It was another night filled with tender love and passionate love. Around 5 a.m., Zhou Yi got up and left home.

Chen Hong saw him off at the gate, watching his figure gradually disappear into the quiet and empty street.

In the early morning in Beijing, the entire city is still asleep, with only the gentle breeze and birdsong breaking the silence.

The streetlights along the roadside have gradually been turned off, and in the distance, young people who are exercising in the morning are running along the deserted sidewalk.

Chen Hong closed the front door and was about to go back inside when she heard Zhou Yi's parents talking inside, and the lights in their room came on.

The old lady opened the door to the main room, leaned out, and asked, "Chen Hong, has Zhou Yi left?"

Chen Hong nodded: "Yes, we just left! Did we disturb your rest?"

"It's okay. We usually wake up around this time too. As people get older, they need less sleep and can't fall back asleep at that time."

It's still early, why don't you go back to your room and take another nap? You young people can't go without enough sleep.

By the way, are you going back to Jinan this morning? Have you booked your ticket?

Chen Hong: "I'm not going to sleep anymore. Once I wake up, I won't be able to fall back asleep. Mom, my flight is at 10 a.m. I booked my return ticket when I came here the day before yesterday."

The old lady opened the door and came out. "If you can't sleep, go back to your room and lie down for a while to rest. Don't you have to catch a plane this morning?"

There's not much to do at home. Oh, by the way, what do you want for breakfast? Your dad's going for his walk soon, he'll buy it together.

Chen Hong: "Let Dad buy whatever he wants. I don't have any dietary restrictions, I eat everything. I'm going back to my room now."

The old lady waved her hand, "Go back. I'll have your dad bring you some door nail baked buns. There's a bakery nearby that makes pretty good door nail baked buns."

Chen Hong returned to her room, packed her suitcase, changed the bed sheets and duvet cover, washed them by hand in the bathroom, threw them into the washing machine to spin dry, and hung them on the clothesline in the yard to dry.

She washed all the underwear that she and Zhou Yi had changed out of and hung them to dry in the bathroom.

At 6:30, Zhou Yi's dad came back from his walk, carrying a bag of door nail-shaped baked buns.

The old lady cooked a pot of plain porridge at home, along with six boiled eggs. There were also some Liubiju pickles that she had bought in advance. For breakfast, each person had a bowl of plain porridge and a boiled egg, and they also ate door nail-shaped baked buns. It was a nutritious and simple meal.

After finishing their meal, Brother Zhou and his family of three said goodbye to Chen Hong and then went out. Some went to work, and some went to school. Among the family, the three of them were the busiest.

The old man put down his rice bowl and ran outside as well, heading to the flower market to collect free flowerpots.

Chen Hong helped the old lady clear the table and washed the dishes in the kitchen.

Zhou Yi's mother stopped her from doing it, saying, "Chen Hong, don't do it. I'll wash these dishes in a little while."

"Aren't you rushing to catch a flight? Have you packed your luggage?"

Instead of washing the dishes, Chen Hong helped clean up the floor and tidied up the area.

"Mom, everything is packed. There's no rush. We can leave at eight o'clock. I washed the sheets and duvet cover this morning. Could you please put them away for us this afternoon when they're dry?"

After staying at home until eight o'clock, Chen Hong picked up her luggage and left the house amidst Zhou Yi's mother's reluctant nagging.

At noon, Chen Hong entered the house on time, but her father and Yu Yang were not home.

Chen Hong called her father and learned that the old man had taken Yu Yang to a restaurant again.

She chuckled inwardly. Luckily, this was Jinan, a city teeming with restaurants and eateries of all sizes. With enough money, one could eat any kind of cuisine—Shandong, Sichuan, Zhejiang, or Hunan—at will.

This is exactly what my dad, who can't cook, wanted!

The old man used to be reluctant to spend money. He would buy something delicious but wouldn't eat it outside. He would bring it home for the whole family to eat, even if it was hard to afford it.

Now, Chen Hong deposits 10,000 yuan into his account every month, and during holidays or when Chen Hong is in a good mood, she will transfer even more money, such as 50,000 or 30,000 yuan.

The old man had nowhere to spend his money, so he looked forward to coming to his daughter's house to take care of the children and take his eldest grandson out to a restaurant.

Perhaps in his mind, this was the only way he could spend money on his grandson.

At noon, only Chen Hong was left at home. Lunch was simple; she cut some braised beef and cooked herself a bowl of clear beef noodle soup.

After eating a simple bowl of noodles, Chen Hong began to organize the clothes in her suitcase, washing what needed to be washed and hanging what needed to be hung in the closet.

She took a shower and then prepared to take a nap.

At 1:30, Dad brought the child back, handed the keys to his daughter, and prepared to go home.

Chen Hong groggily got out of bed and asked her father to stay a few more days, but the old man refused.

“Your sister-in-law has also gone to work. Your mother is quite tired taking care of two children by herself. She has been away for three days, and I am worried about her.”

Now that you're back, you don't need me anymore. I'll go back this afternoon to help your mom take care of the kids.

How was your trip to Beijing? Was the apartment you got alright? Do you need us to go and renovate it?

Chen Hong: "Dad, the houses in the military are not big, and they are all simply decorated."

The family compound doesn't allow outside construction teams to enter. Zhou Yi has already had the logistics department paint the walls and replace the furniture. It's a government-owned house, so it's good enough to live there as long as it's passable.

We don't even know how many more years we can live here. The military doesn't allow us to make any changes, so there's no need for us to either.

Dad was puzzled: "Isn't this house yours if it's allocated to you? Why don't you know how many years you can live here?"

Chen Hong said with a smile, "Dad, haven't you heard the saying, 'The camp remains, but the soldiers come and go'?"

What soldier stays in one unit for their entire life?

When the time limit is reached, soldiers will be transferred, promoted, or reassigned; they will not stay in one place.

The military housing is allocated to military dependents for a few years. If their positions change, they will definitely have to move to a different place to live!

The houses all belong to the government; they won't be given to individuals!

Chen Hong's father muttered, "So, after more than ten years in the army, he still can't afford a house?"

Chen Hong: "Military family housing can definitely not be given to individuals! I heard that there are now military-built houses where, once you reach a certain level, you only need to pay the cost price to buy a house in the area, and the property rights belong to the individual."

It can be lived in by oneself and passed down to one's children, but it cannot be bought or sold!

"If it can't be bought or sold, can it still be considered your own house?"

"Oh, Dad, you can't think like that! They sell houses worth a million to soldiers for only three or four hundred thousand. If you let them sell, you'll make a profit, but the military will be the ones who suffer."

"That won't do. The military is giving you this quota to support military families; we wouldn't let anyone profit from it."

Chen Hong's father passed away, taking with him the four roast ducks that Chen Hong had brought back from Beijing.

Meanwhile, my brother's house in Jinan has been renovated and all the furniture and appliances have been bought. He's just waiting for it to air out before moving in.

These past few days, Chen Yi has been working on his child's school transfer procedures. Once school resumes, the whole family will come to live in Jinan.

Chen Hong was also busy packing her things, preparing to move to Beijing.

In this life, her and her brother's fates are different from their previous lives. They have all changed their destinies and have also affected many people connected to them.

Chen Hong wondered, what about her younger sister? Would her sister's fate change in this life? With her by her side, things should get better and better, right?

Before Chen Hong and her son left Jinan, her brother Chen Yi finally moved and held a grand housewarming banquet.