Chapter 51.1

On October 1st, the day of the National Day holiday, Jiang Rou and Li Xiao chose to move into their new home.

Li Xiao had planned to move during the summer vacation, as the house had been cleaned and there was no noticeable odor. However, Jiang Rou insisted on waiting because she had heard that summer was the peak season for formaldehyde release due to high temperatures and humidity. To mitigate this, she had placed several basins of water around the house.

It wasn’t until October, when the weather cooled, and with the National Day holiday providing a break, that they finally agreed to move that day.

Li Xin had also returned home from school, as the school gave a seven-day holiday, including two days for the weekend, which would be made up later by the school.

The house had quite a lot of stuff, so Li Xiao drove his old van, planning to make several trips. They first packed up the items that needed to be moved and placed them in the yard. Televisions, quilts, clothes, pots, pans, and other miscellaneous items piled up, filling the entire yard.

Jiang Rou and Li Xin, along with the child, made the first trip over. After dropping off the items downstairs, Li Xiao drove back to bring the remaining things.

Jiang Rou and Li Xin began transporting the downstairs items into the elevator. As Li Xin carried the items, she remarked, “Having an elevator is really convenient.”

Unlike their dormitory, which was on the third floor, every time they had to carry hot water upstairs, her arms would ache. Their school was quite old, and they had to fetch hot water from the boiler room next to the cafeteria. If a new thermos wasn’t labeled, it could easily get stolen. Some of her dormmates had lost theirs, but she was lucky as she had brought an old thermos from home that no one took.

When the elevator arrived, Jiang Rou lifted An An, who was sitting on the quilts and placed her outside the door. Then, together with Li Xin, they began moving the items out of the elevator. Once they finished, Jiang Rou went to unlock the door.

An An, being very sensible, helped by moving her small animal-shaped stool into the new home and said to Jiang Rou: “Mommy, rest.”

Hearing this made Jiang Rou’s heart melt.

Li Xin didn’t quite understand and responded with a puzzled “Huh?” to An An.

An An could speak, but with her childish tone and sometimes unclear pronunciation, it wasn’t always easy to understand if one didn’t listen carefully.

The little one repeated herself, this time correcting her words, “Mommy, Auntie, rest.”

This time, Li Xin understood, and her heart softened. She bent down, rubbed his little head, and said, “An An is such a good child.”

The little one was very happy after being praised.

An An, delighted to be moving into the new house, followed Jiang Rou and Li Xin around—she was going wherever they went.

After most of the items were unpacked, Li Xiao returned with more things, bringing along rice, flour, pots, pans, and some furniture from their old home. Jiang Rou had originally not wanted the furniture, finding it a bit ugly and mismatched with the new home’s decor.

Li Xiao didn’t quite understand the idea of matching decor. He just thought it would be a waste to throw it away, so he suggested to Jiang Rou, “Let’s give it to Zhou Jian then.”

That way, the ugly furniture would end up at Zhou Jian’s place.

“Alright,” Jiang Rou happily agreed.

Zhou Jian was also moving today. He had called his family in advance, but for some reason, he still hadn’t arrived. Knowing that Li Xiao wanted to give him some furniture, he was more than happy to accept it.

On the final trip, Li Xiao brought the television. He placed it on a low cabinet in the living room. Since the old satellite dish at home was too big, he had taken it to the store to sell, replacing it with a smaller one. He mounted it on the outer wall of the balcony, drilling holes to fix it in place, and adjusting the position a few times. Then, he asked An An to check if there were any channels.

The little one ran back and forth between the living room and the balcony, sometimes saying there was a signal, sometimes saying there wasn’t.

Li Xiao became confused by her reports and finally told her to go call Jiang Rou.

The little one obediently went to the room to call for her mommy.

Jiang Rou came over, picked up the remote, and flipped through a few channels, noticing that some channels didn’t display. However, the main ones they usually watched were working, so she said it was fine.

When Li Xiao came back inside, he saw An An happily jumping onto the couch. Her little legs were quickly going up and down, and Li Xiao couldn’t help but ask, “How about sleeping by yourself tonight?”

Without even thinking, An An refused, “No, Daddy sleeps alone. Daddy’s feet stink.”

Jiang Rou burst out laughing.

Li Xiao also chuckled.

—o—o—o—

That evening, the whole family enjoyed a hearty housewarming meal, marking the official move into their new home.

