CHAPTER 53: CHAPTER 51: HE CAN SUPPORT GRANDPA AND GRANDMA

I don’t know whether it was because there were too many people or because Mrs. Song was angry, but Song Rong kept coughing, and Song Tingfan quickly went over to pat his back.

After a while, Song Rong felt a little better and said hoarsely, "It’s nothing, don’t worry."

Song An was not a child, so how could he not see it, "Dad, Mom, come home with me. I’ll take care of you from now on."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Song obviously wasn’t happy. She knew her husband’s stubborn conduct, no, the entire Da Song Family had this kind of stubborn conduct, except for Song San, who was even more cunning than a mouse.

"How can you take care of them better than your third brother? They should be with him."

Their daughter, Song Mei, tugged at her, signaling her not to say that. Grandpa and Grandma were already like this.

Song Hao didn’t care much for his mother’s words either. He was always straightforward and scolded, "Mom!"

Neither of them sided with her, so Mrs. Song said angrily, "Mom what mom! You’ll regret it one day!"

The three of them were "fussing" at her, and for what? Wasn’t it for this family?

It costs a lot of money to take care of two elderly people.

Thinking of this, she added, "Our house doesn’t have as many rooms as the third brother’s, so there’s no place for them to stay."

Song Qin and Song Rong hung their heads, not knowing what they were thinking.

"I’ll give my room to Grandma, and I’ll sleep in the living room," Song Hao said.

"You sleep in the living room? If the family proposing marriage finds out you’re sleeping there, who would marry their daughter to you?" Mrs. Song couldn’t help but smack him.

Song An’s face turned sour. He was about to speak when he heard the voice of a young woman, "Grandpa and Grandma aren’t going anywhere, they’re staying right here."

Lin Qiao held onto Song Qin and continued, "You can’t go even if you want to, Grandma, Uncle and I won’t allow it. The four of us make for a lively bunch, there’s always someone to talk to." She gently patted her, signaling her not to overthink.

Song Qin felt a warmth in her heart, "Grandpa and I are not going anywhere."

She could still see who was good to her, but she didn’t want to be a burden on Qiao’er, this child.

She would help out more in the future.

Although Mrs. Song didn’t understand what Lin Qiao was up to, she was happy for the elder Song couple to stay with Song’s second family.

Song An might not usually say much, but when it came to major decisions, he had the final say, so her fussing was useless.

Not wanting to, Song An pursed his lips and finally said, "Dad, Mom, it’s okay if you live with Tingfan."

"Every month, I’ll bring five catties of rice and 500 cents."

"I disagree!"

Mrs. Song immediately rebuffed and added, "Hao is about to get engaged, and Mei’er is getting married. We don’t have enough money! Where would it come from?"

"Don’t shout at me," Song An’s expression darkened, and he added, "Either let Dad and Mom go home with me, or do as I just said."

"I still disagree!" Mrs. Song started to make a scene.

"There’s no need. Your dad and I don’t need you to worry about us," Song Qin felt uneasy thinking about how back when their son and daughter-in-law got married, each family was given five taels. Now...

Though she didn’t intend to ask from the family, those words were still hard to hear.

Song Tingfan straightened his back with a protective sincerity, "Uncle, I can take care of Grandpa and Grandma. We don’t need rice and money."

He had several bamboo baskets stored, which could be exchanged for dozens of cents, and he planned to go hunting during his breaks.

He could provide for Grandpa and Grandma.

If Song An were to leave the elderly for the widowed aunt and orphan of Song’s second family to take care of, he feared he wouldn’t sleep peacefully, "Just do as I said."

Mrs. Song was fuming, speaking without thinking, "Then let your third brother bring out the money. We only got ten taels back then!"

"Third brother got both the house and the land, and now he’s enjoying life in town and not taking care of the elders. How can that be? This old lady will go to the government to report him!"

The commotion from the Song Family attracted other families to come and watch, and Song An, not wanting their parents to be laughed at, pursed his lips and said, "Dad, Mom, I’ll come see you later."

