Reborn in 2006, I met Mr. Zhou from the past.

Her family's house was at the end of the village, the old Su family residence. When the family divided their property years ago, the old house was given to her father, Su Guoyuan. In 1998, it was demolished and rebuilt into a single-story house. After the renovation, the family was heavily in debt, so her father took her mother, Wen Xiaofen, to work in Wencheng, leaving her two sisters, who were still in elementary school, in the care of their two uncles. The two sisters thus became left-behind children.

After her eldest uncle separated from his family, his new house was built next to hers; her second uncle bought his house from someone else, which was located in the center of the village.

Su Fengnan didn't want to take the main road and be seen by the villagers, lest she be bombarded with questions about her family and friends. There were always gossipy people in the village who couldn't stand seeing others do well and loved to spread rumors, which was very troublesome. So she simply took a side path instead.

When we arrived at my second uncle's house, five brick and tile houses came into view. At this time, my second uncle's house was still a brick and tile house, but in another seven or eight years, it would be rebuilt into a two-story building.

As soon as she entered the house, Su Fengnan saw that breakfast had already been laid out on the table: a large plate of dumplings, a plate of cucumber salad, and a plate of houttuynia cordata salad, which instantly whetted her appetite.

"Xiao Nan is here, come sit down and eat dumplings," Auntie said with a smile.

"Thank you, Second Aunt." Su Fengnan said without hesitation, "Then I'll start eating."

The three of them sat down and began to eat together.

Su Fengnan picked up a dumpling and put it in her mouth. After chewing it carefully, a smile instantly appeared in her eyes, and she couldn't help but exclaim sincerely, "Wow, Second Aunt, these dumplings are so delicious! The filling is so flavorful. Can you teach me how to make them?"

Auntie laughed heartily and waved her hand, "I can't teach you that. Yesterday, your brother Hua brought a friend over to play. He specially bought fresh minced meat and dumpling wrappers. The dumpling filling was all made by his friend himself, and then everyone got together to make them. There are still quite a few left in the refrigerator. You can pack a bag to take home and eat slowly later."

"No need, Second Aunt." Su Fengnan, with a dumpling still in her mouth, quickly and softly refused, speaking so hurriedly that she almost choked.

"You silly girl, eat slowly, swallow before you talk, or you'll choke," her second aunt hurriedly instructed, handing her a tissue.

Su Fengnan took the tissue: "Thank you, Second Aunt."

The second uncle spoke up at the right moment, his tone gentle: "Then pack a little less, so you can bring some back for Xiaoxia to try when you go back to the county town this afternoon."

Su Fengnan hesitated for a moment, then nodded in agreement: "Alright then, thank you, Second Uncle and Second Aunt."

My second uncle and aunt were both kind-hearted people. They had three children: the eldest, Su Fenghua; the second, Su Fengyan; and the youngest, Su Fenglin. Fengyan was two months younger than Su Fengnan, and Fenglin was four months older than Su Fengxia. When they were little, they always played together. Since their parents went out to work, Su Fengnan and her sister often helped their second uncle's family with chores and ate at their house.

My second uncle served in the army in his early years and even fought in the Vietnam War. If it weren't for my grandmother's fear that something might happen to him, and her threat to kill herself to force him to leave the army and return home, he would have had no problem getting a good job after his discharge. Unfortunately, there are no "what ifs" in life.

"Second Aunt, did Brother Hua bring his girlfriend home yesterday?" Su Fengnan couldn't help but gossip.

"Haha, he said no, but there seems to be a girl who likes him a lot, and she's always eager to help him with his chores."

"Of course! Our Brother Hua has a great personality, is steady, and handsome. Of course people like him."

These words made Second Aunt very happy.

"Haha, we're just hoping he gets married soon."

In his past life, something unexpected happened to Hua Ge, causing him to miss this girl. He regretted it later, but it was too late. He didn't get married and have children until he was thirty-six years old.

In this life, I don't know if I can help him.

After breakfast, Su Fengnan helped clear the dishes and wash the pots and pans. After leaving her second uncle's house, she headed straight for the tea mountain.

Standing atop the tea mountain, looking at the vast expanse of tea trees neglected and overgrown with weeds, she felt a pang of heartache. This tea mountain had been allocated to various families during the household responsibility system, and the tea-loving families had managed it meticulously. Her family's tea garden was one acre in size, and gazing at the tea leaves, an even bigger idea began to grow wildly in her heart.

