Zhang Haixia looked back at the dilapidated brick house shrouded in darkness.
It didn’t even have a decent door.
It was so poor that even thieves were too lazy to patronize it.
The new house was built by Zhang Dafu on the vegetable land allocated by the village, so it occupied a large area and was built according to the specifications of the small rural villas that many people are familiar with.
These days, rural areas have also been affected by the real estate boom, and chaos continues.
There are cases of buying and selling homesteads and vegetable plots, and some people even have the idea of selling land to build houses.
Many people in more remote mountain villages have bought land and built houses in the town to make it easier for their children to go to school in the future.
Every few years, you have to pay money to get a permit to build a house.
After that, no building is allowed at all.
Renovation of homesteads must go through layers of approval.
Even some illegal houses will be directly demolished by excavators to protect the red line of arable land.
Zhang Haixia has no feelings for this new home and does not have any happy memories of it.
Sometimes she wonders if this place can really be called home?
“Sister-in-law, please have a lollipop.”
Chen Qiao took out two lollipops from his trouser pocket.
“I don’t want to eat it. You can keep it for yourself. Thank you for your kindness.”
Zhang Haixia stroked Chen Qiao’s little head and smiled.
From Zhang Haixia’s point of view, Chen Qiao’s lovely behavior of offering her candy was like Chen Qiao giving her the best and most valuable thing he had.
Hearing this was sweeter than eating any candy.
“It’s very sweet. Eat it. I’ve kept it in my pocket and school bag for many days. It’s almost patinaed. If I don’t eat it, it will melt into sugar water. I’m afraid of cavities if I eat too much.”
Chen Qiao stood on tiptoe holding clothes in one hand and a lollipop in the other, but he could not reach his sister-in-law’s mouth at all.
Zhang Haixia had no choice but to bend down and lower her head.
Her scattered hair fell due to gravity.
She lifted her hair and placed it behind her earlobe, and took the lollipop in Chen Qiao’s hand into her mouth.
So sweet, so sweet that my heart is about to melt.
Along the way, Chen Qiao talked about his niece Xinyu’s situation again.
Zhang Haixia could empathize with him especially.
At least she still had a mother who stayed with her until she was fifteen or sixteen.
Such a young child, without a father or a mother, and with her grandparents in the same condition.
“Fortunately, your family is here.”
“There’s not much we can do, except make sure she doesn’t go hungry.”
“It’s pretty good.”
When they were almost at Chen Qiao’s house, Zhang Haixia hesitated again.
Others who came to visit would bring gifts, but she just brought her luggage and stayed there directly.
She didn’t know any etiquette at all.
What a shame.
“I’ll just forget it after all.”
Zhang Haixia was a little hesitant at first, but she agreed to Chen Qiao on a whim.
She also wanted to meet Chen Qiao’s mother, Chen Lili, and have an in-depth exchange with her idol.
Now there is a cool night breeze, and my brain is gradually calming down.
“You’ve come to my doorstep, at least come in and sit down. My parents are very hospitable.”
Once you go in, don’t even think about coming out tonight.
“Then I’ll at least buy some gifts, cigarettes, alcohol, or cans of peanut milk or something.”
“No need! My mom will get angry if you give my dad cigarettes or alcohol.”
Chen Qiao pushed Zhang Haixia into the house from behind.
Her mother and sister had returned from the vegetable garden and were washing their feet with their trouser legs rolled up.
“Sister Xia.”
Chen Feifei showed a surprised expression.
It was fine that her brother went to play with his sister-in-law, but why did he bring her home and bring luggage with him?
“Haixia, why are you here? Did your bastard dad do something stupid again? Have you eaten? Do you want to eat something else? I’ll heat it up for you.”
Chen Lili asked worriedly.
She thought something big had happened.
Chen Lili works in a health center.
The elderly people who come to get IV drips and see doctors love to gossip.
Since the protagonist is related to Chen Lili, they will ask her whether the story is true or not.
Regardless of whether she knows it or not, Chen Lili always answers that she doesn’t know.
Chen Lili had heard a little about Zhang Haixia’s situation, but there was nothing she could do to help.
