Xiaobao laughed heartily, “Linlin, you’re so good at this! You found me right away.”

Dabao looked at her and asked, “Why were you crying? Did someone bully you?”

Wensheng, upon hearing that someone might have bullied his mom, immediately ran over, “Let’s go beat them up!”

Jiang Lin quickly said, “Who cried? I didn’t cry! My eyes just got irritated.”

Dabao didn’t believe her and looked at Cheng Rushan, “Dad, what do you say?”

Cheng Rushan smiled, said nothing, and went into the house.

Xiaobao exclaimed, “Oh no, my eyes are irritated too!” and started rubbing his eyes with his little hands.

Jiang Lin hurriedly said, “Don’t rub your eyes when they’re irritated. Let me see.”

Dabao, Xiaobao, and Wensheng all burst into laughter.

Jiang Lin: “…”

You little devils!

I’m going to eat!

She turned and ran into the house.

Cheng Yunzhi thought they had been out busy with something, asked a few questions, and then told them to eat quickly.

Yan Runzhi glanced at the young couple, then glared at her own son, indicating that he was not allowed to bully Jiang Lin.

Cheng Rushan innocently spread his hands, showing that he was the one being bullied.

Yan Runzhi brought out the food and smiled, “Bao’er’s mom, we’re celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival tonight. Is there anything special you’d like to eat?”

Jiang Lin thought for a moment.

She had been living with Yan Runzhi for so long and never had to worry about food.

Everything always suited her taste.

She smiled and said, “How about we make meat sandwiches?”

For Yan Runzhi, making meat sandwiches was very simple, even easier than making pancakes with vegetables and meat.

“I just made some dough to steam buns tonight, so I can bake a few flatbreads too,” Yan Runzhi said happily.

She had prepared some marinated food at noon, including pig’s feet, pig’s head meat, tongue, and pig ears.

In the evening, they could heat the flatbreads and stuff them with the cold meat, add some dipping sauce, and Jiang Lin would definitely love it.

As Yan Runzhi talked, Jiang Lin couldn’t help but drool at the thought of the food.

Any little bit of unpleasantness she felt earlier had vanished.

Seeing Jiang Lin smiling happily again, Yan Runzhi was pleased.

Her daughter-in-law was easy to cheer up; give her some good food, and she’d forget any troubles.

Yan Runzhi picked out a piece of pig’s foot with tendons for Jiang Lin. “When I was young, my grandmother used to say that women should eat more pig’s feet; they’re very nutritious, especially the tendons.”

Jiang Lin thanked her and told everyone else to eat while she focused on tackling the pig’s foot.

The marinated pig’s foot was glossy and rich in aroma.

Each bite was a burst of happiness.

She ate the skin and tendons herself, saving the meat for Cheng Rushan.

This Mid-Autumn Festival was especially meaningful.

Dabao and Xiaobao had a radio to listen to, apples, pomegranates, honeydew melons, and mooncakes to enjoy.

Most importantly, their parents were home, filling them with indescribable joy.

Dabao asked, “Mom, my uncle says there are people in the city who make money by writing things. They earn a lot of money. Is that true?”

Jiang Lin smiled, “Yes, that’s true. They’re called writers. Writers earn much more than average workers, and they also get paid for their manuscripts.”

Xiaobao immediately said, “Then I want to be a writer.”

He looked at Wensheng and added, “And there are people who sing opera, right? There’s a theater where Grandpa lives, and actors get paid too.”

Wensheng chimed in, “I can sing opera! Will I get paid?”

Jiang Lin replied, “You’re still young. When you grow up a bit more, writers and actors are usually around Mom and Dad’s age.”

Wensheng argued, “But there are child actors on TV.”

Jiang Lin thought for a moment, “Well… in the countryside, we don’t have the connections. Even in the city, it’s not easy to get into those fields.”

She wasn’t very familiar with the industry, but seeing their eager faces, she decided to ask her father for more information.

Dabao and Xiaobao were immediately thrilled at the thought of helping the family make money.

They excitedly took out their storybooks and discussed how much money they could earn.

Seeing how serious they were, Jiang Lin felt a bit pressured.

Did the kids think their family was too poor?

Did they feel the need to earn money so early?

Little did she know that her hard work had influenced Wensheng, Dabao, and Xiaobao.

They saw their dad driving to earn money, their mom running a brick kiln, their grandma doing embroidery, and their grandpa writing.

They felt they couldn’t just sit idle.

In the evening, the whole family enjoyed moon-gazing and chatting.

It wasn’t until after nine o’clock that Dabao and Xiaobao followed their grandparents back to the house to sleep.

Cheng Rushan reached out and touched Jiang Lin’s face, “Are you cold? Let’s go inside.”

