Although he was taken aback by Second Aunt’s sudden fierceness, Lianshan honestly felt a sigh of relief in his heart. If Second Aunt was all talk and no action, the kind of person who could be easily pushed around, then no matter the difficulty, Lianshan would certainly abandon the plan to bring her along and look for someone else. After all, they needed someone efficient to help with childcare so they could focus entirely on their studies. Trouble and leeches, naturally, should be kept at a respectful distance. Fortunately, Second Aunt did not disappoint him. Seeing Lianshan indeed take the bundle from her hand and hang it onto the front handlebar, and once she was securely seated on the bike with a large bag of bedding, the young man mounted the bike and pedaled away. Second Aunt finally released a bit of her apprehension. Unable to resist showing her fierce side, making Lianshan witness the troublesome daughter-in-laws of hers, she was quite nervous too. Afraid that an opportunity her nephew-in-law found with great difficulty would be ruined. Ten yuan a month, a hundred and twenty yuan a year. Working for two years, she could save up two hundred and forty yuan, enough to arrange a decent funeral for herself. A rare encounter with such a mind-boggling opportunity should absolutely not be missed. With such thoughts, this originally diligent Second Aunt became even more diligent for real. Rising early in the morning to help with cooking, feeding chickens, earthworms, and watering the fungus—all were tasks she rushed to do. Taking care of the children, tidying up the house, wherever she could lend a hand, she did so willingly without explanation. She was great at spotting tasks, and got along well with Little Lian’en. In just a few days, the child could sleep with her in the west room at night. Only during the night did they bring him over to Shuzhen for a feed, and the rest of the night, Second Aunt could watch over him until morning. With this small obstacle of a son taken care of, not having to wake up early for childcare, Lianshan thought he might have hopes of ’happiness.’ However, he didn’t anticipate his wife being firm-hearted, refusing to let the passion carry all the way through despite intimate cuddling. Leaving Lianshan feeling both frozen and blazing, contemplating the endless two years ahead, he couldn’t help but sigh: Keeping one’s word can sometimes be rather annoying. Facing university life that he hadn’t experienced in two lifetimes, he didn’t want it to be disrupted by an unexpected little one. Too embarrassed to straightforwardly ask the women’s affairs director for family planning supplies, Shuzhen could only look at her silly husband with a cold smile: Let you keep babbling on about sleeping suits all the time. Humph, now let you experience what it’s like to ’stay pure’ all day—wear plain clothes! Unless you realize who’s calling the shots around here, you won’t know who’s truly in charge. Lianshan thought to himself, if you’re embarrassed to do it in the village, why should I be? Just wait, once we’re in Beijing where we’re strangers, I’ll go to a family planning office to get some supplies, and then you’ll learn how little you can mess with a man who’s had enough! As the days passed, Shuzhen and Lianshan’s preparations gradually set in. They picked a good amount of vegetables from the garden such as eggplants, beans, cowpeas, and peppers, drying a significant amount. Grain, dried foods, and other items given by the Eight Brothers, along with the entire family’s clothes and bedding, filled six large burlap sacks, along with a stroller and two big triangular bags of food and drink—there was so much stuff it was hard to look directly at. They thought about simplifying their load, but considering the scarce resources and purchase restrictions, every item felt necessary. If they brought too little, traveling might be easier, but they might find themselves ill-prepared when they really need something. Luckily, on their journey, there were a dozen strong men to see them off. Along the way, they’d have help from the retired-soldier Li Hai. And once they reached their destination, they wouldn’t need to bother finding a house, as they’d stay directly in a property under Wu Yinghong’s name, only a ten-minute walk from university. As for any payment, once it was brought up, Lianshan nearly got into trouble with Wu Liguo, so they let it go naturally. Of course, this goodwill was remembered by Shuzhen and Lianshan, always planning on returning the favor in the future. As the start date of September 1st approached, Shuzhen and Lianshan found themselves increasingly busy. The family chickens and wild chickens, ones actively laying eggs, were divided—given four each to the older brother, second brother, the wife’s younger sister, and younger brother’s families. The remaining twenty were killed, with two cooked for Lianshan to bring to the siblings as gifts on the pretext for their gathering, the others were made into cured chicken to bring as treats for after they settled in Beijing. Eggs were sneakily taken to the oldest brother on the pretext of selling, asking him to salt them, and given as snacks to the five siblings and the little sister Wu Yinghong on the mountain occasionally. The vegetables in the garden were mostly gathered, leaving only the unreached cabbage and turnips for the oldest brother to handle and distribute later. In short, both the home and outside, they took what can be taken. What couldn’t be taken or preserved was entrusted to the older brother. On August 23rd, Brother Liu hosted with flour and meat, and Second Sister-in-Law Su Hongying organized her resources, making several pots of white flour meat dumplings for Shuzhen’s family as a farewell meal. Lian Hai’s family, Lian Yue’s family, the Eight Brothers, and Wu Yinghong all came to bid farewell. With a good round of earnest instructions and reluctant goodbyes, Shuzhen, Lianshan, and the Second Aunt holding the baby got on the ox cart driven by Lian Hai, gradually heading towards the train station in Luohe Town, in the direction of Beijing. With help from many hands, it was difficult to heave all their six large burlap bags, plus the stroller, two triangular bags, and a large jar of various luggage onto the train, sparking another wave of reluctant farewells. As the train slowly started to move, Shuzhen could still see her usually reserved eldest brother with reddened eyes. The mischievous second brother kept running alongside the train waving, shouting for little sister to take care of herself and to write home often! Unable to hold back tears, Shuzhen opened the train window and leaned out to wave to her second brother, assuring him she would take care of herself and remember to write home. Until the train gradually picked up speed, carrying away her eldest brother, second brother, brother-in-law, and sister-in-law from her sight, Shuzhen reluctantly retracted her head back inside the train, taking the handkerchief offered by Lianshan to wipe her reddened eyes, feeling somewhat embarrassed for her earlier emotional display. The rare shy daughter-like demeanor amused Second Aunt, saying that Shuzhen, who usually manages all village affairs quickly and speaks efficiently, walks around with such a reckless flamboyance that seeing her shed a tear today finally revealed a bit of the young girl within her.