“Qin Feng, take me back to my hometown tomorrow.” As soon as Qin Feng finally had a day off, Lin Yanan eagerly made her request.
“Sure, but tomorrow is Sunday, so it’s a good chance for the whole family to go back. Li Xue and Tianguo’er haven’t been back in a long time either, so we can stop by my uncle’s place. ”As for what they were going back to the hometown for, Qin Feng didn’t ask. He saw his role as simply that of a laborer.
It was a rare occasion for the whole family to travel together, and everyone was in high spirits—even Li Xue’s steps seemed a bit lighter. But just as the mood was light and cheerful, there were always some inconsiderate people who wanted to butt in.
“I’m already on my way back to my hometown and won’t make it in time. Besides, it’s Sunday—I refuse to work overtime.” When Li Xue received Xing Hui’s call, she couldn’t help but feel annoyed. In the past, Li Xue hadn’t wanted to make a fuss over it, figuring it was better to avoid trouble. But ever since she turned her down a few days ago, Xing Hui had only gotten worse—not only had her workload doubled, but she was now being forced to work overtime even on Sundays, which were supposed to be her days off. Fortunately, they had already agreed to quit next month; otherwise, this oppressive work environment would have been truly unbearable.
Since she already had a plan in mind, Li Xue didn’t let the matter bother her and went straight to play with her daughter. Qin Feng and Lin Yanan, however, looked pensive.
Before long, Qin Feng’s phone buzzed with a WeChat notification. Li Xue and her daughter in the backseat didn’t see the message, but Lin Yanan, sitting in the passenger seat, caught a glimpse of it. It read: “Fengzi, I’m not exactly rolling in cash either. The most I can spare is 10,000 yuan. Don’t think it’s too little—use it for now, and there’s no rush to pay it back.”
Reading those words, Lin Yanan felt a pang of sadness. The original owner had been idle, always thinking only of asking her son for money, seemingly never giving a thought to where that money actually came from.
When the family returned to their hometown, they found Lin Mu and his wife waiting in the courtyard with their daughter, Lin Yu. At the same time, Lin Yanan noticed that the small courtyard, which had been a chaotic mess in her memories, had been tidied up neatly—a far cry from the cluttered space where there used to be barely enough room to stand.
“What’s this? Planning to come back?” Lin Mu noticed that Lin Yanan looked just as she always had and assumed she didn’t want to stay at Qin Feng’s place anymore and was eager to return to their hometown.
“Uh, I’ll stay a little longer. It’s getting colder and colder, and there isn’t even underfloor heating at home. The doctor told me not to do any heavy lifting, so what could I possibly do back there? At least over there, I can still take my granddaughter to and from school!” Lin Yanan truly didn’t want to return to her hometown—not because she disliked the environment, but because there were too many people there who knew her well, and one slip-up could give her away.
“You’re just doing whatever you please. Fengzi is already having a hard enough time.” Hearing Lin Yan’nan’s insincere words, Lin Mu didn’t press the issue further. If she didn’t want to come back, he couldn’t exactly tie her up and drag her home. Lin Mu planned to ask Qin Feng privately later; if things were still the same as before, he’d go pick her up as soon as the weather warmed up.
It was a rare occasion for the two families to gather together. Working as a team, they prepared a sumptuous feast. Everyone ate and drank to their hearts’ content, thoroughly enjoying themselves. Lin Yanan had returned this time to move her sewing machine. Since Qin Feng’s car couldn’t haul it, he went with his uncle to find someone to help—giving the two of them a chance to talk privately along the way.
While Li Xue and the others were tidying up the living room, Lin Yanan went to the bedroom and pulled out a tin box from under the wardrobe. After checking its contents, she carefully placed it into the handbag she was carrying.
Since everyone had to go back to work and school on Monday, the family had to return that afternoon, but the sewing machine Lin Yanan had asked for wouldn’t be delivered until the next day.
Early the next morning, Lin Yanan successfully received her sewing machine and temporarily stored it in the garage. Around noon, Li Xue called to say she wouldn’t be coming home for lunch. Lin Yanan worried that the people at the tutoring center might be intentionally overworking her, leaving her no time to eat. After thinking it over for a moment, Lin Yanan took the prepared lunch and rode her bike to the tutoring center.
As soon as she stepped through the door, she heard a burst of intense shouting coming from inside.