Fu Junyan already had feelings for Ji Meng, now that she was close, he could clearly smell the fragrance that surrounded her. His heart raced uncontrollably, and as he watched her looking up at him with her shimmering, watery eyes while needing to ask a question, his throat suddenly felt dry. He swallowed hard and stood frozen for a moment before finally regaining his voice to reply:

“It’s in the alley, the location is a bit obscure and hard to find. If you need it, I can take you there in a day or two?”

“Today is the weekend, and the craftsman usually takes half a day off on Saturday afternoons.”

After he finished speaking, he suddenly realized that his voice sounded a bit off, and quickly added, “I’ll go put the dishes away first, we’ll talk later.” He hurriedly rushed to the kitchen with the dishes.

“Mengmeng, just leave this to Junyan. He’s got time these days, so you can find him if you need anything.”

Fu Yuanshan knew his son very well and understood why he had rushed away. Although he couldn’t bear to watch, he had to divert attention from his son, who almost embarrassed himself.

“Okay.”

At this moment, Ji Meng also realized that she had been a bit too hasty. If she hadn’t been concerned, she would have impulsively reached out to touch the leather shoes on Fu Junyan’s feet. Feeling awkward, she acknowledged and sat down on a small stool at the low table in the living room.

When adults chat, children often don’t understand and can become bored. Qiuqiu and Fu Junye were both polite kids and didn’t cause trouble, they sat on the small stools beside them, gradually dozing off, their little heads nodding and eventually leaning against each other.

Ji Meng caught sight of this and felt both amused and pained.

“Qiuqiu, Xiao Ye, are you sleepy? Do you want to go inside and take a nap?”

Upon hearing Ji Meng’s words, the adults suddenly realized they had ignored the children. The two little ones, startled awake by Ji Meng’s question, stood up in confusion, their eyes still wet and filled with bewilderment.

After a moment, Fu Junye realized he had fallen asleep in front of the adults, and his face turned red with embarrassment. He lowered his head, feeling annoyed for a while, but soon lifted it again and obediently said to Ji Meng:

“Thank you, Aunt Mengmeng. I’m not sleepy anymore, I don’t need to nap.”

Qiuqiu also came to her senses and hurriedly said, “Mom, Qiuqiu isn’t sleepy either.”

Not wanting to take a nap, especially on a rare weekend with guests at home, Qiuqiu wanted to play more and was eager to find a chance to win back the chess game she lost that morning.

“Don’t want to nap? Is it boring then?”

Fu Yuanshan hadn’t forgotten the plan for today. He glanced at the two kids, who had forced themselves awake at the mention of napping, and smiled as he spoke.

“Qiuqiu, do you like watching movies? Grandpa just got a few tickets for a new movie called ‘Four Little Friends.’ I’ve heard it’s quite good. Would you like to go see it?”

“Watch a movie?”

Qiuqiu had only gone to see one movie before with her dad when he was in the army. She was very young then and only remembered that the screen was huge, and there were people who talked and moved, she really liked it.

Qiuqiu nodded: “Mm, I like it!”

“Great! I’ll let your mom take you to see it.” Hearing this, Fu Yuanshan smiled and took out five tickets from his Zhongshan suit pocket.

“You young people can take the kids to watch the movie while I have a good chat with Old Ji. It’s been a while since we’ve had a chance to sit down and drink tea together, then we can go out and take a look later.”

With Fu Yuanshan’s suggestion, and since the kids also wanted to see the movie, Ji Meng couldn’t refuse, so it was settled.

After tidying up a bit, Ji Meng took Qiuqiu, Fu Qiyan took Fu Junye, and Fu Junyan drove them all to the cinema.

The Ji family lived in the city center, so the cinema wasn’t far away, it was only a ten-minute drive.

Upon arriving at the cinema, Fu Junyan bought sunflower seeds, soda, and candy. As they were about to go in to get tickets, Fu Junyan exchanged glances with Fu Qiyan.

Receiving his brother’s look, Fu Qiyan lowered his eyes briefly. After a moment, he finally raised his gaze and said:

“You guys go ahead, I need to stop by the office. There’s something I need to take care of.”

Ji Meng was momentarily taken aback, and before she could speak, Fu Junyan asked, “Big brother, you’re going to the office? What’s so important that it can’t wait until tomorrow?”

“Mm, I need to make a phone call in person.”

Fu Qiyan replied calmly, then turned his gaze to Ji Meng and said, “Sorry.”

“Uh, it’s okay, if you have work, go ahead.” Ji Meng quickly smiled and replied.

As adults, they understood what this apology implied, Ji Meng wasn’t surprised at all and felt a subtle sense of relief.