Saying that, he stepped out of the yard, and Mrs. Song followed, cursing, "Song An, you heartless man, I’ve been with you for more than ten years, scrimping on food and clothes, and this is how you treat me..."

After saying goodbye to Song Mei and Song Hao, they left too.

Once they left, the people at the gate also dispersed, and it was almost noon. Lin Qiao patted Song Tingfan’s back, "Uncle, go study. Don’t worry, I’ll be here."

Seeing that he didn’t respond, she smiled and playfully pinched his cheek, "Do you not trust your sister-in-law?"

"No."

Song Tingfan shuffled his feet awkwardly and then obediently went back to his room and came out with a cloth bag. He worriedly looked at Song Qin and Song Rong, "Grandpa, Grandma, I’m going to study."

Song Rong smiled gently and said, "Niu Niu, study well, and you’ll succeed." Then he coughed.

This child from the second family, he worried about him the most.

"Grandpa, I’ll study hard. You should go inside; it’s sunny outside."

The young boy wasn’t much of a talker, but he always acted like an adult around his family, being quite "naggy."

Lin Qiao said, "Uncle, I’m here, don’t worry. Go study. If you’re late, the teacher will call me."

Upon hearing this, Song Tingfan quickly waved his hand and ran out. Somewhere in the village, a big yellow dog came out of nowhere and chased after him.

This dog was fierce, and Lin Qiao feared Song Tingfan would get bitten. Standing at the gate, she quickly yelled, "Uncle, dog."

Soon, she realized her worry was unnecessary. The boy picked up a stone and threw it at the dog, not intending to hit it.

The dog ran away, scared.

Song Tingfan waved to Lin Qiao and grinned, "Sister-in-law, it’s okay, it ran away."

Lin Qiao laughed and waved back, indicating for him to go study.

...

In the afternoon, after tidying up the main house for quite a while, it was finally clean, though there were no straw mats.

Lin Qiao thought about getting some straw from the neighbors, and in the village, she was only familiar with the Wang Family next door, but they were out for a feast today and weren’t home.

In her free time, she began embroidering square cloths, as money was tight at home.

Song Qin sat beside her, "Qiao’er, are you going to sell these for money?"

"Yes, eight cents for a piece." Lin Qiao nodded with a smile and glanced at her, "Grandma, go rest for a while. It’s easy to feel lethargic after eating."

Song Qin shook her head with affection, "I’m not sleepy."

"Let Grandma help you embroider."

Lin Qiao knew she wanted to help, thinking embroidering wasn’t heavy work, so she nodded, "Thank you, Grandma."

"What’s there to thank for? It’s Qiao’er who’s working hard, raising..."

Before Song Qin could finish, Lin Qiao interrupted her earnestly, "Grandma, don’t say that. Uncle will feel bad; he secretly wiped his tears last night."

Cough, of course, she was making up the latter part. Song Qin doted on Song Tingfan, and hearing him cry would surely make her heart ache.

Distress leads to villainy, increasing the risk of turning dark. She had to prevent this possibility from every angle.

Song Qin got a little choked up, "Not saying, not saying."

"Grandma, what can you embroider? Teach me?"

"Okay."

...

Lin Qiao discovered that Song Qin’s embroidery was excellent, with particularly fine stitching, "Grandma, your embroidery is really good."

"My family did embroidery for a living, and before I married your grandpa, I also made square cloths for money, earning more than Qiao’er, eighteen cents a piece."

"After marrying your grandpa, he was afraid it would hurt my eyes, so he didn’t let me embroider much. I only occasionally embroidered something for them," Song Qin said with a smile, clearly recalling happier times in her youth.

She then began talking about Song Tingfan, "When Niu Niu was little, I made him a ball, and he loved it. One day, a dog from the village took it, and the next day, he grabbed that dog in the yard, crying and asking where it took it, if it was wrong..."