Old Mrs. Song is reborn; get out of here, you scumbag husband and illegitimate child!

The meal was eaten clean, with every last grain of rice and morsel removed.

Especially that girl named Han Lu, who in the end held the empty plate that had contained braised pork, dipped a white steamed bun in the remaining oil and soup, wiped it clean, and stuffed it into her mouth, her cheeks bulging out.

She wiped the grease from her lips, leaned back in her chair, and hummed softly.

"Oh my, I'm so full. I've wasted the first 21 years of my life. My highlight is this lunch today."

Everyone at the table burst into laughter.

Warm atmosphere.

Even Qiao Siyi, who had been huddled in the corner, smiled.

There was a pile of bones in front of her; she only liked to eat meat and ginger duck.

She ate most of a plate of braised pork by herself, which was more than she had eaten in the past few years.

No one has noticed how much she eats yet.

very nice.

After paying the bill, we left the restaurant.

The group parted ways at the intersection.

Song Xianglan pulled Shen Huijun to the side under a large banyan tree. She took out a roll of ten-yuan notes from her pocket, then stuffed a stack of grain coupons into her daughter-in-law's pocket without saying a word.

"Mom, I have money. Xiang Dong gave me a lot..." Shen Huijun hurriedly pushed him away.

"Take it!"

Song Xianglan pressed her hand down, "A poor family should be generous on the road. Don't be stingy at school, eat whatever you want, and buy whatever you want to wear."

When interacting with classmates, be generous, but don't be a sucker.

Don't try to handle things alone; if you're really struggling, just call me.

Shen Huijun's eyes welled up with tears, and she nodded heavily.

"Mom, I understand."

"Alright, go back now, don't see me off." Song Xianglan waved her hand, turned around and left, taking large strides, her back view exuding a nimble and efficient air.

Shen Huijun stood at the school gate, staring at the figure until it disappeared around the corner. She felt empty inside, yet also as if something had filled her completely.

"Shen Huijun? It really is you."

A surprised male voice came from the side.

Shen Huijun looked away and turned her head to take a look.

A refined-looking man wearing black-rimmed glasses, a white shirt, and blue trousers was standing not far away, holding several books in his hands.

Shen Huijun was stunned for a moment.

He recognized it immediately:

"Yu Guobin?"

"You still remember me!"

Yu Guobin pushed up his glasses and walked over in a few steps.

He had a smile on his face.

"I remember the last time we met, you were just starting junior high, right? You had two braids back then, and you weren't as tall as you are now."

Yu Guobin is the nephew of Shen Huijun's aunt's family. The two families used to live close by and often played hopscotch together when they were young.

Later, the Shen family suffered misfortune.

When the whole family was sent down to the island, the connection was severed.

Shen Huijun smiled politely: "You also got into Xincheng University?"

"Yes, I'm in the biology department, majoring in biochemistry." Yu Guobin looked Shen Huijun up and down, a hint of amazement flashing in his eyes. "And you?"

"Political economy"

"Wow, that's so professional."

Yu Guobin remarked with emotion, "I never expected to run into someone from my hometown here. Do you remember Erpang, the guy who lived at the entrance of our alley?"

He went to the countryside in Yunnan Province. I heard from his family recently that he contracted a sudden illness there and couldn't be saved; he was buried deep in the mountains.

Shen Huijun's smile froze.

Erpang used to always follow her around calling her "sister".

He's a chubby little boy who loves to eat.

"The medical conditions in Yunnan Province are really too poor." Shen Huijun felt a tightness in her chest and sighed, "Such a young life."

The two walked towards the dormitory building.

Yu Guobin glanced at Shen Huijun as he walked.

The island's wind and sun did not diminish her beauty; instead, they gave her a more resilient air, making her even more attractive than the delicate little girl I remembered.

"I heard... you got married on that island?"

Yu Guobin tentatively asked, "Did you marry a local?"

Shen Huijun nodded.

"Yes, I'm married."

Yu Guobin's heart skipped a beat.

He had heard gossip in his hometown that Shen Huijun was forced to marry an illiterate, uncultured man just to have something to eat.

What does a country bumpkin like that know about cherishing women?

Aside from having the strength to cook a few bites, he's incredibly rude.

Looking at Shen Huijun's fair face, he felt both regret and impulsiveness.

Such white swans.

How could a toad ruin it?

"and you……"

Yu Guobin swallowed hard and lowered his voice, "Now that you've been admitted to university, what are your plans for the future?"

