“Oh my, isn’t this Xiaohai back? Came back without saying a word—your own second aunt had no idea.” Sun Guizhi stepped out of the car.
Lin Hai’s face turned cold. “I told you last time—our family has nothing to do with you anymore.”
Sun Guizhi wasn’t bothered. “Oh, you kid, why hold a grudge against family? I’m your elder, I’m not going to take it to heart with a child like you, don’t you agree, big brother?”
“Hmph.” Lin Wen grunted and ignored her.
“So Guizhi’s here.” Song Qin pulled a long face, reluctantly greeting Sun Guizhi.
“That’s right, my nephew’s done well for himself—now when he comes back, he doesn’t even visit his second aunt. So I figured I’d come see him instead, that’s fine, isn’t it?” Sun Guizhi said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
“Oh my, brought his girlfriend home too? What’s her family background? Doesn’t she know to say hello when meeting people?” Su Guizhi then turned her sharp tongue toward Liu Xinyue.
Liu Xinyue’s face instantly flushed red.
Lin Hai frowned, turned around, and led Liu Xinyue straight into the inner room.
“Sis, don’t mind her. She’s so annoying. After my brother left last time, Mayor Huang had her ladder factory shut down. Instead of taking it up with the town office, she came to our house every day throwing a fit, driving Mom and Dad crazy. Later, she forced Second Uncle to come ask Dad for help, and Dad finally put in a word with Mayor Huang, so she could reopen her business.” Lin Yun quickly stepped in to comfort Liu Xinyue when she saw her uneasy expression.
“Forget it. Out of sight, out of mind. We’re moving away anyway.” Lin Hai sighed. He couldn’t exactly kick her out—after all, even if he didn’t care about her, he still had to consider Second Uncle’s feelings.
“Oh my, dear sister-in-law, why are you bothering to pack up all this scrap metal? And this table, these chairs—they’re from years ago. You treat them like treasures.” Sun Guizhi kept rifling through the neatly packed items, scattering them again.
“Huh? Old Uncle’s here too?” Sun Guizhi spotted Lin Gui.
“Second sister-in-law.” Lin Gui was tongue-tied and a bit intimidated by Sun Guizhi.
“Sister-in-law, don’t bother with these things. If you take them to the city, they’ll just embarrass you. Perfect timing—Old Uncle’s here too. Later, have him help me load them into my car, and I’ll take them home. Who knows, maybe I’ll find a use for them someday.” Sun Guizhi rummaged through the items as she spoke.
“Well…” Lin Gui felt a pang of distress—his sister-in-law had already promised those things to him.
“Look at you. Your own sister-in-law asks you to help with a little task, and you make such a fuss? What, you’re not happy about it? Hurry up and help load them!” Sun Guizhi urged.
Lin Gui’s face twisted in frustration, but he didn’t dare say anything and started moving to help load the items.
Suddenly, Lin Hai walked out, holding five stacks of cash.
“Old Uncle, we’re short on time today—we’ll be heading out soon, so I won’t have a chance to visit Aunt. Take this fifty thousand. Buy whatever you need at home, and stop using all that old stuff.”
Before Lin Gui could react, Lin Hai shoved the money into his hands.
“What…” Lin Gui was stunned—Lin Hai had just given him such a large sum.
Sun Guizhi’s face immediately lit up with delight.
“What are you standing there for, Old Uncle? Your nephew’s giving you a gift to show respect. Hurry up and take it.”
With that, Sun Guizhi turned her head toward Lin Hai.
“Your second uncle went out today, so he’s not home. Since you’re busy, just go ahead with your plans—no need to visit him. The way he is, it’s not like there’s much to see anyway.”
Lin Hai didn’t even acknowledge her. He kept his head down, looking around for something.
Seeing this, Sun Guizhi grew a bit impatient.
“Um, Xiaohai, even if you don’t need to visit your second uncle, I can still take the money—or anything else—back for him. I’ll tell him it’s a gift from his nephew. Don’t you think he’d be overjoyed?”
“Money?” Lin Hai looked confused. “Who said I’m giving you any money?”
Sun Guizhi’s breath caught, and her expression turned awkward.
“What about Old Uncle and Aunt? Didn’t you just…”
Lin Hai ignored her. Instead, he bent down and picked up a firewood poker from the ground.
