The next morning, when Cheng You woke up, she found that Qi Chengyan was still at home.
"Aren't you going to work today?"
Qi Chengyan turned over and hugged her, saying, "I'm not going."
What happened last night had left him with lingering fear; it wasn't safe for Cheng You to be home alone.
If Cheng Wenyu were home, he wouldn't be so worried.
Cheng You was naturally happy that he wasn't going.
She didn't need him to earn work points anyway.
"My plaque arrived yesterday. Come and take a look later!"
Cheng You was like a child eager to show off her treasures to him.
Qi Chengyan rolled out of bed and put on his clothes. "Okay, I'll go with you later."
After breakfast, before they even left the house, they saw Cheng Tianhua entering.
"Chengyan, why aren't you at the dike yet?"
Qi Chengyan said, "I'm not going anymore, starting today."
"Nonsense, you're the only one in our production team who can drive a tractor. Who else will go if you don't?"
"There are people in the neighboring village who can drive. You can ask them to go."
Cheng Tianhua was furious. "They aren't from our Wujing Village! The tractor was bought by our village!"
He was unwilling to simply let others use their property.
Qi Chengyan ignored him. He had decided not to go, and that was final.
He was a man of few words, so Cheng You stepped in to explain. "Dad, Chengyan was delayed by something last night and came back late. Someone sneaked into my yard."
Cheng Tianhua waved his hand dismissively, impatient. "They just entered the yard, they didn't do anything to you, what's there to be afraid of!"
Cheng You looked at him with a cold expression and let out a scoff.
"If it were Cheng Tao today, would you say the same? That's right, how could I compare to Cheng Tao? She's your darling. The way you are, anyone would think Cheng Tao is your biological daughter and I was picked up."
After saying that, Cheng You suddenly covered her mouth in surprise.
"Dad, did I guess correctly?"
Cheng Tianhua said gruffly, "What nonsense are you spouting!"
Cheng You snorted, "You know in your heart whether it's nonsense or not."
She left it at that, not tearing down the last shred of pretense.
Then, under Cheng Tianhua's stunned gaze, she closed the door and walked out with Qi Chengyan.
Cheng Tianhua's mind was in turmoil. He clenched his fist fiercely and, without even arranging for someone to drive the tractor, hurried home.
As soon as he entered the house, he grabbed Song Yulian and asked, "Cheng Tao is my daughter, besides me, have you told anyone else?"
Song Yulian was taken aback. "Am I crazy?"
If she were to tell anyone else about this, where would she hide her face?
Cheng Tianhua gritted his teeth. "Then have you told Cheng You?"
Song Yulian replied, "How could I! With Cheng You's temper, if I told her, wouldn't she just kill me? Tianhua, what's gotten into you?"
Cheng Tianhua felt that her words made some sense.
Cheng You had a stubborn personality. If she had known about this, she wouldn't have done nothing.
"It's nothing, I just heard some things."
Song Yulian comforted him, "Don't worry, no one else will know about this. Although I wish Tao'er's identity could be openly acknowledged, this concerns your future, I would never do such a thing."
Cheng Tianhua let out a sigh of relief and stroked her hair.
"I was just overthinking."
How could Cheng You possibly know.
...
On the way to Uncle Li's house, Qi Chengyan said, "I suspect the person last night was Qian Dazhi."
Cheng You was startled. "Qian Dazhi?"
She really hadn't thought of him.
Did he actually have the nerve?
However, it was a pity they hadn't caught him red-handed. It would be difficult to convict him again.
A few days later, the medicinal seeds sent by Song Jingyu arrived.
Cheng You soaked them in dew overnight, and then transported the seeds to Qili Village.
Unexpectedly, the tractor was no longer available to them.
Cheng Tianhua said angrily, "This is village property, not your private belongings. You can't just use it as you please!"
If he had directly refused, Cheng You wouldn't have said anything.
But he had to frame Cheng You for misusing public property, which she wouldn't stand for.
"Dad, I don't agree with what you're saying. Every time we used it, we were either doing something for the village or we paid for it. If you don't believe me, go get the village accountant!"
Cheng Tianhua, too lazy to argue with her, said, "In any case, remember that you can't use it anymore!"
He wanted to let it go, but Cheng You was unwilling.
"That won't do. You must get the accountant here. Only he can prove how much we paid! Don't use this to make trouble later, wouldn't we be wrongly accused?"
Cheng Tianhua was exasperated, his face full of anger.
"When have I ever wronged you!"
Cheng You scoffed, "Every word you just said is a misrepresentation of us!"
Her persistence finally made Cheng Tianhua compromise reluctantly.
"Fine, fine, I misspoke just now, okay?"
"Apologize!"
Cheng Tianhua glared, gritted his teeth, and said, "I'm sorry."
"Are you satisfied?"
Cheng You felt it was barely acceptable.
She turned to Qi Chengyan and said, "Let's go. Without the tractor, we'll ride bicycles."
Qi Chengyan held her hand and led her forward.
"Why did you insist on him apologizing?"
Cheng You tilted her chin slightly, feeling a little proud.
"It's okay if you misunderstand me, but you are not allowed to misunderstand me!"
Qi Chengyan smiled and stroked her head, like soothing a bristling little fox.
Without the tractor, the two of them had to ride bicycles, with the medicinal seeds tied to the back.
When they arrived at their destination, they found Qian Dazhi also there.
Cheng You and Qi Chengyan exchanged a look. They dismounted their bicycles.
"Grandpa, we've come to deliver seeds."
The old man walked out from inside. "Good, give them to your eldest uncle."
Cheng You put down the seeds, with labels indicating the names of the medicinal herbs and some of their characteristics.
She didn't have much experience in planting medicinal herbs, so she could only give them a general idea. They would have to figure out the rest themselves.
After putting things down, she walked towards Qian Dazhi.
"What happened to your hand?"
Qian Dazhi chuckled and unconsciously put his hand behind his back.
"I cut myself while chopping vegetables."
"Really? You cook?" Cheng You raised an eyebrow at him.
Qian Dazhi glanced at Jiang Wanrou. "I certainly didn't before, but after meeting Wanrou, I started learning. Cheng You, will Qi Chengyan be jealous if you come over and talk to me like this?"
Cheng You chuckled, "Of course not."
"So sure?"
"Yes, because he knows I wouldn't look twice at you."
This was hardly a polite remark.
Jiang Wanrou walked over angrily. "Cheng You, what do you mean? Are you deliberately looking for trouble?"
Cheng You took two steps back, sizing up Qian Dazhi. She saw a smugness in his smile.
He was provoking her, and even with his injured hand, there was nothing she could do to him.