"Okay, you can keep it for now. I feel at ease leaving it in your hands."
"Um. I..."
Hao Caiyun glanced to the side and saw that the girl was asleep. She tucked the blanket around Yaya again, then hugged her daughter and drifted off to sleep herself.
Hao Caiyun took leave and went home during the day.
"Jun Jun, your sister and I are going out for a bit. You'll have to stay here by yourself!"
"Okay, Mom, you and my sister can go ahead and do your things."
Zhuang Zhimeng waved to her younger brother, then linked arms with her mother, and the two went directly to the ancestral home.
Hao Caiyun took out the key and opened the courtyard gate, and the mother and daughter walked in together.
"I'll have to come and clean this house when I have time, otherwise it feels like it's getting more and more dilapidated."
"Yes, that's true. Houses that are not lived in often tend to fall into disrepair. Mom, if you don't have time, have Junjun come over and clean it up."
"Yes, I haven't thought of Junjun yet."
I've barely brought him to this house; I'll bring him here specifically to help with chores another day."
"Haha, yes, we specifically hired him to do the work."
The mother and daughter arrived at the location of the stone, and Hao Caiyun inserted the special key into the bottom of the stone.
The cave entrance appeared, and the mother and daughter walked into it, at which point the entrance closed.
"Ya Ya, you should put all these boxes away!"
"Okay, Mom, soon."
Zhuang Zhimeng placed her hand on the box, and the box disappeared.
"Hey, this warehouse of yours is really useful, it saves so much effort!"
"Yes, it's the most convenient way to move things. I can put them into the warehouse as soon as I touch them."
Zhuang Zhimeng collected the several large boxes in no time.
Zhuang Zhimeng clapped her hands.
"Alright, done."
"That was fast! I'm going back to work now. Yaya, you can go home by yourself!"
Zhuang Zhimeng took a roasted sweet potato from the warehouse, wrapped it in kraft paper, and handed it to her mother.
"Mom, I roasted these sweet potatoes myself. You can eat them on the way!"
"Okay, then I'll take it and go."
After her mother went back to work, Zhuang Zhimeng walked home by herself, taking a good look at the current state of Beijing along the way.
There were no skyscrapers, bustling traffic, or pedestrians like in later times.
Zhuang Zhimeng felt very peaceful at the moment, and felt that this environment was not bad, and people's hearts were not so restless.
That evening, Zhuang Xingzhou and Hao Caiyun told their daughter.
"We're off tomorrow. Yaya, call Xiao An and tell him that our two families should get together and go eat at Quanjude."
"Okay, I'll call Brother Qingbai."
Zhuang Zhimeng dialed the phone number of Qingbai's second uncle's house.
An Qingbai hung up the phone and shared the good news with everyone in his family.
"Uncle Zhuang and Aunt Zhuang have invited our whole family to eat Peking duck tomorrow."
Everyone in the family was very excited.
An Tanli smiled when he heard the address.
"Our in-laws are quite thoughtful; they specifically chose Quanjude, which isn't far from here."
To avoid any inconvenience for us to get there, we can just walk.
Shi Meiling asked her second brother with concern.
"Second brother, is roast duck expensive? Don't let our in-laws spend too much!"
An Tanli waved his hand.
"It's alright. With so many of us, two roast ducks are enough. It's just an occasional meal."
"Won't I be treating my in-laws to hot pot again in a few days? This reciprocal exchange will only strengthen the bond between our two families."
Shi Meiling thought about it and agreed, so she stopped worrying about it.
Back in their rooms, the two of them spontaneously discussed what clothes to wear to dinner.
An Qingbai pulled his mother into his room.
"Mom, Auntie asked me to go help out tomorrow night. I estimate I'll be back very late, probably around midnight."
When Shi Meiling heard that her in-laws wanted her third son to help, she agreed without hesitation.
"Okay, go if I tell you to. Be diligent, okay?"
"So what if you're late? You're all grown up, you won't get lost."
An Qingbai nodded.
"Yes, I know."
Zhuang Zhimeng brought her camera along, intending to take some photos of the two families together.
The two families met at the entrance of Quanjude Roast Duck Restaurant.
Shi Meiling and An Tanxiao greeted their in-laws immediately upon seeing them.
"My dear in-laws, you've really gone to great lengths for us."
Hao Caiyun smiled.
"Big sister, don't be so polite. We have to treat you to a good meal since you've come all this way."
Our Beijing roast duck is quite famous; let me introduce you to some.
Zhuang Xingzhou echoed this sentiment.
"Yes, we can afford a meal. Let's go inside!"
An Tanli and An Tanxiao both nodded with smiles.
"Okay, let's go in."
The family members all followed them inside.
An Qingbai only had eyes for his fiancée and moved closer to Zhuang Zhimeng.
"Zhizhi, did you bring the camera?"
"Yes, I brought it. I'll take some photos in a bit."
Zhuang Zhimeng whispered to her fiancé.
"After lunch, Qingbai, come to my house and sleep with Junjun for a while. We're going treasure hunting in the middle of the night."
“Okay, I told my mom that my aunt asked me to go and help, and she agreed without hesitation.”
Just then, Zhuang Zhijun followed them over, walked behind his sister and brother-in-law, and asked in a low voice, just like them.
"What secrets are you talking about? Tell me about them!"
Zhuang Zhimeng rolled her eyes speechlessly and pushed the head that had moved between her and Qingbai back.
"I think you're really just wasting your time. You're so young, you shouldn't be worrying about so many things. What kind of secret is it that everyone knows when you tell it?"
Zhuang Zhijun pursed his lips.
"Sister, stop treating me like a child. I'm sixteen years old now."
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