Before anyone could react, Lin Hai brought the poker down with a crack, smashing bowls and plates into pieces.
“Xiaohai, what are you doing?” Song Qin was startled and hurried over.
Lin Hai tossed the poker aside.
“Nothing. I’d rather smash it all than give it to her!”
Sun Guizhi’s face instantly darkened. Even with her thick skin, she couldn’t stay any longer.
“Wow, impressive. Just as I said—going to school has made him turn his back on his own family. Big brother, sister-in-law, don’t blame me for saying this, but take a look at yourselves. Look at how you’ve raised your child. And you still go around bragging about him to everyone—aren’t you ashamed?”
Sun Guizhi slammed the car door shut, started the engine, and drove off.
“Hmph, what’s wrong with my son? I think he did the right thing! I will brag about him—he’s way better than your son!” Lin Wen yelled at the back of the departing car.
“Sigh, well, now it’s all smashed. At least we don’t have to take it with us. But Xiaohai, really, even if you didn’t want to give it to her, you didn’t have to smash it.” Song Qin looked at the shattered pieces in her hands, feeling a pang of regret.
“Mom, I just couldn’t stand watching her bully Old Uncle. I lost my temper.” Lin Hai also felt he had acted impulsively and spoke apologetically.
“It’s fine. No destruction, no construction. Maybe it’s for the best.” Song Qin quickly let it go.
“Xiaohai, this is too much money. Why don’t you keep it for when you and Xiaoyue get married?” Lin Gui was an honest man—he felt uncomfortable accepting such a large sum from Lin Hai.
“Come on, Old Uncle, just take it.” Lin Hai pushed the money back.
“No, really, it’s too much.”
“If Xiaohai says take it, then take it. Stop being so hesitant. That’s not even a lot of money—Xiaohai has plenty!” Lin Wen started lecturing again.
“You old fool, can’t you just talk nicely?” Song Qin came over and playfully punched Lin Wen.
“Alright, Old Uncle, just take it. It’s a gift from your nephew. Why be so shy about it?” Song Qin urged.
“Sigh, alright, alright. I’ll take it for now. But if you ever need money for your wedding or anything, let me know, and I’ll chip in.” Lin Gui said, visibly moved.
“Xiaohai need your money? Save your little bit for your two sons to build houses.” Lin Wen tilted his chin up stubbornly.
“You old geezer, why are you being so tough with your own brother? Just because Xiaohai’s made some money, you’re all puffed up. Your good intentions always come out twisted because of that sharp tongue of yours. If Old Uncle didn’t know you so well, someone else would cut ties with you after hearing you talk like that. How many people have you offended because of that mouth of yours? Change it already!” Song Qin scolded him.
Lin Hai shook his head. His father had a sharp tongue but a soft heart—he often did good things but ended up being misunderstood. He’d been like that for over half his life. Changing now was nearly impossible.
“Alright, Mom, let’s get ready to go.” Lin Hai checked the time and said to Song Qin.
“Okay, let’s go.” Song Qin took one last look around the house.
“You know, I used to complain all the time—everyone else built big new houses, but ours was still the one your grandpa built when your dad and I got married, so small and low. But now that we’re suddenly leaving, I find myself a little reluctant to part with it.”
“What’s there to be reluctant about? I think you’re just not meant to enjoy life. If you’re so attached, you stay. I’m going to the city with my son to enjoy a good life.” Lin Wen tilted his chin again.
“Old man, are you ever going to stop? There are all these soldiers here. Don’t make me tear into you!”
“Hmph!” Lin Wen cared about saving face, and he really didn’t want Song Qin to start scolding him in front of the young soldiers. He let out a grunt and stayed quiet.
“Old Uncle, we’re leaving now. Please do us a favor and keep an eye on the place. Who knows, if we don’t get used to city life, we might be back someday.” Song Qin said, a little wistfully.
“Don’t worry, sister-in-law.” Lin Gui replied.
“Sigh, let’s go.”
“Wait!” The car started and was about to pull out of the yard when Lin Wen suddenly called out to Lin Hai.
“What’s up, Dad?” Lin Hai was puzzled.
“We almost left behind something important!” Lin Wen jumped out of the car and ran back into the house.
