The timeline system has gone awry; they insist that steamed buns are a magic pill.

Wu Xiaoyue was shocked, incredulous, and utterly dumbfounded. Li Qingqiu—in Han Guodong's words, a good-for-nothing country bumpkin, incredibly poor, extremely lazy, cunning and lazy, never doing anything serious, even getting into a fight over a meat bun and breaking his head in the process, and still hasn't been found.

Such a person would be so intimidating on blind dates that even dogs would run away. Yet here he was, spending money like water, not caring at all about the hundreds of dollars he spent. What was going on? If you said he was some kind of undercover agent, Wu Xiaoyue would be the first to disbelieve it.

If he were a true undercover agent, he would definitely be trying to curry favor with Ayaka, but instead, he shattered Ayaka's idealized image.

"Could it be that I'm overthinking things, and that they didn't take Caiju seriously at all, but were just doing it on purpose to tease Han Guodong? That can't be right, can it? But this person is spending money like a completely different person from before?" Wu Xiaoyue was confused.

"Who exactly is Li Qingqiu?" Wu Xiaoyue wondered. In the blink of an eye, Li Qingqiu was gone. Wu Xiaoyue frantically searched around. "Where did he go?"

"Oh dear, I was so focused on following Li Qingqiu that I almost forgot about work. I need to hurry back." Wu Xiaoyue could only suppress her curiosity and jog back to her workplace. "Should I tell Caiju? Never mind, I'll tell her later. Maybe Caiju won't believe me even if I tell her."

Wu Xiaoyue planned to find out more about Li Qingqiu when she had the chance. Perhaps there was some misunderstanding, or perhaps Li Qingqiu had his own difficulties. Wu Xiaoyue imagined many scenarios, so much so that she was distracted during work hours.

After buying the groceries, Li Qingqiu put them in the storage shelf, took out a basket, carried it on her back, and went to her second aunt's house.

"Second cousin's wife, you're here! That's great!"

Guo Yue turned around and saw Li Qingqiu—the unreliable third son of her second maternal uncle's family. She frowned. She knew this man all too well. He was like a leech, always coming to her house to freeload. But there was nothing she could do. Her mother-in-law liked this nephew quite a bit, especially her maternal grandmother, who doted on him. Her mother-in-law would often ask Li Qingqiu to take some things back to her parents' home.

But the rest of the family knew what kind of person Li Qingqiu was and looked down on him from the bottom of their hearts. It was fine if the relatives were poor; every family had a few poor relatives. The problem was that he would come over every now and then to beg for money, not for the family, but to satisfy his own appetite.

On several occasions, his two cousins ​​caught Li Qingqiu taking money from his second aunt and going straight to state-run restaurants for meals and drinks. This caused quite a stir, as his family rarely ate out. Eating out was a luxury these days, but Li Qingqiu was cheating his second aunt out of money to go to restaurants and watch movies, which was going too far.

No one will look down on poor relatives when they come to visit. It's fine to help them out a little. But if you take my money and enjoy yourself more than I do, who can be comfortable? My cousins ​​are very unhappy with Li Qingqiu.

My cousin's wife was the same way; when she saw Li Qingqiu, she thought he was here to freeload again.

"Sister-in-law, is Second Aunt home?"

"Mom went to a regional meeting and won't be home for the next couple of days."

"Really? I was thinking of visiting my second aunt, but she's not home. Oh well, by the way, sister-in-law, I brought you some that I dug myself..."

Guo Yue was about to say, "No need, what good stuff could a lazy, good-for-nothing like you have?" when she saw Li Qingqiu pull out a net bag full of fresh, tender winter bamboo shoots, and Guo Yue was stunned.

"Winter bamboo shoots?"

"Yes, with this heavy snow, the soil is frozen to death, making it difficult to harvest winter bamboo shoots. I finally managed to dig up about ten pounds, and I brought some for my sister. I brought the rest over. Sister-in-law, you have a large family, so I was afraid it wouldn't be enough for them, so I brought extra."

"I can't accept this."

Guo Yue was somewhat surprised. There must be at least seven or eight pounds of winter bamboo shoots. In previous years, they would have cost two or three yuan each. This year, the mountains were blocked by heavy snow and the temperature dropped sharply. It would probably be really difficult to dig up winter bamboo shoots. It might take two or three days to dig them up.

