MiaoMiao’s face flushed scarlet, unable to utter a word, the temper of a child flaring up. 【This Book is by】Cheng Ying had bought MiaoMiao a beautiful pair of athletic shoes back then.

MiaoMiao had put them on immediately upon seeing them, delighted. It was just that the trousers were a bit small, and few people in the village were accustomed to wearing socks.

So, those shoes on her feet felt somewhat awkward and unflattering at the time, and Chi Wu, whose worldly knowledge was limited, burst out laughing.

This had caused MiaoMiao to hold a grudge until now. Chi Wu recalled that he and Yingzi weren't engaged back then; Chi Wu was practically a rival in love. If it were now, he wouldn't have laughed for anything. He would have praised his little brother-in-law with a clear conscience, all because of his own short-sightedness back then.

Look how he’d provoked his little brother-in-law to the point of holding a grudge.

Chi Wu said, “Alright, let’s sleep. Waiting until this time of night after we arrive, shouldn’t you both be worn out?”

MiaoMiao snorted coldly, “I was waiting for my sister, not you.” With that, she burrowed into the covers.

Chi Wu thought about the courtyard when they arrived; with all that snow, the path leading to the house only had a thin layer. He figured MiaoMiao must have swept it. Although the kid spoke harshly, she must care for him deep down.

Caring for his sister meant caring for him. He and Cheng Ying were husband and wife, inseparable.

Chi Wu said, “I’ll mail those shoes to you later.” When it came to appeasing his little brother-in-law, Chi Wu only had these two tricks.

MiaoMiao huffed, “Hmph, next year I’ll be studying in the provincial capital. I won’t need you to buy them; my sister said she’d take me and let me pick them myself.”

Chi Wu thought, a child seeing through things, why is she so vexing? So hard to please. He closed his eyes to sleep.

When they woke up the next day, the outside was covered in a vast expanse of white.

Cheng Ying, Chi Wu, and MiaoMiao were shoveling snow in the yard; they were running out of places to pile it.

MiaoMiao said, “Too much snow can also cause disaster.” It seemed the child didn’t know about snow disasters.

Cheng Ying said, “It’s a good thing you prepared enough things for Grandma when we left; otherwise, I wouldn’t be at ease leaving Grandma at home.”

Chi Wu said, “It’s fine, don’t worry. I’ll call Grandma in a bit.”

Grandpa even said, “It hasn't snowed this heavily in many years. This is good; you all can stay here peacefully for a few days.”

Chi Wu and Cheng Ying had no objections; as long as they could return to the village before the New Year, that was fine. Besides, reliving the feeling of walking and staying at Grandpa’s house back then wasn't bad either.

Cheng Ying and Chi Wu tried to call the old lady. The phone line was already dead.

It wasn't an issue when the snow was falling, but they feared that once the snow melted, the resulting ice would freeze the lines, often snapping the telephone wires.

It was likely some line somewhere had malfunctioned.

Cheng Ying said, “Luckily, we told Grandma last night that we arrived here. Otherwise, Grandma would surely be worried about us.”

Chi Wu knew Cheng Ying was anxious about home. “Don’t worry, Uncle Gan is there.”

Cheng Ying looked at Chi Wu. If Chi Wu hadn't made such thorough preparations, she wouldn't have trusted anyone else to stay home. Regardless of this troublesome kid's motivations, Cheng Ying remembered how far he’d gone to handle things.

Someone who wasn't dedicated couldn't have done it so well.

Chi Wu said, “Even though it’s stopped snowing, it won’t melt quickly. You should go inside and rest properly these few days.”

Cheng Ying’s face turned bright red. Troublesome kid, do I need you to bring up this kind of issue? And is this something that can be brought up anytime? He’s gone nuts! “Get lost, and if I hear you mention it again, I’ll kick you to death!”

The threat sounded misplaced, but she still went inside.

Chi Wu thought, Who am I doing this for? My face is red just saying it. I'll just be more careful helping my wife in the future. He wouldn't mention it again.

