I couldn't take it anymore; when I went home for Chinese New Year, the family genealogy book ha

"Honey! Stop disciplining our daughter! I'm the hero who made it onto the first page of the family genealogy today. Did you leave me a double portion of braised pork in the kitchen?"

A clear, crisp laugh came from inside the door.

The explosion-proof door was pulled open from the inside.

Su Qing was wearing a beige loungewear outfit and holding a rattle drum in her hand. She glared at Jiang Chen with annoyance.

"You're so loud! I could hear you bragging from way out here!" Su Qing stepped aside to let Jiang Chen in. "Double portions of braised pork, huh? The whole village's having a feast today, Uncle Youfu even moved all the meat from the kitchen to the square!"

Jiang Chen strode into the house.

He changed into slippers and hung his Suzhou-embroidered Tang suit jacket on a solid wood clothes rack.

"That won't do! I'm the newly appointed clan chief!" Jiang Chen swaggered to the leather sofa. "What's the point of being clan chief if there's no meat to eat?"

Jiang Wan walked out of the kitchen carrying a plate of freshly washed red dragon fruit.

"Alright, Chen-ge, Qingqing was just teasing you." Jiang Wan said with a laugh as she placed the fruit platter on the coffee table. "Knowing that you set the rules today, I specially asked Youfu to save you a pot of the finest black-haired pork belly. It was stewed in the Longevity Spring for a full three hours, and it's still simmering in the clay pot."

"My mother-in-law still loves me the most!" Jiang Chen sat down on the sofa with an air of nonchalance, casually picking up a piece of dragon fruit and popping it into his mouth. "Wife, look at this, this is the treatment my real mother gives me."

"Stop being so cheeky!" Su Qing shoved the rattle into Jiang Chen's hands. "Go wash your hands! Your two little devils were rolling around on the floor just now and they want a hug."

The voice just fell.

"Daddy's home!"

A little meatball came running from the other end of the carpet.

That's my youngest daughter, An Yan.

The little girl, dressed in a pink dress, looked like a reckless little cannonball. She spread her two short, chubby arms and pounced on Jiang Chen's legs, hugging him tightly with both hands.

"Oh, my little gold nugget!" Jiang Chen bent down and pinched An Yan's armpits with both hands.

"Lift me up high! I want to be lifted up high!" An Yan whined sweetly, tilting her rosy little face up, drool almost dripping from her mouth.

Jiang Chen burst out laughing.

With a burst of strength, he lifted his daughter high above his head.

"Take off!" Jiang Chen shouted.

An Yan danced and gesticulated in mid-air, her clear laughter echoing throughout the spacious living room.

"Be careful! Don't let her vomit after just finishing her milk!" Su Qing reminded her anxiously from the side.

Just then, a rustling sound came from beside the sofa.

Jiang Chen turned his head and looked.

My son, Jiang Tianci, was lying on the wool carpet. The little guy was quite steady, wearing a miniature blue onesie. He was clumsily trying to walk, using both his hands and feet.

He had just stood up straight and taken only two steps.

thump!

Tianci fell flat on his backside onto the carpet.

Jiang Chen was about to help him up when the boy, without crying or making a fuss, slowly rolled over, dusted off the lint from his hands, and shakily got up again.

"Hey! This kid's got guts!" Jiang Chen hugged An Yan in his arms, grinning at his son. "Wife, Tianci's composure means he'll definitely take over my business and manage the Jiang Group!"

"Come on, he's not even a year old yet, and you've already divided up the family fortune." Su Qing, wearing an apron, turned and walked into the kitchen. "You play with them for a while, I'll go bring out the braised pork."

Before long, the food was served.

The braised pork in the casserole had an enticing amber color and was steaming hot.

The family gathered around the rosewood dining table.

Jiang Chen just picked up his chopsticks.

A loud car horn sounded from outside the courtyard.

Then came Wang Dagou's ear-piercing, raspy voice.

