「The next morning.」

Zhang Yuxi was awakened by the sound of voices outside. She took out her phone, glanced at the time, and saw it was almost ten o'clock.

Oh my God! My first day at my mother-in-law's house, and I slept in this late. What are they going to think of me?

Zhang Yuxi quickly got ready, putting on some makeup before leaving her room.

Zhou Cuilan's voice drifted from the living room, where she was washing dishes. "Oh, Yu Xi, you're awake! There's still some breakfast on the table. Go on and eat."

Lin Jie was there, as were Lin Dashan and Lin Feng.

She composed herself. "Okay, Mom."

"Lin Feng, come here. I have something to tell you."

Lin Feng stood up and followed her back to the room. He was met with the sight of Zhang Yuxi looking at him with a mortified expression, leaving him a bit puzzled.

"What's wrong?"

Zhang Yuxi playfully pounded his chest with her fists. "You're asking me what's wrong? It's this late, and you didn't wake me up!"

"You were all awake while I was still sleeping! What will your parents think? They must think I'm a total pig!"

Lin Feng just chuckled, letting her vent.

Zhang Yuxi's anger flared. "You're still laughing!"

"Alright, alright, I'll stop laughing," he soothed. "Go and eat. They won't think you're a pig."

Ugh, this is so frustrating!

...

After breakfast, Zhou Cuilan said to Lin Feng with a smile, "Lin Feng, why don't you take Yu Xi for a walk nearby? The babies can stay here. Your dad and I will look after them."

They still had over an hour before their next meal, so leaving the babies at home for a short walk seemed like a nice idea.

Zhang Yuxi changed her clothes, then stood before the mirror to apply some light makeup and tidy her hair.

Lin Feng stood at the door with his arms folded, watching her.

Once Zhang Yuxi was ready, she turned to find Lin Feng looking at her with a gentle smile.

With a playful huff, she said, "What are you staring at? Let's go!"

"My wife is so beautiful, how could I not look?" Lin Feng teased.

Zhang Yuxi's face flushed. She grabbed her purse from the table and said, "Let's go."

Meicheng is located in the northeastern part of Nanyue Province. There's a saying that people in the south survive the winter on pure willpower. After all, when you have to resist a cold that feels like a magic attack, this is especially true for the residents of Meicheng.

Lin Feng took her hand. "Let's go, I'll show you around the neighborhood..."

"Okay."

As the two of them went downstairs, an auntie from their building saw them and called out nosily, "Oh, going out for some fun? Are the kids at home?"

"Yeah, we're just going for a stroll."

This was the old part of town, so there weren't many places to go shopping. The two walked slowly, hand in hand, as Lin Feng shared his memories of growing up here.

Before they knew it, they found themselves in front of a newly opened supermarket.

"Come on, let's go check out the supermarket."

Pushing a shopping cart, Lin Feng discussed with Zhang Yuxi whether they should buy a fish to take home. The supermarket wasn't large, with just two floors. The first floor sold food, while the second sold household goods.

With their striking good looks, they were the center of attention wherever they went, but they had grown used to it by now.

"Lin... Lin Feng?" a man's voice suddenly called out from behind them.

Lin Feng turned his head, a look of confusion on his face. "You are...?"

Seeing Lin Feng's face clearly, the man was stunned. "Oh my God, it really is you! I always knew you were good-looking, but after all these years, how did you get even more handsome?"

"I'm Bao Wen! My nickname is Little Baozi! I was your high school classmate. We even met a few times after graduation."

The reminder jogged Lin Feng's memory. "Oh, it's you. What are you doing here?"

Bao Wen grinned. "Just looking around the supermarket. And this is...?"

Lin Feng put his arm around Zhang Yuxi. "This is my wife."

Bao Wen slapped his forehead. "Ah, hello! You can call me Bao Wen. I was a high school classmate of Lin Feng's."

Zhang Yuxi nodded. "Nice to meet you."

"You might not know this," Bao Wen said to her, "but Lin Feng had outstanding grades in school, and he was also the most handsome guy in our class."

"Is that so?"

