Qin Nian quickly got up to help.
"No need, no need, the child can eat by himself. You can't spoil children too much. Your two kids are very capable, aren't they?"
The two children nodded quickly upon hearing their grandmother's praise, and then picked up their little spoons and pretended to use them.
Qin Nian watched as the two children were able to scoop food themselves, and although some spilled out, most of it ended up in their mouths.
Not long after Yang Yufen went into the kitchen, she came out again with a bowl of noodles. Unlike the children's noodles, these weren't small pieces, and the eggs were whole.
"Come on, eat quickly. You must be starving. You've lost weight. I didn't know you were coming back today. If you're not tired after you've eaten, play with the kids for a while. You can take a nap together later. The kids have a habit of taking naps. The blankets in your room were aired out a few days ago, so you can use them right away."
"Thank you, Mom."
Qin Nian ate egg noodles again. The hot soup warmed her stomach. The noodles her mother-in-law made were the best noodles she had ever eaten.
The plan was for Qin Nian to play with the children, but after eating and doing some light exercise, the two children were already sleepy. They were then skillfully carried to bed, each with a small pillow, and fell asleep in no time.
"If you can't sleep, take a shower first; the hot water should be ready by now."
Qin Nian nodded upon hearing this. She did want to take a shower, as she still smelled of odor despite having traveled back in a sleeper car.
After taking a shower, Qin Nian looked at her two children and felt sleepy. She lay down next to them and fell asleep without going back to her own room.
Seeing this, Yang Yufen took a blanket and covered Qin Nian with it. Then she went to the backyard and caught a big rooster. This was one of the last two she had kept. There were three left that she couldn't kill.
The chicks are still small, only a month old. Yang Yufen incubated them using an electric blanket. Several families in the compound had ordered chicks from Yang Yufen, but fearing they wouldn't survive, they all waited until they were a month old before catching them.
When the two children woke up, they were very curious to see their mother beside them, but after being coaxed by their grandmother, they both went to play under the big banyan tree.
"Young lady, you look radiant. What good news could this be?"
In the afternoon, another group of elderly women gathered under the banyan tree.
“My Niannian is back, I’m so happy, but she’s lost so much weight.”
"It's Xiao Qin back! That's great news! She's lost weight, but she'll be back soon. Things outside are definitely not as good as our research institute."
Everyone offered their congratulations. Yang Yufen only played with the child for a short while, as she was still stewing chicken soup at home, afraid that Qin Nian wouldn't see anyone when she woke up.
Yang Yufen took the child home, and Qin Nian indeed woke up.
"Mom, I was just about to come find you."
“You’re awake. Have some chicken soup. The chicken is ready. Your teacher’s wife and the others should be getting off work soon. You can take the kids to see them. Your sister-in-law Hu has some too. Let’s bring some extra eggs over.”
Professor Wen is not the type of person who can raise chickens; he's too busy and simply can't manage it.
"Okay, I didn't buy anything when I came back, Mom. This is my salary and bonuses for the past few months."
Qin Nian quickly rummaged through her belongings and pulled out a cloth bag, then took out a bankbook and an envelope.
The envelope contained a thick black cross.
"The prize money is that big?"
Yang Yufen took it in her hand and glanced at it; it must have cost over a thousand.
“Keep the savings book yourself. Raising a child will cost a lot of money. You will need this bonus, though. Bring it with you later and return it to your teacher’s wife. I borrowed two thousand from your teacher’s wife when I bought the house. I have already paid back half of it. I will pay back the rest and then we will be even.”
As Yang Yufen spoke, she turned around, opened her box, and took out the property ownership certificate from the bottom of the box.
“Keep it, and give it to the children when they grow up. All three houses are rented out now, and the household expenses are covered by the rent.”
Qin Nian never expected that her mother-in-law, while taking care of two children at home, could also renovate the old courtyard and rent it out. No, her mother-in-law even bought two courtyards.
"Mom, there are too many houses to accommodate everyone."
"If you can't fit them all in, you can rent one. One set isn't too many for one child. You can't buy the same size. Hurry up and get ready after you finish eating. We need to take these two kids out to play, otherwise they won't sleep well at night."
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