Once the stone was caught, it became obedient. But the smile on its face was undeniably radiant.

Hearing the commotion outside, Zhang Shouyi had no choice but to wake Zhang Hongmei. It was time to go back.

Sanya was more composed than Shitou, and when she saw Xiao Li come out, her pupils immediately contracted; she was genuinely afraid of them. She didn't know why.

Zhang Hongmei was woken up. "Brother Zhang, it's almost dark outside."

"Yes, Liu Baoguo has brought everyone back. Shall we go home?"

"Let's go home, we're leaving right away." Now fully awake, Huang Ying and the others could wait until later to see what happened. She knelt up, folded the bedding, and put it in the kang cabinet.

"I'll take care of it."

"No need, it's not hard work. Besides, I'll feel bad if you don't do a good job."

"Wife, you have obsessive-compulsive disorder."

"Hehe, a little!"

Hearing the commotion inside, Shi Tou outside immediately called out, "Sister Hongmei?"

"Stone, Sanya, come inside quickly."

When the two of them came in, they saw Zhang Hongmei sitting on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), with her legs dangling over the edge, and Zhang Shouyi squatting on the ground to put shoes on her.

Sanya was most afraid of Zhang Shouyi, but seeing him squatting in front of Sister Hongmei like this lessened her fear a little.

“Sister Hongmei, you’re finally back. I was thinking that if you didn’t come back after I finished my college entrance exams, I would go abroad to find you.”

"You don't want to go to military school? That way you won't be allowed to go abroad, right?"

"Then I won't take the military academy entrance exam."

Sanya complained to her second brother, "Sister Hongmei, my second brother said that only the Capital University can help us go abroad, so we should apply to the Capital University. He made it sound so easy, but is it really that easy to get in?"

"Stone, that's impressive, so ambitious. Capital University is good, but if you go to join the army after graduation, it's better to go directly to a military academy."

Zhang Shouyi had already put her shoes on. Zhang Hongmei quickly got off the ground. She happened to be not far from the stone and gestured with her hand.

"Good heavens, the rocks are this tall!"

Sanya then complained, "He ate enough food for three people by himself, how could he not grow tall?"

Stone just stood there grinning foolishly.

Zhang Hongmei smiled and walked up to Sanya, taking her hand.

"My sister is so beautiful."

Now it was Sanya's turn to feel embarrassed. Everyone she knew said she was beautiful, and when she heard it, she just thought it was a compliment. But when Zhang Hongmei said it, it felt genuinely pleasing.

"Let's hurry home, it's almost five o'clock, and Grandma Dashan is still waiting for us to eat."

Sanya pouted, "Sister Hongmei, I'm not going to his house for dinner. If Wang Xiaorui finds out, she'll make a scene. Who can't afford to eat these days? Why should we look at others with condescension?"

"Hehe, why are you paying attention to her? Go eat, it's your uncle and aunt who are treating you, what does she have to do with you? Hurry up."

The two walked out of the house hand in hand, and Shi Tou then greeted Zhang Shouyi with a simple and honest smile.

"Brother-in-law!"

Zhang Shouyi is now completely satisfied. Someone is calling him brother-in-law. What a good kid!

"Hey! Let's go back and talk. You can practice driving at home for the next couple of days."

"real?"

"Yes, you can just ask Liu Baoguo to teach you. He has both trucks and cars."

"Haha, that's great! Brother-in-law, you're such a good friend!"

The two followed behind Zhang Hongmei and the others, chatting and laughing.

The people outside who were tending the vegetables could hear the conversations inside the house.

Da Shan kept his head down, not saying a word. Er Lengzi glared at San Ya; that girl, she was just so sharp-tongued.

Sanya proudly raised her chin, "So what? What's wrong with that?"

The cabbages and radishes in the yard had already been harvested and stored in the cellar by several people. They washed their hands, got into the car, and prepared to leave.

Zhang Hongmei tried to pull Sanya along, but was refused.

“Sister Hongmei, I’m going to the truck; it’s spacious there.”

Stone chuckled unkindly from behind, earning him a glare from Sanya.

"Let Sanya sit in the driver's seat with me."

“I’m going too. My brother-in-law said I can learn to drive. Er Lengzi, you go home and teach me.”

“Zhong’a, let’s see if you have any talent. I learned to drive by watching a video once and I was able to drive right away.”

"Hehe, I don't know if I have any talent, but I have you to teach me."

"You little rascal, you're so good with words."

They used the same formation as when they arrived, but they were noticeably faster.

"Honey, are you feeling unwell? Should we slow down?"

"No, I'm hungry."

"Honey, there's food in the bag, have some first."

Zhang Shouyi selected from his rings, took out a sesame seed cake, and handed it to Zhang Hongmei.

It was past nine o'clock when we got home. Da Shan's dad was waiting at the village entrance, and when he saw the car coming back, he quickly waved.

"Go home and have dinner."

Li Cuihua, Hu Aifen, and Wang Hongxi's family had already prepared the meal.

Two large grass carp were braised, along with a large pot of braised pork. On the day Liu Maocai slaughtered the pig, Da Shan's father bought twenty catties of meat just to feed Hongmei and the others.

The car stopped directly in front of Dashan's house. Everyone got out. Sanya saw Li Cuihua.

"Mom, I'll just eat at home. I don't want Wang Xiaorui to bother me again."

Li Cuihua slapped her daughter, "Why are you so troublesome at such a young age? Your aunt will be angry soon."

Sanya pouted, but neither refuted nor left.

Wang Hongxi's family stood awkwardly to the side, feeling helpless with their daughter. However, Sanya was truly someone who wouldn't back down even when she was in the right.

Da Shan and Wang Jianshe, both in the crowd, were also quite embarrassed.

Everyone was hungry. Luckily, we had prepared a lot of food, and there was also a steamer full of steamed buns. Otherwise, it really wouldn't have been enough to feed so many people.

After they finished eating, they weren't asked to stay. "Hongmei, the food for the old man and the others has already been sent over, so you don't need to worry."

Li Cuihua knew Zhang Hongmei best. So she told her to save her from worrying.

"Alright! I'm going back to rest too. Sanya, come find me tomorrow morning."

"Understood, Sister Hongmei."

I originally intended to stroll back, but it was too late, and the bodyguards were worried. In the end, I got into the car.

“Brother Zhang, from now on, if I want to go home, I'll go by myself. Having you guys around is such a hassle.”

"Wife, are you disgusted with me?"

"Yeah, a little. I can't even imagine what life will be like in the future," Zhang Hongmei said, sounding somewhat dejected. Freedom? That's something she'll never be able to imagine again.

Zhang Shouyi smiled and put his arm around her, thinking, "You know too late. This trip was fraught with great danger. But for my wife, I still came along. The bodyguards have already dealt with several groups of people."

I'm fine, but I'm worried that my wife might be frightened or hurt. Luckily, we're going back tomorrow.

Back home, Lu Jing had already boiled water and brought it to the bathroom. The two elderly people and Liu Jingsong had already turned off the lights and gone to sleep. "Let's talk about it tomorrow."