After returning from my cultivation journey, I built a farm through fortune telling.

Chapter 123

Bai Lu's maternal grandmother's family had been landlords for generations, but her great-grandmother only had two daughters. One married into a neighboring village, while the other stayed at home to find a husband.

Grandma Qin was the one who was looking for a son-in-law at home. She and Grandpa Qin had a very good relationship. But one day, Grandpa Qin went to the street and someone handed him a piece of paper with a poem written on it. He glanced at it and was so frightened that he immediately threw it away, but it was too late.

later
They lost all their money and were arrested.

After begging and pleading, they were finally released three years later, but the once wealthy landlord family had fallen into complete ruin.

Qin Xiu and her maternal uncle Qin Xi were born after Qin's maternal grandfather passed away. They were more favored by Qin's maternal grandfather and maternal grandmother than their four older brothers and sisters, because the family had fallen on hard times and they were the only ones who had never had a good life.

Qin Xu's father, Bai Lu's maternal uncle, was the eldest son and grandson of the Qin family. He should have had a smooth life, but his family was struck by misfortune after he had only been in school for two years. During the three years that Qin's maternal grandfather was away, Qin's maternal grandmother had a very difficult time raising four children—no, five. Her maternal uncle also had a child bride.

With five children crying for food, Grandma Qin was so exhausted that she developed a chronic illness. After Grandpa Qin returned, she was relieved and fell ill, only recovering a year later.

My eldest uncle was quite successful. He struggled to finish junior high school and then took my aunt out to work. They eventually saved up some money and opened a clothing store in their town. Three years later, they built a small house in town, and they lived a decent life.

Because he was the eldest brother, he took good care of his younger brothers and sisters. However, he was powerless to help them when they were young. Qin Xiu's family was too poor to afford to send six children to school, so she dropped out of school after finishing primary school and stayed home to help with farm work. She also helped take care of her uncle's two children, Qin Xu and Qin Fei, as well as her aunt's eldest daughter, Yu Yan.

Because of the family's decline, the eldest brother and sister in the family of the eldest uncle and aunt were all working hard to earn money outside, so they naturally couldn't take care of the children. They could only leave them to be cared for by the maternal grandparents.

But Qin's maternal grandparents still had farm work to do, so the task of taking care of the children fell to Qin Xiu. Qin Xiu was only twelve years older than Qin Xu, but she raised all of them single-handedly!

Therefore, Qin Xiu's maternal uncle and aunt were especially kind to her.

Especially her eldest uncle, after he became able to do so, brought Qin Xiu to town to help out at his shop and even paid her a salary.

Back then, Qin Xiu was fifteen years old. Her uncle took her to Zhenshan and raised her for two years, where she grew into a fashionable young lady with permed hair and a love for mahjong.

You wouldn't believe it, but Qin Xiu was quite the gambler when she was young!

—My parents were young once too, and they had their own unique charm.

It's just that life has worn me down and turned me into what I am today.

Later, Qin Xiu met Bai Jiang and married into Dongshi Village, much to the dismay of her uncle.

Later, when Dongcheng strictly enforced family planning, Qin Xiu, pregnant with Bai Chen, returned to her uncle's house with Bai Wei and Bai Lu, where they lived for two years.

Because things were better on her uncle's side, and all the neighbors knew Qin Xiu, no one reported her.

Later, Qin Xiu became physically weak, so her maternal grandmother went to town to take care of her. After Bai Chen was born, she brought her back to the village to recuperate. Whenever Qin Xiu talked about this period, she would say that she was at her heaviest then, weighing a full 120 pounds, and her eyes even looked small from the fat.

Bai Lu and Bai Wei ran wild in the village, teasing cats and dogs all day long. Grandma Qin said that all the children in the family combined were not as mischievous as them.

This was also the most carefree time for Qin Xiu. She even thought about inviting Bai Jiang, who was making money outside, to come and develop her career back home!

However, things didn't go as planned, and later, my eldest uncle fell seriously ill.

Hydrocephalus.

Qin Xiu said that they could only watch helplessly as their eldest uncle was covered in tubes.

Qin Xiu said that her eldest uncle cried out in pain every day.

Qin Xiu said that her aunt had exhausted all her family's wealth for that one in ten thousand chance of survival. She sold her house and car, and underwent several surgeries, but in the end, she still couldn't save her uncle's life.

That year, Qin Xu was fifteen years old and had just graduated from junior high school. His father, who was the pillar of the family, had passed away.

My aunt didn't even have fifty yuan in her pocket.

