CHAPTER 488: CHAPTER 488: THIS IS HOME

He slung the bag over his shoulder, his mind made up. No matter how tough it was outside, he was determined never to return to this place.

Even if they did come back to Shenjia Village, it was only because neither Du Jindao nor Third Son Du had ever looked into Granny Lu’s matters. Otherwise, both families would probably have been squeezing into this one room. Who knew what it would be like if this house were to be demolished later on.

So, Qin Xiangnuan had never thought of revealing this matter, thinking it could wait until the demolition happened.

"Brother, about that money, I will pay you back as soon as I can," Dongsheng, who had been uncomfortable the whole trip and was carrying thousands of dollars on him, didn’t know when he could clear the debt, especially when the money was so crucial.

"It’s alright," Qin Xiangyang patted Dongsheng’s shoulder, "don’t overthink it. You don’t need to pay me back, our family is not short of money now."

But... Dongsheng always felt that Qin Xiangyang was pretending to be richer than he was. No matter what Qin Xiangyang said, Dongsheng was determined to repay the money. Once his leg was healed, he would go work part-time on construction sites. Although he had a limp leg, he was strong. With enough diligence, he shouldn’t fear dying of hunger, right?

He had made up his mind that he would take care of Granny himself. After all, he was her biological grandson, and Qin Xiangyang was just a grandson-in-law. It made no sense to expect a grandson-in-law to take care of Granny.

However, in the days that followed, he felt as if he were living in a dream.

Granny Lu had bought him a lot of nice clothes, all very expensive, and they had meat to eat every day at home. They spent money as if it wasn’t money, making Dongsheng really confused, yet he didn’t know how to ask. Qin Xiangyang had re-signed the contracts for the shops here and was preparing to return to Capital City. Naturally, Dongsheng would go back with him.

They had come by plane, so they were a bit more accustomed to it, no longer as astonished as before. But for Dongsheng, the trip was a continuous nervous sweat. He’d never been outside his town, save for a few trips to the city with Du Yinbao, and had never been on a long-distance bus or train, let alone a plane.

He was afraid of the plane being unsafe; what if it fell from the sky? No matter how others felt, he was indeed scared. The sensation of being suspended in the air made him dizzy just to think about it. Although the plane was very stable, more comfortable than the city buses, with soft, reclining seats and even serving meals on board, though it was not enough to fill one’s belly.

He was actually very hungry, but he didn’t dare ask for more, feeling a bit embarrassed, especially when all the airplane attendants were so good-looking.

He... was shy.

Finally, with the plane’s touchdown, he breathed a sigh of relief. Only when his feet touched the ground did he feel truly settled.

Leaving the airport, his mouth remained agape in awe. So this was Capital City, the capital. He had once thought the city was the best place, with many rich people, tall buildings, and nice clothes. Only now did he realize how much of a frog in the well he had been; the outside world was so vast, and it was his first time seeing it.

If he hadn’t come with Granny, he might have spent his whole life dying in Sha Family Village.

This was Capital City.

Tall buildings, wide roads, so many cars, and so many people.

With such a large group, they took two taxis. Dongsheng pressed his face to the car window, taking in everything he saw along the way. It completely overturned everything he knew from the first half of his life. He never dreamed he could one day stand on the soil of the capital and ride in the capital’s taxis. Taxis were expensive; the villagers would rather walk than spend money on them. And the ride just kept going; he had no idea how much it would cost.

Later, perhaps because the drive was too long, he became sleepy, only waking up when the car finally stopped.

Dongsheng, they had arrived, Qin Xiangyang tapped his shoulder.

Dongsheng quickly perked up, wiping his mouth, not sure if he had drooled while asleep.

His mouth was dry, but otherwise, he was fine.

The taxi let them off, and Qin Xiangyang took out the keys to open the door.

"Dongsheng, this is our home. You’ll live with Granny from now on; no more suffering."

Every time Granny Lu thought about the hardships her grandson had endured, her heart ached. Now, with nobody in the Du Family to care about except her young deceased daughter and her grandson, she no longer had any thoughts or concerns for the Du Family.

"Granny, how much is the monthly rent to live here?"

Dongsheng rubbed his eyes in disbelief. Wasn’t this a Siheyuan from the TV, where in the Qing Dynasty, only people with status lived? How much would it cost to rent for a month? There were so many rooms, each costing a hundred or more, right? He had heard that renting in Capital City was quite expensive.

"What are you talking about?" Granny Lu laughed.

"This is our home, not for rent. You can stay anywhere you like without paying."

"Choose any room you want, the unoccupied ones are all available. I’ll go prepare the bedding for you. There’s a new set that you can use after cleaning up. Go to sleep first, and tomorrow your brother Xiangyang will take the day off to show you around and introduce you to your sister-in-law. Our family isn’t big, it’s just us."

Granny Lu said, taking her grandson to choose a room.

"This one is your sister’s and brother-in-law’s, this is for your brother when he comes back, this one is Xiang Lin and Taotao’s, this one is Zhiqing’s grandfather’s, this one is Conghua and Congtou’s," she pointed out each to Dongsheng. The rest, Dongsheng could tell apart easily, just like Granny Lu said, in fact, their home didn’t have many people, just back and forth, just those.

But, he wondered, what were Conghua and Congtou? The way Granny said it, using ’live’, meant they were people, but who would have such strange names? Well, his village did have its share of odd names, so he didn’t find it too strange.

"How about living here?" Granny Lu pointed next to her room. It used to be Qin Xiangmei’s, but since she left, it had been turned into a guest room. It was ready with a bed and desk and close to hers, which was convenient since the boy still had an injury on his leg. Being nearer made it easier for her to take care of him.

Fine.

Dongsheng wasn’t picky about rooms, any would do. Anywhere here was infinitely better than his old shack in the field. Each room was bright and spacious, the courtyard big, not like the adobe bungalows in the village. Living here must be comfortable indeed.