"Brother Chen! Open the door, Brother Chen! I've brought you something good!"

Jiang Chen put down his chopsticks, stood up, walked to the front door, and pulled it open.

Wang Dagou was wearing a sharp, custom-made suit, but his tie was crooked. He was holding a huge, transparent, temperature-controlled incubator and stood on the steps, sweating profusely.

"Why are you here so late at night instead of counting money at the logistics park?" Jiang Chen asked, puzzled.

"Delivering strawberries!" Wang Dagou handed over the incubator. "It's a new variety from the fully automated greenhouse No. 1 on the back hill. The first batch just ripened today! These are cultivated using pure Changsheng Reservoir sediment and spiritual spring water!"

Jiang Chen looked down.

The strawberries in the box were all bigger than eggs, a deep reddish-purple, and exuded an extremely strong fruity aroma.

"Uncle Youfu said he wouldn't sell these strawberries even for 100,000 yuan a pound! He's keeping them all for our village!" Wang Dagou wiped his sweat and shouted at the top of his lungs. "I'm personally bringing them over for Brother Chen to try!"

"Alright, put your things down. Have you eaten yet? Come in and get a couple of pieces of braised pork?" Jiang Chen gestured towards the house.

"I'm not eating anymore!" Wang Dagou waved his hands repeatedly. "Qiangzi is still waiting for me at the logistics park! Another five hundred containers of local specialties arrived from overseas today, and I have to go check the accounts. Chen-ge, enjoy your meal!"

After saying that, Wang Dagou turned around, got into the bulletproof Raptor pickup truck parked by the roadside, and sped away with a roar of the engine.

Jiang Chen moved the incubator into the living room.

Su Qing walked over carrying a plate of washed fruit.

She opened the box, carefully took out the large strawberries, washed them, and cut them into small pieces.

"Hurry up and wash your hands and eat some fruit." Su Qing handed the fruit plate to Jiang Chen. "Da Gou brought over some fresh strawberries today. I just took a bite, and they're so sweet they're melting on my tongue."

Jiang Chen didn't go to get the strawberries.

He suddenly leaned forward and gave Su Qing a heavy kiss on her smooth forehead.

"Thank you for your hard work, my wife." Jiang Chen said in an extremely gentle tone.

Su Qing blushed and playfully pushed him away, saying, "Boss, the children are here. Be mindful of your behavior."

Jiang Wan sat on the sofa, holding An Yan, pretending not to see her, and amused her granddaughter with a smile.

Night slowly fell.

All the village's fully automated sensor streetlights lit up simultaneously.

Jiang Chen finished eating and drinking, then pushed his bowl and chopsticks away.

He stood up and strode to the huge panoramic floor-to-ceiling window in the living room.

outside the window.

The lights of thousands of homes illuminated the valley, making the entire Jiangjia Village look like a fairyland.

Along the straight and wide top-grade asphalt avenue, rows of fully intelligent single-level villas costing tens of millions of yuan are brightly lit.

In the distance, the moonlight was reflected on the surface of Changsheng Reservoir, creating shimmering waves.

The ancestral hall, built entirely of mortise and tenon joints and made of Phoebe zhennan wood at great expense, appeared solemn and sacred under the spotlights.

In the large square at the entrance of the village.

High-powered stereo speakers are playing music with a strong rhythm.

Liu Cuifen and Wu Xiulian, along with hundreds of middle-aged women from the village, were dressed in neat square dance costumes and twirling happily on the colorful paving stones covering several hundred square meters.

Old Master Jiang Wanshan and his gang of old men sat on white marble benches under the big locust tree, smoking premium cigarettes and shouting at the people playing chess.

On the streets, limited-edition bulletproof luxury cars come and go; those are young people from the village returning home to rest after finishing multi-billion dollar deals.

The entire Jiangjia Village.

There is no urban hustle and bustle or indifference.

