Zhang Hongmei did not refuse, saying, "Thank you, Principal. I will work hard and make progress steadily."

"Well done, it's getting late, you should head back now."

Chen Sheng came out and said, "There's one more copy. Are you planning to visit Liu Jingze's teacher? You don't need me to lead the way, right?"

"Thank you, teacher. Don't bother yourself. You should go back and rest. Liu Jingze knows your dormitory."

Liu Jingze thanked Chen Sheng, and then pushed the cart with Zhang Hongmei to his teacher's dormitory.

Liu Jingze used to come over often; there were only two elderly people living at his home.

"Why did you two come here? I heard that Zhang Hongmei's college entrance exam results this year were exceptionally good, and she's a shoo-in for Capital University without a doubt."

"Hehe, this girl came over to thank you for your help, old man."

"Teacher, thank you for your recommendation back then, thank you for giving me this opportunity." Zhang Hongmei also bowed deeply.

"Hehe, gold will always shine; that's your own ability."

"Then I still have to thank you. Without you, I might not be who I am today." Zhang Hongmei wasn't exaggerating. If things were like her previous life, everything would be in chaos, and she might not have been able to go to university.

"Then I'll accept your thanks. From now on, Jingze, you two should take good care of Hongmei."

"Don't worry, teacher." Liu Jingze was just hoping for the best.

"Alright, it's getting late, you should all head back now. I won't keep you any longer."

Once the two left the school, Zhang Hongmei finally relaxed.

"Phew! Mission accomplished."

"Haha, that's a really apt description. Would you dare ride in my car?"

"Sit down, I'm too lazy to walk anymore," Zhang Hongmei said helplessly.

"Hehe, don't worry." Liu Jingze got on the bike, with his other leg on the ground. "Hongmei, you get on first."

Zhang Hongmei reluctantly sat on the back seat, and Liu Jingze slowly started riding.

"Jingze, slow down. This is faster than walking, isn't it?"

Song Zi had a wicked idea. He pedaled a few times, and suddenly the handlebars wobbled. Startled, Zhang Hongmei grabbed Liu Jingze's waist and said, "Stop, I'll walk back."

Liu Jingze laughed heartily, "It's alright, don't worry, I just slipped a little, I'm fine now." Liu Jingze felt a warm, tingling sensation in his waist as Zhang Hongmei hugged him.

Liu Jingze didn't dare tell the truth. If he said he deliberately shook the object, Zhang Hongmei would probably really go back.

The two returned home. "Jingze, let's eat noodles, quick!"

"Okay, I'll start the fire. Shall we have cabbage soup or tomato soup?"

"Let's make tomatoes, and then poach some eggs in them. It'll satisfy our cravings and keep us warm."

Zhang Hongmei had one egg, and Liu Jingze had two, each sitting at the table with a large bowl.

"Hongmei, have you prepared what we should bring tomorrow morning?"

"That's about it, just a few odds and ends. There's just too much stuff."

"It's okay, we can use a passenger bus to transport it."

"Who's picking me up at the station? Forget it, are you going to follow the train and carry your stuff? I'll just push the bike back."

"Come on, do you think I'd trust you to do this? Why do you insist on pushing the cart?"

"I don't need a bicycle anymore, so I'll leave it for our village."

"Hehe, I thought you were going to take it back to the capital."

"Are you crazy or stupid? Where can we put it? Let's go to the capital and buy it again. I have a bicycle ticket."

“Okay, you pay for the ticket, I'll pay for it. I was just thinking of buying one myself.”

“You don’t need to pay, I’ll buy it myself. If you don’t have a bicycle ticket, I do too, we can each have one.”

"What a waste, I could drive you to school."

"I don't need you. We're not in the same class. It'll just be either me waiting for you or you waiting for me, which is a waste of time."

“Okay, I have bicycle tickets. We’ll buy them when we get back to the capital. They also have women’s bicycles in the capital, which are shorter than men’s bicycles.”

“Okay, these are all the New Year’s gifts I brought. There are gifts for the principal, Li Juying, my great-grandmother, my third uncle’s family, and the village chief’s family.”

"It's all grain?"

"Yes, Zhang Shouyi would send me a bag of fine grains every month. I couldn't eat much of it myself, so I saved it for the New Year's gifts."

And this brown sugar, we still need to eat glutinous rice balls on the fifteenth.

I have my own change of clothes at home, so I don't need to bring them. Also, these are candy for the kids, along with pens and notebooks.

“Hongmei, you’ve thought of everything. I never even considered these things.”

"Men are just careless. It's better to have girls. You see, they always say that daughters are like warm cotton-padded jackets."

"Hehe, I don't know much about that. My daughter isn't particularly considerate either."

Zhang Hongmei rolled her eyes at Liu Jingze, "Your family doesn't represent the whole family."

"Alright, that's a thoughtful girl. Bringing all the New Year's gifts is no problem. Is there anything else?"

"No, I have all my necessities at home, so I don't need to bring them."

"That's good. Go and rest. Shall we leave at seven?"

“Sure.” Zhang Hongmei had no objection; any time was fine.

The next morning, Zhang Hongmei got up early to make pancakes, which could be eaten even when they were cold. She put an egg and shredded pickled vegetables in each pancake, rolled them up, and put them in a lunchbox.

Since I couldn't bring hot water, I had to make do with cold water.

While Liu Jingze was loading the truck, he took out another can of oil and poured it into the oil tank. There was no other way; Liu Jingze would have to come along next time.

The two set off before seven o'clock. A bag of cornmeal was draped on the front bumper of the car, and a bag of cornmeal crumbs, brown sugar, and some other odds and ends were in the baskets on either side of the back seat.

Zhang Hongmei felt bad seeing Liu Jingze struggling to push the bike. She steeled herself and said, "Jingze, let's go to the station. If there aren't many people on the train, we'll buy more tickets and put the bicycles on it too."

"Aren't you scared? It's okay, I can push it back. You can sit on it if you're tired."

"Fine, if it doesn't work, I'll just close my eyes. Everyone else is fine on the bus, it's just me being dramatic."

"Are you really alright?"

"Listen to me, let's hurry to the station. I know the driver and the ticket seller, I can just tell them to drive slowly."

"Okay, I'll do as you say." Liu Jingze was especially happy.

The two arrived at the station, and the car was there.

The ticket seller saw Zhang Hongmei getting off the bus and asked enthusiastically, "Are you going home?"

"Yes, Auntie, can I put my bicycle up there? I'll get extra tickets."

"Okay, there aren't many people taking the bus right now, but there are a lot of people. Auntie can help with this. Here, let me help you carry your things up."

Zhang Hongmei got into the car and said to the driver with a smile, "Uncle, please drive slowly for a while. I'm scared. The road is too slippery."

"Hehe, even if you didn't tell me, I wouldn't dare drive fast. Are we going back to our hometown for the New Year?"

"Yes. You all work so hard. Can you stay for a few days during the Chinese New Year?"

"I'll stay for three days, and then I can celebrate the Lunar New Year at home on the 30th."

Liu Jingze moved the bicycle and basket to the back before sitting down.