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Глава 40

Li Changsheng didn't argue anymore. He grabbed his workbook, turned to a new page, and started writing carefully.

Shang Lin nodded in satisfaction, but also felt a little guilty.

There's something I haven't told you—it's not entirely because of the grand principles I've been preaching, but more because Teacher Qiao Liang is always finding fault with us. He already reported me to the principal for not handing in my homework last time. We're in a very precarious situation right now, and we absolutely cannot afford to make any mistakes!

Thinking of that teacher Qiao Liang, Shang Lin felt his head ache even more.

Being too persistent becomes stubbornness and inflexibility. Teacher Qiao, please, have mercy on me, stop watching me so closely and trying so hard to find fault with me!

Li Changsheng calmed down and quickly finished his homework. He drank the milk that Shanglin had just warmed up and was about to tidy up and go back to his room when Shanglin glanced at the wall clock: "Mom and Dad aren't coming back. Changsheng, you sleep with Xialin."

As the business expanded, Zhang Hongwei and Qiu Jianguo returned home less and less often. Even when they wanted to connect with their families, they were always called away in a hurry after only a short while. Qiu Jianguo had taken a leave of absence without pay from the Hongxing factory to focus on running his own business.

Shanglin actually hoped he would resign, so that he would have no way out and could give it his all. But Qiu Jianguo was a cautious person. Besides, having a job but doing business was a different matter from not having a job but doing business. At least if others asked, he could disdainfully say that he didn't want to stick to a secure job for the rest of his life and wanted to make his own way, rather than being forced to admit that he was unemployed and had to work hard.

Grandma is getting old and is used to going to bed early and waking up early, so she's not quite used to the daily routine in Shanglin. She feels she should go to sleep as soon as the sun sets, and she absolutely can't fall asleep in Shanglin before nine o'clock.

Grandpa's health hasn't been good lately, so she went to town to take care of him.

Although the siblings are usually alone at home, Shanglin has recently been feeling uneasy. Xialin has been having nightmares, talking in her sleep, and occasionally sleepwalking; the empty room has instilled a sense of dread in her.

Li Changsheng wards off evil spirits...

After finishing his milk, Li Changsheng wiped his mouth and went into the room with Xia Lin, stabbing each other repeatedly. The two argued for a while about Xia Lin betraying him, until Shang Lin in the next room impatiently stopped them, and then they lay down with a grin.

He lay there with his eyes open in the darkness, quietly observing the room's furnishings.

The house was renovated and redesigned, and divided into three small bedrooms. The Qiu couple had one, and Shanglin and Xialin each had one. Apart from the Qiu couple's room being relatively large, the other two rooms were very small, so small that they could only fit a bed and a table. The two of them could turn around and touch each other in the room.

In Xia Lin's room, there was a tiny desk, with books, paper, and pens scattered haphazardly. The quilt covering her was warm and cozy, carrying the scent of sunshine. Girls often have health issues, so a special "autumn quilt" had been made for her, thinner and lighter than the ordinary cotton quilts at home. This had its advantages; in spring and autumn, it was neither too hot nor too cold, preventing her from kicking off the covers and catching a cold the next day.

Her room didn't have a desk, but it contained a huge wardrobe.

I love to look good!

The air is filled with a faint floral fragrance mixed with the scent of fresh grass, which is very comforting.

Every day, the girl would pick a large bunch of wild chrysanthemums from the roadside and put a vase in each room. He and Xia Lin used to think she was being fussy and irritating, but now it seems it's actually quite beneficial...

The day after tomorrow is the weekend, and the girl said she wanted to go up the mountain to pick wild chrysanthemums. He and Xia Lin had planned to go out and then stand her up, but now it seems that the trip won't be possible...

A little girl...

She drifted off into a sweet dream.

The calamity of wild chrysanthemums

After the last class on Saturday, Pan Ling turned to Qiu Shanglin, who was packing her schoolbag, and asked, "Shanglin, Shanglin, you're not going to school tomorrow, where are you going?"

"I plan to go flower picking in the mountains this morning," she replied, secretly thinking, "I won't tell you my plans for the afternoon. I need to check on the progress of the cat advertisement this afternoon, but I can't say that."

Pan Ling's eyes widened in admiration: "Midterm exams are coming up soon, and you still dare to go out and play!"

Shang Lin smiled. Pan Ling slapped her forehead, annoyed, and said, "I'm so stupid! You weren't scared at all! You're so smart, unlike some people... who are as stupid as pigs!"

His gaze swept over Qiu Xialin, who was sitting next to Shanglin, intentionally or unintentionally.

Hearing the ridicule, Xia Lin raised his eyes and glared fiercely at Pan Ling. Pan Ling was a little scared and shrank back towards Shang Lin. Seeing this, she turned her head and gave him a warning look.

Pan Ling was smug, stuck out her tongue and made a big funny face.

He affectionately touched Lin's rosy cheek: "How about I come to play with you tomorrow?"

Shanglin didn't care: "Okay."

Pan Ling stuck out her tongue at Xia Lin, rolled her eyes, and looked smug.

