To please others? It's better to please yourself.

Zhang Mingyang, who intended to simply say hello and head back, was held up by the people at the educated youth settlement.

As a result, before he even reached his home after leaving the educated youth settlement, he saw a fire in the distance near his house. As it got closer, he heard many sounds.

"Xu Jianshe—come out here!"

"Damn it! He hid himself!"

"Really?" "What happened?" "I don't know."

"It's been half a day, and no one has said a word."

"Are you not home?"

There was a lot of discussion among the crowd.

Zhang Mingyang pushed through the crowd, saying, "Make way, make way." When he saw that they were educated youth, the crowd automatically made way for him.

"Auntie, what's the meaning of all this crowd?" He was exhausted after a long day and was waiting to go home and rest.

Grandma Sun's design work didn't go through yesterday, meaning all her work was for nothing. She was increasingly resentful, so she came back today. "Yesterday, my Lingling fell into the water..."

Zhang Mingyang realized something was wrong and immediately interrupted her, "Auntie, you're too late! Xu Zhiqing has already left."

"You..." Grandma Sun was interrupted before she could finish her sentence.

"What? He's gone? Where did he go?" Sun Lingling stopped pretending to be a coward after hearing this.

More than a dozen people looked at Zhang Mingyang, waiting for his reply.

Zhang Mingyang took a breath and said, "Yes, I left this afternoon. I went back to the city! I'm living in this house now." As long as he didn't say everything, there was still room for maneuver.

"This—" Aunt Sun was also stumped, unsure how to continue the story, and was caught off guard.

"Are you really gone?"

"So fast?"

"And what about the Sun family?"

Talk among the crowd was constant, and some busybodies even pouted, waiting to see the Sun family make a fool of themselves.

The whole Sun family came, and everyone knew what they wanted. Today, their display clearly showed they wouldn't give up until they achieved their goal, but no one expected Xu Jianshe to leave. Everything was ready, but then the opportunity slipped away! How will the Sun family handle this?

Grandma Sun swallowed the words she was about to say to Zhang Mingyang, and was now actually glad that he had interrupted her in time.

"Yesterday, Lingling accidentally fell into the water, and it was Xu Zhiqing who came to call me. I just wanted the whole family to come and thank her!"

"We called out for ages, but no one came out or made a sound. My wife thought those city folks were looking down on us! I started to get a little anxious."

"It was my fault. I've gotten worse with age." Old Mrs. Sun, being a long-lived woman, immediately changed the subject.

"I told you Xu Zhiqing was a good person, otherwise why would he kindly call out to people? We didn't understand, so we were in the wrong," Sun Lingling tried her best to defend herself.

Marrying Xu Jianshe would bring tangible benefits, so what did temporary pride matter? But now that Xu Jianshe is gone and there's no profit to be made, all their plans have come to naught, so they have to minimize the impact and avoid giving anyone cause for gossip. The Sun family cares about its reputation, and their daughters also need to get married.

"Don't worry about such trivial matters. It's getting late, everyone should go home and rest!" Zhang Mingyang began to urge people to leave.

Seeing that the Sun family had all left, and there was no more excitement to see, everyone else followed suit. Everyone was tired after a long day's work.

Zhang Mingyang let out a sigh of relief. From now on, there would be no more news about Xu Jianshe in Caozhuang. After all, life had to go on!

……

Xu Jianshe was unaware that he had escaped danger by running fast.

He just noticed that the girl sitting opposite him on the train looked familiar.

Yuan Zhenzhen was also a little surprised to see Xu Jianshe. "Isn't this the guy who was so envious and jealous of her when we were on the train last time?" At the time, she always felt that the guy across from her was looking at her strangely, but later she realized that he was envious.

Many women say unpleasant things and seem to look down on her, but they're actually quite envious and jealous. Now even gay men are starting to envy and be jealous of her? Has she really reached that level?

Xu Jianshe looked at the "Sea King" opposite him: he was wearing a worn-out military uniform, his hair was obviously dry and yellow; his skin on his face had become dark and rough; when he drank water and held a teacup, the calluses on his hands could be clearly seen.

Two years have passed, and the hardships of rural life have inevitably left their mark on Yuan Zhenzhen.

It's obvious she's not doing well. The "fishing" tactic might work for a short time, but who wouldn't understand it eventually? Besides, they're all living in the educated youth settlement; over time, if you pay attention, all sorts of monsters and freaks will be exposed!

Everyone has their own way of living, and he won't comment on that. We're all adults, and everyone has to be responsible for their words and actions.

Xu Jianshe stood with his feet on a burlap sack, arms crossed over his chest, head resting against the carriage, and fell asleep with his eyes closed in no time.

Seeing that Xu Jianshe had fallen asleep, Yuan Zhenzhen quietly felt relieved. Although the two hadn't exchanged a single word, for some reason she could sense that the person opposite her seemed to know everything.

That gaze seemed to see right through her, revealing all the unpleasantness she had painstakingly hidden.

Yuan Zhenzhen took a mirror out of her pocket and searched carefully for a while before discovering something amiss. It was common knowledge that life in the countryside was hard, but what allowed anyone who had seen her to immediately see something was the expression on her face, or more precisely, her eyes. Her eyes no longer held that bright, clear light.

These past two days, Yuan Zhenzhen has been constantly adjusting her expression in front of a mirror. When she got off the bus, she grabbed her luggage and squeezed off, her eyes now reflecting her former self.

Xu Jianshe smiled as he looked at the girl across from him, wishing her all the best in the future!

After another long day, Xu Jianshe arrived in his familiar hometown. He grabbed his things and immediately took a bus home.

……

Xu's mother was overjoyed, calculating when Xu Jianshe would return, but she dared not show it to others.

Xu's mother originally planned to transfer her job when Xu Jianshe returned home to visit relatives. However, her fourth son didn't get any leave to visit relatives during his first year in the countryside.

Moreover, with Xu Jianguo and his wife moving to the Northwest, the Xu family became a prime example, attracting even more attention. Xu's parents dared not act rashly.

When Xu Jianshe arrived home, it was already 10 a.m. His room was very clean, and his mother had brought back all the packages that had been sent to him and put them in his room.

Xu Jianshe quickly and efficiently put everything away and even prepared lunch. When Xu's mother returned from work at noon, she was speechless with joy upon seeing her son, whom she hadn't seen for two years.

Before Xu's mother could even reach out after the meal, Xu Jianshe reflexively cleared away the dishes and took them to wash.

The son worked so quickly, it broke the mother's heart.

In the afternoon, Xu's mother took Xu Jianshe to hand over his work and handle his household registration. Once everything was settled, Xu Jianshe's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down.

Starting tomorrow, he will return to his old life and become a worker.

In the evening, Mr. Xu returned home from get off work with his three grandsons, and the family celebrated together in a lively atmosphere.

Xu's mother picks up and drops off her grandson every day, buys groceries and cooks, and then starts busy finding a partner for her youngest son.