The new house had a gas stove, a dishwashing sink, and a clean, bright bathroom—making things much more convenient. Jiang Rou was in charge of cooking, Li Xiao handled the dishwashing, and Li Xin entertained An An.

The master bedroom also had an en-suite bathroom. Jiang Rou and Li Xiao took their baths there. The little one had her own small bathing tub and that evening, Jiang Rou bathed her and washed her hair. After changing her into clean clothes, she handed An An over to her father on the bed.

Li Xiao bathed first, and he was quick—he finished in just a few minutes. Once done, he took their daughter and started drying her hair.

He knew how long Jiang Rou took in the shower. Back when they lived in their old place, if he helped take care of the child, Jiang Rou could spend an hour or two in the bathroom, and he had no idea what she was doing there.

It was the same today. By the time she finished her bath and came out, An An’s hair was already dry. The father and daughter were lying side by side, both with their legs crossed in exactly the same way.

When Jiang Rou climbed into bed, the little one rolled over excitedly and said, “Mommy smells so nice!”

Jiang Rou hugged her and gave her a kiss.

—o—o—o—

Zhou Jian had originally been a bit worried about his mother and his wife. However, on the afternoon of the third day of the Lunar New Year, they arrived, carrying large bags. Wang Yan, in particular, had her youngest son strapped to her front, a large bulging bag on her back, and a woven plastic sack slung over each shoulder.

Even young Zhou Hong had a bag in his hands.

The whole family stood at the entrance of their new house, peeking inside, grinning from ear to ear. “Is this really our home? It looks so nice,” they marveled.

They were even hesitant to step inside.

Zhou Jian was grinning with excitement. “What are you standing around for? Come in! This is our house now, the place we’ll be living in. Why are you so nervous?”

He didn’t admit that when he had first seen the house, he had been too nervous to step inside, either.

In the end, it was Zhou Hong who was the bravest. He put down the things he was carrying and walked inside the house.

Zhou Jian happily ruffled his hair. “That’s my boy!”

Zhou Hong beamed with pride.

Zhou Jian’s mother and Wang Yan followed him inside, one after the other. Zhou Jian’s mother walked over to the balcony, marveling at everything she saw. She called out to Wang Yan, “Yan Yan, come look at this! The view from up here is so high!”

Wang Yan, holding the child, came over to take a look. When she saw the view below, she didn’t dare to get too close to the edge—feeling a little scared.

Zhou Jian’s smile was so wide it revealed the gaps in his teeth. He felt happier at that moment than when he had first seen the beautifully renovated new house himself. He began leading them on a tour. “Mom, this room is yours. Little Hong, this room is for you and your brother. And here’s the bathroom…”

The more Zhou Jian’s mother looked, the more she liked the place. When her son told her he had a big house in G Province, she thought he meant just a place slightly bigger than their home. She had no idea it would be like this.

She couldn’t help but exclaim, “This is better than the houses landlords used to live in! My son really has done well.”

Wang Yan stood beside her, nodding in agreement. A few years ago, she would have never imagined living in such a nice house.

Zhou Jian’s face showed a look of pride as he listened.

Meanwhile, Jiang Rou, who was cooking in the kitchen next door, heard the noise and realized that Aunt Zhou and her family had arrived.

She went out to find Li Xiao. He was lying on the living room couch, having had a bit of wine with some friends at noon. After coming home, he didn’t feel like moving and was resting on the couch. An An was sitting on the carpet in front of him, playing quietly with her wooden toys, being as well-behaved as an angel.

When she saw her mother come out, she immediately looked up with a smile and lifted the wooden toy in her hands to show her.

She couldn’t have been any cuter.

Jiang Rou, without hesitation, nudged Li Xiao, who had his eyes closed and was resting. “Go next door and invite them to come over for dinner tonight. And while you’re at it, go buy some extra groceries.”

Li Xiao opened his eyes, stretched, and gave a lazy grunt in response.

Jiang Rou, worried the food on the stove would burn, turned and headed back to the kitchen after speaking.

Li Xiao stayed on the couch for a while longer before finally getting up, albeit reluctantly. He picked up his daughter and slowly made his way out.

He knocked on the door next door, greeted Zhou Jian’s mother and Wang Yan, and told them to come over later for dinner. Afterward, he left with An An in his arms.

Once they had closed the door, Zhou Jian’s mother couldn’t help but remark, “Li Xiao is getting more accomplished every day. I’ve always said he’s meant for big things.”

