Grandma Xie hurried to the door and looked out. There was no one on the street outside: "Where's Yaoyao?"

Xie Zhao put down his bags, walked to the water tank, scooped up a bucket of cold water, raised his head and drank it all in one gulp, then asked Xie Fei: "Is there anything to eat?"

Seeing that her brother was very hungry, Xie Fei hurriedly said, "We have freshly steamed white flour buns. I'll get them for you!"

Xie Zhao wiped his mouth, picked up the things and put them in the hall. There was a plate of white steamed cakes on the table, and Xie Zhao reached out to pick it up. Grandma Xie caught up with him and slapped the back of his hand with the spatula in her hand: "Don't touch it! I bought this for Yaoyao. Didn't you go to pick up Yaoyao? Where is Yaoyao?"

Xie Zhao rubbed the back of his hand and finally said, "She didn't come back."

"Didn't he come back?" Grandma Xie understood and asked, "Didn't you go there specifically to pick up Yaoyao? How could he not come back?"

Xie Zhao lowered his eyes and sorted out the things he brought back: "My sister is in a bad mood and doesn't want to come back."

When Grandma Xie saw her grandson's expression, she raised her spatula and hit him with it: "I think you are the one who is in a bad mood! Yaoyao has sent so many things back these days, how can you be in a bad mood and refuse to go home! Tell me, did you provoke her again?"

Xie Zhao raised his hand to protect his head and said in a muffled voice, "No!"

Grandma Xie asked, "Why is Yaoyao so angry?"

"..." Xie Zhao pursed his lips, put on his stubborn look, and said nothing.

Grandma Xie said, "I think you are too bold! You bully Yaoyao because she sticks to you. Now that Yaoyao runs away, I wonder who you can cry to!"

Xie Zhao said confidently: "She will come back."

Grandma Xie was so angry that she slapped him several times. Xie Zhao even said, "Grandma, be careful, it hurts your hands."

"You...you stubborn bastard!" Grandma Xie was so angry that her hands were shaking.

Grandma Xie was increasingly confused about what her grandson was thinking. One was a spoiled girl who would be stubborn even when being unreasonable, and the other was a naturally stubborn person like Menyouping. These two enemies were fighting each other, and no one knew how it would end.

Grandma Xie was so angry that her chest felt tight. She simply put the matter behind her and called the little fat cat: "Jianjian, ignore your brother. Let's go to the kitchen to eat chicken."

Xie Zhao said: "I am hungry too."

Grandma Xie picked up the spatula and hit him again: "You still want to eat chicken? Get out of here!"

The little fat cat kicked Xie Zhao's head with its hind paw, jumped off the ground, and chased Grandma Xie into the kitchen: "Hmm! Hmm!"

Jianjian is no longer a kitten the size of a pear. The recoil of that claw made Xie Zhao wonder whether it was a cat or a wild boar that kicked his head just now. Can Grandma Xie or Xie Fei withstand such a kick?

In the kitchen, Jianjian straightened his front paws and placed them on Grandma Xie's lap, eating the chicken that Grandma Xie fed him, and meowed from time to time, his voice was sweet and soft. His little meat pads gently stepped on Grandma Xie's lap, which was so sweet that Grandma Xie called him her darling.

Xie Zhao never realized one fact: he was the only one in the family who could be stepped on so roughly by Jianjian.

Xie Fei still felt sorry for her brother and urged Grandma Xie to prepare the meal. After all, this was her beloved grandson and he had worked hard all the way, so Grandma Xie quickly prepared the meal.

Braised chicken, braised pumpkin, blanched okra, stir-fried edamame, and hot steamed buns. Xie Zhao held the buns in one hand and the chicken in the other and ate them. Grandma Xie and Xie Fei were amazed by the bottle of butter. Grandma Xie scooped out a spoonful for Xie Fei to dip in the buns and carefully put away the rest.

"Tomorrow ask your brother to buy a few pounds of mixed noodles. They are delicious when mixed with this sauce! Only a girl like Yaoyao can come up with such delicious food."

Hearing Cheng Yaoyao's name, Xie Zhao paused, and only after Grandma Xie asked him again did he respond, "Yeah. There isn't much noodles left at home, right? I'll go to the grain station and bring some back tomorrow."

Xie Fei took the opportunity to squint at Xie Zhao: "Brother, the textile factory notified me to submit the political review materials tomorrow."

Xie Zhao said: "I haven't forgotten. You will come with me into the city tomorrow."

