Reborn in 2006, I met Mr. Zhou from the past.

As the heavy iron door slowly closed behind him, completely shutting out the oppressive atmosphere of the interrogation room, his tense nerves finally began to relax.

On the morning of New Year's Eve, Zhou Chenyu boarded the earliest flight to Zhucheng.

The cabin was quiet and smooth, but his tense emotions couldn't be calmed. His mind kept replaying the police's words after the interrogation: "According to Brother Kuan, there's a secret organization behind Pan Qianlian. They kidnapped Xie Siya to get something extremely important from her."

"My mother is a scientist. Could it be that those people are after some research data she has?" Zhou Chenyu couldn't help but ask at the time.

"It shouldn't be that," the police shook their heads, offering a negative hypothesis. "If it were just for research data, they could have simply stolen or bribed them; there's no need to go to such lengths as kidnapping or even killing someone. Their elaborate scheme must have something else in mind."

These words plunged Zhou Chenyu into a deep fog once again. He gazed at the churning sea of ​​clouds outside the plane window, his brow furrowed: What were those people looking for in his mother? What could possibly be so depraved as to warrant such madness?

His thoughts wandered aimlessly amidst endless mysteries until Zhao Chuan's low voice beside him pulled him back to reality: "Boss, we've arrived."

"Okay." Zhou Chenyu nodded slightly, putting aside her chaotic thoughts.

After disembarking from the plane, the two went straight to the underground parking lot to retrieve their car. The black sedan smoothly entered the highway and sped along, eventually arriving safely at Zijiang.

……

In Guihua Village, ever since Su Guoyuan and his family returned and cleaned their house inside and out, people have been coming to visit every day. Everyone has their own agenda. They heard that he brought large bags of food, clothing and other necessities for his first and second wives, so they all want to find out if he has made a fortune outside.

No matter how others tried to subtly probe or probe, Su Guoyuan always repeated the same thing: "When I was in poor health, my brother and his family helped me a lot. Now that I'm healthy, whether I have money or not, I can't forget the help my family gave me when I was in my most difficult time. As a person, you have to acknowledge that kindness."

His words were so well-said that fewer and fewer people came to try and get close to him afterward.

New Year's Eve arrived in the blink of an eye. Every household in the village was busy slaughtering chickens and fish. The adults, wearing aprons, were busy around the stove, preparing a sumptuous New Year's Eve dinner. The children, carrying firecrackers, gathered in groups of three or five in the courtyard, setting them off with a crackling sound, filling the whole village with a joyous atmosphere.

Su Fengnan wanted to go into the kitchen to help her parents, but Su Guoyuan and Wen Xiaofen both chased her out. The couple felt sorry for their daughter and were afraid that she would catch a cold outside, so they insisted on not letting her "cause trouble" and told her to go back inside to watch TV.

Su Fengnan felt helpless. She knew her parents loved her, but how could she calm down? She hadn't heard from Zhou Chenyu in so long. The phone was unreachable, and her messages seemed to disappear without a trace. Frustrated, she sat in front of the television, unable to concentrate on the lively programs on the screen. To make matters worse, there was no internet in the countryside at this time, so she had nowhere to go to search online.

She was restless and couldn't sit still in the house, so she put on a thick down jacket and headed straight for the tea plantation outside the village.

The tea mountain was covered in a blanket of white snow, resembling a tranquil snow-covered landscape painting. Su Fengnan found a sheltered spot, took a deep breath, and dialed the number she knew by heart.

"beep--"

After just one ring, a gentle and deep male voice came from the other end of the phone, "Nan'er."

Upon hearing just those two words, Su Fengnan could no longer hold back her tears, almost weeping with joy. She gripped her phone tightly, her voice trembling, "Brother Zhou...you're back?"

"Yes, I'm back." The man's tone was full of apology and heartache. "I'm sorry, Nan'er. I just got back and saw your message. It's my fault for making you worry so much."

Hearing his familiar voice, Su Fengnan sobbed softly in the cold wind, her throat feeling as if something was blocking it, and she couldn't utter a complete sentence for a moment.

"Nan'er, don't cry, it breaks my heart to see you like this..." The voice on the other end of the phone grew softer, carrying a reassuring tone, "Sweetie, I'll come find you after I finish having New Year's Eve dinner with Grandma, okay?"

"No need, Brother Zhou." Her voice still had a thick nasal tone, but it revealed a rare clarity and stubbornness. "I'm in my hometown in the countryside. It's snowing heavily, the mountain roads are slippery and difficult to travel, and driving at night is too dangerous. Don't bother coming over."

She paused, gazing at the vast expanse of snow before her, and added softly, "My parents don't know about us. It's New Year's Eve now, so it's not the right time to tell them. I'll go to Zijiang County to find you tomorrow."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, then the man's deep breathing came through the receiver, carrying a hint of helplessness and an unyielding doting affection.

"Okay, I'll listen to you," he replied softly, his tone full of tenderness.

Then, as if sensing something, his voice suddenly deepened, filled with deep concern: "Are you outside right now? Go back inside quickly, it's freezing outside, don't catch a cold. Message me when you get to the county town tomorrow, and I'll come pick you up."

Hearing the man's anxious yet doting words of advice on the other end of the line, Su Fengnan felt a warmth in her heart, and the anxiety and grievances of the past few days instantly vanished.

"Okay, I'll head back now." She sniffed, pulled her down jacket collar up a little, and couldn't help but smile with relief. "Happy New Year's Eve, Brother Zhou."

Happy Lunar New Year's Eve, my Nan'er.

After hanging up the phone, the wind on the tea mountain didn't seem so biting anymore. Su Fengnan carefully put her phone in her pocket and trudged down the mountain through the thick snow.

The village was filled with the aroma of cooking fires on New Year's Eve, and warm yellow light shone from the windows of every house. The lingering fragrance of the New Year's Eve dinner hadn't yet dissipated when adults went out in twos and threes to visit relatives and friends, while children ran out of their homes to play and frolic. Su Fengnan's parents also followed suit, visiting their eldest and second uncles, leaving the two sisters alone at home.

Before long, the swallows arrived under the cover of night, and the house suddenly became a little lively.

"Sister Xiaonan, I have amazing news for you!" Yanzi entered, her eyes sparkling as she sat down. She mysteriously held up two fingers and wagged them. "Our dessert shop's profits over this period have reached this amount!"

"Two hundred thousand?" Su Fengxia, who was standing next to her, suddenly widened her eyes and couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, raising her voice several decibels.

Yanzi nodded vigorously, her eyes crinkling with a smile: "Yes! It's all thanks to those two big banquet orders we took on before. After you left after the Lunar New Year, we almost missed the deadline for delivery. Those few days were incredibly busy, we were working non-stop until we were practically falling apart. But thankfully, God blessed us, and in the end, they were both delivered smoothly. Although it was hard work to earn this money, it was worth it."