Xia Lin couldn't stand her clinging to her sister all the time, and muttered under her breath, "What are you touching? If you touch me again, I'll chop your hand off!"

Pan Ling didn't hear her. She enviously touched her face again and again: "Your face isn't dry at all. What are you putting on? A little bell or a little palace lantern?"

Her skin was fair, smooth, and delicate, unlike my own skin, which was prone to dryness, peeling, and pain and itching. Spring and autumn in the north are dry, and the autumn winds bring clouds of dust, making it incredibly uncomfortable.

Shang Lin turned his head to avoid the devil's hand, frowning as he looked at the ink stains on Pan Ling's fingers. Pan Ling noticed it too and quickly wiped it on her clothes, saying, "I got it on my pencil when I was sharpening it, I can't wipe it off. You still haven't told me what kind of oil to use!" she said coquettishly.

"I also use the little bell. If my skin feels particularly dry, I apply Pechoin Vaseline moisturizing cream."

Qiu Xialin glanced at her sister with disdain. "Tch, I don't care to expose you."

You clearly had someone buy you some The Body Shop baby cream from overseas, but the box is covered in scribbles. Even though you don't use it much, you don't use the little bell every day either.

Also, you put cucumber slices on your face every night, thinking I can't see them and therefore don't know?

Hmm, you even used the milk I couldn't finish to wash your face.

And then there are tomatoes, watermelons, peaches, whatever you have at home, you put them all on your face, and you have the nerve to say you only use the little bell?

The little bell is for me, okay?

No wonder he was indignant. His sister was willing to spend hundreds of dollars on cosmetics for herself and her mother, but she was only willing to buy small bells for him, his father, and Changsheng, and she even argued that small bells shouldn't be used.

Pan Ling suddenly realized: "Pechoin, right? I'll ask my mom to buy it too."

Shanglin felt guilty. Not only Bai Que Ling, but I also have many other methods, but I dare not tell you.

Many people can't even get enough to eat these days. She said she washes her face with milk every day because she's afraid of being called a spendthrift. As for the products from The Body Shop that she bought in the UK, Shang Lin thinks that although they claim to be free of chemicals, it's just talk, and she doesn't know if they actually add any. So she simply leaves them unused, only occasionally applying the small bell-shaped product when her skin is dry.

After her rebirth, Shanglin naturally understood the importance of appearance more than people in later generations. No matter how beautiful your inner self is, others can't see through you at a glance.

In later generations, people didn't know how to take care of their skin from a young age, and often stayed up late in college. By the time they realized they were old enough to take care of their skin, it was too late. Their pores were large, their skin was dull and dry, and no amount of expensive cosmetics could make up for it.

Because I was so heartbroken at the time, I tried many methods to maintain my skin, and became quite knowledgeable about cosmetics and DIY face masks. My skin was delicate at a young age, so I dared not use cosmetics containing chemical ingredients, but I made my own with fruits and vegetables, which were absolutely hormone-free. My face was fair and smooth, and I wasn't afraid of the dry autumn weather.

Early one weekend morning, Li Changsheng, drenched in sweat after finishing a set of boxing, took a shirtless shower in the yard. His grandmother, who was up early, saw him and inevitably launched into another nagging. Shanglin had just gotten up and was stretching as he listened to his grandmother's rambling about the downsides of cold showers in the yard.

It's really inconvenient not having a dedicated shower room.

Nowadays, very few people bathe every day, especially in the countryside where things are even more backward. Summer is alright, as showering is convenient, but in autumn and winter, the only way to bathe is to go to a public bathhouse. There was a free bathhouse at the Hongxing factory, which opened at a fixed time each week, but it was always packed with people, it was terrifying, and Shanglin never went there.

Going to the town's bathhouse was too much trouble, so I simply bought a large wooden bathtub and boiled water to bathe at home.

As autumn deepens and the weather gets colder, but not cold enough to need a heater, she has already caught a cold several times.

Perhaps a bathroom should be built, she thought.

Ultimately, it all comes down to outdated housing planning. If we could have pooled our resources to build an apartment building earlier, the whole family could have moved there, saving us all this trouble.

But listening to the clatter of pots and pans, the shouts of voices, and the greetings of good morning in the courtyard, Shanglin thought that living in the courtyard for the rest of his life wouldn't be so bad.

After breakfast, Changsheng and Xialin, carrying the large cloth bag that Qiu Shanglin had given them, set off together to the place they had agreed upon the day before.

From afar, Shanglin wondered if she was hallucinating. She asked Changsheng, "Am I seeing things?"

Li Changsheng looked a little awkward carrying the large bag. It was a yellow floral fabric bag sewn by his grandmother, cute and adorable, perfect for a little girl.

Pan Ling, with her sharp eyes, spotted the three people in the distance and ran over, excitedly calling out, "Shanglin, Changsheng!"

She only saw two things; as for the other one… hmph!

Pointing to the groups of people: "They..."

Pan Ling said happily, "I invited them. It's more lively with more people. I asked who wanted to go up the mountain with me after school yesterday, and they all agreed to come."