Sun Miaohong was in high spirits today. Before her husband could even speak, she jumped in. "Since you’re here, you have to come over! It’s just one meal. Right, Leizi?"

Su Lei smiled. "My wife is right! Okay, how about this? You two go buy groceries, and I’ll ride my bike to pick up the father-daughter pair."

Sun Miaohong smiled and nodded. "Sounds like a plan."

It was an offer too gracious to refuse, so Su Yun could only nod in agreement.

Meanwhile, Qin Jiao and her father waited for a short while before her second uncle, Su Lei, arrived. Su Lei invited them to his home for a meal before they headed back to the village, and Qin Zhonghui had no choice but to accept, albeit sheepishly.

In truth, their family wasn’t particularly close with Su Lei’s. This was mainly because they worked migrant jobs year-round and hardly saw each other more than a few times a year.

That was why Qin Zhonghui felt a bit awkward around his second brother-in-law.

Su Lei, who worked at the Bureau of Education, was a much more animated person. He smiled and said, "Come on, Little Nine, you sit on the front crossbar. Let your dad take the back rack."

"Okay!" 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

The crossbar wasn’t exactly comfortable, but in those days, owning a big, Forever-brand bicycle was already something to be proud of.

Su Lei asked, "So, Zhong Hui, you’re back from the doctor. What was the verdict?"

"It’s fine."

From her spot on the crossbar, Qin Jiao piped up. "The doctor said Dad needs to let his hand rest and heal properly, or he won’t be able to cook anymore. Also, he has stomach problems now, all from not eating regular meals."

Sitting on the back rack, Qin Zhonghui sighed but said nothing. At least no one could see the look on his face.

Su Lei, however, grew serious. "You can’t ignore stomach problems. You have to take care of it. And your hand, too. You and Xiao Yun work yourselves to the bone all year. All you think about is keeping your heads down and earning money, but don’t ruin your health over it. That’s being penny-wise and pound-foolish!"

"Mm."

He was his brother-in-law, after all, so Su Lei didn’t want to press the issue. He changed the subject, asking Qin Jiao about school.

"Xiao Jiao, you’re starting your senior year of high school this fall, right? You’ve got to work hard and get into a good university!"

Perched on the crossbar, Qin Jiao felt a light breeze lift her bangs. She squinted, a confident smile spreading across her face. "No problem."

She had been a good student to begin with. It was that *incident* that had derailed her, to the point she never even got the chance to take the college entrance exam.

But this time, she wouldn’t let this precious opportunity slip away.

After all, for a child from a poor family, the college entrance exam was perhaps the single fairest chance they had to change their destiny.

A million soldiers on a thousand horses would charge, but only the most steadfast could make it across that single-plank bridge.

Meanwhile, as Su Yun helped Sun Miaohong with the grocery shopping, she secretly bought two pounds of mutton. It was expensive, but she felt bad letting her second sister-in-law pay for everything.

Sun Miaohong protested politely before accepting the meat. She glanced at the timid Xiao Shi, who had hardly said a word. "You were right to bring Xiao Shi to the county seat for school," she said. "This child... I remember seeing him the year before last, and he was so lively. Now he’s completely withdrawn. He called me ’Second Aunt’ when he walked in the door and hasn’t made a peep since."

Su Yun thought of how Xiao Shi had been bullied by the Qin Family, and her lips thinned. "It’s my fault. I thought it would be fine to leave him back in our hometown, but who knew that the third family’s boy would be such a terror and bully him into this state. That’s why Zhong Hui and I have been talking. We’re thinking of finding work here in the county seat so we can be with the kids while they go to school."

Sun Miaohong nodded in approval. "That’s the right thing to do! I’ll have your second brother ask around about housing. If that works out, he can help you find jobs, too."

Su Yun was overcome with emotion. "Oh, Second Sister-in-law, thank you so much!"

"Don’t be silly. We’re family."