Song Tingxiu( Song Laoer) didn’t have much of a vacation. After the family division, it was time for her to leave.

Before leaving, she had planned to take care of her older brother’s widow and orphans.

However, neither Old Lady Song nor Su Xiangwan would give her this chance.

The women of the village were keeping a close eye on her.

As soon as Su Xiangwan went out to work during the day, she always found a woman to accompany her.

At night, she even specifically invited the unmarried Tao Hongwu to stay with her, refusing to be alone.

A month passed, and Old Lady Song turned the story of the family division into a dramatic performance, making it seem like Su Xiangwan had been ruthless, taking all of her money and being malicious.

She even portrayed how much she loved Tingxiu.

However, the villagers weren’t convinced.

Su Xiangwan appeared honest—she closed the door when it got dark, worked on time, and never lingered outside.

Of course, the changes in the children, Ludan and Goudan, were particularly noticeable.

They no longer carried manure baskets and no longer smelled bad.

Moreover, there was a separate water tank at the labor reform station where Su Xiangwan lived.

Every day she would fetch water and give the children baths.

Ludan was fine, but Goudan’s skin turned much lighter, revealing that he wasn’t actually dark-skinned but had just been dirty.

Today, on the 15th of August, the commune was giving each family half a pound of fine flour and two eggs as a bonus.

Su Xiangwan, following the principle of avoiding trouble before Song Qingshan returned, didn’t go herself but sent Ludan and Goudan with Fang Baoyu to get the eggs.

When the children returned with the eggs, she looked at them and was shocked—they were so small, like quail eggs.

As for the flour, there was no more than three taels, barely enough for one meal of noodles.

However, with those two eggs, Su Xiangwan didn’t need to go all the way to the commune to buy eggs today.

She didn’t go to work either.

She steamed the eggs to make a cake and fed it to Zhi Zhi, giving a little bit of the broth to Goudan and Ludan.

They sat with their eyes fixed on the main road, waiting.

Though the children didn’t know who their mother was waiting for, they could feel her anticipation, so they squatted by the road, eagerly waiting too.

“Mom, is it this person?” A middle-aged man riding a bicycle appeared, the wheels spinning as he approached.

Ludan thought it might be him—this man looked like a cadre.

“Mom, is it this person?” he asked.

Su Xiangwan looked up and said, “No.” He looked to be in his forties, so it definitely wasn’t Song Qingshan.

After a while, a few more people walked by, heading elsewhere. Su Xiangwan went out to look but said, “Not them either.”

The children’s curiosity grew even more.

“Mom, is anyone else coming?” Ludan wiped the sweat off his forehead. It was noon, and he didn’t want to go home.

Goudan stared for a while, then suddenly shouted, “Mom, is it Zhao Cadre? Zhao Cadre is here!”

Zhao Guodong had been going around the village looking for a matchmaker, and recently, with Song Guangguang’s promotion, he had even applied to be the head of the local team in Songjia Village.

Everyone knew why—he was trying to pursue Su Xiangwan.

Su Xiangwan had been giving Zhao Guodong cold treatment lately and responded loudly, “No.”

But Zhao Guodong had already reached the door. “Comrade Su, come out. Let’s meet. I’m serious. I need to talk to you.”

What did he need to talk about? It was just his persistent pursuit of her.

Su Xiangwan was getting annoyed with Zhao Guodong.

Between a man and a woman, if the woman rejects once, that should be enough.

Why did he keep pestering her?

“Zhao Cadre, I’m not interested in you. Please stop coming to my house, okay?” Su Xiangwan said coldly.

Zhao Guodong said, “But your husband has been dead for two years now. I think there’s nothing wrong with you starting a new life. Our family isn’t lacking in anything.”

“My husband…” Su Xiangwan smiled and was about to finish her sentence when suddenly, a loud shout came from outside the door: “You heartless woman, you took my son’s pension and married a man, trying to take my two grandsons away. Su Xiangwan, you’ve lost your conscience, you’ve betrayed me!”

Old Lady Song, full of authority, barged in.

Behind her were Song San, Fang Baoyu, Song Qingyu, and a few children.

The whole family came to bully a widow and her child.

Goudan was standing by the road, and when he saw the angry crowd coming, he didn’t hesitate and kicked Old Lady Song far away.

Well, Old Lady Song, though fifty-six, had good family conditions, good nutrition, and a strong physique.

She couldn’t really be called an elderly person.

After the kick, Goudan rolled several times in the street before finally stopping.

Su Xiangwan was furious and immediately grabbed a stick to rush over: “Old lady, why are you hitting my son?”

“You still dare to say that’s your son? You took my son’s 420 yuan pension and should have remained a widow for life. Just a few days after the division of property, you’ve already been flirting with men! I heard this man has been going around the village looking for a matchmaker, huh, he doesn’t even think about whose daughter-in-law this is!”

