"If you don't like being tied down, you can do some research on your own. You don't necessarily have to be like other scientists, and you don't need to devote yourself to it wholeheartedly. You can do it when you want to, and you can stop and enjoy the scenery when you don't want to."
This heartwarming message from her father warmed Qian Xiao's heart. She felt lucky that there was always someone who would silently support and praise her, no matter whether she was mediocre or successful.
Qian Xiao rubbed Shuang Dan's body (actually, it was air) vigorously: "My goodness, Shuang Dan, when did you start reading philosophy? The way you're talking is so artsy!"
Shuangdan rolled her eyes: "Can't you just stay serious?" Her sentimentality didn't last long before she reverted to her true self.
"Oh dear, it's so tiring to live a serious life all the time. You have to laugh all the time to live a long life. Do you think I can live to be a hundred?"
Shuangdan waved its little paws, trying to slap Qian Xiao's hand away: "If you take good care of yourself, you should be fine. You and Sun Kaicheng both have superpowers. Although yours is much weaker, it's still something. You can live longer than normal people."
"Ah! Superpowers have this benefit too? Should I pick it up and continue practicing?"
Shuangdan grinned. This guy just does whatever comes to mind. Back then, when we told her to practice properly, he even provided crystal cores. What did he say again?
Oh right, why practice that stuff? It's useless. I'd rather lie down and relax. Hey, this is a peaceful era, don't think about fighting all the time.
Just like when she was a child, she wasn't the one who fought with a sickle. She can still remember the host's mindset back then: as long as you don't risk your life, no one will be afraid of you. How come she completely changed after regaining a memory?
"Do whatever you want," the host won't listen to anything you say, it just does whatever it wants, as long as it supports it.
"How can we be so casual about this? Let me ask our Comrade Chengcheng. If it really can extend lifespan, I will definitely practice it seriously." If it can't, then forget it. Meditation and cultivation are still very hard. My legs are so numb that they don't even belong to me anymore.
"Get to work, get to work, finish quickly so I can rest for a while. What should I take back with me tomorrow?"
Shuangdan closed its eyes, and the person didn't need its answer. It was just talking to itself, sighing, "I wonder when we'll have internet so it can have a place to roam freely."
If this boredom continues, it feels like its parts are going to rust.
...
Qian Xiao jumped off the bicycle and dashed into the house. With a powerful tug, he took off his shoes, slid onto the kang (a heated brick bed), and pulled the small quilt over his legs.
"Oh my god, I'm freezing!"
Old Man Qian watched his eldest granddaughter's practiced movements and chuckled, "Why did you come back in this freezing weather?"
"I just wanted to come back and see you and Grandma. Do you want to come back with me to hibernate?" Anyway, Grandpa and Grandma don't have much to do at home, so they can only stay at home anyway.
“No, I don’t know anyone in the city. I can’t stand being cooped up at home all day. It’s so much better to stay at home. I can find someone to chat with as soon as I put on my clothes.”
"Fine, whatever you want. But next year, my second and third aunts will both be going to the city, and it'll just be you and Grandma left at home. That would be so boring. Aren't you going to go over there?"
"No, we won't go. What will we eat and drink there? Everything in the city costs money. It's not as good as home. Chengcheng hasn't come back yet." The two old folks wouldn't want to add to their granddaughter's burden by going there.
"No, it will probably take another month or two."
"Are you okay living alone? Aren't you scared?"
"What's there to be afraid of? My second and third uncles are not far from me." With Shuangdan by her side, she wasn't afraid of being ambushed.
"Where's my grandma?" She had been back for a long time but hadn't seen her grandmother.
"She went to your second grandma's house to help make quilts."
"Yes, my second aunt's cousin is getting married." People here like to hold weddings during the winter when there's not much work to do, so it's a good time to get things done.
"Grandpa, I brought you some cigarettes. My grandma isn't home, so you'd better hide them."
Old Man Qian stopped leaning against him, took his cigarette and went into his room. Qian Xiao shook her head. The room was only so big and there weren't many things. If she hid them in the room, her grandmother would find them in a couple of days. Her grandfather didn't even know to find another place.
It wasn't until the family was having dinner that evening that Qian Xiao learned what her third uncle had come back for.
The atmosphere in the once cheerful family suddenly turned cold: "Are you serious?"
Qian Sanbao looked wronged: "How could I lie to you about this? I still want to live a life with my wife and kids and a warm bed, but now is really not the time. You haven't seen how chaotic the city is now. Our county is considered to be doing well."
Old Man Qian frowned and started rummaging through his pockets. Grandma Qian tapped the table with her chopsticks: "We're all eating, so don't smoke your cigarette."
Old Qian awkwardly lowered his hand: "I'm just worried about the younger ones."
Qian Xiao had been staying home all day doing crafts and had completely forgotten about what was happening. She never imagined that it had gotten so serious that middle and high schools had already suspended classes.
"How are the schools in the commune doing now?"
Wu Dan raised his hand: "Our school is also in a bit of a mess, but we're still having classes."
"Then don't move the four eggs for now. Let them learn as much as they can. Also, check all your extracurricular books carefully. Hide any books that shouldn't be there."
Being close to the commune isn't good either; those little red men will definitely come to the village and cause trouble.
"Big sister, we all know that it was packed up a long time ago. There are no other books in the house except for textbooks."
"That's good. And you four boys, don't get involved with those people. If you see them, stay far away." I'm most afraid that these boys will do something wrong in the heat of the moment, and then it will be too late to regret it.
"Big sister, we won't. We avoid people like that whenever we see them." There are radicals in their school who look like madmen and are quite frightening. If they dare to get involved, their big sister will break their legs.
Qian Xiao nodded in satisfaction. She knew her younger brother well enough to know him well. If he really got involved, she'd rather break his legs and stay home to avoid causing any trouble later.
When Qian Xiao was taking care of her younger brothers, her family never interfered. In their minds, their second son, being a college student, must know more than them.
"Grandpa, my third uncle is right. It's not a good time to live in the past. I don't go out except to work. The county town is really chaotic. I just didn't expect that schools would start to close."
Qian Sanbao quickly nodded in agreement: "My second brother and I were thinking that we couldn't let the child go without school. We'll try to come back to see you whenever we have time off. For now, it's better if the whole family goes there; it's too scary to see."
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