Chapter 14—–

The courtyard no longer smelled bad—any trace of urine and feces had been thoroughly cleaned up by her. The big yellow dog lying in its kennel saw her return and immediately ran over, wagging its tail and hopping around her excitedly.

Qin Yi’an pulled a lunchbox out of the bag slung over her shoulder (ahem, her storage space), and poured the vegetable porridge she’d brought into the dog’s bowl.
“Go eat. And after that, go amuse yourself—don’t follow me around. I’ve got serious business to take care of.”

“Awoo~” the dog whined happily.

Only after watching the dog lower its head and start eating intently did Qin Yi’an begin to take stock of the little courtyard.

Come to think of it, the original “older sister” (the former owner of her body) had been impressive in her own right—a top student. The Qin family hadn’t let her go to school, so she secretly studied on her own. When she was a bit older, she started making money by folding paper boxes to pay her own tuition. She skipped grades and finished school, eventually earning her high school diploma.

The day she got that diploma, she immediately landed a job in the finance department at the specialty foods factory.

This very courtyard had been acquired by exchanging that job offer.

There was no way Qin Yi’an was going to let anyone else walk away with it.

Everything in this courtyard would belong to her—and only her.

As for the supply and marketing co-op job? That was another position the original sister had earned on her second try. Qin Jinbao hadn’t even gone to report in for it yet. Qin Yi’an had to sort that out too before she could leave this place.

She walked into the storage room where the original sister used to sleep—half woodshed, half utility space. From under a stone behind the door, she dug out a small box.

This was everything the original sister had managed to save over the years.

Inside the box were 18 yuan, 5 jiao, and 4 fen—the original owner’s secret savings—along with two well-preserved legal documents.

The one on top was a recent agreement for the sale of her paper mill job.

The second document was the one where she’d exchanged her job at the specialty foods factory for this courtyard house—job to them, house to her. The title deed and land certificate both had the name Qin Yi’an on them. Unfortunately, as soon as she received them, Liu Guifang snatched them away.

Liu Guifang had deliberately not changed the name on the deed. She dangled the house like a carrot, claiming it would belong to the original girl once she was married—just to control her and make her work like a mule for the family.

Now, however, there was no room for dispute over the house. That worked out perfectly for Qin Yi’an.

Even though the Qin couple had used up all their money to repay the factory, there was still this courtyard, some household goods, and another small property listed as a fixed asset. Qin Yi’an also had to claim that original old house they first owned. She’d collect every cent she was owed—interest included.

She tucked the box into her storage space and walked toward the room belonging to Qin Daguai and his wife.

There, she gathered anything of value—like the radio—and stored them safely in her space. One by one, she cleared out all the furniture until only an empty shell of a room was left. With nothing obstructing her view, she spotted a square hole in the wall where the wardrobe used to be. Inside was another box.

A smile crept across her face—finally, she’d found it.

She had guessed correctly: the title and deed for this courtyard and the 50-square-meter old house hadn’t been in the previous box. She knew Liu Guifang must have hidden them somewhere more secure.

She took the box out and opened it—and her eyes immediately lit up.

Inside were five large gold bars (312.5 grams each), a pearl necklace, a pair of jade earrings, and a pair of jade bracelets, all in great condition. There was also the title deed for the old, small house.

She hadn’t expected Liu Guifang and her husband to be hiding such treasures. But now they were all hers—and while they might not seem like much now, they’d be worth a fortune one day.

Qin Yi’an carefully checked every corner of the room—including the ceiling—to make sure nothing else was left behind. Only after confirming it was clear did she place all the furniture back into the space, ready to sell later along with the house.

Once this room was done, she moved on to the others, using the same method.

From Qin Niannian’s room, she found 23 yuan and two cloth ration coupons.

From Qin Jinbao’s room, she found 10 yuan and a wristwatch.

The family didn’t have much worth looting. Apart from the radio, there was barely anything of value.

As for the rest of the junk—it wasn’t even worth keeping. She packed it all up and took it to one of the original sister’s friends to sell. Especially Niannian’s pretty clothes—they sold for 70 yuan. Qin Jinbao’s watch fetched 130 yuan. Altogether, she made about 200 yuan off the junk.

After safely storing the money, she grabbed the household registration book, the deed for the old house, and the two legal agreements, and headed to the police station to meet with Officer Sun as planned.

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, the greedy vultures were beginning to stir…

Qin Daguai’s half-brother hurriedly rushed back to town.

“Come on, we’ve got to take Dad to the county! That runaway ex-wife’s son and his wife got executed today, and their kids are locked up. Only that stolen child is left, and I heard she’s got a whole courtyard to her name. Supposedly there’s still an old house too—and a job at the county co-op! And she’s not even their real daughter.”

“Qin Daguai called our dad ‘father’ for years. That makes Dad her closest living relative—a proper elder. We have to get him to claim that stuff. Even just a portion would be great. If we can get the job, our son will be a town resident. If we get the house too? Even better—it’ll be way easier to marry him off.”

“Alright, let’s go get Dad!” The couple rushed out, thrilled.

At the Liu household, grief was overwhelming. Liu Laogen’s parents were devastated—wailing inside the house after hearing their entire son’s family had perished.

Their married daughter rushed home after hearing the news. As soon as she arrived, she collapsed into her parents’ arms, crying her heart out.
“Mom, how could this happen to our brother and his whole family…”

But the old woman, in no mood for self-reflection, was full of rage.
“It’s all the cursed Sun family’s fault! Their short-lived daughter blamed my son’s family. And that little bastard from the Qin family—if she had just married into our family obediently, none of this would’ve happened. My poor son, my precious grandson!”

Her daughter, wiping her tears, suddenly remembered:
“Mom, didn’t Brother give the Qin family 800 yuan as betrothal money? The girl didn’t even marry into our family—we need to get that back! That’s Liu family money. We can’t just let it go!”

“I’d love to get it back,” the old woman groaned, “but who would we even ask? That whole family’s done for—dead or in jail. They even owe money to the factory. There’s no one left. All that money… gone like water.”

The daughter’s eyes narrowed.
“But there’s still Qin Yi’an, right? They took the bride price—so if she’s not marrying into the family, she must return the money.”

The old man next to them snapped, “Are you stupid? That girl’s a walking disaster—they all died because of her! And now her real parents have shown up, and they’re powerful. You go near her, and you’ll end up locked up too!”

“Then we’ll reason with the police. The Qin family still has a house and a job left—use that to settle the bride price. Mom, Dad, that’s 800 yuan we’re talking about, not 8. That money could support you in old age.” She was determined—if they could get the money, her family would be set.

The old man was tempted.
“Alright. Go talk to the police then.”

“We’ll all go. You two are the parents—it’ll sound better coming from you.” The daughter smiled smugly, already picturing the money in her hands.

“She’s right,” the old woman muttered, “Let’s try. That was my son’s hard-earned money. My son!” she wailed again, but her movements were quick as she packed up to head to the police station.

Since ancient times, nothing stirs people’s hearts like profit—especially when the property in question is half-ownerless. The surrounding vultures were watching closely, all hoping to snatch a piece of the pie.

But before any of them could make a move, Qin Yi’an had already taken the lead.

With Officer Sun guiding her, she officially transferred the ownership of the old house in East City to her name.

The local police station even issued her a compensation agreement — this old 50-square-meter house was meant to make up for all those years.

Since they were already on the same household registration, the process was quick and straightforward. It was handled as a special case and settled within minutes.

Now, the property is officially under Qin Yi’an’s name.

With the house taken care of, the only thing left was the most important matter — the job at the supply and marketing cooperative. Without wasting any time, she immediately set off to handle it.