Jiang Lin, wearing a light cotton jacket and wrapped in a wool blanket that Cheng Rushan had brought back for her, wasn’t cold at all.

She leaned her head on his shoulder, “Let’s sit a bit longer. The moon is so beautiful.”

The full moon hung in the sky like a silver plate, bright and clear.

She felt she could gaze at it all night without getting bored.

Of course, it was because he was by her side.

After their little spat at noon, she felt even closer to him, wanting to be with him every moment.

The night was cool as water, and Cheng Rushan held her in his arms.

They kissed under the moonlight.

He looked down at her, seeing the light in her eyes, and felt his heart become bright as well.

Jiang Lin had already washed up.

She climbed onto the bed and remembered there were a few letters to read.

She took them out.

The ones from Lu Hang and Qian Bo were in one envelope.

Qian Bo wrote about some changes in the city, while Lu Hang’s letter was similar to the previous one.

She was curious when she saw the last letter, which was from the school.

Upon opening it, she saw it was addressed to “Linlin.”

Jiang Lin recognized the handwriting immediately and quickly flipped to the last page to see the signature.

As expected, it was: “Yours, Tao.”

The handwriting of the two Bian Haitao’s was identical, which was quite a coincidence.

She felt a wave of disgust and wanted to tear it up, but she forced herself to skim through it.

The letter started with a very nostalgic and ambiguous greeting, followed by various memories of their past, detailing some very small incidents.

He wrote about how much he missed the past and hoped that it wasn’t just his one-sided feelings, hoping she still remembered their yesterdays.

However, he didn’t mention Meng Yiyi at all.

Jiang Lin pouted, thinking how shameless he was!

Feeling a bit guilty, she sneaked a glance at Cheng Rushan.

He was wiping his face and happened to look over, as if he had caught her doing something suspicious.

Jiang Lin quickly put the letters away nonchalantly, “Lu Hang and Jiang Xinglei wrote letters. Do you want to read them?”

Cheng Rushan noticed her slightly guilty look and knew something was up, but since she seemed to be acting normally, he didn’t expose her.

He smiled, “What did they say?”

Jiang Lin briefly summarized the letters, skipping over Lu Hang’s flowery compliments, which she found pretentious.

She put the letters away, placing them in a woven grass box on the windowsill.

Destroying Bian Haitao’s letter in front of Cheng Rushan wasn’t an option.

Cheng Rushan got onto the bed and glanced at the letters, “Did the school write to you?”

Jiang Lin replied, “Yes.”

She wasn’t sure how much Cheng Rushan knew about Bian Haitao.

Without a good opening to bring it up, she didn’t feel like discussing that scumbag and ruining the mood.

Cheng Rushan didn’t press further.

He never snooped through her things.

He understood Jiang Lin’s character well, and he knew everything about her past that she thought he didn’t.

He didn’t care about her past.

He spread out the blanket.

Jiang Lin asked, “Why did you change the direction?”

Cheng Rushan replied, “There’s a glass window here, so we can enjoy the moon.” He gave her a teasing look.

Jiang Lin blushed, but then reminded herself there was no need to be shy—they were married.

She pounced on him, pinning him against the windowsill, and touched his face, “Little brother, show big sister your beautiful body.”

Cheng Rushan: “…”

He leaned his elbows on the windowsill, letting her tease him.

Moonlight streamed through the glass, illuminating him with a gentle, flowing radiance.

Jiang Lin ran her hand over his body, “Tsk tsk, nice physique. Firm and beautiful, smooth muscles, just the right amount of strength and grace. Perfect combination of beauty and explosiveness…”

Even though she knew the letter was a prank by a certain someone, she still felt a twinge of jealousy.

Cheng Rushan: “…”

He locked eyes with her.

Her face, bathed in moonlight, was bright and clear, her eyes sparkling with a playful glint.

He spoke, his voice a bit husky, “Wife, you were about to cry when I didn’t tease you. Now you might be too happy to cry.”

She stubbornly retorted, “I will cry! You underestimate people. Given the differences between men and women, you—”

He tightened his grip on her waist, flipping her over in an instant, pinning her beneath him.

“Explosive power, huh?” He gazed at her.

The moon was at its zenith, and its light reflected in her eyes, resembling a shimmering lake, incredibly enticing.

He paused for a moment, then gently suppressed the waves of passion, treating her tenderly.

The gentle caress gradually turned into a storm, overwhelming her completely.

…

This time, Cheng Rushan stayed at home for six days.

When he left and returned, it was already the Double Ninth Festival on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month.

That morning, Jiang Lin was at home reviewing her lessons.

