed the other half of the braised pork and brought it home. When Yu Bing drove the car back to the commune to return the car, the sky had darkened a little. Yu Bing walked out of the commune¡¯s entrance and observed her surroundings. When she realized that no one was paying attention to her, she turned right and walked to the report box. She quickly threw the letter in and prepared to return to the village in a good mood. ¡°Miss, wait!¡± Yu Bing heard someone calling her from behind and hurriedly turned around. She saw a middle-aged couple walking towards her quickly. Yu Bing was worried that she had been seen. ¡°Miss, you drove a pregnant woman to the county hospital today, right?¡± the middle-aged man asked. The couple looked very anxious. Looking at the other party¡¯s familiar facial features, Yu Bing immediately guessed that these two were Song Jian¡¯s parents. ¡°I sent them there. Don¡¯t worry, when I left, the pregnant woman had already entered the operating theater successfully.¡± Then, she explained the process in detail. Mr. Song and Mrs. Song heaved a sigh of relief when they heard this. Mrs. Song said gratefully, ¡°Thank you so much! Have you eaten? Come to our house for a meal.¡± Coincidentally, the woman who gave Yu Bing directions today saw Yu Bing drive into the courtyard and hurriedly told Mr. Song and Mrs. Song. Only then did the two of them rush over. When Yu Bing heard this, she smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯ve already eaten. I¡¯m preparing to return to the village now.¡± Mr. Song glanced at the sky. ¡°This matter caused you to miss work for the entire afternoon, right? I¡¯ll send you back on my bicycle. I can explain to your village head and plead for leniency. I can¡¯t let you be punished.¡± ¡°Yes, yes, yes. Hurry up and get the car to send her¡­¡± Mrs. Song realized that she didn¡¯t know Yu Bing¡¯s name and turned to look at her. When Yu Bing heard this, she didn¡¯t refuse. After all, Sun Wang and Li Ping were waiting for her to make a mistake. She hurriedly said, ¡°My name is Yu Bing.¡± Mrs. Song smiled. ¡°Yu Bing, you know my address. Come visit in the future.¡± Yu Bing agreed but she didn¡¯t take it seriously. She only thought that the Song family was being polite. Mr. Song pushed his bicycle out and Yu Bing sat in the back seat. They quickly arrived at the village head¡¯s house. The village chief, Sun Wang, had just finished his meal and was sitting in the courtyard. He didn¡¯t expect to see the president of the commune come to his house. Sun Wang quickly stood up and walked forward with a smile on his face. ¡°President Song! Welcome, welcome. Why are you here so late?¡± Yu Bing was shocked. She knew that the people living in that courtyard were all people who worked in the commune, so she thought that Mr. Song was just a small supervisor. Mr. Song didn¡¯t stand on ceremony and briefly explained what happened in the afternoon. Only then did Sun Wang see Yu Bing. Originally, Sun Wang and Li Ping were thinking that they could finally punish Yu Bing openly. After all, Li Ping hadn¡¯t finished venting her anger. Unexpectedly, Yu Bing actually saved the daughter-in-law of President Song. Sun Wang immediately smiled and praised Yu Bing, ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯ve really taken our teachings to heart. We can¡¯t let down those who have done good deeds. I won¡¯t deduct a single point from you.¡± Yu Bing only wanted to not be punished for being absent from work. She didn¡¯t expect that her work points wouldn¡¯t be deducted either. She was overjoyed and hurriedly thanked him. ¡°Thank you, Village Chief! I will definitely work harder in the future.¡± After everyone spoke, Mr. Song left first. Yu Bing followed closely behind. Sun Wang wanted to stop Yu Bing and ask her about the details, but he thought about how Yu Bing lived in the village, so he wasn¡¯t in a hurry. Chapter 36 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations At this moment, Jiang Chun was waiting anxiously at home. Yu Bing had been gone for most of the day, and the sky outside had already completely darkened. Jiang Chun was about to go out to the youth dormitory to find Liu Ming and the others to accompany her to the commune to look for her. The door creaked open. Yu Bing entered the courtyard and shouted, ¡°Chun Chun, I¡¯m back!¡± Jiang Chun ran out when she heard the sound. Her face was filled with anxiety. ¡°Why were you gone for so long? I thought something had happened to you.¡± Yu Bing hurriedly pulled Jiang Chun into the house. ¡°I¡¯m fine. Let¡¯s talk inside. I brought you something good.¡± There was still untouched food on the kitchen table. Yu Bing knew that Jiang Chun was waiting for her to eat with her. Yu Bing hurriedly said, ¡°Chun Chun, I¡¯ve eaten already. Hurry up and eat now. I have braised pork here.¡± Jiang Chun looked at Yu Bing taking out the braised pork wrapped in oil paper from her bag and was very puzzled. Didn¡¯t she go to send a report? ¡°What happened to you this afternoon?¡± Yu Bing told her what happened in the afternoon from beginning to end. Jiang Chun only felt relieved when she heard that Yu Bing had successfully thrown the letter in before returning to the village. Jiang Chun asked in confusion, ¡°When did you learn to drive?¡± Yu Bing told her the excuse she had thought of beforehand. ¡°Didn¡¯t I often go to the factory¡¯s convoy in the past? I learned it from Master Wu.¡± The reason Yu Bing used this excuse was that there was indeed a person called Master Wu. Master Wu didn¡¯t like to speak and always had a cold expression. He wasn¡¯t close to anyone, but he liked children. Later on, Master Wu was transferred to another province. In her previous life, she had never seen anyone who had any contact with Master Wu even until her death. Although there was a risk of her identity being exposed, she could only take it one step at a time now. There would always be a way. Fortunately, Jiang Chun didn¡¯t continue asking. Yu Bing passed by the Xiao family¡¯s house when she was running at night. She turned around and looked in. Xiao Sheng nodded when he saw Yu Bing looking over from the courtyard. Yu Bing knew that this matter had been settled. Xiao Sheng began to instruct his brother to secretly go to the mountain to pick apples these few days. The apple tree was in the depths of the forest. Because of the rumors of it being haunted, no one dared to go. That day, Yu Bing¡¯s roommates didn¡¯t know these legends, and Yu Bing didn¡¯t remember this matter at the moment, so they walked there. The commune stipulated a regular meeting every Wednesday to deal with the reports that had piled up for a week. Two days later, on Wednesday morning, there were a few opened anonymous complaints on the long table in the commune¡¯s conference room. President Song looked at the letter in front and complained that the mayor of the He Mountain Brigade, Sun Wang, had used his position to privately arrange for his nephew to be the driver of the tractor in the village. He recalled that when he and his wife went to chase after Yu Bing that day, she seemed to have seen her throw something into the letter box. And this letter happened to be from the He Mountain Brigade. He couldn¡¯t help but fall into deep thought. Director Zhao was an upright and fair person. He couldn¡¯t stand such actions the most. ¡°A village chief has to look out for the benefit of the villagers, instead of using his power to enrich his own family. Sun Wang is like an overlord!¡± Seeing this, President Song said, ¡°We must investigate this matter clearly. When we visit the various villages later, we will settle this matter. We will never punish good people, but we won¡¯t let a bad person off!¡± The investigation of the report letter¡¯s contents was usually done by the investigation team themselves. The investigation team¡¯s work scope was very wide. Anything that needed to be investigated, be it official corruption or statistics, were reported to the government at all levels. But occasionally, President Song would go with the investigation team when he was free and visit the villagers in the district to understand the actual situation. After the meeting ended, President Song personally led the monitoring team of the commune to the villages to understand the details of the reports. It was almost noon when the investigation team reached the village committee of the He Mountain Brigade. The village chief, Sun Wang, jogged back to the office with the staff who had just finished work. Sun Wang opened the office door and turned around with a smile. ¡°President Song, leaders, sorry to keep you all waiting. We just came from the field. Please sit.¡± Usually, it was the village chief who went to the commune for the meeting as a representative. The villagers had never seen these commune leaders before, so they hurriedly poured water and moved chairs. President Song waved his hand with a gentle smile on his face. ¡°You guys must be tired after coming back from the farm. We can find a random place to sit.¡± Sun Wang said enthusiastically, ¡°We¡¯re used to working. It¡¯s more tiring for the leaders who run around all day!¡± Chapter 37 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations After everyone sat in the office, President Song gestured to the investigation team leader Mr. Lin. Mr. Lin didn¡¯t beat around the bush and asked directly, ¡°Do you know that every village has to choose a tractor driver?¡± When Sun Wang heard this, he felt a chill down his spine and was about to interrupt. The village¡¯s female director¡¯s eyes lit up. She smiled and asked, ¡°What tractor driver? Is there going to be a tractor in our village?¡± The female director had a son who had just turned 20 this year. When she heard this, she started to plan. The other cadres also hurriedly asked excitedly. They quickly thought about whether they should recommend their families or outstanding youths in the village. When the investigation team saw everyone¡¯s reaction, they knew that the contents of the report letter were true. Their expressions changed and they said solemnly, ¡°Village Chief Mr. Sun, someone reported that you used your power for personal gain and appointed Sun Yu as the tractor driver of the He Mountain Brigade without a fair election. Do you have anything to say?¡± After everyone heard this, they looked at Sun Wang. Sun Wang broke out in cold sweat. This matter had already been exposed, so he couldn¡¯t quibble. Sun Wang immediately admitted his mistake and lowered his head. His tone was very heavy as he said, ¡°The report is true. I failed to abide by the rules! I have also let down the trust of the people!¡± Director Liu, who was in charge of security, revealed a mocking expression. ¡°You admitted it quite quickly. No wonder you chose a tractor driver so quickly as well.¡± Other people were afraid of offending Sun Wang, but Director Liu wasn¡¯t. The conflict between the two families had been going on for a long time, and his family wasn¡¯t less powerful than the Sun family. The female director pursed her lips and chuckled. She couldn¡¯t stand Sun Wang either, but after all, he was the village chief of their village and had a lot of power, so she didn¡¯t dare to offend him too much. Sun Wang felt resentment. In order to keep his position as the village chief, he could only say with a bitter expression, ¡°Everyone knows that being a tractor driver is an honorable thing. My nephew begged me every day to let him contribute to the village, so I agreed.¡± Then, he expressed his stance to the leaders. ¡°Actually, I¡¯ve been feeling very uneasy these past few days. Now that this matter has been exposed, I can sleep soundly! President Song, the leaders, and the members of the village committee, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll call Sun Yu back today.¡± This matter could be made big or small depending on how it was handled. The investigation team discussed it internally. Considering that the He Mountain Brigade had indeed done well in all aspects under Sun Wang¡¯s lead, they decided to punish him lightly for his first offense and requested that he write a self-reflection letter for three consecutive days at the village¡¯s radio station. President Song didn¡¯t speak the entire time. He only said at the end, ¡°Coincidentally, everyone is here. Let¡¯s choose the tractor driver and start training quickly. It has been five days since the tractor driver¡¯s training has started. In another ten days, the driver will return to the city after class. You better find someone with driving experience. Otherwise, I¡¯m afraid that person won¡¯t be able to keep up.¡± It was obvious that no one in the village knew how to drive. In this day and age, cars that relied on gas were very expensive. There were few people in the entire village who had even touched a car, but they were unwilling to let Sun Yu continue to occupy the spot. Seeing that everyone had fallen silent, Mr. Lin of the investigation team turned his head slightly to look at President Song. He realized that President Song only looked at the villagers gently and didn¡¯t look back at him. He had an idea and slowly said, ¡°I heard that a female student who just came to support the construction of the village knows how to drive. She¡¯s thin and petite.¡± The female director immediately thought of the corresponding person and said loudly, ¡°It¡¯s Yu Bing, right? Among the young people who come to our place, only she¡¯s thin and petite!¡± Mr. Lin hurriedly said, ¡°I don¡¯t know her name. Just call her over and ask.¡± The female director hurriedly went to call Yu Bing over. After a while, the female director pulled Yu Bing in and said with a smile, ¡°She¡¯s Yu Bing. I asked just now. She learned it from someone in the city!¡± The moment Yu Bing walked in, Mr. Lin saw a smile on Director Song¡¯s face from the corner of his eye and knew that he had guessed correctly. ¡°Then do you all think we should choose this young lady?¡± Since things had already developed to this point, Yu Bing was indeed the best choice at this moment, so everyone agreed. As long as Sun Wang¡¯s nephew didn¡¯t get this spot, Director Liu and the female director were satisfied. Just like that, Yu Bing obtained the driver spot that she had dreamed of. She pretended to look at President Song nonchalantly. Her intuition told her that President Song helped her in this matter. Chapter 38 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Because it was the next day, after discussing with Xiao Sheng at night, Yu Bing decided to convince Jiang Chunlai to be in charge of making loach mustard soup and jam. Although she had to train for more than ten days, her business couldn¡¯t be paused. Yu Bing originally wanted to make two batches and see if this plan was stable before letting Jiang Chun take over, but the plan couldn¡¯t keep up with the changes. However, it was certain that Xiao Sheng had been doing these things in the previous life. Moreover, she hadn¡¯t heard of anything going wrong. At the very least, it could prove that the person Xiao Sheng found was relatively reliable. Yu Bing entered the house and closed the door. She said softly, ¡°Chun Chun, you know that I have to go for training in the next ten days. I can¡¯t make jam and loach soup, but I¡¯ve already promised him. Can you take my place? I¡¯ll give you all my profits.¡± Jiang Chun was a little hesitant when she heard this. It wasn¡¯t that she cared about the profits. It didn¡¯t even matter if she didn¡¯t get any money. The main thing was that she was afraid of being discovered and criticized, but she was also afraid that Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t be able to fulfill her task. Seeing this, Yu Bing continued to persuade her. ¡°Chun Chun, don¡¯t you want to send some money back to your parents? Didn¡¯t the doctor say that there¡¯s a medicine from abroad that¡¯s effective in treating asthma?¡± Jiang Chun thought of her father¡¯s sadness when her illness acted up. Her mother looked much older than her peers. She made up her mind. ¡°I¡¯ll do it! But I don¡¯t want so much. I just want a third. After all, you guys started the business. I¡¯m just helping cook something.¡± Jiang Chun smiled and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t help at all during this period of time. You deserve the profits. Don¡¯t worry, when I return from my studies, you won¡¯t be able to take them all anymore. I¡¯ll bring you to do it tonight. Then, you can give it a try.¡± When everyone was about to sleep, Yu Bing brought Jiang Chun and Xiao Sheng into the deep mountains. Jiang Chun had also been a cook since she was young. She had only learned how to cook once, but her cooking was already comparable to Yu Bing¡¯s. The next morning, Yu Bing packed her things and set off for the commune. After successfully going to the place where they practiced, the coach Mr. Zhou looked at the thin little girl in front of him and suspected that the village had chosen the wrong person. Starting the tractor required a lot of strength. Even the chosen female tractor drivers had strong and burly bodies. Beside the car, there stood a row of boys. When they saw Yu Bing¡¯s thin appearance, their eyes revealed disdain. The more Mr. Zhou thought about it, the more he felt that the He Mountain Brigade was treating learning to drive a tractor as a joke. The boy from before was lazy and slacked off all day long. His learning progress was the slowest! This time, they sent a thin girl over! Mr. Zhou suppressed his anger and let Yu Bing stand at the front to see how to start the tractor. Yu Bing was the only girl in this group of 20 people, but she stood in front of the team with a firm gaze. Although Mr. Zhou was dissatisfied, he was very serious about teaching. As he explained seriously, he demonstrated. After he was done, he let Yu Bing try. ¡°The first time we pulled it properly, there was at least a sound. Look at this woman¡¯s body. It¡¯s probably difficult for her to even pull it!¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that so? Just after the slacker from their village left, another one came.¡± ¡°The fastest learner is Zhang Feng. It took us three days to completely start the car. I bet she will take ten days.¡± ¡°In my opinion, she might not even be able to start the tractor after the training period is up.¡± ¡­ Yu Bing ignored the chattering discussions beside her and only followed the steps Mr. Zhou demonstrated step by step. She recalled the feeling of the joystick in her previous life and shook it faster and faster. When she heard the sound of the car starting and the familiar sound, she quickly pulled the joystick away. The tractor was successfully started. Mr. Zhou looked at Yu Bing in shock, and the boy who had been mocking Yu Bing fell silent. At this moment, there was no smug expression on Yu Bing¡¯s face. She only stood beside the team with the same calm expression as before. Mr. Zhou glanced at the students training sharply. ¡°Look at her, then look at you guys! There are still some people who haven¡¯t learned how to start the car. You guys can¡¯t even compare to a young lady. Aren¡¯t you guys embarrassed?¡± Then, Mr. Zhou asked the male students to go to another training vehicle to practice what he had taught a few days ago. Then, he gave Yu Bing some tutoring lessons. Mr. Zhou didn¡¯t expect that Yu Bing would learn so quickly. In the morning, Yu Bing had caught up with the rest of the class¡¯ progress. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that it was lunchtime, he would have wanted to continue teaching Yu Bing. Chapter 39 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Bing said in embarrassment, ¡°Mr. Zhou, I learned it before, so I got the hang of it so quickly.¡± Mr. Zhou paused when he heard this. ¡°Seeing how attentive you were, I thought it was your first time.¡± Yu Bing said humbly, ¡°Although I can drive, I¡¯m still far inferior to you. This is the first time I¡¯ve learned systematically, so I want to learn from the beginning.¡± Mr. Zhou was originally a little dejected, but after hearing this, he felt much better. Instead, he felt that it was very rare for Yu Bing to be so humble. In the afternoon, Mr. Zhou did an overall test on Yu Bing and found that Yu Bing had already mastered it. According to Yu Bing¡¯s request, he gave her additional theoretical knowledge. Because Yu Bing was very patient, the boys who were training didn¡¯t want to be scolded by Mr. Zhou all day long and often bought snacks to ask Yu Bing questions. As a result, Yu Bing became Mr. Zhou¡¯s assistant. On this day, Yu Bing was giving guidance to the students. ¡°Yu Bing, come over for a while.¡± Mr. Zhou shouted from the other side of the training ground. Yu Bing walked over and found a young man in a white shirt standing beside Mr. Zhou. He was smiling at her. Mr. Zhou introduced him to Yu Bing. ¡°This is Director Wang of the County Planning Bureau. The bureau wants to borrow you to drive for the leader drive for a week.¡± Along the way, Director Wang didn¡¯t say much. He only said that it was the director¡¯s instructions. Yu Bing guessed that Director Chang had recommended her. After all, he was the only director she knew in the planning bureau. Yu Bing followed him to the logistics department of the Planning Bureau and got the car she was going to drive this week. Because of her good driving skills, many leaders had a good impression of Yu Bing. This made Director Chang, the middleman, very proud. While Yu Bing was washing the car in the parking lot in the morning, Director Chang looked for her. ¡°How have you been these two days? Have you gotten the hang of it?¡± Facing Director Chang¡¯s concern, Yu Bing nodded. ¡°Yes. Thank you for your concern.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good. A few days ago, Little Gu was diagnosed with appendicitis and needed surgery. We didn¡¯t have enough manpower. The first person I thought of was you, so I borrowed you. Seeing that you¡¯re doing well, I¡¯m happy for you.¡± The DMV was in charge of the training and allocation of all the cars and drivers in the county. If there weren¡¯t enough drivers, they would handle it. Yu Bing knew that if not for Director Chang¡¯s recommendation, she wouldn¡¯t have had this opportunity. She was truly grateful to Director Chang. ¡°Thank you for your trust. I will definitely do my best and won¡¯t embarrass you!¡± These sincere and playful words amused Director Chang. ¡°Alright! I heard your coach praise you for your driving skills.¡± Yu Bing scratched her head and replied, ¡°It¡¯s mainly because I¡¯ve learned it before. I¡¯d be ashamed if I couldn¡¯t drive well during the second training. Oh right, Director Chang, how do I get a driver¡¯s license? I don¡¯t have one yet.¡± Director Chang didn¡¯t think of this, but this wasn¡¯t a big deal. ¡°I¡¯ll get Director Wang to help you write a temporary work certificate later. When you have time, go to the DMV to take the test. If you need to go through the process, just cooperate.¡± At this time, there were no personal cars, and the driving test was very simple. As long as she passed the road test, it would be fine. To Yu Bing, the most difficult thing was to get a work certificate. Now that Director Chang had spoken, everything went smoothly, and Yu Bing quickly got her driver¡¯s license. A week passed quickly. Yu Bing and the discharged Little Gu finished the handover work and went to greet Director Chang before returning. The way she left without a fuss made Director Chang, who thought Yu Bing would think of a way to stay, amused. The students of the DMV knew that Yu Bing had been transferred. They thought that Yu Bing had a pwoerful background and would naturally stay in the convoy to drive for the leader. They didn¡¯t expect her to return. Before Yu Bing came, Zhang Feng was the best student among the students, but now, Mr. Zhou¡¯s favorite student had become Yu Bing. Zhang Feng couldn¡¯t tolerate being outdone by a girl. Today, he finally found an opportunity to vent. He raised his eyebrows and said sarcastically, ¡°Hey, isn¡¯t this our famous classmate? Why didn¡¯t you stay in the government? Why did you come back? If you have any difficulties, tell me. I know some people who can help you think of a way.¡± Monkey, who was sitting beside Zhang Feng, immediately said, ¡°Brother Zhang, she¡¯s a capable person. How can she fancy us? We don¡¯t even know where the Planning Bureau is. She might laugh at us.¡± Another person from the Ox-Head Mountain Commune jumped out and said, ¡°Capable? If she was capable, would she have been chased back?¡± When the students of Fengtou Mountain saw that their own people were being bullied, they naturally had to help. Not to be outdone, they said, ¡°If you have the ability, compare yourself to Yu Bing in terms of driving the tractor!¡± Zhang Feng¡¯s expression changed and he didn¡¯t say anything else. It was indeed publicly acknowledged that Yu Bing¡¯s skills were good. Chapter 40 Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Mr. Zhou glanced at Zhang Feng coldly. A man being sarcastic when he was outdone was a matter of bad character. He raised his voice and said, ¡°A group of men who aren¡¯t good at their own tasks are quite good at saying jealous words! Is the DMV competing in terms of driving skills or the ability of blabber nonsense?!¡± The commotion ended just like that. Soon, it was the day of graduation. Yu Bing obtained the graduation certificate with the best results. The students of the Fengtou Mountain Commune returned to the Commune to collect their cars. During this period of time, everyone had been instructed by Yu Bing, so they let Yu Bing choose first. The moment Yu Bing drove the tractor into the village, envious voices sounded in the field. ¡°Yu Bing is so impressive.¡± ¡°Exactly, just like the female driver on the $1 note!¡± The adults and children by the road immediately surrounded the car and ran with it excitedly to see the first car in the village. Yu Bing first drove to the village committee and reported the training progress to the village staff. During this period of time, Sun Wang had been wondering who had reported him. The village wasn¡¯t far from town, and everyone who went to town those few days was suspected of going to the commune. But now, the one with the biggest vested interest in this matter was Yu Bing, and she had been to the town before. Sun Wang decided to secretly observe again. Yu Bing¡¯s arrival made Sun Wang¡¯s expression instantly darken. In the crowd, Sun Yu¡¯s face flushed, and the veins on his clenched fists bulged. As long as he thought of everyone¡¯s envious and admiring gazes when Yu Bing entered the village, his heart burned with anger. If this woman hadn¡¯t snatched his spot, these would have all been his! At the thought of this, Sun Yu gritted his teeth and rushed out. He shouted at Yu Bing, ¡°What right do you have to drive this car?¡± Yu Bing turned around and looked at Sun Yu¡¯s widened eyes. She felt a little amused. ¡°I was chosen during the village¡¯s meeting. Why am I not qualified to drive it?¡± The surrounding villagers chuckled when they heard this. Sun Wang had mentioned in his self-reflection letter that he had secretly chosen Sun Yu without anyone knowing. ¡°You¡¯re even questioning her? You didn¡¯t even wipe your own butt clean.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. He knows that he won¡¯t be chosen if he takes the formal route!¡± When Sun Yu heard the ridicule of the surrounding people, he was enraged. His eyes were red as he roared, ¡°What do you know?! Driving is a man¡¯s business!¡± Yu Leng sneered. ¡°The country¡¯s leaders all say that women are capable as well! Why can¡¯t women drive?¡± When the female director heard this, she couldn¡¯t tolerate it anymore and shouted, ¡°Sun Yu! The country encourages equality between men and women. Women can participate in labor just like men. There¡¯s something wrong with your mindset if you look down on working women!¡± Once he was deemed a dissident, many spots would have nothing to do with him in the future. Sun Yu was stunned. When he heard that the surrounding women were also denouncing him, he could only run away dejectedly. In the next few days, Yu Bing used her capabilities to refute Sun Yu¡¯s doubts. She drove the tractor and sped up the farm work. This earned Yu Bing a lot of praise, and it also made Sun Wang angry. Sun Wang and Sun Yu were still thinking about the tractor spot. Sun Wang thought that Yu Bing was more suspicious, but without evidence, it was possible that someone else had reported it. It was just that the person who benefited in the end was Yu Bing. However, Sun Yu had long decided that it was Yu Bing. He didn¡¯t care how Sun Wang analyzed it. In any case, whoever snatched his spot was the culprit! His eyes were filled with ruthlessness as he looked at Sun Wang and said angrily, ¡°Second Uncle, I can¡¯t take this lying down! I have to teach Yu Bing a lesson!¡± Sun Yu was the only boy in the Sun family. Sun Wang treated him as his son, which was why he always thought of his nephew when there were good offers. However, at the thought of the Song family, Sun Wang hesitated. ¡°Don¡¯t be anxious. Finding out who reported it is our goal. Let¡¯s investigate this first.¡± If it was Yu Bing, even if she had the support of the Song family, he could make things difficult for Yu Bing in the village. However, he didn¡¯t tell Sun Yu this because he was afraid that he would be impulsive. Sun Yu looked at Sun Wang coldly. He felt that his second uncle was timid and afraid of trouble. He decided to do it himself! The tractors were all placed in the Yu Bing¡¯s courtyard. Before Yu Bing set off, she drove around but didn¡¯t find anything unusual. Then, Yu Bing drove out of the house. Halfway there, she saw a group of people in front and wanted to slow down. However, when she stepped on the brakes, she realized that there was no reaction at all. Yu Bing immediately shouted, ¡°Everyone in front, move to the right! Hurry!¡± The people in front turned around one after another. Although they didn¡¯t know what was going on, seeing Yu Bing¡¯s anxious expression, they hurriedly followed suit. Fortunately, Yu Bing had planned to slow down in advance, so she was still a distance away from the crowd. Yu Bing pulled the hand brake forcefully, but realized that it had also failed! Chapter 41 - Call the Police Yu Bing¡¯s heart skipped a beat, and her expression was dark. The hand brake and the foot brake had two unrelated operating systems. Yu Bing had driven for so many years in her previous life, but she had never encountered or heard of both failing at the same time! ¡°Why can¡¯t that car stop?¡± ¡°An accident is going to happen! Hurry up and call the village¡¯s supervisors over. If this continues, an accident will happen!¡± ¡­ Everyone followed Yu Bing, who had been driving forward, and discussed as they ran. The completely uncontrollable speed made Yu Bing break out in cold sweat. Suddenly, she had an idea. She recalled that in her previous life, when she went to repair the car, she heard an old driver mention an emergency solution if two brakes failed at the same time. As Yu Bing thought about it, she followed the instructions. First, she slowed down little by little. Then, she used the clutch to control the speed and drove the car to an open area. She slid for a while before forcefully stopping the car. ¡°I was scared to death. The car rushed forward nonstop just now. If we hadn¡¯t dodged quickly, we would have been crushed by this thing!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Yu Bing, why were you driving so recklessly?!¡± The crowd that had caught up surrounded Yu Bing and complained. At this moment, Sun Yu also smiled smugly in the crowd. Yu Bing knew that this accident was definitely man-made! Not to mention that the probability of both brakes failing was close to zero, Yu Bing would check the car every day when she returned home. No matter what, such a problem should not have happened. If Yu Bing hadn¡¯t coincidentally found out about that method, she might have bumped into someone! This sort of troublemaker disregarded human lives. Other than Sun Yu, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t think of anyone else who would do such a thing! Yu Bing turned around and saw the provocative smile on Sun Yu¡¯s face. She clenched her fists. Her nails dug into her flesh as she quickly thought about how to find evidence that it was Sun Yu¡¯s doing in order to prove her innocence. If she was held accountable for this incident, it being recorded on her file would be considered light punishment. Worst case scenario, she would no longer be able to drive! Yu Bing looked at Sun Yu coldly and said firmly, ¡°I want to call the police! The brake failure was caused by someone deliberately damaging the tractor.¡± As expected, Sun Yu looked flustered. At this moment, Yu Bing happened to see Jiang Chun, who was desperately squeezing forward at the back of the crowd, so she immediately gave her a look. The tacit understanding between the two of them for more than ten years made Jiang Chun immediately understand what Yu Bing meant. She turned around and ran towards the back mountain. Sun Wang and the other villagers had just arrived when they heard the word ¡°call the police.¡± They shouted in exasperation, ¡°Nonsense! Why call the police?!¡± Wasn¡¯t this clearly telling the commune that he, the village chief, wasn¡¯t doing his job well and that something big had happened in the village?! It hadn¡¯t been long since the circumstances of Sun Yu becoming a tractor driver unfairly was exposed. If another incident happened, what would the commune¡¯s leaders think of him? Sun Wang used his authority as the village chief to scan the crowd with a sharp gaze. ¡°This is an internal matter of our village. If you can resolve it yourself, don¡¯t waste the commune¡¯s garrison resources!¡± Unlike in the future, when everyone looked for the police when they needed help, these days, everyone was afraid of the police. They always felt that no matter what the reason was, as long as they entered the police station, it meant that they were bad people. Ordinary people liked to look for government officials to solve problems. They would never think of looking for the police when their interests were violated. Therefore, everyone didn¡¯t think twice when they heard this. Director Liu saw that Sun Wang was putting on airs and was secretly unhappy. If someone was really causing trouble in the village, he should speak up. Hence, he coughed lightly and raised his voice to say, ¡°What¡¯s the current situation? Someone come forward and tell me what happened.¡± The villagers who witnessed the entire process immediately rushed forward to explain what had happened. On the other side, Jiang Chun quietly went to borrow a bicycle from Xiao Sheng, who had just returned home from the county city. When Xiao Sheng heard this, he immediately lent her the bicycle. Jiang Chun quickly rode the bicycle to the commune. The police station was on the first floor of the commune. Jiang Chun locked the bicycle and rushed in quickly. ¡°Hey! Why are you so impetuous?¡± President Song had just arrived at work when Jiang Chun bumped into him. Jiang Chun immediately reached out to support him. ¡°I¡¯m sorry! I¡¯m sorry! I¡­ I have something urgent to tell the police!¡± In this day and age, people usually called the police about fights and deaths. When President Song heard this, he helped Jiang Chun find the police. President Song saw the police department¡¯s Director Qian enter the commune. He waved and shouted, ¡°Mr. Qian, someone is here to report a case!¡± Hearing this, Director Qian immediately went forward and asked, ¡°Young lady, which village are you from? What do you want to report?¡± Jiang Chun immediately reported the name of the He Mountain Brigade. When President Song, who wanted to leave, heard that Jiang Chun was from Yu Bing¡¯s commune, he was no longer in a hurry to go upstairs. He stopped at the side and listened. Chapter 42 - Escalating Situation Jiang Chun anxiously explained what had happened. Because she had to go to the village committee¡¯s warehouse to collect farm equipment and go to the field, she would leave home earlier than Yu Bing every day. When she arrived, she heard Yu Bing say that the car had been tampered with, so she emphasized this when she reported to the police. The tractor was an important piece of public property and an important symbol of the countryside¡¯s modernization. It had just been received, but it had been tampered with and almost crashed into innocent bystanders. If this matter wasn¡¯t handled well, the commune president would be criticized when he arrived in the county. Director Qian immediately called his two subordinates, and President Song also called Manager Wang, who was in charge of the cars, to go with him. The situation was urgent, so the few of them prepared to drive into the village. Before they left, President Song asked Jiang Chun to get in the bus with them. Jiang Chun immediately found an excuse to avoid it. The resolution of the problem depended on these leaders. It didn¡¯t matter if she returned later. Moreover, the bicycle couldn¡¯t be exposed. She still had to secretly ride to the place where Xiao Sheng had asked her to wait. Xiao Lin was waiting for her to return the bicycle. At this moment, the situation in the village had already reached a climax. Yu Bing naturally insisted on calling the police, while Sun Wang was the opposition. Director Liu of the Public Security Bureau and his two village officers maintained a neutral front, but they actually hoped that things would blow up. After all, the worse of a village chief Sun Wang was, the easier it was for him to be toppled. Only then would he have a chance to rise up. The other villagers were just watching the commotion. When Sun Wang saw the stalemate, his expression became even uglier. He resented Yu Bing for being so troublesome! Sun Wang stared at Yu Bing fiercely. ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯re the one looking after this car! If something happens to it in your hands, why do you want to involve the police? I think you want to divert the attention of the people and shirk responsibility!¡± Yu Bing wasn¡¯t to be outdone. She sneered. ¡°Mr. Sun, if this accident isn¡¯t man-made and I¡¯m really at fault, then even if the police come, they won¡¯t be able to change the truth. You have been trying so hard to stop me from calling the police. What are you afraid of?¡± When Sun Wang saw Yu Bing¡¯s unrelenting look, he felt resentful. He looked at the surrounding crowd and decided to evacuate the people first before thinking of a way to force Yu Bing to admit her fault. ¡°You guys don¡¯t have to work anymore? All of you, go work in the fields! This is a big deal. Yu Bing has ruined public property. The village is going to interrogate her now! All of you, disperse. We¡¯ll inform everyone when we get the results.¡± Yu Bing widened her eyes and clenched her fists tightly. She definitely couldn¡¯t be interrogated alone. Although Sun Wang wasn¡¯t omnipotent in the village, if he really went all out against her, it would be very difficult for her to prove her innocence. After all, the other cadres in the village weren¡¯t as powerful as Sun Wang. If they were unwilling to stand up for her, there would be no chance of turning the tables. Seeing this, Yu Bing immediately shouted, ¡°Mr. Sun, tractors are the property of the government, but they are also collectively owned. They serve the country and the people. The people present have the right to know who really jeopardized their interests. I didn¡¯t cause any damage. I¡¯m not afraid of everyone participating in the investigation. Whoever is afraid has a guilty conscience!¡± With that, Yu Bing glared at Sun Yu. Sun Yu revealed a disdainful smile. With the village chief, his second uncle, he wasn¡¯t afraid! The villagers wanted to know the follow-up to begin with. When they heard Yu Bing¡¯s words, they felt that they had found an legitimate reason to watch the drama. Moreover, there wasn¡¯t much work in the field recently. They didn¡¯t have much to do today, so none of them wanted to leave. ¡°Village Chief, we¡¯ll be done in an hour today, so it won¡¯t delay things.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. The fact that the tractor is damaged is more important! We want to see who tried to go against the people. After we find out who he is, we¡¯ll condemn him!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. There¡¯s only one car in the village. If it gets destroyed, how would we do the farm work?!¡± After listening for so long, everyone felt that the possibility of Yu Bing being framed was higher. Hence, everyone was excited to find the culprit. After all, if the car broke down, it would indeed harm the interests of all the villagers. Without the machine, many heavy jobs had to be done manually. Director Liu was thinking about how to make this matter blow up, so when he heard this, he echoed, ¡°I think Yu Bing makes sense. Yu Bing was specifically trained, so it¡¯s definitely possible that the car was sabotaged. As the village staff, we can¡¯t punish innocent people and let the real culprit get off scot-free!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. We can¡¯t harm the innocent, let alone let bad people escape punishment!¡± A vigorous voice interrupted the chattering. Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw a few people in tunic suits and police uniforms standing in front of a small car. They knew that they must be big shots. Otherwise, they wouldn¡¯t have a car! Chapter 43 - Falling Out Chapter 43: Falling Out Seeing this, everyone couldn¡¯t help but make way. The villagers recognized President Song at a glance. Sun Wang thought to himself, Oh no! However, he could only brace himself and go forward to greet them. ¡°President Song! Welcome. Are you here to inspect work? I¡¯ll lead you to the office first.¡± At this moment, Sun Wang only wanted to lure them away to prevent this matter from getting blown up. President Song waved his hand dismissively and raised his chin slightly to look at the tractor. ¡°There¡¯s no hurry. Let¡¯s settle the matter at hand first.¡± Director Qian stood beside President Song and said solemnly, ¡°I¡¯m the police chief. My surname is Qian. I just received a report that someone deliberately destroyed public property! This is vandalism. We came down to investigate this matter. Who is Yu Bing?¡± Sun Yu, who had originally wanted to see his second uncle teach Yu Bing a lesson, panicked when he heard this. When Sun Wang turned around and saw his nephew¡¯s flustered expression, he understood. Although he didn¡¯t show it on his face, he inwardly cursed Sun Yu for causing trouble for him. His mind raced as he tried to come up with a solution. He couldn¡¯t watch Sun Yu be arrested, so he had to place the blame on Yu Bing no matter what. When Yu Bing heard someone call her name, she immediately stood up and stepped forward. ¡°Hello, leaders. I¡¯m Yu Bing. Someone deliberately destroyed the brakes. Moreover, I suspect that person knows some theoretical knowledge about vehicle maintenance. Otherwise, he couldn¡¯t have destroyed it so thoroughly. Please take a look at the damaged place.¡± With that, Yu Bing led a few officers to check the car. When everyone heard this, they couldn¡¯t help but look at Sun Yu. After all, other than Yu Bing, only Sun Wang knew about this. When Sun Yu saw everyone¡¯s suspicious gazes, sweat broke out on his forehead amidst the hot weather. He licked his lips and his breathing quickened. He glared at Yu Bing. ¡°Yu Bing! Don¡¯t slander me. You were the one who didn¡¯t take care of it properly!¡± When Yu Bing turned around and saw Sun Yu¡¯s anxious expression, she said calmly, ¡°I didn¡¯t say it was you. Why are you in a hurry to defend yourself?¡± Then, she continued to ask in a suspicious tone, ¡°Or is it because you¡¯re the guilty one?¡± ¡°If it¡¯s man-made, Sun Yu is indeed the most suspicious.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, only he knows!¡± ¡°Moreover, some people have always been jealous. Perhaps he saw others going to train and felt indignant about the unfairness of the situation!¡± Sun Yu¡¯s panic made Yu Bing¡¯s counterattack seem even more convincing, and the villagers also became inclined towards believing her. Sun Yu saw the obvious suspicion in everyone¡¯s eyes and looked at his second uncle, Sun Wang, with a pale face. At this moment, Sun Wang also knew that with the interference of the commune¡¯s leader today, this matter probably wouldn¡¯t be resolved so easily. He could only take it one step at a time. In order not to be implicated by Sun Yu, he didn¡¯t look back at Sun Yu. Instead, he looked elsewhere. After Officer Wang checked the brakes, he said to Director Qian in a low voice, ¡°There¡¯s a problem with both brake systems. Before this car was taken away from me last week, I did an examination. Now, the brake pads are clearly loose. It¡¯s impossible for it to be caused by natural wear or accident in such a short period of time. It¡¯s definitely man-made!¡± Everyone in the commune knew that Mr. Wang was an experienced driver and was very proficient in driving and repairing. Director Qian didn¡¯t doubt his conclusion. Director Qian slowly took a few steps forward and announced the results to everyone in a low voice. ¡°The brakes were indeed damaged by someone! Yu Bing, when was the last time the car was used?¡± Yu Bing said to Director Qian seriously, ¡°I drove the car home after everyone got off work yesterday. I was in the courtyard before 9 p.m, so I can ensure that no one had touched it before then. When I drove out this morning, I realized that there was a problem with the brakes.¡± Director Qian nodded and glanced at the surrounding villagers with a sharp gaze. He immediately realized that something was wrong with Sun Yu. Coupled with Sun Yu¡¯s performance just now and everyone¡¯s evaluation of him, he came up with a resolution. ¡°The culprit tampered with it some time from nine o¡¯clock last night to this morning before work started. Moreover, he knows about the village¡¯s car safekeeping situation and has a certain level of knowledge about cars. Everyone, find a few people in the village who match the situation and report their names.¡± When everyone heard this, they felt that only Sun Yu matched all of these criterias, but they didn¡¯t dare to say it. After all, the Sun family had Sun Wang, their village chief. Moreover, Sun Wang¡¯s daughter had married an official in the county. During the discussion just now, they had secretly said a few words to each other, but if they really went against the Sun family, they might not be able to stay in the He Mountain Brigade anymore. However, Yu Bing wasn¡¯t afraid of others. If she didn¡¯t say it, the crime of intentional destruction would fall on her. Then, she wouldn¡¯t be able to escape jail time. ¡°I know. Sun Yu fits these criteria.¡± Chapter 44 - Dogfight Sun Wang looked at Yu Bing vicously. Now, the two of them had completely fallen out. When Director Qian heard this, he lowered his eyes for a moment and said loudly, ¡°Villagers whose names have been called will have to step out. Tell me, who else fits the description? Or if the suspect wants to turn himself in, I¡¯ll give you a chance! If you confess, I¡¯ll let you off easy. If you resist, I¡¯ll punish you severely! If you don¡¯t want to go to jail, turn yourself in. I can even fight for leniency for you.¡± Director Qian came to the local police station after he had just retired from the battlefield. The murderous aura on his body had yet to dissipate. When he looked at everyone with his large eyes, everyone felt a little afraid, let alone Sun Yu, who had committed the crime. Sun Yu was already trembling in fear. Thinking that he might go to jail if this matter wasn¡¯t resolved properly, he mustered the courage to glare at Yu Bing. ¡°You b*tch, you just want to frame me!¡± Sun Yu was a stupid wicked person. Not to mention that Yu Bing had no reason to frame him, just based on the fact that this car was kept by Yu Bing, if she really wanted to do something bad, she wouldn¡¯t implicate herself. Seeing that Sun Yu was desperate, Yu Bing asked unhurriedly, ¡°Director Qian, I heard that there¡¯s a technology called fingerprint identification. The suspect tampered with the car, so we should be able to get his fingerprints, right?¡± Director Qian glanced at Yu Bing. He didn¡¯t expect her to think of the same thing as him, so he cooperated and said, ¡°There¡¯s indeed such a technique. I¡¯ll get someone to take the fingerprints later and collect the fingerprints of suspicious people. The results will be out soon.¡± The fingerprint technology and collection weren¡¯t particularly advanced in this era. The fingerprints on the gear weren¡¯t necessarily clear, so the two of them were just bluffing to scare Sun Yu. Director Qian deliberately asked his subordinate to take out a fingerprint device and get Sun Yu¡¯s fingerprint. When Sun Yu saw this, he was so frightened that he ran away. Unfortunately, there were many onlookers. Before Sun Yu could push through the crowd and run away, he was caught by two police officers. Sun Wang¡¯s expression changed drastically. He didn¡¯t have time to do anything. In this current situation, he decided to abandon the carriage to save the queen. After all, he couldn¡¯t lose his position as the village chief. This was the premise of the Sun family enjoying all the preferential treatment in the village! Even if Sun Yu was captured, as long as he was still the village chief, he could think of a way to get him out after the commotion died down. Sun Yu was captured and brought to the leader of the commune. Looking at the intimidating Director Qian, Sun Yu felt his legs go weak and a few thoughts popped up in his mind. He couldn¡¯t go to jail! He definitely couldn¡¯t go to jail! His second uncle! Yes, his second uncle was the village chief. He definitely had a way! If he pushed the blame on him, he would definitely be able to think of a way to escape! Sun Yu seemed to have understood something. He straightened his back and pointed at Sun Wang. ¡°It was my second uncle! He instigated it!¡± ¡°He wanted me to learn how to drive a tractor so that I could bring honor to our family! Second Uncle, I¡¯m the only grandson of the Sun family. Grandma still wants me to take care of her in her old age! Moreover, he took the initiative to give me the spot. Now that it¡¯s been snatched away, he wants me to think of a way to set Yu Bing up!¡± Sun Yu shouted with a flushed face. Sun Wang gritted his teeth in anger when he heard him pushing the blame on him! Sun Wang definitely couldn¡¯t let the blame fall on him. Otherwise, without him, the Sun family would only be ordinary farmers in the village! Sun Wang looked at Sun Yu with a pained expression. ¡°Sun Yu! Why have you become like this? In order to get away with it, first, you framed Yu Bing, and now that the matter has been exposed, you¡¯re blaming me!¡± With that, he turned to the commune leaders with a sad expression. ¡°President Song, Director Qian, I was at home all night last night. If you don¡¯t believe me, you can check my fingerprints.¡± Then, he said, ¡°Sun Yu is my nephew. As the village chief, I failed to keep an eye on the villagers and my own family. I admit that I was derelict in my duties! The organization has nurtured me for many years, and this happened under my jurisdiction. I let down everyone¡¯s trust! I only hope that the organization will give me a chance to atone for my crimes on account of my previous contributions!¡± Sun Wang¡¯s words first confirmed that Sun Yu had destroyed the car, then revealed the other party¡¯s motive. In the end, he said that he should be punished for his dereliction of duty and that he couldn¡¯t get away with it. This self-blame and confession made everyone¡¯s impression of him improve a lot. It had to be said that after being a leader for so many years, he was quite eloquent. At this moment, Sun Wang didn¡¯t dare to think about keeping the position of village chief anymore. He would probably be demoted. However, he could at least be a village official and think of a way to plan for his future. Everyone was dumbfounded by the uncle and nephew¡¯s fight. However, they didn¡¯t expect something even more shocking to happen next. Chapter 45 - Good Seed Sun Yu had been spoiled by the Sun family since he was young, so he was naive and didn¡¯t know anything about the ways of the world. He only knew that not only did his second uncle not help him take the blame, but he also wanted to convict him. He resented Sun Wang to the core. Thinking about how he was going to prison or be punished to undergo labor reform, Sun Yu couldn¡¯t care less. If he had to suffer, he would drag others down with him. ¡°Sun Wang, don¡¯t blame me for being heartless!¡± As he spoke, he revealed how much Sun Wang had embezzled for the Sun family¡¯s benefit over the years and how many people he had framed and suppressed. Sun Wang was furious when he heard this. Not only had he given most of the benefits he had obtained over the years to his nephew, but he usually led Sun Yu when he had the chance to show his face in front of the leaders. Sun Wang never expected that he would be backstabbed by someone he had raised as his own son. Sun Wang went forward and slapped Sun Yu to the ground. As he kicked him, he scolded, ¡°You ingrate! Even raising a dog is better than raising you!¡± The two young police officers immediately went forward to stop the two of them. At this point, everyone roughly understood what had happened. Director Qian got someone to escort Sun Yu and Sun Wang into the car and bring them back to the police station to record their statements. The matters in the village were temporarily supervised by the female director and the security director. The matter came to an end. Before President Song got into the car, he glanced at Yu Bing, who was standing calmly in the crowd, with admiration in his eyes. Most people wouldn¡¯t think of calling the police when they encountered such a big matter. They would be threatened by the village staff into settling it internally. If this matter really developed in that direction, Yu Bing definitely would have become the scapegoat this time. Not only did Yu Bing delay the matter until they rushed over, but when she saw higher-ups at the scene when she was at a disadvantage, her attitude was still neither servile nor overbearing. She didn¡¯t curry favor with them out of fear of being wronged. She even worked with Director Qian to set a trap for Sun Yu. President Song marveled that Yu Bing had the potential for becoming a good leader. Because the car was damaged, it would take the commune two days to apply for gear from the county, so Yu Bing was free today. Yu Bing went to look for the villagers to exchange for a three-pound grass carp. She fished out one of the pickled vegetables she had previously marinated. At night, she made pickled fish, stir-fried chives and eggs, steamed eggplants, cucumber salad, and stir-fried vegetables. She invited the three Xiao siblings over for dinner. The three Xiao siblings brought a basket of vegetables and a small piece of cured meat that they had marinated at home to visit. They even brought their own rice. Everyone exchanged their food with their work points. When they were invited to eat, those who knew etiquette would bring their own food. The five of them sat around the dining table. Yu Bing raised the bowl containing the fish soup and said with a smile, ¡°I have to thank Chun Chun and Xiao Sheng today. If it weren¡¯t for the two of you helping me call the police in time, I might have been blamed for destroying public property! Now, I¡¯ll thank the two of you with soup in place of wine!¡± Jiang Chun smiled and scratched her head. ¡°There¡¯s no need to thank me. It¡¯s mainly because you defended yourself.¡± The corners of Xiao Sheng¡¯s mouth curled up slightly as he picked up the bowl. ¡°We¡¯re in the same boat. I can¡¯t help you much, but I can lend you a car.¡± Although that was the case, bicycles were very precious these days. Xiao Sheng¡¯s bicycle was the only one in the village that couldn¡¯t be exposed, but Xiao Sheng lent it to Jiang Chun without hesitation at the risk of being discovered. This was deep trust. The three of them smiled and clinked their bowls. Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°Alright, then I won¡¯t be polite. Let¡¯s eat!¡± Xiao Lin couldn¡¯t wait any longer and immediately ate a piece of fish and pickled vegetables. His eyes lit up. ¡°Yu Bing, the pickled fish is so delicious!¡± After Xiao Sheng took a bite, he felt that the sourness and crispness of the pickled vegetables were just right. They were on par with the pickled vegetables in restaurants. He looked at the pickled vegetables in his bowl and said calmly, ¡°I want to sell these pickled vegetables!¡± Yu Bing chuckled and looked at the man who was full of business ideas. ¡°You think of business even when you¡¯re eating. But, every family knows how to make pickled vegetables. Who¡¯s going to buy them?¡± Xiao Sheng raised his head to look at Yu Bing. He looked relaxed, and there was a hint of mirth in his eyes. ¡°We¡¯re not selling to individuals, but there¡¯s no hurry now. We still have to consider this matter at length.¡± After saying that, he turned to look at his siblings. Xiao Lin was carefully picking out the fish bones and feeding them to Xiao Li. Xiao Sheng watched with a gentle expression. Xiao Li¡¯s surgery fees had to be earned faster so that the chances of success would be higher. Previously, he didn¡¯t have any skills, so he could only sell vegetables and hunt. But now that he had Yu Bing, who was dexterous, he had to speed things up. The atmosphere in the farmhouse at the foot of the mountain was harmonious, but the Sun family was in chaos. Chapter 46 - Finding Connections ¡°You b*tch! First, you jinxed my son to death. Now, my son and grandson were even sent to the police station by you! Eldest daughter-in-law, slap her a few times!¡± Madam Sun sat cross-legged on the chair. She slapped the table with one hand and held her chest with the other as she cursed loudly. As soon as she finished speaking, Su Qi¡¯s palm landed on Li Ping¡¯s face. The hatred that Su Qi had for being bullied by Li Ping for many years in the Sun family completely erupted at the moment Sun Yu caused her husband, Sun Wang, to be sent to the police station. After Li Ping was caught off guard and slapped twice, she resisted. In the past, she was the only one who could bully others. How dare Su Qi, who had only given birth to three useless daughters, slap her in the face?! ¡°I gave birth to a son! Sun Yu is the only eldest grandson of the Sun family. How dare Su Qi hit his mother?! What right does a bitch like you have to hit me?!¡± Li Ping slapped her back twice. Su Qi was used to being bullied in the Sun family after all. After her momentary outburst, she was suppressed by Li Ping again. Su Qi¡¯s youngest daughter, Sun Xi, had seen Li Ping, her aunt, bully her mother often because she had a son. Now that she finally had the chance to get payback, when she saw that Li Ping still dared to be so cocky, she rammed into Li Ping. Although the 12-year-old Sun Xi was scrawny and petite, because she had been doing farm work since she was young, she was quite strong. She knocked Li Ping back a few steps. Li Ping tripped on the threshold before falling to the ground. ¡°You good-for-nothing! I¡¯ll beat you to death!¡± Li Ping rushed into the house with her hand on her waist. She yanked Sun Xi¡¯s ear as she hit and pinched her. Seeing this, Su Qi immediately rushed forward with anger and the three of them fought. ¡°This is chaos! Are you trying to anger me to death?¡± When Madam Sun saw this scene, she was enraged. She stood up and hit Li Ping¡¯s back with the feather duster. The old ladies in the countryside were all lean yet strong. Moreover, it was three against one. No matter how valiant Li Ping was, she was at a disadvantage at this moment. ¡°Why are you still causing trouble at a time like this?! My father and Sun Yu have already been detained. They¡¯re waiting for the verdict! None of them can escape!¡± A tired and hoarse female voice sounded at the door of the central room. Everyone looked at Sun Wang¡¯s second daughter, Sun Nan, who was standing at the door. When they heard this, they immediately stopped and took a few steps forward. ¡°Sun Nan, what do you mean?¡± Madam Sun stared at Sun Nan with her turbid eyes. ¡°I mean it literally! I met my father. He said that in order to gain leniency, Sun Yu revealed all the dirty things that my father did in the past, such as accepting bribes. Now, both of them will definitely be sentenced. He asked me to come back and tell you guys to be prepared. The Sun family is no longer the Sun family of the past!¡± Sun Nan¡¯s face was filled with fatigue, and her lips were dry from thirst. Sun Xi immediately got a glass of water and handed it to Sun Nan. Old Madam Sun plopped down on the ground with exhaustion. She didn¡¯t know whether to blame her son for not being able to protect her grandson or to blame her grandson for dragging her son down. Li Ping was stunned for a moment. Then, she rushed to Sun Nan and grabbed her arms. She widened her eyes and said, ¡°Money! We can give them money! We can give them money and use our connections. They don¡¯t have to be sentenced.¡± Madam Sun looked like she heard a brilliant idea. She raised her head and looked at Sun Nan. Her eyes lit up as she said, ¡°That¡¯s right! Previously, when those people looked for our family, they gave us gifts and money. Your father handled their business well. This time, we¡¯ll send them gifts and money too! Go look for your sister and let her talk to her husband about this. Her husband is a cadre in the county!¡± 1 Sun Nan looked at the four women in the room who were looking at her with burning gazes. She felt mixed emotions. Of course, she wanted to save her father, but this time, things had blown up, not to mention that Sun Yu was the informant. She lowered her eyes for a moment. ¡°We have to hurry. Sun Yu insisted on revealing my father¡¯s crimes, so I have no idea what will happen next! We have to be fast.¡± When Madam Sun heard this, she turned her attention to Li Ping again. She slapped Li Ping fiercely and shouted angrily, ¡°How have you raised my grandson?! You b*tch, I should have chased you home when my second son was jinxed to death by you!¡± No matter how cocky Li Ping was, she didn¡¯t dare to do anything to Old Madam Sun. She stroked her head and looked at Old Madam Sun as she said fiercely, ¡°Mom, I didn¡¯t even have the chance to raise my son. I don¡¯t even know if I¡¯m his mother or you!¡± Sun Yu had been raised by Madam Sun since he was young. Even Li Ping, his biological mother, didn¡¯t dote on him as much as Madam Sun did. In the Sun family, Sun Yu¡¯s existence only allowed Li Ping to enjoy better treatment than Su Qi. Chapter 47 - Unexpected Guest She was far inferior to Madam Sun in terms of nurturing and intimacy with her son. Li Ping was naturally unwilling to take the blame. She even felt that if she had raised Sun Yu back then, Sun Yu might have already become a high-ranking official! ¡°Instead of arguing about this here, why don¡¯t you gather the money and think about what time you want to look for me tomorrow?¡± Sun Nan felt very helpless. In order to meet Sun Wang, she had been waiting at the police station for the entire day. She had only eaten a steamed bun for lunch and was already exhausted from walking back and forth. The women at home still didn¡¯t understand the seriousness of the matter and were pushing the blame onto others. Hence, after a new question was raised, Madam Sun and Li Ping began to argue about how much money to pay. The next morning, an uninvited guest came to the village. After Yu Yan finished breakfast, she felt bored in the dormitory, so she planned to go out for a walk. Because she had found someone to work for her yesterday, she only found out about the tractor incident that afternoon when everyone returned to the dormitory. When she found out that the final victor was Yu Bing, Yu Yan felt upset for the entire afternoon and hated Yu Bing even more. Previously, in order to please Yu Yan, Sun Yu often secretly gave her candies and eggs from home. Usually, in order to get others to help her do things, she often gave them benefits. She didn¡¯t eat much of the things her parents sent her. It was all thanks to Sun Yu that she could live slack off a little. But now, because of Yu Bing, this route was completely cut off. Yu Yan originally wanted to use Sun Yu to get her an easy task. At that time, she could slack off and keep her snacks. In Yu Yan¡¯s mind, Sun Yu was a fool. As long as she spoke, Sun Yu would be willing to do anything for her even without any substantial benefits. It had to be said that this greatly satisfied her vanity. Unfortunately, before she could mention it, Sun Yu was arrested. ¡°Hello! May I know how to get to the village committee¡¯s office?¡± Yu Yan looked over and her eyes lit up. In front of her, there was a handsome and gentle-looking boy. He was dressed neatly, had running shoes on, and was carrying luggage. ¡°Hello, I¡¯ll bring you there. Are you an intellectual from our village? Isn¡¯t it past the time to recruit intellectuals? How did you get here?¡± Through her clothes and temperament, Yu Yan determined that the other party was probably wealthy. Wanting to leave a good impression on the other party, she spoke in a gentle tone. The person who came was Yao Nian. A few days ago, he accidentally found out that Yu Bing had become a tow truck driver of the He Mountain Brigade. He found out that not only did the tow truck driver get 12 yuan a month, but could also get work points as well. Most importantly, he was working in the commune and was considered a member of the organization, so he decisively transferred from his original village. Although his family had voided the betrothal because Yu Bing was weak, since Yu Bing had displayed her value now, Yao Nian felt that he could give Yu Bing a chance to become his wife. Hence, he quickly settled the procedures and transferred to the He Mountain Brigade. When he saw Yu Yan¡¯s appearance, Yao Nian¡¯s eyes lit up. Yu Yan had a round face and almond-shaped eyes. Her appearance and well-proportioned tall figure made her look very healthy, which matched the aesthetics of people in this era. Therefore, even though Yu Bing was good-looking, she was still despised by the Yao family because she was thin and sickly. However, at this moment, despite Yu Yan¡¯s good looks, Yao Nian didn¡¯t think much of Yu Yan. The most important thing now was to find Yu Bing and find a way to get her to give him the driver¡¯s position. In order to establish the image of a good man and declare his sovereignty, Yao Nian specifically mentioned, ¡°I transferred from another village. My fianc¨¦e is also here. I specifically transferred her here to take care of her.¡± 1 When Yu Yan heard this, her impression of Yao Nian became even better. She wanted to leave a good impression before thinking about snatching her over. She smiled gently and asked, ¡°Who is your fianc¨¦e? I know all the young people in the village.¡± Yao Nian also smiled and replied, ¡°Her name is Yu Bing!¡± Yu Yan paused and asked in disbelief, ¡°Your fianc¨¦e is Yu Bing?¡± Yao Nian nodded firmly. ¡°She¡¯s not in good health. That¡¯s why I turned around.¡± Yu Yan was furious! How come Yu Bing had all the good things?! Not only did she obtain her parents¡¯ affection, but she also got the position of a tow truck driver. Now, she even had such a gentle and considerate fianc¨¦! Yu Yan secretly decided to get close to this man and let Yu Bing experience the taste of losing her man! Hence, she smiled at Yao Nian again and said, ¡°My name is Yu Yan. What¡¯s your name?¡± Chapter 48 - Take Care of Yao Nian hurriedly replied, ¡°My name is Yao Nian. In the future, we¡¯ll be in the same village. If there¡¯s anything you don¡¯t understand, I¡¯ll need you to guide me.¡± Yu Yan said in a joking tone, ¡°No problem. You¡¯re so gentle. You must have been bullied by Yu Bing a lot, right? She¡¯s very powerful here!¡± Yao Nian was confused. He had heard others describe Yu Bing as a taciturn pushover, but he had never heard anyone say that she bullied others. Seeing this, Yu Yan felt that Yu Bing must have hidden her sharp-tongued and unforgiving side because she liked Yao Nian. Hence, she told Yao Nian an exaggerated version of what happened yesterday. After saying that, she looked at Yao Nian and said with a pained expression, ¡°In my opinion, the Sun family was indeed in the wrong, but we¡¯re all from the same village. Why must she ruin their future like that? She was so ruthless. She could have asked the Sun family to apologize in private, but she even caused the police to come over. Sigh, I¡¯m worried that the leaders of the commune will have a bad impression of our village.¡± Yao Nian didn¡¯t expect Yu Bing to have changed so much. He suddenly hesitated about his decision to rashly transfer over here. He should have come here in advance to check the situation. Because he had something on his mind, he was a little distracted when he spoke to Yu Yan. When Yu Yan saw Yao Nian¡¯s reaction, she felt that she had successfully exposed Yu Bing¡¯s true colors and that Yao Nian found out about Yu Bing¡¯s vicious thoughts, so she was very happy. 1 After the procedures were completed, Yao Nian was officially registered in the He Mountain Brigade. There were still spots in the boys¡¯ dormitory, so Yu Yan brought Yao Nian to the dormitory enthusiastically. After chatting along the way, Yao Nian found out that Yu Bing and Jiang Chun lived alone at the foot of the back mountain, so he planned to go over at noon and freeload lunch. After work at noon, the ice tractor, which was filled with people, drove from the village entrance to the end of the village. Xiao Sheng sat at the end. Jiang Chun saw someone standing at the door from afar. When she saw who he was, she turned to Yu Bing. ¡°Little Bing, Yao Nian is here!¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s ears were very sharp, and the rumbling of the tractor didn¡¯t cover his hearing. However, he didn¡¯t say anything. After all, his personal relationship with Yu Bing wasn¡¯t that deep, so it wasn¡¯t appropriate for him to ask. When the car arrived at Yu Bing¡¯s house, Xiao Sheng got out of the car and walked towards his house. Jiang Chun pretended not to see Yao Nian and ignored him as she pushed open the door to let Yu Bing drive the car into the courtyard. Yu Bing ignored Yao Nian and drove in. Seeing this, Yao Nian thought that Yu Bing was unhappy with the Yao family for ignoring the arranged marriage all these years. Yao Nian had been spoiled by his family, so how could he take this? He wanted to leave immediately. However, when he thought about how he had spent a lot of effort to transfer over, and how he had yet to achieve his goal, how could he give up so easily? He would suppress his anger and coax Yu Bing first. When he got the job, he would teach her a lesson. 2 After Yao Nian made up his mind, he hurriedly reached out to block the closing door. ¡°Didn¡¯t you see me? I¡¯m here to look for Little Bing.¡± With that, he swaggered into the courtyard. When he saw Yu Bing in the kitchen, Yao Nian walked to the door and coughed lightly. ¡°Little Bing, I specifically applied to be transferred to the He Mountain Brigade for you. You¡¯re not in good health, so as your fianc¨¦, I should take care of you more.¡± When Jiang Chun heard this from behind Yao Nian, she rolled her eyes. Yu Bing paused. On the day she got the driver position, she had expected that Yao Wannian would curry favor with her, but she didn¡¯t expect him to transfer over without notice. However, Yu Bing didn¡¯t mind. After all, it was more convenient to deal with a scumbag and a bitch in one fell swoop. Considering that although the two families¡¯ betrothal was only verbal, it hadn¡¯t been nullified either, so Yu Bing planned to beat him at his own game. As she started the fire, she replied without looking up, ¡°I can handle my daily necessities myself. How are you going to take care of me?¡± Yu Bing¡¯s voice was soft, so Yao Nian couldn¡¯t hear the disdain in it. He froze for a moment before replying, ¡°I¡¯ll do whatever you ask me to do. I¡¯ll fetch water, chop wood, anything! However, I¡¯ve never done these sorts of things before. I¡¯m just afraid that I won¡¯t be able to do them well.¡± Yao Nian was smarmy. He expressed his loyalty to Yu Bing and reminded her that he had never done this before. He wanted Yu Bing to feel that she owed him for his kindness, but he didn¡¯t want to do anything. Yu Bing rolled her eyes and sneered inwardly. She pretended not to understand and said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll have to trouble you. Jiang Chun and I are girls after all. After a day of work, my body really can¡¯t take it anymore. I¡¯m not as strong as you men!¡± Chapter 49 - Hypocrite Yao Nian didn¡¯t expect Yu Bing to really not stand on ceremony with him at all. However, since he had already promised, he couldn¡¯t bring himself to go back on his word. He could only accept it and treat it as paying for lunch later. Yao Nian had a good idea, but after he finished fetching water, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun were already done eating. Yu Bing looked at the full tank and nodded happily. She turned around and said to Yao Nian with a smile, ¡°It¡¯s been hard on you today! I think it¡¯s getting late. Hurry up and go back to the dormitory to rest. At the same time, you can get to know your roommates. After all, you guys will be interacting frequently in the future.¡± Yao Nian hesitated when he heard this. This was completely different from what he had imagined. Yu Bing naturally wouldn¡¯t give him a chance to speak. She covered her mouth with her hand and yawned. Looking like she was thinking for Yao Nian¡¯s sake, she said, ¡°I¡¯m so tired. I still have to work in the afternoon. If you go back now, you can still sleep for an hour. If you don¡¯t rest, you definitely won¡¯t be able to hold on in the afternoon.¡± At this point, Yao Nian wasn¡¯t thick-skinned enough to stay here and mention lunch. He could only return to the dormitory angrily. Thinking that after coaxing Yu Bing, he could snatch the position of the tractor driver from her, Yao Nian felt a little better. In the small courtyard, after Yao Nian left, Jiang Chun immediately approached Yu Bing and asked, ¡°Little Bing, are you planning to be with him?¡± Yu Bing immediately shook her head. ¡°How is that possible? I won¡¯t be with him. He probably came to our village because I became a tow truck driver.¡± Jiang Chun lay on the bed as she thought about it for a moment before nodding. She said disdainfully, ¡°I think so too. He doesn¡¯t help others unless there¡¯s personal benefits. For so many years, we¡¯ve never seen him take the initiative to greet you in the school or in the courtyard. Now, he knows how important it is to look for his fianc¨¦.¡± Thinking of Yao Nian¡¯s ill intentions, Jiang Chun felt even more at ease about Yu Bing using Yao Nian for hard labor. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun were a grade lower than Yao Nian, but they were in the same building and everyone lived in the same courtyard. Although they didn¡¯t have much interaction, they still knew what kind of person Yao Nian was. He was a hypocrite. Such a person should be made to suffer a little. Only then would he stay away! Jiang Chun snorted coldly, then she chatted with Yu Bing for a while before falling asleep. On the day the car accessories arrived, Yu Bing went to the commune to get them. She happened to meet a tractor driver who came to ask Officer Wang for help because of a problem with the car. Coincidentally, Officer Wang went to the county today. However, the driver looked at Yu Bing as if he had seen his savior. ¡°Assistant Yu! It¡¯s great to meet you. I¡¯m Wang Niu, the driver of the White Forest Brigade nearby. Do you still remember me?¡± Wang Niu was very burly and his voice was so loud that people could hear him from more than ten meters away. Yu Bing smiled and replied, ¡°Of course I remember. You¡¯re Mr. Niu.¡± ¡°Yes, yes, yes, that¡¯s me! It¡¯s been difficult to start the tractor in our village these past two days. Officer Wang is not around, so I want to trouble you to make a trip. I¡¯ll pick up the car and send it over. What do you think?¡± Yu Bing saw that the other party was riding a bicycle. The two villages were 20 to 30 kilometers apart, which wasn¡¯t that far and wouldn¡¯t waste much time, so she agreed. The car stopped in the courtyard in front of the White Forest Brigade¡¯s village building. They had never seen cars being repaired in the countryside, so they were all gathered there to watch the commotion. As Yu Bing inspected the tractor, she patiently told Wang Niu the reasons why it was difficult to start it. ¡°Mr. Niu, this problem is caused by the damage to the cylinder pad. Fortunately, it¡¯s not serious. There¡¯s asbestos thread, right? Bring it over and I¡¯ll teach you how to repair it.¡± 1 It didn¡¯t take Yu Bing long to fill the cylinder. Wang Niu asked for the permission of the village staff, then gave 10 eggs to Yu Bing. Seeing this, Yu Bing hurriedly rejected, ¡°No need. It¡¯s not a big deal.¡± ¡°Miss Yu, just take it. If I had delayed it for another day and waited for someone to come, more damage would have been done. Besides, no matter who comes to help, I can¡¯t let them leave empty-handed. Take it! Otherwise, if there¡¯s a problem again, I¡¯ll be too embarrassed to look for you.¡± Wang Niu smiled and said. As the saying went, When students master the knowledge, the teacher would lose his job. Others would just fix it directly and wouldn¡¯t explain so much, like Yu Bing did, nor would they teach him how to repair it step by step. Be it capabilities or character, Wang Niu admired Yu Bing from the bottom of his heart. When Yu Bing heard this, she accepted the eggs. Chapter 50 - Teacher Assistant Miss Yu Wang Niu rode his bicycle to send her back to the He Mountain Brigade. The car stopped at the entrance of the village, just in time for everyone to get off work. ¡°Isn¡¯t this Mr. Niu?! Yu Bing, you went to help their village repair the tractor?¡± A woman passing by asked curiously. Wang Niu rushed to reply, ¡°There was a problem with our car. Fortunately, I met the teaching assistant Miss Yu at the commune today and asked her to help repair it!¡± ¡°What do you mean by teaching assistant?¡± Another old man asked in confusion. ¡°Assistant teachers are the coach¡¯s helpers. When we went to the county to train, Assistant Yu was the best student. She often helped the coach guide us. She¡¯s amazing!¡± Wang Niu praised Yu Bing when he heard someone ask. Yu Bing saw that there were gradually more people watching, so she blushed slightly. She said in embarrassment, ¡°I¡¯m just a little more experienced than everyone. I¡¯m not that impressive.¡± With that, she turned to look at Wang Niu. ¡°Mr. Niu, hurry up and go back. The sun will be even more scorching at noon!¡± Although he was used to working in the sun, the sun was very scorching at noon. When Wang Niu heard this, he immediately waved goodbye to Yu Bing. Everyone discussed after Yu Bing left. ¡°Yu Bing is so impressive! Her reputation has spread to other villages!¡± ¡°Of course! Yu Bing has earned glory for He Mountain Brigade.¡± ¡°Although she¡¯s thin and petite, she was very steady when she drove the tractor a few days ago!¡± ¡°Did you see the eggs in Yu Bing¡¯s hand just now? It must be a thank-you gift from the White Forest Brigade. With her skills, she¡¯ll be popular everywhere she goes!¡± ¡­ Yao Nian was naturally among those who heard the discussion. He originally wanted to slack off today. When he heard this, he thought of these praises and the eggs in Yu Bing¡¯s hand and suddenly felt motivated to fetch water! After repairing the tractor, Yu Bing received a notice from the commune that she was going to the county¡¯s Agriculture Bureau to help. The Agriculture Bureau planned to reclaim the wasteland in the suburbs to make a large agricultural base. There were more than a hundred acres. The tractor drivers of the five communes explored the wasteland in the morning and worked in the village in the afternoon. Previously, Xiao Sheng would send the jam once a week. Now that Yu Bing was the driver, there were more opportunities to go to the county city, so it was more convenient. After the three of them discussed, because Yu Bing was in charge of transportation and the development of new products, Jiang Chun became in charge of cooking. Xiao Sheng was in charge of sales and helping out. The commission was also redistributed. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun each took 30%, and Xiao Sheng took 40%. On the day of delivery, 100 bottles of jam were placed under the driver¡¯s seat with a straw mat. When Yu Bing drove the car out, she was still a little nervous, so she specifically set off early. When she arrived at the county city, the sky had just lit up. At the agreed place, she saw a child with patched clothes, straw shoes, short hair, and very bright eyes. When the other party saw the tractor stop, he went forward and carefully said, ¡°Did Third Brother ask you to bring corn to my house?¡± It was acceptable for those in the countryside to send their own food to their relatives and friends in the city. Therefore, even if the secret code was used on the wrong person, they didn¡¯t have to worry about others associating it with the black market. At first glance, Yu Bing thought the person was a boy. She didn¡¯t expect the other party to speak in a chirpy feminine voice. After the initial surprise, she immediately replied, ¡°Third Brother said that there wasn¡¯t enough corn, so he brought some buckwheat noodles for your family instead.¡± The secret signal matched up. The girl smiled and hurriedly placed the basket on the ground. Yu Bing looked around. The place was very remote. After observing that there was no danger, she hurriedly lifted the seat. Xiao Li had already tied them together with ten bottles of grass rope, so Yu Bing quickly completed the transfer. The little girl had been observing her surroundings. When she saw that the transfer was complete, she immediately carried the basket on her back and turned around to enter the forest. It was Yu Bing¡¯s first delivery. She heaved a sigh of relief when she saw the little girl leave. Then, she turned around and got into the car to go straight to the Agriculture Bureau. The person in charge waited for all the drivers to arrive before bringing everyone to their destination. In order to facilitate management, every commune chose a person-in-charge. The drivers of the Fengtou Mountain Commune chose Yu Bing without hesitation, so Yu Bing gained another nickname, Team Leader Yu! Chapter 51 - Visit The Agriculture Bureau asked everyone to work from seven to eleven in the morning. After Yu Bing got off work, she went to President Song¡¯s house. President Song had contributed greatly to her becoming a tractor driver. It was all thanks to his timely arrival during Sun Yu¡¯s incident a few days ago that things were resolved. She should personally visit him to thank him. Last night, Yu Bing had asked Jiang Chun to make two more bottles of jam. She asked Xiao Sheng to deduct them from her dividends at a wholesale price. She also went to the supply company to buy a pound of brown sugar and white sugar. At this moment, only Song Li and her sister-in-law were in the Song family¡¯s home. After giving birth, the woman was very weak and needed to lie in bed to recuperate. She would be in postpartum confinement for a month. Song Li had not been assigned a job yet. She was the only idle one in the family, so she naturally had to take care of her sister-in-law. When Song Li heard the knock on the door, she went to open it. When she saw Yu Bing standing outside, she happily pulled her into the house. ¡°Yu Bing, you could have just came directly. Why did you bring gifts?!¡± Song Li looked at the gift Yu Bing had placed in the living room and said with mock anger. When Wang Yun heard Yu Bing¡¯s name in the bedroom, she hurriedly sat up in bed. ¡°Who¡¯s here? Is it Yu Bing?¡± Seeing this, Song Li hugged Yu Bing¡¯s shoulder and walked towards her brother and sister-in-law¡¯s bedroom. She smiled and replied, ¡°It¡¯s Yu Bing. We¡¯ve been waiting for her for so long, and now she¡¯s finally here.¡± As they spoke, they entered the room. ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯re finally here. I¡¯ve been wanting to thank you, but I couldn¡¯t find out.¡± Wang Yun wanted to get off the bed. Yu Bing hurriedly stopped her and pressed her back onto the bed. ¡°Sister-in-law, you can¡¯t get off the bed! Hurry up and go back to lie down!¡± ¡°You¡¯re our savior. Not to mention getting out of bed, I should personally welcome you in!¡± Wang Yun wiped her tears and said. During labor, women¡¯s lives were often at risk. The doctor later told them that it was fortunate that they came in time. Otherwise, it would have been difficult for them to even save the child. She didn¡¯t have much amniotic fluid to begin with, and she had lost it quickly on the way there. In addition, the child in her stomach weighed more than eight pounds, and there was also the problem of the umbilical cord around the child¡¯s neck. If she had come more than ten minutes later, it was possible that two lives would have been lost! It was all thanks to Yu Bing that they arrived in time. Song Jian and Wang Yun had been childhood sweethearts for more than twenty years. When she heard the doctor¡¯s words, she was so afraid that she could barely stand properly. Song Li didn¡¯t dare to imagine what would happen to Song Jian if something happened to her sister-in-law. When Yu Bing heard this, she sighed. She didn¡¯t expect the situation to be so dangerous at that time. At that time, she didn¡¯t think of anything but saving her. At this moment, she looked at Wang Yun and comforted her gently. ¡°It¡¯s all because of your good fortune that you and the baby were able to escape danger. No one would be able to stand by and do nothing when that sort of thing happens. I just happened to be there!¡± Wang Yun could feel that Yu Bing was sincere when she said this, so she became even more fond of Yu Bing¡¯s personality. After being married for two to three years, Wang Yun had seen many people come to the Song family to curry favor with them. Her father-in-law was the leader of the commune. Whoever helped the Song family did so to benefit from the Song family. Who would push the credit away like Yu Bing? Wang Yun held Yu Bing¡¯s hand and said kindly, ¡°That¡¯s because we were destined to meet!¡± With that, an idea flashed across her mind. She said to Yu Bing excitedly, ¡°Hey, since we¡¯re so fated, I¡¯ll acknowledge you as my sister. I only have brothers, and I¡¯m the youngest, so I¡¯ve always wanted a beautiful older sister who¡¯s petite and cute, just like you! In the future, you¡¯ll be my sister. My child will call you Auntie.¡± Song Li agreed. ¡°That¡¯s a good idea!¡± Song Li had a good impression of Yu Bing after what happened last time, so she agreed with her sister-in-law¡¯s suggestion. Yu Bing was stunned. Before she could react, things had been arranged already! At this point, it would be pretentious of Yu Bing to refuse. The Song family members all worked in the government. They weren¡¯t even wary that she coveted the power of the Song family, so she, who had nothing to offer, was even less afraid that they had ulterior motives. The Song family members had helped her once and treated her sincerely. She had to share whatever benefits she had with the Song family in the future! After making up her mind, Yu Bing smiled and said to Wang Yun, ¡°Since you don¡¯t mind, I won¡¯t refuse.¡± When Wang Yun saw that Yu Bing was a straightforward person, she replied happily, ¡°As expected, you¡¯re so forthcoming! You¡¯re not allowed to call me sister-in-law in the future. You have to call me sister!¡± Yu Bing hurriedly smiled and agreed. Chapter 52 - Blessing ¡°Sister-in-law, Yu Bing hasn¡¯t held the baby yet, right?¡± Song Li reminded her. Wang Yun patted her forehead gently and carried her son up from the inside of the bed with a smile. ¡°Yes. I was so happy to see Yu Bing just now that I forgot to show you our baby. Little Treasure is a nickname we gave him. Speaking of which, this is the first time Little Treasure has seen you.¡± Yu Bing was instantly enthralled as she stared blankly at the sleeping child in Wang Yun¡¯s arms. There were only a few strands of hair on Little Treasure¡¯s head. His eyelashes were long and curly, and his small mouth was slightly open. The commotion just now didn¡¯t wake him up. Seeing this, Wang Yun handed her son to Yu Bing and whispered jokingly, ¡°Hold him. You saved Little Treasure. Don¡¯t blame me for being biased. I just want him to benefit from your good fortune.¡± Hearing Wang Yun¡¯s words, Yu Bingxin felt a little moved and her eyes reddened a little. ¡°I have too many bacteria on my hands. I¡¯ll go wash my hands first.¡± With that, she went to the bathroom. Yu Bing had never carried a child in her two lifetimes, let alone been considered lucky by her family. In her previous life, after returning to the city, her sister had a child, but because her body was weak, she was afraid that she would pass the illness to the child, so she didn¡¯t let her carry her. Yu Bing had always wanted a child in her previous life, but in the end, she never had one and was always alone. After sorting out her emotions, she returned to the room and carefully took Little Treasure over. Song Li helped teach her how to hold him. Yu Bing smiled at the baby in her arms. Song Jian was very happy to see Yu Bing when he returned to his room after work. ¡°Yu Bing is here! Song Li, hurry up and get some food from the canteen.¡± Mrs. Song didn¡¯t go home at noon since her workplace was quite far away. The Song family would get food from the office canteen at noon and cook at night. Song Jian didn¡¯t know that Yu Bing would come here, so he only got his usual amount. Yu Bing placed Little Treasure on the bed and hurriedly stopped Song Li, who was about to get food. There¡¯s no need. I¡¯m preparing to leave now. I still have more work waiting to be done!¡± President Song and Song Jian came home from work together. When they saw Yu Bing, they also said warmly, ¡°It¡¯s rare for you to come. You can go back after eating.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect the Song family to be so warm to her, but she came to thank them, so she couldn¡¯t freeload another meal. She hurriedly smiled and rejected, ¡°President Song, there¡¯s really no need. I came today to see Sister Yun and Little Treasure, and to thank you.¡± President Song naturally knew what Yu Bing was grateful for. He waved his hand and said with a smile, ¡°You fought for your spot with your strength. The matter with the Sun family was their own fault. I was just enforcing the law.¡± Mentally, Yu Bing wasn¡¯t 18 years old, and she had experienced the cruelty of society in her previous life. No matter how capable and innocent she was, if President Song didn¡¯t interfere with the investigation, if the Sun family really wanted to distort the truth, she would have suffered retaliation even if she could turn the tables. Putting aside privileges, even if one only wanted to be treated fairly, sometimes, one had to have the power to do so. Yu Bing didn¡¯t say anything else. She only looked at President Song and thanked him. ¡°President Song, no matter what, I should thank you!¡± As President Song looked at Yu Bing¡¯s expression, he marveled over how Yu Bing was wise beyond her years. Song Li had been protected too well since she was young, so she was quite naive. He wanted Yu Bing to interact with Song Li more often. Hence, he smiled brightly and said, ¡°Let¡¯s not thank each other anymore. In the future, we¡¯ll be a family. President Song sounds too formal. Yu Bing, call me Uncle Song in the future.¡± Then, he said to Song Li, ¡°Song Li, Yu Bing is as old as you but is much more capable than you. Learn from her in the future.¡± Song Li covered her mouth and chuckled. ¡°Aren¡¯t we family? Sister-in-law has acknowledged Yu Bing as her god-sister.¡± Wang Yun smiled as she told him about the process. President Song once again felt that letting Yu Bing come to the house more often was the right choice. In the end, Song Jian and Wang Yun forced Yu Bing to stay for dinner. After dinner, Mr. Song asked the Agriculture Bureau about borrowing a tractor. He received a notice from the county government that said that the Agriculture Bureau needed to use a commune tractor, but he didn¡¯t know what use it was for. Yu Bing thought for a moment and said, ¡°I heard from the leader in charge that we¡¯re going to build a large agricultural base in the suburbs of the county. Our mission is to reclaim 150 acres of wasteland, but I don¡¯t know how it will be done.¡± When Song Jian heard this, he frowned and said, ¡°It seems that they are preparing to ease the supply and demand of agricultural products.¡± Mr. Song was very impressed that Song Jian could think of this. Chapter 53 - Recruiting Apprentices When Yu Bing heard this, her eyes lit up. ¡°Since the policy has loosened, can our commune also expand production?¡± Mr. Song smiled and nodded. ¡°Actually, the policy has already been loosened since the beginning of the year, but we¡¯re worried that it will change again, so we¡¯ve been monitoring the situation. However, the conflict between supply and demand must be resolved. I think the county only dared to make such a big move because they got this batch of secondhand tractors.¡± Song Jian lowered his eyes and thought for a moment before saying, ¡°The inability to expand production previously has a lot to do with productivity. With the tractor, it can be completed in half a month or at most a month. Even if the policy changes and it¡¯s no longer needed, it will only waste a month of work time. Dad, should our commune follow suit?!¡± President Song¡¯s tone was very certain. ¡°Of course, it¡¯s our duty as cadres to improve the lives of the people!¡± Yu Bing had also thought of this. Now that she heard the Song family¡¯s father and son¡¯s deduction, she was very happy. In her previous life, the Fengtou Mountain Commune didn¡¯t have any plans to reclaim the land. Later, she was framed by Yu Yan and sent to the farm for labor reform, so she didn¡¯t know much about the situation in the commune. Yu Bing suddenly thought of something and looked at President Song. ¡°Uncle Song, I think we should find out what the Agriculture Bureau is planting first to avoid repetition. It will be troublesome if the supply company can¡¯t collect that many.¡± President Song nodded repeatedly. ¡°Makes sense. I¡¯ll apply to the county first and ask about their plan.¡± The three of them chatted for a while before Yu Bing returned. When she got home, there was less than half an hour before work started, so she napped for a while. After work in the afternoon, Yu Bing found Director Zhao and Director Liu, who were temporarily in charge of the He Mountain Brigade. ¡°Director Zhao, Director Liu, I have something to discuss with you two.¡± The two of them returned the farming tools in their hands to the warehouse. After registering, they followed Yu Bing to the foot of the big tree in front of the door. Ever since Sun Wang was arrested, although the two of them were in charge of the village now, without Sun Wang¡¯s suppression, things had been very smooth sailing for Director Liu recently. His attitude towards Yu Bing, who helped topple Sun Wang, was very gentle. Director Liu smiled and asked, ¡°Yu Bing, what is it?¡± Director Zhao also looked at Yu Bing in confusion. Yu Bing went straight to the point. ¡°It¡¯s like this. I want the village to choose two young people to learn tractor driving from me. This time, there¡¯s a reclamation mission in the county. I think I¡¯ll be there for about a month. I suddenly thought about how if there¡¯s an emergency one day and I can¡¯t go, wouldn¡¯t that delay work?¡± When Director Zhao heard this, his eyes lit up. Seeing this, Yu Bing continued calmly, ¡°The reason I want to train two more drivers is to deal with all kinds of emergencies, just like the reserve militia in the village. What do you two think?¡± Yu Bing was preparing for the reclamation of the village in advance. The earlier the land was plowed, the less likely it was to miss the farming hours. However, it wasn¡¯t certain that there would be no notice, so she thought of an excuse to mention this. Among Director Liu¡¯s two sons, one had used connections to find a job as a temporary worker in the city¡¯s sugar factory and was waiting for an opportunity to become an official. The other had just entered junior high, so this matter wasn¡¯t appealing to him. However, this was beneficial to the village¡¯s strong youngsters! Director Liu thought about how if he announced this news in the radio room, it would be extremely glorious. Director Zhao expressed her support without hesitation. Previously, when she found out about this, she wanted her second son, Wang Tao, to fight for it. Unfortunately, Sun Yu had delayed things and she could only choose Yu Bing, who was experienced. Wang Tao didn¡¯t even have a chance to fight for the opportunity. Now that Yu Bing had given them an opportunity, Director Zhao smiled with joy. ¡°Yu Bing, this is a good thing. I will definitely support you! The country advocates modern agriculture. In the future, there will definitely be more tractors, so our village will nurture talents in advance. When needed, they can contribute at any time!¡± Director Liu nodded in agreement and said, ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯re quite sensible. Many people secretly hide their skills. As the cadres of the village committee, we want to praise you for thinking for the village¡¯s sake and being so selfless! We definitely agree. I¡¯ll inform everyone of this good news later and choose two suitable people for you in the next two days.¡± After everything was settled, Director Liu couldn¡¯t wait to go to the radio room where only the village chief could enter to issue the notice. Director Zhao was in a hurry to go home and discuss this matter with her son. Chapter 54 - New Product Development An hour after dinner, Yu Bing started running and exercising on the way home. Xiao Sheng was weaving a bamboo basket in the Xiao family¡¯s courtyard. After Yu Bing finished running, she walked around and when she saw that there was no one around, she snuck into the Xiao family¡¯s house. After closing the door, Yu Bing sat on a small wooden stool. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t stop what he was doing, but he raised his head and looked at Yu Bing. ¡°The girl you interacted with today is called Zhou Min. The higher-ups are asking for an increase in the quantity. The amount is still 100 bottles every three days. I¡¯ve already accepted it.¡± When Yu Bing heard this news, she felt as if she could already see the money coming to her. She said excitedly, ¡°Go ahead and accept it. Any paying customer is fine! The connections you found this time are not bad. You opened the market and started increasing the quantity after less than a month.¡± When Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing¡¯s money-grubbing look, he smirked slightly. ¡°As long as we have quality goods, we won¡¯t have to be afraid of not being able to sell them. We don¡¯t have money, but the people in the big cities don¡¯t worry about not having money and connections. They¡¯re worried about not having good food.¡± Yu Bing widened her eyes and looked at Xiao Sheng in admiration. She didn¡¯t expect Xiao Sheng to be so knowledgeable after being in the business for a few years. Their country had a huge population, and there were many rich people in the city. The hundreds of bottles of jam they made every month were nothing compared to the huge population. When they were sold in the market, it would be like water dripping into the sea! This was the benefit of having a large population! Yu Bing thought for a moment and said, ¡°Looks like new products will be released soon. You can negotiate with the person above.¡± Xiao Sheng liked how quick-witted and creative Yu Bing was. His eyes flashed with mirth as he said, ¡°That¡¯s right. We only have this product now. In the eyes of the higher-ups, it¡¯s insignificant. It can¡¯t showcase our strength.¡± Yu Bing snorted when she heard this. She hadn¡¯t even displayed 10% of her true potential yet. She pondered over it for a while. ¡°Bring me to the mountain again. I¡¯ll see what other free ingredients I can use!¡± Xiao Sheng immediately replied, ¡°No problem! By the way, the radio announcement said that you were the one who suggested choosing apprentices to learn how to drive the tractor. Is that so?¡± Yu Bing was surprised again. ¡°How did you guess that I took the initiative?¡± Xiao Sheng glanced at Yu Bing and said jokingly, ¡°After the tractor incident two days ago, who dares to target you? They¡¯re afraid of being chewed out by you.¡± Yu Bing rolled her eyes angrily when she saw Xiao Sheng describe her as a tigress. The next day at noon. Yu Bing went straight home from the county city. When she arrived home, it was just past twelve o¡¯clock. Seeing that Jiang Chun was cooking, Yu Bing parked the car and entered the kitchen to help. Yao Nian carried the water into the kitchen shakily while Yu Bing looked at him in disdain. He couldn¡¯t even carry the water as steadily as her. It was obvious that he had been slacking off a lot. He was so tall, but he didn¡¯t have much strength at all! When Yao Nian saw Yu Bing, he immediately put down the bucket and strode to Yu Bing. He asked anxiously, ¡°Little Bing, last night, Director Liu said on the radio that he wanted to choose tractor apprentices. What happened? Did they force you to take in disciples? Tell me, and I¡¯ll seek justice for you!¡± When Yao Nian heard the broadcast last night, he was very shocked. His first reaction was that the members of the village committee were forcing Yu Bing to take in disciples. This was detrimental to his interests! 1 After all, he was going to take Yu Bing¡¯s position as the driver later on. How could he let those uncultured villagers learn how to drive first?! Yao Nian wanted to look for Yu Bing immediately, but before he left, he thought about how Yu Bing was probably panicking if she was forced to do so, so as her fianc¨¦, he would be the first person she would choose to rely on. Hence, he calmly waited for Yu Bing to arrive in the dormitory so he could let her know his importance! Unexpectedly, even until he fell asleep, no one came. He guessed that Yu Bing was too embarrassed to look for him. As a man, it was fine for him to take the initiative. He could even let Yu Bing feel his concern for her. Yu Bing was dismayed by how delusional he was. She frowned and looked at Yao Nian as she said calmly, ¡°I was the one who suggested it. No one forced me.¡± Yao Nian looked like he had suffered a huge blow as he shouted, ¡°Are you out of your mind? Do you know how many people want to be tractor drivers? Don¡¯t you know that the position won¡¯t be lucrative anymore after other people learn how to drive?! You¡¯re as stupid as ever! Hurry up and find the village staff to take back your words!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s tractor driver position was registered with the commune. She wasn¡¯t stupid. Taking in disciples wouldn¡¯t affect her position. Chapter 55 - Vote For Himself She wanted two more apprentices to deal with the occasional unexpected situation or work for more than twenty hours in a row. Of course, the people in the village wanted to become apprentices so that they would have a better chance of winning when there was another driver spot. This was a win-win situation. As for Yao Nian, he only saw the short-term benefits in front of him. Yu Bing naturally wouldn¡¯t take the initiative to explain things to him. When Jiang Chun heard Yao Nian shout at Yu Bing, she rushed forward without even putting down the kitchen knife in her hand, scaring Yao Nian so much that he ran out of the kitchen. Yu Bing hurriedly stopped him and whispered into Jiang Chun¡¯s ear, ¡°Don¡¯t be angry, it¡¯s not worth it! I¡¯ll tell him.¡± After saying that, she stood in front of Jiang Chun and said angrily to Yao Nian, ¡°This position is mine. If I want to take on a disciple, I¡¯ll take on a disciple. If you think I¡¯m wrong, you can go to the village staff to report it. Why are you shouting at me?!¡± After spending a few days with Yu Bing, Yao Nian naturally realized that Yu Bing¡¯s temper was different from before. Just now, he was so anxious that he revealed his true colors. Now that he was frightened by Jiang Chun and snubbed by Yu Bing, he had already realized that he couldn¡¯t fight Yu Bing head-on. Otherwise, he would only push her further away. Yao Nian convinced himself to ignore his ego and force a smile as he said to Yu Bing gently, ¡°Little Bing, don¡¯t misunderstand. I was just worried that you would be bullied. I was anxious, so I accidentally raised my voice.¡± Yu Bing couldn¡¯t be bothered to argue with Yao Nian anymore. She pulled Jiang Chun into the kitchen to cook. Food was the most important thing in the world! Seeing that Yu Bing was ignoring him, Yao Nian felt angry. However, if Yu Bing really accepted apprentices, it would be difficult for him to get past the two experienced tow truck drivers. Yao Nian stood in the courtyard for a while in frustration. Suddenly, he thought of a plan. He decided to let Yu Bing recommend him. Anyway, there were two spots. It wasn¡¯t too much for him to take one. Moreover, if Yu Bing was the one who took the initiative to recommend him, the villagers would definitely approve. Yao Nian¡¯s frustration vanished and he took a few deep breaths before entering the kitchen. He smiled at Yu Bing and said, ¡°Tell the village to give me an apprentice spot. We¡¯re on the same side. After I learn it, I can help you drive for a while. If those outsiders learn it, they won¡¯t listen to your instructions anymore!¡± Yu Bing naturally couldn¡¯t be bothered to listen to Yao Nian¡¯s lies. She glanced at Yao Nian from the corner of her eye and said indifferently, ¡°Didn¡¯t the radio broadcast last night announce that if you want to be an apprentice, go to the village committee to register and be chosen through the village¡¯s fair competition? It¡¯s not my decision. If you want to learn, just register according to protocol.¡± Yao Nian knew his place. He had only been in this village for a few days. If he really dared to participate in the competition, only he would vote for himself. Yao Nian could tolerate Yu Bing¡¯s cold attitude once or twice, but now that he had directly laid out his cards, Yu Bing was still acting so indifferent. Yao Nian was enraged. However, when he saw Jiang Chun looking at him with a knife, he could only hold back his anger and leave. When Jiang Chun saw Yao Nian¡¯s attitude, she rolled her eyes in dismay and said, ¡°Yao Nian is really shameless. He actually has the nerve to make requests with such an attitude!¡± Yu Bing was in a good mood. Seeing that Yao Nian was furious, she felt as if the trauma she had suffered in her previous life had healed a little, but only a little. Yao Nian pursed his lips and walked out of the small courtyard towards the dormitory. The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that he had suffered a loss. When Yao Nian thought of Yu Bing¡¯s attitude towards him, he felt that he couldn¡¯t let this matter rest! Over the past few days, he had helped Yu Bing carry water and chop firewood, but she was actually unwilling to give him one of the two spots. No! He couldn¡¯t suffer this loss! He had to think of a way to get Yu Bing¡¯s position as soon as possible to prevent any mishaps! Before Yao Nian could think of a way, the candidates for the apprentices were confirmed. At dinner, everyone heard the announcement of the candidates for the tow truck driver positions. One was Director Zhao¡¯s son, Wang Tao, and the other was Wu Qing, a famously poor man in the village. Both of them were in their early twenties and were very muscular bachelors. When Yao Nian heard this, his eyes flickered and his hand paused. 1 In the main kitchen, the other young people discussed when they heard this. When Yao Nian¡¯s roommate, Feng Cai, heard this, he looked at Yao Nian and asked curiously, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you sign up for the apprenticeship last night? Yu Bing is your fianc¨¦e. The village will definitely approve Yu Bing¡¯s selection.¡± Yao Nian knew that the other party wanted to mock him. He couldn¡¯t let anyone know that he had looked for Yu Bing but didn¡¯t get a spot. He would be laughed at! 1 Chapter 56 - Heart Fluttering Yao Nian looked at Feng Cai with an indifferent expression. ¡°Yu Bing took the initiative to mention it to me, but I didn¡¯t agree. I don¡¯t want her to bear the reputation of playing favorites.¡± These words made many people present gain a good impression of Yao Nian, especially the girls present. 1 Yao Nian was handsome and gentle-looking. When he looked at others with his big eyes, he always looked sincere and reliable. One couldn¡¯t help but feel the urge to believe him. It was difficult to tell that the real Yao Nian was the complete opposite. Although Feng Cai had only known Yao Nian for about a week, the two of them were on the same team and were roommates. It could be said that they spent more than twenty hours a day together. Feng Cai had already seen Yao Nian¡¯s true colors a few times. Upon hearing Yao Nian¡¯s pretentious answer, Feng Cai didn¡¯t continue to say anything. He just couldn¡¯t stand Yao Nian¡¯s behavior, so he wanted to tease him. As long as Yao Nian didn¡¯t offend him, Feng Cai couldn¡¯t be bothered to expose anything. After all, everyone had a good impression of Yao Nian now. It was probably very difficult for anyone to believe him. God knew how jealous Yu Yan was of Yu Bing after hearing Yao Nian¡¯s words! The Yu family had carefully chosen a fianc¨¦ who was always thinking about Yu Bing. Had they ever thought about her?! Had they ever thought about their second daughter who had been given away for adoption?! Was there a similarly upright man for her to marry? Could she find a good husband? Jealousy overcame Yu Yan and threatened to suffocate her! After dinner, Yu Yan didn¡¯t return to the dormitory as usual. Instead, she found Yao Nian in the courtyard and sat beside him. Yu Yan smiled at Yao Nian. ¡°You¡¯re so good to Yu Bing. I¡¯ve never seen a boy as considerate as you.¡± Yao Nian felt bitter but didn¡¯t show it on his face. He replied perfunctorily, ¡°I should be.¡± Yu Yan bent down slightly and supported her elbows with her knees as she held her chin with both hands. Then, she said with feigned innocence, ¡°You rejected the chance to become an apprentice because of Yu Bing, but Yu Bing should have insisted on giving you the spot. If it were me, I definitely would have insisted. After all, you guys are engaged. Why side with outsiders? If there¡¯s really a problem, outsiders won¡¯t help her. Yao Nian, if you had become an apprentice, you would be helping her instead of harming her!¡± Yao Nian¡¯s eyes flickered. These words coincided with Yao Nian¡¯s thoughts. He felt that Yu Yan had hit the nail on the head. However, in order to maintain his persona, Yao Nian could only lower his eyes and smile to hide his dissatisfaction with Yu Bing. After all, he didn¡¯t even have the chance to agree. Just as Yu Yan had said, he had suggested it for Yu Bing¡¯s own good, but Yu Bing had rejected him mercilessly. When Yu Yan saw Yao Nian¡¯s expression, she knew that he had taken her words to heart. She continued, ¡°If I had a fianc¨¦ like you, I would definitely think of you whenever a good offer came up. I know how to differentiate between outsiders and my folks!¡± Yao Nian said with a hint of disappointment, ¡°Actually, I had thought of this before, but I was afraid that Yu Bing would misunderstand and think that I had ulterior motives, so when she didn¡¯t insist, I didn¡¯t mention it again. You¡¯re the only one who shrewdly thought of this. If I became an apprentice, others would definitely think that I was taking advantage of Yu Bing.¡± Yu Yan immediately put on an angry expression and clenched her fists. ¡°That¡¯s because those people are short-sighted and don¡¯t know what¡¯s good for them. They always see others¡¯ good intentions as ill-intentions. Therefore, the key to this matter is still Yu Bing. If she insists, what can others say? After all, she¡¯s the one taking in disciples. She can take in anyone!¡± The two of them chatted perfunctorily. The more they spoke, the more they felt like they had met a confidant. Under the bright moon on the cool night, as the two of them sat under an osmanthus tree, they suddenly felt a little enamored. 1 On the other side, the Sun family had been quiet these few days. After discussing that day, other than Sun Xi, who was too young to go to the county city, before dawn the next day, Old Madam Sun brought her two daughters-in-law and her second granddaughter to the county city while the sky was still dark. When they arrived, Sun Dong and her husband, Zheng Hai, had just woken up. Bang! Bang! Bang! The anxious knocking on the door made Sun Dong hurriedly open the door. ¡°Grandma? Mom! You¡­¡± Sun Dong didn¡¯t expect the people who came to knock on the door early in the morning to be her maiden family! Old Madam Sun was old, so in order to reach the two of them before they went to work, she walked very quickly. When she saw Sun Dong, she immediately pushed her away and let Su Qi help her to the sofa to catch her breath. Li Ping also followed her in. ¡°Sister, something happened to Dad,¡± Sun Nan, who was walking at the back, said to the confused Sun Dong. 1 Chapter 57 - Distorting the Truth When he suddenly saw so many people at home, Zheng Hai, who had just finished washing up, stopped in his tracks. Zheng Hai¡¯s parents were both supervisors of the water plant. He worked in the county police station, but he was only a small official in charge of logistics. He didn¡¯t have much power, but in the eyes of the villagers, he was already a big shot. When Old Madam Sun saw Zheng Hai, she went forward and held his hand tightly. She wiped her tears and said, ¡°Zheng Hai, you have to save your father-in-law! He was framed and arrested by the commune police!¡± Li Ping was afraid that Madam Sun would expose Sun Yu, so she squeezed forward and added, ¡°Your cousin Sun Yu was also framed!¡± Sun Dong looked at her sister in shock and asked anxiously, ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Just as Sun Nan was about to speak, Madam Sun interrupted and told him what had happened. However, she distorted the truth and told a completely different version. In her version, Yu Bing became the scheming person who snatched Sun Yu¡¯s driver position. After she returned from school, she schemed to take revenge on the Sun family because she was mocked by Sun Yu. When Zheng Hai heard this, he immediately said angrily, ¡°How outrageous! Yu Bing is too arrogant. Grandma, Mom, Second Aunt, don¡¯t worry! I¡¯m also from the police station. I can¡¯t let Dad and Cousin be wronged!¡± The Sun family left a good impression on Zheng Hai. Every time he accompanied his wife back to her family¡¯s house during the new year, they would treat him well. They often asked people to send fruits, vegetables, and miscellaneous grains to his family. In the city, these things needed to be bought with both tickets and money. Because the Sun family¡¯s actions had greatly alleviated the Zheng family¡¯s food shortage, when he found out that his father-in-law had been set up, he wanted to help. No matter what, Sun Wang was more far-sighted than ordinary people. As soon as Sun Dong graduated from high school, Sun Wang spent a lot of money and used his connections to send her to work at the county¡¯s water plant. It was so that Sun Dong could find a city dweller from a well-off family to marry. When Sun Wang¡¯s family was in trouble, Sun Dong¡¯s husband could help. If Zheng Hai¡¯s family members were ordinary workers, how could Sun Wang agree to Sun Dong marrying him?! Sun Dong knew better than anyone what kind of person her grandmother was. She knew that she probably exaggerated things, but she couldn¡¯t say anything in front of her husband. After all, Zheng Hai was willing to take the initiative to help. This made Sun Dong look good in front of her family. Zheng Hai rushed out without eating breakfast. Sun Dong asked him to go to the factory to apply for half a day of leave along the way. After Zheng Hai left, Sun Dong sat on the sofa and said calmly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Zheng Hai is from the county¡¯s Public Security Bureau.¡± When Sun Nan heard Madam Sun¡¯s distorted version of the truth when she was explaining to Zheng Hai, she was extremely anxious. After Zheng Hai left, she hurriedly told Sun Dong what had happened. After she heard this, Sun Dong¡¯s eyes widened and she said anxiously, ¡°Grandma, what you said to Zheng Hai is completely different! If he finds out, he¡¯ll definitely be angry!¡± This time, Old Madam Sun calmly glanced at Sun Dong and said, ¡°What¡¯s the hurry? If Zheng Hai is angry, why don¡¯t you coax him? As long as you serve your man well in bed, are you afraid that he won¡¯t listen to you? I¡¯ll say this now. You have to help your father and cousin out!¡± What did she mean by serving a man well in bed? Was this something a grandmother would say to her granddaughter? When Sun Dong heard this, she was furious. Seeing this, Su Qi was afraid that her daughter would get angry and refuse to interfere, so she immediately said, ¡°Daughter, you can¡¯t abandon your father. If it weren¡¯t for your father¡¯s connections, how could you be married to a city dweller now?¡± Even though she knew that her family was being unreasonable, it was impossible for Sun Dong to really abandon her father. She replied helplessly, ¡°Mom, I didn¡¯t say that I wouldn¡¯t interfere. You guys were the ones who didn¡¯t tell me the truth. I was afraid that if Zheng Hai found out that he had been deceived by Grandma, he would be even angrier. Things would be troublesome at that time.¡± Madam Sun favored boys over girls. Only after Sun Dong married a city dweller did she start to treat her better. Now that she heard her say this, she couldn¡¯t help but scold, ¡°You gave birth to a son for the Zheng family. What are you afraid of?! You¡¯re just like your mother. You¡¯re both timid and cowardly!¡± When Li Ping heard that Su Qi and Sun Dong only mentioned saving Sun Wang, she hurriedly interrupted, ¡°Mom, Sister-in-law only mentioned Second Uncle! Sun Yu has to be bailed out as well. He¡¯s the only male grandson of this generation. He has to carry on the Sun family¡¯s bloodline!¡± Madam Sun waved her hand dismissively. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, both of them will be bailed out. Sun Dong, hurry up and get some food. I¡¯m hungry and tired after walking in the dark for two hours.¡± Chapter 58 - Lost Everything The director of the county¡¯s Public Security Bureau didn¡¯t dare to directly bail Sun Wang and Sun Yu out. Madam Sun, an old lady from the countryside who only knew how to throw tantrums, immediately became cocky after Zheng Hai agreed to help. Sun Dong felt suffocated. She was glad that her son usually stayed with Zheng Hai¡¯s parents for kindergarten. Otherwise, she wouldn¡¯t have been able to take care of him this morning! Thinking that out of sight, out of mind, she simply turned around and went into the kitchen to make breakfast. Sun Dong had just finished cooking when Zheng Hai arrived home. Sun Dong hurriedly went up to take the briefcase. When she saw Zheng Hai¡¯s dark expression, she knew that things hadn¡¯t gone well. When Madam Sun and the others saw that he had returned, they swarmed up and asked with a smile, ¡°Grandson-in-law, how did it go?¡± Zheng Hai took off his coat and hung it on the wall. Then, he turned around and said, ¡°Grandma, I asked around. My cousin was caught red-handed. No one wronged him. Dad was exposed by my cousin. The commune¡¯s investigation team has already intervened in the investigation. During the investigation, many villagers said that Dad accepted bribes. This is different from what Grandma told me this morning.¡± Madam Sun looked to the side guiltily. Seeing this, Li Ping said, ¡°No matter what the truth is, it¡¯s just a matter of benefits! We brought money and we¡¯ll give it to whoever can bail them out.¡± When Madam Sun heard this, she immediately became confident. ¡°Yes, yes, yes! We brought money.¡± Zheng Hai was amused by their ignorance. He had already said that the evidence was conclusive, but they were still hoping to bail them out. From this, Zheng Hai could tell that Sun Wang had indeed received a lot of benefits. Otherwise, why did his family think that they could do anything as long as they had money? Zheng Hai suppressed his anger and continued, ¡°Grandma, this isn¡¯t about money. This matter has blown up too much. President Song is personally supervising the matter and the evidence is conclusive! Don¡¯t touch the embezzled money. These are all stolen money. The police will get it back after investigating.¡± The Sun family¡¯s money was all held by Madam Sun. When she heard that they were going to take the money away, she immediately lost it and shouted, ¡°Why?! We¡¯ve already settled everything for them. Now, they want us to return the money?! Dream on!¡± The reason Madam Sun was willing to take out money now was that she wanted to save her children and grandchildren. If they got out, they would be able to earn back the money. However, if they couldn¡¯t be saved, this bit of money would become the only bit of money she had left. She wouldn¡¯t hand over the money even if she was beaten to death! Zheng Hai only said calmly, ¡°Whoever dares to interfere now will be risking their job. Moreover, even if they risk their position, it won¡¯t change the outcome. I¡¯m helpless. Find someone else to help.¡± With that, he returned to the bedroom. Facing the situation of losing everything, the Sun family was stunned. They didn¡¯t understand why something that could be done with money in the village wouldn¡¯t work this time. Moreover, nothing could salvage the situation. Madam Sun and the others had only been to the county city a few times in their lives. They didn¡¯t know anything, so they could only look for Zheng Hai. However, now, the Sun family¡¯s only hope was completely destroyed. Su Qi was a traditional woman who regarded her husband as the center of her life. Now, he had been arrested, and the person her husband had treated as his biological son was the one who exposed him. Su Qi, who had come back to her senses, turned around and pulled Li Ping¡¯s hair. She scratched Li Ping¡¯s face fiercely as she scolded, ¡°It¡¯s all your son¡¯s fault! Now, the entire Sun family has been ruined by him! Let¡¯s see how you boss people around at home after your son is screwed. You usually rely on my man¡¯s status as the village chief to bully others in the village. Even I, the wife of the village chief, am not nearly as pretentious as you!¡± Five bloody lines immediately appeared on Li Ping¡¯s face. The pain made her come to her senses and she immediately counterattacked. She raised her leg and kicked Su Qi hard. Su Qi endured the pain in her thigh and grabbed Li Ping¡¯s hair tightly. Sun Dong and Sun Nan hurriedly went forward to break up the fight. Although they were breaking up the fight, they were definitely on her mother¡¯s side. After the two of them separated, Li Ping was already beaten black and blue. Although Su Qi was also scratched, her overall condition was much better than Li Ping¡¯s. Sun Dong felt a headache when she saw the scene in front of her. However, she had been a city dweller for a few years, so she was more experienced than Madam Sun and the others. She thought for a moment and said, ¡°Since things have already come to this, it¡¯s useless to fret. After you guys are done eating, go home and work obediently. Don¡¯t cause trouble everywhere in a high-profile manner. Otherwise, those people who have been suppressed in the village will report it to the investigation team. At that time, they will be charged with more crimes.¡± Sun Nan felt that Sun Dong was right, unlike her grandmother and the others, who would fight whenever something happened. She was really tired of trying to mediate every day. ¡°My sister is right.¡± Chapter 59 - Wild Sugarcane Field Sun Dong said in a low voice, ¡°There¡¯s no escaping labor reform. I¡¯ll see if I can get someone to transfer them to a farm with better conditions. We¡¯ll take it one step at a time. Let¡¯s eat first.¡± No one had any other ideas at this moment. When they heard Sun Dong¡¯s words, they nodded hesitantly. Sun Dong packed a portion of food and brought it into the room. She said cautiously, ¡°Hubby, don¡¯t be angry. I didn¡¯t expect my grandmother to distort the truth.¡± Zheng Hai glanced at Sun Dong and said angrily, ¡°Your grandmother euphemized things. She said they were framed! I was almost screwed over by your family! Fortunately, I had an acquaintance ask around today. If I had asked someone to interfere, my promotion would have been gone this time!¡± When Sun Dong heard this, she tugged at the corner of Zheng Hai¡¯s shirt and asked meekly, ¡°Then can you find someone to send them to a farm with better conditions?¡± Zheng Hai glanced at Sun Dong angrily. ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear what I said just now? President Song is personally in charge. Do you know where his daughter-in-law, Wang Yun¡¯s second brother, works? In the county government office! Do you think I have the ability to play tricks under President Song¡¯s nose? I¡¯m warning you, don¡¯t interfere in this matter. Otherwise, it will affect my promotion, and I¡¯ll divorce you!¡± When Sun Dong heard this, she could only give up and coax Zheng Hai softly, ¡°I don¡¯t care anymore. Hubby, eat first. What I made today is your favorite!¡± The Sun family didn¡¯t dare to stir up trouble anymore. Yu Bing began to teach in full swing. She used her afternoon working time to practice and teach at the same time. After teaching for a few days, she began to practice with the two apprentices. Because they were not proficient, the progress was a little slow that day. Yu Bing simply extended the time to leave work so that she could catch up. While Wang Tao was operating, Yu Bing saw Wu Qing run towards a middle-aged man with lame legs on the field. Yu Bing had a deep impression of this man. Although his legs were handicapped, he always did hard labor when he was working. Moreover, he did it efficiently. However, he didn¡¯t talk much and seemed aloof. When Wu Qing saw his mentor looking in this direction, he quickly returned to the field and explained to Yu Bing, ¡°Mentor, that¡¯s my father. I told him that I would be home later today.¡± Yu Bing nodded and said with a smile, ¡°Although your father is handicapped, he¡¯s very agile. He always finishes first.¡± Wu Qing smiled and raised his head slightly as he said proudly, ¡°My father is amazing! He knows everything! Back then, he was shot in the leg on the battlefield and had no choice but to retire.¡± The country¡¯s military policy made many ordinary people admire soldiers. Yu Bing also had a good impression of soldiers and respected them. Yu Bing suddenly thought of the Wu family¡¯s poverty and couldn¡¯t help but ask curiously, ¡°How many people are in your family?¡± Wu Qing replied, ¡°Three. My mother died of illness when I was very young. Now, there¡¯s only me, my father, and Grandma at home.¡± Yu Bing found it even more strange when she heard this. ¡°Your family has two young and strong laborers. Even if your grandmother doesn¡¯t work, you guys can still survive on your own. Why did they say that you guys are poor?¡± Wu Qing sighed helplessly. ¡°My grandmother is not in good health. She has to take medicine all year round to recuperate. Moreover¡­¡± He suddenly thought of something and didn¡¯t continue. Seeing this, Yu Bing didn¡¯t continue asking. Wu Qing heaved a sigh of relief. The sentencing of the Sun family¡¯s uncle and nephew was quickly handed down. The two of them were sentenced to different remote farms for labor reform. Sun Yu was sentenced to five years in prison for deliberately destroying public property. Sun Wang was sentenced for abusing his power for personal gain, suppressing the villagers, and compromising unity. He was also charged with bribery. Because the money couldn¡¯t be recovered, he was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Sun Dong, Su Qi, and the others begged Madam Sun to take out as much money as she could, but when they found out that all the money could only reduce their sentence by two years, Madam Sun rolled around at home and refused to take it out. After all, she would probably turn into bones 20 years later. How could her son whom she couldn¡¯t see anymore be more reliable than money? On their day off, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng secretly went up the mountain. The back mountain was actually very big, and Xiao Sheng rarely went deeper. In the past, he heard from the old people that there was a foggy forest inside. The people who entered didn¡¯t come out again. In addition, after Xiao Sheng deliberately caused rumors of it being haunted, everyone went to the mountains at the entrance of the village and rarely took the initiative to come to the back mountain. Yu Bing had walked around the back of the mountain last time, and there were not much edible things there. The two of them carried sickles and carefully continued into the deep mountains. After walking for half an hour from the small wooden house where the jam was brewed, the two of them saw a large wild sugar cane field! Chapter 60 - Brewing Brown Candy Yu Bing hurriedly ran over and shouted in surprise, ¡°Xiao Sheng! We¡¯re going to be rich!¡± Xiao Sheng followed closely behind. He smiled at the sugar cane and turned to look at Yu Bing. ¡°Will we sell it directly or do you have other plans?¡± When Yu Bing saw the sugar cane, her first reaction was to make brown sugar. Nutrient products like brown sugar could be sold for a lot of money in the supply company! ¡°I want to use it to make candy!¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this, he said in surprise, ¡°You know how to make candy?¡± Yu Bing nodded proudly. ¡°Actually, I have another idea. Previously, I saw that you¡¯re able to hunt down some animals every few days. Now that there are sugarcanes, I want to smoke them and sell them at a much higher price!¡± When Xiao Sheng heard a new term, he frowned at Yu Bing in confusion. ¡°Smoke? What does that mean?¡± This place was located in the north. In this era, transportation was inconvenient, so many people didn¡¯t know about smoked meat. After all, this was a specialty dish of the southern states. Seeing this, Yu Bing slowly said, ¡°As the name implies, smoked meat is made by slowly smoking the meat with fire, so that it can be preserved for a long time in a cool and dry place. When smoking meat, the fire is the key. At that time, we¡¯ll use the juice squeezed out of sugarcane dregs and these cypress branches on the mountain to burn the fire. This way, the smoked meat will have the aroma of sugarcane fruit and the unique fragrance of cypress trees. The key is that the meat smoked from cypress trees has the effect of embalming insects. It won¡¯t look burnt either!¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes lit up when he heard this. This was a good idea. It was another profitable business without the cost of raw materials! Yu Bing patted her head and said anxiously, ¡°We don¡¯t have a machine to squeeze sugar cane juice. What should we do?¡± Xiao Sheng lowered his eyes and thought for a moment before saying calmly, ¡°It¡¯s okay. I can get a juicing stool.¡± This time, it was Yu Bing¡¯s turn to be stunned. She had only seen a juicer before. What the hell was a juicing stool? It was rare for Xiao Sheng to see Yu Bing confused. He smiled and said, ¡°You¡¯ll understand after I bring it back. That¡¯s an old antique. It should be called a Chinese juicer.¡± Yu Bing stopped hesitating when she heard this. She would eventually see it anyway. The two of them raised their sickles and slashed at the sugar cane. They only stopped after slashing for about 20 pounds. Yu Bing estimated that they could make a sample of brown sugar of about one pound. The two of them carried the sugar cane back to the well at the side of the wooden house. Xiao Sheng went to borrow the juicing stool. Yu Bing finished peeling the sugarcane and cut it into small pieces to increase the juice yield. As soon as she was done, Xiao Sheng returned with the tool and even went home to get an aluminum lunch box to make a mold. Xiao Sheng put down the chair and looked up at Yu Bing. ¡°This has a history of more than a hundred years! We have to be careful with this heirloom. Don¡¯t ruin their treasure.¡± Yu Bing looked around the wooden juicing stool excitedly. The so-called juicing stool was actually a four-legged wooden stool about a meter long. Its hind legs were slightly longer than its front legs. When placed on flat ground, the stool would tilt forward. There was also an armrest at the front of the wooden stool to suppress the wooden stool when juicing. There was a depression in the front of the wooden stool. This was where the sugar cane was placed. There was a thin trough in front of the depression that was connected to the front of the stool. The sugar cane juice would be squeezed by the matching wooden stick in the depression. Then, juice would flow through the thin trough and into the wooden bucket used to store the sugar cane juice. Everything was ready. Yu Bing was responsible for putting in the sugar cane pieces while Xiao Sheng was in charge of pressing. The two of them cooperated well and finished squeezing the sugar cane in an hour. They started a fire and poured all the light yellow sugar cane juice into the big iron pot. The two of them took turns stirring with the spatula. An hour later, the sugarcane juice in the pot turned into dense bubbles. After they threw out the foam, the fire simmered for a while before turning into a small fire and continued brewing until the color turned dark red and thickened. Only then did Yu Bing let Xiao Sheng quickly move the big pot to the other side of the stove that didn¡¯t have a fire. Then, she took a shovel and kept stirring. After a few minutes, she realized that there was anti-sand in the brown sugar and stopped stirring. She placed the anti-sand brown sugar into the lunch box and pressed it flat with the shovel to cool it. After it hardened, the brown sugar was removed from the mold. Yu Bing used the knife to cut the brown sugar into small pieces. Then, she used the knife to pry it open. The brown sugar was completed! Xiao Sheng twisted the cut corner with his finger and tasted it. His eyes lit up. ¡°It tastes the same as the brown sugar in the supply company!¡± When Yu Bing saw this, she raised her eyebrows and said proudly, ¡°What I made will definitely be high quality!¡± Chapter 61 - Pastry The two of them were in no hurry to go down the mountain. Instead, they discussed the new products they were going to supply this time. Yu Bing squatted on the ground and wrote on the ground with a tree branch. After a while, she raised her head and said, ¡°I saw that some of the sugarcane fields have already ripened, and some look like they can only be harvested a month later. It just so happens that we can extend the supply time. After all, it¡¯s quite time-consuming to process sugarcane. We can¡¯t handle too many at once.¡± Seeing this, Xiao Sheng also squatted down and turned to look at Yu Bing. ¡°For convenience¡¯s sake, if this batch of goods is handed over once every three days, how much do we supply each time?¡± Yu Bing said the pre-calculated number, ¡°20 pounds! We have to process at least 400 pounds of sugarcane for 20 pounds of brown sugar.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded. ¡°Now, the brown sugar on the black market is one yuan for those without stamps. I¡¯ll try to negotiate to bring the price down to 0.7 yuan.¡± The two of them decided on the supply of brown sugar and began to discuss smoked meat products. Xiao Sheng had never heard of this before, so it was basically Yu Bing who arranged it. The cooking period for smoked meat was relatively long. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng explained their considerations. ¡°These meat have to be marinated for 3 to 7 days first and dried for 3 to 7 days. After the water is dried, it will be smoked for about 8 hours. It will take at least 10 days to half a month. I suggest that the prey be processed after they reach a certain amount.¡± Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t expect smoked meat to be so troublesome. He frowned and said, ¡°But I often only catch one prey every three to five days. How long do we have to save them before we can smoke them even once?¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she couldn¡¯t help but feel vexed. She propped half of her face with her hand as she looked at Xiao Sheng. ¡°Has no one been further into the mountain? Perhaps there will be larger animals like wild boars? Even if there are no wild boars, there should be more small animals in sparsely populated places, right?¡± Xiao Sheng pondered for a moment before saying, ¡°Then let¡¯s set up a trap at the depth of the sugarcane field and expand the hunting range from left to right. I¡¯m afraid we¡¯ll enter the Fog Forest if we¡¯re not careful.¡± Yu Bing repeated curiously, ¡°The Fog Forest?¡± Seeing this, Xiao Sheng told Yu Bing about the legend that no one came out alive after entering the Fog Forest. Yu Bing was intrigued. In her previous life, she had never heard of this legend. ¡°Then does anyone know where the Fog Forest is?¡± Seeing that Yu Bing was interested, Xiao Sheng continued, ¡°No one probably knows anymore. This is a legend that has been passed down by word of mouth since hundreds of years ago. I only know that an ancestor erected a monument outside the Fog Forest to warn future generations to prevent anyone from entering by mistake.¡± Yu Bing guessed that Xiao Sheng only knew this much, so she didn¡¯t ask further. After looking at the size of the wooden house, she said, ¡°Then let¡¯s make 300 pounds at once! This place is large enough to parch all of them.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard Yu Bing¡¯s bold words, he couldn¡¯t help but smile and say, ¡°Then we have to hunt a pig so you can showcase your skills quickly.¡± Yu Bing ignored Xiao Sheng¡¯s teasing. After all, one had to have a goal. After discussing, the two of them decided that in order to have meat to smoke as soon as possible, they had to expand their hunting range. Then, the two of them took the samples and went down the mountain. Xiao Sheng took advantage of the day off to go to the county city openly. After finding Brother Qiang, he discussed the price and supply time. Ever since he started working with Yu Bing, Xiao Sheng had saved money much faster. This time, he prepared to buy some pastries for his siblings. When it was Xiao Sheng¡¯s turn, the salesperson looked impatient when she heard that he wanted to buy pastries. However, when she saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s handsome face, she immediately became more patient. ¡°They¡¯re already gone. The next batch will arrive five days later. Isn¡¯t there still half a month until the Mid-Autumn Festival? Now, whenever the pastries are back in stock, they¡¯ll be sold out two hours later. If you want to buy them, you better arrive before we open the door.¡± Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t even realize that the Mid-Autumn Festival was coming up. When he heard the salesperson¡¯s words, he suddenly had an idea and ran out of the supply company to look for Zhao Quan. When Zhao Quan saw that Xiao Sheng was looking for him, he immediately greeted him warmly, ¡°Brother Quan, why are you looking for me at this time?¡± The two of them were familiar with each other, so Xiao Sheng went straight to the point. He smiled and said, ¡°Brother Quan, I wanted to ask you if the prices of pastries on the black market are higher than usual during the Mid-Autumn Festival?¡± When Zhao Quan heard this, he knew that Xiao Sheng was trying to get a feel for the market, so he said, ¡°It¡¯s indeed a little high. It¡¯s the Mid-Autumn Festival, so people have to visit family and friends. Why? Do you have any new ideas?¡± After saying that, he raised his eyebrows and smiled. Xiao Sheng revealed a smile. ¡°I secretly learned how to make a sort of pastry recently. I thought that if the price was good, I would make some for you to sell during the holidays. I secretly learned it for a long time and wasted a lot of materials in the process!¡± Chapter 62 - Unique Seeing that there was more business, Zhao Quan hugged Xiao Sheng¡¯s shoulder with one hand and said with a smile, ¡°The market price isn¡¯t bad these few days. If you have goods, provide them early on. Otherwise, you¡¯ll miss this wave of popularity.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this, he didn¡¯t hesitate and directly set a time with Zhao Quan. When he delivered the vegetables and loach soup tomorrow, he would bring the pastries over for him to try. When Xiao Sheng rushed to Yu Bing¡¯s house excitedly, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun were making honey osmanthus wine. Seeing Xiao Sheng enter the kitchen with a smile, Yu Bing smiled and teased, ¡°Why do you look so happy? Did they raise the price for you this time?¡± Xiao Sheng crossed his arms and leaned against the door frame. He raised his eyebrows and said softly, ¡°The price didn¡¯t increase, but I got it for 0.7 yuan. I even accepted another deal.¡± Yu Bing unscrewed the bottle cap and placed it in the shade. ¡°You gained a lot this time. What business deal?¡± Xiao Sheng entered the kitchen and sat on the stool. ¡°Doesn¡¯t everyone want to give gifts during the Mid-Autumn Festival? This year, the supply of snacks isn¡¯t good, so the black market will be doing very well! The prices will be higher than usual.¡± Seeing that the two of them were discussing selling goods, Jiang Chun immediately carried a small wooden stool and sat in the courtyard opposite the door. She took the beans she wanted to eat tonight to peel. When Yu Bing heard this, she was very tempted. This was a short-term business, and the profit would be higher than usual. She would have to work a little harder during this period of time, but it wouldn¡¯t delay supplying other goods. It was indeed a good choice to earn extra money. Yu Bing also found a stool and sat down. ¡°We have to use flour for pastries. I took food stamps to the supply company to buy 15 pounds.¡± Xiao Sheng estimated the amount of flour at home and said, ¡°My family still has 30 pounds left. Let¡¯s see what we can do first. We¡¯ll see the price they give after tasting it tomorrow. If it¡¯s worth it, I¡¯ll think of a way to get some elsewhere.¡± Yu Bing felt that Xiao Sheng had thought it through, so she didn¡¯t say anything else. As for the new product, she thought for a while before saying, ¡°Can you get milk? If you can, we¡¯ll make pumpkin cakes. If you can¡¯t, we can only make pumpkin sponge cakes.¡± Xiao Sheng had only eaten sponge cake before, so he asked about the difference between the two curiously. Yu Bing continued to explain patiently, ¡°Pumpkin cakes are more exquisite. They look translucent and have a faint milky fragrance. However, pumpkin sponge cakes are more ordinary. I can only add two eggs to increase the taste and flavor. I¡¯ll also add some honey osmanthus wine that I marinated today to improve the flavor.¡± Xiao Sheng hesitated for a moment when he heard this. In the end, he could only say helplessly, ¡°The milk has to go to the farm in the suburbs of the county, but the farm isn¡¯t available to the public. I can¡¯t get it now. Let¡¯s make sponge cake.¡± Because Jiang Chun didn¡¯t know how to make pastries, she woke up at 2 a.m. the next day. Jiang Chun learned how to make pumpkin sponge cake from Yu Bing while making loach soup. This way, the two of them could take turns making them. Yu Bing cut off a piece of the pumpkin that Xiao Sheng had brought and then peeled it and cut it into thin slices before putting it into a plate. She steamed it for 15 minutes with a large fire. Then, she added an egg, a suitable amount of white sugar and salt, and stirred them with the pumpkin paste. After adding flour, she added a little yeast powder and stirred it into batter before covering it with a steamed cloth. An hour later, she took out a large bowl and brushed oil onto the bottom of the bowl. She poured the batter into it and waited for half an hour. Then, she placed it in a pot of cold water and steamed it for half an hour. After the finished product was brought out, Yu Bing removed the dough and cut it into a square. Then, she gently brushed a layer of marinated honey osmanthus wine on the surface and placed it in a lunch box for Xiao Sheng. In the county city. Zhao Quan was trying out the pumpkin sponge cake. He first tasted the sweetness of the honey osmanthus in his mouth, then chewed a few times and realized that there was a faint egg aroma amidst the sweetness of the pumpkin. The texture was rich. He raised his eyebrows and asked, ¡°Are there eggs in here?¡± Xiao Sheng had already eaten when he received the goods, and he knew the recipe for the sponge cake, so he nodded affirmatively and said with a smile, ¡°I put eggs in it. Not only are there eggs in my cake, but there¡¯s also osmanthus wine made from wild honey. It¡¯s nutritious. Be it giving gifts during the holidays or eating it yourself, the taste and quality are much better than those sold elsewhere.¡± Zhao Quan was a shrewd businessman. He could tell that the sponge cake Xiao Sheng was holding was indeed unique in the county. However, he only smiled faintly and said, ¡°The taste isn¡¯t bad. At the moment, ordinary pumpkin cakes in the market sell for 0.47 yuan per catty. Yours can be sold for 0.6 yuan at most. I don¡¯t earn much. I¡¯ll take 0.15 yuan and give you 0.45 yuan per catty.¡± Before Xiao Sheng came, he calculated that the cost was 0.3 yuan per pound. He could only earn 0.15 yuan according to Zhao Quan¡¯s price. However, this pastry took longer to make than loach soup, so he said to Zhao Quan with a bitter expression, ¡°Brother Quan, this honey is wild. There are even eggs added. The nutritional value is very high! It¡¯s really not worth all the trouble to make unless the price is higher than 0.5 yuan a catty.¡± Chapter 63 - Election Xiao Sheng¡¯s counteroffer was also within Zhao Quan¡¯s expectations. Didn¡¯t business rely on barter? Zhao Quan was in no hurry to reply. He lowered his eyes and pondered over it. Xiao Sheng was in no hurry. He stood at the side and waited for a reply. Seeing this, Zhao Quan knew that Xiao Sheng wouldn¡¯t back down. Hence, he quickly thought about the supply direction and the price increase caused by the holidays. After confirming that he could sell it at a higher price, he agreed to Xiao Sheng¡¯s price. The two of them agreed to supply 20 pounds a day until three days before the holidays. This was because at this time of the holiday, all the pastries would have already been sent to relatives and friends. It was just right to stop supplying them at that point. After a break, a new round of work began. Yu Bing went to the county city early in the morning to explore the land and transport goods. When she finished her work in the morning, she saw Song Jian and the people from the Agriculture Bureau appear at the agricultural base in the suburbs. Yu Bing thought that Song Jian was probably here to visit and ask about the base plan of the Agriculture Bureau, so she didn¡¯t take the initiative to drive over to greet him. Instead, she drank a mouthful of water before preparing to start the car and drive home. At this moment, Song Jian¡¯s mirthful voice came from behind her. ¡°You didn¡¯t even greet me when you saw me?¡± Yu Bing hurriedly turned around and realized that Song Jian was standing behind her alone. She hurriedly explained, ¡°Brother-in-law, I saw that you were busy just now, so I didn¡¯t go up because I was afraid of disturbing you.¡± Song Jian knew that Yu Bing was deliberately avoiding suspicion for the sake of his reputation, so he naturally wouldn¡¯t fuss over it. He lowered his glasses and smiled gently. ¡°I came here to consult people on the plan for planting crops at the base. The second reason is that friday is Little Treasure¡¯s full-month baby shower. You can go over directly from the county after work. As a godmother, you have to find time to come to the house for a meal that day.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she smiled and replied, ¡°I definitely have to go on such an important day. Then I won¡¯t stand on ceremony. I¡¯ll go freeload a meal.¡± Song Jian smiled brightly and said, ¡°We all treat you as family, so don¡¯t stand on ceremony. By the way, your village doesn¡¯t have a village chief now. Is everything okay?¡± When Yu Bing heard the question, she was suddenly stunned. To be honest, without the Sun family in the village, Yu Bing felt that the He Mountain Brigade was much more peaceful. ¡°Everything is quite good. I hope that the new village chief can lead us to focus on work instead of doing things that compromise unity.¡± Yu Bing could tell that the Song family¡¯s father and son were practical officials. After all, she was also a member of the He Mountain Brigade, so she directly said her hopes for the new village chief. Song Jian nodded and said with emotion, ¡°Yes, working hard and raising the people¡¯s standard of living is what everyone wants the most.¡± Then, he asked casually, ¡°Yu Bing, do you have anyone you want to choose? In ten days, we¡¯ll go to your village to witness the election.¡± When Yu Bing heard this news, she was shocked. ¡°In ten days?!¡± Song Jian raised his eyebrows and nodded. ¡°There will probably be an announcement in your village on Thursday for those who want to sign up to participate. The entire village will vote next Wednesday.¡± Yu Bing processed this for a moment and continued to ask, ¡°It¡¯s quite imminent then. Brother-in-law, I¡¯m going back to the village now. Do you want to come with me? It¡¯s on the way.¡± Song Jian smiled and waved his hand. ¡°I still have to go to the Agriculture Bureau later. You can leave first.¡± After the two of them said goodbye, Yu Bing drove the tractor back to the village. Yu Bing took a shower after running at night before slipping into the Xiao family¡¯s house. When Yu Bing saw Xiao Li and Xiao Lin working in the courtyard under the moonlight, Yu Bing stuffed two candies into their hands. After thanking her, the two of them carefully placed the candy in their mouths. After Xiao Li put it in her mouth, she said in surprise, ¡°This is orange-flavored candy.¡± Xiao Lin hurriedly said, ¡°This is apple-flavored!¡± Yu Bing smiled. ¡°This is the fruit candy I bought previously. There are flavors of all kinds of fruits.¡± This was the first time Xiao Li and Xiao Lin had eaten it, so they felt intrigued. They had only eaten malt candy before and only tasted mint candies for the first time after meeting Yu Bing. Now, they were amazed to discover fruit candy. Children¡¯s happiness was that simple. A little piece of candy could make them happy for a long time. Chapter 64 - Uncle Jin Yu Bing looked up and realized that Xiao Sheng wasn¡¯t around. She asked Xiao Lin, ¡°Xiao Lin, where¡¯s your brother?¡± Although they were in their own courtyard, Xiao Lin still covered his mouth with his hand and whispered, ¡°My brother didn¡¯t even eat before going into the mountain to set a trap for the animals.¡± After Yu Bing chatted with them for half an hour, Xiao Sheng returned with sweat all over his face. Xiao Lin hurriedly poured a bowl of water and handed it forward. ¡°Brother, drink water!¡± Xiao Sheng took it and finished it in one go. Only then did he see Yu Bing. ¡°Why did you come?¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she smiled and asked, ¡°Can¡¯t I come even if there¡¯s no reason?¡± Xiao Sheng smiled helplessly and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t mean that. You usually don¡¯t come if you have nothing to do.¡± These words made Yu Bing blush. Every time she came to the Xiao family¡¯s house, she seemed to have a motive. Fortunately, with the cover of the night, Yu Bing subconsciously ignored the embarassment. ¡°Xiao Lin said that you haven¡¯t eaten yet. Eat first and let¡¯s talk while eating.¡± The two of them entered the kitchen together. Xiao Sheng took off the bamboo lid that blocked the small insects, revealing the food inside. There was a large bowl of sweet potato rice, a plate of stir-fried bitter melon, and cold cucumber. Yu Bing watched as Xiao Sheng ate a large mouthful before saying her purpose. ¡°If the village wants to choose a new village chief, who do you want to choose?¡± When Xiao Sheng heard Yu Bing¡¯s question, he ate as he pondered over it. ¡°I can roughly guess a few people who are most likely to sign up for the election, but I don¡¯t want to choose any of them.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard Yu Bing¡¯s question, he ate and thought for a while. ¡°I can roughly guess a few people who are most likely to sign up for the election, but I don¡¯t want to choose any of them.¡± When Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing asking so eagerly, he swallowed his food and raised his eyebrows at Yu Bing. ¡°You look so curious. Do you want to sign up?¡± The most important things in Yu Bing¡¯s life were to stay healthy and earn more money. At the same time, she would let the scumbag, slut, and the people who harmed her suffer retribution. She wanted to make up for the good fortune she didn¡¯t enjoy in her previous life. Yu Bing looked back at Xiao Sheng and said calmly, ¡°I don¡¯t have that much time. However, if you sign up, I can vote for you. I can also help you get Jiang Chun¡¯s vote.¡± To Xiao Sheng, earning money to treat his sister¡¯s eyes was the most important thing. He didn¡¯t have the time or energy to care about the rest. When Xiao Sheng heard this, he looked at the bitter gourd and picked up a piece with his chopsticks. He slowly said, ¡°I don¡¯t have that much time either. I don¡¯t even have enough time to earn money. You don¡¯t have to be so conflicted about your vote. It won¡¯t play a key role.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she pursed her lips and rolled her eyes. ¡°My vote might not make a big difference, but this vote can express my attitude! To me, this is a very serious matter. Moreover, if we can choose a village chief who is competent, isn¡¯t it better than finding a troublemaker like Sun Wang?¡± After saying that, she sat beside Xiao Sheng and stuck her head out. She imitated Xiao Lin by covering her mouth with her hand as she said softly, ¡°If we can choose a bold person who helps our village develop and thinks of the big picture, we might not have to be so secretive. Most of the cadres like to talk about policies now, but can mere policies put bread on the table?¡± The two of them were so close that Xiao Sheng could smell the fragrance of the jasmine soap on Yu Bing after she showered. After Yu Bing finished speaking, she saw Xiao Sheng staring at the table in a daze. She stretched out her hand and waved it in front of Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes. ¡°What are you thinking about? Did you hear me?¡± Xiao Sheng came back to his senses. His Adam¡¯s apple bobbed as he said dryly, ¡°I¡¯m listening. Find a village chief who¡¯s willing to do business.¡± Yu Bing nodded in admiration. ¡°The summary is spot on! Although our village isn¡¯t so poor that people starve to death, the number of times most villagers can eat meat all year round can be counted with two hands. They only eat vegetables every day.¡± Xiao Sheng recalled Yu Bing¡¯s words and felt that she made sense. Everyone was too poor now, so something must be done. Because of public policy, many people couldn¡¯t even raise a few more chickens to eat eggs. If anyone found out that they had secretly sold things, they would definitely be reported. However, if everyone was involved in these side hustles, they would be in the same boat, just like when Yu Bing was called over to eat the bowl of rabbit meat after she discovered him. The best case scenario would be that the village chief would lead everyone to find a way to get rich. Then, everyone would be able to earn money openly. Xiao Sheng suddenly thought of someone. ¡°Actually, there¡¯s someone who fits the requirements you mentioned, but he definitely won¡¯t sign up for the election.¡± Yu Bing hurriedly asked, ¡°Who is it?¡± Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing fixedly. ¡°Uncle Jin, your disciple Wu Qing¡¯s father.¡± Chapter 65 - Persuasion Yu Bing thought of the limping man she saw that day. ¡°Why won¡¯t he sign up? Why don¡¯t we convince him?¡± Xiao Sheng glanced at Yu Bing and continued eating. Seeing this, Yu Bing poked Xiao Sheng¡¯s arm. ¡°Speak!¡± After Xiao Sheng finished his last bite of rice , he looked at Yu Bing helplessly. ¡°I can¡¯t tell you why.¡± Yu Bing frowned as she looked at Xiao Sheng. She thought about it for a moment and said, ¡°It¡¯s fine if I don¡¯t know. Then¡­ then why don¡¯t you convince him?¡± Xiao Sheng lowered his eyes and thought about what Yu Bing had said before. He whispered, ¡°I¡¯ll try!¡± When Yu Bing heard this, her eyes lit up. ¡°All the best! Tell me more about Uncle Jin.¡± Yu Bing had a good impression of Uncle Jin before. After hearing from Wu Qing that Uncle Jin was a retired soldier, she had an even better impression of him. Now that she heard from Xiao Sheng that Uncle Jin met all the conditions she mentioned, Yu Bing was even more curious about Uncle Jin. Xiao Sheng was a reliable and smart person in Yu Bing¡¯s eyes. There were very few people who could obtain his approval. Xiao Sheng thought for a moment and said slowly, ¡°Actually, many people in the village are indebted to Uncle Jin and Uncle Jin¡¯s father. The Wu family was the largest landlord in this village in the past. Later, in order to support the unification of the country, they sold many assets to support the front line.¡± ¡°Not long after this incident, there was another flood in the village. That year, there was no harvest, and many villagers¡¯ houses were washed away. Not only did the Wu family exempted two years of rent, but they also opened a warehouse to distribute grain to save the villagers of the He Mountain Brigade. Everyone survived those two years with difficulty. If not for the Wu family¡¯s actions at that time, many people wouldn¡¯t have survived that natural disaster.¡± ¡°Uncle Jin is the only descendant of the Wu family. In order to protect the country, he resolutely joined the army. Later, after the war was won, Uncle Jin advised his father to support the country¡¯s nationalization policy and take the initiative to hand over his land. Their family has a very good reputation in Jiangning County.¡± ¡°Later, Uncle Jin retired from the army because of an injury. The country arranged a job for him in the county city, but because of some reasons, Uncle Jin refused and returned to the village. One year, there was a famine, but Uncle Jin brought the villagers through it. However, I was still young at that time, so I don¡¯t know what Uncle Jin did exactly, but I know that if Uncle Jin had participated in the village chief election back then, Sun Wang wouldn¡¯t have had a chance.¡± Yu Bing supported her chin with one hand and listened with relish. ¡°So the key to this matter is whether Uncle Jin wants to be the village chief.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded. After confirming that Xiao Sheng would talk to Uncle Jin as soon as possible, Yu Bing went home. The next day, after lunch, Xiao Sheng went straight to Wu Jin¡¯s house. When he entered, he saw Wu Jin¡¯s mother taking off her shoes. Xiao Sheng smiled and went forward. He greeted politely, ¡°Grandma Wu, I¡¯m looking for Uncle Jin.¡± When Grandma Wu looked up and saw that it was Xiao Sheng, a smile immediately appeared on her gentle face. ¡°Ah Sheng, you¡¯re here. Uncle Jin is in the courtyard at the back.¡± Xiao Sheng entered the backyard with familiarity. When he saw Wu Jin repairing the stool, he shouted, ¡°Uncle Jin.¡± When Wu Jin turned around and saw Xiao Sheng, he casually pointed at the stool beside him and turned around to continue repairing. ¡°Ah Sheng, sit. Why are you looking for me?¡± After Xiao Sheng sat down, he thought about how to bring it up to Wu Jin. From the corner of his eye, Wu Jin saw Xiao Sheng hesitate to speak. He smiled and took the initiative to say, ¡°Tell me. I want to see what¡¯s so difficult for you to bring up.¡± Xiao Sheng looked at Wu Jin and probed, ¡°Uncle Jin, Sun Wang has been captured. The village will definitely choose a new village chief.¡± Wu Jin paused and put down the stool in his hand. ¡°You want me to run for village chief?¡± Xiao Sheng thought for a moment and nodded firmly. ¡°Uncle Jin, I know you¡¯re not interested in power and have more important things to do, but have you ever thought that this isn¡¯t a long-term solution?¡± ¡°What if the new village chief is a villain who¡¯s good at exploiting his power? Moreover, the Sun family has been indebted to you, so they help you get the permission slip to leave town every quarter. But can you guarantee that you can get the permission slip from the new village chief? If you can¡¯t get them, what will happen to the people you have to take care of?¡± Other than the Wu family, Xiao Sheng was the only person in the village who knew that Wu Jin was selling local specialties with his comrades. Xiao Sheng was able to enter this industry because Wu Jin had brought him along. Five years ago, when Xiao Li had a high fever that didn¡¯t subside. Xiao Sheng borrowed a lot of money to bring Xiao Li to the hospital for treatment, but even after spending all the money, Xiao Li¡¯s fever didn¡¯t subside. He was unwilling to return to the village to borrow money. At that time, only Wu Jin was willing to lend him money. It was all thanks to this money that Xiao Li could stay in the hospital for two more days until her fever subsided. Chapter 66 - New Path Wu Jin was Xiao Sheng¡¯s benefactor. Xiao Sheng suggested this for the sake of Wu Jin since he hoped that he would be safe. After all, the path Wu Jin took was much more dangerous than his. These days, when one left their residence, they might face the risk of having their luggage checked at any time. This was especially so for long-distance trains. They loved to check if anyone was carrying a lot of food. Once they were discovered, they would be arrested and investigated. Once they were convicted of using the opportunity to seek personal gain, their lives would be screwed. When Wu Jin heard Xiao Sheng¡¯s words, he fell silent. After a few minutes, he said, ¡°After I left the army, the country arranged for me to become the director of security at the milk factory. Do you know why I resigned after refusing and returned to the village?¡± This was the first time Xiao Sheng had heard Wu Jin mention the reason for returning to the village. Back then, many people didn¡¯t understand Wu Jin¡¯s actions. After all, between being a cadre in the city and an ordinary farmer, everyone would choose the former. Xiao Sheng thought for a moment before replying, ¡°To earn money?¡± Wu Jin pursed his lips and revealed a lonesome smile. ¡°That¡¯s only one of the reasons. The most important thing is that I don¡¯t want to wear a public official¡¯s uniform but do things that are inconsistent with national policy.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this answer, the expression on his face became ambivalent. A trace of confusion flashed across his eyes as he looked at Wu Jin. ¡°Uncle Jin, but the current policy makes it so that we might not even be able to eat our fill. Why should we carry it out? Could it be that wanting to eat our fill, eat meat, and wear warm clothes in winter isn¡¯t right?¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s words struck a chord with Wu Jin. Looking at the boy in front of him who had been shouldering the heavy responsibility of his family since he was 13 years old, he reached out and rubbed the top of Xiao Sheng¡¯s head. He said gently, ¡°Of course, it¡¯s not wrong to want to eat your fill and wear warm clothes, but you have to know that no matter if it¡¯s a person or a country, there will be times when they take the wrong path and do something wrong. Now, our country has taken the wrong path. I believe the leaders will definitely realize the problem and correct it, so we have to wait patiently.¡± Xiao Sheng looked at Wu Jin quietly and said slowly, ¡°But the reality is that none of us know when the mistakes will be corrected. However, the conflict of supply and demand will always exist before that. Many people in the village are not in good health and go to the hospital for treatment. Everyone says that it¡¯s caused by malnutrition. What caused the malnutrition? Isn¡¯t it just hunger?!¡± ¡°Uncle Jin, in order to fight for power with the security director, Liu Bao, Sun Wang had done many things that harmed the interests of our village. I don¡¯t believe you don¡¯t know. After Sun Wang is toppled, Liu Bao is the most likely to be chosen. He¡¯s slightly better than Sun Wang and can be considered fair, but he has always been conservative. He doesn¡¯t have the ability to lead the villagers to a good life.¡± Wu Jin looked down at the ground expressionlessly. After a long while, he said in a low and hoarse voice, ¡°I need to think about it.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this, he knew that there was a chance. He thought for a moment and said, ¡°Uncle Jin, if you become the village chief, you might be able to find a balance between leading the villagers to become rich and improving the economy under the current policies. Isn¡¯t this more reliable than running around all day?¡± Wu Jin smiled when he heard this and looked up at Xiao Sheng. ¡°You¡¯re becoming more and more eloquent!¡± Xiao Sheng smiled when he heard this. He had already said what he needed to say, so he stood up and said goodbye to Wu Jin. He turned around and saw Wu Qing, who was looking at him in a daze not far away. Wu Qing came back to his senses and smiled as he went forward to greet him. ¡°Brother Sheng!¡± Xiao Sheng looked at Wu Qing and patted his shoulder before leaving the Wu family¡¯s home. Although Wu Qing didn¡¯t hear everything, he could tell why Xiao Sheng was here. After Xiao Sheng left, Wu Qing walked to his father¡¯s side and squatted down. ¡°Dad, I think Brother Sheng is right. Didn¡¯t you always say that we have to look at the long-term development? I think what Brother Sheng said is the long-term development you mentioned.¡± Wu Jin was indeed persuaded by Xiao Sheng, but he didn¡¯t expect his son to take Xiao Sheng¡¯s side so quickly. He glanced at Wu Qing and said with mock anger, ¡°Don¡¯t be a lobbyist for Brother Sheng. I¡¯ll consider it seriously myself.¡± He smiled foolishly when he heard this. He was persuaded by Xiao Sheng¡¯s words mostly because he was worried about his father. Every time his father went out to get the goods, he and his grandmother would be on tenterhooks, especially since his grandmother couldn¡¯t sleep well at night. If only they could find a different path like Brother Sheng said! Chapter 67 - Took the Wrong One It was late at night. Wu Jin took out a metal box from the bottom of the bentwood box. When he opened it, there were a few bills and a notebook, as well as a few photos. Wu Jin took out one of the group photos and approached the kerosene lamp. In the photo, there were 30 men in military uniforms. This was the most comprehensive photo of the entire platoon. Before Wu Jin retired from the army, he was a platoon leader. After that war, less than 10 people out of the 30 people survived. Wu Jin also retired from the army after being injured at that time. Some of the comrades who sacrificed themselves came from poor families. They had elders and children at home. Without men to support them, their lives would be more difficult than others. After Wu Jin retired from the army, he discussed it with the other two comrades who had retired from the army and returned to the village. The place where the three of them were located was very far apart. One¡¯s hometown was rich in mushrooms and worm grass, while the other¡¯s hometown was rich in dates and walnuts. These were all dry goods that were convenient to carry and keep. Wu Jin was in charge of collecting the goods and returning to City H to find a way to sell them. After the bus fare was deducted, the rest of the money he earned was basically sent to the families of his comrades who were having trouble making ends meet. He made the trip twice a year. He was quite lucky and had only been caught once in all these years. It was all thanks to his vigilance that he was not caught. Wu Jin looked at these slightly yellowed photos and thought of the ¡°new path¡± Xiao Sheng had mentioned today. In the end, he decided to sign up for the village chief election. On Thursday morning, Liu Bao¡¯s voice sounded from the village¡¯s broadcast. ¡°Good morning, villagers. We will now issue a major announcement. Due to the vacancy of the He Mountain Brigade¡¯s village chief position, the commune¡¯s leaders have decided to hold a village chief election at 3 PM next Wednesday at the rice field in front of the village committee. The three with the most votes will be chosen as final candidates. After the commune¡¯s leaders review, the village chief will be chosen among the final candidates. Those who are interested in registering, please register with Director Zhao and me today. After reporting to the commune tomorrow, the village committee will stick the candidate list on the notice board. Please pay attention. Today¡¯s broadcast ends here. Thank you.¡± The villagers who were working in the fields were not very surprised when they heard the radio announcement. After Sun Wang left, they would definitely choose a newcomer. However, everyone had their own thoughts on who to vote for. ¡°Which people do you think will sign up?¡± ¡°Director Liu, the Director of Security, will definitely sign up. the accountant Mr. Wei will probably sign up too.¡± ¡°Hey, Director Zhao, are you going to sign up or not? If you sign up, I¡¯ll definitely choose you. Didn¡¯t Hua Mulan sing that song? Who said that women are inferior to men?!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Director Zhao, sign up as well to represent our women.¡± Zhao Lin originally didn¡¯t want to participate in the election, but she couldn¡¯t resist the encouragement of the female comrade beside her, so she agreed with a smile. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll sign up and join in the fun. On behalf of our female compatriots, I¡¯ll say a few words at the meeting to fight for women¡¯s rights.¡± The field was especially lively today. Everyone was actively discussing who would participate or encouraging the villagers they thought highly of to sign up. When she got off work at noon, Yu Bing happened to return to the village. The scorekeeper saw Yu Bing and kindly reminded her that her letter had arrived in the office yesterday. Yu Bing thanked her and stopped the car by the roadside. Then, she walked into the village committee to get the letter. At this moment, Yu Yan was looking for a letter in the envelope in her office. After finding it, she took it out and casually glanced at it. She happened to see Yu Bing¡¯s letter beside her letter. Yu Yan¡¯s hand moved faster than she could react. By the time she reacted, she had already placed her letter aside and picked up Yu Bing¡¯s letter. This was the first time Yu Yan had seen the Yu family¡¯s address clearly. She reached out and gently stroked the words on it. ¡°This is my family¡¯s home address!¡± Yu Yan thought excitedly. She tried to memorize every word of the letter. The person who sent the letter was Yu Pan. Yu Yan guessed that it was her sister and immediately felt a sense of intimacy. She smiled and looked at the letter again and again, imagining that this was a letter her parents and siblings had specifically sent because they missed her. ¡°What are you doing with my letter?¡± A soft voice sounded from behind Yu Yan. ¡°Ah!¡± Yu Yan was so startled that she shouted and jumped up. Zhao Lin, who was working at the side, looked up at the two of them. Yu Yan turned around and saw Yu Bing smiling at her. She hurriedly patted her chest and scolded angrily, ¡°Yu Bing, what¡¯s wrong with you?!¡± Yu Bing looked at Yu Yan innocently. ¡°I saw you holding my letter, so it¡¯s normal for me to ask. Moreover, why did you take my letter?¡± Yu Yan¡¯s eyes flickered when she heard this. She felt a little unnerved, but pretended to be calm as she replied, ¡°I took the wrong one!¡± Chapter 68 - Full Month Banquet Zhao Lin put down her pen and walked over. ¡°What happened?¡± Seeing this, Yu Yan immediately replied, ¡°It¡¯s fine, Director Zhao. I took the wrong letter.¡± Yu Bing stared into Yu Yan¡¯s eyes and revealed a faint smile. ¡°Do you think it¡¯s fine to yell at me after you took the wrong letter? I saw that you looked so emotional when you took my letter. I was frightened since I thought you were going to take my letter away.¡± When Yu Yan¡¯s thoughts were exposed, she immediately retorted, ¡°Who said I took your letter?! Stop slandering me!¡± Yu Bing tilted her head and looked at Yu Yan with a frown as she said, ¡°I didn¡¯t slander you. I just said I thought you were going to take my letter away with me. Moreover, you did take the wrong letter and shout at me.¡± The letter box was placed on the table beside Zhao Lin¡¯s desk. She usually kept it. When she took it out at work, she would lock it back in the cabinet after leaving the office. Zhao Lin saw Yu Yan¡¯s abnormal reaction and looked at her suspiciously. Then, she said slowly, ¡°Alright, it¡¯s a small matter. You can just apologize.¡± Yu Yan widened her eyes when she heard this. ¡°Why should I apologize?¡± Why should she apologize? If not for Yu Bing, she wouldn¡¯t have been sent away! This letter would have been sent to her. Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t even receive this letter! Zhao Lin couldn¡¯t stand Yu Yan¡¯s behavior to begin with. She looked healthy, but when it came to work, she would always look for substitutes. Yu Bing was different. Although she was thin, she was a dilligent worker and drove such a heavy tractor with ease. Her son often praised Yu Bing at home. Hence, when Zhao Lin heard Yu Yan¡¯s retort, she felt even more uncomfortable. She took the letter from Yu Yan¡¯s hand and handed it over after confirming that it was Yu Bing¡¯s. She said to Yu Yan sternly, ¡°Is it that difficult for you to apologize to someone after taking the wrong letter? You¡¯re really unreasonable!¡± When Yu Yan saw Zhao Lin¡¯s angry expression, she felt that the entire world was going against her. However, she knew that she couldn¡¯t offend the villagers if she wanted to continue to live here, so she looked at Yu Bing and said reluctantly, ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Yu Bing smirked slightly as she said softly, ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± Yu Yan took the letter she had placed at the side and left angrily. Yu Bing thanked Zhao Lin and left the office. Looking at Yu Yan¡¯s back, Yu Bing suddenly had a new idea. Since Yu Yan was looking for trouble, Yu Yan should not blame her for beating her at her own game. After returning home, Yu Bing opened the letter and quickly browsed through it. Her family found out that Jiang Chun had sent 20 pounds of apples and a jar of honey back home. They asked Yu Bing why she didn¡¯t send them, and asked her to send all the rations she could send home. Jiang Chun¡¯s parents wished they could bring everything they could to Jiang Chun, so after Jiang Chun obtained something, she would naturally want to send it home. The Yu family was the exact opposite. They wished that Yu Bing would send all her rations back home every month at her own expense. Moreover, Yu Bing was certain that even if she did this, the Yu family wouldn¡¯t remember her kindness. Yu Bing pursed her lips. She knew it. Why would the Yu family take the initiative to send her a letter? As expected, they had a motive. If it wasn¡¯t for the sake of setting a trap for Yu Yan, she wouldn¡¯t have bothered to reply to this letter. Yu Bing quickly wrote the letter and placed it aside. She planned to send it from the county city tomorrow so that Yu Yan could see the reply quickly. At the thought of this, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t help but smile evilly. She couldn¡¯t wait to see Yu Yan¡¯s expression when she saw the reply. After the excavation mission was completed on Friday morning, Yu Bing drove the tractor straight to the Song family¡¯s home to attend the baby shower. Yu Bing had just reached the door when she heard the lively laughter inside. She raised her hand and knocked. Song Li opened the door. ¡°Yu Bing, we were waiting for you. Everyone is here!¡± Song Li hugged Yu Bing¡¯s shoulder and smiled as she entered the living room. Mrs. Song was busy in the kitchen. Mr. Song and Song Jian were drinking tea and talking with a middle-aged man in the living room. Wang Yun and a young man were sitting at the side and playing with Little Treasure. When Wang Yun saw Yu Bing, she smiled and held her hand as they walked into the living room. ¡°Dad, Brother, this is my god sister, Yu Bing.¡± With that, she turned to Yu Bing and introduced, ¡°Yu Bing, this is the first time you¡¯ve seen my family. My father is from the Food Bureau. My brother, Wang Wei, is a small official in the government.¡± Yu Bing greeted everyone one by one. The Wang family¡¯s father and son secretly sized Yu Bing up. They realized that although this girl was young, she was very graceful and composed. Her eyes were clear, and she didn¡¯t seem like a scheming person. They had a good impression of her. Chapter 69 - Out of League Wang Qing went forward excitedly and said to Yu Bing, ¡°Thank you so much! If it weren¡¯t for you, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to see my daughter. I wouldn¡¯t have had the face to see my deceased wife after I die!¡± Wang Wei followed behind his father and thanked her with a smile. ¡°Yu Bing, thank you for saving my sister.¡± When Yu Bing saw the harmonious family relationship of the Wang family, she replied with a gentle expression, ¡°Please don¡¯t be so polite. Previously, Sister Yun, Brother Song, Uncle Song, and Auntie Song have thanked me a few times already. Anyone would have helped if they encountered this matter. It¡¯s just that I happened to encounter it this time.¡± The Wang family¡¯s father and son had already found out about Yu Bing¡¯s personality from Wang Yun, so they stopped being polite. Wang Qing said to Yu Bing kindly, ¡°We¡¯re family. Wang Yun has acknowledged you as her sister, so you can call me Uncle Wang. Wang Wei will be your brother. You came all the way to our province to help build a village, so if you encounter any difficulties, come find Wang Yun!¡± Yu Bing smiled and nodded as she said jokingly, ¡°Uncle Wang, I won¡¯t stand on ceremony then.¡± Wang Yun hurriedly said, ¡°That¡¯s how it should be!¡± Seeing this, Yu Bing took out a zodiac card she had specifically found someone to make with silver. She handed it to Wang Yun with a smile. ¡°This is a one-month-old gift for Little Treasure. I can¡¯t afford gold, so I can only use silver instead.¡± Wang Yun took it and saw that on one side of the zodiac card, there was the zodiac symbol, and on the other side, there was a happy child. Wang Yun liked it very much. ¡°What¡¯s the need for gold? The child is still young. It¡¯s not good to keep too expensive a gift, so silver is just right!¡± Everyone chatted and laughed in a harmonious atmosphere. After dinner, Yu Bing sat for a while before bidding farewell. When they got off work at night, everyone passed by the notice board and saw the new list of candidates for the village chief position. There were a total of seven people. The security director, Liu Bao, the female director, Zhao Lin, the accountant, Wei Zhen, Wu Jin, and the three village team leaders, who were Lin Qiang, Zhao Gui, and Yue Fei. Although they were all from the same village and were very familiar with each other, the announcement still gave a simple description of the candidate¡¯s situation. Firstly, it was a standard requirement for the public announcement, and secondly, it was for the young people who had just arrived at the He Mountain Brigade and didn¡¯t know the situation in the village. Yu Bing leaned forward and saw Wu Jin¡¯s name. She raised her eyebrows and gave Xiao Sheng a thumbs up. ¡°You¡¯re quite capable!¡± Xiao Sheng glanced at Yu Bing with a faint smile. The scene of the two of them interacting happened to be seen by Yu Yan, who was standing in front of the noticeboard. Although Yu Yan and Yao Nian had become much closer these few days and she had some feelings for Yao Nian, compared to Xiao Sheng, one was like a high mountain flower that people couldn¡¯t help but look up to and want to conquer, while the other was as gentle as water. Yao Nian¡¯s gentleness alone could indeed attract her, but compared to Xiao Sheng¡¯s aloofness, Yao Nian seemed as plain as a glass of water. Yu Yan saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s smile from the side and the jealousy in her heart began to spread. She suddenly thought of a plan. She stared at Yu Bing from the corner of her eye and scolded softly, ¡°B*tch! Shameless!¡± Yu Bing was close to Yu Yan, so she naturally heard everything clearly. However, Yu Yan didn¡¯t name her, so she couldn¡¯t say anything. She wouldn¡¯t go forward to be scolded. However, Yu Bing ignoring Yu Yan agitated her even more. ¡°You seduced another man even though you have a fianc¨¦. What a slut!¡± She was practically naming her. At this moment, there were not many people surrounding the noticeboard. There were only 20 or so people. Because of Yao Nian spreading the word, everyone knew that among the people present, only Yu Bing had a fianc¨¦. A few gossipy middle-aged women immediately felt the tension between the two of them and quickly turned their gazes to them. Xiao Sheng knew that Yu Yan was hinting at something, but he couldn¡¯t say anything. Otherwise, it would only cause gossip. Moreover, he knew that Yu Bing could deal with such people who caused trouble for no reason. Yu Bing turned around and looked at Yu Yan coldly. ¡°You feel uncomfortable if you don¡¯t cause trouble for a day, right?¡± Yu Yan gritted her teeth and said hatefully, ¡°I¡¯m just telling the truth. If you dare to do it, why are you afraid of others saying it? You¡¯re pretending to be chaste.¡± Yu Bing clenched her fists and said calmly, ¡°What did I do? Tell me. If you can¡¯t tell me the truth, I¡¯ll report you to Director Liu and Director Zhao for slander!¡± Chapter 70 - : Innocence Yu Yan glared at Yu Bing and snorted. ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll say it. I¡¯m not afraid of you! You clearly have a fianc¨¦, but you still flirt with other men all day long and even took in two disciples. Who knows if those disciples are learning how to drive a tractor or actually sleeping with you?! You spend all day¡­¡± Before Yu Yan could finish speaking, she was hit by the handle of the tractor. Although she dodged in time, she was still hit. This was an iron product. Even if she was just slightly hit, Yu Yan still felt the pain. Yu Yan screamed and immediately ran to the side to hide behind a woman. However, she continued to say, ¡°You don¡¯t dare to let me say it, right? You¡¯re a slut who likes to hang around with men all day long. You¡¯re the only woman who goes to the county to train drivers. I think you¡¯re probably no longer a virgin!¡± The more Yu Yan spoke, the smugger she became and the louder she shouted. Yu Bing was so angry that she wanted to chase after Yu Yan and beat her up. However, she knew that she couldn¡¯t be rash at this time. If she was led by the nose by Yu Yan, even if she defeated Yu Yan, the rumor would spread. In this day and age, moral conduct was very important. If one were to sleep around, they would be paraded on the streets to be publicly condemned. So she had to dispel this rumor now. Yu Bing looked at the surrounding crowd and shouted, ¡°Please help me call Director Liu and Director Zhao! Someone is slandering me. I want to find some higher ups to uphold justice for me!¡± The contrast between Yu Bing¡¯s capableness and her thin figure made many people admire her very much. In addition, after Yu Bing became a tractor driver, every time she encountered villagers on the way, she would bring them along. She was polite and had a good temper. Most of the villagers had a good impression of her, so as soon as Yu Bing shouted, someone went to help call for help. Yu Yan originally only wanted to throw out the topic to agitate Yu Bing into arguing with her. After all, messy relationships were the best after-meal topics, and the most ambiguous topics as well. As long as Yu Bing started an argument with her, once everyone saw enough and left, someone would naturally help her add fuel to the fire. As the saying went, the law couldn¡¯t be enforced when everyone was an offender. When the rumors spread, it would be difficult for Yu Bing to completely turn the situation around. However, Yu Bing didn¡¯t fall for Yu Yan¡¯s trap. Now, she was determined to find the village staff to interfere. Firstly, she wanted to prove her innocence and secondly, she wanted everyone present to see the entire process clearly. Yu Yan panicked a little. After all, she would be exposed. She couldn¡¯t prove that there was something wrong with Yu Bing¡¯s moral conduct in front of the village staff, so she mustered the courage to shout, ¡°Forget it! You still have the cheek to call the director and the others over? If I were you, I would have run home. I don¡¯t want to be with a promiscuous woman like you lest you taint my innocence!¡± With that, she turned around and wanted to leave. Yu Bing immediately went forward and grabbed Yu Yan¡¯s arm. She glared at Yu Yan and said fiercely, ¡°Don¡¯t even think about leaving before the director comes! Why? Are you afraid and want to run away after creating a rumor?¡± Seeing this, Yu Yan knew that it was probably impossible for her to escape. Hence, she struggled free from Yu Bing¡¯s grip and said loudly, ¡°I won¡¯t leave. I want to see how you¡¯ll distort the truth later!¡± The two directors arrived very quickly. When Director Zhao saw that it was Yu Yan again and thought of how his family¡¯s dinner would be delayed again, he said impatiently, ¡°Yu Yan, why is it you again?! What¡¯s the matter this time?¡± Yu Yan pretended to be aggrieved as she said, ¡°I just said a few words to Yu Bing, but she got upset and insisted on looking for you.¡± When Yu Bing heard Yu Yan¡¯s words, she snorted and frowned. ¡°Yu Yan, your ability to gloss over the important things is really superb!¡± After saying that, she turned around and stood upright in front of the two directors. She looked at the two of them firmly. ¡°Director Liu, Director Zhao, in front of so many people, Yu Yan slandered me for sleeping around with men!¡± When Director Liu heard this, he frowned and said sternly, ¡°Yu Yan, this matter is quite serious. You have to show evidence!¡± How could Yu Yan have any evidence? She could only take it one step at a time. She crossed her hands and said, ¡°Director Liu, Yu Bing has a fianc¨¦, right? Everyone in the village knows that ever since Yu Bing became a tow truck driver, she has been hanging out with men all day long, whether she¡¯s training or taking in disciples.¡± Chapter 71 - Evidence Yu Yan mentioned what everyone could see for themselves. When Yu Bing heard this, she knew what Yu Yan was up to. She retorted calmly, ¡°Yu Yan, are you living in a feudal society? Our country has long entered an era where men and women are equal. This is written in the law. Stop spreading your feudal thoughts!¡± The current state policy was based on anti-imperialism and anti-feudalism, while imperialism and feudalism were based on the notion that women had low status. Yu Yan was so frightened that she hurriedly retorted, ¡°I¡¯m not feudal! Don¡¯t slander me!¡± She was afraid that if she didn¡¯t retort, she would be labeled as a counterrevolutionary. Yu Bing smiled faintly and glanced at everyone. ¡°Let¡¯s put aside the fact that my parents and colleagues only joked about the arranged engagement before I was born. I want to ask everyone, is there a problem with women being drivers?¡± ¡°No problem!¡± The surrounding women immediately replied loudly. After Yu Bing heard this, she continued, ¡°It¡¯s inevitable for men and women to come into contact with each other. Yu Yan, according to you, as long as there are more men than women on the job, there¡¯s a problem with moral conduct?¡± Yu Bing¡¯s rebuttal came one after another. Yu Yan was making something out of nothing to begin with, so at this moment, she was flustered by the question. Her lips moved a few times, but she didn¡¯t answer in the end. However, Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t give her a chance to evade the question. She raised her voice and asked, ¡°Yu Yan, as long as there are more men than women on the job, there¡¯s a problem with moral conduct?¡± Yu Bing¡¯s questioning made a thin layer of sweat appear on Yu Yan¡¯s nose. If her answer was yes, then she would be going against all the working women. However, if she denied it, wouldn¡¯t it be equivalent to taking the initiative to admit that she was deliberately looking for trouble with Yu Bing? Yu Yan didn¡¯t respond directly. She only stared at Yu Bing as she said, ¡°Yu Bing, don¡¯t twist my words to divert attention from the topic at hand. I¡¯m not talking about anyone else. I¡¯m talking about you!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s eyes were cold as she stared at Yu Yan and slowly asked, ¡°Then show me the evidence! You said that there¡¯s something wrong with my moral conduct. When I asked you to show me the evidence, you talked about the nature of my work. Now that I¡¯m talking about the nature of my work, you¡¯re talking about my moral conduct again.¡± ¡°While everyone is here, just say it. What are you trying to say since you¡¯re circling around these two questions?¡± These words directly exposed Yu Yan¡¯s intention to blur the lines between moral conduct and work nature in front of everyone. The people who were feeling a little confused also understood that Yu Yan was indeed causing trouble. Because it was an argument between two females, Zhao Lin, as the female director, took the initiative to step forward to preside over the situation. ¡°Yu Yan, if you can¡¯t produce evidence, then you¡¯re slandering her.¡± When Yu Yan heard this, her clenched fists loosened and clenched again. She raised her head to look at Zhao Lin and started a new round of sophistry. ¡°Director Zhao, I can¡¯t produce evidence now, but that doesn¡¯t mean that Yu Bing has no problems, right?¡± Yu Bing was amused by Yu Yan¡¯s shameless retort. She lowered her eyes for a moment and thought of an idea. She said to Yu Yan, ¡°Yu Yan, there¡¯s money in the letter my family sent me, but I didn¡¯t see it after opening it. I suspect that you took it. After all, my letter went through your hands yesterday.¡± Yu Yan immediately widened her eyes and pointed at Yu Bing. ¡°You¡¯re slandering me! I only took a look at your letter. I didn¡¯t open it. Director Zhao was also present at that time. Don¡¯t slander me.¡± Zhao Lin was stunned for a moment when she heard this. Then, she said, ¡°Let me make it clear first. I only saw you reading Yu Bing¡¯s letter. When I took it from you, I only looked at the recipient on the front of the envelope to confirm the ownership of the letter. However, I didn¡¯t check if the back seal had been opened. I don¡¯t know if it had been opened or not!¡± ¡°I really didn¡¯t open the letter. Yu Bing, you have to have evidence to slander me!¡± Yu Yan panicked when she heard this and blurted out contradictory words. Yu Bing looked enlightened and said, ¡°Oh! You also know that evidence is important.¡± Yu Yan was completely speechless now. She could only stomp her feet in anger. Chapter 72 - Two Liu Bao had been watching from the side, so he could tell what was going on. He came out and said sternly, ¡°Yu Yan, since you can¡¯t produce evidence, you¡¯re slandering her! You¡¯re also destroying internal unity. You have to apologize to Yu Bing and write a self-reflection report of a thousand words tomorrow. If I find that it¡¯s not sincere enough, you¡¯ll have to write another one!¡± After saying that, he looked around and said loudly, ¡°Whoever dares to do such a thing in the He Mountain Brigade will have their work points deducted!¡± After Liu Bao finished speaking, he even glanced at Yu Yan with a warning look in his eyes. After all, he was in charge of the village¡¯s matters for the time being. If anything happened, he would be responsible. After the farce ended, Yu Yan glared at Yu Bing with anger. Yu Bing smiled at Yu Yan and shrugged without caring about her hostile gaze. Yu Bing felt relaxed after dealing with Yu Yan. After all, Yu Yan¡¯s hatred for her had never dissipated in her previous life or now. If she cared, it would only make her feel uncomfortable. Yu Bing walked to the roadside and started the tractor. The engine was successfully started. Yu Bing asked the villagers loudly, ¡°I¡¯m driving home. Those who need a ride, get in the car quickly!¡± The villagers who lived further away from the village entrance climbed into the cars one after another. Accompanied by the sound of the tractor moving forward, Yu Yan watched as Yu Bing drove away with a car full of people. The flesh of her clenched fists was scratched by her nails. The next morning, after work, Yu Yan reluctantly finished her self-reflection and walked out of the radio room to meet Yao Nian. Yu Yan lowered her head slightly. Her eyes were slightly red, and her fragile appearance made her look quite pitiful. When Yao Nian saw this, his heart fluttered, so he took the initiative to go forward and say gently, ¡°Yu Yan, are you alright?¡± Yao Nian handed the handkerchief forward. Yu Yan took it and wiped her tears as she thanked him. As long as Yu Yan thought of her apology to Yu Bing in front of the entire village, she felt depressed, ashamed, and resentful. She felt that everything had gone wrong since she met Yu Bing. She couldn¡¯t help but think about whether her decision to come to build the village was right. Yu Yan had come to the countryside to take revenge on Yu Bing and use Yu Bing to bring her home. She wanted the Yu family to regret their decision to send her away when they saw such an outstanding person like her. Then, they would help her torture Yu Bing! However, the reality was that Yu Bing¡¯s life was getting better and better. Even her gentle and considerate fianc¨¦ had specifically transferred to this village for her. Yes! Fianc¨¦! Yu Yan looked down at the handkerchief in her hand and suddenly had another plan. Yu Yan lowered her head and said in a low voice, ¡°Yesterday, I saw Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng talking very close. The two of them seemed very intimate. At that time, I felt bad for you, so I went forward to expose Yu Bing¡¯s affair. It¡¯s my fault for being too impulsive. I was in a hurry to say it before I even got the evidence.¡± Yao Nian frowned. ¡°Xiao Sheng?¡± He had only been in the village for a short time and didn¡¯t know many people. Yu Yan explained gently, ¡°It¡¯s the neighbor who lives beside Yu Bing. There are four families at the foot of the mountain, but the remaining two families are closer to the village and are still some distance away from the foot of the mountain. I realized that Yu Bing and her neighbor are quite close.¡± Yao Nian remembered the muscular man with tanned skin. He was indeed handsome. At the thought of this, his gaze turned cold. Yu Yan raised her head and looked at Yao Nian with sparkling eyes. ¡°You¡¯re so good to Yu Bing, but she¡¯s still dissatisfied and messed around with another man!¡± Yu Yan¡¯s tone carried a hint of indignation for Yao Nian. After saying that, she hurriedly covered her mouth with an awkward expression. Yu Yan lowered her hand that was covering her mouth and bit her lower lip slightly. An embarrassed smile appeared on her face. ¡°Yao Nian, you won¡¯t blame me for being nosy, right? Sigh, this is just how I am. I can¡¯t bear to see anyone doing immoral things, so I couldn¡¯t help but say a few words.¡± Although Yao Nian didn¡¯t like Yu Bing, he was a male chauvinist. He could despise and abandon Yu Bing, but Yu Bing couldn¡¯t do anything to let him down. Moreover, the entire village knew that he was Yu Bing¡¯s fianc¨¦. If Yu Bing really flirted with another man behind his back, wouldn¡¯t that mean he was cuckolded? The more he thought about it, the uglier Yao Nian¡¯s expression became. Chapter 73 - Masked Thief Yao Nian forced a smile with a stiff expression. He looked at Yu Yan and said calmly, ¡°You were thinking for my sake. Why would I blame you?¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she was secretly delighted. Men couldn¡¯t tolerate their women being involved with other people¡¯s men. As long as she seized this opportunity, she would definitely be able to make Yao Nian and Yu Bing fall out. This way, Yu Bing would suffer. Yu Yan changed the topic. ¡°I¡¯m not saying that Yu Bing is bad. I just think that it would be good if she could change her behavior. It might be better if you guys could discuss it in private. I¡¯m still an outsider. I kindly reminded her yesterday, but she didn¡¯t accept it, so we had an argument.¡± It was best to talk quickly and have a big fight after that! That way, Yu Bing would feel like she wasn¡¯t trusted by her fianc¨¦! At the thought of this, Yu Yan felt better. Yao Nian only nodded and didn¡¯t say anything else. Ever since he quarreled with Yu Bing over the apprenticeship, Yao Nian had not helped chop wood and fetch water anymore. Yu Bing also had not taken the initiative to look for him. From this, it could be seen that Yu Bing didn¡¯t care about him at all. What was the point of talking?! He would only embarrass himself if he went! Yao Nian didn¡¯t really want to marry Yu Bing. He only wanted to use her to get a driver¡¯s position before thinking of a way to kick her away. Initially, he wanted to take it slow, but according to the current situation, he had to speed up. Otherwise, if Yu Bing was really shameless enough to get together with that uncultured farmer in the village, he would really become a cuckold in the eyes of others! Thinking of the contempt that might appear in others¡¯ eyes, Yao Nian felt terrible. Another few days passed. At 1 PM, when everyone had finished lunch and was about to take a nap, Yao Nian arrived at the small courtyard at the foot of the mountain to look for Yu Bing. After Yu Bing opened the door, Yao Nian immediately put on a smile and looked at Yu Bing gently. ¡°Yu Bing, I have something to tell you. Come out for a while.¡± Yu Bing said impatiently, ¡°Let¡¯s talk here. I¡¯m about to rest.¡± Yao Nian continued to speak gently, ¡°Yu Bing, I¡¯ll only take a few minutes of your time. I really have something important to tell you!¡± No matter how Yu Bing refused, Yao Nian insisted on Yu Bing going out for a few minutes. Yu Bing didn¡¯t know what Yao Nian was up to, but when she saw Yao Nian¡¯s fishy move, she was a little curious, so she pretended to be impatient and agreed. ¡°Just a few minutes. Even if you can¡¯t finish your words, I¡¯m coming back.¡± Yao Nian hurriedly smiled and said, ¡°Alright. It won¡¯t take long. I won¡¯t delay your lunch break.¡± ¡°Then wait for me for a while.¡± Yu Bing closed the door and followed Yao Nian out after a minute. Yao Nian brought Yu Bing to the small forest at the back of the mountain. Yu Bing frowned slightly and quietly followed a few steps behind to pick up a small stone with a sharp corner. After walking for two minutes, Yu Bing said to Yao Nian impatiently, ¡°Why do you have to walk so far? I¡¯m not going any further. I don¡¯t care about what you have to say!¡± With that, she walked back. Yao Nian immediately secretly gestured to the people in the forest and stopped Yu Bing. ¡°I¡¯ll say it now. I just want to bring you to the forest to cool down.¡± Seeing this, Yu Bing stopped and looked at Yao Nian. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s talk here. Why are you looking for me?¡± Yu Bing stood with her back facing the forest at the back of the mountain. Yao Nian lowered his head and looked at Yu Bing. ¡°Yu Bing, I came to apologize to you today. I didn¡¯t have a good attitude when I spoke to you about the apprenticeship that day. I hope you can forgive me.¡± Yu Bing looked at Yao Nian suspiciously. Yao Nian taking the initiative to apologize was indeed very fishy. However, she said calmly, ¡°I didn¡¯t take it to heart. I accept your apology. If there¡¯s nothing else, I¡¯ll go back first.¡± From the corner of his eye, Yao Nian saw two sneaky figures quietly approaching the two of them from the forest. He hurriedly thought of an excuse to stall for time. ¡°There¡¯s another thing. Aren¡¯t the two of us engaged? I was wondering if I should write a letter home and let our parents discuss whether we should have an official engagement ceremony.¡± Just as he finished speaking, Yu Bing heard a rough voice behind her. ¡°Are you two here to make out?¡± The sudden voice startled Yu Bing so much that she turned around and immediately stood to the side. Her sharp gaze shot towards the two masked men. The two of them were about the same height. The person who spoke was a thin man. Another slightly plump man chimed in wretchedly, ¡°Bro, this woman is quite good-looking. Why don¡¯t we enjoy ourselves this afternoon?¡± Chapter 74 - Saving The Damsel In Distress At this moment, Yu Bing was thinking of a solution. There was no one on the road at noon, and her house was the closest. However, at this distance, even if she shouted, Jiang Chun wouldn¡¯t hear a word. Just as she was feeling anxious, she saw Yao Nian stand in front of her and say righteously to the two masked robbers, ¡°Who are you guys? How dare you guys try to break the law in broad daylight?!¡± The tall and thin man laughed sinisterly as he said fiercely, ¡°I¡¯m the law. Pretty boy, move aside obediently. If you leave this woman behind, I can let you leave safely! Otherwise, I¡¯ll definitely make you suffer today!¡± When Yao Nian heard this, he snorted and said solemnly, ¡°You shameless people! Even if I have to risk my life, I won¡¯t let you touch my fianc¨¦e!¡± With that, he clenched his fists and assumed a combat posture. The tall and fat guy immediately let out a mocking laugh and stared at Yu Bing with a lecherous gaze. ¡°Little beauty, wait for us to beat this pretty boy down first before we play with you.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t say anything and only looked at the two masked men coldly. From their figures and voices, she guessed that they were not villagers of the He Mountain Brigade. At this moment, Yao Nian turned to look at Yu Bing and whispered, ¡°I¡¯ll hold these two back now. Hurry up and run home! Don¡¯t worry about me. I¡¯ll look for you at your house when I¡¯m out of danger.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she already understood what was going on. It turned out that this was a show orchestrated by Yao Nian! The title of the show was ¡®The Hero Saves The Damsel In Distress¡¯! Yu Bing was so certain because it was impossible for a selfish person like Yao Nian to sacrifice himself for others, let alone her. Yao Nian didn¡¯t know that Yu Bing had seen through his act before it was even finished. If Yao Nian was dealing with an innocent girl with insufficient social experience, this act definitely would have made her loyal to him. Unfortunately, Yu Bing was a little fox in sheep¡¯s clothing. An old soul who had experienced his and Yu Yan¡¯s schemes lived in this 18-year-old body. Yu Bing pretended to be afraid and swallowed nervously. She said to Yao Nian, ¡°Yao Nian, I¡¯ll help you. There are two of them. If I stay here, you¡¯ll have another helper.¡± Yao Nian¡¯s expression froze. Then, he said gently, ¡°I just wang you to be safe. Their target is you. If you run away, they¡¯ll just beat me up. It¡¯ll be fine!¡± The two masked robbers saw the two of them whispering and were wondering why things were different from what they had discussed. Why wasn¡¯t the girl running away? Was she really going to fight? Just as they were hesitating about whether or not to go forward, they heard the girl say, ¡°We¡¯re not afraid of you! Come at us if you have the guts!¡± The two of them were idle hooligans from the outside village. Usually, they were just petty thieves that stole food and livestock. At most, they would threaten meek people to extort money. To put it bluntly, they bullied the weak and feared the strong. When they encountered tough people, they didn¡¯t dare to take the initiative to provoke them. Therefore, the two of them had not committed anything serious crimes so far. Yao Nian had said that they only needed to scare her, so the two of them accepted this task. They didn¡¯t want to fight. If they made a big deal out of it and were caught, they would be sentenced to labor reform. A few yuan wasn¡¯t worth sacrificing their future for. Just as they were hesitating, they saw Yao Nian¡¯s meaningful glance. The two of them understood that Yao Nian wanted to do it real. The tall and fat man secretly asked the tall and thin man, ¡°Bro, are we going to fight? If we don¡¯t do it well, the other party might say we didn¡¯t do a good job and refuse to pay. If we do, I¡¯m afraid¡­¡± The tall and thin man thought for a moment and said, ¡°Let¡¯s go! We waited here for half an hour in advance, but no one passed by. This place is very remote. We can let him run away after he shows off. It¡¯s not worth it to be beaten up for such a small fee.¡± The fat man nodded. Hence, the two of them ran towards Yao Nian. Just as Yao Nian was about to move forward, he saw Yu Bing suddenly jump forward from the side. She took out a rolling pin from the sleeve of her long-sleeved shirt and hit one of them in the head! Then, she threw another stone at another person¡¯s face. Then, she turned around and ran. As she ran, she shouted, ¡°Yao Nian, run!¡± Seeing this, the veins on Yao Nian¡¯s forehead twitched. However, since things had already reached this stage, he could only follow Yu Bing and run. The masked thugs, who had been beaten up, were stunned and looked at each other. It was impossible to chase after them. The two of them decided to silently retreat into the forest and wait for Yao Nian to come and settle the bill. Chapter 75 - Election Yu Bing pursed her lips to hide her smile. After she ran into the house and was about to close the door, she saw that Yao Nian wanted to follow her in. She held the rolling pin in her hand and pressed it against Yao Nian¡¯s shoulder as she slowly said, ¡°You¡¯re here to thank me for saving you, right? You¡¯re welcome! I¡¯m going to bed now. You should go back.¡± Without waiting for Yao Nian¡¯s reaction, she closed the door and locked it before entering the house. Yao Nian frowned as he stared at the tightly shut courtyard door in fury. Yu Bing was completely unpredictable. It was supposed to be the hero saving the damsel in distress, but the plot was completely different now. Yao Nian could only return to the forest to pay them first. But after he went to the forest, the two hooligans would want him to pay more than the agreed amount. The reason was that they had agreed that they would only appear to scare her. In the end, Yao Nian added a beating scene at the last minute. This wasn¡¯t in the script. Hence, the two of them demanded more money. Yao Nian was afraid of revenge, so he didn¡¯t dare to refuse. In the end, he paid twice the agreed price. Yao Nian had suffered a double loss, but he also confirmed Yu Bing¡¯s indifferent attitude towards him. A gloomy look flashed across his eyes. The next day was Wednesday. At three o¡¯clock in the afternoon, the entire village gathered on the rice field in front of the village committee. The five leaders represented by President Song came to the commune. The seven candidates waited to go on stage to give their speeches. After the villagers voted, the top three candidates were Liu Bao, Wu Jin, and Zhao Gui. Liu Bao¡¯s speech revolved around the current state policy and how to carry out the tasks assigned by the country more effectively. As a female candidate, Zhao Gui¡¯s speech was about how to increase the enthusiasm of the villagers and obtain greater harvests in agricultural activities. Wu Jin was more pragmatic than the first two. The central theme of his speech was simple and crude. He hoped to create a new countryside and improve its people¡¯s living standards in the long term! However, when the votes were announced, Yu Bing was still a little surprised. She truly realized the veracity of Xiao Sheng¡¯s words. ¡°If Uncle Jin had participated in the election for the village chief back then, Sun Wang would have had nothing to do with the position!¡± The entire village had 693 votes. Wu Jin had 356 votes, which accounted for half of the votes. After the results were out, President Song concluded the meeting and said that the commune would have a period of observation for the candidates and would officially issue the appointment notice next Friday. After the meeting ended, Yu Bing was led to the stone bench beside the public noticeboard by President Song. Yu Bing looked at President Song in confusion. ¡°Are you looking for me, Uncle Song?¡± President Song smiled gently. ¡°Yes, I saw that you voted for Wu Jin too. You¡¯ve only been here for a few months. I¡¯m a little curious why you chose him among so many people.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t know why President Song would ask her, but she still expressed her opinion truthfully. ¡°I think Uncle Jin is a compassionate person. Although I haven¡¯t been here for long, I¡¯ve heard about some things the Wu family and Uncle Jin have done. There¡¯s no doubt about his character. His past experience has also made his horizons and outlook different from those who have stayed in the village for their entire lives.¡± ¡°I believe that he will definitely be able to lead the villagers to build a new countryside with higher living standards. Moreover, I admire his moral code!¡± With that, Yu Bing asked President Song, ¡°Uncle Song, you also know about the Wu family¡¯s righteous deeds, right?¡± President Song was born and raised here, so he naturally knew. ¡°I know. The Wu family is a famously benevolent family in Jiangning County.¡± Yu Bing smiled at President Song and said, ¡°Uncle Song, I think if Uncle Jin is elected, he will definitely be a good village chief. Firstly, the possibility of him being corrupt is too low. After all, a greedy person will not do anything to help others. Moreover, I think many of Uncle Jin¡¯s ideals are the same as yours. You guys are both practical people. He is also a soldier and is very efficient! In conclusion, I think you can really consider Uncle Jin.¡± ¡°Of course, the other two are also very outstanding, but from their speeches, I believe you can see the limitations of their horizons and grasp of the overall situation. I can only say that among the three candidates, Uncle Jin is the best choice.¡± When President Song heard this, he glanced at Yu Bing. He had specifically looked for Yu Bing to talk about this after the meeting ended because he admired Yu Bing and wanted to listen to her opinion. Chapter 76 - Dividends President Song had to admit that Wu Jin was a good choice, but such a radical person might not be suitable for this position in this era. If Wu Jin was a pioneer, the other two candidates were defenders. Rather than saying that President Song was worried that Wu Jin would not do well, it was better to say that he was worried that Wu Jin would be too radical! In this era where policy restricted development in all aspects, if one wanted to really lead a small village¡¯s economic development, it was impossible to completely follow the national policy. One had to step into the grey territory or even cross the red line! As the president of the commune who managed the five villages, President Song was a doer, but this doer would at most jump between gray and white. He didn¡¯t dare to cross the red line, so he had to consider these three candidates carefully. President Song was silent for a moment before looking at Yu Bing. ¡°I can tell that you really admire Wu Jin¡¯s philosophy, but we still have to hold a meeting to discuss this matter.¡± They naturally had to be cautious when choosing the village chief. Seeing this, Yu Bing didn¡¯t say anything else. She opened her canvas tote and took out the pastries wrapped in oil paper. ¡°Uncle Song, the Mid-Autumn Festival is coming soon. Thinking that you would be coming today, I made some pastries for you to bring back for your family to try.¡± President Song took them and placed them in his briefcase with a smile. ¡°Since you¡¯re so considerate, I won¡¯t stand on ceremony. You don¡¯t have any relatives here, so come to our house for dinner on the Mid-Autumn Festival.¡± Yu Bing thought of Jiang Chun, so she refused. ¡°There¡¯s no need, Uncle Song. My roommate and I agreed to spend the night together. Her family lives in the same courtyard as mine, and we have no relatives here. We can accompany each other.¡± President Song didn¡¯t force her anymore. The two of them chatted for a while before parting. Time passed quickly. The pumpkin cakes were supplied for 10 days in a row. After Yu Bing and Jiang Chun finished dinner, they arrived at the Xiao family¡¯s house. Tonight, the three of them were prepared to calculate the dividends during this period and settle the bill. Xiao Sheng carried a metal box and placed the kerosene lamp on the table. ¡°We¡¯ve been working together for a while. Let¡¯s settle the accounts during the Mid-Autumn Festival so that we can distribute the money.¡± These words struck a chord with Yu Bing. She looked at Xiao Sheng with sparkling eyes. During this period of time, in order to keep up with nutrition, Yu Bing had been eating an egg every day and meat every week. Only 50 yuan of the money she had brought previously was left. It was impossible for her not to be anxious. Xiao Sheng opened the metal box and took out an exercise book. ¡°This is the account book. Every transaction is accounted for. Take a look and see if there¡¯s any problem.¡± Yu Bing and Jiang Chun took the notebook and wrote for a long time. When Yu Bing saw the last number, she nodded in satisfaction and looked up at Xiao Sheng. ¡°There¡¯s no problem with the accounting. It¡¯s very clear.¡± Compared to the calm Yu Bing, Jiang Chun was a little excited. She didn¡¯t expect to earn so much in just a few months. Jiang Chun had always felt ashamed to accept the share that had been set previously. She was only helping to cook things. Firstly, she didn¡¯t have any innovative ideas, and secondly, she didn¡¯t have the courage to expand her network. Therefore, all she could do was work hard. The more she did, the better she felt. Therefore, she had never calculated how much profit she had made. Seeing this, Xiao Sheng reported the number again. ¡°After deducting the cost, the profit from this batch of jam is 532.6 yuan, the loach mustard soup is 18 yuan, and the pumpkin cake is 40 yuan for 10 days. You can hire someone to run errands for you for 5 yuan a month.¡± With that, she looked at Yu Bing and Jiang Chun. ¡°Yu Bing and I will split the profits from the batch before Jiang Chun joined 30-70. For the batch after Jiang Chun joined, we will split it 40% for me and 30% for each of you. In the end, I will get 258.6 yuan, Yu Bing will get 174.8 yuan, and Jiang Chun will get 152.2 yuan.¡± Xiao Sheng moved the money that had been divided in advance to the table in front of the two of them. Yu Bing picked up the money and started counting skillfully. Jiang Chun¡¯s eyes widened as she stared blankly at the thick stack of money in front of her. ¡°Oh my god, this is almost half a year¡¯s salary of an ordinary worker!¡± Yu Bing was amused by Jiang Chun¡¯s reaction. ¡°Work hard. There will be more in the future!¡± Jiang Chun looked at the smiling Yu Bing and then turned to look at the calm Xiao Sheng. She nodded vigorously. ¡°In the future, I¡¯ll do whatever you guys say!¡± Yu Bing noticed from the corner of her eye that Xiao Lin, who was sitting at the side, was looking at the money in his brother¡¯s hand with sparkling eyes. She couldn¡¯t help but smile and say, ¡°We¡¯ve already given you the money for running errands. We can¡¯t refuse to pay you for picking firewood and doing chores just because you¡¯re one of us. I want to give Xiao Lin five yuan a month!¡± Chapter 77 - Lively Festival Xiao Lin hurriedly shook his head when he heard that. ¡°I don¡¯t want money. If it weren¡¯t for you, our family wouldn¡¯t have been able to earn this money. It¡¯s only right for me to help!¡± It was said that children from poor families matured earlier. Their sensibility and ability were forced out by the harsh realities of life. Yu Bing smirked slightly as she rubbed Xiao Lin¡¯s buzz-cut hair. ¡°That¡¯s different. Without your brother, Jiang Chun and I wouldn¡¯t have been able to earn this money.¡± Jiang Chun nodded in agreement. ¡°Little Bing is right. You should be rewarded for your hard work.¡± When Yu Bing heard Jiang Chun¡¯s agreement, she took out two yuan and placed it on Xiao Lin¡¯s table. ¡°For convenience¡¯s sake, I¡¯ll pay two yuan this time, and each of you will pay one and a half yuan. Next time, we¡¯ll get our shares after deducting the labor costs.¡± Xiao Sheng glanced at the 2 yuan and took out 0.5 yuan to return to Yu Bing. Then, he took out 2 yuan and handed it to Xiao Lin. ¡°Since we¡¯ve decided to give it to him, I should be the one giving it to him.¡± Yu Bing raised her eyebrows and smiled without saying anything. Jiang Chun also took out 1.5 yuan and gave it to Xiao Lin. Seeing the five yuan in front of him, Xiao Lin was overjoyed. He placed the money in Xiao Li¡¯s hand. ¡°I made money too!¡± Xiao Li smiled and said, ¡°Second Brother, you¡¯re so impressive!¡± Yu Bing was very envious of the Xiao family¡¯s siblings¡¯ relationship. Although they were poor, they would think of each other no matter what. This was something that she could only dream of in her two lifetimes. Under the dim yellow light, Xiao Sheng¡¯s usually stern expression softened. Yu Bing suddenly thought of the new trap the two of them had dug, so she asked, ¡°Xiao Sheng, have you found any prey on the mountain recently?¡± When Xiao Sheng heard the question, he frowned imperceptibly. ¡°In order to kill them in one large batch, we can only catch them alive, so it¡¯s a little difficult. So far, we¡¯ve only caught three pheasants and two hares.¡± ¡°Previously, a large animal probably entered a trap. Unfortunately, the pit wasn¡¯t deep enough, so it escaped. I¡¯ll dig a few larger traps tomorrow.¡± Yu Bing thought for a moment and looked up. ¡°If you can¡¯t hunt any poultry, it¡¯s fine if you can get fish. In any case, they can both be smoked. The most important thing about smoked meat is that it can be preserved for an entire year. It¡¯s also convenient to eat, so as long as it¡¯s meat, it¡¯s fine.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded thoughtfully. Seeing that the night was getting darker, Yu Bing bade farewell to the Xiao family with Jiang Chun and left. Xiao Sheng watched the two of them return to the small courtyard next door before turning around and entering. Yu Bing returned home and lit the kerosene lamp. Jiang Chun took out the money from her pocket and looked at it again. She ran to Yu Bing¡¯s side and widened her eyes as she whispered, ¡°Little Bing, pinch me! Why do I still feel that it¡¯s unreal?¡± Yu Bing smiled and pinched Jiang Chun¡¯s arm. ¡°Does it feel real now?¡± After feeling the pain, Jiang Chun revealed a silly smile and nodded vigorously. ¡°It feels real!¡± As she looked at Yu Bing, Jiang Chun¡¯s smile faded slightly, and her eyes teared up. She said seriously, ¡°With this money, my father can recuperate. My mother doesn¡¯t have to try to borrow money from everyone all the time. Thank you, Little Bing!¡± Yu Bing thought of how Jiang Chun had left before she could report back in her previous life, and her expression became a little ambivalent. She held Jiang Chun¡¯s hand and slowly said, ¡°Chun Chun, no matter where, in school, in the courtyard, or anywhere else, you¡¯ve always been the one protecting me. Now, I¡¯m very happy that I can finally help you!¡± When Jiang Chun heard this, she only thought that Yu Bing was grateful for their friendship since they grew up together. She didn¡¯t think much of it and held Yu Bing¡¯s hand tightly as she said, ¡°You always secretly hide things for me to eat. I treat you well because you treat me well too!¡± Yu Bing smiled and stopped thinking about the past. After all, this life was already different. Yu Bing took out the money from her pocket and slapped it on her hand. Then, she raised her eyebrows at Jiang Chun. ¡°In the future, I¡¯ll help you earn a lot of money! We can go to the county to buy some meat during our break tomorrow. The Mid-Autumn Festival will be the day after tomorrow. We should celebrate too!¡± Jiang Chun looked at the money in her hand and was in a good mood as she smiled at Yu Bing and said, ¡°Alright! Let¡¯s celebrate this time.¡± Chapter 78 - Public Anger The next morning, a lot of people were already waiting at the village entrance. Yesterday, Yu Bing had applied to the village committee to use the village tractor to send the villagers to the county city. She had also suggested that the village staff charge each person 20 cents. This price was just enough for a round trip. At most, the village would lose the gas money. However, they were from the same village after all, so there was no need to be so calculative. The tractor driver could refuse the task of transporting people to the market. After all, the driver drove to assist in agricultural production. However, Yu Bing felt that there were many things to buy during the festival. There was only one ox cart in the village, so it definitely couldn¡¯t accommodate many people. Anyway, she had to go to the county city to buy things, so she took the initiative to make this suggestion. Yu Bing parked the car and called for everyone to queue up and get into the car. Then, she asked Jiang Chun to help her collect the money. ¡°Hey! Auntie Kang, you only gave enough money for one person when you brought three children. You¡¯re taking up the space of four people!¡± ¡°Da Lianzi, my two children are as thin as bean sprouts. How much space can they occupy?! What¡¯s the point of being so calculative over children?¡± Yu Bing turned around and looked at the three children brought by Auntie Kang. A half-year-old was being carried on her back. One of them was five or six years old, and the other was more than ten years old. Yu Bing said with a serious expression, ¡°Those who can be carried on your back can be ignored, but those who occupy seats have to be accounted for. The children will be charged 10 cents for half a stamp.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s words were very reasonable, so the two of them didn¡¯t argue anymore. The people who brought the children into the car later also followed this rule. Yu Yan, who was passing by, mocked, ¡°Do you think this is your own car? You¡¯re giving them a ride and demanding a fee! What a show off!¡± Some people who brought their children to the market felt upset when they found out that they had to pay half a stamp per child. At this moment, when they heard Yu Yan¡¯s words, they immediately added, ¡°That¡¯s right! This is the village¡¯s car. Why should you charge us just because you want to?!¡± Yu Bing, who was about to turn the joystick, paused and chuckled. Yu Yan was really relentless. She really took advantage of every opportunity to sow discord. She turned around and said loudly to the villagers who were queuing up, ¡°This is indeed a car from the village, but tractors are used for agricultural production! I wasn¡¯t asked to send people to the market. Since you don¡¯t agree with the rules, everyone can take an ox cart or walk there. I won¡¯t drive this car today.¡± The moment she said this, the people who wanted to sit in the car focused their gazes on Yu Yan and the person who had complained just now. ¡°Yu Bing, ignore them! We¡¯re willing to pay. Paying 20 cents for a ride is worth it. Other villages¡¯ transportation is more expensive than ours!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Some people are just troublemakers. Why do they have to ruin such a good thing?!¡± ¡°Those who think it¡¯s expensive, don¡¯t ride it. Don¡¯t delay our time!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. This ride is very cheap. The Mid-Autumn Festival is coming soon, and there are many people visiting the market today. If we don¡¯t go early, we won¡¯t be able to snatch the meat. We can get there early by taking this car. Yu Bing, this fee is very reasonable.¡± ¡°Yu Yan, you¡¯re not going, so you came to cause trouble for us, right?! Will you feel better if you watch us walk there?!¡± ¡­ Yu Yan was so angry that her eyes turned red. She glared at Yu Bing. Liu Bao was also planning to visit his relatives in the county today, so he came to the entrance of the village to get a ride. ¡°What are you doing? I heard you guys arguing from afar!¡± Liu Bao walked forward from afar and looked at Yu Yan. ¡°Yu Yan, what did you say to cause public anger?¡± It wasn¡¯t long after Yu Yan finished writing her self-reflection, so when she saw Liu Bao, she was a little wary and hurriedly said, ¡°I didn¡¯t say anything, Director Liu. I have something on and have to leave first!¡± With that, she ran away dejectedly. Liu Bao looked around expressionlessly and said solemnly, ¡°If Yu Bing hadn¡¯t kindly gone to the village to apply, do you think you would still have a chance to argue about the fees?! Do you guys want a ride or not?!¡± With that, he took out his fare and got into the car. Yu Bing hurriedly went forward and said, ¡°Director Liu, thank you for upholding justice!¡± Liu Bao waved his hand indifferently and smiled. ¡°It¡¯s what I should do. You¡¯re thinking for the sake of the villagers, so I can¡¯t let you be wronged by some ingrates.¡± That day, Liu Bao had seen the scene of Yu Bing and President Song talking in private. Over the past few days, he had been wondering if the two of them were related. Otherwise, why would the position of the tow truck driver happen to go to Yu Bing? From the looks of it, the two of them were quite familiar with each other. Liu Bao decided to go to the commune some other day to ask about it. Chapter 79 - Soufflé With Liu Bao taking the lead, no one dared to say anything else and they got into the car in an orderly manner. It was also because of Liu Bao¡¯s explanation that the villagers of the He Mountain Brigade had a better impression of Yu Bing. Not every family was willing to fork out 20 cents. After all, this bus fare could already buy a few eggs and a few taels of meat. Therefore, everyone squeezed together and took the bus away. After entering the county city, Yu Bing parked the car in a guarded place and went to the supply company with Jiang Chun. Yu Bing bought some pork bones, pork belly, red dates, cinnamon, and other dry goods. Just as she was about to leave, she saw a cake mold. Yu Bing hurriedly asked the staff, ¡°Hello, how much is this cake?¡± The salesperson glanced at Yu Bing and replied aloofly, ¡°This cake is a new product introduced by our supply company. It¡¯s 70 cents a piece.¡± Jiang Chun couldn¡¯t help but say in surprise, ¡°It¡¯s quite expensive. It¡¯s 20 cents more expensive than what¡¯s sold in our city!¡± When the salesperson heard this, she knew that this was an intellectual who was here to build a village, so she said, ¡°There¡¯s no choice. The manpower, resources, and transportation expenses for the things that the city transports to our small mountain village are all costs.¡± Yu Bing bit her lower lip and looked up at the salesperson. ¡°Do many people buy it?¡± The salesperson sighed. ¡°10 pieces were stocked. It¡¯s been left there for two days. Everyone who saw it asked. After hearing the price, only three people bought it!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s eyes flickered and she smirked. ¡°Give me a piece and a pound of fruit candy.¡± The salesperson immediately perked up and grinned. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll pack it for you now! Finally, the fourth person bought it!¡± The salesperson quickly wrapped it in oil paper and handed it to Yu Bing. When she packed the candies, she even gave her a few more. When the two of them came out of the supply company, they returned with a full load. After returning home, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t wait to open the bag to taste a piece. She realized that the cake mold was hard and dry. It was too sweet, a little greasy, and the taste of eggs was too overpowering. Yu Bing walked into the room with the cake. ¡°Chun Chun, try it. What do you think?¡± Jiang Chun took a bite and said, ¡°It¡¯s quite delicious, but the fishy taste is a little overpowering.¡± When Yu Bing heard this evaluation, she frowned. Could it be that her expectations were too high? Hence, Yu Bing took the rest to the Xiao family. The three Xiao siblings¡¯ conclusion was similar to Jiang Chun¡¯s. Xiao Lin even felt that the cake was very delicious. Yu Bing could only blame it on the fact that no one had ever eaten a better dessert. So that night, Yu Bing made a simple version of souffl¨¦. Xiao Sheng came to the kitchen and saw a piece of cake that looked like what he had eaten in the afternoon in front of Jiang Chun. However, it wasn¡¯t exactly the same. He smiled and sat down. ¡°Is this another new product you made?¡± Yu Bing nodded vigorously. ¡°This is called a souffl¨¦. It¡¯s also a dessert from overseas. However, mine is considered a simplified version. Unfortunately, there¡¯s no butter. Otherwise, it would taste even better!¡± Under Yu Bing¡¯s expectant gaze, Xiao Sheng and Jiang Chun took a bite together. Their eyes immediately lit up. Xiao Sheng looked up at Yu Bing and recalled the taste just now. He said, ¡°This cake tastes smooth and delicate.¡± Jiang Chun couldn¡¯t wait to express her opinion. ¡°It tastes soft, sweet, and tender! It has a cloud-like texture.¡± Yu Bing supported her chin with one hand and looked at the two of them proudly. ¡°Guess what the ingredients are?¡± Xiao Sheng had only eaten his first piece of cake this afternoon. He didn¡¯t understand this at all, so he looked at Jiang Chun. When Yu Bing made it just now, she specifically didn¡¯t let Jiang Chun be present, but Jiang Chun judged based on her years of experience in the kitchen, ¡°There must be eggs, flour, and sugar in the cake. These should be the most basic ingredients.¡± Yu Bing revealed a mysterious smile. ¡°I only used three eggs, a little salt, some sugar, and a little vegetable oil.¡± Xiao Sheng and Jiang Chun both revealed shocked expressions. Xiao Sheng then reacted. ¡°How much did you buy that cake this afternoon for?¡± Yu Bing replied, ¡°70 cents, but it¡¯s been on shelf for two days, and only 4 pieces have been sold.¡± Seeing this, Jiang Chun immediately said, ¡°Our cost is so low, so we must have the advantage in price.¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°That¡¯s right. Three eggs can make twice the amount of cake I bought today. It¡¯s equivalent to saying that a piece of souffl¨¦ only needs 1.5 eggs.¡± Xiao Sheng looked at the remaining half of the souffl¨¦ and smirked. ¡°I¡¯ll go to the county tomorrow.¡± Chapter 80 - Isolation The next day, Xiao Sheng brought back good news. In the small county, everyone was most familiar with Western-style pastries like cake and bread, but not many people had heard of souffl¨¦ before. Xiao Sheng used its sense of rarity and unique taste to negotiate the price to 1.5 yuan. Yu Bing¡¯s business was thriving, while Yu Yan¡¯s life was getting worse. Ever since Yu Yan began to realize that food could be used to bribe others to work for her, she became more and more lazy. Although her adoptive parents would send some packages over from time to time, without Sun Yu, she became more and more short of money. Previously, in order to ostracize Yu Bing, she had specifically made preparations in advance. Unexpectedly, Yu Bing didn¡¯t want to come at all, but she couldn¡¯t take back what she had already given out. There wasn¡¯t much food left recently, so Yu Yan chose to give them to those who did farm work for her. She didn¡¯t want to get sunburned. The people who worked on the ground looked very rough. Yu Yan couldn¡¯t stand looking like them, so she chose to cook on her own. After all, it was fine to cook once or twice a month. Yu Yan was barely scraping by, so it was naturally impossible for her to be as generous as before. This time, she had offended her roommate and fellow townsmen, Xu Ling. Yu Yan and Xu Ling lived in a three-person room. Because Yu Bing was unwilling to stay in the dormitory, there was an empty bed. Previously, the two of them had agreed that each of them would take turns cleaning. Today, it was Yu Yan¡¯s turn to clean. Xu Ling walked around the dormitory. As she ate the melon seeds she had obtained from Yu Yan, she threw the melon shells wherever she went. After Yu Yan swept her gaze back and forth a few times, she straightened her back and looked at Xu Ling angrily. ¡°Xu Ling, what are you doing?!¡± Xu Ling glanced at Yu Yan from the corner of her eye and threw another melon seed shell on the ground. ¡°What do I want to do? I want to eat melon seeds.¡± Yu Yan threw the broom to the ground and stared at Xu Ling as she asked, ¡°I¡¯m sweeping the floor. Why did you throw one seed after another? What do you mean by throwing them everywhere?! Do you have any manners?¡± Xu Ling sneered and said meaningfully, ¡°Then do you have any manners? Why didn¡¯t you fulfill the promise you gave me before? Are you trying to swindle me?¡± Yu Yan pursed her lips and said coldly, ¡°I¡¯ve been short on money recently, but you¡¯ve eaten a lot of my food before, right?¡± Xu Ling snorted again. ¡°You promised! Before you moved in, you agreed on these benefits.¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she was furious, so she replied indignantly, ¡°But I asked you to ostracize Yu Bing back then. Didn¡¯t you fail to do so?¡± Xu Ling continued to eat melon seeds. ¡°That¡¯s because Yu Bing didn¡¯t move in. This has nothing to do with me. Besides, I really have ostracized her. I haven¡¯t even spoken to her much.¡± Yu Yan gritted her teeth and shouted, ¡°Do you think that¡¯s what I mean by ostracization? Stop playing dumb! I want her to stay in the dormitory and let everyone ostracize her!¡± Xu Ling couldn¡¯t help but roll her eyes and say calmly, ¡°You can¡¯t even get her to move into the dormitory. It¡¯s useless to talk about that. Anyway, you have to keep your promise.¡± Yu Yan was so angry that she sat on the bed. ¡°I don¡¯t have it now. I can barely fill my stomach myself!¡± Xu Ling wasn¡¯t angry. She only stared at Yu Yan and said, ¡°Then be prepared.¡± 1 When Yu Yan heard this, she naturally knew what she meant. It was none other than what she had hoped that they would do to Yu Bing back then. Yu Yan was angry and anxious. Xu Ling had been in the village for five to six years, so she had more connections than her. How could a newbie like her win? Yu Yan gritted her teeth and could only give in. ¡°I¡¯ve already written to my parents to send something over. I¡¯ll give it to you when I get it.¡± Xu Ling stopped throwing the melon seed shells and retracted them in her palm. ¡°You could have said that earlier. I¡¯ll go next door to play for a while. Hurry up and clean up.¡± With that, she left the dormitory. Yu Yan stared fiercely at Xu Ling¡¯s back. Her cold gaze was like that of a snake hiding in a dark corner while waiting for an opportunity to strike. Chapter 81 - Appointment There were still two days before the appointment of the village chief of the He Mountain Brigade would be announced. President Song had yet to make a decision. This year, the policy was getting looser and looser. This time, the He Mountain Brigade had changed the village chief. President Song had always wanted to choose a radical and meticulous person who dared to think and do bold things. However, he was worried that if the policy was repeated in the future, such a person would be targeted easily. President Song paced back and forth in the office for half an hour. He was frustrated and thirsty. When he picked up the kettle to pour water, he realized that there was no water, so he got up and went downstairs to get water. Just as he was about to go down the stairs, he saw Liu Bao, the director of security of the He Mountain Brigade, talking to the director of the publicity department, Wang Jie. The topic was the Song family. Liu Bao and Wang Jie were cousins. Liu Bao came to the commune this time to ask about Yu Bing. Wang Jie took the cigarette from Liu Bao and lit it with a match. ¡°President Song¡¯s daughter-in-law encountered trouble when she was giving birth previously. She happened to meet Yu Bing, who knew how to drive, so she saved two lives. This is not a secret in our dormitory courtyard. Many people saw it that day.¡± Liu Bao opened his mouth and said in surprise, ¡°Our village didn¡¯t know about this at all!¡± When President Song sent Yu Bing back to the village that day, the sky had already darkened. Other than the Sun family and Jiang Chun, no one else knew about this. After all, the Sun family wasn¡¯t interested in promoting good deeds done by others for free. Wang Jie took a puff of his cigarette and frowned in confusion. ¡°There¡¯s actually someone hiding such a huge contribution?¡± Liu Bao didn¡¯t know Yu Bing¡¯s intentions. This was a life-saving grace. If the staff in the village knew about this, even if they didn¡¯t take care of her, it would definitely be beneficial for her. He lowered his eyes and thought for a few seconds before asking, ¡°Then did you see Yu Bing and President Song interact again later?¡± Wang Jie recalled and shook his head. ¡°I didn¡¯t see them since I was at the commune¡¯s office building, but I heard from people in the dormitory courtyard that he saw Yu Bing come on the day President Song¡¯s grandson turned one month old.¡± When Liu Bao heard this, he narrowed his eyes slightly. It was a pity that his reaction wasn¡¯t fast enough. When President Song was involved in the two incidents involving Yu Bing, he should have come to investigate. After all, there weren¡¯t so many coincidences! Now that the election was imminent, it was too late to establish ties with Yu Bing. There was no point in worrying too much, so Liu Bao changed the topic and asked about the election, ¡°Cousin, what do you think the possibility of me winning the election is?¡± Hearing this, President Song couldn¡¯t go any further and returned to the office with the kettle. The two of them were still talking softly without realizing it. Wang Jie blew out a smoke ring as he looked at Liu Bao. A few seconds later, he said, ¡°It¡¯s hard to say. We just had a meeting this morning to discuss. You and Wu Jin are both very popular, but President Song didn¡¯t say anything on the spot. He¡¯s still hesitating. After all, everyone knows Wu Jin¡¯s reputation and ability. But it¡¯s not like you don¡¯t have an advantage. After all, you haven¡¯t made a mistake in your job for more than ten years. You¡¯re experienced in dealing with the village¡¯s matters.¡± Seeing this, Liu Bao hinted, ¡°Cousin, do you think I should give the president something?¡± Wang Jie shook his head repeatedly. ¡°Don¡¯t make a fool of yourself. This won¡¯t work with President Song.¡± After hearing this, Liu Bao pursed his lips and exhaled. It seemed that nothing was set in stone for the position of village chief. If it were others, he would still have some sense of confidence, but against Wu Jin¡­ President Song sat in his office chair and looked at the name that appeared on the red-headed document. After thinking for a moment, he picked up a pen and filled in Wu Jin¡¯s name. Liu Bao clearly wanted to curry favor to him through Yu Bing. It was fine for such a tactful and worldly person to resolve the conflicts between the families in the village, but President Song was still inclined to focus on people who cared more about how to improve the villagers¡¯ living standards and not people who kept thinking about how to curry favor with their superiors. 1 On Friday, the clerk in charge of passing the documents arrived at the He Mountain Brigade with the red-headed document. After everyone in the village arrived, the clerk read the contents of the document. ¡°The position of village chief of the He Mountain Brigade has been vacant for a long time. We have now decided to carry out a new personnel appointment for Wu Jin. We will now announce that Wu Jin has been officially appointed as the village chief of the He Mountain Brigade and is in charge of all the matters in the village such as production, security, management, and so on. This appointment will take effect from the day it is announced.¡± The audience erupted into enthusiastic applause. Many people were congratulating Wu Jin. Xiao Sheng watched from afar and didn¡¯t go forward, but he looked relieved. Chapter 82 - Factory Late at night, Yao Nian sat at the table alone and wrote to his mother under the dim kerosene lamp. Ever since his plan to save the damsel in distress failed, Yao Nian had been thinking of ways. A few days ago, he saw Yu Bing and Jiang Chun returning from the market with a large bag of things. Although he couldn¡¯t see them, he knew that Yu Bing must be quite rich. In the past few months, she had even grown taller. Yao Nian was overcome with envy. Over the past few days, he had finally thought of another way. He decided to drug Yu Bing and rape her, so she wouldn¡¯t have any choice but to be with him. 5 Women were usually emotionally dependant on their first man. Moreover, Yu Bing would definitely be worried that he wouldn¡¯t marry her after losing her virginity. At that time, Yu Bing would definitely agree to whatever request he made! However, the two people he found last time were too stupid! He had to plan carefully this time and succeed in one go. Wu Jin attended a commune meeting two days after he took office. At the meeting, President Song directly issued the instructions for the excavation of the area under the Fengtou Mountain Commune. At the meeting, he mentioned the crops planted in the rural base of the county¡¯s Agriculture Bureau and asked everyone to avoid planting the same crops. After Wu Jin returned to the village, he looked at the two small hills in front of the village and had an idea. He held the first official meeting of the village committee members and finalized the plan to develop the small hill to plant fruit trees! Reclamation involved the use of tractors, so after work, Wu Jin directly went to find Yu Bing to arrange the use of tractors. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun were cooking dinner in the kitchen when the courtyard door was opened. Wu Jin knocked on the door and shouted, ¡°Is Yu Bing at home?¡± Yu Bing stuck her head out of the kitchen window and looked over. She didn¡¯t expect it to be Wu Jin, so she said loudly, ¡°Mr. Wu, I¡¯m at home.¡± Wu Jin strode in and looked as stern as ever as he said, ¡°Yu Bing, I came to look for you for something. I might take up some of your time.¡± Jiang Chun immediately said, ¡°Little Bing, go ahead. I¡¯ll do it.¡± Yu Bing nodded and poured a bowl of hawthorn tea before leaving the kitchen. She welcomed Wu Jin into the hall with a confused expression. ¡°Village Chief Mr. Wu, what¡¯s the matter?¡± With that, she placed the teacup in front of Wu Jin. Wu Jin thanked her and went straight to the point. ¡°Yu Bing, it¡¯s like this. The village has decided to plant fruit trees on the hill at the entrance of the village.¡± Yu Bing knew that President Song had applied for this. She said excitedly, ¡°This is a good thing!¡± When Wu Jin heard this, his cold expression softened a little. ¡°That¡¯s right, so you¡¯ll have to work hard next. Although the plan is to plant them on both mountains, it¡¯s almost October. We have to make the best use of our time to plow as much wasteland as possible. We¡¯ll plant the apple tree first and try to finish the rest of the land before April next year. This way, we can plant the batch in the spring.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she frowned and asked in confusion, ¡°Village Chief Mr. Wu, we¡¯re going to plant apples on both mountains?¡± Wu Jin replied matter-of-factly, ¡°That¡¯s right. Apples can be stored for a long time. It¡¯s convenient to transport them to other provinces, and we don¡¯t have to worry that the fruit will rot midway.¡± After Yu Bing found out about the plan from President Song, her first thought was to cultivate fruit trees on the hill. It would be a pity if they didn¡¯t use such a large area of land. However, Wu Jin¡¯s plan was very different from what she had imagined. Yu Bing was a little hesitant about suggesting it. Wu Jin saw Yu Bing¡¯s stunned expression and asked directly, ¡°Yu Bing, do you think there¡¯s something wrong?¡± Yu Bing smiled awkwardly. After thinking for a moment, she decided to say it. After all, this concerned the livelihood of the entire village. ¡°Village Chief Mr. Wu, then I¡¯ll give my personal opinion.¡± Then, she asked tentatively, ¡°The advantages of planting apples are indeed obvious, but because of this, the price has never been high. Have you ever thought of planting other trees? For example, cherries, grapes, and so on.¡± Wu Jin replied calmly, ¡°I¡¯ve considered it too, but cherries and grapes have a short shelf life. Moreover, these fruits are delicate, and damage during transportation is far higher than that of apples. If we take them to the acquisition station, the price will inevitably be lowered because of this.¡± Yu Bing nodded. These problems indeed existed, so Yu Bing had no intention of selling them directly. ¡°Have you ever thought of setting up a food processing plant?¡± Chapter 83 - The Golden House Wu Jin looked at Yu Bing in surprise. ¡°Food processing plant? Processed fruits?¡± Yu Bing smiled and said slowly, ¡°That¡¯s right. We can also process some other things, such as fish cans, meat cans, and so on. Our village has mountains and water. I heard from someone that the land at the clearing below the hill at the head of the village is too barren and not suitable for planting crops, but that place is close to the river. I think it¡¯s quite suitable to use it as a fish pond!¡± Wu Jin originally thought that he was already bold enough to think about it. He didn¡¯t expect that the young lady in front of him would directly come up with three new industries, and they were industries that everyone was completely unfamiliar with. Wu Jin thought that Yu Bing was still young so she hadn¡¯t thought of things thoroughly enough. He looked at Yu Bing as he instructed her with the demeanor of an elder, ¡°Your idea is good, but our manpower and resources can¡¯t keep up.¡± Yu Bing grinned when she heard this. Indeed, just hearing her say this was a little unbelievable. Hence, she continued unhurriedly, ¡°Actually, these things seem to be separate industries, but they can actually be combined into one. Here¡¯s what I think. Let¡¯s talk about fruit trees first. We can sell a few types of fruit trees, such as apples and pears, that are convenient for transportation.¡± ¡°But for things like grapes and cherries that have higher preservation requirements and are prone to damage, we¡¯ll make canned fruits. There¡¯s also persimmons that can be made into persimmon cakes. We¡¯re rich in these things in the north, but our compatriots in the south can¡¯t eat them! We¡¯ll sell them in the south, and the purchase price given by the supply station will increase!¡± ¡°Moreover, the time it takes to plant different fruit trees is different. The time it takes to pick and maintain them will vary. This way, as long as the manpower is arranged reasonably, not many people will be needed. Moreover, it won¡¯t be that tiring.¡± Wu Jin actually felt that she made sense, so he didn¡¯t interrupt and continued to listen to Yu Bing. When Yu Bing saw that Wu Jin was listening patiently, she was secretly overjoyed. It seemed that her plan was quite appealing. ¡°Not only do we have to plant trees, but we also have to raise chickens and ducks! Chickens and ducks can find food on the mountain themselves. If there¡¯s not enough food, we¡¯ll feed them wontons, bran, and vegetables. Their feces can also be used as fertilizer for the fruit trees. This will establish an interdependent relationship between them.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s raise fish and duck together as well! We¡¯ll get a fish pond at the foot of the mountain. The duck will have a place to move around in the water. Moreover, its feces can nourish the pond and reproduce a large number of plankton. It will provide sufficient breeding for the growth of the fish. It¡¯s killing two birds with one stone!¡± ¡°The key is that chickens and ducks can still lay eggs after they grow up. The fertilized eggs can be used to hatch, and the unfertilized ones can be sold. That¡¯ll also be an additional income source. After chickens and ducks mature, that¡¯ll be another additional income source. The orchard, chickens, ducks, and fish ponds will be interdependent on each other, forming a closed loop. This method maximizes the benefits at the lowest cost!¡± After Yu Bing finished speaking, she looked at Wu Jin with a burning gaze. The agricultural, forest, and fishing integration project that Yu Bing mentioned was still a little advanced in this era. Although it was only a simplified version, Wu Jin was still stunned by what she said. He spent a few minutes processing what he had just heard. Wu Jin looked up at Yu Bing and said seriously, ¡°Your suggestions are very useful! However, there¡¯s one thing I have to mention. Food processing is too technical. If it¡¯s planting fruit trees or fish ponds, we can ask the people from the Agriculture Bureau and the farm if there¡¯s a problem. However, opening a factory is not a small matter! You have to have the technology and equipment to process all kinds of canned food.¡± Yu Bing looked straight at Wu Jin and said, ¡°The most important aspect about making canned food is disinfection. If you really want to do it, you can find a factory to study and observe. Besides, you can¡¯t back down just because things are difficult. Once it¡¯s done, it will increase the income of the villagers!¡± Wu Jin looked at this petite girl seriously and suddenly smiled. ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯re very creative. I actually thought I was quite daring, but compared to you, I¡¯m still not radical enough.¡± Yu Bing had purely taken advantage of her experience in her previous life. She blushed in embarrassment when she heard Wu Jin¡¯s praise. ¡°I saw this production model in a book in the past, so I thought of it.¡± Wu Jin smiled and took a sip of tea. ¡°As expected, the knowledge in books is priceless. Your suggestion is very good. I¡¯ll consider it seriously when I get back. However, you have to hurry up with the excavation. From tomorrow onwards, we can start work on the hill, right?¡± Chapter 84 - Little Fox Yu Bing nodded and replied, ¡°No problem. Wang Tao, Wu Qing, and I will work three shifts in a row. We will be on standby 24 hours a day!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s arrangement made Wu Jin very satisfied. At this moment, he admired Yu Bing¡¯s foresight in nurturing apprentices in advance. If not for the fact that there were two reserve drivers, even if Yu Bing worked for more than ten hours a day, the amount of work done would be limited. Wu Jin had an idea, but he was in no hurry to say it. He still had to test Yu Bing¡¯s ideas and see if they worked. The two of them had finished chatting. After Wu Jin left Yu Bing¡¯s house, he stood at the door for a while. Then, he turned around and glanced at the Xiao family¡¯s home before walking over. At this moment, the Xiao family was about to eat. ¡°Uncle Jin!¡± The three siblings stood up and greeted Wu Jin when they saw him enter. ¡°Be good and eat first.¡± Wu Jin looked at Xiao Lin and Xiao Li with a loving smile and said gently. Then, he looked at Xiao Sheng and said, ¡°Eat first. I¡¯ll wait for you in the living room. I have something to ask you.¡± Xiao Sheng hurriedly pulled out a stool beside him. ¡°Uncle Jin, sit down and eat.¡± Wu Jin waved his hand. ¡°No need. You guys can eat. My family already cooked my meal at home.¡± With that, he went to the living room and sat down. Seeing this, the three Xiao family siblings sat down and started eating. Xiao Sheng quickly finished eating and entered the living room. Xiao Sheng sat down with a puzzled expression. ¡°Uncle Jin, what do you want to ask me?¡± Wu Jin didn¡¯t know about Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing¡¯s cooperation. He only decided to come over to learn more about Xiao Sheng¡¯s opinion of Yu Bing. Wu Jin asked directly, ¡°Are you familiar with Yu Bing?¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this sudden question, his heart tightened. But, he replied as nonchalantly and calmly as he could, ¡°Average. What¡¯s wrong?¡± Wu Jin told Xiao Sheng what Yu Bing had said just now. Xiao Sheng frowned when he heard this. He had to admit that Yu Bing¡¯s suggestion was very good, but such a progressive made Xiao Sheng have the same doubts as Wu Jin in terms of execution. However, the feasibility of the idea would naturally be revealed when Wu Sheng returned from his investigation. 1 Therefore, Wu Jin asked again, ¡°What kind of person is Yu Bing in your impression?¡± Xiao Sheng thought to himself that Yu Bing was definitely greedy and sly, but he naturally didn¡¯t reveal anything on the surface. Just like how he hid the fact that Yu Bing was doing business with Wu Jin in private, Xiao Sheng also hid his cooperation with Yu Bing from Wu Jin. 1 Xiao Sheng thought for a moment before replying seriously, ¡°She¡¯s capable and smart. She¡¯s very adaptable. She looks petite, but she always has a sense of resilience that¡¯s completely different from her appearance.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s answer matched the impression Yu Bing had given Wu Jin. He became more determined about the suggestion Yu Bing had given him and the decision he had made previously. He stood up and said to Xiao Sheng, ¡°Alright, you can go about your own business. I¡¯ll be going back.¡± With that, Wu Jin left quickly. Just as the excavation was in full swing, good news regarding the trap Xiao Sheng had dug previously came. A wild boar fell into the trap. The wild boar looked very burly. After Xiao Sheng observed that the trap was deep enough, he was in no hurry to kill it. He only secretly got dozens of large grass fish and placed them in the mountain. After estimating that he had saved up the right amount, he brought Yu Bing, Jiang Chun, and Xiao Lin into the mountain at dawn. Xiao Sheng opened the cover used to hide the trap and saw that the wild boar was already lying weakly on the ground. When Yu Bing saw this, she shouted excitedly, ¡°Good heavens! There¡¯s probably more than a hundred pounds!¡± Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing and smiled. ¡°I starved it for two days, so it shouldn¡¯t have much strength now. I¡¯ll stab it with a spear later. We have to move quickly. I¡¯m worried that there are other large animals nearby. It¡¯ll be troublesome if the smell of blood attracts them.¡± Everyone nodded in understanding. Xiao Sheng threw a special spear covered in plant anesthetic juice at the wild boar¡¯s forehead. This spot was the wild boar¡¯s Achilles¡¯ heel. As expected, after the wild boar let out a scream, it struggled for a moment before completely stopping. Chapter 85 - Smoked Meat After Xiao Sheng threw a few stones down to confirm that the wild boar was no longer a threat, he jumped into the pit from the ground and let Yu Bing throw down one end of the rope. Then, he tied the wild boar with the rope. He tried his best to hold it up in the trap while the three people on the ground pulled the rope with all their might. The four of them quickly carried the wild boar up. Xiao Sheng took a few steps back and used the momentum to climb up to the ground. Everyone quickly carried the wild boar back to the wooden house and prepared to kill the pig! The wild boar¡¯s blood filled more than half the basin. After they spinkled some salt, they waited at the side for it to solidify. Although Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t have any experience killing pigs, everyone would watch when the village slaughtered pigs and distributed pork at the end of every year. Fortunately, he hadn¡¯t watched for nothing all these years. Xiao Sheng first used the iron pot to scald the skin and remove the fur. After he cut the pig in half, Yu Bing immediately went forward and smeared the pork with high-quality white wine before letting Xiao Sheng continue. Jiang Chun and Yu Bing took advantage of this period to kill the chicken, rabbit, and those big grass carp. Xiao Sheng was in charge of cutting the meat. Although the meat was cut a little crookedly, he had successfully completed the task of cutting the meat! It was time for Yu Bing to show off. Xiao Lin was in charge of grinding the peppercorns, sienna, fennel, cloves, anise, and pepper into granular and powdery forms. Yu Bing poured the spices that Xiao Lin had ground into the large iron pot and then added salt to stir-fry them. Then, she wrapped the sliced pork, chicken, and rabbit in salt and spices one by one while they were hot. The pieces of meat were placed in various containers that could hold things in an orderly manner. The fish was a little more troublesome. After removing the fish scales, she cut the fish from the back. However, the abdomen was still connected. Unlike meat, which couldn¡¯t be washed with water, fish had to be washed with clear water. She drained the blood, removed internal organs and the black membrane in the abdomen, then dried the water with a cloth. Then, she smeared salt and spices that had been stirr-fried and cooled before storing them in the container. This was considered the first step. The next step would be to marinate the meat in the vat for six days, but she would have to flip it once during the process. It was already afternoon when everyone was done. After leaving the mountain, they returned to their respective homes. At this moment, the Yu family had already received a letter from Yu Bing. In the letter, Yu Bing first explained why she didn¡¯t have anything to send home. It was because farm work was too intense and her body couldn¡¯t take it anymore. Therefore, she didn¡¯t have the strength to pick fruits and do other things when she rested. She also said that she had gone to the hospital when she was sick and spent a lot of money. She hoped that her family could send some more money over. Otherwise, she was afraid that she wouldn¡¯t be able to last until the day her family asked her to return to the city. Yu Bing described herself as miserably as possible in the letter and even expressed her longing for her family. Then, she instructed her family to think of a way to send her some nutritional supplements so that she could survive until the day she returned. She also specifically dripped two drops of water on the letter to imitate the traces of tears. Seeing this, Yu Pan felt a lingering fear in her heart. She touched the nonexistent sweat on her forehead and was glad that she was smart enough to trick Yu Bing into taking her place so that she didn¡¯t have to suffer. She didn¡¯t care that if this letter was true, her sickly biological sister was suffering now! Yu Wu was looking at the new comic book on the sofa absent-mindedly and didn¡¯t notice what Yu Pan was reading. Mr. Yu and Mrs. Yu listened carefully, but when they realized that their youngest daughter was asking for subsidies instead of sending them food, they immediately became impatient. Mrs. Yu snorted. ¡°Other people think of ways to subsidize the family, but she wants to collect more money from the family!¡± As for the mention of finding connections to transfer her back, the Yu family automatically ignored it. After all, they had used this excuse to coax her into going to the village back then. They didn¡¯t really intend to do this. Moreover, they had to fork out money if they wanted to use connections. Their son needed money to find a job and get married. Mr. Yu and Mrs. Yu were worried that the remaining money wasn¡¯t enough to do these things! Yu Pan nodded in agreement when she heard Mrs. Yu¡¯s words. ¡°That¡¯s right. No matter how much she lacks food, she¡¯s just a single person. There are four people in our family, so four people will be going hungry.¡± Yu Pan spoke with conviction, but she once again ignored the fact that the four people in the family were healthy. Moreover, three of them had jobs that weren¡¯t physical. No matter how much of a pinch they were in, they wouldn¡¯t go hungry. Ever since Yu Bing was gone, the number of times they ate meat every month had increased. Chapter 86 - Naive and Gullible Yu Pan continued reading, ¡°By the way, Mom, Dad, I realized that among the young people in our batch of intellectuals, there¡¯s a girl who looks like Dad. She has the same surname as our family, Yu. She¡¯s 20 years old and fits the description of my second sister, whom I¡¯ve heard Grandma mention before. I¡¯ll call her Second Sister for the time being. Second Sister is assigned to do heavy farm work and works very hard. Unfortunately, my body is too weak and I often can¡¯t even do my own work well. If I really help, I¡¯m afraid my body won¡¯t be able to take it and our family will have to send me money.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I went to ask around to exchange an easy job for her, but I need money to pull some strings. Can Mom and Dad send some money over? I wish our family good health and that everything is smooth-sailing. Sincerely, your daughter Yu Bing.¡± After Yu Pan finished reading, she looked up at her parents with a puzzled expression. She was still young when Yu Yan was sent away. She had long forgotten about this second child. She asked curiously, ¡°Dad, Mom, we had another daughter in our family? When did you guys send her away?¡± When Yu Wu heard this, he also put down his book. Mr. Yu and Mrs. Yu looked at each other. Mrs. Yu slowly said, ¡°You were only four or five years old at that time. It¡¯s normal for you not to remember after so many years since we never mentioned it. At that time, Yu Bing and Yu Wu had just been born. How could the family support so many people?¡± In fact, Mr. and Mrs. Yu had wanted to send Yu Bing away at first. At that time, Yu Bing¡¯s body was weak, and the family who came for the adoption was afraid that they wouldn¡¯t be able to support her, so they chose the second child. At that time, Yu Yan was still young and friendly with strangers, so the couple who came to adopt her liked her at first glance. Yu Pan understood after hearing Mrs. Yu¡¯s explanation. In the past, life was so difficult that families would give away the children they couldn¡¯t support. Yu Pan asked tentatively, ¡°Then what about the money that Yu Bing mentioned?¡± Mrs. Yu¡¯s hand that was knitting paused and she replied angrily, ¡°Why should we send it? Doesn¡¯t she know what¡¯s going on at home? Is she even sure that she¡¯s our second child?! Even if she is, we¡¯ve already given her away. She has nothing to do with our family anymore.¡± If it didn¡¯t involve money, since Mrs. Yu still had some feelings for this daughter she had given away, if the other party wanted to interact with her, she had no objections. Once money was involved, it was different. Other than Yu Wu, Mrs. Yu was reluctant to spend money on her other children. Previously, in order to coax Yu Bing to go to the countryside, she spent 70 yuan. Her heart ached so much that she scolded Yu Bing at home for being an ingrate. When Yu Pan heard Mrs. Yu¡¯s words, she agreed very much. She even blamed Yu Bing a little. The family¡¯s financial situation was already quite bad. If another person came, what would she have left?! Yu Pan¡¯s eyes darted around as she thought of something else to say to reinforce her parents¡¯ decision not to acknowledge her second sister. ¡°Dad, Mom, how are the conditions of the family you gave her away to?¡± Mrs. Yu recalled for a moment. ¡°I remember that they seemed well-off. They were dressed quite well when they came to our house, right?¡± Mr. Yu nodded. ¡°They were quite well-off, since they were a double-income family. I remember the middleman said that they already had a son, but the wife of that family got injured during childbirth and couldn¡¯t get pregnant again, so she wanted to raise a daughter. She thought that with more children at home, things would be livelier.¡± When Yu Pan heard this, she couldn¡¯t help but wonder if she could get some benefits from her second sister. However, when she thought of the contents of the letter, she felt that the couple was probably in dire straits. ¡°It¡¯s been so many years. In the past, her family was well-off, but it might not be the case now. If they¡¯re really that capable, why didn¡¯t her adoptive parents help her find a job and stay in the city? Even if she couldn¡¯t stay, they still could have sent her money to pull strings to get an easy job. After all, she¡¯s a daughter they went through great pains to adopt. How can they not care about her?¡± Mrs. Yu also felt that it made sense. Seeing this, Yu Pan struck while the iron was hot. ¡°I even suspect that she accidentally found out about the adoption and deliberately approached Yu Bing. We know Yu Bing¡¯s personality. She¡¯s naive and gullible. Perhaps my second sister¡¯s family is having a hard time and wants to use Yu Bing to ask us for benefits!¡± Feeling that Yu Pan made sense, Mrs. Yu slapped her thigh in realization. ¡°Hurry up and reply to Yu Bing. Tell her to mind her own business! Even if her second sister comes to her, make her insist that our family has never given a child away!¡± After saying that, she pinched Mr. Yu¡¯s arm. ¡°Look at what your mother has done! Why did she tell Yu Bing all this for no reason? Now that our second child has found her, we won¡¯t be able to shake her off.¡± Mr. Yu hissed in pain. ¡°Enough, my mother is no longer around. She might have just said it casually back then. Who knew that Yu Bing would remember it?¡± Chapter 87 - Bacon Grandma Yu didn¡¯t favor boys over girls. Instead, because Yu Bing wasn¡¯t in good health, she often took care of Yu Bing, no one doubted Yu Bing¡¯s excuse. Unfortunately, Grandma Yu, the only person in the family who was good to Yu Bing, passed away when Yu Bing was eight years old. From then on, Yu Bing became a pitiful person who everyone at home bullied. After Yu Pan obtained the result she wanted, she excitedly began to reply. Of course, Yu Pan replaced Mrs. Yu¡¯s meaning with her own thoughts when writing it. Yu Wu, on the other hand, looked as if he heard a story that had nothing to do with him. After listening to a secret of his family from many years ago with interest, he continued to focus on his book. He was neither concerned about his younger sister¡¯s health nor the sudden appearance of his second sister. On the He Mountain Brigade¡¯s side, the meat in the mountain was marinated until the sixth day. The four of them went up the mountain together to carry out the second process. Xiao Lin had already gone up the mountain in advance to boil two pots of water. As soon as Yu Bing and Jiang Chun arrived, they could put the meat in the pot and cook each piece for five seconds. Xiao Lin strung the meat and fish that didn¡¯t need to be boiled with hemp rope, while Xiao Sheng was in charge of hanging the skewered meat and fish on the bamboo rack that had been prepared in advance. The wooden house was well-ventilated, and with the few of them taking turns to go up the mountain every day at noon to move the meat out of the house to dry, the meat would be dry by the time it was their next day off. They moved out the collected cypress branches and sugarcane skins, then lit a few fires. They hung the meat and fish a meter away from the fire. They first used an open fire and then smoked them. After eight hours, they finally finished smoking all the meat. Only 200 kilograms of the original 300 kilograms was left. The final number of finished products was thirty smoked fish, five smoked chickens, three smoked rabbits, a boar¡¯s head, and four pig¡¯s feet. The remaining meat was cut into twenty-eight pieces. There had never been smoked meat in the county city before. Because of how rare it was, Xiao Sheng managed to get a good price. After selling all of them, he earned 241 yuan. As Xiao Sheng was the one who contributed to the hunting, Xiao Sheng took 144.6 yuan, which was 60% of the profit. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun each took 48.2 yuan. The price of smoked meat was much higher than raw meat. The three of them decided to sell Xiao Sheng¡¯s prey after processing them. After Yu Bing and Jiang Chun left, Xiao Lin ran to Xiao Sheng, who was weaving a bamboo basket, and squatted down. His eyes were filled with anticipation. ¡°Brother, do we almost have enough for our sister¡¯s surgery fees?¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s hand paused and he glanced at Xiao Lin. Then, he lowered his eyes and said firmly, ¡°I haven¡¯t saved enough, but now that I have Yu Bing, the day we save enough for our sister¡¯s surgery fees will definitely imminent.¡± Xiao Lin knew that his family was indeed earning money much faster than selling vegetables, but he couldn¡¯t help but feel disappointed when he heard such an answer. Xiao Li, who was at the side, felt the heavy atmosphere. She hurriedly smiled and said, ¡°Big Brother, Second Brother, even if I can¡¯t see, I can still do a lot of work. Look, I don¡¯t even need to hold onto anything when I walk, so I¡¯m not affected that much. I¡¯ll get treated when we save enough money. It¡¯s okay.¡± Xiao Lin didn¡¯t know how much money they were missing, because his brother had only told him that they needed a large sum of money. He thought that they were very close to the amount after earning so much recently. After all, he had heard that a fellow villager, Wei Huiji, had gone to the county for surgery and had been in the hospital for a week. The doctor had even said that it was a small surgery, but even so, it had cost dozens of yuan in the end. His eldest brother had said that his sister was going to have a very big surgery. In Xiao Lin¡¯s eyes, ten times the price should be enough, but he didn¡¯t expect it to still not be enough. However, Xiao Li¡¯s optimism made Xiao Lin feel less disappointed. At most, as his little sister said, she would get the surgery when they saved enough money. Hence, he touched Xiao Li¡¯s braid and smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We will work harder. As long as we persevere, there will be a day when we save enough.¡± Xiao Sheng tightened his grip on the bamboo basket. Not daring to look into their eyes, he lowered his head and gritted his teeth as he tried his best to suppress his emotions. He was the pillar of the family, so he couldn¡¯t let his siblings see his pessimistic side. The amount of money needed for the surgery was too large, and the time left for them to save up was decreasing. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t dare to tell his siblings about it, since he was afraid that they would be disappointed and give up. However, no matter how difficult it was, as long as there was still hope, he would not give up. Chapter 88 - Stealing the Letter During this period of time, after Wu Jin took office, he made drastic adjustments to the original work review and various regulations. At the same time, he also examined the industries that Yu Bing had proposed. Wu Jin¡¯s decisiveness and efficiency had brought a new atmosphere to the village. The villagers were no longer as lazy and undisciplined as before. They no longer dared to slack off like before. October quickly ushered in the autumn harvest. Although the autumn harvest was easier to deal with than the summer harvest, it was still very tiring. Before the autumn harvest, Wu Jin wanted to plan for after the reclamation, so he looked for Yu Bing once after work. At this moment, Yu Bing was opening up land on the hill. After the autumn harvest started tomorrow, she would be going to the fields as well. She looked at the hill that only had a third of the barren land opened up and was a little anxious. ¡°Yu Bing! Stop first. I have something to discuss with you,¡± Wu Jin shouted at Yu Bing not far away. Yu Bing heard Wu Jin¡¯s voice through the rumbling of the tractor and quickly stopped the car. ¡°Mr. Wu, what¡¯s the matter?¡± Wu Jin strode forward. ¡°That plan you suggested is feasible because you were the one who suggested it. I want you to be part of it, in the name of the intellectual team¡¯s captain.¡± Yu Bing froze for a moment. She frowned and asked, ¡°Intellectual team¡¯s captain?¡± Wu Jin told her the plan he had already thought of. ¡°That¡¯s right. There are a total of 68 intellectual youths who came to the He Mountain Brigade to build the countryside. There are 30 girls and 38 boys. The current management method is to choose a team leader for each side. Now, I want you to integrate all the intellectual youths into a single team to manage.¡± ¡°After that, there will be a lot of external contact and management. These knowledgeable youths are more cultured than many people in the village. Their connections and knowledge can help the village stabilize the factory. Now, these knowledgeable youths are like loose sand. I hope you can gather them and help me complete this job.¡± In fact, Yu Bing had expected Wu Jin to let her participate in this plan, but she had thought that it would be in the form of a consultant at most. She didn¡¯t expect him to let her manage the entire group of intellectual youths and enter directly in the name of management. However, this was a lucky break. Back then, she had fought for the tow truck driver position because she was weak and couldn¡¯t do heavy farm work over the long term. Now that she had a better place to go and could exert more value, Yu Bing had even less reason to refuse. She agreed readily. ¡°No problem. I¡¯ll go wherever I¡¯m needed.¡± Wu Jin revealed a faint smile. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll apply for an additional position from the commune in the next few days. We¡¯ll start harvesting soon. We¡¯ll make a detailed plan after we¡¯re done with this integration ecological project!¡± The two sides agreed happily, and the entire village entered a busy autumn harvest. This time, with the tractor, the farm work was finished much faster. In less than half a month, the autumn harvest work came to an end. At this moment, Yu Bing¡¯s letter had been deliberately left in the office for a few days. When Yu Yan went to retrieve her letter again, she couldn¡¯t help but steal it and bring it back to the dormitory. Ever since Wu Jin took office, Yu Yan could no longer use benefits to bribe people to help her work, so she obediently worked with everyone every day. Yu Yan stuffed the letter into the waistband of her pants and returned to the dormitory to get a small knife. While everyone was resting in the afternoon, she ran to an empty place and carefully opened the letter. In order to prevent Yu Bing and Yu Yan from acknowledging each other and letting Yu Yan compete with her for the family¡¯s resources, Yu Pan exaggerated Mrs. Yu¡¯s words. In the letter, Yu Pan told Yu Bing not to acknowledge random people as family. She couldn¡¯t acknowledge a daughter that had already been given away. Yu Pan also repeatedly instructed Yu Bing to take care of her body and not interfere in Yu Yan¡¯s business! Yu Pan specifically gave such instructions not because she felt sorry for her younger sister, but because she was worried that Yu Bing would really help their second sister and when Yu Bing got exhausted, she would ask her family to send money and other things. This was a serious matter that affected her interests! At the end of the letter, she even specifically said that if Yu Yan recognized her, she should deny it. After all, they didn¡¯t grow up together. One couldn¡¯t judge a book by its cover. She reminded Yu Bing not to be deceived. After Yu Yan read the letter, her eyes turned red and tears rolled down her cheeks. The hand holding the letter kept trembling. Chapter 89 - Butterflys Wings Yu Yan couldn¡¯t believe that her blood-related relatives didn¡¯t want to acknowledge her. She felt heartache. She covered her mouth and leaned against the wall weakly, not daring to make a sound for fear of attracting attention. No! Yu Bing must have done something! Yu Bing had already recognized her but was still so hostile to her. Yu Bing must be afraid that she would no longer be favored after she returned to the Yu family, so she used dirty tricks to make them hate her! That¡¯s right. It must be so! She was so outstanding, so how could her family not want to acknowledge her? Yu Bing must have badmouthed her in the letters she sent home! Yu Yan kept comforting herself. She couldn¡¯t accept that the family she wanted to reunite with so badly had such an attitude. She could only blame everything on Yu Bing! Yu Yan came to a realization and gripped the letter in her hand tightly. Her gaze looked sinister and ruthless. She definitely wouldn¡¯t let Yu Bing off! Then, Yu Yan composed herself and smoothed the crumpled letter before stuffing it into the envelope. After sealing it with glue, she found an opportunity to sneak into the village committee and quickly returned to the dormitory while no one was paying attention. It was almost a week later when Yu Bing took the letter away. When she saw the glue on the seal, she immediately understood that Yu Yan had already read it. After all, Yu Pan was a Virgo and a clean freak. It was impossible for her to let the glue stick out of the seal of the envelope! Yu Bing was very curious about the Yu family¡¯s reply and couldn¡¯t wait to tear it open. After reading it, she was shocked. In her previous life, Yu Yan was very popular in the Yu family. She was even more liked by her parents than Yu Pan. She was only second to Yu Wu! Yu Bing¡¯s rebirth was like the wings of a butterfly. With a gentle flap, the wind it stirred up was slowly changing everything. On the other side, Wu Jin had received Yu Bing¡¯s approval document to become the leader of the intellectual team in the commune. He held a village-wide meeting and read out Yu Bing¡¯s latest personnel transfer. This transfer was very sudden for the villagers. After the approval was announced, everyone¡¯s first reaction was surprise. Then, they began to discuss enthusiastically. Many of the knowledgeable youths who had arrived earlier than Yu Bing to support the construction of the He Mountain Brigade were envious, jealous, and unconvinced. Wu Jin and Yu Bing had already predicted everyone¡¯s reaction. It was a new position and she was a young newbie. Regardless of seniority or age, it was very difficult to convince the public. Fortunately, the foundation Yu Bing had established was still quite solid. Most people didn¡¯t show much hostility towards Yu Bing¡¯s appointment. Before Yu Yan could recover from the blow of the Yu family¡¯s reply, she was agitated by the scene in front of her. Be it family, love, or career, Yu Yan felt that Yu Bing¡¯s life was so smooth that she wanted to treat her like that goldfish from back then. Veins popped out on Yu Yan¡¯s clenched fists as she glared at Yu Bing, who was speaking on the stage. Xu Ling, who was at the side, sneered when she saw this. Although she didn¡¯t have much interaction with Yu Bing, she had a good impression of her. However, she had accepted Yu Yan¡¯s favors, so she naturally had to keep her promise. However, the two of them had been fighting more and more recently. Previously, Yu Yan had said that she had asked her family to send things, but it had been so long since then, and she still hadn¡¯t seen the stuff. As a result, Xu Ling¡¯s attitude towards Yu Yan had become worse and worse recently. Yu Yan wasn¡¯t to be trifled with either. It was just that Xu Ling didn¡¯t want to offend her too much due to her connections with the intellectual youths, so she would only talk back to her occasionally. Now, the conflict between the two of them was getting worse because of their conflicting interests. Their relationship was built on benefits, and now that the things that maintained the benefits were gone, their friendship was on the brink of falling apart. 1 Yu Yan glanced at Xu Ling from the corner of her eye, pursed her lips, and gritted her teeth to endure it. Recently, she had been ostracized, so she had no choice but to endure it. She couldn¡¯t help but blame her adoptive parents for not sending anything over! Indeed, she was treated differently since they were not her biological parents! Compared to Yu Yan, who was in a bad mood, Yao Nian was in a good mood. He was in high spirits because his status as Yu Bing¡¯s fianc¨¦ made many people congratulate him on Yu Bing¡¯s appointment. This feeling made Yao Nian feel a little smug. Yao Nian looked at Yu Bing in the distance and smiled mysteriously. At this moment, he was very glad that he had sent a letter to his mother asking about the medicine. As long as the package from home arrived, Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t be able to escape his grasp. The higher Yu Bing climbed, the more Yao Nian would obtain in the future. Chapter 90 - Credit After the autumn harvest, Yu Bing recruited two more apprentices. As she explored the wasteland, she taught her disciples. From time to time, she also taught them the daily repair methods for minor issues. After that, her focus would slowly shift to the ecological industry chain, so she had to make preparations in advance. Yao Nian still didn¡¯t get an apprenticeship this time. Yu Bing was a little surprised that not only did Yao Nian not find trouble with her again, but he even smiled and greeted her when he saw her. His attitude became even better. She couldn¡¯t guess the reason behind Yao Nian¡¯s change in attitude, and Yu Bing couldn¡¯t be bothered to dwell on it. After all, she was busy now. 1 **The Village Council Office** Wu Jin handed the information he had obtained over the past few days to Yu Bing. ¡°Yu Bing, all the fruit trees that can be planted in this season are on it. Among those that are suitable for our village, I have my eyes on the cherry and apple fruit trees.¡± The information included the planting methods and suitable environment for the various fruit trees. After Yu Bing took a closer look, she looked up at Wu Jin. ¡°Mr. Wu, have you thought about how many fruit trees you plan to plant? I¡¯ve taken a look. Pear, kiwi, and peaches are also suitable for planting on our side after spring.¡± Wu Jin took a sip of tea and replied slowly, ¡°I¡¯m also considering planting these two types of fruits. Canned kiwis and cherries are more expensive than ordinary fruits. Since our village is going to make economical crops, we really can¡¯t be too restrained. Also, I plan to make that persimmon you mentioned. I¡¯ll plant hard persimmon. Persimmons can be stored for a long time, so it¡¯s convenient to transport it to sell or make persimmon pancakes.¡± Yu Bing nodded in agreement. ¡°In that case, we¡¯ll have to start preparing the apple and cherry saplings. There¡¯s also the little chick. We can dig the fish pond after the hill is opened up. We¡¯ll also have to wait for the weather to warm up in April and May before we can bring in the little ducklings.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s thoughts were the same as Wu Jin¡¯s, but what was giving Wu Jin a bigger headache now was something else. Wu Jin raised his hand and rubbed his temples. ¡°The most troublesome thing now is where the money will come from.¡± Yu Bing had never thought about this. It had only been half a year since she was reborn, and she was still stuck on the concept that one could find well-funded companies to invest. Now that she heard about Wu Jin¡¯s troubles, she realized that in this era, there was no private company that could invest. After holding his chin for a while, she suddenly thought of the phrase ¡°on credit¡±. It was the era of collective production. All the output of the village would be managed by the village first. Food would be sent to the government first, and the remaining food and income would be distributed according to the number of workers at the end of the year. Yu Bing rubbed her fingers for a while, then looked up at Wu Jin. ¡°Village Chief, our current reclamation plan has been approved by the county. Why don¡¯t we take the document and go to the Forestry Bureau to get a batch of fruit trees first, and then go to the Animal Bureau to get a batch of chicks? They¡¯ll start producing eggs for profit in April and May next year. We¡¯ll pay them back when we have the money. Besides, since the county has approved it, they should support our township enterprises! As for the cannery¡­ Anyway, it¡¯ll have to wait until next year. If it really doesn¡¯t work out, the village will do it on credit first.¡± Good lord! This meant that after crediting the government, they would credit the villagers. There was no escaping it. Yu Bing¡¯s move was foulproof! Wu Jin was speechless. The so-called credit actually meant that the collective income would be used for production first. There was also a precedent for this. In any case, they would only start distributing food and money at the end of the year. If the villagers had urgent matters at home, they would also look for the village committee for a loan approval in advance and pay back the money at the end of the year. At this moment, there was indeed no better way. Wu Jin decided to be thick-skinned. Even if he had to beg for help, he had to think of a way to get the first batch of fruit trees and chicken seedlings! There wasn¡¯t much work for the autumn harvest. After Wu Jin arranged the work in the village, he began to commute to the county city every day. On the other side, Yu Bing wasn¡¯t idle either. She used her notebook to make a form. On it, one¡¯s name, gender, age, educational background, and specialty, as well as the factory area where one was from, were written. She was prepared to do a background check and assign the mission to the male youth team leader Wen Jiang and the female youth team leader Tian Jing. The background check was completed in two days. After Yu Bing read through the files, she had a rough idea. Chapter 91 - Half of the Money The young intellectuals were a little confused about the information registration, but their doubts were quickly answered two days later. The village assembly had been a little intensive recently, and everyone gathered again at the rice paddy field in front of the village council. Wu Jin gave a simple explanation of the agriculture development plan that the commune had requested. ¡°Good afternoon, everyone. In response to the commune¡¯s request to expand the planting range of the wasteland, the leaders of the He Mountain Brigade have agreed to add four new economic industries: orchards, chicken and duck farms, fish ponds, and food processing plants. Our village will commit to building the four industries into an integrated ecological industry chain. Due to the seasonal restrictions of planting and breeding, the limit on the hillside development is temporarily set at 15 hectares. Cherry trees, apple trees, and 2,000 chicken seedlings will be planted. Yu Bing will be in charge of the overall industrial chain. In the future, Yu Bing will select people from the village to participate in the project. Please cooperate.¡± As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Chun smiled and took the lead to applaud. Only then did everyone come back to their senses and applaud. If they did more business, their income would increase. No matter who was in charge, this was something beneficial to the group, so they were all happy. ¡°What do you mean by industrial chain?¡± ¡°It should mean that the four industries will be combined. Industrial chain means that the four industries are connected.¡± ¡°These different industries can be linked together?¡± ¡°Who cares? Anyway, our village has four more economic projects! If we handle this well, our life will be very different!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. My cousin-in-law¡¯s village only set up a fish pond, but everyone got a lot of extra money at the end of the year! This time, we even have a factory. I reckon we¡¯ll end up even better than their village.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! We have a factory too. If we can get in, we¡¯ll be factory workers!¡± ¡°I know. I¡¯ll have to be the first to sign up at that time.¡± Although the main members of a socialist society were workers and farmers, workers generally didn¡¯t have to do as much hard labor as farmers. In this era, being a worker was enviable. ¡°The person in charge, Yu Bing, is someone from our side. Do you think the factory will recruit us first?!¡± ¡°Come on, you haven¡¯t even talked to her before¡­¡± ¡°I think it¡¯s difficult. If you two lived together, you could have talked to her about it privately, but many of us here haven¡¯t even spoken to her before.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t we try to find Yao Nian? He¡¯s Yu Bing¡¯s fianc¨¦ after all. He should be able to choose two people to send in, right?¡± Before the work started, everyone was already trying their best to get a spot in the factory. County Bureau of Agriculture ¡°Gee, why are you here again?!¡± Chief Zhao of the Agriculture Bureau saw Wu Jin waiting for him at the office door as soon as he got to work. As Chief Zhao took out his keys to open the door, he said helplessly, ¡°Mr. Wu, it¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to help you, but if I set this precedent and the other villages ask me to do the same, what should I do? This Agriculture Bureau isn¡¯t opened by my family!¡± Wu Jin followed Chief Zhao in and immediately poured a glass of water. ¡°Please drink some water. I really have no choice. Our village is the poorest in the commune! If I had the money to buy trees, I wouldn¡¯t have come here every day. I still have a lot of business to attend to in my village.¡± Chief Zhao had already been followed around by Wu Jin for a few days. He followed him wherever he went, like a bodyguard. ¡°You¡¯re still complaining to me? I¡¯m getting a headache from being followed by you every day!¡± Wu Jin was fearless. ¡°Hehe, Chief Zhao, if I can¡¯t bring the sapling back, the people in my village will skin me alive. This is much more troublesome than your problem.¡± Chief Zhao was really annoyed by Wu Jin. He had said everything he could to dissuade him, but Wu Jin wouldn¡¯t back down at all. Seeing that Wu Jin was determined, he glanced at him angrily. ¡°3,300 apple trees, 3,000 cherry trees, all on credit? Do you think I¡¯m running a charity? You should at least pay me half of the money!¡± When Wu Jin saw that Chief Zhao¡¯s had loosened up, he immediately pulled a stool over and sat beside his desk. He looked earnest as he said, ¡°Chief Zhao, please help us to the end. Besides, this is a plan approved by the county. Why did they approve it? Isn¡¯t it because they saw us scraping by and wanted to give us some opportunities?! The government is helping us. Chief Zhao, if you give us a loan, you¡¯ll be supporting the county government¡¯s policies.¡± Chapter 92 - Resentment Chief Zhao flipped through the news with today¡¯s newspaper and replied without looking up, ¡°Don¡¯t give me that. 6,300 stalks can only be produced next year. It¡¯s already good enough that I can squeeze out this amount for you!¡± Wu Jin directly reached out and pulled Chief Zhao¡¯s newspaper to the side, then folded it. He looked at him with a long face. ¡°Chief Zhao, when I pay you next year, I¡¯ll give you an extra penny for each tree! That¡¯ll be a total of 63 yuan!¡± When Chief Zhao heard this, he didn¡¯t say anything. He pondered for a while, then said, ¡°No, you want a tree that can bear fruit next year!¡± Wu Jin cursed him inwardly, but put on a helpless expression. ¡°I want an apple tree seed that will bear fruit in one year. As for the cherry tree, you can just give me a seed that will bear fruit next year. I¡¯ve already compromised. If you still won¡¯t agree, I can only continue to nag you every day!¡± Chief Zhao was so angry that he laughed at Wu Jin¡¯s shameless behavior. The He Mountain Brigade wasn¡¯t rich, but the seedlings cultivated by the Agriculture Bureau had to be taken back and sold for money. He couldn¡¯t lower the price, but now that the other party was willing to compensate him, he would treat it as a favor. ¡°Alright. I¡¯m really helpless towards you. I¡¯ll give you an approval slip. Don¡¯t come tomorrow! You always follow me around like a bodyguard. Others will think that I¡¯m stuck up!¡± Wu Jin immediately smiled and said, ¡°That won¡¯t do. Who doesn¡¯t know that you¡¯re the most approachable leader?! Besides, we want seedlings that will bear fruit next year so we can pay you back quickly.¡± Chief Zhao started writing with the approval slip. Wu Jin said again, ¡°Chief Zhao, there¡¯s something else. I want two people from the village to learn the daily maintenance of these two tree seedlings. You can approve them together. This is also for the sake of paying off the loan as soon as possible.¡± Chief Zhao¡¯s hand that was holding the pen paused. He really had no excuse to retort with. ¡°Mr. Wu, not only did you borrow fruit tree seeds from me, but you also want me to help you nurture talents.¡± Wu Jin touched his nose sheepishly as he looked at Chief Zhao. ¡°It¡¯s all for the sake of creating a robust economy and letting the villagers live a good life. The number of technical staff in the county is limited. I know they¡¯re busy. We just want to learn more and solve our own problems, so we don¡¯t have to keep troubling the county to send people down.¡± Chief Zhao rolled his eyes at Wu Jin. ¡°How can technical skills be so easy to learn? I can approve a ten day leave for your people to come over and learn, but there¡¯s no guarantee that they¡¯ll be able to master it.¡± Wu Jin nodded eagerly. ¡°Yes, I understand.¡± Just like that, Wu Jin succeeded in getting the first batch of fruit trees. Following that, he obtained pesticides, fertilizers, and chicken sprouts in the same manner. After this round, Wu Jin felt that he had become much more thick-skinned and his acting skills had improved. However, when he thought of the final success, he felt that it was fine even if it was embarrassing. After all, the benefits that he obtained were the most important! Yu Bing also began to recruit people, mainly daily maintenance personnel. During the harvest season, the entire village would work together. The recruitment process was very smooth. Although they were all farmers, planting fruit trees was still easier than farming. Yu Bing chose 20 people. One of them was a young woman named Ou Qin. Yu Bing had specifically asked her to join after asking around. Because she was the child of a city pesticide factory worker and had a high school education, Yu Bing chose her and a young man from the village, Li An, to go to the Agriculture Bureau for training. Yu Bing divided the twenty people into two groups. One group was led by Ou Qin to look after the cherry trees, and the other by Li An to look after the apple trees. Work in the garden proceeded methodically. On the other side, Yu Yan finally received a package from home. However, at this moment, Yu Yan and Xu Ling¡¯s relationship had already become strained. It was basically impossible for the two of them to reconcile. In the letter sent from home, her adoptive parents also explained why the things had not been sent in time. Both of them had happened to be on a business trip, so the letter had not been received in time. That was why it had been delayed. However, Yu Yan felt that this must be an excuse. How could it be that both of them were on a business trip? Now, she had already been ostracized in the dormitory before sending it over. What was the use! Yu Yan blamed her adoptive parents while eating the red dates and osmanthus that her family had specifically asked someone to bring back from the Western Region to nourish her body. 1 Chapter 93 - Earthworm In the other dormitory, Yao Nian had already obtained the drug. In the letter, Mrs. Yao repeatedly reminded Yao Nian that he could have sex with Yu Bing in order to become a tractor driver, but he couldn¡¯t marry Bing. His family would never agree to have a daughter-in-law who was so sickly! 1 In fact, it was completely unnecessary for Mrs. Yao to remind him. How could he marry a woman who came from the same family background as him? While Yao Nian was hiding in a dark corner and thinking about how to plot against Yu Bing, Yu Bing found out from a woman who married into the He Mountain Brigade that there was a fish pond at their house. Yu Bing knew that they would start draining the fish pond to fish at the end of the year. Thinking of the chicks in the orchard, she had an idea. Village Committee Office Yu Bing entered the village chief¡¯s office and said excitedly, ¡°Mr. Wu, I have something to discuss with you.¡± When Wu Jin saw Yu Bing¡¯s expression, he knew that she must have another good idea. He smiled and said, ¡°From the looks of it, you must have something good to tell me.¡± Yu Bing nodded with a smile. ¡°I heard that there¡¯s also a fish pond in the neighboring county. Now that it¡¯s dry, I want to take the opportunity to bring people over to catch some earthworms to feed the chickens! Our village will also organize people to search in the vegetable garden.¡± Wu Jin frowned and asked, ¡°Catch some earthworms to feed the chickens? Did you read that from a book again? No one has ever mentioned it before.¡± This information was from news reports from later generations of her previous life. The benefits of earthworms had yet to become public knowledge. Yu Bing said, ¡°Mr. Wu, don¡¯t worry about it. This is definitely effective. Earthworms contain rich proteins that can promote the growth of chickens and make it easier for them to lay eggs!¡± Wu Jin looked at Yu Bing suspiciously, but thinking of Yu Bing¡¯s capabilities and cautious personality, he chose to believe her. He gave Yu Bing a letter of recommendation. Yu Bing hurriedly pulled the 15 people Wu Jin had assigned to her to the Little Lake Village in the neighboring county city. The Little Lake Village was close to the lake, so other than farming, the fish pond was their main industry. Little Lake Village¡¯s village chief was very curious when he saw the letter. ¡°Earthworms can raise chickens?¡± Seeing this, Yu Bing explained the benefits of raising chickens to the village chief of Little Lake Village. The village chief was skeptical, but there were many earthworms in the fish pond. They didn¡¯t raise chickens, so he didn¡¯t care. He agreed to the request of the He Mountain Brigade. Yu Bing brought people over early in the morning every day and only returned to the village at night. After two days of nonstop fishing, they obtained four to five hundred catties. They didn¡¯t have a fish pond on their side yet, so in order to ensure the subsequent usage, Yu Bing found a vacant office and covered the wooden boxes with soil. She raised the half of the earthworms they caught plus the ones found in the village. She just needed to throw some leaves, vegetables, and fruit skins every day. The farm was built in the orchard and it was just a simple construction of two sheds. There were ten compartments in each shed, and 100 people lived in one. Its main purpose was to shelter the chickens from the wind and rain. Four people were hired to watch over them. The leader was a middle-aged woman called Ren Yue. Yu Bing gathered the four villagers who were in charge of raising the chickens and taught them how to deal with the earthworms. ¡°Earthworms are the intermediate hosts and communicators of many types of parasites. If you feed them worms directly, the chickens will be infected with parasites and fall ill. Therefore, the earthworms that will be fed the chickens have to be disinfected. You all must take this seriously!¡± Yu Bing washed the earthworms with clear water, then boiled them with hot water. After boiling them for about six minutes, she scooped them out, cut them into pieces, and mixed them into the feed to feed the chickens. The process was very simple, so Yu Bing only asked the team leader to do it once. After discovering that there were no problems, she didn¡¯t ask the team members to do it again. After all, the team leader knew how to do it. No matter how problematic the team members were, the team leader could solve it. She didn¡¯t spend any effort guiding them. As the saying went, if one didn¡¯t know how to supervise well, they would tire themselves to death. Then, Yu Bing taught them how to preserve it. She heated up the remaining half of the earthworm and dried them. This way, they could directly take them when they needed to use them. The four of them had a few chickens at home. This was the first time they learned that earthworms could be fed to chickens. They learned very attentively and planned to go home to dig some for their adult hens to try. Unexpectedly, after eating them, they started to collect eggs every day. Everyone was even more impressed with Yu Bing! The cost of raising chickens had decreased, while the immune system and growth speed of the chicks had effectively increased. The orchard was also in good condition. Yu Bing was in a good mood recently! Chapter 94 - Causing Trouble Yao Nian started to cause trouble again. Because Yu Bing was busy working and had people around her at all times, Yao Nian couldn¡¯t find a chance to interact with Yu Bing alone. Even if he went to her door, he would be rejected by Yu Bing. He barely got to see her at all. Li Ping saw all of this. The last time Yao Nian had looked for people from outside the village, she had accidentally seen him. Later, she secretly followed him and seen the entire process. Only then did she find out that the so-called engagement between the two of them didn¡¯t seem to be approved by his parents. She also discovered that there was a sinister heart hidden under Yao Nian¡¯s refined appearance. After several failed attempts to come into contact with Yu Bing, Li Ping took the initiative to find Yao Nian. When Yao Nian came, Sun Wang and Sun Yu had already been arrested. He had heard about it from others, so he didn¡¯t know much about the Sun family. At that time, Li Ping was able to become the team leader because of Sun Wang¡¯s ability. After Wu Jin took office, he made many adjustments to his position. Li Ping was demoted from the team leader to an ordinary team member. Therefore, Yao Nian had indeed seen Li Ping before, but he had never interacted with her before. Yao Nian looked at the middle-aged woman with a puzzled expression. ¡°Why are you looking for me?