Chapter 208: Misunderstanding Resolved

"Ping'an, I can accept the crucian carp and pig trotters for free, but the Milk Powder is out of the question. You must have spent a lot of money on it too."

"I roughly know the Black Market prices, and it's hard to buy without connections. How about this, I'll give you fifty per tin."

"Brother Fang, you really don't have to. Someone gave them to me."

Zhang Ping'an wasn't lying; these were all things Li Huaide and Xu Lijuan had given him before, which he had kept in his space and never used.

"Then I don't care, otherwise I won't take them."

"Fine, fine, fine, suit yourself."

"That's more like it. Let's keep business and personal matters separate. Will you eat at home at noon?"

"No, I still have to make a trip to Qin Family Village."

"Alright then." Fang Dahu thought Zhang Ping'an was going to look for Qin Dabao, so he didn't insist further.

Zhang Ping'an pedaled his tricycle to the Zhang Family Village Back Mountain, stored the tricycle in his space, and quickly headed deep into the branch of the Taihang Mountains behind the Back Mountain.

"Roar!" Sensing Zhang Ping'an's scent, Sanhu let out a roar, then lazily lay back down to bask in the sun without moving.

"You guy, you're really lazy. Come back with me."

Having learned from the lesson with Erhu, Zhang Ping'an directly filled Sanhu's stone trough to the brim and released dozens of litters of rabbits before taking Sanhu into his space.

Smelling a member of its own kind in the space, Erhu came over. The two tigers first bared their teeth and hissed at each other, then dispersed to find their own separate territories.

It was already past four in the afternoon. There was no rush regarding Dahu; it was still very safe in the Zhang Family Village Back Mountain. The villagers in their hometown had a stable source of food, so naturally, they wouldn't risk going up the mountain to find food.

The backup plan Zhang Ping'an had left in the Back Mountain was no longer needed, but the sweet potatoes couldn't be wasted; he would find time to harvest them next time.

There were also the Tea Trees. He hadn't tended to them for the past two years, and he didn't know what they looked like now. He would have to prune them when he went over next time.

Upon returning home, Zhang Ping'an discovered three beauties and one handsome man in military uniform at his house.

"Brother Ping'an, come quickly! Yingnan is back, and so is her partner, Du Weitao."

"Old classmate, long time no see. Xiao'e, Aihua, you're here too. Hello, um, Du..."

"Old classmate, you're older than him, just call him Weitao. Weitao, he is your brother-in-law."

"..."

"That works too. Hello, Weitao."

"Hello."

The two shook hands. Du Weitao's initial dissatisfaction vanished instantly under the strength of their grip.

"Hello, brother-in-law," Du Weitao said, grimacing.

"Hahaha, hello."

"I told you your strength wasn't as great as his, but you didn't believe me," Mu Yingnan said, rolling her eyes at Du Weitao.

"Hehe," Du Weitao could only offer an awkward smile.

"You're already very good, Weitao. I started exercising when I was ten, kept at it for over ten years, and I hunt year-round. You're a few years older than me, so maybe you could arm-wrestle me."

"Old classmate, we came over this time mainly to thank you for saving my grandfather. It's only in these past few years that I've realized I misunderstood them."

"Hm?"

"I've already told Xiao Ling about this matter; I'll let her tell you. It's getting late now, I should head back. We're getting married at the end of the year, remember to come."

"Alright, I'll definitely be there."

After seeing them out of the courtyard, Lou Xiaoe and Li Aihua also prepared to head home.

"How did you all get here?"

"I can just go back directly. Brother-in-law, why don't you see Aihua off?" Lou Xiaoe knew her father had always had people secretly protecting her.

"No need, no need. My brother said he'd come to pick me up in a bit."

"Alright then. Aihua, you wait inside. Xiao Ling and I will go see Xiao'e off."

At the entrance of the Siheyuan, Zhang Ping'an saw A Biao following behind Lou Xiaoe and felt relieved to head back.

"How did they all end up coming together?"

