Early the next morning, Lin Yujiao walked into the brigade office. Li Xinghua and Lin Tieniu were already there waiting for her.
“Granduncle, Grandaunt.”
They were all members of the Lin clan. Although their blood relationship was distant, proper seniority still had to be observed when addressing elders.
Lin Tieniu belonged to the same generation as Lin Laogen. Even though he was not particularly old, Lin Yujiao still had to address him as Granduncle according to their place in the clan.
“Yujiao, you’re here.”
Li Xinghua warmly took Lin Yujiao by the hand.
“You really are a kindhearted child.”
Whatever Lin Yujiao’s reasons for selling the house might have been, there was no denying that the house had solved an urgent problem for their family.
Lin Yujiao smiled.
“Grandaunt, there’s no need to be so polite. A house is meant to be lived in. As long as someone can make good use of it, that’s enough.”
“Listen to you. It really shows that you’ve been educated. You even know how to make things sound pleasant.” Li Xinghua beamed. “Now that we have this house, we won’t have to worry about where the boys will live after they marry.”
Without Lin Yujiao even asking, Li Xinghua eagerly told her about the arrangements the family had already made.
Once they bought the Lin family’s house, the third and fourth sons would each be able to marry and establish their own households. The room that became available in the old family home would then be given to the fifth son.
“Fifth Uncle doesn’t mind?” Lin Yujiao asked.
After all, there was still a difference between living in the old family home and moving into the newer house.
Lin Yujiao’s house was large enough for two small households to live comfortably, but squeezing three families inside would be difficult.
That meant one of the brothers would inevitably have to remain in the old house.
At the mention of this, Li Xinghua looked rather pleased.
“He doesn’t mind. The three brothers discussed it among themselves and came to the decision together. Our fifth boy has an honest and simple temperament. If he stays close to us, his father and I can keep an eye on him and help him when necessary.”
The third and fourth sons were more quick-witted and capable of handling themselves.
If those two moved out and established their own households, their parents would worry less about them.
Lin Yujiao smiled approvingly.
“Grandaunt, your family really is harmonious. Everyone discusses things together instead of fighting over them. That’s wonderful.”
Families capable of settling a matter as important as housing without turning against one another were not particularly common.
And Lin Tieniu and Li Xinghua had not chosen to keep their fifth son with them because they favored one child over another.
They had considered each son’s temperament and decided that the fifth would benefit most from remaining close to his parents.
The parents cared for their children, while the brothers cared for one another.
A family like this was rare.
Li Xinghua’s smile grew even broader.
“You really know how to speak sweetly. But you’re not wrong. Ever since my boys were little, I taught them that brothers from the same family must care for one another. They must never become like your Eldest Uncle…”
“Xinghua, what are you saying?”
Lin Tieniu hurriedly interrupted her, looking embarrassed.
Of all the things she could have mentioned, why bring up that?
Lin Yujiao burst out laughing.
“It’s fine, it’s fine. Grandaunt didn’t say anything wrong. My Eldest Uncle and my Younger Uncle truly have no brotherly affection for my father.”
If those two had genuinely cared about Lin Dajun as their own brother, they would never have treated his daughter this way immediately after his death.
Li Xinghua also felt that she had said nothing wrong.
“Yujiao won’t mind hearing the truth. Let me tell you something, child. After the way they’ve bullied you, you must never become softhearted. The moment you soften, they’ll only become harder on you.”
Many people understood such a simple truth.
Yet no one had ever spoken so openly to Lin Yujiao about it.
Most villagers were afraid of offending the Lin family.
Li Xinghua, however, was genuinely considering the situation from Lin Yujiao’s perspective.
Lin Yujiao tightened her hand around hers, touched by the older woman’s sincerity.
“I understand. Thank you, Grandaunt.”
Once they had finished talking, Village Chief Lin began handling the transfer of the house.
The procedure was simple.
The house registration merely needed to be changed to Lin Tieniu’s name. Since his sons had not yet formally divided the household, the property still had to be registered under the name of the family head.
Li Xinghua took out two hundred and fifty yuan and handed it to Lin Yujiao.
Not a single fen was missing.
The banknotes had even been neatly arranged.
Their household had many strong laborers, so the family had managed to accumulate some savings over the years. However, the sons still needed betrothal gifts for their marriages, along with all the other necessities required to establish their own households.
Once this two hundred and fifty yuan was taken from their savings, money would become tight.
Yet Li Xinghua showed no trace of reluctance.