Xie Fei's eyes sparkled with excitement, and she secretly glanced at Grandma Xie. Grandma Xie put a piece of chicken into Xie Zhao's bowl and said, "Didn't we hand in Xiao Fei's information last time? What's the problem?"

Xie Fei panicked for a moment. Xie Zhao swallowed the meat slowly and said, "Some chapters are incomplete. I need to go there in person. It's okay."

Grandma Xie was still a little worried. The Xie family had such a high class background, and although more and more rightists had been rehabilitated recently, the mainstream society still discriminated against and excluded them severely. A textile factory was a popular lucrative job, could her little girl really get in?

Xie Zhao said seriously: "Don't worry."

Grandma Xie looked at her grandson who was becoming more and more calm, and finally nodded: "Hey."

Xie Fei hurriedly finished his meal and then ran to look at the gifts Xie Zhao brought back. Xie Zhao was a good brother. When he went out to do work, he would always bring a piece of maltose or a small item for his sister. Now that he had money, he bought more and more things.

Duck egg powder painted by the beauty in the porcelain box, osmanthus scented hair oil, Caizhizhai crispy candy, Daoxiangcun cakes, silk as soft and smooth as flowing water, brightly colored wool yarn, the latest style dresses...

Xie Fei picked up the skirt, unfolded it, looked at it, and screamed.

A yellow shadow whizzed out, meowing stubbornly, and gave Xie Zhao a claw without saying a word.

Xie Zhao: “…”

Grandma Xie also came out of the kitchen and asked, "What's wrong?"

Xie Fei rushed over excitedly and showed her new skirt to Grandma Xie: "Grandma, look! This is my new skirt. I have a new skirt!"

"Hey! You scared me. I learned how to be surprised from Yaoyao." Grandma Xie narrowed her eyes and examined the skirt carefully: "It's beautiful! The material is good too. Didn't Zhao'er pick it out?"

Xie Fei said cleverly, "It must have been picked by Sister Yaoyao. She is the best at dressing up!"

Xie Zhao pushed out a few pieces of cloth and wool: "These are all bought by Yaoyao for you, and some are from grandma."

There is no woman who doesn’t love these. Grandma Xie wiped her hands on her apron and said, “What about mine? This is good wool and the color is elegant!”

Xie Fei held a piece of red cloth with dark patterns on her grandmother's body and said with a smile, "This will be perfect for a cotton blouse to wear during the New Year!"

Grandma Xie's wrinkles were relaxed with joy. Suddenly, she caught sight of her grandson and poked him on the forehead again: "Hurry up and bring Yaoyao back to me!"

Xie Zhao picked up a pack of snacks and turned to leave. Grandma Xie asked, "Where are you going?"

Xie Zhao didn't even turn his head: "Captain's house!"

"What a stubborn guy!" Grandma Xie said angrily.

Xie Fei folded her skirt lovingly and said, "Grandma, my brother just came home, please stop scolding him. My brother must be sadder than the rest of us if Sister Yaoyao doesn't come home."

Grandma Xie said angrily, "Is he sad? This brat thinks he is just playing tricks on me! Isn't he afraid that Yaoyao will really run away?"

Xie Fei was bewildered and asked, "What do you mean?"

"Girls, stop asking about these things!" Grandma Xie scolded her, "I think your brother and Yaoyao's free love is not a good thing. Your grandfather and I only saw each other for the first time on our wedding night, but we lived a good life. They seem like enemies, not as good as us!"

Xie Fei puffed up her face. She was the one who supported Cheng Yaoyao and Xie Zhao's love the most. She got angry when she heard what Grandma Xie said, but she didn't dare to refute. She muttered, "You are promoting feudalism. Be careful not to be reformed."

"How dare you lecture me?" Grandma Xie pinched her and said, "I have been reformed! Go, put these things away and don't let anyone see them."

The Xie family is living a better life now, but they cannot achieve success overnight. If others see all these good things, they will cause trouble again.

After a busy year, the villagers finally have some free time in winter. The villagers are either gathering at the entrance of the village to bask in the sun and chat, or resting at home.

In the bright and tidy main room of the branch secretary's house, Wang Cuiping was peeling peanuts, and the branch secretary, wearing a cotton jacket, was drinking with a small plate of peanuts. The eldest son was a deputy captain in the village, the second son was in the city's public security bureau, and the third son, Lin Jiajun, had also made progress recently. The branch secretary felt relieved, picked up the small wine cup and took a sip, and then the door was kicked open.