Guo Yue felt a little embarrassed for a moment, realizing she had just been a bit petty.

"We're family, sister-in-law, why are you being so polite with me?" Li Qingqiu thought to himself. He had stored a lot of winter bamboo shoots on his own storage shelf and in his cave, so they were perfect for using as favors.

"Yes, yes, we're family. Come in and sit down. Your cousin will be back soon."

"No, sister-in-law, I have to catch the bus. It's almost time. Next time, I'll see if I can get more winter bamboo shoots. Sister-in-law, I'm leaving now." What Li Qingqiu said was true. There was only one bus at two o'clock, and she couldn't be late, or she wouldn't be able to get back.

"You're leaving already?"

Guo Yue was momentarily stunned. What was wrong? Li Qingqiu seemed different this time. Guo Yue watched Li Qingqiu walk away. If it weren't for the net bag full of winter bamboo shoots at her feet, she probably would have thought she was daydreaming.

"Xiao Guo, where did you get so many winter bamboo shoots? They're so tender! They must have been expensive, maybe five or six cents?"

"Grandma Wu, these were a gift from a relative. Are winter bamboo shoots so expensive this year?"

"Of course! With such heavy snow this year, it's hard to dig up winter bamboo shoots. You probably can't even buy them for five cents. Your relative is really generous, sending so many at once. It must be worth four or five dollars."

"Four or five yuan?"

Guo Yue was lost in thought, while Li Qingqiu, who had just left, was thinking to herself that she must get along well with her second aunt. Her uncle was an experienced worker at the county agricultural technology station, and he was the one who introduced her to her brother-in-law. Otherwise, her sister wouldn't have been able to marry such a good man.

My second aunt used to work at a department store, then became the deputy director of the neighborhood committee office, and now it seems she's going to be transferred again. Some of my cousins ​​work in the security department of a large factory, while others are police officers. My cousin's wife also has a good job.

Li Qingqiu had previously made a mess of this good relative relationship, but now she definitely needed to straighten things out. This would make things easier to get along with in the future, and if she caused any trouble, someone would be there to cover for her. Her second aunt was filial, and her grandmother had spoken up for Li Qingqiu quite a bit.

Unfortunately, Li Qingqiu is utterly hopeless. Otherwise, it wouldn't be a problem to give him a temporary job. My sister's job was arranged properly by my second aunt.

Li Qingqiu didn't feel he was losing out by sending some winter bamboo shoots. His second aunt had always been kind to him, and even after several tantrums, she hadn't said anything harsh.

Sitting on the mule cart, Li Qingqiu thought to himself, "Li Qingqiu, you're quite something. You're such a scoundrel, yet you have a grandmother and grandfather who dote on you. Although your mother often beats you, she still has some affection for you. Your second aunt and sister are also good to you."

There's also a beautiful, good-looking, and seemingly decent "white moonlight" (ideal love in Chinese folklore). Damn, his life isn't bad at all, Li Qingqiu thought to himself. If he were a little more serious, he might even be able to find a city girl while working a temporary job.

"What a pity, all of it was lost because of the meat buns," Li Qingqiu sighed.

"Cough cough cough."

"Grandpa, can't you see how sad I am?" Li Qingqiu was a little helpless. The old man was puffing on his pipe with great enthusiasm. Li Qingqiu thought to himself, "If you're not kind, don't blame me for being unkind." He glanced at the old man's grandson beside him.

Li Qingqiu pulled out a handful of fried meatballs. They were crispy and crunchy, and the children stared at the meatballs in Li Qingqiu's hand, their mouths watering. In this day and age, not many people eat meatballs casually.

Everyone in the car instinctively looked at Li Qingqiu. The little kid was especially eager, pulling his grandfather and shaking him incessantly. But things were different now than in later years, and no one dared to suggest giving the child a taste.

Seeing that the old man finally had no time to smoke his pipe, Li Qingqiu ate with even more gusto. "I must say, the meatballs at the state-run restaurant are really delicious, so fragrant." As he spoke, he even gave the child a close-up shot, slowly putting a meatball into his mouth, munching on it with half his mouth open.

The child cried loudly, craving the cigarette. Li Qingqiu chuckled and said, "Grandpa, you little rascal, you're smoking now, aren't you? Stop smoking now, stop spitting it out now. Look at your grandson, what a good kid, he's become such a glutton."

