The scenery in the mountains is better than that in the city. The Qin family's house is also in a good location, and you can see the snow-covered, rolling mountains from the courtyard.
Ever since Ye Yun and Qin Zheng left, Luo Xiujuan has been taking care of the old lady with all her heart.
In the morning, Qin Xiang'e went out to sell mung bean cakes, while she stayed at home with the old lady, basking in the sun and doing housework. In the afternoon, Qin Xiang'e returned home and rode her old bicycle to town to take a look at Wangshan Tower.
Homestays are being built around Wangshanlou.
Ruan Boli is a businessman who never wastes time. He hired a professional construction team and personally built a homestay around Wangshanlou that resembled a resort village.
The most important of these is a hot spring pool.
Ruan Boli said he wanted to create a unique hot spring resort.
The expansion project inevitably generated dust. The inside of Wangshanlou was fine, but the outside was covered with a layer of dust, which Luo Xiujuan couldn't clean up.
Ruan Boli and his companions lived in Wangshan Tower and would often help clean the inside. As for the outside, they unanimously decided to do a thorough cleaning together once the surrounding area was expanded.
As usual, after visiting Wangshan Tower, Luo Xiujuan returned home just as she finished cooking.
She filled a bucket with water and washed the large piece of meat that Qin Xiang'e had brought back from town at noon, planning to stew it into a wild vegetable and meat noodle soup for dinner.
It needs to be stewed until very tender, ideally so tender that it falls apart at the slightest touch, so that the old lady's teeth can still chew it.
Luo Xiujuan carefully washed the wild vegetables, feeling emotional. She never imagined she could live such a life.
Although she was embarrassed to eat the large piece of meat, the sheer amount of oil and grease was enough to satisfy her craving.
In the past, she and her son lived a life of hardship, sometimes not knowing where their next meal would come from, and they would save up a single ration for three days. How could they have meat at every meal like they do now?
Her son is doing well now.
Every now and then, Ye Yun would call the village to tell her about Xiao Hai's situation and ask Xiao Hai to say a few words to her.
She knew that Xiao Hai was doing better than her in the county town, and that he was still able to go to school.
These were all given to Xiao Hai by Ye Yun and Qin Zheng. Ye Yun and Qin Zheng treated Xiao Hai like their own son, and she remembered all the kindness they showed her and her son.
As she thought about it, Luo Xiujuan began to miss her son.
With the little one by Ye Yun's side, she naturally had nothing to worry about. However, after being apart for a long time, she, as the mother, couldn't help but miss him.
"mother!"
A childish voice suddenly rang out.
Luo Xiujuan, who was washing wild vegetables with her head down, couldn't help but be startled and looked up in surprise.
She was so engrossed in washing vegetables that she didn't even notice a car parked in front of her house.
Next to the car, Coal Ball was excitedly barking around the vehicle.
Xiao Hai leaned out of the car window and shouted.
When Luo Xiujuan looked up and spotted him, her youthful eyes lit up with joy. Qin Zheng pushed open the door for her and immediately jumped out of the car, running towards Luo Xiujuan like a little monkey.
"This, this..."
Luo Xiujuan stared in astonishment at Xiao Hai running towards her, until the little guy suddenly hugged her, tightly embraced her neck, and buried his little head in her arms.
As if he had missed her for a long time, the little guy hugged her neck and started to cry quietly.
At such a young age, he suppressed his sobs, not uttering a sound, his head bowed and choking back tears; only his small shoulders, trembling, were visible.
Luo Xiujuan then came to her senses.
She quickly dropped the wild vegetables she was holding, hastily wiped her hands with her apron, cupped Xiao Hai's face in her hands, and asked anxiously, "Xiao Hai? Why are you back?"
Xiao Hai looked at her without saying a word, tears streaming down his face.
This sight made Luo Xiujuan even more anxious. Could it be that Xiao Hai had caused trouble in the county town and was sent back by Ye Yun and Qin Zheng?
“Juanzi…”
Just then, another trembling voice reached Luo Xiujuan's ears.
Luo Xiujuan was suddenly taken aback.
This voice seemed to transcend centuries, so ancient that she could hardly believe she could still hear this voice she had almost forgotten.
Yet, it still struck her the moment it appeared, throwing her thoughts into chaos.
Luo Xiujuan turned her head in disbelief and saw a thin but familiar figure get out of the car; it was none other than Xun Xiangbin.
Her heart skipped a beat; she could hardly believe what she was seeing.
"Juanzi, do you still recognize me?" Xun Xiangbin saw the shock in Luo Xiujuan's eyes, and a bitter look appeared on his face.
He leaned on his cane and walked unsteadily up the slope step by step.
He came to see Luo Xiujuan before he had fully recovered. Nearly three days of this had left him extremely weak, and he could barely walk steadily with the help of his cane.
As he approached Luo Xiujuan, the shock in the woman's eyes became even clearer, deeply stinging Xun Xiangbin's eyes.
He gazed greedily at Luo Xiujuan.
Looking at her hair, a mix of black and white, at the fine lines around her eyes, at her face that is no longer what it used to be.
But she's not even thirty yet.
It's only been five years.
The girl with braided pigtails, pure eyes, who used to sit with him in the mountains watching the clouds drift by, has aged as much as a thirty-year-old woman.
Luo Xiujuan looked completely at a loss.
She never expected to see Xun Xiangbin so soon. He had been gone for so many years without a trace, and she had even thought that she would never see him again in this lifetime.
Unexpectedly, she saw it.
Not only did I see it, but it happened so suddenly.
"What are you all standing in the yard for? Aren't you cold?" Old Gao cursed as he got out of the car and shouted into the yard.
He first looked Luo Xiujuan up and down with an inscrutable expression, thinking to himself, "Is this the girl that Xun Xiangbin can't forget?"
Luo Xiujuan is not good-looking now. Not long ago, she was a beggar with a child, thin as a rake and pale as a ghost.
Although she had regained some energy at Old Qin's house during this time, the loss of energy and appearance was not so easy to recover. The fine lines around her eyes, the few strands of white hair at her temples, and the dry, straw-like ends of her hair made her look rustic and poor at first glance.
Old Gao turned his head and glared at Xun Xiangbin.
"You little punk, have you gone mad at the sight of people? You want to freeze in the yard? I don't want to keep you company!" Old Gao said, entering the main room as if he knew the place well.
Ye Yun and Qin Zheng then slowly entered the room.
Qin Zheng was still carrying the things he had brought back from the city, large and small bags.
Inside were cotton-padded jackets that Ye Yun had specially made for the old lady and Qin Xiang'e, as well as some food.
There was also a small schoolbag containing Xiao Hai's homework, which he brought back to show Luo Xiujuan so she could see how Xiao Hai had written.
"Woof woof woof—"
The dog was extremely excited to see Qin Zheng. It followed Qin Zheng and barked at him, wagging its tail so hard it seemed like it was about to take off, and occasionally it would pounce on Qin Zheng!
Pet the dog! Pet the dog!
"Good dog!"
Qin Zheng was in a good mood, patted the dog's head, and said something complimentary to satisfy it.
"Girls, you're going home."
Upon seeing Ye Yun, Luo Xiujuan disregarded Xun Xiangbin and hurriedly took the bags from Qin Zheng's hands.
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