The poor girl from the 1970s was forced to kiss by the damp educated youth.

Zhu Chen and his group came with the intention of making friends, and the gifts they brought were all high-quality. Not to mention cigarettes and alcohol, there were also imported milk powder and chocolates, some fruits and pastries that were not cheap, as well as sausages and cured meat, which weighed about ten kilograms in total.

Chen Zhi tidied up the gifts. She had Xi Lang put the cigarettes away first, as they wouldn't need them for the time being. They couldn't finish all the fruit, so she stored some in her Qiankun Sleeve; it would still be fresh when they took it out next time.

"Why did those people disappear?" Chen Zhi asked curiously.

"We've entered a small, secret realm."

"What is a secret realm?"

"It's like a formation, cutting through space to create independent spaces. They were unlucky; the secret realm was weakening due to the air currents, and it sucked them in. Once inside, they were repelled by the space and imprisoned in a space of less than 100 square meters, where they stayed for several days. Luckily, they brought some food with them when they went out, otherwise they would have starved to death."

"Their situation is better than Jiang You's."

"Their luck was both good and bad. That little secret realm is mobile and unpredictable, and they just happened to come across it."

"Then how did you get in?"

"Forcefully broken through."

Chen Zhi paused for a moment, then silently envied, "Is there any danger inside?"

"There is no danger, but there are some rare medicinal herbs and trees." They are all currently in his Qiankun sleeve.

Chen Zhi wasn't interested in medicinal herbs or trees; she thought there might be magical creatures like dragons or phoenixes.

The day before New Year's Eve, Jiang You and Feng Ruyu came to visit. They each rode a bicycle; Feng Ruyu's bicycle was loaded with candy, cookies, and snacks, while Jiang You's bicycle carried a whole sheep and two old hens.

"Your house is nice!"

Jiang You was a very outgoing person. After parking the car, he started moving his things on his own. Once he was done, without Chen Zhi even asking him to, he started wandering around the house. "The house is nice, and the location is excellent. To have managed to preserve a house like this, there must be someone living there, right?"

Chen Zhi hummed in agreement, "I guess so."

Xi Fangxiu's position is not low.

"We've known each other for a while now, but I still don't know what you and your partner do." Jiang You looked around. "By the way, where's your partner?"

"He went out very early this morning."

Xi Lang left with Master Yang. Master Yang arrived early in the morning and said that Xi Lang's application to join the calligraphy association had been approved, and asked Xi Lang to meet with a few people.

Jiang You: "Will he be back today?"

Chen Zhi didn't answer directly, "Do you need to see him about something?"

Jiang You shook his head, "It's nothing, I just wanted to see him."

He was genuinely curious because Feng Ruyu had praised him so highly, making him seem capable of anything.

"Then you'll have to wait a bit." Chen Zhi brewed a pot of tea for Jiang You and Feng Ruyu, and then took out some fruits and snacks to serve them. "I'll go prepare lunch."

Jiang You: "Do you need any help?"

"No need. I'll just cut some meat and wash some vegetables."

The hot pot broth was prepared yesterday; all we need to do is heat it up. We originally only prepared beef and pork, but Jiang You brought lamb, so we can cut some more lamb now.

There were also some fried meatballs from yesterday; I filled a portion of each kind, and it looked like quite a lot.

Just as Chen Zhi was finishing her preparations, Song Zhaoyuan and his nephew Song Yuanzhi arrived at her door, bringing New Year's gifts: several boxes of pastries and a fruit basket.

Why did we all end up together today?

Chen Zhi cut two more plates of beef and mutton, and when she felt it wasn't enough, she added a plate of fish slices.

There isn't enough rice; we need to cook another pot.

There's also wine; it needs to be heated up a bit more.

Thinking that Xi Lang and Master Yang would probably be back soon, Chen Zhi simply prepared more.

As it turned out, her decision was correct. Not only did Xi Lang and Master Yang return, but they also brought the president of the calligraphy association with them.

Now, the table was full.

Chen Zhi even specially replaced it with a large iron pot.

The president of the calligraphy association is an old man with gray hair and beard named Huang Ye. He is sixty-seven years old this year and looks like a Taoist priest, even more so than Xi Lang.

After exchanging pleasantries, the men at the table didn't talk about current events or the economy. Instead, they started discussing Taoist doctrines, from the Tao Te Ching to the I Ching and then to Zhuangzi.

Chen Zhi listened, completely bewildered. She once again lamented that she hadn't read enough books.

To her surprise, she was able to join in a few words with Jiang You, who was speaking in a loud and clear tone.

She became the only one who couldn't get a word in edgewise.

Chen Zhi: "......."

They could only eat in silence.

After the meal, we would gather around the stove to brew and drink tea.

Chen Zhi continued to listen to others without interrupting, her expression focused and attentive, seemingly enjoying the conversation immensely. She didn't even notice Xi Lang's gaze occasionally falling on her.

The group chatted until dusk before parting ways.

Jiang You originally wanted to chat with Xi Lang, but seeing that it was getting dark, he could only wait until another time.

"Come to my place on the second day of the Lunar New Year, and I'll treat you to a whole roasted lamb," Jiang You invited.

Chen Zhi was tempted and looked at Xi Lang. Xi Lang nodded. He had agreed with Chairman Huang on the first day of the lunar new year, and he didn't have any plans for the second day.

Jiang You was delighted, "Then it's settled. I'll be waiting for you at home on the second day of the Lunar New Year, so come early."

