Huang Yan gathered some wheat straw from the corner of the wall and piled it together. It was so dark that she couldn't see clearly, and her hands were sticky from shoveling it. She knew what it was, but she didn't care because she needed to keep warm.

She first let Cheng Guihe choose a seat, and then reached out to beckon Cheng Yajun and Cheng Hongmei.

Cheng Yajun sat down without saying a word, while Cheng Hongmei cried and said with great disgust, "This wheat straw smells so bad, it's too dirty, I'm not sitting here."

At this point, Huang Yan was no longer in the mood to coax Cheng Hongmei and said, "If you're not going to sit, then stand. I'll sit by myself."

Left standing there, Cheng Hongmei couldn't help but cry again.

Cheng Hongmei wiped away her tears, looked at her brother and parents, then at Li Jinlong who was huddled alone on the other side. After hesitating for a few seconds, she lifted her foot and walked towards Li Jinlong.

"Jin, Brother Jinlong, I'm so cold. Your place is cleaner. Can I squeeze in with you?"

In the darkness, Li Jinlong chuckled: "Of course we can, why not?"

On such a cold day, having a little girl to keep me company is wonderful.

Even if we're doomed tomorrow, that's still tomorrow. We should enjoy every day we can.

He straightened the wheat straw beside him and solicitously invited Cheng Hongmei to sit down: "Little sister, come, sit here."

Cheng Guihe and Huang Yan glanced in their direction but ignored it.

Cheng Yajun's ankle was hit by a pebble by Cheng Baidong, and it was estimated that the bone was injured. It was still hurting. At this moment, he was resting with his eyes closed. Hearing the noise, he opened his eyelids and glanced at the scene. He rolled his eyes speechlessly and closed them again.

Unlike the drafty cowshed, the main room of Fang Qiao's house was warmed by a stove.

Dinner was hand-pulled noodles cooked by the old lady, mainly because Cheng Baidong and his aunt tried to stop them but couldn't.

As the old lady would say, "Dumplings for going out, noodles for coming home; noodles bind your legs, so that you can have a long and happy reunion." So only noodles cooked by her, as the elder, are truly effective.

Cheng Baidong's aunt got off work late. When she got home, she heard that the old lady had been urgently taken away, so she rushed over. When she arrived, Cheng Guihe had already been tied up and taken away.

After dinner, they sat down to chat. When the topic turned to Cheng Guihe, Aunt Cheng's feelings were complicated: "My brother... he's really muddle-headed. What kind of things has he done!"

"He's not confused, he's ruthless," the old woman sneered.

Aunt Cheng gave an awkward laugh: "I really didn't know he was this kind of person before."

"How could you not know? He's been doing this for more than just a day or two."

The old lady couldn't hold back any longer: "Have you forgotten what happened to the job your third brother left behind? If he hadn't been greedy and secretly sold the successor's spot, Xiaoqiang would be a coal miner now, instead of having to do hard labor in a brick factory! Look at how much the kid is suffering now, it's all his fault!"

Xiaoqiang is his aunt's son. He is 19 years old this year. After graduating from elementary school, he worked at home for a few years. When he turned 16 and was ready to take over the job, he went to the coal mine to complete the procedures, only to find out that the job had been taken by someone else several years ago.

After a commotion, it was discovered that Cheng Guihe had taken 300 yuan from someone and resold the job, and that too much time had passed to get it back.

Unable to take over the family business, Xiaoqiang could only work at a brick factory.

Working under the scorching sun all year round, the workload was heavy but food was scarce. After a few years, he became dark and thin, a far cry from his chubby, fair-skinned childhood self.

They are all the old lady's sons and grandsons. The third son's family used to live a very comfortable life in town, but now they have fallen to this state. Whenever she thinks of Cheng Guihe, she gets angry and wishes she had never given birth to this vengeful child!

Fang Qiao listened quietly without saying a word.

Cheng Guihe is, after all, the old lady's own son and Aunt Cheng's own brother. No matter how harshly they curse each other now, they are still family members connected by blood. Who knows if they will reconcile in the future?

It's fine if she joins in the cursing today, but if the family makes up happily again in the future, she'll be the one who suffers. So it's best to keep quiet.

Aunt Cheng sighed, "Alas. My eldest brother wasn't born bad. He used to be good to his siblings. It's all because of Huang Yan. He married an unvirtuous woman who has ruined three generations of his family."

"But he insisted on marrying her anyway. Which family member agreed?" The old lady was still indignant when she thought about it: "Xiao Yan died giving birth to his child. And what did he do? His wife and child were barely cold from their graves when he brought home another woman, Yan, who was pregnant before they were even married. I feel ashamed for him even though he doesn't feel ashamed!"

Aunt Cheng glanced at Fang Qiao out of the corner of her eye and gently nudged the old lady: "Alright, Mother, that's all old news. Don't talk about it in front of the younger generation. Let's go to the east wing and see if Bai Dong has made up the bed yet."

The east wing consists of two adobe houses, which were built to provide a place for the old lady to live in her old age.

Cheng Baidong wasn't home, so the old lady had never lived here.

The room has a bed and furniture, and Fang Qiao usually cleans and tidies it up regularly so it's ready to move in.

Aunt Cheng helped the old lady to the east wing, and Fang Qiao, supporting her pregnant belly, also went back to her room.

When Cheng Baidong returned, the double bed, which was only 1.5 meters wide, was not enough for three people. Fortunately, Tiantian was not picky about the bed or the people she slept in. As soon as she heard that she was going to sleep with Aunt Yun, she obediently hugged her little pillow and followed Wang Yun.

Fang Qiao sat on the edge of the bed in a daze for a while. Not long after, Cheng Baidong came in from outside carrying a thermos.

Fang Qiao's eyelids trembled.

After the initial surprise cooled, Fang Qiao was somewhat at a loss.

For her, the last time she interacted with Cheng Baidong was more than 30 years ago, and she couldn't quite remember how to interact with him.

Before Fang Qiao could figure out how to start the conversation, Cheng Baidong had already poured her a glass of water and handed it to her: "Have some water, the temperature is just right, not too hot."

"Okay." Fang Qiao took the enamel water cup, felt the temperature with her fingertips, and found it wasn't hot at all.

She took two sips and felt the taste was off. She smacked her lips and took two more sips. This time she was sure it was the wrong taste; the water from her well wasn't this sweet.

She looked at Cheng Baidong suspiciously and asked, "Where is this water from? It's so sweet."

Fang Qiao's reaction surprised Cheng Baidong: "You've never had it before?"

"Should I have drunk it?" Fang Qiao asked back.

Cheng Baidong: "If you didn't drink it, then what did you do with the water you took out of your space?"

"Feed the chickens... huh?" No, that's not right.

Fang Qiao suddenly realized what he meant, her eyes widening in disbelief as she pointed a finger at him: "You, you know?"