Xu Lai didn't take the ring; she only glanced at it before closing the box and pushing it back.

“I think we need to meet the elders and understand each other’s family situation before we talk about these things.”

Zhao Qingyun didn't look disappointed. He forced a smile and said, "Okay, I'll take you home for the New Year, okay?"

Xu Lai nodded: "Okay."

...

"He proposed to you?!" Xia Ning exclaimed in surprise.

Xu Lai shushed her, "Keep your voice down."

She specifically called Xia Ning today to share this matter with her, hoping she could give her some advice.

Xia Ning guessed, "I think you probably didn't agree to his proposal, right?"

Xu Lai nodded. "I couldn't think it through for a moment, so I returned the ring to him."

Xia Ning sighed, somewhat exasperated, and said, "There's no need to hesitate. With his qualities, what else is there to consider? Besides, you both like and admire each other."

Xu Lai twirled a strand of hair around her fingertip and said, "I know, but where will we live in the future? Will his parents agree to him staying here indefinitely? To put it bluntly, that would be like him marrying into the family."

Xia Ning thought for a moment and said, "That makes sense. You've already come back from City B, so you probably don't want to stay there forever."

Xu Lai patted her face: "Let's take it one step at a time and talk about it after the New Year." She wanted to see Zhao Qingyun's parents' attitude before making her next plan.

After seeing Xia Ning downstairs, she went to bake the pork she had marinated the day before yesterday.

They used an old, round piece of sheet metal, which they no longer used, to dry the cured meat.

She lit a fire inside the tin can, then took a machete and went up the mountain to cut some cypress branches, which would make the smoked meat even more fragrant.

As she descended the mountain, she saw workers measuring something with a measuring tape on that wasteland. She wondered, "Is the village going to build some kind of facility again?"

When they got home, Grandma had already removed the firewood. There were still some glowing embers left inside. Xu Lai threw in cypress branches, along with the orange and grapefruit peels and sugarcane peels she had peeled earlier, all of which could be thrown in to smoke the food.

When white smoke started to rise from below, Xu Lai took a stick, skewered the meat through it, and placed it over the smoke to smoke.

She placed four sticks in total, arranging the cured meat and sausages.

To prevent the dogs from stealing food, Xu Lai found a cage and covered it up so that Xiao Hei and the others couldn't touch it.

She remembered the piece of land behind the house and told her grandmother, "Grandma, when I came back just now, I saw someone measuring the size of that wasteland with a ruler."

Grandma thought for a moment and said, "That piece of land hasn't been touched for many years. Maybe someone in the village wants to build a house there."

Zhao Qingyun is currently discussing the design plans with the designer. He wants to build a three-story villa, and the location has already been chosen, just behind two houses.

Based on Xu Lai's preferences, he communicated with the designer for a long time and finally drew three drawings, all with similar styles but different layouts.

He decided to take the blueprints home and let Xu Lai choose one.

After getting home from get off work, he waited for Xu Lai to go back to her room before taking out the blueprints. He then made an excuse to ask, "My cousin suddenly wants to build a house and asked me which of these three styles to choose. I'm having trouble deciding, so could you help me take a look?"

Xu Lai put down the skincare products, walked to his side, picked up the blueprint and compared it, then said, "The second one, it has a small yard and a pond, so you can grow vegetables and fish when you have free time."

After she finished speaking, she looked at Zhao Qingyun and said, "What do you think? I'm just going by my own preferences, but if it's built in City B, it doesn't seem like a good place for growing vegetables and fishing."

Zhao Qingyun smiled and said, "It's alright, our opinion is just for reference. I'll reply to him right away."

He took his phone and walked to the side, then messaged the designer: "The exterior and basic layout are finalized in drawing two. We'll discuss the internal structure in detail next time."

Xu Lai was completely unaware of the situation. Zhao Qingyun also wanted to surprise her, so he didn't tell her the truth. He planned to tell her when the renovation was underway, so the two of them could decorate their home together.

Xu Lai's birthday had just passed, and Christmas was just around the corner. Her grandparents didn't celebrate these Western holidays, but Xu Lai still bought a box of apples and put them at home.

On the day Zhao Qingyun was about to go to work, Xu Lai handed him an apple, saying, "It's Christmas Eve, eat an apple."

In the afternoon, Xia Ning gave her an apple that was carefully decorated in a box. She took it, put it on the table, and asked, "Did any of the children give you an apple today?"

Xia Ning nodded: "I did send them, and they were all so enthusiastic. I told them not to send me any more, since an apple and its box cost four or five yuan each, and young children don't have much pocket money to begin with."

Xu Lai pointed to a box of apples over there, "Take some back and eat them."

Xia Ning shook her head: "There's still a bag of apples left at home. They're so dry and tasteless."

Xu Lai got up, took an apple, washed it, cut it into four pieces, gave half to her grandparents, and one half to herself and Xia Ning.

"Try it, this apple is quite sweet. The owner said it has a rock sugar core, and it tastes sweeter than the others," Xu Lai said, taking a bite.

Xia Ning also took a bite, then asked, "Why does your yard smell so smoky? Did your food burn?"

Xu Lai was startled by her words. She was smoking cured meat in the back of the kitchen, so she quickly went to check.

Fortunately, it didn't catch fire; it was just that the grease from the smoking dripped onto the branches below, which smelled rather pungent.

When Xia Ning came over and saw it, she was really tempted by all that meat.

"Xiao Lai, can you bake a few pieces for me too?" she asked coquettishly.

Xu Lai asked in surprise, "Grandma Xia, don't you bake cured meat for the New Year?"

Xia Ning waved her hand: "Don't say that. Grandma is old and always forgets things. Every time, the meat is either burnt or black, so it's never very tasty."

Xu Lai: "Okay, you bought the meat yourself, I'll bake it for you too."

Xia Ning smiled, "Okay, Xiao Lai is so nice."

Suddenly, Xia Ning heard the sound of an excavator coming from behind and asked, "What's going on behind your house? I remember that was a wasteland. Why is there construction going on?"

Xu Lai sighed, "I don't know, it started at seven in the morning, and it's kept me from sleeping well."

Xia Ning pinched her cheek: "That's awful. Come sleep at my house."

Xu Lai slapped her hand away, "I'm not going unless you clean the room first."

Xia Ning immediately ran away when she heard about cleaning, saying, "Then forget it, you'll just have to bear with it yourself."

Xu Lai shook her head. "You're backing down now that we're talking about this."