After dinner, Xu An took the items Xu Ning had bought earlier to the cowshed.

Upon returning, he chuckled and said, “Xiao Mo told me that since I’m home today, he won’t come over to sleep here. He wants to spend some time with the elders at home. He said once I leave tomorrow, he’ll come over to keep you company.”

Xu Ning smiled and replied, “Alright, I got it.”

She then asked, “Xiao An, how’s the food at school? Should I make you some dishes to take with you tomorrow?”

“Sis, there’s no need to. The food at school is quite good. Besides, I come home every week. If I want to eat something special, I can always make it when I get back.”

“Are you adjusting well at school? Are any of your classmates giving you trouble? How are the teachers?”

Xu An laughed and said, “School is going great. No one is bullying me, and the teachers are teaching well. You don’t need to worry.”

He took his backpack, placed it on the table, and pulled out a stack of letter paper. “Sis, let’s write a letter to Big Brother Lu today. I’ll mail it tomorrow when I go to town.”

Xu Ning paused for a moment and said, “Xiao An, you go ahead and write. I don’t have much to say this time, so I won’t be writing.”

She had already decided not to write to him for at least two months, as a way to teach him a lesson for spreading nonsense.

Xu An didn’t think much of it. In the past, it was usually him writing the letters, and his sister would just add a few lines at the end.

What he didn’t know was that in the past two years, his sister had been writing her own separate letters and slipping them into the envelope.

When Lu Xiaotang received the letter and opened the envelope, he read it several times but didn’t find anything written by Xu Ning. At that moment, he realized something was wrong—she was definitely upset.

Immediately, he began writing a self-reflection letter every day. After a week’s worth of letters, he bundled them together in an envelope and sent them off. Then, he kept writing, determined to continue until Xu Ning replied.

In the past, he used to send her two letters a month. Now, it had doubled to four, and the envelopes were always stuffed full.

Every time the postman called Xu Ning to pick up a letter, Wei Lanlan and Yang Xiaomei would tease her about it.

Xu Ning found herself both amused and exasperated by Lu Xiaotang’s apology letters. Despite being a serious man, he had somehow picked up all these playful phrases. She really didn’t know how to deal with him, so she eventually replied to his letter, telling him to be serious and to stop writing like that in the future.

When Lu Xiaotang received her letter, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. He thought to himself, At last, I’ve managed to win her over.

That evening, Xu Mo sat on the kang, doing his homework while proudly saying to Xu Ning, “Sister, guess what good news I have today?”

Xu Ning smiled and said, “What good news? Is it that one of the aunties in the village is trying to set you up with a wife?”

Xu Mo, with a serious expression, replied, “Sister, stop talking about wives. I’m still young! I’ll give you one more chance to guess properly.”

Xu Ning playfully cleared her throat and said, “So, it’s not about a wife, huh! Then what could it be? Could it be that you found some money?”

Xu Mo huffed and said, “Sister, I got promoted! I’m now the second squad leader.”

“Do you know what a second squad leader does? Except for the senior squad leader, I am the biggest official in the class.!”

Xu Ning looked at the little “official” enthusiastically boasting and laughed, “Wow, Xiao Mo is now the second squad leader! That’s really impressive.”

She even gave him a thumbs up for effect.

Xu Mo couldn’t have been prouder. Smiling widely, he continued leaning over the table to do his homework.

When Sun Hao and Yang Xiaomei got married, they also asked Xu Ning to help with the cooking.

After breakfast, she went over to assist, but the atmosphere in the educated youth courtyard was noticeably tense.

Lin Qiuhua and Chunhua came to the kitchen to lend a hand, but none of the other female educated youths showed up.

During the meal, the men and women still sat at separate tables. The village head came with a few squad leaders and said a few words of congratulations to the newlyweds, which finally livened up the atmosphere a bit.

Xu Ning sat next to Wei Lanlan, and the two exchanged casual conversation, neither saying much. Across the table, Lin Miao hadn’t spoken a word since sitting down, and Lin Qiuhua was equally silent.

