Lin Wen ran into the house and emerged a moment later with an old, worn military satchel.
“Let’s go.” Once in the car, Lin Wen’s mood suddenly turned somber.
“Sigh, thinking about Dad again?” Song Qin asked from the back seat with a sigh.
“This is the only thing the old man left behind. If he were still here, going with Haizi to enjoy life in the city, how happy he’d be.” Lin Wen stroked the satchel, his voice thick with emotion.
Lin Hai fell silent, too.
The “old man” his father mentioned was Lin Hai’s grandfather, Lin Cheng.
Lin Hai’s deepest memory of Lin Cheng was of a very kind old man who loved to sit Lin Hai on his lap and tell him stories about the battles he’d fought in his youth.
But then, when Lin Hai was seven, Lin Cheng suddenly left home.
His parents, uncles, and aunts—everyone except Sun Guizhi—searched for over ten days but never found him.
After that, no one heard from Lin Cheng again. They didn’t even know if he was alive or dead.
Lin Hai was too young to remember much, only that when his parents and uncles returned, they went straight to Second Uncle’s house and had a huge fight with Sun Guizhi, almost coming to blows.
As for why his grandfather had left home, Lin Hai had no recollection.
“Dad, why did Grandpa leave home back then?” Lin Yun asked the question on everyone’s mind.
“Hmph, it’s all because of that Sun Guizhi!” Just mentioning it made Lin Wen angry all over again.
“Her again?” Lin Yun felt a wave of disgust at the name.
“Who else could it be?” Lin Wen slammed his fist against the armrest in frustration.
“Dad, what exactly happened?” Lin Hai wanted to know the whole story, too.
“Sigh.” Lin Wen let out a heavy sigh.
“That year, when your Second Uncle got married, the family couldn’t afford furniture. So your mother and I talked it over and moved all our new furniture over to them, so their wedding wouldn’t look so shabby.”
“Then guess what? The very next day after moving it in, she had her own family come and take it all for her brother. Then she demanded your grandfather buy a whole new set, plus the ‘Four Major Appliances,’ or else she wouldn’t marry your Second Uncle.”
“Where was your grandfather supposed to get the money? The old man had no choice but to sell the house and scrape together enough to buy them new furniture and the appliances. Only then did your Second Uncle manage to get married.”
“So the wedding happened, but now your grandfather and your Old Uncle had nowhere to live. Your Second Uncle and I discussed it and decided they’d stay with each of us for six months, rotating.”
“The first six months with us were fine. But when it was time for the next six months at your Second Uncle’s place, Sun Guizhi flat-out refused to let them stay. I, your Old Uncle, and your aunt had a huge fight with her. The neighbors couldn’t stand watching either and came out to confront her. Only then did she reluctantly agree to let your grandfather stay, but she absolutely refused to take in your Old Uncle. With no other choice, your Old Uncle ended up staying at your aunt’s place.”
“Who would’ve thought that move sealed your grandfather’s fate? If I’d known, I would’ve had him stay with us, even if it meant we had to struggle a bit.” Lin Wen’s voice cracked with emotion.
“That Sun Guizhi is terrible! What happened next?” Lin Yun asked.
“What happened next? Sigh! Your grandfather had been there less than a month when he suddenly left home. Later, we heard from the neighbors that Sun Guizhi treated him horribly—not a single kind word. That sixty-year-old man was either yelled at or cursed at every day, given only one meal a day, and forced to sleep in the same place as the donkey at night…” Lin Wen couldn’t continue. The tough, weathered man broke down in tears.
“My poor old father! The three of us brothers and your aunt, none of us were even his biological children—he adopted all of us! And how did his kindness get repaid? Your Second Uncle, that coward, let Sun Guizhi destroy his life!”
“What!” Lin Hai’s heart jolted. Only now did he learn that his father and his siblings weren’t actually his grandfather’s biological children.
That made the old man’s kindness to them all the more profound.
Knowing his father and uncles as he did, Lin Hai was sure they weren’t ungrateful people. His grandfather should have been spending his later years surrounded by family, but all of that was ruined by Sun Guizhi…
The more Lin Hai thought about it, the angrier he became. Suddenly, he slammed on the brakes.
