I couldn't take it anymore; when I went home for Chinese New Year, the family genealogy book ha

The next afternoon, Jiang Chen was playing chess with his father, Jiang Jianjun, in the yard.

A familiar engine roar could be heard from the dirt road in the village.

A red delivery truck bearing the "SF" logo ignored the narrow roads of the village and drove aggressively straight to the entrance of the Jiang family compound, making a neat drift before coming to a smooth stop.

Wang Xiuying, who was picking celery on a small stool in the yard, looked up when she heard the noise.

When she saw that car, her heart skipped a beat.

Oh no, that spendthrift son of his must have bought some random junk again.

The deliveryman jumped out of the driver's seat, saw Jiang Chen in the yard, his eyes lit up, and he ran over with a big smile on his face.

"Brother Jiang! We meet again!"

This young man has become Jiang Chen's "personal courier" ever since he delivered those more than one hundred packages to the Jiang family last time.

"Thank you for your hard work." Jiang Chen handed him a Zhonghua cigarette.

The deliveryman was flattered and accepted the package, then opened the back door of the truck and began to huff and puff as he unloaded the items.

One, two, three...

They were all huge, tightly wrapped cardboard boxes with yellow tape.

Most eye-catching was a huge box that was almost half a person tall, with the words "Fragile! Handle with care! Contains nuclear weapons!" written on it in red marker.

Looking at the mountain of boxes, Wang Xiuying forgot to pick the celery in her hands, and her expression changed from helplessness to shock.

"Jiang Chen! What...what did you buy this time?!"

Jiang Chen smiled but didn't say anything.

He found a pair of scissors in the house and, with a "rip," slit open the largest box.

As the cardboard was lifted.

A colossal object, entirely black, with an exaggerated design, exuding a metallic and futuristic feel, was exposed to the air.

It was like a small armored tank, lying there quietly.

Jiang Chen bent down and fumbled around on the machine's complex panel until he found the largest, red power button.

Just a gentle press.

"Buzz—"

Immediately afterwards, a dazzling ring of colorful lights lit up around the "tank"!

Red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, purple...

Various colors flashed wildly, illuminating the entire courtyard like a midnight disco.

A clear, resonant electronic synthesized voice, full of heavy metal quality, suddenly blared from the speaker!

"Heavy Metal Rock Soundbar!"

"At your service!"

Startled by the sudden turn of events, Wang Xiuying's hand trembled, and the celery in her hand fell to the ground.

She stared dumbfounded at the flashing and rattling "iron lump" in front of her, and it took her a long time to find her voice.

"My goodness! Chen'er! What...what did you buy? A tractor?!"

Jiang Chen looked at his masterpiece with satisfaction, then walked over and slid open another long, rectangular box.

Inside were ten neatly folded, brand-new red dance costumes, carefully packaged in transparent plastic bags.

On top of all, there was the grand finale, a Suzhou embroidery cheongsam packaged in a gold gift box, and a dazzlingly white faux mink shawl.

"Mom, come and take a look."

Jiang Chen waved to Wang Xiuying.

Wang Xiuying walked over hesitantly, but Jiang Chen had already opened the golden gift box.

When he took out that red velvet cheongsam and unfolded it in the winter sun.

Wang Xiuying's eyes widened instantly.

She had lived for over fifty years and had only ever seen such beautiful and expensive clothes in period dramas on television.

The smooth, water-like velvet fabric, the phoenix embroidery shimmering in the sunlight…

Every detail exuded an aura of "nobility" that felt unfamiliar to her.

She carefully reached out her hand, her fingertips gently tracing the soft fabric, her eyes filled with delight and disbelief.

But she still unconsciously uttered the words she had said for half her life.

"This...this dress is so expensive! How much did it cost?"

"The workmanship is so good, it must be expensive... How could I, an old woman from the countryside, possibly wear this to dance? It would be such a waste!"

Jiang Chen couldn't help but laugh when he heard his mother's insincere words.

Without saying a word, he picked up the snow-white, fluffy mink shawl and draped it over Wang Xiuying's shoulders.

Then, he half-pushed and half-pulled her to the huge full-length mirror in the main room, which had been specially installed during the renovation.

"Mom, don't say anything."

"See for yourself!"

Wang Xiuying stared blankly at the familiar yet unfamiliar figure in the mirror.

In the mirror, the woman was wearing a coarse cotton coat that looked a bit worn from washing, but on her shoulders, she wore a snow-white, luxurious mink shawl that seemed to be worn only by movie stars.

That stark, even somewhat comical, contrast produced a wonderful chemical reaction.

That shawl seemed to possess a magical power, forcefully suppressing the rustic air about her, a result of years of hard work.

Instead, it highlights a unique charm and elegance that has been refined by time.

Wang Xiuying stared in disbelief at her reflection in the mirror, where she looked incredibly elegant and as if she had suddenly become ten years younger.

She had never worn such nice clothes in her entire life.

She didn't even know what to do with her hands and feet.

Jiang Chen struck while the iron was hot.

He walked back to the courtyard, grabbed all ten brand-new red team uniforms, along with the gorgeous cheongsam, and stuffed them into Wang Xiuying's arms.

"Mom, these red ones are for Aunt Zhang and Aunt Li."

"Take this tomorrow and tell them it's from your son, a token of his respect for our elders."

"As for the robe you're wearing, and this cheongsam, they're your signature battle attire!"

Jiang Chen's gaze became serious and sharp.

He held his mother's shoulders and said, word by word:

"Mom, remember this!"

"You are not only yourself now, you are also the face of the Jiang family!"

"My dad, me, and Lingling have earned you a lot of face outside. At home and in the village, you must hold your head high!"

"Our family members, wherever we go, will never tolerate being mistreated by others! We will never allow others to point fingers at us and say we are petty and uncouth!"

"You must lead your team, don your battle uniform, and take back everything you lost yesterday, right back to me!"

These words were like a fire, completely igniting the flame of resentment that had been suppressed in Wang Xiuying's heart all her life!

She looked at her completely transformed self in the mirror.

She touched the soft, smooth shawl she was wearing.

He looked down at the pile of brand-new team uniforms in his arms, each one representing a sentiment.

My back, which I've never felt so strong in my entire life, suddenly straightened up as if a steel bar had been injected into it!

All hesitation and cowardice vanished at this moment!

She slapped her thigh, her eyes, bright with excitement, staring straight at her son!

"Alright, son!"

"Mom will listen to you!"

"Mom, tonight we're going to meet that Wang Cuihua!"