The next day, Yan Qiao specially hired someone to cut off the toon buds from the second toon tree.

I'll be giving away prizes on Weibo, only to fans in Yancheng. They'll arrive on the same day.

Fans from other regions expressed their extreme envy.

Being a fan of Qiaoqiao is so wonderful! I even won a Jo Malone perfume in a raffle last time!

[A blogger who holds giveaways every few days—who understands this kind of happiness!]

After Yan Qiao posted the picture of the toon leaves, she received a private message from a fan.

She said her home was in Yanjiao and she had a plum orchard, and asked if she wanted to come and pick plums.

Yan Qiao had no plans for tomorrow, so she asked Pei Xiang if she wanted to go.

Pei Xiang replied quickly: 【Ha! I isolate distant relatives and look down on them for going bankrupt. I'm not worthy to pick the plums!】

Yan Qiao: […]

That big mouth of yours should be punished!

Yan Qiao: [Who said that? I certainly didn't!]

Pei Xiang: [Smiling] I'll have your man go with you, I'm not going!

Yan Qiao: [Shyly] Not yet, let me win him over first!

Pei Xiang was furious. Being love-struck is no good!

She says she won't go, but she'll definitely go picking green plums tomorrow.

Otherwise, wouldn't that give Pei Jingzhan an opportunity to take advantage of her, and her plan to sow discord wouldn't have succeeded yet?

The next day, Yan Qiao and Pei Jingzhan set off directly from the courtyard house and arranged to meet Pei Xiang at the Green Plum Garden.

Picking green plums is perfect for making plum wine.

The young fan's name is Aiwen, and he lives with his parents in a village in Yanjiao.

The plum orchard was planted by her father when he started his business. Later, the business failed, he changed careers, and couldn't bear to cut down all the plum trees, so he kept them.

Yan Qiao brought some homemade dried meat biscuits, packed them in a box, and gave them to Ai Wen as a gift.

After waiting for a while, Pei Xiang arrived, looking grumpy.

But when facing Pei Jingzhan, she couldn't help but cower.

Yan Qiao wanted to experience what it was like to pick green plums herself, so she asked Pei Jingzhan and Pei Xiang to wait below.

This gave them both a chance to speak.

"Uncle, you can't do this! Deceiving a girl's feelings will get you struck by lightning!" she reprimanded him righteously.

Pei Jingzhan: "...Who deceived the girl's feelings?"

Pei Xiang said matter-of-factly, "Of course it's you! What did you say when Grandma urged you to date? A marriage between equals is the only way to last! You used to say you wanted an arranged marriage! You even went on blind dates. If those women hadn't failed you, your child would already be crawling by now!"

Pei Jingzhan's face turned cold, and he warned her, "You are not allowed to talk about these things in front of Qiaoqiao."

Pei Xiang snorted, "I will absolutely not be threatened by you!"

Pei Jingzhan casually curled the corners of his lips, "I originally asked Li Qiao to bid on a ten-carat flawless square diamond as a birthday present for you, but it seems you don't care."

Pei Xiang was shocked: "!!!"

"Who says I don't care! Uncle, my dearest uncle! In my heart, even my parents can't compare to you!"

Pei Jingzhan glanced at her, "Who is unworthy of Yan Qiao?"

"No one else is good enough for you, you're the perfect match! You're so perfect for me!" Pei Xiang said with a fawning expression.

What is backbone? Can backbone feed you? Can backbone buy her sparkling diamonds?

Pei Jingzhan said, "Say something nice."

Pei Xiang chuckled, "Wishing my uncle and aunt a speedy marriage, a long and happy life together, and many children!"

"Let's forget about having a baby soon." Yan Qiao is still young; we should wait until she's in college at least.

Pei Xiang: "..."

Some people may appear serious on the surface, but in reality, they've already decided when to have children.

That scoundrel, I wonder how long he's been eyeing Yan Qiao.

Waaah, it's all her fault! She's the one who pushed Yan Qiao into this fire pit!

Pei Jingzhan scoffed, "Didn't you want to use the Dongshan villa to throw a birthday party?"

Pei Xiang nodded repeatedly. Pei Jingzhan's villa has a huge swimming pool, and she wanted to throw a pool party and invite her girlfriends to have fun together.

Pei Jingzhan said, "I'm lending you the Yunzhu ship. Now, do you know what to do?"

The Yunzhu is Pei Jingzhan's private luxury cruise ship. Pei Xiang had been there once and had always longed to visit it.

It would be so prestigious to have a birthday party there.

"Thank you, Uncle. I'm off now!"

Pei Xiang casually made up an excuse and waved goodbye to Yan Qiao in a good mood.

"I'm leaving now, have fun!"

As she walked out of the plum garden, she turned around and received a call from Zhang Yufan: "Grandma, what's up?"

"You saw Yan Qiao? How's her relationship with your uncle? Is there any hope?"

Pei Xiang clicked her tongue, "Grandma, what are you saying? What do you mean by 'there's a chance'? My uncle and aunt are absolutely a match made in heaven! Just wait to hold your grandson!"

