Late at Night

At night, Yang Haiyan tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

To be fair, in modern times, she could be considered a confident girl.

Although she wasn’t exceptionally beautiful, she wouldn’t embarrass herself if taken out.

Even without her parents or family to support her, given her income, education, and career, she felt she wasn’t doing too badly.

But right now, she was feeling a bit nervous.

This was likely the kind of emotion that every girl experiences when meeting her boyfriend’s parents.

Qin Fang watched her flip around and pulled her into his arms, saying, “Just relax and sleep.”

He didn’t know that his wife was worried about meeting his parents.

Seeing him with his eyes closed, Yang Haiyan thought of the way he smiled more than usual during the day, realizing he was happy about going home to see his family.

She decided not to bother him, sighed, and closed her eyes, counting sheep.

The next day, Yang Haiyan successfully couldn’t get up.

It was Qin Fang who dragged her out of bed and helped her get dressed.

Of course, he took advantage of the situation quite a bit while dressing her.

Yang Haiyan was a bit surprised. “Husband, you’re quite skilled at dressing a girl.”

Qin Fang adjusted her clothes and then proudly patted her chest before walking out of the room, ignoring her comment.

Yang Haiyan: “…”

After washing up, they had breakfast and prepared to return to their hometown.

They rode a reasonably sized horse-drawn carriage.

Since they had a donkey cart that was moderately sized, the carriage was made a bit larger.

Four boxes were placed in the carriage without looking crowded; one box contained furs, and the other held fabric, stacked side by side at the bottom.

Above that, one box held Yang Haiyan’s belongings, and another held Qin Fang’s, making them easy to access.

They were accompanied by Kun Shi, who also lived in Qin’s area.

Upon arrival, Kunshi would return home as well.

The reason they didn’t bring any servants this time was that Qin’s family had limited space.

Bringing servants would require them to clear living space, but that wasn’t the main reason.

The primary concern was that the Qin family consisted of ordinary folk; bringing servants might make them feel uncomfortable.

Another reason, reflecting Yang Haiyan’s careful thoughts, was that taking servants would give others the impression that they lived exceptionally well at the border.

Not to mention, distant relatives might come by asking for favors, and even nearby relatives, within three generations, could also ask for things.

As a relative, Yang Haiyan was willing to help with ordinary matters; after all, everyone could encounter difficulties.

Frankly speaking, isn’t that the purpose of having relatives?

However, having read too many novels featuring troublesome relatives, she was afraid that some might be overly demanding, leading to big issues.

Refusing could hurt the relationship, while agreeing might not bring her any joy.

Thus, it was better not to bring servants.

Before getting on the carriage, Yang Haiyan held onto Granny Lian’s hand. “I’m leaving the house to you. Regarding the monthly expenses for March, if I’m not back in time, just hold off until I return before distributing them.”

Granny Lian replied, “You can rest assured; everyone understands.”

Yang Haiyan continued, “This month, I won’t be here, so I’m counting on you. I’ll remember all your kindness.”

Granny Lian hurriedly bowed, “I dare not; as long as the madam is well, I can relax.”

Yang Haiyan climbed onto the carriage.

“Go…” Kun Shi drove the carriage while Qin Fang rode his horse.

The journey from the border to Bai Li Village in Jintian County was not short.

Since the horse-drawn carriage was slow and they traveled on the main road rather than the smaller paths, the journey took a total of five days to reach Jintian County.

Upon arriving, it was getting dark.

Yang Haiyan said, “Husband, let’s stay in an inn for the night and head back to the village tomorrow. If we return now, not only would we disturb the family’s rest, but they might also go out of their way to prepare dinner for us.”

Upon hearing this, Qin Fang agreed, “Then we’ll stay in the inn.”

The next day, Kun Shi and Qin Fang parted ways.

Kun Shi still had two more days of travel to return home.

After Kunshi left, Qin Fang hired a coachman and then the couple bought some items in the county, such as pastries and meat.

The Qin Family

March is a busy time for the common people as it’s the season for spring plowing.

Grandpa Qin and the Qin family members were working in the fields.

With a large family, they could complete tasks quickly.

However, because the Qin family had many members, they also consumed a lot of food, making life tight for them.

Yet, due to their hard work, life wasn’t too difficult.

After finishing his work, Qin Shouye approached his father, “Dad, I thought about it all night. Once the farm work is done, I want to find a job in town.”

Qin Father thought carefully.

His son had studied for a year and recognized many characters.

Since his son wasn’t preparing for the imperial examination, a year of study was sufficient.

It would indeed be good for him to find a job in town.

There was no need to seek prestigious positions like a restaurant manager or an accountant, but anything was better than working in the fields.

After all, fieldwork was quite tiring, and as parents, they naturally hoped their children would do better.

Qin Father said, “You’re right, but this matter needs to be discussed with your grandfather.”