The secretary was so frightened that his hands shook and the wine spilled all over his cotton padded quilt: "Cough, cough, cough..."

The little daughter Lin Lulu rushed in angrily, sat down on the chair with red eyes, and made a lot of noise.

Wang Cuiping stood up in shock: "What's wrong? Lulu, what happened? Who made you angry?"

When Lin Lulu heard this, she opened her mouth and started to cry. The secretary licked the wine on the back of his hand with heartache. The cotton shirt was beyond repair. He picked up the bottle of Moutai on the table and looked at it against the light with heartache. This was exchanged for him by his second son with the army ticket. A bottle cost seven or eight yuan!

"You silly girl, your father only drinks a small cup of this every day, pour it all out on me!"

Lin Lulu cried even louder.

Wang Cuiping pushed the secretary hard and winked at him: "Your daughter has become like this, and you, as a father, don't even ask about it!"

The secretary still felt sorry for his little daughter. When he heard her crying, he put down the bottle and said unhappily, "Why else? It's just because Xie San ignored him!"

"My name is Xie Zhao!" Lin Lulu corrected herself immediately.

The secretary said in annoyance: "Okay, okay, you keep calling me "Xie San Ge" all the time, don't you?"

Lin Lulu chuckled and immediately pulled Wang Cuiping's clothes again: "Mom~"

The mother understood her daughter's feelings best. She hugged Lin Lulu and said, "We can't blame our daughter entirely. Ever since Xie San saved her in the mountains that year, the child has been loyal to him."

The secretary sighed. Both of them were helpless with their little daughter. Lin Lulu was good-looking and worked in the city. It would not be difficult for her to find a good match in the city, let alone in the village. But Lin Lulu was stubborn and set her sights on Xie San.

Lin Jiajun happened to come in with a bag of salt and said, "The village is very lively today. Everyone is talking about Xie San who made a fortune somewhere and brought back a cart of good stuff!"

Wang Cuiping winked at him: "Stop talking!"

Lin Jiajun put the salty package on the table and looked at Lin Lulu: "Who bullied you? Tell me, I'll avenge you!"

The branch secretary scolded: "I'll tell you off! Don't cause me any trouble!"

"Okay, my son is worried about his sister," Wang Cuiping explained. "He is making trouble because Xie San doesn't like to talk to her."

When Lin Jiajun heard this, he put down his sleeves and snorted, "What's so good about Xie San'er? People are chasing after him one by one."

Lin Lulu retorted: "He's not good? Then why is Cheng Yaoyao shamelessly pestering him?"

Lin Jiajun glared at him, and the secretary slammed the table: "Shut up! What are you talking about!"

Lin Lulu was startled and said stubbornly: "She is pestering Third Brother Xie! She also made Third Brother Xie ignore me. It's all her fault!"

Lin Jiajun said, "Don't get involved with Cheng Zhiqing! Xie San has ignored you since he was a child, what does it have to do with him! Besides, any man would choose her over you."

"You...you want to choose her, but has she ever paid attention to you?" Lin Lulu retorted, "Cheng Yaoyao is not good in any way, but he has good taste!"

Lin Jiajun's face immediately turned red and he started arguing with Lin Lulu. The secretary couldn't stop scolding them even after slamming the table. In the end, one of them went back to the room to cry, and the other slammed the door and left.

The secretary was so angry that he threw the cup down and said, "What a sin! How could I have given birth to such a pair of precious babies!"

Wang Cuiping was also annoyed that her children were not doing well, and she also had to comfort her husband: "I have asked Jiaqi to keep an eye on them, and I will introduce good partners to Jiajun and Lulu. Xie San is not the only good man in the world!"

There was a sudden sound of banging in the inner room: "I don't want anyone else except Third Brother Xie!"

"Do you still have any shame, you damn girl?" Wang Cuiping said angrily.

In the end, out of concern for her daughter, she whispered to the Party Secretary, "Everyone in the village says Cheng Yaoyao will never come back. How about... how about you go talk to the Xie family?"

The secretary said angrily, "I said Xie San was good at first, but you gave up because of his high class background! If we had come to propose marriage at that time, we would have helped him in his time of need, and I guarantee that the Xie family will be grateful to us for the rest of their lives. Now that they are living a good life, are we going to propose marriage with such a flattering face? Besides, Cheng Yaoyao is still talking to Xie San, so what's the point of us going to propose marriage?"

Wang Cuiping threw her hands and said, "At first I wanted Cheng Yaoyao to live with us, but you didn't allow her to do so! You said we couldn't marry her! Now Xie Saner is involved! Our Qi also refused to go on blind dates, it's all your fault!"