She had felt quite uncomfortable in the car earlier—going to the movies with one woman and two men plus two kids was indeed an odd combination.

“Brother Qiyan, if you’re busy, just go. We’re just here to accompany the kids to the movies, there’s no need to feel sorry.”

Fu Qiyan paused for a moment, gazing at Ji Meng as if to say something, but in the end, he said nothing, simply telling Fu Junyan to take good care of Fu Junye before nodding slightly to Ji Meng and turning to leave.

“Let’s go inside.” With his elder brother gone, Fu Junyan sighed in relief. He took Fu Junye’s hand and turned to smile at Ji Meng.

Ji Meng smiled back and led Qiuqiu inside.

The cinema in this era was relatively simple, with wooden chairs painted a reddish-brown color. Once inside, the air wasn’t very well ventilated.

However, the atmosphere was quite good and lively.

On the weekend, as the only cinema in the provincial capital, it was fairly crowded, almost full.

Ji Meng and Fu Junyan found their seats among the densely packed crowd with the two kids, and the movie began.

Movies from the 1980s had a distinct period flavor. Ji Meng rarely watched this kind of film and found it quite interesting. She turned to look at Qiuqiu, who was staring at the screen with wide eyes, not blinking. Ji Meng couldn’t help but smile.

At the same time, she sighed inwardly. She had been busy with work and making money lately and had somewhat neglected her daughter. She had just arrived in Hangzhou and should have taken her out more to see and explore, helping her get familiar and relax.

No matter how sensible she was, Qiuqiu was still just a little over four years old and shouldn’t have her playful nature stifled.

“How’s the movie?” Halfway through, Fu Junyan, who hadn’t spoken to Ji Meng, felt a bit anxious and couldn’t help but ask.

“Hmm? It’s fine. I don’t usually watch movies, so it feels fresh to see one now,” Ji Meng replied with a smile.

“As long as you can sit through it, that’s good. This movie is more geared toward children.”

Fu Junyan smiled in relief. He originally wanted to choose a romance film to watch with Ji Meng, but he felt that it would be difficult to invite her out without the kids present on their first outing.

“In fact, there are many romance films from Hong Kong, but they’re not allowed to be screened publicly now. If there’s a chance, I can take you to see one?” After some thought, Fu Junyan nervously rubbed his palms and spoke.

Hearing this, Ji Meng pressed her lips together lightly: “Brother Junyan, right now I just want to focus on doing a good job with the collective and taking care of Qiuqiu, I don’t have any other thoughts.”

Beside them, Qiuqiu glanced at her mother upon hearing this, then returned her gaze to the screen, lost in thought.

“I understand.”

Fu Junyan nodded, he wasn’t surprised by her answer.

With his eyes slightly lowered, he lightly touched the back of his teeth with the tip of his tongue. After a moment, he turned to Ji Meng again and said, “I can wait. We can talk when you have thoughts. For now, let’s be friends. If you have anything, you can tell me, and I can reach out to you if I have something too.”

The cinema was dimly lit, with only the light from the big screen illuminating the interior. They sat in the middle, where the light shone on Fu Junyan’s clear and handsome face, making the emotions hidden in his peach blossom eyes clearly visible.

Ji Meng remained silent.

Was Fu Junyan good?

Very good.

In terms of family background, looks, talent, and character, he was exceptional.

To be honest, if she had met him during a blind date in her past life, she would have agreed to give it a try without hesitation.

But now, knowing he was the original body’s greatest love and that he loved the original body back, she felt a knot in her heart.

His obsession and lack of love also made her hesitant.

Ji Meng was sure she didn’t have that much love to give this man.

She’s an orphan, and by nature, she was somewhat cold. The experiences she had gone through since childhood left her with fears she couldn’t overcome.

Ji Meng clenched her wrist, and after a moment, she raised her eyes: “I’m sorry…”

“Let’s not talk about this today, it’s important to accompany the kids!”

Fu Junyan interrupted Ji Meng. He could see her struggle and hesitation and didn’t want to push her or hear an answer he couldn’t accept.

Let’s leave it at that for now. At least for the time being, he still had hope.

Suppressing the sense of melancholy and disappointment in his heart, Fu Junyan smiled and said, “Speaking of which, I came today to thank you.”

“Uh? Thank me for what?”

“Thank you for mentioning that there were counterfeit Chinese herbs in Huicheng the other day. Because of your words, I sent that batch of medicine I brought back from Huicheng for inspection, and it turned out that eight types of herbs were fake…”

“So many?”