¡± Li Ping smiled nonchalantly. ¡°It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t know me, but I can help you get Yu Bing out.¡± Yao Nian¡¯s eyes twitched when he heard this and he was flustered. After all, drugging someone was a crime! He didn¡¯t know if the woman in front of him really knew what he wanted to do to Yu Bing, so he denied it. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about. I¡¯ll find Yu Bing myself. I don¡¯t need anyone else¡¯s help.¡± Li Ping chuckled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m on your side. I¡¯m Li Ping, Sun Yu¡¯s mother. Although you came late, you should have heard about our family¡¯s scandal.¡± She paused for a moment, and her expression slowly became ferocious. ¡°It¡¯s all that bitch Yu Bing¡¯s fault! She destroyed our family, so I won¡¯t let her off! I don¡¯t know what you want to do, but I know you want to be with her, but she doesn¡¯t. That¡¯s reason enough for me to want to help you!¡± Yao Nian felt a little more at ease when he heard this. The enemy of an enemy was a friend. Although Yu Bing was not an enemy, she was someone who went against him. Out of caution, Yao Nian still didn¡¯t agree to cooperate. After all, if they were exposed, Li Ping would be an accessory at most. He would be the main culprit. Yao Nian looked flustered as he spoke up for Yu Bing. ¡°Yu Bing is my fianc¨¦e. Why wouldn¡¯t she want to be with me? I know you hate her for getting your son arrested, but she was only trying to protect herself. The past is the past. I hope you can let it go and not try to get revenge.¡± When Li Ping heard Yao Nian¡¯s pretentious words, she said indifferently, ¡°I saw the entire process in the forest last time. Do you think there¡¯s a need to pretend in front of me? We have a common enemy. You want to get her, and I hope she suffers. After all, my son¡¯s life has been ruined. Why should she have happiness?!¡± ¡°Yao Nian, men have to be ruthless! A coward will never be able to do anything big. The cliche of a hero saving a damsel in distress is useless on a cold-hearted person like Yu Bing! After you¡¯ve thought it through, look for me.¡± With that, she turned around and left without giving Yao Nian time to react. Yao Nian was shocked by Li Ping¡¯s words. He didn¡¯t expect anyone to see what happened that day. He was very flustered and hurriedly returned to the dormitory. ¡°Yao Nian, watch where you¡¯re going!¡± Feng Cai, who was knocked over by Yao Nian at the corner, cursed. Yao Nian hurriedly apologized and returned to the dormitory. As Yao Nian lay in bed, he realized that at most, he had found an accomplice. Even if he was exposed, he could just say that he liked Yu Bing, so he wanted to show off in front of her. At most, he would suffer some embarrassment. There was nothing to panic about. Yao Nian comforted himself and he slowly calmed down. ¡®Yao Nian.¡¯ Yao Nian heard a knock on the door and rose to answer it. There were two people standing outside. One was called Huang Yu and the other was called Gao Xin. Yao Nian put on his usual smile and welcomed them in. ¡°Hello, come in and sit down.¡± After the two of them entered the dormitory and sat down, they exchanged glances. Finally, Huang Yu said, ¡°Yao Nian, it¡¯s like this. Isn¡¯t the village planning to set up a factory? We want to trouble you to help us ask Yu Bing if she can recruit us.¡± Yao Nian didn¡¯t expect the other party to come to him for help. He felt a little surprised and smug as he said, ¡°Isn¡¯t the factory going to be opened next year? What¡¯s the hurry?¡± Chapter 95 - The Life I Want to Live Gao Xin immediately hinted, ¡°We also want to settle things early so that we can ask the family to send some packages over. After all, we can¡¯t let you work for nothing.¡± Even if the two of them offered him gifts now, Yao Nian didn¡¯t dare to accept them directly. After all, he knew very well what Yu Bing¡¯s attitude towards him was. Yao Nian didn¡¯t answer directly. He only smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s still too early. We won¡¯t know the factory¡¯s situation until next year. Don¡¯t be too anxious. We¡¯re all intellectual youths who came down from the city to build the countryside. If there¡¯s any good offer, we¡¯ll definitely take care of everyone.¡± He neither refused nor agreed. Huang Yu and Gao Xin thought that Yao Nian was being cautious and didn¡¯t want to make any promises too early, so they didn¡¯t say anything else. Before leaving, Huang Yu suddenly remembered that it was Yao Nian¡¯s turn to cook tomorrow, so he smiled and said, ¡°Yao Nian, you¡¯re the one cooking tomorrow, right? Gao Xin and I don¡¯t have much work tomorrow, so we¡¯ll do it. We¡¯ll compensate you for delaying your lunch break today.¡± Gao Xin quickly nodded in agreement. They were all adults and everyone knew that this conversation had only delayed less than five minutes of his time. It was just an excuse to curry favor with Yao Nian. Yao Nian waved his hand and smiled. ¡°What delay? It was just a few words.¡± Huang Yu pretended to be angry. ¡°It¡¯s still a delay! Alright, don¡¯t reject us. Otherwise, it means you aren¡¯t treating us as friends.¡± Yao Nian pretended to be reluctant as he agreed. After the two of them left and closed the door, Yao Nian sat on the bed alone as he grinned from ear to ear. This was the life he wanted! When he came back to his senses, he knew that the reason he could enjoy the treatment just now was because he was tied to Yu Bing. His smile slowly faded as he realized that he really had to speed things up and take down Yu Bing. After some hesitation, he secretly contacted Li Ping. The two of them arranged that on their day off, Li Ping was in charge of luring Jiang Chun away to drug Yu Bing while Yao Nian found a way to climb into Yu Bing¡¯s house. At this moment, Yu Bing had no idea that she was being schemed against. She was still thinking about what business she could work on with Xiao Sheng for the new year. Ever since the reclamation work in the county ended, Yu Bing only occasionally had excuses to drive out to deliver goods. When she couldn¡¯t, she would have to rely on Xiao Sheng. Yu Bing felt a little bad about this, so she decided to continue working hard on the new product. After some contemplation, she went to look for Xiao Sheng in frustration. ¡°Xiao Sheng, is there anything edible in the mountains now?¡± Xiao Sheng frowned and thought for a long time. ¡°Do purple sweet potatoes and yams count? Can you cook them?¡± Yu Bing tilted her head as she thought about it for a moment. ¡°Purple sweet potato, yam¡­ I have an idea! I¡¯ll make purple potato yam cake. It¡¯s very good!¡± Yu Bing perked up and sat up straight as she looked at Xiao Sheng energetically. ¡°How much more are there?¡± Xiao Sheng thought of those he had sold after discovering them. After all, those were vegetables, so he didn¡¯t think too much about their other uses. In addition, Yu Bing had been busy a while ago and didn¡¯t mention this matter. He said guiltily, ¡°About 0.15 hectares in total.¡± Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t dare to tell the truth. He didn¡¯t know why. Yu Bing clasped her hands together. She was going to make money in the afternoon on her day off! It was late autumn, and the weather was already chilly. The cold weather made it easy to sleep. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun slept in and only woke up at 10 AM. Jiang Chun washed up and started to heat up the fire to steam a few sweet potatoes. ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to Xiao Sheng, who got us cotton quilts. Moreover, they¡¯re even cheaper than the supply agency¡¯s. Otherwise, we would have caught a cold after the temperature suddenly dropped!¡± ¡°We do have to thank him. I was thinking about buying cotton before, but I forgot about it.¡± Yu Bing squatted on the ground with toothpaste in her mouth and said incoherently. Jiang Chun looked at Yu Bing, who had washed up, and said, ¡°Things are quite difficult for the three of them. I heard that Xiao Sheng was only 13 years old when his parents passed away. He was alone with his 1-year-old sister and 3-year-old brother. It¡¯s all thanks to Mr. Wu¡¯s family and some kind-hearted people in the village that they survived.¡± Yu Bing worked all the time, so she didn¡¯t know much about the rumors in the village. This was the first time she had heard such detailed information about the Xiao family. Suddenly, she felt a little saddened. ¡°Sigh, then we should work hard. Xiao Lin is a teenager, so he won¡¯t be able to earn much work points. Xiao Li spends all day weaving baskets at home, so the three of them barely have enough work points to fill their stomachs. If Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t work so hard, I really can¡¯t imagine what would have happened to his family.¡± Chapter 96 - Tea Jiang Chun agreed very much and praised, ¡°That¡¯s right. Compared to those men in the city who can¡¯t do any hard labor, Xiao Sheng is really a very responsible and dutiful.¡± Yu Bing thought of how Xiao Sheng often looked expressionless when she first met him. She suddenly smiled and said, ¡°Indeed, and he¡¯s quite good-looking. It¡¯s just that when we¡¯re not familiar with each other, and he always looks so aloof!¡± They were chatting when they heard a knock on the door. After Yu Bing opened the door, she realized that it was Fu Qi, who was in the same group as Jiang Chun. When Fu Qi saw that it was Yu Bing, she immediately smiled and greeted her. Yu Bing was now a popular person in the village. ¡°Hello, Yu Bing. I¡¯m here to look for Jiang Chun.¡± When Jiang Chun heard her name, she looked out the kitchen window. ¡°Fu Qi, what¡¯s the matter?¡± Fu Qi¡¯s hearty voice sounded. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you wanted to learn how to make soles? You¡¯ve been busy recently, right?¡± Only then did Jiang Chun think of this. Because her parents were frugal, her father¡¯s shoes had already been patched twice before she left. Therefore, she wanted to send them home directly. This way, her father couldn¡¯t reject her. Jiang Chun estimated that an hour or two of learning would be enough. In any case, she would have to finish lunch before going up the mountain. There was still time, so she took two steamed sweet potatoes and left the kitchen. ¡°Today is fine. I¡¯ll go to the house with you now.¡± When she reached the door, she turned to look at Yu Bing. ¡°Yu Bing, I¡¯ll go to Fu Qi¡¯s house for a while. I¡¯ll come back at noon.¡± Yu Bing replied, ¡°Alright, there¡¯s no hurry.¡± Then, she gave them both a knowing look. After Jiang Chun left, Yu Bing turned around and entered the house, planning to read the breeding book she had found in the county city. The doors of rural family homes were rarely closed except for when they slept or when no one was home. After coming to the countryside, Yu Bing slowly developed such a habit. Because it was a blind spot, Yu Bing didn¡¯t see anyone sneak into the kitchen and pour something into the teapot. After half an hour, Yu Bing felt a little thirsty and went to the kitchen to pour tea. Li Ping hid behind the tractor in the courtyard. Through the gap, she saw Yu Bing raise her head, and Li Ping revealed a fierce smile. Li Ping saw Yu Bing stay in the kitchen for a while before carrying the teapot into the room. She quickly ran out of the courtyard and waved at Yao Nian, who was standing in the distance. Then she walked towards the village. Her mission was completed. The rest was up to Yao Nian. Yao Nian specifically waited for a few minutes before looking around to confirm that there was no one around before entering Yu Bing¡¯s house and quietly closing the door. At this moment, Yu Bing was in the room. Yao Nian called out tentatively as he approached the door, ¡°Yu Bing, are you there?¡± When Yu Bing heard someone calling, she got off the bed. Just as she walked to the hall, she saw Yao Nian enter and asked curiously, ¡°Why are you here?¡± Yao Nian¡¯s face stiffened and he felt a little annoyed. The drug was too slow, so he quickly found an excuse. ¡°I wanted to ask about the recruitment at the factory.¡± Although the factory was opening next year, many people were already asking questions. Upon hearing Yao Nian¡¯s question, Yu Bing didn¡¯t get suspicious. ¡°Recently, many people have asked me, but I¡¯ve been busy with the orchard and farm, so I haven¡¯t had time to make plans.¡± Yu Bing picked up the teapot on the table and poured a bowl of tea before Yao Nian. ¡°Have some tea.¡± Yao Nian saw that the tea was still steaming in front of the table. He held the bowl in his hand but didn¡¯t drink. ¡°Thank you. Have a cup too. The weather is very dry in utumn. You should drink more water to dry your throat.¡± Yu Bing looked at Yao Nian with a burning gaze and said, ¡°I just drank a big cup and the teapot ran out of tea, so I specifically filled it with water from the pot. The hawthorn tea leaves are also freshly brewed. Drink it while it¡¯s hot.¡± Yao Nian was relieved when he heard that it was newly filled water. He thought that at most, a little bit of powder would get into the teapot and it wouldn¡¯t affect him that much. Besides, it would be suspicious if he didn¡¯t drink it. Hence, he took a few sips and continued to find a topic to talk about. ¡°Then will we recruit more people? The people in my dormitory is quite concerned. They wanted me to ask because they aren¡¯t familiar with you.¡± Yu Bing smiled meaningfully. How could someone like Yao Nian be so kind? She didn¡¯t believe it! However, since the other party had come to consult her nicely, she had no choice but to answer. ¡°Because it¡¯s a factory, there are indeed certain educational requirements for the recruitment staff. We will have an interview at that time. Be it the villagers or the intellectuals, we will choose the best.¡± Yao Nian found a few more topics to ask Yu Bing about. After a few questions, Yu Bing replied impatiently, ¡°I¡¯ll inform everyone after I¡¯ve planned. I can¡¯t answer all of them now. You can go back first.¡± Chapter 97 - A Helper Yao Nian was a little anxious when he heard this. He found an excuse and stalled time for another minute. Yu Bing quickly walked to the courtyard and opened the courtyard door. She asked curiously, ¡°Did you close the door of my house? You¡¯re asking normal recruitment questions, so why are you acting so sneaky? Alright, hurry up and go back. I still have something on later.¡± Seeing that the courtyard door was wide open, Yao Nian couldn¡¯t do anything else. He could only walk out of Yu Bing¡¯s house. When he saw Yu Bing close the door, he seriously suspected that his mother had bought the wrong medicine. After walking for more than ten meters, Yao Nian suddenly felt dizzy. He clutched his head with his hand, but he felt sleepy. Yao Nian wanted to sober up. He shook his head hard and blinked a few times before fainting. After a minute, Yu Bing sensed that there was no movement outside the door. She carefully opened the door and peeked out. She discovered Yao Nian lying in the open space in front of her. She stepped forward and kicked him gently a few times as she shouted, ¡°Yao Nian? Yao Nian?¡± When Yu Bing saw that Yao Nian was completely unconscious, she glanced at the drainage ditch beside him and her lips curled into an ambiguous smile. ¡°Since you came to me yourself, don¡¯t blame me for being ruthless!¡± After saying that, she kicked him and Yao Nian¡¯s upper body rolled into the ditch. 1 The water in the ditch wasn¡¯t deep, just a shallow finger-high depth, but in a season like this, where people were already starting to wear a sweater jacket, lying in it for ten minutes or so meant a fever! ¡°What game are you two playing?¡± A deep voice sounded from behind Yu Bing teasingly. Yu Bing was shocked and felt like her heart was about to jump out. When she turned around and saw that it was Xiao Sheng, she retracted her hand and shoved Xiao Sheng. She pushed him into his house and looked around before entering. Xiao Sheng watched Yu Bing¡¯s actions in the courtyard and smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I just came from the village. I checked that there was no one around just now.¡± Yu Bing patted his chest and glared at Xiao Sheng. ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to sneak up behind me next time!¡± Then, he explained, ¡°Let me make it clear first. Yao Nian was the one who started it. I¡¯m just giving him a taste of his own medicine. If he didn¡¯t provoke me, I wouldn¡¯t have bothered to mess with him.¡± Xiao Sheng raised his eyebrows and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t say anything.¡± Seeing Xiao Sheng¡¯s reaction, Yu Bing asked curiously, ¡°You don¡¯t think I¡¯m vicious?¡± Xiao Sheng pursed his lips and said with a smile, ¡°Let¡¯s talk about familiarity first. I think I know you quite well, so I won¡¯t trust an unfamiliar person and suspect you. Besides, I¡¯m not blind. I can tell what type of person he is.¡± Xiao Sheng had raised his siblings alone. He already knew what human nature was like. Moreover, he gained the ability to read people after dealing with those people out in society. Yu Bing was stunned when she heard this. She was blind in her previous life. Otherwise, she wouldn¡¯t have been schemed against by them. Yu Bing blinked and looked at Xiao Sheng. She said in a joking tone, ¡°Thank you for your trust and understanding!¡± Although Yu Bing was smiling at this moment, Xiao Sheng could sense the loneliness in Yu Bing¡¯s heart. He thought she might want to be alone at this time, so he said to Yu Bing, ¡°Alright, go ahead. I¡¯m going home.¡± After Yu Bing sent Xiao Sheng out, she suddenly couldn¡¯t focus on reading when she returned to her room. She sat on the bed and fell into a daze. After a while, she felt better. Then, she went into the kitchen and started to make lunch. After a while, Jiang Chun returned. Jiang Chun quickly walked into the kitchen and sized up Yu Bing from head to toe. ¡°Little Bing, I just saw Yao Nian walking towards the village alone from our direction. His back is drenched. Was he here for you? Did anything happen?¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t want to make Jiang Chun sad by mentioning this, but she didn¡¯t expect her to see him, so she explained the matter in detail. The reason Yu Bing was fine was because she didn¡¯t drink the pot of tea at all. When she wanted to drink it, she discovered some white powder on the edge of the teapot opening and guessed that someone wanted to set her up. She didn¡¯t know if the culprit was still at home or not, so she pretended to drink tea as she blocked the door, then carried the teapot back to her room to wait for someone to take the bait. After a while, Yao Nian came to the door. There was only half of the tea left in the teapot. Even if she poured a large cup, there would still be more. Therefore, Yu Bing specifically mentioned that there was no tea in the teapot just now to verify if the other party was alone or had an accomplice. Yao Nian drank it directly after knowing that it was newly filled. It was enough to prove that Yao Nian had an accomplice. Although Yu Bing didn¡¯t know who the accomplice was, she wasn¡¯t afraid. The truth would eventually come out. Chapter 98 - Purple Potato Mountain Medicine Cake Besides, Yao Nian would definitely lie low for a while after this. Catching a cold was very serious in this era. After Jiang Chun heard this, she really wanted to find Yao Nian to kick him a few more times. At the same time, she thought of Fu Qi asking her to make shoe soles today. Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°If you go to him, won¡¯t he know that I saw through his scheme and kicked him into the ditch? It would be better for him to suspect me without any concrete evidence. It¡¯s more torturous.¡± Jiang Chun thought about it and agreed, so she instructed Yu Bing to close the courtyard door the next time she was alone at home. However, when she thought of Fu Qi¡¯s actions, she decided to go to the Fu family. It wasn¡¯t that she didn¡¯t trust Fu Qi, but she wanted to help Yu Bing find the other person, so she went out again without eating. When Jiang Chun returned, she told Yu Bing that Fu Qi had looked for her today because Li Ping had gone to ask her mother for shoe samples. That was why she had thought of this matter. Jiang Chun suspected that Li Ping had found out about this when she was talking to Fu Qi at work. That was why Li Ping had used this matter to lure her out of the house and create an opportunity for Yao Nian. Li Ping did have a motive, but just because she went to the Fu family¡¯s to ask for a shoe sample didn¡¯t mean she was guilty. The two of them could only put this matter aside for now, but they were much more wary of Li Ping. After lunch, the two of them left the mountain one after another. When they arrived, Xiao Sheng and Xiao Lin were already digging for purple sweet potatoes and yams. Yu Bing steamed the peeled purple sweet potatoes and yam in the pot. After adding white sugar, she squeezed them into paste and kneaded them into balls. She placed a purple sweet potato pill and a yam pill in a specially made plum mold. After pressing and forming, the final shape was a purple and white plum-shaped pastry. Every pastry was brushed with a thin layer of golden osmanthus wine. Yams and purple sweet potatoes were common ingredients, and the cooking method was simple. Although there was white sugar and honey, it couldn¡¯t be too expensive, so purple potato yam cake could only be priced at 0.22 yuan per catty. Fortunately, the raw materials were free, and the profit was 0.1 yuan per catty. It had been a long time since everyone made a product with such low profits. They could only comfort themselves that even if there was little profit, it was still profit. The village¡¯s developments were all on track, and they were continuing to open up land with the tractor. As planned, the opening up of two hillsides and fishponds would be completed by early January next year. **The Village Council Office** Yu Bing took the time to sort out the future plans of the industrial chain and came to report the work arrangements to Wu Jin. As Yu Bing looked at her notebook, she said, ¡°Mr. Wu, after the reclamation work is completed at the beginning of next year, we¡¯ll maintain the status quo in the industrial chain first. We¡¯ll start after February next year. After the reclamation, we¡¯ll plant pears first, then plant kiwis and persimmons in March.¡± ¡°April will be busier. The cherry trees will start to ripen in April. There won¡¯t be too many produce in the first year. There will be enough people after transfering the apple tree group over to help pick them. Therefore, I¡¯ve arranged for all the preparations for the construction of the factory to be completed between February and March, including the purchase of the disinfectant equipment and the recruitment of people. The fish pond is planned to be filled with fish seedlings at the end of April.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to put the duck seedlings in later, at the end of June, or they¡¯ll eat the fish. Those are my work arrangements for the industrial chain.¡± When Wu Jin heard how much money needed to be invested, he felt his temples throb. He closed his eyes and raised his hand to massage his temples. ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯ve given me such a big problem! It¡¯s almost the end of December. The village is going to start distributing the money and food. Just now, the accountant Mr. Wei gave me this year¡¯s account book. After distributing it, there¡¯s only 1,200 yuan left in the account book. The Agriculture Bureau hasn¡¯t settled the previous accounts. I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t be able to get the loan. The same goes for the fertilizer and pesticide. We still have to go to the machinery factory in the city. This is the main difficulty. They don¡¯t know us, and it¡¯s a state-owned factory. They definitely won¡¯t give us money!¡± Wu Jin saw that Yu Bing was thinking about something. He paused for a moment before continuing to say with distress ¡°I¡¯ve asked around. The simplest high-temperature disinfectant equipment costs about a thousand yuan!¡± Yu Bing suddenly looked up and said excitedly, ¡°Mr. Wu, there¡¯s a way to deal with the machine. I suddenly remembered the information sheet from my previous investigation. Feng Cai is a disciple of the city¡¯s machinery factory, and his father is the human resources department chief!¡± Wu Jin slapped the table excitedly. ¡°That¡¯s great! Then tell him that the village will give him a leave slip to go home for the New Year and communicate with his family about this matter to get us one. We¡¯re all on the same side, so they don¡¯t have to worry about us reneging on our promise.¡± Chapter 99 - Palladium Machine In this day and age, when intellectuals came to the countryside, if they needed to go home, they would have to get their families to explain the situation. The village would then decide if they were allowed to go home during the holidays based on the situation. Without a travel permit, they wouldn¡¯t be able to get a ride or stay in a hotel. Once they were discovered by the pickets on the street, they would be arrested and interrogated at the police station. It was rare for Yu Bing to see Wu Jin so happy. She smiled and continued, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that. I¡¯ll definitely think of a way to settle it. I¡¯ve also thought about setting up a factory. We¡¯ll go to the Commerce Bureau to record the information of the factory before the end of the year and then get a loan. I originally planned to use the money to buy equipment. Now, we will only purchase simple equipment, I¡¯ll buy the necessary disinfection equipment on credit for now. The loan can be used to buy the fruit trees and duck and fish seedlings after the new year.¡± Wu Jin nodded repeatedly when he heard this. Since he was in a good mood, he who was usually serious began to joke. ¡°Yu Bing, letting you manage these things is the best thing I¡¯ve done! The fruit tree this time is twice the size of the original one, and so are the others. If I don¡¯t pay any money, Chief Zhao and the other factory directors will probably chase after me and beat me up!¡± Yu Bing pursed her lips and snickered. Yu Bing would occasionally be transferred to work in the commune and county. Wu Jin was already famous for borrowing money from all sorts of places in the county. Things were indeed quite difficult for Wu Jin, so Yu Bing had been asking around about bank loans recently as well. Yu Bing closed her notebook, stood up, and said to Wu Jin, ¡°Mr. Wu, since you have no objections, that¡¯s the plan for now. I¡¯ll go to the county¡¯s Industrial Commercial Bank and try to get it done as soon as possible.¡± Wu Jin replied happily, ¡°Okay, okay, okay. Hurry up and go.¡± Yu Bing first went to the dormitory building. When she saw Xu Ling downstairs, she quickly went up and asked, ¡°Hello, Xu Ling. May I know which dormitory Feng Cai is in?¡± Xu Ling didn¡¯t expect that Yu Bing knew her name when she had never even talked to her before. She was a little happy and quickly replied enthusiastically, ¡°He¡¯s in room 302. It¡¯s your first time here, so you probably don¡¯t know the way. Let me take you there.¡± Yu Bing smiled and replied, ¡°Sorry to trouble you.¡± In her previous life, she had been in the same dormitory as Xu Ling and Yu Yan. At that time, she had been beguiled by Yu Yan. In order to play with Yu Yan, she helped and followed Yu Yan wherever she went. At that time, she wondered why Xu Ling had always looked at her strangely. Later on, she realized that Xu Ling thought that she was stupid. Now that she thought about it, she was indeed stupid! Room 302. Xu Ling left after bringing Yu Bing to the door. Yu Bing knocked and Yao Nian opened the door. Yao Nian looked at Yu Bing in surprise. ¡°Yu Bing?¡± he said in a nasal voice characteristic of a heavy cold. ¡°Are you here for me?¡± Yu Bing looked at Yao Nian¡¯s pale face as she replied, ¡°No, I came to look for Feng Cai.¡± Ever since Yao Nian had fallen into the water that day, he had developed a serious cold. He had a high fever for several days. Today, he felt slightly better, so he had the time to recall what happened that day. The dizziness he felt after he came out that day was the medicine effect that his mother had mentioned in the letter. Why had he been drugged? Even if he had drunk from the same teapot, Yu Bing had drunk it before him. The amount she drank should have been heavier. Could it be Yu Bing¡¯s doing? But how could Yu Bing know his plan?! Yao Nian couldn¡¯t figure it out, so he asked tentatively, ¡°Did you feel any discomfort the day I looked for you?¡± Yu Bing frowned and recalled, ¡°Yes, I felt a little dizzy after you left, so I went to sleep. When I woke up, it was already past noon.¡± Seeing that Yu Bing didn¡¯t seem to be lying, Yao Nian could only think that something might have gone wrong after Li Ping drugged him. He looked at Yu Bing fixedly. Yu Bing looked at him calmly. Yao Nian had just recovered from his fever and the headache caused by his cold made him unable to think about anything deeply. Hence, he could only return to the bed and lie down to rest. Yu Bingxin chuckled to herself. She felt that with her current acting skills, she could win an Oscar. Chapter 100 - Hope Feng Cai, who was lying on the bed, hurriedly sat up when he heard his name. He looked at Yu Bing in confusion. ¡°Miss Yu?¡± Yu Bing smirked slightly. ¡°Feng Cai, I have something to discuss with you.¡± Feng Cai stood up and walked forward. ¡°Miss Yu, please go ahead.¡± Yu Bing was very gentle when she asked for help. ¡°Feng Cai, your family owns a mechanical factory, right?¡± Feng Cai was quick-witted and immediately thought of the factory equipment, so he nodded. Yu Bing didn¡¯t like to beat around the bush. She said directly, ¡°Our factory currently plans to purchase a high-temperature disinfectant equipment in March, but as you know, there are many projects in the village now, and there are many places that are in urgent need of money. Village Chief Mr. Wu said that he will give you permission to visit your family during the new year. I heard that you haven¡¯t been home for two years. It just so happens that you can go back and reunite with them this year. At the same time, help our factory ask if the equipment can be bought on credit for now.¡± Feng Cai frowned when he heard this. He felt that this matter was a little troublesome. If they wanted a discount or to pay in installments, he would definitely be able to help. However, if they weren¡¯t paying a single cent upfront¡­ When Yu Bing saw Feng Cai¡¯s troubled expression, she smiled awkwardly and said, ¡°I know you¡¯re in a difficult position too. I really had no choice but to shamelessly look for you. As the person in charge of the project, I can give you an affirmative answer. As long as this matter is settled, you¡¯ll be a great contributor to our factory! Our factory welcomes capable people like you to join us!¡± Yu Bing dared to use a position in the factory as bait because a young man had previously asked her about her recruitment requirements. At that time, Feng Cai had stopped to listen. This offer was indeed very attractive to Feng Cai. If he entered the factory, he would be a worker. Not only would his job be easier than farming, but he would also receive salary and work points. He was ranked fourth among the five children in his family. His parents had limited abilities, so he didn¡¯t expect them to help him find a job and arrange for him to return to the city. However, he was still a high school student after all. He was really unwilling to spend the rest of his life as a farmer! Feng Cai thought about this and decided that he had to think of a way to get this done no matter what. Although it was a factory in the village, there was still a chance for him to rise if he performed well! After making up his mind, he looked at Yu Bing with a firm gaze. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll definitely think of a way to settle it.¡± Yu Bing smiled. ¡°Alright, I believe you can do it! I have nothing else to do, so I¡¯ll leave first. If you need to communicate anything in the future, look for me.¡± Feng Cai agreed readily. After coming to He Mountain Brigade to build the countryside for five years, he finally saw hope. Beside him, Yao Nian had already fallen asleep in bed. Coupled with the fact that their conversation wasn¡¯t very loud, Yao Nian didn¡¯t hear their discussion at all. It had to be said that Yao Nian¡¯s illness had saved Yu Bing a lot of trouble. Otherwise, if he found out, many more trouble might have happened. After taking down Feng Cai, Yu Bing returned home happily. Previously, Xiao Sheng had planted a lot of mustard vegetables in bulk. Now that the mustard vegetables were ripe, he came to Yu Bing at night to discuss the matter of making pickled vegetables. Yu Bing asked, ¡°How much can you harvest?¡± Xiao Sheng estimated, ¡°About 2,000 kilograms.¡± After making a judgment, Yu Bing replied, ¡°We can only use vats for pickled vegetables. We only have a total of three vats now. We can only marinate up to 1,000 catties at a time. There will be two batches.¡± Xiao Sheng said to Yu Bing, ¡°Now, the main customers are individuals, and individuals usually make their own pickled vegetables. I plan to go to the city to check the situation on my day off.¡± Yu Bing said worriedly, ¡°But we don¡¯t even know the situation in the city. If we go there rashly and something happens to you, no one will be able to help you. Moreover, you still need Mr. Wu to write a letter of recommendation. How are you going to tell him?¡± The recommendation letter was the least of Xiao Sheng¡¯s worries, but there were many things he couldn¡¯t tell Yu Bing now. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the recommendation letter. Although I¡¯ve never been to the city, the boss I know has connections in the city. I plan to look for him.¡± When Yu Bing saw that Xiao Sheng had made preparations in advance, she calmed down a little. ¡°A batch of pickled pickled vegetables can be released in three to seven days. Confirm the order first. Once you get the order, I¡¯ll marinate it immediately. If you can¡¯t get it, you can sell it directly. You also have to consider the transportation.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s see how much we can get at once before we see how to transport it over. Actually, I also want to take this opportunity to see if we can establish a channel with the city. The selling prices there will be better.¡± After the two of them made their plans, Xiao Sheng decided to go to Wu Jin¡¯s house immediately. Chapter 101 - Road Money Wu Jin¡¯s house. Xiao Sheng entered the courtyard and saw Wu Jin repairing the wooden barrel alone under the roof. He asked casually, ¡°Uncle Jin, are you home alone? Where are Grandma Wu and Wu Qing?¡± When Wu Jin saw Xiao Sheng, he went into the house and took out a stool. ¡°My mother went to visit neighbors. Wu Qing is opening up land on the other side of the slope. He¡¯s in charge of the tractor schedule from 6 pm to 10 pm today.¡± Xiao Sheng took the stool and sat beside Wu Jin. ¡°Uncle Jin, please give me a permission slip. I want to go to the city on my day off.¡± Wu Jin was a little puzzled when he heard this. Could it be that the output of those lands in the mountains was so high that they had to go to the city to sell them? Hence, he asked directly, ¡°Are you going to sell vegetables and prey?¡± Xiao Sheng paused for a moment before answering honestly, ¡°I want to pickle some vegetables and go to the city to sell them.¡± Wu was silent for a moment. ¡°You found a channel?¡± Xiao Sheng nodded. ¡°I know who has it, so I want to make contact.¡± Wu Jin didn¡¯t want to issue this permission slip. Firstly, he was worried about Xiao Sheng. Secondly, the bigger the business, the easier it was to be discovered and reported. If anything happened to Xiao Sheng, what would happen to Xiao Lin and Xiao Li? Seeing that Wu Jin didn¡¯t agree, Xiao Sheng knew that he was worried about him. ¡°Uncle Jin, the sooner my sister¡¯s eyes are treated, the higher the possibility of her regaining her vision. Don¡¯t worry, I will definitely be very careful. I know that nothing can happen to me.¡± Wu Jin stared at Xiao Sheng¡¯s unwavering gaze and sighed. ¡°It¡¯s good that you know that nothing can happen to you. No matter what happens in the past, remember to prioritize your own safety! Your life is more important than money.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard Wu Jin relent, he revealed a faint smile. ¡°I know!¡± The autumn and winter fruits in the mountains began to ripen. Yu Bing made two more types of jam according to the seasonal fruits. On Friday, Xiao Sheng brought the new products to Brother Qiang. ¡°Brother Qiang!¡± Xiao Sheng greeted as he entered. Brother Qiang played with two walnuts with one hand as he waved at Xiao Sheng. ¡°Come in and sit.¡± After Xiao Sheng sat down, he took out the jam from the basket and smiled slightly. ¡°Brother Qiang, this is an improved version I made. Try it.¡± Brother Qiang picked up his chopsticks and dipped them in. ¡°It tastes okay. I¡¯ll give you the usual price for the jam.¡± Xiao Sheng wasn¡¯t in a hurry to agree. He told him the plan he had discussed with Yu Bing last night. ¡°Brother Qiang, the price of these two new products is 0.02 yuan cheaper. Actually, there¡¯s something else I came here for today. I have a batch of pickled vegetables that weigh about 1,700 catties. I would like to trouble you to give me a channel in the city.¡± After a while, Brother Qiang looked up at Xiao Sheng. ¡°How do you want to sell it?¡± Xiao Sheng revealed his plan. ¡°I want to sell it to canteens in bulk.¡± Qiang turned the walnut in his hand and said slowly, ¡°Why are you asking me? Do you think I¡¯ll definitely set you up with one?¡± On the surface, it looked like he was just introducing someone to help Xiao Sheng sell the goods, but as long as there was interaction, it was only a matter of time before he gained access to the other channels in the city. Xiao Sheng smiled. ¡°I don¡¯t know what answer you¡¯ll give me, but no matter what, I still want to give it a try. Don¡¯t worry, no matter what it is, as long as it¡¯s through the channels of this person you introduced to me, I¡¯ll pay you 0.01 yuan per kilogram or bottle.¡± Brother Qiang¡¯s spinning hand paused for a moment. The amount didn¡¯t seem to be that much, but if he just needed to introduce someone to him and didn¡¯t have to care about anything else, he would profit without doing anything. Moreover, his distribution of goods was indeed limited. If Xiao Sheng really found another channel in the city, it was impossible for him to do anything about it. At most, he would feel upset and do something to give him trouble. Xiao Sheng was bold, meticulous, and willing to give up short-term profits to pursue long-term development. Brother Qiang admired Xiao Sheng¡¯s capability and boldness. Forget it, he would just treat it as promoting someone he admired. Thinking about this, Qiang smiled brightly. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll introduce you.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s smile deepened. ¡°Thank you, Brother Qiang!¡± Brother Qiang waved his hand and asked his two subordinates to leave. After the door closed, he picked up the paper beside him, then wrote down a name and house number. He handed it to Xiao Sheng and said softly, ¡°Go to this house number on Peace Street and look for him. Tell him that Third Uncle asked you to send sweet potatoes. He will ask why your eldest niece didn¡¯t come with you. Then, tell him that she has caught a cold recently, and Third Uncle is worried about her so he let her rest at home.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded to show that he remembered. Chapter 102 - To the City Brother Qiang continued, ¡°The city¡¯s supply and marketing club is on Xianglin Avenue, which is next to Peace Street. The black market is a little far away. It¡¯s at a place called Dongge Road. It¡¯s a long way. If you go there, find two banyan trees side by side. The black market is next to them.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes flickered. Brother Qiang had told him this because he wanted him to go to these two places to inquire about the market before negotiating the price. This was to prevent him from not knowing the price when he went to negotiate. Xiao Sheng¡¯s expression became even more earnest. ¡°Thank you for your advice, Brother Qiang!¡± Brother Qiang smiled, but said nothing. He liked dealing with smart people like this. It saved him a lot of trouble! Soon, it was their day off. Before dawn, Xiao Sheng rode his bike into the county. When he arrived at the county, he got into a car and took out the few sweet potatoes that he had steamed in the morning to eat. They arrived at the provincial capital, City H, an hour later. It was after nine when they arrived. It was Xiao Sheng¡¯s first time in the city. When he saw the huge station parking lot filled with people, he didn¡¯t know which way to go. He observed the direction of the crowd and chose the direction with the most people. Then, he asked around and found the black market. Xiao Sheng carried a basket and strolled around like he usually did. Although he didn¡¯t show it on his face, he was actually surprised that the black market in City H was much larger than that in Pingjiang County. The variety of things sold was also very comprehensive. He also saw the cake that Yu Bing bought from the supply and marketing club last time. However, the difference was that there were more layers of white of the version sold here. They said that this was some cream cake. It was very beautiful and had flowers on it. The dazzling array of items dazzled Xiao Sheng. He also asked about the prices of many agricultural products and finally discovered a pattern. Any agricultural products produced in the village would be sold in the city at a higher price than those produced in the county. However, if it was novel Western-style pastries or fabrics, they would be more expensive in the county than in the city. After shopping for more than half an hour, Xiao Sheng went to the supply and marketing club. After investigating both sides, he went straight to Peace Street and found that it was actually City H¡¯s sugar factory. The guard that Xiao Sheng found helped to call the person over. After waiting by the door for more than ten minutes, he saw a middle-aged man in his forties come out. He had a square face, wasn¡¯t very tall, and was a little chubby. He was wearing a patched tunic suit and a pair of old shoes. After they left the door, Xiao Sheng took a few steps forward and called out softly, ¡°Uncle Ping.¡± Qin Ping glanced at Xiao Sheng with confusion in his eyes. He was cautious and didn¡¯t reply. Xiao Sheng calmly recited the code words Brother Qiang had given him. After the code words matched, Qin Ping brought Xiao Sheng to an inconspicuous corner in the distance. Xiao Sheng explained his intentions and quietly revealed the vegetables in the basket. There were two bags of pickled vegetables. Qin Ping realized that the pickled vegetables were very colorful. He reached out and pinched a little to taste it. It also tasted better than what he usually bought. In the north, there were fewer vegetables as winter progressed. Qin Ping was the person-in-charge of the canteen. Many workers had reported to the higher-ups that the amount of food provided by the canteen was getting smaller and smaller, but there wasn¡¯thing he could do if the supply agency couldn¡¯t supply them. Even so, he still specifically sent people to keep an eye on them every day since he was afraid that the supply agency would supply their food to other units. Xiao Sheng¡¯s arrival made Qin Ping happy, but he didn¡¯t show it on his face. He only asked, ¡°How much is the price?¡± There were many people in the city, so there were people who didn¡¯t pickle vegetables or didn¡¯t pickle enough and wanted to go out to buy them. Therefore, there were also many vendors selling pickled vegetables on the black market. Xiao Sheng estimated the price based on the information he had obtained from the black market and the supply and marketing society. ¡°0.08 yuan per catty.¡± The price was reasonable for this season¡¯s pickled vegetables. Qin Ping asked again, ¡°How many catties can you supply?¡± Xiao Sheng quickly replied, ¡°About 1,700 kilograms.¡± Qin Ping asked tentatively, ¡°Do you have any other vegetables? What price?¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes lit up. In winter, the prices of vegetables were more expensive. The county city was closer to the countryside, so they could sell them for a good price in the city. ¡°There¡¯s also cabbage and radishes. They¡¯re all 0.05 yuan a catty.¡± Qin Ping estimated according to the amount given by the supply and marketing club every day. ¡°I need 200 catties of pickled vegetables a week, and 100 catties of cabbage and radish each, but you have to give me a discount of 0.01 yuan per catty.¡± Chapter 103 - Very Delicious He had already given Brother Qiang a 0.01 yuan profit per catty. If he gave up more, he wouldn¡¯t be able to earn much more than in the county city. Why did he have to go so far in that case? Xiao Sheng said with a bitter expression, ¡°Uncle Ping, 0.01 yuan is too much. The village is already far from the city. This is hard-earned money for us. At most, I can only give you a 0.005 yuan discount. You know the market price outside. This is already cheaper than the price outside.¡± Qin Ping did a mental calculation again. It wasn¡¯t a big deal for him to report an additional 1 point to the finance department at this price. The rebate here was less, but with the extra portion, he could earn 0.015 yuan per pound, so he didn¡¯t say anything else. He smiled at Xiao Sheng and said, ¡°I know it¡¯s not easy for you guys either. Alright, it¡¯s only right for the workers to take care of the farmers. Let¡¯s go with this price.¡± Xiao Sheng quickly agreed. After returning to the village, Xiao Sheng went to Yu Bing¡¯s house to talk about the gains from this trip. ¡°I think going to the city this time was the right decision. Although I gave up on 0.015 yuan of profit, the price of each catty of vegetables is still at least 0.01 yuan higher than selling them in the county city.¡± Yu Bing looked at Xiao Sheng¡¯s excited expression and smiled. ¡°Of course. It¡¯ easier to work in the city, but compared to us self-sufficient people, they have to rely on the supply chain and the black market to buy things. However, the supply is insufficient. Even if we have money and stamps, we might not be able to buy anything.¡± Xiao Sheng agreed very much. ¡°I¡¯m selling in batches now. If we can find someone to help us sell more later, the food we make can also be sold for a good price!¡± Yu Bing thought about it for a moment, then raised her eyebrows. ¡°When the food processing plant is set up next year and the goods are shipped out, it will be more convenient for us.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this, he had a trace of anticipation for this factory. He suddenly realized that Yu Bing¡¯s arrival not only brought him a trace of vitality and hope, but also the entire village. It was a stark contrast to the lifelessness from so many years. a€| . For the registration information, they needed a factory name. For this, Wu Jin specifically held a village committee meeting to discuss it carefully. In the end, he decided to call it ¡°Delicious Food Processing Plant¡±! It was simple, crude, and catchy. The most important thing about a brand was that its name had to be easy to remember! The day after the name was confirmed, Yu Bing started commuting to the county to register and apply for a loan. In this day and age, approval was slow, there was a lot of procedures, and the bank was strict, especially when it came to bank loans. That was why Yu Bing started preparing so early. When she came to the Commerce Bureau, the staff used the excuse that the excavation documents were to promote the development of the rural industry, but they didn¡¯t explicitly mention allowing the establishment of a factory, so they refused to register for Yu Bing. Then, Yu Bing ran to the department that approved the reclamation documents. She wanted to use the fact that the factory was also used to promote the development of the rural industry as an excuse, hoping that the department could write her a document that allowed her to set up a factory. However, the answer she received in the end was that she had only received an application for the commune¡¯s reclamation. Reclamation and the factory were two separate affairs. Yu Bing had no choice but to return to the commune to look for President Song. In President Song¡¯s office. After Yu Bing entered, she smiled and shouted, ¡°Uncle Song.¡± When President Song looked up and saw Yu Bing, his serious expression softened. He pretended to complain, ¡°Yu Bing, why did you think of coming to my place today? Usually, you don¡¯t even have the time to stay for a meal at my house!¡± Knowing that Wang Yun liked to eat dried sweet potatoes, Yu Bing dried a lot of sweet potatoes and gave them to Wang Yun. Later, she found out that Auntie Song¡¯s appetite wasn¡¯t good, so she made hawthorn cake and sent it to the Song family. Similarly, the Song family sincerely treated Yu Bing as family, especially since Auntie Song, who always complained that Yu Bing was too thin. When she received some foreign dried goods, she asked Song Li to send them to the village so Yu Bing could eat them to nourish her body. Slowly, Yu Bing¡¯s heart that had been broken by the Yu family began to slowly heal because the Song family. Yu Bing touched her nose and said embarrassedly, ¡°Didn¡¯t we just start preparing for the industrial chain in our village? I¡¯m indeed a little busy. When I¡¯m done, I¡¯ll definitely go eat delicious food at your house. I came today because I have something to ask of you.¡± President Song looked as if he had expected this. ¡°I knew it. For you to come to my office, it must be business again. Tell me, what is it?¡± Chapter 104 - Loan Yu Bing smiled ingratiatingly and then told him about the situation she had encountered in the past two days. ¡°I¡¯m here to ask you to help our village apply for another factory document. Otherwise, it would be difficult for us to get a loan from a bank.¡± President Song smiled helplessly. ¡°At that time, I was only thinking about reclamation and didn¡¯t expect that you would have plans to open a factory. I heard Wu Jin report your plan. I think it¡¯s a good idea. The commune will apply for the documents to be sent to you as soon as possible. Just now, you said that you wanted to get a loan from a bank? I heard that it¡¯s difficult to get a loan now.¡± Yu Bing smiled and joked, ¡°Even if it¡¯s difficult, we have to do it! Uncle Song, I¡¯ll have to trouble you with the documents!¡± Song smiled. ¡°The country¡¯s leaders all say that the world is yours and ours, but in reality, it¡¯s yours. It¡¯s a good thing that you young people have novel ideas. Us old farts should support you young people more. Yu Bing, work hard!¡± Not long after they met, President Song had already thought that Yu Bing was a promising candidate for a cadre, so Wu Jin approved Yu Bing¡¯s application without hesitation. President Song asked someone to handle the matter. The documents were completed two days later. Yu Bing took the documents approved by the county and went to the Commerce Bureau to repeat the registration process and waited for a few more days. When Yu Bing got the receipt from the Commerce Bureau, she ran to the bank without stopping. There were only two banks in the county, and Yu Bing had learned about the specific policies. This was because many villages had previously opened factories to borrow money. However, there were profits and losses, causing the bank¡¯s repayment to be affected. Therefore, the bank¡¯s current loan policy was relatively stricter in this area. After some consideration, Yu Bing chose AC Bank, which had a higher chance of approving a loan. Yu Bing went straight to President Bai of the AC Bank. ¡°Hello, President Bai. I¡¯m Yu Bing, the head of the He Mountain Brigade¡¯s Community Enterprise.¡± President Bai stood up politely and invited Yu Bing to sit on the sofa at the side. ¡°Hello, Miss Yu. Are you looking for a loan from a new company?¡± Yu Bing explained to President Bai, ¡°Yes, we¡¯re a food processing plant. We mainly process our own fruits and canned fish.¡± Mr. Bai nodded and asked, ¡°How much do you want to borrow?¡± Yu Bing pursed her lips and said carefully, ¡°Five thousand yuan.¡± If Yu Bing were to apply for a loan in the name of the Community Enterprise, the target of the review would also be the factory. New enterprises didn¡¯t have any assets or capital flow for review. Yu Bing heard that in such a situation, they could only borrow this amount at most. Yu Bing was already prepared to ask for 500 less if this amount was rejected. No matter what, she would borrow as much as she could! President Bai saw that Yu Bing was a little nervous and smiled. ¡°I can approve five thousand yuan for you. Which loan repayment method do you plan to choose?¡± Yu Bing¡¯s mouth opened slightly as she looked at President Bai in shock. What happened to approval being difficult and policy being tight? She should have borrowed more! She wanted time to rewind to before she answered. President Bai raised her eyebrows. ¡°I know Wang Wei. He told me that you might come to our bank to apply for a loan, and he told me to make an exception.¡± Yu Bing was touched when she heard this. A warm smile appeared on her face. It seemed that President Song had told Brother Wei after finding out that day. She naively thought that she had gotten lucky today. Yu Bing looked at President Bai and said firmly, ¡°President Bai, I¡¯ll choose a three-year loan. No matter what, thank you very much! Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll definitely return this money. To put it bluntly, even if the factory is not profitable, I¡¯ll personally return this money. I won¡¯t make things difficult for you!¡± When President Bai heard this, he looked at Yu Bing in a different light. He and Wang Wei had known each other for many years. Although the two of them were ten years apart in age, they were close friends. Previously, when Wang Wei asked him for help, he thought that Yu Bing had taken the initiative to look for Wang Wei to get in through the back door. He didn¡¯t expect her to be completely unaware. The two of them discussed how to repay the loan, the deadline, the loan interest rate, and the disbursement time, which was after the new year. President Bai asked Yu Bing to collect the approved documents three days later. When Yu Bing submitted the documents at the village council meeting three days later, it silenced those who were previously against Yu Bing being in charge. Chapter 105 - Bacon After the autumn harvest, Wu Jin began to organize people to clean up the weeds. They also did deep plowing and fertilized the soil in preparation for the coming year. After finishing this round of farming, there wasn¡¯t much farm work left. Everyone began to wait for the arrival of the winter snow. As the days passed, it began to snow soon. Animals chose to hibernate in the winter, and people would also become lazy in the winter. After winter, the troublemakers in the village, such as Yu Yan and Yao Nian, seemed to be too lazy to stir up trouble. Yu Bing was in charge of many things and often wasn¡¯t in the village. Yu Yan couldn¡¯t find an opportunity to do anything. On the other hand, Yao Nian had taken more than a month to recover from the heavy cold due to the cold weather. After recovering, he had lost a lot of weight and had become a little frail. However, he still maintained his good looks and aloofness. His tall and thin appearance made some people feel that he had the refined look of a scholar, giving some girls a good impression of him. Yao Nian¡¯s appearance caught Yu Yan¡¯s eye. Ever since their heartfelt conversation under the osmanthus tree, the two of them could occasionally feel an indescribable feeling when their gazes met again. The intellectuals in the dormitory building also saw clearly that Yu Bing had no feelings for Yao Nian. Otherwise, she would have visited Yao Nian when he was sick. In order to maintain his affectionate image, Yao Nian could only say that Yu Bing was dissatisfied with the arranged marriage. After the country established a new regime, it advocated free love. Most of the time, so-called arranged marriages were just the one-sided wishes of parents, or an offhand remark. The young people who were educated with modern values didn¡¯t have a good impression of arranged marriages. If Yu Bing and Yao Nian were in love with each other, no one would say anything. But now, it was obvious that they weren¡¯t. Everyone had a better impression of Yu Bing, who dared to resist an arranged marriage! Gradually, no one took the arranged marriage seriously anymore. All year round, this was the period when people in rural areas had the most free time. At the end of December, after the village handed over the pigs according to the weight stipulated by the country, there were still five left. After the butcher in the village killed the pigs, he distributed them to each family to start making cured meat. The difference between making cured meat and smoked meat here was that there was no smoke when making cured meat. As long as it was marinated and dried in the courtyard, it could be eaten. Xiao Sheng¡¯s culinary skills were terrible, so in the past, he had always gone to the Wu family to ask Grandma Wu for help. After tasting Yu Bing¡¯s cooking this year, he invited Yu Bing to help at home. Yu Bing naturally wouldn¡¯t refuse such a small favor. After Yu Bing marinated the meat, she looked up from the window and saw Xiao Li grabbing the snow in the courtyard to build a snowman. Yu Bing sighed and turned to look at Xiao Sheng. ¡°Does Xiao Li usually stay at home alone? Every time I come, I find her working at home.¡± Xiao Sheng paused and said slowly, ¡°Yes, she¡¯s usually alone at home.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, her heart ached for this eight-year-old child. She washed her hands and ran out of the kitchen, then grabbed a handful of snow and quietly approached Xiao Li. Xiao Li stopped building the snowman and turned to look in Yu Bing¡¯s direction. She smiled and shouted, ¡°Sister Yu Bing.¡± Yu Bing stepped on the snow heavily. She smiled mischeviously and said, ¡°Hmph, it¡¯s useless even if you hear my voice. You can¡¯t stop my sneak attack!¡± As soon as she finished speaking, Yu Bing placed the snow in her hand on Xiao Li¡¯s neck. The cold and soft feeling made Xiao Li¡¯s neck itch. She laughed loudly and sat down on the snow. Then, Yu Bing quickly helped her up and pinched the tip of Xiao Li¡¯s nose. There was mirth in her friendly voice as she said, ¡°Come, let¡¯s work together to build a snowman, okay?¡± Xiao Li nodded happily. Her brothers usually accompanied her, and Wang Xia would occasionally come over to play. Only Yu Bing and Jiang Chun would come to chat with Xiao Li from time to time. Xiao Li sighed as she built the snowman. ¡°Sister Yu Bing, ever since you came, I feel that my brother¡¯s culinary skills have improved a lot.¡± After all, Xiao Sheng often helped out. After watching so much, his culinary skills more or less improved. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t help but think of the bowl of rabbit meat and burst out laughing. Xiao Sheng walked out of the kitchen and pretended to try to scare her as he said, ¡°Xiao Li, you¡¯re getting bolder and bolder. You even dare to make up stories about your brother!¡± Chapter 106 - Snowball Fight When Xiao Li heard this, she grinned and begged her brother for mercy. Xiao Sheng walked forward and patted Xiao Li¡¯s head gently. Then, he squatted down and built a snowman with them. The three of them quickly built a snowman that was half the height of a man. Yu Bing ran into the kitchen and took two dead tree branches, then stuck them into the snowman as arms. She also used two stones as eyes. A carrot was used as the mouth. She described the snowman¡¯s appearance to Xiao Li as she made it. Xiao Li listened attentively, as if trying to imagine the snowman she described. As Xiao Sheng watched Yu Bing talking to Xiao Li patiently, his heart softened. That warm moment didn¡¯t last long. Suddenly, Xiao Sheng was hit from the side by a snowball. He frowned and turned to look. It was Xiao Lin. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t say anything. He lowered his head and patted the snowflakes off his body. Xiao Lin knew that Xiao Sheng wouldn¡¯t fight back, but a snowball fight was only interesting if people fought back. How could he have a snowball fight alone? Hence, he aimed the other snowball in his hand and threw it at Yu Bing. Yu Bing was caught off guard by the snowball. Seeing that Xiao Lin¡¯s face was red from the cold and his body was covered in snowflakes, she immediately felt playful. She bent down and immediately threw a snowball at him. ¡°I¡¯m not like your brother. I know how to fight back!¡± Xiao Sheng, who was called out, was stunned. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t fight back because Xiao Lin was his younger brother. It was just that his heavy burden had long made him lose interest in playing and he couldn¡¯t be bothered to respond. Yu Bing excitedly exchanged a few rounds with Xiao Lin. When she looked up and saw that Xiao Sheng seemed apathetic, she gave Xiao Lin a look. Under normal circumstances, Xiao Lin wouldn¡¯t dare to provoke his brother, but things were different now. There was Yu Bing! Hence, his usually hidden troublemaker tendencies began to stir. Yu Bing and Xiao Lin took turns to throw snowballs at Xiao Sheng, looking like they wanted to force him to attack. Xiao Sheng raised his hand to block two snowballs flying towards his face. He pursed his lips and shouted in a low voice, ¡°Xiao Lin!¡± When Xiao Lin heard Xiao Sheng call his name, he immediately lowered his hand and planned to stop. Seeing this, Yu Bing immediately shouted, ¡°Xiao Lin, I¡¯ll protect you. Hurry up and fight!¡± Xiao Lin was still afraid to move. Yu Bing looked at the way Xiao Sheng raised his eyebrows and looked at him. The two armies were at war, so Yu Bing approached Xiao Lin to say a few words. Xiao Lin was successfully instigated. Then, the two of them joined forces again. Xiao Sheng wasn¡¯t someone without a temper. Being besieged by the two of them, the suppressed desires in his heart exploded. He also made a snow ball and counterattacked. Jiang Chun had originally come to call Yu Bing home for dinner. When she saw this, she couldn¡¯t help but join in excitedly. Snowballs were more fun with more people. The few of them fought in high spirits. Xiao Li, who was standing at the side, heard the commotion beside her and felt the cheerful atmosphere. She was smiling from ear to ear. Ever since he was 13 years old, Xiao Sheng had never fought a snowball fight like this. When he smiled, his usually serious and mature appearance had a hint of youthfulness. The few of them played for more than ten minutes before stopping. After Yu Bing and Jiang Chun returned home, Xiao Sheng curled his finger at Xiao Lin. Xiao Lin shrank his head and walked over obediently. Xiao Sheng knew Xiao Lin well. Xiao Lin wasn¡¯t someone vulnerable to coaxing, so he was curious about what method Yu Bing had used. ¡°What did Yu Bing say to you just now?¡± Xiao Lin replied honestly, ¡°Yu Bing said that you usually have a straight face and that you shouldn¡¯t be so tense all the time, so I have to let you relax during a snowball fight.¡± Xiao Sheng was stunned. Then, he blinked and said gently, ¡°Let¡¯s eat.¡± With that, he turned around and entered the kitchen. Seeing that his brother didn¡¯t scold him, Xiao Lin happily took his sister¡¯s hand and followed behind. During the meal, Xiao Lin chattered as usual, ¡°Brother, when you find a wife in the future, you have to find someone like Sister Yu Bing. Every time Sister Yu Bing comes to our house, I feel that the house seems to be much livelier. Moreover, she treats our sister very well!¡± When Xiao Li heard this, she interrupted, ¡°I¡¯m fine. When our brother marries a wife, she has to care about him and treat him well.¡± Xiao Lin ate a mouthful of rice before saying, ¡°I think Sister Yu Bing treats our brother quite well.¡± Xiao Li thought about it and nodded in agreement. 2 Chapter 107 - Sachima The conversation between the two made Xiao Sheng speechless. Yu Bing clearly treated him no differently from others. Xiao Sheng cleared his throat and said helplessly, ¡°Just take care of yourselves. You don¡¯t have to worry about me. Stop fooling around with matchmaking.¡± Xiao Sheng had no intention of getting married at all. With his family¡¯s conditions, he was too ashamed to let others suffer with him. Xiao Sheng only wanted to cure Xiao Li¡¯s eyes and raise his siblings. He didn¡¯t want to think about anything else. On the other side, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun were also discussing the Xiao family. Jiang Chun cut an eighth of the chicken she had bought at the last market, chopped it into small pieces, and stewed them with radishes and cabbage. The two of them ate the warm food stewed on the stove with relish. After taking a bite of the radish, Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°This is the first time I¡¯ve seen Xiao Sheng so relaxed. He¡¯s usually as serious as an old man.¡± Jiang Chun said casually, ¡°That¡¯s also worrying. I heard Xiao Lin mention that Xiao Li¡¯s eyes can be recovered through surgery, so their family is trying so hard to save money.¡± Yu Bing stopped eating and looked up at Jiang Chun. ¡°Xiao Li¡¯s eyes can be treated with surgery?¡± Jiang Chun nodded. ¡°He let the cat out of the bag that day. The information was kept very secret.¡± Yu Bing lowered her head and continued eating thoughtfully. In her previous life, the Xiao family had kept a low profile when living at the foot of the mountain and secretly saved money. She wondered if they had gathered enough money for the surgery. Due to the snow, the mountain became even colder. After discussion, Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing brought the raw materials on the mountain to Yu Bing¡¯s house according to the amount used every time. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun began to make pastries and jam at home. Fortunately, their residence was far from the village. The two of them only began to cook after sealing the doors and windows at night. There was still more than half a month before the New Year. The annual Spring Festival was the country¡¯s most important festival. Everyone was willing to spend money on the New Year¡¯s goods. The amount of jam the county wanted was also increased by 50 bottles each time. Due to the custom of visiting relatives and friends more often during the Spring Festival, Yu Bing decided to add a new type of Manchu pastry¡ªSachima. As there was no way to openly go to the station to hitch a ride, every batch of vegetables was sent by Xiao Sheng and Zhou Min¡¯s brother, Zhou Qun. However, this also gave Xiao Sheng many opportunities to explore the city. Some raw materials that needed to be bought could also be compared and obtained at a cheaper price, effectively reducing the production cost. Yu Bing asked Xiao Sheng to buy some red dates and raisins from the northwest. She was prepared to make the Sachima into two versions, a simple version and deluxe version. After buying the materials, they began to make samples. Jiang Chun and Xiao Sheng helped. Yu Bing mixed the eggs and flour together and added a moderate amount of baking powder. First, she stirred it with chopsticks until it was evenly mixed. Then, she kneaded it into a medium-soft dough. She placed the dough in a basin and covered it with white gauze. Fifteen minutes later, she kneaded it evenly again and covered it with white gauze again. When the dough was ready, she pressed it with her hand and rolled it into a large square piece with a rolling pin. It was rolled into the thickness of a one-dollar coin. Next, she cut the large piece into 5cm and 3mm wide slices. Finally, she sprinkled a small amount of flour and gently shook it open to prevent it from sticking. At this time, Yu Bing poured vegetable oil into the pot. When the oil was 60% hot, she fried the noodles in small amounts a few times. During this process, she had to constantly flip the noodles with her chopsticks and fish them out when the noodles were fried until the surface was slightly golden. Then, it was time to mix the syrup. White sugar, malt sugar, and water were poured into a clean pan. They began to stir and slowly thicken. Yu Bing had a good way to test if the syrup concentration was up to standard. When a drop of syrup was dropped into clear water, if Yu Bing could pinch it with her hand, it was ready. At this point, all the noodles that had been fried could be poured into the syrup. They could be continuously stir-fried until the noodles were evenly dipped in the syrup. Finally, they could be poured onto the chopping board. With a rolling pin and a spatula, the noodles wrapped in syrup would be pressed into a square. At this moment, on the other side of the chopping board, Jiang Chun had already removed the cores of the red dates and cut them into small pieces. Yu Bing sprinkled red date fragments and raisins on half of it while it was hot. After it completely cooled, she cut it into a small square that was five centimeters long and wide. Sachima had been made! Those with embellishments on top were the deluxe version, while those without were naturally the simple version. Chapter 108 - Hiding Money Xiao Sheng looked at the golden-colored sachima and picked up a piece to take a bite curiously. His eyes lit up. ¡°Although it has been fried, the texture is soft and fluffy. It¡¯s sweet but not greasy. The taste is velvety and smooth. It tastes better than the pastries I sold previously! Although the souffl¨¦ is also delicious, it¡¯s slightly inferior in terms of layering.¡± When Jiang Chun heard Xiao Sheng¡¯s high evaluation, she also ate a piece curiously. As she ate, she asked in surprise, ¡°Where is this snack from? It¡¯s so delicious! Where did you learn how to make it? This snack will definitely sell out!¡± Yu Bing smiled. ¡°Sachima is a Manchu snack, but it¡¯s popular in the western and the capital region. I read about it in a book before. I didn¡¯t expect to succeed in one go.¡± The first part was true, but the second part was purely made up by Yu Bing. This was one of the snacks she started a business on in her previous life. Previously, she didn¡¯t make it because of the cost and the limitations concerning the raw materials. After Xiao Sheng finished a piece, he said confidently, ¡°We can definitely make a huge profit during this Spring Festival. I previously contacted two people in City H who can help us distribute the goods. It¡¯s time to put them to good use!¡± Sachima was considered a new product in this province and city. Moreover, the method of making it was more complicated than that of the previous pastries. There was sugar, eggs, and dried goods scattered on the surface. They were all nutritional products of this era. Many people would definitely be interested. Therefore, Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t plan to disperse them in the county. He directly helped Brother Qiang distribute the goods. The simplified version was sold for 1.1 yuan per kilogram, and the deluxe version was 1.5 yuan per kilogram. The price set by the city was 1.3 yuan per pound for the simplified version and 1.7 yuan for the deluxe version. Sachima had been selling like hotcakes during the period before the New Year. They were busy until the 27th before they stopped supplying all channels. The three of them started checking their accounts around the kerosene lamp at night. The last dividend was in October. It was almost three months now, and there were new products added midway. Even Yu Bing was looking forward to it. After checking, Xiao Sheng got 586.8 yuan, while Yu Bing and Jiang Chun got 440.1 yuan each. During the first dividend, Jiang Chun had been excited for a few days after receiving more than a hundred yuan. Now, looking at the thick stack of money in her hand, she could barely even speak properly. Although the accounting had always been done by Xiao Sheng, he was still excited when he received them. Ever since he started working with Yu Bing, the money he had earned in the past half a year was an amount that he had to save up for two years in the past. At night, Xiao Sheng looked at the recorded money amount in his notebook. After so many years, he had saved a total of 2,830.6 yuan. It was still far from the surgery fee that Elder Lu had mentioned, but he had only contacted two individuals in the city. At this moment, Xiao Sheng wanted to speed up the opening of the city¡¯s channels. After Jiang Chun returned home, she took the money and walked around the house to find a place to hide it, but she felt that it wasn¡¯t safe to hide it anywhere. As Yu Bing watched Jiang Chun¡¯s actions, she couldn¡¯t help but laugh. ¡°Stop pacing back and forth like this.¡± Only then did Jiang Chun stop in her tracks. Her face was filled with worry. ¡°Little Bing, where do you think I should put this money? I keep feeling that others can guess where I put it.¡± Yu Bing smiled and glanced at Jiang Chun. ¡°Others will guess where your money is based on the premise that you¡¯re rich. Do you think the two of us are dressed better than the others in the village? We look no different from others when standing in a crowd. Who can tell that you have money?¡± Jiang Chun slapped her thigh and said in admiration, ¡°You¡¯re right. I originally thought that since I only had one jacket that had a few patches, I might as well buy cloth to make a new one. Now that I think about it, it¡¯s better to keep a low profile! I want to add a few more patches now.¡± Yu Bing was amused by Jiang Chun. ¡°Let¡¯s just act normal. Too much is as bad as not enough. Just be moderate. Adjust your mentality first. Don¡¯t think of yourself as rich yet. Just treat it as if you¡¯re holding five yuan.¡± Jiang Chun said angrily, ¡°If it¡¯s really five yuan, I¡¯ll hide it in my socks every day.¡± After saying that, she looked around and took out a handkerchief to wrap it in before wrapping it in a layer of parchment paper. Finally, she placed it in a small jar and moved the jar of pickled vegetables in the corner of the room away. She dug a hole in the ground below and turned to Yu Bing to ask in a low voice, ¡°Do you want to put it here with mine? I think this place is the best place to hide it!¡± Chapter 109 - Pretense Yu Bing smiled and refused. In order to spread the risk, her money was divided into three portions and placed in different places. However, after seeing how Jiang Chun stored her money, she decided not to tell her. Otherwise, she would probably dig through the ground tonight. After Jiang Chun filled the soil back in, she stomped a few times with her foot and moved a little of the soil beside her to the spot that had just been dug so that no one could see the traces of digging. Then she moved the pickled vegetable jar back. The next day was the 28th. Feng Cai was already waiting at the entrance when Yu Bing drove to the dormitory building at eight o¡¯clock. After he saw Yu Bing, Feng Cai climbed into the car. Feng Cai smiled and thanked Yu Bing. ¡°Miss Yu, sorry to trouble you today.¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s not troublesome. You¡¯re also helping the village. Just pay more attention to the matter concerning the machine.¡± This matter involved his own interests, so Feng Cai would naturally do his best. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll definitely think of a way to get the machine for the factory!¡± As Yu Bing drove the car, she asked casually, ¡°What kind of benefits do those factories in City H usually give during the New Year?¡± Yu Bing had returned to her province from the countryside in her previous life. She didn¡¯t know much about City H. Moreover, every province and city was different. Some benefits were also very different. Hence, Yu Bing wanted to consult him while sending him off. Feng Cai thought about it for a moment. ¡°They usually hand out apples, snacks, canned goods, noodles, soap, face wipes, you name it. I heard from my uncle that when they make their purchases, it mainly depends on what the supply company has to offer.¡± Yu Bing was interested. ¡°Your uncle is in charge of purchasing?¡± Feng Cai replied, ¡°Yes, but he¡¯s from the garment factory.¡± Yu Bingxin thought, it didn¡¯t matter what factory he was at as long as he was in charge of purchasing. Hence, she began to paint a rosy picture for Feng Cai. ¡°Feng Cai, if I let you be the head of the sales department, are you confident?¡± Feng Cai¡¯s eyes lit up when he heard the words ¡®head of the sales department¡¯. He immediately turned to look at Yu Bing and said, ¡°Miss Yu, I¡¯m confident in doing a good job.¡± Yu Bing said slowly, ¡°Our factory will start making jam in April next year when the cherries are ripe. This first batch of sales is very important! This involves the subsequent arrangements and funds of our industrial chain. Although the 3,000 cherry tree seeds will bear fruit in three years, the amount of jam needed is a little large. I estimate that there are about 20,000 bottles, so we have to make plans for the sales.¡± Feng Cai thought for a moment before saying, ¡°I haven¡¯t been back for two years. I¡¯ll follow my father to visit more relatives and friends during the new year to prepare for the sales of our processing plant.¡± Yu Bing nodded in satisfaction. She had said so much in order to hear Feng Cai say this. There wasn¡¯t much resources in the country right now, but there were a lot of people, especially since the older generation was particular about having more children. It was common to have three or four children. Everyone was aiming for seven or eight. People like Jiang Chun¡¯s father, who was in poor health, didn¡¯t dare to have more children because of his family¡¯s difficulties. Jiang Chun¡¯s mother died early, and her father didn¡¯t remarry, so she was his only daughter. 1 Therefore, as long as there weren¡¯t any special circumstances, everyone¡¯s family had many members in it. There were a lot of people in every family. Feng Cai would visit more people during the new year to build relationships and to get his relatives to help introduce him to the purchasing department of their respective units. After Yu Bing sent Feng Cai to the county city station, she took the food she made to Director Chang, the canteen chef who always complained that she was too skinny, and the drivers of the logistics department to send New Year¡¯s gifts in advance. Yu Bing would never forget anyone who was good to her. Then, she brought gifts to the coach Mr. Zhou before returning to the village. The Spring Festival was from the first to the fifth day of the new year. Although it was a holiday, people still had to be on duty for the orchard and farm. Yu Bing gathered the three team leaders for a small meeting. Yu Bing looked at the three of them and asked, ¡°Have you all arranged the on duty schedule for the five-day holiday during the Spring Festival?¡± This was because the farm work in the village had been completed before the snow fell. After that, they had to wait until spring before starting to go to the fields. The villagers never had to schedule who would be on duty. However, because the chickens had to be fed every day, Ren Yue considered this problem and made arrangements. ¡°The four of us will take turns feeding them once a day. I¡¯ll feed them on the extra day that¡¯s unaccounted for.¡± After Yu Bing heard this, she asked, ¡°During the Spring Festival, are you prepared to release the shed as usual?¡± Ren Yue was stunned for a moment but still replied truthfully, ¡°No.¡± Chapter 110 - Writing Couplets Yu Bing had no intention of blaming her. She only told Ren Yue, ¡°I know that the Spring Festival is a special holiday, but the chickens still have to move around normally. You guys can just release them for about two hours every day. You can go there when you feed them at other times.¡± As long as they released them, they would have to count them one by one when they returned to the chicken coop before they could complete their work for the day. It was a little time-consuming to count 2,000 chickens per person, so Ren Yue wanted to slack off during the new year. But Yu Bing gave clear instructions now, so she would naturally do as she was asked. At the time, Li An felt that there wasn¡¯thing much to do in the orchard these days, so he hadn¡¯t thought of arranging for anyone to check. Ou Qin was an intellectual, and her parents were also workers in the factory, so she knew the rule that someone had to be on duty even if they didn¡¯t produce anything. ¡°Miss Yu, I have arranged for two people to be on duty every day. One person is responsible for the morning and one person is responsible for the afternoon.¡± Yu Bing nodded in approval of this arrangement. Seeing this, Li An expressed that he would arrange for staff to be on duty when he returned. After this, Yu Bing¡¯s work before the holiday came to an end. Every year, during these two days, someone would help the villagers write couplets. In the village, the accountant Mr. Wei and a few young adults knew how to write calligraphy. There would be five tables per five people. Those who wanted people to write calligraphy would look at their calligraphy and choose whoever handwriting they liked. Because they were from the same village, no one dared to accept the money. However, the villagers would still take two eggs or some biscuits and sweets as payment for the person who wrote the couplet. However, they had to pay for the red paper themselves. Writing the couplets were concentrated in the past two days, and there were more than 200 families in the village. Besides those who had to do housecleaning and prepare for the New Year¡¯s meal, the others joined in the fun. Yao Nian knew how to write calligraphy, so when he found out about this, he also participated in writing couplets. How could he miss the chance to show off his talent?! Yu Bing and Jiang Chun took two eggs and a handful of candy and red paper to the rice field. When Yu Bing saw Yao Nian, she skipped over him. As the saying went, words were reflective of a person. Yao Nian¡¯s handwriting was indeed not bad, but after recognizing his true colors, she could only say that he was very superficial. Even the words he wrote were as hypocritical as him. When Yu Bing arrived, many people greeted her. Yao Nian naturally knew and was especially attentive when writing. Even his posture was better than before. He hoped that Yu Bing would take a fancy to his handwriting and take the initiative to ask him to write it. This way, he could salvage his image. Unexpectedly, Yu Bing chose someone else without even looking at him. Although Yao Nian tried his best to control his anger, he still accidentally wrote a word wrong. Fortunately, everyone would have two extra sets of red paper to write their couplets. Yao Nian looked at the new red paper that had just been laid out. He paused for a few seconds before he composed himself and started writing again. When the people around them saw this, they looked at the two of them with curiosity. Yu Bing was indifferent. She left after the person finished writing the couplets. Yao Nian felt uncomfortable because he still had to stay there. Yu Yan was also here to join in the fun. After seeing this situation, she felt a little ambivalent. She had a good impression of Yao Nian, but if Yu Bing didn¡¯t like Yao Nian at all, then what was the point of her doing all this? Yu Yan stayed for a while before returning to the dormitory. She had to think about how to deal with Yu Bing next. After Yu Bing and Jiang Chun returned home, they started to paste the couplets. They even specifically cut the paper into squares and let the young man who wrote the couplets write the word ¡°fortune¡± on the courtyard door twice. After the small courtyard was pasted with red couplets and the word ¡®fortune¡¯, the atmosphere instantly became lively! Yu Bing felt a little emotional that time had flown by so fast. Half a year felt like it had passed in the blink of an eye, unlike her previous life, where she was trapped in the fields and dormitory every day. At that time, every day felt like a year to her. Yu Bing was quite satisfied with herself when she thought about how she had done many meaningful things, such as going out and getting to know a lot of people, and working on the village¡¯s ecological industry chain. Her rebirth couldn¡¯t be for the sake of revenge. Revenge was just someone she would do in passing. She had to fill this life with excitement that was absent in her previous life! After the two of them cleaned up the house, they ate a simple dinner at night. After all, tomorrow was the day of the feast. Chapter 111 - Fellowship 1 Early on the morning of New Year¡¯s Eve, the two team leaders of the intellectual team specifically came to inform Yu Bing and Jiang Chun that every New Year¡¯s Eve, the young people would hold a party in the dormitory building. The two of them had just arrived this year and they were afraid that they didn¡¯t know, so they specifically came over to invite the two of them to participate. In her previous life, because of her poor health, she had gone to bed early today. Now that she had recuperated for half a year and had caught up in terms of nutrition, she wasn¡¯t affected by occasionally staying up late. Yu Bing agreed happily. As soon as the two team leaders left, Wu Jin came to the door. ¡°Yu Bing, there¡¯s a gala for young people every year on this day. I was wondering if there could be a change this year. The villagers and the young people can hold one together!¡± ¡°I¡¯ve discovered that there are always invisible barriers between intellectuals and the villagers. If there can be such a social event, it might be very useful in breaking the barriers and integrating the two sides.¡± Yu Bing had actually discovered this problem too. After all, when everyone came to the desolate countryside from a prosperous city, they would subconsciously feel superior. They felt that they were educated and knowledgeable, so when interacting with the villagers, they would have a slightly condescending attitude. Yu Bing lowered her eyes for a moment and thought for a moment before saying, ¡°Village Chief, I think this is very feasible. I¡¯ll communicate with them later. Moreover, we can make it a little grander. After all, this is the first time!¡± Wu Jin raised his eyebrows and asked expectantly, ¡°What new ideas do you have?¡± In Wu Jin¡¯s heart, Yu Bing was a very thoughtful and knowledgeable intellectual. She often came up with new ideas unexpectedly, so every time Yu Bing had an idea or suggestion, he would always look forward to hearing it. Yu Bing smiled. ¡°It¡¯s not a new idea. I just want two people from both sides to come out and create a show together.¡± Wu Jin nodded in agreement. ¡°That¡¯s a good idea. It¡¯s best if we choose people with influence on both sides!¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she stared at Wu Jin expectantly. When Wu Jin saw this, his expression froze. Seeing the meaning in Yu Bing¡¯s eyes, he waved his hand repeatedly. He didn¡¯t hesitate when dealing with enemies, but he couldn¡¯t bring himself to go up on stage to perform. Yu Bing continued to persuade him, ¡°Village Chief, you¡¯re the most influential person in the village. I plan to go up on stage to perform as well. Just follow my lead! I¡¯ve already thought of the content of the show. We¡¯ll act out a skit. You won¡¯t have to sing or dance.¡± ¡°You suggested this first. You have to set an example!¡± Wu Jin could only agree helplessly and comfort himself that it was just a skit. At least he didn¡¯t have to dance around in front of the entire villagers. Yu Bing pursed her lips and chuckled. ¡°I still lack a young boy for this skit. Remember to look for one.¡± Wu Jin sighed. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go announce it first and inform everyone. Let¡¯s set it at seven in the evening. At that time, everyone will be free after dinner.¡± Yu Bing added, ¡°You¡¯d better get the cadres to mobilize every family and get some prizes. Otherwise, I¡¯m afraid that if the villagers don¡¯t perform enthusiastically, with just the young people¡¯s performance, the meaning of us organizing this event will be lost.¡± After they discussed it, Wu Jin went to broadcast. As soon as the news was out, the villagers immediately became more enthusiastic. Putting aside the prizes, there were no entertainment programs in this era. Entertainment was slightly better in the city, but in the village, they would just eat and chat at home. Now that there was a program to watch, everyone worked much faster when preparing for the New Year¡¯s Eve dinner. Wu Jin finally pulled the accountant Mr. Wei over. Mr. Wei was popular in the village and had some influence. Yu Bing pulled the female youth team leader, Tian Jing, over. Tian Jing had come to the village to support the construction when she was 16 years old. She was already 23 years old. She was young but experienced and was very popular among the female youths. Yu Bing spent half an hour editing a skit from the future in her past life. As she raed the finished script, Yu Bing silently apologized to the original author for plagiarizing. The four of them rehearsed in the village committee¡¯s office. Yu Bing had condensed the original work into a skit that lasted less than ten minutes, so there weren¡¯t many lines. It took everyone half a day to finish rehearsing. They usually ate dinner early on New Year¡¯s Eve. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun finished eating just after five o¡¯clock. Thinking about tonight¡¯s performance, Yu Bing suddenly thought of how Xiao Li always stayed at home to work alone. After thinking about it, Yu Bing took two ropes and went to the Xiao family¡¯s house. The Xiao family was already done eating. Xiao Li had just taken a shower and was about to finish weaving the bamboo mat in her hand before watching the performance. No, it was more accurate to say that she would listen to the performance. Chapter 112 - Encouragement After Yu Bing entered and greeted everyone, she walked towards Xiao Li. ¡°Xiao Li, did you sign up for the performance?¡± Xiao Li opened her unfocused eyes and shook her head in disappointment. Then, she smiled. ¡°I can¡¯t see, so I can¡¯t participate.¡± Yu Bing sat beside Xiao Li and said casually, ¡°Then if there¡¯s a chance for you to perform a show, what do you want to perform?¡± Xiao Li replied seriously, ¡°Sing.¡± Yu Bing reached out and touched Xiao Li¡¯s hair. ¡°Being blind doesn¡¯t affect your singing. You can also sign up.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this, he looked at the two of them with mixed feelings. He hoped that Xiao Li could show off more, but he was also worried that Xiao Li would hear those malicious words if she was exposed to everyone. Xiao Li might have also thought of those people¡¯s malicious words. Her smile faded slightly and she said timidly, ¡°I think it¡¯s better for me not to participate.¡± Misfortune specialized in finding the unlucky. But no matter what, one had to refuse to submit first before one could overcome fate. Yu Bing sighed to herself and encouraged, ¡°Xiao Li, a great person once said that the path is winding, but the future is bright. This applies to the country and individuals. You have to move forward firmly at all times. Don¡¯t care what others say. You should learn to resist those injustices.¡± Xiao Li lowered her eyes and said, ¡°Is resistance useful?¡± Yu Bing thought for a moment and replied, ¡°Resistance might be useful, or not, but resistance can serve as a wakeup call for many people and let them see you and your attitude. Perhaps some people will still feel disdain, but some people will change their minds because of this. At that time, it will become useful. Where there is oppression, there is resistance.¡± Xiao Li hadn¡¯t gone out for many years, and no one would come to the Xiao family¡¯s house. Previously, when she went out, her brother would accompany her. The Xiao family was like a shield to Xiao Li. Her sense of security was only in this small world. However, apart from safety, this world couldn¡¯t give her anything else. She didn¡¯t have the innocence that she should have at this age. She could only see the suffering that her blindness brought her. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t have the recklessness of a youth, but he still had the temperament of a youth. He still fought against the injustice of this world and never gave up. When Xiao Li heard this, she pursed her lips and tightened her grip on the bamboo basket. Seeing this, Yu Bing continued, ¡°Of course, the relationship between you children isn¡¯t something as exaggerated as oppression, but they¡¯re still displaying malice towards you. It¡¯s not your fault that you can¡¯t see, nor is it an excuse for them to bully you. Young people should be hot-blooded and unwilling to be subdued by any force. I hope you can resist and fight. You have to understand the importance of resistance and learn to grow. Everyone has to learn to take brave steps forward and not give up on themselves!¡± Xiao Li was silent. Xiao Sheng stopped working, as if he was waiting for something. It was very quiet. After a while, Xiao Li looked up and said quietly, ¡°Sister Yu Bing, I want to try singing¡­¡± Yu Bing held Xiao Li¡¯s hand and said firmly, ¡°Alright! Then sing.¡± Xiao Sheng had a complicated expression but didn¡¯t say anything. He lowered his head and continued working. Yu Bing said gently with a smile, ¡°You have to dress up well to perform on stage.¡± Xiao Li¡¯s hair hung in front of her chest. When she was young, Xiao Sheng would only comb it like this. When she grew up, Xiao Li naturally inherited Xiao Sheng¡¯s skills. Yu Bing did a princess-style shawl braid, which was from the future, for Xiao Li. These days, girls basically had ponytails, braids, or short hair. When Xiao Li appeared at the rice field, the little girls were immediately attracted to her and chattered about their hair. After knowing that it was Yu Bing¡¯s work, everyone continued to stare at the braid as they tried to figure out how to braid it. There were also some who wanted to bully Xiao Li for not being able to see, and tried to grab her braid directly, but they were glared at by Xiao Lin. The other girls also stood up for Xiao Li. Wang Xia even wanted to beat those people up. Xiao Li hadn¡¯t interacted with so many people for several years and was a little nervous, but with Wang Xia and Xiao Lin protecting her, she naturally wouldn¡¯t be bullied. Chapter 113 - Revealing Her True Thoughts Yu Bing was also silently paying attention. Although there were people with ill intentions around Xiao Li, there was no lack of kind-hearted girls. Seeing that Xiao Li slowly relaxed, Yu Bing began to ask about the various matters concerning the gala. The hosts were a man and a woman. In the past, these two people were paired up the most often. They could be considered tacit partners. The male intellectual team leader, Wen Jiang, collected and registered the program schedule for the intellectuals. The villagers were registered by the female director, Zhao Lin. Because there were prizes this year, the intellectuals registered much more enthusiastically than in previous years. Before the gala began, many villagers also ran forward to register after initially hesitating. It started at seven o¡¯clock sharp. Most of the intellectual youths were performing artsy things like singing, dancing, memorizing poems, and performing comedies. The villagers had a lot of tricks up their sleeves. They danced, sang, played suona, cut paper, and performed military boxing. There was also an old man who pretended to break a big rock with his chest! It was said that before the new regime was established, he had learned street tricks to earn money. As for the other sixty-year-old man, he was a martial artist. He had grown up in Shaolin Temple and had only renounced asceticism more than ten years ago. He could chop stones with one hand. It was said that two fingers were enough. Now, he didn¡¯t exercise enough, so his martial arts skills had weakened. There was also a middle-aged woman who could stack ten different items on top of each other, such as bowls, chopsticks, small sugar jars, and a series of small items one on top of another. She could keep them from falling through the balance between the contact point of the items. The knowledgeable youths all lamented at the fact that although the villagers weren¡¯t as knowledgeable as them, everyone had something they were good at. They couldn¡¯t do what others could either. Compared to everyone¡¯s brilliant talent shows, the purpose of Yu Bing¡¯s program was that everyone could have a moment of relaxation and joy after a year of hard work. Yu Bing¡¯s show was scheduled for the second half, and it was the only skit show. This skit might not be tonight¡¯s best show, but some funny jokes did make everyone laugh and alleviate much of the fatigue and tension everyone felt in their daily lives. In the end, everyone voted for the top three. Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect to be nominated as the first place. The dragon and lion dance team got second place. Because it was the new year, this show had a festive theme. The old man who performed a one-handed handstand got third place! At the end of the party, everyone sang a festive song together at Yu Bing¡¯s suggestion. The song praised their motherland. Every morning, and before work started in the afternoon, the radio station would play this type of song for a while. Everyone knew how to sing it. With everyone singing, the party reached its final climax and ended at almost half past eleven in the evening. Whether it was the villagers or the knowledgeable youths, they all mingled together and chatted as they walked towards the village. They returned to their respective homes and waited for midnight. Yu Bing, Jiang Chun, and the three Xiao siblings walked at the back of the group. Xiao Li was very excited. She had sung a children¡¯s song tonight. Wang Xia had taught her this song at school! After she finished singing, she heard many people clapping. Although everyone was clapping enthusiastically no matter what show it was, Xiao Li still felt very excited. Xiao Li was very excited. She had sung a children¡¯s song tonight. Wang Xia had taught her this after she learned it in school! After she finished singing, she heard many people clapping. Although everyone clapped enthusiastically no matter what show it was, Xiao Li still felt very excited. When they passed by Yu Bing¡¯s house, Xiao Sheng said, ¡°Xiao Lin, bring our sister home first.¡± Seeing this, Jiang Chun guessed that Xiao Sheng had something to do with Yu Bing, so she entered the house alone. Yu Bing looked at Xiao Sheng blankly. Xiao Sheng said to Yu Bing, ¡°Thank you for tonight!¡± Yu Bing raised her eyebrows and asked, ¡°About letting Xiao Li perform on stage?¡± Xiao Sheng smiled faintly. ¡°Thank you for that too.¡± Then, his smile faded and he continued, ¡°My sister used to go out when she was young. Once, when I went out to work, Xiao Lin wanted to go out to play while our sister was asleep. When my sister woke up, she couldn¡¯t find anyone. When my sister heard the sound of children playing outside the door, she climbed out to play with them, and then¡­¡± Xiao Sheng stopped. Yu Bing didn¡¯t interrupt and waited silently. Xiao Sheng continued after a while, ¡°When I got home, my sister was sitting at the door, crying so hard that she was twitching. Her face was covered in blood. From then on, I didn¡¯t let her go out, and she didn¡¯t want to go out again. It¡¯s been three years. Seeing how happy she was tonight, I suddenly didn¡¯t know if what I did was right or wrong.¡± 1 Chapter 114 - Happy New Year Yu Bing thought of the three-centimeter scar on Xiao Li¡¯s forehead when she helped her comb her hair. Yu Bing understood Xiao Sheng¡¯s actions, so she slowly said, ¡°In the past, she was still young and didn¡¯t have the ability to protect herself. It¡¯s normal for you to be worried about her and not let her out. But now that Xiao Li has slowly grown up, she has to come into contact with society. Take things slow.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded and then mentioned in embarrassment, ¡°I want to ask you for a favor.¡± Yu Bing looked over in confusion. ¡°Tell me.¡± Xiao Sheng said carefully, ¡°You have a high education level. I want to ask you to come to my house to tutor my sister when you¡¯re free. She can¡¯t see, so the schools won¡¯t accept her. I can only teach her some elementary school literature and poems. I don¡¯t know how to teach her the rest.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard Yu Bing¡¯s words tonight, he felt that if Xiao Li could learn from Yu Bing, her level of knowledge and horizons would definitely be impressive in the future. Therefore, after hesitating for the entire night, he still made this presumptuous request. Yu Bing liked Xiao Li very much, so she agreed. ¡°No problem. I might not be able to go to your house every day, but I¡¯ll go over when I¡¯m free!¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s smile widened. ¡°Yu Bing! Thank you so much!¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°You¡¯re welcome. I like Xiao Li very much and am willing to teach her.¡± 1 As soon as she finished speaking, firecrackers sounded outside. This meant that it was already past midnight and the new year had arrived. Every family in the village went out to light the firecrackers. Lighting firecrackers meant exorcism and eliminating calamity. It also meant that the old would be eliminated and the new would be welcomed. It represented people¡¯s expectations for a good life in the new year. Every year, at this time, the festive atmosphere unique to the Spring Festival became even stronger. Xiao Sheng looked at the light emitted by the firecrackers in the village and turned to look at Yu Bing. ¡°Happy New Year!¡± Yu Bing looked at Xiao Sheng with a smile. ¡°Happy New Year!¡± She didn¡¯t expect her first New Year after her rebirth to be spent with Xiao Sheng. Feng Cai, who had returned to City H, was also very busy. He returned home at about noon in December. The Feng family lived in a building of a mechanical factory. The house was 50 square meters with two rooms and a hall, but Feng Cai¡¯s family of eight lived in it. Feng Cai hadn¡¯t been home for the new year for two years. He felt mixed emotions as he looked at the familiar door in front of him and raised his hand to knock. The person who opened the door was Grandma Feng. At 70 years old, she was still quite healthy. Her white hair was combed back neatly. ¡°Grandma!¡± Feng Cai shouted happily. When Grandma Feng saw Feng Cai, she wiped her tears excitedly. ¡°You¡¯re back! Hurry up and let me take a look.¡± She held Feng Cai¡¯s hand at the door and kept looking up and down. Then, she said in a choked voice sadly, ¡°You¡¯ve lost weight again!¡± When Feng Cai¡¯s sister-in-law heard the voice, she put down the spatula in her hand and walked out. ¡°Fourth Brother is back! Grandma, let Fourth Brother in first. It¡¯s cold outside. Let¡¯s go back to the house to talk.¡± Feng Cai quickly greeted his sister-in-law. Only then did Grandma Feng come back to her senses and pull Feng Cai into the house. When Feng Cai reached home, he realized that only Grandma Feng, his younger brother, and his sister-in-law were at home. As soon as they entered the house, Feng Cai¡¯s sister-in-law asked her son, Feng An, to call for them. Feng An shouted in a childish voice, ¡°Fourth Uncle.¡± After Feng Cai agreed happily, he gently pinched Feng An¡¯s little face. Because the school was on break during the new year, when the kid at home saw his fourth brother, Feng Cai, he casually greeted him, then ignored him. Feng Cai couldn¡¯t be bothered. He only looked around the house carefully. He hadn¡¯t been back for a few years, but the house hadn¡¯t changed much. There was a bed on both sides of the window. His eldest brother¡¯s family of three lived on one side, and his two sisters lived on the other side. There was a cloth curtain around the bed, so there were two rooms. As for the two bedrooms at home, one was where Grandma Feng lived, and the other was where Mr. and Mrs. Feng lived. Feng Xian slept in a small bed in his parents¡¯ room. As he only came back once every few years, he temporarily squeezed into the lower bunk of the shelf bed that the three of them slept in. His sister-in-law and his nephew slept on the upper bunk. When Feng Cai saw this, he felt a little baffled. Why was this bed still here after his two sisters got married? He looked at his sister-in-law and asked curiously, ¡°Sister-in-law, why is this bed still here?¡± Chapter 115 - Feng Family After Feng Cai was born, Mrs. Feng¡¯s health began to deteriorate. Feng Cai could be said to have been brought up by Grandma Feng. Their relationship was very intimate. Grandma Feng¡¯s smile froze. She lowered her head and didn¡¯t dare to tell Feng Cai. Others always said that she was biased towards Feng Cai, but he was also the most filial. Grandma Feng was worried that if Feng Cai found out about this, Feng Cai would make a fuss. However, she didn¡¯t want to see her son in a difficult position. However, there was no point in concealing the truth. Feng Cai¡¯s sister-in-law sighed and said honestly, ¡°Grandma sleeps here now.¡± When Feng Cai saw this, he understood everything! He punched the desk in the living room, startling Feng Xian, who quickly ran out the door. Feng Cai turned to look at his sister-in-law and asked solemnly, ¡°How are the rooms allocated now?¡± Feng Cai¡¯s sister-in-law glanced at Feng Cai, then slowly explained the situation at home. Grandma Feng¡¯s original room was now occupied by his younger brother, Feng Xian. Grandma Feng had moved to the hall and lived under the shelf bed where his two sisters used to sleep. On the other side, the shelf bed still belonged to his brother and his family. When Feng Cai heard this, he sneered. ¡°Looks like that woman isn¡¯t pretending anymore! Is Feng Xian, a junior, older than Grandma? In my father¡¯s eyes, your family of three isn¡¯t as important as Feng Xian? No, it should be said that all of us aren¡¯t as important as him.¡± The current Mrs. Feng wasn¡¯t Feng Cai¡¯s biological mother. Feng Cai¡¯s biological mother had died when he was six years old. The next year, Mr. Feng was introduced to Lin Lin, who was two years younger than him, and she became his wife. Lin Lin¡¯s husband died and she married over with her two daughters. She only gave birth to Feng Xian later on. Chapter 116 - Mr. Feng At this moment, the door was pushed open and Mr. Feng returned. Because Feng Cai didn¡¯t greet him in advance when he returned home, Mr. Feng was very surprised to see him. Then, a trace of surprise flashed across his eyes. Then, he immediately suppressed the smile on his face and returned to his usual serious expression. He said calmly, ¡°You¡¯re back.¡± Because of their conservative upbringing, people in this era were always very reserved when it came to expressing their love, in order to maintain their parental authority in front of their children. Feng Cai hadn¡¯t been home for two years. Seeing Mr. Feng¡¯s usual serious attitude towards him, he was a little disappointed. ¡°Dad.¡± Mr. Feng nodded and said in a low voice, ¡°I didn¡¯t know you were coming back today. I¡¯ll go buy some more groceries.¡± With that, he turned around and left. Before long, Lin Lin returned with Feng Xian. Because of Feng Xian¡¯s tip-off, she already knew that Feng Cai was at home in advance. As soon as she entered, she smiled and said, ¡°You¡¯re back for the new year. The house will be lively this year!¡± After so many years of practice, Feng Cai had also learned how to maintain pretenses. Moreover, when dealing with someone like Lin Lin, he had to be better at pretending than her . Therefore, Feng Cai also smiled and replied, ¡°Yes, I haven¡¯t been home for a long time. I¡¯m back to visit everyone this year.¡± The two of them smiled and exchanged a few pleasantries before Lin Lin entered the kitchen. Because of Feng Cai¡¯s arrival, Feng Cai¡¯s sister-in-law hadn¡¯t finished cooking the dishes. Feng Yu worked far away and ate in the office canteen at noon. Therefore, after the dishes were ready, they were served on the table. When Mr. Feng returned home with the groceries, he saw the dishes on the table and smiled. ¡°I thought there weren¡¯t enough dishes, so I specifically went downstairs to buy some ready-made dishes.¡± Lin Lin smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s all because my son ran to inform me when he saw that his second brother was back. I went to the market to buy a fish before I went home.¡± Mr. Feng nodded in satisfaction. ¡°You¡¯re the one who dotes on him the most!¡± Feng Cai sneered to himself. All these years, what he admired the most was Lin Lin¡¯s efficiency. Everyone began to eat. Mr. Feng asked in confusion, ¡°Did your brother apply for your leave?¡± When Feng Cai first went to the countryside, Mr. Feng used his connections to apply for leave for him every year. However, after the application was approved, he would let Feng Yu send it in his own name. Feng Yu wasn¡¯t allowed to mention his name. However, because Feng Cai went with resentment, he refused to go home for the first two years. It wasn¡¯t until the third year after his nephew was born that Feng Cai thought of going home for the new year. However, when he left, the father and son fell out again. In a fit of anger, Mr. Feng didn¡¯t look for any of his connections for this matter for the past two years, so Feng Cai thought that Feng Yu had found someone to do it behind his back. Feng Cai didn¡¯t hide the fact that he needed Mr. Feng¡¯s help this time. ¡°We have a factory in the village and need the machines in the factory, so the village chief approved the application.¡± Mr. Feng asked with concern, ¡°You¡¯re working in the factory now?¡± Lin Lin stopped chewing and secretly pricked up her ears to listen carefully. Feng Cai replied, ¡°The factory will open after the new year. I came back to look at the equipment first.¡± Mr. Feng revealed a gratified expression. ¡°Looks like you did well in the village. See, I was right to send you there! If I had stayed in the city and slacked off like you did in the past, you wouldn¡¯t have become so capable!¡± Feng Cai tightened his grip on his chopsticks. His originally relaxed expression became a little stiff. He didn¡¯t speak, but Mr. Feng didn¡¯t notice. He was still smug about the decision he had made. Seeing this, Lin Lin lowered her head and ate to hide her joy. Grandma Feng knew that this was a source of sadness to Feng Cai. Unfortunately, Mr. Feng didn¡¯t notice it at all. Grandma Feng looked at Feng Cai nervously, afraid that the family would start arguing. Feng Cai was no longer the impulsive 17-year-old from back then. A self-deprecating smile appeared on his face. That¡¯s right. He had the image of being a good-for-nothing. Although he had been mischievous since he was young, he never denied what he had done. After the money theft incident that Lin Lin had planned back then, as long as he and Lin Lin went against each other, Lin Lin would believe all of Lin Lin¡¯s slander towards him. To Feng Cai, his father¡¯s distrust was the reason he felt hurt. Chapter 117 - Parting On Bad Terms Feng Cai took the initiative to mention Grandma Feng¡¯s living situation. Mr. Feng also felt very guilty about this. The house was small. Lin Lin took out the hospital certificate of her son¡¯s mental illness and said that she wanted her youngest son to stay in a room. At first, he refused, but Lin Lin cried beside him every night. He had seen Lin Lin¡¯s contributions to the family over the years and she rarely made requests. This time, her request wasn¡¯t for herself, but for Feng Xian. That was why he had shamelessly looked for Grandma Feng. Therefore, in the face of Feng Cai¡¯s question, Mr. Feng could only explain this helplessly. Feng Cai suspected that Lin Lin had gotten someone to write a fake certificate, but the investigation would take time. He only had a few days of leave, so it was impossible for him to investigate it clearly. Hence, he said, ¡°Dad, why don¡¯t you give up some space in your room or brother¡¯s room? Grandma is old. If she doesn¡¯t rest well, she might suffer from mental problems too!¡± Mr. Feng had also thought of this problem, but Lin Lin said that the doctor had mentioned that the room was too small and could make people depressed, so Mr. Feng gave up. When Feng Cai heard this, he felt that Lin Lin was playing tricks, so he said calmly, ¡°He just sleeps in the room and is usually in the living room. How depressed can he get?¡± A hint of ruthlessness flashed across Lin Lin¡¯s eyes, but she couldn¡¯t refute this, so she could only lower her head and remain silent. Mr. Feng, who was already feeling guilty, was persuaded by Feng Cai. He decided to give Grandma Feng another room. When Feng Yu returned at night, the two brothers chatted happily. When Lin Lin went out to visit and Feng Xian looked for his friends to play, Feng Cai told Mr. Feng, who was sitting on the sofa while reading the newspaper, that he wanted to buy equipment on credit. Before Feng Cai could finish saying that he had to get this done before he could join the factory, Mr. Feng became angry. Mr. Feng had a straightforward personality and he was righteous. He felt that this harmed the interests of the factory. ¡°Nonsense! They want to get equipment without paying a single cent? He Mountain Brigade is so far away from the city. Who can guarantee that they will be able to repay the money?! When can they pay it off?!¡± Feng Cai promised Mr. Feng, ¡°I¡¯m also in the village. I promise that I¡¯ll help the machinery factory keep an eye on this debt and make the village pay it back!¡± Mr. Feng looked distrustful. ¡°That¡¯s easy to say. Who doesn¡¯t have a good attitude when they borrow on credit? But when you chase after them to pay back the money, their attitude will be much different! Let me warn you, don¡¯t use my status in your factory to make promises.¡± Feng Cai said anxiously, ¡°Dad, this is very important to me! If the village doesn¡¯t pay it back, I¡¯ll use all the money I earn in the future to pay off the debt. Believe me, okay?!¡± Feng Cai didn¡¯t believe in factories that had yet to be opened, but he believed in Wu Jin¡¯s character. Feng Cai had been in the village for so many years and had long heard of the Wu family¡¯s deeds. Wu Jin had personally approved of using this machine for production. Even if the factory wasn¡¯t built, he believed that Wu Jin definitely wouldn¡¯t go back on his word. However, Mr. Feng didn¡¯t understand this. When he heard that Feng Cai planned to sacrifice himself for the village¡¯s factory, he felt that Feng Cai¡¯s idea was unacceptable. Hence, he said without thinking, ¡°You overestimate yourself! Don¡¯t you know how much a machine costs? Let me tell you, you don¡¯t have that much credibility with me. Give up!¡± On the first night Feng Cai returned, the father and son parted on bad terms. Feng Yu also felt that Feng Cai¡¯s guarantee was unreliable. He secretly pulled Feng Cai to the courtyard downstairs to dissuade him. Only then did Feng Cai have the chance to tell him about the factory. He also told him about the situation in the village and the village chief¡¯s character. He also told him the plan that he hadn¡¯t had the chance to reveal just now. Only then did Feng Yu realize that Feng Cai had really matured. He looked at his brother in relief. ¡°I¡¯ll talk to Dad again. He¡¯s afraid that you¡¯re being too impulsive. If he hears this, I believe he¡¯ll agree to help you talk to the factory.¡± Feng Cai¡¯s emotions, which had finally calmed down, began to fluctuate again. He said to Feng Yu angrily, ¡°Don¡¯t tell him! It¡¯s fine if he doesn¡¯t believe me. Anyway, I¡¯m a liar in his eyes. I won¡¯t beg him! I¡¯ll think of something myself. Brother, don¡¯t worry about this.¡± With that, he turned around and left. Feng Cai planned to look for his friends to see if he could get it done. He had to settle this! Chapter 118 - Receiving Red Packets On the morning of the first day of the new year, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun were woken up by the sound of firecrackers in the village. After getting up, the two of them washed up and also set off a string of firecrackers at the door before opening the courtyard door. At this time, the firecrackers were different from yesterday¡¯s. Setting off firecrackers on the first day of the new year were a way to pray that everything would go smoothly this year, that the farmers would have abundant grains, and also herald the arrival of new spring, when everything would be full of vitality. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun put the pastries, candy biscuits, and the dates that Xiao Lin had specifically picked in the mountains a few days ago into the bamboo basket. If anyone came to visit, they had to offer these snacks as refreshments. It was a tradition to visit relatives and friends during the new year. Yu Bing carried the two portions of sachima and egg cake, jam, vegetables, sweet potatoes, and so on, and headed to the Song family to pay New Year greetings. The entire Song family was present. Yu Bing greeted everyone with a smile. At this moment, the little baby was already six months old and slightly chubby. Yu Bing took out the red packet from her coat pocket and stuffed it into his pocket. Mrs. Song watched as Yu Bing carried so many things and scolded, ¡°You¡¯re spending money again! This sachima is expensive. The last time I went to the county city, I saw someone selling it. When I asked the price of the luxurious version, it was 1.85 yuan a catty! Also, these jam are not cheap either.¡± Song Li and Wang Yun were also a little speechless when they heard the price. Yu Bing had raised the price by at least two catties. In the commune, everyone¡¯s New Year¡¯s gift usually didn¡¯t exceed one yuan. Yu Bing¡¯s gift cost five yuan. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t say that she had made these things herself, or else the fact that she was doing business in the black market would be exposed. She could only smile and wheedle. ¡°Isn¡¯t this the first time I came to visit? I have to go all out. Besides, there¡¯s only one Spring Festival a year. I won¡¯t buy it next time!¡± ¡°I won¡¯t buy it next time, but I¡¯ll make it again,¡± Yu Bingxin thought to herself. Yu Bing brushed over the matter and changed the topic. Then, Mrs. Song took out the red packet she had prepared and handed it over. Yu Bing quickly refused. ¡°I¡¯m already part of the workforce. I¡¯ll be laughed at if I accept red packets.¡± President Song said with a straight face, ¡°Don¡¯t refuse a gift from an elder! Besides, you¡¯re not married yet. Take it.¡± Song Li teased, ¡°Yu Bing, you have to accept it. I¡¯m the same age as you. If you don¡¯t accept my parents¡¯ gift, they might not give it to me next year!¡± At this moment, Wang Yun also took out a red packet and said with a smile, ¡°That¡¯s right. If don¡¯t accept our parents¡¯ gift, we won¡¯t be able to give this red packet away! Take it. We¡¯re all family. It¡¯s our family¡¯s tradition to be children before we¡¯re married.¡± Song Hui also said, ¡°I¡¯ll testify to this. I kept getting red packets until the year I got married. If you don¡¯t take it, my parents will ask me to return the red packets from those years. I¡¯ll find trouble with you if that happens.¡± Yu Bing felt touched when she saw everyone laughing and teasing her. Her eyes turned red. ¡°Alright, I won¡¯t stand on ceremony then.¡± As she spoke, she carefully placed the red packet in the inner pocket of her cotton shirt. For so many years, only her grandmother would give her red packets when she was still alive. Her parents only gave red packets to Yu Pan and Yu Wu. She was already used to this kind of differential treatment. After Song Li and Wang Yun became familiar with Yu Bing, they could tell that Yu Bing had a hard time in her family. Therefore, every time Yu Bing came, the Song family would treat her like family. They hoped that this kind and capable girl could feel the warmth of a family too. After Yu Bing chatted with Mrs. Song and President Song for a while, Wang Yun and Song Li pulled Yu Bing into the room and the three of them whispered to each other. Song Li had been feeling very troubled about deciding what job she wanted to do recently. Director Song wanted to find her a job at the supply and marketing club, but she felt that it was boring to work at the supply and marketing club. It usually wasn¡¯t very busy there, except on market days and holidays. Song Li pursed her lips and said, ¡°I feel that that job is just about knitting while gossiping. I don¡¯t have the patience to listen to that!¡± Wang Yun burst out laughing. ¡°You don¡¯t know how lucky you are. This job that many people consider a dream job is actually so worthless in your eyes.¡± Indeed, it was good to be able to do their own family¡¯s work while chatting, and get a salary. This was also why many people felt that working in the supply and marketing club was a good job. Even Yu Bing wanted to live such a life, but no one doted on her or planned for her. From her previous life until now, she knew that she could only rely on herself, so she didn¡¯t dare to slack off and could only force herself to become stronger. Chapter 119 - Meaningful 119 Meaningful Every time her parents received benefits from her, they would be much more amiable to her than usual. In her previous life, because she craved this trace of warmth, she worked hard to earn money, putting her already fragile body under more stress. However, when she was lying in bed with cancer, instead of her family¡¯s concern, what she received was their anticipation to divide her inheritance after her death! Therefore, she was used to being busy. Only by being busy could she feel at ease. Yu Bing looked at Song Li and asked seriously, ¡°Then what do you like?¡± Song Li tilted her head and thought about it for a long time. ¡°I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anything I like in particular.¡± In the past, she had gone to school every day and didn¡¯t have to think about anything. Now that she was suddenly asked this question after graduation, she felt a little lost. Yu Bing asked again, ¡°Then if you don¡¯t want to be too idle, do you want to be very busy?¡± Song Li was stunned for a moment. Then, she frowned and replied, ¡°No, I just want to find something meaningful to do.¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°Every job has meaning, but it depends on what kind of purpose you want to pursue. Although working in the supply and marketing club is very idle, the purpose of this job is to let everyone buy things. For example, the cleaners. Their existence allows us to live in a clean and tidy environment. There are also teachers, doctors, and police officers. The purposes of these jobs are to teach, save lives, and uphold justice.¡± When Wang Yun heard this, she agreed. ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯re right. Whether it¡¯s a big or small job, as long as you do it well, you¡¯ll be serving the people and contributing to society. It just depends on which position you want to contribute through.¡± After hearing Yu Bing and Wang Yun¡¯s words, Song Li felt that her future plan was much clearer. ¡°Then I want to become a doctor! Although other jobs are also meaningful, saving lives makes me feel more accomplished!¡± In the end, Song Li told President Song her thoughts. President Song looked at Song Li with relief. Out of a parent¡¯s love for his children, President Song definitely wanted her to choose a job that was high-paying yet easy, and closer to home. Studying medicine was very demanding, but he was happy to see Song Li learn to be independent. After all, one¡¯s life was one¡¯s own. The company of one¡¯s parents only lasted for a phase. One had to rely on oneself to explore one¡¯s path in life. Because Wang Yun had acknowledged Yu Bing as her godsister, Yu Bing definitely couldn¡¯t forget to give the Wang family a New Year¡¯s gift. According to tradition, the second day of the Chinese New Year was when a married daughter returned to her house to pay her respects. If she returned on the first day of the Chinese New Year, it would be inauspicious. Although the establishment of the new regime dispelled this feudal superstition, most people still chose to return the next day as usual. However, the Wang family was a little special. After Wang Yun¡¯s mother passed away, her father didn¡¯t remarry. Every year, the number of relatives who came to visit the house was the highest during these two days. The two men, her father and brother, were too busy at home, so Wang Yun would go back to help during the day on the first and second day of the Spring Festival every year. This year, Wang Yun specifically came to the Song family¡¯s house to set off together. Yu Bing came early. After more than an hour, friends and family of the Song family began to come one after another. Seeing this, Yu Bing said goodbye to the Song family and left first. The Song family packed many local specialties and candy biscuits for Yu Bing and even stuffed a can of malted milk. Malted milk was a precious nutritious product in this era. It could be seen how much the Song family cared about Yu Bing. Yu Bing came with a pile of New Year gifts and left with a pile of gifts. Wang Yun rode her bicycle back to the Wang family¡¯s house. The guests of the Wang family had already arrived. There were two groups of guests. One was an uncle from the countryside who had brought his wife and children to see Wang Yun¡¯s father, Wang Qing. The other family was Wang Qing¡¯s subordinate¡¯s. When Wang Yun saw her aunt, she frowned imperceptibly. Then, she led Yu Bing into the house to introduce him. Yu Bing greeted everyone gregariously. The gift Yu Bing brought was the same as the one she gave the Song family. Because of Yu Bing and Wang Yun¡¯s relationship, logically speaking, the New Year¡¯s gift for the Wang family should be more important than the Song family¡¯s. In addition, Wang Wei had helped her secure the loan from the bank previously, but Yu Bing and the Song family interacted more frequently. After weighing the pros and cons, Yu Bing finally decided to prepare according to the same standards. Yu Bing took this opportunity to thank Wang Wei. The two of them spoke alone on the balcony. In the Wang family¡¯s kitchen. Wang Yun was preparing fruits and snacks when her aunt walked into the kitchen. She said to Wang Yun seriously, ¡°Xiao Yun, why did you acknowledge a sister?! You¡¯re pure-hearted and kind, but since we¡¯re family, don¡¯t blame me for being blunt. You¡¯re just gullible. How can you believe an outsider so easily?!¡± Chapter 120 - Wang Yuns Aunt She was just short of saying that Wang Yun had been deceived by Yu Bing. Wang Yun secretly rolled her eyes and ignored her aunt. Wang Yun¡¯s aunt was someone who could talk for a long time even without anyone talking to her. She didn¡¯t mind if Wang Yun didn¡¯t speak. ¡°Yu¡­ Her name is Yu Bing, right? As soon as you left, Yu Bing pulled your brother to the balcony! I don¡¯t know what they¡¯re talking about, but it¡¯s obvious that she has ill intentions!¡± Only her family knew about Wang Yun¡¯s difficult labor. Since this wasn¡¯t a joyous matter, the Wang family didn¡¯t intend to publicize it, so none of the relatives in the village knew about it. Wang Yun took a deep breath and said in a low voice, ¡°Aunt, I know very well what kind of person Yu Bing is. Even if I¡¯m blind, my brother and father aren¡¯t. Just take care of your family¡¯s matters.¡± Wang Yun¡¯s aunt didn¡¯t seem to hear the displeasure in Wang Yun¡¯s tone. She narrowed her saggy eyes and said with certainty, ¡°You don¡¯t have to make any excuses. They¡¯re naive and gullible too. How can your father and brother understand the thoughts of a scheming woman? I think she deliberately gained your trust to get close to your brother!¡± ¡°Your brother is tall and handsome. He even works in the government. My cousin also works in the unit! Your family¡¯s wealthy background attracts those women with ill intentions. Therefore, your brother¡¯s wife has to find a woman with a known background!¡± When Wang Yun heard this, she knew what the other party was up to. She sneered. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about my brother¡¯s marriage!¡± Wang Yun didn¡¯t say much because it was useless to say anything. Wang Yun¡¯s aunt was an opportunist. Wang Yun¡¯s aunt didn¡¯t have the slightest self-awareness that she was a guest. She continued to say annoyingly, ¡°I have a niece who¡¯s very good-looking! She¡¯s just right for your brother. They are¡­ a match made in heaven!¡± Wang Yun laughed out loud when she heard this. Her aunt had never gone to school before. In order to matchmake, she was probably using all her knowledge to try to persuade her. ¡°It¡¯s rare for you to come here. You should go outside and drink tea.¡± Wang Yun¡¯s aunt felt that Wang Yun didn¡¯t know what was good for her and was rebuffing her good intentions. ¡°I¡¯m only thinking for your brother¡¯s sake because I¡¯m your aunt! Wang Wei is not young anymore. If he doesn¡¯t look for a wife now, it¡¯ll be too late!¡± Wang Yun glanced at her aunt. ¡°The niece you¡¯re talking about is called Fang Fang, right?¡± Aunt Wang Yun¡¯s heart skipped a beat. She tucked her hair behind her ear. ¡°Yes.¡± Wang Yun asked again, ¡°She¡¯s 22 this year, right?¡± In the countryside, girls who were 22 years old but still unmarried usually had some problems. Normally, they would marry before 20 years old. Wang Yun¡¯s aunt didn¡¯t know how much Wang Yun knew. She said calmly, ¡°She¡¯s not married because my brother and sister-in-law can¡¯t bear to part with her. She¡¯s really a good girl. If you don¡¯t believe me, go and ask around. Everyone says that Fang Fang is the most beautiful and is worthy of your brother.¡± Wang Yun¡¯s aunt kept praising the other party¡¯s appearance, but she didn¡¯t mention anything else. Wang Yun thought of what the other party had said when she met her fifth aunt in the commune that day and couldn¡¯t help but sneer. Since the other party was shameless, there was no need for her to give her face. ¡°Aunt, why are you only talking about her looks and not her character? For example, she pushed a female intellectual into the river and was caught on the spot. She¡¯s lazy, illiterate, and promiscuous. She¡¯s always gossiping and badmouthing others. Why? Do you think our family is too peaceful?¡± Aunt Wang Yun¡¯s expression froze. She knew that this matter was a lost cause. She secretly felt rueful about the 100 yuan that her sister-in-law had promised her! She secretly cursed the person who revealed this to Wang Yun. If she found out who had ruined her plan, she would definitely tear the other party¡¯s mouth apart! When Wang Yun¡¯s aunt saw Wang Yun¡¯s cold expression, she argued guiltily, ¡°Those people are spreading rumors. Um, I¡¯ll go out first. You can continue busying.¡± Wang Yun threw the knife in her hand onto the stove angrily. If not for the fact that she was an elder, she really wanted to slap her. Wang Yun¡¯s aunt turned around and left the kitchen. She almost bumped into Yu Bing, who was about to enter the kitchen. Mr. Wang was the most capable relative in her hometown, so even if Wang Yun was a junior, she had to curry favor with her. However, she would not be polite to Yu Bing, so she said angrily, ¡°Are you blind?!¡± When Wang Yun heard this, she turned around and said seriously, ¡°Aunt, this is my sister. She¡¯s my family. I hope you can be nice to her.¡± Wang Yun¡¯s voice was clear and loud. Everyone in the living room could hear her. Chapter 121 - Big and Small Bags Wang Qing sat there calmly as he turned to the kitchen and said with a faint smile, ¡°It¡¯s not easy for them to come to our house as guests. Take today as a chance to relax. Don¡¯t go to the kitchen. The two of them are not children. They can handle it.¡± Wang Qing¡¯s words immediately revealed whose side he was on. Wang Yun¡¯s uncle was afraid of angering his cousin who was a government official, so he glared at his wife. When Wang Yun¡¯s aunt saw that her man was angry, she didn¡¯t dare to cause trouble anymore. She obediently returned to the sofa and sat down. After Yu Bing finished chatting with Wang Wei, she planned to go to the kitchen to help. When she heard Wang Yun¡¯s words, she couldn¡¯t help but marvel that everyone¡¯s family had weird relatives! Seeing that her aunt was waiting obediently, Wang Yun pulled Yu Bing into the kitchen. ¡°I¡¯ve let you suffer.¡± Yu Bing quickly shook her head and said with a smile, ¡°Before I could react, you and Uncle Wang already finished defending me.¡± Wang Yun secretly took out a piece of gelatin cake from the kitchen cabinet and handed it to Yu Bing. ¡°Eat it to fill your stomach first. My aunt is like that. Just ignore her.¡± This gelatin cake was a nutritious food for women. Because Wang Yun had injured her body when giving birth, Wang Qing had specifically gotten someone to buy it in the provincial capital. Yu Bing pursed her lips and chuckled. She would automatically ignore whatever these unimportant people said and wouldn¡¯t be hurt, but the Wang family¡¯s protection of her warmed her heart. Yu Bing planned to return to the village after lunch. She carried the things given by the Wang family and the Song family, then boarded the bus back to the commune. In order to earn some money, the old man driving the ox cart in the village took advantage of the fact that everyone was visiting their relatives and friends frequently during the new year to drive everyone. When Yu Bing got off the bus and rushed over, there were already a few villagers, Yu Yan, and a few intellectuals in the car. Everyone greeted Yu Bing when they saw her. In everyone¡¯s eyes, Yu Bing wasn¡¯t only the captain of the intellectual team, but also the person in charge of the village¡¯s industrial chain. She was someone with independent personnel immunity! As long as one wanted to enter the industrial chain, one would be polite to Yu Bing. Yu Yan was extremely jealous! If she had grown up in her biological parents¡¯ house, everything Yu Bing had today would be hers. 2 Because there were many things, the space was filled after Yu Bing got on the ox cart. Seeing this, Yu Yan snorted. ¡°If you take two seats alone, no one else will have a place to sit!¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t want to argue with her during the new year. She only said calmly, ¡°I¡¯m the only one getting in the carriage now. If there¡¯s anyone else, I can carry everything.¡± They had been waiting for more than an hour. When the old man saw that there were only two empty seats left, he originally planned to leave. Unexpectedly, Yu Bing happened to catch up. The old man was happy that he had earned another person¡¯s travel fee. When he heard this, he immediately said kindly, ¡°It¡¯s fine. If you hadn¡¯t come, I would have driven the carriage back.¡± Since the old man had no objections, Yu Yan couldn¡¯t say anything else. She could only pout and glare at Yu Bing. When the villagers saw Yu Bing carrying a large pile of things, they thought that they had been sent from her house. Because the postman was also on holiday for the new year, but there was someone on duty at the post office, everyone needed to go to the post office to pick the packages up. A woman smiled and tried to befriend her. ¡°Miss Yu, your family is really good to you. They were afraid that you wouldn¡¯t be able to eat well in the village, so they sent so many things over.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t want to expose her relationship with the Song family and the Wang family. She sincerely treated them as friends, so she only smiled and didn¡¯t deny it. Instead, she changed the topic. However, this became a tacit agreement in Yu Yan¡¯s eyes. She couldn¡¯t help but think of the letter again. In the letter, her biological parents didn¡¯t seem to want to acknowledge her, but blood ties couldn¡¯t be broken just like that. She didn¡¯t believe that they didn¡¯t miss her. Yu Yan observed Yu Bing¡¯s things from the corner of her eye. The more she looked, the more she felt that these things were for two people. If they were just for Yu Bing alone, why would they give her so much? Half of it must have been given to her by her biological parents! 1 Along the way, Yu Yan imagined her biological parents reading the letter Yu Bing had sent home. They wanted to acknowledge her, but because she had already been given to someone else, they could only suppress their heartache and write that letter. As she thought about it, Yu Yan looked at Yu Bing with red eyes. Chapter 122 - The Drama of the Year Xu Ling, who was beside her, sensed Yu Yan¡¯s emotions and felt puzzled. Why did she feel that Yu Yan seemed so similar to that crazy granny in her courtyard? If it weren¡¯t for the fact that the ox cart fees couldn¡¯t be refunded, Xu Ling really wanted to jump out of the carriage and walk back herself to avoid Yu Yan. The police had said that if that crazy old lady killed someone one day, she wouldn¡¯t have any legal responsibility. Yu Bing also noticed Yu Yan¡¯s expression, but she couldn¡¯t be bothered with her. She had no idea that Yu Yan¡¯s imagination was running wild. After arriving at the village, Yu Yan was in no hurry to leave. She only stood quietly by the ox cart and waited for Yu Bing to give her her share. Yu Bing didn¡¯t know about Yu Yan¡¯s delusional thoughts, nor did she expect that Yu Yan was waiting for her. She only focused on bringing the things home. Seeing that Yu Bing didn¡¯t want to give her anything and was planning to go back directly, Yu Yan widened her eyes. She knew it! Yu Bing would definitely hide what her biological parents had given her! This bitch! However, on second thought, Yu Yan guessed that her biological parents didn¡¯t tell Yu Bing directly. They probably thought that Yu Bing would take the initiative to give her the things, but they didn¡¯t know that their relationship had long become strained and that she wouldn¡¯t deliver the things to her at all! 1 Yu Yan returned to the dormitory angrily. At night, she even tossed and turned without being able to fall asleep. In the end, she made up her mind to retrieve her things. On the second day of the Spring Festival, after Yu Yan woke up, she ran to Yu Bing¡¯s house and hid behind a big tree in the distance. She planned to sneak in after Yu Bing and Jiang Chun left. The wind was a little strong today. Yu Yan waited for more than an hour before they carried their things out. She realized that the two of them were going to Xiao Sheng¡¯s house, which was next door. Yu Yan couldn¡¯t help but curse Yu Bing for being a vixen. She even wanted to seduce Xiao Sheng! However, at this moment, the most important thing for Yu Yan was to get her bag, so she didn¡¯t care that much. After confirming that Yu Bing and Jiang Chun had entered the Xiao family¡¯s house, she immediately ran to the wall at the side of the Yu family¡¯s house. After coming to the countryside, Yu Bing started exercising and paying attention to her nutrition but was still only 1.6 meters tall. Yu Yan had never lacked clothes or food since she was young. Coupled with her biological parents¡¯ genes, her tall figure of 1.7 meters had made many people envious. Her height also gave her an advantage when climbing the wall. The two-meter-tall wall couldn¡¯t stop Yu Yan at all. She only extended her arm and easily climbed over the rotten tree roots in the corner. After landing safely, Yu Yan pushed open the closed door. There were many candies and cookies in the bamboo basket on the table in the hall. There were also a few souffl??s that Yu Yan had seen in the county¡¯s black market. Because it was expensive, Yu Yan had only bought one piece at that time. She didn¡¯t expect Yu Bing have so many pieces here. ¡°This must have been bought with the money Dad and Mom gave. If that¡¯s the case, I should have a share!¡± With that, Yu Yan sat down and started eating without hesitation. She even poured herself a bowl of water. After she finished the two, she found a piece of greaseproof paper in the hall. She bagged the cookies and candy, then stuffed them into her cotton shirt. The reason Yu Yan only took cookies and sweets and not souffl?? was that cookies and sweets were easy to buy for everyone. However, if she took the souffl?? back to the dormitory, it would be equivalent to telling Yu Bing that she had come to her house to steal. After taking the food, Yu Yan entered the room again. She planned to look for some money and stamps, but after searching around, she didn¡¯t find anything except a few clothes. However, the sauerkraut jar beside the desk was especially eye-catching. Why hadn¡¯t the sauerkraut jar been left in the kitchen? Yu Yan, who was puzzled, opened the lid and realized that there were only a few pickled vegetables inside. She refused to give up and searched a few more times, but she found nothing. In the end, she could only return the jar to its original position. Yu Yan couldn¡¯t find any money. She could only go to the kitchen to take some food. However, as soon as she entered the kitchen, she heard voices coming from the courtyard door. It was Yu Bing and a little boy¡¯s voice! If she was caught by Yu Bing, Yu Bing would definitely send her to the police station without hesitation! How could Yu Yan have the time to care about taking things? Seeing a small stool under the roof, she quickly picked up the stool and jumped out. Chapter 123 - Raising a Dog Outside the door, Yu Bing smiled and took the bamboo basket of flowers from Xiao Lin. ¡°Thank Xiao Li for us. We¡¯ll definitely put it on our bedstand and look at it every day.¡± Yu Bing and Jiang Chun took the flowers Xiao Li made. Xiao Lin¡¯s mission was completed, so he skipped away. Yu Yan, who had sprained her ankle when she jumped down, was leaning against the wall and breathing, listening to the sounds in the courtyard. She heard Xiao Lin say goodbye and the sound of the courtyard door opening. ¡°I remember I closed the door when we left just now,¡± Jiang Chun said in a puzzled voice. Yu Yan, who had a guilty conscience, ignored the pain in her ankle and limped towards the village. Realizing something was wrong, the two of them immediately ran into the house. The table had been swept clean, and there were only two souffl¨¦s left. How could they not understand? There had been a thief. Jiang Chun ran towards the house where the money was hidden, while Yu Bing quickly ran to the courtyard. When she found a stool in the corner, she quickly chased after her. Yu Yan had injured her leg, so how could she run that fast? Not long after, Yu Bing saw Yu Yan¡¯s back. After knowing who it was, Yu Bing smiled. Her things were not so easy to take. Yu Bing turned around and went home. Jiang Chun was at home checking the inventory to see if anything was missing. Seeing Yu Bing return, Jiang Chun quickly went forward and asked, ¡°Did you see who it was?¡± Yu Bing had no intention of telling Jiang Chun. She only asked, ¡°Are you missing anything?¡± Jiang Chun shook his head and said in a low voice, ¡°The pickled vegetable jar was touched. Fortunately, the other party didn¡¯t discover the money I had hidden underground. I was scared to death!¡± Then, she complained with heartache, ¡°There¡¯s nothing else missing, but the food in the living room is gone.¡± Yu Bing entered the house and realized that there were no signs of tampering at the place she had hidden the money. After confirming that there was only less food, she was relieved. ¡°Looks like our wall is still a little too short. Let¡¯s get a dog to guard the door?¡± In this day and age, there were very few people who raised dogs. After all, there was barely any food for people, so they couldn¡¯t care less about animals. However, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun were different from before. Moreover, with the identity of the tractor driver as a cover, since Yu Bing received a salary and work points, in the eyes of outsiders, she had the ability to raise a dog. Yu Bing decided to raise a puppy. Raising a puppy from when it was young would make the puppy more loyal. Unfortunately, the families in the village who raised dogs didn¡¯t have puppies, so she let Jiang Chun look after the house while she went to Xiao Sheng¡¯s house. When Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing walk into the house, he went forward. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Yu Bing explained what had happened just now, but she didn¡¯t mention that the thief was Yu Yan. When Xiao Sheng heard this, he frowned and said, ¡°I¡¯ll help you look for it, but I might not be able to find it in the next two days. Why don¡¯t I help you build a higher wall first?¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°No need. Just find it and help me send it over. Tell me how much it costs.¡± When Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing¡¯s strange attitude, he asked in confusion, ¡°You¡¯re so calm. Do you know who entered your house?¡± Seeing that Xiao Sheng had guessed it, Yu Bing didn¡¯t hide it. She nodded. ¡°She won¡¯t be able to cause any trouble. After this, she will probably have to lie low for a long time.¡± Seeing that Yu Bingxin knew what she was doing, Xiao Sheng was no longer worried. Yu Bing didn¡¯t call the police. Firstly, there was insufficient evidence. Secondly, even if the police determined that Yu Yan was a thief, they would only detain her for a few days. Thirdly, Yu Yan would immediately pay the price for her theft. Twisting her ankle was just the appetizer! Moreover, Yu Bing didn¡¯t want to finish Yu Yan off so quickly. After all, the game had just begun. 1 Soon, it was the third day of the Spring Festival. Yu Bing had already visited the people she wanted to visit a few days ago and brought them the New Year gift. On the third day, she planned to visit everyone in the dormitory building. After all, she was also the captain of the intellectual team. It wasn¡¯t good for her not to show her face during the New Year. At the dormitory building of the intellectual team. There was a large living room on the first floor of the dormitory building. It was usually a place for everyone to relax and enjoy themselves. At this moment, most of the young people were chatting and warming up around the large basin in the middle. ¡°Captain Yu!¡± Someone with sharp eyes immediately shouted after seeing Yu Bing enter the room. Yu Bing smiled and nodded. She raised her voice and said, ¡°Happy New Year! I brought some pastries for everyone.¡± Chapter 124 - Peanut Allergy Everyone also saw Yu Bing at this moment and stood up to greet her. Yu Bing placed the pastries in her hand on the table in the hall and said with a smile, ¡°This is the first New Year I spent with everyone in the He Mountain Brigade. Usually, because I don¡¯t live in the dormitory, although I know everyone, I¡¯m not very familiar with them. I wanted to come over and chat with everyone during the New Year.¡± Yu Bing came over this time firstly because she didn¡¯t know all the intellectuals very well. In order to effectively carry out the follow-up work, it was necessary to know more about everyone¡¯s situation. After all, the information registration she had asked the two team leaders to do previously only had simple information. She would only know more after familiarizing herself with everyone. Secondly, it was because the policy of supporting construction in the countryside had been around for many years. Some people had resigned themselves to fate and stayed in the countryside to get married and have children, but most people still had a strong desire to return to the city. This was also an important reason everyone hadn¡¯t been able to integrate with the villagers. After the year was over, when the factory was established, the advantages of the intellectuals would slowly be revealed. In terms of farming, the villagers were teachers, but in terms of management of the factory, the intellectuals had more say. The educational foundation they had would make them more accepting of new knowledge. The network behind them would also have a positive effect on the development of the factory. Yu Bing didn¡¯t want to see the younger generation of intellectuals show an even stronger sense of superiority after gaining power. Otherwise, it would only intensify the conflict between the two sides and sooner or later, something big would happen. When Yao Nian saw everything Yu Bing was enjoying, she felt even more indignant. And those pastries weighed several kilograms! The tractor driver¡¯s salary really made Yu Bing¡¯s life good. Yao Nian stared blankly at the pastries on the table, thinking about how to get Yu Bing. Yu Bing supervised the intellectuals now, and she was in charge of a huge industrial chain. When they opened the factory next year, she would be the factory director. Yao Nian originally only wanted to control Yu Bing, but not only did he fail that time, but he also fell seriously ill. People who did bad things tended to feel diffident. Yao Nian was indeed manipulative, but the most daring thing he had done was to try to rape Yu Bing. In the end, he didn¡¯t get anything out of it and even harmed himself. Yao Nian was still a little afraid. After that, he also went to ask Li Ping, but Li Ping insisted that she had seen Yu Bing drink the tea and even suspected that there was something wrong with his drug. She complained to him, making him confused. Previously, he didn¡¯t plan to marry Yu Bing, but after Wu Jin came to power, no one dared to slack off or bribe people to work for them. If this continued, Yao Nian felt that he really wouldn¡¯t be able to hold on anymore. Moreover, as Yu Bing held more positions, her value also increased. Now, marrying her seemed to be a good choice. As for thinking of a way to scheme against Yu Bing, Yao Nian didn¡¯t consider it for the time being. This time, he planned to use some above-board methods. Yu Bing stayed in the dormitory for a long time before leaving. In the afternoon. ¡°Yu Bing!¡± Yu Bing was reading alone in the room. When she heard the familiar voice, she calmly read the last two lines before looking at the door. Yu Yan covered her face with a scarf, revealing only her angry-looking eyes as she limped into the living room. Seeing Yu Yan¡¯s appearance, Yu Bing knew that the peanut butter she had put in had worked. When making pastries today, Yu Bing specifically brushed on a layer of peanut butter. That¡¯s right, she did it on purpose! There was a price to pay for daring to take her things. Yu Yan could forget about taking advantage of her in this lifetime. Yu Bing had learned about Yu Yan¡¯s peanut allergy in her previous life. At that time, Yu Yan went to the Yu family¡¯s house as a guest and accidentally ate bread stained with peanut butter. Not long after, an allergic reaction appeared. Only then did everyone know that she was allergic to peanuts. Yu Yan had eaten peanuts once when she was young. Since she had an allergic reaction, she had never eaten any peanut products again. However, she was still too young at that time and didn¡¯t have any memories of it. Her adoptive parents were worried that she would accidentally eat it, so they specifically told her when she grew up. It was because she didn¡¯t remember the taste of peanuts that she didn¡¯t realize there was peanut butter in the pastries today. She even felt that the pastries were sweet and ate quite a few! Yu Bing looked at Yu Yan in confusion and asked, ¡°You are?¡± Yu Yan snorted. ¡°Stop playing dumb! How can you not know that I¡¯m Yu Yan?¡± Yu Bing looked at Yu Yan in surprise. ¡°Yu Yan! I really didn¡¯t recognize you. What happened to you?¡± Chapter 125 - Calling the Police Over A Needle Yu Yan replied angrily, ¡°You should know best! You¡¯re really vicious!¡± Yu Bing was confused by Yu Yan¡¯s answer. She was vicious? Could it be that she forced Yu Yan to eat them? Yu Yan had always been good at distorting the truth, so Yu Bing was already used to it. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± Seeing Yu Yan¡¯s current appearance, Yu Bing was relieved, so she couldn¡¯t be bothered to talk to her anymore. She continued to read the book in her hand calmly. Yu Yan snatched the book and threw it on the ground. Then, she said indignantly, ¡°You must know that I¡¯m allergic to peanuts, right?¡± Yu Yan thought that her biological parents definitely knew that she was allergic to peanuts. 1 It had to be said that Yu Yan¡¯s thoughts were as outlandish as ever. She even thought that Yu Bing didn¡¯t give her those packages because she expected her to go to her house to get them and specifically placed the peanut products in the dessert. All of this was to set her up and make her sick! As for why Yu Bing set her up, Yu Yan had yet to think of a reason, but she still blamed Yu Bing. Yu Bing naturally wouldn¡¯t let Yu Yan lead her by the nose. After hearing the question, she said in confusion, ¡°Firstly, I didn¡¯t know that you were allergic to peanuts. Secondly, if you¡¯re allergic to peanuts, go to the doctor. What¡¯s the point of looking for me?¡± Yu Yan slammed the table and glared at Yu Bing. ¡°You caused this to happen to me! The only things I ate were your pastries today. There must be peanuts in them!¡± Yu Bing stood up and glanced at Yu Yan. ¡°I gave those pastries to the intellectuals. If others can eat it, how would I know that you can¡¯t? I¡¯m actually impressed that you still have the guts to come to my house. Why? Do you think I don¡¯t know that you came to my house to steal things last night?¡± When Yu Yan heard the word ¡°steal¡±, she came back to her senses. ¡°What rumor are you trying to start again?!¡± Yu Bing rolled her eyes. ¡°What did I start a rumor about? I didn¡¯t say anything. I was just wondering if I should go to the commune to report the case so that we can be on guard against theft in the future.¡± Yu Yan jumped up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. ¡°Do you have to do this? I only took a little bit of your food! How stingy!¡± Yu Bing smiled meaningfully. ¡°Since you say I¡¯m stingy, give me 10 yuan. Then, I¡¯ll take it that I sold those pastries to you.¡± ¡°This is highway robbery. Those things cost two to three yuan at most. Moreover, those belong to me! It¡¯s only right that I take them.¡± Yu Yan¡¯s gaze was fierce. Yu Bing wasn¡¯t anxious. She sat down indifferently, then said, ¡°I kept the stool you stepped on yesterday. Your footprints are clearly visible. As long as the police come and rule out those with an alibi at the time, matching the footprints with the remaining people will be enough to find the culprit.¡± With that, Yu Bing stuck her head out and glanced at Yu Yan¡¯s shoes. ¡°You were wearing these shoes when you stole things yesterday, right? They¡¯re so new. No wonder the footprints on my stool are clearly visible! And as for those pastries, your roommate should know how many you bought and how many are left. Do you think she¡¯ll choose to protect you or uphold justice?¡± Yu Yan panicked when she heard this. She was the only girl in the dormitory who had new shoes. It would already be good enough if Xu Ling didn¡¯t hit her when she was down. How could Xu Ling cover up her?! No, she couldn¡¯t have a criminal record! Damn that bitch! She asked her for 10 yuan for something worth 2 to 3 yuan as if she had never seen money before! Since it was just 10 yuan, so be it! Yu Yan had no choice but to take out 10 yuan from her pocket and throw it on the table. ¡°Wait, pick up the book.¡± Yu Bing sat down slowly and looked at Yu Yan indifferently. Yu Yan was so angry that she panted heavily. Thinking about how the evidence was still in Yu Bing¡¯s hands, she could only obediently bend down and pick up the book on the table. Then, she turned around angrily and left. Wasn¡¯t Yu Bing afraid that she would be a threat to her if she was recognized and returned to the Yu family? That was probably why Yu Bing had always disliked her and schemed against her. Yu Bing wanted her to give up on the idea of reuniting with the Yu family. Hmph, the more Yu Bing was afraid, the more she would try to think of a way to go home! City H During the new year, Feng Cai visited many elders and also revealed that there would be a food factory in the He Mountain Brigade. However, he didn¡¯t say anything else. After all, he hadn¡¯t been back for two years. People might get turned off if he was too straightforward. Therefore, Feng Cai chatted with his elders about light-hearted topics. On the second day of the new year, Feng Cai went to his uncle¡¯s house. He was Feng Cai¡¯s main target. Shen Ge looked at Feng Cai and said in relief, ¡°You¡¯ve really grown up and become more mature.¡± Feng Cai¡¯s aunt took out the fruit plate and placed it on the coffee table. Then, she tapped Feng Cai¡¯s head with slight force as she said, ¡°This kid suffered so much in that woman¡¯s hands. How can he not mature?¡± Chapter 126 - Bad News Feng Cai teased, ¡°Isn¡¯t that so? Didn¡¯t they say that you learn from your mistakes? I¡¯ve already grown so much, so my IQ has increased.¡± As Shen Ge brewed tea, he lectured Feng Cai. ¡°Fortunately, you didn¡¯t stay in the countryside for so many years in vain. Compared to two years ago, you have less arrogance and hostility. It¡¯s fine to be assertive, but being too cocky might not be good for your growth.¡± Shen Ge specifically said this since the reason Feng Cai couldn¡¯t defeat his stepmother in the past was that he was too stubborn and didn¡¯t know how to be tactful. Feng Cai recalled how Mr, Feng had scolded him in the past under Lin Lin¡¯s instigation, and how he had suffered because he didn¡¯t bother to defend himself. He couldn¡¯t help but laugh at himself. Feng Cai recalled and changed the topic to business. ¡°Uncle, our village is going to open a food factory after the new year. The first batch of products is cherry jam. I want to ask if your factory can prioritize us when purchasing.¡± Ever since Feng Cai¡¯s biological mother passed away, Shen Ge and his wife doted on the two brothers, Feng Yu and Feng Cai. Therefore, as soon as there was a vacancy in the factory, he immediately discussed it with Mr. Feng and spent some money to get Feng Yu a job. It was also because of this that Feng Cai didn¡¯t beat around the bush, like he did with his other relatives and friends. He went straight to the point and told his uncle about the predicament he was facing. When Shen Ge heard this, he asked with the same concern as Mr. Feng, ¡°You joined the factory?¡± Feng Cai told him about the mission Yu Bing had given him. After Shen Ge knew that the sales would determine whether or not Feng Cai became an official employee, he immediately said, ¡°As long as the quality is passable, the employee rewards of our clothing factory can be decided as jam. But Feng Cai, you have to keep an eye on the quality of the products!¡± Purchasing had always been a lucrative job. To Shen Ge, purchasing from anyone was the same. Since his nephew had this mission, he would definitely give Feng Cai this chance. The only requirement was that the quality had to be passable. Otherwise, if the employees felt that the quality was too bad and reported it to the higher-ups, he would be in trouble. Feng Cai immediately smiled and promised, ¡°Uncle, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll definitely feedback this opinion to the factory! For the first batch, word of mouth is very important. We don¡¯t want to ruin our reputation.¡± Shen Ge hinted again, ¡°It¡¯s best to be more particular about the quality! If it looks good and tastes good, I can help your factory fight for more opportunities in the future.¡± Feng Cai was overjoyed. ¡°Thank you, Uncle! I¡¯ll definitely do my best! I¡¯ll show you our products in advance.¡± Shen Ge smiled and nodded. On the other side, Feng Yu hesitated for a while before choosing to tell Mr, Feng. He didn¡¯t know what other ways Feng Cai had, but he was worried that if the person Feng Cai found didn¡¯t agree to help and his brother didn¡¯t get a spot in the factory, wouldn¡¯t he have to be a farmer for the rest of his life? Therefore, Feng Yu told Mr. Feng about the connection between Feng Cai¡¯s transfer and purchase of the machine. ¡°Father, my brother said that their cherry trees will bear fruit after the new year. If the factory is willing to pay on credit, he will think of a way to persuade the village to use the fruit trees with the corresponding production value as collateral and pay them off within two years.¡± Mr. Feng was silent after hearing this. After a long while, he slowly said, ¡°I¡¯m going to the factory director¡¯s house. Don¡¯t tell your brother yet.¡± Feng Yu revealed a happy expression. They were going back to the village tomorrow, so Feng Cai asked his two buddies out again. Chen Min was a little embarrassed. He didn¡¯t help his buddy because his father was unwilling to negotiate with his supervisor. However, because his father was a member of the factory¡¯s guild, Chen Min finally persuaded his father to recommend the products of He Mountain Brigade¡¯s factory on the next procurement proposal for employee benefits. Although the outcome wasn¡¯t very satisfactory, Feng Cai was still very grateful for everything Chen Min had done. As the two of them spoke, the other buddy arrived. Feng Cai placed all his hopes on Jiang Tao and stared at him intently. Jiang Tao deliberately kept Feng Cai in suspense. He said with an impassive expression, ¡°Which news do you want to hear first?¡± When Feng Cai heard this, his expectant expression dimmed. He replied in a gloomy voice, ¡°Bad news.¡± Jiang Tao said in a low voice, ¡°My father went to look for the factory director, but it didn¡¯t work out.¡± At this moment, Feng Cai pursed his lips and thanked Jiang Tao. Although he didn¡¯t succeed, he had to remember when others helped him. Seeing this, Jiang Tao asked slowly, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you ask about the good news?¡± Feng Cai suppressed his disappointment and asked, ¡°What¡¯s the good news?¡± Chapter 127 - Thoughts Jiang Tao smiled. ¡°The good news is that your father has already talked to the factory director about this in advance, so my father didn¡¯t manage to get it done.¡± Feng Cai stood up straight and asked in disbelief, ¡°My father?¡± Jiang Tao raised his eyebrows and nodded. Feng Cai blinked. He knew that his eldest brother must have secretly told his father. After bidding farewell to his two buddies, he strode home. After Feng Cai entered, he saw that only Feng Yu¡¯s family and Grandma Feng were in the living room. The others had already returned to their rooms to rest. Feng Cai sat beside Feng Yu and asked softly, ¡°Brother, you told Dad?¡± Feng Yu stopped repairing his son¡¯s toy and looked up. ¡°You¡¯re just too stubborn. If you had told Dad nicely, how could he not help?¡± Feng Cai lowered his head and said silently, ¡°That¡¯s because you said so.¡± Feng Yu felt very helpless when he heard this. His brother and father¡¯s relationship had been strained since the ¡°five yuan¡± incident. At first, he didn¡¯t understand why his father didn¡¯t believe Feng Cai. No matter how mischievous Feng Cai was, he wouldn¡¯t stoop so low as to steal. Only after he became a father did he understand that people scolded their children because they had high expectations for them. Instead of saying that his father didn¡¯t trust Feng Cai, it was more accurate to say that Feng Cai¡¯s mischievous behavior, which Lin Lin had deliberately indulged for a long time, disappointed his father time and time again. The more one loved someone, the higher the expectations one would subconsciously have of the other party. He would also point out the other party¡¯s mistakes more sternly. The so-called ¡°lost five yuan¡± was only the catalyst for the long-term conflict between the two of them. Mr. Feng was afraid that Feng Cai would lose his principles, so he punished him very severely, including sending Feng Cai to the countryside to support the construction. This was the vital reason Lin Lin¡¯s plan succeeded. After thinking for a moment, Feng Yu went against his father¡¯s wishes and told Feng Cai the truth about the application he had sent home a few years ago. Feng Cai looked at Feng Yu in a daze. He had always thought that his father didn¡¯t like him since he had always been beaten up the most since he was young. He knew that he was more mischievous than his elder brother, so it was normal for him to be beaten up more. However, later on, his stepmother, Lin Lin, deliberately set him up a few times and his father ignored his explanation but believed in Lin Lin¡¯s words. That was why Feng Cai had this impression. Feng Yu patted Feng Cai¡¯s shoulder earnestly. ¡°No matter what decision Dad makes for you, he¡¯s always doing so for your own good. Of course, I¡¯m not saying that everything he does is right.¡± 1 Feng Cai lowered his eyes and was silent for a long time before replying, ¡°I understand, but with that woman, our family¡¯s relationship can¡¯t be like that of a normal family.¡± Feng Yu raised his eyebrows. ¡°Most of the time, we tolerate her. It¡¯s not that we¡¯re afraid of her, but we don¡¯t want to put our father in a dilemma. Besides, we¡¯ll eventually establish our own small family. In the end, she¡¯s the only one who will stay in this house to accompany our father.¡± 1 ¡°I¡¯m already in line for a house near the company. I¡¯m going to move out after the house is built in half a year. I¡¯m not worried about Dad. I don¡¯t want to have a head-on conflict with her now. I mainly hope she¡¯ll treat Grandma better in the future.¡± Feng Cai understood what Feng Yu meant. He wanted to move out, so if there wasn¡¯t a policy that allowed them to return to the city, he might not be able to return to the provincial capital for the rest of his life. In the end, the person who would take care of his grandmother and father would be Lin Lin. 1 Feng Cai didn¡¯t agree with Feng Yu¡¯s point of view, but he didn¡¯t refute it. After all, Lin Lin wasn¡¯t a kind person. Feng Cai had reservations about whether she treated their father and grandmother sincerely. However, he was also determined to work hard in the factory. Feng Cai always felt that only by becoming powerful could he suppress the greed of people like Lin Lin. On the morning of the fifth day of the Spring Festival. Lin Lin handed a bag of food to Feng Cai and said with a smile, ¡°Our family specifically prepared these packages for you to take to the countryside. If there¡¯s not enough food in the countryside, send a letter back.¡± Lin Lin was used to maintaining a pretense, but if he really sent a letter home asking for things, it was unknown if he could really get anything or not. Therefore, Feng Cai also smiled and replied, ¡°Our family isn¡¯t rich either. I also eat a lot after doing heavy farm work. Although I don¡¯t eat well in the countryside, sweet potatoes and wild vegetables can still fill my stomach.¡± Who didn¡¯t know how to act? Feng Cai thought that even if he couldn¡¯t anger Lin Lin, he could at least annoy her. The only advantage the village had over the city might be the abundance of vegetables. Therefore, it was more convincing for him to use heavy farm work as an excuse when saying that he couldn¡¯t get enough to eat. Chapter 128 - The Zhou Siblings As expected, when he heard this, Mr. Feng asked Lin Lin to bring five yuan and a food stamp for a pound of meat over. Lin Lin didn¡¯t show it on her face, but she resented Feng Cai to the core. Men cared about their egos the most. Moreover, they were sending Feng Cai off now. In front of so many people, Lin Lin couldn¡¯t do anything that didn¡¯t match her persona. Therefore, she had no choice but to do so. If Feng Cai had suggested it last night, Lin Lin could have thought of a way to make Mr. Feng give up on this idea. Everyone sent Feng Cai out of the door. In the end, Feng Yu rode his bicycle to send Feng Cai to the station. ¡°Here, take it. I was deliberately angering her!¡± Feng Cai handed the money and food stamp back to Feng Yu. Feng Yu didn¡¯t take it. ¡°I don¡¯t want it. The city is given priority to the village¡¯s produce. We can eat meat and don¡¯t do heavy work every month in the city. Although you¡¯re full in the village, you can¡¯t eat much meat. You have to nourish yourself since physical labor is so arduous. If you eat a little meat every month, a pound of meat can last you half a year.¡± Feng Cai didn¡¯t refuse anymore. He planned to send some canned food home from time to time after the food factory opened. After Feng Cai returned to the village, he immediately found Yu Bing and Wu Jin, then told them about the guarantee. The machine that Feng Cai had his eyes on was 980 yuan. Through his father, they gave a 90% discount, which made it a total of 882 yuan. They had to offer 735 equivalent cherry trees as collateral. Yu Bing and Wu Jin agreed without hesitation. On the sixth day of the New Year, the holiday ended. Yu Bing prepared to take the receipt of the loan and go to AC Bank to look for the teller at the front desk to deposit the money. This was a huge sum of money. For this, she even specifically brought Xiao Sheng as her bodyguard, and deliver Brother Qiang¡¯s goods to the county along the way. The two of them quickly arrived at the delivery location. Usually, Yu Bing could see a figure in a tattered hat waiting there from afar, but today, Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing looked at each other. Xiao Sheng quickly observed his surroundings and realized that there were figures moving behind a few trees. He felt a little uneasy and immediately asked Yu Bing to let him out of the carriage. Xiao Sheng planned to wait here alone for Zhou Min to figure out the situation. Yu Bing would go to the bank first. After he figured out the situation, he would meet up with Yu Bing and decide what to do next. Hence, Yu Bing let Xiao Sheng out. Xiao Sheng got out of the carriage and thanked Bing loudly. ¡°Captain Yu, thank you for giving me a ride!¡± The tractor¡¯s engine was a little loud, so Yu Bing replied loudly, ¡°You¡¯re welcome! It¡¯s along the way. When you¡¯re done, look for me at the police station. I¡¯ll bring you back to the village!¡± Going to the police station was a lie that Yu Bing had made up. Although they didn¡¯t know if the people waiting here were targeting them or not, mentioning the police station was a good way to scare them. The two of them looked like villagers who had gone to the county city for errands. There was was nothingiously suspicious about them. With that, Yu Bing changed gears and drove away. The person behind the tree looked at the departing tractor and was a little puzzled. Didn¡¯t Xiao Sheng send his goods through the tractor? ¡°Brother Wu, is that female driver a delivery person or not? Should we stop her?¡± Brother Wu rolled his eyes. ¡°Why stop her? Don¡¯t you know that we have to catch them red-handed with the goods? Don¡¯t you see that the woman is going to the police station? If we dare to stop the government¡¯s car halfway and there are no goods in the car, we¡¯ll have to be sent to the police station.¡± When the other two people hiding behind the tree saw Xiao Sheng get out of the car, they also quietly approached Brother Wu and asked him what to do. Brother Wu was also very upset about this. After all, his boss had asked them to stop the delivery of goods this time, but they didn¡¯t see the goods. Xiao Sheng had come to the county empty-handed! After pondering for a while, he only left one underling to follow him to see if Xiao Sheng hid the goods elsewhere. Xiao Sheng pretended not to notice that someone was following him and continued to wait calmly. Half an hour later, the Zhou siblings still didn¡¯t appear. Xiao Sheng suppressed the uneasiness in his heart and walked towards the county. After shaking off the two people behind him, he went to the Zhou family¡¯s courtyard. Zhou Min opened the door with red eyes. Xiao Sheng immediately asked after entering, ¡°Where¡¯s your brother?¡± Zhou Min lowered her head. ¡°My brother is lying inside. He was captured today.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s pupils dilated as he entered Zhou Qun¡¯s room with familiarity. He saw Zhou Qun lying on the bed with a swollen face. Xiao Sheng quickly stepped forward. ¡°Zhou Qun, what¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°Brother Sheng!¡± Zhou Qun quickly tried to get up, but he grimaced in pain when he tried to! ¡°Lie down and talk,¡± Xiao Sheng quickly said and slowly helped Zhou Qun back to the bed. Chapter 129 - Debt Rayment by Work ¡°Brother Sheng, I was followed today. There were three of them. When they realized that I wanted to lose them, they blocked me and forced me to tell them who the delivery person was. I didn¡¯t say anything, so they beat me up. I was worried that going to the delivery point would expose Yu Bing, so I came back. I thought that if you didn¡¯t see anyone, you would realize that something had happened to me.¡± Xiao Sheng frowned and said, ¡°They already know where our delivery point is.¡± The Zhou siblings widened their eyes and looked at Xiao Sheng. ¡°Is Sister Yu Bing alright?¡± They had a good impression of Yu Bing, who followed the principle of doing more and talking less. Although the two parties usually didn¡¯t communicate much, Yu Bing always remembered to bring them some cookies from time to time. Even if they refused, she would quietly throw the things into the basket on their backs when they turned around. Xiao Sheng shook his head. ¡°When we saw that you guys weren¡¯t there, we guessed that something might have happened. I got off there. They probably think that I delivered the goods to you directly, so they guessed that I hid them elsewhere.¡± The siblings breathed a sigh of relief. Xiao Sheng asked again, ¡°Do you know who it is?¡± Zhou Qun expressed that he didn¡¯t know. ¡°I only heard them mention the name Brother Wu.¡± Xiao Sheng was only familiar with the few leaders beside Brother Qiang. Brother Wu wasn¡¯t among them. He was clearly a lackey. It seemed that he could only investigate secretly. Xiao Sheng glanced at Zhou Qun, who was lying on the ground. ¡°Get up. I¡¯ll take you to the hospital for a checkup.¡± Zhou Qun quickly shook his head and grabbed the bedboard under him. He said firmly, ¡°I¡¯m not going. I¡¯ll be fine in two days.¡± Zhou Min cried anxiously at the side, ¡°Brother, just go! You usually bear with the pain. Now, you can only lie in bed. Isn¡¯t this serious enough?¡± Seeing this, Xiao Sheng could only threaten, ¡°I¡¯ll pay. After the Lantern Festival, the supply in the city will be restored. If you don¡¯t recover by that time, I¡¯ll find someone else to deliver the goods for me!¡± Zhou Qun panicked when he heard that. ¡°Then deduct the treatment fee from my salary.¡± Xiao Sheng agreed helplessly and helped Zhou Qun up. Zhou Min ran to the small courtyard and pushed out the cart that usually pulled coal and placed a rag on it. When they arrived at the hospital, they realized that Zhou Qun¡¯s ribs were fractured. Xiao Sheng felt anger. Those people really didn¡¯t care about human lives at all and only cared about money! They were so ruthless to a teenager! Fortunately, children of this age were still growing and had strong healing abilities. The doctor only prescribed medicine for ten days, then treated the injuries on his body. He instructed Zhou Qun to come back for a follow-up examination in ten days. If he healed well, there was no need to apply any more medicine. After Xiao Sheng sent Zhou Qun home, he went to the bank to look for Yu Bing. As they had already agreed on the time to release the money when the procedures were done, the bank prepared the cash on time. Yu Bing received the money smoothly. When Xiao Sheng arrived, it was almost ten o¡¯clock. After the two of them got into the car, Xiao Sheng told Yu Bing what had happened. Yu Bing gritted her teeth and cursed, ¡°These bastards!¡± Xiao Sheng pointed at the corner in front and said, ¡°No one usually approaches the corner in front. Leave me there. After I send this batch of goods, we¡¯ll stop the supply. I¡¯ll resume the supply with the city before the Lantern Festival. Drive straight to the police station and wait for me!¡± When Yu Bing arrived, Xiao Sheng took the Zhou family¡¯s basket and loaded the goods before going to Brother Qiang. At this moment, the two people who had lost Xiao Sheng had also returned to the black market. They were reporting the situation to Zhang Chao when they saw Xiao Sheng coming over with the goods. Xiao Sheng had been observing the black market¡¯s situation. As the clothes of people in this era were similar, Xiao Sheng felt that the two people talking to Zhang Chao looked like the people who were following him. In order not to alert the enemy, he quickly glanced at them and memorized their appearances. After the delivery, they left the black market as usual. After walking for a while, as Xiao Sheng had expected, someone followed him. This time, Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t turn around. He deliberately walked into the salon to ask about the price of cutting hair. Through the reflection of the mirror, he saw the stalker¡¯s appearance and confirmed that it was Zhang Chao¡¯s doing. When the two of them followed Xiao Sheng and saw Yu Bing waiting at the police station, they were terrified. The most terrifying thing for people in their line of work was seeing the police. They jogged away in apprehension. When they returned to the village, Yu Bing handed the money to Mr. Wei. Mr. Wei smiled. ¡°Good. I finally see some money coming in!¡± Chapter 130 - The Hope of the Village As soon as he finished speaking, Wu Jin entered the office. When he saw the money in Wei¡¯s hand, his eyes lit up. ¡°You¡¯re quite fast! Mr. Wei, give me 2,000 yuan and give me the village¡¯s account book from last year. I¡¯ll go to the Agriculture Bureau now!¡± Mr. Wei¡¯s heart skipped a beat. He had yet to spend much time with the money, so why was this ¡°Wealth Distribution Boy¡± here?! Mr. Wei pursed his lips and took out the ledger first. Then, he gloomily counted out 2,000 yuan and handed it over. Wu Jin immediately reached for it. He tugged at it twice but it didn¡¯t budge. He looked at Mr. Wei helplessly. Mr. Wei looked up at Wu Jin and said with heartache, ¡°Remember! Spend less if you can. There are still many expenses to pay!¡± Wu Jin said impatiently, ¡°I know. Let go quickly. Don¡¯t waste my time.¡± Mr. Wei slowly let go and watched Wu Jin walk out the door. Yu Bing pursed her lips and chuckled. Her originally depressed mood improved substantially. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Mr. Wei. I¡¯ll make sure you have endless money in the future.¡± Mr. Wei felt a little better when he heard this. ¡°You have to work hard. This industrial chain is the hope of the entire village!¡± Yu Bing smiled and nodded. This time, Wu Jin entered the Agriculture Bureau proudly with the money. After knocking on the open door, Wu Jin greeted with a smile. ¡°Happy New Year, Chief Zhao!¡± As long as the Lantern Festival wasn¡¯t over, the new year wouldn¡¯t be over. Chief Zhao looked up and realized that it was Wu Jin. He didn¡¯t expect to get the money before the fruit tree bore fruit, so he looked at it suspiciously. ¡°Mr. Wu, Happy New Year. Why am I getting goosebumps from your smile?¡± Wu Jin smiled and said, ¡°Chief Zhao, you misunderstood me! I¡¯m here to buy trees from you.¡± When Chief Zhao heard this, he felt a little relieved and teased, ¡°Not bad. You have the money to expand production! What kind of saplings are you planning to buy this time?¡± Wu Jin sat in his chair calmly and slowly replied, ¡°3,000 pear trees and 5,500 persimmon trees each. I want all of them to bear fruit this year.¡± Chief Zhao¡¯s eyes lit up when he heard this number. He immediately took out a calculator and started typing. When he saw the number, he looked up at Wu Jin and said, ¡°A total of 10,600 yuan!¡± Wu Jin smiled and looked at Chief Zhao. ¡°I¡¯ll pay 1,000 yuan for this batch of fruits first. I¡¯ll borrow money from you for the rest.¡± Chief Zhao¡¯s smile froze. He knew that he had let his guard down too early! He was so angry that he put the calculator aside. ¡°Go wherever you want! You have the cheek to say that you want to buy trees from me with 1,000 yuan?!¡± Wu Jin¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change as he continued, ¡°This 1,000 yuan is not just money. It represents my attitude!¡± Then, he took out the ledger he had specifically brought and flipped to the last page. ¡°Chief Zhao, take a look. After distributing the money at the end of last year, this is all that¡¯s left! 1,200! I really gave you all the money I could!¡± Wu Jin had a bitter expression on his face as he said helplessly, ¡°Chief Zhao, I really have no choice. The village is poor! As the village chief, if I don¡¯t think of a way to help everyone survive, won¡¯t I have to watch the villagers work on an empty stomach forever?!¡± As Wu Jin spoke, he became emotional. He still had lingering fear when he recalled that year¡¯s famine. The feeling of watching the villagers die from eating soil since there wasn¡¯t any money or food was too unbearable. Chief Zhao was also from the countryside and knew the economic situation of the various villages in the county. When he thought of the situation of the He Mountain Brigade, he felt sympathetic. Therefore, he accepted the 1,000 yuan. However, he still had to charge an additional 0.01 yuan for the remaining money. Otherwise, it would be difficult for him to explain to his supervisor and other departments. Wu Jin successfully obtained the fruit seedlings and three training spots. He left the Agriculture Bureau in satisfaction. The next day, with great reluctance, Mr. Wei forced himself to send 2,000 yuan to go to the pesticide factory and fertilizer factory. However, Wu Jin changed the 1,200 yuan in the account book to give it to whoever wanted it. In the end, he spent a total of 1,300 yuan to negotiate the use of this batch of fruit trees¡¯ pesticide and fertilizer for half a year. Naturally, he continued to write IOUs for the rest. After the matter was settled, Yu Bing chose a knowledgeable young man and two villagers to go to the Agriculture Bureau for training. Chapter 131 - Trial The work in the orchard officially began on the tenth day of the new year. There wasn¡¯t much farm work in the fields now. The entire village, old and young, had been mobilized to dig pits and plant trees. Their enthusiasm was also very high. Previously, the apples and cherries had only been planted on half of the large slopes of the two hills. The other dirt slopes had been plowed only before the holidays. Yu Bing requested that the remaining 11,500 tree pits be dug in one go by February. This way, they only had to put the seedlings in March. February was the time to plant pear trees. After the pit was dug, with everyone¡¯s combined efforts, the 3,000 pear trees were planted in a few days. Seeing the change in the hillside, the villagers felt a sense of accomplishment. When President Song brought a group of people to the He Mountain Brigade, he saw the prosperous orchard. President Song introduced He Mountain Brigade¡¯s orchard to the county head Mr. Bai and voiced his plan to open a food processing plant. Mr. Bai watched everyone get busy at the foot of the hill. He smiled and said to the people behind him, ¡°Everyone is very enthusiastic! It feels completely different from when we came down to inspect in the past.¡± President Song smiled. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s completely different! What I know is the rough plan. I¡¯ll call Wu Jin and the person-in-charge over and ask them to tell you in detail. I heard that Mr. Wu plans to let the village go all out.¡± Wu Jin brought Yu Bing down the mountain. When he saw the leaders of seven to eight communes and counties, he went forward and greeted them. ¡°Hello, leaders! This is our intellectual team captain, Yu Bing. She¡¯s also in charge of these project industrial chains.¡± Yu Bing smiled. ¡°Greetings, leaders!¡± Mr. Bai smiled and nodded. ¡°Not bad. You¡¯re taking on a big responsibility at such a young age.¡± Mr. Bai didn¡¯t know Bing well and said these words out of courtesy. Yu Bing didn¡¯t mind. After all, she wasn¡¯t interested in showing off in front of them. Mr. Bai had heard some news about Wu Jin going around buying things on credit and was a little curious about how big his operation was, so he took the time to come to the village. ¡°You, Wu Jin, are famous in the county now!¡± Wu Jin naturally knew what Mr. Bai meant, but he was already thick-skinned. ¡°I had no choice.¡± ¡°Everyone knows that our village is a poor village. We can only rely on the help of our various other units. Mr. Bai, can you give us some support? We plan to buy some fish and duck seedlings in two months. Can you help us inform the farm first?¡± Mr. Bai was stunned. He didn¡¯t expect Wu Jin to seize the opportunity to ask for help and offer to pay on credit. He laughed and said, ¡°Mr. Wu, everyone has their own difficulties. It¡¯s not appropriate for me to interfere in the work of other departments.¡± Wu Jin was vexed. Why was he here if he wasn¡¯t going to help?! Seeing this, President Song quickly smiled and tried to smooth things over. ¡°Mr. Wu, you¡¯re always thinking about developing the economic industry in the village! Tell Mr. Wu about your ecological integration industry chain. Mr. Wu has a lot of say in the agricultural field. If there¡¯s any problem, he can give you guidance.¡± It wasn¡¯t that President Song didn¡¯t want Yu Bing to do so, but Yu Bing¡¯s position wasn¡¯t high enough. Mr. Wu had never heard of Yu Bing either. It wouldn¡¯t be good for him to call Yu Bing out too deliberately. When Wu Jin heard this, he quickly pulled Yu Bing out. ¡°Yu Bing is in charge of the design and implementation of this industrial chain. It¡¯s more suitable to let her explain.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t hesitate and stood up to report the plan of the entire industrial chain. During this period, Mr. Bai also asked questions about what he was puzzled about. Yu Bing answered them one by one. Yu Bing¡¯s plan was very thorough. The questions didn¡¯t stump her at all. After the report, Mr. Bai couldn¡¯t help but view Yu Bing in a different light. He originally thought that the other party was just a little talented and smart, but he didn¡¯t expect her to be such a mature and bold woman! Mr. Bai had visited and examined many villages¡¯ economic industries, but Yu Bing¡¯s industrial plan still amazed him. It also made him want to support her. He could use the He Mountain Brigade as a pilot for a new model. If the industrial chain plan really worked, he wanted to promote it to benefit more villages. Chapter 132 - Special Policy After confirming this idea, Mr. Bai said to Wu Jin, ¡°This plan sounds quite good, but I wonder what will happen when it comes to practice. Although I can¡¯t help you get the duck and fish seedlings, I can set this place up as a pilot for a new industry chain model and give you some special privileges.¡± This was really an unexpected gain! Wu Jin took the initiative to request it, but Mr. Bai didn¡¯t agree. However, he unexpectedly received special privileges after explaining the industrial chain! Wu Jin¡¯s eyes lit up as he looked at Mr. Bai. Although he didn¡¯t know what privileges there would be, it was a good thing. ¡°Mr. Bai, thank you for your strong support of our village¡¯s industries!¡± Mr. Bai felt as if he had become a hot commodity in Wu Jin¡¯s eyes at this moment. He smiled and said, ¡°We will make adjustments according to your plan after the meeting. The following documents will be approved.¡± Wu Jin nodded repeatedly. As long as he didn¡¯t have to pay or could pay less, everything was fine! Because the construction of the industrial chain had yet to be completed, Mr. Bai and the others only watched the planting of the fruit trees at the foot of the mountain. They planned to come over after the factory and fish pond were set up. After sending them away, Wu Jin and Yu Bing immersed themselves in the production of the orchard again and successfully planted all the pear trees into the pit before the Lantern Festival. As for Xiao Sheng, he had also figured out the situation. The person targeting Xiao Sheng was called Zhang Chao. He was one of Brother Qiang¡¯s capable subordinates and was considered one of the few highly valued lackeys. Zhang Chao¡¯s reason for targeting him was that Brother Qiang had taken a fancy to Xiao Sheng¡¯s ability and wanted to secretly nurture him. He also hoped that Xiao Sheng would take over the black market stall in the county city. When Xiao Sheng heard this news, he found it unbelievable. After all, the two of them had only worked together for about half a year, while Zhang Chao had been with Brother Qiang for a few years. Zhang Chao also realized that Brother Qiang seemed to have the intention to promote Xiao Sheng and planned to choose the new person-in-charge of the county¡¯s black market. That was why he wanted to stop the delivery of Xiao Sheng¡¯s goods. He beat his deliverer to give Xiao Sheng a warning. How could an ambitious person like Zhang Chao allow a newbie like Xiao Sheng to get ahead of him? However, since Xiao Sheng had dared to enter this industry at such a young age, how could he be someone who was willing to submit? After figuring out who was behind this, he was even more fearless. However, considering the safety of Yu Bing and Zhou Qun, he planned to deliver the goods himself before he thought of a good solution. Those people had already tasted the power of his fists. Coupled with the fact that he was someone Brother Qiang valued, they didn¡¯t dare to do anything openly. Otherwise, it would be equivalent to slapping Brother Qiang in the face. Therefore, as long as it was Xiao Sheng who was doing the delivery, those people didn¡¯t dare to stop him. There wasn¡¯t much work in the fields before the holidays ended, and the commune and county didn¡¯t arrange for tractors to go on errands. However, Yu Bing hadn¡¯t been idle these few days. After they planted the pear trees, there was still land on the big hill to plant kiwis. The small hill was where all the persimmon trees were planned to be planted. Yu Bing would go to the orchard every day to patrol and check on the chickens on the farm. After making sure that everything was fine, she would go home to rest. As soon as she was ready to go to the orchard today, she was stopped. ¡°Hello, I want to ask which direction is Xiao Sheng¡¯s house?¡± A low and magnetic voice sounded. Yu Bing turned around and saw two young men. One of them was Zhang Chao, who Yu Bing knew. Yu Bing was about to shout in surprise when she suddenly realized that according to the timeline, the two of them would only meet more than ten years later. Hence, she quickly replied with a smile, ¡°Xiao Sheng¡¯s family is at the back of the village! Do you know him?¡± Zhang Chao smiled and nodded. Then, he thanked her and left. As Yu Bing looked at Zhang Chao¡¯s departing figure, she marveled over how the two of them had met so early in this life. In her previous life, the two of them met after Zhang Chao came out of prison. Yu Bing and Zhang Chao met through a charity event for the disabled. At that time, Zhang Chao was wearing a worn-out white shirt. He didn¡¯t look rich, but he donated more than 10,000 yuan to blind disabled people. One had to know that 10,000 yuan was a large amount of money in the 90s, so his shabby clothes and extravagant behavior at that time aroused Yu Bing¡¯s curiosity. Later, when Yu Bing was robbed, Zhang Chao helped subdue the criminal and was stabbed in the abdomen. Then, the two of them started interacting. Chapter 133 - Blind Sister When Yu Bing learned that Zhang Chao couldn¡¯t find a good job because he had been in prison and could only rely on hard labor to earn money to support his sickly wife, she decided to let Zhang Chao be her bodyguard and driver. After the two of them became familiar with each other, Yu Bing learned from Zhang Chao that in order to suppress his competitor, he had accidentally killed his competitor¡¯s blind sister. 1 Later on, because Zhang Chao turned himself in, he was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Because he actively cooperated with the reform in prison, he was released early. Although many years had passed, he still couldn¡¯t forget that little girl from back then. Therefore, he scrimped and saved to donate the money he had saved to blind people, hoping to lessen his guilt. Yu Bing recalled her previous life as she walked up the mountain. Since she could meet Zhang Chao so early in this life, Yu Bing hoped that she could change Zhang Chao¡¯s fate. However, she didn¡¯t expect Xiao Sheng to know Zhang Chao. That was good. She could get to know Zhang Chao in advance through Xiao Sheng. Yu Bingxin was very happy to think that she could save her old friend from trouble, but in the next moment, the smile on Yu Bing¡¯s face froze. His competitor¡¯s blind sister! Didn¡¯t Xiao Sheng¡¯s recent goods get intercepted by his competitor? His blind sister was Xiao Li! Yu Bing felt like her heart was about to stop. When she regained her senses, she ran towards the Xiao family crazily! Yu Bing felt extremely guilty. She should have thought of it earlier. How many people had blind sisters?! That little girl who always faced the hardships of life with a smile didn¡¯t deserve to suffer this! The journey that usually took half an hour was shortened to ten minutes by Yu Bing. When she ran to the Xiao family¡¯s house, she saw the courtyard door wide open. Yu Bing rushed in and realized that the house was already empty. The courtyard was scattered with straw mats that Xiao Li usually made. Yu Bing was flustered. She was afraid that she would never see that cute face again. Suddenly, Yu Bing remembered that Zhang Chao had mentioned that he didn¡¯t know how to swim, so he couldn¡¯t save the girl in time. Yu Bing quickly rushed to the pond not far away! At the edge of the pond. With her hands grabbed, Xiao Li could only try her best to drag herself in the opposite direction. She asked in a panic, ¡°Who are you? Let go of me. My brother will be worried if he doesn¡¯t see me.¡± Zhang Chao replied with a fierce expression, ¡°It¡¯s good for him to be worried. When he comes back, remember to tell him not to touch anything he shouldn¡¯t touch. Otherwise, there will be more things for him to worry about!¡± Xiao San stuck his head out and estimated the depth of the pool. ¡°Brother Chao, this pool doesn¡¯t look deep. It shouldn¡¯t be able to drown anyone. Should we throw her in?¡± Chapter 134 - Knocking on the Door Zhang Chao realized that Yu Bing was even fiercer than him, but he couldn¡¯t defeat her! Moreover, Yu Bing always seemed to be very familiar with him, making him wonder if he knew her in the past. Hearing Yu Bing scold him, he couldn¡¯t help but explain loudly, ¡°I just pushed her to the pond. How can someone drown in such a shallow place?!¡± Yu Bing was so angry that she went forward to hit him again. She scolded, ¡°She¡¯s blind and can¡¯t swim. Even if she¡¯s half a meter tall, she¡¯ll drown!¡± Zhang Chao didn¡¯t know how to swim either. He only thought that as long as the water was shallow, one wouldn¡¯t be able to drown. He didn¡¯t know that if a person who didn¡¯t know how to swim entered the water in an anxious state, the other party might not even be able to stand up. Moreover, the depth of this pond wasn¡¯t visible to the naked eye. However, Zhang Chao was a highly adaptable person. Now that his plan had failed, he decided to run away. However, he couldn¡¯t resist ranting, ¡°You ruined my plan! Just you wait!¡± Then, he looked at Xiao San in disdain and regretted not choosing carefully. He actually found someone with lower combat strength than him. He frowned as he said fiercely, ¡°Get up quickly. How embarrassing!¡± The two of them supported each other and left. Only then did Yu Bing heave a sigh of relief. One had to know that Zhang Chao was very good at combat in her previous life. She didn¡¯t expect him to be so weak when he was young! Seeing that Xiao Li was trembling by the pond and didn¡¯t dare to move, Yu Bing threw away the branch in her hand and quickly went forward to hug Xiao Li. When Xiao Li felt Yu Bing¡¯s warm hug, she cried, ¡°Sister Yu Bing!¡± Yu Bing pressed Xiao Li¡¯s head into her arms and patted Xiao Li¡¯s back with her other hand to comfort her gently. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid. I¡¯m here. Those bad people have all left!¡± Xiao Li had only felt this fearful three years ago. This time, she was truly frightened. She cried for more than ten minutes before stopping. ¡°Xiao Li, Xiao Li¡­¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s shout came from afar. Xiao Li immediately replied loudly in a choked voice, ¡°Brother! Brother, I¡¯m here.¡± ¡°Come, let¡¯s go home. Your brother must be anxious.¡± Yu Bing hugged Xiao Li¡¯s shoulder and walked towards the Xiao family¡¯s house. Xiao Sheng rushed over. When he saw Xiao Li¡¯s red and swollen eyes, he immediately ran forward to check her and shouted, ¡°Who bullied you?!¡± Although she knew that her brother wasn¡¯t angry at her, Xiao Li was still frightened by Xiao Sheng¡¯s anger. Yu Bing nudged Xiao Sheng¡¯s arm gently and said softly, ¡°Why are you so loud? The most important thing now is to bring Xiao Li home first. I¡¯ll tell you when we get back!¡± At this moment, Xiao Li reached out and held Xiao Sheng¡¯s palm tightly. She smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯m fine. Don¡¯t worry.¡± As he held Xiao Li¡¯s hand tightly, Xiao Sheng calmed down. Yu Bing saw that Xiao Li was clearly still afraid, but she was comforting her brother, who was worried about her. Her heart ached for this sensible little girl. In her previous life, she was only eight years old when she died. How panicked and desperate must she have felt when she couldn¡¯t see in the water? In her short life, she had only experienced hardship. The only blissfulness in her life was from the affection of her two brothers. At the thought of this, Yu Bing was even angrier at Zhang Chao! She had to teach him a lesson! After Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng coaxed Xiao Li to sleep, the two of them returned to the living room to talk about what had happened just now. When Xiao Sheng found out, he immediately stood up to go settle the score with Zhang Chao. When Yu Bing saw the bloodthirsty look in Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes, she had a bad feeling. She was afraid that something would happen and wanted to follow him, but she was worried about Xiao Li being alone at home. Coincidentally, Xiao Lin returned at that moment. After Yu Bing instructed Xiao Lin not to go out and watch his sister at home, she went out and jogged to catch up to Xiao Sheng. When the two of them arrived at Zhang Chao¡¯s house, it was already noon. Xiao Sheng pushed open the closed door. Zhang Chao was eating with a gentle-looking girl. The girl¡¯s face was sickly pale, and her small oval face appeared pretty and gentle. Yu Bing recognized her at a glance. She was Xia Rou. When Zhang Chao saw the two of them, he knew that they were here to settle scores with him, so he stood up and pulled Xia Rou into the room. However, when Xia Rou saw this, she knew that Xiao Sheng had ill intentions, so she refused to leave. She turned to look at Zhang Chao and asked with a frown, ¡°Did you cause trouble again?¡± Chapter 135 - Lesson Xiao Sheng stood in the courtyard and gritted his teeth as he said to Zhang Chao, ¡°Do you want to come out yourself or let me in?!¡± Since he had already come looking for him, he couldn¡¯t hide. Hence, Zhang Chao pulled Xia Rou¡¯s hand and came out. Without another word, Xiao Sheng punched him. Zhang Chao raised his hand to block, but unfortunately, he didn¡¯t move fast enough and was punched in the left side of his face. Xia Rou was so frightened that she immediately went forward to stop him. Yu Bing pulled her back. She had to let Xiao Sheng vent his anger. Moreover, she hoped to use this opportunity to teach Zhang Chao a lesson! Yu Bing told Xia Rou about how Zhang Chao had almost killed Xiao Li. Xia Rou was shocked. She only knew that Zhang Chao had found a job, but she didn¡¯t know what he was doing. Occasionally, he would come back with injuries. When she asked, he only said that it was a fight with a colleague. Xia Rou lowered her head and kept wiping her tears. Although she knew that Zhang Chao deserved it, it would be a lie to say that she wasn¡¯t worried when she saw Zhang Chao being beaten until he couldn¡¯t fight back anymore. Xia Rou wiped her tears and took out an iron box from the room. She rushed to the courtyard and begged, ¡°Sir, this is all my family¡¯s money! Consider it compensation for Zhang Chao¡¯s mistake. Can you stop hitting him?¡± Xiao Sheng had already lost his rationality, so how could he stop? Yu Bing looked at Zhang Chao, who was already vomiting blood and struggling weakly. She felt that Xiao Sheng couldn¡¯t continue hitting him anymore. Otherwise, Zhang Chao would definitely die. She hurriedly went forward and grabbed Xiao Sheng¡¯s raised fist tightly. She said anxiously, ¡°Xiao Sheng! Stop hitting him. If you continue, he¡¯ll die!¡± How could Yu Bing have enough strength to stop Xiao Sheng? Just as he pulled out his fist and was about to continue beating him, Yu Bing shouted, ¡°If he dies, you¡¯ll have to go to jail. How can Xiao Li and Xiao Lin fend for themselves at such a young age? Also, how will Xiao Li¡¯s eyes get treatment?¡± Only then did Xiao Sheng stop and slowly stand up. He glanced at Xia Rou and said coldly, ¡°I don¡¯t want money. He almost killed my sister and beat up a 16-year-old child working for me until his bones cracked. It¡¯s not too much for me to break his arm, right?¡± Xia Rou was stunned when she heard this. However, when she thought of the evil things Zhang Chao had done behind her back, she felt that it was good for Zhang Chao to be taught a lesson now. If he knew how much it hurt, he wouldn¡¯t dare to act so recklessly and trample on others¡¯ lives anymore. Otherwise, if someone died, it would no longer be resolved with just a beating. At the thought of this, Xia Rou picked up a wooden stick in the corner with a determined gaze and placed her left hand on the wooden table beside her. Yu Bing knew what the other party wanted to do and was about to go forward to stop her, but Xia Rou had already raised the wooden stick and hit her arm. Zhang Chao, who was lying on the ground, saw Xia Rou¡¯s actions and roared with widened eyes, ¡°No!¡± ¡°Ah!¡± Although Xia Rou was mentally prepared, the moment her bones broke, she still cried out in pain. Small beads of sweat appeared on her even paler face. Zhang Chao struggled to get up with all his might and staggered towards Xia Rou. He cried, ¡°Why did you do this? I¡¯ll take responsibility for what I did!¡± Xiao Sheng was stunned. Xia Rou didn¡¯t look at Zhang Chao. She endured the pain as she looked at Xiao Sheng and said, ¡°Sir, I¡¯m Zhang Chao¡¯s wife, Xia Rou. I believe that I still have some weight in his heart. You hit him this time, but maybe he¡¯ll continue to find trouble with you next time. If I break my arm as compensation for this incident, it¡¯ll be more effective. In the future, I¡¯ll watch over him and won¡¯t let him hurt your people again.¡± Seeing this, Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t say anything else. He turned around and walked out. Yu Bing glanced at Xia Rou¡¯s broken arm and sighed. Then, she followed Xiao Sheng out Zhang Chao¡¯s home. The two of them took a cab back to the commune. The ox cart in the village was only used during market day, so the two of them could only walk back. Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing and said with lingering fear, ¡°Yu Bing, thank you. If you hadn¡¯t discovered it in time, it would have been too late by the time I returned.¡± Yu Bing accepted his thanks. After all, without her, Xiao Li would really be gone. She reached out and patted Xiao Sheng¡¯s shoulder gently. ¡°I just happened to encounter this matter. It¡¯s good that it was resolved smoothly. Xia Rou is Zhang Chao¡¯s most beloved. With her around, Zhang Chao won¡¯t attack again.¡± Xiao Sheng thought of Zhang Chao¡¯s reaction when Xia Rou broke her arm and felt that Yu Bing made sense. Suddenly, he thought of what Yu Bing had said when she stopped him and asked softly, ¡°How did you know that my sister¡¯s eyes can be treated?¡± Chapter 136 - Sichuan Hotpot Yu Bing was stunned for a moment before silently apologizing to Xiao Lin. Then, she decisively betrayed him. ¡°Xiao Lin accidentally let it slip to Jiang Chun. Don¡¯t worry, if you don¡¯t want too many people to know about it, Jiang Chun and I definitely won¡¯t tell anyone.¡± Letting others know was indeed detrimental. Everyone knew that it would definitely cost a lot to cure blindness. At that time, if those curious villagers brought this matter up, the Xiao family would become the center of gossip. This wasn¡¯t conducive to Xiao Sheng earning money in a low-profile manner. Xiao Sheng cursed Xiao Lin inside, but he was glad that Yu Bing and Jiang Chun were trustworthy. At this point, Yu Bing asked the question she was concerned about, ¡°How much does Xiao Li¡¯s surgery cost?¡± Xiao Sheng thought of the exorbitant number and lowered his eyes. ¡°I don¡¯t know for sure. I only heard that it costs about 10,000 yuan, but I¡¯ll only know the details after she goes to a large hospital for a checkup.¡± When Yu Bing heard this number, she felt a little shocked. 10,000 yuan was exorbitant even in her future era, let alone now. Hence, she comforted him. ¡°It¡¯s fine. She can have the surgery when you save up enough money. As time passes, the medical standards will increase.¡± Xiao Sheng shook his head. ¡°Xiao Li can¡¯t wait. The person I asked told me that the sooner Xiao Li undergoes surgery, the higher the chance of her regaining eyesight.¡± For some reason, he suddenly wanted to tell Yu Bing about these things that outsiders couldn¡¯t know. Perhaps it was because he also wanted to find someone to confide in to relieve the heavy burden in his heart. When Yu Bing heard this, she sighed inwardly. ¡°Haven¡¯t you found a sales channel in the city now? I¡¯ll push out a few more new products. With more sales channels, we¡¯ll be able to earn money faster!¡± Xiao Sheng smiled and nodded. After Zhang Chao¡¯s matter was resolved, the supply in the county returned to normal. Lantern Festival. In order to thank Yu Bing for saving Xiao Li, the Xiao family invited Yu Bing and Jiang Chun to celebrate the holidays together. Yu Bing looked at the chickens and fish that had already been killed in the kitchen and couldn¡¯t help but tease Xiao Lin, who was burning the fire, ¡°It¡¯s rare for someone as stingy as your brother to offer chickens and fish today.¡± Xiao Lin touched his nose in embarrassment when he heard this. In order to save up for the surgery fees, their family was usually willing to spend money on Xiao Li, but they could scrimp on everything else. His clothes were full of patches, but he couldn¡¯t bear to buy cloth to make a new one. Every year, Xiao Sheng only used clothing stamps on Xiao Lin and Xiao Li. As long as his clothes could be worn, he would sell the remaining clothing stamps for money. The weather was cold, so it wasn¡¯t suitable for eating stir-fried vegetables. There was no mutton to cook, so Yu Bing suddenly decided to eat Sichuan spicy hotpot! Ever since she started to earn money, Yu Bing had never scrimped on food. There were many spices at home. Yu Bing ran home, took the things needed for the hotpot base, and went to the Xiao family¡¯s house to start making the hotpot base! Due to everyone¡¯s low tolerance for spicy food, Yu Bing planned to make it mildly spicy. First, she cut the dried chili into small pieces and shook out the chili seeds in the dry chili seasoning. Then, she filtered the chili seeds with a funnel, leaving only the dried chili shells to pour into the bowl. She added boiling water and soaked them for 20 minutes. Then, she filled a clean bowl with aniseed, cinnamon, fragrant leaves, seedless grass fruit, and fennel. She added a large spoonful of high-quality white wine to stimulate the aroma of the spices. After stirring it evenly with a spoon, she soaked it for five minutes. She took out another clean bowl and placed a small pinch of green and white peppers in it. Then, she poured in the white wine that had just been soaked in spices. After stirring it evenly, she soaked it for 10 minutes. This could effectively prevent it from tasting bitter when stir-fried. Yu Bing took out a piece of ginger and onion, then cut them into pieces. Then, she placed the soaked chili shell on the chopping board and cut it. She took out a small bowl, then placed sugar and rice wine in it. After doing all this, she was done preparing the ingredients for the hotpot base. Everyone knew that Yu Bing was preparing a new dish, so they surrounded the kitchen and watched curiously. Yu Bing first poured the oil into the cold pot and boiled it at 150 degrees heat. Then, she added onions, ginger, and coriander. At this moment, she had to slow-fry it over a small fire to let the oil and the taste of the spices fuse completely. After the spices changed color, she fished them out. Then, she poured in chili powder and spices and continued to stir-fry them. About ten minutes later, the water in the chili had been stir-fried dry, and the air was filled with an aromatic and spicy smell. It made the people in the kitchen cough. Chapter 137 - Red Oil Bean Paste About 15 minutes later, Yu Bing added homemade red oil bean paste and stir-fried it until the bean paste inside was dry. When the oil in the pot was clear and red, she added the green peppers and white wine. One minute later, she added sugar and rice wine to increase the freshness. After the stir-fried sugar melted, she added salt. When the salt melted, she was done! Xiao Sheng was in charge of washing the vegetables. Jiang Chun cut the chicken, fish, potatoes, and carrots into pieces. She even took two yams, peeled them, and cut them into pieces as well. Then, she brought out a large basin of cabbage. The veggies for the hotpot were ready. Because there was no matching table for the Sichuan hotpot, they only needed to place the saucepan on the stove. After the hotpot base was placed in the pot and the spices were stir-fried, clear water was added. Yu Bing said regretfully, ¡°Without soup, we can only add clear water. Otherwise, it will taste amazing! After the water boils, add whatever you want to eat. Eat it directly after it¡¯s cooked.¡± Everyone sat in a circle and sniffed the fresh and spicy taste of the Sichuan-style hotpot. It was so appetizing that everyone kept salivating. After finally scalding the veggies they had placed in, they couldn¡¯t wait to fish them out and taste them. The taste was delicious and spicy. It was too spicy, but they couldn¡¯t help but continue eating. They finished all the remaining vegetables, not even leaving a single cabbage leaf! When eating spicy hotpot in the middle of winter, everyone was sweating profusely and even the pores on their bodies relaxed. ¡°How satisfying! It¡¯s so spicy!¡± Even Jiang Chun, who rarely ate spicy food, felt that she couldn¡¯t stop. The Xiao siblings liked spicy food. In addition, Yu Bing controlled the spiciness, so the few of them ate until their stomachs were full. Xiao Sheng asked, ¡°Can this pot base be made into bottle form?¡± Yu Bing tilted her head and thought for a moment. In the future, with embalming and vacuum packaging, it could indeed increase the preservation time, but it had to be stored in the fridge. Now, they didn¡¯t have such conditions and technology, so she replied, ¡°No, it can¡¯t be preserved.¡± Xiao Sheng felt a little regretful. After all, rich people liked these sorts of novel things. As he was thinking, his eyes swept across a small bottle on the stove. He remembered that Yu Bing had put two spoonfuls in when she was making the hotpot base just now. Xiao Sheng went forward and took the glass bottle. ¡°Yu Bing, what is this?¡± Yu Bing turned around and took a look, then said, ¡°Red oil bean paste.¡± Xiao Sheng took out clean chopsticks and scooped up a little to taste. ¡°The sauce is delicious and spicy. I can taste the hotpot base!¡± Yu Bing nodded. ¡°You know your stuff. This sauce makes noodles, steamed buns, or stir-fried meat very delicious. It can even be eaten dry. It¡¯s like chili sauce, but it tastes much better than ordinary chili sauce.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°Then can we sell this?¡± A conflicted expression flashed across Yu Bing¡¯s face. ¡°I can, but this is very troublesome. A batch of finished products can only be produced once a month.¡± Yu Bing explained the production process and the required materials to Xiao Sheng in detail. Xiao Sheng thought about it carefully before saying, ¡°Give me a can that you haven¡¯t opened yet. I¡¯ll try it. I¡¯ll decide if I want to sell it after seeing how much it can be priced!¡± After the Lantern Festival, the Spring Festival would be over. The village would also begin to arrange work. Because there wasn¡¯t much work, Xiao Sheng took this opportunity to go to the county city. Brother Qiang was preparing to nurture a successor because he was going to take over the black market in City Z. This was enough to prove that Brother Qiang had a say in the market in City Z. Although Brother Qiang had yet to tell him about the matter, Xiao Sheng thought of how much Brother Qiang valued him and wanted to give it a try. Because making red oil bean paste was troublesome and there were many ingredients required, it couldn¡¯t be sold cheaply. The county city¡¯s consumption was limited, so there definitely wouldn¡¯t be many goods that could be sold. Xiao Sheng could only set his sights on the city, but he had only found a few people in City H to help him sell them in individual quantities. If he wanted to sell more, he had to go through Brother Qiang. In order to be more convincing, Yu Bing specifically made steamed buns, noodles, and a few cold dishes made with bean paste and placed them in the lunch box. Brother Qiang was indeed tempted after eating them. It was versatile, convenient to eat, and tasted good. He had yet to see something like it in the entire province. These were all selling points. In the end, Brother Qiang asked Xiao Sheng to go back and wait for the news. He had to go to the city to let someone see the goods before he could decide if he could sell them in City Z and what the price was. As long as Brother Qiang didn¡¯t directly refuse, there was still hope. Xiao Sheng thanked Brother Qiang again and again. Chapter 138 - Pilot Policy February quickly came to an end. Mrs. Yao also received Yao Nian¡¯s letter. When she found out that her son had fallen ill after his plan failed and that the new village chief had taken office, Mrs. Yao immediately felt heartache and tears welled up in her eyes. Then, she learned that Yu Bing was actually going to become the factory director! She recalled her previous impression of Yu Bing and realized that she couldn¡¯t think of anything. Yu Bing was like an invisible person in the Yu family. She was never like other children who liked to go to other people¡¯s houses to visit or play with their peers in the courtyard after school. Mrs. Yao thought about the number of times she had seen Yu Bing. They were all simply greetings when they saw each other in the building. How could such a person become the factory director? Mrs. Yao felt confused and continued to read the letter. She learned that her son actually had the intention to marry Yu Bing. When Mrs. Yao read this, she felt unhappy. Yu Bing¡¯s family background was similar to theirs, and she couldn¡¯t help Yao Nian return to the city. The Yu family didn¡¯t value Yu Bing, so it was impossible for her dowry to have anything valuable. Most importantly, from Yao Nian¡¯s letter, Mrs. Yao learned that the factory had yet to open and she was only preparing to be the factory director! Who knew if this was a sure deal or not?! After thinking about it, she decided not to reply for the time being. At this moment, Mrs. Yao suspected that Yu Bing had bewitched her son. After all, Yao Nian had only planned to rape Yu Bing previously. How come he wanted to marry her now? This was a big deal. She couldn¡¯t let Yao Nian fool around since the matter was uncertain. If Yu Bing really became the factory director, she could relent. 1 At this moment, Yao Nian still didn¡¯t know what his mother was thinking. He was waiting for the Yu family to agree to the marriage. When the factory was built, he could get a management job. Because of these thoughts, Yao Nian became more patient even when doing the most tedious farm work. At this moment, a document entitled ¡°Pilot Industrial Chain Policy for the Ecological Integration Project of the Fengtou Mountain Brigade of Pingjiang County¡± was already in Wu Jin¡¯s hands. The support of the policy included requiring the village to send the corresponding personnel to the corresponding departments involved in the industrial chain to receive technical training. They also allocated 2,000 yuan from the county finance bureau to the He Mountain Brigade as a pilot fund. Wu Jin was so overjoyed that he became easygoing towards everyone he encountered recently. It was better to teach people how to fish than to give them fish. The Agriculture Bureau was a government agency. Under the principle that officials had to uphold justice for the people, he was able to convince Chief Zhao to give him five spots. However, those factories didn¡¯t fall for it. They were national companies. Although they were publicly owned, they were still considered companies It wasn¡¯t that he hadn¡¯t tried convincing them, but the factories were unwilling. If he continued bugging them, they might not even let him buy things on credit anymore. Now, everything was fine! Wu Jin felt proud at this moment. He said to Yu Bing, ¡°Yu Bing, choose someone. This is a document issued by the county government. Let¡¯s see how those old foxes can stop me!¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯ll arrange for people to report to various units in the county tomorrow. People in the agriculture and breeding industry are most afraid of encountering pests and animals falling sick. We have our own technicians, so many hidden dangers can be discovered and resolved in time. I¡¯m already looking forward to the harvest of the fruit trees!¡± Wu Jin complained, ¡°That¡¯s right. There are only a few technicians in the factory! Every time I go to make an appointment, it takes several days for people to come down. Their attitude is so unpleasant!¡± On second thought, he reminded her, ¡°Although we have documents that we can ask them to give us training, how much we can learn depends on how those old masters teach us. You have to send smart and tactful people. After all, not many people are willing to teach people their best skills so easily.¡± Yu Bing nodded in understanding. Previously, there had only been 2,000 chickens on the chicken farm according to the size ratio, but now that the other half of the big hill had been reclaimed, Yu Bing planned to add 1,000 more chickens and two more breeders. On the small hill, Yu Bing planned to raise ducks entirely and manage them separately. The small hill would raise 2,000 ducks with four people watching over them, so she sent two people to the chicken and duck team farm each to learn techniques. Fish ponds, fertilizer plants and pesticide plants were also studied in a ratio of two people per unit. After the orchard planting and farming were arranged, Yu Bing began to arrange things for the food factory. Feng Cai had already taken the IOU to the machinery factory to settle the procedures, so the factory had to be set up. Chapter 139 - Factory Yu Bing happened to meet Wu Jin in front of the office building. ¡°Village Chief, I just went to the village and realized that there¡¯s an empty adobe house a few hundred meters away from the village committee¡¯s office. That house is quite big. It looks to be two to three hundred square meters. There¡¯s also empty space around it suitable for future expansion. I think it¡¯s the perfect space to build a factory building! It¡¯s just that the road in front of the house is a little narrow. It has to be wide enough to accommodate two cars.¡± Wu Jin frowned and looked in the direction Yu Bing was pointing. He was enlightened and said, ¡°Oh, I know the area you¡¯re talking about!¡± ¡°That house is quite good. The office of the old regime was there. At that time, in order to differentiate from the old regime, they wanted to tear it down and rebuild it. However, the house there is quite good, so we couldn¡¯t bear to tear it down and chose a new location here. Since you like it, I¡¯ll get the old builder in the village to go with you to see the safety of the overall structure. If there¡¯s no problem, we¡¯ll settle there.¡± Yu Bing agreed readily. ¡°Alright! Send me someone. I¡¯ll bring people to sort it out in the next few days.¡± Although the empty tiled house had not been used for more than twenty years, fortunately, the structure was safe. Yu Bing asked the old master to bring more than ten experienced people to divide the large tiled house into two rooms. In the empty space beside it, a 100-square-meter red brick tiled house was built as a warehouse. Then, they would apply a layer of plaster powder on all the walls of the factory and it would be done! In order to increase the safety of the factory, the entire factory and the empty space in front were surrounded by a large circular wall. As for the big iron gate at the entrance of the factory, it was temporarily put on hold because there weren¡¯t enough funds. Anyway, the door of the factory was locked. When there were goods, someone would be on duty at night. When Yu Bing went to the brick factory in the neighboring village to pull bricks, due to Wu Jin¡¯s reputation for buying goods on credit, the village chief said that he would only give them the bricks when he received the money. At this time, the red brick cost 0.02 yuan a piece. The budget for building the house was less than 200 yuan. It didn¡¯t cost much, so Yu Bing didn¡¯t intend to buy it on credit. However, she still tried to save as much money as she could. She forced the other party to give her a discount. The original price was 186.3 yuan, but the final price was 180 yuan. There was strength in numbers. In three days, the factory was built according to the requirements. Wu Jin had been busy organizing the villagers to prepare for spring plowing these few days, while Yu Bing brought her disciples to expand the road. At the same time, she arranged for six agile women to clean the factory. In addition, Yu Bing also had to take care of the orchard. The kiwi and persimmon trees had already reached planting season. Over the past few days, her disciples had taken turns pulling the saplings up the mountain in batches from the Agriculture Bureau. Yu Bing arranged for people to plant them in the orchard and monitored the progress. She only arranged ten people for the management of the kiwi tree. However, there were many persimmon trees, and they were alone on the small hill. Yu Bing arranged for 15 people to manage them. The people in charge of each type of fruit tree were the batch of people who were arranged to participate in training at the Agriculture Bureau. Feng Cai had already pulled the machine back, so Yu Bing focused on the factory. The factory had been cleaned and the water and electricity were functioning. Yu Bing even asked the carpenter in the village to make a wooden sign saying ¡°Delicious Food Processing Factory¡± and hang it on the wall of the factory. The factory was almost ready now, so Wu Jin took the time to go to the factory to take a look. As soon as he entered the factory, Wu Jin saw a simple staff changing room on the left side of the entrance. Although it was impossible to completely build the food processing plant into a sterile production site like those of the future, Yu Bing still tried her best to standardize the management of the factory. When the workers went to work, they had to change into uniforms in the changing room as soon as they entered the factory. The factory¡¯s work clothes were a long-sleeved shirt-style pocketless apron. The rope design behind it could be adjusted to fit one¡¯s figure. The uniform reached one¡¯s knees. Everyone had to wear a small white round hat to prevent their hair from falling into the food, since it would affect food hygiene and safety. Therefore, no matter how tight the funds were, Yu Bing still took two yuan from Mr. Wei to buy the cheapest cloth. With a set of labor fees of 0.5 yuan, she subcontracted it to two aunties who were the best at making clothes in the village and made 14 sets of work clothes. The requirement to wear work clothes was firstly to prevent employees from stealing them, and secondly, to look uniform and create a serious work atmosphere for employees, instead of letting them feel like they were in the comfort of their homes. This was because the villagers had never worked in a food factory before. Once they relaxed, it was very easy for them to bring some of their bad hygiene habits to the factory. Yu Bing definitely wouldn¡¯t allow this. Chapter 140 - Recruitment The remaining space was divided into a 150-square-meter operation room and an 80-square-meter disinfection room. On the left side of the operating room, there were five large boiler stoves against the wall. In the corner next to the stove, there was an operating table with running water equipment. In the middle of the room, there were a few long tables for the operating table for storing food. The remaining space was filled with rows of custom-made wooden shelves that were 1.5 meters tall. Each floor was separated by 30 centimeters, and they were used to store all kinds of canned food that had been boiled and bottled. They passed through the small door in the middle and entered the disinfection room. Disinfection equipment had already been placed inside. Feng Cai bought a double-layered sterilization pot. This kind of equipment had a wide range of applications. It could be used in bags or cans. It could be used to disinfect and sterilize all sorts of products, from fruit and milk products to meat and fish. The machine occupied an area of more than ten square meters and was placed in the middle of the room. The four walls were wooden shelves of the same specification as the operating room. They were used to temporarily store the finished products that had completed the disinfection process. These things would be moved to the warehouse beside it to be labeled before work ended every day. The factory¡¯s hardware and equipment were all prepared. Wu Jin couldn¡¯t find any problems with the factory¡¯s settings. He only asked Yu Bing, ¡°What other preparations are there for the factory?¡± Yu Bing took out a notebook from her green crossbody bag. There were a few things that had yet to be ticked on it, so she said with annoyance, ¡°There¡¯s still job recruitment waiting to be completed. Our food factory¡¯s trademark hasn¡¯t been designed yet. After the designing is done, we still have to contact the paper factory to help us print it. We still have to purchase glass bottles, and we haven¡¯t contacted the food supply company yet.¡± When Wu Jin heard this, he lowered his eyes and said, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll take the time to take a look at the planting situation in the orchard. Your focus has to be on the preparation of the factory. This is the key for us to repay the money.¡± Yu Bing said seriously, ¡°Alright, I understand.¡± After the two of them finished distributing the work, they began to get busy. At this moment, Brother Qiang also sent back news. City Z was willing to sell 100 bottles of red oil bean paste. According to the size of 250 grams a bottle, Xiao Sheng negotiated the wholesale price of one yuan per bottle. The price seemed expensive, but there was a lot of oil in the red oil bean paste. In the future, people always said that people in this era didn¡¯t have enough to eat. It could be seen how precious oil was now. Red oil bean paste was salty and tasty. It was also spicy and appetizing. Even if there wasn¡¯t a single dish, even a little bit of red oil bean paste could add flavor to a bowl of rice. Moreover, after the red oil bean paste was finished, the remaining layer of oil could be used for cooking for an entire week. It also tasted better than ordinary oil. Xiao Sheng had already calculated the cost of production. A bottle cost 0.68 yuan. Although it was time-consuming, the profit of 0.32 yuan was still worth it! After all, no matter how little the amount was, even a little money was money! With the arrival of spring, the supply of various vegetables gradually followed. The supply of pickled vegetables in the city had already been stopped. The three vats of pickled vegetables on the mountain were also empty now. They could be used to marinate red oil bean paste for Yu Bing. The quantity of 100 bottles only took up two-thirds of a vat. Because she wasn¡¯t sure how popular they would be and if they would increase the quantity, Yu Bing naturally didn¡¯t dare to make too much. She only asked Xiao Sheng to buy the corresponding amount of raw materials according to the supply. At this moment, the factory recruitment work that everyone in the village was looking forward to began in full swing. The registration work was on the flat ground in the factory courtyard, and the recruitment registration information was handled by the female director, Zhao Lin. The main reason Yu Bing chose Zhao Lin to help her was that Zhao Lin was in charge of resolving conflicts in the village and knew the situation of the various families very well. Yu Bing was recruiting people to work, so she didn¡¯t want to attract those troublemakers! The recruitment notice was pasted on the wall of the factory¡¯s entrance. There were 14 people being recruited, and the age limit was 18 to 28 years old. The number of people required for each position was five female chefs, two disinfectants, and seven ordinary workers. The recruitment method was divided into two rounds, a written test and an interview. Yu Bing was inclined to recruit women for the first batch of employees. After all, it was the food industry and was closely related to the kitchen. Women were more meticulous and hygienic, especially those in charge of making jam on the stove. However, many people who came with hope were disqualified because of their age. When they saw the recruitment requirements, they were very indignant. ¡°Yu Bing, older people are more efficient at work. Why don¡¯t you want us?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Chapter 141 - Written Test Older villagers tended to take advantage of their seniority. In fact, this was why Yu Bing included the age requirements. The establishment of a new factory included the establishment of rules. She had to let the workers learn to obey management right from the beginning. Otherwise, she would have to spend time managing these people. As long as the first batch of employees could be managed according to the factory management system, even if they recruited older workers later, there wouldn¡¯t be any trouble. Yu Bing said calmly, ¡°The factory has just been established, and many things are still in the process of being explored. Young people learn quickly, which helps the factory figure out the correct production model quickly. Only then can we gain a foothold and expand production.¡± After these words, everyone quieted down. Yu Bing continued, ¡°In the future, the factory will need to expand recruitment. I will relax the age limit, but there¡¯s one thing that won¡¯t change. All workers who enter the factory have to pass the written test.¡± Yu Bing made this decision for the sake of the factory. The villagers weren¡¯t stupid. The factory was the village¡¯s industry. If the factory could do better, they could get more money at the end of the year. Moreover, everyone felt much better when they heard that they still had a chance. Most importantly, almost every family had people of this age. It didn¡¯t matter if they were old, as long as their sons, daughters, or daughters-in-law had a chance! Hence, everyone stopped protesting and hurriedly pulled their family members into the queue to sign up. Other than Feng Cai, Yu Yan and Yao Nian didn¡¯t sign up either. There was naturally no need to mention Feng Cai. He had already been appointed as the chief of the sales department. Although he was currently a general without an army, he was still a leader. As long as the factory performed well, it was only a matter of time before he had subordinates. The intellectuals were envious, but they couldn¡¯t do anything about it. After all, they couldn¡¯t give the factory the necessary machines like Feng Nian could. However, because of Feng Cai¡¯s example, the young people began to rack their brains to think of what benefits their family¡¯s connections could bring to the factory so that they could successfully become workers. Yu Yan couldn¡¯t take this lying down. She couldn¡¯t stand being led by Yu Bing. Putting aside her identity as Yu Bing¡¯s sister, submitting to Yu Bing and being controlled by Yu Bing was worse than asking her to farm. Yao Nian, on the other hand, was waiting for his mother to propose the idea of marriage to Yu Bing¡¯s parents. He had the intention of letting Yu Bing give him a management position, so he disdained signing up here. There were 187 applicants. They would participate in the written test three days after the registration deadline. In the past three days, the He Mountain Brigade had been in high spirits! At this time, most people had never officially attended school and had only attended literacy classes. They rarely read or write. As time passed, other than knowing how to write their name, because it involved getting work points, many people had forgotten how to write other words. Over the past few days, everyone had been asking each other questions and discussing as they worked. From time to time, they would gesture on the ground. The high learning atmosphere of the villagers made the intellectual youths especially nervous. They, who originally felt that they had the upper hand, suddenly lost their confidence. Every day, after work, they took out their textbooks from their previous studies and revised them attentively. Yu Bing was happy to hear this because it was getting closer and closer to the time the college entrance examination was resumed. Others might not know, but as someone who had experienced the future, she knew very well that once the policy to resume the college entrance examination was adopted, it meant that the entire country would undergo a tremendous change. She hoped that the intellectual youths of the He Mountain Brigade could seize the opportunity. The college entrance examination had been put on hold for 10 years. This meant that a large number of positions for high-level talents were completely vacant. This made the country crave talents to the extreme. Therefore, after the university students recruited through the college entrance examination three years ago graduated, they held very important positions in various departments of the country. It could be said that it was a chance for all scholars to turn things around. Yu Bing personally came up with an exam paper for this written test. The language arts section tested composition and grammar. They also had to write a small essay of about 100 words. The Mathematics section tested addition and subtraction methods of numbers within 100 and the conversion of currency units. In fact, Yu Bing didn¡¯t have high expectations. As long as one could understand words and calculate, one could pass. Therefore, as long as one mastered basic knowledge points, one could pass. Chapter 142 - Results After the written test, there were still 135 applicants left. The competition was still very intense. Other than those who already had positions in the industrial chain project, Yu Yan and Yao Nian, who hadn¡¯t signed up, the remaining 60 people all entered the second round of the interview. The interview was arranged on the second day of the written test. The interviewers were Yu Bing, Zhao Lin, and Wu Jin. The female chefs who signed up were all villagers. Their job was to cook jam, so they were tested on their culinary skills. However, Yu Bing was more concerned about whether their clothes were clean and tidy, as well as some small habits when cooking. For example, many people would reach into the pot and pick up a vegetable to taste it. There were also those who didn¡¯t wash their hands before cooking. Whether the countertop was still clean after cooking was also part of the assessment. In the end, five young wives with good cooking skills and hygiene were chosen. The two disinfectants were in charge of operating the machine to disinfect the canned food. It involved mechanical operations and theoretical learning, so it mainly tested the candidate¡¯s memory and learning ability. When Feng Nian went to retrieve the machine, he specifically learned how to use and maintain the double-layer sterilization pot. During the interview, he was in charge of explaining the names and uses of the various parts of the machine. Whoever repeated it the most comprehensively would be chosen. In the end, the male intellectuals were chosen. As for the ordinary workers, they were all assigned to the mobility team. As the name suggested, they were flexible employees. They did whatever job needed to be done and helped out in the factory. This required the workers to cooperate well and be able to endure hardships. Of course, they also had to value cleanliness. After all, they were in the food industry, which had high hygiene requirements. This was also Yu Bing¡¯s basic requirement for the people working in the factory. Four women and three men were chosen. Among them, four were intellectuals. Jiang Chun was also one of the chosen people. Then, Yu Bing chose a team leader from each of the three groups. Yu Bing¡¯s management of the factory was based on leadership accountability. The team leaders and section chiefs were directly responsible for reporting to Yu Bing. At the same time, they had to supervise the employees in their team. Once there was a problem, they would first find out which team had made a mistake. Then, Yu Bing would directly hold the relevant leaders accountable. As the factory director, Yu Bing was mainly responsible for the general development direction of the factory. She had to keep an eye on the sales and funds, the production plan, the quality control, and the work content of the various departments at every stage. How could she have so much time to pay attention to such trivial matters and the management of the grassroots employees? Yu Bing definitely wouldn¡¯t hold back when it came to delegating authority, but correspondingly, these small leaders who had enjoyed power had to shoulder the responsibility of managing employees and leading their team members to do their jobs well. The next morning, Yu Bing finished writing the recruitment results in the office and prepared to go out to post them. When everyone saw Yu Bing come out, they greeted her warmly. Yu Bing smiled and replied to them one by one. Then, she pasted the list on the factory wall. When everyone saw the name list, they realized that about half of the people in this round of recruitment were intellectuals. The villagers were furious! The more enthusiastic everyone was just now, the more indignant they were now. ¡°This is the village¡¯s industry. Why should intellectuals take up so many of our spots?¡± A hoarse female voice sounded. Yu Bing felt that the voice was a little familiar. Before Yu Bing could find the source, the remaining villagers began to voice their dissatisfaction loudly. ¡°That¡¯s right. Even if it¡¯s just according to the proportions of the number of villagers and intellectuals in the village, the intellectuals shouldn¡¯t account for so many people!¡± ¡°Yu Bing, are you biased towards your own people?¡± ¡°Yu Bing, even if you¡¯re an intellectual yourself, you can¡¯t give all the spots to your people so blatantly!¡± ¡°I already said that the written test was held to eliminate us. As for the age limit, I think it¡¯s just to make way for those intellectuals!¡± ¡°That¡¯s not fair. We protest this list!¡± ¡°Yes, we want to protest!¡± ¡°Objection!¡± The villagers began to shout in unison. When the final list of people was confirmed yesterday, Yu Bing had already expected today¡¯s situation. Yu Bing expected that there would be villagers who were unconvinced and caused trouble, but she had a clear conscience, so she shouted, ¡°Everyone, calm down and listen to me first!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t listen to her! She must be trying to find an excuse to deceive us again!¡± Chapter 143 - Debt Yu Bing quickly looked at the crowd and realized that Li Ping was avoiding her gaze. She knew that Li Ping was definitely involved in this matter. Yu Bing¡¯s voice was drowned out by everyone¡¯s angry shouts. There was also someone deliberately causing trouble by fanning the flames, so the villagers continued to shout in protest. Seeing this, Yu Bing turned around and said a few words to Jiang Chun. Jiang Chun ran into the factory. In fact, when this result came out, the intellectuals felt that Yu Bing was biased towards them. However, no matter what, Yu Bing was being blamed because of them now, so they silently surrounded Yu Bing, thinking that if the villagers became agitated and attacked Yu Bing directly, they could stop them. Although the intellectual youths had good intentions, this undoubtedly made the villagers even more certain that Yu Bing was biased and unfair. It also made the relationship between the villagers and the intellectual youths more estranged. Everyone began to condemn Yu Bing even more fiercely. ¡°This industrial chain belongs to our village. The village chief should have chosen the person in charge from among the villagers. Why should you be the one in charge?¡± These words had a domino effect! Many people didn¡¯t care about this at first. After all, they all felt that even if Yu Bing didn¡¯t become the person in charge, they wouldn¡¯t either! However, it was different now. They felt that they had suffered unfair treatment, so after someone suggested it, this matter became an excuse for them to condemn Yu Bing and force her to compromise. However, there were people in the crowd who knew the inside story. ¡°I heard that this industrial chain was proposed by Yu Bing, so they made her the person in charge.¡± With someone speaking up for Yu Bing, a small group of villagers voiced their belief in Yu Bing¡¯s capabilities. Therefore, there was no longer a problem with her being the person in charge. They only had doubts about the recruitment results this time. However, those who believed in Yu Bing were in the minority. Most of them were still unconvinced. At this moment, Jiang Chun carried a loudspeaker from the factory and walked to Yu Bing¡¯s side with a stool in one hand. Then, she quietly crawled out from the side. Yu Bing took the loudspeaker and stepped on the stool. Then, she said firmly, ¡°I¡¯ve heard everyone¡¯s doubts. Now, I hope you can all calm down and let me tell you guys why!¡± ¡°Let her talk. Let¡¯s hear what she says!¡± ¡°Alright, we¡¯ll let you talk. If you don¡¯t satisfy us, we¡¯ll report you. If the village doesn¡¯t care, we¡¯ll look for the commune. If the commune doesn¡¯t care, we¡¯ll look for the county!¡± Then, everyone finally quietened down. Yu Bing picked up the loudspeaker again. ¡°Villagers! Intellectuals! What I¡¯m going to say next is what I want to say to all of you. I¡¯ve never thought that the locals of the He Mountain Brigade are on opposing sides of those of us who came from the city to the countryside to support the construction, but I know many of you don¡¯t think so.¡± ¡°The villagers have an advantage in terms of planting, but in terms of cultural foundation and learning ability, the intellectuals have an advantage. These advantages should be complementary, not opposing! We should be united.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not easy to start a factory. From the establishment of the factory to purchasing the necessary equipment, to organizing the recruitment of people to produce it, to the sales problem after the finished product is produced, all of this is complicated.¡± ¡°If our factory wants to develop, the most important thing is to survive first! The abilities of intellectuals can more effectively help the factory increase its survival rate. Why?¡± ¡°Because they have more connections and better knowledge. They can sell the products in the factory to the county and the city. I believe that the furthest place many villagers have been to is only the county city. I also believe that if I give you guys a chance, you will grow up, but our factory can¡¯t afford to wait!¡± ¡°Everyone saw the village¡¯s account book at the end of last year. It¡¯s only 1,200 yuan, but look at our project. There are more than 10,000 tree seedlings planted in the orchard, a farm, and a fish pond. Do you think the money in the village¡¯s account can really carry out these projects?¡± No one had ever calculated this before. When they heard Yu Bing¡¯s words, they fell into deep thought. ¡°The current disinfection equipment in the factory is from the intellectual Feng Cai. Through his family¡¯s connections, he obtained a discount and He Mountain Brigade was able to buy it on credit. The Mountain Brigade is now in debt! Do you know why Mr. Bai came to oversee our project? Because even a high-ranking person like him heard of our village¡¯s reputation of borrowing money everywhere! That¡¯s why he came to take a look!¡± Chapter 144 - Clear Conscience Just as Yu Bing had said, no matter how one looked at it, the village¡¯s industrial chain exceeded the fund balance on the account. Although the villagers didn¡¯t say it, they were aware. Now that Yu Bing had directly exposed it, they couldn¡¯t play dumb anymore and could only face it head-on. Yu Bing saw everyone¡¯s silence and knew that she had to take this opportunity to completely convince these people. Otherwise, wouldn¡¯t she be exhausted if they caused trouble every other day?! ¡°The first batch of workers in the factory is very important. This will affect whether the factory can gain a foothold or not. I have to ensure that the people chosen are the best. Only then can the factory operate faster and obtain funds to ensure the virtuous operation of the factory. As the vanguards, the intellectuals are under even more pressure.¡± ¡°I hope that before you all cause trouble, you remember one thing. You differentiate between your own people and outsiders, but you seem to have omitted something. After intellectuals come to the countryside, their household registration is also in the countryside! Everyone¡¯s goal should be the same, and that is to hope that the He Mountain Brigade will get better and better!¡± ¡°Moreover, the factory is a collective economic project in the village, and the benefits generated are also collectively owned. Only when the factory earns money can everyone truly benefit! Therefore, I¡¯ll choose whoever can do the jobs the best and bring the greatest benefits to the factory. Only when the factory is stable can it bring more dividends to everyone at the end of the year. Only then can it steadily expand and create more jobs for more people!¡± ¡°Villagers, I, Yu Bing, have no selfish motives towards the people I recruited, and I have a clear conscience! Alright, that¡¯s all I want to say. If you¡¯re unhappy and want to report me, so be it. Everything I do can withstand tests and investigations!¡± At this moment, everyone felt a little embarrassed when they heard this. Yu Bing was loyal to the public, but not only did they not appreciate her kindness, but they also came to cause trouble. They were too short-sighted. When Li Ping, who was in the crowd, saw that Yu Bing had actually turned the situation around, she was furious. Her eyes darted around and she no longer hid herself. She looked straight at Yu Bing as she said loudly, ¡°We villagers can also learn the knowledge that the intellectuals have. You said that the current situation can¡¯t wait for us to grow, but what makes you assume that we have to take so long to learn?! You¡¯re just prejudiced against villagers!¡± As soon as she said this, a small group of people agreed. Yu Bing stared at Li Ping coldly. Just as she was about to speak, she was interrupted by a voice. ¡°Let me uphold justice.¡± When everyone heard Wu Jin¡¯s voice behind them, they made way. Wu Jin walked forward with a few people. ¡°Someone has already told me what happened just now. Firstly, you¡¯re questioning the unfairness of this selection, and secondly, you¡¯re questioning Yu Bing¡¯s ability. Then I¡¯ll tell you the actual results now!¡± With that, he called the few people he had brought over. They were all villagers who were going to the county to participate in training. As long as there were two matching spots in the factory, Yu Bing arranged a villager and an intellectual. Firstly, it was to appease the villagers, and secondly, she was worried that there would be a return policy in two years. If the intellectuals wanted to return to the city, it would be terrible if the technical talents of the project all left! ¡°I was sent to the pesticide factory. It involves chemistry knowledge. I only know a little because I went to junior high school. However, compared to the young people who went to training with me, my learning progress is still far inferior. Knowledge takes time to accumulate and can¡¯t be mastered overnight. It¡¯s a fact that the education system in the countryside is not as good as the city¡¯s, and it¡¯s also a fact that the intellectuals can complete their training faster and better. The staff arrangements made by the factory director are all for the sake of the better development of these industries in the village!¡± ¡°I was sent to the Agriculture Bureau. I can prove this!¡± ¡°I can also prove it!¡± ¡­ The villagers who had participated in the training all spoke up and explained. Seeing this, the villagers no longer suspected anything. However, this wasn¡¯t the end. Wu Jin suppressed his anger and glanced around as he continued in a low voice, ¡°I¡¯ll tell everyone clearly now that the ecological industry chain in the village was proposed by Yu Bing. Our village was able to get a bank loan because of Yu Bing, so she¡¯s undoubtedly the best candidate to be the person in charge. If you¡¯re unconvinced, come up with a better plan than the current one and try to get a loan the money from the bank. Then, I can also let you be the overall person in charge!¡± Chapter 145 - Hot Potato Previously, only some people knew about this. Now that Wu Jin had said it in public, everyone finally realized Yu Bing¡¯s strength! None of them dared to say anything else. They also realized that if they angered Yu Bing and she quit, they wouldn¡¯t be able to do these projects. Most importantly, this was a debt-ridden project! Before paying off the debt, this project was like a hot potato. Ordinary people couldn¡¯t accept it and didn¡¯t want to accept it! In the end, the matter was resolved peacefully, so Li Ping could only leave with the crowd indignantly. Ever since Sun Wang became disgraced, the Sun family kept a low profile. Only Li Ping would occasionally try to stir up trouble. However, without her backer and her son, all she usually did was say some mean things out of envy. She couldn¡¯t cause much trouble in the village. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t be bothered to waste time on this clown. After all, she was very busy now! During this round of recruitment, the intellectuals were especially proactive in showing off their skills and family connections in hopes that Yu Bing would take a fancy to any of them. This was their chance! A girl called Shu Ya caught Yu Bing¡¯s eye because she was good at drawing! When Shu Ya was working in the field, she was called to the field by Tian Jing. ¡°Captain Yu is looking for you. Please go to the factory.¡± Shu Ya¡¯s heart thumped. She had a feeling that this might have something to do with the information form she went to sign up for. The factory would only start work in April after the cherries were picked. Yu Bing was the only one in the factory now. There was a large desk and a few chairs against the wall in the warehouse as a temporary office. Yu Bing looked at Shu Ya and asked with a smile, ¡°I saw that your application information said that you know how to draw. Then do you know how to design trademarks?¡± Shu Ya lowered her eyes and hesitated for a moment. Then, she looked at Yu Bing and said firmly, ¡°Captain Yu, to be honest, I¡¯ve never designed trademarks before, but I hope you can give me a chance! If you have any requests, feel free to ask. I¡¯ll definitely design it to your satisfaction!¡± Yu Bing knew that these intellectuals had been doing farm work for so many years and yearned for the knowledge they had learned to be put to use in an important position, so she comforted her. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll definitely give you an opportunity. Our factory doesn¡¯t have a trademark yet. Help me design a simple, classy, and discernible trademark. It¡¯s best if it¡¯s novel.¡± When Shu Ya heard this, she immediately smiled and said, ¡°Alright, Captain Yu, I¡¯ll give you the design plan tomorrow!¡± It was only the middle of March, so there was still time. Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°There¡¯s no hurry. Give it to me after you¡¯ve designed it. You just have to submit the draft in three days.¡± Shu Ya nodded vigorously. When she went back to do farm work, she felt more energetic! After work, Shu Ya locked herself in the dormitory and began to draw. She didn¡¯t even want to eat. When she was truly starving, she took out biscuits and ate two pieces. This was the fifth year since Shu Ya left the countryside. She no longer had any hopes of returning to the city. She was 23 years old this year and was old enough to get married in the city. From the end of last year, she had the idea of marrying a villager and taking root in the countryside. However, she was still a little indignant. Shu Ya¡¯s family was a scholarly family. Most of her ancestors were teachers. If not for this vigorous campaign to support the construction of the countryside, she would have become a teacher like her parents. This had been her goal and dream since she was young, but now, she could only do farm work. In the first year, she was still looking forward to returning to the city. In the second year, she began to have a mental breakdown. In the third year, she was completely devastated. In the fourth year, she accepted it. Now, it was the fifth year. She felt numb to the tedious lifestyle she had lived for so many years. When Yu Bing first became the captain of the team of intellectuals, Shu Ya didn¡¯t care at all because this had nothing to do with her life. She still had to go to the field every day. It wasn¡¯t until the start of the industrial chain that Shu Ya had a feeling that there might be a big change in the He Mountain Brigade. Feng Cai didn¡¯t hide the fact that he could enter the factory as long as he helped the factory settle things. Shu Ya became filled with anger at that moment! Chapter 146 - : Trademark Design At this moment, Shu Ya, who was creating, felt a burst of inspiration. The knowledge she had suppressed for so many years was released at this moment. She drew tirelessly under the kerosene lamp until four in the morning before she was finally willing to stop. Every time she finished a drawing, she would suddenly have new ideas. Hence, she drew a few designs and finally chose three works that she was most satisfied with before going to bed. Perhaps because she was too excited, Shu Ya couldn¡¯t fall asleep. When the sky lit up and people started to get up, she hurriedly washed up and rushed to Yu Bing¡¯s door excitedly. Because she was worried that Yu Bing wasn¡¯t up yet, she didn¡¯t knock. She stood outside the door and waited. She even practiced smiling. She had to give Yu Bing a good image of someone diligent and responsible. After about half an hour, the door opened. As soon as Yu Bing opened the door, she was startled by the figure that suddenly appeared outside the door. When she saw that it was Shu Ya, she heaved a sigh of relief. ¡°Shu Ya, you scared me.¡± Seeing this, Shu Ya hurriedly frowned and apologized nervously. ¡°Captain Yu! I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m sorry! I just wanted to show you my design as soon as possible. I didn¡¯t expect to scare you.¡± Yu Bing came back to her senses and waved her hand with a smile. ¡°It¡¯s fine. I just didn¡¯t react in time.¡± She looked at the blueprint in Shu Ya¡¯s hand and said in surprise, ¡°You finished drawing so quickly?¡± Shu Ya immediately handed over the design draft. ¡°Yes, I drew it last night. I wanted you to see it first. If you¡¯re not satisfied, I can modify it at any time! I don¡¯t want to delay the factory¡¯s printing time.¡± Seeing Shu Ya¡¯s enthusiastic attitude, Yu Bing naturally wouldn¡¯t refuse. She started looking at the design draft at the door. Yu Bing was someone who had experienced the future, so she had seen many trademarks and creative ideas, but the aesthetics of the current era were different from those of the future. People might not like the design concepts of the future, so she didn¡¯t mention them to Shu Ya. However, Shu Ya¡¯s design also made Yu Bing¡¯s eyes light up in amazement. Yu Bing nodded in satisfaction and looked at Shu Ya with certainty. ¡°Your design is very creative. It¡¯s settled then! You and I will go to the village committee and tell the village staff. We¡¯ll have a meeting to discuss it.¡± When Shu Ya heard this, her eyes lit up. **The Village Council Office** Shu Ya passed down the design draft and stood in front of the blackboard as she gazed at the village staff sitting around the conference table. She suddenly felt a little excited. It felt just like when she was called on stage by a teacher to explain her solution. Every time this happened, she felt like a teacher. Seeing Yu Bing¡¯s encouraging smile, Shu Ya nodded firmly at Yu Bing and began to talk about her design ideas. Shu Ya designed a total of three models. One was a simple drawing of a gluttonous child. Beside it was the word ¡°delicious¡±. The second model focused on words and used words to piece together the child¡¯s gluttonous expression. The last model was the most direct. It was a thumbs-up gesture with the factory name below. The focus of this design was that the thumb was deliberately enlarged, imperceptibly strengthening the senses, as if hinting that the food of this brand was especially delicious. Shu Ya even thoughtfully made a promotional slogan for the food factory. ¡°Love ¡®Delicious¡¯. It only takes a second!¡± This was the first time everyone had seen such a trademark. They felt that it was very novel, mainly because it matched the aesthetics of the people of this era and was creative. The slogan was also catchy, so Shu Ya received everyone¡¯s unanimous affirmation. ¡°I have an idea. These three types are too difficult to choose from, so can you integrate them? For example, the child in the first design will give the third type a thumbs up, and how about changing the word ¡®Delicious¡¯ in the first design to the words in the second design?¡± Everyone agreed with this village official¡¯s idea. Everyone looked at Shu Ya. When Shu Ya heard this suggestion, she disagreed, and a conflicted expression appeared on her face. When Yu Bing heard this suggestion, she knew that it was a bad idea and knew the reason why Shu Ya was unwilling to accept it. However, she wanted to see if Shu Ya would choose to listen or stick to her guns. After all, if she listened to the leader, the plan would definitely be approved. However, knowing that the effect wouldn¡¯t be as good, it was especially important to adhere to professional judgment. Chapter 147 - Dilemma After a short internal struggle, Shu Ya chose to say her true thoughts. ¡°Leaders, sometimes, one plus one might be less than two. If all the good points are used on a single trademark, it will seem too complicated and it won¡¯t be as pleasing aesthetics-wise as the simple-looking one.¡± When everyone heard this, they were baffled. Why did good things become bad when added together? At this moment, Yu Bing stood up. ¡°Trademarks are the same as brands. What¡¯s important is that they should be simple and easy to remember! Overly complicated patterns will distract consumers. Everyone¡¯s memory points are limited. Moreover, if they¡¯re too complicated, other manufacturers will take advantage of the situation to copy our design. For example, if the other party¡¯s design is a child wearing an inconspicuous hat, consumers won¡¯t pay attention to such details at first glance. They might think that it is our brand and buy it without a second thought.¡± These were all actual cases that happened in the future. The previous explanations were from a professional perspective. Many people might not be able to understand it, but after hearing Yu Bing¡¯s example, they understood clearly. Anyone with a brain wouldn¡¯t do such a thing. Hence, everyone was convinced. In the end, they decided on the design with a thumbs up. Yu Bing once again promoted her principle of choosing the most simple design to everyone. Shu Ya returned to the field. The young people who knew that Shu Ya had helped the factory create designs quickly asked about the results. After knowing that the design was chosen, they were very happy for her. Yu Yan also heard them and asked, ¡°Seeing how happy you are, Yu Bing agreed to let you enter the factory?¡± Shu Ya smiled and replied, ¡°I¡¯m happy because my knowledge was able to help the village. Captain Yu didn¡¯t say anything about me entering the factory. Since the factory¡¯s trademark doesn¡¯t have to be changed often, she probably only asked me to help design it as a one-time favor. It¡¯s not a big deal.¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she sneered and mocked, ¡°Isn¡¯t that letting people work without compensation?!¡± Some people could tell that Yu Yan was always looking for trouble with Yu Bing, so they said with dissatisfaction, ¡°Don¡¯t be so utilitarian. Captain Yu is our superior, so how can we disobey her? If this factory is run well, we will get bonuses at the end of the year! Whether it¡¯s for public or private reasons, we should help when needed and not be so fussy about personal gains and losses.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Captain Yu is such a capable person. If she can showcase her capabilities in front of her, if there are more opportunities in the future, she will think of her. What a good opportunity to perform!¡± As they spoke, the topic shifted to how capable Yu Bing was. Seeing everyone¡¯s admiration for Yu Bing, Yu Yan was furious. Yu Bing! What was so impressive about her?! If she had been raised in her biological parents¡¯ home since she was young, she would definitely be more outstanding than Yu Bing! At the thought of this, she blamed her adoptive parents for not nurturing her. After the food factory¡¯s trademark was confirmed, Yu Bing planned to go to the county to contact the sugar factory to supply sugar. She also had to place orders for the glass bottles in advance. Wu Jin stopped her and used the excuse that it wasn¡¯t safe to bring money alone to signal Yu Bing to bring Xiao Sheng along. Yu Bing felt that it was faster to go there alone. However, Wu Jin stuffed Xiao Sheng into the car. Yu Bing had no choice but to bring Xiao Sheng to the county city. Yu Bing was very puzzled. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Xiao Sheng sighed softly. ¡°Uncle Jin hopes that I¡¯ll stop selling things in the black market and will help you in the factory.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she suddenly turned to look at Xiao Sheng with widened eyes. ¡°The village chief knows that we¡¯re doing this?¡± Xiao Sheng looked at the car that had gone astray and hurriedly reached out to turn the steering wheel. ¡°Watch the road! Watch the road!¡± Yu Bing came back to her senses and looked ahead. Xiao Sheng said, ¡°He only knows about my involvement. He doesn¡¯t know that you¡¯re also involved.¡± Yu Bing heaved a sigh of relief, but then she thought of Xiao Li¡¯s eyes. ¡°Then what do you think?¡± Xiao Sheng leaned against the back of the chair and looked at the road as he replied, ¡°I haven¡¯t thought about it yet. The last time I went to deliver, Brother Qiang also mentioned to me about picking up the county¡¯s black market.¡± Of course, Yu Bing knew Xiao Sheng¡¯s dilemma. After all, the government policy still didn¡¯t allow private business dealings. There were still a few years before the reform and opening up, so it was indeed very dangerous to take over the black market. If something happened, it would be a problem for Xiao Sheng¡¯s two siblings to survive. But if he didn¡¯t continue, then Xiao Li¡¯s eyes¡­ Yu Bing sighed. What a dilemma! Chapter 148 - Choice Considering the food factory, Yu Bing thought for a moment and said, ¡°Why don¡¯t you wait another month or two? Let¡¯s see how the food factory does. If we can expand production in the future, I plan to give you a commission from the sales department, such as a 0.1 yuan commission from selling 10 bottles. If the business expands, the salary will be quite high. Moreover, there¡¯s also our private extra income.¡± ¡°Although we¡¯ve been selling what we made ourselves, it¡¯s still a small matter compared to taking over Brother Qiang¡¯s position. You might not even be able to survive if you¡¯re caught!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s tone carried a hint of worry. Of course, Xiao Sheng knew the danger, so he had to think about it carefully. ¡°I know what you mean. I¡¯ll think about it again.¡± The two of them arrived at the county city in silence. Because Xiao Sheng often bought raw materials, he was very familiar with this area. He placed an order of 20,000 yuan with the glass factory. Because of Xiao Sheng¡¯s reputation, he was allowed to only pay half the deposit and pay the rest after receiving the goods. Then, Yu Bing took the trademark and went to the Commerce Bureau to file it. If she didn¡¯t file the trademark and it was stolen, it would be difficult to explain things. Yu Bing attached great importance to copyrights! Then, she took a sample of the glass bottle to the paper factory and asked someone to set the logo to a suitable size to produce stickers. Then, she prepared to return to the village to buy the raw materials. This time, she paid on the spot and returned to the village. Everything was ready in the factory. When the fruits ripened and the factory started operating, Feng Cai mentioned his uncle¡¯s requests to Yu Bing. If it was just ordinary employee benefits, they could just send the canned fruits. However, Feng Cai¡¯s uncle planned to give the employees a holiday gift during the Dragon Boat Festival, so they had to be more particular! Yu Bing thought of the bamboo weaving skills of the villagers, so she brought a few empty glass bottles and went to look for Xiao Li. After leaving the Xiao family¡¯s house, Yu Bing called Shu Ya over again and asked her to make a sticker design with the words ¡°Dragon Boat Festival¡± according to the specification of 10 centimeters in diameter and 5 centimeters in width. She had to add the elements of the Dragon Boat Festival and let people see the cherries. It was soon April. Every fruit tree team sent at least half of their team to the cherry garden to pick ripe cherries. Yu Bing divided the 30 people into two groups. 20 people were in charge of picking and 10 people were in charge of transporting them to the food factory and washing them. As for the ordinary workers in the food factory, they were in charge of removing the washed cherries¡¯ fruit cores. The cooking process was assigned to the chef team. The chefs placed all the cherries in a large vat and marinated them with white sugar for the night. They only began to boil them the next day. At this moment, they added sugar and lemon juice. After boiling them to make them thicken, the chefs and ordinary workers placed the jam into a glass bottle and finally entered the disinfection room. When the first batch of samples came out, the jam was 500 grams a bottle. Yu Bing immediately separated them into ordinary and gift box versions. Feng Cai was pleasantly surprised when he saw the two versions in front of him. In this day and age, packaging was very scarce. After all, it was already good enough to have food to eat. Who would want to focus on external packaging? Therefore, Shen Ge¡¯s description referred to the color of the jam. He didn¡¯t want any hair or impurities in them. It was just that Yu Bing thought of more details. In the future, it would be a market economy. In order to sell goods, there would be endless innovations in promotional methods and packaging design. Yu Bing was a merchant who experienced intense commercial competition after all. These ideas were at her fingertips. In order to keep a low profile and not seem too futuristic, she had only displayed a little bit of her creativeness. Ordinary clothes weren¡¯t seasonal. Many of the gifts given to workers by factories had the factory¡¯s logo. However, Yu Bing included a small design. In the glass lid and the concave area of the bottle, she asked Xiao Li to make a circle with bamboo and tie it tightly so it could be handheld. With a handheld design, it was very convenient for consumers to take it home. They didn¡¯t have to find a bag to store it, which made it different from ordinary glass canned food from other companies. Just this design alone could make the products from their factory stand out. The gift box was a rectangular bamboo basket. The front of the bamboo basket was pasted with a Dragon Boat Festival sticker designed by Shu Ya. There were two large cherry jam jar designs on the small dragon boat. The brand name was written below, and the Dragon Boat Festival blessings were on the right. Chapter 149 - Choice Once this design was introduced, Feng Cai felt more confident in promoting it to those unfamiliar companies! Feng Cai said excitedly, ¡°Captain Yu! If we sell it in this packaging, I dare to say that no factory can compare to us! Even the packaging is so convenient and creative. This time, I want to take out more samples to promote them to other units.¡± Yu Bing smiled and encouraged, ¡°No problem. Take 10 bottles of samples. I¡¯ll bring you to Mr. Wu to get permission to drive to City H.¡± When they arrived at the village committee, everyone sat down to discuss the price of canned cherries. Mr. Wei took out his small account book and calculated it for everyone. In the end, the cost of production was 1.15 yuan per bottle. However, with the packaging, the ordinary version¡¯s price was 1.152 yuan, and the gift box version¡¯s price was 1.16 yuan. If freight costs were added, each bottle would cost an additional 0.2 yuan. In the end, the ordinary version was priced at 1.6 yuan per bottle, and the gift box version was priced at 3.42 yuan per two bottles. After the price was determined, Feng Cai immediately took the approval slip and went to the city to negotiate orders. Yu Bing prepared to go to the county¡¯s market. The first stop was the county government. After all, it was a pilot project approved by Mr. Bai. It would be a waste not to use this connection. In the county government office building. To go to the county head¡¯s office, one had to pass through the secretary¡¯s office first. There were two staff members in the secretary¡¯s office. Wang Wei was among them. Yu Bing didn¡¯t go forward to greet Wang Wei. She just knocked on the door like an ordinary staff member. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Yu Bing, the person in charge of the food processing plant of the He Mountain Brigade. I want to make an appointment with Mr. Bai to report on the progress of the project.¡± The other clerk was closer to the door and replied in a businesslike tone, ¡°Hello, Mr. Yu. Please register. I¡¯ll help you arrange the time.¡± Wang Wei walked forward and said with a smile, ¡°Secretary Li, this is my sister. Please help arrange an earlier time.¡± Secretary Li immediately revealed an understanding expression and smiled. ¡°So she¡¯s one of us! No problem. This test is a project that the county head is concerned about. It should be ranked top priority.¡± Wang Wei thanked her and brought Yu Bing out of the office. Yu Bing asked worriedly, ¡°Brother Wang Wei, will this affect your reputation?¡± Wang Wei replied nonchalantly, ¡°It¡¯s fine. Instead of sneaking around and letting others discover it, it¡¯s better to expose the relationship myself. We¡¯re not afraid of investigation. Moreover, Mr. Bai only chooses the best. You relied on your strength to get to this position. The scale of the project has nothing to do with me.¡± ¡°Besides, the county head is indeed very attentive to your experimental unit. Even if I didn¡¯t tell Secretary Li just now, the county head definitely would have given you priority when he saw your appointment.¡± Only then did Yu Bing feel relieved. The competitive relationship between the colleagues in the office was very strong. Wang Wei was Mr. Bai¡¯s right-hand man. Whether it was the convenience the food factory was currently receiving or buying things on credit, she was afraid that someone would blame Wang Wei and say that he was using his position to profit for his family. Wang Wei asked with concern, ¡°You¡¯re not here this time just to report your progress, are you? Did you encounter some trouble?¡± Yu Bing looked at Wang Wei and smiled. ¡°I¡¯m just reporting the progress. Most importantly, I came to discuss business.¡± Wang Wei thought for a moment and raised his eyebrows. ¡°You¡¯re here to ask Mr. Bai for an order, right?¡± After being seen through at a glance, Yu Bing admitted frankly, ¡°That¡¯s right. After all, we¡¯re also an experimental unit. We hope that Mr. Bai will help give us a good start!¡± Wang Wei nodded with a smile. He looked at the corridor and realized that no one was around. Then, he whispered, ¡°That¡¯s a good reason. However, if you want Mr. Bai to place an order, this isn¡¯t enough. It¡¯s best if you can earn more income from the village and expand the recruitment. After all, Mr. Bai wants to solve the unemployment problem and the poverty in the village.¡± After Yu Bing contemplated it, she said, ¡°Thank you, Brother Wang Wei.¡± Seeing this, Wang Wei didn¡¯t say anything else. ¡°Then sit on the stool in the corridor and wait. I¡¯ll go back to the office first.¡± More than half an hour later, Secretary Li brought Yu Bing into the county head¡¯s office. Chapter 150 - Process Yu Bing smiled and walked to Mr. Bai¡¯s desk. ¡°Hello, Mr. Bai. I¡¯m here to report the progress to you.¡± Mr. Bai wasn¡¯t someone who liked to speak in a bureaucratic tone. He pointed at the stool in front of the table and said, ¡°Looks like you guys are already on the right track in all aspects. Let¡¯s talk.¡± Yu Bing first reported that the orchard had been planted and the cherries were being picked and sent to the factory for production. ¡°Mr. Bai, the first batch of jam has been produced in our factory. You¡¯re welcome to go inspect in the near future!¡± Mr. Bai was very happy to hear that the factory had started production. ¡°Sure. How are the other results of your industry chain?¡± Yu Bing wasn¡¯t in a hurry to promote. She continued to report, ¡°Mr. Wu has just finished buying fish seedlings and is preparing to throw them into the fish pond at the end of the month. The duck seedlings are expected to be bred in June, but a third of our hens have started laying eggs this month. Currently, the farm is choosing fertilized eggs that can continue to hatch.¡± When Mr. Bai heard that the He Mountain Brigade wanted to go all out on credit, his smile stiffened. He skipped over the topic, since he was afraid that he would be asked for more funds if he asked any more questions. He changed the topic to the factory. ¡°Is your food factory only planning to process the raw materials it produces?¡± Yu Bing replied, ¡°For now, that¡¯s the case. However, after producing the jam, we¡¯ll make the subsequent production arrangements according to the repayment situation. After all, the investment is large in all aspects. What¡¯s more important now is to open up sales channels.¡± After Yu Bing finished speaking, she calmly took out a sample from her backpack and smiled at Mr. Bai. ¡°Mr. Bai, this is the first batch of jam from our ¡®Delicious Food Factory¡¯. I specifically brought it for you to see.¡± As Mr. Bai looked at the two completely different packagings, he was immediately intrigued by the unique design. ¡°Is this a packaging you specifically designed for the Dragon Boat Festival?¡± Eye-catching packaging accounted for half of the success. Yu Bing eagerly explained the design concept of the two packages. Mr. Bai nodded. ¡°You young people are so creative. This idea is not bad.¡± Seeing this, Yu Bing took out a lunch box with a few clean spoons. She took out a spoon and scooped a spoonful of jam before handing it to Mr. Bai. ¡°Mr. Bai, try it.¡± Mr. Bai looked at the colorful jam and took the spoon to smell it first. After eating half a spoonful, he said, ¡°The cherry taste is very strong. It melts in your mouth. It¡¯s sour, sweet, and tasty. Not bad. The color and scent are enticing!¡± Yu Bing immediately said, ¡°Mr. Bai, the Dragon Boat Festival is coming soon. If it¡¯s so delicious, your unit can order a batch.¡± Mr. Bai was savoring the taste of the jam when he heard this. His expression froze and he cleared his throat before saying, ¡°Little Yu, the government has the government¡¯s procurement process. It¡¯s not up to me to decide. You have to go to the Procurement Department to sign up and go through the normal process.¡± With that, he quickly finished the remaining half spoonful in one bite, since he was afraid that Yu Bing would take away the half spoonful of jam because he didn¡¯t help. How could Yu Bing not know that she had to report to the Procurement Department? However, the smaller the place, the more important connections were. There were at least ten to twenty food lists reported by the Procurement Department. She didn¡¯t know anyone from the Procurement Department, and she didn¡¯t want to use the Wang family¡¯s help anymore because favors were the hardest to repay! Yu Bing wasn¡¯t so selfless as to keep using her personal connections for the sake of the factory. Besides, the He Mountain Brigade¡¯s project was also the county head¡¯s focus of attention. If she didn¡¯t make good use of it, she would be letting down the factory¡¯s reputation as an experimental unit! Thinking of Wang Wei¡¯s words, Yu Bing continued, ¡°Mr. Bai, this is an experimental unit personally approved by you. I won¡¯t say anything else. Our factory has just been established and no one has heard of our brand. You have to help us at this critical time!¡± ¡°We¡¯ll use the funds from this batch of jam sales to continue the next round of production. We¡¯ll also use this opportunity to promote the food factory!¡± Yu Bing planned to sell this batch of jam to various units. She wanted to use the word-of-mouth advertisement method through the unit¡¯s purchases before negotiating with the supply company. After all, only after everyone knew this brand would they have the urge to buy it in stores. These days, no one was rich. No one was willing to spend money to buy a bottle of jam from an unknown brand. Therefore, when Mr. Bai heard Yu Bing¡¯s sales plan, his expression softened slightly. Chapter 151 - Return a Portion First Yu Bing continued, ¡°If the factory¡¯s reputation doesn¡¯t spread and sales channels aren¡¯t opened immediately, it will be difficult to continue the entire project. I plan to see if I can go to the other communes in the neighboring village to collect some eggs or other seasonal fruits to do some other food processing.¡± ¡°Firstly, we can expand the production of the factory to provide more employment opportunities for the villagers. For example, many villagers can weave gift boxes for the factory to earn some extra money after work. Secondly, we can buy products from other places. That can also drive the economy of some surrounding areas.¡± Mr. Bai was convinced by the latter sentence. ¡°Everything is difficult at the beginning. The government can help you guys with the first batch of production and sales, but if there¡¯s a next time, we have to go through the formal procurement process.¡± Yu Bing replied loudly, ¡°No problem!¡± Yu Bing thought happily that she would talk about future matters in the future. She would settle this matter first. Mr. Bai wrote a certificate and asked the secretary to sign it. Yu Bing took the approval to the Procurement Department. It wasn¡¯t until both parties signed the procurement agreement and took half of the deposit from the Finance Department that this matter was settled! Then, Yu Bing went straight to the fertilizer factory and found the factory director. Yu Bing went straight to the point. She first introduced herself and then started chatting casually. ¡°Mr. Ma, these are cherries we grew from your fertilizer we bought on credit. They taste very good. Try them!¡± With that, she took out a clean spoon from the lunch box and handed it to the factory director with a smile. This was the first time the factory director had seen someone speak so self-righteously about credit without any shame at all. His expression froze slightly as he took it and tasted it. He realized that the taste was indeed good. When he saw the packaging, his eyes couldn¡¯t help but light up. He said jokingly, ¡°Miss Yu, you specifically gave me two bottles to try so that I wouldn¡¯t collect the debt?¡± Yu Bing replied with a smile, ¡°You can say that, but we¡¯re very self-aware. We sent it to you without you urging us!¡± When the factory director heard this, he revealed a suspicious expression. Wu Jin had promised to repay the debt within a year. Now that half a year had passed, it would be great if he could repay it in advance! However, on second thought, there was no such thing as a free lunch in this world! Hence, he asked Yu Bing tentatively, ¡°Miss Yu, are you planning to return it soon?¡± Yu Bing said calmly, ¡°I do plan to pay off a portion first, but I can only pay it back after we sell the jam. What do you think of our jam?¡± The factory director recalled the taste just now. Even if it was a pertinent evaluation, the taste wasn¡¯t inferior to those tasty cherry jams on the market. Most importantly, the packaging was outstanding. To consumers, other than the brand not being famous, there was nothing to nitpick about. When Yu Bing heard this affirmative answer, she revealed her purpose for this trip. ¡°As long as you think it¡¯s good! Isn¡¯t the Dragon Boat Festival coming soon? The fertilizer factory should be preparing to start purchasing staff gifts, right? Our jam is definitely presentable as a gift!¡± Only then did the factory director realize that Yu Bing had this ulterior motive. He said gloomily, ¡°So you were planning to sell it to us to earn more money after you finished borrowing from us?¡± Yu Bing said in disagreement, ¡°You¡¯re wrong! Even if there was no loan, don¡¯t you have to buy things for the employees during the holidays? Honestly, is this jam good enough for your factory to buy and distribute as employee benefits or holiday gifts?¡± The factory director had to admit that the taste and packaging were up to par! Hence, he relented and asked, ¡°Then how much do you plan to sell it for?¡± Yu Bing listed the prices of the two products and then said, ¡°Mr. Ma, since the fertilizer factory is so rich, you guys have to order the gift box version, right? It¡¯s more deluxe! If you give it to the employees and they bring it home from work, everyone will say that the fertilizer factory provides good benefits!¡± The fertilizer factory was indeed profitable. Coupled with Yu Bing¡¯s flattery, Mr. Ma decided to buy the gift box version. However, he still wanted to lower the price. ¡°The price is too high. You have to lower it for us. The most famous Peony brand jam is this price!¡± Chapter 152 - Good Start Yu Bing took out the government¡¯s purchase order slip from her bag. ¡°Mr. Ma! Is Peony¡¯s jam packaged like mine?! It¡¯s just that the brand is more famous now. This is already the lowest price. If the price gets any lower, we¡¯ll lose money. The government bought more than you, but I didn¡¯t give them any discount.¡± The factory director took a look and confirmed that it was indeed the same price. Hence, he said, ¡°Since you guys still owe me money, if you lower the price, I¡¯ll buy it immediately!¡± Yu Bing chuckled. ¡°Mr. Ma, if the price is any lower, we won¡¯t be able to earn money. This factory has to operate normally to have a chance to repay your money faster, right?¡± When the factory director heard this, he realized that she made sense. ¡°Getting rid of the decimal cents should be fine, right?¡± Yu Bing said readily, ¡°Of course! We can still afford to lose this small amount.¡± Yu Bing successfully obtained the order from the fertilizer factory and from the pesticide factory for the Dragon Boat Festival. Coincidentally, the farm decided to distribute a batch of daily employee benefits this month, so they ordered the ordinary version. Holding the four orders, Yu Bing felt over the moon. After entering the village committee¡¯s office, she handed the order and deposit to Mr. Wei. He was overjoyed and kept showering Yu Bing with praise. Two days later, Feng Cai also returned from City H. In addition to the clothing factory order given by Shen Ge, he also obtained the mechanical factory order from Chen Min¡¯s father. He went to seven or eight factories in the city and finally obtained three orders. The presales of 20,000 bottles of jam gave the food factory a good start! The eggs from the farm had also been chosen. There were more than a hundred eggs that hadn¡¯t been fertilized, but Yu Bing didn¡¯t plan to sell them. She planned to place them in the shade to preserve them first. She planned to start producing other food after the jam was done. In many places, rural enterprises only started production after receiving orders. Without orders, they would usually be busy with the fields. However, Yu Bing wanted the factory to be operating all year round. Agricultural products were bought at low prices. Only by processing them into food could profits be increased. The factory was in full swing, and the villagers were filled with hope. As Yao Nian looked at the factory that had already begun to operate, he was secretly anxious. Ever since everyone realized that Yu Bing didn¡¯t take the so-called betrothal seriously, some families in the village with sons of the right age started to have designs on Yu Bing. It was true that villagers didn¡¯t like thin girls, but Yu Bing¡¯s ability could make up for these shortcomings. Unable to hold back, Yao Nian wrote another letter to his mother. After Mrs. Yao received the letter, she read that the factory had already begun to produce. When she learned that Yu Bing was still the factory director, she began to waver. Moreover, Yao Nian repeatedly emphasized that he couldn¡¯t take it anymore. Mrs. Yao thought about how her husband couldn¡¯t find a chance to transfer Yao Nian back, so she made up her mind to let her son marry Yu Bing. If Yao Nian really had to stay there for the rest of his life, since Yu Bing was the factory director, she could arrange for Yao Nian to enter the factory as a manager. At the very least, the two of them would live more comfortably than farmers. Mrs. Yao went to the Yu family¡¯s house after dinner. ¡°Duan Mei, are you knitting at home?¡± Duan Mei was Mrs. Yu¡¯s name. Mrs. Yao¡¯s name was Shi Lian. When Duan Mei looked up and saw Shi Lian standing at the door, she smiled and said, ¡°Yu Wu has grown taller, so I might as well knit a new sweater for him.¡± Yu Pan, who was reading a novel at the side, looked up and greeted Shi Lian, ¡°Hello, Auntie Shi!¡± Shi Lian said amiably, ¡°So Yu Pan is also at home. Aren¡¯t you going out to play with your friends?¡± Yu Pan smiled and replied, ¡°I¡¯m not going. I¡¯m accompanying my mother at home.¡± The two of them chatted awkwardly for a while. Even after seeing that Duan Mei didn¡¯t say anything else to her after greeting her, Shi Lian didn¡¯t mind. Shi Lian knew that Duan Mei was blaming her for breaking the contract because of Yu Bing¡¯s weak body, but Shi Lian didn¡¯t think that there was anything wrong with her doing this. As a mother, how could she choose a sickly person as her son¡¯s wife? If it were Yu Wu, Duan Mei might have been even more ruthless than her! However, there was no choice now. After all, Yu Bing changed so dramatically after going to the countryside. Shi Lian could only humble herself. Chapter 153 - Talking About the Betrothal Again She forced a smile and walked into the Yu family¡¯s house. ¡°Duan Mei, Yu Bing and Yao Nian have gone to support the rural construction. It¡¯s hard to say if they¡¯ll be able to return in the future. These two children are already at the age of marriage. Why don¡¯t we let them get married in the countryside?¡± When Duan Mei heard this, she looked at Shi Lian in disbelief. She knew how much Shi Lian despised Yu Bing. This sudden change in attitude made her feel that something was fishy. She sneered and asked, ¡°Why did you change your mind again?¡± Shi Lian didn¡¯t know if Yu Bing had told her family about her becoming a tractor driver and factory director, so she probed, ¡°I¡¯m indeed not very satisfied with Yu Bing¡¯s weak health, but there¡¯s nothing to be picky about. She¡¯s smart, and she¡¯s not bad-looking. Most importantly, our families know each other well. It¡¯s better than letting Yao Nian marry a village girl in the future! You don¡¯t want Yu Bing to marry a farmer in the village either, right?¡± When Duan Mei heard this, her knitting hand paused for a moment. Of course, she didn¡¯t want Yu Bing to marry a farmer. She had raised Yu Bing for so long so she hoped that her betrothal money could subsidize Yu Wu. Farmers wouldn¡¯t be able to afford that much betrothal money. However, Shi Lian was very scheming. Duan Mei didn¡¯t believe that Shi Lian would want Yu Bing to be her daughter-in-law for this reason. After all, Yao Nian was only two years older than Yu Bing. What was the hurry? However, Duan Mei didn¡¯t insist. Yu Bing wasn¡¯t in good health, so there were not many people who were willing to marry her. Hence, she smiled and said, ¡°Let¡¯s wait and see. Yu Bing is only 18 years old. There¡¯s no hurry. I still want to keep her for two years.¡± When Shi Lian heard this reply, she knew that the Yu family didn¡¯t know anything. Otherwise, if she came knocking on their door now, Duan Mei would put on airs in front of her! At the thought of this, the smile on Shi Lian¡¯s face became more sincere. It seemed that Yu Bing resented the Yu family since she didn¡¯t even tell them about such a big matter. However, this wasn¡¯t surprising. Duan Mei and her husband had always ignored Yu Bing and allowed outsiders to bully her. Yu Bing wasn¡¯t in good health to begin with, but she did the heaviest work at home. However, Shi Lian was happy to see this happen. After all, the more dissatisfied Yu Bing was with the family, the less likely it would be for her to use the Yao family¡¯s things to subsidize the Yu family in the future. After marrying Yao Nian, she would be closer to the Yao family! Hence, she continued, ¡°Duan Mei, it¡¯s not that I want to criticize you, but Yu Bing isn¡¯t in good health. Only after she gets married can Yao Nian help her. Otherwise, if Yao Nian helps her, the villagers will gossip.¡± Duan Mei pursed her lips. When did Shi Lian become so kind as to care about Yu Bing? No! There was definitely something fishy! However, Duan Mei continued with a fake smile, ¡°The child¡¯s marriage is a big deal. I have to discuss it with my husband.¡± Shi Lian looked understanding. ¡°That¡¯s understandable. Then go ahead. We¡¯ll talk after your family has discussed it.¡± With that, Shi Lian didn¡¯t stay any longer and left the Yu family. After all, the Yu family didn¡¯t know Yu Bing¡¯s situation yet. If she was too enthusiastic, it would make Duan Mei overthink things. However, Duan Mei had known her for many years. From the moment Shi Lian took the initiative, Duan Mei had already set up a defense. As soon as Shi Lian left, Duan Mei gestured for Yu Pan to close the door. After Yu Pan closed the door, she leaned towards her mother and analyzed, ¡°There¡¯s definitely something wrong!¡± As Duan Mei knitted the sweater, she glanced at Yu Pan. ¡°Of course. Why would a shrewd and scheming person like Shi Lian do losing business? We can¡¯t rush this. Let¡¯s figure things out first.¡± Yu Pan nodded in agreement. Soon, Mr. Yu returned home. Duan Mei told him what had happened, but Mr. Yu wasn¡¯t that meticulous. He said in disdain, ¡°Who can Yu Bing marry? She¡¯s just a burden. It¡¯s already good enough that someone is willing to marry her. Marrying her to Yao Nian is considered choosing a city dweller for her. We¡¯ll look good too. We can also shut those people in the courtyard up, lest they keep poking their noses into our business and saying that we¡¯re not good to her.¡± Duan Mei rolled her eyes at Mr. Yu. ¡°What do you know?! Do you think we¡¯ll definitely profit from agreeing to Shi Lian¡¯s offer? Let me tell you, it might be a losing deal!¡± Chapter 154 - Losing Business Mr. Yu scratched his bald head and frowned. ¡°Then what do you think we should do? Don¡¯t anger Shi Lian, or else Yu Bing¡¯s marriage might be completely delayed. If Yu Bing can¡¯t get married, let¡¯s see who you can ask for the betrothal gift from.¡± Yu Pan listened excitedly at the side. Her eyes darted back and forth between her parents as she couldn¡¯t help but interrupt, ¡°Dad, my mother¡¯s judgment must be right. Marrying Yu Bing is equivalent to marrying a medicine jar and she has to be taken great care of. Auntie Shi is famous in the courtyard for being shrewd. How can she accept such a bad deal? This matter definitely isn¡¯t that simple.¡± With her daughter¡¯s support, Duan Mei felt that she couldn¡¯t agree so casually. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about this. I¡¯ll figure out the real reason for Shi Lian¡¯s change in attitude first.¡± When Yu Pan heard this, she had an idea. ¡°The reason must be Yu Bing. Why don¡¯t I write a letter to Yu Bing and ask her? I¡¯ll let her tell us what happened in the past few months in detail. We¡¯ll analyze it then!¡± Duan Mei also felt that she could only start with Yu Bing, so she agreed to Yu Pan¡¯s suggestion. In the eyes of the Yu family, Yu Bing was still the obedient and hardworking old cow from the past, so they subconsciously thought that Yu Bing would be as obedient as ever and cooperate with all their requests. Shi Lian waited for a few days without a response from the Yu family, so she decided to take the initiative. She stopped Mr. Yu in the corridor. ¡°Mr. Yu, are you off work?¡± Mr. Yu smiled in response. Shi Lian pretended to ask nonchalantly, ¡°Mr. Yu, how¡¯s the discussion about Yu Bing and Yao Nian going?¡± Mr. Yu replied according to his wife¡¯s instructions, ¡°This is a new era, so marriage is one¡¯s personal freedom. We have to consider our child¡¯s wishes. Duan Mei wrote to Yu Bing to ask about her thoughts.¡± The corners of Shi Lian¡¯s smile froze. If Yu Bing was willing, there was no need for her to do this! She would directly let Yao Nian occupy Yu Bing¡¯s body. It would be best if she got her pregnant again. At that time, the betrothal money would be saved. She smiled and said, ¡°Free love sounds nice on the surface, but the most important thing about marriage is that it has to be suitable. After all, after marriage, it¡¯s all about money. Who can rely on love to eat their fill? We¡¯re already so old, so don¡¯t we have more experience to help them make the right choice? It¡¯s better for us parents to make the decision regarding their marriage. I¡¯ll talk to you later. I¡¯ll go back and cook for my husband first.¡± As soon as Shi Lian turned around, the smile on her face immediately disappeared. If the Yu family found out that Yu Bing was the factory director, wouldn¡¯t the betrothal gift cost an astronomical price? She had to think of another way. At night, Shi Lian pulled her husband to the Yu family¡¯s house after dinner. There was a rhythmic knock on the door. At this moment, the Yu family had just finished eating and Yu Pan was clearing the dishes. ¡°Yu Pan, open the door.¡± Duan Mei was already knitting on the sofa. Yu Pan looked at Yu Wu, who was sitting on the sofa, and said unhappily, ¡°I¡¯m cleaning up the dishes. Let Yu Wu go!¡± Duan Mei sat up straight and glared at Yu Pan. ¡°Your brother is already sitting down. You¡¯re standing. Open the door immediately and stop talking nonsense!¡± Yu Pan threw the cloth on the table away and stomped her feet as she opened the door indignantly. ¡°Auntie Shi, Uncle Yao.¡± Seeing this, Shi Lian smiled and teased, ¡°What¡¯s with your unhappy expression? Did your mother make you angry?¡± Duan Mei replied angrily, ¡°She¡¯s angry just because we asked her to do something. That wretched girl has been spoiled by me and her father!¡± Yu Wu stood up and greeted them before walking into the room. He didn¡¯t want to listen to these elders chat. Mr. Yu hurriedly invited Shi Lian and Mr. Yao to sit down and poured two cups of tea. Mr. Yao smiled and said, ¡°I haven¡¯t been to your house for a long time, so I came to chat.¡± Mr. Yu also smiled and replied, ¡°You¡¯re welcome anytime. Shall we play chess?¡± Mr. Yao was interested. ¡°Let¡¯s have a round!¡± The men took the chessboard to the table at the side. They all knew what the two women wanted to talk about. It would probably take a lot of time. They didn¡¯t want to participate. It was better not to get involved in a conflict between women. It was too stressful. Chapter 155 - Disclosure Shi Lian didn¡¯t want to appear too anxious lest she was at a disadvantage. The two of them chatted about other things for a long time before Shi Lian got to the point. Since Duan Mei suspected her, she would release the news of the tractor driver. This would let Duan Mei know that she indeed had an advantage, but that this advantage wasn¡¯t enough to make them raise the betrothal amount. Shi Lian said nonchalantly, ¡°Duan Mei, Yu Bing is lucky. She became a tractor driver not long after arriving in the countryside. Although driving is difficult, it¡¯s better than farming. Moreover, she¡¯s the only driver in the village. I heard from Yao Nian that the village chief values her very much.¡± Shi Lian¡¯s voice wasn¡¯t loud, but the Yu family¡¯s house wasn¡¯t big either. This was explosive news to the Yu family. Mr. Yu stopped playing chess. Yu Pan immediately turned off the tap and ran out of the living room. She asked in shock, ¡°Auntie Shi, you said that my sister became a tractor driver?¡± Shi Lian was stunned for a moment. ¡°You guys don¡¯t know?¡± Then, she covered her mouth, as if she had said something wrong. When Duan Mei came back to her senses, she resisted the urge to curse. She looked helpless as she said, ¡°Looks like this girl is blaming me and her father. Previously, she agreed to go to the countryside to support us. She probably felt that it was too arduous and regretted it after she went there. But since she¡¯s already gone, we don¡¯t have the ability to find connections to get her to come back.¡± Duan Mei didn¡¯t want Shi Lian to laugh at her, so she could only push the blame on Yu Bing. Shi Lian didn¡¯t expose Duan Mei¡¯s words. If not for the poor relationship between them, how could Yu Bing not tell her family about such a big matter as transferring jobs? However, now that her son was going to marry her daughter, she had to coax Duan Mei. Hence, she said sympathetically, ¡°Children are debtors from our previous lives. Isn¡¯t Yao Nian the same? Since he went to the countryside, I haven¡¯t been eating or sleeping well. I¡¯m worried that he¡¯ll suffer in the village!¡± Then, she put on a sincere expression and sighed. ¡°I won¡¯t hide it from you anymore. I want them to get married mainly because Yu Bing is now in an important position in the countryside. I was just thinking that if they get married, Yu Bing will have a chance to help Yao Nian.¡± Only then were Duan Mei¡¯s doubts dispelled. She knew that Shi Lian would never do things without purpose. How could she fancy a sickly person like her daughter? Although she didn¡¯t know about Yu Bing¡¯s transfer, at least Shi Lian had to humble herself for the marriage. Thinking of this, Duan Mei felt a little better. Duan Mei looked at Shi Lian and said slowly, ¡°Yu Bing has just gotten the job. There¡¯s no hurry. We can talk about this in two years when the two children are older. The two of them are still children.