The old woman glared at her granddaughter. "What nonsense are you spouting? She's just growing taller—how could she possibly eat less?"

Chi Yong saw Cheng Ying's pleasure, and realized the old woman wasn't truly against keeping the dog; it was just a habitual, perfunctory complaint. "Mom, it’s fine. Are we really so poor that we’d starve over one more mouth? We aren't home half the week anyway. Having something active in the yard for company is good. Let's keep it," he reasoned.

The old woman quieted down. "Then listen to you two."

Cheng Ying understood then. Grandmother felt that since she wasn't earning money, her upkeep came from her stepfather and stepmother, so she shouldn't be pushing for frivolous things. Cheng Ying felt a pang of heartache, realizing her grandmother likely lived with such reservations often. Taking a deep breath, Cheng Ying resolved that she had to earn money so her grandmother could live without restraint, to enjoy life freely, instead of feeling like she was imposing on others.

"Mom, Zhi Zi and I will head to the fields to check things out," Chi Yong said. "It looks like the autumn harvest won't be more than two weeks away."

"No rush, Yongzi. I have something to tell you," the old woman replied.

Yang Zhi picked up her hoe. "Mom, you two talk. I’ll go check the fields first." With that, she left with Chi Wu. Cheng Ying watched her biological mother's decisive departure and thought: How much trust she has in her stepfather. And my own mother barely interferes with household matters; she’s completely dedicated to the work. What a simple wife she is.

The old woman watched her daughter-in-law’s retreating figure and sighed. "Yongzi, Yingzi has been wandering around the mountain acreage these past two months."

Chi Yong listened intently. He knew that the 'mountain acreage' his mother mentioned must be the plot Cheng Ying had acquired by selling the tiger-skin item. Otherwise, his mother wouldn't have brought it up specifically. Regarding their own family's mountain land, the old woman never negotiated; she just commanded work to be done.

The old woman looked at Chi Yong and continued, "Since the acreage is ours anyway, I thought we could hire someone to tidy it up. What do you think?"

"I defer to you, but have you settled on how you want it tidied?" Chi Yong asked.

"At least the irrigation ditch needs to be re-dug. You handle the rest as you see fit."

"Alright. Perfect timing, everyone’s free before the autumn harvest, so finding people won't be hard. But we can’t just use people for free. Mom, what arrangement did you have in mind?"

"We can find a few folks in the village. Three yuan a day, and we cover lunch and dinner," the old woman suggested.

"Three yuan is quite good. We don't need to cover dinner. We can have Yingzi bring them a meal at noon," Chi Yong countered.

"I'll listen to you. As a woman, my thinking is bound to be less thorough than yours."

"Mom, I’ll probably only be home on Sundays. I’ll need you to manage things; having someone watching the work up on the mountain is essential."

This time, the old woman glanced at Cheng Ying. "The folks in this village are honest. Don't worry, nothing will go wrong."

Chi Yong understood the subtext of his mother's glance immediately: this was about his young stepdaughter tidying up the mountain land. Chi Wu had mentioned that Cheng Ying spent every day up there, and a large portion of the acreage was now covered in saplings she had planted. Chi Yong felt a frustrating inadequacy when it came to this girl. Deep down, he wanted to cherish her, to spoil her rotten, but she simply wouldn't accept it. She didn't seem to lack a father’s love. She wasn't interested in beauty, clothing, or looking pretty; she just disappeared into the mountains for over two months straight. At this rate, it seemed she was planted there, and he didn't know when she'd return. Thankfully, when she came back on Sundays, her studies hadn't lagged. He figured she’d understand beauty when she got older.

Chi Yong pulled out a wad of cash—two months of wages for himself and Yang Zhi. "Mom, take this for now. Here are Yang Zhi's and my wages for the past two months."

The old woman didn't take it. "We have enough money at home. You save this. I’ll ask you if we run short."

"Mom, we’re hiring help. Please take this money first."

The old woman waved him off. "Yongzi, that mountain acreage will eventually be Yingzi’s. We all know this without me saying it. I haven't interfered with how Yingzi messes around with it, and the money for hiring help will come from that two thousand yuan."

Chi Yong didn't get angry. "Mom, can't my wife and I save up a dowry for Yingzi? You're treating me like an outsider."

The old woman stated firmly, "When Yingzi gets married, whatever you two give will be yours to decide. But this mountain acreage, let Yingzi manage it herself."

In Cheng Ying's view, the old woman was being the "strict friend first, kind person later"—stating things clearly now would save trouble later. Of course, Cheng Ying knew her stepfather wouldn't covet these things; he was too broad-minded for that.

"No matter what, you must take this money, Mom. You are the mistress of the house," Chi Yong insisted.

The old woman didn't refuse. Her daughter-in-law might be simple-minded, but she needed to be sharp-witted on her behalf. Cheng Ying saw that the bills were all fives, amounting to just over a hundred yuan. Wages were too meager in those days, and large bills rarely reached small places like their village.

Cheng Ying looked at her stepfather and smiled with a disarming, genuine simplicity. "I have money."

