After getting off the train, Zeng Min stared at the station. It was like a simple and unpretentious old man. Although it was a bit shabby, people came and went like a tide. As night fell, the flow of people became even denser.

Zeng Min carefully held the child, waiting for Tu Mingcheng to take out the luggage. The driver also came to help.

A short while later, the driver, seeing that their luggage was all packed, strolled over and talked to Tu Mingcheng.

“Mingcheng, if you go back now, there might be no one to cook at home. You and your sister-in-law can wait here for a while while I hand over my shift. Afterwards, you can come home with me and have dinner at my house before going back, how about that?”

Tu Mingcheng politely declined, saying, "Thank you for your kind offer, Brother Chen, but we won't trouble you. We can just go to the state-run restaurant for a good meal before heading back."

The driver said generously, "It's no trouble at all. Your sister-in-law has already finished get off work. We can just go back and eat what's ready."

"Really, no need. We have a lot of luggage and our homes are on a different route from yours, so we'll be going now. You go ahead and do your work." Tu Mingcheng said as he carried the basket on his back, which looked like a small mountain pressing down on his back. He even asked Chen Wei to put the burlap sacks on the ground on the basket, and then carried the remaining bags, like a camel carrying a heavy load.

Tu Mingcheng called Zeng Min and her son, and they left as quickly as a gust of wind.

Chen Wei watched the family of three walk away, muttering to himself, "Why are they so polite! They never come to our house when we invite them over. They're as stubborn as rocks!"

Tu Mingcheng thought he would send the luggage home first, and then take Zeng Min and her son to a state-run restaurant for dinner.

After leaving the station, walk along the only main road in the county for about ten minutes, then turn a corner, and you will arrive at your destination.

As he walked, he introduced the area to Zeng Min, saying, "The road we're walking on is the busiest part of the county town. On the street ahead, there's a state-run restaurant, a hospital, and a post office. You can't go wrong sending things there. The police station is right next to the post office. This area is full of government offices."

"Go left from the main road, walk for two minutes, and then turn left again to reach our home. Our house is on North Street. To the left of North Street is the Ethnic Minority Middle School, and to the right is Anling County No. 2 Primary School. It will be much more convenient for Anlin to go to school in the future."

"There was also a department store, which was actually just a slightly larger supply and marketing cooperative."

As Zeng Min listened to his introduction, she couldn't help but wonder why she didn't seem to see any factories.

"So where do you work?" Zeng Min asked curiously.

Tu Mingcheng replied, "I work at a machinery manufacturing plant, not around here. It's about five or six kilometers away, a twenty-minute bike ride away."

"Isn't there a residential compound for family members? Why did you buy a new house here?"

“There was a family compound offered to me, but I didn’t take it. It’s too small and noisy. You guys live here, which isn’t far from the machinery factory. I’ll come back every day. Life is more convenient here. There’s also a small market every week where comrades from the surrounding county town bring their own things to exchange.”

"Okay, I'm fine with living anywhere anyway."

The two arrived at a courtyard that looked like a house with blue tiles. The house was not big, but it had two floors. Because there was a stone wall at the entrance, they could not see what the courtyard looked like, but they could see the second floor.

Tu Mingcheng took out the key, opened the gate, and went inside to see a small courtyard.

There is a hand pump well on the left and a small vegetable garden on the right; it is still an empty space.

Zeng Min's arms were getting tired from holding An Lin, so she put him down.

He pulled him forward again, and Tu Mingcheng went first to open the door and put his luggage in the main room.

Zeng Min followed her into the main room. Looking around, she saw two rooms on the left: a master bedroom and a smaller room. On the right, in front, there was a kitchen, and behind, another room and a storage room.

Anlin let go of his mother's hand and asked excitedly, "Mom, is this our home from now on?"

Zeng Min: "Yes, whether I like it or not."

"Yes, I like it."

"Mom, can I sleep in this small room from now on?" Anlin was obviously used to sleeping separately from his mother at the Tu family's house and hadn't thought about sleeping with her.

Zeng Min asked him, "Aren't you going to sleep with your mother? Aren't you scared in this unfamiliar place?"

"Don't be afraid, Dad is here. Dad will protect me and Mom." She looked at Tu Mingcheng and said, "Right, Dad?"

Tu Mingcheng stepped forward and picked him up, replying, "Yes, we are little men, we must be strong. Even if Dad isn't around, you still have to protect Mom, okay?"

Anlin gave him a sweet kiss and said in a childish voice, "I know, I will eat lots of food, grow up quickly, and protect Mommy."

Tu Mingcheng: "Then work hard, I believe in you."

Seeing Minmin looking around, Tu Mingcheng led her to the back of the kitchen and said, "There's a small vegetable garden here, so you can eat whatever you want. You can keep the two hens you brought here; just cover them with a bamboo cage."

Upon hearing Mingcheng mention the hen, Zeng Min quickly went to the main room to retrieve it. Luckily, it was in a bamboo cage, otherwise it would have suffocated.

Tu Mingcheng told her to stay here and do her work while he carried An Lin to the main room to tidy up.

After Tu Mingcheng finished tidying up, Zeng Min had also finished touring the rooms on the second floor. There wasn't much to see on the second floor; it was just a corridor and three rooms.

Zeng Min pushed open the master bedroom door, where there was a table, a wardrobe, and a 1.8-meter-long canopy bed, which looked much wider than usual.

Tu Mingcheng came up behind her, pulled her into his arms from behind, pressed her tightly into his embrace, and took a deep, satisfied breath of the woman's body fragrance.

"Now we can finally enjoy some time alone together."

He leaned down and kissed her. Zeng Min was a little excited and turned around to hook her arms around his neck. Tu Mingcheng leaned down to cooperate, and the two kissed passionately, ignoring Xiao Anlin.

When the two went out again, half an hour had passed. Tu Mingcheng led the mother and son to find food.

When they arrived at the restaurant, it was already crowded. Tu Mingcheng asked Zeng Min to find a seat for the child while he went to order food.

A short while later, Tu Mingcheng brought over the dishes. Zeng Min took a closer look and saw a plate of cold pig's ears, a plate of stir-fried eggplant, a pot of stewed beef with potatoes, and a plate of fragrant rice.

Tu Mingcheng beamed with joy: "I'm so lucky today, there's actually beef."

Zeng Min, however, was somewhat worried: "Won't so much meat be very expensive?"

Tu Mingcheng waved his hand and said, "It's not expensive at all. We don't eat at restaurants often."

Zeng Min was still a little reluctant: "How much will this meal cost?"

"It's not much, so don't worry about eating it."

Zeng Min listened and thought it was alright. The food was plentiful and reasonably priced. She served An Lin a bowl of rice and added some meat, and the three of them happily ate together.

Zeng Min was carsick and had little appetite today, but Tu Mingcheng ate everything he had, and even An Lin ate a big bowl.

After dinner, the family of three went home to rest; they were all exhausted from the day.

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