Zhang Shouyi held his wife close, whispering sweet nothings. They played around for another hour before finally resting.

The next morning, Zhang Hongmei saw Zhang Shouyi off and arranged breakfast.

The children all came out of the practice room to eat at 6:30.

"Mom, let Lu Jing take me. None of you should go. I'm afraid I'll cry."

"Okay, Mom will be waiting for you at home."

"Sister Hongmei, don't see me off. I'll come again next year," Wang Zining said with a smile.

“Alright, I’ll stay home and wait for you too,” Zhang Hongmei comforted Wang Zining.

"Sister, we're setting off with you, it's time for us to head back up the mountain too," Zhang Zhenye said with a smile, changing the subject.

"Yeah, boss, you four remember to miss me."

Daniel sat next to Zhang Hongmei, holding her hand.

The children looked at this and that, and seemed a little downcast.

Breakfast was over. Watching the six children and two elderly people get on the bus, Zhang Hongmei no longer felt the distress she had before. She waved goodbye and watched them leave.

Liu Qiang held Zhang Hongmei's hand and said, "Auntie, your brothers and sisters have all left. Don't be sad, I'm still here."

“Yes, Auntie, we’re here with you.” The other children chimed in.

"Yes, I still have you all."

The sudden peace and quiet made Zhang Hongmei feel a little uneasy. She was no longer going to school, and exams were only two weeks away. She decided to stay home.

However, I made a special trip back to Liu Chongyu's house at noon. Ma Li is seven months pregnant. She's not working right now, mainly because she's still experiencing morning sickness at this stage of her pregnancy.

Upon entering the house, Zhang Hongmei saw an elderly woman who looked remarkably like Ma Li. She immediately greeted her with a smile, "Auntie, are you my sister-in-law's mother? It's the first time I've met you."

"Hehe, girl, please come in."

“Chongyu, this is your maternal grandmother.”

The little guy bowed respectfully and said, "Hello, Grandma."

“Okay, it’s the same grandma who saw you when you were little, Chongyu. You’ve grown up so much in the blink of an eye.”

Ma Li slowly emerged as well. Liu Chongyu ran over, "Mom, be careful."

Mary hadn't seen her son for almost a month. She was extremely excited, holding her belly with one hand and clutching her son with the other.

"Chongyu, Mom misses you so much."

At this moment, Zhang Hongmei and the other woman also arrived.

The old man put his arm around Ma Li's shoulder and said, "Let's all hurry back inside. I'll go cook for you and your daughter."

“Auntie, no need. My son and I had already eaten before we came back. We only got home yesterday at noon. The children had a group activity yesterday afternoon, so they didn’t come back. But Chongyu missed his mother, so we took the time to come back and see her today.”

"Hongmei, thank you so much." Mary was genuinely grateful to Zhang Hongmei.

"Sister-in-law, shall we stand on ceremony? This is my nephew."

Lu Jing and Gan Lu unloaded all the food, pork, chicken, fish, peanut oil, and bird's nest they had brought from the car.

"Sister-in-law, these were all brought back by my aunt. My great-grandmother lives here, and my aunt really can't come over, so we can only trouble your aunt."

"What's the big deal? My uncle is retiring in six months, he'll get by. We're all family, no need for formalities."

"Yes, yes, yes, what the old lady says is right."

Liu Chongyu took out a pendant with exceptionally good quality from his pocket and handed it to Ma Li, saying, "Mom, this is for you."

Ma Li's eyes welled up with tears. Her son rarely spent time with her, and she was worried that he wouldn't be close to her.

The other two were also very pleased. The old lady was pleased that her grandson hadn't become estranged from her daughter, while Zhang Hongmei was pleased that the child she had raised was grateful and polite.

The mother and daughter cuddled together for a while longer, but it was getting late, and they had classes in the afternoon, so they had to go back.

After arriving home, they received a call from Annie, and they successfully met up with Carlos.

"Hongmei, we're leaving tomorrow. I've walked around this place once, thank you."

"Hehe, do you think I wouldn't work if I got paid? Go back and say hello to my godparents. I really don't have a chance to go back and see them."

"Yes, I know. Daniel told me that the leadership has agreed to let the children come to our area in the future?"

"Well, it depends on where they go to university. If the second and fourth kids really go to military academies, they won't have a chance."

"Well, those are things for the future. Hongmei, you'll definitely be happy."

"Don't worry, you too. And also, go back and try to persuade Wyatt."

The two talked for another ten minutes or so before hanging up.

It was already past 3 p.m., so I drove back to the compound to visit Zhou Shixiong. The children came over to say goodbye before they left.

"Uncle, are you angry with me?"

"You still remember to come see me?"

"We've come back, haven't we? We'll move back on Monday."

"There are still four days left?"

“I’ll take the kids home on Saturday and then come back to be with you.”

"That's more like it. Is your great-grandmother in good health?"

"Yes. She's almost a hundred years old, so she's definitely not as good as she used to be, but I think she'll live a few more years without any problems."

"That's good, that's good." Zhou Shixiong was now terrified of someone dying. He himself was even more unwilling to die. He still had many good days ahead of him, and to die like this was truly unacceptable.

The father and son talked on and on about many things. Zhang Hongmei also told Zhou Shixiong about how she had lost her temper and kicked her family out of Liujiatun.

"Uncle, do you think I'm being a bit excessive or a bit dramatic?"

Zhou Shixiong smiled and said, "What's wrong with that? But the worst thing you can do is get angry. Getting angry is bad for your health. It's not unreasonable for someone of your status to live a little more authentically."

"I'm just afraid of causing you trouble. You might say I'm abusing my power, and I'll feel bad if you smear my reputation."

"Heh. You're overthinking it. Let's see who dares to bring this up."

Zhang Hongmei quickly changed the subject. "Don't get really angry."

Zhang Hongmei didn't return to Fuzeyuan until five o'clock.

It took Zhang Hongmei a while to adjust to having so few people at the dinner table that evening.

After dinner, the two went back to their room to study the martial arts techniques. Later, their study extended to their bed.

"Wife, maybe our daughter is already here."

Zhang Hongmei knew Zhang Shouyi had already replied, and rolled her eyes at him, "How could it be so fast?"

"Why not? We're in such good health!"

Zhang Hongmei felt that this guy was about to say something nonsensical again, so she quickly got up and said, "Brother Zhang, let's try practicing. I feel that I should be able to break through soon."

Zhang Shouyi knew his wife's little scheme but didn't expose her. However, he still listened to her, and the two of them got up, each giving a cup of water, and then gave each of their four sons a cup of spring water.

The couple sat down and began their practice. Zhang Hongmei quickly entered a meditative state and felt comfortable all over.