Zhou Jian immediately refuted her. “When did you ever say that? I don’t remember it at all.”

Wang Yan chuckled at this exchange.

—o—o—o—

That evening, Jiang Rou prepared eight dishes in total. Four of them were from the ingredients Li Xiao had brought home. She had intended for him to buy some fresh ingredients from the market at the entrance of the neighborhood, but instead, he had bought four pre-cooked dishes from a nearby restaurant and brought them back.

Oh well, it saved her the trouble of cooking more herself.

Li Xiao also bought a large bottle of cola. Knowing An An might want to try some, Jiang Rou heated up two bottles of Wang Zai milk for her instead.

Zhou Jian’s mother and Wang Yan had never tried cola before. Wang Yan had bought it for Zhou Hong once, but she had never allowed herself a sip. When Zhou Hong offered her some, he claimed he didn’t like it.

Upon tasting their first sip, both women’s expressions became quite animated, as if they had just drunk a mouthful of bubbles. However, after a couple more sips, they found it addictive. Zhou Jian’s mother, with a shy smile, said, “No wonder kids love drinking this.”

The two families were already very close, so Jiang Rou didn’t feel the need to hold back. She casually brought up some gossip from their hometown, “How’s everything back in the county? How are Aunt Wang and Uncle Wang?”

“They’re doing well,” Zhou Jian’s mother replied. She couldn’t resist sneaking another sip of cola, thinking she had never tasted anything so good in her life. “Old Wang and his wife practically live at the market now. You know what Ma Aihua is like—wherever there’s excitement, she’s there. There’s nothing in that town that she doesn’t know about. She even came by the day before we left and talked to me for ages.”

“Oh, by the way, did Zhu Qiang get into some kind of trouble over here? Ever since he got back, he’s been telling everyone how well you two are doing, and he regrets not going south with you. He’s even rented a store near a school and started selling fried noodles and fried rice. Since it’s cheap, his business is actually doing quite well.”

“But his relationship with Wang Tao isn’t the same anymore. Wang Tao’s wife has been badmouthing him, saying he was a jerk for sneaking off south without taking Wang Tao with him. Without Zhu Qiang, Wang Tao’s been pushed out of Jiangnan Villa. Zhu Qiang’s pretty upset, too. He blames them for not keeping an eye on his wife, Mei Zi, who ran off with someone.”

Hearing this, Jiang Rou instinctively looked up in surprise.

Zhou Jian was equally shocked. “What do you mean? Mei Zi ran off with someone?”

Even Li Xiao paused, chopsticks in hand, listening intently.

Zhou Jian’s mother turned to him, surprised. “What? Didn’t I tell you about this?”

Zhou Jian shook his head, puzzled. “When did this happen?”

Zhou Jian’s mother explained, “It was around the time when Zhu Qiang went south. Mei Zi had just given birth to a daughter. You know Zhu Qiang’s mother—she’s always been arrogant. She was already unhappy with Mei Zi because of her family’s background, and after Mei Zi gave birth to a girl, she became even more upset. She scolded her constantly and even made her eat leftovers. Honestly if things have already come to this point, with a child in the picture, what’s the point of holding onto grudges? It’s better to just get on with life. No amount of money is worth more than a person, right?”

She continued, “From what I could tell, Mei Zi seemed to realize her mistakes. After that, she never returned to her family’s home and worked hard in Zhu Qiang’s household—doing all the chores. That’s the unfortunate thing for women. They can only rely on their family and their husband’s family. If neither supports them, they’ve got nothing left. When things get desperate, they’ll find a way to escape.”

Zhou Jian’s mother’s tone grew sad. “It’s just a pity for the child. Her mother ran off with some big boss of a hotel. How is that girl going to get by now?”

Not only would the child’s life in Zhu Qiang’s household become unbearable, but she would probably also face bullying when she grew up or when she started to go to school.

Zhou Jian sipped his cola, trying to process the shocking news.

Jiang Rou was equally stunned. She never expected that something that had once happened to her would be mirrored in Zhu Qiang’s wife’s life.

Li Xiao, who rarely spoke, finally broke his silence. “And Zhu Qiang…?”

Zhou Jian’s mother sighed. “Of course, he was furious. He even took the child and went to Mei Zi’s parents’ home to confront them. But they just shut the door and refused to come out. Zhu Qiang left the child at their door, claiming the girl wasn’t his. The next day, the police returned the child after Mei Zi’s family called them.”

