Cheng You watched the river lanterns, and as she talked with Qi Chengyan, she began to feel drowsy.
She hadn't even eaten much of what he'd brought.
Qi Chengyan extinguished the flame on the river lantern and carried Cheng You down the riverbank on his back.
The night was colder, and he couldn't help but quicken his pace.
When Cheng You woke up in her own bed the next day, she had no idea how she had gotten back.
Cheng Wenyu said, "I went to Grandma Liu's for dinner and came back to find you already asleep. Sister, what delicious food did Brother Yan take you to eat?"
Cheng You thought about it and realized she had cried so much last night that she hadn't eaten anything!
She felt a pang of regret, as Qi Chengyan had brought her chocolate.
She had only heard of this item from Sun Xiaowan, and last night was her first time trying it.
But she had only eaten one piece, which was such a pity.
Cheng You shook her head, "I didn't eat anything."
"Huh? Then you went home hungry last night?"
"Not exactly." She had eaten a little something at Uncle Li's, so she didn't feel hungry when it was mealtime.
Cheng You got up to wash up and reached into her pocket, feeling the chocolate.
Qi Chengyan had given her all the remaining chocolate.
Cheng You, surprised and delighted, took out the chocolate and offered one to Cheng Wenyu.
"Try it."
"What is this?"
"Chocolate, it's imported from abroad."
Cheng Wenyu peeled off the wrapper, his expression a little displeased.
Why was this chocolate so dark?
"Sister, is this edible? It looks like mud."
"It's sweet, try it first."
Cheng Wenyu took a small bite, his brows furrowing. "It's a bit bitter."
The taste was so strange, and he definitely didn't like it.
Cheng You took a bite herself and her eyes curved into a smile.
It was this taste, she liked it so much!
"Hmph, you don't appreciate it. It's delicious!"
Cheng Wenyu put on his schoolbag, "I'm leaving for school now."
When he returned next time, it would be after the final exams.
Cheng You happily tucked the chocolate into her pocket and went to Uncle Li's house, giving Grandma Li a piece of chocolate.
"How is it? Delicious, right?"
Grandma Li nodded, "This candy is so new, I've never tasted anything like it before."
Cheng You smiled, "It's my first time trying it too."
She had intended to give Uncle Li a piece, but he took one look and shook his head.
He didn't want to eat anything that looked like that.
Cheng You snorted and turned to feed a piece to Zhou Yunru.
Zhou Yunru exclaimed, "This is such delicious candy! What is it called?"
"Chocolate."
Zhou Yunru smiled at her teasingly, "Did the educated youth Qi give it to you?"
Cheng You smiled happily, "Yes."
"Cheng You, when do you plan to get married?"
Cheng You's smile froze, "Married?"
She hadn't even considered it yet.
"It won't be that soon."
Zhou Yunru said, "It's not that soon. You and the educated youth Qi have been dating for a few months, haven't you?"
She herself had been introduced through a matchmaker to Zhao Jianguo and they had started discussing marriage in less than a month.
"You're still young, and you don't feel rushed. It's better to have children early. You're so beautiful, you should have many."
Cheng You hunched her neck and shook her head. She didn't want that many.
At most two, she didn't want that many children.
Cheng You patted her cheeks. What was she thinking about having children for? She hadn't even considered marriage yet.
If she were to get married, she'd at least have to get her mother's dowry back.
Besides, she couldn't be the one to bring it up.
Cheng Tao sneered from the side, "Sister-in-law, that educated youth Qi is from the city. How could he possibly get married in the countryside?"
Zhou Yunru said calmly, "You feel inferior because you're from the countryside, but don't drag me into it."
"I don't feel that way, I'm just reminding Cheng You not to aim too high."
Cheng Tao had been scolded by Wang Hongxia a few words last night and still felt uncomfortable.
Wang Hongxia felt that she couldn't earn money like Cheng You, and at the same time, she couldn't bear children like Zhou Yunru.
In short, she found fault with everything about her.
Cheng Tao had never experienced such hardship in her life, and following Zhao Yunlin had been unbearable.
Cheng You curled her lips and smiled, "What business is it of yours whether I aim too high? You'd better learn to identify the herbs properly. If Father finds out you're slacking off here, he'll be angry, won't he?"
After all, Cheng Tianhua was also finding Cheng Tao displeasing these days.
After Cheng Tao left in a huff, another girl who had come to study also approached.
Her name was Pan Yu, and she was from another village. She was said to be Lin Guafu's cousin and was a year younger than Cheng You.
"Sister Cheng You, can I help you like Sister Yunru?"
Cheng You saw her obedient demeanor. She had been behaving very well these past few days and seemed genuinely interested in learning medicine.
She nodded, "You can, but let me be clear, your pay for helping Sister Yunru won't be as high as hers."
Pan Yu was flattered, "I get paid too?"
"If you help me, you will."
Cheng You earned tens of yuan a month, so giving them a few yuan in wages was not a problem.
She didn't believe in letting people work for free.
Perhaps because of the pay, Pan Yu worked exceptionally hard that day, running back and forth, rushing to do everything.
Besides Zhou Yunru, Uncle Li had the highest hopes for her.
However, Zhou Yunru had a slightly better talent in this area.
With Pan Yu's help, it not only lightened Zhou Yunru's workload but also made Cheng You's job easier.
But after a few days, Zhou Yunru noticed something was wrong.
"I just saw Pan Yu taking notes."
Cheng You looked up, "Taking notes? It seems she's very diligent."
Uncle Li liked disciples like that.
However, Zhou Yunru said, "But what she's writing down is the formula for the hemostatic powder."
Cheng You put down what she was holding and glanced outside.
Indeed, she saw Pan Yu sniffing a jar of hemostatic powder, studying it while taking notes.
Actually, the hemostatic formula wasn't anything special; it was in the book Uncle Li had given her.
Cheng You had openly shared it with them from the beginning.
But Cheng Tao didn't believe it, always thinking Cheng You couldn't be so generous.
Now, it was clear that Pan Yu also didn't believe it.
"Let her be."
Since Cheng You didn't care, Zhou Yunru didn't say anything more.
Around noon, before Cheng You could leave, she saw Wang Hongxia arrive again.
She was holding a bowl and walked over with a smile.
"Eldest daughter-in-law, come drink chicken soup. Mother specially stewed this for you."
Zhou Yunru ignored her and went about her business packing up to leave.
Wang Hongxia had no choice but to follow her with the chicken soup.
"Mom knows you're still angry. I'm not asking for forgiveness, I just want to be good to you and the child. I killed this chicken specifically to stew this soup for you. Please eat it."
Following behind her so humbly with the chicken soup, she did look a bit pitiful.
In contrast, Zhou Yunru seemed a bit heartless.
"Eldest daughter-in-law, I've spoken to Jianguo. It's okay if you don't want to come home, and it doesn't matter what the child's surname is. As long as you give birth to the child safely! Mom is begging you, please drink the chicken soup. If you don't drink it now, you can take it home."