I mean... after all, we're educated people...

Shen Huijun gave him a strange look.

"What plans can I have? Just study hard."

When they arrived at the girls' dormitory building, Shen Huijun stopped.

"I've arrived, I'm going up now."

"Keep in touch when you have time! We're from the same hometown, so let's visit each other more often." Yu Guobin stood downstairs, watching Shen Huijun gracefully go upstairs and disappear around the corner of the stairs.

He stood there for a long time.

He slowly turned around.

He figured that Shen Huijun must be suffering in silence.

What else could that country husband give her besides making her suffer?

If Shen Huijun doesn't have children yet, then this isn't a problem.

Yu Guobin is a college student with a bright future. If he can rescue her from that "pit of fire," it would be a good deed and also fulfill his own destiny.

If you swing your hoe well, no corner is too big to dig down.

……

On the other side, Song Xianglan was strolling along the streets of the new city with her hands behind her back.

The city center of the new town is actually just a few streets, with typical Nanyang-style arcade buildings on both sides, which are dilapidated but have a touch of Western style.

The walls were peeling and the windows were made of wood with shutters.

As Song Xianglan looked at these old houses, the beads of her abacus clicked rapidly in her mind.

This location and this house would be incredibly valuable even in later generations.

Any one of these outfits could fetch tens of millions.

Unfortunately, there is no such thing as buying and selling commercial housing now; houses are allocated by work units.

Song Xianglan told herself that as soon as the policy was relaxed, she had to rush over and buy a few buildings to collect rent.

She wandered over to the vicinity of the dock.

Fishing boats docked, unloading baskets of still-wriggling seafood. Several vendors carried loads of seafood along the shore, hesitant to openly hawk their wares, but immediately approaching anyone who glanced at them to try and sell.

"Hey lady, want a bowl of peanut soup? It has an egg in it, it smells amazing!"

Following the aroma, Song Xianglan went over and ordered a bowl of piping hot peanut soup and a freshly made horseshoe pastry.

The peanut soup is simmered until it's thick and white like milk, and the peanuts are tender yet intact, melting in your mouth.

A sip of soup warms you up from head to toe.

This meal only cost one cent.

They ate and drank their fill.

She bought two more pounds of mung bean cakes and three pounds of chestnut cakes, intending to take them back for everyone to try.

After finding a hotel and booking a room, Song Xianglan put her things down and, without resting, headed straight for the underground market she remembered.

These days, some things can't be done in the light of day and are traded underground.

The underground market is located near an abandoned air-raid shelter.

The room was dimly lit, and everyone had pulled their hat brims down low, their voices barely louder than a mosquito's buzz.

Song Xianglan knew nothing about antique appraisal, so she dared not touch those bottles and jars, afraid of being fooled. She went straight to the calligraphy and painting stall.

In the end, I spent fifty yuan to buy two scrolls.

She wasn't sure if it was genuine, but judging from the color of the paper and the seal, it must have been quite old.

These days, everyone is struggling to make ends meet, so who cares about calligraphy and paintings?

Fifty yuan is already a huge sum of money.

After leaving the ghost market, she went to the secondhand market.

This place is much more open and honest, full of broken furniture, old books and newspapers.

Song Xianglan rummaged through a pile of junk and bought a sandalwood pen holder, a few small ornaments that looked like sandalwood, a Dezhong teapot signed by Shao Daheng, and a vase with intertwined branches.

The stall owner was having a huge clearance sale with everything at low prices.

Song Xianglan was overjoyed.

I stayed one night in the new town.

The next morning, Song Xianglan boarded the boat for her return journey.

This trip was to send my daughter-in-law to university.

Having surveyed the market and even snagged a bargain, it was a perfect outcome.

We bumped our way back to the village.

The sun has set in the west.

He pushed open his own courtyard gate, and before he could even put his things down, the ugly woman came over.

Liu Chounu held a half-finished shoe sole in her hand, the needle still brushing against her hair, her small eyes darting towards the bag in Song Xianglan's hand.

"Lanlan's back?"

Her ugly face was all smiles. "I heard you went to the new city? Did you see anything new or interesting?"

Song Xianglan placed the bag on the table in the main room.

I went outside to fetch water to wash my face.

"It's just so-so, lots of people and cars, noisy. The food is about the same as here."

Undeterred, the ugly woman tucked the shoe sole under her armpit and said, "Lanlan, could you... help us earn some more money?"