I was married off to a disabled hero in lieu of marriage; my in-laws doted on me and I aspired to gr

Qiaoqiao and her mother took out the gifts they had prepared for Fenglin one by one.

Zheng Fenglin shouted happily at first, then his eyes reddened: "Qiaoqiao, I can't accept these. So many valuable things, just give me a thermos."

"This dress is your size, but I can't wear it. Look, I was afraid it would be too red and I wouldn't have a chance to wear it again, so I bought a light pink one. It's so pretty."

Qiaoqiao's mother picked up the dress and held it up against Fenglin, saying, "It fits perfectly, just right."

"It's a coincidence, even my mom isn't this nice to me."

"In Dashui Village, those women mocked me, and only you stood up for me. Fenglin, we are good sisters, and no matter how far apart we are, our friendship will never change," Qiaoqiao said sincerely.

"Fenglin, look at this quilt cover. I specially chose a bright red one."

Qiaoqiao's mother took out a silk quilt cover, which was embroidered with dragons and phoenixes, and was smooth, soft and very beautiful.

"It's so beautiful, even smoother than my face. I don't dare touch it, afraid my calluses will get caught on it."

Feng Lin gently touched it, feeling incredibly happy.

"Fenglin, Jintao's mother, is she good to you?" Qiaoqiao asked hesitantly.

"What's so good about it? You're still just as mean. But Jin Tao said that his mother scolded me and told me to scold her back. He also said that only I can control his mother, unlike you who are so gentle."

Something seemed off, so Fenglin quickly took back his words. Qiaoqiao said generously, "I'm not gentle, I'm cowardly. I really envy your ability to love and hate so fiercely."

Zheng Fenglin sighed, "Things have changed. Jin Tao, you're doing so well now, and Jin Tao has let go of the past."

"Brother Jintao is a benefactor to my family. He saved my grandmother and has helped my family behind the scenes. I will always remember this kindness."

Qiaoqiao changed the subject, afraid that Fenglin would feel uncomfortable.

"Auntie, did you tell Qiaoqiao about Grandma's illness? Luckily, those bad people were punished accordingly, otherwise, they would have been furious."

The world is cold and indifferent. Commander Zhou was injured, the village's experimental site was canceled, the pigs were enslaved, and Jin Tao was under tremendous pressure. Those wheat fields were still managed by each family.

"Qiaoqiao, if the land were contracted out to individual households, we could have enough to eat and wear, so why aren't we allowed to? I had ten Angora rabbits, and they were all taken away; not a single one was left for me."

Fenglin choked up when talking about things in the village.

She had planned to make a warm and lightweight cotton coat for Qiaoqiao once she had rabbit fur.

"I'm sorry, Fenglin. I didn't expect that my father-in-law's injury would affect so many people." Qiaoqiao felt very guilty.

"Why are you apologizing? It wasn't your fault, it was those snobs. It's okay, Jin Tao said he'll take the exam and get into an agricultural university, where there's a wider world to explore."

"Jin Tao is idealistic and sentimental. Feng Lin, you made the right choice in marrying him."

"Yes, in my heart, Jin Tao is a man who dares to take responsibility. Qiao Qiao, we will both get better and better."

Zhao Jintao spent the entire afternoon in his study, only coming out when called for dinner.

"Brother Jintao, don't you get a headache from reading all afternoon?" Qiaoqiao asked at the dinner table.

"It doesn't hurt. I have so much information to study. I still need to look at some more tonight."

This is the difference between a top student and a poor student; Qiaoqiao gets anxious just looking at those materials.

"Choose a few valuable books to take home and read. How much can you copy by copying like this?"

"No, you and Yang Zheng need to study too," Zhao Jintao refused.

"There's a lot of duplicate content, so we'll just keep one copy. By the way, the power will be cut off in the compound at 10 PM, so you can only watch it until then."

"Do you have a kerosene lamp at home?"

"I have candles. I'll get you two later, but don't stay up too late. You'll be going to the city to buy wedding supplies tomorrow."

"Yes, yes, I know what I'm doing."

"You and my brother will definitely pass the exam. I know nothing about those complicated math and physics subjects."