Now, she was fully focused on studying, awaiting news about the reinstatement of the college entrance exams.

When she felt tired from studying, she would get up and take a walk.

On a whim, she fiddled with the ten-tube radio that her brother had assembled, which could pick up foreign stations.

While tuning the radio, she suddenly heard a news announcement from Xinhua News Agency.

Jiang Lin was stunned.

Even though she had mentally prepared herself, hearing the news directly from the radio was incredibly shocking.

The central government had decided to reinstate the college entrance exams!

Although she had roughly known that the exams would be held at the end of November or early December, she still felt anxious without an official announcement.

What if this world didn’t follow the trajectory she knew? After all, some major events in this life were different from her previous one.

But now, it was confirmed!

Today was October 21st, and each province would set their own exam dates and questions.

She quickly tuned to the provincial radio station, but unfortunately, they hadn’t announced the specific exam dates for their province yet.

Just then, Wensheng, Dabao, and Xiaobao ran back, shouting, “Mom, Dad is back!”

Jiang Lin was so happy that she dropped her books and ran out with them.

She was genuinely overjoyed.

The reinstatement of the college entrance exams, the thing she had been preparing for so long, had finally been confirmed.

She no longer had to endure the agony alone.

Honestly, studying alone required a great deal of willpower and determination, and it was easy to slack off.

Fortunately, her self-control was quite good.

Cheng Rushan strode in from outside, and she and Dabao and Xiaobao quickly ran to meet him.

Dabao and Xiaobao were ready to jump into their father’s arms, but Jiang Lin was faster, leaping into Cheng Rushan’s arms first.

Cheng Rushan quickly caught her, laughing, “My wife is getting more enthusiastic.”

Xiaobao shouted, “Linlin, here I come!”

He immediately grabbed Jiang Lin’s leg and hung on, with Dabao following suit on the other leg.

So everyone watched as Jiang Lin hung onto Cheng Rushan, with Dabao and Xiaobao clinging to her legs.

The whole family!

Yan Runzhi quickly stopped Dabao and Xiaobao. “Get down, you’ll tire out your mom’s legs.”

Jiang Lin, who was hugging Cheng Rushan’s neck, was about to kiss him when she saw Dai Guohua coming over with something on his shoulder.

Her face turned red immediately.

Oh no, she got a bit carried away in her excitement.

She quickly said, “Put me down.”

Cheng Rushan teased, “Is my wife feeling shy?”

Jiang Lin quickly got down and greeted Dai Guohua.

She happily said, “Brother Guohua, I just heard on the radio that the central government is reinstating the college entrance exams. Your brother is a high school student, right? He can take the exams.”

Dai Guohua and Cheng Rushan both stared at her in disbelief.

Dai Guohua asked incredulously, “Linlin, really?”

Jiang Lin smiled with her eyes curved into crescents. “Of course, it was announced on the radio, Xinhua News Agency’s news. It will definitely be in the newspapers too.”

Cheng Rushan thought: She was so excited, but it turns out it wasn’t because I came back.

Yan Runzhi was thrilled, “Daughter-in-law, you had the foresight to study for the recruitment exam. Now you can take the college entrance exam. With such thorough preparation, you will definitely get in!”

Wensheng declared, “My mom will definitely pass!”

Dabao and Xiaobao were also very happy, circling around Jiang Lin. “Linlin is going to take the college entrance exam!”

Yan Runzhi said, “Daughter-in-law, does your uncle know? Quickly send a telegram to inform him.”

Jiang Lin smiled, “They definitely know already.”

In the provincial capital, there is a lot of news, and it was probably spreading a few days ago.

They won’t miss it.

The most pitiful ones are the educated youth and students in the countryside.

They work during the day, have no radios or newspapers, and can’t get the latest news.

They might not find out about the exams until right before they start.

Plus, it’s hard to buy books in the countryside.

Let alone exam guidelines and reference books, even basic textbooks are hard to find.

After graduation, many sold their books, and those who didn’t couldn’t keep them.

Only true book lovers would have kept their books.

She said, “I’ll go to the brigade to inform the accountant to announce it on the loudspeaker and notify all the educated youth and students.”

As Jiang Lin ran off with Dabao, Xiaobao, and Wensheng, Cheng Rushan said to Dai Guohua, “I need to get a household registration in the provincial capital.” It’s convenient for everything.

Dai Guohua was taken aback and said, “Rushan, you’re that confident…” That your wife will get in?

Is university so easy to get into?

Even when they allowed it before, out of a class of forty students, it was good if two got in, and one might be to a junior college.

Now, after so many years of not studying, suddenly taking the college entrance exam, how can you be so sure?

Cheng Rushan smiled. “Of course, my wife will get in.”