When the RV entered the village, it was around 2 p.m. Everyone was probably resting, and we didn't see many people along the way.

They arrived at what used to be their own yard and parked the car.

Jiang Ning slowly got out of the car, a look of surprise on her face.

Along the way, they saw that every household had built a two-story house, painted white on the outside, with green glazed tiles on the roof shining in the sunlight, and the decoration of two dragons playing with a pearl looked lifelike.

But his own home was not demolished; it was exactly the same as before. Even the original mud house, which had been washed away by rain and was now just ruins, had not been touched.

The vegetable garden next to the house was quite well-maintained. Each variety of vegetable was enclosed and paved with cement. The entire garden was clean, except for the soil under the vegetables.

Lin Chen glanced at Jiang Ning, then walked into the open door.

Just as they were about to step over the threshold, a little boy of about three years old came out, opened his innocent eyes and asked them who they were.

"Hello little friend, are any adults in your family home?"

Just as he finished speaking, a woman with half-black and half-white hair came out of the house.

"Yes, yes, who are you looking for?"

The woman recognized Jiang Ning immediately upon seeing her appearance, and then shouted into the house.

"Ergou, get up! Look who's back!"

Zhao Ergou sprang out of bed with a start, went to the door, and saw Lin Chen and Jiang Ning. He grinned from ear to ear.

"I was wondering why my eyelids had been twitching all day; it turns out you guys really are back!"

Zhao Ergou quickly asked his wife to bring them stools.

"Ergou." Lin Chen didn't sit down right away, but went up and hugged Ergou.

For some reason, Zhao Ergou, who is usually carefree, had tears in his eyes.

"Brother Chen, I've missed you so much! You guys have been gone for thirty years, my grandson is old enough to run errands now."

As he spoke, he called out to the little boy from before and greeted Jiang Ning and the others.

"Dog Egg, say hello quickly."

Zhao Ergou's wife, Cuihua, rolled her eyes at him.

“Speak more politely. Our Gou Dan has a name. His name is Zhao Wenzhuo.”

Dog Egg timidly called them Grandpa and Grandma.

Jiang Ning stroked his hand and took a piece of candy out of her pocket and gave it to him.

"Zhao Wenzhuo is a good name."

Zhao Ergou and his family still retain the local custom of serving sesame and bean tea to guests.

They drank and chatted about the situation here.

Lin Chen was puzzled as to why they hadn't built a new house, considering they had sent a lot of money home over the years.

Zhao Ergou scratched his head and chuckled.

“Brother Chen, I just think all those buildings look the same. Our old house has character, and we’re used to living here. Besides, I’m afraid you won’t even recognize the door when you come back.”

Lin Chen: "Your children are all married, right? Why is only your grandson here?"

Zhao Ergou: "They've all gotten married and complained that the houses here are shabby, so I gave them money and helped them buy houses in the county town."

"Luckily I bought the house early; now prices have skyrocketed. Houses in the county town cost 5,000 yuan per square meter. In this world, money is practically worthless."

Lin Chen then asked them, "With prices so high now, do you have enough money?"

“That’s enough. How much can a few of us eat? My son found a job in the county town and earns several thousand yuan a month. He even said he wanted to take us to live with him, but I didn’t agree. I told him to let me take care of his child.”

"Thanks to your assistance, a primary school was built in our village, and children from nearby villages are now attending the village primary school."

"Our village wouldn't be so well-developed without your financial assistance!"

Since Lin Fugui stepped down, Chayuan Village has had a new village chief. With sufficient funds, the village chief has led the villagers to accomplish many practical things.

However, now most of the able-bodied men in the village have gone out to find work, leaving mostly elderly people and children at home.

The children also aim to get into big cities; no one wants to stay in the countryside.

After chatting for an afternoon, Jiang Ning and his wife learned a lot about the current situation in the village.

After dinner, the two of them took a stroll by the lake, hand in hand.

Behind the village lies Tuanjie Lake, with clear water. A gentle breeze ripples the water, revealing aquatic plants within.

The air by the lake was also very fresh; after a few breaths, I felt refreshed and relaxed.

After more than two months of wind and sand in the border region, this landscape scenery instantly dispels fatigue.

"Our hometown is still the best!" Lin Chen picked up a pebble and skipped it across the water.

The pebble floated six times on the lake shore before finally sinking to the bottom.

Looking into the distance, Jiang Ning spotted the small island in the middle of the lake and exclaimed excitedly:

"Do you remember that little island? Yu Xiaofeng wanted to burn us to death on it back then, but now it's lush with trees and is a nice place to relax."

Lin Chen followed her gaze, took her hand, and walked over there.

"My uncle and aunt passed away a long time ago, and they didn't get to see the prosperity we have now."

They couldn't help but sigh when they thought of the people and events from the past.

It is said that back then, Lin Tao left some money for Yu Xiaofeng, and she went to the capital to see her son one last time. However, she was hit and killed by a car while crossing the road because she couldn't avoid it in time.

Based on the ID card she was wearing, the police located Lin Baojia and gave him her ashes, Lin Tao's money, and the compensation.

All that money added up to more than 100,000 yuan.

Lin Baojia suddenly became one of the wealthiest people in the village.

Many women actually came to his door to propose marriage.

Finally, Lin Baoguo couldn't resist the temptation and had a relationship with a woman.

The woman didn't really want to marry him; after sleeping with him, she started crying and sobbing.

Her son threatened to call the police and demanded 100,000 yuan in compensation from her.

Lin Baojia was always timid, and after being intimidated and threatened, he actually gave them 100,000 yuan.

I managed to save tens of thousands of yuan, but then this person lent me a little, and that person took advantage of me, and gradually all my money was gone.

In the end, he starved to death.

Zhao Ergou is not a philanthropist who would give alms to someone who has no food.

Besides, the two families had no contact whatsoever. Although they lived only a few steps apart, by the time they smelled the stench of Lin Bao's corpse, it was already several days after he had starved to death.

Now, the grass on his grave has grown very tall.

The two were taking a walk by the lake when they encountered many villagers who came over to greet them when they saw them return.

Before they could even finish a cup of tea, news of their return spread like wildfire throughout the village.

That evening, their house was surrounded by layers of people, making it impossible to get through.

These once familiar faces, after thirty years of weathering, are no longer the same as they used to be.

But when it comes to what happened back then, everyone remembers it!

The best wedding banquet they had ever had in their lives was at their own family's house.

"I never imagined that after all these years, you would still remember to come back!"

Some people sighed.

As they were talking, a middle-aged woman with short, ear-length hair pushed through the crowd and exclaimed in surprise when she saw Jiang Ning.