Grandma Qin peeked through the crack in the door and saw an honest-looking rural woman standing outside, drenched in sweat and looking somewhat bedraggled.
“Wait there,” Grandma Qin said expressionlessly, though she didn’t shut the door on her.
She went into the kitchen, found one of the cups normally used for guests, poured a cup of cooled boiled water, and handed it to Qin Suian, who was standing obediently outside waiting.
“Thank you, ma’am.” Qin Suian accepted the cup with both hands and gulped down several mouthfuls.
After walking for half the day, she truly was thirsty.
Grandma Qin was still the same—cold on the outside, warm-hearted underneath.
“Thank you, ma’am. I’d also like to ask you something. The house across from here looks empty. I’d like to rent it. Do you know the owner?” Qin Suian quickly asked while returning the cup.
“That one across the street?” Grandma Qin glanced at the house Qin Suian pointed to. It turned out to be Zhou Jinfeng’s house.
“No one’s living there, that’s true. But whether they’re willing to rent it out is another matter,” Grandma Qin muttered.
“It’s like this, ma’am. I recently got divorced and came to the county with my two daughters, planning to make a living through a small business.
I’ve been looking for a place all day and eventually found this one. The courtyard seems spacious, so I wanted to rent it,” Qin Suian explained honestly without hiding anything.
“Oh my, divorced?” Grandma Qin was genuinely surprised.
These days, what woman dared to get divorced so casually? No matter how hard or miserable life was, most women simply endured it, believing that if they kept enduring, things would eventually pass.
Grandma Qin looked at Qin Suian differently now. Though dressed in shabby clothes, she was neat and tidy.
“Yes. Here’s my divorce certificate, and this is my referral letter for the guesthouse.” Qin Suian hurriedly took out the documents she carried with her.
“Alright, alright. I believe you. I’ll go get the key and take you to see the owner,” Grandma Qin said. Having just finished lunch and with nothing else to do, she figured a walk wouldn’t hurt.
She turned and went inside to fetch the key.
Grandma Qin led Qin Suian to Zhou Jinfeng’s home in South Alley.
It was Sunday. Zhou Jinfeng had just finished lunch and was washing clothes.
When she heard knocking at the door, she was surprised to see Grandma Qin, who had been her neighbor for over ten years.
“Auntie Qin, what brings you here? Come in, come in,” Zhou Jinfeng greeted warmly.
“And this is?” Zhou Jinfeng noticed Qin Suian standing behind Grandma Qin.
She had never seen her before, and she didn’t look like Grandma Qin’s relative.
“This is Xiao Qin. She just got divorced and came out with her two daughters to make a living. Poor thing. She wants to rent your house by the river, if you’re willing,” Grandma Qin said after sitting down on a bamboo chair.
On the way there, Qin Suian had told her everything that happened in the Wang family.
She simply stated the facts without deliberately seeking sympathy, but even so, Grandma Qin empathized deeply.
After all, she herself had once had a mother-in-law who was very skilled at manipulating her son.
As they chatted along the way, Grandma Qin felt more sympathy for Qin Suian’s situation, and her tone naturally became more affectionate.
Zhou Jinfeng brought over two cups of cooled boiled water.
Hearing Grandma Qin’s words, she was rather shocked.
Divorced?
That was quite a rare word.
She gave Qin Suian another careful look.
After all, divorced women were extremely uncommon.
Grandma Qin then retold Qin Suian’s story to Zhou Jinfeng, adding in some of her own feelings about it.
Originally, Zhou Jinfeng had never planned to rent out the house. Mainly because she hadn’t found a suitable tenant, and it seemed better to leave it empty.
But Qin Suian’s circumstances, together with Grandma Qin’s persuasion, eventually moved her to agree.
The house had belonged to her grandmother.
Her grandmother had only one daughter—her mother—but her mother had passed away even earlier than her grandmother. Zhou Jinfeng herself was also an only child, so after her grandmother died, the house had sat empty for years.
Zhou Jinfeng was a straightforward person. Once she decided to rent it out, she wasted no time. She grabbed the keys and first took Qin Suian to see the place.
“Out of so many houses, you picked mine. Your luck’s pretty good,” Zhou Jinfeng said as she unlocked the riverside house and led Qin Suian around.
“There’s a main hall, two bedrooms, a kitchen, and even a bathing room. The toilet’s convenient too, and there’s a well.”
“And behind the house is a large vegetable plot my grandmother reclaimed herself. My daughter’s away at college now, and I can’t eat that much by myself, so I planted less this year.” To keep the property from becoming abandoned, Zhou Jinfeng had fenced off a large patch of land behind the back door for growing vegetables.
Beyond the garden, past a sloping patch of land, flowed the Huaishan River.
After touring the place, the two sides spent quite a while discussing the rental terms. In the end, they settled on a monthly rent of five yuan.
That was the reference price Grandma Qin had provided. Nearby rentals ranged anywhere from three to ten yuan a month.
This price was considered fair.
Prepared in advance, Qin Suian had brought paper and pen with her and immediately drafted two copies of the rental agreement.
“Xiao Qin, your handwriting is actually pretty good,” Grandma Qin remarked. Acting as a witness, she stayed the whole time and was surprised not only that Qin Suian was literate, but that her handwriting was rather nice too.
“Hehe, I went to elementary school for a few years,” Qin Suian replied shyly with a smile.
Her handwriting used to be poor. But while teaching Little Hu to write, she had practiced herself as well. It wasn’t beautiful, but at least it was neat.
Nowadays, most rentals were arranged privately, with everyone tacitly understanding the situation. The agreement was mostly just a formality.
Zhou Jinfeng signed the papers and accepted the first quarter’s rent—fifteen yuan—plus a five-yuan deposit from Qin Suian.
With that, the matter was settled.
“Thank you, Sister Zhou. Thank you, Auntie Qin. I’ve truly met kind people today.” Qin Suian excitedly grasped both women’s hands, her gratitude overflowing.
At last, she had a place to settle down again.
“Alright then, these keys are yours for now. Go buy two more locks yourself. In the future, when I come tend the vegetables, I’ll enter through the garden gate,” Zhou Jinfeng said, handing her several keys.
After returning, Qin Suian checked out of the guesthouse and brought her two daughters to the rented home.
Since Zhou Jinfeng regularly came to clean the place, aside from a little dust, it didn’t look run-down at all. Inside were tables, chairs, beds, cabinets, and even kitchen pots, stoves, bowls, and basins.
“Are we really going to live here from now on?” Xiaojuan looked around at the brick-and-tile house with its glass windows, electric lights, and water well in the backyard.
This place was far better than the Wang family home.
“Yes. From now on, this is where we’ll live.” Qin Suian also felt emotional inside. This time, she had brought Xiaomei and Xiaojuan with her. Unlike her previous life, her heart was now filled entirely with hope for the future.
Xiaomei was happy too. Even if it was only temporary, being away from the Li family for a while was enough to make her cheerful.
Qin Suian had told her that she and Wang Fuyuan had quarreled, and in anger she brought Xiaojun out with her, planning to try doing small business and make a living independently.
Xiaomei wanted to ask more questions, but Qin Suian simply told her not to overthink things. After all, they weren’t out cheating or stealing. Plenty of people were doing business in the streets and alleys—one more or one less made no difference.
“Xiaomei, just sit here. Don’t do anything else.” Qin Suian wiped down a chair and brought it over for Xiaomei to sit on.
“Mom, I can’t just sit around doing nothing. At least let me sweep the floor,” Xiaomei pleaded, looking at Qin Suian.