My eldest uncle's wife was his childhood sweetheart. To a large extent, she existed to take care of him. Moreover, my eldest uncle was capable on his own and didn't need her to do anything. Once he left, her world collapsed. She had neither the ability nor the mental preparation to take on the responsibility of the family.

If it weren't for Qin Xiu and her aunts and uncles persuading him, and if they hadn't pooled their money, Qin Xu would have dropped out of school and started working long ago.

Of the four siblings, Qin Xiu faced the most difficulties. She had little education and couldn't find a good job.

After returning to Yangcheng, she left Bai Lu and her two siblings in the care of their grandparents. Then she worked with Bai Jiang on construction sites, doing all the hard and tiring work, which caused her to develop cervical and lumbar spondylosis. Bai Jiang's lumbar spine was injured while carrying cement, and it still aches in rainy weather.

Every month when they receive their salary, they send part of it back to their hometown to give to Grandpa and Grandma Bai, part of it to Qin Xu and Aunt Bai, part of it to save for emergencies, and only a small portion for their own expenses.

Life was truly hard. Qin Xiu didn't want to recall those days. Her beloved older brother was gone, and she became a low-level worker.

When she first started working, she was so tired that she couldn't even lift her arms. She was scolded by the foreman every day. It was really too tiring. She cried through countless pillows. Bai Jiang saw this and felt sorry for her. If possible, he would not want Qin Xiu to come out to work with him, but he was powerless to do so because he only knew how to be a construction worker. He didn't know anything else.

Time passed slowly. Qin Xu had always been an excellent student, excelling in both character and academics, and had never fallen out of the top three in his grade. However, his uncle's departure had a significant impact on him. He was depressed for a long time, and his grades declined. But in the end, he managed to adjust and was admitted to a prestigious university.

It took me ten years to go from three years of high school and four years of university to starting work, from an intern to making some progress.

He chose to stay in Shanghai, where big cities offer more opportunities, but the days before success are incredibly tough, so tough that there's no time to reminisce about the past. Fortunately, he made it through.

To be honest, without these uncles and aunts, Qin Xu wouldn't be where he is today.

Since college, he has worked part-time while studying to try his best to ease the burden on his aunts and uncles, and even had some savings so he could buy things for everyone during the Lunar New Year.

Now he works as a software developer at a company, is a middle manager, earns an annual salary of 800,000 yuan, and is Qin Xiu's most promising nephew!

This is also why Qin Xu always grants Qin Xiu's requests.

No matter how difficult life was, his aunt never shortchanged him on his living expenses each month. He always remembered this and was grateful.

An Lin was Qin Xu's junior high school classmate. She knew about what had happened to his family, how difficult his journey had been, and how much his relatives had sacrificed for him.

Therefore, she never expressed any opinion about Qin Xu "lending" money to her third aunt and younger aunt's family over the years.

Moreover, most of the family's money was earned by her husband, so if he was willing to lend it, she wouldn't stop him.

Because she knew very well that even if she tried to stop it, it wouldn't work; the money would still be lent out, but an argument was inevitable.

What's the point of having a big argument?

She is very happy now, loves her husband and her beloved children, and is content. There is no need to waste their feelings on these pointless arguments.

Qin Xu settled down in Shanghai. The house was bought in full three years ago. It wasn't very big, with only three bedrooms, two living rooms, and two bathrooms, but every corner of the house was carefully decorated by the couple. It was a warm little home with him, her, and their three children.

In the kitchen, there was the sound of children's laughter, the clatter of pots and pans, the occasional crisp sound of eggs being tapped against the rim of bowls, and the children's exclamations: "Oh, Mom, look! It's a double-yolk egg!"

“Yes, that’s right—” Anlin echoed, tapping the egg on the edge of the bowl with her hand, and another egg fell into the bowl: “Let’s go out and play, Mom has to cook! Qiqi, take your little brother and sister out!”

"Let's go, let's go! Mom's going to cook, let's not bother her, let's go play with building blocks in the living room!" Eight-year-old Qin Qi called to her younger siblings, who cheered and followed her out.

Anlin smiled as she watched them, only turning her gaze away after they closed the sliding kitchen door.

She took out ten eggs at once, but three of them were double-yolk eggs. She silently put the five eggs back—what kind of chickens do her aunt's family have? Every single one of them is a double-yolk egg!
She used chopsticks to whisk the eggs and poured them into the prepared batter. She added chopped green onions and a little salt, and then continued to whisk quickly with chopsticks until the batter was smooth and free of lumps.

