The game of power begins with the police officers at the local police station.

As dawn broke, Jiang Yiqiu got up, checked her watch, and saw it was only 7:30. She had been in a state of high excitement lately, in excellent spirits, sleeping only five or six hours a day, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't fall asleep.

After washing up and putting on makeup, it took more than half an hour to get ready, while Chen Shi was still fast asleep.

Jiang Yiqiu woke Chen Shi up: "Honey, get up, it's past eight o'clock."

Chen Shi was woken up, still groggy, and rubbed his sleepy eyes: "I'm so sleepy, it's still early, I'll sleep a little longer."

"It's getting late, a little past eight. I'll get up, tidy up, and have breakfast. It'll be a little past nine. The weather is overcast, and there's a lot of fog below Shangying Town, so we can't drive fast at all. It'll take at least two hours to get back, and I won't get home until after eleven."

Chen Shi really wanted to sleep. He had trouble getting up, especially in winter, when he always liked to sleep in and was extremely reluctant to sit up.

"I bought a lot of things to take back to your parents, take them with you first."

Jiang Yiqiu carried large and small bags downstairs. The apartment building had seven floors but no elevator. Jiang Yiqiu's apartment was on the fifth floor. He made four trips back and forth to move everything, filling the car completely. The trunk was full, and the back seats were also full, leaving only the driver's seat and the front passenger seat empty.

Despite the temperature being -4 degrees Celsius today, Jiang Yiqiu was still covered in sweat. When he got home, he took off his down jacket.

After washing up, Chen Shi asked, "Where are your things? I'll get them for you."

"I've taken them all." Jiang Yiqiu checked the time; it was already nine o'clock.

"Let's go out for breakfast."

Jiang Yiqiu grabbed his down jacket and headed outside. Chen Shi called out, "It's cold outside, put your down jacket on."

"I'm hot, I'll put it on later."

Chen Shi was driving, Jiang Yiqiu was in the passenger seat, and Shen Xiaorong was standing by the window watching the car disappear from sight. She suddenly felt depressed and longed for a home.

Last night, she really wanted to tell Chen Shi that she wanted to go back to his hometown for the New Year, but seeing that Jiang Yiqiu was obviously jealous, she didn't want to put Chen Shi in a difficult position, so she didn't say anything.

As the car drove out of the school, Jiang Yiqiu pointed to a snack shop next to the school: "We'll have breakfast here. Their clay pot rice noodles are delicious."

Chen Shi stopped the car, and the two got out and went into the snack shop. The owner recognized Jiang Yiqiu and greeted him warmly: "Principal Jiang, haven't you gone home for the New Year yet?"

"Going back today"

"What would you like to eat?"

Jiang Yiqiu looked at Chen Shi: "What would you like to eat?"

"Give me a bowl of clay pot rice noodles."

Jiang Yiqiu said to the owner, "Two bowls of rice noodles in a clay pot."

The clay pot rice noodles were served quickly, and Chen Shi took a bite: "Delicious!"

Jiang Yiqiu ate heartily, but then ate slowly and deliberately, taking small bites. After eating only half, he put down his chopsticks, saw that Chen Shi had finished his soup, and stood up to pay the bill.

The owner smiled broadly: "Principal Jiang, it's our honor to have you come to our snack shop. Your presence is like giving us free massages. Business is booming because of you. How can we ask for your money if we don't pay you for your massages?"

"You're in business, here's the money." Jiang Yiqiu put down twenty yuan, turned and left.

The two got into the car, and Chen Shi said, "Let's go."

Jiang Yiqiu glanced at his watch; it was 9:20. "It's getting late. I probably won't get back until midnight."

"No need, it'll be eleven o'clock at the latest." Chen Shi stepped on the gas, and the car sped away.

"Slow down, the road might be icy, safety first," Jiang Yiqiu reminded.

After leaving the county town, it takes about ten minutes to reach Heyuan Town, and about twenty minutes to reach Shangying Town.

The most difficult part is the road from Shangying Town to Fushan Town. The mountain road is rugged with many bends. In winter, the weather is cold and foggy, with extremely low visibility, sometimes less than five meters, making it impossible to drive fast.

After passing Shangying Town, the car slowed down from over 70 km/h to over 30 km/h. There was still ice on the road, and Jiang Yiqiu kept reminding him to drive slower.

As Chen Shi drove, he thought to himself that it took too long to get from the county seat to the towns below. If he were to become a leader in the county, the first thing he would do would be to build a highway connecting the county seat to the towns below.

