Shi Tou wanted to invite Liu Xu to eat Peking duck, but she refused. "Let's just go to a state-run restaurant and have something simple to eat."

Stone had no objections, but the two of them were quite lucky today, as there were dumplings available at the store.

After dinner, the two went to find the new house. Taking out the keys, Shi Tou exclaimed, "Wow, this house is beautiful!"

"Yes, I've been to this house before. I was the one who came to inspect the renovations. The furniture inside is all there, and there's nothing missing."

The two walked around the room, and the more they looked, the more satisfied they became.

"Honey, what do we need to prepare?"

"Are we going to stay here? Aren't we supposed to stay in our hometown? If we're not going to stay here, then we shouldn't prepare anything. We don't know how long it will be before we can come back, so preparing things would be a waste."

"Where shall we stay? We definitely need to bring our luggage."

"My second sister told me that the family has prepared two sets of luggage for you, so we can just move them over. We can also take them with us when we leave. We only need to prepare the kitchenware."

"We don't need the kitchen. I reckon Mom and Dad will definitely come back with us. Besides, my second sister will definitely invite us to eat at her place."

"Okay, let's go back and get our luggage."

When the two returned, they saw that Er Ya hadn't gone to work that afternoon, and a delicious aroma was wafting from the kitchen.

"You two are back? Have you eaten?"

"Second sister, we've already eaten. Sister Hongmei gave me a house, and we just went to see it. It's so beautiful, with all the furniture. I was thinking of moving my luggage there, since we'll be staying for a few days after we come back."

"No rush, I've already prepared everything before you came back. If you're leaving tonight, you should go and rest for a while."

"Go and rest, I'll help my second sister cook."

"No need, you two go and rest. We don't need you here. I just brought you some dry food so you can at least have some to eat on the way if we miss our train."

"Second sister, when is Pengfei coming back?"

"He told me at noon that he would be home by four o'clock in the afternoon. Ping An and the other two are in the study, so don't worry about them."

Shi Tou took Liu Xu's hand, and the two went back to their room.

Liu Xu's face was flushed red, but she didn't shake it off.

Actually, Shi Tou was quite embarrassed. But being a man, he pulled Liu Xu into the house, and the two of them didn't do anything, just lay on the bed chatting.

Shi Tou was so excited that he couldn't sleep. His wife was beside him, and although he couldn't do anything, he was happy.

Er Ya was preparing pancakes and boiled eggs in the kitchen; other things were hard to carry and wouldn't taste good if they got cold.

There's beef stewing in the pot; you can also wrap it in a pancake and eat it.

It wasn't until 3:30 in the afternoon that Er Ya had Shi Tou load the two children's luggage into the car. "You two must behave well. The car is small, and if you make a fuss, you won't be comfortable."

"Mom, don't worry, we will definitely listen to Uncle." Ping An quickly assured his mother.

When Pengfei returned, the family sat down for dinner. Er Ya gave the three of them some more instructions.

“You can’t fall behind in your studies when you go back. Pengfei, you’re in sixth grade now, so you need to catch up. These are the books I borrowed for you. You can go back and preview them in advance.”

"Second Aunt, I understand. Don't forget to pick up my admission notice."

"I understand, I won't forget. I'll say it one last time: if you dare to go up the mountain on your own, I'll show you what it's like when I lose my temper."

"Mom, can Dad come back with us?" Ping An quickly changed the subject.

"It should be fine. Your Aunt Hongmei said they should be back in four or five days. Just stay home and wait patiently."

After seeing the five of them off, I was all alone at home, and it felt so empty. Having no other option, I called Wang Ying.

Wang Ying came to pick up Er Ya, and the two went to the lingerie store. This small store has been open for almost ten years and business is still quite good. The two of them can only come here once or twice a month.

"Well, Shi Tou is married too. My third aunt can finally relax."

"Yes, I reckon my mom will have to go to Sanya's place again. We talked on the phone yesterday, and Sanya is planning to have my mom bring the baby back to raise when it turns one year old."

"Hehe, this is great. We're all together, and we can help take care of each other."

"Yes, Song Zigan's family doesn't have anyone who can help. Let's talk about it later. Personally, I still think it's better for the child to be raised by himself."

"Of course. Children grow up without you even noticing. Look at Zhiyu, he's already seven years old."

"That's right, Ping An turned eight on Christmas Eve, and Hongmei told him to go straight to fourth grade for the New Year."

"Qihong and Qingyang are also in fourth grade. Zhiyu wants to join them too, so the four of them can be together again."

"Yes, Hongmei only has three little ones left," Er Ya sighed. In fact, all of their children could be said to have been raised by Hongmei.

The two checked the accounts at the lingerie store and found nothing wrong, so they went home.

Zhu Zi and his wife came over that evening. "Er Ya, we can't go back. We can't get leave even at the end of the year."

"It's alright, Shi Tou and Liu Xu will have to go back to the capital eventually."

“We should have come over yesterday after we found out, but the logistics company had too many shipments to handle, and your cousin was also working overtime.”

"Alright, do we really need to explain our relationship? Cousin, are you going back this year?"

“I have to go back. My mom called and said my breasts are too soft now. I have to go back no matter what. I’ve saved up a month’s vacation, and the three of us will go back together.”

“Let’s go back too. Cheng Guangxu should be back by this week at the earliest.”

Both of them became a little sad as they spoke, as the old man was over seventy years old and his health wasn't particularly good to begin with.

"Alright, it's getting late, you should all go back and get some rest."

“Okay, this is for Shi Tou. You don’t need to keep it in the books. Just give it to him privately.” Zhu Zi took out two hundred yuan and handed it to Er Ya.

"Can't you give it to yourself?"

"I'm just worried we won't make it in time. What if they come back on the fifteenth of the twelfth lunar month?"

"Okay, I understand."

After seeing Zhu Zi and his wife off, Er Ya tossed and turned, unable to sleep. She really hoped Cheng Guangxu would come back soon.

Shi Tou drove, Liu Xu sat in the passenger seat, and the three children in the back, having lost their initial excitement, swayed and fell asleep by eight o'clock in the evening.

"It must be exhausting for the three of them to sleep like that."

"It's okay, they're all boys, don't worry about them. You should get some sleep too, I can drive myself."

"Okay, I'll drive when it's midnight."

Stone didn't refuse, otherwise he was afraid that Willow Catkins wouldn't sleep and would keep him company.

The road has been repaired very well; it's all paved with asphalt, and it's not as bumpy as before, which will save you a lot of trouble.