RPAGF Chapter 120 We're lucky to have survived in town at all.
Chapter 120 We're lucky to have survived in town at all.
“Okay, that’s what Mom thinks too. Anyway, we’ve already sold a lot of our roasted sweet potatoes, so there’s no rush to sell them all in a day or two.”
Hearing her father and sister talking, Xiaoyu happily ran over with her short legs.
Since they separated their households, their lives have gotten better and better, and their meals have become more and more abundant. Recently, they have been eating meat more often, and Xiaoyu has gained a lot of weight, with her round little face looking like a lucky doll.
"Father, elder sister, you're finally... back! Quickly... quickly sit down in the courtyard and rest."
She still hasn't completely gotten rid of her stuttering.
Lin Qingchuan's expression was solemn. He silently unloaded the mule cart, took the grass he had cut from the roadside, and threw it all to the mules to eat.
He took four sesame seed cakes from the mule cart, handed one to his youngest daughter, and also gave her a small paper packet containing a handful of milky white sugar cubes.
"Yu'er, take the candy back inside and put it away. You and your sister can eat it together."
"it is good."
Xiaoyu obediently agreed, her eyes crinkling with laughter, revealing two adorable little tiger teeth. She then toddled back into the house with her short legs, placing the candy under her and her sister's pillows as if hiding treasures.
Lin Qingchuan then handed the remaining three sesame cakes to his wife.
"Fengniang, have something to eat first, I'll go and unload the pig's trotters."
Liu was not a greedy person, so she immediately stuffed the sesame cake to her eldest daughter, saying, "Let Tang'er eat first, and I'll help you unpack the pig's trotters."
"Mom, you should eat first before you get back to work. Dad and I ate on our way back."
After saying that, Lin Xiaotang immediately stuffed the sesame seed cake back into her mother's hand.
As Liu ate the sesame seed cake, she felt a warm glow in her heart. She had never dared to dream of such a happy life, where she could find leisure amidst her busy schedule.
Since their daughter encouraged them to separate their household, they gradually realized that as long as they are hardworking and capable, they can earn money and make their lives better and better with their own hands.
only……
Not long after things settled down, my father-in-law and stepmother's family got into trouble again, and they inevitably started causing trouble again.
Just thinking about it makes her worried!
After Liu finished eating half a sesame seed cake, she and her husband unloaded the pig's trotters from the cart and carried them to the well. She cooked while her husband burned the pig hair; neither of them was idle.
Lin Xiaotang took two eggs out of the chicken coop, fed the chickens, and then began to teach Xiaoyu to read.
She bought a copy of the Thousand Character Classic in the county today, just in time for her parents and Xiaoyu to be able to read.
However, unlike Xiaoyu, her parents didn't have the time; they could only study when it was raining and they had free time.
Just after lunch, a waiter from Yunlai Restaurant rushed to the door.
Xiao Zhu said anxiously, "Brother Qingchuan, something bad has happened. Your father and stepmother are making a scene at the restaurant, insisting on finding you. They said if you don't come, they'll sit at the restaurant's main entrance and refuse to leave. Manager Yao is afraid they'll disrupt the restaurant's business, but he doesn't dare let the staff lay a hand on them, so he sent me to find you."
His father and stepmother couldn't find his home in town, so they cornered him at the Yunlai Restaurant to force him to show himself.
The reason they weren't kicked out was because Manager Yao was concerned about his reputation. If it were anyone else who dared to cause trouble and disrupt the restaurant's business, the staff would have already chased them away.
Lin Qingchuan's expression suddenly darkened, and he sighed, "Alright, I'll go and talk to them."
Lin Xiaotang, who was teaching her younger sister to read, stuffed the book into her sister's arms and immediately got up to follow.
"Dad, I'll go with you."
She feared that if her grandfather and stepmother used both soft and hard tactics, her kind-hearted father would soften his heart.