She had taken the betrothal gift to go to school in her early years, and her mother still nags her about it and has not forgiven her yet.
If she helped and ended up making things worse and making the old lady angry, she might really cut off ties with their family.
If Chen Lili hadn’t taken care of several elderly people over the years and given them money and gifts during the holidays, they would have been the first to take care of them and send them to the hospital when the elderly were not feeling well.
If the health center didn’t have the conditions to treat them, they would use their connections to send them to a big hospital.
“I…have already eaten.”
Zhang Haixia was a little reserved.
“When I went to my sister-in-law’s house…” Chen Qiao talked about how Zhang Dafu smashed the bowl to ask for money and forced marriage, and then said that his sister-in-law planned to resign and take the college entrance examination.
“It takes a lot of courage to make this decision, but I support you.”
Chen Lili took Zhang Haixia’s hand and said earnestly as a person who had experienced it, “Girls need to study more. I felt it was a pity that you didn’t go to college. Study hard to keep disgusting people and things away from you.”
“Although I am still staying in the countryside, it is also because my children are still young and I have to take care of the elderly. If I really don’t care about them at all, I will be criticized in the future.”
“What’s going on?”
Chen Feifei asked in a low voice, nudging Chen Qiao with her elbow.
“That’s what I said.”
“I’m asking how Sister Xia is carrying her duffel bag.”
“Oh, my sister-in-law is staying at our house tonight. Her house doesn’t feel safe at all. It’s drafty everywhere. Before she resigned, she lived in the staff dormitory. After she resigned, she lived in the middle school dormitory to concentrate on preparing for the exam.”
“That’s more like it. What’s that in your hand?””oh.”
Chen Qiao looked down and saw that he was holding his sister-in-law’s clothes in his hands, but his hands were pressed on the cover, flattening it and deforming it.
“My sister-in-law’s clothes.”
Chen Qiao said calmly.
As long as he didn’t show any shyness, he was innocent and childish.
Chen Feifei snatched the clothes from Chen Qiao’s hand and said with a straight face: “How can you take a girl’s underwear?”
“Don’t I often help my sister and mother get clothes?”
Do I have to avoid it from now on?
Although it’s nothing, Chen Qiao still feels a little sad that he has grown up so quickly.
After all, his body cannot undergo super transformation yet.
“Sister Xia is different from me and my mother. You have to be more careful in the future. Do you understand?”
“Oh.”
Chen Qiao nodded, pretending to understand, but he didn’t dare to refute: Sister-in-law is also family.
It was he who forced himself to call her sister-in-law.
When Chen Qiao called her that, his mother glared at him.
But it was not a good idea to ask him to change his words in front of Zhang Haixia.
After all, this relationship was the premise of everything.
“You guys go upstairs and watch TV. Haixia and I will have a private chat.”
My mother started to chase them away, still treating them as children.
Chen Feifei stuffed all of Zhang Haixia’s clothes into the luggage bag, took Chen Qiao’s hand and left the living room.
“Sister, shall we eavesdrop?”
“This is not good…” In fact, Chen Feifei also wanted to eavesdrop, but she was the older sister and couldn’t lead her younger brother astray since her younger brother said so.
“It’s nothing.”
“Well, if you’re caught, just say it’s what you want to hear.”
“That’s how it is…”
Chen Qiao squatted behind the wall and eavesdropped.
Chen Feifei squatted behind Chen Qiao, put her arms around his neck, pressed her chest against the back of his head, and pressed her whole body weight on him.
“After you get into university and graduate, what are your plans?”
Chen Lili asked tactfully.
“I originally wanted to work hard to pay back the betrothal money, but now I may have to wait several years after graduation to do so.”
“This is not your fault in the first place. You can only say that he is unlucky. Working in a mine is inherently dangerous. I have tried to persuade him to change his job, but he just wants to make more money while he is young and in good health. I will talk to my brother and sister-in-law sometime. You are still so young, I can’t really let you marry me and become a widow. What era is this now?”
“They were also angry at the time, and it was also because your father was such a jerk. If we don’t do anything, the whole village will think we are easy to bully, which will make you suffer. Just focus on studying and don’t worry about other things. You can ask me for help in your life if you have any problems. Don’t be shy.”