¡± Of course, this wasn¡¯t the real reason. Duan Mei suddenly remembered that tractor drivers were paid! It wasn¡¯t easy for her to raise Yu Bing. If Yu Bing didn¡¯t pay her a few years of salary, wouldn¡¯t she have raised her for nothing? This wouldn¡¯t do! How could Shi Lian not know what Duan Mei was thinking? This was how she treated her daughter, Yao Ling. Daughters were useless. If she didn¡¯t take advantage of the time when her daughter was still in her maiden family, when she was married off, even if she wanted to subsidize her maiden family, there would be a limit. However, things were different now. Shi Lian couldn¡¯t let the Yu family drag on like this. After all, Yao Nian couldn¡¯t afford to wait. He had to change his job from farming to factory management quickly! Shi Lian didn¡¯t look anxious at all. Instead, she smiled calmly and said to Duan Mei, ¡°Those young people nowadays advocate free love. Aren¡¯t you afraid that Yu Bing will take a fancy to a poor boy in the village and marry him? Her household register is already in the village and is no longer in your family. She¡¯s far away, so you won¡¯t be able to do anything about it.¡± Only then did Duan Mei think of this problem. Yu Bing had a household register now, so she could get a marriage certificate without her family¡¯s permission. If she was really coaxed to stay in the village and find a poor person to marry, so poor that he couldn¡¯t even afford a betrothal gift, she would have raised Yu Bing for nothing! Shi Lian saw the sudden change in Duan Mei¡¯s expression and continued to add fuel to the fire. ¡°Although our family¡¯s conditions are indeed average, we won¡¯t scrimp on betrothal money! Actually, driver tow trucks don¡¯t earn much money a month. I heard that it was only about 10 yuan. Our family isn¡¯t greedy for this money. We just hope that Yu Bing can help Yao Nian get an easy job like being a scorekeeper.¡± Chapter 156 - Going to the Village Shi Lian had already thought about it thoroughly. In order for her son not to suffer, if it really didn¡¯t work out, she would give Yu Bing¡¯s family the average price of the betrothal money in the city. As long as they got married and Yao Nian controlled the money in the family, Yu Bing, the factory manager, would earn back the betrothal money she had given her family. This business wasn¡¯t a loss. When Duan Mei heard this, she was sincerely moved. Moreover, the betrothal money in the countryside was very little. If Yu Bing married Yao Nian, she could ask for two to three hundred yuan according to the city¡¯s standards, and it would be settled in one go. Yu Bing¡¯s salary was paid monthly, so she had to be given two years¡¯ worth of money before she could get the same amount as the betrothal money. If this wretched girl got married in the countryside before this, she might not be able to get enough! Therefore, it was more important to get the money! Hence, Duan Mei smiled at Shi Lian. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if there¡¯s a betrothal gift or not, as long as the young couple is happy. My husband and I will think about it carefully before replying to your family.¡± Duan Mei basically agreed. However, as a woman, even if she agreed, she had to be more reserved. What she meant was that the man¡¯s family took the initiative to beg her daughter to marry him, and not the other way around. At this point, Shi Lian was no longer so anxious. She also had a daughter, so she naturally knew this unwritten rule. ¡°Alright, men are afraid of entering the wrong line of work, and women are afraid of marrying the wrong man. It¡¯s only right for you to consider it for two more days.¡± The two families exchanged pleasantries before the Yao family left. As soon as the guest left, Duan Mei¡¯s expression instantly turned ugly. As she stood in the living room, she started to scold, ¡°Yu Bing, that wretched girl! I raised her for 18 years. It wasn¡¯t easy for her to get a salary, but she didn¡¯t even send it back. We had to find out from Shi Lian. Now, Shi Lian is probably secretly laughing at our family! This little bitch! When she comes back to get married, I¡¯ll tear her mouth apart!¡± Yu Pan and Mr. Yu were already used to Duan Mei scolding Yu Bing, so they didn¡¯t feel that she should not use such vulgar words on her daughter. At this moment, Yu Pan vaguely felt that she had missed out on some important information. Suddenly, she narrowed her eyes as she said, ¡°Mom, don¡¯t you think there¡¯s something wrong with this?¡± Duan Mei was in the midst of scolding when she was suddenly interrupted. She was a little unhappy and replied impatiently, ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Didn¡¯t Shi Lian confess? She wants Yao Nian to get an easy job through Yu Bing.¡± Yu Pan slapped her thigh. ¡°It¡¯s precisely this that is suspicious! Think about it, if she wants Yu Bing to help Yao Nian transfer jobs, she can just pay Yu Bing or ask Yao Nian to find a village official. The money spent on bribing definitely won¡¯t be more expensive than the betrothal money, right? I don¡¯t believe that with so many people, she can¡¯t use any connections with this money. Yao Nian is her lifeline. Anyway, I don¡¯t believe that Auntie Shi wants to use Yao Nian¡¯s marriage in exchange for the job of a scorekeeper. In her eyes, even a fairy is out of Yao Nian¡¯s league.¡± When Duan Mei heard this, she slowly sat down. She thought for a moment and said, ¡°But Yu Bing¡¯s job has a salary. She earns more than a hundred yuan a year. Yao Nian might not even be able to earn even a hundred yuan a year in the countryside. If Yao Nian was in the city, Shi Lian would definitely be picky about her daughter-in-law. However, Yao Nian is in the countryside. What choice does he have? It¡¯s not bad to marry someone like Yu Bing.¡± Yu Pan shook her head in disagreement and continued to analyze, ¡°Anyway, I think it definitely isn¡¯t that simple. It¡¯s not like we¡¯re transferring Yao Nian back. If he¡¯s transferred to the county or the commune, I think Auntie Shi might want Yu Bing to be her daughter-in-law. But now, it¡¯s just so Yao Nian can be transferred to another position. Mom, do you think this is like the Auntie Shi you know?¡± When Duan Mei heard Yu Pan¡¯s words, she couldn¡¯t help but waver. She couldn¡¯t make up her mind, so she turned to look at Mr. Yu. ¡°What do you think?¡± To Mr. Yu, he didn¡¯t care about anything else as long as he could eat his fill and wear warm clothes every day. He couldn¡¯t be bothered with these complicated matters. Hence, he took out today¡¯s newspaper from the side and said nonchalantly, ¡°If you¡¯re really worried, go to Yu Bing and you¡¯ll understand everything.¡± When Yu Pan saw that Mr. Yu was on her side, she immediately echoed, ¡°My father is right. The round-trip ticket doesn¡¯t cost more than 10 yuan. Mom, why don¡¯t you go? At the same time, see if Yu Bing is hiding anything from us. Perhaps you¡¯ll find out the real reason Auntie Shi came to propose marriage.¡± Chapter 157 - Going to the Village Duan Mei was convinced by her words and she sneered. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go. If there¡¯s really something else going on, it can only mean that the Yao family can benefit more from it. Shi Lian can forget about brushing me off with a betrothal gift!¡± Shi Lian would never have expected that her almost succeeded plan would be ruined by Yu Pan¡¯s occasionally lucid mind. When Mr. Yu heard this, he looked up and said, ¡°Food is easier to get in the villages than here. Get Yu Bing to buy more for you.¡± Duan Mei said matter-of-factly, ¡°That¡¯s for sure. I¡¯ll get all her salary back this time. Our family is in such a difficult situation, so she definitely has to help.¡± When Yu Pan heard that her mother was preparing to get Yu Bing¡¯s salary, she excitedly thought about how she would get a few yuan from her mother. This way, with the money she had saved up, she could buy the dress she liked. Therefore, the next day, the reply Shi Lian received was that Duan Mei decided to go to the countryside to ask Yu Bing¡¯s opinion in person, in case Yu Bing didn¡¯t agree to be with Yao Nian. Shi Lian had no choice but to ask for leave to visit Yao Nian. The matter of Yu Bing being the factory director would definitely be exposed, so she could only try to think of a solution according to the situation. The two of them made up their minds and applied for leave from the factory in three days. At this moment, Yu Bing was completely unaware and was still focused on production. Because the bamboo gift boxes cost more than 16,000 yuan, the villagers started weaving at home as soon as they got off work. As long as they passed the inspection, they would get 0.02 yuan. The materials could be obtained for free in the village¡¯s bamboo forest. They could weave one in 10 minutes. With these income-generating projects, the villagers, who liked to gossip and sow discord all day long, turned their attention to earning money. The entire He Mountain Brigade was immersed in the harmonious atmosphere of doing business. As for the ordinary version, the mobility team was in charge of them. Because the craftsmanship was very simple, it only took a minute to weave a rope. Yu Bing wanted to save as much as possible. If the mobile team could handle it, they would do it themselves. In the future, if the quantity was large, they would hire one or two more people to be in charge. The goods from the farm had to be shipped first. There were a total of 369 bottles of ordinary goods. Yu Bing personally drove them there. Although they owed the farm money, that was another matter. Yu Bing insisted on paying the remaining 295.2 yuan. After all, they had agreed in advance when they placed the order. At this moment, before Yu Bing received the letter from the Yu family, Duan Mei and Shi Lian had already arrived at the county city and were on their way to the commune. The two of them were carsick from being on the road for an entire day and night. When they finally arrived at the commune, they found out that the ox cart in the village only came to town on market day. They had no choice but to drag their tired bodies to the village. Shi Lian and Duan Mei weren¡¯t young anymore. There were buses for long trips in the city, so they rarely walked so much, especially on uneven yellow soil. Duan Mei had even sprained her ankle. Shi Lian brought a bag of dried meat and chili sauce. The two of them supported each other for three to four hours. When they arrived at the village entrance, they happened to meet the villagers preparing to go to work in the afternoon. Everyone knew that the two of them were from the city from their clothes, so a friendly villager walked up and asked, ¡°Hello, are you here to visit your relatives?¡± When Yu Yan, who was passing by, saw a stranger coming into the village, she took a few more glances. She saw two middle-aged women. One of them had short hair and looked smart and capable, while the other had her hair tied back. Both of them looked tired. Yu Yan felt that the long-haired, round-faced woman gave her a sense of intimacy, so she stopped and took another look. Yu Yan looked like Duan Mei. The two of them had round faces and almond-shaped eyes. They looked 50% alike. Perhaps because of the sense of kinship, Yu Yan developed a good impression of Duan Mei. When Shi Lian heard the question, she hurriedly replied, ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Yao Nian¡¯s mother. This is Yu Bing¡¯s mother. We¡¯re here to see the children.¡± When everyone heard Yu Bing¡¯s name, they stopped and said enthusiastically, ¡°Yao Nian is with the intellectuals. She should be starting work soon. Miss Yu went to collect the payment early in the morning. It¡¯s been hard on her. I wonder if she¡¯s back now?¡± Chapter 158 - Tearing Yu Bing Apart ¡°No, I met Jiang Chun just now and specifically asked. She said that there¡¯s an assignment and it needs a car to be done. Miss Yu still has to go to the DMV after delivering the goods.¡± ¡°Miss Yu is really capable! You can¡¯t judge a book by its cover. You can¡¯t tell how capable she is from her gentle and meek appearance.¡± ¡°She¡¯s not like us, who only have the strength to boast. Miss Yu is smart!¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I think studying is useful! Unfortunately, we only attended literacy classes. We¡¯re not as lucky as children these days, who are able to attend elementary school, middle school, and high school.¡± Everyone discussed it, and it wasn¡¯t difficult to tell that the villagers admired Yu Bing. When Duan Mei heard everyone¡¯s evaluation of Yu Bing, she was secretly shocked. If she hadn¡¯t heard wrongly, everyone seemed to be calling Yu Bing the factory director! She smiled and asked, ¡°Yu Bing is the factory manager?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. You still don¡¯t know? Fair enough. Miss Yu is a low-key person. The factory officially opened this month. She probably hasn¡¯t had the time to tell you,¡± a young wife from the village replied enthusiastically. Shi Lian¡¯s heart skipped a beat. She was worried that Duan Mei would think that she had deliberately hidden the fact that Yu Bing was the factory director. However, Duan Mei was still in shock about Yu Bing being the factory director. How could she have thought of this? At this moment, Yao Nian, who had come to work, also saw his mother and Duan Mei at the entrance of the village. He immediately smiled and ran forward. ¡°Mom, Auntie Duan, why are you here? You should have sent a letter in advance so that I could pick you up.¡± Shi Lian looked at Yao Nian, who had become thinner, and her heart ached so much that she cried. ¡°Son, why have you become so thin?¡± Yao Nian felt a little sad when he heard this. Ever since he started work, his handsome face had become quite rugged-looking. Yao Nian looked at his mother and suddenly felt aggrieved. His sister was originally the one who would come to the countryside. He had sacrificed so much for her to marry someone wealthy, but she actually broke up with such a wealthy boyfriend at the drop of a hat. He had lost a powerful brother-in-law and the chance to return to the city. Now, he could only stay in the village! However, they were in public after all. Yao Nian held back the tears in his eyes. Now that he had found a way out through Yu Bing, he definitely wouldn¡¯t end up that miserable. Hence, he smiled and said, ¡°That¡¯s how farm work is. Mom, Auntie Duan, I¡¯ll bring you to our dormitory building first. I¡¯ll find the team leader to arrange a place for you two to stay tonight!¡± The two of them followed Yao Nian towards the dormitory building. Yu Yan stared at Duan Mei¡¯s back with yearning. Thinking about how Duan Mei hadn¡¯t noticed her just now, she felt a little disappointed. However, on second thought, her mother looked exhausted just now, so it was normal for her not to notice her. Hence, she followed the group into the field with a heavy heart. After the new year, an intellectual got married and moved out of the dormitory, so the house happened to be empty. Yao Nian found a team leader and arranged for his mother and Duan Mei to enter the dormitory. Duan Mei was still thinking about Yu Bing becoming the factory director. She didn¡¯t know how much Yu Bing had hidden from her, so she was anxious to see Yu Bing so that she could scold her. ¡°Yao Nian, which room is Yu Bing staying in? I want to go to her room to wait for her.¡± Yao Nian told Duan Mei about Yu Bing and Jiang Chun living alone. When Duan Mei heard that she had to walk to the end of the village, she immediately decided to sleep for a while first. In any case, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t escape anyway. After Yao Nian settled her down, he went to work. Shi Lian¡¯s heart ached so much that she cried again. Duan Mei wasn¡¯t that sentimental about Yu Bing. She wanted to tear Yu Bing apart now, so she had to rest well and conserve her strength before settling the score with Yu Bing at night! Yu Bing only returned home at seven in the evening. Jiang Chun urged Yu Bing to wash her face first. Then, she entered the kitchen and hurriedly brought the food on the stove to the table. ¡°What assignment were you on this time?¡± Yu Bing was extremely hungry. When she saw the food, her eyes lit up. ¡°I brought a batch of goods from the county¡¯s sugar factory to the city¡¯s supply and marketing club. I have to go tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, twice a day.¡± Jiang Chun asked again, ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean you have to come home this late every day? What time do you leave every day?¡± Yu Bing took a few sips of the warm soup and felt much better. ¡°We have to leave at seven in the morning.¡± Chapter 159 - Giving Back to the Family Jiang Chun said with heartache, ¡°Every time there¡¯s an assignment, you start work earlier than us and get off work later than us. Your long working hours off set the low-intensity advantage of this job.¡± Yu Bing smiled and patted Jiang Chun¡¯s shoulder. ¡°No matter what, it¡¯s better than farming. There¡¯s a salary.¡± After chatting for a while, Jiang Chun remembered something important. ¡°By the way, your mother and Auntie Shi came together!¡± Yu Bing choked, scaring Jiang Chun so much that she hurriedly patted Yu Bing¡¯s back. Yu Bing confirmed with Jiang Chun, ¡°My mother and Yao Nian¡¯s mother?¡± Jiang Chun nodded seriously. Yu Bing was a little puzzled. She didn¡¯t reply to the previous letter, so hadn¡¯t they not contacted each other for a long time? Why did her mother come so suddenly, and with Yao Nian¡¯s mother? At the same time, Yu Bing also realized that her identity was about to be exposed. Thinking of her mother¡¯s methods, Yu Bing sneered. In any case, she wouldn¡¯t let her mother succeed. Yu Bing was halfway through her meal when Duan Mei and Shi Lian came over under Yao Nian¡¯s lead. The courtyard door was open. The three of them saw the dim yellow light in the kitchen and walked in. When Duan Mei saw the small bowl of hibiscus eggs and two vegetables on the table, she felt a little dissatisfied. Mr. Yu and Yu Wu were given priority to the eggs at home. She and Yu Pan could only eat them two to three times a week. Yu Bing could actually afford to eat them now. It seemed that this girl had really saved up some money. Jiang Chun was facing the kitchen door. When she saw them, she greeted them first. When Yu Bing heard this, she could only put down her bowl and chopsticks and stand up to call out, ¡°Mom, Auntie Shi.¡± ¡°Yu Bing, my mother and Auntie Duan are here to discuss our marriage,¡± Yao Nian said excitedly. Marriage? Yu Bing frowned. She wondered when Yao Nian had arranged this. Shi Lian also smiled and said, ¡°You guys are already at the legal age of marriage. It¡¯s time to fulfill the arranged marriage.¡± The mother and son wished they could immediately settle this matter so that they could publicize it. This way, they could force the Yu family to agree to this matter for the sake of their reputation. However, Duan Mei also reacted now. If Yu Bing was just a driver, she definitely would have agreed directly. However, the situation was clearly different now. Duan Mei didn¡¯t believe that Shi Lian didn¡¯t know that Yu Bing was the factory director before, but she didn¡¯t want to expose her. Now that she had the upper hand, she had to think about how to use Yu Bing to maximize the benefits for the Yu family. Hence, Duan Mei also smiled and said, ¡°We just arrived. There¡¯s no hurry to discuss this matter. I¡¯ll talk to Yu Bing about it first. As I said, the two of them have to be willing to spend the rest of their lives together.¡± When Shi Lian heard this, she gritted her teeth in hatred, but she still didn¡¯t show it on her face. At this point, she could only see what the two of them could come up with first and think of a way to deal with it. ¡°Fair enough. You probably miss your daughter too after she left home for more than half a year. You two can chat first. Yao Nian and I will wait for you two outside.¡± Jiang Chun turned around and looked at Yu Bing worriedly before following her out. After everyone left, Yu Bing continued to sit down and eat. Only then did Duan Mei have the time to size up Yu Bing. Yu Bing had grown taller and her figure was no longer like that of a primary school student. Even her breasts had started to develop a little. She knew that Yu Bing was lying when she was complaining about struggling to make ends meet in the letter. Duan Mei felt that Yu Bing was challenging her authority as a mother! Duan Mei was furious. Seeing that Yu Bing ignored her, she frowned and scolded, ¡°Is this your reaction when you see me?¡± Yu Bing looked up tiredly. ¡°Mom, I only ate two buns in the afternoon because I was in a hurry. Driving is very exhausting. I just arrived home to eat. Can you wait for me to finish eating before talking?¡± Duan Mei snorted. ¡°You still have the cheek to eat?! Yu Bing, I think you¡¯re getting bolder and bolder after leaving home. Do you think I can¡¯t control you because you¡¯re here? Let me tell you, I gave birth to you, so you have to be controlled by me for the rest of your life!¡± Yu Bing ate calmly as she looked up to ask, ¡°Then what do you want to control now?¡± Duan Mei limped to the small stool beside Yu Bing and said matter-of-factly, ¡°Take out your salary for the past few months. Do you know how poor our family is now? We can barely eat! Yet you can even eat eggs. After we raised you for so long, you have to think of a way to repay the family now that you¡¯re capable of earning money!¡± Chapter 160 - : Change Although she no longer had any hope for family, Yu Bing still felt bad when she heard that her mother was treating her like a fool. ¡°Mom, you and Dad earn 36 yuan a month. My sister leaves 20 yuan for you and keeps 2 yuan herself, but she can eat and live at home. In other words, there are four people in the family, and three of them have a salary. You guys earn a total of 92 yuan a month.¡± ¡°Mom, even if you eat meat a few times a month, you can save up a third of your money, right? I don¡¯t think our family is so poor that we can¡¯t even afford to eat.¡± Duan Mei¡¯s expression changed when she heard this. She was able to save money because of her own capabilities. ¡°You heartless person. You said so much because you don¡¯t want to give the money to the family, right?! Yu Bing, let me tell you, I have many tricks up my sleeve. Don¡¯t force me to use them on you!¡± Yu Bing wasn¡¯t someone who could be threatened. ¡°Mom, I believe you¡¯ve already found out about my salary. It¡¯s 12 yuan a month. Although there¡¯s rice and oil distributed for free, I have to spend my own money to buy everything else. You know my ill health. The job of a tow truck driver isn¡¯t much easier than farming. If I don¡¯t eat anything to nourish my body, I¡¯ll have to spend money to see a doctor if my body can¡¯t take it anymore. Mom, I don¡¯t have to calculate this. You should know that it¡¯s better to use this money to buy medicine, right?¡± When Duan Mei heard this, she calculated inside. In the past, when Yu Bing was at home, she had to see a doctor every two to three days. In total, the average monthly medical fee was two to three yuan. However, because it was a small medical room in the factory¡¯s infirmary, it didn¡¯t cost money. There was a monthly nutritional allowance of five yuan for the sick family members of the employees. She used this money to buy nutritional supplements for Yu Wu. Otherwise, how could Yu Wu have grown so tall? She had fed him all kinds of nutritional supplements since he was young! Thinking of this, Duan Mei was a little smug about her meticulous planning. She thought about what Yu Bing had said carefully and decided to leave the medical fees as nutritional fees for Yu Bing and give her some extra emergency money. After all, only when Yu Bing recovered could she continuously get more money from her. ¡°You make sense. Leave five yuan for the driver¡¯s salary and send the remaining eight yuan and the factory director¡¯s salary back.¡± Seeing how ¡®benevolent¡¯ Duan Mei was to her, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t help but scoff. ¡°Mom, I have many places to spend money on, so I won¡¯t send the money. But don¡¯t worry, when you and Dad get old and need your children to support you guys, I¡¯ll definitely give you the same amount my brother and sister gives you.¡± When Duan Mei heard this, she slammed the table in anger. ¡°You heartless person! I should have strangled you to death when you were born. I raised you, but you don¡¯t have any gratitude at all. Without me, you would have grown up on the streets!¡± The more agitated Duan Mei became, the calmer Yu Bing felt. ¡°Mom, the five yuan subsidy given by the factory is for me, right? It¡¯s a fact that medical treatment doesn¡¯t cost money, right? I¡¯ve been working for the family since I was five years old. I¡¯ve been cooking three meals a day since I was eight years old. I eat meat twice a month, but I¡¯m only allowed to eat one piece each time.¡± ¡°Although this is a new society and there are no more servants, I¡¯ve always felt that this word can more accurately explain my status in the Yu family. After all, based on the treatment I¡¯m receiving, no one would think that I¡¯m the Yu family¡¯s daughter.¡± ¡°Then treat me as the family¡¯s helper. My salary should be enough to afford those meals. After all, the amount I eat at home has been strictly calculated by you. I can only eat until I¡¯m half full.¡± Yu Bing came to a conclusion with a hint of mockery. ¡°So you¡¯ve already earned the subsidy money from the time I was born to the time I graduated from high school. In that case, I supported myself and even earned some money for my family.¡± Duan Mei looked at Yu Bing, who seemed completely different, and was a little surprised. Could a person change so much? Duan Mei secretly sized up Yu Bing. If not for the fact that Yu Bing¡¯s face was identical, she would have suspected that Yu Bing had been switched. Yu Bing sensed Duan Mei¡¯s suspicious gaze and ignored her. After finishing the last two mouthfuls of food, she began to clear the dishes. Chapter 161 - Causing Trouble Duan Mei suppressed the strange feeling in her heart and said with bravado, ¡°If it weren¡¯t for the fact that your father and I are both employees, do you think you would have received the factory¡¯s subsidy? That¡¯s for the families of the employees!¡± Yu Bing sneered. ¡°Mom, if it weren¡¯t for the fact that Yu Wu and I are twins, you probably would have aborted me without hesitation.¡± Duan Mei glanced at Yu Bing in disdain. ¡°Don¡¯t blame me for favoring boys over girls. Every family is the same! Although this is a new society and gender equality is emphasized, anyone who doesn¡¯t have a boy will be laughed at. This is a traditional idea that has been passed down for thousands of years. How can it be changed so easily? If you want to blame someone, blame yourself for not being a boy!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s hand that was washing the dishes paused. ¡°What about my sister? She¡¯s also a girl. I¡¯m always the first to be ordered around at home and whatever I can¡¯t finish is given to my sister. Even if there are two things at the same time, I¡¯ll always be in charge of the dirtiest and most tiring task.¡± Yu Bing asked a question that she had been curious about for two lifetimes. ¡°Mom, I want to ask you, why are you so unfair to me? Why do I feel that you look at me with hatred sometimes?¡± Duan Mei¡¯s eyes flickered when she heard this question. Why? The doctor said that she had injured her body when she gave birth to the twins and couldn¡¯t have children in the future. That was why she only had one son, Yu Wu. What did having a son mean? It meant having someone to take care of her in retirement! If she didn¡¯t count on her son, should she count on her married daughter instead? Moreover, she was a sickly daughter! If not for the subsidies given by the factory, she wouldn¡¯t have given away her healthy second child back then. Duan Mei was biased towards Yu Pan. Other than the fact that her healthy daughter could bring her more benefits, it was also because Yu Bing had been introverted since she was young and wasn¡¯t as eloquent as Yu Pan. She was so sickly that it annoyed her. However, Duan Mei didn¡¯t even think about how her exploitation of Yu Bing was comparable to that of a capitalist. Yu Bing ate the least but did the heaviest work at home while dragging her sickly body. It was all thanks to Yu Bing¡¯s strong desire to survive and her unwillingness to give up on her that she was able to grow up. Now, Yu Bing was a money tree in Duan Mei¡¯s eyes. Of course, she wouldn¡¯t reveal her true thoughts. ¡°You silly child, what nonsense are you spouting? I admit that I¡¯m a little biased, but you¡¯re also my child. What hatred? You¡¯re making a fool of yourself. Besides, I¡¯m helping you safe keep your salary for your own good. Young people shouldn¡¯t frivolously buy things they shouldn¡¯t buy. I¡¯m just saving it for you first. In the end, it¡¯s all for your dowry.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she revealed a suspicious expression. ¡°Mom, will you really give me every cent of this money as my dowry?¡± When Duan Mei heard the question, she was secretly happy. The older the wiser. She planned to coax Yu Bing into giving her the salary. What could Yu Bing do even if she didn¡¯t give it to her afterwards? Duan Mei smiled kindly. ¡°Of course, I won¡¯t lie to you!¡± In her previous life, Yu Bing was deceived by these lies. In this life, she had already given up on her family and wouldn¡¯t fall for such lies anymore! Yu Bing got the answer she wanted. After putting down the washed bowls and chopsticks, she wiped her hands. Duan Mei didn¡¯t rush her and waited patiently. She felt that Yu Bing definitely wouldn¡¯t refuse. After all, she was considering it from Yu Bing¡¯s perspective. Yu Bing turned around and looked straight at Duan Mei. ¡°Since you say so, I¡¯m relieved. I¡¯ll save the dowry money myself. At that time, my family won¡¯t have to pay for it. This is the same as asking you to help me save money.¡± Duan Mei felt that she had been played by Yu Bing and flew into a rage. She glared and raised her hand to teach Yu Bing a lesson like before. Yu Bing grabbed her mother¡¯s raised hand. ¡°Mom, I¡¯m already an adult. I¡¯m no longer the child who let you vent your anger on me whenever you wanted.¡± With that, she shook off Duan Mei¡¯s hand. Duan Mei felt that her authority as a mother had been challenged by Yu Bing again, so she said fiercely, ¡°Yu Bing, let me tell you. Send the money back to me obediently. Otherwise, I¡¯ll report you to your superior and say that you¡¯re unfilial! I¡¯ll see if you can still keep this job if that happens!¡± This was Duan Mei¡¯s ultimate move. In this era, this kind of move was a sure kill! Filial piety was one of the most important values. Even if the leaders knew that the parents of the employees were in the wrong first, out of ethics and various regulations, they could only talk to the employees and let them compromise. After all, if this matter blew up, it wouldn¡¯t be good for the factory. Chapter 162 - I Dont Want Your Money However, Yu Bing wasn¡¯t afraid. At most, she would farm again. In any case, her health was much better than before! She would just have to endure it for another year and wait for the country to reform and open up. Therefore, Yu Bing was very calm about this. However, she still had to fight for what she needed to fight for first. ¡°Mom, there¡¯s a saying that goes, ¡®If the parents aren¡¯t kind, the children won¡¯t be filial.¡¯ How did you guys treat me? I¡¯m just returning the favor.¡± ¡°Moreover, I also said that I won¡¯t scrimp on a single cent of your and Dad¡¯s retirement money. However, if you jeopardize my job, I can¡¯t guarantee that I will be able to pay as much as my brothers and sisters in the future. After all, they¡¯re in the city. As a farmer, I can¡¯t earn much money.¡± ¡°You!¡± Out of anger, Duan Mei¡¯s hand that was pointing at Yu Bing was trembling! ¡°Alright, Yu Bing, just you wait! I don¡¯t believe that I can¡¯t deal with you! I¡¯m your mother!¡± Duan Mei turned around and left angrily. Unfortunately, her limping posture forcefully lowered her intimidation by a few levels. Seeing this, Shi Lian and Yao Nian hurriedly followed. Jiang Chun looked at Duan Mei, who had rushed out of the courtyard, and felt indescribably happy. She went forward and closed the door with a bang. When she turned around and saw Yu Bing standing outside the kitchen, Jiang Chun went forward and held her hand. ¡°Little Bing, your family is so outrageous!¡± ¡°I always thought that since you¡¯re the youngest in the family, you should be given an easy job. I didn¡¯t expect¡­ No wonder people in our neighborhood say that your parents are mean. It turns out that they even took the nutritional allowance given to you by the factory!¡± Yu Bing smiled nonchalantly. ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s all in the past! No matter what, I was able to grow up because they gave me a home and didn¡¯t throw me to the roadside to fend for myself.¡± Jiang Chun hugged Yu Bing¡¯s shoulder with heartache. ¡°Now that I think about it, it¡¯s good for you to go to the county to accept missions these two days. You can avoid your mother. I don¡¯t believe that they can stay here forever!¡± Then, she said hatefully, ¡°Yao Nian caused all of this! In the past, when you guys were at home, he avoided talking about this marriage. Now that he sees that you¡¯ve recovered, he wants to reap the benefits!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s lips curled up slightly. ¡°This time, I¡¯ll let him know what it means to be delusional!¡± After Yao Nian and Shi Lian sent Duan Mei back to the dormitory, the two of them walked to the open area and chatted softly. Yao Nian looked at his mother and asked anxiously, ¡°Mom, what should we do now? Why do I feel that things are getting worse?¡± Shi Lian didn¡¯t expect that Yu Bing and Duan Mei had already fallen out. She lamented, ¡°I realize that Yu Bing seems to have become a different person. Didn¡¯t she not dare to raise her voice in the past?¡± Yao Nian replied angrily, ¡°How would I know? I¡¯ve never spoken to her much in the past. She was like an invisible person. Who would pay attention to her?¡± Shi Lian lowered her eyes and pondered over it. Yao Nian didn¡¯t dare to speak, since he was afraid that he would interrupt his mother¡¯s train of thought. After a long while, Shi Lian looked up at Yao Nian and said, ¡°This is not completely disadvantageous to us. Duan Mei is just greedy for Yu Bing¡¯s salary, but Yu Bing doesn¡¯t want to give it to her. This is a good chance for me to mention your marriage.¡± ¡°Think about it. If Duan Mei can¡¯t get Yu Bing¡¯s money, but we can give it to her immediately, how can she not be tempted?¡± Yao Nian¡¯s eyes lit up when he heard his mother¡¯s analysis, but he said worriedly, ¡°But do you think Yu Bing will still listen to her mother? I realized that she hates me, but other than ignoring her in the past, I¡¯ve never bullied her.¡± Shi Lian frowned and said, ¡°No matter what, we can only work on Duan Mei now. As long as she¡¯s willing, we can always think of a way. If she wants money, she has to make Yu Bing marry you. Whether she¡¯s kidnapped or drugged, this has nothing to do with us. As long as she gets married and sleeps with you, I don¡¯t believe there¡¯s anything Yu Bing can do about it!¡± Yao Nian raised his eyebrows and smiled. ¡°Then I¡¯ll be on good behavior in front of Auntie Duan these few days. Mom, you have to help me. When I marry Yu Bing, I¡¯ll find a management job in the factory and get all her money. You can wait for me to be filial to you in the future!¡± These words made Shi Lian smile. ¡°I know you¡¯re filial. As long as you live a good life, we¡¯ll be happy. Your father and I have social security. We don¡¯t want your money.¡± Chapter 163 - Mother and Daughter Meet Shi Lian cared a great deal about her son. If she wanted retirement savings, she would only ask her daughter for money. How could she bear to let Yao Nian save money for her? The two of them echoed each other. Those who didn¡¯t know better would think that Yu Bing was about to marry Yao Nian. The next morning, Duan Mei slept in. After she got up, she ate the sweet potatoes that Yao Nian had prepared in advance before going to the factory to look for Yu Bing. Duan Mei followed the villagers¡¯ directions and found the factory. She looked at the small factory in front of her in disdain. As expected of the countryside, even the factory was so shabby. It was unlike the factories in the city, where there were hundreds of workers. When Duan Mei walked to the factory door, she saw a middle-aged woman dressed like a cadre not far away. She shouted, ¡°Hello, I¡¯m looking for Yu Bing.¡± At this moment, Zhao Lin, who had just arrived at the factory to supervise the progress, turned around when she heard the voice. When she saw Duan Mei, she immediately smiled and went forward. She asked kindly, ¡°You¡¯re Yu Bing¡¯s mother, right?¡± Duan Mei smiled and nodded. It had to be said that Duan Mei was very good at keeping up a pretense in front of outsiders. She looked like a cultured and experienced city dweller. Because Yu Bing often went out because of the factory and vehicle dispatch, Zhao Lin was assigned here. She could be considered a part-time production director of the factory. She kept an eye on the production progress when Yu Bing wasn¡¯t free. Zhao Lin didn¡¯t know about Yu Bing and Duan Mei¡¯s actual relationship. She smiled at Duan Mei and said, ¡°Yu Bing has been transferred to the county¡¯s DMV to transport goods these two days.¡± Duan Mei frowned. Seeing this, Zhao Lin knew that the other party didn¡¯t know about this and hurriedly helped Yu Bing smooth things over. ¡°She was probably too busy and forgot to tell you.¡± Duan Mei naturally wouldn¡¯t reveal that she suspected that Yu Bing hid it. She smiled and said, ¡°Yes, she came back so late yesterday. I was worried that she didn¡¯t get enough rest, so I didn¡¯t talk to her much.¡± Zhao Lin immediately said, ¡°Yu Bing is indeed busy, but she¡¯s very organized when it comes to doing things. She planned such a big project in our village. I can tell at a glance that you¡¯re a cultured person. Otherwise, how could you raise such a capable daughter like Yu Bing?!¡± As parents, who didn¡¯t want their children to be promising? Therefore, Zhao Lin praised Yu Bing vehemently. Although Duan Mei didn¡¯t really teach Yu Bing that much, the other party praised her for being a cultured person. This made her feel very pleased! Because Yu Bing wasn¡¯t around, Duan Mei didn¡¯t stay for long and returned to the dormitory. Yao Nian had to start work in the morning, and Shi Lian insisted on helping her son, so Duan Mei could only wander around the dormitory alone. At around ten o¡¯clock, Duan Mei strolled into the kitchen. The person on duty would only enter the kitchen at eleven, but Duan Mei saw a tall figure inside. At this moment, the other party happened to turn around. Duan Mei looked at the other party¡¯s face and realized that she looked very similar to her. She suddenly thought of her second daughter, whom Yu Bing had mentioned in the letter she had sent home previously. At this moment, Yu Yan was also stunned. She stared at Duan Mei in a daze, her eyes gradually welling up with tears, and her lips moved a few times. Yu Yan looked at her mother with mixed feelings. Yu Yan thought of the words in the letter, which said that Duan Mei didn¡¯t want to acknowledge her. Then, she thought of how she had imagined her mother¡¯s appearance for many years. Now that she saw Duan Mei, she felt that Duan Mei was as kind and beautiful as she had imagined. In the end, Yu Yan didn¡¯t dare to call her ¡°Mom¡±. She only turned around and scooped out the soup made from the small half of the chicken in the pot. After all, Yu Yan was the daughter Duan Mei had raised for two years, so Duan Mei felt very conflicted. When she saw Yu Yan¡¯s expression, she knew that she had already recognized her. After Yu Yan turned around, Duan Mei sized Yu Yan up carefully and realized that there wasn¡¯t a single patch on Yu Yan¡¯s clothes. This was rare in this era. She only wore good clothes when she went out to meet guests, but Yu Yan¡¯s daily clothes actually met this standard. Duan Mei paid attention to the brand-new shoes on Yu Yan¡¯s feet, her tall and well-proportioned figure, and the rosy and fair face she had seen just now. These all showed how wealthy the family that adopted Yu Yan was and how well-off her daughter was! 1 Chapter 164 - Vampire Yu Yan looked down at the chicken soup and tightened her grip on the bowl. This morning, Yu Yan pretended to be sick and took half a day off. She even went to town to buy some chicken to make a bowl of chicken soup for Duan Mei. Yu Yan rarely cooked at home. She only needed to tidy up her room, so her culinary skills were not very good. She was worried that the chicken soup wouldn¡¯t taste good, so she didn¡¯t dare to hand it to Duan Mei. Duan Mei was hesitating about whether to greet Yu Yan or not, but then she remembered that she had already given her second daughter away, and her family had promised not to ask for her back, so she hesitated and planned to leave. At this moment, Yu Yan turned around nervously and walked towards Duan Mei. Duan Mei didn¡¯t know how to react and was stunned. Yu Yan looked at Duan Mei with admiration and said softly, ¡°You must be very tired after traveling from the neighboring province for so long. I made a bowl of chicken soup for you to nourish your body.¡± Duan Mei was shocked. She didn¡¯t expect her daughter, whom she hadn¡¯t seen for many years, to know that she was adopted and recognize her the moment she saw her. She felt a little baffled. She didn¡¯t know what Yu Yan¡¯s intentions were, so she smiled and refused tactfully. ¡°I¡¯m fine. You guys usually do heavy work, so you need more nourishment. Keep this soup for yourself.¡± Yu Yan¡¯s intuition told her that her biological mother must have already recognized her. In Yu Yan¡¯s eyes, Duan Mei¡¯s polite refusal became a display of maternal love. She was even more touched. ¡°This was specifically stewed for you. If you won¡¯t drink it, just pour it away.¡± Duan Mei didn¡¯t expect Yu Yan to have such deep feelings for her biological mother, so she took it helplessly and said, ¡°Then you have to drink half of it. Otherwise, I won¡¯t drink it.¡± Tears welled up in Yu Yan¡¯s eyes as she smiled and said, ¡°Alright, let¡¯s drink together.¡± The two of them gave in to each other. When Yu Yan took a sip, she realized that the chicken soup was a little too light. She said shyly, ¡°It doesn¡¯t taste very good. I didn¡¯t add enough salt.¡± Duan Mei brought it over and took a sip as well. Then, she said lovingly, ¡°It¡¯s very delicious. This is the best chicken soup I¡¯ve ever tasted.¡± At this moment, Yu Yan felt that she had truly experienced maternal love. Indeed, only a biological mother would tolerate a child¡¯s mistakes, unlike her adoptive parents, who made her reflect on her mistakes. She wasn¡¯t a soldier! While eating the same bowl of chicken soup, although the two of them didn¡¯t expose each other, their relationship was rapidly improving. When Duan Mei returned to her room, she was hesitating about whether or not to take the opportunity to acknowledge this daughter. After all, Yu Yan seemed to have good financial conditions and was easy to coax. She was much easier to deal with than Yu Bing. After talking to her biological mother, Yu Yan felt extremely happy. While lying in bed and recalling the scene just now, Yu Yan let out a silly laugh. She knew it. How could her mother not acknowledge her?! Yu Bing must have been sowing discord in that letter. Fortunately, she didn¡¯t fall for it and hate her family. Otherwise, she would have missed out on such a good mother and let Yu Bing enjoy her alone! Yu Yan was feeling smug about her intelligence. However, she thought about how her mother hadn¡¯t acknowledged her just now and wondered if it was because she was afraid that Yu Bing would be unhappy! After all, Yu Bing had lived with her parents for 18 years, while she had been sent away at the age of two. In terms of deep relationships, she was incomparable to Yu Bing. It was all because of Yu Bing that she was sent away. That was why she only experienced maternal love 18 years later! The more Yu Yan thought about it, the more she felt that it made sense. Then, she couldn¡¯t help but cry again, since she was afraid that her mother would really reject her because of this. No! She couldn¡¯t let Yu Bing get her way! Yu Yan reached out and wiped the tears off her face with determination. Yu Bing didn¡¯t know what Yu Yan was thinking. Otherwise, she would immediately hold a ceremony for the two of them so that Yu Yan could experience the deep ¡®love¡¯ the Yu family¡¯s parents displayed when facing their daughter. On this day, Duan Mei waited until 9 PM, but she didn¡¯t hear the sound of the tractor passing by the dormitory building. She fell asleep while waiting. The next day, Duan Mei woke up early and prepared to drag Yu Bing to the village chief to talk about her salary. Unfortunately, when she rushed to Yu Bing¡¯s house, she only saw the exhaust of the tractor! Chapter 165 - Working For Nothing This didn¡¯t shake Duan Mei¡¯s determination to look for the village chief today. However, she still had her pride. Family scandals couldn¡¯t be exposed. Shi Lian was still here, so after going to the field, she pulled the village chief aside to talk. She revealed the family¡¯s financial difficulties. ¡°Mr. Wu, as a parent, how can I not care about Yu Bing? However, this child misunderstood us. She resents us for letting her come to the countryside, but we had no choice. Our family couldn¡¯t find any way to let her stay in the city.¡± Duan Mei¡¯s words made her seem like a helpless parent, while Yu Bing was an insensible daughter. If Yu Bing hadn¡¯t specifically come to tell Wu Jin about it yesterday, Wu Jin really would have thought that Yu Bing had some misunderstanding with her family, and would have helped mediate. Wu Jin had worked with Yu Bing for a few months and knew her quite well, so he chose to believe Yu Bing without hesitation. He looked at Duan Mei and said in a comforting tone, ¡°I understand Yu Bing. She¡¯s not a petty person. Talk to her again. If it¡¯s really a misunderstanding, how can Yu Bing really hate you?¡± Duan Mei could discern the evasion in Wu Jin¡¯s words, so she sighed and continued, ¡°I know you¡¯re in a difficult position. Actually, my request is very simple. In the future, please arrange for someone to transfer Yu Bing¡¯s salary to me every month. I won¡¯t let you help for nothing. I¡¯ll pay 20 cents for every transfer!¡± Nowadays, factories allowed parents to help collect salaries. Even if their children were unwilling, if the parents were unyielding and went to the factories to cause trouble every two to three days, many factories would choose to compromise in the end. Their monthly salary would be taken by the parents. However, Wu Jin wasn¡¯t intimidated by this question at all. He revealed an awkward smile. ¡°Yu Bing¡¯s mother, you just came and don¡¯t know much about our factory. All the projects in our village are in debt now, so we can¡¯t pay Yu Bing at all. At that time, when Yu Bing accepted the job, she also clearly expressed that she was willing to wait until the factory made a profit before getting paid.¡± Duan Mei frowned when she heard this. ¡°You¡¯re saying that she¡¯s working for nothing?!¡± Wu Jin nodded with an embarrassed but forced expression. When Duan Mei heard this, she became unhappy and said, ¡°Mr. Wu, it¡¯s unreasonable for a worker to not be paid, isn¡¯t it?¡± Mr. Wu had long become extremely thick-skinned. Moreover, now that Yu Bing, the person involved, had agreed, he smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s not that we won¡¯t distribute it, but we¡¯ll distribute it later. After all, the factory is in trouble now. As cadres, we should take the lead!¡± ¡°However, we all believe that the difficulties are temporary. When the difficulties pass, we will definitely make up for the salary we owe previously.¡± When Duan Mei heard the words ¡°make up¡±, she asked patiently, ¡°Then how much do you owe?¡± Mr. Wu told her the number. When Duan Mei heard that there was a debt of more than 10,000 yuan and that the factory only produced jam at the moment, she felt that Mr. Wu had made things sound too good just now. Who knew when it would be paid off? If it closed down before the debt was paid off, she would really have worked for nothing! Seeing that there was no hope of getting the salary, Duan Mei planned to go to the commune. The commune was a government organization. The salary wouldn¡¯t be delayed anymore. Fortunately, her ankle wasn¡¯t very sprained. After applying hot compresses, she would basically be fine tomorrow. Then, she could go to the commune. Compared to Duan Mei¡¯s carefree life, Shi Lian¡¯s heart ached whenever she saw Yao Nian working. She insisted on farming with him every day. Yao Nian wanted his mother to help him share the burden, but there were so many people watching. He didn¡¯t want the villagers to gossip about him needing his mother¡¯s help. He couldn¡¯t afford to lose face, so he could only reject Shi Lian¡¯s idea. Yao Nian was in charge of picking out feces from the septic tank in the village that was used to ferment farm fertilizer. Yao Nian usually hated this dirty and tiring job, but he was very happy today. This was because when people couldn¡¯t see them, Shi Lian would help him pick them. Whenever they realized that there were villagers around, Yao Nian would do it. Shi Lian would also carry a bucket at the side so that Yao Nian could save some energy. The countryside life these few days also deepened Shi Lian¡¯s intention to matchmake her son and Yu Bing. How could Yao Nian continue doing such a job?! Without Shi Lian by her side, it was much easier for Duan Mei to meet Yu Yan in the dormitory. After all, it would be unreasonable for Duan Mei to acknowledge the daughter she sent away. Chapter 166 - Catch When they were poor, they gave her away to others to raise. When other people finally raised their child to adulthood, they eagerly acknowledged her. Wouldn¡¯t that be taking advantage of the situation? If that was the case, who would be willing to adopt other people¡¯s children? The couple who adopted Yu Yan had been found by Shi Lian¡¯s distant relatives. If Shi Lian found out about this and spread word of it, the Yu family would definitely be discussed and despised. Even if Shi Lian didn¡¯t spread word of it, this would undoubtedly become the best thing Shi Lian had on her. Therefore, no matter what, Duan Mei couldn¡¯t let Yu Yan¡¯s true relationship with her get exposed. Yu Yan pretended to be sick this morning and went to town to buy some pork belly. At this moment, Duan Mei was secretly making braised pork in the kitchen. ¡°Your food looks delicious!¡± Yu Yan praised Duan Mei¡¯s cooking with a smile. Duan Mei looked at Yu Yan lovingly. ¡°Try it and see if you like it.¡± Yu Yan took a bite and felt that it was better than what her adoptive mother had made at home in the past. She was overjoyed. ¡°You should try it too! I specifically bought this for you to nourish your body.¡± Duan Mei picked up a piece and ate it. She had been here for three days and had eaten the meat Yu Yan had bought for two days in a row. Moreover, she didn¡¯t have to work every day. Duan Mei felt very blissful these days. At the same time, she could tell that Yu Yan really wasn¡¯t short of money. She was probably very rich! When they were about to finish eating, Duan Mei glanced at Yu Yan and suddenly lowered her eyes in disappointment. ¡°I didn¡¯t let you live a good life when you were young. Now, I¡¯m even freeloading off you. I should be the one buying this meat, but our family¡¯s financial situation is really bad. I just brought enough money for the travel expenses. I don¡¯t even have enough to buy you anything.¡± When Yu Yan heard the guilt in Duan Mei¡¯s tone, she hurriedly shook her head. ¡°Don¡¯t say that. I¡¯m already very satisfied to be able to eat the food you personally cooked for me.¡± When Duan Mei heard this, she looked at Yu Yan with a touched expression. ¡°Good child, we didn¡¯t raise you, but you¡¯re the most sensible person in the family. Our family has let you down!¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she felt as if all the grievances she had suffered had disappeared at this moment. This was because her biological mother had seen how good she was, and Yu Yan had interpreted Duan Mei¡¯s apology as her parents regret for giving her away. She knew that she was definitely better than Yu Bing! It wasn¡¯t that her parents didn¡¯t like her, nor did they abandon her. Yu Yan thought for a moment and finally asked the question that had been buried in her heart for many years, ¡°Why did you choose to send me away back then?¡± When Duan Mei heard this question, her heart skipped a beat. She knew that she had to answer this question properly, or this ATM might run away. Duan Mei¡¯s expression was solemn. ¡°Actually, I couldn¡¯t bear to send any of you children out. You¡¯re all my beloved children!¡± Then, she sighed. ¡°I remember that it was snowing that day. When your adoptive parents came to the house, I could tell that their family was much wealthier than ours. Your adoptive parents chose you in the end. At that time, I couldn¡¯t bear to part with you and cried until I almost fainted. But on second thought, our family was so poor that we couldn¡¯t even support ourselves. You would suffer if you stayed by our side. I might as well let you live a good life with them!¡± ¡°All these years, I¡¯ve often dreamed of that day and can¡¯t forget it. I thought that I would never see you again in my life. I didn¡¯t expect the heavens to take pity on me and let me see you again in my lifetime. Now that I know that you¡¯re doing well, the pain I¡¯ve suffered day and night is worth it!¡± It had been 18 years. How could Duan Mei still remember if it had really snowed or not the day she sent Yu Yan out? As for crying and fainting, if Yu Bing hadn¡¯t mentioned Yu Yan in the letter, she would have forgotten about this matter. However, Duan Mei had been quite good at language arts in the past and knew how to use the environment and details to bolster the vibe. After this description, the image of a loving mother was immediately established! Duan Mei¡¯s evocative description successfully made Yu Yan cry. She felt that her longing for her family for so many years had reciprocated. This wasn¡¯t her one-sided wishful thinking, but a mutual loving relationship with her family! Yu Yan, who had been suppressing her emotions for a long time, completely lost control at this moment. ¡°Mom!¡± Duan Mei was already immersed in her acting. Now that she heard Yu Yan¡¯s sincere shout, she suddenly felt a little moved and her eyes turned red. ¡°Yes!¡± The mother and daughter hugged each other with tears, but they were tears of joy. One was that they had finally fulfilled their long-cherished wish, and the other was because they had gotten an adult daughter back for free. Duan Mei held Yu Yan¡¯s hand tightly. ¡°Good child, I always thought that you would hate us. I didn¡¯t expect¡­¡± Chapter 167 - Sick Paranoia Yu Yan choked and said, ¡°I know you must have your reasons. I don¡¯t blame you. Actually, I¡¯d rather live a hard life with you guys. Although I don¡¯t have to worry about food and clothing, my adoptive parents don¡¯t treat me as their biological daughter at all.¡± Duan Mei was stunned when she heard this. She vaguely remembered how happy the couple was when they carried Yu Yan away. However, this wasn¡¯t important. The more dissatisfied Yu Yan was with her adoptive parents, the closer Yu Yan would be to her. This was a good thing! Hence, Duan Mei stroked Yu Yan¡¯s head lovingly and said, ¡°Child, it seems that you¡¯ve suffered a lot.¡± Duan Mei successfully planted the image of a loving mother in Yu Yan¡¯s heart. Now, in her heart, her biological mother was tolerant, loving, and devoted to her children. She was completely different from her adoptive parents, who were strict with her. Yu Yan attributed the two contrasts to blood relations. Those who were related to her by blood were her family. However, she once again ignored the fact that her adoptive parents were stricter with their biological son than with her. Moreover, she was always the one who picked the things at home first and the leftovers went to her adoptive brother. Yu Yan wiped her tears. ¡°Mom, what meat do you want to eat tomorrow? I¡¯ll buy it tomorrow morning. It wasn¡¯t easy for you to come here. Let me be filial to you.¡± When Duan Mei heard the word meat, she couldn¡¯t help but swallow hard. Although they could eat shredded meat once a week, in this era, who would complain about having too much meat? However, she had to maintain her image and couldn¡¯t be too greedy. This was because Duan Mei knew that the more she acted like this, the more touched Yu Yan would be. Then, Yu Yan would give her even more benefits. ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to buy anymore. I¡¯ve been eating meat for two days. Save the money and nourish yourself.¡± As expected, Yu Yan was touched again. Her biological mother was indeed different. Even when she was ordering her, she sounded so gentle. She was always concerned about her. Duan Mei suddenly thought of going to the commune tomorrow. ¡°By the way, Yu Yan, do you usually walk to the commune?¡± Yu Yan didn¡¯t know why her mother suddenly asked this, but she still replied honestly, ¡°On my day off, the old man driving the ox cart will drive the carriage. We usually have to walk, but if there¡¯s really an emergency, we can book a ride in the carriage. It¡¯s 20 cents per round trip.¡± When Duan Mei heard this, she calculated the time and realized that it was only Wednesday today. She had only applied for seven days of leave. The journey had already delayed her for two days. Today was the third day of her trip to the countryside. She had to hurry up and settle the matter. Otherwise, she would have to apply for more leave. Thinking of how the factory would deduct these seven days¡¯ salary, Duan Mei was so distressed that she didn¡¯t sleep well for two days. When Yu Yan saw Duan Mei frown, she asked curiously, ¡°Mom, are you going to the commune?¡± Of course, Duan Mei couldn¡¯t say that she was going to get Yu Bing¡¯s salary, so she found an excuse. ¡°That¡¯s right. Isn¡¯t Yu Bing a tow truck driver? She¡¯s so young, so she definitely isn¡¯t well-versed in the ways of the world. I¡¯ll show up and put in a good word in front of everyone to help her pull some strings.¡± Little did Duan Mei know that her performance, which she thought would earn her extra points, was simply breaking Yu Yan¡¯s heart. Yu Yan¡¯s expression froze and she felt a little frustrated. It was Yu Bing again! Why wouldn¡¯t Yu Bing even let her mother off these few days after she snatched away her mother¡¯s love for 18 years?! Yu Yan¡¯s paranoia had already reached a sick level. Not to mention the Yu family¡¯s actual attitude towards Yu Bing, Yu Bing wasn¡¯t even weaned when she was sent away. No one should blame such a young baby! When Yu Yan discovered that Yu Bing had come to the countryside to support the construction, she secretly ran to the street office to sign up without her adoptive parents¡¯ knowledge. At that time, Yu Yan was curious about Yu Bing. She planned to reunite with her blood relatives after building a good relationship with this little sister of hers. However, for some reason, the more she interacted with Yu Bing, the more she disliked her. She developed the paranoid idea that Yu Bing had caused her to be sent away by her parents. When Duan Mei saw Yu Yan¡¯s livid expression, she asked with concern, ¡°Yu Yan, why do you look so pale? Are you feeling unwell?¡± Yu Yan came back to her senses and smiled. ¡°Mom, I¡¯m fine. I¡¯m just a little envious of my sister for being able to enjoy the care of her family since she was young.¡± Yu Yan knew that her dark thoughts couldn¡¯t be exposed. In her biological mother¡¯s eyes, she had to seem kind and benevolent. Now that her biological mother had already acknowledged her, she had to slowly plan to take back everything that should have belonged to her from Yu Bing! Yu Bing didn¡¯t know that this mother and daughter were plotting against her. It wasn¡¯t easy for her to return early today, but the sky was already dark. Chapter 168 - Going to the Commune When Duan Mei heard the sound of the tractor returning to the village, she thought about going to look for Yu Bing¡¯s superior tomorrow. It didn¡¯t matter if Yu Bing was present or not. She couldn¡¯t be bothered to make another trip. Yu Bing had just arrived home and was about to eat when Xiao Sheng came over with a puppy. Yu Bing¡¯s eyes lit up. She stopped eating and went forward with Jiang Chun. Jiang Chun took the puppy and held it in her arms. After Yu Bing played with it for a while, she looked up at Xiao Sheng and asked excitedly, ¡°You found this for me?¡± Xiao Sheng smiled and replied, ¡°Yes, it wasn¡¯t easy for me to find a female dog. I carried her over as soon as she stopped weaning today. This is a wolf dog. Its mother is very fierce. She can definitely help you keep a close eye on your family!¡± Yu Bing nodded in satisfaction. It was good as long as the dog was fierce! ¡°Thank you. How much is it?¡± There was a custom here. It was best to give the original owner some money when raising other people¡¯s dogs because dogs represented fortune. If you didn¡¯t give them a single cent, it was equivalent to others giving you their fortune. Who would be willing to do that? Therefore, Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t stand on ceremony. ¡°It¡¯s from a friend. He only accepted 0.5 yuan.¡± 0.5 yuan was indeed a cheapprice. Yu Bing took out the money and handed it to Xiao Sheng. This also meant that there would be a new member in the family from now on. Seeing that the matter had been settled, Jiang Chun hurriedly carried the puppy into the room and prepared to build a home for it. Xiao Sheng said to Yu Bing, ¡°Uncle Jin asked me to tell you that your mother has already looked for him today. She didn¡¯t get the money, so she will probably go to the commune to get your driver¡¯s salary. Uncle Jin asked you to be prepared in advance. You might be interviewed by the leaders of the commune.¡± Yu Bing chuckled nonchalantly. ¡°It¡¯s okay. We¡¯ll deal with whatever comes our way.¡± Xiao Sheng left after sending the news. The next day, Duan Mei woke up early and specifically booked an ox cart to send her to the commune. When she arrived, she asked for the logistics department at the front office. After Duan Mei successfully found the place, she saw that there were five people in the office, so she knocked on the door. ¡°Hello, I want to ask which leader is in charge of the village¡¯s tow truck driver?¡± Officer Huang, who was reading the newspaper, looked up at Duan Mei and asked, ¡°I am. Why are you looking for me?¡± Duan Mei hurriedly smiled and walked to Officer Huang¡¯s desk. ¡°I¡¯m Yu Bing¡¯s mother.¡± When Officer Huang heard Yu Bing¡¯s name, he hurriedly smiled and said, ¡°I know her. She¡¯s an experienced driver in our commune. She¡¯s very skilled. Please sit.¡± Other than being skilled, Officer Huang also knew that Yu Bing had saved his immediate superior¡¯s daughter-in-law. That was why he was so enthusiastic when he found out that Duan Mei was Yu Bing¡¯s mother. Duan Mei thought that it was because of the friendliness of rural people, so she didn¡¯t think much of it. ¡°My family¡¯s situation is a little difficult now, but Yu Bing refuses to send the money home. I hope you can transfer her salary to me every month. I won¡¯t help for nothing. I¡¯ll give you 0.2 yuan for your hard work.¡± Duan Mei didn¡¯t care at all about how Yu Bing¡¯s image in the commune would be damaged after she said this. She also didn¡¯t consider whether Yu Bing¡¯s future would be impacted if there was a chance for her to be promoted in the future. This was because to Duan Mei, as long as she could get Yu Bing¡¯s salary, it was fine. Otherwise, if Yu Bing was promoted and given a raise, she would be even angrier if she couldn¡¯t get the money! Mr. Huang knew that Yu Bing was an intellectual from the city. When he saw Duan Mei, he thought that she was here to help Yu Bing pull strings. He really didn¡¯t expect this. Therefore, Officer Huang was stunned and asked, ¡°Her entire salary?¡± When Duan Mei saw the other party¡¯s expression, she was too embarrassed to say that she wanted Yu Bing¡¯s entire salary. She was also worried that the higher-ups would think that she was selfish and that they would feel that Yu Bing was pitiful, then side with Yu Bing. After all, she was far away and couldn¡¯t come every month, so she immediately replied, ¡°Just send eight yuan. I¡¯m not an unreasonable parent. I know that she needs to spend money here. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that our family is about to run out of money, I wouldn¡¯t have touched her salary. It wasn¡¯t easy for us to raise her. Now that she¡¯s finally working, it¡¯s normal for her to subsidize our family.¡± This was indeed very normal. However, when Officer Huang heard Duan Mei¡¯s words, he still frowned and scratched his head. He suspected whether the Yu Bing he knew was the Yu Bing she was talking about. However, there was indeed only a driver called Yu Bing in the commune. Chapter 169 - Verification Officer Huang still remembered that a month ago, Yu Bing had specifically brought some sweet potatoes she had dried for everyone to eat. From time to time, Yu Bing would chat with the auntie who worked in the canteen sometimes because she had helped Yu Bing previously. Was she really the kind of person her mother mentioned? As Officer Huang looked at Duan Mei, he felt that it was better to persuade her to go back first and let Yu Bing try her best to communicate with her family in private. If her parents caused trouble when they came to the commune, it wouldn¡¯t have a good impact on her future work development. Fortunately, only the logistics department knew about this. Everyone had a good relationship with Yu Bing and wouldn¡¯t spread it. After making up his mind, Officer Huang smiled and said, ¡°Does Yu Bing know about this? Does she agree?¡± This was a routine question. Duan Mei knew this very well. ¡°She didn¡¯t agree, so I came.¡± Mr. Huang took a sip of water from the tea jar beside him and said, ¡°Usually, the employee will collect the salary herself. If she wants her parents to collect it on her behalf, she has to sign an agreement.¡± When Duan Mei heard this, she said with a bitter expression, ¡°I have no choice. There are a few mouths at home waiting to be fed. If she doesn¡¯t send the money back, we won¡¯t be able to survive. As her leaders, you can¡¯t ignore this matter.¡± Officer Huang had been working for more than twenty years, and it wasn¡¯t uncommon for parents to ask for their children¡¯s salaries. Most of the time, parents wanted to control their children by controlling their children¡¯s finances. This was especially common among female employees, so Officer Huang was very calm when he heard this. He even felt a little bored. It had been so many years since parents started using this excuse. Those parents liked to use family difficulties as an excuse, but most were not telling the truth. The smile on Officer Huang¡¯s face faded a little. ¡°Although I¡¯m her leader, this is your family¡¯s matter. Why don¡¯t you go home and discuss it with Yu Bing? I know Yu Bing quite well. She¡¯s good-tempered and polite. I believe she treats her family well. Tell her nicely. If your family is in such a difficult situation, I believe she¡¯s not the kind of person who will be heartless enough to ignore it.¡± When Duan Mei saw Officer Huang¡¯s attitude towards her, she knew that this little leader was probably biased towards Yu Bing. She couldn¡¯t help but curse Yu Bing. This little b*tch must have used her good looks to seduce these men, so they were all speaking up for her. Hence, Duan Mei didn¡¯t intend to say anything else to these leaders. Her expression changed and she said resentfully, ¡°Since you can¡¯t interfere, I¡¯ll find someone who can!¡± With that, she glared at Officer Huang and stood up to leave. Duan Mei searched floor by floor and finally saw the door sign of the president¡¯s office on the third floor. Seeing a man in a tailored tunic suit sitting inside, Duan Mei knocked on the door. President Song was reading the notes he had taken when he went to the county for a meeting yesterday. When he heard the sound, he looked up and realized that it was an unfamiliar middle-aged woman. Seeing this, Duan Mei took the initiative to smile and greet him. ¡°Hello, President. I¡¯m the mother of your commune¡¯s He Mountain Brigade driver, Yu Bing.¡± At this moment, President Song remembered that Song Li would occasionally mention Yu Bing¡¯s family situation at home, so he asked calmly, ¡°Hello, why are you looking for me?¡± When Duan Mei heard the question, the smile on her face slowly faded. She lowered her head as she walked into the office. ¡°President, I didn¡¯t want to trouble you, but I really had no choice.¡± President Song smiled faintly when he heard this. ¡°Yu Bing¡¯s mother, please go ahead.¡± Duan Mei sighed and said helplessly, ¡°Our family¡¯s financial situation is very bad now. Firstly, I came to the countryside to see the child, and secondly, I want to discuss Yu Bing¡¯s salary with her. I don¡¯t want to take Yu Bing¡¯s entire salary away. I just want her to send eight yuan a month to the family. When the family gets through this hard time, I won¡¯t want it even if she offers it to me. However, she¡¯s determined not to disregard the family¡¯s life and death and refuses to send a single cent home!¡± After hearing this, the first thought of those who didn¡¯t know was that her parents were not coveting their daughter¡¯s salary. They even left five yuan, didn¡¯t they? However, if one thought about it carefully, one would realize that there were uncertainties regarding these words. This was Duan Mei¡¯s single-sided recount. The leaders of the commune couldn¡¯t go to the neighboring city to investigate such a small matter. Chapter 170 - Obstruction of Public Work President Song was in no hurry to express his opinion. Instead, he continued to ask, ¡°What¡¯s the situation at home now? Do you have more children, or is it a problem with a family member¡¯s health?¡± Duan Mei was stunned. How could she answer this? Yu Bing was the youngest, and her entire family was healthy. She definitely couldn¡¯t answer this question truthfully. Duan Mei could only start making things up, but health problems couldn¡¯t be joked about. Her husband was the pillar of the family, and her son was more important to her than her life. Yu Pan was important too. She still had to earn money for the family, so she could only make an issue out of the family size. ¡°Yu Bing still has a few younger siblings. Only her father and I work. The food at home is not enough.¡± Yu Bing was the only female driver in the commune and was also an intellectual. After she was selected, her file had to be transferred from the village to the work unit. When the office was archiving files, President Song happened to be watching from the side. It clearly said that she was the youngest in the family of five. Now that he heard Duan Mei¡¯s answer, he naturally knew that she was making it up. President Song asked in a concerned tone, ¡°In that case, things must be difficult for the family. How many people are in the family now?¡± Duan Mei was a little depressed. Why was President Song asking so many questions? She replied nonchalantly, ¡°There are still five children at home now. My husband and I are both ordinary workers. We have so many mouths to feed. I start to worry every day as soon as I open my eyes!¡± President Song frowned and asked curiously, ¡°I¡¯ve seen all the information about the tow truck drivers. I remember that Yu Bing has older brothers and sisters in her file, but I didn¡¯t see any mention of younger siblings.¡± When Duan Mei heard this, her eyes flickered. ¡°Maybe she forgot to write it.¡± President Song¡¯s expression turned serious. ¡°How can something like this be missed? The information in the file has to be authentic! We definitely have to call your factory and the office to verify this situation. Yu Bing¡¯s mother, please go back first. We¡¯ll figure out the situation first.¡± Duan Mei didn¡¯t have the time. She was leaving the day after tomorrow. Besides, if the commune called, her lies would be exposed! Hence, Duan Mei panicked and hurriedly said, ¡°President, this has nothing to do with my purpose for coming here today! I came because I want the organization to help me uphold justice. Just send me eight yuan every month when she gets her salary.¡± When President Song saw Duan Mei¡¯s anxious expression, he slowly said, ¡°This is very important. If what you say is true, then we definitely have to talk to Yu Bing. If the truth is different from what you described, then it¡¯s better to settle your family matters yourself.¡± Duan Mei¡¯s expression turned ugly when she heard this. She could tell that none of these leaders wanted to get involved in this matter. What she said were all lies. Now, she could only cry and make a fuss. She pinched the flesh of her thigh and said with red eyes, ¡°President, you can¡¯t say that. My husband and I raised Yu Bing until she was 18 years old. Now that she has a salary, shouldn¡¯t she be filial to her parents? Filial piety is an important value everywhere in the country!¡± When President Song saw Duan Mei¡¯s true colors, he believed Song Li¡¯s words even more. Moreover, it was probably even worse than they thought. ¡°Yu Bing¡¯s mother, don¡¯t try to hide the truth. I¡¯m just saying that your family matters have to be resolved by yourselves. Yu Bing works for our commune, so her salary should be given to her. However, if what you say is true, Yu Bing should indeed help the family. As leaders, we won¡¯t sit back and do nothing. So, do you think I should call your factory to ask or should you communicate with Yu Bing?¡± Duan Mei felt a little guilty when she saw President Song looking straight at her. She felt that President Song seemed to know everything, but she still calmed down and shouted, ¡°I don¡¯t care how you investigate, but Yu Bing¡¯s salary has to be transferred to the family!¡± President Song frowned as he looked at Duan Mei. She looked like an uncultured woman who was trying to force others to compromise by throwing a tantrum. President Song didn¡¯t indulge such people. He said coldly, ¡°This is the government¡¯s office. I won¡¯t let you be unreasonable. If Yu Bing is in the wrong, the organization will educate her. However, if Yu Bing isn¡¯t in the wrong, you can settle your family matters in private. If anyone dares to cause trouble here, the police station is on the first floor, so I don¡¯t mind calling the police and saying that someone is obstructing official business!¡± Chapter 171 - Giving Money President Song had worked in the government for many years, so he was intimidating and authoritative. Duan Mei was just an ordinary worker who had lied to a leader. She was immediately frightened by President Song¡¯s angry expression. Her mouth moved a few times, but in the end, she didn¡¯t dare to make a fuss again. Duan Mei was quite perceptive. She could tell that this president was clearly a straightforward and righteous person. If she caused trouble again, he would really dare to call the police! What would happen to her after entering the police station? If the factory found out, they would definitely punish her! Duan Mei was so frightened that her legs went weak. She ran out of the door without even saying goodbye. From Duan Mei¡¯s behavior, President Song knew that Yu Bing had a tough time at home. He thought for a moment, then picked up the phone on the table and called his daughter. Yu Bing was still on a mission in the county today. Duan Mei couldn¡¯t look for her after returning to the village, so she could only return to the dormitory angrily. When they got out of the car, Duan Mei handed 0.2 yuan to the old man driving the ox cart. She didn¡¯t get anything done today, and she even spent money! Shi Lian was also in the dormitory today. She had grown up in the city and had never done any farm work. After she had helped Yao Nian for two days, her body couldn¡¯t take it anymore. Today, she could only lie in the dormitory and rest. The two of them were eating and living together now. Of course, Shi Lian knew what Duan Mei had gone to do in the morning. When she saw the anger on Duan Mei¡¯s face, she knew that things hadn¡¯t gone smoothly. Shi Lian sat up in bed and deliberately said, ¡°Yu Bing has agreed, right? Yu Bing is not married and doesn¡¯t have her own family. It¡¯s only right for you to help her manage her money.¡± After suffering for a few days, Duan Mei was already filled with resentment. When she heard Shi Lian¡¯s words, she immediately began to complain. First, she scolded Yu Bing for being heartless. Then, she scolded Wu Jin again, saying that he was an evil capitalist who exploited Yu Bing and didn¡¯t pay her for her labor. Then, she scolded Yu Bing, saying that she was stupid for working for free. Then, Duan Mei scolded the two leaders she had seen today for being biased towards Yu Bing. Then, she scolded Yu Bing for being a slut and a bitch. Even Shi Lian couldn¡¯t bear to hear this. No matter what, Yu Bing was Duan Mei¡¯s biological daughter. However, she didn¡¯t have the habit of upholding injustice. She listened with relish and even chimed in from time to time. After Duan Mei scolded all of them, she felt much better. Shi Lian waited for Duan Mei to calm down before saying, ¡°Sigh, the older children get, the harder it is to control them. Isn¡¯t Yao Ling the same? She had such a good boyfriend in the past, but she broke up with him just like that. It¡¯s useless even if her father whips her.¡± Shi Lian deliberately used a similar experience to resonate with Duan Mei. As expected, Duan Mei began to lament how obedient Yu Bing was at home. Now, she was completely different. Shi Lian also said sympathetically, ¡°That¡¯s right. In the past, Yu Bing used to stay at home and work without complaint. Look at her now. She¡¯s driving a tow truck everywhere.¡± Duan Mei nodded in agreement. Shi Lian continued, ¡°We¡¯ve known each other for so many years. Don¡¯t blame me for being blunt. If we were in the city, I would indeed look down on Yu Bing. In the past, she was weak and sickly. Now, she has finally recuperated, but she¡¯s busy working all day. Which family wouldn¡¯t want a daughter-in-law who focuses on the family? But Yao Nian likes her! In the past, the two of them didn¡¯t interact much in the neighborhood. Now, after interacting in the same village for some time, Yao Nian has taken a fancy to Yu Bing.¡± ¡°I¡¯m indeed a little snobbish. I like the fact that Yu Bing can give Yao Nian a good job. It¡¯s my fault for hiding the fact that Yu Bing is the factory director. I was just afraid that my family wouldn¡¯t be able to afford it if the betrothal gift is too high. Yao Nian really likes her, so I¡¯m in a dilemma. Now, let¡¯s be frank. I think it¡¯s a little difficult for you to get Yu Bing¡¯s salary. Her attitude that night was so tough. She would rather not work than give you the salary!¡± When Duan Mei heard this, she felt a little disdainful. She cursed Shi Lian for acting so pretentious. Yao Nian liked Yu Bing? Why not just say that Yao Nian liked Yu Bing¡¯s ability to change his position?! However, when she heard Shi Lian expose the fact that as a mother, she couldn¡¯t do anything to her daughter, she felt helpless and resentful. She hated Yu Bing for making a fool of her! Shi Lian ignored the displeasure on Duan Mei¡¯s face. After all, neither of them had the upper hand in this matter now, so she said, ¡°In any case, my family¡¯s attitude won¡¯t change. Since Yao Nian likes Yu Bing and I can¡¯t bear to let Yao Nian farm anymore, as long as you and Mr. Yu agree, I¡¯ll propose marriage immediately after I return to the city.¡± Chapter 172 - Annoying Duan Mei had mixed feelings. Yu Bing was successful now, but she couldn¡¯t get any benefits. This glory had nothing to do with her! However, if she married Yu Bing off just like that, the betrothal gift she got back definitely wouldn¡¯t be high. She felt very conflicted. Duan Mei lowered her eyes and thought for a long time. In the end, she decided not to rush it. She looked at Shi Lian and smiled. ¡°Yu Bing hid so many things from the family. I have to go home and tell my husband first. As for the marriage proposal, we¡¯ll talk about it when we return to the city. Since we live upstairs and downstairs from each other, it¡¯s very convenient to discuss it.¡± Hearing this, Shi Lian could only give up, but she was still confident in her plan. In fact, when Shi Lian found out that the factory was in debt and Yu Bing didn¡¯t have a salary, she wanted to give up! She had the same worry as Duan Mei. She was afraid that the factory would close down before it could even finish paying off its debt. Then, all her efforts would go down the drain! However, later, Yao Nian told her in private that the village¡¯s industry was a pilot project chosen by the county head, so she continued to follow the original plan. The county head¡¯s attention meant special treatment. This factory wouldn¡¯t close down that easily! However, Duan Mei thought that she was superior to the villagers since she was from the city. She was unwilling to go to the village to chat with people, so she saw Yu Yan the most. However, Yu Yan despised Yu Bing. How could she take the initiative to mention the project Yu Bing was in charge of? That was why Duan Mei didn¡¯t know anything and was taken advantage of by Shi Lian. At 6:30 PM, Yu Bing still hadn¡¯t arrived home, but Jiang Chun, who was in the small courtyard, welcomed two guests. ¡°Woof woof.¡± Barking came from the courtyard. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun had named the puppy Little Tiger because they hoped that it could be as majestic as a tiger. Little Tiger lived up to its name. As long as anyone stepped into the courtyard, other than Xiao Sheng, they would roar to show off regardless of whether the guest was friend or foe! Jiang Chun had just finished eating when she heard the barking and immediately walked to the courtyard. ¡°Song Li, Sister Yun!¡± Jiang Chun greeted the two of them with a smile. Then, she turned to look at Little Tiger. ¡°Little Tiger, they¡¯re one of us. You¡¯re not allowed to be mean to them.¡± Jiang Chun had often heard Yu Bing mention the two of them in the past. Later on, on their day off, they had even met them twice when they went to the city to buy things. They had also gone to a restaurant for a meal together, so they knew each other. Wang Yun smiled and said, ¡°Jiang Chun, I¡¯ve never been to your place before, so I came to take a look today.¡± As she spoke, she handed over some fruits as a gift. ¡°Welcome! Why did you bring gifts? Don¡¯t buy them next time!¡± Jiang Chun took the gifts and welcomed the two of them to the living room before handing over two cups of honey water. When Song Li saw that Jiang Chun was alone, she asked and found out that Yu Bing had yet to return from her assignment. Song Li could only tell Wang Yun the purpose of this trip and ask Jiang Chun to pass on the message. She waited for a while, but no one returned, so she rode back. When Yu Bing returned home at nine o¡¯clock in the evening, Jiang Chun heard the sound of a car from afar, so she opened the door. After Yu Bing entered the kitchen to eat, Jiang Chun immediately told her about Wang Yun and Song Li¡¯s visit. ¡°The Song family and Wang Yun were worried that if your mother made a big deal out of it, it would affect you negatively, so the two of them specifically came to talk about this. Auntie Duan, on the other hand, wants to fabricate bad things about you in order to get your salary!¡± Compared to Jiang Chun, who was indignant, Yu Bing had long expected that her mother wouldn¡¯t let the matter rest. However, she didn¡¯t expect her mother to risk not being able to get her retirement money to go to the commune. She felt disappointed, but the Song family¡¯s actions warmed Yu Bing¡¯s heart. Yu Bing had to admit that the relationship between people wasn¡¯t determined by blood. Therefore, she would repay whoever treated her well in this life! Duan Mei really had the spirit of an unkillable cockroach. For the past few days, she had been repeatedly rejected by different people. She originally wanted to give up, but when she woke up the next day, she made the decision to look for Yu Bing again! She had already confirmed that Yu Bing had completed the county¡¯s assignment yesterday, so Yu Bing would definitely go to the factory today. She wanted to go to the factory to stop Yu Bing! When Duan Mei arrived at the factory, she saw Yu Bing and Wu Jin. Duan Mei planned to make a fuss if there was really no other way. If Yu Bing still wanted to manage the workers, she couldn¡¯t afford to suffer this humiliation. Chapter 173 - Stop Her Thinking that she had something on Yu Bing, Duan Mei walked into the factory confidently. ¡°Yu Bing!¡± At this moment, Yu Bing was calculating the price with the list of goods. When she saw Duan Mei, she knew that she was here to cause trouble. She called out calmly, ¡°Mom.¡± ¡°Coincidentally, Mr. Wu is also here, so let¡¯s chat for a while.¡± Duan Mei looked at Yu Bing threateningly. Yu Bing remained silent. Duan Mei resented Yu Bing for being so ruthless and forcing her to throw a tantrum in public. ¡°Village Chief, don¡¯t you think children should give their money to the family to supplement the family¡¯s expenses?¡± Wu Jin didn¡¯t expect to get dragged into this mess. He thought for a moment and said, ¡°It depends on each family¡¯s individual circumstances. It can¡¯t be generalized.¡± Duan Mei rolled her eyes when she heard Wu Jin¡¯s diplomatic answer. She scolded Yu Bing in a low voice, ¡°Yu Bing, I¡¯ve raised you since you were young, but you don¡¯t plan to give your family a single cent? I¡¯m giving you a chance to maintain your dignity by whispering to you now!¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t care about this so-called chance at all. She said louder than usual, ¡°Mom, if you think I¡¯m wrong, you can say it out loud.¡± The workers¡¯ attention was attracted by the sound. They couldn¡¯t help but slow down and listen attentively. Duan Mei didn¡¯t expect that not only did Yu Bing not care, but she also took the initiative to make things public. In order to make the public take her side, Duan Mei immediately pretended to be meek and said bitterly, ¡°Yu Bing, I didn¡¯t raise you properly! You don¡¯t have any gratitude at all. How did you become like this?!¡± Yu Bing smiled gently. ¡°Mom, I told you that when you and Dad grow old, I will give you the same amount of retirement money as my brother and sister will. Now, the family¡¯s income of 92 yuan is more than enough to support four people.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not in good health. I have to spend 12 yuan to treat illnesses and nourish my body. Every year, the government only distributes staple food. I have to spend extra money on other things like egg, meat, and condiments. I don¡¯t have any money left. Moreover, this place is far from home. I have to save some money for emergencies. I really don¡¯t have any extra money for you.¡± ¡°92 yuan!¡± ¡°Oh my god! 92 yuan is enough to eat meat every day, right?¡± ¡°The supply in the city is also limited. Even if they have money, they might not have that many meat stamps.¡± ¡°In that case, won¡¯t they be able to save a lot of money every month?!¡± After Yu Bing said it out loud, everyone knew what Duan Mei was planning. Seeing this, Duan Mei could only say, ¡°You young people spend money extravagantly. I¡¯m just helping you save it. I won¡¯t touch your money. If you need money, you can borrow it from the village first. Doesn¡¯t the factory still owe you your salary?!¡± Yu Bing had already said what she needed to say, so she couldn¡¯t be bothered to waste time talking about this anymore. ¡°Mom, I¡¯m busy delivering goods now. It¡¯s not easy for you to have time off work these few days. Rest well in the dormitory. You¡¯ll be busy again when you go back in two days.¡± With that, she wanted to leave. Duan Mei hurriedly pulled her back and said angrily, ¡°Have you even accompanied me properly these past few days? Is this how you treat your daughter? Don¡¯t even think about going anywhere today!¡± Mr. Wei had gone to keep an eye on the workers who had finished loading the goods. When he heard this after he returned to the warehouse, he immediately panicked. ¡°Yu Bing, you can¡¯t shirk responsibility at the critical moment. The contract says it very clearly. The goods from the fertilizer factory must be delivered today! If the delivery is delayed, if the other party thinks that we violated the contract and fines us, we¡¯ll be screwed!¡± Zhao Lin was also in the workshop just now and was still immersed in the news of the mother and daughter¡¯s terrible relationship. When she heard this, she immediately reacted. Hence, he went forward to stop Duan Mei and said with a smile, ¡°Yu Bing is indeed busy. These are all serious matters. When she¡¯s done, we¡¯ll definitely let her accompany you!¡± Mr. Wei was a man, so it wasn¡¯t appropriate for him to touch her. He could only use his body to block in front of her as he winked at Yu Bing to hint at her to leave quickly. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t help but purse her lips and snicker when she saw their actions. With someone shielding her, she ran out of the factory and started driving. When Duan Mei bypassed the two of them, Yu Bing had already driven away. Duan Mei was so angry that she stomped her feet. She turned around and looked at Zhao Lin and Mr. Wei, who were standing behind her. At this moment, one was looking at the sky and the other was looking at the ground. Duan Mei could only glare at the two of them and leave angrily! Chapter 174 - Only You Duan Mei returned to the dormitory building angrily and rushed up the stairs. ¡°Ah!¡± There were two exclamations. Duan Mei was furious and had been holding it in just now. Now was the time to vent her anger. Before she could see the person clearly, she shouted, ¡°Can¡¯t you watch where you¡¯re going?!¡± After Yu Yan stood still, she saw that it was Duan Mei. Before she could call for help, she heard her mother¡¯s roar. This was the first time Yu Yan had seen Duan Mei in such an irritable state. She widened her eyes in shock. At this moment, Duan Mei took a closer look and realized that she had bumped into Yu Yan. When she saw Yu Yan¡¯s stunned expression, she immediately put on an anxious expression. ¡°Yu Yan, did I hurt you? I was walking too quickly just now. I¡¯m really sorry.¡± Yu Yan came back to her senses. When she saw Duan Mei sizing her up anxiously, she no longer cared about what had just happened and hurriedly replied, ¡°Mom, I¡¯m fine.¡± After Duan Mei looked around and realized that there was no one around, she pulled Yu Yan into the kitchen. After all, at this time, it was the least likely for anyone to go to the kitchen. She was worried that Yu Yan would have a grudge against her. After all, the two of them had just acknowledged each other a few days ago, so what Duan Mei had to do now was appease her. Hence, she said gently, ¡°Something happened just now and I couldn¡¯t control my emotions. Please don¡¯t blame me.¡± Yu Yan shook her head gently. Everyone had times when they couldn¡¯t control their emotions. Moreover, her mother immediately apologized to her. How could she still be angry? Yu Yan thought of her mother¡¯s words and asked with concern, ¡°Mom, I don¡¯t blame you. What happened just now to make you so angry?¡± Duan Mei quietly observed Yu Yan¡¯s attitude. Seeing that she didn¡¯t seem to be faking it, she was relieved and sighed. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Just take good care of yourself. Those troublesome things should be handled by the adults.¡± Duan Mei couldn¡¯t say that she didn¡¯t succeed in asking Yu Bing for money, right? She could only use the words parents often used to brush Yu Yan off. Unexpectedly, Yu Yan insisted that Duan Mei tell her. Actually, she wanted to show off how understanding she was while Duan Mei was in the countryside these few days. Duan Mei lowered her eyes and said helplessly, ¡°You know that our family¡¯s conditions aren¡¯t very good. I wanted to ask Yu Bing send a portion of her monthly driver¡¯s salary home to subsidize the family. Who knew that she wouldn¡¯t help at all¡­¡± At this point, Duan Mei pretended to choke up. She covered her mouth with her hand and turned her head to the side, looking very sad. When Yu Yan heard this, she was extremely angry. ¡°How could she do that?! Her family isn¡¯t wealthy. Now, she has a job, but she actually dared to refuse! I¡¯ll go look for her!¡± With that, she looked like she was about to go out to settle scores with Yu Bing. How could Duan Mei really let Yu Yan go? Yu Bing might tell Duan Mei the truth, so Duan Mei hurriedly went forward to stop Yu Yan. ¡°Forget it, don¡¯t go. If you go to her, she¡¯ll argue with you. I don¡¯t want to see you two fight.¡± Yu Yan panicked when she heard this. ¡°Mom, I¡¯m not afraid of arguing with her. Is it reasonable for her to disregard the wellbeing of the family?¡± Duan Mei naturally refused to let go. She said kindly, ¡°Yu Bing has been in poor health since she was young. I can understand if she wants to save some money and eat better food. Besides, if our family is in trouble, we can grit our teeth and endure it. I was too angry just now. Now that I think about it, it¡¯s actually nothing. As parents, we just want our children to be well.¡± These words touched Yu Yan. She felt that she was very lucky to have such a kind biological mother, unlike her adoptive mother, who always spoke so stiffly. When she thought of how Yu Bing didn¡¯t cherish such an opportunity to contribute to the family, she felt very indignant for her blood-related relatives. Then, Yu Yan said with self-reproach, ¡°Mom, why didn¡¯t you tell me before? I thought that your lives would be much better after I left, so I didn¡¯t ask about your current situation.¡± Duan Mei lowered her head and shook it a few times. ¡°We didn¡¯t raise you for that long. How can we let you help us?¡± Yu Yan was very moved when she heard this, but she felt that Duan Mei still wasn¡¯t treating her as a family member. That was why Duan Mei looked for Yu Bing but was unwilling to look for her. Yu Yan felt saddened. This was an opportunity for Yu Yan to show off. This way, they would know that Yu Bing wasn¡¯t worthy of being their family member at all. Only then would they cherish her after she returned! After making up her mind, Yu Yan looked straight at Duan Mei and held her hand. Her tone was gentle yet firm as she said, ¡°Mom, if there¡¯s any trouble in the future, you have to tell me. We¡¯re related by blood. Anyone can raise me, but you¡¯re the only one who gave birth to me!¡± Chapter 175 - Foolish and Rich Chapter 175: Foolish and Rich With that, she took out 65 yuan from her pocket. She had saved it up for half a year, but at this moment, Yu Yan wasn¡¯t reluctant at all. After she counted out 50 yuan, she added another 10 yuan and only left 5 yuan for herself to send a telegram home in two days and ask her adoptive parents to send more money over. ¡°Mom, take it. It¡¯s not much money, but it¡¯s a token of my appreciation.¡± Duan Mei was shocked by Yu Yan¡¯s actions. She only planned to maintain her image as a loving mother. She didn¡¯t expect Yu Yan to take so much money! Duan Mei lowered her eyes and thought about it. In the end, she resisted the urge to take the money and refused. ¡°No, the expenses in the countryside are not small either. Keep it for yourself. Besides, we can¡¯t use your money!¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she became even more anxious. Her eyes turned red as she asked, ¡°Mom, do you not treat me as your daughter?¡± Only then did Duan Mei take it with a helpless expression. In fact, she heaved a sigh of relief. She had rejected Yu Yan because she wanted to test her daughter¡¯s tolerance for her family¡¯s situation. She was now certain that her second daughter was a rich fool! Duan Mei suppressed her joy and frowned slightly as she said softly, ¡°Yu Yan, that¡¯s not what I meant. I was worried that if you gave the money to the family, it would be difficult for you to explain it to your adoptive parents.¡± Only then did Yu Yan smile. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Mom. I¡¯ll handle it!¡± Seeing this, Duan Mei was relieved. If Yu Yan couldn¡¯t deal with them, she would rather ask for less each time. As time passed, she could save up a lot of money bit by bit. The mother and daughter conversed for a while more before parting. The two of them had a tacit understanding not to let others know. Duan Mei was worried about Shi Lian, while Yu Yan was worried about Xu Ling, who was in the same city as her. Xu Ling¡¯s house wasn¡¯t far from hers. If her true relationship with Duan Mei was exposed, it was inevitable that her adoptive parents would find out. If they were angry and stopped sending her money every month, how could she survive in the countryside?! Moreover, now that she knew that her biological family¡¯s conditions were not good, she had to hide this matter even more so that she could send her adoptive parents¡¯ money back to her biological family. Besides, she was still hoping that they would help transfer her back to the city in two years. She came here this time purely to get close to Yu Bing and return to her biological parents¡¯ house. She didn¡¯t plan to stay in the countryside for the rest of her life. However, the truth would always be revealed eventually. Shu Ya left the kettle on the table when she was eating breakfast in the kitchen this morning. When she wanted to drink water in the field, she realized it. She applied for leave from her team leader and ran back to the dormitory building. She didn¡¯t expect to discover such a shocking secret. After sensing that the two of them were about to come out, she immediately left the door quietly. On the day Duan Mei and Shi Lian returned home, Yu Bing brought 15 pounds of corn to the lobby of the intellectual team dormitory early in the morning. Yu Bing handed the corn in her hand to Yao Nian. ¡°This is my mother¡¯s expenses for the past few days. You helped pay for it previously.¡± Yao Nian smiled gently and rejected, ¡°Yu Bing, with our relationship, there¡¯s no need to return the favor. Your mother is also my mother.¡± Seeing that Yao Nian didn¡¯t take it, Yu Bing placed it at his feet. ¡°Take it. We have nothing to do with each other, so I have to return the favor.¡± Yao Nian¡¯s smile froze. Seeing this, Duan Mei smiled and said, ¡°Yao Nian, there¡¯s no need to be anxious. Let me discuss this matter with your mother.¡± Shi Lian knew that Duan Mei¡¯s attitude was one thing, but saying this in public was another. Shi Lian saw that there were a few intellectuals in the hall who had also heard it, and her expression was very ugly. However, she couldn¡¯t cause trouble again, or things would be even worse. She could only scowl. After Yao Nian placed the food back in the dormitory, the few of them left the dormitory building. When Duan Mei walked out of the courtyard, she saw Yu Yan under the osmanthus tree. Despite seeing the reluctance in Yu Yan¡¯s eyes, she didn¡¯t dare to respond. She only nodded quietly as a farewell. Shi Lian also noticed Yu Yan. When she saw Yu Yan¡¯s face, she felt that Yu Yan looked very familiar, but she didn¡¯t think much of it. Today, Yu Bing and Yao Nian both took a day off and sent their mothers off. Yu Bing helped Duan Mei onto the back seat and pointed at a sack on it. ¡°Mom, there¡¯s sweet potatoes and yams inside. I also put some dried sweet potatoes and radishes in it. The sweet potato noodles weigh 20 pounds, and there are two bottles of jam at the top. Be careful not to break them.¡± Duan Mei¡¯s expression changed and she immediately asked, ¡°You weren¡¯t there when I went to your house two days ago. Jiang Chun didn¡¯t tell you that I asked you to buy 200 pounds of rice?¡± Chapter 176 - Gift Chapter 176: Gift Yu Bing replied nonchalantly, ¡°She did, but I didn¡¯t have enough money and you didn¡¯t leave me any money. This is all I could buy. I only had the money to buy the jam after I got the staff discount!¡± With that, she turned around and jumped out of the car without looking at Duan Mei¡¯s ashen expression. She started shaking the handle at the front of the car to start the car. When Shi Lian heard Yu Bing¡¯s reply, she was in a good mood. She was very happy with Yu Bing¡¯s unyielding attitude towards Duan Mei. This way, she wouldn¡¯t have to worry about Yu Bing subsidizing her family after marrying into the Yao family. Yao Nian didn¡¯t prepare anything for Shi Lian. He only took the blanket and spread it on the seat. He even borrowed two straw hats and handed them to Duan Mei and Shi Lian. Shi Lian was very gratified to see Yao Nian¡¯s actions. She felt that her son had become much more sensible and considerate. As for the food, they had enough at home. She wouldn¡¯t want it even if Yao Nian gave it to her. Before she went to the countryside, she specifically asked her daughter for some household expenses and bought this month¡¯s worth of food. Yu Bing drove alone in front while Yao Nian kissed up to Duan Mei from behind, making her happy and making Shi Lian jealous. Shi Lian, Yao Nian¡¯s biological mother, had never been coaxed by Yao Nian like this before, but she understood. After all, Yao Nian had yet to marry Yu Bing, so her son naturally had to put in some effort. When Yao Nian got Yu Bing, she would get payback on Yu Bing and let Yu Bing know that it wasn¡¯t easy to be the daughter-in-law of the Yao family. Yu Bing drove quickly. When they arrived at the train station in the city, it wasn¡¯t even eleven o¡¯clock. The few of them went to buy bus tickets first. Yu Bing naturally paid for Duan Mei¡¯s bus ticket, while Shi Lian paid for her own. After Yu Bing sent Duan Mei to the waiting room, she left directly. Yao Nian originally wanted to show off in front of Duan Mei again, but he didn¡¯t dare to delay anymore. Shi Lian was also worried that Yu Bing would leave Yao Nian behind, so she couldn¡¯t be bothered to remind him anymore. She hurriedly took out 10 yuan from her pocket and stuffed it into Yao Nian¡¯s hand so that he could spend it. After Yao Nian said goodbye to Duan Mei, he hurriedly went out to chase after Yu Bing. At this moment, Yu Bing was starting the car. When she saw Yao Nian panting as he ran to her side, she was a little disappointed. She wanted to quickly start the car and leave so that Yao Nian had to walk back. What a pity. After the car started, Yao Nian wanted to climb into the empty seat beside Yu Bing. The front seat was more comfortable than the back and they could chat to improve their relationship. If not for the fact that he wanted to curry favor with Duan Mei just now, he would have sat in the front long ago. Yu Bing blocked the seat beside her with a joystick. She raised her chin and gestured for Yao Nian to go to the back. Yao Nian frowned and said, ¡°There¡¯s an empty seat beside you. Why can¡¯t I sit there?¡± Yu Bing glanced at Yao Nian and said slowly, ¡°I don¡¯t like people sitting beside me when I drive. If you don¡¯t want to sit in the back, you can walk back. I¡¯ll count to three. If you don¡¯t get in the car, I¡¯ll drive. Onea€|¡± When Yao Nian saw Yu Bing counting, he immediately ran to the back and climbed into the car before Yu Bing could count to three. Before he could steady himself, the car started immediately. Yao Nian was startled. Fortunately, he was fast enough. After Yao Nian got into the car, he couldn¡¯t help but let his imagination run wild again. He clearly remembered that Xiao Sheng and Jiang Chun both sat beside Yu Bing in the past. Jiang Chun sat beside her because they were on good terms, but what about Xiao Sheng? Yao Nian couldn¡¯t help but suspect that the two of them were close. In addition, Xiao Sheng was a man, and the two of them were neighbors. The more Yao Nian thought about it, the more uneasy he felt. What if Yu Bing took a fancy to that farmer? Therefore, even though the tow truck was loud, Yao Nian didn¡¯t want to let go of this rare chance to be alone with Yu Bing. He wanted to win Yu Bing¡¯s heart, so he spoke to Yu Bing loudly, but Yu Bing pretended not to hear him and focused on driving. At first, Yao Nian thought that Yu Bing didn¡¯t hear him, so he raised his voice again and again. Only when he shouted for the third time and Yu Bing didn¡¯t react did he realize that Yu Bing did it on purpose. Yao Nian was furious and filled with hatred. He had to teach Yu Bing a lesson after they got married in the future and let her know how a woman should treat her husband! It had to be said that Yao Nian and Shi Lian were indeed mother and son. Before the marriage was even confirmed, they were already thinking about how to deal with Yu Bing in the future. After sending Duan Mei off, Yu Bing returned to work. The Dragon Boat Festival was getting closer and closer. The factory worked overtime and sent the goods to various units at the agreed time. In the end, there were still about 200 pounds of cherries left. The ripe cherries had to be picked from the tree, but after picking them, they couldn¡¯t be kept for more than a few days, so Yu Bing ordered them to continue producing. This jam could last for at least eight months. She didn¡¯t believe that she wouldn¡¯t be able to sell it in such a long time. Even if the shelf life became shorter, it was better than letting the fruit rot. Chapter 177 - Shortcut Chapter 177: Shortcut That night, Yu Bing jogged at the door of the house again. She suddenly had an idea, so she went into the Xiao family¡¯s house. At this moment, Jiang Chun and Xiao Li were practicing weaving bamboo gift boxes under the corridor. Although the orders had all been delivered and there was no need to accept gift boxes for the time being, Jiang Chun had failed to make five out of ten gift boxes previously, so she came to look for Xiao Li to teach her so that there would be more gift boxes the next time the factory accepted them! When Xiao Li heard footsteps, she looked up in Yu Bing¡¯s direction. ¡°Sister Yu Bing!¡± Xiao Lin was originally playing with water at the side, but when she heard Yu Bing, she immediately stopped and ran to Yu Bing to call for help. Yu Bing was very popular in the Xiao family. Yu Bing smiled and reached out to caress Xiao Lin¡¯s inch-long hair. Although it felt a little prickly, it was very comfortable to the touch. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t help but rub it a few more times. ¡°Where¡¯s your brother? I have something to tell him.¡± Xiao Lin replied softly, ¡°My brother went to the back.¡± Yu Bing knew that this meant that he climbed up the mountain, so she carried a small stool and watched Xiao Li and Jiang Chun weave a bamboo basket while waiting. Half an hour later, Xiao Sheng went down the mountain and returned home drenched in sweat. When he saw the two new guests at home, he wasn¡¯t surprised because he was already used to it. When Yu Bing saw Xiao Sheng enter the woodshed with the hoe, she followed him in. Xiao Sheng turned around and smiled. ¡°Are you waiting for me?¡± Yu Bing crossed her arms and leaned against the door frame with a smile. ¡°I have something to discuss with you.¡± After Xiao Sheng put the things away, he walked to the door and looked at Yu Bing curiously. ¡°Tell me.¡± The two of them were half a meter apart. Yu Bing could smell the faint smell of sweat on Xiao Sheng¡¯s body. The smell of sweat was mixed with a grassy scent. She, who was usually a clean freak, actually wasn¡¯t put off. Yu Bing wasn¡¯t even as tall as Xiao Sheng¡¯s shoulder. When Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing¡¯s distracted look, he took a step forward and waved his hand in front of her eyes as he called out softly, ¡°Yu Bing.¡± Yu Bing blinked and came back to her senses. Her eyes darted around as she suddenly remembered why she had come over. ¡°Ah¡­ By the way, there are still more than 300 bottles of jam in the factory. I want to discuss it with you. Should we stock up and sell them?¡± Xiao Sheng asked in disbelief, ¡°You¡¯re saying that we should get the stock from the factory and sell it on the black market?¡± Yu Bing nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s see if Brother Qiang has any channels to sell it to the city. Actually, I suggested this idea because I considered the future operating model of the food factory. I hope that the food factory will produce food every month. Otherwise, with just the in-season jam and fish, the factory will be empty for half a year that year. It can indeed have an income-generating effect, but it¡¯s not obvious.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I want to use your channel to open the market of the village¡¯s food factory. Otherwise, we can only go to the supply and marketing club. However, the brand is not famous yet, so they will definitely use this fact to lower the price. Moreover, with the limited spending power of the county city, the amount the county¡¯s supply and marketing club wants is also limited. If we want the entire factory to keep moving, we have to get more orders.¡± Xiao Sheng was in no hurry to reply to this. After thinking for a moment, he lowered his eyes and said, ¡°I have something to tell you.¡± Yu Bing looked at Xiao Sheng curiously. Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing fixedly. ¡°I¡¯ve already taken over Brother Qiang¡¯s faction in the county city.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s eyes widened as she asked in surprise, ¡°When did you agree?¡± Xiao Sheng replied calmly, ¡°A week ago. I was dealing with the vegetable fields on the mountain just now. The money comes slowly and the job consumes a lot of energy and time. If I want to focus on that side, I definitely won¡¯t be able to take care of this side, so I plan to stop selling vegetables after harvesting the last batch.¡± Yu Bing was very surprised by Xiao Sheng¡¯s decision. She thought that Xiao Sheng would be afraid of the risks and choose to come to the factory. However, this was Xiao Sheng¡¯s personal choice. Although she didn¡¯t agree, she couldn¡¯t say anything. In fact, Xiao Sheng had no choice but to make this choice. After all, Xiao Li¡¯s surgery fee was too expensive. After cooperating with Yu Bing, his earning speed had increased greatly. However, at this speed, no matter how capable he was, he would still have to wait for two years. However, things would be different after he took over the county¡¯s black market. As long as all the goods passed his hands, there would be a transaction fee. Moreover, Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t want Xiao Li to wait any longer. Xiao Li was going to celebrate her ninth birthday next month. Previously, there were only few ways to earn money, so he had no choice but to save money slowly. However, now that a shortcut had suddenly appeared in front of him, even if it was very dangerous, he couldn¡¯t help but be tempted. Chapter 178 - 178 Advancement 178 Advancement Brother Qiang had retired from the county city to take over the market in City Z. After Xiao Sheng was promoted, although he was still under Brother Qiang¡¯s control, he had a lot of control over the county city¡¯s black market. Most importantly, he could take over a transport convoy that Brother Qiang had developed previously. With a convoy, there were too many things he could do. Therefore, Xiao Sheng was very tempted by Yu Bing¡¯s suggestion. He now had the ability to take on the factory¡¯s orders. Moreover, as a middleman, he could earn money quickly. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t think too much about it and agreed readily. ¡°In that case, we have to implicate Uncle Jin. We have to look for him together.¡± Although the government didn¡¯t interfere with the sales route of township enterprises, it had to be legal. For example, the black market wasn¡¯t legal. Under normal circumstances, township enterprises could only sell products in bulk to units or supply and marketing clubs. Purchasing departments of companies would only go to the food factory or supply and marketing club to buy products on daily employee benefits during the holidays. The supply and marketing club was the primary model of modern business superpowers. They targeted the terminal market, which was the people in the entire county. However, after the food had been distributed, people would only go to the supply company to buy it if they liked it. Peasants who didn¡¯t work rarely wanted to buy these products. Their money was mostly spent on necessities, such as firewood, rice, oil, and salt. They were only willing to go to the supply company to buy cakes and pastries during the holidays. However, be it workers or farmers, if they wanted to buy things, they had to have stamps. Therefore, these legitimate channels restricted the production of the factory. In Yu Bing¡¯s current situation, there were a few villages with food processing plants, but the number of enterprises in the county city was fixed and the demand was very limited, so most villages chose to produce them according to the required quantity. If there were no orders, they would return to the fields to continue farming. If Yu Bing wanted the factory to operate all year round, other than letting the factory produce new products that were not available in the city, she also had to sell the products to further counties and cities. For example, Feng Cai relied on his connections to get an order from the provincial city. Yu Bing wanted to distribute the goods to various places through Xiao Sheng¡¯s black market. Black market transactions didn¡¯t accept stamps, so it was convenient for many people with money but no stamps in the city. These people were the customers Yu Bing wanted to win over. This matter definitely had to be discussed with Wu Jin. Although Yu Bing was the factory director, this was a public industry in the village. Without Wu Jin¡¯s approval, if such a large amount of goods couldn¡¯t be sold, Wu Jin would definitely investigate it. ¡°If we approve it directly, the wholesale price will definitely reduce the cost of transporting products from the county to the city. Moreover, the retail price of wholesale and selling units is different. The price has to be lower, but the exact price will definitely have to be discussed with Mr. Wu.¡± There was no time to lose. The two of them went to Wu Jin¡¯s house in the dark and explained their intentions. Wu Jin was originally smoking a pipe leisurely when he was shocked by their bold plan. That¡¯s right. He had also sold things on the black market previously. He had brought Xiao Sheng into the business, but that only involved himself. Now, the two of them wanted to implicate the entire village! Wu Jin looked at Xiao Sheng and said after a while, ¡°Looks like Yu Bing already knows what you¡¯ve been doing behind people¡¯s backs?¡± Yu Bing interrupted, ¡°Xiao Sheng and I are partners.¡± Xiao Sheng had never revealed to Yu Bing that Wu Jin had also sold things together in the black market. Yu Bing simply felt that she had to show some sincerity to let Wu Jin see her determination. Reselling goods was a serious crime. Yu Bing took the initiative to expose herself because she hoped that Wu Jin would believe her. Moreover, Wu Jin had long known about Xiao Sheng¡¯s methods, but Xiao Sheng had been unscathed for so many years, so she could tell that Wu Jin was a reliable person. Wu Jin really didn¡¯t expect Yu Bing, a little girl from the city, to be so bold as to go to the black market with Xiao Sheng to do business. However, from this, he could tell that the two of them had already made up their minds. They didn¡¯t plan to discuss it with him. They probably wanted to convince him! Yu Bing¡¯s suggestion was indeed very beneficial to the entire factory, but it was too reckless. Wu Jin sighed as he said, ¡°Yu Bing, I know you¡¯re thinking for the sake of the factory and hope that the villagers¡¯ economic standards can improve, but this pathway is too dangerous. If the higher-ups find out that our village¡¯s factory sold the goods to the black market¡¯s channels, this matter will implicate the entire village! As the village chief, I can¡¯t take this risk. I have to be responsible for the villagers.¡± Chapter 179 - 179 A New Move 179 A New Move Yu Bing expected this outcome, so she continued, ¡°Don¡¯t you think the scrutiny on the black market isn¡¯t that serious now? Moreover, I¡¯ve already thought about it. We¡¯ll find a few enterprises in the city where Xiao Sheng is distributing the goods and get the orders through our connections. On the surface, everyone will see the purchasing documents of the enterprises, and when we transport the goods over, we¡¯ll naturally be able to do it openly.¡± After Yu Bing finished speaking, she tapped Xiao Sheng gently with the tip of her foot. Xiao Sheng knew that it was his turn to speak. ¡°Uncle Jin, I¡¯m the one protecting Brother Qiang¡¯s relationship with the county bureau now. Brother Qiang also has people in City Z. If they hear any news, I¡¯ll definitely know in advance. The forged goods list is mixed in with the goods lists of various enterprises. Some small factories don¡¯t even have to use a stamp to place orders. They just have to sign an autograph. Mr. Wei¡¯s focus is only on checking the numbers. As long as he gets the money from the total number of goods, he definitely won¡¯t notice anything.¡± Wu Jin picked up the pipe and took a deep puff. After a moment of silence, he said, ¡°I¡¯ll think about it again. You guys can go back first.¡± Yu Bing wanted to say something else, but Xiao Sheng pulled Yu Bing¡¯s arm gently. ¡°Go back first. I haven¡¯t talked to Uncle Jin in a long time. I¡¯ll leave later.¡± Yu Bing glanced at Xiao Sheng and understood the hint. Hence, she didn¡¯t say anything else and stood up to say goodbye to Wu Jin. After Wu Jin left the courtyard, he said, ¡°Don¡¯t think I didn¡¯t see the two of you sending secret signals!¡± Xiao Sheng pursed his lips and smiled. ¡°I knew I couldn¡¯t hide it from you. You didn¡¯t force me to leave with her because you wanted to hear what I planned to tell you.¡± Wu Jin glanced at Xiao Sheng and snorted as he smoked. Xiao Sheng took the initiative to take Wu Jin¡¯s tobacco bag. He took out a few strands of tobacco and kneaded them into fluffy balls before putting them in the pipe. ¡°Actually, you¡¯re also tempted, right? Otherwise, you wouldn¡¯t have hesitated.¡± Xiao Sheng and Wu Jin were considered old friends, so he knew Wu Jin very well. ¡°Now that you¡¯re the village chief, it¡¯s impossible for you to rely on your connections to apply for half a month of leave from the village every year, like when you were idle in the past. You used to travel extensively to collect goods and sell them.¡± ¡°The factory is opening now. Putting aside the fact that the factory still owes money, if it¡¯s really opened for half a year and closed for half a year, it will be difficult for the debt to be repaid in two years. The village won¡¯t get much money in the first two years. I know that the families of your comrades who sacrificed themselves are in a bad situation. If you really want to wait for the factory to make a profit, I¡¯m afraid you can only use your work points and your salary as the village chief for the next two years.¡± With that, he added, ¡°But your salary is meager¡± Wu Jin, who was about to take a whiff, paused and knocked Xiao Sheng¡¯s arm with the pipe, making Xiao Sheng grimace. ¡°You always want to use this method to convince me. Aren¡¯t you very smart? Why don¡¯t you try something new?!¡± Xiao Sheng smiled and said, ¡°Uncle, it does not matter if it¡¯s new or not, as long as it works!¡± Wu Jin had to admit that Xiao Sheng¡¯s trick worked every time. If it was just him alone, he would definitely work with Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing. However, this matter involved too many people, so he still couldn¡¯t make up his mind. He glanced at Xiao Sheng and changed the topic. ¡°Are you and Yu Bing together?¡± Xiao Sheng was shocked and hurriedly replied, ¡°Don¡¯t talk nonsense! Yu Bing and I are in a platonic cooperative relationship.¡± When Wu Jin saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s flushed face, he rolled his eyes. ¡°Yu Bing is not bad. If you¡¯re interested in her, hurry up and make a move. Otherwise, she might be snatched away.¡± Xiao Sheng felt his heart race. After calming down for a while, he slowly said, ¡°Before Xiao Li¡¯s eyes recover, I won¡¯t think about anything. Besides, with my family¡¯s conditions, whoever I marry will suffer.¡± Wu Jin was tired of hearing Xiao Sheng¡¯s old excuse for refusing to get married and knew his obsession with treating Xiao Li¡¯s eyes, so he stopped persuading him. ¡°Go back first. I¡¯ll think about it.¡± Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t delay any further. ¡°Alright, Uncle, take the time to think about it.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t know if Wu Jin had been convinced by Xiao Sheng or not, so she could only wait. After work in the evening, Wu Jin went into the orchard to find Yu Bing and asked her to go to his house with Xiao Sheng after dinner. When Yu Bing heard this, her eyes lit up. She knew that he probably agreed. In fact, be it the ecological industry in the village or finding a sales route for the factory, Yu Bing was thinking for the sake of the factory and herself. Chapter 180 - 180 Meeting Zhang Chao Again 180 Meeting Zhang Chao Again In the beginning, she had accepted this position to prevent herself from farming. Now, to fulfill the duties of her position, she was looking for a market. As the factory director, she had to do her best and improve the living standards of these villagers. This was also her original intention for establishing this industrial chain. After Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng finished eating, they gathered at Wu Jin¡¯s house again. Wu Jin confirmed with Yu Bing, ¡°You previously said that you plan to find a few enterprises to get the order at the place where Xiao Sheng is distributing the goods. Are you planning to go yourself or call Feng Cai?¡± Yu Bing replied, ¡°I¡¯ll call Feng Cai along. If Xiao Sheng has many places to distribute goods in the later stages, we need someone to specifically maintain these late-stage relationships. Feng Cai is the chief of the sales department. He has to be familiar with these customers¡¯ information. Moreover, I don¡¯t have that much energy to spend on these sorts of things.¡± Wu Jin agreed with this. Then, he touched his nose and asked, ¡°I also want to participate. Are the two of you willing to let me?¡± Xiao Sheng naturally knew the reason, but Yu Bing was a little shocked. She thought that she and Xiao Sheng had actually convinced Mr. Wu. The two of them naturally agreed. Then, Wu Jin said slowly, ¡°Then I¡¯ll ask you two another question. If you two agree, let¡¯s do it.¡± Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng nodded and looked at Wu Jin seriously. Wu Jin glanced at the two of them. ¡°If we use the entire village as a bet, I won¡¯t agree. So, we can do it, but if we¡¯re really caught and implicated, the three of us have to bear the responsibility. We can¡¯t implicate everyone in the village.¡± The two of them hesitated for a moment when they heard this, but they also remembered that although this matter expanded the factory¡¯s sales, they were profiting the most. Hence, the two of them nodded in agreement again. The three of them trusted each other, so they didn¡¯t write any contracts. After all, writing it in black and white would leave evidence and attract trouble. The remaining jams were personally sent by Yu Bing to the warehouse designated by Xiao Sheng. However, what shocked Yu Bing was that the person who received the goods was Zhang Chao. Zhang Chao had already returned to his usual frivolous self. When he saw Yu Bing, he was a little embarrassed, but when he thought of the group of lackeys standing behind him, he quickly put on an arrogant look. Yu Bing, who thought of the calm and levelheaded Zhang Chao in the future, suddenly couldn¡¯t help but laugh. ¡°What are you laughing at?¡± Thinking of how the other party had seen his woeful state, Zhang Chao thought that Yu Bing was mocking him and immediately widened his eyes as he glared at Yu Bing. Yu Bing was unafraid of Zhang Chao. She chuckled and put on a fierce look as she said, ¡°You¡¯d better not be fierce to me. Otherwise, I know your home address, so I can look for Xia Rou at any time.¡± Zhang Chao wasn¡¯t afraid of anyone, but he was afraid of his wife who cried at the drop of a hat. However, compared to Xia Rou crying at the drop of a hat, he was more afraid of Xia Rou breaking his hand and ignoring him. Xia Rou meant the world to Zhang Chao. However, in front of outsiders, Zhang Chao also cared about his reputation. He said stubbornly, ¡°Hmph, tell her if you have the guts to. As if I¡¯m afraid of her? What a joke! I can¡¯t be bothered to find trouble with you now. A gentleman doesn¡¯t argue with women, understand?!¡± With that, he turned around and shouted to his lackeys behind him, ¡°Brothers, unload the goods!¡± Seeing this, Yu Bing stopped teasing him. She was amused that Zhang Chao hadn¡¯t changed since then. Perhaps he was just sharp-tongued. After Yu Bing finished sending the goods, she took the forged procurement documents and returned to the village to report to Mr. Wei. Mr. Wei didn¡¯t know that the two people in charge would be so bold as to sell the goods on the black market. He took the documents without any suspicion and glanced at them casually. Then, he noted the name of the manufacturer and the goods. After counting the money, he recorded them. After the marketing direction for the food was set, Yu Bing began to focus on preparing to produce new products. At the end of April, there were already a thousand eggs. Yu Bing finally decided on a few products, including ham sausage, purple yam cake, waffles, and egg yolk pastry. Although it wasn¡¯t the season for purple sweet potatoes, the production of purple sweet potatoes wasn¡¯t bad. Every family kept them in the cellar, so they could still harvest a lot during this season. The main ingredients of the waffles and egg yolk pastries were eggs and flour. She had to think of a way to discuss making ham sausage with the meat factory. Because ham sausage tasted good and was easy to carry, it became popular in the next few decades. Therefore, this was a must-have product for Yu Bing! Chapter 181 - 181 Waffle 181 Waffle The beginning of May meant that the summer harvesting time was about to arrive. Wu Jin wanted to organize the villagers to start preparing for harvesting. The food in the field was the lifeline of the entire country¡¯s people, so he couldn¡¯t be sloppy. During this period of time, the industrial chain was handed over to Yu Bing to handle. Work in the orchards wasn¡¯t very busy now. Yu Bing even specifically transferred half of the people from every orchard to the fields to help. Yu Bing went to the county¡¯s flour factory and supply company to discuss buying on credit. In the end, Yu Bing successfully obtained the raw materials by paying half the deposit and settling the balance within two months. The milk was obtained through Wu Jin¡¯s military connections. The other party agreed to let them pay on credit, but the payment would be settled in full in February. Mr. Wei was dissatisfied with the results of the negotiation. Mr. Wei took the money out of the safe and counted it with heartache. ¡°Miss Yu, you were only given a two-month grace period after giving a 50% deposit. You must have been scammed. The village chief gave me too little!¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she immediately looked at Mr. Wei helplessly. ¡°Mr. Wei, you can¡¯t blame me for this. Our village chief is already famous for buying things on credit. Seeing that there are so many other creditors, all of them are afraid that they won¡¯t be able to get their money back. I was only able to negotiate a 50% deposit and a two-month grace period!¡± When Mr. Wei heard this, he had no reason to complain anymore. The last 300 bottles of jam from the previous batch were sold wholesale, but the final profit reached 7,350.8 yuan. However, only a few days later, 1,000 yuan was paid. Thinking about how he still had to pay back a portion of the money to the various manufacturers, because this was what Yu Bing had promised when she accepted the order, Mr. Wei felt a headache coming on. He placed the money on the table and turned his head away. Out of sight, out of mind! Seeing this, Yu Bing comforted him. ¡°Mr. Wei, don¡¯t worry. After the goods are delivered, the money will come back immediately.¡± Mr. Wei pursed his lips and nodded. Yu Bing first taught the five chefs the simplest way to make waffles, then specifically found a blacksmith to make a mold with an iron plate. At this moment, they had yet to develop a mold that didn¡¯t stick to the pot. They could only rely on the cooking skills of the chefs. If the time was too long, the food might get burnt. If the time was too short, the taste would be off. In any case, they had to control the timing well. Otherwise, the pancake would be ruined. In order to perk everyone up, Yu Bing made a request. ¡°Attention, chefs. Only three flawed pancakes are allowed every day. As for the rest, you¡¯ll have to pay for them yourselves.¡± Everyone immediately became nervous. The ordinary workers asked curiously, ¡°Miss Yu, how much does each pancake cost?¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°0.05 yuan each! The staff price is 0.04 yuan each.¡± ¡°It¡¯s so expensive!¡± ¡°There¡¯s flour, eggs, white sugar, and milk in these pancakes. Of course these pancakes are very expensive.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t bear to eat it!¡± ¡°It smells extremely delicious and these are all good ingredients. In any case, I have to eat one after I get my salary. These raw materials are all very nutritious.¡± Everyone discussed it, but after they started working, everyone was on high alert, since they were afraid that something would go wrong with the pancakes. If they made one additional mistake, they might feel happy after eating the pancake. However, if they made a few more mistakes, they would probably be scolded by their families when they returned home. Who would lose so much money while working?! Yu Bing asked everyone to produce 1,000 first, then got someone to send 300 to the supply company and 200 to the restaurant. Yu Bing had gotten these orders when she went to the county city to get the goods. The remaining 500 were naturally sent through Xiao Sheng¡¯s channels. Waffles were a foreign delicacy. How could people in a small county city have seen these Western desserts before? The outer shell was crispy, but the inside was soft. It had a milky sweet taste. As soon as waffles were introduced in the small county, their reputation immediately spread throughout the factory. 0.05 yuan was indeed a lot for the villagers, but for families in the county city, buying it a few times a month to satisfy their cravings wasn¡¯t difficult. Chapter 182 - 182 Advertisement 182 Advertisement Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations The workers were encouraged by the good reviews of the waffles. They even suggested to Yu Bing that they continue to speed up production. Yu Bing considered the storage problem and the consumption power of the county city, so she was in no hurry to expand. This time, she was just testing the waters. Now, after the waffles were produced, they were distributed wholesale without any external packaging, so they only had a shelf life of three days. Since Yu Bing wanted to expand, she definitely had to think of a way to extend the shelf life. This way, she could send the products to other provinces instead of sticking to the local market. The waffles had the same specifications as the egg yolk pastries and purple yam cakes, but the packaging had to be different. Desserts were more expensive than ordinary food to begin with. Yu Bing hoped to surpass other brands in the details, especially when the domestic market retailers were not paying attention to this aspect. Yu Bing hoped that she could make ¡®Delicious¡¯ into a brand that made people feel proud when they gave its products away as gifts. Chapter 183 - 183 Recruiting Again 183 Recruiting Again Yu Bing felt that if Shu Ya had been born in the future, she would definitely be a good employee in advertising design because she had never mentioned writing any advertising slogans. However, Shu Ya was able to think of the positive effect of advertising slogans. Her ideas were always innovative. The key was that the effect of her innovative ideas was indeed eye-catching. Yu Bing immediately arranged for Feng Cai to go to the printing plant to discuss the price. Although Feng Cai was the chief of the sales department, the factory¡¯s capital chain was so tight now. Everyone had many jobs. Then, the factory began to arrange for the production of Snowflake Crisp and egg yolk pastries. These two types were specialties from the same place and came from a province surrounded by the sea. The difference between Snowflake Crisp and ordinary desserts was that Snowflake Crisp was especially chewy. Delicious cream was wrapped in peanuts, biscuits, almonds, dried cranberries, and other foods. The texture of the cream could also be felt by the combination of the softness of the cream and the crispness of the various nut biscuits. Because she didn¡¯t get cotton candy, Yu Bing could only create this taste in another way. The texture of the egg yolk pastry had clear layers. The outermost layer was crispy golden-yellow skin and pastry. Further in, there was sweet and soft bean paste or lotus filling. The innermost layer was salted egg yolk. Not only did this contrast of sweetness on the outside and saltiness on the inside not make people feel that the texture was strange, but it was the perfect fusion. From the side, one could see four layers of different colors of filling. When one took a bite, there were three layers of texture. They were crispy, soft, salty, and crunchy. Be it the appearance or taste, one could feel the multilayered changes. Because these two types of ingredients were complicated and time-consuming to use, they were more expensive. Snowflake Crisp was priced at 0.05 yuan per 30 grams, and the egg yolk crisps were priced at 0.3 yuan per 100 grams. Yu Bing only dared to produce 500 Snowflake Crisps and 300 egg yolk crisps for the market. The county¡¯s supply and marketing club had 300 Snowflake Crisps and 100 egg yolk crisps. The rest of the portions were sold by Xiao Sheng via wholesale. Xiao Sheng sold most of the goods in the city. The purchasing power and market there were big enough, so the goods were sold out in two days. In the county city, the snowflake pastries were sold out in three days, and the egg yolk pastries were sold out in five days. According to the market feedback, Yu Bing planned to look for various enterprises to discuss purchasing employee benefits. After all, this was the time when the demand for goods was the greatest. Then, she would ask Feng Cai to go to a few supply and marketing clubs in City H to negotiate and get the orders from both sides first. At that time, she would bring Feng Cai to City Z. Although they were not familiar with City Z, Xiao Sheng had a sales channel there, so they had to find a enterprise as a cover. On the other hand, waffles were fully distributed. There was no need to go to enterprises to get bulk orders. After they sold the cherry jam last time, the enterprises who loaned things to He Mountain Brigade had received a portion of the repayment, so it was very easy for Yu Bing to get the order this time. The purchasing department could purchase food from anyone. Moreover, with the factory director¡¯s special approval, it wasn¡¯t difficult for them to get orders. After all, these two products were impeccable in terms of taste and novelty. After receiving the order, Yu Bing recruited more people. Time was tight. The recruitment training had to be completed in three days. Then, they would start production. A new day began. On this day, what woke everyone up wasn¡¯t the song on the radio, but the announcement of the second batch of workers in the factory. Hence, everyone gathered at the factory door excitedly before starting work. The recruitment advertisement was still on red paper. This time, there were two female chefs and two ordinary workers being recruited. The age range had not changed. There were two rounds of interviews. In order not to affect work, the registration time was changed to break at noon. The written test took up an hour after work. The location was the three classrooms in the village¡¯s primary school. The results were out the next morning, and the interview was scheduled for noon that day. The people in the village didn¡¯t expect the recruitment to start again after such a short period of time. The three-day learning fever caused by the written test also dissipated after the recruitment ended. Many people began to regret not persevering at that time. Moreover, the time between the registration and the written test was too short. It was definitely too late for them to learn at the last minute. Some of the girls who wanted to work in the factory were so anxious that they cried. However, they could only blame themselves for not making preparations in advance. Someone complained, ¡°Didn¡¯t we have three days to prepare before? This time, things were too rushed.¡± Chapter 184 - 184 Night School 184 Night School Those who knew the situation immediately stood up and said, ¡°The order is urgent this time. We have to recruit people who can be used immediately.¡± Another person who knew the inside story said, ¡°I heard that the first recruitment was held because Mr. Yu wanted to take care of the villagers. She knew that the villagers usually didn¡¯t study, so their literacy was limited, so she specifically extended the time and let us use those three days to review our knowledge and increase the pass rate of the villagers.¡± ¡°Sigh, then we¡¯ve really let Miss Yu down. We haven¡¯t learned anything since the last recruitment.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that so? I originally wanted to continue learning after the recruitment ended. After all, Miss Yu said that the factory still had to recruit workers. Unfortunately, I found the words difficult to recognize, so I didn¡¯t learn after that.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the saying? I remember now! If you can¡¯t take the hardships of studying, you¡¯ll have to take the hardships of life!¡± ¡°No, no. If I don¡¯t pass this time, I have to persevere and continue learning. Perhaps I¡¯ll be able to seize the opportunity when the factory recruits more students in the future.¡± ¡°Me too. Count me in!¡± ¡­ . In this round of the written test, Yu Bing asked the same type of questions as she did in the first round. She only changed the specific questions. The two ordinary workers who were chosen in the end were an intellectual, a villager, and two female chefs. One of the female chefs was called Jiang Wen. She was the only one who insisted on studying after the last job recruitment. She was illiterate and from a family that favored boys over girls. She was also the eldest, so her parents naturally left her at home to do housework and take care of her siblings. Because she had never been to school for even a single day, Jiang Wen had only relied on the 20 words she had learned in three days to take the exam last time. Therefore, she only filled in two questions on her paper. The rest were all blank, so Yu Bing had a deep impression of her. Jiang Wen had never been to school, but she knew that the early bird catches the worm. Her thoughts were very simple. Others who had gone to school might have had enough time to revise, but she didn¡¯t. Therefore, she forced herself to memorize five words a day. At night, after dinner, she kept writing every word she had learned on the ground and repeated them tirelessly. The people who taught her how to read were her sister-in-law, who had attended the literacy class, and her son, who was in the third grade of primary school. Other than the two people who taught her, everyone else in her family mocked her for wasting her time. They said that if she had the time, she might as well do more housework, serve her husband, and give birth to a few more children, but she refused to accept it. She had just celebrated her 28th birthday this year and happened to be at the maximum recruitment age, so she wanted to give it a try. Even if she didn¡¯t succeed, she would rest assured knowing she had done her best. Reality proved that opportunities were only given to prepared people! When Jiang Wen¡¯s in-laws found out about the results, they were very surprised. Jiang Wen¡¯s brother-in-law and sister-in-law had graduated from junior high and had also entered the interview process with her. Unfortunately, they didn¡¯t get chosen in the end. When their in-laws saw the results announced immediately after the interview, they were stunned. Jiang Wen¡¯s sister-in-law usually mocked Jiang Wen the most when she was studying. She boasted that she was one of those rare people with a junior high school degree in the village and had always scoffed at Jiang Wen for not going to school. She felt that Jiang Wen was uncultured and uneducated, so she loved to snub Jiang Wen at home. On this day, Jiang Wen finally welcomed the first rare peace and quiet ever since she insisted on studying. This was because no one would mock her anymore when they passed by the courtyard. Many people knew that Jiang Wen was illiterate in the past and was very curious about her admission. After knowing that Jiang Wen had learned about 300 common words in the past two months, they all made up their minds to study. Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect this small interlude to ramp up the enthusiasm of the He Mountain Brigade. She suddenly had an idea. Yu Bing found Wu Jin and said with a smile, ¡°Village Chief, I have something good for the country and the people that I need your help with!¡± Wu Jin looked at her suspiciously. ¡°Tell me. I¡¯ll listen.¡± Yu Bing told him her plan. ¡°I want to open a night school in the village!¡± Wu Jin frowned and confirmed, ¡°Night school?¡± Yu Bing nodded affirmatively. ¡°In the past, in order to improve the literacy of farmers and increase their awareness of legal rights, the country specifically opened a literacy class. Almost everyone knows how to write and read. But now, because they have lived in the countryside for a long time and have dealt with farming all day, I realize that other than their names, they keep making mistakes when writing other words!¡± Chapter 185 - 185 Recruiting Teachers 185 Recruiting Teachers Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Seeing that Wu Jin didn¡¯t have any objections, Yu Bing continued, ¡°Ever since the factory recruited more people, everyone has become proactive! I want to take the opportunity to set up a night school so that everyone can learn how to read. Then, we¡¯ll go to the second-hand market in the city to buy some books related to agricultural farming and set up a small library in the village. On the one hand, it¡¯s to let everyone read and consolidate their knowledge. On the other hand, I hope that everyone can learn more knowledge. After all, knowledge is power!¡± Yu Bing had to let him see the benefits, so she said, ¡°Everyone will learn planting and breeding techniques from books. Perhaps they can really double the production of our village! At that time, under your wise leadership, everyone will embark on a new path to becoming rich. Our village will go from being the poorest village to the richest village.¡± Wu Jin teased, ¡°Are you planning to instill the importance of knowledge in everyone?¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t instill it. The importance of knowledge has been passed down for thousands of years.¡± Wu Jin smiled and shook his head. ¡°Being literate is a good thing. You can acquire knowledge and learn the ways of the world. I support you!¡± Previously, there were cadres in the village who had mentioned establishing night schools. After all, there were so many intellectuals in the village. Any one of them could teach the villagers a lot of things. Chapter 186 - 186 Fixed Candidate 186 Fixed Candidate Yu Bing had thought long and hard about this reward. After all, preparing for class also took time. Moreover, standing on the podium for an hour in a row was also a tiring job. Who still had the strength to teach after a day of farm work? Now that there was this benefit, everyone became motivated. Someone immediately asked, ¡°Captain Yu, other than teaching language arts and physics, what other subjects are there?¡± Yu Bing smiled. ¡°You guys can do whatever you want. I¡¯ll schedule a class for everyone once a week. Everyone has a chance to reach, but you have to tell me the content of the class in advance. I¡¯ll decide if there¡¯s a need to have this class.¡± Then, she changed the topic. ¡°Let me make this clear. If anyone makes up class content in order to be a registrar, they can¡¯t schedule classes for a month. The second time, they can¡¯t schedule classes for half a year. The third time, they can forget about having another chance.¡± Although Yu Bing was still smiling, there was a warning look in her eyes. However, most of the intellectuals were honest people and wouldn¡¯t do such things, so everyone was still very enthusiastic. A bespectacled young man immediately raised his hand and asked, ¡°Captain Yu, what are the standards for the class? What if some people can attend twice a week, while some people can only attend once a week?¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she immediately replied, ¡°The class schedule is based on the schedule of the villagers. There will also be some special positions, such as language arts and Mathematics teachers. Being able to read is the foundation of learning, so language arts classes will be arranged for twice a week.¡± ¡°Everyone is most familiar with these two subjects and wants to teach them the most. However, in order to effectively continue the progress and not repeat the teaching process, I will arrange for two teachers to be in charge of these two subjects. The rest will be fun classes outside of class.¡± When everyone heard that there were fixed candidates, they asked curiously. Yu Bing said the candidate she had high hopes for. ¡°The language arts teacher is Shu Ya, and the math teacher is Dong Yang.¡± ¡°Why should you decide?!¡± A female voice sounded in the crowd. When Yu Bing looked towards the source of the voice, as expected, it came from Yu Yan. Yu Bing already knew their strength. ¡°Because I¡¯m the organizer, because I¡¯m the captain of the intellectual team, and because I¡¯ve already understood everyone¡¯s situation. If you¡¯re not convinced, please understand the situation first before talking to me.¡± Many people knew that the two of them didn¡¯t get along, but not many have seen their conflict head-on before. Yu Bing had chosen experienced intellectuals who had been in the countryside for many years. Everyone had some understanding of their strength and knew that Yu Bing had not chosen them randomly. As the saying went, ¡®If there¡¯s no investigation, there¡¯s no right to speak!¡¯ However, in Yu Yan¡¯s eyes, her right to speak had nothing to do with whether she had investigated them or not. As long as Yu Bing said so, she would object. This was more like her life motto. ¡°What a joke! Do you think you know everything just because you say so? Yu Bing, you¡¯re a crony who is abusing your power. You¡¯ll arrange a position for whoever has a good relationship with you!¡± As Yu Yan stood in the crowd, she glared at Yu Bing and acted like a hero who wanted to uphold justice and expose injustice. When Yu Bing saw Yu Yan¡¯s pretentiousness, she sneered. ¡°Yu Yan, I wanted you to understand more about the situation first because I had good intentions. Looks like my good intentions were unnecessary.¡± ¡°Shu Ya once won the first prize for the national middle school student ¡®Golden Penhead¡¯ essay competition, and Dong Yang was in the top ten of the Capital Region¡¯s Mathematics competition.¡± Although Dong Yang said it was a local municipal competition, the capital was the place with the best educational resources in the country, so this award was very valuable. Shu Ya and Dong Yang had never bragged about these things, so over time, the others only knew that the two of them were top students, but they didn¡¯t expect them to be so impressive. Yu Bing found out because she often chatted with everyone after becoming a captain, and everyone hoped that Yu Bing would take a fancy to them, so they didn¡¯t deliberately hide their talents when they chatted. This allowed Yu Bing to find out a lot of information. Chapter 187 - 187 One Person Calling The Shots 187 One Person Calling The Shots When Yu Yan was in school, her grades were all in the top ten of the cohort. She originally wanted to argue with Yu Bing and arrange a written test. She was confident that she could definitely get the position. However, she was shocked by the academic talent of these two people. Hence, she looked a little uncomfortable and was about to sit down as if nothing had happened. However, Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t let her off so easily. The corners of her lips curled up as she asked, ¡°Why don¡¯t I arrange an exam for you, Shu Ya, and Dong Yang? If you defeat them in these two subjects, you can get the position. I¡¯ll even apologize to you.¡± If they really competed, Yu Yan would embarrass herself in public. Yu Bing¡¯s mockery angered Yu Yan. She glared at Yu Bing as she replied, ¡°I didn¡¯t say that I wanted to compete with them. I just couldn¡¯t stand you calling the shots and wanted to speak up for everyone!¡± Yu Yan thought that someone would definitely feel that Yu Bing was being unfair by deciding for everyone so directly. However, she didn¡¯t expect that this was only a small number of people. Moreover, after knowing that the difference in strength between the two sides was so great, they could only tacitly agree to Yu Bing¡¯s arrangements. Otherwise, it would be a waste of time. Therefore, most of the people felt indignant. If Yu Yan wanted to go against Yu Bing, she shouldn¡¯t drag them down with her! Immediately, someone said indignantly, ¡°Let me make it clear first that I don¡¯t feel that it¡¯s unfair. I¡¯m a bad student, so I have no intention of becoming a teacher.¡± ¡°Me too. With my grades, I won¡¯t be teaching anytime soon.¡± ¡°Shu Ya, Dong Yang, there¡¯s no need to compete. I admit defeat.¡± The others also discussed softly, but most of them admired the two of them and didn¡¯t doubt their teaching ability. Yu Yan could only sit down indignantly. This time, she had the patience to listen because after Wu Jin became the village chief, he became more and more strict with work. After Li Ping was removed from her position as team leader, the newly appointed Wang Gui couldn¡¯t stand people slacking off, so Wang Gui kept an eye on Yu Yan¡¯s attendance. A few days ago, when Duan Mei came, she took half a day off work very often. After she returned, Wang Gui assigned her the heaviest job. Wang Gui said that she should exercise to prevent herself from falling sick again. Yu Yan was living a miserable life every day now. Now that she saw such a good opportunity, how could she care about her pride? Since this job was for intellectuals, she also wanted to compete. Even if she could only get a day or two a month, it was fine. The meeting continued. A young man raised his hands and asked, ¡°Can I read some agricultural science books to the villagers?¡± Yu Bing felt that this was a good idea. ¡°Sure, but you can¡¯t read it out loud. You have to read through the book yourself first and summarize it like the teachers did when we were in school in the past. You have to pay more attention to the details!¡± With that, she looked around at the young people sitting there. ¡°There¡¯s something you have to pay attention to. If a certain number of villagers report that the classes aren¡¯t efficient and there are less than 50 people in the class, the class you¡¯re teaching will be suspended.¡± When everyone heard this condition, they were a little nervous. Firstly, they had never been teachers before. Secondly, they had to pay attention to what content the villagers were interested in to prevent the attendance rate from being too low. Yu Bing had also considered this. Moreover, it was harvest season, so the farmers were busy. If they were to attend the class, it would probably become a ¡°snoring competition¡± in less than ten minutes. ¡°You can do an investigation first and see what everyone is interested in. After the harvest season, our night school will officially start. During this period, whoever decides what course to teach will prepare a lesson plan for me to see, so I can arrange the schedule immediately.¡± After the intellectual youth meeting ended, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun returned to the small courtyard at the foot of the mountain. At this moment, the Yu family was also having a family meeting. After Yu Wu saw the jam on the table, he went to the kitchen to get a clean spoon. He scooped a large spoonful into his cup. Seeing this, Yu Pan also took a large spoonful. Unfortunately, before she could put it in the cup, it was snatched away by Duan Mei. Duan Mei distributed some jam from the spoon to Mr. Yu¡¯s cup and poured a portion into her own cup. ¡°Why are you eating so much?! This jam is very precious. It¡¯s one buck per bottle.¡± When it was handed back to Yu Pan, there was only a thin layer of jam left. Chapter 188 - 188 All For Naught 188 All For Naught Yu Pan lowered her head to look at the spoon and then at Yu Wu, who had already drunk all the cherry juice. She was furious. ¡°Mom! You¡¯re too biased. Yu Wu got so much. I only have this little bit. I can¡¯t even taste it after mixing it with water!¡± Duan Mei was pouring water into her and Mr. Yu¡¯s cups. She replied without looking up, ¡°Then why don¡¯t you pour less water? You¡¯re so troublesome.¡± Yu Pan knew that it was useless to reason with her mother about this, so she couldn¡¯t be bothered to argue anymore. While everyone began to drink the jam water, she quickly picked up the cherry sauce, dug out another spoonful, and placed it in her mouth. Duan Mei was so angry that she took a wooden sweater needle from the side and stood up to chase after Yu Pan. ¡°You wretched girl! Such a big spoonful is enough for a few people!¡± Yu Pan hid from Duan Mei¡¯s sweater needle while savoring the sour and sweet cherry sauce in her mouth. In the end, she ran into the room and locked the door. Duan Mei, who was outside the door, was still scolding relentlessly, ¡°B*tch, I dare you to hide in the room and never come out!¡± Yu Pan, who was behind the door, recalled the jam that she had already swallowed. Although she had been poked twice, she still felt that it was worth it. She muttered to herself, ¡°The jam from Yu Bing¡¯s factory is quite delicious. I have to write to her next time and ask her to send a few more bottles.¡± The two men in the living room were already used to this. Yu Pan was only occasionally emboldened, but she didn¡¯t cause any big trouble. With Duan Mei restraining Yu Pan and Yu Bing, they didn¡¯t have to interfere on the surface, but secretly¡­ Yu Wu looked at the jam that was missing another spoonful and said with heartache, ¡°Mom, this jam is really delicious. You have to keep a tight watch on the rest. Otherwise, my sister will steal it again.¡± Duan Mei¡¯s heart ached. She tightened the bottle cap and said to Yu Wu gently, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I will lock it up later. I¡¯ll leave these for you to eat.¡± With that, she turned to look at Mr. Yu and frowned as she asked, ¡°What should we do about Yu Bing? She¡¯s working for free in the factory. The commune doesn¡¯t agree to transfer money directly to our house. If I were in the local area, I could go there every day and cause trouble until they compromise. But now, those people are clearly protecting Yu Bing!¡± Mr. Yu lowered his head and thought for a while. Then, he frowned and said, ¡°This is indeed difficult to deal with, but why did Yu Bing suddenly become so insensible?¡± When Duan Mei went to the countryside, she had already thought of how to distribute Yu Bing¡¯s salary. Now, it was all gone. Duan Mei thought of the few days Yu Bing had ignored her. She gritted her teeth and said hatefully, ¡°That b*tch was probably pretending for the past 18 years! I was wondering why she agreed so quickly when Yu Pan asked her to go to the countryside. She probably already wanted to leave us. I¡¯m so angry! If I knew this, I wouldn¡¯t have given her so much money and stamps no matter what!¡± Mr. Yu didn¡¯t agree with his wife¡¯s judgment. After all, they had lived under the same roof for 18 years. He didn¡¯t think that his daughter could have such a plan at such a young age. He only felt that Duan Mei was making wild guesses since she couldn¡¯t get any money. ¡°Yu Bing is already a young adult. In addition, she¡¯s far away, so it¡¯s normal for her to have some selfish thoughts, but if she won¡¯t subsidize the family at all, that won¡¯t do.¡± With her husband¡¯s support, Duan Mei felt that she had to think of a way to deal with Yu Bing. ¡°I think we should just agree to Shi Lian¡¯s marriage proposal. Moreover, Shi Lian is the one taking the initiative now. Although Yu Bing doesn¡¯t have the factory¡¯s salary now, the factory¡¯s production might boom in a few months. Shi Lian thinks I don¡¯t know what she¡¯s up to. Isn¡¯t she betting that Yu Bing would get her salary and then she could get the betrothal money back from Yu Bing?! I definitely have to ask for a higher betrothal price.¡± Mr. Yu was in no hurry to express his opinion. Just as his wife had said, there was still time. Yu Bing was the captain and factory director of the village. These positions were all high-ranking. This was enough to show how much Yu Bing was liked by those leaders. Glancing at his son, who was still smiling foolishly at the comic strip at the side, Mr. Yu sighed slightly. He had to save more money and help his son find a job in the factory first. Otherwise, if this continued, he would become a good-for-nothing. Duan Mei suddenly thought of the money in her pocket and quietly tugged at the corner of Mr. Yu¡¯s shirt. Then, she stood up and entered the room. Seeing this, Mr. Yu followed her in. Chapter 189 - 189 God of Fortune Comes 189 God of Fortune Comes After Duan Mei closed the door, she pulled her husband to the bed and told him about her trip to the countryside. Then, she took out 60 yuan. Mr. Yu was shocked. ¡°There was really such a coincidence?!¡± Duan Mei smiled happily. ¡°This is called the God of Fortune coming to our door herself!¡± Mr. Yu lowered his head and looked at the 60 yuan. The negative emotions from Yu Bing¡¯s refusal to subsidize the family dissipated by more than half. He smiled and said, ¡°Our second daughter is quite nice. She knows who her real family is!¡± Duan Mei took out a locked metal box from the gap behind the bed and carefully placed the money in. ¡°Yes, we only raised her for two years, but I didn¡¯t expect her to care so much about us, unlike that little b*tch Yu Bing. She¡¯s so ungrateful despite how many years we raised her! Fortunately, she wasn¡¯t chosen by that couple back then because of her poor health. Otherwise, with her ungrateful personality, we wouldn¡¯t get this 60 yuan!¡± Mr. Yu nodded in agreement and gave his wife an idea. ¡°Then take the initiative to write a letter to her. You must win her heart. You can¡¯t let her side with her adoptive parents.¡± Duan Mei smiled smugly when she heard this. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, she took the initiative to mention writing a letter to her adoptive family, so I agreed.¡± When Mr. Yu heard this, he nodded in satisfaction. ¡°We have to save money and find a job for Yu Wu first. It won¡¯t be good for him to waste time at home all day long. Coincidentally, since our second daughter has appeared now, keep it up. I won¡¯t appear for the time being. If the Yao couple finds out that we went to acknowledge our second daughter, this matter will be difficult to resolve!¡± ¡°I understand. When I was in the countryside, I was very careful when I met our second daughter. Shi Lian didn¡¯t notice anything!¡± As Mr. Yu looked at the money in the small metal box, he thought happily about getting more money from his second daughter this year. This way, Yu Wu¡¯s job would be settled. Next, he would start saving up the betrothal money for Yu Wu¡¯s wife! Mr. Yu wanted to consider Yu Bing¡¯s situation thoroughly. First, he would try to get Yu Bing¡¯s salary. This way, he could let her earn money to subsidize the family. When she became older, he would marry her off and get another sum of betrothal money. Yu Bing was only 18 years old now, but she was already a cadre in the village. What if she achieved greater fortune in another two years? She might even be able to marry a cadre in the commune or county. Yao Nian wasn¡¯thing! Mr. Yu Bing didn¡¯t want a son-in-law who had to be raised by his daughter. At the thought of this, Mr. Yu planned to write a letter to remind Yu Bing. Things were different now. Yu Bing had to have higher standards. She couldn¡¯t fall for the farmers in the village or useless intellectuals like Yao Nian! ¡°I¡¯ll write a letter to Yu Bing these few days.¡± Duan Mei was different from Mr. Yu. Getting quick money as soon as possible was the most important thing to Duan Mei. Mr. Yu wanted to maximize the long-term benefits Yu Bing brought. No matter what, in their eyes, Yu Bing wasn¡¯t family, but a tool for making money. He Mountain Brigade. As soon as Yu Bing entered, she greeted Auntie Zhao loudly, ¡°Auntie Zhao, I want to exchange eggs with you again!¡± There were not enough eggs in the factory. Yu Bing had recently arranged for Feng Cai to go to the two neighboring villages to buy the eggs for the factory. For personal consumption, Yu Bing still had to exchange eggs with Auntie Zhao. ¡°No problem.¡± Auntie Zhao limped out of the living room with a smile. ¡°How many do you want this time?¡± Yu Bing handed the bamboo basket forward and replied with a smile, ¡°10!¡± Auntie Zhao walked towards the room again. Yu Bing saw a bamboo basket under the loquat tree in the courtyard and a bamboo pole with a net beside it. Yu Bing approached the loquat tree and asked loudly, ¡°Auntie, are you going to pick loquats?¡± Auntie Zhao¡¯s voice came from the house. ¡°Yes, many loquats are ripe already, so I want to pluck them and make loquat syrup.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll help you.¡± With that, Yu Bing rolled up her sleeves, picked up the bamboo pole, and began to climb the tree. She chose a thicker tree trunk as a fulcrum to climb higher. Just now, she realized that the short spots had already been removed. Comparatively, because Auntie Zhao¡¯s legs were handicapped and she couldn¡¯t reach the bamboo pole, some of them were almost ripe and on the verge of falling down. At this moment, Auntie Zhao had already packed the eggs. When she walked out of the house and saw Yu Bing, who had already climbed up the tree, she hurriedly said, ¡°Be careful. Don¡¯t climb too high.¡± Yu Bing was thin and was from the city. Auntie Zhao was worried that she wasn¡¯t as healthy as children from the countryside. Moreover, she was a girl as well. Chapter 190 - 190 Picking Loquats 190 Picking Loquats When Yu Bing was framed and got sent for labor reform at the farm in her previous life, she had to follow everyone up the tree to pick fruits. In this life, her recuperation was quite effective, so she wasn¡¯t afraid of these things. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll pluck all the ripe ones for you!¡± Auntie Zhao was relieved to see that Yu Bing seemed flexible and agile. More than half an hour later, Yu Bing saw that there were only unripe loquats left on the tree. Then, she prepared to come down. ¡°Mom!¡± A calm, powerful, and slightly magnetic voice sounded outside the courtyard door. ¡°Ah Xing!¡± Auntie Zhao went forward excitedly. She walked around to see if her son was injured. Being a soldier was a dangerous profession. She would worry about her son whenever she was free. Yu Bing, who was about to get off the tree, stopped in her tracks. She hugged the tree trunk and tilted her head as she looked at the door curiously. She saw an olive-green military uniform appear in front of her. The man had sharp eyebrows and bright eyes. His righteous aura made him look heroic. As soon as Zhao Xing entered the house, he sensed that there was someone on the tree. He looked at Yu Bing with a piercing gaze. Yu Bing was thin and had appeared on a tree, so at first glance, he thought that she was a naughty child from the village. Only then did his gaze soften. When Auntie Zhao saw Zhao Xing looking at the tree, she thought that Zhao Xing had fallen in love with Yu Bing at first sight. Originally, she felt that marriage was between two people, so it was useless for her to play matchmaker no matter how much she liked Yu Bing. However, if the two of them had chemistry, she could help them! Hence, in the following days, Auntie Zhao secretly thought of ways to matchmake the two of them. Zhao Xing retracted his gaze and said to his mother, ¡°Mom, I have half a month of family leave, so I came back to see you.¡± When Auntie Zhao heard that her son had a half-month family leave, tears of joy welled up in her eyes. ¡°Alright, I haven¡¯t seen you in two years, so I have to nourish you well this time.¡± At this moment, Yu Bing also got off the tree. Seeing this, Auntie Zhao introduced the two of them enthusiastically, ¡°Yu Bing, this is my son, Zhao Xing. He¡¯s 23 years old and is a company commander in the army now.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she hurriedly greeted, ¡°Hello, Commander Zhao.¡± Auntie Zhao specifically mentioned her son¡¯s position in the army to show Yu Bing her son¡¯s qualifications, not to let her call him Commander Zhao. Hence, she hurriedly said, ¡°We¡¯re all acquaintances. Just call him Ah Xing.¡± When Yu Bing heard Auntie Zhao¡¯s words, she was stunned for a moment. This was only the first time the two of them had met, so it probably wasn¡¯t appropriate to address each other so intimately. Zhao Xing could tell what Auntie Zhao was thinking at a glance. Now, he could tell that Yu Bing was embarrassed, so he changed the topic. ¡°Mom, this is?¡± When Auntie Zhao heard the question, she said, ¡°Ah Xing, let me introduce you. This girl is very capable. Her name is Yu Bing. She¡¯s a knowledgeable youth who came to our village to support the construction. She¡¯s now the captain of the knowledgeable youths and the overall person-in-charge of the industrial chains in our village!¡± Auntie Zhao was especially proud when she said this. Those who didn¡¯t know better would think that Yu Bing was her daughter. When he came in just now and saw the pole in Yu Bing¡¯s hand and the loquats under the tree, he knew that she was probably helping his mother work. From this, it could be seen that the two of them were very familiar with each other. Zhao Xing had discovered those drastic changes as soon as he entered the village. Only after greeting the people in the village did he find out that the current village chief of the He Mountain Brigade was Uncle Jin. Uncle Jin was a man of action. Ramping up economic production as soon as he took office was indeed his way of doing things. Therefore, Zhao Xing thought that this change was the result of Uncle Jin taking office. Now that he heard his mother¡¯s introduction, he realized that the real vanguard was actually this young lady in front of him. Zhao Xing was a little surprised, but his expression didn¡¯t change. He smiled and greeted, ¡°Hello, Miss Yu.¡± When Auntie Zhao heard the formal way the two of them addressed each other, she felt very helpless, but she also realized that this matter couldn¡¯t be rushed. Anyway, there was still half a month. There was still a chance if she worked harder. Seeing that the mother and son had finally met, Yu Bing hurriedly took the bamboo basket with eggs on the ground and handed Auntie Zhao the money. ¡°Auntie, I¡¯m going back now.¡± Auntie Zhao smiled and replied, ¡°Come and visit when you¡¯re free.¡± Yu Bing said goodbye and left the Zhao family¡¯s home. Only then did Auntie Zhao pull Zhao Xing into the house. ¡°Son, I¡¯ll make you a bowl of noodles. Rest for a while.¡± ¡°Mom, I¡¯ve already eaten in the county before I returned to the village. I¡¯m still very full. I bought some local specialties for you this time.¡± As he spoke, he placed everything in his bag on the table. Chapter 191 - 191 Southern Pancakes 191 Southern Pancakes Auntie Zhao glared at Zhao Xing. ¡°You¡¯re spending money recklessly. I¡¯m well-fed. I don¡¯t lack anything and don¡¯t need you to buy anything.¡± Zhao Xing took out a piece of pancake and stuffed it into Auntie Zhao¡¯s mouth as he said righteously, ¡°How can it be the same? Have you ever eaten pancakes made of flowers? Every place has its own delicacies. You have to try them. Tasting the delicacies of different places is a pleasurable experience!¡± ¡°These are all kinds of wild fungi. They¡¯ve already been processed and dried. Using them to make soup is beneficial for your health! Also, what you ate just now was pancakes made of flowers. This is beef jerky. You have to finish the pancakes in time. The rest can be preserved in the shade for a long time. Don¡¯t be reluctant to eat them. You keep saving up food until they expire!¡± Of course, Zhao Xing didn¡¯t only bring these things. Auntie Zhao watched as Zhao Xing introduced these specialties to her and felt a little emotional. Her son had grown up and knew how to take care of her now! Zhao Xing said so much because he wanted his mother to know that he could eat these things very often. Now, only the two of them were left at home. He was in the army now, so he had enough food to eat. It was just that his mother always wanted to leave the good things for him, but when he returned, he wouldn¡¯t be able to eat that much. When the food went bad and had to be thrown away, it would be a waste. Auntie Zhao knew her son¡¯s intentions. Regardless of whether she could do it or not, she still had to assure him, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll eat it. Don¡¯t worry. What do you think about that young lady just now? She¡¯s beautiful and capable. If you can marry such a wife, I¡¯ll be able to rest assured even if I die tomorrow.¡± Zhao Xing was a little unhappy when he heard this. ¡°Mom, what nonsense are you talking about? Don¡¯t talk about death all day long. I haven¡¯t shown you enough filial piety. I still have to be filial to you.¡± Zhao Xing¡¯s brother had already sacrificed himself for the country. At the mention of her eldest son, Auntie Zhao fell silent. When Zhao Xing realized this, he felt so guilty that he wanted to slap himself. He hurriedly changed the topic. ¡°Mom, hurry up and put these things away.¡± After Auntie Zhao¡¯s thoughts were interrupted, she came back to her senses. ¡°There¡¯s no hurry. It¡¯s rare for you to come back, so you have to visit the families of the elders in the village in the next two days. I¡¯ll split the things first. You can go to Yu Bing¡¯s house later. She helped me pick loquats just now. You have to give her some thank-you gifts.¡± With that, she hurriedly distributed a portion. ¡°Give these to her. She lives in the small courtyard beside the Xiao family¡¯s three siblings.¡± Zhao Xing felt a little strange when he heard this. As an intellectual, Yu Bing didn¡¯t live in the dormitory building, but lived outside on her own? However, Zhao Xing wasn¡¯t a nosy person. Moreover, he could tell that his mother wanted to matchmake them, so he wouldn¡¯t ask further, lest his mother became more enthusiastic. Although he had no interest in Yu Bing, he didn¡¯t want to anger his mother, so he agreed. In any case, he could visit Xiao Sheng. After thinking about it, he took out another specialty and set off for the end of the village. Yu Bing had just arrived home for dinner when she saw Zhao Xing enter. ¡°Hello, Miss Yu. These are some specialties my mother asked me to bring over. Thank you for taking care of her.¡± Just now, before Zhao Xing came, Auntie Zhao kept nagging him about how diligent Yu Bing was and how Yu Bing took care of her. She also took out some pastries that Yu Bing had given her previously and insisted that Zhao Xing try them too, so Zhao Xing thanked Yu Bing sincerely. Yu Bing took the specialties in embarrassment. ¡°Auntie Zhao is too polite! Actually, she took good care of us, so I just helped her when I saw her sometimes.¡± She suddenly thought of the snacks she had made recently. They could serve as return gifts, so she hurriedly ran into the kitchen to pack some. ¡°Commander Zhao, these are some soft cakes I made myself. Although they¡¯re not worth much, they can fill your stomach when you¡¯re hungry.¡± Zhao Xing took it politely and left. As Yu Bing looked at the flower pancakes in her hand, she suddenly had an idea. She thought of the flatbread desserts in the south. Transportation wasn¡¯t very convenient now. The delicacies that are rare in the north could be the focus of their factory. Their novelties alone could attract many people. After Zhao Xing left Yu Bing¡¯s house, he went straight to Xiao Sheng¡¯s house. Xiao Sheng was about to close the door and take a nap when he saw Zhao Xing suddenly appear at the door. He shouted happily, ¡°Brother Xing!¡± Chapter 192 - 192 Little Overlord 192 Little Overlord Zhao Xing did not say a word. He immediately threw a punch at Xiao Sheng. Seeing this, Xiao Sheng hurriedly took a step back and turned around. Zhao Xing quickly raised his leg and kicked Xiao Sheng, while Xiao Sheng used his arm to block Zhao Xing¡¯s kick in time. The two of them exchanged moves one after another. Although Zhao Xing only attacked with one hand, Xiao Sheng was still at a disadvantage after more than ten rounds. Zhao Xing retracted his hand and smiled. ¡°Not bad! It seems that you¡¯ve practiced the martial arts techniques I taught you. You¡¯re stronger than before and are almost taller than me!¡± Zhao Xing hugged Xiao Sheng¡¯s shoulder and sized him up. Without special training, anyone who could last more than ten rounds under an outstanding special forces soldier like Zhao Xing wasn¡¯t an ordinary person! After Xiao Sheng received Zhao Xing¡¯s praise, he smiled and touched his inch-long hair in embarrassment. ¡°I¡¯m far inferior to you. I was thinking of learning a few more moves when you came back.¡± When Zhao Xing¡¯s brother joined the army, Zhao Xing wasn¡¯t even 10 years old yet. Every time Zhao Xing¡¯s brother returned home, Zhao Xing would say that he wanted to learn boxing from him. Over time, his boxing skills became famous among the children in the village. At that time, Xiao Sheng was only a six or seven-year-old child. When he saw how capable Zhao Xing was, he followed behind Zhao Xing all day long and clamored to learn martial arts from him. When Zhao Xing was young, he was an aloof loner. However, he could not withstand Xiao Sheng¡¯s pestering, so their friendship began from that time. Zhao Xing handed the specialties in his hand to Xiao Sheng and teased, ¡°I¡¯ll be back for half a month this time. As long as you¡¯re not afraid of hardship, I¡¯ll let you practice until you get sick of it.¡± Not only was Xiao Sheng not afraid, but he was also very excited. Ever since he took over Brother Qiang¡¯s job, it was inevitable that he would encounter dangerous situations. Fighting was even more unavoidable. It was all thanks to his good martial arts skills that he was able to survive. Otherwise, he would have been beaten up countless times already. Now, his reputation for being able to fight helped him avoid a lot of trouble. The two of them entered the house to catch up. Auntie Zhao waited for the entire afternoon. When she finally saw her son enter the house, she smiled as she went forward. ¡°Looks like you and Yu Bing hit it off. You two chatted for the entire afternoon.¡± Zhao Xing said to his mother helplessly, ¡°Mom, I went to Xiao Sheng¡¯s house. I won¡¯t consider marriage for the time being.¡± Auntie Zhao¡¯s expression froze. She thought that going to the Xiao family¡¯s house was in passing, but she did not expect that helping her give Yu Bing a gift was in passing! Seeing that Zhao Xing did not understand her painstaking efforts, Auntie Zhao was so angry that she pinched her son¡¯s arm hard. ¡°Rascal, good girls are targeted early on. While you still have a chance, hurry up and show off your assets!¡± As for Yao Nian, her so-called fianc¨¦, after they heard Mrs. Yu¡¯s ambiguous words that day, many people already knew the real situation. Therefore, most of the villagers had already tacitly agreed that Yu Bing was not engaged, especially Gao Xin and Huang Yu, who had wanted to enter the factory through Yao Nian. At that time, in order to please Yao Nian, the two of them had even helped him cook for the entire day. Therefore, now, the two of them would mock Yao Nian from time to time, saying that he was delusional and wanted to rely on a woman to climb up the ladder, but failed. Yao Nian was so angry that he could not even eat, especially when he saw that Feng Cai, his roommate, was doing well in the food factory. He felt even more indignant. Yao Nian could not figure out why Yu Bing treated him like this. Even if the two of them did not have much interaction in the past, they grew up in the same neighborhood and were neighbors who lived in the same building. At this moment, Feng Cai was packing his luggage in the dormitory and preparing to take a taxi back to City H to look for orders. As Yao Nian looked at Feng Cai coldly, he was even more indignant about Yu Bing ignoring him. If Yu Bing was willing to be with him, Feng Cai would not be the chief of the sales department. The more he thought about it, the more he gritted his teeth. Feng Cai inadvertently turned around and saw Yao Nian¡¯s expression. His hand that was holding the clothes paused. He knew that Yao Nian was just jealous of him. Hence, he threw the clothes onto the bed and glared at Yao Nian fiercely. ¡°Why? Are you unhappy with me?¡± When Yao Nian saw Feng Cai¡¯s fierce expression, he immediately retracted his gaze and lay down. Chapter 193 - 193 Chop Wood 193 Chop Wood Yao Nian did not dare to have any objections in front of Feng Cai, but inwardly, he cursed Feng Cai for being a boorish person who only knew how to solve problems with force. He was a civilized person and would not stoop to the level of such a brawny person. Feng Cai despised men who relied on women, so after knowing what kind of person Yao Nian was, he ignored him. If Yao Nian had responded to him like a man just now, Feng Cai wouldn¡¯t have felt so disdainful. When Feng Cai saw Yao Nian¡¯s reaction, Feng Cai smirked. He thought in disdain that if a capable girl like Yu Bing liked such a man, it meant that all the men in the world were probably dead! Recently, Auntie Zhao liked to invite Yu Bing to her house whenever she had nothing to do. Yu Bing was confused. However, Yu Bing was really busy, and Auntie Zhao was too embarrassed to keep delaying Yu Bing¡¯s time, so Auntie Zhao decided to change her strategy. Yu Bing did not have time, but Zhao Xing did! Auntie Zhao said to Zhao Xing, who was chopping firewood, ¡°Help Yu Bing pick firewood later. The two of them have been working hard for the entire day. They definitely don¡¯t have the strength to go to the mountain to pick tree branches.¡± Zhao Xing refused without thinking. ¡°Mom, it¡¯s not suitable for me to go to a girl¡¯s home.¡± Yu Bing lived with Jiang Chun. In addition, she was the one who took the initiative to mention this, so there was nothing inappropriate about it. Zhao Xing was just unwilling to do so. Auntie Zhao did not accept her son¡¯s excuse and said, ¡°Those two young ladies often come to help me, especially Yu Bing! It¡¯s not easy for you to come back. You have to help me repay some favors!¡± Zhao Xing chose to remain silent. It was not that he did not understand his mother. She had never liked owing favors. If others helped her, she would keep thinking about it until she returned the favor. Seeing that Zhao Xing was ignoring her, Auntie Zhao pretended to be sad. ¡°I¡¯m usually alone at home and no one talks to me. Only Yu Bing comes to accompany an old woman like me. Otherwise, I¡¯d be so pitiful all alone.¡± Auntie Zhao narrowed her eyes and secretly glanced at Zhao Xing. She realized that his originally expressionless face had softened a little, so she continued to keep up the act. ¡°A lame old woman like me can¡¯t help her. Now that my son is back, I thought you could help me repay a favor. I didn¡¯t expect such a small request to be rejected.¡± Zhao Xing saw Auntie Zhao wiping her tears with a handkerchief. His mother was such a tough woman. How could she cry over such a thing?! Although Zhao Xing knew that his mother was definitely pretending, he still compromised in the end. He was a soldier who served the country and the people, but the only person he had neglected was his mother. However, he loved this job and the army. Although his mother did not blame him for leaving home and joining the army, the more understanding his mother was, the guiltier Zhao Xing felt every time he thought of how he had neglected his mother and left her all alone. It was rare for him to come home and didn¡¯t he return to make his mother happy? ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go.¡± Auntie Zhao smiled smugly and urged, ¡°Hurry up.¡± After Zhao Xing went to the mountain to chop a large basket of firewood, he walked towards Yu Bing¡¯s house. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun had just gotten off work and returned home. ¡°Miss Yu, Jiang Chun.¡± Zhao Xing saw the two of them busy in the kitchen when he entered. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun stopped what they were doing and walked to the courtyard. Yu Bing smiled and greeted, ¡°Commander Zhao, why are you free to come over today?¡± Zhao Xing rarely smiled at strangers, but he knew that he was a little scary when he did not smile. Hence, he smiled stiffly at the two of them. ¡°My mother asked me to chop some firewood for you two.¡± When Yu Bing and Jiang Chun saw Zhao Xing¡¯s smile, they both felt that smiling didn¡¯t suit Zhao Xing. Yu Bing was a little confused when she heard Zhao Xing¡¯s words. Why did Auntie Zhao suddenly ask Zhao Xing to chop firewood for her? Hence, she hurriedly replied, ¡°Auntie Zhao is always so polite. Hurry up and go back. We can chop it ourselves.¡± Zhao Xing began to chop firewood in the courtyard. ¡°Sometimes, I can¡¯t go home for an entire year. I¡¯m really grateful that you guys are willing to spend time chatting with her.¡± Chapter 194 - 194 Flirtatious 194 Flirtatious Zhao Xing said these words from the bottom of his heart. His sincerity made it difficult for Yu Bing and Jiang Chun to refuse, but they decided to spend more time with Auntie Zhao in the future. Humans lived in groups, and they could tell that Auntie Zhao liked company. Zhao Xing planned to go home after work. The two of them tried their best to keep Zhao Xing for lunch. ¡°There¡¯s no need to trouble yourselves. My mother cooked already. It¡¯s rare for me to come home, so I want to spend as much time with her as possible,¡± Zhao Xing said seriously. When Yu Bing heard this, she could not ask him to stay anymore. After thanking him, she sent Zhao Xing out the door. Yao Nian, who had come to look for Yu Bing, happened to see this scene. In fact, he had seen it since Zhao Xing entered Yu Bing¡¯s house. When Yao Nian saw the military uniform, he guessed that he was the son of Auntie Zhao, who had recently returned home to visit his family. His name seemed to be Zhao Xing. Seeing Yu Bing smile at Zhao Xing, Yao Nian cursed softly, ¡°Slut! You smile so happily at other men, but you¡¯re so cold to your fianc¨¦!¡± Yao Nian came to look for Yu Bing today because he wanted to take the initiative to express his goodwill. He wanted to tell Yu Bing that he would fetch her water in the future. In the past, he did not persist. This time, Yao Nian planned to continue using this matter to get close to Yu Bing and curry favor with her. When Duan Mei left that day, she said in public that the marriage had to be discussed again, so it was not appropriate for him to consider himself Yu Bing¡¯s fianc¨¦ anymore. He was worried that his mother would not be able to deal with Duan Mei, so after some thought, he decided to start with Yu Bing. If he could give Yu Bing a good impression of him, he might be able to convince her to register their marriage and get rid of the betrothal! However, before he could express his determination to Yu Bing, Zhao Xing actually came with firewood! If he said he would help her carry water now, it would seem like he was imitating Zhao Xing and he wouldn¡¯t seem sincere at all. Yao Nian felt that he could neither advance nor retreat now. He hesitated until Yu Bing sent Zhao Xing out of the door and returned home to close the door before returning to the dormitory resentfully. As the saying went, the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. Yu Yan, who followed them, saw this scene.m Seeing that two men wanted to curry favor with Yu Bing, Yu Yan cursed softly, ¡°Slut! You already have a fianc¨¦, but you¡¯re still flirting with Xiao Sheng all day long. Now, you won¡¯t even let go of the soldier who has just returned to visit his family. He has only been back for a few days, but you¡¯ve already seduced him!¡± The more Yu Yan scolded, the more ferocious her expression became. ¡°B*tch!¡± Actually, Yu Yan did not have much feelings for Xiao Sheng now. After all, good looks could not put bread on the table. She already had enough of the hard life of rural people. She definitely could not marry someone from the countryside. Otherwise, her life would be ruined! However, this did not stop her from resenting the fact that Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng seemed to have become closer. Thinking of how her mother had said before returning to the city that Yu Bing refused to subsidize her family, Yu Yan felt that it was even more unfair. She muttered, ¡°Not only did such a person become the captain of the intellectual youths, but she also became the factory director. I have to think of a way to help my family punish her!¡± Feng Cai returned with orders from three supply and marketing companies. In addition, Yu Bing had obtained a few orders from the county city. The production line in the factory would not stop for the next month. Yu Bing made three combinations of orders for the egg yolk pastry and snowflake pastry this time. They were all food combinations for employees benefits. First, the packaging was simplified. The snacks were wrapped in square brown paper, then tied with thin twine to make a double cross knot. Finally, the food factory¡¯s logo was pasted on the packaging surface. The daily benefits given to employees were not as good as holiday gifts. The packaging had to be nice. However, if it affected the price, the purchasing department would decisively choose the cheaper one. After all, compared to the procurement requirements during holidays, daily benefits were more practical. The first was a simple egg yolk pastry set, which cost six yuan a pack and was priced at 1.75 yuan. The second was a Snowflake Crisp set that cost 20 yuan a pack and was priced at 0.95 yuan. There was also a mixed set of four egg yolk pastries with 10 Snowflake Crisps that was priced at 1.7 yuan. Yu Bing had received a total of 2,330 orders for the three sets. Among them, the mixed set had the most orders. Coupled with the bulk orders Feng Cai received, there were 13,058 egg yolk pastries and 24,610 Snowflake Crisps to be produced this time. Chapter 195 - 195 Wanting a Car 195 Wanting a Car Previously, they were only testing the market response, so not much had been made. Therefore, the oven used was a simple version made of a pot lid and an iron plate made of yellow soil. For the production of small batches, it was enough, but for a large batch, it might have to work non-stop for 24 hours to be in time for the delivery. Therefore, two days ago, Yu Bing had already gotten someone to make two large ovens made of yellow soil in the empty space beside the window of the factory. They were already ready for use. Yu Bing divided the seven chefs into two groups. Because the egg yolk pastries needed to be roasted, the production process was relatively complicated. Therefore, three of them were in charge of making Snowflake Crisps, and four were in charge of the egg yolk pastries. There was no use for the disinfection room for the time being. Yu Bing also temporarily transferred the disinfection workers to the mobility team. The 11 workers helped the chefs do some chores. Yu Bing asked Xiao Sheng to bring Wu Qing to various places to buy salted egg yolks and eggs. The others could be bought from the supply company, but the supply company lacked salted egg yolks and eggs. Because Xiao Sheng had been in the black market for many years, he knew the production situation in many places very well. Therefore, Xiao Sheng negotiated first and asked Wu Qing to go to the designated place to get the goods. For this reason, the lack of cars became an important factor in limiting the development of the factory. The tractors in the village were mainly used for production, especially at this time. Yu Bing did not even dare to take the car out of the field for a long time. She had no choice but to ask Mr. Bai for help again. ¡°Hello, Mr. Bai!¡± Yu Bing knocked on the door. When she saw Mr. Bai looking over, she immediately put on her brightest smile. When begging people, one¡¯s attitude was very important! Mr. Bai glanced at Yu Bing and teased, ¡°I heard that ¡®Delicious Food Factory¡¯ has produced new products again. Recently, the most popular foods in the county has been your factory¡¯s products.¡± Yu Bing sat on the chair opposite Mr. Bai and said with a smile, ¡°It¡¯s alright. I brought a few products for you to try.¡± With that, she took out the latest three products from her bag and placed them on the table. Mr. Bai glanced at the food on the table and swallowed hard. Last time, his wife had bought some, but he had only eaten one piece. Now that he thought about it, he wanted more. People in inland cities had never eaten these specialties from islands around the sea, so it was understandable for Mr. Bai to crave for more. However, Mr. Bai knew that Yu Bing¡¯s things were not easy to get. She probably had something to ask for again. He resisted the urge to eat it and looked up at Yu Bing as he said slowly, ¡°Tell me, what¡¯s the matter this time?¡± Yu Bing did not want to be so direct. When she heard Mr. Bai expose her, she chuckled. ¡°Mr. Bai, I knew my intentions wouldn¡¯t be able to escape your notice!¡± It was never wrong to put in a good word for her first, especially when she needed help. However, Mr. Bai did not take the bait. He continued calmly, ¡°Don¡¯t give me that. Hurry up and spill the beans.¡± Yu Bing tapped the tip of her nose with her index finger and revealed a fawning smile. ¡°Mr. Bai, our village can take eliminated transport vehicles in the county.¡± When Mr. Bai heard that Yu Bing actually had designs on cars, he said angrily, ¡°No, there¡¯s none¡± Yu Bing knew that big ticket items had always been difficult to get. She did not have money. If she did, she would have gone to the car factory to buy a car! Yu Bing poured a glass of water for Mr. Bai ingratiatingly. ¡°Don¡¯t be like this, Mr. Bai. It¡¯s not easy for us to operate an experimental unit!¡± With that, she took out this list of orders from her bag. ¡°Look, in order not to jeopardize the pilot project you personally approved, I specifically asked someone to get orders. There are orders from 3 City H supply companies. If it can be settled, we can supply it every week! There are also some county orders. The waffles are delivered every other day. I¡¯m so busy that I really don¡¯t have no choice. Now that it¡¯s harvesting season, I don¡¯t dare to have any designs on the tractor in the village.¡± Then, Yu Bing said with a long face, ¡°If this continues, our factory will really have to travel at night in the future and carry poles to deliver goods! The county city is near, but if we go to the city to deliver goods, we¡¯ll really have to start leaving after dinner the day before!¡± Yu Bing was playing the pity card, so she pinched her thigh under the table and looked at Mr. Bai with teary eyes. When Mr. Bai heard Yu Bing¡¯s words, he was in a dilemma. They had the ability to operate the experimental unit properly, but now that the market had been opened, they were stuck in transportation. He could not just ignore their problems. Chapter 196 - 196 The Last Step 196 The Last Step After thinking for a moment, Mr. Bai looked up at Yu Bing. ¡°Yu Bing, it¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to help, but the county¡¯s transport trucks are indeed tight now. A few days ago, the director of the DMV came to me and said that he wanted to apply to buy an extra one, but the government doesn¡¯t have money now.¡± When Yu Bing saw Mr. Bai¡¯s expression, she guessed that what he said was true. She couldn¡¯t help but frown. If she had to cry to get what she wanted, so be it. ¡°Mr. Bai, can¡¯t we get eliminated cars from other places?¡± In a dilemma, Mr. Bai glanced at Yu Bing and said, ¡°It¡¯s very difficult. These are all important production tools. When there are obsolete cars in the city, every county will fight for them.¡± Yu Bing really had no choice but to rely on Mr. Bai. Yu Bing put away her slightly flippant expression and looked at Mr. Bai solemnly. ¡°Mr. Bai, the reason the village wants to sell to the supply and marketing club now is to stabilize our food factory¡¯s sales market. I told you before that I want to make the food factory a regular year-round production factory, so can we have our own transport vehicle? This plays a key role in stabilizing our market.¡± Mr. Bai pursed his lips and was silent for a moment. This experimental unit was very important, and Yu Bing had exceeded his expectations. Therefore, Mr. Bai knew that he had to think of a way to get the car. He couldn¡¯t screw up at the last step. ¡°Alright, you guys have already completed 99 steps. I¡¯ll take the last step.¡± With Mr. Bai¡¯s promise, Yu Bing heaved a sigh of relief. She knew that cars were difficult to get, so she didn¡¯t dare to make any more requests. As long as she could drive it, it was fine! Mr. Bai was very efficient and got it done within three days. He had found an old comrade from the city government and settled it. The car¡¯s exterior was relatively damaged, but the internal parts were fine. Yu Bing knew a lot about repairing cars. After the repair, she knew that the old comrade Mr. Bai had found was very reliable. Such a car condition was considered very good among eliminated cars. After the repair, it wouldn¡¯t be a problem to use it for more than ten years. Yu Bing thanked Mr. Bai repeatedly and took out the pickled vegetables she had marinated and small pastries to express her gratitude. Yu Bing drove back to the village happily. When the villagers saw the transport truck, they asked excitedly, ¡°Mr. Yu, is this our village¡¯s car?¡± Yu Bing slowed the car down and replied with a smile, ¡°Yes, this car will be used by our village¡¯s food factory in the future!¡± ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯re so amazing. You even know how to drive such a big car.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the big deal? Isn¡¯t it the same as a tractor?!¡± ¡°What do you know? Bicycles and tractors are also motors. Why don¡¯t people who know how to ride a bicycle know how to drive a tractor? They¡¯re different motors. They must have different driving methods.¡± ¡°What¡¯s there to argue about?! Pay attention.¡± Someone looked at the villagers who were arguing about cars in disdain. ¡°Then what should we pay attention to?¡± ¡°What does having a car for the food factory mean? It means that the factory is doing well now! Didn¡¯t Yu Bing just recruit the second batch of workers a while ago? Now, she¡¯s driving a new car back. This means that the things produced by our food factory must be selling well now.¡± ¡°In that case, they might be able to pay off the debt owed by the industrial chain this year and even give us some money!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right. Miss Yu is really impressive. This factory has only been open for two months, but it has already reached this scale.¡± Everyone started work with more motivation. Although they didn¡¯t become workers, the positive changes in the village due to the industrial chain made everyone admire Yu Bing¡¯s ability. When Yu Yan heard everyone¡¯s praise for Yu Bing, the jealousy in her heart began to spread again. As she watched Yu Bing leave, the corners of Yu Yan¡¯s mouth curled into an evil smile. Now that she was busy with work every day, she didn¡¯t have free time. However, soon, she would teach Yu Bing a lesson. It would be a thank-you gift from her as a sister. After all, if not for her, her mother wouldn¡¯t have come to the countryside and she wouldn¡¯t have had the chance to see her mother so quickly. Yu Bing didn¡¯t know that she had been targeted by some nefarious people again. She parked the car in the factory warehouse excitedly. They didn¡¯t have the money to install a door at the entrance to the factory courtyard yet. Yu Bing was worried that someone would target this car. It wasn¡¯t easy for her to get this car! Chapter 197 - 197 Long 197 Long-term Cooperation There were goods and a large car in the warehouse now, so Yu Bing started a shift and arranged for the seven male workers in the factory to take turns guarding it. This transport vehicle was considered a light truck. It was six meters long and could carry six tons of goods. It was enough for the current transportation requirements. However, only Yu Bing knew how to drive, so the heavy responsibility of transporting the goods fell on her. Considering that the factory was short of manpower, Yu Bing chose Wu Qing to go to the county¡¯s DMV to practice driving and get a permit. After the farming was done, the remaining people would go for training one after another. Yu Bing was confident that getting the light truck was only the beginning. She wanted to expand the factory and get an entire convoy! The production in the factory went smoothly. Although a batch of waffles had to be supplied every other day, they were only supplied to the county city at the moment. This was because after Yu Bing thought about it again and again, for safety reasons, she felt that it was better to wait until she obtained the orders from the unit in City Z and the supply company before starting to restore the supply for Xiao Sheng¡¯s side. At that time, as long as everyone took two hours off work the day before the supply, they could finish making waffles. After five days, the food factory had prepared all the goods requested by City H¡¯s supply company. Yu Bing and Feng Cai drove the goods to their destination. Yu Bing arrived at the first supply company. The person in charge, President Cen, was a woman in her fifties. She had short hair that reached her ears and a pair of thin black-framed glasses. The wrinkles on her forehead could be vaguely seen. When Cen Xi saw Yu Bing, she was a little surprised. She didn¡¯t expect the person-in-charge of the food factory to be such a young lady. After the two of them greeted each other, Cen Xi arranged for the employees to start unloading the goods. Yu Bing glanced at Cen Xi and took out a bamboo basket from the driver¡¯s seat. Then, Yu Bing walked towards Cen Xi and said with a smile, ¡°President Cen, this is a sample we gave away for free. Because it¡¯s a new variety, not many people know about it. You can use a plate to cut the sample into small pieces for everyone to try before deciding whether to buy it or not.¡± Cen Xi glanced at the food in the bamboo basket, but was in no hurry to take it. Cen Xi looked up at Yu Bing and asked, ¡°Do the other supply and marketing clubs have it?¡± At first glance, Yu Bing could tell that Cen Xi was an extremely attentive woman. Moreover, she was very upright. Such a person hated special treatment and cherished her reputation the most. Hence, she replied seriously, ¡°Yes, this is our factory¡¯s sales strategy. After all, consumers¡¯ money is all hard-earned, so we wanted to send some samples to the supply company to hold some sampling activities.¡± Cen Xi had worked with so many manufacturers before, but this was the first time she had seen someone as generous as Yu Bing. However, this wasn¡¯t foolish generosity. The value of these foods was insignificant compared to the benefits she would obtain after opening the market. Cen Xi originally looked down on Yu Bing since she was young, but now, because of this action, her impression of Yu Bing changed. Cen Xi reached out and handed the list to the chief of the sales department behind her. Then, she began to arrange work seriously. ¡°As the factory director said, arrange for the sampling.¡± The chief of the sales department immediately agreed. Cen Xi glanced at Yu Bing, who was half a head shorter than her. Up until now, she remained confident and calm. She was much more mature than people her age. Cen Xi couldn¡¯t help but think of her younger self. The expression on her face softened a little as she said calmly, ¡°Miss Yu, you¡¯re very confident in your products.¡± Yu Bing smiled confidently and said, ¡°I should have confidence!¡± After sending products to this place, Yu Bing said the same thing to the two remaining companies. Yu Bing wasn¡¯t afraid that no one would buy her products, but she was afraid that others wouldn¡¯t dare to try these new varieties and that it would delay the speed at which she opened the market. Two days later, someone called the village committee¡¯s office. ¡°Hello, He Mountain Brigade¡¯s village committee.¡± It was Mr. Wei who answered the phone. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m from City H¡¯s Anjian Road Supply and Marketing Club. I¡¯m the person in charge of the sales department. My surname is Liao.¡± A young man¡¯s voice sounded on the phone. When Mr. Wei heard that he was a customer of the factory, he immediately greeted him warmly, ¡°Hello, Mr. Liao! I¡¯m the accountant of the factory. Do you need to place an order?¡± ¡°Yes, we want to discuss a long-term cooperation.¡± Mr. Wei smiled from ear to ear when he heard this. ¡°Alright, please wait a moment. What¡¯s your current number? I¡¯ll get our Section Chief Mr. Feng to call back later.¡± The other party gave Mr. Wei a number and agreed to call back in half an hour. Chapter 198 - 198 Sign Up 198 Sign Up Mr. Wei swept all the ledgers on the table into the drawer. After locking them, he immediately ran to the factory. When Yu Bing found out that the three supply and marketing clubs were going to discuss long-term cooperation, she was also overjoyed! This was a provincial capital city. Previously, she felt that her products would definitely enter the market, but having it come true felt completely different! Yu Bing felt that the fact that she could get feedback so quickly this time definitely had something to do with them sampling the food. She decided to follow this strategy every time she went to new customers in the future. After all, how could there be no bait when one was trying to fish?! When Feng Cai heard that they were going to discuss a long-term collaboration, he was very nervous. Usually, sales contracts were signed for a year. To the food factory, this was really a big order. Therefore, he was very worried that the other party would bargain too much. He was also afraid that he wouldn¡¯t be able to get the order if he insisted on not lowering the price, so he found Yu Bing and asked her to go with him. Yu Bing felt that Feng Cai simply lacked experience and wasn¡¯t incompetent, so she encouraged him, ¡°How many orders have you obtained? You have to believe in yourself! If you weren¡¯t suitable, I would have replaced you and demoted you to an ordinary worker in the past few months.¡± Although Yu Bing said this, Feng Cai was still a little nervous. ¡°These are all big clients. If the negotiation is successful, we can¡¯t stop production for the entire year. If the negotiation fails, I¡¯ll become a sinner in the factory.¡± After saying that, he felt depressed again and said helplessly, ¡°I¡¯m worried that I can¡¯t get it done. How can you be so confident?¡± Yu Bing burst out laughing. She actually understood Feng Cai¡¯s thoughts. She was the same when she first went to negotiate with a big client. ¡°Isn¡¯t my confidence in you a good thing? This is the first time, so it¡¯s normal that you¡¯re nervous. Just show your usual performance. Besides, is it that you don¡¯t have confidence in yourself or our products?¡± ¡°The year-end bonus of the supply and marketing club is related to their performance. They also hope to get these popular products from our factory. Otherwise, if other supply and marketing clubs have them but they don¡¯t, wouldn¡¯t they lose customers?¡± When Feng Cai heard Yu Bing¡¯s words, he thought about it and felt that it made sense. There were a total of five supply and marketing clubs in City H. Feng Cai had also been to the other two. However, when the other party heard that it was an unknown rural food factory, they rejected Feng Cai without even giving him a chance to taste it. Now, the reputation of these two snacks was slowly spreading in the city, so they found out about the He Mountain Brigade¡¯s number from somewhere and called. The person who answered the call was still Mr. Wei. Because Feng Cai had already set off for the city, after knowing that the other party also wanted to discuss cooperation, Mr. Wei hurriedly called Yu Bing over. In an era where transportation and communication were inconvenient, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t contact Feng Cai, so she could only give him Feng Cai¡¯s home address. Seeing this situation, Yu Bing decided to hire a full-time accountant. Otherwise, it wasn¡¯t a good idea to keep making Mr. Wei run from the village committee to the factory. With more and more things to do, she felt that the white hair on Mr. Wei¡¯s head was increasing. Moreover, the better the business in the factory, the larger the number would become, and the accounts would be more difficult to match. She had to find an accountant who specialized in managing the accounts in the factory. After Yu Bing discussed it with Mr. Wei, she decided to start recruiting. While the factory wasn¡¯t busy yet, Mr. Wei had time to help train new workers. Because she was only recruiting one person, Yu Bing didn¡¯t post any more notices. Instead, she chose to let Wu Jin broadcast it directly in the village. This time, the requirement was that they had to have high school-level education. However, not many people in the village had graduated from high school. Even among the intellectuals, only more than half of them had completed all their high school studies. It was unknown if their grades were good. The position of finance manager was very important. One had to be able to write and calculate. One had to be levelheaded, meticulous, and strict. One had to be responsible and couldn¡¯t embezzle! Yu Bing decided to expand the scope to include a few other villages in the Fengtou Mountain Commune. She had to find a person truly suitable for the position. Otherwise, she could only tire Mr. Wei out for a while longer. Because it involved other villages, the registration time was extended to five days this time. ¡°Mom, I¡¯m going to the mountain to collect firewood.¡± A woman with gray hair and a weathered face said to an old lady who was lying down and smoking leisurely. The old lady agreed. Then, the woman carried a bamboo basket and walked out the door. Today was her day off, and it was also the last day of registration for the accounting post of the He Mountain Brigade¡¯s food factory. After the woman left, she went straight to the He Mountain Brigade. Seeing that Jiang Chun was about to get up and leave, she hurriedly ran forward and asked anxiously, ¡°Hello, is it too late for me to sign up now?¡± Chapter 199 - 199 I Want to Schedule Class 199 I Want to Schedule Class Jiang Chun glanced at the woman and felt that she was almost 40 years old. However, she could still tell that she must have been a beauty when she was young. Unfortunately, she seemed very haggard now. However, her eyes were looking at her with eagerness. Jiang Chun couldn¡¯t bear to see her like this and replied, ¡°Hello, there¡¯s still time, but the age limit is 32 years old. I¡¯m afraid you¡¯re a little too old.¡± The woman was stunned. Then, she forced a stiff smile as she looked at Jiang Chun. ¡°I¡¯m 30 years old this year.¡± When Jiang Chun heard this, she wished she could find a hole to hide in. She said awkwardly, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, my eyesight isn¡¯t good.¡± With that, she hurriedly handed over a registration form. The woman lowered her eyes and shook her head with a smile. After taking the form, she placed the basket aside and sat on the stool to pick up a fountain pen. She froze for a few seconds before starting to write. It had been ten years already. She could no longer remember the feeling of holding a pen. Only after writing two words did she regain her memories and started writing smoothly. When Jiang Chun saw the woman sitting upright and writing, she suddenly felt that she seemed elegant and refined at this moment. She looked like the lady on an antique vase she had seen at her grandparents¡¯ house when she was young. She no longer seemed like the woman with the weathered face from before. At this moment, Yu Bing came out of the factory and saw the woman at the registration office. Her eyes widened slightly. ¡°Wen Qina€|¡± After the woman handed the registration form to Jiang Chun, she stood up and left the factory with a calm expression. Yu Bing walked forward and glanced at the words on the registration form. The words looked elegant, and one could see the writer¡¯s personality from the handwriting. When Jiang Chun turned around and saw Yu Bing, she couldn¡¯t help but sigh with marvel, ¡°She¡¯s one of the first batches of intellectuals to come to the countryside, and she¡¯s from the capital. Her handwriting is so beautiful!¡± Yu Bing nodded. Yes, her handwriting was really beautiful. Thinking of her future, Yu Bing felt a little melancholic. She felt sorrowful for Wen Qin and for the young man who had saved her life. At this moment, Yu Bing suddenly wanted to hire Wen Qin directly. However, when she thought of her identity, she felt that she might not be helping her but harming her by doing this. Forget it, she would take it one step at a time. The registration ended. Although there was only one position, there were still many people who came to sign up. In the end, 128 came. It was quite cutthroat. On the other side, people began to sign up for classes. There were only a few topics that they could hold classes on. If others came up with them first, the intellectual would have to think of different topics. However, when teaching students who didn¡¯t have any learning experience, they had to investigate the types of knowledge the villagers needed first and learn the textbooks to make lesson plans, so that the villagers could really learn them. Therefore, no one came to report to Yu Bing even after a long time. Yu Bing never expected that the first person to sign up would be Yu Yan. Yu Yan found Yu Bing in the factory¡¯s office. Yu Bing sat in the office while she had to do farm work all day long, so there was a hint of indignance in her tone as she said impatiently, ¡°I want to schedule classes.¡± Yu Bing was looking at the registration form for this batch. When she heard this, she didn¡¯t respond and continued to flip through it. Seeing this, Yu Yan couldn¡¯t help but raise her voice. ¡°Yu Bing, I¡¯m talking to you!¡± This time, Yu Bing raised her head and looked at Yu Yan. ¡°Oh, you were talking to me just now. I thought you were talking to the air, so I didn¡¯t disturb you.¡± Yu Yan didn¡¯t even know how to greet others properly. Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t tolerate this. Yu Yan was about to flare up, but then she thought about it and suppressed her anger. She was still counting on Yu Bing to help her arrange her classes, so she forced a smile. ¡°Yu Bing, I want to arrange classes.¡± Yu Bing repeated, ¡°You want to schedule classes? I think I said that it¡¯s not a matter of whether you want to or not, but whether your lesson plan can pass.¡± Of course, Yu Yan remembered the class scheduling requirements. It was just that she didn¡¯t want to beg Yu Bing, but now, she had no choice but to endure it. She took a deep breath to suppress her anger before saying, ¡°I¡¯ve already prepared the lesson. I plan to teach them how to prevent pests from planting. I¡¯ve already found the book. This is my lesson plan.¡± With that, Yu Yan took out a notebook from her bag and placed it on the table. Yu Bing picked it up and flipped it open. She realized that it was clearly plagiarized. If the villagers asked a few questions, Yu Yan probably wouldn¡¯t be able to answer. Chapter 200 - 200 Bringing The Plan Forward 200 Bringing The Plan Forward Yu Bing raised her head and said to Yan, ¡°Bring out the original book. I want to confirm if the lesson plan you gave me was summarized or copied.¡± Yu Yan copied most of it, but there was a simple summary or two written at the end of every paragraph. Hence, she said confidently, ¡°I didn¡¯t bring the book. I summarized it. Moreover, what do you mean by copying? What I¡¯m teaching is the contents of the book. If this is considered copying, why don¡¯t you just ask me to write a textbook myself?¡± Yu Bing snorted. ¡°If you don¡¯t know how to write a lesson plan, ask other people. What¡¯s the difference between a lesson plan like yours and me reading it from the book?! Who doesn¡¯t know how to read? If a teacher¡¯s role is only to read according to the book, then it¡¯s no different from letting a student self-study. Go back and prepare another lesson!¡± The reason why students were students was that they didn¡¯t have enough knowledge. They could understand words, but they couldn¡¯t connect the dots. At this time, the teacher was like a converter. After understanding the obscure things in the book, the teacher would describe them in plain language. Yu Bing knew that Yu Yan just wanted to relax for a few days, but she had to be responsible for the villagers! She sincerely hoped that the villagers could benefit from this and improve their lives by increasing production. She also hoped that the intellectuals could take advantage of this opportunity to freshen up their knowledge and rest at least once a month. This was a win-win situation! Yu Yan didn¡¯t intend to look at other people¡¯s teaching plans and humbly ask for advice. She just assumed that Yu Bing was deliberately targeting her. When she saw Yu Bing reject her directly, she didn¡¯t intend to pretend anymore. She slapped the wooden table and shouted, ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯re using your position to take revenge!¡± Yu Bing smiled when she heard this. Seeing Yu Yan¡¯s exasperated expression, she teased, ¡°You think we enmity? I¡¯m quite confused. Tell me, what grudge do you have against me?¡± In Yu Yan¡¯s mind, Yu Bing should be played like a fool. Yu Bing owed her this! However, now, Yu Bing was toying with her. Although Yu Yan had never had the upper hand, Yu Bing¡¯s naked disdain made Yu Yan decide to bring the plan forward! Yu Yan didn¡¯t say anything else to Yu Bing. She took her notebook and glared at Yu Bing fiercely. The hatred in her eyes was obvious. Then, she turned around and left. As Yu Bing looked at Yu Yan¡¯s departing figure, she couldn¡¯t help but roll her eyes. Then, she returned to work. Because the written test was set for the day after tomorrow, Yu Bing had to finish the questions tonight. The accounting position was different from the other positions. Moreover, there was no specialized accounting course in the current full-time school. Almost all the new accountants were taught by the old accountants. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t come up with accounting questions from the future. She could only test the other party¡¯s meticulousness and overall learning ability when coming up with the test questions. The workers on duty at night would come to the factory at eight o¡¯clock. Because Yu Bing was worried about the goods and the car in the warehouse, she had been the one guarding the vacancies during the shift. The workers arrived at the factory at eight o¡¯clock on time, but because Yu Bing had yet to finish the questions, they stayed in the factory until eight-thirty. Yu Bing took out a fruit candy from her pocket and put it in her mouth. Then, she prepared to go home from the small path. There was a small path from the factory to the end of the village. This path could save Yu Bing half the time, so she chose to take a shortcut every time she returned home from the factory. Yu Yan had followed Yu Bing for a few days, so she naturally discovered this pattern. Usually, Yu Bing would come out of the factory at eight o¡¯clock sharp. Today, she was half an hour late, causing her to squat in the grass for a long time and be bitten by a few small insects. Yu Yan blamed all of this on Yu Bing! If she didn¡¯t have to get revenge on her, she wouldn¡¯t have suffered so much! At this moment, Yu Yan quietly followed behind Yu Bing. She wanted to push Yu Bing into the small pond she passed by when she was about to reach home! It was May, so the temperature was still a little cold at night. Yu Yan planned to let Yu Bing soak in cold water! Seeing that they were getting closer and closer to their destination, Yu Yan secretly approached Yu Bing with a scarf around her head. At this moment, Yu Bing was still thinking about which questions she had to change and didn¡¯t notice that someone was following her. Yu Yan was also a little nervous. There were still three steps left! 3 steps, 2 steps, 1 step! Yu Yan¡¯s hand was already on Yu Bing¡¯s shoulder! Chapter 201 - 201 The Culprit Complains First 201 The Culprit Complains First A pair of thin and long hands immediately pressed Yu Yan¡¯s right hand tightly. Before Yu Yan could react, Yu Bing quickly turned to the side far away from the pond and pushed her hard. Plop! Yu Yan was caught off guard and fell into the water. Her scarf floated on the surface of the water. Under the moonlight, Yu Bing saw who had ambushed her. ¡°Yu Yan!¡± Seeing that the matter had been exposed, Yu Yan immediately changed her mind. She flailed up and down in the water, as if she didn¡¯t know how to swim. She blamed Yu Bing, ¡°I just wanted to pat you and say hello. What are you doing?! Hurry up and save me. I don¡¯t know how to swim!¡± Yu Bing sneered. Not only did Yu Yan know how to swim, but she was also extraordinarily good at it. Yu Yan realized that her plan had failed, but she wouldn¡¯t give up until she dragged Yu Bing down! Yu Bing calmly broke a thin branch from the tree trunk beside her and poked it into the water. She pushed Yu Yan, who was about to reach the shore, closer to the center of the pond. A smile appeared on her lips. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m not good at swimming.¡± Seeing this, Yu Yan knew that Yu Bing didn¡¯t believe her at all, so she began to distort the truth in an attempt to defame Yu Bing. She shouted, ¡°Help! Help! Yu Bing is trying to kill me!¡± This path had never been taken by many people, and this place was close to the edge of the village. At this time, it was even more deserted. Yu Bing watched as Yu Yan swam towards the shore with all her might and poked her a few more times. She asked sarcastically, ¡°Are you shouting for a ghost? Didn¡¯t you choose this place because there¡¯s no one here?¡± Yu Yan was wearing thin clothes, and her skin was delicate. Yu Bing poking her enraged her. ¡°Yu Bing, stop! I dare you to try poking me again!¡± As she spoke, she grabbed a tree branch with one hand and tried to pull Yu Bing into the water. Yu Bing looked down from the shore and deliberately stood a little further away from the shore. How could Yu Yan resist the tree branch with one hand? She revealed a mischievous smile. ¡°Your class schedule is not good. I can¡¯t agree to your class schedule, but now that you¡¯ve made another request, I¡¯m too embarrassed to refuse!¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she was exasperated but helpless in the water. She could only dodge. Unfortunately, Yu Bing¡¯s attack range was wide. Yu Yan had no choice but to beg for mercy. ¡°I was wrong. Stop hitting me!¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she hit Yu Yan a few more times with the branch before stopping. ¡°What did you do wrong?¡± Yu Yan finally heaved a sigh of relief, but then she said stubbornly, ¡°I just wanted to scare you. I didn¡¯t scare you, but you still pushed me into the water instead!¡± Yu Bing was so angry that she laughed. With the two of them here, Yu Yan was still pushing the blame on her. ¡°Stop playing word games with me! If I don¡¯t push you, should I wait for myself to be pushed by you?¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she rolled her eyes. Yu Bing should have stood there and let her push her! ¡°Alright, you¡¯re still unwilling to admit your mistake, right?¡± Seeing that Yu Yan had no intention of repenting, Yu Bing picked up the branch and hit Yu Yan again. Yu Yan felt that her hand was about to swell from the slap. Seeing that Yu Bing insisted on seeking justice, she couldn¡¯t be bothered to be stubborn anymore and hurriedly shouted, ¡°I was wrong. I shouldn¡¯t have resented you for not accepting my lesson plan! I shouldn¡¯t have taken revenge on you! Is that enough?¡± This was the first time Yu Bing had seen such a disheveled Yu Yan. She felt delighted and said to Yu Yan fiercely, ¡°If you dare to play any tricks again, I¡¯ll let you experience what it means to be criticized by the public! You¡¯ve already seen a lot of my methods. You¡¯d better believe that I¡¯ll do what I say!¡± Yu Yan thought of the losses she had suffered the previous few times and avoided eye contact. Yu Bing wanted to beat her up. After soaking in the water for so long, when the cold wind blew, Yu Yan would probably catch a cold and fever. Seeing Yu Yan¡¯s timid expression, Yu Yan knew that after this incident, Yu Yan would definitely keep a low profile for a while. Only then did she throw away the branch in her hand and walk home while humming a tune. At this moment, Yu Yan couldn¡¯t care less about revenge. She hurriedly swam to the shore to climb up. Only then did she realize that after being in the water for so long, she didn¡¯t have much strength left. After trying for a long time, she still didn¡¯t manage to climb up the shore. At this moment, a pair of thick palms appeared in front of Yu Yan. Yu Yan looked up and realized that it was Yao Nian. Chapter 202 - 202 Playing Dirty 202 Playing Dirty Yao Nian had actually long discovered Yu Yan¡¯s sneaky figure. He had been following behind her to see what she was up to. Because he didn¡¯t dare to follow too closely, he only saw Yu Yan put her hand on Yu Bing¡¯s shoulder and get pushed down. Then, Yu Yan shouted for help. Because their voices were too soft when they were talking, he didn¡¯t hear anything else. Initially, Yao Nian thought that the two of them had a conflict and planned to go forward to counsel them. After all, one was his confidant and the other was his fianc¨¦e. Yao Nian hoped that the two of them could get along well. This way, it would be convenient for him to continue dating his soulmate after he got married. However, when Yao Nian saw how ruthless Yu Bing was with the tree branch, he scurried back into the grass to hide since he was afraid that he would be implicated! At this moment, Yu Bing had left, so it was naturally his chance to appear. Yao Nian pretended not to know anything and asked with feigned shock, ¡°Yu Yan, why did you fall into the pond?¡± Yu Yan hurriedly grabbed Yao Nian¡¯s hand, then Yao Nian pulled her ashore. With Yu Yan¡¯s white shirt drenched, it outlined her figure perfectly. She had lived a pampered life since she was young, so she was very curvy and well endowed. In addition, the hazy moonlight made Yu Yan look drenched and disheveled, but also delicate and fragile. Yao Nian noticed that the top buttons of Yu Yan¡¯s shirt had already fallen off when she struggled in the water just now. Her plump breasts were exposed and this sight tantalized Yao Nian. He felt very horny at this moment. He couldn¡¯t help but hug Yu Yan tightly. Panting heavily, he stared at her slightly pale face as he said, ¡°Yu Yan, you¡¯re so beautiful!¡± In this era, people were still very conservative. They were too shy to mention things like sex. Although people advocated free love, before marriage, young people would only hold hands at most. Yao Nian had never seen such a scene, let alone experienced it. Yu Yan was shocked by Yao Nian¡¯s sudden hug. When she came back to her senses, she struggled vigorously. ¡°Yao Nian, let go of me!¡± As Yao Nian looked at Yu Yan¡¯s rosy lips, he forgot all about Yu Bing. He held Yu Yan¡¯s head in place with his hand and kissed her fiercely. Yu Yan had already used up all her strength, so she was no match for a grown man. Yao Nian sucked on Yu Yan¡¯s lips and tongue repeatedly. Yu Yan felt her mind go blank and she was completely helpless as Yao Nian did whatever he wanted. She only came back to her senses when Yao Nian rubbed her breast. After she raised her foot and stomped down hard, Yao Nian let go in pain. Yu Yan used the last of her strength to push Yao Nian away and ran away without looking back. Only then did Yao Nian come back to his senses. He stared at Yu Yan¡¯s back figure with joy and fear. He was happy that he had made out with a woman. Although it was brief, it was enough for a man who had never had sex to savor for a long time. However, he was afraid that Yu Yan would report him. In this era, it was even possible for him to be executed for it. However, in this era, most women who encountered such things didn¡¯t dare to make a big deal out of it. Otherwise, even if the man was arrested, the woman¡¯s reputation would be ruined, because only a few men wouldn¡¯t mind that their future wife had encountered such a thing. After thinking about it, Yao Nian became relieved. On the other side, Yu Yan, who had returned to the dormitory, was still in shock. She sat on the bed in a daze. When she thought of what Yao Nian had done to her, her heart almost jumped to her throat! Xu Ling went to another dormitory. When she returned, she saw Yu Yan drenched. The two of them had fallen out, so she went to bed without asking. When Yu Yan heard the door close, she came back to her senses and hurriedly took her clothes to wash up. After the lights were off at night, the image of Yao Nian hugging and kissing her kept appearing in Yu Yan¡¯s mind. The warm touch of his body was still so vivid. Yu Yan felt very ashamed. When she thought of how she had been intimate with a man other than her husband before she got married, she felt very terrified. She was afraid that her future husband would despise her, and she was even more afraid that he would think that she was shameless and publicize this matter to everyone. Yu Yan fell asleep with all sorts of worries. Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect such drama to happen after she left. She arranged to print the test papers and started the writting test for the accountant position. When she saw Wen Qin get first place with full marks, Yu Bing heaved a sigh of relief. With such outstanding results, Yu Bing felt less pressure. The next day was the final interview. Because the results would be announced on the spot, a few applicants waited silently on the other side after the second round. Chapter 203 - 203 Fighting for the Spot 203 Fighting for the Spot Yu Bing was arguing with the village chief, Wu Jin, the female director, Zhao Lin, and Mr. Wei to help Wen Qin fight for the spot. ¡°Yu Bing, she¡¯s the eldest daughter of a capitalist! She came to the countryside to do labor and understand what farmers¡¯ lives are like. We came to change her mindset of capitalist exploitation, not let her sit in the office comfortably. How can we change her mentality if she gets an office position?¡± Mr. Wei was very opposed to this. Yu Bing didn¡¯t argue head-on. She asked from another angle, ¡°Mr. Wei, putting this aside, based on the two interviews, isn¡¯t Wen Qin the best?¡± Mr. Wei paused for a moment before answering, ¡°I won¡¯t deny that she¡¯s outstanding, but no matter how outstanding she is, we have to consider her family¡¯s problems. I¡¯m doing this for the sake of the factory. If we recruit such an employee, once the higher-ups pursue the matter, if we¡¯re detained for having political problems, we¡¯ll be doomed!¡± Zhao Lin couldn¡¯t help but nod when she heard this. Wu Jin remained silent. Yu Bing knew that there would be a lot of resistance, but she still wanted to give it a try. Wen Qin was really talented. In the interview just now, she completely displayed her sensitivity to numbers and her cautious personality. Wasn¡¯t she the perfect candidate to be an accountant? Yu Bing wanted to repay the kindness of the stubborn youth in Wen Qin¡¯s stomach. Although Wen Qin¡¯s stomach didn¡¯t show, her occasional nauseating reaction attracted Yu Bing¡¯s attention. She calculated the youth¡¯s age and guessed that he was probably already in her stomach. A major reason that the young man died early was that Wen Qin was overworked when she was pregnant, causing him to be extremely weak at birth. Later on, because their family was poor, the young man didn¡¯t recuperate well and was malnourished. In this life, because of Yu Bing¡¯s rebirth and the food factory in the village, Wen Qin actually appeared in front of her in advance. In that case, Yu Bing naturally hoped that she could help to repay him for saving her life. Family problems were a big problem. Yu Bing knew that she couldn¡¯t avoid it and chose to respond directly. She recalled the information from her previous life and replied, ¡°As far as I know, although the Wen family was once a capitalist, they also donated a lot of family assets in the later stages of the war. This means that the Wen family supports the workers¡¯ and farmers¡¯ movement. They are different from the shady capitalists who exploit the people at the bottom! The reason she came is the same as us ordinary intellectuals. She came as a city dweller and responded to the call of the country to build a village. At the same time, she wants to forget the capital exploitation education she had once received. She didn¡¯t come to the countryside as a sinner!¡± ¡°Leaders, we have to differentiate clearly! Moreover, she has been here for eight years. She¡¯s one of the earliest batches. Look at her. She¡¯s completely the same as ordinary rural women. She¡¯s already integrated into our people. Isn¡¯t this transformation thorough?¡± Everyone turned to look at Wen Qin. She no longer seemed like a city dweller. Her face was covered in scars, and her hands were dry and callused. She was as thin as a bamboo pole. Zhao Lin sighed. ¡°To be fair, I think Wen Qin is a good candidate. My sister married into Wen Qin¡¯s village. Wen Qin married Sun Guo less than half a year after she came. Sun Guo is blind and his hand is broken, so he can¡¯t do heavy work. There¡¯s only an old mother in her sixties at home. Wen Qin does all the dirty work. The Sun family is supported by the work points Wen Qin earns.¡± When Yu Bing heard Zhao Lin¡¯s evaluation, she heaved a sigh of relief and hurriedly said, ¡°If Wen Qin is willing to get married in the countryside, it means that she has taken root in the countryside. With the Sun family¡¯s poverty, I think it¡¯s very appropriate for us to give Wen Qin an opportunity. We¡¯re doing this factory in the hope of bringing better economic benefits to the village and allowing the villagers¡¯ quality of life to improve qualitatively. Although Wen Qin isn¡¯t from our village, choosing the best will help our factory develop better. Talent is very important!¡± Yu Bing had already said everything she could. The rest would depend on luck. Wu Jin had the same considerations as Mr. Wei. After all, there was a big difference between helping in private and putting it on the table. However, Yu Bing¡¯s words hit the nail on the head. As an ordinary intellectual, even if Wen Qin¡¯s family wasn¡¯t that good, it wasn¡¯t unreasonable for her to work as an accountant. Moreover, the higher-ups were not so strict about this anymore. Wu Jin was unwilling to give up on such a good candidate. Chapter 204 - 204 Madam Sun 204 Madam Sun Wu Jin expressed his opinion. In the end, the vote was three to one, allowing Wen Qin to successfully get hired. As Wen Qin walked home, she still felt that it was unbelievable. She had really gotten chosen! ¡°Mom!¡± A six-year-old boy at the village entrance shouted happily when he saw Wen Qin. When Wen Qin saw her son, a smile appeared on her face. ¡°Xiao Hui, I got chosen!¡± Xiao Hui smiled widely. ¡°Mom, you¡¯re so impressive!¡± Wen Qin saw the two baskets beside her son. One was firewood that Wen Qin had gone up the mountain to chop before the interview, and the other was wild vegetables that Xiao Hui had picked in the afternoon. ¡°Xiao Hui, it¡¯s been hard on you.¡± Xiao Hui shook his head and carried the small basket containing wild vegetables. ¡°Mom, let¡¯s go back quickly. Otherwise, Grandma will hit you again.¡± The moment Xiao Hui lowered his head to pick up the things, Wen Qin smiled mockingly. Whether or not she would be allowed to go to work was the most important obstacle to overcome. After dinner that night, Wen Qin mentioned to her mother-in-law and husband that she had successfully applied for the position of accountant in He Mountain Brigade¡¯s food factory. When her mother-in-law found out that Wen Qin had secretly gone to the neighboring village to apply for a job without a word, her first reaction was to pick up the copper pipe beside her and hit Wen Qin. Wen Qin quickly said, ¡°My monthly salary is 15 yuan. My work points will be 5 points a day!¡± When Madam Sun heard this, she paused and narrowed her eyes as she stared at Wen Qin. ¡°You can get half of the work points and a salary?¡± Wen Qin glanced at her mother-in-law and nodded. Madam Sun took a puff of her cigarette. After a moment, she slowly said, ¡°You¡¯re getting bolder and bolder. You actually dared to secretly run to another village to apply for a job. Kneel.¡± Wen Qin clenched her fists, then let go and slowly knelt in front of Madam Sun. Sun Guo sat beside Madam Sun with a blank expression. He also rolled up some tobacco and smoked. Even when he saw Madam Sun making things difficult for his wife, he didn¡¯t react. He only stared out the door in a daze. When Xiao Hui saw his mother kneel down, his eyes turned red with anxiety, but he didn¡¯t dare to help his mother plead for leniency with Madam Sun. From his past experience, his plea would only let his mother escape this calamity at this moment. In the future, she would be treated even worse. When Madam Sun saw that everyone in the room was under her control, she narrowed her eyes and hummed a tune proudly. After half an hour, Madam Sun looked at Wen Qin, who was kneeling on the ground without daring to move. She felt very pleased. So what if she was the daughter of a rich family? So what if she was beautiful and talented? She still had to listen to her orders obediently. Madam Sun glanced at Wen Qin from the corner of her eye. ¡°Do you know what you did wrong?¡± Wen Qin lowered her eyes with a blank expression. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have applied for a job at the food factory.¡± Madam Sun nodded in satisfaction. ¡°It¡¯s good that you know. If you do it again, don¡¯t blame me for being ruthless.¡± With that, Madam Sun hit Wen Qin¡¯s arm with a cigarette stick as she said coldly, ¡°The food factory gets off work at six o¡¯clock. After work, you have to come back in half an hour. If you exceed this time, don¡¯t even think about working again! If you dare to stay outside and seduce other men, I¡¯ll beat you to death! Also, you¡¯re not allowed to shirk doing chores at home!¡± When Wen Qin heard that she could go out to work, she heaved a sigh of relief. Although she had only been given half an hour, there was still enough time for her to jog back. She replied in a low voice, ¡°I understand.¡± Only then did Madam Sun let Wen Qin get up. Then, she instructed her to work while she wandered to the liveliest place in the village to chat. The sky had just lit up when Wen Qin woke up. After working for an hour or two, she finally finished cleaning the house. Just as she was about to leave, she was stopped by Madam Sun. ¡°Wait.¡± As usual, Yu Bing arrived at the food factory a little early. As soon as she arrived, Wen Qin arrived at the entrance of the food factory. After Yu Bing registered Wen Qin, she let Mr. Wei watch over her. The position of an accountant was different from other positions. Even though Yu Bing wanted to help, she still specified a probation period of half a month. After confirming that Wen Qin could really take on this job in the factory, she would give her a promotion. After all, official matters had to be handled properly. Chapter 205 - 205 Looking for Her 205 Looking for Her On the other side, Feng Cai, who had just arrived in City H, had also returned home. He saw that the room Feng Xian originally lived in had two rooms separated by boards. Feng Cai entered the room and walked around. The original room wasn¡¯t very big. Now that it had been divided into two, only a single bed and a small closet could be placed in one room. He sneered. ¡°She really went all out for Feng Xian. She actually came up with this idea!¡± As Madam Feng held her grandson¡¯s hand, she said with a smile, ¡°It¡¯s just a place to sleep. It¡¯s enough.¡± Feng Cai knew that Madam Feng didn¡¯t want to see him fall out with his family. Although the room was a little small, he had achieved his goal, so he didn¡¯t say anything else. At night, the family gathered around for dinner. When Mr. Feng found out that Feng Cai¡¯s food factory was doing well, he was very happy. He couldn¡¯t help but drink two more glasses, but he still put on a serious expression as he said, ¡°Work hard. Although you¡¯re just a salesperson in the factory, there¡¯s a lot of room for improvement!¡± Feng Cai didn¡¯t explain his position. After all, he was only a one-man band at the moment and was no different from an ordinary salesperson. Lin Lin looked at Feng Cai, who could go home more frequently recently, and felt a little indignant. If he went to the countryside, he should stay there. Why did he keep running back to the city?! However, when she heard Mr. Feng¡¯s words, the smile on Lin Lin¡¯s face became more sincere. He was just a mere salesperson. This stepson she had purposely indulged into a good-for-nothing couldn¡¯t surpass her biological son! Lin Lin couldn¡¯t bear to let her son go to the countryside. She couldn¡¯t even bear to let him enter a factory to work. Therefore, she had recently gotten to know the wife of the chief of the supply company¡¯s purchasing department through her connections. She wanted to maintain this relationship for two years. In addition, with the money she had saved now, when Feng Xian became an adult, she would make him stay in the city to work in an office even if she had to spend all this money. Thinking of how Feng Cai might have to bow down to her son to distribute the goods for the food factory, Lin Lin immediately felt that even the food in her mouth tasted better. The next day, Feng Cai left early and returned late. He went to two supply and marketing clubs and brought the tasty purple yam cakes and waffles from the factory to promote them. He successfully increased the number of long-term contracts from two to four. He planned to visit the last one tomorrow. The next morning, the Feng family had just woken up and were eating breakfast around the table. ¡°Knock knock¡± There was a knock on the door. Lin Lin happened to get up and go to the kitchen to get porridge, so she opened the door. When she saw the man in his early thirties in a tunic suit outside the door, Lin Lin greeted him in surprise, ¡°Mr. Wu!¡± Wu Tian, who was outside the door, looked at Lin Lin in confusion. ¡°You are?¡± Lin Lin smiled and introduced herself. ¡°My name is Lin Lin. We met once when Jiang Xin and I were shopping last month.¡± Jiang Xin was Wu Tian¡¯s wife. When Wu Tian heard this, he tried to recall but couldn¡¯t remember. However, he pretended to look enlightened, as if he remembered. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s Sister Lin. This¡­ this is your house?¡± Wu Tian looked down at the address in his hand and checked the room number at the door. ¡°This address should be correct.¡± Wu Tian was the chief of the supply company¡¯s procurement department and whom Lin Lin wanted to establish connections with for Feng Xian¡¯s future job. When she saw Wu Tian looking for someone, Lin Lin thought that he had found the wrong place. After all, she didn¡¯t think that anyone in the Feng family would know Wu Tian. It wasn¡¯t easy for her to get a chance, so Lin Lin wanted to show off. ¡°Mr. Wu, there¡¯s no one in this neighborhood that I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ll give you directions. Who are you looking for?¡± Wu Tian heaved a sigh of relief when he heard this. Recently, three supply and marketing clubs had recommended two new products. Many people traveled far just to buy them. Later, Chief Liao asked around and found out that it was actually Feng Cai, who had come to visit Wu Tian some time ago to promote the food factory in the village. The president had given Wu Tian a strict order to contact the supplier immediately, so he specifically came over early in the morning to look for Feng Cai. ¡°I want to look for Feng Cai. Is this Chief Feng¡¯s house?¡± When Lin Lin heard this form of address, she subconsciously raised her voice. ¡°Chief Feng?¡± When Feng Cai heard his name, he stood up and walked towards the door. When he saw Wu Tian, Feng Cai immediately recognized him as the person-in-charge of the An Jianlu Supply and Marketing Club¡¯s procurement department. He went forward and greeted, ¡°Hello, Mr. Wu.¡± When Wu Tian saw Feng Cai, he no longer had his previous arrogant attitude. He took the initiative to reach out and hold Feng Cai¡¯s hand. ¡°Good morning, Chief Feng.¡± When Feng Cai saw the other party¡¯s attitude, he guessed the reason. He smiled and asked despite knowing the answer, ¡°Good morning, Chief Wu. What brings you all the way to my house?¡± Chapter 206 - 206 Showing Off 206 Showing Off Wu Tian seemed to have forgotten his impatient attitude on that day. He smiled very amiably and said, ¡°I thought about it. The two food products from your factory are quite novel. I rejected your offer that day out of caution. After all, it¡¯s a new product, so we had to discuss it internally.¡± Although his attitude made Feng Cai very unhappy that day, when he heard the other party¡¯s polite words, he cooperated and said, ¡°It¡¯s only right to be cautious. We established cooperations with other supply and marketing clubs later, and the feedback was quite good. Chief Wu, since you came to look for me, you must have already discussed it with them and come to a conclusion.¡± Wu Tian smiled and said, ¡°There is a conclusion. The cooperation depends on the price.¡± The specifics couldn¡¯t be discussed at home, so Feng Cai didn¡¯t eat breakfast anymore. He followed Wu Tian to the supply and marketing club to discuss cooperation, leaving behind the shocked Lin Lin and the surprised Mr. Feng and Feng Yu. They had already established cooperations with three supply and marketing clubs in City H. This time, Feng Cai was much more confident in negotiating with Wu Tian. In the end, An Jianlu Supply and Marketing Club decided on three of the four products Feng Cai brought. After Feng Cai received Wu Tian¡¯s order, he went to the third supply company that had agreed to sign a long-term cooperation. The mission was completed in a few days. After dinner, the few colleagues who usually smoked and chatted with Mr. Feng downstairs in the courtyard didn¡¯t see him, so they went to the Feng family¡¯s house together. The Feng family¡¯s door wasn¡¯t closed, so the few of them shouted at the door, ¡°Why aren¡¯t you downstairs?!¡± Mr. Feng cleared his throat before saying, ¡°I¡¯m not free today.¡± ¡°You¡¯re so free that you¡¯re reading the newspaper. What do you mean you aren¡¯t free?¡± Only then did Mr. Feng say with a look of disdain, ¡°Feng Cai returned to City H for a business trip. He¡¯s now the sales section chief of the village¡¯s food factory. Early this morning, the chief of the supply company¡¯s purchasing department came to our house to look for him to sign the contract. I¡¯m waiting for him to come back and see if he has any difficulties in his work, so I can guide him. After all, he just got the job.¡± The few of them had been colleagues for twenty to thirty years. When they heard this, they raised their eyebrows at each other. They knew that he was showing off his son to them, but this was really beyond their expectations. After all, Feng Cai was famous for being mischievous and causing trouble. Everyone¡¯s impression of him was that he was a slacker. The few of them became interested. After entering the Feng family¡¯s home and greeting the Feng family, they immediately asked, ¡°Feng Cai came to the factory to buy machines before the new year. It¡¯s only been a few months, but the business has already expanded to the city!¡± Mr. Feng asked with a mysterious expression, ¡°Do you know about the brand ¡®Delicious¡¯, which became famous for its egg yolk pastries and Snowflake Crisps recently?¡± Everyone nodded repeatedly. Recently, many people around them had been saying that these two products were considered high-end gifts. Mr. Feng was a little smug, but his tone was still calm as he said, ¡°Those two products are from their factory.¡± ¡°Not bad. He was so mischievous in the past, but he accomplished something after he went to the countryside!¡± ¡°He even smashed my glass window when he was young. I didn¡¯t expect him to become a section chief in the blink of an eye.¡± Hearing everyone¡¯s praise, Mr. Feng could no longer suppress the smile on his face. After learning the ins and outs of the matter, the few of them left. Lin Lin was cleaning up the house at the side. When she saw this scene, she felt very indignant. Her son, Feng Xian, had clearly been sensible and obedient since he was young. His grades were alright, but Mr. Feng always paid more attention to Feng Cai. Now, Feng Cai had only become a section chief, but Mr. Feng was acting like Feng Cai became a factory director and couldn¡¯t wait to show off to others that Feng Cai had changed. Thinking about how the bad reputation she had painstakingly created for Feng Cai would be shattered one by one, Lin Lin lowered her head to sweep the floor to hide the displeasure on her face. Feng Yu, who was at the side, was in a very good mood. Seeing his father¡¯s deliberate behavior, he secretly laughed. Feng Cai had never enjoyed maternal love since he was young. In addition, with Feng Cai¡¯s mother¡¯s last words before her death, Feng Cai was the one his father paid the most attention to among the three brothers. Both sides clearly cared about each other, but because of the way they communicated and their personalities, whenever the father and son communicated, they would argue with each other. After a while, Feng Cai returned. Feng Cai¡¯s sister-in-law heated the food and placed it on the table. Mr. Feng looked at Feng Cai, who was eating, and asked, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell us that you were going to become the section chief?¡± When Feng Cai heard this, he replied nonchalantly, ¡°I¡¯m a one-man band in our sales department. What¡¯s there to brag about?¡± Chapter 207 - 207 Good Choice 207 Good Choice When Lin Lin heard this, she couldn¡¯t help but laugh. Mr. Feng was stunned. When he saw Lin Lin¡¯s reaction, he frowned and looked at her. Lin Lin realized that her snicker had ruined her image and hurriedly changed the topic. ¡°The floor in the room hasn¡¯t been swept for a few days. I¡¯ll go sweep it.¡± Lin Lin didn¡¯t expect this. Her unpleasant mood brightened up. Feng Yu glanced at his father, who was also thinking about how to comfort his brother. Mr. Feng touched his nose and comforted him. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Don¡¯t be discouraged. Your factory¡¯s products are quite famous now. When the market expands, your department will definitely recruit more people.¡± Feng Cai glanced at his father and brothers with a smile and said, ¡°Are you guys comforting me? What¡¯s there to comfort me about? I just want to work hard and learn more to be worthy of this position. Moreover, I¡¯m very confident in our factory!¡± Seeing this, Feng Yu immediately said, ¡°As long as you¡¯re confident!¡± Mr. Feng nodded. Seeing that Feng Cai sounded sincere, the two of them were relieved. After Feng Cai completed the mission in City H, he bought the earliest bus ticket back to the village. That night, after Yu Yan, who was drenched, ran back to the dormitory in the wind, she had a high fever in the middle of the night due to physical and mental duress. When Xu Ling, who was in the same dormitory, woke up early in the morning and saw Yu Yan, who was still sleeping, she didn¡¯t call her up. She washed up and left. She liked to see Yu Yan get scolded for slacking off. Yao Nian wanted to see Yu Yan¡¯s reaction the next day, but he realized that she didn¡¯t come to work. He became very afraid and wondered if Yu Yan had already gone to the commune police station in town to report him for sexual harassment. Yao Nian worked uneasily for the entire morning. When he returned to the dormitory at noon, he didn¡¯t even have time to eat before going straight to Yu Yan¡¯s dormitory. He wanted to apologize to Yu Yan and ask her to let him off. Unexpectedly, the door wasn¡¯t locked. As soon as he pushed open the door, he saw Yu Yan lying on the bed with a flushed face. He hurriedly carried her to the village¡¯s infirmary. The doctor looked at the thermometer and complained to Yao Nian, ¡°Why did you send her over so late? Her temperature is almost 41 degrees! Let¡¯s get an IV to reduce the fever first.¡± Seeing Yu Yan get an IV drip, Yao Nian felt relieved. However, this was a good opportunity to show off. He had saved Yu Yan, so Yu Yan probably wouldn¡¯t harp on what happened last night. At the thought of this, Yao Nian asked someone to help him and Yu Yan apply for half a day off. He guarded Yu Yan so that Yu Yan would know his contribution. At this moment, Yu Yan was already delirious from the fever. She only knew that someone had sent her to the infirmary. It wasn¡¯t until two hours later that she opened her eyes weakly and saw that the person who had sent her here was Yao Nian. When Yao Nian saw that Yu Yan had woken up, he immediately poured a glass of warm water. ¡°You¡¯re awake? Have some water.¡± Yu Yan¡¯s mouth was very dry, so she only recovered her energy a little after being helped up and drinking a full cup of water. When she saw Yao Nian beside her, she thought of their intimate actions last night. Not knowing how to face him, she hurriedly turned her face to the side. Yao Nian was also very embarrassed at this moment. He didn¡¯t know how to mention what happened last night and ask Yu Yan not to pursue the matter. He remained silent until half an hour later, when the doctor came to take out the needle. The doctor handed the medicine to Yu Yan and instructed, ¡°You have a cold and fever. Try to stay warm these few days. I¡¯ve prescribed you medicine. Take it three times a day for two days. If your fever rises to more than 39 degrees in the future, come over immediately. Three bottles of intravenous drips and medicine cost a total of 4.3 yuan.¡± Yu Yan hurriedly touched her pocket and realized that she didn¡¯t bring a single cent with her. Seeing this, Yao Nian could only take out the last 10 yuan and hand it over. He comforted himself with the idea that this was a fair price to pay compared with being accused of sexual harassment. After all, compared to being reported by Yu Yan for facing jail time, if this 4.3 yuan could move Yu Yan, it would be worth it! After the two of them left the infirmary, Yu Yan lowered her head and whispered, ¡°I¡¯ll return it to you in the dormitory later.¡± Yao Nian resisted the urge to agree and refused. ¡°No need. I should pay.¡± When Yu Yan heard this, her originally pale face flushed slightly. In her opinion, Yao Nian¡¯s words were expressing that he had to be responsible for what happened last night. Yu Yan secretly glanced at Yao Nian from the corner of her eye. He was tall and handsome. Moreover, he was from the city like her. His father was also a higher-up in the factory. Yu Yan suddenly felt that it was a good choice to be with Yao Nian. After all, if she married him, she could live in the same neighborhood as her biological parents and meet them often. Chapter 208 - 208 Together 208 Together After thinking about it for a while, Yu Yan¡¯s thoughts wandered to how to tell her adoptive parents that she had accidentally met Yao Nian in the countryside, fell in love with him, and got married to him. When she got married, she would naturally return to her husband¡¯s house. Everything would go according to plan. At that time, her adoptive parents wouldn¡¯t be able to object. After thinking this through, Yu Yan no longer felt conflicted. She lowered her eyes shyly and said, ¡°Alright, since we¡¯re already together, I won¡¯t be so formal with you.¡± When Yao Nian heard this, he tensed up. Did Yu Yan want him to take responsibility? As expected, Yu Yan had fallen for him, but what about Yu Bing? Yao Nian was a little troubled. Although he liked Yu Yan a little, after all, Yu Yan had more things in common with him, compared to Yu Yan, Yu Bing could give him more benefits. However, on second thought, Yao Nian wondered if Yu Yan would get angry and pursue what happened last night if he rejected her. If that happened, not to mention enjoying himself, he would be in jail for countless years. A wise man submitted to circumstances. Yao Nian decided to agree to Yu Yan¡¯s request for the time being. Yu Bing was always cold to him and it would take time to woo her, so he might as well agree to Yu Yan¡¯s request and take it one step at a time. Hence, the relationship between the two of them was settled by a freak combination of factors. However, because Yao Nian still had hopes for winning over Yu Bing, he used the excuse of being worried about others gossiping about the two of them to convince Yu Yan not to make the relationship public for the time being. Yu Yan also had her own plans. After all, Yao Nian had an arranged marriage with Yu Bing. If she intercepted it, it would be bad if her parents¡¯ impression worsened because of this. Hence, she didn¡¯t think that Yao Nian¡¯s reason was far-fetched. Instead, she happily agreed. Feng Cai had obtained four one-year orders and obtained them at the price of the first supply. He didn¡¯t lower the price just because it was a long-term cooperation. For this, he was praised by everyone at the meeting, especially Mr. Wei, who was filled with admiration for Feng Cai. With multiple long-term orders, the food factory¡¯s development had basically stabilized for the year. According to the contract, they would supply goods to City H once every three days. There would be 1,500 egg yolk pastries in every batch, 2,200 Snowflake Crisps, 1,000 purple sweet potato tacos, and 1,500 waffles. If there were any changes in the supply amount, they would communicate one month in advance. Because of the independent packaging and disinfectant technology, the storage time of the products was extended correspondingly. Yu Bing planned to bring Feng Cai to the supply and marketing club in City Z. In the blink of an eye, it was mid-June. The summer harvest was coming to an end. The duck seedlings had also been put into the farm as planned. The fish seedlings had already started production at the end of April. The entire ecological industry chain had been completed as planned. All that was left was to wait for the grapes and apples to ripen in August and September. Yu Bing had also successfully obtained long-term orders from two supply and marketing companies in City Z. She rushed back to the village with Feng Cai and the other two. When she handed the contract orders to the finance office to settle, Yu Bing realized that Mr. Wei was alone. Yu Bing asked, ¡°Where¡¯s Wen Qin?¡± A trace of worry appeared on Mr. Wei¡¯s face. ¡°I don¡¯t know. She didn¡¯t come yesterday. I thought that there was a sudden emergency at home and she didn¡¯t have the time to ask for leave, but she didn¡¯t come today. I even told Director Zhao to go to her house in the afternoon to see what was going on. Tomorrow is the last day of the probation period. It¡¯s not worth it to delay her promotion because of some disciplinary problems.¡± The salary during the probation period was five yuan less than that of an official employee. This wasn¡¯t a small sum of money. Yu Bing thought of the rumors about the Sun family in her previous life and felt a little uneasy. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go with you guys this afternoon.¡± When Yu Bing saw Mr. Wei¡¯s expression, she couldn¡¯t help but tease, ¡°Previously, you refused to let Wen Qin take over your position. Now, it seems that you¡¯re very satisfied with your disciple.¡± Mr. Wei smiled in embarrassment and said in an admiring tone, ¡°Wen Qin is indeed smart. She understands things very quickly! She¡¯s humble, studious, and infers from others. It was quite easy to teach this apprentice. She has basically learned everything she needs to learn. If she doesn¡¯t understand, she would ponder over it herself and ask me again. She can probably even manage the food factory alone.¡± After Yu Bing heard Mr. Wei¡¯s evaluation, she was relieved. The accounting method in agriculture was different from that in the food factory. It was more difficult. Moreover, as the variety and the orders increased, managing the food factory would also become more cumbersome and time-consuming. The accounts of the entire industrial chain were divided into two. Wen Qin was only in charge of the food factory, while Mr. Wei was still in charge of the rest. Chapter 209 - 209 Causing Trouble 209 Causing Trouble Getting the order from City Z this time meant that a new round of recruitment was about to begin. After the revenue increased, Yu Bing prepared to start separating the money. In addition to recruiting ordinary workers, she also planned to recruit a cashier. Five o¡¯clock in the afternoon. After Yu Bing, Zhao Lin, and Mr. Wei arrived at the small mountain village, they asked the villagers for directions along the way and found the Sun family. When they arrived at the Sun family¡¯s house, they realized that the door was locked. When they saw an old lady staggering out of the courtyard next door, the three of them went forward and asked, ¡°Hello, have the Sun family gone to work in the fields?¡± The old lady glanced at them and realized that they were unfamiliar faces, so she asked warily, ¡°Who are you guys?¡± Zhao Lin recognized at a glance that this was her brother-in-law¡¯s mother¡¯s aunt, Madam Zhou. She had happened to meet her last year, so she took a step forward. Fortunately, Madam Zhou was old but not muddle-headed. She immediately remembered. ¡°Oh! I remember now. You¡¯re the sister of my niece¡¯s daughter-in-law. The Sun family went out to work. Why are you looking for them?¡± Zhao Lin explained, ¡°They suddenly stopped coming without even saying goodbye. We¡¯re a little worried.¡± Madam Zhou lamented, ¡°Wen Qin is locked up at home. I originally thought that her hardships would be over, but the Sun family insisted on giving her trouble!¡± Yu Bing was shocked. ¡°Why did they lock her up?¡± Madam Zhou wasn¡¯t in a position to say too much, so she only advised them, ¡°Don¡¯t waste your efforts. The Sun family won¡¯t let her work again.¡± As soon as she finished speaking, a little boy ran to the Sun family¡¯s home with two roasted sweet potatoes and shouted, ¡°Mom, I found two sweet potatoes for you. Take them.¡± Seeing this, Yu Bing hurriedly asked, ¡°Little kid, is your mother Wen Qin?¡± Xiao Hui¡¯s eyes lit up when he saw them. ¡°Are you the leaders of my mother¡¯s factory? Are you here to save her?¡± Hearing this, Yu Bing and the others looked at each other. They knew that it definitely wouldn¡¯t be easy to get Wen Qin to go back to work. However, no matter what, restricting one¡¯s personal freedom was prohibited by the law. Zhao Lin was a feminist, so she naturally couldn¡¯t sit back and do nothing. Hence, she went forward and smiled at Xiao Hui. ¡°Little kid, call your father and grandmother back.¡± Xiao Hui stuffed the sweet potatos into Zhao Lin¡¯s hand and said excitedly, ¡°Please help me throw these to my mother. She didn¡¯t eat anything today. She¡¯ll starve my little brother who¡¯s in her stomach. I¡¯ll go get someone!¡± At this moment, Wen Qin also realized that the factory¡¯s leaders had come to her house. She asked, ¡°Are they Miss Yu and Mr. Zhao?¡± Yu Bing raised her voice and replied, ¡°It¡¯s me. We came to see you. Are you okay now? Can you catch the sweet potatos?¡± Wen Qin hurriedly shouted, ¡°Don¡¯t throw it! I can¡¯t catch it. Don¡¯t smash the sweet potatoes again.¡± Yu Bing could tell that Wen Qin sounded weak, so she didn¡¯t speak to her anymore. Everyone outside the door could only silently wait for the Sun family to return. More than ten minutes later, Madam Sun and Sun Guo appeared. Madam Sun quickly glanced at Yu Bing and the others. Her gaze lingered on Mr. Wei for a few seconds before she said coldly, ¡°You guys can go back. Wen Qin isn¡¯t going to work anymore.¡± Yu Bing saw the wariness in Madam Sun¡¯s eyes and said solemnly, ¡°I¡¯m the factory director of the food factory. Even if Wen Qin doesn¡¯t want to go anymore, Wen Qin has to reply to me in person. When I hired her back then, we made an agreement. How can she suddenly go back on her words?!¡± Madam Sun had no intention of opening the door at all. She said unreasonably, ¡°So what if she doesn¡¯t go?! Do you think you can force her?¡± Madam Sun was the best at falsely accusing people. She was always causing trouble in the village. Anyone she hated would be slandered by her. Therefore, many people refrained from provoking her. Yu Bing wasn¡¯t afraid. She only said calmly, ¡°Wen Qin applied voluntarily. There wasn¡¯t any coercion involved. Now, Wen Qin¡¯s sudden absence from work has caused a great loss to our factory! We came to her to ask for an explanation.¡± When Madam Sun heard this, she panicked a little. She couldn¡¯t tell if Yu Bing was telling the truth or not. She pointed at Yu Bing and emboldened herself as she said, ¡°She¡¯s only been working for more than ten days. What damage can she cause to the factory? Don¡¯t try to extort us!¡± Yu Bing smiled coldly and said, ¡°If you don¡¯t believe me, you can open the door and let me confront Wen Qin.¡± Chapter 210 - 210 Slander 210 Slander Zhao Lin and Mr. Wei knew that Yu Bing wanted to use this as an excuse to force Madam Sun to let them meet Wen Qin, so they claimed that they wanted to hold Wen Qin accountable. Madam Sun believed them and cursed Wen Qin for causing trouble for the family. She took out her key to open the door. The three of them followed her into the courtyard and saw Wen Qin, whose hands and feet were tied with hemp rope, sitting on the ground beside the chicken shed in the courtyard. Her hair was messy, her face was pale, and there were bruises. She had clearly been beaten up. Her mouth was so dry that it had cracked and she leaned against the wall weakly. When Yu Bing and the others saw Wen Qin¡¯s situation, their expressions changed drastically. Yu Bing quickly stepped forward to untie her. When Madam Sun saw Yu Bing¡¯s actions, she immediately ordered her son, ¡°What are you doing? Sun Guo, stop her!¡± Sun Guo immediately pushed Yu Bing away and stood in front of Wen Qin. Yu Bing was caught off guard and staggered a few steps back. Then, she looked at Madam Sun and Sun Guo angrily as she said, ¡°She¡¯s a human, not a beast. You have no right to restrict her freedom like this!¡± Zhao Lin went forward to support Yu Bing. As the female director, she had mediated many family conflicts, but she had never seen such an evil mother-in-law who treated her daughter-in-law as subhuman. She couldn¡¯t help but ask loudly, ¡°What right do you have to tie her up like this?¡± It would have been fine if she hadn¡¯t said anything, but once she did, the anger in Madam Sun¡¯s heart intensified. ¡°I don¡¯t think your food factory is a decent place! It¡¯s just a lewd place with messy relationships. You actually dared to bring a lecher to look for this b*tch. I plan to call the police. I¡¯m going to report you!¡± These words stunned everyone. When Yu Bing saw Madam Sun staring at Mr. Wei with a vicious gaze, she understood. Wen Qin was already numb to her mother-in-law slandering her. However, now that her mother-in-law was using her as an excuse to criticize Mr. Wei, she felt ashamed and angry. ¡°Mom, Mr. Wei and I are innocent. We¡¯ve never been alone together! You can¡¯t slander him like this!¡± Yu Bing could tell who was truly in charge of the Sun family, so she ignored Sun Guo and looked at Madam Sun. ¡°Madam Sun, you have to have evidence. If you falsely accuse us and damage our factory¡¯s reputation, our factory will hold you accountable!¡± Madam Sun¡¯s eyes flickered. Then, she thought of someone and said, ¡°I have a witness! Xiao Hui, call your second uncle over!¡± Xiao Hui looked around at the adults in front of him with hesitation. After receiving his mother¡¯s affirmative gaze, he ran out of the house. Yu Bing gestured for Zhao Lin to feed the sweet potatoes in her hand to Wen Qin first. Madam Sun thought that they had brought the food, so she didn¡¯t say anything. Soon, Lai Tong was called over. The village chief and Madam Zhou were also here. Madam Zhou had asked her grandson to call the village chief because she knew the Sun family too well. Worried that Yu Bing and the others would suffer, she specifically asked the village chief to come. Madam Sun looked at Lai Tong with a meaningful look in her eyes. ¡°Lai Tong, didn¡¯t you say that you saw Wen Qin with Mr. Wei last time?¡± Lai Tong had indeed seen the two of them talking together. On the day the food factory came to the village to collect eggs, their family didn¡¯t make it in time, so he could only make a trip. When he arrived, he happened to see Wen Qin and Mr. Wei loading the car and counting the goods in the courtyard, but the driver was still waiting to set off. Wen Qin was beautiful and elegant. When she first came to the village, Lai Tong pursued Wen Qin eagerly. The entire village knew about it, but Wen Qin rejected him without hesitation. Not long after, she married Sun Guo. Sun Guo was 35 years old at that time. Because his family was poor, he had never gotten a wife, so Lai Tong had always held a grudge because of this. Wasn¡¯t this a slap in his face? Wen Qin¡¯s actions were equivalent to telling the entire village that a virile 20-year-old was inferior to a blind old bachelor. At that time, Lai Tong was so embarrassed that he didn¡¯t even dare to leave the house! Therefore, when Lai Tong returned to the village and met Madam Sun and Sun Guo, he deliberately mentioned this matter. Although it was a true description, it sounded very vague. Everyone around the Sun family knew how strict Madam Sun was with Wen Qin. Lai Tong knew that his description would definitely make Wen Qin lose her job. This could be considered revenge for the humiliation Wen Qin gave him back then. Lai Tong was telling the truth back then. Madam Sun was paranoid, so he wasn¡¯t worried that this matter would implicate him at all. He told them the truth again in a serious tone. When Madam Sun heard this, she was a little stunned. ¡°That¡¯s not what you said that day!¡± Lai Tong looked at Madam Sun in amusement. ¡°Madam Sun, what am I wrong about?¡± Chapter 211 - 211 Resumption of Diplomatic Relations 211 Resumption of Diplomatic Relations Madam Sun was speechless. At that time, after Lai Tong finished speaking, he looked at Sun Guo with sympathy. Her first reaction was that Wen Qin and Mr. Wei had an affair. At the thought that Wen Qin might have cheated on her, she rushed home angrily. Madam Sun knew very well that she couldn¡¯t let Wen Qin leave the Sun family. Otherwise, she and her son would have to do those chores, especially the heavy work in the field. If her son couldn¡¯t do it, without Wen Qin¡¯s help, her work points wouldn¡¯t be enough to exchange for food! At the thought that Wen Qin ran away with someone and that there was no one left for her to order around, Madam Sun panicked. Hence, she made a prompt decision and asked Sun Guo to tie her up at home. It wasn¡¯t easy for Wen Qin to get such a good opportunity. She couldn¡¯t bring herself to give up, so for the first time, she put on a tough front with Madam Sun. Hence, Madam Sun starved Wen Qin today to force Wen Qin to compromise as soon as possible. Seeing this, Yu Bing sneered and gave Mr. Wei and Zhao Lin a look, asking them to stop Sun Guo. Then, she quickly went forward and rolled up Wen Qin¡¯s long sleeve. As expected, there was a large bruise on her arm. This scene made Yu Bing clench her fists. She immediately began to untie the hemp rope. ¡°Village Chief, Wen Qin is an employee of our food factory. Now that she has been mistreated like this, she can¡¯t work normally. As the factory director, I have to figure out the situation. After all, it wasn¡¯t easy for us to spend so much time and effort to nurture an accountant.¡± When Madam Sun saw that her son was being stopped, she could only go forward and stop them. The village chief felt embarrassed in front of the villagers, so he scolded angrily, ¡°Madam Sun, Sun Guo, how can you guys hit someone?!¡± When Madam Sun saw the village chief¡¯s angry expression, she hurriedly explained, ¡°This b*tch was fooling around outside. If we don¡¯t teach her a lesson, it¡¯ll be too late if she really sleeps with another man.¡± After Yu Bing helped Wen Qin up, she said sternly, ¡°You said that Wen Qin was fooling around, but that¡¯s just your groundless accusation. But now, there is conclusive evidence of illegal imprisonment and domestic violence!¡± As a woman, Zhao Lin empathized with her and couldn¡¯t help but speak up for her. ¡°Wen Qin is pregnant with your family¡¯s child. How can you be so ruthless?!¡± When Madam Sun heard the word ¡®evidence¡¯, she panicked and shouted, ¡°What imprisonment? I don¡¯t understand what you¡¯re talking about! She¡¯s my daughter-in-law. If I tell her to stay at home, she has to stay at home. Which couple doesn¡¯t fight? Moreover, I only hit her hand. Her body isn¡¯t injured, and the child in her stomach is fine!¡± Madam Sun deemed it their family¡¯s internal strife. At this moment, as long as no one died, it was really difficult for the police to intervene in the fight between husband and wife unless the victim pursued legal action. Yu Bing looked at Wen Qin encouragingly, in hopes that she would stand up for herself bravely. When Wen Qin glanced at Yu Bing, her originally lifeless eyes lit up and she opened her mouth slightly. Madam Sun had been staring at Wen Qin¡¯s reaction. When she saw that Wen Qin seemed to want to speak, she suddenly coughed. When Wen Qin turned around and saw the warning in Madam Sun¡¯s eyes, her eyes dimmed again. ¡°Miss Yu, I¡¯m sorry. I can¡¯t go back to work.¡± Madam Sun revealed a smug smile and looked at Yu Bing provocatively. ¡°My daughter-in-law doesn¡¯t want to go, so don¡¯t interfere in my family¡¯s matters. Get lost!¡± Zhao Lin and Mr. Wei couldn¡¯t help but frown at Wen Qin. They didn¡¯t understand Wen Qin¡¯s choice. If it was a fight between husband and wife, it was understandable that she didn¡¯t want to cause trouble at the police station and wanted to settle it in private, but she had such a good job in the factory. Even with the factory director around, she didn¡¯t try hard to fight for the opportunity and gave up directly. They really couldn¡¯t understand. They only felt that the Wen Qin they saw here was completely different from the outgoing Wen Qin they usually interacted with. Yu Bing had observed the changes in Wen Qin and saw that she changed her mind after she glanced at Madam Sun. When she thought of her previous guess, she decided to give it a try. She pretended to be nonchalant as she said, ¡°Wen Qin, when you make a decision, don¡¯t let others affect you. The previous dynasty has been dead for many years. A few years ago, we resumed diplomatic relations with America. This era is really different from the past.¡± Chapter 212 - 212 Report 212 Report ¡°We women have to learn to be independent and fight for our legal rights! The country protects the vulnerable!¡± Wen Qin suddenly grabbed Yu Bing¡¯s hand and stared at her as she asked in shock, ¡°What¡­ what did you just say? We resumed diplomatic relations with America?¡± Yu Bing felt her hand hurt from being grabbed, but she was even more certain of the rumor she had heard in her previous life. She looked straight at Wen Qin and replied firmly, ¡°Yes, it happened three to four years ago. Our relationship is very good now.¡± Wen Qin suddenly laughed out loud. The more she laughed, the louder she became. Gradually, her laughter turned into wailing, as if she wanted to cry out all the grievances of her life. Everyone present was stunned. Worried, Sun Guo wanted to go forward, but he didn¡¯t dare to. He looked at Madam Sun timidly. Madam Sun felt a little scared and wondered if she had driven Wen Qin crazy. After a while, Wen Qin wiped her tears and stood in front of the village chief as she said firmly, ¡°Village Chief, I want to make a report! I want to report my mother-in-law for domestic violence and corruption!¡± Domestic violence and corruption were two mainstream terms of taboo conduct. Madam Sun had never thought that Wen Qin would dare to point the blame at her. She glared at her and picked up the tobacco pipe hanging from her belt to hit her. The current Wen Qin was no longer afraid. She used all her strength to grab Madam Sun¡¯s hand. Wen Qin did manual labor all year round. Although she was very thin, she was still very strong, so Madam Sun couldn¡¯t pull her hand out. Knowing that Wen Qin was about to fall out with her, she shouted at her son, ¡°Sun Guo, take out that letter and give it to the village chief!¡± When Sun Guo heard this, he hurriedly shook his head and begged his mother, ¡°Mom, you can¡¯t take it. Wen Qin will be doomed.¡± When Madam Sun saw her son¡¯s expression, she was furious and shouted, ¡°If you don¡¯t bring it here, she¡¯ll ruin my life! Hurry up!¡± Sun Guo didn¡¯t dare to disobey his mother, so he could only enter the room to get the letter. Madam Sun looked at Wen Qin proudly. As long as this letter of treason was released, who would have the time to care about her minor crimes? Soon, the letter was in the village chief¡¯s hand. Yu Bing immediately went forward. It was an English letter. The village chief frowned. How could he understand a foreign language? Yu Bing reminded him, ¡°Village Chief, this is in English. It says the campus situation of Wen Qin¡¯s sister, who went to study in America. You can also look for the intellectuals in your village to help translate.¡± Communication with foreign countries was a big deal. The village chief thought about it and remembered that Yu Bing wasn¡¯t from the village after all, so he called someone over at the door to call an intellectual who knew English over to confirm the contents of the letter. After the three young people who knew English came, they translated the entire letter and confirmed that it was an ordinary letter. Although there was no news in the countryside, the village chief went to a meeting every month. He knew that their country and America had resumed diplomatic relations with each other. Hence, he quickly made up his mind about the letter. ¡°Our two countries are on friendly terms now. Moreover, this is an ordinary letter. There¡¯s no treason involved whatsoever.¡± When Wen Qin heard this, she finally relaxed and a tear streaked across the corner of her eye. When she came to the countryside back then, she happened to meet the mailman who had delivered the letter her sister had sent her, so she stuffed it into her bag and brought it to the countryside. At that time, the village had not prepared a dormitory for the intellectuals, so she was arranged to stay in the Sun family¡¯s house. Madam Sun had sticky fingers. When she wasn¡¯t around, Madam Sun rummaged through her bag and saw this foreign letter. Then, she used it to threaten her into marrying Sun Guo. Back then, the relationship between the two countries was very tense and the law wasn¡¯t as lax as it was now. Those people wouldn¡¯t care about the content at all and wouldn¡¯t even give them a chance to refute. Anyone who received a foreign letter might be directly deemed as a traitor for betraying the country and colluding with the enemy. In order not to implicate her elderly parents in the city, she could only choose to compromise. There was no external information channel in the countryside. Wen Qin didn¡¯t expect the relationship between the two countries to have changed long ago, so she had been enduring it silently. Chapter 213 - 213 Freedom 213 Freedom After enduring for so many years, Wen Qin had already lost hope for her future life. This time, she wanted to obtain an accounting position only to save money to send her son to school, but she didn¡¯t expect such a big surprise. However, this news wasn¡¯t good for Madam Sun. For so many years, she had relied on this letter to control Wen Qin. If it was useless, how could Wen Qin listen to her orders in the future? ¡°This is treason! Do you guys plan to protect this bitch?¡± She was just short of saying that the village chief was covering up for her. How could the village chief tolerate this? ¡°Madam Sun, don¡¯t be unreasonable! A few people have already read and confirmed the contents of the letter. Moreover, our two countries are now on friendly terms. Don¡¯t ruin the harmonious relationship between our two countries!¡± Yu Bing smiled coldly and reminded her, ¡°Madam Sun, you should be glad that this isn¡¯t a letter of treason. Otherwise, if you didn¡¯t report it, you would be the one most guilty of cover-up. It would be no different from treason!¡± Madam Sun immediately came back to her senses. Her mouth moved, but she didn¡¯t dare to speak again. Madam Sun didn¡¯t dare to cause trouble anymore, but Wen Qin wouldn¡¯t forget the evil things Madam Sun had done to her. ¡°Village Chief, there¡¯s a book called ¡®Women¡¯s Virtue¡¯ in my mother-in-law¡¯s room. Every time she¡¯s in a bad mood, she forces me to kneel in front of her bed and read it. In the summer, she forces me to fan her face and massage her legs all night. If anything went wrong, she would scald me with her pipe!¡± After Wen Qin finished speaking, she rolled up her pants and they saw that her calf was covered in burns. There were new and old scars stacked on top of each other. Everyone was terrified by the sight! When Madam Zhou saw this scene, she couldn¡¯t help but walk forward angrily. ¡°What did you promise me back then? You¡¯re so unrepentant!¡± The village chief didn¡¯t expect someone to use such torture methods under his rule. This was no different from those landlords who oppressed the poor and treated the people at the bottom inhumanely! ¡°Sun Ying, you¡¯re well-versed in the ways of those landlords who exploit and oppress others. I originally thought that you were sold to be a concubine of an old landlord and a victim of feudal society, but now, I think what you said back then was all a lie!¡± After Madam Sun¡¯s evil deeds had been exposed, she was so flustered that her legs went weak. She braced herself and continued to quibble, ¡°I¡¯m the victim. Wen Qin was in the wrong, so I taught her a lesson!¡± Madam Zhou didn¡¯t intend to hide it anymore. ¡°Sun Ying, seems like you really won¡¯t shed tears until you see the coffin. I shouldn¡¯t have helped you hide it back then! Village Chief, when Sun Ying was a concubine in the past, she had a maidservant. You know that I used to be a helper in that landlord¡¯s family. I saw Sun Ying whip that little maidservant a few times.¡± ¡°Later, after the new regime was established, the servants of the landlord¡¯s family disbanded. Not long after that servant returned home, she died of illness. I hesitated about whether or not to reveal it. Sun Ying found me and said that she punished the servant because she had done something wrong. She also promised me that she wouldn¡¯t use those torturous methods on anyone else in the future. I pitied her for having a blind son, so I didn¡¯t reveal it.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t expect Sun Ying to be so vicious! We all know Wen Qin¡¯s character. We also know how much she has contributed to the Sun family! Other than working, she usually stays at home. It¡¯s only recently that she applied for an accounting position.¡± With that, Madam Zhou looked at Madam Sun mockingly and said, ¡°You have to find a more credible excuse.¡± Just like that, Madam Sun¡¯s background was exposed. The village chief had to deal with this matter seriously, so he said, ¡°Madam Sun, you have to accept everyone¡¯s criticism and change your feudal mindset. In the future, you have to go to the weekly criticism meeting to reflect on yourself!¡± Madam Sun knew that there was nothing she could do about this, so she sat on the ground with a defeated expression. In the past, she was the one who took the lead in criticizing others. Those were her most glorious moments. Even if there was nothing wrong with those people, she could fabricate a problem and slander them. Only when Madam Sun saw those people begging for mercy in front of her would she feel the pleasure of power. As Wen Qin looked at Madam Sun, who had been defeated, she knew that she was truly free now. Chapter 214 - 214 Guilt 214 Guilt At this moment, Sun Guo also realized that from this moment on, the woman he had been suppressing would no longer be under his control! His mother would also be condemned because of her! Sun Guo lowered his head to hide the ruthlessness in his eyes as he looked at Wen Qin. After Lai Tong heard all of this, he also understood the reason behind Wen Qin¡¯s decision back then. He felt mixed emotions. After the village chief settled the matter, he left the Sun family¡¯s home. At this moment, only the Sun family and Yu Bing were left in the small courtyard. Wen Qin bowed to Yu Bing and the others. ¡°Thank you for not giving up on me. Yu Bing, thank you for telling me this. Otherwise, I might not have been able to escape this cage for the rest of my life.¡± Yu Bing smiled nonchalantly. ¡°I just said whatever came to my mind. I didn¡¯t expect to be able to help you. Remember to go to work on time tomorrow.¡± After Wen Qin¡¯s matter was resolved, Yu Bing didn¡¯t stay any longer. The few of them returned to He Mountain Village together. At night, Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing discussed the supply of goods in City Z under the tree at the door. Xiao Sheng teased Yu Bing, ¡°You¡¯re so busy that it has not been easy to see you recently.¡± Yu Bing thought of their private collaboration. It had been a long time since she had produced a new product, so she smiled in embarrassment. ¡°I¡¯ve been a little busy recently. When I¡¯m done, I¡¯ll try to come up with a new product.¡± Xiao Sheng knew that Yu Bing had misunderstood him and hurriedly said, ¡°I have no intention of rushing you. I just want to discuss with you if we should temporarily suspend our private dealings. I¡¯ve set up a transport team over there, and the industries you manage are expanding, so we might as well focus on buying goods from the factory in the future. We¡¯ll distribute whatever goods there are in the factory. This way, we won¡¯t be so tired. It¡¯s just that Jiang Chun¡­¡± Yu Bing also agreed with Xiao Sheng¡¯s idea, but she and Xiao Sheng still had another collaboration. After this collaboration was canceled, Jiang Chun would be the most affected. Jiang Chun¡¯s source of external income would be cut off, but she and Xiao Sheng really didn¡¯t have time to manage this collaboration. Yu Bing quickly made a decision. ¡°Our hands are tied and we really don¡¯t have time. I¡¯ll tell Jiang Chun. I¡¯ll think of other ways for her to earn money. By the way, why did you think of taking the transportation route?¡± Xiao Sheng was silent for a moment before saying, ¡°I want to bring my sister to the hospital in Shanghai. She¡¯s turning nine years old this year. It¡¯s best if she can finish the surgery before she¡¯s 10 years old. I want to bring her for a checkup first and ask how much the surgery costs will be. I have an idea. The transport team can exchange supplies with the black market in the neighboring province. This way, we can earn money faster.¡± Yu Bing patted Xiao Sheng¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much. If you¡¯re in trouble, just tell me. I can help.¡± Xiao Sheng smiled at Yu Bing. ¡°Thank you.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s smile made Yu Bing¡¯s heart skip a beat. Even the moonlight seemed to pale in comparison. Fortunately, under the cover of the night, Yu Bing¡¯s blush wasn¡¯t discovered. ¡°Then, if there¡¯s nothing else, I¡¯ll go back first.¡± Xiao Sheng hurriedly grabbed Yu Bing¡¯s arm. ¡°What¡¯s the hurry? Tell Jiang Chun tonight, then we¡¯ll split the money tomorrow.¡± Yu Bing nodded in agreement. After Xiao Sheng let go, she ran away. After returning home, Yu Bing locked the door. Thinking of Xiao Sheng¡¯s smile under the moonlight, she couldn¡¯t help but blame Xiao Sheng for flirting with her. She warned herself, ¡°Beauty is distracting. You can¡¯t be lustful.¡± ¡°What beauty?¡± Jiang Chun heard Yu Bing mutter to herself and asked curiously. Yu Bing was startled by Jiang Chun and shouted, ¡°You misheard!¡± Then, she thought of today¡¯s conversation and pulled Jiang Chun onto the stool. ¡°Chun Chun, I have something to tell you.¡± When Jiang Chun saw Yu Bing¡¯s careful expression, she was amused. ¡°If you have anything to say, just say it. There¡¯s no need to hesitate.¡± Yu Bing scratched her head with a smile and said, ¡°Xiao Sheng and I want to stop our collaboration now, because he and I will become busier and busier from now on and won¡¯t be able to take care of that business.¡± Jiang Chun chuckled. ¡°I thought it was something serious. I was already prepared. All good things must come to an end. Moreover, you guys have helped me earn so much money, so I¡¯m already very satisfied!¡± Yu Bing looked at Jiang Chun and said seriously, ¡°Chun Chun, I¡¯ll help you think of another way to earn money during this period of time.¡± Chapter 215 - 215 Splitting the Money 215 Splitting the Money Jiang Chun smiled and shook her head. ¡°Just do your own thing. I work in the factory now, so I get a salary and work points every month. This extra income is enough to cover my father¡¯s medical fees. Besides, the better our food factory¡¯s business, the more dividends we get at the end of the year. That¡¯s another sum of money.¡± Although Jiang Chun said this, Yu Bing still felt a little guilty. Previously, when she did not have enough manpower, she called Jiang Chun over to help. Now that she and Xiao Sheng had their own businesses, she kicked Jiang Chun to the curb. The next morning, Wen Qin came to work half an hour early. Yu Bing realized that Wen Qin seemed much more spirited. Yu Bing believed that with Wen Qin¡¯s intelligence, it was impossible for the Sun family to control her anymore. After work at night, everyone gathered at the Xiao family¡¯s house. Thinking that it was the last time the three of them would split the money, Yu Bing suggested that everyone eat together. When Xiao Li and Xiao Lin heard that Yu Bing was in charge of cooking, they agreed and prepared the ingredients according to Yu Bing¡¯s request. Jiang Chun was in charge of cutting the vegetables. Xiao Lin marveled as he started the fire, ¡°Sister Yu Bing, I haven¡¯t eaten your cooking in a long time! After so many months, I can finally eat a delicious meal again!¡± Yu Bing chuckled. ¡°You¡¯re right, but be careful, or else your brother won¡¯t cook for you next time.¡± Xiao Sheng glanced at Xiao Lin as he washed the vegetables. ¡°You¡¯re so picky! I¡¯ll let you cook your own meal next time.¡± Xiao Lin immediately fell silent. After all, he was even worse a cook than his brother! As Xiao Li sat at the side, she listened to everyone¡¯s conversation with relish. The moment Yu Bing arrived, the house became very lively. After Yu Bing carried the big yellow clay pot she had brought from home over, she smiled mysteriously and said, ¡°I¡¯ll cook a new dish for you guys today!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s new dish for tonight was rice casserole! After Yu Bing brought the clay pot to the stove, she brushed a layer of oil on the bottom of the pot and placed the rice that had been soaked two hours in advance. After smoothing the rice, she placed it in mushroom water. Then, she inserted her finger on the surface of the rice. The water reached half of the first joint of her index finger. Then, after the fire boiled, she lowered it to a small fire and slowly braised it. Then, she cut the sausage into thin slices. She also cut the mushrooms that had been soaked in water and blanched the vegetables in the boiling water. When the rice was 80% cooked, the sausage and mushrooms were placed around the edge of the casserole. A raw egg was beaten in the middle. After the lid of the casserole was closed, a circle of cooking oil was poured along the side of the pot. This way, the rice crust at the bottom of the pot would taste even better. When he heard the sizzling and smelled the aroma, Xiao Lin¡¯s stomach growled. During this period, Yu Bing began to mix the sauce, the most important part of this dish. She mixed raw soy sauce, soy sauce, oil, white sugar, salt, and sesame oil evenly. Then, she added a suitable amount of water. Five minutes later, the vegetables were placed, and the sauce was evenly sprinkled. The meal was ready. Then, Yu Bing made braised chicken, fish head tofu soup, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, and salad. As expected, the new dish was praised profusely. Compared to white rice, rice casserole had a richer taste because of the sauce, while the rice crust at the bottom of the pot was brown and crispy! To the inland provinces, the origin of the rice casserole was too far away, so there was no chance of eating it. Therefore, the novelty made this delicacy much more popular to everyone. After dinner, they began to distribute the money. It had been almost half a year since the last time they distributed the money. As usual, Xiao Sheng let Yu Bing and Jiang Chun look at the account book first. After they confirmed that there were no mistakes, Xiao Sheng received 1,331 yuan this time, while Yu Bing and Jiang Chun each received 998.25 yuan. After Yu Bing and Jiang Chun returned home, Jiang Chun dug out the money they saved up and started counting. Jiang Chun grabbed Yu Bing¡¯s hands tightly and asked excitedly, ¡°Guess how much money I have now!¡± Yu Bing smiled and asked, ¡°How much?¡± Jiang Chun patted her chest to suppress her urge to shout as she said in a low voice, ¡°1,500 yuan! I¡¯ve never seen so much money in my life! I even sent 100 yuan back previously. I felt like I had spent a lot on my daily expenses, but there¡¯s still so much left! Even if they didn¡¯t spend money on expenses, my parents would have to save for a few years to save up 1,500 yuan, but I¡¯ve already earned so much in just a year.¡± When Yu Bing saw the unconcealed smile on Jiang Chun¡¯s face, she shook her head in amusement. ¡°I plan to go to the bank to register an account in two days. Do you want to come along?¡± Jiang Chun hurriedly nodded. Now, she felt that it was no longer safe to leave the money underground. What if someone could tell at a glance that there were signs of movement on the ground?! Chapter 216 - 216 Additional Order 216 Additional Order The order from City Z was delivered once every three days, but the timing of City Z¡¯s delivery was different from City H¡¯s delivery so that the transport truck would have the time to deliver the goods. S City, Huazhong Military District. ¡°This bean paste is so tasty! It¡¯s very authentic!¡± ¡°Indeed, it¡¯s much better than the chili sauce we bought in the canteen.¡± ¡°This meal is delicious.¡± The soldiers in the army came from all over the world and had all kinds of preferences. There were also many spicy food lovers in the Huazhong Military District. Since he was free today, Zeng Wei didn¡¯t ask the orderly to help get food today. He went to the canteen himself, but he didn¡¯t expect the complaints he usually heard to become praises today. Hence, after getting food, he also got a small spoonful of bean paste in the ingredients area. Zeng Wei liked bland food. After taking a few bites of the spicy food, he couldn¡¯t help but drink some water. However, he still wanted to eat the food. After the meal, a thin layer of sweat appeared on his forehead. However, even so, he, who didn¡¯t eat spicy food, couldn¡¯t resist the charm of this chili bean paste. Thinking about how his wife also liked spicy food, Zeng Wei called the logistics department to buy two cans. The people of the logistics department were amused when they received the call. ¡°Mr. Zeng, we only bought a total of 50 bottles. I still have half of them left, but more than ten people want to buy them. You might as well ask Zeng Li. I have to contact him later to increase the price.¡± Zeng Li? When did this brat¡¯s reach extend to this place? ¡°Alright, I understand.¡± Zeng Wei hung up after figuring things out. When Zeng Wei returned home at night, he happened to see his wife holding a glass bottle with the words ¡°red oil bean paste¡± written on it. The red bottle was exactly the same as the one he had eaten from today. ¡°Zeng Li brought it home?¡± Lin Xue teased her husband with a smile, ¡°You¡¯ve become more observant. These few days, you were able to guess what we wanted before you even came home.¡± When Zeng Li came down from the second floor and saw his brother, he raised his eyebrows proudly. ¡°You¡¯re back. I heard from the logistics department that you¡¯re quite fond of my red oil bean paste!¡± Zeng Wei glared at Zeng Li. Zeng Li was 20 years younger than Zeng Wei and the entire family doted on him. Because of this, he was a good-for-nothing even at 21 years old. When Zeng Wei was 20 years old back then, he had been in the army for a few years and was already married! However, although Zeng Wei complained, he couldn¡¯t bear to force his brother to do something he didn¡¯t like. As long as Zeng Li didn¡¯t do anything illegal, Zeng Li could do whatever he wanted outside. Ever since Zeng Li was born, their mother hadn¡¯t been in good health. She followed their father in the army and could barely take care of their second sister. Therefore, Zeng Wei and Lin Xue brought Zeng Li, who was just a year old, home and raised him with their half-year-old son. Zeng Li¡¯s elder brother was like a father, while his elder sister-in-law was like a mother. Zeng Wei and Lin Xue treated their third brother as their son. Zeng Wei doted on him even more than his son. In addition, Zeng Li had been eloquent since he was young and was well-liked by adults. After Zeng Wei took off his hat and coat, he said to Zeng Li, ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to interfere in the military¡¯s procurement in the future.¡± Zeng Li could successfully get through to the logistics department this time because of the Zeng family¡¯s power in the army. However, this was a critical moment for their father¡¯s re-election, so Zeng Wei couldn¡¯t help but lecture Zeng Li. Zeng Li put on an amiable expression and placed his hand on Zeng Wei¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Brother, I¡¯m doing this for the benefit of the spicy food lovers. The logistics department called our house today. They were practically begging me to increase the price! You can¡¯t let everyone return to the days of eating boiled vegetables for nothing just to keep a low profile.¡± Zeng Wei thought of the food preferences problem that was mentioned at every meeting and said, ¡°Bean paste is an exception. You¡¯re not allowed to interfere in anything else!¡± ¡°Alright, alright, alright!¡± Zeng Li agreed for the time being. Zeng Li had always been indignant that his family treated him as a mischievous child who had yet to grow up. Therefore, when he saw the red oil bean paste brought by his subordinates, he immediately thought of the problem that his brother had mentioned. The logistics department had never been able to buy the chili sauce the soldiers wanted, so he hurriedly arranged it. He thought that if this matter was settled, he could change his family¡¯s impression of him! Unexpectedly, he still didn¡¯t get what he wanted. He Mountain Village. Yu Bing was checking the accounts with Wen Qin in the office separated from the warehouse. When she realized that two numbers didn¡¯t match, she was annoyed. Chapter 217 - 217 Daydream 217 Daydream When Yu Bing heard footsteps and looked up, she saw Xiao Sheng walking towards her with a stack of vouchers and a stamped transportation slip. After the two of them exchanged looks, Yu Bing turned to look at Wen Qin. ¡°Wen Qin, go ask the person who handled those two sums and try to find him today. It will be even more difficult to investigate the longer it drags on.¡± Wen Qin nodded and left the office with the receipt. Xiao Sheng handed the materials in his hand to Yu Bing and said calmly, ¡°I got an order for bean paste. The supply time is for half a year and 2,000 bottles per month as employee benefits.¡± After hearing about another huge order, Yu Bing looked at Xiao Sheng in surprise. ¡°Including the orders you placed previously, with your current order quantity, you¡¯re considered a big client of our food factory!¡± Xiao Sheng was now in charge of the county¡¯s black market, so he was already used to the supply of more than a thousand bottles a month. However, at this moment, when he saw Yu Bing smiling from ear to ear, he suddenly felt very happy. ¡°This is the receipt. All the procedures have been completed. At that time, I¡¯ll get the convoy to take the goods.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s orders were the easiest to fulfill. The purchase receipts and vouchers for transportation when they went to the other provinces to deliver the goods had already been settled. The food factory only had to handle the production. This simple process could help them avoid many risks. Yu Bing thought of something and said, ¡°Now that the business is expanding further, why don¡¯t I make you the factory¡¯s sales consultant? It¡¯ll be similar to a part-time job. This way, your schedule will be flexible and you won¡¯t be restricted by the sales department in the factory. You can just contact me directly.¡± Xiao Sheng chuckled. ¡°That¡¯s a good idea. I came to look for you this time because of this. In the future, I¡¯ll have to travel more and more often. Without a good excuse, I¡¯ll seem suspicious.¡± After the end of the harvest, the village opened the night school last week. Classes were from 7:30 to 8:40 p.m. from Monday to Friday. There would be a 20-minute break between classes and no classes on the weekend. When the people working in the food factory saw the increase in orders recently, they predicted that the factory would continue to recruit people in advance, so they reminded their family and friends. Therefore, there were quite a lot of people going to night school now. Under such a rich learning environment, the factory welcomed its fourth expansion. After Yu Bing discussed it with the staff in the factory, she decided that after this recruitment, the factory¡¯s original management system would be completely adjusted and used as permanent management regulations in the future. The roles of ordinary workers and various administrative personnel had to be divided. They couldn¡¯t have a single person manage so many things all alone, or else there would be trouble sooner or later. Previously, it was still a small workshop and everything could be simplified. However, now that the scale had increased, it naturally couldn¡¯t be managed the same way as before. This round of recruitment was also the largest recruitment since the first round. A total of 10 people were recruited. Previously, the focus of the food factory was jam and snacks, but chili sauce was considered seasoning, so these two weren¡¯t the same type of food. In order to prevent mixing, they couldn¡¯t share a production room. After Yu Bing and Wu Jin discussed it, in the empty space behind the current factory building, they made a production room with the same area size as that of the existing factory building. In the middle, they built another door to the disinfection room of the old factory building, so it would be more convenient for the chili sauce to be transported to the disinfection room. The reason why they had such a large-scale renovation this time was that Yu Bing planned to use the factory to produce seasoning and canned meat products. Because the previous development wasn¡¯t big, Yu Bing didn¡¯t dare to try to produce expensive meat products. However, the timing was right now. Yu Bing planned to do it in advance to prevent wasting time and effort next time. While the recruitment and expansion were going on, the acquisition of chili was also on the agenda. Yu Bing delegated this task to Xiao Sheng and Feng Cai. The two of them bought things separately. Not only did it give Feng Cai a chance to gain more experience, but also created an excuse for Xiao Sheng to run around, so it was killing two birds with one stone. The Sun family. ¡°Sun Nan, are you daydreaming? As long as Yu Bing is still the factory director, do you think you can enter the food factory? You¡¯re asking for humiliation!