"Sure, why not? But your house is so big, why has it all been turned into a vegetable garden? Can I take a look around?"

Zeng Yiming's curiosity was piqued, and he felt like he was no longer sleepy.

"Sure, feel free to look around!"

Shen Yanming didn't bring any along; he let Zeng Yiming wander around on his own.

Then he went into the master bedroom, took out the quilt that Zhang Heping had used for one night last time, and put it on the sofa in the living room.

After Zeng Yiming returned to the living room after visiting several bedrooms, Shen Yanming said to him, "The duvet cover was just washed, so you can use it without worry."

Zeng Yiming touched it and said with a smile, "I don't mind even if it hasn't been washed. You can't be so fussy when you're a guest at someone else's house."

"It's not a matter of being pretentious or not. Since you're here, we want to make sure you're comfortable."

"Yes, I feel quite relieved. I can sense that you and Joan have made a lot of preparations for my arrival."

Shen Yanming nodded. Although they were all small things, it was undeniable that he and Qiao An had indeed prepared a lot.

Zeng Yiming casually took off his shoes, lay down on the sofa, and asked, "Why did you turn the bedroom into a vegetable garden? Can you eat all those vegetables?"

"If you can't finish it, just make it into dried vegetables. You've experienced food shortages before, don't you know the importance of being prepared?"

Zeng Yiming choked, touched his nose and said, "I know, how could I not know?"

However, I've always been tinkering and getting what I want without much effort, and I never thought of growing it myself like you do.

Even the land at home, I haven't really taken care of.

Shen Yanming smiled and said, "Everyone has their own way of living. As long as you can make a living, that's fine."

Actually, you should be able to tell from these two interactions that I don't have the energy to do anything new right now. I just want to live a peaceful and stable life with my wife, with enough to eat and drink, and without being too busy or tired.

"Yeah, I can tell, and you seem really timid right now!"

"Yes, although I haven't experienced it yet, I'm afraid to face the evil in human nature. I'd rather be ordinary and not be noticed by evil people than live in fear one day."

Zeng Yiming froze. "Yanming, do you know something?"

Shen Yanming shook his head. "I don't know anything. I just think that the saying 'It's not scarcity that's worrisome, but inequality' makes a lot of sense."

Perhaps it's because everyone can still fill their stomachs, or perhaps the guards have made many efforts behind the scenes; in any case, the world you see is still somewhat different from the real world.

I ask you, if the climate continues to deteriorate and people eventually can't even maintain their basic needs, who will be the first target of the darkness that has been bred?

Are we ordinary people like us, or wealthy businessmen like you with plenty of money and resources?

The answer is self-evident.

Therefore, sometimes, being ordinary is not necessarily a bad thing.

When you lack the power to protect everything, being an ordinary person is often the best option!

Shen Yanming's words dealt a profound blow to Zeng Yiming's soul.

In the past, he always thought he was capable of exchanging meat, grain, vegetables, gold and jewelry, etc., at such times. His parents also thought he was capable and would show off to their neighbors and friends, intentionally or unintentionally.

In the past, he always felt proud when he saw others casting envious, jealous, and hateful glances at him. But now, Shen Yanming told him that those glances were like time bombs, which could backfire on him if he wasn't careful.

When Shen Yanming spoke to him on the phone before, he told him to pay attention to the amount of goods supplied to Chen Shunwei and the others, which must have taken these factors into consideration.

He wasn't just trying to protect Chen Shunwei and the others; he was also reminding himself of something.

Perhaps it wasn't that Shen Yanming was too timid, but rather that I was too daring.

Seeing Zeng Yiming deep in thought, Shen Yanming and Bi Qiaoan both retreated into the bedroom.

"Did you just say too much?" Bi Qiaoan asked with some concern.

"We got carried away and said so much, but I am indeed worried that if he expands his business too much, he will be targeted by others."

"He's so opinionated, do you think he'll listen to you?"

Shen Yanming smiled and shook his head. "He doesn't listen to me; he listens to himself! What I said is just my own understanding, and it may not be correct. It can only be used as a reference. As for how to do it, it's up to him."

Bi Qiaoan looked worried. "I just hope that in the future, something will happen that he won't hold a grudge against you!"

"No, he's not that kind of person!"

The conversation between the two entered the living room through the crack in the door, and Zeng Yiming, who was deep in thought with his eyes closed, heard it all clearly.

Although he didn't know if the couple had said those words on purpose, he knew they meant well.

Zeng Yiming's lips curled slightly as he began to plan for the future.

But as he was thinking, he fell asleep.

After Bi Qiaoan finished speaking, she turned her head and found that the bedroom door was not closed. Her eyes widened and she mouthed silently, "Did he hear that?!"

Shen Yanming nodded and replied in a whisper, "I did it on purpose!"

Then he turned around and gently closed the door.

"You didn't even tell me beforehand, weren't you afraid I'd talk badly about you?" Bi Qiaoan complained angrily.

"Don't worry, because my wife rarely speaks ill of others, and besides, you have a very good impression of Zeng Yiming."

How do you know I have a good impression of him?

"You prepared so many gifts for him! If you didn't have a good impression of him, you probably wouldn't even let him into your house, right?"

Bi Qiaoan shook her head. "I prepared a gift for him not because I had a good impression of him."

It's because when we were at Qingli Mountain, he prepared so many animal cubs and plant seedlings for us.

It can be said that our current abundance of food is largely due to him.

In this respect, I am grateful to him.

"Yes, if it weren't for his help, we could have gotten those things, but it would have taken a lot of effort. That's why I gave him two ginseng roots and even risked exposure to give him pills."

So, honey, we don't owe him anything. Let's just treat him normally, okay?

"Yes, I'll try my best!"

Bi Qiaoan nodded, then burst out laughing, "Probably because ginseng and pills aren't too rare for us, that's why I didn't properly assess their value."

Because it came so easily, they subconsciously felt it couldn't compare to the small fruit trees and poultry the other party had given them, which is why they were exceptionally friendly towards them.

"I knew that was the reason, otherwise I would have really drunk two jars of vinegar." Shen Yanming laughed. "But wife, they brought us forty catties of pork. Aren't the return gifts we prepared a bit insufficient?"

"Help me think of something else we can give away!"