Chapter 8: Renovating the New Home, Integrating into the Family

“What is it? What’s inside?” Bai An curiously peered behind her dad.

Lu Demin, seeing Bai An’s curious expression, mysteriously pulled out a hairpin from his pocket.

A pink hairpin.

“Looks good, right?” Lu Demin placed the hairpin on Bai An’s head and, holding her, walked over to Wan Qing. “I have great taste, don’t I?”

Lu Jin’an glanced at the hairpin on Bai An’s head, his expression unreadable, before turning around and walking into the house, dragging a chair behind him.

“You’re still a director, huh?” Wan Qing looked up and smiled gently. “But Bai An looks good in anything.”

“Come on, Bai An, try on this dress, how do you like it?” Wan Qing shook the garment she had just altered, casually sticking a needle into her hairpin.

Lu Demin noticed this and quickly walked over, removing the needle from Wan Qing’s hair, slightly annoyed. “This is dangerous.”

Wan Qing smiled and put the dress on Bai An, carefully observing.

“It’s beautiful.” Bai An twirled around in the new dress, happily saying.

But Wan Qing hesitated when she noticed the sleeves were too long. “It’s a little big, but Bai An is growing, so it should work for now.”

“My daughter is just so pretty.” Lu Demin beamed with pride.

Wan Qing shot him a look. “Yours is inside.”

“Oh, and mine too.” Lu Demin happily walked into the house.

In the afternoon, as Lu Demin was working with cement, Bai An watched curiously from the side. Seeing her, Lu Demin waved her off.

“Stay back, you might get your new clothes dirty.”

Bai An agreed and ran over to Lu Jin’an. “Do you want to go out and play?”

Lu Jin’an shook his head. “I need to help Dad. You can go play.”

Bai An looked over at Wan Qing, who was tidying up the house, clenching her hands. She felt this was the perfect opportunity.

While they weren’t paying attention, Bai An ran to the back of the house, and seeing no one around, slipped into her space.

Inside her space, she couldn’t take anything with packaging or items too out of place for the era.

After a bit of searching, Bai An filled up a box.

Some simple daily necessities: mirrors, candles, towels, toothbrushes, shoes, bowls, chopsticks, and some random other items.

Once Bai An had packed everything, she hid the box behind a large tree at the back of the house.

Bai An wandered leisurely on the hillside, and when Lu Jin’an came to find her and saw her happy expression, he curiously asked, “Where did you go to play? You look so happy.”

Bai An shook her head. “I didn’t go anywhere.”

Lu Jin’an chuckled, walked over, and took Bai An’s hand. “Let’s go home then.”

When Bai An returned home, she was truly shocked by how efficiently her parents had transformed their environment.

The previously dilapidated house was no longer made of dirt but now had clean, smooth cement floors. Wan Qing had tidied up the entire house neatly.

Now, it truly felt like a home.

Wan Qing smiled, linking her arm with Lu Demin’s. “I never had the time or energy to clean up the house before, but now, seeing everything neatly arranged, it really makes me happy.”

Lu Jin’an observed the changes in the house, his eyes slightly shifting. He looked down at Bai An and felt no longer alone. His heart, which had always felt empty, now seemed filled.

Wan Qing dressed everyone in new clothes and made sure she herself looked well. Ever since she followed the country’s policy of sending educated youth to the countryside, Wan Qing had never truly felt a sense of belonging here.

Now, maybe she could try to treat this place as a real home.

“Bai An.”

“Hmm?” Bai An looked at her mother with a confused expression. “What’s wrong?”

Wan Qing gently stroked the side of Bai An’s head. “Do you think you’re a little lucky star?”

Since Bai An came to their family, their lives had been improving.

“Mom.” Bai An ran into Wan Qing’s arms. “I’ve always had better luck than others. Before, I often found things.”

“That’s why it’s my good luck to have ended up here.”

In the evening, Lu Demin found a box behind the house. Wan Qing looked at its contents and softly said, “Let’s go make an offering tomorrow.”

From today onward, the villagers clearly noticed that the family from the city, Lu Demin’s family, no longer felt so lifeless. It was as if they had been revived, and they wore satisfied smiles on their faces every day.

Though they had always been kind, there had been a sense of distance before. But now, the family was slowly integrating into the community.

Lu Demin built a small yard, and Wan Qing planted vegetables, raised chickens and ducks, and built a few more small rooms. One was for Lu Jin’an, one for Bai An, and there was also a new bathroom and kitchen.

“Bai An, come out and play!” The two kids stood at the gate of Lu Demin’s newly built yard, calling out, “Bai An, hurry, or we’ll be late!”

“Coming, coming!” Bai An hurriedly strapped her small bag with flowers on her back.

As Lu Jin’an grew older, his features became more refined. Seeing Bai An in such a rush, he furrowed his brows. He reached out and grabbed Bai An’s bag, pulling her back. “You haven’t written today’s characters yet. Where are you going?”

Bai An pretended to be aggrieved and tugged at Lu Jin’an’s clothes, acting coquettishly. “I’ll write them when I come back.”

Lu Jin’an’s face remained emotionless as he covered Bai An’s face with his hand. “When you come back tonight, you’ll write three more pages.”

Hearing this, Bai An froze, her lips pulling into a forced smile. “Why three more pages?”

The “three pages” Lu Jin’an mentioned weren’t simple. Everyone knew he had obsessive-compulsive disorder and that Bai An would have to write until he was satisfied.

“Don’t want to write?”

“I’ll write.” Bai An shrugged off his hand. “I’ll do it when I come back.”

Seeing Bai An’s downcast expression, Lu Jin’an smiled indulgently. After so many years together, he knew her well. Though she seemed upset on the surface, she was likely cursing herself on the inside.

“Go play. Weren’t you in a hurry just now?” Lu Jin’an stuffed some snacks into Bai An’s bag. “Remember to come back before sunset. If you’re late again like last time, Dad won’t let you off.”

“I know, I know.”

Cui Ju and Da Zhuang saw Bai An come out of the house and excitedly called her name, chattering away like a group of sparrows.

But when they saw the boy standing at the door with a cold expression, they immediately fell silent.

“We should leave quickly.” Cui Ju grabbed Bai An’s hand and said to Da Zhuang.

Da Zhuang nodded quickly in agreement.