Ji Meng’s expression tightened. “Then your loss…”

“The loss is quite severe. I’ve put in a large portion of the money I’ve been working with this year.”

Fu Junyan smiled bitterly, then his expression relaxed a moment later.

“Fortunately, you reminded me, allowing me to send it for inspection in advance, preventing a serious trade incident. Otherwise, it wouldn’t just be about losing money…”

This was something Ji Meng hadn’t anticipated. Even according to the novel’s timeline, the counterfeit herb incident shouldn’t have happened so soon.

Was there something else going on?

Ji Meng furrowed her brows. “Is the only problematic batch the one you brought back? What about the other herbs traded from Huicheng recently?”

“Hmm, right now, it’s just this batch. What’s wrong?” Fu Junyan didn’t quite understand why Ji Meng was asking this.

“I feel that something isn’t right, but I can’t put my finger on it, it’s just a gut feeling.”

Ji Meng spoke honestly, then after a moment, she turned to Fu Junyan: “Brother Junyan, I have a suggestion. If you go to Huicheng again in the future, try to buy smaller batches of the herbs you need first and send them for inspection before making larger purchases.”

“Of course, it would be best if you could familiarize yourself with all the counterfeiting methods.”

Upon hearing this, Fu Junyan shook his head.

“It’s difficult to send for an inspection in advance. The prices of herbs fluctuate, and by the time the inspection process is completed, the herbs may have already lost their value, leading to a loss.”

“As for familiarizing myself with all the counterfeiting methods, I truly don’t know where to start.”

“I can help a bit with that. I can write down some common counterfeiting methods and identification techniques for herbs, and then you can familiarize yourself with those herbs more.”

“As long as you get familiar with the herbs and refer to this, it should be fine.”

“You understand Chinese herbs?”

Fu Junyan was taken aback, then he recalled what she had shared in detail that day at the restaurant and realized she had indeed intended to remind him.

Fu Junyan was moved, he tightened his grip and suppressed the emotions surging within him. He tilted his head slightly and said, “Thank you, Mengmeng.”

“What are you thanking me for? Our family only knows this much, I haven’t even thanked Uncle Fu and you for the help you’ve given us over the years. Plus, I heard from Dad that you’ve often come to visit him these past few years…” Ji Meng waved her hand, smiling.

After discussing the herbs, the atmosphere lightened up. Just then, the movie reached a climactic part, and the two focused on watching it.

The two-hour film finished, and it was already late when they left for the Ji family home.

The car stopped outside the alley. They had just gotten out and were about to enter when Fu Junye suddenly reached out, clutching his stomach in discomfort.

“Uncle, I need to go to the bathroom.”

“Ah?”

Fu Junyan was momentarily stunned, looking down at Fu Junye, whose small face was flushed red, clearly having held it in for a long time.

“You can’t hold it anymore? You little rascal, why didn’t you say you needed to go to the bathroom sooner?”

“Mengmeng, I’ll take him to the bathroom, you take Qiuqiu back first…”

Fu Junyan quickly said, grabbing his nephew and tucking him under his arm as he dashed toward the public restroom.

“Does Qiuqiu need to go to the bathroom?”

Watching the panicked uncle and nephew run off, Ji Meng looked down and asked Qiuqiu.

Qiuqiu shook her head: “Mom, Qiuqiu didn’t drink juice while watching the movie, so I don’t need to go to the bathroom.”

“Then let’s head back first.”

The public restroom wasn’t very close, and Ji Meng wasn’t sure whether Fu Junye needed to use the toilet for number one or number two. With people coming and going in the alley and possibly running into acquaintances, it wouldn’t be easy to wait here and explain if someone asked. Ji Meng reached out to take Qiuqiu’s hand and walked into the alley.

As they entered a side street and turned the corner, Qiuqiu suddenly stopped and looked at Ji Meng with her head tilted.

“Mom, does Uncle Junyan want to be Qiuqiu’s dad?”

Ji Meng was taken aback, she had specifically avoided certain words when talking with Fu Junyan earlier, yet Qiuqiu still picked up on it?

Ji Meng looked down at Qiuqiu. The little girl’s expression was calm, as if she were simply asking out of curiosity.

“Why do you ask that, Qiuqiu?”

“Mom, Qiuqiu isn’t like Sister Dandan from the village, she won’t oppose you marrying someone new.” Qiuqiu looked at Ji Meng earnestly without answering her question.

“Qiuqiu can feel that Uncle Junyan is a good person. He really likes Mom, so Qiuqiu doesn’t mind if Mom marries him, as long as he treats Mom well.”