It has an intense, inseparable local flavor and the warmth of everyday life.

Su Qing placed the plate of sliced ​​fruit on the coffee table next to her.

She walked over and gently took Jiang Chen's arm.

The two stood side by side in front of the floor-to-ceiling window.

"What are you looking at? You seem so engrossed." Su Qing followed Jiang Chen's gaze and looked outside.

Jiang Chen reached out his thick hand and put his arm around Su Qing's shoulder.

"Look at our Jiangjia Village." Jiang Chen's voice was deep, yet it exuded an air of dominance and satisfaction.

"Back then, our shabby village didn't even have a decent cement road," Jiang Chen recalled the days when he had just been bound to the village a little over a year ago. "The old men and women would argue for three days and three nights over a single cabbage in the field."

Su Qing covered her mouth and laughed.

"That's right. It was the first time I drove into the village, and the chassis almost broke." She leaned her head on Jiang Chen's shoulder. "I was even mistaken for a swindler. If it weren't for you, the local bigwig, stepping in, I'm afraid I would have been drowned in Liu Cuifen's spittle."

"And now?" Jiang Chen waved his hand, pointing to the magnificent estate outside the window. "Now, who dares to give Jiang Family Village the cold shoulder? Those billionaire families in the provincial capital are lining up to give us money, and they all have to be deferential to us!"

"You're such a bandit," Su Qing said coquettishly, pinching Jiang Chen's waist.

Jiang Chen burst out laughing.

"This isn't banditry, this is discipline!" Jiang Chen declared confidently. "I've invested hundreds of billions to build large apartments for the villagers, send out Wuling Hongguang minivans, and construct the world's top schools and traditional Chinese medicine hospitals."

He turned and looked into Su Qing's eyes.

"What do I want? I don't want how much money they can make for me," Jiang Chen said, his tone becoming serious. "What I want is this peace and stability. Once you step through the threshold of Jiang Family Village, you're family. We can close the door, eat meat to our hearts' content, and drink wine from large bowls. No matter how big the storms outside, they won't capsize our ironclad ship!"

The doorbell rang suddenly.

Jiang Shitou's signature loud voice came from outside.

"Brother Chen! Xiaoya and I have come to bring you some wedding candy! And Uncle Youfu's freshly braised pig ears!"

"Coming, coming!" Jiang Wan smiled and stood up to open the door.

As soon as the door opened, Jiang Shitou led his newlywed wife, Lin Xiaoya, in, carrying large and small bags.

"Brother Chen, sister-in-law! Sorry to disturb your rest!" Jiang Shitou rubbed his bald head and grinned foolishly.

"What are you doing here! Come in and sit down!" Jiang Chen strode over and patted Jiang Shitou on the shoulder. "Now that you're married, you're an adult. You'll have to pay more attention to the security team from now on."

The room was immediately filled with laughter and cheerful chatter.

An Yan clung to Lin Xiaoya's leg, begging for candy. Tianci, meanwhile, was diligently working on a large strawberry.

Jiang Chen returned to the floor-to-ceiling window.

He looked at the happy family reflected in the glass.

In my mind, the system interface that once frantically issued tasks and offered massive cash back has long since disappeared.

The path of extravagant spending by the super-rich may have reached its limit.

There is nothing in this world that he needs to throw money at.

He had reached the pinnacle of the world in terms of wealth, power, and prestige.

But the everyday family life filled with warmth and human connection, the genuine smiles and loyalty of tens of thousands of people in the village, is the ultimate meaning of Jiang Chen's hard work.

As long as the old locust tree remains, as long as the water in Changsheng Reservoir continues to flow.

The smoke from the fires of Jiangjia Village will live on forever, never ceasing.

Jiang Chen picked up a slice of watermelon from the coffee table and took a big bite. Juice spilled out.

"Cool!"

He looked out the window at the prosperous land and shouted.

The story ends here, leaving behind a lingering aftertaste.

(The End)