Brother, just how powerful is our family?

"Let's go take a look at the old house," Qin Jianguo said.

The old house is located at the other end of the village; it was the house where Qin Jianguo lived when he was a child.

Later, the family moved to the county town, and the old house was left vacant, only occasionally being returned to clean it.

It was a very old house, a brick and tile structure, only one story, and looked shorter and more dilapidated than the two-story buildings in the village.

The yard was overgrown with weeds, some of the plaster on the walls was peeling off, and the paint on the wooden door was also peeling off.

"This house... is over forty years old." Qin Jianguo pushed open the creaking wooden door. "When your mother and I got married, we lived here. You and your younger brother and sister were all born here."

Qin Feng walked into the courtyard. The courtyard was small, about thirty square meters, with a hand pump well against the wall, the wellhead already rusted. There were three main rooms, all with the doors and windows closed, the glass covered with a thick layer of dust.

"When I was a child, I would sleep in the yard in the summer and look at the stars," Qin Jianguo recalled. "In the winter, the whole family would gather together to keep warm. We were poor back then, but... we were quite happy."

Qin Yang looked around curiously—shortly after he became aware of things, his family moved to the county town, so he had little memory of the old house.

Qin Feng remembered even more. He remembered the courtyard, the hand pump well, bathing here in the summer, and his grandfather sitting on the doorstep smoking...

"This house needs repairing," Qin Jianguo sighed. "But even if we repair it, no one will live in it, it's a waste of money."

"It can be fixed, and it can be kept as a memento," Qin Feng said.

"We'll see," Qin Jianguo waved his hand. "Let's go take a look at the ancestral hall."

The Qin Family Ancestral Hall is located in the center of the village. It is a relatively large building, but it also looks quite old.

The building has blue bricks and gray tiles, wooden doors and windows, and a plaque hanging above the door with the four large characters "Qin Clan Ancestral Hall" written on it, though the characters are now blurred and illegible.

The door to the ancestral hall was unlocked, so Qin Jianguo pushed it open and went inside.

Several offering tables were set up in the main hall, with some memorial tablets on them, but most of them were covered in dust.

A faded portrait of an ancestor hangs on the wall; the faces of the figures in the portrait are blurred, and the details are indistinct.

"Our Qin family isn't any big family," Qin Jianguo said, lighting a cigarette. "Our ancestors were just ordinary farmers; none of them were any great figures. This ancestral hall was built before Liberation, and it was almost demolished during the Cultural Revolution. Your great-grandfather secretly saved it."

He walked to the offering table and wiped the dust off with his sleeve: "According to the rules, the ancestral hall should be repaired regularly and used for sacrificial rites. But our Qin family doesn't have much money, and the young people have all left, so it has gradually fallen into disrepair."

Looking at the dilapidated ancestral hall, Qin Feng felt a mix of emotions welling up inside him.

This is his root, the source of his bloodline. Though ordinary and unremarkable, this is the true Qin family.

"Dad, how many people are there in our Qin Family Village now?" he asked.

"There are probably still about thirty households, more than a hundred people, in the village," Qin Jianguo thought for a moment. "But most of the young people have left, and those who remain in the village are mostly over fifty years old. There are no more than ten people your age in the whole village."

"Have they all gone out to work?"

"Yeah. There are many factories in the south, and the wages are high. Farming in the village doesn't earn you much money in a year. What young person would want to stay in the village?"

Qin Jianguo took a drag of his cigarette and continued, "It's not that I didn't want to come back. But what would I do back home? Farm? Start a small business? There's no future in that. So I had no choice but to leave, taking the children with me. Gradually, the village dwindled in number and the people got older..."

There was a sense of helplessness in his voice. This is a microcosm of countless villages in China—young people leave, the elderly stay behind, and villages gradually become hollowed out.

Qin Feng remained silent. He looked at the dusty memorial tablets in the ancestral hall and the portraits of his ancestors on the wall, and suddenly felt that he should do something.

"Dad," he began, "I want to..."

Before he could finish speaking, footsteps sounded outside the ancestral hall. Several elderly people entered one after another.

