The wind picked up even more, and the dark clouds in the sky seemed to be pressing down. Hua Kai hugged her arms tightly and quickened her pace to walk home with her younger brother.
She knew that this matter wasn't over yet. None of the people in Hua Lin's family were easy to deal with, and they would definitely come looking for trouble again. However, she was confident that she could handle those people easily and would deal with them all at once.
When she arrived at her doorstep, she looked around. It was a neat little courtyard with a stone wall more than half a meter high and a wooden gate.
In front are three small, old brick and tile houses with original-colored wooden door and window frames, clean windows, and chili peppers, corn, and some dried vegetables hanging from the eaves.
On the left side of the yard, in the pigpen, a middle-aged woman was using a tarpaulin to cover the holes in the pigpen's roof.
When the woman saw her children return, she said to them, "Qingyang, help Mom cover the pigsty. The straw mat in this corner was just blown up by the wind. I don't know when your dad and brother will be back. It's going to rain soon, so we don't want the pigsty to flood."
After saying that, he turned to Huakai and said, "Kaikai, quickly bring in the clothes, the rain is coming soon."
Hua Kai looked at the woman and knew that this was Gu Lanyan, the mother. She was actually only in her forties, but because of years of hard work, she looked much older than her actual age.
In the original owner's diary, Hua Kai knew Gu Lan Yan very well. She was a very simple rural woman with little education, but she was very good to children. After Hua Kai's accident, Gu Lan Yan's hair turned white overnight. Later, she worried and suffered from various illnesses because of Hua Kai's stress and passed away in her early fifties.
Looking at this woman, Hua felt a pang of sadness, and her eyes welled up with tears. In her past life, she had always dreamed of having a loving mother and a warm home.
At this moment, she vowed that in this life she would cherish this family and prevent the terrible things described in the original owner's diary from happening. Of course, the first major disaster had been averted, and she believed that the future would be even better.
She composed herself and replied, "Okay, Mom." She called her "Mom" very easily, without any sense of distance that came with her sudden arrival.
After saying that, she went to collect the clothes.
Hua Kai carried the clothes she had collected into the house. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was inside, she quickly took a walk around the house to familiarize herself with the surroundings.
Upon entering, you find a kitchen, which is quite simple. To the east of the entrance is a stove, and by the north window is a cabinet. In the corner, there are two bundles of firewood. There are doors on the east and west sides, leading to the rooms on either side.
In the east room, there was a kang (a heated brick bed) facing south. At the end of the kang were a pair of chests, with quilts neatly folded on top of them.
Against the east wall was a small cabinet of different heights. On the left side of the cabinet door of the tall cabinet was a mirror, and on the right side was a curtain. On the low cabinet were an old-fashioned pendulum clock and several tea mugs.
There was a table by the north window and four wooden stools that I made myself.
The west room was even simpler, with a kang (heated brick bed) facing south, a cabinet at the end of the kang, and a rice container placed in the west corner of the wall, which was supported by a wooden frame.
There were stacks of neatly folded burlap sacks, two woven baskets, and some hemp rope next to the rice bin.
Looking at all the things in the house, Hua Kai could only sigh that this family was truly poor.
Although she suffered greatly mentally in her past life, her family was relatively well-off. Now, looking at all this, she only had one thought in her mind: to make money as soon as possible.
Furthermore, Huakai has been admitted to high school. School has just started, and there is still hope that she can go to high school this year. She will go to the city in the next couple of days to discuss with the teacher and try her best to keep her student status. She will definitely find a way to get the money to go to school within a month.
In her previous life, Hua Kai also started working while in school and was very good at doing business. Now that she has returned to this era, when individual businesses are just emerging, it is easier to make money, and she is confident.
"Kai Kai, you and your brother stay home and close the doors and windows. I'm going to bring umbrellas to your dad and your brother," Gu Lanyan said to Hua Kai as she put on her raincoat as she entered the house.
I read about it in the original owner's diary. At that time, the village supply and marketing cooperative was collecting wild medicinal herbs, and many people went up the mountain to dig them up and sell them for money.
Every year, their stepmother would take a large portion of their family's harvest, claiming it was for her retirement. If they didn't get it, she would cause trouble in the village, accusing them of being unfilial. Public opinion can be terrifying, so it became a habit, which kept their family poor.
Although they were poor, their family was hardworking and had saved enough money to send Huakai to high school. However, last year, when her father was helping her second uncle harvest rice, he injured his leg. Because it was so serious, he had to go to the city hospital for treatment and stayed there for more than half a month, which basically used up all their savings. So Huakai could no longer afford to go to high school.
Fortunately, we can make money selling medicinal herbs this year. My father and older brother go to dig up medicinal herbs every day, saying that once they have saved enough, Huakai can take the exam again next year and go to high school.
Hua Kai understands that her father has a stepmother. With a stepmother comes a stepfather, something she experienced herself in her past life.
Therefore, in this life, she is determined to free her father from his stepmother's clutches as soon as possible and let them live a happy life.
She said to Gu Lanyan, "Mom, I'll go with you."
Gu Lanyan said, "No need. The road is difficult to walk on, and we don't have enough raincoats. You can stay at home. By the way, bring me a bundle of firewood later. I'll come back and cook lunch."
Hua Kai replied, "Okay, Mom. Be careful."
She wasn't familiar with this time of year, so she figured it was better not to go, to avoid causing trouble for the adults. Anyway, since there was no record of this incident in the diary, it meant there was no danger.
After Gu Lanyan left, Hua Kai went to gather firewood. Just as she entered the house, the rain started to fall.
She brought back firewood, looked around the kitchen, and saw some green beans and potatoes. She had lived in the countryside when she was a child and knew how to use earthen pots and stoves, so she rolled up her sleeves and started cooking.
When Hua Qingyang came out and saw Hua Kai cooking, he was a little surprised: "Sister, why are you cooking? Didn't Mom say she would cook when she got back?"
Hua Kai smiled and said, "My hands aren't just for writing; I can do everything."
She knew that her parents used to spoil her because she was a good student, so they always made her study and didn't let her do too much work.
Hua Qingyang looked at Hua Kai and smiled: "Sister, you've really changed."
As she washed the vegetables, Hua Kai smiled and said, "I'll become even better in the future."
Hua Qingyang came over to help Hua Kai while saying, "Sister, in two years I'll go out to work with Qiangzi and the others, and then I'll support you through college."
Hua Kai frowned at Hua Qingyang: "How old are you? You've already dropped out of school. Go back to school in a couple of days."
Hua Qingyang scratched his head: "Sis, I'm not a very good student, just average. I can't seem to get into high school. What's the point of wasting my time?"
Hua Kai looked at Hua Qingyang solemnly and said, "We don't know what the future holds, but going to school is definitely the right thing to do. The knowledge you learn will be useful in the future. I'll talk to Mom and Dad in the next couple of days and let you go back to school."
Hua Qingyang wasn't against studying, but he felt that if he couldn't pass any exams, it would be a waste of time: "Sister, our family doesn't have money. If we could support one student, we would guarantee that we would support the best student. That way, we would have a chance, right?"
Hua Kai could only be thankful that her family didn't discriminate against girls, but she also felt sorry for her younger brother: "Don't worry, we can both go to school."
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