As a modern college student, Li Qingqiu clapped his hands with pride, finished the last meatball, and let out a satisfied burp.

"Waaaaah."

The child eventually cried. Li Qingqiu smiled slightly and said, "Grandpa, comfort your grandson." He leaned against the side of the car and watched as the old man comforted his grandson, and the smoke did not affect him any further.

"Bad guy."

"cut."

Li Qingqiu rolled his eyes. "Go cry, little brat." Just as he was feeling smug, a familiar voice suddenly came from the dog beside him.

"Third brother."

"what?"

Li Qingqiu was stunned for a moment, then turned her head with difficulty. "Mom, what are you doing here?"

Why is Shilan Hua here at the train station? Shouldn't it be at Lijia'ao? What's going on? Li Qingqiu was a little confused.

"How much did you sell it for?"

"How much did it sell for?"

It wasn't that Li Qingqiu was putting on an act; he genuinely didn't realize it for a moment.

"Xiaomei said you went to the county town to sell mushrooms. How much did you sell?"

"Oh, Mom, you found out?"

Li Qingqiu had originally planned to wait until the third generation of mushrooms came out before telling his family, but now he'd been exposed. "Oh, Li Qingmei, I didn't expect this, it's you again who snitched."

"It has nothing to do with Xiaomei. I overheard Xiaomei and Xianjing talking about the mushrooms..."

"Oh dear, Mom's outside the window," Li Qingqiu sighed. "This guy is practically a home security camera. He can leak anything without me saying a word." Li Qingqiu quickly put the radio and the porcelain basin he had bought back into the basket.

"Mom, those mushrooms made a lot of money, but..."

Seeing Li Qingqiu hesitate, Shi Lanhua had a bad feeling. "You're not going to give me the flowers, are you?"

"Mom, you really know me best. You guessed right, it cost money." Li Qingqiu said, as expected of my mother, she really understands me.

"How much did you sell it for, and how much did you spend?"

"It cost me thirty or forty yuan, that's a bit of a expense," Li Qingqiu replied casually.

"Thirty or forty yuan, how much did you spend?"

"It was all spent, and a little more was added."

"You spent it all, and it still wasn't enough. You even added more. Tell me exactly how much you spent?" Shi Lanhua's hands trembled slightly. She couldn't hold back anymore and was about to hit someone.

"Not much, maybe seventy or eighty yuan more."

"How much? You name it, how much will you add?"

Shi Lanhua's mind went blank. Seventy or eighty yuan! This wasn't seven or eight mao, it wasn't seven or eight yuan, it was seventy or eighty! They hadn't even had that much left over from their entire year's work points and food rations.

Li Qingqiu actually said it so casually: seventy or eighty yuan. No, that's just the extra. If you add the mushroom seller's fee of thirty or forty yuan, that's not one hundred and one hundred or twenty yuan. Good heavens, this is a sin!

"Who could spend money like this? Even a great person wouldn't dare to spend money so recklessly," Li Qingqiu glanced at Shi Lanhua and asked cautiously, "Mom, are you alright?"

"It's okay, it's okay, I'm fine, I'll beat you to death, you good-for-nothing..."

Shilan Flower suddenly appeared, but luckily Li Qingqiu had been paying attention all along. He took off running. Just kidding, Mom was furious, so he couldn't just stand there like an idiot. He took off running.

"Stop right there..."

"Mom, I'm not stupid. I'm not going to just stand there and take the beating. I'm going home now. Take your time, don't get too angry. If you get sick from anger, no one will suffer for you. I've already spent the money, and I even borrowed some industrial vouchers from a classmate. Don't worry, I'll pay it back myself. Don't worry about us..."

"What?! You even borrowed industrial vouchers from your classmate... You're going to drive me crazy..."

"How much did you borrow?"

"Not many, maybe ten or so."

"You, you... more than ten bills are enough to buy a bicycle... what did you buy...?"

"A radio, what a great thing! Now I can listen to whatever I want..."

Shi Lan Hua was furious. A radio? What was the point of it? It was just a toy, costing over a hundred yuan and requiring more than ten industrial coupons. Shi Lan Hua was furious. Seeing his mother's eyes redden, Li Qingqiu ran even faster…