Jiang Lin noticed that Cheng Yunzhi’s health wasn’t the best; he walked with a slight limp in his right leg due to an old knee injury from kneeling too much in the past.

Yan Runzhi explained that his knee had been permanently damaged and couldn’t fully straighten.

Because of this, Jiang Lin didn’t want him to do any physical work.

Cheng Rushan had a job in transportation that earned good money, and Jiang Lin could earn eggs and grains.

Yan Runzhi also made income from her embroidery.

They weren’t wealthy, but they had enough for food and basic needs.

Yan Runzhi said, “Let’s listen to Bao’ers mother (Jiang Lin), she makes the decisions in our house.”

Cheng Rushan added, “Dad will teach Big Brother, Da Bao, and Xiao Bao how to read.”

Although Da Bao and Xiao Bao loved listening to stories and making up their own, they didn’t know many characters yet; they could only write ‘world peace.’

Jiang Lin made sure Cheng Yunzhi had tasks to keep him occupied so he wouldn’t idle and start overthinking or feel like a burden.

Having work to do would help him find his own personal value.

After breakfast, Jiang Lin still had to go roof houses for people.

Cheng Rushan said, “I have nothing going on today, so I’ll accompany you.”

Jiang Lin asked, “When will you get the tiles for us?”

Cheng Rushan smiled, “Do you think I would lie to you? Daiguo Hua will come to pick me up in a couple of days. I’ll get you two truck loads then.”

Jiang Lin smiled back, “That sounds about right.”

When they mentioned going to roof houses, Da Bao, Xiao Bao, and Wensheng immediately wanted to go along.

Jiang Lin said, “You guys help grandpa and grandma at home. We just moved and there’s a lot of mess that needs sorting out. Grandpa and grandma are not strong enough, they need the men to help.”

Da Bao immediately agreed, “Sure!”

Xiao Bao muttered quietly, “What’s so good about it? Linlin wants us to stay home and study, it’s no fun at all, just like those school kids, shaking their heads reading books, so boring.”

Jiang Lin insisted, “A real man keeps his word. If you promise, you have to do it.”

She quickly took Cheng Rushan with her and left.

Today they went to Mrs. Huang’s house.

It had been two days since they promised, and Mrs. Huang was getting anxious.

Mrs. Huang’s husband had passed away last year, leaving her to raise her 13-year-old daughter Qingxiang and her young son Guoqing alone.

They lived next to Cheng Yulian’s house, with vegetable gardens adjacent to Yan Runzhi’s, and they had a good relationship.

Jiang Lin noticed Mrs. Huang’s roof was in desperate need of repair, not just leaking but on the verge of collapse.

Mrs. Huang was determined to buy tiles to fix it, but she didn’t have the money and was worried sick.

Although Jiang Lin was a businesswoman, she sympathized with widows and those in need.

She asked Mrs. Huang to do some embroidery work to earn the money.

Jiang Lin designed several small embroidery pieces, Yan Runzhi embroidered the flowers, and others helped with sewing.

Now Qingxiang was learning embroidery, and Yan Runzhi said she was doing well.

At harvest time, when everyone was busy, Shang Baozhu and Shang Zonghui had to go to the fields, so Jiang Lin went with Cheng Rushan.

Mrs. Huang asked Qingxiang and Guoqing to stay home while she went to work in the fields.

Jiang Lin first roughly counted the tiles and cement she had given to Mrs. Huang’s house.

There were enough tiles and a small amount of cement to seal the ridge tiles.

She took off her shoes to climb up the wall, but Cheng Rushan grabbed her hand.

“You stay down here and help me throw the tiles up. I’ll go up and take a look,” she said.

Cheng Rushan thought it was not proper for a woman to climb so high, but he remembered she wasn’t like other women.

Since she had told him last time that he underestimated women, he had checked himself but didn’t want her to strain.

“You take care,” he finally did not stop her.

Jiang Lin said with a smile: “I am afraid of pain and will certainly be careful.”

She climbed the wall and saw Cheng Rushan staring nervously at her.

She smiled and decided to proceed gradually so as not to alarm him.

She stood on the wall, “You can start.”

Cheng Rushan calculated the distance and cautiously threw the first tile to her.

Jiang Lin effortlessly caught the tiles thrown to her; she was quite strong.

Cheng Rushan watched silently as he threw several more tiles to her.

Jiang Lin caught five tiles and moved them up to the roof, securing them in place before continuing to catch more tiles.

When they had enough, they stopped to prepare for laying the tiles.

Qingxiang led her younger brother to a safer distance as Jiang Lin had instructed, to avoid getting hit by falling tiles.

Qingxiang couldn’t help but stare at Jiang Lin while embroidering, unable to take her eyes off her.

She had never seen her sister-in-law being so capable in such work!

When Cheng Rushan saw that they had enough tiles, he leaped onto the wall and then onto the roof to help Jiang Lin lay the tiles.

The two of them began working on Mrs. Huang’s roof in a very affectionate manner.

Cheng Rushan worked quickly, even coming down halfway to help mix mud and carry it up.

