"Okay." Xie Xinlian was naturally happy. Her husband’s consideration was enough for her. "We’ll go to Yinkui’s house on the eighth day, and Jinkui’s on the tenth. I and Ani won’t go to those two places. You take An’nan with you."
No matter which house they visited, it was some distance away. They had to walk there, taking at least an hour and a half. Transportation nowadays was limited to bicycles or walking. Since their family didn’t own a bicycle, they could only walk.
"Fine, I’ll take An’nan." She knew her wife couldn’t go out with her for the next two years. Zhu Yanyi was currently studying with Xie Zhong. She wouldn’t join such boring social visits. So, she could only take Zhu Yanli.
Although it was still the first lunar month, Zhu Yanyi would not attend any further visits unless necessary. She packed up and went to the Xie house to study with Xie Zhong. Since she planned to start school in the second half of the year, she only had half a year of full-time study with Xie Zhong. Zhu Yanyi cherished this time. Although the Ruyi Space contained many books, none were basic. Even the "basic" books in the space were too profound for her. She needed to master real-world basics first to understand the space’s books.
Living at the Xie house, Zhu Yanyi studied with Xie Zhong during the day and secretly entered the space to study at night. Her progress was truly rapid. Xie Zhong believed Zhu Yanyi had great talent. Only Zhu Yanyi knew how much diligence she had put in.
On the tenth day, after breakfast, Xie Zhong took Zhu Yanyi out. Zhu Yanyi knew he was taking her to visit his friends. She actually didn’t know how Xie Zhong had friends. In her previous life, she hadn’t heard of them. Those people existed then, too. But in her previous life, neither the Zhu family nor the Xie family had anyone Xie Zhong considered worthy of sincere cultivation. Even if he loved Zhu Yanyi and her sisters, it was just a grandfather’s love for his granddaughters. There was nothing more. So, Xie Zhong never told his descendants about these people. But things were different now. With Zhu Yanyi’s unexpected presence, Xie Zhong’s life had changed. At least, his death two years later no longer existed. Given Zhu Yanyi’s displayed talent and her circumstances, she needed backing.
Xie Zhong held Zhu Yanyi’s hand. They walked slowly. Zhu Yanyi noticed they were heading to a remote area outside Gangan Village. There were indeed a few households here. Because they were far from the village center, Zhu Yanyi didn’t know who lived there.
The houses here were tall single-story buildings, each with an independent courtyard. There were about five or six households. The layout was interesting. The five or six households were built opposite each other along the road. Three on this side, three on the other. The house sizes were similar, and the heights were about the same. However, the courtyard layouts differed. Some planted fruit trees, some flowers, some herbs. Some even had rockeries. Each had its own charm. But Zhu Yanyi knew the people living here must have backgrounds.
After going through turbulent times, only those with backgrounds could live such comfortable lives.
Xie Zhong led Zhu Yanyi directly into a courtyard with a grape trellis. The trellis now only had bare vines. The leaves were long gone. Below, there was a table and several chairs. There was no dust on them, showing people often sat here.