Chi Yong looked at his daughter, thinking she was being too cagey. Of course, she has money. The hundred-plus yuan I gave her—I’ve never seen her spend a dime of it. He suspected even the old woman didn't know. Look at how shrewd my girl is.

"Fine, you have money, you do as you wish," Chi Yong conceded. "Uncle will go find people in the village. I can even supervise for a couple of days on Sunday."

Cheng Ying nodded along. "Uncle really has the way of it. Grandma and I couldn't find anyone."

Chi Yong knew the girl was flattering him, but the praise felt genuinely pleasant. He turned and left.

By the next day, Cheng Ying understood the true hassle of hiring workers. It wasn't just finding them; the old woman was up before dawn to prepare packed lunches, meaning she’d be busy for as many days as the work lasted. As Chi Yong led the hired men out, he called Cheng Ying over. "Come along. We need a proper plan for how to organize the cleanup."

Cheng Ying knew her stepfather understood; they were organizing things according to her own vision. They truly are people who understand each other, she thought.

Chi Wu started to follow, but his stepfather stopped him. "You bring the lunch over at noon."

"Do I need to go?" Yang Zhi asked, while efficiently continuing the chores she was already doing.

Chi Yong glanced at Cheng Ying, then back at the old woman outside. "No, I think our own yard needs tending too. We can't waste time. Let Wu Zi deliver the food. You stay busy here."

Cheng Ying looked at her stepfather, wondering if his concern wasn't sometimes petty. He didn't want his biological wife going up the mountain to see her biological father. Cheng Ying understood perfectly. "Yes, the cabbage in the yard needs planting too. Grandma and I can’t possibly turn over soil that hard."

"Exactly! The radishes and cabbages all need planting. Fine, I’ll clear out the yard first. Our entire winter vegetable supply depends on them," Yang Zhi agreed.

Chi Yong left with Cheng Ying, letting out a genuine sigh of relief. He couldn't quite explain why, but he didn't want Yang Zhi going up into the mountains, and he himself felt like avoiding it, almost as if running away. He wondered when he had become so useless.

Cheng Ying pursed her lips, almost teasing him: What a pointless jealousy. You’re jealous of a dead man, and you're over ten years too late. Whose fault is that? Aren't you just making trouble for yourself?

Chi Wu stayed home, cuddling the puppy while helping his mother turn the soil, create ridges, and plant cabbage. But his mind was long gone, following Cheng Ying and the others up the mountain.

Chi Yong hired older, reliable men from the village—those in their forties who hadn't left for migrant work. Though less energetic than younger men, they were conscientious workers with good skills. Along the path, Chi Yong asked Cheng Ying for her plan. "Yingzi, how do you want to organize this?"

"I found a few wild ginseng seedlings in the mountains and protected them. We must clear the ditch, or the saplings I planted will be drowned. Also, I want to build a small dam at the mouth of the ditch, not deep, just enough to hold some water."

Chi Yong, preoccupied, wanted to see firsthand what Cheng Ying had been up to these past two months. "Then have the men start the dam at the ditch mouth now. That will require cement, right?"

"I asked Old Man Sun. He said the ditch entrance is narrow, about ten bags of cement will be enough. I had him slip it in when he went to the city, hiding it from Grandma. It’s already in the village," Cheng Ying explained.

Chi Yong chuckled, amused by her audacity. But then he realized: She has money, otherwise she couldn't do this. "Your nerve has certainly developed. Later—"

Cheng Ying quickly interjected, "Grandma definitely won't come to check. If nobody mentions it, she'll never know I brought it in."

"Then I’ll say I brought it in. But cement isn't something just anyone can buy. How did you get it?"

"Wu Zi had someone help him when he went to the city to buy herbs."

Chi Yong was momentarily stunned. When did this child grow up enough to manage things like this? And her using his own son so effectively! This meant they had connections in the city now. It was too much for the adults to worry about.

Chi Yong was speechless for a moment. "First, let's secure the location. I’ll have someone bring the cement over. The work at the ditch mouth will probably only take two days. You can manage the rest of the ditch yourself." He realized he was accepting it. She had already prepared the cement; what else did she need him for?

When they arrived at the ditch mouth, the workers Chi Yong had hired the previous day were already there. Chi Yong explained the plan, and they immediately started work. Chi Yong and Cheng Ying walked along the ditch deeper in, discussing road repairs and ditch diversion strategies.

When Chi Yong reached the grave site of Yingzi's father and saw the area planted with rows of small saplings, his eyes grew moist. Thank goodness my wife didn't come. Thank goodness the old woman never comes. They would be heartbroken. How old was the girl? All those trees—they were earned purely through sheer physical labor. Two months—the child probably hadn't rested a single day. Just digging up those saplings was exhausting work. How far into the mountains must she have gone to gather this many?

"Yingzi, you have your mother, you have your uncle. You don't need to work this hard," Chi Yong said, speaking from the heart. For him, raising an adopted daughter wasn't a burden.

Cheng Ying thought that the work was indeed demanding, but perhaps not as exhausting as Chi Yong imagined. "Uncle, I didn't do that much. Chi Wu helped on Sundays. And these seedlings weren't far away; we just cut the branches, brought them here, sectioned them, and planted them."