Sold into a ghost marriage? Four-year-old and his thuggish father go on a killing spree.

"One, two, three... twelve dollars and sixty cents... twelve dollars and seventy cents!"

Sunlight streamed through the window, casting a warm halo around Gu Niannian's jet-black hair.

She carefully poured out the coins and small bills one by one from a rusty tin biscuit box, spread them on the kang (a heated brick bed), and counted them over and over again with her small, tender hands.

Inside the iron box was all her wealth.

A year has passed since that shocking arson attack.

Chengjiawan underwent significant changes that year.

After being warned by Cheng Tiezhu about "collective punishment" and "police investigation," Gu Yanchun's family became completely obedient and dared not cause trouble again.

Gu Yanqiu's agricultural technology extension station has long been on the right track.

His fame spread like wildfire, from Chengjiawan to Shuanghe Town, and then from Shuanghe Town to Qinghe County.

Tractor drivers from the surrounding villages and towns would immediately think of the "miraculous" technician Gu from Chengjiawan whenever their machines broke down.

In fact, during last autumn harvest, a working group from the province came down to inspect agricultural mechanization and even made a special trip to the extension station.

The provincial-level official leading the team shook Gu Yanqiu's oil-stained hands and praised him repeatedly, calling him a "technical pioneer who is deeply rooted in the grassroots."

Gu Yanqiu's income also rose accordingly.

The technicians' fixed salary, plus bonuses for various maintenance tasks, and the occasional "extra income" they received for solving problems for other communes, all contributed to their income.

After a month, you can steadily earn more than forty yuan.

In an era when the average monthly income was less than twenty yuan, Gu Yanqiu had become a "high-income" person in Chengjiawan.

The lives of the father and daughter have been dramatically improved.

That low, dilapidated mud-brick house was completely renovated.

The roof was replaced with new tiles, and the walls were plastered again with a mixture of mud and straw.

It was brushed with a layer of snow-white lime.

A new stove was built inside the house, so it will no longer leak wind in winter or rain in summer.

A brand-new cotton quilt was laid on the kang (a heated brick bed), soft and warm.

Gu Niannian finally had two new clothes without patches and a pair of new cloth shoes that fit her perfectly.

Although it wasn't made of "Dacron" material, the soft touch of the cotton made her feel that it was more precious than the most luxurious silk in the world.

Gu Niannian herself has become a minor "celebrity" in Chengjiawan.

At the age of six and a half, she successfully skipped a grade again when school started last fall, jumping directly from second grade to fourth grade.

In every exam, she consistently ranked first in the entire school, leaving those children who were three or four years older than her far behind.

The title of "child prodigy" spread far and wide.

She was no longer just "Technician Gu's daughter"; she had her own name—Gu Niannian.

The twelve dollars and seventy cents in the tin biscuit box she saved up were earned by herself.

Helping the village with accounting skills earns a "reward" of two cents.

At the literacy night school, she served as a "little teacher" to the illiterate uncles and aunts. Cheng Tiezhu gave her special permission to earn half a work point.

When she went to the mountains with her father to collect wild produce, she always managed to find the most hidden mushrooms and medicinal herbs thanks to her exceptional memory. Gu Yanqiu allowed her to keep the extra change she made.

Little by little, it adds up.

When Gu Yanqiu pushed open the door, what she saw was her daughter lying on the kang (a heated brick bed), looking adorable like a little money-grubber counting money.

He walked over with a smile on his face and ruffled his daughter's hair.

"Is our little housekeeper taking inventory of the household belongings again?"

Gu Niannian looked up, her little face full of seriousness. She carefully put the counted money back into the tin box, and then solemnly pushed the box in front of Gu Yanqiu.

"dad."

Her voice was clear and firm.

"I want to pay back the money."

"Pay back the money?" Gu Yanqiu was taken aback for a moment, then chuckled. "What do you owe money for? Are you trying to buy some treats again, trying to beat around the bush with your father?"

"No!" Gu Niannian shook her head seriously.

She pulled out the slightly yellowed account book from a small wooden box on the kang (a heated brick bed).

Opening the notebook, behind the pages recording income and expenses, there was another list.

Several names were clearly written on it in childish handwriting:

[Aunt Zhao Fengying: A bowl of hot porridge, two days' accommodation, and three yuan for travel expenses.]

Uncle Zhang Dacheng: A truck saved my life.

[Grandpa Cheng Fulai: He took me home, and we were reunited as father and daughter.]

[Aunt Wang: Dumplings for the Winter Solstice, as usual.]

[Aunt Li Huilan: Speaking out for justice has damaged her reputation.]

……

Behind every name lies a profound debt of gratitude.

This is her "list of things to be grateful for".

It was the warmth and light that sustained her after she escaped from the hellish Wangjia Village.

She pointed to the first name on the list, tilted her little face up, looked at her father, and her eyes sparkled.

"Dad, we have money now, and our lives are better."

"We must not forget those who helped us in the past."

"I think, starting tomorrow, I will repay these kindnesses one by one."

Looking at the list and into her daughter's clear eyes, Gu Yanqiu felt a warm glow in her heart, filled with emotion.

He thought that as life got better, the past hardships and displacement would gradually be forgotten.

But he forgot what a resilient and grateful heart his daughter had.

They clearly distinguish between gratitude and resentment.

We will avenge any wrongs we have done, and we will repay any kindness we have shown!

He reached out his rough, calloused hand and gently stroked his daughter's head, his eyes welling up with tears.

"it is good."

His voice carried a subtle, almost imperceptible undertone.

"Dad will go with you."

Gu Niannian nodded vigorously, a bright smile spreading across her face.

She carefully took out five coins from the tin box.

It's two yuan more than the three yuan Aunt Zhao gave me back then.

She silently thought to herself: This is interest, and it's also my sentiment.

So, how is Aunt Zhao Fengying, the first person on the gratitude list who gave her the first bowl of hot porridge and the first hug at the Baima Town Supply and Marketing Cooperative, doing now?

Will she still remember that thin little girl in a bright red wedding dress, her body cold?