1990s: Spring Water Family

Chapter 49 That bed was the only thing Grandpa left behind.
"Selling beds?"

Which bed are you selling?

My older cousin and my younger cousin didn't dare to get involved in the adults' affairs, so they silently pretended to be invisible. But when they heard that they were selling beds, they couldn't hold back any longer and ran out from the inner room.

Which other bed is there?

Auntie frowned: "Apart from that old antique, the rest of the furniture in this house wouldn't fetch much money if sold together."

"No."

My cousin got anxious: "That bed is a family heirloom, we can't sell it."

The aunt was furious: "You brat, what do you know? Go away."

"Mom, that bed is the only thing Grandpa left behind."

My cousin was also reluctant, and he forced himself to persuade me, "Even if we're short of money, we can't sell the bed."

"If you're not going to sell the beds, are you going to borrow money?"

The aunt, feeling a pang of bitterness after being repeatedly contradicted by her children, couldn't help but cry out, "Your sister is being unreasonable, but aren't you unreasonable too? Don't you understand where all the money your parents have saved over the years has gone? For your tuition and living expenses, your mother hasn't bought herself a single new piece of clothing in four years; she wears your sister's hand-me-downs."

My cousin blushed, feeling extremely ashamed.

"Forget it, stop talking."

My aunt's husband couldn't stand it anymore and patted his wife on the shoulder.

"Why don't you tell me?"

The aunt shook off his hand, her eyes reddening: "A bed is inanimate, but a person is alive. Are you going to drive someone to their death over an inanimate object?"

"You don't need to feel wronged, Mom won't force you to your death."

Grandma wiped her eyes, forcing back her tears: "If you want to sell the bed, then sell it. As long as you have the ability to sell it, it's up to you whether you sell it for a lot or a little. I don't care."

"No, I don't agree."

My cousin stamped her foot in frustration, and before she could finish speaking, she turned and ran away: "We can't sell the bed! It's just borrowing money, right? I'll go borrow from Sister Juan. I'm quitting my job at the soy sauce factory and going to Guangzhou with her to wholesale clothes."

"Come back here, you brat! Who gave you permission to resign?"

My aunt was trembling with anger. Just as she was about to stop her, my cousin lifted the curtain and ran out.

"Liu Jian, hurry up!" Uncle pushed his cousin from behind: "Call your sister back, don't let her do anything foolish."

"understood."

My cousin didn't want to stay and take the blame, so he strode away quickly with his long legs.

The brother and sister ran out of the yard one after the other and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

The room fell silent, and the atmosphere became even more oppressive.

"Ugh."

My uncle sighed deeply, took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, and under the pretext of smoking, hid in the yard by himself.

-

When Lin Xiyu returned from the market, she immediately sensed something was wrong as soon as she entered the house. Her aunt's family was not there, and the quietness in the yard made her feel inexplicably uneasy.

"Meow."

A tabby cat jumped down from the eaves and circled around her. She was carrying a plastic bag containing a dozen or so horseshoe-shaped sesame cakes.

The sesame seed cakes were fresh out of the oven, crispy and fragrant. The tabby cat was drooling over them, meowing incessantly around her.

"Is this your cat?"

Li Yan became interested and bent down to pet the cat.

"Meow."

The tabby cat disliked being touched by strangers, let out a disgruntled meow, and brandished its claws.

"No."

Fearing that she would be scratched, Lin Xiyu broke off a small piece of the sesame seed cake and threw it away.

The tabby cat let out a meow and darted over, grabbing the sesame seed cake and leaping onto the roof.

"Xiaohua is the cat that Grandma Yang next door keeps."

Seeing that it had run away, Lin Xiyu felt relieved and explained with a smile, "It often sneaks into our yard to play. Grandma says that if there's a cat, there are no mice. Every time it sees Xiaohua, she feeds it some food. Over time, it has become familiar with our family."

(End of this chapter)