"It was a coincidence. Xiao'e and Aihua were together, and Yingnan came later."

"I see."

"Ping'an, Xiao Ling, is my sister still at your place?" Just as the two entered the Front Courtyard, they heard Li Aiguo's voice from behind.

"She is, Li Ge. Aihua just said you were coming to pick her up."

"This girl used to never go anywhere when she was home on break, but now it's the opposite; she runs around everywhere whenever she has a chance." Li Aiguo was also quite troubled. He was in Public Security and knew it wasn't safe at night now.

"Haha, she's just a kid, they all like to play. Maybe it's because she hadn't been out for so long before, and now that she has the chance, she wants to make up for lost time."

"Ping'an, you might be right. This girl's heart has really become wild."

"Li Ge, Aihua comes over to keep me company and helps me look after the children. Don't you go grounding her."

"..."

Li Aiguo was puzzled. When this girl was at home, she didn't have that kind of patience for his son, so how could she be helping look after children over here?

Li Aihua heard their conversation in the courtyard and hurried out.

"Brother, let's go. Brother Ping'an, Sister Xiao Ling, goodbye."

"Alright, come back and play when you have time."

"Okay, sure."

After dinner that night, Wang Xiaoling lay in Zhang Ping'an's arms and finally revealed the family conflict of Mu Yingnan.

"The woman and child that Yingnan's father brought back are actually the wife and child of his former comrade-in-arms."

It turned out that Mu Baoguo should have died in the war in the South back then. It was his comrade, Yang Hui, who took the fatal blow for him, allowing him to survive, while his comrade sacrificed his life.

After leaving the battlefield, Mu Baoguo went straight to his comrade's hometown and brought his wife and child to his side to take care of them.

But in this day and age, it was inevitable that a widower bringing home a widow and child would face criticism. So, Mu Baoguo simply posed as the woman's husband, supporting the woman and child, but they only had the name of husband and wife, and it had been that way ever since.

Zhang Ping'an found it unbelievable after hearing this; were Mu Yingnan and her younger brother fools? Had they really not noticed anything unusual all these years?

"Brother Ping'an, does it feel unbelievable? I couldn't believe it either when I heard. Yingnan said that at first, her father was afraid she and her brother wouldn't be able to accept it, so he specifically arranged for the Yang family mother and son to stay in the guest room, and they are still in the guest room now."

"..."

"These two siblings are really something else; what kind of married couple doesn't sleep together?"

"Yingnan said she was so stunned with anger at the time that she didn't think much of it, and later, after joining the army, she had even less time to think. If it hadn't been for her father's old comrade-in-arms in the military mentioning it, the two siblings would still be kept in the dark."

Zhang Ping'an was also speechless; they say big bears have no brains, but Mu Yingnan's isn't even big. No wonder her grades were poor when she was in school; it turns out her brain just isn't very large.

"When is Yingnan getting married?" There was less than half a month left until the New Year.

"Five days from now, over at her place; that Du Weitao is also considered her childhood friend."

Zhang Ping'an nodded; it was about what he had guessed, as that Du Weitao looked just like a child of the compound.

The next day, at Procurement Section Three, Zhu Jianhua sat in his office with an ugly expression. Yesterday, Xu Kun had made things clear to him directly; since Li Huaide had said those words, he naturally dared not jump around anymore.

In the days that followed, the people in Procurement Section Three also returned to their usual procurement efficiency, which made Zhu Jianhua's expression even worse.

"Dad, cousin, we..."

"That's enough, just be honest. Xu Kun doesn't fall for your tricks anymore, and with Li Huaide pressing down from above, we have already lost."

Zhu Weiguo also had a look of unwillingness, but there was no other way. A few years ago, Li Huaide had somehow suddenly gained the attention of the Xu Family. If one could have looked down on Li Huaide, this Xu Family son-in-law, before, one could no longer afford to climb up to him now.

There was also the relationship between Zhang Ping'an and the Xu Family that he couldn't figure out; how did a poor kid end up riding on top of him?