It hurts, my head hurts, my head hurts so much.

When Chu Fang woke up, he covered his head, feeling as if there were thousands of silver needles pricking it.

He turned over, startling Zhong Tingyue awake, who also opened her eyes and said, "You're awake."

"Where is this?" Chu Fang asked hoarsely.

"hell."

"The fortune teller said that I will go to heaven after I die."

"The calculation was wrong."

Zhong Tingyue then got up and went outside. Chu Fang stared blankly at the ceiling, his eyes lifeless.

After a while, he gradually came to his senses.

Oh, I was at Zhong Tingyue's hometown, and I drank a lot of alcohol. I think I'm drunk...

At this moment, Zhong Tingyue came in carrying hot water and asked, "Do you remember what happened yesterday?"

"Hmm..." he replied listlessly.

"Drink less in the future." Zhong Tingyue wrung out the washcloth and helped Chu Fang wash his face.

After washing his face, Chu Fang felt much more awake. He then slowly got up and left the room. He saw his sister-in-law sitting in the air as if she had become an immortal, with two attendants on either side of her: a dog attendant and a cat attendant.

"Zhong Rou, what are you doing floating in the air?" he asked.

"Huh?" Zhong Rou was taken aback. "Brother-in-law, I'm not arrogant."

Chu Fang slapped himself, instantly sobering up. He saw his sister-in-law playing with the tabby cat and the little yellow cat.

He drank too much...

Just then, Zhong Ping walked over, smiling sheepishly, and said, "Uncle apologizes to you for what happened yesterday, Xiao Chu."

Last night, Gao Ruoyun scolded him almost all night long.

How could a father-in-law get his future son-in-law drunk after he finally came to visit?

"Uh... it's nothing." Chu Fang shook his head. "Liquor is the essence of grain; the more you drink, the younger you become."

“Look, even Xiao Chu is saying that.” Upon hearing this, Zhong Ping slapped his thigh and turned to speak to his wife.

Gao Ruoyun glared at her husband, who immediately shrank back. She handed Chu Fang a bowl of noodles and said, "Little Chu, drink in moderation in the future, and don't hang out with those drunkards."

Chu Fang smiled faintly and accepted the bowl of noodles.

The noodles are a specialty of the Central Plains region, called hele noodles. The noodles are chewy and elastic, and the soup base is chicken broth left over from yesterday's banquet, which is fresh, fragrant and delicious.

Having a bowl of this in winter is incredibly refreshing.

After finishing the he luo noodles, Chu Fang became fully awake.

Zhong Tingyue wore a long, pristine white down jacket that gently enveloped her graceful figure, its smooth lines outlining her slender silhouette. The collar stood up slightly, perfectly protecting her delicate neck.

"Come on, I'll take you to the market." As Zhong Tingyue spoke, she gathered her soft hair, a few strands falling gently beside her ears, swaying lightly in the wind, adding a touch of unintentional gentleness.

Now that they were here, as the hostess, she naturally wanted to show Chu Fang around so he could see the sights of the Central Plains.

Chu Fang, Zhong Tingyue, and Zhong Rou headed towards the market.

The so-called market and the "market in Chengdu" have the same meaning. Both are about selecting a reasonable day for residents from the surrounding area to come and exchange and buy things.

However, compared to Chengdu, the Central Plains market seems to be more lively.

One point of difference is that the Central Plains markets have many activities involving worshipping gods, religion, and folk customs.

The three strolled through the market, buying local specialties, snacks, souvenirs, and more.

They walked up to a monkey show stall. The stall owner was playing with the monkey, making the onlookers laugh heartily. The sister-in-law watched with envy and asked, "Uncle, can I play with your monkey?"

"This monkey is aggressive and can hurt people."

Hearing this, the sister-in-law became even more interested and went forward to perform with the monkey. Seeing this, the stall owner had no choice but to let her do as she pleased, since he was there and nothing serious should happen.

Squeak... ...

Upon seeing Zhong Rou, the monkey bared its teeth and pretended to attack, while Zhong Rou struck out with her 'Zhong-style Eight Fists'.

What followed was a horrific scene witnessed by the onlookers. It was a truly gruesome sight. In the end, the monkey squeaked and hid behind its owner, its face filled with terror.

Having been a monkey for so many years, this was the first time it had encountered such an aggressive human.

If it could speak, it would say: I must appeal to the central government!

"Little beauty, you're a natural at performing monkey shows. Have you ever thought about following in my footsteps?" The stall owner was astonished.

"No! It's not challenging at all." Zhong Rou tossed her ponytail.

The three walked along the street, browsing through various stalls and witnessing quite a bit of amusement. A fortune teller and a soothing divination master got into an argument; one claimed to possess local magic and be knowledgeable in astronomy and geography, while the other boasted of imported divination techniques and expertise in celestial phenomena. They debated who was more powerful, and in the end, the younger sister-in-law was deemed superior...

Zhong Rou went up and asked a question: You both say you are very capable, so please tell me, what did the first person who drank milk do to the cow?

The two looked at each other, shaking their heads, while the younger sister-in-law replied, "Nonsense!"

The three continued walking when they suddenly saw Li Meng, her husband, and their child. Li Meng waved, and the group gathered together.

When the two met again, Chu Fang said, "I was busy yesterday and didn't get to chat with you much. Please forgive me."

"Hey, it's nothing." Li Meng waved her hand. "Besides, you're such a big boss, and you're still thinking of me. I feel unworthy of such kindness."

She paused for a moment, then continued, "I was wondering what kind of guy could win over Yueyue, how charming he must be. Now that I see, he's even more charming than I imagined."

As she spoke, she nudged Zhong Tingyue's arm and said, "How did you find one? Find one for me too."

Zhong Tingyue: "... ..., your husband is right next to you."

Li Meng's husband, standing nearby, smiled wryly, knowing that his wife's thoughts were always whimsical.

Zhong Rou was holding the child next to her, making him laugh in a funny way, just like when she was performing with a monkey earlier.

Zhong Rou tilted her chin up and said, "Taking care of children isn't that difficult. It's better to play with monkeys."

The two chatted for a while before parting ways. Before parting, Chu Fang slipped a red envelope into the child's pocket as a greeting gift and New Year's money.

"Hmm... not bad, he's an excellent boy." Li Meng nodded, watching the backs of Chu Fang and the other two.

"It's a pity that they like your sister," Li Meng's husband said.

"What? Jealous? Look at you, so petty. It's not much bigger than your thing." Li Meng glanced at her husband sideways.

Li Meng's husband twitched the corner of his mouth.

This is spreading rumors, slander, and insults!

Li Meng opened the red envelope and nodded in agreement: "They really are rich; they even use checks to make purchases when they go out."

Li Meng's husband glanced at it and commented, "6666."

Fine, I'll accept it even if it's small.

... ...

For the next few days, Chu Fang stayed at the Zhong family's house. Since it was the Chinese New Year, many of the migrant workers had returned, and he got to know almost all of Zhong Tingyue's relatives and friends.

Not only did I meet many people, but I also received a lot of news, such as Zhong Tingyue burying and erecting tombstones for deceased small animals, from chicks and ducks to locusts and ants...

There was also a time when her teacher asked her to cut out newspaper images to take to school. While others cut out airplanes and cars, Zhong Tingyue cut out the character "囍" (double happiness), which made the teacher smile awkwardly.

"I never imagined Ms. Zhong could be so childish," Chu Fang said with a smile.

"What's it to you?"

“... ..."