¡± As Li Ping sat in the living room with her legs crossed, she rolled her eyes at Sun Nan, who was reading. When Su Qi, who was sewing the soles of her shoes, heard this, she stopped and whispered to Sun Nan, ¡°Sun Nan, your father and Sun Yu schemed against her so many times. There¡¯s definitely no chance of this happening, so you shouldn¡¯t waste time anymore.¡± Chapter 218 - 218 Unbelievable 218 Unbelievable Li Ping burst out laughing when she heard this. ¡°Although your mother gave birth to useless people, she¡¯s smarter than you.¡± As Madam Sun, who was sitting at the side, watched the women argue, she smoked calmly. As long as there was someone serving her three meals a day and she could smoke, these people could do whatever they wanted. When her son came out and she had someone to support her again, she would deal with these unruly women. It was fine if Li Ping said that, but when she saw that her mother was also discouraging her, Sun Nan was so angry that she took a deep breath and said, ¡°Mom, how do you know that it won¡¯t work? No matter what, I want to give it a try. If I really can¡¯t get chosen, I¡¯ll give up and won¡¯t think about this anymore.¡± When Li Ping heard this, she continued to make sarcastic remarks. ¡°You¡¯re just a good-for-nothing. Do you even remember how to write so many years after graduating from primary school? What are you boasting about?!¡± Although Li Ping felt that Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t let Sun Nan apply, it was best to make Sun Nan give up on this idea just in case. If Sun Nan really got lucky and became a factory worker, wouldn¡¯t Su Qi be able to use her second daughter to bully her at home? Li Ping couldn¡¯t tolerate this, so she spared no effort in mocking Sun Nan to make Sun Nan give up on this idea. Unfortunately, Sun Nan didn¡¯t fall for it at all. In the next few days, she attended night school and read and practiced writing whenever she had the time. When Sun Nan successfully passed the selection and joined the food factory, the Sun family was still in disbelief. Yu Bing disdained abusing her power to take revenge for personal grudges. As long as there was nothing wrong with their moral character, she was willing to give capable people a chance. Sun Xi ran into her and Sun Nan¡¯s room and looked at her second sister excitedly. ¡°Second Sister, did you find an opportunity to take revenge on Yu Bing for getting Father arrested?¡± When Sun Nan heard this, she frowned and asked, ¡°Who said this to you?¡± Sun Xi replied honestly, ¡°I overheard Aunt talking about it. She said that since you entered the factory, you have a chance to attack Yu Bing.¡± Sun Nan was stunned for a moment. After a moment of silence, she said to Sun Xi solemnly, ¡°Listen, Dad did a lot of wrong things. He helped Sun Yu target the factory director, so he was arrested and sentenced! However, the factory director disregarded the past and gave me a fair chance. If it weren¡¯t for the factory director¡¯s magnanimity, I might not have been able to enter the factory and become a worker.¡± ¡°We have to distinguish right from wrong.¡± Upon hearing this, Sun Xi nodded. She had always been conflicted about this. On the one hand, she felt that if not for Yu Bing, her father wouldn¡¯t have been arrested. However, she also knew that Yu Bing couldn¡¯t be blamed for this. It wasn¡¯t Yu Bing who forced her father to accept bribes, nor was it Yu Bing who forced her cousin, Sun Yu, to set her up. Now that she heard her second sister¡¯s words, she understood what she couldn¡¯t figure out previously. It was the farming period, so Wu Jin stipulated that every family in the village send out a young and strong laborer. Therefore, in just a week, the brand-new factory was constructed. It would be put into use after having putty powder left on for three days. The production time of the red oil bean paste was a month. Yu Bing specifically arranged for two workers to wash the bean paste that they had bought with warm water in advance before being parched. Yu Bing did the first round personally, then she parched them for another five days. They had purchased enough chili for this round. In order to achieve the best taste, after washing it, they still had to dry it for two days. The new round of recruitment was already completed, so Yu Bing taught the newcomers how to concoct the red oil chili. At this time, the factory¡¯s construction was already completed and there were more than ten large earth vats placed inside. Yu Bing moved all the materials from the courtyard into the factory. Then, she mixed the red oil chili and bean paste evenly for the second round of condiment mixing. After stirring it evenly, she placed it in a large jar and poured in a suitable amount of oil. Then, she sealed it and marinated it for 20 days before dividing it into small sterilized glass bottles. There were already 33 full-time employees in the factory. Coupled with Xiao Sheng, a part-time employee, the food factory could be considered a small processing plant now. There were two people in the finance department, the accountant, Wen Qin, and the new cashier, Zhou Mi. Zhao Lin, the female director, was in charge of the administrative department, which was mainly in charge of the logistics and personnel assessment of the factory. The position of the director had very few responsibilities, so after Yu Bing and Wu Jin discussed it, they let her hold two positions. Chapter 219 - 219 Serious Illness 219 Serious Illness The sales department was changed to the business department, which Feng Cai was in charge of. The sales and procurement of the factory were handled by this department. The last position to be filled was the production director. The factory¡¯s leaders unanimously agreed that Jiang Chun would be in charge of following up on the production progress and arranging the production plan for the factory¡¯s orders. There were two production rooms in the factory now. Yu Bing called the factory that made jam and snacks Production Room 1, and the newly built factory for condiments and meat products Production Room 2. Because there was only an order for red oil bean paste for Room 2 and no one needed to guard it during the marination period, all the workers in Room 2 were temporarily transferred to Room 1 to help during this period. Among the ten new employees, eight belonged to Production Room 1. Three of them were chefs, and the five ordinary workers were part of the mobile team. According to protocol, they had to choose a team leader to manage the team. One of the remaining two new employees obtained a cashier post, while the other joined the mobile team of Production Room 1. Yu Bing also changed the employee management system according to the actual situation in the factory to prevent people from slacking off. On first strike, money would be deducted, and on third strike, they would be fired. Among the employees recruited for this round, Xu Ling had also applied successfully, so Yu Yan had been in a very bad mood recently, especially since she couldn¡¯t schedule her classes either. After that night, their relationship worsened even more. Even if she was willing to put down her pride, Yu Yan knew that it was impossible for her to enter the factory. Seeing how happy Xu Ling was in the dormitory all day, Yu Yan felt even more resentful. However, when she thought about how she had gone against her adoptive parents¡¯ wishes in order to come to the village and even swore that she didn¡¯t need their help, Yu Yan knew that it was useless even if she gave in now. Yu Yan knew her adoptive mother¡¯s personality very well. She hated spineless people the most. If she really went back on her word and said that she couldn¡¯t stand the hardship and wanted to go back, her adoptive mother wouldn¡¯t help her! It was because she wasn¡¯t her biological daughter, so her adoptive mother didn¡¯t care about her! The more Yu Yan thought about it, the angrier she became. Her biological parents didn¡¯t have connections, but her adoptive parents did. However, her adoptive parents wouldn¡¯t help her. At the thought of this, Yu Yan hurriedly took out a letter and prepared to write to Duan Mei. Ever since they parted last time, the two of them had only sent each other a letter once. The last time her sister sent a letter, she mentioned that the jam was delicious. Yu Yan planned to buy six bottles from the factory when she sent the letter this time. Although the factory didn¡¯t sell the jam to individuals, they would still give special treatment to the people in their own village. As usual, she asked about her family¡¯s health and work situation first. This was because Yu Yan was completely unaware of her biological parents¡¯ situation. She yearned for Duan Mei and her sister to write more about her family¡¯s matters in the letter. Yu Yan also mentioned her own recent developments. She felt that this way, she would become closer to her family. At the end of the letter, she suggested going back to visit her family. After writing this letter, she continued to write another one. This was for her adoptive parents. She couldn¡¯t visit her biological family empty-handed, so she had to get more money from her adoptive parents first. After Yu Yan thought about it for a long time, she decided to ask for money on the grounds that she was seriously ill. She did have a high fever of 41 degrees last time. If Yao Nian had not discovered her in time, there was no telling what might have happened. At the thought of this, Yu Yan was extremely determined. After writing the letter, Yu Yan couldn¡¯t help but smile at the thought of returning to her true home and seeing her family, whom she had not seen for many years. Her originally depressed mood also improved. Since Yu Bing didn¡¯t know how lucky she was, she couldn¡¯t blame her for snatching her parents back! A week later, Yu Yan¡¯s adoptive parents, Yu Hai and Li Xin, received the letter. When they saw that Yu Yan was ¡®seriously ill¡¯, the two of them became as anxious as cats on a hot tin roof. One packed their luggage, while the other went to apply for leave and buy train tickets. On the other side, the Yu family also received Yu Yan¡¯s letter and the jam she had specifically bought. Because Yu Yan had sent a lot of jam, Yu Pan could finally dig a full spoonful openly this time. After adding water to it, she sat on the sofa with Yu Wu and drank it slowly. ¡°Our second sister is not bad. She¡¯s much more generous than Yu Bing!¡± Duan Mei looked at the jam that was missing a spoonful with heartache. ¡°Let me tell you, you can only dig a full spoonful this time. We have to save the rest! Your cousin¡¯s birthday is next month, so we have to take two bottles to your uncle¡¯s house.¡± Yu Pan complained indignantly, ¡°Why should I save it? If I wasn¡¯t smart enough to mention it at the end of the letter, these six bottles of jam wouldn¡¯t have been sent over! All you do is send our things to our uncle¡¯s house!¡± Chapter 220 - 220 Their Own Thoughts 220 Their Own Thoughts When Duan Mei heard this, she glared at Yu Pan. Then, she hurriedly looked at Mr. Yu as she explained guiltily, ¡°If I bring jam to them, they¡¯ll think that our family is doing well. Wouldn¡¯t this give our Yu family pride? I don¡¯t want to be inferior to my sister and let those gossipy women say that you¡¯re inferior to my brother-in-law.¡± Only then did Mr. Yu relent. Yu Pan secretly rolled her eyes. It had been quite a while since her mother had been subsidizing her maiden family behind her father¡¯s back. However, she didn¡¯t want to be the bad guy who revealed it. She was going to marry out of the family anyway, so if she offended her mother, her dowry might get deducted. Yu Pan continued to read the letter. ¡°I caught a cold recently and had a fever that reached 41 degrees. When I was delirious, I thought I would never see you guys again in my life. Fortunately, I was discovered in time and sent to the infirmary for treatment. Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ve already recovered. Dad, Mom, I want to see you guys and my siblings. I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t have the chance to see what my family looks like. Sincerely yours, Yu Yan.¡± When the family of four sitting in the living room heard Yu Yan say that she had recovered, they automatically chose to skip the first half and discuss the second half. Yu Bing¡¯s fever had reached 42 degrees once, but Duan Mei and Mr. Yu ignored her after feeding her two tablets of fever-reducing medicine. Didn¡¯t Yu Bing survive? Yu Wu was quite curious about what his second sister looked like. After all, he had already eaten what she had bought before he even saw her. ¡°Dad, Mom, if she wants to come, let her come.¡± Duan Mei said in frustration, ¡°How can it be that easy? Yao Nian¡¯s mother was the one who helped find the adopter. If they find out that we¡¯ve been secretly interacting with Yu Yan, what will happen to me and your father¡¯s reputation in the factory?¡± Yu Pan had a good impression of Yu Yan. After all, Yu Pan had only mentioned it casually, but she didn¡¯t expect Yu Yan to be so considerate. From this, Yu Pan could tell that the family who adopted Yu Yan was very well-off. She couldn¡¯t help but think of ways to extract more benefits. Yu Pan was 23 years old this year. If nothing unexpected happened between her and her current boyfriend, she would probably meet his parents at the end of the year and start discussing marriage. The more Yu Pan thought about it, the more she felt that having a rich sister help gather dowry for her was a good idea. Therefore, she had to meet Yu Yan more often and build a good relationship with her. ¡°Dad, Mom, I agree to let Yu Yan come and reunite our family. There¡¯s a small chance of her bumping into Auntie Shi and Uncle Yao.¡± Duan Mei and her husband exchanged looks. They were also conflicted. Their second daughter was well-off, so it would definitely be beneficial for them to build a good relationship with her, but¡­ Yu Pan knew that if she didn¡¯t dispel her parents¡¯ worries, they would definitely reject Yu Yan. Hence, she began to think about a plan. At bedtime, she really thought of a way. She ran into her parents¡¯ room and said excitedly, ¡°Dad, Mom, I¡¯ve thought of a way!¡± On the third day after receiving the letter, Yu Hai and Li Xin arrived at the Fengtou Mountain Commune with their luggage. Because it wasn¡¯t their day off, there was no ox cart to pick them up. The couple could only ask for directions along the way. Yu Hai looked at his wife, who was panting with every step, and said worriedly, ¡°Li Xin, give me the things in your hand. You¡¯re frail to begin with, so why did you bring so many things?!¡± Li Xin could only hand the food in her hand to her husband. Then, she shook her head and said with a smile, ¡°Back then, I went to the battlefield too. If I hadn¡¯t injured my body and got transferred to the logistics department, I would still be able to fight enemies now.¡± Yu Hai smiled helplessly and said, ¡°You¡¯re too headstrong. If you had a softer personality, Yu Yan wouldn¡¯t be so afraid of you.¡± Li Xin smiled and rolled her eyes at her husband. ¡°It¡¯s fine as long as we have a benevolent father like you at home. If I hadn¡¯t been stricter, would you have been able to tame our boy? Only after he grew older did he finally begin to mature. Yu Yan is a girl. I¡¯m already very lax with her.¡± Yu Hai looked at his wife dotingly as he said, ¡°Yes, yes, yes. You¡¯ve indeed shown your gentlest side to Yu Yan. It¡¯s also because Yu Yan is stubborn and in some aspects, she¡¯s even more difficult to deal with than her brother.¡± When Li Xin heard this, she felt a little proud and couldn¡¯t help but retort, ¡°So what if Yu Yan is stubborn? I¡¯m stubborn too. I raised her after all, so she¡¯s like me!¡± As the couple chatted with laughter as they walked, they no longer felt that the journey was long and boring. Chapter 221 - 221 Ginseng 221 Ginseng Rumble! The sound of a tractor came from behind. When Yu Hai turned around and saw that the driver was a young lady, he hurriedly shouted, ¡°Hello, young lady. Can you give us a ride?¡± Yu Bing hurriedly parked the tractor beside Yu Hai and replied loudly, ¡°Hello, where are you guys going?¡± Yu Hai took a step forward and approached the driver¡¯s seat. ¡°We¡¯re going to the He Mountain Brigade to visit our relative.¡± Yu Bing was going to the county to repay money today. The factory was profitable now, so the factory held a meeting and decided to pay off the debts first. When Yu Bing saw the couple¡¯s outfits, she guessed that they were the parents of an intellectual. She smiled gently and said, ¡°I¡¯m from the He Mountain Brigade. Hurry up and get in the tractor.¡± Yu Hai didn¡¯t expect to be so lucky, so he said happily, ¡°What a coincidence! My wife is not in good health, so she can¡¯t walk very quickly.¡± With that, he helped Li Xin into the car and they reached the village around 20 minutes later. Yu Yan, who was working in the field, immediately saw her adoptive parents sitting in the tractor. She immediately realized that they might have come to see her because she had written about being seriously ill, so she was frightened. When she saw that the driver was Yu Bing, she was anxious and afraid. She was afraid that Yu Bing would tell her adoptive parents what she had done to her. Yu Yan hurriedly applied for leave from the team leader and rushed back to the dormitory. After all, as the captain of the intellectual team, Yu Bing dropped the couple off at the dormitory entrance and chatted with them for a while. She didn¡¯t expect the few of them to hit it off. Li Xin asked with a smile, ¡°Yu Bing, how old are you this year? You look about the same age as my daughter. You look thin, but you¡¯re much more capable than her. It¡¯s my fault for spoiling her. I usually do everything at home and never gave her a chance to learn how to be independent.¡± Yu Bing replied with a smile, ¡°I¡¯m 19 this year. I came to the countryside last year. What¡¯s your daughter¡¯s name?¡± Li Xin immediately replied, ¡°Her name is Yu Yan. What a coincidence that we have the same surname as you. We¡¯re really fated!¡± Yu Bing was speechless. Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect to meet Yu Yan¡¯s adoptive parents in this life. She looked at the parents who clearly doted on their daughter, but in her previous life, Yu Yan said they were misogynistic and strict. Not only that, but Yu Yan also portrayed herself as an adoptive daughter who was mistreated by her adoptive parents. At the thought of this, Yu Bing felt pity for the couple in front of her. However, this was someone else¡¯s family matter after all, and she wasn¡¯t familiar with them. If she revealed Yu Yan¡¯s true colors, the other party might think that she was sowing discord. Hence, she didn¡¯t say anything else. She only smiled and said that she still had to return to the factory before leaving. At this moment, Yu Yan had also jogged to the dormitory. When she saw her adoptive parents sitting under the tree at the door, she heaved a sigh of relief. Then, she recalled her exaggerated description of her illness. After thinking of an idea, Yu Yan hid in the corner and spun around more than ten times. After holding onto the wall and waiting until she felt less dizzy, she covered her mouth and nose and held her breath for about a minute before slowly walking out. At this moment, Yu Yan¡¯s face was already a little pale. Coupled with the fact that she had run over here previously, her face was still covered in sweat. She said weakly, ¡°Dad, Mom.¡± When Yu Hai and Li Xin saw Yu Yan¡¯s appearance, they didn¡¯t doubt her at all. They went forward to support her as they said worriedly, ¡°It¡¯s been so many days, so why is your condition still so serious? We have to go to the hospital to take a look.¡± Li Xin and Yu Hai originally thought that since it had been about half a month after Yu Yan initially sent the letter, she should have recovered. The reason they were in a hurry to come was that they thought that Yu Yan would be frail after being seriously ill and wanted to give her some things to nourish her. Moreover, they had not seen their daughter for a year and missed her very much. Only then did Yu Yan realize that she had overdone it. She blamed Li Xin for it. If Li Xin had not been so strict with her since she was young, she wouldn¡¯t have panicked and forgotten about the time difference. She definitely couldn¡¯t go to the hospital, so Yu Yan hurriedly pulled her adoptive mother back. ¡°Mom, I¡¯m already much better. When I saw you guys in the field previously, I thought I was seeing things and was in a hurry to rush back. That¡¯s why I look exhausted.¡± Li Xin said with heartache, ¡°It¡¯s not like we¡¯ll run away, so what¡¯s the hurry? But from the looks of it, your immune system has probably become a lot weaker. Your father and I went to the pharmacy to buy some ginseng. Unfortunately, it¡¯s still a little young.¡± Wild ginseng was rare. Yu Hai had bought it with the help of a few acquaintances. Chapter 222 - 222 Exposed 222 Exposed When Yu Hai saw the sweat on Yu Yan¡¯s head, she hurriedly said to his wife, ¡°The sun is high here, so let¡¯s not talk in the courtyard anymore. Let¡¯s help our daughter into the room first.¡± After Yu Yan brought her adoptive parents to the dormitory, the two of them were relieved to see Yu Yan¡¯s dormitory environment. They took out the nutritional supplements, dried m¡°eat, and various sweets, biscuits, and pastries they had brought. There were a total of three luggages, and the things they brought for Yu Yan accounted for two. Li Xin asked Yu Hai to buy a chicken from the villagers and planned to make soup for Yu Yan to nourish herself. She took the laundry that Yu Yan had saved up for two to three days to wash, while Yu Yan lay in bed and ate snacks. After Li Xin hung up the clothes, she hurriedly returned to the room and tidied up the things she had brought. She suddenly realized that there was a wooden box in the wardrobe, so she took it out curiously. This frightened Yu Yan so much that she jumped up and took a few steps forward to snatch it. Li Xin was stunned for a moment when she saw Yu Yan¡¯s actions. Only then did Yu Yan realize how abrupt her actions were. The letters between Yu Yan and Duan Mei were inside. Yu Yan was worried that she would lose tem, so she specifically bought a wooden box and placed them inside, so she could read them from time to time. Yu Yan was very angry that Li Xin had touched the box, but when she saw Li Xin¡¯s expression, her anger was immediately extinguished. She only lowered her head and muttered, ¡°Mom, this is my privacy.¡± Li Xin also knew that her daughter needed her private space after she grew up, so she didn¡¯t think too much about it. Although she was a little disappointed that her daughter was starting to keep secrets from her, she still smiled and said, ¡°Alright, I won¡¯t look.¡± However, Li Xin suddenly realized that Yu Yan¡¯s face was no longer as pale as before. It was very healthy and rosy. She didn¡¯t look like she had just recovered from a serious illness at all, so she said in confusion, ¡°Why is your complexion so much better after lying down?¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she felt a little flustered, but then she thought of an excuse. ¡°The weather is too hot. Perhaps that¡¯s why my face is flushed. My chest still feels a little stuffy.¡± Li Xin looked at Yu Yan suspiciously, but didn¡¯t say anything else about it. ¡°Lie down first. I¡¯ll go to the kitchen to boil the chicken.¡± As Yu Yan looked at her adoptive mother¡¯s departing figure, she rolled her eyes and let out a sigh of relief. She was almost scared to death just now. The person in charge of cooking today was Shu Ya. When she saw a middle-aged couple in the kitchen, she asked curiously, ¡°Hello, who are you guys?¡± Li Xin smiled and replied, ¡°Hello, young lady. We¡¯re Yu Yan¡¯s parents. We came to the village to see her.¡± When Shu Ya heard this, her eyes widened. She immediately thought of how Yu Yan had just reunited with her biological mother in this kitchen not long ago. However, Shu Ya quickly hid her surprised expression. She smiled as she said calmly, ¡°You guys are so good to Yu Yan. You guys even took leave to come over.¡± When Li Xin saw Shu Ya¡¯s surprised expression, she felt a little baffled. However, because they were not familiar with each other, it wasn¡¯t appropriate to ask directly. She continued, ¡°Isn¡¯t Yu Yan sick? Her father and I were really worried, so we came over to take a look.¡± When Shu Ya heard this, she didn¡¯t think much of it. She comforted them with a smile, ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much. Although Yu Yan¡¯s fever was a little high last time, fortunately, she was treated in time, so she was fine after two to three days. She even went to the county for a day on her day off last week.¡± Shu Ya had good intentions and wanted to comfort them, but she didn¡¯t expect to accidentally expose Yu Yan¡¯s lie. After Li Xin thought of the contents of the letter and Yu Yan¡¯s appearance when they met just now, she was furious and didn¡¯t even remember to put down the big spoon as she turned around and strode upstairs. ¡°Li Xin, don¡¯t be so anxious. You¡¯ll scare the child!¡± Yu Hai, who was washing vegetables at the side, couldn¡¯t care less about the task at hand. After he wiped the water off his hand, he hurriedly followed. Li Xin had always had a sharp tongue, but she was a softie at heart. However, when she put on a straight face, even if Yu Yan admitted her mistake on the spot, she wouldn¡¯t feel repentant. Yu Hai knew this mother and daughter¡¯s tempers very well. He was afraid that their already tense relationship would become even worse. Li Xin was an impatient person. As soon as she entered the dormitory, she questioned Yu Yan impatiently, ¡°Yu Yan, you¡¯ve learned to lie now!¡± Yu Yan was rejoicing over avoiding a calamity and was thinking of making up an excuse to make her adoptive parents leave tomorrow. There were many people in the dormitory building, so she was also worried that someone would let it slip, but she never expected to be exposed so quickly. When Yu Yan saw Li Xin¡¯s expression, her mind went blank. She couldn¡¯t think of any excuse. Chapter 223 - 223 Half 223 Half-truth Seeing this, Li Xin knew that Yu Yan had really lied to her. No wonder after resting for a while, there was no longer any sign of illness on her face. She couldn¡¯t hold back her anger and scolded Yu Yan sternly, ¡°Kneel down!¡± Li Xin¡¯s years of intimidation made Yu Yan¡¯s legs go weak and she automatically knelt down. Her face also turned pale. Li Xin glared at Yu Yan. ¡°Raise your hands!¡± Yu Yan raised her palm shakily with her palm facing up. Li Xin used the wooden handle of the iron spoon to hit her palm a few times. Yu Hai heard Li Xin¡¯s reprimand at the top of the stairs. After entering the room, he quickly closed the door and grabbed Li Xin¡¯s hand as he advised anxiously, ¡°Let¡¯s talk things out. Let¡¯s listen to the reason the child lied first.¡± When Yu Yan saw her adoptive father present, she relaxed a little. She quickly thought of an excuse and said with a long face, ¡°I just wanted you guys to care more about me.¡± When Li Xin heard this, she was so angry that she laughed. ¡°How can we not care about you? We send you money every few days after a month because we¡¯re afraid that you won¡¯t be able to eat properly! If you wanted to see us and wrote us a letter, we would have come.¡± Li Xin saw through Yu Yan¡¯s excuse. ¡°Do you see that? She¡¯s still lying to us! She still refuses to tell the truth!¡± Li Xin¡¯s voice became louder and louder. Seeing this, Yu Hai walked to Yu Yan¡¯s side and said in a low voice, ¡°Yu Yan, it¡¯s not like you don¡¯t know that your mother hates being deceived the most. Be good and tell your mother the truth. I will help you.¡± Yu Yan knew that she couldn¡¯t tell the truth. Otherwise, she might never get these treatments again. Seeing that Li Xin didn¡¯t believe her, she lowered her head and planned to remain silent to the end. When Li Xin saw Yu Yan¡¯s silent attitude, the anger in her heart intensified. She felt that Yu Yan was still unrepentant. ¡°Yu Yan, it¡¯s only been a year since you came here, but look at what you¡¯ve become! It¡¯s bad enough that you lied to me in the letter, but you¡¯re still continuing to lie to me! When I go back this time, I¡¯ll find someone to transfer you back to the city. If you stay here, there¡¯s no telling how bad you¡¯ll become!¡± Yu Yan actually wanted to return to the city. After Wu Jin became the village chief, she had no chance to slack off anymore. Now, Yu Yan couldn¡¯t hold on anymore, but that was because she wanted to go back on her own accord, instead of being forced to go back by her adoptive mother. Seeing Li Xin¡¯s domineering attitude, Yu Yan missed Duan Mei even more. Thinking of how she said that she wanted to go back to see them in the letter, she immediately became emboldened and retorted, ¡°I¡¯m not going back. I want to stay in the village.¡± Hearing this, Li Xin sneered. ¡°Alright, you can stay if you want, but in the future, our family won¡¯t send you a needle or a thread. In the future, you will earn your own food. If it¡¯s not enough, don¡¯t look for us.¡± Yu Yan panicked and glared at Yu Hai. ¡°Dad!¡± Yu Hai couldn¡¯t resist Yu Yan¡¯s plea for help, so he smiled at his wife ingratiatingly. ¡°Honey¡­¡± After Li Xin gave him a side-eye, Yu Hai shut his mouth. ¡°Yu Yan, I¡¯ll ask you one last time. Why did you lie to me and your father?¡± Yu Yan had no choice but to compromise. ¡°I just want you and Dad to care more about me and send more money over. I barely have any money left.¡± Yu Yan knew that half-truths were the hardest to tell, so she put on a helpless look. When Li Xin heard this, she frowned and asked, ¡°I send you at least 10 yuan a month. Even if you eat meat twice a week, there¡¯s still extra. Your father and I even sent you a lot of food and clothes. There¡¯s not much that you need to buy. What did you spend all your money on?¡± Yu Yan frowned, but kept silent. Li Xin found a bench to sit on and said, ¡°If I find out that you¡¯re lying again, you¡¯ll have to pack your things and come back with me immediately.¡± Seeing that her adoptive mother was adamant, Yu Yan was at her wit¡¯s end. If she returned like this and fell under her adoptive mother¡¯s control, she wouldn¡¯t be able to return to her biological parents¡¯ house to reunite with them. At this point, with her adoptive mother¡¯s shrewdness, Yu Yan knew that if she didn¡¯t tell the truth, she would suffer. She could only choose to go back or have money and food supply cut off. Sigh, if her adoptive mother scolded her, so be it! It was fine as long as her adoptive mother didn¡¯t transfer her back immediately! Yu Yan lowered her head and said meekly, ¡°I used the money to buy food and distribute it to the intellectuals.¡± Chapter 224 - 224 Rebel 224 Rebel At this time, everyone was poor. Even if they were from families with slightly better conditions, it was impossible for them to share food with others all day long. In such a situation, they either needed other people¡¯s help or had ulterior motives. When Li Xin heard this, she asked, ¡°Why do you share food every month?¡± Under Li Xin¡¯s sharp gaze, Yu Yan told her how she had bribed others to work for her. Li Xin originally thought that Yu Yan genuinely wanted to come to the countryside to help. Although she couldn¡¯t keep Yu Yan by her side, when she thought of her daughter¡¯s dedication to helping the country, she felt quite proud. However, the actual situation was like a slap in the face to her! Li Xin said angrily with a serious expression, ¡°You insisted on coming to the countryside. We arranged a job for you, but you didn¡¯t want it, so we let you come! But you couldn¡¯t stand the suffering and even used our family¡¯s money to bribe people to do your work. Now that I¡¯m asking you to go back, you¡¯re actually unwilling. Tell me, what exactly do you want?¡± Seeing that the topic returned to this matter, Yu Yan could only continue to remain silent. At most, she would secretly contact her adoptive father to get money. Her adoptive father had always been more soft-hearted towards her, but her adoptive mother was in charge of the family¡¯s money. Her adoptive father didn¡¯t have much money himself, so she couldn¡¯t get much. But it didn¡¯t matter. In order to meet her biological parents, she could endure this! At this moment, the door was pushed open and two girls with braids appeared at the door with a lunch box. When Yu Yan saw Xu Ling return from work, without waiting for Li Xin to let her get up, she immediately jumped up and pretended that nothing had happened. Li Xin didn¡¯t say anything when she saw this. After all, Yu Yan was an adult. No matter how she lectured her daughter, she had to give her some face in front of outsiders. Yu Hai tried to smooth things over. ¡°Hello, young lady. We¡¯re Yu Yan¡¯s parents.¡± No matter how hostile Xu Ling and Yu Yan were in private, Xu Ling still had to be humble and polite to her elders. Hence, she smiled and greeted, ¡°Hello, my name is Xu Ling. I live in the same dormitory as Yu Yan.¡± Li Xin hurriedly stood up and took out a bag of biscuits from Yu Yan¡¯s cabinet. Then, she stuffed it into Xu Ling¡¯s hand with a smile and said, ¡°Here, eat some biscuits.¡± Xu Ling thanked her politely. With Xu Ling¡¯s return, the conversation could only be paused. Then, Li Xin turned around and glanced at Yu Yan as she said, ¡°Go down and eat first.¡± With that, she led the way out of the room. At this moment, Yao Nian, who had just returned to his room, was extremely excited. He had left quickly after work. After getting food, he wanted to get some jerky from Yu Yan. When he heard the conversation in the room, he pressed his ear against the door curiously to listen to what they had to say. He didn¡¯t expect to hear such a big news. Yao Nian only knew that Yu Yan¡¯s parents treated her well and that her family was quite well-off, but he didn¡¯t know the details. However, from the conversation just now, he realized that her parents were actually well-connected and could transfer her back to the city. This was enough to prove that Yu Yan¡¯s family was definitely much better off than his own. Yao Nian only spent half a second before deciding to kick Yu Bing out of his plan. No matter how impressive Yu Bing was, she could only stay in the village. If he married Yu Bing, even if he became the factory director, he would still be a villager! However, if he could marry Yu Yan, since Yu Yan¡¯s parents couldn¡¯t bear to see her suffer and wanted to keep her by his side, as long as Yu Yan could be transferred back, as her husband, they would definitely think of a way to get a job for him. Although Yao Nian felt a little regretful that he couldn¡¯t return to his hometown, he didn¡¯t have the ability to choose now. It was already good enough if he could return to the city and become a city dweller. His parents didn¡¯t have the ability to help him! Yao Nian started to think about how he could improve his relationship with Yu Yan. After all, if he could win a woman¡¯s heart, he would do whatever he said next! In the afternoon, Yu Yan went to work. The female team leader, Tian Jing, arranged an empty dormitory for Li Xin and Yu Hai to stay in. The two of them were currently worrying about Yu Yan in the dormitory. Yu Hai recalled Yu Yan¡¯s behavior after she left home. ¡°I feel that this child has changed a lot after staying here for a year.¡± Li Xin sighed as she said, ¡°I feel that she has become more and more rebellious in the past few years. I think we should transfer her back, so we can keep an eye on her. If she¡¯s here, we can¡¯t find out in time and correct her mistakes.¡± When Yu Hai thought of Yu Yan¡¯s personality, he didn¡¯t agree with this method. ¡°I think it¡¯ll be difficult. She refuses to go back no matter what. If we really cut off her allowance, things will be even more troublesome if she really does something drastic. I think we should communicate with her in a gentler manner.¡± Chapter 225 - 225 Gift 225 Gift ¡°Yu Yan.¡± A crisp male voice interrupted the family meeting. When Yu Hai and Li Xin looked over, they saw a tall and handsome boy in neat clothes. Yao Nian took a few steps forward and placed the matching yolk pastry and snowflake pastry on the stone table. Then, he smiled at Hai and Li Xin and said, ¡°Hello, my name is Yao Nian. I¡¯m from A City and I came to help build the countryside. This is the most popular dessert in our village, so I bought some for you guys to try.¡± The couple looked at each other in confusion. First, Yu Yan pretended to be sick today, then was punished. In the afternoon, she was afraid that her adoptive parents would immediately transfer her back to the city and only found out before dinner that she could stay, but all her subsidies were halved according to the previous amount. She felt aggrieved, but in the end, she compromised in order to have more opportunities to return to her biological family. After this series of events, how could Yu Yan still remember Yao Nian? Moreover, the two of them had not been together for long. She didn¡¯t plan to tell her family about her relationship so soon. Yu Yan walked to Yao Nian¡¯s side quickly and whispered for him to go back first. Yao Nian knew that his actions were a little rash. However, he had waited for the entire afternoon, but he didn¡¯t see Yu Yan introduce him to her parents. Thinking of Yu Yan¡¯s family background, he decided to seize the opportunity to impress Yu Yan¡¯s parents first. If he could please his future in-laws, he would be able to return to the city sooner! When Yu Hai and Li Xin saw this scene, they immediately understood their relationship. After Li Xin touched her husband¡¯s hand and glanced at the gift box on the table, Yu Hai immediately understood what Li Xin meant. He picked up the gift box and handed it back to Yao Nian. He didn¡¯t allow Yao Nian to refuse. Then, he smiled and said, ¡°Thank you for your kindness, but it¡¯s not easy for you to save some money in the countryside. Take it back and eat it yourself.¡± Regardless of how far Yu Yan and Yao Nian¡¯s relationship had developed, without Yu Yan informing them in advance, Li Xin and Yu Hai definitely couldn¡¯t accept this gift on such an informal occasion. Accepting it would lower Yu Yan¡¯s status and make it seem like their family had accepted this relationship just over a gift. Yao Nian¡¯s smile froze. He glanced at Yu Hai and then at Li Xin, who was sitting there silently with a smile. When he saw their calm appearance yet unyielding attitude, he knew that his efforts tonight had been in vain. He could only whisper to Yu Yan, ¡°Then I¡¯ll go back first.¡± Yu Yan hurriedly nodded. Yao Nian said goodbye to the couple before turning around and entering the dormitory building. Li Xin was about to flare up when Yu Hai hurriedly stopped her and asked Yu Yan gently, ¡°When did you two get together?¡± Yu Yan replied softly, ¡°We¡¯ve only been together for a little more than a week.¡± Li Xin didn¡¯t say anything. Yu Hai seemed to have thought of something and asked, ¡°Did he say that he¡¯s from A City? Do you know what his family does?¡± Yu Yan suddenly remembered that her adoptive parents had gone to her biological parents¡¯ home back then and knew which factory her biological parents worked at. They were colleagues and neighbors of Yao Nian¡¯s parents. She couldn¡¯t let her adoptive parents know Yao Nian¡¯s identity. Otherwise, they would definitely guess that she already knew the truth about her background! Chapter 226 - 226 Tailored 226 Tailored Yu Yan quickly made the decision to hide this matter and said calmly, ¡°I don¡¯t know. We¡¯ve only been together for a few days. I only know that his father is a small leader in the factory.¡± Although Li Xin had only seen Yao Nian once, she didn¡¯t like the way he did things. She was worried that Yu Yan was just smitten with his handsome appearance, so she thought for a moment and reminded her, ¡°Yu Yan, the most important thing when looking for a partner is character. Don¡¯t just look at appearances. It¡¯s fine if you want to date him. We won¡¯t object, but you definitely can¡¯t get physical with him before you guys get married.¡± Although Li Xin¡¯s tone was calm, it revealed her firmness. When Yu Yan heard this, her thoughts drifted to that night. She felt a little guilty and angry, so she blushed and said, ¡°Mom, what are you talking about? What kind of person do you take me for?! I¡¯m going to bed now!¡± With that, Yu Yan stood up and returned to the dormitory. Li Xin stared at Yu Yan¡¯s back worriedly as Yu Yan left. The next day, the factory was about to welcome the big customer who ordered bean paste. Xiao Sheng was unprepared. When he arrived at the county city¡¯s office early this morning, he saw Zhang Chao talking to a man. The other party was wearing a white shirt, black trousers, leather shoes, and a watch. It was obvious that he came from a wealthy family. Although the man was dressed formally, from his charming eyes and his graceful mannerisms, Xiao Sheng quickly determined that he was definitely from a wealthy family. People who didn¡¯t come from a good family wouldn¡¯t exude that kind of casual elegance. After Brother Qiang took over the black market in the city, Zhao Chao worked under Xiao Sheng. After a period of interaction, Zhao Chao was completely won over by Xiao Sheng¡¯s methods and intelligence. He was Xiao Sheng¡¯s fanboy now. When Zhang Chao saw Xiao Sheng, he ran forward eagerly and introduced the person sitting in the room. ¡°Boss! This is the big buyer who placed the bean paste order.¡± Previously, when Xiao Sheng went to negotiate, the person who signed the contract was Zeng Li¡¯s assistant, so he didn¡¯t see Zeng Li in person. Xiao Sheng found it a little strange. The contract procedures had been settled, so why did he come to a small county like Pingjiang at this time? However, he didn¡¯t show any expression on his face. He only walked forward and extended his hand. ¡°Hello, my name is Xiao Sheng.¡± Zeng Li stood up with a smile and reached out to shake Xiao Sheng¡¯s hand. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Zeng Li.¡± Xiao Sheng asked, ¡°Mr. Zeng, why are you here today?¡± With a serious and responsible attitude, Zeng Li planned to take this opportunity to change his family¡¯s bad impression of him and make them realize he was no longer a child. Hence, Zeng Li went straight to the point and said, ¡°I¡¯m just here to see the production environment of your food factory and see if you have any other chili products.¡± Xiao Sheng wanted to say that there was only one product, but when he thought of Yu Bing¡¯s superb culinary skills and her mind, which seemed to be full of delicacies from all over the world, he immediately changed his words. ¡°You¡¯re welcome to visit. If you have any other needs for spicy products, we can customize a new product for you according to the requirements.¡± Zeng Li was very satisfied when he heard this. He didn¡¯t want this trip to be in vain. On this business trip, after Zeng Li took the train to the city, he borrowed a car from an acquaintance and drove to the county city. After Xiao Sheng arranged the assignments for that day, he brought Zeng Li back to the village. Because her adoptive parents were going back today, Yu Yan applied for half a day¡¯s leave. Then, she found the old man who drove the ox cart to send her parents to the bus station in town. The bus to the city would set off half an hour later, so the few of them were still waiting in the waiting room. Li Xin nudged Yu Hai meaningfully. After Yu Hai received the signal, he caressed Yu Yan¡¯s head and said with a nostalgic smile, ¡°You¡¯ve grown up in the blink of an eye. It seems like just yesterday that you were in the first grade of primary school. Every day, when your mother and I sent you to the classroom door, you would start to hug my thigh and refuse to let go. You insisted on going home.¡± When Yu Yan heard her adoptive father¡¯s words, she also laughed. When she was young, she wanted to play all the time. When she heard that she had to sit in the classroom the entire day when she went to school, she didn¡¯t want to go. In the first month of the first year, this sort of scene happened every day. Hence, her adoptive parents used toys and snacks to lure her into the classroom every day. They only stopped when she started to feel the joy of going to school. Chapter 227 - 227 Discontent 227 Discontent Li Xin smiled as she listened to the father and daughter reminisce about the past. Seeing that the atmosphere was very harmonious, Yu Hai slowly changed the topic to what he really wanted to say. ¡°Yu Yan, life is very long. We will meet many people, good and bad. We have to be careful when making friends.¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she knew that Yu Hai was talking about her boyfriend. ¡°Dad, I know what you want to say. Don¡¯t worry. Besides, I¡¯ve only dated him for a few days.¡± Li Xin reminded him again worriedly, ¡°You can date him, but remember to keep your distance.¡± Yu Yan replied impatiently, ¡°Got it, got it.¡± As Li Xin looked at her daughter¡¯s pretty face, she thought of the young lady who accompanied them to the village yesterday, so she asked, ¡°How¡¯s your relationship with Yu Bing?¡± Yu Yan¡¯s heart skipped a beat. ¡°I¡¯m not familiar with her.¡± Li Xin nodded. Yesterday, she had heard the chatter of those intellectuals and knew that Yu Bing didn¡¯t live in the dormitory building. ¡°That girl is very nice. Although she¡¯s younger than you, she¡¯s very smart. She¡¯s the intellectual team captain and the village¡¯s factory director. I heard that she was the one who came up with the idea for your village¡¯s economic project.¡± Yu Hai also agreed and said, ¡°Your mother and I even chatted with her yesterday. I didn¡¯t expect such a capable young lady to be so humble. She didn¡¯t seem arrogant at all. You should befriend more people like her. You can learn many good things from her.¡± When Yu Yan heard her adoptive parents¡¯ praise for Yu Bing, her expression instantly became very ugly. She vented the dissatisfaction she had long suppressed in her heart. ¡°You guys haven¡¯t interacted with her for that long! I knew you guys had always been dissatisfied with me. You guys finally revealed it! If you guys are so satisfied with her, why didn¡¯t you guys choose her? Why did you guys choose me?!¡± Yu Yan was already brooding over her adoptive parents choosing her instead of Yu Bing back then. What did they mean by saying this now? Did they regret it? The more Yu Yan thought about it, the more she felt that she had discovered the truth. Li Xin and Yu Hai also suddenly thought of Yu Bing, so they mentioned it, but they didn¡¯t expect Yu Yan to have such a big reaction. The couple didn¡¯t realize what Yu Yan meant. After all, Yu Yan was very young when they adopted her, so the two of them never thought that Yu Yan knew her true background. Li Xin¡¯s smile disappeared. ¡°Yu Yan, why are you so narrow-minded now? We¡¯re just talking about our opinions of her and giving you a suggestion. Your words are too hurtful! Have your father and I ever mistreated you since you were young? When have we not fulfilled your requests? Seems like your father and I came here to see you for nothing!¡± With a livid expression, Li Xin went straight to the entrance to wait for the tractor. When Yu Hai heard this, his expression turned ugly. His usually gentle countenance looked very serious at this moment. ¡°Yu Yan, when I received your letter, your mother was very anxious. What do you mean by we¡¯ve always been dissatisfied with you? Do you think we lectured you because we¡¯re dissatisfied with you? Or do you think as long as we say something you don¡¯t want to hear, we¡¯re dissatisfied with you? Didn¡¯t you ever think that we said those words to you because you were in the wrong?¡± ¡°Yu Yan, I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s my imagination, but you seem to have been blaming us in the past few years. We¡¯ll go back now. Take care of yourself.¡± With that, Yu Hai chased after his wife without looking back. Yu Yan lowered her eyes and stared at her toes. After a moment of silence, she turned around and left the waiting room. She wasn¡¯t wrong! They were dissatisfied with her! They used the excuse of doing so for her own good to punish her and scold her. In reality, it was because she wasn¡¯t their biological daughter. Yu Yan reconfirmed her original belief, but she overlooked the fact that her adoptive parents¡¯ biological son had been punished and scolded more times than her. He Mountain Village. When she found Yu Bing, Yu Bing was looking at the ratio of chicken and duck feed at the farm in the orchard. After Xiao Sheng asked Jiang Chun to tell Yu Bing about Zeng Li¡¯s arrival, she quickly recalled what other formulas she could use. Chapter 228 - 228 New Product 228 New Product When she arrived at the factory and saw Zeng Li, she overlooked his handsome looks and noble aura. She only saw him as a cash cow. Yu Bing stared at Zeng Li with sparkling eyes. ¡°Hello, Mr. Zeng. My name is Yu Bing. I¡¯m the director of the Delicious Food Factory.¡± When Zeng Li saw Yu Bing¡¯s sparkling eyes when she looked at him, he felt very smug. So far, unless it was a brat who had yet to develop an aesthetic sense, no one could resist his charm. Originally, he thought that Yu Bing would be different from other women since she could become the person-in-charge at such a young age. Now, it seemed that she was just so-so. Although Yu Bing was quite beautiful, Zeng Li felt a little bored when he saw Yu Bing¡¯s obsequious demeanor. He only greeted her aloofly, ¡°Hello, Miss Yu.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t mind Zeng Li¡¯s cold attitude at all. As long as she got more orders, it was fine even if he scolded her. After all, the factory still had debts, so she had no choice but to humble herself to earn more money. Yu Bing continued to introduce the factory to Zeng Li enthusiastically. After walking around, Zeng Li realized that although the food factory was only small, its hygiene and food production processes were not inferior to those of large food factories in the city. He was impressed with Yu Bing and asked, ¡°What other spicy products can you guys make?¡± Yu Bing told him what she had thought of just now. ¡°We can also make mushroom chili sauce, beef chili sauce, mushroom beef chili sauce, and garlic pepper chili sauce. We also plan to make canned spicy fish in a few months.¡± In fact, there were far more spicy sauce products than this. There were also various combinations. According to the situation, Yu Bing chose a few that would have a broader customer range in the future. Due to the pricing of the products, Yu Bing suggested three types of chili sauce for mushrooms and beef alone. Canned meat would definitely be expensive, followed by meat and vegetables. The cheapest would definitely be all-vegetarian chili sauce. Zeng Li nodded when he heard this. Actually, he didn¡¯t eat spicy food very often, so he didn¡¯t know that there could be so many varieties of spicy sauces. He asked Yu Bing, ¡°It sounds like there are quite a lot of varieties, but I wonder how they taste.¡± Yu Bing had thought of these just now. There were no ready-made products yet, so she suggested making a few products this afternoon and giving Zeng Li samples to try tomorrow. After setting a time to meet tomorrow, Yu Bing took some condiments from the factory and prepared to go home to make them to prevent herself from occupying the boiler in the factory and affecting the progress of the other orders. Among the variety of sauce flavors, mushrooms and beef were more troublesome. Yu Bing still had some dried mushrooms at home that could be used first. The supply company had already sold out the beef at this time, so she could only buy two pounds from the black market through Xiao Sheng. Although there were no plans to produce canned fish now, the opportunity to see a rich patron was really rare, so Yu Bing fished out a few baby grass carp from the fish pond. This time, she would let the rich patron try it first. If he liked it, she would have a buyer after the fish harvest! After gathering enough raw materials, Yu Bing began to cook. No matter which type of spicy sauce it was, the commonality was that the chili had to be chopped up and special oil that had been stir-fried with more than ten spices and ingredients had to be used. Yu Bing soaked the dried mushrooms in hot water first, then cut the beef and poured in the seasoning wine to remove the fishy taste. Then, she added pepper, salt, and raw soy sauce to stir evenly. After marinating them for ten minutes, she divided them into two portions. A small portion was used for the mushroom beef chili sauce. Yu Bing made the beef chili sauce first before pouring out the special oil. Then, she poured in a large portion of marinated beef. The meat was fried until it turned white and she added crushed chili. Then, she stir-fried it for more than 10 to 20 minutes before extracting the water. After a layer of clear oil surfaced in the pot, she added black beans, garlic, and ginger. After stir-frying them evenly, she added salt, chicken bouillon, five-spice powder, white sugar, and raw soy sauce. Then, she continued to stir-fry until the aroma of black beans and ginger, and garlic was released. Then, she added stir-fried sesame seeds to increase the aroma and stir-fried them evenly again before taking them out of the pot. At this moment, the dried mushrooms had already been soaked. Yu Bing squeezed out as much water as possible from the mushrooms. Then, she cut them and divided two portions, leaving one for the mushroom chili sauce and beef chili sauce each. Then, the griddle was used to stir-fry the shiitake mushrooms. After the water evaporated, she poured in the special oil. The shiitake mushrooms were fried for three minutes. Then, the bean paste from the factory was poured into it and the chopped chili was added. Chapter 229 - 229 Honey Trap 229 Honey Trap During this period, it was constantly stirred clockwise to prevent it from sticking to the pot. Then, salt, chicken essence, and raw soy sauce were added for freshness. Ripe sesame seeds were sprinkled and stir-fried. After the mushroom chili sauce thickened, it was taken out of the pot. In the end, she began to make mushroom beef chili sauce. First, Yu Bing poured the raw peanuts into the pot and stir-fried them until they were brown. After they cooled, she rubbed the skin out. The remaining peanuts were smashed and placed aside for further use. After pouring in the special oil, she stir-fried the beef until it turned white. Then, she poured in white wine to remove the fishy smell and increase the aroma as she stir-fried it slowly over a small fire until the water in the beef evaporated. Next, she added chopped chili and soybean sauce. After the aroma of the sauce emitted, she added white sugar and stir-fried it again. Then, she poured in the diced mushrooms and continued to stir-fry the mushrooms at low heat in order to evaporate the water. This was to extend the storage time. Ten minutes later, she poured in the spice powder, salt, and crushed peanuts. Five minutes later, she added chicken bouillon and cooked sesame seeds, then she stir-fried them evenly. These three flavors had similar names, but there were differences in their cooking methods, so the taste was completely different. Out of the few types of spicy sauces, the garlic double-pepper sauce was the simplest to make. The garlic was fragrant, and the red pepper in the double-pepper added spiciness. The green pepper gave it a fresh taste. When the final product was presented in a glass jar, it was green and red in color. Canned spicy fish was more troublesome to make. Just marinating the fish pieces took two hours. After that, she had to dry it and pour in a special oil to fry the fish until it turned golden. The fish pieces and the chili sauce were made separately. After the chili sauce was ready, she poured in the fish pieces and stir-fried them evenly. The next day, Xiao Sheng brought Yu Bing to the county city. When they arrived at the county city, it was just past eight o¡¯clock. In order to show her hospitality, Yu Bing treated Zeng Li to breakfast at the state-owned restaurant. Zeng Li wanted to order a bowl of noodles, but Yu Bing ordered buns and soy milk first, so he didn¡¯t say anything. After all, it was someone else¡¯s treat. Yu Bing deliberately ordered buns. Then, she took out the sample and recommended to Zeng Li, ¡°Mr. Zeng, buns taste superb with chili sauce. This way, you can also get a better feel of our products.¡± Zeng Li agreed with her. This was because many soldiers in the army ate steamed buns or white rice dipped in chili sauce. He could also learn their habits. This way, the products he chose might suit their taste better. After eating a plate of buns with a few varieties of chili sauces, Zeng Li was already sweating from the spiciness, but he continued to dip the buns in the sauces. This was the first time Zeng Li found out that buns, which he didn¡¯t like, could be so delicious. After finishing the five new products, Zeng Li was still savoring the aftertaste. Every product had its own characteristics, giving him difficulty choosing. ¡°They all taste good and have their own unique characteristics, but I can¡¯t choose them all.¡± Before coming, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng had already set the price, so Xiao Sheng suggested, ¡°Mr. Zeng, why don¡¯t you consider the purchase budget first?¡± ¡°Each bottle is 500 grams. The price of garlic and pepper sauce is 1 yuan, mushroom chili sauce is 1.2 yuan, beef chili sauce is 1.8 yuan, and mushroom beef chili sauce is 1.5 yuan. The supply for canned spicy fish is not available yet, but the price is 1.2 yuan. You¡¯re welcome to order when the goods are available.¡± The budget of the army was relatively limited. The first two varieties were for the army, while the beef chili sauce was supposed to be sold on the black market. Other than the capital, the two most prosperous port cities in the country were S City and G City. There were more rich people in S City than in the rest of the country. They only lacked good products. After Zeng Li heard the price, she quickly calculated the market price. After a while, she said, ¡°I¡¯ll order 1,000 bottles of garlic, peppers, mushroom beef, and beef chili sauce each.¡± Yu Bing pursed her lips as she looked at Zeng Li with sparkling eyes. Yu Bing was certain that she would be able to pay off all her debts by the end of this year! When Zeng Li saw Yu Bing¡¯s gaze, he decided that it was time to use a honey trap. He raised his eyebrows and winked. ¡°Miss Yu, please give me a discount of 0.1 yuan per bottle. I¡¯m probably the biggest customer of your factory now.¡± When Xiao Sheng saw Zeng Li¡¯s actions, his gaze turned extremely cold. When Zeng Li felt a sudden chill behind him, he turned around and looked around, but he didn¡¯t find anything amiss. Yu Bing didn¡¯t find it strange when she heard that the customer wanted to bargain. After all, this was a necessary part of business negotiation, but what did he mean by raising his eyebrows and winking at her? Chapter 230 - 230 Interesting 230 Interesting After being stunned for a moment, Yu Bing dismissed it as his eyes being uncomfortable. She smiled and said, ¡°Mr. Zeng, this is a small business. You can compare the prices. Among products of the same quality, this price is definitely the fairest! We barely earn much profit. We just want to keep in touch with you and be friends.¡± She naturally couldn¡¯t reduce the price immediately. Yu Bing planned to continue the bargaining to give him the impression that their profits were really low. After a few rounds of bargaining, in the end, the price of each bottle was reduced by 0.04 yuan. Zeng Li was puzzled as to how Yu Bing could remain so unyielding despite his charm. This question was quickly answered. Just as she was about to settle the payment after the contract was signed, Yu Bing saw that the manager of the fertilizer factory had also come to eat breakfast and was sitting at the next table. At this moment, Zeng Li saw Yu Bing look at the middle-aged man at the next table with the same fervent gaze. Yu Bing greeted him warmly, ¡°Good morning, Mr. Ma! What a coincidence.¡± When the factory director saw that it was Yu Bing, he thought about how Yu Bing had just returned a sum of money yesterday, so he felt that he had to be more enthusiastic. He immediately smiled at her. Yu Bing was the best at seizing opportunities, so she immediately picked up the samples beside her and walked over. ¡°Mr. Ma, this is our factory¡¯s new chili sauce. Do you want some samples of each?¡± Without waiting for a response, Yu Bing picked up a spoon and picked up a small spoonful of each type before placing them on the plate containing the steamed buns. The factory director wanted to refuse, but when he saw that there was also meat in the chili, he shut his mouth. After the factory director took a bite of the bun with the beef chili sauce, his eyes immediately lit up. It was moderately salty and spicy. Then, he took a bite of the bun with the mushroom beef chili sauce, which was fresh and delicious. Then, he couldn¡¯t help but continue to dip the bun in every product. Because Yu Bing didn¡¯t scoop much spicy sauce, it was gone before the factory director had enough of it. He looked at the spicy sauce in Yu Bing¡¯s hand, but was too embarrassed to ask for more. Yu Bing was very observant. Seeing this, she took the initiative to hand it over. ¡°It¡¯s my fault. I was worried that you wouldn¡¯t like it, so I didn¡¯t dare to scoop too much.¡± With that, Yu Bing took the initiative to dig out a large spoonful each. ¡°What a coincidence. We just released a new product, and then we met you. We just negotiated a few orders.¡± The factory director understood Yu Bing¡¯s intentions when he heard this, so he said with a smile, ¡°Since you¡¯re so enthusiastic, I know that you must have something to ask for.¡± Yu Bing smiled readily and said, ¡°Isn¡¯t it a good thing that we came to you for something?! Isn¡¯t our product delicious? At the end of the day, we keep introducing new things to serve the people better and add more choices for everyone¡¯s meals.¡± The factory director smiled and shook his head. ¡°I can¡¯t outtalk you.¡± Yu Bing chuckled. ¡°Mr. Ma, consider using our chili sauce for employee benefits. It¡¯s definitely economical and practical. A mere spoonful of chili sauce is enough for an entire bowl of rice. It can save a lot of money.¡± When the factory director thought of the benefits that had been decided these past two months, he didn¡¯t relent. As Zeng Li looked at Yu Bing, who was still trying the persuade the factory director, he frowned and leaned towards Xiao Sheng as he whispered, ¡°Does Miss Yu look at every customer with shining eyes?¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this, he immediately realized why Zeng Li did that to Yu Bing just now and couldn¡¯t help but chuckle. ¡°Yes, customers are gods, so of course Miss Yu¡¯s eyes light up whenever she sees God.¡± Zeng Li¡¯s mouth dropped agape as he stared at Yu Bing. In the end, he relied on his own shamelessness to get the order. It was negotiated at the original price he had quoted previously. Zeng Li was amused. This was the first time he had met a money-grubber like Yu Bing. However, when discussing business, this side of her wasn¡¯t annoying. Instead, it was very adorable. Zeng Li felt that this trip was getting interesting! After Yu Bing received the order, she went to settle the payment happily. She felt that it was worth it to treat them to breakfast, since she had managed to get two customers with a single meal! As he watched Yu Bing and the others leave, the factory director fell into deep thought. How had he been convinced so easily? The monthly budget for the third month wasn¡¯t even out yet, but the employee benefits expenditure was set first. He should have eaten breakfast at home. Why did he suddenly come out to eat?! It would be fine if he came to eat here tomorrow instead of today. Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t come to the county city every day¡­ Chapter 231 - 231 Giving Chicken Soup 231 Giving Chicken Soup Zeng Li¡¯s inspection had ended, but he wasn¡¯t in a hurry to go back. Because the order date for the chili sauce was a week later, he said that he would wait for the delivery and check it himself. Therefore, in the past two days, Zeng Li traveled from the county city to the village after sunrise and from the village to the county city after sunset. During the day, he followed Yu Bing to the factory. In Yu Bing¡¯s office. Zeng Li placed a thermal lunch box on Yu Bing¡¯s desk and said with heartache, ¡°Yu Bing, I specifically went to the state-owned restaurant to get someone to make chicken soup for you. You¡¯re so small and thin, so you have to nourish yourself.¡± Ever since he signed the order after breakfast that day, Zeng Li¡¯s address of Yu Bing had changed from Miss Yu to her name. Two days ago, Zeng Li started giving her watches and skincare products, but Yu Bing had refused them on the grounds that they were too expensive. This courting style had never failed Zeng Li before! Unexpectedly, Yu Bing completely changed his previous understanding. However, Zeng Li wasn¡¯t discouraged. He changed his pursuit method to giving her supplements instead. As Yu Bing looked at Zeng Li, who came to her every day, she suddenly felt a little glad that the factory director¡¯s office was completely independent. Outsiders only thought that Zeng Li was worried about the order and personally came to keep an eye on it. Otherwise, if others saw their interaction, she wouldn¡¯t be able to explain herself. Yu Bing believed that she would definitely become the number one topic in the village. Perhaps there would be rumors that the two of them were in a relationship. Yu Bing looked at Zeng Li, who was still so persistent after being rejected by her for two days, and sighed. How did she catch the eye of this young master? Whatever it was, she could change! Due to the other party¡¯s status as a rich patron, Yu Bing said patiently, ¡°Mr. Zeng, I¡¯ll buy whatever I want to eat myself. I won¡¯t drink this soup. Please don¡¯t give me anything else.¡± Seeing this, Zeng Li could only use her trump card. ¡°I¡¯m giving it to you no matter what. If you don¡¯t want to drink it, throw it away.¡± Under normal circumstances, when a girl heard this, she would accept it because she didn¡¯t want to waste it. However, Yu Bing¡¯s reaction was unexpected. When Yu Bing heard this, she smiled and said, ¡°Mr. Zeng, this is yours, so I won¡¯t keep it for you. However, if you want to throw it away, I can do it for you. Do you need me to?¡± Zeng Li didn¡¯t relent. ¡°It¡¯s up to you.¡± Without another word, Yu Bing took the thermos box and walked out. When Zeng Li saw this, he immediately went forward to stop her. ¡°Are you really going to dump it? This is meat. Many people can¡¯t even afford to eat rice!¡± Although Zeng Li¡¯s family was rich, his parents had experienced war, where it was common for people to starve and freeze on the battlefield. Therefore, the Zeng family had a family motto that they couldn¡¯t waste food. Seeing that Yu Bing was so stubborn, Zeng Li could only compromise and take back the thermos box. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll eat it myself. Yu Bing, it¡¯s been so many days. I don¡¯t believe you can¡¯t tell that I¡¯m pursuing you. Are you really not going to give me a chance?¡± Yu Bing glanced at Zeng Li. ¡°Mr. Zeng, I don¡¯t plan to find a partner yet. Moreover, we¡¯re not from the same world. This factory is still in debt. I promised the leaders that if this project doesn¡¯t succeed, I¡¯ll have to bear these debts myself.¡± Zeng Li smiled when he heard this. Other things aside, he had a lot of money. Zeng Li looked at Yu Bing affectionately and said in a seductive tone, ¡°If that day really comes, I can help my girlfriend.¡± Yu Bing replied with a fake smile, ¡°Thank you for your kind intentions, Mr. Zeng. If you really want to help me, why don¡¯t you place more orders with our factory? I hope our products can satisfy you and that we can sign a long-term contract. After all, this is a win-win situation.¡± The more Yu Bing refused, the more determined Zeng Li was to win her over. This was the first time he had met a girl like Yu Bing. Yu Bing was independent, intelligent, and quick-witted. She was domineering, but also gentle. She also fought hard for the interests of the factory during negotiations. She gave him a vivacious impression. She was very different from those girls who only knew how to rely on their families and play around all day long. Chapter 232 - 232 Differential Treatment 232 Differential Treatment Zeng Li stared at Yu Bing and smiled slightly as he said firmly, ¡°Yu Bing, I won¡¯t give up.¡± Yu Bing was helpless and could only express her stance again. ¡°Mr. Zeng, we¡¯re completely unsuitable. Don¡¯t waste your time on me.¡± Yu Bing had no intention of getting married in this life. She just wanted to earn money. After the country opened up the market, she would earn a lot of money and achieve financial freedom. Then, she would travel around the world. Why would she want to find a man to serve and torture herself? In her previous life, Yu Bing had been schemed against by Yao Nian. In terms of relationships, she was relatively naive. Therefore, in the face of Zeng Li¡¯s pursuit, because she couldn¡¯t respond to it, she chose to reject him directly. She thought that blunt refusal would solve the problem. However, men¡¯s desire to conquer often arose from women¡¯s rejection. The more explicitly women refused, the more men couldn¡¯t let go. Many scheming women would play hard to get on purpose because they knew men had this mentality! Zeng Li raised her eyebrows and said nonchalantly, ¡°You can dislike me, but you can¡¯t stop me from liking you.¡± ¡°Yu Bing, you¡­¡± Xiao Sheng entered the office as he spoke, but he didn¡¯t expect to see Zeng Li. Xiao Sheng greeted him in confusion, ¡°Mr. Zeng?¡± Xiao Sheng knew that Zeng Li planned to leave after the goods were ready, but he thought that Zeng Li would wait in the county city. After all, he really couldn¡¯t think of anything in the village that would attract this noble young master¡¯s attention. Zeng Li smiled and replied, ¡°Good morning. Don¡¯t be surprised. I¡¯ve been coming every day recently because I want to pursue Yu Bing.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard Zeng Li¡¯s high-profile announcement, his heart skipped a beat. He immediately turned to look at Yu Bing, but when he saw her roll her eyes helplessly, he heaved a sigh of relief. Xiao Sheng was a little happy and dejected. He was the only one who knew how outstanding Yu Bing was. However, with Yu Bing¡¯s hard efforts, she now had a larger platform to showcase her skills, allowing more people to see how outstanding Yu Bing was. Xiao Sheng suddenly felt pressured. He hoped that he could become more powerful, but he didn¡¯t know why he had such thoughts. Thinking of this, Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing and said, ¡°There¡¯s progress regarding what you asked me to pay attention to previously.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°What is it?¡± Seeing Yu Bing looking at him with a burning gaze, Xiao Sheng couldn¡¯t help but glance at Zeng Li. He felt smug about this difference in treatment. ¡°It¡¯s in the county city. I¡¯ll bring you there.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t have any urgent work to do, so without another word, she found a large sack and folded it a few times before stuffing it into the cloth bag. Then, she followed Xiao Sheng out. There were many documents in the factory director¡¯s office. As Yu Bing held the lock in her hand, she stared at Zeng Li, who was still inside. Then, she shook the lock in her hand to signal to him that she wanted to lock the door. Seeing Yu Bing¡¯s obvious difference in treatment, Zeng Li was furious. He could tell that Xiao Sheng also liked Yu Bing! That smug look just now was simply a provocation. He couldn¡¯t admit defeat! ¡°I happen to be returning to the county city, so I¡¯ll go with you guys,¡± Zeng Li said as he walked out of the office. When he saw the bicycle parked beside the car in the factory courtyard, Zeng Li revealed a confident smile. Then, he turned around and made an inviting gesture to Yu Bing. ¡°Yu Bing, can I have the honor of giving you a ride?¡± Xiao Sheng smiled and went forward to unlock the bicycle. Yu Bing was thinking of making Zeng Li give up, so how could she sit on it? Hence, she smiled politely but aloofly at Zeng Li as she said, ¡°Thank you, Mr. Zeng, but we still have something to do, so we won¡¯t waste your time.¡± With that, Yu Bing sat in the back of the bicycle. Xiao Sheng turned around to smile at Zeng Li. ¡°Goodbye, Mr. Zeng.¡± As Zeng Li watched the two of them leave, he was so angry that he kicked the tire. Force him to give up? Impossible! This was the first time Zeng Li had met a girl who he didn¡¯t know how to win over. He could only take things slowly. He had plenty of time anyway. All women were afraid of being pestered. Chapter 233 - 233 All Women Were Afraid Of Being Pestered 233 All Women Were Afraid Of Being Pestered Hence, on a rural road, passersby saw a small car driving at the same speed as the bicycle beside it. Zeng Li followed the two of them to the county city. Xiao Sheng had no intention of hiding their whereabouts from Zeng Li. To a certain extent, they were both doing things that were not allowed in this era. They were both rebels. Zeng Li looked at the dumpster-like place in front of him. There was a sign at the entrance of the courtyard with the words ¡°Recycle Station¡±. Zeng Li looked at the two people beside him and asked with a frown, ¡°Are you guys here to pick up trash?¡± Yu Bing nodded without hesitation. She hoped that this dirty place could scare this big shot away. ¡°Yes.¡± As expected, an indescribable expression appeared on Zeng Li¡¯s face. Xiao Sheng followed Yu Bing through the door without hesitation. After greeting the old man guarding the recycling station, he walked in. The waste recycling station was completely different from the trash recycling station. The waste recycling station collected all kinds of household waste, while the trash recycling station was an open-air large-scale secondhand recycling station. However, there were also prohibited items that had been confiscated. However, most of them were confiscated items, and there was no lack of antique calligraphy and paintings. As long as someone¡¯s house had been searched, other than basic daily necessities, the other items in the house would be deemed to be prohibited items and thrown here. Therefore, there were all kinds of things here, but the truly valuable things had long been secretly taken away by bold thieves. The remaining things were not very valuable. Yu Bing wasn¡¯t looking for valuable items to sell, but high school books that had been thrown here. After ten years of turmoil, the end of the next year would usher in a turning point, which was the resumption the college entrance examination. In the past ten years, education hasn¡¯t been taken seriously. There were 50 to 60 students in a class. The more serious the teacher was about supervising the students, the more likely their faces would be plastered on ¡®big-character posters¡¯! Especially when they encountered rebellious teenagers who liked to slander people. ¡°Big-character posters¡± refers to words in capital letters. At first, it was only used as a way to promote good ideas. However, some ambitious and scheming people gradually started to use it as a method to expose and criticize others. On the other hand, the so-called revelations were mostly groundless and taken out of context. The criticism was random, causing a large number of innocent scholars to be falsely accused and persecuted. It was under this thinking that the knowledge they learned in this decade was the most basic and simple, and couldn¡¯t be compared to the quality of knowledge acquired on campus ten years ago Yu Bing came here today to look for textbooks from many years ago. After Zeng Li followed them for a few steps in and saw the messy pile of things that emitted a faint stench, he really couldn¡¯t continue walking. However, when he saw the two of them in the distance, he made up his mind and covered his mouth and nose with his hand as he followed. The further back the things were placed in the recycling station, the older they were. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng stopped at the innermost area and began to search. Xiao Sheng¡¯s family had encountered an accident before he finished junior high, so when Yu Bing was looking for books, she subconsciously paid attention to junior high books. Fortunately, these things were the most inconspicuous, so the two of them easily flipped through many of them. However, because it had been too long, after soaking in the rain, many of the books couldn¡¯t be read anymore. The books were also in different sets. In order to piece together a complete book and read it clearly, the two of them spent a lot of time. Fortunately, Yu Bing found a set of senior textbooks. The textbook was filled with all kinds of notes. It was obvious that this person was a top student. After Yu Bing flipped through it, on the blank space on the first page of the textbook, the words: Gao Yang, Class 1 of the third year were written. His handwriting was bold and striking. Yu Bing looked at the words and muttered, ¡°Xiao Sheng, if you see any books with Gao Yang¡¯s name, keep them all.¡± Chapter 234 - 234 Returning the Favor 234 Returning the Favor Xiao Sheng nodded when he heard this. Soon, he found two books. He raised the cover and asked, ¡°Yu Bing, are these two books useful?¡± Yu Bing approached the few books Xiao Sheng found. After taking a few casual glances, her eyes suddenly froze. Xiao Sheng held an English-Chinese dictionary in his hand and a high school mathematics, physics, and chemistry exercise notebook that the other party had summarized. It was probably a summary that he had specially made to prepare for the college entrance examination, but it probably wasn¡¯t used because the college entrance examination had been canceled. Yu Bing touched Xiao Sheng¡¯s upper arm in surprise. Then, she praised him excitedly, ¡°Xiao Sheng, nice job! With these two books, I¡¯ll definitely get twice the result!¡± Mathematics, physics, and chemistry were different from liberal arts, where one could get some points from memorizing. If one didn¡¯t have a scientific mindset and didn¡¯t really understand the logic behind it, once the questions changed, they wouldn¡¯t be able to solve the question. Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing¡¯s smile as he listened to her tell him how important these two books were. He didn¡¯t interrupt and only watched Yu Bing quietly with a smile. When Xiao Sheng was asked by Yu Bing to help find books, he thought of the county¡¯s waste recycling station, so he established a good relationship with the old man here, so that they could sneak in, but he didn¡¯t ask Yu Bing what she wanted to do. In this era, knowledge wasn¡¯t valued. When conspirators explained that labor was the most honorable thing, they raised the status of workers and farmers to a high position, while intellectuals became the targets of belittling and suppression. Although these things were thrown here like trash, under normal circumstances, no one could take them out. If they wanted to transport these books out, they had to have some connections. Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing placed the books they found on the ground and sorted them. Then, they chose one set of junior high books, three sets of high school books, and some other books as cover. Yu Bing took out the large sack in her bag and placed all the books in it. Although Zeng Li followed them to the back, he didn¡¯t climb up the pile of junk to help. He found an empty space nearby and stood there counting the ants on the ground. After waiting for two hours, he saw the two of them interacting intimately in the distance. He was anxious but helpless. Just as he was about to give up and climb up, Xiao Sheng walked down with the sack. Zeng Li asked curiously, ¡°What were you guys looking for? Books?¡± Zeng Li was far away and below, so he couldn¡¯t see clearly. Xiao Sheng replied calmly, ¡°Yu Bing is preparing to set up a reading room in the village, so we chose some suitable books.¡± Yu Bing pursed her lips and smiled when she heard this. Xiao Sheng¡¯s words were true. She wanted to set up a reading room, and they did look for books. However, she had smuggled some other books with her at the bottom of the bag. When Zeng Li heard this plan, he couldn¡¯t help but praise himself for his good taste in women. In this era, many people looked down on intellectuals. Although this family was full of martial artists, they had always admired cultured people. Which of those scientists who served the country and the people were not intellectuals? Yu Bing¡¯s ideals were the same as his family¡¯s. It meant that her ideas resonated with his! The more Zeng Li looked at Yu Bing, the more pleasing she became to him. Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect that Zeng Li already felt resonance with her just based on a few words. Because Xiao Sheng had a good relationship with the old man guarding the waste, the other party only flipped through the books casually. When he realized that they were only books and comics related to agriculture, he only accepted one yuan and let them go. Zeng Li wanted to show off, so he said, ¡°It¡¯s already one in the afternoon, so let¡¯s go eat together.¡± Yu Bing rejected him without hesitation with the excuse that she wasn¡¯t hungry. A meal at a restaurant was enough for her to eat two home-cooked meals with meat. Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t eat out unless she could get an order in exchange. She would rather go home hungry. Just as Yu Bing refused, her stomach growled. A blush crept onto Yu Bing¡¯s face. This physiological reaction that couldn¡¯t be controlled by her subjective consciousness made Yu Bing feel embarrassed. Xiao Sheng suppressed the smile on his face. ¡°Let me treat you to a bowl of noodles. You¡¯ve been so busy recently, but you still took the time to teach Xiao Li, so I have to return the favor. Although it¡¯s not enough to repay your kindness, I hope you won¡¯t mind.¡± When Yu Bing thought about how no matter how tired she was, she still held classes for Xiao Li at least twice a week, she accepted this treat with a clear conscience. Chapter 235 - 235 Not a Bad Person 235 Not a Bad Person Zeng Li took a deep breath in exasperation. However, it didn¡¯t matter, since he still had a second move. ¡°The back of the bicycle is filled with books. Yu Bing, you might as well take my car. Otherwise, you¡¯ll have to walk back.¡± Yu Bing looked at the large sack on the ground. The books inside weighed at least 60 to 70 pounds and were vertical, so it was indeed inconvenient for her to carry them. However, she said nonchalantly, ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s just a few steps.¡± Xiao Sheng wanted to walk with Yu Bing, but Yu Bing¡¯s stomach began to growl again. Yu Bing was so embarrassed that she wanted to find a place to hide. Xiao Sheng said to Yu Bing, ¡°Come ride the bike. I¡¯ll run and push from behind. This way, it won¡¯t be too difficult for you to ride it.¡± Seeing this, Zeng Li had no choice but to compromise. ¡°Put the books in my trunk!¡± After Yu Bing thought about it, she finally agreed. Zeng Li would just help them transport something a kilometer away. Even an ordinary friend would help. When they returned to S City with the goods, she would send him some snacks to return the favor. At this moment, a small incident happened in the factory. Jiang Chun was now considered a small leader in the factory. In order to fulfill the duties of her position and to not let others say that Yu Bing was playing favorites, she was basically the first to arrive every day and the last to leave after work. Today was no exception. At 12:15 p.m., after everyone left, she went around the courtyard to Production Room 2 and started patrolling. The two production rooms in the factory were connected through the disinfection room. Jiang Chun didn¡¯t find anything unusual after walking around, so she locked the door. At this moment, she heard a sound from the direction of the storeroom. Jiang Chun suspected that it was a rat. After all, rats had appeared before. She thought that it was about time to raise a cat. The warehouse was only two meters tall. There was a ventilation window in front and behind, but they were all surrounded by barbed wires. The other four places were sealed, leaving only a single door for entering and exiting. The workers had no idea how the rat had run in under their noses. The warehouse key was in the hands of Director Huang, who was in charge of the warehouse. Although Jiang Chun didn¡¯t have the key, she still planned to knock on the door a few times to see if she could scare the rat away. ¡°Huh? Director Huang didn¡¯t even lock the warehouse door after leaving?!¡± Jiang Chun was a little angry when she saw the lock hanging at the side. If someone with ulterior motives sneaked in and stole everything, it would affect the delivery time and they would have to pay heavy compensation. Seeing that the door wasn¡¯t locked, Jiang Chun decided to catch the rat. She saw a wooden stick beside the door, so she picked up the wooden stick and pushed the door open. When hunting a rat, she had to trap it inside first. Hence, as soon as she entered the warehouse, Jiang Chun turned around and closed the door. Just as she was about to turn around, a dagger was pressed against her neck, scaring Jiang Chun so much that she didn¡¯t dare to move. She said with a quivering voice, ¡°If there¡¯s anything, let¡¯s talk it out.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid. I won¡¯t hurt you, but you can¡¯t scream.¡± When the man¡¯s deep and hoarse voice sounded in Jiang Chun¡¯s ear, although Jiang Chun was panicking, she could still hear the hint of weakness in the man¡¯s voice. However, her life was in his hands, so she didn¡¯t dare to do anything. She immediately promised, ¡°I won¡¯t scream.¡± Cui Jin pressed the wound on his abdomen as he leaned against the wall. He was already at the end of his rope. From what he had heard outside the door previously, this woman was responsible. At least, she had good character. As for whether she would keep her promise, he could only take a gamble. When Jiang Chun heard the sound behind her, she slowly turned around and saw a man with a buzz cut. He was wearing a tight black T-shirt, but his pants were camouflaged. His face was painted, and he looked very disheveled. When she saw that the man¡¯s fingers were bleeding, she knew that he was injured. Cui Jin endured the sleepiness caused by blood loss and stared at Jiang Chun as he said, ¡°I¡¯m not a bad person. Please take me to a safe place secretly. I can¡¯t be discovered by anyone.¡± When Jiang Chun saw the man¡¯s tough temperament, she thought of her uncle, who was a retired soldier. She could roughly guess the man¡¯s identity, but she wasn¡¯t sure. However, the man¡¯s gaze was very piercing and righteous. After thinking for a moment, Jiang Chun chose to trust her intuition. In this era, anyone would treat saving soldiers as an honorable thing. Since the other party wanted to hide his whereabouts, Jiang Chun guessed that he was on a secret mission. Chapter 236 - 236 High School Textbook 236 High School Textbook Jiang Chun nodded without hesitation. ¡°Then follow me.¡± With that, she placed Cui Jin¡¯s arm on her shoulder. Jiang Chun supported him as she walked towards the quiet path beside the factory carefully and listened to their surroundings attentively. Fortunately, as usual, she didn¡¯t encounter anyone along the way. Jiang Chun brought Cui Jin back to the kitchen and helped him sit on the hay pile against the wall. As Jiang Chun looked at the blood that kept flowing out from between her fingers, she said worriedly, ¡°Your blood keeps flowing. I¡¯ll go to the infirmary to get some medicine to stop the bleeding.¡± Cui Jin hurriedly held Jiang Chun¡¯s hand and said with a frown, ¡°We can¡¯t let anyone know that you bought hemostatics. Otherwise, you and I will be in danger. Give me some plant ash.¡± Jiang Chun hurriedly went to the stove to fill a bowl. Then, she entered the room and took two rolls of gauze straps. She placed the cold water that had been boiled in the morning beside Cui Jin. Cui Jin knew that this wasn¡¯t the best way to treat his wound, but they had limited conditions now. He endured the pain and tore open the cloth he had used to bandage the wound. Then, he washed the blood around the wound with cold water and placed a bowl of plant ash on the wound. However, he didn¡¯t have the strength to bandage it anymore, so Jiang Chun helped bandage the strap around Cui Jin. Cui Jin looked at Jiang Chun as he thanked her weakly. ¡°Thank you for believing me.¡± Jiang Chun pursed her lips and said with a smile, ¡°I¡¯ll cook first. Lie down for a while.¡± Noodles were easy to digest, so Jiang Chun prepared two bowls of noodles and even placed two eggs in Cui Jin¡¯s bowl. Cui Jin looked at the bowl of noodles in Jiang Chun¡¯s hand. Twofried eggs were lying above the white noodles. Green onions and vegetables floated above the clear soup. The hot noodles were emitting a rich aroma, making Cui Jin, who hadn¡¯t eaten for a long time, swallow hard. Cui Jin took out 0.5 yuan from his pocket. Such a bowl of noodles would be sold for at least 0.3 yuan outside, and she had even given him bandages, so he still owed her. Hence, he handed it over awkwardly and said, ¡°This is all I have now. I¡¯ll make it up to you later.¡± Jiang Chun waved her hand to reject him. It was her honor to be able to help a soldier that protected the country. How could she accept money? Besides, she could afford this. ¡°Hurry up and eat.¡± With that, Jiang Chun placed the noodles on the small stool in front of Cui Jin and turned around to return to the table to eat her own noodles. Seeing this, Cui Jin didn¡¯t say anything else and started eating. Then, Jiang Chun washed the dishes. After glancing at Cui Jin, who was resting with his eyes closed, she tiptoed back to her room. Cui Jin opened his eyes when he heard Jiang Chun¡¯s footsteps. ¡°Miss, is there a deep mountain that no one has gone to nearby?¡± Jiang Chun was stunned for a moment before replying, ¡°There are rumors that the back mountain behind my house is haunted, so no one goes there.¡± Jiang Chun approached Cui Jin and asked, ¡°Where do you want to go?¡± When Cui Jin heard the description, he felt that it was a good place to hide. Not to mention that he didn¡¯t believe that there were ghosts in the world, even if there were, ghosts couldn¡¯t be more terrifying than humans. Hence, he nodded. ¡°I¡¯m very weak now, so I¡¯ll have to trouble you to send me to the mountains. I don¡¯t need you to go deep into the mountains. I can walk further in myself.¡± Jiang Chun frowned and asked, ¡°Are you worried that my family will discover you?¡± With Cui Jin¡¯s taciturn personality, he usually only gave orders and never explained them. However, the girl in front of him wasn¡¯t his subordinate. If he didn¡¯t explain clearly, the other party might not help. ¡°That¡¯s one thing. Most importantly, here, it¡¯s very easy for me to be discovered by the person I want to hide from. Once I enter the mountain, he won¡¯t be able to do anything to me. I can also recuperate properly.¡± When Jiang Chun heard this reason, she immediately nodded in agreement. On the other side, Yu Bing and the others had just finished eating. Zeng Li had been busy the entire morning, so he planned to rest in the county city in the afternoon and look for Yu Bing tomorrow. Zeng Li grabbed the sack from the trunk, but he didn¡¯t notice that there was a small hole at the bottom of the sack that was hooked to a small iron hook on the side of the carriage. ¡°Rip!¡± When Yu Bing saw that a large hole was torn open under the sack, she hurriedly took a few steps forward and a few high school textbooks at the bottom fell out. Chapter 237 - 237 Extremely Hungry 237 Extremely Hungry As Zeng Li looked at the scattered books, he was very puzzled, but he still said calmly, ¡°Do you need to go through so much trouble? You could have just borrowed high school textbooks from those graduates, but you specifically came to the recycling station to find them. I¡¯ll send you two new sets after I return to S City.¡± Yu Bing put the books back into the torn bag and replied with a look of disdain, ¡°I have to return what I borrowed. It¡¯s expensive to buy new books. All these books are only worth a yuan!¡± At this moment, Xiao Sheng had already returned to the restaurant and asked for two ropes. He took the bag from Yu Bing and went forward to tie the tear. Then, he carried it to the back seat and tied it tightly with the rope. Although Zeng Li found their actions strange, he didn¡¯t think too much about it. After all, what Yu Bing had said just now made sense. No matter what, such a large bag of books couldn¡¯t be bought in a bookstore without at least ten to twenty yuan. Because the back seat was already occupied by books, Yu Bing followed at the side while Xiao Sheng pushed the cart in front. Xiao Sheng was pretending to be calm just now. In fact, he was very flustered. After leaving the city and seeing that there was no one else on the way, he whispered to Yu Bing, ¡°Is it okay that Zeng Li saw those books just now?¡± Yu Bing replied calmly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, having textbooks isn¡¯t against the law. It¡¯s just that the place where we bought the books is a little unconventional.¡± After Xiao Sheng thought about it, he agreed and felt that he was being a little paranoid. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng went to the village¡¯s school first and placed the books they had used as cover there. Then, Xiao Sheng brought the remaining books home first while Yu Bing went to the factory. After work, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun returned home together. After entering the kitchen, Jiang Chun hurriedly began to wash the rice. She looked at Yu Bing, who was also in the kitchen, a little anxiously. Although she had burned the things at home that had accidentally been stained with blood, she was worried that Yu Bing would notice something. Hence, she tried her best to say in a calm tone, ¡°Yu Bing, go back to your room and do your own work. I¡¯ll be done shortly.¡± Because Yu Bing was usually busy, she didn¡¯t do many chores at home and left them all to Jiang Chun, but Jiang Chun never blamed her. Instead, Jiang Chun asked her to rest. Yu Bing felt that she had been spoiled by Jiang Chun. When Yu Bing heard Jiang Chun¡¯s words, she felt even more embarrassed. ¡°I don¡¯t have anything on today, so I¡¯ll cook tonight. Go rest.¡± After Yu Bing finished speaking, she saw something on the stove. She walked towards it and realized that it was money. Even if it was just 0.01 yuan, Jiang Chun¡¯s money would be wrapped in a handkerchief and placed in the innermost layer of her pocket. She was always afraid that she would lose the money, let alone 0.5 yuan! However, Yu Bing recalled that she hadn¡¯t approached the stove today. She picked up the money and turned to look at Jiang Chun as she asked in confusion, ¡°Jiang Chun, why did you put your money on the stove?¡± At this moment, Jiang Chun was putting the rice into the lunch box. She wasn¡¯t someone who left money out in random places, Hence, she replied without looking up, ¡°I didn¡¯t put money on the stove.¡± There were only two people at home. If Yu Bing was sure that it wasn¡¯t hers, it must be Jiang Chun¡¯s. ¡°Are you sure? I only had breakfast at the table this morning and didn¡¯t touch the stove. Did you put it there at noon?¡± Jiang Chun¡¯s hand paused when she suddenly remembered that the soldier had given her money at noon, but she had refused it. She turned to look at Yu Bing¡¯s hand. The value of the money was the same as what the soldier had given her, so Jiang Chun could only pretend that she had just remembered. ¡°Oh! Yes! It¡¯s mine. I¡¯m a little muddle-headed today.¡± Yu Bing handed the money to Jiang Chun. ¡°It¡¯s 0.5 yuan. Fortunately, it was left at home.¡± Jiang Chun took it and smiled awkwardly before lowering her head to continue working. Yu Bing squatted under the stove and started a fire. Jiang Chun didn¡¯t know what reason she could find to send Yu Bing out. If she said too much, she was afraid that Yu Bing would become suspicious, so she could only act according to the situation. Half an hour later, they started having the meal. As Yu Bing looked at Jiang Chun¡¯s full box of white rice, she frowned and said, ¡°Are you very hungry today?¡± Jiang Chun usually only ate half a bowl of rice, but in this situation, she could only nod and say, ¡°Yes, I¡¯m very hungry today.¡± However, after Yu Bing put down her bowl and chopsticks and saw that Jiang Chun had only eaten a third of the meal, she realized that Jiang Chun seemed to be acting a little strange today, but she couldn¡¯t tell what it was. Chapter 238 - 238 Delivering Food 238 Delivering Food When Jiang Chun saw that Yu Bing had yet to leave after eating, she guessed that she wanted to help wash the dishes after she finished eating, so she immediately said, ¡°I¡¯ll wash them after eating later. Go do your work.¡± Seeing that Jiang Chun was eating very slowly tonight, Yu Bing asked worriedly, ¡°Jiang Chun, are you feeling unwell today?¡± Jiang Chun immediately denied it. ¡°I¡¯m fine. Do I look sick to you?¡± Yu Bing studied Jiang Chun carefully and shook her head. Jiang Chun knew that if she answered a few more questions, she would probably be exposed. Thinking of Yu Bing¡¯s visit to the county city this morning, she immediately changed the topic. ¡°Where did you and Xiao Sheng go this morning?¡± Yu Bing thought of her book and slapped her thigh. ¡°I haven¡¯t retrieved my books yet! I went to buy books today. I have to go to the Xiao family¡¯s house later.¡± Yu Bing thought that she might as well take this opportunity to mention the matter to Jiang Chun, so she leaned closer to Jiang Chun and said secretively, ¡°When I went to the city previously, I overheard a leader say that the college entrance examination might resume next year, so I specifically went to look for old high school textbooks today. Since I found out, I have to make preparations in advance!¡± When Jiang Chun heard this, she looked out the door warily before asking in surprise, ¡°The college entrance examinations are really resuming?¡± Yu Bing nodded firmly. Jiang Chun revealed a happy smile, but then she froze and said, ¡°Sigh, wasn¡¯t there a similar rumor a few years ago? There was no follow-up after that. I don¡¯t think we should get our hopes up.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, her eyes darted around and she said, ¡°Things are different this time. This time, a very high-ranking leader said it. Although I can¡¯t tell you who I heard it from, I can guarantee that it¡¯s definitely true!¡± Jiang Chun knew that Yu Bing wasn¡¯t someone who believed in hearsay. If she wasn¡¯t 100% confident, she wouldn¡¯t be so certain, so Jiang Chun believed her. Seeing Jiang Chun¡¯s trusting expression, Yu Bing continued, ¡°I¡¯ll get the books later and teach Xiao Li. When I come back, we¡¯ll study together!¡± When Jiang Chun heard this, she immediately replied, ¡°Don¡¯t wait anymore. Go now. Give Xiao Li more lessons. I¡¯ll do the dishes.¡± Jiang Chun had to hurry up. Otherwise, if Yu Bing didn¡¯t see her when she returned, she would have to continue making up excuses. When Yu Bing heard this, she stood up and went to the Xiao family¡¯s house. As soon as Jiang Chun left, she divided the side of the lunch box she had eaten with clean chopsticks and finished her portion. She picked out the remaining vegetables and took out five eggs from her lunch box. Then, she placed ten sweet potatoes in the pot and steamed them. Ten minutes later, Jiang Chun took out a small bamboo basket and quickly placed the food in it before leaving the house. Jiang Chun didn¡¯t listen to Cui Jin, who said to place him at the entrance of the forest. Instead, she brought him to the deeper forest that she had accidentally entered previously. There was a very thin layer of miasma there. As long as one passed through it, the air further beyond it was normal. In an ancient book she had found at home in the past, Jiang Chun had read that eating garlic and burning vermicelli could prevent one from being affected by the miasma. Considering that Cui Jin had to hide his whereabouts, she specifically chose this place. With the natural barrier of miasma, ordinary people wouldn¡¯t take the initiative to approach. After Jiang Chun entered the mountain, she walked for half an hour and arrived at a dilapidated temple. This ancient temple had probably been abandoned for decades. This was the place Jiang Chun discovered after passing through the miasma. At this moment, the sun had completely set. In complete darkness, Jiang Chun hurriedly lit the kerosene lamp. Cui Jin was hiding behind the temple door. Before Jiang Chun entered, she knocked twice and shouted, ¡°It¡¯s me!¡± After greeting him, Jiang Chun pushed the door open. Through the dim yellow light, she could vaguely see Cui Jin¡¯s figure and she walked over. When Cui Jin, who was sitting on the ground, heard footsteps nearby, he took out his gun and assumed a defensive posture. After confirming that Jiang Chun was alone, Cui Jin relaxed. After Jiang Chun placed the kerosene lamp on the ground, she took out the candles and matches from the basket. ¡°These are for you to use as light. Use them sparingly. I¡¯ll go to the county city to buy two more on my day off in a few days.¡± Chapter 239 - 239 Writing a Letter 239 Writing a Letter She took out some food and continued, ¡°Hurry up and eat. I only have one lunch box. I have to take it back later. These are eggs and sweet potatoes. I can only come to deliver food to you once at night. My friend will definitely find out if I bring more. She¡¯s much smarter than me.¡± After Jiang Chun blurted everything out, she realized that she had nagged him. When she looked up and saw the smile on Cui Jin¡¯s face, Jiang Chun blushed and smiled in embarrassment. ¡°I have a habit of nagging. I know it¡¯s a little annoying.¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m quite introverted, so it feels good to have someone to talk to.¡± With that, Cui Jin picked up the lunch box and started eating. After eating, Cui Jin smacked his lips to savor the aftertaste and praised, ¡°Your culinary skills are quite good!¡± Jiang Chun smiled when she heard this. ¡°My friend taught me how to cook. I didn¡¯t cook this well in the past.¡± Cui Jin thought about how the other party had helped him so much, but he didn¡¯t even know the other party¡¯s name. He hurriedly asked, ¡°Miss, my friends call me Ah Jin. I still don¡¯t know how to address you.¡± Jiang Chun also introduced herself. ¡°My name is Jiang Chun.¡± Cui Jin had been hiding and escaping today. In order to mislead the traitor, he didn¡¯t even know where he had escaped to, so he asked, ¡°Jiang Chun, what¡¯s the name of your village?¡± ¡°He Mountain Village.¡± Cui Jin recalled the topographic map of this area and silently calculated the distance. He realized that he was only more than a hundred kilometers away. This time, Cui Jin brought a five-person team out to capture a spy. At the final critical moment of the capture, a traitor appeared in the team, and the knife wound on his body was the other party¡¯s doing. Now that he was in a pinch, he didn¡¯t know what had happened to the team. The traitor wanted to kill him, so that the traitor could continue hiding, but now, he didn¡¯t know Cui Jin¡¯s exact situation, the traitor would definitely return to the army and fabricate a story to distort the truth about his disappearance. Or, the traitor would retreat in the shortest time possible after stealing secrets. Cui Jin knew that he couldn¡¯t let the other party continue to hide. Otherwise, if the military¡¯s important secrets were leaked, even his death wouldn¡¯t be enough for him to atone for it! He could only recuperate for another day at most before he had to leave. After pondering for a moment, he said to Jiang Chun, ¡°You don¡¯t have to come over anymore. I¡¯ll leave tomorrow.¡± Jiang Chun widened her eyes and asked in shock, ¡°Your wound is so deep, but you¡¯re leaving after only a day? It¡¯ll be even worse if the wound gets infected.¡± Cui Jin looked at the round-faced girl with almond-shaped eyes in front of him. At this moment, her eyes were shining. Cui Jin smiled and said in a low voice, ¡°A day is already a lot. I still have very important things to do. I¡¯ll write a letter to you later.¡± ¡°Huh? Write a letter?¡± Jiang Chun was stunned for a moment. Weren¡¯t they talking about him leaving? Why did it suddenly jump to the letter-writing segment? When Jiang Chun thought of the money on the stove today, she thought that the other party must be planning to send her the money again for tonight¡¯s meal, so she smiled and rejected him. ¡°The 0.5 yuan you gave me is enough. You don¡¯t have to send me money anymore.¡± Cui Jin smiled and reached out to rub Jiang Chun¡¯s head as he said softly, ¡°Hurry up and go back. It¡¯s not easy to walk back when it¡¯s dark.¡± Jiang Chun had only been rubbed on the head by an elder before, so when she was suddenly touched by a member of the opposite sex who was about her age, her ears burned. She didn¡¯t dare to look at him directly anymore. She picked up the lunch box and placed it in the basket. Then, she carried the kerosene lamp and ran away without even saying goodbye. As Cui Jin watched Jiang Chun¡¯s fleeing figure, he laughed helplessly. ¡°I seemed to have been a little too anxious, but I have no choice. After all, I¡¯ve been single for 25 years, but I¡¯ve finally met a girl I¡¯m attracted to. I can¡¯t let her slip away.¡± After Jiang Chun ran home in one breath, her heart was racing. For a moment, she couldn¡¯t tell if it was because she was in too much of a hurry or because of his actions. When Yu Bing returned with the books, she saw Jiang Chun sitting there in a daze with her hands supporting her head. Then, Jiang Chun suddenly smiled. This was a very rare side to Jiang Chun. After Yu Bing arrived beside Jiang Chun quietly, she suddenly waved her hand in front of Jiang Chun¡¯s eyes. Jiang Chun was so frightened that her body trembled. Then, she suddenly came back to her senses and clutched her chest as she said, ¡°You almost scared me to death.¡± Chapter 240 - 240 The Feeling of Like 240 The Feeling of Like Yu Bing squeezed beside Jiang Chun on the chair and asked, ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± Jiang Chun definitely couldn¡¯t tell the truth, so she could only change the topic. ¡°I¡¯m thinking about the college entrance examination you mentioned.¡± After Yu Bing heard Jiang Chun¡¯s reply, she smiled at Jiang Chun. ¡°You¡¯re changing the topic? Do you think I¡¯m that gullible? You were smiling so bashfully just now.¡± Jiang Chun retorted without thinking, ¡°Nonsense! How could that be possible?¡± Jiang Chun¡¯s reaction made Yu Bing feel that she was hiding something from her. Yu Bing thought of the shy smile she had seen before entering. Jiang Chun was definitely in love. Yu Bing rubbed her chin with her fingers and began to recall the male workers Jiang Chun interacted with every day. No matter how she thought about it, she couldn¡¯t think of a single suspicious person. However, Yu Bing had been busy recently, so Jiang Chun might have interacted with that person at some other time. The more Yu Bing thought about it, the more she felt that it was possible. She raised her eyebrows at Jiang Chun and asked with a confused expression, ¡°Who exactly is that man?¡± When Jiang Chun saw Yu Bing¡¯s mischievous expression, she patted her arm with a smile and said, ¡°Don¡¯t make wild guesses.¡± Although Yu Bing looked relaxed and gossipy, she was very worried about Jiang Chun¡¯s marriage in this life. Although Jiang Chun had avoided Sun Yu, she didn¡¯t know who Jiang Chun¡¯s husband would be in the future. Thinking of this, Yu Bing said to Jiang Chun seriously, ¡°Jiang Chun, neither of us have much love experience, but when the two of us get together, our brains are better than one person¡¯s. What can¡¯t you make up your mind about? Don¡¯t not tell me it¡¯s because you¡¯re shy. Marriage is a lifetime thing. You can¡¯t be anxious. You have to investigate the other party carefully.¡± When Jiang Chun heard Yu Bing¡¯s words, she lowered her eyes for a moment before saying slowly, ¡°What do you think it¡¯s like to like someone?¡± Yu Bing thought of her marriage with Yao Nian. It wasn¡¯t necessarily true that she liked Yao Nian. It was more that Yao Nian had been attentive to her at that time, and she was probably too desparate for love, so she had fallen into the trap the other party had dug. It wasn¡¯t because she liked him, but that she wanted to obtain the other party¡¯s approval and please him. Yu Bing could only answer Jiang Chun¡¯s question based on the television dramas she had watched in her previous life. ¡°When you like someone, you keep thinking about that person and your emotions are affected by that person¡¯s actions.¡± Jiang Chun was even more confused after hearing this. After all, she had only known him for half a day. She had not had the chance to verify the first half, but the second half¡­ Her emotions were indeed affected by the other party¡¯s actions tonight. However, now that she thought about it, she had not even seen the other party¡¯s appearance clearly, so this couldn¡¯t be considered her liking him¡­ When Yu Bing saw Jiang Chun¡¯s slightly confused gaze, she knew that the two of them had yet to confirm their feelings. Hence, she said to Jiang Chun earnestly, ¡°Remember, no matter how much you like someone, you have to put yourself first. You have to love yourself first, and only then will others love you.¡± Jiang Chun nodded. After a heart-to-heart chat, Jiang Chun slowly calmed down. Thinking that the other party would leave tomorrow and she didn¡¯t have to send food anymore, she threw tonight¡¯s matter to the back of her mind. The two of them began their study session for the college entrance examination. Yao Nian had become much more attentive to Yu Yan recently, but Yu Yan was very dissatisfied with Yao Nian¡¯s sudden appearance in front of her adoptive parents. He almost messed up her plan. Therefore, after sending her adoptive parents away, Yu Yan no longer treated Yao Nian as well as before. Yao Nian was completely dumbfounded. He only thought that Yu Hai and Li Xin were too strict and that he didn¡¯t meet their requirements, so they didn¡¯t let Yu Yan come into contact with him. No matter what the reason was, after knowing Yu Yan¡¯s family background, Yao Nian wouldn¡¯t let go of this springboard that could help him escape this rural place. Looking at Yu Yan, who was acting so cold to him, Yao Nian could only suppress the frustration in his heart and curry favor with Yu Yan. ¡°Yu Yan, I just wanted to perform well in front of your parents. Are they dissatisfied with me?¡± Yu Yan was very annoyed at this moment, so she said impatiently, ¡°Let¡¯s talk about our matters later. I¡¯m tired now, so I¡¯m going back to the dormitory to rest first.¡± Yu Yan meant what she said. In terms of geographical location, marrying Yao Nian would allow her to be closer to her biological parents, so she was quite satisfied with Yao Nian, but she had to use this to teach Yao Nian a lesson. Otherwise, if he let anything slip in front of her adoptive parents next time, she might not be able to smooth things over. As for how to teach him a lesson, she would think about it after she rested. However, Yao Nian didn¡¯t think that way at all. Chapter 241 - 241 I Agree 241 I Agree Ever since Yao Nian overheard that conversation and found out that Yu Yan¡¯s family was wealthier than his, he had been feeling insecure. Yu Yan¡¯s current behavior made Yao Nian feel that his guess was right. As he watched Yu Yan leave, Yao Nian felt very anxious. After all, the two of them had just gotten together and their relationship wasn¡¯t solid yet. If Yu Yan¡¯s parents were fast enough, Yu Yan might be transferred back to the city very soon. He definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to follow them. Returning to the city required money and connections. If they weren¡¯t related, who would help a stranger? Yao Nian decided to speed things up and take their relationship to the next level. Recently, Yu Yan had been ostracized by Xu Ling. However, because she would send food to some female intellectuals from time to time, there were still some greedy people who were willing to hang out with with her. There were some people who were neutral and didn¡¯t hang out with Xu Ling, but Yu Yan felt that they were slow-witted and only had working in mind, so she disdained to play with them. Among the female intellectuals, Yu Yan was the most well-off. However, because she had to save money to visit Duan Mei, she had been short on money recently. Those people were secretly saying that Yu Yan was stingy, which angered Yu Yan so much that she had been staying in the dormitory apart from working. On their day off, Yao Nian took the initiative to invite Yu Yan to watch a movie. Yu Yan was bored at that time, so when she heard that there was no need for her to pay, she immediately agreed happily. At this time, movie theaters still used projections. The projector projected the movie onto a large white cloth. Even with such simple equipment, the movie theater was still fully-packed. The movie theater only had a screening room that could accommodate about 300 people. It was played twice a day, once in the morning and once in the afternoon. The second floor, which was for projectors and discs, was built in the back half of the theater. After Yao Nian bought the tickets, he specifically brought Yu Yan to buy melon seeds. When they were halfway to the cinema from the supply company, Yao Nian said that he wanted to buy soda, so the two of them returned to the supply company. After two trips, when they arrived at the cinema, only the back seats were left. Yu Yan was a little unhappy and she frowned at Yao Nian as she complained, ¡°It¡¯s all your fault. Only the back seats are left.¡± At this time, there were still no fixed seats, so it was first come, first served. Yao Nian smiled good-naturedly and said, ¡°Alright, it¡¯s all my fault. I was just worried that you would be thirsty after eating melon seeds.¡± When Yu Yan heard Yao Nian say that he had bought it for her, she felt a little embarrassed. When she turned around and saw Yao Nian¡¯s smile, she suddenly felt her face heat up, so she turned around and looked straight ahead. When Yao Nian saw Yu Yan¡¯s reaction, a scheming look flashed across his eyes. The lights in the cinema were suddenly turned off, and the room was plunged into darkness. A few seconds later, light began to refract from the curtain in front of them. The movie had begun. Yao Nian¡¯s mind wasn¡¯t on the movie at all. After more than ten minutes the movie started playing, Yao Nian saw Yu Yan reach into the bag containing the melon seeds while watching the movie, so he reached over to take the melon seeds as well. Yu Yan was watching with relish and didn¡¯t notice Yao Nian¡¯s actions at all. When their hands touched, she was so startled that she immediately withdrew her hand and turned to look at Yao Nian. Yao Nian hurriedly apologized in a low voice. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Yu Yan shook her head. When she saw Yao Nian take the melon seeds and pull his hand away, she reached into the paper bag again. Recalling the feeling when the other party¡¯s calloused palm touched the back of her hand just now, Yu Yan felt the heat on her face return. Yu Yan suppressed the strange feeling in her heart and looked up at the screen. However, Yao Nian didn¡¯t give her time to calm down. He looked at her hand, which was on her lap, and grabbed it. Yu Yan was stunned by Yao Nian¡¯s sudden action. When she came back to her senses, her heart raced. She quickly looked at the people around her and heaved a sigh of relief when she realized that no one was paying attention to her. Then, Yu Yan exerted force to pull her hand out, but Yao Nian pressed Yu Yan¡¯s hand on his leg firmly. Yu Yan looked up at Yao Nian and said anxiously in a low voice, ¡°You¡¯re crazy! There are people beside us. It¡¯ll be over if we¡¯re discovered.¡± Yao Nian replied, ¡°Then promise me that we can hold hands when there¡¯s no one around.¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she was angry and embarrassed. She exerted force again. When she realized that she couldn¡¯t pull her hand out, she could only compromise. ¡°I agree.¡± Yao Nian revealed a smug smile in the darkness and let go of Yu Yan¡¯s hand. Chapter 242 - 242 I Will Only Marry You 242 I Will Only Marry You Yu Yan hurriedly retracted her hand, but her attention could no longer return to the screen. Her thoughts drifted to the first night they interacted intimately, and then to the scene where he forced her to hold hands. The two of them had gotten a little too close to each other just now. He smelled quite good, and he gave off the faint fragrance of soap. As expected, she had to find someone from the city. Rural people worked in the fields all day long and were so dirty. They were unworthy of her. At the thought of this, Yu Yan secretly glanced at Yao Nian from the corner of her eye. Yao Nian was good-looking to begin with. In the dark cinema, the screen emitted a weak light. Under this hazy feeling and the heart-fluttering sensation that had just been aroused, Yu Yan suddenly felt that the embarrassing touch just now was a little romantic. Yu Yan suddenly thought of what her cousin had said. If someone could make her heart race, it meant that she liked him. Although Yu Yan wasn¡¯t sure if she liked Yao Nian or not, she knew that being with Yao Nian was definitely better than being with that bumpkin her adoptive parents had found for her! Her adoptive brother wasn¡¯t a good person either! Initially, she thought that although she wasn¡¯t his biological sister, he had been quite good to her since she was young. However, her adoptive brother didn¡¯t think of introducing her to the children of high-ranking officials in the army. He even introduced her to someone whose family was in the countryside! She heard that that person even had twin siblings who were six years old. She didn¡¯t know what the man¡¯s parents were thinking. Their son was already 19 years old, but they still wanted to give birth to more children. In the future, when the younger ones grew up, the two old fellows would be so old that they wouldn¡¯t be able to work anymore. In the end, the betrothal gifts and dowry would fall into the hands of the eldest son and daughter-in-law! Yu Yan felt that her adoptive parents treated her as a fool. Fortunately, her hunger strike was effective and forced them to give up on this idea. Otherwise, she would definitely turn the courtyard upside down and embarrass them. She didn¡¯t plan to take care of her future husband¡¯s siblings! At the thought of this, Yu Yan began to feel indignant about how Yu Bing could get Yao Nian, who had been carefully chosen by her parents. However, when she thought of Yao Nian¡¯s various advances on her, Yu Yan attributed all of this to Yao Nian¡¯s affection for or even infatuation with her, so she felt smug. She had charmed Yu Bing¡¯s fianc¨¦ into being loyal to her. Wasn¡¯t this direct proof that she was more outstanding than Yu Bing? During the remaining hour of the movie, Yu Yan¡¯s imagination was running wild, while Yao Nian was coming up with his subsequent plan. It was only noon after the movie, so Yao Nian brought Yu Yan to the state-owned restaurant for noodles. Then, they went to the park to swim in the lake. When they returned to the village on the ox cart, it was already five o¡¯clock. After interacting with her for some time, Yao Nian had discovered that Yu Yan was a simple-minded and vain person who was vulnerable to flattery. Therefore, he easily won Yu Yan over and she was all smiles for the entire afternoon. Yu Yan was even more satisfied with Yao Nian, so it could be said that both sides felt that they had achieved their goal. However, when Yao Nian calculated that the expenditure for today was as high as two yuan, he immediately felt rueful. He could only comfort himself that one had to spend money to make money! After dinner, the two of them gathered in an inconspicuous corner under the dormitory building. Yao Nian looked at Yu Yan affectionately as he said, ¡°Yu Yan, I don¡¯t want to hide my relationship with you like this. I want everyone to know that you¡¯re my girlfriend!¡± As Yu Yan looked at Yao Nian¡¯s serious and affectionate confession, she felt extremely satisfied. However, she couldn¡¯t let Yao Nian have his way so quickly. Things that were obtained too easily often weren¡¯t cherished. She had to continue to keep Yao Nian hanging to let him know that she wasn¡¯t a woman who could be obtained easily. However, Yu Yan naturally couldn¡¯t show it on her face. She pretended to be troubled as she said, ¡°Let¡¯s wait a little longer. We haven¡¯t been together for long. If everyone finds out that you like someone else one day, how can I survive here?¡± Yao Nian immediately expressed his loyalty. ¡°How can that be?! I¡¯ve only liked you in my life! I won¡¯t marry anyone but you!¡± When Yu Yan heard Yao Nian¡¯s confession, she wasn¡¯t fooled by his words. Instead, she thought of Yu Bing. ¡°Pfft, are you lying to me? You even helped Yu Bing carry water previously. If you didn¡¯t like her, how could you help her?¡± Chapter 243 - 243 Treating Her As A Sister 243 Treating Her As A Sister Yao Nian was stunned for a moment when he heard this, but he quickly found an excuse. ¡°Everyone knows that we got engaged when we were young. I¡¯ve always treated her as my sister, so I wanted to take care of her more. But later on, I got to know you. At that time, I was also very conflicted. On one hand, she¡¯s my responsibility, and on the other hand, you¡¯re the person I like.¡± ¡°I tried to let go of you, but I really couldn¡¯t control my heart. At that time, I was really conflicted, so I didn¡¯t go to her house anymore.¡± The outcome of the matter didn¡¯t change, but the content had been changed by Yao Nian. Yu Yan was very satisfied with what he said. However, Yu Yan still had another question. ¡°But don¡¯t your parents want you two to be together? Does who you like even matter?¡± Factors like his parents and his family concerned the possibility of long-term development. This question made Yao Nian tense up. He had to answer flawlessly. Only by making Yu Yan believe that he would marry her could he have a share of her family¡¯s resources. Yao Nian lowered his eyes and pretended to be helpless, but his mind was racing. A moment later, he said in a low voice, ¡°Yu Yan, an arranged marriage is arranged. I really don¡¯t want to spend the rest of my life like this. I only want to be with the person I like!¡± Then, he looked up at Yu Yan seriously. ¡°So, I told my mother to help me cancel the engagement. Otherwise, even if Yu Bing and I were together, we would despise each other. My mother had already agreed, so I couldn¡¯t control myself that night. Otherwise, I definitely wouldn¡¯t have let you get involved in the relationship between me and Yu Bing and ruin your reputation.¡± This time, not only did Yao Nian explain everything perfectly, but he also explained why he had molested her that night. When Yu Yan heard this, she was overjoyed. As expected, Yu Bing was nothing compared to her! Yu Yan didn¡¯t expect Yao Nian to be so loyal to her. Before she had any feelings for him, he already had deep feelings for her. At the thought of this, she finally agreed to publicize their relationship. While Yu Yan and Yao Nian were getting intimate with each other, Yu Bing was focused on her career. Yu Bing planned to continue getting orders from other cities. In addition, Xiao Sheng had gotten in touch with Zeng Li now. The black market that Zeng Li was in charge of was in the city, so the demand was very high. To distribute the goods in the black market, Xiao Sheng could only forge documents for the food factory to legitimatize this illicit dealing. After Yu Bing and Wu Jin discussed it, they planned to introduce a production line. Feng Cai called his family and checked the price. The machine Yu Bing wanted cost about five to six thousand yuan. However, in the long term, this could increase the productivity and competitiveness of their food factory. However, if they wanted to introduce a production line, they had to look for the county leader to approve it first. This experimental unit was personally managed by Mr. Bai, so they had to go to his office. This was one of the restrictions of the planned economy. It was rare for Zeng Li to get up early, but when he came to the village and found out that Yu Bing had gone to the county city to do business, he could only return unhappily. At this moment, Yu Bing was waiting in the county government¡¯s building anxiously. It wasn¡¯t easy for her to wait until Mr. Bai, who had gone out to inspect the base, returned, but she was turned down. Yu Bing asked in confusion, ¡°Mr. Bai, why?¡± As Mr. Bai looked at the young lady who had made the food factory¡¯s business boom in less than half a year, he said earnestly, ¡°Yu Bing, your development is too fast. Being too anxious about expansion is not a good thing. Young people can¡¯t be impatient. You have to play it safe!¡± Yu Bing looked dejected. At the end of the day, Mr. Bai didn¡¯t believe that she still had so many orders. ¡°Mr. Bai, I¡¯m not in a hurry to expand, but if this continues, there won¡¯t be enough manpower. Moreover, no matter how fast a person is, he can¡¯t be as fast as a machine. Our current manpower is just right for now, but if we want to accept a few more orders, with our shortage of manpower, we definitely won¡¯t be able to accept them. Do we have to turn down business?¡± Mr. Bai was exasperated. He had seen how difficult it was to convince Yu Bing, but the food factory was still in debt. If he signed the contract and introduced the production line to expand, but didn¡¯t get orders afterwards, the capital chain would be broken and they wouldn¡¯t be able to pay the debt. The people in charge of the other departments would probably come to his office door every day to demand an explanation. Even if he wanted to help the food factory operated by the He Mountain Brigade, he had to consider the other departments. Seeing that Yu Bing was unwilling to let him off, Mr. Bai could only explain the possible consequences. ¡°You still owe them money, so I can¡¯t sign this.¡± Chapter 244 - 244 Unexpected Surprise 244 Unexpected Surprise When Yu Bing saw Mr. Bai¡¯s troubled expression, she understood the other party¡¯s difficulties. If she didn¡¯t show him something convincing, it would be a little difficult to get approval for the production line. Hence, Yu Bing returned to the factory first and looked for Wen Qin to settle all the debts. After Wen Qin worked for a while, she was already proficient in many things. As soon as Yu Bing asked for the data, she took out the account book and reported, ¡°Because our orders for the past two months have stabilized, the factory has always had orders for production. Therefore, the progress of our repayment with the various supply units, machinery plants, and banks is far faster than that of the previous agreement. Currently, the farm is in debt¡­¡± As she listened to Wen Qin report her debt, Yu Bing felt a headache coming on. She still owed a total of 22,098 yuan, and the amount they currently had was only 10,820 yuan. Of which, 6,000 yuan was to be used to buy machines. The remaining 1,000 yuan was used for the daily cash flow in the factory, which meant that the actual amount available was only 3,820 yuan. As Yu Bing looked at the specific amount of debt on the paper, she thought for a long time and said, ¡°We¡¯ll pay off all the debts first. There are still more than two years to go before we have to pay off the bank¡¯s 4,000 yuan. Let¡¯s put it aside for now. We¡¯ll also put aside the 588 yuan payment for the city¡¯s machinery factory. The fertilizer factory, pesticide factory, and farm don¡¯t owe much. We¡¯ll pay off the total debt for them, which is 2,562 yuan. Wen Qin, add all the arrears for the raw materials supply unit that will be settled at the end of every month and see how much they cost in total.¡± After Wen Qin calculated it, she came up with a number quickly. ¡°3,267 yuan.¡± Yu Bing frowned. ¡°After deducting the 2,562 yuan that needs to be returned, there¡¯s still 1,258 yuan left. Even if the rest can be deducted from the debt that can be delayed for the time being, the remaining debt can¡¯t be repaid no matter what.¡± When Wen Qin saw Yu Bing¡¯s troubled expression, she was very helpless as well. Although she was born into a family of businessmen, she didn¡¯t know much about business at all. If she was asked to do accounting, she could handle it in minutes, but in terms of coming up with ideas, there was really nothing she could do. When Xiao Sheng entered the office, he saw Yu Bing¡¯s troubled expression and teased with a smile, ¡°It¡¯s rare to see Miss Yu being stumped.¡± Yu Bing glared at Xiao Sheng. ¡°Stop gloating!¡± Xiao Sheng knew Yu Bing¡¯s plan, so he asked directly, ¡°Why did Mr. Bai reject you? Tell me. Perhaps I can give you a good idea.¡± After hearing Yu Bing¡¯s recount, Xiao Sheng raised his hand and knocked Yu Bing¡¯s forehead. Although it didn¡¯t hurt, Yu Bing still touched her forehead and hit Xiao Sheng¡¯s arm fiercely. ¡°It hurts!¡± Wen Qin chuckled. She realized that Yu Bing¡¯s usual maturity and calmness would disappear occasionally when she encountered Xiao Sheng. Every time this happened, she felt that she shouldn¡¯t be in the room. Yu Bing¡¯s little strength was like a mere tickle for Xiao Sheng, who smiled and said, ¡°Aren¡¯t you quite smart? Why can¡¯t you think of it? Aren¡¯t the chickens, ducks, fish, and fruit trees in our village potential sources of money?¡± Yu Bing clapped her hands and came to a realization. ¡°That¡¯s right! How could I have forgotten?! Mr. Bai got me all confused. Moreover, we¡¯ve already paid off a portion of the money. Logically speaking, our current assets are more than our debt. Even if the food factory really closes down, we can completely pay off our debts after we sell our assets!¡± Yu Bing borrowed Xiao Sheng¡¯s bicycle and rushed to the county city. Zeng Li missed her again. Looking at the locked office, Zeng Li shook his head helplessly. ¡°She¡¯s working way too hard!¡± Yu Bing tried to convince Mr. Bai again. As she looked at the signature and seal on the note that approved the purchase of the production equipment, Yu Bing¡¯s desire to go all out ignited. Two days later, everything in Zeng Li¡¯s order was manufactured. On the seventh day, three 3,000 bottles of spicy products were completed on time. Zhang Chao, with another underling, was in charge of the transportation. Yu Bing planned to follow them to S City to look at the production line. Although City H was the capital of the provincial city, it was still a little inferior to S City, which had trade with foreign countries and more advanced manufacturing technologies. Xiao Sheng planned to go to the big hospital in S City to get a consultation for Xiao Li. This time, he would go out in the name of purchasing machinery and equipment with Yu Bing. Zeng Li had originally planned to take the train, but after knowing that Yu Bing was also going to S City, he decisively chose to take the truck with them. Chapter 245 - 245 Tribulation 245 Tribulation There were five spaces in the front compartment of the large truck, which was just enough to sit in. When Zeng Li saw Xiao Sheng, who was sitting between him and Yu Bing, he felt dejected. However, he had no choice. After all, this seating was arranged by Yu Bing. The journey took three days, and sitting all day was very tiring. The next day, Zeng Li regretted it. He could have had a good sleeper for a two-day train journey, but instead, he insisted on suffering with them. The worst part was that he couldn¡¯t sit next to Yu Bing! Because a place was under reconstruction, Zhang Chao took a detour. At eight in the evening, before the car entered the county city, the few of them were already hungry. Fortunately, Yu Bing had prepared biscuits and candy, so everyone ate them to fill their stomachs. The road was already dark and the only source of light was the four headlights in front of the tractor. As Yu Bing looked at the night sky through the window, she suddenly felt uneasy. ¡°How much longer will it be until we reach the nearest town?¡± As Zhang Chao sat in the front passenger seat, he looked at the map and estimated, ¡°I estimate that it will take at least half an hour. I didn¡¯t expect the detour to last two to three hours.¡± When Xiao Sheng glanced at Yu Bing, he saw her worried look, so he comforted her, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we have iron rods and knives in the truck when we travel long distances.¡± Yu Bing was speechless. Yu Bing was very puzzled. What did this have to do with weapons? This was clearly a safety problem! At this time, everyone was poor, so there would be people who took the risk to hijack trucks. The supplies on the truck were valuable. Even if they couldn¡¯t sell them, if they encountered a truck like theirs that stored food, they could eat the food. Moreover, these people wouldn¡¯t attack anywhere near their village. Instead, they usually went to roads that were more than 50 kilometers away from their own village, for fear that the police would investigate after the driver called the police. Therefore, trucks that had been hijacked basically wouldn¡¯t be able to retrieve the goods. They could only blame their bad luck. ¡°Oh no, there are trees and nails blocking the way!¡± Zhang Chao sounded a little tense. The few people in the back seat leaned forward and looked out of the car window. They realized that a tree trunk that was 30 to 40 centimeters thick blocked the entire road. There were even rows of large iron nails placed in front of the tree trunk. This was blatant robbery. At this time in her previous life, Yu Bing had gone to the countryside for labor reform, so she never had this sort of experience at all. She had only heard about it from others. Now that she saw it, she finally realized how brazen these people were. Zhang Chao had no choice but to stop the truck. Xiao Sheng took out an iron rod from the compartment under the back seat. Other than Yu Bing, he gave one to everyone else. Then, he turned to Yu Bing and said, ¡°Lock the door later.¡± Yu Bing nodded repeatedly. She knew that if she couldn¡¯t help, at least she shouldn¡¯t be a burden. After Xiao Sheng and the other three got out of the truck, Yu Bing hurriedly locked the door. At this moment, the people hiding in the grass behind the tree appeared. More than twenty people were holding long knives and iron rods. From their temperament, one could tell that they were experienced robbers. They were not poor people who just wanted to steal food to fill their stomachs. Xiao Sheng realized that he had encountered a tough nut to crack. The man in the lead had a fierce expression. ¡°We don¡¯t want to fight, so you better not resist. Or else, you¡¯ll get injured and lose your money.¡± ¡°Open the trunk!¡± A few people had already circled to the back of the truck and smashed the trunk with iron rods. Zeng Li was a little tyrant in the military courtyard, so he had never been bullied like this before. He mocked with a sneer, ¡°You¡¯re quite fierce! Let me tell you, even if Satan comes, I won¡¯t be afraid!¡± While Zeng Li was talking, Xiao Sheng quickly looked at the position where their opponents were standing and realized that those people had surrounded them and their truck, but they seemed very relaxed. He guessed that the people they had stopped previously had probably compromised very quickly. Seeing that Zeng Li and the other party were still arguing, Xiao Sheng quickly told Zhang Chao and the others how to fight later. Zhang Chao had followed Xiao Sheng for a few months and had developed a tacit understanding with him in terms of fighting, so he understood Xiao Sheng¡¯s instructions very quickly. When Zeng Li saw the other party¡¯s stubborn attitude, he warned them one last time, ¡°Don¡¯t say that I didn¡¯t remind you later. These are f*cking military goods. If you guys dare to steal them, I will find you guys even if you hide underground!¡± The man in the lead was already impatient and asked with laughter, ¡°Buddies, are you guys afraid? These are military goods.¡± The lackeys beside him also teased, ¡°We¡¯re not afraid! We haven¡¯t robbed the army¡¯s goods before, so we can give it a try!¡± The man in the lead laughed smugly. ¡°Did you think we¡¯d be frightened?! Why don¡¯t you just say that these products are for the country¡¯s leaders? Buddies, don¡¯t waste time anymore. Attack!¡± Chapter 246 - 246 Chili Water 246 Chili Water The man in the lead stood still while the other lackeys rushed forward. Zhang Chao and his lackeys were in charge of resisting both sides. Zeng Li was from a military family, so his martial arts skills were outstanding. He and Xiao Sheng mainly attacked in the front. At this moment, Yu Bing heard a sound in the front truck. She looked around and realized that it was the sound of knives and iron locks knocking on the door of the trunk. When she realized that these people had division of labor, she looked at her companions, who were fighting in front of her, anxiously. This batch of goods had yet to be transported to the designated delivery place in S City, so if it was taken away, the factory would bear the losses of this batch of goods. The loss would be more than four thousand yuan! However, the knocking sounds that followed unnerved Yu Bing, who could no longer sit still. She bent down and found an iron rod under the seat, then took out a handheld sprayer from her backpack. Before she set off, Yu Bing had filled the inside with chili water, but she didn¡¯t expect it to really come in handy. Yu Bing quickly jumped out of the truck and squatted on the ground. When she saw two feet at the back of the car from the bottom of the truck, she felt more confident. When she walked to the back of the car, she saw that the two men were still trying their best to smash the lock. Yu Bing immediately went forward to stop them. ¡°Stop!¡± The two men didn¡¯t expect a girl to suddenly appear. When they saw that Yu Bing had one hand behind her back and was holding an iron rod in the other, they couldn¡¯t help but laugh loudly and say disdainfully, ¡°Little girl, that iron rod is not for girls. I advise you to stay at the side instead of getting in the way. Otherwise, you¡¯ll suffer!¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she took a step forward and challenged the other party. ¡°Then give it a try! Let¡¯s see who suffers!¡± When the two men heard this, impatience appeared on their faces. This lock was about to be smashed, so wasn¡¯t this a waste of their time? A man with a scar on his forehead frowned and said, ¡°Seems like you want to do this the hard way. Bighead, continue smashing the lock. I¡¯ll deal with her!¡± Yu Bing continued to provoke the other party, ¡°Don¡¯t. The two of you should attack together. My time is more precious than yours.¡± The scar-faced man laughed lewdly and turned to the man called Bighead. ¡°I originally wanted to be lenient today and leave after taking the goods. Bighead, you should enjoy the little girl who sent herself to you!¡± Bighead also stopped what he was doing and sized Yu Bing up as he said frivolously, ¡°Alright, while they fight in the front, let¡¯s deal with this brat first! Didn¡¯t she say that the two of us should attack together? Looks like she¡¯s experienced!¡± The two of them exchanged looks. They assumed that a little girl couldn¡¯t do anything to them, so they walked towards Yu Bing. Yu Bing stood there very calmly. She waited until the two of them were two meters in front of her before suddenly raising the sprayer behind her. With the hand holding the iron rod, she quickly pushed the push lever, and chili water sprayed into the man¡¯s eyes. ¡°Ah! It hurts!¡± ¡°What the hell is this?! Help!¡± The two men covered their eyes and didn¡¯t dare to open them at all. They could only shout loudly in hopes of attracting the attention of the people in front. However, the group of people in front of the truck was engaged in a heated fight, so they didn¡¯t notice the commotion behind them. Xiao Sheng withstood most of the enemy¡¯s attacks all alone, while the others supported him. When the man in the lead saw that the situation had reversed in just a few minutes, he understood that he had encountered a tough opponent today. Seeing that more and more of his subordinates had been beaten to the ground, he raised his saber and joined the battle. The man saw Zeng Li and remembered that the other three had been very protective of him during the fight, so he planned to make an example of Zeng Li. If something happened to an important person, they would definitely try their best to save him. At that time, they might even let them take their things and go. Thinking of this, the man slashed at Zeng Li¡¯s back with all his might. When Xiao Sheng saw the man¡¯s bulging muscles, he knew that if he didn¡¯t block the knife, Zeng Li would most likely be severely injured. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t know how powerful Zeng Li¡¯s background was, but to be able to occupy half of the black market in a place like S City, his family¡¯s background was definitely not to be underestimated. Out of instinctive reaction, Xiao Sheng extended his iron rod and blocked the man¡¯s long saber. Bang! A part of the hollow iron rod caved in, causing Xiao Sheng¡¯s hand to go numb. Chapter 247 - 247 Fighting Too Much 247 Fighting Too Much After Zeng Li finished dealing with the two lackeys, he turned around and saw this scene. He widened his eyes and said angrily, ¡°How dare you try to kill me? If I don¡¯t skin you guys alive tonight, I won¡¯t live up to my reputation as a little tyrant!¡± Thinking about how he had almost lost half his life in this remote village, Zeng Li was even more furious. If those people in the courtyard found out, how could he maintain his dignity?! At this moment, there were still four to five people who could fight. When Xiao Sheng saw that Zeng Li could free his hands to deal with the man, he took the time to look back at the front of the truck, but he didn¡¯t see Yu Bing. Then, he realized that the door showed signs of opening and immediately turned around to run towards the front truck. When Xiao Sheng saw that the truck was empty, his heart suddenly skipped a beat and his mind went blank. At this moment, he heard a man¡¯s shout from behind the car, so he ran to the back of the car. When he arrived, he saw Yu Bing raise the iron rod and hit the back of the man¡¯s head. Yu Bing gave each of them a blow. Her actions were swift and ruthless. Of course, she didn¡¯t kill them and only knocked them out. When Yu Bing turned around, she saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s gloomy expression. Thinking that he was worried about the goods, she hurriedly went forward and said with a proud smile. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I kept my eye on the goods!¡± When Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing¡¯s smug expression, he felt even angrier. ¡°Who let you come down?!¡± Yu Bing was so frightened by Xiao Sheng¡¯s angry voice that she trembled and stared at Xiao Sheng in a daze. A few seconds later, she explained in a low voice, ¡°They were picking the lock at the back.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this, he was even angrier. Yu Bing knew that there were two men, but she still dared to run to the back. ¡°Is your life more important or the goods more important?!¡± Yu Bing originally felt guilty, but when she heard this, she puffed up her chest and said to Xiao Sheng, ¡°They¡¯re both important. These goods cost 4,180 yuan!¡± When Xiao Sheng saw how righteous Yu Bing was despite risking her own life, he was so angry that he didn¡¯t know how to communicate with her. He wished he could teach her a lesson, but in the end, he only grabbed Yu Bing¡¯s arm and dragged her back to the truck. His expression was serious as he warned, ¡°No matter what happens, you¡¯re not allowed to come down!¡± After Xiao Sheng finished speaking, he closed the door with a bang. As Yu Bing looked at Xiao Sheng¡¯s departing figure through the car window, she muttered indignantly, ¡°So what if you can fight? I can outsmart them!¡± When Xiao Sheng returned, Zeng Li and the others had already beaten the remaining few to the ground. Zeng Li was still brooding over the possibility of losing face, so he had to teach them a lesson. ¡°Xiao Sheng, we have to call the police. Since they dared to threaten me, we have to wipe them out!¡± Zhang Chao also echoed, ¡°Brother Zeng is right. I wonder which brat slapped my face. If my wife doesn¡¯t recognize me after I go back, I have to make them pay the price!¡± Xiao Sheng frowned as he looked at the people on the ground. ¡°Take down the ropes in our truck and tie them all up. Then, we¡¯ll go to town to call the police. The police will deal with the aftermath.¡± They did as he said. Zeng Li was the most enthusiastic about this matter. When he returned, he had to tell his brother that he had done a good deed for the people during this business trip! After ensuring that they couldn¡¯t escape, Xiao Sheng and the others moved the thing blocking the way. After a smooth journey, they arrived in town in less than half an hour. Zeng Li brought Zhang Chao to report to the police, while Xiao Sheng drove to the guest house and took out the recommendation letter from the factory to check-in. After all this trouble, the few of them finally had dinner at the guest house. Zhang Chao told the few of them who didn¡¯t go what happened after they called the police. It turned out that those people were all repeat offenders. After the police found out about the situation, they said that they would be sentenced to prison terms ranging from five to 10 years. Then, Zhang Chao began to praise Xiao Sheng again. ¡°Those people were quite good at fighting. If it weren¡¯t for Boss, who could fight ten people all alone, how could we have defended this batch of goods? I can only say that they were destined to encounter this calamity. Their demise was predestined.¡± Zeng Li was unhappy when he heard this. After all, even if he couldn¡¯t fight ten people alone, he could fight six or seven! However, when he thought of the attack that Xiao Sheng had blocked for him, although he didn¡¯t want to admit it, he had to admit that Xiao Sheng was indeed good at fighting. ¡°Brother, your martial arts techniques were quite impressive! They seemed like military moves.¡± Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t explain further. He only said calmly, ¡°I gained experience after fighting often.¡± When Zeng Li heard this, he felt that it made sense. ¡°Well said! Battle experience increases our strength!¡± Chapter 248 - 248 Industrial Stamp 248 Industrial Stamp Yu Bing was eating as she listened to their conversation. Although she felt that she had done nothing wrong, out of intuition, she felt that it was better for her to speak less tonight when facing Xiao Sheng. The next morning, everyone continued on their way. The journey was very smooth and they reached S City at around five in the afternoon. Zeng Li had already gotten someone to prepare the rest of the money and deliver the goods at the same time. The few of them quickly unloaded the goods into Zeng Li¡¯s warehouse. When they arrived at Zeng Li¡¯s territory, Zeng Li planned to show off in front of Yu Bing. ¡°The nightlife in S City is very lively. We can go eat first. I heard that a new movie has been released recently and has raving reviews! After seeing the movie, we can go to the mall. The mall will only close at 10 p.m.¡± Yu Bing rejected him with a smile. ¡°Mr. Zeng, you haven¡¯t been home for so many days, so you should go home and have a good meal with your family first. The few of us will eat something and rest.¡± After Zeng Li¡¯s invitation was rejected, he could only go home first. He comforted himself that it wasn¡¯t easy for him to bring the goods back, so it was time to go back and show off. Zhang Chao stayed with his subordinates for the night. He had to drive the truck back tomorrow morning. After all, there was still a pile of goods waiting to be shipped, so he prepared to rest early after dinner. After Yu Bing finished eating, she planned to go to the department store to buy a watch. However, after rummaging through her bag, she realized that she had only brought her watch stamp and had left her industrial stamp at home. In the planning economy, other than having the corresponding receipts, they also had to save up on industrial stamps. If Yu Bing wanted to buy a watch, not only did she have to prepare money, but she also had to prepare a watch stamp and an industrial stamp, or else she couldn¡¯t buy anything. These two types of stamps were very rare. Most of them would only be given to people who worked in factories. Yu Bing had exchanged them with Wang Yun. Wang Yun didn¡¯t accept money, so Yu Bing could only give her more than ten pounds of jerky in return. If she bought them, a watch stamp and an industrial stamp would cost dozens of yuan! Yu Bing thought that Xiao Sheng might have stamps with him, but when she thought about how Xiao Sheng had not taken the initiative to talk to her since last night, she felt angry. After she thought for a moment, she finally knocked on the door. After Xiao Sheng opened the door, Yu Bing ignored him and skipped past him. She looked at Zhang Chao and asked, ¡°Zhang Chao, did you bring industrial stamps? One will do.¡± When Zhang Chao heard his name, he walked to the door. ¡°Yu Bing, I only brought food stamps and meat stamps.¡± With that, he looked at Xiao Sheng. ¡°Boss, I remember that you always bring stamps when you go out. Do you have them?¡± Xiao Sheng glanced at Yu Bing and replied, ¡°Yes.¡± When Yu Bing saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s cold expression, she hesitated for a moment before turning around and returning to her room. Zhang Chao was baffled and asked, ¡°Boss, did you guys¡­ quarrel?¡± Xiao Sheng felt very dejected. Without replying, he turned around and entered the room. Seeing this, Zhang Chao felt fortunate that his wife told him everything, unlike these two, who were both so secretive and uncommunicative. As Xiao Sheng lay on the bed, he sulked. Last night, she had disregarded her own safety, but she thought that he was in the wrong? His anger hadn¡¯t even subsided yet, but she was angry now. Moreover, what did she mean just now? She didn¡¯t ask him, but asked Zhang Chao instead when she knew that he had stamps. After tossing and turning on the bed for a few minutes, Xiao Sheng chose to compromise. After he sat up, he took out an industrial stamp from his pocket and left the room. When Yu Bing heard the knock on the door, she stood up and opened it. Xiao Sheng handed over the industrial stamp and said, ¡°It¡¯s already dark outside, so I¡¯ll accompany you to the department store.¡± Xiao Sheng had already compromised, so Yu Bing naturally wouldn¡¯t put on an attitude anymore. She took the stamp and said, ¡°I¡¯ll return it to you when I get back. I¡¯ll get my bag first.¡± After Yu Bing took her bag from the room, she left with Xiao Sheng. In S City, there were still cable cars from before the founding of the country. Although it was already past seven in the evening, there were still many bicycles on the streets. There were also some small cars. Compared to other cities, S City was much more prosperous. The guest house was very close to the Yellow Port River. There were boats of all sizes parked on the river, both domestic and overseas boats. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng bought a map at the guest house. Then, the two of them followed the map and got on the bus that headed to the department store. Chapter 249 - 249 In the Dead Center 249 In the Dead Center The department store had five floors. At the entrance of the first floor, a sign showed the main products of each floor. The first floor was filled with various electrical appliances and industrial products. The second, third, and fourth floors were filled with clothes and shoes. The fifth floor was filled with toys and various miscellaneous items. The department store was very lively at night. Most of the people came here to shop after dinner. As soon as she entered, Yu Bing went to the counter to look at watches. S City¡¯s watches were very famous. Most of the watches on the counter were domestic. The only imported watches were all from well-known brands. After a few decades, they had become luxury goods, so they weren¡¯t cheap now. In the end, Yu Bing hesitated over three watches. Two of them were from a famous domestic brand from S City, and the other one was from a foreign brand. ¡°How much are these watches?¡± The salesperson played with her nails as she glanced at them and said ¡°The Plum Brand one costs 120 yuan, while the Peonie Brand one costs 180 yuan, and the WM Brand one costs 280 yuan.¡± The salesperson at the counter watched the two of them look at the watches for more than ten minutes. With the watches on the counter, she couldn¡¯t go anywhere, so she was a little impatient. ¡°I¡¯ll put the watches back inside the counter first. You guys can take your time choosing until closing time.¡± When Yu Bing saw the salesperson¡¯s attitude, she felt angry, but she endured it. At this time, there were no private enterprises and all enterprises were state-owned, so it was impossible for these salespeople to feel the need to provide good service. This was the advantage of having a monopoly. Even if Yu Bing changed to another department store, she would receive the same service. When Xiao Sheng saw that Yu Bing couldn¡¯t make up her mind, he pointed at the Peonie Brand and said, ¡°Choose this one.¡± The Peonie Brand watch had a round watch shell that was small and exquisite. The dial was simple and elegant. The three-dimensional scale and needle were also golden in color, but there were black edges. It looked very sophisticated and easy to read. The silver-white chain strap was low-key but tasteful. Then, Xiao Sheng analyzed it for Yu Bing. ¡°Although the style of Plum Brand watch is classic, it¡¯s more suitable for women over the age of 30. The WM Brand watch¡¯s design is very creative and unique. But if it appears in the village, I guarantee that you will immediately become the latest topic of conversation in the village.¡± When Yu Bing thought of the gossipy villagers that rivaled the paparazzi of the modern era, she burst out laughing. She looked at the salesperson, who had already run to chat with her colleagues, and shouted, ¡°I want this Peony Brand watch.¡± Only then did the salesperson slowly walk over and take out the watch from the counter again. Then, she picked up the receipt beside her and started writing. ¡°180 yuan, one watch stamp, one industrial stamp each.¡± After Yu Bing handed over the money and stamps, she picked up her watch happily. After the two of them left the counter, Yu Bing said to Xiao Sheng, ¡°If jobs are no longer so secure in the future, I think the first person to be fired will be that salesperson from just now.¡± Xiao Sheng smiled and said, ¡°How is that possible? How can a state-owned enterprise go bankrupt? It¡¯s not like collective industries, or private companies overseas, which can go bankrupt at the drop of a hat.¡± Indeed, it was impossible for people of this era to imagine the monumental economic reform that would happen a few years later. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t reveal too much, so she could only whisper with a mysterious expression, ¡°Young man, you¡¯re still young. How can there be anything in this world that remains the same forever?¡± After Xiao Sheng thought about it with a frown, he felt that Yu Bing¡¯s words did make sense. Then, he looked at Yu Bing and said curiously, ¡°You always have so many outlandish ideas in your mind. Moreover, you¡¯re very bold!¡± When Xiao Sheng said she was bold, other than referring to the fact that Yu Bing, a girl, dared to get involved in the black market, he was also referring to the fact that she seemed to have an inexplicable optimism about the future. However, this optimism was unrelated to anything they had experienced now, such as buying books to prepare for the college entrance examination, or Yu Bing¡¯s inadvertent revelation that she was optimistic about the future economic situation. Of course, if Yu Bing had not been reborn, she probably would have had the same conservative view of the future as Xiao Sheng. However, she knew the future. If she didn¡¯t do anything about it, she would feel that she had let down the opportunity the heavens had given her! Because she knew that Xiao Sheng was trustworthy, sometimes, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t help but let things slip. When she heard Xiao Sheng¡¯s question, she only smiled and gave an ambiguous answer. ¡°Fullness for the bold, famine for the timid. I¡¯m in the dead center and barely get by.¡± logo This is the end of Part One, and Chapter 250 - 250 Buying Toys 250 Buying Toys The two of them chatted softly as they walked. Most of this era¡¯s clothes were in black, white, gray, blue, or green, but because of S City¡¯s advantage as a port city, it had many foreign brands and its people were much more stylish. However, Yu Bing only took a cursory glance. She had seen many beautiful clothes in her previous life, so she could resist the temptation of these styles. Moreover, she worked all day, so it wasn¡¯t suitable for her to wear glamorous clothes and dresses. When the two of them arrived at the children¡¯s clothing area, Yu Bing saw a beautiful blue and white navy-style dress. Her eyes lit up and she immediately rushed over. ¡°This is so beautiful!¡± Yu Bing turned to look at Xiao Sheng. ¡°Xiao Li will definitely look good in this.¡± Xiao Sheng glanced at the dress. After a few seconds, he said slowly, ¡°After she finishes the surgery, I¡¯ll bring her here to choose personally.¡± Yu Bing nodded and said with a smile, ¡°She¡¯ll definitely be very happy. I¡¯ll pay for it. You¡¯re not allowed to snatch my credit!¡± Yu Bing thought of her vision regarding marriage in her previous life and said, ¡°I¡¯ve always thought that if I had a daughter, I would definitely dress her up every day like a little princess.¡± If Xiao Li underwent surgery, Yu Bing would also take some time to come over. The two little fellows of the Xiao family were so grateful and sensible that her heart ached for them. Yu Bing only chatted with Xiao Li occasionally, but Xiao Lin and Xiao Li were so grateful that they plucked fruits and sent other things to her in return. When they watered their own vegetable field and pulled weeds, they even did the same for her. As long as they could help, they would do it directly and wouldn¡¯t let her or Jiang Chun refuse. To be honest, Yu Bing already treated them as her siblings. When Xiao Sheng heard Yu Bing¡¯s words, he looked conflicted. ¡°Do you plan to get married soon?¡± Yu Bing paused for a moment before saying, ¡°I don¡¯t plan to get married. It¡¯s quite nice to be alone.¡± Now, it was Xiao Sheng¡¯s turn to be stunned. ¡°Why?¡± Yu Bing couldn¡¯t say that she was traumatized because she had been screwed over too badly in her previous life, so she could only say perfunctorily, ¡°After you marry someone, you have to serve your in-laws and take care of your siblings. You also have to prevent your spouse from cheating. It¡¯s too tiring.¡± Xiao Sheng was speechless. Xiao Sheng couldn¡¯t help but think about his family¡¯s situation. He could skip the in-laws segment. He had siblings, but he would take care of them. Moreover, his brother and sister were quite independent and could take care of themselves. As for cheating¡­ he was definitely not an irresponsible person. Once he chose to get married, he would definitely treat her well for the rest of his life. Cheating was impossible for him! The more Xiao Sheng thought about it, the further off tangent he went. He suddenly came back to his senses. What was he thinking?! His sister¡¯s surgery hadn¡¯t even been settled yet, so why was he thinking about such nonsense? He removed these thoughts from his mind. The two of them arrived at the fifth floor soon. Yu Bing took a fancy to a toy frog that could jump on a chain and a puppy made of cloth. ¡°I want two tin frogs and that puppy in dungarees.¡± Yu Bing smiled at Xiao Sheng and said, ¡°Every time I carry the little tiger to your house, Xiao Li looks overjoyed. I might as well buy her a little cloth dog. This toy frog is for Xiao Lin. I can already imagine him showing off in the village.¡± Xiao Sheng hurriedly stopped her. ¡°Don¡¯t buy these things for them. They¡¯re not cheap.¡± After Yu Bing glared at Xiao Sheng, she picked up the toys again. ¡°It¡¯s not easy for me to come to S City. What¡¯s wrong with me buying some toys for them? They¡¯ve helped me so much, so I have to thank them.¡± The salesperson was already ready for the payment. Seeing that the two of them were about the same age and seemed very close when they interacted, she guessed that the two of them were in a relationship and preparing to get married. She hurriedly advised, ¡°It¡¯s normal for future sister-in-laws to buy gifts for their brother-in-laws or sister-in-laws. You guys will be family in the future. Young man, don¡¯t be too fussy.¡± As soon as she said this, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng immediately blushed. Yu Bing hurriedly explained, ¡°We¡¯re friends. We¡¯re not in the kind of relationship you¡¯re talking about.¡± The salesperson revealed an understanding smile. ¡°Young people are all bashful before they get married. Alright, alright, alright. I won¡¯t say anything more.¡± Yu Bing felt that the misunderstanding was getting worse, so after paying the money and stamps, she grabbed the toys and left in a hurry, for fear that the salesperson would blurt out something inappropriate again. Xiao Sheng followed behind Yu Bing with a blush. Along the way, the two of them didn¡¯t mention the previous misunderstanding and changed the topic. Chapter 251 - 251 Corneal Change 251 Corneal Change The next morning, the two of them began to get busy. Xiao Sheng went to the hospital for the consultation, while Yu Bing went to the machinery factory to check out the production line. There were three machinery factories in S City. After Yu Bing spent a day checking all of them, she gained a certain understanding of the equipment to be imported. Yu Bing still planned to wash the washing part manually for the time being, but cutting vegetables, stirring, cooking, and packaging had to be mechanized. The machine for cutting vegetables could shred, cut into pieces, slice, or mince the vegetables. As long as the mechanic parts at the incision were changed, the desired effect could be produced. In one minute, the machine could finish the workload of ten workers. Yu Bing planned to put this machine in the second production room. Yu Bing planned to add two mixing machines, one in each workshop. Both the large oven and the fully automatic packaging production line would be placed in Production Room 1. There were a total of five machines. The three shops offered different prices. The cheapest price was 5,270 yuan, followed by 5,720 yuan. The most expensive one was from the number one machinery factory in S City. It cost 6,500 yuan. Yu Bing had her sights on the one that cost 6,500 yuan. After all, you get what you pay for. Compared to the other ones, the use and maintenance of the machines from the number one machinery factory were simpler and more efficient. After thinking for a long time, Yu Bing decided to focus on quality. Machines were fixed assets that could be used for a long time, so she couldn¡¯t be stingy and had to consider the effects and practicality. Yu Bing planned to bargain tomorrow. After all, the budget given by the factory was only 6,000 yuan. After making the plan, Yu Bing looked at her watch. It was almost eight o¡¯clock, so she went out to look for Xiao Sheng. After Yu Bing knocked on the door, she that Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t look happy. She guessed that the hospital consultation probably wasn¡¯t very optimistic. ¡°Have you eaten yet?¡± Xiao Sheng shook his head. Seeing this, Yu Bing raised her eyebrows and said, ¡°I haven¡¯t eaten either. I heard that S City¡¯s pan-fried buns and BBQ duck are very famous. Let¡¯s go and try them together.¡± With that, she turned around and left without giving Xiao Sheng a chance to refuse. Xiao Sheng hurriedly followed. There was a state-owned restaurant not far from the guest house. Yu Bing was in no hurry to ask Xiao Sheng about the situation. She waited for the dishes to be served before asking, ¡°Which hospital did you guys go to today?¡± Xiao Sheng swallowed the bun in his mouth before saying, ¡°I asked previously. The two hospitals with the best ophthalmology department are the Medical University and the Military Affiliated Hospital. I went to both today. The explanations given by both sides are similar.¡± ¡°The cornea of Xiao Li¡¯s eyes were perforated due to a high fever. The inside and outside of her eyeballs are already infected. The blindness was caused by tear infections. Moreover, the hospital said that treatment of Xiao Li¡¯s eyes have been delayed for too long, so they asked me to bring her for a checkup quickly and wait for the results. She might have to undergo a cornea transplant.¡± Although Yu Bing didn¡¯t understand those professional terms, she knew that anything that involved organ transplantation was quite serious. ¡°Did the doctor say how much the surgery costs?¡± Xiao Sheng paused for a moment before replying, ¡°The total expense costs about 20,000 yuan.¡± Yu Bing asked, ¡°How much are you lacking?¡± Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t answer directly. He only said, ¡°I can save enough money, but the doctor said that there¡¯s a queue for the cornea. However, the earlier Xiao Li¡¯s surgery is done, the better. If there¡¯s any change in her condition, even if the cornea surgery is successful, the chances of her regaining her vision will decrease.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she fell silent. If there wasn¡¯t enough money, she could think of a way. If there was no cornea, there was really nothing she could do. They could only try their luck. Looking at the dejected Xiao Sheng, Yu Bing comforted him. ¡°Bring Xiao Li back for a checkup immediately after you go back. If you¡¯re sure you want her to undergo a cornea transplant, get the doctor to help you guys get a spot first. There aren¡¯t many people who can afford this amount of money, so it might be Xiao Li¡¯s turn soon.¡± Xiao Sheng smiled. ¡°Alright, don¡¯t worry about us. We can only do our best and leave the rest to fate.¡± The two of them didn¡¯t speak much after that. After eating, they returned to the guest house. The next day, Yu Bing went to S City¡¯s number one machinery factory to discuss the price, while Xiao Sheng went to S City¡¯s black market to see its development. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t tell Yu Bing that to pay for the surgery, he was still short of more than 5,000 yuan, so he still had to ask around and see if there were other ways to earn money. Zeng Li brought a few bottles of chili sauce home that day. As Lin Xue looked at her brother-in-law, who had disappeared for almost half a month, she said angrily, ¡°You finally came back?¡± Zeng Li smiled and took out the chili sauce jars from the bag. ¡°Sister-in-law, I went to buy things for our soldiers! In order to get the factory to fulfill my order first, I went to keep an eye on them every day. Otherwise, how could they be so efficient?¡± Chapter 252 - 252 Blocked 252 Blocked Lin Xue took a random bottle and opened it. After she fanned it a few times with her hand, she smelled it and said, ¡°Smells good!¡± Zeng Li smiled proudly and said, ¡°Everyone in your hometown loves spicy food. If you¡¯re satisfied, the soldiers will love it as well.¡± At this moment, a sound came from the door. Zeng Wei heard the conversation as soon as he entered. When he saw Zeng Li, he said angrily, ¡°You finally came back?¡± Zeng Li laughed as he teased, ¡°Brother, you and Sister-in-law are really husband and wife. When you guys saw me, you both said the same thing! Let¡¯s not talk about anything else. Try these few types of chili sauce I risked my life to bring back!¡± When Zeng Wei heard this, he sized up Zeng Li. Lin Xue grabbed Zeng Li¡¯s hand anxiously and checked it. ¡°Are you hurt?¡± Zeng Li hurriedly explained, ¡°Sister-in-law, don¡¯t be nervous. I¡¯m not injured. Among the buddies who came back with me, there was a very tough person called Xiao Sheng. He saved me in time. We were stopped by some people near Minxin Town and fought with them.¡± When Zeng Wei heard that Zeng Li wasn¡¯t injured, he secretly heaved a sigh of relief. When he heard that there was a fight, his first question was, ¡°You didn¡¯t lose, right?¡± Zeng Li touched his glossy hair and said calmly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I didn¡¯t embarrass the Zeng family! There were more than twenty of them, but they were all beaten up by us. We called the police and wiped out that group of bandits. They¡¯ll be out five to ten years later.¡± Zeng Wei nodded in satisfaction when he heard this. ¡°Not bad.¡± The garlic, double-pepper sauce, and mushroom beef sauce that Zeng Li had brought back were all purchased by the logistics department of the military region the day after the goods returned. After that, the soldiers who had originally complained about the taste of the food shut their mouths. Finally, Zeng Wei no longer had to hear the same complaint during every meeting. Because of this, the Zeng family finally changed their impression of Zeng Li. Zeng Li was on a roll recently. Zeng Li had left S City for more than ten days. Although he had a capable right-hand man to help him oversee the black market, as the person in charge behind the scenes, it was time for Zeng Li to go and inspect. Zeng Li went to the black market¡¯s office early in the morning. After he finished checking the recent accounts, it was already afternoon. After he stretched himself, he left the black market. Just as he was thinking about the next move in his pursuit of Yu Bing, he suddenly saw more than ten men walking toward him. Zeng Li looked around and realized that he was on a small path. At this time, he didn¡¯t see anyone else on the small path, so he felt a little uneasy. Zeng Li turned around and walked back, but when he heard the other party¡¯s quickened footsteps, he immediately understood that the other party was really coming for him. Hence, he ran forward quickly. Just as he was about to reach the main road in ten meters, three men appeared at the entrance of the path and blocked the way. After Zeng Li stopped in his tracks and looked around, he determined that the leader was the man who was wearing a floral shirt and standing at the entrance of the path. His expression was calm as he asked, ¡°What a spectacle. You actually found more than ten people to block my way. You think quite highly of me.¡± The man raised his sunglasses to his head, revealing a pair of sinister eyes. ¡°Third Young Master Zeng, you don¡¯t recognize me anymore?¡± Zeng Li frowned when he realized that he was Zou Wu¡¯s younger brother, Zou Kun, his biggest competitor in S City¡¯s black market. ¡°I barely recognized you after you changed your style. Why are you dressed so gaudily? Who are you showing off to?¡± When Zou Kun heard Zeng Li¡¯s words, the ruthlessness in his eyes intensified. ¡°Third Young Master Zeng, if you don¡¯t know how to speak properly, I¡¯ll teach you!¡± The Zeng family was involved in the military, while the Zou family was in politics. However, the difference between the two families was that the Zeng family¡¯s status in the army was as solid as ever. Zeng Wei, Zeng Miao, and their uncle all had deep roots in the army. However, the Zou family was in decline now. The Zou family had three sons. The eldest, Zou Wen, had followed his father into politics. The second son, Zou Wu, had entered the government on the surface, but he and the third son, Zou Kun, were actually trying to seize control of S City¡¯s black market share. Zou Kun was a ruthless, but simple-minded and petty person. The reason his business could reach its current level was all because of Zou Wu¡¯s command from behind the scenes. Zou Kun was only the person in charge on the surface. The last time Zou Kun messed up a delivery, Zeng Li contacted the other party and snatched the long-term supply of those orders. This was normal in the business world, but Zeng Li knew that Zou Kun must be feeling upset. He didn¡¯t expect Zou Kun to come looking for him so quickly. Chapter 253 - 253 Blocking the Dagger 253 Blocking the Dagger Zou Kun didn¡¯t understand, but Zou Wu did. Zeng Li glanced at Zou Kun and asked, ¡°Does your second brother know that you came to stop me today?¡± Zou Kun¡¯s eyes flickered with a shifty look and he didn¡¯t answer Zeng Li¡¯s question. Instead, he changed the topic. ¡°If you dare to snatch my order, you have to pay the price!¡± After Zou Kun finished speaking, he didn¡¯t give Zeng Li a chance to reply. Afraid that Zeng Li would escape later, he asked his subordinates to attack. Zou Kun only wanted to vent the anger in his heart and make up for the losses he had suffered. He didn¡¯t care about the consequences! As Zeng Li looked at the people surrounding him, he immediately clenched his fists in a combat posture. However, he was very apprehensive. After all, he alone wasn¡¯t a match for all these people. These dozen people had been carefully chosen by Zou Kun, who wanted Zeng Li to be bedridden for a month so that he could take this opportunity to snatch a portion of Zeng Li¡¯s market share. That was Zou Kun¡¯s true goal. Five minutes later, Zeng Li gradually lost his strength. He had already been punched twice in the face. After he was punched in the stomach again, he spat out bitter water. Seeing this, Zou Kun walked forward slowly with an iron rod. ¡°I won¡¯t ask for much. I just want to break two of your ribs.¡± Zeng Li gasped in pain. ¡°Zou Kun, don¡¯t you dare!¡± ¡°The police are here!¡± A magnetic and deep voice sounded from behind them. Zou Kun¡¯s raised hand paused for a moment. Then, he turned around and saw a handsome man in a washed-out blue coat. Even when he saw them fighting, his expression was still very calm. Zou Kun didn¡¯t panic when he heard the police were here. He sized the other party up suspiciously, then turned his head around and said, ¡°Little Five, Ah Da, go take a look. If there are police, think of a way to lure them away.¡± Two men, one tall and one short, walked out of the small path behind Zou Kun. When Xiao Sheng saw that the other party wasn¡¯t afraid at all, he knew that Zeng Li was in big trouble this time. Zou Kun¡¯s intuition told him that the man in front of him wasn¡¯t ordinary. However, he still had to deal with Zeng Lin, so he didn¡¯t have the time to dwell on it. Hence, he said impatiently, ¡°We have something to do here, so hurry up and leave.¡± With that, he turned around and raised the iron rod at Zeng Li. At this moment, Zou Kun suddenly felt a sharp pain in his arm. Zou Kun let go and the rod fell to the ground. Zou Kun suddenly turned to look at Xiao Sheng and stared at him intently as he said with certainty, ¡°You¡¯re with Zeng Li!¡± When Zeng Li saw that everyone¡¯s attention was attracted by Xiao Sheng, he bent down quickly and picked up the iron rod to counterattack! Because they had many people, Zou Kun didn¡¯t make everyone bring weapons. After all, a group of people holding iron rods on the street was too ostentatious. Even the mayor¡¯s son couldn¡¯t be so high-profile. Xiao Sheng could tell that Zou Kun was the leader. He wanted to capture the leader first, but every time he approached Zou Kun, he was immediately stopped by his subordinates. When Zeng Li saw Xiao Sheng join in, he became invigorated and waved the iron rod in his hand. A few minutes later, when Zou Kun saw that the other party had the upper hand, he looked at the two of them viciously. He took out a dagger from his waist and walked over in Zeng Li¡¯s direction. When Xiao Sheng saw Zou Kun¡¯s actions from the corner of his eye, he raised his leg and suddenly kicked the lackey who was pestering him a few meters away. Then, he strode forward and pushed Zeng Li away. However, he couldn¡¯t dodge in time and was stabbed in the abdomen by Zou Kun¡¯s dagger. Zeng Li was enraged and smashed the iron rod at Zou Kun. Then, Zou Kun pulled out his dagger in pain and turned around to stab Zeng Li, but Zeng Li was already prepared. He smashed the iron rod at Zou Kun¡¯s arm. Zou Kun immediately retreated after his dagger was knocked away. He wasn¡¯t good at fighting, so he had always hidden at the back and waited for protection. Today, right before his plan was about to succeed, it was ruined by a man who appeared out of nowhere, so he took action personally. Zou Kun looked at the only subordinate still standing beside him. Even though Xiao Sheng had been stabbed, he still looked battle-ready and his gaze was fierce. Zou Kun knew that he wouldn¡¯t be able to fight against him now. Moreover, there were not enough people to protect him now, so he was worried that he would be injured. No matter how unwilling Zou Kun was, he could only retreat for now. He glared at Zeng Li and gritted his teeth as he squeezed out, ¡°Consider yourself lucky this time!¡± Zeng Li stared at him intently. When he saw Zou Kun walk away from the path with his men, he frowned and went forward to check Xiao Sheng¡¯s injuries. Seeing that Xiao Sheng¡¯s clothes were already dyed red with blood, he hurriedly took off his coat and folded it into a long strip. Then, he tied his coat to Xiao Sheng¡¯s abdomen tightly to stop the bleeding. He placed Xiao Sheng¡¯s arm on his shoulder and said, ¡°Let¡¯s go to the hospital immediately!¡± Chapter 254 - 254 Hospitalized 254 Hospitalized At this moment, Xiao Sheng was holding his abdomen and sweating profusely from the pain. Fortunately, as soon as the two of them reached the main road, they saw a man on a tricycle. The man was a warm-hearted person. He pedaled the tricycle quickly and sent the two of them to the nearest hospital. As soon as Xiao Sheng arrived at the hospital, he was pushed into the operating theater. As Zeng Li looked at the closed door of the operating theater, he heaved a sigh of relief. Then, he immediately remembered that he had to inform Yu Bing. Yu Bing spent the entire afternoon in the factory bargaining with Section Chief Mr. Ma. In the end, Mr. Ma lowered the price by 300 yuan. Although it was still over budget, she was unfamiliar with S City after all, so she couldn¡¯t pull strings. Yu Bing was already satisfied that she got a 300 yuan discount. Yu Bing handed over the deposit of the 2,000 yuan that Zeng Li had given her the day before yesterday. Yu Bing felt distressed about giving away so much money so soon. However, when she saw the contract signed by the two parties, she couldn¡¯t help but smile because this meant that the food factory had advanced into modern mechanization and its development had taken another step forward. As Chief Ma registered the delivery information, he asked, ¡°Miss Yu, when should we send this machine over?¡± Yu Bing thought about how Xiao Sheng had already consulted with the hospitals, and the rest had to wait until he brought Xiao Li over for a checkup. The earlier they went back, the earlier Xiao Sheng could bring Xiao Li over. Hence, she decided to return to He Mountain Village tomorrow. ¡°Please send it over tomorrow.¡± After Mr. Ma recorded the register time, he said, ¡°We¡¯ll leave at eight tomorrow. Don¡¯t be late.¡± After the negotiation, Yu Bing felt relieved. She strolled around outside for a while before returning to the guest house leisurely. As soon as Yu Bing entered the guest house, she saw her name on the big blackboard behind the front desk. This blackboard was a little like a message board. After guests who had missed calls returned to the guest house, they could find out who had looked for them through this method. Yu Bing thought that it was a call from the factory, so she took out her identification and went to the front desk to ask, ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Yu Bing. Who called?¡± After the young lady at the front desk confirmed Yu Bing¡¯s identity, she opened the notebook in her hand. ¡°It¡¯s a call from the hospital. A person called Zeng Li left a message for you. He said that Xiao Sheng is injured and asked you to go to the hospital after you return.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she hurriedly stuck her head out to look at the message in the record book. After confirming it, she hurriedly left. Fortunately, Yu Bing had a map with her. After finding the place according to the road map, she immediately took a taxi. At the hospital. After Yu Bing entered the hospital lobby, she went to the consultation desk first. ¡°Hello, can you help me find out where Xiao Sheng is being treated?¡± The nurse at the consultation desk hurriedly asked, ¡°Don¡¯t be anxious. What is the patient receiving treatment for?¡± Yu Bing was stumped by the question. ¡°I don¡¯t know either. I only heard that he was injured.¡± The nurse quickly made a judgment. ¡°Injured patients usually go to the emergency room first. Just go to the end of this path.¡± After Yu Bing thanked her, she walked towards the emergency room quickly. ¡°Hello, has the emergency room treated a patient called Xiao Sheng?¡± The nurse at the emergency nurse station looked through the records and replied, ¡°Yes, he had a knife wound. After the surgery, he was transferred to Room 306 on the third floor.¡± After reading the records, the nurse looked up and was about to remind Yu Bing when she realized that the young lady from before was nowhere to be seen. After Yu Bing found the ward, she pushed open the door to enter. The ward was a two-person ward. Xiao Sheng was lying on the bed with an IV drip in his hospital gown, while Zeng Li was lying on another empty bed with a swollen face. He had taken off his shoes and was eating an apple with his legs crossed as he chattered nonstop. When Zeng Li saw Yu Bing enter, he raised his hand and greeted, ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯re here.¡± Zeng Li no longer had any designs on Yu Bing, so there was no need to maintain his image. Xiao Sheng had saved him twice. The first time was during the delivery, and the second time, Xiao Sheng was purely dragged into his mess. No matter what, a friend in need was a friend indeed, so Zeng Li already treated Xiao Sheng as his buddy. As the saying went, a friend¡¯s wife was off-limits. Although the two of them had yet to address the elephant in the room, he couldn¡¯t make a move on his buddy¡¯s woman. Although Yu Bing saw that Xiao Sheng¡¯s face was still a little pale, the fact that he was staying in an ordinary ward meant that he was fine, so she felt relieved, but then she frowned at the two of them and asked, ¡°What were the two of you doing? Who were you two fighting with?¡± When Zeng Li heard this, he immediately explained righteously, ¡°It had nothing to do with Xiao Sheng. He was implicated by me this time, but it wasn¡¯t my fault. Someone else was looking for trouble with me!¡± Zeng Li roughly explained the situation. When Yu Bing heard that Xiao Sheng was just helping, she didn¡¯t say anything else and only asked with concern, ¡°Then how many days will you be hospitalized for?¡± Xiao Sheng replied helplessly, ¡°I have to be hospitalized for a week.¡± Chapter 255 - 255 Expose 255 Expose When Yu Bing thought of the delivery time she had agreed on with the machinery factory, she felt a little troubled. It wasn¡¯t appropriate for her to leave Xiao Sheng all alone when he was hospitalized. Xiao Sheng also knew that Yu Bing went to order the machine today and guessed that Yu Bing was probably planning to go back tomorrow, so he took the initiative to suggest, ¡°Go back with the machine first. Food is provided in the hospital¡¯s canteen. I¡¯ll ask the nurse to help me get food.¡± Nurses could help him get food, but they wouldn¡¯t help wash the patient¡¯s clothes. This was the family¡¯s responsibility. Yu Bing frowned as she thought about how to deal with this. Zeng Li wanted to interrupt and say that he could get his family to send food every day, but he suddenly thought of something and shut his mouth. At that moment, Yu Bing thought about Xiao Li¡¯s matter and had a plan. ¡°I¡¯ll stay here. The machinery will be shipped back tomorrow, so I¡¯ll talk to the machinery factory and ask them to bring Xiao Li and Xiao Lin over when they come back. This way, Xiao Li can go to the hospital for a checkup. We¡¯ll go back together after you¡¯re discharged.¡± When Zeng Li heard this, he secretly revealed a smile of approval. Xiao Sheng also felt that this plan was good, but he knew that the village¡¯s industrial chain needed many things to be done, so he didn¡¯t want to delay Yu Bing. ¡°Go back first. I¡¯ll give the driver some compensation for his hard work, so when the driver brings Xiao Li here, he¡¯ll send her to the hospital entrance. After I¡¯m discharged, I¡¯ll bring Xiao Li back to the village after the checkup.¡± Zeng Li glared at Xiao Sheng angrily. When Xiao Sheng saw this, he frowned in confusion. Fortunately, Yu Bing didn¡¯t notice the interaction between the two of them. When she heard Xiao Sheng¡¯s words, she knew that he didn¡¯t want to trouble her. She rejected his idea. ¡°Just do as I say. I¡¯ll make the call now.¡± Zeng Li watched as Yu Bing left and said resentfully, ¡°Xiao Sheng, Xiao Sheng, if you don¡¯t change your mindset, you¡¯ll be single for the rest of your life!¡± Xiao Sheng rolled his eyes at Zeng Li. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± Zeng Li sat on the stool in front of the bed and said with frustration, ¡°I can take care of you, but why didn¡¯t I say anything? I was creating an opportunity for you so that Yu Bing would feel worried when she thought about how you didn¡¯t have anyone to take care of you and would stay. But, you actually ruined the opportunity!¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this, he was stunned for a moment. ¡°Stop associating her with me. It¡¯ll affect her reputation.¡± When Zeng Li heard this, he revealed a look of disdain. ¡°Tsk, tsk, tsk. Stop acting like you¡¯re not familiar with her. Do you dare to swear on your soul that you don¡¯t like her?¡± Xiao Sheng choked, but then he took a deep breath and said, ¡°I don¡¯t like her.¡± When Zeng Li saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s stubborn attitude, he snorted. ¡°I wonder who was so worried after seeing her get out of the truck that night.¡± Although Zeng Li didn¡¯t say anything that day, he saw everything. Xiao Sheng coughed lightly, but didn¡¯t speak. Seeing this, Zeng Li continued to provoke Xiao Sheng. ¡°Yu Bing is a kind girl. She¡¯s also good-looking and capable. Let me tell you, if you don¡¯t make a move, she¡¯ll be wooed by another man sooner or later. Even without me, there¡¯ll be someone else. Are you really willing to see her smile in another man¡¯s arms?¡± When Xiao Sheng heard Zeng Li¡¯s words, that scene appeared in his mind involuntarily. He suddenly felt suffocated, as if his heart was being pinched by a hand, and his hands, which were under the blanket, involuntarily clenched into fists. Zeng Li was observing Xiao Sheng¡¯s expression carefully when he suddenly realized that the needle of the infusion was a little swollen. ¡°The needle is running! You can¡¯t exert force with your hand that has the needle inserted.¡± Seeing this, Zeng Li teased, ¡°See, your body is much more honest than your mouth. Just thinking about that scene is unbearable to you.¡± Xiao Sheng had never thought that he would fall in love with Yu Bing. He had seen Yu Bing¡¯s love and care for his siblings, so his good impression of her was more out of gratitude, and he had always thought that they only trusted each other as business partners. Coupled with the issue regarding Xiao Li¡¯s eyes, Xiao Sheng had never considered dating or getting married. Now that Zeng Li had exposed him, Xiao Sheng realized that he had fallen in love with Yu Bing at some point. It wasn¡¯t because of gratitude, but because he was attracted to her as a person. He began to feel conflicted. ¡°What¡¯s the point of liking her? She¡¯s an intellectual from the city. I¡¯m just a country bumpkin.¡± Zeng Li had been born with a silver spoon in his mouth, so he couldn¡¯t understand Xiao Sheng¡¯s mindset. He only felt that Xiao Sheng was complicating something simple. Chapter 256 - 256 Departure 256 Departure ¡°Gee, this is the first time I¡¯ve seen you so insecure. You¡¯re not like this when you¡¯re negotiating orders with me or fighting with others! Why are you worrying so much? If the two of you like each other, just get together. Besides, how do you know she doesn¡¯t like you? You gave up without asking. This is so unlike the you I know!¡± Xiao Sheng was silent after he heard this, and Zeng Li didn¡¯t say anything else either. Xiao Sheng had to think things through himself. It was useless for others to say anything else. Moreover, he had already said what he needed to say. Yu Bing called the machinery factory first. Because bringing two children along the way was a simple task and they didn¡¯t have to make a detour, the other party readily agreed. Then, Yu Bing called the food factory to look for Jiang Chun. The hospital only provided a single phone for the patients and their families to contact the outside world, so the queue was very long. Yu Bing was already making the second call, so the people waiting in line behind her were getting impatient. After Yu Bing contacted Jiang Chun, she made a long story short. ¡°Chun Chun, Xiao Sheng is injured and will be hospitalized for a week. I have to take care of him here for the time being. In addition, the machine will be shipped back tomorrow. When the drivers return to S City, give the two drivers two yuan each. Then, get Xiao Li and Xiao Lin to come back with the drivers. Help them pack their clothes and look for the village chief to write a permission slip for the siblings in the name of visiting their relative in the hospital.¡± Despite her shock, Jiang Chun jotted everything down quickly. Then, she asked who would be the operator of the machine. Yu Bing thought for a few seconds and replied, ¡°Everyone will learn how to operate it. You¡¯re the person-in-charge of the production room, so you¡¯ll be in charge of choosing the worker who masters how to operate it the best.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s principle was to be fair and give everyone a chance. After arranging the pick-up and matter of the factory¡¯s production, Yu Bing hung up with peace of mind. He Mountain Village. Yu Yan had been living very comfortably recently. On one hand, it was because of Yao Nian¡¯s various attempts to curry favor with her, and on the other hand, she had finally received the long-awaited letter from the Yu family today. Yu Yan opened the letter carefully. The beginning of the letter said that the entire family was very concerned about Yu Yan¡¯s illness and they expressed their worries about her health. Yu Yan felt touched when she read it. Then, they agreed Yu Yan¡¯s idea of going home to take a look and said that they hoped that after Yu Yan confirmed the exact time, she would tell them in advance so that the family could clear up their schedule for those few days and accompany her. When Yu Yan read this, she was so touched that tears fell. After reading about the importance they attached to their reunion in the letter, Yu Yan felt even more determined that she couldn¡¯t have been abandoned by her parents back then and that she had been adopted because of Yu Bing¡¯s scheme! Yu Yan reread the letter a few times. No matter how she read it, she felt that this letter was filled with kinship. She became even more determined about her plan to reunite with her family. The most important thing now was to wait for her adoptive parents to send money over. Previously, Yu Hai had said that in order to prevent her from spending money recklessly, her allowance and packages would be halved. However, Yu Yan felt that they were just joking and didn¡¯t mind. In any case, they would send a few months¡¯ worth of money every time. When she spent them all, she would urge them to send more. At this time, the food factory received the machines bought from S City. After the trainers from the machinery factory installed them, they stayed for another day to teach everyone how to use them and repair them daily. On the morning of the day they set off for S City, Jiang Chun placed Xiao Li and Xiao Lin¡¯s clothes and food into a bag. ¡°Xiao Lin, remember not to let Xiao Li out of your sight. Cities are very big, and you¡¯re unfamiliar with the place. Once Xiao Li gets lost, it¡¯ll be very difficult to find her.¡± Jiang Chun was afraid that the two children would be worried, so she hid the fact that Xiao Sheng was injured. Therefore, the two of them only knew that they were going to S City for a checkup. From the day they found out the news until before they set off, they had been very excited. Not only were they excited about Xiao Li regaining her vision, but they were also curious about the prosperous world they were about to go to. Xiao Lin suppressed the excitement in his heart and said to Jiang Chun seriously, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Sister Jiang Chun. I¡¯ll definitely hold my sister¡¯s hand at all times!¡± Jiang Chun smiled and patted Xiao Lin¡¯s head as she continued to explain, ¡°I believe you. The driver will send you straight to the hospital¡¯s door. Then, you¡¯ll go straight to room 306 on the third floor. If you can¡¯t find it, ask the medical staff. I wrote down the exact address and placed it in a bag. If you forget it, take it out and read it. Also, the money and stamp must be placed in the innermost layer of your clothes.¡± Xiao Lin nodded vigorously. He, who had only been to the village¡¯s medical center, thought that this place was for Xiao Li¡¯s treatment, so he didn¡¯t suspect anything. After Jiang Chun sent the two of them to the car, she asked the driver about their approximate time of arrival in S City. Then, she went to the office to call Yu Bing and asked her to try her best to pick them up at the entrance. Chapter 257 - 257 Arrival 257 Arrival Although Jiang Chun told Xiao Lin to look for it himself and gave him the detailed address, that was mainly because she was worried that Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t be able to pick him up. In that case, the two children wouldn¡¯t have to wait there the entire time. When Zhao Lin saw Jiang Chun at work, she took out a letter from her pocket and handed it over with a smile. ¡°The postman came to deliver letters this morning and I happened to see yours, so I brought it over for you.¡± Jiang Chun thought about how a letter had just arrived last week. Why was another letter sent again so soon? After she took the letter, she thanked Zhao Lin. When she saw that the sender¡¯s name was Cui Jin, Jiang Chun¡¯s eyes widened. Because it was work time, Jiang Chun put the letter into her pocket and planned to read it at noon. After chatting with Yu Bing that night, Jiang Chun had been busy working and studying these past few days, so she had almost forgotten about Cui Jin. She didn¡¯t expect Cui Jin to send another letter. At this moment, the letter in her pocket seemed to have a sort of magic, captivating Jiang Chun. When she finally returned home at noon, Jiang Chun opened the letter. There were not many words, just two pages, but there was a two-yuan note and a small paper bag of rat poison. The contents of the letter were very simple. First, he expressed his gratitude to Jiang Chun, then he revealed his identity as a soldier. However, he didn¡¯t mention what had happened that day. He only said that the matter had been resolved and that interesting things had happened recently. At the end of the letter, he even asked about Jiang Chun¡¯s situation at work and mentioned that the special rat poison he had found in the army¡¯s cookhouse was very useful, so Jiang Chun could write to him if she needed it again. Jiang Chun burst out laughing when she saw this. The last time she sent him into the mountain, she felt that the silence was a little awkward, so she found a topic to talk about. She even said that when she heard him inside, she thought it was a rat, but she didn¡¯t expect him to remember her words. Hence, after Jiang Chun finished reading, she raised her pen and replied to the letter. Then, she sent it back according to the address. On the day Cui Jin received this letter, he was in a good mood. Only then did his subordinates realize that their stoic superior knew how to smile too! At this moment, Yu Bing, who was in S City, was traveling from the market, the guest house, and the hospital every day. At 10 AM on the day Jiang Chun told her about, Yu Bing waited at the door. At almost 11 AM, she finally saw the large truck from the machinery factory. When Xiao Lin pulled Xiao Li out of the car and saw Yu Bing, Xiao Lin waved and greeted her happily, ¡°Sister Yu Bing!¡± Xiao Li carefully identified the direction of the footsteps she was familiar with. When she heard it, a smile immediately appeared on her face. ¡°Sister Yu Bing.¡± After Yu Bing replied loudly, she hurriedly went forward to hold the hands of the two siblings in relief. They were two children after all, so although they were in a company car, she couldn¡¯t help but feel worried. Yu Bing turned to look at the two drivers and thanked them with a smile. ¡°Thank you guys so much! These two little fellows have caused you guys a lot of trouble.¡± Because Jiang Chun had given them two red packets early that morning, the drivers, who originally thought that bringing children was troublesome, immediately had no complaints anymore. The two of them took care of the Xiao siblings along the way. ¡°It¡¯s not troublesome at all. These two children are too sensible! I¡¯ve never seen such sensible children.¡± Those words were true. Xiao Lin and Xiao Li were afraid of troubling them, so they didn¡¯t make any requests along the way and Xiao Lin kept cracking jokes. Usually, drivers would find long-distance drives boring, but this made the entire trip much more interesting. The other driver also smiled and said, ¡°Xiao Lin is very eloquent. He¡¯ll definitely be promising in the future.¡± Yu Bing suddenly felt as if her own children had grown up. As she looked at Xiao Lin, she couldn¡¯t help but rub his head with a smile. After saying goodbye to the drivers, Yu Bing brought the two children into the hospital. When Xiao Li didn¡¯t hear her brother¡¯s voice, she turned her head and asked, ¡°Sister Yu Bing, where¡¯s my brother?¡± Ever since Xiao Lin entered the city, he had been looking around with wonder. When he heard Xiao Li¡¯s question, he finally realized that his brother didn¡¯t appear. ¡°That¡¯s right. Sister Yu Bing, where¡¯s my brother?!¡± Yu Bing replied, ¡°Your brother is waiting for you guys in the hospital. He was accidentally injured and got hospitalized. But don¡¯t worry, he¡¯ll be discharged in two days!¡± Although she said that, Xiao Li and Xiao Lin¡¯s joy from entering the city disappeared, and their faces were filled with worry. Chapter 258 - 258 Discharged 258 Discharged When Yu Bing saw their expressions, she was glad that Jiang Chun had hidden it from them. Otherwise, they probably wouldn¡¯t have been able to sleep well these few days. After all, if they hadn¡¯t seen with their own eyes that the brother they cared so much about was really safe, no matter what others said, they would be worried. The door of the ward wasn¡¯t closed, so Xiao Lin saw Xiao Sheng lying on the bed at a glance. When he saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s rosy face, the worry in his heart disappeared. He immediately regained his usual liveliness and shouted with a smile, ¡°Brother!¡± Xiao Sheng heaved a sigh of relief when he saw the siblings arrive safely. ¡°Did you guys encounter anything on the way?¡± Xiao Lin shook his head and kept talking about what had happened along the way. ¡°Sister Jiang Chun prepared buns and eggs for us. The two drivers were very good to us and even gave us something to eat.¡± Xiao Li couldn¡¯t see her brother¡¯s condition, but from Xiao Sheng¡¯s vigorous voice, she could tell that he was indeed fine. Her smile returned to her face as she turned towards the direction of the voice. Xiao Sheng was young and strong. In addition, he had been eating enough food for the past half a year, so his physique was much stronger. His wounds were healing very well. Because he was in a hurry to bring Xiao Li to get a consultation as early as possible, when the doctor came for ward rounds, Xiao Sheng requested to be discharged tomorrow. At this time, the doctors didn¡¯t earn any commission from medicine. Seeing that Xiao Sheng was indeed recovering very well, they agreed to let Xiao Sheng undergo another observation tomorrow morning. If there was nothing amiss, he could be discharged. Zeng Li came to report every day, so he knew that Xiao Li came here to see a doctor. ¡°The two little fellows are finally here!¡± The Xiao siblings greeted him politely, ¡°Hello, Brother Zeng!¡± When Yu Bing saw Zeng Li, she told him about Xiao Sheng being discharged early. Zeng Li panicked when he heard this. ¡°Why are you in such a hurry? Stay for another day. You don¡¯t have to worry. I¡¯m paying.¡± Xiao Sheng looked at Zeng Li and explained, ¡°It¡¯s not about money. I want to bring Xiao Li to get her eyes checked as soon as possible. Moreover, the doctor said that I can be discharged in my current state. I have something else I want to ask you for help with.¡± When Zeng Li heard that the doctor had agreed, he didn¡¯t insist anymore. ¡°What is it? Tell me.¡± Xiao Sheng replied, ¡°I want to ask if you know anyone who works in the Medical University or the Military Affiliated Hospital?¡± Zeng Li smiled. ¡°I thought it was something serious! My second sister is the deputy director of the Military Affiliated Hospital. Leave this to me.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this surprising answer, he finally smiled for the first time in so many days. He was no longer so worried and his mood instantly improved. In fact, he just happened to pass by at that time and witnessed Zou Kun¡¯s ambush. Because Xiao Sheng knew Zeng Li, he helped him. However, Xiao Sheng had decisively made the decision to block the attack. Zeng Li was from S City and his family was powerful. At that time, Xiao Sheng thought that if he could save Zeng Li¡¯s life, he could ask him to help pull strings with the hospital with regard to the cornea transplant. He was willing to spend more money if necessary. He didn¡¯t expect Zeng Li to be so well-connected. In this case, they might really succeed. At noon, Yu Bing brought Xiao Lin and Xiao Li back to the guest house. She lived in a standard room, which happened to have two beds. Unless a couple could show their marriage certificate, men and women couldn¡¯t stay in the same room in the guest house. However, because Xiao Lin was still a ten-and-a-half-year-old child, after reporting to the receptionist, Yu Bing was allowed to take him to her room. Hence, Yu Bing and Xiao Li slept on the same bed while Xiao Lin slept alone. After taking an afternoon nap, Yu Bing planned to bring the two children around S City. In the afternoon, she brought the siblings to S City¡¯s beach to enjoy the breeze. As Xiao Lin, who only went as far as the county city, looked at the merchant ships coming and going on the sea and the port in front of him, he felt as if he had opened the door to a new world! He described the scenery in front of him to Xiao Li excitedly. As Yu Bing brought the two of them around, they ate many local snacks. Xiao Sheng¡¯s dinner for that day was their leftover snacks. The next morning, after Xiao Sheng passed the physical examination, he received a discharge certificate from the doctor. Yu Bing went through the discharge procedures. Previously, Zeng Li had generously paid 1,000 yuan for the hospitalization fee and deposit. Now, 889.52 yuan was returned. Yu Bing handed the bill and the refund to Zeng Li. After all, it was his money. Now that it had passed through her hands, it was better to check it right here. If the amount wasn¡¯t right, she could explain it clearly. Hence, she said, ¡°I counted it. There¡¯s no problem with the amount of money. You should check it too.¡± Chapter 259 - 259 Queue 259 Queue After Zeng Li only accepted the money, he said, ¡°There¡¯s no need to check. How can I not believe you?! During this period of time, you¡¯ve spent money to buy and cook Xiao Sheng¡¯s meals every day. How much are the labor fee and grocery fees? I should pay for this.¡± Yu Bing took note of the grocery fees. They were friends, so the labor fees definitely couldn¡¯t be calculated. After removing the portion that she should bear, Xiao Sheng owed her 8.58 yuan. Initially, she had planned to ask Zeng Li for money, but when she thought about how Xiao Sheng had saved Zeng Li and how Zeng Li had also helped Xiao Li, it didn¡¯t seem appropriate for her to ask Zeng Li for this money again. Hence, she rejected him. ¡°No need. It¡¯s not much money.¡± Yu Bing looked calm on the surface, but she comforted herself by telling herself to treat it as buying Xiao Li a shirt. Zeng Li looked at Yu Bing in surprise and suspicion. After all, it was rare to see a miser like her be so generous. Before Zeng Li went out today, he specifically borrowed the car that the army had given him. Hence, after they left the hospital, they didn¡¯t have to squeeze into the bus anymore. They drove all the way to the entrance of the Military Affiliated Hospital. After Zeng Li brought them out of the car, he introduced as they walked. ¡°My sister said that Dr. Min is the best in the ophthalmology department. His success rate for the cornea transplant is more than 99%. My sister has already helped us inform him in advance. We can just go to the department to look for him.¡± After saying that, Zeng Li talked about the award this doctor had received, how influential his research was, and most importantly, his success rate for this difficult surgery. The few of them nodded repeatedly when they heard the introduction. They didn¡¯t understand, but he sounded quite impressive, so they nodded! After Dr. Min saw Xiao Li, his conclusion was that there was a cornea perforation and a cornea transplant had to be done. Xiao Li was nine years old now, so this surgery had to be done as soon as possible, preferably before she turned ten years old. When Xiao Sheng heard this, he hurriedly asked, ¡°Doctor Min, if we sign up now, what position in line will we be?¡± After Doctor Min found out about the circumstances yesterday, he had already roughly determined Xiao Li¡¯s situation. He had also checked the number of people queuing up for the cornea transplant in advance. When Xiao Sheng asked, he replied, ¡°Number five.¡± Yu Bing had heard that fewer people donated corneas than other organs, so the number five didn¡¯t seem that far back in line, but in reality, it might take a long time. ¡°Doctor Min, how long do people usually have to wait?¡± Dr. Min shook his head. ¡°There¡¯s no way to tell. If it¡¯s fast, it might take a year. If it¡¯s slow, it might take a few years.¡± This answer made everyone¡¯s hearts heavy. In the end, Dr. Min taught Xiao Sheng a massage technique and prescribed some pre-transplant surgery medicine to slow down the lesions in Xiao Li¡¯s eyes and buy more time for post-transplant surgery. After they left the hospital, the atmosphere in the car was a little gloomy. Xiao Sheng looked at Zeng Li and said, ¡°Zeng Li, please help me pay more attention to the follow-up. If I can speed things up by paying more money, I can accept it.¡± Zeng Li patted Xiao Sheng¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I understand. Don¡¯t worry.¡± Xiao Li couldn¡¯t see, but she could feel that everyone was very worried because of her matter, so she smiled and comforted everyone. ¡°It¡¯s okay. I can¡¯t see, but I can cook, wash clothes, and do anything. It¡¯s no different from being able to see.¡± Although Xiao Li hid it very well, from their occasional interactions, Yu Bing knew how much she yearned to see. She was clearly the person who needed to be comforted the most now, but she still smiled and comforted everyone, as if nothing was wrong. Yu Bing felt a lump in her throat. After taking a deep breath, she smiled and said, ¡°Let¡¯s not scare ourselves. Although the earlier the surgery is done the better, obeying the doctor¡¯s instructions and delaying the lesion to the greatest extent is equivalent to extending the surgery time. Therefore, the most important thing now is to remain hopeful and take precautions!¡± Xiao Sheng understood why Yu Bing said this, so he smiled and echoed, ¡°That¡¯s right. Do what we can first. We¡¯re going back tomorrow, so I¡¯ll treat you guys to a meal at the state-owned restaurant tonight. Zeng Li, it wasn¡¯t easy for us to come here, so we have to eat your hometown¡¯s most special dishes.¡± Zeng Li became excited when he heard about food. ¡°No problem. Leave the ordering to me. I¡¯ll definitely let you guys experience the charisma of this city¡¯s food!¡± Everyone chatted and laughed as they changed the topic. After dinner, Zeng Li sent them to buy train tickets. After this trip to S City, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng really became friends with Zeng Li, so they bid farewell reluctantly. Chapter 260 - 260 Home 260 Home Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng took the train at four o¡¯clock in the afternoon. The next morning, they arrived at the train station in City H at seven o¡¯clock. After changing trains a few times, they got off at the town¡¯s bus station at twelve-thirty. Yu Bing bought a bunch of local specialties and even Xiao Sheng, despite being injured, carried a few bags of light things. Just as they were wondering how to go back, they saw Wu Qing, who was already waiting at the exit with the tractor. Wu Qing hurriedly went forward and took the things from Yu Bing as he said with a smile, ¡°Yu Bing, Brother Sheng, you guys are finally back. My father had to take care of everything these few days. He¡¯s been spread out pretty thin.¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°The Village Chief is very capable.¡± Wu Qing looked at Xiao Sheng and asked with concern, ¡°Brother Sheng, are you alright now?¡± Xiao Sheng smiled and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m fine.¡± At that moment, Xiao Lin had already placed the things into the back of the car and helped Xiao Li into the car. No matter how prosperous the city was, Xiao Lin only wanted to satisfy his curiosity. At this moment, after returning to this familiar place, he couldn¡¯t wait to rush home. After all, east or west, home was the best! As soon as the tractor arrived at the end of the village, Yu Bing saw Little Tiger waiting at the door obediently. When Little Tiger saw them, it immediately turned to look at the house and barked a few times. Then, it ran forward happily and circled the tractor. ¡°Little Tiger!¡± Xiao Li had just gotten out of the car when she heard the sound. After she squatted down and spread her arms, Little Tiger jumped forward happily. Yu Bing whispered to Xiao Sheng, ¡°I think you might as well find someone to buy a puppy and leave it at home. It can guard the home and accompany Xiao Li. Although she acts like she doesn¡¯t care about that surgery on the surface, she must feel upset. A puppy can divert her attention.¡± In the past, it was difficult for Xiao Sheng to earn money, so he saved every cent he had. Although he was still short of money now, since he had more connections, things were much easier than before. He had enough money to feed another mouth. Xiao Sheng also agreed with Yu Bing¡¯s suggestion. ¡°That¡¯s a good idea. I¡¯ll find someone who has a puppy.¡± After Wu Jin sent them back, he went home. At this moment, Jiang Chun, who was in the house, had just finished cooking and placed the food on the table. When she heard the tractor and Little Tiger¡¯s cries, she smiled and quickly walked out of the door. ¡°Your timing is just right. You three don¡¯t have to go back. I thought that you guys probably wouldn¡¯t be able to eat until very late if you guys returned home to cook, so I cooked your portions. Come in and eat!¡± Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t refuse when he heard this. Everyone was quite familiar with each other, so he didn¡¯t say those pleasantries. However, he still had to return the favor. ¡°Then we won¡¯t stand on ceremony. I¡¯ll get Xiao Lin to bring the rice and vegetables over later.¡± Xiao Li also smiled and said, ¡°I can help wash the dishes!¡± Jiang Chun accepted this suggestion happily. Then, she put her arm around Xiao Li¡¯s shoulder and brought her into the house as she said with a smile, ¡°Alright! With your help, I can quit after eating.¡± Previously, Yu Bing had specifically told Jiang Chun that people with disabilities often cared a lot about other people differentiating them from ordinary people. Therefore, if Xiao Li wanted to show off, she should not stop her. If she kept acting worried that Xiao Li wouldn¡¯t be able to complete it, it would only make Xiao Li feel even more insecure. Jiang Chun cooked steamed grass carp with chopped peppers, tomatoes and scrambled eggs, tofu with onions, stir-fried zucchini, and vegetable soup. The few of them finished their meal with relish. After sending the Xiao family¡¯s three siblings away, Yu Bing asked Jiang Chun about the situation in the factory for the past two weeks. Previously, there were many things that she couldn¡¯t explain over the phone. Although Yu Bing was in S City, she had been worrying about the matters over here. Jiang Chun looked at Yu Bing helplessly and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You worry too much. When you weren¡¯t in the factory, Feng Cai went to City Z and got two companies¡¯ employee benefits orders for next month.¡± Yu Bing praised with a smile, ¡°Not bad. You guys don¡¯t need anyone to urge you guys to work. You¡¯re all good employees!¡± Then, she asked, ¡°Have they mastered how to use the machine? Is it handy?¡± Jiang Chun could only continue to report, ¡°The workers are all familiar with it now. With the machine, the efficiency will increase exponentially!¡± Yu Bing nodded in satisfaction. ¡°By the way, did you get a cat for the warehouse?¡± Jiang Chun paused. ¡°Um¡­ I bought a bag of rat poison. It¡¯s very useful. After rats eat it, they¡¯ll be thirsty and run out to find water to drink. Once they drink water, that poison produces toxins, so there¡¯s not a single rat in the warehouse now.¡± Chapter 261 - 261 Birthday Gift 261 Birthday Gift Yu Bing didn¡¯t care about the method, as long as there were no rats. ¡°That¡¯s good. Actually, I¡¯m also worried that the cat would be naughty and tear the packaging of the food. At that time, we¡¯ll have more trouble. Since the rat poison is useful, buy more of it.¡± Jiang Chun nodded with an awkward expression. However, Yu Bing was unpacking the gifts she had brought back this time and didn¡¯t notice. These gifts had been bought when she brought the two little fellows shopping two afternoons ago. Yu Bing took out a dress from the bottom of the bag and looked at Jiang Chun expectantly as she said, ¡°Chun Chun, I bought you a dress!¡± The upper body of the dress was a beige medium-sleeved flounced shirt. The lower body was a rusty red A-line umbrella dress that reached her calves. It looked elegant and youthful. Jiang Chun¡¯s face was a little chubby, but she wasn¡¯t fat. This outfit could make her look more mature. The first thing Jiang Chun saw was the price. She didn¡¯t even have to touch the material. Just by looking at it, she knew that it wasn¡¯t cheap! ¡°Why did you spend so much money? I don¡¯t want it. Keep it for yourself.¡± After Yu Bing folded the dress and placed it on Jiang Chun¡¯s bed, she said with a smile, ¡°I can¡¯t wear the dress. I¡¯m 166 centimeters tall now. I bought the dress for you. If you don¡¯t wear the dress, I¡¯ll give the dress away. Besides, have you forgotten what day it is today?¡± This dress cost at least 20 to 30 yuan. How could Jiang Chun bear to give the dress away? As she looked at Yu Bing¡¯s smug smile, she felt very helpless. Ever since Yu Bing arrived in the countryside, she had grown from 155 centimeters to 166 centimeters, but after she grew to 160 centimeters, she had stopped growing. Jiang Chun thought about how it really didn¡¯t fit Yu Bing, so she didn¡¯t refuse anymore. This was the first new dress Jiang Chun had ever owned. Most of her clothes were old clothes that her neighbor¡¯s sister or her relatives didn¡¯t want. After Jiang Chun carefully put the dress into the cabinet, she thought about making a dress for Yu Bing on her birthday next month. Hearing Yu Bing¡¯s question, Jiang Chun thought about it seriously. In the end, she only remembered that she had to prepare all the goods from City H¡¯s supply and marketing club before she got off work today, since she didn¡¯t want to delay the delivery tomorrow morning. She asked Yu Bing, ¡°What day is it today?¡± Yu Bing shook her head helplessly. ¡°Your birthday!¡± Jiang Chun slapped her forehead gently. ¡°I forgot! But there¡¯s nothing to celebrate. Turning nineteen isn¡¯t that special.¡± Yu Bing placed all the gifts and specialties on the table and started to distribute them. ¡°We¡¯re rich now, so we can¡¯t mistreat ourselves on our birthdays! Last year, we just arrived and were poor, so we could only eat an egg to celebrate our birthdays. We can¡¯t be so sloppy this year. I¡¯ll bake you a cake. Let¡¯s have a good celebration today.¡± When Jiang Chun heard this, she placed her head on Yu Bing¡¯s shoulder and asked with emotion, ¡°Yu Bing, why are you so good to me?¡± Yu Bing¡¯s hand that was holding the gifts paused as she secretly thought to herself, ¡°Of course, it¡¯s because you treat me better.¡± Everyone felt that Yu Bing was impressive and that Jiang Chun had always been basking in Yu Bing¡¯s glory. Only Yu Bing knew that in her past life and this life, Jiang Chun¡¯s kindness towards her had never changed. It was like a drizzle in spring. This kind of concern and care had always been silent, so it was easy to overlook. Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°When I¡¯m busy, you do all the work at home. The two of us don¡¯t have to be so formal.¡± When Jiang Chun heard the last half of the sentence, she felt that it made sense. She decided that she had to do more work and take good care of the house so that Yu Bing could focus on doing big things. With Jiang Chun¡¯s help, after spending an entire afternoon, Yu Bing finally finished dividing the things. Xiao Li and Xiao Lin¡¯s toys were given to them after dinner. The remaining frog toy, three lipsticks, two bottles of wine, and a few boxes of snacks of different flavors were gifts for the Song family. She also prepared the same amount for Wang Yun¡¯s family. Because the Wang family¡¯s father and son didn¡¯t drink, Yu Bing bought two famous Hero Brand fountain pens from S City. The remaining snacks were for leaders and old colleagues from the Planning Bureau, as well as Village Chief Mr. Wu, Auntie Zhao, and the others who were on good terms with her. At night, Yu Bing baked a cake and cooked some dishes. Jiang Chun had had the most extravagant birthday of her life, so she invited Yu Bing to watch a movie together on her day off. Chapter 262 - 262 Stalking 262 Stalking On her day off. Yu Bing insisted that Jiang Chun change into new clothes before they went out. She felt a sense of accomplishment when she saw how beautiful Jiang Chun looked in the clothes she had chosen. The two of them took the opportunity to send the gifts along the way, so they only watched the movie at around noon. At this moment, Yu Yan saw an acquaintance from He Mountain Village. Actually, she had only seen him once before. Yu Yan was prepared to take an ox cart to town to get the package from home, but she didn¡¯t expect to encounter Cui Jin. After she saw Cui Jin from afar, she looked around nervously. Because it was their day off, everyone had entered the city to buy things. There were not many people walking around outside the village. There were just children chasing each other and playing around. Yu Yan walked towards Cui Jin quickly. When she was a few steps away from Cui Jin, she stopped and glared at him as she said angrily, ¡°Follow me!¡± Cui Jin didn¡¯t expect Yu Xi¡¯s sister to be an intellectual in He Mountain Village. Before he could say anything, Yu Yan turned around. He wanted to leave directly, but thinking of his relationship with Yu Xi, he endured his anger and followed her. After the two of them walked to a corner concealed by a tree, Yu Yan crossed her arms in front of her chest and asked with a frown, ¡°Cui Jin, is there a point in following me like this?¡± Although Cui Jin had a poker face, when he heard Yu Yan¡¯s words, he couldn¡¯t help but reveal an exasperated expression. He knew Yu Yan because he had gone to Linshui City with Yu Xi to participate in the military school¡¯s advanced studies last year. In the army, Yu Xi and Cui Jin had a very good relationship. Therefore, when he arrived at Yu Xi¡¯s hometown, Yu Xi insisted on bringing Cui Jin home for dinner and matchmake Yu Yan and Cui Jin. Previously, Yu Hai and Li Xin had read Yu Xi¡¯s letter, which mentioned Cui Jin¡¯s family situation. Although he was from the countryside, his family structure was very simple. He also had siblings and his parents were both cultured people with decent jobs. Cui Jin¡¯s grandmother lived with Cui Jin¡¯s uncle, who was in retirement from the army. Cui Jin had become a battalion commander at a young age and had a bright future! Although Cui Jin¡¯s siblings were a little young, his family wouldn¡¯t cause any financial burden for the young couple. There wouldn¡¯t be any financial problems if Yu Yan chose such a family. Cui Jin¡¯s family was cultured, so there wouldn¡¯t be communication issues. However, the other party was from the countryside. With Yu Yan¡¯s family¡¯s financial situation, if Yu Yan married over, she would be marrying down. Li Xin knew Yu Yan¡¯s temper too well. She wasn¡¯t someone who could withstand suffering, so if she found someone with slightly worse financial conditions, the other party¡¯s parents would be more tolerant of her. Moreover, after they found a job in the city for Yu Yan, the other party¡¯s parents definitely wouldn¡¯t stop her. This way, when their son-in-law returned to the army, Yu Yan could return to her maiden home and they could take care of her. Therefore, the Yu family was very satisfied with Cui Jin. When they ate together that day, they saw that Yu Yan¡¯s attitude towards Cui Jin wasn¡¯t bad. She even looked bashful when she looked at Cui Jin, so the couple thought that this matter would go smoothly. Therefore, after Yu Xi and Cui Jin returned to school, Li Xin couldn¡¯t wait to tell Yu Yan about Cui Jin¡¯s family situation. Unexpectedly, after she told Yu Yan that Cui Jin¡¯s family was from the countryside and that he had a six-year-old sister, Yu Yan became enraged and blamed them for trying to ruin her life. Li Xin was so angry that she almost had a heart attack. A few days later, since Yu Hai and Li Xin didn¡¯t want to miss out on this good son-in-law, they mentioned Cui Jin to Yu Yan again. This time, as soon as they mentioned his name, Yu Yan immediately covered her ears and said that she never wanted to hear this name again. Otherwise, she would go on a hunger strike. Marriage was a joyous occasion, but since Yu Yan was so resistant and Li Xin didn¡¯t want her daughter to be unhappy, she could only give up on this idea. Cui Jin was also very embarrassed during the meal that day. At that time, his parents and superiors had been urging him to get married. He didn¡¯t have a sweetheart, so he went to the Yu family¡¯s house with the intention of taking a look. Yu Yan was quite good-looking, but Cui Jin really didn¡¯t feel anything for her. After returning to school, he was even thinking about how to reject the matter if Yu Xi mentioned this again. However, this matter was left unsettled. Cui Jin knew that Yu Yan probably didn¡¯t fancy him, so he heaved a sigh of relief. When Cui Jin saw that Yu Yan had mistaken him for a stalker, he thought about it and felt that he should explain himself so as not to scare the young lady. When Yu Yan saw that Cui Jin was about to say something, she immediately made a stop sign and continued loudly with an impatient expression, ¡°I don¡¯t want to hear your confession. I won¡¯t change my decision. For my brother¡¯s sake, I won¡¯t fuss over your harassment this time. If there¡¯s a next time, I¡¯ll report you to the army! I¡¯ll even¡­¡± Chapter 263 - 263 Sending Rat Poison 263 Sending Rat Poison As soon as she saw Cui Jin, Yu Yan accused him of all sorts of things without giving him a chance to explain. On account of Yu Xi, he didn¡¯t want to argue with Yu Yan, but when he heard that Yu Yan was going to write a letter to report him to the army, his expression instantly turned cold. Even though Cui Jin didn¡¯t speak, Yu Yan was so frightened by his expression that she didn¡¯t dare to continue. In contrast to the agitated Yu Yan, Cui Jin only looked at Yu Yan coldly and said in a low voice, ¡°You want to report me even though you don¡¯t know about the situation. Have you ever thought of the consequences of your indiscriminate slander?!¡± Yu Yan was intimidated by Cui Jin and only retorted softly, ¡°When did I slander you? You¡¯re being unreasonable by stalking me!¡± Cui Jin was so angry that he laughed. ¡°Are you the only one in the village?¡± Cui Jin suddenly remembered that his crush was also in this village. Yu Yan had misunderstood him, so if his crush heard about it and thought that he wanted to two-time, things would be over for him. His goal for this visit was very clear. He couldn¡¯t let Yu Yan mess it up. At the thought of this, he couldn¡¯t care less about the fact that Yu Yan was his good friend¡¯s sister. He returned to his usual manner of speaking and said with a cold expression, ¡°Go back and take a look in the mirror when you¡¯re free. You¡¯re not that beautiful, so how can you be so confident? Also, I¡¯ll be staying here for a while recently. Don¡¯t associate me with you. It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t care, but don¡¯t implicate me!¡± As soon as Cui Jin finished speaking, he saw a girl with two braids that reached her chest. He only came back to his senses when he saw that she passed by an intersection and disappeared. When Yu Yan heard Cui Jin¡¯s words, she was so angry that she could barely speak. Just as she was about to retort loudly, she saw Cui Jin¡¯s gentle gaze as he looked behind her, so she followed his gaze and looked behind her, but she didn¡¯t see anything. After Cui Jin retracted his gaze, he looked at Yu Yan again. ¡°For your brother¡¯s sake, I won¡¯t hold you accountable. If you dare to say that I have anything to do with you next time, it won¡¯t be you who will write a report. I¡¯ll report you for slander!¡± After Cui Jin finished speaking, he ignored Yu Yan¡¯s reaction and strode towards the intersection. As Yu Yan watched Cui Jin leave, she raised her hand and pointed at Cui Jin in exasperation, ¡°You¡­¡± Unfortunately, before Yu Yan could finish her sentence, Cui Jin disappeared. ¡°Ah!¡± Yu Yan, who was about to go crazy from anger, could only stomp her feet and shout. Yu Yan had never been treated like this before. Ever since she was young, whenever boys saw her, they took good care of her. Therefore, when Cui Jin said that she was slandering him, she couldn¡¯t think of a way to refute him. Cui Jin, who had disappeared, was chasing after Jiang Chun. ¡°Jiang Chun.¡± Jiang Chun was discussing the movie plot with Yu Bing when she heard someone call her. She turned around and looked at the other party. As Jiang Chun looked at the unfamiliar man in front of her, she felt a sense of familiarity. His well-defined facial features were handsome, he had deep eye sockets, and his jawline was as chiseled as a knife. The man¡¯s masculine aura finally made Jiang Chun realize who the other party was. Because she wasn¡¯t 100% sure, Jiang Chun looked at him tentatively. ¡°Cui Jin?¡± As Cui Jin looked at the pretty girl in a dress, he felt his face heat up. However, because of his training, his skin was quite tanned, which helped Cui Jin conceal his blush. Cui Jin could no longer remember the words he had planned to say. He froze for a moment before he thought of something. ¡°I¡¯m here to send you rat poison.¡± Jiang Chun was stunned for a moment. The last time she replied, she didn¡¯t mention rat poison. Yu Bing had only asked her to buy more yesterday, so how did Cui Jin find out today? Yu Bing snickered and covered her mouth with her hand quickly. Then, she looked at Jiang Chun teasingly and repeated what Jiang Chun had said last night, ¡°I bought a bag of rat poison. It¡¯s very useful.¡± Jiang Chun blushed and hit Yu Bing¡¯s arm angrily. Yu Bing pursed her lips to hide her smile as she observed the way Cui Jin looked at Jiang Chun. Based on the many romance dramas she watched, she was certain that Cui Jin liked Jiang Chun very much. Seeing the military uniform and the righteousness in the other party¡¯s eyes, Yu Bing decided to give the two of them a chance to interact. ¡°I¡¯ll go back first. You two can talk.¡± Jiang Chun was about to call Yu Bing to wait for her, but Yu Bing walked away quickly. Looking at Cui Jin, Jiang Chun suddenly felt that the atmosphere was a little awkward. She thought of the rat poison he had mentioned, so she continued, ¡°Thank you. I was about to write you a letter and ask you to help me buy some more.¡± Chapter 264 - 264 Sour Smell 264 Sour Smell Cui Jin had only hung out with boys since he was young. Because he hated how fussy girls were, he knew nothing about how to interact with girls. Looking at the girl he liked, he decided to be direct. ¡°Jiang Chun, do you have a boyfriend?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Jiang Chun was stumped by this straightforward question. After Jiang Chun was stunned for a moment, she suddenly realized that Cui Jin had feelings for her, so she replied embarrassedly in a low voice, ¡°No.¡± After Cui Jin heaved a sigh of relief, he stared at Jiang Chun¡¯s face and asked, ¡°Then can I be your boyfriend?¡± Jiang Chun was stunned by Cui Jin¡¯s abruptness. ¡°But we don¡¯t know each other very well.¡± Since Jiang Chun didn¡¯t reject him directly, the tense expression on Cui Jin¡¯s face eased up. ¡°I have 12 days of leave this time. Subtracting the time for the round trip, I have nine days to let you learn more about me.¡± ¡°My family is from the countryside. There are a total of five people in my family. I also have a pair of six-year-old twin siblings. I know you¡¯re from the city, so I wonder if you mind.¡± Jiang Chun shook her head and said with a blush, ¡°I don¡¯t mind. I¡¯m quite good at taking care of people, so you can rest assured.¡± Then, she explained her family¡¯s situation. She emphasized her father¡¯s illness, that she was an only child, and that she needed to support her parents in their old age. Jiang Chun¡¯s actions gave Cui Jin a better impression of her. He admired her frankness and open-mindedness. ¡°In the future, I¡¯ll treat your parents as my own.¡± Their relationship had yet to be confirmed, but they were already talking about their post-marriage life. Jiang Chun felt that their conversation was too forward-looking, but at this point, she continued to talk about her plan. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I have a job too. I can afford my father¡¯s medical expenses.¡± When Cui Jin heard this, he hurriedly said, ¡°A son-in-law is like a son, so I should pay for it. My father is the village chief, and my mother is a doctor in the commune. My parents said that since they have a salary and a pension, I should spend all my money on my own family. After we get married, my salary will be yours.¡± There were people who pursued Jiang Chun, but whenever they found out about Jiang Chun¡¯s family¡¯s situation, they hesitated. Having to take care of a patient who needed medicine for the long term was like throwing money into a bottomless pit. When Jiang Chun heard Cui Jin¡¯s words, she was very touched. ¡°My family¡¯s situation is like this. Other than being a city dweller, my conditions are not as good as yours. If you don¡¯t mind, we can date each other.¡± Cui Jin revealed a rare smile. ¡°No problem!¡± Jiang Chun thought of his accommodation, so she asked, ¡°Where are you staying tonight?¡± Cui Jin replied, ¡°I have a letter of recommendation and a military certificate, so I¡¯ll explain it to the village chief later. Any place is fine.¡± It was still early, so the two of them chatted as they walked toward the end of the village. Jiang Chun and Yu Bing would take care of Cui Jin¡¯s meals. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t ask Jiang Chun about the exact situation in front of Cui Jin, but she was very surprised at the speed at which the two of them suddenly confirmed their relationship and when Jiang Chun had met such a soldier. She didn¡¯t notice at all. After dinner, Jiang Chun was worried that Cui Jin wouldn¡¯t be able to find his way, so she brought him to the village chief¡¯s house to settle down. Cui Jin was also worried that it wasn¡¯t safe for Jiang Chun to walk alone at night, so he insisted on sending Jiang Chun home. In the end, the two of them continued to chat under the tree at the door. After Yu Bing washed up, she waited for a long time. The moon was already rising, but the two people outside the door still didn¡¯t seem to have finished talking. Seeing this scene, she couldn¡¯t help but marvel, ¡°It¡¯s good to be young! How come I feel like the air is filled with the sour smell of love?¡± They didn¡¯t part until nine-thirty. When Yu Bing saw Jiang Chun close the door, she immediately rushed forward and said fiercely, ¡°If you confess, I¡¯ll forgive you. If you resist, I¡¯ll punish you severely! Tell me honestly, how did you guys meet under my nose without me knowing?!¡± Jiang Chun pursed her lips and smiled in embarrassment. Then, she tilted her head and said to Yu Bing, ¡°Do you still remember the 0.5 yuan on the stove?¡± After Yu Bing came to a realization, she slapped her thigh and said, ¡°I knew it! Moreover, you clearly looked a little off that night. I just didn¡¯t think too much about it, so you were able to brush it off. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Jiang Chun, you hid it quite well. I was deceived by you!¡± Jiang Chun hurriedly explained, ¡°I didn¡¯t do it on purpose. The mission he was on had to be kept a secret. Moreover, he was in trouble at that time. One more person knowing about it would mean more danger.¡± Chapter 265 - 265 Compromise 265 Compromise When Yu Bing saw Jiang Chun¡¯s serious expression, she smiled and said, ¡°I was joking, but aren¡¯t you two confirming your relationship too soon?¡± Jiang Chun thought for a moment before saying seriously, ¡°I already had a good impression of him before. This time, when he suddenly appeared and I recognized him, I suddenly felt an indescribable sense of joy. Moreover, he didn¡¯t despise me after he found out about my family¡¯s situation.¡± Yu Bing knew that Jiang Chun had been taken advantage of by Sun Yu in her previous life and was forced into marriage. Without Sun Yu in this life, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t guess what Jiang Chun¡¯s marriage would be like, nor did she want to interfere too much. She believed that Jiang Chun could make a choice that was suitable for her without external pressure. All Yu Bing could do was strengthen herself, so that if there was a problem with Jiang Chun¡¯s marriage one day, she could also be Jiang Chun¡¯s powerful backer. ¡°Only you know if the shoes fit. I believe you can choose your other half on your own.¡± When the topic shifted to relationships, Jiang Chun couldn¡¯t help but ask Yu Bing curiously, ¡°Yu Bing, what kind of man are you looking for?¡± Yu Bing was stunned for a moment. When Xiao Sheng¡¯s face suddenly appeared in her mind, she was so startled that she hurriedly shook her head. Jiang Chun was a little confused by Yu Bing¡¯s reaction. ¡°Why are you shaking your head?¡± When Yu Bing came back to her senses, she smiled awkwardly and said, ¡°I don¡¯t plan to get married.¡± Jiang Chun widened her eyes. ¡°Why?¡± As Yu Bing sat on the chair, she supported her chin with one hand as she looked ahead and said, ¡°I don¡¯t want to be hurt. Be it family or love, as long as I don¡¯t put in the effort, I won¡¯t be hurt.¡± Jiang Chun didn¡¯t agree with this point of view. ¡°You¡¯re a classic example of not even eating because you¡¯re afraid of choking on your food. This is too extreme. You just haven¡¯t met anyone you like from the bottom of your heart and who reciprocates your feelings!¡± Yu Bing glanced at Jiang Chun and said with a smile, ¡°Not bad. You¡¯ve only been in a relationship for slightly more than half a day, but you¡¯ve already become my relationship mentor.¡± Jiang Chun rolled her eyes at Yu Bing. ¡°I¡¯m serious!¡± No matter how Yu Bing thought about it, she felt that earning money was the best thing to do. After all, money wouldn¡¯t betray people. On the other side, Yu Yan felt that she was really unlucky today. First, she met Cui Jin and was mocked. Then, she went to town to collect the package, but realized that her adoptive parents had only sent five yuan and half of the previous amount of food! Yu Yan glared at the letter from her adoptive parents on the table and slashed it a few times with the fruit knife. Only then did the frustration in her heart dissipate. After calming down, she opened the torn envelope and started reading it impatiently. The letter was written by Yu Hai. He only told her about some family matters and how her adoptive mother had been sick for more than a week after returning home. Then, he told Yu Yan not to worry. Then, he explained that they halved the money and food in hopes that she would integrate into the countryside like the other intellectuals, instead of bringing the spoiled behaviors of a city-dweller to the village and creating opportunities to slack off through bribery. Yu Yan gritted her teeth and thought, ¡®Who¡¯s worried about that woman falling sick? It¡¯s best if she dies from illness!¡¯ Throughout the letter, there was no mention of letting her return to the city, but Yu Yan knew that her adoptive parents had done this on purpose. They hoped that she could admit her mistake and take the initiative to bring up the matter of returning. However, her relationship with her biological parents had yet to stabilize. If she returned to the city, it would be difficult to contact them again. This matter became an endless loop. The most important thing for her now was to maintain a stable relationship with her biological parents. However, the bus fare, gifts, and money to visit her biological parents with were all halved because her adoptive parents wanted to force her to return to the city. They distributed the money and only sent it once a month now! She could no longer receive 50 yuan like before and write a letter to ask for more after three months. After all, they wouldn¡¯t let her starve after she ran out of money. It had to be said that the Yu couple had really forced Yu Yan into a corner this time. Thinking of the five yuan in her pocket, Yu Yan felt anxious. After all, this amount of money wasn¡¯t even enough for her bus ticket! She calculated her savings and realized that she only had 7.83 yuan left. Seeing that her trip home was impossible now, Yu Yan was very indignant. Staring at the words ¡°your adoptive mother is sick¡± in the letter, Yu Yan finally chose to compromise. Li Xin¡¯s illness was caused by long-term exhaustion, so she could only recuperate slowly. On hot days, others would sweat from the heat while wearing singlets, but even when she wore long sleeves, she would feel that the temperature was just right. Chapter 266 - 266 Making a Quilt 266 Making a Quilt Li Xin was vulnerable to coldness, especially when she sat in the office and didn¡¯t move often. If her blood flow wasn¡¯t smooth, she would feel even colder. Yu Yan had known about this, but she had never thought of doing anything about it. It was only when she was forced into a corner this time that she thought of what to do to curry favor. After thinking about it, Yu Yan planned to make a thin blanket for Li Xin. Because it was only to cover the legs, there was no need to make it too big. In order to finish it earlier, Yu Yan specifically took half a day off the next day and went to the supply company in town to buy four pieces of fabric that were all one meter long and wide. She also bought half a catty of cotton. At this time, almost all girls knew how to sew clothes, blankets, and other things by themselves, while Yu Yan only knew how to use a sewing machine. Yu Yan was playful and didn¡¯t like to do chores. She learned how to step on a sewing machine because her family was one of the few families who could afford a sewing machine. In order to show off, she specifically learned how to use it from Li Xin. There were only two sewing machines in He Mountain Village. Yu Yan gave five eggs to the owner of the sewing machine in exchange for the right to use the sewing machine for the night. The inner lining of the blanket was made of white cotton. After the cotton was stuffed in, it was sutured. Finally, nine squares of the same size were rolled out on the flat blanket. This was to prevent the cotton in the inner lining from moving around. The quilt was very simplistic. In order to save money, white cotton was used inside as well. However, in order to make it look prettier and to show her good intentions, Yu Yan reluctantly spent an extra yuan to buy a plain-colored floral cotton quilt to make the cover. She only had 12.83 yuan left in her pocket because she spent another 3.5 yuan on this thin quilt. Since Yao Nian had caught a cold yesterday, he spent the entire day in the dormitory recuperating and didn¡¯t accompany Yu Yan to town to collect the packages. However, Yu Yan specifically made him a bowl of ginger soup before setting off. Initially, Yao Nian was thinking happily that Yu Yan would definitely bring him some food when she returned. However, even before he fell asleep at night, he didn¡¯t see her. He wanted to look for her during the day, but he had a low fever today and slept for another day. After dinner, Yao Nian looked around the dormitory building again, but he didn¡¯t see Yu Yan, so he gave up. Thinking about how Yu Yan didn¡¯t visit him today, he was a little angry. Yu Yan¡¯s unpredictability made Yao Nian a little frustrated. Because Yu Yan wasn¡¯t in the dormitory, Yao Nian could only use the stupidest method, which was to guard the dormitory building. He had to figure out what Yu Yan had been busy with these two days. When Yu Yan returned to the dormitory building, it was already nine in the evening. When Yao Nian saw Yu Yan return with a blanket in her hand, he immediately went forward to greet her. Because of the money shortage, Yu Yan had placed all her attention on thinking of a way to get money from her adoptive parents. Now that she saw Yao Nian, she finally remembered that her boyfriend had been sick these past two days. She had completely forgotten about it. She asked with some embarrassment, ¡°Are you feeling better?¡± Yao Nian coughed and shook his head weakly. ¡°I¡¯m fine. I was just a little worried when I didn¡¯t see you today. I heard that you took leave this afternoon. Did something happen?¡± Yao Nian wasn¡¯t pretending. His body was indeed a little weak from the fever these two days. When Yu Yan saw Yao Nian¡¯s pale face, she felt even more guilty, so she explained, ¡°My mother is in ill health, so I thought of making a small blanket for her to cover her legs when she goes to work.¡± When Yao Nian heard Yu Yan¡¯s explanation, he revealed a gentle smile. ¡°It¡¯s good that you¡¯re fine. I was worried that you wouldn¡¯t tell me about your troubles because I¡¯m sick.¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she felt very touched and said with a smile, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll definitely tell you if there¡¯s any trouble.¡± Yao Nian swayed deliberately, as if he couldn¡¯t stand steadily. Yu Yan hurriedly held his arm and asked anxiously, ¡°Why does it seem like your condition has worsened?¡± Yao Nian held his forehead as he said in a low voice, ¡°I had another low fever today. That¡¯s probably the reason.¡± Yu Yan thought about how the food in the dormitory was mostly vegetarian. If Yao Nian didn¡¯t get enough nutrition while he was recuperating, his immunity would be even worse. Thinking of the money in her pocket, she finally said, ¡°I¡¯ll make some chicken soup for you tomorrow.¡± Yao Nian refused repeatedly. ¡°Don¡¯t waste money. Your parents sent you living expenses, so you should try to eat more nutritious food. I¡¯m tough, so I¡¯ll recover in two days at most.¡± Chapter 267 - 267 Misunderstanding 267 Misunderstanding When Yu Yan saw that Yao Nian was thinking for her sake, she was a little touched. Then, she thought of how her adoptive parents had reduced her allowance without regard for her quality of life, and her mood instantly plummeted. Yao Nian wanted to retreat in order to advance. After all, if word got out that he had molested Yu Yan, his reputation would be tarnished. However, if Yu Yan insisted, it would be disrespectful for him to refuse. Unexpectedly, Yu Yan remained silent. Yao Nian could only continue asking, ¡°Yu Yan, what¡¯s wrong? You don¡¯t seem to be in a good mood.¡± Yu Yan thought about how she had no one to confide in, and Yao Nian was her boyfriend, so in a sense, he was family. Therefore, she told him what was troubling her. However, she naturally wouldn¡¯t tell him the truth. Omitting the fact that her parents had asked her to go back because she had lied and they wanted to discipline her, she only said the second half of the matter. ¡°In order to force me to return to the city, my parents halved my allowance and monthly packages.¡± This wasn¡¯t good news for Yu Yan, but it was even more shocking for Yao Nian. He only had 3.88 yuan left in his pocket after paying the medical fees for Yu Yan last time, subtracting the money he spent on dates with Yu Yan recently, and his recent daily expenses. Even if he scrimped and saved, he could only last until next month. Originally, Yao Nian thought that Yu Yan was quite lavish, since she sent food to those female intellectuals all day long. He was her boyfriend, so if he coaxed her, he would definitely enjoy even more benefits. Therefore, after knowing that Yu Yan wasn¡¯t that well off, Yao Nian was anxious now. Although he didn¡¯t know why Yu Yan was unwilling to return to the city, at this moment, even if Yu Yan was willing to go back, he couldn¡¯t let Yu Yan go back. It had not even been a month since two of them had confirmed their relationship. Yu Yan would definitely be arranged to go on a blind date by her parents and marry someone else when she returned. How could he have anything to do with her after that? When Yu Yan saw Yao Nian¡¯s anxious expression, she thought that Yao Nian was worried about her, so her heart softened and she told him her plan. After Yao Nian found out why Yu Yan had disappeared today, his previous dissatisfaction with her disappeared. After all, letting Li Xin transfer more money over was the most important thing! Yao Nian revealed a relaxed smile. ¡°How can there be overnight feuds between mother and daughter? If you have your own thoughts, they should respect you. Just write a letter back and try to compromise.¡± Yao Nian wasn¡¯t sure if Yu Yan would be able to get money with this move, but he knew very well that his relationship with Yu Yan had to improve. After Yu Yan became so smitten with him that she couldn¡¯t bear to leave him, if Yu Yan¡¯s parents mentioned returning to the city again, he could persuade Yu Yan and use this opportunity to give the Yu couple a favorable impression of him! Thinking of this, Yao Nian decided that it was time to write a letter to his mother. He had to tell her the latest news so that Yu Bing¡¯s family wouldn¡¯t change their minds and have designs on him. Now, he was out of Yu Bing¡¯s league. When Xiao Sheng went out in the morning and passed by Yu Bing¡¯s house, he saw a man in a black shirt chopping firewood in the courtyard. Xiao Sheng stopped in his tracks. After hesitating for a moment, he walked in. When Little Tiger saw him, it trot forward and started wagging its tail nonstop. When Cui Jin saw Little Tiger¡¯s reaction, he knew that the man probably came often and he looked up. Although the other party was expressionless, Cui Jin felt hostility, so Cui Jin¡¯s first guess was that the man in front of him was also Jiang Chun¡¯s admirer. The two men tacitly kept silent and only sized each other up. After Yu Bing and Jiang Chun tidied up and pushed open the door, they saw two men staring at each other in the courtyard. The atmosphere was very strange. Yu Bing scratched her head and decided to break the ice. ¡°Xiao Sheng, why are you here so early in the morning?¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this, he felt a little dejected. He felt that Yu Bing had isolated him from that man. Moreover, he was outside while the other party was inside. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t answer. Instead, he asked, ¡°Who is he?¡± Ever since Jiang Chun confirmed her relationship with Cui Jin and had been dating him for slightly more than half a day, she seemed to have suddenly matured. She immediately understood what the tense atmosphere was about. The smile on her face deepened as she looked at Xiao Sheng and said, ¡°This is my boyfriend, Cui Jin.¡± Jiang Chun walked up to Cui Jin and introduced Xiao Sheng. When she saw Cui Jin looking at her with a slightly jealous gaze, she could only secretly glance in Yu Bing¡¯s direction. Cui Jin immediately understood Jiang Chun¡¯s hint. The tension from just now dissipated in an instant. The two men looked at each other with a smile and shook hands in a friendly manner. Chapter 268 - 268 Brand Image Shop 268 Brand Image Shop Yu Bing didn¡¯t notice that Xiao Sheng¡¯s mood had changed from tense to relieved. Her mind was on how to increase the food factory¡¯s orders. Yu Bing had new ideas recently. After returning to the factory yesterday and keeping an eye on the current production volume, she became even more determined to carry out her plans. When she saw Xiao Sheng, she wanted to mention it to him and ask for his opinion. After all, Xiao Sheng couldn¡¯t take the salary of a sales consultant without doing anything. ¡°Xiao Sheng, there¡¯s something I want to discuss with you. Come with me to the factory first.¡± Xiao Sheng replied, ¡°Alright, I have something to tell you too.¡± Because Cui Jin wasn¡¯t an employee of the factory, it wasn¡¯t convenient for him to stay in the factory for a long time. He could only help Jiang Chun chop firewood and carry water. Then, he watched Jiang Chun and the others leave. Yu Bing told Xiao Sheng her plan. ¡°I want to open a brand image shop in each of the ten cities in the province. Only our food factory¡¯s products will be displayed inside.¡± Xiao Sheng quickly searched for memories of the sort of shop that Yu Bing had mentioned in his mind. After a fruitless search, he could only ask humbly, ¡°What is a brand image shop?¡± This was a marketing method in the future. In this era, it seemed a little too advanced, so Yu Bing decided to explain it to Xiao Sheng. ¡°It¡¯s a method to advertise our factory¡¯s brand and let more people know about our food factory.¡± When Xiao Sheng thought of the current economic system, he asked, ¡°But the shops outside are all state-owned. We can¡¯t open a shop in the name of the village¡¯s food factory!¡± Yu Bing smiled. ¡°Think outside of the box! Our shop won¡¯t delivery good. We¡¯ll only accept orders from offices.¡± Xiao Sheng quickly understood. ¡°Isn¡¯t this just a combination of a shop and an office? It¡¯s equivalent to changing from retail to only accepting wholesale orders, but it will have an additional product display function.¡± Yu Bing snapped her fingers. She knew that once she told Xiao Sheng, he would definitely understand her thoughts quickly. She looked at Xiao Sheng with sparkling eyes as she said, ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right! The office and the Commerce Bureau will still have the signboard of the food factory, but we¡¯ll add the function of displaying orders and giving orders to the factory. We won¡¯t sell goods to the public directly, so this isn¡¯t against the law.¡± Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing in admiration as he said, ¡°I wanted to tell you how I plan expand my business scope. I plan to add a channel to City T. I was thinking of asking you to approve the factory¡¯s request to accept orders from there, but with your current speed of development, I won¡¯t have to worry at all.¡± ¡°But there¡¯s another problem. If the orders are so spread out, have you thought about how to deliver them all?¡± Yu Bing stared at Xiao Sheng with a smile, but didn¡¯t speak. Xiao Sheng immediately understood and said with a chuckle, ¡°You seem to have thought about it long ago. Do you plan to use my transport team?¡± Yu Bing widened her eyes and nodded vigorously. She had no choice. The factory¡¯s tractors had been obtained by Mr. Bai with great difficulty. It hadn¡¯t been that long after, but she already needed a few more tractors. Mr. Bai probably wouldn¡¯t even let her enter the office next time. Yu Bing¡¯s sparkling eyes made Xiao Sheng¡¯s heart race. He couldn¡¯t help but blame Yu Bing for being so charming! Xiao Sheng looked away and pretended to be calm as he said, ¡°No problem. I¡¯ll sell them to you at the market price.¡± Yu Bing panicked when she heard that it would be at the market price. How much would it cost to make a trip at the market price? ¡°Don¡¯t you know how poor our factory is?! We have a huge debt.¡± Xiao Sheng turned his gaze back to Yu Bing and said with a smile, ¡°My buddies have to earn money too. Although our prices are based on the market price, you can compare the quality of the service and see if it¡¯s safer and faster than other convoys.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s convoy was made up of people left behind by Brother Qiang and some people recruited by Zhang Chao. They were idle people he knew and trusted. The convoy was considered a formal sideline business derived from the black market. The convoy was in Zhou Qun¡¯s name. Zhou Qun and his sister were very loyal to Xiao Sheng and were from the county city, so they were perfect for the job. The government was already very strict with for-profit companies, so convoys were even more strictly regulated. The people from the district administrative office pitied Zhou Qun for not having a job and having to support his sister. The siblings relied on each other at such a young age, so sometimes, when they saw Zhou Qun appear in the black market in private, they would turn a blind eye. After all, people had to survive. The clerk couldn¡¯t bear to see Zhou Qun and his sister camping on the street all day long while trying to organize a convoy, so after Zhou Qun filled in the various forms, he relented. Chapter 269 - 269 Recruiting Operators 269 Recruiting Operators There were very few convoys like Xiao Sheng¡¯s. Most of them were state-owned transport convoys. Once things involved a state-owned company, the efficiency was unpredictable. They would be lucky if they met a responsible driver who delivered the goods on time, but if they met a slacker, it was very likely that the delivery would be delayed by a day or two. Therefore, this was also the reason Yu Bing wanted to look for Xiao Sheng¡¯s convoy. Moreover, Xiao Sheng had a very strong backer now, so it was relatively safe. ¡°Alright, then if anything happens to the goods during the transportation, you guys will be responsible.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded and agreed readily. ¡°We¡¯ve signed an agreement in advance, so we¡¯re a legitimate convoy. Don¡¯t worry.¡± After confirming it, Yu Bing began to write the application report. When writing this report, she had to be very particular about details. For example, if it was just an ordinary office, the report would be approved by the Commerce Bureau very easily. However, Yu Bing¡¯s shop wouldn¡¯t just be an office. Hence, she emphasized that the office would release samples and offer tours of the factory. She didn¡¯t mention anything else. As long as the report for the samples was approved, as long as they didn¡¯t sell goods, it was up to the food factory to decide how much samples to display. In any case, the the central authorities¡¯ reach didn¡¯t extend to this area. After she took the report to the city and successfully filed it, the rest would be easy to handle. Wu Jin rarely ever objected to Yu Bing¡¯s decision. After all, he was as radical as Yu Bing. When the county¡¯s people saw the request to display the products, they hesitated for a moment. Yu Bing repeatedly promised that it was only an office of the factory and that they wouldn¡¯t sell goods. Only then did they give the official stamp of approval. After the procedures were completed, they split into two groups. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng were in charge of traveling to five cities. Yu Bing gave Feng Cai a task. Without going through the usual interview process, he had to directly recruite a salesperson to accompany him to various cities to set up an office. In the future, he would run the sales business with that salesperson. As soon as the news was released, almost all the male intellectuals signed up. Therefore, during the two days before they set off, many people surrounded Feng Cai and flattered him all day long. Some people who usually only nodded at him as a greeting took the initiative to call out to him in greeting from afar. Some people even fought over the chance to wash clothes and dishes for him. However, Feng Cai remained calm and rational. He was still the same as before and didn¡¯t let the attention get to his head. After dinner, Feng Cai was writing the plans for the cities he was in charge of at the table. When Liu Jian saw that Feng Cai was in the dormitory, he knocked twice. When Feng Cai looked up and saw him, Liu Jian said with a smile, ¡°Brother Cai, I saw that you kept coughing today. This is pear cream candy that my family sent over previously. It¡¯s very effective at stopping coughing and moistening the lungs.¡± As Liu Jian spoke, he walked into the room and placed the pear cream candy on the table. Feng Cai pushed the candy back and rejected with a smile. ¡°Take it back. The candidate for the salesperson has already been decided.¡± Liu Jian continued smiling as he joked, ¡°It¡¯s just a few pieces of candy. I won¡¯t take them away just because I didn¡¯t get chosen. I see that you¡¯re coughing quite intensely.¡± Feng had just opened his mouth to speak when he started coughing again and coughed for more than ten seconds before stopping. He didn¡¯t refuse anymore. After he unwrapped the candy and put a piece in his mouth, the refreshing sweetness of the pear cream candy instantly traveled from his throat to his lungs. Feng Cai stood up with the candy in his mouth and thanked Liu Jian. ¡°I feel much better! Thank you for the candy.¡± Liu Jian replied, ¡°You¡¯re welcome. I¡¯m glad that it worked. I¡¯ll go back now. Tell me after you¡¯re done eating. I still have more.¡± Feng Cai hurriedly stopped him. ¡°Liu Jian, I remember that your family is in City B, right? Coincidentally, one of the places I¡¯m in charge of this time is in City B. Do you have time to tell me the situation over there?¡± Liu Jian smiled brightly and said, ¡°I have time. You asked the right person. I¡¯ve loved to run around since I was young. There¡¯s no path in B City that I¡¯m not familiar with.¡± When Feng Cai heard this, he hurriedly pulled Liu Jian to a chair and prepared to take notes. Yao Nian and Feng Cai were in the same dormitory. Yao Nian was extremely jealous when he saw Feng Cai being praised by the intellectuals in the dormitory these two days. When he saw that Liu Jian was still so eager to curry favor with Feng Cai even though he knew that Feng Cai had already chosen another candidate, he felt that Liu Jian was a fool for continuing to give him candy and guidance. Yao Nian didn¡¯t want to see Feng Cai get the information about City B so smoothly, so he had an idea and said, ¡°Liu Jian, are you stupid? He already has a candidate. Also, Feng Cai, aren¡¯t you being too unscrupulous? You didn¡¯t choose Liu Jian, but you¡¯re still trying to get him to tell you information!¡± Chapter 270 - 270 Business Trip 270 Business Trip Feng Cai frowned at Yao Nian. Just as he was about to speak, Liu Jian¡¯s gentle yet sonorous voice sounded in his ear. ¡°Yao Nian, I do want the position of salesperson. I also admit that I gave Brother Cai pear paste candies to please Brother Cai, but even if it weren¡¯t for this, I would have given it to Brother Cai if he needed it. There are only a few dozen male intellectuals in our dormitory. Everyone came from the city to build the countryside, and none of us have relatives or friends here. Close friends are better than distant relatives, so everyone should help each other. I don¡¯t think we have to involve personal interests in everything.¡± ¡°Moreover, when it comes to introducing City B, Brother Cai is asking directly, so I should answer if I can. This is the same as asking for directions on the street. There¡¯s no need to be so roundabout.¡± Liu Jian could tell at a glance that Yao Nian was stirring up trouble and retorted bluntly. Feng Cai looked at Liu Jian meaningfully. Then, he patted Liu Jian¡¯s shoulder and said indifferently, ¡°Ignore him. He likes to cause trouble.¡± Only then did Liu Jian turn around and continue to tell Feng Cai about the situation in City B. Yao Nian was so angry that he clenched his fists tightly. He felt that Liu Jian was ungrateful. He spoke up for Liu Jian, but Liu Jian turned the blame on him. Such a person should stay in the field for the rest of his life! After thinking about it, he comforted himself that it wasn¡¯t worth being angry over these people. After all, he would be returning to the city with Yu Yan soon. Why should he care about these people? The next morning, Feng Cai wrote the name of the young man who had successfully applied for the position of salesperson. ¡°Congratulations, Liu Jian.¡± ¡°Liu Jian, don¡¯t forget your buddies in the future!¡± The few people who were good friends with Liu Jian smiled and patted his shoulder. When Liu Jian saw his name, he was stunned. Last night, after Feng Cai said that the person had been chosen, he completely forgotten about this matter. Feng Cai smiled as he walked towards Liu Jian. ¡°We¡¯ll set off after lunch. Is everything settled?¡± Only then did Liu Jian come back to his senses and finally believe that the announcement he saw was true. ¡°No problem, no problem! I¡¯ll go pack my things immediately.¡± Speaking of which, Liu Jian arrived here a year later than Feng Cai. Feng Cai understood Liu Jian¡¯s feelings at this moment. After all, he had been there before. ¡°There¡¯s no hurry. Come with me to the factory to settle the employment procedures first before going to the village committee to get a business trip certificate.¡± With that, he brought Liu Jian out of the dormitory building. Everyone looked at Liu Jian curiously. They didn¡¯t see him helping Feng Cai that much, so why was he chosen? The key was that Liu Jian¡¯s family was an ordinary working-class family. No one could think of any benefits Liu Jian¡¯s family could bring to the factory, like Feng Cai¡¯s family could. In fact, Feng Cai had told everyone who came to express goodwill to him from the beginning that he already had a candidate in mind. He had also seen people who had the same reaction as Yao Nian, but most of them had the same reaction as Liu Jian. However, the best most people could do was to not take back the candy they had given him. Liu Jian was different. Even if there were interests at stake, he would help if he could without thinking about the gains. Feng Cai liked such sincere people. Feng Cai didn¡¯t want troublemakers on the team he led. Moreover, Liu Jian was from B City, so it was indeed a bonus. A salesperson was supposed to maintain customer relationships. Liu Jian had observed Feng Cai¡¯s situation and delivered the thing he needed in time, which meant that he was meticulous and efficient. He wasn¡¯t a slow-witted person. Since Yu Bing gave Feng Cai the privilege of recruitment, Feng Cai didn¡¯t want to let Yu Bing down, so he naturally had to choose the most suitable person. That was why he thought of this method to test everyone. After lunch, Wu Qing drove Yu Bing and the others to the county bus station. The first stop Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng chose was C City. As soon as they left the station, Yu Bing bought a map. Unlike in the future, they could navigate wherever they went with a phone, they could only rely on the map to find places in this era. The bus station was usually in the center of the city, so Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng went to the guesthouse to put down their luggage first. Yu Bing planned the intinerary in five cities according to the nearby and distant route. It was only 3:30 pm when they checked in, so the two of them decided to walk around the city center today to see if there was a suitable location for an office. Chapter 271 - 271 Chat Group 271 Chat Group No matter what era it was, shops that were downtown had no need to worry about rent. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng strolled around for two to three hours, but they didn¡¯t see anyone renting out anything. When it was time to eat, Xiao Sheng pulled Yu Bing into the noodle shop by the roadside. ¡°Let¡¯s eat first.¡± Because she had no idea what to do next, Yu Bing was feeling vexed. ¡°I don¡¯t have an appetite. You can eat yourself.¡± Xiao Sheng pressed Yu Bing¡¯s shoulder to make her sit on the stool in front of the dining table. Then, he said mysteriously, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ve thought of a way, but I can only tell you after you eat dinner.¡± Yu Bing looked at Xiao Sheng suspiciously. Xiao Sheng moved the menu to Yu Bing and said, ¡°Order what you want to eat. If it¡¯s too late, the restaurants will close and you¡¯ll only be able to eat the bland food in the guesthouse.¡± The guest house also had food, but it didn¡¯t taste very good. Therefore, Yu Bing took the menu and said, ¡°I want a bowl of braised beef noodles.¡± After Xiao Sheng made his choice, he queued up to place an order. Ten minutes later, Xiao Sheng placed two bowls of noodles on the table. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t help but ask again, ¡°Tell me the solution you came up with.¡± Xiao Sheng knew that if he didn¡¯t say it, Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t feel at ease eating this meal, so he didn¡¯t hide it anymore. ¡°I think our direction is too limited. We shouldn¡¯t just look around downtown. There are indeed a lot of people there, so it¡¯s easier for others to see our brand. However, as you can see, everything we can see is rented out already.¡± Yu Bing pursed her lips and thought for a moment before agreeing to Xiao Sheng¡¯s suggestion. The shops were all state-owned. Since they didn¡¯t close down, they naturally wouldn¡¯t vacate the shops unless the shops needed to be moved to another address. However, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng were here on a business trip to choose a location, so they couldn¡¯t keep waiting forever. Because they no longer considered the downtown location, the range of locations expanded substantially. Yu Bing took out the map from her bag and said, ¡°In that case¡­¡± Xiao Sheng placed the map on the table beside him. Then, he looked at Yu Bing gently as he said firmly, ¡°Eat noodles first! It won¡¯t taste good anymore if it¡¯s mushy.¡± Yu Bing frowned when she thought of this. Mushy noodles would be a waste of money, so she picked up the chopsticks on the table and started eating. After Yu Bing hurriedly finished the noodles, she studied the map. ¡°These factories are very scattered. We have to find a relatively concentrated place.¡± Xiao Sheng lowered his eyes and thought for a moment before suggesting, ¡°Actually, we can also find the factory with the most workers and the best employee benefits in City C and collaborate with the supply company closest to that factory. As long as we let them display our goods and coupled with the advertisement created by our image shop, we can start to venture into City C¡¯s market.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s eyes lit up when she heard this. ¡°If the employee benefits are good. When the workers have money, they will naturally go to the supply company to spend it. Good idea! We¡¯ve opened ten offices at once now. If the number of orders increases, it will be a little difficult for the food factory to supply them. Although the marketing effect will be delayed if we¡¯re far from the city center, there are benefits to taking things slow. Moreover, the rent is relatively cheaper.¡± Thinking about it this way, this choice seemed quite appropriate for the situation. Now, the main problem was to find a large factory that met the requirements. The two of them walked out of the noodle shop while looking at the map. They discussed going to the entrances of the various factories if it really didn¡¯t work out. At this moment, Yu Bing turned around and saw a group of middle-aged people gathered under a tree in the distance. Yu Bing had an idea and turned around to walk towards a small shop she had seen previously. Xiao Sheng followed with a puzzled expression. Then, he saw Yu Bing buy two pounds of mung bean cake. Be it in the city or the countryside, it seemed to be a habit for people to chat in groups under the tree after dinner. There were ten to twenty people chatting, so it was the local information exchange center! They gossiped about relationships, factories in the city, and what employee benefits were given this month. New policies issued by the government were their favorite topics of conversation after meals. Chapter 272 - 272 Alert 272 Alert Yu Bing watched from afar first. Under the tree, there was a long stone bench built with cement around the tree roots. Beside it, there were two sets of stone tables. Most of the people gathered towards one side of the stone table. A woman in her fifties, who was sitting on a matching stone stool, was watching her grandson while listening to everyone talk. Occasionally, she would chime in. Yu Bing realized that as long as she spoke, the sounds of discussion would become softer and most of their attention would be focused on this woman. Hence, Yu Bing walked towards her with a faint smile on her face as she said warmly, ¡°Hello, I want to ask you something.¡± When the auntie looked up at Yu Bing, she realized that she was an unfamiliar girl in her twenties who even had an accent. Beside her, there stood a sturdy young man of about the same age. The auntie beckoned to her grandson, who was talking to another child, and pulled him to her side. When the others saw that it was an unfamiliar face, they also called their children back to their side. Yu Bing looked at Xiao Sheng in confusion. Although her appearance wasn¡¯t very amiable, she didn¡¯t look like a bad person, right? Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng had just arrived in City C and didn¡¯t know that two children had gone missing nearby a few days ago. Even after the police intervened, they had yet to find them. One was a five-year-old boy who disappeared after entering the public bathroom. The other was a three-year-old boy who followed his grandmother to the supermarket to buy groceries. While his grandmother was paying the bill, the child disappeared. Now, in order to find the child, the two families had already mobilized their entire family to look for them on the streets, but there was no news at all. Everyone was guessing that the children had most likely been kidnapped by human traffickers and the probability of finding them was almost zero, so families with children had been very vigilant recently. No matter how kind-looking a suspicious person was, they would treat him or her as a human trafficker first. The woman sized up the couple in front of her suspiciously and asked, ¡°Are you guys from out of town?¡± Yu Bing saw everyone¡¯s vigilant gazes. Although she didn¡¯t understand what was going on, she knew that it was best to prove her identity now to prevent any misunderstandings. Hence, Yu Bing took out her and Xiao Sheng¡¯s certificates from her bag and handed them over as she smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯m Yu Bing, the director of the He Mountain Brigade¡¯s food factory. This is our factory¡¯s sales consultant, Xiao Sheng.¡± Everyone leaned forward to look at the certificate. When they saw that they were staff members of a factory, they were relieved. Hence, the auntie told Yu Bing and the other two about the recent incidents. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. When we heard that you guys had accents, we became even more afraid and nervous.¡± Yu Bing was enlightened. There were really many human traffickers in every era and many families had been separated. Although gender equality was strongly advocated, how could feudal thinking that had been passed down over thousands of years be changed so easily? The people in the city were more progressive. The more remote the area was, the more conservative people were. They believed that raising children was for the purpose of being looked after in old age. They believed that if there were no sons in the family, they would be letting down their ancestors. Therefore, a family that couldn¡¯t give birth to a son would spend their family¡¯s savings to buy someone else¡¯s son to adopt and raise as their son. Therefore, the prime target of human traffickers was little boys under the age of five or six. Because they were still young, they barely remembered things and would forget their biological parents and original family quite easily. When Yu Bing heard this news, she sighed. In a few decades, technology would become more advanced, but even then, lost children might not be able to be found, let alone now. After Yu Bing came back to her senses, she explained her intentions to everyone. ¡°We came to City C on a business trip to open an office for the food factory, but we don¡¯t know much about City C. When we saw you guys chatting here, we thought that since you guys are all locals, you¡¯ll definitely know the situation in City C like the back of your hand! Therefore, we want to ask you guys to give us some guidance.¡± Chapter 273 - 273 Stating Their Purpose 273 Stating Their Purpose ¡°I specifically bought this mung bean cake just now. The weather is hot, so you guys can eat it to ward off the heat.¡± With that, Yu Bing opened the paper bag in her hand and placed it on the stone table. Elders liked to lecture the younger generation, and Yu Bing seemed very humble, generous, and polite. The mung bean cake wasn¡¯t worth much, but her pleasant attitude satisfied them and they started talking. ¡°Little Yu, you¡¯re only 19 years old, but you¡¯re already a factory director. Impressive!¡± ¡°This is the era of the young people. Look at this pair of young people. They¡¯re about 20 years old, but they already manage a factory.¡± The auntie who was previously questioned also had a relaxed smile on her face. ¡°Little Yu, you made the right choice by asking us. We¡¯re all born and raised in C City. Although we don¡¯t know everything about C City, we still know much more about C City than other people.¡± When Yu Bing heard that everyone was calling her Little Yu, she immediately asked, ¡°What¡¯s your surname?¡± The auntie replied, ¡°My surname is Zhou. You can call me Auntie Zhou.¡± Yu Bing also said readily, ¡°Auntie Zhou, I want to know which factory in C City is the most profitable.¡± Yu Bing was good-looking and gentle. Coupled with the fact that she was humble and polite to her elders, everyone was very enthusiastic after lowering their guard. ¡°In terms of the size of the factory, it has to be C City¡¯s Third Paper Factory and the state-owned 604 Sugar Factory.¡± ¡°But in terms of employee benefits, Red Flag Automobile Factory is better.¡± ¡°Indeed. My niece-in-law works in a car factory. I heard that a cinema is being built in the factory district!¡± ¡°Red Flag Automobile Factory is indeed not as big as those two factories, but the employee benefits are good! Its daily employee benefits are better than many factories¡¯ monthly benefits. Others give out labor protection gloves, but Red Flag Automobile Factory gives out condiments, others give out a box of mooncakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival, but Red Flag Automobile Factory gives out mooncakes and fruits. In any case, Red Flag Automobile Factory always surpasses others in terms of employee benefits.¡± Everyone spoke one after another, so Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t even have to interrupt. They basically understood everything they wanted to know in an hour and a half. However, Yu Bing didn¡¯t leave immediately just because she got the information she wanted. She chatted with them for half an hour before saying goodbye to everyone. This move made them have an even better impression of her. Young people liked to play with their peers, and their children and grandchildren didn¡¯t like to listen to their nagging. It wasn¡¯t easy for them to meet two children who were so agreeable, so everyone liked them very much. It was already past eight in the evening, so the location of the office could only be discussed the next day. However, the preparations had to be done in advance. After Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng returned to the guest house, they analyzed the map. As Xiao Sheng looked at the situation around the car factory on the map, he expressed, ¡°The car factory is profitable and has many subsidies for employees. There are a few thousand people in the factory, but their factory is a little remote. The car factory is the only factory at that location and the rest are mostly residents. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s appropriate for us to choose this location.¡± Yu Bing agreed with Xiao Sheng. ¡°Indeed, in order to facilitate the discharge of sewage, the paper factory is also close to the river and farm in the suburbs. This way, it looks like only the vicinity of the state-owned 604 Sugar Factory is a suitable choice.¡± Xiao Sheng had the same opinion as Yu Bing. He also took a fancy to this location at a glance. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s not very far from downtown, and there are supply and marketing companies and hospitals around it. These facilities are all our target customers. The flow of people isn¡¯t particularly heavy, but it¡¯s alright. Because many bus routes pass through this road, people will be able to see our shop a lot when on buses and will slowly gain an impression of our brand.¡± Yu Bing smiled and nodded. Advertisements were actually a kind of subconscious hypnosis. You might not pay special attention to it at first, but if you saw advertisements of the brand often and saw this brand at the supply company or the mall, you would have the urge to try it. After the two of them agreed, they went straight to the 604 sugar factory after breakfast the next morning. This road was a main road that was more than 2,000 meters long. The sugar factory was at the first half of the road and there was also a medium-sized textile factory at the end of the road. There were also three small factories within a radius of two kilometers. The more the two of them looked at their surroundings, the more satisfied they were. Chapter 274 - 274 Renting 274 Renting After walking around, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng took a fancy to the two empty shops on the road. One was a house outside the sugar factory. Previously, the sugar factory had used it to store miscellaneous items in their factory. The house wasn¡¯t big, only 50 square meters, but it was just right for the office Yu Bing wanted to build. The offer price of the sugar factory was 15 yuan a month, and the deposit was three times the rent. Moreover, one had to pay 3 months¡¯ rent in advance and a deposit of 1 month¡¯s rent. In other words, the deposit was 45 yuan. Even time one paid the rent, one had to pay two months¡¯ rent, which was 30 yuan. The other house was at the entrance of an alley in the middle of Pure Bottle Road. It was the first house and the location was alright. However, the landlord said that if they wanted to rent the shop in front, they had to rent the courtyard at the back as well. There were two rooms at the back of the courtyard, and the landlord¡¯s family of six lived on the second floor. They wanted to rent the entire first floor to earn a little more income. There were three rooms on the second floor, so it was enough for six people. The kitchen and bathroom were in the courtyard on the first floor, so they could share them together. The shop in front was 60 square meters, and there were two rooms at the back. The big one was 20 square meters, and the small one was 15 square meters. However, the landlord didn¡¯t ask for a high price. The area was twice the size of the sugar factory, but the monthly rent was only 25 yuan. The deposit was only two times the rent plus 50 yuan. After the two of them finished asking around, they came to the main road to discuss. Xiao Sheng had his eyes on this private house with a courtyard. ¡°When the workers in the factory come, we won¡¯t have to rent an additional place for them to stay. The overall price is lower than that of the sugar factory. We can also keep an eye on the shop at night.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t think so. She had been in business for so many years after the reform and opening up, so she had a lot of experience in renting houses. She had been scammed quite often as well. When renting a private house, the other party would calculate everything clearly. On the surface, it was more convenient to rent a shop and residence together, but that was only if the landlord didn¡¯t live there. This wasn¡¯t the case at all. The kitchen and the bathroom in the courtyard were shared facilities. There were six of them, but the office needed at least two people working there. With eight people here, even going to the public restroom outside would be more convenient. Even if they gave in to the tenants in the beginning, as time passed, even if they might not say anything, the more people there were, the more trouble. It wasn¡¯t that she thought the worst of people, but if there was a bottle of jam or a bag of snacks missing from the shop one day, would the employees be willing to compensate them? The first suspect would definitely be the landlord. It might have been a curious customer or the sticky-fingered landlord, but once suspicion was planted, would the tenant and the landlord still be able to get along well? Renting a place in the sugar factory was different. Renting public property meant that the rent would go to the factory. Of course, at this time, most of the workers in the factory were very loyal to the factory. They wouldn¡¯t harm the interests of the factory just because the money wouldn¡¯t go to them. Because it was a fixed-income job, the interests of the employees were the same as those of the factory. They might not be willing to lower the rent or deposit, but they had their own protocol. As long as there was a protocol, they were not afraid of being screwed. On the other hand, when it came to private houses, the landlord had the final say. Although there was a contract, how many people would actually involve the law? It would be time-consuming and laborious to bring it to court, but if it reached the police station, the police would let the two parties reach a private settlement. At the thought of this, Yu Bing glanced at Xiao Sheng and revealed a smile that he didn¡¯t understand. ¡°You¡¯re inexperienced when it comes renting, since you¡¯ve never been scammed in these circumstances. There are many details to pay attention to.¡± With that, Yu Bing told him everything she had considered. Xiao Sheng had never rented a house before. Even the black market¡¯s office was negotiated with Brother Qiang. The transport team¡¯s office was also settled by Zhou Qun and Zhang Chao. His task was to sign things and let the finance department to pay. In Xiao Sheng¡¯s impression, renting a house was a very simple matter, so he didn¡¯t expect there to be so many twists and turns. He couldn¡¯t help but look at Yu Bing with admiration. Then, Xiao Sheng thought about it again. How did Yu Bing know so much? Hence, he asked curiously, ¡°You¡¯ve never rented a house before, so how do you know so much?¡± Chapter 275 - 275 Property Management 275 Property Management Yu Bing was stunned when she realized had shot herself in the foot by showing off too much. She smiled and tried her best to look less flustered as she explained, ¡°When I was at home, my father¡¯s friend came to talk to him about renting an office. I overheard it and remembered it.¡± Fortunately, Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t think much of it when he heard this, because he was just asking casually. After all, to rural people, it wasn¡¯t strange for worldly city dwellers to know this sort of thing. Hence, the two of them returned to the sugar factory to sign the contract. However, Yu Bing was careful when signing the contract. The rented house was outside the factory, and the shop faced the street. It was dozens of meters away from the guard post at the factory¡¯s entrance. After Yu Bing finished reading the contract, she said to Director Lin of the Logistics Department, who was in charge of renting, ¡°Director Lin, it¡¯s fine if you won¡¯t give me a discount, but you have to give us a guarantee for the safety of the shop. It isn¡¯t far away, so your colleagues from the Security Department can help keep an eye on us at night. Let those thieves know that the people in the factory are paying attention.¡± Director Lin was stunned when he heard this request. Because there was no concept of property management at this time, after renting out the house, they left everything else to others. Director Lin said awkwardly, ¡°Mr. Yu, we¡¯re only in charge of renting out the houses. I¡¯ve never seen anyone having to ensure the safety of the renter as well. There¡¯s no such precedent.¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°Director Lin, if there¡¯s no precedent, we can create a precedent. Actually, I just want them to take a look when they¡¯re free. I¡¯m quite assured with renting from your sugar factory. There probably aren¡¯t many people who dare to have designs on a sugar factory. I just want to be more at ease.¡± ¡°Moreover, it¡¯s almost autumn and the weather is dry. I¡¯m afraid it¡¯ll be troublesome if a wildfire starts. No matter how much our small shop loses, the losses won¡¯t be that substantial, but it¡¯ll be terrible if it affects your factory.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s words hit the nail on the head. The prestige of a state-owned factory wasn¡¯t to be underestimated. Ordinary people didn¡¯t dare to cause trouble here. Most of the security guards were retired soldiers or militiamen with some martial arts skills. All of them were young and strong, unlike the security guards in ordinary residential districts in the future era, in which in order to save money, the property company mostly found middle-aged and old people to be security guards for appearance¡¯s sake. When Director Lin heard this, he felt that it made sense. In any case, he would let the security guard take the time to take a look at their shop after the factory closed. There were also patrols in the factory at night. At that time, he would add a route and let them wander around the factory area during every patrol. It wouldn¡¯t take much effort. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s add this.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s smile became even more sincere. She immediately lowered her head and added this note to the paper. She secretly rejoiced that fortunately, no one knew about property management and wouldn¡¯t charge them for this. Otherwise, even if the small fees didn¡¯t seem much, it would add up to a lot in a year! After both parties signed and pressed their fingerprints, and the house was rented out. Yu Bing also obtained the right for renovation. Although she had to return it to its original state after the lease was up, good renovation was very important to the brand¡¯s image! At this point, only a third was completed. Yu Bing still had to renovate the shop in City C before she could leave. This was because this office was equivalent to a model room. Before she left, she had to take a few photos and bring them back, so the staff in the other cities could do renovations with this photo as a model. All of the brand¡¯s shops had to have the same style. This way, when others went to other cities, they would be able to recognize the office of ¡°Delicious Food Factory¡± at a glance without even looking up at the sign. Only then would a good branding effect be achieved. Yu Bing turned to look at Director Lin. ¡°I want to ask where we can find renovation workers and carpenters. Also, where¡¯s the nearest glass factory?¡± Mr. Lin thought for a moment and told Yu Bing, ¡°You have to go to the village to look for someone who knows how to renovate and carpentry. You can go to White Mountain Village, which is the nearest, and take the bus for Route 21.¡± After Yu Bing thanked him, she separated from Xiao Sheng. Xiao Sheng went to White Mountain Village to look for workers, while Yu Bing went to the nearest glass factory. As soon as Yu Bing entered the door, she was stopped by the guard, who was a middle-aged man in his forties. He was wearing an army green factory uniform. On his left shoulder and chest, there were the words ¡°C City¡¯s Ping An Glass Factory.¡± ¡°Young lady, you don¡¯t seem to be from our factory.¡± Yu Bing immediately smiled and said amiably, ¡°Hello, I¡¯m an employee of a food factory in City H¡¯s village. Our factory has an office at the sugar factory and wants to renovate it. We need glass, so we need to buy some from the glass factory.¡± Chapter 276 - 276 Buying Glass 276 Buying Glass The guard frowned and said, ¡°Young lady, we sell them in large quantities. If you don¡¯t buy enough of them in quantity, I don¡¯t think the factory will sell them.¡± Yu Bing scratched her head and looked up at the guard. ¡°I have no other choice. The glass specifications of the supply company outside have been set, but the specifications of our office are special, so we need to come to the factory to customize them.¡± The guard had never heard of anyone being so particular about glass, since glass windows only had a few specifications. However, he still pointed the way. ¡°Do you see that red brick bungalow? Go there and ask, but you¡¯re an outsider, so you have to register first.¡± After Yu Bing registered according to the rules, she went to the red-brick bungalow. The label at the door said sales department. There were five to six desks in the office inside, but now, there were only two people, a middle-aged woman and a young man. Yu Bing knocked on the open office door. ¡°Hello.¡± The man closest to the door looked up and asked Yu Bing, ¡°Hello, do you want to order glass?¡± Yu Bing walked forward. ¡°Hello, I want to order glass. I don¡¯t want to order that much in quantity, but I have some specific specifications, so I want to buy a large piece and cut it myself.¡± The middle-aged woman¡¯s gaze shifted from the newspaper to Yu Bing. After she sized Yu Bing up and saw that she was dressed in a neat Lenin suit, she asked slowly, ¡°Which enterprise are you from?¡± Yu Bing reported her factory and her intention to establish an office. This was an inconvenience unique to this era. When doing business, the other party had to see if they were representing an agency first. If it was an individual¡¯s purchasing needs, these factories would directly reject them. Although the middle-aged woman didn¡¯t refuse directly, she said in disdain, ¡°The quantity isn¡¯t enough. We produce them according to the quantity of the orders.¡± Yu Bing took out two bottles of jam from the factory and placed them on the woman¡¯s desk with a smile as she said, ¡°I know you¡¯re in a difficult position. Every time the glass factory sends out some unqualified glass products, perhaps you can sell them to me at a cheaper price? I¡¯ll pick them from there.¡± They could find decent-quality defective goods in the factory, but the goods for the orders the factory received had to be perfect. Therefore, it was useless to keep such defective goods and they could only be sold at a low price. However, they usually found people to collect them in batches. The middle-aged woman looked down at the jam, then raised her head and called out to the man just now, ¡°Mr. Yang, bring this girl to the warehouse where the defective goods are stored.¡± Mr. Yang smiled brightly and replied, ¡°Alright, Sister Lin.¡± Then, Mr. Yang brought Yu Bing to the warehouse. There were quite a lot of defective goods in the warehouse. Yu Bing picked a few large pieces of pure transparent glass that had only a little bit of cracks and made note of the location. She found that the location of the cracks didn¡¯t affect the aesthetics, so she chose four pieces. After choosing, Yu Bing returned to the sales department to write the bill again. She realized that a bottle of jam had appeared on the man¡¯s desk, but there were only office tools and documents on the woman¡¯s desk. The woman took out the sales slip from the drawer. ¡°What specification? What quality?¡± Mr. Yang noticed the extra jam on his table as soon as he entered, so he immediately replied, ¡°One piece of glass with a thickness of 0.5CM and three pieces with a thickness of 0.3CM and two square meters. There are quite a lot of cracks on the pure transparent glass.¡± Yu Bing marveled to herself that gift-giving culture really had a long history. In the end, she bought it at an extremely low price of 12 yuan. In addition, the cost of the two bottles of jam was slightly more than a yuan, which was equivalent to only spending more than 13 yuan. At other places, she would have to spend at least 18 yuan! After Yu Bing handed the money over, she thanked the two of them with a smile. ¡°Thank you, Sister Lin. It¡¯s been hard on you, Mr. Yang. You even accompanied me there.¡± Mr. Yang smiled and waved his hand repeatedly. ¡°It¡¯s what I should do. There¡¯s a driver that pulls carts at the door. Tell them to spread the cloth thicker. I¡¯ll wait for you at the warehouse entrance.¡± After Yu Bing paid, she left and saw two drivers in the distance. She chose a driver who had the most cloth strips. Then, she handed the receipt and receipt to the warehouse manager. After the warehouse manager confirmed that the receipt was correct, he let Yu Bing and the driver in. Yu Bing called the driver to pull the glass into the cart, while Mr. Yang pulled the warehouse manager to the side to smoke a joint and chat. Chapter 277 - 277 Brief Wooden Wind 277 Brief Wooden Wind The master glanced at Yu Bing¡¯s thin body. Just as he was about to carry it alone, Yu Bing wrapped her hand in a cloth and raised a piece of glass. ¡°I¡¯ll help you.¡± The driver was stunned for a moment. Seeing Yu Bing¡¯s serious expression, he raised the glass and moved it out of the door with Yu Bing. Then, he placed it in the cart gently. The remaining pieces were relatively small, so it was easier to move them. After helping the driver move the glass up, Yu Bing said goodbye to Mr. Yang and the warehouse manager before leaving. After unloading the glass at the office, Yu Bing waited for more than an hour before seeing Xiao Sheng return with a few people. One of them was a carpenter who had brought his son along. The remaining three people were led by Uncle Zhao, who was the oldest. The three of them were in charge of carving out a rectangle that was three meters long and 1.5 meters wide from the wall one meter away from the door. Then, they smeared putty on the entire room and separated it into a small office of 15 square meters. The office would be used as a signing ground for customers. Yu Bing wanted to build a simple log-style shop. The left-hand side of the door was designated as a display area, and the right-hand side was a recreation area to entertain guests and chat about products. Against the wall of the display area, the 3.5-meter-tall wooden cabinet made of top lattice covered the entire wall. It was made of raw wood varnish. The lattice of the wooden cabinet had three different specifications. There was a square with a 0.5m x 0.5m specification, and there were also rectangles with other specifications. Nowadays, people¡¯s aesthetics were still limited to symmetry. Yu Bing wanted to break this aesthetic standard and attract the attention of the people coming and going through creative designs. In the middle of the shop, there was a row of waist-high wooden cabinets. At the bottom, there was a locked cabinet that could be used as a small warehouse to store samples. On top, there was a flat display table, where the products would be arranged in various positions. Then, according to the holiday, there would be all kinds of gift boxes displayed. In the recreation area, there was a sofa and a small wooden coffee table. There was a wooden shelf with green plants in the space between the sofa and the office. Coupled with the two large floor-to-ceiling glass windows beside the door, the environment was refreshing and elegant, making the people who entered feel relaxed. When Xiao Sheng heard about this design, he was filled with anticipation. At this moment, as he watched Yu Bing talking to the workers, he felt that she was like a small sun in the winter. She was bright, but not blinding. She was warm, but not scorching, making him feel the urge to get close to her. After giving instructions on the renovation, they began to discuss the price. Uncle Zhao provided the materials and construction. After all, Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing had limited time and were amateurs, so it was better to let the expert state the total price, which added up to 45 yuan. The carpenter¡¯s family had the habit of storing all kinds of wood, so the materials and labor cost a total 70 yuan, mainly because high-quality wood wasn¡¯t cheap. After the discussion, both sides started renovation at the same time. The renovation would be completed in three days. By the time they were done, it was already past three in the afternoon. The two of them found a random shop to eat at. Then, they took the prepared materials to the local Commerce Bureau to file. They originally thought that with the approval from the Pingjiang County Commercial Bureau, after finding the address and showing the rental contract and various factory documents, it would be very easy to file it. Unexpectedly, they encountered a tough nut to crack! After a young lady in her twenties read the document, she rejected Yu Bing¡¯s offer. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, this won¡¯t do. I¡¯ve never heard of an office having a display. An office is an office. It isn¡¯t a shop. Why do you have to display products?¡± When Yu Bing saw the other party¡¯s bureaucratic demeanor, she knew that giving gifts definitely wouldn¡¯t work on her, so she could only try her best to explain, ¡°An office is ultimately a place where the factory communicates with the outside world. Our factory is in City H. People from afar can¡¯t go all the way there to check out the goods, but if they don¡¯t, they won¡¯t be able to place the order with peace of mind.¡± The young lady was still unmoved. ¡°Then you can take the products to their factories. Isn¡¯t this how many people run their businesses? Why can¡¯t you guys do it?¡± Yu Bing was very dejected. From the looks of it, Director Wu must be from a wealthy family and didn¡¯t know that the competition outside was so intense, nor did she know that if one didn¡¯t work hard, one wouldn¡¯t even be able to eat one¡¯s fill. If they didn¡¯t think of a creative way to sell their products and used the traditional method, how could a food factory in the village compare to those large state-owned factories in the city that already had established brands and had already established deep connections with various large organizations? If they had not done something out of the box, the food factory¡¯s orders might not have even expanded out of the county city yet! Chapter 278 - 278 Kidnapping 278 Kidnapping However, there was nothing else Yu Bing could do, so she still had to continue to persuade her nicely. After all, she was in charge of the shops in the area of Pure Bottle Road. ¡°Director Wu, doesn¡¯t taking the products to their offices to display have the effect? It¡¯s just that one is placed in the shop, and the other is taken out, but the essence of it hasn¡¯t changed.