“If only my mom had been like this back then, maybe I wouldn’t have dropped out and left home. Perhaps in her heart, having a son in her remarried family made her see her ex-husband’s daughter as trouble, letting her go since dropping out was my own choice, not her responsibility…”

Her emotions surged, and she hugged Yan Runzhi voluntarily. “Thank you.”

Yan Runzhi hugged her back. “Bao’er mother, what do you want to eat for lunch?”

Jiang Lin hesitated. “…”

She felt like she really wanted to make a menu list and order things every day like an empress dowager or an emperor, haha.

Jiang Lin let go of her and thought for a moment. “I really want to eat cake.”

Yan Runzhi asked, “What kind of cake? Red date cake?”

Jiang Lin described a type of steamed cake she had eaten in her previous life—delicate, soft, slightly sticky, but not as glutinous as sticky rice.

Yan Runzhi exclaimed, “What color is it?”

Jiang Lin said, “It’s yellow, but not too yellow, similar to the color of red date cake.”

Yan Runzhi nodded knowingly. “I know, it’s millet cake. Grind millet into flour, make dough, and then steam it. You can add red bean paste, date paste, or brown sugar. Ah, it’s delicious.”

Jiang Lin’s mouth watered. “We have millet. I’ll go grind it, and we can have it tonight. Grandma can watch over it for lunch.”

Yan Runzhi said, “Dongsheng is leaving tomorrow. Let him grind it for us today.”

Yan Runzhi went out to talk to Cheng Rushan about grinding millet, while Jiang Lin stayed in her room arranging small items.

She packed her belongings into a new suitcase and noticed the two notebooks again.

She hesitated for a moment before flipping through them.

The original owner’s handwriting and literary style were average, but there was a romantic heart reflected in the pages, filled with tears of longing.

After reading a couple of pages that felt too sentimental for comfort, Jiang Lin wasn’t sure how to handle them.

Just then, the room dimmed as Cheng Rushan entered.

She quickly closed the notebooks and hid them at the bottom of her suitcase.

Cheng Rushan asked, “Will you come with me and the kids to grind millet?”

He always wanted to do something with her and the children together, so that when he wasn’t home, the children would still think about how they did things together.

He missed six years, and he wanted to make up for it immediately.

Jiang Lin was initially going to refuse, but she couldn’t resist his intense gaze. “Let’s go.”

Cheng Rushan smiled as Jiang Lin locked her suitcase and placed the key in another small wooden box.

He reached out to hold her hand.

Jiang Lin’s heart skipped a beat involuntarily.

Before she could refuse, he had already grasped her hand.

His palm was warm, surprisingly dry and cool without any sweat.

His fingers were long and enveloped hers completely.

She couldn’t help but recall his firm, embracing hug, filled with strength and longing, which had disrupted her heartbeat.

Cheng Rushan held her small hand, gently rubbing her delicate hand back with his thumb.

Sensing no resistance from her, he smiled and removed a bit of spider web stuck on her head before releasing her hand.

“Let’s go.”

Back at home, Yan Runzhi tidied up and prepared lunch while Cheng Rushan and Jiang Lin took the boys to grind millet.

The millet was too small to use a millstone; they needed to use a hand-operated mill with upper and lower grinding discs, requiring patience to grind the millet into flour repeatedly.

A stone mill was different from a millstone and was usually placed in a mill.

The water locust village’s mill was located in a corner of the brigade, not far from his home.

Cheng Rushan carried a shoulder pole with one end holding a basket with his two sons inside, while the other end held a “yanzi” basket filled with twenty kilograms of millet.

Due to the large weight difference, the “yanzi” basket was also equipped with a large iron piece!

Jiang Lin walked alongside, carrying several light tools.

Cheng Dabao held a broken iron shovel, and Cheng Xiaobao held a small wooden hammer, tapping it as they walked and jokingly talked about parading around.

Grandma had previously told them stories about parading around with a gong and drum.

They didn’t understand the complex emotions of adults; they just wanted to attract attention to show those who had once ridiculed them for not having parents that they now had parents to play with.

Jiang Lin asked them to stop the noisy banging, but Cheng Rushan didn’t mind.

If they liked making noise, let them. It didn’t bother anyone.

In fact, she understood the children’s mentality very well.

From poverty to sudden wealth, they always wanted to show off a bit.

After her parents divorced, she often fantasized countless times that her father had not had an affair but had vehemently rejected the mistress and treated her and her mother better than before.

Then she would proudly tell her classmates that her parents had never really divorced.

So she didn’t really mind; she let the two boys make noise as they pleased.

Soon, many children came out to peek, cautiously observing because Cheng Rushan was there, and they didn’t dare approach.

Cheng Dabao said, “Hey, look! My dad’s back! He’s so tall. Did you see?”

Cheng Xiaobao tapped the hammer a couple of times. “See? My parents. We’re grinding millet.”

Cheng Dabao continued, “My dad brought back a lot of delicious things!”

Cheng Xiaobao: “Big chicken legs, big ducks, big meat!”

Cheng Dabao: “Sugar!”

Cheng Xiaobao immediately pulled out a piece of pan-fried cake from his pocket. “Look, it’s fragrant and sweet, pan-fried cake!”

This was made by Yan Runzhi using egg whites and sugar to fry the dough, specifically as a snack for the two children.