The phone rang, and Jiang Yiqiu picked it up and saw: "It's your dad calling."

Jiang Yiqiu answered the phone and placed it on the stand.

"Xiao Shi, what time will you be back?"

"I'm back, on my way."

"Where are you? We're cooking and waiting for you. Your sister and brother-in-law are here too. They knew you were coming back, so they rushed back from Laoyan Town early this morning."

"We've come down from Shangying Town."

"The fog is heavy and the roads are icy, so drive slowly."

After hanging up the phone, Chen Shi said, "Let's go back to our house first, and then we'll go to your house this afternoon."

Jiang Yiqiu looked at Chen Shi: "Okay, I'll listen to you."

A short while later, Jiang Yiqiu's phone rang; it was Zhang Qingrong calling.

"Xiao Qiu, when are you coming back? I'll cook for you."

"Mom, we've arrived in Shangying Town. Don't wait for us. We're going to Chen Shi's house first and we'll be back this afternoon."

"Drive slower, the fog is so thick you can't see the road."

It's more than 30 kilometers from Shangying Town to Fushan Town, and it took a full hour to get there.

We didn't stop in Fushan Town, but went straight back to Qinghe Village, which took another twenty minutes.

The brothers Chen Jianhua and Chen Jianyong, upon learning that Chen Shi was coming back, waited at the door early in the morning.

Chen Shi stopped the car, and Chen Jianyong jogged over and opened the door: "Xiao Shi's back."

Chen Shi got out of the car, Chen Ai and Zhang Gao came out, and Chen Xing and Wang Xiufen followed, carrying Xiao Huihui.

They all greeted Chen Shi and Jiang Yiqiu.

Wang Guahua led Xiaomile and Chen Yanshi out, Wang Guihua beaming, "My little one's back!"

Chen Shi hadn't returned for a year. Upon seeing Wang Guihua, he immediately called out, "Mom!"

Xiaomi Le shook off Wang Guihua's hand and ran towards Chen Shi: "Uncle, you're back."

Chen Shi picked up Xiaomi Le and said, "Xiaole has grown taller."

"Uncle, I'm in kindergarten now. After the New Year, in September, I'll be going to primary school."

Jiang Yiqiu opened the trunk. Suddenly, she didn't know what to call Chen Yanshi and Wang Guahua. She couldn't bring herself to call them Mom and Dad, and she felt it was inappropriate to call them Uncle and Aunt. She had registered her marriage with Chen Shi.

He forced himself to say, "Mom and Dad, this is a gift I brought for you."

Wang Xiufen glanced at Jiang Yiqiu and thought, "How shameless! He's not even married into the Chen family yet, and he's already calling them Mom and Dad."

Wang Guihua said with a smile, "Yiqiu, there are so many things, take some back to your parents."

A few days ago, Xiao Shi brought back two truckloads of stuff; we can't even fit it all at home.

Jiang Yiqiu smiled and said, "It's not much, just some tonics. Keep them and eat them slowly. They have a good shelf life and can be stored for several years."

Wang Xiufen looked at these things; they were all valuable. She wouldn't normally buy them for herself, but she had to take some back for her parents.

Chen Jianhua, Chen Jianyong, and Chen Xing helped carry the things.

Chen Shi looked at the newly built house, two and a half stories high, just like the houses built in the village. It wasn't luxurious, but Chen Shi was very satisfied.

Chen Ai and Zhang Gao walked over. Chen Ai said, "The house was designed by your brother-in-law. It's over 280 square meters in total. The first floor wasn't decorated much. It was left for my parents to store their food. Only the kitchen and bathroom were on the first floor. My parents are old and it's inconvenient for them to go upstairs. Their bedroom was also designed on the first floor."

The second floor is beautifully decorated. Xiao Shi, why don't you go up and take a look?

Xiaomile exclaimed, "Uncle, didn't you bring me any toys?"

Jiang Yiqiu, who was standing nearby, said, "Xiaomi Le, your aunt brought it for you."

Jiang Yiqiu handed the scooter to Xiaomi Le.

Chen Shi put Xiaomi Le down. Xiaomi Le, holding her scooter, looked at Chen Shi and pouted, "Uncle didn't buy me any toys."

Chen Ai said, "Your uncle and aunt are family. If your aunt buys it for you, it means your uncle is buying it for you too."

Xiaomi Le was then happy and took Xiao Huihui to play on the scooter.