Meanwhile, Wang Juanjuan and Gu Wenjing were chatting and laughing with Chunhua and her little aunt, filling the table with their voices.

When Sun Hao and Yang Xiaomei came over to offer a toast, they first expressed their gratitude to Xu Ning and the others for their help, encouraging everyone to enjoy the food and not be too formal.

The group playfully teased the newlyweds, and the mood at the table remained pleasant.

Suddenly, from the men’s table, there was a sharp sound as Gu Wenping’s wine glass shattered.

Sun Hao quickly walked over, noticing that Gu Wenping’s face was flushed. It was clear he’d had quite a bit to drink.

They had only bought two bottles of alcohol for the day, and the liquor tickets had been specially sent by Sun Hao’s family. Now, both bottles were already empty.

Gu Wenping, his eyes red with emotion, stared at Lin Miao, but she didn’t spare him a glance.

Seeing how much Gu Wenping had drunk, Yang Wenli and Chen Xiangdong quickly dragged him into the house, half pulling, half carrying him. Causing a drunken scene at someone else’s wedding? That wasn’t acceptable.

Though they had managed to get him inside, the lively atmosphere never fully recovered after that.

The village head and the squad leaders finished their meal, stayed for a bit longer to chat, and then headed back.

The female educated youths helped clear the dishes before leaving as well.

After returning to her room, Yang Xiaomei was fuming, cursing Gu Wenping for using alcohol as an excuse to act foolish.

Sun Hao laughed and tried to calm Yang Xiaomei down, saying, “Don’t be angry. Just keep your distance from those few people in the future. There’ll be more trouble from them, I’m sure.”

After Xu Ning returned home, with nothing much to do, she decided to make some cakes. She kneaded some dough, planning to send the cakes with Xu Mo the next day for Grandpa Qi and the others at the cowshed. Without Grandpa Qi’s help, Xu Mo wouldn’t have been able to go to school so smoothly, and the few people in the cowshed wouldn’t have had it so easy either.

When Xu Mo came over that evening, he sniffed the air and made his way straight to the kitchen. Seeing the cakes on the table, he grabbed a piece and stuffed it into his mouth.

As he ate, he mumbled, “Sister, didn’t you go to the wedding banquet today? When did you make these cakes?”

Worried that he might choke, Xu Ning poured him some water and smiled. “I made them in the afternoon. Slow down, don’t choke. Tomorrow morning, take these to the cowshed for Grandpa Qi and the others.”

Xu Mo nodded and said, “Grandpa Qi loves this cake. He always says it’s soft and fragrant, but it’s such a waste of good ingredients.”

After finishing the cake in his hand, Xu Mo continued, “Sister, you know what, today after school, I ran into Gu Wenjing and Wang Juanjuan by the well at the cowshed.

Wang Juanjuan was crying, and Gu Wenjing was comforting her. It seemed like they were talking about not being able to return to the city. Wang Juanjuan said it was all because of her two sisters-in-law, and she swore she wouldn’t let them get away with it.

I saw her face, and it was really scary. She even glanced at me, so I quickly lowered my head and pretended not to notice before heading home.

Then, Gu Wenjing said something like, ‘How can that little brat still go to school?’ I told Dad and Uncle Lu about it when I got home. Dad and Uncle Lu told me to avoid them from now on, and Grandpa Qi said he would walk me to and from school from now on.”

Xu Ning felt a pang of concern as she gently stroked Xu Mo’s head. “Xiao Mo, Dad and Uncle Lu are right. From now on, aside from going to and from school, don’t play near the cowshed anymore.

Those two aren’t good people. They’re unhappy with their own lives and don’t want to see others doing well. People like that are the worst. But right now, we can’t do much about them. We just need to stay out of their way for now and wait for the right chance to deal with them.”

Xu Mo obediently nodded and said, “Sister, I understand. I won’t cause any trouble for Mom and Dad.”

Xu Ning, feeling both love and sadness, pulled him into her arms, thinking, Once we get through these few years, no one will dare to look down on Xiao Mo anymore.