Normally silent, Song San also grabbed a stick: “Sis-in-law, don’t act rashly. This stick doesn’t have eyes.”

“We’ve already split the family. What right does your Song family have to interfere with me? If I want to go to heaven, that’s my business!” Su Xiangwan retorted.

“You took my big brother’s pension. Not only can we interfere, but we can also beat you,” Song Laosan insisted.

Old Lady Song suddenly jumped up, “San’er, go inside and take the money. Qingyu, Baoyu, grab the children. Don’t leave anything for her, just leave her alone here to work!”

Qingyu and Baoyu each took one child and went to grab the two boys.

As for Song Laosan, he was sly, and in a flash, he rushed straight towards the labor reform station.

Su Xiangwan shouted, “Zhao Guodong, stop Song LaoSan! Don’t let him into my house!”

Her house had 400 yuan in a savings account, and Song Laosan was clearly here to steal money.

Zhao Guodong, who had come to propose to her, had never witnessed such scenes. But being a cadre, he stepped forward and blocked Song Laosan at the entrance of the labor reform station.

Song Qingyu tried to grab Goudan, but he bit her hand, and the child, as if mad, broke free and charged straight at Old Lady Song.

Meanwhile, Ludan, who had been caught by Fang Baoyu, headbutted her in the nose, causing her to crouch down with a cry of pain.

The two children were fierce, charging at Old Lady Song almost simultaneously.

One came from the front, the other from behind.

Old Lady Song was knocked back with a cry, but she quickly grabbed Ludan and slapped him hard several times.

Then, she kicked Goudan twice.

Su Xiangwan’s mind went blank, and she immediately struck Old Lady Song with a stick.

“You… you dare to hit me?” Old Lady Song screamed and charged at Su Xiangwan.

Su Xiangwan had taken advantage of the chaos to strike, and as soon as she saw Old Lady Song chasing after her, she turned and ran.

Fang Baoyu, preparing to drag Goudan, was struck by a flurry of blows to her head from Su Xiangwan, who helped Goudan to his feet.

Goudan, with a missing tooth, struggled to stand and said, “Mom, mom, I’m fine, really, I can protect you.” He spread his arms protectively.

Old Lady Song yelled, “Goudan, hurry up and go home to scoop up the manure. You’re not behaving, you unruly grandson. I’ll take care of you!”

Goudan’s eyes darkened, his fists clenched, and suddenly he stood up and stormed towards Old Lady Song.

Grandma Song slapped him, but he didn’t dodge, moving forward.

She slapped again, and he still didn’t move.

His gaze was filled with such fury that it seemed like he would really stab her if he had a knife.

The intense and vengeful look in his eyes frightened Su Xiangwan.

Without thinking, she ran and knocked Old Lady Song to the ground.

Just then, the sound of a tractor approached. A man jumped off the tractor from afar and rushed toward Old Lady Song.

“Mom, what’s going on?” the man said, holding Old Lady Song.

Song Laosan, Fang Baoyu, and the others were stunned.

No way! It’s impossible!

Song Qingshan, who had been dead for two years, was back!

Su Xiangwan wiped her face, quickly jumped onto the tractor that Song Qingshan had driven back, and started driving it.

Who said she was waiting for a man?

What she had been waiting for was the tractor that Song Qingshan brought back.

According to the story, the things that Song Qingshan brought back could make the Song family wealthy for many years.

How wealthy?

When everyone was starving in the hungry season, Song Laosan could go into town and bring back big slabs of fatty meat.

The whole family would eat so well they were practically drooling when going outside.

People said that it was the treasures Song Qingshan brought back that allowed the family to eat meat even when food was scarce.

Never mind other things, she had to get that tractor into the house first.

“Goudan, Ludan, hurry and open the door. Mom needs to get the tractor in!” Su Xiangwan called out, driving straight to the labor reform station.

Ludan and Goudan were still putting down the door threshold while looking back. “Mom, Mom, who was the person carrying Grandma? And where did this tractor come from? Why are we driving it back to our house?”

Su Xiangwan drove the tractor into the yard and quickly shut the two big doors.

She peered through the crack of the door and said, “That is your father, the martyr Song Qingshan.”

Well, the man was wearing a green military uniform from the 65 model, but there were no red shoulder straps.

He looked to be at least 1.8 meters tall, with slightly dark skin and thick, firm eyebrows. He helped Grandma Song to her feet, listening to her chattering, while also looking over toward this side.

His gaze wasn’t as sharp as Song Tingxiu’s, but there was a kind of determination that other men didn’t have.

This was the father of the male protagonist in the original book, Song Qingshan.

Su Xiangwan let out a small breath, smiling with a curve of her lips.

He was so handsome!

The man outside was tall, with striking looks, almost like a leading man from a movie of the 1980s.

Not only was he not dead, but he also brought back a truckload of treasures.

And now, being the first to act, that truckload of treasures belonged to Su Xiangwan.