"Since you're studying humanities, you just need to understand math. Don't bother with the really difficult problems. Out of a hundred tests, sixty points are easy; just get sixty points," Zhao Jintao advised.

"And my English isn't good either, I definitely won't pass the exam, but my brother insisted that I try." Qiaoqiao pouted.

"You all have a weak foundation, but we learn ahead of time, which gives us an advantage over others. You can do it," Zhao Jintao encouraged.

"But you're studying so hard, will the college entrance exam ever be reinstated?" Zheng Fenglin asked doubtfully.

"My brother's mentor said that news has already come out from within: the first step will be the resumption of the college entrance examination, and the second step will be reform and opening up. My father's old superior has also been transferred to a local position to take charge of work. The military is being merged, and most soldiers are being demobilized and returned to their units. The college entrance examination will definitely be resumed; it's just a matter of time," Qiaoqiao said earnestly.

"Yang Zheng said the same thing in his letter to me, and his friends in Shanghai also wrote to him about it." Zhao Jintao was convinced that the college entrance examination would be reinstated.

"You're all college students, and all I know how to do is dig the ground," Zheng Fenglin said, somewhat disappointed.

"You can raise rabbits? Don't underestimate raising rabbits, it's a technical college too. Look at Yang Zheng's master, an eighth-level fitter, he's really amazing, and he didn't even go to college."

Zhao Jintao smiled indulgently, and Qiaoqiao chimed in, "That's right, Wenhui's prosthetic leg was made by my brother and his master together. I doubt even a college student could make it."

"So, everywhere is a university. Auntie, your cooking is a university too, it's the best!"

Zheng Fenglin laughed, and Qiaoqiao's mother said awkwardly, "You child, cooking is a university degree, and so is farming. Everyone in Dashui Village is a university student."

"You could say that farming requires wisdom; haphazard planting yields no harvest."

"Haha, yes, we're all college students."

At night, Fenglin slept with Qiaoqiao, while Zhao Jintao slept in the study.

On the bed, Fenglin touched Qiaoqiao's belly and said, "When you got married, your aunt was worried that you wouldn't have children. Look, your belly is so big now. Qiaoqiao, now that you have a child, Wenhui can walk again. Your choice back then was right."

"There's no right or wrong here. I married Zhou Wenhui because I wanted my brother to get a job in the factory and my father to be able to hold his head high."

"It's fortunate that you got married, otherwise Zhao Jintao would have been left to me."

"Fenglin, you mustn't say that. In my heart, Jintao is my own brother."

"So, am I your sister-in-law or your best friend?"

"Yes, yes, it's all good, it's a double blessing, alright?"

"Haha, okay, we all need to take good care of ourselves."

"I'm so tired," Fenglin said, and then started snoring.

Zhao Jintao is really good at learning. When Qiaoqiao's mother called him to eat breakfast, he was still copying notes.

"Brother Jintao, you didn't sleep all night?" Qiaoqiao asked in surprise.

"I felt like every part was a knowledge point, so I couldn't help but look at it for a while longer, and before I knew it, it was dawn."

"You're aiming for Tsinghua or Peking University."

"No, it's because I don't understand, I don't know how, and I was anxious, so I wanted to take a look more." Zhao Jintao smiled sheepishly.

"Have you selected any materials? Take a few back with you; we can buy more if we need them."

"I took a look and found two books explaining difficult physics and chemistry problems from past college entrance exams. I'll take one back with me."

"Choose two more books, and you can take them with you. That way, I won't have to do so many questions."

"Then, I'll bring another math book. I have some materials sent by Yang Zheng at home, so two books should be enough."

"Okay, I'll send you any new information later. If you need anything, have Fenglin write to me."

"Okay, thank you, Qiaomei."

After breakfast, Zhao Jintao and Zheng Fenglin were heading to the city. Zheng Fenglin carefully put the gift Qiaoqiao had given him into his bag, while Zhao Jintao put the book into his bag like a precious treasure.

After waving goodbye, Qiaoqiao saw them to the door and said, "Fenglin, I can't go back for your wedding. I wish you and Brother Jintao a long and happy life together."

"Thank you, we will."