Han Jianwu turned around, looking at Huo Qingqing over the heads of their two children. "It's not too late to change your mind."
Huo Qingqing lowered her head and kissed two young faces, shaking her head. "I have no regrets."
Today marked the official beginning of the Han family's relocation, bringing mixed emotions to different members.
Elder Brother and Sister-in-law's family happily moved their belongings to the new house, with Sister-in-law smiling from ear to ear throughout the process.
As Elder Brother's family moved out of the north room, Fifth Brother's family would move in. Third Sister-in-law's family relocated to the west wing, though the kitchen in the backyard needed proper repairs before it could be inhabited.
Third Brother had a quick temper but was reasonable, while Third Sister-in-law, the most attractive among them, had a straightforward personality and a sharp tongue. However, she wasn't the type to bully her own family and would protect them when it mattered. Second Brother and Second Sister-in-law, both junior high school graduates, were educated. Second Sister-in-law wasn't easy to provoke but never bullied family members either.
Among the sisters-in-law, the most challenging to deal with were actually the ever-smiling Sister-in-law and Fifth Brother's wife, who only showed her temper at home.
"Third Sister-in-law, I bought these biscuits, fruit candies, white sugar, and brown sugar when I went to the county town the day before yesterday. Please don't find them too humble," Huo Qingqing said, carrying the items to Third Sister-in-law.
Third Sister-in-law laughed heartily. "These must have cost quite a bit! Why would you spend so much on family?"
Huo Qingqing replied, "It's precisely because we're family that it's worth the expense. But I do have a favor to ask. We need a few more days to vacate the house for you while we fix up the back building."
Third Sister-in-law laughed again. "I know! Just stay as long as you need. That house definitely requires proper fixing up."
Huo Qingqing said, "Then thank you, Third Brother and Third Sister-in-law."
"Don't mention it! We're all family – why stand on ceremony?"
These days, Han Jianwu had been hiring people to repair the kitchen, rebuild the kang and stove, plaster the walls, fill cracks, and thoroughly fix the roof.
The current gossip throughout the village centered on the Han family's division, providing daily drama for everyone.
No one had expected Han Jianwu and Huo Qingqing to be assigned that dilapidated Xia House. While many households in Han Family Village lived in drafty, leaky homes – some even in thatched cottages – Han Jianwu was different. The Han family's fortunes had truly improved during his five or six years of military service, when he had built two wing houses for the family.
Yet, when it came to the division, Han Jianwu ended up being driven to that broken-down Xia House. Villagers whispered behind their backs, "It's different when you're not the biological son."
"I heard it's because of Huo Qingqing that Old Han's family drove Fourth Brother to the Xia House."
"So biased – the eldest son got two new houses while the fourth son has to live in a broken Xia House."
"Huo Qingqing only dares to bully Han Lao Si. She didn't even protest when assigned to that shabby house."
"Maybe she plans to run away at any time, so she doesn't care?"
The village men said, "If I were Han Lao Si, I'd hang that bitch up and beat her for three days and nights. Only breaking one of her arms and legs would satisfy my anger."
In the Educated Youth compound, everyone expressed sympathy for Huo Qingqing.
Gao Yunxia and Zhang Guohua no longer feared Huo Qingqing collecting debts. With the Han family in chaos and hearing that she and Han Jianwu had been driven to that broken Xia House, where would she find the energy to collect debts?
Gao Yunxia thought Huo Qingqing must have let the matter drop, figuring her earlier stance was probably just for show to Han Jianwu.
Repairing the Xia House required considerable money and ration coupons. The workers all calculated payment based on work points, preferring ration coupons over cash, as money wasn't particularly useful to them.
Most of these expenses were covered by Huo Qingqing, because aside from requiring the house to be windproof and leak-proof, the interior had to be constructed according to her specifications and requirements, which meant purchasing cement.
They built a kang, and the stove was quite small. Since there were few of them, two small pots would suffice.
The last few days were spent scrambling for supplies. Han Jianwu managed to secure quite a few items: wooden buckets, water vats, vegetable racks, various jars, and cooking utensils. There was also a small square table, a few small stools, and an Eight Immortals Table.
The house was quickly repaired, but it wasn't yet habitable. They continued to stay temporarily in the west wing of Third Brother's house and made do with shared meals. Sometimes they ate at Second Sister-in-law's place, but Huo Qingqing always gave Food Stamps in return, so they never ate for free.
Finally, they moved into their new home. Huo Qingqing said to Han Jianwu, "Let's install a large gate. When the weather warms up, I'm worried the kids might run around unsupervised. If the adults are busy and don't notice, they could run outside the gate and get into danger. Zhuangzhuang is a bit better, but Niu'er doesn't speak well and wouldn't be able to call for help if she were in danger."
They lived in the backyard, and if the children weren't watched carefully, they could easily run to the front yard to play. Huo Qingqing was still worried that the events of her past life might repeat themselves—after all, in her past life, Niu Niu had truly been kidnapped by human traffickers.
Over this period, Han Jianwu had observed that Huo Qingqing seemed genuinely committed to settling down and building a life with him. She contributed money and effort without the same delicacy she had shown before. She was good to him and the children in every way, learning to cook and tend the fire without complaint, even though all she had been given was a dilapidated Xia House in the backyard.
"Alright!" Han Jianwu nodded in agreement. "I'll take care of it tomorrow."
Huo Qingqing added, "There's one more thing."
"Go on?"
Huo Qingqing said, "Can you come with me to the Educated Youth point to collect a debt?"
Han Jianwu asked, "When?"
"Right now."
Han Jianwu replied, "Okay."
The Educated Youth had all returned from work, and the place was crowded.
Gao Yunxia hadn't expected Huo Qingqing to actually come to collect the debt. Zhang Guohua wanted to curse and even tried to incite the other Educated Youth to fight Han Jianwu, but none of them listened to him.
Huo Qingqing took out the account book. "I gave you a week before, but I've been busy lately and couldn't come. It's been almost half a month now—you should have gathered enough, right?"
Zhang Guohua smirked and moved closer to Huo Qingqing, but she coldly said, "Educated Youth Zhang, a debt must be repaid. Let's skip any other unnecessary talk."
Gao Yunxia, afraid of provoking Han Jianwu and wanting to avoid trouble, said, "I only have ten jin of Food Stamps and five yuan right now. I'll give you that first, and I promise to pay the rest within a month."
Huo Qingqing looked at Han Jianwu.
Han Jianwu said, "At most half a month. If you can't pay by then, we'll report you to the Commune." Then, he turned to Zhang Guohua. "Educated Youth Zhang, what about you?"
Zhang Guohua glanced at the account book and looked at Huo Qingqing. "Qingqing?"
Huo Qingqing replied, "Please call me Educated Youth Huo."