Qin Shouye replied, “Yes, Father.”

The thought of going to town to earn some copper coins and improving their family’s life made him feel satisfied just imagining it.

His elder brother had said before he went to serve in the military that after he was gone, Qin Shouye would be the big brother of the family, responsible for taking care of his younger siblings and being filial to their grandparents and parents.

At the Village Gate

At the village gate, a horse-drawn carriage and a horse slowly approached.

Many children were playing in the village.

Upon seeing the horse and carriage arrive, they all crowded to one side, peeking over.

“Wow, is that a rich master from the town coming?”

“The rich master from the town has money! Let’s go over. If the master asks us for directions, he’ll surely give us something to eat.”

“Let’s go, let’s go!”
“I’m not going.”
“Me neither, I’m scared.”

Some children were timid, while others were bold.

A few brave ones ran over to the horse, but they didn’t get too close, afraid of being stepped on.

“Sir, which family are you looking for? Do you need someone to show you the way?” The boy asking the question was around eight or nine years old and looked very clever.

Qin Fang looked at him and replied, “No need, I know the way.”

“Oh.” The little boy looked a bit disappointed.

The other children also sighed in disappointment.

They had originally thought a rich master had come to town and might reward them with some candy.

Now it seemed unlikely.

“Ershan, what are you doing?” Two boys and a girl came down from the hillside, each carrying a backpack.

Ershan was the boy who had spoken to Qin Fang.

Hearing someone call him, he turned around and said, “Shoucheng, Niudan, come look! A rich master from the town has arrived.”

Qin Shoucheng, along with Niudan and Siya, came over.

Qin Shoucheng was twelve years old this year, Niudan was ten, and Siya was nine.

Normally, the children in the Qin family did tasks like cutting pig grass and feeding chickens while their parents worked in the fields.

Qin Shoucheng said, “I’m going home to feed the pigs.”

Niudan exclaimed loudly, “We’re going to feed the hen some eggs. Grandma said if we feed the hen well, we’ll get big eggs to eat!”

Ershan replied, “Alright then.”

When Qin Fang heard Ershan call out Shoucheng and Niudan’s names, he turned his attention to the children.

When he went to serve in the military, Shoucheng was only seven, and Niudan was just four.

In the blink of an eye, those little boys had grown into young men.

Though the children had grown, they still looked thin.

Thinking about their family’s situation, Qin Fang felt a pang of sadness for them.

Seeing Qin Shoucheng leading his younger siblings home, Qin Fang called out, “Shoucheng, Niudan.”

Hearing the rich master from town call his name, Qin Shoucheng curiously stared at him.

The more he looked, the more familiar he found the man riding the horse.

However, he couldn’t quite place where he had seen him before.

Although Qin Fang had left to serve in the military when Shoucheng was seven, five years ago, he had been shorter and less sturdy than he was now, making it hard for Shoucheng to realize that this was his older brother.

Niudan was even more confused; he was only five when his older brother left, so he had little memory of him.

However, being bold, upon hearing the rich master from town call his name, he happily asked, “Master, you know me? How did you know my name?”

Yang Haiyan also heard the voices, especially when she heard Niudan call Qin Fang “master.”

She couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

She got out of the carriage and asked Qin Fang, “Is this Niudan from Uncle Er’s(Second Uncle Qin) family?”

Although she hadn’t met the Qin family members, Qin Fang had told her about each of them.

Qin Fang nodded and dismounted. “Shoucheng, Niudan, I’m your big brother. Don’t you recognize me?”

Niudan blinked, puzzled as to how the rich master from town had turned into his brother.

However, upon hearing Qin Fang say this, Qin Shoucheng rushed over.

He stared at Qin Fang for a while, then grinned and shouted, “Big brother… is it really you?”

Qin Fang ruffled his hair, “Shoucheng, you’ve grown taller and more mature. You can help the family now and take care of your younger siblings.”

Hearing his big brother praise him, Qin Shoucheng smiled sheepishly and fidgeted with his clothes.

He remembered how his big brother used to catch fish and pick wild fruits for them to eat before leaving for the military.

Niudan looked up curiously at Qin Fang, “Big brother, you’re really him?”

He had often heard family members mention his big brother but had no impression of him.

Now seeing Qin Fang, he felt that his brother was even more impressive than the rich master from town.

Qin Fang smiled, “Yes, I’m your big brother.”

Niudan looked back at the horse, curiously asking, “Big brother, is this your horse? Can I ride it?”

Qin Fang picked up Niudan and said, “Hold on tight.”

Niudan let out a shout as Qin Fang lifted him, and once he was on the horse, he joyfully waved his arms.

Qin Shoucheng looked at Niudan with some envy, “Big brother, I want to ride too.”

Qin Fang simply picked him up as well, then looked at the little girl beside them.

He hesitated for a moment and asked, “Siya?”