Qin Xu helped cut the oysters. The cleaned fresh oysters were easily cut in half under the knife. He added the oyster meat to the egg batter. The oysters were still quite plump. An Lin originally wanted to buy small oysters because they were easier to fry and tasted better, but they were sold out at the market. She could only buy large oysters and process them herself.

Qin Xu's family hired a part-time housekeeper who was only responsible for cleaning the house and preparing dinner, but she couldn't come today because she had something to do, so the couple had to do it themselves. Fortunately, they often cooked for themselves before, so their skills weren't too bad.

The couple were busy in the kitchen, while the children sat around on the living room carpet, playing with building blocks, occasionally looking up at the kitchen, twitching their little noses, and looking forward to the delicious food that was about to be served.

Anlin poured a generous amount of oil into a frying pan. Once the oil was hot, she poured the oyster egg mixture into the pan and gently spread it out with a spatula.

With a sizzling sound, the egg mixture made a wonderful sound the moment it came into contact with the hot oil, and an even richer aroma spread out.

The oyster omelet slowly turned golden brown in the pan. Anlin gently flipped it with a spatula until one side was set. She then tossed the pan over to flip it over and continued frying. Finally, she put it on a pretty plate.

The oyster omelet was made very successfully, perfectly intact, and perfectly round on the plate.

"Mom, the egg pancakes you made today smell so good!"

The youngest child, three-year-old Qin Hong, was attracted by the aroma. He stopped playing with the building blocks and ignored his older sisters calling him. He ran straight into the kitchen and hugged An Lin's leg—he remembered that he had helped crack the eggs and thought An Lin was making egg pancakes!

“It’s not an egg pancake, it’s an oyster omelet, your favorite. It’s made with eggs that your aunt just sent. Wash your hands, time to eat!” Anlin replied, her voice full of affection.

An Lin and Qin Xiu originally only planned to have one child, but they couldn't resist the mother-in-law's urging to have another one. She said that having another child would make the family more lively and that having another child would allow them to discuss things together in the future, so they had a second child. Later, she realized that the Qin family was just a family with a throne to inherit, and her mother-in-law just wanted a grandson.

She had a fight with her husband over this, and Qin Xu managed to persuade his mother, since raising three children in Shanghai is really stressful!

Although my aunt was very unwilling, she didn't say anything in the end.

But the third brother still arrived unexpectedly.

Anlin didn't consider herself a mother who favored sons over daughters, but she was actually relieved when she learned that her third child was a son.

She was utterly fed up with her mother-in-law's constant references to her grandson!
Now that her grandson has arrived, she has no reason to find fault, right?
"Yay!" Qin Hong cheered, clapping his hands excitedly, and ran over to Qin Qi: "Big sister, wash your hands and eat!"

"Go to the bathroom by yourself, stand on that little stool, squeeze some hand soap, and I'll turn on the tap for you. Rub your hands, rub them again, great job—" Qin Qi washed her younger siblings' hands like a little adult, only turning to wash her own hands last.

"Have you washed your hands? Dinner's ready!"

Anlin called out towards the bathroom.

"Alright!" The children rushed over in a flurry, scrambling to get a seat as if they were in a competition.

Qin Xu and An Lin set out the tableware and brought out the food, respectively. As they watched the children eagerly take their seats, their faces beamed with happiness.

Qin Xu picked up his phone and clapped softly to signal everyone to quiet down.

The children immediately stopped making noise and all looked at their father. Qin Xu, holding his phone and filming a video, said, "Okay, look here, Qiqi, Shishi, Xuxu, let's first thank our aunt for sending the fresh eggs and oysters, so we can have such a delicious oyster omelet today. Thank you, aunt!"

"Thank you, Auntie!" the children waved at the camera and said in unison.

Qin Xu filmed the children and tonight's dinner, then sent the video and put his phone away: "OK, time to eat!"

"Wow, it smells so good!" The eldest daughter, Qin Qiqi, sniffed and blinked her starry eyes at An Lin, saying, "Mom, the oyster omelet looks delicious!"

With her chubby little face, she looks just like a little glutton.

"Thank you for acknowledging Mom's cooking skills, dear! Here's a big one for you!" Anlin smiled as she divided the fried oyster omelet into several portions and placed them on the children's plates. Anqi's plate had the biggest piece: "You can have more if you want."

"Okay! Thank you, Mom!" the three said in unison.

An Lin smiled and said, "You're welcome, eat up!"

(End of this chapter)