When Shi Ting mentioned dinner, Zhao Meiyun said, "Tingting, I have some dry food here."

Shi Ting clearly didn't want to eat the dry rations and looked longingly at Shi Zhen.

Shi Zhen said, "Aunt Zhao, eating dry food is tasteless. I'll go buy some steamed buns."

"That's too expensive." Zhao Meiyun hesitated. They had already eaten popsicles, how could they eat steamed buns too?

"I still have enough money to buy steamed buns," Shi Zhen smiled.

He still has some money, but he doesn't plan to spend it recklessly.

Shi Zhen bought six fist-sized buns, one for each person as usual. If they felt it wasn't enough after finishing the buns, they could eat dry rations.

The so-called dry food was pancakes that Zhao Meiyun made yesterday with freshly ground mixed grain flour. These pancakes were salted and had no filling, so they could be kept for a few more days.

For Shi Zhen, such a small bun was not enough. After finishing the bun, he took out a multigrain pancake and started eating it.

Although this pancake contains flour, it has a higher proportion of mixed grain flour and is not ground finely enough, making it very coarse to eat, like eating sand.

Shi Ting was still eating her steamed bun wrapper.

She ate the filling first, then slowly ate the outer skin, and said, "Meat buns are so delicious. I wish I could eat meat buns every day from now on."

Shi Zhen glanced at her. In her past life, Shi Ting definitely wouldn't have eaten these kinds of steamed buns later on. She probably ate too many delicious things back then, and her palate became increasingly picky...

After eating the steamed buns, Shi Ting stopped eating the multigrain pancakes, while everyone else ate some. Zhao Meiyun even licked the crumbs off her hands.

After they finished eating, Shi Zhen said, "Let's go, let's find a place to stay for the night."

This county town has buses that connect it to the outside world, but none that run within the city. They were carrying a lot of luggage, so they would need to find at least three pedicabs…

Shi Zhen could afford the money, but seeing that Shi Dalin, Zhao Meiyun, and Zhao Qiujuan didn't find walking tiring at all, he decided not to spend the money.

Let Shi Ting and Zhao Dongjuan suffer a bit.

Shi Zhen led them on a walk, looking for a place to stay.

Fortunately, the county town was not big, its size was even similar to that of Anshan Town... They walked for half an hour and arrived near the bus station.

There were places to stay here. Shi Zhen asked around and found that there were also large dormitory-style rooms where you could sleep for two yuan a night.

He didn't want the large dormitory-style room; instead, he asked for two rooms with two beds each, one for the four women and one for him and his father.

"Why are the four of us sharing a room?" Zhao Dongjuan asked, somewhat displeased.

“What’s wrong with four people sharing a room?” Zhao Meiyun glared at her daughter and said to Shi Zhen, “Actually, the six of us can squeeze into one room.”

This room costs eight yuan a night! Watching Shi Zhen spend the money without batting an eye, Zhao Meiyun felt particularly distressed.

"Auntie, you should go to sleep. You have to get up early tomorrow," Shi Zhen said.

The hotels at that time had very poor accommodation conditions. Their rooms did not have toilets, and the showers and toilets were all outside and shared.

Fortunately, men and women are separated, so the women can also take a shower.

Shi Zhen rinsed himself off briefly and then urged his father to go wash up as well.

His father had walked such a long way in the sweltering heat, and he had a strong smell of sweat on him, but he didn't seem to notice it.

When people live in poor conditions, they often don't have the energy to pay attention to hygiene.

The next day, they boarded a minibus and headed to the provincial capital.

They were carrying a lot of stuff, and the people on the bus were somewhat dissatisfied when they saw them. Some even gave them strange looks from time to time.

Shi Dalin, Zhao Meiyun, and Zhao Qiujuan blushed and lowered their heads, revealing embarrassed smiles. As for Shi Zhen, he was already used to other people's gazes and just tried his best to put things together so as not to bother others.

Fortunately, it wasn't during the Spring Festival travel rush, and the train wasn't full, so there wasn't any potential for conflict.

The little girl, Shi Ting, felt particularly embarrassed and called out in a wronged tone, "Brother..."

Shi Zhen reassured her, "It's alright. Last time I came out, some people said I smelled bad and avoided me."

Shi Ting felt a little sorry for her brother.

However, her sympathy lasted only a short while before her focus shifted: "Brother, the people outside are dressed so nicely."

