CHAPTER 478: CHAPTER 478: RETURNING TO MY HOMETOWN

"Qin Xiangmei is pregnant?"

"Quite astute," Jian Zhiqing pinched her face, "Indeed she is. Your sister is really lucky, managing to cling to the big tree of the Song Family."

Qin Xiangnuan curled her lips disdainfully.

Yes, that woman has always been fortunate, even more so in her past life. This life may not be as good as the last, but it is still much better than many others’. Plus, she hasn’t mentioned that in this era of one-child policy, Qin Xiangmei gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl. Just because of this, even if Mrs. Song does not like this daughter-in-law, for the sake of the two children, she will still treat Qin Xiangmei with courtesy.

She squinted her eyes; good fortune is good fortune, unchangeable. However, just as before, she didn’t believe that Song Wang’s feelings towards Qin Xiangmei remained as blindly committed as before. Once a person’s heart is hurt, scars remain, and even if the wounds heal over time, that pain is still as tearing as ever.

Jian Zhiqing took a blanket and gently covered Qin Xiangnuan, "Are you going to sleep like this?"

He sat to one side, took out his mobile phone, scrolled through it, then sat silently aside, staying quiet, keeping her company.

In another place, as expected, Song Wang’s marriage ended up not falling apart. But Song Wang’s treatment of Qin Xiangmei wasn’t like it used to be, sometimes looking at her with a hint of alienation. Qin Xiangmei, however, didn’t care. She stroked her belly, and her mouth cracked into a smile.

Good children, your timing is impeccable; with the golden grandson of the Song Family, who wouldn’t have to heed me?

Mrs. Song truly disliked Qin Xiangmei, but as Qin Xiangnuan thought, for the sake of her grandson, Mrs. Song would endure it.

Is Granny Lu going back to her hometown?

Qin Xiangnuan asked the increasingly silent Granny Lu. As people age, their pursuits diminish, and sometimes all they desire is the unity of the family, their children by their side. Though they’ve never treated Granny Lu poorly in terms of food, clothing, shelter, and daily necessities - indeed, her life is much better than that of an ordinary elderly woman - she never mentioned, and nobody knew, that she once had to beg for a living and was very close to dying.

Over the years, Granny Lu has lived well and has not suffered much grief, but Qin Xiangnuan knew that a knot remained in her heart.

That knot was about her three sons back in the hometown.

Even though none of the three sons were filial, and none of them cared whether their old mother lived or died – not one was willing to support her. Otherwise, Granny Lu would not have had to beg to survive. It’s said that children are raised for support in old age, but Granny Lu’s three sons ended up being useless.

But to Granny Lu, a son is still a son; they are flesh that fell from her body. In fact, three pieces of flesh. How could she not feel pain?

Sigh, Granny Lu sighed.

Those uncles of yours are really good for nothing; I don’t know how I gave birth to such unfeeling wolves. But no matter what, they are my own flesh and blood. I wonder how they are doing now, whether they’ve built their houses, and what about the children - how old they are now and whether they are in school.

Lately, the more Granny Lu thought about these matters, the heavier her heart felt. Sometimes it’s like this; when you don’t want to think, you just can’t help it. But once you start to care, it’s constant, a persistent concern.

"If Granny wants to know, why not go back and see?"

Qin Xiangnuan could guess what Granny Lu was thinking. Instead of letting her fret needlessly here, it would be better to go back and resolve the matter. Moreover, they hadn’t been back for a long time, and the leases for the several shops there needed to be renewed. The sooner the better – let’s go soon.

And also... She narrowed her eyes slightly, still clearly remembering that one cousin from her second uncle’s side who had helped her before. There were many relatives in her family, but only that cousin had ever assisted her, and she had not told Granny Lu.

In reality, her three uncles, perhaps as a result of not supporting their old mother, were not leading good lives. Her second uncle had already died of illness a few years ago, leaving behind a son - that cousin who had once lent her a hand.

In fact, she had already forgotten what that cousin looked like. She only vaguely remembered that he had taken something out of his pocket and put it in her hand before running off. At that time, she was being chased for debts and penniless, with the salary she had just earned taken away by Wang Dali’s mother, who hadn’t left her a single cent. It was that cousin who had given her three hundred yuan, the result of her strenuous half-month’s work. It was with that money that she managed to survive the next few tough months. It was just that in her previous life, her time was short, and she had died before she could repay the money to her cousin.

The debt owed in a previous life must be repaid in this life.

It’s good to add splendor to the splendid, but to extend help in desperate times is truly precious, so she would repay that kindness which she undertook in her past life.

When Qin Xiangyang heard that Granny Lu was returning to her home village, he also took leave from work to accompany Granny Lu and take care of the shops there. After this new contract is signed, the rent will increase, and he might soon receive more than five or six thousand yuan - perhaps closer to seven or eight thousand. And this is only temporary; as wages rise and prices increase, rent naturally follows suit. It is uncertain who benefits from the inflation and who suffers.

They went by plane.

Jian Zhiqing took a few days off to accompany them. He had recently switched departments and was not too busy, having arranged his work for the previous days in advance.

The flight from the Capital City to their hometown took just a few hours. It was Qin Xiangnuan’s first time on a plane, just like many others - for example, Granny Lu, and herself who in both lives had only ever traveled by train. Jian Zhiqing frequently traveled for work, so he was accustomed to flying, as was Qin Jiyang. These past few years, he had been using every school holiday to fly here and there, paying out of pocket to learn new things. Currently, he’s also trying to acquire more knowledge to break new ground in his field.

Thus, Qin Xiangyang’s ideological awareness has become very high in recent years. Of course, this is also true in school because knowing more has already made him a very famous high-tech talent.

Granny Lu was quite nervous; after all, it was her first time flying. She thought to herself: planes fly in the sky, what if it falls? What if it collides with a cloud? In short, she was restless and sleepless throughout the journey, worrying endlessly. While she was still consumed by her chaotic thoughts, the plane had already arrived.