"It's best for Aiguo to stay with the Zhao family; he won't be able to pass any political background checks if he wants to do anything in our family. As for my affair with Xiao Cui, don't interfere. She's having a child with that reputation now, which doesn't necessarily mean she's doing it for the child's good."

What could he do? Just because he was the son of the Qi family meant he had to stay even if the Qi family was a quagmire. The image of Zhao Aiguo, whom he had only briefly met, flashed through his mind again. He also remembered signing that certificate under Zhao Dahu's half-coercion and half-enticement.

Qi Zhifang didn't dare to speak at this moment, after all, she had caused the most trouble for her family. She quickly set out the bowls and chopsticks and said, "Alright, alright, let's all keep quiet and eat quickly."

Seeing Qi Zhijun and his mother's expressions, Qi Zhifang whispered, "Brother, don't be angry. Eat your food first. Mom was just trying to help you. She just said the wrong thing. Besides, I saw with my own eyes how good Aiguo is. He's our child, and it's really upsetting that he was given away to someone else!"

Qi Zhijun looked at Qi Zhifang and said, "Do you think I'm comfortable with this? I don't know if it's good to keep our son with us, but look at our family. Are you sure bringing Aiguo back would be better than staying with them?"

Looking at the bland and watery food in front of him, he was embarrassed to say anything. He chuckled and said, "Besides patriotism, we haven't done much for him since he was a child. Now that the Zhao family has raised him well, it's not right for us to go and snatch his child away!"

Qi Zhifang opened her mouth but couldn't say anything. Qi Zhijun said irritably, "And you, I heard from Mom that you caused trouble again. Can you stay away from them from now on? Did you bring Aiguo back thinking you could feed him, give him a drink, and raise him better? Or did you bring him back to share the blame with us? If you really care about him, you should pretend you don't know him when you see him in the future."

Mother Qi interrupted angrily, "What's wrong? Can't the Qi family's simple meals feed people? I raised you and Fangzi the same way, and we're no worse off than anyone else! They still dream of eating well and drinking extravagantly every day. Our Qi family just doesn't have that kind of life; I'd be afraid it would shorten our lives! What's wrong with the Zhao family? What do they have more than us? Just a bit more fat, right? They bring back food from the canteen every day, eating the public food while saving for themselves. In the end, isn't that just skimping on the workers' meals? They eat their fill, taking more than they can eat, and now they've found kindred spirits. Aren't they afraid of choking on their own food?"

Seeing Qi Zhijun's furrowed brows and displeased expression, Qi Zhifang quickly tried to smooth things over, saying, "Alright, alright, Mom, say less and eat your food!"

The three of them ate their meal in silence, each inwardly complaining about the person opposite them.

Qi Zhifang clearly wasn't going to let it go so easily. Although she hadn't seen Zhao Aiguo, she hadn't been idle during this time. She was plotting a meticulous plan—a plan to alienate Zhao Aiguo from the Zhao family and force him to return home. Meanwhile, Zhao Dahu was also thinking about how to make things difficult for Qi Zhifang, but even he hadn't expected her ability to court disaster to be so powerful! ...

Everyone has the right to pursue happiness, but of course, everyone's understanding of happiness is different, such as that of the couple Wei Xigun and Liu Taohua.

After receiving her monthly salary, Liu Taohua went out with a full bag as soon as she got off work. Because the canteen had a lot of leftover steamed buns made from mixed flour, she spent 10 cents to buy ten of them, along with five cornbreads and a lunchbox of leftovers.

When I got home, I quickly took out one steamed bun and hung the rest in the window of the west room.

I lit the stove, first put a kettle on the stove, then peeled two potatoes, cut them into chunks, waited for the water to boil, filled the thermos, put a small iron basin on the stove, added a spoonful of chive blossoms and some soy sauce, and then put the potatoes in.

When Wei Xigun came home from get off work carrying a jar of stinky tofu, I could feel the warm aroma, which made me feel completely comfortable.

She consciously took the thermos, mixed some water, washed her hands and face, and sat down around the stove. Liu Taohua poured the leftovers she had brought back into the stove, stirred it, took a bite, nodded, and handed Wei Xigun a steamed bun with two sides of the dough, saying, "I bought ten steamed buns with two sides of the dough at the canteen today. You can have one first, and I'll save one for you for breakfast tomorrow. Take the rest back with you."

Wei Xigun thought for a moment, then put the steamed bun back and said, "Never mind, I'll take it back for my mother and daughter to eat together." As he spoke, he took out his wages, which amounted to 28 yuan plus the receipt.

Liu Taohua nodded and said, "Then let's take 30 yuan back to Mom, keep 16.5 yuan for ourselves, to pay for Shuqing's rent, and save the rest for small items or anything we don't need."

Wei Xigun grinned, revealing a set of big white teeth, and said, "Okay, whatever you say. You're such a good wife!" Liu Taohua glared at him.

After eating, they started packing. The two of them had a total of 70 jin of grain for the month. This month, they received their share, and Liu Taohua took half of it back with her. In addition, there was a jar of stinky tofu, ten steamed buns made from two different kinds of flour, and two jin of meat that she bought with their meat ration coupons. Looking at the pile of things they had prepared for the home and the fact that they would be meeting tomorrow, the two of them were overwhelmed with happiness.

For ordinary people at the bottom of society, happiness means being able to be together, having a hot meal when they come home, and being able to buy things for their family so that they are well-fed and clothed.

As for the Zhao family, Zhao's father had promised to go for hot pot that day, but he was called away by his boss to cook, so it was delayed until now. Today, after receiving their salaries, the whole family went for hot pot together, which cost five yuan. The whole family ate until their bellies were round and full. For the Zhao family, this is happiness. On the basis of being well-fed and clothed, they can also give their family some specific small goals. On the premise of being well-fed, they can eat a little better.

But Qi Zhifang's sister is different. Her happiness is the same. The first thing she did after receiving her salary was to go see Xiao Hu. She believes that the persistence of a moth drawn to a flame is happiness. So she boarded the train heading north.

After finding the place according to the address memorized, I was detained before we even met.