The three of them returned home, hastily cooked something to eat, and then retreated into their room. 

Li Xiaohan was starting to feel more and more uncomfortable living in this house. 

In a low voice, she asked, “Father, when are we going to build our own house? It’s really not convenient living here.” 

“Mm,” Li Xiandong responded quietly. He too was starting to feel like an outsider. 

“We need to set aside some money first for Mother’s treatment. In the past, she always relied on wandering doctors for medicine, but that’s not going to work anymore. Now that we have money, let’s go to Renhetang. The doctors there are definitely better than the traveling ones.” 

As soon as Li Xiaohan said this, a spark lit up in both Li Xiandong’s and Madam Wang’s eyes. 

“But before we treat Mother, we need to build our house and move out first.” 

They had to leave, quickly and as far away as possible. 

“I’ll go into the city tomorrow to order the bricks and tiles, and then find an auspicious day to break ground,” Li Xiandong said after thinking for a moment. 

Li Xiaohan wasn’t familiar with the house-building process. In modern times, people usually bought ready-made homes, and even if they built their own, professional construction teams handled everything under contract. 

Luckily, her father had experience expanding the old family house and knew the process fairly well. All she needed to do was encourage him. “Yes, Father, make sure our house is spacious and comfortable.” 

Our house. 

That phrase touched Li Xiandong deeply. 

With money in hand, Li Xiandong no longer had to worry about the cost of building a house, and his imagination began to run wild. 

A house. A home. 

What should his own house look like? 

It had to be large and spacious, made of brick and tile, with four main rooms and maybe four side rooms on each end. No need for a rear wing… 

The next morning, the three of them left early to avoid the other villagers. First, they watered the Sanqi they had transplanted the day before. Then, Li Xiandong set off alone for the city, carrying a basket full of straw sandals Madam Wang had woven. 

“Father, once you order the bricks and tiles and find a good date, come straight back. From now on, you’re the pillar of this family. Mother and I are counting on you,” Li Xiaohan said, her eyes full of trust and reliance as she looked up at him. 

Those words—“pillar of the family” and “counting on you”—filled Li Xiandong with an overwhelming sense of duty and motivation. He had never felt so needed and validated. He practically flew down the mountain path to the city. 

Turning around, Li Xiaohan looked calm. “Mother, let’s head back into the mountains to look for more Sanqi. Maybe we’ll find some. Anyway, now that we’ve separated from the family, we don’t have to do house chores anymore.” 

Madam Wang had always been timid from years of being suppressed, but she wasn’t stupid. After a moment’s pause, she mustered up some courage from somewhere, hoisted her basket, and the mother and daughter headed into the mountains. 

Busy days always passed quickly. Before they knew it, the sun was setting. It wasn’t safe in the mountains at night, so the two women hurried out of the woods. 

When they returned home, the sky was already darkening. Not long after, Li Xiandong rushed back from the city, drenched in sweat and flushed from exertion. 

“Father, here, have some water,” Li Xiaohan said, quickly handing him a bowl of water she had set out earlier to cool. It was still humid and hot in September afternoons—her father must have walked the whole way back. 

“Did you order the bricks and tiles? Did you pick a date?” Li Shengli asked as soon as his eldest son returned from the city. 

“Yes. It’s been decided. The day after tomorrow,” Li Xiandong replied quietly. 

“Good. I’ll send your two brothers to help you then.” 

Once the topic of building the house ended, the two fell into an awkward silence. 

After a while, Li Xiandong lowered his head and muttered, “Then, Father, I’ll head in now.” 

“Mm.” Li Shengli sighed. 

Time passed quickly, and soon it was the groundbreaking day. 

Li Shengli brought along his three sons—Li Xiandong, Li Xianxi, and Li Xiannan—and the four of them got to work cutting grass. 

They had to first clear the wild grass from the building site, then rake out the roots and level the ground before proceeding to the next step. Otherwise, the rampant growth of weeds could damage the foundation. 

Li Xiaohan felt something was strange. In this life, unlike in the modern world with all kinds of advanced tools and workers, their house construction only had her grandfather, father, and two uncles doing the labor? Even if it was just laying the foundation, this didn’t seem right. 