She added, “But what hurt him most was losing that one thousand yuan he spent on the wedding. If he wants to remarry, he’ll have to pay for the bride price all over again. Though from what I’ve heard, Zhu Qiang’s mother is now planning to find him a second wife—someone divorced.”

Zhou Jian’s mother mentioned that Ma Aihua had told her Zhu Qiang’s mother was looking for a second wife like Wang Yan, someone who had been married before. She didn’t care if the woman was from the countryside as long as her family was well-off, she could bear children, and, most importantly, she was hardworking and wouldn’t cause trouble. And if she required no bride price, that would be a bonus.

In the past, the neighbors had gossiped behind Zhou Jian’s back, saying he was foolish for marrying a divorced woman and raising someone else’s child. But later on, everyone envied him. Wang Yan was hardworking and had given birth to his children. Her brother was successful in business, frequently bringing food and gifts. The entire family got along well. Some even said that Zhou Jian’s success was thanks to the good fortune Wang Yan had brought into the household.

Zhou Jian’s mother didn’t know much about “good fortune” or not, but she believed that as long as the young couple was happy, that was all that mattered. Wang Yan’s family had helped them in many ways, and she had never acted superior. Now that her son was doing well, she had no intention of looking down on her daughter-in-law. This harmony was what kept the household at peace.

Jiang Rou glanced at An An, who was nestled in Li Xiao’s arms. The little one’s mouth glistened with oil as she ate, her face full of innocent, carefree joy.

Unable to find a handkerchief, Li Xiao simply lifted her small arm and wiped her mouth with it.

The little girl opened her mouth, frowning and pointing to her teeth, saying, “There’s meat.”

She was trying to show him the bit of meat stuck between her teeth.

Without hesitation, Li Xiao used his finger to pick the meat from her teeth, then casually wiped his hand on her clothes.

Father and daughter continued eating, unbothered.

Jiang Rou, watching this scene, couldn’t help but feel a slight relief.

Later that night, as they lay in bed, Li Xiao noticed Jiang Rou hadn’t spoken much and finally asked, “What’s wrong?”

He sensed something was off with her mood.

Jiang Rou gently patted the sleeping An An, who lay between them. Since the bed in their new room was no longer pressed against the wall, they didn’t dare let An An sleep on the edge. The little girl sprawled out in her sleep, her tiny belly rising and falling peacefully, looking irresistibly cute.

In a soft voice, Jiang Rou replied, “I just feel so bad for that child.”

That child was even younger than An An had been in their past life. And it struck her how, even though some things had changed, it didn’t mean they wouldn’t happen at all. The events that were supposed to happen to Li Xiao and An An in the past life had been avoided this time, but now it seemed they had befallen Zhu Qiang instead.

Jiang Rou reflected on how this might be what people called fate—how the trajectory of one person’s life could cause everything around them to shift.

She wondered whether it was for the better or worse.

Li Xiao’s expression remained calm. “There are many people in the world who are pitiful. There’s nothing to be overly sympathetic about. They’ll grow up, just like I did.”

Jiang Rou turned to look at him, unable to resist asking, “What were you like when you were young?”

She already knew he had been quite fierce as a child. The records had mentioned how he had once used a stone to smash someone’s head.

Li Xiao answered in a matter-of-fact tone, “I was always fighting. I fought with people every day. My father was never home, and my mother didn’t care. The kids in the county bullied me at first, but eventually, no one dared to mess with me anymore.”

He continued, “I used to envy Zhou Jian and his siblings when we were kids. They all had their parents taking care of them. I remember once when we were playing outside until dark, their parents came to call them home for dinner, but no one came for me.”

He must have been only six or seven years old then, old enough to understand.

Jiang Rou’s mind conjured up an image of a young Li Xiao standing alone, watching as his friends were called back to their homes, while he was left alone.

Other children could play freely because they knew their families were waiting for them at home. Li Xiao, on the other hand, was afraid of returning to an empty house.

She found herself at a loss for words. These were experiences she had never lived through. Her first twenty years had been spent in a loving family, with doting parents, a protective older brother, and later, a strong-willed friend.

It felt like they had lived in two entirely different worlds.

Seeing her silence, Li Xiao smiled and said, “It’s nothing. It’s all in the past. I’ve forgotten most of it.”

He truly didn’t care anymore. He was grateful for his current life and hoped it would continue on indefinitely.

Jiang Rou turned over, pulling him and An An into a warm embrace.