Wang Weibing was waiting for Gu An'an at the village entrance. Apart from the village chief's wife, no one else actually saw what happened. Later, he chickened out too quickly, so Weibing's mother couldn't stir up any controversy in the village.

Hearing her say this, the villagers didn't show it on their faces, but their ears were perked up, all wanting to know what had happened between the incredibly capable Gu Zhiqing and that kid Wang Weibing.

Seeing that Gu An'an had no reaction, the guard's mother continued, "Auntie knows that you two are not destined to be together. You can't keep holding a grudge. Auntie has worked hard to save up these things. I wanted to exchange them for some money to help Weibing get a wife. If you and Weibing can't be together, you can't stop him from finding someone else."

The way you say that makes it sound like Gu An'an is resorting to underhanded tactics after her advances were rejected.

"Are you done talking?"

The guard's mother didn't understand what she meant and thought she was backing down, so she quickly said, "You're done talking, you're done talking. Hurry up and weigh it and write it down so I can go to work in the fields."

"You said you'd leave, so either go back and pick out some things properly before coming back, or I'll just call the village chief directly."

The guard's mother got impatient. "Why do you have to be picky? I think mine is about the same as theirs."

She wanted to keep arguing, but the people in line behind her couldn't wait any longer. "If Gu Zhiqing says it's no good, then it's no good. Hurry back and pick and choose. Maybe you can still catch up with this batch. Otherwise, you should just give up and go to work."

"Yes, move aside quickly, don't hold us up, we have a lot of things to do at home."

"Auntie, let me go when you're all better. I'm waiting to go and gather pig feed."

He promised Zhou Zhiqing that he would help her gather two baskets of pig feed to exchange for something today; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to complete the task.

Before the guard's mother could move aside, he blinked and placed the things on the table. "Gu Zhiqing, this is what my mother asked me to bring over. Take a look and see if it's okay. If not, I'll pick something else."

Gu An'an had met this child before. Zhou Yue told him that he was also a pitiful person. His father died early, and his family consisted of two elderly people besides a teenager. He was probably devastated by his son's departure, and his health had been poor for years. The few work points he earned were not enough to cover medical treatment and medicine.

Children from poor families learn to be independent early. When Zhou Yue first couldn't find a place to gather pig feed, a group of children led her there. Later, all the other children wanted candy, but only Hu Zi refused the temptation. After asking him, they learned that he wanted eggs to nourish his family. However, they felt that such a request was too much and could only silently refuse.

Seeing his pitiful state, Zhou Yue asked him to help gather pig feed, and in return, he could exchange the pig feed for whatever he wanted, such as eggs or grain.

Tiger worked diligently, gathering his own pig feed and then Zhou Yue's feed every day, and had been doing this for several days.

Gu An'an felt at ease looking at a child like this.

Looking at the contents of the bag, Gu An'an knew that Tiger's mother was also particular; the ingredients were neat, even, and very tender, indicating excellent quality.

"No need to sort them again, they are all up to standard."

Tiger was excited when he saw that Gu An'an had weighed the food and put it on the tab. With these things, his grandparents and mother could eat more, and maybe they could even save some money for his grandparents' medical treatment.

"Thank you, Gu Zhiqing, you are such a good person."

After leaving those words, Tiger ran off in a flash.

As Gu An'an watched his receding figure, she suddenly recalled the plot of the book. The year the college entrance examination was reinstated, Hu Zi's grandmother collapsed from exhaustion in the field and suddenly became seriously ill. Hu Zi's grandfather couldn't bear the successive blows and fell ill in bed. Hu Zi's mother had to work in the fields and take care of the elderly and children. She collapsed from exhaustion and the elderly also passed away.

Anyway, it was all a series of tragedies. This was something Qin Xue had only heard about before returning to the city. As for the family's final fate, of course, it wasn't elaborated on, since they were just a background character.

After a long day of hard work, Gu An'an finally went through all the goods she had brought. This job was no easier than earning work points in the fields. Gu An'an decided that next time there was such a job, she would definitely let someone else do it.

"Uncle Village Chief, everything we collected today is here."

Dried mushrooms and dried vegetables made up the majority of the items, while dried chicken and dried rabbit were relatively rare, only found in households that knew how to hunt. The quantity required by Director Li was still far from what he needed.

“It’s alright. Your aunt’s place is more remote than ours. The village is smaller and the land is less, but there are more people who know how to hunt. I’ll have her go back and ask around tomorrow. She’ll definitely be able to gather all the necessary items.”

It's true that you only realize how little you have when you need it. If he had known this day would come, he would have urged the villagers to be more diligent and save more things for when it's crucial.

Gu An'an didn't care what he did; she just felt tired and thirsty.

Just as I was about to say goodbye and go back to get some water, a hand reached out from the side holding a military water bottle. "Have some water to moisten your throat. The bottle is new, so don't worry about drinking it."

Before Gu An'an could even take the water bottle, the village chief's eyes darted over, and then, afraid that Gu An'an would be embarrassed, he quickly slipped away, saying, "Yes, drink more water, drink more water. I'll carry the things."

He carried his things and headed towards the warehouse, his teeth practically showing as he turned around.

Indeed, his nephew has good taste, choosing such a good girl; she's a true lucky star for their village.

Gu An'an didn't hesitate. After finishing here, she still had to go to Wang Laonian's house, so she really didn't have time to go back for a drink of water.

"How about we grab something to eat here tonight?"

Xiao Yuheng really couldn't bear to see Gu An'an go back to prepare food after working so hard all day. The main problem was that she was currently without a formal status or position. Otherwise, he would have gone back to the courtyard to prepare dinner first.

But Gu An'an would never agree to that. Eating one meal after another would not be a good thing in other people's eyes.

"No need, Xiaoyue has definitely prepared dinner. We can eat directly when we get back later. I'm not tired."

Xiao Yuheng sensitively seized on the words "late," and asked, "Do you have anything else to do? Do you need my help?"

Gu An'an: ...Big brother, you've been busy all day, aren't you tired?