Cheng Ying entered the space again, only to find a host of beautiful little fry swimming in the pond. And if you looked closely, you'd notice that each one was more exquisite than the last, each more unnaturally captivating.

They were all developing in a miraculous direction. Cheng Ying could only sigh in wonder.

Even though they were female fish, they still couldn't satisfy her craving. What sorrow, what grandeur.

Cheng Ying felt this was a period of waiting for a sudden ascent. These beautiful things were purely for appreciation; at a time when solving basic sustenance was the priority, they were merely decoration.

Truly useless. Cheng Ying comforted herself, thinking that Heaven was making her accumulate strength so she could burst forth later, preparing for the future.

Her happiness lay ahead. That was the only way to interpret it.

Still, looking at the various beautiful scenes within the space sometimes brought Cheng Ying a sense of exhilaration, even though the layout of the space was quite haphazardly planned by her; it couldn't suppress the riot of colors. With the arrival of the Twenty-Third Little Year, all work in the production team ceased.

And the confirmed news had arrived: their village would not have electricity until after the New Year. The team distributed five catties of sorghum and two catties of coarse white flour to every household.

When Chi Wu carried the flour inside, his small face was flushed, unable to hide the sheer excitement radiating from him. "Our house has two catties of white flour!

We can make dumplings!" Hearing 'dumplings,' Cheng Ying’s mouth started watering; it was a flavor she deeply missed. But facing Chi Wu, Cheng Ying spoke sternly, "Look at you, getting so excited over this little bit." Chi Wu ignored her, carefully placing the white flour on the highest shelf.

Dumplings couldn't be eaten without this ingredient. In her hand, Cheng Ying was carving knitting needles from a stick, busy knitting a vest for her grandmother—sleeveless, collarless, something she could wear underneath so no one would see.

Cheng Ying was quite pleased with herself; it wasn't easy to think of such a thing. Only Chi Wu knew about this, because Cheng Ying needed him to stand guard.

And in their downtime, she also "enslaved" Chi Wu to twist yarn strands for her. Because of a pair of socks and a pair of trousers, Chi Wu had no complaints whatsoever about this task, doing it diligently and expertly.

The yarn he twisted was even more consistent than what Cheng Ying managed. Chi Wu said, "Yingzi, did you know the township got electricity?

I heard they're showing a movie tomorrow night to celebrate!" Chi Wu's expression was as if he had already seen the film. Cheng Ying wasn't interested.

Movies these days truly offered little excitement. "Why the look on your face?

You want to go?" Chi Wu mumbled indistinctly, not speaking. It was useless for him to want to go; he held little sway in the household.

So, if this kid wanted to go, he had to work on Cheng Ying. It couldn't be helped; she was the old lady's own granddaughter, her words carrying more weight and importance than his.

"Don't you want to see it?" Cheng Ying considered the distance to the township. Joining the excitement wasn't out of the question, but to walk that far just for a movie—Cheng Ying felt a pang of soreness in her soles just thinking about it.

The thought alone brought pain. "No, you go ahead," she refused decisively and immediately.

Chi Wu scratched his head. "Why don't you want to go?

Lots of the children are going, and adults too. I heard Captain's Third Great-Grandmother is going." Cheng Ying’s little heart gave a slight flinch; this was turning into a massive community event.

"If you want to go, what should I call you?" This was clearly teasing a child. Chi Wu's face grew redder.

How could this girl be so difficult to fool? "What should you call me?

We grew up around the same time." Cheng Ying stopped working on the vest, shaking one finger. "Wrong, I'm a month older than you." Chi Wu stared at Cheng Ying's crystal-clear, delicate fingers, slightly dazed.

How could they be so beautiful? In the village, Chi Wu had never seen hands this lovely.

Thinking of this, Chi Wu quickly placed his own hands behind his back. When gathering firewood, they did the same labor, yet the girl's hands were unmarked.

Chi Wu pursed his lips, feeling inexplicably unhappy. "Go if you want, don't if you don't.

I just thought the old lady likes excitement." With that, he walked away. Cheng Ying thought this boy couldn't handle a little teasing.

However, her own old lady did enjoy lively gatherings, but the township was still too far. Cheng Ying felt a chill down her spine just contemplating the trip.

Her last journey to the county seat had been a very unpleasant experience for Cheng Ying. Cheng Ying didn't know why Chi Wu's mood shifted, but young men and women were always so mercurial.

Cheng Ying didn't dwell on it. It was only when the old lady returned that Cheng Ying asked her, "Grandma, is Third Great-Grandmother really going to the township to see the movie?" The old lady showed little enthusiasm.

"Mm, I heard." Cheng Ying pressed, "Grandma, are they taking the team's mule cart?" The old lady replied, "Your Great-Grandpa isn't that kind of person. The team's cart isn't moved around casually." Cheng Ying was astonished.

"Grandma, don't tell me Third Great-Grandma, being so old, is walking there herself?" Cheng Ying had seen Third Great-Grandma a couple of days ago when visiting her own grandmother; she looked like a woman nearing seventy. It was amazing that her own grandmother could maintain her composure, constantly calling her 'Old Auntie' and chatting with her.

Cheng Ying’s Grandma said, "What are you talking about? Can your Third Great-Grandma walk that far?" Cheng Ying casually asked, "Then how is she going?" The old lady got a ladle of coarse grain from the cupboard to cook porridge and, as she left the room, told her granddaughter, "Worrying about things that don't concern you!

