This old well was thus sealed away.

My late grandmother once told me that the water in this well was sweet and pure, and it would still produce water even in years of severe drought.

This was an empty room for her to store things, and a small plot of land where she could grow vegetables.

There is nothing else.

"Great!" Lin Momo finally managed to utter those two words after a long pause, a mixture of pain and joy.

It seems that if she wants to live a good life, she still has to rely on her own hard work and start from scratch.

She has never been a greedy person, and she is already quite content to have this space.

Food tastes best when cooked by yourself, and life is more fulfilling when you work hard for it.

There's nothing I can do in this space for now, and I need to get to the city early tomorrow.

So Lin Momo had a sudden thought and went back to bed.

In the pitch-black darkness.

Listening to Lin Sanya's long, even breaths, her heart calmed down, and she gradually drifted off to sleep.

*

The waning moon gradually sank into the sky, and the sparse stars twinkled, the brightest of which was the Big Dipper.

On the dirt road leading out of the village, an open-top mule cart gradually drove away from the still-sleeping village, with the occasional crisp crack of a whip and the snorting of a mule.

"Er Ya, how much money did your grandpa just give you?" Xu Gensheng, sitting on the carriage shaft and driving, casually asked his niece behind him, lightly waving the leather whip in his hand.

He has a square face, a typical northern man's face, which gives people the impression of being honest and kind. But after exchanging a few words with him, you will feel deceived: Where is the honesty and kindness in this person? He is obviously very shrewd.

Lin Momo, who was on the cart, had never gotten up this early before. The bumpy ride made her sleepy, and she didn't reply for a moment.

After a short while, Xu Gensheng turned his head and asked, "Why did you fall asleep?"

"Hmm." Lin Momo was too lazy to talk and just mumbled something casually.

"I heard that doctors in the county charge high fees. Do you have enough money?"

"Is this enough? I only borrowed this much yesterday. I'll try my luck first. If it's really not enough, there's still Uncle, isn't there?" Lin Momo looked up and blinked, her clear eyes gazing at her clever uncle.

The eldest brother is like a father. Generally, the eldest brother is more honest and simple, and willing to take care of his younger siblings. Just like in TV dramas, the eldest brother works hard to raise his younger siblings, but never asks for anything in return.

This uncle really overturned Lin Momo's understanding.

More than concerned about whether his critically ill younger brother could be saved, the older brother was more concerned about whether his father had secretly given his younger brother more money and how much he had suffered.

"Did you borrow money yesterday?"

"Oh, your uncle went to Nanshan to collect firewood yesterday, so he might not know. You should go back and ask your aunt; she should have heard about it from the villagers." Lin Momo knew that her uncle definitely wouldn't believe her, so she would go back and ask her wife.

Anyway, she visited several houses yesterday, and many people in the village saw her and asked her and her sister what they were doing going from house to house.

Of course, Lin Momo wouldn't be foolish enough to say she was borrowing money; she would always use "going to play with so-and-so" as an excuse. But the families she went to borrow money from wouldn't be kind enough to cover for her.

Putting aside others, that gossipy aunt of the Fan family would definitely tell everyone about it as a joke.

"Wow! You're quite capable. Even if your uncle went to the village to borrow it, he might not be able to get it."

Lin Gensheng praised his niece in a strange tone, then got to the point, "So, how much money did you borrow?"

This old man is just like those gossipy women in the village—narrow-minded, talkative, and always asking unnecessary questions.

"My father said we shouldn't flaunt our wealth, and we shouldn't tell anyone." Lin Momo rolled her eyes at the back of his head.

"You can't even tell your uncle?"

Lin Gensheng was a little hurt, and solemnly emphasized, "We are family, and your uncle would never covet your little bit of money."

"Could you lend me some money, Uncle?"

"What? Borrow money? Didn't you borrow it last time? Five taels, have you forgotten?" Lin Gensheng was so frightened that he almost dropped the whip.

Lin said knowingly, "Oh, so you can only borrow it once?"

"Yes, who has that much money to lend to others?"

"Didn't Uncle just say that we're family? If you lend money to someone else once, you should lend it to your own family twice, right? Besides, my father is your own brother, born of the same mother. Can anyone else compare to that relationship? Can Uncle just stand by and watch his own brother die? Are you even my father's brother? Is that how an older brother should act?"

Seizing the loophole in his words, Lin Momo launched a counterattack.

This uncle, driven by self-interest, kept switching between his own family and others. When he was pushed to the brink, he started to back down, saying, "But, but my family doesn't have any money either. After the family split up, all the money we saved was spent on your brother Dayong's wedding. The little bit left was all lent to your family last time."

Lin silently sheathed her sword. "Oh, it seems my family has no choice but to sell land."

"What? Your family is going to sell the land? Your mother didn't say how much money she planned to sell it for?" Lin Gensheng was shocked again, and forgot to crack the whip to urge the mule, which had slowed down.

"Mother hasn't said anything yet, she only said that if we don't have enough money, we'll sell the land."

With a vague remark, Lin Momo said with considerable regret, "What a pity. If my uncle's family were wealthy, we could have sold it to him."

"Your family only has those five acres of land left, is your mother willing to sell it?"

“No one will grow it if we don’t sell it, so we might as well sell it to save my dad’s life.” Lin Momo added fuel to the fire, “Mom said that without Dad, our whole family would starve.”

“Your mother is right. The land can be bought back later if you have the money. But if the person is gone, the land can't be kept either. Without your father watching over your brother, who knows when he might go gambling again. If he loses, selling the land won't be enough to cover the losses, and you sisters will be dragged down with him.”

What insolent and lewd words!

My uncle can't expect his family to have a better life.

Lin Momo silently complained.

Uncle Lin turned his head and stared at Lin Momo anxiously, saying, "Er Ya, tell your mother not to sell the land yet. When I get back, I'll have your aunt go to her parents' house to borrow money. How can we sell our Lin family's land to others? That way, it will be easier for your family to buy it back when you have the money in the future, right?"

You're actually quite kind!

Lin Momo didn't respond, looking into the distance listlessly, and casually said, "This isn't urgent, Uncle, you should hurry on your way. Getting a doctor for my father is the priority."

"Okay, okay," Lin Gengsheng replied hastily, then added, "But remember this, Uncle, you absolutely must not let our Lin family's land go to waste..."

Suddenly, Lin Momo pointed ahead and exclaimed, "Uncle, look, there's a figure ahead!"

"Ah, a figure?"

Lin Gensheng was startled by his niece's shout and hurriedly sat up straight, looking ahead.