But during these days, Cheng Ying’s hands never stopped holding brown sugar water. Chi Wu brought it to her every time.

Cheng Ying was about to be depressed to death. Even a couple still maintained some reserve—what was Chi Wu trying to do?

It had been several years since they stayed comfortably at Grandpa’s. These few days, Cheng Ying actually found the feeling again, chatting endlessly with Grandpa about his past experiences traveling as an itinerant performer. When happy, she’d pat her chest, “I’ve sort of inherited Grandpa’s legacy as his granddaughter. Grandpa, didn't I tell you I’m studying medicine now?”

The old man startled, nearly dropping his pipe from his mouth. “Really?”

Cheng Ying rubbed her hair, truly having forgotten. “I really didn’t tell you?”

The old man slapped his thigh. “Oh, I thought my granddaughter was going to be an official! Why did you study this?”

Cheng Ying laughed, touching her hair. She genuinely forgot. “Isn’t this quite good? We can consider this a family tradition.”

The old man said, “It’s good, yes. Just not becoming an official.”

Cheng Ying chuckled. Who said going to university meant becoming an official? There was a misunderstanding in that perception. “Why not? When the time comes, we’ll open our own hospital, and you can be the director!”

The old man was so shocked by his granddaughter that he almost fell off the kang. “Oh, my ancestor, take it easy! Grandpa’s bones can’t take much more excitement. What are you planning?”

Cheng Ying fell silent. These days, village clinics served the public; hospitals were all state-run, with no such thing as private ownership. Especially in their remote mountainous area, they hadn't even heard of it.

No wonder the old man was so agitated. A few years ago, this idea could have warranted several criticisms.

Cheng Ying pursed her lips. “Uh, hehe, I was just saying. Opening an herbal medicine shop would be acceptable.”

The old man raised his eyebrows. He knew his own modest skills. Did she mean opening a shop just to sell poultices? Being rich wasn’t worth provoking that much scrutiny. “You stop having crooked ideas. Whatever you study, just focus on your education.”

Chi Wu remained silent. Chi Wu had looked up what Yingzi was learning; there were even programs for studying abroad.

Most were developing their careers overseas; currently, medical technology abroad was indeed more advanced.

Chi Wu felt this was a hidden danger.

To be honest, Chi Wu never considered himself great; he always intended to advance hand-in-hand with Cheng Ying. Being left behind by Yingzi was something he truly didn't want.

That one instance at school was enough; Chi Wu regretted it deeply. He wouldn't repeat such a mistake.

Fortunately, he hadn’t heard Yingzi express any desire to achieve fame in her specialized field.

Cheng Ying said, “Don’t say that! Just because you think it’s impossible now doesn’t mean it will be impossible in the future. MiaoMiao, you should study medicine too when the time comes. If our family went public with that, we’d be a lineage! Think how much weight that would carry!”

The old man was mollified by his granddaughter's coaxing. It was equivalent to transitioning from a rebel army to regular soldiers; being recognized made him happy. All his life, even if he didn’t boast about saving lives, he truly helped people in need and cured the sick.

Having a promising future, being validated—even just imagining it was exhilarating! “You can mess around all you want, but don’t ruin MiaoMiao.”

Cheng Ying felt frustrated that her idea wasn't getting support. “Forget it, you’re not being supportive.”

Uncle came in from outside. “If that day truly comes, we will finally have made a name for ourselves.”

Cheng Ying patted her chest, guaranteeing, “This really isn't just a dream!” If our family's medical skills aren't great, we can hire people, right?

Auntie said, “That’s enough, let’s eat quickly. It’s freezing cold; you people are just spouting nonsense.”

Chi Wu, standing nearby, said, “Auntie, come eat with us.”

Uncle said, “Wu Zi always thinks of his Auntie. No wonder your Auntie is so fond of you; three out of every five sentences she speaks are about how wonderful Wu Zi is.”

Cheng Ying looked at the people around her, genuinely unaware that Auntie had such a high opinion of Wu Zi. “Really?”

Uncle shook his head and told his son, “Ask MiaoMiao.”