After everyone left, the house suddenly became quiet.

Chen Zhi and Xi Lang cleared the table and washed the dishes together. After they finished, they went upstairs together.

Upon arriving at the room, Chen Zhi went straight to the desk.

There is a separate study on the second floor, but Chen Zhi has never used it. The study is too cold, and it would be wasteful to have a stove in both the study and the bedroom. So, the two of them have always read in the bedroom.

Xi Lang took a shower first as usual tonight. After showering, he got into bed, holding a book. Half an hour passed, and he hadn't even turned two pages.

"Working so hard tonight?" Xi Lang's eyes gleamed with a sinister light.

Chen Zhi didn't even look up. "It's still early. I'll memorize a couple more books. You go to sleep first."

Xi Lang pursed his lips. "It's the same if we look at it again tomorrow."

"No." If she goes to bed now, she won't be able to get up tomorrow morning. By the time she gets up, it will be noon, and she will have wasted a whole morning.

Xi Lang rubbed his temples, reflecting on whether he had made a mistake by letting Chen Zhi study.

His partner wanted to learn and improve, and Xi Lang couldn't stop him. He could only occasionally cast a resentful glance at him, pleading for someone's pity. Unfortunately, that person was too focused and serious, and didn't even look at him once.

Finally, Xi Lang simply put on his clothes, took out talisman paper and cinnabar, and poured all his energy into the talisman brush and into the talisman paper.

On New Year's Eve, Xi Fangxiu called Xi Lang and asked him to bring Chen Zhi back to the Xi family home for the holiday, but Xi Lang refused.

"I've already made concessions, what more do you want?" Xi Fangxiu's exasperated voice came through the receiver. As an elder, he had taken the initiative to lower his head, and his eldest son still wouldn't take the opportunity to back down. He really didn't know what was good for him.

Xi Lang remained unfazed. "We all dislike each other, why force ourselves to get together?"

It would be a real shame to ruin such a good day.

"We are family," Xi Fangxiu reminded him through gritted teeth.

"Are you the only one who thinks this way?" Xi Lang's tone became impatient. "Don't worry, I will take care of you in your old age and won't abandon you. As for anything else, don't force it; you can't force it anyway."

After saying that, Xi Lang hung up the phone.

He turned to look at Chen Zhi, "Want to go out for a walk?"

Chen Zhi looked at the weather outside; it was gloomy and there wasn't much to see. "I'm not going."

It's better to stay home and read a book.

Seeing that her eyes were glued to the book, Xi Lang found it both funny and infuriating; he had really shot himself in the foot.

Whose fault is it?

"I'm going to buy a gift for visiting Elder Huang tomorrow. I'll be back soon. We'll prepare the New Year's Eve dinner when I get back."

"Isn't it only morning, and you already have to prepare the New Year's Eve dinner?"

"Yes, in more particular families, preparations start from morning till night. When I get back, we'll make some dumplings first, then cook rice, have lunch in the afternoon, and dumplings for dinner."

"You can arrange it."

As soon as it got dark, the sound of firecrackers could be heard from outside.

Chen Zhi hadn't seen firecrackers for several years, and when she heard the sound, she couldn't help but run out to see them.

"Hey beautiful neighbor, we're going to set off firecrackers too, do you want to come and watch?" He Qianqian asked through the fence, her gaze fixed on Chen Zhi's face, unable to look away.

How come this girl has grown even more beautiful in just a few days? She's like a ripe peach, radiant inside and out. This is probably what the fairies described in ancient paintings and calligraphy are like.

He Hongwei also came out of his house, holding two long strings of firecrackers in his hands, their bright red color making them very festive.

"Would the neighbor like to give it a try?" he asked.

Chen Zhi was somewhat tempted and was about to speak when Xi Lang stuffed about ten unopened firecrackers into her hand, saying, "We have them at home too, no need to envy others."

Chen Zhi blurted out instinctively, "So many?"

Xi Lang replied calmly, "Okay, set them off as much as you like. I'll buy more if you need more. There will be fireworks later, and you can set them off then too."

You think you can trick him out of his life with just a little something? Dream on.

He Hongwei and He Qianqian looked at the firecrackers in Chen Zhi's hand and fell silent.

Is this about getting married or taking care of a child?

When Chen Zhi was a child, she envied other children who had firecrackers to set off, but now, after setting off a few, she couldn't help but lose interest.

Too noisy!

There was still a lot of smoke and ash, which was pungent and made my nose sting.

It's strange; things I used to like now seem so ordinary.

"Let's try the fireworks." Xi Lang brought out the fireworks as well.

"Should we release them now?" Chen Zhi looked up. "It seems like others haven't started releasing them yet."

"That's perfect, let's be the first." Xi Lang handed the matchbox to Chen Zhi.

Chen Zhi thought it made sense; being the first one was fine. She took the matchbox, took out a matchstick, and struck it lightly. The light illuminated her slightly flushed face, which was flushed with excitement.

When the fireworks shot into the sky, the noise startled Chen Zhi, who instinctively lunged towards Xi Lang, who caught her with satisfaction.

The fireworks were dazzling, illuminating the night sky.

Chen Zhi's eyes widened, her clear gaze reflecting the blazing firelight. Xi Lang was looking at her, his eyes filled with nothing but her.

"So beautiful," Chen Zhi murmured.

Xi Lang hummed in agreement, lowered his head, and slowly brought his lips closer to hers, saying in a hoarse voice, "She is very beautiful."