I feel right at home in the world of the courtyard house.

On the outskirts of Huairou, Qin Huairu's eldest and second eldest brothers had been waiting by the roadside for quite some time.

Two days ago, Qin Huairu sent a letter saying that she was leaving to go back to her parents' home early this morning. The two brothers arrived before dawn, not daring to delay for even a moment.

This was Qin Huairu's first visit to her parents' home since becoming a widow. Since Jia Dongxu's death, the two families had only met once, at the funeral, and the siblings had grown quite estranged. Therefore, the two brothers were especially attentive to their sister's return.

"Big brother, look, the bus is coming, isn't it this one?" The second brother, with sharp eyes, pointed to the green bus slowly approaching in the distance and turned to shout to his eldest brother.

The older brother squinted, looked in the direction the bus had come from, and nodded repeatedly: "It's about this time, it must be the bus she took, no doubt about it."

A moment later, the bus came to a smooth stop in front of the two people, and the door opened with a "creak".

Qin Huairu, carrying large and small bags, slowly walked down from the front door. She immediately spotted her two older brothers by the roadside, and a genuine smile spread across her face as she called out loudly, "Big brother, second brother!"

"Huai Ru!" Her two older brothers rushed over to greet her, looking her over from all angles, their voices full of concern. "Huai Ru, was the journey quite bumpy? Was it relatively smooth?"

"Hey, it's not far, just a short ride by car, there's no problem with it," Qin Huairu replied with a smile, handing the heavy object in her hand to her brother. "Here, big brother, help me carry this, it's really heavy."

She was carrying a cloth bag in one hand and a bulging grain sack in the other. Her arms were slightly red from being tied up, and the sack looked quite heavy.

"Why did you bring things back? What kind of year is this? Your family isn't doing well either. You're still a rural resident, so you don't have a ration quota," the older brother scolded.

Qin Huairu's heart sank suddenly, and she felt secretly annoyed.

Oh no, how could I have forgotten such a big thing?

Since getting a permanent position last year, she submitted her household registration application, but then completely forgot about it. She had no idea where the paperwork was stuck, as there was still no progress. Come to think of it, since transferring to the guesthouse, things at home had gradually improved; the previous struggle to make ends meet was over, and her sense of crisis had lessened, causing her to forget about such an important matter. When she got back, she had to talk to Li Jing'an and ask him to help urge them on; this matter couldn't be delayed any longer.

The older brother took the sack of grain, weighed it in his hand, and couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "Wow, it's so heavy! Hey, you didn't bring back your own family's food rations, did you? It looks like it weighs thirty or forty pounds!"

The second brother reached out and lifted the cloth bag next to him, peeked inside, and his eyes widened instantly.

Inside the pocket lay a large piece of fresh pork belly, several neatly packaged packets of brown sugar, and a few handfuls of thin noodles. In those days, thin noodles were a real rarity; ordinary families might not even be able to afford a bite during festivals.

The second brother was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but ask, "Huai Ru, why did you bring back so many expensive things? How much money did this cost?"

Qin Huairu waved her hand with a smile, her tone light and confident: "Brother, life is much better now! I transferred to work at a guesthouse in the city. Not only do I have a stable salary, but I can also help out-of-towners exchange tickets, so I can save up a little money. I haven't been back to my parents' home for the past few years, so I'm definitely going to buy a lot of things since I'm finally here. Otherwise, the villagers will gossip and say that I'm like water spilled from a cup after marriage, forgetting my roots."

After saying that, she took one of her brothers' arms with each hand and walked excitedly toward the village three or four hundred meters away by the roadside.

Along the way, she was dressed smartly and carrying nice things in her hands. Before she had gone far, a long string of villagers who came to watch the spectacle followed behind her, dragging along like a long tail.

Qin Huairu had a sweet tongue and greeted each of her uncles, aunts, and grandfathers along the way.

The women and older women who had gathered around huddled together, whispering amongst themselves, their voices filled with curiosity and doubt:

"Didn't her husband die? She became a widow at such a young age."

"Yeah, I think it's been about two years, right? How come life seems to be getting better and better after her husband died?"

"Could she have secretly remarried?"

"I haven't heard any news about this, not a whisper of it..."

The whispers drifted intermittently into her ears, but Qin Huairu paid them no heed. With a beaming smile, she walked proudly into her parents' courtyard.

She made a point of wearing the guesthouse's uniform today: a gray collared blouse and neat straight-leg trousers. Her clothes were clean and tidy. Among the villagers, all dressed in coarse cloth and old clothes covered in patches, she stood out like a crane among chickens.

Qin Huairu felt a surge of pride, secretly thinking: If she hadn't been transferred to the guesthouse and was still wearing that old, greasy, and tattered work uniform from the steel mill, how could she be so presentable today? This new work uniform was something she specially wore back to save face and make a good impression.

