"Sister-in-law, I know what you're going to ask. He likes me," Qin Xiaoyu said, lowering her head and blushing.
"And what about you?"
"I like him too."
"That won't do!" Her cousin's voice suddenly rose, startling Qin Xiaoyu.
“Let me tell you, don’t be foolish. You can’t afford to lose. Who is he? He’s the commander’s son. Even if you’ve made some money now, officials and merchants have never intermarried. You’re still a young widow. You can’t possibly marry into the Zhou family. Get rid of that idea as soon as possible, or you’ll be the one who gets hurt.”
"Sister-in-law, I understand. You love me the most. I'll think it over carefully." Qin Xiaoyu understood what her cousin-in-law was saying, so she wasn't angry.
"Little Fish, I treat you like my own sister. Please don't make me worry. Please don't let anything happen to you, okay? I can't handle anything right now." My sister-in-law was already pleading.
"Okay, okay, don't worry, there won't be any problems." Qin Xiaoyu couldn't bear to put any more pressure on her sister-in-law, so she could only coax her.
Qin Xiaoyu hadn't cuddled her two children to sleep in a long time, and they were so excited that they played around until midnight.
The two children were fast asleep, and the yard was quiet. The July night was already quite humid. The window facing the yard was open, but because of the curtains, no wind could get in, making the room feel suffocating.
She didn't know how the host had survived those years.
Both children had beads of sweat on their foreheads and were sleeping restlessly, tossing and turning. Each time they rolled over, a damp patch appeared on the mat; she worried they'd get heat rash tomorrow. She had no choice but to sit up and fan them with a palm-leaf fan.
There was some noise upstairs, and someone opened the door. Then there was a few light knocks on Qin Xiaoyu's door.
She hurried down to answer the door; it was Grandma Hanhan.
“I know you can’t sleep well. You go to sleep, and I’ll fan you.” Grandma Hanhan also held a palm-leaf fan in her hand.
"Mom, you've been working so hard all day, go back to sleep. I'm fine." Qin Xiaoyu's nose was sore, but Grandma Hanhan ignored her and insisted on climbing onto the kang (a heated brick bed).
"Go to sleep, I'll keep an eye on things." Grandma Hanhan pressed Qin Xiaoyu down without saying another word.
Qin Xiaoyu was also exhausted, and after relaxing, she closed her eyes and fell asleep.
She didn't know how much time had passed before she opened her eyes and realized that it was already daylight.
The early mornings in Northeast China in summer are still quite refreshing, with a gentle breeze. Grandma Hanhan is asleep, her body tilted to one side. Hanhan and her little sister are probably dreaming about something, as they both have smiles on their faces.
Qin Xiaoyu slipped off the kang (a heated brick bed), placed a large pillow under Grandma Hanhan, and then quietly went to the kitchen in the upper room.
She tiptoed to light the fire and start cooking. She had cooked many times since her rebirth, but this time she did it with genuine joy.
She wanted to make breakfast for her beloved family.
The porridge was already cooking in the pot, and she brought a basin of hot water into the lady's room.
The lady was already up and was somewhat surprised to see Qin Xiaoyu.
“Last night my mother-in-law went to my room and fanned us. She’s tired and still sleeping now,” Qin Xiaoyu said with a smile.
"Yes, good. This is what you call a loving mother and filial son. The Tang family should be like this." The lady smiled with satisfaction.
Grandpa Hanhan got up too. He saw that Qin Xiaoyu was cooking, but there was no sign of Grandma Hanhan. He was about to get angry when his wife scolded him a bit. Only then did he learn about what happened last night.
"Oh dear, I woke up late." Grandma Hanhan rushed out of Qin Xiaoyu's room, her shoes on the wrong feet.
"Why are you running? You're getting old. Are you as agile as you were when you were young? What if you fall?" Grandpa Hanhan's words were reproachful, but there was an indescribable tenderness in his tone, which made Grandma Hanhan stunned. She had gotten up late, shouldn't he be angry? Why was he being so considerate?
The two children were used to waking up early at the beach, so they washed up by themselves as soon as they got up, and soon the family sat down around the table to eat breakfast.
"This feels like home. Little Fish, it would be so nice if you came home every day," the wife said with emotion.
"Once I make enough money to buy a big house, we'll all move in together," Qin Xiaoyu said confidently. Now it's time to consider the branch school.
"Let's leave these two boys at home for a couple of days," said Hanhan's grandmother.
"No, when I brought them back yesterday, Auntie told me that my little sister's piano lessons had been suspended for twenty days, and she must have her lesson today," Qin Xiaoyu said with difficulty.
"The child is the priority, it's alright," the wife quickly said.
"What's all that noise outside?" Hanhan's grandfather stood up and craned his neck to look outside.
"There's a car, it's Uncle Chen." Hanhan called out, ran to the door, and pulled the guard inside.
"Auntie asked me to come and pick you up." The guard was quite familiar with Hanhan and Xiaomei, and the two children pulled him into the house, one on each side.
"Shall we go now?" Qin Xiaoyu said goodbye before leading them out.
The alley was packed with people again. Qin Xiaoyu and the guard carried the two children into the car and drove off while honking the horn all the way.
"Thank you so much for your help." Qin Xiaoyu wanted to say something more, like, "Could you please not drive your car in here next time?" but she couldn't bring herself to say it.
She brought two bags of dried shrimp from home to school and gave them to Tian Tian. Now Tian Tian is the school's little manager, taking on half of the work, both inside and outside the school.
"Little Fish, why are you so late?" Master Wang said sternly as he came out of the office.
"What's wrong, Master?" Qin Xiaoyu asked suspiciously, noticing her strange expression.
"We have guests." Master Wang glanced back.
Qin Xiaoyu glanced at the person on the sofa, feeling a bit overwhelmed.
She recognized all three people in the room: her father, stepmother, and half-sister Qin Xiaoye.
In Qin Xiaoyu's memory, her stepmother never smiled at her; she always had a face that looked like she owed eight lifetimes of debt, with contempt in her eyes.
She searched the host's memories and found that the child was truly pitiful. When she was a little over one year old, her father cheated on her, and her mother left home in a fit of anger. No one ever saw her again, and no one knew whether she was dead or alive.
The father got together with his mistress, who naturally refused to raise his ex-wife's child. Since the grandparents were unreliable, they had no choice but to reluctantly send Qin Xiaoyu to her ex-wife's family home.
Qin Xiaoyu's maternal grandmother's family hated her father from the bottom of their hearts, and they directed that hatred at her. They verbally abused her almost every day, and beat her every few days.
Her violence was accumulated from childhood. When she was fourteen, she was kicked out of her maternal grandmother's house. Her father and stepmother were busy with work, so they took in a nanny.
She had to do laundry, cook, take care of the family, and live at their mercy. As for her marriage, it was a hasty decision made by her stepmother to get rid of a burden. Qin Xiaoyu married Tang Wenzhi, whom she had only met once, which doomed their unhappy marriage.
Now that these three people have appeared, it goes without saying that they need something from her. Qin Xiaoyu's face darkened.
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