At two hundred and fifty yuan, Lin Yujiao was already selling the house for the lowest reasonable price.
If the house had belonged to Li Xinghua, she would never have agreed to sell it for less than three hundred yuan.
Two hundred and fifty yuan might have been enough to build another house from scratch, but there was absolutely no chance it would build one as good as Lin Yujiao’s.
Since their family was receiving such a favorable deal, Li Xinghua believed they ought to appreciate their good fortune.
Her cheerful mood soon rubbed off on Lin Yujiao as well.
“Grandaunt, give me one more day. After that, I’ll leave the key with Village Chief Lin, and your family can move in.”
Then she added, “I’ll leave the dining table, beds, and the other large furniture for you as well.”
Li Xinghua stared at her in surprise.
“Really? You’re leaving all of it?”
She had assumed Lin Yujiao would sell the furniture separately.
Those pieces could still fetch a fair amount of money.
Seeing how delighted she was, Lin Yujiao found herself smiling too.
“Mm, I’ll leave all of it for you. Most of those things are still quite new, so take good care of them.”
She could have stored the furniture inside her storage space, but there was little point.
She had no use for any of it.
The furniture was made from ordinary wood and held no particular value as antiques. Rather than letting it sit uselessly in her storage space, she preferred to leave it with people who genuinely needed it.
Of course, Lin Yujiao had only made this decision because she liked Li Xinghua’s straightforward and warmhearted nature.
After receiving a definite answer, Li Xinghua felt even more fortunate that they had bought the house.
They had the house.
They had the furniture.
Now their sons could immediately begin preparing for marriage.
As for Lin Yujiao asking for one more day before handing over the house, that was hardly worth mentioning.
Still, Li Xinghua could not help asking with concern, “Then what are you planning to do after you leave?”
Lin Yujiao glanced at Village Chief Lin before answering.
“I plan to visit my mother’s family. I probably won’t be coming back for a while.”
Apart from Village Chief Lin and Auntie Cuihua, she did not want anyone else to know about the childhood betrothal.
Li Xinghua did not suspect anything.
Everyone in the village knew that Jiang Chunyue had not originally been from the area.
Years ago, when Lin Dajun had been serving in the army away from home, he had brought her back with him.
No one in the village knew where Jiang Chunyue’s maternal family lived.
That made it particularly convenient for Lin Yujiao to use them as an explanation for where she was going.
By the time the rest of the Lin family learned she had left, they would have great difficulty finding her even if they wanted to.
With the completed registration papers in hand, Li Xinghua and Lin Tieniu quietly slipped out of the brigade office.
Only after they had left did Village Chief Lin begin preparing Lin Yujiao’s introduction letter.
He placed the letter Lin Yujiao had brought beside him and carefully copied the name and address written by Qin Jianguo.
“Qin Weiguo, XX Military District…”
He examined the information more closely.
“He’s in the navy? Heishi Island…”
Lin Yujiao had already committed the entire address to memory.
She nodded.
“I checked the map. It’s quite far from here. I don’t even know whether there’s a train that goes directly there.”
“The longest introduction letter I can issue is for three months,” Village Chief Lin told her. “Once you arrive, settle everything as quickly as you can.”
Lin Yujiao understood what he was implying.
He wanted her to resolve the marriage as soon as possible so that she could transfer her household registration and establish herself there.
Otherwise, she would have to return before the introduction letter expired, lest she find herself without valid papers and be treated as an unauthorized drifter.
“Village Chief Lin, could you also prepare a certificate allowing me to transfer my household registration?”
Village Chief Lin’s hand stopped.
He looked up at her.
“Are you certain?”
Then he patiently tried to persuade her.
“Yujiao, don’t force yourself to endure more than you can bear. If life outside becomes too difficult, come back. At least everyone here knows you. Even if the days are hard, you can endure them and still find a way to live.”
Lin Yujiao knew he was trying to leave her a path home.
She did not believe she would need it, but she appreciated his kindness all the same.
“Village Chief Lin, thank you. But please prepare the certificate for me anyway. What if I end up needing it?”
Village Chief Lin sighed.
“All right. I’ll prepare it for you.”
He finished the documents and handed them to Lin Yujiao, his gaze filled with concern.
“Remember this. No matter what happens, staying alive is the most important thing.”
Lin Yujiao nodded.
“All right.”
She would treasure this new life.
But merely surviving was not enough.
She intended to live well.
No matter how many hardships stood in her path, she would overcome them one by one.