When Jiang Ruyu opened the last seafood gift bag, she was overjoyed. Sure enough, food was the most satisfying thing. The gift bag contained fish, shrimp, crabs, all kinds of snails, and so on. Luckily, she could store it in her backpack. With so much stuff, she could enjoy seafood from time to time when she returned to Yanjing.

Having received so much unexpected wealth, Jiang Ruyu's mood soared to the heavens, like a plane taking off.

Once Jiang Lin and Zheng Yang boarded the ship, she couldn't suppress her smile, and both Jiang Lin and Zheng Yang looked at her with some curiosity.

"Sis, what are you laughing at?"

Jiang Ruyu paused for a moment: "Did I laugh?"

"Ah, look at you, smiling like a blooming peony."

Jiang Ruyu cleared her throat and said casually, "Yeah, I'm quite happy. Look at all this seafood, we can have a big meal again, of course I'm happy."

Jiang Lin rolled his eyes in dissatisfaction: "Sis, you're treating me like a child again. If you don't want to talk, then don't. Humph, I don't want to know anyway."

Jiang Ruyu slapped his head: "You little brat, don't eat what I make later."

It was getting late, so Jiang Ruyu and the others didn't linger and went back. The seafood on the boat consisted of abalone, scallops, conch, and other shellfish. After returning the boat, they borrowed the kitchen from the guesthouse.

Jiang Ruyu made a big pot of seafood noodles. There was still some flour left over from what she bought yesterday, so Zheng Yang took over the work of kneading the dough and rolling out the noodles. He had been learning to do these things for over a year, just so he could lighten Ruyu's burden in the future.

Jiang Ruyu liked his quiet and hardworking nature; he never made empty promises and always kept his word. That's what made a man real.

The abalone was cleaned and cut into small pieces. The conch was also sliced, and a few poached eggs were added.

Jiang Ruyu braised the remaining abalone, and the scallops were also delicious steamed and dipped in sauce.

They left a bowl of noodles and a dish for the chef, and Jiang Ruyu and the others borrowed their pots and pans and went to their room to eat.

"Ah, hand-pulled noodles are still the best, they smell so good!" Jiang Lin exclaimed as he ate the noodles.

If you like it, eat more.

As Jiang Lin was eating, he suddenly remembered something: "Sis, are you guys getting ready to leave?"

“Yes, we’ve been here for a few days now. You can send us off the island tomorrow. We’ll go see your brother again. It’ll take us many days on the road, so we can’t delay any longer.” Jiang Ruyu nodded as she looked at Jiang Lin, feeling reluctant to part with him.

"Oh." Jiang Lin's mood gradually declined.

After finishing their meal, they returned the belongings to the owner and cleaned up the kitchen before leaving. The three of them walked along the path on the island.

Jiang Ruyu handed the defensive bead to Jiang Lin: "Wear this, and don't take it off. It's a talisman. I know we're not allowed to promote feudal superstitions now, but just treat it as a little trinket. Don't take it off, understand?"

Jiang Lin looked at the blue bead hanging from the black rope and thought it was quite pretty. Knowing that it was a gift from his family, he didn't say anything and took it to wear around his neck.

"Sister, I know you're all worried about me. I'll definitely take good care of myself." Jiang Lin didn't dare say things like "I'll definitely not get hurt." In war, how can a soldier not bleed and sacrifice himself?

"It's good that you know. No matter what, think things through before you act, and don't act rashly and impulsively." Jiang Ruyu didn't want to say too much. This trip had shown her how much Da Linzi had grown. He could handle some things on his own, so there was no point in saying too much.

The three of them strolled along the path, chatting about everyday matters. As it grew dark, Jiang Ruyu told Jiang Lin to go back, as they had a set bedtime.

The next day, Jiang Ruyu and the others packed their things. Jiang Lin brought a large bag of things with him when he arrived.

"Sister, this is my comrade-in-arms, and also some dried goods I traded with the fishermen. I'll send them home when I leave the island."

"Okay, thank you, my comrades. You've really gone to a lot of trouble."

"They all want to eat the sauce you sent." More than an hour later, Jiang Ruyu and the others left the island and arrived in town: "Go back, Dalin, we're leaving. Don't see us off. Take care of yourself and stay safe."

Jiang Ruyu hugged her younger brother without saying much. Parting is inherently sad, and if she said too much, she would burst into tears.

Zheng Yang gave his brother-in-law a bear hug: "Take care of yourself."

Jiang Lin's eyes reddened slightly. He saluted them and turned to board the boat. "Sister, I will be fine. Wait for me to come back. Be careful on your journey and write to me when you get home."

"Okay, you're doing well."

We've all grown up, we all have our own lives now, and we need to strive for our ideals.

Hopefully, years from now, after weathering the storms of time, we will still be who we are.

Jiang Ruyu and his comrades mailed the dried seafood that Jiang Lin and his comrades had prepared back to Yanjing, and also wrote a letter to let them know they were safe. They then boarded the train to continue south. They got off the train in Jincheng, bought some local ham and other specialties to send back, and then continued on to Xiacheng.

It took them more than five days to finally reach Jiming Island in Xiacheng, where Jiang Hui was. It was a huge effort, as it was so far away.

Jiang Hui was also unaware of their arrival. When Jiang Ruyu and the others arrived on the island, they were immediately surrounded by onlookers. Jiming Island is truly small, and the sudden appearance of two unfamiliar faces made it clear to everyone that these people were not from the island.

"Comrades, who are you looking for? You're not from this island, are you?"

An elderly man wearing a tank top asked in broken Mandarin.

Zheng Yang took out a cigarette case and offered a cigarette: "Grandpa, you still have some? We're from Yanjing, here to visit relatives. Are there any educated youth from Yanjing on your island?"

The old man glanced at the cigarette in his hand and exclaimed, "Wow, a Zhonghua cigarette with a filter! This is expensive!"

"Ah, visiting relatives? You're educated youth from Yanjing? Yes, I'm the Party Secretary of Jiming Island. Are you family members of educated youth?"

Jiang Ruyu and the others didn't take the old man's probing questions to heart, and just answered a few questions: "Yes, I was passing through here on a business trip and stopped by to see him. My younger brother, Jiang Hui, where is he?"

"Jiang Hui? Jiang Zhiqing, oh dear, so you're a relative of Jiang Zhiqing. What a coincidence! Jiang Zhiqing was a good comrade on our island."

Then, Jiang Ruyu heard this person praising Jiang Hui, and it was so much so that you'd think he was their own child.

They also learned that Jiang Hui was actually doing quite well. This kid was smart and no longer needed to do manual labor. He not only opened a primary school on the island but also served as the island's accountant, the kind who only handled accounting and not money. He was fast, accurate, and never made mistakes. He was handsome, had a good temper, and was very capable. Everyone on the island liked him.

Jiang Ruyu and Zheng Yang exchanged a glance: "I didn't expect this kid to be so good. He's doing quite well."

Zheng Yang was also surprised: "Now you can rest assured."

The island's Party Secretary led them to the place where Jiang Hui taught, a house built of stone. Jiang Ruyu saw Jiang Hui, whom she hadn't seen for a long time, outside the window.

Jiang Hui was in the middle of class when the Party Secretary interrupted him: "Little Jiang, come out quickly, your family has come to see you."