As soon as they entered the courtyard, Qin Huairu's mother rushed out of the house to greet them, hugging her daughter tightly, tears streaming down her face, heartbroken. Her two sisters-in-law also quickly came over, gently comforting their mother-in-law.

"Mom, why are you crying? I'm perfectly fine now, aren't I? I'm safe and sound, without any illness or disaster." Qin Huairu gently patted her mother's back, soothing her softly.

Qin's mother wiped away her tears, her face full of heartache: "Oh, my poor daughter, widowed at such a young age, she has to take care of her mother-in-law and raise three young children all by herself, her life is so hard!"

"Mom, don't cry. Look at me now, I'm doing great. If I weren't doing well, I wouldn't have the time or money to come back and see you."

Qin Huairu coaxed her for a while, and with her two sisters-in-law constantly persuading her, Qin's mother's emotions gradually calmed down.

Qin Huairu smiled, took a step back, opened her arms, and twirled gently. Her eyes crinkled as she asked, "Mom, sister-in-law, do you see any difference in me now?"

"Wow, look at these clothes! They're so neat and stylish! They look impressive!"

"Let me touch it too. This material feels so smooth and doesn't rub against my hands. What kind of good material is it?"

The two women's eyes lit up, and they looked around her work clothes with admiration, unable to resist reaching out to gently touch them, their faces full of envy.

"It's nothing, just the kind of material that's fashionable in the city, durable." Qin Huairu said casually, but she was extremely proud of herself. Before, when she worked at the steel mill, she wore coarse cloth work clothes that were stiff, rough, and always covered in grease stains that she could never get clean. Now, the work clothes at the guesthouse were made of polyester, crisp, bright, and presentable. Compared to her old days, it was a world of difference.

Seeing her daughter looking so presentable, Qin's mother wondered how her life had suddenly improved so much, but she didn't ask too many questions, afraid of touching on her daughter's difficulties. She quickly pulled her into the house.

"Huai Ru, your dad's home. That old man has been missing you for a while, but he just wouldn't say it. Now that he knows you're coming, he's stuck inside and won't come out. He just likes to pretend."

Qin Huairu's eyes crinkled with laughter after hearing this, and she followed her mother toward the main room.

As soon as the group entered the main room, they saw Qin's father squatting on a small stool, puffing on his pipe, his brows slightly furrowed, as if he were in a daze.

"Father, I'm back." Qin Huairu quickly stepped forward and greeted him softly.

Mr. Qin glanced at her, his eyes lighting up, but he quickly concealed it and said casually, "You're here? Have a seat."

But his hand gripping the pipe tightened slightly, his fingertips turning white. Anyone could see that he was not at peace, he just wasn't good at expressing it.

Qin Huairu understood her father's temperament best and didn't mind, simply standing aside with a smile.

The eldest and second eldest brothers gently placed the grain bags and cloth bags they were carrying on the table. Qin Huairu quickly took out a pack of Daqianmen cigarettes from her pocket and hurriedly handed it to her father: "Dad, please smoke this."

Qin's father subconsciously took the cigarette, but when he looked down, his eyes widened in shock. He recognized it as Daqianmen, a truly high-quality cigarette, not something ordinary people could afford. He quickly waved his hand and shrank back, saying, "I... I'm not used to this good cigarette. I'm more comfortable smoking my dry tobacco."

"What's there to smoke? Just smoke it, don't be stingy." Qin Huairu forced the cigarette into her father's hand without saying a word, then turned and pointed to the cloth bag on the table, saying to her mother, "Mom, there's a piece of meat in here. We'll stir-fry some for lunch, and you can keep the rest for yourselves. Don't hoard it."

Qin's mother and her two sisters-in-law rushed over, lifted the cloth bag, and were instantly stunned.

That piece of pork belly, with its five layers of fat and three layers, weighed a good five pounds. It was glossy, tender, and fresh, and in those years of scarcity, it looked incredibly appealing.

Qin's mother couldn't help but lower her voice and ask, "Huai Ru, this must have cost a lot of money and tickets, right? Will your mother-in-law agree to let you take so many things back to your parents' home?" She had met Jia Zhangshi a few times, and although she wasn't familiar with her, it was hard to believe that her mother-in-law would be so generous as to take out such a large piece of meat in this year's climate.

"Mom, don't worry, I told my mother-in-law beforehand, and she specially went to the early market to buy it for me," Qin Huairu replied with a smile, her tone composed.

Qin's mother still had some doubts, but she didn't ask any more questions, afraid of spoiling her daughter's mood.

Qin Huairu patted the grain bag at her feet and said to her parents with a smile, "Dad, Mom, there are still forty catties of cornmeal here, and a few catties of thin noodles in the bag. You can keep them and eat them slowly."

The Qin family members stared at the table laden with delicious food, then at their elegant and radiant daughter before them, and were all speechless for a long time.