As soon as An Guoqing asked, he saw Gao Guifen shoot him a glare.

"What’s wrong?"

An Guoqing didn’t understand.

An Ning didn’t really understand these things either, but she figured no woman enjoyed being told she was getting on in years.

"Big Brother, there’s no age limit for drinking milk powder. It’s good for her health, and the baby will grow up strong and healthy."

"Really? Then I’ll drink it."

His sister-in-law took the milk powder, hugging it to her chest. She placed a hand on her belly, practically glowing with a maternal aura.

"Oh, that’s great! You drink it all, then. Drink plenty."

An Guoqing added, but his sister-in-law just shot him another glare.

’Why is she still glaring at me?’

An Guoqing was still confused.

Fortunately, An Ning didn’t give him a chance to ask.

She kept pulling out more gifts, and soon everyone was heading back to their rooms with their arms full.

That day, the meal at the An family’s home was exceptionally fragrant.

An Guoming was the head cook, with Lin Cuihua assisting him and An Ning tending the fire.

Her eternally-unchanging post of fire-tender had simply moved from the old house to the new one; An Ning’s position in this regard was rock-solid.

"I’m going over to Uncle An’s."

An Sancheng took the things An Ning had bought and went to Uncle An’s house.

When An Sancheng arrived at Uncle An’s house, he distributed the gifts. While everyone was looking at them, he pulled Uncle An outside.

The two brothers talked for a bit, and An Sancheng subtly brought up the origin of the truck.

"Sancheng, our two families are different."

Uncle An squatted on a ridge between fields, surrounded by open, yellow earth.

Just the two brothers in the middle of a vast, empty landscape.

"Your second son was always smart, not to mention An Ning. And Guoping will be able to get an education and leave home in the future too."

"Good things are good, but not if you don’t have the ability to handle them."

"I know these things are good. In the future, they’ll help my sons settle down, maybe run a small business in town. As long as they have enough to eat and drink with some spare money, that’s enough."

Uncle An took a puff from his long-stemmed pipe, blowing out a large smoke ring.

"When I’m gone, I’ll divide things up for them. After that, I won’t be able to look after them anymore."

An Sancheng squatted across from his brother, knowing he was right.

"In the whole An family, you’re the smartest, Big Brother."

In front of Uncle An, An Sancheng was like a child full of adoration.

Uncle An tapped An Sancheng’s head with his pipe, his eyes full of fond, fatherly affection.

"You... you’ve been a sweet-talker since you were little. I’m not that smart. I just live by one truth: you only take on what you can handle."

An Sancheng nodded with a fawning grin.

The two brothers stood up and slowly started walking home.

"Big Brother, about Second Brother—"

"Stay out of it. And don’t you dare tell him, understand?"

"I understand."

An Sancheng didn’t dare say more.

As they neared the edge of the fields, Uncle An spoke again.

"Sancheng, what did An Ning buy the truck for?"

"She wants to lease a mountain."

An Sancheng didn’t hide it from Uncle An.

After hearing this, Uncle An became thoughtful.

’Farming is something my family can do.’

"Sancheng, go home and ask for me. What if I have Guoyang and Guolin join in and lease some land, or a hill, or something? Would that be okay?"

"Don’t worry, they’ll have to listen to An Ning in whatever they do. If they don’t listen, then you don’t have to bother with them."

"We’ll sign a contract."

Naturally, Uncle An was still looking out for his own children.

Leasing the mountain might not be hard, but what to do afterward—how to sell what they grew—would all depend on An Ning.

"I’ll go back and ask."

With his hands behind his back, Uncle An tapped his pipe against his palm a couple of times. "You go ask. I’ll go back and discuss it with my family too. I’ll just say An Ning is lending them the money and see what they think."

After the two brothers made their plan, they each returned to their own homes.

When An Sancheng got home, he was hit by a heavenly aroma the moment he stepped into the courtyard.

"It’s a good thing we moved here. Otherwise, the walls would be lined with neighbors trying to get a sniff."

That evening, the An family gathered happily for a huge feast.

However, this "huge feast" was a little... rustic.

Abalone stewed with potatoes, sea cucumber braised with green onions, scallops stir-fried with garlic sprouts, and prawns boiled in saltwater.

The first collision of northern and southern ingredients had quietly occurred in the An family’s kitchen.

"Time to eat."

It was Lin Cuihua who called out, as always. Everyone sat down, their bowls filled with white rice.

"I wouldn’t even dare to eat like this in my dreams."

An Guoqing held his bowl of white rice and looked at the table laden with dishes, feeling like it was all unreal.

"Gui Fen, pinch me—AH! You actually pinched me."

An Guoqing saw Gao Guifen press her lips together to hide a smile.

"You told me to."

An Guoqing rubbed the inside of his thigh with one hand, his brows furrowed.

"You used a little too much force."

"No, I didn’t. Now eat."

Gao Guifen placed a scallop in An Guoqing’s bowl before lowering her head and starting to eat herself.

Everyone started eating. Across from An Guoqing, An Ning lowered her head to hide a laugh.

’His wife is definitely getting revenge on my big brother for that comment about her age.’

After the meal, An Guoping went to help with the dishes.

An Ning, An Guoming, An Guoqing, and An Sancheng gathered in a room to discuss their next steps.

An Sancheng started by telling An Ning what Uncle An had proposed, and An Ning immediately said it was no problem.

"Alright, then we’ll wait and see what your uncle decides."

After saying that, An Sancheng turned back to An Ning.

"So, what’s next, daughter?"

Everyone in the room looked at An Ning.

"First, we lease a mountain and some farmland. Then we hire people to clear and fertilize it, getting the land ready."

"Also, I plan to buy a batch of plastic sheeting to build greenhouses. This technology will allow us to grow vegetables here in the north, even in winter."

They all knew about the first part of the plan, but the second part was news to them.

"We can grow vegetables in the winter?"

An Guoqing was very interested.

"Yes. It’s like the garlic sprouts we ate today. Mom just put some garlic on the warm kang, and they sprouted, right?"

"As long as the temperature is high enough, it’s definitely possible to grow vegetables in the winter."

An Ning watched them nod repeatedly. They were all farmers; they understood as soon as she explained.

But the main reason An Ning wanted to use greenhouse technology was that she needed to farm.

Without farming, she couldn’t recover her spiritual power.

An Ning’s gaze shifted to An Guoming. "Second Brother, what are your plans?"

"Now that the family has a truck, we’ll need someone to drive it. There will also be all sorts of things that require someone to handle contacts and business outside the village. The future sales will all need someone in charge."

"I know. I’ll head back to the county town first and sell the goods we brought back. It’ll take time for the family to get the mountain ready. I’ll come back when it’s time for the first harvest."

An Ning thought An Guoming’s plan was very thorough.

"Let’s do that."

With the plan settled, the group dispersed to get some rest.

Early the next morning, An Ning and An Sancheng went to the home of Sun Dazhuang, the former team leader who was now the village chief.

Sun Dazhuang decided to just join them, and the three of them hopped into the truck driven by An Guoming. They went to the town first, and then to the county seat.

Once they reached the county seat, An Guoming dropped them off at their destination and left.

After asking around for a while, An Ning and the others finally found the office for handling land-leasing procedures.