¡± When Director Wu heard this, she thought about it and felt that it made sense. However, she felt that the rules didn¡¯t allow this. After thinking for a long time, she still refused, ¡°No, the rules don¡¯t say that offices can display products. Only shops that sell products to outsiders can.¡± Yu Bing felt that she was about to go crazy. This young lady was so young, so why couldn¡¯t she think things through? She took a deep breath and continued, ¡°Director Wu, there¡¯s no rule that says that it can¡¯t be displayed, right?¡± Director Wu was stunned. This¡­ seemed to be the case. However, she thought of the principle her father had told her. She had to be impartial when enforcing the rules and she was responsible for every decision she made. Hence, she rejected righteously once again, ¡°Don¡¯t think about bending the rules. If the rules didn¡¯t specify you can, it means you can¡¯t do it.¡± When the bell rang, Director Wu began to pack her things and prepare to get off work. Yu Bing could only go back and think of another way before coming back tomorrow. They had already paid the rent deposit and the renovation deposit. After spending so much money, they had to set up this office. The next morning, Yu Bing came over herself while Xiao Sheng was in charge of supervising the shop. After the sky turned dark, Xiao Sheng watched as Yu Bing returned angrily. As soon as she saw him, she started to curse, ¡°Director Wu is simply crazy! She¡¯s only in her early twenties, but she¡¯s as stubborn as an old man!¡± ¡°Not only did she refuse to give us an office with a display function, but she even asked me to return to Pingjiang County to re-apply for the approval form first. She said that the word ¡®display¡¯ can¡¯t appear on it. This is the first time I¡¯ve seen such a stubborn person. At the end of the day, she¡¯s afraid of taking responsibility! However, she has no idea about the difficulties we low-level personnel face. She¡¯s an ordinary officer, so if she¡¯s afraid of taking responsibility, she can look for the higher-ups for special approval! She has no right to refuse to look for her superior and pass the buck with me!¡± This was the first time Xiao Sheng had seen Yu Bing so angry. Her voice was so loud that he didn¡¯t dare to make a sound. Half an hour later, after Yu Bing finished complaining, Xiao Sheng said gently, ¡°I¡¯ll go with you tomorrow and see if there¡¯s any other way to resolve this matter.¡± Since Yu Bing and Director Wu quarreled in the office today, it was indeed unsuitable for her to go tomorrow. Thinking about it, she decided to let Xiao Sheng try. On the other side, Director Wu, Wu Ling, was being reprimanded by her father at home. Mr. Wu was the deputy director of the City C Commerce Bureau. After knowing that Wu Ling had quarreled with the staff, he asked about the exact situation after dinner. After all, it had a negative impact on the bureau. Mr. Wu¡¯s expression darkened when he heard the cause and effect. ¡°Wu Ling, is this what I taught you?¡± Wu Ling was already in a bad mood after the argument with Yu Bing. When she heard that her father was blaming her, she was puzzled and aggrieved. ¡°Dad, what¡¯s wrong with what I did? I followed the rules impartially. What did I do wrong?¡± As Mrs. Wu watched cartoons with her son, she listened to their conversation. She was also very troubled by her daughter¡¯s inflexibility, but she still had to protect her daughter after all. Seeing that her husband was about to flare up, she hurriedly said, ¡°Talk to the child nicely.¡± When Mr. Wu saw his wife stop him, he suppressed his anger. ¡°This isn¡¯t called enforcing the rules impartially. This is called passing the buck. You¡¯re so inflexible!¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong with what the other person said? Aren¡¯t these two things of the same nature? Which sentence can you refute? Just like you said, the rules didn¡¯t specify anything. If you don¡¯t know what to do and are afraid that you¡¯ve made the wrong decision, then go to your superiors instead of refuting them! You can¡¯t even find theoretical evidence to support your point of view. Why right do you have to say that you¡¯re right and that the other party is wrong?¡± Wu Ling subconsciously wanted to retort, but she didn¡¯t know how to. ¡°I¡­¡± Seeing that his daughter had nothing to say, Mr. Wu continued, ¡°She said that she came from a neighboring city to set up an office, but you told her to go back and redo the process again? Aren¡¯t you causing trouble for her? The documents they gave her are just a reference. The key is what the documents we approved are. You¡¯re making things difficult for her.¡± Chapter 279 - 279 Human Trafficker 279 Human Trafficker Wu Ling muttered softly, ¡°I didn¡¯t want to make things difficult for her. I just wanted the contents of the document to be consistent.¡± Mr. Wu knew that Wu Ling was an inflexible person, so he could only explain the situation to her. ¡°We belong to a subordinate unit of the government. To put it nicely, we¡¯re officials, but in the end, we¡¯re a department that exists to regulate and manage the public affairs of the entire society. Our main goal is to solve the problem. You have to know your priorities. Is your so-called unity the crux of this matter? Is it necessary?¡± Wu Ling understood what Mr. Wu meant and whispered, ¡°Then tomorrow, I¡¯ll ask my supervisor to approve the office application form for ¡®Delicious Food Factory¡¯.¡± Mr. Wu reminded her, ¡°If your supervisor doesn¡¯t approve, remember to ask the leader for the reason. Don¡¯t argue foolishly. You have to be reasonable when retorting.¡± The next morning, as Wu Ling looked at the signed document in her hand, she began to reflect on her work style. ¡°Sister, I want to go out and play!¡± Wu Gang tugged at his sister¡¯s sleeve. The kindergarten was on summer break now, and Grandma Wu had been feeling unwell for the past two days, so Mrs. Wu took leave and brought her to the hospital. Mr. Wu had to go to the city government for a meeting today, so the heavy responsibility of taking care of the child landed on Wu Ling. As Wu Ling looked down at her three-year-old brother, she patted his little head and said, ¡°Go, but you¡¯re not allowed to leave the office building.¡± Wu Gang nodded excitedly. This office was too small and he was done exploring it. It was time to go to the next place to start his adventure! When Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng arrived at the metal door of the Commerce Bureau again, Yu Bing noticed that a middle-aged woman was squatting beside the metal door and feeding a little boy a lollipop. When the woman saw Yu Bing looking at her, she pulled the child to the other side. As she walked, she asked, ¡°Is this candy delicious? You can eat an orange-flavored candy later.¡± When Yu Bing saw this, she felt very dejected. Was she being treated as a human trafficker again? After watching the woman disappear around the corner with the child, she retracted her gaze and looked at the office building in the distance as she said helplessly, ¡°What if you get refused as well?¡± Xiao Sheng chuckled. ¡°This is unlike you. Didn¡¯t you say that you¡¯re an unkillable cockroach?¡± Yu Bing also laughed. ¡°That¡¯s right! We have to do it even if we can¡¯t!¡± The two of them discussed their strategy for negotiating with Wu Ling later. ¡°Ah.¡± Yu Bing was caught off guard and bumped into someone¡¯s arm. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Yu Bing saw that it was the middle-aged woman she had seen just now. She was smiling and apologizing to her. With that, the woman carried walked forward quickly with a snakeskin bag. Yu Bing touched her arm, which was in pain from the collision. As she watched the woman disappear again, she felt that the other party was a little strange. Thinking of the conversation between the woman and the child she had just heard, the strange feeling in her heart intensified. When Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing¡¯s dazed expression, he asked, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± When Yu Bing heard Xiao Sheng¡¯s accent, her eyes widened slightly. She knew what was wrong now! Previously, when the woman spoke to the child, she was coaxing the child to eat candy. However, parents were usually afraid that their child¡¯s teeth would decay, so they rarely took the initiative to give candy. Moreover, as soon as she placed the first one in the child¡¯s mouth, she was in a hurry to use the second one to entice him. Thinking of the kidnapping cases that the women mentioned, she was shocked. ¡°That woman has an accent! Moreover, she didn¡¯t have a snakeskin bag with her before. She only obtained it after she went to the corner with that child!¡± Xiao Sheng quickly guessed what Yu Bing meant. ¡°Human trafficker?¡± Yu Bing grabbed Xiao Sheng¡¯s hand. ¡°Let¡¯s chase after her!¡± The two of them hurriedly rushed towards the direction where the woman had disappeared. However, when they reached the corner, they saw the woman turn into another alley. Yu Bing didn¡¯t dare to shout loudly for fear of alerting the enemy, so she could only run with Xiao Sheng. However, when they walked to the place where the woman had disappeared and saw the alleys, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t know which one to take. They could only randomly choose one. After more than ten minutes, they were lucky enough to see the woman again. She was still holding the snakeskin bag, and there was a man in blue clothes beside her. The moment their eyes met, the woman immediately knew that Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng wanted to snatch the child in their hands, so she pulled the man¡¯s hand and ran back. Chapter 280 - 280 Slander 280 Slander They were about a hundred meters apart. At a fork in the road, Yu Bing watched the two of them run away from each other. As she ran, she said, ¡°I wonder who has the child. Chase after that man to the left. I¡¯ll chase after that woman!¡± Hence, when they reached the fork in the road, the two of them began to chase after them according to the route they had chosen. Yu Bing hadn¡¯t run for nothing this year. After chasing for more than ten minutes, the woman finally bent down and supported herself against the wall. She panted heavily and said, ¡°Stop chasing me. I can¡¯t run anymore. Moreover, it¡¯s useless even if you chase me. The child isn¡¯t with me.¡± Yu Bing went forward and grabbed the woman¡¯s hand. Then, she pulled it behind her and scolded sternly, ¡°Just because the child isn¡¯t with you, it means you aren¡¯t a human trafficker? Let¡¯s go!¡± Yu Bing planned to drag her to the police station and call the police at the same time. Xiao Sheng was alone now, so Yu Bing was a little worried. The woman was already exhausted and could only let Yu Bing push her forward. After walking for a few hundred meters, they arrived at the main road. After a few minutes of panting, the woman recovered. She didn¡¯t know where Yu Bing was taking her, but she knew that it was definitely not some place she wanted to go. Hence, she began to think of a solution. With an idea in mind, she suddenly turned around and bumped into Yu Bing¡¯s body. Yu Bing fell at a disadvantage because of her light weight. After her hands were free, the woman ran forward. After Yu Bing stabilized herself, she shouted as she chased, ¡°The woman in front is a human trafficker. Help me catch her!¡± Previously, there were not many people in the alley and it was far away, so it was useless to shout, unlike now, when there were many people on the main road. When the passersby heard Yu Bing¡¯s shout, they were a little hesitant about whether to help. After all, they could not judge the authenticity of her words. Yu Bing was so angry that she wanted to beat them up. At this moment, the woman had already crossed the road. Just as Yu Bing was about to chase after her, a bus drove over quickly. Just as Yu Bing thought that she could not dodge in time and was about to be crushed, a hand grabbed Yu Bing¡¯s collar and pulled her back. ¡°Look where you¡¯re going!¡± After Yu Bing came back to her senses from the shock, she shook off the other party¡¯s hand and said, ¡°Let go! I have to chase after the human traffickers!¡± The man repeated in a clear voice, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, my colleague has already chased after them.¡± Only then did Yu Bing notice that the man was wearing a police uniform. She immediately shouted excitedly, ¡°Police! I¡¯ve finally encountered you guys! That woman has a male accomplice. My colleague went to chase after her accomplice. He¡¯s in this area.¡± At this moment, another police officer returned with the woman in handcuffs. ¡°Zhao Bing, we¡¯ve caught her.¡± Zhao Bing immediately told his colleague Lin Ci about the accomplice. Then, he shouted with a dark expression, ¡°Who¡¯s your accomplice? Where is he now?¡± The woman looked a little afraid, but she still continued to refute, ¡°You arrested the wrong person! I bumped into this young lady just now and she wanted me to pay compensation, but I saw that she wasn¡¯t injured, so I didn¡¯t agree. She wanted to extort me. Since her plan didn¡¯t work, she¡¯s starting to slander me!¡± Yu Bing sneered. ¡°You¡¯re making it up! If you confess, we¡¯ll consider lightening your punishment. If you resist, we¡¯ll punish you severely! If your accomplice is caught and confesses first, you¡¯ll miss a good opportunity to atone for your crimes! Do you really plan to bear the consequences all alone?¡± Zhao Bing looked at Yu Bing with dismay. Why was this young lady even more familiar with these lines than him? He coughed lightly and said to regain control over the situation, ¡°This girl is right. If he¡¯s caught, you won¡¯t have a chance to redeem yourself by finding him with us!¡± ¡°Lin Ci, I¡¯m going to chase after her accomplice. Take her back to the police station first. Otherwise, she¡¯ll think we¡¯re joking with her!¡± Yu Bing was also in a hurry to look for Xiao Sheng. Human traffickers were all vicious people. If that man had a knife, Xiao Sheng would be in danger! The woman¡¯s mind was also racing. She didn¡¯t know if the man could escape or not. As long as the man ran away with the child, these people would not be able to get evidence to punish her. After all, no one had seen her put the little boy in a snakeskin bag. After analyzing the situation, the woman calmed down. Not only could she not expose the man, but she also had to help him stall for time! Hence, the woman continued to complain with a bitter expression. ¡°Young lady, I only bumped into you once. You don¡¯t have to take revenge on me like this. Police, you can¡¯t listen to her one-sided story!¡± Chapter 281 - 281 Dismissed 281 Dismissed When Lin Ci heard this, he glanced at the woman and hesitated for a moment before saying, ¡°We won¡¯t arrest the wrong person, nor will we let a bad person off. You¡­¡± Although Zhao Bing was young, he was very experienced. They had been talking about that accomplice the entire time just now. If this was really made up, then as the target of slander, her first reaction should be confusion. Her focus should also be on the accomplice, instead of repeating what she had said previously. ¡°Lin Ci, she¡¯s stalling for time.¡± Zhao Bing looked at the woman with a sharp gaze. Then, he said to Lin Ci, ¡°Don¡¯t waste time with her. Hurry up and escort her back to the police station, then send more people over.¡± After Lin Ci understood, he glared at the woman and pushed her forward. ¡°Move!¡± Yu Bing knew that the woman couldn¡¯t do much in the hands of the police, so she hurriedly said to Zhao Bing anxiously, ¡°Officer Zhao, let¡¯s set off and chase after him.¡± Zhao Bing nodded. ¡°Lead the way!¡± As Yu Bing led the way, she quickly searched in the direction where Xiao Sheng had disappeared. Just as she ran forward to the corner at the end of the road, she saw Xiao Sheng appear with an unconscious child. Yu Bing jogged forward and asked with concern, ¡°Xiao Sheng, are you alright?¡± Xiao Sheng sized Yu Bing up first. After discovering that she wasn¡¯t injured, he noticed Zhao Bing, who was wearing a police uniform. ¡°I¡¯m fine. It¡¯s just that the man ran away. He left this child behind halfway. I was worried, so I could only bring the child back first.¡± When Zhao Bing heard this, he knew that they definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to catch up with the accomplice. He still had to interrogate the woman he had caught just now. ¡°Now, we can only think of a way to get that woman to spill the beans. I¡¯ll have to trouble the two of you to return to the police station with me to give a statement.¡± At this moment, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t care less about her own business. She cooperated and went to the police station with Xiao Sheng. The little boy was the only witness at the moment. After the doctor¡¯s examination, they found that he hadn¡¯t suffered any injuries. He had only inhaled an excessive amount of ether, so he was still unconscious. Yu Bing could only go to record her statement with Xiao Sheng first. Yu Bing thought about it carefully. If the two previous missing children cases were also related to them, since the two cases had happened less than a week ago and the police had been investigating the city¡¯s transportation these few days, it was very likely that the two children hadn¡¯t been transferred away yet. Human traffickers wouldn¡¯t stop on their own. If they couldn¡¯t catch that accomplice, more children would be captured! Yu Bing told Zhao Bing her thoughts. Zhao Bing also considered the situation Yu Bing had mentioned. When he saw Lin Ci come out of the interrogation room, he asked, ¡°Lin Ci, how did it go?¡± Lin Ci replied with annoyance, ¡°No matter what I said, that woman kept repeating the same thing. She said that she was innocent. I couldn¡¯t get anything out of her.¡± As Zhao Bing was about to enter the interrogation room to interrogate that woman, Yu Bing hurriedly asked, ¡°Officer Zhao, can we listen in?¡± After Zhao Bing thought about it, he agreed. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng followed Lin Ci into the observation room at the side. Through the one-way glass in the room, Yu Bing saw that the woman¡¯s expression was very calm. The trace of panic that was on her face when she had been caught had completely disappeared. Zhao Bing looked at the woman in front of him, who looked very ordinary and wouldn¡¯t be noticed on the streets. Instead of sitting upright in all seriousness, he relaxed and leaned against the back of the chair as he asked aloofly, ¡°Name, age, and hometown.¡± The woman glanced at Zhao Bing and said slowly, ¡°Chen Yu, 34 years old, from C City.¡± When Zhao Bing heard the woman¡¯s accent, he asked, ¡°You married here from elsewhere?¡± Since he could find out about this very easily, Chen Yu didn¡¯t hide it. ¡°Yes, I got married ten years ago.¡± At this moment, a female police officer entered the interrogation room with a little boy in her arms. After Zhao Bing looked at the record of Lin Ci¡¯s interrogation in his hand, he looked up at Chen Yu and said, ¡°Do you know this little boy?¡± Chen Yu was stunned for a moment before she subconsciously denied it. ¡°I don¡¯t know him.¡± Zhao Bing¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change as he continued, ¡°We¡¯ll know the truth when he wakes up. Are you sure you don¡¯t know him?¡± Chen Yu stared in the child¡¯s direction for a few seconds before replying helplessly, ¡°Officer, I really don¡¯t know him. How old is that child? How can you believe in whatever he says?¡± Testimonies of children under the age of 10 were indeed dismissed, but Zhao Bing¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change. Chapter 282 - 282 Pennant 282 Pennant Most of the people didn¡¯t have much legal awareness and wouldn¡¯t pay attention to this sort of thing, so Zhao Bing decided to bluff her. He said with a smile, ¡°He¡¯s the person involved, so why can¡¯t his testimony be accepted? Even a three-year-old can answer simple questions like whether or not they know anyone.¡± When Chen Jia saw Zhao Bing¡¯s smile, she felt a chill down her spine. She had no idea what was going on with Li Da, but she could only brace herself and insist. ¡°Officer, I have no choice if you don¡¯t believe me.¡± Yu Bing suggested to Lin Ci, ¡°I have a small suggestion. You can ask her if she knows the child who was in the snakeskin bag she¡¯s holding.¡± Lin Ci immediately understood Yu Bing¡¯s intentions. Just now, everyone¡¯s attention was on the child. Now, he could use the child as a distraction and ask whether Chen Yu had taken the snakeskin bag or not. Although Yu Bing didn¡¯t see Chen Yu put the child into the snakeskin bag with her own eyes, she saw Chen Yu holding the snakeskin bag! During the chase, from Chen Yu holding the snakeskin bag to her accomplice holding it, to Xiao Sheng catching up and Chen Yu¡¯s accomplice throwing the child in the snakeskin bag away to protect himself, this was a sequential process. As long as Chen Yu admitted that she had held the snakeskin bag, even if they couldn¡¯t charge the mastermind, Chen Yu wouldn¡¯t be able to escape the crime of being an insider and accomplice. After Zhao Bing heard Lin Ci¡¯s words, he wasn¡¯t in a hurry to ask immediately. When Chen Jian saw Lin Ci come in, her expression became much more vigilant. It was obvious that she was worried that the police had new evidence against her. Zhao Bing returned to the previous fruitless topic. Sensing that Chen Yu gradually revealed impatience, he suddenly asked the question. As expected, Chen Yu denied it again. ¡°I don¡¯t know him.¡± Zhao Bing smiled again and asked, ¡°The snakeskin bag you were holding had a child in it, but you don¡¯t know him?¡± When Chen Yu heard this, she was stunned for a moment. Only then did she notice the trap Zhao Bing had set for her just now and a trace of panic finally appeared in her eyes. Zhao Bing didn¡¯t intend to let her answer. ¡°Even if we can¡¯t convict the main culprit, as an accomplice, you will be sentenced to at least 10 to 15 years in prison!¡± Chen Yu swallowed nervously and lowered her head without saying anything else. Lin Ci came in again and handed over the results of the police¡¯s search near Chen Yu¡¯s house. After Zhao Bing took a look, he sat up straight and stared at Chen Yu¡¯s face as he said, ¡°Your child has congenital heart disease. I heard that he had a heart bypass surgery two months ago. This surgery is quite expensive, right? You married from elsewhere and don¡¯t have a job. Your husband is just an ordinary worker in a paper factory. Where did you get the treatment fees from?¡± Soon, Chen Xiao admitted that she had kidnapped the child. In order to reduce her sentence, she revealed the residence of her accomplice, Li Da. Unfortunately, Li Da was vigilant and after shaking off Xiao Sheng, he didn¡¯t go home again. However, the good news was that during the search, the police discovered a cellar in his house. The two little boys who had disappeared a few days ago were hidden in it. Li Da lived alone at the edge of the village, a distance from the other villagers, so no one noticed the abnormality in his house. This wasn¡¯t the first time this group of people had committed a crime together. According to Chen Yu¡¯s confession, Li Da was the liaison in this city, and his home was the liaison point. Chen Yu had met Li Da when she brought her son to the hospital for treatment a year and a half ago. After Li Da found out about her family¡¯s situation, he enticed her into joining them by offering a high return. Previously, they had helped find buyers and acted as a liaison. However, their profits were not as high as those of the seller, so she and Li Da conspired to change roles, resulting in three trafficking cases. After the truth of the matter was revealed, Yu Bing sighed. Chen Yu was a kind mother, but in order to save her son, she chose to hurt another family. How hateful! After Zhao Bing left the interrogation room, he looked at Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng as he said seriously, ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to you guys today. Otherwise, who knows how many children they would have kidnapped!¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s a coincidence. If not for the sake of finding a suitable location for the office, we wouldn¡¯t have chatted with those people. If I didn¡¯t know about this in advance, I wouldn¡¯t have connected the dots.¡± Zhao Bing also smiled and said, ¡°When will your office open? At that time, our police force will send you a silk banner and congratulate you on your opening.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s eyes lit up. This was much more useful than their own advertising. This was equivalent to official accreditation! It was the best signboard and sign of approval! Chapter 283 - 283 Flattery 283 Flattery Although she didn¡¯t do this to get these things, since they were offered, Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t refuse. Moreover, under her management, the quality of the food factory¡¯s products was now passable. The best they could do for customers was to let them eat without worry and enjoy the food. Yu Bing joked to the police officers present, ¡°Officer Zhao, then it¡¯s settled. We¡¯ll invite all of you guys to visit when we open for business. Don¡¯t refuse.¡± Everyone was very supportive and said that they would be present. The two missing children cases had caused everyone insomnia for a few days. The families with children had also been in a state of panic. If it weren¡¯t for Yu Bing¡¯s help this time, even the director wouldn¡¯t have been able to withstand the higher-ups¡¯ blame, let alone them. Now that the case had been successfully resolved, everyone was very grateful to Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng. Zhao Bing didn¡¯t give up on tracking Li Da, so he arranged for a female police officer to follow Yu Bing to the entrance of the Commerce Bureau. Chen Yu said that she had discovered the child playing at the entrance of the Commerce Bureau, so his relatives must be within this range. Xiao Sheng was still in charge of the physical labor. As Yu Bing watched Xiao Sheng carry the little boy with one hand, she chuckled, puzzling Xiao Sheng. ¡°In the future, you¡¯ll definitely be a qualified father. You don¡¯t even have to learn how to take care of children.¡± Xiao Sheng said helplessly, ¡°I raised Xiao Li and Xiao Lin, so what do you think?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ Brother, Sister, who are you?¡± A soft voice interrupted their conversation. Wu Gang rubbed his eyes with his chubby hands. He felt so sleepy. Previously, a woman had given him candy. Then, he smelled an unpleasant smell and couldn¡¯t remember anything else. Yu Bing looked at Wu Gang¡¯s chubby little face. Wu Gang¡¯s big and round eyes were as black and shiny as black gems. Wu Gang was so cute that she felt like her heart was about to melt at the sight of him! The young female police officer at the side also found Wu Gang adorable. She, who was walking beside Yu Bing, scuttled to Xiao Sheng¡¯s side and asked softly, ¡°Little kid, what¡¯s your name?¡± Wu Gang wasn¡¯t afraid of strangers at all and he replied politely, ¡°My name is Wu Gang.¡± When Yu Bing saw that the female police officer was about to touch Xiao Sheng¡¯s arm, she suddenly felt a little uncomfortable. Although she knew that the other party¡¯s sights were set on the child, she couldn¡¯t suppress the anger in her heart. Yu Bing rolled her eyes at Xiao Sheng. The girl didn¡¯t notice that they were too close, but how could Xiao Sheng not notice either? When Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing¡¯s unhappy expression, he frowned as he tried to recall when he had offended her. Yu Bing gave Wu Gang an amiable smile and extended her hands to Wu Gang. ¡°Little kid, can I carry you?¡± Wu Gang stretched out his short and fleshy arms as he said with a bright smile, ¡°I¡¯d love to have a pretty girl carry me.¡± Anyone would be in a good mood after being praised by such a cute child. Yu Bing was no exception and she hugged Wu Gang. The female police officer laughed when she heard Wu Gang¡¯s words. ¡°This child is so sweet.¡± When Xiao Sheng saw that Wu Gang had made Yu Bing smile, he couldn¡¯t help but mutter softly, ¡°Kiss *ss.¡± Yu Bing and the female police officer teased Wu Gang. When they arrived at the entrance of the Commerce Bureau, Yu Bing asked, ¡°Wu Gang, do you still remember this place?¡± After Wu Gang took a look, he said, ¡°I remember. My sister and father work here!¡± Yu Bing and the others had previously thought that Wu Gang¡¯s parents were here to do business or buy things nearby. If they worked here, things would be easier. ¡°Dad, I¡¯ve been searching the building for more than an hour, but I can¡¯t find him. Let¡¯s call the police!¡± ¡°The police won¡¯t file a case unless it¡¯s been more than 24 hours. Why did you lose sight of your brother? Go outside and look for him!¡± The girl said in a choked voice, ¡°I¡¯ve looked outside already. I told him he can¡¯t leave the building.¡± Yu Bing watched as Wu Ling and a middle-aged man walked out. When Wu Gang heard the familiar voices, he looked over and shouted, ¡°Sister! Dad!¡± When Wu Ling and the man saw Wu Gang, they hurriedly ran forward. The female police officer frowned at the father and daughter as she lectured, ¡°The child is only three years old. How could you guys let him out of your sight? He was in the hands of human traffickers just now!¡± Chapter 284 - 284 Doctrine 284 Doctrine The female police officer pointed at Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng as she introduced, ¡°These two are Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng. You guys really have to thank them! If not for them, Wu Gang might not have been found!¡± Then, the female police officer explained what had happened in detail. Then, she left. When Wu Ling heard that Yu Bing had saved her brother, she hurriedly wiped the tears off her face. Thinking of how she had quarreled with Yu Bing yesterday, she felt a little embarrassed. Then, she thanked Yu Bing sincerely. ¡°Yu Bing, thank you!¡± Yu Bing handed Wu Gang to Wu Ling with a smile and said nonchalantly, ¡°You¡¯re welcome. I happened to discover that there was something fishy about that person. I definitely couldn¡¯t just stand by and do nothing when I saw it.¡± Mr. Wu also said gratefully, ¡°Miss, I want to invite you and Xiao Sheng to our house for a meal. Please agree! If Wu Gang had been kidnapped, I can¡¯t imagine how traumatized my wife and mother would be. You¡¯re our family¡¯s benefactor!¡± Wu Ling also nodded repeatedly. ¡°My father is right. Please come for dinner.¡± ¡°By the way, Dad, this is the factory director of the ¡®Delicious Food Factory¡¯ I mentioned yesterday.¡± When Mr. Wu heard this, he felt that this was fate and marveled, ¡°Looks like everything was predestined. If Wu Ling hadn¡¯t stopped you for a day, the two of you wouldn¡¯t have made another trip. Then, Wu Gang might really not have been able to come back!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s smile froze when she heard this. So she got delayed in order to do a good deed? When Mr. Wu saw Yu Bing¡¯s expression, he realized that he had said the wrong thing. ¡°Yu Bing, don¡¯t misunderstand. After I found out about your argument last night, I criticized Wu Ling. There¡¯s something wrong with her working style! Wu Ling, did you settle it this morning?¡± Wu Ling hurriedly said, ¡°It¡¯s been taken care of. Yu Bing, I took the form you filled to my superior today. The signing and stamping have been completed, so I¡¯ll give you the documents later.¡± This surprise was too unexpected! Yu Bing was already thinking about whether she should ask for approval as repayment for saving their family member, but she didn¡¯t expect it to be approved already. It also gave her a new understanding of the father and daughter in front of her. After all, after the argument yesterday, she suspected that Wu Ling learned her ways from her parents. Yu Bing¡¯s smile became much more sincere. ¡°You¡¯re too polite. There¡¯s no need to treat us to a meal. Getting the certificate approved is enough.¡± Mr. Wu hurriedly said, ¡°That certificate should have been given to you in the first place. Wu Ling is inexperienced and overly dogmatic. They approved it after going through standard protocol.¡± ¡°However, our family wants to thank you guys in private by treating you guys to dinner tonight. We have to come. If others find out that we didn¡¯t even treat you guys to a meal, they will criticize our family! We can¡¯t just brush over this matter.¡± After Yu Bing thought about it, she didn¡¯t refuse anymore. After all, building a good relationship with the people from the Commerce Bureau was also beneficial to the development of their office here. ¡°Alright, then we¡¯ll oblige.¡± After Yu Bing took the office¡¯s registration documents, she returned to the sugar factory with Xiao Sheng. The workers they hired were all very productive. They were already more than halfway through the project, which would be completed around noon tomorrow. Seeing that it was almost six o¡¯clock, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng went to the supply company to buy some snacks. After they took out two bottles of jam from their luggage, they set off for the Wu family¡¯s home. The Wu family¡¯s door was open. Wu Gang, who was squatting at the entrance while playing with a frog toy, immediately saw Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng. He stood up with a smile and jogged over. ¡°Pretty Sister, Brother, welcome to my house!¡± Yu Bing immediately squatted down and held Wu Gang¡¯s round face as she said, ¡°We meet again!¡± When Grandma Wu, who was sitting on the sofa in the room, saw her grandson¡¯s reaction, she knew that these were the guests they were going to entertain today. She stood up and went forward. Then, she held Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng¡¯s hands tightly as she said excitedly, ¡°Little Yu, Little Xiao, it¡¯s all thanks to you guys today! If my eldest grandson was gone, I really wouldn¡¯t be able to live anymore.¡± Her son and daughter-in-law had to go to work during the day, so the two children at home were taken care of by Grandma Wu. When her grandson, Wu Gang, was born, he was weak and sickly. It was because she brought him to the hospital all the time and took care of him so diligently that he became so healthy later on. Her grandson, who she had spent so much effort raising, was like her mental pillar now. When Grandma Wu recalled that she had almost lost her grandson, she hurriedly wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. Chapter 285 - 285 Unprepared 285 Unprepared When Mrs. Wu heard that her son¡¯s saviors had arrived, she hurriedly put down the spatula in her hand and walked to the door to thank them. When Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng saw the gratitude and eagerness in the Wu family¡¯s eyes, they were a little embarrassed. Mr. Wu could tell that Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng were both upright people, so he interrupted his mother and wife with a smile. ¡°Let Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng in first. You guys are so excited that you¡¯ve forgotten to welcome them in. Wu Ling and I have already thanked them profusely today. Let the children from afar come in and have a good meal tonight.¡± Grandma Wu also smiled and said, ¡°Sorry for nagging you guys for such a long time. You guys haven¡¯t even taken a sip of water. Come in quickly!¡± Mrs. Wu also said happily, ¡°Sit and chat for a while. I¡¯ll go to the kitchen to cook two more dishes. They¡¯ll be ready soon!¡± Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng entered the house. From the Wu family¡¯s house, they were quite well-off, so their positions were probably quite high-ranking. The family of five lived in a house with three bedrooms and two living rooms. Usually, only ordinary families with seven to eight people could be allocated such a large house. Few many families who could be allocated such a large house. There was a radio, a sewing machine, and watches on the couple¡¯s hands. The Wu family were equipped with all three of the era¡¯s most popular items. After Xiao Sheng placed the gift on the coffee table, Grandma Wu scolded, ¡°Today is a thank-you banquet specifically set up for you guys. How can we let you guys spend money? What a waste of money. Take it back and eat it yourself!¡± Xiao Sheng had never been good at communicating with elders, so Yu Bing took the initiative to continue the conversation and coaxed her with a smile, ¡°Grandma Wu, it¡¯s our first time here! We won¡¯t bring it next time.¡± Grandma Wu nodded in satisfaction when she heard this. ¡°That¡¯s more like it. In the future, when you come to C City for business trips, come over to stay. I will cook for you guys. There¡¯s enough room for everyone here. You don¡¯t have to spend money on staying at the guest house.¡± At this moment, Wu Ling brought wheat milk essence to the two of them. ¡°Yu Bing, Xiao Sheng, you guys came all the way here, so drink something first!¡± Wheat milk essence was a high-end nutritional product at this time, even more so than honey water. It could be considered a luxury item among nutritional products. Many people felt that wheat milk essence was even more nutritious than honey. In fact, they were about the same in terms of nutrition, but the price of wheat milk essence was much higher. Seeing that there were many people in the living room, Wu Gang also joined in the fun and surrounded the sofa. Grandma Wu stroked her grandson¡¯s head as she lamented, ¡°I even know one of the two families who lost their child a few days ago. She¡¯s a colleague of my niece¡¯s schoolmate at the factory. That child¡¯s mother became so haggard because of this. We weren¡¯t familiar with her, but we felt so sad when we heard this.¡± With that, she scolded fiercely, ¡°Those human traffickers should be arrested and shot! They have children of their own, yet they still did such a thing. Aren¡¯t they afraid that retribution will befall their own children?!¡± At this point, Grandma Wu couldn¡¯t help but pat the back of their hands excitedly. ¡°Thanks to you two, our three families avoided the pain of separation!¡± The children of the other two families were escorted back by the police. At this moment, they only knew that Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng were people who had come to City C on a business trip to look for an office. If they knew that the two of them were at the Wu family¡¯s house, there would probably be more than ten people waiting there tonight. Yu Bing recalled that there was still one male accomplice who had not been caught, so she mentioned this. ¡°There are human traffickers everywhere. Even without them, there are still others. We still have to be vigilant about this.¡± Mr. Wu sighed when he heard this. ¡°These human traffickers have many tricks up their sleeves. It¡¯s impossible to guard against them. Previously, when I went out of town on a business trip, I heard of an abduction case as well.¡± ¡°A mother carried her one-year-old child to buy groceries. She kept bumping into a woman, so the two of them chatted. Seeing that it was inconvenient for the mother to pick vegetables and carry the child at the same time, the women took the initiative to help. In the end, the mother let down her guard and handed the child over. Then, the child was gone!¡± These were just some simple tricks human traffickers used. In the future, the country would crack down on a group of human traffickers, from which they would obtain information and come up with many anti-trafficking methods. Yu Bing told the Wu family everything she knew, dumbfounding everyone. At this moment, the food was ready, so Mrs. Wu called everyone to eat at the table. There were chicken, duck, and fish on the dining table. Usually, such sumptuous dishes were only reserved for the Spring Festival. Chapter 286 - 286 Getting Orders 286 Getting Orders The atmosphere at the dining table was very harmonious, and everyone ate with relish. After the meal, Wu Ling helped clean up the dining table. Mrs. Wu took out two apples from the fruit basket and picked up the watermelon from the ground. As she prepared to enter the kitchen. Yu Bing went forward and stopped her. ¡°Auntie Wu, you¡¯re too polite! We¡¯re already very full. If you continue cutting fruits, it¡¯ll be a waste since we won¡¯t be able to eat them. You guys can keep them for tomorrow.¡± Grandma Wu pulled Yu Bing to the side. Although she had a straight face, there was a gentle look in her eyes. ¡°Who said they¡¯re for you guys? I want to eat fruit, so you guys have to eat with me later. Otherwise, I¡¯ll be unhappy.¡± There was a feast for dinner and fruits afterwards. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng weren¡¯t stupid, so they naturally knew that these were prepared for them. However, when Grandma Wu heard their rejection, she shifted the attention to herself. When Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng heard this, they could only sit back down on the sofa obediently. The Wu family also sat in the living room. Wu Gang squatted on the ground as he played with his toy car while Grandma Wu, Wu Ling, and Yu Bing chatted. Mr. Wu chatted with Xiao Sheng. When he saw Mrs. Wu place the fruit plate on the coffee table and sit beside him, he secretly gave Mrs. Wu a look. Mrs. Wu turned to look at Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng, who were sitting in the middle of the sofa, and asked with a smile, ¡°Yu Bing, Xiao Sheng, I heard from Wu Ling that you guys run a food factory.¡± Yu Bing nodded with a smile and advertised. ¡°Our food factory currently makes snacks, jam, and spicy food.¡± With that, she picked up the cherry jam she had brought. ¡°This was produced by our factory. It¡¯s fruity and sweet!¡± Mrs. Wu picked up a bottle of jam and looked at the color and packaging. Although she didn¡¯t know how it tasted, from the looks of it, it wasn¡¯t inferior to the jam large food factories in the city produced. ¡°Is this cherry jam still being produced?¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t think too much about it, since she thought that Mrs. Wu was just asking casually. ¡°This was produced two months ago. Our jam only uses in-season fruits. It¡¯s July now, so we¡¯ll have to start production of grape jam at the end of the month.¡± When Wu Ling heard this, she turned to look at Mrs. Wu. ¡°Mom, doesn¡¯t your supply company have to import goods every month? You can consider Yu Bing¡¯s food factory!¡± Mrs. Wu smiled and said, ¡°Aren¡¯t I asking now? I have to understand the types of products the factory is producing now so that I can buy them.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s eyes lit up. It seemed that Mrs. Wu had quite some power in the supply and marketing club! ¡°Mrs. Wu, you can rest assured with our products! Currently, there are nearly ten products in the factory. New products are still being developed, so there will be more new products on the market in the future.¡± ¡°At the moment, we have cooperative supply and marketing clubs in City H and City Z. The market feedback on the sales of our products also shows that our products are very popular.¡± Whenever Yu Bing mentioned those products, she would keep going on and on. After the other party said one sentence, she replied with ten sentences. Yu Bing looked like a refined young lady, but when promoting products, she wasn¡¯t inferior to those experienced salespeople who came to look for her often. Hence, Mrs. Wu smiled at Yu Bing and said, ¡°I¡¯m the person-in-charge of the procurement department of the Jinsha Road Supply and Marketing Club. Our supply and marketing club is only medium-sized, so we might not buy a lot. After your office is established, get someone to bring the samples and look for me in the procurement department.¡± Yu Bing was so happy that she smiled from ear to ear. Being a samaritan was quite worth it this time! As expected, good people would be rewarded. The renovation of the office was completed as scheduled. The small conventional-sized window by the door had now become floor-to-ceiling windows on both sides. During the day, there was no need to turn on the electric lights to illuminate the entire shop. The gentle natural light and the various decorative cabinets made of wood were simple yet tasteful. This interior style was unique in the entire province! The signboard was also wooden, but it had an irregular frame and looked traditional, but also idiosyncratic. Yu Bing found a photo studio two streets away. At this time, there was no such thing as door-to-door service, so she had to go to the photo studio herself. Yu Bing spent a great deal of effort persuading them before they finally agreed to take five photos pf the shop from all angles. After paying, she asked the staff to print out the photos and send them to He Mountain Village¡¯s food factory. Chapter 287 - 287 Receiving the Thin Blanket 287 Receiving the Thin Blanket The trip to C City finally came to an end. In the evening, Xiao Sheng went to buy bus tickets to the next city for seven o¡¯clock tomorrow morning. Things went more smoothly in the next three cities than in City C. With the approval of Pingjiang County and the documents that City C had successfully filed, Yu Bing successfully completed all kinds of procedures by relying on her eloquence. She was just waiting for the employees to come to the office. It had been ten days since they came and the two of them had been busy the entire time. If not for the fact that they had spare money and were willing to splurge on good food, they would have collapsed from exhaustion already. The last city on this business trip itinerary was City F. City H was in the center of Jiang Province, and City F was in the southernmost part of Jiang Province. It took a day to travel there by train. At this moment, Yu Hai and Li Xin also received the thin blanket Yu Yan had sent back. Li Xin looked at the blanket again and again as she kept touching the blanket. Yu Hai brought the stir-fried dishes to the table. When he saw the smile on his wife¡¯s face, he revealed a doting expression. ¡°It¡¯s time to eat. It¡¯s been more than half an hour since you¡¯ve opened the package already, but you¡¯re still caressing the blanket.¡± Li Xin rolled her eyes at her husband and said with a smile, ¡°What do you know? My daughter made this for me.¡± Yu Hai echoed, ¡°Yes, yes, yes. She sent you her first handmade product immediately after she made it.¡± After Li Xin folded the small blanket and placed it aside, she said, ¡°This child has really become more sensible than before when she went to the countryside. In the past, when did she ever remember that I had arthritis?¡± With that, Li Xin recalled the last time Yu Yan lied and said with a frown, ¡°But she also developed the bad habit of lying.¡± Yu Hai held his wife¡¯s hand as he brought her to the dining table and said, ¡°Yu Yan isn¡¯t meant for hard labor. I don¡¯t know why she suddenly wanted to go build a village. She must have realized that rural life was completely different from that of the city when she went there, so she came up with the bad idea of bribing others to work for her.¡± Li Xin picked up her bowl and chopsticks as she agreed with her husband¡¯s words. Both of them were mid-level managers, so their salaries and employee benefits were very good. Their son was paid a salary in the army, so they didn¡¯t have to worry about him. They weren¡¯t super wealthy, but they were at least well-off. Therefore, Yu Yan had never suffered before and didn¡¯t know how rough life in the countryside was. She might not be able to eat her fill even if she worked hard every day, let alone enjoy food. Wheen Li Xin thought about how hard Yu Yan was working on the farm, she decided that Yu Yan couldn¡¯t scrimp on food. Otherwise, if she was overworked and didn¡¯t get enough nutrition, she might collapse. This was why she sent money and packages every month. Yu Hai looked at Li Xin as she said, ¡°Our daughter said that she owes people money for her previous treatment. Now that she doesn¡¯t have spare money anymore, those who got benefits from her previously are mocking her. Do you think we should increase her allowance? I saw a water mark on the letter. I suspect that the child cried when she wrote the letter.¡± When Li Xin heard her husband¡¯s words, she hesitated for a moment. ¡°If the intellectuals she interacted with previously are really such people, it¡¯s good that Yu Yan can take the opportunity to see their true colors. How can she be friends with such people?! Besides, I don¡¯t believe that all the young people in the dormitory building are like that.¡± Just as Yu Hai thought his wife was determined to teach Yu Yan a lesson, she shifted her ground. ¡°However, she has to repay the money and favors she received. If she wants to resume the previous method of transferring money, there¡¯s no need to think about it. We can only transfer it monthly. Otherwise, if she has too much money, she might get scammed by other people. Transfer an additional 10 yuan this month and send more packages. Let her use some to repay the young people who took care of her when she was sick.¡± Yu Hai knew that Li Xin had relented. Otherwise, an additional five yuan would have been more than enough. There was no need to increase it to ten yuan. He smiled and asked, ¡°Then will it still be five yuan a month in the future?¡± Li Xin lowered her eyes and thought for a moment before saying, ¡°The packages will still be halved, but send 10 yuan a month, in case she gets sick and needs money urgently. After all, we¡¯re too far away to help.¡± As for the reasons Li Xin changed her mind, firstly, it was because her daughter knew how to be considerate and caring now. This could be considered a good change to her after going to the countryside. Another reason was that as her husband had said, Yu Yan probably wouldn¡¯t be able to stay there for long. Even if she was given an additional five yuan, it wouldn¡¯t be enough for her to get anyone to help her work. As long as she could force Yu Yan to participate in hard labor, it was only a matter of time before she returned to the city. Chapter 288 - 288 Downtown Shop 288 Downtown Shop After Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng arrived in City F, they checked into the guesthouse near the train station downtown. It was already late so the two of them went out to eat before strolling around. Most of the small shops had already closed, with only the supply company, state-run restaurants, department stores, and movie theaters still open. It had been almost a month since the two of them went to the recycling station. Although she was on a business trip now, Yu Bing still took out some math and geography textbooks to read. No matter how tired she was from running outside during the day, Yu Bing would spend at least an hour reading at night. ¡°You brought textbooks?¡± Xiao Sheng realized that Yu Bing kept bugging him about studying, so he had no choice but to take it seriously as well. His grades were quite good when he was in school. After he picked up textbooks again after so long, he was indeed a little slow at first, but now, he had already read up to the second year of junior high school. ¡°Yes, I brought a physics book over.¡± Yu Bing asked, ¡°Is there anything you don¡¯t understand?¡± Xiao Sheng smiled and said, ¡°Not for the time being. If there is, I¡¯ll ask you.¡± Yu Bing nodded in satisfaction. She hoped that Jiang Chun and Xiao Sheng could both get into university. The college entrance examination was like the turning point of one¡¯s life, especially in this era. If they passed the exam, they would be able to start a brand new life. This was also the fairest way for ordinary people to break the class barrier. The two of them chatted as they strolled around. At the corner in the distance, a pair of venemous eyes were staring at the two of them. Perhaps the hatred in the other party¡¯s eyes was too intense, but Xiao Sheng felt uncomfortable, as if he was being watched. After he used his intuition to sense the direction of the gaze, he suddenly looked up at the 2 o¡¯clock position, but he only saw the hem of the other party¡¯s shirt. As Xiao Sheng looked at the hem of the other party¡¯s shirt, he fell into deep thought. He didn¡¯t know if he was too sensitive or if someone was really watching him just now, but this was his first time in F City. Logically speaking, he didn¡¯t have any emnity with anyone here, so why was someone watching him? Although Xiao Sheng was puzzled, he felt that he might have been overthinking, so he didn¡¯t chase after the person. Not only was he unfamiliar with the place, but he was also worried about leaving Yu Bing alone at night. The two of them strolled around for a while longer before returning to the guest house. The following day, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng went out and started looking for a shop. This time, they were very lucky to find a shop for rent downtown. The previous tenant of this shop also used it as the office of a food factory. That food factory was the collective industry of a village brigade in City F. However, because they couldn¡¯t get orders in the city, they moved away after the one-year lease ended. The two of them came at the right time. The previous tenant had moved away two days ago, and the landlord was about to post a rent notice after cleaning up. Xiao Sheng had sharp eyes and saw the landlord¡¯s actions from across the road, so he pulled Yu Bing over and asked. This shop, which was 70 square meters, was quite big. Yu Bing planned to create an office and two staff dormitories. This way, she could save on rent. Because of the good geographical location, the landlord demanded a monthly rent of 35 yuan and refused to lower the rent in the slightest. However, she only had to pay one month¡¯s rent as deposit and one month¡¯s worth of rent up front. She could also change the wall layout of the house. Therefore, Yu Bing gritted her teeth and signed the contract. Holding the freshly printed contract, Yu Bing looked at the time on her watch. It was already half past eleven. Thinking that it was almost time for the Industrial and Commercial Bureau¡¯s lunch break, she went to lunch with Xiao Sheng first. Yu Bing was in a good mood after everything went smoothly, so she ate more than usual. She specifically ordered a large bowl of braised chicken noodles. As she slurped the noodles, she said to Xiao Sheng, ¡°Big plate chicken is a specialty of a province at the border, but I didn¡¯t expect to be able to eat it in an inland city. Speaking of which, during this entire trip, things went the smoothest in F City.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s cheeks were stuffed with noodles, making her look adorable. As Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing, there was unconcealed gentleness in his eyes. ¡°Yes, if everything goes smoothly, we can complete the filing this afternoon.¡± Yu Bing nodded vigorously, then a mixed expression appeared on her face. ¡°I¡¯ve thought about it. After we settle the procedures this afternoon, we¡¯ll go straight to the train station to buy the earliest train ticket back. The blanket in the guesthouse is only washed once every 10 days to half a month. Only once was I lucky enough to get new bedding. If I¡¯m unlucky, even if I don¡¯t use it and put it at the end of the bed, I can still smell the sweat in the air.¡± Xiao Sheng was a clean freak to begin with, so when he heard Yu Bing¡¯s plan, he agreed. It was much more comfortable to stay at home. Chapter 289 - 289 Using Herself 289 Using Herself After the two of them finished eating, they returned to the guest house to take a nap as they waited for the Industry and Commerce Bureau to start work at 2:30 PM. When Yu Bing woke up, she suddenly felt a familiar pain in her lower abdomen. Soon, the sticky feeling in her lower body confirmed Yu Bing¡¯s guess. Because Yu Bing had been malnourished for a long time, her first period came when she was 16 years old. After that, her period had always been very irregular. Every time her period came, she would feel subtle pain on the first day. Yu Bing¡¯s nutrition had improved in the past year, so her period became more regular. Fortunately, Yu Bing had already prepared tampons, so she wasn¡¯t at a loss. After returning from the bathroom, she happened to meet Xiao Sheng, who was knocking on her door. Yu Bing¡¯s face was a little pale, so Xiao Sheng was startled. ¡°Yu Bing, are you sick?¡± Yu Bing shook her head gently and replied weakly, ¡°I¡¯m on my period.¡± With that, she took out her key, opened the door, and walked in. After Yu Bing slowly sat on the bed, she saw that Xiao Sheng was still at the door. Just as she was about to call him in, she saw that his ears were red and he was looking elsewhere with an awkward expression. Only then did Yu Bing remember what she had just said. In the future, there were more male salesmen selling female personal items and there were also all kinds of tampon advertisements on television. There were also physiology classes in primary and secondary schools. Everyone was familiar with this term, so Yu Bing blurted it out. Seeing Xiao Sheng¡¯s uncomfortable expression, Yu Bing coughed to ease the awkwardness. ¡°Xiao Sheng, go alone this afternoon.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded, but still didn¡¯t look at Yu Bing. Seeing this, Yu Bing pursed her lips and snickered. ¡°The factory certificate and various approval documents are in the bag on the desk.¡± Xiao Sheng walked straight to the desk under the windowsill and found what he wanted to take. Then, he rushed out of Yu Bing¡¯s room. It was rare to see Xiao Sheng¡¯s shy side, which amused Yu Bing. There was nothing to do in the afternoon, and Yu Bing¡¯s abdomen hurt so much that she didn¡¯t have the energy to read, so she could only lie in bed and daydream. The weather was hot, but there was a ceiling fan in the room that was wheezing. The low rhythmic sound, coupled with the relatively cool environment, made Yu Bing feel a little sleepy. Not long after, there was a knock on the door, waking Yu Bing up. After she blinked a few times, she came back to her senses. Then, she shouted in the direction of the door, ¡°I¡¯m coming.¡± With that, she slowly got out of bed. After Yu Bing opened the door, she realized that it was the young lady at the reception desk. ¡°You¡¯re Yu Bing, right? A little boy is looking for you downstairs.¡± Yu Bing looked puzzled. When did she get to meet a little boy? However, she still followed the receptionist to the first floor. Seeing a seven-year-old boy wearing clothes covered in patches standing at the door, Yu Bing went forward and asked, ¡°Are you looking for me?¡± The little boy asked curiously, ¡°Are you Yu Bing?¡± Seeing Yu Bing nod, he said, ¡°A brother called Xiao Sheng asked me to call you to the police station.¡± Yu Bing widened her eyes slightly and asked in surprise, ¡°The police station? What happened?¡± The boy shook his head in confusion. ¡°I don¡¯t know. That¡¯s what he told me. He said it was urgent.¡± Yu Bing thought worriedly, could it be that Xiao Sheng and the people from the Commerce Bureau had a conflict and started fighting? However, on second thought, Xiao Sheng was good at fighting, but he wasn¡¯t someone who liked to fight and he wouldn¡¯t fight unless someone offended him deeply. Yu Bing had just woken up, so she was still in a daze. She was a little anxious and didn¡¯t have time to think about it, so she planned to go straight to the police station to take a look. She asked, ¡°Which police station is it?¡± The little boy immediately replied, ¡°Sang¡¯an Road Police Station. It¡¯s not far. Turn into that small path from the first intersection ahead. It won¡¯t take more than ten minutes.¡± The little boy ran away after saying that. Yu Bing hurriedly returned to her room to get her bag. As she walked, she found the path the little boy had mentioned on the map. It was indeed a shortcut. Yu Bing was so flustered that she forgot about the pain in her abdomen. She jogged towards the police station, but there were many forks in the road, so she had to keep looking down at the map to confirm the direction. When she arrived at another fork in the road, Yu Bing looked at the map to confirm the route, but her mouth and nose were suddenly covered. Yu Bing subconsciously struggled and grabbed the back of the other party¡¯s hand with her nails. After the other party loosed his grip slightly after feeling the pain, he endured the pain and covered Yu Bing again. Yu Bing quickly fell unconscious. As the man stared at the unconscious Yu Bing, he said fiercely, ¡°B*tch! How dare you ruin my plan? In that case, you¡¯ll be the replacement!¡± Chapter 290 - 290 Missing 290 Missing The man looked around. After confirming that there was no one around, he quickly tied Yu Bing up and stuffed a towel into Yu Bing¡¯s mouth. Then, he placed her in the snakeskin bag he had prepared beforehand and quickly walked to the main road. It was five o¡¯clock when Xiao Sheng returned. When he saw Yu Bing¡¯s closed door, he wasn¡¯t in a hurry to tell her the good news. Instead, he returned to his room to get his enamel cup and went to the state-owned restaurant not far away to order brown sugar-boiled egg. In the past, whenever his mother was feeling unwell at this time every month, his father would prepare a bowl of brown sugar-boiled eggs and his mother would feel better after eating it. The round trip took less than 20 minutes. Just as Xiao Sheng was about to raise his hand to knock on Yu Bing¡¯s door, he lowered it. In his opinion, this was a very private matter. He and Yu Bing were not husband and wife. He was worried that his actions would seem rash, but on second thought, it was better than letting Yu Bing continue to suffer, so he raised his hand firmly and knocked on the door a few times. Seeing that no one answered, Xiao Sheng knocked harder a few more times, but there was still no answer. Xiao Sheng was a little worried that she might have fainted from the pain. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t have time to put down the porcelain cup. He went straight to the front desk on the first floor and said anxiously, ¡°Hello, the person living in room 208 is my colleague. I knocked on the door just now, but no one answered. She started to feel unwell this afternoon. I¡¯m a little worried about her, so please help me open the door.¡± The young lady at the front desk recognized Xiao Sheng. This man was the best-looking person she had ever seen in her life. Unfortunately, he was from the countryside. Otherwise, she would have thought of a way to win him over no matter what. Because of Xiao Sheng¡¯s good looks, she remembered him on the first day and also remembered Yu Bing. Moreover, she was the one who told Yu Bing that someone was looking for her today. The young lady blushed slightly. ¡°Your colleague¡¯s name is Yu Bing, right? A little boy came to look for her today. Then, I saw her return to her room to get a bag and leave. She seemed to be in a hurry.¡± This was the first time the two of them came to this city. What could Yu Bing possibly do? Xiao Sheng couldn¡¯t think of the reason. The two of them came out together to do something, so no matter how anxious Yu Bing was, she would have left a note and stuffed it into his room. It was impossible for her to leave without a word! ¡°Do you know what time she went out?¡± The receptionist said affirmatively, ¡°About four-fifteen. That¡¯s when we go to the boiler room to boil hot water every day. She¡¯d just left when the receptionist¡¯s alarm went off.¡± Xiao Sheng continued to ask, ¡°Did you see which direction she left in?¡± The receptionist frowned and tried to remember. ¡°I saw her go right after leaving the door. She kept looking at the map, so she must have been trying to find the way.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s intuition told him that something was wrong, so he placed the enamel cup at the front desk for safekeeping and left. Xiao Sheng asked around the shops on the street. When he saw a young man reading at the entrance of the bookstore, he immediately went forward and asked, ¡°Hello, did you see a girl in her twenties at 4:15 p.m.? She was wearing a plaid shirt and black pants. She had two braids that reached her chest. By the way, she¡¯s about this tall and might be holding a map.¡± Xiao Sheng gestured. At the mention of the map, the young man immediately remembered. He was an employee of the bookstore. At that time, he saw that the door was a little dirty, so he took a broom to sweep the floor. Then, he saw a young lady walking forward with a map. Because she was quite beautiful, he paid more attention to her. ¡°I saw her. She seemed quite anxious and she turned into the path at the entrance ahead.¡± After Xiao Sheng finally obtained a useful clue, he hurriedly thanked him and ran into the alley. After running for dozens of meters, he saw two forks. After Xiao Sheng looked around, he could only choose one at random. Then, he continued to ask people as he walked forward. However, there was basically no one on the road in the residential area at this time. Just as Xiao Sheng had to choose a path at the fork again, he discovered a little girl about ten years old walking towards him with a map in her hand. Xiao Sheng took a few steps forward and yanked the map over. After he opened it, he discovered the various circles he and Yu Bing had drawn on it when they were researching the location. The little girl was shocked by Xiao Sheng¡¯s actions. After Xiao Sheng came back to his senses, he realized that his actions were too aggressive, so he hurriedly smiled and tried to look as gentle as possible. ¡°Little girl, where did you get this map?¡± The little girl looked at Xiao Sheng timidly. If not for Xiao Sheng¡¯s handsome looks, she would have run away in fear. ¡°I picked it up on the path at Westwind Road.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this, he frowned. On the path? He took out 0.02 yuan from his pocket and tried to entice her, ¡°Little girl, bring me to the place where you picked up the map. Then, you can take this 0.02 yuan to buy candy.¡± Chapter 291 - 291 Mole 291 Mole When the little girl saw the money, she was slightly tempted. She could buy two pieces of fruit candy for 0.02 yuan! After she thought about it, she agreed. The little girl turned left and right. Two minutes later, she brought Xiao Sheng to the place where Yu Bing had been ambushed. ¡°Brother, I picked it up here.¡± Xiao Sheng looked at the three forks in front of him. He didn¡¯t know which path Yu Bing had taken at that time, so he looked around to see if there were any strange marks or other things that Yu Bing had dropped. After a fruitless search, he bent down and asked the little girl, ¡°When did you pick it up?¡± The little girl tilted her head and thought for a while. ¡°It¡¯s been a while since I picked it up. I picked it up on the way to Xiao Meizi¡¯s house.¡± Xiao Sheng described Yu Bing¡¯s appearance again, but the little girl shook her head again to indicate that she had never seen her before. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t give up. He thought for a moment and continued to ask, ¡°Did you see anyone along the way?¡± The little girl lowered her eyes and started to recall seriously. She even raised her finger and counted with one finger. ¡°After I left the house, I saw Uncle Tang, Auntie Zhang, and that annoying person in my class. Then, I picked up the map and met Grandpa Zhao. Then, I went to Xiao Meizi¡¯s house. When I came out, I saw you on my way home.¡± Xiao Sheng grabbed the little girl¡¯s shoulder and asked anxiously, ¡°You didn¡¯t see any strangers?¡± The little girl paused when she heard this. Xiao Sheng stared at her nervously. This was the only clue he could find now. If this trail went cold, he wouldn¡¯t know how else to find her! The little girl thought of someone she had overlooked. ¡°The annoying person was talking to an unfamiliar man. I¡¯ve never seen that man around here.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s pupils dilated. It was very likely that Yu Bing had encountered something here and disappeared as a result. One more person meant one more clue. ¡°What did he look like?!¡± The little girl replied, ¡°I didn¡¯t see his face. I only saw him carrying a snakeskin bag.¡± Snakeskin bag! Xiao Sheng felt even more uneasy. ¡°Is the annoying person you¡¯re talking about your classmate? Bring me to him.¡± A trace of unwillingness appeared on the little girl¡¯s face. ¡°I don¡¯t want to look for him. He keeps pulling my hair in class!¡± Xiao Sheng was stunned for a moment. Then, he took out another 0.05 yuan and enticed, ¡°I heard that the supply company has beautiful hair clips. You can buy them with this money.¡± This was too tempting for the little girl! The last time she went to the supply company with her mother, she saw a hair clip that cost this much, but her mother didn¡¯t buy it for her. The little girl felt that it was worth it to get a pretty hair clip in exchange for a tug at the end of her hair. ¡°Alright! I¡¯ll bring you there.¡± The two of them set off for the little girl¡¯s classmate¡¯s house. Then, the little girl took the initiative to call her classmate out of the house. Zhang Zhen went downstairs in his patched clothes. When he saw Xiao Sheng, he was stunned for a moment. He thought that the little girl had found her brother to take revenge on him, so he wanted to run home. Xiao Sheng reacted quickly and grabbed Zhang Zhen¡¯s arm. ¡°I have something to ask you!¡± After Zhang Zhen was caught, he could only turn around and point at the little girl in fear. ¡°Didn¡¯t she find you to beat me up?¡± Xiao Sheng, who felt like he got dragged into the feud between two primary school students, felt very helpless. ¡°I¡¯m here to ask you something. Have you seen a man holding a snakeskin bag in this alley?¡± When Zhang Zhen heard that he wasn¡¯t here to beat him up, he heaved a sigh of relief. ¡°Are you asking about Brother Xiao Sheng? I¡¯ve seen him before!¡± Xiao Sheng was stunned. ¡°The man you saw said his name is Xiao Sheng?¡± Zhang Zhen nodded affirmatively, but when he saw the name on the certificate in Xiao Sheng¡¯s hand, he was stunned. ¡°Both of you guys are called Xiao Sheng?¡± At this moment, Xiao Sheng was 100% certain that someone was plotting against them, so he asked Zhang Zhen to tell him everything about the fake Xiao Sheng. Zhang Zhen told Xiao Sheng everything that had happened today. ¡°I was playing at my house this afternoon when he suddenly appeared in front of me and said that his name was Xiao Sheng. He gave me 0.1 yuan as an errand fee and asked me to help him find a girl called Yu Bing. He said that he wanted her to go to the police station on Sang¡¯an Road. He even asked me to tell her how to get there.¡± Xiao Sheng felt his throat tighten. ¡°What did he look like?¡± Zhang Zhen replied, ¡°He¡¯s very ordinary-looking, but he has a mole at the corner of his mouth and two hairs on it!¡± Chapter 292 - 292 Call the Police 292 Call the Police Li Da! Xiao Sheng immediately thought of his name. He had seen his face during the previous pursuit ¡°What else do you know?¡± Zhang Zhen shook his head. ¡°Today is the first time I¡¯ve seen him. Later, I saw him in the alley and ran over to greet him. However, I saw that the snakeskin bag he was pulling was a little heavy and he was panting from exhaustion. After he replied to me, he left in a hurry.¡± After confirming that it was Li Da¡¯s revenge, Xiao Sheng felt flustered. He didn¡¯t know anyone in City F, and the police station only accepted missing reports after 24 hours. After his parents passed away, this was the second time he felt that deep sense of powerlessness. However, Xiao Sheng knew that he had to think of a way. There was only one outcome for a young girl caught by human traffickers ¨C to be sold to some remote place and become the wife of an old man who couldn¡¯t get married! The other party might be in his forties or fifties, or he might be disabled or mentally handicapped. In any case, he wouldn¡¯t be a normal man! Thinking about how Yu Bing was waiting for him to save her, Xiao Sheng forced himself to calm down. When he saw the two children, he decided to report the case first! Regardless of whether the police accepted the report or not, he had to give it a try. ¡°I want to ask you two for a favor. Come with me to the police station on Sang¡¯an Road and tell the police what you just said.¡± Children had a sense of fear for the police station, so the two of them hurriedly shook their heads. ¡°We¡¯re not bad people, so why should we go to the police station?¡± Seeing this, Xiao Sheng could only think of a way to calm them down first. He squatted down and looked at the two of them at eye level as he said, ¡°I know you¡¯re not bad people. That girl called Yu Bing is missing, so I have to go to the police station to get the police to help find her, but my testimony won¡¯t be convincing enough. You guys have to tell the police what you saw.¡± Zhang Zhen guessed that he had accidentally helped a bad person, so a trace of cowardice appeared on his face. ¡°I¡¯m not going. Don¡¯t arrest me!¡± Xiao Sheng was already anxious, but he still continued to say patiently, ¡°Why would they arrest you? You¡¯re also a victim. You were also deceived by that bad person, right? If you don¡¯t go to the police station to explain the situation, the police will think that you¡¯re in cahoots with him. You¡¯ll turn from a victim to an accomplice.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s trick was quite effective. Zhang Zhen was so frightened that he immediately changed his mind. ¡°Then let¡¯s go quickly, or else the police will misunderstand me!¡± The little girl didn¡¯t think much of it. She hadn¡¯t done anything bad, so wasn¡¯t afraid of the police and agreed to go with them. A few minutes later, they arrived at the police station on Sang¡¯an Road. Xiao Sheng told them about how they had helped the police catch the human traffickers in City C. Coupled with the words of the two children, the police here also contacted the police station where Zhao Bing was in City C and obtained confirmation. Xiao Sheng successfully got the police station to file a case, but he was also worried that the policemen here would delay things, so he raised the hypothesis that there might be more than one victim, in hopes of attracting their attention and getting them to investigate if there were any cases of missing women and children in the suburbs of the city. The police said that they would investigate and asked Xiao Sheng to return to the guesthouse to wait for news. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t dare to place all his hopes on the police, so he returned to the guest house and called Zeng Li. Zeng Li promised to help him find connections and ask him to wait for the notice. His second call was to Wu Gang¡¯s father. Mr. Wu didn¡¯t expect this to happen, but he asked Xiao Sheng to call again in 20 minutes. At this moment, Yu Bing had already been moved out of the city in an ox cart. After Yu Bing woke up in the snakeskin bag, she realized that she couldn¡¯t break free, so she gave up. The most important thing for her now was to conserve her strength. The car swayed. After more than half an hour, Yu Bing felt that the snakeskin bag she had been in was lifted. By the time she could see the world outside, the sky had already darkened. As Yu Bing looked at the unfamiliar man with a mole at the corners of his mouth and saggy eyes, she couldn¡¯t remember who he was. However, when she saw a girl in her twenties and two little boys in the same room, she immediately understood that she had encountered human traffickers again! Just as Yu Bing was wondering why she was so unlucky, the man spoke. ¡°B*tch, do you not recognize me?¡± As Yu Bing looked at the man, she didn¡¯t say anything. It wasn¡¯t her fault that she couldn¡¯t say anything. After all, her mouth was still stuffed with cloth. After the man helped Yu Bing remove the cloth, Yu Bing made a bold guess. ¡°Li Da?¡± Chapter 293 - 293 Group 293 Group The man smiled, revealing a row of slightly yellow buck teeth. ¡°You¡¯re quite smart! But then again, since you got my accomplice caught and ruined my plans, how can you not be smart?¡± Yu Bing began to worry about whether or not Xiao Sheng could find her. After all, they had never expected that Li Da could escape so far away. After she thought about it, she felt that it was better to get some information first. ¡°You don¡¯t have a certificate, so how can you run so far?¡± Li Da revealed a disdainful smile. ¡°I can have as many certificates as I want! B*tch, I¡¯ll find you a husband and let you live in hell for the rest of your life!¡± A dorky-looking middle-aged man walked in. ¡°Mr. Li, I heard that you got another woman? Not bad! You¡¯re quite fast.¡± The moment Li Da turned around, he revealed a fawning smile. ¡°Brother Long, my nest was destroyed by the police because of this woman. I hope you can let me help her find a good buyer.¡± After Brother Long glanced at Yu Bing¡¯s beautiful face, he suddenly became lecherous. ¡°No problem, but I want to play with her first.¡± Li Da¡¯s smile froze. Whether or not she was a virgin made a great difference in terms of the price. However, he was under someone else¡¯s control now. As long as he could get permission to punish Yu Bing, it was enough! As Yu Bing watched Brother Long walking towards her, she suppressed her panic and said calmly, ¡°I¡¯m on my period.¡± Brother Long didn¡¯t stop. After all, Yu Bing wasn¡¯t the only woman who used such an excuse. However, when his hand touched Yu Bing¡¯s pants and felt the thick fabric inside, he knew that Yu Bing was telling the truth and his expression darkened. ¡°Damn it!¡± Li Da watched as Brother Long left. Then, he picked up the cloth and stuffed it into Yu Bing¡¯s mouth again. He stared at Yu Bing intently as he said, ¡°Don¡¯t even think about playing tricks!¡± Yu Bing observed that everyone in the room had their hands and feet tied behind their backs. The four of them each occupied a corner. The two children seemed to be unconscious and their eyes were closed, while the girl was staring at the ground in a daze. Yu Bing¡¯s bag had also been put away, and her watch was gone, so she didn¡¯t have anything she could use now. As Yu Bing stared at the moon through the window, she wondered what Xiao Sheng would do when he discovered that she was missing. Xiao Sheng forced himself to rest in bed for seven hours before getting up because he couldn¡¯t collapse before he found Yu Bing. Yesterday, Mr. Wu found his old comrade, Jiang Heng, who had become the captain of the Criminal Investigation Team of the Municipal Bureau after leaving the army. After learning about the situation from Xiao Sheng, Jiang Heng escalated the case from the district police station to the city police station. Not long after Xiao Sheng woke up, Zeng Li¡¯s call came. ¡°Xiao Sheng, I received some news. Some time ago, the army sent a team to track down a human trafficking group. I heard that in order to prevent trafficked people from running back to their homes, they like to commit crimes across provinces to avoid letting the police and their families track down those children and women who are claimed to have been bought from them.¡± ¡°The leader is someone called Wang Long. I wonder if Li Da is from his network. If he is, things will be easy.¡± Xiao Sheng clenched his fists tighter. ¡°I¡¯ll think of a way to find out.¡± In order to prevent the kidnapped women and children from attracting the attention of outsiders, the gang had an unwritten rule, which was to give them a bowl of drugged water before they left. Yu Bing hadn¡¯t had her tampons changed the entire night, so she felt very uncomfortable. When she saw Li Da come in with a kettle, she said, ¡°I want to go to the bathroom.¡± Li Da looked at Yu Bing suspiciously and didn¡¯t say anything. Yu Bing said weakly, ¡°I haven¡¯t eaten all night. How can I have the strength to run? Moreover, I¡¯m on my period. If I don¡¯t change my pants, they¡¯ll get dirty. Do you want to buy me new pants?¡± Li Da grabbed Yu Bing¡¯s arm with one hand and lifted her up. After helping her untie the rope, he shouted, ¡°Mrs. Wang, a woman wants to go to the bathroom.¡± Soon, an ordinary-looking but muscular middle-aged woman walked in. Yu Bing said innocently, ¡°I need my bag. My tampons are inside.¡± Li Da could only go next door to get Yu Bing¡¯s bag. When Yu Bing saw the man and woman in front of her, she didn¡¯t do anything else. She took the things she needed and spread them out for them to see. The woman called Mrs. Wang accompanied Yu Bing out of the house. Yu Bing realized that this was a small house with a courtyard, but she didn¡¯t see any neighboring houses around. Just now, she saw seven to eight men in the lobby. There were also three in the courtyard, which meant that there were more than ten human traffickers hidden in this small house. Chapter 294 - 294 Trail Goes Cold 294 Trail Goes Cold Mrs. Wang was guarding the door after Yu Bing entered the bathroom. Yu Bing didn¡¯t plan to play tricks at this moment. The wilderness was filled with their people, so Yu Bing didn¡¯t plan to fight them head-on. It was useless and she might even get her legs broken. At that time, she wouldn¡¯t be able to escape all the more. Yu Bing suspected that this Mrs. Wang was Brother Long¡¯s wife, but it still had to be verified. After leaving the bathroom, Yu Bing smiled at Mrs. Wang and said, ¡°Can you find me a better family? Don¡¯t find me an old man.¡± Mrs. Wang looked at Yu Bing in surprise. After all, this was the first time she had seen someone who wasn¡¯t afraid after being caught, could immediately adapt to the environment, and fight for preferential treatment for herself. However, she still didn¡¯t say anything. When Yu Bing saw that Mrs. Wang ignored her, she knew that this woman wasn¡¯t easy to deal with. She had to think of another way. Li Da would definitely try to ruin her life. At that time, she might not have a chance to escape at all. At this moment, the others in the room had already been drugged. Yu Bing took it obediently and drank it as well. Brother Long looked satisfied when he saw this. ¡°This young lady is very sensible.¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°Brother Long, a wise person submits to circumstances. I understand this principle.¡± Brother Long laughed when he heard this. ¡°Interesting! You¡¯re quite bold. I like you!¡± Yu Bing subconsciously looked at Mrs. Wang, who was looking at her. As expected, she could see a trace of jealousy. After Yu Bing confirmed their relationship, she didn¡¯t speak further and sat back in her seat obediently. Soon, Yu Bing fell unconscious again. Because she was on her period, if the boss of this group didn¡¯t touch her, the other lackeys definitely wouldn¡¯t dare to do anything to her. When she woke up again, it was already night. The food was sent into the room by another person. There was only salad and a bowl of sweet potato porridge. The children were already gone. Yu Bing only saw that the girl was still with her. In order to let them eat, their hands and feet had been untied. The girl¡¯s eyes looked hollow and listless. Only then did Yu Bing see the bruises under her long sleeve. After she glanced at the person smoking and chatting at the door, she asked softly, ¡°What¡¯s your name? Where are you from?¡± The girl glanced at Yu Bing and was silent for a moment before replying softly, ¡°I¡¯m Gu Ting. I¡¯m from City B of Jiang Province.¡± Yu Bing nodded. She was from the same province as her and could be considered a fellow townsman. ¡°Let¡¯s eat first. I¡¯m also from Jiang Province. When were you abducted?¡± Gu Ting found Yu Bing¡¯s calm reaction very strange. Right after she had been kidnapped, she was resisting nonstop, so she got beaten up. Later, when she saw so many of them, she resigned herself to fate and learned her lesson. That was why she was no longer beaten up. ¡°It¡¯s been five days. They sold girls from out of town to Jiang Province, while they sold girls from Jiang Province out of town. There were two girls with me. They took them away the day you came.¡± The fact that they could cross provinces meant that this group was definitely not a small one. It also meant that they were experienced enough to avoid the police¡¯s pursuit time and time again. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t help but feel discouraged. At this moment, Xiao Sheng was with Zhao Xing. After Zeng Li found out that Li Da and Wang Long, who was nicknamed Brother Long, were in cahoots, he explained the situation to his brother and brought Xiao Sheng over. Coincidentally, Zhao Xing was the captain of the team in charge of the case. Zhao Xing looked at Xiao Sheng, whose eyes were already bloodshot, and said, ¡°Xiao Sheng, go sleep.¡± As Xiao Sheng sat on the stool by the wall, his expression was cold, but the anxiety in his eyes couldn¡¯t be hidden. ¡°I dream of her the moment I close my eyes. Tomorrow will be the fifth day she has gone missing. I¡¯m afraid. She looks gentle and easygoing, but she¡¯s actually more stubborn than anyone else. I¡¯m worried that something will happen to her.¡± After Zhao Xing and the others had chased them to the suburbs of City F¡¯s Wenshan County, the informant¡¯s trail went cold. Zhao Xing patted Xiao Sheng¡¯s shoulder with sympathy. He didn¡¯t expect Xiao Sheng to fall in love with Yu Bing. Today was the fourth day of her abduction. Because Yu Bing drank the medicine obediently every time, was very cooperative in other aspects, and seemed like she only wanted them to find a good husband for her, the person who brought the medicine to her lowered his guard. Before she set off in the morning, she had only drunk half of it. The other half had been vomited onto the ground, her sleeve, and the gag. Therefore, she woke up very early today and overheard some of their plans. Chapter 295 - 295 Domestic Violence 295 Domestic Violence Today was the day she and Gu Ting would be sold. In the evening, five buyers would come and bid for them. Although Yu Bing didn¡¯t know where she was now, from their conversation, she found out that they were in a mountain village without any roads for transportation vehicles, so they could only walk. No girl was willing to marry into such a place. Most of the wives were obtained through human trafficking or exchange marriages, which was basically when people exchanged their wives. However, it was very difficult to escape after being sold to such a place. The people there were all in cahoots. As long as they saw anyone¡¯s wife try to escape, they would immediately capture her and send her back. This was so that when the future wife they bought escaped, others would help capture her as well. When Yu Bing saw the relevant news, she knew that as long as a family¡¯s daughter-in-law ran away, the entire village would look for her together. Moreover, they would usually be tied to the house with chains to prevent them from escaping. Even after the daughter-in-laws had given birth to a few children, some in-laws would still be worried. There were also cases of people being locked up for more than ten years, so among so many people who had been kidnapped, very few could successfully escape. Yu Bing knew that tonight was her last chance to escape. If she couldn¡¯t escape, she would rather die than live such a debasing life! As usual, Yu Bing pretended to wake up at the usual time. No one suspected her. Soon, the sun set, and the five buyers came over. Yu Bing and Gu Ting were also untied so that the buyers could see them better. Gu Ting had been bought by a man in his thirties, while Yu Bing had been taken away by a man in his forties called Dashan. The other party had even brought his mother along. The 60-year-old woman looked at Yu Bing like she was a commodity up for grabs. Dashan¡¯s mother didn¡¯t agree with her son choosing Yu Bing. She preferred the plumper Gu Ting, since she felt that curvy women could get pregnant easier, unlike Yu Bing, who was good-looking but way too thin. However, she was most worried that Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t be able to withstand her son¡¯s beating. If she died, she would have to spend money to buy another wife! At this moment, Li Da walked to Yu Bing¡¯s side and whispered into her ear, ¡°I specifically chose this man for you. His previous two wives were beaten to death. I hope you can live longer. than them¡± When Yu Bing heard this, her eyes flickered. When she looked at Dashan, she realized that he was staring at her in anger, as if he had caught her cheating or something. When Yu Bing looked at Li Da, who was deliberately getting closer to her, she immediately understood his motive. After Yu Bing raised her foot and stomped on Li Da, Li Da raised his hand in pain and wanted to slap Yu Bing, but Yu Bing said calmly, ¡°Dashan has already bought me just now. If you dare to hit me, Dashan will ask you to compensate him.¡± When Li Da heard this, he could only give up and say fiercely, ¡°Alright! After you¡¯re tortured to death in bed by Dashan, I¡¯ll personally throw you into the mountain to feed the wild dogs!¡± When Yu Bing heard this, although she didn¡¯t show it on her face, she was extremely nervous and was even more determined to find an opportunity to escape later. Worst case scenario, she would be beaten to death. In any case, she didn¡¯t want to die in the Dashan family¡¯s home as a captive. When Yu Bing left the small courtyard with Dashan and his mother, the sky was already dark. After Dashan took out the torch he had prepared and lit it, he slapped Yu Bing hard. Yu Bing was caught off guard and fell to the ground. Blood flowed from the corner of her mouth and her head and ears buzzed. Dashan was very tall and muscular. As he stood in front of Yu Bing, he said condescendingly, ¡°If I see you talking to another man again, I¡¯ll beat you to death!¡± Dashan¡¯s mother glanced at Yu Bing. She was already used to such scenes. Women had to be beaten up if they were disobedient! Women who misbehave deserved to be beaten! Yu Bing lowered her head and gritted her teeth as she slowly stood up. When the mother and son saw Yu Bing¡¯s compliant attitude, they were satisfied. Women had to be more docile. Dashan¡¯s mother understood the principle of giving a carrot and stick, so she said to Yu Bing, ¡°As long as you stay in our house obediently and give Dashan a fat son, you will enjoy a good life in the future.¡± Then, she complained to her son, ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to hit her before she gives birth to a son! The children of those two sluts from before were aborted by you, so I still don¡¯t have a grandson yet!¡± Chapter 296 - 296 Tiger 296 Tiger Dashan¡¯s mother was very displeased with Dashan for not having a son even at 32 years old. It wasn¡¯t easy for her to save up a little money, but it was used up by her son to buy a wife. Today was the first time they met, so they had to take her notch down to make her afraid, so that she wouldn¡¯t dare to run away. However, she couldn¡¯t let her son hit her again. Yu Bing pretended to be meek and docile as she said timidly, ¡°Dashan, Mom, I¡¯ll definitely be obedient! I¡¯ll do whatever you guys ask me to do.¡± Dashan bared his yellow teeth and looked at his mother proudly as he laughed loudly. ¡°Mom, did you see that? She became obedient immediately after I beat her up!¡± Dashan¡¯s mother became a little more pleased with Yu Bing. After all, her two previous daughters-in-law had been very unruly at the beginning. They only submitted after being beaten up for a few days. With this single slap, Yu Bing was subdued. She was much less troublesome! ¡± Dashan, tie her hands up!¡± Yu Bing immediately took the initiative to stretch out her hands to let Dashan tie her up. She even looked at Dashan shyly with her watery eyes. ¡°Dashan, can you tie it a little looser? I¡¯ve been tied up for a few days already, so my hands hurt.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s voice was soft to begin with. The two previous wives were villagers before they were kidnapped. They looked rough and sallow, unlike Yu Bing, who was from the city. After Yu Bing went to the countryside to work for a few months, she kept herself well-protected from the sun. Later on, she didn¡¯t even have to go to the field anymore, so she still looked fair and cute. Dashan¡¯s heart softened under Yu Bing¡¯s gaze. He lowered his head and saw that there was indeed a red mark on Yu Bing¡¯s hand, so he loosened it a little. When Dashan¡¯s mother saw this, she cursed Yu Bing for being a vixen. However, seeing that she was quite obedient, she didn¡¯t say anything in the end. The three of them began to walk home. Dashan walked in front while Yu Bing took the initiative to accompany Dashan¡¯s mother at the back. She kept calling her ¡®mother¡¯ and saying all kinds of pleasant things to her. Yu Bing looked at Dashan¡¯s mother, who was beaming from ear to ear from her praise, and asked, ¡°Mom, how much longer are we going to walk for?¡± Dashan¡¯s mother looked into the distance and said, ¡°We¡¯ve only walked less than a third of the way. It¡¯ll take at least an hour.¡± Yu Bing nodded and pretended to be curious. ¡°Mom, there are so many mountains here and the trees are so dense. If we go in, I¡¯m afraid we won¡¯t be able to get out. There can¡¯t possibly be tigers here, can there?¡± Yu Bing looked at Dashan¡¯s mother in fear. Dashan¡¯s mother revealed a smug smile. ¡°There are indeed tigers. This mountain is huge, so the people who live here don¡¯t dare to enter the mountain alone. If there aren¡¯t more than ten to twenty people, they¡¯ll be courting death by entering the mountain.¡± At this point, Dashan¡¯s mother looked at Yu Bing meaningfully. ¡°Most of the women in our village are trafficked wives. Previously, in order to escape, some women ran into the nearby mountains. Later, that man mobilized the entire village to look for them, but they only found that woman¡¯s bloody clothes and some missing limbs. From then on, the women nearby became obedient.¡± Yu Bing knew that Dashan¡¯s mother was saying this for her to hear, but she wasn¡¯t afraid. Dying in the mouth of a tiger was better than being a captive sex slave and fertility tool! However, Yu Bing still pretended to tremble in fear. ¡°I won¡¯t escape. I don¡¯t want to be eaten by a tiger.¡± Along the way, Yu Bing kept looking around at the forest on both sides of the road, as if she was afraid that a tiger would suddenly appear. Yu Bing¡¯s timidity pleased the mother and son. However, Yu Bing was actually taking the opportunity to observe the surroundings and find an opportunity to escape. After walking for another ten minutes, Yu Bing said to Dashan¡¯s mother in embarrassment, ¡°Mom, I want to go to the bathroom.¡± Dashan¡¯s mother frowned and glanced at Yu Bing. ¡°Why are you so troublesome?! Go to the bathroom when we get home!¡± Yu Bing acted anxious. She clutched her thigh with her hand and kept crossing her legs as she said, ¡°Mom, I can¡¯t hold it in anymore. I¡¯ve been holding it in for a long time. I have biological needs!¡± At this moment, Dashan turned to look at Yu Bing, who looked at him pleadingly. ¡°Brother Dashan, I really need to pee.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s face had swollen a little from the previous slap, and her hair was a little messy. She had a delicate appearance, which made her look even more charming under the moonlight. Dashan felt horny as he gazed at her. Thinking about how he could play with this woman tonight, he couldn¡¯t help but feel happy, so he said, ¡°Mom, let her go.¡± Chapter 297 - 297 Escaped 297 Escaped Yu Bing nodded anxiously. ¡°Mom, accompany me. I¡¯m afraid.¡± When the mother and son heard this, their vigilance relaxed substantially. Yu Bing and Dashan¡¯s mother entered the forest at the foot of the mountain. The trees in the forest were very tall, and the grass was half the height of a person. After finding a relatively flatter place, Yu Bing said to Dashan¡¯s mother, ¡°Mom, I want to relieve myself. Help me untie the rope.¡± Dashan¡¯s mother¡¯s expression changed drastically. She immediately poked Yu Bing¡¯s head as she said, ¡°Little b*tch, do you want to escape?!¡± Yu Bing replied with a long face, ¡°Mom, I¡¯m not trying to escape. It¡¯ll be smelly, so I¡¯ll be embarrassed if you help me lift my pants. Moreover, I¡¯m on my period, so I can¡¯t trouble you.¡± Dashan¡¯s mother sized Yu Bing up suspiciously. Then, she reached out and touched Yu Bing¡¯s lower body through her pants. When she realized that she was indeed wearing a tampon, her expression eased up. Then, she thought of the matter of consummating the marriage, so she shouted, ¡°You b*tch! Why are you on your period so coincidentally?! How long will it be until it¡¯s over?¡± Yu Bing hurriedly said, ¡°Almost. There are still two days left.¡± In fact, Yu Bing only had five days of menstruation every time. Today was the last day, but Yu Bing lied without batting an eyelid. Dashan¡¯s mother didn¡¯t think too much about it, since her son could tolerate it for another two days. Thinking of Yu Bing¡¯s obedient and timid appearance previously, and how Yu Bing even took the initiative to let her follow her, she untied Yu Bing. At this moment, Yu Bing said in fear, ¡°Mom, wait for me under that tree. Don¡¯t stay too far away from me. Let¡¯s keep talking later. This way, if wild beasts hear us, they probably won¡¯t dare to come over.¡± As soon as Yu Bing said this, Dashan¡¯s mother completely believed that Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t run away anymore. She only said impatiently, ¡°I know! Hurry up!¡± As she spoke, she walked towards the tree. The spot Yu Bing chose wasn¡¯t too far or too close. Moreover, with the grass blocking her, Dashan¡¯s mother couldn¡¯t see what Yu Bing was doing. When Yu Bing saw Dashan¡¯s mother walk away, she hurriedly squatted down and took the initiative to find a topic to talk about. As Dashan¡¯s mother stared at the grass and listened to Yu Bing¡¯s words, she was very assured. As for Yu Bing, she squatted on the ground and wanted to choose a moderate-sized stone. As she spoke, she looked around. A few minutes later, she found a palm-sized stone not far away. Just as Dashan¡¯s mother was getting impatient from waiting, Yu Bing stood up and pretended to lift up her pants as she shouted, ¡°Mom, I¡¯m done!¡± Yu Bing dusted her hands as she approached Dashan¡¯s mother. She acted like she felt refreshed after relieving herself. When Yu Bing was still a step away from Dashan¡¯s mother, Yu Bing suddenly looked at the tree behind Dashan¡¯s mother in fear. ¡°Snake¡­ snake!¡± Dashan¡¯s mother rolled her eyes. ¡°What¡¯s there to be afraid of?!¡± As she spoke, she bent down to find a stick to kill the snake and bring it home. For the people in the mountains, snakes could serve as meat dishes! Seeing that Dashan¡¯s mother was bending down, Yu Bing quickly took out the stone at her waist and threw it at the back of her head. After Dashan¡¯s mother swayed twice, she fell to the ground with a bang. Yu Bing hurriedly searched through her pocket, inner pocket, soles, and socks. These were classic places to hide money. As expected, Yu Bing found some money and stamps. She was even lucky enough to find a pickled vegetable pancake wrapped in tinfoil. Yu Bing endured the sour smell as she stuffed everything into her pocket. After taking away everything, Yu Bing hurriedly ran towards the mountain. As she ran, she remembered to erase her tracks. She had learned this move from Xiao Sheng when she entered the mountain previously, but she didn¡¯t expect it to actually come in handy at this time. Yu Bing didn¡¯t run far. She climbed up a dense tree more than a hundred meters away. Yu Bing could still vaguely see Dashan¡¯s mother, who had been knocked out. A few minutes later, a tall figure appeared in her field of vision. It was probably Dashan. He stopped there for a moment before carrying his mother away. After Yu Bing heaved a sigh of relief, she ate the pickled vegetable cake. She had only eaten a few sweet potatoes tonight and had just walked so far, so she was already exhausted. She was glad that she had recuperated a lot in the past year. Otherwise, it probably would have been quite difficult for her to escape. However, Yu Bing knew that it wasn¡¯t the time for her to relax. Dashan would definitely call the villagers to look for her, so she still had an hour left to find a safe place to hide. Wild beasts only existed in the deep mountains, so the possibility of tigers and wolves appearing at the foot of the mountain wasn¡¯t high. Yu Bing determined that her current location was definitely within the other party¡¯s search range. However, if she chose to take the main road and encountered the villagers nearby, she would definitely be captured. Chapter 298 - 298 Elites 298 Elites Caught in a dilemma, Yu Bing pondered for a moment and decided to find a hidden cave to hide in. If Dashan found the entire village to help, they would probably search the mountain directly. After Yu Bing looked up at the Big Dipper in the sky, she instinctively chose a direction to run in. Because she was in a hurry, Yu Bing didn¡¯t get rid of her tracks this time. Two hours later, when she saw the few scattered torches in the distance, she panicked. Not to mention that the cave had yet to be found, this was completely different from the timing she had calculated! In fact, it wasn¡¯t that Yu Bing had miscalculated, but that Dashan didn¡¯t return to the village to get reinforcements. Back then, Dashan¡¯s mother had married Dashan¡¯s father through a marriage swap, so Dashan¡¯s mother¡¯s maiden family was in the nearby village. Dashan went to look for his uncle behind his mother¡¯s back. Dashan¡¯s uncle made a prompt decision. He asked his youngest son to look for the village chief of Dashan¡¯s village and ask them to send someone over. Then, he immediately mobilized the entire village¡¯s young adults to help his nephew find his wife. Yu Bing had delayed them by wiping away her traces previously. Otherwise, Yu Bing would have seen these torches half an hour ago. Yu Bing had no choice but to hide in the deep mountains. After an unknown period of time, Yu Bing was so tired that she could barely lift her feet and she fell hard. After Yu Bing fell, she accidentally discovered a small hole above the upper left side of her arm. Because there were a few large flowering plants blocking it, it was very well hidden. If Yu Bing had not been lying on the ground and looking down at it, she definitely would have missed it. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t care less about the injuries on her hands and feet. She was already exhausted, so she had to hide quickly. She pulled the plants away and climbed in. Then, she placed the plant in its original state. Because the cave was too small, Yu Bing could only curl up and lean against the wall of the cave. She planned to close her eyes and rest for a while. ¡°After I find this b*tch, I¡¯ll break her legs and lock her up for the rest of her life!¡± ¡°Dashan, she couldn¡¯t have gone deep into the mountains, right?¡± ¡°That woman has been pretending to be obedient and timid in front of my mother and me previously. This means that she has thought of running away long ago. She knows that there are tigers in the deep mountains, but she still dares to run into the mountains. I think she¡¯s very bold! I¡¯ll have to trouble you guys. As long as we find her, I¡¯ll treat all the men in the village to meat!¡± In fact, they were just helping each other out. After all, if someone else¡¯s wife ran away one day, he would need their help, which would return the favor. Therefore, treating everyone to a meal was unnecessary. But now that Dashan had said it, everyone became more enthusiastic and motivated. Dashan was going all out this time because he wouldn¡¯t allow a woman to play him like this. Even if he had to sell his mother¡¯s only silver earring, he had to find Yu Bing and torture her for the rest of her life! The commotion outside woke up the tired Yu Bing. Through the gaps in the plants, she saw that the sky was already bright outside. Yu Bing covered her mouth with both hands and moved deeper into the cave. On the other side, the subordinate Zhao Xing had sent out also contacted his informant again. After returning to the house that he was temporarily camping out in, he found Zhao Xing, who was talking to Xiao Sheng. ¡°Captain, I just received news that Wang Long just finished a business deal last night and returned to the county city early this morning.¡± Xiao Sheng suddenly stood up, while Zhao Xing began to get excited as well. He planned to reel in the net tonight. They had been waiting for this group of people for almost a month. Wang Long was very cunning. Others had three burrows, but he had ten! The order from the higher-ups was that everyone in the group had to be arrested. In order to ensure that not a single person was missed, they had delayed things until now. After Zhao Xing gathered everyone in the living room, he lowered his head to look at his watch. ¡°It¡¯s 2:13 now. We¡¯ll set off at 3:15 and will arrive at 3:15. Team One will be in charge of guarding the periphery to prevent anyone from escaping. Team Two and Team Three will follow me to capture them. Team Four will be on standby 50 meters away and assist in time. Team Five will wait at the five openings we found previously. Two people per opening! Start checking the ammunition now and make sufficient preparations for the operation later. Disperse!¡± Although there were only 50 people in this operation team, all of them were elites. Chapter 299 - 299 Rape 299 Rape Zhao Xing turned to Xiao Sheng and said, ¡°Wait here.¡± Xiao Sheng refused without thinking. ¡°Brother Xing, I want to go in with you. My martial arts skills might not be as good as yours, but I definitely won¡¯t hold you back. Moreover, you¡¯ve seen my spearmanship before. I know how to shoot too!¡± Xiao Sheng had never received formal training before, so Zhao Xing was really worried about bringing him. ¡°The group of people following Wang Long will most likely be sentenced to death if they¡¯re caught. They¡¯re a group of outlaws with guns, so they¡¯ll probably fight to the death!¡± Xiao Sheng wasn¡¯t intimidated by Zhao Xing¡¯s words at all. He stared straight back at him and said, ¡°Brother Xing, I can do it. My family has a shotgun and I¡¯ve grown up using it. I can take responsibility for my own decisions!¡± Zhao Xing knew Xiao Sheng¡¯s ability, but he was afraid that he would be injured. However, seeing the determination in Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes, he finally gave in. ¡°Follow behind Team 2!¡± Xiao Sheng knew that those people would be brought back for interrogation, but the wait made him feel panicked. He felt that the sooner he saw those people, the sooner he would know Yu Bing¡¯s whereabouts. 3:15 A.M. Teams 1 and 3 were already standing in their respective positions. Zhao Xing made a gesture. When a team member saw this, he quietly climbed up the two-meter-tall wall and jumped to the ground lightly. Then, he carefully opened the door from the inside, but it still made a slight sound. Zhao Xing shouted angrily, ¡°Quick, arrest them!¡± There were five rooms in the small courtyard. The four team members were in charge of searching one room. Everyone kicked open the door quickly. At this moment, most of them were still sleeping. ¡°Get up! Raise your hands! Cover your head and squat on the ground!¡± Accompanied by the light of the flashlights and shouts, the human traffickers woke up to see guns pointed at them. However, there were also people who were more vigilant. When the team members entered, a human trafficker in a room had already reached for a gun! When he saw the olive green outfit, he fired, so the first person to enter was shot. Fortunately, the other party¡¯s aim was off, and the team members were wearing bulletproof vests. After a chaotic battle, a human trafficker took advantage of the chaos to run to the courtyard. After Xiao Sheng hit the other party¡¯s knee with a small stone in his hand, the human trafficker fell to the ground. After Xiao Sheng strode forward and pressed his knee against the other party¡¯s back, he grabbed the other party¡¯s gun-wielding arm and smashed it against the ground. The gun fell out of his hand. Then, he pressed the human trafficker¡¯s hands against his back and caught the handcuffs Zhao Xing threw over. Xiao Sheng¡¯s movements were very swift, so swift that the human traffickers couldn¡¯t react in time. Zhao Xing revealed a satisfied expression. Two minutes later, everyone was handcuffed as they squatted in the courtyard. ¡°Captain, Wang Long ran away! This is his wife. When we went in, we saw her sitting on the bed in a daze.¡± Zhao Xing revealed a disdainful smile. ¡°Then let him enjoy the last few minutes of his life in the tunnel!¡± In Wang Long¡¯s room, there was a tunnel that could lead to five different exits outside. It was an emergency countermeasure for the current situation. Everyone looked at Wang Long¡¯s wife curiously. She looked like an ordinary rural woman, but she looked very calm, as if everything in front of her had nothing to do with her. At this moment, Xiao Sheng noticed a golden watch on the woman¡¯s hand. He immediately pulled the woman¡¯s arm and yanked off the watch! The color of the watch was very new, and there was the word YB on the side of the watch. Xiao Sheng had seen Yu Bing carve it with his own eyes when they were in C City. Yu Bing said that there were too many similar watches on the street, so she had to make a distinction! Xiao Sheng¡¯s voice was low, but the anxiousness in his eyes betrayed him. ¡°Where is the owner of this watch?¡± When the woman heard this, she turned her head and sized up Xiao Sheng as she asked calmly, ¡°What¡¯s your relationship with her?¡± Xiao Sheng replied, ¡°Friends!¡± The woman didn¡¯t answer his question. ¡°You like her?¡± she asked again. Xiao Sheng asked again with a cold expression, ¡°Where is she?¡± The woman didn¡¯t hide it anymore and told him about the village where Yu Bing was sold to ¡ªTunli Village. The woman looked at Xiao Sheng and said, ¡°Come here. I¡¯ll tell you a secret. It¡¯s very important!¡± Xiao Sheng looked at the woman suspiciously, but he didn¡¯t dare to miss out on anything. The woman waited for Xiao Sheng to come closer before saying slowly in a low voice, ¡°She was raped by Wang Long.¡± Xiao Sheng turned around and glared at the woman. The woman stared back at him without any guilt. Chapter 300 - 300 Lost and Recovered 300 Lost and Recovered Seeing Xiao Sheng¡¯s red eyes and cold aura, Mrs. Wang felt a little smug. She couldn¡¯t let Wang Long die so easily. He had to atone for his sins! Zhao Xing felt that something was wrong with Xiao Sheng and went forward to ask softly, ¡°What happened?¡± Xiao Sheng clenched his fists and shook his head. He couldn¡¯t say anything, since it concerned Yu Bing¡¯s reputation. At this moment, Wang Long was captured and brought back. When Xiao Sheng saw this, he rushed forward and punched Wang Long in the face. No one expected this. When the team members came back to their senses, both of Wang Long¡¯s teeth were already knocked out. Zhao Xing hugged Xiao Sheng tightly from behind and pulled him away as he shouted, ¡°You¡¯re out of your mind! What are you doing?!¡± After Xiao Sheng was stopped, he remained silent and only glared at Wang Long. Wang Long was so frightened that he hid behind the team. Zhao Xing didn¡¯t know what was going on with Xiao Sheng, but time was tight, so he couldn¡¯t be bothered to ask further. He brought Wang Long back to the temporary base to record his statement and interrogate him. Because Mrs. Wang was an informant that defected to Zhao Xing, everyone quickly found out the specific situation of a few villages from her. The four nearby villages were all Wang Long¡¯s big clients, so the villagers were very vigilant against strangers and even more vigilant against the police and soldiers. They were afraid that they would be discovered and that their wives would be released by the police. Although Xiao Sheng was also anxious, after knowing that the situation in these villages was complicated, he understood that he couldn¡¯t be impulsive. He could only wait for Zhao Xing to come up with a plan before taking action. The scope of this operation was wide. Zhao Xing had applied for the support of 400 people from the police force in City C. There were only four teams participating in the rescue operation. The team leader of each team was in charge of a village with 100 police officers. The goal of this operation was to save the kidnapped women and children in the village. Wang Long and the others had committed too many crimes, so the fifth team continued to interrogate them in the city¡¯s detention center. The village with the most transactions and the most complicated situation was Tunli Village, so Zhao Xing participated in the rescue operation. In order not to alert the villagers or give them time to transfer the kidnapped people, Zhao Xing¡¯s plan was to take the mountain path. At dawn, the main group began to set off. As Yu Bing looked at the feet that had just passed by the hole, her heart was about to jump out of her throat and she didn¡¯t dare to move at all. It wasn¡¯t until two hours after the sound disappeared that Yu Bing crawled out of the hole. After getting her bearings, Yu Bing continued forward. After walking for more than an hour, she suddenly felt a little dizzy. Yu Bing knew that her hypoglycemia might have acted up, so she could only sit down and rest for a while. Yu Bing saw many small yellow fruits hanging on a short tree and there were many traces of birds pecking. Although she didn¡¯t know what fruit it was, if animals could eat it, humans could basically eat it as well. Hence, she slowly stood up and picked a few. It tasted sour and sweet. Yu Bing simply ate the fruits as a meal. Just as she turned around and was about to leave, she saw Dashan walking towards her stealthily with dozens of people from afar. At the sight of this, Yu Bing ran in the opposite direction. ¡°B*tch, stop right there!¡± Dashan immediately ran forward. Yu Bing felt that she had never run so fast in her life, but men were stronger than women after all. After more than ten minutes, Yu Bing¡¯s speed was getting slower and slower. The distance between the two of them was getting closer and closer. When Yu Bing turned around again, she saw Dashan¡¯s hand on her shoulder. She was anxious and afraid. The next second, Yu Bing¡¯s arm was grabbed. Dashan slapped Yu Bing¡¯s face. ¡°How dare you run!¡± Last night was supposed to be his wedding night, but not only did he stay up the entire night, but he also had to use his mother¡¯s last pair of silver earrings as compensation, the more Dashan thought about it, the angrier he became. He slapped Yu Bing again, making her ears buzz. Dashan watched as Yu Bing returned to his control and revealed a smug smile. ¡°Run! Why aren¡¯t you running anymore?!¡± ¡°B*tch, I¡¯ll make up for yesterday¡¯s consummation now. Previously, you were flirting with Li Da, so don¡¯t tell me you¡¯ve already slept with a man before?¡± Dashan was very suspicious. As Dashan shouted at her, his foul breath wafted into her nose. She endured the fear as she said with a trembling voice, ¡°You can¡¯t touch me! I¡¯m still on my period.¡± Dashan was stunned for a moment. Then, he said indifferently, ¡°What has it got to do with me?!¡± Then, he grinned and revealed a wicked smile. ¡°Since you dared to run, you¡¯ll suffer the consequences! I¡¯ll let everyone see how you beg for mercy under me later! This is the punishment for escaping!¡± Yu Bing felt disgusted when she heard this and struggled violently. Chapter 301 - 301 Live 301 Live When the people following Dashan heard that there would be a live show, they were all extremely excited. They didn¡¯t mind watching. Moreover, they had only found her after a tiring night. All of them wanted to see a woman being tortured during sex, so they began to jeer! ¡°Dashan, this virgin is different from the widow at the entrance of the village. You have to control yourself. Be careful not to ejaculate too quickly!¡± When Dashan heard this, he turned around and smiled. ¡°This is the third time I¡¯ve done this already. On the other hand, you¡¯ve only ever had one wife, so why are you advising me?¡± Everyone burst into laughter. ¡°It¡¯s hard to say if she¡¯s still a virgin. Look at her fair and cute appearance. She¡¯s good at seducing men, so perhaps she¡¯s already been banged by quite a few men already! Dashan, if you hadn¡¯t caught her this time, she probably would have hooked up with another man!¡± ¡°That makes sense. Dashan, you didn¡¯t spend money to buy a woman that is second-hand goods, right? Hurry up and check the goods!¡± These words really agitated Dashan. He had already suspected that Yu Bing was promiscuous. Now that everyone thought so, he immediately felt that he had been cheated on. Dashan sized Yu Bing up and realized that none of the wives in the village were as good-looking as Yu Bing. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that Yu Bing and Li Da were already having an affair. ¡°F*ck! Did I buy a prostitute with only a pretty face? F*ck, b*tch!¡± With that, he patted Yu Bing¡¯s face hard. ¡°B*tch! If I find out later that you¡¯re not a virgin, you¡¯re dead!¡± When Yu Bing heard these insults, she immediately raised her hand and scratched Dashan¡¯s face. Five bloody marks appeared. Dashan cared about his reputation the most and it was great humiliation for him to be injured by a woman in public. He slowly turned around and glared at Yu Bing. Then, a sinister smile appeared on his lips as he shouted, ¡°If I don¡¯t torture you to death today, I won¡¯t live up to my reputation!¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t want to give up on this new life, so she kicked and hit him with her hands and feet. The worst-case scenario was that she angered Dashan and he killed her. However, this was better than being raped. Dashan pushed Yu Bing to the ground impatiently. Then, he spread his legs and knelt on Yu Bing as he began to unbuckle his belt. ¡°Stupid bitch! I¡¯ll make you lie on your stomach, you slut!¡± The surrounding people were watching excitedly and kept cheering at the side. When Dashan heard the jeers, Dashan became emboldened. He raised his hand to beat Yu Bing again to show the villagers his might as the head of the family. At this moment, Yu Bing saw a stone from the corner of her eye. She hurriedly picked up the stone and turned around to smash it at Dashan¡¯s head. When Dashan felt a liquid slide down his forehead, he wiped it with his hand and saw that half of his palm was covered in blood. His anger intensified. He pinched Yu Bing¡¯s face and glared at her sinisterly as he roared, ¡°You dare to hit me? After I torture you until you give birth, I¡¯ll break your legs and make you a prostitute for the men in the village. I¡¯ll let you have a taste of being banged by all the men in the village! At that time, I¡¯ll use the money you earn to buy an obedient virgin!¡± Yu Bing reached out and grabbed Dashan¡¯s pinky finger, then she bent it outwards. This was the weakest part of a person¡¯s finger. After Dashan loosened his grip in pain, Yu Bing took advantage of his distraction and immediately bent her knee towards Dashan¡¯s crotch. Dashan shouted in pain and cold sweat broke out on his head as he bent down to cover his crotch. Yu Bing sat up and tried to move back. When Dashan saw that Yu Bing wanted to take the opportunity to escape again, he endured the pain and grabbed Yu Bing¡¯s arm again. Just as his hand was about to touch her, red liquid suddenly seeped out of Dashan¡¯s shoulder with a muffled sound. ¡°Ah!¡± Dashan felt a sharp pain in his shoulder and was knocked back by the impact of the ammunition. Only then did everyone realize that while they were watching the commotion, people in olive green uniforms had appeared dozens of meters away! ¡°Police and soldiers!¡± ¡°Run!¡± Everyone began to escape. Seeing this, Yu Bing immediately stood up and rushed to Dashan¡¯s side. She slapped Dashan twice. Now that his right shoulder was shot and his testicles were in pain, he couldn¡¯t exert any strength at all and endured two slaps from Yu Bing. Yu Bing was still angry. When she saw the stone beside her, she picked it up and smashed it at Dashan¡¯s head. Once, twice, three times! Xiao Sheng stuck the gun behind his waist and watched with heartache as Yu Bing vented. Only when Dashan¡¯s head was bleeding did he stride forward and stop Yu Bing¡¯s hand from smashing down any further. ¡°Yu Bing! If you continue, he will die.¡± Yu Bing stared at Dashan with red eyes. Then, she raised her hand mechanically to repeat her actions. Only then did Xiao Sheng feel that something was wrong with Yu Bing. He shouted anxiously, ¡°Yu Bing! Yu Bing, don¡¯t scare me! It¡¯s not worth it to dirty your hands for such a person.¡± Chapter 302 - 302 Illegal 302 Illegal Yu Bing slowly regained her senses when she heard a familiar voice. She saw a familiar face, bloodshot eyes, and stubble around the person¡¯s lips. She was stunned for a moment before realizing who the person in front of her was. Yu Bing, who had been tense for so many days, suddenly relaxed and tears flowed out. After Xiao Sheng hugged Yu Bing tightly, he was overcome with the joy of finding her again. Yu Bing went from crying silently to sobbing softly, then to wailing. As she hugged Xiao Sheng tightly, she couldn¡¯t help but punch his back. ¡°Why are you only here now?! I thought you wouldn¡¯t be able to find me.¡± Xiao Sheng clenched his fists again and said with red eyes, ¡°No! No matter where you are, I¡¯ll be able to find you!¡± At this moment, Zhao Xing and the others captured Dashan and the others who tried to escape. When Dashan saw Yu Bing hugging another man, he was so angry that he forgot about being beaten up just now. This concerned the ego of a man! He shouted weakly, ¡°B*tch! How dare you hug another man in front of me? You¡¯re my wife. Get over here!¡± Xiao Sheng really wanted to go back and beat him up again, but the woman in his arms was more important now, so he clenched his fists and endured it. However, even though Xiao Sheng couldn¡¯t move, the others could. Zhao Xing punched Dashan and shouted in a rough voice, ¡°What are you shouting for? Do you know that raping a woman is illegal?!¡± Dashan panicked when he heard this. ¡°She¡¯s my wife. I spent money to buy her! What¡¯s wrong with f*cking my wife? Don¡¯t think that just because you guy are public officials, you can snatch someone else¡¯s wife!¡± Zhao Xing was so angry that he laughed. ¡°The law prohibits human trafficking. Leave your twisted logic for prison!¡± Dashan was still disobedient after being handcuffed by the police and continued to shout fiercely, ¡°She¡¯s mine since I spent money to buy her! Just you wait. I¡¯m going to sue you police officers for snatching my wife! Just wait to be fired!¡± A few minutes later, Yu Bing calmed down and came out of Xiao Sheng¡¯s arms. Only then did she realize the presence of the group of more than a hundred people. She hurriedly stood up. No matter how thick-skinned she was usually, she couldn¡¯t help but blush. Zhao Xing pretended not to see anything and greeted her very naturally, ¡°Miss Yu, long time no see.¡± Yu Bing replied awkwardly, ¡°Long time no see, Mr. Zhao.¡± Time was tight, so Zhao Xing didn¡¯t plan to waste time on pleasantries. ¡°Miss Yu, we¡¯re going to Tunli Village to save the kidnapped people. We don¡¯t have any extra people to send you guys back to the county city, so you have to come with us first.¡± The situation here was complicated, so it was definitely safest to stay with the main group. Yu Bing agreed without hesitation. For a few days in a row, Xiao Sheng had only washed up simply and didn¡¯t have the time to tidy up himself. This was the first time Yu Bing had seen Xiao Sheng so unkempt and it would be a lie to say that she wasn¡¯t touched. Yu Bing came out in a hurry, so she didn¡¯t leave any clues. After she was kidnapped, she had been telling herself that only she could save herself. However, deep down, she still hoped that someone could save her. That was why the moment she saw Xiao Sheng, she suddenly lost it. The group continued on their way. When Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing¡¯s swollen cheeks, he frowned. ¡°Who hit you?¡± Previously, Yu Bing was too agitated, so he couldn¡¯t ask, but now, he definitely couldn¡¯t let it go. Yu Bing noticed Xiao Sheng¡¯s gaze and gently touched her face with her hand. It hurt a lot when she touched it, so she started complaining angrily, ¡°It¡¯s that man! He married two wives before and beat them when they were pregnant, causing them to lose their children. Li Da even said that he killed those two wives!¡± As Yu Bing spoke, she raised her hand to point at Dashan. Zhao Xing clenched his fists when he heard this. For a scumbag like him, even being shot to death was considered light punishment. Xiao Sheng felt that he had hit him too lightly and clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles creaked. He looked at Zhao Xing with a dark expression as he said, ¡°Brother Xing.¡± Zhao Xing turned his head to look at Xiao Sheng before silently turning his head to look in front. It was only because he was a public official that he refrained from hitting him. Now, he could only mutter softly, ¡°Leave him alive for the judge to sentence.¡± Zhao Xing decided to start ignoring everything that happened from now on. As for when he would start pursuing responsibility again, that would depend on the situation. After Xiao Sheng obtained tacit approval, he walked towards Dashan and said to the police officer in charge of escorting them, ¡°Buddy, can I help you escort them since I have nothing to do?¡± Chapter 303 - 303 Women Have to Be Hit 303 Women Have to Be Hit The two police officers exchanged looks. To be able to participate in such an operation as an ordinary person, Xiao Sheng was probably well-connected. Therefore, they hurriedly smiled and said, ¡°Thank you.¡± Without the police officers restraining him, Dashan looked at Xiao Sheng in confusion. His first reaction was to run, but when he saw so many police officers in front of him, he gave up struggling. However, Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t give him a chance to give up. He said, ¡°Run.¡± Dashan wasn¡¯t stupid. When he saw Yu Bing¡¯s intimate actions with the man in front of him just now, he guessed that the two of them had a close relationship. Since the odds were against him, he didn¡¯t plan to fight. He would report both of them together when he reached the government, so he said, ¡°I didn¡¯t touch her!¡± Xiao Sheng suddenly smiled, but the look in his eyes was terrifying. ¡°Which hand did you hit her with?¡± Dashan was about the same height as Xiao Sheng, but he was much more muscular than Xiao Sheng. However, in the face of Xiao Sheng¡¯s terrifying expression, Dashan felt a trace of fear. He could only try to instill his ideals into Xiao Sheng. ¡°Brother, women have to be beaten. If not, they won¡¯t listen. If you had disciplined her well, would she have run out and get kidnapped?¡± Yu Bing, who was following behind Xiao Sheng, couldn¡¯t help but jump out when she heard this. She endured the pain on her cheek as she complained, ¡°Bullsh*t! My kidnapping was caused by human traffickers and buyers like you. You¡¯re the ones who broke the law. Stop blaming the victim!¡± Only then did Dashan notice Yu Bing¡¯s petite figure and he looked at Yu Bing with anger. He was certain that these people were lured over by Yu Bing. ¡°How dare a woman interrupt when a man is talking?!¡± ¡°Buddy, did you see that? She has no manners at all! If my woman dares to speak to me like that, I¡¯ll kill her in bed!¡± As soon as he finished speaking, Xiao Sheng kicked Dashan¡¯s abdomen again, causing him to retreat a few meters. ¡°I originally thought that you only had too many hands, but now it seems that you have a potty mouth too. Your family didn¡¯t teach you well, so I¡¯ll do it for them!¡± Xiao Sheng said coldly. When Dashan saw that Xiao Sheng¡¯s fist was already in front of him, he could only raise his hand to block it. Xiao Sheng¡¯s punch landed on Dashan¡¯s arm, but it still forced him a few steps back. They had stopped in their tracks to speak just now, so now, they had already fallen behind the main group. Dashan knew that he couldn¡¯t defeat Xiao Sheng, so he ran forward. ¡°I¡¯m going to get beaten to death. I want to call the police!¡± Xiao Sheng calmly picked up two small stones and hit Dashan¡¯s knees. After the burly man fell and broke his front teeth, the people who saw it chuckled, but they kept walking forward. No one helped him. Everyone¡¯s family had female relatives. As long as they thought about how their family¡¯s female relatives might be trafficked to such a man, they had the urge to beat him up themselves. Xiao Sheng walked forward and broke Dashan¡¯s hands, which were still covering his mouth in pain. ¡°Since you¡¯re not answering, I¡¯ll assume that you used both hands to hit her.¡± Looking at Dashan¡¯s limp arms, Xiao Sheng smiled in satisfaction. Yu Bing smiled and praised, ¡°Those hands are used to harm the weak, so by breaking them, you¡¯re getting rid of evil for the people!¡± When Xiao Sheng looked at the lively expression on Yu Bing¡¯s face and thought of the news he had obtained from Mrs. Wang, his heart ached even more for Yu Bing. He felt that she was forcing a smile. In order not to let Yu Bing think of sad things again, Xiao Sheng could only pretend not to know. Yu Bing didn¡¯t know that her chastity had been completely ruined by Mrs. Wang out of selfish desires. She was still excited that she could participate in the rescue of the victims. Last night, when the people of Tunli Village received the message, they gathered the entire village¡¯s young and strong to rush to the vicinity. However, because they still had to work in the fields today and everyone was tired from searching all night, only twenty-odd people from Tunli Village followed Dashan. The other villagers had all returned to work. Before coming, Zhao Xing had already found out from the county¡¯s household registration office that there were 167 villagers registered in Tunli Village. At this time, household registration wasn¡¯t as strict as in the future. There were definitely some people who had hidden things for various reasons, but there should not be more than 50 people. There were 95 strong laborers in the entire village, while the police and Zhao Xing¡¯s team, together with Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing, had a total of 113 people. They had the advantage in numbers, but they were not familiar with the way! When they arrived at the forest outside the village, Zhao Xing planned to send the five team members to change into plain clothes to enter the village to investigate and understand the road conditions. When he turned around and saw Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng, he suddenly had a better idea. ¡°Mr. Yu, Xiao Sheng, can the two of you disguise yourselves as people who are going to buy chili peppers and infiltrate the village? Our team can only observe from the periphery.¡± Chapter 304 - 304 Pretending to Be a Couple 304 Pretending to Be a Couple It was easy for people to be alarmed when five men entered the village, but a man and a woman weren¡¯t that suspicious. When the time came, they would cooperate from the inside out! Xiao Sheng¡¯s first reaction was that he couldn¡¯t take the risk with Yu Bing. Just as he was about to object, Yu Bing agreed before him. ¡°No problem. I¡¯ll help if I can! I definitely won¡¯t expose the plan.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t overlook the worry in Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes. She wasn¡¯t stupid and it was because there were so many people on their side that she agreed, so she whispered to Xiao Sheng, ¡°It¡¯s fine. Don¡¯t I still have you? There are still so many people outside. If we only observe from the periphery, there will definitely be people who will move the victims quickly and hide them.¡± Xiao Sheng was silent, but there was still disapproval on his face. Yu Bing touched her nose and said sheepishly, ¡°I¡¯ll run as soon as I see any danger. I promise I¡¯ll follow you closely.¡± Zhao Xing also said, ¡°There are so many of us, so we definitely won¡¯t let anything happen to you!¡± Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing and Zhao Xing. He could only compromise, so he took out a dagger from his lower back and handed it to Yu Bing. ¡°Wear it on your pants.¡± Yu Bing immediately obeyed. Because Yu Bing had a wound on her face, and in order to make it easier for her to infiltrate the village, after discussion, they decided to let Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng use the ruse of helping the food factory purchase items and masquerade as husband and wife. Moreover, Xiao Sheng had the persona of a domestic abuser. Most of these men who bought wives treated women as objects. They would beat them up and scold them often. They didn¡¯t treat women as humans at all. Xiao Sheng¡¯s image as a domestic abuser could make them lower their guard. Because she had been escaping all night, Yu Bing was in a sorry state. The two of them first found a place with a stream to wash up before entering the village. Tunli Village¡¯s fields were not concentrated in front of the village, like those of He Mountain Village. Their land was distributed in two places in front and behind the village. When Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing walked to the field at the entrance of the village, they realized that the women in the fields were all over 30 years old. There were no young women. When someone realized that Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng were not from their village, they immediately walked to the field and asked loudly, ¡°Who are you guys? Which family are you guys from?¡± Xiao Sheng smiled as he took out the recommendation letter. Then, he handed it forward. ¡°We¡¯re from the Food Factory in City H. We¡¯re here to set up an office in City T. I heard that your village is rich in chili, so I wanted to come over to take a look at the quality. If it¡¯s good, our office will purchase it.¡± At this time, it was the season for the chili harvest. This was a side hustle of the village, so they didn¡¯t have to report to the government. Therefore, the villagers who surrounded them didn¡¯t suspect anything. ¡°Great. This way, we won¡¯t have to go all the way over there to sell it!¡± ¡°I know right? It¡¯s simply delaying me from spending time with my woman!¡± ¡°Who¡¯s Yu Bing?¡± the person holding the recommendation letter asked. Xiao Sheng introduced, ¡°Yu Bing is my wife. My name is Xiao Sheng.¡± The person holding the recommendation letter was the village chief of Tunli Village, Chen Jiang. He sized up the timid Yu Bing, who was following closely behind Xiao Sheng. ¡°You only manage the business, but your wife is the factory director?¡± Xiao Sheng smiled in disdain. ¡°The factory director position is just an empty title. I have the final say at home.¡± Everyone hooted. ¡°That¡¯s how it should be. How can we let a woman surpass us, men?¡± Chen Jiang didn¡¯t immediately lose his vigilance as the villagers did. He looked at Yu Bing¡¯s face and asked, ¡°Miss Yu, what¡¯s with your face?¡± Xiao Sheng turned around and glanced at her indifferently as he said, ¡°I taught her a lesson for being insensible. This morning, she told me that she wanted to eat meat for lunch. This is my hard-earned money?!¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t this the same as the Liu family? So what if Mr. Liu¡¯s wife is the female director? She still gets beaten up by Mr. Liu when she gets home. If she dares to disobey, she¡¯ll be taught a lesson!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that the higher-ups insisted on choosing a woman to take this position, a mere woman wouldn¡¯t have had anything to do with this position! Mr. Liu beat her up a lot because of this.¡± ¡°Hahaha, Mr. Liu is just a farmer, so it would be strange if he wasn¡¯t angry that his wife is an official. He has to beat her up every day to relieve his envy! She probably gets tortured even more in bed at night!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll testify to this. I heard his wife begging for mercy at night. Isn¡¯t he afraid of torturing her to death?¡± ¡°What¡¯s the big deal? Hasn¡¯t his daughter grown up already? He can use his daughter to exchange for a new wife. If not, he can save up money and buy a new one¡­¡± Before the man could finish speaking, he heard the village chief cough twice, so the man shut up. When Yu Bing heard their disrespect for women and their utter disregard for the lives of others, she was so angry that she could only grab her bag tightly to suppress her anger. She had to act respectful and virtuous, as well as keep up the impression that Xiao Sheng beat and scold her often. Chapter 305 - 305 Cash Return 305 Cash Return As the village chief, Chen Jiang went to the commune for meetings often. He was disdainful of the commune¡¯s principle of gender equality, but many villages were supporting it. However, no matter what, he wouldn¡¯t allow gender equality in Tunli Village, which he ruled over. Because their village was the most remote from the commune, the leaders rarely came over to inspect. Even if they did, the men in those families would hide them. Therefore, Chen Jiang¡¯s noncompliance was never discovered. When he saw that Xiao Sheng had the same attitude, he immediately felt a sense of kinship with him! Chen Jiang extended an olive branch. ¡°You¡¯re welcome to purchase goods!¡± Xiao Sheng smiled and shook Chen Jiang¡¯s hand. ¡°I want to see the crops first.¡± Because the village was remote, many people were unwilling to come to buy it. The villagers could only send the crops to the supply company in town themselves and the price wasn¡¯t high. Therefore, Chen Jiang took this matter quite seriously. ¡°No problem. Chen Ping, Jiang He, come with me to accompany Xiao Sheng. The rest of you, hurry up and disperse!¡± After watching the commotion, everyone obediently dispersed. On the way into the village, Chen Jiang continued to look at Xiao Sheng suspiciously. ¡°Why did you come all the way here to collect them?¡± Xiao Sheng made up an excuse without batting an eye. ¡°Transportation is inconvenient, so the further you go, the cheaper it will be. I know that the price you sell to the supply company at is lower than its actual value. You¡¯re a practical person. My price isn¡¯t higher than the price the supply company pays, but I can get someone to come in and collect¡­¡± After Xiao Sheng looked at the two villagers accompanying him, he leaned closer to Chen Jiang and whispered, ¡°Moreover, I¡¯ll give you 0.02 yuan for every catty. I also want to earn some profit from it.¡± When Chen Jiang heard this, he revealed a meaningful smile. ¡°I understand! Don¡¯t worry, I am the one who makes the decision!¡± After Chen Jiang finished speaking, he began to plan. Every year, he would sell two to three thousand catties of chili during the harvest. This meant that he could earn 50 to 60 catties! Tunli Village was extremely poor. Chen Jiang, who was the village chief, only little money every year even after embezzling. If he could help Xiao Sheng facilitate this matter, he could easily get more money. If they could cooperate over the long term, his family would have an additional fixed income every year. This was a great thing! With this in mind, Chen Jiang looked at Xiao Sheng even more fervently. He glanced at his right-hand men and suddenly felt that they were in the way, so he said, ¡°Go to my house and ask my wife to cook more food today. I want to keep Brother Xiao for lunch. After informing her, you guys can go to the fields. There¡¯s a lot of work to do today.¡± Yu Bing suppressed her laughter when she heard Xiao Sheng¡¯s lies. The division of labor between the two of them was very clear. Xiao Sheng was in charge of diverting everyone¡¯s attention while she thought of a way to secretly figure out the situation in the village. Now that Chen Jiang had sent the two of them away, Yu Bing walked behind them slowly and began to size up the houses. Tunli Village was completely different from He Mountain Village. The houses here were very concentrated. Yu Bing guessed that it was to control the woman they had bought better. At such a close distance, if there was any commotion, they would quickly discover it. Unfortunately, all the doors were locked at this moment, so Yu Bing couldn¡¯t see the situation in the houses. At that moment, a pregnant woman in tattered clothes ran over. Her face and hair were dirty and messy. ¡°Go home. I want to go home.¡± Chen Jiang quickly stopped her and shouted at a house behind the road, ¡°Jiang He¡¯s mother! Your daughter-in-law is acting up again!¡± Jiang He¡¯s mother had been cooking in the house and didn¡¯t notice that her daughter-in-law had run away. When she heard Chen Jiang¡¯s voice, she hurriedly ran out. ¡°This lunatic really thinks I¡¯m not busy enough. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that she has a child in her stomach, I would have beaten her to death!¡± Chen Jiang glared at Jiang He¡¯s mother and signaled with his eyes that there were outsiders in her village. ¡°Alright, hurry up and bring her back.¡± Jiang He¡¯s mother didn¡¯t dare to say anything else. The woman who had been causing trouble was so frightened that she didn¡¯t dare to move when she saw Jiang He¡¯s mother and let her drag her away. Chen Jiang was afraid that Xiao Sheng would notice something, so he smiled helplessly and said, ¡°One can¡¯t help but complain when one has a mentally ill daughter-in-law.¡± Xiao Sheng smiled in understanding and pointed at Yu Bing. ¡°That¡¯s normal. How many times has my mother said she would beat her to death? Isn¡¯t she still fine?¡± As Yu Bing watched as the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law entered the second house in front, she had an idea and tugged at the corner of Xiao Sheng¡¯s shirt. When she saw him turn around, she carefully raised her head and said softly, ¡°Hubby, I want to go to the bathroom.¡± Xiao Sheng was shocked by this form of address. Fortunately, he immediately came back to his senses and said impatiently, ¡°You¡¯re so troublesome! You don¡¯t even know anyone. Where do you plan to go?¡± Chapter 306 - 306 Containing the Brain 306 Containing the Brain Yu Bing acted afraid that Xiao Sheng wouldn¡¯t let her go, so she said anxiously, ¡°That auntie¡¯s house is just ahead. There are people at her house, so I¡¯ll go there. I won¡¯t delay your discussion.¡± At this moment, Xiao Sheng turned to Chen Jiang and said, ¡°Mr. Chen, can she borrow your village¡¯s bathroom?¡± At this point, Chen Jiang couldn¡¯t refuse. His house was still a distance away, so it would be strange if he didn¡¯t agree to such a small request. He could only smile and say, ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll bring you guys there.¡± Chen Jiangli started shouting from afar, ¡°Jiang He¡¯s mother, the guest is coming to your house to borrow the bathroom.¡± The three of them waited at the Jiang family¡¯s house for a few seconds before someone opened the door. Jiang He¡¯s mother smiled and explained, ¡°Sorry for the delay. I was cooking, so my hands were tied.¡± Yu Bing took a step forward and said, ¡°Sorry to trouble you, Auntie. I might have drunk too much water this morning.¡± Jiang He¡¯s mother had a round face, so she looked very kind when she smiled. ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s inevitable when you¡¯re outside.¡± Yu Bing followed Jiang He¡¯s mother to the small courtyard. Seeing this, Xiao Sheng suggested looking at the chili plants planted in the vegetable field beside the Jiang family¡¯s house. There were a few vegetable fields beside the Jiang family¡¯s house, which were probably cultivated by the nearby families. Chen Jiang thought of Yu Bing¡¯s swollen cheek and glanced at Xiao Sheng. He felt that since the man in front of him could be so ruthless to his wife, he wasn¡¯t a kind person. At the very least, he wasn¡¯t a righteous person like the police or soldiers. He hesitated for a few seconds before agreeing. The Jiang family had three rooms. After entering the courtyard, there was a living room directly opposite it. There were two rooms on the left and right of the living room. There was also a large lock on the right that locked the door. The room on the left of the small courtyard was used as the kitchen, and there was a bathroom built from a few cupboards on the right. Yu Bing ran the water to pretend that she was using the bathroom. When she left the bathroom, she saw Jiang He¡¯s mother waiting for her in the courtyard, so she smiled and said, ¡°Auntie, do you grow chili at home too?¡± Because Yu Bing¡¯s face was still red and swollen, her smile looked a little strange, but Jiang He¡¯s mother was used to it. Men in the village didn¡¯t hold back when beating their wives, so Yu Bing¡¯s swollen face made her feel like they were from the same village. She replied with a smile, ¡°Yes, every family plants them.¡± Yu Bing pretended to be happy and deliberately grinned, which tug at the wound on her cheek. Then, she hurriedly covered both sides of her face as she hissed in pain. As expected, Jiang He¡¯s mother¡¯s attention was diverted to that, and she asked curiously, ¡°What did you do wrong? Your man hit you so hard.¡± Yu Bing replied with feigned aggrievement, ¡°I felt a little hungry today and wanted to eat meat, but my man thinks I¡¯m spending money recklessly.¡± Jiang He¡¯s mother glanced at Yu Bing and pursed her lips. ¡°It¡¯s not that I want to criticize you, but how can a woman be so greedy? After a woman gets married, she should prioritize her man. Even if there¡¯s meat, it¡¯s for the man to eat. No wonder you were beaten up.¡± ¡°Listen to me. During the new year and other holidays, women can eat one or two pieces of meat, but you have to leave good things for your men so that you can live a better life. You guys look so young. You guys just got married, right?¡± Jiang He¡¯s mother¡¯s originally kind face looked so mean under the effect of the narrow-minded words she spoke. Crazy! Everyone in the village was crazy! In feudal society, the east bound women¡¯s feet, while the west bound women¡¯s waists. The entire world had entered the modern era, so those traditions had been abolished. However, some people still had the same backward mentality! Yu Bing scolded her inwardly, but on the surface, she still listened obediently and nodded. ¡°I just got married a few months ago.¡± Jiang He¡¯s mother looked enlightened. ¡°No wonder you don¡¯t know anything. But your man is a little too hot-tempered. Look at your swollen face!¡± Yu Bing looked at Jiang He¡¯s mother gratefully. ¡°You¡¯re so kind. No one has even taught me these things before, so I didn¡¯t know. I wouldn¡¯t have been beaten up so much if I had a mother-in-law like you. You even treat your crazy daughter-in-law so well.¡± When Jiang He¡¯s mother saw how docile and obedient Yu Bing was, a smug expression appeared on her face. ¡°I¡¯m indeed an easygoing person. I¡¯ve always stopped my son whenever my daughter-in-law was beaten up. Otherwise, how many times would she have gotten beaten up by my son?¡± Yu Bing knew how to curry favor with such people, so she chatted with Jiang He¡¯s mother about the etiquette of feudal society. Under Yu Bing¡¯s intentional compliance, the two of them hit it off. Jiang He¡¯s mother found Yu Bing¡¯s obedient appearance even more pleasing to the eye and chatted with her amiably, like a neighbor. Yu Bing looked at Jiang He¡¯s mother with a regretful expression. ¡°Aunt, you should have let your son marry a normal woman. Only then can she serve the man and mother-in-law well.¡± Chapter 307 - 307 Probe 307 Probe Jiang He¡¯s mother was annoyed at the mention of that. There was certainly no problem when she bought this daughter-in-law, but the woman was stubborn and kept looking for an opportunity to escape. They would find her after she ran away and beat her up, beating her harder and harder every time. Her legs were broken once, but it was still useless. Once, she actually ran to town and almost ran into the police station. Fortunately, the villagers arrived in time to stop her. That time, she angered her son to the extreme. After dragging her back to the village, he raped her at the entrance of the village in front of everyone. After that, she lost her sanity, but the upside was that she no longer tried to escape. Jiang He¡¯s mother lamented, ¡°She was fine when my son married her. Jiang He wanted to marry a city dweller, so he chose her. What a pity that my son bought such a disobedient woman.¡± Realizing that she had said something she shouldn¡¯t have, Jiang He¡¯s mother subconsciously covered her mouth. However, Yu Bing acted as if she didn¡¯t notice anything wrong. After she glanced at the only room in the courtyard with the door tightly closed, she changed the topic tactfully. ¡°Auntie, I want to drink some water. My throat is very dry.¡± Jiang He¡¯s mother glanced at Yu Bing from the corner of her eye a few times. She saw that Yu Bing didn¡¯t seem to notice anything amiss, so she said, ¡°Wait a moment. I¡¯ll get you a bowl of water.¡± Yu Bing took this opportunity to approach the locked room and look through the gap in the door. The gap in the door was a little wide, so Yu Bing could clearly see that the slightly pregnant woman was chained to the head of the bed next to the door. While she was watching, she met the eyes of this so-called lunatic. She still had a silly expression on her face and her eyes were listless as she shouted softly, ¡°Go back to City B¡¯s cotton mill. You¡¯ll be rich if you go.¡± Although the woman¡¯s voice was soft, Yu Bing, who was outside the door, heard every word clearly. Yu Bing recalled that in the future of her previous life, there had been cases of women escaping captivity by pretending to be mentally insane. Her eyes lit up and she asked, ¡°Your family owns a cotton mill? Our factory has an office there too. It¡¯s not far from the cotton mill.¡± Feng Cai and Liu Jian were running errands around City B. Yu Bing didn¡¯t know where the office was located, but it didn¡¯t stop her from using this as an excuse to test the other party. Tian Lin paused for a moment. When she heard Yu Bing¡¯s reply, she was also conflicted about whether to respond to her. She had heard the conversation in the courtyard just now and knew that this woman¡¯s thoughts seemed to be similar to those of the people in Tunli Village, but the information she revealed tempted her too much. Very few people came to the village from outside. The number of outsiders Tian Lin had seen in the past three years could be counted on one hand. If she missed this opportunity, she didn¡¯t know how much longer she would have to wait. It was too difficult for her to escape alone. If she could find help, her chances of escaping would be higher. Should she take a gamble? Unable to make up her mind, Tian Lin clenched her fists tightly. Seeing that the woman was silent, Yu Bing thought that she was worried about her, so she whispered, ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid. I¡¯m not a bad person. We¡¯re here to save you. Our main force is in the forest at the entrance of the village. As long as the information in the village is sent out, everyone can be saved. Do you have any way to bring us around?¡± Tian Lin was stunned when she heard this. It had been three years! She had never given up! She had pretended to be a lunatic for almost two years before the Jiang family let down their guard and she had figured out a lot of routes. Today, she finally saw hope. Even if this woman was a liar, she had enough of this place already, so she was willing to take a gamble! After Tian Lin walked forward, she stood still a meter away from the door. Her tears couldn¡¯t stop flowing as she said in a quivering voice, ¡°My family owns a cotton mill. As long as you save me, I can give you money! My family is very rich!¡± Seeing that Tian Lin was very rational, Yu Bing heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed that she had made the right bet. However, before she could say anything to comfort Tian Lin, an interrogative voice suddenly came from behind. ¡°Why are you standing there?!¡± When Jiang He¡¯s mother saw Yu Bing standing outside her son¡¯s room, she sized her up. Yu Bing¡¯s heart skipped a beat and her back was instantly drenched in cold sweat. After she took a deep breath and turned around, she pretended to cower as she replied softly, ¡°I heard a sound inside just now and was curious to take a look.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you thirsty? I brought you water.¡± Jiang He¡¯s mother handed over the bowl in her hand, but whether she believed Yu Bing¡¯s words or not was unknown. Yu Bing¡¯s heart was pounding, but she walked forward and drank the water calmly, as if nothing had happened. At this moment, Chen Jiang and Xiao Sheng also returned to the Jiang family¡¯s house. The two of them were chatting happily. Jiang He¡¯s mother looked at Chen Jiang and hesitated for a moment before deciding to report Yu Bing¡¯s actions to him. After all, Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing were outsiders! ¡°Village Chief.¡± Jiang He¡¯s mother quietly gestured to speak with Chen Jiang. Chapter 308 - 308 Alarmed 308 Alarmed Chen Jiang was talking excitedly when he was suddenly interrupted. He looked a little unhappy, but when he saw Jiang He¡¯s mother¡¯s anxious expression, he said to Xiao Sheng, ¡°There might be something urgent, so I¡¯ll go have a chat with her first.¡± After Xiao Sheng nodded, Chen Jiang followed Jiang He¡¯s mother a few meters towards the door and stopped to ask. Jiang He¡¯s mother told him what she had seen just now. ¡°I also heard something about a large army at the village entrance. I was a little far away at that time, so I couldn¡¯t hear clearly.¡± Chen Jiang¡¯s expression froze. When he looked at Xiao Sheng, his previous amiable expression turned cold. Yu Bing thought to herself that this was bad, but at this moment, she could only deal with whatever came her way. Frightened by Chen Jiang¡¯s sudden change of expression, she approached Xiao Sheng timidly and quickly explained what had just happened in a low voice. Xiao Sheng¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change, but he was already prepared for the worst. Before the matter was resolved, Chen Jiang naturally wouldn¡¯t lay things out on the table immediately. No matter what, he had to find someone to go to the village entrance to investigate the situation before making plans. If it was a misunderstanding, he would lose the opportunity to earn extra money. ¡°It¡¯s not easy for two guests to come all the way here, so let¡¯s go to my house to rest first.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s heart skipped a beat. He knew that this meant they had been exposed, but he still nodded calmly. ¡°Then I¡¯ll oblige.¡± As he spoke, he approached Chen Jiang. Before Chen Jiang could react, he suddenly punched Chen Jiang¡¯s temple. Jiang He¡¯s mother was so frightened that her face turned pale. Just as she was about to shout, Yu Bing pressed a dagger to her neck. ¡°Watch your mouth, or I¡¯ll slash your neck!¡± With her life in Yu Bing¡¯s hands, Jiang He¡¯s mother quickly nodded. Seeing that the situation had been stabilized, Yu Bing heaved a sigh of relief. As she felt the sweat in her palm, she felt a lingering fear. However, in the next moment, an exclamation came from outside the door, instantly disrupting the situation. ¡°Yu Bing!¡± A familiar voice made Yu Bing look out the door. It was Dashan¡¯s mother! After Dashan¡¯s mother was beaten up, she stayed at her brother¡¯s house for the night. Because she was anxious about whether Dashan would find his wife, she immediately rushed back after she felt a little better. It was precisely because of this that Dashan¡¯s mother happened to miss the rescue team going to the village to save people. She didn¡¯t expect to see the scene in front of her. After recovering from her shock, she immediately ran towards the entrance of the village. As she ran, she shouted, ¡°Help! There are outsiders killing people!¡± Xiao Sheng immediately chased after her, while Yu Bing knocked Jiang He¡¯s mother unconscious and found a bunch of keys from her body. She hurriedly released Tian Lin and anxiously arranged, ¡°Think of a way to report to the main force! They¡¯re in the forest at the entrance of the village. Find them and tell someone called Zhao Xing about the situation in the village.¡± Tian Lin asked in surprise, ¡°What about you?! All the women they caught ended up miserable!¡± The reason Yu Bing arranged this was because she was an unfamiliar face and wasn¡¯t familiar with the way. The two of them were too conspicuous and it wouldn¡¯t be easy to hide from them. At that time, they would really be helpless. Yu Bing said with a serious expression, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. I have my own arrangements. Hurry up and leave!¡± Seeing this, Tian Lin didn¡¯t continue to persuade her. She turned around and jogged out the door. On the other side, Xiao Sheng had caught Dashan¡¯s mother, but the matter had already spread. Xiao Sheng could only bring Dashan¡¯s mother back to the Jiang family¡¯s home first. Yu Bing, who was looking for handy tools in the room, saw Xiao Sheng enter and asked, ¡°What should we do next?¡± Xiao Sheng frowned at Dashan¡¯s mother. Dashan¡¯s mother¡¯s heart skipped a beat when she saw Xiao Sheng looking at her coldly. After she looked at the two people who had already been knocked down to the ground, she mustered her courage to say, ¡°The village is filled with our people. You can¡¯t escape. If you let me go, I can help you plead for leniency.¡± Xiao Sheng sneered and knocked her out with his knife. Then, he pulled Yu Bing¡¯s arm. ¡°Let¡¯s leave quickly. Those villagers will find us soon.¡± Yu Bing nodded, and the two of them left Jiang He¡¯s house. Xiao Sheng had only strolled around the vicinity just now and didn¡¯t know the terrain well, so he and Yu Bing found a place to hide and look for suitable weapons. When the two of them saw that a certain house¡¯s door was unlocked, they hurriedly pushed the door open and entered. They saw a crippled middle-aged woman cooking. When she sensed the two strangers in front of her, she picked up the kitchen knife warily and asked, ¡°Who are you two?!¡± Yu Bing immediately went forward with a smile. ¡°We came to the food factory to buy chili.¡± Chapter 309 - 309 Blind Woman 309 Blind Woman The blind woman didn¡¯t let down her guard. ¡°How can you guys walk around the village so casually? Don¡¯t come over, or I¡¯ll call for help!¡± Yu Bing continued to speak to divert the woman¡¯s attention. When Xiao Sheng saw that the blind woman was distracted for a moment, he ran forward and restrained the woman¡¯s hand before snatching the knife away. Xiao Sheng pressed the knife against the blind woman¡¯s neck and said fiercely, ¡°If you dare to shout, don¡¯t blame me for attacking!¡± The woman immediately fell silent. Seeing this, Xiao Sheng said to Yu Bing, ¡°See if there are any abducted women and children in this family.¡± Yu Bing found an unconscious woman with bloody legs and a high fever. At this moment, the blind woman asked in surprise, ¡°Are you two the police?¡± Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng exchanged looks, but didn¡¯t answer. The blind woman cried and laughed at the same time. ¡°Why are you guys here so late?!¡± The two of them realized that this middle-aged woman had been kidnapped too, so Xiao Sheng put down the knife and Yu Bing walked forward to comfort her gently. ¡°Everything will be over. Our people will be here soon.¡± The blind woman wiped her tears and shook her head. ¡°I¡¯ve run many times, so my man beat my legs and eyes into this state.¡± When Yu Bing saw the blind woman¡¯s miserable appearance, she was about to say something encouraging when the villagers¡¯ voices came from outside the door. ¡°Let¡¯s look over there! I don¡¯t believe they¡¯re gone. It¡¯s not like they¡¯ve grown wings and can fly!¡± ¡°There are people guarding the edge of the village, so they must still be in the village!¡± ¡°Let¡¯s knock on every door one by one!¡± As soon as he finished speaking, there was a knock on the house where Yu Bing and the others were hiding. The blind woman was stunned for a moment, but hurriedly wiped her tears and said, ¡°Go to the kitchen and hide. I¡¯ll send them away.¡± Seeing this, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng immediately went to the kitchen beside the door. The blind woman replied to the door, ¡°Coming.¡± She quickly opened the door and pointed at the kitchen. ¡°Two people came to my house just now and are hiding in the kitchen now!¡± Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t expect the blind woman to betray them. Looking at the villagers blocking the kitchen door, Yu Bing was shocked and said to the woman by the door angrily, ¡°Weren¡¯t you kidnapped?¡± The woman sneered. ¡°I wasn¡¯t lying to you, but my son is already 15 years old. It wasn¡¯t easy for us to survive until now, and I bought him a wife to serve me. If you guys dare to ruin things, you¡¯re my enemies! You can only blame yourselves for coming so late!¡± Just because she was drenched by the rain, she wanted to knock off someone else¡¯s umbrella. The bold girl who once resisted injustice was harmed by the malice of this village and turned to the side of evil. Yu Bing was silent, but she didn¡¯t dare to agree. ¡°Don¡¯t waste time talking nonsense with them! Arrest them!¡± A shout came from the back of the crowd. It was Chen Jiang¡¯s angry voice. He had just been woken up by someone who splashed cold water on him, so he went out to capture them. Looking at the crowd who rushed in, Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing raised the wooden sticks they had found in the kitchen and began to counterattack. Fortunately, after he was robbed on his trip to S City, Xiao Sheng taught Yu Bing a few simple self-defense techniques. These villagers were only strong, but Yu Bing¡¯s moves relied on her cleverness and the advantage of her petite physique to resist for a while. However, outnumbered, Yu Bing was gradually exhausted and got caught. Seeing this, Xiao Sheng was distracted and got hit in the back by a thick wooden stick. Xiao Sheng quickly turned around and grabbed the wooden stick. Then, he raised his leg and kicked hard, sending the attacker flying towards the wall. Chen Jiang saw that although he had the advantage in numbers, if he wanted to take down Xiao Sheng, probably more than ten people would be injured. The losses were too great. ¡°Xiao Sheng! If you don¡¯t stop, don¡¯t blame me for letting the villagers attack Yu Bing. After all, you guys hit so many of us. When men are angry, they have to find women to vent their anger on.¡± Chen Jiang glanced at Yu Bing and threatened. Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes were red as he glared at Chen Jiang and shouted, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare to!¡± Seeing that Yu Bing¡¯s hand was being held by two men, Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t dare to resist and could only let the rod hit him. After Yu Bing raised her leg to kick one of the men¡¯s thigh, the other man let go in pain. Seeing this, the other man was on guard. He blocked the attack with his free hand and raised his hand to slap Yu Bing. Bang! After a loud gunshot sounded, everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw a group of people in olive green clothes in the courtyard. In order to find Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng, most of the people in the village gathered together, which made it easier for Tian Lin to sneak around. She picked up a stone to defend herself and avoided the villagers. Then, she took a small path that she had taken some time ago. Chapter 310 - 310 Reinforcements 310 Reinforcements Just as Tian Lin was about to walk to the small path up the mountain, she met a middle-aged man. She immediately placed her hands behind her back. When the man saw Tian Lin, he increased his pace and walked towards her. As he walked, he scolded with a frown, ¡°Where are you going?¡± Seeing the man approach, Tian Lin acted shocked out of her wits. She hunched her shoulders and lowered her head slightly. ¡°I want to go to the bathroom.¡± The man sneered. ¡°What a lunatic. Your home has a bathroom, but you actually came out to use the bathroom.¡± Tian Lin pretended to be like a child as she retorted, ¡°I¡¯m not crazy!¡± The man laughed loudly and reached out to grab Tian Lin back to the Jiang family. Tian Lin took advantage of the man¡¯s approach to take out a stone from behind her and hit the man. The man hurriedly turned around, but he was still scratched by the sharp edge of the stone. The man came back to his senses and went forward to grab Tian Lin as he said fiercely, ¡°You were actually pretending to be crazy!¡± As he spoke, he tried to drag Tian Lin back to the village. Tian Lin pulled the man¡¯s hand in the opposite direction, but she was still dragged back. She was so close! Why was it like this every time?! Tian Lin was overcome with despair. At this moment, a touch of green flashed in her peripheral vision. After the man¡¯s forearm was held tightly by a pair of strong hands, he felt a sharp pain and immediately let go of Tian Lin¡¯s hand. ¡°Ah! My hand!¡± When Tian Lin saw that the man who had saved her was wearing a military uniform, she was overjoyed. ¡°I was kidnapped and brought here. I have important news to tell Zhao Xing.¡± This person was the member of Zhao Xing¡¯s team who was in charge of observing the terrain outside the village. When he heard this, he decisively knocked the man out and brought Tian Lin and Zhao Xing to meet up. Only then did Yu Bing and the others receive help in time. ¡°Put down your weapons! Everyone, raise your hands and squat on the ground!¡± Zhao Xing shouted in a low yet sonorous voice. When the villagers saw more than twenty black guns, some of them were already scared out of their wits. Chen Jiang watched this scene with terror. He knew that it was hopeless in this situation, so he stopped struggling. He threw down his weapon, hugged his head, and squatted down. The other villagers didn¡¯t have the courage to resist either and did as they were told. Before Zhao Xing entered the village, he divided the people into three teams. The first team started at the front of the village, while the second team started at the back of the village. The remaining people split into two and surrounded them from the left and right to ensure that no one escaped. When the police suddenly appeared in the village, the villagers were stunned. The military police were all holding guns, while the villagers only had farm equipment. Faced with the suppression of martial strength, everyone hugged their heads and obediently squatted on the ground in a row. After the police handcuffed the villagers and left 20 people to guard them, the rest followed them into the village to rescue the other victims. In less than half an hour, all the people in the village gathered on the empty field in the middle of the village. In the end, they discovered that there were 12 children and 56 women who were victims, 23 of whom had been here for 15 years, some of whom even had grandchildren already. Therefore, at least half of the people chose to continue staying in the village because of the children. Some of the children of the victims were already 18 years old and didn¡¯t remember where they used to live at all. They, who were used to living in Tunli Village, were afraid of going to an unknown environment and chose to continue staying here. The people who suggested leaving were strongly refuted by the buyers. Their reasons were similar to Dashan¡¯s. They all used money as an excuse. Just like goods, whoever paid for them should own them. In their eyes, weak people like women and children were goods, instead of free and independent people with unique personalities. Such mentalities couldn¡¯t be changed with just a few words. Sometimes, the firm enforcement of the law by the authorities was more useful than reasoning. The threat of being imprisoned for a few years was far more effective than persuasion. This matter alarmed the entire country. Because there were many people involved, the range was too wide. In the end, public inspection authorities at the city and county levels were sent to four villages. They spent a week sorting out the cases and arrested all the people who had been involved in human trafficking to the county city to carry out the sentencing. The human trafficking organization, which had existed for more than ten years, was finally caught. As the main culprit, Wang Long was sentenced to death for many crimes. The other people were sentenced to three to life imprisonment according to the severity and number of crimes committed. After Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng returned to the guest house in City F, they called the Wu family to report their safety and called Zeng Li to thank him. Due to time constraints, they could only find another opportunity to visit these two families to thank them. Chapter 311 - 311 Escaped 311 Escaped After resting for a day, Xiao Sheng bought a return ticket. The journey took about twenty days. The two of them were still feeling lingering fear as they sat on the train. When Xiao Sheng thought of the final verdict, he frowned and said, ¡°Unfortunately, Li Da escaped.¡± After hearing Xiao Sheng¡¯s words, Yu Bing felt a little dejected. ¡°He¡¯s really lucky. He went to his lover¡¯s place that day and escaped!¡± When Xiao Sheng saw the displeasure on Yu Bing¡¯s face, he comforted her. ¡°Justice has long arms. He¡¯ll be caught one day.¡± Yu Bing nodded weakly. Staring at Xiao Sheng¡¯s side profile as he took out the book from his backpack, she couldn¡¯t help but think of that day when he suddenly stood in front of her and her heart skipped a beat. ¡°How long ago did you find out about my accident?¡± Xiao Sheng turned to look at Yu Bing and thought for a moment before saying, ¡°When you went out but didn¡¯t leave me any messages, I felt that something was wrong. Then, after I found the little boy who brought you the message, I became completely certain.¡± Then, Xiao Sheng told her how he found the clues. How many times had Yu Bing almost died of illness at home in the past without being discovered? Or rather, even if she was discovered, she wouldn¡¯t be taken seriously. Perhaps they even hoped that she would die. Yu Bing felt that her every move was noticed by Xiao Sheng. Thinking of the things she had ignored in the past, Yu Bing guessed that Xiao Sheng had feelings for her. Yu Bing, who didn¡¯t want to get married, wavered a little. For the first time, she wanted to respond to the feelings of someone of the opposite sex. In her previous life, she was good to Yao Nian and curried favor with him because she yearned for the gentleness he had shown her in order to coax her. She had a good impression of Yao Nian at first. However, later on, during the process of doing business, she encountered people who had a good impression of her, but they all had ulterior motives. It was no longer pure love. Now, Xiao Sheng made Yu Bing feel an emotion that she had never experienced before. After thinking about it all the way on the train, Yu Bing finally made up her mind to give herself and Xiao Sheng a year of observation. Not only would a year test if the other party¡¯s feelings for her were still the same after a year, but a year would also give her some time to decide if she should change her mind about not getting married. Xiao Sheng held the book in his hand but didn¡¯t read it at all. He felt very conflicted. He wanted to express his feelings to Yu Bing and marry her, but then he thought about how he couldn¡¯t touch the 10,000 yuan he had saved for Xiao Li¡¯s surgery, and how the only thing he could offer her was meat at every meal. However, Yu Bing was also good at earning money herself, so Xiao Sheng felt that this didn¡¯t give him an advantage. Moreover, he still had to support his siblings. The more he thought about it, the less confident Xiao Sheng became. However, in this day and age, if a woman was discovered to have lost her virginity before marriage, her life definitely wouldn¡¯t be easy. She might even be divorced. Thinking about how Yu Bing would be criticized, Xiao Sheng felt suffocated. Both parties returned to the village with different thoughts in mind. Feng Cai and Liu Jian¡¯s situation wasn¡¯t very smooth either. They returned to He Mountain Village two days earlier than Yu Bing and the others, so no one felt that anything was fishy about Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng¡¯s return date. Xiao Sheng naturally didn¡¯t say anything about this journey because he feared that Yu Bing¡¯s reputation would be tarnished. As for Yu Bing, she felt that mentioning it would seem like she was bragging about doing a good deed and was afraid that the people who cared about her would be worried, so the two of them didn¡¯t mention it. After returning to the village, everything seemed to have returned to normal. Only Xiao Sheng remained troubled. After Yu Bing returned, she was as busy as usual. After agonizing over his dilemma, Xiao Sheng finally mustered his courage and asked Yu Bing to meet him for a chat two nights after returning to the village. Under the tree in front of Yu Bing¡¯s house. Yu Bing wiped the sweat off her forehead with the towel hanging around her neck and panted slightly as she asked, ¡°What can¡¯t be discussed at home? Why did you specifically choose to talk outside?¡± Xiao Sheng took a deep breath and swallowed hard. Then, he gazed at Yu Bing with earnestness and affection. When Yu Bing sensed a possessive aura unique to males on Xiao Sheng, she stopped wiping her sweat for a moment, and her breathing couldn¡¯t help but slow down. She was a little nervous for some reason. Xiao Sheng looked very calm on the surface, but his heart was racing. ¡°Yu Bing, I like you. Are you willing to date me with marriage in mind?¡± Chapter 312 - 312 Broken Leg 312 Broken Leg Yu Bing blushed. Although she had already sensed Xiao Sheng¡¯s intentions, she didn¡¯t expect him to talk to her about it so quickly. Not daring to look into Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes again, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t help but tighten her grip on the towel. She looked down at the corner of his shirt to calm her nerves. This was an experience she had never had in her two lifetimes. Seeing that Yu Bing didn¡¯t answer, Xiao Sheng was also extremely nervous. After thinking about it, he decided to promote himself. No matter how good a product was, sometimes, it had to be promoted. ¡°I have siblings to support, but I can earn money. I definitely won¡¯t let you starve. I¡¯ll give you all the money I earn, and your money will be yours.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she secretly glanced at Xiao Sheng. Seeing that he was as nervous as her, she relaxed a little. ¡°I can¡¯t agree to be with you now. I need a year of observation first.¡± Although they couldn¡¯t start dating immediately, Xiao Sheng was still so happy that he grinned, revealing his white teeth. ¡°Alright, alright, alright! One year it is. I will definitely perform well!¡± Xiao Sheng had never been in a relationship, so he didn¡¯t have much experience. Under normal circumstances, since his confession wasn¡¯t rejected, he should take advantage of the opportunity to take a walk and chat with her. However, when he saw that it was almost eight o¡¯clock, his first reaction was to ask Yu Bing to go back and wash up quickly so that she could rest early. ¡°I¡¯ll send you back. It¡¯s getting late.¡± Although it was only a few steps, Xiao Sheng felt that this was an excellent opportunity to show off. Since the two of them had basically confirmed their relationship, Xiao Sheng smiled along the way. Yu Bing glanced at Xiao Sheng coquettishly. ¡°You¡¯re so silly. Those who don¡¯t know might think that you¡¯ve hit the jackpot or something.¡± Xiao Sheng said proudly, ¡°This news makes me even happier than hitting the jackpot.¡± Yu Bing chuckled. ¡°We¡¯ve reached my home. Watch the road when you go back.¡± After the two of them said goodbye, Yu Bing turned around and entered the courtyard to share this news with Jiang Chun. When Jiang Chun saw the smile on Yu Bing¡¯s face, she joked, ¡°You¡¯re actually making fun of him? You¡¯re so smiling so brightly that it¡¯s as if you¡¯ve hit the jackpot or something. I wonder who was the one who said that she didn¡¯t want to get married.¡± Not long ago, Yu Bing had said that she didn¡¯t intend to get married, but reality proved her wrong so quickly. Yu Bing covered her face and said shyly, ¡°Alright, I admit that I¡¯m embarrassed about changing my mind so quickly.¡± ¡°Also, I usually smile like this. You¡¯re much more exaggerated than me. When you first started dating Cui Jin, you smiled from ear to ear every day.¡± Jiang Chun blushed. ¡°Nonsense.¡± The cheerful laughter of the two girls echoed in the room, and love was in the air again. Because the city¡¯s office location had already been decided, the staff was the next thing to deal with. After a few days of enthusiastic discussion and selection, it was finally decided that two people would work in each office. According to the ratio of one intellectual and one villager, as long as the intellectual passed the salesperson¡¯s assessment, he would be dispatched to the corresponding city. The first batch of candidates was very important because they were going to expand the territory of the food factory. Not only did they have to go to the city¡¯s units, but they also had to get orders from the counties under the city¡¯s jurisdiction. For safety reasons, unless the female intellectuals were locals of the city, the rest of the first batch of personnel would all be men. In the end, eight male intellectuals, two female intellectuals, and ten male villagers were chosen. After being chosen, they had to undergo training before they could go to the office to work officially. After Yu Bing and the village¡¯s female director, Zhao Lin, finished this round of recruitment, Jiang Chun received an emergency call from her family. While Jiang Chun¡¯s father was climbing the rack to count inventory, he missed a step and broke his leg. The factory Jiang Chun¡¯s parents worked in and Yu Bing¡¯s parents¡¯ factory was a cotton mill. Considering that Jiang Chun¡¯s father was suffering from asthma, the factory arranged for him to look after the warehouse and manage the inventory. Jiang Chun¡¯s mother worked as a temporary worker in the factory¡¯s canteen. Jiang Chun panicked when she received the call. Yu Bing immediately went forward to comfort Jiang Chun. Jiang Chun was the person in charge of the production room, so if she wanted to take leave and go home, she had to settle her work first. Jiang Chun knew the situation of the team leader in the production room the best, and Yu Bing had to choose an employee who could temporarily replace Jiang Chun, so she asked, ¡°Jiang Chun, which team leader do you think can arrange the production work properly while you¡¯re home?¡± Jiang Chun knew every employee under her jurisdiction very well. When Yu Bing asked, she immediately had a candidate in mind. ¡°Wu Xiang! She¡¯s levelheaded and impartial.¡± Chapter 313 - 313 Enlightened 313 Enlightened Yu Bing had some impression of Wu Xiang. Although she had a hot temper, her personality was perfect in this situation. If a candidate who suddenly took over the position didn¡¯t have an assertive personality, she might be led by the nose. ¡°Then let¡¯s set her up. I¡¯ll get Director Zhao to help. In that case, it¡¯s settled.¡± ¡°Now, list your daily work and your work plan for the next half a month. I¡¯ll go home and pack your things for you. At the same time, I¡¯ll go to the village committee to issue a certificate. You don¡¯t have to worry about anything else now. Just do as I say.¡± With Jiang Chun¡¯s current distraught state, the best way to calm Jiang Chun down was to tell her what to do. Because of Yu Bing¡¯s actions, Jiang Chun immediately felt more assured. Hence, she immediately took out the paper and forced herself to calm down before starting to do the work handover. Yu Bing went to the field to explain the situation to Wu Jin. When Wu Jin heard this, he agreed without hesitation. When Xiao Sheng heard this, he also asked for an official business certificate from Wu Jin. Wu Jin originally wanted to ignore Xiao Sheng, but after Xiao Sheng secretly told him about his one-year promise with Yu Bing, he immediately came. As he watched the two of them leave, Wu Jin revealed a fatherly smile. He had good foresight. Previously, he had felt that the two of them were suitable and now, they really started dating. Yu Bing looked at Xiao Sheng suspiciously. ¡°Did you ask for a certificate because of me?¡± Xiao Sheng touched his nose sheepishly. ¡°Not entirely. Two days ago, Zeng Li said that he found a business channel and wanted me to supply him. It¡¯s near your home. I promised to go discuss it with him, but I haven¡¯t thought of a time to go. Coincidentally, you have something on, so I came with you. This way, you also have company.¡± Yu Bing fell silent. She was only worried that Xiao Sheng would delay his own matters because of her. Since it was convenient, there was nothing to be conflicted about. After Yu Bing returned home and took her passbook, she packed her and Jiang Chun¡¯s clothes before handing the house keys and Little Tiger¡¯s food to Xiao Lin. Only then did the two of them carry their bags to the factory to pick up Jiang Chun. When Jiang Chun saw that Yu Bing had also handed over her work, she realized Yu Bing¡¯s plan. ¡°Yu Bing, there are a lot of things in the factory that needs you. Don¡¯t delay your business for my sake. I can go back myself. Are you worried that I don¡¯t know the way back?¡± Yu Bing pulled Jiang Chun out of the factory. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You¡¯re my biggest business now! Besides, if this factory can¡¯t operate without the two of us, it means I¡¯ve failed to manage it properly. You look so distraught now, so I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ll pass the bus station!¡± Jiang Chun knew that Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t change her mind easily, so she didn¡¯t persuade her anymore. Touched, she looked at Yu Bing with red eyes and held her hand as she said, ¡°Thank you, Yu Bing!¡± The tractor in the village was occupied, so Xiao Sheng could only find an old man to send the three of them to the town¡¯s bus station. It was easy to buy bus tickets and they would be able to buy a bus ticket to City H that set off an hour later as soon as they arrived. However, the earliest train ticket was at six in the morning the next day. In this day and age, it was normal for trains to be delayed, so Jiang Chun had to suppress her anxiety. When the train arrived at the station, it was already past nine in the morning the day after tomorrow. Yu Bing instructed Xiao Sheng at the bus stop, ¡°Go to the guest house on Hechuan Road later. Jiang Chun and I will go to the city¡¯s workers¡¯ hospital first. We¡¯ll look for you after we¡¯re done.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded. ¡°Alright, be careful. We¡¯ll contact you later.¡± After bidding farewell, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun went to the hospital where Jiang Chun¡¯s father, Jiang Wu, was. Jiang Chun¡¯s mother, Jiang Mei, was a gentle yet weak-minded woman. Therefore, after Jiang Wu fell unconscious when he broke his leg, she was at a loss and called Jiang Chun in a panic. Jiang Chun and Yu Bing went to the ward to see Jiang Wu first. He had already woken up last night, but Jiang Chun was still worried, so Yu Bing accompanied her to find the attending doctor to understand the situation. There were four doctors in the office. After Jiang Chun knocked on the door, she asked, ¡°May I know who is Wu Chen¡¯s doctor?¡± A male doctor in his thirties looked up at Jiang Chun and asked, ¡°Which patient¡¯s family member are you?¡± Jiang Chun went forward and replied, ¡°Hello, Dr. Wu. My father is Jiang Wu.¡± Wu Chen glanced at Jiang Chun. ¡°Your father¡¯s legs are fractured from the fall. After he recovers, it won¡¯t be a problem for him to walk, but he won¡¯t be able to do strenuous exercise. He won¡¯t be able to do physical work either. Your family has to be careful and try your best to help the patient share the burden.¡± Chapter 314 - 314 Support 314 Support To Jiang Chun, as long as her father was fine, she was relieved. ¡°Doctor, why did my father faint?¡± Wu Chen explained patiently, ¡°It¡¯s because your father hit his head on the ground when he fell. I did a CT scan of his brain. There are no blood clots in his skull, only a slight concussion. It¡¯s normal for him to feel a little dizzy and nauseous. What he should do now is to lie in bed and recuperate.¡± After Wu Chen finished speaking, he looked at Jiang Chun meaningfully. ¡°As family members, think of a way to give the patient a quiet recuperation environment. Otherwise, it won¡¯t be good for his recovery.¡± Yu Bing felt that Wu Chen was implying something. When the two of them returned to the ward, she understood why Wu Chen said that. ¡°Third Brother, since your leg is broken, you might as well stay at home and recuperate. Let Jiang Yu take your place. He¡¯s young and doesn¡¯t have much experience, but he can learn.¡± When Jiang Chun heard her grandmother¡¯s shrill voice from outside the door, she suppressed her anger and the urge to rush in to scold her. Old Madam Jiang had five sons and two daughters. Jiang Wu was the third son. Their parents usually valued the eldest and doted on the youngest, while the middle one was usually ignored. Therefore, Jiang Wu was the least favored of the three. Jiang Chun walked into the ward and saw Old Madam Jiang sitting on a chair beside the bed. Her third cousin, Jiang Yu, was her uncle¡¯s second son. At this moment, he was standing behind Old Madam Jiang with a smile. Jiang Yu was 19 years old this year and was only two months older than Jiang Chun, so he should have gone to build a village last year like Jiang Chun did, but Jiang Chun¡¯s aunt used connections to delay it, so he missed the departure time of the intellectuals. Jiang Chun knew that they had always had the idea of letting Jiang Yu replace Jiang Wu. Everyone knew that her father relied on medicine to treat asthma. Her mother¡¯s part-time work income was only 15 yuan a month, and her father¡¯s salary was 25 yuan. In addition, the factory gave him a special sick allowance of 5 yuan a month. A total of 45 yuan was just enough for his daily expenses and treatment. It was already very good if they could save up to 5 yuan a month. Jiang Chun knew that these so-called relatives only wanted to live off of them and had never cared about their lives at all. Jiang Chun¡¯s grandparents had their own house. Because they lived with Jiang Chun¡¯s uncle, the house was basically given to Jiang Chun¡¯s uncle¡¯s family. Because Jiang Chun¡¯s grandparents had a pension, Jiang Chun¡¯s uncles didn¡¯t need to provide for them, but they insisted on Jiang Chun¡¯s family giving them five yuan every month. Jiang Wu was a filial person, so he was willing to take cheap medicine with poor efficacy so that he could scrimp and give the money to his mother. However, Old Madam Jiang¡¯s greed grew. In order to make his mother happy, Jiang Wu sometimes even sent her the holiday benefits given by the factory. Jiang Chun could only sulk at those times. Later, when Jiang Chun was in junior high school, she fainted. The doctor said that she was malnourished and only then did Jiang Wu start to halve the gifts he sent over. However, no matter what Jiang Wu did, all he got in return was even more ruthless oppression. Jiang Chun took a deep breath and greeted Old Madam Jiang. ¡°Grandma.¡± Old Madam Jiang glanced at Jiang Chun but didn¡¯t respond. She said to Jiang Wu with a frown, ¡°You don¡¯t want to agree? Do you want to be disobedient and unfilial? You don¡¯t want to listen to me anymore?¡± Jiang Yu also smiled and said, ¡°Third Uncle, don¡¯t be so insensible. Despite my young age, I know that I have to listen to my parents. Just listen to Grandma¡¯s arrangements.¡± Jiang Wu¡¯s mind started buzzing again when he heard their words. Jiang Mei was very worried when she saw her husband frown in discomfort. She mustered her courage and said to Old Madam Jiang, ¡°Mom, if Jiang Wu loses his job, our family won¡¯t have the money to buy medicine. I¡¯m sorry, but we can¡¯t give Jiang Yu his job.¡± When Old Madam Jiang heard this, she narrowed her small eyes at Jiang Mei and scolded, ¡°Since when do you have the right to speak here? You¡¯re just a hen who doesn¡¯t know how to lay eggs! He doesn¡¯t even have a male descendant, what¡¯s the point of living in this world?! You¡¯re only around because he¡¯s so protective of you. He should have divorced you long ago and asked you and your daughter to scram from our family!¡± Every time Jiang Mei saw Old Madam Jiang, she had to listen to this sort of thing. She was already used to it, but she still couldn¡¯t help but feel aggrieved. When Jiang Chun saw Jiang Mei¡¯s red eyes, she immediately pulled her mother behind her and said coldly, ¡°Grandma, I¡¯m a girl, but I have my father¡¯s blood running in me. My mother left the Jiang family with the bloodline of the Jiang family, so why should we scram?!¡± ¡°Moreover, our family register belongs to our family of three. It doesn¡¯t have anything to do with you, right? I¡¯m not even in the same family register as you, so why are you so worried?!¡± Chapter 315 - 315 Nosy 315 Nosy Jiang Chun was clearly implying that Old Madam Jiang was nosy. Because of her father, Jiang Chun had always been tolerant of Old Madam Jiang, but Jiang Chun would no longer put up with this tolerance. Just now, when she saw Old Madam Jiang disregard her father¡¯s well-being and her family¡¯s survival, she didn¡¯t want to put up with this so-called kinship anymore. Old Madam Jiang was very misogynistic and wished she could drown all the girls in her family. She felt that feeding them was a waste of her family¡¯s food. When Old Madam Jiang, who was used to bossing people in Jiang Chun¡¯s family around, was suddenly retorted by a junior like Jiang Chun, the girl she hated the most, she was so angry that she raised her index finger and pointed at Jiang Chun. ¡°You useless piece of trash! How dare you talk back to me?!¡± Old Madam Jiang looked at Jiang Wu and shouted sternly, ¡°Are you going to watch this little b*tch insult me like this?¡± Jiang Wu looked at his mother and daughter as he said softly, ¡°Mom, Jiang Chun didn¡¯t mean that. It¡¯s not that serious. Jiang Chun, Grandma is an elder. How can you say that?¡± Jiang Chun opened her mouth to retort, but when she saw her father¡¯s meek expression, she endured it. Old Madam Jiang looked at Jiang Wu critically. ¡°That¡¯s it? This little b*tch must apologize to me!¡± Jiang Wu looked at Old Madam Jiang helplessly. ¡°Mom, Jiang Chun is your biological granddaughter. Can you not call her that?¡± Old Madam Jiang glanced at Jiang Wu. Since her grandson had yet to get the job, she endured it and requested once again in a stiff tone, ¡°How rude of her to contradict an elder! Tell her to apologize to me!¡± Jiang Wu felt that his mother¡¯s request wasn¡¯t too much, since his daughter had indeed gone overboard by saying that his mother was nosy. ¡°Jiang Chun, apologize to your grandmother.¡± Jiang Chun pursed her lips and clenched her fists. ¡°Dad, Grandma is going to cut off our family¡¯s livelihood. Am I not even qualified to speak up?¡± Without waiting for her father to answer, Jiang Chun looked at Old Madam Jiang and asked innocently, ¡°Grandma, if my father gave his job to my cousin, what about my father¡¯s medical fees? Will my cousin pay?¡± Old Madam Jiang¡¯s expression froze, but she quickly thought of a good idea. She sized up Jiang Chun with a scheming gaze. ¡°I heard that you¡¯re a small leader in the food factory. Your monthly salary is 20 yuan. You can send your salary home. I¡¯ll get your cousin to take 5 yuan from his monthly salary as your family¡¯s living expenses. 40 yuan a month is enough for the two of them.¡± The reason Old Madam Jiang suggested that Jiang Yu give them five yuan a month was that Jiang Chun still had to return to the village. Jiang Chun¡¯s household register had already been moved to He Mountain Village because of the construction of the countryside. She had to be wherever her household register was. When Jiang Chun returned, whether Jiang Yu would give her living expenses or not wasn¡¯t something she could control. If her third son and Jiang Mei dared to ask for money, Old Madam Jiang was confident that she could suppress them. Jiang Yu would have already gotten the job anyway, so her third son couldn¡¯t go back on his word anymore! Yu Bing knew about Jiang Chun¡¯s family¡¯s situation, but Jiang Chun usually euphemized things. This was the first time she had witnessed Old Madam Jiang¡¯s shamelessness. Jiang Chun was also amused by Old Madam Jiang. ¡°Grandma, what¡¯s the difference between this and asking my father to give his job to Jiang Yu for free? Such a job is already worth a thousand yuan on the market. You¡¯re really quite scheming. You want to use five yuan a month to send our family away. Do you think my family is a bank where you can pay in installments?! Moreover, even the bank collects interest.¡± Jiang Chun didn¡¯t agree, and neither did Jiang Yu. Why should he give his third uncle¡¯s family money?! Not to mention five yuan, even 0.01 yuan was too much! Jiang Yu looked at Old Madam Jiang anxiously. ¡°Grandma, why do I even have to pay them? You didn¡¯t say anything about this at home.¡± Old Madam Jiang had never expected her grandson to be so useless! As if she was willing to pay them? Jiang Chun wasn¡¯t as easy to fool as her third son and third sister-in-law. Jiang Chun was also hot-tempered. Therefore, the most important thing now was to bluff Jiang Chun and get the job! However, Old Madam Jiang couldn¡¯t say this directly. If Jiang Wu found out, he would definitely be disappointed. She knew that the best way to control her son, Jiang Wu, was to play the family card. As long as she said a few pleasant words, her son would do as she said obediently. Hence, Old Madam Jiang could only stare at Jiang Yu and hint at him with her eyes. ¡°Jiang Yu, listen to me. Your third uncle and third aunt usually treat you so well, so what¡¯s wrong with using your salary to be filial to them?¡± Chapter 316 - 316 Disrupter 316 Disrupter Unfortunately, if Jiang Yu had such intelligence, he wouldn¡¯t have said those words just now. Seeing Old Madam Jiang staring at him, he felt that Old Madam Jiang wanted to use her status as an elder to force him to agree. Old Madam Jiang only showed such an attitude towards her third uncle¡¯s family and the female members of the family. She had never treated her other sons and grandson like this. Jiang Yu, who had been spoiled by Old Madam Jiang since he was young, felt indignant. ¡°No!¡± When Old Madam Jiang heard this, she knew that her grandson didn¡¯t understand her hint. She could only frown and pat Jiang Yu¡¯s arm gently. ¡°Listen to me. How can I possibly harm you?¡± Jiang Chun sneered when she heard this. ¡°Did you guys not get the story straight at home? It seems that your original plan was to snatch it openly, but unfortunately, I disrupted your plan.¡± ¡°This salary is equivalent to my father¡¯s medical fees. You want to exchange my father¡¯s life for your grandson¡¯s future? Impossible!¡± After Old Madam Jiang¡¯s scheme was exposed by Jiang Chun just like that, she was anxious and angry. After she looked around, she picked up the empty aluminum lunch box on the bed and threw it at Jiang Chun. Jiang Chun dodged. Clang! The lunch box fell to the ground. Jiang Chun looked at Old Madam Jiang as she smiled mockingly and said, ¡°Grandma, you¡¯re really unoriginal. Unfortunately, I¡¯m no longer the same little girl you beat and scolded when I was young!¡± Old Madam Jiang was furious, but she knew that she couldn¡¯t continue talking about this for the time being, lest Jiang Chun really convinced Jiang Wu to change his mind. Old Madam Jiang could only change the topic to Jiang Chun. Hence, she picked up the walking stick at the side and stomped it on the floor as she said to Jiang Wu sternly, ¡°Look at the good daughter you raised. She¡¯s driving me crazy! Was it easy for me to give birth to you after ten months of pregnancy? I raised you and got you married, but this is how you raised your daughter?¡± This move might not be effective on others, but it was effective on Jiang Wu. After Old Madam Jiang finished speaking, she raised her head and waited for Jiang Wu to make Jiang Chun admit her mistake. It was the same process every time. Old Madam Jiang had already thought it through. This time, no matter how much Jiang Wu protected this b*tch, she had to make Jiang Chun kneel, pour tea, and apologize to her no matter what. Then, she would force Jiang Wu to chase Jiang Chun back to the village so that she wouldn¡¯t delay her important matter. Unfortunately, Old Madam Jiang¡¯s plan had failed this time. At this moment, Jiang Wu felt very dizzy and nauseous again, so he couldn¡¯t hear what the outside world was saying. When Jiang Mei saw her husband holding his head with both hands and looking like he was in pain, she leaned forward anxiously and shouted softly, ¡°Hubby, what¡¯s wrong?¡± When Jiang Chun saw that her father¡¯s expression was even uglier than before, she hurriedly went forward to ring the bell at the head of the bed. The nurse quickly rushed over. When she saw so many people in the ward, she knew the reason for Jiang Wu¡¯s flare up. The nurse glanced at the people in the ward and said angrily, ¡°As long as the ward stays quiet, everything will be fine. We repeatedly emphasize that the patient needs to recuperate, so with so many of you guys here, aren¡¯t you guys causing trouble? If his condition worsens and his recovery is delayed, our hospital won¡¯t take responsibility. There can only be two family members in the ward at most. Do as you deem fit!¡± With that, the nurse turned around and left. Jiang Chun turned to look at Old Madam Jiang. The two of them had already fallen out anyway, so she couldn¡¯t be bothered to pretend anymore. Hence, she said coldly with an impassive expression, ¡°Grandma, my father isn¡¯t feeling well now. If there¡¯s nothing else, you can go back first.¡± Old Madam Jiang rolled her eyes. ¡°It¡¯s not up to you to decide whether I stay or leave!¡± Jiang Yu, who had yet to achieve his goal, naturally didn¡¯t want to leave. He looked at Jiang Chun proudly and said, ¡°That¡¯s right. Grandma is here to see her biological son. You have no right to interfere.¡± Jiang Chun couldn¡¯t attack her elder, so thinking that the only thing that could control the two of them now was the job, she said, ¡°If you guys cause trouble for my father and make his condition worsen, I¡¯ll have an excuse to apply to be transferred back to take over my father¡¯s position!¡± These words stopped Old Madam Jiang from cursing. After she glared at Jiang Chun, she held Jiang Yu¡¯s hand as they left reluctantly. The ward became quiet again. Only then did Yu Bing go forward and greet softly, ¡°Hello, Uncle Jiang. I came to visit you with Jiang Chun.¡± Jiang Wu was dizzy and his leg was still in pain, so he smiled at Yu Bing as he replied weakly, ¡°Thank you for coming to see me.¡± With that, he looked at the two bags in Yu Bing¡¯s hand. He knew that they were their luggage. ¡°You just got off the train, right? It¡¯s not easy to rest on the train, so hurry up and go home to put your things away. After washing up, get some rest.¡± Chapter 317 - 317 Market Investigation 317 Market Investigation When Jiang Mei saw Jiang Chun and Yu Bing¡¯s tired expressions, she said with heartache, ¡°Yes, yes, yes. Go home first. I¡¯ll take care of him.¡± After Jiang Chun already had an understanding of her father¡¯s condition, she was much more relieved, so she left the hospital with Yu Bing. Yu Bing didn¡¯t return to the factory courtyard with Jiang Chun. Or rather, she had no intention of returning home at all. This time, she only accompanied Jiang Chun to visit Mr. Jiang and waited to return to the village together. When Jiang Chun heard Yu Bing¡¯s plan and thought of her grandmother¡¯s actions, she naturally understood. ¡°Then I¡¯ll go back first. I¡¯ll also tell my parents not to mention your return to the public. But what are your plans for the next half a month? Staying in the guest house the entire time isn¡¯t a good idea.¡± Yu Bing had already planned it out. ¡°I¡¯ll help if you need help. I plan to check out the market situation here for the rest of the time. When I¡¯m free, I¡¯ll read in the guest house. Don¡¯t worry, my schedule is full!¡± When Jiang Chun heard this, she said in amusement, ¡°You¡¯re quite busy. You didn¡¯t even leave Xiao Sheng any time.¡± Yu Bing was stunned for a moment, but then she smiled awkwardly. She hadn¡¯t gotten used to suddenly having a probationary boyfriend, so she had forgotten about Xiao Sheng when she was making the plan. After the two of them separated, because of Jiang Chun¡¯s reminder, Yu Bing specifically went to the supply and marketing club and bought two pounds of her favorite pastry, sesame cake. Previously, after changing cars in City H and arriving in Hang City, Xiao Sheng went to the hospital without stopping. He didn¡¯t even have time to eat anything and must be hungry too, so buying some sesame cakes for Xiao Sheng was a good idea. Yu Bing took out her certificate and checked in at the reception desk of the guest house. Then, she asked about Xiao Sheng¡¯s room. The guest houses of this era were different from the hotels in the future, where they needed to keep their guests¡¯ information confidential. They told Yu Bing about Xiao Sheng¡¯s room number as soon as she asked. Yu Bing lived on the second floor, so she put down her luggage first before going downstairs to look for Xiao Sheng on the first floor. After Yu Bing knocked on Xiao Sheng¡¯s door, she raised the pastries with a smile. ¡°These are my hometown¡¯s famous pastries and are also my favorite.¡± Xiao Sheng took the pastries and was secretly happy that Yu Bing hadn¡¯t forgotten about him when she accompanied Jiang Chun to the hospital. A smile appeared on his face as he turned to let Yu Bing into the room. ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll buy more for you when we get back, so you can take your time eating them.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she felt a little guilty. After all, she had only thought of this because of Jiang Chun¡¯s reminder, but he immediately thought of buying more for her and bringing them back to the village to eat. Xiao Sheng poured a glass of water for Yu Bing as he told her his plan for the day. ¡°I¡¯m going to see the person Zeng Li arranged here in the afternoon. What are your plans?¡± Although Yu Bing was born and raised in Hang City, she didn¡¯t know much about supply companies and malls around here in the 1970s. In her previous life, she had returned to the city in the 1980s. Before she went to the countryside, her parents had only brought her to the mall a few times. Usually, Yu Pan, who worked in the supply and marketing club, was in charge of whatever her family needed to buy. Therefore, Yu Bing¡¯s life was very simple. She went to school and did housework at home after school. Only during the school¡¯s spring outing could she go out of town. The province Yu Bing was in was Zhe Province, which was adjacent to Jiang Province. The development of the market spread from near to far, and Zhe Province was in the middle of Jiang Province and the prosperous city of S City. Yu Bing¡¯s plan was very simple. At this stage, she wanted to occupy the market in Jiang Province first and then open up the market in S City through Zhe Province. The capital, S City, and Guang Province were the most developed first-tier cities in the country in the future, so Yu Bing planned to take down S City before Guang Province developed. As long as she could gain a foothold in S City, there would be a better branding effect when she went to other provinces in the future! Yu Bing didn¡¯t want to start making preparations so quickly, but since she happened to be back because of Jiang Chun¡¯s father, she decided to do a market investigation in advance. The bus ticket fare couldn¡¯t be wasted. ¡°I¡¯ll go to the market in the next few days to investigate.¡± Because this was Xiao Sheng¡¯s first time in Hang City, he asked Yu Bing about the local customs and economic development here to see what other business he could do here. After the two of them ate together, they got busy with their own things. Xiao Sheng¡¯s negotiation was finished in two days. The rest of the time, he accompanied Yu Bing to the market and learned how to do market investigation with Yu Bing. Because it was a planned economy, for the market investigation method, they couldn¡¯t completely follow the model of a market economy. Therefore, Yu Bing first categorized the supply companies and the malls into low, middle, and high-end markets according to the target customer group. Then, she chose two to three more representative businesses in each market to shop at. Firstly, she had to investigate the pricing of her competitors, and secondly, she had to understand the tastes and packaging of her competitors¡¯ products. Therefore, Yu Bing bought some of the top three best-selling foods in the market. Chapter 318 - 318 Discharged 318 Discharged Time passed quickly. Jiang Wu had been in the hospital for seven days. After the fracture surgery, he had been recuperating. After Doctor Wu confirmed that there were no signs of infection in the wound, he approved Jiang Wu¡¯s discharge. Over the past few days, Old Madam Jiang hadn¡¯t brought anyone to the hospital to harass them anymore, so Jiang Wu healed from his concussion. Because Jiang Chun¡¯s family lived on the fifth floor, Jiang Wu needed someone to carry him home. Therefore, on the day Jiang Wu was discharged, Yu Bing dragged Xiao Sheng over to help and got a cart to take them back to the courtyard. Jiang Chun¡¯s home was by the side door of the courtyard. After the cart stopped downstairs, Jiang Mei led the way while Xiao Sheng carried Jiang Wu up the stairs. Jiang Chun carried her father¡¯s change of clothes and walked side by side with Xiao Sheng, while Yu Bing walked at the back. ¡°Mr. Jiang, you¡¯re discharged today?¡± At the corner of the third floor, the auntie who came downstairs saw the Jiang family and stopped to greet them. Jiang Mei smiled and replied, ¡°Yes, I¡¯m finally discharged. If I stay any longer, I¡¯ll smell like disinfectant.¡± The auntie immediately saw Xiao Sheng, who was carrying Jiang Wu on his back. Seeing that the young man was tall and handsome, her eyes immediately lit up with curiosity. She felt that she had a new topic to talk about tonight. ¡°That¡¯s how the hospital is. Is this young man over there Jiang Chun¡¯s boyfriend?¡± At first, Jiang Mei also thought that Xiao Sheng was Jiang Chun¡¯s boyfriend and when he entered the ward, there was even a misunderstanding. Because Xiao Sheng was good-looking and vigorous, Jiang Mei was very satisfied and asked about his family background. Later, when she found out that the two of them were just ordinary colleagues, she felt a little regretful, but her attention was quickly attracted by the real boyfriend her daughter mentioned. Jiang Chun was so frightened by the auntie¡¯s words that she waved her hand repeatedly. ¡°No, Auntie, this is my colleague. He¡¯s here on a business trip, so he came to help today out of kindness.¡± The woman didn¡¯t believe her at all. She felt that Jiang Chun was just embarrassed, so she revealed an understanding expression. When Jiang Mei saw her neighbor¡¯s expression, she understood that Jiang Chun¡¯s words would only make things worse, so she took the initiative to change the topic. ¡°This is Jiang Chun¡¯s boyfriend¡¯s friend and Jiang Chun¡¯s colleague, so we troubled him to help.¡± When the woman heard this, the interest in her eyes disappeared. She thought that she had explosive news to share tonight. Now, she only knew that Jiang Chun was in a relationship, but she didn¡¯t know what Jiang Chun¡¯s boyfriend looked like, so the scoop was no longer that juicy. ¡°Oh, I see. Then hurry up and settle Mr. Jiang down first.¡± With that, the woman turned around and made way. Yu Bing, who was behind, felt uncomfortable when she heard the neighbor pair Xiao Sheng and Jiang Chun together. It was the same this morning. Auntie Jiang had also misunderstood that Xiao Sheng and Jiang Chun were a couple. Although she had explained it clearly later, she still felt upset. Yu Bing also knew that no one could be blamed for this and she even felt that she was being a little petty. The auntie looked at Yu Bing, who was following behind, and felt that she looked a little familiar. However, because Yu Bing¡¯s family lived on the other side and she used to be very scrawny, the auntie couldn¡¯t figure out whose child she was, so she overlooked Yu Bing. After entering Jiang Chun¡¯s house, Yu Bing knew that the mother and daughter still had many things to do, so she left with Xiao Sheng without staying for dinner. After Yu Bing left the courtyard, the smile on Yu Bing¡¯s face faded. Xiao Sheng wasn¡¯t a talkative person to begin with. After walking for a while, he realized that Yu Bing was in a bad mood. Xiao Sheng asked with concern, ¡°Yu Bing, what¡¯s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?¡± Yu Bing¡¯s expression froze, but then she felt even more dejected. ¡°No.¡± When Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing¡¯s cold expression, he quickly recalled what he had done today. After confirming that he hadn¡¯t done anything wrong, he was slightly relieved and continued to ask, ¡°What happened? Tell me and I¡¯ll see if I can resolve it.¡± Yu Bing glanced at Xiao Sheng and paused for a moment before saying angrily, ¡°You originally had 10 points, but now, you only have 5 points!¡± Xiao Sheng widened his eyes and looked at Yu Bing in confusion. ¡°Why were my points deducted? Wait, what do these points represent anyway? The points for the probation period?¡± Yu Bing stopped in her tracks and said angrily, ¡°Yes, there are 100 points. You won¡¯t pass if you don¡¯t get 100 points a year later.¡± Chapter 319 - 319 Points Deducted 319 Points Deducted Xiao Sheng immediately became nervous when he heard this. His basic score was too low, and half of it had been deducted! ¡°Why were my points deducted? If you tell me, I will definitely correct my mistake.¡± Yu Bing reached out to twist Xiao Sheng¡¯s arm to vent her anger. When she realized that she couldn¡¯t twist it, she became even angrier. ¡°You don¡¯t even know why your points were deducted? I don¡¯t want to talk to you anymore.¡± As Yu Bing continued walking forward, Xiao Sheng hurriedly followed and looked at Yu Bing helplessly as he negotiated, ¡°Why don¡¯t you beat me up to vent your anger? My score is low enough, so don¡¯t deduct it anymore.¡± Looking at Xiao Sheng¡¯s innocent expression, Yu Bing suddenly felt that good-looking people indeed had an advantage. With his good-looking face and pitiful expression, she suddenly felt less angry. Only then did Yu Bing realize that she was actually quite vain. She only had higher standards regarding looks. Otherwise, she would have been even worser off in her previous life. ¡°I won¡¯t hit you. My hand will hurt if I hit you. If you can think of the reason, I won¡¯t deduct the points.¡± Xiao Sheng could only lower his head and think as he walked. ¡°Yu Bing!¡± Yu Bing knew who the other party was without turning around. ¡°Yu Bing!¡± Yu Pan rushed to Yu Bing and sized her up. Yu Pan looked at Yu Bing, who was already as tall as her and had a rosy complexion. She was wearing a crisp white shirt, military-green pants, and a pair of canvas shoes. Yu Pan only had two sets of such good clothes and she wore them for work! Seeing the drastic change in Yu Bing, she thought that she was seeing things. If she hadn¡¯t slept in the same room as Yu Bing for more than ten years, she might not have recognized her. Seeing that Yu Bing was so well-off in the countryside, Yu Pan felt indignant and immediately scolded, ¡°Yu Bing, when did you come back?! Why didn¡¯t you go home? Why were you wandering around with a man?¡± After Yu Pan finished speaking, she glanced towards Xiao Sheng, but was stunned. Previously, she hadn¡¯t seen Xiao Sheng¡¯s face and only wanted to catch Yu Bing red-handed. Now that she saw his handsome looks, she regretted being so loud. Just as she was about to speak to salvage her impression, Yu Pan¡¯s boyfriend, Wen Zheng, appeared. On their day off today, Wen Zheng and Yu Pan arranged to watch a movie together. After buying the movie tickets, he came out and realized that Yu Pan wasn¡¯t waiting for him at the door. After looking around, he realized that she was talking to a man and woman on the road in the distance, so he came over. ¡°Yu Pan, who are these two?¡± When Yu Pan heard Wen Zheng¡¯s question, she looked at Yu Bing, who was as glamorous as her, and introduced reluctantly, ¡°This is my sister, Yu Bing. This man is¡­ Yu Bing, introduce him.¡± Yu Bing glanced at Wen Zheng, who was wearing a pair of glasses. ¡°He¡¯s my colleague, Xiao Sheng.¡± Yu Pan was a little satisfied when she saw Yu Bing listen to her so obediently. Although Yu Bing¡¯s appearance had changed drastically, she still listened to her instructions. She looked at the handsome Xiao Sheng and asked curiously, ¡°Which city is he from?¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t plan to fall out with her family yet, so she replied patiently, ¡°He¡¯s a local from He Mountain Village.¡± Yu Pan originally thought that Xiao Sheng was from the city when she saw his appearance and refined aura. Now that she knew that he was just a bumpkin, she lost interest. After glancing at Wen Zheng, Yu Pan looked at Yu Bing proudly. ¡°This is my boyfriend, Wen Zheng. He¡¯s a technician in the factory and the team leader of his team!¡± When Yu Bing saw Yu Pan showing off, she was used to it and couldn¡¯t be bothered with her. She still had to continue investigating the market. ¡°If there¡¯s nothing else, I¡¯ll leave first.¡± When Yu Bing didn¡¯t look at her enviously as she expected, Yu Pan was enraged and scolded coldly, ¡°Wait! Did I let you leave? When did you come back? Why did you come back? Why didn¡¯t you tell our family? Mom and Dad wanted you to bring some jam for them to give away as gifts!¡± Yu Pan was a little addicted to jam, especially since it didn¡¯t cost her money. However, in front of her boyfriend, she definitely couldn¡¯t say that she wanted to eat it, so she could only push the blame on her parents. Hearing Yu Pan¡¯s reprimanding tone, Yu Bing knew that she wanted to show off again by belittling her, so she didn¡¯t reply and only changed the subject. ¡°I¡¯m on a business trip and I still have something urgent to attend to. If there¡¯s anything, we¡¯ll talk when I get home.¡± With that, she ignored Yu Pan¡¯s shouts and pulled Xiao Sheng¡¯s sleeve as she left. Chapter 320 - 320 If I Dont Deduct, Ill Earn 320 If I Don¡¯t Deduct, I¡¯ll Earn Xiao Sheng had been dealing with various people since he was young. Coupled with the fact that Duan Mei had gone to the village to cause trouble last time and Yu Bing¡¯s decision to stay in the guest house instead of going home this time, he knew that Yu Bing¡¯s relationship with her family wasn¡¯t good. The first thing Yu Pan and Yu Bing talked about just now showed how badly the Yu family treated Yu Bing, so Xiao Sheng tactfully didn¡¯t interrupt. After all, not many sisters would criticize their sister whom they hadn¡¯t seen for a year the moment they saw each other again. She even implied that Yu Bing was promiscuous. Moreover, she didn¡¯t care about Yu Bing¡¯s reputation at all and insulted her in public. Xiao Sheng was worried that Yu Bing was in a bad mood, so he racked his brain to find a topic to talk about, in hopes of diverting her attention. When Yu Bing saw how talkative Xiao Sheng was today, she felt puzzled. She only realized it when she was about to reach the supply company, so she looked at Xiao Sheng with a smile. ¡°I won¡¯t deduct your points.¡± She was the one who was being unreasonable by venting her frustration on Xiao Sheng. Yu Bing suddenly understood why she was unhappy. It was none other than the jealousy and possessiveness she felt because she treated Xiao Sheng as her boyfriend. After Yu Bing changed the topic suddenly, Xiao Sheng paused for a moment before reacting. Then, he smiled as he confirmed, ¡°Then I¡¯ll still get 10 points?¡± Yu Bing nodded seriously. Although the score wasn¡¯t high, Xiao Sheng was already satisfied. As long as his score didn¡¯t get deducted, he could earn more! Xiao Sheng recalled the conversation between Yu Bing and her sister and said with concern, ¡°You told your sister that you were going home just now. Are you planning to stay at home?¡± Yu Bing replied nonchalantly, ¡°I¡¯ll go back to take a look in the next two days after I¡¯m done. Yu Pan saw me, so I should go back. Moreover, in a few days, when Uncle Jiang gets better, we¡¯ll have to go to his house to visit him. If we bump into them again at that time, I don¡¯t know what rumors my mother will spread about me in the courtyard. At that time, I¡¯ll be in a passive position. Although I don¡¯t really care, it¡¯s best to avoid it.¡± The Yu family¡¯s home. Yu Pan returned home after the date. As soon as she closed the door, she shouted, ¡°Dad, Mom, I have big news! Big news!¡± Duan Mei was digging for loofahs in the living room to eat at night. When she saw Yu Pan¡¯s shocked expression, she said in disdain, ¡°Can¡¯t you be calmer at your age?¡± Yu Pan threw her bag onto the sofa. ¡°Yu Bing is back!¡± Mr. Yu, who was reading the newspaper, paused. The letter he had sent last time didn¡¯t get any follow-ups, so he was wondering what was going on. Could it be that she didn¡¯t reply because he was coming back? Duan Mei also stopped what she was doing. ¡°Where did you see her? The train station?¡± When Yu Pan thought of Yu Bing¡¯s mindblowing physical change, she felt uncomfortable. Not everyone became sallow and thin when they went to the countryside, but their looks definitely couldn¡¯t compare to when they were in the city. Yu Bing, on the other hand, was getting more and more good-looking! Yu Pan suddenly felt that she didn¡¯t have any advantage over Yu Bing at all. Her eyes darted around as she started to add fuel to the fire. ¡°I saw her in front of the Golden Flower Cinema. She definitely won¡¯t come back today. When I saw her, she didn¡¯t even have any luggage in her hands! She didn¡¯t even say that she was bringing any gifts to visit you guys. Yu Bing is really getting more and more insensible!¡± When Duan Mei heard this, she threw the loofah in her hand into the basin and scolded, ¡°She¡¯s so rebellious! Why is she here? Did you tell her to come home?¡± Yu Pan immediately replied, ¡°Yes, she said that she was here on a business trip. Moreover, there was a male colleague with her. They seemed very intimate.¡± Yu Pan paused for a moment and narrowed her eyes as she stroked her chin. ¡°In my opinion, their relationship is definitely quite intimate!¡± Duan Mei stood up in shock. ¡°Yu Bing went on a business trip with a male colleague? How old is he?¡± Yu Pan was shocked by Duan Mei¡¯s reaction and said sheepishly, ¡°He seemed to be around 20 years old. He was quite good-looking and his name is Xiao Sheng.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s figure appeared in Duan Mei¡¯s mind, and a disdainful expression appeared on her face. What was the use of being good-looking? He was just a villager without money or power! When Duan Mei was in the village, she was anxious to get Yu Bing¡¯s salary, so she didn¡¯t notice which guy Yu Bing was close to. She only saw Xiao Sheng once on the day she left. However, it had been a few months already. If the two of them really developed feelings for each other during this period, she wouldn¡¯t get any betrothal money! At the thought of this, Duan Mei was a little anxious. ¡°Where is Yu Bing staying now?¡± Yu Pan recalled the scene of Yu Bing tugging at Xiao Sheng¡¯s clothes and shook her head. ¡°I didn¡¯t have time to ask. She just brushed me off with work and ran away with Xiao Sheng.¡± Chapter 321 - 321 Home 321 Home Yu Pan deliberately worded it ambiguously, so the others thought they had held hands. When Duan Mei heard that the two of them had held hands, she was shocked! She hurriedly looked at her husband. ¡°I think we should quickly find Shi Lian to settle Yu Bing and Yao Nian¡¯s marriage. If Yu Bing really gets together with that man, we won¡¯t get a single cent!¡± Mr. Yu lowered his eyes and thought for a moment. ¡°There¡¯s no hurry. She¡¯s on a business trip. Perhaps for safety purposes, she brought a male colleague along. We¡¯ll ask when Yu Bing comes back and see what the situation is. If you look for Shi Lian so rashly, what if it¡¯s not what you think?¡± Duan Mei thought to herself, ¡°What if it is?!¡± However, she thought about how two days wasn¡¯t a big deal, so she endured it. Duan Mei had just picked up the loofah and was about to continue digging when she suddenly thought of something. ¡°Oh no! Didn¡¯t Yu Yan say in her last letter that she was coming this Wednesday?!¡± Mr. Yu was shocked and turned to look at his wife. ¡°Hurry up and call her. Tell her to return to the village and come back some other time. The Yao couple is enough of a headache for us. If Yu Bing finds out and exposes it, how can we continue to live in the courtyard?!¡± Duan Mei agreed anxiously. ¡°I¡¯ll go now. Yu Pan, cook the loofahs!¡± After Duan Mei instructed Yu Pan, she took her bag and went straight to the post office. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng worked for another two days before finally completing the market investigation. Yu Bing chose a working day to go home. Before she left, she went to the supply company to buy two pounds of mung bean cake. At five-thirty in the evening, it was time to get off work. Yu Bing specifically chose this time to go to the courtyard. ¡°That¡¯s Yu Bing, right?¡± ¡°Looks like it.¡± ¡°She has changed so much!¡± ¡°Are you Yu Bing?¡± someone asked curiously. Yu Bing immediately smiled and greeted, ¡°Auntie Cheng, I¡¯m Yu Bing.¡± Those who knew the Yu family surrounded her. ¡°You¡¯re getting more and more beautiful after you went to the countryside!¡± Aunt Cheng also asked curiously, ¡°You¡¯ve changed so much from before. Even we, who have been your neighbors for so long, can barely recognize you. We thought that you were just a look-alike. Are things hard for you in the countryside? Why do you seem even better off than when you were at home?¡± When Yu Bing heard this, a bitter smile appeared on her face. ¡°Things are quite tough in the countryside. When I was busy farming, I was so tired that I felt that my body was no longer mine after work every day. However, although I was tired, I could at least eat my fill. That¡¯s why I grew taller.¡± ¡°I¡¯m quite lucky. A few months ago, our village opened a food factory. Life became easier for me after I started working there, so I gained weight after a few months.¡± ¡°Sigh, your mother is too much. She left all the heavy work at home to you, but she¡¯s quite good at pretending outside. After comparing you to your brother and sister, who wouldn¡¯t know what¡¯s going on? Duan Mei thinks she hid it quite cleverly and thinks we don¡¯t know.¡± The person who spoke was Yu Bing¡¯s neighbor and had watched Yu Bing grow up. The neighbors had always seen the unfair treatment Yu Bing had suffered. In the past, they had helped speak up for her, but Yu Bing was still young at that time and was very obedient to her parents. As outsiders, they could help once or twice, but they couldn¡¯t help every time. Sometimes, when they saw Duan Mei¡¯s pretentious act, they treated it as watching a circus act for free. This was the effect Yu Bing wanted, but she still acted helpless. ¡°I¡¯m not in good health, so it¡¯s inevitable that my family will complain. That¡¯s why I wanted to do more work to make up for it. However, it¡¯s useless. In the end, I got sent to build a village¡­ Sigh, let¡¯s not talk about it anymore. At least I¡¯ve made it through now.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s vague words made everyone¡¯s imagination run wild. Who didn¡¯t know that life in the countryside was tough? There was endless work all day long. Because of the hard work, rural people looked much aged than city dwellers. Even young and strong city people might not be able to adapt if they went to the countryside. Despite having two healthy children, the Yu family made Yu Bing go. This was no different from letting Yu Bing fend for herself. When Duan Mei saw a group of people surrounding Yu Bing from afar, she frowned and shouted, ¡°Yu Bing?¡± When everyone saw Duan Mei, they tacitly changed the topic and greeted her. Yu Bing turned around and replied, ¡°Mom.¡± Duan Mei greeted the neighbors. Then, in front of everyone, she smiled at Yu Bing gently and said, ¡°Yu Bing, hurry up and go home.¡± Yu Bing followed Duan Mei upstairs, but she knew that the contents of the conversation just now would quickly spread. Chapter 322 - 322 Not Allowed To Be Together 322 Not Allowed To Be Together Yu Bing followed Duan Mei into the house. Yu Wu was lying on the sofa reading a novel when he heard the door open. He knew that Yu Bing had already returned to Hang City. Although he had already found out from Yu Pan and his mother that Yu Bing was no longer that thin and weak, he was still a little surprised to see her in person. However, after the surprise, he didn¡¯t express anything else. When Yu Wu saw the things in Yu Bing¡¯s hand, he was interested and sat up. ¡°What good things did you bring back? Do you have jam?¡± Yu Bing placed her luggage in the corner of the sofa for the time being before placing the pastries on the coffee table. ¡°I bought two pounds of mung bean cake.¡± When Yu Wu heard this, he shouted, ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯re too stingy! You only come back once a year, but you only bought two pounds of mung bean cake!¡± Duan Mei went forward and realized that there was really only mung bean cake. Thinking of how Yu Yan gave them jam and money, Duan Mei¡¯s expression immediately became even uglier. ¡°Yu Bing, is this how you show your filial piety to your parents?¡± Yu Bing lowered her eyes and said helplessly, ¡°I have no choice. The factory hasn¡¯t paid off its debt yet and I bought these two pounds of mung bean cake with my savings.¡± At this moment, the door opened again. Yu Pan and Mr. Yu had returned home. Yu Bing greeted obediently, ¡°Dad, Sister.¡± Mr. Yu was stunned for a moment because Yu Bing was clearly much healthier. Then, he nodded. Yu Pan replied aloofly. When she realized that there was something on the coffee table, she also walked forward happily. When she found out that Yu Bing had bought an ordinary snack, she couldn¡¯t help but roll her eyes at Yu Bing. ¡°You¡¯re the factory director, yet you brought back such cheap goods.¡± Yu Wu also chimed in, ¡°That¡¯s right. Yu Bing, go to the supply company and buy some good things.¡± Yu Bing only listened and didn¡¯t say anything. This was her biological family. After everyone saw her, they were not concerned about how she was doing in the countryside, but were thinking about what else she could provide them with to continue parasitizing. Mr. Yu saw Yu Bing¡¯s smile fade. Although he was also very dissatisfied, he thought about how he still had to ask Yu Bing some questions later, so he felt that it wasn¡¯t good to disappoint her yet. Hence, he berated Yu Wu and Yu Pan and said to Yu Bing, ¡°Yu Bing, your brothers and sisters speak without thinking. Ignore them. It¡¯s good that you¡¯re back.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t say anything else, but she sneered inwardly. From these words, he was basically distinguishing Yu Bing from them. Yu Bing lowered her eyes and acted like she was a little down. ¡°Dad, Mom, you both know the situation of our factory. We¡¯re on a business trip, but we even have to pay for travel expenses ourselves first and see how to get reimbursements after we get back.¡± Duan Mei was speechless when she heard this and glared at Yu Bing. ¡°Stupid! All you ever do is do free labor!¡± When Mr. Yu heard this, he wavered a little. It had been almost half a year since the factory opened, but it still wasn¡¯t profitable. If the food factory closed down in the future, without Yu Bing¡¯s current position, the Yao family most likely wouldn¡¯t fancy Yu Bing anymore. At the thought of this, he asked gently, ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯re not young anymore. Do you have a boyfriend?¡± Mr. Yu decided to understand the situation first. What if that bumpkin¡¯s family was quite well-off and could fork out more betrothal money? Yu Bing knew that he was asking about Xiao Sheng, so she feigned innocence and replied, ¡°No.¡± Duan Mei couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore and said, ¡°If not, how could you have held hands with him?!¡± Yu Bing frowned. When had she ever held hands with Xiao Sheng? ¡°Who spread the rumor about me?¡± Yu Bing asked despite knowing the answer. Yu Pan felt a little guilty, but she remembered that she had forgotten to mention something else, so she immediately perked up and said, ¡°I even saw you twist his arm. If you guys weren¡¯t together, why would you guys be so intimate?¡± Yu Bing paused for a moment. She really didn¡¯t know how to explain this. When Mr. Yu and Duan Mei saw Yu Bing¡¯s expression, their hearts skipped a beat. They immediately guessed that the two of them might not have officially confirmed their relationship yet. Mr. Yu immediately asked, ¡°How¡¯s Xiao Sheng¡¯s family¡¯s situation?¡± Yu Bing planned to beat her parents at their own game and use Xiao Sheng to completely destroy her parents¡¯ desire to let her marry into the Yao family. Hence, she replied obediently, ¡°His parents are no longer around and he¡¯s raising his siblings alone. They¡¯re all adorable children around the age of 10. Unfortunately, his sister has poor eyesight, so he wants to save money to treat her eyes.¡± Mr. Yu and Duan Mei exchanged looks and said sternly, ¡°Yu Bing, I¡¯m warning you, you¡¯re not allowed to be with him!¡± Chapter 323 - 323 Hurry Up and Scram 323 Hurry Up and Scram Duan Mei added, ¡°You have to find someone capable. Good looks are useless! The key is that he has two burdens! Hurry up and give up on him. We will arrange your marriage. We won¡¯t harm you.¡± Yu Pan was watching the show from the side. In her eyes, it was the same whether Yu Bing married Xiao Sheng or Yao Nian, since she still had to stay in the countryside. However, if she married Yao Nian, her family could get the betrothal money and she could get some from her mother as her dowry! Yu Bing remained silent with her head lowered, making it impossible to see her expression. Mr. Yu and Duan Mei didn¡¯t like Yu Bing¡¯s current cheerfulness and confidence, because what they needed wasn¡¯t an independent Yu Bing, but an obedient Yu Bing who only knew how to work for the family. After Yu Wu realized that he couldn¡¯t get any other food from Yu Bing, he stopped paying attention to what was being discussed at home and continued to read his novel. Only when he was a little hungry did he shout at Duan Mei, ¡°Mom! Hurry up and cook. I¡¯m starving!¡± Duan Mei turned around and looked at Yu Wu with a smile as she comforted him. ¡°I¡¯ll go cook right away. Eat a few pastries to fill your stomach first.¡± With that, she turned around and saw that Yu Pan had already eaten a few pieces. She slapped Yu Pan hard and rared, ¡°How dare you?! You ate so much at once! Your brother hasn¡¯t eaten any yet.¡± With that, Duan Mei immediately wrapped the mung bean cake and took it back to her room. Yu Pan shook her head proudly. Although it was the cheapest pastry sold in the shop, it was still quite delicious. She had eaten quite a few pieces just now, so this slap was worth it. When Yu Bing saw this familiar scene, she sneered. It was time to make her ultimate move. She didn¡¯t want to stay in such a scheming family for another second. ¡°Mom, I¡¯m not staying at the guest house anymore, but at home instead. Remember to cook my portion for all three meals. I¡¯m busy, but I¡¯ll be back for meals.¡± Duan Mei came out of the room and sized up Yu Bing. As she entered the kitchen, she said, ¡°I can cook your share, but pay me money and food stamps.¡± Yu Bing deliberately walked to the door of the house and looked at Duan Mei helplessly as she said loudly, ¡°Mom, I really don¡¯t have money. I¡¯ve already spent most of it at the countryside to see the doctor and nourish my body. If it weren¡¯t for those stamps and money, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to enter the factory.¡± ¡°I only have two food stamps worth three taels left. I still have one yuan left for the bus ticket to inspect the market. Dad, Mom, I can only rely on my family now. I won¡¯t be staying for long, just a week.¡± Duan Mei, who was washing the rice, paused. Then, she turned around and glared at her as she shouted agitatedly, ¡°A week?! If you don¡¯t have money and stamps, don¡¯t even think about staying for a single day. You¡¯re on a business trip for the factory, so let them take care of you!¡± Duan Mei felt that it was already good enough for her to let Yu Bing go home and save money on the guest house fees. Morever, Yu Bing had to give her money and stamps for food, and she had to let Yu Bing take on all the housework at home. This way, she could relax for a few days. Unexpectedly, this wretched girl wasn¡¯t willing to pay at all. The more Duan Mei thought about it, the angrier she became. ¡°Get lost! Think of a way yourself. Dream on!¡± Yu Bing replied loudly, ¡°Mom, when our factory earns money, I¡¯ll apply for money and send it back to you!¡± Mr. Yu watched as the two of them spoke louder and louder. The soundproofing of the building wasn¡¯t good, so he was afraid that others would find out that his family was too stingy to give food to his daughter and that they would say that they were abusing Yu Bing, so he went forward and whispered, ¡°Be quiet! Aren¡¯t you afraid that others will know what our family is saying?¡± Duan Mei was about to say something when she was stopped by Mr. Yu. She couldn¡¯t be bothered to waste her breath anymore, so she shouted at Yu Bing angrily in a low voice, ¡°Get lost!¡± Yu Bing lowered her head and raised her hand to wipe her nonexistent tears. Then, she went to the sofa to get her luggage. After opening the door and walking out, she turned around reluctantly and said, ¡°Mom, I¡¯ll really return the money and stamps to you. If you let me out now, I¡¯ll starve.¡± Some families on the same floor were sitting at their door while picking vegetables and chatting. When they heard the commotion, they pricked up their ears to eavesdrop on the Yu family¡¯s conversation. Now that they saw Yu Bing leave the house with her luggage, they felt even more interested. When Mr. Yu saw Yu Bing like this, he stopped his wife, who wanted to scold Yu Bing again. Just as he was thinking about how to explain in order to prevent the neighbors from thinking that he had chased Yu Bing away, he saw Yu Bing slam the door shut with a bang. He was at a loss for words. Chapter 324 - 324 Agreeing to the Marriage Proposal 324 Agreeing to the Marriage Proposal When the neighbors saw Yu Bing turn around and leave, they frowned. ¡°Mr. Yu and Duan Mei are too outrageous. They even want to charge their daughter money for a few meals at home!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Their family of four has three people working. I can often smell meat when I pass by their home. How can they be short of food for one more person? Moreover, Yu Bing already said that even if she doesn¡¯t have money now, she¡¯ll make up for it later. Yet the couple can actually bear to watch Yu Bing starve outside.¡± ¡°If it were me, I wouldn¡¯t have come back!¡± ¡°Indeed, how heartless! It¡¯s time to eat, so they should at least let her have a meal. The Yu family doesn¡¯t even want to give her a single grain of rice now.¡± Yu Bing could naturally imagine the discussions of outsiders. This was a part of her plan of escaping the Yu family¡¯s control in the future. With the advantage of public opinion being on her side, it would be easier for others to understand her. After Yu Bing left, Duan Mei looked at her husband and said, ¡°I think she did it on purpose! She wants to ruin our family¡¯s reputation!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s actions could be interpreted as leaving after being rejected, but it could also be interpreted as Yu Bing deliberately showing her neighbors that her family mistreated her. However, no matter what, this matter had already affected the Yu family negatively. Mr. Yu no longer cared to think about what Yu Bing¡¯s intention was. Since they definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to get Yu Bing¡¯s salary, he began to agree with his wife. ¡°After dinner, go to Shi Lian and discuss the two children¡¯s marriage with her. Settle it as soon as possible and get the money. This year, the recruitment for sending intellectuals to build the countryside has begun again.¡± ¡°I just pulled some strings today. Yu Wu will go to the food factory to work as a temporary worker. As long as Yu Wu gets this position, he won¡¯t have to go to the countryside. We have to gather enough money quickly!¡± Duan Mei¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go tonight!¡± At the Yao family¡¯s house. When Shi Lian saw Duan Mei standing at the door, she greeted her with a smile, ¡°Duan Mei, it¡¯s been a long time since you¡¯ve been a guest at my house. Come in.¡± When Duan Mei entered and saw that Mr. Yao was also there, she smiled and said, ¡°Mr. Yao is also here. That¡¯s good.¡± Mr. Yao stood up and replied with a smile, ¡°You¡¯re a rare guest. Please sit.¡± Shi Lian welcomed her in and let her sit on the sofa. Then, she poured a glass of water for Duan Mei and said, ¡°Is Yu Pan ready to get married?¡± Duan Mei smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s not confirmed yet. They¡¯re just dating.¡± Duan Mei changed the topic and revealed her true motive for coming to the Yao family¡¯s home. ¡°Shi Lian, Mr. Yao, my husband and I thought about it and felt that a good child like Yao Nian is indeed rare. I really don¡¯t want Yu Bing to marry a bumpkin, or else even if the intellectuals can return to the city in the future, she won¡¯t have a chance at all. Therefore, we discussed it and decided to agree to your previous marriage proposal!¡± Shi Lian¡¯s smile didn¡¯t change, but she disdained Duan Mei¡¯s actions. Previously, she wanted to keep Yao Nian hanging and see if she could climb up the social ladder through another man. Now, she changed her mind? It was too late! Thinking of the contents of her son¡¯s letter last week, Shi Lian felt a little smug. Her son was indeed outstanding. With his own strength, he had found a girl whose family was more than ten times more well-off than his family! He could even return to the city and find a job. How could Yu Bing compare to her?! Hence, Shi Lian looked at Duan Mei indifferently and replied aloofly, ¡°Duan Mei, I thought about it and decided to let the children decide it themselves. Yu Bing has high standards. My husband and I also thought about it later. What you said makes sense. Marriage is about reciprocation. Let the two children choose who to date themselves. They¡¯re still young, so there¡¯s no hurry.¡± Duan Mei paused. She could tell that Shi Lian had changed her mind, so she was a little anxious. Her son was still waiting for money in order to pull strings! Duan Mei realized that it wasn¡¯t the Yao family who was proposing marriage now, but their family. Hence, she could only smile and say, ¡°What do children know? The parents should make the decisions regarding marriage. How can parents harm their children? Aren¡¯t many couples like this? They¡¯re living quite harmoniously now!¡± Shi Lian was very calm. ¡°You can¡¯t say that. Free love is popular now. We should also learn from it and keep up with the times. Don¡¯t be anxious. Our children will have their own match! These two children probably are not meant to be together. Otherwise, they would have been engaged already.¡± Duan Mei knew that Shi Lian was determined not to consider Yu Bing anymore, so she said with a stiff expression, ¡°Alright, since you¡¯ve decided, I hope you won¡¯t regret it and come looking for me after this!¡± With that, she stood up and left the Yao family¡¯s home. Chapter 325 - 325 Not Getting Married 325 Not Getting Married When Shi Lian saw Duan Mei leave, she crossed her legs proudly and said sarcastically, ¡°Now, she¡¯s throwing a tantrum? Why didn¡¯t she think of this today when she was ignoring us previously? Does she really think that her daughter is in high demand and my son is grass?! Does she think I¡¯ll regret it? Dream on!¡± The two of them had completely fallen out. On the other side, at Jiang Chun¡¯s house, after a few days of peace, Old Madam Jiang came looking for her again. This time, in addition to Jiang Yu, she also brought her eldest son and daughter-in-law. After Jiang Mei opened the door, she felt vexed when she saw that it was her mother-in-law and greeted timidly, ¡°Mom, Brother, Sister-in-law.¡± Old Madam Jiang snorted in response. Jiang Yu¡¯s parents no longer had their usual arrogant attitude and smiled as they chatted with Jiang Mei. Although Jiang Yu was as rude as usual, he didn¡¯t call the couple useless, as he usually did. Jiang Chun was changing her father¡¯s dressing in the room. When she saw the Jiang family, she greeted them. She was a junior, so she didn¡¯t want to give them an excuse to make an issue out of etiquette and accuse her of being ill-mannered. Old Madam Jiang sat by the bed as she looked at Jiang Wu and said, ¡°How¡¯s your leg? We came to see you.¡± Seeing that his mother was concerned about him, Jiang Wu was in a good mood. ¡°Mom, I¡¯m much better. Brother, Sister-in-law, Jiang Yu, thank you for visiting me.¡± After Jiang Wu finished speaking, he smiled at Jiang Mei. ¡°Honey, quickly bring a few stools in for my brother¡¯s family to sit on.¡± Jiang Mei wasn¡¯t as happy as Jiang Wu. She knew that Old Madam Jiang must have come for Jiang Wu¡¯s job again, but she still brought three stools in. Only then did Old Madam Jiang continue, ¡°I didn¡¯t come to visit you because I was worried that it would affect your rest. As soon as we found out that you were feeling better, your brother¡¯s family suggested coming to visit. You have to remember your brother¡¯s family¡¯s kindness!¡± Jiang Chun couldn¡¯t help but sneer. Old Madam Jiang immediately glared at Jiang Chun. If not for the fact that there was something important to deal with at the moment, she would have taught Jiang Chun a lesson already! ¡°Brother, you need to climb a ladder in order to count the goods in the warehouse. If your legs are crippled, don¡¯t climb up and down. I¡¯m doing this for your own good. Let Jiang Yu take your place.¡± Jiang Chun couldn¡¯t help but mock, ¡°Grandma, my father only has a temporary fracture, not a broken leg. He can recover!¡± Old Madam Jiang endured her anger and didn¡¯t respond to Jiang Chun. Instead, she said to Jiang Wu, ¡°Brother, I made this decision for your own good. Your family doesn¡¯t have a son, and Jiang Chun won¡¯t be of much use after she marries someone. At that time, she will focus on her in-laws and won¡¯t care about you guys.¡± ¡°If you give the job to Jiang Yu, our entire family will be grateful to you. When you and Jiang Mei are old and need help, Jiang Yu will also help you.¡± After Uncle Jiang pushed his son¡¯s arm gently, Jiang Yu immediately said what they had discussed at home, ¡°Third Uncle, Third Aunt, don¡¯t worry. In the future, when you¡¯re old, call me if there¡¯s any heavy work at home!¡± Jiang Wu was a little hesitant when he heard this. His daughter would get married sooner or later, so he and Jiang Mei indeed had to consider their retirement. Jiang Chun didn¡¯t expect Old Madam Jiang to bring this up. Her father was only in his early forties and was still about twenty years away from retirement! Jiang Chun made up her mind and said, ¡°I¡¯m not getting married! When my father retires, I¡¯ll come back to take over and stay by my parents¡¯ side to take care of them!¡± Jiang Yu¡¯s mother smiled and said sarcastically, ¡°Which girl doesn¡¯t get married? Be careful, or your parents will be mocked.¡± When Jiang Mei heard this, she panicked. ¡°What nonsense are you talking about? How can you not get married? If you don¡¯t get married or have children, who will take care of you when you¡¯re old?¡± In this day and age, not many people had the courage to get a divorce, let alone not get married. They felt that this would be very embarrassing. There was a saying that family scandals couldn¡¯t be aired in public. Therefore, no matter what the situation was at home, in order to maintain the integrity of the family, there were many people who chose to tolerate each other for the rest of their lives. The Civil Affairs Bureau handled very few divorce certificates a year. In order to get her mother¡¯s support, Jiang Chun could only change her words. ¡°Then I¡¯ll work at both sides and marry a man who can accept it.¡± Jiang Mei and Jiang Wu also felt that this was a good idea. Other people¡¯s children would never be like their own. How could they be as assured as their own daughter taking care of them? Chapter 326 - 326 Sowing Discord 326 Sowing Discord Old Madam Jiang gritted her teeth in anger. When she saw Jiang Wu¡¯s leg in a cast, she had an excuse again. Her tone was filled with concern as she said, ¡°You¡¯re not in good health and your legs are broken. What if you get too tired at work and it worsens your condition? I am considering for Jiang Yu¡¯s sake, but you¡¯re also my son, so I am also considering for your sake. If you give your job to Jiang Yu, you¡¯ll still have five yuan a month in the future and you don¡¯t have to work. That¡¯s like killing two birds with one stone! Moreover, you don¡¯t have to pay for my monthly retirement expenses.¡± Jiang Chun knew that her father would start to waver if Old Madam Jiang spoke gently, so before her father could speak, she stopped him. ¡°Grandma, the doctor said that my father¡¯s legs can recover. My father¡¯s poor health is due to a chronic illness. He was able to do this job in the past, so he can do it now as well.¡± Only then did Old Madam Jiang look at Jiang Chun and say unhappily, ¡°Your father will get older and older. As his mother, I can¡¯t bear to let him work so hard, even if you¡¯re ruthless enough to.¡± Old Madam Jiang glossed over the fact that she had snatched her son¡¯s job and made it seem as if she was doing it for her son¡¯s sake. She even blamed Jiang Chun for mistreating her parents. Old Madam Jiang wanted to sow discord, but Jiang Wu wouldn¡¯t fall for it. He knew how filial Jiang Chun was. Last year, when they were recruiting from door to door for intellectuals to go to the countryside, Jiang Wu couldn¡¯t bear to let Jiang Chun suffer, so he suggested giving his job to Jiang Chun. However, new employees only earned 18 yuan a month, while due to Jiang Wu¡¯s work experience, Jiang Wu¡¯s salary had already increased to 25 yuan. This meant that the Jiang family¡¯s monthly salary would be reduced by 7 yuan. With three more people at home, this seven yuan might not be enough for Jiang Wu to even buy the cheapest medicine every day. Therefore, Jiang Chun stopped Jiang Wu and insisted on going to the countryside. Later, Jiang Chun earned some money in He Mountain Village and often sent packages home. Only then did Jiang Wu improve the quality of his medicine and his body recovered a little. Jiang Wu couldn¡¯t help but speak up for his daughter. ¡°Mom, there¡¯s nothing wrong with my body. Jiang Chun is assured because she knows that I can do it.¡± Jiang Wu was filial to his mother, but no matter how filial he was, how could he possibly prioritize his nephew over his daughter? When Jiang Mei saw that Jiang Wu had the same thoughts as her, she heaved a sigh of relief. She looked at Old Madam Jiang and mustered her courage to go forward. ¡°Mom, after Jiang Chun went to the countryside, Jiang Wu and I have been living a better life than before, but now, you insist that we give up our jobs. In that case, Jiang Wu won¡¯t even be able to afford the cheapest medicine. Moreover, Jiang Chun is 19 years old this year and will reach marital age in two years. We have to start preparing the dowry now. Our family doesn¡¯t even have 20 yuan in cash now.¡± ¡°As parents, we don¡¯t have the ability to save up money for Jiang Chun¡¯s dowry, so I discussed it with Jiang Wu and asked Jiang Chun to save up her salary as a dowry. If we even take this money, how can Jiang Chun get married? If she doesn¡¯t have a dowry, she will be looked down on by her in-laws before she even gets married. How can she have a good life in the future?!¡± The more Jiang Mei spoke, the sadder she became. Her family had sacrificed the most for her in-laws, but why did her in-laws want to force her family to a dead end? It was one thing for her to favor boys over girls, but why did she not even care about Jiang Wu¡¯s well-being? ¡°Mom, please let our family live our lives!¡± Jiang Mei had been oppressed in the Jiang family for so long that she didn¡¯t even dare to speak loudly. This was the first time Jiang Mei had expressed her thoughts and emotions so assertively, shocking everyone present. After Old Madam Jiang came back to her senses, she glared at Jiang Mei with her small eyes as she scolded loudly, ¡°You b*tch. In the past, you always stood quietly at the side and didn¡¯t even dare to make a squeak. Turns out you were pretending all along! You made me really think that you were a good person. Turns out you were waiting for this day.¡± ¡°Let me tell you, my son¡¯s relationship with me is not something you can sow discord with! You only gave birth to a girl after marrying into our family, yet you dare to shout at me now? Why does a wretched girl need a dowry when she¡¯s getting married? What a waste!¡± After Old Madam Jiang scolded her, she still felt that it wasn¡¯t enough and even got off the bed nimbly, planning to teach her third daughter-in-law a lesson. ¡°Jiang Mei, you have such a potty mouth. I¡¯m gonna tear your mouth apart!¡± Chapter 327 - 327 Take Care 327 Take Care When Jiang Mei saw her mother-in-law walking towards her, she was so frightened that she didn¡¯t dare to move. Jiang Wu was anxious, but could only lie in bed and couldn¡¯t stop her. Fortunately, Jiang Chun had been paying attention to Old Madam Jiang. Seeing this, she immediately went forward and grabbed her hand. ¡°Grandma, are you planning to pester us again?¡± Old Madam Jiang looked at Jiang Chun with an ice-cold gaze. Then, she pulled her hand out slightly and immediately started using her old trick. She sat on the ground as she began to cry. ¡°My life is really tough. I raised you painstakingly, but you¡¯re just going to watch your wife and daughter bully your seventy-year-old mother? Do you have any conscience?¡± ¡°What a sin! I was thinking for your sake, but you didn¡¯t appreciate it! Jiang Wu, you¡¯re really disappointing! I¡¯m already so old, but I was scolded by your wife and beaten up by your daughter. I¡¯m really a failure. I¡¯ll just die so that I won¡¯t be an eyesore to your family!¡± Jiang Wu wasn¡¯t blind, so he naturally knew that Old Madam Jiang wanted him to beat up his wife and daughter. However, his wife had been with a sickly person like him for so many years without complaints and regrets, while his daughter was filial and sensible, so he couldn¡¯t disregard right and wrong just to please his mother. However, when he saw his mother sitting on the ground and wiping her tears, he was in a dilemma. He could only say helplessly, ¡°Mom, the floor is cold. You have rheumatism to begin with, and your legs will hurt at night if you suffer the cold. If you have anything to say, say it in bed.¡± Old Madam Jiang was going all out. She originally thought that after she finished speaking, her eldest son¡¯s family would immediately help her up, and she would be able to get up at that time. Unexpectedly, no one did so. If she listened to Jiang Wu¡¯s words, how could her words have any deterrent effect?! Jiang Chun pretended not to see Old Madam Jiang¡¯s distortion of the truth. When she saw that Jiang Mei wanted to go forward, she even secretly stopped her. Old Madam Jiang had to continue acting, so she could only continue shouting, ¡°Turns out that you still care about my life! Then chase Jiang Chun back to the village. I feel upset whenever I see her now. If you still want me to be your mother, you have to do as I say!¡± The eldest son¡¯s family didn¡¯t help her because they thought that if Old Madam Jiang continued to sit there and cry, the effect would be better. As for the fact that her body would hurt from the cold, she could endure it. She wouldn¡¯t die from it anyway. Now that Old Madam Jiang had said this, the eldest son could tell that his mother wanted to chase Jiang Chun away, so she could convince his third brother and wife in private. Otherwise, with Jiang Chun around, it would indeed be difficult to negotiate. Hence, he said, ¡°Brother, don¡¯t make Mom angry! Let Jiang Chun return to the village first.¡± When Jiang Wu heard that she was only asking Jiang Chun to return to the village and didn¡¯t mention anything else, she heaved a sigh of relief. ¡°Mom, Jiang Chun will be back in a few days. She¡¯s on a leave.¡± When Old Madam Jiang heard this, she immediately stopped wiping her tears and looked up to ask, ¡°How many days is the leave?¡± Jiang Wu thought of the time on Jiang Chun¡¯s certificate and replied, ¡°Five days. Mom, it¡¯s not easy for Jiang Chun to come home. She only comes back once a year.¡± When the eldest son heard this, he anxiously shot Old Madam Jiang a look. Old Madam Jiang received the hint and said, ¡°No, she has to leave tomorrow.¡± Jiang Chun was a little puzzled. She could tell why Old Madam Jiang wanted to chase her back to the village, but she didn¡¯t understand why she was in such a hurry. Hence, she planned to test them and force them to reveal it themselves. ¡°Dad, I applied for leave with our village chief and leader yesterday. They know that I¡¯m an only child, so they allowed me to take care of you at home for half a month.¡± Old Madam Jiang was even more unwilling to accept it when she heard this. She immediately clutched her chest and shouted, ¡°My chest feels stuffy whenever I see this wretched girl. Are you trying to anger me to death? You¡¯re not even willing to agree to such a small request.¡± When Jiang Chun heard this, she said calmly, ¡°Grandma, if my mother doesn¡¯t go to work soon, she¡¯ll probably lose her job as a part-time worker. In that case, my father can¡¯t lose his job all the more. I¡¯m staying at home to help my mother take care of my father.¡± Old Madam Jiang paused for a moment. When she saw Jiang Yu sitting beside her, she had an idea. ¡°Let Little Yu come here to take care of them for half a month. Hurry up and return to the village.¡± Jiang Yu was stunned. Why was he being dragged into it? They had never mentioned this at home before, so was Old Madam Jiang serious, or was she lying to Jiang Chun? Chapter 328 - 328 Ad Lib 328 Ad Lib Through Jiang Yu¡¯s reaction, Jiang Chun could tell that this was Old Madam Jiang¡¯s improvisation again. She had an idea and said, ¡°Then it¡¯s best if you stay at my house. My mother has to work during the day and rest well at night, so she can¡¯t keep watch. My father might have to go to the bathroom at night. It¡¯s best if you sleep on the floor, so you can get up at any time.¡± ¡°You must do daily maintenance for him twice a day. You have to help my father exercise his joints every day to prevent muscle atrophy and joint stiffness. By the way, you have to turn him over regularly every two hours to avoid bedsores. Also¡­¡± Before Jiang Yu could figure it out, he heard Jiang Chun¡¯s blabbering. He had yet to even remember the first part, but Jiang Chun kept blabbering on and on. Jiang Yu was befuddled. ¡°Stop, stop, stop! It¡¯s so troublesome. I can¡¯t remember it all. Whoever wants to do it can do it. I can¡¯t do it!¡± Jiang Chun nodded in understanding. ¡°You¡¯re a man who does great things. It¡¯s indeed a waste of your talent to stay at home all day to serve others.¡± When the eldest son and his wife heard Jiang Chun¡¯s words, they found her much more pleasing to the eye than before. It was indeed a waste of their son¡¯s talent to serve others, but they could understand Old Madam Jiang¡¯s actions. They knew that it was most likely to trick Jiang Chun into leaving first. If it really didn¡¯t work out, Jiang Yu could come here every few days to put on an act. Jiang Yu was excited when he heard this. ¡°Of course! Jiang Chun, I realize that you¡¯re quite discerning. With my talent, I have to stay in the city to showcase my skills.¡± Jiang Chun replied supportively, ¡°Cousin, you¡¯re more suited to working in an office. To put it bluntly, my father¡¯s job is to check inventory in the warehouse. How bright of a future can you have? All you¡¯ll ever do is deal with a pile of goods. You won¡¯t even have a chance to meet the higher-ups. You won¡¯t even have a chance to show off.¡± Jiang Yu felt that Jiang Chun had hit the nail on the head. ¡°That¡¯s right! I had no choice. The recruitment time¡­¡± ¡°Cough, cough, cough!¡± When Old Madam Jiang heard that things were going in the wrong direction, she hurriedly coughed violently. Mr. Jiang and his wife also reacted and hurriedly tugged at Jiang Yu¡¯s arm while thinking about how to smooth things over. ¡°Jiang Yu is a child, so let him start from the basics and get some training experience.¡± Although Jiang Yu didn¡¯t finish his words, Jiang Chun still remembered the keywords and understood that their eagerness was related to the registration time of the intellectuals being sent to the countryside. At this moment, Old Madam Jiang also said in dissatisfaction, ¡°Jiang Yu is a down-to-earth child, so he will start from the bottom, unlike some people who are already in charge of the department at such a young age. If people attain success too easily, they¡¯ll become arrogant. For example, a certain someone has only been a small leader for a few months, but she already dares to get aggressive with her elders.¡± ¡°I wonder what the factory¡¯s leaders are thinking. How can they choose a woman?! My poor grandson. He has talent, but nowhere to showcase it!¡± Sometimes, Jiang Chun was impressed by how deeply-rooted Old Madam Jiang¡¯s misogynistic mindset was. She was clearly a woman herself, but no matter what she said, she always discriminated against women. Jiang Chun was already used to it and retorted calmly, ¡°Grandma, then I¡¯ll swap places with my cousin. I¡¯ll give him the position of a small leader in the countryside. I believe that with my cousin¡¯s participation, the food factory will definitely be raking in money every day! Since I don¡¯t have the capability, I¡¯ll just make do with staying in the city.¡± Old Madam Jiang immediately spat. ¡°In your dreams!¡± Jiang Chun smiled insincerely and said, ¡°Grandma, you made it sound so good that I really thought I got a bargain.¡± Although it was summer, the cold air on the floor still seeped into Old Madam Jiang¡¯s body through her clothes. Her legs began to feel a little uncomfortable, and she became frustrated. Seeing how stubborn Jiang Chun was, Old Madam Jiang knew that she wouldn¡¯t be able to achieve anything even if she continued to argue with her, so she didn¡¯t want to waste time talking to her. Old Madam Jiang targeted Jiang Wu again and said angrily, ¡°Don¡¯t say that I didn¡¯t give you a choice. Either give Jiang Yu your job or let Jiang Chun buy a ticket back to the village immediately.¡± Jiang Wu didn¡¯t want to choose either option, but when he saw his mother sitting on the ground with an unyielding attitude, he was also in a dilemma. The room fell silent. Jiang Chun sighed. Her father was too filial. Fortunately, ever since her malnutrition incident, he had started to think more about his family, so there was still hope. Jiang Chun looked at Old Madam Jiang, who was already fidgeting a little. She knew that she definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to hold on for long. Therefore, she couldn¡¯t let her get up immediately. Otherwise, once she recovered, there was no telling how long she would cause trouble in their house. ¡°Grandma, don¡¯t make things difficult for my father. He¡¯s most worried about your health, so aren¡¯t you forcing him to compromise?¡± Chapter 329 - 329 In Good Health 329 In Good Health Jiang Chun hinted to Old Madam Jiang that sitting on the ground and crying was very effective! On the other side, she said to Jiang Wu, ¡°Dad, you can¡¯t move your legs now, so it¡¯s useless even if you¡¯re anxious. Don¡¯t worry, my grandmother lives with my uncle¡¯s family and they take good care of her. She¡¯ll be in good health.¡± Old Madam Jiang wasn¡¯t someone who would mistreat herself. Rheumatism was a problem caused by poor living conditions when she was young and couldn¡¯t take good care of her body, but in other aspects, she took good care of herself. When Jiang Wu saw Old Madam Jiang¡¯s rosy face and heard her energetic voice, he was no longer anxious. He tried to convince his mother. ¡°Mom, Jiang Chun is our only daughter. She¡¯s been in the countryside for a year and it¡¯s not easy for us to meet, so there¡¯s no hurry.¡± ¡°She¡¯s insensible, so I apologize for her making you uncomfortable! Don¡¯t hold it against a child like her.¡± Seeing that her move had no effect on Jiang Wu, Old Madam Jiang became a little anxious and her attitude became even tougher. ¡°Let me tell you, you can only choose one of two. You don¡¯t have to explain so much. If you don¡¯t do as I say, I¡¯ll go to your workplace to cause trouble. Let¡¯s see how you can stay in the workplace in the future!¡± Old Madam Jiang was dropping all pretense, so Jiang Chun didn¡¯t intend to be polite anymore when she heard this. ¡°Grandma, you were in a hurry to chase me away because I stopped my father from giving his position to my cousin. But you¡¯re already so old, you should have heard of this saying, right? Cutting off someone¡¯s source of income is like killing their parents. You¡¯re not giving our family any way out!¡± ¡°If that¡¯s the case, you¡¯re forcing me into a corner. If you go to my father¡¯s workplace, I can risk my life to go to my uncle¡¯s workplace and the courtyard where you guys live to make a fuss until everyone knows! I¡¯ll let others judge if this is the right thing to do!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t believe that giving my father¡¯s job to a healthy young man is more important than my father¡¯s life!¡± As the saying went, the timid were afraid of the tough and the hard were afraid of the ruthless. Jiang Chun realized that she couldn¡¯t be soft-hearted to these people. The more soft-hearted she was, the more she would be bullied by them! When Old Madam Jiang saw Jiang Chun¡¯s unyielding demeanor, she knew that she had no choice, so she look at Jiang Wu again and said, ¡°What your daughter is saying is what you mean, right? You want to cut ties with the Jiang family, right?¡± Jiang Chun stood in front of her father and looked straight at Old Madam Jiang with a firm attitude. ¡°Grandma, if you¡¯re willing to lose the five yuan my father gives you every month, we¡¯ll listen to you. If you want to sever ties with us because of this, we have to respect your choice out of filial piety!¡± Jiang Wu was unwilling to agree to his mother¡¯s request, but he had never thought of leaving the Jiang family, so he was a little angered by Jiang Chun¡¯s decision. ¡°Jiang Chun!¡± When Old Madam Jiang saw her son¡¯s reaction, she looked at Jiang Chun proudly with a hint of provocation in her eyes. Jiang Chun took a deep breath and turned to look at her father helplessly. ¡°Dad, don¡¯t you understand? You treat them as family, but do they treat you as family? They only want to suck your blood. Even if you don¡¯t do it for yourself, you have to take care of yourself for me and Mom¡¯s sake!¡± With that, Jiang Chun stopped looking at her father and turned to Old Madam Jiang and the eldest son. ¡°Grandma, Uncle, if you guys are heartless, don¡¯t blame me for being heartless! My father is about to lose his job, so I¡¯m not afraid of losing face. I won¡¯t be going anywhere these few days. I¡¯ll go downstairs to get a loudspeaker and tell everyone about your schemes!¡± When the eldest son saw Jiang Chun¡¯s desperate expression, he was really worried that if Jiang Chun kept her word, how could his family stay in the courtyard in the future? At the thought of this, he felt a little terrified. Not knowing what to do next, he looked at his mother blankly. They were used to standing behind their mother and enjoying the benefits Jiang Wu¡¯s family brought, so they had no experience with such direct confrontations. Old Madam Jiang could no longer hold it in. Her legs were already starting to hurt. When she saw Jiang Chun¡¯s aggressive expression and the timid expression of the eldest son¡¯s family, she was furious. ¡°Help me up!¡± Only then did the eldest son and Jiang Yu¡¯s mother hurriedly help her up. Old Madam Jiang endured the pain and decided to hold on for a while longer. This time, she changed her strategy and looked at Jiang Wu with a sad expression. ¡°Think about the time you had a high fever when you were young. I didn¡¯t sleep well the entire night and took care of you. When you weren¡¯t feeling well, I hugged you for the entire night. Think about it carefully. Do you have to go against us over such a small matter? As for the money to buy your medicine, I¡¯ve also considered it for you and given you a plan. The money is enough for you to buy medicine.¡± ¡°Alright, we¡¯ll leave first. Think about it yourself. Is our mother-son relationship more important or your job more important?¡± Chapter 330 - 330 Disillusionment 330 Disillusionment With that, Old Madam Jiang endured the pain and left. Jiang Chun had to admit that Old Madam Jiang¡¯s last move was much more brilliant than her crying, shouting, and fighting. Humans were emotional creatures, especially people like Jiang Wu, who valued relationships. This move was very effective against him. In the afternoon, Jiang Chun took the time to go out and ask about the recruitment time for this year. When she found out that the name list would be confirmed in three days, she instantly understood why they were in a hurry to chase her away. Jiang Chun knew that she had to have a good talk with her parents. Or, she could drag the time and make Jiang Yu go to the countryside. However, as long as she wasn¡¯t at home, her dad¡¯s job would be snatched by those people sooner or later. After all, other than her third cousin, there were still a few other cousins of the right age. If they didn¡¯t completely give up on the position, this matter definitely wouldn¡¯t be over. After dinner, Jiang Chun went to her parents¡¯ room. ¡°Dad, Mom, let¡¯s talk.¡± Jiang Chun took a stool and sat in front of her father¡¯s bed. ¡°Dad, what are your plans now?¡± Jiang Wu looked at his wife and daughter guiltily. ¡°Jiang Chun, I know you¡¯re thinking for my sake, but I think some things are more important than money.¡± Although she had already mentally prepared herself, Jiang Chun was still angered by Jiang Wu¡¯s final decision. ¡°Dad, are you really planning to let me send all my salary back every month?¡± When Jiang Mei heard this, she was the first to disagree. ¡°No! That¡¯s our daughter¡¯s dowry money. We don¡¯t have the ability to save dowry for her, so at least we can¡¯t drag her down anymore!¡± Jiang Wu hurriedly comforted his wife. ¡°Don¡¯t be anxious. I didn¡¯t say that I wanted my daughter¡¯s money. Jiang Chun, you don¡¯t have to send it.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve thought about it. I plan to get your mother to go to the match factory to get a matchbox for me to paste. Ten of them cost a penny. If I¡¯m proficient, I¡¯ll cost ten yuan a month. Coupled with the five yuan your cousin gave me, we¡¯ll have 30 yuan. It¡¯s just that it¡¯ll be hard on your mother. It wasn¡¯t easy for her to start living a better life, but now, she has to live a hard life with me.¡± To Jiang Mei, as long as it didn¡¯t harm her daughter¡¯s interests, she wasn¡¯t afraid of suffering herself. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Don¡¯t all families live like this?¡± Jiang Wu held his wife¡¯s hand and the two of them looked at each other affectionately. Jiang Chun was speechless as she watched the two of them make things difficult for themselves, but act so touched by each other¡¯s so-called sacrifices. She was so exasperated that she actually lost her temper. ¡°Dad, Mom, we don¡¯t owe my uncle¡¯s family anything. Why should we suffer and give all the benefits to others?¡± Of course, Jiang Wu knew that he didn¡¯t owe his siblings anything, but he owed his parents. ¡°Your grandmother gave birth to me and raised me. Now that she has mentioned this, she will be unhappy if I don¡¯t agree.¡± Jiang Chun decided to analyze it for her father. She had to completely destroy her father¡¯s fantasy of kinship with her grandmother in order to save him from being free labor for the other Jiang family members. ¡°Dad, Grandma has been involved in many things. Which one of them didn¡¯t you agree to? But what happened in the end? How did she treat our family and that of my uncles? Did she treat you better because you agreed? No.¡± ¡°She actually treats you worse than she treats my uncles. Do you think this is still a question of whether you agree or not?¡± When Jiang Wu heard Jiang Chun¡¯s words, he fell into deep thought. He knew that he wasn¡¯t as well-liked by his parents as his siblings were. Putting aside his two married sisters, he was the dumbest among the five brothers in the family, so he had wanted to do more things for his parents to see since he was young. As time passed, he became used to this kind of sacrifice, and his family seemed to be used to asking him for things. Jiang Chun could tell that Jiang Wu looked a little sad, but she still decided to be ruthless and expose his unrealistic fantasy. ¡°Whenever I go to my grandparents¡¯ house. They give everyone gifts but me. Grandma favors boys over girls, but she still gave my female cousins candy during the new year. However, I never got one.¡± ¡°No matter who did something wrong, they would blame it on me without hesitation. Is it because you didn¡¯t protect me? No, it¡¯s because they knew that Grandma would never listen to our family.¡± ¡°There¡¯s also Mom. When everyone went to Grandma¡¯s house to help prepare New Year¡¯s Eve dinner during the new year, she went the earliest and came back the latest. My aunts chatted while working, but as long as Mom dared to stop, she would be scolded even if she just had to drink water or go to the bathroom!¡± Chapter 331 - 331 Selling By the Pound 331 Selling By the Pound Jiang Chun could only start by exposing all the unfair things she and her mother suffered and that her father had deliberately ignored. Jiang Chun didn¡¯t want her father to lie to himself again. Jiang Wu and Jiang Mei married out of love, so the two of them had a good relationship. Ever since Jiang Mei married into the Jiang family, because of her gentle personality and Jiang Wu¡¯s forbearance, she had become like Jiang Wu over time. Whenever Old Madam Jiang caused trouble, her first reaction was to endure it. When Jiang Wu heard Jiang Chun¡¯s words, he began to ponder over those things that he didn¡¯t want to remember seriously. However, his many years of habit still made him find excuses for his actions. ¡°Your grandmother used to treat me very well too. When I was sick, she took care of me without sleeping all night.¡± Jiang Chun resisted the urge to roll her eyes. ¡°Dad, I¡¯ve heard these words for as long as I can remember. It¡¯s been 19 years since I¡¯ve been born, but Grandma keeps mentioning this matter repeatedly. It¡¯s enough to show that this is the only time she has ever treated you well.¡± ¡°Moreover, not only did Grandma raise you, but didn¡¯t Grandma also raise my uncles? Moreover, you¡¯re the only son who gives Grandma a monthly pension. Not only did we do better than them, but we also did more than them. However, Grandma still has many requests for our family. Do you think it¡¯s reasonable?¡± Jiang Wu lowered his eyes and remained silent. Jiang Mei looked at her daughter and then at her husband. ¡°I think our daughter makes sense.¡± Although Jiang Mei was unassertive, she knew how important her husband¡¯s salary was to this family. In the past few months, they had just started to have some spare money and could still save a few yuan sometimes. As Jiang Wu looked at Jiang Mei, who was in her early forties but already had white hair, he felt guilty. ¡°It¡¯s been so many years, so it¡¯s time to consider our family more.¡± When Jiang Mei heard her husband¡¯s words, she revealed a gratified smile. However, she thought about how Old Madam Jiang would definitely continue to bring people to their door. ¡°Sigh, if Grandma doesn¡¯t get your job, she¡¯ll probably come again.¡± When Jiang Wu heard this, his expression couldn¡¯t help but turn solemn. It wasn¡¯t that Jiang Chun couldn¡¯t deal with Old Madam Jiang and the others, but because of her father, she wasn¡¯t in a hurry to make a move. After all, it was useless to charge forward alone. Even if Jiang Chun had the ability to counterattack, as long as her parents hung a white flag behind her, she would be in an awkward position. It was fine if she worked for nothing, but in the end, she would end up offending both sides. Therefore, tonight¡¯s conversation was very important. When Jiang Chun saw the worry on her parents¡¯ faces, she said calmly, ¡°As long as you guys can maintain your stance, I have a way to make Grandma, Uncle, and the others not dare to have any designs on the position again.¡± Jiang Wu asked curiously, ¡°What solution do you have?¡± Jiang Chun smiled and said with a chuckle, ¡°We¡¯ll learn from Grandma and hit her where it hurts.¡± Jiang Mei couldn¡¯t help but worry when she heard this. Her mother-in-law was selfish and domineering. At home, as long as her father-in-law didn¡¯t speak, she was basically in charge. Her personality was as tough and unreasonable as it could get. ¡°Then your grandmother will probably skin you alive.¡± Jiang Chun was already prepared, so she replied indifferently, ¡°We¡¯re in the right, so I¡¯m not afraid of her! If they hadn¡¯t gone overboard and pressured us like this, would we be forced to do this?¡± ¡°What she¡¯s doing now is no different from skinning our family alive. If we really continue to suffer like this, not to mention being skinned and sucked dry, they¡¯re probably even thinking about how to sell us as jerky after we¡¯re sucked dry!¡± Jiang Chun¡¯s words weren¡¯t too exaggerated. As long as their family still had a trace of value, Old Madam Jiang wouldn¡¯t let go. Jiang Wu sighed softly, but in the end, he didn¡¯t say anything. The next day, at dawn, Jiang Chun went out and secretly stuffed a report letter into the door of the district administrative office. Jiang Chun had just finished helping her father exercise when there was a knock on the door. Jiang Chun turned to her father and said again, ¡°Dad, you promised to think more about our family in the future, no matter what happens.¡± Before Jiang Wu could react, Jiang Chun brought this up again. However, he still smiled and nodded. ¡°I remember. Hurry up and open the door. The knocking sounds quite urgent. Perhaps our neighbor has something urgent.¡± Chapter 332 - 332 Focused Care 332 Focused Care Jiang Chun smiled when she received her father¡¯s affirmative answer. Then, she slowly turned around and left the room. It would be strange if the knocking wasn¡¯t anxious. With her letter, Jiang Yu would probably become the focus of the recruitment office! Jiang Chun opened the door. As expected, it was Old Madam Jiang. However, the formation was smaller today. Jiang Chun greeted calmly, ¡°Hello, Grandma, Aunt.¡± Old Madam Jiang pushed Jiang Chun away aggressively, while Jiang Yu¡¯s mother followed closely behind. However, before entering Jiang Wu¡¯s bedroom, Old Madam Jiang restrained her emotions. After entering, she asked gently, ¡°Have you thought about it last night?¡± It had to be said that Jiang Chun¡¯s conversation yesterday was very useful. Jiang Wu, whose delusion had been crushed by Jiang Chun¡¯s words, felt a little disappointed when he heard his mother ask about her promotion. However, this made him agree with Jiang Chun¡¯s analysis from last night even more. ¡°Mom, I¡¯m sorry. I can¡¯t give up my job.¡± Old Madam Jiang didn¡¯t expect her most obedient third son to reject her request so explicitly one day, so she was stunned for a while before coming back to her senses. She looked hurt as she said, ¡°For the sake of a job, you¡¯re willing to disregard our relationship?!¡± When Jiang Wu heard this, he didn¡¯t know how to answer. What did his job and their mother-son relationship have to do with each other? He lay on the bed as he looked at his mother anxiously. He wanted to explain, but he wasn¡¯t eloquent, so he didn¡¯t know how to. When Jiang Chun saw that Old Madam Jiang wanted to play the blame game, she hurriedly walked forward and stood beside her father as she looked at Old Madam Jiang and said, ¡°Grandma, you know that my father is stupid, so don¡¯t falsely accuse him. It¡¯s not that my father doesn¡¯t care about kinship now, but certain people don¡¯t care about my father¡¯s life at all, so we had no choice but to reject this excessive request.¡± ¡°To be precise, in order to get this job, certain people disregard the lives of their relatives and their many years of kinship.¡± Old Madam Jiang was furious when she heard this. Jiang Chun was just short of naming her. Old Madam Jiang had a bad temper to begin with. If it wasn¡¯t for the sake of achieving her goal, she wouldn¡¯t have put so much effort into pretending just now. Now that Jiang Chun had directly refuted her, she was instantly enraged. She tapped her walking stick on the ground as she cursed, ¡°You d*mn girl! What nonsense are you talking about?! What do you mean by disregarding the lives of their relatives? You¡¯re the one who refused to hand over your salary to your father, causing him to suffer!¡± Jiang Chun once again marveled at Old Madam Jiang¡¯s ability to distort the truth. Just as she was about to speak, Old Madam Jiang interrupted her. Old Madam Jiang glared at Jiang Chun. This morning, the intellectual enlistment office¡¯s people personally went to her house to say that Jiang Yu had used illness as an excuse last year. They also mentioned that Jiang Yu had to sign up for the enlistment even if he was sick this year. This meant that to Jiang Yu, there were still three days left yesterday, but there were only two days left today. If he couldn¡¯t get a job in two days, he had to go to the countryside! Before coming, Old Madam Jiang had already thought about it. She couldn¡¯t waste time with Jiang Chun. Otherwise, she would definitely suffer. It had always been like this in the past. Her third son and his wife were both obedient pushovers, but they had given birth to Jiang Chun, a rebel! When Old Madam Jiang saw that Jiang Chun kept going against her whenever she ordered her parents around, she didn¡¯t give her candy biscuits during the new year, but she had to say it out loud to make a fool of them. Couldn¡¯t she endure it silently like her parents? Old Madam Jiang was even angrier when she thought of how Jiang Chun had gone against her in the past, but she could only suppress her anger today. After all, the matter was too urgent. There was no hurry to deal with this little girl. Since Jiang Chun dared to stop her, she would let her pay the price now! ¡°I can¡¯t be bothered to waste time on you! Jiang Wu, I¡¯m your mother after all, and I¡¯m not someone who doesn¡¯t care about my family. I¡¯ve suggested so many solutions, but you¡¯re unwilling to accept any one of them. Then I¡¯ll compromise and give you another solution, but you have to agree!¡± ¡°I found a good marriage candidate for Jiang Chun. The other party is a small leader of the watch factory. Moreover, his family has connections that can transfer Jiang Chun back.¡± Jiang Mei had just entered the house after work at noon. When she heard this, she jogged into the bedroom and asked in surprise, ¡°Mom, is what you said true?¡± Old Madam Jiang glanced at Jiang Mei and said aloofly, ¡°Of course it¡¯s true.¡± Jiang Wu was delighted when he heard this. ¡°Mom, how old is the other party? How many people are in the family?¡± Seeing the anxious expression on her third son and his wife¡¯s faces, Old Madam Jiang deliberately kept them in suspense for a while before replying, ¡°He¡¯s 30 years old and lives with his parents. His two sisters have already married and moved out.¡± When Jiang Mei heard the man¡¯s age, she looked a little hesitant. ¡°He¡¯s only getting married at this age? Could it be a second marriage? How many children does he have?¡± Chapter 333 - 333 Mental Violence 333 Mental Violence When Jiang Yu¡¯s mother heard this, she immediately held Jiang Mei¡¯s arm and comforted her patiently, ¡°His wife passed away at the beginning of the year because she wasn¡¯t in good health. Otherwise, how could Jiang Chun have a chance to marry such a good man?! Besides, it¡¯s good that he¡¯s older. Older men are more considerate and tolerant. Moreover, his first wife only left two daughters. As long as Jiang Chun gives birth to a son, since those two daughters will get married and move out in a few years, how can they get in Jiang Chun¡¯s way?!¡± Jiang Chun didn¡¯t believe that they would be so kind as to introduce a good man to her. Moreover, at the critical moment when Jiang Yu was about to be recruited to the countryside, they weren¡¯t in a hurry to find connections. Instead, they were concerned about her marriage. Hence, she asked curiously, ¡°Aunt, what kind of leader is he? What¡¯s his name?¡± When Jiang Yu¡¯s mother heard this, she calmed down. She knew that the chance to return to the city and the position of a little leader was very enticing to women. As long as she could settle this matter in the next two days, her son¡¯s job would be settled as well! As for how this little b*tch ended up, it was none of her business. ¡°His name is Chen Xuan. He¡¯s a tall and handsome man. Although he¡¯s only 30 years old, he¡¯s already the deputy section chief of the factory¡¯s human resources department. The deputy factory director is his uncle. This young man has a bright future!¡± When Jiang Mei and Jiang Wu heard this condition, they felt that the fact that he had children from his previous marriage wasn¡¯t so unacceptable anymore. The two of them knew too well what it was like to be poor. With Chen Xuan¡¯s conditions, at the very least, their daughter wouldn¡¯t have to suffer when she married him. She would just have to wait until her two stepdaughters were old enough to get married. A few days ago, Jiang Chun had mentioned to her parents that the person she was dating was a soldier. At this moment, Jiang Wu and his wife had completely forgotten about him. Compared to letting their daughter marry far away, they hoped that their daughter could stay by their side. Hence, the Jiang Wu couple was very concerned about this and asked about the man eagerly. While everyone was focused on this matter, Jiang Chun quietly slipped out of the house. At this time, there were only so many types of work units assigned to city dwellers. Most of them had been arranged to work in the factory, so the factories in the entire city were like a large network of connections and most people married other factory workers. Therefore, the spouses of the employees of factories were basically factory workers in the city as well. Jiang Chun found her neighbor, Madam Li¡¯s daughter-in-law, Wu Tao, because her workplace happened to be the watch factory. When Jiang Chun returned home after asking around, Jiang Yu¡¯s mother and Old Madam Jiang had already deceived Jiang Wu and his wife into wishing that they could settle the marriage immediately. Jiang Chun felt a chill run down her spine when she saw how vicious her relatives were. ¡°Dad, Mom, I suddenly remembered that Grandma Li¡¯s daughter-in-law is an employee of the watch factory, so I asked about Chen Xuan¡¯s situation. It seems that Aunt and Grandma missed out on a lot of important information.¡± Jiang Yu¡¯s mother looked a little uncomfortable when she heard this, but she still braced herself and said, ¡°Jiang Chun, some people just can¡¯t stand other people being well off. Don¡¯t be deceived by rumors.¡± Old Madam Jiang also came back to her senses. ¡°Jiang Chun, don¡¯t be ungrateful and believe in an outsider¡¯s lies instead of your own family!¡± As expected, a guilty person would expose herself after just a few truthful words from others. Seeing this, Jiang Chun sneered. ¡°Grandma, Aunt, I haven¡¯t even said anything. How do you guys know that someone is spreading rumors?¡± Old Madam Jiang and Jiang Yu¡¯s mother¡¯s voices were speechless. They didn¡¯t know how to explain what they had just blurted out. Jiang Wu and Jiang Mei were honest but not stupid. When they saw their reaction, they understood that there was definitely something wrong with Chen Xuan. Jiang Chun knew that if she reported Jiang Yu, the Jiang family would definitely try everything they could to get her father¡¯s position as soon as possible. Therefore, she was already mentally prepared and doubted everything they said. At this moment, Jiang Chun didn¡¯t want to beat around the bush anymore. She directly told Jiang Wu and Jiang Mei what she had found out. ¡°Chen Xuan¡¯s wife died by suicide. Everyone in the dormitory said that Chen Xuan¡¯s wife was often abused by the Chen family at home.¡± ¡°Chen Xuan¡¯s family is misogynistic. Chen Xuan¡¯s wife lost a lot of blood when she gave birth to a younger daughter, causing her to be unable to give birth again. Chen Xuan¡¯s family was very dissatisfied with this and verbally abused her every day. After a long period of psychological abuse, she became depressed. At the beginning of the year, she committed suicide at home.¡± Chapter 334 - 334 Change In Mentality 334 Change In Mentality Jiang Mei had been a victim of her mother-in-law¡¯s psychological abuse. Moreover, they didn¡¯t even live together. Every time they met, Jiang Mei would be depressed for a long time afterwards. Chen Xuan¡¯s wife lived with her in-laws, which was equivalent to the entire family putting all kinds of mental shackles on her at all times. It would be strange if there were no mental problems in the long term. It could be said that Chen Xuan¡¯s wife¡¯s death was caused by the Chen family. When Jiang Chun saw her parents¡¯ ugly expressions, she continued, ¡°The assistant factory director of the watch factory is indeed Chen Xuan¡¯s uncle. In order to find another wife for Chen Xuan, he has been looking for people to introduce him to. He even promised that he could arrange a temporary job in the factory after the deed is done.¡± Hearing this, the Jiang Wu couple¡¯s expressions changed drastically. They immediately realized what their mother and brother¡¯s family were up to. Jiang Wu looked at his mother in disbelief. ¡°Mom, Jiang Chun is my only daughter and your biological granddaughter. No matter how much you don¡¯t like her, you can¡¯t push her into this sort of thing!¡± For the first time, Jiang Mei hated herself for being too cowardly in the past, which allowed these greedy people to push their luck again and again! Wasn¡¯t bullying them enough? They didn¡¯t even let her daughter off! Jiang Mei¡¯s eyes reddened as she clenched her fists. Then, she raised her head and pointed at the door as she shouted at them, ¡°Get lost! Get out of my house!¡± Old Madam Jiang had never been treated like this before, so she roared angrily, ¡°Are you crazy? How dare you talk to me like that?!¡± When Old Madam Jiang saw the enamel cup on the bedside table, she picked it up and threw it in Jiang Mei¡¯s direction. Fortunately, Jiang Chun reacted quickly and hurriedly pulled her mother away. The cup fell to the ground with a clang. Last night, Old Madam Jiang hadn¡¯t rested well because of rheumatism and had learned her lesson so today, she sat on the bed and started crying. ¡°I¡¯ll just die in your house! How can you bully your old mother like this?¡± ¡°I had good intentions. How would I know that their family is like that?! You can¡¯t blame me!¡± If not for Old Madam Jiang and Jiang Yu¡¯s mother¡¯s overreaction just now, Jiang Wu would have thought that Old Madam Jiang had been deceived. However, now that his delusion of kinship had been shattered, Jiang Wu felt that the harsh reality seemed much clearer, and he was extremely disappointed by the truth. As he watched Old Madam Jiang¡¯s pretentious acting, he said calmly, ¡°Mom, go back. As parents, we will think about Jiang Chun¡¯s marriage. You don¡¯t have to worry about it anymore.¡± When Old Madam Jiang saw her third son¡¯s firm attitude, her heart skipped a beat. She felt that she was about to lose something important. After forcefully ignoring the strange feeling in her heart, she knew that this plan had completely failed when she saw her third son¡¯s unyielding attitude, so she didn¡¯t waste any more time. However, in order to maintain her dignity, Old Madam Jiang still said fiercely before she left, ¡°Since you¡¯re so ruthless, you don¡¯t have to come home to see me anymore in the future. I don¡¯t have an unfilial son like you! Be careful not to be struck by lightning and suffer retribution!¡± With that, Old Madam Jiang stood up and left Jiang Chun¡¯s house. Jiang Yu¡¯s mother didn¡¯t want to give up yet, since her son was the one who had to go to the countryside, but her mother-in-law had already left, so it was useless for her to stay here. She could only glare at Jiang Chun in resentment for ruining her plan. Originally, Jiang Chun¡¯s parents were already tempted and said that they wanted to arrange for the two families to meet this afternoon. Jiang Chun wanted to use the recruitment office to pressure Jiang Yu and force Old Madam Jiang and Jiang Yu¡¯s family to panic. Jiang Chun wanted to force Old Madam Jiang and Jiang Yu¡¯s family to use more intense methods to pressure her family. Then, she would take the opportunity to blow things up. Old Madam Jiang cared about her son and grandson¡¯s future and reputation the most. Therefore, she would go to her grandmother¡¯s house with a loudspeaker and publicize their actions. As long as she wasn¡¯t afraid of losing face, Jiang Chun believed that before she could finish speaking, Old Madam Jiang would have no choice but to give in. This method seemed simple, but it was very effective. Previously, they didn¡¯t want to be so ruthless, so they didn¡¯t use it. At this point, they could only use this threat to completely dispel their designs. Otherwise, no one would be able to withstand trouble every two to three days. However, unexpectedly, Old Madam Jiang and the others¡¯ plan aroused her parents¡¯ love and protectiveness of their daughter and completely angered them, ensuring that they would no longer obey Old Madam Jiang. Chapter 335 - 335 Returning to the Village 335 Returning to the Village To Jiang Chun, this effect was better than causing trouble herself. Only when her parents rebelled could they truly escape the Jiang family¡¯s control and Old Madam Jiang¡¯s control. Soon, it was time to return to the village. Because Jiang Wu couldn¡¯t get out of bed yet, Jiang Chun found a trustworthy retired neighbor and gave the old man 0.05 yuan a day to go to her house every two hours to help turn her father around. Jiang Chun settled all the arrangements before leaving home. After Yu Bing returned home that day, she stayed in the guest house and read with Xiao Sheng, ignoring everything else. The family visit was 15 days. On the afternoon of the last day, the three of them returned to He Mountain Village. On the way to work, Yu Yan saw the smile on Yu Bing¡¯s face as she spoke to Xiao Sheng and Jiang Chun from afar. The unwillingness and grievance in her heart surfaced again. Ever since Yu Yan received a call from Duan Mei last week and found out that Duan Mei wanted Yu Yan to postpone her visit because Yu Bing was at home, she had been absentminded. She had already applied for leave early. In order to avoid being unable to buy train tickets, she had specifically applied for a day off and went to the city to buy tickets in advance. However, all of this was ruined by that phone call. After Yu Yan quietly watched Yu Bing disappear from her sight, she returned to the dormitory in a daze. Then, she lay on the bed alone with tears silently flowing down. Why did they still care more about Yu Bing¡¯s feelings and thoughts when she was so unfilial? Was companionship really that important? However, it wasn¡¯t her fault that she was unable to accompany her family! It was all because of Yu Bing that she lost the chance to accompany them! Yu Yan clenched her fists tightly and lowered her head to bite the back of her hand. At this moment, Yu Yan felt that life was very unfair. She was even more determined to snatch her family away from Yu Bing no matter the price. She had to let Yu Bing have a taste of being abandoned by her family! Yao Nian was eating with Yu Yan now. He realized that as long as he ate with Yu Yan, he could more or less get some share of the canned meat sent by Yu Yan¡¯s parents. After waiting for a long time without seeing Yu Yan, Yao Nian went to the dormitory to look for her. After Yao Nian pushed open the closed door and saw Yu Yan lying on the bed, he went forward and asked softly, ¡°Yu Yan, why aren¡¯t you going down to eat?¡± Yu Yan came back to her senses and quickly wiped her tears. ¡°I don¡¯t have an appetite anymore. Hurry up and go down to eat first.¡± Yao Nian sensed that Yu Yan was in a bad mood. Now was the time for him to perform, so he couldn¡¯t leave. His food had already been placed in the lunch box before he came up anyway. After Yao Nian sat by the bed, he bent down to approach Yu Yan. He looked at her with heartache as he asked gently, ¡°How can I eat if you don¡¯t have an appetite? Yu Yan, what¡¯s wrong? Who made you unhappy?¡± Yu Yan felt that Yao Nian was like a ray of light in the dark world at this moment. His gentle voice was like a whistle that pointed the way for her. Looking at Yao Nian¡¯s handsome face, Yu Yan felt a hint of tenderness and said, ¡°I¡¯m fine. I¡¯ll be fine after some time alone. Take my meat sauce and go downstairs to eat first.¡± Yao Nian resisted the urge to take the meat sauce and rush down to eat. He swallowed hard as he said with difficulty, ¡°No, I want to accompany you. Yu Yan, what happened?¡± As Yu Yan stared at the concerned Yao Nian, she couldn¡¯t tell him in detail, so she only asked, ¡°What did you like about Yu Bing back then?¡± This was a difficult question for men, so Yao Nian immediately stopped thinking about eating meat. He began to think about whether Yu Yan was jealous. ¡°It wasn¡¯t that I liked her. You also know that Yu Bing and I were engaged when we were young. I treated her as my sister and wanted to bear the responsibility of this arranged marriage.¡± ¡°If I hadn¡¯t met you, I might have listened to my parents and agreed to such a feudal marriage. Fortunately, you saved me from this terrifying marriage!¡± Yao Nian could tell from Yu Yan¡¯s eyes that she was moved. He was secretly happy that he answered correctly. He decided to say even more things to consolidate his position in Yu Yan¡¯s heart. ¡°I know Yu Bing is interested in me, but she¡¯s too shy to express her feelings, so she always acts cold to me. I didn¡¯t have any romantic feelings for her, so I played along and pretended not to know.¡± These words expressed that Yu Bing was deeply attracted to him, so he wasn¡¯t a guy that no one cared about, but he also expressed that he had no feelings for Yu Bing. Yao Nian was very satisfied with his answer. Chapter 336 - 336 Not Refusing Anyone 336 Not Refusing Anyone When Yu Yan heard Yao Nian¡¯s words, she felt much better. She felt that she had already roped in her first supporter from the people around Yu Bing. As for the other relatives of the Yu family, when she went to Hang City, she had to take advantage of this rare opportunity to perform well. Moreover, she had to slander Yu Bing as well! Yu Yan was already familiar with the tactic of belittling someone while praising herself. Yao Nian successfully won Yu Yan over. When Yu Yan sent Yao Nian out, she even handed him the meat sauce. ¡°Hurry up and eat. I¡¯m really not hungry.¡± Yao Nian sighed helplessly and stroked Yu Yan¡¯s hair as he said dotingly, ¡°Then look for me when you¡¯re hungry. I still have an egg left. I¡¯ll cook it for you.¡± There were still six eggs that Yu Yan had bought herself left, so she didn¡¯t need Yao Nian¡¯s egg. However, Yao Nian¡¯s constant concern for her made her very happy. She smiled and glanced at Yao Nian coquettishly. ¡°No need. I still have more, so keep it for yourself.¡± Yao Nian had just accompanied Yu Yan to exchange eggs two days ago, so of course, he knew that Yu Yan still had a lot. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t have offered his egg. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go down first.¡± After Yu Yan saw Yao Nian leave, she planned to check her things to see which things to bring to Duan Mei, Mr. Yu, and the others. Now that Yu Bing was back, Yu Yan planned to apply for leave from the village chief tomorrow. In order to save on the round-trip fare, she didn¡¯t plan to buy train tickets in the city in advance this time. She would leave directly after applying for leave tomorrow. When she arrived at the train station, she would take whichever train was earliest. Yu Yan originally had 12.83 yuan left after buying the materials to make the blanket. Coupled with her daily expenses, she only had 8.7 yuan left after scrimping and saving. In order to save money to visit Duan Mei, Yu Yan had been living her most pauperized month ever since she came to the countryside. After the trouble of buying train tickets and canceling them a while ago, although the train station had refunded the money in full, Yu Yan still lost 1.6 yuan after making two trips to City H. Although her living expenses had increased to 10 yuan a month last month and she had received her living expenses half a month in advance this month under her strong request, she only received 27.1 yuan in total. Last week, Yu Yan went to the food factory and bought two more bottles of mushroom beef sauce, egg yolk pastries, snowflake pastries, and some other snacks in the factory. She spent a total of 8.62 yuan as a result. In the past, Yu Yan wouldn¡¯t care about such a small amount of money at all, but things were different now. When Yu Yan went to the food factory to buy these things, she kept cursing Yu Bing for setting such a high price, but she still had to buy them. After all, she had never seen these types of desserts in the city. Moreover, they tasted better than other brands of pastries. Be it in terms of appearance or taste, it was very high-end. It was also packaged independently, so it was easy to store and carry around. It would be a deluxe gift if she gave it away. Then, Yu Yan found the villagers and spent 2.6 yuan to buy 20 pounds of sweet potatoes and 20 pounds of corn flour. The sack was instantly filled, but there were only 15.88 yuan left now. Moreover, she still had to keep 10 yuan as backup. After thinking about it, Yu Yan decided to borrow 50 yuan from the village tomorrow. At most, she would return five yuan a month. Moreover, there would be dividends for the food factory at the end of the year, so she would be able to get some money even if she earned few work points. At that time, she would just have to offset this portion of the money. After packing everything and locking them in the cabinet, Yu Yan went to bed early. The next morning, Yu Yan found Wu Jin to issue a leave of absence for her. A leave of absence had already been issued two weeks ago, but it had been canceled after it wasn¡¯t used, so Yu Yan had gone through a round of trouble for nothing. When Yu Yan went to look for Wu Jin, she was worried that he would find her troublesome and that things wouldn¡¯t go so smoothly. After all, everyone in the village could tell that Wu Jin valued Yu Bing, and Yu Yan and Yu Bing¡¯s hostile relationship was infamous in the village. However, Yu Yan was just being petty-minded. Although Wu Jin didn¡¯t like Yu Yan¡¯s character, he wasn¡¯t a narrow-minded person. Naturally, he wouldn¡¯t make things difficult for Yu Yan just because he found her troublesome or for personal grudges. After Yu Yan successfully obtained the certificate, she returned to the dormitory happily to pack her things. Because Yu Yan was on family leave, Yao Nian thought that Yu Yan was returning to her home, so he endured the pain and went to the county city¡¯s supply company to buy two bottles of jam for Yu Yan to bring home. If she could add more gifts, Yu Yan would naturally accept them. Chapter 337 - 337 Perform Well 337 Perform Well Yao Nian booked an ox cart and personally sent Yu Yan to the bus station. As he helped her carry her luggage, he secretly hoped that Yu Yan would mention him when she returned home. After Yu Yan took the bus to City H and arrived at City H¡¯s bus station at noon, she bought a train ticket from City H to Hang City at six that night. To save money, Yu Yan could only book the most ordinary green train, which had hard seats. After confirming the train number and departure time, Yu Yan called the cotton mill¡¯s family courtyard from the phone window at the train station. According to the method of contact she had agreed upon with Duan Mei in the letter, Yu Yan told Duan Mei about her arrival in the name of Duan Mei¡¯s distant relative. At this time, the arrival schedule for green trains was almost always late at night. Yu Yan only arrived at the train station at ten o¡¯clock on the third night. When Yu Yan went to the countryside last year, she was only carrying a small piece of luggage. Her adoptive parents would send the things through the post office or give her money to buy them locally. She had never carried so many bags around before. This time, she was exhausted! However, when the car arrived at the station, Yu Yan perked up again. She had only seen her biological mother, but had never seen her biological father, sister, and brother before! Full of anticipation, Yu Yan carried the sack and the pieces of luggage off the train. Then, she looked around the platform. ¡°Yu Yan.