“How about you just buy tiles for people and let others lay them?” Cheng Rushan suggested to her.

Jiang Lin replied, “Sure, I wasn’t planning to work on construction sites forever. Working on construction sites all the time, I’d just be a worker or a craftsman, managing resources to be a boss. Whether it’s making money or saving effort, I also want to be a small boss.”

In her previous life, she quickly organized a group with good technical skills and good relationships while working for others, taking orders herself and building a good reputation.

Later, she established a small-scale decoration studio because of her responsibility, excellent skills, and attention to detail, earning a great reputation.

Homeowners praised her, and she even got many villa decoration jobs through word of mouth, doing quite well.

Cheng Rushan breathed a sigh of relief.

He really worried about her climbing up and down like that, afraid she might fall and get hurt.

Before noon, Jiang Lin and Cheng Rushan finished roofing the two small houses for Mrs. Huang.

Cheng Rushan jumped down first and said directly to Jiang Lin standing on the eaves, “Jump down, I’ll catch you.”

Jiang Lin looked at the distance to the wall where she walked, realizing how dangerous it would be to jump down like this.

He had just reminded her to be safe, yet he was encouraging her to take such risks.

This guy!

Cheng Rushan stood in the yard, arms open, looking up at her with a smile. “Come on, don’t be afraid. If you fall, I’ll cushion you.”

He wanted her to completely open her heart to him, let go of her defenses, and trust him completely.

If she could entrust her life safety to him, she would also entrust her body and mind to him.

Seeing his serious attempt to persuade her, Jiang Lin felt he wasn’t joking but genuinely wanted her to jump down.

Jiang Lin thought to herself, if he let her fall, she’d surely give him a good scolding!

But his eyes and voice were so persuasive, tempting her to take the risk, assuring her he would catch her and encouraging her to trust him completely.

She clenched her teeth and leaped towards him, thinking, “Well, he’s there to catch me anyway, so even if I fall, it won’t hurt.”

Cheng Rushan watched as she indeed jumped towards him, smiling happily.

He bent his knees slightly, hands firmly under her armpits, and caught her steadily. “See, I told you I could.”

He smiled at her, still holding her, gently lifting her a bit.

She was strong but light on her feet.

He wanted to kiss her.

Jiang Lin’s heart raced.

Then she glanced southwards towards the paulownia tree where Qingxiang and Guoqing, brother and sister, were watching.

Qingxiang was looking at her with admiration.

Jiang Lin was startled and quickly patted Cheng Rushan’s hands away.

This was too much, showing affection in front of someone else’s children might set a bad example.

Cheng Rushan let her down, and they cleaned up.

He helped her gather her things in a basket, holding her hand as they walked home for dinner.

Qingxiang watched them, her face blushing.

As Cheng Rushan and Jiang Lin were leaving, they saw Wensheng coming with Da Bao and Xiao Bao.

“Mom, it’s lunchtime, let’s eat,” Wensheng said.

Jiang Lin asked them what they had been doing at home, if they had been good, if they had listened to grandpa and grandma, and if they had caused any trouble.

She had asked the three of them to help grandpa at home, and he had given them tasks, including learning to read and memorizing a Tang poem.

Da Bao and Xiao Bao quickly recited the poem but were impatient with learning to read, just going through the motions.

Wensheng used to know these things but now pretended he didn’t, mumbling along like Da Bao and Xiao Bao.

Cheng Yunzhi didn’t push them to learn.

After everything that had happened, he just wanted the children to be happy.

Whether they studied or not, what difference did it make?

Finally, he told them a story, and the three “children” listened attentively and with great interest.

Wensheng played a tune and sang a few lines, and Da Bao and Xiao Bao adapted it with Dongsheng and Lin Lin.

However, this time, after Dong Sheng and Lin Lin got married, she had four children.

Wensheng, Da Bao, Xiao Bao, and their sister.

Back home, Yan Runzhi had already prepared dinner.

Besides the usual vegetables, she and Cheng Yunzhi had decided to make a dish of smoked sausage and smoked fish.

The smoked fish had been soaking all morning, its flesh torn into strips, quickly fried with fragrant Sichuan peppercorns and spices, then set aside.

They stir-fried scallions, ginger, and garlic until fragrant, added transparent sausage slices, mixed in the fish, and added soy sauce, salt, and sugar, simmering it all until tender and flavorful.

With a bowl of rice, it was deliciously savory, and without rice, dipping steamed buns into the broth made it equally delicious.

Jiang Lin smelled the aroma and couldn’t help but salivate. “Dad, Mom, you should write down your recipes for these dishes.”

It would also give Cheng Yunzhi something to do, preventing him from getting upset out of boredom.

In the afternoon, Jiang Lin and Cheng Rushan continued to help lay tiles for others.

By evening, Duan Chang’an delivered a cart of tiles.

Cheng Rushan helped unload them and told Duan Chang’an that he would treat him and Zhu Junjie to dinner that night at Zhu Junjie’s place.

Duan Chang’an happily agreed to inform Zhu Junjie.

Cheng Rushan needed to handle the transportation.

