Forced by the villagers, Cai Tiangui finally put aside his pride and went to apologize to Cheng You.
He shamelessly begged Cheng You to sign the contract with the villagers again.
He thought Cheng You would make things difficult for him, but to his surprise, she agreed readily, making him feel like a petty man.
Cai Tiangui wiped his face. At this moment, he had lost all face and dignity.
"Boss Cheng, I'm not as good as you."
Seeing this, Cheng You's expression was calm as she reminded him, "Boss Cai, we are both businesspeople. I never deliberately make things difficult for others. You shouldn't just focus on making money; you also need to properly teach your daughters."
When Cai Tiangui returned home and inquired, he found out that it was Cai Xiaoyu who had caused this trouble for him.
After scolding his daughter severely, he felt that continuing like this was not an option.
He immediately sent people to inquire in nearby villages about families with honest people and arranged for Cai Xiaoyu to meet them.
Cai Xiaoyu still wanted to marry a military officer and was unwilling to marry a villager.
This continued until Cai Tiangui cut off her allowance for two months and kicked her out of the house, telling her to fend for herself for food and drink.
Having tasted hardship, she finally compromised with Cai Tiangui and agreed to marry.
Of course, when Cheng You heard about these events, she treated them as a joke and forgot about them after a laugh.
Entering her fourth year of university, Cheng You no longer had to attend classes and dedicated most of her energy to her thesis.
Under Su Jinwen's guidance, she revised and edited it until May, when she finally submitted the final draft.
The little dumpling was already six months old, plump and fair, her delicate features resembling a miniature Cheng You.
Every time Cheng You wrote her thesis nearby, the baby would sit and play with toys, showing a remarkably quiet and obedient disposition.
Having finally completed her thesis, Cheng You decided to take Lele back to Yongcheng.
Lele was born in winter. At that time, Elder Jiang was not in good health, so he hadn't come.
He hadn't met Lele yet.
Cheng You also wanted to take the child back to pay respects to Jiang Qing.
Song Qinglan personally packed her things for her, careful not to miss anything.
With a child, the amount of things needed for travel doubled.
"If you weren't busy with your thesis, you should have gone back to visit months ago."
The elders of the Feng family also wanted to pay respects to Jiang Qing, so they planned to travel with Cheng You for mutual support on the journey.
Feng Xianxu and Qiu Tingting also wanted to go, but coincidentally, Qiu Tingting had just discovered she was two months pregnant and was not suitable for long-distance travel, so they had to postpone their visit.
Watching the receding scenery, Cheng You felt a sense of emotion.
The last time she returned, there were only two of them. Now, there was a little dumpling.
Despite the long journey, the little dumpling showed no signs of discomfort and slept almost the entire way.
By the time they reached Qili Village, she had just woken up, appearing full of energy.
The old lady gently touched her little fleshy face, "Our Lele knows she's going to see Grandma and is so happy."
The little dumpling didn't understand what she was saying. She grinned, revealing her tiny teeth.
This was the first tooth she had grown, a small, white speck, particularly adorable.
The Jiang family had known about Cheng You's return early and were all waiting at home.
Everyone wanted to hold Lele but were afraid of startling her.
Fortunately, the little dumpling was not shy and just looked around curiously.
They rested for a day and paid respects to Jiang Qing the next day.
Jiang Qing's grave was newly built. Her black and white photograph was on the tombstone, showing a woman with a gentle smile.
Cheng You lightly stroked the photo, suddenly feeling as if she saw the woman who held her and sang lullabies.
Time would heal the pain, but the absence of her mother was a scar that would never fade.
Qi Chengyan held the child, one hand resting gently on Cheng You's shoulder, offering silent comfort.
Cheng You wiped away a tear, turned around, and picked up the little dumpling.
"Lele, let's say goodbye to Grandma and go down the mountain."
Lele waved her chubby little arms, nestled in her mother's arms, and looked at the photograph on the tombstone.
Cheng You had only intended to visit Jiang Qing with the child, but she hadn't expected to visit Cheng Tianhua.
It was Elder Jiang who reminded her.
"It's just burning some paper money, so it's only an extra trip. You have to maintain appearances, lest people gossip behind your back."
When Lin Guafu was imprisoned because of Cheng You, some people in the village had already spread rumors.
After being persuaded by the elder, Cheng You reluctantly agreed and made a trip to Wujing Village.
She could consider it a visit to her sixth aunt's home.
Although it was to pay respects to Cheng Tianhua, more things were sent to her sixth aunt's home.
In front of Cheng Tianhua's grave, only a stack of paper money was burned.
Their visit happened to coincide with San Leng's return home.
Years had passed since they last saw each other. The boy who once carried a basket with Cheng You to gather wild vegetables and pick duck eggs had grown up.
He had served in the army for many years, weathered many storms, and appeared more mature than his peers.
But when he spoke, he was still the same younger brother from before.
"Sis!"
Cheng You smiled and patted his arm, "You've gotten darker, and you're sturdier than before."
San Leng chuckled. Seeing that Cheng You and Qi Chengyan had only just gotten married, and now they already had a child.
"Can I hold her?"
Cheng You handed Lele over. To her surprise, Lele wasn't shy and immediately grabbed San Leng's clothes.
Sixth Aunt came out from the house and reminded them with a smile, "You're not gentle, be careful."
"Sixth Aunt, has San Leng retired?" Cheng You asked.
Sixth Aunt shook her head, her smile unable to be hidden. "He hasn't retired; he's been promoted. He was just promoted to deputy company commander and applied for a ten-day leave to visit home."
San Leng was still young, and there was still great room for advancement in the future.
Even if he didn't have the chance to be promoted later, if he applied for demobilization, the army would arrange a job for him.
With her grandson having achieved great success, Sixth Aunt was also happy.
Cheng You, holding the child, and Qi Chengyan walked around the village.
It had been some time since they were home, and the village hadn't changed much.
They walked familiar paths, returned to the house they once lived in, and passed by the small trails they had walked.
It felt like returning to a few years ago.
By the roadside, Cheng You and Cheng Tao met eyes from a distance.
Both holding children, they seemed like people from different worlds.
Cheng Tao looked at the child in her arms, lowered her head, and hurried past.
They had been comparing themselves their whole lives. If one had to declare a winner, she had lost completely.
Her face was sun-spotted, her skin dark, and her hands had countless cracked scars. She worked in the fields to feed her child, drifting further and further away from the life she had envisioned.
And her child, with the rice ears in the field as toys and the haystack on the ridge as a bed, seemed to be continuing her life.
Watching Cheng Tao's retreating figure, the blockage in Cheng You's heart seemed to have completely dissolved.
"It's getting windy, let's go back."
Qi Chengyan took the child, wrapped his arm around Cheng You, and the family walked back slowly.
The old ox returning at dusk, the sunset clouds in the sky, their shadows stretching long.