Something was wrong. 

But what exactly was wrong? 

Li Xiaohan racked her brain, unable to figure it out. 

Li Xiandong felt like a failure. 

In Pingshan Village tradition, digging the foundation was hard labor, and close relatives and clansmen would come help. Only when it came to actually building with bricks and tiles would they hire a construction master to guide them. 

Now, as he dug the foundation, not a single close clansman came. Only his father and brothers were helping. 

Li Xiandong was filled with anxiety and confusion. He simply thought he wasn’t well-liked. The fear of life after splitting from the family weighed on him—he didn’t dare face it and could only throw himself into work. 

Li Xiaohan was helping Madam Wang gather the weeds while silently wondering what had gone wrong. 

“Mother, did we inform anyone else about the house construction?” Li Xiaohan asked, frowning. 

“Who would we tell?” Madam Wang was flustered. She instinctively felt something was wrong with the situation but couldn’t see a way out. “I don’t know… Isn’t telling your grandfather enough?” 

Ah! 

That’s the reason! 

Li Xiaohan mentally smacked her forehead, speechless and helpless. 

Because of their personalities, both Li Xiandong and Madam Wang always avoided working with the other villagers. They hadn’t formed any close relationships. 

And according to village custom, whoever heads the household handles such affairs. Her grandfather had washed his hands of it, and her father hadn’t realized he was now the head of the family. He couldn’t handle the social aspect of this, so no one came to help. 

Honest people just don’t know how to manage social affairs. 

Looking at her father working hard with his head down, Li Xiaohan felt a headache coming on. She had found the cause, but how to solve it? 

If she remembered correctly, for important matters like this, the head of the household had to go personally and invite others to show sincerity. But how could she persuade her father? And given his current mental state, would he even listen? 

Should she count on her grandfather? 

Forget it. Her grandfather was out of the question. Better to think of another way. 

As she worked with her head down, Li Xiaohan frantically searched her memories for a solution. 

By afternoon: “Mother, I’m going to step out for a bit.” 

Li Xiaohan had come up with an idea. She wasn’t sure it would work, but the current situation didn’t leave her much time to hesitate. 

“Okay.” Madam Wang was distracted and simply nodded. She only noticed that her daughter had slipped out for about the time it takes an incense stick to burn before running back again. 

That evening, after a full day’s work, Li Xiandong and the others went back to their rooms to rest. Spending the whole day bent over cutting grass and digging was no easy job. 

“Husband, I heard from our third son that Eldest Son’s housebuilding today had no one helping?” Madam Chen brought Li Shengli a basin of water to wash his feet and asked with concern. 

“Mm.” Li Shengli responded gruffly. 

“If you ask me, Eldest Son is a bit too isolated. He doesn’t have any close friends in the village. People say that when the father is strong, the son becomes weak. They’re used to relying on you. Now that they’ve split from the family, they can’t stand on their own yet and still need to lean on you.” She sighed softly. “When we’re old, the eldest won’t even have a son of his own. In the future, we’ll have to rely on Changrong.” 

Li Shengli washed his feet in silence. 

The more he thought about it, the more he felt Madam Chen was right. The more he thought, the more ashamed he felt. He simply lay down and covered himself with a quilt, going straight to sleep. 

Madam Chen poured out the foot water outside the room. In the deep night, when no one was around, she curved her lips into a smile in the dark. 

Over on Li Xiandong’s side, Madam Wang said carefully, “Husband, how about I help dig tomorrow too? Xiaohan can help pick out stones and pull up weeds—just some small tasks.” 

“No need. Digging the foundation is heavy work. Doctor Zhang said you need to rest and recover.” Li Xiandong stared into the darkness, gritting his teeth. His voice carried the stubbornness and harsh resolve of an honest man. “If Father and the others are willing to help, we’ll accept the kindness. If they’re not, I’ll do it myself. One day won’t do it? Then two days, three days, five days, ten days—I’ll get it done. I will build our house.” 

“Mm.” Madam Wang didn’t dare try persuading him further. 

Meanwhile, in the east side room, Li Xiaohan wondered if her cousin had passed on the message. Should she make another trip early tomorrow morning?