Zhang Yufan asked in surprise, "Last time you said your uncle was an old cow eating young grass, how come you've become a lackey now?"

Pei Xiang lightly slapped her mouth, "My bad, my bad! Even if my uncle is an old bull, he's the richest and most handsome old bull. No other bull can compare to him."

Zhang Yufan: "..." This doesn't sound like a compliment.

...

After picking the green plums, Ai Wen invited Yan Qiao to his home for tea.

Pei Jingzhan put Qingmei in the carriage first, while Yan Qiao and Ai Wen walked ahead.

"Qiaoqiao, no wonder you want to keep him as a sugar daddy, he's so handsome! You wouldn't be at a loss to keep ten men like him!"

Yan Qiao: "...My relationship with him is just that of a pure boss and employee, do you believe me?"

Evan paused for a moment, then a lewd smile suddenly appeared on his face.

"Got it, got it, that's which one you like."

Which one?

Evan patted her on the shoulder, "I get it! You wait, I'll send you a box of gifts later, I have a friend who sells those things!"

Yan Qiao: "..." What do you know? I don't know anything!

However, her attention was soon drawn to the mugwort in her vegetable garden.

"Can I pick some mugwort leaves to take home?"

"Of course, they're all wild. My mom picks some to eat occasionally, so we don't pull them out."

She asked Yan Qiao to pick the fruit, while she went to prepare the gift she wanted to give her.

Just as Yan Qiao was about to pick some mugwort leaves, she looked up and saw Pei Jingzhan and Yan Yaoyao.

An alarm bell rang in her mind.

The two were a certain distance apart, but Yan Qiao still found it an eyesore.

Evan came out at some point and didn't seem surprised when he saw Yan Yaoyao.

“She has been delivering oil and rice to elderly people over 70 years old living alone in our district recently, and today it’s our village’s turn.”

Although she didn't have a good impression of Yan Yaoyao, she had to admit that what she did was genuine; the oil and rice had all gone into the homes of elderly people living alone.

Yan Qiao suddenly realized, "So that's how it is."

She stood there, watching the two of them approach from afar.

Yan Yaoyao kept talking; you could tell her mouth never stopped.

Pei Jingzhan ignored him, his expression indifferent.

His reaction pleased Yan Qiao somewhat.

When they stopped in front of Yan Qiao, Yan Yaoyao smiled slightly: "Thank you, Mr. Pei, for showing me the way."

"Yan Qiao, what a coincidence! I didn't expect to meet you here." She took the initiative to greet him.

It was as if the two of them had never had any prior conflict.

Yan Qiao smiled slightly, "I heard from Xiao Wen that you do charity work here."

Yan Yaoyao lowered her head and smiled shyly.

"What I'm doing is just a small-scale operation, hardly charity. I'm just giving away some oil and rice, nothing valuable."

Yan Qiao looked disapproving: "How can you belittle yourself? There are quite a few elderly people living alone here. Delivering oil and rice to each household must cost a lot of money."

Yan Yaoyao became wary. "Fortunately, my parents are very supportive of my career, and I have their help."

Yan Qiao suddenly frowned. "But I feel like oil and rice aren't very practical. Wouldn't it be inconvenient for some elderly people living alone to cook?"

Evan immediately understood: "Indeed, some of the elderly people living alone here have difficulty walking."

Yan Qiao nodded, "Then sending money is more practical."

She gave Pei Jingzhan a wink, and he smiled helplessly, indulging in the agreement: "Indeed, giving money is more practical."

Yan Yaoyao's face stiffened. Just delivering the oil and rice had already cost a lot of money.

If they give me more money...

One hundred yuan is not enough; you need at least two hundred.

With so many elderly people living alone, how much money must that cost?

Yan Qiao smiled and waved her hand, "I just said it casually, I didn't mean to ask you to give them money."

Pei Jingzhan said calmly, "But if we could give them a red envelope, I think the villagers would be very grateful."

Yan Qiao: "Having oil and rice is already pretty good."

Pei Jingzhan: "It's not very practical."

Yan Qiao: "Red envelopes are useful, but they cost too much money."

Pei Jingzhan: "That's true."

Yan Yaoyao turned to look at Pei Jingzhan, her heart pounding.

"Does Mr. Pei really think that giving a red envelope is better?"

Pei Jingzhan looked straight ahead and said, "That's natural."

Yan Yaoyao gritted her teeth and decided to take his advice.

"Okay, for all elderly people over 70 living alone, add another 200..."

Pei Jingzhan looked over, "How much?"

Yan Yaoyao hardened her heart: "300! Give everyone another 300 yuan!"

My heart is bleeding.

Evan exclaimed, "Miss Yan is truly magnanimous! On behalf of the elderly, I thank you!"

After Pei Jingzhan and Yan Qiao entered the house, Yan Yaoyao was left alone, bewildered in the wind.

She hadn't even sent the money out yet, and she was already starting to regret it.

Why did you agree?

Sending this red envelope would cost at least a million! How could she have agreed?!