Old Mrs. Chen couldn't hold back her tears, and choked out, "Sister, what can we say? We can never repay your kindness in this lifetime!"
Seeing his wife crying and saying what he himself wanted to say, Old Man Lu nodded repeatedly in agreement.
Seeing them like this, Liu was also moved. Whenever she saw the Lu family, she was reminded of those difficult days.
"Alright, you two, don't be sad anymore. The family is reunited now, which is a wonderful thing. You mustn't cry! Ah Song's mother, hurry up and comfort your in-laws. The other children, don't stand there, quickly sit down for your aunt. Why be so polite at your aunt's house? If you're too polite, I'll get angry."
Seeing that Liu was pretending to be angry, Zhang quickly came over to comfort her parents-in-law.
With her son unharmed and living a good life, Zhang's sorrow subsided, replaced by a sense of fortunate relief. Her son had turned misfortune into blessing! Her daily prayers and chanting had not been in vain. From now on, she planned to pray for Madam Qin every day, and if possible, she would certainly erect a longevity tablet for her.
Qin San Niang: I really don't need it...
Today is the opening of the tavern, and several families had planned to celebrate by having a meal together. They prepared more food than usual, but now that there are more than a dozen people from the Lu family, there is not enough rice. So, Wu Chunhua cooked a pot of millet rice.
Knowing that the Lu family must not have had a proper meal in a long time, they quickly stir-fried a few light dishes. Even so, the Lu family felt they couldn't take it all in.
There weren't enough tables, so Qin San Niang had the children put two large tables together so that they could barely seat so many people.
The dishes filed in one after another, constantly challenging their worldview. The Lu family members didn't know where to put their chopsticks; the food was just too good! The aroma alone was irresistible.
At the dinner table, Liu and the others kept urging them to eat quickly, and Qin San Niang also took the initiative to add dishes for Zhang. Although they were very reserved at first, they gradually relaxed. There was plenty of millet rice, and the aroma of rice filled the air as they ate. The Lu family felt like they were about to cry...
After dinner, it was already late. Qin San Niang didn't insist they stay, telling them to rest well and talk again tomorrow. As for their lodgings? She had already thought of it; there were rooms with beds in the workshop area.
The elderly couple from the Lu family were kind and grateful, so they naturally followed the arrangements made by their hosts. As long as it was a place that could shelter them from the wind and rain, it would be better than sleeping on the streets! Unexpectedly, the room that the eldest child's mother arranged for them was actually quite nice.
The key to the workshop's rest area was handed to Lu Song, knowing that the family had been reunited after a long separation and naturally had a lot to talk about.
"Auntie, Uncle, you and your family should go and rest first. We can talk about other things tomorrow. Let Ah Song take you to freshen up and get a good night's sleep."
Old Man Lu thanked him profusely and led his family, following behind his grandson, walking slowly. Seeing this, Mrs. Liu felt another pang of sadness.
The workshop wasn't far away, only a distance of two or three hundred meters.
When they arrived, they realized that it was not quite what they had imagined. They had thought it would be a rough thatched house, but in front of them was a row of very neat mud-brick houses.
“Grandpa, this is where we rest. We can stay in any of these rooms. There’s a well in the yard. Behind here is the outhouse and bathing area. You can boil water here to wash up,” Lu Song explained one by one.
His grandfather and the others were covered in dust, and when he saw them, his nose stung with tears. He realized that his family must have suffered a lot.
Who knew there was a well in the yard?! Everyone was quite happy. They had just had a good meal, and now that they were relaxed, everyone started to smile.
The third daughter-in-law, Madam Mo, put down the bundle on her back and clicked her tongue as she looked at everything before her. She thought to herself, "The Qin family's workshop is actually cleaner, tidier, and more like a home than our own in the north!"
"Tsk tsk, Ah Song, you're living a really comfortable life. Your aunt is even a little envious! If we had known you were living this well, your mother and grandmother wouldn't have cried every day!"
Hearing this, Old Mrs. Chen frowned, but everyone was having a good time, and she didn't want to spoil the mood. In her heart, however, she thought, "It's time to teach this third daughter-in-law a lesson!" Even so, Old Mrs. Chen still wasn't going to let her off the hook, and said...
"Third son's wife, we're all tired. Go and boil some more water so everyone can wash up later. Eldest son's wife and second son's wife, you two go and make the beds."
"Yes, Mother." The three daughters-in-law nodded in agreement, but Mo rolled her eyes inwardly, thinking to herself that this old woman was just biased! Boiling water was the dirtiest and most tiring job, and she was obviously deliberately picking on her! Fine, at least she could wash first.
Old Mrs. Chen naturally couldn't grant her wish. Once the water boiled, she had her eldest daughter-in-law take a spoon and bathe with her, then her second daughter-in-law took the child, then the men, and finally it was her turn to bathe.
Madam Mo was furious, but Lu Laosan glared at her with a strong warning, which genuinely frightened her. With her family not around, she needed to restrain herself.
With enough rooms available, the Lu family members were able to live separately and finally get a good night's sleep.
The third wife's snoring was the first to start, but the first wife and her husband couldn't fall asleep. Looking at her sleeping children, she felt a joy of having lost them again. Zhang didn't plan to close her eyes all night, afraid that when she opened her eyes the next day, someone would tell her that it was all a dream.
The eldest son of the Lu family hugged his wife and told her that this was not a dream, and that the children had all returned! This grown man couldn't help but burst into tears when he saw his son today. The past six months had been incredibly difficult for them.
Recalling everything that had happened, the father and mother had traveled to many places in search of Song'er, their brows furrowed the whole way. They would ask any passerby they encountered if they had seen a boy that tall...
Because they were so eager to find their grandson, the shrewd old couple were swindled out of a lot of money.
Sometimes, Lu Laoda couldn't bear to burden his family and wanted to give up, but before he could say it, his mother would interrupt him, "Laoda, Song'er is the eldest grandson of our Lu family. We have no place to live or roots in the south, so let's follow in Song'er's footsteps and go wherever we end up. If we can't find a place to live, we'll settle down there."
Lu the eldest fell silent, knowing his parents were still unwilling to give up, but what about himself? He felt the same way! However, he had the second and third wives behind him, and he couldn't bear to see his younger brothers suffer because of their family. But his two foolish younger brothers were both stubborn, turning around and persuading him not to worry, to do as his parents said! They even said that if Song'er couldn't be found, the second brother's children would have to support their eldest brother and sister-in-law in their old age.
The third brother's wife, who had some reservations, also persevered, so the couple were filled with gratitude towards their family.
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