Happiness came too suddenly, and Wu Sicheng felt he had to do something to express his joy.

An Moxue, however, became curious about Wu Sicheng's parents. Parents like his seemed to be quite rare!

"Your parents are a bit of a surprise to me."

"Yeah, that's how they are. They're incredibly open-minded as long as it doesn't involve each other. But once it involves each other, they become unbelievable, sometimes even like madmen. In their eyes, all I need to do is stay alive; nothing else matters."

"I can kind of tell. Has it always been like this, from childhood to adulthood?"

"Yes, I lived with my grandparents before I went to military school. After I started working, we had even less contact."

"What about your grandparents? Will they agree?"

"Yes." Actually, he wasn't very sure. His grandfather was very open-minded, but he really couldn't say for sure about his grandmother. However, their marriage was still several years away, and having children was even further down the line. His grandparents' health wasn't very good, and it was hard to say whether they could hold on until then. There was no need to create obstacles for himself. As long as he could get past his parents' approval, that would be fine.

An Moxue had some doubts, but she didn't say anything. Who knew if the two of them would drift apart as time went on?

"Mo Xue, I learned about your parents' situation when I came back this time. Has it been completely resolved? Are there any other problems?"

"Let's just say it's resolved! Why is it that good people in this world don't live long?"

"Because they are kind and have no intention of harming others."

"Yes, that's why I'm not kind. I want to live to be a hundred years old, and I want all those who covet me to die a horrible death," An Moxue said through gritted teeth.

Wu Sicheng found An Moxue's genuine and unpretentious nature extremely endearing, and wanted to share the good news with her: "Moxue, do you know? I got promoted when I came back this time. I'm now the deputy regimental commander."

"real?"

"Of course." He smiled happily at her incredulous look.

"Then you must be a very young regimental commander? My father was only a regimental commander when he sacrificed his life! I'm only a battalion commander now."

"What? You're already at the battalion level?" He was full of surprise, but also a little shocked. This girlfriend is so amazing. He always felt unworthy of her if he didn't work hard. What was going on?

"What? You're not happy?" An Moxue glared at him fiercely, as if to say that if he didn't like what she said, they would fight.

He replied with a strong survival instinct: "How could that be? I just feel sorry for you. You were promoted so quickly, you must have made a lot of contributions, but in my eyes they were all dangerous. Mo Xue, are you alright!"

"Once it's over, it doesn't feel like a big deal anymore."

"You need to start preparing for the New Year now, how you want to spend it. You stay at home, I'll go out and get some food."

"Wait a minute." An Moxue grabbed his arm and said, "No need to go. Aunt Ma has made all the preparations. We'll spend the New Year with them."

"That's not a good idea! I can't just eat and drink for free; I still need to get some food."

“What’s wrong with that? You brought a lot of food in your bag. That’s enough. I’m also planning to go hunting for roe deer, wild boar, deer, pheasants, and rabbits. Even the fish is a fish that weighs over a hundred pounds. That’s enough to eat.”

"I'll go get some other things, especially fruit. I remember you used to eat fruit every day when we were abroad. Don't worry about me," Wu Sicheng said, and left the house.

An Moxue was alone in the house for a short time when Tao Hua arrived.

Upon seeing An Moxue, he gave her a hug. "Sister Moxue, I missed you so much! Without you, I feel so lost and uncertain about things. I'm afraid I'll make the wrong decision and regret it later. Here, these are mushrooms I dried in the fall."

"Thank you." An Moxue took the bunch of mushrooms and asked, "Hmm? Why are you alone? Where's your sister?" An Moxue looked at the little girl who had grown into a young woman and seemed more cheerful. Before, she wouldn't have given a hug when they met after a long separation.

"She got married," Plum Blossom dropped a bombshell.

"When did this happen?" An Moxue asked as she served Meihua some food: peanuts, melon seeds, sugar cubes, hazelnuts, pine nuts, and a cup of brown sugar water.

Meihua didn't stand on ceremony either, eating as she spoke, "It's been two months, and I've married Daqin from the militia company."

"The youngest son in the Xu family?"

"right."

"And what about you?"

“I’m still at the educated youth settlement, but I’ve set up my own stove and sometimes cook for myself. Let me tell you, once I went to the mountains to pick mushrooms and found a ginseng root, which I sold for a hundred yuan. After that, life became much easier.” Mei Hua said, her eyes and brows full of smiles.

"That's great, you're really lucky. I've been to the mountains so many times and never encountered anything like it. Did you keep quiet to yourself?"

"No, I asked Uncle Ma to help me sell it. Only my sister knows about it. I gave her thirty yuan as a dowry when she got married."

"Sure! I'll find someone. This old man won't let you lose money selling these; you might not be able to sell this many on your own."

Mei Hua chuckled foolishly and said, "Hehe! My sister says so too. Sister Mo Xue, you're getting prettier and prettier!"

“You’ve become more attractive too. You’re taller now, and you’re not as thin and sallow as you were when you first came to the countryside. Your face is fuller, and even your hair has turned black. Take good care of yourself. This is the time when you’re growing. Don’t neglect yourself. If you neglect your health now, it will affect you for life. If you’re not healthy, no one will care about you. Even when you get married, your husband might not care.”

"Sister Moxue, I know that besides my sister, you are the only one who would tell me these things."

"Sister Moxue, let me tell you, new educated youth have arrived at the educated youth settlement. There's so much to do all year round..."

When Wu Sicheng returned, it was already dark. As soon as he entered the house, he started moving things inside. "Mo Xue, quick, open it and see if the fruit is frozen."

As soon as An Moxue opened the package, she saw a familiar bag of fruit, the very same ones she had sold to Er Gouzi: apples, pears, oranges, and bananas—everything was there, except for three bananas.

How much did you pay for these things?

"There isn't much, but such good fruit is rare. Even my grandfather and his family rarely get to eat it. It's just a little bit, but it's enough for you by yourself."

"I just wanted to ask if you overpaid? I bought some too, and they're in the box!"

"Oh! Apples are three yuan each, pears are two yuan and fifty cents each, oranges are one yuan each, and bananas are five yuan each."

An Moxue looked at the pile of fruit on the kang (a heated brick bed) and asked, "How much did it cost in total?"

"Ninety-eight yuan." Well, Er Gouzi knows how to do business.

"I also bought a fish. I'll make you grilled fish. Do you want some?" An Moxue glanced at it and realized it was also one of the fish she had sold. For a moment, she didn't know what to say.