Why did you provoke me?

When Yu Meng woke up completely, the whole family was overjoyed. Yu Hai, who had already graduated and was preparing to open his business in Xiaolou, heard about Yu Meng from Jiang Mingfeng and abandoned everything else, rushing back that very day.

Yu Meng was still thinking about the ice cream, so she told Yu Hai about it.

"Little sister, wait here, I'll go to the river and break off a big block of ice for you. You've just recovered, don't go out, it's cold outside." Yu Hai turned to leave. Yu Meng called after him, "It's not certain there is, I have to go look for it myself, let's go together."

Yu Hai glanced at his mother, who sighed, "Wear more clothes. It's cold outside."

"Mom, we'll be back in a bit. With Xiao Ge there, everything's fine," Yu Meng assured her.

After the New Year, as the weather warms up, the ice on the river becomes quite unique. It stands upright, neatly arranged like icicles. When you stomp hard on the edge of the ice, it shatters like glass and falls back into the river. At this time, it's extremely difficult to retrieve a single, solid block of ice.

Yu Meng half-squatted, her hand gently caressing the ice surface. In a short while, a piece of ice appeared in her hand. It was a small piece, and Yu Meng held it up to her eyes; its vibrant colors were mesmerizing.

Yu Hai watched from behind, his mouth agape. "Little sister, she's so beautiful!"

Yu Meng turned the tiny ice skins into tiny ice beads. Yu Hai followed behind, carrying a box. He had never known his little sister was so amazing.

Only after the box was full did Yu Meng reluctantly return home.

Yu Meng looked at the box of ice beads, which shimmered with iridescent colors under the sunlight. She thought of the crystal ball from her past life. There was a sphere placed on a shelf, right at the entrance of the hall, so that as soon as you entered, the scenery and colors inside the sphere would catch your eye.

She wanted to make a crystal ball like that too, to put in the shop in town as its prized possession. She had originally planned to use the jade pendant, but that was a truly valuable item; if it was about grabbing attention, a crystal ball would suffice. The jade pendant would remain a hidden treasure.

She also took out a few of the grass beads she had saved earlier and placed them aside according to their color intensity.

I dream of creating a scene of blue sky and green grass inside a crystal ball. Combined with the colors refracted by the outer layer of ice, it would surely be breathtaking.

Yu Meng buried herself in her design project. Her work wasn't finished until evening.

It was an ordinary, large ball. Inside, there were shades of green, and a touch of red and yellow. It was a piece of flower crust that she had casually torn off a flower in the summer.

When Mr. and Mrs. Yu came home, they were surprised to see a large ball on the table.

Aunt Yu reached out and touched it. "Little Si, what did you make? A big ball?"

"Mom, I made this. I want to put it in town as the shop's prized possession," Yu Meng said, spinning the ball with her fingers.

Yu's father watched from the side without intervening. "Little Si'er, aren't you afraid of touching this?"

"Don't worry. But if too many people touch it, it will get dirty. Wait until the sun comes out tomorrow, and you'll see how beautiful it is."

"My little Si'er is so clever. Is this the 'ice skin' you got from the river bend?" Aunt Yu touched it with obvious delight. "It feels a little cool. I hope it won't melt when it's hot."

"Of course not. If Mom likes, I can make a small one and put it on our windowsill," Yu Meng said, looking at her mother.

"You silly child, you should make a small one and sell it in the store. What if it gets stolen if you keep it at home?" Aunt Yu glared at Yu Meng.

"Isn't it because you like it that Xiao Si wanted to make it for you?" Dad Yu said with a smile. "Things Xiao Si makes are all very valuable. They can't be kept at home, just like your mother said, they'll attract unwanted attention."

"Dad, Mom, we agreed before that if my little shop opens, you'd both put down what you're doing and help me run it. I'll give you 20% of the profits. Dad, 10% and Mom, 10%."

"It's our own child, why would we take your money? We'll save it all for your dowry," Aunt Yu said with a smile. No matter what, it's good that our child is thinking of being filial. How could we really take our child's money?

"If you go and help me with the work, and you don't ask for money, what will you use to help my brother get married?" Yu Meng asked a very practical question.

Mr. Yu nodded, "Little Si is right, we'll listen to Little Si."

The family finished their meal happily. Yu Hai said that he had to go to town tomorrow to take care of some things; a few frames weren't finished yet, and he needed to check on them.

Busy times always fly by, and a week has passed in the blink of an eye.

Li Yiqing sent word that the auditorium where Dali was to give her lecture was ready, and asked when Dali could go.

"Little sister, what date are you planning to open? I'll come after you open," Dali asked.

"Everything is ready. I'll ask my parents to help me pick a date."

Yu's mother actually went to an old lady to ask about auspicious dates. Yu Meng asked her mother in surprise, "What did that old lady say?"

"Making a fortune every day, it couldn't be more prosperous." Aunt Yu was clearly very happy.

Yu Meng once quietly asked her father, "Are there many people who can predict the future? Are they looked down upon?"

"Those are all capable people. Ordinary people wouldn't dare to mess with them, and who would dare to look down on them? If you let people like them set their sights on you, you won't have a good chance of making things right." Mr. Yu's voice was low.

Yu Meng's heart sank. She just couldn't understand how someone would target a little girl like her who had never even left the house.

Yu Meng introduced Zhao Changjiu to her parents, "Dad, Mom, he's an excellent cook. Let him cook for you. He'll also do the cleaning and run errands."

Yu's father still remembered this person; he was the human trafficker who sent his daughter back.

Yu's father secretly pulled Yu Meng aside. "How can you let this person stay in our house? What if something happens and you get implicated?"

"It's alright, he and his brother are both officially registered with the security team. The two brothers insisted on working for me, so I couldn't stop them." Yu Meng still revealed a little bit of information.

"They have a good eye," said Mr. Yu, who is very receptive to new ideas. He also thinks his own children are very capable.

"Dad, there are several rooms upstairs, enough for our whole family. You and Mom can live here from now on."

"Okay, once everything is on track, I'll be able to free up my time, and then I'll come home to visit from time to time." Mr. Yu readily agreed.

Anyone with common sense would not refuse Yu Meng's suggestion.

Yu Meng set up a special counter in a corner of the front hall, specifically for collecting unique and attractive dough. She had her parents look after it. Otherwise, she worried that after a while, they might find the work too slow and stop staying there.