The place Xue Nan liked was actually quite remote, quite a distance from the city, and the group walked for a long time before they arrived.
Xue Nan happily pointed to a dilapidated house and said to Qingli: "Sister, this is it. Look, this house is very big. Although it is a bit old, it is very nice to live in after cleaning it up. The land at the back can be used to grow some vegetables. Xiaohua likes to grow vegetables the most. The yard in front is also very big, which is very convenient for drying clothes and big enough for us to stay. What do you think, sister?"
After Xue Nan finished his eloquent introduction, he looked at Qingli expectantly, wanting to see her reaction.
Qingli frowned. If she hadn't seen with her own eyes how shabby the house was, she would have thought it was such a nice house just by listening to the child's description!
There is only this one house in this circle, and it is at the foot of the mountain. The surroundings are indeed very empty and the house is very big, but it is all rotten. The tiles on the roof are rotten, the walls are covered with cobwebs, the yard is deserted, and everything is in tatters. The only intact thing is the wall, which is really not good and can't even be lived in.
"Xue Nan, why do you call this a good thing? This place is totally uninhabitable. Forget it, let's find another place!"
Qingli said she was about to leave, and Xue Nan hurriedly said, "Sister, this place is really suitable, listen to me."
Qingli stopped helplessly and said, "Since I said I would support you, I will not be reluctant to spend money. You don't have to choose such a shabby place just because you are reluctant to spend money. Let's go and find another place."
Xue Nan said hurriedly: "It's not to save money, it's just that this place is really suitable, sister, we are not suitable to live in a crowded place, the environment here is very suitable for us to live in, I will repair the house a little bit, as long as it doesn't leak, the backyard can also be used to grow vegetables, and the front yard is also large. As long as we take good care of it, it will be very clean and spacious."
"This is really the most suitable place I have chosen. The owner of this house has moved to the village. Sister, let's go find him and buy it! Let's not look at other places."
Qingli took another close look at the place. The environment was indeed good, but the house was too shabby. She couldn't bear to see these children suffer, but when she thought about it, it was actually very good for them to have a place of their own that could shelter them from the wind and rain.
Looking at Xue Nan's expectant eyes, Qingli thought for a moment and nodded, "Okay! Then I'll listen to you. Let's go buy it. You can handle the rest by yourself. I won't help you."
Qingli thought that she couldn't help him all the time, and there were many things they really needed to do themselves.
Xue Nan nodded quickly, "Well, sister, you have helped me a lot. I, Xue Nan, will never forget your kindness."
Qingli smiled and touched his head, and then the group headed towards the nearby village.
The house cost 10 taels of silver, and in the end Qingli even asked the family for two more plots of land around the house so that they could grow some food.
After dealing with the house issue, Qingli said goodbye to Xue Nan and the others and left alone.
After Qingli left, Xue Nan took a few older boys to start repairing the house, while the rest of the younger ones cleaned the yard, swept the floor and weeded. Every child's face was filled with smiles.
"We will have a home from now on, which is great. We don't have to wander around anymore."
"Yes, yes! We have a home now, that's great!"
"Sister Qingli is a good person. When we grow up, we must repay her well."
"Brother Nan, do we still have to beg in the future?"
The children were talking at once, and some were asking questions out of curiosity.
Xue Nan climbed onto the roof and said with certainty, "Of course we will continue begging. I'll tell you about this once I have a plan. We will continue begging, but our real purpose is no longer just begging."
Several children didn't understand what he said and looked confused.
Xue Nan did not continue to explain, and led everyone to prepare their accommodation first, one step at a time.
···
After Qingli left, she returned to the city again. It was already dark at this time.
In a small village on the outskirts of the city, in Lin Dafu's small thatched house, the family was eating dinner with lights on.
For poor families, dinner is just a small pot of rice, a few big black steamed buns, some stir-fried vegetables, and a few pieces of greasy meat.
This is considered a pretty good meal.
The family of four at the table were eating happily, not paying any attention to the boy sitting on the doorstep watching them.
After the ghost couple who came from Wang's house came back, they kept watching their son working hard.
He took clothes to the river to wash for the whole family and hung them up to dry, cleaned the yard, and at a young age, he had to cook food for the pigs, carrying the bucket on his waist and stumbling to feed the pigs. He also had to cut grass for the cows and feed the chickens. After finishing all that, he would light the fire and cook, never stopping for a moment.
The two children of Lin Dafu's family were playing in the yard, doing nothing. They also bossed Lin Jiabao around, ordering him around like a servant.
The ghost couple watched with tears in their eyes, feeling very distressed.
The most annoying thing was that after little Lin Jiabao finished everything, what she received was not praise but scolding and contempt. After Lin Dafu and his wife came back from work, they directly called their children to eat, but Lin Jiabao, who had been busy all day, was called out and not allowed to eat at the table.
A small figure sat alone on the doorstep, looking enviously at the family at the dining table.
Lin Dayong and his wife, who were ghosts, squatted beside their son distressedly, looking at the longing in his eyes, their hearts ached.
If they were still alive, their son would not have suffered so much. At this time, the two of them hated Wang Can for destroying their family.
Lin Jiabao seemed to feel a breeze blowing across his face. The wind was very gentle and warm, just like his mother caressing his cheek.
He closed his eyes with some nostalgia, if only his mother and father were still alive,
Lin Dayong's ghost was angrily waving his claws and swearing behind his eldest brother's family, but Lin Dafu's family could not hear him and continued to eat happily.
When they finished their meal, there was a black steamed bun left on the table. Lin Dafu's wife said to Lin Jiabao, "Jiabao, come and eat. There is another steamed bun. After you finish eating, wash the bowls and clean the house."
After Lin Dafu's wife finished speaking, she smiled and went out to the yard with her children and husband. The family talked and laughed, and the atmosphere was warm.
Lin Jiabao then stood up and walked towards the dining table. His stomach was already growling with hunger. He took the black flour bun and couldn't wait to take a bite.
Lin Dayong and his wife, who were spirits, cried when they saw this. They have not stopped crying since they came back.
It was already completely dark, and the couple just hoped that their son would go to sleep quickly so that they could enter their dreams and talk to him.
Unfortunately, after Lin Jiabao finished eating the steamed buns, he had to wash the dishes. After washing the dishes, Lin Dafu’s wife actually asked him to chop firewood, and asked him to chop the firewood they brought back today before going to bed.
Lin Dayong was so angry that he wanted to bite his elder brother and sister-in-law to death. How could they be so cruel!
Lin Jiabao had no room for refusal and could only go to chop wood obediently. If he didn't obey, he might not even have steamed buns to eat tomorrow. He didn't want to go hungry; that feeling was too uncomfortable.
The night was long, and a faint oil lamp was lit in the yard. Lin Jiabao's small figure was cast on the ground. He raised the axe in his hand and chopped the wood with great effort. He had to chop a piece of wood several times before he could split it.
His hands had been worn and healed over and over again, and now they had a layer of calluses on them, so when he worked, his skin wouldn't be broken as easily as before.
After chopping for an unknown amount of time, Lin Jiabao just felt that he was getting weaker and weaker, and his eyelids were very heavy. He didn't eat much, and he didn't have enough physical strength. He worked all day without eating, and his body couldn't stand it. Finally, he couldn't bear it anymore and fell asleep.
Lin Dayong and his wife immediately went into their son's dream, crying.
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