Why bother how she goes?" The old lady’s mood sounded decidedly unhappy. Something was wrong.

Cheng Ying couldn't ignore her current task. She immediately followed her grandmother out of the room, shamelessly trailing behind her.

"Grandma, don't lock the cupboard anymore. If Chi Wu and I come back early, we'll cook the porridge.

You just sit on the kang and ladle it out for me, okay?" The old lady looked at her granddaughter. "There wasn't much to lock up anyway.

It’s just a habit, as if we have petty-handed people around. Fine, from now on, my granddaughter will hold the key." Cheng Ying thought to herself that her grandmother didn't lock things to keep out her own mother; it must be to lock out Second Aunt.

She was the only discordant element in the family. Seeing her grandmother, Cheng Ying immediately became smug.

"Oh my, so from now on, I'm in charge of the house?" The old lady’s mood lifted slightly upon seeing her granddaughter’s smile. "Don't flatter yourself." Cheng Ying, seeing the smile on her grandmother's face, pressed on.

"Grandma, you don't know, we only have this one lock. Isn't it true that whoever holds the key is in charge?" The old lady leaned in.

"Yingzi, you must not tell anyone outside. I overheard your Third Great-Grandma muttering that after the New Year, our village will not only get electricity, but the fields will also be distributed to individual households!" Cheng Ying found this hardly surprising; it was bound to happen eventually.

"Then have you heard anything about when they'll build roads here?" Hearing her granddaughter’s question, the old lady felt her small secret wasn't so mysterious anymore. "You stubborn child, roads aren't built just because someone says so!

What a huge matter that is! Why should you worry about it?

Can we even influence it? Even the Captain can't!" After speaking, the old lady seemed to drift off into thought.

Cheng Ying brightened. "Grandma, distributing the fields is such a good thing!

Then our family won't have to worry about food!" The old lady sighed. "It's good, it is good.

But how can our family compare to others? Wu Zi’s father, what kind of work can he manage?

When I'm older, and we have more land, can your mother handle it all? It will just mean more burden on your mother alone." Cheng Ying realized the old lady’s worry was genuine: "Grandma, if it's just the fields being divided, will the mountains also be divided?

If so, let's ask for less farmland and more mountain plots. Managing the mountain plots is better than managing the fields." The old lady stared at her granddaughter, surprised.

"I've never heard of dividing up mountain tracts. But what prospect is there in mountain plots?

What will we eat?" Cheng Ying countered, "Grandma, have you forgotten what my mother knows how to do? If the mountain plots don't generate money, why must the labor force of our brigade spend all day earning work points on the mountain?" Cheng Ying was trying to make the old lady reconsider, knowing that if she just said the mountain plots could generate income, the old lady wouldn't trust her.

The old lady mused, "Yingzi, we’ll have to discuss this properly later. I can't decide this alone; I need to talk to your mother.

If it weren't for your Eldest Uncle... never mind." Cheng Ying knew the old lady intended to consult her Eldest Uncle.

But Cheng Ying didn't believe her Eldest Uncle could look after them for many years; he had his own sons, and in these times, he couldn't manage everything. The old lady probably realized that if she asked her Eldest Uncle, he would advise taking the land division over the mountain division.

But if they took the land, they couldn't manage it themselves, and the burden would fall on Eldest Uncle and Second Uncle. If she asked them for help in such a way, it was essentially asking them to step in when they were already overworked.

The old lady probably understood this, which is why she stopped mid-sentence. Cheng Ying understood this even more clearly.

She knew that dividing fertile land was about securing subsistence, but to truly strike it rich, one absolutely had to rely on the mountain plots—the principle of living off the mountain. This point, others probably wouldn't grasp, but her stepfather might.

But regardless, the final decision on this matter rested with her grandmother. So, the focus of her efforts had to remain here.

No need to rush; things after the New Year were still far off. Seeing she couldn't offer much practical help to her grandmother right now, Cheng Ying turned and went outside.

Cheng Ying, feeling uncharacteristically gossipy, went out and pulled Chi Wu back. "Go ask Third Great-Grandma how she plans to get to the township to see the movie." Chi Wu looked at Cheng Ying with disdain.

"The Captain started preparing his single-wheel cart yesterday. He must be letting Third Great-Grandma use the wheelbarrow to go." Cheng Ying frowned.

To push a wheelbarrow—a heavy, cumbersome vehicle—for dozens of li just to see a movie was something Cheng Ying couldn't honestly comprehend. Where was the comfort in that compared to staying home?

They even had a wheelbarrow in their own backyard. Cheng Ying suddenly understood.

The reason her own grandmother was unhappy was probably not about the movie itself. Third Great-Grandma and her grandmother were only a dozen years apart; both were elderly women.

Since Third Great-Grandma was going to see the movie, and the Captain (who was Third Great-Grandma’s son) immediately started preparing the wheelbarrow, the old lady wasn't the only one with a son. Cheng Ying could understand this.

It was a very common dynamic: among old women, it was a competition over whose son was more filial, whose daughter-in-law was more sensible, and whose grandchildren were smarter. It was the same principle as young people competing over whose father was more influential.

Cheng Ying wandered to the back courtyard. The single-wheel cart looked decent; they had one too.

But for someone her age, pushing a wheelbarrow was truly more than a little difficult. It was too much to ask of a ten-year-old girl.

When Chi Yong and Yang Zhi returned, they were both physically and mentally relaxed. For ordinary people, only these few days around the New Year offered a break, a chance to stay settled and content for over ten days.