From humble beginnings to the pinnacle of life

I shoveled a mouthful of noodles into my mouth, then looked up at her: "What brilliant idea have you come up with this time?"

"Can all the land around here be used to grow vegetables? Corn, potatoes, tomatoes, and the like, right?"

I was a little surprised to hear this; I had thought she was going to say something important.

I hesitated for a moment before speaking: "Theoretically, the land conditions are not a problem, but farming is far from as easy as you imagine. It's not as simple as just burying the seeds in the soil and waiting for the harvest."

I picked up a small bok choy leaf with wormholes and showed it to her, and continued, "Just like this bunch of bok choy, it lacks nutrients and is full of wormholes. Growing vegetables requires fertilizing, weeding, and pest control. You have to worry about wind and drought. It's a time-consuming and physically demanding job."

Before I could finish speaking, Su Qing's head was throbbing, and she quickly raised her hand to interrupt me.

"Okay, okay, stop talking, it's giving me a headache."

I couldn't help but laugh and joked, "Now you know that farming isn't as simple as you thought, is it?"

She pouted, nodded as if she understood but not quite, and let out a long sigh:

"Now I really admire my grandma. How did she manage to grow so many vegetables in such a large vegetable garden?"

I was slightly taken aback, a little puzzled: "Did your grandmother grow these vegetables? That can't be right, didn't your grandmother pass away many years ago?"

Su Qing rolled her eyes at me: "I didn't say that she farmed this land. I was talking about her old home, where a whole plot of land was planted with crops and vegetables by her."

I gave an awkward, self-deprecating smile.

Su Qing's eyes softened, and she slowly said, "To be honest, I've always envied my grandmother's way of life. How should I describe her? She lived a very self-consistent life."

"That old man must be a very kind person," I replied.

"Yes, she was truly kind. She never argued or fought in her entire life. From childhood to adulthood, I have never seen her quarrel with anyone."

"Since you live a self-consistent life, you naturally won't easily get into arguments with others," I said.

"That makes sense. Some people seem to live a carefree and easy life, but that's just an appearance to outsiders. Self-consistency is different. I've never met another person like Grandma who truly lived with such clarity and understanding."

In my understanding, self-consistency means reconciling with oneself.

That wasn't a forced suppression of temper or a forced calm; it came from a genuine acceptance of many gains and losses and disputes.

Although I have never met Su Qing's grandmother, after hearing what she said, I can already picture a gentle and open-minded old woman in my mind.

She must have been a free-spirited and decisive woman when she was young.

After a brief silence, I said, "Your current optimism and open-mindedness are more or less influenced by your grandmother, aren't they?"

Su Qing tilted her head slightly, thought carefully for a moment, and nodded gently: "Now that you mention it, it does seem a little bit true."

"And what about your sister? How's her relationship with Grandma?" I asked casually.

Su Qing pursed her lips and gently shook her head: "It's not that she's good, but it's not that she's bad either. She's focused entirely on her studies since she was little, unlike me, who's always clinging to my grandma."

After hearing these words, I suddenly understood.

No wonder the two sisters have such different personalities; it turns out that many things were foreshadowed from childhood, and they were never the same kind of people.

After chatting for a while, they finished off all the noodles in their bowls.

Su Qing took the initiative to pick up the bowls and chopsticks and carried them to the kitchen to wash them.

This is Su Qing.

Although she comes from a privileged background, she is not skilled in many household chores and is sometimes clumsy in her work.

But she never put on airs of being a pampered young lady.

She is willing to learn and do what she is supposed to do.

I went back to my room to change into my outdoor clothes, said hello to Su Qing in the kitchen, and then went out to hail a taxi.

The car drove all the way to Wang Ge's outdoor equipment store.

It was still that inconspicuous little shop, with a narrow storefront that was easy to miss if you weren't looking carefully.

Small but complete.

Upon opening the door, one is greeted by a wall covered with all sorts of outdoor gear, and old photos taken during early self-driving adventures.

Wang Ge is still the same as always. Even if a customer walks into the store, he won't greet them warmly. He just keeps his head down and busy with his own things, as if whether or not they buy something is entirely up to fate.

Today he was sitting in the corner, head down, engrossed in a book.

I tiptoed around behind him and suddenly said, "Boss, you're so engrossed in what you're watching, I could come in and take all the equipment from your shop without you even noticing."

Without even looking up, Wang Ge casually pointed to the surveillance camera in the corner of the ceiling.

After saying this, he suddenly stopped, raised his head abruptly, and looked directly into my eyes.

He immediately closed his book and stood up, his voice trembling with excitement: "Lin Ye! Good heavens, when did you get here!"

I smiled and said, "I just came in and saw you were engrossed in your reading, so I didn't want to disturb you."

Wang Ge chuckled a little sheepishly, "It's nothing, I was just browsing around when I had nothing else to do."

He reached out and patted my arm hard, looking me up and down with a complex mix of emotions.

"I've lost a lot of weight, and my skin is much tanned. But my overall energy and spirit have completely transformed."

I gave a faint, bitter smile: "A person who has returned from the brink of death is bound to change in some way."

"Come, sit down and let's talk."

Wang Ge pulled me to sit on an outdoor folding chair and turned around to pour me a glass of warm water.

As soon as he sat down, he eagerly looked at me and said, "Tell me, how do you feel now that you've walked the entire route?"

A bitter smile tugged at the corner of my mouth: "Two words: suffering."

Wang Ge understood perfectly and nodded slowly: "That's for sure. Besides, you didn't even choose a well-established, conventional time-travel route. To be honest, at first, I was worried..."

He stopped mid-sentence.

I understood what he was about to say, and I continued, "Have you already resigned yourself to the fact that we might not come back?"

Wang Ge nodded with a wry smile and let out a heavy sigh: "When I first ventured into the no-man's-land, I was also prepared for the worst. But the more times I went, the more timid I became, and the clearer I became about the dangers of that wilderness."

I nodded in complete agreement: "If I were to go through it all again now, I might not have the courage."

Looking at me, Wang Ge exclaimed sincerely, "But undeniably, you've accomplished something great. You've pioneered a route no one had ever taken before, and you've survived it."

I smiled and waved my hand modestly: "A large part of it was luck. Of course, without Brother Wang's help from behind, we wouldn't have made it out at all."

Wang Ge waved his hand and changed the subject: "Today, there's one more person who wants to see you."

I was slightly taken aback and subconsciously asked, "Is it A-Qiu?"

"It's not A-Qiu."

Wang raised his wrist and glanced down at his sports watch, then said, "I just sent him a message. Judging by the time, he should be arriving soon."

"Who is it, acting all mysterious?" I asked, full of curiosity.

Wang Ge deliberately kept everyone in suspense: "You'll know when the person arrives."