¡± Yu Yan looked in the direction of the voice and saw Duan Mei, who was waving at her with a smile. Beside her, there stood a middle-aged man with a shaved head who was a head taller than her. Yu Yan knew that he was her father! Although her father didn¡¯t have a smile on his face, Yu Yan felt that she could sense the man¡¯s passionate emotions under his calm appearance. Hang City had a big train station, so there were many people getting on and off. Yu Yan raised her hand and waved it from more than ten meters away, indicating that she saw Duan Mei. Then, she carried her things and moved out of the crowd with difficulty. Duan Mei and Mr. Yu knew that the train would definitely be delayed, so they took a shower before leaving. Unexpectedly, they arrived half an hour earlier than the train. After suffering mosquito bites outside for half an hour and sweating profusely, they didn¡¯t want to move at all. Moreover, they had just arrived at the station and there were many people getting off the train. If they squeezed into the crowd, they would get all sweaty again. However, when they saw Yu Yan lower her head and bend down to take her things, the couple quickly exchanged looks and smiled as they went forward. Two minutes later, the two sides finally met. Duan Mei hurriedly took the sack from Yu Yan¡¯s right hand. ¡°Let me carry this heavy thing.¡± Yu Yan let go and watched as Duan Mei handed the sack to Mr. Yu. Then, Duan Mei introduced, ¡°Mr. Yu, this is our second child, Yu Yan.¡± Duan Mei turned around and smiled at Yu Yan. ¡°Yu Yan, this is your father.¡± Yu Yan immediately called out, ¡°Dad!¡± This was the first time Mr. Yu had heard his second daughter call him that after so many years. Thinking of how she had come all the way to see him, he was a little touched and the smile on his face became more sincere. ¡°Yes!¡± Mr. Yu took the sack and smiled at Yu Yan as he nodded. ¡°Good child, you must be tired from such a long journey, right? Rest well when you get home later.¡± Duan Mei held Yu Yan¡¯s hand and said with a smile, ¡°Yes, let¡¯s go home quickly and talk at home.¡± The three of them slowly followed the crowd out. When Duan Mei noticed that Yu Yan was wearing a checkered shirt made of polyester fabric this time, she felt a little envious and looked at Yu Yan with an even more fervent gaze. ¡°Yu Yan, have you eaten yet?¡± Yu Yan nodded. ¡°Mom, don¡¯t worry. I bought boxed lunch in the car at mealtime.¡± After leaving the station, Mr. Yu pushed out his car from the shed and tied the sack and luggage to the back of the car. Then, the family of three headed back to the courtyard. The three of them returned home half an hour later. Duan Mei and Mr. Yu were also a little glad that Yu Yan arrived late at night. At this time, the people in the courtyard had already returned home and fallen asleep, so they didn¡¯t meet a single acquaintance. Duan Mei had guessed that Yu Yan¡¯s adoptive parents were well-off, but Yu Yan was very fond of her biological parents¡¯ families, so they had to play the biological family card. She even specifically instructed Yu Wu and Yu Pan to perform well in front of Yu Yan for the next few days. Chapter 338 - 338 Must Wait for You 338 Must Wait for You Because it was almost eleven o¡¯clock when they arrived home, the couple thought that the siblings had gone back to their room to sleep, but they didn¡¯t expect them to still be in the living room. Yu Pan and Yu Wu were indeed sleepy from waiting, but neither of them wanted to give up on their first meeting with Yu Yan. Yu Pan was afraid that the good things Yu Yan had brought back would be hidden by Duan Mei before she could eat them. She had to prevent her mother from transferring the things back to her parents¡¯ house or giving them all to Yu Wu, so she had to confirm the variety and number of things with her own eyes. Yu Wu had been specifically instructed by his parents to wait no matter how late Yu Yan returned home tonight. He had to rely on his second sister to find a job and get married. Therefore, although he was so tired that he could barely keep his eyes open, he forced himself to wait on the sofa. When the two of them heard the commotion at the entrance, they sobered up and stood up to look over. When Duan Mei saw the two siblings who were standing upright, she smiled and said to Yu Yan, ¡°Before I left, I specifically said that the train would definitely be delayed and let the two of them sleep first, but I didn¡¯t expect them to wait for you.¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she was touched again. Duan Mei held Yu Yan¡¯s hand as they walked to the middle of the living room. ¡°Come, let me officially introduce you guys.¡± ¡°Yu Yan, this is your eldest sister, Yu Pan, and brother, Yu Wu.¡± Yu Yan immediately greeted obediently, ¡°Eldest Sister, Brother.¡± Yu Pan looked at Yu Yan and realized that she wasn¡¯t inferior to her. Moreover, she was dressed like a pampered young lady. It was obvious that she had grown up in a much better environment than her family. Yu Pan really couldn¡¯t understand why Yu Yan insisted on acknowledging her poor relatives. Yu Pan could only think that Yu Yan was stupid, but no matter what, she was still a beneficiary, so she revealed her gentlest smile. ¡°You¡¯re finally here. I was young in the past, but I remember having a sister. Although I don¡¯t remember why you weren¡¯t at home, I always thought that it would be good if we could meet again!¡± Yu Pan even walked forward and held Yu Yan¡¯s hand. ¡°Looks like the heavens heard my wish and sent you to our side again.¡± When Yu Pan sent the message, she exaggerated and made things up. However, when she was sweet-talking, her words could make one¡¯s heart melt. This was also one of the important reasons she had some importance in Duan Mei¡¯s heart. Yu Wu wasn¡¯t to be outdone. He shouted with a smile, ¡°Second Sister, I¡¯ve been looking forward to it since I knew you were coming. Now, I¡¯ve finally seen you!¡± Yu Yan felt touched from the moment she got out of the car until now. This scene was exactly the same as the scene she had been imagining ever since she found out that she wasn¡¯t Li Xin and Yu Hai¡¯s biological daughter. Yu Yan covered her face. She couldn¡¯t believe this scene was real, so she replied excitedly, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you guys to welcome me so warmly.¡± Duan Mei hugged Yu Yan¡¯s shoulder and said excitedly, ¡°Although you didn¡¯t grow up beside us, the blood flowing between us is the same. Such kinship can¡¯t be severed no matter how much time passes. We¡¯re all very happy that you came back to acknowledge us.¡± Yu Yan nodded excitedly again. That¡¯s right, kinship without blood ties wasn¡¯t kinship! ¡°By the way, I bought some food from our village¡¯s food factory and brought it back. There¡¯s also some corn flour and sweet potatoes. There¡¯s a limit to what we can buy in the village, so please don¡¯t take offense.¡± The Yu family hurriedly expressed that she was being too polite, but they didn¡¯t ask her not to bring stuff again next time, for fear that Yu Yan would take their words seriously. After Yu Yan took out the things from the sack, the things almost took up the entire coffee table. Overjoyed, Yu Pan picked up a souffl¨¦ with individual packaging and ate it. ¡°It¡¯s so delicious! What¡¯s this called?¡± Yu Pan moved too quickly, so Duan Mei was caught off guard. She could only watch as Yu Pan took the things away. In front of Yu Yan, she couldn¡¯t say anything. Seeing this, Yu Wu also opened one curiously and ate it. When Yu Yan saw that Yu Pan had never eaten it before, she was a little surprised and had a bold guess. ¡°This is called souffl¨¦. Yu Bing didn¡¯t bring it for you guys to eat?¡± Not knowing how to answer, the Yu family paused for a moment. After all, they had to act like a loving family in front of Yu Yan. Chapter 339 - 339 Recognized 339 Recognized Fortunately, Duan Mei reacted quickly and thought of how she had hinted to Yu Yan in the village that Yu Bing was unfilial to her family. At that time, Yu Yan defended her, so she planned to divert the topic to this. She immediately put on the image of a good mother who was thinking for her daughter¡¯s sake. ¡°Sigh, she might not have money for it.¡± With that, she glanced at Yu Pan, who immediately understood Duan Mei¡¯s thoughts. ¡°Mom, don¡¯t speak up for Yu Bing. She won¡¯t feel grateful for your kindness. The last time she came back, she only brought two pounds of mung bean cake. Everyone in the courtyard knows. She was dressed in nice clothes, but she doesn¡¯t care about her family at all.¡± Yu Yan didn¡¯t expect Yu Bing to be so outrageous, and her expression immediately became as ugly as the Yu family¡¯s. She said angrily, ¡°Yu Bing is so unfilial. I wonder why those leaders let such a person become the captain of the intellectuals and the person-in-charge of the factory. Aren¡¯t they afraid of her leading the village astray?!¡± Duan Mei¡¯s image as a loving mother couldn¡¯t be ruined, so at this moment, she still had to put in a good word for Yu Bing. ¡°Forget it. We¡¯re family after all and it¡¯s not like we lack food.¡± Yu Pan was still sulking over the fact that Yu Bing didn¡¯t bring her jam, but in order to create the image of a harmonious family atmosphere for Yu Yan, she could only agree. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s not that we covet the food, but we¡¯re a little disappointed. Therefore, we¡¯re really grateful to see you bring these things back when visiting us.¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she felt that the money she spent was worth it. She felt like she was needed and approved by them. When Yu Yan saw that her family was so tolerant of Yu Bing, she was a little angry and decided to talk about Yu Bing¡¯s moral conduct. ¡°Sigh, it¡¯s not that I want to criticize her, but she¡¯s my sister after all. She runs around with a man all day long. She really doesn¡¯t know¡­ There are a lot of rumors in the village. Doesn¡¯t she have a fianc¨¦¡­¡± When Duan Mei heard this, she thought of how she had been rejected by Shi Lian because of Yu Bing and that bumpkin a while ago, so her expression turned ugly. ¡°I can¡¯t control her anymore. Let¡¯s not talk about her anymore. Today is a festive day of reunion.¡± When Yu Yan saw the stiff expression on Duan Mei¡¯s face, she smiled. Just like that, Yu Bing would slowly become despised by her family. In the end, everyone would abandon her without hesitation! As Yu Pan pricked up her ears and listened carefully, she didn¡¯t stop what she was doing and picked up another piece of snowflake pastry to unwrap. Seeing that Yu Pan had performed well tonight, Duan Mei endured it. Although she didn¡¯t say anything, she quickly put away all the things on the coffee table. ¡°It¡¯s getting late. Yu Pan, bring Yu Yan to wash up. Everyone, sleep early today. We still have more time to catch up. There¡¯s no hurry.¡± Yu Pan could tell what Duan Mei was up to, but she didn¡¯t mind. As long as Yu Yan was around, she could get food from her mother. After all, her mother still had to cooperate. Yu Yan slept in Yu Bing¡¯s previous bed. There were not many things that belonged to Yu Bing at home to begin with. When she went to the countryside, Yu Bing had already taken all her things away, so now, the room was filled with Yu Pan¡¯s things. There were no longer any traces of Yu Bing¡¯s existence. When Yu Yan saw this, she was very satisfied. She thought that the Yu family had specifically cleaned it up for her. The next day, the Yu family woke up to eat breakfast. The breakfast Duan Mei prepared was very simple. She steamed five sweet potatoes that Yu Yan had brought over, one for each of them. She also cooked some plain porridge and cut some pickled vegetables as side dishes. Yu Yan ate with relish. She felt that even if she had to eat bland food here, it was better than eating delicacies with her adoptive parents. Yu Yan had applied for a week¡¯s leave to visit her family. Other than the four-day round trip, she could only stay in Hang City for three days. Today was Yu Yan¡¯s first day here. Previously, the Yu family was worried that it would be difficult to explain if Yu Yan was seen by Shi Lian or others, and the solution Yu Pan thought of was very simple. She asked Duan Mei to specifically take three days off to accompany Yu Yan. However, in order to avoid meeting acquaintances, Duan Mei had found all kinds of reasons to keep Yu Yan at home two days ago, so no one knew that there was an additional person in the Yu family¡¯s home. Chapter 340 - 340 Simple 340 Simple-minded However, they couldn¡¯t keep Yu Yan indoors for three whole days. Moreover, in order to express the Yu family¡¯s goodwill to Yu Yan, on the last day, everyone who had work applied for leave and the family of five strolled around Hang City together. They still ate breakfast at home. The factory started work at eight o¡¯clock, so after Yu Pan finished breakfast, she found an excuse to knock on the Yao family¡¯s door after eight o¡¯clock. After Yu Pan confirmed that Shi Lian had gone to work, she returned home and gave Duan Mei a secret signal before the family left. Everyone had fun outside for the entire day. At night, they ate outside before returning to the courtyard at nine o¡¯clock. This was because at this time, most people had already returned home and were preparing to sleep. Unfortunately, Shi Lian returned to her mother¡¯s house to visit her sick mother after work today, so she only returned home at this time. The few of them bumped into each other downstairs, startling Duan Mei and Mr. Yu. ¡°You guys scared me!¡± Shi Lian panted as she rolled her eyes. It was dark at night, and the street lamps were very dim. Shi Lian only knew that the Yu family had probably returned from shopping. Although they couldn¡¯t be in-laws anymore and had parted on bad terms last time, they still had to greet each other since they lived upstairs and downstairs from each other. However, she didn¡¯t expect the Yu couple to look so frightened when they saw her. After Duan Mei came back to her sense, she replied with a smile, ¡°No, no. I was just too engrossed in talking to the children, so I was frightened when you suddenly called us.¡± Shi Lian was a little surprised to see the smile on Duan Mei¡¯s face. After so many years of interaction, she knew Duan Mei well. Duan Mei wasn¡¯t a magnanimous person and was definitely not the kind of person who would forget about the two of them arguing after such a short period of time. Shi Lian felt that something was amiss, but she didn¡¯t show it on her face. ¡°Where did your family go? It¡¯s rare for you guys to have the time to relax.¡± Shi Lian and Duan Mei were not from the same production workshop, so she didn¡¯t know that she had taken leave today. As Shi Lian spoke, she sized up the area behind Duan Mei. Yu Hai wasn¡¯t good at dealing with shenanigans between women, so he remained silent. When Duan Mei saw Shi Lian, she subconsciously let go of Yu Yan¡¯s hand and deliberately walked in front of Yu Yan to block Shi Lian¡¯s vision. ¡°Yes, we went shopping together after dinner tonight. Why are you back so late?¡± Although the Yu family deliberately concealed it, Shi Lian still noticed the existence of the fifth person. ¡°My mother has had a headache for a few days. I was worried, so I went to see her and came back late. Did a guest come to your home? Or is she a friend of Yu Wu¡¯s?¡± Originally, Shi Lian wouldn¡¯t have paid attention if there was just another person around. However, the Yu family¡¯s secretive attitude made her curious. However, her first guess was that she was Yu Wu¡¯s girlfriend. When Duan Mei looked at Shi Lian¡¯s curious expression, she regretted coming out today. She didn¡¯t expect to bump into someone she knew, and worst of all, it was Shi Lian! However, Duan Mei thought of a way to change the topic. ¡°Yu Wu is still young, so he¡¯s not in a hurry to get married. She¡¯s a relative from my hometown and came over to visit for two days, so we brought her out tonight.¡± As Duan Mei spoke, she went forward and held Shi Lian¡¯s hand. Then, she pulled her towards the stairwell. ¡°Your outfit looks nice. Did you buy new clothes recently?¡± How could Shi Lian be fooled so easily? Although she followed Duan Mei up the stairs, she still turned around and continued to stare at Yu Yan¡¯s face. Yu Yan was also a little nervous. She hoped that Shi Lian would recognize her and let more people know her identity, but she didn¡¯t want her identity to be exposed so quickly. If word got to her adoptive parents and they really cut off all her allowance, how could she survive in the future?! Now, 10 yuan a month and the package that had been halved only allowed her to keep up appearances and sustain her daily needs. That amount of money was impossible for her to bribe people to work for her. Moreover, she couldn¡¯t afford to show her filial piety to her biological parents, so she had to continue to compromise and stay by her adoptive parents¡¯ side. Thinking of this, Yu Yan lowered her head slightly and avoided Shi Lian¡¯s gaze. When Shi Lian saw Yu Yan¡¯s face, she felt that she looked a little familiar, so she felt that things were not as simple as Duan Mei had said. If that was the case, why did she act so secretive? Chapter 341 - 341 Distant Relative 341 Distant Relative Shi Lian continued to recall as she replied, ¡°I bought these clothes a few months ago and I¡¯ve worn them a few times already. Perhaps you didn¡¯t see it when I was wearing them. Your distant relative looks quite familiar. Have I seen her before? Little girl, what¡¯s your name?¡± As Shi Lian spoke, she suddenly turned around and asked Yu Yan. This sudden question frightened Duan Mei so much that she broke out in cold sweat. Yu Hai was also anxious. He didn¡¯t understand why women were always so curious about other people¡¯s family matters. At this moment, Yu Yan couldn¡¯t answer, and Yu Wu was indifferent, so the quick-witted Yu Pan saved the day again. Yu Pan smiled as she replied, ¡°Auntie Shi, my distant relative is quite introverted and shy. She doesn¡¯t like to talk, so her family asked her to come to the city for two days to broaden her horizons.¡± When Shi Lian heard this, she looked at Yu Yan, who had her head lowered in silence. She felt that something was wrong, but she really couldn¡¯t remember where she had seen her before. When she went to He Mountain Village, Shi Lian either helped Yao Nian work or rested in the dormitory. In addition, Duan Mei and Yu Yan deliberately avoided her when they met, so Shi Lian only saw Yu Yan when she passed by the dormitory in the blink of an eye. She didn¡¯t even know her name. Moreover, it had been a few months already, so it was already impressive that Shi Lian found Yu Yan familiar. Seeing that she had already arrived at her floor but had yet to think of where she had seen Yu Yan before, Shi Lian could only give up. ¡°I¡¯m here. Bye.¡± Duan Mei and Mr. Yu hurriedly bid farewell to Shi Lian. As they watched Shi Lian leave, the couple finally heaved a sigh of relief. Then, the group continued upstairs and returned home. The Yu family¡¯s home. During the past few days, Duan Mei had revealed from time to time that the financial situation at home wasn¡¯t good and that she had not eaten meat in a long time, but Yu Yan didn¡¯t do anything about it. Today was Yu Yan¡¯s last night, so Duan Mei and Mr. Yu had already lost their patience. Their salary had been deducted since they took leave these few days. In addition, the rice, vegetables, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, and water that Yu Yan had used over the past few days cost money. When Duan Mei thought of this, her expression turned a little ugly. Although Yu Yan had given them food, food couldn¡¯t be used as money! Mr. Yu was more open-minded. He was a little worried that Yu Yan¡¯s impression of them would change because of this and that she would become estranged from them. At that time, it would be even more difficult to get money. Even if they couldn¡¯t get money this time, as long as Yu Yan felt kinship with them, Yu Yan would definitely give them the money she had obtained from her adoptive parents. After the family washed up, Mr. Yu gestured for Duan Mei to call Yu Yan into the bedroom. The two of them planned to appease Yu Yan first and see if there was a chance to mention the money. ¡°Yu Yan, do you still remember that auntie from just now? She¡¯s Yao Nian¡¯s mother, and also our neighbor and colleague.¡± Seeing Yu Yan nod, Duan Mei continued, ¡°I hope you can understand us. We still have to live in the courtyard in the future. If the people in the courtyard find out that we contacted you in private, we¡¯ll be criticized.¡± ¡°Sigh, it¡¯s all our fault for being so incompetent. Back then, we only planned to have one child. Who knew that there would be two? That¡¯s why we had to give you away to another family.¡± Duan Mei looked at Yu Yan with sadness and guilt. She hoped that Yu Yan could understand the helplessness of her having to send a child away and the consequences of the matter being exposed. However, Yu Yan only heard half of Duan Mei¡¯s words. Yu Yan¡¯s lowered eyes flashed with hatred for Yu Bing again. She hated her for depriving her of the right to grow up in this family. When she looked up at her biological parents, the ruthlessness had already disappeared and she expressed her understanding gently. ¡°Dad, Mom, I understand. You don¡¯t have to worry about me misunderstanding.¡± ¡°By the way, I have 50 yuan here. Take it first.¡± Yu Yan took out money from her pocket. She originally wanted to give it to them before she left tomorrow, but after hearing Duan Mei¡¯s words, she had a strong desire to prove herself. Mr. Yu and Duan Mei looked at each other. They were still short of 100 yuan, so the two of them naturally wanted Yu Yan to take out an additional 50 yuan. Hence, Mr. Yu looked at Yu Yan and said slowly, ¡°Child, we won¡¯t take your money. Keep it yourself.¡± Chapter 342 - 342 Argument 342 Argument When Duan Mei heard her husband¡¯s words, a troubled expression appeared on her face. ¡°The family¡¯s situation is already very bad. Over the past few days, I wanted the child to eat some nutritious food to nourish her. Coupled with today¡¯s expenses, the family has already spent most of last month¡¯s salary. Not to mention that we haven¡¯t saved a single cent, how to spend the next half a month is still a problem.¡± Mr. Yu¡¯s expression darkened when he heard this. ¡°Why are you saying this in front of the child?! I¡¯ll think of a way!¡± Duan Mei turned around angrily. ¡°What can you think of? All you can do is borrow money! Life is difficult these days. Who will lend money to you?¡± When Yu Yan heard her parents¡¯ argument, she was a little helpless because her adoptive parents had never quarreled in front of her. She only remembered that her family also had a financial problem in primary school. At that time, she didn¡¯t know that she was adopted. At that time, her adoptive parents were arguing in the room. She passed by when she went to the bathroom to wash up after she finished her homework. Because they were a little loud, she leaned against the door curiously and eavesdropped. Only then did she hear the two of them arguing about money. Later, her adoptive mother discovered her. Yu Yan didn¡¯t remember how she felt at that time. She only remembered asking if her family was broke. However, her adoptive parents didn¡¯t admit it at that time and said that she had misheard. However, after that, she didn¡¯t dare to take the initiative to ask for toys again for a long time. Even if her adoptive parents took the initiative to buy her toys, she refused. At that time, there was only one thought in her mind, which was that she couldn¡¯t spend money recklessly. It wasn¡¯t until her adoptive father was promoted half a year later and there were more meat dishes at home that she returned to her original lifestyle. However, before Yu Yan could compare her adoptive parents to her biological parents, she was pulled back to reality by the increasingly loud argument. Yu Yan said, ¡°Dad, Mom, stop arguing. We¡¯re all family. Let¡¯s talk things out.¡± After Mr. Yu and Duan Mei finally awaited a way out, they secretly blamed Yu Yan for being insensible. When Yu Yan saw that his parents were arguing, Yu Yan actually didn¡¯t stop them immediately and seemed to be thinking about something else. They had no choice but to raise their voices to attract her attention. Yu Yan heaved a sigh of relief when she saw her parents stop arguing and she stuffed the money into Duan Mei¡¯s hand. ¡°Mom, take it. Dad, don¡¯t stand on ceremony with me.¡± When Mr. Yu saw the 50 yuan that they had already obtained, he couldn¡¯t bear to part with it, but with the idea of no pain no gain in mind, he took the money out of Duan Mei¡¯s hand and placed it in Yu Yan¡¯s hand. He sighed. ¡°Child, take it back. 50 yuan isn¡¯t enough to solve the problem even if you give it to us. Why don¡¯t you keep it and buy something delicious for yourself?¡± Yu Yan was stunned for a moment. ¡°What happened? Why does it seem like you guys owe a lot of money?¡± Only then did Duan Mei say, ¡°Sigh, it¡¯s all your brother¡¯s fault. This year¡¯s recruitment of intellectuals has already ended. Your father originally wanted to get through the recruitment first and slowly gather enough money to get him a job later.¡± ¡°Who knew that they would be so strict this year? The bone fracture certificate your brother originally found was no longer useful, so he was signed up. He said that he would go to the countryside alone after his leg recovered, but they visit every month to check on his recovery. This can¡¯t be hidden for long. The temporary job your father found previously costs 580 yuan, and we¡¯re still short of 100 yuan. Your father has been anxious about this recently.¡± In the past, Yu Yan would have given them the remaining 50 yuan without hesitation, but now, she didn¡¯t dare to. She still had 50 yuan worth of debt, so she said to Mr. Yu and Duan Mei, ¡°Dad, Mom, I¡¯ve been short on money recently, so I can only give you guys this much. However, don¡¯t be angry. Although this 50 yuan isn¡¯t enough, it¡¯s better than nothing.¡± Yu Yan¡¯s reaction was completely different from what Duan Mei had expected! In Duan Mei¡¯s opinion, it was impossible for her not to be able to fork out the remaining 50 yuan. However, she couldn¡¯t force Yu Yan to take the money, so she could only say, ¡°How can we think it¡¯s too little? Take it that we borrowed this money from you.¡± Yu Yan shook her head repeatedly. ¡°There¡¯s no need. I haven¡¯t been by your side over the years, so this bit of money is nothing. Just treat it as me being filial to you guys. Just take it.¡± At this point, Duan Mei and Mr. Yu probably couldn¡¯t get any more money from Yu Yan. Even if there was only a little, it was still money, so they could only keep the 50 yuan for now. Chapter 343 - 343 Getting Better and Better 343 Getting Better and Better Duan Mei looked at Yu Yan in relief and said, ¡°Good child, you care so much about us. We can¡¯t count on Yu Bing at home. Fortunately, the heavens sent you back to us.¡± At this moment, Mr. Yu also echoed, ¡°Yu Yan, with you joining the family, things will definitely get better and better in the future. Our family will work hard together!¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she felt that all her contributions were noticed by her family and that she was about to surpass Yu Bing. She was secretly happy and decided to settle the remaining 50 yuan. She couldn¡¯t let her father borrow money, since she had to protect the Yu family¡¯s reputation. This way, her status in the Yu family would definitely surpass Yu Bing¡¯s! However, Yu Yan wasn¡¯t in a hurry to tell her parents this. After all, this was only her plan, and she hadn¡¯t carried it out yet. Yu Yan hoped to give them a surprise. After Mr. Yu and Duan Mei personally sent Yu Yan back to the room, they returned to the bedroom. As soon as the door closed, their faces immediately fell. Mr. Yu frowned and asked, ¡°What should I do? Do I really have to ask for an advance salary from the factory?¡± Duan Mei rolled her eyes as she said angrily, ¡°What else can you do? Are you willing to let your son go to the countryside?¡± Of course, Mr. Yu couldn¡¯t bear to! Mr. Yu looked at his wife as he complained, ¡°According to Yu Yan, her adoptive parents are quite well-off. We¡¯re only short of 50 yuan, so why can¡¯t Yu Yan bear to pay? To think you were so confident that you could get enough money from her.¡± When Duan Mei saw Mr. Yu¡¯s attitude, she said indignantly, ¡°Didn¡¯t you read her letter? Didn¡¯t you also think that you could definitely get the money from her back then?¡± Duan Mei was a little angry as she said, ¡°Is this wretched girl wary of us? She might have money, but she just can¡¯t bear to give it to us.¡± Mr. Yu felt that it made sense. The two of them completely ignored the 50 yuan they had just received from Yu Yan and couldn¡¯t wait to start criticizing her. Because of this, Mr. Yu didn¡¯t send Yu Yan off because he couldn¡¯t free himself at the last minute. Yu Yan didn¡¯t notice that her father was already a little dissatisfied with her. Instead, she believed her father¡¯s excuse and even thoughtfully asked Mr. Yu not to worry about her and to go to work early. After that, Duan Mei waited for everyone to go to work before secretly bringing Yu Yan out to get a ride. Before boarding the train, Duan Mei took out a small cloth bag she had made from old clothes and gave it to Yu Yan as a small gift for returning home to reunite with her family. It wasn¡¯t that Duan Mei specifically made it. It was just that this way, she wouldn¡¯t have to spend a single cent and there was readily available fabric. However, Yu Yan was very happy and determined that although the Yu family¡¯s gift might be insignificant, the goodwill was deep. When Yu Yan came, she was carrying a bunch of luggage. When she returned, she traveled light. She had an old set of handmade clothes, and even the clothes in the luggage were gone. The polyester plaid shirt that Duan Mei had taken a fancy to had already been successfully tricked away from Yu Yan¡¯s hands. The two of them had similar figures, so the clothes didn¡¯t look out of place on Duan Mei. Because she didn¡¯t successfully get an extra 50 yuan from Yu Yan last night, she couldn¡¯t even be bothered to prepare food for the trip. Her excuse was that the food wouldn¡¯t be fresh anymore after being left out for too long and that she was worried that Yu Yan would have diarrhea after eating it. Yu Yan returned to He Mountain Village after that. During this week, Yu Bing began to force Xiao Sheng to catch up on his learning progress. Because Xiao Sheng had not even graduated from junior high school, his level of knowledge had only reached the third year of junior high school. Moreover, as there was no exam, Yu Bing could only make up questions for Xiao Sheng according to his level and check his mastery of knowledge points. Yu Bing hoped that Xiao Sheng would quickly complete the junior high school curriculum and register for the town¡¯s junior high school. Then, she would pull strings and get the school to give him the graduation examination questions. After he passed, he could get his graduation certificate. The high school curriculum was generally more difficult, so Yu Bing was worried that Xiao Sheng would spend too much time on it. The first round of examinations after the college entrance examination was the easiest. The more time passed, the harder the examination would be, so Yu Bing hoped that Xiao Sheng could seize the opportunity. Yu Bing would go to the Xiao family¡¯s house to tutor Xiao Sheng every night after running. Even Xiao Li¡¯s class, which used to be twice a week, became three times a week. Xiao Lin had always been lax in his studies and slacked off with his friends all day long. This time, he wasn¡¯t let off. They all joined the studying camp. Jiang Chun felt that Yu Bing trusted the rumors too much, but with her trust in Yu Bing, Jiang Chun still chose to study diligently and review the high school textbooks. The two small courtyards at the foot of the mountain were filled with a rich learning atmosphere. Chapter 344 - 344 Earning Quick Money 344 Earning Quick Money Yao Nian was looking forward to Yu Yan¡¯s package when she returned from her family visit. However, when he saw that Yu Yan only returned with the luggage she had taken away at that time, he was dumbfounded. At this moment, Yu Yan had no idea about Yao Nian¡¯s plans. She was thinking about how to get 50 yuan. ¡°Yao Nian, how can I get 50 yuan quickly?¡± Yao Nian frowned when he heard Yu Yan¡¯s words. If he knew, he would have kept it to himself and secretly done so long ago. Why would he tell her? ¡°I only know that the fast and efficient way to earn money is written in the criminal code.¡± His words were blunt, but it was the truth. For example, petty theft, highway robbery, and even going to the black market to do business were prohibited by the country these days. Ordinary people should just farm and work obediently. Take business for example. Who didn¡¯t know that people who did business on the black market earned a lot of money? However, there weren¡¯t many people who really dared to do so. Who would get involed in that sort of business if they weren¡¯t forced into a corner? After all, anyone who was caught would be shoot, so Yu Yan didn¡¯t have the guts to do so. When she heard Yao Nian¡¯s words, Yu Yan knew very well that earning money by herself wouldn¡¯t work. However, there was definitely no need to think about her adoptive parents. This time, in order to get her living expenses half a month in advance, she had spent a long time persuading her adoptive father to secretly transfer the money in advance. But who else could she ask? When Yu Yan took the certificate to the village committee to cancel her leave, she saw Jiang Chun coming out with a letter. Cui Jin¡¯s name immediately appeared in her mind. Yu Yan had an idea. She could still ask her adoptive brother! Her adoptive brother treated her well and he didn¡¯t have a girlfriend, so he would definitely be able to fork out 100 yuan. In order to save time, Yu Yan returned to town and went to the post office to make a call. Yu Yan was quite lucky. Coincidentally, Yu Xi wasn¡¯t out on a mission. After waiting for more than ten minutes, she received a call back. ¡°Brother, send me 100 yuan!¡± Yu Xi had doted on Yu Yan since she was young, so Yu Yan was used to bossing him around. However, when he heard his sister ask for 100 yuan, Yu Xi still hesitated. He knew that his parents wouldn¡¯t let Yu Yan suffer even if they had to cut off his allowance. ¡°Sister, why do you suddenly want such a large sum of money?¡± Yu Yan couldn¡¯t find a suitable excuse, so she didn¡¯t answer directly. ¡°I need it urgently, Brother. It¡¯s very urgent.¡± Yu Xi felt that Yu Yan was acting very abnormally. ¡°Do Dad and Mom know?¡± Yu Yan was so frightened that she hurriedly explained, ¡°They don¡¯t know. Don¡¯t expose me, or I¡¯ll ignore you for the rest of my life!¡± With such a large sum of money, Yu Xi definitely had to ask about it. ¡°Yu Yan, is it inconvenient for you to tell Dad and Mom? You have to explain what the money is for clearly. Otherwise, no matter what you say, I won¡¯t transfer the money to you.¡± When Yu Yan heard Yu Xi¡¯s words, she knew that she had to make something up. Hence, she began to think of an excuse. She also had to guarantee that Yu Xi wouldn¡¯t tell her adoptive parents. ¡°Sigh, there¡¯s a girl in our dormitory who¡¯s seriously ill and needs surgery urgently. I want to help her, but I don¡¯t want my parents to know. You have to help me keep it a secret!¡± Yu Xi was puzzled. ¡°Why? You¡¯re being a samaritan, so they¡¯ll praise you!¡± Yu Yan couldn¡¯t possibly say that her she was broke because she had deceived her adoptive parents, right? She could only say, ¡°I have my reasons. I¡¯m not going to do anything bad. Just send it to me!¡± Yu Xi was the same as Yu Hai and Li Xin. His impression of Yu Yan was still from when she was young. He never expected that she would lie to cheat money one day, so he believed Yu Yan¡¯s excuse. Yu Xi replied helplessly, ¡°Alright, it¡¯s too late now, so I¡¯ll send it to you tomorrow.¡± Only then did Yu Yan smile and say sweetly, ¡°Thank you, Brother!¡± After Yu Yan settled the matter, she walked back to the village. With 100 yuan from her adoptive brother, her debt and her parents¡¯ urgent needs would be resolved. Yu Yan suddenly felt that she had to maintain a good relationship with her adoptive brother. When she really didn¡¯t have money and needed it urgently, she could look for him. By now, the food factory¡¯s offices in various cities had been operating for a month already and had received orders from everywhere. Chapter 345 - 345 External Debt 345 External Debt At the same time, some office staff suggested that they could get big clients, in hopes that the factory could give them a portion of the profits. The other offices also encountered some problems, big and small. Some small problems could be resolved by Yu Bing over the phone, but there were also some problems that Yu Bing planned to see for herself. Because Feng Cai was the sales manager and Yu Bing didn¡¯t plan to supervise the offices herself in the future, she asked Feng Cai to accompany her. At the same time, she wanted him to see how she dealt with the problems in the office. After all, these people were all employees of his department now. Yu Bing and Feng Cai went to the nearest City H first. The intellectual stationed in this office was called Wen Wen, and the villager was called Li Kun. After Yu Bing arrived at the shop, she was in no hurry to ask about the work situation. Instead, she first asked the two of them if they were used to life in the city and if there were any difficulties. Wen Wen¡¯s family was from S City, so he was completely used to city life, but Li Kun was the complete opposite. Li Kun¡¯s family wasn¡¯t well off and in the city, everything was more expensive. In order to save money, he had been eating steamed buns for an entire month. They chatted until noon. Then, Yu Bing invited two more employees to the noodle shop outside to eat beef noodles. When they returned to the office, she began to ask questions about work. Wen Wen said to Yu Bing, ¡°Mr. Yu, I think we¡¯ll lose many big customers if we mark everything at the same price.¡± Of course, Yu Bing knew. It was just that there were no big orders in the early stages, so she dealt with everything this way for the time being. These things definitely had to be slowly adjusted according to the situation. After all, the food factory and office were still new to this industry, so the rules and regulations still needed to be improved. ¡°What suggestions do you have?¡± When Wen Wen saw Yu Bing¡¯s serious expression, he said his suggestion, ¡°I¡¯ve asked around about the way other people¡¯s business departments categorize their customers. They do it step by step. For example, they change the price according to the quantity specification.¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°This is indeed a very common marketing method.¡± Wen Wen continued, ¡°Moreover, if the factory doesn¡¯t give a certain amount of rebate, we might not be able to take on such a big client. I wonder if our factory has the corresponding expenses?¡± Yu Bing couldn¡¯t help but sigh. Rebate was really a long-standing tradition in the country¡¯s business history. Even though most people nowadays were still law-abiding, there were still some people who couldn¡¯t resist the temptation of wealth. Rebates varied from person to person. Perhaps some customers wouldn¡¯t order it if they didn¡¯t give them a rebate, but there were also people who didn¡¯t want rebates no matter what. It was impossible for others to write receipts for these transactions, so everything depended on the salesperson. He said that the customer wanted a kickback, but it was impossible for manufacturers to verify if this was true, so this kind of gray area was very difficult to deal with. Yu Bing looked at Wen Wen and replied, ¡°There¡¯s no budget for this for the time being.¡± At this moment, Li Kun said, ¡°Our goods are high quality. Even if this shop doesn¡¯t want them, other shops will. Why play dirty tricks behind our backs?¡± When Wen Wen heard this, he immediately asked loudly, ¡°What do you mean by dirty tricks?¡± Li Kun didn¡¯t back down and said, ¡°Whoever does this sort of thing is playing dirty tricks!¡± Li Kun hated this kind of behavior the most. Before the founding of the country, his grandfather was a businessman. However, in order to avoid the war, he sold his assets and escaped to his hometown. Their Li family emphasized doing business in an above board manner. Although they had stopped doing business since then, Li Kun often heard from his living grandfather that integrity and reputation were the most important things in doing business. As long as the product was good, there was no need to be afraid of not being able to sell it. When Feng Cai saw that his department was arguing in front of Yu Bing, he felt embarrassed. Fortunately, no one from the other departments was around. ¡°Why are you arguing?! If you have something to say, talk it out!¡± With Feng Cai¡¯s roar, the two young men glared at each other and didn¡¯t say anything else. However, neither side was willing to compromise. Yu Bing smiled. ¡°Your considerations make sense. Our products are good, but some people value profits more. They don¡¯t care about our products. They only care about the money in their pockets.¡± ¡°But we¡¯re doing business now, so the important thing is to let the village¡¯s food factory have orders and profits. Don¡¯t forget that our factory still has external debt.¡± When Li Kun heard this, he became dejected. Wen Wen felt that Yu Bing was on his side, so he glanced at Li Kun proudly. Chapter 346 - 346 Rebate 346 Rebate Seeing Wen Wen¡¯s gaze, Li Kun couldn¡¯t help but snort. ¡°I¡¯m just afraid that when the time comes, the pockets of certain individuals will be even richer than a factory safe.¡± When Wen Wen heard this, he slammed the table and shouted with widened eyes, ¡°Li Kun! I¡¯ve put up with you for a long time! Aren¡¯t you implying that I want to embezzle? Now, while the factory director and Director Feng are both here, hurry up and say whatever you have against me so that you won¡¯t gossip behind my back in the future!¡± Li Kun also lost his temper. He had a clear conscience, so he said, ¡°I don¡¯t gossip behind people¡¯s backs. I¡¯ve always said things in person. Do you think I¡¯m afraid of you?! Miss Yu, Mr. Feng, I know that giving customers kickbacks is beneficial to expanding sales, but once we start, there will always be people who want to take advantage of the loophole and secretly stuff the money into their own pockets.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not targeting anyone. I¡¯m just stating the facts. Besides, if you¡¯re not guilty, why are you so anxious?¡± Seeing that the two of them were about to argue again, Yu Bing hurriedly raised her hand to interrupt. ¡°Stop! Everyone wants the best for the factory, so even though we have disagreements, we have to make it clear that we¡¯re comrades on the same side.¡± ¡°Next, I¡¯ll say a few words. A factory can¡¯t stay the same forever, nor can it be overcautious. It has to adapt to the actual situation. However, the situation Li Kun mentioned is also a very realistic problem. Li Kun, I understand that you¡¯re thinking for the sake of the factory. The office is far from the factory, so when the factory¡¯s control is not that strong, there will definitely be some employees who try to cook the books, so this is a problem we have to face.¡± Li Kun felt a little better when he heard this. He knew that this would make them lose customers, but if the factory wasn¡¯t managed well, things would definitely be chaotic. Li Kun¡¯s family had been in business for generations. Due to the situation, they had no choice but to sell their assets and return to their hometown. He heard from his grandfather that when the family was at its most prosperous, they were quite famous locally. Although he had never done business before, he really wanted his family to return to its former glory. He had never enjoyed the good times in the past, but he was afraid of living a poor life. In the past, when there was no factory in the village, he naturally didn¡¯t have any thoughts about it. Now that there was an opportunity, Li Kun really wanted to use the food factory as a platform to make a name for himself. Therefore, when Wen Wen mentioned the rebate, he objected because he was worried that the interests of the factory wouldn¡¯t be guaranteed. Without the platform, he could only become a farmer again. Moreover, only if the factory prospered could the workers and villagers truly benefit. Collective economic industries were different from private industries. All the interests of the collective industry belonged to the village collectively. The interests of everyone in the village were deeply tied to the village¡¯s economic industries. Yu Bing was like a professional manager, and everyone in He Mountain Village was a shareholder. The office in City H was the closest to the food factory, and it was the first city the factory expanded to. In addition, Feng Cai, a local, knew the market here, so the development here was the most stable. The only unstable thing was probably Li Kun and Wen Wen¡¯s disagreement. After Yu Bing understood the situation in the office, she let the two employees leave the office. Yu Bing felt a headache from the two of them¡¯s argument, so she raised her hand and rubbed her temples. She looked at Feng Cai and said, ¡°For the development of the food factory, one has to settle the internal affairs first. As the person in charge of the department, you have to manage it well! Fortunately, it has just developed, so if there are any problems, they can be adjusted and resolved in time. In the future, if there are competitors, just the internal conflict alone will give others many loopholes.¡± Feng Cai touched his nose and replied helplessly, ¡°They¡¯re all doing this for the sake of the factory. I¡¯m also having a headache as a referee and was just thinking about how to resolve it this time. I¡¯m really at my wit¡¯s end.¡± After Yu Bing glanced at Feng Cai, she tapped her five slender fingers on the table rhythmically and said, ¡°We have to find the source of the problem first. Do you think they¡¯re suitable partners?¡± Feng Cai shook his head repeatedly. He felt that among all his subordinates, they were the most troublesome pair. When Yu Bing saw Feng Cai¡¯s resistant expression, she asked with a smile, ¡°Then what do you think the reason is?¡± Chapter 347 - 347 Complementarity 347 Complementarity As Feng Cai sat in the chair, she thought for a while and said, ¡°Their ideals are different, and their personalities are also different. Wen Wen is proactive and bold, while Li Kun is conservative and likes to play it safe.¡± Yu Bing raised her eyebrows and nodded. ¡°Didn¡¯t I analyze it? I think they¡¯re quite suitable as partners. The two of them don¡¯t have any selfish motives. They just do things differently. Their personalities happen to complement each other. If Wen Wen really rushes forward without caring about anything, he might cause trouble, so it¡¯s good that Li Kun can counter him.¡± Feng Cai also felt that it made sense. ¡°But the two of them won¡¯t listen to each other now.¡± Yu Bing shrugged. ¡°That¡¯s your business. You also know that Wen Wen is from S City, which is the most prosperous city in the country other than the capital. He¡¯s educated and knowledgeable, so it¡¯s inevitable that he feels a little superior. Although Wen Wen has been in the countryside for a few years and definitely isn¡¯t that high and mighty anymore, some things will always be revealed inadvertently. Li Kun doesn¡¯t owe him anything, so why should he suffer such an attitude?¡± Yu Bing raised a finger at Feng Cai. ¡°I¡¯ll give you another piece of news for free. As far as I know, Li Kun¡¯s family used to do business. Although it¡¯s been many years since they left this industry, he must have heard of some things about it since he was young, so he¡¯s not an ignorant person. Therefore, both of them have advantages in different aspects. Neither of them should look down on the other.¡± Feng Cai understood what Yu Bing meant. He had to find a way to let both parties see that both of them have advantages in different aspects, so that they would be convinced. ¡°How do you know so much?¡± Yu Bing smiled proudly. ¡°Do you think I read those employee files for nothing?¡± The employee files of this era were different from those of the future. The employee files of state-owned or collective enterprises weren¡¯t something people could fill in as they pleased when applying for jobs. All the resumes and related experiences were in line with the records of the Household Registration Administration. After one applied for a job, a copy of this information would be sent to the archive room in the factory. Of course, because the management was still too lax, if someone cooked the books, there would definitely be inconsistencies. However, most people didn¡¯t have to do such a thing. After the problem in City H was resolved, the two of them went to the next city. The problems they encountered weren¡¯t very serious. Yu Bing and Feng Cai resolved things quite smoothly, until they encountered the local tyrant that outsiders were most worried about. At the office of the Delicious Food Factory in E City. When Yu Bing and Feng Cai arrived, it was 3:30 PM. They saw two young people squatting on both sides of the office door. When they saw that Yu Bing and Feng Cai were about to enter, they immediately stood up and glared at the two of them fiercely. However, they didn¡¯t say anything. They only stepped forward slightly and blocked the door. Then, they sized them up a few times. If this was a customer, they would have been scared away long ago. Yu Bing gently pushed away Feng Cai, who was protecting her, and crossed her arms as she looked at them. ¡°You don¡¯t have to stop us. I¡¯m the person in charge of this food factory.¡± The four of them were stunned for a moment. They didn¡¯t expect to meet the big boss when they came to cause trouble, nor did they expect the other party to be a young lady in her twenties. They looked at each other for a while before returning to the door and continuing to squat. Only then did Yu Bing and Feng Cai enter the office. It had been a week since anyone entered the shop. Lin Zhi felt that he was about to peel off the top layer of the display table and the bottle of canned food was so dirty that it didn¡¯t even show any fingerprints. At this moment, when he saw Yu Bing and Feng enter, he went forward excitedly and greeted, ¡°Miss Yu, Mr. Feng! You¡¯re here!¡± Feng Cai looked around and only saw Lin Zhi. ¡°Where¡¯s Zhao Peng?¡± Lin Zhi replied, ¡°He went out to deal with orders. I¡¯m looking after the shop.¡± Yu Bing pointed at the people outside and asked, ¡°Do those people outside squat at our door every day?¡± Lin Zhi replied with a dejected expression, ¡°That¡¯s right. They¡¯ve been squatting here for an entire week and are as punctual as when I go to and from work. What a waste of our good location. Every time, we can only watch the traffic coming and going outside. As long as someone wants to come in to take a look, these people will surround them and stare at them without saying anything. Who would dare to come in?!¡± Chapter 348 - 348 Threat 348 Threat Feng Cai frowned and asked, ¡°I asked you guys to call the cops. Did you? What did the police say?¡± At this point, Lin Zhi felt even more helpless and replied with a frown, ¡°I did. The police said that it isn¡¯t illegal for them to squat by the roadside. The police can¡¯t control them.¡± Yu Bing heaved a sigh of relief. Even the authorities couldn¡¯t suppress a local tyrant, let alone them. ¡°Have you found out who instigated them?¡± Lin Zhi perked up when he heard this. ¡°These people are super cunning! Every time they leave, they leave separately. Zhao Peng and I were shaken off a few times. We followed one of them yesterday and I saw him enter a place called Jin Lan Food Factory in the suburbs.¡± Yu Bing had already guessed that the other party was from a large factory. State-owned food factories disdained such dirty tricks. If it was a collective industry, it was very possible. Competition between peers was inevitable. Feng Cai lowered his eyes and said, ¡°Looks like we must be competing for the same customers.¡± Yu Bing nodded. ¡°Show me the orders you guys signed for during the opening.¡± The E City office had received five orders in the past month. They were all small orders, and each unit had only issued one to two hundred orders for daily welfare benefits. Yu Bing smiled coldly and said, ¡°I thought it was some sort of competitive relationship. Is there a need to do this?!¡± ¡°Lin Zhi, you signed two orders here. Ask your acquaintances if they asked for goods from Jin Lan Food Factory. Do they often place orders or occasionally?¡± Lin Zhi had been very frustrated for the past week. Now that the leader came to issue orders, he finally felt more assured. ¡°I¡¯ll go immediately!¡± After Zhao Peng came back, he followed this model and asked the manufacturer in charge of the order. At night, after the few of them ate together, they began to consolidate the information. Yu Bing asked the two of them to share the information they had obtained first. Zhao Peng said first, ¡°I have two regulars at Jinlan Food Factory.¡± Lin Zhi hurriedly said, ¡°I have one here, but they¡¯ve only ordered it two or three times occasionally. They say that Jin Lan¡¯s products taste average, but the price is cheap. Sometimes, when the budget is not enough, they¡¯ll place an order with Jin Lan.¡± Zhao Peng nodded in agreement. ¡°Although I didn¡¯t mention it, I know that the economic efficiency of these two small factories is average, so when I came to promote beef chili sauce, they didn¡¯t consider it at all and only ordered our cheaper food.¡± Seeing this, Feng Cai said to Bing, ¡°You can¡¯t blame us for this. If they can¡¯t compare to us in terms of taste at the same price, they might as well think of ways to improve the quality and taste of their products!¡± Yu Bing understood the logic, but she knew that developing a new product wasn¡¯t that easy. She had information about the future, so she knew the cooking methods of so many delicacies. However, no matter what, the other party¡¯s methods were really dishonorable. This kind of business method couldn¡¯t take them far. ¡°Let¡¯s go to Jin Lan Village tomorrow and talk to their factory director directly.¡± However, plans couldn¡¯t keep up with changes. In the morning, the few of them went from the staff dormitory to the office. Not long after the door opened, the four young men came again. This time, they didn¡¯t wait outside the shop. Instead, they walked straight into the shop. The young man in the lead was wearing a blue and white shirt, but the blue stripes on his shirt had already been washed out. There were also two small holes at the collar. After the young man in the blue and white shirt entered, he walked straight towards Yu Bing and said coldly, ¡°Hurry up and get out of E City. Otherwise, we won¡¯t just be squatting outside in the future!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s expression was cold and indifferent. ¡°Lin Zhi, let¡¯s go to the police and say that we were threatened.¡± The young man in the blue and white shirt smiled indifferently. Then, he brought them to the sofa in the resting area and sat down. Seeing this, Lin Zhi quickly walked out the door. ¡°Ouch! It hurts!¡± A wail came from the door. Yu Bing¡¯s heart skipped a beat as she hurriedly walked out the door. Feng Cai followed closely behind. Lin Zhi stood beside an old woman in her sixties or seventies. Beside the old woman, there stood a little girl who looked to be eight or nine years old. ¡°What happened?¡± Yu Bing went forward and asked. Lin Zhi looked at Yu Bing anxiously. ¡°I didn¡¯t touch her. She bumped into me herself!¡± When the old woman heard this, she shouted again, ¡°My arms and legs are definitely broken. Young man, you want to shirk the blame after hurting someone?!¡± The little girl beside him shouted, ¡°You bumped into my grandmother.¡± Chapter 349 - 349 Fraud 349 Fraud Yu Bing¡¯s first reaction was that Lin Zhi had been scammed. She looked at the old man and the young woman in front of her. Their faces were sallow, and they looked emaciated. Their clothes were also covered in patches. She felt that these clothes seemed to be made of rags. Lin Zhi was very sure that the other party had bumped into him. Moreover, the two of them had only touched each other lightly, so he immediately retorted agitatedly, ¡°Old woman, how can you lie through your teeth?¡± When the passersby saw that there was drama to watch, they slowly surrounded them. The old woman didn¡¯t reply. She only pointed at the office and said angrily, ¡°Young man, you¡¯re an employee of the food factory office behind, right? Is this how your unit educates you? Then I really have to doubt the quality of your products. If there is a food problem one day, will you deny it like this?!¡± ¡°Young man, you can¡¯t do this. You have to be responsible if you bump into someone!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Don¡¯t be afraid. We¡¯ll watch over him for you. He won¡¯t be able to escape.¡± ¡°This food office looks quite high-end, but why is their conduct so disgusting?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t buy from ¡®Delicious Food Factory¡¯ in the future! Just as the old lady said, if anything happens, they will push the blame to others and we¡¯ll only be able to blame our bad luck.¡± ¡°I even went in to try it when it opened previously. The products taste quite good, but I didn¡¯t expect the employees to be so unscrupulous. I guess this factory isn¡¯t that good. I have to tell our factory¡¯s purchasing department not to buy this brand.¡± ¡­ . Yu Bing had already realized that they were probably from Jin Lan Village. No wonder they were so fearless when she said she wanted to call the police. So they had a trap set up! When Yu Bing saw that Lin Zhi still wanted to refute and explain, she hurriedly stopped him. When faced with trouble, people¡¯s first reaction was to sympathize with the weak. Moreover, in a situation where they were at a disadvantage, a denial would only arouse the criticism of the onlookers who didn¡¯t know the truth. ¡°We will naturally take responsibility. How about this? We¡¯ll take you to the hospital for a checkup and let the doctor make the judgment.¡± When everyone heard Yu Bing¡¯s words, their anger subsided. Of course, the old woman couldn¡¯t go to the hospital, since she wasn¡¯t injured, so she only wiped her tears and said, ¡°I don¡¯t want to go. I¡¯m just an old woman from the countryside. Who knows where she will take me? This young man wanted to shirk responsibility just now.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she immediately replied, ¡°Madam, if you¡¯re worried, you can find two kind-hearted people to accompany you. As long as the doctor says that you were injured from the collision just now, we¡¯ll pay for your medical expenses. Everyone present can bear witness! We¡¯re definitely not irresponsible people!¡± When Yu Bing said this, everyone¡¯s impression of her improved greatly. Seeing this, the old woman said, ¡°You black-hearted employees! I don¡¯t believe you guys!¡± At this moment, Lin Zhi had yet to realize the situation and only treated this as a scam. Seeing that everyone was accusing him, he couldn¡¯t help but retort, ¡°You¡¯re just trying to scam money! I really didn¡¯t touch her. She bumped into me herself! Otherwise, why did she refuse when we said we would bring her to the hospital for a checkup?¡± The surrounding crowd also began to waver. After all, they didn¡¯t see who bumped into whom just now. However, Yu Bing had an ominous feeling. The old woman looked indignant. ¡°I don¡¯t want your money. I just want justice! Xiaoxiao, help me up! Let¡¯s go!¡± As soon as she said this, everyone stood firmly on the old woman¡¯s side and began to criticize Yu Bing and Lin Zhi. They all felt that the old woman had nothing to gain from slandering them. The little girl helped the old woman up. Yu Bing knew that she couldn¡¯t let the two of them leave. Otherwise, the factory¡¯s reputation would be completely ruined here. No matter how big the food factory became in the future, today¡¯s matter would become an indelible stain. Yu Bing went forward and held her arm with a smile as she said, ¡°Please ignore him. It¡¯s not easy for you to come from the countryside. No matter what, you fell at the entrance of our office. Come with me to the hospital for a checkup. Otherwise, I¡¯ll really be worried if you go back like this!¡± Chapter 350 - 350 The Police Are Here 350 The Police Are Here Without waiting for the old lady to answer, Yu Bing said to the onlookers, ¡°If you guys have time, please accompany us to the hospital. As I said, we won¡¯t shirk our responsibility!¡± ¡°I, Yu Bing, am the person-in-charge of the food factory. I keep my word!¡± Ever since Yu Bing appeared, she had always been above board. Moreover, every time she spoke, she would resolve trouble head-on, giving everyone a good impression of her. The old lady couldn¡¯t leave since her hand was grabbed, so she looked a little flustered. ¡°The police are here!¡± Feng Cai¡¯s voice sounded in time. When everyone heard this, they quickly made way. Feng Cai appeared with two police officers. Yu Bing explained the ins and outs of the matter first. She didn¡¯t say who hit whom. She only said that the old lady had fallen and that only Lin Zhi happened to appear beside her. She also expressed that after the examination, regardless of whether Lin Zhi was responsible or not, she was willing to pay the examination fee, so she hoped that the police would let her bring the old lady to the examination first before determining who was responsible. This kind of civil dispute was the most troublesome because of the problem of compensation. Now that Yu Bing wasn¡¯t afraid of paying and was so proactive, how could the police not agree? Moreover, if they went to the hospital to let the doctor take a look, they would be able to know if they were really scammers or not. It would help determine the person responsible for the accident. The more generous Yu Bing was, the easier it was for her to obtain everyone¡¯s approval. At this moment, the old woman was sweating profusely. When she saw this scene, she knew that her plan had failed. She was also worried that if the police determined that she was fine and locked her up for a few days, no one would take care of her granddaughter. As the old woman struggled free from Yu Bing¡¯s grasp, she said, ¡°I felt that I was fine when I stood up just now, so there¡¯s no need to go.¡± The old lady wanted to leave after saying that. It wasn¡¯t easy for her to turn the situation around, so how could Yu Bing let her leave? Hence, she immediately said with a smile, ¡°Madam, let¡¯s go for a checkup. Didn¡¯t you criticize us and our factory just now because you were worried that we would be irresponsible? Don¡¯t worry, there are so many people, and the police are also here, so you don¡¯t have to worry.¡± The weather was already hot, and the old woman felt guilty, so a thin layer of sweat appeared on her forehead. When she saw Yu Bing¡¯s unyielding attitude, she knew that if she didn¡¯t say anything, the other party definitely wouldn¡¯t let her go. ¡°I fell and thought that this young man had bumped into me, but it was a misunderstanding. I was a little muddle-headed since I¡¯m old. Now, I remember.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she let go. Then, the old woman ran away with her granddaughter. Everyone was a little stunned by the old woman¡¯s dexterous. It seemed like the old woman was extorting money, but she didn¡¯t ask for money, so why was she doing this? No matter what, the truth was finally revealed, so everyone left in satisfaction after watching the commotion. Seeing that the matter had been resolved, the police officer asked Feng Cai, ¡°Just now, you said that someone came to your office to threaten you?¡± Feng Cai called the police for this reason. ¡°Yes, they¡¯re inside.¡± With that, he led the way into the shop. Only then did Lin Zhi realize that what had happened just now was a trap set up by Jin Lan Village. He knew that he had caused trouble just now, so he lowered his head and said to Yu Bing, ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Lin Zhi had grown up in the village and had only been to the county a few times, so it was normal for him not to have such an experience. Yu Bing smiled. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Don¡¯t be so rash in the future. Calm down and think about what to do first. Otherwise, you¡¯ll be led by the nose.¡± Lin Zhi nodded and suddenly thought of something. ¡°We shouldn¡¯t have let those two go just now. They¡¯re in cahoots with the people inside. We should get the police to arrest them and interrogate them.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s expression was a little solemn. She could guess that it was useless even if the police came this time. ¡°If we didn¡¯t let them go just now, the incident wouldn¡¯t have been over. Everyone would have continued to watch. Most importantly, as long as the people on both sides insist that they don¡¯t know each other, the police can only ask a few questions, but in the end, they have to let them go. There¡¯s no point in letting them stay.¡± The breakthrough point wasn¡¯t here. After Yu Bing figured it out, she entered the shop. Faced with the policemen¡¯s questioning, the four young men insisted that they were here to inquire about the price and order. They refused to admit that they had threatened them. Chapter 351 - 351 Jin Lan Village 351 Jin Lan Village When Feng Cai heard this answer, he sneered and asked, ¡°You said that you came to place an order, then which factory are you from? What¡¯s your name?¡± The young man in the blue and white shirt was stunned for a moment, but he quickly reacted and blamed her. ¡°You guys looked for the police since the price wasn¡¯t settled? If you know which factory we¡¯re from, you¡¯ll look for us to cause trouble, so I can¡¯t tell you.¡± The police officer frowned as he watched the scene in front of him. He didn¡¯t know which side was telling the truth, but he still sided with Feng Cai. In this day and age, everyone was afraid of going to the police station. Who would call the police for no reason? However, if the other party only threatened them verbally, without evidence or other witnesses, they were helpless. ¡°If there¡¯s any conflict, try to resolve it in private!¡± The police officer left. Feng Cai and the two employees of the office were furious when they saw their competitor¡¯s nonchalant expression. The young man walked to Yu Bing and said again, ¡°Leave E City immediately. Otherwise, what happened today won¡¯t happen only once.¡± Yu Bing chuckled. ¡°Including paying people to extort money?¡± The young man smiled as a threatening look flashed across his eyes, but he didn¡¯t say anything. Yu Bing was smiling, but there was a hint of coldness in her eyes. ¡°In order to set up a trap for us, you guys even involved the elderly and children. Can¡¯t Jin Lan Food Factory use honorable methods to compete with us?¡± The young man¡¯s smile froze. He was shocked that they had been followed to the factory, but he quickly regained his composure and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± Yu Bing said, ¡°I¡¯m going to your factory now. Do you want to come along?¡± The young man didn¡¯t reply. He returned to sit on the sofa. Yu Bing smiled and said to Feng Cai, ¡°Feng Cai, let¡¯s go to the Jin Lan Food Factory.¡± Feng Cai glanced at the few young men who were sitting there calmly and revealed a provocative smile before leaving with Yu Bing. When the few of them saw that Yu Bing was serious, they looked at the young man in the blue and white shirt in unison. ¡°What should we do?¡± Little Hai frowned at Lin Zhi and Zhao Peng, who were watching his group. He thought that it was fine as long as someone stayed here to keep watch. That female factory director didn¡¯t look like someone easy to deal with, so he had to hurry back and inform Jin Lan Food Factory. The reason Jin Lan¡¯s people were in such a hurry to make a move today was that the order Zhao Peng had negotiated yesterday was also an old client of Jin Lan¡¯s. Therefore, the four of them came today to keep an eye on the people from the office and cause trouble wherever they went, so that they couldn¡¯t continue negotiating. After making the arrangements, Little Hai left the office alone and took a shortcut back to the factory. After the bus stopped two kilometers away from Jin Lan Village, Yu Bing and Feng Cai got off the bus and found a passerby to ask for the route. Then, they walked for another half an hour before arriving at Jin Lan Village. The two of them saw that most of the people working in the fields were women, and even children around 10 years old were there. However, under normal circumstances, unless the farm was busy, most children would be arranged with some other easy work. Moreover, less than a third of the men in the field were men, but most of them looked to be in their twenties. There were also some elderly men, but there were few men in their prime around. Feng Cai found it a little strange. ¡°Why are there so few men in the field?¡± Yu Bing also found it strange and the two of them continued walking. When they entered the village, they saw that there were some younger children carrying baskets and preparing to go up the mountain. Without exception, they were all dressed in very shabby clothes, even worse than those of He Mountain Village¡¯s villagers. However, Jin Lan Village was in the suburbs of the city. No matter how bad conditions were, it shouldn¡¯t be this bad. Moreover, this village had a food factory. Just as she was feeling puzzled, Yu Bing saw a young man in a blue and white shirt and a kind-looking middle-aged man in his forties appear. When she saw the man¡¯s tanned skin and red tank top that had been washed into a light pink color, Yu Bing was speechless. The middle-aged man smiled at Yu Bing and Feng Cai as he extended his hand. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m the village chief, Xu Jin. Welcome to Jin Lan Village.¡± Yu Bing smiled as she shook Xu Jin¡¯s hand before letting go. ¡°Hello, Mr. Xu. I¡¯m Yu Bing, the person-in-charge of Delicious Food Factory .¡± Feng Cai also extended his hand. ¡°Hello, my name is Feng Cai. I¡¯m from Delicious Food Factory¡¯s management department.¡± Xu Jin smiled and nodded. ¡°The village committee is only a few steps away. Come to my office.¡± Yu Bing and Feng Cai exchanged looks before following him to the village committee¡¯s office. Chapter 352 - 352 Negotiation 352 Negotiation At this moment, an armsless man walked out from around the corner and had canvas bag in his mouth. Because of the man¡¯s sudden appearance, Yu Bing and Feng Cai were shocked. The man couldn¡¯t say anything and could only look at the two of them apologetically. When Little Hai saw this, he said to Yu Bing and Feng Cai unhappily, ¡°What¡¯s there to be afraid of? Why are you doing business when you¡¯re so timid?!¡± When Xu Jin saw this, he gestured for the man to leave first. Then, he glared at Little Hai and said to Yu Bing and the other two, ¡°Little Hai is a little hot-tempered, but he doesn¡¯t have any ill intentions. I apologize to the two of you on his behalf.¡± Yu Bing and Feng Cai felt a little embarrassed. They didn¡¯t have any intention of discriminating because they usually only came into contact with people with dislocated legs or blind people. They rarely encountered people with mutilated limbs, so they only lost their composure when they suddenly saw him without any mental preparation. When Yu Bing heard Xu Jin¡¯s words, she explained, ¡°We didn¡¯t mean to be rude just now.¡± Xu Jin nodded in understanding. He also knew that Little Hai was dissatisfied that they had snatched the order and was just using it to make a fuss. After changing the topic, the group quickly arrived at the village committee. The office was also very simple. There was a conference table at the entrance. Although it was a conference table, it was actually a rectangular board placed on two long stools. Further in, there was Xu Jin¡¯s desk. Xu Jin sat at the head of the conference table. After Little Hai poured two cups of water for Yu Bing and Feng Cai, he stood behind Xu Jin and looked at Yu Bing and Feng Cai with an unfriendly expression. Xu Jin looked at the two young people in front of him as he said slowly, ¡°I won¡¯t waste your precious time. Let¡¯s get straight to the point.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t want to beat around the bush either, so she also went straight to the point. ¡°I¡¯m all ears.¡± Xu Jin explained his request according to the situation he had encountered in the past. ¡°I hope you guys can exit the market in E City.¡± Yu Bing chuckled. ¡°What if I don¡¯t?¡± Although Xu Jin had a smile on his face, his tone was very firm. ¡°Miss Yu, you¡¯re not the first person to say this. The food factory offices that you mentioned previously have already left E City. We¡¯re not greedy. We only want the market share of E City.¡± ¡°You can open an office anywhere, so why do you have to go against a small food factory like ours?¡± Giving up wasn¡¯t Yu Bing¡¯s way of doing things. ¡°Mr. Xu, you can chase one or two away, but there will always be one you can¡¯t chase away. Instead of spending time chasing competitors away with all kinds of underhanded methods, it¡¯s better to think of improving your strength. If you¡¯re interested, we can have a good talk and see if my suggestion can bring some good changes to your factory.¡± Xu Jin was unmoved when he heard this and said with a frown, ¡°Since you insist on staying, we can only show you our abilities. I¡¯m not talented, but in order to protect my livelihood, I¡¯m willing to go all out!¡± When Yu Bing and Feng Cai heard this, they couldn¡¯t help but frown. The negotiation had just begun, but the other party had already expressed an attitude of wanting to fight to the death. Even if they really established themselves in E City in the end, they would definitely have to pay a huge price. Yu Bing realized that the other party might not intend to negotiate with them at all. In that case, there was no need to continue with the backup plan. ¡°Since Mr. Xu has made up his mind, let¡¯s rely on our own abilities.¡± Xu Jin smirked and said with a smile, ¡°Little Hai, help me send off the two guests.¡± Little Hai revealed a provocative smile at Yu Bing. Fortunately, he returned in time and reminded the village chief of the painful lessons of the past. Otherwise, the village chief would have been deceived by these treacherous merchants again! Every time, they would either request to cooperate or make suggestions. They even said that they had many tricks up their sleeves. They were the ones who had more tricks up their sleeves! ¡°Please leave!¡± Yu Bing and Feng Cai could only leave first. On the way out of the village, Little Hai was called away by a child. Little Hai was in a hurry to leave, so he could only point in the direction and let Yu Bing and the others leave the village alone. Then, he left in a hurry. Feng Cai looked at Yu Bing and said, ¡°This village seems a little strange. Also, that village chief¡¯s attitude is also weird. How can they negotiate like this?¡± Not to mention Feng Cai, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t figure it out either. However, compared to this, Yu Bing felt more troubled about not knowing what Jin Lan would do next. The two new employees in the office definitely couldn¡¯t handle it, so between her and Feng Cai, at least one of them had to stay. However, it was hard to say how long it would take to resolve the matter here. After all, they lived near E City, so it was very convenient for them. For Yu Bing, having to deal with trouble every few days was very annoying. Chapter 353 - 353 Jin Lan Food Factory 353 Jin Lan Food Factory Yu Bing and Feng Cai were discussing softly. ¡°Ah!¡± The two of them exclaimed in low voices again. Another disabled person appeared at the fork a meter away. He was also a man. The top of his thigh was completely gone and he used a short wooden block that was slightly narrower than his lower body as his lower body. He held a small wooden board with both hands as he moved forward. When the man heard a sound behind him, he hurriedly turned around. When he saw that it was two unfamiliar young men and women, he immediately smiled and asked softly, ¡°Are the two of you here to see our village¡¯s food factory?¡± Previously, there had been a few times when outsiders came to look for the food factory, so the man asked enthusiastically. Yu Bing was stunned for a moment, but Feng Cai had already reacted and hurriedly replied, ¡°Yes, we came here to look for your food factory.¡± The man was secretly overjoyed. Their number of orders had decreased recently, so he smiled and said, ¡°Follow me. The factory is ahead.¡± The two of them realized that the man thought that they were going to the factory now. Since the negotiation had failed, there was naturally no need to go anymore. However, although the man had lost his legs, he wasn¡¯t slow at all. In the blink of an eye, he had already walked a few meters. When he turned around and saw that the two of them were still at the same spot, he enthusiastically shouted for the two of them to follow. Yu Bing and Feng Cai were too embarrassed to refuse, for fear that they would let down his good intentions, so they followed him. They planned to find an excuse to dismiss him at the door and leave the village. After walking for about a hundred meters, they saw the Jin Lan Food Factory. The factory was built on the roadside of the village¡¯s main road. It occupied an area about the same size as the Delicious Food Factory, but the buildings were more dilapidated. Yu Bing was about to thank the man when she saw him walk through the door. He even turned around and introduced the factory¡¯s products to Yu Bing. Yu Bing and Feng Cai realized that this man might be an employee of the factory. The man introduced the products as he entered the factory. The moment they entered, the two of them were shocked by the scene in front of them. There were about thirty disabled people working in an orderly manner. The only ones with healthy limbs were five female workers. The factory was very clean. Although they were doing production work, it wasn¡¯t messy. Everyone was wearing the same clothes, masks, and hats. The only special thing was that there were chairs beside the workbench. Many people with their legs amputated were sitting on it and working. Some of them had both hands intact, while others only had one hand to operate with, but their speed was no slower than that of ordinary people. ¡°Although we¡¯re disabled, we¡¯re very fast! All these years, the factory has never been late in delivering the goods. Don¡¯t worry about your orders!¡± After talking for so long, the man¡¯s tone was still as enthusiastic as before. Little Hai saw Yu Bing and Feng Cai when he arrived at the production room after moving the goods from the warehouse, so he quickly walked forward in shock and shouted, ¡°Why are you guys here?!¡± The man looked at Yu Bing and then at Little Hai. ¡°Aren¡¯t they our customers?¡± Little Hai¡¯s expression froze. No matter how intense the competition was outside, they had a tacit understanding not to tell the workers in the factory, ¡°Yes, but the price hasn¡¯t been agreed upon. They¡¯re leaving the village.¡± The man nodded and said with a smile, ¡°Little Hai, even if you guys can¡¯t reach an agreement, you have to pay attention to your attitude.¡± Little Hai smiled at the man and replied, ¡°Got it, Third Uncle. Hurry up and go do your work. I¡¯ll greet them.¡± After the man left, Little Hai¡¯s smile immediately fell. He turned to look at Yu Bing and Feng Cai as he said with displeasure, ¡°You actually dared to use my third uncle to enter the factory. Are you trying to steal confidential information?! Hurry up and leave!¡± After Feng Cai came back to his senses, he rolled his eyes at Little Hai and said in disdain, ¡°Who cares about your factory? Our products are much better than yours!¡± Feng Cai and Xiao Hai argued as they walked in front while Yu Bing followed behind thoughtfully. When Yu Bing came back to her senses, she had already walked to the village entrance. The quarrel between the two of them had also come to an end. As Yu Bing looked at this young man who wasn¡¯t even 20 years old, she understood why his threatening gestures sometimes seemed a little exaggerated. It was because the purpose of his threats was self-protection, not harm. Yu Bing looked at Little Hai solemnly. ¡°Little Hai, why are there so many disabled people in the village?¡± Little Hai paused for a moment, then he replied mockingly, ¡°Why are you asking this? Do you want to mock them?¡± Chapter 354 - 354 Similar 354 Similar When Yu Bing heard Little Hai¡¯s answer, she knew that the people in the village must have been mocked. She asked gently with a smile, ¡°Am I that vicious in front of you? Don¡¯t you want us not to take up your market share? If you tell me the reason, I¡¯ll consider your request.¡± When Little Hai heard this, he wasn¡¯t appeased. Instead, he became angry. ¡°Liar! Are all your tricks so similar? We don¡¯t need your pity!¡± When the food factory was first established, in order to defeat the local food factory and get orders, Jin Lan¡¯s price was lower than many factories, but the subpar taste had always been Jin Lan¡¯s disadvantage. However, it was precisely because of this that the other food factories didn¡¯t take them seriously. In addition, everyone was local and more or less knew about their situation. Therefore, they weren¡¯t that ruthless, and Jin Lan was able to barely survive. However, a few years ago, some food factories from other places slowly began to enter E City and set up offices. In order to expand the market and get orders in the early stages, they would give discounts. Moreover, they sold novel food products from overseas. Everyone liked novelty, so Jin Lan¡¯s business was affected as a result. At that time, Little Hai was only 17 years old. When he saw this situation, he and a few friends threatened them. From then on, Little Hai became a local tyrant. After everyone found out who the mastermind was, they came to the village to negotiate with the village chief. At first, the village chief told them the truth and hoped that everyone could leave a portion of the market share for Jin Lan. However, although they agreed on the surface, they secretly spread rumors that the disabled employees of Jin Lan Village¡¯s food factory were unhygienic and used their feet to make food. However, those who could enter the factory were people with dexterous hands. Moreover, they had specifically gone to a large factory to learn before working in Jin Lan. However, how could the people outside know so much? When they heard this, many employees boycotted Jin Lan¡¯s food. It wasn¡¯t until Xu Jin persuaded them to invite all the agencies they had worked with in the past to the factory for a visit that the orders resumed. Jin Lan¡¯s profits were quite low, but they had no choice. To others, it was just a little bit of profit, but this factory was those workers¡¯ hope! There were a few times when he was schemed against, so Little Hai hated out-of-town offices very much. He would use all kinds of methods to force any food factory office discovered to have the same customer base as them out of E City. Although Yu Bing didn¡¯t know the details, she could guess when she saw Little Hai¡¯s irritable and resistant look. ¡°Little Hai, you might have been deceived by others before, so it¡¯s normal for you not to believe me, but I really want to help you.¡± ¡°You might have eaten our products before, so you can tell how good they taste. If I really compete with you, you might not be able to win, so I have no reason to lie to you.¡± Although Feng Cai and Little Hai had quarreled just now, when he saw the situation in the factory and thought of the scene in the village, he knew that something must have happened in this village. Feng Cai also had a good impression of those resilient and optimistic people. If possible, he hoped to help them. Seeing Little Hai¡¯s resistance at this moment, he also helped Yu Bing persuade him, ¡°That¡¯s right. Our factory is very efficient and has spread throughout the entire province. Moreover, what Miss Yu said previously makes sense. If you don¡¯t think of a way to increase your efficiency, you¡¯ll eventually lose your ground.¡± Little Hai looked at Yu Bing and Feng Cai, then he lowered his eyes for a moment before saying, ¡°Ten years ago, the exploration team dug out a coal mine 80 kilometers away from our village. They gave us a lot of money and went to the surrounding villages as well. Every young and strong man in our village went to earn money. Things were fine the first year, but then there was suddenly an earthquake.¡± ¡°The coal mine collapsed, and many people were buried in the well. Many people in our village died, and few survived unscathed. Most of them barely survived.¡± ¡°Many people are disabled to varying degrees because of this. Although they were given some compensation and medical expenses, it isn¡¯t enough for them. They can¡¯t participate in farm work anymore, so the village chief found a way to set up a food factory. This way, they have a place to work and at least support themselves.¡± ¡°The food factory is their lifeline!¡± Chapter 355 - 355 Not a Match 355 Not a Match Humans were very insignificant in the face of nature, but the magical thing about humans was that no matter what they suffered, there would always be people who dared to fight against fate. Yu Bing had always liked people who loved life and were full of vitality. She smiled slightly and said to Little Hai, ¡°Do you want to earn more money?¡± Little Hai was still a little wary, but hs eyes couldn¡¯t help but flicker. In order to attract customers, the factory had also produced new products, but the effect wasn¡¯t great. They only had old customers who wanted cheap things. The reason people were attracted to new offices every time was because of the subpar taste of the food in Jin Lan Village¡¯s food factory. ¡°Why are you helping us? We¡¯re competitors.¡± Feng Cai chuckled. ¡°Our factory director wants to conquer the entire country¡¯s market. You, who only want to stabilize your position in E City, are not our match.¡± If anyone else heard this, they might be furious, but Little Hai was completely different. Ten years was enough for him to recognize the strength of Jin Lan Food Factory. He would be satisfied as long as he could stabilize Jin Lan¡¯s position in E City. Feng Cai¡¯s words made Little Hai feel relieved. People would be envious and jealous of those who were slightly stronger than them, but they would only admire those who were at a different level than them. After all, if they could see the distance clearly, it was easy for them to feel that it was an obstacle they could overcome. Little Hai brought people to find Xu Jin. After finding out about Yu Bing¡¯s intentions, he was a little surprised. In fact, after Yu Bing and Feng Cai left, Xu Jin had thought about it for a long time in his office. The times were changing, and there had been more and more food factories in recent years. If one didn¡¯t advance, one would fall behind. In the past two years, the orders in the factory had begun to decrease. He knew that maintaining the status quo would definitely make things worse, but Xu Jin knew that he didn¡¯t have the ability to reform the food factory. As he looked into Yu Bing¡¯s sincere gaze, he felt that her eyes had the power to make people want to believe in her. After thinking for a moment, he made a decision. ¡°Miss Yu, I¡¯ll leave it to you!¡± Yu Bing smiled when she heard this. ¡°Alright.¡± After both sides reached an agreement, Yu Bing began to learn about the economic industry in the village. Other than planting agricultural crops like rice and wheat that had to be handed over to the country, the main economic industry was a food factory. Every family planted sweet potatoes. Yu Bing planned to teach them how to make sweet potatoes and crispy sweet potato pancakes. These two crops were high-yielding and the raw materials were cheap. Yu Bing told Xu Jin her thoughts. ¡°When you plant potatoes and sweet potatoes next year, you can plan the land in the village in advance. This way, the cost of raw materials can be reduced, and there will be more profit margin.¡± After Xu Jin heard this, he felt that Yu Bing had considered the actual situation in their village and felt that this suggestion was reliable. Yu Bing continued, ¡°These two types of snacks are not complicated, but the simpler the food, the harder it is to make it delicious. There are specialties in each field, so I suggest that chefs try their best to find people with specialized skills. Don¡¯t limit yourself to choosing from people with disabilities. You should also consider the market¡¯s feedback. There¡¯s still a lot of room for improvement in terms of the taste of the current products.¡± ¡°As long as we can guarantee the taste, we can guarantee the number of orders. We can guarantee that the workers have work to do and the factory can earn money. Only then can the factory operate normally. We have to get our priorities straight.¡± When Xu Jin heard this, he nodded repeatedly. ¡°I didn¡¯t consider it carefully. Everyone is thinking that this food factory is specially built for this group of special people in the village, so they want to choose people from among them. The five female workers were hired because we considered that it would be inconvenient for them to do some heavy work.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know anything about running a factory. Miss Yu, it¡¯s all thanks to you this time. If you have any objections, feel free to ask. I¡¯ll do as you say!¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°Mr. Xu, don¡¯t be anxious. Listen to me finish before you make a judgment. What I said might not be right. The actual situation of every factory is different.¡± Xu Jin trusted Yu Bing very much now, so he said, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll listen to you finish first. Little Hai! Learn from her!¡± If there was anyone Xu Jin felt most at ease handing the factory over to, it would be Little Hai, who was bold and loyal. Chapter 356 - 356 Recruiting Chefs 356 Recruiting Chefs As Little Hai looked at Yu Bing, who was about his age, he wondered how this woman was so smart. The village chief didn¡¯t even understand such a difficult thing, so how could she explain it so logically at such a young age? Yu Bing thought for a moment. ¡°How about this? Let¡¯s see who¡¯s willing to apply for a kitchen position at noon today. We won¡¯t waste any time. They¡¯ll sign up for the competition on the spot and we¡¯ll choose two chefs first. At that time, I¡¯ll teach them the cooking method of the two food products I have first.¡± ¡°There¡¯s another problem you have to pay attention to. You lack your own main products now. The few pastries you¡¯re currently producing are relatively ordinary and are mass-market. Unless you can make the taste outstanding, it¡¯s best to produce some products that don¡¯t exist in the current market.¡± When Little Hai heard this, he immediately asked, ¡°Then can we directly make the two types of food you gave us into the main products?¡± Yu Bing nodded with a smile. ¡°Of course, but this involves another problem. These two products are simple, so if someone who¡¯s good at making snacks thinks about it, they can roughly guess the method.¡± ¡°Therefore, you have to pay attention to the stability of the taste during production to protect your customer base. Moreover, it¡¯s best to give out samples to get orders before the product is released to the market. It¡¯s best to distribute the goods at about the same time and distribute them as widely as possible so that everyone can associate the products with your brand.¡± ¡°This way, even if someone wants to imitate you later, unless the other party¡¯s cooking skills are better than yours, customers will still favor Jin Lan at the same price or if it¡¯s only slightly cheaper than yours.¡± Xu Jin sighed softly. ¡°Oh my god, no wonder our factory can¡¯t compete with others. There are too many twists and turns. It gives me a headache!¡± Little Hai nodded in agreement. Xu Jin marveled as he turned on the office radio and began to announce the recruitment of two chefs at noon. Because there was no age and gender restriction for chefs in Jinlan Village, anyone in the village who felt that they had some decent culinary skills would participate proactively. The judges were the cadres of the village committee and the two specially invited judges, Yu Bing and Feng Cai. Jin Lan had been operating for eight years, and during this period, the equipment inside was added bit by bit, so it was much more complete than the equipment in Delicious Food Factory. Yu Bing asked everyone to make the snacks they were best at making. After intense competition, a newly married wife and a middle-aged woman were finally chosen. In the afternoon, Yu Bing asked the two new chefs to learn from the original chefs first before modifying them according to their own experience. After the finished products were out, the workers present tasted them together and everyone¡¯s eyes lit up. Their performance was within Yu Bing¡¯s expectations. When she ate the food from the Jinlan Food Factory yesterday, she felt that it wasn¡¯t easy for the factory to last so many years. It was all thanks to their cheap prices. Next, it was Yu Bing¡¯s turn to impart the formula. Yu Bing planned to make sweet potatoes first. This product was made from scallion pancakes and sweet potatoes. Scallion pancakes were a specialty of Treasure Island. Yu Bing steamed the sweet potatoes in the pot and started to make scallion pancakes. She poured a suitable amount of flour into the basin and added a little salt. Then, she poured warm water into it and stirred it into dough. Then, she kneaded it into dough and covered it with a steamed cloth. After 30 minutes, the dough was cut into the right size. She brushed cooking oil on the surface and waited for 40 minutes. Yu Bing used this time to make a souffl¨¦. After she stirred it evenly with flour, salt, and cooking oil, she adjusted it to a state where she could pull it. Then, she used a rolling pin to roll the small dough into a large piece of dough. Then, she kept pulling it around. She tried her best to pull it as big as possible without breaking the skin. Then, she used a brush to brush a layer of souffl¨¦. After that, she folded the thin-skinned dough into the shape of a folding fan. At this moment, the large piece of dough became a long strip with a few layers. Yu Bing picked up the dough slice and stretched it slightly on both sides. The longer the better. Then, she rolled it from left to right. After rolling it, Yu Bing kneaded the dough with her hand and rolled the dough into a pancake shape. The pancake skin of the scallion pancake was done. Chapter 357 - 357 Group Construction 357 Group Construction At this moment, the sweet potatoes were also cooked. After Yu Bing crushed the sweet potatoes into paste and covered half of the scallion pancake skin with the sweet potato paste, she folded the remaining half and cut it into strips. Then, she picked it up and twisted it twice. Then, she brushed the egg yolk on it and sprinkled white sesame seeds. After she placed it in the oven made from the earthen kiln, she took it out 20 minutes later. Then, it was time for the crispy potato pancakes. Yu Bing cut the potatoes into pieces first, then placed them in water to wash away the starch in the potatoes. After she added some salt, she stir-fried them until they were transparent. The small earthen bean was taken out of the pot and poured into the bowl. Then, starch was added and laid flat in a rectangular mold. After it was cooled, it was cut into small pieces and placed in the oil pot to be fried until it was a golden crisp. These two types of food looked golden and crispy, but they were sweet inside. On the other hand, the crispy sweet potato pancakes had the glutinous aroma of potatoes. After taking a bite, one could even taste potato particles in their mouth. Although they were fried and crispy, they were not greasy. ¡°This tastes amazing! This is the first time I¡¯ve discovered that two staple foods that I¡¯m sick of eating can be cooked like this.¡± ¡°Moreover, this method is quite novel. I¡¯m sure these two cooking methods will be mindblowing!¡± The workers in the factory were only given a small portion each. They put it in their mouths and slowly savored the aftertaste. Xu Jin held Yu Bing¡¯s hand excitedly. ¡°Yu Bing, thank you so much! Things have been getting worse and worse for the past two years. We couldn¡¯t sell our goods anymore. Now, they¡¯ve already suppressed us to the point where the price is only slightly higher than the cost. If we hadn¡¯t met you this time, it would have been good enough if the factory lasted until the end of the year.¡± Yu Bing looked at Xu Jin with a smile. ¡°Mr. Xu, don¡¯t stand on ceremony. I¡¯m just telling you the method. You¡¯ll have to rely on yourselves in the end. However, if there¡¯s anything you need, you can call our factory.¡± Xu Jin raised his hand to wipe away a tear from the corner of his eye. No one knew how much pressure he was under. If the factory really couldn¡¯t continue, he didn¡¯t know how to arrange the lives of these disabled people. Yu Bing was a little moved when she saw this scene. If it were a village chief like Sun Wang, he wouldn¡¯t care about the lives of these people. Thinking of this, she couldn¡¯t help but give them another piece of advice. Yu Bing raised her eyebrows as she looked at Xu Jin and Little Hai with a meaningful smile. ¡°Mr. Xu, Little Hai, if you can put down your pride, there¡¯s actually a place where you can definitely get a lot of orders.¡± Xu Jin and Little Hai looked at Yu Bing with delight, but Little Hai immediately expressed his stance. ¡°We¡¯re already so poor. What else can¡¯t we do? As long as it¡¯s not illegal, we¡¯re willing to do anything!¡± Yu Bing said without hesitation, ¡°Go to the government and complain that you¡¯re poor, or go to the commune first. The village is close to the commune. Take the commune¡¯s order and go to the county to complain. If you¡¯re not familiar with the county government¡¯s interpersonal relationships, you might not be able to take over all the departments. In any case, just try your best to convince them.¡± ¡°Focus on the disabled. Tell them how disabled people refuse to burden the country. Even though they lost their hands and feet, they continue to contribute to the construction of the motherland¡¯s economy. Therefore, they have to place orders to support disabled people. We have to make them feel obliged to help.¡± Xu Jin was stunned when he heard this. Little Hai listened with relish and nodded repeatedly. ¡°I know a little about moral kidnapping. All these years, the disabled people in our village have been relying on themselves, so it¡¯s time for their government to express their gratitude!¡± Yu Bing nodded in satisfaction when she saw Little Hai¡¯s reaction. He was quite promising! After explaining the matter to Jin Lan Food Factory, Yu Bing and Feng Cai left Jin Lan Village. Feng Cai turned to look at Yu Bing and marveled, ¡°I realized that no matter what happens, you always have a way to resolve it.¡± Yu Bing pursed her lips smugly. She had no choice. After all, she had been reborn from the modern era. ¡°I just happen to know some things, so I can make some inferences.¡± When the two of them returned to the shop, the others were about to get off work. Yu Bing brought everyone to the restaurant to eat a good meal as a reward for team building. Zhao Peng and Lin Zhi had been mentally tortured by Little Hai and the others this week. Zhao Peng and Lin Zhi were from poor families, so they usually bought groceries together and cooked in the dormitory. Now that they had come with Yu Bing to a restaurant, they were a little excited. Chapter 358 - 358 Picking Them Up 358 Picking Them Up Yu Bing knew that the first batch of employees was actually under a lot of pressure. Whether the office could stay open or not had a lot to do with how many orders they could get. Therefore, she would bring her employees to eat out for every shop she went to. After all, gatherings and meals made people more relaxed. Yu Bing asked everyone to order dishes, which were pickled fish, stir-fried cured meat, stir-fried eggs, and sliced meat. After the dishes were served, everyone ate and chatted. After Yu Bing finished explaining the situation at the Jinlan Food Factory, Zhao Peng and Lin Zhi sighed. ¡°I really didn¡¯t expect there to be such a story behind it.¡± Feng Cai also sighed and said, ¡°Everyone has their own hardships. Compared to their hardships, I think our hardships are really nothing. At least we¡¯re healthy and able-bodied. This is more important than anything else.¡± Yu Bing, who had been tortured by illness for so many years, felt this deeply. In the past, she would also complain about why the heavens were so unfair to her. However, when she saw that people who were more miserable than her were still working so hard to survive, while she admired them, she also felt a lot of encouragement. Seeing that everyone was so emotional, Yu Bing told them her decision. ¡°In the future, the cheap food products in our food factory will mainly be distributed to the supply and marketing club. Only during holidays will we take the initiative to contact large factories and agencies. Unless customers take the initiative to look for us, don¡¯t take the initiative to contact them.¡± Zhao Peng and Lin Zhi were shocked to hear about this arrangement. They were not going to turn down business? After Feng Cai thought for a while, he understood what Yu Bing meant, but he was worried that he was wrong, so he probed, ¡°You want to give factories like Jin Lan Food Factory some chances?¡± The corners of Yu Bing¡¯s mouth curled up slightly. ¡°There are endless business opportunities. In the past, I always wanted to take down all the consumers in the middle and lower ranges, but actually, there are some times when not doing it is more meaningful. Do you still remember why Jin Lan hated the offices of out of towners who came in and had the same customer group as them?¡± Feng Cai naturally remembered. ¡°Not only did those people deceive them, but they also spread rumors and slandered them in order to snatch their market share.¡± Yu Bing nodded vigorously. ¡°There are small factories in every place. We can¡¯t leave no space for others. Since we can eat meat, we have to at least give others some meat soup. I hope everyone will benefit.¡± Feng Cai smiled at Yu Bing and said, ¡°You¡¯re clearly not leading a good life either, but you still can¡¯t bear to see such suffering.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she thought of the word ¡°Holy Mother¡±. However, she didn¡¯t think of herself as a Holy Mother. She was just an ordinary person with empathy. She made this decision after confirming that she had the ability to lead everyone in a better direction. After solving the problem in E City, since the remaining shops were all very successful, they could visit shops in two cities per day. After Yu Bing gathered everyone¡¯s feedback, she returned to He Mountain Village with Feng Cai. This time, the person who drove the tractor to pick her up wasn¡¯t Wu Qing, but Xiao Sheng. When Yu Bing saw him, she was stunned for a moment. Then, the corners of her mouth subconsciously curled up. Xiao Sheng watched Yu Bing walk towards him with a relaxed expression and a smile on his lips. Feng Cai and Xiao Sheng were quite familiar with each other because of their work relationship. Now that he suddenly saw the usually aloof Xiao Sheng smile, he was shocked. However, he realized that the other party¡¯s eyes were fixed on Yu Bing. It wasn¡¯t until Feng Cai saw Xiao Sheng take the initiative to go forward and help Yu Bing carry her luggage that he came to a realization. When he got into the tractor, he tactfully chose the back seat. As Xiao Sheng drove, he asked Yu Bing about the situation of this business trip with concern. The sound of the tractor was loud, so in order to let Xiao Sheng hear her clearly, Yu Bing whispered into his ear. When Yu Bing¡¯s sweet voice entered Xiao Sheng¡¯s ears, at first, Xiao Sheng listened attentively, but he gradually became distracted. The unique fragrance on Yu Bing¡¯s body wafted all the way to Xiao Sheng¡¯s nose under the summer wind like a wisp of smoke before dissipating, leaving only the sound of Xiao Sheng¡¯s heart racing. Chapter 359 - 359 Nosebleed 359 Nosebleed Yu Bing was focused on talking about her trip to Jin Lan Village when she saw blood flowing from Xiao Sheng¡¯s nose. She was shocked. ¡°Why is your nose bleeding?¡± Yu Bing hurriedly took out a handkerchief from her purse and helped Xiao Sheng hold his nose. Only then did Xiao Sheng come back to his senses and look at Yu Bing helplessly. Xiao Sheng was still driving, so Yu Bing was so startled that she hurriedly reached out and pinched Xiao Sheng¡¯s chin gently. Then, she turned his head back to look at the road. ¡°Hurry up and stop the car. Let¡¯s change seats. I¡¯ll drive.¡± Xiao Sheng hurriedly stopped the car and raised his hand to press his nose. Only then did Yu Bing let go and change to the driver¡¯s seat. Feng Cai, who was behind, widened his eyes and glanced back and forth at the two people sitting in the front car. He had been watching the scenery outside, so now that he saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s nosebleed, he felt that he had missed out on some shocking news. After Yu Bing started the tractor, she tilted her head slightly and asked Xiao Sheng with concern, ¡°Are you feeling better?¡± At this moment, Xiao Sheng consciously distanced himself from Yu Bing. Otherwise, he felt that he would continue to bleed. ¡°I¡¯m fine. Perhaps the weather is a little too hot.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t think too much about it and let Xiao Sheng rest while she focused on driving. After entering the village, Yu Bing drove the car to the village committee building and parked it there. After Feng Cai said goodbye to the two of them and left first, Yu Bing ran into the office and handed the key to Mr. Wei for safekeeping. Xiao Sheng quietly removed the handkerchief covering his nose. When he realized that the bleeding had stopped, he took off the handkerchief. As he looked at the bright red color in the middle, his ears burned. From the corner of his eye, he saw Yu Bing walking towards him from the office, so he immediately stuffed his dirty handkerchief into his pocket. When Yu Bing saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s actions, she pursed her lips and chuckled but didn¡¯t expose him. She pretended that she didn¡¯t see it to prevent this man from feeling even shyer. ¡°Let¡¯s go. I¡¯ll make some herbal tea for you later.¡± Xiao Sheng was just making up an excuse. At the thought of drinking bitter herbs, he said, ¡°There¡¯s no need to go through so much trouble. I¡¯ll just drink more water.¡± When Yu Bing saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s resistant expression, she asked with interest, ¡°Are you afraid of taking medicine?¡± Xiao Sheng was stunned for a moment. Then, he looked at Yu Bing seriously and said, ¡°Of course I¡¯m not afraid of taking medicine, but it¡¯s better not to take it if possible.¡± Yu Bing smiled and said affirmatively, ¡°So you¡¯re afraid of taking medicine!¡± Xiao Sheng opened his mouth to redeem his dignity, but when he saw Yu Bing¡¯s smug expression, Xiao Sheng suddenly felt that nothing else was important anymore. As Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng were acting lovey-dovey, when Yu Yan saw the happy Yu Bing from afar, she was overcome with anger! It had been almost ten days since she called her brother last time. Although the two of them were a little far apart, she should have received the money after a week. Yu Yan waited patiently for another three days. After there was still no news today, she took half a day off to go to town to make a call. After the call went through, Yu Yan said that she wanted to look for Yu Xi. Yu Ya felt the other party freeze for a moment. ¡°You¡¯re Yu Yan?¡± When Yu Yan heard the familiar voice, she remembered that the other party was Cui Jin. After all, the two of them had parted on bad terms a while ago. ¡°Yes, I want to look for my brother.¡± When Cui Jin heard Yu Yan¡¯s commanding tone, he wanted to hang up directly, but when he thought about how she was Yu Xi¡¯s sister, he endured it and replied coldly, ¡°Yu Xi is out on a mission. I¡¯ll tell him when he comes back.¡± When Yu Yan heard this news, she was a little puzzled. Her adoptive brother had clearly promised her to get it done that day. ¡°When did my brother go on a mission?¡± Cui Jin replied aloofly, ¡°It¡¯s a military secret, so I can¡¯t tell you.¡± Yu Yan snorted. ¡°Could it be that my brother has already returned to the army but you deliberately didn¡¯t send me a message?¡± Cui Jin rolled his eyes over the phone. ¡°You¡¯re delusional! Don¡¯t call if there¡¯s nothing important, lest you delay important calls.¡± With that, Cui Jin hung up the phone quickly. When he saw that the soldier on duty had returned, he left. He cursed his bad luck. He kindly helped him guard the phone for more than ten minutes, but he received a call from Yu Yan. On the other side, Yu Yan, who had been hung up, glared at the phone fiercely. She wished she could kill Cui Jin. Unwilling to give up, she called again. At this moment, the soldier on duty gave the same answer as Cui Jin had. Chapter 360 - 360 Take Medicine 360 Take Medicine However, Yu Yan didn¡¯t believe it. No matter how urgent the mission was, he didn¡¯t even have the time to inform others?! After Yu Yan thought about it, she felt that either her adoptive brother had changed his mind and didn¡¯t want to send her money, so he found an excuse to lie to her, or her adoptive brother and Cui Jin had lied to her together. If it was the latter, Cui Jin must have said something bad about her! Yu Yan hung up and walked out of the post office. She recalled that the first time Cui Jin saw her, he wasn¡¯t like this at all! Yu Yan recalled that everything had changed since Jiang Chun hooked up with Cui Jin. Cui Jin¡¯s change definitely had something to do with Yu Bing. Who didn¡¯t know that Jiang Chun and Yu Bing were close? Yu Yan clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. ¡°Yu Bing! It¡¯s you again!¡± Yu Yan had no choice but to think of another way. Unexpectedly, when she returned to the village, she saw Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng chatting intimately. The more Yu Bing smiled, the more hatred Yu Yan felt! Last time, because Yu Bing had taken leave to go home, Yu Yan had change her plans. In addition, this time, Yu Bing even urged Cui Jin not to let her adoptive brother give her money! However, Yu Yan didn¡¯t have the time to deal with Yu Bing yet. Her parents were in a hurry to gather money for her brother, so she had to settle this matter first before dealing with Yu Bing. Now, she couldn¡¯t contact her adoptive brother, and there were probably no intellectuals who could fork out 50 yuan. After Yu Yan thought about it, she decided that the fastest way was to borrow money from the village committee. After Yu Yan arrived at the village committee, she knocked on the open office door. Mr. Wei was checking the accounts and shouted without looking up, ¡°Please come in.¡± Yu Yan walked in with a smile and exchanged pleasantries. ¡°Mr. Wei, you seem busy.¡± Mr. Wei looked up. ¡°Yu Yan, what¡¯s the matter?¡± Yu Yan replied with a smile, ¡°I want to borrow 50 yuan.¡± Mr. Wei frowned at Yu Yan. ¡°You just borrowed 50 yuan this month, but you haven¡¯t even returned your work points yet.¡± Yu Yan smiled apologetically and said, ¡°There¡¯s still half a year left, so I¡¯ll work hard in the second half of the year. When my parents send me money next month, I¡¯ll return five yuan every month.¡± If everyone said that, why would he need to do accounting? There would already be a bunch of debt already. ¡°No, your work points in the first half of the year are only about 30 yuan if they¡¯re exchanged for money. In the second half of the year, you¡¯ll only be able to earn 50 yuan at most. I was already very lenient to lend you 50 yuan last time.¡± Seeing Mr. Wei¡¯s firm attitude, Yu Yan could only stomp her feet angrily and leave. When she returned to the dormitory and saw the other intellectuals, Yu Yan¡¯s heart skipped a beat. If borrowing from one person couldn¡¯t get her 50 yuan, she could borrow from five people. Borrowing money wasn¡¯t a glorious thing, and Yu Yan didn¡¯t want too many people to know, so she planned to borrow it from well-behaved people who didn¡¯t talk that much. In the small courtyard at the foot of the mountain, Yu Bing brewed a bowl of cold tea after dinner. She even found some herbs that were not very bitter. After brewing them, she went to the Xiao family¡¯s house. ¡°Sister Yu Bing.¡± ¡°Yu Bing¡± The two little fellows shouted louder than the other, as if they were competing. Yu Bing smiled and replied to them one by one. After Yu Bing walked to Xiao Sheng, who was reading under the eaves of the corridor, she pulled out a small stool from the side and sat down. ¡°Drink it quickly.¡± Xiao Sheng frowned at the black herbal tea. Then, he moved to the side silently and distanced himself from the medicine bowl. ¡°Yu Bing, I¡¯m really fine.¡± This side of Xiao Sheng made Yu Bing feel for the first time that he was quite childish and she advised patiently, ¡°I specifically chose a less bitter version. You¡¯ll know after taking a sip.¡± Xiao Sheng was afraid that Yu Bing would be angry if he rejected her again, but he really didn¡¯t want to drink it. He could only frown and look at Yu Bing with a long face, in hopes that she could tell that he was very resistant. When Yu Bing saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s pitiful appearance, her heart softened. However, when she thought of his nosebleed today, she felt that she couldn¡¯t indulge him. Yu Bing coaxed Xiao Sheng with a smile, ¡°I prepared fruit candy for you. You can squeeze your nose and finish it in two mouthfuls. Then, I¡¯ll put the candy in your mouth immediately. Believe me, you¡¯ll only taste sweetness.¡± When the sound of suppressed laughter came from beside him, Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t need to look to know that it was Xiao Li and Xiao Lin. Thinking that his dignity as a big brother couldn¡¯t be ruined, he made up his mind, closed his eyes, and drank it in one go. Chapter 361 - 361 Lend Money 361 Lend Money This medicine wasn¡¯t bitter, but it was torturous for people who hated taking medicine. After a bowl of medicine, Xiao Sheng¡¯s facial features scrunched up. When Yu Bing hurriedly stuffed the candy she had prepared into Xiao Sheng¡¯s mouth, her fingers accidentally touched Xiao Sheng¡¯s soft lips, and the two of them froze. When Yu Bing came back to her senses, she hurriedly retracted her hand and her eyes flickered as she looked elsewhere. ¡°Um¡­ I¡¯ll go back first.¡± With that, Yu Bing stood up and quickly walked out of the Xiao family¡¯s house. As Xiao Sheng watched Yu Bing flee, he reached out to touch his mouth. As he thought about the touch just now and felt the sweetness of the melted candy filling his mouth, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly. ¡°Second Brother, has Sister Yu Bing left?¡± Xiao Li was sitting in the living room while waiting for class, but she heard Yu Bing walking further and further away, so she frowned and asked Xiao Lin curiously. Xiao Lin heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed like he could skip class tonight. He closed his book and turned to Xiao Li. ¡°Sister Yu Bing seems to have something urgent to do, so it looks like we won¡¯t have class tonight. Let¡¯s not disturb her.¡± Xiao Li nodded obediently, while Xiao Lin quickly put the book back into his bag excitedly. He planned to go to the stream to look for his friends. In the afternoon, he heard them say that they were going to roast the peanuts they had picked up on the mountain yesterday. He originally thought that there was no time for him to join them, but he had time now. Xiao Lin walked to the door of the living room quietly. First, he stuck his head out and looked around. When he saw his brother focused on reading, he took a deep breath and sneaked towards the entrance. Xiao Sheng said in a cold voice, ¡°Have you finished memorizing your textbook yet?¡± Xiao Lin stopped what he was doing and turned around to see Xiao Sheng staring at him with a serious expression. He immediately begged, ¡°Brother, I¡¯ll memorize it tomorrow night.¡± Xiao Sheng snorted and said, ¡°You also said that yesterday, so you¡¯re not allowed to go out until you¡¯re done reciting.¡± Xiao Lin could only return to the table dejectedly. He knew that Yu Bing¡¯s words were like an imperial edict. Sigh, those poor little peanuts could only enter someone else¡¯s stomach. In the intellectual dormitory. Yu Yan planned to ask the three young men in the same batch as her. After all, they had lived in the same courtyard for so long. Moreover, they were not the kind of people who liked to gossip, so she didn¡¯t have to worry about them spouting nonsense. In the first half of the year, another intellectual got married. Liu Ming, Qian Hao, and Li Zhen had a good relationship, so they found an opportunity to transfer to another dormitory. After Yu Yan finished eating, she went straight to their dormitory. Yu Yan smiled as she greeted the three of them at the door. ¡°Hello, I have something to tell you guys. Are you guys free now?¡± The three of them were a little surprised to see Yu Yan at the door. Not only was Yu Yan usually arrogant, but ever since everyone moved to the dormitory building together, Yu Yan had barely taken the initiative to talk to them. Qian Hao, who was writing a letter at the table, stood up with a smile and took the initiative to say to Yu Yan, ¡°I¡¯m free. Come in and sit.¡± It wasn¡¯t that they had a grudge against Yu Yan. Since there was a Yu Yan, they had to treat her well out of courtesy. Liu Ming and Li Zhen also stopped what they were doing and chatted with Yu Yan. After Yu Yan entered the room and sat on a chair, Qian Hao immediately went to pour a glass of water and placed it in front of Yu Yan as he greeted with a smile, ¡°Yu Yan, drink water.¡± Yu Yan nodded with a smile. Seeing that the three of them had a good attitude towards her, Yu Yan felt optimistic. This was the first time Yu Yan borrowed money from someone. Previously, she had borrowed 50 yuan from the village committee, but Yu Yan felt that it wasn¡¯t exactly borrowing money. To be precise, it was on credit. After all, she could pay for it with her work points. She took a sip of water to ease her nervousness before asking, ¡°I need money urgently now, so I want to borrow some from you guys. I can pay it back next month!¡± The reason Yu Yan said that she would return it next month was that she was worried that if the time was too long, everyone would be even more unwilling to lend it to her. Moreover, she believed that her adoptive brother would give her money within a month. Then, she would find out what Cui Jin had said to her adoptive brother that made him ignore her. Moreover, she had a trump card. As long as she wheedled, her adoptive brother would compromise. Yu Yan was confident that she would definitely be able to pay it back next month. However, there was never anything definite in the world. Life would always create accidents in various ways. Reality would give Yu Yan a heavy blow a month later. Chapter 362 - 362 Paupern 362 Paupern At this moment, the three men in the dormitory looked at Yu Yan in disbelief. She was publicly acknowledged as the richest person among the intellectual youths, but there were actually times when she needed to borrow money. In this day and age, everyone was poor, but the extent of their poverty was different. People wouldn¡¯t lend money to those they were not very familiar with and trusted that easily. Hence, Liu Ming asked, ¡°How much do you want to borrow?¡± After Yu Yan thought about their situation, she raised two fingers hesitantly. ¡°20 yuan.¡± This wasn¡¯t a small sum, so the three of them exchanged looks. Liu Ming asked again, ¡°Did you encounter something urgent?¡± Yu Yan definitely couldn¡¯t tell him the details, so she could only reply ambiguously, ¡°It¡¯s an urgent matter, but it¡¯s not convenient for me to reveal the specifics.¡± Liu Ming didn¡¯t continue asking. Putting aside the question of whether he had money or not, Li Zhen was really unwilling to lend her money. The two of them were not familiar with each other and were just roommates in the same dormitory building. Previously, when they lived in the temporary dormitory together, Li Zhen had always disliked Yu Yan¡¯s snobbish behavior. Yu Yan said that it was urgent, but Li Zhen didn¡¯t believe her, so he rejected her with a smile. ¡°I¡¯ve been short of money recently, so I only have a few yuan in case of emergencies.¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she immediately placed her hope on Qian Hao and Liu Ming. She looked at them with her watery almond-shaped eyes and deliberately softened her voice as she said pitifully, ¡°Qian Hao, Liu Ming, can you guys help me?¡± Yu Yan was good-looking to begin with. When she no longer acted as high and mighty as before, she looked cute and lovable. However, no matter how cute she was, Liu Ming only had five yuan on him. This money would last him until the village distributed dividends at the end of the year. He could only say to Yu Yan apologetically, ¡°Yu Yan, I¡¯m sorry, but I really don¡¯t have any money on me.¡± Qian Hao¡¯s heart skipped a beat under Yu Yan¡¯s gaze. He had 10 yuan on him and it was all he had until the end of the year. He wanted to refuse, but when he saw Yu Yan¡¯s gaze, he couldn¡¯t bear to. After thinking for a moment, he said, ¡°Yu Yan, I only have 10 yuan on me. I¡¯ll lend you 5 yuan. I want to keep the rest for myself in case I have urgent matters.¡± Among the three of them in the dormitory, only one person was willing to lend money, and it was only five yuan. Yu Yan was naturally indignant and said to Qian Hao in a gentler voice, ¡°Qian Hao, lend me the rest. I¡¯ll return it to you when I get the money sent by my family next month.¡± Qian Hao was a little hesitant. 10 yuan was all he had. What if he really needed it urgently? His family¡¯s financial situation wasn¡¯t good, so they didn¡¯t have additional money to send to him. Li Zhen sneered. Yu Yan was as selfish as ever. She didn¡¯t consider how the person she borrowed from would survive before she returned the money. He couldn¡¯t help but say, ¡°Yu Yan, if you take all his money away, how will Qian Hao survive before next month?¡± Yu Yan replied without thinking, ¡°Don¡¯t you guys sometimes go an entire month without spending a single cent?¡± Li Zhen was amused. ¡°There¡¯s a difference between not spending money and not having any money at all.¡± Yu Yan pursed her lips and glanced at Li Zhen. Qian Hao had not even said anything, so what did it have to do with an outsider like her?! However, at this point, Yu Yan couldn¡¯t leave him without a single cent, so she widened her eyes and pouted at Qian Hao as she said with an understanding expression, ¡°Qian Hao, can I borrow nine yuan?¡± Yu Yan¡¯s feigned cuteness disgusted Li Zhen. However, Qian Hao¡¯s face heated up when he saw Yu Yan blinking her eyes at him and he agreed. ¡°Okay.¡± Seeing that his friend had already agreed, Li Zhen couldn¡¯t say anything else. After Yu Yan received the borrowed nine yuan, she thanked Qian Hao repeatedly and promised that she would definitely pay it back next month. After leaving Qian Hao¡¯s dormitory, Yu Yan¡¯s smile fell. She cursed Qian Hao for being such a pauper. Who would have thought that he would really deduct one yuan from the ten yuan? If it weren¡¯t for Li Zhen being a busybody, she wouldn¡¯t have said that and might have been able to borrow 10 yuan. Thinking of the fact that Yu Bing and Li Zhen were usually on good terms, Yu Yan couldn¡¯t help but wonder if it was because of Yu Bing that Li Zhen and Liu Ming didn¡¯t lend it to her. After all, in the previous dormitory, Yu Bing had a better relationship with the three young men than her. The more Yu Yan thought about it, the more she felt that her failure to borrow money was because of Yu Bing. She also felt that Yu Bing was a vixen! She had hooked up with Li Zhen and Liu Ming, and now, she had hooked up with Xiao Sheng. What a promiscuous b*tch! Chapter 363 - 363 Compatible 363 Compatible Looking down at the nine yuan in her hand, Yu Yan felt a little glad. Fortunately, she could tell that Qian Hao liked her. Otherwise, she might not have been able to win over these three people. Yao Nian came out of the dormitory and was about to wash up. When he saw Yu Yan walking towards him with her head lowered, he greeted her excitedly, ¡°Yu Yan, you¡¯re here for me?¡± Yu Yan looked up and realized that it was Yao Nian. After putting the money away, she said with a smile, ¡°Yes.¡± The two of them chatted for a while before parting. Yu Yan didn¡¯t want Yao Nian to know that she was short of money, since she had always been so glamorous in front of him. She was worried that if he found out about her pinch, he would look down on her, so she had never thought of borrowing money from Yao Nian. Yu Yan¡¯s next target was Shu Ya, who was in the dormitory next door. She knew that Shu Ya¡¯s family was well-off among the intellectuals, and she was very agreeable. As soon as she entered, she saw Shu Ya preparing for class, so she walked over and said, ¡°Shu Ya, you¡¯re reading?¡± Shu Ya looked up and greeted with a smile, ¡°Yu Yan.¡± There was a chair beside the desk, and Yu Yan sat on it without hesitation. Perhaps because she had already asked once and was successful, Yu Yan no longer felt so embarrassed to borrow money this time. ¡°Shu Ya, I want to borrow some money from you. I¡¯ll return it to you next month.¡± Shu Ya was stunned for a moment. Just as she was about to speak, she was interrupted by a crisp female voice. ¡°The rich Miss Yu actually also has a day when she needs to borrow money?!¡± When Yu Yan heard the voice behind her, she turned around and saw Xu Ling standing behind her. She rolled her eyes and said, ¡°What has it got to do with you? I didn¡¯t borrow money from you.¡± Xu Ling came to look for Shu Ya¡¯s roommate, Tian Jing, who wasn¡¯t around, but she saw Yu Yan and Shu Ya talking. The two of them usually didn¡¯t interact, so Xu Ling was curious and came in to listen to what the two of them were talking about. Xu Ling wasn¡¯t angry. After all, this was nothing compared to watching Yu Yan make a fool of herself. Hence, she retorted, ¡°What has it got to do with you? My mouth belongs to me. Can¡¯t I express my opinion?!¡± ¡°Yu Yan, don¡¯t you always boast that your family is so rich? Why do you have to borrow money? Could it be that you were pretending previously?¡± Xu Ling¡¯s face was filled with mockery. Yu Yan glared at Xu Ling. When she thought of how Xu Ling had taken so much food and necessities from her and was now adding insult to injury, she felt even angrier. ¡°You ate so much of my food, so can¡¯t you tell if I¡¯m pretending or not?¡± Xu Ling was a little angry to be exposed like this in public. After all, no one wanted to have the image of taking advantage of others, so she immediately retorted, ¡°What do you mean I ate your food?! You were the one who insisted on giving me food.¡± After saying that, she looked at Shu Ya. Thinking of the good relationship between Shu Ya and Yu Bing, she deliberately said, ¡°you wanted to slack off and ostracize Yu Bing, so you went around giving food to others. I only accepted it because you begged me so pitifully.¡± When Yu Yan heard Xu Ling reveal what she had done, she gritted her teeth in hatred. ¡°Xu Ling! If you dare to spout nonsense again, I¡¯ll tear your mouth apart!¡± Xu Ling smiled nonchalantly and said, ¡°If you dare to touch me, I can make you unable to stay here anymore! However, you¡¯re thick-skinned, so you might really be able to stay here. I remember that you objected the most when Shu Ya became a language teacher two months ago, right?¡± Then, Xu Ling looked at Yu Yan in disdain and shook her head. ¡°I really don¡¯t understand why you have the cheek to borrow money from her. If I had done such a thing, I definitely wouldn¡¯t have the nerve to look for her again.¡± After Yu Yan froze for a moment, she turned around hurriedly and explained to Shu Ya, ¡°Shu Ya, I wasn¡¯t going against you at that time. I just had some questions to ask.¡± ¡°Do you think she¡¯s a fool? How dare you use such a lousy excuse?¡± As soon as Yu Yan spoke, Xu Ling interrupted. Yu Yan wanted to fight Xu Ling, but when she saw the other party¡¯s thick arms, she cowered. It had to be said that Yu Yan and Yao Nian were very compatible in terms of bullying the weak and fearing the strong. Seeing that the two of them were arguing in her dormitory, Shu Ya was annoyed and said, ¡°Yu Yan, I really don¡¯t have money. Why don¡¯t you ask someone else?¡± Shu Ya was well-off, but like Li Zhen, she didn¡¯t believe in Yu Yan¡¯s character. Moreover, Shu Ya was a girl. No matter how little she interacted with Yu Yan, she knew more about her than Li Zhen did. It was easy to borrow money, but it was difficult to ask for money back. Shu Ya had some money, but it was impossible for her to lend it to someone she didn¡¯t trust. Chapter 364 - 364 Borrowing Money Forcefully 364 Borrowing Money Forcefully Xu Ling was causing trouble at the side, and Shu Ya refused to borrow money, so Yu Yan became angry and said to Shu Ya, ¡°You don¡¯t even know how much I want to borrow, yet you say that you don¡¯t have money?!¡± When Shu Ya heard this, she was stunned. If she didn¡¯t want to lend money, did she have to find a reason to get the other party to agree? Shu Ya was amused. She had a good temper, but she wasn¡¯t a pushover. ¡°Yu Yan, I have the right to decide what to do with my money.¡± Xu Ling covered her mouth and snickered. She didn¡¯t have much of a relationship with Shu Ya, but at this moment, they could temporarily join forces, so she echoed, ¡°Yu Yan, when did you change professions to become a robber? This is the first time I¡¯ve seen someone try to borrow money by force.¡± As Yu Yan looked at the two people in front of her, she was so angry that she glared at them and blurted out without thinking, ¡°You guys are joining forces to bully me!¡± With that, Yu Yan returned to the dormitory angrily. Xu Ling happened to see Tian Jing return to the dormitory, so she turned around to look for Tian Jing. When Shu Ya saw this scene, she felt that she had been caught in the crossfire of their dispute, so she shook her head and continued to prepare for class. In the next few days, Yu Yan changed her method and specifically borrowed money from boys. It had to be said that this trick was quite useful. Yu Yan successfully borrowed 40 yuan from eight boys by playing the pity card. In addition to Qian Hao¡¯s nine yuan, she added another yuan. The day after she gathered enough money, Yu Yan went to town to transfer the money over. She even wrote a letter and badmouthed Yu Bing in it. After Yu Yan sent the letter to her email, she was in a good mood. She couldn¡¯t wait to see Yu Bing get punished. After sending the letter, she called the army again, but the reply she received was that Yu Xi had yet to return, so she could only return to the village first. He Mountain Village. Yu Bing had been living very comfortably recently, and the number of orders in the factory had steadily increased. The chicks laid eggs very quickly. With the high protein of the earthworms, each adult hen could keep producing one egg a day. Moreover, they had successfully applied a few batches of fertilized eggs. The number of chicks had increased by more than 600. The increase in chicken feces also brought more nutrients to the fruit tree. The ducks that had just been raised this year had plenty of space to move around on land and in the fish pond, so they grew very quickly. With the nourishment of the duck feces, the fish in the fish pond also grew very. The fish meat was fat and tender. In her previous life, she was framed by Yu Yan and sent to a labor reform farm. Now that her relationship with Xiao Sheng was stable and Jiang Chun had a new relationship, everything was developing in a good direction. Yu Bing felt that the current situation satisfied her very much. However, this peacefulness was disrupted not long after. The person who caused trouble was Wen Qin¡¯s husband. Ever since Madam Sun was criticized, she didn¡¯t dare to bully Wen Qin at home anymore. She no longer had anything on Wen Qin, so Wen Qin wouldn¡¯t obediently let her beat and scold her. So many years had passed, and Wen Qin was pregnant. As long as Madam Sun didn¡¯t cause trouble, Wen Qin wanted to spend the rest of her life like this for the sake of the child. Unfortunately, after Madam Sun stopped causing trouble, Sun Guo started causing trouble. Yu Bing went to work early with Jiang Chun. When she entered the office, she saw a child sleeping on the sofa in the accounting room. The child¡¯s mouth was a little pale, and he was clearly sick. He was also wearing an adult¡¯s jacket. Yu Bing leaned closer and recognized that this was Wen Qin¡¯s son, Xiao Hui. After Wen Qin took the kettle to get hot water, she returned to the office. When she saw Yu Bing, she explained in a panic, ¡°Miss Yu, my son is sick. I was worried about leaving him at home. Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t delay work.¡± Yu Bing smiled at the nervous Wen Qin and said, ¡°Don¡¯t be nervous. I just came in to take a look. What¡¯s wrong with Xiao Hui?¡± When Wen Qin heard the question, her eyes dimmed. ¡°Xiao Hui has a cold and fever, but he felt better after I gave him medicine.¡± Yu Bing nodded in understanding. Children who were weak were prone to illness, let alone someone like Xiao Hui, who was clearly malnourished. ¡°I still have half a jar of oat milk. Go to my place later and give a cup to Xiao Hui. He has to pay more attention to nutrition when he¡¯s sick. If you need any help, just ask. Don¡¯t stand on ceremony with me.¡± When Wen Qin heard this, her eyes flickered and her lips opened and closed. When Yu Bing, who was about to return to the office, saw this, she stopped in her tracks and smiled at Wen Qin. Chapter 365 - 365 Divorce 365 Divorce When Wen Qin saw Yu Bing¡¯s warm smile and the encouraging look in her eyes, she ignored her fear. ¡°Miss Yu, I want to ask if you know any empty houses in the village that can be rented to me?¡± Yu Bing asked curiously, ¡°You¡¯re moving out?¡± Wen Qin nodded firmly. ¡°I want a divorce!¡± Unlike in the future, where people would call for divorce at the drop of a hat, in this day and age, asking for a divorce would definitely cause an uproar. If it was in the countryside, it would be even worse. Yu Bing didn¡¯t find Wen Qin¡¯s decision strange at all. With her support, as long as Wen Qin had a backbone, as long as the Sun family did anything to provoke Wen Qin, Wen Qin would definitely counterattack immediately. Wen Qin was knowledgeable and cultured, but she was forced to marry Sun Guo. Most importantly, not only did Sun Guo not cherish such a good wife, but he also helped his mother persecute her with feudal thoughts. If this dysfunctional marriage continued, it would be the greatest contradiction to the advocacy of equality between men and women. Yu Bing thought about the housing situation in the village. ¡°Safety is the most important thing if you want to live alone. There¡¯s an empty house near Auntie Zhao in the village. If you shout, the people around you can hear you. I¡¯ll help you ask about the empty house at noon.¡± Wen Qin didn¡¯t know why, but she had a premonition that Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t persuade her not to get a divorce, like others would. However, she didn¡¯t expect her to agree to help her without hesitation. Yu Bing was very efficient and found out that the house beside Auntie Zhao belonged to the village chief¡¯s second uncle. Two years ago, the village chief¡¯s second uncle felt that that piece of land was too small and that after the family had more children, it wouldn¡¯t be able to accommodate them, so they bought new land to rebuild in the west of the village. Now, the small courtyard here was empty. When the village chief¡¯s second uncle heard that Wen Qin was willing to rent it, he was very happy. No one lived in the house, so it would become dilapidated if it was left there for too long. Although they were not living there now, he couldn¡¯t bear to let such a good house go to waste. Hence, he only charged them two yuan in rent per month. Of course Wen Qin was willing, so she took leave in the afternoon to sign the contract. After Wen Qin received her salary, she paid 1.4 yuan without hesitation. After work, Wen Qin entrusted Xiao Hui to Yu Bing. Then, she planned to go back and pack her things before moving in tonight. The Sun family¡¯s home. When Sun Guo saw his wife enter the room to pack her clothes as soon as she returned home, he felt a little flustered. ¡°Wen Qin, what are you doing?¡± When Wen Qin came to the countryside back then, her parents had packed a lot of clothes for her. However, after she got married, they were either taken away by Madam Sun or given away in exchange for favors. In addition, she had never bought a single piece of clothing for so many years, so there were not many clothes for her to pack now. After Wen Qin took out her bag, she began to stuff her and her son¡¯s things. When Sun Guo saw that Wen Qin was silent, he snatched the bag and asked in a panic, ¡°Are you planning to abandon this family and your son?¡± Wen Qin sneered. ¡°Of course I want my son, but this has never been my home, so how can I ¡®abandon¡¯ it?!¡± At this moment, Sun Guo glared at Wen Qin fiercely. ¡°Did you find a man outside? Who is that adulterer?¡± Sun Guo was very suspicious. He had seen how popular she was with men from the first day she married into the family. On their wedding day, when they toasted, other men would ogle her. At night, as soon as she returned to the house, Sun Guo immediately hit her and scolded her for seducing men, but she didn¡¯t even know which man looked at her. Wen Qin was already used to Sun Guo¡¯s reaction. Now, she was no longer afraid of the Sun family! Wen Qin rolled her eyes and said impatiently, ¡°I came back firstly to pack my things and leave, and secondly to discuss the divorce with you.¡± When Sun Guo heard this, he was instantly furious and shouted, ¡°B*tch, don¡¯t even think about getting a divorce! You can only be mine!¡± When Madam Sun heard the commotion, she came to the bedroom and looked at Wen Qin with a cold gaze. ¡°There must be an adulterer. It¡¯s probably that accountant from last time! Hmph, I knew that something would happen sooner or later if she went to work. How can men and women work together? Isn¡¯t this giving those bitches a chance to seduce men? A factory? I think it¡¯s more like a brothel!¡± In the eyes of the Sun family¡¯s mother and son, any man and woman who were not husband and wife probably had some sort of dirty relationship. When Wen Qin saw this ignorant mother and son, she felt nauseous! Chapter 366 - 366 Raising Him Herself 366 Raising Him Herself Wen Qin sneered. ¡°You think others are the same as you? I don¡¯t want to talk nonsense with you. Let¡¯s get straight to the point. I want to take Xiao Hui away after the divorce. I don¡¯t need you to pay alimony.¡± In order to get custody of her son, Wen Qin was willing to make some concessions. The Sun family knew Sun Guo¡¯s situation too well. If not for the fact that they had something on Wen Qin, how could Sun Guo have gotten a wife? The Sun family¡¯s mother and son were determined not to get a divorce. Sun Guo couldn¡¯t even get a wife when he was 35 years old, let alone now that he was in his forties. Madam Sun¡¯s small eyes darted around as she said firmly, ¡°Our family has never had such an embarrassing thing as a divorce before. There¡¯s no way you can get a divorce! Moreover, Xiao Hui¡¯s surname is Sun, so he¡¯s a child of the Sun family. Don¡¯t even think about taking him away!¡± Wen Qin was so angry that she laughed. ¡°I¡¯m afraid Xiao Hui will die if he stays here! Ask your son what he did! Why has Xiao Hui been running a fever these past few days? It¡¯s all because your good son tricked your grandson into taking a cold shower. After he finished showering, he didn¡¯t put on clothes for Xiao Hui and let him catch a cold in the courtyard! What¡¯s even worse is that he deliberately opened the window to let Xiao Hui catch a cold! Xiao Hui is already weak, and now, he has lost quite a few pounds!¡± Because her grandson was sick, Madam Sun had been cursing Wen Qin at home from morning to night these days. She said that Wen Qin was an incompetent mother and neglected her son just for the sake of a few yuan. Madam Sun hid these things from Sun Guo. In the Sun family, Madam Sun was first, Sun Guo was second, and Sun Hui was third. However, because she only had one grandson now, Madam Sun treasured her grandson more. Sun Guo had lived under his mother¡¯s abuse for a long time, so he only dared to secretly attack Xiao Hui. No matter how bad their parents¡¯ relationship was, children always yearned for a complete family and always hoped that their parents could stay by their side. Sun Guo used Sun Hui¡¯s fear of his parents separating to coax Sun Hui into cooperating with him. Ever since the letter restraining Wen Qin lost its effect, the Sun family¡¯s mother and son had been feeling uneasy, for fear that Wen Qin would run away. Although there was no way to go anywhere without a travel certificate these days, it was better to be safe than sorry. After all, Wen Qin had to go to He Mountain Village to work during the day, so they couldn¡¯t see or control her, especially since Wen Qin had recently used the excuse of being busy with work to come home half an hour later than usual. At the end of the day, the Sun family blamed the source of this uneasiness on Wen Qin¡¯s job. That was why Sun Guo wanted to use Xiao Hui to force Wen Qin to return to her family and stay in the small mountain village obediently. In the past, he could use physical abuse to force Wen Qin into submitting, but after they no longer had anything to blackmail her with, as long as Wen Qin looked at him coldly, Sun Guo wouldn¡¯t dare to hit her again. Without the usual methods of oppression, after Sun Guo saw his son¡¯s status in Wen Qin¡¯s heart, he determined that he was the only way to keep Wen Qin by his side. He knew too well how beautiful and dazzling his wife had once been. As long as he let her out, other men would definitely see her beauty. Sun Guo had finally broken the swan¡¯s wing, so how could he let her reattach it? Madam Sun was quick-witted and immediately understood Sun Guo¡¯s intentions, so she lied through her teeth. ¡°It¡¯s a woman¡¯s responsibility to take care of children. What does a man like him know?! The weather is so hot, so Xiao Hui probably couldn¡¯t help but want to take a cold shower. Sun Guo was just too lazy to go in to get a towel and let him air dry his body.¡± When Sun Guo heard that his mother had found an excuse for him, he immediately nodded vigorously. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s it!¡± As Madam Sun spoke, she even pointed at Wen Qin¡¯s nose and scolded, ¡°It¡¯s your responsibility as a mother! It¡¯s because you didn¡¯t take good care of Xiao Hui that he¡¯s so weak. Which child would catch a cold merely after taking a cold shower? Instead of reflecting on yourself, you even pushed the blame onto your man. I think that you have someone you like at work, so you want to push the blame on my son in order to get a divorce!¡± Wen Qin knew that Madam Sun was good at distorting the truth, so she knew that even if she continued, it would be pointless. Thus, she didn¡¯t say anything else and turned around to take two sets of clothes before leaving. She would take leave tomorrow morning and come back to take the rest of the things. She didn¡¯t believe that they could stay at home forever. Chapter 367 - 367 Die Together 367 Die Together When Sun Guo saw Wen Qin doing whatever she wanted and that his son had not been brought back, he knew that she had most likely made up her mind to leave. Hence, he went forward and grabbed Wen Qin¡¯s arm. Then, he turned to Madam Sun and said, ¡°Mom, bring the rope over. I want to tie her up!¡± Madam Sun instantly perked up when she heard this. Then, she turned around and walked towards the kitchen. Seeing this, Wen Qin struggled as she took out the dagger from her pocket and threw the scabbard at Sun Guo. Sun Guo didn¡¯t expect Wen Qin to carry a knife with her. Although he reacted in time and blocked with his hand, his arm was still cut. The wound wasn¡¯t deep, but blood immediately flowed out. When Wen Qin saw that Sun Guo had loosened his grip, she couldn¡¯t be bothered to take her things anymore and hurriedly ran out. She and Madam Sun happened to bump into each other at the door. When Wen Qin staggered and almost lost her balance, Sun Guo caught up again. Wen Qin immediately raised her dagger and aimed it at the two of them. ¡°I¡¯ll stab whoever comes forward! I can¡¯t live like this anymore anyway. Worst case scenario, we¡¯ll die together!¡± Wen Qin¡¯s desperate look frightened the Sun family¡¯s mother and son. After all, they both cherished their lives. Sun Guo hesitated. After Madam Sun stopped her son and gave him a look, Sun Guo could only listen to his mother and let Wen Qin go. After Wen Qin disappeared, Sun Guo said gloomily, ¡°Mom, why did you stop me? I can¡¯t lose my wife and son.¡± Madam Sun went to the kitchen¡¯s stove to take a handful of plant ash and applied it to Sun Guo¡¯s wound to stop the bleeding. At the same time, she glared at Sun Guo. He made it sound as if he would dare to rush forward if she didn¡¯t stop him. Madam Sun tiptoed and raised her hand to tap Sun Guo¡¯s temple as she said resentfully, ¡°How did I give birth to an idiot like you?! Didn¡¯t you see how ruthless she was? If you dared to stop her, she would have stabbed you!¡± With that, Madam Sun retracted her hand. She narrowed her eyes and thought for a moment before saying, ¡°The only one who can control her now is Xiao Hui. Go to the village and find some young and strong clansmen. We¡¯ll go to the food factory tomorrow morning.¡± Sun Guo knew that he was stupid, so he immediately went out and did as she said. He Mountain Village. The courtyard Wen Qin rented was about the same size as Yu Bing¡¯s house. There was only an additional small storeroom. No one had lived in the house for two to three years, so there were many places to tidy up. After Yu Bing and Jiang Chun got off work, they brought Xiao Hui to their new house to clean up. Xiao Hui had taken medicine today and was taken care of by Wen Qin, so he didn¡¯t have a fever anymore, but he was still a little weak. The two of them cleaned up the place first, then went to find Xiao Li to buy a mat to spread on the bed so that Xiao Hui could rest. After Wen Qin returned to He Mountain Village, she went straight to the small courtyard she had rented. When she returned home, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun had already tidied up the bedroom. Wen Qin was very grateful to the two of them. ¡°You guys helped tidy up and even helped me take care of Xiao Hui. If it weren¡¯t for you guys helping me, I don¡¯t know how much time it would have taken me to clean up tonight. When I¡¯m done, I¡¯ll invite you guys to our house for dinner.¡± Jiang Chun replied with a smile, ¡°You¡¯re welcome. Xiao Hui was very obedient, so he didn¡¯t need us to take care of him. We¡¯ll come to your house when you¡¯re done.¡± When Yu Bing saw that Wen Qin had not brought anything back and that she was still holding a dagger without a scabbard, she asked worriedly, ¡°Did the Sun family stop you?¡± When Wen Qin saw Yu Bing looking at the dagger she was holding, an apologetic expression appeared on her face. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Yu Bing. I was in a hurry to run away, so I didn¡¯t have time to pick up your scabbard from the Sun family¡¯s home.¡± This dagger was given to her by Xiao Sheng. Although Yu Bing was a little sad to see the incomplete dagger, she knew that if the situation wasn¡¯t dangerous, Wen Qin wouldn¡¯t have used the knife. She suppressed her heartache and pretended not to care as she said, ¡°It¡¯s fine. What¡¯s the Sun family¡¯s attitude regarding the divorce?¡± Wen Qin told her the whole story. It was said that even a vicious tiger wouldn¡¯t hurt its cubs. Sun Guo was really worse than a beast. When Yu Bing and Jiang Chun heard this, they supported Wen Qin¡¯s decision to get a divorce. Previously, there was already domestic violence going on and now, they were even more unscrupulous. They had to get a divorce as soon as possible. The next morning, Sun Guo and his mother rushed to He Mountain Village aggressively with the people they gathered. Chapter 368 - 368 The Aura of the Same Kind 368 The Aura of the Same Kind It was everyone¡¯s first time here, so they didn¡¯t know the way. After entering the village entrance, they saw a beautiful girl with braided hair. It was obvious that she was an intellectual who was here to build the village. Seeing that the other party was a tall and fair girl who was wearing clothes without any patches, Madam Sun secretly scolded the other party for being a vixen. However, there was no one else to ask now, so she smiled and went forward to greet her. ¡°Hello, young lady. How do I get to your village¡¯s food factory?¡± It was rare for Yu Yan to wake up early today, but she didn¡¯t expect to meet such a large group of people looking for the village¡¯s food factory. Although Madam Sun smiled kindly, Yu Yan could still sense that she was a troublemaker like herself. As Yu Yan looked at the twenty to thirty young and strong men behind Madam Sun, she knew that these people were definitely up to no good, so she immediately replied enthusiastically, ¡°Hello, the food factory is a little far from here, so I¡¯ll bring you guys there.¡± Madam Sun was even happier to hear that she would lead the way. As she followed, she thought of saying something to ruin Yu Bing¡¯s reputation in the village, so she said, ¡°You¡¯re really kind-hearted, unlike the factory director of your food factory. She¡¯s very wicked! I don¡¯t know what she said to my daughter-in-law, but now, my daughter-in-law insists on getting a divorce. My family is in chaos!¡± Yu Yan¡¯s eyes lit up when she heard Yu Bing¡¯s name. Yu Yan had been annoyed that Yu Bing had been living too comfortably recently, so she thought of a plan. ¡°The factory director of our village¡¯s food factory is called Yu Bing. Are you talking about her?¡± Madam Sun recalled. ¡°I think so. I remember that her surname is Yu.¡± Yu Yan looked at Madam Sun as she said with certainty, ¡°It must be Yu Bing. She¡¯s the only one with the surname Yu in the factory. If it¡¯s her, then it¡¯s really possible that she urged your daughter-in-law into getting a divorce.¡± When Madam Sun heard this, she immediately fell for Yu Yan¡¯s trap and glared at Yu Yan. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Yu Yan looked troubled as she said hesitantly, ¡°We¡¯re all from the same village, so there are some things I can¡¯t say.¡± It wasn¡¯t easy for Madam Sun to obtain some useful information, so how could she miss it? As she held Yu Yan¡¯s hand, a sad expression appeared on her face and she said, ¡°Young lady, you don¡¯t know, but Yu Bing has caused trouble for my family! It wasn¡¯t easy for my son to get a wife, but Yu Bing ruined things and my daughter-in-law wants a divorce now. She didn¡¯t even return home last night. My grandson was also taken away. I feel so sad.¡± ¡°Tell me secretly. I definitely won¡¯t expose you!¡± Upon hearing Old Madam Sun¡¯s words, Yu Yan felt pleased, so she relented. Yu Yan still pretended to be reluctant. ¡°Grandma, I¡¯m only saying this because I pity you. Yu Bing goes on business trips often and brings different men with her every time. She¡¯s often absent for half a month. I don¡¯t know if she¡¯s really on a business trip or if she¡¯s using the excuse of going on a business trip to hang out with men. What do you think your daughter-in-law can possibly learn from her?¡± Madam Sun was shocked and couldn¡¯t believe that a single woman could spend half a month with a man. Now, she was even more certain of her guess. Yu Yan exaggerated a lot of things as she told Madam Sun about Yu Bing. As she spoke, she had already led the group to the entrance of the factory. After she looked around and realized that no one in the village had seen her, she immediately bade farewell to Madam Sun and left. She only wanted to see Yu Bing suffer and didn¡¯t want to be implicated. However, Yu Yan didn¡¯t really go back. Instead, she turned a corner and hid behind a big tree. She had to see Yu Bing suffer with her own eyes. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun arrived at the food factory early as usual. From more than ten meters away, they saw a group of young and strong men surrounding the entrance. Yu Bing sensed that the other party had ill intentions. ¡°That¡¯s her. She¡¯s the director of the food factory, Yu Bing!¡± Before she could walk in, she heard a shrill voice from the middle of the group. Then, she saw Madam Sun emerge from the crowd. Madam Sun said in a mean voice, ¡°My daughter-in-law hasn¡¯t been home for the entire night since she came to work. What does your factory do? Human trafficking?¡± Chapter 369 - 369 Individual 369 Individual In the face of Madam Sun¡¯s aggression, Yu Bing replied slowly, ¡°Madam, Wen Qin is an independent person. It¡¯s her choice whether she goes back or not. Our factory has no restrictions. Do you always accuse people without evidence?¡± Madam Sun¡¯s expression froze when she heard this. Ever since she was exposed last time, her life had not been smooth. In the past, whenever it was revealed that she was a concubine forced to marry a rich person and was a victim of abuse, everyone tolerated her. However, now that everyone knew the truth, their attitude towards her worsened. Coupled with the fact that she had been publicly criticized a few times, Madam Sun could still remember the feeling of rotten eggs and small stones being thrown at her. Her heart skipped a beat, but then she thought of what Yu Yan had said, she perked up again. ¡°Stop threatening me. You¡¯re the one who urged my daughter-in-law to get a divorce. You¡¯re the one who destroyed someone else¡¯s family. You should be the one being criticized!¡± ¡°I¡¯m warning you. Hand over my daughter-in-law now and tell her that she¡¯s not allowed to get a divorce. Then, fire her and never hire her again! Then, this matter will be over. Our family doesn¡¯t want to pursue the matter!¡± When Yu Bing heard Madam Sun¡¯s request, she felt that it was ridiculous and couldn¡¯t be bothered to respond to her, so she planned to bypass them to head into the factory. This was He Mountain Village, so she didn¡¯t believe that the other party would dare to force her. ¡°Let me repeat, Wen Qin is an independent person. What decision she wants to make is up to her. I won¡¯t interfere!¡± Seeing that Yu Bing was unwilling to relent, Madam Sun immediately shouted, ¡°Block the door!¡± Yu Bing and Jiang Chun were blocked at the door. At this moment, Wen Qin brought Xiao Hui to the factory. She had gone to the factory to apply for leave to return to the Sun family¡¯s home to get her things today. Unexpectedly, before she entered the factory, she saw the Sun family¡¯s mother and son arguing with Yu Bing at the entrance of the factory. When Wen Qin heard the last two sentences of their conversation, she quickly stepped forward. ¡°This is my own decision. It has nothing to do with others!¡± As soon as Wen Qin appeared, Sun Guo glared at her. When Wen Qin saw so many people at the scene, her heart skipped a beat. She thought that she might as well blow things up while there were many people and let the Sun family know that they couldn¡¯t stop her. Otherwise, if she went again, it was difficult to guarantee that she could escape unscathed. Madam Sun jumped up when she heard this and glared at Wen Qin fiercely as she said, ¡°I think you want a divorce because you¡¯re having an affair with a man here. Hand him over!¡± Of course, Wen Qin wouldn¡¯t admit to something that wasn¡¯t true at all, so she turned to Yu Bing and Jiang Chun and said, ¡°Miss Yu, go in first. I¡¯ll settle my own matters.¡± ¡°No one can leave! Wen Qin, if you don¡¯t want to resign, come back with me. No one can go to work!¡± Sun Guo blocked the door with his men. At this moment, workers had already begun to come to work one after another. When they saw this situation, they were confused. Wen Qin didn¡¯t want to affect the operations of the factory, so she was a little anxious. ¡°Sun Guo, don¡¯t drag other people into the divorce between the two of us. Don¡¯t implicate the innocent!¡± When the onlookers heard about the divorce, they began to discuss it. This was a big deal in the countryside! When Madam Sun saw that there were more people, she had an idea and began to cry. ¡°Everyone, please be reasonable. After she came here to work, she seemed to have become a different person. Yesterday, as soon as she returned home, she said that she wanted to divorce my son. Yu Bing instigated all of this! We don¡¯t want to cause any trouble here. Firstly, we want to persuade my daughter-in-law to go home. Secondly, if she insists on getting a divorce, she can¡¯t take the child away! The child belongs to our family, so she has no right to take the child away!¡± No one believed the first half of the sentence, since everyone knew what kind of person Yu Bing was after interacting with her for so long, but when they heard her mention that Wen Qin couldn¡¯t take the child away, they didn¡¯t think that there was a problem with it. ¡°Indeed, the child belongs to the Sun family and can¡¯t be taken away.¡± ¡°What? How can they get a divorce? Children from divorced families will be ostracized in the village. For the sake of the child, you can¡¯t get a divorce!¡± There were more and more onlookers. Most of them persuaded her not to get a divorce. Fortunately, Wen Qin was a determined person, so the opinions of others didn¡¯t affect her. ¡°I gave birth to the child, so why can¡¯t I take him away? I want a divorce and the child!¡± Chapter 370 - 370 Slander 370 Slander Wen Qin told them about how the Sun family had deliberately made the child sick in order to prevent her from going to work. ¡°How can I dare to let them have my son? We all have children. Can such unscrupulous people raise the child properly? If it were you, would you dare to entrust them with the child?¡± Yu Bing knew that Wen Qin wouldn¡¯t change her mind easily, but she was still a little worried when she saw so many people dissuading Wen Qin. However, seeing Wen Qin¡¯s current stance, Yu Bing was relieved. Most of the employees in the factory were female. To mothers, children were more important than anything else, so Wen Qin¡¯s words struck a chord with them. In addition, there were many intellectuals in the factory. Everyone was young and from the city, so they were much more accepting of divorce than the villagers were. The public opinion was biased towards Wen Qin, so Madam Sun couldn¡¯t help but glare at her son. It was all his fault that they were at such a disadvantage! ¡°My son did this to let Wen Qin go home to take care of the child. She¡¯s pregnant with another child, so we were just worried about her. If it weren¡¯t for someone goading her, why would my daughter-in-law want to get a divorce? Yu Bing, if you don¡¯t fire Wen Qin, your factory won¡¯t be able to work!¡± Yu Bing was very puzzled. Why did Madam Sun keep staring at her? If she wanted to mediate, it would depend on them. Moreover, with Wen Qin¡¯s personality, even if she really fired her, she wouldn¡¯t change her mind. The Sun family blocked the door, so the workers couldn¡¯t get to work. Although there were many employees in the factory, Yu Bing didn¡¯t dare to let them fight. She was worried that if everyone got carried away, they wouldn¡¯t be able to stop and someone might really die. Therefore, Yu Bing could only choose a peaceful solution. ¡°Madam Sun, don¡¯t bring your family conflict to the factory to resolve! Also, let me solemnly state that I didn¡¯t interfere in any employee¡¯s marriage decision.¡± Madam Sun sneered and said disdainfully, ¡°You don¡¯t have to say anything. With what you¡¯ve done, I don¡¯t dare to let my daughter-in-law work with you! The factory director goes on business trips with different men all day long. Don¡¯t you guys think anything of it? She might have done something with those men. I wonder what methods she used to get the position of factory director!¡± Yu Yan was already a little impatient from waiting behind the tree. When she saw that Madam Sun had finally said this, her frustration disappeared and she watched excitedly. When Yu Bing heard this, her expression instantly darkened. ¡°Madam Sun, slandering and spreading rumors is illegal! If you dare to slander me like this, I can sue you in court! You say that I slept around, but what evidence do you have?¡± If unmarried slept around and were caught, they would go to jail! Worst case scenario, they would be arrested and shot to death! Madam Sun¡¯s accusation could be fatal, so Yu Bing took it very seriously. Madam Sun didn¡¯t have any evidence. Yu Yan¡¯s words made her imagination run wild and she made all sorts of assumptions. ¡°Then what evidence do you have to prove your innocence?¡± Yu Bing said with a sneer, ¡°Madam Sun, whoever reports it will testify! You can¡¯t produce evidence, but you want to ruin my reputation. I won¡¯t let this matter rest. Jiang Chun, go report to the police.¡± Jiang Chun couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore. When she heard this, she immediately ran to the village committee to make a call. Madam Sun panicked when she heard that Yu Bing was going to call the police. She didn¡¯t expect Yu Bing to be so unyielding. However, when she thought about it, she realized that she had said these sorts of things in the village often, but no one had ever threatened to call the police. Thinking of this, she calmed down a lot and felt that Yu Bing was just scaring her. Madam Sun snorted. ¡°You want to scare me? I don¡¯t give in to threats!¡± At this moment, Wu Jin also arrived at the entrance of the factory. After asking someone about the current situation, he went forward. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m the village chief of He Mountain Village, Wu Jin.¡± When Madam Sun heard that he was the village chief, she immediately complained to Wu Jin tearfully and repeated the story. However, she didn¡¯t mention a word of anything that reflected badly upon her. Seeing that the employees of the factory had already arrived at the door and were waiting to work, the village chief said to Madam Sun, ¡°This is the village¡¯s factory, so you can¡¯t block the way. If you have anything to say, we¡¯ll talk to the village committee. Get your people to leave first.¡± Madam Sun¡¯s eyes darted around a few times before she finally agreed to Wu Jin¡¯s suggestion. Chapter 371 - 371 Causing Trouble 371 Causing Trouble The reason Madam Sun agreed was firstly because of Wu Jin¡¯s identity as the village chief, and secondly, because no matter how much trouble she caused at the entrance of the factory, only dozens of food factory workers would know about it, so the impact would be limited, but the village committee was different. It would help her blow things up. Yu Yan, who was far away, could only vaguely hear their words. Now that she saw Madam Sun ask the people blocking the door to move aside so the workers could enter to work, she cursed Madam Sun for being useless and wished she could rush forward herself. However, she could only follow behind the crowd silently and continue to observe the subsequent developments. When they arrived at the village committee, Madam Sun refused to enter the office. ¡°I¡¯m not going in. This is your territory. Who knows what you guys want to do? If you want to talk, do it here!¡± At this time, all the villagers had gone to the fields, but from afar, they could still see a large group of people at the entrance of the village committee. Some people had already noticed this situation, but because the team leader was in charge, they couldn¡¯t go over to watch. They could only discuss with others in low voices. After Yu Yan followed Madam Sun all the way to the village committee, she could tell what Madam Sun was up to. After thinking about it, she decided to help Madam Sun, so she jogged to the field. Yu Yan ran to the middle of the road and shouted, ¡°Someone from the neighboring village is causing trouble here!¡± When everyone heard that someone was causing trouble, they, who were already a little distracted, became even more curious. Now that they had an excuse, they immediately raised their hoes and shovels to help. The group leader, Director Liu, only managed to stop more than half of them. A small number of people had already rushed over the moment they received the news. Seeing this, Director Liu could only jog over. When Madam Sun and the villagers saw dozens of people rushing towards the village committee, their first reaction was that they had encountered trouble. An older man in his thirties or forties looked at Wu Jin with a dark expression. ¡°Mr. Wu, what do you mean by this?¡± Wu Jin frowned in puzzlement when he saw the villagers in front of him. However, he only thought that everyone had seen the situation here and rushed over out of worry. Madam Sun was worried that Wu Jin would chase her away, so before Wu Jin could speak, she took the initiative to help him out and said, ¡°We¡¯re in the right, so we¡¯re not afraid no matter how many of them come!¡± When Da Gang heard this, he felt a little uneasy. They were in other people¡¯s territory to begin with, so if they really fought, he would definitely suffer. Hence, he made up his mind to admit defeat immediately if they really fought later. There was no need for him to be beaten up for the sake of his relatives. ¡°Village Chief, what happened?¡± ¡°Village Chief, who¡¯s here to cause trouble? We¡¯re not pushovers!¡± Everyone asked Wu Jin, but their eyes were fixed on Madam Sun and the others. They looked like they would immediately pounce on them as long as Wu Jin gave the order. When Madam Sun saw that there were fifty to sixty people, she secretly rejoiced and her usually sharp voice immediately became choked as she said, ¡°We¡¯re not here to cause trouble. We¡¯re here to seek justice!¡± ¡°My daughter-in-law, Wen Qin, has gone out of control ever since she came to work. Now, she¡¯s even asking for a divorce. My poor six-year-old grandson lost the company of his parents at such a young age! Which village has a divorced family?¡± ¡°How can our family hold our heads up in the future?! If they find out that my grandson has a divorced mother, what will happen to him when he grows up?!¡± The villagers of He Mountain Village didn¡¯t expect this to be a family matter. Because of their conservative views, their first reaction was to help the Sun family persuade Wen Qin. Wen Qin could only tell them what the Sun family had done to her and her son again. She thought that it would change everyone¡¯s mind, but she didn¡¯t expect everyone to condemn her. They felt that it wasn¡¯t to the point of needing a divorce and they even tried to dissuade her. ¡°Wen Qin, men are mostly hot-tempered and some beat their wives when they¡¯re anxious. There are only a few couples who haven¡¯t fought before.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. You guys can¡¯t fight anymore. Look at the injury on Wen Qin¡¯s hand!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! Moreover, how can you jeopardize the child¡¯s health?¡± Chapter 372 - 372 Separation 372 Separation Wen Qin showed everyone the old scars from the past. When Sun Guo saw that someone was speaking up for her, he immediately said, ¡°No, no. I haven¡¯t touched her for a few months. That was in the past. I won¡¯t beat her anymore!¡± As for the problem regarding the child¡¯s illness, he used Madam Sun¡¯s previous excuse. No one doubted him. After all, no one would really investigate it in detail. They only had an acquaintance with Wen Qin and didn¡¯t know her that well. ¡°That¡¯s more like it. Wen Qin, bring the child home. Your man has promised you already.¡± When Madam Sun saw that the situation was looking good, she immediately said, ¡°Miss Yu, my daughter-in-law is pregnant and has to take care of my grandson, so she won¡¯t be working anymore. She¡¯ll be resigning today.¡± Wen Qin stood forward and said to Madam Sun sternly, ¡°This is my job, so you have no right to make the decision for me!¡± Yu Bing was furious. These feudal ideas were still restraining everyone, so no wonder it was so difficult to promote equality between men and women. If women themselves didn¡¯t come to this realization, who could they expect to save them? ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but this is a matter between the employee and the factory. The families of employees can¡¯t interfere with the factory¡¯s personnel hiring.¡± When Madam Sun saw that Yu Bing was still going against her, a ruthless look appeared in her eyes. ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯re unwilling to stop until you break up our family, right?¡± Wu Jin guessed that there was still going to be trouble, so he planned to send everyone away first. After all, it wasn¡¯t appropriate for about a hundred people to crowd around here. Those who didn¡¯t know better would think that there was a gang fight. Moreover, it wasn¡¯t easy to control so many people. If a fight. broke out, they wouldn¡¯t be able to stop it, so he said, ¡°Everyone, please disperse. This is Wen Qin¡¯s family matter, so let them settle it themselves.¡± Now that the situation was finally advantageous to her, how could Madam Sun let her go? ¡°Mr. Wu, what do you mean? Everyone is trying to uphold justice, so why are you chasing them away?¡± Wu Jin knew that these old ladies from the countryside were the most difficult to deal with, so he said with an impassive expression, ¡°It¡¯s work time now. The villagers still have to work in the fields.¡± ¡°Village Chief, we¡¯ll be the judges at the side. You guys can say whatever you want. It won¡¯t delay our work.¡± A slightly hoarse female voice sounded from the crowd. It was unknown who spoke, but the people who wanted to watch the commotion quickly echoed, ¡°Village Chief, this involves our village¡¯s food factory, so we¡¯re concerned. This little bit of time won¡¯t delay our work. We will definitely finish today¡¯s work!¡± Madam Sun was very smug when she heard this. She knew that people liked to watch drama and that they liked to persuade people not to get a divorce. When Madam Sun saw Yu Yan in the crowd, she suddenly thought of something and her eyes lit up as she looked at Wu Jin suspiciously. ¡°Mr. Wu, I¡¯m afraid that¡¯s not the reason, right? I heard that you recommended Yu Bing as the factory director. Could there be an unclear relationship between the two of you?¡± Wu Jin was an upright person, so he didn¡¯t expect to be slandered by Madam Sun at his age. He was so angry that he scolded in a low voice, ¡°Madam Sun, you can¡¯t spout nonsense!¡± ¡°Madam Sun, you¡¯re overthinking things. Mr. Wu was in the army in the past, so he¡¯s fair and upright. Miss Yu is in this position because of her talent.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. There¡¯s nothing wrong with their moral characters. Madam Sun, you¡¯re overthinking things.¡± The villagers saw everything Yu Bing did for them. Now, everything in the industrial chain was developing in a good direction. Other food factories might not be able to reach their current scale in a year, but Yu Bing did so in less than half a year. Madam Sun didn¡¯t expect Wu Jin and Yu Bing to have such a good reputation in He Mountain Village. However, when she thought of the information Yu Yan had given her, she felt a little more confident and decided to narrow down the scope. ¡°I don¡¯t know about Mr. Wu, but I¡¯ve heard a little about your factory director. I heard that she often goes on business trips. Do you know what will happen when a man and woman are together all day long? Moreover, she¡¯s with a different man every time!¡± Hearing this, the surrounding villagers couldn¡¯t help but be led astray by Madam Sun. Sex-related news had always attracted more attention than other rumors. Chapter 373 - 373 Evidence 373 Evidence Yu Bing wasn¡¯t angry when she heard this again and asked calmly, ¡°Madam Sun, this is the second time you¡¯ve said it. Where¡¯s the evidence?¡± Madam Sun replied calmly, ¡°I don¡¯t have any evidence, but which woman would go out with a man all day long like you? Tell me, would you guys feel at ease having such a woman as your wife?¡± ¡°The most important thing for a woman is to serve her husband, her in-laws, and take care of her children! But what about Yu Bing? She has been working with a group of men for longer than she has stayed at home, right? With my daughter-in-law following such a leader, it would be strange if she didn¡¯t ask for a divorce! However, my family is kind. For the sake of my grandson, as long as Wen Qin is willing to come back, we¡¯ll let bygones be bygones.¡± At this point, Madam Sun changed the topic and forcefully squeezed out a few tears. ¡°Yu Bing, please take pity on our family. Please show mercy and don¡¯t do evil things like breaking up other people¡¯s families again!¡± Madam Sun complained tearfully. Her goal was to force Yu Bing to settle the matter peacefully and fire Wen Qin. As long as Wen Qin lost her source of income, where else could she go in the village all alone? She could only return to the Sun family obediently. At that time, Wen Qin would be at her mercy. Wen Qin had embarrassed their family so much, so she had to teach Wen Qin a lesson! When the villagers heard Madam Sun¡¯s question, they discussed it one after another. Everyone acknowledged Yu Bing¡¯s capabilities. Some of the women had even thought of marrying Yu Bing to their sons, but after hearing that Yu Bing went on business trips often, they gave up on this idea. The position of factory director sounded prestigious, but they hoped their future daughter-in-law would be able to manage the household. Therefore, when Madam Sun said this, everyone had different opinions. They also suspected that Yu Bing was really behind Wen Qin¡¯s divorce. They had heard that it was normal for city dwellers to get divorced. Yu Bing was knowledgeable and individualistic, so it was hard to guarantee that Wen Qin wasn¡¯t influenced by her. Every time someone attacked a woman, it would be about sexual matters. Yu Bing lamented that there was still a long way to go in promoting equality between men and women in the country. Yu Bing stopped Wen Qin, who was about to retort, and whispered a few words into her ear. Then, she walked to Madam Sun. ¡°Madam Sun, you said that I asked Wen Qin to get a divorce? First, your family used the Wen family¡¯s letter to threaten Wen Qin into marrying into your family. Then, you and your son used verbal insults, beatings, and other methods to torture Wen Qin mentally and physically at the same time. You even used imprisonment to restrict her personal freedom. Do you treat Wen Qin as a human being? Is this how you treat your family?¡± Then, Yu Bing told everyone about the humiliation Wen Qin had suffered when she went to the Sun family¡¯s house. Yu Bing turned around and looked around at everyone as she said, ¡°If your daughter met such an in-law, would you guys refuse to let her get a divorce?¡± ¡°If my daughter suffers such grievances, I¡¯ll f*cking smash their house!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! My daughter doesn¡¯t live a luxurious life at home, but I can¡¯t bear to lay a finger on her. If anyone dares to abuse my daughter like this after she marries into her in-laws¡¯ family, I¡¯ll definitely bring her brothers to fight them.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. They do have to seek justice, but they can¡¯t divorce so casually. Just beat them up until they¡¯re afraid of bullying their daughter.¡± ¡°If my daughter marries into such a family, I¡¯ll definitely let her get a divorce! How can pride be more important than my daughter? If my daughter stays there, I¡¯m afraid that she¡¯ll be killed by this vicious mother and son one day!¡± One wouldn¡¯t even feel the pain until the knife cut one¡¯s flesh. First, Yu Bing told them the origin of this dishonorable marriage, then she told them about Wen Qin¡¯s undignified life in that family. Then, she let them see Wen Qin¡¯s choice to divorce from a different perspective. Madam Sun didn¡¯t expect Yu Bing to speak up for Wen Qin despite being slandered, so she was furious and decided to expose everything. Regardless of whether it was useful or not, at least she couldn¡¯t let Yu Bing off so easily! Madam Sun shot Yu Bing a sinister look. ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯re criticizing others, but what about you? Why didn¡¯t you mention your own moral conduct?¡± As the sound of the tractor approached, everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw Xiao Sheng driving. Two men in military green police uniforms got out of the car with ugly expressions. ¡°Young man, you were driving so fast that the bumpiness almost shook the breakfast out of my stomach.¡± Chapter 374 - 374 Witness 374 Witness Xiao Sheng went forward and said to the two police officers apologetically, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but things were a little urgent. I¡¯ll treat the two of you to a meal as an apology later!¡± The older policeman shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Let¡¯s work on the case first.¡± When Madam Sun saw that there were really police officers, she licked her dry lips nervously, and the veins on her temples throbbed. When Yu Bing saw this, she smiled and went forward to greet them. ¡°Hello, police officers. I¡¯m the person in charge of the food factory, Yu Bing. I want to report that someone is spreading rumors about me sleeping around!¡± Madam Sun panicked when she heard this. ¡°I was just saying so casually. Isn¡¯t everyone in the village like this? Other people also said that about me. Who would call the police because of this?¡± Yu Bing smiled coldly and said, ¡°So now, you¡¯re admitting that you don¡¯t have any evidence and were spreading rumors about me to everyone?¡± Since the police were already here, Madam Sun naturally didn¡¯t dare to admit it. Moreover, she immediately thought of the person who told her this news. ¡°Someone else told me this. Otherwise, how would I know? I wasn¡¯t the one who started the rumors.¡± The young police officer asked, ¡°Who told you?¡± When Madam Sun looked over, she only saw a crowd. At this moment, she suddenly saw a figure walking out. She immediately raised her hand and pointed as she shouted, ¡°It¡¯s that woman without a single patch on her shirt! She told me these things!¡± After everyone looked in the direction Madam Sun was pointing at, they saw Yu Yan squeezing her way out of the crowd. ¡°Yu Yan?¡± Someone immediately shouted in surprise. Yu Yan cursed Madam Sun for being incompetent and implicating her, but she still turned around and immediately retorted, ¡°Don¡¯t slander me. What did I tell you? Can anyone else testify?¡± When the police arrived, everyone wanted to get rid of their own suspicion, so when Madam Sun heard Yu Yan deny it, she pointed at her family members behind her and said, ¡°They are all witnesses. Don¡¯t try to deny it!¡± Seeing this, Yu Yan smiled and said, ¡°These are all people from your village, so of course they¡¯re on your side.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect Yu Yan to be involved in this matter. Now, she immediately understood why Madam Sun kept going against her. It turned out that there was a good-for-nothing military advisor behind the scenes. After Yu Bing thought for a moment, she decided to help Madam Sun. ¡°As far as I know, the confessions of people from the same village can be accepted, right?¡± The old policeman replied, ¡°It can be accepted, but the confession of a relative will be reconsidered. Just being from the same village is fine.¡± Madam Sun trembled when she heard this. ¡°You little b*tch, you still want to harm me? She told me those words. She¡¯s the one who spread rumors and slandered me. If you want to arrest someone, arrest her!¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she panicked. She was indeed the one who said it, so now, she could only think of a way to confirm those things. Otherwise, she would be arrested. ¡°I was telling the truth to begin with. She did go on a business trip with different men and went for many days. For so many days, they did whatever they wanted and no one knows what they did. What right do you guys have to say that I started a rumor and lied? It might be true. Yu Bing is just complaining out of guilt!¡± Yu Bing frowned as she said, ¡°I don¡¯t know why you hate me so much that you even ran to an outsider to spread rumors.¡± After Yu Bing finished speaking, she turned around and smiled at everyone. Compared to the exasperated Yu Yan, she looked much calmer. ¡°I, Yu Bing, have a clear conscience. Since someone suspects me, I¡¯m not afraid of explaining.¡± When Wen Qin saw the way Yu Bing looked at her, she took out the various bills she had specifically found in the accounting room and handed them over. After Yu Bing took it, she took the receipt and explained the itinerary and time of her stay in each place. ¡°This is the bus ticket for my work trip with my colleague and the accommodation receipt for the guesthouse. This is enough to prove my innocence!¡± Everyone knew that unless there was a marriage certificate, the opposite sex had to stay in separate rooms. Moreover, there would be ward rounds at random times during this period. If they were caught, they would be sent to the police station. Therefore, no one dared to commit crimes in the guesthouse. Moreover, the dates of Yu Bing and her colleagues¡¯ accommodation tickets were all the same. This evidence proved that Yu Yan and Madam Sun were spreading rumors and slandering Yu Bing, but this matter could be serious or trivial depending on how they dealt with it. Just as Madam Sun had said, there were many rumors being spread in the village, but no one had reported it to the police. Therefore, this depended on the person who had spread the rumors. Hence, the old policeman asked Yu Bing, ¡°Miss Yu, do you want to negotiate in private or pursue this matter to the end?¡± Chapter 375 - 375 Investigate Until the End 375 Investigate Until the End Yu Bing wasn¡¯t a good-tempered person. They had already bullied her, so if she didn¡¯t fight back, they would push their luck next time. ¡°What will happen if I pursue the matter?¡± When Madam Sun and Yu Yan heard this, they looked at the police nervously. After the old policeman thought about their situation, he said, ¡°Those who spread rumors and slander people will be detained for three days and fined five yuan.¡± When Madam Sun heard this, she immediately cried, ¡°I don¡¯t have money! I don¡¯t have money!¡± Yu Yan¡¯s expression changed drastically. She wasn¡¯t worried about the fine, but the detention. Although it wasn¡¯t to the extent of leaving a criminal record, there would definitely some sort of record. When the police saw Madam Sun sitting on the ground and throwing a tantrum, they said calmly, ¡°If you don¡¯t pay the fine, you¡¯ll be detained for ten days.¡± Madam Sun didn¡¯t mind being detained. The most important thing was keeping her money. Yu Yan looked at Yu Bing, who was standing at the side. Thinking of the consequences of detention, she hesitated and walked towards Yu Bing. Then, she forced a smile and said, ¡°Yu Bing, I apologize to you. I promise I won¡¯t find trouble with you again! Let¡¯s negotiate in private instead of involving the police. I¡¯ll give you the five yuan directly.¡± Yu Yan thought that she should give in and get over this crisis first before thinking of a way to deal with Yu Bing later. She didn¡¯t believe that Yu Bing would be so lucky every time! Yu Bing glanced at Yu Yan. She would rather believe that a sow would climb a tree than believe what Yu Yan had said. Yu Bing sneered. ¡°You should be punished for your mistakes. Haven¡¯t you schemed against me enough times? This time, I should teach you a lesson so that you¡¯ll learn your lesson in the future!¡± When Yu Yan saw that Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t back down at all, her expression darkened and she pursed her lips tightly. ¡°Do you have to be so ruthless to me?¡± Yu Bing said sarcastically, ¡°You were the one who started it. I was just forced to fight back.¡± Yu Yan was furious, but she knew that Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t give in, so she didn¡¯t embarrass herself anymore. She glared at Yu Bing hatefully as she pointed at Yu Bing¡¯s nose and said sinisterly, ¡°Alright! Just you wait. Don¡¯t let me find an opportunity. Otherwise, I¡¯ll definitely ruin your reputation!¡± Yu Bing rolled her eyes indifferently. In her previous life, she didn¡¯t have a good ending even though she didn¡¯t provoke Yu Yan. Therefore, so what if she provoked her in this life? When Wen Qin saw this scene, she wanted to end things today, so she proposed a divorce again. Madam Sun immediately stood up and rushed towards Wen Qin. ¡°You can get a divorce, but Xiao Hui will belong to us. You¡¯ll give us five yuan a month for child support!¡± This was the last ditch effort she came up with last night. She knew that her son was still infatuated with Wen Qin, but the problem was that if Wen Qin was determined to get a divorce, she could sue for divorce if they didn¡¯t agree. Therefore, Madam Sun planned to take advantage of the opportunity to negotiate and get more benefits. With the five yuan alimony every month, she could save up for a year or two and go to the deep mountains to find a daughter of a poor family to marry her son to. It didn¡¯t matter if she was old or ugly, as long as she could give birth and work. Wen Qin naturally didn¡¯t agree with this plan. ¡°No! One of you is violent, and the other is immoral. Both of you have been taken to the police station. None of you can give the child a good environment to grow up in.¡± Seeing this, Madam Sun immediately retorted, ¡°Sun Hui¡¯s surname is also Sun, so he¡¯s a child of my family! Moreover, as a pregnant woman, you can¡¯t even take care of yourself, so who will help you take care of Xiao Hui? Can you give the child a good environment?¡± Madam Sun only fought for Xiao Hui¡¯s custody and ignored the child in Wen Qin¡¯s stomach, since she was already certain that the child in Wen Qin¡¯s stomach was a girl. Moreover, she had previously asked Wen Qin to abort the child to prevent it from being a burden. However, this little b*tch didn¡¯t listen to her. This was Wen Qin¡¯s Achilles¡¯ heel and her face turned pale. Madam Sun¡¯s question was very realistic. After all, there were two people in the Sun family who could take care of Xiao Hui, and once the child was born, Wen Qin would have to take care of two children. Even if she filed for divorce in court, the child wouldn¡¯t be given to her. When Yu Bing saw Wen Qin¡¯s expression, she knew that Wen Qin hadn¡¯t thought of how to deal with it, so she gave her suggestion. ¡°After Wen Qin takes maternity leave, she can place the child in the neighbors¡¯ houses to let them help take care of them. Xiao Hui has already started school and can take care of himself. Moreover, most importantly, Wen Qin has a salary every month, so her financial ability is enough to support two children.¡± When Wen Qin heard this, she came back to her senses. ¡°Yes, be it financially or educationally, I¡¯m better than you guys. I¡¯m not afraid of you guys even if you sue me!¡± Chapter 376 - 376 Going to the Police Station 376 Going to the Police Station When Madam Sun realized that she couldn¡¯t get any money or grandchild, she refused to accept it. However, because she was going to the detention center for a few days, she thought that she might as well let Wen Qin take care of the child. When she returned, she would go to Wen Qin¡¯s house and cause trouble! Madam Sun narrowed her narrow eyes as she said to Wen Qin, ¡°Since we can¡¯t reach an agreement, we won¡¯t agree to the divorce.¡± When she saw Madam Sun¡¯s shameless look, Wen Qin could only frown helplessly. There wasn¡¯thing she could do. After the old policeman looked at the time, he said, ¡°Find time to settle your family matters in private. It¡¯s getting late, so the related personnel will return to the police station with me to take a statement.¡± Seeing that she was about to be taken away, Madam Sun hurriedly pulled Sun Guo to the side and instructed him. Then, she boarded the tractor fearlessly. Yu Yan, on the other hand, looked indignant. However, when she saw the villagers¡¯ disdainful expressions, her face turned pale. She was so embarrassed that she immediately lowered her head and hurriedly followed Madam Sun into the tractor. Yu Bing and Wen Qin naturally had to go too. After Xiao Sheng took two bulging brown paper bags from Wu Qing, he strode forward to drive the tractor. Yu Bing stopped Xiao Sheng and whispered, ¡°Don¡¯t run. I¡¯ll drive myself.¡± Xiao Sheng was a little worried, so he placed the paper bag under the car seat and refused. ¡°No, I have to follow you.¡± After Xiao Sheng finished speaking, without giving Yu Bing a chance to refuse, he took the joystick and started the tractor. Yu Bing blushed when she saw Wen Qin¡¯s teasing gaze. Wen Qin went to the back seat tactfully. When the two police officers returned to town, they realized that the speed of their return wasn¡¯t slow, but the ride was very stable. Compared to the bumpy ride they experienced when they came, it didn¡¯t seem like the driver was the same person. Before entering the police station, Xiao Sheng stopped the old policeman and took out the snacks that he had specifically asked Wu Qing to buy from the food factory. As he stuffed them into the old policeman¡¯s hand, he said with a smile, ¡°Sorry to trouble you two officers to come with me so early in the morning. Please accept the breakfast I prepared.¡± Seeing this, the old policeman waved his hand repeatedly. ¡°No need, no need. If people need help, they should call the police. It¡¯s our duty to go help!¡± Even if they called the police, when the police came and what they did depended on various factors. The food factory would become larger and larger in the future, so they would eventually be troubled by their competitors. Therefore, it was very important to have a good relationship with the police. Xiao Sheng knew that Yu Bing had a good relationship with Director Qian of the police station in the commune because of President Song. However, these low-level police officers were the ones who did the specific work. Although they didn¡¯t have high positions, if they didn¡¯t do a good job, they could delay a lot of things and on the surface, one couldn¡¯t find fault with them. If they knew about one¡¯s relationship with their superior, they wouldn¡¯t dare to delay it, but if they were not proactive in small matters, there was really nothing one could do. After all, no matter how good their personal relationship was, it was inconvenient to trouble their superior from time to time. Therefore, although the other party said that, Xiao Sheng had to give him everything he needed. He stuffed the two bags of food into the old policeman¡¯s hand. ¡°Take it as my compensation. I drove too quickly and made the two of you suffer.¡± After Xiao Sheng finished speaking, he pointed at two bags and leaned closer as he said with a smile, ¡°These bags are already packed for the two of you. Bring them back for your family to try the taste of our food factory¡¯s products. If you have any objections, you¡¯re welcome to raise them at any time. The other bag can be eaten in the office. Your job is harder than ours and you have to work the night shift, so it¡¯s the perfect snack to fill your stomach when you¡¯re hungry at night!¡± In fact, the package was only to cover the two bags of gift boxes when they were brought into the office. After everyone got some, they would naturally be more careful when doing things and it wouldn¡¯t let these two police officers, who had obtained gifts, get targeted. Moreover, this food were not considered expensive. It was just a token of appreciation, not money. It could be treated as a gift from the commoners to thank the police for seeking justice for them, so it wasn¡¯t considered a bribe. Seeing that Xiao Sheng was so sensible, the old policeman didn¡¯t refuse anymore and praised him with admiration in his eyes, ¡°Young man, you¡¯re quite reliable at such a young age.¡± Chapter 377 - 377 Deal With These Problems 377 Deal With These Problems Xiao Sheng smiled humbly. ¡°I still need your guidance on many things. In addition, I hope you can help me ¡®take care¡¯ of the two troublemakers in the next few days. Otherwise, if they keep going to the factory to cause trouble, it will really affect our production progress.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s request wasn¡¯t a difficult request, so the old policeman immediately promised, ¡°Your suggestion is very good. The people inside are criminals to begin with, so law enforcement should stop doing illegal things and make them repent for their mistakes.¡± Xiao Sheng smiled even more sincerely when he heard this and the two of them chatted as they entered the police station. In fact, the situation was very clear, so they just needed to go through the standard procedure. Yu Yan was willing to pay a five-yuan fine, so she only needed to be detained for three days. Madam Sun would be detained for ten days. On the way back to the village, after Yu Bing found out where Xiao Sheng had placed the food under the car seat, she praised, ¡°Not bad, Little Xiao. I didn¡¯t even have time to deal with these problems.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard Yu Bing¡¯s address, he glared at her. ¡°How rude.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she pursed her lips and chuckled. From the looks of it, she was indeed younger than Xiao Sheng, but according to her actual age, she was older than him, so it wasn¡¯t wrong to call him Little Xiao. As Yu Bing stared at Xiao Sheng¡¯s handsome side profile in a daze, Xiao Sheng felt a little embarrassed. He reached out and held Yu Bing¡¯s chin gently as he turned her face forward. ¡°Watch the road.¡± Yu Bing insisted on teasing Xiao Sheng, so she turned to look at him and said, ¡°I¡¯m not driving, so why should I look at the road? Let me ask you a question. You have to tell me the truth.¡± Yu Bing restrained the smile on her face slightly and said seriously, ¡°Just now, Madam Sun said that I go on business trips with my male colleagues often. Do you really not mind?¡± Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t expect Yu Bing to ask this question, but he was a little happy, since this meant that Yu Bing was already starting to care about his thoughts. ¡°It¡¯s not the first day we¡¯ve met each other, so I know what kind of person you are. Besides, it¡¯s better for them to think this way. This way, no one will compete with me.¡± Yu Bing added, ¡°I might not even be able to cook when I¡¯m busy.¡± Xiao Sheng replied indifferently, ¡°I didn¡¯t starve to death after so many years without you, so as long as you don¡¯t mind my culinary skills, I don¡¯t mind being in charge of cooking at home.¡± After Xiao Sheng finished speaking, he raised his eyebrows at Yu Bing. ¡°Does my answer earn me any points?¡± When the serious atmosphere Yu Bing had created was instantly ruined, she couldn¡¯t help but smile and say, ¡°In view of your overall performance today, I¡¯ll give you an additional five points.¡± Xiao Sheng immediately beamed when he heard this. He had 15 points now, so he was one step closer to full marks! Because Yu Yan had betrayed her own people and even started rumors, her reputation in the village and among the intellectuals had plummeted. Initially, everyone only thought that she had a hot temper and liked to slack off, but she wasn¡¯t a bad person. Now that this incident had happened, they considered her to be immoral as well. Yao Nian had been suffering these past few days. He was also at the scene that day, and when he saw Yu Yan leave with the police, he wished he could burrow into the ground. He had never been so embarrassed in his life. Moreover, his relationship with Yu Yan was considered official. Although no one did anything to him because of Yu Yan¡¯s actions, the two of them were in a relationship after all. In order to avoid awkwardness, sometimes, everyone avoided talking about Yu Yan in front of him. This made Yao Nian feel that he had been ostracized because of Yu Yan, so he felt resentful towards Yu Yan. Although Yao Nian didn¡¯t have a good reputation among intellectuals, people who were not familiar with him had a good impression of him because of his good looks. Now that something had happened to Yu Yan, he had no choice but to start thinking about his reputation. Should this relationship continue? However, Yu Yan¡¯s family background made Yao Nian hesitate. After all, the temptation of returning to the city was too great for an intellectual! After Yao Nian hesitated for a few days, Yu Yan left the detention center. In the end, Yao Nian decided to continue maintaining a relationship with Yu Yan for the time being. If Yu Yan¡¯s family really had a way to transfer him back to the city, who would know what happened in the countryside? As for the demerit in the file, it would only affect Yu Yan herself. It was fine as long as he wasn¡¯t affected. After making up his mind, Yao Nian naturally had to perform well, so he woke up early and went to the commune¡¯s police station. Chapter 378 - 378 Bad Upbringing 378 Bad Upbringing Yu Yan and Madam Sun had been locked in the same room for the past few days. Over the past few days, the two of them had lost weight from hunger. The food in the detention center was provided for free, so it was naturally not that good. For every three meals a day, there were two mixed-grain cornbreads and a small plate of pickled vegetables. This amount of food was enough to keep people full if they didn¡¯t exercise. However, because of Xiao Sheng¡¯s special instructions, all the food for the two of them was halved. To Madam Sun, who was from a poor family, this sort of life wasn¡¯t much worse than being at home. Moreover, she could lie down until mealtime and eat directly. Therefore, although Madam Sun barely had enough to eat every day, she was still able to adapt. However, to Yu Yan, these days were torture. For as long as she could remember, she had never experienced stomach cramps from hunger. Not only did she often buy meat to nourish herself, but she also had all kinds of snacks in her room. Even if she had to save money to return to her biological parents¡¯ house a while ago, she could still eat one or two snacks every three to five days to satisfy her cravings. Moreover, Madam Sun felt that Yu Yan had caused her to be sent to the police station, so she scolded Yu Yan every day after eating. She cursed endlessly, making Yu Yan so angry that she fought with her. In the end, their dinner was canceled that day. Their stomachs took turns growling that night. After this time¡¯s punishment, the two of them didn¡¯t dare to fight anymore and started shouting at each other every day instead. The morning Yu Yan went out, she was in an especially good mood. Madam Sun was naturally unhappy when she saw this, so she started to cause trouble again. ¡°Little slut! So what if you went out earlier than me? Your record can¡¯t be cleared!¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she felt stifled. Madam Sun had touched a sore spot. Over the past few days, she had been so focused on competing with Madam Sun that she had neglected this important matter. The intellectual¡¯s file was in the village committee, and as the captain, Yu Bing had the right to comment on the file record. If it were anyone else, she could have bribed them with money, but Yu Bing¡­ Yu Yan knew that the two of them were already enemies, so it was impossible for Yu Bing to erase her record. Madam Sun was lying on the bed with her legs crossed. When she saw Yu Yan¡¯s gloomy expression, she felt satisfied and even felt that the cornbread in her mouth was no longer as stale as before. Yu Yan naturally couldn¡¯t stand Madam Sun¡¯s smug expression and she provoked, ¡°Madam Sun, don¡¯t be smug. Do you think you can get the money and grandson you want? Wen Qin has Yu Bing¡¯s help, so don¡¯t even think about it!¡± ¡°You¡¯ve seen Yu Bing¡¯s methods before. From our current situation, you can tell how vicious she is. Otherwise, there are many things like this in the village, so if they wanted to arrest people, quite a few families would have been arrested!¡± When Yu Yan saw Madam Sun¡¯s disappearing smile, she continued proudly, ¡°Moreover, Yu Bing is the factory director. Compared to ordinary people like us, she¡¯s a powerful person in the village.¡± Seeing that Madam Sun pricking up her ears to listen, Yu Yan felt smug. She pretended to lament, ¡°A woman like her needs a strong man to teach her a lesson. Otherwise, how could a woman like her have so much power? Speaking of which, whoever marries her will really gain both money and manpower.¡± When Madam Sun heard Yu Yan¡¯s words, she came up with some new ideas. She no longer had the mood to care about Yu Yan¡¯s provocation. Instead, she began to scheme in the corner. Seeing this, Yu Yan revealed a meaningful smile. If she suffered, Yu Bing shouldn¡¯t think about having it easy either! After Yu Yan completed the procedures and left the police station, she saw that Yao Nian had come to pick her up. She finally felt better. Yao Nian had already adjusted his mentality. When he saw Yu Yan, he hurriedly went forward and said with a pained expression, ¡°You¡¯ve lost weight. Did you not eat well inside?¡± When Yu Yan heard Yao Nian¡¯s concerned words, she suddenly felt sad and her eyes turned red. Thinking that her adoptive parents would definitely ignore her, and her biological parents were far away and couldn¡¯t help her, she felt sad. She couldn¡¯t help but cry as she complained to Yao Nian about the grievances she had suffered inside. Yao Nian¡¯s patience when listening to her and the fact that he had come to pick her up made Yu Yan¡¯s impression of Yao Nian improve greatly. Chapter 379 - 379 Big Order 379 Big Order In the blink of an eye, it was August. Yu Bing had released three new products in the factory last month. They were five-spice-flavored peanuts, egg rolls, and finger potatoes. With the novelty of the products and the guarantee of quality control, coupled with the promotion of the office¡¯s image shop, the factory¡¯s orders rose steadily. Especially after the kickback problem was resolved, the salesperson had a lot of advantages when interacting with the procurement department of the large factory. Yu Bing¡¯s solution wasn¡¯t complicated. The rebate was for the sake of selling more goods, so Yu Bing set the threshold for the rebate. When the monthly shipment reached more than 10,000 yuan, the salesperson could apply for a 1% rebate to the customer. Customers who spent 50,000 yuan annually could apply for a 0.05% rebate at the end of the year. The salesperson¡¯s salary had a five-yuan base salary as well as a commission. It ensured that the salesperson¡¯s salary was much higher than the rebate returned to the customer. It was a policy of using high pay to discourage corruption. However, Yu Bing controlled the expenses of maintaining her customers very strictly. It was mainly because after the country opened up the market economy, many state-owned enterprises went bankrupt due to problems with public funding. Therefore, Yu Bing planned to control the cost of operating expenses right from the beginning. Ring, ring, ring¡­ As Yu Bing looked at the report, she picked up the phone in the office. ¡°Hello, this is Delicious Food Factory.¡± An excited shout came from the phone. ¡°Yu Bing, we signed a big order!¡± Yu Bing recognized Feng Cai¡¯s voice and was invigorated by their excitement through the phone. ¡°How big of an order is it to excite you so much?¡± Feng Cai said in a mirthful voice again, ¡°An order of more than 20,000 yuan! City H¡¯s steel factory is rich! This year¡¯s National Day coincides with the Mid-Autumn Festival, so it¡¯s a double holiday and there are more orders.¡± Yu Bing asked, ¡°What kind of goods have they ordered? What packaging requirements are there?¡± Feng Cai looked at the order details as he replied, ¡°They ordered egg yolk pastries and requested that they be packaged with bamboo baskets. There are 20 pieces per basket, a total of 3,400 baskets. It¡¯s just that they¡¯re a little anxious to get the goods. They have to get them before the last day of August. Otherwise, we have to pay triple the compensation.¡± Yu Bing looked at the date. There were still 22 days left. Although there were other orders in the factory, they could produce egg yolk pastries first. However, when she heard the amount of compensation, Yu Bing frowned. ¡°The contract template I set has already mentioned the way to compensate for the breach of contract. Why should I change it? Also, I mentioned that if the delay was caused by an uncontrollable factor, our food factory won¡¯t pay for the breach of contract. Did you add it after you changed the terms?¡± Feng Cai only remembered this when he heard Yu Bing¡¯s words, so he stammered, ¡°We didn¡¯t add it. We signed it in a hurry at that time, so I forgot. The reason we had to change it was that their quantity was really huge. Moreover, they didn¡¯t bargain. They even said that we could complete it on a quantitative basis this time. In the future, they would consider us for holiday orders! This time, because they were in a hurry to get the goods and were worried about delaying things, they used this method to let us produce their order first.¡± Yu Bing was a little angry, but she knew that since the contract had been signed, it was useless to say anything now. She could only repeat sternly, ¡°The contract template can¡¯t be changed. If there¡¯s a next time, whoever changes it will resign.¡± Feng Cai didn¡¯t understand Yu Bing¡¯s inflexibility. This was the first time he got such a big customer, and this time¡¯s order was big enough, so he even made a trip. When he went to discuss the order, the other party had else something on and was anxious. If he missed the meeting and left a bad impression on the other party, they might not work together next time. It was out of consideration for the factory¡¯s interests that he didn¡¯t call back to tell Yu Bing about this. However, seeing Yu Bing¡¯s unyielding attitude, although Feng Cai was unwilling, he still agreed. After hanging up, Yu Bing felt a little uneasy. Coincidentally, Xiao Sheng came to the office, so she told him what had happened. When Xiao Sheng saw the changes made by the other party, he also found it a little strange. Very few factories would have such strict requirements for time and compensation. ¡°There are about two months until National Day, but the other party only gave you guys until the end of August. It¡¯s not a shop that¡¯s in a hurry to sell Mid-Autumn Festival Gifts, so why would they make such a request?¡± Yu Bing¡¯s original focus was only on compensation. Now that Xiao Sheng mentioned the abnormality of the deadline, she felt even more uneasy. Chapter 380 - 380 Uneasy 380 Uneasy ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have noticed if you hadn¡¯t mentioned it. I just looked at this month¡¯s order schedule. It can be arranged, but their requirements are indeed strange.¡± Xiao Sheng thought for a moment, but still couldn¡¯t tell what the other party was up to. Hence, he said to Yu Bing, ¡°Since you¡¯ve signed it, don¡¯t worry too much about it. Hurry up and prepare the ingredients. The amount of flour needed for the egg yolk pastry is very large. This order is too sudden, so you have to request ingredients from the flour factory.¡± Yu Bing nodded and suppressed the uneasiness in her heart. She ordered the raw materials first, but soon, their uneasiness proved to be well-founded. After Yu Bing hung up, she looked at Xiao Sheng helplessly. Xiao Sheng¡¯s heart skipped a beat. Then, he bent down and patted the top of Yu Bing¡¯s head as he asked gently, ¡°What did the flour factory say?¡± When Yu Bing heard Xiao Sheng¡¯s calm voice, she calmed down. Then, she licked her lips and looked into Xiao Sheng¡¯s black eyes as she replied, ¡°The flour factory said that they have received a notice from the higher-ups that the flour produced is now under comprehensive control. The flour produced for this month has to be supplied to the army at any time. After this month, if it¡¯s confirmed that it¡¯s not needed, it can be imported into the market.¡± Such a notice meant that the country was preparing for war. Such an urgent notice meant that it was very difficult for the food factory to obtain flour. Xiao Sheng thought of the batch of flour that had just arrived at the warehouse at the end of last month and asked, ¡°The factory ordered flour last month. How much is left?¡± Yu Bing had just read yesterday¡¯s newspaper, so she immediately blurted out, ¡°There¡¯s still 4,680 catties of flour, but the amount required for this month will take up 3,000 catties. Completing the steel factory¡¯s order will take 6,800 catties. Putting aside some other consumption requirements, we must prepare at least 5,300 catties of flour.¡± This amount was usually fine, but now, it wasn¡¯t enough. After Yu Bing thought about how the flour rationing was this month, and the other party had also requested that the goods be delivered this month, she looked up at Xiao Sheng and speculated, ¡°I think there must be something fishy about this matter. I don¡¯t believe there¡¯s such a coincidence.¡± With that, Yu Bing picked up the phone and called Feng Cai back. After telling him the current situation, Feng Cai broke out in cold sweat. One had to know that three times 20,000 yuan was 60,000 yuan! After hearing Yu Bing ask him to investigate the steelworks, he also realized that he might have really fallen into someone else¡¯s trap. Hence, after hanging up, he immediately began to investigate. He also called all the offices and informed everyone that he wouldn¡¯t take urgent orders for the time being on the grounds that there were many factory orders. Moreover, he informed them that they couldn¡¯t change a single word on the contract template when signing the contract. The two of them continued to think of ways in the office, but they both thought of buying it from the black market. Even if the price was higher, it was better than paying three times the compensation. However, with such a large quantity, they still had to ensure that production wouldn¡¯t be delayed. This meant that the time left for them was very tight. At this moment, Xiao Sheng suddenly thought of the 10,000 egg yolk pastries order he and Yu Bing had placed last week. ¡°Move my order to next month. Supply the production of the steel factory first.¡± There were a total of 68,000 egg yolk pastries. Although these 10,000 were a drop in the bucket, they still resolved one-seventh of the urgent need. However, Yu Bing was a little worried. ¡°Then what about the orders on your side?¡± Xiao Sheng smiled and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, these are just the normal unstable factors of the black market¡¯s supply, so things have always been quite flexible in this regard. I¡¯ll replace it with other products.¡± Yu Bing was relieved when she heard this. Then, she thought about whether this method could be used for other orders, so she immediately called them to negotiate. The people Yu Bing communicated with were all old customers who had ordered from her a few times. Because they had a certain level of cooperation and personal relationships, after Yu Bing mentioned the difficulties, many people were willing to exchange for products that used less flour or postpone it until next month. Yu Bing used this method to gather another 1,200 pounds of flour. Now that the shortfall of 5,300 pounds had been reduced by 1,200 pounds, they still had to find 3,100 pounds of flour. The supply company required stamps to buy flour, so this method wasn¡¯t feasible. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng decided to gather supplies from the black market, then go to the villages further away to collect them. Going straight to the door to collect goods was opportunistic, so the two of them definitely couldn¡¯t collect the goods in any nearby villages, in case they were recognized and reported. Chapter 381 - 381 Listen to You 381 Listen to You This matter was very important. If the workers found out, they would be panicking, so they definitely couldn¡¯t make it public. Moreover, the method of purchasing raw materials wasn¡¯t legitimate, so it wasn¡¯t appropriate for too many people to know about it. After thinking about it, Yu Bing explained the current predicament and solution to Wu Jin, Wen Qin, and Jiang Chun in detail. Although they knew that they would be dead meat if they were caught, they had no other choice. If they really had to pay the compensation, the food factory would definitely have to close down. Risky maneuvers might pay off lucratively.! After Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng brought 1,500 yuan to the county city of Pingjiang County, Xiao Sheng gave Zhang Chao the task of purchasing flour from the county city¡¯s black market. Then, the two of them set off for a county city 200 kilometers away. The two of them didn¡¯t dare to go to other communes in Pingjiang County. They were afraid that in the future, if they were bumped into and their true identities discovered, they would be backstabbed. Shanyang County. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng finally arrived at the station after about four hours of driving. As soon as they left the bus station, they realized that the city construction and road plan here were clearly much better than in Pingjiang County. Shanyang County was the richest county city under City H¡¯s jurisdiction. Shanyang County was located between five counties and cities. It was an important transportation route. There was a saying that if one wanted to be rich, one had to build roads first. This saying fit Shanyang County perfectly. Shanyang County relied on the convenience of its transportation road and prime location as the main road to develop the county. The government would set up toll stations at the entrances and exits of every town. These days, unlike in the future, when only highways collected tolls, the local people collected road usage fees for the roads under their jurisdiction whenever they entered or left every place. The dense traffic in Shanyang County also brought a lot of income to the local government. Moreover, the number of passengers and freight drivers had also led to the economic development of the places along the way. After the related service industry developed, the local government immediately encouraged the relevant towns to open industrial factories to take advantage of the roads. Coupled with the fertility of the land here, the wheat production was higher than that of the other areas of City H. This also meant that it was easier to buy flour in Shanyang County¡¯s countryside. Xiao Sheng had only passed by Shanyang County a few times with the convoy, so he wasn¡¯t very familiar with it. Although they were going to collect it directly, they definitely couldn¡¯t ask a random family if they didn¡¯t know anyone. Otherwise, if they met the wrong person, the two of them would immediately be sent to the police station. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t know where the black market was, so he brought Yu Bing around the county city first. His plan was to go to the black market to find someone to help him collect a large amount of wheat. Soon, Xiao Sheng discovered a suspicious person. The other party was an old man in his fifties or sixties. He had many patches on his clothes, and the soles of his worn-out shoes were almost flat. There were even holes in the soles of his shoes, and his skin looked rugged. He looked a little nervous and kept looking around. Xiao Sheng quickly determined that this was the first time the other party had entered the county city to sell his family¡¯s things and he probably didn¡¯t even know where the black market was, so he could only find an opportunity to sell them by the roadside alone. Hence, Xiao Sheng immediately changed his original plan. Xiao Sheng turned around and said to Yu Bing in a low voice, ¡°There¡¯s a loner there. We¡¯ll pretend that we need to build a new house. We¡¯ll say that the workers have a high demand for steamed buns and we don¡¯t have that many flour stamps, so we can only buy more from an individual.¡± Yu Bing was better at doing business than Xiao Sheng, but Xiao Sheng was more proficient in underground trading. As the saying went, there were specialties in every industry. Yu Bing nodded without hesitation and said, ¡°I¡¯ll listen to you.¡± When Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing looking at him obediently with her round black eyes, his heart softened, but he suppressed the urge to pat her head again and turned around to bring Yu Bing towards the old man. This time, Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing¡¯s goal was to go to the countryside, so they specifically wore clean clothes. However, there were two to three patches on their clothes, pants, and semi-new shoes. The first impression they gave off was that they weren¡¯t impoverished, but they weren¡¯t from the city either. Chapter 382 - 382 Entrapment 382 Entrapment Xiao Sheng pretended to be confused as he looked around, as if he was looking for someone. When he saw the old man, he deliberately paused and took a few more glances. At this moment, the old man also saw two people. It was mainly because of Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng¡¯s good looks that the old man noticed them. When he saw the two young people whispering to each other in hesitation when they saw him and seem to want to walk towards him, he had a bold guess. He thought about how he had been here for half a day today but had yet to sell a pound of food, so he felt a little anxious. The old man thought of his grandson, who was still lying in the hospital, and gritted his teeth as he walked towards the two of them. ¡°Are you guys going to buy food?¡± Yu Bing was stunned when she heard this direct question. If they were being used by the police as bait, this old man would be handcuffed. Xiao Sheng wasn¡¯t surprised. This was the first time this old man had come out to sell food despite his old age, so it was normal for him to be inexperienced. Xiao Sheng acted surprised and he said excitedly, ¡°Yes, yes, yes. Our family had a few more children, so there¡¯s not enough space to live in. Now, we want to start construction on another piece of land, but the workers¡¯ food hasn¡¯t been settled yet. Do you have any excess flour?¡± The old man also said excitedly, ¡°Yes! How much do you want?¡± Xiao Sheng said, ¡°We want a lot. We want as much as you have. I just got married and my two sisters-in-law are pregnant. There¡¯s not enough food at home at all, so I want to buy more.¡± The old man glanced at Yu Bing, who seemed different from the girls in the village. He could tell at a glance that she was an intellectual. There were not many city dwellers who could earn full work points. Such a delicate young lady probably only earned five to six work points, so she might not even be able to support herself. There were pregnant women at home who needed to be nourished, so it was normal that there was a high demand. After a simple guess, the old man didn¡¯t suspect anything anymore. His youngest son had died of tuberculosis at the beginning of the year, leaving his youngest grandson behind. His daughter-in-law had married elsewhere. Now, he had to help his youngest son leave behind descendants no matter what. After thinking about the remaining 500 catties of food at home, the old man decided to leave only a small portion for his grandson to nourish his body after he was discharged from the hospital. ¡°My family has 500 catties. I¡¯ll sell them all!¡± Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t show it on their faces, but they were overjoyed. Xiao Sheng calmly asked despite knowing the answer, ¡°Are they all in the county city?¡± The 500 pounds of flour had to be filled with two to three bags of plastic fertilizer bags. Moreover, the old man didn¡¯t expect to meet a big customer today. Since it was also his first day selling, he was afraid of being arrested and confiscated, so he didn¡¯t take much. ¡°I only took 50 pounds of flour, so you guys might have to accompany me home.¡± These words were precisely what Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng wanted to hear. They also wanted to take the opportunity to see if they could get the old man to set them up and collect more flour from the local village. Hence, the three of them went straight to their destination. The old man¡¯s house was two to three hours away from the county city by foot. Because they were in a hurry, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng suggested taking the bus to the commune before walking to the village. The bus fare cost 0.05 yuan, so the old man was a little hesitant. Now, he wanted to save every cent he had. Seeing this, Yu Bing mentioned, ¡°Sir, we want to take the bus to go home early. We¡¯ll help you pay for your fare.¡± The old man wasn¡¯t the kind of person who would take advantage of others, but it was already noon. If they delayed any longer, the two young people would have to walk at night, so he didn¡¯t refuse. The old man turned around and took out a bag from a corner more than ten meters away. After opening it, he took out a large handful of chestnuts from the smaller gray bag as he said to Yu Bing with a smile, ¡°Can I exchange the 0.05 yuan fare with chestnuts? My family planted them themselves. They¡¯re sweet and delicious!¡± The old man¡¯s hands that were holding the chestnuts were covered in calloused skin and were covered in black cracks. His nails were yellow and black, as if even if he soaked them in water for a day and night, they wouldn¡¯t turn white. At this moment, there was a hint of anticipation on his face. He hoped that he could use his worthless food to exchange for a bus ticket and complete this deal that could let his grandson stay in the hospital with peace of mind. As Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng exchanged looks, they felt a lump in their throats. Then, they quickly smiled and said in surprise, ¡°We happened to want to eat chestnuts recently. Unfortunately, our family doesn¡¯t have any. We even said that I would buy some on another day. What a coincidence.¡± The old man smiled even more happily. ¡°My family¡¯s chestnuts matured early, so I brought some along this time. I wanted to sell them, but unfortunately, I didn¡¯t dare to ask anyone to buy them this morning for fear of being reported.¡± Chapter 383 - 383 Settling the Score 383 Settling the Score After Yu Bing opened the backpack on her back, the old man stuffed it all in and planned to give her another handful. ¡°If you like it, bring more back. This is a gift from me!¡± Yu Bing hurriedly stopped the old man. The old man had to sell this in exchange for money, so how could she take it for free? Hence, she smiled and said, ¡°There¡¯s no hurry. We still have to go to your house.¡± The old man nodded repeatedly and said happily, ¡°Then I¡¯ll carry it first. I¡¯ll give it to you when you come back.¡± Xiao Sheng wanted to help, but he was also worried that the old man wouldn¡¯t agree. After all, food was money. Hence, he could only support the old man as he carried the food on his back so that the old man wouldn¡¯t be so tired. It was work time today, so there were not many people on the bus in the urban and rural areas. There were still empty seats, so the three of them walked towards the back. After the few of them got on the bus, they began to chat with each other. In less than half an hour, they found out everything about the old man¡¯s family. The old man¡¯s surname was Wang. He and his wife had three sons and three daughters, who were already married. After his sons got married, they all lived in separate homes. He and his wife originally lived with his eldest son¡¯s family. After his youngest son passed away at the beginning of the year, he wanted to bring his youngest son¡¯s only child to his eldest son¡¯s house to take care of him. However, his eldest daughter-in-law didn¡¯t agree. Even if the old man and the others exchanged work points for food, she refused. She even threatened that if the two elders wanted to take care of their third son¡¯s child, they had to move out of their house. Their second son¡¯s family said that if they wanted to support them, they had to give their youngest son¡¯s house to them. Otherwise, they wouldn¡¯t agree to this matter. However, his youngest grandson had lost his father and his mother had remarried. That house was where his youngest grandson would settle down in the future. The two elders were naturally unwilling to give their youngest son¡¯s house away, so they could only bring their youngest grandson back to their third son¡¯s house to stay. Unexpectedly, bad things come in succession. Starting from last month, his five-year-old grandson had caught a cold and coughed non-stop. He also had a recurring fever for more than half a month, and even taking medicine was useless. The old man brought his grandson to the hospital in town to take a look, but the result was that the cold had already become pneumonia. Only then did they hurriedly apply for hospitalization. However, 50 yuan was only enough for three to four days of treatment. The doctor said that they had to prepare 10 days and half a month¡¯s worth of money, so he came out to sell things today. ¡°We¡¯ve arrived at the Yangqiao Commune. Hurry up and get off!¡± The ticket seller announced loudly at the front of the car. Mr. Wang hurriedly stood up and carried the bag on his back. ¡°Little Xiao, Little Yu, we reached the station.¡± The three of them got out of the car and walked towards the village together. Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing deliberately lagged behind and mouthed a few words behind Mr. Wang. Then, Xiao Sheng took a few steps forward and helped Mr. Wang hold the food on his back as he asked gently, ¡°Mr. Wang, can you help us go to your village to collect a few more bags of flour? I¡¯ll give you 0.1 yuan for every 10 pounds.¡± Mr. Wang was a little surprised. Were 500 pounds of flour not enough? ¡°Little Xiao, why do you want so much?¡± Xiao Sheng said to Mr. Wang calmly, ¡°Mr. Wang, this isn¡¯t much. My family has to hire ten people to build a house. They¡¯re villagers from the same village as us, so they didn¡¯t ask for that much money from us. The fertility of the land over there isn¡¯t very good, so everyone wants more flour. My father asked me to exchange for 20 pounds per person this time, which would be 200 pounds.¡± Xiao Sheng raised two fingers and continued to calculate. ¡°We have to live in this house for the rest of our lives after it¡¯s built, so we can¡¯t be careless. We have to ensure the quality of their food. Otherwise, how can they do their best for us? From morning to night, they¡¯ll be given three meals a day. It¡¯s not too much for a man to eat 10 steamed buns a day, right?¡± Mr. Wang nodded. Seeing this, Xiao Sheng continued, ¡°That¡¯s one catty of flour. Ten people need 10 catties of flour a day. They¡¯ll need at least 10 days to half a month to build a house, right? I estimate that 20 days means another 200 catties!¡± Xiao Sheng raised four fingers and waved them in front of Mr. Wang. ¡°My wife happens to be pregnant. You can tell that she¡¯s an intellectual, right? Look at how thin she is. I don¡¯t dare to let her work while she¡¯s pregnant, so I have to prepare enough food for the next year. She needs to eat for two people. Even if she usually eats rice and sweet potatoes, I still have to prepare at least 200 pounds of flour. That¡¯s not too much to ask for, right?¡± Chapter 384 - 384 Making Up a Story 384 Making Up a Story As Xiao Sheng babbled on, Mr. Wang, who was following Xiao Sheng¡¯s train of thought, was stunned and didn¡¯t even think of the loophole in Xiao Sheng¡¯s words. He felt that Xiao Sheng¡¯s words sounded reasonable, so he nodded again. Xiao Sheng immediately said, ¡°This doesn¡¯t even include my two sisters-in-law. They¡¯re not as weak as my wife, but when they¡¯re five to six months pregnant, my brother and the others won¡¯t bear to let my sisters-in-law work anymore. The two of them need at least 200 pounds of flour together. That¡¯s a total of 600 pounds!¡± Xiao Sheng raised another finger. ¡°After the house is built, won¡¯t we have to treat the entire village to a meal? Everyone will get a steamed bun. This is the basic standard. There are more than 600 people in our village, so that¡¯ll use up another 100 pounds of flour.¡± Xiao Sheng deliberately discussed the topic of building a house along with the matter of his pregnant relatives¡¯ food. He was afraid that Mr. Wang would be too clear-headed, so he continued to go off tangent. ¡°By the way, my mother-in-law sent a letter a few days ago saying that there¡¯s a shortage of food in the city. My wife has two younger brothers and a sister in addition to my wife¡¯s grandparents, so the salary of only two people supports seven people. They¡¯re so poor that they barely have enough to eat. As her son-in-law, shouldn¡¯t I express my gratitude? Although my wife is petite, she¡¯s not easy to appease when her temper flares up. I¡¯m thinking of exchanging for 300 pounds.¡± Xiao Sheng looked at his fingers and saw that he had only managed to make excuses for up to 900 pounds. He didn¡¯t know how many pounds of flour Zhang Chao could collect, so he still had to continue making up stories. Yu Bing was amused when she heard this. This was the first time she realized that Xiao Sheng was so good at making up stories. She covered her mouth as she snickered all the way. Now that she saw him stop talking, she knew he couldn¡¯t think of any more excuses, so she immediately went forward to salvage the situation. Yu Bing strode forward and said to Xiao Sheng angrily, ¡°You want to reduce the quantity by 200 pounds again?! My mother said that she needs 500 pounds!¡± Now, there was an excuse for an additional 200 pounds! In front of Mr. Wang, Xiao Sheng smiled apologetically at Yu Bing and said, ¡°Yes, 500 pounds. I was mistaken just now!¡± Xiao Sheng smiled at Mr. Wang helplessly and said, ¡°Mr. Wang, we have to add 200 pounds.¡± Mr. Wang looked at Xiao Sheng sympathetically. He understood the difficulty of serving his wife¡¯s family! Seeing this, Yu Bing said, ¡°Also, my brother-in-law is preparing to get married after the new house is built, so we have to prepare 100 pounds of flour for the banquet. People have children after they get married, right, Mr. Wang?¡± Mr. Wang nodded in agreement. ¡°Of course.¡± Yu Bing nodded seriously. ¡°My sister-in-law has to be well-nourished when she¡¯s pregnant and can¡¯t keep eating grains. If we eat noodles but she doesn¡¯t get any, won¡¯t that be differential treatment? Won¡¯t her brothers from her maiden family ask for an explanation? Therefore, we need at least 1,500 pounds.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard how Yu Bing increased the quantity from 900 pounds to 1,500 pounds with such a vague excuse, he suddenly felt that he was too honest in comparison. He was worried that Mr. Wang would realize that the numbers didn¡¯t add up, so he immediately summarized the matter. ¡°Mr. Wang, my family needs it very urgently. Otherwise, we wouldn¡¯t have specifically come out to buy it. Can you help us?¡± Mr. Wang was already confused by these numbers and was being led by the nose. Moreover, there were labor fees as well. Mr. Wang recalled that the nurse had come to urge him to pay the fees yesterday, so he made up his mind and decided to take on this job. This way, the doctor said that he would have enough money to buy nutritious food for his grandson in the later stages. Selling 500 pounds was risky, and selling 1,500 wouldn¡¯t make that big of a difference anyway. In any case, since they were taking the risk, so they might as well do something big! Mr. Wang replied to Xiao Sheng firmly, ¡°Alright! I¡¯ll help you guys collect it.¡± The corners of Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing¡¯s mouths curled up into relaxed smiles. Because this was the first time Mr. Wang had done this, Xiao Sheng secretly reminded him, ¡°Mr. Wang, remember to look for those who are short of money and know how to keep secrets. Otherwise, we¡¯ll all be in trouble if word gets out.¡± Mr. Wang said with a serious expression, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that. I was born and raised in the village, so I definitely won¡¯t look for someone I don¡¯t trust.¡± Xiao Sheng smiled and said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll have to trouble you.¡± The few of them chatted amiably for half an hour before arriving at the village where Mr. Wang was. Because Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng were unfamiliar faces and had done such shady things, Mr. Wang brought the two of them home on an uninhabited path. Chapter 385 - 385 Whats Done Is Done 385 What¡¯s Done Is Done Mr. Wang lived in his youngest son¡¯s house, which was bought from someone else when they split up two years ago. There were two bedrooms and a living room. There was also a small room specifically used to store food. The kitchen and bathroom were all built with wooden boards and thatch. After they had moved in, they only repaired the living room and master bedroom. The rest of the place had not been renovated. The house occupied a large area, but it was relatively simple and crude. After the guests entered the house, Mr. Wang poured two bowls of hawthorn tea for the two of them to drink and said with a polite smile, ¡°There¡¯s no good tea, but hawthorn tea can quench your thirst. Please don¡¯t mind.¡± Yu Bing hurriedly replied, ¡°I like drinking hawthorn tea.¡± Mr. Wang then said to the two of them, ¡°The amount you want is too big, so it won¡¯t be easy to gather it in a short period of time. You guys will probably have to stay at my house tonight.¡± As long as they could get enough in quantity, they would agree to stay for two nights, let alone one night. There were bedrooms on both sides of the living room. The master bedroom was on the left, and the second bedroom was on the right. Mr. Wang turned to Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng as he said, ¡°The two of you will stay in the room on the right tonight, but no one has been living there, so it¡¯s a little damp. I¡¯ll clean it up for you guys now.¡± Without waiting for their reaction, Mr. Wang went to clean up. Only then did Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng realize the trouble caused by their fake identities. They exchanged looks in shock before looking away awkwardly. Xiao Sheng was secretly happy, but he naturally didn¡¯t dare to show it on his face. When he saw Mr. Wang enter the room to clean, he hurriedly followed him in. ¡°Mr. Wang, I¡¯ll do it. Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she also followed him in. She was really embarrassed to trouble an old man to clean her room, so she said, ¡°Mr. Wang, we¡¯ll do it ourselves!¡± Xiao Sheng snatched the rag from Mr. Wang¡¯s hand. When Mr. Wang saw that the two of them were in the room, he immediately felt that he was a third wheel, so he smiled and said, ¡°Then I won¡¯t insist. You guys can clean up. I¡¯ll go look for my old friend to see if there¡¯s any flour he wants to sell.¡± Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng hurriedly agreed. Then, Mr. Wang left. What was done was done, so they definitely had to stay in the same room tonight. Yu Bing took the rag from Xiao Sheng¡¯s hand without hesitation. ¡°Go sweep the spider webs in the corner. Some of them are too high for me to sweep.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s face was a little flushed. After agreeing, he went to the door to find a small broom and a long broom. One was used to sweep the spider webs, and the other was used to sweep the floor. Then, the two of them cleaned up in silence. Yu Bing turned around and stole a glance at Xiao Sheng, who was looking up at the spider web in the corner of the roof with a focused expression. The light from the window shone on the side of his face. He had a high nose bridge, thin lips, and a perfect jawline. Perhaps it was because the roof was a little dusty, but he frowned slightly. However, this expression didn¡¯t affect his handsome appearance. Yu Bing was mesmerized and stopped wiping the desk. When Xiao Sheng felt a gaze on him, he turned his head and saw from the corner of his eye that Yu Bing was staring at him in a daze. He couldn¡¯t help but smile. This scene suddenly made Yu Bing realize what it meant to have beautiful scenery at her fingertips, but it also made her come back to her senses. She hurriedly lowered her head and continued to wipe the table. She was originally blushing after being caught, but on second thought, beautiful people and things were meant to be appreciated, so she grinned and let out a low laugh. The corners of Xiao Sheng¡¯s mouth curled up and in the end, he couldn¡¯t help but laugh as well. The two of them stopped acting bashful and laughed softly as they worked. Although she didn¡¯t know why, she felt that everything at this moment made her want to laugh to express the joy in her heart. There wasn¡¯t much furniture in the house. The bed was made of wooden boards and stools. There were two old-fashioned four-cornered long stools in the structure of a falcon. They were placed one in front of the other and supported by a wooden board that was two meters long and 1.3 meters wide. There was also a desk and a chair, as well as two large wooden boxes piled in the house. They were probably used to store miscellaneous items. Because no one had been living there, Xiao Sheng moved the bed to the courtyard. Then, he cleaned it with clear water and placed it under the sun to dry. Yu Bing wiped the mat on it and placed it in the shade to dry. Chapter 386 - 386 Free Love 386 Free Love An hour later, the room looked brand new. Because it was made of yellow mud and it had been a long time since someone lived there, there was a layer of dust on the ground. In order to avoid dust getting into the air, after a simple sweep, Yu Bing sprinkled a thin layer of water on the ground. Then, she opened the doors and windows so that the sun outside could shine into the room and dry the water. After Xiao Sheng finished his work, he realized that there was an unfinished mat in the living room, so he started weaving. Yu Bing sat at the side in boredom as she watched Xiao Sheng quietly. At six in the evening, Mr. Wang returned home with a handful of wormwood and some vegetables. When he saw the two of them sitting in the living room, he hurriedly stopped them and said, ¡°You two are guests, so why are you helping me work? You can¡¯t do this! Stop!¡± Xiao Sheng stopped what he was doing and looked up with a smile. ¡°I weave at home quite often. I have nothing to do now anyway.¡± Yu Bing echoed, ¡°Mr. Wang, just let us do some work. We¡¯re really bored.¡± Mr. Wang could tell that the two of them were diligent people like him and couldn¡¯t stand being idle, so he smiled helplessly and said, ¡°Alright, I won¡¯t stand on ceremony with you guys. Just treat it as your own home. I¡¯ll go cook now.¡± Yu Bing really wanted to cook, but she knew that Mr. Wang¡¯s family couldn¡¯t afford to waste ingredients, so she could only turn around and continue watching Xiao Sheng. Seeing Yu Bing¡¯s bored expression, Xiao Sheng suggested teaching her how to weave. Yu Bing nodded repeatedly. She had watched him so many times but had never done it before. After Mr. Wang finished cooking, he turned around. When he saw the intimate interaction between Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing in the living room, he no longer doubted their relationship. When he carried the dishes into the living room, he teased, ¡°It¡¯s popular for young people to marry who they like these days instead of having arranged marriages. You guys got married out of love, right?¡± When Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing heard this, they blushed. The two of them were not even officially in a relationship yet. Seeing this, Mr. Wang thought that the two of them were just being shy, so he laughed out loud and said, ¡°Although my wife and I had an arranged marriage, our loving relationship is not inferior to yours.¡± The two of them hurriedly went to the kitchen to serve the dishes to avoid being teased again. Because there were guests, Mr. Wang even took out cured meat and cut a small piece of it. Mr. Wang made three dishes and a soup. There was cured meat stir-fried with dried bamboo shoots, stir-fried loofah, chives, scrambled eggs, and vegetable soup. Although the food didn¡¯t taste good, there was meat and vegetable, so it was a decent meal for treating guests with. After dinner, Mr. Wang told Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng that his friend was interested in selling 200 pounds of flour. The supply company¡¯s price was 0.18 yuan a catty of flour, if one had stamps. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t have stamps, so the purchase price of Mr. Wang¡¯s flour was set at 0.26 yuan, according to the black market price. Even if Mr. Wang could receive flour that was lower than this price, they didn¡¯t interfere. As long as the quality was fine, they were willing to pay an additional fee of 10 catties of 0.1 yuan. However, Mr. Wang was an honest person, so he quoted the price Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng offered. This price was neither high nor low, and he didn¡¯t have to take the risk to sell it on the black market. Therefore, when Mr. Wang mentioned it to his old friend, they quickly agreed after discussing it. Yu Bing took 260 yuan from the bag she carried on her back and handed it to Mr. Wang. ¡°Mr. Wang, please accept this payment for the 1,000 catties of flour. If you agree, you can just bring the goods back. We¡¯ll pay for the 500 catties and your hard work together when we leave. The payment can be adjusted after that.¡± Mr. Wang smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s fine. You guys are already here, so how could I be afraid that you guys will run away? On the other hand, aren¡¯t you afraid that I¡¯ll pocket so much money?¡± Yu Bing smiled and said confidently, ¡°I believe in my own judgment. You¡¯re definitely not a greedy person!¡± Anyone who didn¡¯t have ulterior motives would be touched by such unconditional trust. After Mr. Wang took the money, he said energetically, ¡°Since you trust me so much, I can¡¯t let you down. Every family is idle after dinner, so I¡¯ll go out and find a few families to try my best to gather enough flour for you guys.¡± Chapter 387 - 387 Shy 387 Shy After Mr. Wang left, Xiao Sheng saw some unfinished firewood in the courtyard. Thinking about how Mr. Wang was the only man in his house and how Mr. Wang still had to chop firewood even though he was so old, Xiao Sheng took an axe from the side and started chopping. Yu Bing boiled hot water in the kitchen to take a bath. The two of them planned to go back that day, so they didn¡¯t bring a change of clothes. Before Mr. Wang left, he found clothes that he and his wife had only worn a few times and lent them to Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng so that the two of them could change into them after showering. Although Yu Bing was a little obsessed with cleanliness, she was still able to adapt to the environment. She sweated profusely during the hot day, so if she didn¡¯t change her clothes, it would be useless even if she took a shower. It was fine if she couldn¡¯t change her undergarments. Now that she had clothes she could change into, she wasn¡¯t that picky. After Yu Bing took a shower, she changed into a tank top and pants. After she washed the clothes she had changed out of, she hung them up in the courtyard. From the corner of his eye, Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing¡¯s two slender and fair arms and felt his mouth go dry. After he coughed lightly and moved his body, he continued to chop firewood with his back facing Yu Bing. In the future, it was normal for girls to wear tank tops in the summer, so Yu Bing didn¡¯t think there was anything wrong with her appearing in front of Xiao Sheng in a tank top. After she was done, she even approached Xiao Sheng and said gently, ¡°Hurry up and take a shower. Otherwise, you might not be able to when Mr. Wang comes back.¡± Xiao Sheng replied without turning his head, ¡°Got it. There¡¯s still some firewood, so I¡¯ll take a shower after chopping them. Rest first. I¡¯ll wait for Mr. Wang to come back and ask about the purchase.¡± Hearing this, Yu Bing didn¡¯t say anything else. Because there was no toothbrush, Yu Bing mixed warm water with salt and started to rinse her mouth. Then, she went to the living room to get the mugwort leaf that Mr. Wang had specially picked and returned to her room to burn it. Mugwort leaf could ward off humidity and prevent mosquitoes. Xiao Sheng heaved a sigh of relief when Yu Bing returned to her room. Looking at the closed door, Xiao Sheng was a little nervous and expectant. After cutting the remaining firewood, he went to the living room to get a change of clothes and went to the kitchen to get hot water to shower. When the room was filled with smoke from the leaf, Yu Bing covered her nose and left the room. After estimating that the leaf was almost burnt, she opened the door to let the mosquitoes and smoke out. At this moment, Xiao Sheng had also finished showering and came to the courtyard. Yu Bing saw that Xiao Sheng was wearing a tank top and knee-length shorts. His firm muscles and perfect body contours were quite eye-catching. Such a masculine man was just her type. Seeing Xiao Sheng dressed so casually, Yu Bing suddenly felt a sense of blissfulness. Xiao Sheng, on the other hand, blushed awkwardly. When Yu Bing saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s obedient look, she chuckled. Xiao Sheng was a little embarrassed. How could a man like him be coyer than a girl like Yu Bing? Hence, he relaxed and ignored Yu Bing¡¯s gaze as he washed his clothes in the courtyard. When Yu Bing saw that the smoke in the room had almost dissipated, she stopped teasing Xiao Sheng and turned around with a smile to return to her room. At the foot of a tree. A forty-year-old woman with short hair and wearing a gray shirt walked to the foot of the tree. After she sat down beside the woman who was holding the soles of her shoes, she asked curiously, ¡°Jiang Mo, do you have a rich relative who came to the village?¡± The woman holding the soles of her shoes was wearing a fashionable plaid shirt and her withered hair was tied back in a bun. When she heard Chen Ni¡¯s question, she was confused. ¡°Why are you suddenly asking this?¡± Chen Ni replied, ¡°When I passed by, I saw smoke still rising from the kitchen of your third brother¡¯s house and heard sounds from inside.¡± Jiang Mo frowned as she said in disdain, ¡°Maybe my mother-in-law came back with that little burden. I already said that it¡¯s normal for children to catch a cold and have a fever, so why does he listen to those doctors and insist on hospitalization? Is hospitalization an option for poor people like us? He even came to ask my family for money. Does he think we have too much money or something?!¡± Chen Ni wanted to retort when she heard this, but she thought about how it was inconvenient for a third person to know what she was about to say, so she looked around and whispered into Jiang Mo¡¯s ear, ¡°I suspect that your father-in-law might have found a way to make money! I eavesdropped on your father-in-law and my in-laws saying that your father-in-law wanted flour for 0.26 yuan per catty. He wanted as much as my in-laws had. Your family might really have a low-profile rich relative! If there¡¯s anything good in the future, don¡¯t forget me!¡± Chapter 388 - 388 Rich Relative 388 Rich Relative When Jiang Mo heard this price, her eyes lit up. When did the Wang family have such a rich relative? If someone wanted flour, her family was willing to sell them! Moreover, if they were relatives, they might be able to negotiate the price and ask the other party to give them more. ¡°How much did he want? How much did your family sell?¡± Chen Ni extended two fingers. ¡°I saw it clearly. At that time, your father-in-law was holding a thick stack of money!¡± In this day and age, the maximum face value of bills was 10 yuan, so one could imagine how valuable 10 yuan was these days. To be able to take out dozens of bills so casually was quite shocking for ordinary families in the countryside. Moreover, it was an upright person like Mr. Wang. Jiang Mo¡¯s eyes widened. This time, she could no longer sit still. She stood up to leave, but then she sat back down and whispered into Chen Ni¡¯s ear, ¡°You can¡¯t spread word of this.¡± Chen Ni rolled her eyes. ¡°I¡¯m not stupid. I¡¯m telling you because you guys are relatives. This is a speculative matter. Although it¡¯s a relative who wants flour, once it concerns money, things are different. I don¡¯t want to get my in-laws arrested.¡± Jiang Mo didn¡¯t care who was arrested as long as she was fine. After receiving Chen Ni¡¯s guarantee, she rushed home. The moment Jiang Mo entered the house, she saw the Wang family¡¯s second son sitting in the courtyard drinking mulberry wine with a very satisfied expression. Thinking of how her father-in-law had dragged others to get rich together with him, but how her husband didn¡¯t know anything, Jiang Mo was furious. ¡°You only know how to drink. You might as well just drink yourself to death!¡± When the Wang family¡¯s second son saw his wife¡¯s angry expression, he was a little impatient. ¡°Why are you shouting?! I only drink a small cup every day!¡± Jiang Mo took a small stool from the side and sat beside her husband. Then, she suppressed her anger and asked patiently, ¡°Think about it carefully. Does your family have any rich relatives you rarely interact with?¡± After the Wang family¡¯s second son thought about it, he shook his head and replied firmly, ¡°No!¡± Jiang Mo snorted and told him what she had heard from Chen Ni. ¡°Your father hid it so well that he even hid it from his biological son!¡± ¡°He didn¡¯t think of you when an opportunity to earn money came. Instead, he thought of those outsiders. I think he resents us for not lending money to Third Brother¡¯s son for treatment. Or he resents us for not adopting that little burden.¡± His hand that was holding the wine glass froze. Then, he narrowed his eyes and thought about it. He felt that Jiang Mo¡¯s guess made sense. ¡°There¡¯s no point in my father doing this! That little burden still has to be raised for more than ten years before he becomes an adult, but he wants me to raise him for free without even giving me a house. Dream on! He¡¯s not my son. I have to ask my father about this personally.¡± Jiang Mo thought so too, so the husband and wife immediately reached an agreement. Before Jiang Mo left, she saw her youngest son playing with the water at the side. She frowned at her eldest daughter, who was washing clothes, and instructed, ¡°Keep an eye on your brother. If he catches a cold, I¡¯ll teach you a lesson!¡± With that, she pulled her husband out of the door. When the two of them arrived at Chen Ni¡¯s house, Mr. Wang had already left. The Wang family¡¯s second son looked around but didn¡¯t see his father, so he asked, ¡°Mr. Chen, where did my father go?¡± After Mr. Wang glanced at the Wang family¡¯s second son, he slowly raised his pipe to smoke as he replied aloofly, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± The Wang family¡¯s second son knew that Mr. Chen didn¡¯t like him, so he couldn¡¯t be bothered to stay any longer and left with Jiang Mo. Mr. Chen¡¯s expression darkened slightly as he shook his head in disdain. Although he didn¡¯t know why the two of them were looking for Mr. Wang, they were probably up to no good. He really looked down on people who were so cold to their relatives. After the Wang family¡¯s second son and his wife left, the two of them asked around the village again. Jiang Mo looked at her husband and suggested, ¡°Why don¡¯t we go straight to Third Brother¡¯s house and wait? Your father will eventually come home.¡± The Wang family¡¯s second son agreed. When the two of them arrived at their third brother¡¯s house, they saw that the door wasn¡¯t locked. After the couple exchanged looks, they pushed open the door. Chapter 389 - 389 Raising the Price 389 Raising the Price Jiang Mo originally thought that her mother-in-law was at home, but she didn¡¯t expect to see a young man hanging clothes in the courtyard. Thinking of the rich relative Chen Ni mentioned, she immediately smiled and walked forward. ¡°Young man, you¡¯re a relative who came to visit, right?¡± After Xiao Sheng glanced at the Wang family¡¯s second son and his wife, he had a bad feeling, but he changed the topic without batting an eyelid. ¡°You¡¯re Mr. Wang¡¯s son and daughter-in-law, right? Mr. Wang is out. I¡¯ll tell him that you guys were here when he comes back later.¡± The Wang family¡¯s second son smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯m not looking for my father. I¡¯m looking for you! I heard that you guys want to collect the flour. My family has flour too! It¡¯s just that can you raise the price? We¡¯re relatives. Don¡¯t you think so? We don¡¯t have to mention too much. Just 0.3 yuan per catty will do.¡± Although the Wang family¡¯s second son and Jiang Mo didn¡¯t get the story straight beforehand, it didn¡¯t stop the two of them from thinking of the same thing. Xiao Sheng¡¯s heart skipped a beat, but he said with a smile, ¡°I think you might have misunderstood something. I just happened to pass by the Yangqiao Commune. Because it¡¯s a little late, I borrowed this place for the night.¡± No matter what question it was, Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t answer directly. He only used ambiguous words to mislead Wang Lao Er. No matter what, he couldn¡¯t admit to buying flour. Mr. Wang had once said that his two sons weren¡¯t good people and his second son was very greedy. Seeing the actions of the couple in front of him, Xiao Sheng was more inclined to believe that they were the Wang family¡¯s second son and his wife. The Wang family¡¯s second son and his wife had already determined that Xiao Sheng was their relative. At this moment, Yu Bing, who was about to sleep, heard voices in the courtyard, so she drapped a thin blanket over herself and walked out. Hearing the creak of the door opening, the people in the courtyard turned to the door. As Jiang Mo glanced at Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng, her mind raced. Seeing that the two of them were about the same age, she went forward and held Yu Bing¡¯s arm affectionately. Then, she smiled at Xiao Sheng and said, ¡°This is your wife, right? She¡¯s really good-looking!¡± As Yu Bing looked at Jiang Mo in confusion, she looked docile and gullible. Jiang Mo came up with a plan to find a breakthrough from Yu Bing, so she said, ¡°We¡¯re the second branch of the Wang family. We know you want to buy some flour and we want to sell it too.¡± Yu Bing wasn¡¯t that naive, so when she heard this, she said in confusion, ¡°We didn¡¯t buy flour. You¡¯re mistake.¡± When the Wang family¡¯s second son and Jiang Mo heard that the two of them were still denying it, Jiang Mo continued to persuade them, ¡°We¡¯re all relatives, so we won¡¯t harm you guys. Don¡¯t be afraid that we¡¯ll report you. How could we do such a thing?!¡± The Wang family¡¯s second son simply used his father as an excuse. ¡°My father asked me to look for you guys directly, since we¡¯re family. He¡¯s busy collecting flour outside and doesn¡¯t have time to talk.¡± Xiao Sheng knew what kind of people they were, so he naturally didn¡¯t believe them. He said with a confused expression, ¡°I think you¡¯ve really misunderstood.¡± No matter what the Wang family¡¯s second son and his wife said, all they got was denial, so they lost their patience. After the two of them muttered softly at the side, they searched the courtyard and room. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng stood in the courtyard calmly. They searched everywhere, but only saw a few hundred pounds of flour, some mixed noodles, and rice in the small storeroom. From the amount, they were obviously rations that Mr. Wang had kept for himself. Just as the two of them were feeling dejected, Mr. Wang returned with his wheelbarrow. There was a plastic bag of fertilizer on the cart. The two of them immediately rushed up and untied the rope at the mouth of the bag. When they saw the white flour inside, they revealed smug smiles. Mr. Wang was startled by his second son and wife, so he said unhappily, ¡°What are you guys doing here?¡± The couple had already forgotten how they had scolded their father a few days ago for coming to borrow money, so they smiled and said, ¡°Dad, why didn¡¯t you tell us that our relatives want to buy flour? We have flour too!¡± When Mr. Wang heard this, he had a bad feeling and subconsciously looked at Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing. He had already been very careful and discreet, but this unfilial son still found out. Chapter 390 - 390 Unyielding 390 Unyielding Mr. Wang denied with a dark expression, ¡°Stop spouting nonsense! Do you guys want me to be arrested?!¡± Hearing this, the Wang family¡¯s second son crossed his arms in front of his chest and restrained his smile as he said, ¡°Dad, the flour is here, so stop pretending!¡± Mr. Wang wanted to retort, but he couldn¡¯t find an excuse at the moment. In order not to expose Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng, he could only bite the bullet and say angrily, ¡°We didn¡¯t have enough to eat, so I had no choice but to buy it. Besides, if I had borrowed from you guys, would you guys have given it to me? If you guys think there¡¯s something wrong, report it!¡± Jiang Mo hurriedly put in a good word for them. They used the good cop, bad cop method. However, Mr. Wang refused to be persuaded and chased them away. Seeing that their father refused to relent, the Wang family¡¯s second son and his wife had no other choice. the Wang family¡¯s second son wanted to say something, but Jiang Mo pulled his arm. When he turned around and saw the look his wife gave him, he shut his mouth. Jiang Mo said with a fake smile, ¡°Since you don¡¯t like us, we won¡¯t insist.¡± With that, she pulled the Wang family¡¯s second son out. the Wang family¡¯s second son didn¡¯t understand what his wife was up to, but he knew that she had more ideas than him, so he left without saying anything. Mr. Wang stood at the door. When he saw the two of them leave, he turned around to lock the door. Mr. Wang looked at Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng with a guilty expression. ¡°I¡¯m really sorry! When I went to collect the flour, I said that a relative had a wedding and needed to buy some flour. I don¡¯t know where they got the news.¡± Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t panic. This matter was risky to begin with, but purchasing flour was urgent, so they had no other choice and could only deal with whatever came their way. Yu Bing comforted him. ¡°It¡¯s fine, Mr. Wang. Everything has risks, so you don¡¯t have to take it to heart.¡± After Xiao Sheng looked at the bag in the car, he asked, ¡°Mr. Wang, how many pounds are there here?¡± Mr. Wang wiped the sweat off his forehead. ¡°200 pounds. I didn¡¯t dare to pull the cart to the other families. Otherwise, it would be too conspicuous. I¡¯ve arranged a time for them and they¡¯ll bring it over directly later. I¡¯ll pay after I¡¯ve weighed the quantity.¡± With that, she instructed, ¡°Little Yu and shouldn¡¯t come out of the room. Lock the door. I¡¯ll deal with the rest.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded with a smile. ¡°It¡¯s been hard on you tonight. There¡¯s hot water in the kitchen, so take a shower later.¡± Ever since his wife brought his grandson to the hospital, Mr. Wang had been living alone. Today, because of Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng¡¯s arrival, this desolate house finally regained a trace of coziness. When Mr. Wang heard this, he said with a smile, ¡°It¡¯s fine. Rest early. I¡¯ll take leave tomorrow morning to send food to my wife and grandson. At that time, I¡¯ll push a wheelbarrow to send the flour into the city. You have to think about how to transport this flour back in advance.¡± Xiao Sheng had already arranged the transportation, so he wasn¡¯t worried. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ve already arranged it. Let¡¯s rest first.¡± After Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing returned to their room, they didn¡¯t go to sleep immediately. As the two of them sat opposite each other on the bed, their relaxed expressions disappeared, and their faces were filled with worry. Yu Bing said firmly, ¡°the Wang family¡¯s second son and his wife definitely won¡¯t give up so easily.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded in agreement and replied with a frown, ¡°They definitely won¡¯t give up yet, so we have to think of a way, but they probably won¡¯t come again tonight. If something happens to us, they won¡¯t get anything either.¡± As Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng discussed softly in the room, the Wang family¡¯s second son and his wife were also secretly observing from a corner far outside the house. The two of them were very patient this time. They watched as eight people entered Mr. Wang¡¯s house at different times with flour on their backs. They only stood up when the light in the small courtyard disappeared. the Wang family¡¯s second son said excitedly, ¡°Honey, why don¡¯t we go home and carry the flour over directly? There¡¯s so much flour, so the old man can¡¯t use the excuse that it¡¯s all for himself, right?¡± Jiang Mo looked at her husband in disdain and pursed her lips. ¡°If he insists that it¡¯s all for himself, can you show evidence that proves otherwise?¡± Chapter 391 - 391 Same Bed 391 Same Bed The Wang family¡¯s second son was stunned. If his father insisted, there was really nothing he could do. After all, he couldn¡¯t really report him. Otherwise, his reputation would be ruined as well. That wouldn¡¯t do! the Wang family¡¯s second son looked at his wife anxiously and asked, ¡°Then what should we do?!¡± Jiang Mo was silent for a few minutes before the corners of her lips curled up into a scheming smile. ¡°We¡¯ll come over before dawn tomorrow morning. We won¡¯t sell the flour, but they still have to fork out the money!¡± the Wang family¡¯s second son was a little confused. They weren¡¯t fools, so why would they give them free money? Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing didn¡¯t sleep after entering the room. After discussing tomorrow¡¯s matters and waiting for the door to be completely locked, they lay down in peace. During the silent night, without other distractions, the two of them finally felt a trace of nervousness. Yu Bing was a little uneasy. After all, in her two lifetimes, she had never slept in the same bed with a man. Yu Bing thought that she would be so nervous that she wouldn¡¯t be able to sleep tonight, but she didn¡¯t expect to fall asleep not long after she lay down. Yu Bing was on the inner side of the bed, while Xiao Sheng was on the outer side. After the two of them lay down, he didn¡¯t dare to move or kept reciting the text he had read in his mind until he heard the even breathing beside him. When Xiao Sheng turned his head carefully, he accidentally saw the fair and delicate skin on Yu Bing¡¯s waist. Perhaps because the tank top was a little loose, the hem of the shirt had reached her waist. With just a glance, Xiao Sheng felt his throat go dry. He swallowed hard and quickly pulled down the corner of his shirt to cover Yu Bing¡¯s bare waist. He then covered Yu Bing¡¯s stomach with a thin blanket to prevent her from catching a cold. The window of the room was made of see-through paper and there was a hint of light, so it wasn¡¯t pitch-black in the room. Yu Bing¡¯s facial features were a little blurry in the darkness. Xiao Sheng held his breath and moved closer to Yu Bing. Then, he saw Yu Bing, whose hair was loose, clearly. She had a smooth forehead, a small nose, and her rosy lips were slightly parted. Xiao Sheng smiled as he looked at Yu Bing. The more he looked at her, the cuter he found her. However, his breathing couldn¡¯t help but become heavy. Xiao Sheng hurriedly turned around and turned his body to face the outside. Then, he took a deep breath. If he continued to look, he was afraid that his nose would bleed again tonight. Xiao Sheng focused his attention on the courtyard absent-mindedly. The occasional rustling of the leaves caused by the wind made his wildly beating heart slowly calm down. He originally thought that with the person he loved beside him, he wouldn¡¯t be able to fall asleep, but when he heard the rustling outside the window, he fell asleep in a daze. When the morning sun shone on Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng¡¯s faces, the two of them opened their eyes at the same time. The moment Xiao Sheng opened his eyes, he saw the roof, and Yu Bing saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s perfect side profile. They both froze for a moment and it took them a few seconds to realize what had happened yesterday. Xiao Sheng turned around and met Yu Bing¡¯s gaze. The two of them felt a little awkward, but what made Xiao Sheng even more embarrassed was his physiological reaction every morning. Moreover, he felt that he was even more aroused than usual today. While Yu Bing was still unaware, he quickly pulled the thin blanket over her and covered his lower body. Yu Bing was stunned when she saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s actions. Then, Xiao Sheng coughed twice and explained seriously, ¡°I suddenly feel a little cold.¡± It was still summer. How cold could it get? Yu Bing felt that Xiao Sheng was acting a little strange today, but she didn¡¯t think too much about it. She looked up at the light that seeped through the window paper as she said, ¡°It¡¯s getting late. We have to set off quickly to send this batch of goods back first.¡± Xiao Sheng tightened his grip on the blanket. ¡°Okay,¡± he replied, but his body didn¡¯t move at all. Yu Bing sat up to get off the bed, but Xiao Sheng was lying on the outside, so if she wanted to go out, she had to step over him. Thinking of this, Yu Bing blushed. She thought that Xiao Sheng was deliberately teasing her, so she said coquettishly, ¡°Get up quickly.¡± Chapter 392 - 392 Unable to Defend Himself 392 Unable to Defend Himself At this moment, Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t dare to get up, since he was afraid that Yu Bing would see his physiological reaction and scold him for being a perv. At that time, he would really not be able to explain himself. However, when he saw Yu Bing¡¯s embarrassed expression, he didn¡¯t dare to say anything else. After thinking for a moment, he sat up with the blanket and glanced elsewhere. ¡°Go past me.¡± Yu Bing frowned when she saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s strange actions, but when she thought about how she could get out of bed now, she decided not to pursue the matter. When she got out of bed and put on her shoes, she heard a sound behind her. When Yu Bing turned around, she realized that Xiao Sheng was lying down again. Moreover, his face was a little flushed. She hurriedly reached out and touched Xiao Sheng¡¯s forehead. ¡°Are you feeling unwell?¡± Xiao Sheng hurriedly brushed Yu Bing¡¯s hand away. If he held her hand for a while longer, he would feel even more uncomfortable. ¡°I¡¯m fine. I¡¯m going to sleep for a while more, so you can go out first.¡± Yu Bing looked at the sweat on her hands and thought of Xiao Sheng¡¯s resistance to taking medicine, so she said angrily, ¡°You¡¯re afraid of taking medicine, so you didn¡¯t tell me that you were sick?¡± Xiao Sheng was unable to defend himself, so he said with a conflicted look, ¡°Yu Bing, I¡¯m really fine. I¡¯ll be fine after lying down for a few more minutes.¡± Yu Bing narrowed her eyes at the nervous Xiao Sheng. She was certain that he was afraid of taking medicine, so she pulled Xiao Sheng¡¯s arm. ¡°No, I¡¯m bringing you to the hospital now.¡± Unless Xiao Sheng was willing to get up himself, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t drag him away. Yu Bing saw Xiao Sheng looking at her with a troubled expression, but he didn¡¯t say anything, so she sized up Xiao Sheng quizzically, making him even more nervous. In her previous life, Yu Bing had also heard some dirty jokes from the female bosses around her. Seeing Xiao Sheng cover his lower body with the blanket nervously, Yu Bing instantly understood and her face turned red. She hurriedly turned around and said quickly, ¡°Lie down for a while more.¡± Then, she fled. Seeing this, Xiao Sheng finally heaved a sigh of relief. After seeing the door close, he lifted the blanket and looked at a certain spot that was still erect. His head ached, so he could only try to divert his attention to serious matters. Ten minutes later, he finally returned to normal. Only then did Xiao Sheng slowly get up and get off the bed. When the two of them saw each other in the courtyard, they deliberately averted their gazes to avoid looking at each other. Mr. Wang had already prepared breakfast. Each of them had two sweet potatoes and a bowl of millet porridge. When Mr. Wang saw that the two of them had woken up, he smiled and said, ¡°Come and eat.¡± After Xiao Sheng sat at the table, he immediately asked with concern, ¡°Mr. Wang, how many pounds did you collect last night?¡± When Mr. Wang heard this, he replied in embarrassment, ¡°I only collected 780 pounds last night.¡± Mr. Wang recalled that before he set off last night, he had confidently said that he could gather enough, but now, he was still a few hundred kilograms short! The key was that his second son and wife knew. Mr. Wang was so worried that his second son and wife would cause trouble that he didn¡¯t sleep well last night. Although it wasn¡¯t the amount they had expected, the gains from this trip weren¡¯t small. More than a thousand pounds of flour was enough to last the food factory for a few days, so Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll calculate the money for you first.¡± After breakfast, Yu Bing began to settle the bill for Mr. Wang. The old man¡¯s 500 pounds, plus the 780 pounds from last night, made a total of 1,280 pounds of flour. Yesterday, they had already paid for the 1,000 pounds of flour. The price of the additional 220 pounds was 57.2 yuan, plus the labor fee of 7.8 yuan. Yu Bing took out 65 yuan from her bag and handed it to Mr. Wang. To old farmers like them, who had been digging in the soil their entire lives, just these hard work fees would take them a month or two to earn. But he earned this in one night! Mr. Wang had earned a total of 137.8 yuan from the flour and hard work fees. Looking at the money in his hand, he was a little excited. His grandson was saved! All they had to do next was wait. They couldn¡¯t set off until everyone was at work. Otherwise, it would be troublesome if people saw them. Therefore, the three of them moved all the flour to the wheelbarrow first. Mr. Wang still remembered the chestnuts he had promised Yu Bing yesterday, so he brought two large handfuls over. Yu Bing used the excuse that they were too heavy to stop Mr. Wang. Chapter 393 - 393 Silence Fee 393 Silence Fee Taking advantage of this opportunity, Xiao Sheng washed and dried the clothes he and Yu Bing had worn. After Yu Bing secretly sneaked back to the bedroom, she took out two yuan from her bag and placed it on the desk in the bedroom as her and Xiao Sheng¡¯s accommodation fees, food expenses, and payment for the chestnut. She knew that if she gave it to Mr. Wang directly, he definitely wouldn¡¯t accept it. After the singing from the village¡¯s radio station stopped, the three of them pushed the wheelbarrow out of the door. Mr. Wang still planned to bring them out of the village from the path they had come from yesterday. With a weight of 1,280 pounds, even if there was a tool cart, it would take a lot of effort. Xiao Sheng took the initiative to take the wheelbarrow, while Mr. Wang and Yu Bing assisted by the side by covering the flour with the mat that Mr. Wang had made. The few of them had just walked a few meters when they heard enthusiastic calls behind them. ¡°Dad!¡± Mr. Wang had a bad feeling. When he turned around and saw his second son and wife smiling sinisterly, while he felt guilty, he pretended to be angry as he said, ¡°I want to go to the hospital to visit Shu Gen. Stop being a hindrance here. Get lost and go to work!¡± Shu Gen was the Wang family¡¯s third son¡¯s youngest son. Jiang Mo and the Wang family¡¯s second son weren¡¯t angry at all when they heard his angry shout. Instead, they approached him with a smile. Jiang Mo said intimately, ¡°Dad, we¡¯re also worried about Shu Gen, so we want to go visit Shu Gen today.¡± the Wang family¡¯s second son echoed with a smile, ¡°That¡¯s right. Dad, when did you make so many mats? Coincidentally, my family lacks a bed, so I¡¯ll take one.¡± With that, he reached for the mat. Xiao Sheng quickly grabbed the Wang family¡¯s second son¡¯s hand and looked at him coldly. the Wang family¡¯s second son pulled his hand back in pain. When he saw Xiao Sheng¡¯s gaze, he was a little frightened. Seeing this, Jiang Mo sneered. ¡°Let¡¯s not beat around the bush. Let¡¯s get straight to the point. We don¡¯t want to care if you¡¯re relatives of the Wang family, but if you want to take the food away, you have to pay hush money!¡± When Jiang Mo saw such a large amount of flour last night, she was already suspicious. After all, ordinary families didn¡¯t need so much flour. Moreover, unless one was from a rich family, who could afford so much flour? Therefore, Jiang Mo¡¯s first reaction was that the two people in front of her sold things on the black market. That was a crime, so if she didn¡¯t extort some money, it would be a waste! After Jiang Mo laid the cards on the table, Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°What if we don¡¯t?¡± Jiang Mo replied fiercely, ¡°Then I¡¯ll report you to the village chief!¡± Mr. Wang was extremely anxious. He was the one who had messed this up, so he couldn¡¯t implicate others. He slapped his second son hard as he glared at him and said angrily, ¡°I¡¯m not asking you to lend me money, but there¡¯s no need for you to be so ruthless, right? You want to force me, your mother, and your brother¡¯s only descendant to death? The heavens are watching. Aren¡¯t you and your wife afraid that your third brother will haunt you at night?¡± Whether his third brother¡¯s ghost came to look for him or not didn¡¯t matter. Money was the most important thing now! If he didn¡¯t hurry, the two of them would run away! the Wang family¡¯s second son sneered. ¡°Dad, stop trying to scare me. Instead of talking nonsense with me, you might as well persuade them to give us the money as soon as possible so that you can leave early. I don¡¯t want much. I only want 100 yuan!¡± When Mr. Wang heard his second son extort him so nonchalantly, he felt embarrassed. As he pointed at the Wang family¡¯s second son, he was so angry that his fingers trembled and he couldn¡¯t even speak properly. Yu Bing was worried that something would happen to Mr. Wang, so she hurriedly went forward and patted Mr. Wang¡¯s chest to calm him down. Then, she looked at the couple coldly. ¡°If you want to report us, go ahead. We¡¯re not selling them on the black market, so I¡¯m not afraid of you exposing us.¡± She would go along with them and leave them with no way out. Jiang Mo had expected that they wouldn¡¯t compromise easily and that they would bargain. She had even thought of the lowest price, but she had never expected that they were unafraid at all. When she heard Yu Bing¡¯s denial and saw her fearless attitude, she was a little puzzled. Was she wrong? However, Jiang Mo still refused to give up so easily. Only a fool like her father-in-law would believe in the excuse that they would use the flour for self-consumption. Chapter 394 - 394 Troublemaker 394 Troublemaker When the Wang family¡¯s second son heard this, he was a little dumbfounded. Jiang Mo gave the Wang family¡¯s second son a look, asking him what to do. Jiang Mo didn¡¯t really plan to report them. After all, her father-in-law was also involved. Just like the Wang family¡¯s second son, she didn¡¯t want to ruin her reputation. Jiang Mo signaled for the Wang family¡¯s second son to help her, but the Wang family¡¯s second son didn¡¯t understand her signal. The two of them exchanged glances for a long time without avail. Yu Bing sneered and suggested to the two of them in a mocking tone, ¡°Why don¡¯t you go home first and discuss it?¡± Jiang Mo was so angry that she glared at the Wang family¡¯s second son. Then, she looked at Yu Bing and cleared her throat before saying, ¡°For my father-in-law¡¯s sake, if you really think that you can¡¯t fork out 100 yuan, it¡¯s negotiable. How much can you offer?¡± When Yu Bing heard this, a smile appeared on her lips, but her eyes were as cold as ice. ¡°We won¡¯t pay a single cent. You¡¯re Mr. Wang¡¯s son and daughter-in-law. If you report us, everyone will suffer together!¡± Jiang Mo was so angry that she laughed. So that was how it was! When Jiang Mo saw Yu Bing¡¯s stubborn expression, she began to play tricks. ¡°No wonder you¡¯re so calm. You want to use this against us. Let me tell you, we¡¯re not afraid! At most, our family will sever ties with my father-in-law!¡± the Wang family¡¯s second son was so shocked when he heard this that he pulled Jiang Mo¡¯s arm and said in a low voice, ¡°What nonsense are you talking about?! How can you say such a thing so casually?!¡± Since ancient times, filial piety had always been important, especially in the vast rural areas that were still deeply affected by traditional views. There were examples of parents severing ties, but if their children dared to take the initiative to mention it, they would be criticized and ostracized by the entire village. Jiang Mo was so angry that she blurted it out rashly. ¡°Things are so lively here! It¡¯s not that I want to criticize you, but how can you be so opportunistic?¡± The person who came was Mr. Wang¡¯s sister-in-law, Lin Bi. If there was anyone in the village who couldn¡¯t stand the Wang family, it would be Mr. Wang¡¯s sister-in-law. She was petty and would hold a grudge over small matters for a long time. When they saw the person who appeared, even the Wang family¡¯s second son and his wife felt uneasy. Lin Bi was famous for stirring up trouble in the village. She stirred up trouble wherever she went, as if she wanted to turn the world upside down. the Wang family¡¯s second son was afraid of being implicated, so he hurriedly said, ¡°This has nothing to do with us! I wanted to stop my father from doing it.¡± Jiang Mo was also afraid of her eldest aunt, so she nodded repeatedly. She knew that extorting money was impossible now, since her eldest aunt would blow things up and would definitely tell the village chief, ¡°Eldest aunt, we still have work to do. Take your time chatting with my father. We¡¯ll leave first.¡± Lin Bi smiled when she heard this and went forward to grab Jiang Mo¡¯s hand. ¡°Don¡¯t be anxious. The village chief will be here soon!¡± Lin Bi felt a little lazy today and laid at home until her back hurt before getting up. She wanted to bring her grandson out for a walk, but she didn¡¯t expect to have such a shocking discovery. This excited her. When Lin Bi thought of the iron pot that her father-in-law had given Mr. Wang when they split up, she was furious and hurriedly asked her grandson to report it to the village chief while she kept an eye on them. None of the people who appeared here today could escape! Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t expect to be stopped by someone else halfway and a trace of panic appeared in their eyes, but they quickly calmed down. The village chief Mr. Wang arrived very quickly. Because Lin Bi¡¯s grandson deliberately publicized it, they even attracted a group of villagers. Seeing Mr. Wang¡¯s family and two outsiders, Mr. Wang asked with a serious expression, ¡°Wang Chong, what¡¯s going on?¡± Although the village chief was younger than Mr. Wang, he was of higher seniority, so Lin Bi and Mr. Wang had to call him Fifth Uncle. When Mr. Wang heard the village chief call him by name, he panicked. His mouth moved a few times, but he didn¡¯t know how to explain. Seeing this, Lin Bi immediately went forward and told him everything she had seen. How could the village chief not know Lin Bi¡¯s character? He couldn¡¯t be bothered with her, so he glanced at his nephew and said angrily, ¡°Fool!¡± Chapter 395 - 395 Popular Support 395 Popular Support When Yu Bing saw that so many people had been implicated, she knew that she definitely couldn¡¯t fool them anymore, so she picked up her certificate and handed it over. ¡°Mr. Wang, this is my identification.¡± After Mr. Wang took the certificate, he looked at Yu Bing suspiciously. ¡°You¡¯re the director of a food factory?¡± Yu Bing stood upright in front of the village chief Mr. Wang and stared straight back as she said with a nod, ¡°Our factory needs a lot of flour, but the flour factory doesn¡¯t have enough flour at the moment. In order to increase production, we can only buy some more in private.¡± ¡°There was excess flour at Mr. Wang¡¯s house, so we thought that we might as well ask Mr. Wang to help us collect more. I know that your village¡¯s flour production is very high. If you report me, the villagers involved will be arrested together, so why don¡¯t we cooperate?!¡± After Xiao Sheng finished speaking, he took a few steps forward and smiled at the villagers kindly. ¡°Do you still have any excess flour at home? If you do, our food factory will accept it. You don¡¯t have to go out to the black market to trade. It¡¯s so dangerous. We¡¯re offering you guys direct service now.¡± Everyone just came to watch the commotion, but when they heard this, they couldn¡¯t help but whisper. ¡°My eldest son is preparing to get married, but the girl said that she wants a 200 yuan betrothal gift and a sewing machine. These can¡¯t be bought without 300 to 500 yuan. We haven¡¯t even gathered enough money for the wedding banquet. We were worrying about how to get the money.¡± ¡°Who doesn¡¯t worry about money? If we can exchange flour for money, it¡¯s worth it even if we have to eat coarse grain! Otherwise, if we encounter a headache or fever, we won¡¯t even be willing to go to the village¡¯s medical center to buy prescribed medicine.¡± ¡°The supply companies only offer 0.16 yuan a catty. I wonder how much they will offer?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t sell it at this price. Let the village chief report them!¡± Some people were bold enough to ask directly, ¡°How much will you pay per catty?¡± Seeing this, Mr. Wang immediately shouted, ¡°What are you shouting for?! What do you guys want to do? Are you all trying to get caught?¡± Xiao Sheng ignored the village chief and replied, ¡°0.26 yuan!¡± ¡°My family can gather 50 pounds!¡± ¡°My family can sell 60 pounds!¡± ¡­ . Upon hearing this price, the villagers who were short of money became excited and emboldened. With people taking the lead, the remaining people naturally began to feel tempted as well. Everyone was afraid of poverty. Although the village¡¯s production wasn¡¯t bad, they couldn¡¯t exchange it for money. Everyone¡¯s hearts ached when they sold the food that they had worked hard to plant at such a low price. Some chose to announce the number loudly, while others whispered to each other. ¡°This price is not bad. My family can gather 100 pounds to sell!¡± ¡°Although I¡¯m tempted, I¡¯m afraid of getting arrested.¡± ¡°The law doesn¡¯t punish the masses. We didn¡¯t do anything outrageous. How can they arrest the entire village? If they really dare to arrest us all, we¡¯ll kill those people from the Commerce Bureau and say that they want to force us to our deaths and won¡¯t give us a way out. We¡¯ll cry at the entrance of the county government!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. In the future, if you don¡¯t have money for treatment, go to the cadres¡¯ houses. If they won¡¯t let us earn any money, they should give us money when we need it!¡± When the village chief heard these words, he was so angry that he turned around and glared at Xiao Sheng. ¡°Stop enticing the people in the village to do illegal things!¡± Xiao Sheng pursed his lips and restrained the amusement in his eyes. ¡°This is called popular support. Besides, we¡¯re not going to the black market to trade. We¡¯ll go straight back to the food factory to produce the goods. Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s very safe!¡± Seeing that the situation was completely different from what she had imagined, Lin Bi panicked and shouted at everyone, ¡°What do you guys want to do? You guys actually want to break the law with them?! If you guys dare to cover up for them, I¡¯ll report you guys. I¡¯ll go to the commune to the county! I don¡¯t believe they¡¯ll turn a blind eye!¡± A woman about the same age as Lin Bi stood up. ¡°Lin Bi, stop causing trouble here! Resolve the internal conflicts in your Wang family yourself. If you dare to implicate us, we¡¯ll make sure your family can¡¯t survive in the village!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! It¡¯s your business if your family doesn¡¯t sell it, but if you dare to stab us in the back, I¡¯ll be the first to punish you!¡± Those who wanted to sell flour all criticized Lin Bi. Chapter 396 - 396 Hope 396 Hope Seeing this, Lin Bi¡¯s two sons hurriedly went forward and said to their mother in dissatisfaction, ¡°Mom, stop angering everyone. If our family is really ostracized, you can live by yourself!¡± When Lin Bi saw that everyone was expressing their dissatisfaction with her, she didn¡¯t dare to say anything else and stood at the side with her head lowered. Usually, when she caused trouble, it was usually because the two families had a conflict. Now that she was facing so many people, even if her sons didn¡¯t say anything, she didn¡¯t dare to go against them. After all, she and her two sons still had to live in the village. If she went against the entire village and was ostracized, her sons would really abandon her. Seeing this, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng exchanged looks and smiled. There were no eternal enemies, only eternal interests. As long as everyone¡¯s goals and interests were the same, the problem would resolve on its own. Seeing that everyone wanted to sell flour, the village chief became even more anxious. If this matter was exposed, the commoners could avoid being punished by the higher-ups. However, as the village chief, he definitely couldn¡¯t avoid punishment for covering up for a crime. Even if he had contributed to the village previously, he would definitely lose his position as the village chief. ¡°I¡¯m warning you, you guys are not allowed to sell it! If you don¡¯t listen, bear the consequences!¡± Then, he turned around and said to Mr. Wang, Yu Bing, and Xiao Sheng in front of everyone, ¡°Wang Chong, return the flour to whoever sold it to you now. I¡¯ll get them to return the money. The two of you, take the money and leave quickly! Pretend that this didn¡¯t happen. Otherwise, I¡¯ll report you guys!¡± As soon as she said this, the families who had already sold the flour and obtained the money were unwilling to accept. Who was willing to return the money? Yu Bing, who had finally collected more than a thousand pounds of flour, was naturally unwilling to give up. She said to everyone, ¡°I don¡¯t know who owns the flour I collected, but to sell food for money means that they¡¯re definitely short of money. Everyone has worked hard for an entire year¡­¡± ¡°Stop talking, do you hear me?!¡± The village chief stopped her anxiously. Xiao Sheng immediately stopped the village chief with a smile. ¡°Don¡¯t be anxious. If we¡¯re wrong, no one will be tempted and there¡¯s no need for you to be anxious. If we hit the nail on the head, it¡¯s useless even if you¡¯re anxious. You can¡¯t stop us.¡± The village chief was led astray by Xiao Sheng¡¯s words. Yu Bing took the opportunity to run to the villagers and continue to goad them. ¡°You also know that when it comes to dividends, you guys can only earn two to three hundred yuan at most, and worst case scenario, you guys can only earn one to two hundred yuan. Which family doesn¡¯t have people who get headaches and fevers? You guys also need to buy wedding gifts. Our food factory didn¡¯t go to any other village, but here instead.¡± A voice sounded from the crowd. ¡°Looks like we can only watch everyone else earn money. Our family doesn¡¯t have any excess flour to sell. We don¡¯t even have enough to eat!¡± ¡°Flour is a staple food after all. My boys are still growing and eat a lot, so I don¡¯t dare to sell flour even if I lack money.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she realized that these dissenters were a threat and that she had to pull them into the same boat. ¡°Our factory also needs a lot of various raw materials. The factory plans to make sweet potato products. Every family plants them, right? Therefore, it¡¯s fine if some families don¡¯t have flour to sell this time. We can cooperate next time. The food factory also has to constantly develop new products, so there will eventually be a time when what we want is what you guys have!¡± Although she sounded like she was lying, people needed hope. Life was already so tough, so if there was no hope at all, life would be even more difficult. Therefore, when everyone heard this, even if they couldn¡¯t cooperate this time, they no longer felt sad. Instead, they gained more trust in Yu Bing. Now that the situation was favorable, as Xiao Sheng blocked the village chief, he turned around and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We¡¯re a legitimate manufacturer and we¡¯re not selling what we bought! We can promise everyone again that after we buy them from you guys, we¡¯ll take them back and produce them directly. We won¡¯t sell them on the black market! Therefore, in a sense, we¡¯re not going anything illegal.¡± Chapter 397 - 397 Buy It Now 397 Buy It Now The village chief also tried his best to stop them. ¡°Everyone, don¡¯t listen to their lies! If we want to sell it, we can only sell it to the supply company!¡± Yu Bing immediately challenged the village chief. ¡°Villagers, how much does the supply company pay?! If you sell it to me now, you won¡¯t even have to leave the village¡¯s entrance and the price will be even higher.¡± ¡°Village Chief, don¡¯t stop them anymore. I think they have a point. They¡¯re not selling it to others at a high price!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Your family doesn¡¯t lack money, so you don¡¯t understand the pain of being short of money!¡± Xiao Sheng also smiled and said, ¡°Village Chief, please be more understanding of us poor commoners.¡± After Yu Bing found a large rock, she stood up and waved her arms as she said, ¡°If you guys sell it now, we¡¯ll accept it now and pay you on the spot! We¡¯ll get to know each other better over time. Everyone, I wish us a pleasant cooperation. The next time we need to buy other ingredients, we¡¯ll look for you guys immediately. What do you guys think?¡± ¡°Alright!¡± Everyone was completely convinced by Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng¡¯s words and replied enthusiastically. Yu Bing smiled as she continued to goad them. ¡°Then quickly go back and bring the flour you want to sell. I¡¯ll wait for everyone here!¡± When everyone heard this, they dispersed and went home to pack flour. Since the villagers had already been settled, Xiao Sheng hugged the village chief¡¯s shoulder as he continued to brainwash him. The content was nothing more than that the food factory wasn¡¯t being opportunistic, so the village chief wouldn¡¯t lose his official position. Just as Xiao Sheng was about to smoke, the village chief finally relented. In fact, he had no choice but to relent. The villagers had already brought flour over. Yu Bing¡¯s side began to enter the acquisition stage. Some enthusiastic villagers who sold large quantities even carried the large scale over. Xiaohe Village was only a small village with 60 to 70 families. More than two-thirds of the families participated in the flour sale this time. Some of them wanted to sell 20 to 30 pounds. Other than Mr. Wang, who sold 500 pounds because he was waiting to save his grandson¡¯s life, the rest only weighed 200 pounds at most. In the end, Yu Bing received a total of 4,950 pounds of flour in Xiaohe Village. It was definitely impossible to pull the wheelbarrow, so the village chief lent his bicycle to Xiao Sheng and asked him to ride to town to contact the transport truck. Xiao Sheng rode the bicycle quickly. Ten minutes later, he found the post office in town and called the office of the transport team. Zhang Chao was afraid of missing the call, so he didn¡¯t dare to go back home last night. At this moment, he was still sleeping on the sofa in the office. He was startled when the phone rang. Then, he sat up and shook his head a few times as he rubbed his face hard with his hand. When he sobered up, he immediately strode to the table and picked up the phone. ¡°This is Zhang Chao.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s low and magnetic voice sounded. ¡°How many do you have now?¡± In this day and age, calls were transferred by people, so the other party could hear the information on the phone at any time and had no privacy, so there were many things that couldn¡¯t be said openly. When Zhang Chao heard this, he sat on the table and replied proudly, ¡°550.¡± If not for his connections, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to gather this amount in a day. Xiao Sheng sneered. ¡°Ask them to stop. You can only make up this number. Drive over to the entrance of the supply and marketing club beside the Yangqiao Commune in Shanyang County.¡± When Zhang Chao heard Xiao Sheng¡¯s words, he held back his retort. After all, there was an operator listening, but he was indignant. He decided to pick Xiao Sheng up personally and see how many people he had gathered, so he could laugh at him! After Xiao Sheng finished the call, he went to the gathering point to wait for the car. Everyone in the village had already dispersed. the Wang family¡¯s second son¡¯s family finally sold the flour to Yu Bing for 0.26 yuan. Lin Bi¡¯s two sons also participated. After the troublemakers were pulled onto this ship, Yu Bing felt much more at ease. Mr. Wang was still helping at the side, since he wanted to do more work to make up for the trouble he had caused. ¡°Little Yu, I¡¯m really sorry. I almost messed things up for you guys!¡± Yu Bing shook her head with a smile. ¡°Mr. Wang, if this hadn¡¯t happened, who knows how many days it would have taken us to gather this amount?! Moreover, we lied to you, so I¡¯d like to apologize to you!¡± When Mr. Wang heard this, he waved his hand repeatedly. ¡°If I hadn¡¯t met you guys, there¡¯s no telling when I would have sold them all. Now, I even got paid by you guys for my hard work. This is all thanks to you guys!¡± Chapter 398 - 398 Forgery 398 Forgery The two of them exchanged a few more pleasantries. Seeing that Yu Bing really didn¡¯t blame him, Mr. Wang pushed his mat and left. He wanted to go to the supply company to sell the mat. Thinking about how the money in his pocket was enough to treat his grandson, Mr. Wang felt invigorated. At this moment, Zhang Chao was driving a light truck to the Yangqiao Commune. Because it was empty and there was no need to pick people passengers like a bus, the truck drove very quickly and arrived in two hours. When Xiao Sheng saw the car stop, he walked to the front passenger seat and sat in the driver¡¯s seat. Zhang Chao asked impatiently as he drove, ¡°How many pounds did you receive for you to mock me?!¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this, he turned around and raised his eyebrows at Zhang Chao as he reported the number with a smile. ¡°Oh my god!¡± Zhang Chao didn¡¯t expect Xiao Sheng to receive so much in quantity even when he went to an unfamiliar place, so he was shocked. When Xiao Sheng saw Zhang Chao¡¯s dispirited appearance, he was a little worried. Yu Bing was going to sit inside later, so he said in disdain, ¡°Drive carefully.¡± Zhang Chao came back to his senses and focused on driving. He failed to beat him in terms of purchasing quantity, but he couldn¡¯t be criticized for his driving skills as well. When the car entered the village, many children ran with the car. When Xiao Sheng and Zhang Chao were moving the goods, they even enthusiastically helped carry some light flour bags. After that, Yu Bing took out the candies she had brought and distributed them to the children present. Then, the car left under everyone¡¯s gaze. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng originally thought that the return trip would be smooth-sailing since the flour collection wasn¡¯t smooth-sailing. Unexpectedly, when they left the city, they encountered the police checking cars at random times. Zhang Chao took out the transportation document he had prepared and handed it over. The person who checked Zhang Chao¡¯s car was a young police officer in his twenties or thirties. After looking at the documents and knowing that it was a compliant transport car, he still didn¡¯t let it pass immediately. Instead, he looked at the back of the car and asked, ¡°What goods are in the car?¡± The police officer would know once he checked it later, so Zhang Chao definitely couldn¡¯t lie. ¡°It¡¯s just some flour for the food factory.¡± The police officer frowned when he heard this. ¡°Are there employees from the food factory in the car?¡± After Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing exchanged looks, they got out of the car together. Yu Bing walked forward and greeted loudly, ¡°Hello, I¡¯m the director of the food factory, Yu Bing.¡± The police officer looked at Yu Bing suspiciously. ¡°Are you the factory director?¡± Yu Bing nodded and said fearlessly, ¡°I¡¯m the factory director. Don¡¯t underestimate me just because I¡¯m young. I¡¯m responding to the country¡¯s call to build a new countryside! Women are just as capable as men, so why can¡¯t I be the factory director?¡± Yu Bing said this to give the other party the impression that she wasn¡¯t to be trifled with. As expected, the police officer didn¡¯t say anything else when he heard this. Instead, he changed the topic. ¡°Where did you get the flour? Nowadays, the country is rationing flour, so where do you buy your flour?¡± Yu Bing¡¯s mind raced as she thought of an excuse. At this moment, Xiao Sheng interrupted, ¡°This is specially approved flour.¡± Zhang Chao hurriedly handed the special approval slip he had just obtained before setting off to the police. The police officer looked at them suspiciously and took the special approval slip. After confirming that there was indeed no problem, he handed it back and waved his hand to let them pass. After the few of them returned to the car, Yu Bing sighed in relief and relaxed a little. After the car drove past the toll station, Yu Bing finally picked up the special approval slip. As she flipped through it carefully, she said in admiration, ¡°Zhang Chao is not bad. This forgery technique is quite realistic!¡± As Yu Bing spoke, she raised her thumb. Zhang Chao was stunned for a moment. He knew that Yu Bing was bold, but he didn¡¯t expect her to even think of forging a military approval slip! Xiao Sheng said helplessly, ¡°Forgery? To think that you could even think of it. Do you think everyone is as bold as you?