When she's outside, she always feels like she can't even hold her head high.

She envied those who dressed smartly and wanted to be like them.

Shi Zhen sighed inwardly.

He knew that some people who did not get enough material things when they were young would like to shop a lot when they grew up.

His sister is naturally more concerned with food, clothing, and daily necessities, and she never got anything like that before...

It's normal to become a shopaholic.

but……

Buying things is fine, but maxing out your card and expecting someone else to pay you back is unacceptable.

If she can earn money, she can spend it however she wants; relying on others is never reliable.

And even if you're spending your own money, you can't overspend.

Ultimately, it all comes down to moderation.

The Shi family was deeply moved on their journey to Anshan Town.

They had never seen much of the world, so everything was unfamiliar to them and made them uneasy.

That evening, when they got off the bus at Anshan Town Bus Station, they were all exhausted.

Even Shi Zhen was extremely tired.

They brought so much stuff; his dad practically wanted to bring all the food from the house!

“I rented a house in town. Just walk along this street and you’ll get there,” Shi Zhen said, pointing to the town’s largest road at present.

The bus station is located at the easternmost part of Anshan Town, where there are still many newly built houses in recent years, while the vegetable market and various old houses are all located to the west.

Shi Zhen usually lives in the west, and his rented house is also in the old alley in the west.

"Brother, I really can't walk anymore..." Shi Ting said, her eyes brimming with tears.

Shi Zhen said, "We're almost there. Hang in there. Tingting, we'll see a movie theater in about ten minutes. There are lots of delicious food stalls in the square in front of the movie theater. I'll buy you whatever you want to eat."

These days, Shi Zhen is always dangling carrots in front of Shi Ting, trying to get her to follow him.

Shi Ting was really tired and couldn't walk anymore, but she was still tempted by the delicious food her brother was talking about.

She's eaten a lot of delicious food these past two days, only to realize that she used to eat pig swill at home.

"What good food is there?" Shi Ting asked.

"We have everything, you'll see when you get there," Shi Zhen coaxed her, carrying the load at the front.

They came to Anshan Town on the last bus. It was already eight o'clock and dark, but there were still many people coming and going on the road, and some shops were still open.

Shi Ting gritted her teeth and walked forward, trying to imagine the delicious food outside the movie theater to motivate herself.

As she walked, she actually saw the small square in front of the movie theater, where there were many stalls and bright streetlights.

Shi Ting's eyes lit up.

She smelled a fragrance!

But just then, Shi Ting suddenly heard a loud voice: "Brother!"

The dialect here is a little different from theirs, but Shi Ting could roughly tell that the person was calling for her brother. She subconsciously looked over and saw a boy waving his arms at them.

Is her brother over here? Shi Ting looked around but didn't see anyone answer. Instead, her brother suddenly quickened his pace and walked forward.

Then, Shi Ting saw the boy say to her brother in a clear voice, "Brother!"

Shi Ting's expression froze.

The moment Shi Zhen heard Guan Baiyu call him "brother," all his fatigue vanished instantly.

Seeing Guan Baiyu was a particularly pleasant thing for him.

"Why are you out setting up a stall?" Shi Zhen asked. He felt unsafe that Guan Baiyu was out setting up a stall so late at night.

"I've got nothing better to do anyway," Guan Baiyu said with a smile, looking at Shi Zhen. He was so happy to see Shi Zhen instead of setting up his stall. "Brother, you're finally back!"

"Brother! Who is he?" Shi Ting rushed up and asked, dissatisfied.

Shi Zhen is her brother! She's hers!

From childhood to adulthood, she was the envy of many in the village because she had an older brother named Shi Zhen.

Now someone else is trying to steal her brother!

Shi Ting glared angrily at Guan Baiyu.

Shi Ting's face shape is completely different from Shi Zhen's, but her eyebrows and eyes are somewhat similar to Shi Zhen's.

When Guan Baiyu saw her, his heart skipped a beat.

He knew Shi Ting; she was his brother's younger sister.

My younger sister, born to the same parents.

Guan Baiyu felt incredibly bitter and inexplicably disliked Shi Ting.

But he shouldn't have done that.

If he doesn't like Shi Ting, his brother might distance himself from him.

As Guan Baiyu was deep in thought, Shi Zhen said, "Tingting, this is Guan Baiyu, your cousin."