"It's true! In the blink of an eye, he's married, and I still don't even have a girlfriend!" As he spoke, Bao Wen took out his phone. "Bro, let's exchange WeChat contacts. How about we grab a drink when you're free?"

They exchanged contact information.

"I'm pretty busy," Lin Feng said. "I'm afraid I might not have time for a drink."

Bao Wen waved his hand dismissively. "No worries, no worries. It's good just to chat."

After a bit more small talk, Lin Feng steered Zhang Yuxi toward the supermarket's seafood section. "Let's go, we'll buy a fish. I'll make you fish with broad bean chili sauce tonight."

Zhang Yuxi was already used to Lin Feng putting his arm around her in public. Seeing the envious glances from those around them filled her with a sense of pride and happiness, along with a little bit of smugness.

Behind them, Bao Wen kept glancing back at the couple.

My God, how did Lin Feng get so handsome? And he found a wife who's prettier than a celebrity? Didn't people say his family was broke?

In high school, the class monitor had created a QQ group. Over the years, some people had left, while others just became lurkers. After graduation, as everyone entered the workforce or went to college, the class monitor made a new WeChat group and added most of their classmates to it. But back then, Lin Feng had been too poor to join.

In fact, most of the classmates knew about Lin Feng's family situation. Back in their first year of high school, his family had been quite well-off. Lin Dashan, through hard work and some small business ventures, had made a good name for himself in Meicheng. But a failed investment cost him everything, even his house. He was still carrying some debt even now.

After Lin Feng left, Bao Wen immediately whipped out his phone and started blasting the group chat, tagging everyone. Many of their old high school classmates were still active in Meicheng.

*I just ran into Lin Feng and his girlfriend.*

*Holy shit, he's gotten insanely handsome!*

*And his girlfriend is even more gorgeous than a movie star!*

It didn't take long for the dead silent group chat to burst into activity.

"Baozi, are you kidding me?"

"For real? Hurry up and send a picture..."

"Yeah, right! No pic, so you're just spouting bullshit, right?"

Faced with his classmates' skeptical questions, Bao Wen grew flustered. He raised his phone to snap a picture to post in the group, but he realized Lin Feng had already walked too far away. With a helpless sigh, he left the supermarket.

Meanwhile, Lin Feng led Zhang Yuxi to the supermarket's seafood section. They bought a grass carp and then, in the condiment aisle, a bottle of Pixian broad bean paste. After looking around a bit more, it seemed there was nothing else they needed.

"Honey, for the New Year," Zhang Yuxi suddenly asked, "shouldn't we buy some things like peanuts and sunflower seeds?"

Back in Modu, Zhao Lizhen always handled these things—or more accurately, the family housekeeper did. Zhang Yuxi wasn't sure what else families prepared for the New Year besides buying festive goods.

Lin Feng thought for a moment. "I'll ask Mom and see if she's prepared anything."

He was glad he called, as Zhou Cuilan confirmed she had already prepared everything. So, Lin Feng just bought a box of cherries to bring back for his parents to try.

Seeing red envelopes for sale, Zhang Yuxi tapped his shoulder. "Honey, red envelopes."

Right! We haven't bought red envelopes yet!

Lin Feng walked over to the shelf and grabbed a thick stack of them.

On the way back, they passed a bank.

Zhang Yuxi asked, "Honey, should we withdraw some cash?"

That reminded him. How could they hand out New Year's red envelopes without cash? Even though mobile payments were convenient now, the sense of ritual was still important.

"Honey, didn't you make a list for the red envelopes?"

It was a list for the red envelopes for their relatives' children. Of course, those still in school, like Lin Jie, would get one too.

Zhang Yuxi suddenly looked a bit embarrassed. "Honey, I... I was just jotting things down..."

"Let me see. I'm not going to say anything."

She handed the list to Lin Feng. He scanned it: eight hundred for each of the younger children not yet in school, and two thousand for the older ones who were. A hundred thousand in total should be enough, which was well within his means.

"Let's withdraw a bit more, just in case."

Lin Feng knew he had nearly ten million in savings, though he wasn't sure of the exact amount.

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