Yang Zhi wasn't one for chitchatting about life's aspirations with Chi Yong, preferring a good fistfight when necessary. Chi Yong glanced at his wife, ah, every coin has two sides.

It was fortunate he wasn't some greenhorn sipping milk and nibbling on toast; he understood a woman’s utility, applicability, and overall value. Otherwise, a wife like his would have been sent packing long ago.

"You've found yourself a good man." He felt a deep, lingering sense of relief and congratulation for his wife from the bottom of his heart. Yang Zhi nodded sincerely, "Mmm, quite good." She was actually a little shy, but given the objective truth of the statement, Yang Zhi managed to suppress it.

Chi Yong went out to tease their son; how tedious. His wife's strength lay in her kind heart, stepping into his world at precisely the right moment in his life.

Cheng Ying and Chi Wu had nowhere else to go but to fuss over their small courtyard; there was nothing else to do. Cheng Ying surveyed the two-courtyard residence, overjoyed in her heart.

Although it had initially looked like a traditional siheyuan courtyard home, once Cheng Ying had people clean it up, everything that needed tearing down was removed, leaving only the front and back sections. Everything else was illegal construction, deemed unnecessary to keep—it just took up space.

For Cheng Ying, a family of three, even with guests coming and going, it was more than sufficient. Moreover, after demolishing the illegal structures, the yard was more than twice as spacious as before.

There was enough room not just for two small vegetable patches, but even for several fruit trees. While the workers were busy fixing up the house, Cheng Ying directed them to work on the yard simultaneously.

Chi Wu noticed that every time Cheng Ying went out, a driver would deliver all sorts of strange things to their yard—a chaotic mix of everything. Considering he had spent far longer in the provincial capital than Cheng Ying, he couldn't figure out where she found places selling such bizarre items.

Cheng Ying put a great deal of effort into bringing things into their yard. First, regardless of whether they were aesthetically pleasing or not, she had to buy a pile of useful and useless items from outside.

Then, she would mix the good things from her Space in with this pile of junk before bringing it all inside. Honestly, it wasn't easy; Cheng Ying thought smuggling was truly a skilled trade.

What Cheng Ying was most pleased with was managing to procure two enormous vats in the provincial capital— vats that were massive, truly massive. In the old days, such large vats were kept to prevent water damage or for firefighting; nowadays, most families with these large vats used them for growing lotus flowers.

Cheng Ying paid money and found a craftsman to bring them into their small courtyard—they were intended for her old mother to raise fish in. The old lady was fond of this hobby.

She loved fish, but she despised glass fish tanks. When Cheng Ying tried replacing the old lady’s fish tank at home, the old lady had used the glass tank to store corn mash instead.

The fish remained in their old, chipped ceramic vat. Although changing the water was a bit of a hassle, the old lady had nothing else to do and enjoyed tending to it herself.

Cheng Ying figured that since her mother was old, finding some light physical activity to keep her busy was important. So, when she saw these two large vats at the flower and bird market, she insisted on bringing them home.

She scooped two fish from the pond in her Space and placed them inside; the life force was boundless. Speaking of the flower and bird market, Cheng Ying truly couldn't appreciate it—what a jumble of nonsense.

It wasn't as beautiful as the wild grasses in her Space. So, she didn't buy a single potted plant, though she did purchase a few nice-looking flowerpots.

Of course, she prioritized her old mother's aesthetic; they were all simple clay pots. If she bought something too fancy, the old lady might end up using it for some strange purpose.

As for the flowers, Cheng Ying simply uprooted them from her Space. She dug up some soil from the ground outside their front door, managed to plant them, and then brought them into the courtyard.

With these additions, the courtyard immediately looked vibrant and full of life. Chi Wu looked up from the vegetable patch, "Can you stop messing around?

What is all this junk? If Grandma comes and doesn't like it, won't we have to tidy it all up again?" Cheng Ying scorned Chi Wu's taste, "Hurry up and turn over that soil; plant two rows of late cucumbers and two patches of snow peas.

Grandma will love it. You big lad, complaining after doing a bit of work—that's a sickness you picked up from staying in the city." Chi Wu's face darkened.

Cheng Ying went out and had a grand time, while he had been turning the soil in the courtyard for the past two days, his hands blistered from planting vegetables. If Cheng Ying had stayed by his side, enduring hardship together would have been acceptable, but Cheng Ying herself had run off, leaving Chi Wu to suffer alone—the young man started to push back, "Why don't you get down to work?" Cheng Ying raised an eyebrow, "If I got down to do this little bit of work, what would be left for you to do?

Just work diligently for me. I’m telling you, in a couple of days, I’m bringing a batch of saplings; those five-plus mu of outside land are waiting for you too." Chi Wu felt unable to vent his frustration.

Five mu of land! A few years ago, doing some work wouldn't have been a big deal for Chi Wu, but now, five mu was genuinely exhausting for him.

He looked at Cheng Ying, and his resolve immediately softened, "Yingzi, can we wait until the tractor arrives before we do it?" Cheng Ying replied, "No, the tractor needs to be left on the mountain for Second Uncle." Chi Wu pleaded, "Yingzi, look at my hands; they're blistered. Can we just hire someone to do it?" Cheng Ying looked at the hands Chi Wu held out—long, slender, well-articulated, without any lingering marks from past manual labor.