“Mom, you don’t have to worry about Dad getting angry. It’s Qiuqiu who wants Mom to find a new dad. Qiuqiu will ask Dad to forgive…”

At the corner, Su Cheng had just approached when he heard his daughter’s words, causing him to pause for a moment.

“Can Qiuqiu tell Mom why she thinks that?” Ji Meng didn’t expect Qiuqiu to say such things. She bent down to touch her daughter’s head and asked.

“Why would you want to accept a new dad?”

Ji Meng knew that children from single-parent families were often sensitive and usually opposed to their parents finding someone new.

Because of their sensitivity, they worry about many things, fearing that the arrival of someone else would disrupt their existing peace and stability, and they especially dread the idea of new siblings from the new parents.

But Qiuqiu, on the other hand, was expressing the opposite opinion.

This was very strange, just like Qiuqiu’s happiness level that had reached 60% but hadn’t increased since then.

There had to be a reason for this.

Ji Meng originally thought it was because Qiuqiu was worried about not having enough money.

But these days, she had told her daughter how much money she was earning, and Qiuqiu knew they weren’t lacking in funds anymore.

“Qiuqiu, you should know that Mom can earn a lot of money. Even without a new dad, Mom can still take care of you. Why would you still want Mom to remarry and find a new dad?”

Qiuqiu hesitated for a moment upon hearing this. After a while, she lowered her eyes, tears rolling down like lines from her big eyes.

“Because then Mom wouldn’t have to work so hard, and her feet wouldn’t hurt anymore!”

Qiuqiu didn’t actually want a new dad, in her heart, there was only one dad.

Her sacrificed dad, her hero dad.

But she knew that her mom was struggling these days.

She woke up very early and came home late every day, her mom’s feet were swollen, and she had blisters on her big toes. Grandpa had even prepared foot-soaking medicine for her mom, but it didn’t help much. Whenever she secretly saw her mom like that, she felt like crying.

If there were a new dad, her mom wouldn’t have to work so hard.

As for her own dad, she could keep remembering him quietly in her heart.

Qiuqiu tightened her small hands, suppressing the urge to cry again, and looked at Ji Meng.

“Qiuqiu is growing up too slowly and can’t help Mom share the burden, so let’s find someone who can help Mom.”

Ji Meng immediately covered her mouth, her eyes welling up.

She didn’t realize that Qiuqiu knew about the blisters on her feet from the previous weeks.

During the busy time of helping Meng Ling clear out the clothing factory, she was overwhelmed.

Standing all day and having to walk around for sales work required her to wear dress shoes, so it was normal for her feet to hurt and develop blisters after a long day.

Although Ji Qinghe had prepared foot-soaking medicine for her, just soaking them without proper care didn’t yield much effect. Her blisters had worsened, sometimes causing her so much pain that she couldn’t sleep.

Fearing that Qiuqiu would find out, Ji Meng would only soak her feet after Qiuqiu had fallen asleep.

She didn’t expect that Qiuqiu had always known and felt sorry for her.

Ji Meng hugged Qiuqiu and cried uncontrollably. After a long while, she wiped away her tears with her hand, took a deep breath, and solemnly promised Qiuqiu:

“Baby, Mom will pay more attention from now on, work less hard, and take good care of herself. My feet won’t have blisters anymore, so don’t worry, okay?”

Seeing her mother cry, Qiuqiu reached out her small hand and wiped the tear marks from Ji Meng’s face.

“Mom, don’t cry. You need to take care of yourself from now on. No blisters and no bleeding on your feet.”

“Okay, Mom will do it.”

Ji Meng forced a smile, worried that passersby might see and question them. She took Qiuqiu’s small hand and stood up, saying, “Alright, let’s hurry back. We watched a movie today, and next week Mom will take you to the zoo, okay?”

“Yeah, okay!”

Qiuqiu agreed enthusiastically and was about to follow her mother when she suddenly heard a hoarse voice calling from behind, “Qiuqiu.”

Ji Meng and Qiuqiu turned their heads simultaneously and saw Su Cheng coming out from the corner of the alley.

In the afternoon, the alley was shaded and dim.

Not far away, the man stood backlit in a green military uniform, his figure tall and straight, broad and well-defined.

He had a pale, cold face that was strikingly handsome, with deep, well-defined features and piercing eyes that were both cold and profound.

At this moment, his deep, dark eyes were slightly red around the edges, and the piercing coldness had softened as he looked gently at Qiuqiu.

“Qiuqiu, Dad is back.”

“Dad!”

Qiuqiu rubbed her eyes vigorously to confirm that this wasn’t an illusion or a dream. She shouted and quickly ran toward Su Cheng!

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