¡± ¡°The day before yesterday, after we discussed collecting flour, I entered the city to get a car. I happened to hear from my subordinates that the inspection of cars had become stricter than before, so I specifically asked Zeng Li to get this approval slip. I didn¡¯t expect it to really come in handy.¡± At that time, Yu Bing was also anxious that she didn¡¯t think of the connection between flour rationing and car inspections. Chapter 399 - 399 Double Standards 399 Double Standards When Yu Bing thought of how she had used the leader¡¯s quote to embolden herself just now, she felt that she was a little childish. If she really encountered martial law-controlled supplies, that little trick of hers would be useless. Those car inspectors would rather kill a thousand innocent people than let anyone off. Yu Bing touched her nose sheepishly and smiled at Xiao Sheng ingratiatingly. ¡°Fortunately, you thought of this point. I didn¡¯t even think of it. Not only did we almost lose the goods, but we almost got sent to the police station as well.¡± Xiao Sheng patted the top of Yu Bing¡¯s head with a smile and his voice was filled with gentleness as he said, ¡°If you can think of everything, why would you still need me?¡± This was the first time Zhang Chao had heard Xiao Sheng speak in such a gentle voice. The hot weather couldn¡¯t stop the goosebumps on his arms. Was this still the aloof boss he knew? Zhang Chao turned his head slightly and glanced at the two people sitting beside him from the corner of his eye. When he saw their lovey-dovey gazes as they looked at each other, he shook his head in disdain. ¡°Focus on driving.¡± A low and cold voice sounded from the car. Zhang Chao immediately turned his head. This was double standards! It was as if he should be under the car, not in it! The rest of the journey was very smooth. When they returned to Pingjiang County, they brought the flour that Zhang Chao had bought back to the food factory. Food factory. Xiao Sheng unloaded the goods with his men while Yu Bing took the money to report to Wen Qin. Before she went on a business trip, she received 1,500 yuan. Xiao He Village and Zhang Chao brought back a total of 5,500 catties of flour, which cost a total of 1,430 yuan. In addition, she paid 7.8 yuan in labor fees. After deducting the fare, food costs, and transportation fee of 50 yuan, in the end, she only returned 8.2 yuan. Wen Qin took the money with a smile. ¡°Not bad. There¡¯s still some money left!¡± When Yu Bing saw the dark circles under Wen Qin¡¯s eyes and the haggardness on her face, she asked, ¡°You didn¡¯t rest well last night?¡± When Wen Qin looked up and saw the concern in Yu Bing¡¯s eyes, she replied gently, ¡°Yes, I haven¡¯t been resting well recently.¡± As Yu Bing looked at Wen Qin¡¯s bulging stomach, she patted her shoulder and said, ¡°Rest well. If you really can¡¯t handle it, take leave occasionally. Even if you don¡¯t think for yourself, you have to consider the baby in your stomach. Your health is more important.¡± Wen Qin nodded with a smile. When Yu Bing heard Director Zhao remind her to get the letter, she was a little puzzled. Last time, things had ended on a bad note, but her family still wrote to her? When Mr. Yu and Duan Mei received the money from Yu Yan, their first reaction was indeed surprise, but then it turned into resentment. When Duan Mei saw the remittance slip that had been sent with the letter, she said unhappily, ¡°Why didn¡¯t Yu Yan tell us earlier?!¡± Mr. Yu also looked a little unhappy. ¡°If I had known that she had money, I wouldn¡¯t have gone to the factory to borrow money two days ago. I¡¯m a small leader after all, so it reflected badly upon me!¡± Duan Mei agreed. ¡°The family¡¯s reputation has been ruined because of her! Read this letter.¡± With that, she handed the letter to Yu Pan. Yu Pan took the letter aloofly and began to read it. Yu Yan had only sent money this time, and it wasn¡¯t for her. She didn¡¯t get any things, so it was impossible for Yu Pan not to feel resentment. Yu Pan read the entire letter indifferently. When Duan Mei heard this, she was so angry that she held her forehead with her hand and said, ¡°It¡¯s over. Yu Bing is really going to marry that country bumpkin!¡± Mr. Yu frowned. ¡°She¡¯s relying on the fact that she¡¯s far away from us and we can¡¯t control her.¡± When Yu Wu heard this, his first reaction was that he would have a country bumpkin brother-in-law and he couldn¡¯t help but frown. He made up his mind not to let outsiders know about this. Otherwise, it would be too embarrassing! He was from the city, so he didn¡¯t want to have anything to do with rural people. If Yu Bing insisted, he could only pretend that he didn¡¯t have this embarrassing sister. At the thought of this, he lowered his head and took another bite of the apple in his hand. When Yu Pan found out about this, she was in a good mood. Her two sisters were both in the countryside. One of them married into the countryside and became a villager. Even if the other married an intellectual, her household register was still in the countryside. That meant that among her sisters, she had married the best man. As expected, her life wasn¡¯t something they could compare to! Chapter 400 - 400 Marriage Is The Grave Of Love 400 Marriage Is The Grave Of Love Duan Mei was vexed. ¡°Our family has raised her for so many years, so we can¡¯t let someone marry her for free. Shameless b*tch! It¡¯s only been a year since she went, but she already seduced a countryside man into marrying her.¡± Duan Mei was indignant, and Mr. Yu was naturally indignant as well. ¡°Xiao Wu¡¯s job has been settled now, but we haven¡¯t settled his marriage yet. If we can¡¯t get Yu Bing¡¯s betrothal money, how can we find someone to introduce to Yu Wu?¡± Yu Wu rolled his eyes when he heard his father¡¯s words. He didn¡¯t want to get married. Once he got married, he would be controlled. For example, his father would be nagged by his mother when he returned at night. He would be nagged even if he forgot to buy the things his mother had instructed him to buy. How awful would his life be if got married? What was that saying? Marriage was the grave of love. He didn¡¯t understand love, but he knew that graves didn¡¯t mean anything good! Yu Wu said impatiently, ¡°I¡¯m still young. Why should I get married?¡± When Duan Mei heard this, she nodded at Yu Wu dotingly. ¡°You don¡¯t know anything. Only by finding a woman to serve you can we be at ease. Marriage is a big deal. We have to calculate the money first. After we get Yu Bing¡¯s betrothal money, we¡¯ll help you save more money for another two years before we can finally help you hold a glamorous wedding!¡± Mr. Yu nodded in agreement. In reply, Duan Mei asked Yu Pan to scold Yu Bing for being shameless and say that Yu Bing had to obtain her family¡¯s permission to marry anyone. Then, they emphasized that Yu Bing couldn¡¯t have sex before marriage! Ever since Yu Bing caused trouble the last time she returned, the Yu family¡¯s couple knew that Yu Bing might not listen, but they were unwilling to just give up like that. Because of this, Mr. Yu and Duan Mei¡¯s attention was completely occupied by Yu Bing¡¯s betrothal money. Coupled with their dissatisfaction with Yan Yan¡¯s remittance, the two of them didn¡¯t mention anything about replying to Yu Yan. Yu Bing read the letter quickly. When she saw the mention that someone in the village had seen her, she knew that Yu Yan was behind it. She sneered and threw the letter into the desk drawer. Then, she dismissed this matter. At Wen Qin¡¯s house. ¡°Why are you back so late? I¡¯m starving!¡± Madam Sun sat at Wen Qin¡¯s door as she ate melon seeds. After saying that, she turned to look at Sun Hui and shouted with heartache, ¡°My precious grandson, you¡¯re back. Were you tired at school today?¡± Sun Hui shook his head and shared happily, ¡°Grandma, I like to go to school, so I¡¯m not tired at all. I¡¯m very happy.¡± Madam Sun also smiled kindly. ¡°That¡¯s good. If Xiao Hui is happy, I¡¯ll be happy as well.¡± Wen Qin held her son¡¯s hand as she unlocked the courtyard door. ¡°I¡¯ve already sued for divorce. I won¡¯t change my mind even if you come to my house to cause trouble.¡± ¡°Who said I¡¯m going to cause trouble?! I¡¯m here to see my grandson. I panic every single day I don¡¯t see him. I have no choice but to stay at your door every day.¡± When Madam Sun saw the door open, she followed Wen Qin and her son in. Wen Qin felt even more helpless when she saw Madam Sun like this. In the past, it was easy to deal with her when she threw a tantrum. However, ever since she left the police station two days ago, Madam Sun¡¯s way of doing things had completely changed. With the excuse that she missed her grandson, she came to her door every day before lunch. At noon, when Wen Qin brought her son home for lunch, Madam Sun took the opportunity to follow her in. As soon as the food was served, Madam Sun took a bowl and chopsticks to eat as well She didn¡¯t care if there was a portion for her. In front of her son, Wen Qin couldn¡¯t snatch her bowl and not let her eat, right? Dinner was the same. After Wen Qin went to work and Xiao Hui went to school, Madam Sun went to the door to sit and wait for them to return. However, as long as they were at home, Madam Sun would follow them in. She was certain that Wen Qin wouldn¡¯t mistreat her in front of the child to avoid traumatizing the child. Madam Sun had not stayed in the police station for 10 days for nothing. After butting heads with Yu Bing twice in a row, she had become smarter. If the hard way didn¡¯t work, she would use the soft approach. There was food and drink at Wen Qin¡¯s place anyway, so she would leave the farming to her son for the time being. If they could get Wen Qin back, would they have to worry about not having money to pay for food? Even if she couldn¡¯t get Wen Qin back, it didn¡¯t matter. She still had a backup plan! In the ten days at the police station, Madam Sun had racked her brains over this matter and she felt a little smug when she thought of her plan. Chapter 401 - 401 Return Half 401 Return Half The days passed uneventfully. The production at the food factory also progressed smoothly. In order to prevent anything from happening in the future, the food factory brought forward the production schedule of the steel factory¡¯s order by a week. Yu Yan had been living from hand to mouth recently. She had changed her eating habits to eating meat only twice a week and the food her adoptive parents had sent over previously was no longer distributed to others. Only then did she barely last until mid-August. However, after a quarter of the month, she didn¡¯t receive any money from her adoptive parents, nor could she get into contact with her adoptive brother again. ¡°Yu Yan, I¡¯ve been feeling unwell recently and want to go to the medical center to get an examination. Can you return the nine yuan to me now?¡± ¡°No, I feel like I¡¯m lying. Yu Yan, I¡­¡± In the dormitory, Qian Hao repeatedly practiced how to ask Yu Yan about returning the money. When Li Zhen saw Qian Hao¡¯s lips, which were pale because of his illness, he revealed a resentful expression. ¡°You¡¯ve been practicing for half an hour. Do you have to do this? She¡¯s the one who owes you money and you¡¯re the creditor. This is the first time I¡¯ve seen a creditor act so humble!¡± An awkward expression appeared on Qian Hao¡¯s face. ¡°We¡¯re all intellectuals, so if I take the initiative to mention it, it feels like I don¡¯t believe her.¡± Li Zhen was a straightforward person and always said whatever he wanted to say. ¡°It¡¯s not a matter of trust. It¡¯s almost a month now. Moreover, you¡¯re sick now. What¡¯s more important than going to the doctor?¡± Liu Ming, who was reading at the side, glanced at Qian Hao and said, ¡°You had a fever yesterday and the doctor asked you to get an infusion, but you insisted on taking medicine. In the end, the fever didn¡¯t subside today. If it drags on and gets worse, I¡¯m afraid your 10 yuan won¡¯t be enough for treatment.¡± These words made Qian Hao nervous. He had already spent 0.5 yuan yesterday to buy fever medicine and anti-inflammatory medicine. His throat felt a little better today, but his other symptoms had not subsided. The severity of Qian Hao¡¯s depended on timely treatment, and his family didn¡¯t have the money to send them over again. At the thought of this, Qian Hao pursed his lips tightly. ¡°I¡¯ll go to Yu Yan and explain the situation to her now. She should understand.¡± When Qian Hao arrived at Yu Yan¡¯s dormitory, Yu Yan was picking out the last bit of beef sauce from the bottle and putting it onto the rice. When Yu Yan saw Qian Hao standing at the door, she knew his motive. She turned to look at Xu Ling, who was mending her clothes, then stood up to walk out. Yu Yan pulled Qian Hao to the roof and asked knowingly with a smile, ¡°Qian Hao, why are you looking for me?¡± Qian Hao scratched his head in embarrassment. ¡°Yu Yan, my tonsils are inflamed now and the doctor said that I have to go for an infusion for two days. I don¡¯t have enough money on me now. I want to ask if you can pay me back today?¡± Yu Yan only had 2.29 yuan on her now, so when she heard Qian Hao¡¯s words, she was a little angry, but she still smiled sweetly. ¡°Qian Hao, my parents should have sent money over already, but the money hasn¡¯t arrived yet. I still have to wait a few more days.¡± Qian Hao paused for a moment when he heard this. Thinking of what Liu Ming had said, he mustered his courage again. ¡°The earlier I treat my condition, the better. I¡¯m afraid the cost will increase if I delay it. Can you return half of it to me first?¡± Half of it was 4.5 yuan. Yu Yan didn¡¯t know magic, so how could she conjure 4.5 yuan out of thin air? She resented Qian Hao for causing trouble for her. She had already said that she would pay it back this month. It had only been a few days, but he was already rushing her! There were still ten days until August. Did he have to go so far? Those who didn¡¯t know better would think that she borrowed money without paying it back! Yu Yan was glad that she had pulled Qian Hao to the roof to talk. If others found out, her reputation would definitely be ruined. At the thought of this, Yu Yan¡¯s expression turned a little ugly. She glanced at the dispirited Qian Hao, whose face was a little flushed. ¡°I really don¡¯t have any money now, so why don¡¯t you go to the village committee to borrow money and deduct it from the dividends at the end of the year?¡± Qian Hao had heard of this method before. Although dividends could be used at the end of the year, Qian Hao had never borrowed money before. Moreover, he didn¡¯t want to owe others, so he had never considered this method before. When Yu Yan saw the hesitation on Qian Hao¡¯s face, she hid the impatience on her face and revealed a trace of sadness. ¡°Qian Hao, I really can¡¯t take out that much money now.¡± Then, she looked at Qian Hao with teary eyes as she said, ¡°Actually, it¡¯s not a big deal to borrow money from the village. Many villagers are like this. Which family doesn¡¯t have times when they need money urgently? Qian Hao, if you insist on me paying back the money, I¡¯ll think of a way to borrow it again.¡± Chapter 402 - 402 Fake Goodwill 402 Fake Goodwill With that, Yu Yan bit her pink lips and lowered her eyes with a sad look. When Qian Hao saw Yu Yan like this, he felt like his heart had been pricked by a needle and he hurriedly said, ¡°Yu Yan, I¡¯ll go to the village to borrow it. You don¡¯t have to borrow it anymore. I know things aren¡¯t easy for you either.¡± Yu Yan looked up at Qian Hao with a grateful expression and said with a gentle smile, ¡°Qian Hao, thank you for your understanding.¡± When Qian Hao saw Yu Yan¡¯s smile, a smile appeared on his pale lips. He suddenly felt that if the person he liked was happy, what did it matter if he bore more? After Yu Yan sent Qian Hao to the village committee to borrow money, she stood alone on the roof. Her eyes were filled with gloominess as she cursed Qian Hao for being a hypocrite. Qian Hao was the person who lent her the most money, so she thought that he was a good person, but she didn¡¯t expect him to be the first to urge her! As Yu Yan stared at Qian Hao¡¯s back as he walked out of the door from upstairs, she sneered. He clearly had a way to borrow money from the village committee, but he still came to urge her. Didn¡¯t he just resent seeing her live a comfortable life these few days? Thinking of Qian Hao¡¯s crush on her, she felt a little disdainful. She couldn¡¯t bear the feelings of someone who would even rush her over nine yuan. Yu Yan didn¡¯t know that Qian Hao¡¯s urging for money was only the beginning, and she had few days to continue enjoying her current comfortable life. Food factory. As Yu Bing looked at the egg yolk pastries that had been produced a week earlier than planned, she sneered and decided to make a trip to City H personally this time. The other party had set a trap for the food factory so carefully. If she didn¡¯t even know who her opponent was, wouldn¡¯t that be disrespectful to her opponent? Xiao Sheng found Yu Bing in the warehouse of the factory and went forward to ask, ¡°I heard that you¡¯re going to deliver the goods yourself this time?¡± When Yu Bing saw Xiao Sheng, the coldness on her face gradually dissipated and she said with a smile, ¡°Yes, the other party has already made a move, so it¡¯ll be rude of me not to meet the other party.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this, a smile appeared on his lips. ¡°I¡¯m in charge of the transportation this time, so I¡¯ll accompany you to meet the mastermind.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she looked at Xiao Sheng and the two of them smiled at each other. The 3,400 portions were quickly loaded into the car. It was only a half-day drive from He Mountain Village to City H, so the two of them set off at noon. When they arrived in the city, it was already evening. All the products were temporarily unloaded in the office. Yu Bing was worried about leaving so many goods in the office, so she got the two employees to work in shifts and take turns staying in the shop at night to guard this batch of goods. The office in City H rented a small courtyard for staff accommodation and there were two bedrooms inside. Xiao Sheng and the male staff in the office stayed in one, while Yu Bing stayed in the other room alone. Because of the delivery, when Feng Cai returned to City H from other offices, he returned home. After dinner, the few of them had a short meeting, where Feng Cai who told them about the results of the investigation. Feng Cai pointed at a bespectacled male employee in the office and said, ¡°The steel factory¡¯s people took the initiative to find Ning Yi. The other party was Zhao Cheng, the person-in-charge of the steel factory¡¯s procurement department. He immediately asked for an order of 20,000 yuan. The only requirement was to change the contract and ensure the delivery time. I won¡¯t say the rest, since you guys understand.¡± ¡°After the incident, I began to investigate Zhao Cheng¡¯s interpersonal network. As expected, I found something! His father-in-law is Bai Sheng, the deputy factory director of the Red Flower Food Factory in City H. The Red Flower Food Factory is a medium-sized factory. The first city our food factory entered was City H. Over the past few months, our factory has also nurtured a group of loyal consumers, so it took up a large portion of Red Flower Food Factory¡¯s market share.¡± ¡°I also heard that the factory director is retiring in two months. There are three deputy factory directors in the factory who are eyeing the position of the factory director.¡± At this point, the matter was already very clear. In order to become the factory director, Bai Sheng wanted to use the bankruptcy of Delicious Food Factory as proof of his ability. He somehow found out in advance that flour was being rationed this month, so he used this to set a trap for them with his son-in-law. Another employee program said in disdain, ¡°How despicable to use such a shady method to compete for an official position. If they have the ability, they should use their products¡¯ strength to compete!¡± Chapter 403 - 403 Business Is Like a Battlefield 403 Business Is Like a Battlefield Ever since the day they found out that they had been schemed against, the two employees hadn¡¯t slept well with the threat of the compensation of 60,000 yuan looming over them! They didn¡¯t dare to imagine the consequences. If they couldn¡¯t hand over the goods, how would the factory compensate this sum of money? If they closed down because they couldn¡¯t afford the compensation, did that mean that the entire village would have to bear a heavy debt because of their mistake? With this heavy burden, the two of them felt that they were the sinners of the entire village. In just a few days, they had lost a few pounds. A few days after the incident, it was announced that the factory had received enough flour to continue producing. Only then did the two of them perk up again. The business world was like a battlefield. Yu Bing had already experienced it in her previous life. Now that she had the chance, she could teach the employees about this. ¡°Don¡¯t ever hope that your opponent has a conscience when doing business. The same rice nurtures a hundred different people. However, no matter what others do, we have to remember at all times that we have to be wary of others!¡± ¡°This is a lesson for us. Our food factory is still new, but if we want to go far, these things will definitely be unavoidable in the future. Therefore, you guys have to adjust your mentality and be vigilant.¡± Feng Cai and the two employees nodded. People were easily blinded by huge benefits. They had discussed it together after the incident. They were too greedy at that time. For the so-called huge order, they had neglected many fishy details. In fact, when they recalled it again, they discovered many loopholes. At that time, if they had calmed down and thought for a few more minutes, they might have been able to avoid this trap. In fact, many schemes that had high profits as bait were like this. They were clearly full of loopholes, but people believed them without a doubt. However, everyone had learned their lesson. At the end of the meeting, after Yu Bing instructed Feng Cai to go to work tomorrow, she immediately contacted him to set a time for the delivery that day. As long as the goods were still in their hands, it meant that the risk hadn¡¯t been diverted. In any case, the sooner the goods were delivered, the better. After work the next day, Feng Cai called the other party to set a time. He didn¡¯t want to have this hot potato for even a moment longer. After Feng Cai hung up, he said to Yu Bing, ¡°Yu Bing, the steel factory said 3 PM.¡± Yu Bing was silent for a moment before arranging, ¡°Load the car at two in the afternoon and set off at two-thirty sharp.¡± Zhao Cheng was stunned. He didn¡¯t expect this food factory to really produce all the egg yolk pastries. Most importantly, he had told the finance department that this was just a ruse and the other party would return the deposit later. How was he going to explain this to them now?! Although he was the person-in-charge of the procurement department, the procurement department needed to submit an application at the meeting and be approved before placing an order. In order to help his father-in-law, he skipped this segment and privately found the finance department to place an order on the grounds that he was helping his relatives in the food factory. Therefore, although the delivery was in the afternoon, Zhao Cheng knew that he couldn¡¯t accept this batch of goods. Otherwise, not only would he be unable to explain himself to the finance department, but he would also lose his position as the head of the procurement department! At the steel factory. Three people arrived at the steel factory 10 minutes early. Feng Cai walked to the office of the union¡¯s procurement department with familiarity and knocked on the door. ¡°Hello, Mr. Zhao. We¡¯re from Delicious Food Factory and we¡¯re here to send the shopping gift order.¡± Zhao Cheng stood up calmly and shook hands with him with a smile. ¡°Long time no see, Little Feng! You guys are very fast. You even delivered the goods in advance.¡± Feng Cai also smiled and pretended not to know that he had been schemed against. He went forward and shook hands before turning around to introduce Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng. Zhao Cheng had naturally asked about Yu Bing in advance when he set up this trap. He had only heard that she was a female intellectual and thought that she was a tough middle-aged woman. He didn¡¯t expect her to look so petite and dainty, as if she had just come of age. He was slightly surprised, but he still greeted the two of them warmly with a smile on his face. Zhao Cheng instructed a female employee in the office, ¡°Please sit down. It¡¯s rare for you to come to our office, so have some tea first. Xiao Li, help pour a cup of tea.¡± Seeing this, Yu Bing also replied politely, ¡°Mr. Zhao, you¡¯re too polite. You¡¯re our biggest customer now, so I should be the one to treat you to tea instead. Our goods are downstairs, so why don¡¯t we let them unload the goods first?¡± Chapter 404 - 404 Refusal To Admit 404 Refusal To Admit Zhao Cheng smiled and waved his hand. ¡°There¡¯s no hurry. It seems that you¡¯re an impatient person. Please have some tea and rest first.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t insist anymore. She had plenty of time today. No matter what they were up to, they had to accept the goods and give them the money! ¡°Alright, I¡¯m used to being busy. It¡¯s rare for me to be free to have a chat over tea.¡± The few of them chatted for a while more. Zhao Cheng was stalling for time because he wanted to understand Yu Bing¡¯s temper by chatting with her so that he could find a breakthrough in the subsequent negotiations. However, the troublesome thing was that he realized that although Yu Bing was young, it was very difficult to find fault with her. They had been drinking tea for almost an hour, so Zhao Cheng couldn¡¯t delay it any longer. Hence, he could only get to the point. Zhao Cheng asked curiously, ¡°I heard that flour is being rationed now. Is this news true?¡± Yu Bing also replied directly, ¡°Director Zhao, you¡¯re very well-informed. The daily supply of supply to the people is normal. People like us who don¡¯t deal with raw materials don¡¯t know this sort of thing.¡± When Zhao Cheng heard this, he suspected that the other party had already realized something, but he still continued to smile and say, ¡°I overheard a little about it. Then how did you get the flour for this batch of snacks?¡± Yu Bing teased, ¡°This concerns the production plan of our factory. Mr. Zhao, this is a trade secret, so it can¡¯t be leaked.¡± At this moment, Zhao Cheng stopped pretending. He restrained his smile and said, ¡°Miss Yu, the control of supplies means that the international situation is tense. At this time, the country needs everyone to work together to achieve great things. As a citizen, I have the right to uphold the country¡¯s policies.¡± Yu Bing and the other two sneered inwardly. He made it sound dignified and even acted like he was doing it for the country and the people. Those who didn¡¯t know better would think that he was a selfless public servant, but in reality, none of his actions were upright! Yu Bing could tell that the other party didn¡¯t want to accept this batch of goods, so she couldn¡¯t be bothered to waste time with him. ¡°Director Zhao, do you mean that you don¡¯t want to accept this batch of goods? You made us produce them, but now you don¡¯t want to accept this batch of goods, so you have to compensate us for violating the contract!¡± Zhao Cheng knew that he definitely couldn¡¯t say that on the surface. When he heard Yu Bing mention compensation, he calmed down. He had avoided this point in the contract, so he said earnestly, ¡°Since I placed an order, it means that I really want your products, but we can¡¯t go against the national policy. Do you have any evidence to prove the purchase of this flour?¡± After Zhao Cheng hung up in the morning, he immediately looked for Bai Sheng to think of a way. Bai Sheng had mentioned that the food factory might stock up on more raw materials, but the steel factory¡¯s order was too big, so it was impossible for the food factory to stock up on such a large amount in the warehouse. If these spare raw materials were bought and placed in reserve, it would take up the factory¡¯s cash flow. No factory would waste cash on spare materials in the warehouse. It was very likely that this batch of flour had been privately bought from private people through illegitimate methods, so Zhao Cheng deliberately made such a request. Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°Mr. Zhao, if I want steel from your steel factory, can I also ask you for the price list for the raw materials?¡± Zhao Cheng didn¡¯t mind Yu Bing¡¯s sarcasm. ¡°The situation is different now. If you can¡¯t produce evidence, I¡¯m very worried that you used illegal methods to buy raw materials and did things that go against policy. If that¡¯s the case, I¡¯m sorry, but I really can¡¯t accept it. Moreover, you should think of a way to make me not report you now.¡± Yu Bing wasn¡¯t angry when she heard this and didn¡¯t respond to this topic. Instead, she turned to the legal aspect. With a calm expression, she said, ¡°I¡¯ve been looking through the legal provisions in my free time recently. There¡¯s a clause that says that if the contract is only beneficial to one party, this is called a noticeable loss contract, where one can look for the court to make changes and ask for compensation if one suffers losses. I looked at the amended contract. It fits this clause quite well.¡± ¡°There¡¯s only a huge fine for our breach of contract, but there¡¯s no compensation for breach of contract for Party A. I think at this point, I can take you to court.¡± Chapter 405 - 405 No Way Out 405 No Way Out In this day and age, unless it was someone from the public inspection law, ordinary people rarely took the initiative to involve the law. Unless it was absolutely necessary, civil disputes usually wouldn¡¯t be resolved through the law. That was why Zhao Cheng had made this huge mistake. He was bent on destroying Yu Bing and earning a windfall at the same time, but he didn¡¯t expect there to be such a law, so he was dumbfounded when he heard this. A trace of panic flashed across Zhao Cheng¡¯s eyes. Not to mention going to court, he didn¡¯t even want this matter to spread beyond the door. Therefore, he couldn¡¯t help but panic as he spoke. ¡°Miss Yu, our steel factory is also a state-owned large factory. I don¡¯t want everyone to know about it, so how about this? Let¡¯s each take a step back. You can return the deposit and take the goods away. Then, the contract will be voided. You won¡¯t lose anything. If we don¡¯t want the goods, you can sell them to others.¡± Yu Bing sneered. This person was still dreaming of escaping scot-free at this point. At first, he wanted to ruin Yu Bing¡¯s factory. Now that he realized that it wouldn¡¯t work, he changed his plans. He refused to accept the goods and pay. He even wanted to take advantage of her. ¡°Director Zhao, you¡¯re really scheming! You were the one who placed the order and changed the contract. Now, you don¡¯t want it anymore! You call the shots, but you don¡¯t want to take responsibility at all. Alright, I won¡¯t talk to you anymore. I¡¯ll talk to your leader directly. I want to ask him. There¡¯s no competition between the food factory and the steel factory, so why did he set up a trap for us?¡± With that, Yu Bing stood up and planned to look for the president of the factory. Zhao Cheng immediately strode forward and blocked the door as he scolded with a cold expression, ¡°What are you trying to do? We¡¯re a state-owned factory. Is the president someone from your village¡¯s factory can see just because you want to?¡± Yu Bing crossed her arms in front of her chest and looked at Zhao Cheng indignantly. ¡°It¡¯s not up to you to decide if I get to see him or not! Why? Do you want to bully others just because you¡¯re an employee of a state-owned company? I¡¯m unafraid! I¡¯m just defending my rights. I want justice and an explanation. I¡¯m not afraid of anyone!¡± Xiao Sheng went forward and stopped Zhao Cheng, while Yu Bing walked out to look for the president¡¯s office. Zhao Cheng had no choice but to instruct his subordinate, ¡°Xiao Li, call the security department over quickly. Someone is causing trouble!¡± Although Xiao Li had been focused on writing the report previously, she had also been eavesdropping. She didn¡¯t know about the contract at all, but now that she thought about it, it should be the day he specifically gave her half a day off. After hearing the conversation just now, even a newbie like her knew that Zhao Cheng wanted to scheme against them, but he didn¡¯t expect them to have something on him as well. Hearing Zhao Cheng¡¯s instructions, although Xiao Li felt disdain for him, she had no choice but to go. However, when she saw the two men standing at the door, she was a little afraid. She was worried that she would be implicated and beaten up if she walked past them. But her worries were clearly unfounded. After Xiao Li slowly passed by them and left the office, she ran downstairs. At this moment, Xiao Sheng also let go of his hold on Zhao Cheng, who immediately ran out. Xiao Sheng and Feng Cai naturally wouldn¡¯t let Zhao Cheng stop Yu Bing, so they let Zhao Cheng follow at a moderate distance, but he couldn¡¯t get close to Yu Bing. After all, Zhao Cheng was the person involved, so they still had to confront him in front of the president later! After Yu Bing went up a flight of stairs, she found the office. Yu Bing knocked on the open door. A woman in her fifties was sitting inside. She was wearing glasses and her hair was neatly combed back. On the liver-colored frosted glass table, there was a list. On top of it, it said Allie, the president of the factory. Allie looked up when she heard the knock on the door. When she saw a young lady, she asked kindly, ¡°Hello, who are you?¡± Yu Bing entered the office with a smile and greeted politely, ¡°Hello, President Allie. I¡¯m Yu Bing, the director of Delicious Food Factory.¡± Allie took off her reading glasses and pointed to the stool in front of the table. ¡°Please sit down. Your brand is very famous now and I¡¯ve eaten several of your products. They tasted very delicious!¡± After Allie finished speaking, she changed the topic. ¡°I really want to cooperate with you, but I remember that your factory¡¯s name isn¡¯t on the procurement list this time.¡± Yu Bing was stunned for a moment before she realized that Zhao Cheng didn¡¯t leave any way out for her. Since he was so ruthless, he couldn¡¯t blame her. At this moment, Zhao Cheng, Xiao Sheng, and Feng Cai also arrived. Chapter 406 - 406 Swallowing It In One Gulp 406 Swallowing It In One Gulp After Zhao Cheng rushed in, he looked at Allie and hurriedly explained, ¡°President Ai, these people came to cause trouble because the order wasn¡¯t negotiated. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ve already called the security department to deal with it.¡± Despite hearing this, Yu Bing wasn¡¯t anxious. She took out a contract from her bag and held it in her hand as she said, ¡°If the order wasn¡¯t negotiated, why did you sign this contract with us?!¡± Then, Yu Bing sneered at Zhao Cheng as she turned around and placed the contract on the desk to hand it to Ellie. Zhao Cheng hurriedly rushed forward and snatched the contract before Allie could get it. He tore it in half, then crumpled it into a ball and stuffed it into his mouth. Although it was only a piece of paper, he almost choked on it. Zhao Cheng pounded his chest a few times before swallowing the paper ball. Then, he panted heavily. When Xiao Sheng and Feng Li finally reacted, it was already too late to stop him. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t help but swallow hard. Just looking at him made her choke. She looked at him with admiration as she marveled, ¡°Mr. Zhao, in order to keep this job, you¡¯re really going all out.¡± Then, she said something that almost made Zhao Cheng faint from anger. ¡°But I want to say that I copied an extra copy just now to prevent this sort of situation.¡± Yu Bing smiled innocently. Zhao Cheng glared at Yu Bing and gritted his teeth. Then, he turned his gaze to Yu Bing¡¯s backpack, like he wanted to rush up and snatch the bag. With the previous experience, when Xiao Sheng saw Zhao Cheng¡¯s gaze, he went forward to separate the two of them. At this moment, Xiao Li also brought five people into the office from the security department. When Zhao Cheng saw the people from the factory arrive, he said excitedly, ¡°Arrest these three troublemakers!¡± Allie had the highest ranking in the office, so the security team glanced at Allie, who hadn¡¯t spoken, and hesitated. Only then did Zhao Cheng notice that he had overstepped his authority just now, so he turned around and looked at Allie. Then, he lowered his voice and said, ¡°President Allie, these people are here to cause trouble. Go ahead and do your own thing. Don¡¯t worry about such a small matter. Leave it to me.¡± Allie glanced at Zhao Cheng, then at the calm Yu Bing and said, ¡°There¡¯s no hurry. Since there¡¯s a problem, let¡¯s solve it. I¡¯m not very busy today.¡± Yu Bing smiled and took out another contract from her bag. Fortunately, she was prepared. Although there were no photocopiers or scanners these days, there was paper, so Yu Bing specifically copied a few copies. How could she take out the original so easily? She said with a smile, ¡°Mr. Zhao, your plan to destroy the evidence has failed.¡± Yu Bing placed a new copy of the contract in front of Allie. ¡°President Allie, please take a look at this copy first.¡± Zhao Cheng didn¡¯t know if what he had eaten was the original, but he knew that unless Yu Bing really took out the original, he couldn¡¯t admit it. Evidence was the most important. If those words were just to trick him, he had to remain calm all the more. After figuring this out, he was no longer so anxious. When Allie saw the commotion Zhao Cheng had just caused, she believed Yu Bing. She looked at Zhao Cheng with a probing gaze before reaching out to pick up the contract. Yu Bing waited for Allie to put down the contract before saying slowly, ¡°President Allie, the compensation money was changed at Zhao Cheng¡¯s insistence. I originally wanted to ask you if the factory added this to all the contracts in order to ensure the delivery time, or if it was Zhao Cheng¡¯s personal actions. However, I didn¡¯t expect the truth to be that our food factory wasn¡¯t on Zhao Cheng¡¯s application list at all.¡± Then, Yu Bing explained the situation in detail. Her subordinate ignored the factory rules and even used the reputation of the steel factory for selfish purposes. After hearing this, Allie looked at Zhao Cheng with an ugly expression. She suppressed her anger as she asked, ¡°Zhao Cheng, what do you have to say?¡± Zhao Cheng gritted his teeth and replied, ¡°President Allie, don¡¯t believe this woman¡¯s words. She wrote those words herself, so of course she can say whatever she wants.¡± Yu Bing snorted. ¡°Mr. Zhao, seems you don¡¯t want to admit your mistake. Are you betting that you ate the original?¡± After making sure that Xiao Sheng could stop Zhao Cheng, Yu Bing lowered her head and opened her backpack again. This time, she took out the original version and handed it to Allie. ¡°President Allie, this is the original version. It has Mr. Zhao¡¯s signature and the contract stamp of the steel factory.¡± Chapter 407 - 407 Investigation 407 Investigation Allie took it and confirmed it carefully. After reading it, she handed it back to Yu Bing. Then, she slammed her palm on the wooden table. ¡°Zhao Cheng! I¡¯ll give you another chance to explain. What¡¯s your purpose in doing this? Who allowed you to use the steel factory to do such a thing?¡± When Zhao Cheng saw Allie¡¯s reaction, he knew that he had really been exposed. He wanted to explain, but he realized that he couldn¡¯t find a reason. After all, the other party had already taken out the evidence, so he could only lower his head in silence. Allie had to investigate Zhao Cheng¡¯s motive for setting up a trap in the name of a purchase, but she also knew that internal scandals couldn¡¯t be exposed, so the specific investigation must have been done internally. She calmed down and said to Yu Bing with a smile, ¡°Miss Yu, we will definitely give you an explanation for this. The investigation will take some time, but we will definitely contact you as soon as the results are out.¡± This was equivalent to saying that they had to wait for the results of the investigation before they could deal with this batch of goods. Yu Bing looked troubled. ¡°President Allie, I know you definitely have to investigate first before you can give us the results, but we can¡¯t afford to delay. We charter this transport truck, so every day costs us money.¡± ¡°Back then, in order to accept your steel factory¡¯s order, our food factory did our best. We invested a lot of manpower and resources, so don¡¯t blame me for being blunt. If the result you give is that you refuse to accept this contract, I definitely won¡¯t agree.¡± 20,000 yuan wasn¡¯t a small sum, so Allie couldn¡¯t decide it on her own. The main reason was that Zhao Cheng had not applied for it at the conference where they had discussed the festivities previously, and the budget and plan for the festivities had already been prepared. The cooperating manufacturers had already signed the contract and given them a deposit. If they wanted to accept the egg yolk pastries, it meant that they had to spend more than 20,000 yuan on the festivities this time! After Allie thought for a moment, she could only answer, ¡°Miss Yu, I already understand your request. I¡¯ll highlight it at the meeting, but after all, it¡¯s not up to me to decide. I can¡¯t give you an answer now. How about this? I¡¯ll definitely give you a definite answer the day after tomorrow at the latest.¡± Yu Bing also knew the protocol of these state-owned factories, so two days was already considered fast. ¡°President Allie, I¡¯m not making things difficult for you. We can¡¯t compare to the state-owned enterprises. The village¡¯s factory concerns the livelihood of us farmers, so I hope your state-owned factory can be more understanding and help us.¡± Allie nodded in understanding. The state-owned factory was backed by the country, and the collective industry of the village was the side industry of the farmers, so the investment wasn¡¯t on the same level. However, the country was now strongly encouraging rural enterprises to revitalize the economy, so this was also an excuse for her to help them get this additional order. Yu Bing could only pull the goods back. Feng Cai said in dejection, ¡°The fuel money for this round trip has been wasted again!¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°Pay attention to the situation! If we can think of a way to really cooperate with the steel factory, there¡¯ll be more opportunities in the future.¡± Feng Cai was a little skeptical. ¡°What if Zhao Cheng uses his connections to protect himself? At that time, we¡¯ll be arch-enemies. It would be strange if he places an order with us!¡± Yu Bing replied affirmatively, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Even if Zhao Cheng can keep his job, it¡¯s definitely impossible for him to stay in the procurement department anymore. He shouldn¡¯t even think about becoming a cadre! 20,000 yuan is a lot of money. Moreover, he did this in the name of the steel factory. How can the steel factory let him off so easily?¡± Feng Cai was relieved when he heard this. Then, he said regretfully, ¡°Unfortunately, we can¡¯t do anything to the real mastermind. Zhao Cheng can¡¯t drag his father-in-law down with him.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she fell silent. She was also thinking of a countermeasure for this matter. Seeing this, Xiao Sheng interrupted, ¡°It¡¯s not like there¡¯s nothing we can do.¡± The two of them immediately looked at him with sparkling eyes. He Mountain Village. Madam Sun was pushing her luck. Madam Sun arrived at Wen Qin¡¯s house before lunch every day. Then, she ate two meals and left after dinner. However, after Wen Qin and her son went out, Madam Sun¡¯s actions attracted a lot of criticism. Wen Qin could only turn a deaf ear and resolve to fight the Sun family to the end. Although Madam Sun and her son¡¯s true colors had been exposed in He Mountain Village, there were always some busybodies and troublemakers in the village. When they saw Madam Sun, they couldn¡¯t help but tease her. Chapter 408 - 408 Dare Not To Give In 408 Dare Not To Give In Of course, Madam Sun knew that the other party was up to no good and wanted to laugh at her, but she also had her own motives. As long as she could live a good life, what was the big deal about being mocked? Moreover, she was bored sitting here every day, so if others wanted to inquire about family matters and mock her, she could use them to kill time. With this mentality, Madam Sun¡¯s waiting time in He Mountain Village became more and more comfortable. She even had her own group of friends to chat with when she was free. When Wen Qin discovered this, she thought of a countermeasure and prepared lunch every morning instead. Xiao Hui went straight to the food factory after school, and the location of her lunch break was changed to the office. The factory had also hired two security guards now. Unless one was an employee of the factory, one couldn¡¯t enter. However, Madam Sun also had countermeasures. Madam Sun took advantage of Wen Qin not wanting to fall out with her in front of her child. She changed the timing to right before dinner. She didn¡¯t go back at night and slept on the brick bed instead. The brick bed was big, so seven or eight people could sleep on it. As the two of them kept butting heads in the village, the office in City H also received a notice from the steel factory two days later. Yu Bing only brought Xiao Sheng and Feng Cai. At the steel factory. The office where they met this time was changed to a conference room. Other than Allie and Zhao Cheng, the person in charge of the finance department and the deputy factory director also came. It could be seen that 20,000 yuan had a huge impact even on a profitable steel factory. It was equivalent to the monthly salary of hundreds of employees. Although it had only been two days, Zhao Cheng was no longer as high-spirited as before. His chin was covered in stubble, and his eyes were bloodshot. His suit was also a little wrinkled at this moment. His eyes were lowered, and he looked listless. After everyone sat around the rectangular conference table, they began to greet each other. Then, Allie put on her reading glasses, took out a red-headed document, and began to read the results of Zhao Cheng¡¯s investigation. ¡°Zhao Cheng has already admitted that he set a trap for ¡®Delicious Food Factory¡¯. His goal was to obtain a high compensation for breach of contract. After a meeting, we¡¯ve decided that Zhao Cheng will be expelled from public service and given a serious demerit record on his file.¡± Yu Bing sneered inwardly. Wasn¡¯t this just a pretense for shirking responsibility? The two families knew that even if Zhao Cheng revealed his father-in-law, it would only implicate one more person. Therefore, they must have already discussed it in private. If they could save one, they would. The position of deputy factory director was more valuable than the head of the procurement department. After Allie finished reading, she put down the document, took off her glasses, and smiled kindly at Yu Bing as she said, ¡°It¡¯s a fact that you were deceived by Zhao Cheng, but we¡¯ve already finished planning our budget. At the moment, we really can¡¯t apply for an additional 20,000 yuan, but we also admit that it was caused by poor factory supervision, so as compensation, we¡¯re willing to increase the budget by 10,200 yuan to buy half of your goods.¡± Yu Bing patiently listened to Allie tell her about the meeting¡¯s decision. The corners of her mouth curled up slightly as she said in a calm yet sonorous voice, ¡°President Allie, if it weren¡¯t for the fact that he was the head of the procurement department of a state-owned enterprise, my colleague definitely wouldn¡¯t have signed such an unfair contract so easily.¡± Then, Yu Bing said earnestly, ¡°Moreover, for a state-owned factory like yours, it¡¯s difficult to increase the budget by more than 20,000 yuan. It¡¯s not that I¡¯m unwilling to give in, but with the burden of hundreds of families¡¯ livelihoods, I don¡¯t dare to give in!¡± The steel factory¡¯s leader was silent for a few seconds before the deputy factory director said, ¡°Miss Yu, among all our orders, the most expensive order is only a little more than 10,000 yuan. State-owned enterprises have our own protocol system.¡± ¡°In order to prevent embezzlement, we have regulations. The corresponding cooperative price for daily purchases can¡¯t exceed the corresponding amount. Moreover, our budget for gifts is already at the maximum. We only obtained this 10,200 yuan order after two meetings.¡± The rules of these state-owned enterprises were especially rigid. Yu Bing knew that the other party wasn¡¯t lying, so she asked, ¡°What about daily employee benefits?¡± Chapter 409 - 409 Discussion Alone 409 Discussion Alone The deputy factory director replied helplessly, ¡°The purchase of daily benefits has already been budgeted and approved by the suppliers for the second half of the year. We¡¯ve also seen that the expiration date of your food is half a year. The earliest is January next year. It¡¯s only August now. By the time we can distribute it, there will only be a two-month expiration date. The workers definitely won¡¯t accept it.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she knew that these leaders had indeed thought of all the solutions they could think of, so she didn¡¯t make things difficult for them. However, the smile on her face deepened. ¡°You guys only heard Zhao Cheng¡¯s own story, right?¡± When the leaders heard this, they looked at each other. Zhao Cheng had confessed to everything he had done. There were no loopholes in regard to his motive and what had happened, so the truth was clear. It didn¡¯t seem like there was a scapegoat, so what was there to investigate? Yu Bing didn¡¯t intend to let them answer. She continued, ¡°Zhao Cheng¡¯s father-in-law is the deputy director of the Red Flower Food Factory in City H. Your steel factory does not have any competitive relationship with our food factory, so it¡¯s not just for the compensation, right? Mr. Zhao has been in this position for less than 10 years, but this year, when we entered City H¡¯s market and occupied the market share of Red Flower Food Factory, he set this trap.¡± When everyone heard Yu Bing¡¯s words, they knew that Zhao Cheng was still hiding something. However, that was another factory. It didn¡¯t matter if Zhao Cheng confessed or not. After all, they couldn¡¯t interfere. However, now that Yu Bing had mentioned this, everyone understood what she was thinking. The deputy factory director was a straightforward person, so he asked directly, ¡°Do you want to change the daily purchase share of the Red Flower Food Factory to your factory¡¯s?¡± Yu Bing nodded with a smile. ¡°The person who started it has to be punished. I believe the reason you did this is also because of your relationship with your father-in-law. Why don¡¯t you discuss it with your father-in-law?¡± Zhao Cheng raised his eyes and glared at Yu Bing. He had taken responsibility for this matter so that it wouldn¡¯t affect his father-in-law. In that case, he would still have a chance to compete for the position of factory director. However, if the Red Flower Food Factory lost its big client, the steel factory, the likelihood of him getting the position of factory director was even more out of the question! Zhao Cheng recalled that his father-in-law had promised him the night before that as long as he survived this crisis, he would help him get another job. Even if he was just an ordinary staff member, at least he would have a job and a salary. If his father-in-law was implicated, his career would be ruined! ¡°Yu Bing, I advise you to leave a way out.¡± Yu Bing smiled indifferently. ¡°Zhao Cheng, when you set me up, did you think of leaving me a way out? 60,000 yuan! All the assets of our food factory combined are not enough to pay for the compensation! If you had considered the farmers¡¯ families behind this factory, you wouldn¡¯t have been so ruthless. Since you¡¯re so heartless, don¡¯t blame me for being heartless either!¡± Seeing that Yu Bing didn¡¯t give in to the threat and had an even tougher attitude, Zhao Cheng could only grit his teeth and glare at Yu Bing with a sinister gaze. After the three leaders of the steel factory exchanged looks, they turned around and went to the empty space at the side to quietly discuss the feasibility of this plan. After more than ten minutes, the three of them returned to the conference table again. ¡°Miss Yu, it¡¯s a little difficult for us to carry out the plan you proposed. We signed a contract with the Red Flower Food Factory. If we terminate the contract for this reason, we will definitely have to pay compensation for breach of contract unless they¡¯re willing to negotiate the cancellation of the order without compensation.¡± They were actually telling Yu Bing that if Zhao Cheng could persuade the Red Flower Food Factory to terminate the contract, they could cooperate with Yu Bing. When Yu Bing heard this, she was in no hurry. She turned to look at Zhao Cheng with a smile and said gently, ¡°Zhao Cheng, why don¡¯t you tell your father-in-law?¡± Zhao Cheng had already been fired and was in the process of handing over his work. In any case, he wasn¡¯t going to stay here anymore, so he didn¡¯t have to maintain his image in front of the leaders. Hence, when he saw Yu Bing thinking of a way to sell the remaining half of the goods, he was a little smug. He gloated and said, ¡°Dream on! Just wait for those goods to rot!¡± Yu Bing wasn¡¯t angry. This batch of goods could be sold in less than half a month to those she had stopped supplying this month. Yu Bing was confident, but she had to make Zhao Cheng accept punishment and deal with this batch of goods. Yu Bing said to the leaders kindly, ¡°Leaders, can we discuss it with Zhao Cheng alone?¡± Chapter 410 - 410 Admission Ticket 410 Admission Ticket They had already persuaded many people in order to get half of the orders. If Yu Bing could settle the rest of the goods herself, as long as it didn¡¯t affect the interests of the steel factory, they could turn a blind eye. Allie replied with a smile, ¡°Of course. We¡¯ll go to the office next door. After you¡¯ve discussed it, come find us.¡± Seeing this, Zhao Cheng revealed a disdainful smile. Thinking about how Yu Bing was going to lower her head to him later, he felt relaxed and leaned against the back of the chair. Yu Bing placed her hand on the table and leaned forward as she said with a sincere expression, ¡°Zhao Cheng, there are two choices for you now. One is to tell your father-in-law to take the initiative to withdraw from the supply list of the steel factory. The second is for me to call the police and tell the police about your fraud. I¡¯m so easygoing that I even gave you a chance to choose.¡± When Zhao Cheng heard the police report, he stood up anxiously. Seeing this, Feng Cai stood up as well. ¡°What do you want to do? If you want to fight, we¡¯ll report another crime when we call the police!¡± AFter Zhao Cheng calmed down and thought about it for a while, he said, ¡°I didn¡¯t get a single cent from you guys, right?! How did I scam you guys? At most, I set you guys up to help my father-in-law!¡± Yu Bing smiled. ¡°You¡¯re underestimating it. No matter what, this can be considered an attempted fraud. It should be enough to sentence you to a few months of labor reform. This glorious record will also be on your file.¡± Zhao Cheng was frustrated. He wasn¡¯t sure if he committed attempted fraud or not, since he wasn¡¯t a law student! However, since Yu Bing directly suggested calling the police, he had no choice but to consider her chances of success. Being sent to jail and doing hard labor on a farm was no joke. Putting aside how difficult life was there, as long as there was a record on his file, no factory would accept him again. This was no longer a matter of whether his father-in-law had connections or not. Although Zhao Cheng had only interacted with Yu Bing twice, from the fact that the other party had completed the order and successfully counterattacked, he knew that if the other party really dared to call the police. If the police didn¡¯t do anything, they would get payback another way. However, he couldn¡¯t risk the rest of his life to bet on it! Yu Bing actually wasn¡¯t confident that she could suppress Zhao Cheng through the police. The new regime had only been established for a short period of time, so the current laws couldn¡¯t be compared to those of decades later. Perhaps some law had a loophole for him to exploit. Moreover, this flour couldn¡¯t be investigated. Now, she had to quickly get rid of it before Zhao Cheng realized it. Otherwise, if this matter blew up, she would have to use Zeng Li¡¯s connections to resolve it. Yu Bing would feel embarrassed if she kept asking Xiao Sheng to do her a favor. Therefore, Yu Bing wanted to use this method to make both sides suffer. They had to pay the price for this sort of underhanded competition! Zhao Cheng, the direct perpetrator, had already suffered retribution, but the mastermind couldn¡¯t escape either. They had to suffer this loss, so that Yu Bing and the others could vent their anger. Zhao Cheng was silent for a long time before choosing to compromise. ¡°I¡¯ll give you an answer tomorrow.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t give them time to discuss. She complained impatiently, ¡°I¡¯ve already been delayed here for a few days. The food, accommodation, and car charter are all expenses. We¡¯re villagers, so our lives are not as easy as that of leaders like you guys. Call your father-in-law now. Otherwise, we can only meet at the police station. If we drag your father-in-law into this, it will be even more disadvantageous for you.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s attitude was very firm. When Zhao Cheng heard this, he could only glare at Yu Bing in exasperation. His chest heaved as he gritted his teeth and replied, ¡°Alright! I¡¯ll call him now!¡± The outcome was as Yu Bing had hoped. After all, if she called the police, she would definitely implicate the two of them. No matter what the outcome was, it would negatively affect Zhao Cheng¡¯s father-in-law. If Zhao Cheng¡¯s father-in-law¡¯s competitors found out about Yu Bing¡¯s matter, this election opportunity would be gone forever. It was unknown what method Zhao Cheng¡¯s father-in-law used, but the next day, he made the Red Flower Food Factory agree to terminate the contract with the steel factory. After the contract was terminated the next day, the Delicious Food Factory took over the share of the Red Flower Food Factory and signed a contract with the steel factory to obtain the admission ticket they had dreamed of. Feng Cai was very excited when he saw the new procurement contract! As long as they got a foot in the door, with the high quality of their food, as long as the salespeople put effort into maintaining this cooperation, they wouldn¡¯t have to worry about the next collaboration opportunity! Chapter 411 - 411 Separation 411 Separation After the order crisis was resolved this time, all the office employees were divided into two batches and returned to the factory for anti-fraud training. The goal of the training was to prevent and see through the various traps set by others. After all, Yu Bing had so much anti-fraud knowledge in her mind. It would be a waste not to use them as examples. Yu Bing was delayed by something and got off work half an hour late. When she passed by the accounting room, she heard voices inside. ¡°Mom, is it because of Grandma that we¡¯re not going home at noon? Are we not going back to Dad and Grandma¡¯s house in the future?¡± A childish voice came from the door. In the finance room, Sun Hui¡¯s small body was covered by Wen Qin¡¯s thin jacket as he lay on the one-meter-long desk. Because of malnutrition, he looked like he was four years old at six years old. Wen Qin looked at her son¡¯s clear and bright eyes, which revealed the innocence unique to children. She originally wanted to resolve things peacefully with the Sun family behind his back, but seeing Madam Sun¡¯s actions, she knew that she was too naive. Sooner or later, the child would have to know. Wasn¡¯t Madam Sun so fearless because Madam Sun knew she didn¡¯t want the child to be affected? However, if this continued, the child would probably be affected even more. After making up her mind, Wen Qin asked, ¡°I¡¯m going to leave your dad. Are you willing to live with me?¡± Sun Hui didn¡¯t answer immediately. He lowered his eyes and thought for a moment. Wen Qin¡¯s heart was in her throat as she stared at the expression on her son¡¯s face. Sun Hui didn¡¯t remain silent for long. After he looked up at Wen Qin, he replied seriously, ¡°Mom, if we have to be separated, I¡¯ll be with you. The child in your stomach will be born soon, so I want to protect you guys. Grandma has my father, and you have me.¡± After Sun Hui finished speaking, he patted his chest with his small hand, as if he wanted to use this action to increase the credibility of his words. Wen Qin¡¯s eyes instantly filled with tears as she held her son¡¯s small hand and kissed it. With her son¡¯s assurance, she was much more confident. When Yu Bing heard the mother and son¡¯s conversation, she couldn¡¯t help but think of the rumors she had heard when she returned to the village two days ago. Hence, she raised her hand and knocked on the door of the accounting room. ¡°Wen Qin, I¡¯m Yu Bing.¡± When Wen Qin heard Yu Bing¡¯s voice, she hurriedly stood up and opened the door. ¡°Yu Bing, you¡¯re not off work yet?¡± Yu Bing replied in embarrassment, ¡°I just locked the door and was about to go home. When I passed by just now, I overheard your conversation.¡± Then, Yu Bing asked with concern, ¡°I heard that Madam Sun has started to stay at your house overnight?¡± Wen Qin nodded helplessly. ¡°I plan to talk to her after work today.¡± Yu Bing patted Wen Qin¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Let me know if you need help.¡± Wen Qin pursed her lips and smiled as she said, ¡°Okay!¡± Yu Bing and Wen Qin chatted for a while before leaving. At four in the afternoon, Madam Sun appeared in He Mountain Village as usual. ¡°You¡¯re quite punctual. You appear at this time every day.¡± Madam Ning, one of Madam Sun¡¯s friends, took the initiative to greet her. Madam Sun replied with a smile, ¡°I just wanted to chat with you guys for a while. Why didn¡¯t Bai Tao come today?¡± Madam Ning said mysteriously, ¡°Bai Tao¡¯s family caused a huge commotion this morning. Her second daughter-in-law wants to leave. She¡¯s very angry and is probably lying at home.¡± Madam Sun immediately leaned forward and asked curiously, ¡°Isn¡¯t her youngest son still unmarried? Why does the family want to leave under such circumstances?¡± Rural families usually split up after their children became adults and got married. If all the sons in the family wanted to split up, their parents would mostly agree. They would most likely live with their eldest son after they split up. When Madam Ning saw that Madam Sun was interested in her news, she said, ¡°She has three sons and two daughters, but she dotes on the youngest son the most. Her second daughter-in-law works in our village¡¯s food factory. Bai Tao was envious and wanted to get her youngest son a spot in our village¡¯s food factory as well.¡± ¡°However, Yu Bing is very strict. Moreover, the recruitment process for the food factory is very rigorous. It¡¯s impossible to bribe her. Therefore, her youngest son failed a few times.¡± ¡°Bai Tao didn¡¯t give up and got someone to find a part-time worker job in the town¡¯s factory. This will cost a lot of money, so her second daughter-in-law objected. She thinks that after she submits her monthly salary, Bai Tao will use it to subsidize her youngest son. In a few months, she will have to pay the betrothal gift. This morning, she forced Bai Tao to choose between her youngest son¡¯s job and marriage. If she wants to choose both, she has to split up the family first.¡± Chapter 412 - 412 Dont Want Money 412 Don¡¯t Want Money Madam Ning told Madam Sun a bunch of things about Bai Tao¡¯s family, but Madam Sun only heard, ¡°Yu Bing doesn¡¯t accept bribes.¡± Seeing that Madam Ning was talking excitedly, Madam Sun could only suppress her curiosity and listen attentively. In fact, Madam Sun¡¯s thoughts had already unfolded with that sentence. She felt that her idea was good, but she had yet to plan how to implement it. She had to hurry! When Madam Ning finally finished speaking, Madam Sun hurriedly asked, ¡°How much?¡± Madam Ning was stunned and asked in confusion, ¡°How much?¡± Madam Sun repeated impatiently, ¡°When Bai Tao wanted to send her son to work in the food factory, how much was she planning to spend?¡± When Madam Ning heard this, she thought that Madam Sun also wanted to spend money to send her son to the factory, so she didn¡¯t think too much about it. ¡°100 yuan!¡± At this moment, Madam Sun felt that Yu Bing was like a cash cow! After Madam Ning thought for a moment, she said in a gloating tone, ¡°Your son can forget about it. Isn¡¯t your daughter-in-law in the midst of a divorce? Yu Bing is quite protective. Moreover, you even brought people to cause trouble for her last time. No matter how much money you give her now, she won¡¯t let your son in.¡± The old people in the village didn¡¯t go to the fields. After all, the chores at home was relatively easy. Only very diligent and healthy old people would insist on working in the fields to earn work points. Madam Sun glanced at Madam Ning silently, but she felt disdain for her. No wonder she had to wash clothes, cook, and take care of children for the younger generation in the family. Unlike her, who only had to take care of her grandson occasionally and teach her daughter-in-law a few lessons every day. Of course, she left all the chores to her daughter-in-law. Previously, Wen Qin was obedient. Later on, before the divorce, she gave half of her salary every month. But now¡­ She no longer cared about that money. After all, as long as she helped her son deal with Yu Bing, she would be able to enjoy life. When Madam Sun thought of how Yu Bing had rejected Bai Tao and missed out on the 100 yuan benefit fee, her heart ached. When her son married Yu Bing, she would definitely teach her a lesson. She was a fool if she didn¡¯t accept free money. The two of them were alike. Although they both felt that the other party was inferior to them, when they gossiped about other people¡¯s matters, the two of them would have the same opinion. They chatted excitedly until past five o¡¯clock before Madam Ning got up and went home to cook. Madam Sun waited for Wen Qin to appear. Then, she stood up, patted the dust off her butt, and followed Wen Qin into the house. Madam Sun went straight to the living room as usual and waited for dinner to start. However, she realized that Wen Qin was following her instead of going to the kitchen. The smile on Madam Sun¡¯s face gradually disappeared as she said gloomily, ¡°Why aren¡¯t you cooking? Are you trying to starve me to death?¡± Wen Qin pushed Xiao Hui gently. ¡°Xiao Hui, go into your room. I have something to say to your grandma.¡± After Xiao Hui looked at the two of them, he obediently entered the room and closed the door. Wen Qin turned around and looked at Madam Sun as she said with an impassive expression, ¡°It¡¯s useless for you to waste time with me. I¡¯ve already filed for divorce more than a month ago. The verdict will come soon. You can delay it for another month at most. If you dare to appear at my house again, I can sue you for trespassing!¡± Madam Sun was an illiterate person who only knew how to write her name. She didn¡¯t know if Wen Qin was telling the truth, but she felt that as long as she had Xiao Hui, everything could be considered family matters. As long as it wasn¡¯t a matter of life and death, even officials couldn¡¯t interfere! ¡°Are you trying to scare me? As a grandmother, I can¡¯t even visit my grandson? Which country has such an unreasonable law? Do you think you can fool me just because I don¡¯t know the law? I¡¯m much older than you!¡± As Madam Sun spoke, she took out her tobacco pipe to poke Wen Qin like before. After Wen Qin snatched Madam Sun¡¯s tobacco pipe and threw it to the ground, the brass pipe and the dark red hollow golden sandalwood connecting the pipe mouth were broken, and the cigarette mouth was also broken in half. Madam Sun was stunned. To Madam Sun, this cigarette butt proved that she had once been a master and that there had been people who had been ordered around by her. It was also a symbol of her former status. It was a witness to the glorious life she had led after giving birth to a son for Mr. Sun. However, all of this disappeared with the broken pipe. Chapter 413 - 413 Cigarette Pole 413 Cigarette Pole Madam Sun was furious. ¡°You b*tch! I¡¯ll beat you to death!¡± She raised her hand to hit Wen Qin. Madam Sun even had delusions that Wen Qin would stand there and let her beat and scold her like before. Wen Qin raised her hand and grabbed Madam Sun¡¯s thin arm so tightly that Madam Sun couldn¡¯t break free. ¡°I went to the hospital to do an injury report and have already submitted it to the court. This is enough to prove that you and your son have been using domestic violence on me for a long time.¡± ¡°Also, there¡¯s the record of so many years of work. Speaking of which, I really have to thank you. Ever since I arrived at your house, you stopped working and even taught your son to slack off. The work points of the two of you are not as much as mine alone. Not to mention, other than work points, I also have a salary now, so I¡¯m definitely taking custody of Xiao Hui!¡± ¡°If you want to visit your grandson, do so at the door. After all, I¡¯m not at ease with people who have violent tendencies and have been detained before!¡± Wen Qin knew that her son would hear everything she said, but she still chose to respond to Madam Sun rudely. If she continued to compromise like this, she would only be in a slightly better situation than before. Wen Qin didn¡¯t want her son to interact with the Sun family at all. People¡¯s values were formed when they were children, so Wen Qin felt that she should cut ties quickly. Madam Sun was shocked, but she still put on a fierce look as she tried to break free from Wen Qin¡¯s hand. Then, she gritted her teeth and said, ¡°I won¡¯t let you off easy! Just you wait!¡± From Wen Qin¡¯s determined gaze and tone, Madam Sun knew that Wen Qin was beyond her control now. Since they were not divorced yet, she was still her mother-in-law. Even if she suffered today, she couldn¡¯t let Wen Qin off easy. Hence, she shouted at the door, ¡°Help! My daughter-in-law is going to beat me to death!¡± Madam Sun¡¯s sharp voice spread. At this time, everyone had just returned home from work. When they heard this shout, many people left the living room and walked to the courtyard to find out which family the voice came from. Seeing this, Wen Qin didn¡¯t stand on ceremony anymore. She grabbed Madam Sun¡¯s arm and dragged her out of the door. Madam Sun refused to leave and let out a miserable scream. ¡°Ah! Someone¡¯s going to die! Help!¡± When Wen Qin finally dragged Madam Sun to the door and opened it, she saw that there was already a crowd outside. At this moment, Madam Sun stopped struggling and let Wen Qin pull her. She forced out two drops of tears as she said, ¡°Villagers, please help me. I want to see my grandson. What right does Wen Qin have to refuse?¡± ¡°She scared me to death. I thought someone died!¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you see what Madam Sun was like last time? She likes to exaggerate things.¡± ¡°If the old woman wants to see her grandson, Wen Qin is being too unreasonable if she refuses.¡± Madam Ning was originally cooking at home. When she heard from the passersby that something had happened to Wen Qin¡¯s family, she hurriedly ran over to watch the commotion. When she heard this, she defended her friend. ¡°That¡¯s right. At this age, other than her grandson, she doesn¡¯t have any other concerns. As her daughter-in-law, it¡¯s fine if she¡¯s not filial, but she doesn¡¯t even let her grandson see her. She¡¯s too vicious!¡± Everyone was discussing at the door, but Wen Qin didn¡¯t intend to explain too much. ¡°I¡¯ve already filed for divorce with the court and the verdict will be out soon, so I¡¯m no longer the daughter-in-law of the Sun family. As for visiting the child, the verdict will decide it. Everything will be done according to the law.¡± Madam Sun thought quickly. ¡°Then before the court gives the verdict, you¡¯ll still be my daughter-in-law. Whether I want to see my grandson or not is none of your business!¡± Madam Ning wanted to blow things up, so when she heard Madam Sun¡¯s retort, she immediately added, ¡°That¡¯s right! Wen Qin, why are you so immoral? How can you bully an old woman who loves her grandson so dearly?¡± ¡°Madam Ning, you have to help the right people. The immoral one is Madam Sun instead of Wen Qin,¡± A villager mocked. Chapter 414 - 414 Manipulation 414 Manipulation ¡°That¡¯s right! Your memory isn¡¯t good, but we have good memories. The scar on Wen Qin¡¯s arm that day scared me. Madam Sun and her son don¡¯t even treat people as humans, so I wonder who¡¯s the immoral one.¡± ¡°Children are unfilial when parents are unfilial. There¡¯s a reason for all of this. Madam Sun, we¡¯ve all seen what kind of person you are last time, but you still haven¡¯t given up and still came to our place to cause trouble!¡± Most people were still on Wen Qin¡¯s side, so Madam Ning naturally wouldn¡¯t continue standing up for her. Madam Sun didn¡¯t expect so many people to help Wen Qin. Seeing this, Wen Qin became even more confident. ¡°Xiao Hui¡¯s grandma, don¡¯t come to my house in the future! Even if the verdict hasn¡¯t been handed down, I¡¯m not related to you by blood and I rented this house. If you barge in without my permission, it can be considered trespassing. If I call the police, you¡¯ll definitely be detained again.¡± When Wen Qin mentioned detention, everyone recalled that Madam Sun had been arrested by the police and looked at Madam Sun with disgust. ¡°Let¡¯s go, son. This is someone who¡¯s been in prison. She¡¯s a bad person! Let¡¯s not get too close.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t see it that day. So she was the one who was arrested!¡± ¡°I happened to be there that day and witnessed the entire process. This old woman is so hateful. After slandering the accountant, she slandered Miss Yu. To put it bluntly, she wants to force Miss Yu to fire the accountant. The accountant can only go home after losing her job. What would be waiting for her next is to return to the Sun family and continue doing hard labor!¡± There were some smart people who could tell at a glance what Madam Sun was planning. However, Madam Sun wasn¡¯t afraid of the detention center at all. In any case, it was just a matter of going in for a few days. Food and accommodation were provided, and she didn¡¯t have to work. However, looking at the people pointing at her outside, she knew that she wouldn¡¯t be able to gain anything today, so she stared at Wen Qin as she said fiercely, ¡°I want to take away my pipe!¡± With that, she turned around and entered the living room. After she picked up her broken cigarette butt, she walked past Wen Qin. When she turned around, she looked at Wen Qin venomously. Then, she snorted and walked out of Wen Qin¡¯s house. Seeing that there was nothing much to see, everyone dispersed. Madam Sun cursed all the way back to the village. Unexpectedly, she discovered Yu Bing, who had returned home alone. She walked forward with a smile and greeted, ¡°Yu Bing, are you off work?¡± Yu Bing felt a chill run down her spine when she saw Madam Sun¡¯s wrinkled smile. She sized her up suspiciously but didn¡¯t speak. Madam Sun continued, ¡°I heard that you live at the back of the village. I¡¯ve been wandering around recently and realized that there aren¡¯t many families there, so it¡¯s not safe. Although you live with another female intellectual, you two are still girls.¡± Then, she said earnestly, ¡°A girl should get married as soon as possible. With a man at home, she will have a pillar of support.¡± Yu Bing replied with a fake smile, ¡°Wen Qin is the pillar of your family, right?¡± Madam Sun¡¯s expression froze for a moment as she cursed Yu Bing inwardly. However, when she thought of how she had once tortured Wen Qin and imagined the scene of her torturing Yu Bing, her anger dissipated. She put on a magnanimous expression as she said, ¡°Children don¡¯t understand the concept of family. No matter how capable a woman is, she has to get married¡­¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she turned around and left. She couldn¡¯t even be bothered to say another word to Madam Sun. It was a waste of time to hear such brainwashing words. When Madam Sun saw Yu Bing turn around, her anger that had finally subsided rose again! She cursed softly, ¡°Little bitch, let¡¯s see if you still dare to be so arrogant after Sun Guo screws you! This time, we learned a lesson from that b*tch Wen Qin. We have to think of a way to control Yu Bing!¡± ¡°You still dare to come to our place?¡± Yu Yan wrapped her fingers around the braid on her chest and stood beside Madam Sun. As she stared at Yu Bing¡¯s departing back, she teased Madam Sun in amusement. The sudden voice startled Madam Sun and she took a few steps back. ¡°Ah!¡± Chapter 415 - 415 Encouraging Education 415 Encouraging Education Yu Yan looked at Madam Sun with interest as she asked with a smile, ¡°Madam Sun, why are you so scared?¡± When Madam Sun saw that it was Yu Yan, she rolled her eyes at her. ¡°You have the nerve to stay here? Why wouldn¡¯t I dare to come? You make it sound like you¡¯re not the one who entered the police station with me!¡± ¡°You¡­¡± Yu Yan pointed at Madam Sun, but couldn¡¯t refute her. She quickly looked around and heaved a sigh of relief when she realized that there was no one around. Madam Sun looked at Yu Yan in disdain. ¡°What do you mean?! You want to cause trouble, but you¡¯re so timid. No wonder you can¡¯t compare to Yu Bing! You guys are both surnamed Yu, but why are you so much worse?!¡± Madam Sun had always felt that Yu Yan was the one who caused her to go to jail, so she felt like they were enemies. Even Yu Bing was ranked lower in terms of enemy status. Moreover, it was obvious that Yu Yan couldn¡¯t stand Yu Bing, so Madam Sun knew that Yu Bing was Yu Yan¡¯s sore spot! As expected, Yu Yan was furious. Yu Yan couldn¡¯t stand people praising Yu Bing in front of her! Just as she was about to say something, she recalled what she had heard Madam Sun mutter when she approached just now. Although Madam Sun¡¯s voice was soft, Yu Yan still heard it. After she thought about it for a moment, she decided to add fuel to the fire. Yu Yan pretended to be angry and said, ¡°What¡¯s the use of thinking highly of her?! Yu Bing¡¯s monthly salary is dozens of yuan, but will it go to your pocket just because you put in a few good words for her?¡± Dozens of yuan? Madam Sun¡¯s eyes lit up. Yu Yan was very satisfied when she saw Madam Sun¡¯s greedy expression and she continued to add fuel to the fire, ¡°You¡¯re so funny. She caused us to get sent to jail while she fooled around with a man. Why are you helping her?!¡± Last time, Madam Sun was misled by Yu Yan¡¯s words. This time, when she heard Yu Yan¡¯s ambiguous words again, she was a little suspicious and looked at Yu Yan with a gaze that said, ¡°Don¡¯t treat me like a fool.¡± Yu Yan felt exasperated. Yu Yan originally wanted Madam Sun to know that Yu Bing had a crush, so Madam Sun should make a move quickly. She didn¡¯t expect Madam Sun to become so cautious after being tricked once. Yu Yan could only say, ¡°If you don¡¯t believe me, you can ask around. It¡¯s that man who looked for the police last time. If he wasn¡¯t interested in Yu Bing, would he have run around for her? When he went, the two of them were sitting together intimately. You saw it too! I¡¯m not lying.¡± Madam Sun quickly recalled Xiao Sheng¡¯s appearance. She had to admit that Xiao Sheng¡¯s appearance was indeed handsome. Her son was nowhere as handsome. At the thought of this, she felt a little uneasy. When Yu Yan saw Madam Sun frown slightly, she knew that Madam Sun was convinced. The corners of her mouth curled up into a smug smile and she regained her good mood. Yu Bing had no idea they were scheming against her at this moment. She went to the commune in the afternoon and bought some pork and pork bones in town. After Yu Bing entered Wen Qin¡¯s courtyard, she saw Sun Hui squatting in the small courtyard while practicing calligraphy with a tree branch. As she approached, she encouraged with a smile, ¡°Xiao Hui is so diligent!¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t have any children in her previous life, but she knew that encouragement was very important for children like Xiao Hui, who were not outgoing enough. She had to praise them more and slowly nurture their confidence. When Sun Hui looked up and saw Yu Bing, he smiled and stood up to greet her politely. ¡°Sister Yu Bing!¡± Yu Bing patted Sun Hui¡¯s head. ¡°After having class during this period of time, do you think it¡¯s difficult?¡± Sun Hui immediately shook his head and shared his learning experience. ¡°It¡¯s not difficult at all. My mom has taught me some words in the past and I often teach students who haven¡¯t learned those words yet after class.¡± As Yu Bing looked at the bright expression on Sun Hui¡¯s face when he mentioned studying, she praised, ¡°Xiao Hui, you¡¯re awesome! Do you have any books you want to read? Next time, when I help the village¡¯s library buy books, I¡¯ll pick something you like to read.¡± Chapter 416 - 416 Extracurricular Studies 416 Extracurricular Studies Extracurricular books were always more attractive to students than boring textbooks. Xiao Hui couldn¡¯t help but feel excited when he heard this. ¡°I want to read ¡®The Little Prince¡¯. Mom told me about this book.¡± ¡°Xiao Hui, how can you ask other people for books?¡± Wen Qin heard their conversation when she walked out of the kitchen. When Xiao Hui heard the reproach in his mother¡¯s tone, he realized that he had done something wrong. He lowered his head and apologized to Yu Bing. Yu Bing hurriedly eased things over by joking, ¡°I took the initiative to ask. If you want to blame someone, you might as well blame me. The library is meant for everyone. Xiao Hui is my little consultant for purchasing books. I¡¯m learning what types of books children like at this stage from him.¡± Seeing that Yu Bing didn¡¯t seem perfunctory, Wen Qin said to Sun Hui gently, ¡°Thank her.¡± When Sun Hui heard that he had a chance to read the book he wanted to read, he looked at Yu Bing with sparkling eyes and said loudly, ¡°Thank you, Sister Yu Bing!¡± Yu Bing raised her eyebrows. ¡°I have to thank you for your suggestion.¡± When Sun Hui heard this, he immediately replied, ¡°Sister Yu Bing, if you need any help next time, look for me!¡± When Yu Bing saw Sun Hui¡¯s anxious expression, she smiled and said, ¡°No problem!¡± When Wen Qin saw her son¡¯s enthusiastic expression, she smiled and said, ¡°Hurry up and practice your calligraphy. The two of us will talk for a while.¡± Sun Hui walked to the other side and continued to use the tree branch to review the knowledge he had learned today. Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°I feel that after you moved out with Xiao Hui, he became much livelier.¡± Wen Qin nodded in agreement. ¡°Indeed. When we were in the Sun family¡¯s home, although they didn¡¯t mistreat Xiao Hui, they didn¡¯t treat him very well either. They have always been selfish and have always put themselves first. That family doesn¡¯t have any kindness at all. They¡¯re a dysfunctional family.¡± Wen Qin¡¯s tone was filled with disgust. ¡°Madam Sun wants to control everyone in the family. Sun Guo is like a pawn. He gets what he wants by listening to Madam Sun.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she whispered to Wen Qin, ¡°I just came back from town and saw your mother-in-law leaving the village. How was your discussion?¡± Wen Qin said helplessly, ¡°It¡¯s still the same, but I won¡¯t indulge her this time. the verdict will be out in more than a month and I¡¯ve already applied for visitation rights once per month on the grounds that the Sun family is prone to domestic violence. The location can only be near my address.¡± When Yu Bing heard that Wen Qin already had an idea, she didn¡¯t say anything else. She took out a piece of pork bone wrapped in newspaper from her bag and handed it to Wen Qin. ¡°Wen Qin, I bought two pork bones. I¡¯ll give you one to make soup for Xiao Hui tonight.¡± Wen Qin hurriedly pushed it back. ¡°I can¡¯t take it. Take it back.¡± Yu Bing frowned and stuffed it into Wen Qin¡¯s hand. ¡°If I hadn¡¯t bumped into your mother-in-law just now and knew that she wasn¡¯t eating at your house tonight, I wouldn¡¯t have brought it. I don¡¯t care if you eat it or not, but Xiao Hui has to eat it. Look at how thin the child is. When he was lying down to take a nap at noon, I saw that he¡¯s not even as tall as the table. If you don¡¯t nourish him, you¡¯ll regret it!¡± When Wen Qin heard this, she didn¡¯t refuse anymore and she looked moved as she said, ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll buy some and return it to you during my break.¡± During the time that Madam Sun was here, she always ate two-thirds of the meat all alone. There wasn¡¯t meat much to begin with. Even if Wen Qin didn¡¯t eat a single piece, Xiao Hui could only eat two to three pieces of meat. Wen Qin didn¡¯t have many meat stamps on her, so it was considered good if she could afford it once a week. Yu Bing knew that Wen Qin wasn¡¯t rich, so she didn¡¯t answer. Instead, she pointed at the grape tree at the door and said, ¡°Forget about the meat. The grapes I bought this time can last us a few days. I think the grapes in your small courtyard are about to ripen. When they ripen, just pick a basket for me. It¡¯s not cheap to buy them outside.¡± When Wen Qin heard this, she hurriedly smiled and replied, ¡°No problem!¡± When Yu Bing taught Xiao Li at the Xiao family¡¯s house at night, she realized that many of Xiao Lin¡¯s basic knowledge wasn¡¯t solid. Chapter 417 - 417 Talent 417 Talent Yu Bing frowned as she flipped through Xiao Lin¡¯s essay. Not only were the idioms used wrongly, but there were also many spelling errors. Her attention was usually on Xiao Li and Xiao Sheng, and she only paid attention to Xiao Lin occasionally. She saw that Xiao Lin was quite good at math and that he was a serious listener, but she didn¡¯t expect this kid¡¯s language arts skills to be so bad. When Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing¡¯s ugly expression, he asked curiously, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Yu Bing looked at Xiao Sheng with an indescribable expression. ¡°Don¡¯t you check Xiao Lin¡¯s language arts skills and such?¡± Xiao Sheng frowned and asked, ¡°Is there a need for me to check?¡± Yu Bing was stunned by this question. Xiao Lin was a little puzzled when he heard this. ¡°Sister Yu Bing, our teacher doesn¡¯t have such requirements. If there¡¯s a mistake, the teacher will mark the mistakes after checking the homework.¡± Only then did Yu Bing realize that education in the country was still at the laissez faire stage, unlike in the future. It was nowhere as competitive. However, in this 500-word essay, there were 20 to 30 spelling errors. Yu Bing felt that if Xiao Lin continued like this, Xiao Lin would only be slightly better than an illiterate. Looking at Xiao Lin, who still had a confused expression and didn¡¯t realize that there were many problems with his studies, Yu Bing could understand why homework was enough to drive some parents crazy. ¡°Xiao Lin, in the future, tell your brother all the new terms you learn every day in class and let him review them with you every night. It¡¯ll only take a few minutes, so it won¡¯t delay anything.¡± When Xiao Lin heard that it would only take a few minutes, he agreed readily, but he completely ignored the fact that he would be punished with copywriting if he made a mistake. Yu Bing handed the essay to Xiao Sheng as she said gloomily, ¡°You have to check Xiao Lin¡¯s learning. You can¡¯t just let him finish writing every day without checking. Take a look yourself. There are so many errors on it.¡± Xiao Sheng wasn¡¯t surprised after seeing it. Studying was one¡¯s personal responsibility. If he was bad at studying, he could learn something else. The most important thing was for him to be self-reliant. ¡°That¡¯s okay. Perhaps Xiao Lin doesn¡¯t like studying very much, and that¡¯s why he got this score.¡± Yu Bing also knew that people nowadays didn¡¯t value knowledge that much. They valued it because for thousands of years, they had the philosophy that ¡°nothing is as important as studying.¡± They didn¡¯t value it because after high school students finished school, they would farm in the field like many illiterate farmers. In addition, many parents only knew commonly used words and could only tutor first and second-year students. They were helpless in regards to anything beyond that, so they had no choice but to let their children be. However, Yu Bing knew how rapid the development and changes of the world would be in the future. What did the 21st century lack the most? Talents! As Yu Bing looked at the three siblings in front of her, she analyzed for them, ¡°The lack of knowledge is only temporary. You might not feel the difference between having knowledge and not having knowledge now, but why? It¡¯s because jobs are allocated by the country now, so the city will assign them as many jobs as possible and there are no extra vacancies. Adult city dwellers come to the countryside to farm, so it seems that everything is carried out step by step and whether one has to study or not depends on whether one¡¯s parents have the ability to help one find a job.¡± ¡°Then what if all of this changes one day? What if all jobs are publicly recruited, and only the capable ones get the jobs. If you have more knowledge than others, won¡¯t you have a higher chance than others? Won¡¯t you have more choices than others?¡± Xiao Lin immediately gave an answer that was unique to people of this era. ¡°That has nothing to do with us. We¡¯re from the countryside. The jobs in the city are reserved for city dwellers.¡± Yu Bing asked again, ¡°Then what if rural people can also go to the city to work?¡± When Xiao Lin heard this, he replied, ¡°That¡¯ll cost money. A female classmate¡¯s father spent money and pulled strings to become a worker at the sugar factory in town.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s expression froze. The dogma and rigidity of this era were so deeply engraved in everyone¡¯s bones that it was like their DNA. Everyone¡¯s thoughts were very rigid. There were too many people who didn¡¯t dare to think outside the box. They didn¡¯t dare to imagine a change in the country in the future. Yu Bing could only use another method to make it easier for everyone to understand. ¡°Your classmate¡¯s father has at least graduated from junior high, right?¡± Xiao Lin nodded vigorously when he heard this. ¡°Yes, but unfortunately, he didn¡¯t finish high school.¡± Chapter 418 - 418 Little Teacher 418 Little Teacher Hearing this, Yu Bing used the village¡¯s food factory as an example. More than half of the workers in the factory had graduated from junior high school or above. ¡°Important positions that don¡¯t require hard labor all filled by knowledgeable people. Let me ask you, you¡¯re all earning the same amount of money, so are you willing to earn money easily or work yourself to death?¡± Xiao Lin immediately replied, ¡°Of course we want to earn money easily!¡± Yu Bing turned to look at Xiao Sheng again. Xiao Sheng smiled and said, ¡°You mean that we have to take learning seriously and that we have to do our best so that we can seize the opportunities that might come and change our fate.¡± Yu Bing nodded in satisfaction. ¡°That¡¯s a good summary! Studying will let you have more choice than others when facing opportunities. Don¡¯t question the use of what you¡¯ve learned. These things will send you to further places in the future. What you learn will become ways for you to open up this world¡¯s opportunities and become a better version of yourself.¡± Xiao Lin and Xiao Li couldn¡¯t fully understand Yu Bing¡¯s words, but when they experienced more things and saw more of the world, they would know why knowledge made them better versions of themselves. Then, Yu Bing gave Xiao Lin an assignment. ¡°In the future, you have to be a teacher for an hour every night. Teach Xiao Li everything you learned that day.¡± In the eyes of primary school students, teachers were synonymous with wisdom. Moreover, he could let his sister learn what they had learned, so Xiao Lin happily accepted the mission. Xiao Sheng had already begun to learn the knowledge of the third year of junior high. When Yu Bing saw his progress, she looked up at Xiao Sheng and said, ¡°You have to finish middle school knowledge by September. Otherwise, since there are too many subjects in high school, the time will be too tight.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded. ¡°I also plan to finish junior high school knowledge by next month.¡± Yu Bing took out the test paper she had set out and let Xiao Sheng do it again. Looking at the test paper with almost full marks in all subjects, Yu Bing remained calm, but she secretly treated Xiao Sheng as a star student. Although there were not many subjects to learn in junior high and the difficulty was much lower than that of high school, Xiao Sheng had not finished junior high back then. In addition, he had been out of class for so many years. However, he had mastered the junior high curriculum in just a few months. Thus, Yu Bing praised Xiao Sheng. After Yu Bing completed her task and prepared to go home, Xiao Sheng sent her back to her house as usual. Yu Bing recalled seeing Xiao Lin massage Xiao Li¡¯s eyes before she left, so she asked about the surgery. At the mention of this, Xiao Sheng was also a little annoyed. ¡°There¡¯s still no news. She¡¯s only been pushed up one spot after so long.¡± Yu Bing couldn¡¯t help with this and could only ask about the current situation. ¡°As long as we don¡¯t give up, there will be hope!¡± Since Yu Bing mentioned Xiao Sheng¡¯s worries, she naturally couldn¡¯t leave just like that. Hence, the two of them walked back and forth in the empty space between the two homes. Xiao Sheng could see the worry in Yu Bing¡¯s eyes, so he said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. I¡¯m fine. It¡¯s been so many years. If it really doesn¡¯t work out, I¡¯ll earn money and support her for the rest of my life.¡± After saying that, he thought about how Yu Bing would be a member of the Xiao family in the future, so it would be disrespectful for him to make such a decision directly. ¡°Yu Bing, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll work hard to earn money. Even if I have to support Xiao Li, I won¡¯t let you suffer or worry about money.¡± Yu Bing was originally listening to Xiao Sheng¡¯s plan seriously, but she didn¡¯t expect the topic to suddenly change to her, so she was caught off guard. The tips of her ears and cheeks flushed as she whispered shyly, ¡°Who cares about your money? You can give your money to whoever you want.¡± Xiao Sheng touched his nose and lowered his head to look at Yu Bing, who was avoiding eye contact out of bashfulness. He smiled and said, ¡°You don¡¯t want to interfere, but I¡¯m begging you to interfere.¡± Yu Bing rolled her eyes at Xiao Sheng coquettishly. As she pursed her lips, she couldn¡¯t hide the smile on her face. ¡°Xiao Sheng, you¡¯re getting more and more glib-tongued!¡± Xiao Sheng was stunned. This wasn¡¯t a good thing, but for some reason, Yu Bing didn¡¯t look angry. After he thought for a while, he felt that this might be what Zhang Chao had said. Women always said one thing but meant another. Seeing that Yu Bing wasn¡¯t angry and was in a good mood, Xiao Sheng was slightly relieved. Thinking of his pitifully low score, he decided to learn from Zhang Chao in the future. Hence, he replied seriously, ¡°I¡¯m telling the truth. That¡¯s what I think.¡± Chapter 419 - 419 Remittance Bill 419 Remittance Bill On the last day of August, Yu Yan didn¡¯t find the remittance slip sent to her by her family at the village committee. Yu Yan refused to give up and looked around a few more times. ¡°Director Zhao, are the letter and transfer forms here?¡± Zhao Lin glanced at Yu Yan and replied aloofly, ¡°They¡¯re all there.¡± Yu Yan suspected that Zhao Lin had misplaced or lost her receipt. At the thought of this, her tone became a little unfriendly. ¡°My family would definitely send me money at the end of the month at the latest.¡± Zhao Lin understood what Yu Yan meant, so she raised her head and frowned. ¡°What do you mean? If you have something to say, just say it directly. There¡¯s no need to beat around the bush!¡± Yu Yan snorted. ¡°What do I mean? I¡¯m just telling the truth.¡± Zhao Lin put down her pen and looked at Yu Yan steadily as she said with a cold expression, ¡°If you think I stole from you, there¡¯s no need. You¡¯re the only one who can take the money. It¡¯s useless even if others take it.¡± ¡°If you want to say that I tampered with it, please provide evidence, if you don¡¯t have evidence, this can be considered slander.¡± Although Zhao Lin spoke nonchalantly, the mockery was obvious. Yu Yan immediately cowered when she heard the mention of slander. To her, this term was equivalent to detention. Moreover, Zhao Lin was a member of the village committee after all. Yu Yan still wanted to stay in the village, so she naturally didn¡¯t dare to offend her. However, she still felt that Zhao Lin had misplaced her transfer slip. She couldn¡¯t produce evidence, so she could only pout and say softly, ¡°That¡¯s what you think. I didn¡¯t say that! I know my family will send me things every month!¡± Yu Yan rolled her eyes at Zhao Lin, but when she saw Zhao Lin slap the table and stand up, she turned around and quickly left the office, for fear that Zhao Lin would hold her accountable. Although she could deduce the truth, she had no evidence, so she was at a disadvantage. Yu Yan didn¡¯t think that she was a coward at all. After all, if she really angered the other party, she would definitely cause trouble for herself. Yu Yan left the village committee¡¯s office. Seeing that it was still early, she planned to go to town to make a call and ask her family to cancel the original transfer form and remit it. Just as she had this thought, Yu Yan saw Yu Bing, who had come to the village committee. Yu Yan stopped in her tracks and crossed her arms in front of her chest arrogantly. When Yu Bing saw Yu Yan standing in the empty space in front of the office, she glanced at her before walking straight to the office. The two of them brushed past each other. Seeing this, Yu Yan suddenly turned around and followed Yu Bing into the office again. Seeing Yu Bing and Zhao Lin chatting and laughing, she suddenly thought of the remittance slip she had not received. When Yu Yan connected the dots, she instantly understood the truth. Yu Bing and Zhao Lin were colleagues. Yu Bing had the status of team leader and project manager, and she was even Zhao Lin¡¯s son¡¯s tractor driver, so Zhao Lin must have deliberately messed with her to curry favor with Yu Bing! The more Yu Yan thought about it, the more she felt that it made sense. She looked at Yu Bing with a vicious gaze and resented Madam Sun for being too inefficient. She had clearly pointed out a way for Madam Sun, so why was she still wasting her time on Wen Qin?! If not for the fact that she had to be more careful after leaving the police station to prevent her future from being affected, she wouldn¡¯t have needed that stupid mother and son from the Sun family! No matter how indignant Yu Yan was, very soon, she was no longer in the mood to target Yu Bing. She couldn¡¯t get into contact with her adoptive parents, and she had also lost contact with her adoptive brother. Yu Yan was in a bad mood after she heard the military communications officer repeatedly emphasize that he wasn¡¯t lying. Yu Yan suppressed her anger and had no choice but to say, ¡°Call Cui Jin over.¡± When the communications officer heard the other party change her request, he finally heaved a sigh of relief. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go look for Commander Cui now.¡± With that, he hung up and went to the dormitory to look for him. Cui Jin looked at the chili sauce, pork jerky, and sweet potatoes that Jiang Chun had sent him. As soon as they arrived, more than half of them were snatched away by his soldiers. He hurriedly put away the rest. ¡°You brats, eat them sparingly!¡± ¡°Your wife¡¯s culinary skills are superb!¡± ¡°Commander, how did you win her over? She sends you food and clothes all day long.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been married to my wife for so many years, but I¡¯ve never seen her so attentive to me!¡± When Cui Jin heard their teasing, a smug expression appeared on his usually stoic face. ¡°Why do you think I¡¯ve been single for so many years? I only found such an outstanding person because I prefer quality over quantity!¡± Chapter 420 - 420 Better to Have Nothing Than Suck It Up 420 Better to Have Nothing Than Suck It Up The messenger knocked on the open door. ¡°Commander Cui, there¡¯s a call for you!¡± When Cui Jin heard this, he put away his share and ran out without looking back. Seeing their superior¡¯s reaction, everyone tacitly thought that the person on the other end of the phone was Cui Jin¡¯s girlfriend. Life in the army was boring to begin with, and it was Cui Jin¡¯s fault. How could Cui Jin¡¯s subordinates suppress their curiosity?They started asking about Cui Jin¡¯s girlfriend. ¡°What¡¯s the name of Commander Cui¡¯s girlfriend?¡± ¡°Does her voice sound good?¡± ¡°I heard that she¡¯s from the south. Isn¡¯t she very gentle?¡± Girlfriend? The messenger was a little stunned. The other party had looked for Yu Xi at first and said that she was his sister. She had called several times this month. Could it be that Yu Xi¡¯s sister was dating Cui Jin? The communications officer narrowed his eyes and replied firmly, ¡°Her name is Yu Yan.¡± Cui Jin didn¡¯t know that there had been a misunderstanding and was still immersed in the anticipation of talking to Jiang Chun. After picking up the call, he didn¡¯t wait for the other party to speak. He said in a gentle voice, ¡°Chun Chun, the food I received is very delicious! My subordinates are fighting over it. Don¡¯t send me so much next time. Your salary isn¡¯t high either. By the way, I asked someone to buy you a watch. I was worried that it would break when I sent the package. I¡¯ll give it to you when I have time off next time.¡± Yu Yan was stunned for a moment before replying awkwardly, ¡°It¡¯s me, Yu Yan.¡± Cui Jin was also stunned for a moment. He knew that he had misunderstood, so he immediately said impatiently, ¡°Miss Yu, why are you looking for me?¡± When Yu Yan sensed the difference in Cui Jin¡¯s attitude, she was even more unhappy. ¡°Cui Jin, you¡¯re too much! What right do you have to treat me differently?¡± Cui Jin chuckled. He was already used to Yu Yan¡¯s playing the blame game. ¡°I should be the one asking you why should I treat you how I treat my girlfriend?¡± When Yu Yan heard this, her first reaction was that Cui Jin was hinting that she could enjoy this treatment if she became his girlfriend. Hence, she blushed in embarrassment. ¡°Pfft, how shameless! I knew you still had fantasies about me. Let me tell you, it¡¯s impossible between us!¡± The gentleness in Cui Jin¡¯s voice on the phone just now and his usual cold appearance were a stark contrast. It made Yu Yan feel that if she could win over such a man, it would be quite satisfying. However, she quickly remembered that Cui Jin was a villager her adoptive mother¡¯s family had deliberately arranged for her. After she came back to her senses, she rejected him righteously. She definitely couldn¡¯t fall for their scheme! Cui Jin was stunned when he heard this. He felt that not only was there something wrong with Yu Xi¡¯s sister¡¯s morals, but there was also something wrong with her brain. He didn¡¯t want to waste time with her, so he asked directly, ¡°Why are you looking for me? If there¡¯s nothing else, I¡¯m hanging up!¡± Only then did Yu Yan remember the most important thing. ¡°Wait! Why can¡¯t I find my brother?¡± When Cui Jin heard Yu Yan¡¯s words, he felt like laughing. The missions carried out by everyone in the army were confidential. If she asked him, who should he ask? ¡°Your brother went on a mission. Didn¡¯t the messenger tell you?¡± Yu Yan was still a little suspicious and she asked angrily, ¡°He told me, but I suspect that you were behind it! Did you say something bad about me to my brother that made him misunderstand me and ignore me?!¡± Cui Jin frowned. He didn¡¯t want to waste any more time with Yu Yan, so he replied sarcastically, ¡°How many years have you and your brother been family for? Your brother and I only met in the army. How can your brother misunderstand you just because I said a few words? If I had that kind of influence, you should suspect that your character is so bad that you can¡¯t hide it from your brother anymore!¡± Yu Yan immediately retorted, ¡°There¡¯s something wrong with your character! Who goes on a mission for so long?¡± When Cui Jin heard this, he felt sorry for Yu Xi. His sister, who he missed, didn¡¯t even know about the uncertain timing of his missions. He had only been with Jiang Chun for a few months, but he already learned about the confidentiality rules and various instructions in advance, for fear that he would cause trouble for him. ¡°Yu Yan, if you had cared more about your brother, you wouldn¡¯t have asked me such a question. Yu Xi hasn¡¯t returned from his mission. It¡¯s the same no matter who you ask. Don¡¯t look for me next time. I don¡¯t have time to answer your nonsense!¡± With that, Cui Jin hung up. Yu Yan frowned at the phone call that had been hung up before she could even reply and put down the phone in anger. Chapter 421 - 421 Complain 421 Complain ¡°What are you doing?! Can you afford to pay for damage to the phone?¡± The staff in the post office was shocked when he saw Yu Yan¡¯s actions. He hurriedly picked up the receiver and heaved a sigh of relief when he heard a normal sound coming from the other end. This phone was very expensive! ¡°This is the only place in our town that has a public phone. If it¡¯s broken, there¡¯s one less.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Who is this? We usually have to queue during holidays. If there¡¯s one less, we¡¯ll have to wait even longer.¡± Yu Yan was startled by the other party¡¯s roar. When she heard everyone¡¯s complaints about her, she was embarrassed and angry. However, seeing that the other party had many people, she couldn¡¯t go against them. She could only stomp her feet and run out of the post office angrily before walking back to the village. At this moment, Yao Nian had been waiting in the lobby of the dormitory building for a long time already. When Yao Nian saw Yu Yan, he immediately stood up and walked forward. Then, he handed the lunch box over with a smile. ¡°You went to get the transfer form, right? Seeing that you haven¡¯t returned until dinner time, I knew that you had to go to town, so I saved food for you.¡± Yu Yan was in a bad mood, so she naturally didn¡¯t treat Yao Nian amiably. Instead of taking the lunch box, she entered the living room and sat on the bench. Seeing this, Yao Nian hurriedly sat down beside her and looked at Yu Yan with concern. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Did things not go well?¡± After Yu Yan gritted her teeth and pursed her lips, Yao Nian tactfully went to get a glass of water and placed it in Yu Yan¡¯s hand. ¡°You must be tired after being out for so long. Drink some water and rest for a while.¡± Yu Yan took a few sips of water before catching her breath. Then, she told him about how she suspected that Zhao Lin had lost her remittance slip in order to curry favor with Yu Bing. She also complained about her adoptive parents and brother. ¡°I wonder what my parents are up to. No one answered their phones!¡± When Yao Nian heard that Yu Yan didn¡¯t get a single cent today, he couldn¡¯t help but complain to Yu Yan. He wanted to coax Yu Yan to buy a chicken, but now, his plans were ruined! Although his mind was racing, Yao Nian didn¡¯t dare to show it on his face and he comforted Yu Yan softly, ¡°Maybe your parents have something on. Try calling them tomorrow.¡± When Yu Yan heard that she had to go to town to make calls again tomorrow, she felt even more vexed. There was a phone in the village committee¡¯s office, but it was mainly used for docking work or very urgent matters. People like Yu Yan were definitely not allowed to use it. Yu Yan still had 3.5 yuan, which she had to spend on calls. Moreover, she had promised the others that she would return the money in September. This meant that she had to contact her family as soon as possible. She couldn¡¯t care less about her pride anymore and she asked Yao Nian, ¡°Can you lend me 2 yuan? I¡¯ll return it to you when my family sends the money over.¡± Yao Nian was stunned. He had just received 10 yuan from his mother a few days ago and couldn¡¯t bear to spend it. When Yu Yan saw Yao Nian¡¯s hesitant expression, she thought of what Cui Jin had said on the phone about buying a watch for Jiang Chun and her expression turned ugly. ¡°Other people give their partners a watch without even batting an eye, but it¡¯s so difficult for me to borrow just two yuan from you. In that case, you don¡¯t have to lend it to me!¡± Yu Yan was so angry that she snatched the lunch box from Yao Nian¡¯s hand and stood up to go upstairs. Yao Nian didn¡¯t dare to let Yu Yan return to her room in anger and he hurriedly stopped her before coaxing her carefully. After Yao Nian heaved a sigh, he took out two yuan from his pocket and handed it to Yu Yan. ¡°You¡¯re my girlfriend, so how can I refuse to give you two yuan? I just want to save up more money and buy you a decent gift in the future. I¡¯m not as rich as other people¡¯s boyfriends, but I also want to try my best to give you the best.¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she rolled her eyes at Yao Nian. ¡°Really?¡± Yao Nian immediately swore. ¡°Of course it¡¯s true!¡± After Yao Nian expressed his stance, Yu Yan no longer fussed over the watch. As he watched Yu Yan leave, Yao Nian rolled his eyes angrily. Yu Yan even wanted a watch! If not for Yu Yan¡¯s family¡¯s connections, would he have humbled himself to curry favor with her? Now, he didn¡¯t even get any benefits from Yu Yan, yet Yu Yan dared to ask for precious things like watches from him! Chapter 422 - 422 Material 422 Material Yao Nian secretly spat at Yu Yan and scolded her for being short-sighted. He originally thought that the daughter of a rich family didn¡¯t value material goods, but he didn¡¯t expect her to be so materialistic. Yu Yan ran to town for a few days in a row to make calls, but she still couldn¡¯t contact her adoptive parents. In the end, she found an old colleague who was very close to her adoptive parents. Only then did she find out that her adoptive parents had hurriedly applied for leave from the agency half a month ago. She didn¡¯t know where they went. Among the male intellectuals who had lent Yu Yan money previously, two of them secretly discussed things amongst themselves and came to look for Yu Yan. The two of them waited in the courtyard in front of the dormitory building. When they saw Yu Yan, they hurriedly went forward. ¡°Yu Yan, you said that you would return the money this month¡­¡± Yu Yan looked at Zhao Wen and Wen Xun, who were standing in front of her, and hurriedly looked around. When she realized that no one was paying attention, she pulled the two of them to a corner. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, my parents received an urgent assignment and went on a business trip. They didn¡¯t have time to transfer the money to me. I can only return it to you guys in a few days.¡± After Zhao Wen and Wen Xun exchanged looks, Zhao Wen said, ¡°Yu Yan, we¡¯re a little short on money, so if it¡¯s inconvenient on your side, you can return half of it first.¡± If Yu Yan returned the money now, she wouldn¡¯t even have a chance to make any calls next time. After thinking for a while, she planned to play the blame game. Yu Yan looked sad as she asked, ¡°Don¡¯t you guys believe me? You know my family¡¯s background. How can I not pay back the money I owe?¡± Then, she said nonchalantly, ¡°It¡¯s only a few dozen yuan, which was my pocket money for a month or two in the past. When my parents come back from their business trip and send the money over, I¡¯ll return it to you guys all at once. There¡¯ll be packages too. I¡¯ll give you guys some biscuits as interest.¡± The reason the two young men agreed to lend money was mainly that Yu Yan usually gave everyone the impression that she wasn¡¯t short of money. Moreover, they were all young people from the city who were short of money, so Yu Yan might help them if they were in trouble. Moreover, when they heard that Yu Yan had promised to give him additional benefits, they were even more tempted. However, Zhao Wen was still a little worried, so he asked, ¡°When are your parents coming back from their business trip?¡± This question stumped Yu Yan a little and she could only reply vaguely, ¡°Probably this month.¡± The two of them each lent 5 yuan to Yu Yan. This was a lot of money for them! When they heard this, they began to feel uneasy again. Wen Xun couldn¡¯t help but ask, ¡°Can you confirm the time? We don¡¯t have any spare money on hand. If something happens, we really won¡¯t know what to do.¡± Seeing that the other party wanted to get to the bottom of it, Yu Yan felt very unlucky. Why was Yu Bing with these poor people? She had only borrowed a few yuan, but now, she was being urged, as if she owed them her life. It was all Yu Bing¡¯s fault! If not for her, she wouldn¡¯t have ended up like this! Yu Yan lowered her eyes to hide the gloominess in them. After a moment, she looked up with a smile and an understanding expression on her face. ¡°I understand. We¡¯re all struggling. Don¡¯t worry, I, Yu Yan, am not someone who refuses to return the money I borrowed. The time for my parents¡¯ return hasn¡¯t been decided yet, but I¡¯ll definitely be able to return the money this month!¡± Yu Yan thought about how her parents had never been away from home together in the past. This time might have been an emergency. Moreover, they had been gone for half a month. No matter what, there would be someone at home this month. In addition, the creditors were already urging her. At this moment, Yu Yan only wanted to calm them down and send them away, so she gave an affirmative answer. The two of them didn¡¯t say anything else and returned to the dormitory after saying goodbye to Yu Yan. Seeing that there were no outsiders in the courtyard, Yu Yan couldn¡¯t help but curse, ¡°Yu Bing, why don¡¯t you die?! You¡¯re simply born to jinx me! You didn¡¯t give your family money, so I had to go around borrowing money!¡± At this moment, Yu Yan still didn¡¯t realize that she was the one who insisted on currying favor with her biological parents. Chapter 423 - 423 Arent Meant To Be Close 423 Aren¡¯t Meant To Be Close Coincidentally, this scene was seen by Shu Ya again. Shu Ya wanted to plant potted flowers in her room recently, so she went to the villagers to ask for a few flower seeds today. Then, she went to town to buy a flower pot and shoveled the soil behind the osmanthus tree in the courtyard. Unexpectedly, just as she dug up more than half a basin and was about to get up and return to the dormitory, she heard the three of them talking. Being urged to return money wasn¡¯t an honorable thing. Moreover, she hadn¡¯t lent Yu Yan money. In order to avoid an awkward situation, she could only squat back down. It was only after Yu Yan left that she walked out from behind the tree with the basin. In the afternoon, Shu Ya went to the factory area to report the contents of the September night school to Yu Bing. When Yu Bing saw that Shu Ya was looking for her, she smiled. ¡°You came at the right time. I was about to look for you!¡± When Shu Ya heard this, she smiled and went forward to ask, ¡°Is it the packaging design for the double holidays?¡± Yu Bing pursed her lips and smiled. ¡°That¡¯s right. Last month, flour started to get rationed, so we didn¡¯t dare to go to the agency to get orders. Now that it¡¯s been canceled, we have to snatch customers quickly.¡± In Yu Bing¡¯s memory, there was no war this year. However, because there was no food factory in the village at this time in her previous life, a month of temporary rationing didn¡¯t affect the lives of the residents and Yu Bing didn¡¯t know about the rationing. Out of caution, she was in no hurry to snatch the agency¡¯s gift order. This matter also gave Yu Bing inspiration. She had to produce more raw materials that were not easy to regulate. Otherwise, if she encountered such a situation again, not many products in their food factory could compete with those of other large food factories. Shu Ya had been trying to get creative inspiration since last month. Now that Yu Bing suddenly mentioned it, she was prepared. ¡°I already have some inspiration, but I keep feeling that there¡¯s something missing. However, I can design it for you in the next two days.¡± After the two of them chatted about the design direction and theme innovations this time, Shu Ya felt enlightened. This was also why she liked to chat with Yu Bing. Yu Bing looked young, but Shu Ya knew that she was forward-looking and open-minded. Shu Ya admired this girl who was a few years younger than her. Thinking of Yu Yan¡¯s vicious curses when she mentioned Yu Bing in the afternoon, Shu Ya looked at Yu Bing with a hint of worry. She was a little hesitant about telling her what she had seen previously. Yu Bing senses Shu Ya¡¯s strange gaze and thought that it was about work, so she smiled and said, ¡°We¡¯re already so familiar with each other. If you have any thoughts, just mention them. There¡¯s nothing to be embarrassed about.¡± Previously, the two of them were not very familiar with each other, so there were some things that Shu Ya didn¡¯t say. However, this time, she saw Yu Yan¡¯s malicious intent towards Yu Bing with her own eyes, so she decided to tell her everything she knew. Yu Bing was a little surprised. Yu Yan had reunited with her family much earlier than in her previous life. In Shu Ya¡¯s opinion, Yu Bing¡¯s surprise was due to her sister¡¯s sudden appearance and her sister¡¯s inexplicable malice towards her. Shu Ya patted Yu Bing¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t be so sad. Some siblings just aren¡¯t meant to be close. You have to be more careful.¡± Yu Bing came back to her senses and nodded with a smile as she said, ¡°I¡¯m fine. Don¡¯t worry.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s response was truthful. She didn¡¯t care what that family did. However, in Shu Ya¡¯s eyes, this seemed like a forced smile. After all, in her opinion, Yu Bing¡¯s family hid such a shocking secret, so how could Yu Bing accept it so quickly? Shu Ya wanted to give Yu Bing more personal space to calm down, so she stood up and left. Yu Yan and the Yu family thought that they had hidden the matter perfectly, but they didn¡¯t expect Yu Bing to already know about everything. In the next few days, a few more people came to ask Yu Yan about the repayment, but they were all temporarily appeased by Yu Yan in the same way. On the other side, Madam Sun finally couldn¡¯t hold back her urge to cause trouble. Madam Sun lay on the bed and held her waist as she wailed, ¡°My waist will be crippled if this continues!¡± As Sun Guo squatted on the ground, he took out a bottle of medicinal wine from the corner and helped Madam Sun massage her waist. Chapter 424 - 424 Vampire 424 Vampire ¡°Damn Wen Qin! She really screwed me over! Be gentle! You idiot! Do you want to kill me?!¡± In the past, when Wen Qin was around, these were all Wen Qin¡¯s tasks. Now, it was Sun Guo¡¯s turn, but he didn¡¯t have a good grasp. However, Madam Sun didn¡¯t have anyone else to order around now, so she could only curse and shout in pain to vent her dissatisfaction. Sun Guo softened his actions and asked blankly, ¡°Mom, what should we do about my wife? Are we really gonna get a divorce?¡± After a few minutes, Sun Guo finally managed to massage Madam Sun with the strength that she was satisfied with. Madam Sun closed her eyes as she enjoyed the massage in comfort. Only then did she reply to her son¡¯s question, ¡°Useless thing! You¡¯re still thinking about that b*tch now. She has never thought about you for even a second! You two definitely have to get a divorce. That woman can¡¯t be controlled at all now. But don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t let you be without a woman.¡± When Sun Guo heard this, although he was a little reluctant, he was still tempted by his mother¡¯s words. ¡°Mom, last time, you said that you would find an obedient woman from the mountains for me to marry. Can you find someone as beautiful as Wen Qin?¡± When Madam Sun heard this, she snorted. ¡°You¡¯re the same as your father, who died early! You only know how to find good-looking people. Can good-looking people put food on the table?! I found a city dweller for you this time, a rich city dweller!¡± Sun Guo frowned. When did the plan change? However, it wasn¡¯t bad if she was a young woman from the city. No matter what, city dwellers were more special than the women from the mountains. Their skin was delicate and flawless. Just thinking about it made him excited. He asked with interest, ¡°Mom, who are you going to find for me? There are two young women in our village who seem to be from well-off families.¡± Madam Sun thought of the two young women from the same village and smiled nonchalantly. ¡°I found them for you from the He Mountain Village. You¡¯ve seen them before.¡± Sun Guo had only been there once. After thinking for a long time, he still didn¡¯t know who the daughter-in-law Madam Sun mentioned was. Madam Sun stopped beating around the bush. ¡°It¡¯s Wen Qin¡¯s supervisor, Yu Bing.¡± When Sun Guo heard the name from Madam Sun¡¯s mouth, his expression froze. The two times Yu Bing caused trouble made him a little afraid. ¡°Mom, she¡­ Why don¡¯t we forget it? It¡¯s better to look for someone from the village. Most importantly, they¡¯re more obedient.¡± When Madam Sun saw Sun Guo¡¯s cowardly expression, she was furious and she slapped her son¡¯s arm fiercely. ¡°What do you know?! You¡¯re such an idiot. If I weren¡¯t around, you wouldn¡¯t have been able to survive! I¡¯ve already asked around. Yu Bing has many jobs. The factory director gets a salary. She¡¯s the tractor chauffeur in the village, so she gets another salary for it. Her chauffeur position is registered in the commune, so she gets a salary and employee benefits as well.¡± Sun Guo was blind and weak. Ever since Wen Qin married into the Sun family, Madam Sun had been living an easy life for a few years, since there was someone to do chores and support the family. She and her son just had to earn some work points to fill their stomachs. After Wen Jin entered the food factory, their lives improved. Madam Sun was used to freeloading off others and didn¡¯t want to work herself. With Wen Qin no longer under control, she could only look at the next daughter-in-law candidate. When Sun Guo heard Madam Sun¡¯s description, he was a little tempted. His mother was already old and could only earn limited work points, let alone him. If they didn¡¯t find someone to order around, their family wouldn¡¯t be able to survive! Madam Sun continued, ¡°Speaking of which, I¡¯m also angry! I saw that she was quite smart the last two times, but I didn¡¯t expect her to be so stupid! Isn¡¯t Yu Bing busy with the food factory? The people driving now are all her disciples. She actually gave all the chauffeur¡¯s salary to her disciples. Fortunately, her disciples were also stupid and left the daily employee benefits of the commune¡¯s employees to her.¡± Sun Guo wasn¡¯t smart, but he knew that he couldn¡¯t let others take advantage of him. When he heard this, he felt a sense of sympathy. ¡°Mom, when I marry her, I¡¯ll definitely let her get her salary back. Otherwise, I¡¯ll beat her to death. What a prodigal woman!¡± Seeing that her son regained his usual attitude towards Wen Qin, Madam Sun nodded in satisfaction. ¡°That¡¯s more like my son. If a daughter-in-law is disobedient, she has to be taught a lesson until she¡¯s obedient!¡± Chapter 425 - 425 Creating Opportunities 425 Creating Opportunities Sun Guo also liked to see women being beaten, scolded, and begged. Every time this happened, he would feel a strange sense of satisfaction, making him feel a sense of ego inflation. Sun Guo thought of the two times he had met Yu Bing. The other party had always ignored him and even looked down on him. Thinking of this, the violence in his heart stirred. He couldn¡¯t wait to see Yu Bing¡¯s helpless expression when she was pressed under him. The more Sun Guo thought about it, the more excited he became. ¡°Mom, how can we get Yu Bing to agree to marry me? Even those letters from overseas are useless. What else can we do?¡± The Sun family didn¡¯t know that their country and America had resumed diplomatic relations, but that didn¡¯t mean that they were on good terms with every country internationally at this stage. They still had tense relationships with some. As long as the communication was found, it would be fatal. However, to people who had never even been to the city before, other than their own country, the outside world was collectively considered foreign. They didn¡¯t know that there were more than 200 foreign countries. At this moment, less than a third of the foreign countries had diplomatic relations with theirs. However, it was useless even if they knew, because Yu Bing didn¡¯t have such evidence for them to catch. After thinking about it, Madam Sun could only think of a method that had been used for thousands of years. ¡°Rape her!¡± Sun Guo suddenly became smarter this time. ¡°Mom, Yu Bing helped a lot with Wen Qin¡¯s divorce. Even if Yu Bing marries me, we can¡¯t control her. At that time, won¡¯t she have the final say? What if she learns from Wen Qin and wants a divorce too? At that time, I won¡¯t have a wife anymore.¡± When Madam Sun heard this, she couldn¡¯t help but glare at her son. ¡°If you hadn¡¯t thought that you were so smart and deliberately made Xiao Hui sick, would you have angered Wen Qin? You have no self-control! So what if she really has another man? If she really dares to cheat on you, she¡¯ll be the one at fault. At that time, we¡¯ll have a better way to control her! During the time Wen Qin was gone, I finally understood that pride is not as important as loyalty!¡± When Sun Guo thought of his abstinence for the past two months, he felt that being cheated on wasn¡¯t that unbearable. As long as he found out in time and taught her a lesson, he would have new dirt to use against her. Then, he would be at ease. After figuring this out, Sun Guo agreed with Madam Sun. Seeing this, Madam Sun continued, ¡°Women will always have special feelings for their first man. I¡¯ll create an opportunity for you. It¡¯s best if you sleep with Yu Bing a few more times. You have to get her pregnant. Only by getting her pregnant will we have authority. At that time, she¡¯ll probably be the one begging you to marry her! Otherwise, who else can she marry?¡± Madam Sun planned to use the most precious chastity of this era to control Yu Bing. Many women didn¡¯t dare to say anything when they encountered rape. They would either devote themselves to the man who raped them or quickly find a reliable man to marry. They would think of a way to fool him on their wedding night and make him think that it was her first time. In order to prevent Yu Bing from choosing the second path, Madam Sun emphasized that Yu Bing had to be impregnated. As long as she was pregnant, it wouldn¡¯t be so easy for Yu Bing to get an abortion. The hospital wouldn¡¯t agree to a pregnant woman¡¯s miscarriage without the signature of a family member. If she tried to get an abortion herself and anything unexpected happened, she might lose her right to be a mother. If it was serious, she might even lose her life. Madam Sun didn¡¯t think Yu Bing had the guts to do so. The mother and son didn¡¯t consider the fact that Yu Bing could call the police. In this era, even if they knew that the woman was a victim, once such a thing happened, only the woman would be criticized and gossiped about. Malicious gossip was even more hurtful than physical abuse. The latter was a physical wound, while the former was a psychological injury. In this conservative era, a woman¡¯s life would be ruined in this situation. Therefore, when faced with such a situation, many people could only swallow their anger. It wasn¡¯t easy for Madam Sun and Sun Guo to wait until their day off. Then, they carried 10 pounds of sweet potatoes to He Mountain Village early in the morning. Chapter 426 - 426 Cant Remarry 426 Can¡¯t Remarry He Mountain Village. During her time in He Mountain Village, Madam Sun had already figured out the roads in the village, so she arrived at Wen Qin¡¯s house with familiarity. After knocking on Wen Qin¡¯s door, Madam Sun smiled as she pulled Wen Qin¡¯s hand. Seeing this, Wen Qin pulled her hand back without hesitation. Wen Qin knew what they were like, so she looked at the Sun family¡¯s mother and son warily. When Madam Sun saw that Wen Qin wasn¡¯t falling for it, her expression froze. However, she quickly regained her smile, as if the awkward scene had never happened. ¡°Wen Qin, the sweet potatoes planted at home are ripe. Sun Guo misses you and Xiao Hui, so he specifically sent some over.¡± Sun Guo hurriedly raised the sack containing the sweet potatoes in his hand for Wen Qin to see and echoed, ¡°Yes, yes, yes. I haven¡¯t seen you and my son for a long time, so I wanted to come and see you guys.¡± If they were just visiting the child, Wen Qin naturally wouldn¡¯t stop them. After she looked at the two of them, she finally turned around to let them enter the house. The two of them were overjoyed when they saw this scene. After they walked through the courtyard, they saw Xiao Hui eating breakfast. Ever since the last argument, Madam Sun had not seen Sun Hui for a while, so she missed him very much. The moment she saw him, she immediately called him. Xiao Hui also put down his bowl and chopsticks as he greeted his father and Grandma. Madam Sun carried her grandson, but she kept looking at the table, since she wanted to know what Wen Qin had made for breakfast. Wen Qin had learned her lesson, so she pretended not to see Madam Sun¡¯s gaze. After she looked at the remaining half of the corn cake in Xiao Hui¡¯s bowl, she quickly put it into the kitchen. She had no intention of being polite to the Sun family. She was certain that if she dared to ask them if they had eaten breakfast, the mother and son would really dare to ask for food. She still had to save money to give birth. She didn¡¯t have that much money to feed two healthy people! Madam Sun had already cursed Wen Qin inwardly. She had deliberately come over early this morning without eating because she wanted to freeload, but she didn¡¯t expect Wen Qin to have learned her lesson. However, at the thought that there was something more important today, Madam Sun suppressed her anger and continued to pretend to be a kind Grandma. During this period of time, Sun Guo was already used to being hungry, so he didn¡¯t mind. For a moment, the atmosphere was quite harmonious. When Wen Qin saw that the Sun family¡¯s mother and son were talking to Xiao Hui, she didn¡¯t pay much attention to them. She picked up the tattered clothes that Yu Bing had helped her find and began to change them to the size of a newborn¡¯s. Madam Sun sat for a while. When she saw that Wen Qin had let down her guard, she gave Sun Guo a look. Sun Guo licked his lips and looked at Wen Qin. ¡°Wen Qin, I agree to the divorce. Go to court and withdraw the lawsuit.¡± Wen Qin, who was focused on making clothes, paused when she heard this and looked up at Sun Guo in surprise. ¡°Why did you suddenly agree to a divorce?¡± Sun Guo repeated what Madam Sun had taught him, ¡°We¡¯re husband and wife after all. The older one is sensible now, and the younger one is still in your stomach. We were husband and wife, so I don¡¯t want to fight in court with you. Otherwise, how can the two children stay in the village in the future?¡± Sun Guo¡¯s words were quite sincere, but Wen Qin felt that it wasn¡¯t something Sun Guo could think of. However, on second thought, no matter what, this was a good thing for her. She wanted to set off firecrackers to celebrate if she could get a divorce even a minute earlier. ¡°When are we going to get a divorce?¡± Seeing this, Madam Sun knew that it was time for her to speak up. ¡°Wen Qin, with my way of doing things, I definitely would have fought this lawsuit to the end with you. I couldn¡¯t watch my grandson lose a complete family, but Sun Guo¡¯s heart softened. He felt that even if it was for the sake of the child, the two of you couldn¡¯t go that far. He persuaded me for a long time before I finally agreed today.¡± Wen Qin looked at Sun Guo in disbelief. Madam Sun continued, ¡°However, I have one last request. After the divorce, you can take care of the two children, but you can¡¯t marry again in this lifetime! If there¡¯s any violation, Xiao Hui¡¯s custody will belong to the Sun family.¡± Chapter 427 - 427 See the Witness 427 See the Witness Wen Qin had no intention of getting married again, so this request wasn¡¯t difficult for her at all. ¡°No problem. I agree to this request.¡± Madam Sun didn¡¯t expect Wen Qin to agree so easily. Wen Qin was only 30 years old. Although she looked old and haggard from years of hard work, it was definitely not a problem for her to find an older man. Therefore, Madam Sun expected that Wen Qin would definitely disagree. Then, the two sides would start an intense dispute over this matter. She could take the opportunity to ask Yu Bing to be the mediator. Because of the country¡¯s special social system, as long as people with work agencies didn¡¯t break the law, they would mostly look for the other party¡¯s supervisor to be the mediator. Therefore, Madam Sun¡¯s idea wasn¡¯t abnormal. However, Madam Sun didn¡¯t expect Wen Qin to be so cooperative, so she was stunned. ¡°You, you agreed just like that?¡± Wen Qin looked at Madam Sun in confusion. ¡°Didn¡¯t you ask for this? Aren¡¯t you happy that I agreed?¡± Madam Sun opened and closed her mouth a few times. Her mind raced as she thought of a way to respond. She sized up Wen Qin suspiciously. ¡°Since you agreed so easily, are you up to something?¡± Wen Qin looked at Madam Sun and Sun Guo angrily. ¡°Then what do you guys think I should do?¡± Seeing this, Madam Sun said, ¡°Let¡¯s write an agreement. Call the leader of your factory over as a witness.¡± Under normal circumstances, there would be no problem with these words, but what was Madam Sun¡¯s relationship with Yu Bing? Yu Bing was the person who had sent her to the police station for detention, so they should be at odds. Therefore, Wen Qin immediately sensed that something was wrong. She had been in the Sun family for about ten years, so she knew the Sun family¡¯s mother and son too well. Yu Bing would help her, so it was odd for Madam Sun to look for Yu Bing. Wen Qin didn¡¯t know what the two people in front of her were up to, but she was already very certain that Madam Sun had brought Sun Guo here not for a divorce but for revenge, so she couldn¡¯t look for Yu Bing. Since they weren¡¯t to discuss the divorce, there was nothing for them to talk about. Wen Qin couldn¡¯t be bothered to feign civility with them. She stood up and said, ¡°I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a need to talk about it anymore. Let¡¯s wait for the court¡¯s verdict. When the time comes, if you guys feel indignant, you guys can make a fuss. I¡¯m not afraid of confronting you guys in the court, since I¡¯m already mentally prepared. You guys can leave now.¡± Upon hearing this, Madam Sun widened her eyes in surprise. She had only made that suggestion just now, so if she didn¡¯t agree, she could just say so. Did she have to chase them out directly? Moreover, Wen Qin didn¡¯t do what they expected, so how could they continue their plan? Madam Sun was annoyed that her plan had been disrupted twice. Now that she saw Wen Qin¡¯s uncooperative attitude, she was furious. ¡°Wen Qin! I think you¡¯re too big for your britches! As long as the court doesn¡¯t hand down the verdict, you¡¯ll still be the daughter-in-law of our family! If I ask you to call Yu Bing over, you have to call her over immediately!¡± Madam Sun panicked and revealed her ultimate goal in a fit of anger. Wen Qin sneered. ¡°I was wondering why you were so easygoing today. You can¡¯t help but let the cat out of the bag now, right? Hurry up and leave. Don¡¯t force me to chase you away.¡± Seeing this, Madam Sun knew that Wen Qin definitely wouldn¡¯t call Yu Bing over, so she turned around and said to Sun Hui, who was standing at the side and watching them argue, ¡°Xiao Hui, find Yu Bing and tell her to come over as a witness to the divorce agreement.¡± Wen Qin stopped him. ¡°Xiao Hui, don¡¯t go!¡± Madam Sun quickly pushed Sun Hui out. Wen Qin wanted to stop her, but Sun Guo hugged her and stopped her. Although Sun Guo couldn¡¯t exert much strength with one hand, he was a man after all, so Wen Qin couldn¡¯t break free for the moment. ¡°Sun Guo, let go of me! What do you want?!¡± At this moment, Madam Sun had already brought Sun Hui out of the courtyard. When Sun Hui heard his mother¡¯s cry, he was so worried that he wanted to turn around, but he was grabbed by Madam Sun and couldn¡¯t leave. Madam Sun bent down and coaxed Sun Hui, ¡°Xiao Hui, do you want your mother to be fine?¡± Sun Hui nodded vigorously. Chapter 428 - 428 Good Day 428 Good Day Madam Sun smiled kindly. ¡°If Yu Bing comes to resolve the matter, your mother will be fine, so when you look for Yu Bing later, tell her that your mother asked you to go.¡± Sun Hui frowned. Wasn¡¯t this a lie? His mother didn¡¯t agree at all. Seeing this, Madam Sun coaxed him again, ¡°Xiao Hui, be good. I will buy you candy after this matter is resolved.¡± With that, she pushed Xiao Hui forward. Sun Hui looked at his Grandma, who was blocking the door, and could only turn around and leave the house helplessly. Madam Sun watched as Sun Hui walked towards Yu Bing¡¯s house and revealed a smug smile. After Madam Sun rubbed her palms together a few times, she turned around to enter the courtyard with a smile. Only then did she see her son standing in front of the living room¡¯s door with a pale face. Madam Sun went forward in confusion. ¡°Why did you come out? Where¡¯s that b*tch?¡± When Sun Guo heard his mother¡¯s question, his lips trembled a few times, but in the end, he only made a sound the size of a mosquito. ¡°Mom¡­¡± When Madam Sun saw Sun Guo¡¯s pale lips and panicked expression, she had a bad feeling. Madam Sun walked past Sun Guo and into the living room. She saw Wen Qin lying on the ground with a brick stained with blood beside her. Her head was covered in blood and a lot of it had even flowed onto the yellow mud floor below her. Madam Sun was shocked by this scene and let out a low cry. ¡°Ah!¡± However, Madam Sun had killed people before, so she quickly calmed down. When she went forward to check Wen Qin¡¯s breathing, she realized that she didn¡¯t feel any breath on her finger. At this moment, Sun Guo followed her into the house. Seeing that Madam Sun was silent, he went forward timidly and asked, ¡°Mom, how is Wen Qin?¡± Madam Sun looked up at Sun Guo and said slowly, ¡°She¡¯s dead.¡± Madam Sun¡¯s eyes looked calm, as if Wen Qin¡¯s life wasn¡¯t worth her worrying about. Sun Guo was flustered and his voice was quivering as he said, ¡°Mom, what should we do? Save me.¡± Madam Sun stood up calmly and walked to Sun Guo. Then, she raised her hand and slapped Sun Guo hard on the face as she scolded in a low voice, ¡°Calm down! Are you afraid that others won¡¯t know what you did? What happened?¡± Sun Guo came back to his senses after being slapped. He took a deep breath and said, ¡°She kept struggling to run out, so I was anxious. When I saw a brick at the foot of the table, I didn¡¯t think too much about it and pulled it out. I¡­ I just wanted to knock her out. I didn¡¯t want her dead!¡± When Madam Sun heard this, she glared at Sun Guo. ¡°You¡¯re so incompetent!¡± At this point, there was no time to pursue the matter. Madam Sun only scolded him in a fit of anger. Most importantly, she had to deal with this matter quickly. Madam Sun quickly scanned the room with her small eyes and saw the standing closet against the wall. Then, she walked over and opened it. When she saw that the space inside was very large, she ordered Sun Guo, ¡°Drag that b*tch in!¡± Sun Guo wasn¡¯t an assertive person to begin with, and he had been slapped by Madam Sun. Now, he did whatever Madam Sun asked him to do. After Wen Qin was dragged into the cabinet, Madam Sun found a shovel and asked Sun Guo to dig out the soil that had seeped into the blood. Then, she flipped the clean soil over to cover the traces. After everything was settled, Sun Guo looked around in fear. He kept feeling that Wen Qin¡¯s ghost was staring at him and he said with a trembling voice, ¡°Mom, let¡¯s run away now. I¡¯m afraid.¡± Madam Sun sneered. ¡°Do you think we can get away with it by leaving now? Don¡¯t forget, Xiao Hui knows that we were here. Moreover, he¡¯s already gone to look for Yu Bing.¡± Sun Guo paused when he heard this and said uncertainly, ¡°I¡¯m his father. How can he dare to report me to outsiders?¡± Madam Sun rolled her eyes at her son. ¡°If Yu Bing finds the corpse in the closet and Xiao Hui is coaxed by that woman, won¡¯t he tell her everything? Not only can¡¯t we leave now, but we have to continue our plan!¡± ¡°We have to drag Yu Bing into this. After you rape her, we¡¯ll let her follow us to bury Wen Qin at night. As long as Yu Bing doesn¡¯t call the police, as her family, we can say that Wen Qin ran away with someone, and the others won¡¯t interfere. Wouldn¡¯t this matter be over without anyone knowing? We can also use it to control Yu Bing at the same time.¡± ¡°We have nothing to lose, but she¡¯s richer and more powerful than us. As long as she wants to keep everything she has now, she has to listen to us obediently! With her salary and work points, our good days are coming!¡± Chapter 429 - 429 Help If You Can 429 Help If You Can Sun Guo was convinced by his mother. The more he listened, the more excited he became. He had completely forgotten about the panic he felt just now. ¡°Mom, I¡¯ll listen to you!¡± On the other side, Sun Hui had already jogged to Yu Bing¡¯s house. ¡°Sister Yu Bing.¡± Seeing that the sun was shining today, Yu Bing took advantage of her day off to wash her hair in the courtyard. Now, she was bending down to dry her hair. ¡°Xiao Hui?¡± Sun Hui ran to Yu Bing¡¯s side and looked at her anxiously. ¡°Sister Yu Bing, can you go to my house? My grandma asked me to look for you as a witness to the divorce.¡± Sun Hui didn¡¯t lie according to Madam Sun¡¯s request. When Yu Bing heard this, she was as incredulous as Wen Qin. ¡°Looking for me?¡± When Yu Bing saw Sun Hui nod, she frowned. ¡°Your grandma agreed to your parents¡¯ divorce? Then what did your mother say?¡± Sun Hui thought for a moment and replied helplessly, ¡°My mother didn¡¯t want me to look for you, but my grandma pulled me out and insisted that I come over.¡± When Jiang Chun heard this in the kitchen, she stuck her head out of the window. ¡°Madam Sun must be up to no good again. Little Bing, don¡¯t go. She might have thought of some disgusting method to set you up again!¡± Yu Bing quickly dried her hair. ¡°I¡¯d better go. If it can be resolved smoothly, Wen Qin can also relax and recuperate.¡± It wasn¡¯t easy for Wen Qin to take care of a child while she was pregnant, so Yu Bing wanted to see if she could deal with the Sun family once and for all. They could either quickly go through the procedures for the divorce or wait for the court¡¯s verdict quietly. If they came every few days, when would it end? Yu Bing lowered her head and said to Sun Hui, ¡°Xiao Hui, stay here and play with Xiao Hu and Sister Jiang Chun later. I¡¯ll go look for your mother.¡± Sun Hui thought of his mother¡¯s words before he went out. ¡°Sister Yu Bing, I¡¯m worried about my mother. I want to go back and see her.¡± Yu Bing stopped what she was doing. ¡°Did your father hit your mother again?¡± Sun Hui lowered his head in sadness. Although he only heard sounds, based on his many years of experience, Sun Hui felt that his father must have hit her again. Yu Bing slapped the towel in her hand on the shelf beside her. ¡°Bastard! Is he even a man?!¡± Jiang Chun frowned when she heard this. She knew that Yu Bing had made up her mind, so she helped Yu Bing persuade Sun Hui. ¡°Xiao Hui, with Yu Bing around, your grandma and father can¡¯t bully your mother. If you go with them, they will have to divert their attention to take care of you.¡± Sun Hui was very worried, but he knew that they were right, so he didn¡¯t insist on following them. Yu Bing quickly combed her half-dried hair with her hand and tied her hair into a low ponytail. Then, she entered the house and took her dagger. After the scabbard disappeared last time, Xiao Sheng made a scabbard out of wood and put it on. He even engraved Yu Bing¡¯s name on it. After Yu Bing left, she quickly walked to Wen Qin¡¯s house. When she entered the courtyard, she stopped and shouted into the open room, ¡°Wen Qin!¡± The Sun family¡¯s mother and son were discussing how to deal with Yu Bing. When they heard her voice, Madam Sun immediately appeared in the middle of the living room opposite the courtyard door. When she saw that Yu Bing was alone, she asked, ¡°Why are you alone? Where¡¯s Xiao Hui?¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t say that Xiao Hui was at her house, since she was worried that the two of them would take him away. ¡°Xiao Hui met a classmate halfway and went to play with him.¡± Madam Sun was overjoyed. Now, she didn¡¯t have to worry about anything. She deliberately looked behind Yu Bing and said, ¡°Wen Qin saw that you hadn¡¯t come out for too long and ran to look for you. Didn¡¯t you see her?¡± Madam Sun was worried that Yu Bing would be suspicious if she didn¡¯t see Wen Qin, so she found an excuse. Yu Bing frowned when she heard this. According to Sun Hui, Wen Qin didn¡¯t want her to come at all. If she left the house, she would definitely stop her from coming, which would be against Madam Sun¡¯s wishes. Yu Bing determined that Madam Sun was definitely lying and deliberately said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll wait for her in the courtyard.¡± How could they do it in the courtyard?! Madam Sun was a little anxious. ¡°Miss Yu, come in and wait. Who knows when she¡¯ll return?!¡± Chapter 430 - 430 Maintenance 430 Maintenance Yu Bing glanced at Madam Sun as she continued aloofly, ¡°Won¡¯t she come back if she can¡¯t find me at my house? It¡¯ll just be a few minutes.¡± Madam Sun pursed her lips. She couldn¡¯t say that Wen Qin would never come back. Moreover, Madam Sun knew that Yu Bing wasn¡¯t easy to deal with and she didn¡¯t get to use the excuse she came up with beforehand, so she could only enter the living room. When she saw her son standing at the side in a daze, she was furious and rolled her eyes at Sun Guo. Then, she saw the pen and paper Wen Qin had placed by the bed. Madam Sun had an idea. Soon, she appeared in front of Yu Bing with a smile and told her about the agreement. ¡°Why don¡¯t you go into the house and write it first? When you¡¯re done, Wen Qin will probably be back. Let¡¯s confirm it quickly so that we can settle the procedures.¡± Such straightforwardness was really unlike Madam Sun. Yu Bing sneered inwardly, but she revealed a smile on the surface. ¡°Alright, but I have to go to the bathroom first. I¡¯ll go in and write later.¡± After a few minutes, Yu Bing came out and saw that Madam Sun was still waiting in the courtyard. She pretended not to care and entered the living room. After Yu Bing entered the house and sized up her surroundings., she realized that there was indeed only the Sun family. Then, she sat down at the table without thinking much about it. As soon as Yu Bing placed her hand on the table, the table that had lost its brick swayed and she couldn¡¯t write at all. After Yu Bing looked down and realized that the brick she had found when she came to help clean up the house was gone, she was a little puzzled and muttered to herself, ¡°Why did she take off the brick?¡± When the Sun family¡¯s mother and son, who were sitting at the other end of the table, heard this, their hearts jumped to their throats, but Madam Sun maintained her composure. However, Sun Guo was extremely nervous. When he saw the kettle on the table, he wanted to take a few sips to calm himself down, so he raised it and wanted to pour a glass of water. However, he didn¡¯t expect his hand to tremble so much that the water was poured out of the cup. This scene stunned Yu Bing. Madam Sun hurriedly snatched the kettle over and filled the cup. Then, she smiled at Yu Bing and said, ¡°Sun Guo has a slight fever today. He¡¯s not in a good state.¡± Madam Sun secretly glared at her son. Sun Guo lowered his head and picked up the water to finish it. After that, he didn¡¯t dare to move again. This excuse was quite good, but since it came from Madam Sun, Yu Bing didn¡¯t believe it at all. At the same time, she felt even more uneasy. As she wrote the divorce agreement, she recalled the strange actions of the Sun family¡¯s mother and son after entering the house. Yu Bing recalled Sun Guo¡¯s strong reaction when she lifted the brick. Yu Bing began to ponder over it, but her hands didn¡¯t stop moving. The divorce agreement was written in less than a minute. Then, Yu Bing smelled a fishy scent. After she handed the agreement to the Sun family¡¯s mother and son, she looked around to see where the smell came from. Like her, Wen Qin was very clean and would never let such a smell appear in the room. Madam Sun couldn¡¯t read, but Sun Guo could. Hence, Sun Guo read it to Madam Sun. When the two of them saw Yu Bing looking around absent-mindedly, they felt extremely uneasy. After Madam Sun gave Sun Guo a look, Sun Guo swallowed hard and nodded. Then, he stood up quietly and went to the side. Madam Sun handed the agreement back. ¡°Yu Bing, I have to add another rule.¡± Yu Bing was looking at a few dark red dots on the ground not far away. When she heard Madam Sun¡¯s words, she came back to her senses. ¡°Add what?¡± Madam Sun made a request without hesitation. ¡°Wen Qin has to give me alimony.¡± Yu Bing glared at Madam Sun. ¡°You¡¯re crazy about money. Wen Qin isn¡¯t your daughter. What right do you have to ask her for alimony?¡± Madam Sun didn¡¯t listen at all and kept trying to divert Yu Bing¡¯s attention. Sun Guo took this opportunity to go behind Yu Bing and take out a handkerchief soaked in knockout powder to cover Yu Bing¡¯s mouth and nose. Yu Bing reacted quickly and held her breath. Then, she quickly took out a handful of quicklime soil from her pocket and threw it towards Sun Guo¡¯s eyes. She had already closed her eyes and covered her face with her other arm. This series of actions only took two seconds. Before Sun Guo could react, Yu Bing threw it towards Sun Guo¡¯s eyes. ¡°Ah!¡± Sun Guo covered his eyes and shouted, ¡°Mom! My eyes hurt!¡± Chapter 431 - 431 Dont Want to Go to Jail 431 Don¡¯t Want to Go to Jail When Yu Bing entered and didn¡¯t see Wen Qin, she collected some soil at the foot of the wall of the bathroom. Because this house had not been lived in for that long, it was a little dark and damp. Therefore, Wen Qin had bought some lime powder a while ago and sprinkled it along the wall to remove the dampness. Although there wasn¡¯t much lime powder mixed in the soil, the eyes were the weakest point of the human body and the lime powder was a strong alkaline substance. Sun Guo immediately felt a burning sensation in his eyes. He, who only had one eye to begin with, panicked and immediately let go of Yu Bing. Yu Bing was worried that there was still soil containing lime powder around her, so she grabbed the table and hurriedly stood aside before daring to open her eyes. Madam Sun didn¡¯t expect such a huge change in the situation, so she stood up and helped Sun Guo up quickly. Looking at her son¡¯s red eyes, Madam Sun gritted her teeth and asked sternly, ¡°Yu Bing, what did you do to my son?!¡± Yu Bing sneered. ¡°I gave you guys some lime powder. If you guys want to cause trouble, I¡¯ll help you guys torture yourselves!¡± Madam Sun wanted to rush over and fight Yu Bing, but Yu Bing hurriedly took a step back to distance herself. However, she stepped on something and almost fell. When Madam Sun saw what had tripped Yu Bing, her heart skipped a beat. She hurriedly pulled Sun Guo out of the door and cried as she walked. ¡°Son, I will bring you to the doctor immediately! I will seek justice for you later!¡± Yu Bing found it a little strange that Madam Sun had retreated so quickly. However, when she thought about how they had not gained anything from her, she couldn¡¯t be bothered to chase after them. When she looked down at the red brick, she thought it looked familiar. Then, she turned to look at the table leg that had been raised on one side of the table and felt even more puzzled. Yu Bing bent down to pick it up and was about to stuff it back when she realized that there was a dark color on it. Yu Bing felt even more uneasy, as if she missed some important clues. The red brick that had been thrown to the side, the strange reaction of the Sun family¡¯s mother and son, Wen Qin, who had suddenly been let out by Madam Sun to look for her, and the smell of blood. After Yu Bing turned around, she realized that she was very close to the closet and the rusty smell seemed to be coming from there. Yu Bing¡¯s eyes flickered and she suddenly realized the truth. Then, she quickly stepped forward and opened the closet. After the Sun family mother and son ran all the way to the river, Sun Guo kept washing his eyes with the flowing river water. Because the lime powder had been placed for a long time and mixed with the soil, it didn¡¯t affect Sun Guo that much after it was washed away in time. After confirming that there was nothing wrong with Sun Guo¡¯s eyes, the mother and son began to worry about Wen Qin¡¯s body being discovered. Sun Guo grabbed his mother¡¯s arm and said with a long face, ¡°Mom, what should we do? I don¡¯t want to go to jail!¡± His plan had been disrupted time and time again. Before he went out, he had delusions of obtaining Yu Bing and living a good life afterwards. Now, he only hoped to escape the crime of murder. Madam Sun was also very flustered. As she looked at her middle-aged son, who was still unable to support himself, she felt even more vexed and pointed at Sun Guo¡¯s head. ¡°What¡¯s the use of you?! Giving birth to a piece of barbecue is better than giving birth to you!¡± She could eat barbecue when she was hungry, but Sun Guo would only find trouble for her. If not for the fact that she only had this one son, Madam Sun would have given up on him long ago! Sun Guo was used to his mother¡¯s domineering attitude. Although he was indignant, he didn¡¯t dare to retort. He knew that if he wanted to be safe, he still had to rely on his mother. As Madam Sun looked at the He Mountain Village behind her, she was silent for a moment before saying fiercely with a dark expression, ¡°Let¡¯s go home first! As long as we insist that we didn¡¯t do anything, the police won¡¯t be able to do anything to us. If they say that we killed someone, they have to take out the evidence! If Yu Bing dares to be nosy and call the police, we¡¯ll accuse her.¡± Madam Sun glanced at Sun Guo¡¯s dirty black shirt. ¡°Hurry up and wash your clothes when we get back. It¡¯ll be troublesome if they find out that you¡¯re stained with blood.¡± The two of them returned to the village and stayed there uneasily for three days. When nothing happened during those three days, they were relieved. The mother and son discussed softly as they ate dinner. ¡°Mom, do you think perhaps Yu Bing didn¡¯t notice?¡± Madam Sun took a bite of the mixed grain bun as she said nonchalantly, ¡°Why worry about so much? It¡¯s good that she didn¡¯t find out. If she did, she probably wouldn¡¯t have dared to make a fuss. Isn¡¯t she afraid that the police will suspect her first?¡± ¡°Remember, when the police come to ask questions, say that we went to see our grandson and settle the divorce agreement that day. Not long after Xiao Hui went out, Wen Qin saw that Yu Bing had yet to come and said that she wanted to go out to look for her herself. After that, we only saw Yu Bing return alone. Then, when we wrote the agreement, we left because we couldn¡¯t reach an agreement on the additional alimony. We have to emphasize that Yu Bing stayed at Wen Qin¡¯s house alone in the end.¡± Chapter 432 - 432 Malicious Ghost 432 Malicious Ghost When Sun Guo heard this, he frowned and asked, ¡°What about my eyes?¡± Madam Sun picked up a pickled veggie and asked impatiently, ¡°Do you care more about your life or taking revenge on her? As long as she exposes us for setting her up, our true motive will be exposed. It will contradict what we said previously! If we¡¯re discovered, we can forget about escaping!¡± When Sun Guo heard this, he didn¡¯t dare to say anything else. He could only consider himself unlucky. Because of Wen Qin¡¯s incident, the two of them had been very well-behaved these few days. They didn¡¯t go anywhere except to the fields. Not long after dinner, they went to bed and prepared to sleep. Sun Guo was lying on his side and sleeping soundly when he suddenly felt a cool breeze beside his ear. He opened his eyes in a daze and saw a pregnant woman standing three meters away, staring at him. The woman¡¯s face was pale, and her eyes were bleeding. Two five-centimeter-long fangs protruded from her mouth. ¡°Ghost! Mom! Mom!¡± As Sun Guo shouted in terror, he crawled to the bed beside the wall, as if this would increase his sense of security. He shouted for a few more minutes before realizing in despair that Madam Sun didn¡¯t respond. As the wind blew against the closed window, Sun Guo felt even more terrified. The woman seemed to have noticed that Sun Guo was a little tired from shouting, so she moved closer to Sun Guo, scaring him so much that he cried out, ¡°Don¡¯t come over! Don¡¯t come over! I¡¯m begging you!¡± The woman said in a monotone voice, ¡°Do you recognize who I am?¡± The moonlight shone through the window, but the light was still very dim. Sun Guo couldn¡¯t see the woman¡¯s facial features clearly, but he really couldn¡¯t think of anyone else who would look for him if she turned into a ghost. Moreover, her hairstyle and clothes were exactly the same as Wen Qin on the day she died! ¡°Yes, yes! Wen Qin, on account that Xiao Hui still needs someone to take care of him, please spare me!¡± The woman revealed a smile, but the other muscles on her face looked stiff and didn¡¯t move. That made her entire face look even creepier. Her sinister voice sounded again, ¡°What did you do that you want me to let you off?¡± Sun Guo was so frightened that he peed his pants as he cried and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t do it on purpose. I accidentally killed you!¡± When the woman heard this, she asked angrily, ¡°You threw me into the closet without even rescuing me. How is this an accident? Tell me! Why did you look for me that day?¡± The wind outside seemed to be controlled by the woman¡¯s mood. The wind that had slowly stopped began to blow again, scaring Sun Guo so much that he hurriedly replied, ¡°It was useless to save you since you were dead. I wanted to divorce you that day. I wanted to fulfill your wish.¡± Even though Sun Guo was frightened out of his wits, he still didn¡¯t reveal his true motive that day. He had a feeling that if he revealed his true motive, he might anger the other party. He couldn¡¯t fight against a malicious ghost, so he might as well euphemize his goal. Perhaps Wen Qin would spare him. When the woman saw that Sun Guo was unwilling to reveal his true motive, she was a little anxious. However, she had an idea and moved to the bed. Accompanied by Sun Guo¡¯s even more intense screams, the woman rolled her eyes as she said in a low voice, ¡°You still refuse to tell the truth? Do you know why your mother didn¡¯t come to look for you? Do you want a straightforward death or do you want to live a life worse than death?¡± The woman really seemed like a malicious ghost. In addition, Madam Sun was a light sleeper. Sun Guo had been howling for so long, but his mother didn¡¯t respond, so he already suspected that she had been killed by the malicious ghost that Wen Qin had turned into after her death. Now that he heard this, he confirmed his guess. Sun Guoxin¡¯s fear had already reached the max and he couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore. Instead of being tortured like this, he would rather die early and be reincarnated. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you!¡± Sun Guo made up his mind and told her about his and Madam Sun¡¯s plan with his eyes closed. After saying that, Sun Guo still didn¡¯t dare to open his eyes. He cried and continued to beg, ¡°Wen Qin, Xiao Hui no longer has a mother. Without a father, he will become an orphan. He will be bullied if no one protects him. Please let me take care of him!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Xiao Hui will only lose his father and won¡¯t become an orphan!¡± A mocking voice sounded in Sun Guo¡¯s ear. Chapter 433 - 433 Seeing Things 433 Seeing Things Sun Guo slowly opened his eyes. At this moment, a ray of light shone straight on Sun Guo¡¯s face. Sun Guo reflexively raised his hand to block the light. Two men in police uniforms raised their badges. ¡°Sun Guo, we¡¯re police officers from the police station. You¡¯re suspected of murdering Wen Qin. Please come with us.¡± Sun Guo widened his eyes and stared blankly at the police officer who suddenly appeared. After confirming that the other party was a living person, he climbed to the bed to look at the other party¡¯s identification. After confirming his identity, he swallowed nervously. ¡°You¡­ What right do you have to arrest me? Do you have evidence?¡± Sun Guo still had the last bit of hope. If he didn¡¯t admit to what he said just now, so what could they do to him? At this moment, half of the woman¡¯s body was exposed from the side and she looked at Sun Guo with a smile. ¡°Do you think you can deny it?¡± Under the light of the flashlight, Sun Guo saw who the other party was and exclaimed, ¡°Yu Bing!¡± Seeing that Sun Guo had recognized her, Yu Bing sneered and went forward to slap Sun Guo twice. ¡°It¡¯s me! You bastard! Wen Qin and you have been husband and wife for so many years and she has worked so hard for your family, but you didn¡¯t even try to save her after you injured her. How heartless! She still has your child in her stomach. Do you know that your actions could have killed them?!¡± Seeing that Yu Bing, a woman, dared to bully him in front of other men, Sun Guo¡¯s first reaction was to hit her back. The police officer at the side immediately grabbed Sun Guo¡¯s arm. ¡°Sun Guo! What are you trying to do? Don¡¯t you think your crimes are serious enough?¡± When Sun Guo heard the police¡¯s scolding, he felt extremely aggrieved. He pursed his lips and asked, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say anything when she hit me just now?¡± One of the police officers coughed lightly when he heard this. ¡°Who hit you? The light was too dim just now. You were just seeing things.¡± These two police officers were the police officers in charge of Wen Qin¡¯s case. During the visit and investigation, they had learned a lot about the Sun family¡¯s mother and son. Just now, they had heard with their own ears how Sun Guo had planned all of this, so they couldn¡¯t sympathize with such a person and even felt that Yu Bing had gone easy on them. When Sun Guo heard this, he felt that he definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to escape this time. However, he thought of Madam Sun. His mother definitely wouldn¡¯t leave him alone. She still had to rely on him to take care of her, so she definitely had a way! At the thought of this, Sun Guo felt more at ease. ¡°Where¡¯s my mother? I want to see my mother!¡± The police officer glanced at Sun Guo and said calmly, ¡°She¡¯s outside. Hurry up. We don¡¯t have so much time to waste with you.¡± When Sun Guo heard this, he hurriedly got up and put on his coat. When he went to the courtyard, he saw his mother gagged and handcuffed as she stood beside Xiao Sheng. Sun Guo opened his eyes slightly. When he saw the scene in front of him, he didn¡¯t know how to react. The police officer pushed Sun Guo¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Let¡¯s go. You and your mother have to go back to the police station to explain. There will be many opportunities for you two to meet.¡± After Sun Guo came back to his senses and looked at the police officer, he saw the other party walking past him with a heavy machine. This time, they drove a small car. The six of them returned to the police station of the commune in the middle of the night in less than half an hour. After Madam Sun regained her freedom, the first thing she did was scold Yu Bing, ¡°You little bitch! What right do you have to say that we killed Wen Qin? I can say that you killed her! My son and I left long ago. You were the last one to leave. Who knows what you did after that?!¡± Yu Bing smiled coldly and said, ¡°You still want to frame me now? Your son confessed everything. You should have been able to hear him clearly in the courtyard, right?¡± Sun Guo immediately denied it. ¡°What did I say? I didn¡¯t say anything! The police are in cahoots with you!¡± When Madam Sun saw that her son was quite smart this time, she revealed a gratified expression. ¡°That¡¯s right. Your food factory has a good relationship with the police, so your testimony can¡¯t be trusted.¡± Yu Bing raised her hand and began to clap as she said with a smile, ¡°You guys won¡¯t shed tears until you see the coffin, right? Don¡¯t worry, we have a lot of evidence. As long as you¡¯re stubborn enough, the police will show them to you later!¡± Sun Guo and Madam Sun exchanged looks and suddenly felt uneasy. As Madam Sun looked at Yu Bing¡¯s smirk, she gritted her teeth in hatred and said, ¡°If you don¡¯t have evidence but want to slander us, I¡¯ll sue you!¡± The old policeman was the one who dealt with Madam Sun and Yu Yan last time. Seeing this, he interrupted Madam Sun. ¡°I¡¯ll bring you to the interrogation room to record your statements first.¡± Chapter 434 - 434 Punishment 434 Punishment This wasn¡¯t the first time Madam Sun had taken a statement. Thinking of the small room, she immediately refused. ¡°No! I want to record my statement in the hall!¡± There were two other police officers on duty in the hall. Madam Sun was worried that this old police officer would help Yu Bing. If he closed the case even without evidence, what would happen to her reputation? She thought that the other party wouldn¡¯t dare to openly side with Yu Bing in public. Of course, Yu Bing knew what Madam Sun was thinking. She turned around and asked the two police officers to see if they could interrogate her directly in the hall. The interrogation system in this era wasn¡¯t as standard as that of the future. In addition, it was early in the morning and no one would call the police in the middle of the night. Moreover, Yu Bing had been entrusted by Wen Qin to cooperate with the police. In the end, the Sun family successfully obtained the opportunity to be interrogated in the hall. This time, when Madam Sun asked for evidence, the police took out a tape recorder that played the conversation between Yu Bing and Sun Guo. Madam Sun and Sun Guo¡¯s eyes widened. This was the first time they had seen something that could record voices. Madam Sun looked at the police and Yu Bing warily. Then, she leaned closer to her son and frowned as she asked in a low voice, ¡°You¡¯re not some high-ranking official, so why were you recorded?¡± Sun Guo didn¡¯t know about recording functions either, so he scratched his head and thought for a moment before replying, ¡°I don¡¯t know either. Only the village chief¡¯s house has this thing. I¡¯ve only heard songs being played from this thing.¡± Yu Bing watched as the two of them muttered softly. Then, she raised her eyebrows and asked, ¡°You didn¡¯t expect what you said to be recorded, right? The evidence is conclusive. What else is there to say?!¡± If Madam Sun was so easy to defeat, she wouldn¡¯t be Madam Sun. She immediately argued, ¡°You pretended to be a ghost to scare my son. He was so frightened that he spouted nonsense. That¡¯s like forcing a confession. It doesn¡¯t count at all!¡± Yu Bing chuckled as she mocked, ¡°Then what kind of evidence do you want? Tell me and I¡¯ll see if I have it.¡± When Madam Sun heard this, she immediately thought of a piece of evidence that they definitely couldn¡¯t produce. ¡°Unless someone saw it with their own eyes!¡± Yu Bing sneered, her eyes filled with coldness. ¡°Are you trying to say that only what Wen Qin saw with her own eyes is the truth?¡± Madam Sun revealed a smug smile. ¡°You¡¯re right!¡± A meaningful smile appeared on Yu Bing¡¯s face and a handwritten letter from the police was handed over. The old policeman took the letter he had just received yesterday afternoon. ¡°This is a letter written by Wen Qin herself. It clearly states what happened before and after Wen Qin was injured. It also clearly mentions that Sun Guo bashed her head, causing her life to be in danger.¡± As Madam Sun and Sun Guo stared at the letter in the old policeman¡¯s hand, they were both surprised and afraid. ¡°Wen Qin isn¡¯t dead?¡± Yu Bing felt terrible when she thought of Wen Qin¡¯s miserable state in the hospital. She looked at the Sun family¡¯s mother and son coldly. ¡°You guys dodged a bullet! You guys can avoid the death sentence, but you can¡¯t escape punishment. For villains like you guys, the death sentence is too lenient.¡± ¡°Officer, I want to pursue their crime of attempted rape! In the previous recording, Sun Guo personally revealed their plan. Moreover, Sun Guo used a handkerchief that was drugged to cover my mouth. This is in accordance with what the law says about the perpetrator attempting to commit the crime against me¡± When Madam Sun heard this, she immediately stood up. ¡°Little b*tch, don¡¯t spout nonsense! Otherwise, we¡¯ll kill you when we get out!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°Officer, the suspect is still threatening me. I want to pursue this too!¡± When the police officers present heard Yu Bing¡¯s words, they were amused by her actions. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll record your statement later.¡± When the Sun family¡¯s mother and son finished recording their statements, the sky was already bright. Wen Qin¡¯s case was mainly handled by the police, Yu Bing, and Xiao Sheng. At the entrance of the police station, they briefly explained the possible punishment from the court. ¡°Because Sun Guo and the victim, Wen Qin, are still married, this is considered domestic violence. However, because two lives were in danger and the victim also requested heavier punishment, the crime of intentional harm definitely can¡¯t be avoided.¡± ¡°Moreover, under the misconception that the victim was dead, they absconded. Coupled with the fact that you accused him of attempted rape along with several other crimes, the court should sentence him to at least 18 to 20 years in jail.¡± ¡°Madam Sun attempted to cover up the crimes and was the mastermind for all the crimes. She also threatened you just now, so she should be sentenced to at least 15 to 20 years in jail.¡± Chapter 435 - 435 Thermos 435 Thermos The Sun family¡¯s mother and son were completely done for now. Xiao Sheng reached out and shook the old policeman¡¯s hand. ¡°I¡¯ve really troubled you this time. You even accompanied us here so late at night.¡± The old policeman smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s not troublesome. We¡¯re supposed to serve the people! Fortunately, Miss Yu is smart and knows that this mother and son are quibblers. Before we left, she even reminded us to bring the recorder.¡± After leaving the police station, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng went to a restaurant for breakfast and ordered chicken soup takeout to bring to the hospital. When Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng entered the ward, Wen Qin had just been pushed by a nurse to see her son, who was in an incubator. Yu Bing placed the chicken soup on the table beside the bed. ¡°Wen Qin, I brought you chicken soup. Drink it.¡± That day, Wen Qin was lying in the closet with blood all over her face. When Yu Bing saw the sight, she was shocked. Although Wen Qin wasn¡¯t breathing at that time, Yu Bing quickly dragged her out of the closet and placed her flat on the ground. It took about five minutes for Wen Qin to regain her breathing. Yu Bing quickly bandaged Wen Qin¡¯s wound. When she realized that Wen Qin had suffered a miscarriage, she hurriedly asked her neighbor to get Xiao Sheng to drive over to pick them up. When they sent Wen Qin to the hospital in town, Wen Qin was in a coma and the fetus in her stomach was facing possible miscarriage. Thus, the hospital requested for immediate surgery to take out the fetus. Under pressure, Yu Bing signed her name on the surgery consent slip. Fortunately, Wen Qin was quite lucky this time. The fetus in her stomach was already eight months old. After the C-section, the fetus was slightly larger than a kitten. The fetus¡¯s heart had stopped beating, but the medical staff still tried their best to save the fetus. It wasn¡¯t until half an hour later that the little life was finally saved. Fortunately, the baby¡¯s organs had already grown. However, because the baby was born prematurely, the baby¡¯s body was very weak and could only be placed in an incubator to recuperate. Wen Qin only woke up at noon the day before yesterday. The first thing she did when she woke up was to ask Yu Bing to call the police for her. That was how the letter and last night¡¯s arrest came about. To Wen Qin, Yu Bing was no longer just her savior. She was also the baby¡¯s savior. After taking the chicken soup from Yu Bing, Wen Qin leaned against the head of the bed weakly and smiled at Yu Bing. ¡°Although I feel very embarrassed, I¡¯ve already received so much kindness from you, so I won¡¯t stand on ceremony with you. You can settle the score with me after I recover.¡± Hearing that Wen Qin was still in the mood to joke, Yu Bing was relieved and said with a smile, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll settle the score with you when you recover. You should take advantage of the fact that your baby hasn¡¯t come out of the incubator yet to nourish yourself now. Otherwise, when he comes out of the incubator, he won¡¯t have breast milk.¡± Wen Qin smiled when she heard this and lowered her head to drink the soup. At the mention of the baby, who was in the incubator, Yu Bing asked with concern, ¡°How is the baby now? What did the doctor say?¡± At the mention of the child, Wen Qin¡¯s face was filled with maternal gentleness. ¡°He¡¯s changing every day. He¡¯s growing up every day. The doctor said that he¡¯ll stay there for another week. At the moment, the doctor hasn¡¯t noticed anything abnormal. The doctor wants him to stay in the incubator a little longer so that it can help him develop immunity to the external environment after he comes out.¡± Yu Bing had never given birth before and knew nothing about these things. However, doctors were professionals, so listening to them was definitely the right choice. ¡°Do whatever the doctor says. You don¡¯t have to worry about money. I¡¯m single and without a family, so it¡¯s fine for me to lend you money.¡± When Wen Qin heard this, her eyes teared up a little and she raised her hand to wipe the tears from the corners of her eyes. ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to you and Xiao Sheng this time. Otherwise, the baby and I definitely would have died.¡± Xiao Sheng wasn¡¯t very familiar with Wen Qin. Or rather, other than Yu Bing, the only girl he was familiar with was Jiang Chun. At this moment, when Xiao Sheng heard Wen Qin mention him, he comforted her. ¡°The baby is lucky. Before the surgery, the doctor said that you were in shock for so long and lost too much blood, so you wouldn¡¯t be able to keep the child in your stomach, but we didn¡¯t expect him to be so tenacious as to survive until the doctor brought him out.¡± Chapter 436 - 436 Work Problem 436 Work Problem When Wen Qin thought of her youngest son, who she had seen in the incubator just now, her heart softened and she revealed a proud expression. ¡°Yes, those nurses said that the baby is the strongest baby they¡¯ve ever seen.¡± Yu Bing watched as Wen Qin finished the chicken soup. ¡°Just stay here with the baby and focus on recuperating. Don¡¯t worry about the rest.¡± A woman who had given birth had to recuperate for a month. Otherwise, if she didn¡¯t recover completely, there might be sequelae in the future. Yu Bing was worried that Wen Qin was in a hurry to go back to work, so she specifically mentioned it. Wen Qin also knew that she had suffered too much over the years and if she didn¡¯t take the opportunity to recuperate, she might not be able to take good care of the two children in the future. She looked at Yu Bing with a smile as she nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll definitely take good care of her this time.¡± After chatting for a while, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng left the ward. Before they left, Xiao Sheng accompanied Yu Bing to the nursery again. Through the glass window of the ward, they saw a child with Wen Qin¡¯s name bracelet. He was as thin as a monkey and was sleeping in the incubator. When Yu Bing thought of the cool-looking young man she had seen in her previous life, she couldn¡¯t help but rejoice. This young man almost lost the chance to come to this world. Yu Bing didn¡¯t know if the dates of the baby¡¯s birth were the same in her two lifetimes or if it would affect him if they were not. However, at this point, Yu Bing only hoped that this young man¡¯s future would be smooth sailing. Now that she thought about it, Yu Bing felt that the reason the baby committed crimes in the future was most likely because of the Sun family¡¯s mother and son. Fortunately, the Sun family had already been sent to prison. If the baby and Sun Hui stayed by Wen Qin¡¯s side, they would definitely be better off than with the Sun family¡¯s mother and son. They would probably have a different ending from that of their previous life. After the two of them left the hospital, they drove back to He Mountain Village. Xiao Sheng turned to look at Yu Bing and asked, ¡°What are you going to do about Yu Yan?¡± This was because Yu Bing had heard the confession of the Sun family¡¯s mother and son and learned from Madam Sun that the inspiration for her plan came from Yu Yan. However, Yu Yan had only mentioned it. Everyone else would think it was just an offhand remark, but people like Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng, who knew the inside story, naturally wouldn¡¯t believe that. However, Yu Yan had learned her lesson this time. After she secretly sowed discord, not only could she achieve her goal, but they also couldn¡¯t find any evidence against her. On the way back, Yu Bing already thought of how to deal with Yu Yan. She raised her eyebrows and glanced at Xiao Sheng with a smile. ¡°I think she¡¯s causing trouble because she¡¯s too idle. In that case, I¡¯ll find something for her to do!¡± When Xiao Sheng saw the naughty expression on Yu Bing¡¯s face, he smiled dotingly and said, ¡°Call me if you need me.¡± Yu Bing nodded. After getting out of the car, she went to find Shu Ya to find out more about the situation. After receiving a lot of information, Yu Bing went to look for Feng Cai. ¡°Feng Cai, do you know that Yu Yan borrowed money?¡± Feng Cai often went on business trips now and didn¡¯t know much about the situation in the dormitory building. ¡°I really didn¡¯t know. Why?¡± Yu Bing sneered and said, ¡°She might have been too idle recently, so she started to find trouble with me again. If I don¡¯t fight back, she¡¯ll think she can do whatever she wants!¡± When Feng Cai heard this, he immediately understood why Yu Bing was looking for him and he asked tactfully, ¡°What do you want to do?¡± After Yu Bing whispered her plan to Feng Cai, Feng Cai nodded. Soon, among the young people who lent money to Yu Yan, someone heard the news from somewhere. After dinner, as everyone rested in their respective dormitories, Li Zhen rushed into the dormitory. ¡°Qian Hao, I heard that something happened to Yu Yan¡¯s parents at work, so she hasn¡¯t received the money sent by her family yet. You¡¯d better confirm with her. Nine yuan is not a small amount.¡± If anything bad happened to someone working in a government agency, they would be transferred to a different position at best. At worst, they would be fired and publicly condemned. When Qian Hao heard this, he panicked a little. Not only did he not have a single cent on him, but he also owed the villagers money for treatment. ¡°Where did you hear the news from? Is the news reliable?¡± Chapter 437 - 437 Business Trip 437 Business Trip Li Zhen picked up the teapot on the table and took a big gulp of water. ¡°I overheard Zhao Wen and Wen Xun saying that they plan to ask Yu Yan.¡± Qian Hao hesitated for a moment when he heard this. ¡°The answer will be the same no matter who asks. I¡¯ll ask them after they ask Yu Yan.¡± Li Zhen nodded. ¡°Be careful. Don¡¯t be the last to know everything.¡± Li Zhen didn¡¯t want to add insult to injury. He just felt that no matter what, as a creditor, Qian Hao had to at least know the truth. If something really happened to Yu Yan¡¯s family, Yu Yan should come up with a plan to repay the money. Li Zhen knew Qian Hao¡¯s family situation. This amount of money wasn¡¯t a small amount to him. Qian Hao knew that Li Zhen was reminding him out of goodwill, so he smiled and replied, ¡°I understand.¡± On the other side, Zhao Wen and Wen Xun had already reached the entrance of Yu Yan¡¯s dormitory. The dormitory door was open, and Yu Yan and Xu Ling were inside. Zhao Wen called out softly, ¡°Yu Yan, I have something to ask you.¡± Yu Yan was lying on the bed while writing to her adoptive parents. Recently, she had not been able to contact anyone, so she was a little flustered. This had never happened before. Yu Yan couldn¡¯t contact them even after calling them a few times. Yu Yan couldn¡¯t help but wonder if her adoptive parents were looking for an excuse not to pick up the phone to force her to return to the city. However, the more they were like this, the more Yu Yan didn¡¯t want to go back. Yu Yan could only write a letter as a last-ditch effort now. Yu Hai and his wife were almost 50 years old and couldn¡¯t be contacted now, but Yu Yan had never thought that something might have happened to her adoptive parents¡¯ health. She was only worried that she wouldn¡¯t be able to continue getting money from her adoptive parents. When Yu Yan heard someone call her, she looked up. When she saw Zhao Wen and Wen Xun, her heart skipped a beat. She looked at Xu Ling, who was looking at her, then stood up and walked out of the room with a smile. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen you guys for a few days. I happened to have something to look for you guys for.¡± With that, she signaled for the two of them to follow her. At this time, there was definitely no one in the kitchen, so Yu Yan brought the two of them to the kitchen to talk. After Zhao Wen and Wen Xun exchanged looks, they looked at Yu Yan, who was smiling at them. Zhao Wen took the initiative to ask, ¡°Yu Yan, the first half of September is almost over. Have your parents returned from their business trip?¡± Yu Yan smiled as she replied, ¡°Not yet. They¡¯re on a business trip for a long time this time. I contacted their colleagues, who said that something cropped up at the place where they were on a business trip, so they¡¯re delayed.¡± When Zhao Wen saw Yu Yan¡¯s calm expression, he suspected the authenticity of the news. However, he still asked, ¡°Yu Yan, are things going well for your parents in the workplace?¡± Yu Yan was a little stunned when she heard this. ¡°Pretty well. Why do you ask?¡± When Zhao Wen saw Yu Yan¡¯s confused expression, he didn¡¯t know if Yu Yan was pretending and glanced at Wen Xun. He was a little unsure if he should continue asking. If the information was wrong, it would be rude of them to ask directly. Wen Xun could see the hesitation in Zhao Wen¡¯s eyes. He thought about how Zhao Wen¡¯s family was better off than his. Zhao Wen could afford the delay, but Wen Xun couldn¡¯t. ¡°Yu Yan, I heard that something happened to your parents¡¯ at their workplace.¡± Yu Yan frowned when she heard this. However, even she couldn¡¯t help but believe it. Usually, her adoptive parents would take the initiative to send her letters. She would reply depending on her mood. Sometimes, she would only reply to two or three letters, but her adoptive parents would still send her letters happily. Two or three letters a month was the least. Now that she thought about it, they had not contacted her for more than a month. However, no matter how flustered Yu Yan was, she couldn¡¯t show it now. Otherwise, if they were worried that she couldn¡¯t return the money and caused a commotion, her reputation would be ruined! In fact, ever since Yu Yan slandered Yu Bing and was detained, no one had a good impression of her anymore. However, they were still living together after all, so everyone still had to maintain a polite pretense and they greeted Yu Yan as usual. Yu Yan assumed that everyone¡¯s opinion of Yu Bing was the same as her own. Although there was no evidence, she assumed that they couldn¡¯t stand Yu Bing hanging out with a man all day long. Yu Yan pretended to be angry and replied, ¡°Who started the rumors? Nothing happened to my parents! They just went on a business trip!¡± Chapter 438 - 438 Eavesdropping 438 Eavesdropping When Zhao Wen and Wen Xun saw that Yu Yan¡¯s reaction didn¡¯t seem fake, they felt that the news might really be wrong. After all, they had accidentally heard someone mutter it and they didn¡¯t see who said it. Seeing this, Zhao Wen and Wen Xun comforted her. ¡°Someone might have been mistaken.¡± Yu Yan believed that no one would spread such news for no reason. This was clearly targeted at her, so she frowned and asked, ¡°Where did you guys hear this news from?¡± The two shook their heads. ¡°We didn¡¯t see the person who spoke either.¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she confirmed her guess. After sending Zhao Wen and Wen Xun away, she returned to the dormitory with a heavy heart. However, these two young men were not the only ones who received this news. The others also came to look for Yu Yan in the next two days. Although Zhao Wen and the other two had already asked Yu Yan, they were nervous about their money. They were not smitten with Yu Yan like Qian Hao was, so they naturally had to ask Yu Yan personally. They only stopped asking after getting the answer that Yu Yan¡¯s family was fine. Xu Ling, who was in the same dormitory, saw all of this. After someone came looking for Yu Yan again, Xu Ling finally couldn¡¯t hold back her curiosity and quietly followed them to see what they were talking about. When Yu Yan returned to the dormitory, she saw Xu Ling looking at her with a gloating expression. Yu Yan rolled her eyes at Xu Ling and returned to her bed. When Xu Ling saw that Yu Yan still looked as condescending as ever, anger surged in her heart. She sat up and said sarcastically, ¡°I wonder if anyone has heard of the saying that a fallen phoenix is inferior to a chicken. You¡¯re already in such a state, yet you still look down on others. I was wondering why I didn¡¯t see you bring back any letters and packages after so long. Turns out that something happened to your family.¡± As soon as she said this, coupled with Xu Ling¡¯s difference in attitude before she left, Yu Yan knew that the other party must have eavesdropped on her just now. ¡°Xu Ling! Stop spouting nonsense! You¡¯re a city dweller after all, but you actually eavesdropped on me. I think you¡¯ve really been assimilated by the rural people after staying here for so many years. You¡¯ve also become a true rural woman!¡± Xu Ling was furious when she heard this. She hated being called a rural person the most. She put the book aside. ¡°Yu Yan, what are you still so smug about? Your cabinet has long become empty. Didn¡¯t you buy meat every few days in the past? You haven¡¯t eaten meat for an entire week now, right?¡± With that, Xu Ling smiled at Yu Yan smugly. ¡°Your current life isn¡¯t even as good as mine. If it weren¡¯t for your wealthy family, who in the youth dormitory would even talk to you? You¡¯re just keeping up appearances now. I want to see how long you can be smug for. Without money, you¡¯re nothing!¡± Yu Yan gritted her teeth. Of course, she knew that the people around her were all trying to get benefits from her, so she couldn¡¯t refute Xu Ling¡¯s words. Yu Yan felt enraged, so she criticized Xu Ling for what she cared about the most. ¡°So what? My parents are on a business trip, so they can¡¯t be bothered to send me money. Yet this is all you can do in this life. Isn¡¯t your family misogynistic? Your parents only use the money on your brother.¡± ¡°Just be prepared to stay in the countryside for the rest of your life! Do you still want to wait for the return policy? It¡¯s been so many years, but I¡¯ve only seen people coming from the city to the countryside. How many people can return to the city from the countryside? If you don¡¯t have connections, you¡¯ll have to do hard labor for the rest of your life! I don¡¯t want to go back for the time being. As long as I¡¯m willing to go back, my parents will immediately pull strings!¡± For these intellectuals, the most important thing was to return to the city and continue to be city dwellers. Although many people had been working in the fields every day in order to survive all these years and seemed to be resigned to their fate on the surface, that was only to make themselves feel better. In fact, most of them had never given up. Otherwise, there wouldn¡¯t be so many young people still insisting on not marrying the villagers. It was one thing to look down on them, but most importantly, once they got married, they would be trapped in the countryside and there was a high chance that they wouldn¡¯t be able to return to the city in the future. When Xu Ling saw the smug expression on Yu Yan¡¯s face and heard Yu Yan say that she would be a farmer for the rest of her life, her eyes widened in anger as she stood up and pounced on Yu Yan. ¡°You b*tch! I¡¯m going to tear your mouth apart!¡± Chapter 439 - 439 Draw 439 Draw Yu Yan raised her hand to block the attack and flung Xu Ling¡¯s hand aside as she scolded angrily, ¡°Xu Ling, are you crazy? Do you really think I don¡¯t dare to provoke you?!¡± Xu Ling was so angry that she raised her leg and kicked Yu Yan¡¯s thigh. ¡°Damn b*tch, if your parents really become radicals, forget about staying in the dormitory building or staying in the village. Just wait to stay in the cowshed at the edge of the village! You still want them to pull strings for you? Dream on!¡± ¡°You said that I can¡¯t go back, but I think you¡¯re the one who can¡¯t go back!¡± Xu Ling cursed as she pinched the soft flesh on Yu Yan¡¯s body. Yu Yan wasn¡¯t to be outdone. She was taller and stronger than Xu Ling, so she pulled Xu Ling¡¯s hair and slapped her. Although Xu Ling dodged in time, Yu Yan¡¯s long nails still left five bloody marks on her neck. Yu Yan was also a little agitated and attacked even more ruthlessly than before. If things were really as Xu Ling said, her life would be over. ¡°My parents aren¡¯t rebels! You¡¯re slandering them and spreading rumors! I¡¯m going to report you!¡± As Xu Ling fought back, she continued to provoke Yu Yan. Although she didn¡¯t know why Yu Yan hated Yu Bing so much, she just knew that the two of them didn¡¯t get along. ¡°Pfft! You still have the nerve to mention slandering and spreading rumors. Why? Did you learn this move from Yu Bing? Why don¡¯t you take a look at yourself? Can you compare to her? Don¡¯t imitate her, lest you become a laughing stock!¡± The two of them took turns attacking each other. They had been roommates who lived together for a year, so the two of them knew each other¡¯s weaknesses and sore spots very well. Both sides became tired, but they only reached a draw in the end. After the two of them knew that they couldn¡¯t gain anything from the other party, they tacitly chose to stop fighting. One of them had red marks all over her neck and face, and her hair was disheveled. The other one had internal injuries. The places where she had been pinched were all covered by her clothes. Only her clothes were wrinkled on the surface, but she was in pain. Xu Ling glared at Yu Yan. Then, she opened the cabinet and started to pack her things. Before she opened the door and left, she turned around to look at Yu Yan and she gritted her teeth as she said fiercely, ¡°Just you wait. I won¡¯t let you off easy!¡± Once Xu Ling left, the entire dormitory would belong to Yu Yan. Thinking of how even Xu Ling was forced away by her, Yu Yan felt very smug. However, very quickly, Yu Yan¡¯s mood plummeted again. Although she had been denying Xu Ling¡¯s words just now, she couldn¡¯t help but think in the direction the other party had said. She even thought about her adoptive brother¡¯s job. Could he have been implicated by her adoptive parents? Otherwise, why couldn¡¯t she contact him¡­ Yu Yan lay on the bed, but she couldn¡¯t sleep soundly. Thinking of the treatment she would suffer after becoming a child of rebels, Yu Yan felt a little flustered. She hesitated about writing a letter to sever ties and sending it to her adoptive parents¡¯ agency to express her attitude so that she wouldn¡¯t be locked up because of her adoptive parents. However, on second thought, they had lost contact for more than a month. If something really happened, after making so many calls back, her adoptive parents¡¯ colleagues would definitely reveal a little. Didn¡¯t Auntie Jiang, who answered the call, have a very good relationship with her adoptive mother? However, she didn¡¯t hear anything from her. At the thought of this, Yu Yan calmed down a little. She felt that she shouldn¡¯t scare herself by letting her imagination run wild. She tossed and turned until midnight before falling asleep. When Yu Yan got up the next morning, she realized that the bruises on her body from last night were aching. She slowly sat up and began to put on her clothes. When she finally tidied up and was about to wash up, she heard some voices outside the door, but they were too soft for her to hear what was being said. After Yu Yan opened the door curiously, she saw that everyone who had borrowed her money had appeared at the dormitory door and the voices of discussion disappeared. Yu Yan was shocked by the scene in front of her and she had an uneasy feeling, but she forced a smile at everyone. ¡°You guys¡­¡± The nine boys looked at each other. In the end, Wen Xun stood up and said with a smile, ¡°Yu Yan, I need money urgently now. Can you think of a way to return it to me first? You don¡¯t have to give me candy or biscuits. We¡¯re all intellectuals from the city, so it¡¯s only right for us to help each other.¡± Chapter 440 - 440 Sowing Discord 440 Sowing Discord With one person taking the lead, the others began to voice their requests as well. However, everyone¡¯s goal was the same, which was to urge Yu Yan to return the money. Yu Yan was a little angry and embarrassed. ¡°Didn¡¯t I say that I¡¯ll return it to you guys after my parents send me money from their business trip?¡± At this moment, a boy stood up and went straight to the point. ¡°Yu Yan, I heard that a problem arose at your parents¡¯ workplace.¡± It was this excuse again! Before Yu Yan went to bed last night, she had already made up her mind. As long as there was no confirmation, she would insist that it was just a business trip. She really didn¡¯t have money now, so she could only delay it for as long as possible. Yu Yan began to look impatient. ¡°Who told you that there was a problem with my parents¡¯ workplace? This is a rumor! I want to settle the score with whoever started the rumor!¡± Everyone looked at each other. When they heard that Yu Yan was going to cause trouble, they didn¡¯t dare to say who they had heard it from. Otherwise, if she told them out of kindness but they sold her out, that would be immoral. Seeing this, Wen Xun also walked forward and explained, ¡°Yu Yan, we didn¡¯t say that we would force you to return all the money immediately. Perhaps you can pay a portion first? Return as much as you can. See how long it will take for you to return the rest. Come up with a plan and tell us. Then, we¡¯ll be more assured.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Return as much as you can.¡± ¡°Or, find some stamps or some things you don¡¯t need. You can sell them and exchange them for money to return to us.¡± There were some murmurs in the crowd. Because there were many people, Yu Yan didn¡¯t know who was talking. Yu Yan had some valuable stamps that could be sold for more than ten yuan. However, she planned to send them to the Yu family, so she definitely couldn¡¯t sell them. Yu Yan looked at everyone in exasperation and began to condemn the person who had instigated them to look for her. ¡°I really don¡¯t have anything to exchange for money now. Who told you all of this? I can confront that person face to face. If that person doesn¡¯t even dare to show his face, why do you guys believe him?¡± Yu Yan wasn¡¯t even sure if something had happened to her adoptive parents or not. Speaking of which, she wasn¡¯t lying, so she wasn¡¯t afraid of confronting the other party. Thus, her tone became much tougher. When everyone heard this, they were speechless. They really couldn¡¯t refute Yu Yan¡¯s words. When Xu Ling, who was hiding in the corner, saw that Yu Yan had the upper hand, she stomped her feet in anger. ¡°How incompetent!¡± Seeing that the group of men seemed to be persuaded by Yu Yan, Xu Ling couldn¡¯t help but rush out and shout, ¡°Yu Yan, you have the cheek to say that you don¡¯t have stamps? You can lie to others, but I¡¯ve lived with you for so long. How can I not know?¡± Xu Ling rushed to the middle of the crowd and continued, ¡°Don¡¯t be deceived by Yu Yan. I saw a few clothing stamps and cotton stamps in her hand a few days ago! She just wants to shirk the debt!¡± Now that Xu Ling had appeared, Yu Yan¡¯s first reaction was that all the rumors were spread by Xu Ling. ¡°Xu Ling, this is our private matter. If you have something against me, don¡¯t manipulate other people.¡± Yu Yan deliberately turned the matter into a private grudge between the two women so that everyone would think that Xu Ling had ulterior motives for telling them that. Xu Ling knew that Yu Yan was sharp-tongued, so she didn¡¯t say anything else and pushed Yu Yan away. Then, she picked up the scissors on the desk and was about to pry open the lock of Yu Yan¡¯s closet. Seeing this, Yu Yan was so frightened that she went forward and pushed her away. ¡°Xu Ling, what are you trying to do? Do you want to snatch my things in front of so many people?¡± Xu Ling looked at Yu Yan and sneered. ¡°You also know that there are so many people here? I just want everyone to see if there are stamps in your closet or not! I want to expose your true colors! Besides, if you¡¯re not lying, open it for everyone to see. What are you afraid of?¡± Yu Yan blocked the cabinet. ¡°Stop sowing discord. I haven¡¯t even settled the account with you for slandering my parents!¡± Xu Ling snorted. ¡°You haven¡¯t contacted your parents for more than a month, right? What rumors did I spread? I only told everyone what I knew truthfully. They guessed that something happened to your parents. Don¡¯t try to pin the blame on me!¡± ¡°On the other hand, you made yourself sound so pitiful. Show us the evidence. You don¡¯t even dare to let us see the closet. It can be seen how diffident you are! I didn¡¯t sow discord. You¡¯re the one who let everyone down!¡± Chapter 441 - 441 Attitude Problem 441 Attitude Problem After Xu Ling finished speaking, she went forward to push Yu Yan away and the two of them started fighting again. The men hurriedly stopped the fight. Unfortunately, the women¡¯s combat strength was astonishing at this moment. Not only did they fail to stop them, but they were also accidentally injured. Because the previous argument had happened in the corridor and it was time to wash up, many people who heard the commotion ran over to watch the commotion, including Yao Nian. Although he didn¡¯t witness the entire process, he found out about the cause and effect of the matter from the discussions of the people beside him. His face flushed with embarrassment and he secretly resented Yu Yan for implicating him. He didn¡¯t want to see the aftermath, so he left. When Yu Bing was called to the dormitory by Qian Hao, she saw Yu Yan and Xu Ling fighting. She frowned and shouted, ¡°What are you guys trying to do? Are you trying to cause trouble? Stop!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s voice was completely ignored. Although Yu Bing really wanted to see Yu Yan continue to be beaten down, as the captain of the intellectual team, she had to mediate. Yu Bing said in a cold voice, ¡°Alright, continue fighting. I¡¯ll give you both a serious demerit on your files later!¡± As soon as she said this, Yu Yan and Xu Ling gradually paused. After Yu Bing gave the man beside her a look, everyone went forward again and finally stopped the two of them this time. Yu Bing waited for the situation to be under control before asking, ¡°Can someone tell me what happened?¡± Qian Hao thought that Yu Bing had come because of him, so he hurriedly went forward and told her what had happened. His description was very objective. As soon as Qian Hao finished speaking, Xu Ling immediately said righteously, ¡°Miss Yu, I just can¡¯t stand Yu Yan lying, so I want to seek justice for these young men who lent Yu Yan money!¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she immediately pointed at Xu Ling and said, ¡°Don¡¯t lie You can¡¯t stand me, so you¡¯re just using my parents¡¯ matter to cause trouble. You¡¯re treating the others as pawns. Your motives are evil!¡± When Xu Ling heard this, she smiled as if she had seen through Yu Yan. ¡°Yu Yan, don¡¯t try to change the topic. Captain Yu, Yu Yan borrowed money from the intellectual team and didn¡¯t return it. You have to uphold justice for all these young men!¡± When Xu Ling said this, she pulled Yu Bing to her side. ¡°Yes, this is an internal conflict among intellectuals, so Captain Yu is the perfect person to handle it.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think this matter should be escalated to an internal conflict. What if Yu Yan¡¯s parents are really on a business trip and they might send her money later? Aren¡¯t we being too aggressive now?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t focus on the business trip for now. Whether or not she has the ability to pay back the money is the key. If she has the ability to pay back a portion but refuses to, things will be different.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. If she really can¡¯t take out any money, we won¡¯t force her. As I said just now, it¡¯s not impossible for us to accept a repayment plan. The key is her attitude.¡± The people who were borrowing money started discussing. When these words entered Yu Yan¡¯s ears, she looked at Yu Bing nervously. Now that this matter had reached Yu Bing, Yu Yan had already lost the chance to deal with it herself. Seeing this, Xu Ling looked at Yu Yan gloatingly. She was very sure that she had seen stamps in Yu Yan¡¯s hands before! Previously, Yu Bing had asked Feng Cai to deliberately release the news because she wanted these creditors to pester Yu Yan and find her something to do. Now, everything was going according to her expectations. Yu Bing smiled at Yu Yan meaningfully. She avoided the rumors and only mentioned the debt problem. ¡°Yu Yan, it¡¯s only right to repay a debt. You saw everyone¡¯s attitude. I suggest you show some sincerity. They¡¯re all intellectuals from the city, and they¡¯re not unreasonable people. If you have money, you should pay. If you don¡¯t have money, you have to find a solution.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t say it explicitly, but everyone knew the so-called sincerity was none other than the stamps Xu Ling mentioned. Seeing this, Xu Ling echoed, ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s not easy for everyone to pool their money and lend it to you. You can¡¯t keep sending them away by saying that you don¡¯t have money since your parents are on a business trip, right?¡± Chapter 442 - 442 Pretending to Be A Good Person 442 Pretending to Be A Good Person Hearing Xu Ling¡¯s words, Yu Yan didn¡¯t dare to speak anymore. Otherwise, they would really think that she was trying to go back on her words! Xu Ling still felt that it wasn¡¯t enough and continued to add fuel to the fire. She deliberately asked, ¡°Yu Yan, why aren¡¯t you speaking? Does this mean you really planned to go back on your words?¡± Yu Yan glared at Xu Ling with red eyes. ¡°Xu Ling! You usually like to form cliques and ostracize other intellectuals. When I give you good things, you curry favor with me. When I don¡¯t give you any benefits, you immediately take the lead to ostracize me! You¡¯re pretending to be a good person in front of everyone now! In the end, you just want to use other people to bully me!¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine if you take my things and eat my food, but now that my parents can¡¯t send me money in time, you¡¯re spreading rumors and inciting everyone to hit me when I¡¯m down. Xu Ling, you¡¯re an ungrateful person! It¡¯s better for me to feed dogs than feed you!¡± Everyone knew that Xu Ling liked to form cliques, but it was better to avoid unnecessary trouble, so if the matter didn¡¯t involve them, no one would say anything. Now that Xu Ling¡¯s tendency to form cliques and Xu Ling¡¯s ungrateful behavior was exposed by Yu Yan in public, the onlookers didn¡¯t say anything on the surface, but they looked at Xu Ling with disdain. After Yu Yan finished speaking, she looked at the people who had lent her money and said angrily, ¡°How many of you have eaten my food before? I¡¯m just a little late, but you guys keep urging me. Did I refuse to return the money?¡± Yu Yan didn¡¯t have to worry about food and clothing in the past, so she was indeed quite lavish. Of course, she did this mainly to enjoy everyone¡¯s envious gazes, but no matter what, she did give a lot of food to most intellectuals. Therefore, when everyone heard Yu Yan¡¯s words, they felt a little embarrassed. After all, they had received things from her. When Xu Ling saw that Yu Yan had ruined her reputation, she naturally couldn¡¯t let the matter rest. She was a little angry after being exposed, so she shouted, ¡°Yu Yan! Don¡¯t slander me!¡± Yu Yan had exposed her, so Xu Ling had to return the favor. Since Yu Yan ruined her reputation, she had to suffer as well! Xu Ling criticized her again. ¡°Don¡¯t you yourself know best why you gave everyone food?¡± ¡°It was only after Mr. Wu took the Village Chief position that you had no choice but to go to the field yourself. Before this, you didn¡¯t work that much! You paid people to clean up the dormitory and work in the field! As for the food that you occasionally shared with everyone, it¡¯s just hush money! Don¡¯t be such a hypocrite.¡± Yu Bing¡¯s eyes lit up. Just as she was wondering where the breakthrough point was, Xu Ling took the initiative to mention it. Xu Ling exposed Yu Yan¡¯s dirty laundry once again, making Yu Yan so angry that she picked up the broom and hit Xu Ling. After dodging the attack, Xu Ling wanted to hit her back. Seeing this, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t ignore it anymore and shouted with a frown, ¡°Hurry up and separate the two of them! How can you guys fight in public?!¡± The boys separated the two of them, preventing another fight from breaking out. Yu Bing looked at the two people who were bickering and said in derision, ¡°Didn¡¯t you guys claim to be cultured city dwellers?¡± Seeing that no one was speaking, Yu Bing paused for a moment before continuing, ¡°I already understand the situation. Since the two of you failed to reach a peaceful settlement, I can¡¯t hide or ignore this incident. Yu Yan, objectively speaking, since your actions back then were done with ulterior motives, there¡¯s no need to use them to ask for favors now¡­¡± Yu Yan had deliberately argued with Xu Ling to divert everyone¡¯s attention just now, but Yu Bing directly exposed that she had ulterior motives. Yu Yan thought of her incompatible relationship with Yu Bing and knew that she couldn¡¯t let her continue, so she interrupted Yu Bing. ¡°Yu Bing, everyone knows that our relationship is not good. I have reason to suspect that you¡¯re using your position to take revenge and slander me! I know that I owe everyone money, but I¡¯ve never denied it. I¡¯m already here. Are you guys afraid that I¡¯ll run away or something?¡± When the debt collectors heard this, their expressions softened. Now that the matter had blown up, everyone knew that Yu Yan had borrowed their money, so they were not afraid that she would go back on her word. In this place where they had to have permission even when they went out of town, Yu Yan couldn¡¯t escape even if she wanted to. Chapter 443 - 443 Implicated 443 Implicated When Xu Ling heard this, she said, ¡°So what even if you¡¯re here?! Give everyone their money back! You just want to stall for time!¡± When Yu Yan saw Xu Ling try her best to ruin her reputation, she was angry and anxious. Yu Bing clenched her fists and placed them under her nose to hide her smile. She coughed lightly and continued, ¡°Yu Yan, everyone else will naturally judge if I¡¯m using my position to take revenge or not. This matter was caused by you borrowing money. I appeared because you couldn¡¯t resolve it and caused an even bigger conflict. This has already affected the harmony of the intellectuals, so I had no choice but to step in.¡± Some of the people watching the commotion were on good terms with Xu Ling, so when they heard Yu Bing¡¯s words, they found a way to deal Yu Yan a blow. They immediately mocked, ¡°Captain Yu has a lot of things to do, but now, she has to clean up your mess. It¡¯s fine if you¡¯re not grateful, but you criticize everyone you see. How despicable.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t give Yu Yan a chance to interrupt this time. ¡°I have a lot of things to do, so let¡¯s end it quickly. Yu Yan, since everyone is suspicious of your ability to repay the debt and you really can¡¯t fork out the money now, why don¡¯t you show some sincerity first?¡± ¡°As for what this gesture of sincerity is, it¡¯s up to you. You can¡¯t just let them wait forever, right?¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t explain clearly, but she brought the topic back to the main point again. Wen Xun was in a hurry to ask for money, so he immediately said, ¡°Yu Yan, open it and let us see if you have stamps. This is the greatest gesture of sincerity!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. If you don¡¯t have any, everyone will know that it¡¯s useless to force you. Then, we can sit down and talk about other ways.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. You said that you don¡¯t have money, but Xu Ling saw the stamps in your hand. In that case, prove it!¡± ¡°I think there are stamps in this cabinet. Xu Ling must have seen them! Think about it, the two of them are roommates in the same dormitory, so how can Yu Yan hide them?¡± ¡°I think so too. Yu Yan keeps changing the topic. Isn¡¯t this a sign that she¡¯s trying to hide things? At this point, if she really doesn¡¯t have money, she can just be frank about it.¡± Their attention was pulled back to the main topic. Everyone was discussing, but the main goal was to let Yu Yan open the cabinet to prove her innocence. Yu Yan had left the cabinet because she wanted to hit Xu Ling. When Xu Ling saw the empty spot, she gave a look to the people she was on good terms with in the crowd. Three girls slowly moved towards Yu Yan. At this moment, Yu Yan was focused on the crowd in front of her and didn¡¯t notice their move. When Xu Ling saw that the three girls had successfully approached Yu Yan, she immediately picked up the scissors that had just been knocked down and rushed over to continue prying the lock. When Yu Yan discovered this, she turned around to stop her, but how could Xu Ling¡¯s companions give her this chance? The few of them immediately surrounded Yu Yan. The creditors also wanted to know Yu Yan¡¯s debt repayment ability, so they naturally wouldn¡¯t go forward to stop them. Instead, they craned their necks and waited to see the outcome. There were still many people watching outside the door. At this moment, they kept squeezing in to see the situation up close. Yu Bing watched this scene in amusement. Compared to Yu Yan, who deliberately spread rumors about her to Madam Sun and secretly goaded her and her son into trying to rape her, ruining Yu Yan¡¯s reputation wasn¡¯t that big of a deal. Two minutes later, Xu Ling finally pried open the lock. After she opened the cabinet, she saw the small wooden box that Yu Yan usually treasured. The lock of the wooden box was very small and easy to pry open. After a while, Xu Ling opened the wooden box and saw the stamps and letters inside. Xu Ling¡¯s attention was on the stamps and she didn¡¯t check the letters. She took out the stamps excitedly and turned around to show them to everyone. ¡°Look! I knew there were stamps!¡± Seeing this, Yu Yan stopped struggling and her face turned pale. Yu Bing went forward with a smile as she said calmly, ¡°Yu Yan, if you have any difficulties and don¡¯t want to sell stamps to repay the money, you should tell everyone.¡± When Li Zhen saw the stamps Xu Ling raised, he turned to look at Qian Hao and realized that he was looking at Yu Yan in disappointment and sadness. Chapter 444 - 444 Fake Rich Lady 444 Fake Rich Lady Li Zhen was straightforward and had a strong sense of justice to begin with. Now that his good friend looked like he had suffered a huge blow, he couldn¡¯t help but say angrily, ¡°Yu Yan, you¡¯re too much! Qian Hao lent you almost all the money he had on him. In the end, he didn¡¯t even have the money to treat his illness. What did you say at that time? You asked him to borrow money from the village committee! If you didn¡¯t have the money, I wouldn¡¯t have said anything, but you clearly do. Even two to three yuan for emergency treatment would have been fine, but you clearly don¡¯t care at all!¡± When the other creditors saw this scene, they felt that they had been deceived and their expressions darkened. Xu Ling flipped through the stamps in her hand and continued to add insult to injury with a smile. ¡°Yu Yan, if these are food stamps, I can understand that you¡¯re keeping these in order to fill your stomach, but these clothing stamps and cotton stamps¡­ As far as I know, you have two winter clothes that haven¡¯t been patched. One of them is a new cotton shirt that your mother specifically sent over at the beginning of the year. There are also two slightly older ones. The cotton blanket you have is the softest and newest one I¡¯ve ever seen!¡± ¡°These stamps can¡¯t be used to buy food, but you can¡¯t even bear to sell them to pay off your debts. I suspect that you don¡¯t really plan to pay back the money. Don¡¯t tell me you want to keep them until winter to make yourself a new cotton shirt? Now, the people who lent you money can barely afford to buy food. You¡¯re too outrageous!¡± Xu Ling looked indignant, as if she was a defender of justice. Yu Yan didn¡¯t lack clothes, but she couldn¡¯t tell them that her powerful and rich parents were not her biological parents and that she had to help her real family. No! The people in the dormitory building who usually curried favor with her would definitely laugh at her for pretending to be a rich girl! They wouldn¡¯t see how filial she was to her biological parents. They would only mock her and ostracize her if they couldn¡¯t get any more benefits from her. Moreover, Yu Yan couldn¡¯t tolerate her image of being from a well-off family being ruined, so she could only remain silent. Seeing this, everyone thought that Yu Yan had acquiesced to Xu Ling¡¯s words, so everyone started discussing. At this point, mirth flashed across Yu Bing¡¯s eyes, but she quickly regained her calm expression. ¡°Qian Hao, Wen Xun, discuss a plan with Yu Yan. It¡¯s inappropriate to keep causing trouble and it won¡¯t be good for our image if the villagers see this. Since everyone is here today, we might as well lay everything on the table.¡± The intellectuals in the building had all gathered to watch the commotion, so Yu Bing¡¯s actions were no different from public execution to Yu Yan. Yu Yan knew that she was at a disadvantage now, so it was useless for her to say anything. However, she still wanted to protect her last bit of dignity. ¡°This is our private matter, so please leave. We want to discuss it in private.¡± The three girls surrounding Yu Yan were already brooding over the fact that they couldn¡¯t get any benefits from Yu Yan. Yesterday, Yu Yan had fought with Xu Ling, so they had to stand up for their friend! After the three of them exchanged looks, the girl with short student hair interrupted, ¡°That won¡¯t do. Previously, they were deceived by you so many times. Who knows if you¡¯re telling the truth or not? They can¡¯t outwit you when it comes to scheming. We have to help them check. Don¡¯t you guys think so?¡± Sometimes, intellectuals liked drama as much as the nosy women in the village. After all, the villagers either worked in the fields or slept every day. Their days were really boring, so no one wanted to miss a single commotion. Moreover, this time, they were on the side of justice. Everyone became enthusiastic and immediately replied loudly. ¡°Yes, if you have anything to say, just say it. Who knows what tricks you¡¯re up to?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. They all returned empty-handed previously, so it¡¯s obvious that they¡¯re all honest people. Yu Yan, stop trying to play tricks in order to delay time. Hurry up. We still have to work later.¡± ¡°Everyone here will be the judge. Don¡¯t just think about yourself. To you, that money is a small amount, but to others, it¡¯s their entire living expenses. You have to pay back the money! Come up with a repayment plan!¡± Yu Yan was so angry that she was about to cry. She had never felt so embarrassed since she was young! Even when she was taken away by the police last time, she was taken away directly. She had never experienced being trapped in a room where everyone was looking at her with a condemning gaze. Chapter 445 - 445 Ruining the Environment 445 Ruining the Environment Of course, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t let Yu Yan have her way. Otherwise, the punishment would be too light. She had to make her remember this humiliation and ruin her reputation among the intellectuals! Yu Bing said solemnly, ¡°Yu Yan, if you had revealed the truth to the few boys who lent you money, things wouldn¡¯t have ended up like this! If we weren¡¯t here now, perhaps we wouldn¡¯t have been able to come up with a plan that both sides could accept in the end. If we couldn¡¯t, when would this matter end? Do you want to ruin the harmony amongst the intellectuals?¡± The country had been summoning intellectuals to build the countryside for so many years. It wasn¡¯t that people had never borrowed money before, but the earliest batch of people knew that such an incident had never happened before. There would definitely be small conflicts, but no conflict over money had arisen in the youth dormitory building in the He Mountain Village. The atmosphere had always been very good. Those who had been in the know for a long time looked at Yu Yan with even more hostility. Yu Yan was very indignant when she saw Yu Bing say that she was the culprit. However, she knew that if she protested now, she would only attract everyone¡¯s dissatisfaction. She lowered her eyes to hide her hatred for Yu Bing. When Yu Yan looked up again, she had an aggrieved look on her face as she looked at Qian Hao and the others with tears in her eyes. ¡°I¡¯ll get someone to sell those stamps in the next two days and distribute them to everyone according to the ratio of money everyone lent me. Although everyone could only get one to two yuan after she sold the stamps, which was less than half of the money they lent, it wasn¡¯t a problem if they used this money sparingly. If they didn¡¯t fall sick, it would be enough to last them a month. No matter what, it was better than nothing. A boy wearing black glasses asked, ¡°If your parents don¡¯t transfer money to you in the future, what about the rest of our money?¡± Yu Yan had never thought that she would be without money one day, so when she heard the question, she was stumped. A boy with ill intentions interrupted, ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that you have four cotton clothes? Sell three and keep one!¡± Yu Yan felt that the voice was a little familiar, so she looked in the direction of the voice. The other party was short and had shifty eyes. His petite figure made him look very wretched. Yu Yan recognized that the other party was a boy who had confessed to her a few times but was rejected. Because of this, he often badmouthed her to the other young people. When the boy saw Yu Yan looking at him, a smug expression appeared in his eyes as he continued, ¡°The two clothes without patches are quite new. Those three clothes are definitely worth more than ten yuan! Sell the remaining sweaters, pants, clothes without patches, porcelain basins, and so on!¡± Moreover, most people were still very simple-minded these days. After all, they were not in the triads and loan sharks. They wouldn¡¯t force people into bankruptcy over a few yuan. Yu Bing rolled her eyes. A cornered dog would jump over a wall. A rabbit would bite when cornered. What a bad idea! The reason Yu Bing called it a bad idea was that everyone would feel a little embarrassed. In this era, they couldn¡¯t earn much money like in the future, so they had to save stamps and money for everything. Then, they would buy them one by one. Ordinary families could only save up for one new cotton shirt for their families after an entire year. Therefore, when Yu Yan heard this, her eyes turned red. ¡°I do owe money, but there¡¯s no need to force me into a dead end!¡± Sure enough, some people began to whisper that this was a little too much. After the boys who lent money discussed it among themselves, someone stood up and said, ¡°Yu Yan, we don¡¯t need you to sell everything in order to pay back the money. If it¡¯s really too difficult, you can pay back some every month. As long as you work hard and the village pays the dividends at the end of the year, you should be able to pay it off in one go!¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she gritted her teeth and remained silent. Previously, when she went to borrow money, the accountant Mr. Wei said that her work points were not even 50 yuan at the moment. Who knew what would happen at the end of the year? She didn¡¯t want to choose any option now. Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t let Yu Yan delay time. Thus, she stood up and exposed Yu Yan¡¯s ability to earn work points. ¡°The village said that Yu Yan borrowed 50 yuan previously. Because the amount was relatively large and Yu Yan often takes leave to slack off, her work points might not be able to be offset it. We are not certain how much of everyone¡¯s dividends we can distribute to everyone before the end of the year, so we won¡¯t include the dividends at the end of the year.¡± Chapter 446 - 446 Disappear 446 Disappear After cutting off Yu Yan¡¯s escape route, Yu Bing suggested, ¡°How about this? I¡¯ll give everyone a solution. Yu Yan, sell those stamps and two new cotton clothes. The earnings should add up to 20 to 30 yuan. In the next two months, if you receive money from your family, return it to everyone. If you don¡¯t, see how much you can get at the end of the year. If it¡¯s not enough, sell your leather shoes. This way, it shouldn¡¯t be a problem for you to return everyone¡¯s money.¡± Everyone felt that this plan was good. Cotton clothes and leather shoes were all external items. Moreover, keeping two of the four cotton clothes was already better than many other people, who only had one cotton shirt to resist the cold. Most of the people in the village ran around the fields all day long, so leather shoes were not useful for farm work at all. It was like expensive furnishing. If it really snowed, leather shoes wouldn¡¯t ward off the cold. Leather shoes just looked good. However, Yu Bing knew Yu Yan too well and knew that this plan would make her suffer the most. What Yu Yan cared about the most was her reputation and the feeling of being fawned over by everyone. Thus, Yu Bing would destroy what she cared about. In her previous life, Yu Bing and Yu Yan lived in the same dormitory. Yu Bing knew that Yu Yan usually only wore old cotton clothes when she went to the fields. Once Yu Yan returned to the dormitory, she immediately changed into new ones, even if Yu Yan only wore them for a few hours. There were few girls in the entire He Mountain Village who had leather shoes, so this was something she could brag about. But now, the decision wasn¡¯t up to Yu Yan. The boys agreed. If the matter wasn¡¯t resolved, the onlookers wouldn¡¯t disperse. Yu Yan felt like an animal in a zoo at this moment. She didn¡¯t want to be laughed at again, so she could only quickly agree. Seeing that the matter had been resolved, everyone left in satisfaction. Before Xu Ling left, she looked at Yu Yan and provoked, ¡°I don¡¯t dare to room with such a problematic person anymore. In the future, I¡¯ll stay in Room 310. If anyone needs anything, look for me there!¡± The veins on Yu Yan¡¯s temples throbbed as she looked at Xu Ling with a murderous gaze and she treated her as the second person she hated the most in He Mountain Village. The first person was naturally Yu Bing. Yao Nian didn¡¯t go far. Wanting to secretly find out what happened before thinking about his next step, he hid at the corner of the dormitory building. As he watched Yu Bing leave the dormitory building, Yao Nian felt a little regretful. He felt that he should have chosen Yu Bing back then. How could he have made a decision so quickly? However, the temptation of returning to the city was still very great. Yao Nian chose to wait patiently to see if there was anything wrong with Yu Yan¡¯s parents¡¯ jobs. Once it was confirmed that their positions were affected, he would mention breaking up. He couldn¡¯t let his bright future be ruined! Because of this embarrassing incident, Yu Yan kept a low profile in the next few months and became even more sinister. The money Yu Yan owed was paid off in October because she finally got into contact with her adoptive parents. Her adoptive parents also explained the reason for her disappearance. It was because her adoptive brother, Yu Xi, was seriously injured during a secret assignment. The leader of the army specifically took the entire family away to take care of the injured. Yu Xi was treated more than ten times over two months before finally surviving. This was a matter of life and death. Li Xin wasn¡¯t in good health and had fainted twice. Under such circumstances, she naturally didn¡¯t contact Yu Yan. There was another reason. They wanted to save money for Yu Yan so that she would be able to eat meat every week. Thus, they placed their attention on Yu Xi, who was in an even more critical situation. Who would have thought that not only did Yu Yan not have money at that time, but in order to return to Hang City, she also owed a lot of money and was waiting for them to send money to save her? Because they had not transferred money to Yu Yan for two to three months, Yu Hai and Li Xin felt that they had mistreated their daughter. Therefore, when Yu Yan asked for 50 yuan, the two of them sent it over without asking. However, to Yu Yan, no matter what her adoptive parents did now, the resentment in her heart wouldn¡¯t decrease because of their explanation. Instead, she was even more certain that her adoptive parents didn¡¯t treat her as their biological child. However, after this incident, Yu Yan realized that she couldn¡¯t lose contact with her adoptive parents, so she suppressed her dissatisfaction and pretended to be concerned about her adoptive brother¡¯s injuries. After knowing that he was already recovering, she felt a little disappointed. In the past, Yu Yan felt that having an adoptive brother was quite good because she wouldn¡¯t be bullied. But now, she felt that it would be good if her adoptive brother disappeared. This way, her adoptive parents could only give her all their attention. Chapter 447 - 447 Quiet Times 447 Quiet Times After Yu Yan kept a low profile, Yu Bing enjoyed a rare period of peace. In the past few months, Wu Jin was mainly in charge of the orchard, fish pond, and farm. Yu Bing was in charge of the processing and sales. The harvest began in October, so the orchard was quite busy. Everything was happening altogether. The pear tree, kiwi tree, and persimmon tree all began to ripen this month, so the workers in the orchard worked overtime to pick them. Wu Jin went in to preside over the harvesting work in the field, while Yu Bing took half a day every day to go to the orchard to see the harvesting progress. Because the kiwis were resistant to transportation, they were still very stiff when they were plucked. There was still some time before the fruit became soft and ripe, so Yu Bing arranged for someone to bring them to another province to sell. The persimmons were processed into persimmon pancakes and sold by Yu Bing in bags. The pears were made into canned fruits. Persimmons and pears belonged to the north. After processing the finished products, Yu Bing and Wu Jin obtained the transportation approval slip and asked Xiao Sheng¡¯s transport team to sell them in the nearest southern city. In the blink of an eye, it was the end of the year. At Xiao Sheng¡¯s house. At night, it was study time once again. Xiao Sheng was now working in the food factory. On the surface, he was already a worker. With this as a cover, his family occasionally ate meat openly. Yu Bing saw that Xiao Li and Xiao Lin were struggling to survive under Xiao Sheng¡¯s awful cooking and couldn¡¯t bear to see them suffer, so every time she bought meat, she would buy more. Then, she would send a bowl of veggies to the Xiao family every few days to improve their quality of food. After a while, Xiao Sheng simply bought some meat and placed them at Yu Bing¡¯s house. He asked Yu Bing and Jiang Chun to help his family cook twice a week every time they cooked as compensation. The two families were already so familiar with each other, so Yu Bing and Jiang Chun didn¡¯t refuse. However, they would send back some of the other veggies they made every time. After more than half a year, Xiao Lin and Xiao Li had grown a lot taller. There was finally some flesh on their faces, and they were no longer as scrawny as before. It was snowing outside and two braziers were placed in the living room on the left and right, warming up the room. Every time Yu Bing came to the Xiao family¡¯s house, she would first give Xiao Li a lesson before teaching Xiao Lin. At this moment, Xiao Lin and Xiao Li were sitting beside the brazier. Ever since Xiao Lin became Xiao Li¡¯s teacher, his grades had indeed improved greatly. In order to not make any mistakes in class for Xiao Li at night, he even started paying more attention in class. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng sat at the table. Yu Bing looked at the snow as she marveled, ¡°Time passes so quickly! I¡¯ve been in He Mountain Village for a year and a half now.¡± Xiao Sheng felt a little emotional when he heard this. Last year, he was only Yu Bing¡¯s business partner, but this year, he had become her boyfriend. Xiao Sheng chuckled when he thought of this. Yu Bing turned around curiously and asked, ¡°What are you laughing at?¡± The smile on Xiao Sheng¡¯s face was very gentle as he asked, ¡°Do you still remember the scene of us meeting on the back mountain?¡± Yu Bing thought about it and laughed. ¡°Of course I remember. Your gaze almost scared me to death! At that time, I really felt that you wanted to kill me to silence me.¡± Xiao Sheng smiled and said, ¡°At that time, I felt so unlucky. I hadn¡¯t been seen for so many years, but you saw me. Moreover, you were an intellectual from the city. We weren¡¯t familiar with each other, so I thought you might report me. At that time, I was prepared for the worst.¡± ¡°But after that, I was glad that we met that time!¡± After Xiao Sheng finished speaking, he looked at Yu Bing fixedly. As Yu Bing stared back at him, she felt that Xiao Sheng¡¯s usually cold eyes when he looked at others were filled with tenderness. He was smiling and his eyes were shining like the starry sky, mesmerizing Yu Bing. ¡°Hahaha, Brother, your deskmate is so funny.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! The next time he does something stupid, I¡¯ll remember and tell you when I come back.¡± The two of them, who were immersed in each other¡¯s gazes, were interrupted by the chatter beside them. When they came back to their senses, they felt their faces heat up and their gazes drifted elsewhere. However, they couldn¡¯t help but smile. When Yu Bing thought of the one-year promise she had set, she hurriedly warned herself not to be mesmerized by his good looks and to hold on for the test! Chapter 448 - 448 Geography Question 448 Geography Question Yu Bing suppressed her flustered emotions and changed the topic. ¡°I heard from Xiao Lin just now that there¡¯s only one person left in front of Xiao Li, right?¡± Xiao Sheng smiled excitedly and said, ¡°That¡¯s right! Perhaps she can have surgery next year!¡± After Yu Bing confirmed that the news was true, she smiled brightly. ¡°The opportunity is very close. As long as we save enough money and persist in massaging Xiao Li¡¯s eyes, the success rate of the surgery will be very high! By the way, remember to inform me when you go to S City!¡± Xiao Sheng knew how concerned Yu Bing was about Xiao Li¡¯s eyes, so he nodded with a smile. ¡°Okay.¡± The two of them chatted for a while before starting class. Yu Bing had already gone through all the textbooks from her three years of high school. Now, she was mainly reviewing and doing questions to consolidate her knowledge. Xiao Sheng¡¯s current learning progress only reached the second year of high school. Yu Bing¡¯s plan for Xiao Sheng was to finish all the high school textbooks by February of next year. Yu Bing checked Xiao Sheng¡¯s practice books for all the subjects last week. The completion rate was very good, and the accuracy was about 98%. She was stunned when she realized that there was a large blank under the geographical exercise question she had carefully chosen. She didn¡¯t say anything and only frowned at Xiao Sheng. Xiao Sheng explained diffidently, ¡°This question is too difficult.¡± Then, in order to prove his point, Xiao Sheng pointed at the question he had left blank and said, ¡°Look at this question. The police look at the North Star and then bring people into the criminal den. What is the first sentence the criminal is most likely to say? I really don¡¯t understand how the two are related?¡± The four answers to this question were in the dialect of four places. The question was actually asking the police where they were at this moment. Then, Xiao Sheng pointed at another blank question. ¡°Look at this again. Why does everyone say the northwest wind instead of the southeast wind? Isn¡¯t this just an idiom? How can there be so many whys?¡± ¡°Why are there so many songs in the southwest region of our country? This should be a history question. Is it appropriate to put it in the geography question section?¡± Yu Bing chuckled as she looked at these questions. Back then, she had chosen this book from the waste station because some of the questions were flexible and had the questioning style of that of the future. She could use them as inferences. However, Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect Xiao Sheng to be ignorant about so many things. She remembered that Xiao Sheng was quite good at every subject, so she wanted him to challenge himself. As Xiao Sheng looked down at the questions, he seemed a little vexed. After Yu Bing thought for a moment, she replied seriously, ¡°I¡¯ll try my best to come over every night to explain these special questions to you. Try your best to catch up on high school geography before the Spring Festival.¡± A hint of joy flashed across Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes, but he pursed his lips tightly to prevent himself from smiling. It had been almost half a year since the test started, but he had not even gotten half of the points. Xiao Sheng was a little anxious. However, Yu Bing had been too busy some time ago and the two of them were busy with their own things, so Xiao Sheng was anxious but helpless. When he received this geography exercise book and saw this strange question, Xiao Sheng was indeed a little stumped. However, he was still able to write the correct answer after careful analysis. However, Xiao Sheng thought of how much Yu Bing valued his learning progress, so he thought of this method to increase the time the two of them spent together. This reason was aboveboard and was the least like to arouse Yu Bing¡¯s suspicion. At this moment, Yu Bing still didn¡¯t know and was still feeling smug that Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t have to worry about other subjects. She thought that the two of them would definitely be able to get into the capital¡¯s school together in the future. At nine o¡¯clock in the evening, Xiao Sheng sent Yu Bing home. Then, the two of them chatted at the door for a while. In the room, Jiang Chun was reading the letter Cui Jin had sent. After reading it, she covered her face with her hands and laughed. After Yu Bing entered, she saw Jiang Chun smiling foolishly. Yu Bing had an idea and she tiptoed behind Jiang Chun. Only then did she realize that there was an unopened math book on the table in front of her and a few pieces of paper beside it. Yu Bing whispered into Jiang Chun¡¯s ear mischievously, ¡°No wonder you¡¯re smiling so brightly.¡± Jiang Chun was originally alone at home, so when she heard Yu Bing¡¯s words, she was startled. Chapter 449 - 449 Proposal 449 Proposal She quickly patted her chest a few times, then she patted Yu Bing¡¯s arm and said, ¡°Do you want to die? You scared me to death!¡± Yu Bing teased, ¡°It¡¯s your fault for being so engrossed that you didn¡¯t even notice when I came in, but that¡¯s normal. Every time you see Cui Jin¡¯s letter, you enter a trance!¡± Jiang Chun rolled her eyes at Yu Bing. When she thought of the contents of the letter, she didn¡¯t know how to decide. She originally wanted to reply immediately after reading the letter so that she could study. Unexpectedly, the night passed, but she still hadn¡¯t decided. At this moment, looking at Yu Bing, who was drinking water, she hesitated about whether to ask her. From the corner of her eye, Yu Bing saw Jiang Chun¡¯s hesitant expression and she teased, ¡°If you have something to say, say it. When did you become so indecisive?¡± Jiang Chun pursed her lips and said in embarrassment, ¡°Cui Jin mentioned marriage to me in the letter.¡± Yu Bing asked in surprise, ¡°He proposed to you?¡± When Jiang Chun heard this word, she asked curiously, ¡°Propose?¡± Yu Bing suddenly remembered that there was no such saying in the country yet. Now, if the man wanted to get married, he would ask directly. If the woman agreed, they would get married. If she didn¡¯t, they would interact with each other some time longer. There was no such thing as a marriage proposal. After the country opened up and the world resumed trade, the people in the country learned the term from abroad. Yu Bing immediately changed her words and explained, ¡°It means he wants to marry you.¡± Jiang Chun smiled when she heard Yu Bing¡¯s words. ¡°He wants to get married, but I haven¡¯t decided on it yet.¡± Yu Bing nodded in understanding. ¡°Marriage is a big deal, so it¡¯s normal to hesitate about marriage. What are you thinking now?¡± Jiang Chun lowered her eyes and thought for a while before replying, ¡°We communicate almost every week. Although we don¡¯t really spend much time together, I think we already know each other very well through letters. Be it our values or opinions on many things, we are very similar. I can also sense our fondness for each other. Moreover, we¡¯ve been datng for half a year, so it seems quite appropriate to get married now.¡± Speaking of marriage and relationships, Yu Bing felt that she had only experienced failure so far and couldn¡¯t give Jiang Chun too many good suggestions, so she could only think of some future television dramas and novels as references. ¡°Think about what his shortcomings are and what you can¡¯t tolerate the most. Then, think about it. If he can¡¯t change these things for the rest of his life, will you be able to tolerate him for the rest of your life and not bring them up when you guys fight?¡± Sometimes, when Cui Jin was on an assignment and couldn¡¯t write to her, he would suddenly go AWOL. This was indeed very concerning to her. However, she also knew that this was because of Cui Jin¡¯s profession. After all, there were some things that someone had to do. In addition, Jiang Chun had already overcome this problem in the early stages of her relationship. As for the rest, Jiang Chun really couldn¡¯t think of anything else. ¡°I can¡¯t think of anything. What I care about the most is probably the way husband and wife interact during the marriage. Actually, there will be times when we have differences of opinion, but no matter how fierce the argument is, he will give in when I give in. Then we can find a compromise. I¡¯ve always felt comfortable with this way of interacting.¡± At the thought of this, Jiang Chun smiled sweetly. ¡°I know that there are always all kinds of conflicts when two people are together, but every conflict seems to bring us closer to each other. He even said that he¡¯s preparing to transfer to a new military district, which will only be built a year later. At that time, he¡¯ll apply to let me follow the army.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect Cui Jin to have already considered Jiang Chun in his future plans and treat Jiang Chun as such an important part of his future. This improved Yu Bing¡¯s impression of Jiang Chun¡¯s future marriage. Hearing Jiang Chun¡¯s description, she smiled and said, ¡°Actually, you already have an answer.¡± Jiang Chun was stunned when she heard this, but then she quickly understood what Yu Bing meant. They had common topics, and there were no unacceptable shortcomings. When conflicts arose, they could be easily resolved. She and Cui Jin also looked forward to developing this relationship to the next level. Jiang Chun took out a blank letter without hesitation and began to reply. Seeing this, Yu Bing didn¡¯t disturb her anymore and quietly went to make the bed. Perhaps it was because of Jiang Chun¡¯s influence, but after Yu Bing turned off the kerosene lamp and went to bed at night, she fell into deep thought as she looked at the moonlight shining in from the window. She and Xiao Sheng met often, but the two of them had never quarreled. There didn¡¯t seem to be any conflicts between them. At most, one side would get angry, but then get appeased by the other party very quickly. Chapter 450 - 450 Interacting Period 450 Interacting Period The two of them had to interact for a period of time, but were they getting along? She didn¡¯t know if it was because she liked his handsome face or if she was very touched that Xiao Sheng would appear to save her every time she was in danger, but was this love? For the first time, Yu Bing felt a little confused about her feelings. She and Xiao Sheng seemed to be completely different from Jiang Chun and her boyfriend. Amidst such conflicted and confused emotions, Yu Bing fell asleep. Early the next morning, the snow began to fall even more heavily. When Yu Bing stepped on the snow, the snow reached her ankles. It was farm time in the village again. Other than the factory, which was still operating normally, the work in the field had already been put on hold, and people watched over the orchard according to the shift schedule. This year, they no longer needed to ask for the earthworms from other people¡¯s fish ponds, and that saved them another sum of money. When the fish pond dried last month, they let the children in the village go down to catch earthworms together. They could get work points and play with mud at the same time, so all of them were overjoyed. When the weather turned cold last month, all the fish had already been fished out. The chickens and ducks on the farm would become the contents of the new New Year gift box released by the food factory. After collecting the eggs every month, they identified the fertilized eggs and continued to hatch them. The rest were directly transferred to the food factory to produce ingredients. This method reduced costs greatly. Yu Bing had secretly smoked them on the mountain last year, but this year, she no longer had to do the labor herself. In order to develop the factory better, she contributed the formula to the factory. As long as the order came from Xiao Sheng, she could get dividends. As Yu Bing thought of next month¡¯s bonuses, she laughed to herself. This time, the fish pond harvested more than 13,000 catties of fish and they were all made into canned spicy fish according to the weight of 500 grams per bottle. Because there was a drying and frying process, which reduced the water inside, only 12,852 bottles were made. There were 3,000 chickens and ducks each. Yu Bing asked the factory to make smoked meat because the welfare products distributed by the factory were based on the price. However, the price of a whole chicken and duck wasn¡¯t cheap, so they were sold by half, which was equivalent to 6,000 bags of cured chicken and 6,000 bags of cured duck in total. This was still an era where supplies were scarce and everyone ate meat sparingly, so this amount was actually just right. Although there were only half, it could last a family of five or six for two to three months if they cut a small piece and ate it with stir-fried other vegetables every meal. The food factory had been developing new products. In the past few months, Yu Bing had judged whether it was worth continuing to produce based on sales, so she had been adjusting the amount and variety of food. At the end of the year, the number of food types still being sold reached 16. Yu Bing¡¯s strategy of setting up an image shop was very successful. The Delicious Food Factory had already successfully made a name for itself in Jiang Province. Due to the increase in orders, the food factory had recruited another batch of workers in the past few months. There were already 65 workers in the factory, and the business personnel outside the factory had also become three people per shop. There were one manager and two employees, totaling about 100 people in all the shops. The debts owed last year and the beginning of the year were also paid off in advance, so the village¡¯s industrial chain was booming. On the 10th of February, according to the production progress decided by Yu Bing, all the production in the factory had to be completed by January 20th. The annual leave would start on the 21st. It was less than a month away, so the factory was working overtime to produce. Jiang Chun was the person-in-charge of the production department. She went out early every morning and only returned when the sky was completely dark. She was even busier than Yu Bing. It was also because the various departments in the factory had already formed regulations that Yu Bing relaxed a little after she was done busying some time ago. Now, Yu Bing was in charge of cooking three meals and chores at home. After breakfast, Yu Bing left the house in her old cotton jacket and gray scarf. A few women from the village walked over. When they saw Yu Bing walking on the road, they immediately took the initiative to greet her. ¡°Miss Yu, you¡¯re going to work?¡± Yu Bing saw that the women looked a little familiar. Although she couldn¡¯t name them, she still smiled and replied, ¡°Yes, you guys are going out?¡± ¡°There¡¯s not much work to do now, so we¡¯re going to town. We¡¯re bored out of our minds.¡± ¡°Miss Yu, I¡¯m studying hard during the night classes now! Next time I apply for a job, pay more attention to me.¡± ¡°Me too, me too. I didn¡¯t dare to miss a single lesson.¡± As the few of them chatted non-stop, Yu Bing smiled helplessly and said, ¡°As long as you guys attend class diligently, there will be a chance when the factory expands!¡± Chapter 451 - 451 Gold 451 Gold Yu Bing was usually busy and walked very quickly, so when everyone saw her occasionally, they would only greet her briefly. This time, when they stopped her, all of them wished they could express how diligent and studious they were. After Yu Bing finally sent them away, she continued walking forward slowly. Because of the farming break, many people strolled around and the village was much livelier than usual. On the way to work at the factory, many villagers greeted Yu Bing enthusiastically. Although they didn¡¯t stop her or say anything else, everyone¡¯s gazes were so fervent that Yu Bing was a little afraid. She felt that they looked at her as if they had seen gold and were about to pounce on her. ¡°Yu Bing is really impressive. I knew that she was capable, but I didn¡¯t expect her factory to be even more impressive than the food factory that has been open for two years in the neighboring county.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that so? My niece-in-law works there. Now, there aren¡¯t as many workers in that factory as there are in her factory. In the past, she always showed off her identity as a worker in front of me and acted so condescending. Now, my daughter has also entered the factory and her treatment is better than my niece-in-law¡¯s! I¡¯ll teach her a lesson when I return to my parents¡¯ house this year!¡± ¡°Our village is one of the poorest in the commune. It makes me feel embarrassed every year when I go back to my parents¡¯ house and see my sisters. This year, when I went to town and mentioned I¡¯m from the He Mountain Village, they immediately mentioned the name of our food factory. How impressive!¡± ¡°So in my opinion, it¡¯s very useful for girls to study! I¡¯m forcing my daughter to go to night school every day now. If she can enter the factory one day and become a worker, she can find a good husband in the future.¡± ¡°Our village is indeed different now. In the past, every time it was the new year, the children would be happy, but we adults would be worried sick. Now, there¡¯s hope. By the way, I heard that yesterday, the factory mentioned that the factory¡¯s debt had been paid off!¡± ¡°When my daughter came home yesterday, she also said that she probably will get some dividends this year.¡± ¡°Oh my god! That¡¯s great. Debt is really stressful. No matter how much the dividends are, they represent hope! To be honest, if it weren¡¯t for Yu Bing, we might still be the poorest village.¡± The dozen or so people gathered around and chatted. Other than voicing their high hopes for the future, they also praised Bing. All of this was heard by Yao Nian and Yu Yan, who were passing by. Yu Yan¡¯s expression was very ugly, and Yao Nian¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t any better. As long as Yu Bing was doing well, Yu Yan would be displeased. Yao Nian felt that if only Yu Bing and Yu Yan¡¯s advantages could be combined! Yu Yan had a wealthy family, but she wasn¡¯t capable and relied on her family to support her. Yao Nian couldn¡¯t help but beat around the bush a few times to test her willingness to return to the city. However, no matter what, Yu Yan refused to go back. Thinking that she could only help him a little in terms of giving him food, Yao Nian felt a little unhappy. Yu Bing¡¯s family wasn¡¯t wealthy, but she was capable and had a good reputation in the village. Who wouldn¡¯t greet her when they saw her? Yao Nian felt that if he could become Yu Bing¡¯s man, he would definitely be respected and fawned over by everyone in the village! The more Yao Nian thought about it, the more he felt that it was a pity that the two of them couldn¡¯t become one. He also felt a little disdain for Yu Yan. When Yu Yan sensed that Yao Nian was a little down, her already unhappy expression darkened. ¡°What? Do you regret not being with Yu Bing?¡± Hearing Yu Yan¡¯s sarcastic tone, Yao Nian looked up at Yu Yan and immediately revealed a fawning expression. In this situation, the first thing he had to do was appease Yu Yan. As long as Yu Yan could let him return to the city, everything else could be pushed back. The desire of returning to the city overcame everything once again. Yao Nian coaxed Yu Yan softly, ¡°What are you talking about? You clearly know that I never liked her. In the past, I was with her because of my sense of duty. After I got together with you, did I even look at her?¡± After Yao Nian kept expressing his loyalty, he finally appeased Yu Yan half an hour later. Yao Nian finally heaved a sigh of relief. He had heard that a new movie was being released in the town¡¯s cinema. Today, he had to think of a way to do something to Yu Yan so that the two of them could get closer. Chapter 452 - 452 Small Meeting 452 Small Meeting Yao Nian really couldn¡¯t stand staying in the village anymore and set a time limit for him to stay until next year at most. Before next year, he had to think of a way to make Yu Yan relent and bring him back to the city. Yu Bing, who had already arrived at the factory, had no idea that so many things had happened behind her back. She wanted to expand the factory¡¯s business to the capital and S City before school started next year. After things stabilized, she would hand the responsibilities over to reliable people and continue to expand the factory¡¯s business. This way, even if she left the He Mountain Village later, Yu Bing could rest assured. After all, everything here was planned and built by her, so she didn¡¯t want the industrial chain to slowly wither after she left. This was the livelihood of the hundreds of people in the village! Yu Bing recruited Shu Ya into the factory as a product designer. Because she didn¡¯t have to be there physically, her work points were still the same, but her salary and benefits were half of that of ordinary workers. Yu Bing even left the management of the night school to Shu Ya. After all, Shu Ya was from a scholarly family and had some talent in terms of education. Not only did Shu Ya prepare her own classes, but she also often helped give other teachers ideas on how to make the class more lively and make students listen to the class more attentively. She would also actively make adjustments to the classes according to the villagers¡¯ actual needs. When there was a need, Shu Ya would work on designs for the factory. Usually, she would watch over the library Yu Bing established and occasionally help the teachers who were working. She was also very busy, but it was much more relaxing than working in the fields. To Yu Bing, this was called leaving professional matters to professionals. However, to Shu Ya, this showed that Yu Bing valued her. Although she didn¡¯t say it, she remembered Yu Bing¡¯s kindness. When Yu Bing arrived at the office, Shu Ya was already waiting at the door. After Yu Bing opened the door, Shu Ya followed her in. Feng Cai handed over the contract orders he had recently brought back to Wen Qin. At the same time, he would check which people had yet to send the final payment, so he could urge them. When the two of them saw Yu Bing pass by the accounting room, they stopped what they were doing and went next door. Today, Yu Bing specifically gathered them for a small meeting to discuss the New Year gift box set. Wen Qin handed the compiled data to Yu Bing. ¡°As you requested, I¡¯ve compared the sales of various products in the past half a year by month. The second page is the top ten products of our list, the sales performance of various cities in the past three months, and the third page is the production cost of each product under the current production capacity and the price of raw materials.¡± After Yu Bing looked at the data, she asked Feng Cai, ¡°Tell me about the sales situation of the various cities and your thoughts on the New Year gift box.¡± This sudden question made Feng Cai a little nervous. He had never specifically memorized sales data, so he could only try to recall the data he remembered. He stuttered as he said, ¡°As for gift boxes, I think there should be as many types as possible. Other than the gift boxes for single products, the other combination gift boxes should have a deluxe and normal version. The purchasing prices of the suppliers of Jiang Province¡¯s various agencies and manufacturers are mostly between 0.5 to 4 yuan. I suggest we stick to this price range as well.¡± Although Yu Bing was younger than him, Feng Cai couldn¡¯t help but feel nervous when he was asked. Feng Cai swallowed hard after answering the question. Yu Bing gave the first two pages to Feng Cai and Shu Ya, and the third page to Wen Qin. Feng Cai was only half right. To be able to remember so much data from the image shop in the past few months without specific statistics meant that he had analyzed the orders from the sales department. Although Feng Cai didn¡¯t meet Yu Bing¡¯s expectations, he passed. Yu Bing didn¡¯t say anything and only reminded Feng Cai to value the application of data. ¡°You can also use a similar form to manage the data for your customers starting next year. This will help you discover problems in time and make sales decisions.¡± ¡°For example, you will be able to tell if our customers prefer our spicy products or sweet products, as well as the price range they can accept. This way, you can recommend new products next time.¡± ¡°Even when we give them custom-made products for their daily employee benefits, we can match them according to their preferences, especially for orders from large factories. We have many competitors, so we should cherish every opportunity.¡± Chapter 453 - 453 Grinder 453 Grinder The diagrams Wen Qin made were categorized by product and city. With the data comparison, a lot of information could be seen at a glance. Feng Cai nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll make a form template after I get back and send it to various offices to make a client¡¯s data and materials book.¡± This was because Yu Bing wanted the approximate data to make the product judgment of the gift box set. However, Feng Cai was the person in charge of the business department, so the data in his hand should be more detailed and he could make a more effective marketing plan for customers. Yu Bing nodded and continued, ¡°Our gift box set products will be chosen from among the top ten. I think our spicy products and sweets will be popular in some cities. The product ratio in the gift box will have half of each.¡± ¡°For the other cities, we will come up with the corresponding ratio according to the data we have. The ten cities will be divided into three categories according to the similarity of the data. For each category, we will produce three different combination sets. We won¡¯t make gift boxes with chicken or duck meat. Because there¡¯s not much chicken and duck meat, we¡¯ll only provide them to the manufacturers and agencies under City H¡¯s jurisdiction.¡± After Feng Cai went to the warehouse to get the finished products, the four of them combined them. Then, Wen Qin calculated the best sale price. In the end, Yu Bing set the price. After the discussion, they set the price for nine gift boxes in the morning. Shu Ya was considered an experienced person, while Yu Bing provided ideas at the side. The sample design was confirmed in the afternoon and they used the bamboo weaving technique as usual. However, the design styles of gift boxes of different prices were also different. The stickers on the bamboo basket were also different. Then, the two sides split up. Shu Ya immediately went to town to communicate with the printing factory about the sample design of the design sticker. Feng Cai asked the employees in the warehouse to weave the bamboo baskets according to Shu Ya¡¯s design of the bamboo basket. There were two gift boxes for each meal set. At noon the next day, 10 shops, 9 gift boxes, and 60 samples were all prepared. Time was tight, so Feng Cai temporarily borrowed the employees of the four warehouses and the few of them went to various image shops to deliver samples. As the New Year product orders began to be pre-sold, the entire village began to weave bamboo baskets again. New Year¡¯s Day would be in a few days, and Wu Jin had thought that the village would hold a gala performance like last year, but everyone¡¯s attention was on weaving the bamboo baskets. After all, earning money was the most important! With more money, everyone could eat a few more pieces of meat during the new year. None of them were in the mood to appear on the show anymore. After all, weaving baskets would only take about ten days. After this, they would have to wait until the next holiday. In the end, Wu Jin could only give up. Because the food factory had made a name for itself in the province, it accumulated a certain amount of customers. Moreover, every New Year, Yu Bing would diligently make modifications to the packaging. When the price was about the same, the details determined success or failure, so orders kept coming to the food factory. Some manufacturers had also discovered the details on the packaging of the Delicious Food Factory and many imitated it. Some of them failed to imitate it. Some of the imitations were indeed well-made, but the taste of their products wasn¡¯t as good as that of Delicious Food Factory. There were also one or two large food factories that did both. However, Delicious Food Factory was the first to make a name for itself with this idea. This service concept of respecting consumers was promoted by Delicious Food Factory. In this era, where there was a lack of service, this service concept helped them gain a large number of loyal customers. Moreover, Delicious Food Factory also had many trump cards, so even if its business was affected, the impact was very small. After all, the domestic market was so big. Moreover, they could also sell goods on Xiao Sheng¡¯s black market. With the current production capacity of Xiao Sheng¡¯s black market, Xiao Sheng could sell all the remaining stock. After Wu Jin finished patrolling the orchard and farm, he went to the food factory. When he saw that Yu Bing had personally made the gift box packaging because of the shortage of workers, he smiled and went forward to help. ¡°Yu Bing, our village is about to be made into a model village by you. Everyone is extremely enthusiastic!¡± Yu Bing turned to look at Wu Jin and said with a smile, ¡°That¡¯s good. Usually, the villagers keep having conflicts with each other. Now, they¡¯re all cooped up at home weaving bamboo baskets. Not only are they vying to do more work, but the social climate is also improving as well!¡± When Wu Jin heard this, he thought about it and felt that it was true. ¡°What¡¯s the saying? Money talks. Even those who like to gossip have quietened down.¡± When Yu Bing thought of the adaptation of that saying in the future, she smiled and said, ¡°Those who had the time to cause trouble previously were just too idle.¡± Chapter 454 - 454 Abandoning the Old and Welcoming the New 454 Abandoning the Old and Welcoming the New The other employees in the warehouse laughed when they heard this. ¡°That makes sense. My mother-in-law likes to cause trouble. It¡¯s as if she¡¯s unhappy if she doesn¡¯t sow discord. However, every time the factory starts making baskets, she doesn¡¯t go anywhere during that period of time. She just stares at the gift boxes every day and tries her best to make a few more.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. I can¡¯t control my wife either. However, as soon as Miss Yu says the factory will start making baskets, no one goes to the ¡®Information Exchange Center¡¯ at the entrance of the village anymore!¡± ¡°Hahaha, the entire family is working together to weave bamboo baskets. It¡¯s indeed much more harmonious!¡± The food factory was immersed in a productive atmosphere. Everyone was making the final push for the last batch of New Year¡¯s orders. The last day of this year arrived. Although New Year¡¯s Day wasn¡¯t as grand as the Spring Festival, in the Gregorian calendar, it was also a day of abandoning the old and welcoming the new. According to the country¡¯s legal holidays, the food factory would have a day off on January 1. This wasn¡¯t the first time Xiao Sheng had invited Yu Bing and Jiang Chun to the Xiao family¡¯s house for dinner, so the two of them didn¡¯t stand on ceremony with him. After all, the more people, the merrier. This year was much colder than last year, so everyone unanimously decided to eat hotpot. Yu Bing stir-fried the hotpot base like last year, while Jiang Chun and Xiao Sheng were in charge of washing the hot vegetables. Because they were already prepared and Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t lack money or stamps, this year¡¯s feast was much more sumptuous than that of last year. Other than chicken and fish, Xiao Lin bought pig liver, pig intestines, beef, and tofu in town early in the morning. Yu Bing soaked the dried mushrooms in water. Winter vegetables like potatoes, radishes, and cabbage filled the table. Everyone raised their glasses. Because there was no wine, they filled them with honey water to celebrate. Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s a new year again. I hope everything will go smoothly for all of us this year.¡± Xiao Sheng also smiled and said, ¡°I wish everyone a happy new year.¡± Jiang Chun thought for a moment and smiled. ¡°My blessing is simple. I hope everyone will be happy every day and live a better life!¡± Xiao Lin was unwilling to be ignored, so he hurriedly raised his glass and said, ¡°I want to say my blessing too. I want to wish everyone a happy new year!¡± ¡°I hope that Sister Yu Bing and Sister Jiang Chun will become more and more beautiful and have their wishes fulfilled. I hope that my brother will be safe and my sister will be healthy. I hope that my study progress will improve!¡± Xiao Lin¡¯s blessings were very specific, and with the innocence and sincerity of a child. The blessings were usually said by adults, but since Xiao Lin joined in the fun, Xiao Li was also interested and said with a smile, ¡°Then I wish everyone all the best!¡± Yu Bing laughed as she rubbed Xiao Li¡¯s head. ¡°Well said! This blessing has the most weight.¡± As the five of them said their New Year¡¯s blessings, the hotpot on the table was steaming. In the brazier on the ground beside it, the burning dead wood crackled like firecrackers while warming the air. There was snow outside the house, and warm yellow lighting in the house. At this moment, in the intellectual dormitory, everyone was gathered together to celebrate the new year. As the male team leader and female team leader of the intellectual team, Wen Jiang and Tian Jing suggested that everyone hand over 0.3 yuan, so that everyone could pool their money together to get stamps and eat a good meal. Everyone agreed. In the end, they used the 20.5 yuan they had gathered to buy two chickens, nine pounds of pork, and one pound of pork bones. The intellectuals had reclaimed two acres of veggie land at the back of the dormitory building, so they didn¡¯t need to pay for the vegetables. The pork bones were used as the base of the soup, and the pork was cut into thin slices. In order for everyone to get a share of the chicken, the chicken was cut into small pieces. Because the meat was distributed evenly according to the number of people, the two team leaders first used bone soup to cook the meat and vegetables. Then, everyone held a bowl as they queued up. These things looked like a lot, but with 68 people, everyone could only eat two pieces of chicken at most. They could even get four to five pieces of pork. Although it wasn¡¯t much, it was enough to satisfy their appetite. After most people received the meat, they would first bury it under the rice. After the vegetables were served, they would take a piece out from time to time to slowly savor the meat. Yu Yan sat at the side with Yao Nian in an old cotton jacket. Seeing everyone¡¯s actions, she snorted in disdain and ate the meat in her bowl first. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that the weather was cold and she didn¡¯t want to freeze her hands, she wouldn¡¯t have bothered with these poor people for just a few pieces of meat. Chapter 455 - 455 Half a Liquor of Rice 455 Half a Liquor of Rice Yu Yan decided to go to the county¡¯s restaurant tomorrow on New Year¡¯s Day and order a bowl of red braised pork. Ever since the last fight, Xu Ling and Yu Yan¡¯s relationship had been tense. Xu Ling often secretly paid attention to Yu Yan, for fear that she would miss the opportunity to catch the chink in her armor. When Xu Ling saw Yu Yan¡¯s expression, she mocked, ¡°Yu Yan, why are you snorting?! Don¡¯t forget that a few months ago, when your parents didn¡¯t send you money, we pitied you and our charity allowed you to last for half a month. Otherwise, would you have been able to wait until your parents sent you money? How dare you look down on us for eating these few pieces of meat? You¡¯re so heartless!¡± Xu Ling had always remembered how Yu Yan said that she was ungrateful. Because Xu Ling had also given Yu Yan half a handful of rice, she used it to mock Yu Yan whenever she had the chance recently. In early September, under everyone¡¯s supervision, Yu Yan sold her new cotton clothes and stamps for 26 yuan and paid off her debt. However, Yu Yan had only been here for half a year last year. Moreover, she often slacked off when Sun Wang was the village chief. Therefore, there wasn¡¯t much food left for her at the end of the year. Previously, Yu Yan had money, so when she ran out of food, she would take the money to buy rice from the villagers or take food stamps to the food supply shop. However, when she was urged to pay the debt in September, she happened to be out of rice. The few yuan she had left was used on phone calls. That was her last hope, so she had to keep it no matter what. In the end, Yu Yan spent 20 cents to buy a large bag of sweet potatoes. She ate them for three meals a day. In order to make them last longer, she only ate one steamed sweet potato per meal. When she was working, Yu Yan often found an opportunity to slack off and conserve her energy. Although she only ate until she was so hungry that her stomach ached every day, she could still hold on. In October, the village began harvesting. The team leader knew that Yu Yan liked to slack off, so he kept an eye on her. During the harvest period, every family would be able to eat better food. Otherwise, their bodies wouldn¡¯t be able to take it and they would collapse from exhaustion sooner or later. Usually, they would eat porridge for lunch, but during this period of time, they would basically eat rice. Some families even cooked meat, and those who went to the fields could get a piece or two. However, at this moment, Yu Yan only had sweet potatoes left. Even if she ate two at noon, after holding on for a week, she fainted in the field because she was tired and hungry and was sent to the infirmary. Yu Yan was an intellectual under the team leader Tian Jing. After this incident, she immediately went to visit her to learn more about the situation. Yu Bing usually only paid attention to the intellectuals. Moreover, she was busy during that period of time. When she found out about the situation from the doctor, Tian Jing could only call for everyone to donate some rice to Yu Yan. Considering that Yu Yan¡¯s stomach was injured by hunger, Tian Jing didn¡¯t cook hard rice. Instead, she took the rice everyone gave her and cooked a bowl of thick rice porridge. She also sent red dates to help replenish Yu Yan¡¯s blood. She tore them and placed them in the rice porridge. After cooking them, she brought them to the infirmary for Yu Yan to drink. Tian Jing knew that Yu Yan was stubborn and prideful, so she didn¡¯t tell Yu Yan that this rice was donated by everyone. In order to prevent Yu Yan from asking him for money and rice, Yao Nian had been pretending to be sick recently and often complained about being poor in front of Yu Yan. Fortunately, Yu Yan believed him. However, this time was different from the past. Yu Yan was so hungry that she fainted. If he, her boyfriend, didn¡¯t do anything, Yu Yan would definitely be suspicious. The rice everyone donated helped him out, so Yao Nian wouldn¡¯t tell Yu Yan about this. Yu Yan had always thought that Tian Jing had given the rice to her. She thought that since Tian Jing was the team leader, she had the responsibility to take care of her, so she took it with a clear conscience and was worried that Tian Jing would want her to pay the rice back. It wasn¡¯t until a week later that Yu Yan found out how the rice came about after being mocked by Xu Ling. She couldn¡¯t take it lying down and wanted to return the rice, but Yao Nian kept the rice on the grounds that she already owed everyone a favor anyway. However, when Yu Yan received the money from her adoptive parents, she bought a few pounds of snacks and biscuits and distributed them to everyone. Now that she heard Xu Ling mention this again, Yu Yan felt stifled. ¡°Xu Ling, you¡¯re not going to let this matter rest, are you?! Didn¡¯t I buy food for everyone later? Those things are much more expensive than that handful of rice!¡± Chapter 456 - 456 Biased 456 Biased When Xu Ling heard this, she sneered and said, ¡°Yu Yan, you¡¯re really ungrateful. If it weren¡¯t for the half a handful of rice you look down on now, you might have starved to death! We saved your life, understand? Do you think you can return the favor just by buying some expensive things?¡± Yu Yan retorted bluntly, ¡°Never expect the rewards when helping someone out. Aren¡¯t you blackmailing me now?¡± Xu Ling looked as if she had heard a joke. ¡°Never expect the rewards when helping someone out? Isn¡¯t it a little funny to hear this from the mouth of someone who received the favor? When you¡¯re rich, you buy things for everyone to eat as repayment?¡± When everyone heard Yu Yan¡¯s words, their expressions darkened. When they donated rice, they didn¡¯t think of asking Yu Yan to repay them. They only did it on account of the fact that everyone was away from home and that they should support each other. Although everyone disliked Yu Yan, her life was in danger. Moreover, the team leader had already spoken. However, putting aside the fact that Yu Yan and Xu Ling were criticizing each other, Yu Yan¡¯s mocking attitude towards them really disappointed them. Tian Jing¡¯s expression darkened as she reprimanded loudly, ¡°Alright! Stop arguing, or else get out!¡± Seeing that their team leader was angry, Yu Yan and Xu Ling stopped, but they still glared at each other fiercely. The originally festive atmosphere instantly became a little stiff. Everyone continued to eat the veggies silently. Seeing this, Wen Jiang smiled and suggested that they perform in the hall to celebrate the new year together like in previous years. This suggestion was agreed upon by everyone. There were many intellectuals who could sing and dance. They didn¡¯t need to prepare in advance and could perform on stage directly. The atmosphere returned to normal. After dinner, everyone washed up together. The people on the stage were performing, and the people below the stage were weaving bamboo baskets. Everyone was smiling, and the atmosphere was peaceful. As Yu Yan watched the lively scene in front of her, she felt that she was a little out of place, so she didn¡¯t want to stay any longer. She stood up and returned to her room. When Yao Nian saw this, he wanted to chase after her, but when he thought of Yu Yan¡¯s moodiness recently, he gave up. He was afraid that he would get in trouble later, so he felt that it was better to watch the performance downstairs. Yu Yan took out the letter she had gone to collect in the afternoon. The person who had sent the letter was her adoptive parents. There was also a situation note in the envelope. Li Xin had found an agency to write this. With this certificate, Yu Yan could find the village to write a certificate and return to the city for the new year. Yu Hai and Li Xin mentioned in their letter that because Yu Xi was still recovering this year, the supervisor had specifically approved for him to return to the team after the new year. They hoped that Yu Yan could go home early this year so that their family of four could celebrate the new year. Yu Xi had been a soldier for ten years, and this was the second time he had celebrated the new year at home, so Yu Hai and Li Xin were looking forward to this year¡¯s Spring Festival. When Yu Yan saw these words, a hint of hatred appeared on her face as she muttered, ¡°I won¡¯t let you guys get what you guys want. Reunion¡­ I won¡¯t go back!¡± Thinking of her stomachache from starvation some time ago, Yu Yan felt that her adoptive parents were not worthy of asking her to go back to celebrate the new year! It was all Yu Xi¡¯s fault! Something just had to happen to him at that time. Her adoptive parents were so biased now! Yu Xi was going home to celebrate the new year, so they asked her to go home early. Why? Since they went to the Yu family to adopt her back then, why didn¡¯t they cherish her?! Thinking of how she had already been mocked by all the intellectuals because she had borrowed money, Yu Yan hated her adoptive parents for only caring about their biological son and not her. Performing surgery was the doctor¡¯s business, and they couldn¡¯t help. If she was in trouble, they could have helped, but didn¡¯t help! Moreover, if they had sent her money as usual, she wouldn¡¯t have ended up in this state. When she thought of how her adoptive mother wanted to force her to return to the city and control her, Yu Yan felt even more resentful. Yu Yan¡¯s grip on the letter slowly tightened until the letter was torn. Yu Yan resented her adoptive parents, but she didn¡¯t stop replying. Yu Yan knew very well that although she was going against her adoptive parents, thinking of a way to get more money from them was more important! They owed her this! Chapter 457 - 457 Onion Noodles 457 Onion Noodles Yu Yan replied that she would return home as soon as possible for the new year and hoped that her parents could send some more money over for travel expenses. Yu Yan¡¯s new cotton clothes had been sold last time. Now, be it buying ready-made clothes or buying cotton to make them herself, she needed stamps. However, Yu Yan didn¡¯t have any stamps now, so she asked her adoptive mother to send a new cotton shirt over with the excuse that she had donated the new cotton shirt she had received last year to a poor orphan. Then, she asked about her adoptive brother¡¯s recovery and expressed her worries as sincerely as possible. After writing the letter, she stuffed it into the envelope and prepared to send it out when she went to town tomorrow. The next day was New Year¡¯s Day, so many people in the village woke up early and went to town or county city. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun chose to sleep in at home and woke up at ten o¡¯clock. The two of them had just washed up when they heard a knock on the door. Little Tiger, who was playing in the courtyard, shouted at the closed courtyard door. After Yu Bing hurriedly went to open the door, she realized that Wang Yun and Song Li were standing outside. She asked happily, ¡°Why are you two here?¡± Yu Bing had not been to the Song family¡¯s house for more than three months because she was busy. She held their hands and led them in happily. ¡°Come in and sit!¡± Wang Yun rolled her eyes at Yu Bing. ¡°If you hadn¡¯t come, you would have forgotten about me.¡± Song Li pouted and said, ¡°Hmph, you must have forgotten about me too.¡± Yu Bing joked with a smile, ¡°I didn¡¯t forget you guys. I¡¯ve been too busy recently. I wanted to visit you guys, Uncle Song, and Auntie Song during the factory¡¯s break.¡± Because Jiang Chun had seen the two of them before, she came out of the room and greeted them. ¡°Have you guys eaten breakfast yet? I¡¯ll cook now. Let¡¯s eat together later.¡± Song Li hurriedly pulled Jiang Chun and rejected, ¡°There¡¯s no need to go through so much trouble. We only came after eating. We just want to talk to Yu Bing about something.¡± Yu Bing deliberately revealed a regretful expression. ¡°That¡¯s a pity. I originally wanted to make onion noodles.¡± Yu Bing had made onion noodles in the Song family¡¯s house once. Mrs. Song had learned how to make it a few times, but failed to replicate the taste. Now that she could eat it, Song Li¡¯s eyes lit up and she raised her hand. ¡°I¡¯ll eat! I¡¯ll eat! Add me a bowl.¡± When Wang Yun saw that her sister-in-law had changed her mind without hesitation, she coughed lightly and said, ¡°It took a lot of energy to ride a motor here, so I¡¯m a little hungry too. I¡¯d like a bowl.¡± Yu Bing and Jiang Chun burst out laughing. Jiang Chun praised, ¡°Yu Bing¡¯s onion noodles are indeed superb.¡± Song Li and Wang Yun immediately nodded in agreement. Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°You guys have been to my house before, so make yourselves at home.¡± Song Li pushed Yu Bing into the kitchen with an anxious expression. ¡°Hurry up and cook it. Don¡¯t worry about us. We won¡¯t stand on ceremony with you.¡± Yu Bing smiled and started making noodles after she was pushed into the kitchen. Onion noodles were a specialty of Yu Bing¡¯s hometown. The ingredients were simple, but they consumed a little oil. Yu Bing washed a handful of onions and cut them into pieces. Then, she peeled open the skin of the white onions and broke them into pieces. Then, she heated the pot and poured oil into it. When the oil was heated, she poured the white onions onto the oil and spread them out evenly. As the oil temperature increased, she added some clear water into the pot to lower the oil¡¯s temperature. This way, she could fish the white onions out when they became crispier. Then, she placed the green onions into the pot of oil and quickly moved them with her chopsticks to let them dissipate the water. Soon, the green onions looked like a combination of reddish-brown and dark green. At this moment, two-thirds of the onion oil was poured out. Then, she continued to pour raw soy sauce into the pot to bring out the unique fragrance of the onions. Then, she added some sugar, a certain amount of water, and boiled it again. When the oil and sauce separated, it meant that the onion oil juice had been mixed evenly. At this moment, she boiled the noodles. After the noodles were cooked, she fished them out and poured in the onion oil before mixing them evenly. There was some fried golden and crispy onion on the surface. The onion oil noodles were ready now. Everyone had a big bowl. After Wang Yun and Song Li finished eating, they felt so stuffed that it was like their stomachs were about to explode. Yu Bing prepared hawthorn tea for everyone. Only after eating and drinking her fill did Wang Yun remember her purpose for coming this time. Chapter 458 - 458 University Spot 458 University Spot Wang Yun slapped her thigh. ¡°I almost forgot about the serious business! Yu Bing, this year, our commune fought for a university spot for each village. My father-in-law only found out about this yesterday and is preparing to announce this news to the various village chiefs at the monthly commune meeting in three days.¡± ¡°My father-in-law said that with your performance, you will definitely get a spot in your village. If the village chief has any objections, he¡¯ll handle it. Your priority now is to study. Although you just finished high school last year, you¡¯ve been in the countryside for more than a year after all, so you probably forgot about some knowledge. The list will be confirmed in a week, but you can start preparing early now.¡± Song Li echoed, ¡°That¡¯s right! You don¡¯t have to worry about the spot. With your performance, no one in the He Mountain Village has contributed more than you. The spot should be yours. If anyone dares to play any tricks, my father will keep an eye on them!¡± Yu Bing was stunned for a moment. She recalled that in her previous life, she had also obtained a spot for a University of Labor and Agriculture. However, she was stupid and got deceived by Yao Nian. In order to please him, she gave up this spot without hesitation. Yao Nian used this spot to return to the city and attend university. There was actually a huge difference between a University of Labor and Agriculture and a real university. The University of Labor and Agriculture appeared because of the cancellation of the college entrance examination. It was unique to this period and had only existed for a short ten years. From the name, it could be seen that the students of this university were selected among workers, farmers, and soldiers. They would go to school to receive two to three years of education before returning to production. Letting intellectuals go to the countryside to do construction was to transform students into workers, farmers, and soldiers. The University of Labor and Agriculture was the exact opposite. These spots were confirmed by the school and reported to the admissions office. After they were collected, they were distributed to various factories, villages, and troops. Although these people still returned to their original places of work after graduation, their identities became public officials. This was an opportunity for them to change their fate. The conditions for enrollment were very simple. As long as one was about 20 years old, had good morals, was healthy, and had a level of education above junior high, they would be qualified. Then, the various grassroots agencies would recommend candidates and they would take the same exam. They could only go to university after they passed the political review. However, the passing rate was very high, above 90%. The enrollment system was through recommendation, so there was a lot of room for manipulation. This was because the screening criteria wasn¡¯t one¡¯s learning score, but a supervisor¡¯s subjective judgment of whether the other party was proactive or not. Therefore, there were many cases of getting in through the back door. The most important thing was that ¡°clean background¡± and ¡°political overreach¡± mainly depended on your family¡¯s background and whether you were related to people with correct political ideals. The University of Labor and Agriculture was said to be a university, but the knowledge base of the students who went to school there was very different. To teachers, such differences made the difficulty of teaching them rise exponentially. Moreover, the content of the lessons was unrelated to the subject, such as politics, digging pits, clearing the river, rehearsing performances, watching movies, and so on. Yu Bing, who knew the future, naturally didn¡¯t care about this spot. She hoped to participate in the college entrance examination at the end of the year and enter a real university to learn cultural knowledge. Jiang Chun was extremely excited when she heard this, even happier than if she herself obtained the spot. ¡°This is a good thing! Don¡¯t worry, Yu Bing has been studying. She will definitely pass!¡± After Yu Bing glanced at the few people who were happy that she had obtained a spot, she thought for a moment and said, ¡°Sister Yun, Song Li, tell Uncle Song not to worry. I don¡¯t plan to take this spot.¡± Wang Yun asked in confusion, ¡°Why? A lot of people are dying to get this spot.¡± To the people of this era, it was incomprehensible to take the initiative to give up such a rare opportunity to climb up the social ranks, so the three of them looked at Yu Bing in confusion. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t say the reason, so she could only find an excuse. ¡°I think my current life is quite good. Moreover, if there¡¯s really a chance to return to the city, I think I¡¯m quite capable and often go to other agencies to do business, so I have a higher chance of being chosen by the agency supervisor than other people. It¡¯s better to give the opportunity to people who need it more.¡± Song Li said with admiration, ¡°No wonder my father asks me to learn from you. I¡¯m still far inferior to you!¡± Chapter 459 - 459 Formula Milk 459 Formula Milk Yu Bing felt a little guilty when she heard this and she touched her nose sheepishly. ¡°It¡¯s mainly because I have more opportunities than others. Otherwise, I might not have given up the spot.¡± However, Wang Yun and Song Li still persuaded her. Even Jiang Chun felt that it was a pity for Yu Bing to give up this opportunity. Only a thousand people had such a spot. Last year, it wasn¡¯t even their commune¡¯s turn. However, since Yu Bing had already made up her mind, the three of them could only give up. Wang Yun and Song Li sat for a while before riding the motor back to town. As soon as the two of them left, Xiao Sheng arrived. After Xiao Sheng entered with a small cloth bag, Little Tiger immediately went forward and wagged its tail at Xiao Sheng¡¯s feet. Yu Bing shook her head when she saw its solicitous look. Yu Bing said in disdain, ¡°This heartless fellow treats you better than its two masters, Jiang Chun and me. I even suspect that you secretly bewitched it.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard Yu Bing¡¯s teasing words, his heart skipped a beat and he stared at Yu Bing as he said in all seriousness, ¡°If I had bewitching soup, I would have made you drink it.¡± Yu Bing blushed and hurriedly looked at Jiang Chun, who was cleaning the kitchen. Seeing that Jiang Chun didn¡¯t seem to have heard him, she turned around and glared at Xiao Sheng as she said softly, ¡°What nonsense are you talking about?¡± Xiao Sheng was afraid that Yu Bing would be angry, so he didn¡¯t dare to tease her anymore. He handed over the cloth bag in his hand and said with a smile, ¡°I got the milk powder you wanted.¡± Yu Bing took the bag in surprise and eagerly took out two bags of milk powder to take a look. ¡°This is great! Xiao Yu has been eating rice paste for half a month. The little bit of meat he finally grew is gone again!¡± Xiao Sheng smiled and said, ¡°The milk powder you want is foreign and has always been in high demand, so the price increased a little when I got it.¡± This thing was expensive and difficult to get. If not for Xiao Sheng, Yu Bing would have wasted a lot of time asking for stamps. The town had yet to sell them, so she had to try her luck in the county city. If the county city didn¡¯t have such an expensive thing, she could only take a car to the provincial city to buy it. ¡°It can¡¯t be helped even if it takes a long time. As long as we can get it, it¡¯s fine. How much is it?¡± To infants, formula milk was more nutritious than fresh milk, so Yu Bing insisted on buying formula milk. Because he didn¡¯t have foreign goods like milk powder, Xiao Sheng had to use his connections and treat others to a meal to get these two bags. He knew Yu Bing¡¯s personality, so he didn¡¯t say that it was free. However, he only reported the price of the milk powder and didn¡¯t say anything else. ¡°Two bags cost a total of 150 yuan.¡± Jiang Chun happened to come out of the kitchen. When she heard this, she took a few steps forward and looked at the milk powder in Yu Bing¡¯s hand as she said in surprise, ¡°Oh my god! This is so expensive! I heard that a bag of milk powder only cost more than ten yuan before.¡± Yu Bing explained to Jiang Chun, ¡°That¡¯s for adults. This is for infants and children. It¡¯s made with a targeted formula.¡± In this day and age, there were not many families who could afford to drink milk powder. The formula in the country was still underdeveloped, so many people didn¡¯t know that people of different ages drank milk powder with different formulas. Jiang Chun took it and looked at it again. Then, she shook her head as she marveled, ¡°How many people can afford it?!¡± Yu Bing smiled as she returned to her room to take out money for Xiao Sheng. ¡°Thank you. I know how difficult it is to get this thing. I¡¯ll treat you to a meal another day.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s eyes darted around. ¡°Can I get extra points instead?¡± Yu Bing¡¯s smile froze. Thinking about how he had been doing well recently and how she had not given him extra points for a long time, she said readily, ¡°I still have to treat you. I¡¯ll give you five points if you want.¡± 50 points were enough! This was a pleasant surprise, so Xiao Sheng smiled. ¡°Then I¡¯ll be waiting.¡± Jiang Chun didn¡¯t know what the two of them were talking about, but she knew that it must be an agreement between lovers. Her eyes darted between the two of them with a teasing look. Yu Bing was so embarrassed that she glared at Jiang Chun. Then, she said to Xiao Sheng seriously, ¡°Hurry up and go back. We¡¯re going out later.¡± Xiao Sheng was speechless. He suddenly felt like a milk powder deliveryman. Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing resentfully, then he left obediently. Yu Bing cleared her throat guiltily. ¡°Let¡¯s go to Wen Qin¡¯s house to take a look.¡± When the two of them arrived, Wen Qin was making lunch. Wen Qin¡¯s family¡¯s lunch was very simple. They had stir-fried cabbage, minced meat, and potatoes. There was only a little bit of minced meat. Their main dish was sweet potatoes. This was the norm for most people in this era. Seeing the two of them enter, Wen Qin hurriedly left the kitchen and called the two of them to sit in the living room. In the house, Sun Hui was sitting beside his brother¡¯s bamboo cradle. When he saw Yu Bing and Jiang Chun, he hurriedly stood up and greeted them. The two of them laughed and played with the two children for a while before sitting on the chairs beside them. Chapter 460 - 460 Letter 460 Letter Yu Bing placed the milk powder on the table. ¡°You suddenly ran out of milk, so I bought some milk powder for Xiao Yu. He¡¯s still young, so he definitely can¡¯t keep drinking rice paste.¡± Wen Qin was worldly, so when she saw the foreign language on the packaging, she hurriedly stuffed the milk powder back into the bag. ¡°Why did you buy this?! It¡¯s so expensive! Take it back and return it.¡± Yu Bing took out the milk powder again. ¡°Now is not the time to be polite. It¡¯s not enough for him to just eat rice paste when he¡¯s less than half a year old. What if it slows his growth? Xiao Yu¡¯s condition wasn¡¯t good when he was born. He was born weak and has to recuperate before he can recover. Look, he only ate rice paste for a few days, but his face is as thin as a monkey¡¯s. Even if you don¡¯t feel sorry for him, I do.¡± Wen Qin looked in the direction of the bamboo cradle and thought of the look on her youngest son¡¯s face. In the end, she gave up on maintaining her pride. ¡°Yu Bing, if you encounter anything in the future, just ask. I¡¯ll do my best to help you.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t refuse. In the beginning, she had helped Wen Qin because she had yet to return the favor she owed Sun Yu. However, now, she genuinely liked Wen Qin. She wasn¡¯t a saint who was willing to do good deeds without asking for anything in return. Friendship depended on reciprocity. If it was one-sided, the friendship definitely wouldn¡¯t last long. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun stayed for a while before leaving. The two of them rode Xiao Sheng¡¯s bicycle to town first before heading to the county city to watch a movie. In order to ensure that the orders were completed on time, there would be no more breaks for the next 14 days. On the other side, Yu Yan woke up at eleven o¡¯clock. After washing up, she tied her hair into two ponytails with a red headband and matched it with a red cashmere scarf. This made her look rosier and lessened the sickly look on her face. She chose a relatively good one from the two cotton clothes and put it on. Then, she put on her leather shoes despite the heavy snow. Then, she placed the letter into her green backpack and sent it to the county city to be mailed. When Yu Yan met Yao Nian in the hall on the first floor, she greeted him and turned to leave. When Yao Nian saw that Yu Yan was clearly dressed to enter the city, he hurriedly stopped her. ¡°Yu Yan, you¡¯re going to the city?¡± Yu Yan glanced at Yao Nian and replied, ¡°I¡¯m going to the county city to send a letter.¡± Hearing Yu Yan was going to send a letter, Yao Nian asked expectantly, ¡°A letter?¡± Yu Yan didn¡¯t notice Yao Nian¡¯s abnormality and replied aloofly, ¡°Yes, if there¡¯s nothing else, I¡¯ll leave first. I still have to transfer buses later.¡± Yao Nian wanted to inquire about the contents of Yu Yan¡¯s letter and see if there was a chance to persuade Yu Yan to return to the city. However, when he saw her anxious expression and thought of the 16.8 yuan in his pocket, he gritted his teeth and pretended to be indifferent as he said, ¡°Today is New Year¡¯s Day. I was about to look for you to go to the county city to watch a movie. I didn¡¯t expect you to plan to go to town as well. What a coincidence!¡± Yu Yan looked at Yao Nian suspiciously. ¡°This is too sudden.¡± Yao Nian found an excuse and explained, ¡°I¡¯ve thought about it before. I wanted to give you a surprise, so I deliberately waited until now to say it.¡± Yu Yan thought about how she was still preparing to eat a feast later. It wasn¡¯t worth it for Yao Nian to freeload a meal with just a movie stamp, so she was a little unwilling to bring Yao Nian along. Moreover, Yu Yan realized that Yao Nian was too poor. When she was in trouble previously, Yao Nian couldn¡¯t help at all. Therefore, Yu Yan had a bad impression of Yao Nian now. In the past, she would think of him if she had any delicious food to share. Yu Yan didn¡¯t relent and found an excuse to refuse. ¡°I¡¯m a little tired, so I won¡¯t go play. I¡¯m just going to the county city to send a letter. I¡¯ll be back soon.¡± Yao Nian didn¡¯t expect that there would be a time when he would be rejected. However, he didn¡¯t believe this excuse. She could just send the letter in town and she didn¡¯t need to go to the county. She was clearly prepared to go stroll around. While he was in a daze, Yu Yan had already turned around and left. Seeing that Yu Yan was so cold to him, Yao Nian panicked. Ever since everyone found out that Yu Yan had borrowed money, although Yao Nian still maintained a certain distance from Yu Yan in order to get a spot to return to the city, he had never helped her, especially when it came to food. At that time, Yu Yan didn¡¯t ask Yao Nian for money to buy rations, and Yao Nian didn¡¯t even mention it. He pretended not to know that his girlfriend could barely fill her stomach with sweet potatoes every day. From that moment on, Yu Yan rarely took the initiative to look for Yao Nian. Chapter 461 - Chapter 461 Not Very Suitable Chapter 461 Not Very Suitable Yu Yan¡¯s actions were exactly what Yao Nian wanted. He wanted less contact with Yu Yan so that others wouldn¡¯t mention him when they gossiped about Yu Yan during mealtimes and affect his reputation. When Yu Yan didn¡¯t have enough money to contact her family, Yao Nian immediately took the initiative to give her 1.5 yuan, but when he gave it to her, he deliberately said that he only had 2 yuan and that his family had yet to send him money. Firstly, he could curry favor with Yu Yan and tell her that he had given her all the money he had. Secondly, he hinted to Yu Yan that he didn¡¯t have extra money to buy rice for her, so it was useless to look for him. It wasn¡¯t until Yu Yan¡¯s money and packages were sent over that everyone found out that Yu Yan¡¯s parents were fine that Yao Nian slowly began to take the initiative to look for Yu Yan like before. When Yu Yan was so broke that she had to live on sweet potatoes, she cooked by herself. Later, when Yu Yan had more food and ate with everyone else again, Yao Nian sat beside her again. When Yu Yan first received the package, Yao Nian realized that she had started to put out canned meat again when she was eating, so he reached out with his chopsticks to pick up the meat like before. When he saw that she didn¡¯t refuse, he was glad that Yu Yan was stupid and gullible. However, he didn¡¯t expect things to suddenly turn out like this after a month. In fact, Yu Yan didn¡¯t refuse at that time because other than Yao Nian, no one else would sit beside her. In the huge hall, everyone else was in groups of two to three, but she was alone. In the past, it was fine for her to walk, work, and be alone, but in such an environment, Yu Yan still cared about being seen as a loner. Yu Yan believed that Yao Nian really didn¡¯t have money, so he didn¡¯t help. Therefore, after she obtained the packages, she still chose to share them with him. However, this didn¡¯t mean that she didn¡¯t mind! When he saw Yu Yan leave, Yao Nian followed her and chased after her as he asked carefully, ¡°Yu Yan, are you angry?