Volume 1 Chapter 4: The Door Doesn't Match the House, No Worries

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  "You kid... when did you become so slick and cunning?" Meng Lin raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

  In her impression, her son Peng Yuanzheng was an honest and simple-minded child. Although he lost his father at a young age, under his mother's strict teachings, he was well-read, polite, and diligent, belonging to the typical kind of person who knew his place. But today at the Meng's house, Peng Yuanzheng was so indignant that it showed on his face, his words were sharp and slightly sarcastic, all of which made Meng Lin feel unfamiliar.

  Peng Yuanzheng was taken aback for a moment, then revealed his signature silly smile. But with a different mood, this smile always carried a hint of melancholy.

  In his previous life, he followed his mother's teachings and was humble in his dealings with others, diligent in his work, and never took any shortcuts or engaged in corrupt practices. He was known as a honest and hardworking model within the organization. However, in the official circles, being an honest person ultimately didn't bring him much benefit, although he had good relationships with others, his career path was unusually difficult.

  He was always selected as an outstanding party member and a model worker, but when it came to promotions, he never got his chance. People with similar qualifications became department heads, while he remained a senior staff member; by the time he was promoted to deputy department head, others had already become successful county officials, and the gap between them grew wider and wider.

  Later, Peng Yuanzheng gradually came to realize a truth: in this life, he had always been taken advantage of because of his honesty. Being honest is actually not a big deal; the key is that he didn't have any connections. And because of his honesty, he wasn't good at scheming and finding backers, so the outcome was predictable.

  But he realized this truth too late. Age is unforgiving, and after passing 35 years old, nearing the age of no longer being perplexed, he had already passed the golden age for promotion.

  At this thought, Peng Yuan Zheng couldn't help but let out a soft sigh.

  The past is gone. Fortunately, he has another chance to start anew, and he decides to embark on a path of life that is completely different from his previous one.

  At this time, Cao Ying next door was taking a bath at home, changed into a clean and refreshing T-shirt + jeans shorts, and went out.

  Her mother, Liu Fang, poked her head out of the bedroom and frowned, saying, "Xiao Ying, you just got back, where are you going again? You've already been assigned to teach at No. 2 Middle School, why don't you hurry up and prepare? When school starts, how will you teach your students?"

  Cao Ying was a high school classmate of Peng Yuanzheng, but his grades were slightly worse than Peng's. He attended Normal University in the same province and after graduation, he was assigned to Xin'an No. 2 Middle School, which is also not bad.

  This is related to her father Cao Dapeng. Cao Dapeng was the party secretary of Xin'an Machinery Factory, and although he was just a state-owned enterprise leader, he also had some connections and played a crucial role in his daughter's job assignment. Otherwise, Cao Ying would have at least a 90% chance of being assigned to a district-affiliated middle school or even a rural town middle school.

  "Mom, I've already graduated from college. Why are you still nagging me? There's no rush to find a job either, it's still two months away. I'm going out to have some fun with my classmates." Cao Ying scolded, about to head out the door.

  Liu Fang hummed, "You this dead girl, don't think I don't know what you're going to do - I can tell you, that Peng Yuanzheng is not suitable for you, Mom strongly opposes you being with him!"

  Cao Ying refuted with great discontent, "What's wrong with Peng Yuanzheng? He excelled in both arts and sciences since childhood and is a prestigious university student! Besides, Peng Yuanzheng and I are just ordinary classmates, what are you talking about?"

  "What's with the little tricks, can't mom see through them?" Liu Fang walked out of the bedroom with a face full of cucumber slices. "Ordinary classmate? You started inquiring about Peng Yuanzheng as soon as you graduated, Peng Yuanzheng came back yesterday, and you specifically waited downstairs for him, exchanged two sentences with him, then took a bus ride around... Do you think mom is an idiot?"

  As soon as Liu Fang's words came out, Cao Ying's pretty face suddenly turned red.

  "What's the use of being a university student from a famous school? Without any connections or background, in the end you'll still be assigned to some rural area with your tail between your legs?" Liu Fang glared, "Mom is just thinking about what's best for you. Besides, he's just a mom's boy, his family conditions are so poor, our two families aren't even on the same level..."

  Liu Fang's words had not finished yet, Cao Ying pushed the door out and closed the anti-theft door with a clang.

  "You..." Liu Fang stamped her foot heavily, and the cucumber slices on her face all fell off.

  Cao Ying quickly went downstairs and arrived at the bottom of Peng's building.

  She hesitated for a moment downstairs and still went upstairs.

  She indeed had some feelings for Peng Yuanzheng. During high school, these feelings were quite strong. However, at that time, Peng Yuanzheng was completely focused on studying and was a top student in school, with strict family rules, strongly opposed to puppy love.

  Later, Peng Yuanzheng finally got into a top domestic university, while Cao Ying only attended a provincial normal university. They went their separate ways. However, although they were not together, the thought in Cao Ying's heart never fell.

  She is a more outstanding beauty, and also writes well, so she naturally doesn't lack suitors in college. It's just that every time Cao Ying compares the other party with Peng Yuanzheng, and after comparison, Peng Yuanzheng's many advantages are infinitely magnified in her heart.

  After graduating from college, Cao Ying accidentally heard Meng Lin say that Peng Yuanzheng still didn't have a girlfriend, and the idea in her heart was reignited.

  Cao Ying calmed down at the entrance of Peng's house and gently knocked on the door.

  Meng Lin opened the door and saw Cao Ying, couldn't help but smile and say, "It's Little Ying! Come on in!"

  Meng Lin is the cashier of the machinery factory, living in the same residential area, so they are relatively familiar with each other. Moreover, Cao Ying has always been respectful to Meng Lin, and every time she sees her, she greets her from afar with a "Hello Aunt Meng".

  "Is Aunt Meng here? Is Peng Yuanzheng in?" Cao Ying's face turned red as she asked softly.

  Meng Lin smiled, "Where is he? Xiao Ying has arrived."

  Peng Yuanzheng walked out of his bedroom, having just changed clothes and was about to go out when he saw Cao Ying, which was quite unexpected.

  "Cao Ying? Looking for me about something?"

  Cao Ying's pretty face turned even redder.

  Meng Lin turned around and glared at her son, scolding him, "What's wrong with you? You're old classmates, can't they just come to play with you for no reason?"

  Peng Yuanzheng was taken aback, how could he not know that Cao Ying had a crush on him. In his previous life, he and Cao Ying were once together, but due to her parents' strong opposition, they had to part ways halfway. Cao Ying later married the son of a cadre under pressure, but divorced less than a year after marriage.

  Peng Yuanzheng's marriage was also unhappy. He remained unmarried until he was 30 years old, when he married a language teacher from a junior high school affiliated with the district education bureau. Unfortunately, this marriage lasted even shorter, and the woman initially thought he was an official cadre with power and influence, but after getting married, she discovered that Peng Yuanzheng was actually poor and without any backing, so she soon found a new love and fell into the arms of a wealthy man.

  Fortunately, Peng Yuanzheng didn't have much feelings for her, and the marriage was also for the purpose of carrying on the family line, so he didn't mind that she had run away.

  Peng Yuanzheng clearly remembered that his romance with Cao Ying also originated from these few days. After Meng Lin's death, it was Cao Ying who accompanied him through the most obscure and painful summer of his life.

  Is this life... going to start all over again with Cao Ying? And the outcome... how will it be this time?

  Peng Yuanzheng shook his head, he had big things to attend to now, as for personal matters between men and women, let's talk about it later.