“What’s wrong, Xiaohai?” Song Qin asked, concerned, sensing something was off.
“I’m going back. I’m going to ruin Sun Guizhi.” Lin Hai’s eyes were bloodshot. Remembering how his grandfather had doted on him as a child, he was consumed with rage.
“Let it go. It’s been so many years. Besides, if you hurt her, what about your Second Uncle?” Song Qin shook her head.
“How could Second Uncle be such a coward!” Lin Hai slammed his fist against the steering wheel in frustration.
After hearing about their grandfather, the mood in the car became heavy and oppressive.
No one spoke again until they exited the highway and entered Jiangnan City.
“Screech!” Lin Hai pulled over at the highway exit and got out.
The truck behind them also stopped.
Guo Fei jumped out and shook Lin Hai’s hand.
“Haizi, let’s part ways here. I came to help you move, but in the end, we didn’t move anything except ten cases of wine for ourselves. Honestly, I feel a bit embarrassed.”
“Haha, Brother Guo, you’re being too polite. Even though we didn’t end up moving this time, you guys helped me a lot by keeping the troublemakers in check. I really appreciate it.” Lin Hai said with a smile.
“Alright, no need to say more. If you ever need anything from me, just ask.”
“Of course. Brother Guo, when you get back, please give my regards to Commander Zhan.”
After parting ways with Guo Fei, Lin Hai and Guang Touqiang drove the two cars straight back to the villa.
As soon as he entered the villa, Lin Wen’s face broke into a wide grin.
“Xiaohai, we’re living here? It’s like a little Western-style house. So impressive.”
“Oh, the surroundings are so nice! And they all have little yards. If I get bored, I can plant a vegetable garden.” Song Qin exclaimed in admiration.
“What vegetable garden? Do you think you’re still in the village? How embarrassing!” Lin Wen scolded.
“I’ll do what I want. Mind your own business!” The two of them started bickering again.
“Wow, Brother, there’s even an outdoor pool! Can we go swimming in it?” Lin Yun asked excitedly.
“Of course, anytime you want.” Lin Hai replied with a smile.
Seeing his family’s happy reactions made Lin Hai feel good inside.
The cars stopped in front of Lin Hai’s villa. Guang Touqiang quickly got out and rushed over to open Lin Hai’s door for him.
Lin Wen seemed to enjoy the treatment, nodding approvingly at Guang Touqiang.
“Hey, Qiangzi, you keep calling Xiaohai ‘master.’ What exactly are you learning from him?”
“Learning to fight!”
Pfft!
Oh, come on!
Can’t you talk properly?
Lin Hai almost got out and kicked him.
“Learning to fight?” Lin Wen frowned. He looked at Guang Touqiang’s appearance and rough style, and his heart sank.
“Xiaohai, get out here!” Lin Wen’s expression darkened.
Lin Hai shot Guang Touqiang a fierce glare.
“Dad, I’ve been learning some martial arts from an old master at school. He wanted to learn from me.”
Lin Hai quickly gave Guang Touqiang a pointed look.
“Oh, right, right! I’m a big kung fu fan and wanted to learn the ‘Foshan No-Shadow Kick’ from him. I was just joking with you earlier.”
Guang Touqiang struck a Huang Feihong pose as he spoke, but with his appearance, it looked utterly ridiculous.
Lin Wen couldn’t help but laugh.
“Then teach him properly. Qiangzi seems like a good guy.”
That one sentence almost brought Guang Touqiang to tears.
Finally, someone said something nice about me.
“Of course.” Lin Hai agreed, thinking to himself that he really should find time to teach Guang Touqiang something.
After all, he’d been calling him “master” for a while now, and Lin Hai could tell that Guang Touqiang was sincere.
“I don’t care what you learn, just don’t stray onto the wrong path.”
“Don’t worry, Dad. You know me.” Lin Hai said as he unlocked the villa door.
“Ahh!!!” The moment the door opened, Lin Yun let out a sharp scream.