Su Fengnan remembered that the land in their entire county was rich in selenium, which is beneficial to the human body. Her junior high school chemistry teacher had specifically mentioned this in class, but she hadn't taken it to heart at the time.

In her previous life, six or seven years after she left home, many local specialties in the county were labeled as selenium-rich green products, including tea. Unfortunately, the tea plantations in her village were later completely destroyed by batches of businessmen who came to attract investment.

With this in mind, she secretly made up her mind that she must find a way to acquire the right to use this place within the next three years. To protect this tea mountain, she needed to have money to invest.

If her first plan succeeds, she can save the land before the tea plantation is destroyed, produce and sell selenium-rich green tea, and provide jobs for the villagers, so that the village is no longer just populated by the elderly and children.

But you have to take things one step at a time, and eat one bite at a time; you can't rush it.

She went into her family's tea garden, picked a bag full of fresh leaves, returned to her second uncle's house, gave the tea leaves to her second aunt to help process, and then went home.

Upon arriving home, Su Fengnan immediately began cleaning inside and out. In less than an hour, the house was spotless and sparkling clean. Although she was a little tired, looking at the tidy house made her feel refreshed and relaxed.

After resting for a while, she went to her private plot to weed and fertilize. The various vegetables in the plot were growing well, and she picked a large bagful to take back to the county town. She also went to the bamboo grove to pick some bamboo shoots. By the time she finished all this, it was already past two in the afternoon.

Su Fengnan washed up again, packed the things she wanted to take back to the county town into her basket, locked the door, and headed towards the county town with the basket on her back.

Just as they reached the village entrance, Su Fengnan's aunt saw her carrying a basket of vegetables and said sourly, "Oh, Xiaonan's back? It's been so long since we've seen you. You didn't do anything shameful in the county town, did you?"

Su Fengnan smiled and retorted, "Auntie, are you really my aunt?"

"Hey, Xiaonan, how can you talk like that? How come I'm not your aunt anymore?"

Su Fengnan stared at her coldly and said, "Have you ever seen your own aunt talk about her own niece like this?"

Su Fengnan tilted her basket again so her aunt could see it clearly, and said without any emotion, "See, Aunt? This is called earning a living. It's better than some people who are always eyeing what others are doing."

As soon as she finished speaking, she heard the sound of a motorcycle behind her. She turned around and saw that the motorcycle had already stopped beside her.

"So it's Xiaonan. Are you walking to the county town alone?" Su Fengjiang asked.

Su Fengjiang is my cousin from the same clan.

"Yes, Brother Jiang."

"Get in, I'll give you a ride to school on the way."

"Okay, thank you."

Su Fengnan was naturally happy to take a free ride. Brother Jiang was a decent person; she could ride in his car without worry.

Seeing that Su Fengnan was about to get into Su Fengjiang's car and drive away, the aunt muttered sarcastically, "She's getting more and more uncontrollable as she gets older."

But her words were long forgotten by the motorcycle exhaust fumes, and Su Fengnan didn't hear them at all.

Half an hour later, Su Fengjiang dropped Su Fengnan off at the building where she was staying. It was exactly four o'clock in the afternoon.

"Thank you, Brother Jiang." Su Fengnan got out of the car.

"By the way, this package was asked to be brought to you by your second aunt." Su Fengjiang handed over a large package.

"Ah...so many."

It seems that her second uncle was afraid she wouldn't accept it, so he asked Brother Jiang to bring it over on his way.

"You should go inside now, I'm leaving."

"Okay, thank you, Brother Jiang."

Su Fengnan carried a basket on her back and a package into the rented room on the first floor.

Su Fengxia was cooking when she saw her sister return. She quickly greeted her with a smile, "Sister, you're back! You brought so many things."

"Quick, help me take this." Su Fengnan was panting heavily.

Su Fengxia quickly stepped forward and took the package from her arms.

Putting down the basket, Su Fengnan slumped onto the table, panting. She drank two glasses of water before she could catch her breath. "Xiaoxia, I brought back a lot of vegetables. Just cook a couple of dishes. We have evening self-study tonight, so we need to hurry."

"Okay, I understand. Dinner is ready, I'll start cooking right away."

Every time I go back to my hometown on the weekend, I basically have to hike back and forth, leaving me exhausted and sore all over.

But the thought of being able to live a second life filled Su Fengnan with joy, and this fatigue was nothing at all. She even ate an extra bowl of rice for dinner than usual.