Several children watched from afar.

This kind of pan-fried cake tasted sweeter the more you chewed, making them swallow hard with envy.

Cheng Dabao said, “Anyone who barks like a dog can have some.”

Previously, when he and his brother played outside, the kids would say to them, “If you two crawl like dogs, we’ll play with you.”

Cheng Dabao and Cheng Xiaobao were angry and refused to crawl like dogs, saying, “Who cares about playing with you? We’ll play on our own.”

Surprisingly, there were actually kids who started barking like dogs, “Woof, woof, woof.”

Cheng Xiaobao threw a piece of pan-fried cake over, and several children quickly grabbed it.

Cheng Dabao and Cheng Xiaobao clapped their hands and laughed.

Jiang Lin: “…”

When they arrived at the millstone, there were no outsiders around.

Jiang Lin frowned deeply. “Cheng Dabao, Cheng Xiaobao!”

Seeing her expression, the two children gave a pleading look to Cheng Rushan for help.

Cheng Rushan: “… Wife?”

Jiang Lin: “Shut up!”

Cheng Rushan: “…”

Jiang Lin: “Both of you, stand properly!”

The two boys immediately stood against the wall, jostling each other.

Jiang Lin: “Do you know what you did wrong?”

Cheng Dabao pursed his lips. “We shouldn’t waste food.”

Cheng Xiaobao: “We should cherish food.”

Jiang Lin: “What else?”

Cheng Dabao: “They bullied us.”

They called him and Xiaobao “dog bastards” and he told them to bark like dogs.

What’s wrong with that?

When the old folks bullied them, Dad supported them and fought back.

When the scoundrels bullied them, wasn’t it right to fight back?

Kids learn quickly by example.

Jiang Lin: “If they bully you, you can fight back, you can tell your parents and fight back, but you can’t insult others in this way.”

Cheng Dabao and Cheng Xiaobao looked up at her. “What’s insult?”

Jiang Lin: “Call me ‘mom’!”

Cheng Dabao and Cheng Xiaobao quickly corrected themselves, “Mom!”

Jiang Lin: “Doing things that aren’t human is insulting others.” You think I’m a walking dictionary? How should I know!

Cheng Dabao and Cheng Xiaobao looked at each other and then at Cheng Rushan. “Dad, what does it mean to insult someone?”

Cheng Rushan lowered his eyes, his face expressionless.

He smiled when they asked, “If someone calls you a dog bastard, that’s insulting you. Beat them up as hard as you can. If you can’t beat them, Dad will help you.”

Cheng Dabao and Cheng Xiaobao were feeling proud of themselves.

They glanced at Jiang Lin and smirked mischievously.

Immediately, Cheng Rushan’s face darkened.

He raised his hand high and gently tapped the heads of the two boys. “No talking back to Mom. You must listen to what Mom says.”

The two boys immediately looked up at Jiang Lin. “Mom, we were wrong!”

Jiang Lin hesitated, thinking they apologized quickly, but she wondered if they would really change.

“You know how hurtful it is to be humiliated, right?”

Both boys nodded earnestly.

“If we don’t like feeling hurt, then we shouldn’t do it to others.”

“But what if they do it to us?” The two children puffed out their cheeks, their big eyes wide open.

“Fight back hard, and if you can’t, Mom will help you.” Jiang Lin replied firmly.

“You’re really nice, Mom.” Cheng Xiaobao immediately hugged Jiang Lin’s leg and winked at Cheng Dabao, who reluctantly hugged her other leg.

Cheng Rushan interjected, “Remember, do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

The two boys repeated the phrase, feeling relieved that Mom and Dad weren’t angry.

Having parents was really great.

Jiang Lin observed how quickly they apologized, knowing the boys were smart and sensible.

She realized they might unintentionally return the same treatment they received when they gained power.

Though it might be fair to treat others as they treated you, Jiang Lin felt uneasy about it.

She wasn’t a highly successful person and couldn’t give grand lectures, but she knew that gaining respect from others required respecting them first.

While receiving sympathy after being hurt was understandable, maintaining self-respect and showing respect even in adversity would earn genuine respect from others, and preserve one’s dignity.

Jiang Lin crouched down, arms open wide, and hugged the two boys together. “Dabao, Xiaobao, Mom also wants to apologize for not taking good care of you before. Mom promises she won’t let anyone bully you again and will love you well.” Tears welled up in her eyes as she spoke.

Seeing Jiang Lin cry, Cheng Dabao and Cheng Xiaobao hurriedly wiped her tears with their small hands. “Mom, don’t cry. We won’t insult people anymore.”

Moved by their sincerity, Jiang Lin smiled through tears and kissed each of them. “You’re such good boys. No matter what happens, Mom will always love you.”

“Jiang Lin is a good mom too.” Cheng Dabao kissed her cheek awkwardly.

“Linlin is also a good mom.” Cheng Xiaobao gave her a loud kiss on the cheek and rubbed it.

Jiang Lin chuckled. “Alright, let’s go grind the millstone.”

As she started to get up, she was suddenly embraced in a strong, powerful hug that made her feel like she was electrified, leaving her shoulders tingling.

Cheng Rushan looked down at her with lowered eyes and whispered, “I want to kiss you too.”