"Eighth Master," Han Baozhu nodded, "Let's go back and pack up first, and then we'll have a meal together in a few days. Everyone can come."

"Alright, go ahead, you're lucky, kid." Han Kuan patted Han Baozhu on the shoulder, then glanced at Le Yao, "Alan, your parents didn't spoil you for nothing."

Le Yao smiled and nodded: "I will take good care of them."

When she first came to the village as a child, the villagers often laughed at Han Baozhu and Liu Sujuan, calling them fools. They said they couldn't even raise their own children properly, let alone take in another one. Among them, Han's grandfather was the most opposed, because if there were more children, wouldn't his grandson have less to eat and drink? He even threatened to sever his father-son relationship with Han Baozhu if the girl was kept.

However, the couple was determined to keep their daughter. As a result, Han Baozhu was beaten so badly by his own father that his skin was torn and bleeding. In the end, it was the village chief, Han Kuan, who intervened to mediate.

Not two years later, Grandpa Han became paralyzed, and Liu Sujuan personally took care of him for three years. Finally, on his deathbed, he acknowledged Han Binglan as his granddaughter.

The Han family's house is located at the westernmost part of the village, near the foot of Pear Blossom Mountain.

The main building has four rooms facing south, a large courtyard, and two side rooms on the east and west sides.

Since no one had lived there for several months, it was necessary to open the windows for ventilation, clean the house, and air out the bedding, so everyone got busy with these tasks.

Just then, a gray-haired head appeared over the neighboring courtyard wall: "Zhu Zi, Juan'er, I've finished cooking. Come and eat first, we'll cook again tonight. I made locust flower buns..."

This woman is the fifth grandmother who lives next door. Her deceased husband was Han Baozhu's fifth cousin, a close relative. His son and daughter have settled in the county town, so she usually lives alone.

Despite being an old woman with bound feet, Fifth Grandma had a very loud voice, so loud that half the village could hear her.

“Okay, we’ll be there in a bit.” Liu Sujuan nodded. “Fifth Aunt, don’t step on the ladder, be careful not to fall.”

"Don't worry, I'm still very agile," the old lady said as she climbed down the ladder. "The buns won't taste good if they get cold. Xiangdong, come over here and peel the garlic..."

After lunch, the afternoon began distributing the gifts that had been brought back.

These were all prepared by Le Yao. Every household had them. The usual ones were two packs of cigarettes, two bottles of wine, and two packs of snacks. Closer relatives, like the village chief and Grandma Wu, also received tea, milk powder, and other items.

Dinner was cooked at home by Le Yao. The rice, noodles, meat, and vegetables were all brought over by the neighbors, so it was quite a feast.

Nothing happened that night. The next morning after breakfast, Leyao suggested going to see her aunt.

The aunt was Liu Sujuan's older sister, Liu Su'e, who happened to be married in Shangmatun, which was only separated from Hetao Village by a river. She could use the excuse of visiting relatives to investigate Shuo Shuo's family without arousing anyone's suspicion.

"After your dad's accident, your aunt's husband sent over 20,000 yuan overnight. I was originally thinking of going over in a few days too," Liu Sujuan said to Le Yao while packing up the gifts, talking about her older sister's situation. "Yulan did quite well on the college entrance exam this year and got into Xiling Normal School. I reckon she should be getting her acceptance letter soon... That girl has a bit of a temper, but she's not a bad person. If she says anything unpleasant, don't take it to heart..."

"Mom, I'm the older sister, I won't mind." Le Yao nodded.