Although he shared a vehicle with Dai Guohua, he believed this kind of work was best done with a couple of partners.

Most people wouldn’t dare do that, as being a driver was a respected profession.

However, Cheng Rushan was different.

He wasn’t afraid of others trying to take advantage of him, as he was confident that they wouldn’t succeed.

Jiang Lin packed some dried fish for him to take to the two men.

While Yan Runzhi was cooking, Cheng Fujun came personally to invite Cheng Yunzhi, “Second Brother, let’s go to the brigade for a chat.”

Cheng Yunzhi and Cheng Fugui had a special status in the village, formerly addressed with respect, though they had moved away from that tradition.

They now used age-based titles among themselves.

Cheng Yunzhi didn’t mind much about such formalities.

He replied, “If it’s something urgent, wait for Dongsheng to come back. I’ve just returned and don’t want to get involved in matters right away.”

Since his youth, Cheng Yunzhi had avoided family matters, leaving them to his older brother to handle.

Now that he had returned, he naturally refrained from interfering.

Cheng Fujun said, “Some matters are easier to discuss with Second Brother. Dongsheng is still young and might find it hard to understand certain things.”

Considering this, Cheng Yunzhi nodded.

After informing Yan Runzhi and Jiang Lin, he headed to the brigade headquarters.

Yan Runzhi quickly reminded him quietly, “If it’s a major issue, just say you need to consult at home before making any decisions.”

Cheng Yunzhi nodded again, “I understand.”

Arriving at the brigade headquarters, a place he had lived in since childhood, but had moved with his wife to a quieter courtyard after marriage, now returning brought back a mix of emotions.

Apart from Cheng Fujun and Cheng Fulei, along with other officials, Cheng Fuman’s bothersome associates were notably absent.

They mainly wanted to discuss the return of certain properties, some of which had already been divided and were impossible to return.

As for the houses, various production teams at the brigade headquarters still used them, leaving no place for return.

They were all in a dilemma and wanted to consult Cheng Yunzhi beforehand.

Cheng Yunzhi replied, “Secretary, Brigade Chief, I can’t decide on this matter. You should discuss it with Dongsheng or even ask Dongsheng’s wife.”

Cheng Fujun and the others were surprised by Cheng Yunzhi’s current lack of assertiveness, always deferring decisions and consulting his son’s wife.

They sighed at how the former Second Young Master had changed.

During their conversation, due to various complex factors, they were at a loss for words and the situation felt awkward.

Cheng Fujun and the others were not bad people, but due to certain circumstances, they had to handle these matters officially.

Cheng Yunzhi was not narrow-minded and harbored no ill feelings toward them.

However, years of adversity and hardship had made it difficult for him to easily open up and resume a brotherly relationship.

Years of caution had ingrained in him a habit of keeping silent and not speaking out unnecessarily.

He preferred to remain silent rather than risk saying something that couldn’t be taken back, which could be used against him.

Cheng Yunzhi had to leave since Cheng Fujun insisted.

As he walked to the alley, he coincidentally met Jiang Lin who had come to fetch him.

Jiang Lin, noticing his difficulty in walking, assisted him over the threshold.

Back inside, Yan Runzhi had already set the table for dinner.

Jiang Lin said, “Dad, I have a suggestion.”

Yan Runzhi responded, “What is it, dear?”

“The main courtyard is too big for us to move back into right now. It might attract unwanted attention.”

Yan Runzhi agreed, “I feel the same. It’s too spacious, and we wouldn’t be able to manage.”

Jiang Lin continued, “How about we rent part of it to the brigade? Then, take back another part, renovate it into a small exhibition hall. We can display our family’s history and some of our grandfather’s legacy. It would help the villagers and their children understand our family better.” She glanced at Yan Runzhi, “We could include Grandpa’s history as well.”

Knowing that past hurts couldn’t just disappear, she believed that instead of suppressing them, it was better to have a proper way for people to remember and for future generations to understand.

Yan Runzhi wiped her tears and said to Cheng Yunzhi, “Old man, our daughter-in-law is quite insightful, coming from the provincial capital. I think her idea is good.”

Cheng Yunzhi had never thought of such a thing.

Jiang Lin’s suggestion was novel, akin to compiling village records or family history, centered around their own family.

However, he still had some reservations, “Would this be considered wrong? Would it violate any policies?”

Jiang Lin smiled, “Let’s first communicate with the County Cultural Department. If they approve, the County Cultural Museum staff will surely come down to manage it.”

Yan Runzhi nodded in agreement.

When Da Bao and Xiao Bao heard about it, they ran over with Cheng Ruzhou.

Without knowing the specifics, they shouted, “We also agree! Whatever Linlin says goes.”

Yan Runzhi asked them to wash up for dinner.

After dinner, Jiang Lin and the others sat at the table discussing, while Ruzhou played games with Da Bao and Xiao Bao.

When Cheng Rushan returned from outside, his steps were steady, but his eyes were glossy, indicating he had likely consumed a fair amount of alcohol.

He entered the house and saw Jiang Lin discussing matters with her parents.

He went straight to her and sat beside her, reaching out to pull her waist into his embrace.