Shi Zhen had already told his family about Guan Baiyu, and even said that he was able to make money because of Guan Baiyu.

His and Shi Ting's mother came to their village during that rather chaotic era and married his father.

She never revealed her background, so neither he nor her father knew anything about her family.

Therefore, when he told his father that he had a cousin, his father immediately believed him, thinking that his mother had told him this in private.

If his father believed it, then of course the rest of the family believed it too.

After all, he had no reason to make up a cousin.

Now, the Shi family, having followed Shi Zhen over, felt quite a sense of familiarity when they saw Guan Baiyu.

Shi Dalin said, "You...you must be Bai Yu, right? You look a lot like your aunt."

Shi Zhen: "..." His dad really knows how to talk nonsense. Guan Baiyu and his mother are not alike at all.

No, there are still some similarities, namely the face shape.

His mother had a pointed face and a small face, just like Guan Baiyu.

Twenty years from now, Guan Baiyu will be considered a heartthrob, while his mother Shi Ting... Shi Ting doesn't need plastic surgery to have a typical internet celebrity face, and his mother is pretty much the same.

"Hello, little sister; hello, uncle; hello, aunt; hello, older sister." Guan Baiyu greeted them one by one in Mandarin, her smile particularly kind.

"Hello, hello." Shi Dalin and Zhao Meiyun didn't understand Mandarin very well, but they roughly understood the meaning, so they replied in their dialect.

Shi Ting wasn't so angry anymore; she looked at Guan Baiyu with curiosity.

Guan Baiyu is handsome, and Shi Ting has a good impression of him. Besides, he's also her brother...

"You must be Tingting? I've heard my brother mention you before... Is there anything you'd like to eat among these fried skewers? I'll fry some for you." Guan Baiyu smiled at Shi Ting.

Girls Shi Ting's age should like fried skewers, right? Guan Baiyu smiled very gently, but he couldn't help feeling nervous inside.

Shi Ting then noticed the fried skewers, and after noticing them... her mouth watered.

Everything here looks delicious!

"I'm a little hungry, I..." Shi Ting looked at Guan Baiyu shyly.

"I'll get you one of each," Guan Baiyu said.

Shi Ting no longer disliked him at all: "Okay, okay."

Guan Baiyu immediately took one of each and put them in the pot to fry. Only after he finished did he realize that there were other people present.

Should he have made a few more servings?

Shi Zhen guessed his thoughts: "My sister can't eat that much by herself. We can share these later."

Hearing Shi Zhen say that, Guan Baiyu stopped putting more fried skewers into the pot, as there was indeed no more room in it.

The food needed to be fried for a while to be cooked, so Guan Baiyu looked at the people in front of him with curiosity.

Shi Dalin and Zhao Meiyun's identities were easy to distinguish, Shi Ting's identity was also confirmed, and there were two young women... these must be his brother's stepsisters, right?

Guan Baiyu didn't know why, but subconsciously wanted these people to know about his close relationship with his brother.

He took a water bottle from the tricycle next to him and gave it to Shi Zhen: "Brother, have some water. Are you hungry? How about we fry a few more skewers of rice cakes later?" Fried rice cakes are delicious, filling, and cheap!

"Okay," Shi Zhen replied, taking the water to drink.

Guan Baiyu took out another towel to wipe his sweat: "Brother, drink slowly."

After he finished wiping, he took out the stool he had brought to sit on and offered it to Shi Dalin: "Uncle, are you tired? Sit down for a bit!"

After finishing that, Guan Baiyu picked out the fried skewers: "I heard from my brother that you don't eat spicy food where you're from, so I won't put any chili on them. Try them and see if you like them. By the way, my brother rented a place, and it's all set up..."

Guan Baiyu repeatedly referred to Shi Zhen as "my brother," which made it seem as if he and Shi Zhen were particularly close.

Shi Dalin, Zhao Meiyun, and Zhao Qiujuan were all very pleased—this child has a very good relationship with Shi Zhen, no wonder she is willing to help Shi Zhen make money!

Zhao Dongjuan felt a little uncomfortable. Was this person being too pretentious? But since she was waiting to eat the food this person fried, she didn't say anything.

As for Shi Ting, who should have felt something was wrong the most... her eyes were practically glued to the oil pan, how could she notice any of this?

Guan Baiyu: "..." It seems he's wasted his time.