A joke from long ago had actually come true today.

Xie Changyi’s eyes were red as she looked at her younger sister. "You’ve really suffered all these years." She had been raised by their uncle and aunt abroad, so her living environment had been tolerable.

But her sister was different.

She grew up with their other uncle and aunt, and the only reason they raised her to adulthood was because they were afraid the main family would hold them accountable!

Otherwise, why would they have been too scared to let her sister return to pay respects to their ancestors?

The more she thought about it, the angrier Xie Changyi became.

Yu Chunhe saw that the two of them needed to talk, so after the meal, he left with Director Zhao.

Meanwhile, Xie Changning had the driver who came with them stay at the guesthouse, while she went with Xie Changyi back to the residential building where she lived.

Xie Changyi wasn’t married and lived alone.

She lived in a small, fifty-square-meter apartment that was kept spotlessly clean. Xie Changning looked at Xie Changyi’s home and remarked with some emotion, "To have reached your position, you must have suffered much more than I did."

Xie Changyi had returned from abroad and had a complicated background. To have climbed to this position showed how much effort she had put in.

"It was nothing, really. It just cost me a lot of time and any chance of marriage."

Xie Changyi had grown up abroad, so her way of thinking was fundamentally different from the domestic idea that women must get married.

She wouldn’t compromise herself just because of the older generation’s saying, "A woman’s purpose is to get married."

As Xie Changyi spoke, she looked at Xie Changning. "Do you also think my life is incomplete?" Many people said that. They said that now that she was successful in her career, she could start looking for a family of her own.

But after so many years, she was long accustomed to living on her own.

She had no intention of looking for a partner at all.

As Xie Changyi spoke, she had been bracing herself for her sister to lecture her as well. However, she heard her sister say, "There are many kinds of happiness. If you feel that your life is happy right now, then it’s complete."

’Does a complete life have to be defined by marriage and children?’

’Everyone’s path is different.’

Xie Changning wouldn’t persuade someone to get married, nor would she persuade them not to. She just felt that everyone was walking the path they believed was right for them.

So, there was nothing to persuade anyone about.

In all the years Xie Changyi had been out in the world, even high-ranking leaders would tell her that she should consider her "personal matters."

But her sister said that as long as she felt happy now, her life was complete.

Xie Changyi was moved. She looked at her younger sister. "You’re the first person to say that to me."

"Oh, really? Then I’m honored."

Xie Changning and Xie Changyi’s interactions were strangely harmonious.

There was no clichéd pouring out of their hearts or dwelling on each other’s hardships. Instead, they shared a tacit understanding and talked about the future.

In their view, no matter how bitter the past was, it was over.

The future was what mattered most.

"Mom and Dad would be so happy to see how well you’ve grown up." Xie Changyi was over ten years older than Xie Changning and subconsciously wanted to take care of her. As she spoke, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of regret.

’I should have made a scene and demanded to come back back then!’

Xie Changning shook her head. "We’re both doing well now."

Xie Changyi nodded.

The two of them sat facing each other. After a long silence, Xie Changning finally spoke up. "Sis, do you know where they were sent?"

This was the first time Xie Changning had called her "Sis." Xie Changyi felt a small thrill of excitement.

"Yes! I do!" she said, not hiding it.

Xie Changning lowered her gaze. "I want to go see them."

"Why?" Xie Changyi looked at her sister with disapproval.

In her opinion, visiting them was completely unnecessary. It would be better to just pretend that family was dead.

Xie Changning’s lips curved into a smile. She said to Xie Changyi, "They did raise me, after all. I have to go see them. Only when they see how well I’m doing can they be at ease."

Xie Changyi was left speechless.

She could see it now. Her sister wasn’t going to put them at ease; she was going to give them sleepless nights.

Seeing how well Xie Changning was doing, would they be able to be at ease?

Of course not!

"I’ll go with you. If we go together, they’ll be even *more* at ease."

She wanted that family to know that her sister had been officially welcomed back into the main family. She was no longer the poor little thing they used to bully, waiting for her backer...

’Never mind,’ she thought. ’My official position doesn’t really allow for that kind of thinking.’

’I’ll just do it quietly.’ That would be enough.

The two sisters slept in the same bed that night.

Before falling asleep, a thought popped into Xie Changning’s head. ’Blood ties are truly a mysterious thing. They can guide a person, even when they know nothing, to find their family with just a sixth sense.’

The next day, when Xie Changning woke up, Xie Changyi had already made breakfast.

After they ate, they went to the guesthouse to find the driver and have him take them to the train station.

"Director Xie, Factory Director, are you sure you don’t need me to come with you?"

"No need. You’re the factory’s only driver, so prioritize the factory’s needs. We’ll be fine." Xie Changning waved her hand, dismissing him.

Xie Changyi had already requested time off from the bureau first thing in the morning.

She had a deputy director under her, so things wouldn’t grind to a halt just because she was gone for two days.

The two took a train to Tulake Village in Da Guazi County, Ping’an City.

It was currently a busy season for the educated youth. As soon as the two arrived in the village, the brigade leader instantly came up to greet them. "You must be the new educated youth sent down from above, right? Perfect. Get your things put away and hurry down to the fields."

Xie Changning turned to look at Xie Changyi, then shook her head at the man.

"We’re not educated youth sent to the countryside. We’re here to visit relatives."

The brigade leader was taken aback.

He looked at Xie Changning’s and Xie Changyi’s outfits—simple white shirts, green military-style pants, and cloth shoes. They looked incredibly low-key.

However, he could tell they were from the city.

Definitely not from the countryside.

"Who are you looking for?" the brigade leader, who didn’t have a good impression of city folk, asked them with a sour expression.

The two exchanged a glance before speaking. "We’re relatives of the Xie Family. Could you please take us to see them?"

Xie Changning stepped forward and took a handful of peanut brittle from her pocket to give to the brigade leader.

The brigade leader’s expression softened a little when he saw the peanut brittle.

"Fine. But I’m warning you, no whispering allowed. You can only talk to them in front of me!"

"No problem."

Seeing that they were both cooperative, the brigade leader finally turned and led the two of them to where the educated youth were working.

The Xie Family members were made to work separately, with one here and another over there.

They weren’t allowed to gather together at all.

Only when Xie Changning and Xie Changyi arrived were they allowed to assemble. "Hey, Xie Family! Relatives are here for a visit!"

Hearing the brigade leader’s shout, the members of the Xie Family all stopped what they were doing and turned their heads in unison.

And then they saw Xie Changning and Xie Changyi standing at the edge of the field.

The family hurried over to Xie Changning. "Changning, you came to see us?"

As soon as her adoptive father from the Xie Family saw it was Xie Changning, he rushed over to her.