¡± Although Yao Nian suspected that Yu Yan was suddenly angry because he had not helped her two months ago, as long as she didn¡¯t say anything, he would pretend not to know. He was hoping that Yu Yan was throwing a tantrum because of other trivial matters. When Yu Yan saw Yao Nian¡¯s expression, she only said calmly, ¡°No, I¡¯m not angry.¡± Women liked to say one thing but mean another. Yao Nian had heard this from someone somewhere. Moreover, his intuition told him that Yu Yan must be angry. When he spoke again, he smiled ingratiatingly. ¡°Yu Yan, tell me what I did wrong. I¡¯ll definitely correct my mistake.¡± If he had a problem, he could change it, but if he was too poor, could he change it? Although Yu Yan thought so, in order not to appear like a gold digger, she definitely couldn¡¯t say it directly. ¡°You¡¯re not wrong. It¡¯s just that I think we might not be compatible.¡± This was equivalent to breaking up with him. At this moment, the two of them had already walked to the entrance of the village to wait for the ride. There were people going to town and the county today, so there were also many people waiting. When Yao Nian saw so many people, he was too embarrassed to suck up to Yu Yan like before. He could only remain silent for the time being and follow Yu Yan. Yu Yan felt even more unhappy when she saw this. When she spoke again, her voice was even colder. ¡°Yao Nian, go back. I¡¯m going to send a letter.¡± Since Yu Yan had spoken, Yao Nian had no choice but to respond. After he thought for a moment, he made up his mind and said in a low voice, ¡°We haven¡¯t seen a movie in a long time. There should be a new movie screening soon, so I want to bring you to see it. Although today isn¡¯t a holiday, it¡¯s the first day of the new year. Moreover, you didn¡¯t eat much meat last night, so I¡¯ll bring you to a restaurant. My family wired me 10 yuan last week. The moment I received the money, I started planning to bring you out to play today.¡± Yu Yan looked at Yao Nian in surprise. After the two of them got together, Yao Nian had never given her anything more than five yuan. The meat she had treated him to was more than this amount. Usually, she was worried that he would be hungry, so she would give him snacks and biscuits from time to time. Seeing that Yao Nian planned to surprise her even though he didn¡¯t have money, Yu Yan felt a little touched and wavered in her decision to break up with him. After all, Yao Nian had a huge advantage that others didn¡¯t have. After marrying him, it would be easier for her to return to her original family. She lowered her head and didn¡¯t say anything, but she didn¡¯t insist on entering the city alone like before. ¡°Having a fight?¡± ¡°It¡¯s good to be young. It¡¯s only at this time that men lower their heads and curry favor with us women. They don¡¯t take women seriously anymore after getting married!¡± ¡°When I was dating my husband, he never lowered his head to me like this. Now that I think about it, I really suffered a loss. There were quite a few people who wanted to marry me back then.¡± The women waiting by the side teased the two of them. Chapter 462 - Chapter 462 Persuaded Chapter 462 Persuaded When Yu Yan heard this, she was touched. She felt that affection was the only reason a man would be willing to lower his head to his girlfriend in front of outsiders. Yu Yan was happy, but Yao Nian was angry. He felt that his dignity as a man was being trampled on! But everything was for the sake of him returning to the city! Yao Nian kept telling himself this in order to suppress the anger in his heart. It was difficult to talk with so many people around. After Yao Nian and Yu Yan alighted in town, they went to the entrance of the commune to wait for the public bus to go to the county. There was only one public bus from town to the county city. Usually, it would make two trips in the morning and two in the afternoon. During the holidays, it would make four more trips. However, there were many people entering the city, so the bus was very crowded. Yao Nian and Yu Yan couldn¡¯t sit down, so they could only squeeze into a corner by the window. Yao Nian wanted to use physical contact with Yu Yan to deepen their relationship, so he held the car window with both hands and embraced Yu Yan. Yao Nian was tall and strong, and his strength had increased from doing farm work in the field all day long. Yu Yan was protected by Yao Nian, so she wasn¡¯t squeezed by other people. When she was in such close contact with Yao Nian, she suddenly recalled the night she was forcefully kissed by Yao Nian and her heart skipped a beat. When Yao Nian lowered his head and saw Yu Yan¡¯s red ears, he deliberately lowered his head and whispered into Yu Yan¡¯s ear with a smile, ¡°Yu Yan, are you going home for the new year?¡± The two of them were very close. Yu Yan was a little distracted by Yao Nian¡¯s masculine scent and couldn¡¯t think properly. When Yao Nian asked her, she replied honestly, ¡°No.¡± Yao Nian asked curiously, ¡°Your parents can¡¯t get a permission slip to let you go home?¡± Yu Yan shook her head. ¡°No, I got the slip from their supervisor yesterday, but I don¡¯t want to go back.¡± Yao Nian frowned in confusion. During the new year, people would go home to eat fish and meat, watch a movie, go to the park, and go to the department store. Any one of these reasons was enough to make intellectuals like them yearn to return to the city. Thinking of this, Yao Nian was a little worried that his parents wouldn¡¯t be able to pull strings to let him go home for the new year. Seeing that Yu Yan didn¡¯t know how to enjoy life, Yao Nian was a little angry, but he still continued to ask patiently and gently, ¡°Why? Did you have a conflict with your parents?¡± Hearing Yao Nian¡¯s question, Yu Yan regained some rationality from the ambiguous atmosphere Yao Nian had created. Of course, she couldn¡¯t tell him the real reason, which was that she wanted to make things difficult for her adoptive parents. For the time being, she didn¡¯t want to expose the fact that they were not biologically related, so she decided to tell Yao Nian half of the truth. ¡°They didn¡¯t send me money in time previously, causing me to break my promise, so I feel upset.¡± If Yu Yan fell out with her family, wouldn¡¯t he have even less chance? Yao Nian advised, ¡°How can there be overnight feuds between children and parents? Your parents must have been panicking when they found out that your brother¡¯s life was in danger. Besides, didn¡¯t they immediately send money and packages as soon as they returned?¡± ¡°In order to compensate you, there was a lot of jerky and canned meat in that package. This means that they care about you. Besides, you were sick previously and injured your body, so if you go back and eat some good food, you can recuperate. Seeing you have gastric pain sometimes makes me feel very upset.¡± When Yu Yan heard the mention of nourishing her body, she was a little tempted. She couldn¡¯t eat too much now or go hungry. Otherwise, her stomach would immediately hurt so badly that it was as if someone had stabbed her stomach with a knife. Every day, when she looked in the mirror, her face would look sallow, which was completely different from her healthy and rosy appearance in the past. After Yu Yan thought for a moment, she was convinced by Yao Nian and said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll go to the village tomorrow to get a permission slip. I¡¯ll go back in three days.¡± Yao Nian heaved a sigh of relief and smiled widely. When Yu Yan saw Yao Nian¡¯s happy expression through the reflection of the car window, she smiled and said, ¡°Those who don¡¯t know better would think that you¡¯re the one returning to the city for the new year. By the way, did your parents get a permission slip for you?¡± Yao Nian sighed. ¡°There¡¯s no news yet.¡± Previously, Yao Nian had lied and said that his father was a supervisor in the factory, but his father was actually an ordinary worker. Ordinary workers might not be able to pull strings because the person who issued the permission slip had to be responsible. If the intellectuals took the opportunity to run away and didn¡¯t return to the village, the person who issued the permission slip would be implicated. ? Chapter 463 - Chapter 463 Seduction Chapter 463 Seduction There actually were not many people who would run. Without permission slips, they couldn¡¯t go anywhere, but people had escaped before. As long as they were not discovered by the patrols on the street, who would know that you were an intellectual who had moved to the countryside? Therefore, the people who issued permission slips were very strict and the only exceptions were when someone in the family was seriously ill or there were other emergencies. However, if the applicant was a small supervisor in the factory, since they were all management level, they would be willing to cut them some slack and probably wouldn¡¯t refuse. For example, Yu Yan¡¯s parents were both cadres. She didn¡¯t want to go back, but her family had the ability to help her go back. Therefore, Yu Yan was very puzzled when she heard this. ¡°Your father is a workshop director, so he should be able to handle it. You didn¡¯t go back last year either.¡± Yao Nian revealed a helpless expression. ¡°My father¡¯s principle is to do things through legitimate methods and serve the people wholeheartedly. However, the person in charge of writing the permission slip is selfish and likes to abuse his power. He¡¯s different from my father. The two of them are arch-enemies, so it¡¯s quite difficult for me to go back.¡± When Yu Yan heard this explanation, she assumed it was why Yao Nian was so poor. She patted Yao Nian¡¯s arm comfortingly and looked at him with sympathy. ¡°Then I¡¯ll bring you more delicious food this time.¡± Yao Nian was secretly happy, but he still maintained an indifferent expression. ¡°The most important thing for you is to take care of yourself. You¡¯re not in good health now, so go home for the new year and see if your parents can transfer you back to the city. I¡¯m very worried that you won¡¯t be able to hold on after the new year.¡± This time, Yu Yan didn¡¯t refute Yao Nian¡¯s persuasion and lowered her eyes to think about Yao Nian¡¯s suggestion. Yao Nian smiled smugly. The two of them, who were immersed in their own schemes, didn¡¯t notice that two pairs of eyes were watching them. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun took turns riding their bicycles against the wind. The cold winter wind hurt their faces and when the cold air entered their bodies, they felt as if ice had entered their lungs. Then, the two of them wrapped their scarves around their heads and only revealed their eyes in order to look at the road. She smiled and raised her hand to wave as she took the initiative to greet him. ¡°What a coincidence. 00:22 We¡¯re actually in the same bus.¡± Yu Bing was very familiar with the doorman of the commune. When she parked the bicycle in the commune and went out, she happened to see the public bus coming. After squeezing in, she realized that Yao Nian and Yu Yan were standing beside her. The two of them didn¡¯t want to listen. However, their voices were right beside their ears,. Although the car window was wide open and the wind blew in, there were many people in the car. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun were squeezed so hard that they were sweating. The two of them took off their scarves and held them in their hands. After the bus stopped, Yao Nian turned around and saw Yu Bing and Jiang Chun behind him. His eyes instantly widened. Yu Bing had only seen this once in her two lifetimes. Seeing the panic in Yao Nian¡¯s eyes, she was amused and wanted to scare him. She smiled and raised her hand to wave as she took the initiative to greet him. ¡°What a coincidence. We¡¯re actually in the same bus.¡± With that, she turned around and followed the crowd out of the bus. Yao Nian was still in a daze as he looked at Yu Bing¡¯s back. Yu Yan assumed that Yao Nian was still thinking about arranged marriage. However, she didn¡¯t blame Yao Nian. She only felt that Yu Bing wanted to ruin things when she saw the two of them being intimate. Otherwise, she wouldn¡¯t have taken the initiative to smile and greet Yao Nian. Yu Yan immediately got out of the bus. When Yao Nian saw Yu Yan chasing after Yu Bing, he was so frightened that he hurriedly chased after her. It wasn¡¯t easy for him to convince Yu Yan to think of returning to the city. If Yu Bing revealed that he had lied to her at this critical moment, with Yu Yan¡¯s vain personality, she might dump him as her boyfriend. Then, all his efforts would be in vain! Yu Yan caught up to Yu Bing and scolded loudly, ¡°Yu Bing, why are you so shameless?! You seduced Yao Nian in front of me just now? I¡¯m gonna report you!¡± After lunch, many people in the county city came out to stroll around, so the streets were bustling. When they saw someone arguing, they stopped in their tracks to watch. Before Yu Bing could respond, Jiang Chun pushed Yu Yan in displeasure. ¡°Are you crazy?! We¡¯re all intellectuals from the same village. Is there a problem with greeting each other in the bus? Did they talk about something shameful? If you¡¯re so paranoid, buy a chain and lock him at home, so he¡¯ll listen to whatever you say. This way, you won¡¯t have to worry.¡± Chapter 464 - Chapter 464 Pretty Boy Chapter 464 Pretty Boy She was mocking Yu Yan for treating Yao Nian like a dog. After Yao Nian looked at the surrounding crowd, he suppressed his anger as he said, ¡°Jiang Chun, we¡¯re all from the same neighborhood. Do you have to be so harsh?¡± 1 Jiang Chun felt that her words were already flattering. Yao Nian looked down on Yu Bing in the past, but after Yu Bing became a supervisor, he wanted to get back together. He even invited Duan Mei over, causing Yu Bing to be complained about and almost lose her job as a tractor chauffeur. Then, Yu Yan kept provoking Yu Bing from the day she met them. She hadn¡¯t even settled the account with these two people yet! Yu Yan knew how protective Jiang Chun was of Yu Bing, so she criticized the two of them together. ¡°Why are you in a hurry to bark? Your master hasn¡¯t even said anything yet! You have such poor taste. You even pick up trash that I don¡¯t want!¡± Jiang Chun knew about Yu Yan and Cui Jin¡¯s blind date. When she heard Yu Yan call Cui Jin trash, Jiang Chun slapped Yu Yan. Yu Yan raised her hand to hit her back, but Yu Bing immediately went forward and grabbed Yu Yan¡¯s hand. She looked at Yu Yan with a pitiful expression as she said, ¡°It¡¯s normal for someone like you, who only knows how to spend money to buy friends, not to understand the feeling of being protected by one¡¯s best friend.¡± Then, Yu Bing glanced at Yao Nian in disdain before saying to Yu Yan, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, the things you treat as treasures are just trash in my eyes! I don¡¯t even know what¡¯s so good about him that¡¯s worthy hobby!¡± Yu Bing mocked Yao Nian for being a freeloader. of me coveting. Is it because he can earn seven work points a day? I can earn eight to ten work points when I go to the fields. You like to use your money and food to support men, but I don¡¯t have that hobby!¡± Yu Bing mocked Yao Nian for being a freeloader. ¡°Oh my god, I thought it was something serious. She¡¯s keeping a freeloader, but she¡¯s still so paranoid and afraid that he will run away.¡± ¡°There¡¯s only one reason for a freeloader to run away.¡± ¡°I know the answer. The woman has no money anymore!¡± Everyone originally thought that they were watching two women fighting over a man. They didn¡¯t expect that Yu Yan was suspecting that her freeloader liked someone else. The funniest thing was that Yu Bing didn¡¯t fancy her freeloader at all. After Yao Nian saw the onlookers who were watching the drama, he looked at Yu Bing with viciousness in his eyes. ¡°Yu Bing, you don¡¯t have to slander me like this. I wasn¡¯t the one who arranged the marriage back then. Since we¡¯re both unwilling to be trapped in an arranged marriage for the rest of our lives, let¡¯s stay away from each other. just because you can¡¯t find a boyfriend yourself doesn¡¯t mean you have to ruin my relationship with my girlfriend!¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she struggled free from Yu Bing¡¯s grasp with excitement in her eyes. At this moment, Yu Yan felt that she had beaten Yu Bing, so she said with certainty, ¡°I think that¡¯s the case too! You don¡¯t understand how good Yao Nian is. He often buys me gifts. You can¡¯t find an intellectual who¡¯s willing to be with you now, right? You regret it, so you want to snatch my boyfriend. Unfortunately, Yao Nian is devoted to me. It¡¯s impossible for him to be with you!¡± When the tables suddenly turned, everyone turned their attention to Yu Bing. Yu Bing felt that with Yao Nian¡¯s acting skills and ability to distort the truth, he would definitely be able to do well in the entertainment industry. Yu Bing frowned at the two people in front of her and said in exasperation, ¡°Please don¡¯t split up. You guys have to be together for the rest of your lives! After all, paranoia is something you two have something in common. Yu Yan, no matter how pompous you make it sound, you can¡¯t hide how much money and energy you spent on him. It far exceeds the amount he has spent on you.¡± Yu Bing looked at Yao Nian mockingly. ¡°Right? The son of the workshop director?¡± Yao Nian became nervous and glared at Yu Bing, for fear that she would expose something detrimental to him again. Yu Bing insulting Yao Nian was tantamount to insulting Yu Yan. They were a couple, but Yu Yan didn¡¯t know how to refute Yu Bing because she realized that what Yu Bing said was the truth. She knew that Yao Nian¡¯s father was upright, but these people would only judge them by what they saw on the surface. Yu Yan hit Yao Nian¡¯s arm angrily. ¡°Say something!¡± Chapter 465 - Chapter 465 Leave Coolly Chapter 465 Leave Coolly When Yao Nian saw Yu Bing¡¯s smile, he didn¡¯t dare to provoke her anymore and could only comfort Yu Yan, ¡°Forget it. We¡¯re magnanimous and won¡¯t lower ourselves to her level. We have a lot of things to do today. Don¡¯t let her affect our mood!¡± 1 Yu Bing sneered and pulled Jiang Chun away. Seeing this, Yu Yan was even angrier. However, she couldn¡¯t win against Yu Bing even if she chased after Yu Bing. In the end, she would end up embarrassing herself, so she could only vent her anger on Yao Nian. ¡°Are you even a man?! You don¡¯t even dare to say anything when you see your girlfriend being bullied!¡± Seeing that the two of them were still arguing, the others were in no hurry to leave. When Yao Nian saw everyone¡¯s interested gazes, he was embarrassed and angry, so he forcefully pulled Yu Yan away. ¡°Let¡¯s talk later! Didn¡¯t you see so how many people there are?!¡± ¡°Are you scolding me?¡± Yu Yan glared at Yao Nian as she was pulled forward. Yu Bing had no time to care about the two people behind her. At this moment, she was chatting with Jiang Chun about what happened on the bus. Jiang Chun looked at Yu Bing excitedly. ¡°Yao Nian actually lied to Yu Yan. If Yao Nian¡¯s lie is exposed when they discuss marriage, do you think Yu Yan will still marry him?¡± Yu Bing thought for a moment. ¡°Yes. At that time, there will be no turning back.¡± Yu Bing was certain that with Yao Nian¡¯s methods, he wouldn¡¯t do such a thing without full confidence. However, now, there were three people involved. When Yu Bing thought of Yao Nian¡¯s angry expression just now, she laughed out loud. Jiang Chun wasn¡¯t a nosy person and wouldn¡¯t say this. She wouldn¡¯t be so kind as to help Yu Yan either. Vicious people like Yao Nian and Yu Yan should be together for the rest of their lives to avoid harming innocent people. Her blessing just now was very sincere. 1 Yu Bing and Jiang Chun went to the grain shop to buy some spices for cooking first before going to the cinema. However, they didn¡¯t run into Yao Nian and Yu Yan again. The two of them returned to the village after watching the movie. Yao Nian and Yu Yan sat on the last ride back to town. When they returned to the dormitory, it was already seven o¡¯clock. Before the two of them returned, they went to a restaurant to eat. They ordered two meat dishes and one vegetable dish. There was still a lot left afterwards. Yu Yan was a spendthrift to begin with. She felt that it was rare for them to go out to eat, so she insisted on ordering two meat dishes. Yao Nian felt rueful when he saw how much money he spent. Although he would eat them in the end and wouldn¡¯t waste them, they were spending his money! On this trip today, they had soda, melon seeds, and movie stamps. The two of them even went to the park to take a boat and Yao Nian bought ice cream for Yu Yan to appease her. Yao Nian spent 5.8 yuan in a single day. This was almost one month¡¯s worth of his expenses. However, Yao Nian had no other choice, so Yao Nian spent an hour coaxing Yu Yan to appease her and divert her attention from the commotion in the county city today. Late at night, Yao Nian opened the door and took a look. He didn¡¯t hear anyone walking around in the building, so he guessed that everyone returned to their rooms to rest. Then, he left the room and locked the door before he tiptoed downstairs and knocked on Yu Yan¡¯s door gently. Yu Yan had just taken off her coat when she heard the knock on the door, but she couldn¡¯t be bothered to put it on anymore. Seeing that the sweater she was wearing was quite appropriate, she went to open the door. Seeing the door open, Yao Nian quickly pushed it open and entered. Yu Yan looked at Yao Nian in confusion. ¡°Why aren¡¯t you here instead of sleeping?¡± After Yao Nian closed the door and locked it, he turned around and hugged Yu Yan to kiss her. This was the second kiss since the last time, when they were by the small pond. Yu Yan was so frightened that her first reaction was to push Yao Nian away. At this moment, Yao Nian was focused on deepening his relationship with Yu Yan, especially after Yu Yan confirmed her plan to return to the city in three days. Yao Nian was worried that Yu Yan¡¯s family would find a strong backer. At that time, if Yu Yan didn¡¯t even need to come back to settle the procedures and directly used special channels to skip the village chief¡¯s approval, the money he had spent during this period of time would be wasted! It had to be said that men seemed to be self-taught in terms of sex. The kissing and the masculinity emitted by Yao Nian stimulated Yu Yan. Since Yu Yan was making out with the man she liked, Yu Yan quickly became carried away by the pleasure of kissing and stopped struggling. As Yao Nian sucked on Yu Yan¡¯s lips forcefully, Yu Yan slowly stuck out the tip of her tongue in response. The ambiance was filled with eroticism as they moved from the ground to the bed. Ever since Xu Ling moved away, Yu Yan was the only one left in this dormitory. That was why Yao Nian targeted her at this time. Yao Nian¡¯s heart was racing. Although he had mentally prepared himself in advance, he didn¡¯t have any experience in this aspect. The last time, he had only kissed her lips and touched her chest. Chapter 466 - Chapter 466 Phone Call Chapter 466 Phone Call When Yao Nian saw Yu Yan lying on the bed with a dazed expression, his throat bobbed. He was overcome with lust, and he couldn¡¯t wait to move his lips to Yu Yan¡¯s earlobe to lick it. 1 Yu Yan felt her spine go numb. The places Yao Nian had kissed felt itchy. Yu Yan was wearing a jumper, so Yao Nian pushed her clothes up to take them off. When Yu Yan, who was only wearing a light shirt under her sweater, was suddenly stimulated by the coldness in the air, she came back to her senses. She hurriedly grabbed Yao Nian¡¯s hand, which was taking off her clothes, and panted weakly as she said, ¡°No, no. We¡¯re not married yet.¡± Yao Nian¡¯s lower body was already swollen and he was overcome with lust, so he immediately replied, ¡°Then let¡¯s get married.¡± As he spoke, his hands didn¡¯t stop their movements at all. One took it off and the other pulled it down. Yu Yan struggled for a while before completely sobering up. Although the soundproofing of the room wasn¡¯t bad, Yu Yan felt scared and felt that if they were even a little bit louder, others might find out. She could only reject him in a low voice, ¡°We can¡¯t do it now. We¡¯re not married yet!¡± Yao Nian knew that Yu Yan was amenable to coaxing but not coercion, so he didn¡¯t dare to go against her. He could only grab Yu Yan¡¯s hand and press it on the bed. Then, he leaned over and kissed Yu Yan¡¯s mouth. ¡°Yu Yan, I¡¯m not taking things to the last step. I just want to touch you. I like you too much, so I can¡¯t control myself.¡± When Yu Yan heard this, she felt a little relieved. She was also a little smug that she made Yao Nian fall for her, so she said coquettishly, ¡°Then touch me through my clothes.¡± Yao Nian could only compromise. He suppressed his desire and said dotingly, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll listen to you.¡± Although Yao Nian agreed, his hand quickly entered Yu Yan¡¯s long john and he felt Yu Yan¡¯s soft skin again. Yu Yan was so frightened that she exclaimed, but Yao Nian kissed Yu Yan to stop her. Yao Nian had never touched other women before. The last time he was by the small pond with Yu Yan, he touched her through her clothes. This time, on the bed, Yao Nian took off Yu Yan¡¯s lingerie and grabbed Yu Yan¡¯s breasts. Yu Yan had big breasts. When Yao Nian grabbed her breasts, he almost couldn¡¯t help but ejaculate, but he didn¡¯t dare to and only kissed Yu Yan¡¯s mouth to calm himself down. 2 Yu Yan felt the roughness of Yao Nian¡¯s palm. At this moment, she was rubbing her most delicate part. Her entire body suddenly felt hot and itchy. She wanted to object, but she didn¡¯t want to either. Yu Bing¡¯s face was burning. She felt a little bashful and said in a low voice, ¡°You liar. How embarrassing. Take your hand away.¡± 1 After Yao Nian recovered, he chuckled and coaxed, ¡°What¡¯s there to be shy about? We¡¯ll do it after we get married anyway.¡± When Yu Yan heard Yao Nian reveal his intention to get married, she revealed a sweet smile. Yao Nian felt that Yu Yan had loosened up, so he said sweet nothings to tease Yu Yan. Yao Nian appeased Yu Yan until she took off her clothes. However, because Yu Yan insisted on not losing her virginity before marriage, they did everything except the last step. Yao Nian had basically achieved his goal now. Although he didn¡¯t break through Yu Yan¡¯s last line of defense, the deed confirmed that Yu Yan was his woman. The two of them slept together without a marriage certificate. In this era, this was called adultery. If someone found out and reported it, they would go to jail, so Yao Nian didn¡¯t dare to stay any longer. Yu Yan opened the door. After confirming that it was safe, Yao Nian sneaked out and ran back to his room. After the holidays ended, the food factory entered a busy rush period. Any factory worker who was idle was mobilized. In the entire factory, only Wen Qin could sit in the office because she had to do the financial accounting at the end of the year. When Wen Qin heard the phone in Yu Bing¡¯s office ring, she was afraid that something urgent had happened, so she asked Sun Hui, who had followed her to work, to call Yu Bing. Sun Hui obediently put down the rattle drum he was playing with and jogged out of the office. When Yu Bing was found, she was checking the quality of the gift boxes sent by the villagers in the warehouse. She couldn¡¯t leave, so she turned around and said to Sun Hui, ¡°Xiao Hui, go back first. I¡¯ll go back and check the call records after I¡¯m done.¡± Sun Hui remembered Yu Bing¡¯s words and told Wen Qin. At first, Yu Bing remembered it, but when other work came, she forgot. When Wen Qin heard the phone ring for the fifth time, she was a little worried. She asked her son about Yu Bing¡¯s location and went straight to her. ¡°Yu Bing, I heard your office phone ring a few times. There might be something urgent.¡± Only then did Yu Bing stop packing and return to the office to check the number. She realized that they were all the same number, so she called back. As soon as the call went through, the person picked up. ¡°Good lord, you finally picked up!¡± Chapter 467 - Chapter 467 Queued Chapter 467 Queued Yu Bing recognized Zeng Li¡¯s voice. ¡°I¡¯m really sorry. I was helping in the warehouse and didn¡¯t pick up the call in time.¡± 1 After wasting so much time, Zeng Li didn¡¯t dare to waste any more time. He told her the purpose of the call directly. ¡°Xiao Li¡¯s turn is here. There was originally a child in front of her, but after the doctor checked, he realized that the other party¡¯s eyes were infected, so the spot was given to Xiao Li.¡± ¡°Hurry up and find Xiao Sheng to wire 10,000 yuan to my account. This is the surgery deposit. Only after confirming that you have the ability to pay for this surgery can you keep the spot. I called you immediately after I received the news. I¡¯ve already spent all my money at the end of the year. Otherwise, I would have paid it directly.¡± ¡°The child behind Xiao Li is a big shot, so the money has to be transferred to my account today. If we¡¯re late, we might not be able to keep this spot! Hurry up and pack your luggage to prepare. After I inform you guys over the phone, bring her over for a preoperative checkup.¡± Yu Bing hurriedly thanked him. ¡°Zeng Li, thank you so much! I¡¯ll go look for Xiao Sheng immediately!¡± After Yu Bing hung up and ran to the Xiao family¡¯s house, Xiao Lin said that Xiao Sheng had gone to the county city. Yu Bing could only return to the office and call the county city¡¯s transport team. However, she was surprised to find out that Xiao Sheng happened to go to the neighboring county today and would only return at four or five in the afternoon. They couldn¡¯t get into contact with him now. Yu Bing looked at the time. It was already 2: 30 p.m. The post office got off work at 5 p.m. By the time Xiao Sheng returned, it would be too late, so Yu Bing could only deal with it herself. Yu Bing told Jiang Chun about the situation first before telling her where she was going. Then, she took her work pass home and took out her passbook. She realized that there were only 8,520 yuan in her account and she was still short of 1,500 yuan. This number was a huge sum of money at this time. After Yu Bing thought about it for a moment, she could only ask Wu Jin for this money. Yu Bing¡¯s money was able to increase so quickly because she had approved goods from the factory and sold them on the black market with Wu Jin and Xiao Sheng. After Yu Bing jogged all the way to the village committee, she found Wu Jin and told him about this. In this day and age, there wasn¡¯t much money in the bank, so Wu Jin left his money at home. After withdrawing the cash, he handed it to Yu Bing. Yu Bing drove the tractor all the way to the bank to get the money. There were only two tellers, but there were five people waiting in front of her. In this day and age, there were very few individuals who came to banks. These five people were all here for business, so it took even longer! At this moment, it was already 3:50 PM. Yu Bing was so anxious that she stomped her feet. Even if she got the money in seconds. It would take time for her to queue up to transfer the money and for Zeng Li to queue up to withdraw the money! Even finding the president might not be useful. Although the food factory was a customer, others were here on behalf of the factory and agency, so the president couldn¡¯t afford to offend them. Seeing that the counter was handling the deposit business of a state-owned factory, Yu Bing had an idea and found the next person. The other party was a woman in her forties, but her hair had been permed. The ends of her short hair curled up slightly, but she was wearing a plain gray cotton shirt that everyone on the street was wearing. However, the woman had tied a silk scarf around her neck. Yu Bing walked forward with a smile and sat beside the woman. ¡°Hello, your hairstyle is so pretty. You look so good in it. You must have spent a lot of money on it, right?¡± A faint smile appeared on the woman¡¯s originally expressionless face. ¡°It only cost me five yuan. My hair has been permed for a month already. It doesn¡¯t look as good as when I first got it done.¡± Yu Bing looked unconvinced and said in surprise, ¡°Really? I thought you just got it done. The curls are just right! It looks very natural and beautiful!¡± Yu Bing¡¯s tone was very sincere. As the woman looked up and touched the end of her hair, the smile on her face deepened. Then, Yu Bing said, ¡°There are so many people today! You¡¯re also here for business, right?¡± The woman nodded and complained, ¡°It¡¯s fine if there are many people, but there are only two personnel handling it.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she took out 10 yuan from her backpack and secretly showed it to the woman as she asked softly, ¡°I want to exchange number plates with you. This 10 yuan is the fee. What do you think?¡± The woman was in no hurry to get the agency¡¯s business done, since it wasn¡¯t her own business. As long as she got a number, it would eventually be her turn. When the woman saw the money, her eyes flickered. She had been thinking about perming her hair again before the new year. Now that she had the money for getting two perms, she handed the number plate in her hand to Yu Bing. ¡°Young lady, you have something urgent, right?¡± Yu Bing smiled helplessly and said, ¡°Indeed. Fortunately, you¡¯re easy to talk to. Others might not be willing to swap with me.¡± Although she had gotten the number, Yu Bing still continued to chat with the woman. This made the woman have a good impression of her. ¡°You¡¯re quite savvy.¡± Chapter 468 - Chapter 468 Reluctant Chapter 468 Reluctant Yu Bing scratched her head and smiled as she said, ¡°I learned it from others.¡± ¡°No. 06, please come to the counter.¡± After Yu Bing looked at the number plate, she turned around and said goodbye to the woman. Then, she sat at the counter as she took out all the money. The post office wasn¡¯t far from the bank. After Yu Bing arrived, she began to queue again. Fortunately, the money was successfully transferred at 4:30. Then, she immediately called Zeng Li to collect the money. Yu Bing wasn¡¯t in a hurry to leave. She waited at the side for Zeng Li to reply before returning to the village. When Yu Bing returned to the factory and was about to get off work at seven, she received a call from Zeng Li, who asked them to bring Xiao Li to S City as soon as possible tomorrow. As soon as she hung up, Xiao Sheng ran into Yu Bing¡¯s office and asked Yu Bing in a daze, ¡°It¡¯s Xiao Li¡¯s turn for the surgery?¡± Yu Bing nodded with a smile. Then, she stood up and walked forward to share the good news. ¡°I just finished talking to Zeng Li on the phone. He said that the spot has been confirmed. Xiao Li has to go over as soon as possible. This time, we can have a festive New Year. Looks like¡­¡± Before Yu Bing could finish speaking, she was hugged by Xiao Sheng. As she buried her face in Xiao Sheng¡¯s chest, she heard Xiao Sheng say in a low voice, ¡°Yu Bing, thank you! If it weren¡¯t for you, I would have missed the chance this time.¡± After Xiao Sheng returned to the village, he met Wu Jin and found out that Yu Bing had gathered money for Xiao Li¡¯s surgery fees. Yu Bing leaned back and said gently, ¡°You should thank yourself. If not for your business channel and your dividends, I might not have been able to gather so much money.¡± After Xiao Sheng let go, he smiled at Yu Bing and rubbed the top of her head. ¡°I won¡¯t say any pleasantries. I¡¯ll bring you a gift when I come back. The factory is so busy now, so don¡¯t waste your time with me.¡± Yu Bing wanted to go with him, but at this time, she still had to participate in the food factory¡¯s dividend accounting. She could only reply helplessly, ¡°There might be a recovery period after the surgery. I wonder if you guys can come back before the new year.¡± Xiao Sheng had asked about this the last time he went, so he replied, ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯ll be back so soon. She¡¯ll have to be observed for at least a month.¡± The three of them, Xiao Sheng and his siblings, would have to spend the New Year in S City. Before they even separated, Yu Bing began to feel reluctant. ¡°Then bring some sausages. It¡¯s not like in the village. You¡¯re unfamiliar with the place, so it won¡¯t be easy to buy things.¡± Xiao Sheng had always felt that Yu Bing only felt gratitude towards him. She might like him a little, but not that much. Seeing the reluctance in Yu Bing¡¯s eyes, other than feeling a little touched, Xiao Sheng also felt a little more confident in their relationship. ¡°Alright, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll prepare these.¡± Yu Bing reminded him a few more times. She knew that Xiao Sheng had been outside for so many years and his abilities were not inferior to hers, but she couldn¡¯t help but remind him. Perhaps it was because the two of them had been having tutoring lessons every night recently, or because the new year was approaching, the merrier the reunion was supposed to be, the lonelier she felt. Yu Bing felt that she had been thinking about Xiao Sheng much more recently than before. Xiao Sheng had to look for Wu Jin to get a permission slip, so the two of them chatted for a while before parting ways. After Yu Bing ate, she began to prepare things at home. She steamed all the 30 eggs that she had stocked up at home and made 20 scallion pancakes for Xiao Sheng and the others to eat on the way. Then, she took two bottles of beef chili sauce from the kitchen cabinet. Because it was their own food, the filling was full of meat. The supply of meat in the big city was very tightly regulated, so it was better to be more prepared. Just as she was covering the food with newspapers, Yu Bing saw Xiao Sheng enter the door. She smiled and said, ¡°I was about to send you food. I didn¡¯t expect you to come first.¡± Xiao Sheng placed the money wrapped in newspaper on the table. When he heard this, he said happily, ¡°It means that we have telepathy. I¡¯ve already returned Uncle Jin¡¯s money. This is yours.¡± Yu Bing glanced at it and said, ¡°Leave it there.¡± Then, Yu Bing placed the things she had prepared into the cloth bag and handed them to Xiao Sheng. ¡°There should be enough to last you guys the entire trip. Have you settled everything?¡± After Xiao Sheng took them, he looked at Yu Bing as he replied, ¡°I¡¯ve already given instructions for the black market and the transport team. I also went to the station to buy a ticket to City H at nine o¡¯clock tomorrow. I¡¯ll call you when I get to S City.¡± Upon hearing this, Yu Bing said, ¡°Then you have to wake up at six tomorrow. I¡¯ll drive you there.¡± How could Xiao Sheng bear to let Yu Bing wake up so early? He hurriedly refused. ¡°You still have to go to the factory, so don¡¯t delay your work. I¡¯ve already called Wu Qing. It¡¯s farming break now, so he¡¯s very idle.¡± Chapter 469 - Chapter 469 Good Phenomenon Chapter 469 Good Phenomenon Seeing that Xiao Sheng had already made the arrangements, Yu Bing didn¡¯t insist. ¡°Alright, be careful. Call me if anything happens.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard Yu Bing¡¯s concerned tone, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly. ¡°Alright, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll be careful.¡± Yu Bing felt that she had already said everything she needed to say, so she looked at Xiao Sheng and urged, ¡°It¡¯s getting late. You still have to wash up and pack your things when you get back. You also have to wake up early tomorrow, so hurry up and go back to finish your work before resting early.¡± Xiao Sheng pursed his lips and rubbed Yu Bing¡¯s head. ¡°You heartless girl. I probably won¡¯t be able to come back until the new year. Why aren¡¯t you cherishing your time with me now?¡± When Yu Bing heard this, her fair face flushed. ¡°It¡¯s not like you won¡¯t come back.¡± Although she said that, Yu Bing still chose to continue chatting with Xiao Sheng. ¡°Are you guys going to stay in the guest house after you go there?¡± Xiao Sheng shook his head. ¡°The guest house is too expensive. If I stay for a month, even an eight-person bunk bed costs 0.2 yuan. I can stay anywhere alone, but with Xiao Lin, I definitely have to choose a two-person one, so it¡¯ll cost 0.5 yuan a day. I might as well rent a house near the hospital. It¡¯ll probably be 7 to 10 yuan a month.¡± occasionally make soup to nourish their bodies. It would also save money, but his culinary skills¡­ Yu Bing nodded. If he rented a house, he could cook his own food. S City¡¯s cuisine didn¡¯t suit the taste of the people in Jiang Province. It was fine to try something new on a business trip, but they definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to tolerate it over the long term. He could occasionally make soup to nourish their bodies. It would also save money, but his culinary skills¡­ Yu Bing glanced at Xiao Sheng as she said tactfully, ¡°I¡¯ll write a few recipes with low failure rates for you. Coupled with the few dishes you¡¯ve improved on previously, it¡¯ll be enough.¡± After Yu Bing took out a pen and paper, she sat at the table as she started writing. Xiao Sheng smiled and sat down as well. ¡°When I didn¡¯t know you, no matter how bad my cooking tasted, they still ate it. Now, they¡¯ve been completely spoiled by your good culinary skills.¡± Yu Bing was smug. ¡°The increase in demand means that the supply base has improved. This is a good sign! Humans¡¯ basic survival needs are to eat their fill and wear warm clothes. Only by resolving this problem can they eat well and dress well.¡± After Yu Bing finished writing, handed over the recipes. Xiao Sheng took it and folded it before putting it in his pocket. His family could earn so much money because they were lucky enough to meet Yu Bing. Most people were still struggling to make ends meet. This was the reality of this era. As Xiao Sheng recalled the changes in his family over the past year, he said with emotion, ¡°I wonder when the current situation will change.¡± Yu Bing was stunned for a moment, but she didn¡¯t dare to make it too obvious. She only hinted, ¡°Soon. The wrong decision will eventually be remedied.¡± Yu Bing was only worried that her earning speed couldn¡¯t keep up with the change in policy. After she and Xiao Sheng went to school next year, she would definitely not be able to continue being the factory director of the food factory. Xiao Sheng would probably have to put his job on hold as well. Yu Bing¡¯s first choice was definitely a school in the capital. Be it educational conditions, connections, or business policy, going to the capital to develop was the best choice. However, the living expenses in the capital were high, and they would be living near the cream of the crop in the country. Even after this ten-year catastrophe, those families with deep foundations still secretly preserved a certain amount of strength. A starving camel is still bigger than a horse. Their bit of money was completely insufficient. The two of them chatted for a while before bidding farewell and parting ways. The next morning, Xiao Sheng got on the bus with his siblings. The He Mountain Village was still enveloped in darkness in winter. The north wind howled fiercely, and even though they were wrapped up, their eyes were still trembling from the cold. However, it also confirmed that the sky before dawn was the darkest, but it was the closest to dawn. The three siblings in the car were burning with passion as they rushed forward with the hope their family had for many years. After the Xiao family left, Yu Bing didn¡¯t need to hold classes anymore. Because of the snow on the ground, it wasn¡¯t convenient for her to run anymore. The only two places she went to were the factory and her home. After Yu Yan was issued the permission slip, she also went home. Yao Nian performed very well this time and bought food for Yu Yan to bring back. He even sent her to City H. Among the intellectuals in the village, other than a few who returned home with the agency permission slip sent by their parents, the others accepted spending the new year in the village, as if they were used to it. Yu Bing was relieved when she received a call from Xiao Sheng, who said that they had arrived in S City safely. Then, she immersed herself in work. Chapter 470 - Chapter 470 Meeting Gift Chapter 470 Meeting Gift It was another day of working overtime. Because a factory suddenly increased the quantity of the order and Yu Bing couldn¡¯t bear to lose the large order, after she discussed the production progress with Jiang Chun, she accepted the order. The food factory, which was only a little busy, was working even harder now. Yu Bing hired five part-time workers to help out. Yu Bing moved her shoulders to relieve her stiff muscles. After she entered the house with Jiang Chun, she said weakly, ¡°Oh my god, I feel like my shoulders don¡¯t even belong to me anymore!¡± Yu Bing was like a screw now. She helped out wherever she needed to. She even had to do heavy manual labor like this when there was a shortage of people. Compared to Jiang Chun, who stayed in the production workshop to help bottle and bag things, she was much more tired. Jiang Chun rubbed her wrist and replied with a smile, ¡°All the best. There¡¯s still a week before the order will be completed. Victory is just ahead! Alright, go lie down for a while. I¡¯ll go cook.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t listen to Jiang Chun¡¯s arrangements. She followed her into the kitchen and said, ¡°You¡¯re not any better than me. Let¡¯s cook together so we can get things done faster. I think we should just cook noodles. It¡¯s faster and more convenient. Everyone will get two eggs and some sausages and vegetables.¡± There was meat, eggs, and vegetables. The food was quite good. Jiang Chun¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°Then I¡¯ll help you.¡± After dinner, Jiang Chun couldn¡¯t wait to take out the letter Zhao Lin had helped her receive in the afternoon. When Yu Bing returned to the living room, she saw Jiang Chun smiling foolishly at the letter. Yu Bing teased, ¡°You¡¯re smiling so brightly again. What did your person do to you?¡± Jiang Chun turned to look at Yu Bing and shared excitedly, ¡°I¡¯ve passed my political review! Cui Jin¡¯s marriage application report to the army has also been approved.¡± It was more troublesome for a soldier to get married. The marriage partner had to go through the military¡¯s political review. This review wasn¡¯t only for a soldier¡¯s partner. The partner¡¯s acquaintances and immediate family had to be investigated to ensure that they wouldn¡¯t be infiltrated by the enemy. Yu Bing also sat down at the table happily. ¡°Congratulations. After this round, it¡¯s basically a sure bet, a shoo-in.¡± Jiang Chun smiled sweetly and lowered her head as she said in embarrassment, ¡°Cui Jin even said that he applied for a family visit leave for 20 days. He¡¯ll come over to register his marriage with me before the new year.¡± When Yu Bing heard this and looked at the only bedroom, she suddenly felt a little redundant. After she thought for a moment, she said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll stay in the dormitory building. You guys can stay here.¡± Jiang Chun hurriedly shook her head. ¡°There¡¯s no need to go through so much trouble. We¡¯ll go register our marriage on the day he comes over. After that, we¡¯ll go back to his house and stay for 10 days. Then, we¡¯ll go to my house to visit my parents during the rest Yu Bing smiled nonchalantly. ¡°What¡¯s there to be sorry about? Getting married and going home for the new year is a serious of the time.¡± With that, Jiang Chun looked at Yu Bing apologetically. ¡°Yu Bing, I¡¯m sorry that I have to leave you here alone for the new year.¡± Yu Bing smiled nonchalantly. ¡°What¡¯s there to be sorry about? Getting married and going home for the new year is a serious matter. I don¡¯t lack anything here, so don¡¯t worry about me. You should think about what gift to prepare for your parents-in-law.¡± Jiang Chun blushed when she heard Yu Bing¡¯s teasing, but she quickly became a little vexed. ¡°Cui Jin¡¯s family is quite well-off, so I don¡¯t know what to prepare. I still have some dried mushrooms that I asked Xiao Sheng to buy last time. I plan to bring that with me, but those things definitely won¡¯t be enough. I have to prepare some other things.¡± Dry mushrooms were a specialty of the city of Yungui Province in the southwest. They were nutritious and tasty. To the inland area, they were considered very expensive gifts. However, in addition to cost, quantity was also important. There were indeed too few in terms of quantity, and it wasn¡¯t auspicious to give gifts in single quantities. Yu Bing gave Jiang Chun an idea. ¡°Since it¡¯s still early, you might as well make something for them yourself. Sincerity is the most important thing.¡± She had an expensive gift and a gift to express her sincerity. As long as the other party wasn¡¯t someone picky, it would be enough. Jiang Chun nodded. ¡°Then I¡¯ll knit two scarves for my in-laws! By the way, I¡¯ll also knit wool gloves for the twins. These are easy to knit. When we¡¯re done with the factory¡¯s work, we can buy yarn from town during the holidays.¡± After the factory completed all the orders as scheduled, it was time for the holidays. Because of the year-end dividends, work in the accounting room was still ongoing. Chapter 471 - Chapter 471 Redemption Meeting Chapter 471 Redemption Meeting Wen Qin and the accountant Mr. Wei reported and summarized the accounting situation in the factory to the village committee led by Yu Bing and Wu Jin. The settlement time for the other three people¡¯s projects was the last day of December. After the results came out, it was the most important moment for the entire village. It was the year-end dividend meeting! The meeting location was in the rice field in front of the village committee. All the men, women, old, and young in the village were present. When Wu Jin took over, He Mountain Village was still a poor village. However, at the end-of-year summary meeting of the county government last December, He Mountain Village lost the poverty that had existed for more than ten years. As Wu Jin looked at the thriving village, he felt a little emotional. He revealed a rare smile and said loudly through the loudspeaker, ¡°Good afternoon, everyone! It¡¯s time for the year-end dividends again. I¡¯ll share the good news with everyone first!¡± ¡°The changes in our village in the past year have been huge! The commune supervisor and the county supervisor saw it all. At the conference at the end of last month, they praised He Mountain Village! Not only are we no longer labeled as a poor village, but the county director also praised us in front of the entire county¡¯s supervisors. He gave us the 1976 Advanced Model Village pennant as a commendation! He also encouraged us to continue developing and expand the ecological industry chain!¡± With that, Wu Jin turned around and took out a pennant from a bag. After he received the news last month, he was in no hurry to announce this good news at the radio station. He wanted to show it in public today. Seeing it personally could make people feel more honored. Wu Jin hoped to use this method to motivate the entire village to continue this year¡¯s work enthusiasm. As soon as the silk banner was taken out, the villagers below the stage became excited. ¡°Mr. Wu, how many villages in the county have this?!¡± ¡°Are we the only ones who have it?¡± ¡°This is the first time our village has been so glorious in so many years!¡± Some old people in their sixties or seventies had never heard of their village obtaining such an honor since the founding of the country, so they grinned happily. When Wu Jin heard this, he replied with a smile, ¡°There are only three villages in the entire county!¡± As soon as he said this, everyone became excited again. Although their village wasn¡¯t the only one which was commended, there were more than a hundred villages in Pingjiang County, so it was already impressive for their village to enter the top three! The lively atmosphere below the stage made Wu Jin¡¯s smile deepen. Then, he raised his hand to signal for everyone to be quiet. ¡°There¡¯s someone who contributed greatly to our advancement. Next, please let our overall person-in-charge of the ecological industry chain, Yu Bing, say a few words to everyone.¡± Yu Bing was in the first row of the audience watching the commotion, but she didn¡¯t expect to be suddenly called on stage. She thought that she would just get a dividend like last year. Yu Bing wasn¡¯t prepared, so she hurriedly waved at Wu Jin with a resistant expression. ¡°Mr. Wu, just say it yourself. I didn¡¯t prepare anything to say.¡± Wu Jin was usually serious and always had a straight face, so those who were not familiar with him were a little afraid of him. However, Wu Jin acted a little mischievous today. ¡°Miss Yu says that she¡¯s not prepared to speak on stage. Everyone, tell me. Do you guys still want to hear her speech?¡± Someone immediately shouted in support, ¡°I want to listen to her speech!¡± Everyone also asked Yu Bing to go on stage to say a few words. At this point, it would be inappropriate to refuse, so Yu Bing couldn¡¯t refuse anymore. She smiled and stood up to walk onto the stage. As Yu Bing looked at the smiling faces below the stage, she smiled and said, ¡°Good afternoon, everyone. I¡¯m Yu Bing. I suddenly came up and don¡¯t know what to say. In that case, I¡¯ll just say whatever comes to mind.¡± ¡°I¡¯m very happy that this project was able to reach this scale and was even approved by the county supervisor. However, what I want to say is that I was the one who suggested this project, but its success in the end is inseparable from the efforts and support of the entire village!¡± ¡°Some people might give credit to the workers in the factory, as well as the workers in the orchards, farms, and fish ponds. They¡¯re the ones in the front line, so of course they contributed a lot.¡± ¡°But the villagers who didn¡¯t participate directly also contributed. The farm work in the field, the maintenance and repair of the village¡¯s infrastructure, all needed people to do it. This project mobilized more than a hundred people in the village, which means that all the work in this area was distributed equally. Therefore, you guys are the contributors behind the scenes!¡± ¡°Our project is like a ship. I know the direction, but you guys are rowers. Everyone is very important. Only by working together can we drive the ship to our destination faster and better. I hope we can maintain this high fighting spirit during the new year! Thank you, everyone.¡± Chapter 472 - Chapter 472: A Small Group of People Chapter 472: A Small Group of People Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations The audience applauded and everyone was discussing it enthusiastically. ¡°Miss Yu, you¡¯re still as low-key as ever. Why was Sun Wang so short-sighted previously? He was giving orders all day long, but he almost sank the boat.¡± The surrounding people laughed when they heard this. ¡°That¡¯s right. Not everyone can determine the right direction.¡± ¡°Previously, I thought that the production value we created in the field was inferior to the employees involved in the project. After hearing this, I feel more confident.¡± ¡°We¡¯re behind-the-scenes contributors, the kind who contribute silently.¡± ¡°Educated people are indeed quite eloquent. Her words make people feel so comfortable.¡± ¡°That¡¯s just empty talk. I think she¡¯s trying to coax us villagers who didn¡¯t get chosen as workers to work in the fields obediently.¡± ¡°Hey! Mr. Niu, you make it sound like you didn¡¯t have to work before this project began!¡± The man called Mr. Niu immediately retorted, ¡°Yes, but there were many people, so we didn¡¯t have to be as tired as we are now!¡± Mr. Niu attended the interview every round of recruitment, but he was always stuck at the first round. He had always been a little indignant and angry that Yu Bing refused to lower her standards, causing more than ten worker spots in the factory to be occupied by outsiders. There were many people in the village who could tell right from wrong, so someone immediately interrupted and rebuked him, ¡°There weren¡¯t so many dividends in the past! When there were fewer dividends, there were fewer complaints. Now, there are more dividends than in the past, but you¡¯re using work as an excuse.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Stop pretending to be the victim! Not to mention the year-end dividends, which family hasn¡¯t earned money from the bamboo gift boxes, eggs, chili, and other raw materials that the factory usually collects? In the past, we had to take them to the commune ourselves. Now, we can earn money at our doorstep, yet you¡¯re still complaining?!¡± A small group of people like Mr. Niu, who wanted to cause trouble, was quickly condemned by the others. Although the villagers didn¡¯t know how much more dividends there would be this year, this project gave everyone hope. They wanted to protect it and refused to allow these troublemakers to stir up trouble. After Yu Bing finished speaking, Wu Jin went on stage and told them about the profits of the factory. Because most of the profits were used to repay the debt, there was only profit for the two to three months at the end of the year. He set aside the operating capital and distributed the rest in dividends, so there wasn¡¯t much left. Then, the village staff began to organize everyone to line up and go forward. After confirming their work points with Mr. Wei and Wen Qin, the cashier was in charge of distributing the money. Zhao Lin, Director Liu, and a few team leaders were in charge of distributing the food. People like Yu Yan, who slacked off all day long and took leave very often, didn¡¯t get much money. After the 50 yuan she borrowed from the village was deducted, she only got 12.82 yuan. Because she had gone home, the money and food were temporarily placed in the office of the village committee. She would collect them after the new year. As Yao Nian looked at the 128.5 yuan in his hand, he felt a little upset. He had previously asked around. According to previous years, he could only get 80 to 90 yuan. The reason why he could get so much more now was that the village¡¯s collective project had succeeded. When Yao Nian thought of Yu Bing, who had been talking so confidently on the stage just now, he suddenly felt that she was very dazzling. Her thin figure, which he used to think was unattractive, seemed so charming. Her cheeks were fair and rosy, revealing her healthiness. She exuded a completely different aura from before. However, if one asked Yao Nian if he had any regrets, he would definitely deny it. After all, the temptation of returning to the city was greater to Yao Nian than anything else. He only felt that as his former marriage partner, Yu Bing had once belonged to him, so how could her life get better after being abandoned by him? However, no one cared about the complicated emotions in Yao Nian¡¯s heart. He was just secretly complaining to himself. He was someone who bullied the weak and feared the strong. Yu Yan¡¯s outcome after scheming against Yu Bing was still vivid in his mind, so he wouldn¡¯t provoke Yu Bing now. After the end-of-year dividends were distributed, everyone had to start preparing for the new year. Because it was cold outside, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun had been reading at home every day recently. Their days were leisurely and carefree. Cui Jin rushed to the He Mountain Village on the morning of the 27th of the lunar year. After Jiang Chun took the marriage report from Cui Jin¡¯s army, she looked for Wu Jin to write a permission slip. This kind of marriage was naturally in line with the conditions to write a permission slip. Chapter 473 - Chapter 473: Rare Impulse Chapter 473: Rare Impulse Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations After Jiang Chun finished the procedures, she went home and began to pack her luggage while nagging Yu Bing to be careful at home. As Yu Bing listened to her, she replied with a smile, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Little Tiger is accompanying me, so you and Cui Jin can just enjoy your wedding.¡± The two of them chatted for a while before parting reluctantly. Jiang Chun and Cui Jin wanted to go home early. Because they had to transfer routes a few times, which would be pretty troublesome, they bought bus stamps to the provincial capital that day and transferred trains there. After she was suddenly the only one left in the house, Yu Bing felt that the small house actually seemed quite empty. Yu Bing read books and played with the dog during the day. At night, amidst her boredom, she brought her recent correspondence with Xiao Sheng to bed to read again. Things were not going well in terms of the surgery. The person who donated the cornea decided to set the surgery on the second day of the new year, so their schedule had to be delayed. Other than the surgery, the two of them talked about their daily lives in the letters as well. When Yu Bing saw that Xiao Sheng said that he missed her in the recent letter, a scene suddenly appeared in her mind. Xiao Sheng gazed at her with his gentle eyes as he told her that he missed her and she even seemed to hear his voice. Yu Bing¡¯s face instantly turned red. Then, she pulled the blanket over to cover her face and she couldn¡¯t help but giggle. At this moment, Yu Bing suddenly had a bold idea. The next morning, Yu Bing jogged to Wu Jin¡¯s office. Yu Bing panted. ¡°Uncle Jin, I want to get a permission slip to go to S City.¡± When Wu Jin saw Yu Bing¡¯s anxious expression, he asked in confusion, ¡°Isn¡¯t your family in Hang City? Why are you going to S City?¡± Before Yu Bing could answer, Wu Jin suddenly realized something and revealed a teasing expression. ¡°Are you worried about Xiao Sheng?¡± Yu Bing¡¯s ears turned red, but she braced herself and said, ¡°I¡¯m just worried about Xiao Li. It¡¯s not convenient for a man like him to take care of her.¡± Wu Jin pursed his lips to hide his smile. He wanted to tease Yu Bing, but he was worried that his teasing would embarrass Yu Bing and make her unwilling to go later. If Xiao Sheng found out that he had ruined his plans, wouldn¡¯t he cause trouble for him when he returned? Hence, he pretended to be serious as he said, ¡°Alright, I¡¯m very touched that you want to inspect the market during the new year.¡± There had to be a reason for the permission slip, so Wu Jin immediately found a reason that matched Yu Bing¡¯s identity. It was easy to get things done with acquaintances around. Yu Bing suppressed the embarrassment of being seen through by Wu Jin and took the permission slip. ¡°Thank you, Uncle Jin!¡± When Wu Jin thought of the problem of Yu Bing¡¯s transportation to the county city, he mentioned his son. ¡°Get Wu Qing to send you to the county city later.¡± Yu Bing wanted to get there quickly, so she accepted Wu Jin¡¯s good intentions. She went home to get some food, then carried Little Tiger to Wen Qin¡¯s house and asked her to take care of it for a while. Wen Qin had received a lot of favors from Yu Bing, so he was very happy to be able to help now and he told Yu Bing not to worry. After settling Little Tiger down, Wu Qing and Yu Bing started the trip to S City with luggages of various sizes. Many people returned home during the new year, so it wasn¡¯t easy to buy train stamps. When Yu Bing arrived at City H¡¯s train station, the stamps to City S were already gone. Yu Bing was rarely so impulsive, and she didn¡¯t expect to be in such a sorry state after being impulsive for once in so long. She could only deposit the package at the train station¡¯s service station first and go to the stamp refund office to see if anyone returned S City bus stamps. After waiting for an entire day, Yu Bing finally saw someone return an S City bus stamp just when she thought she had to spend the new year in the waiting room. Yu Bing was so excited that she almost stuck her head into the other side of the counter. After she took the stamp she had finally bought, she took out the package and waited in the waiting room to get on the bus. Yu Bing was quite lucky. The time of the stamp that was returned was early in the morning on the 30th. This meant that when Yu Bing arrived in S City, she could still make it in time for the last day of the new year. Xiao Li had to be hospitalized for a checkup three days before the surgery, so Xiao Li could only spend the new year in the hospital. On the 30th, Xiao Sheng and Xiao Lin accompanied Xiao Li for New Year¡¯s Eve dinner and stayed in the hospital until nine o¡¯clock at night. Because the doctor asked Xiao Li to sleep early, the two brothers didn¡¯t stay long. They hired a female nurse to accompany Xiao Li to the bed, then they left. Chapter 474 - Chapter 474: Heartache Chapter 474: Heartache Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations The courtyard Xiao Sheng rented was only ten minutes away from the hospital. Because it was the new year, the streets were very lively. However, Xiao Sheng and Xiao Lin were not interested. As long as the surgery wasn¡¯t done yet, they would feel uneasy. The two of them walked home under the dim yellow street lamp in the alley. When they arrived at the door, they saw a petite figure standing beside the courtyard door. Her head was wrapped tightly in a scarf and she looked very sleepy. There were two bags on the ground and the rope holding the bags was held by the owner. Xiao Lin was wondering why someone would come looking for them when they were only tenants. He thought that the other party had come to the wrong door. However, Xiao Sheng recognized the person standing at a glance and hurriedly ran forward. When he saw Yu Bing with her eyes closed and head lowered, his heart ached. Xiao Sheng shook Yu Bing¡¯s shoulder gently and shouted softly, ¡°Yu Bing, Yu Bing¡­¡± Yu Bing woke up and slowly opened her eyes. There was a hint of sleepiness in her soft voice and she sounded like she was wheedling as she said, ¡°You¡¯re back. ¡± When Xiao Lin heard his brother call for her, he realized that it was Yu Bing. He ran forward and opened the door as he asked happily, ¡°Sister Yu Bing, why are you here?¡± Yu Bing was extremely sleepy now. Previously, she had waited for the stamp for an entire day, and after getting on the train, she didn¡¯t dare to fall asleep. However, when she heard Xiao Lin¡¯s question, she tried her best to smile and joke, ¡°Why? Am I not welcome?¡± Xiao Lin hurriedly smiled and replied, ¡°Of course you¡¯re welcome!¡± Xiao Sheng took the luggage from Yu Bing. ¡°When did you arrive? Did you wait for a long time?¡± Yu Bing shook her head groggily. ¡°I didn¡¯t wait long. I arrived at eight-thirty.¡± It was already past nine o¡¯clock, which meant that Yu Bing had been standing in the wind for more than half an hour. Xiao Sheng brought Yu Bing into the house. Seeing that Yu Bing could barely even keep her eyes open, his heart ached. ¡°Yu Bing, sleep in Xiao Li¡¯s room. Her blanket is clean.¡± At this moment, Yu Bing was so sleepy that she couldn¡¯t think straight, so she followed Xiao Sheng mindlessly. Hearing Xiao Li¡¯s name, she opened her eyes and looked at the two brothers in front of her. Only then did she realize that someone was missing. ¡°Where¡¯s Xiao Xiao Sheng held Yu Bing¡¯s hand as he entered Xiao Li¡¯s room and he explained, ¡°The doctor said that she has to be hospitalized before the surgery, so I asked a nurse to take care of her. Hurry up and get some rest now.¡± Yu Bing was relieved when she heard this. Coupled with the fact that she had already reached a safe environment, she closed her eyes as she followed Xiao Sheng. Xiao Sheng stopped in front of the bed. Seeing that Yu Bing was about to rush forward with her eyes closed, he hurriedly stopped her and pressed her against the bed. Xiao Sheng shook his head helplessly. Then, he untied the scarf Yu Bing was wrapped in and took off her hair tie. Then, he began to help Yu Bing take off her clothes, shoes, and pants until only her autumn clothes were left. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t have any lustful thoughts at this moment. He only wanted Yu Bing to rest. Yu Bing cooperated the entire time. The fabric of the blanket was so cold that Yu Bing shivered, but because she was too sleepy, she fell asleep nonetheless. Xiao Sheng was amused by Yu Bing¡¯s lack of vigilance. After reaching out to cover her with the blanket, he carefully tucked in the corners of the blanket and turned on the stove in the room. S City was humid, in contrast to the dry and cold temperature in Jiang Province. The cold here was bone-deep. In addition, there was no adobe bed, so one had to burn a stove when sleeping. Otherwise, one might catch a cold. After the room slowly warmed up, Xiao Sheng sat by Yu Bing¡¯s bed. Then, he reached out his index finger and scratched the tip of Yu Bing¡¯s nose gently as he said softly, ¡°Little thing, did you come to give me a surprise?¡± Yu Bing, who was already asleep, naturally couldn¡¯t reply to him. Xiao Sheng¡¯s heart softened and he leaned over to kiss Yu Bing¡¯s forehead before getting up to leave. When Yu Bing woke up, the sunlight was already very bright outside. She opened her eyes groggily and was still in a daze when she suddenly saw an unfamiliar environment. After a few seconds, she came back to her senses and yawned. When she saw the neatly folded clothes and pants beside the pillow, she picked them up and put them on.. Chapter 475 - Chapter 475: New Year Chapter 475: New Year Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations When Yu Bing opened the door, she saw the two of them squatting on the ground and stewing veggies with the stove. The two people in the living room turned around when they heard the commotion. Xiao Lin immediately smiled and greeted Yu Bing. ¡°Happy New Year, Sister Yu Bing. Happy New Year!¡± Yu Bing chuckled as she took out a red packet from her pocket. ¡°Happy New Year, you¡¯re quite quick-witted.¡± Xiao Lin hurriedly put away the red packet and replied cleverly, ¡°In terms of New Year blessings, of course the earlier the better.¡± Xiao Sheng stood up with a gentle look in his eyes as he said to Yu Bing, ¡°Happy New Year.¡± Yu Bing thought of how she had been stripped down to her long johns last night, so she blushed slightly as she replied softly, ¡°Happy New Year.¡± Xiao Sheng patted the top of Yu Bing¡¯s head and said gently, ¡°Lunch is ready. Sit at the side for a while.¡¯ Yu Bing looked at the eggplants and salted fish stew in the pot in relief. This was what she had taught him how to make and it wasn¡¯t difficult, so Xiao Sheng should be able to settle it. Xiao Lin, who was watching at the side, felt that the atmosphere was a little strange, but he didn¡¯t know what exactly was wrong. Before he could think of an answer, the aroma of the food attracted his attention. Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing had an unspoken mutual understanding as to why Yu Bing rushed to S City at this time. In fact, this was also the characteristic of courtship in this era. It wasn¡¯t as straightforward as in the future. Instead, people¡¯s interactions were more reserved. There was no intense passion, only subtle affection. The two of them had been at each other¡¯s throats for so long, but Xiao Sheng had only confessed his feelings twice. The first time was when he confessed that he liked her, and the second time was when he said that he missed Yu Bing during their last correspondence. Yu Bing¡¯s response was, ¡°If you say so, here I come.¡± Before dinner started, Yu Bing took the initiative to ask about Xiao Li¡¯s latest situation and Xiao Sheng explained in detail. Yu Bing calculated the time. Today was the first day of the new year, which meant that tomorrow was the day of the surgery. The three of them went to the hospital together after dinner. Xiao Li didn¡¯t know that Yu Bing had arrived in S City last night. When she heard the familiar footsteps, she hesitated for a moment and couldn¡¯t believe it, so she asked tentatively, ¡°Sister Yu Bing?¡± After Yu Bing entered the ward, she didn¡¯t speak, but she didn¡¯t expect her footsteps to be recognized immediately. She went forward to rub Xiao Li¡¯s face with a smile as she marveled, ¡°Your ears are too impressive! You came to the big city and heard so many sounds, but you still recognized my footsteps so quickly.¡± When Xiao Li heard Yu Bing speak, her eyes lit up in excitement. Then, she smiled and said, ¡°Sister Yu Bing, are you here to accompany me during the surgery?¡± After Xiao Sheng opened the lunch box, he looked at Xiao Li, who was talking to Yu Bing happily, and interrupted the two of them with a smile. ¡°Xiao Li, hurry up and eat. Sister Yu Bing won¡¯t leave.¡± The female nurse went forward to take the lunch box and feed Xiao Li, but Xiao Sheng hurriedly stopped her. ¡°Auntie, Xiao Li can eat by herself. You don¡¯t have to worry about her.¡± The female nurse was in her forties. When she heard this, she retracted her hand. As an outsider, it was inconvenient for her to say anything while the family was chatting. The female nurse looked at Xiao Sheng and the others as she said tactfully, ¡°Then you guys can chat inside. I¡¯ll sit outside. Call me if there¡¯s anything. ¡± Because it was the new year, the others in the ward chose to go home for the new year. The ward had six beds, but other than Xiao Li, there was only a little boy opposite her. His mother and Grandma were accompanying him. After Yu Bing took a look, she retracted her gaze. Xiao Li had not seen Yu Bing for a month and missed her very much, so the two of them kept talking. Xiao Li suddenly stopped talking. Then, she said to Yu Bing softly, ¡°Sister Yu Bing, cover your ears.¡± Although Xiao Li had reminded her, Yu Bing felt a little baffled. Before she could react, Xiao Sheng covered Yu Bing¡¯s ears with his palm. The ward door was suddenly pushed open forcefully and the white wooden door hit the wall with a bang.. Chapter 476 - Chapter 476: Removal of the Conjunctiva Chapter 476: Removal of the Conjunctiva Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations The little boy¡¯s mother stood up and took a few steps forward. Then, she asked the man who walked into the ward, ¡°What did Dr. Min say?¡± The man replied angrily, ¡°What can he possibly say?! He¡¯s just shirking responsibility!¡± When the little boy¡¯s grandma heard this, she immediately shouted, ¡°I knew we shouldn¡¯t have signed that preoperative notice! I told you guys not to sign it, but you insisted. Now, they¡¯ve shirked the blame and we can¡¯t even hold them accountable. This is the hospital¡¯s way of scamming us commoners!¡± When Yu Bing heard the argument, she turned to look at them curiously. The boy was lying on the bed with a comic book in his hand and was engrossed in it. There were still seven to eight small books on the bedside table and stacked against the wall. Perhaps because the boy¡¯s eyes were itching, but he reached out and rubbed them twice. When the boy¡¯s mother saw this, she quickly grabbed her son¡¯s hand. After the little boy was stopped, he tried to shake off his mother¡¯s hand impatiently and shouted, ¡°What are you doing?! My eyes are itching!¡± When the old lady saw that her grandson was unhappy, she raised her finger and accused the woman, ¡°Chen Xi, would it kill you not to provoke him? He¡¯s already uncomfortable, so why do you have to go against him?!¡± Chen Xi looked at her mother-in-law helplessly. ¡°Mom, the doctor said that he can¡¯t rub his eyes, or they¡¯ll get infected.¡± The old lady only cared about the fact that her grandson was unhappy. ¡°Those bullsh*t doctors were lying to you! His surgery failed, so he wants to use other excuses to cover up his mistake!¡± With that, the old lady said to her son, ¡°Ou Wei, let me tell you, we can¡¯t let this matter rest just like that! My grandson was stabbed in the eye and we¡¯ve paid the surgery fees. Now, they¡¯re saying that our poor care caused the postoperative infection. We won¡¯t admit to this! They should make up for their mistake. Our request is very simple. They have to give us imported medicine for free for the subsequent treatment and refund the surgery fees!¡± Ou Wei was tall and muscular. When he heard his mother¡¯s words, he expressed agreement. ¡°I¡¯ve alreaay asKea arouna. Tnere¡¯s maeea an Importea anti-inflammatory drug. With a few injections, the infection will immediately improve by more than half. It¡¯s just a little expensive. A few injections will cost one to two thousand yuan. Mom, don¡¯t worry. If he doesn¡¯t give us an explanation, we won¡¯t let him off! He has to satisfy our requirements!¡± After Yu Bing retracted her gaze and took Xiao Sheng¡¯s hand, she realized that everyone seemed to be used to it already and looked very calm. Xiao Lin went forward and whispered to Yu Bing, ¡°That little boy¡¯s name is Ou Li. He¡¯s six years old this year and he did a conjunctiva removal surgery. Two days ago, the doctor discovered that there was an infection after the surgery. When his family found out, they felt that it was caused by the surgery, so they¡¯ve been looking for Dr. Min for the past two days.¡± Yu Bing widened her eyes in shock. His conjunctiva had been removed? Then what was the other party looking at with the comic book just now? When Xiao Sheng heard Xiao Lin¡¯s blunder, he looked up and rubbed his forehead helplessly. ¡°That¡¯s called conjunctiva cyst removal.¡± Yu Bing was speechless. Xiao Lin laughed awkwardly. ¡°It¡¯s pretty much the same.¡± Xiao Sheng tapped Xiao Lin¡¯s head hard. ¡°It¡¯s very different! I told you to study hard instead of focusing on those messy things. You didn¡¯t even get the facts straight.¡¯ Xiao Lin smiled at Xiao Sheng ingratiatingly and didn¡¯t dare to retort. He was afraid that he would anger Xiao Sheng and be forced to return to the rented house to study. ¡°Brother, I¡¯ll definitely focus on learning.¡± Although Xiao Lin was here to accompany Xiao Li for the surgery this time, Xiao Sheng brought all the books over, so he didn¡¯t stop studying! It was only during the new year that Xiao Lin obtained a few days of break from studying. Yu Bing reached out and rubbed Xiao Lin¡¯s head. She was a little envious that he and Xiao Li had such a brother. Their family wasn¡¯t well-off, but because Xiao Sheng was protecting them, Xiao Li and Xiao Lin were actually very well protected. Perhaps it was because boys matured later, but Xiao Lin still didn¡¯t know how to cherish the opportunity to study. Although his grades had indeed improved after a few months of hard work, it was more because other people told him to do this than because he himself realized that he should do it. Xiao Lin had his shortcomings and strengths, such as being unafraid of hardship, respecting his brother, and being protective of his younger sister. At this moment, he was giving Xiao Li an eye massage.. Chapter 477 - Chapter 477: Medical Trouble Chapter 477: Medical Trouble Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Half an hour later, two medical staff came to do ward rounds. When Xiao Sheng saw them, he immediately stood up from the stool and greeted, ¡°Dr. Min, Miss Zhao, Happy New Year.¡± Xiao Li and Xiao Lin also greeted the adults politely. Dr. Min smiled and nodded in response. As he looked at Xiao Lin, he praised, ¡°Xiao Lin, you learned it very well. Your technique is quite professional.¡± Xiao Lin straightened his body and grinned. ¡°Thank you for your praise, Dr. Min.¡± Amidst the harmonious atmosphere, a mean voice suddenly interrupted them. ¡°Who are you trying to harm now?!¡± When everyone turned their attention to the person who spoke, they realized that it was Ou Li¡¯s grandma. Dr. Min frowned and turned to the old lady standing behind him. ¡°Madam Ou, I¡¯ve already said that the surgery was very successful. This infection is caused by postoperative care. If you don¡¯t believe me, you can go to another hospital for a checkup. This way, you can verify if what I said is true.¡± When the old lady heard this, her ears automatically filtered out. ¡°Don¡¯t give us that. You just want to appease us to make it easier for you to shirk responsibility!¡± Then, the old lady reached out with her thin but strong hand and grabbed Dr. Min¡¯s wrist firmly before she pulled him towards Ou Li¡¯s bed. ¡°Come here! Look at my grandson¡¯s red eyes! What did you say before? You said that this was a small surgery. Why didn¡¯t you do it well?!¡± Miss Zhao hurriedly followed. When she saw the child lying down while reading, she frowned. She snatched the book from the child¡¯s hand. ¡°Madam Ou, how many times have I told you? He can¡¯t read while lying down. Look at how red his eyes are. How long has he been reading for?! I reminded you guys every day not to let him overuse his eyes.¡± Ou Li was reading with relish when the book in his hand was suddenly taken away, so he lost his temper. ¡°Grandma! She snatched my book!¡± The old lady hurriedly went forward to comfort her grandson before warning Miss Zhao fiercely, ¡°I¡¯m warning you, return the book quickly! You snatched things from a child. To think that you¡¯re a nurse. How rude!¡± Miss Zhao was a medical staff who had just graduated and had only been working for a few years. This was the first time she had seen such an unreasonable family who blamed her when she reminded them out of goodwill. She retorted angrily, ¡°I¡¯m doing this for his own good. Madam Ou, are you insensible too?¡± When the old lady saw that she had been criticized by a young lady in her twenties, she glared at her and threatened, ¡°Who do you think you¡¯re talking to?! I¡¯m in my sixties, yet you scolded me? Let me tell you, I¡¯m going to the director¡¯s office to report you later!¡± Young people were impetuous, and Dr. Min was worried that the already tense doctor-patient relationship would worsen, so he pushed Miss Zhao¡¯s shoulder and asked her to return to the nurses¡¯ station first. Miss Zhao pursed her lips helplessly and left first. Dr. Min pushed up the mirror frame of his glasses as he tried to persuade the old lady. ¡°Madam Ou, I¡¯ll give Ou Li a checkup first.¡± The old lady glanced at Dr. Min and made way for him. After Dr. Min checked Ou Li and looked at the small book at the head of the bed, he frowned and said earnestly, ¡°Madam Ou, Ou Li has just finished surgery two weeks ago and he¡¯s in a recovery period now. His diet has to be light and he can¡¯t use his eyes excessively. This is the most basic requirement.¡± At this moment, Chen Xi and Ou Wei entered the ward with the kettle. When Ou Wei heard Dr. Min¡¯s words, he snorted. ¡°My son can do whatever he wants. If there¡¯s a problem, it¡¯s your problem!¡± ¡°Dad, why can¡¯t I see you clearly?¡± Ou Li suddenly asked in a panicked voice. Ou Wei hurriedly rushed to his son¡¯s bed. ¡°Son, what¡¯s wrong? Can you see me clearly now?¡± Although he could see clearly now, Ou Li was still a little afraid. He cried as he said, ¡°I can see you clearly now, but not from afar. Daddy, am I going blind?¡± Chen Xi and Grandma Ou were frightened by Ou Li¡¯s sudden change in condition and hugged Ou Li as they looked into his eyes. Ou Wei turned around and grabbed Dr. Min¡¯s collar. ¡°What happened to my son¡¯s eyes? What did you do during the surgery? I¡¯m going to cripple your hand?!¡± Dr. Min was 173cm tall and Ou Wei was 190cm, so Ou Wei used his advantage in height to lift Dr. Min up. Dr. Min could only tiptoe as he tried to remove his hand from his collar as he said anxiously, ¡°Don¡¯t be rash. Listen to me first.¡± Xiao Sheng¡¯s pupils dilated when he saw this scene. Not only was Dr. Min the most authoritative doctor in S City¡¯s ophthalmology world, but he was also Xiao Li¡¯s chief surgeon tomorrow.. Chapter 478 - Chapter 478: Loss of Vision Chapter 478: Loss of Vision Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Xiao Sheng quickly stepped forward without hesitation and grabbed Ou Wei¡¯s wrist. After Ou Wei let go in pain, his other free hand quickly clenched into a fist and attacked Xiao Sheng. Although Xiao Sheng was only 186 centimeters tall and didn¡¯t look as muscular as Ou Wei, his strength was far stronger than that of ordinary people. He caught the other party¡¯s fist with his bare hand and clenched it tightly. Ou Wei didn¡¯t expect this and shouted, ¡°Ouch!¡± When Madam Ou saw that her son was being held by Xiao Sheng, she wanted to knock Xiao Sheng away with her body. Just as she took a step forward, Xiao Sheng said in a cold voice, ¡°I¡¯ll fracture his hand if anyone dares to come over. If you don¡¯t believe me, give it a try.¡± Xiao Shengs voice wasn¡¯t loud, but it was very cold. It was obvious that Xiao Sheng would do what he said! Madam Ou immediately stopped. Xiao Sheng looked at Ou Wei aloofly as he asked calmly, ¡°Can we talk things out now? Ou Wei nodded. ¡°Sure, sure!¡± After Xiao Sheng let go, Ou Wei quickly took two steps back and shook his hand. Dr. Min looked at Xiao Sheng gratefully as he explained to Ou Wei¡¯s family, ¡°The vision loss is temporary! It¡¯s possible for such a situation to happen during the recovery period, especially since you didn¡¯t take care of the patient according to our requirements.¡± Ou Wei snorted. ¡°Stop using that as an excuse. Tell me. When will my son recover? Dr. Min frowned and said seriously, ¡°You can¡¯t let Ou Li continue to read comics all day long, let alone rub his eyes. You have to take care of him according to our requirements. The normal recovery period is about a month. As long as you take good care of him, this situation will disappear.¡± The Ou family was just an ordinary working-class family. They didn¡¯t have any culture, but they used brute force and pestering to achieve their goals quite often. Ou Li was the only child in the family. Not long after Ou Li was born, Ou Wei got into a conflict with someone outside and injured his penis. He lost his ability to reproduce, so the entire family treated his only child as a treasure. At first, Ou Li l s eyes only itched, so he went to the clinic to see the doctor, who said that it was conjunctivitis. The doctor prescribed Ou Li some anti-inflammatory ointment and medicine and reminded the Ou family to pay attention to his eye habits. After Ou Li went home, he applied medicine for two days and it healed, so the family didn¡¯t take it to heart. However, Ou Li l s eye habits had not changed, and whenever he felt itchy, he could recover after dripping medicine. As time passed, the conjunctivitis kept flaring up again and again. When they realized that there were blisters in his eyes recently, the family immediately came to the best ophthalmology hospital in S City. After Dr. Min¡¯s checkup, he arranged for surgery according to Ou Li¡¯s condition. Normally, he would be discharged in a week, but the Ou family was worried that he wouldn¡¯t recover well and insisted on staying until he recovered. Ou Wei sized up Dr. Min and lowered his eyes for a moment. Then, he raised his hand and pointed at him as he said fiercely, ¡°This better be the case. If anything happens to my son¡¯s eyes, I¡¯ll cripple you!¡¯ Dr. Min sighed as he looked at Chen Xi and Madam Ou, who were coaxing Ou Li. Then, he said, ¡°I know you love the child, but this is a big deal that will affect his sight for the rest of his life! You can¡¯t let the child do whatever he wants anymore! As long as he gets through this period of time, he can read comics normally.¡± Previously, the cyst was gone after the surgery, so Madam Ou felt that this wasn¡¯t a big deal. Chen Xi would listen to the doctor¡¯s instructions, but Madam Ou and Ou Wei indulged Ou Li. Now that Ou Li was in a critical situation, the two of them finally listened to the doctor. M/hen Dr. Min saw that the Ou family was silent, he knew that they would change their ways this time. Then, he turned around and checked Xiao Li. Xiao Li l s eyes were in good condition, so Dr. Min could tell that the Xiao family was really attentive. Doctors liked family members and patients who followed the doctor¡¯s orders the most. Dr. Min smiled as he said to Xiao Sheng, ¡°There¡¯s one last checkup left. Miss Zhao will bring you to the place for the checkup at 3:30.¡± When Yu Bing thought of how the surgery was delayed for half a year, she asked worriedly, ¡°Dr. Min, how are Xiao Li l s eyes compared to half a year ago? Dr. Min praised, ¡°From the current examination, it¡¯s not much different from six months ago. This means that your daily care is very good! The last report will determine the difficulty of the surgery..¡± Chapter 479 - Chapter 479: Not For Sale Chapter 479: Not For Sale Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Xiao Sheng asked a few more questions, and Dr. Min answered them patiently one by one. As soon as Dr. Min left, a couple entered the ward and walked straight to Xiao Li¡¯s bed. ¡°Hello, is this Xiao Li¡¯s bed?¡± Xiao Sheng paused and turned to look at the couple in front of him. The man was wearing a tunic suit, while the woman was wearing a Lenin suit and carrying a beautiful small leather bag. Both of them were wearing imported watches. Their leather shoes looked new and polished. The man looked at them with a hint of condescension. Xiao Sheng stopped peeling the apple. After confirming that he didn¡¯t know the other party, he sat down when he saw the man¡¯s gaze. ¡°May I ask who you are? The woman smiled. ¡°My name is Ning Bi. This is my husband, Jiang Heng. You¡¯re Xiao Li l s brother, right? We have something to discuss with you.¡± As Xiao Sheng sized up the two of them, he felt that they didn¡¯t come with good intentions. However, he had to understand the other party¡¯s motive first before he could make his next move. ¡°Tell me.¡± Ning Bi took out 10,000 yuan from her bag and placed it on the bed. ¡°My daughter is the next patient to undergo cornea surgery. I want to buy your sister¡¯s queue spot with 10,000 yuan.¡± Xiao Sheng looked down at the 10,000 yuan on the bed. Xiao Lin widened his eyes when he heard this. They had waited for so long before it was their turn. How could they buy the spot just like that? Who cared about this bit of money?! Their family could afford it too! As Xiao Li leaned against the bedhead, she was stunned. Yu Bing frowned as she looked at the well-off couple in front of her. Xiao Sheng retracted his gaze and continued to peel the apple as he said emotionlessly, ¡°I¡¯m not selling it.¡± Jiang Heng and Ning Bi exchanged looks. They didn¡¯t expect to be rejected. Peasants might only earn 10,000 yuan in their entire lives! Jiang Heng gestured for his wife to continue. Ning Bi smiled. She didn¡¯t care about Xiao Shengs cold attitude and continued, ¡°I heard that you guys came from the countryside. The surgery fee is at least 20,000 yuan. I reckon you guys have already borrowed from everyone you can. Why do you have to do this? You can only farm for the rest of your lives and make your family owe such a large debt. You might not be able to repay it for the rest of your lives!¡± Xiao Sheng pretended not to hear her and focused on peeling the apple skin. Jiang Heng and his wife were both government workers. His father worked in the army, so he was used to others flattering him. When he saw Xiao Sheng ignore them, he felt a little angry and said coldly, ¡°Kid, don¡¯t be too arrogant! First, figure out if your family background can compare to mine.¡± When Xiao Lin heard these threatening words, he looked at Xiao Sheng worriedly. Xiao Shengs gaze was still on his hand as he smirked and said, ¡°No matter what, I insist on my choice. Otherwise, how can I live up to the evaluation you gave me? As soon as he finished speaking, the apple was completely peeled. Xiao Sheng looked at it with a smile. Then, he threw it into the trash can at the side. ¡°It looks quite nice. Unfortunately, it¡¯s just trash.¡± After Xiao Sheng placed the apple in Xiao Li l s hand, he slowly wiped the juice on his finger with a handkerchief. His actions were so elegant that he didn¡¯t look like he came from the countryside. After Jiang Heng was first rendered speechless by Xiao Sheng with his words and was referred to as trash, his expression turned livid. Seeing this, Ning Bi knew that it was impossible to force Xiao Sheng and continued to say with a smile, ¡°When girls in the countryside grow up, they usually only have one path, which is to get married! You guys are from the countryside, so you¡¯re most likely to get married in the countryside. No matter how rich you are, your family can only save a few hundred yuan a year. This is already considered rich for you guys.¡± ¡°So what if Xiao Li marries well? Her mother-in-law will be in charge of the family¡¯s money. How can she use her husband¡¯s family¡¯s money to pay off her debts? In the end, the debt will belong to the two of you. Or should I ask Xiao Li directly? Does she really have to be so selfish?¡± If Xiao Li l s surgery fees had been saved up, even if she was persuaded to come to the hospital for treatment, when she heard this, she would definitely refuse to undergo surgery out of guilt. Unfortunately, Ning Bi had miscalculated. It was impossible for the Xiao family to reveal the source of the money and it would be better if others thought that they had borrowed the money.. Chapter 480 - Chapter 480: Discrimination Chapter 480: Discrimination Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations At this moment, only Madam Ou was guarding Ou Li l s bed. She was holding a grudge against Xiao Sheng for hurting her son, so when she saw this scene, she also went to the end of Xiao Li l s bed and said sarcastically, ¡°Isn¡¯t that so? They¡¯re a group of rural bumpkins. They don¡¯t have money, but they still insisted on coming to a big hospital in S City.¡± ¡°The people in S City don¡¯t even have enough medical resources themselves! If not for the fact that we¡¯re worried about my grandson¡¯s eyes, we would have gone back long ago. Living with a group of out-of-town people makes us smell like dirt. It wasn¡¯t easy for us to wait until the others left, but we still have to stay with this family.¡± Madam Ou¡¯s words were filled with disdain. S City was the only city in the country that had always been as famous as the capital, so the people of S City always felt a sense of superiority towards people from other provinces. Usually, when they saw people from other provinces, they were very condescending. When Xiao Lin heard the other party¡¯s words, he suddenly understood why they pretended not to hear him when he greeted them previously and why when he went to play with Ou Li when the Ou family wasn¡¯t around, Ou Li would roll his eyes at him. Xiao Lin lowered his eyes and gritted his teeth as he grabbed the corner of his shirt tightly. Yu Bing stopped Xiao Sheng when he wanted to speak. In non-working settings, it wasn¡¯t suitable for a man to quarrel with a woman. If he lost, he would suffer humiliation as well. It was a catch-22 situation. After Yu Bing stood up and walked to them, she sized up Jiang Heng and Ning Bi from head to toe. This action wasn¡¯t polite, but it was Yu Bings response to the two of them being rude just now. The couple in front of her had probably never been sized up like this before, so their expressions were a little ugly. Yu Bing felt a little better and asked, ¡°You two are cadres, right?¡± Yu Bing looked at Madam Ou again. ¡°And you¡¯re a retired worker?¡± Madam Ou immediately straightened her back and revealed her identity proudly. ¡°I¡¯m an old employee of S City¡¯s cotton mill! I¡¯ve been deemed a model worker as well! Yu Bing smiled and clapped as she said, ¡°Speaking of which, city dwellers should be more enlightened than us bumpkins, but now, all of you keep calling us bumpkins. Why? Don¡¯t you eat the vegetables planted by bumpkins? Are you planning to promote the theory of discrimination between rural and urban areas this time? Or is it the theory of inequality?¡± ¡®i l thought that rural people like us still had some status in this country, but it seems that I¡¯m too ignorant. It¡¯s not easy for me to come to S City, so I have to find the relevant departments to report your theories and determine which is the right one.¡± The country had already been advocating equality for twenty to thirty years. At various conferences, they kept emphasizing the importance of the peasant class, but their arguments were the complete opposite. If the relevant departments found out, they would definitely arrest them. When Madam Ou heard this, she quickly defended herself. ¡°I didn¡¯t say anything just now!¡± Then, she scurried back to her bed. Ning Bi opened her mouth a few times before closing it again. She didn¡¯t know what to say for a moment. In the end, she said, ¡°Let¡¯s not talk about anything else. You need money, right? I¡¯ll give you another 2,000 yuan.¡± After Yu Bing picked up the 10,000 yuan tied to the bed with a rubber band, she threw it at Ning Bi. ¡°I won¡¯t even consider adding 20,000 yuan. Materialistic people only have the pleasure of squandering money left.¡± This time, Yu Bing spoke with disdain and arrogance. The confrontation just now let the couple realize that this family was a tough nut to crack, so they no longer asked for trouble and left with the money. After Dr. Min finished checking the ward, he returned to the office and saw two patients¡¯ families standing inside. When Jiang Heng and Ning Bi saw their daughter¡¯s attending doctor, they stood up and greeted him. Dr. Min thought that something had happened to the patient and asked with concern, ¡°Please sit down. Did something happen to Jiang Nuan¡¯s eyes? Ning Bi pretended not to know anything and replied with a smile, ¡°Jiang Nuan¡¯s eyes are fine. We heard that the little girl in front of us hasn¡¯t undergone surgery yet, right?¡± Dr. Min nodded. ¡°Yes, the donor can last until the Spring Festival and hopes to spend another year with his family, so after our discussion, the surgery was scheduled for tomorrow.¡± After Ning Bi and her husband exchanged looks, Ning Bi said slowly, ¡°Time is quite tight, so I hope you can give this spot to my daughter..¡± Chapter 481 - Chapter 481: Good Potential Chapter 481: Good Potential Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Dr. Min was stunned. Back then, it was because of Jiang Heng and Ning Bi l s interference that he had no choice but to find an excuse to give the Xiao family half a day to transfer money. He had already violated medical ethics once, so why was this family still causing trouble? Dr. Min¡¯s expression became a little gloomy. ¡°The Xiao family knows Deputy Dean Mr. Zeng¡¯s family. Moreover, didn¡¯t you say last time that as long as they can fork out the money, you won¡¯t pester them about this anymore? Jiang Nuan is only eight years old now, but Xiao Li is about to turn ten years old.¡± Ning Bi frowned when she heard this. She was a little angry that the other party was comparing her daughter to a country bumpkin. Jiang Nuan wasn¡¯t someone a countryside girl could compare to! Even the commander of the military¡¯s art team praised Jiang Nuan for being a good dancer. If not for the accident last year, she wouldn¡¯t have wasted so much time. Now, they had to hurry up and let her start dancing again! However, facing this expert who was the best at ophthalmology surgery in S City, Ning Bi still had to be patient. ¡°Dr. Min, I hope you can understand how worried parents are about their children. As long as the surgery hasn¡¯t been done, we won¡¯t be able to relax. As for Deputy Dean Mr. Zeng, you don¡¯t have to worry about it, as long as you think of a way to silence the Xiao family.¡± It wasn¡¯t a secret in the hospital that the dean and vice dean didn¡¯t get along, so Dr. Min used this to test the other party¡¯s power. After all, the Zeng family backed Deputy Dean Mr. Zeng. The other party tolerated it last time, so if they caused trouble again, it would be a little disrespectful to the Zeng family. The strength of the two families wasn¡¯t much different, so why should the Zeng family give in twice in a row? This time, they might not be willing to suffer in silence. After all, the Zeng family¡¯s in-laws were not to be trifled with either. Moreover, Dr. Min hated people who didn¡¯t take others¡¯ lives seriously. Not to mention that Jiang Nuan had the time to wait for the next donor, and it wasn¡¯t their turn yet. Which parent wouldn¡¯t be anxious to treat their child?! Jiang Heng glanced at Dr. Min, who was clearly irked. He pursed his lips tightly and said without regard for the other party¡¯s displeasure, ¡°You¡¯ve been the director for a long time, right? Don¡¯t you want to move up the ranks? Speaking of which, my father and the dean are old comrades who have been through life and death together. Otherwise, we wouldn¡¯t have chosen to come to your hospital. Jiang Heng¡¯s tone was very aloof but threatening. Dr. Min tightened his grip on his pen. He had been in this position for ten years. His wife thought that he was incompetent, since he couldn¡¯t be promoted even after so long. Every time he went to his in-laws¡¯ house during the new year or festive season, he would always be compared to his son-in-law¡¯s neighbor. How could he not want to be promoted? However, Dr. Min thought of the joy on the faces of the Xiao familys three siblings when they found out that they met the surgery criteria. He really couldn¡¯t bear to crush the hopes of this family. After all, no one knew when there would be a next donor, and with Xiao Li l s age, this was very likely their family¡¯s last chance. Jiang Heng could tell that Dr. Min was conflicted and snorted. He felt that Dr. Min wanted benefits but didn¡¯t want to be a bad person either. One couldn¡¯t have cake and eat it too! ¡°Dr. Min, every man for himself! You¡¯re already in your forties. Are you going to be the director for another ten years? Are you going to watch helplessly as young people rise up and order you around? I¡¯ll bring Jiang Nuan to the hospital for a checkup tomorrow morning. After the checkup, perform the surgery as soon as possible. Our family¡¯s time is very precious.¡± Jiang Heng was certain that Dr. Min would think of a way to cancel Xiao Li i s surgery for the sake of his future. After saying this, he left with his wife. Not many people would go to the hospital during the new year, so the office was very quiet. Dr. Min sat in the office for a long time. Miss Zhao knocked on the open door with the report. ¡°Dr. Min, Xiao Li l s report is out.¡± Dr. Min came back to his senses when he heard the voice. ¡°Alright, give it to me.¡± After Dr. Min took the report and looked at it seriously, he said, ¡°Her situation is quite good.¡± Miss Zhao smiled and said happily, ¡°That¡¯s great! The three of them lost their parents when they were young and relied on Xiao Sheng to support them. Now, they finally have hope.¡± Dr. Min¡¯s eyes flickered when he heard this and he tightened his grip on the report.. Chapter 482 - Chapter 482: Waiting for the Notification Chapter 482: Waiting for the Notification Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Miss Zhao thought of Xiao Sheng and hurriedly said, ¡°Dr. Min, the surgery will be at nine tomorrow morning, right? I¡¯ll inform the family in advance.¡± As Miss Zhao turned around excitedly, Dr. Min hesitated for a moment before calling out to her, ¡°Don¡¯t be anxious. I¡¯ll reconsider the exact time. Wait for my notice.¡± Miss Zhao was a little puzzled. Usually, after the results were out, the family would be informed a day in advance. However, when she saw that Dr. Min didn¡¯t look too happy, she didn¡¯t ask. ¡°Okay.¡± When Xiao Sheng returned to get water, he saw Miss Zhao return to the nurses¡¯ station. He went forward and asked, ¡°Miss Zhao, did Doctor Min say how my sister¡¯s checkup result is?¡± Looking at Xiao Shengs handsome face, Miss Zhao blushed a little and she replied gently, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Brother Xiao. Dr. Min said that Xiao Li l s condition is quite good.¡± Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t notice Miss Zhao¡¯s abnormality, since he was too focused on the surgery. When he heard this, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly as he asked expectantly, ¡°Then the surgery is tomorrow, right?¡± Miss Zhao froze for a moment before replying, ¡°Wait for my notice.¡± Xiao Sheng felt a little uneasy when he heard this ambiguous answer. ¡°Is there any problem? Seeing that Xiao Sheng was a little anxious, Miss Zhao felt dejected that she had not been of much help. She thought for a moment and replied, ¡°I¡¯ll ask again later. Perhaps it¡¯s because of the operating theater¡¯s usage time or the nursing department¡¯s schedule. They¡¯re probably determining the schedule. Don¡¯t think too much about it.¡± Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t know the specifics, so when he heard this, he nodded at Miss Zhao with a smile. ¡°Miss Zhao, sorry to trouble you.¡± Xiao Shengs smile mesmerized Miss Zhao. When she came back to her senses, she shook her head repeatedly and replied shyly, ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll tell you after I ask. By the way, is the girl who came to see Xiao Li a relative of yours? The reason Miss Zhao thought that Yu Bing was a relative of the Xiao family was that everyone felt that coming to the hospital during the new year was inauspicious, so they wouldn¡¯t come unless they were close relatives. Miss Zhao realized that Yu Bing looked delicate and fair, like a girl who had been educated in the city. She thought that if they were all in S City, she could interact more in the future. This way, she could befriend the people around Xiao Sheng and maintain a relationship with Xiao Sheng. Xiao Sheng froze before realizing that she was talking about Yu Bing. Because their relationship had yet to be officially confirmed, Xiao Sheng replied according to the reason on the village¡¯s permission slip, ¡°She¡¯s an intellectual in our village. She came on a business trip for the factory. When she found out that Xiao Li was undergoing surgery, she came to visit.¡± When Miss Zhao heard this, she felt a sense of crisis. However, since Xiao Sheng said that they were from the same village, she must be just here to take a look, so she shouldn¡¯t worry too much about it. She smiled at Xiao Sheng sweetly. ¡°In that case, she¡¯s really diligent. She¡¯s still so busy even during the new year.¡± Xiao Sheng smiled, but didn¡¯t continue the conversation. ¡°Then I¡¯ll go in first. Let me know if there¡¯s any news.¡± When Xiao Sheng entered the ward, Xiao Li was talking to Xiao Lin. Yu Bing seemed distracted. After Xiao Sheng placed the kettle in his hand on the table beside Xiao Li l s bed, he saw the few chocolates on the table and he asked curiously, ¡°Where did these chocolates come from? Xiao Li smiled as she replied, ¡°This is from Sister Zhao.¡± Sister Zhao referred to Miss Zhao. When Xiao Li was first hospitalized, she and Xiao Lin called her the nurse at first, but the other party took the initiative to ask them to call her differently and they didn¡¯t mind. After all, it was just an address. Xiao Sheng frowned. ¡°Xiao Li, don¡¯t accept other people¡¯s things. These are very expensive.¡± Because the domestic market wasn¡¯t open to foreign countries, foreign products like chocolate weren¡¯t cheap. Xiao Lin explained, ¡°We rejected her, but Sister Zhao said that today is the first day of the new year.¡± It wasn¡¯t good to reject other people¡¯s gifts during the new year, so Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t say anything else. Yu Bing glanced at Xiao Sheng, who didn¡¯t notice anything amiss, and pursed her lips as she said angrily, ¡°Why blame them? They didn¡¯t call her over.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard Yu Bings resentful words, he turned his head slightly. He didn¡¯t know if Yu Bing was angry or not, but he thought for a moment and explained, ¡°I don¡¯t blame them. I was just asking.¡± When Yu Bing saw Xiao Shengs innocent expression, her anger dissipated. If she had to blame someone, she could only blame his handsome face. He himself wasn¡¯t the problem. Thus, she didn¡¯t harp on this matter anymore.. Chapter 483 - Chapter 483: Support Chapter 483: Support Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Because of Dr. Min¡¯s words, Ou Wei and Chen Xi took the comic book away when they got to work in the afternoon. Ou Li made a fuss over it for a long time, and Madam Ou had just appeased him. ¡°Mom¡­¡± After Chen Xi appeared in the ward, she called out to Madam Ou sadly. When Madam Ou saw her daughter-in-law¡¯s expression, she frowned and looked at her grandson, who had finally fallen asleep. Then, she rolled her eyes and walked towards Chen Xi as she scolded softly, ¡°Who are you crying for? Our family¡¯s luck is about to be scared away by you!¡¯ Although her mother-in-law said this, Chen Xi couldn¡¯t suppress her sadness. ¡°Mom, Ou Li¡¯s eyes are screwed. His vision is declining now, and after that, he will be blind.¡± Madam Ou slapped Chen Xi hard and scolded, ¡°Is there a mother like you? You¡¯re cursing your son like this during the new year. Do you think you can lord over our family just because you gave birth to Ou Li?!¡± Chen Xi looked at Madam Ou with red eyes as she shook her head. ¡°Mom, when I was at work just now, I heard from my colleague that conjunctiva cysts don¡¯t have to be operated on. Dr. Min is a quack! Now that Ou Li has undergone surgery, Ou Li¡¯s vision has worsened even though his cyst is gone. My colleague said that he¡¯ll go blind next! That¡¯s why we immediately applied for leave and rushed back.¡± When Madam Ou heard this, her body swayed twice. After she held onto the end of the empty bed opposite Xiao Li, she finally stopped. ¡°Oh my god! What should we do?! Where¡¯s Ou Wei?¡± ¡°When Ou Wei and I came, we discussed that we can¡¯t let this quack off! Ou Li l s life is ruined, so we have to make him pay and promise to support Ou Li for the rest of his life!¡± When Madam Ou heard this plan, she nodded repeatedly. ¡°Yes, your decision is correct.¡± As Yu Bing listened to the Ou family¡¯s plan, she was baffled. They actually listened to their colleague instead of the doctor? Even if she really suspected Dr. Min¡¯s medical skills and was worried that the child wasn¡¯t temporarily blind as he had said, she should bring the child to another hospital to get checked and hear what the other doctors had to say before making plans instead of jumping to conclusions from insignificant evidence. She wanted to settle scores without even verifying it first. Xiao Sheng frowned when he heard their conversation. Madam Ou suddenly remembered that the hospital was their territory, so how could Ou Wei be a match for the quack? She narrowed her eyes and said, ¡°Chen Xi, we have to help too. There are so many doctors and nurses in this hospital, so Ou Wei is not their match on his own!¡± Chen Xi reacted and replied, ¡°Then let¡¯s hurry up and go provide support.¡± The two of them hurriedly left the ward. Yu Bing looked at Ou Li, who was sleeping soundly on the bed, and shook her head. ¡°Previously, they treated him with such attentiveness. Now, they actually left the child here all alone.¡± Xiao Sheng sneered and said, ¡°His greatest value now is probably to give them an excuse to ask for compensation.¡± When Yu Bing heard this, she also felt that family¡¯s actions gave off such a feeling. She looked at Ou Li, who was spoiled yet abandoned by his family, with pity. When Yu Bing turned around and saw the same look on Xiao Shengs face, the two of them thought of something. Xiao Sheng instructed Xiao Lin with a serious expression, ¡°Xiao Lin, keep an eye on Xiao Li. I¡¯ll go out for a while.¡± When Xiao Lin saw his brother¡¯s serious expression, he nodded. ¡°Brother, don¡¯t worry.¡± Yu Bing left the ward with Xiao Sheng. Dr. Min had just finished going to the bathroom. When he came out of the bathroom, he met Ou Wei, who was looking for him. Ou Wei pushed Dr. Min into the empty ward beside him. He knew that an argument in the corridor would definitely attract other medical staff and he was on his own now. Ou Wei explained the theory he had heard and raised his request. Dr. Min looked at Ou Wei as he explained helplessly, ¡°Ou Li l s conjunctiva cyst was caused by repeated conjunctivitis. Moreover, when you brought him here for a checkup, he had to undergo surgery as soon as possible. If he didn¡¯t, he would have gone blind!¡± Ou Wei believed the news he had received, so he grabbed Dr. Min¡¯s collar and punched him. ¡°You¡¯re a quack! My colleague¡¯s relative didn¡¯t undergo surgery, but he healed on his own.. Checkup my ass! You think you can say whatever you want since in any case, ordinary people like us can¡¯t understand?!¡± Chapter 484 - Chapter 484: Guilt Chapter 484: Guilt Translator: I-lenyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Dr. Min was a scholar, so how could he withstand Ou Wei¡¯s punch? He was knocked to the ground and blood flowed from the corner of his mouth. As he looked at the stubborn Ou Wei, he became a little angry. ¡°Everyone¡¯s physical condition is different! He¡¯s not a doctor, so how can he determine that Ou Li will go blind without even knowing anything about his physical condition? But you actually believed him! If you don¡¯t believe me, take the medical report to the other hospitals!¡¯ Ou Wei looked at Dr. Min, who was struggling to get up, and snorted. ¡°You¡¯re all birds of a feather! Don¡¯t try to stall for time! Write a confession letter and a guarantee that you¡¯ll give half of your salary to our family as compensation every month!¡± The Ou family was an unreasonable family to begin with. Moreover, this had already escalated into a medical dispute. Dr. Min wanted to leave first and call the Medical Department to deal with it, but Ou Wei was blocking the door and he couldn¡¯t get through at all. In the end, he could only continue to negotiate with him and find an opportunity to leave. ¡°Then do as I say and take care of Ou Li first. Then, you¡¯ll be able to see if Ou Li loses his sight or not. If he doesn¡¯t, look for me again. My job is here, so I won¡¯t escape.¡± Of course, Ou Wei knew that he could find Dr. Min, but he would feel more at ease with dirt on him. Ou Wei was rude and uncultured, but he knew that he would be detained for beating someone. He was a factory worker. If he had a criminal record, even if he wasn¡¯t fired, he definitely wouldn¡¯t get a promotion, salary raise, or other benefits in the future. Therefore, he had to get a confession this time. This way, the other party would listen to whatever he said, unless he didn¡¯t want to continue working in the medical world! Ou Wei wasn¡¯t stupid. He had already expected this response. If he waited for something to happen to Ou Li¡¯s eyes before looking for him, Dr. Min would know that he would settle scores with him. Even if Dr. Min didn¡¯t hide, he would be on guard. At that time, he would be the one in trouble. Upon seeing Dr. Min¡¯s sorry state, Ou Wei took out the paper and pen he had obtained from the operating table and slapped it on the bed. ¡°Stop playing tricks. Write it down!¡¯ Ou Wei was very aggressive. Dr. Min wasn¡¯t in the wrong, but he was being pressured. Dr. Min lost his temper and said, ¡°My diagnosis is right! Why should I write a confession?! There are several reasons for the formation of conjunctiva cysts. You guys are the irresponsible ones for not letting Ou Li have surgery in time. As parents, you guys didn¡¯t take proper care of him after the surgery, causing his condition to worsen. I haven¡¯t even criticized you guys for it yet!¡¯ Dr. Min couldn¡¯t write it. If he wrote it, his life would be ruined. The Ou family was very cunning. With this, he would be under their control for the rest of his Ou Wei rolled up his sleeves and said, ¡°You¡¯re shirking responsibility? If you won¡¯t write it, I¡¯ll beat you until you write it!¡¯ Ou Wei punched Dr. Min twice more. Bruises instantly appeared at the corners of Dr. Min¡¯s mouth and eyes. Dr. Min felt very disheartened. The patient didn¡¯t obey the doctor¡¯s orders, and the patient¡¯s family was unreasonable. Powerful people could play dirty tricks and manipulate his patients at will. As a doctor, he didn¡¯t even receive the most basic respect! In fact, he had encountered these sorts of things many times already. The oath he had read with his classmates on the day he graduated from medicine seemed meaningless at this moment. Dr. Min suddenly was fed up with his identity. When Dr. Min was picked up by the collar and pressed against the wall again, he looked at Ou Wei coldly. ¡°If you want to make a fuss, go ahead. At most, I won¡¯t be a doctor anymore. I don¡¯t care who you tell. There¡¯s nothing wrong with my diagnosis.¡± Ou Wei was impulsive. Now that he heard Dr. Min¡¯s words, his anger that had subsided rose again. ¡°Alright! Then I¡¯ll cripple your hands. As you wish, I¡¯ll make sure you can¡¯t go on the operating table or be a doctor anymore!¡¯ Ou Wei let go of Dr. Min¡¯s collar and pulled Dr. Min¡¯s forearm before pressing it against the nearest bedside table. Then, he pulled a four-sided stool on the ground with his other hand and raised it high. When Dr. Min saw this, his eyes widened slightly and he wanted to pull his hand away, but the difference in their strength was too great. He couldn¡¯t break free. At the critical moment, the door was pushed open. A person kicked Ou Wei to the bed at the side, and the chair he raised smashed into him.. Chapter 485 - Chapter 485: Medical Dispute Chapter 485: Medical Dispute Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations ¡°Hubby!¡± When Chen Xi and Grandma Ou saw Ou Wei being beaten up, they immediately shouted and rushed into the ward. Yu Bing followed them into the ward. When she saw Dr. Min, who was standing at the side and panting, she went forward and said, ¡°Dr. Min, let¡¯s go out first.¡± Dr. Min came back to his senses and nodded. Just as he was about to leave, Grandma Ou looked up and saw him. Grandma Ou rushed to the door and stopped them. ¡°Since you guys injured my son, no one can leave!¡± This commotion attracted the attention of the medical staff on this floor. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I heard someone arguing previously. I thought it was a patient¡¯s family.¡± ¡°Hey, isn¡¯t that Dr. Min?¡± When Grandma Ou saw the surrounding crowd, she closed the door and pointed at Xiao Sheng as she scolded, ¡°You country bumpkin, how dare you hit my son?! Let me tell you, I¡¯m a local. I know people in the police station. If you dare to offend me, I¡¯ll get someone to arrest you and send you to do labor reform!¡¯ Xiao Sheng turned around and looked at Grandma Ou coldly without saying anything. Grandma Ou, who wanted to continue shouting, was suddenly a little afraid. She slowly lowered her finger, but she still refused to relent. ¡°This has nothing to do with you. If you leave now, we¡¯ll pretend that nothing happened¡± When Grandma Ou saw the blank paper on the bed, she knew that Ou Wei had not convinced Dr. Min, so the most important thing now was to get the confession letter first. Yu Bing didn¡¯t have the patience. Dr. Min was going to perform surgery on Xiao Li tomorrow, so what if it affected his performance? They had to end things quickly! Yu Bing took two steps forward and hugged Grandma Ou from behind The old lady was only 1.5 meters tall and had a thin figure, so it wasn¡¯t difficult to carry her. Yu Bing turned around and shouted, ¡°What are you waiting for? Doesn¡¯t your hospital protect doctors during medical disputes? Call the police!¡¯ Grandma Ou didn¡¯t expect Yu Bing to be so unyielding and she struggled violently. ¡°Let go of me! You little b*tch!¡± Grandma Ou¡¯s arm was grabbed. She wasn¡¯t tall or strong enough to break free, so she could only scold her. Ou Wei watched as Xiao Sheng stood at the side with the stool he had found previously. He held his waist, which felt like it was broken from the kick, and didn¡¯t dare to say anything else. Chen Xi supported Ou Wei as she stood at the side. She didn¡¯t dare to go forward to hit Xiao Sheng or help her mother-in-law deal with Yu Bing. The medical staff quickly separated Dr. Min from the Ou family. The medical department also quickly sent people to resolve the Ou family¡¯s medical dispute. With the police here, things finally calmed down. The medical department proved that there was nothing wrong with Dr. Min¡¯s medical diagnosis. They also listed the mistakes the Ou family made when they didn¡¯t follow the doctor¡¯s instructions. Of course, the most important thing was that they proved that Ou Li¡¯s loss of vision was temporary. Xiao Sheng hit Xiao Sheng in self-defense. When Grandma Ou saw that there were really police officers, she was completely terrified and stood at the side meekly. Originally, the police wanted to arrest Ou Wei and detain him for a few days, but the medical department negotiated with the Ou family and asked them to compensate Dr. Min with some medical fees before bringing Ou Li out of the hospital. This was equivalent to lowering the punishment in exchange for peace in the hospital. Although Dr. Min felt aggrieved, he was willing to compromise in order to avoid future trouble. What happened wasn¡¯t a perfect solution, but at least things were resolved. Dr. Min said to Xiao Sheng gratefully, ¡°Xiao Sheng, thank you so much this time. If my hand was really hit by a chair, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to perform surgery for the rest of my life.¡± Although Dr. Min did want to give up previously, when he saw that the chair was about to fall, the fear of not being able to be a doctor anymore overcame him. At such a critical moment, Dr. Min discovered his answer to Jiang Heng¡¯s words in the afternoon. He also remembered his original intention for becoming a doctor. His utilitarian thoughts developed after experiencing the harsh realities of life. He didn¡¯t study medicine for the sake of fame and fortune. The reason he liked this profession was that medical skills could save more lives, so that more people could continue to see this beautiful world. Xiao Sheng smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s good as long as you¡¯re fine. Your hand harbors the hope of many families. It can¡¯t be broken.¡± When Dr. Min heard this, he was slightly moved. That¡¯s right. There were still family members who approved of them and cooperated with them. Recently, there had been too many worries in his work and life, so he had become a little pessimistic.. Chapter 486 - Chapter 486: Bored and Pretentious Chapter 486: Bored and Pretentious Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations After this incident, Dr. Min decided to follow his principles in the future. ¡°Xiao Sheng, Xiao Li¡¯s surgery is scheduled for nine o¡¯clock tomorrow. I¡¯ll go to the ward to look for you to sign the surgery consent form later and tell you some things to take note of before the surgery.¡± Xiao Sheng looked excited as he said, ¡°Sorry to trouble you, Dr. Min. I¡¯ll wait for you in the ward.¡± Dr. Min nodded with a smile before leaving. When Yu Bing heard the exact time, her eyes lit up. ¡°We can rest assured now.¡± Xiao Sheng smiled and said, ¡°That¡¯s right. Fortunately, we came in time this time. Otherwise, tomorrow¡¯s surgery wouldn¡¯t be able to happen.¡± The next morning, Jiang Heng and Ning Bi brought Jiang Nuan to the hospital confidently, but they received the news that Dr. Min was operating on Xiao Li. Jiang Heng¡¯s expression darkened. In the end, he left with his wife and daughter without saying a word. After the surgery, Xiao Li¡¯s eyes were covered with white gauze and she could only take it off after two weeks. Then, according to the situation, the doctor would decide how long she would continue to be hospitalized for observation. Miss Zhao was Xiao Li¡¯s nurse and she pushed Xiao Li into the ward. When she saw that Yu Bing was also there, the smile on her face froze slightly. She was a little puzzled as to why Yu Bing was here again today. However, she immediately regained her composure and smiled at Xiao Sheng. ¡°Brother Xiao, I¡¯m here to deliver Xiao Li¡¯s first dose of medicine after surgery.¡± Xiao Sheng stood up and thanked her seriously. ¡°Miss Zhao, it¡¯s been hard on you.¡± As Miss Zhao stood in front of Xiao Sheng, she lowered her head bashfully. ¡°This is my job.¡± Yu Bing watched with an impassive expression. Miss Zhao didn¡¯t take the medicine after saying that. Instead, Miss Zhao kept flirting with Xiao Sheng. Yu Bing cursed Xiao Sheng for attracting so much attention from girls! At this moment, Xiao Sheng, who had been scolded by Yu Bing a few times, was wondering why Miss Zhao was wriggling in front of him. However, he didn¡¯t have much experience with girls and was very hesitant about reminding her to distribute the medicine quickly. In the end, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t stand it anymore and coughed lightly. ¡°Miss Zhao, there are so many types of medicine. Which one belongs to Xiao Li?¡± When Miss Zhao came back to her senses, she looked at Yu Bing resentfully. She could already feel that Xiao Sheng was about to say something to her just now, but he was interrupted by her. After Miss Zhao found the medicine bag with Xiao Li¡¯s name on it from the basket, she handed it to Xiao Sheng with a smile. Xiao Sheng felt that if he took it, he would definitely touch Miss Zhao¡¯s hand. Just as he was about to say something, Yu Bing interrupted him. Yu Bing was originally sitting by the bed. At this moment, she stood up and took a few steps forward. Then, she took the medicine and smiled as she said to Miss Zhao gently, ¡°Let me do it. Xiao Sheng is clumsy. If I¡¯m not around next time, just put the medicine bag on the bedside table.¡± Miss Zhao frowned and felt that Yu Bing was a little nosy. However, thinking about how she and Xiao Sheng had yet to confirm their relationship, she couldn¡¯t object. She suppressed her displeasure and used Xiao Li¡¯s illness as an excuse to say a few words to Xiao Sheng before leaving. After Xiao Sheng sat down again, he felt a little scared by Yu Bing¡¯s ambiguous smile and revealed a fawning smile. However, Yu Bing didn¡¯t respond to him. She chatted with Xiao Li and Xiao Lin instead. They had to pay special attention to Xiao Li¡¯s diet during postoperative care. Now that Yu Bing was here, she was naturally in charge. After the cornea transplant, she couldn¡¯t eat raw, greasy, or spicy food. Xiao Lin accompanied Xiao Li in the hospital while Xiao Sheng brought Yu Bing to the supply company around their residence to buy groceries. Along the way, Xiao Sheng tried his best to find a topic to talk about. Yu Bing was also cooperative, but if Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t take the initiative to chat, Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t have talked to him. Xiao Sheng was anxious along the way. Then, the two of them returned home after buying veggies. Yu Bing filled a basin with cold water and prepared to wash the veggies, but Xiao Sheng took over. ¡°Don¡¯t touch this water. The tap water in this city isn¡¯t like well water. Be careful not to get frostbite.¡± Hearing Xiao Sheng¡¯s concerned words, Yu Bing smiled and deliberately asked, ¡°How many girls have you said such sweet words to?¡± Xiao Sheng turned on the tap and washed the vegetables slowly. He felt that Yu Bing¡¯s question was strange, but he didn¡¯t hesitate to answer, ¡°Only you and Xiao Li. I don¡¯t have the time to mind other people¡¯s business.¡± Yu Bing naturally believed Xiao Sheng¡¯s words. She even knew Xiao Sheng¡¯s answer the moment she asked, but she still wanted to ask and hear it from Xiao Sheng. Yu Bing recalled that every time she watched television dramas and novels, she would feel that the female lead was boring and pretentious, but she didn¡¯t expect herself to become such a person one day.. Chapter 487 - Chapter 487: Passive Income Chapter 487: Passive Income Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Bing smiled, but didn¡¯t say anything else. She wasn¡¯t generous enough to help others confess to Xiao Sheng. It was best not to expose this matter until they left, lest it caused trouble. Xiao Sheng helped out as Yu Bing made three veggies and a soup dish. Yu Bing first used half a chicken to boil the soup. She placed red dates, ginseng, and other medicinal herbs inside in order to help replenish blood. She simmered it for an hour before putting the thick layer of golden chicken oil on the soup into the thermos. After the surgery, she had to get enough protein and vitamins, which could help improve her immune system and facilitate the recovery of the wound. Yu Bing stir-fried tomatoes, scrambled eggs, minced tofu, and boiled veggies with soy sauce. There were meat and vegetable dishes that were light but nutritious. After the food was ready, the two of them packed two portions to be sent to the hospital and placed a few oranges inside for Xiao Li to replenish her Vitamin C. Then, they sat down in the living room and started eating. As Yu Bing sized up the two -bedroom apartment with a small kitchen, she asked, ¡°How much is the rent?¡± Xiao Sheng looked up at the new house and said, ¡°Eight yuan a month. This house is one of the better ones in this area, but the bathroom is a little far. I have to run to the alley.¡± Most of the old houses in S City were like this. They used the public toilets in the alley. Many people found it inconvenient to go out at night, especially in winter. Every time they came out of bed, they needed a lot of courage. Therefore, they would put a bucket in their room to solve the problem. Yu Bing asked again, ¡°Then why doesn¡¯t this family live in this house?¡± Xiao Sheng recalled his conversation with the landlord. ¡°After the landlord¡¯s husband passed away, she remarried and moved into her husband¡¯s house. She wanted to rent out the old house to earn some rent.¡± Yu Bing narrowed her eyes. This family¡¯s situation was complicated, so the possibility of them selling this house wasn¡¯t high. She could only wait until she had money before coming to see if there was a chance to buy another house. However, houses were fixed assets and wouldn¡¯t be cheap at any time. When Yu Bing thought about the little money she had, she suddenly felt the pressure to earn more money increase. When Xiao Sheng saw Yu Bing narrowing her eyes in deep thought, he knew that she must be thinking of another way to earn money. He reached out to touch Yu Bing¡¯s head in amusement as he said aloofly, ¡°What money-earning trick are you thinking of again?¡± Yu Bing chuckled. ¡°I just think this house is quite good. If only I could buy a house that belongs to me.¡± When Xiao Sheng brought Yu Bing around the area yesterday to familiarize her with the route, Yu Bing later remembered that this area would become City S¡¯s business area in the future. Every demolition family here had a few shops, and it was in the downtown area. Just the rent alone was enough for the family to live on. That would be passive income! When Xiao Sheng heard this, he looked at Yu Bing as if she was delusional. ¡°These houses belong to the country. Although the agency gave it to the landlady¡¯s family, she only has the right to use it.¡± After the founding of the country, the houses in the city began to be allocated. As a national policy and factory employee benefit, housing was provided by the country and factories. However, before this system was implemented, what the country had to do first was to renovate private property. In other words, all private property would be nationalized and managed by the country. Then, they would pay a low rent to the owner to afford basic living expenses. This decision had both pros and cons, but it benefited the vast majority of people. It integrated internal resources, allowing many ordinary people to obtain free housing. Therefore, as long as a person could enter a factory or work in an agency in this era, they would have everything provided. Freedom to buy and sell houses only happened after the reform and opening up. What was impossible now would happen in the future. Yu Bing couldn¡¯t explain, so she smiled and said, ¡°That¡¯s hard to say. Times are changing.¡± Xiao Sheng knew that Yu Bing often had bold fantasies in her mind, so he shook his head helplessly. After the two of them finished eating, they went to the hospital to deliver the food. After Xiao Sheng arrived at the hospital, he went to ask Dr. Min some questions. Yu Bing took the things to the ward first. Just as she reached the door, Yu Bing heard laughter coming from inside. Yu Bing pushed open the closed door and walked in. When the beautiful figure with her back facing the door heard the sound of the door opening, she immediately stood up and turned around.. ¡°Brother Xiao, you¡¯re here!¡¯ Chapter 488 - Chapter 488: Pursuit Chapter 488: Pursuit Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Miss Zhao¡¯s smile froze when she saw Yu Bing. Then, she stuck her head out and looked behind Yu Bing, but she didn¡¯t see Xiao Sheng. Miss Zhao restrained her smile when she saw Yu Bing, but her tone was still very gentle. ¡°When I was chatting with Brother Xiao, he said that you were here on official business. Why are you so free as to come to the hospital every day?¡± Yu Bing could tell that Miss Zhao was showing off her intimacy with Xiao Sheng to her. At the same time, she didn¡¯t forget to mock her for not doing her job properly and stalking Xiao Sheng all day long. Yu Bing was in no hurry to answer. She walked around Miss Zhao and went to the bed to put the food down. The atmosphere tensed up. Xiao Lin felt his hair stand on end and he called out to Yu Bing with a smile, then went forward to help take out the food from the bag. Xiao Li turned her head to Yu Bing and smiled sweetly. ¡°Sister Yu Bing, it¡¯s so good to have you around. I can finally stop eating my brother¡¯s awful cooking! If you weren¡¯t busy with work, I would have brought you along on the first day I came.¡± Yu Bing was very relieved when she heard this. She hadn¡¯t doted on them in vain. Although Xiao Lin was still confused, he vaguely sensed that Miss Zhao¡¯s attitude towards Yu Bing didn¡¯t seem pleasant, so he went forward to help and didn¡¯t look at Miss Zhao anymore. As a girl, Xiao Li was keen and could tell that Miss Zhao was targeting Yu Bing. When she said that, she meant that she wanted Yu Bing to come. The fact that Yu Bing had put down her work amidst her busy schedule meant that Yu Bing and the Xiao family were very close. Yu Bing stroked Xiao Li l s head as she complained with a smile, ¡®Your brother is so clumsy. He still has to practice for at least another ten years.¡± With that, Yu Bing turned to look at Miss Zhao. ¡°Miss Zhao, I dont have to report my work arrangements to you, do I? Even cows have time to rest. It¡¯s the new year, but you know how to exploit people better than landlords.¡± Some people didn¡¯t deserve respect. Yu Bing wouldn¡¯t stand on ceremony if she asked for trouble. When Miss Zhao heard Yu Bing comparing her to an exploitative landlord, she couldn¡¯t maintain the gentle expression on her face anymore. She glared at Yu Bing and said, ¡°Stop slandering me. When did I say I wouldn¡¯t let you rest?! Can¡¯t I just ask a question?!¡± Yu Bing smiled aloofly. ¡°Interrogation is also a form of questioning. I¡¯m just answering your question, so why are you so angry? Since Xiao Sheng wasn¡¯t around, Miss Zhao rolled her eyes at Yu Bing and left. When Xiao Li heard Miss Zhao leave, she looked up and asked Yu Bing curiously, ¡°Sister Yu Bing, does Sister Zhao like my brother?¡± Xiao Lin¡¯s hand that was holding the lunch box trembled and he immediately turned around to express his opinion. ¡°I don¡¯t want Sister Zhao to be my sister-in-law. I keep feeling that every time she comes to visit us, her smile is so fake.¡± Xiao Lin knew that it wasn¡¯t good to speak ill of others behind their backs, but this concerned their family and his brother¡¯s lifelong happiness, so he couldn¡¯t care less now. Moreover, he still felt that it was best for Sister Yu Bing to be their sister-in-law. Xiao Li couldn¡¯t see, but she could feel that although Miss Zhao came to see her and expressed concern about her every time, she was actually asking about their family¡¯s situation and her brothers matters 90% of the time. However, she couldn¡¯t chase her away. However, Xiao Li knew that there were many things in her family that couldn¡¯t be known to others. Most of the time, she would think of ways to cooperate with her second brother to brush the matter over. Thus, she was very tired every day. Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect Xiao Li to be so keen, so she smiled as she replied, ¡°Even you can tell, but your brother doesn¡¯t know at all!¡± When Xiao Li heard this, she said to Yu Bing worriedly, ¡°Sister Yu Bing, I don¡¯t want Sister Zhao to be my sister-in-law either, but what if my brother likes Xiao Lin frowned when he heard this. If his brother liked her, he really had no choice. When Xiao Sheng entered the room, he happened to hear Xiao Li l s words. He quickly closed the door and went forward angrily. ¡°What nonsense are you talking about? When did I say I like Miss Zhao?! You guys are spreading rumors about me?!¡± With that, he looked at Yu Bing nervously. Yu Bing rolled her eyes and directed her anger towards him.. Chapter 489 - Chapter 489: I Won’t Like Her In The Future Either Chapter 489: I Won¡¯t Like Her In The Future Either Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Xiao Sheng could only say to his siblings, ¡°Let me tell you, I have nothing to do with Miss Zhao! I don¡¯t like her at all.¡¯ After saying that, Xiao Sheng thought for a moment and felt that he wasn¡¯t being firm enough, so he added, ¡°I won¡¯t like her in the future either!¡± Xiao Li and Xiao Lin were relieved when they heard this and started eating with relish. Xiao Sheng seemed to be saying this to his siblings, but he was actually showing Yu Bing his determination. When Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng were close together, she said softly, ¡°You sound quite firm, but no one knows what will happen in the future.¡± Xiao Sheng felt extremely aggrieved that Yu Bing still looked like she didn¡¯t believe him, so he said angrily, ¡°Then I¡¯ll go wherever you go in the future. I¡¯ll let you watch me.¡± After Xiao Sheng said this, for the next half of the day, he insisted on following Yu Bing even if she had to go to the bathroom. He was determined not to be beyond three meters away from her. Before bed every night, Yu Bing would go to the public bathroom. To Yu Bing, she didn¡¯t want to use a bucket if she could avoid it. Although there was a lid, it was still in the room. As long as she fell asleep, she usually wouldn¡¯t wake up again. Yu Bing glanced at Xiao Sheng, who had followed her out, and pushed him back into the door. ¡°I want to go to the bathroom. You¡¯re not allowed to follow me!¡± After Yu Bing left, she heard footsteps behind her and turned to look at Xiao Sheng. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t look at Yu Bing, who was annoyed. Yu Bing lost her temper and said, ¡°How immature! Are you a child?¡± Xiao Sheng tilted his head and replied softly, ¡°I¡¯m only immature in front of you.¡± Xiao Sheng followed her without hesitation. After Yu Bing entered the public bathroom, he waited outside. There were not many people in the alley. Occasionally, one or two would come to the bathroom like Yu Bing. When Yu Bing came out and saw Xiao Sheng standing not far away, she felt angry and amused. Then, she went forward and patted Xiao Shengs arm a few times. It was winter, so he was wearing a coat. These few smacks didn¡¯t hurt at all. He didn¡¯t even feel a tickle. The two of them returned to the rented apartment. After closing the door, Yu Bing stopped Xiao Sheng, who wanted to return to his room. ¡°Can you stop fooling around?¡± Xiao Sheng suppressed his smile. ¡°Then do you believe me now? Yu Bing immediately nodded. ¡°I believe you!¡¯ Xiao Sheng hugged Yu Bing tightly. As he looked at the little girl in his arms, he gritted his teeth and said, ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to anger me like this next time!¡± Xiao Sheng hadn¡¯t followed her for nothing. Yu Bing had been unpredictable these past two days, and his siblings made such a guess today, so Xiao Sheng understood after thinking about it for a while. He also knew that Yu Bing was just feeling uncomfortable. If she really didn¡¯t believe him, she would have packed up and left long ago. She wouldn¡¯t have given him a chance to follow her. Yu Bing turned around slightly and pursed her lips to hide her smile. Seeing the smirk on Yu Bings lips, Xiao Sheng tightened his grip on her arm. ¡°Why are you still smiling?! Don¡¯t you know how I treat you? You¡¯re actually jealous over this.¡± Yu Bing blushed and said stubbornly, ¡°Who¡¯s jealous?! I¡¯m happy for you. After all, she¡¯s good-looking and has a good family background. If you marry her, it can save you decades of hard work.¡± Xiao Sheng smiled when he heard this. ¡°What if I want to suffer with you? Will you give me a chance to?¡± Who didn¡¯t like sweet nothings? Moreover, they came from a usually slow-witted person like Xiao Sheng. Yu Bing looked up at Xiao Sheng with her watery eyes and smiled slightly as she said gently, ¡°It depends on your performance.¡± With the person he had been longing for in his arms, Xiao Sheng couldn¡¯t help but lower his head and kiss Yu Bings smooth forehead. Yu Bings heart skipped a beat. Xiao Sheng couldn¡¯t help but kiss her nose, the tip of her nose, and then her The moment their lips touched, the two of them felt a sense of numbness, but neither of them could bear to separate, nor did they take things to the next step. They just enjoyed this moment of intimacy. However, men were different from women after all. The close distance between the two of them made Xiao Sheng smell Yu Bings fragrance and he suddenly felt a sense of desire arise. Xiao Sheng kissed Yu Bing hard before finally letting go. Xiao Sheng hurriedly said to Yu Bing, ¡°Go to bed early. I¡¯m going back to my room first.¡± Chapter 490 - Chapter 490: Been Through Life-and-Death Together Chapter 490: Been Through Life-and-Death Together Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Bing was a little confused when she saw Xiao Sheng suddenly run away. Then, she thought of their actions just now and returned to her room with a blush. The next morning, when the two of them first saw each other, they felt that the atmosphere was a little different from before. It was as if the barrier between the two of them had suddenly disappeared. The two of them ate millet porridge, eggs, and sweet potatoes in the morning. After eating, they set off for the hospital together. For the next few days, everything went according to plan. Everyone¡¯s learning ground was also transferred from their home to the ward. Xiao Lin had changed a lot. In the past, whenever he saw books, he would complain. Now, he suddenly seemed to have grown up and realized the importance of learning. He took the initiative to learn things every day and even ask for practice questions from Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng. The four of them felt as if they had returned to the He Mountain Village. Other than Miss Zhao finding excuses to come to the ward from time to time, everything was peaceful. Ever since Xiao Sheng clarified the misunderstanding he had accidentally caused that day, Xiao Sheng would take the initiative to avoid Miss Zhao in the hospital. When he couldn¡¯t avoid it, he would only say one word to her. However, Xiao Shengs cold attitude didn¡¯t make Miss Zhao retreat. Instead, she became even more encouraged. On the fifth day of the new year, Xiao Sheng told Yu Bing that he wanted to visit Zeng Li. When Xiao Sheng thought of how Zeng Li had helped him when he brought Xiao Li here, he felt a little embarrassed. ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to Zeng Li that Xiao Li was treated. Until now, I¡¯ve only treated him to a meal.¡± Zeng Li had indeed helped a lot, so Yu Bing nodded and said, ¡°New years is the time to visit relatives and friends, so we should visit him. I¡¯ll go too. We all know each other, so it¡¯s not good for me to stay behind.¡± When Xiao Sheng thought of Zeng Li l s family background, he felt that it might not be convenient to visit directly. After the two of them discussed it for a while, they decided to invite Zeng Li out for a meal. After the two of them agreed, Xiao Sheng called the Zeng family. The person who answered the call happened to be Zeng Li. Zeng Li was feeling bored at home, so when she heard the invitation, she immediately agreed. Both parties agreed to meet at five o¡¯clock. After Zeng Li hung up the phone, he said to Lin Xue, ¡°I won¡¯t be home for dinner tonight.¡± ¡°You brat, it wasn¡¯t easy for me to get you home. Where are you going now? Zeng Rou¡¯s in-laws had a bunch of relatives from her hometown, so she was busy entertaining them until yesterday. After they returned, she took the time to bring her son back to her parents¡¯ house. As soon as she entered, she heard that her brother was going out to eat during the new year. Zeng Li smiled and said, ¡°A friend came from afar. He wants to thank me by treating me to a meal.¡± ¡°Uncle!¡± Two boys rushed out from behind Zeng Rou and pounced on Zeng Li. Zeng Li collapsed on the sofa in an exaggerated manner. ¡°Oh my, my two fat nephews are going to crush me!¡± Zeng Rou¡¯s two children were 7 and 11 years old. Each of them was more slender than the other. Their nicknames were Big Fatty and Little Fatty. They were at the age when they were unruly troublemakers. However, Zeng Li was once the king of the children in the neighborhood and he subdued them in a few moves, so the two of them admired Zeng Li very much. Seeing that her sister-in-law only brought the children back, Lin Xue asked with concern, ¡°Why didn¡¯t their father come back?¡± After Zeng Rou placed the box of ginseng she had brought back on the table, she sat on the sofa. ¡°He received an assignment at the last minute this morning, so I had to come back myself.¡± When Zeng Wei saw Zeng Rou return home, he took the opportunity to persuade Zeng Li, ¡°It¡¯s rare for your second sister to come back for the new year and our family to have a meal together, so why don¡¯t you and your friend meet another day?¡± Zeng Li didn¡¯t expect his second sister to return either, so he said awkwardly, ¡°I¡¯ve already promised them.¡± In fact, the main reason was that he also wanted to play with Xiao Sheng. After all, even when his family didn¡¯t celebrate the holidays together, his family ate together occasionally. They were all in the same place, so it wasn¡¯t difficult for them to meet. Moreover, he had already been detained at home for a blind date from the start of the new year to yesterday. It wasn¡¯t easy for them to give him a break today, but his brother had found an excuse to let him accompany him until now. Zeng Rou said aloofly, ¡°You and your friends see each other all day long. Accompany me for a meal.¡± When Zeng Li heard this, he immediately retorted, ¡°We¡¯re not just ordinary friends. Xiao Sheng and I have been through life and death together!¡± Zeng Rou paused when she heard this name. ¡°Is he the friend whose sister is going to have a cornea transplant?¡± Zeng Li nodded vigorously. ¡°It¡¯s him!¡± Zeng Rou had met Xiao Sheng and his siblings before. On the first day they came to S City, Xiao Sheng brought Xiao Li to the hospital for a checkup. At that time, she happened to be patrolling the hospital with other doctors and saw Zeng Li bringing them to the ophthalmology department, so they greeted each other.. Chapter 491 - Chapter 491: Invitation Chapter 491: Invitation Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations When Zeng Rou thought of how Xiao Sheng had made Jiang Heng and Ning Bi return empty-handed, her impression of him improved. ¡°Your friend is not bad. Jiang Heng wanted to cut the queue and even came to me to ask me to pull strings for him again.¡± ¡°Pfft! If it weren¡¯t for his Old Master, I would have retorted directly the first time. He even wanted me to pull strings for him twice. How shameless! I didn¡¯t agree, so he said to me that if he could use money to make the other party give up, I wouldn¡¯t be able to interfere in this matter. He looked very confident.¡± ¡°At that time, I was thinking that if your friend was really so greedy for that bit of money that he abandoned his family, I definitely wouldn¡¯t let you get close to him.¡± Zeng Li said with certainty, ¡°That¡¯s impossible. He values his family the most. He¡¯s very unyielding! With that, he explained the basic situation of the Xiao family. After the Zeng family found out that Xiao Sheng had supported the family since the age of 13 and even saved up for his sister¡¯s surgery fees, their impression of him improved a lot. Zeng Wei knew what kind of friends Zeng Li had. It wasn¡¯t easy to meet someone like Xiao Sheng, but he was still worried and wanted to keep an eye on him. If Xiao Sheng was really that good, he would let Zeng Li learn from Xiao Sheng. He was in his twenties, so he was still quite impulsive. ¡°In that case, invite him to our house for dinner.¡± Zeng Li also felt that this was a good idea. After dinner, she could use the excuse of sending them off to go out to play. ¡°Good idea. I¡¯ll give him a call. By the way, his girlfriend came with him. She¡¯s the factory director of the food factory I ordered chili sauce from.¡± When Zeng Li found out that Yu Bing had specifically come to accompany Xiao Bing this time, she thought that their relationship had been confirmed. When Lin Xue heard this, she remembered. ¡°Miss Yu, the one you said was very good at cooking?¡± Zeng Li nodded. ¡°Then I¡¯ll go look for them. It¡¯s three o i clock now, so I¡¯ll bring them over early. By the way, make more food so that he can pack a portion for his siblings.¡± Lin Xue replied readily, ¡°No problem.¡± After saying that, Zeng Li moved to his brother¡¯s side and put his arms around Zeng Wei¡¯s shoulders as he smiled and said, ¡°Brother, can I borrow your car? It¡¯s freezing outside. It¡¯s quite far from the military-affiliated hospital.¡± Seeing that it was no longer snowing outside, Zeng Wei didn¡¯t stop him. He only reminded him, ¡°Be careful and drive slowly! The snow has just melted, so the road is still wet.¡± When Zeng Li heard that he could borrow the car, he nodded obediently. His two nephews also wanted to go, but Zeng Li hurriedly ran away after appeasing them. Zeng Li had never been to Xiao Li l s hospital this time, so he didn¡¯t know where she was staying. He went to the ophthalmology consultation nurse station first. After asking her, he found the ward and pushed the door open. In the empty ward, there were four people studying and doing questions. Even Xiao Li was holding a book and touching the braille text on it. After Zeng Li closed the door, he said helplessly, ¡°You guys are still studying during the new year? If the college entrance examination resumes, if any one of your family members fails to get into the capital¡¯s university, I¡¯ll suspect that the scoring teacher made a mistake.¡± When Xiao Li and Xiao Lin heard his voice, they turned around and greeted him obediently, ¡°Hello, Brother Zeng. We wish you a smooth new year and that everything will go your way.¡± Zeng Li took out two red packets from his pocket and handed them over with a smile. ¡°I love hearing such blessings.¡± Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing were a little baffled when they saw Zeng Li suddenly appear. It wasn¡¯t five o¡¯clock yet. Yu Bing had not seen Zeng Li for a long time, so she went forward and greeted him with a smile, ¡°Happy New Year.]¡¯ At this point, Yu Bing paused for a moment before deliberately whispering, ¡°I wish you happiness and prosperity! The saying ¡®I wish you happiness and prosperity¡¯ was derogatory in this era of poverty. Although everyone wanted happiness and prosperity, the environment didn¡¯t allow it. Over time, this New Year blessing disappeared. However, Zeng Li was different. Although what he did couldn¡¯t be exposed out in the open, he was a businessman in essence. Upon hearing this long-lost blessing, Zeng Li revealed a knowing expression and said, ¡°If you were younger, I would have given you double the red packet!¡± After Zeng Li finished speaking, he gave everyone his blessings. After Xiao Sheng looked at the time and saw that it was just past four o¡¯clock, he joked, ¡°You¡¯re this anxious for me to treat you? Only then did Zeng Li reveal his motive. ¡°I want to invite you guys to my house for dinner..¡± Chapter 492 - Chapter 492: Dirty Scoop Chapter 492: Dirty Scoop Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng were stunned. Xiao Sheng said, ¡°That¡¯s not appropriate Aren¡¯t you staying in the military district with your brother? It¡¯s probably not convenient.¡± It was very troublesome for outsiders to enter the military district¡¯s neighborhood. If there was no resident to bring them in, the guard would call the other party first to inform them. After confirming that the other party had agreed to see them, he would personally send them to the door of the other party¡¯s house. Firstly, it was to prevent any communication mistakes. Secondly, most of the people living there were soldiers and family members of those with military positions, so they had to be cautious. Zeng Li waved his hand nonchalantly. ¡°My brother asked me to call you guys. It¡¯s fine. Come with me. I¡¯ll get the chauffeur to pack some food for these two little fellows and send it over later.¡± They even thought of Xiao Li and Xiao Lin¡¯s dinner. When Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng heard this, they couldn¡¯t refuse anymore. After getting into the car, Yu Bing suddenly remembered that she couldn¡¯t go to someone else¡¯s house empty-handed during the new year. Yu Bing said to Zeng Li, ¡°Drive back to our place first. I¡¯ll get something first.¡± Zeng Li knew that Yu Bing must have prepared gifts. ¡°My family has everything. Just take some random things. There¡¯s no need to be so formal.¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°We don¡¯t have any expensive goods, so we can only express our sincerity with some things we made ourselves.¡± When Zeng Li thought of Yu Bings culinary skills, he replied with a smile, ¡°It¡¯s only delicious if you cook it yourself! The key is that it has to pass through your hands. Just don¡¯t let it pass through Xiao Shengs.¡± Xiao Shengs expression darkened and he felt helpless. His lack of culinary skills was his biggest shortcoming. After returning to the rented house, Yu Bing took a bag of dried sweet potatoes. She ate the dried sweet potatoes as snacks when she was bored. Now, they happened to come in handy. She also took the spicy beef sauce. Everyone was accommodating to Xiao Li¡¯ s light diet now, so these two jars could be given away. Then, she went to the supply company to buy some fruits and pastries. As Yu Bing sat in the car, she looked through the packed gifts. ¡°Unfortunately, our goods haven¡¯t been sold here yet. I wonder if these pastries are delicious.¡± Zeng Li had taken a portion of the goods from Xiao Sheng now, so he naturally knew the situation. ¡°The taste isn¡¯t bad, but the price here is much higher than your factory¡¯s!¡± Yu Bing nodded. ¡°Then it seems that with the additional transportation tee, we still have an advantage.¡± Yu Bing began to think about business again. The group quickly arrived at the Zeng family¡¯s house. The houses in the military neighborhood had two specifications, which were a single-family buildings and a tube-shaped buildings. Zeng Wei was assigned to a three-story building and there was a small courtyard at the entrance. They planted flowers on one side and veggies on the other. Zeng Li led Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing into the house. ¡°I¡¯m back.¡± Zeng Rou¡¯s two children were playing inside. When they saw their uncle return, they ran forward, but when they saw the two unfamiliar guests, they greeted them politely first. Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng took out red packets and handed them over. Zeng Li smiled and introduced, ¡°These are my sister¡¯s two sons, Big Fatty and Little Fatty.¡± Zeng Wei was watching the news on the television in the living room. There was no remote control in this era, so he had to press it manually to change it. When Zeng Wei saw that the guests had arrived, he stood up and went forward to lower the volume so that it didn¡¯t affect their conversation. Zeng Li brought the two of them into the living room and said, ¡°This is my brother, Zeng Wei! Brother, this is my good buddy, Xiao Sheng. This is Yu Bing. When Yu Bing saw Zeng Wei, she could barely maintain her composure. She knew that Zeng Li¡¯s family background was extraordinary, but she didn¡¯t expect his brother to be Zeng Wei, who would appear at important news conferences in the country in the future. Yu Bing swallowed nervously as she greeted, ¡°Happy New Year, Mr. Zeng.¡± Zeng Wei smiled and nodded in response. He looked very amiable, but he was intimidating as well. Zeng Wei pointed at the sofa beside him as he called out to the two of them, ¡°Please sit.¡± Zeng Rou and Lin Xue brought honey water and a plate of cut fruits from the kitchen. Zeng Li introduced them again. When Lin Xue saw Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng sitting together like a couple, she couldn¡¯t help but think of her brother-in-law¡¯s marriage. She smiled and said, ¡°You two look really compatible together, unlike Zeng Li. He¡¯s already 22 years old but still doesn¡¯t have a girlfriend.¡± After Lin Xue finished speaking, she looked at Zeng Li, who didn¡¯t want to get married, and she felt a little vexed. ¡°Look at them. They have company during the new year.. Don¡¯t you feel lonely?¡± Chapter 493 - Chapter 493: Urging Marriage Chapter 493: Urging Marriage Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Whenever elders saw their juniors, their favorite thing to do was to urge them to get married. Although Zeng Li was only 22 years old and there were many boys who got married after the age of 20, Zeng Li didn¡¯t even have a girlfriend. How could Lin Xue not be anxious? Her son had already found a childhood sweetheart in the neighborhood, so Zeng Li was her focus now. After all, her mother-in-law had called a few times to ask. When Zeng Li heard the question, he immediately shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m not lonely at all! I¡¯m usually very busy. I only have free time during the new year.¡± Lin Xue couldn¡¯t continue this topic in front of the guests, so she glared at Zeng Li. Zeng Li immediately shut up. As for Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng, who had been paired up by the Zeng family at some point, the two of them couldn¡¯t explain. In addition, Zeng Li and Lin Xue had already digressed from the topic, so they could only skip this segment. Lin Xue chatted with them for a while before entering the kitchen to cook. Zeng Rou followed her in to help. Zeng Wei originally wanted to chat with Xiao Sheng to understand more about his character, but he didn¡¯t expect that the more he chatted, the more he liked him. Xiao Sheng had levelheadedness and wisdom that far exceeded that of his age, especially his tenacity. This was the first time Zeng Wei had shown fondness and approval towards his friend, so Zeng Li couldn¡¯t help but feel a little smug. ¡°Xiao Sheng is really impressive and he¡¯s very skilled! By the way, Xiao Sheng was the one who helped me block Zou Kun¡¯s knife attack last time. He saved my life. That¡¯s how I was able to escape.¡± Zeng Wei was stunned for a moment. Previously, when Zeng Li told him about this, his first reaction was that Zeng Li¡¯s capable subordinates saved him. Now that he knew that it was Xiao Sheng, Zeng Wei had a new idea. He looked at Xiao Sheng and said with a smile, ¡°Then I have to test your skills! Do you want to compete with me?¡± Big Fatty and Little Fatty went to watch the battle together. Men liked to challenge people stronger than them, and Xiao Sheng also wanted to spar with powerful people to learn more efficient moves. There was a room on the first floor of the Zeng family¡¯s house and it was usually used for sparring. There was also a military sand table against the wall. Zeng Wei had educated his sons and Zeng Li in military knowledge since they were young. Unfortunately, Zeng Li didn¡¯t put in any effort to learn. Fortunately, his sons were more productive. The training room was filled with men and when they fought to their heart¡¯s content, they would definitely have to take their tops off. Therefore, Yu Bing didn¡¯t follow them in. Seeing this, Zeng Rou came out to chat with Yu Bing. When Yu Bing saw Zeng Rou picking vegetables, she helped. Zeng Rou hurriedly stopped her. ¡®You¡¯re a guest. If you do chores, that¡¯ll be bad hospitality on our end.¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯ll be a little uneasy if you guys don¡¯t let me do it. You¡¯re all busy, but I¡¯m the only idle person.¡± When Zeng Rou heard this, she hesitated for a moment before saying, ¡°Actually, I really need your help.¡± Because she didn¡¯t know if she could do it or not, Yu Bing didn¡¯t agree immediately. ¡°Miss Zeng, tell me. As long as I can help, I will.¡± Zeng Rou smiled. ¡°You¡¯re friends with Zeng Li, so just call me Second Sister.¡± Zeng Rou felt a little embarrassed since her next words sounded a little presumptuous. ¡°Didn¡¯t you bring canned spicy beef? When my brother brought the goods from your factory, I couldn¡¯t help but try them. It tasted super good!¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never eaten such delicious beef before. I just want to ask how you made it. If your food factory plans to mass-produce it, I¡¯ll get him to bring me some during production. I ¡® Yu Bing heaved a sigh of relief. She didn¡¯t plan to produce this. Firstly, there were few cattle. Beef was rare, and spicy beef was used in large quantities. Secondly, the cost was high, and not many people could afford it. If the market wasn¡¯t big, there was no need to waste time. Moreover, she had many recipes in mind. In the future, when people¡¯s standard of living improved, she could make other beef products. ¡°I made this for myself. If you like it, I¡¯ll give you the recipe.¡± Seeing that Yu Bing was so sensible, Zeng Rou reached out and held her hand as she said with a smile, ¡°Then I¡¯ll have to trouble you. If possible, can you demonstrate it for me? This was easy, so Yu Bing agreed readily.. Chapter 494 - Chapter 494: A Young Man Until Death Chapter 494: A Young Man Until Death Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations When Lin Xue came out and saw this scene, she teased, ¡°From the looks of it, you must have succeeded.¡± Zeng Rou smiled. ¡°Sister-in-law, don¡¯t tease me. You were also waiting for the good news! Yu Bing didn¡¯t expect her spicy beef to be so popular! When Lin Xue saw Yu Bings surprised expression, she smiled and said gently, ¡°I¡¯m from Sichuan Province, but the spicy beef I make isn¡¯t as good as yours. I was really curious and couldn¡¯t help but ask Second Sister to learn how to make it from you.¡± Spicy-flavored dishes stimulated the taste buds, so many popular dishes in the future carried some spiciness. Because of this bottle of canned beef, Yu Bings relationship with the Zeng family¡¯s sister-in-laws had also become much closer. When women chatted about family matters together, they became much closer to each other. After Yu Bing followed them into the kitchen, she began to demonstrate to the two of them. They had to entertain guests during the new year, so they were afraid that they wouldn¡¯t be able to buy groceries in time. Moreover, the supply company was tightly regulated, so there might not be enough goods. Therefore, every family would stock up on a lot of veggies before the new year. Families of these high-ranking officials all had meat and Zeng Li had connections, so Zeng Rou had enough assurance to ask Yu Bing to demonstrate. Yu Bing glanced at the condiments. Fortunately, Lin Xue was from Sichuan Province and had spicy ingredients available. Yu Bing chose a piece of beef tenderloin first and cut it into thin strips. Then, she added seasoning wine, spring onions, ginger, soy sauce, oil, and spice powder to marinate the beef. During the marination, Yu Bing helped Lin Xue do chores in the kitchen. At first, Lin Xue and Zeng Rou tried to stop her, but they failed. Whenever Yu Bing saw a dirty spot, Yu Bing wiped it. When Lin Xue saw Yu Bing working diligently, she was impressed. In fact, the Zeng family didn¡¯t care much about the woman¡¯s family background. As long as she had a clean family background, was generous, and could get along well with the family, it was enough. Lin Xue smiled at Yu Bing and said, ¡°If you didn¡¯t have a boyfriend, I would have matchmade you with Zeng Li no matter what.¡± As soon as she said this, Yu Bing felt that it was better not to explain the misunderstanding, lest she made things worse. ¡°Sister-in-law, don¡¯t worry too much. Zeng Li just hasn¡¯t met the right person yet. When he does, he might immediately have two children in three years.¡± Although Zeng Li didn¡¯t even have a girlfriend, these words struck a chord with Lin Xue. The more she looked at Yu Bing, the fonder she became After half an hour, Yu Bing poured the oil into the cold pot. When the oil heated up, she added beef strips and fried them for six to seven minutes before fishing them out. After Yu Bing poured the oil out of the pot and poured in new oil to boil again, she turned the heat lower and stir-fried the dried chili and pepper. After she mixed the chili noodles with the beef jerky, she placed a small pinch of white sugar, cumin, and white sesame. Then, she stir-fried them evenly and took them out of the pot. When Lin Xue saw this, she clapped her hands. ¡°So you added more white sugar than me! I was wondering about it!¡± Seeing this, Yu Bing explained, ¡°Putting white sugar can increase the freshness.¡± Because there were guests and her sister-in-law was returning to her maiden home for the new year, Lin Xue made a total of ten dishes. ¡°Yu Bing, take a look at what Xiao Shengs siblings like to eat. Pick them out first. I¡¯ll get the chauffeur to send them over.¡± Yu Bing took the lunch box that Lin Xue had washed, but she didn¡¯t pick food from every dish. She only chose four light dishes, which were three meat dishes and one vegetable dish. Lin Xue carefully wrapped another layer in a thermal bag before asking the chauffeur to send it over. After all the dishes were prepared, the others were still fighting intensely. When Lin Xue heard the sound of fighting coming from the training room, she immediately knew what Zeng Wei was thinking. ¡°Mr. Zeng can¡¯t bear to let go of a good seedling. He¡¯s already in his forties, but he still thinks he¡¯s a young man.¡± Lin Xue shook her head and said. Yu Bing didn¡¯t think too much about it when she heard this. She smiled and said, ¡°There¡¯s a saying that men stay young-minded until they die.¡± Zeng Rou brought the last dish to the table. She felt that Yu Bing¡¯s words made sense and said, ¡°Every time Mr. Zeng brings me to the streets, he insists on riding that motorcycle that he finally got. He says that it looks cool. He¡¯s already so old, but he¡¯s still acting like a young man. Alright, I¡¯ll call them for dinner.¡± It wasn¡¯t until Zeng Rou entered the room to call for help that Zeng Wei and Xiao Sheng stopped. The two of them didn¡¯t fight the entire time. They would fight for a while before stopping. Then, they would discuss how to fight and how before continuing. Zeng Li was exhausted from sparring with the two boys.. Chapter 495 - Chapter 495: Plan Chapter 495: Plan Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Seeing Zeng Rou call him for dinner, Zeng Li hurriedly chimed in, ¡°Hurry up and eat. I¡¯m starving! Big Fatty, Little Fatty, Eldest Aunt made a lot of delicious food today. Hurry up and go take a look.¡± When Big Fatty and Little Fatty heard that there was food, they immediately ran away. Zeng Li collapsed on the ground and heaved a sigh of relief. She clearly knew that her brother liked people skilled in martial arts, so why did she mention to Zeng Wei that Xiao Sheng was skilled in martial arts? When Zeng Wei and Xiao Sheng fought previously, they felt that their clothes were in the way, so they only fought in their long johns. Zeng Wei took out a clean spare towel from the cabinet beside him and let Xiao Sheng wipe his sweat. Xiao Shengs moves were very swift and his endurance was very strong. When Zeng Wei thought of the team he wanted to build, he had a plan in mind. ¡°Who did you learn your skills from? Xiao Sheng scooped up his clothes and wiped his body with a towel. ¡°There¡¯s a guy who¡¯s a few years older than me in my village. He and his brother are both soldiers. I learned it from them.¡± When Zeng Wei heard that the other party was also a soldier, he became even more interested in the person who taught him. He asked, ¡°What are their names? Xiao Sheng paused in his actions. ¡°My older brother sacrificed himself to protect the country¡¯s borders. My younger brother¡¯s name is Zhao Xing.¡± Zeng Wei patted Xiao Shengs shoulder and said with a heavy tone, ¡°Sacrificing one¡¯s life for the country and the people is honorable. We¡¯re all proud of him.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded. People who chose to be soldiers were unafraid of death. Xiao Sheng knew that the moment Brother Zhao died, he definitely felt that his death was worth it. After Zeng Wei and Xiao Sheng came out, everyone sat down. After more than an hour of interaction, Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing had become much more familiar with the Zeng family. When they ate, everyone was no longer as restrained as before. Zeng Wei even opened a bottle of wine. With wine at the dining table, the men ate much slower. From six o¡¯clock, three men ate until almost nine o¡¯clock before leaving the dining table. Zeng Rou had already brought the two children home. Zeng Li was drunk. Zeng Wei was dizzy, but at least he could talk and walk normally. Xiao Shengs face was a little flushed, but he didn¡¯t feel drunk. Zeng Wei and his wife sent Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing to the door. They really liked this young couple. Before they left, they even asked the two of them to come over for a meal before returning to City H. Lin Xue thoughtfully instructed the chauffeur to pick Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing up first before sending the three of them home. It was already half past nine when Yu Bing and the others arrived home. There was a fire in the kitchen¡¯s coal stove and a pot of water had been placed on it before they left the house at noon. At this time, small bubbles were still forming at the bottom of the pot. Yu Bing poured out half a pot and placed it in the wooden basin for Xiao Lin to wash up first. Xiao Lin quickly washed his face and wiped his body in the kitchen. Yu Bing took advantage of this opportunity to light a stove in Xiao Lin¡¯s room. After Xiao Lin tidied himself up, he quickly entered the room. Xiao Sheng leaned against the wall and stared at Yu Bings busy figure. He suddenly felt at home. He was clearly in someone else¡¯s house, but this feeling was very strong. Yu Bing only saw Xiao Sheng after she finished busying. She went forward and waved her hand in front of Xiao Sheng. From the moment she realized that Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t speak in the car, she suspected that he was drunk, but it wasn¡¯t that obvious. Xiao Sheng watched as Yu Bing tested if he was seeing things. He was amused by her cuteness and pulled her hand down gently before hugging her tightly. When Yu Bing smelled the alcohol on Xiao Sheng, she was surprised to find that she didn¡¯t feel disgusted even though she was so close to him. She remembered that in her previous life, before she completely gave up on Yao Nian, Yao Nian had accompanied the supervisor to drink once. He got slightly drunk. Then, he lay on the sofa like a boss while she poured tea and took care of him. However, she was very repulsed by the smell of alcohol on him. When she handed him water, she wished that her arms could grow longer so she could stay as far away as possible. The two of them sat next to each other quietly. Just as Yu Bing felt that she was about to faint from the smell on Xiao Sheng, his magnetic voice suddenly sounded in her ear. ¡°Yu Bing, I really want to become an official soon.¡± Yu Bing raised her face slightly in Xiao Shengs arms. The dim yellow light shone on the side of Xiao Shengs face and gave him a glow. Every contour of his face made Yu Bings heart pound.. Chapter 496 - Chapter 496: Impulse Chapter 496: Impulse Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Bing suddenly thought of the one-year test period. Only half a year had passed. How could she embarrass herself by backtracking? However, she really wanted to be impulsive for once! Yu Bing saw the nervousness in Xiao Shengs eyes and smiled. Then, she placed her hand on his waist and nodded slightly. Actually, Xiao Sheng was just probing because he really didn¡¯t want to wait any longer. Today, when the Zeng family misunderstood but Yu Bing didn¡¯t refute them, his heart skipped a beat. Xiao Sheng was prepared to be rejected, so when Yu Bing agreed, Xiao Sheng widened his eyes slightly, unable to hide his surprise and shock. Yu Bing had never seen him smile so happily before. Xiao Sheng asked Yu Bing again, ¡°You really agree? Yu Bing smiled and nodded affirmatively once again. Xiao Sheng tightened his embrace and carried the person in his arms away from the ground and onto the table. Their foreheads touched and they looked at each other. It wasn¡¯t until Xiao Lin coughed a few times on the bed because his throat itched that the two of them came back to their senses. Xiao Sheng suddenly didn¡¯t know what to say. ¡°You¡­¡± ¡°You¡­¡± Yu Bing also said. The tips of their ears burned. Xiao Sheng smiled at Yu Bing and said, ¡°Wash up and go to bed.¡± After washing up, they returned to their rooms. Yu Bing thought of how she had been hesitating about whether her feelings for Xiao Sheng were love before the new year. Tonight, she was so charmed by him that she was willing to take things to the next step. Perhaps love made her impulsive. Yu Bing covered her mouth and chuckled at herself. However, when she recalled what happened just now, she didn¡¯t regret it at all. At that moment, she only knew that she wanted to be with Xiao Sheng. She didn¡¯t want to hesitate anymore. How could youth not be filled with impulsiveness? The two of them were only a wall away. As Xiao Sheng lay in bed, he couldn¡¯t fall asleep. He tossed and turned restlessly. One moment, he thought of the first time the two of them met, and the next moment, he thought of their first cooperation. Xiao Sheng was very excited and only fell asleep in the latter half of the night. After Yu Bing woke up the next day, she went to the living room. When she saw Xiao Sheng making breakfast with dark circles under his eyes, she suddenly thought of something and asked, ¡°Did you not sleep well last night?¡± Xiao Sheng was a little embarrassed and used Xiao Lin as an excuse. ¡°Xiao Lin snored last night, so I only fell asleep in the middle of the night.¡± When Xiao Lin, who was rubbing his eyes as he left the room, heard this, he immediately retorted, ¡°How can I have snored? Brother, you¡¯re talking nonsense!¡± He had stayed at his friend¡¯s house in the past, but no one had ever said that he had this problem! Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t expect to be exposed on the spot. Looking at Yu Bing¡¯s teasing gaze, he could only brace himself and reply, ¡°How can you hear yourself when you¡¯re asleep? Perhaps it¡¯s because you were too tired yesterday. Do you still want to eat eggs? When I went to the alley this morning, I even met a milk seller who gave me a pound of milk. Didn¡¯t you say that you wanted to drink milk a few days ago? Hurry up and wash up.¡± When Xiao Lin heard that there was milk to drink, he jogged into the kitchen. Yu Bing approached Xiao Sheng with a smile and poked Xiao Sheng¡¯s slightly flushed face with her finger as she said softly, ¡°Why are you so cute?¡± Xiao Sheng glared at the culprit who caused him insomnia in the middle of the night. He was a mature man, so he said, ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to call a man cute.¡± Yu Bing chuckled. ¡°Then should I call you old man? Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing helplessly. Today was the sixth day of the new year, so the shops were basically open. After breakfast, Yu Bing planned to go to the department store and supply company to check the market situation. After talking to Zeng Li yesterday, she wanted to bring forward her plan to move into S City, so she planned to take a few days off to do an investigation. Xiao Sheng was a little worried about Yu Bing being alone, but Xiao Lin couldn¡¯t accompany Xiao Li. He had disappeared for half a day yesterday, so Xiao Lin knew that Zeng Li could call them. The investigation would take an entire day. If the hospital had an urgent matter to discuss with an adult, it would be troublesome if none of them were around. After the two of them discussed for a while, they finally decided that Yu Bing should go alone. Xiao Sheng could only remind Yu Bing to be careful when she went out. Then, he took out the map and confirmed the range of the investigation for today.. Chapter 497 - Chapter 497: Reincarnate Chapter 497: Reincarnate Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Xiao Sheng was peeling oranges in the ward. Xiao Li ate an apple and an orange every day. When Miss Zhao saw that Yu Bing didn¡¯t follow Xiao Sheng to the nurse¡¯s station, she took the medical record book and pen to Xiao Li l s ward. A young nurse with a round face rolled her eyes when she saw her leave. ¡°Is she here to work or pursue guys? She¡¯s been late every day for two years, but ever since she came from that young lady¡¯s family, she¡¯s been extremely enthusiastic about coming to work! Another nurse, who was older, smiled. ¡°She¡¯s from a well-off family, so coming to work or not depends on her mood.¡± The round-faced nurse lamented, ¡°That¡¯s right. Even when choosing a boyfriend, she only considers his looks and not his family background.¡± The older nurse shrugged. ¡°Xiao Sheng is indeed good-looking. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that I¡¯m married, I would have been tempted as well. However, marriage isn¡¯t like dating. After marriage, livelihood will become very important. At that time, good looks will be useless. Zhao Min has the right to be willful. As long as he marries her, the Xiao family will go from rags to riches!¡± The round-faced nurse raised her eyebrows and admitted helplessly, ¡°Indeed, the problem of settling down in the city is difficult for us commoners, but to Zhao Min¡¯s family, it¡¯s a piece of cake.¡± The older nurse agreed. ¡°Xiao Sheng will definitely change his mind. This is something that can change the fate of a family. Even I wouldn¡¯t be able to refuse.¡± The round-faced nurse was interested when she heard this. ¡°You also think that Xiao Sheng and that young lady are a couple, right? However, I don¡¯t think Xiao Sheng will have a change of heart. The two of them seem to have a good relationship. Moreover, when I passed by the ward previously, I accidentally heard that a couple wanted to buy Xiao Li¡¯s queue spot with 10,000 yuan, but Xiao Sheng rejected them directly. I don¡¯t think he¡¯s the kind of person to bend over backward for money! Why don¡¯t we make a bet?¡± When the head nurse heard that the two of them were getting more and more engrossed in their conversation, she coughed lightly. ¡°Do you want me to set up another tea table for you guys?¡± The two nurses immediately lowered their heads. Seeing that the two of them were silent, the head nurse said again, ¡°Get to work!¡± Without Yu Bing in the ward, Zhao Min felt much more at ease. She smiled and greeted everyone. ¡°Brother Xiao, Xiao Li, Xiao Lin, good morning! Xiao Li and Xiao Lin replied politely, ¡°Good morning, Sister Zhao.¡± Xiao Sheng nodded in response and peeled the oranges one by one before handing them to Xiao Li. Zhao Min wasn¡¯t discouraged when she saw Xiao Shengs coldness. ¡°Brother Xiao, I have something to tell you. Let¡¯s go outside.¡± After Xiao Sheng glanced at Zhao Min, he refused without thinking. ¡°Miss Zhao, if you have anything to say, say it here.¡± Zhao Min looked at Xiao Li and said to Xiao Sheng, ¡°There are some things that aren¡¯t easy for me to say here.¡± With that, she turned around and left before Xiao Sheng could react. Seeing this, Xiao Sheng thought that there was something wrong with Xiao Li l s condition and that Zhao Min couldn¡¯t say it in front of her, so he followed Zhao Min. Zhao Min quickly turned into an empty ward. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t think too much about it. It wasn¡¯t until Zhao Min closed the ward door and looked at him from the door that Xiao Sheng realized that he had been tricked. Xiao Shengs expression darkened. ¡°Miss Zhao, it¡¯s not good for a man and a woman to be in the same room alone. Please open the door.¡± When Zhao Min saw Xiao Shengs serious expression, she pursed her lips and smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, no one can see us.¡± She wasn¡¯t stupid. She wouldn¡¯t ruin her own reputation. She just wanted to find a quiet place to talk to him alone. Xiao Sheng wasn¡¯t worried about Zhao Min¡¯s reputation. She asked for it. He was only worried that others would see him, then started gossiping and spread word of it to Yu Bing. He had just become her official boyfriend for 24 hours. He couldn¡¯t have this woman ruin things for him. Zhao Min felt very happy when she saw Xiao Shengs angry expression, since it meant that he cared. It was better than him looking at her coldly. ¡°Xiao Sheng, I like you. Let¡¯s date each other.¡± Zhao Min was very bold. If it were Yu Bing who took the initiative, Xiao Sheng would be so happy that he would start dancing. Xiao Sheng looked at Zhao Min calmly. Thinking that she didn¡¯t know that he had started officially dating Yu Bing last night, he explained patiently, ¡°Miss Zhao, I have a girlfriend, and I love her very much.¡± When Zhao Min heard this, she sneered. She knew that these two people weren¡¯t just friends from the same village! ¡°You guys are only in a relationship. You guys aren¡¯t married.. Besides, how do you know that you won¡¯t fall in love with me?¡± Chapter 498 - Chapter 498: Different Worldviews Chapter 498: Different Worldviews Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Xiao Sheng frowned. Could one cheat just because they were in a relationship and unmarried? When Xiao Sheng heard Zhao Min¡¯s words, he felt that the two of them didn¡¯t see eye to eye, so he said with a cold expression, ¡°I don¡¯t need to know. I only know that other than love, I have responsibilities towards her as well. Miss Zhao, you deserve to find a better person. I owe a lot of money because of my sister¡¯s treatment, and I¡¯m a country bumpkin. I¡¯m not worth your effort. Please move aside. I want to go out.¡± When these words reached Zhao Min¡¯s ears, she felt that she had good taste in men. Xiao Sheng was responsible and loyal, so she didn¡¯t want to let go even more. ¡°What if I don¡¯t let you? Xiao Sheng stared at Zhao Min with an impassive expression for a few seconds. Then, he looked around and walked to the window opposite the door. After he estimated the distance, he jumped down. Zhao Min was so frightened that she hurriedly ran to the window. She saw that the moment Xiao Sheng touched the ground, he rolled forward twice to deflect the impact. There was grass under the window. After Xiao Sheng stood up and patted the weeds and dust off his body, he entered the hospital building through the door again without looking back. His swiftness made Zhao Min¡¯s heart flutter. She covered her face with both hands as she stared at Xiao Shengs departing figure with a smile. Yu Bing met an unexpected person. ¡°Yu Bing!¡¯ When Yu Bing heard the familiar voice, she could guess who it was without turning around. Just as she stopped, Yu Pan rushed in front of her. As Yu Pan looked at Yu Bing¡¯s beautiful face, she felt a little upset. She was originally the prettiest in the family, and even Yu Yan wasn¡¯t as pretty as her. Now, she was actually outshone by Yu Bing. Although she had fallen out with her family last time, Yu Bing still had to pretend in front of outsiders, so she smiled and greeted, ¡°Happy New Year.¡± When Wen Zheng saw Yu Bing, he quickly sized her up. There were no patches on her clothes, and she looked even prettier than the last time they met. Wen Zheng¡¯s eyes flickered as he said, ¡°Happy New Year. We didn¡¯t have the chance to talk more the last time we met. It¡¯s almost lunchtime. Let¡¯s find a place to eat together.¡± When Yu Pan heard this, she looked at Wen Zheng in surprise. This time, they appeared in S City because Wen Zheng wanted to break up with her, but Yu Pan didn¡¯t want to break up. She knew that Wen Zheng had always wanted a foreign technical translation book related to Wen Zheng¡¯s current job. However, only S City had this book. Moreover, one had to have a special stamp in order to buy such a book. Not everyone could buy it. Yu Pan found an old classmate from a newspaper agency to help. She put in a good word for him and gave him a gift. She spent the 20 yuan she had saved up to get a stamp in order to win Wen Zheng over. Thus, Wen Zheng didn¡¯t mention the breakup again. This time, she insisted on coming with Wen Zheng to buy the book. Yu Pan¡¯s idea was very simple. She wanted to appease Wen Zheng during this trip. The two of them had been in a relationship for more than half a year. At first, Yu Pan had the upperhand. However, for some reason, Yu Pan actually fell for him. In fact, Wen Zheng¡¯s family background was very ordinary. His parents were both employed, but there were six children at home. He was the fourth oldest. He had two elder sisters and an elder brother, and two younger brothers. As a middle, he wasn¡¯t paid much attention to by his parents. Before he was assigned to the agency¡¯s dorm, the two of them could only squeeze on the iron bed in the Wen family¡¯s living room. Yu Pan, who had always been realistic, completely changed when she met Wen Zheng. Wen Zheng was a pragmatic person. He realized that Yu Pan¡¯s family background was better than his, but her family was misogynistic. Moreover, she only had looks but no brains, so he immediately wanted to dump her. He was looking for a helper, not a useless vase. It wasn¡¯t until Yu Pan unintentionally mentioned that Yu Bing was the director of the Delicious Food Factory before the new year that he didn¡¯t insist on breaking up anymore. He had gone to City H for a business trip previously and knew that this brand was very famous in the Jiang Province. To be able to make this brand so famous in such a short period of time, Yu Bing had to have some connections. Previously, they had not been able to talk, so Wen Zheng was determined to build a relationship with Yu Bing this time. Yu Bing wasn¡¯t familiar with Wen Zheng, so she rejected, ¡°No need. I still have something to do. You guys can eat first.¡± Wen Zheng smiled and said in a gentle voice, ¡°No matter how busy you are, you still have to eat. Moreover, it¡¯s a joyous occasion for the two of you to meet out of town so coincidentally during the new year. The first time we met was too sudden last time. I was really a little embarrassed that I didn¡¯t prepare a welcome gift or treat you to a meal last time. Take it as me making up for it this time..¡± Chapter 499 - Chapter 499: Hope of Marriage Chapter 499: Hope of Marriage Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations When Yu Pan heard this, she felt that Wen Zheng definitely still had her in his heart. Otherwise, why would he think of treating her family to a meal? Wasn¡¯t this a sign of goodwill? She felt touched and actually treated Yu Bing nicer than usual. Yu Pan smiled and held Yu Bings hand as she said, ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s rare for us to get together under such circumstances. Don¡¯t be shy.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t want to be too involved with the Yu family, but at this moment, her stomach growled. Yu Bing blushed slightly, and Yu Pan kept pulling her into the restaurant beside her, so she didn¡¯t refuse. ¡°Thanks for the treat, Brother Wen. Wen Zheng smiled amiably. ¡°We¡¯re family.¡± These words made Yu Pan¡¯s heart pound and she felt that there was hope for their marriage. She decided to perform well in front of Wen Zheng today and let him see her gentle and considerate side to her family. Thinking of this, she became even more enthusiastic towards Yu Bing, but this contrast frightened Yu Bing so much that she thought that Yu Pan must be out of her mind. Wen Zheng ordered red braised pork and stir-fried vegetables. Although there were only two dishes, they were enough. Yu Pan felt very proud. Red braised pork was quite extravagant! While waiting for the dishes to be served, Yu Pan asked curiously, ¡°Why are you in City S at this time? Yu Bing hid the Xiao family¡¯s matter and said coldly, ¡°It¡¯s boring to stay in the village, so I came out to inspect the market.¡± Wen Zheng looked at Yu Bing in admiration and said with a smile, ¡°Previously, I heard from Yu Pan that you¡¯re the director of the food factory. I was thinking that since a young lady like you achieved this position, you must be very smart. Now, it seems that you¡¯re diligent as well.¡± Wen Zheng sounded very smarmy. As Yu Bing looked at Wen Zheng, she felt that if this person wasn¡¯t really gentle and honest, he must be cunning and sly. However, this was only the second time they met, so Yu Bing didn¡¯t jump to conclusions and only chatted with the other party as if they were ordinary friends. Because Yu Pan didn¡¯t cause trouble and even smiled from time to time, Yu Bing enjoyed the meal quite comfortably. Yu Bing could also tell that Wen Zheng wasn¡¯t as unassuming as he looked on the surface. Instead, he was a very smart person. He was sensible, eloquent, and motivated. He had a strong sense of purpose and was indeed much better than the husband Yu Pan had found in her previous life. However, with his IQ, he could manipulate Yu Pan very easily, unlike in her previous life, where the husband and wife maintained an equal relationship and neither took advantage of the other. However, Yu Bing couldn¡¯t be bothered with Yu Pan¡¯s private matters as long as she didn¡¯t provoke her. Wen Zheng also realized that Yu Bing wasn¡¯t as meek as she looked. She was decisive and smart. Her brilliant thoughts impressed him and talking to her even made him feel that he was too ignorant. Wen Zheng knew that being a factory director definitely wasn¡¯t Yu Bings zenith! It was very good to be friends with such a person, but Wen Zheng felt that if she was his wife, he couldn¡¯t control her. It was better not to provoke her or become an enemy. After the two of them separated, Wen Zheng looked at Yu Pan, who was still smiling foolishly, and shook his head helplessly. She didn¡¯t understand his ulterior motive towards Yu Bing at all! When Yu Pan saw that Wen Zheng was still holding the book, she hurriedly took it. ¡°I¡¯ll take it. Don¡¯t tire yourself out.¡± Wen Zheng glanced at Yu Pan and suddenly felt that marrying her seemed to be a good choice. Yu Pan¡¯s heart was filled with him, so he wasn¡¯t worried about being cheated on at all. Most importantly, Yu Pan had always been obedient to him. Moreover, even in such a misogynistic family, she still fought for her own rights and interests instead of helping her brother curry favor with her parents. She was on the As long as he had a good relationship with his sister-in-law, he believed that he would definitely be able to get some help from her in the future. After all, with his family background, it was very difficult for him to marry someone with better conditions. After making up his mind, Wen Zheng said to Yu Pan, ¡°Let¡¯s get married.¡± Yu Pan was so surprised that she didn¡¯t even know that the book in her hand had fallen. She looked at Wen Zheng in a daze as she asked in disbelief, ¡°Are you serious? When Wen Zheng saw Yu Pan¡¯s expression, he smiled and bent down to pick up the book. ¡°But you also know my family¡¯s situation. I can¡¯t give you any betrothal gifts. I wonder how much your family wants?¡± Yu Pan knew that her parents would definitely ask for an exorbitant amount. She couldn¡¯t let them ruin her marriage. Her eyes darted around as she said, ¡°I¡¯ll go home and ask around first.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t know that her appearance had actually facilitated Yu Pan¡¯s marriage. She was busy until five in the afternoon before driving back to the rented house to prepare dinner. Yu Bing had told with Xiao Sheng that she would come back every day to cook and bring the food over, so Xiao Sheng wouldn¡¯t have to run back and forth in the cold.. Chapter 500 - Chapter 500: Nothing Chapter 500: Nothing Translator: Henyee Translations | Editor: Henyee Translations Ever since that incident, Zhao Min had gone to Xiao Li¡¯s ward even more frequently. However, Xiao Sheng had been tricked once, so he refused to talk with Zhao Min alone anymore. No matter what excuse she used, he would at most talk to her in the corridor of the ward. Even Xiao Li and Xiao Lin felt that something was wrong. The round-faced nurse watched as Zhao Min turned into Xiao Li l s room again and shook her head. ¡°How can she be so thick-skinned? Xiao Sheng clearly doesn¡¯t want to talk to her.¡± When the older nurse saw Yu Bing walking over from the staircase, she nudged the round-faced nurse with her shoulder and said excitedly, ¡°There¡¯s gonna be drama!¡± When Yu Bing entered the room, she saw Zhao Min smiling sweetly at Xiao Sheng. She smiled and greeted her calmly, ¡°Miss Zhao, you¡¯re quite free. Every time I come, you¡¯re checking on Xiao Li.¡± Zhao Min raised her head slightly. ¡°This is my responsibility. There aren¡¯t many people in the ophthalmology department who are hospitalized now, so I naturally have to do my best. After all, I can help. On the other hand, it¡¯s quite hard on you. Although everyone knows how to cook, when things get busy, such a small matter can only be done by those who are idle.¡± Zhao Min¡¯s words made it clear that she was more useful than Yu Bing, who could only do small things that everyone knew how to do. Yu Bing wasn¡¯t irked at all. She smiled and placed the lunch box on the cabinet. Xiao Sheng knew very well how much Yu Bing had helped him, but she couldn¡¯t tell anyone about this, or else she would implicate him and make people look down on him. This was the first time Xiao Sheng showed anger towards Zhao Min ever since he jumped out of the window a few days ago. ¡°Miss Zhao, our family is preparing to eat. Please get out immediately.¡± When Zhao Min saw that Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t care about her reputation at all and embarrassed her in front of so many people, her eyes instantly turned red. She glanced at Yu Bing, who ignored her, and knew that Xiao Sheng was angry because she had provoked Yu Bing just now. The anger in her heart intensified. She glared at Yu Bing and turned to leave. As Yu Bing looked at Zhao Min, who had lost without her even having to make a move, she thought of a future saying. ¡°A smart woman would deal with men. Only a stupid woman would deal with women.¡± If Zhao Min really snatched Xiao Sheng away, she would treat it as her misjudging Xiao Sheng. Xiao Li and Xiao Lin could sense Xiao Shengs anger, so the two of them were extremely quiet as they held their lunch boxes. Seeing this, Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°Why are you guys standing there in a daze? If you guys don¡¯t eat now, the food will get cold.¡± With that, Yu Bing picked up the remaining lunch box and walked to Xiao Sheng. Then, she looked up with a smile and said, ¡°Let¡¯s eat.¡± Xiao Sheng took the lunch box and secretly glanced at Yu Bing. When he realized that she didn¡¯t seem angry, he was relieved. ¡°The day after our relationship became official, I told her that I had a girlfriend. I can count the number of times I¡¯ve talked to her these past few days on my fingers. We were always discussing Xiao Li¡¯s condition.¡± Yu Bing chuckled. ¡°What¡¯s there to be angry about? Didn¡¯t you already chase her away? Xiao Sheng saw the trust in Yu Bings eyes and smiled. ¡°My attitude has always been firm.¡± When Xiao Li heard their conversation, she asked in surprise, ¡°Brother, Sister Yu Bing, are you two together?¡± Xiao Sheng was a little embarrassed by his sister¡¯s question, but Yu Bing smiled and continued, ¡°Yes, do you welcome me into your family?¡± Xiao Li smiled and shouted, ¡°Of course you¡¯re welcome!¡± Xiao Lin still had food in his mouth, but he couldn¡¯t wait to express his stance. ¡°I welcome you too. I asked Brother to marry you early on, but he was unwilling to at that time.¡± Xiao Lin was so happy that he sold Xiao Sheng out. Xiao Sheng glared at Xiao Lin, who was still talking non-stop, and explained to Yu Bing in embarrassment, ¡°With my family¡¯s previous situation, I didn¡¯t intend to get married, nor did I want to implicate you.¡± Yu Bing knew Xiao Shengs character, so she said jokingly, ¡°Sometimes, 1 plus 1 isn¡¯t just equal to 2, but also 3. After you met me, didn¡¯t you get everything? That¡¯s more than 3.¡± Xiao Sheng smiled when he heard this. He felt that all the luck in his life might have been used on meeting Yu Bing. Perhaps Xiao Shengs words that day had really dealt Zhao Min a blow, but they didn¡¯t see her for a few days. She only went to work two weeks after the surgery, when Xiao Li¡¯s gauze had already been removed. Zhao Min had been home these past few days, but when she was alone, she would always think of Xiao Sheng, especially when she played with young masters of the same social class as her. She couldn¡¯t help but compare them. They weren¡¯t as good-looking as Xiao Sheng, nor were they as responsible as Xiao Sheng. They weren¡¯t good at fighting and weren¡¯t considerate enough.. Other than having a better family background than Xiao Sheng, they were nothing in comparison! Chapter 501 - Chapter 501: Removing the Gauze Chapter 501: Removing the Gauze Translations Editor: Henyee The more Zhao Min compared them, the better she felt about Xiao Sheng and she couldn¡¯t let go of him. After thinking about it, she decided to persevere to the end. If it really didn¡¯t work out, she would take Xiao Sheng down even if she had to use her family¡¯s power! Zhao Min went to work confidently once again. After changing into her nurse uniform, she picked up Xiao Li l s record and prepared to go to the ward. The older nurse grabbed Zhao Min¡¯s arm and smiled ingratiatingly as she said, ¡°Zhao Min, the head nurse said that I¡¯ll be in charge of Xiao Li from now on. You¡¯ll be in charge of the other patient.¡± After saying that, he pulled the record sheet back from Zhao Min¡¯s hand and placed the record sheet Zhao Min was in charge of in her hand. Zhao Min frowned. ¡°Why? When did this happen? Why didn¡¯t I know?! The older nurse replied, ¡°I don¡¯t know the details either. It changed the day after you took leave.¡± Zhao Min slammed the record sheet on the table and went to the pharmacy behind the nurses¡¯ station angrily. The head nurse was distributing medicine in the pharmacy when Zhao Min rushed in and asked, ¡°Head Nurse, why did you change the patient I¡¯m in charge of?¡± When the head nurse saw that Zhao Min didn¡¯t respect her as her superior at all, her expression turned ugly, but she could only reply patiently, ¡°Xiao Sheng requested it. He said that you were too young and asked me to get an experienced nurse.¡± The anger on Zhao Min¡¯s face didn¡¯t disappear. She knew that Xiao Sheng was expressing his stance to Yu Bing. It was difficult to extinguish the anger in her heart, but she had no other choice. If she continued to cause trouble, she would only make him hate her even more. After Zhao Min returned to her seat, she began to think of a solution. The two nurses exchanged looks and raised their eyebrows gloatingly. ¡°Finally, someone can take care of her.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± The two nurses exchanged looks of schadenfreude. In the examination room, Dr. Min was removing the gauze for Xiao Li. Everyone surrounded her nervously. After removing all the gauze, there was still a round cotton pad stuck to each of her eyes. Xiao Li was very nervous and kept clenching and unclenching her hands. After Dr. Min removed the last cover, he said softly, ¡°Xiao Li, you can open your eyes now.¡± When Xiao Li felt the light that she could sense even before the surgery, she swallowed hard and didn¡¯t dare to open her eyes. Instead, she raised her hands and said nervously, ¡°Brother.¡± Xiao Sheng hurriedly went forward and held Xiao Li¡¯s hand. Then, he bent down and rubbed Xiao Li¡¯s head as he comforted her gently. ¡°Little Sister, I¡¯ll be with you. Don¡¯t be afraid!¡± Xiao Li felt much more at ease and slowly opened her eyes. After she closed them, she slowly opened them again. She saw the outline of a figure in the whiteness. The outline was embedded with a layer of yellowish-red light, but the person¡¯s face couldn¡¯t be seen clearly. Xiao Li was a little flustered and closed her eyes again. Yu Bing was so nervous that her heart was about to jump out of her throat. Xiao Lin grabbed the corner of his shirt with an anxious expression, but no one dared to disturb Xiao Li. Xiao Li closed her eyes for a few seconds before opening them again. After she blinked a few times, the figure in front of her became clear. Dr. Min realized that her eyes were focused and immediately said, ¡°Turn around. I¡¯ll examine you again.¡± After Xiao Sheng let go of Xiao Li¡¯s hand, Xiao Li turned around in a daze. When she saw the detector in front of her, she placed her head on the shelf. After Dr. Min¡¯s checkup, he smiled at Xiao Sheng and said, ¡°Her condition is very good. After another week of observation, she can be discharged if there are no problems.¡± Xiao Sheng bowed to Dr. Min and thanked him excitedly. Xiao Lin and Xiao Li also stood beside their brother and bowed. Dr. Min waved his hand in dismissal. ¡°It¡¯s my duty! Xiao Li, thank your family. They really did everything they could for you.¡± Xiao Li nodded vigorously with tears in her eyes. Xiao Li had never seen her two brothers before. She reached out and touched Xiao Shengs face like before. When Xiao Lin saw this, he also stretched his head over. ¡°Touch me, touch me.¡± Xiao Li smiled and touched her second brother as well. In the past, she could only imagine their facial features. Now that she could see them, she felt that she couldn¡¯t get enough of them. After Xiao Li finished looking at her two brothers, she noticed Yu Bing, who was smiling at her from the side. She took a few steps forward excitedly and hugged Yu Bing as she shouted with a smile, ¡°Sister Yu Bing!¡± Yu Bing frowned and pretended to be angry as she teased Xiao Li. ¡°I¡¯m unhappy that you only see me now..¡± Chapter 502 - Chapter 502: Coercion Chapter 502: Coercion Translations Editor: Henyee Knowing that Yu Bing wasn¡¯t really angry, Xiao Li shrunk her neck and giggled. Yu Bing smiled and pinched Xiao Li l s nose. ¡°This is great. When we get back, you can go to school with your second brother. Today is the Lantern Festival, so it¡¯s a double blessing. We¡¯ll stew a chicken to celebrate tonight.¡± Xiao Li l s eyes lit up and she nodded vigorously. She would have classmates too now! Xiao Lin¡¯s attention was all on the food. ¡°That¡¯s great! There¡¯s chicken to eat!¡± After the Lantern Festival, the New Year holiday would be over. The food factory would resume production on January 16th, but Xiao Sheng wanted Yu Bing to stay for another week and go back with them. Otherwise, if Yu Bing set off alone and had to stay up the entire way, he would be worried. The new year had just ended, so there wouldn¡¯t be many orders. Yu Bing also wanted to take the opportunity to nurture everyone¡¯s abilities. Moreover, from this year onwards, she would slowly take a more offhand approach. She would have to choose two deputy factory directors when she returned, so that she could be more at ease when she left. After Yu Bing made up her mind, she called the village committee and asked Wu Jin for leave. When Wu Jin heard that Yu Bing was coming back with the Xiao family, he smiled widely. ¡°Yu Bing, don¡¯t worry about the factory. The heads of the various departments have been cooperating for almost a year. Previously, when you were on a business trip, the factory was fine. Just stay. I¡¯ll check on the factory every day.¡± Yu Bing knew that Wu Jin had been thinking about her and Xiao Sheng. Now, he couldn¡¯t wait for her to stay in S City. She smiled helplessly and said, ¡°Thank you. Then, Yu Bing explained the things to take note of when the production resumed. The phone fee was expensive, so after the two of them explained the key points, they immediately hung up. In the ward, Yu Bing and the others were happily discussing what would happen after Xiao Li was discharged. Previously, she could only listen to them. Now that her eyes had recovered, she couldn¡¯t waste this opportunity. Otherwise, she would have come for nothing after staying for almost two months. Until now, Xiao Li only knew what the hospital looked like. Amidst the harmonious atmosphere, Zhao Min suddenly appeared at the entrance of the ward. ¡°Brother Xiao, Dr. Min is looking for you.¡± Xiao Sheng looked at Zhao Min suspiciously. ¡°Hasn¡¯t Xiao Li¡¯s nurse been changed?¡± Zhao Min was stunned for a moment. Then, a wronged expression appeared on her face as she looked at Yu Bing resentfully. ¡°I happened to bump into Dr. Min. That¡¯s what he told me.¡± The doctor¡¯s office was at the end of the corridor. After Xiao Sheng thought about it for a moment, he stood up to leave, but he kept a distance of two meters from Zhao Min. Zhao Min was embarrassed and angry. She was a girl, but she was being guarded against by a man. Those who didn¡¯t know better would think that she was a pervert. Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t care what Zhao Min thought. He only knew that he couldn¡¯t have any contact with Zhao Min. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t be able to defend himself. When Zhao Min saw that Dr. Min¡¯s office was getting closer and closer, she knew that her lie was about to be exposed. Instead of being exposed in front of others, she might as well say it herself. After all, there were only the two of them now. Hence, she stopped and turned to look at Xiao Sheng. ¡°I was the one who wanted to look for you.¡± Seeing this, Xiao Sheng turned around and wanted to leave without another word. Zhao Min ran to Xiao Sheng and opened her arms to stop him as she said with a serious expression, ¡°Let me finish first. What I¡¯m about to say will affect your life! Xiao Sheng glanced at Zhao Min and dismissed her words. However, he thought that it was good to take this opportunity to explain things clearly so that the other party wouldn¡¯t keep pestering him. Seeing that Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t resist anymore, Zhao Min continued, ¡°My father is the deputy mayor of S City, and my mother is the director of the Human Resources Bureau. All of my family members work in the government. As long as you¡¯re with me, I can make your family become city residents and even work in the factory!¡± Xiao Sheng sneered. ¡°I really didn¡¯t expect myself to be so valuable, but I¡¯m unwilling to agree.¡± Zhao Min didn¡¯t expect Xiao Sheng to reject her without hesitation. She said, ¡°Even if you don¡¯t want to think for yourself, you have to think for your siblings, right? Are you going to let them dig in the field for the rest of their lives? Zhao Min was basically coercing him. She knew that Xiao Sheng valued family, so she tried to tie Xiao Li and Xiao Lin¡¯s future to Xiao Shengs marriage. However, everyone was independent. Xiao Sheng had raised them, so as his brother, he definitely fulfilled his responsibility. Xiao Sheng had no responsibility or obligation to bear the responsibility for Xiao Li and Xiao Lin¡¯s future after they became adults.. Chapter 503 - Chapter 503: Indenture Chapter 503: Indenture Translations Editor: Henyee Xiao Sheng looked at Zhao Min mockingly. ¡°Their future lives will be in their own hands, and can¡¯t be exchanged for my indenture.¡± Xiao Sheng expressed his displeasure. When Zhao Min saw Xiao Shengs reaction, she hurriedly explained, ¡°Xiao Sheng, that¡¯s not what I meant. I just want to say that I can give you more than Yu Bing can give you.¡± Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t want to waste time on Zhao Min. The two of them were too different. ¡°I have hands and feet, so I¡¯ll get whatever I want myself. Miss Zhao, please don¡¯t look for me again in the future. I don¡¯t want others to misunderstand. Xiao Shengs rejection had always been direct and merciless. Zhao Min clenched her fists and stared at Xiao Sheng in confusion as she asked, ¡°Since Yu Bing is an intellectual living in the countryside, there¡¯s a high chance that her family is an ordinary family without any connections. I¡¯m not worse-looking than her and my family background is better than hers, so how am I worse than Yu Bing? If there¡¯s anything about me you don¡¯t like, I can change.¡± Xiao Sheng replied calmly, ¡°You two are two different people to begin with, so there¡¯s no point in comparing. However, in my eyes, she¡¯s the best. There¡¯s no other reason.¡± Zhao Min felt helpless. Xiao Shengs words made her unable to even find a direction to work towards. In that case, he shouldn¡¯t blame her for being heartless! Zhao Min looked at Xiao Sheng with a trace of ruthlessness in her eyes and her expression was very stubborn. ¡°If you don¡¯t care if you can become a city dweller or not, you should at least care if Yu Bing can continue working, right?¡± Xiao Sheng frowned when he heard this and asked coldly, ¡°What do you want?¡± Zhao Min was very happy that she had found something that Xiao Sheng cared about and could control him, but she was also very angry at how much he cared about Yu Bing. This contradictory feeling made her feel a little exasperated. Zhao Min smiled proudly at Xiao Sheng. ¡°Now that you my family background, you should know that I can do many things, such as removing her from her position, making her go to the farm to undergo labor reform, or worse. By the way, my parents dote on me very much. As long as I want it, they will help me do it!¡± Xiao Sheng gritted his teeth and glared at Zhao Min. He had never hated anyone so much. When Zhao Min saw Xiao Shengs obvious hatred, she smiled even more happily. ¡°Brother Xiao, the choice is in your hands now. See what kind of life you want to choose for Yu Bing.¡± Just as Zhao Min finished speaking, clapping sounded behind her. Yu Bing said in admiration, ¡°How impressive. You¡¯re using your power for personal gain so openly now?¡± Zhao Min turned around and saw Yu Bing, who was two meters away. She rolled her eyes, but didn¡¯t answer directly. Instead, she turned around and said to Xiao Sheng sweetly, ¡°Brother Xiao, give me an answer in three days. Otherwise, don¡¯t blame me for taking action.¡± After Zhao Min finished speaking, she didn¡¯t wait for their reactions. When she passed by Yu Bing, she even let out a disdainful snort. Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing worriedly, but Yu Bing raised her eyebrows and shrugged nonchalantly. Seeing Zhao Min¡¯s departing figure, Xiao Sheng walked forward and said in a low voice, ¡°We have to make some preparations. We can¡¯t let her do whatever she wants.¡± Yu Bing nodded. The other party¡¯s family background was indeed more impressive than hers, but it was precisely because of this that this might become the other party¡¯s weakness. ¡°I¡¯ll go to the Xiao family¡¯s house to look for Zeng Li l s sister-in-law. Women know more about the complicated relationship between the families of the high-ranking officials¡¯ children.¡± Xiao Sheng looked at Yu Bing apologetically. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for implicating you.¡± Yu Bing said with a serious expression, ¡°Indeed. To be precise, I was implicated by your beauty.¡± Seeing that Yu Bing was still in the mood to joke, Xiao Sheng said helplessly, ¡°Why are you still teasing me at a time like this?¡± Yu Bing pursed her lips and said with a chuckle, ¡°You¡¯re the one who¡¯s unaware. In the eyes of politicians, love is the least worth mentioning. This matter might not be that serious. It¡¯s not suitable to visit someone¡¯s house during the Lantern Festival, so I¡¯ll call and see if I can arrange to visit the Zeng family tomorrow morning. Some things were easier for women to communicate about, so Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t get involved. The next day, just after nine o¡¯clock, Yu Bing brought fruits, osmanthus yams, bean rolls, and a few other snacks to the Zeng familys house. When Lin Xue saw Yu Bing, she welcomed her into the house warmly.. Chapter 504 - Chapter 504: Compromise Chapter 504: Compromise Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations For the next two days, Zhao Min waited very patiently. She didn¡¯t take the initiative to appear in front of Xiao Sheng, but her good mood every day indicated her confidence in this matter. At the Zhao family¡¯s house. When he saw his daughter return from work, Mr. Zhao took off his reading glasses and said gently, ¡°Little Min, don¡¯t go to the hospital anymore for the time being.¡± Zhao Min changed into her house slippers at the entrance and walked into the living room. ¡°Why not?¡± Mrs. Zhao carried the fruit plate out of the kitchen and said with a smile, ¡°You¡¯re not young anymore, so you should start considering your marriage. Your father and I think highly of Zou Wu. The two of you have known each other since you were young and have a certain level of acquaintance. The Zou family and we are both in politics, so we can support each other in the future. The two of you will get engaged in two months. During this period of time, nurture your relationship. You can continue working after this matter is settled. Zhao Min looked at her parents in shock and shouted, ¡°How can you guys determine my marriage without asking me? Moreover, I don¡¯t like him! Mr. Zhao frowned. ¡°What judgment can you have at your age? We¡¯re your parents. How can we harm you? Be good.¡± Zhao Min looked at Mrs. Zhao anxiously. ¡°Mom, I have someone I like! I don¡¯t want to marry Zou Wu!¡± Mrs. Zhao hurriedly comforted her daughter, ¡°A crush is the most useless thing. Marriage is about daily life. Our families are well-matched. If you marry him, you can still enjoy your current lifestyle.¡± Zhao Min¡¯s heart was filled with Xiao Sheng, so how could she listen to these words? ¡°I¡¯m not marrying him!¡± Mrs. Zhao¡¯s heart ached for her daughter, so she comforted her softly. However, Mr. Zhao didn¡¯t allow Zhao Min to continue being willful. ¡°If you don¡¯t marry Zou Wu, are you going to marry him and farm in the countryside?¡± When Zhao Min heard this, she understood. ¡°Who complained to you? Dad, with our familys power, we can easily get him a job in the city¡¯s factory. This isn¡¯t a problem at all.¡± When Mr. Zhao heard this, he became even angrier. ¡°You¡¯re really something. He already rejected you, but you¡¯re still harassing him. Don¡¯t you have any dignity?! You haven¡¯t even married him, but you¡¯re already using your family¡¯s connections to pave the way for him. Zhao Min! Did I teach you to harass men like this? Our family wants a son-in-law who can help us, not a useless son-in-law!¡± When Zhao Min heard her father, who had always doted on her, say that she was harassing a man, tears fell. Then, she turned around and ran back to her room. Mrs. Zhao followed Zhao Min into the bedroom and looked at her daughter, who was wiping her tears at the desk. Then, she said helplessly, ¡°Little Min, you should start to mature. In the past, we doted on you because you were young. Now, you should take on the responsibility of being a daughter of the Zhao family.¡± When Zhao Min heard her mother¡¯s words, she realized that in their eyes, she was just a pawn for a political marriage. She sobbed as she said to Mrs. Zhao, ¡°Didn¡¯t you guys dote on me the most? From the looks of it, all of it was fake! You guys were treating me well so that I can contribute to my brother¡¯s political career! Mrs. Zhao frowned and said seriously, ¡°Little Min, our love for you is real, but since you were born into a family like ours, you don¡¯t have the right to choose your own marriage partner. Since you¡¯ve enjoyed the priviledges the Zhao family has given you, you should bear the responsibility of protecting it!¡± Seeing her daughter¡¯s swollen eyes, Mrs. Zhao said with heartache, ¡°Your father and I married the same way. Didn¡¯t we spend our entire lives together?¡± Zhao Min was stunned and didn¡¯t say anything else. Seeing this, Mrs. Zhao lamented, ¡°You refuse to listen now, but let me tell you this. If you insist on marrying that man, we won¡¯t give you any help. Do you really want to go to the countryside to farm with him?¡± ¡°Rural people might not even be able to eat meat once a month. Moreover, I heard he spent ten to twenty thousand yuan on his sister¡¯s surgery. I think they probably borrowed the money from everywhere. If you really marry him, not to mention meat, if he has to pay off his debts, you might not even be able to eat your fill! Zhao Min was persuaded, mainly because before she entered the hospital, she had stayed in the countryside for half a year to support her father. Zhao Min knew how tough life in the countryside was. After working for a few days, she couldn¡¯t take it anymore and started to pretend to be sick. She relied on the money and stamps her family sent to live. Life in the countryside was too tough. Thinking about it now, she still felt a little afraid. Zhao Min was unwilling to give up just like that. However, Mr. Zhao wasn¡¯t to be trifled with. He locked Zhao Min in the room and let Mrs. Zhao cook for Zhao Min every day according to the quantity and food standards in the countryside. Zhao Min, who couldn¡¯t tolerate not being able to eat meat, chose to compromise in less than three days.. Chapter 505 - Chapter 505: Confirmation Chapter 505: Confirmation Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Until Xiao Li was discharged from the hospital, Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t see Zhao Min again. He asked Yu Bing what she had said at the Zeng family¡¯s house that day. Yu Bing smiled. ¡°From the way the Zhao family pulled strings to get their daughter into the hospital, but ignored the fact that she was late to work everyday, their family is definitely not upright and principled. How can such a family allow their son-in-law to be a farmer who can¡¯t help them? J only went to the Zeng family to confirm my guess.¡± When Xiao Sheng heard this, he knew that this matter was completely resolved. ¡°Then how did you let the Zhao family know about this?¡± Yu Bing pursed her lips and said with a smile, ¡°I wrote a letter to Deputy Mayor Mr. Zhao and placed it in the government¡¯s mailbox. I couldn¡¯t see an official like Deputy Mayor Mr. Zhao in person, so J could only use this method.¡± Xiao Sheng scratched his head as he said with self-reproach, ¡°This happened because of me, but I didn¡¯t help at all.¡± Xiao Sheng had no concept of political marriages at all, so it was normal for him not to know. Yu Bing teased, ¡°It¡¯s fine. If there¡¯s a next time, you can solve it according to this method before I find it.¡± Xiao Sheng showed a resistant look when he heard this. Zhao Min already gave him enough of a headache. After being discharged, the four of them stayed for two more days according to their previous plan. They brought Xiao Li to a few special attractions and ate a lot of local specialties. Previously, she only knew the name and taste of the local specialties, but she didn¡¯t know what they looked like. This time, Yu Bing helped her make up for her regrets. Before they left, Xiao Sheng and Yu Bing were invited to the Zeng family¡¯s house as guests. Yu Bing asked Lin Xue about Zhao Min. After knowing that the two of them had already begun the blind date stage, although Yu Bing knew that the Zhao family definitely wouldn¡¯t let Zhao Min contact Xiao Sheng again, if Zhao Min could give up on her own, this matter would be completely resolved. On the way back, they took care of each other. Yu Bing could finally sleep in peace. Xiao Li stared at the scenery outside the car window with relish. To Xiao Li, what she had seen these past few days was too shocking. Things that she couldn¡¯t visualize in the past finally appeared before her eyes. The person who came to town to pick them up was Wu Qing. Xiao Li could tell who it was from the footsteps and immediately shouted, ¡°Brother Wu Qing.¡± Wu Qing went forward and stroked Xiao Li l s head. Then, he smiled excitedly and said, ¡°Can you really see? Or are you relying on your hearing?¡± Xiao Li replied with a smile, ¡°I¡¯ve never seen your face before. Of course I relied on my hearing to recognize you, but I can indeed see.¡± Wu Qing carried Xiao Li into the trunk and said, ¡°That¡¯s good! Wang Xia asked me when I would pick you guys up quite a few times. You guys are finally back.¡± Xiao Li was also very excited when she heard this. When Yu Bing saw Xiao Li l s reaction, she only thought of the netizens in the future. As Wu Qing drove the tractor, the sound attracted the people working in the field. The villagers already knew that Xiao Li had gone to S City to get her eves treated. Everyone was very curious about where the money came from. Fortunately, Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng had already discussed this matter. Then, they discussed it with Wu Jin. In the end, they spread the version they agreed upon through Wu Qing. Wu Qing said that Wu Jin¡¯s family used to have an ancient jade. Seeing that Xiao Li needed money for her treatment, he found someone and sold it for more than 10,000 yuan. In addition, Xiao Sheng had saved a powerful family in S City, so they kindly lent Xiao Sheng money for the surgery. The lie Yu Bing fabricated made most people marvel at the Xiao family¡¯s good luck. ¡°He deserves such luck. It really hasn¡¯t been easy for Xiao Sheng to raise his siblings all alone.¡± ¡°Happiness comes after suffering. These three children will be blessed in the future.¡± ¡°You guys really believe it? How can he possibly gather so much money?¡± ¡°You¡¯re not popular, so you can¡¯t borrow so much money. Don¡¯t think others are the same as you. If he didn¡¯t borrow it, where do you think this money came from? ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s not like he doesn¡¯t have any difficulties. He got rejected a few times and came back. Isn¡¯t he still carrying a huge amount of debt now?!¡± ¡°It¡¯s difficult for Xiao Sheng to marry a wife. No matter how handsome he is, no one will marry a debtor..¡± Chapter 506 - Chapter 506: Recruitment Form Chapter 506: Recruitment Form Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations The villagers discussed animatedly, but most of them believed the story that Yu Bing had made up. Most of them had only been to the county city, so they didn¡¯t expect Xiao Sheng to dare to go to the black market to do business. It was very difficult for people who had farmed for their entire lives to know the ins and outs of business. At the dormitory building of the intellectual team. As Yao Nian looked at the recruitment form, he was so excited that his hands trembled slightly and he stared intently at the words on it. ¡°Yu Yan, with this watch, I can go back?¡± Yu Yan glanced at it indifferently. ¡°Yes, but this is only a part-time job.¡± At the mention of this, Yu Yan was a little angry. Before she came to the countryside, her adoptive parents had found her an official job. Now, she had actually been demoted to a part-time worker! Yu Yan guessed that her adoptive parents must have felt that she was disobedient and wanted to threaten her in order to make her more obedient. Hmph! She refused! Yao Nian could hear the disdain in Yu Yan¡¯s tone and felt that Yu Yan didn¡¯t know how lucky she was. Now that more and more of the factory¡¯s work desks were getting filled, it was already good enough for her to get a part-time job. If she worked hard to build a good relationship with the supervisor, it was only a matter of time before she became an official employee. However, on second thought, wouldn¡¯t he have a chance if Yu Yan disdained the job? A scheming look flashed across Yao Nian¡¯s eyes. ¡°Yu Yan, what do you plan to do with this recruitment form? Yu Yan twirled the end of her hair with her finger as she said disdainfully, ¡°I¡¯m not interested in a part-time job. I¡¯m wondering if I should sell this spot.¡± Yao Nian was overjoyed. ¡°Then how much do you plan to sell it for?¡± Yu Yan said without hesitation, ¡°600 yuan!¡± Yu Yan had already thought about it. With this 600 yuan, she could lend 200 yuan for her sister¡¯s marriage and become her sister¡¯s favorite sister. She wanted to destroy Yu Bings status in the hearts of the Yu family one by one. Her parents and brother had already taken her money. Only her sister was As for the remaining 400 yuan, she had to save it. She had suffered enough when she was broke and didn¡¯t want to try again! When Yao Nian heard this number, his heart skipped a beat. However, when he thought of their relationship, he felt that he could bargain a little, so he said gently, ¡°Yu Yan, I want to buy the recruitment form, but you also know how principled my father is. My family can¡¯t fork out so much money.¡± When Yu Yan heard that Yao Nian wanted to return to the city, she said unhappily, ¡°Are you going to leave me all alone here?¡± Yao Nian hurriedly denied it and sat by the bed before hugging her. ¡°I didn¡¯t plan to leave you here. You¡¯ll return to the city sooner or later, so being a part-time worker is indeed unfair to you. I¡¯ll enter the city first to test the water for you. I¡¯ll strive to become an official as soon as possible to reach the same status as you!¡± ¡°If possible, I was thinking of not letting you rely on your parents to return to the city. I¡¯ll try my best to think of a way to get you back. After they see my ability, they¡¯ll be more at ease about letting you marry me!¡± When Yu Yan heard the last sentence, she felt persuaded. She really didn¡¯t want to rely on her adoptive parents anymore, or else they would always feel that she owed them a lot. Didn¡¯t she contribute as well? Yu Yan felt aggrieved that she had to submit to her biological parents for so many years. She had to save money and cut ties with her adoptive parents before returning to her biological family. When Yao Nian saw that Yu Yan looked touched, Yao Nian knew that he had successfully coaxed her and secretly rejoiced. Yu Yan thought about it seriously. In the end, she said, ¡°500 yuan!¡± The corners of Yao Nian¡¯s mouth twitched. He had already put in so much effort, but he only got a 100 yuan discount! Yao Nian looked at Yu Yan pitifully. ¡°Yu Yan, my sister just got married some time ago. Our family doesn¡¯t have much money now. 500 yuan is still too much for us.¡± Yu Yan was very unwilling to lower the price again. This discount was on account of their current intimate relationship. ¡°This is a steel factory. It¡¯s one of the most profitable state-owned factories! Just look at the salary. Even part-time workers earn 26 yuan. After they become full-time workers, their salary will be 30 yuan. They will receive an additional living allowance of 5 yuan every month.¡± ¡°The employee benefits of the steelworks factory are much better than those of other factories. It¡¯s very difficult to find such treatment in our city. Besides, this 500 yuan is only two years worth of salary..¡± Chapter 507 - Chapter 507: Deputy Director Chapter 507: Deputy Director Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yao Nian looked at Yu Yan, who was in his arms. After a period of recuperation, her face had become a little rosy. As he watched her pale pink lips move, he felt a little tantalized again. After thinking for a while, he decided to use the honey trap approach again. This wasn¡¯t the first time the two of them had done it. They quickly became immersed in it. After a round of intimacy under the blanket, the two of them, who were hugging each other, were covered in a thin layer of sweat. When Yao Nian saw Yu Yan¡¯s dazed gaze, he began to lick Yu Yan¡¯s earlobe. When he heard Yu Yan moan, he suppressed his desire and whispered into Yu Yan¡¯s ear, ¡°Yu Yan, after I go to Linshui City, I¡¯ll definitely do my best. After I become an official, I¡¯ll find pull strings to transfer you back. Then, we¡¯ll be together forever. When Yu Yan heard Yao Nian¡¯ s oath, she felt touched and turned to look at Yao Nian. ¡°Is that really what you plan to do?¡± Yao Nian looked straight into Yu Yan¡¯s eyes as he said affectionately, ¡°This has been on my mind since I got together with you. I¡¯ll write a letter later and ask my parents to gather the money. If I can¡¯t gather enough money¡­ then I can only take it one step at a time. Even if I can¡¯t go to Linshui City, I won¡¯t give up on you.¡± When Yu Yan heard Yao Nian¡¯s words, she began to feel that she was being a little selfish. She already had skinship with Yao Nian, so there was a high chance that she would marry him. Yu Yan decided to compromise again. She looked up at Yao Nian and said softly, ¡° I can give up another 50 yuan at most. I have a use for this money. If you can¡¯t gather it, I can only sell it to others. If it were anyone else, I would have asked for at least 700 yuan, not a cent Jess.¡± Yao Nian knew that this was probably Yu Yan¡¯s lowest price, so he didn¡¯t dawdle anymore and said straightforwardly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll definitely get my parents to transfer the money over as soon as possible.¡± After the two of them came to an agreement, they covered their heads with the blanket. Moaning and laughter came from inside the blanket again. At this moment, Yu Bing also received a letter from Yu Pan. The invitation inside stated that the wedding banquet would be on March 30. There was still half a month left, so Yu Bing planned to use work as an excuse to refuse to return. However, she still had to give Yu Pan a gift. After all, they were biological sisters. If outsiders found out that she didn¡¯t give Yu Pan a gift, it would definitely become a topic of conversation in the neighborhood. After Yu Bing finished writing the letter, she took out 20 yuan and planned to go to town to send a letter on another day. In this day and age, gifts were generally five to ten yuan. Giving 20 yuan was considered very generous. After Yu Bing finished dealing with the letter, she went to discuss the matter with Wu Jin. Wu Jin was reading the newspaper in his office. When he saw Yu Bing, he waved for her to come over and take a look. Wu Jin pointed at a few reports and said, ¡°This is todays newspaper. I realized that ever since the Lantern Festival, the news reports have been much bolder. Many economically and politically sensitive words have reappeared. Do you think the political climate is about to change? After Yu Bing read the contents of the news, she planned to reveal some things. Only then would Wu Jin understand why she wanted to recommend a deputy factory director and her handover would be smoother. Yu Bing whispered to Wu Jin, ¡°The political climate is definitely going to change. I heard that the college entrance examination might resume in the second half of the year.¡± Wu Jin looked at Yu Bing in shock. Yu Bing nodded affirmatively. ¡°This news is very accurate. I came to look for you today for this.¡± ¡°I plan to study hard and prepare for the exam, so I want to recommend two deputy factory directors. Firstly, I want to familiarize them with the business. Secondly, if I have to take leave, someone can replace me at any time.¡± ¡°Secondly, I plan to expand the market from Zhe Province to S City this year. Coincidentally, I¡¯m still here, so I want to mention this to the deputy factory director. If they encounter any difficulties along the way, I can help them think of a way. M/hen they have the experience of expanding the market, the transition problem of changing the factory director of the food factory will be resolved smoothly.¡± Wu Jin frowned and asked, ¡°This hasn¡¯t been confirmed yet, so why are you making such big changes?¡± Yu Bing said with a smile, ¡°Even if it¡¯s just a rumor, don¡¯t you believe that I can expand the scale to the level of needing two factory directors in a year?¡± Chapter 508 - Chapter 508: Recruitment Form Chapter 508: Recruitment Form Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Seeing Yu Bing display her usual confidence, Wu Jin laughed out loud. ¡°I underestimated your ambition. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll cooperate. Do you have a candidate in mind for the position of deputy factory director?¡± Yu Bing was biased towards Feng Cai. After all, she had nurtured him. Moreover, Feng Cai was deeply influenced by her in terms of the factory¡¯s development direction. Those concepts were set by Yu Bing according to the development of the era. As long as they followed this path, the food factory could survive the collapse of the village¡¯s collective industry in the 1990s. Yu Bing looked at Wu Jin as she said, ¡°I choose Feng Cai. He¡¯s the first employee of the food factory and has been with our food factory through its development, so he knows our current development direction. Be it in terms of experience or understanding of the food factory¡¯s situation, I recommend him.¡± Wu Jin thought of Feng Cai l s identity as an intellectual and hesitated. ¡°If the college entrance examination really resumes, what if Feng Cai wants to return to the city?¡± Yu Bing recalled her conversation with Feng Cai and replied affirmatively, ¡°His family situation is special, and his academic results are average, so he wants to hold on to everything ge gas now. The country has also revealed its intention to develop the economy. Our factory has a chance to enter the city. Even if we can¡¯t, if Feng Cai can manage the food factory well, the supervisors will promote him. He¡¯s more suitable for this path than studying.¡± When Wu Jin heard this, he knew that Yu Bing must have thought it through in advance, so he didn¡¯t say object anymore. ¡°Then do you have any thoughts about the other candidate?¡± Yu Bing shook her head. ¡°Do you have any recommendations? Wu Jin thought of Shen Ping, who had recently entered the factory. The Shen family¡¯s conditions in the village were considered above average, and they were the only few people who had graduated from high school in He Mountain Village. Previously, he didn¡¯t participate in the interview to enter the factory because before the factory was built, he had already become a part-time worker in the factory in town. However, at the end of last year, the factory didn¡¯t perform well. He only returned to the village after all the part -time workers were fired. Wu Jin revealed the candidate he had his eyes on. ¡°Shen Ping has been working in that factory for three to four years. The fact that he hasn¡¯t become an official employee has a lot to do with the factory¡¯s productivity. His experience and knowledge surpass those of many people.¡± Yu Bing knew the people in the factory, but she didn¡¯t know everyone in person. She only knew their names. After some discussion, the two of them decided on the candidate for the deputy factory director. Before the announcement, Yu Bing called the two of them over for a heart-to-heart talk. Yu Bing confirmed if Feng Cai was still willing to stay in the food factory and continue to contribute to the collective industry of the He Mountain Village. As for Shen Ping, she tested his work ethic and character. She was very satisfied with the outcome of the heart-to-heart talk. After the food factory¡¯s deputy director candidate was announced, Yao Nian also received money from his family. Although the Yao family wasn¡¯t wealthy, they could still afford 450 yuan. However, Yao Nian wanted to save as much money as possible. After all, the family¡¯s money would be left to him in the future. His sister¡¯s marriage was just an excuse. In order to create the illusion that it was difficult to gather money, Yao Nian only handed the money over after Yu Yan urged him once. After obtaining the recruitment form, Yao Nian began to think of a way to get Yu Bing to stamp the public seal of the intellectuals¡¯ management office on the recruitment form. Then, he would take this form to the village committee to get a permission slip and transfer his household register to the steel factory with the recruitment form. Yao Nian thought about his relationship with Yu Bing and felt that he didn¡¯t have much conflict with Yu Bing on the surface. At the very least, his schemes against her had never succeeded. Because of this, Yao Nian felt that Yu Bing didn¡¯t know what he had done, so he went to the supply company to buy a box of pastries and brought the recruitment form to the food factory to look for Yu Bing. Yao Nian said to Yu Bing ingratiatingly, ¡®Yu Bing, my family found me a job. Please stamp it.¡± When Yu Bing glanced at the factory name and realized that it was in Linshui City, she sneered. Without the spot she had given up in her previous life, Yao Nian obtained the spot to enter the factory from Yu Yan. It had to be said that Yao Nian was quite a gold digger. However, Yu Bing didn¡¯t want Yao Nian to return to the city so easily, so she said with a troubled expression, ¡®Yao Nian, it¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to help you, but you can only earn 7 to 8 points a day. Your work ability isn¡¯t good enough. The spot in the factory is so precious, so if I give it to you, people will say that I¡¯m playing favorites..¡± Chapter 509 - Chapter 509: Seal Chapter 509: Seal Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations When Yao Nian heard this, he knew that this stamp wasn¡¯t that easy to get. He immediately handed the pastries over. ¡°Yu Bing, you also know that I¡¯m a scholar. Agricultural work isnt my forte. Can you make an exception? Yu Bing immediately pushed the pastries back and rejected them righteously, ¡°Don¡¯t do this. I won¡¯t take anything. I¡¯m just telling the truth.¡± When Yao Nian saw how stubborn Yu Bing was, he was so anxious that he wanted to flare up. However, he didn¡¯t dare to curse Yu Bing. He could only squeeze out a smile and continue, ¡°Then what will it take for you to stamp it?¡± Yu Bing smiled and said, ¡°You make it sound like I¡¯m deliberately making things difficult for you. I¡¯ve already told you about your problem. As long as you get full work points in a month or two, I can stamp it. Of course, if you think I¡¯m targeting you, you can report it to my superiors.¡± Yao Nian didn¡¯t dare to offend Yu Bing at such a critical moment, mainly because he was indeed in the wrong. The intellectual team leader¡¯s evaluation of one¡¯s performance did depend on one¡¯s usual work performance. However, the team leader wouldn¡¯t offend those with family connections, since they also wanted to leave a way out for themselves. They might be able to ask for favors. Therefore, after hearing Yu Bings words, Yao Nian could only shake his head and explain, ¡®You¡¯ve misunderstood. I didn¡¯t mean that. I¡¯ll definitely work hard and try to get the stamp as soon as possible.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t reply when she heard this. She lowered her head and continued to look at the latest quarter¡¯s financial statements. Seeing this, Yao Nian could only leave first and think of another way. The reporting time for the recruitment form was limited. The machinery factory gave him three months, which was only two months away from now. Yao Nian was very anxious. The money had already been spent, so it was impossible for Yu Yan to return it. If he couldn¡¯t report on time, the 450 yuan would be wasted. This money was enough to last city dwellers for more than half a year! After thinking about it, Yao Nian could only try to earn more work points. For the next month, Yao Nian took the initiative to do the heaviest work every day. At first, he was worried that he wouldn¡¯t be able to hold on. Perhaps the temptation of returning to the city was too great, so he forcibly held on for more than 30 days. In the end, he fell ill on the 35th day. After the sudden increase in workload more than a month in a row and the psychological pressure of not being able to return to the city without a stamp, Yao Nian finally collapsed. He was overworked and he even vomited blood once from exhaustion. When Yu Bing heard this, she only sneered. Compared to how much she had suffered back then, this was nothing. When Yu Yan first found out that Yao Nian didn¡¯t get a stamp, she didn¡¯t say anything. At that time, she was in a hurry to return to Hang City to attend the wedding. Yu Yan hurriedly applied for leave and left. In the end, she appeared at the wedding event location as Duan Mei¡¯s family member. She stayed in Hang City for another half a month and enjoyed spending time with her biological family. However, the joyful time depended on the fact that Duan Mei had obtained another 30 yuan from Yu Yan. Yu Yan didn¡¯t think that there was any problem. It wasn¡¯t easy for her to visit her parents, so it was only right for her to give them some money to be filial. She wasn¡¯t as heartless as Yu Bing! The two sides had completely different motives, but the outcome was the same. When Yu Yan returned to the He Mountain Village, Yao Nian had already started working hard to earn work points. As long as he didn¡¯t ask her for help, she couldn¡¯t be bothered to interfere. After Yao Nian rested for a day, he was in a hurry to get a stamp from Yu Bing. Just as he was worried that Yu Bing would find another excuse to reject him, he saw Yu Bing quickly stamp his form. Yu Bing was so straightforward this time because she hoped that Yao Nian and Yu Yan would get together. The closer the two of them were to each other, the more relieved she would be. After Yao Nian received the stamp, he packed his luggage and reported to the steel factory in Linshui City. Yao Nian was no longer around, and Yu Yan was immersed in the joy of spending time with her biological family. No one caused trouble for Yu Bing, so Yu Bing couldn¡¯t be bothered with them. She began to arrange for the two new deputy factory directors to work together to expand the food factorys business beyond the province. She played the role of an auxiliary personnel and created sufficient learning opportunities for the two of them. Yao Nian reported to the steel factory in April. Not long after he reported, Yu Hai learned from an acquaintance that the job he had found for Yu Yan had gone to Yao Nian.. Chapter 510 - Chapter 510: Resuming the College Entrance Examination(1) Chapter 510: Resuming the College Entrance Examination(1) Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations The Yu family¡¯s home. Li Xin, who was knitting a sweater for Yu Yan, paused and asked her husband in dismay, ¡°Yu Yan gave her boyfriend the job?¡± Yu Hai hugged his wife¡¯s shoulder as he comforted her. ¡°Don¡¯t be agitated. Yu Yan might be afraid that we won¡¯t agree to them being together, so she did things first without telling us. However, this isn¡¯t a bad thing.¡± Li Xin patted her chest to calm herself down. Then, she asked with a frown, ¡°Isn¡¯t this bad? How much effort did we spend to get that position?! Moreover, that guy doesn¡¯t seem like a responsible man. Yu Yan is really becoming more and more rebellious!¡± Yu Hai also found it strange. Yu Yan was quite obedient during the new year and had promised them that she would return to the city to work. Why did she change her mind all of a sudden? Li Xin wasn¡¯t in good health, so she couldn¡¯t be too agitated. Yu Hai could only think of a way to calm her down first. Yu Hai smiled at his wife gently. ¡°Isn¡¯t love unpredictable? What¡¯s the use of us feeling that it¡¯s a bad idea? After all, Yu Yan is the one who is with him. Didn¡¯t your parents not agree to us being together in the past? Do you think you¡¯re unhappy now? We think that guy isn¡¯t good for her, but perhaps we¡¯re wrong.¡± When Li Xin heard this, she smiled and nudged Yu Hai gently, tacitly agreeing with her husband. Yu Hai continued to comfort her. ¡°Think about it. This boy¡¯s family definitely won¡¯t be able to pull any strings. If he comes to Linshui City to work now, won¡¯t he stay here in the future? If we find another job for Yu Yan, she¡¯ll definitely come back without hesitation. If they get married in the future, they¡¯ll be living under our noses. You don¡¯t have to worry about the complicated relationships she¡¯ll have to deal with after marriage. That boy¡¯s job was arranged by us, so how can their family not think highly of Yu Yan?¡± Li Xin nodded. ¡°You¡¯re right. In that case, let¡¯s forget about this matter. But what should we do next?¡± Yu Hai felt exasperated, but he still smiled at his wife. ¡°We can¡¯t mention this when we write the letter. We can write about our daily life and continue to look for job vacancies.¡± Li Xin nodded helplessly. When finding a job for Yu Yan, they had already pulled strings twice. If Yu Yan let them down again, she really didnt want to intervene anymore. Time passed day by day. Yu Bing had already slowly transferred most of the work on hand to Feng Cai and Shen Ping. The products also began to be sold in Zhe Province and the sales were quite stable. At the meeting, the two deputy factory directors decided that after the sales of the food factory in S City increased, the factory should focus on stable development instead of rapid development. Yu Bing didn¡¯t interfere in their market expansion too much. As long as they didn¡¯t deviate from the general direction, she wouldn¡¯t intervene. Otherwise, according to her strategy, they would have entered S Citys market long ago. Jiang Chun and Xiao Sheng had been reading and doing practice questions under Yu Bings supervision for a longer time recently. Since a few months ago, Yu Bing had also hinted to the intellectuals to read more high school textbooks when they had nothing to do. Some people had already guessed something. Because Yu Bing often went to various counties and cities, it was easier for her to obtain information from the outside world than them. Therefore, although everyone was dubious, many people still asked their families to send their books over to start their study. After all, getting into university was one of the few ways they could return to the city. Yu Yan disdained this and felt that Yu Bing was lying. She was just waiting to see Yu Bing get disproven. Both the factory and the village committee subscribed to the official newspaper. What the intellectuals working in the factory looked forward to the most every day was receiving the newspaper from the postman. In the village, there weren¡¯t many ways for them to communicate with the outside world. This was one of the few ways. Today, Liu Ming picked up the newspaper. When he saw the shocking news that had just been published in the newspaper, his eyes were filled with disbelief. After being stunned for a long time, he lowered his head and reread it a few times. After repeatedly confirming it, he ran into the factory and shouted, ¡°The country has resumed the college entrance examination! Even when the villagers of He Mountain Village heard the shout, they didn¡¯t stop working. They only looked at him curiously to hear what he would say next. The intellectuals instantly stopped what they were doing. They understood how important this was, so they stared at Liu Ming in a daze.. Chapter 511 - Chapter 511: Resuming the College Entrance Examination(2) Chapter 511: Resuming the College Entrance Examination(2) Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Seeing everyone¡¯s stunned reaction, Liu Ming raised the newspaper in his hand and said softly, ¡°The country has resumed the college entrance examination!¡± Some people rushed to Liu Ming to snatch the newspaper without even taking off their gloves. The other intellectuals also ran forward to see the newspaper. The entire page of the day¡¯s news was reporting on the resumption of the college entrance examination. There were also the views of the various national leaders on the resumption of the college entrance examination and specific guidelines on the registration method and conditions. Their reactions stunned the other employees in the workshop. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with them? Why are they acting so weird?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear that the college entrance examination has been resumed?! ¡°If the college entrance examination has been resumed, people can become cadres when they return, just like when they go to the University of Labor and Agriculture? ¡°They might even be able to return to the city. Otherwise, why would they be so excited?¡± Zhao Lin, Jiang Chun, and a few team leaders returned from the conference room after a meeting. They saw that about half of the people of Production Room 1 were blocking the middle road. Zhao Lin immediately shouted, ¡°What are you guys doing? You guys don¡¯t want to work anymore?! Everyone came back to their senses when they heard the supervisor¡¯s voice and turned around. Zhao Lin saw that some of the female workers¡¯ eyes were red and everyone still had some excitement in their eyes. She was about to reflect on whether she had spoken too harshly just now. Jiang Chun¡¯s heart skipped a beat when she saw everyone¡¯s strange expression. Then, she went forward and took the only newspaper. Although Yu Bing had hinted to Jiang Chun many times, it wasn¡¯t news that was released through official channels after all. Therefore, the shock of seeing it with her own eyes was no less than that of other intellectuals. Jiang Chun thought about how she was the person in charge of the production department. No matter how excited she was, she couldn¡¯t delay her work because of private matters, so she cleared her throat and said, ¡°Everyone, get back to work first. Since the matter was reported, we can read it later as well. We can discuss it during lunch break.¡± The intellectuals suppressed their excitement and returned to work. At noon, Yu Bing specifically went to the intellectual dormitory for this matter. This was a big deal for the young people, so as the captain, Yu Bing had to guide everyone. As everyone discussed it during lunch, their faces were filled with excitement. When they saw Yu Bing enter, everyone gathered in the hall with small stools. Yu Bing stood at the front and saw the unconcealable fervor in everyone¡¯s eyes. Among the group of young people who came at the beginning, there were still three people who were unmarried and had been waiting for the opportunity to return to the city. The others were also young people who had been here for three to five years, or seven to eight years. The opportunity that everyone had been waiting for so long suddenly appeared in front of them, so many people wished they could do nothing but study every day. However, the college entrance examination wasn¡¯t that easy. Although the difficulty of the first year was the lowest, most of the young people had been out of school for many years after all. Even with her previous reminder, the number of people who registered was large and the number of enrollment spots was limited. In addition, everyone was afraid that the policy would change overnight. There was only this one chance. Many people prepared for the exam with heavy psychological pressure, which wasn¡¯t conducive to preparing for the exam. Yu Bing glanced at everyone and said with a smile, ¡°I also received a notice from the commune in the morning. If the youngsters of every village want to apply, you guys can register with the captains of the various villages. Raise your hands first. I¡¯ll roughly count the number of people.¡± As expected, most people signed up. Only a small number of young people who had not attended high school or had bad grades didn¡¯t sign up. After Yu Bing counted the number of people, she continued, ¡°A total of 56 people have signed up. It¡¯s the middle of October now, and the exam is in the middle of December. Two months of study time is indeed very tight. Moreover, we still have to face harvesting season. Although it¡¯s nearing the end, we still have to be busy for another week. What are your plans for this week?¡± After a low discussion, someone mustered his courage and said, ¡°Captain Yu, I want to take a week off.¡± After a while, Yu Bing asked, ¡°Is that what you all want?¡± Everyone had been in the village for so many years and knew that if the harvest wasn¡¯t done in time, it would affect their gains. However, compared to returning to the city, no one cared about that right now.. Chapter 512 - Chapter 512: Delivering Books Chapter 512: Delivering Books Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations It was precisely because of this that when they heard Yu Bing¡¯s question, everyone stammered. They wanted to express their agreement, but they didn¡¯t dare to. Only some people said that they would continue working. However, they hoped that Yu Bing could represent the intellectuals and the village chief to arrange some easy work for the candidates. This way, they would have the energy to read books at night. After everyone expressed their opinions, they realized that Yu Bing didnt speak. Everyone gradually stopped talking. At this moment, Yu Bing continued, ¡°I understand everyone¡¯s feelings, but I also hope that you guys will treat this matter rationally. The development of the country requires talent. The resumption of the college entrance examination after so many years and the selection of talents is enough to prove this. Don¡¯t worry that you¡¯ll only have this one chance. The most important thing is to adjust your mentality.¡± ¡°At the same time, you have to be prepared to continue taking the test if you fail! Everyone, you have to look further ahead. The harvest relationship isn¡¯t only about our own rations, but also about the rations of the entire country. You can¡¯t take leave, but the time for study is too tight, so I can help you guys have as easy a job as possible.¡± Yu Yan was also listening below. Her adoptive parents had not found her a suitable job yet and Yao Nian had yet to become a full-time employee, so she was currently living in the countryside in torment. Her reputation had already been tarnished The youths in the dormitory ignored her and she didn¡¯t like to talk to them. However, she had really had enough of being all alone. Yu Yan had already thought it through. She had to pass to show her adoptive parents that she could return to the city without relying on them! Yu Yan was preparing to get accepted into a school in Hang City. She even planned to let Yao Nian get in with her. When she graduated, she would lay her cards on the table with her adoptive parents. Then, she would think of a way to work by her biological parents¡¯ side. She would completely cut ties with her adoptive parents in Linshui City so that her parents wouldn¡¯t feel sad when they saw her contacting her adoptive family. Ever since she found out that the college entrance examination was going to be resumed, Yu Yan had been very proactive. When the young people were discussing this matter, she squeezed in to discuss it as well. Her plan was to take leave, not only for the week of harvest, but until the end of the exam. Now that she heard Yu Bing reject this choice, she immediately lost it. ¡°Yu Bing, you can slack off and read at any time since you don¡¯t work in the factory, but when it comes to us, we¡¯re not even allowed to take leave? What right do you have?!¡± Yu Bing glanced at Yu Yan and said coldly, ¡°You earn your job yourself. The recruitment process for entering the factory is fair and square. If you think it¡¯s easy, you can enter too. Moreover, my studying won¡¯t take up my work time. You can rest assured about that.¡± Yu Yan sneered and said, ¡°Who will believe your words? As long as we sign up, we¡¯re all competitors. I think you want to give us less time to study so that you can take the opportunity to squeeze us out.¡± Yu Yan¡¯s reputation wasn¡¯t good among the young people, but Yu Bing was very reputable. Logically speaking, no one should have believed in Yu Yan¡¯s words, but now that Yu Yan had linked Yu Bing¡¯s motive to everyone¡¯s interests, she successfully convinced some people. ¡°I think Yu Yan makes sense. If we spend less time studying, Yu Bing will have a chance to do better than us. When they accept students, the students are chosen from top to bottom according to their scores. If enough spots are filled, they will stop accepting students.¡± ¡°Yu Bing is usually quite kind, but at such a critical moment, it¡¯s really hard to say if she will do such a thing or not. The difference might be the difference between returning to the city or staying in the countryside.¡± The person who was persuaded by Yu Yan didn¡¯t dare to say it too loudly, but the words still reached Yu Bing¡¯s ears. Yu Bing sighed inwardly, but when she saw the trust in most people¡¯s eyes when they looked at her, she felt a trace of warmth in her heart. Hence, she told them the decision she had made previously. ¡°I got a set of high school textbooks, some notes, and a full set of practice books. I specifically brought them over today. If you can¡¯t find any way to buy textbooks, you can discuss how to allocate the time to read the books.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t like to engage in unfair competition. She believed in her own strength, and she was prepared this time, so she was very confident. After saying that, Yu Bing opened a large cloth bag she had brought over and took out the set of books she usually used to study. In the past year or so, she had already studied it two to three times.. Chapter 513 - Chapter 513: SICK Leave Chapter 513: SICK Leave Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Bing¡¯s current focus was on doing questions and redoing the wrong questions. After all, the best way to prepare for the exam was to do many questions, so it was a waste to keep these books. Yu Bing didn¡¯t retort Yu Yan. Instead, she used her actions to respond to Yu Yan¡¯s malicious guesses about her. Those who suspected that Yu Bing had ulterior motives were a little ashamed when they heard Yu Bing¡¯s words. Yu Yan didn¡¯t expect Yu Bing to be so generous and stupid. People could easily get textbooks as long as they had some connections, but notes and exercise books were different. The notes had to be written by top students for them to be effective. Yu Bing¡¯s actions made Yu Yan unable to continue retorting, so she could only think of another way. She didn¡¯t care about other people as long as she had enough time to prepare. Yu Bing gave many more tips regarding studying. Many people benefited greatly after using her method. While everyone was working hard to balance work and studies, Yu Yan deliberately let herself catch a cold. In the end, she successfully applied for sick leave with moderate pneumonia. After Yu Bing found out, she could only shake her head regretfully. Firstly, she didn¡¯t approve of this method, and secondly, there was no need. If she couldn¡¯t get in this year, she could still try again next year. However, once she fell sick, it would be difficult for her to recuperate. However, Yu Bing wasn¡¯t so kind as to remind Yu Yan. Since Yu Yan wanted to do things the hard way, it was her choice. She had already said what she needed to say in the meeting that day. She didn¡¯t expect Yu Yan to still stake everything on this. Wu Jin also understood the young people¡¯s desire to return to the city. During the preparation period, they tried their best to arrange easy work for everyone, so they naturally didn¡¯t earn that many work points. However, everyone was focused on the college entrance examination, so who could care about this? There were also some good scholars in the village who applied with the young people. Wu Jin also gave them preferential treatment at work. After two months of preparation for the exam, it was soon time for the exam. The college entrance examination was divided into liberal arts, science, and politics. Language arts, mathematics, and politics were compulsory subjects. Liberal arts also tested history and geography. Science tested physics and chemistry. The choice of subject would affect their major, but everyone still chose the subjects they were good at. Yu Bing and Jiang Chun chose liberal arts while Xiao Sheng chose science. The examination time for the college entrance examination was concentrated in two days. The youths of the various villages had to go to the county city to take the examination. All the middle and primary schools in the county were requisitioned as the venue for the college entrance examination. Two days passed in a flash. On the day they finished all the subjects, everyone gathered in the dormitory lobby to compare the answers. This time was the most important scoring segment. Everyone could apply for three schools at most. Generally, they would rank the schools they were more confident in getting into and wanted to go to first. The schools that they weren¡¯t confident in getting into were ranked second. The third school was the school that they were most confident in and had a relatively low cutoff score. In the future era, the grades would be released first, then the examinees would apply to various schools according to the cutoff score. However, nowadays, they had to estimate their own scores before the grades were out and start applying to school. Without a doubt, this increased the difficulty. The first year¡¯s test paper was relatively simple and many answers could be found in the textbooks. As long as one could remember the answers, most of them could get these questions correct. Yu Bing, Xiao Sheng, and Jiang Chun filled in their ideal school after estimating their scores. Yu Bing followed her previous plan and filled in the economics department of the capital university. Xiao Sheng filled in the energy chemistry engineering major at the capital university. Jiang Chun filled in S City¡¯s Teacher¡¯s College. S City was where Cui Jin was located in the military district. It wasn¡¯t far from Hang City. A month later, acceptance letters from various schools were sent to the village one after another. Jiang Chun was among the first batch of examinees to receive the acceptance letter, while Yu Bing only received it half a month later. The two of them were accepted into their first choice. Yu Yan had gotten herself sick on purpose to exchange for sick leave, but she didn¡¯t manage to get into any school. Yu Yan had gastric problems to begin with. Although she had recuperated at home for a period of time during the new year, this sort of chronic illness wasn¡¯t easy to cure. Now that she had moderate pneumonia, the discomfort severely affected her learning efficiency. Coupled with the fact that time was tight and she had not touched her textbooks for more than a year, it took her a period of time just to adapt. Unexpectedly, Yao Nian was accepted into Hang City¡¯s Water and Electricity Academy. Because his score wasn¡¯t high enough, he didn¡¯t get accepted into the Mapping Engineering major. However, he was assigned to the agricultural hydraulic engineering major, which didn¡¯t have enough people.. Chapter 514 - Chapter 514: Discovery Chapter 514: Discovery Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Although the school and major he was accepted into weren¡¯t ideal, Yao Nian was famous in the factory as one of the first batch of accepted students after the college entrance examination was resumed. Although Li Xin and Yu Hai didn¡¯t have a good impression of Yao Nian, because of Yu Yan, they would pay attention to Yao Nian¡¯s situation occasionally. After knowing that he had been admitted, their opinions of him changed a little. The couple even found Yao Nian and asked him about his job after graduation. The two of them originally wanted to keep Yu Yan by their side, but if Yao Nian wanted to return to his hometown because of his studies and work, Yu Yan would most likely follow him. This was the first time Yao Nian had seen Yu Yan¡¯s parents since he came to Linshui City. He knew that they were all leaders in the agency, so he was a little nervous. ¡°Hello, Uncle and Auntie.¡± Li Xin had a faint smile on her face, but she didn¡¯t say anything. Yu Hai smiled and greeted, ¡°Hello, Yao Nian. This is the second time we¡¯ve met.¡± The two of them chatted for a while before Yu Hai cut to the chase. ¡°We still don¡¯t know where your hometown is. Have your parents retired yet?¡± When Yao Nian heard this, he knew that Yu Yan¡¯s parents had agreed to him and Yu Yan. being together. He revealed his usual gentle facade and briefly explained his family¡¯s situation. This time, because he was already a university student now, Yao Nian didn¡¯t try to impress Yu Hai with the lie that his father was a small supervisor in the factory. He was worried that Yu Hai would think that his family was well-off and increase the betrothal money as a result. At this moment, Yu Hai and Li Xin were stunned when they heard that Yao Nian¡¯s home and the home of Yu Yan¡¯s biological family were actually in the same neighborhood. Yao Nian felt that Yu Yan¡¯s parents¡¯ reaction was a little strange and looked at them in confusion. Yu Hai saw the panic in Li Xin¡¯s eyes and touched his wife gently. Then, he smiled as he asked Yao Nian, ¡°What are your parents¡¯ names?¡± Yu Hai¡¯s question was a little obtrusive, but he was anxious to know more. Yao Nian found it strange, but he told him his parents¡¯ names honestly. Li Xin¡¯s breathing instantly quickened as she looked at Yu Hai. Yu Hai was afraid that Yao Nian would notice something amiss, so he took a step forward to block Yao Nian¡¯s probing gaze and continued to ask, ¡°Then did you apply to Hang City¡¯s school because you want to stay and work in Hang City after graduation?¡± Yao Nian revealed a strange expression. ¡°Uncle, wasn¡¯t it you who suggested that I enter Hang City? I originally wanted to choose a school in Linshui City, and with my work experience here, it would be easier for the school to assign me a job there after graduation. However, Yu Yan told me that the schools in Hang City are easier to get into. She even said that she would study there with me and that after graduation, you can think of a way to transfer us over, so I filled in my three choices with schools in that place.¡± Yao Nian had considered this problem when he filled in the school¡¯s registration form. His parents were ordinary workers, and his family couldn¡¯t give him any help, so it was better to stay in Linshui City. Yu Yan¡¯s family was well-off, and she could help him find employment. In the future, when they had a child, they could leave the child with his in-laws. He could also save some money when raising the child. Moreover, under normal circumstances, a girl who married into her in-laws¡¯ family had to integrate into a new environment. It was definitely not as good as staying by her parents¡¯ side and living in an environment she was familiar with since she was young. Because of this, Yao Nian even specifically wrote to Yu Yan and said that he was willing to stay in Linshui City for her sake. He exaggerated his concessions and sacrifices in hopes of leaving a better impression on Yu Yan and her family. However, Yao Nian didn¡¯t expect Yu Yan to let him return to Hang City. However, considering that it was Yu Yan¡¯s parents who suggested it and that the school there was indeed easier to get into, he agreed. Where Yao Nian studied wasn¡¯t important. What was important was his future job. When Yu Hai heard Yao Nian¡¯s words, he no longer had the urge to continue chatting. He found an excuse and brought his wife home first. Yu Jia Li Xin looked at Yu Hai worriedly. ¡°Hubby, how could it be such a coincidence?! The person Yu Yan found happened to be from the same family as the middleman who introduced us to her back then. Do you think perhaps Yu Yan discovered something?¡¯ Yu Hai pondered for a moment. From Yao Nian¡¯s words, it could be seen that Yu Yan wanted to go to Hang City. In the past two months, the couple had been using their connections to find examination materials to send to He Mountain Village, so they communicated very frequently. However, in the letter, Yu Yan didn¡¯t reveal any intention of not wanting to stay in Linshui City. Yu Hai looked at his wife and said, ¡°Yu Yan probably already knows that we¡¯re not her biological parents and that her biological family lives in Hang City. I even suspect that she¡¯s already been there..¡± Chapter 515 - Chapter 515: Admission Chapter 515: Admission Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Li Xin leaned against the sofa and lamented, ¡°What goes around comes around. Since she doesn¡¯t want to expose the matter, let¡¯s pretend that we don¡¯t know. Once we expose the matter, I¡¯m worried that she won¡¯t return to this house.¡± Yu Hai nodded. ¡°We can only take it one step at a time. Perhaps she just wants to see what her biological family is like. Don¡¯t think too much about it.¡± ¡­ He Mountain Village. Xiao Sheng¡¯s notice wasn¡¯t seen even at the end of the admission period. At this moment, the various enrollment offices had already begun to count the number of people accepted this time. There were 65 people applying from the He Mountain Village, and 18 people were successfully accepted in the end. 12 people got into universities, and six people got into secondary vocational colleges. They had the highest acceptance rate among all the villages in Jiangning county city. Yu Bing even obtained the title of the top scholar in the entire city for the college entrance examination. After Yu Bing confirmed that all the schools had completed their admission work, she looked for Xiao Sheng again and asked, ¡°Are you sure you remembered the correct answer when you compared answers with me?¡± Xiao Sheng nodded affirmatively. ¡°I¡¯m sure.¡± When Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng compared the answers, the difference in their scores was estimated to be less than 20 points. With Yu Bing¡¯s score as a comparison, Xiao Sheng should have received a notice from a school. Just as Yu Bing and Xiao Sheng were planning to go to the Education Bureau to check their grades, Wu Jin received a call for Xiao Sheng and called him to the village committee through the broadcast speaker. Xiao Sheng was a little shocked after picking up the phone, but he didn¡¯t show it on his face. He only said that it was the county city¡¯s transport team. Then, he hurriedly left and returned to the food factory. After Xiao Sheng entered Yu Bing¡¯s office and closed the door, he looked at Yu Bing with sparkling eyes and went forward to say softly, ¡°Zeng Li¡¯s brother was looking for me just now.¡± Yu Bing widened her eyes. Xiao Sheng continued, ¡°He said that my acceptance letter was intercepted by the military. He hopes that I can enter the army directly. The army also has a military academy slot for soldiers to further their studies.¡± Yu Bing was stunned for a moment. Then, she chuckled as she looked at Xiao Sheng. ¡°As expected, outstanding people work for the country. What are your plans?¡± Xiao Sheng smiled. He admired soldiers the most. It wasn¡¯t that he hadn¡¯t thought about it when he filled in his choice, but considering the placement of his younger siblings, he didn¡¯t choose a military school. However, the call just now gave him nothing to worry about. ¡°I agree. Moreover, the military base is in the capital. I don¡¯t know the exact location, but I know it¡¯s a little remote.¡± This was already an unexpected surprise for Yu Bing. There were many military bases in the country, so she felt lucky that Xiao Sheng and she happened to be in the same place. ¡°When are you going to report?¡± Xiao Sheng replied, ¡°Ten days after the Lantern Festival, Commander Zeng said that he would solve the problem of Xiao Lin and Xiao Li¡¯s schooling. There is a public primary school in Pingjiang County. The principal there is his former comrade. Xiao Lin and Xiao Li will return to the village during the winter and summer break. This solves the problem of their commute and meals.¡± Yu Bing didn¡¯t agree with him. No matter how much the principal took care of them, love was something outsiders couldn¡¯t give. Moreover, the food in school wasn¡¯t as good as that at home. If they wanted to spend money to eat meat dishes, it would be good enough if they could even find three pieces of meat in the food prepared by the canteen auntie. They might end up being malnourished. Yu Bing analyzed these details with Xiao Sheng. ¡°I¡¯ll bring them to the capital to study. I originally planned to rent a house near the school and move out anyway, so the two of them can accompany me, but the problem of studying still needs to be solved by Commander Ceng.¡± Schooling determined household registration, and household registration was related to property. Yu Bing wanted to buy a house, but unfortunately, it would be a few years before the transaction of houses was allowed. Therefore, without connections, schooling would be a huge problem. Xiao Sheng was a little tempted when he heard Yu Bing¡¯s suggestion. When he was with Yu Bing, he always felt as if he was riding on Yu Bing¡¯s coattails. ¡°They¡¯re already 10 years old. Children from poor families learn to take care of themselves earlier, so they can also take good care of themselves in boarding school. I¡¯ll leave them some allowance. Moreover, Zhou Min and Zhou Qun¡¯s family are in the county city, so I¡¯ll put some money in for them to send meat dishes to Xiao Lin and his sister once or twice a week.¡± Yu Bing knew that Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t want to trouble her, so she frowned and said, ¡°The president has a good saying. A relationship without the aim to get married is sexual harassment.. Are you trying to sexually harass me?¡± Chapter 516 - Chapter 516: Farewell Chapter 516: Farewell Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Xiao Sheng didn¡¯t know why the topic suddenly changed to this, so he hurriedly replied, ¡°When did I say I didn¡¯t want to marry you?!¡± Yu Bing was very satisfied when she heard this. She rolled her eyes at Xiao Sheng and said, ¡°Since we¡¯re getting married, we¡¯re family. What does it matter if I help when it¡¯s not convenient for you to take care of them? I know you feel that you¡¯ll owe me, so you should think about how to repay me now.¡± ¡°Besides, are you at ease with me living alone? No matter what, it¡¯s safer with Xiao Lin and Xiao Li accompanying me, right?¡± Xiao Sheng was tempted by the last sentence. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll leave all my bankbooks with you when we get home. You can use my money however you want.¡± When Yu Bing saw Xiao Shengs earnest gaze, she smiled and said, ¡°Then I won¡¯t stand on ceremony. I¡¯ll help you keep it first.¡± Xiao Shengs file was transferred to his newly established special team by Zeng Wei. However, on the surface, he joined the army as an ordinary soldier through his relationship with Zhao Xing. Yu Bings school term started a month after the Lantern Festival. There were three days for reporting. However, in order to take care of each other during the commute, Yu Bing decided to accommodate Xiao Sheng and set off early. She could also solve the rental problem along the way. Jiang Chun¡¯s school started school early. The Lantern Festival was the next day, so Yu Bing personally drove the tractor to send her to the bus stop in town. Before leaving, Yu Bing and Jiang Chun hugged each other as they said goodbye. After Yu Bing was reborn, she and Jiang Chun lived in the He Mountain Village together for almost two years. They were a little sad to suddenly part ways now, but all good things must come to an end. So far, her and Jiang Chun¡¯s situation was much better than in her previous life. One had to learn to be content. Yu Bing looked at Jiang Chun and instructed, ¡°Chun Chun, take good care of yourself when you reach S City. Tell me the address when you get there.¡± Jiang Chun¡¯s eyes turned red. ¡°Alright, you have to take care of yourself too. Contact me immediately after you settle down in the capital.¡± The two of them talked for another half an hour before parting reluctantly. When the chauffeur urged them, the two of them finally separated. These days, transportation wasn¡¯t as convenient as in the future, so they might not see each other again for a few years. After Jiang Chun left, Yu Bing started to pack her luggage. She still had to spend some time saying goodbye to her friends and colleagues. Yu Bing personally made many snacks and desserts during the Lunar New Year. Then, she first went to the county to visit the county head Mr. Bai, Director Chang, and the others, who had given her a lot of guidance in her work. Then, she went to the commune to look for the Song family and Wang Yun. She treated them to a meal at the state-owned restaurant to thank them for taking care of her like family for the past year or so. The commune colleagues who had worked with her before also gave her what they had made as a parting gift. Just this farewell took three days. On the fourth day, Yu Bing packed her luggage and took away all the valuables. She gave the worthless ones to the families in the village who needed them. The train and bus didn¡¯t transport living creatures now, so Yu Bing could only entrust Little Tiger to Auntie Zhao, who was usually alone at home. With a dog by her side, she wouldn¡¯t feel so lonely. On the fifth day after the Lantern Festival, Yu Bing and the Xiao siblings set off from the village at 8 am. Wen Qin specifically came to send them off. Due to her family background, Wen Qin had a solid foundation in her studies. Although she only had two months to study, she still got into S City¡¯s Foreign Language Academy with good results. She would leave a few days later than Yu Bing, so the two of them said goodbye in the village. Wen Qin hugged Yu Bing with tears in her eyes and said in a choked voice, ¡°Yu Bing, thank you! I really didn¡¯t expect such a day to come.¡± To Wen Qin, Yu Bing was like a ray of light in her life. If Yu Bing had not come to look for her personally after she was forced to give up her job, she might have fallen into despair forever. After that, Yu Bing was implicated a few times because of her, but Yu Bing still stood on her side as usual. Yu Bing patted Wen Qin¡¯s shoulder and said with a smile, ¡°You¡¯re welcome. You¡¯re here today because you¡¯ve been working hard and have never given up on yourself. Otherwise, just relying on me would be useless.¡± Wen Qin wiped a tear from the corner of her eye and handed Yu Bing a bag. Then, she said with a smile, ¡°I made you some jerky. My culinary skills aren¡¯t as good as yours, but make do with it on the way.¡± Wen Qin t s financial situation wasn¡¯t good. She had bought this meat with half a month¡¯s salary. This represented her sincere feelings, so Yu Bing accepted it without hesitation.. Chapter 517 - Chapter 517: Heading North Chapter 517: Heading North Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Yu Bing and the others embarked on the journey north. It took two days and two nights for them to take the train to the capital from Jiang Province. Fortunately, Xiao Sheng used his connections to buy four sleeper spots. After he left the capital train station, he found two tricycle buses and took them to the guest house near the capital university to temporarily settle down. Xiao Sheng booked two rooms. After putting the things away, Yu Bing suggested finding a place to stay first. After all, the guest house was too expensive. The less time they stayed there, the better. The school was in the downtown area of the capital and there were many houses of local residents nearby. Most of them had been requisitioned by the state after the new regime was established. The landlord would usually be able to have a few more houses. Many people were willing to squeeze their entire family into one single house to subsidize their families. Due to her status as a university student in the capital university, Yu Bing successfully rented a two-room courtyard house. The big room was 15 square meters, which Yu Bing and Xiao Li would stay in, and the small one was 10 square meters, which was for Xiao Lin to stay in. The kitchen was near the door and between the two rooms. Most importantly, there was a bathroom in the courtyard. Although there were more than twenty families living in the neighborhood, there was no need to run to the alley outside the courtyard to use a public bathroom. Moreover, it was only a ten-minute walk to the capital university, so Yu Bing was very satisfied. However, the consumer prices in the capital were extraordinarily high. The rent of the two rooms added up to 22 yuan a month. After paying the rent, the four of them cleaned up the room on the same day. There was only one bed in each room. Everyone only brought blankets and clothes to the capital, so the remaining items had to be bought. After waking up the next day, the few of them decided to move their luggage over first. Xiao Lin and Xiao Li were in charge of watching the house. Xiao Sheng borrowed a tricycle bus from the landlord and brought Yu Bing to the waste station to find two cabinets. They spent 30 yuan buying stoves, pots, bowls, and other daily necessities at the supply company. Then, they piled them all on the tricycle and brought them back to the courtyard. After bringing the things home, Xiao Sheng carried the heavy things in alone while Yu Bing, Xiao Lin, and Xiao Li were in charge of moving the light things. With everything they needed, their life in the capital officially began. This was because Xiao Sheng had to report the arrival the day after tomorrow. Everyone decided to watch the flag-raising ceremony and climb the Great Wall together tomorrow. These were two things that out of town people had to do after arriving in the capital. Then, the four of them went to the photo studio to take two photos to commemorate their arrival in the capital. Blissful times were always short. In the blink of an eye, it was time for Xiao Sheng to go to the army. Thinking about how the two of them wouldn¡¯t see each other for at least half a year or even a year, Yu Bing felt sad. Bus station When Xiao Sheng saw that Yu Bings eyes were a little red, he felt dejected as well and he hugged Yu Bing reluctantly as he said, ¡°I¡¯ll work hard in the army. I¡¯ll strive to get a residence as soon as possible and bring you guys over.¡± Yu Bing nodded in Xiao Shengs arms and reminded him worriedly, ¡°No matter what you do, remember to protect yourself. Xiao Li, Xiao Lin, and I are waiting for you at home.¡± In the past, without Yu Bing, Xiao Sheng would also be worried about his siblings when he went out. However, now that there was Yu Bing, he felt very at ease. Xiao Sheng kissed the top of Yu Bings head softly and rubbed his siblings¡¯ hair as he said gently, ¡°The two of you should study hard and help Sister Yu Bing do housework after school.¡± Sad expressions appeared on Xiao Li and Xiao Lin¡¯s faces. Then, they nodded and hugged Xiao Shengs waist reluctantly. The loudspeaker at the entrance kept playing the bus countdown, so the two of them let go of Xiao Sheng and let him enter the station. Yu Bing looked at Xiao Shengs back as he left and suddenly felt a little dejected. They had never been apart for so long after they met. The three of them returned home listlessly, but there were many children of the same age in the courtyard, so they quickly forgot about their sadness. On the other hand, Yu Bing was in low spirits for a few days before she finally recovered. Soon, school started. Xiao Li and Xiao Lin were also arranged to go to the primary school affiliated with the capital university. The primary school was beside the capital university. At first, Yu Bing sent them back and forth. It was only when the two of them found an alley to go to and from school that she felt at ease and let them commute themselves. In 1978, the country had just opened the market, but many people still treated business as speculation. Some government officials were also a little ambivalent about entrepreneurship. Yu Bing was one of the first batch of university students and received quite a lot of attention, so if Yu Bing went to do business as a university student, she would most likely be reported. Now, most people were still thinking about the Cultural Revolution. Even if the school didn¡¯t expel her, she would still be publicly criticized, so she wasn¡¯t in a hurry to do business.. Chapter 518 - Chapter 518: Tempted Chapter 518: Tempted Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Thinking of the economic development trend in the future, Yu Bing even applied for a fashion design class for herself. She planned to get a double degree and then focus all her attention on studying and interacting with her classmates to make up for the university time that she had not enjoyed in her previous life. Yu Yan, who was in the He Mountain Village, didn¡¯t give up on the idea of returning to the city. In July of the next year, she got into a secondary school and studied accounting. At this time, the value of secondary school was much higher than in the future. Yu Hai and Li Xin had been sending Yu Yan double the amount of things during the preparation period. Firstly, they hoped that Yu Yan could understand how much they doted on her, so that when she filled in her school application, she would return to Linshui City to study. Secondly, they were worried that she would be malnourished and that it would affect her preparation for the examination. However, Yu Yan still agreed on the surface. After the exam, she filled in all three applications to schools in Hang City. When Li Xin found out, she was so angry that she almost fainted. Li Xin wasn¡¯t angry that Yu Yan wanted to go to Hang City to study and return to her biological family, but that the daughter she had raised since she was young was compliant on the surface but rebellious on the inside. She didn¡¯t care about their ten to twenty years of mother-daughter relationship at all. She was even unwilling to return home even once after she got into the school and went straight to school from the He Mountain Village. Mr. Yu and Duan Mei were very angry when they found out from Yu Yan that Yu Bing got into the capital university but didn¡¯t tell them. However, Yu Bing would give them alimony like Yu Pan after they grew old, so they couldn¡¯t be bothered to cause trouble anymore. They realized that Yu Bing was no longer the little girl they could control so easily. If they dared to cause trouble, she would really abandon them. It was precisely because of this that Duan Mei was very happy that Yu Yan had gotten into a school in Hang City. After a disobedient person left, an easy-to-manipulate person appeared, so it wasn¡¯t a loss. After all, they had never spent money to raise their second daughter, but they would get money from Yu Yan directly after she started working. Just the thought of this was enough for Duan Mei to rejoice. Ever since Yu Yan sold the recruitment spot to Yao Nian, she had saved up 200 yuan. During the preparation period, she used various excuses to ask her adoptive parents for money. When she arrived at Hang City to study, she had already saved up 400 to 500 yuan. After Yu Yan had some money in her hands, she couldn¡¯t bear to splurge on herself. She bought meat every few days and returned to the Yu family¡¯s house to eat. As a result, Duan Mei was in a good mood every day. Yu Yan went there frequently, so Shi Lian naturally noticed something amiss. There was once when she happened to bump into Yu Yan and Duan Mei walking side by side on the stairs with Yao Nian. Shi Lian immediately recognized Yu Yan as the little girl she had arranged for someone to adopt. Only then did Yao Nian find out about Yu Yan¡¯s true identity. He immediately wanted to break up with Yu Yan. After all, the Yu family¡¯s situation was the same as his own. How could they help him?! However, Yu Yan wasn¡¯t easy to shake off. She had almost lost her virginity to Yao Nian. If Yao Nian dared to let her down, she would ruin Yao Nian¡¯s studies and career. Yao Nian naturally didn¡¯t dare to take the risk. In the end, he had no choice but to compromise. At this moment, Li Xin and Yu Hai went to Yu Yan¡¯s school. Yu Yan felt that it wasn¡¯t easy for her to return to her biological family, so she didn¡¯t want to return to her home in Linshui City for a moment longer. Moreover, the money she had saved up during the two years she had been studying was completely enough. After she graduated, the school would also find her a job. She thought that she was settled, so she fell out with her adoptive parents. Li Xin and Yu Hai didn¡¯t expect to raise an ingrate after so many years. They returned to Linshui City sadly and made up their minds to treat it as if they had never raised Yu Yan. The Yu family was in a mess, but Yu Bing was living very comfortably in the capital. In the middle of 1979, more and more people came out to do small businesses on the streets of the capital. The support for individual entrepreneurship became more and more obvious, and Yu Bing began to feel tempted. Yu Bings original plan was to start from catering like in her previous life, but catering was time-consuming. Now, she couldn¡¯t take so much time out, so she could only postpone the catering plan and focus on selling ready-made clothes. During the Cultural Revolution, people advocated plainness, so most of them only wore black, blue, or gray clothing. People suppressed their pursuit of beauty for a full ten years! Anything that had been suppressed for a long time would eventually explode. Therefore, after the reform and opening up, young men and women had no resistance towards fashionable and gorgeous clothes. Many daily habits had changed drastically along with the change in policy, but the people¡¯s disdain for merchants had not changed much. They still had the idea that working in national institutions and factories was the best place for a person to go.. Chapter 519 - Chapter 519: Small Peak Chapter 519: Small Peak Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations Vendors on the street couldn¡¯t find other jobs. In order to survive, they had no choice but to be vendors on the street. This group of people happened to become the pioneers of this era and made a fortune. In the blink of an eye, Yu Bing welcomed summer break of her sophomore year. Yu Bing had started looking for shops near the school before the end of the semester. She searched for more than a month before finally finding a suitable shop. As soon as it was the holidays, Yu Bing entrusted Xiao Li and Xiao Lin to the kind landlady for a week while she went to Yang City alone to buy goods. At this time, everyone liked to go to the local clothing factory nearby to buy goods, but they didn¡¯t know that the clothing style in the north was completely incomparable to that in the south. Yang City was a special economic zone designated by the country after the reform and opening up. As a trading port since ancient times, it had a certain advantage. In addition, Hong Kong, which was only across the sea, had close trading relations with foreign countries. Hong Kong was synonymous with fashion and prosperity. After the clothes were transported to the shop in the capital by Yu Bing, everyone was in awe. There were dozens of styles of dresses. There were flare dresses, tight-body dresses, cheongsam dresses, sleeveless dresses, a-line dresses, four-piece dresses, eight-piece dresses, and so on. The styles were all in the fashion style of Hong Kong, and Hong Kongs fashion was in the style of foreign fashion. One could imagine how attractive this novelty was to customers. This batch of goods included blouses, pants, and skirts. Because it was summer, skirts accounted for two-thirds of the goods. Because there wasn¡¯t enough money, Yu Bing even used Xiao Shengs money. She bought a total of 1,200 goods in one go. When she was busy, Xiao Li and Xiao Lin helped out in the shop. In less than a week, the goods were all sold. Yu Bing immediately went to Yang City to purchase the second batch of goods. This time, she learned her lesson and saved the phone numbers of all the shops. Then, she brought back 3,000 pieces of clothes. The people who bought clothes helped spread the name of the shop, so more people were waiting to ask for the goods this time. In just a week, there were less than 1,000 pieces After Yu Bing confirmed the style with the shopkeeper over the phone, she paid half the deposit. The rest would be paid after she received the goods. Yu Bing earned 73,790 yuan during the two-month summer break. During this period, some shoppers realized that Yu Bings shops styles were very special, but no one knew where Yu Bing got the clothes from. They began to ask around. Some relatives and friends who had been to Yang City on business immediately knew where the supply came from. After the origins of Yu Bings goods were revealed, many shop owners went south to Yang City to buy goods as well. After Yu Bing made a lot of money, many shops in the capital began to sell clothes from Yang City. However, Yu Bings shop had already made a name for itself, so when others mentioned shops with clothes from Yang City, they would think of Yu Bings shop first. Before school started, Yu Bing made another trip to Yang City. The reason she came personally was that she was about to start taking the premium route. Previously, she was the only one in the capital who had goods from Yang City and those styles could be easily sold by other merchants as well. However, things were different now. They were everywhere on the streets, so she had to follow the principle of ¡°I have what others don¡¯t, and when they have it I got a better one.¡± Because there were still classes going on at school, Yu Bing hired a neighbor who knew her well to help sell goods and began to plan to develop her own clothing brand. Yu Bing had a certain level of design experience. Coupled with the influence of fashion in the future, she began to design blueprints in the second half of the year. She hired 15 women and established a small clothing production line to specialize in producing her own brand. Yu Bing had designed winter clothes, so there was still plenty of time. The location of the shop was no longer near the school this time. Because the shop focused on mid-to high-end brands, the shop¡¯s location was downtown. The renovation design was decorated in the minimalistic style of the future. Yu Bing hired five shop assistants and nurtured them according to the standards of salespeople in the future. In this era, where there was no awareness of service standards, this move helped Yu Bing retain many esteemed guests. The opening date of Yu Bings shop was November 1st. It happened to be late autumn to early winter, so it happened to be the time for winter outfits. The fashionable clothes attracted the attention of many people and were slightly ahead of the designs of this era and the shop had better service. All kinds of factors combined made Yu Bings brand famous among many middle and high-end consumers. When Yu Bings career reached a peak, Xiao Sheng received a family visit leave. The two of them had not reunited since the last time they parted. During this period, they had been relying on letters and the only photo they had taken together to satisfy their longing.. They originally thought that they would only be separated for a year and a half, but who knew that they would only meet again after two years? Chapter 520-END - Chapter 520_End : Finale Chapter 520_End : Finale Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations On the night of early January, Xiao Sheng arrived home at seven o¡¯clock. Because he wanted to surprise Yu Bing, he didn¡¯t reveal his visit to her in advance. When Yu Bing heard the knock on the door, she thought it was Auntie Lin from next door. When she saw Xiao Sheng, her smile froze on her face. After the two of them looked into each other¡¯s eyes, Xiao Sheng took a step forward and hugged Yu Bing tightly. 10 Years Later Yu Bing looked at the twins, who were still watching television in the living room, and shouted, ¡°It¡¯s time to eat.¡± When the two children heard this shout, they immediately got up and went into the kitchen to bring the prepared rice out of the dining table. After Yu Bing looked at the usually calm and sensible second child, she couldn¡¯t help but lower her head to kiss his little head. The third child replied without turning his head, ¡°Mom, wait a little longer, after I¡¯m done watching this episode.¡± Xiao Sheng walked down from the study on the second floor and said in a cold voice, ¡°I wonder who said yesterday that he¡¯s a five-year-old man and has self-discipline. In that case, why don¡¯t you eat tomorrow? When the three babies saw their father come downstairs, they immediately ran to the dining table and replied with a smile, ¡°We have to eat today¡¯s food today and tomorrow¡¯s food tomorrow.¡± Yu Bing smiled as she shook her head helplessly. After Xiao Sheng sat in his seat, he placed Yu Bings favorite dishes in front of her. When the three babies saw this scene, they sighed and said, ¡°Dad, I really suspect that my brother and I were adopted by you guys.¡¯ Yu Bing reached out her index finger and tapped the third child¡¯s head gently. ¡°You talk nonsense al]. day long.¡± The three babies looked enlightened. ¡°That¡¯s right. Other people call their children darlings, but Dad said that our family¡¯s biggest darling is Mom.¡± Yu Bing blushed when she heard this and glared at Xiao Sheng, who pursed his lips to hide his smile and didn¡¯t say anything. At night, the two of them lay in bed and chatted. Yu Bing looked at Xiao Shengs side profile as she asked curiously, ¡°Why do I feel that you haven¡¯t aged even after so many years? You look even more handsome.¡± Xiao Sheng paused. ¡°What do you mean by after so many years? I¡¯m only 32 years old. Now that you mention it, I feel like I¡¯m in my fifties.¡± Yu Bing chuckled. ¡°I often feel that we¡¯ve been together for a long, Jong time.¡± Xiao Sheng pulled Yu Bing into his arms and said with a smile, ¡°Has it been that long? I hope we can be together for even longer.¡± As Yu Bing hugged Xiao Sheng tightly and listened to his heartbeat, she felt at ease. Sometimes, Yu Bing was afraid that everything she had obtained since her rebirth was a dream, because all of this was so wonderful that she couldn¡¯t believe it. Xiao Sheng was already at the official level. After he got married, he followed the army to the military. When Xiao Sheng had an assignment, he would bring the two little guys back to the city to live in a courtyard house he had bought two years ago. When Xiao Sheng was at home, Yu Bing drive a small bus back and forth to the army and company every day. The Baifei clothing brand, which was established when she was a student, already had 70 chain brands in the country. Later, she started a food chain as well. A few years ago, she dabbled in real estate and established Evergreen Real Estate. In order to get into an architecture major, Xiao Lin had just graduated this year and entered Evergreen Real Estate to work. Xiao Li was studying abroad as a computer science major. Jiang Chun was a high school teacher in Cui Jin¡¯s army and had two sons and a daughter. Wen Qin was now a diplomat; Shu Ya had fulfilled her dream of becoming a university professor; Feng Cai had successfully brought the food factory into City H, and Song Li, Wang Yun¡­ Yu Bing was very happy that her friends were all doing well. Yu Bing had almost forgotten that she had recently heard news about Yu Yan and Yao Nian. The two of them had given birth to a daughter. The Yao family was misogynistic and favored boys, but because of the single-child policy, they couldn¡¯t have another child. Mrs. Yao cursed at home all day long. Yu Yan wasn¡¯t a good-tempered person either, so the Yao family was full of chaos all day long. After Yao Nian graduated from university, he was assigned to the city¡¯s Agriculture Academy and often went to the countryside, where he didn¡¯t want to go the most, to help with technical guidance. All these years, he had never been promoted. Yu Pan wasn¡¯t doing well either. Last year, Yu Pan had come to the capital with her husband to look for her. She didn¡¯t know how Yu Pan found out that Wang Wei, who had been transferred to City H, was related to her by blood and wanted her to find Wang Wei to help her husband apply for the position of director of the factory. She didn¡¯t know how they had the cheek to look for her, since they hadn¡¯t contacted each other for so many years. In her previous life, before she died, she heard how Yu Pan badmouther her in order to please Yu Yan. Now that she thought about it, she didn¡¯t feely any hatred anymore. It was so tiring to live a life filled with hatred. Her life was quite blissful at the moment. Just as Yu Bing was thinking about it, she heard steady breathing from beside her. Yu Bing raised her head gently to look at Xiao Shengs handsome face and realized that as he grew older, his facial features became more and more manly. After she kissed Xiao Shengs chin, she revealed a coquettish smile and snuggled back into Xiao Shengs arms to sleep..