I took a taxi home from the hotel, but got stuck in traffic. By the time I got home it was almost 9 p.m., which was just around the time Xia Minmin was going to bed.

Xia Minmin's strange biological clock turns off at 9 p.m., just like a robot going out of power. No matter what she's doing, she can fall asleep immediately and no matter how much others try to wake her up.

As soon as Li Chunmei, the head of the household, entered the house, she immediately began to assign tasks to Xia Jianguo and Xia Minmin.

"Jianguo, go to the balcony and collect the clothes. I'll bring Xiaomin the pajamas in later."

"Xiaomin, hurry up and go take a shower. Maybe you shouldn't wash your hair today?"

Upon hearing that she couldn't wash her hair, Xia Minmin shook her head frantically, "Mom, believe me, I can hold out until I finish drying my hair."

Xia Minmin's hair is not only thick but also black and shiny. Li Chunmei often says that all the nutrients are concentrated in her hair, and not washing her hair for two days is Xia Minmin's limit.

"Alright! Alright! Go take a shower now, I'll bring your clothes in later."

After Li Chunmei finished speaking, she pushed Xia Minmin into the bathroom.

Xia Jianguo carried clothes into the house from the balcony and handed Xia Minmin's pajamas to Li Chunmei, saying, "Take these in to Xiaomin, and I'll fold the rest of the clothes."

"Okay. Xiaomin will be out in a bit. I'll go take a shower first after she comes out, and you can dry her hair."

Xia Jianguo was quite adept at blow-drying children's hair; he was the one who did almost all of Xia Minmin's hair. "I know, don't worry! This isn't the first time I've blow-dried Minmin's hair!"

Li Chunmei was well aware of Xia Jianguo's abilities, but she could never help but grumble, "Jianguo, I'm sorry."

Xia Jianguo stood up and patted Li Chunmei's hair. "Chunmei, you don't need to apologize, I understand. You've been taking care of Xiaomin all by yourself for a long time. Now I'm not as busy as I used to be, and I can help you with a lot of things. If I've done anything wrong, you can tell me directly and I'll correct it."

Li Chunmei's eyes reddened. A husband who can see your efforts and is willing to work hard to earn money, even if he doesn't have much money right now, as long as the two of you share the same goal and work together, you will eventually succeed.

"Jianguo~" Li Chunmei was about to hug Xia Jianguo.

Clang!

The bathroom door is open!

"Mom, I'm done washing!"

Xia Minmin, who had just come out of the bathroom, saw Xia Jianguo and Li Chunmei standing side by side. Xia Minmin was caught in a dilemma, not knowing whether to go in or back, and stood awkwardly at the bathroom door with a silly smile.

Li Chunmei said coquettishly, "You child, what are you standing there for! Hurry up and come over so your father can help you dry your hair. After you're done, you can go to sleep."

"Jianguo, help Xiaomin blow-dry her hair, I'm going to take a shower first."

Xia Minmin slowly walked over and sat down on the sofa next to Xia Jianguo.

After taking a deep breath, Xia Jianguo took out a hairdryer and dried Xia Minmin's hair.

When Li Chunmei came out of the bathroom, Xia Minmin's hair was still wet. "Jianguo, is your hair still wet?"

"Almost there."

Li Chunmei took the hairdryer from Xia Jianguo and said, "Go take a shower, I'll dry the rest."

"Xiaomin's head keeps nodding down, she's probably about to fall asleep. If she falls asleep after I finish drying her hair, just wait for me to carry her inside, then you don't need to carry her!"

Li Chunmei nodded. Xia Minmin is almost 8 years old now, and she can't carry her anymore.

When Xia Jianguo came out, Xia Minmin had already been put to sleep on the sofa by Li Chunmei.

Xia Jianguo dried his hair and carried Xia Minmin into the bedroom. Li Chunmei covered Xia Minmin with a blanket, set the alarm clock, and then tiptoed out of the room.

Xia Jianguo was sitting on the sofa watching the evening news when Li Chunmei walked over and tapped her shoulder, which was a little sore from a long day's work.

Xia Jianguo beckoned to Li Chunmei, "Come here, let me give you a massage!"

Li Chunmei sat next to Xia Jianguo, who pressed hard on her shoulders. "Jianguo, be gentle, it hurts a little!"

Xia Jianguo did as he was told, reducing the pressure. "How's this pressure?"

"Okay! Thank you for building the nation!"

"We don't need to be so polite!"

Xia Jianguo pressed for about fifteen minutes, then Li Chunmei stopped him from continuing.

The couple sat snuggled together on the sofa watching TV.

"Chunmei, thank you. My parents passed away early. If it weren't for your constant encouragement and belief in me, I wouldn't be where I am today. I still remember the day my father died, all the relatives came to my door demanding repayment of debts! They all ganged up on me, and not a single person believed that I could pay off all the debts!"

"For a long time, I dreamed about their faces; they were so hideous, as if all the past warmth had vanished, and I was a truly wicked person."

"The day I paid off all my debts, they seemed to have forgotten everything that had happened before, as if they had never forced me. Those hideous faces were just figments of my imagination."

Although Li Chunmei's eyes were on the television, her mind was completely elsewhere. That year, shortly after she became pregnant with Xia Minmin, her father-in-law passed away. They begged for a long time before someone was willing to lend them money for his funeral. No sooner had he been laid to rest than all the family's creditors came knocking on their door demanding repayment…

Li Chunmei thought for a moment, "I know that you would talk in your sleep every night that year, but we shouldn't dwell on the past after the founding of the country. Those unbearable past experiences have become our nourishment. At least now those people don't dare to say bad things about us to our faces."

"People are pragmatic. When you have something to offer them, they'll fawn over you; when you don't, they'll join the bandwagon in criticizing you or even kick you when you're down!"

"Our lives are not as good as some, but they are better than others."

Xia Jianguo pondered for a long time. Those people and things had indeed been far away from him for a long time, and they really shouldn't bother him anymore.

"Oh, right, Jianguo, before we got on the bus, I talked to my little sister about buying a house in a good school district, and I promised to lend them the money. I'm sorry, I didn't discuss it with you beforehand!"

Xia Jianguo held Li Chunmei's hand and said, "You've always been thinking of me. I should thank you for what happened to my little sister!"

Li Chunmei said, "I also have a daughter, and I can't bear to see my younger sister like that. I still remember the end of the year after my father-in-law passed away. When we came home, she sat timidly in the house looking at me. My heart softened immediately. Children without parents are the most pitiful."

"Besides, my younger sister and Xiao Wu are both grateful and empathetic people. If anything were to happen to us, they would take good care of Xiao Min as she grows up and wouldn't covet what we leave behind. If it were your older brother and sister-in-law, I wouldn't treat them like this!"

Xia Jianguo said, "Our daughter will definitely not have the same experience as my younger sister. Every year we will buy Xiaomin a house and save some gold for her, so that she will have confidence no matter what she does in the future."

“Chunmei, we will take good care of Xiaomin as she grows up. When Xiaomin goes to university, we will travel together. When Xiaomin gets married, we will buy a house near her and settle down with her to raise our children.”

Xia Jianguo and Li Chunmei leaned back on the sofa, filled with anticipation for their future life.

"Go to sleep! It's very late."

"Um."