It was all thanks to her, really. Back then, the hands Chi Wu presented were unbearable to look at, like a crow's claws.

It took all her effort and careful application of Space water to achieve this result. "Haven't you been soaking your hands properly?

For relief?" There was a touch of pity in her voice. Chi Wu’s mouth curved into a smile; it wasn't easy for him to get blisters.

"I soaked them, but they still blistered. Yingzi, let's hire help; I'm tired." Cheng Ying conceded, "We can hire people for the outside work, but the courtyard always needs tending by us.

However, don't worry too much. See?

Once the eastern part is done, that’s settled. I bought fruit trees for the western side; we'll plant them, and it won't require much more effort." Chi Wu brightened, "You promised!

I’ll go find people right now, and as soon as your saplings arrive, we can get them into the ground immediately." As for where Cheng Ying bought the saplings, Chi Wu didn't even think to ask. For someone like Cheng Ying, knowing people from all walks of life wasn't a big deal.

Cheng Ying rented a place in a secluded area and moved the crabapple saplings from her Space there, then arranging transport was not easy either. In Cheng Ying's view, it was just wasting money on travel expenses.

What good was having a Space if you still had to go through all this trouble? It was much like being a thief; anything that couldn't be taken out openly always felt tainted.

She always had to create such complicated arrangements just to ease her own mind. By the time Cheng Ying's saplings were planted in the fields, nearly half a month had passed.

Cheng Ying’s house was finally ready to be moved into. The sudden appearance of such a large, lush nursery in that quiet area over the last ten-plus days had certainly attracted a few onlookers.

Cheng Ying could only claim that Chi Wu was an efficient worker and the people he hired were quite quick. The two of them surveyed the small courtyard; from now on, this was home.

Comforting, reassuring. Once Cheng Ying’s house was finished, the first thing she did was bring her old mother over.

If the old lady didn't come, there was no proper housewarming celebration. So, the two young people locked the door, informed the family back home, and drove back to the village.

When Chi Wu spoke to Old Man Chi, he borrowed the car. The two young people were bold enough to drive back themselves.

Both Chi Wu and Cheng Ying had decided: moving meant the old lady would have many small things to carry, which would be inconvenient by public transport. Chi Wu and Cheng Ying stopped by the township office to inform their maternal uncle, explaining the situation.

The old man expressed his support, though he felt a sting of jealousy. These were Cheng family children; they were succeeding and bringing the Cheng family's old lady to the city—and it had nothing to do with him.

That feeling was intensely unpleasant. Uncle said, "Yingzi, your grades are excellent.

Later, have Wuzi's father help you out; getting into a good high school is crucial. Since you have the car, Uncle won't escort you, but when there’s time, Uncle will bring your maternal grandfather over to see you." Cheng Ying responded, "Uncle, you must visit my mountain plot several times.

Once Grandma and I are settled in the city, I will come back to pick up Grandpa. If Grandpa is willing, he can live with me in the city; I won't say much else, but medical care will be much easier to access.

If the county needs saplings, Uncle needs to help manage things; the price can be increased a little." The uncle expressed his understanding. He could handle that task.

The old man spat, "Pah, pah, pah, what nonsense are you talking about, girl? Letting me live with your grandmother?

Wouldn't that be utterly unbearable?" Cheng Ying had thought the old man was sensitive about her mentioning easy medical access, but it turned out Grandpa was more concerned about living with his own wife. Aunt chimed in, "That's enough.

Yingzi is going to the city for school; there's no need to be sad. When Miaomiao goes to high school, she can go stay with her big sister too." Cheng Ying said, "Mhm, I’ve already prepared a room for Miaomiao; come whenever you like, you hear?" Miaomiao stood on the ground like a little adult, "I know, Sister, don't worry.

I’ll be here to look after things at home." Cheng Ying felt a lump in her throat. How could this unlucky child be so thoughtful?

Anyone not knowing might think she was being married off; the feeling was awful. She ruffled Miaomiao's hair, then got into the car with Chi Wu to drive back to the village.

Arriving home, Cheng Ying felt her body and mind relax. She hadn't been back for over twenty days, only stopping by briefly during the last ginseng harvest.

Cheng Ying wasn't in a rush to tell the old lady; instead, she first went into the mountains to speak with Second Uncle. She also said a few words by the newly, grandly renovated gravesite.

After all, she was taking the mother of the deceased away from her hometown, so she had to give an account to the son. This was Cheng Ying's way of showing respect to the old lady; Cheng Ying wasn't afraid of the living, but the deceased—the father of this body—deserved an accounting for her own peace of mind.

Although she didn't believe in ghosts or spirits, her Space and her rebirth were beyond scientific explanation. Second Uncle comforted Cheng Ying, "It's fine; I have this pack of little dogs to keep me company." Cheng Ying looked at the pack of large dogs following Er Ya; they truly looked like a wolf pack.

It was likely due to Cheng Ying intentionally feeding them Space water; these dogs were all quite intelligent, and each one was majestic and powerful-looking, intimidating to behold. When Second Uncle was in a good mood, he would let them roam.

Led by Er Ya, they had never left the mountain, successfully scaring away group after group of people who came up. After all, the effect of a pack of large dogs appearing at once was quite shocking.

Cheng Ying wasn't worried about security.