The secretary was confused: "Why are you blaming me?"

The old couple complained to each other, feeling extremely regretful as they thought that Cheng Yaoyao and Xie San were the perfect match for their children.

Xie Zhao and Cheng Yaoyao were unaware of all these disturbances.

After Xie Zhao found Lin Dafu to cancel his leave, he proposed to transport the vegetables stored in the village to the provincial capital to exchange for supplies. Tianshui Village didn't have much else, but there were a lot of fresh vegetables and local specialties. The price of these things in Lin'an City was very low, and the price would double when transported to the provincial capital, which was just right to exchange for some things needed in the village. Lin Dafu agreed, and with a wave of his hand, he approved another note for Xie Zhao.

Cheng Yaoyao, who was far away in Suzhou, was also busy at this time.

Cheng Yaoyao set a grand goal of making 10,000 yuan, which scared Sister Meng but also encouraged her. Sister Meng was from Huizhou and had the blood of a shrewd Huizhou merchant flowing in her body, so she naturally had a passion for making money.

Two shiny glass jars were placed on the table. Sister Meng said, "Yaoyao, do you think these glass jars meet your requirements?"

Sister Meng's ability far exceeded Cheng Yaoyao's expectations. She only mentioned that the product should be packaged and described the requirements, and the next day Sister Meng got these glass can samples.

Sister Meng picked up two glass cans and introduced them to Cheng Yaoyao: "This is the latest model I got from the canning factory. One can holds exactly one kilogram. This one is eight cents cheaper, but the lid is a little worse."

Cheng Yaoyao picked up the expensive glass jar, which was round and plump, with uneven patterns on the bottle body and a shiny aluminum lid that could be twisted open. The cheap one was the most common unpatterned glass jar, with a thinner lid that could not be used after being pried open.

Cheng Yaoyao said without hesitation: "Of course, choose the expensive one. Our product is high-end, so we can't save any money on the packaging. Not only the canned food, but also the packaging and labels. The packaging is high-end, and customers can buy it as a gift to relatives. We have to build a brand."

Sister Meng's eyes lit up: "Okay, I understand. But this brand...if something goes wrong, won't it be caught for sure?"

This also makes sense. Cheng Yaoyao touched his chin. He wanted customers to recognize his products, but he also wanted to avoid any evidence: "Then let's not write the brand on the label. Let's leave our special mark on it."

Sister Meng took out a notebook and wrote down everything Cheng Yaoyao said, then asked, "What are you marking?"

Cheng Yaoyao pondered over it, then took a piece of paper and a pen and quickly drew a pattern.

Simple strokes form a pattern, and a lively little cat jumps onto the paper.

Sister Meng couldn't help laughing: "Wow, you can also draw."

Cheng Yaoyao waved his hands in a swollen manner: "I know a little bit. Go and make a copy."

After being packaged, the abalone butter reappeared in front of Cheng Yaoyao. The orange abalone butter solidified in the glass bottle, and the crab roe particles and oil were vaguely visible. The shiny glass jar was pasted with light brown kraft paper, with a sleeping cat printed on the left side and a few lines of beautiful small words printed on the right, introducing the history and formula of the abalone butter. The outer packaging was sealed with a brand new paper box. Such a bottle of abalone butter looks quite decent and high-end, and it is not embarrassing to use it as a gift.

Cheng Yaoyao was very satisfied: "Very good! Let's do it! Then I'll go back to the crew first, I'll take these bottles away!"

The crew's part has come to an end. Although Cheng Yaoyao's part is small, it is also sporadic and uninterrupted. Cheng Yaoyao rushed back to the crew with a bag of butter in his pocket.

Compared to the small-scale business she had done before, this was the first time that Cheng Yaoyao made money seriously, and Director Rong was her first client. The advantage of these big clients is that they are tight-lipped, spend money quickly, and can introduce clients of the same level.

As a national-level director, Director Rong can make a fortune just by introducing a few clients to her!

Today, the crew was supervised by the assistant director. Cheng Yaoyao asked the script supervisor, "Where is Director Rong?"

The script supervisor said, "I'm in the office. Don't go there now...Yayao!"

Cheng Yaoyao didn't hear anything at all, and ran to Director Rong's office excitedly. When she reached the door, it suddenly opened, and a crying person rushed out and almost bumped into her.

Cheng Yaoyao was so frightened that he took two steps back before he could stand still. When he looked carefully, it was Liu Yue.