MiaoMiao, unhappy, jutted out her chin. “Hmph.”

Cheng Ying understood. Perhaps Chi Wu was what her Grandpa referred to as the 'other person's child' in the family.

The old man said, “Hey, don’t be unhappy. If you had even half of your Brother Wu Zi’s ability, Grandpa would rest easy.”

Uncle chimed in, “Even a small fraction would do.”

Cheng Ying shook her head and comfortingly patted MiaoMiao’s head, completely understanding that feeling. “Poor child, the life you live.”

MiaoMiao said, “I will definitely be better than him.” This statement was basically ignored by the adults.

Cheng Ying’s menstrual period had passed, and she couldn't bear to stay there any longer. Her heart was anxious.

The snow continued to fall intermittently, worrying Cheng Ying. Traveling over forty li in this weather made her uneasy.

Chi Wu was even happier to spend these days alone with Cheng Ying in their own house, so Chi Wu was more anxious than Cheng Ying. Didn't he rush back to the village precisely because he wanted to spend a few days alone with his wife?

Chi Wu thought these days were still good. Seeing Cheng Ying worried, Chi Wu suggested, “How about I find a cart to take us part of the way?”

Cheng Ying considered it carefully. “In this weather, even if someone has a cart, they might not want to drive.”

Chi Wu’s thinking was broader. “Look, isn’t there a pali (sleigh)?”

Cheng Ying slapped her head; she had short-circuited. She was only thinking about riding the pali for fun and hadn't considered it could be used as transport. “Oh, right! If our Second Girl’s family were here, this would be so convenient!”

Chi Wu said, “Exactly. Knowing that, I’ll call Second Uncle and ask him to pick us up part of the way.”

Cheng Ying regretted it. “We should have thought of that earlier.”

Chi Wu said, “I'll find someone to take us as far as Liang Shang, and the rest of the way, the two of us walking back isn’t too far.”

Cheng Ying said, “It’s been half a year since we were home. If we go back, we haven't prepared anything to eat.”

Chi Wu said, “Don’t worry. There’s a supply station in the village. Besides, when Mingzi went back, I told him to tidy up the house for us if he had time.” He was encouraging Cheng Ying, and seeing her waver, Chi Wu pressed on. “Later, I’ll go up the mountain to bring Second Girl down, and we can go sledding on the Dahe River. How about it?”

Cheng Ying was tempted. Even MiaoMiao, standing beside them, was tempted.

Chi Wu didn't procrastinate; he found a pali the next day.

Auntie’s face turned green. “In this weather, where are you going? Are you tired of staying here?”

Chi Wu said, “Auntie, this snow won't melt even by New Year's. We still need to go back and handle things. Besides, Old Aunt gave birth to a son; if we miss the full month celebration, that’s not right.”

Cheng Ying nodded along. Why didn’t this kid mention the sledding?

MiaoMiao pouted aside. Little brat. Even though her own parents don't see clearly, they still ask me to learn from someone like this.

Chi Wu finally managed to persuade Auntie to let his wife leave with him. MiaoMiao, lacking any social awareness, insisted on following. For Chi Wu, this was terrible luck.

How easy was it to have a moment alone with his wife? They were already engaged; if things stayed lukewarm for too long, how could Yingzi make any progress with him?

Chi Wu harbored romantic intentions for Cheng Ying but lacked the courage to act on them fully. His desire, however, never ceased.

He grabbed MiaoMiao and left. Three minutes later, MiaoMiao returned without a sound, no longer demanding to follow Cheng Ying. Chi Wu had won over his little brother-in-law.

Cheng Ying couldn't figure out what agreement these two had reached.

ps: It’s the end of the month, asking for Pink Tickets, three chapters requesting votes. I feel the story of returning to the city is about Wu Zi loving Cheng Ying, pursuing her, and embracing his wife, as well as Cheng Ying seeing Chi Wu—the process of him entering her sight and her heart. In any book, there must be the process of the male and female protagonists meeting, getting to know each other, and pledging themselves to each other. (.)RU