The silver hidden under the bed was money that the couple had painstakingly saved up over several months. If they had known, they should have looked at houses a few days ago. If they didn't have enough silver, they could have talked to Manager Su to get an IOU and advance the money for braised pig's trotters. They should have bought a small house.
The father and daughter, along with Xiao Zhuo, ran quickly to Yunlai Restaurant.
Sun sat on the threshold of Yunlai Restaurant, blocking the door with her legs outstretched, acting like a shrew.
Compared to his wife, Mr. Shen was more concerned about his image. He stood expressionless in the lobby of the restaurant, and the couple seemed determined not to leave until their eldest son arrived.
"There are seats inside, don't block this place, go sit inside and wait."
Manager Yao, accompanied by a shop assistant, patiently tried to persuade them, though he was furious inside. He couldn't bring himself to be violent towards Qingchuan's father and stepmother.
Sun said matter-of-factly, "Who knows if you're trying to trick me? I'm not going anywhere. I'll just sit here and wait. We won't leave until Qingchuan comes."
Lin Qingchuan, who had followed Xiao Zhuo there, happened to overhear his stepmother's unreasonable words.
He said coldly, "Manager Yao didn't lie to you. I'm here. Can you come out and talk about what's going on?"
In order to find him, his father and stepmother really did anything.
When Sun saw her stepson, it was like seeing a lifeline. Her eyes lit up, and she stood up abruptly, excitedly grabbing her stepson and pulling him outside.
"You can come out, you can come out. Your mother and father came here to wait for you, not to delay the restaurant's business."
Mr. Shen immediately came out of the lobby and followed his wife outside.
Lin Xiaotang quickly apologized to Manager Yao, "Manager Yao, I'm sorry, we didn't know they could do this."
Manager Yao waved his hand helplessly, "It's alright. If I wasn't worried that they would continue to delay business, I wouldn't have called your father over. You should go and take a look."
"Yes, thank you, Manager Yao."
So she immediately turned around and followed her father.
Lin Qingchuan led his stepmother all the way to the end of the alley, and only stopped when they reached a secluded spot.
Having run back and forth between the town and the county for so many days, he's much smarter than before. He knows to find a secluded place to avoid his stepmother's tantrums, crying, making a scene, and threatening suicide, which would attract a crowd.
"Qingchuan, all your younger brothers have been detained by Juxian Restaurant. Your mother and father have come to ask you for help."
For the first time in her life, Sun spoke to her stepson in such a humble tone, feeling utterly humiliated and blushing with shame.
Six hundred taels of silver—Old Shen didn't know how to ask the question. He rubbed his hands together, looking at his eldest son with a nervous expression.
Gone is the domineering figure he once was, the head of the household, the one who always had the final say.
Lin Qingchuan frowned and asked, "What kind of help?"
Sun looked at her husband, hesitated, and didn't know how to bring it up. She felt that it was better for her husband to say it, so she blinked hard to signal him to bring it up.
Old Mr. Shen coughed lightly, closed his eyes, and asked, "Qingchuan, how much silver have you and Fengniang saved up?"
Even a simpleton like him could tell that his father was asking him how much silver he had saved, not how much he could raise, because he wanted to take away all the silver he and his wife and daughter had saved.
He had already given up hope for this father, and now he was utterly heartbroken.
Lin Xiaotang was also unwilling!
The master didn't ask how much to borrow, but instead asked how much silver they had saved. Did he intend to take the silver and the jars with them?
She answered before her father could, "Father and Mother haven't saved any money; we're barely making ends meet."
Mr. Shen was taken aback, and his tone hardened slightly, "When adults are talking, how dare you, a child, interrupt? Go home and play with Xiaoyu."
"Tang'er is a child, that's true, but she has the right to speak up. Fengniang and I are able to do business thanks to her ideas. What she said is also true. We haven't saved any money. Once we leave Guihua Village, it's already a miracle that we can survive in the town."
When Mr. Shen saw that his eldest son refused to say how much silver he had saved, he immediately became anxious.