Gu An'an: ...I made a bad choice in making friends.

As the group started walking towards the village chief's house, Zhou Yue began to worry whether her series of outrageous actions had offended him.

"An'an, you're not angry, are you?"

Actually, she only dared to agree because she felt that Gu An'an didn't seem to reject Xiao Yuheng. If it were any other toad, she would have definitely kicked them out.

What do you think?

Zhou Yue said with a pained expression, "Don't be angry, I won't dare to do it again."

"However, I think this Deputy Regiment Commander Xiao is really good. You can try to get to know him. If you don't like him, we just won't agree."

These days, it's not easy to find a good man. Just like her aunt, she didn't know him well enough before marriage, and she suffered after marriage. So, in Zhou Yue's opinion, you must see the other person's character clearly before getting married. Not only should the man be a good person, but his family members should also be easy to get along with.

Overall, the maintenance efforts by the village chief's family over this period have been satisfactory, but we'll have to wait and see how things develop.

Gu An'an was just bluffing her. Although she initially refused, there was nothing wrong with actually going.

As for Xiao Yuheng...

She has never believed in love at first sight. If he is really interested in her, she'll have to wait and see how he behaves.

As soon as I entered, I was greeted by a smiling face full of wrinkles.

"Xiao Gu, Xiao Zhou, hurry up and get on the kang (heated brick bed)."

The meal had just been cooked, and the kang (heated brick bed) was very warm. Gu An'an looked at the table full of dishes, which were obviously prepared on special occasion.

"Grandma Wang, Aunt Qiuju, why did you prepare so much delicious food? It's too much of a waste."

Although they are just some farm-style dishes, you can tell that they were prepared with care.

Grandma Wang looked at Gu An'an with eyes full of affection, "It's not much, just what we usually eat at home."

Farmhouse dishes are farmhouse dishes, but it's impossible to prepare this much on a normal day.

Seeing her grandson glancing at Gu An'an every now and then, Grandma Wang felt as sweet as if she had eaten honey.

“An’an must be homesick here, right? Once we start hibernating here, just write a report and go home for a visit. Your uncle won’t dare to block your application, don’t worry.”

Hearing his grandmother talk about Gu An'an's family situation, Xiao Yuheng, who knew the inside story, suddenly became nervous, afraid that Gu An'an would be sad because of it. But she calmly said, "There's nothing to think about. My mother passed away a long time ago."

Upon hearing this, the Wang family exchanged glances, their eyes filled with disbelief. They had always assumed such a confident and cheerful girl would have a wonderful family, but they never expected this...

As for why her father wasn't mentioned, no one asked again. It's obvious: if her biological mother is gone, she might have a stepmother, and if she has a stepmother, she might have a stepfather. It's no wonder their relationship is strained.

"It's okay. From now on, Xiaowang Village will be your home. No one here will dare to bully you. If anyone dares to utter a word, I'll curse them to death."

These words were, of course, meant to comfort Gu An'an.

"Okay, then Auntie can't abandon me in the future. But I'm not that miserable. Uncle Li and Aunt Li are very good to me. Uncle Li is the factory manager of the machinery factory, and it was he who decided to make the purchase from us this time."

The Wang family never expected that Gu An'an's uncle was actually the factory director of the machinery factory. Not to mention Shanghai, even the director of their commune's candle factory was arrogant and domineering. You can imagine how powerful leaders in big cities are.

"Director Li is a good man," the village chief said sincerely, while also thinking about what he could give in return.

"Um."

Next, everyone deliberately avoided the topic of parents and talked about things that the two girls might be interested in. Knowing that Gu An'an had picked the first batch of fragrant cucumbers, the village chief's wife quickly taught them the authentic way to eat them.

"Cucumber dumplings are the most delicious. Blanch them, chop them up, and add some minced meat or scrambled eggs. The taste will definitely not disappoint you."

"You can also stir-fry it directly; it has a refreshing cucumber flavor."

Gu An'an listened quietly, and only spoke after everyone had finished, "If our cucumbers were still bright green when they were transported out, they would definitely have a better market."

The village chief paused, his hand still holding the food. "If you don't dry it, it'll be difficult to transport, won't it?"

"We can make cucumber flavor into a pickled product, so customers only need to rinse it a few times. However, this requires us to put effort into the packaging, just like the ones I see outside, we can seal them in plastic bags."

As Gu An'an explained, various images flashed through the village chief's mind: "Will outsiders buy into this?"

After all, it's a wild vegetable that can be found all over the mountains, so why would it be worth that much?

"We'll only know if they'll buy it or not after trying."

The standard of living in China is not yet at the level of pursuing a healthy and green lifestyle; most people just want to fill their stomachs and eat oily or greasy food.

But successful experiences tell us that this product has no shortage of market overseas, so we should prepare for it as soon as possible.

The village chief took Gu An'an's words to heart, but his current task was to sell what he already had; only with money could he consider other things.

The meal ended in a pleasant atmosphere. When Xiao Yuheng escorted the two back, many families in the village had already gone inside to rest.

As she rounded a corner, a sudden scream rang out, sending chills down Zhou Yue's spine.

"What happened?"

The three stopped in their tracks, and then heard screams followed by a series of pleas for mercy.

"Please, please don't take the child away."

“She is also your child, and also my granddaughter. Can you, can you spare her life? I will work to support her.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a sharp yet aged voice rang out.

"You're going to support her? You eat, drink, and live in our house. How are you going to support this money-losing brat? Get out of her clutches right now, or I'll kick you out too."

"Mom, no, Xiaoya is my child."

No matter how much the young woman pleaded, the other voice showed no sign of relenting, and it could be heard that someone was pulling the woman away from her to prevent her from chasing after them.

This house was the closest to the educated youth compound, but it was also some distance from the other houses. If they hadn't happened to be passing by, no one would have heard the noise.

Gu An'an had met this family a few times before. The son was honest, but the mother was quite formidable. She had never seen this young woman before and never expected to encounter something like this.

Just as she was thinking, the courtyard gate next to her was opened, and a woman in her fifties walked out carrying a child in her arms. The child looked like a newborn and was not in good health. Even though the child was frightened, the child's cries sounded like a kitten. If she were to throw the child out like that, the child would definitely not survive the night.

The woman was surprised to find someone at her doorstep, and she stopped in her tracks, her old face showing some embarrassment.

It's one thing that she didn't want her granddaughter, but it's another thing that she was caught red-handed trying to abandon her. If she really didn't care that much, she wouldn't have secretly abandoned her under the cover of darkness.

But she was still thick-skinned; before Gu An'an and the other two could even speak, she had already taken the initiative.