"Jianguo? It really is you!" an elderly man with gray hair exclaimed in surprise.

"Sixth Uncle," Qin Jianguo hurriedly went to greet him, "How are you feeling?"

"Good, good!" Uncle Liu looked Qin Feng and Qin Yang up and down. "This is... Xiao Feng? Xiao Yang? They've grown so much!"

"Hello, Sixth Grandfather." Qin Feng and Qin Yang greeted him respectfully.

"Good, good!" Uncle Liu held Qin Feng's hand, his eyes a little moist. "The last time I saw you, you were just a child. In the blink of an eye, you've grown into a grown man, and quite accomplished!"

Other elderly people also gathered around; they were all elders of the Qin family. They looked at Qin Feng with concern, curiosity, and...expectation in their eyes.

"I heard you're doing very well outside?" an old man asked.

"It's alright," Qin Feng said modestly.

"Don't be modest!" another old man laughed. "We've all heard. He came back in a big car, with bodyguards following him... Our Qin family has finally produced someone important!"

"Yes, yes, our Qin family's ancestral graves are emitting auspicious smoke!"

The elderly people chatted animatedly, creating a lively atmosphere. Qin Jianguo introduced these elders to his son—this is Second Grandfather, this is Fourth Grandfather, this is Seventh Grandfather...

Qin Feng greeted them one by one with respect. Some of these elderly people he knew, and some he didn't, but they were all his elders and members of the Qin family.

"Xiao Feng," Uncle Liu said, holding his hand, "how long will you stay this time?"

"It's uncertain for now, but I'll probably stay for a while," Qin Feng said.

"Okay, okay..." Uncle Liu nodded repeatedly, "Stay a little longer and take a good look at our old home. Our Qin Family Village may be poor, but it's a good place."

"Sixth Uncle is right," another old man chimed in. "Xiao Feng, now that you've made something of yourself out there, don't forget your hometown. Our Qin family is counting on young people like you."

These words were somewhat blunt, but very sincere. The old people looked at Qin Feng with expectation and worry in their eyes—they were afraid that this promising young man would leave and never return, forgetting his roots.

Looking at these elderly people, at the wrinkles on their faces, and at the expectation in their eyes, Qin Feng made a decision.

"Grandpas," he said earnestly, "I am a member of the Qin family, and this is my root. I will never forget it."

The elderly people all smiled.

"That's good, that's good..."

"There's hope for our Qin family!"

"Xiao Feng, come back and visit more often..."

After chatting for a while in the ancestral hall, Qin Jianguo checked the time and said, "Uncles, we should go back now. Our families are waiting for us for breakfast."

"Alright, go back now." Uncle Liu patted Qin Feng on the shoulder. "Come visit sometime, your sixth grandmother's cooking is delicious."

"Definitely." Qin Feng nodded.

Leaving the ancestral hall and walking on the village's cement road, Qin Feng's mood was different from when he arrived.

He was no longer just a fleeting visitor; he rediscovered his connection with this land.

We encountered several elderly people on the way, and they all greeted us warmly. Some of them even took out vegetables and fruits they had grown themselves and insisted on giving them to us.

"Here you go, we grew them ourselves, no pesticides used!"

"Xiao Feng, try this peach, it's so sweet!"

"Jianguo, bring the kids over for dinner sometime!"

Qin Feng did not refuse and accepted them all, saying that he would definitely visit him another day.

Qin Jianguo remarked with emotion, "The people back home are still so warm and welcoming."

Qin Feng didn't speak; he looked out the window at the village. The village looked peaceful and beautiful.

But beneath this tranquility lies the loss of young people, the loneliness of the elderly, and the slow decline of a traditional village.

"Dad," he began, "I want to do something for our hometown."

Qin Jianguo looked at his son: "What do you want to do?"

"I haven't decided yet," Qin Feng said, "but I don't want to watch my hometown slowly age like this. I want to bring young people back and revitalize the village."

Qin Jianguo was silent for a moment, then nodded: "It's good that you have this intention. But... it's not easy. There's no industry in the village, what will the young people do when they come back?"

"It can create industries," Qin Feng said. "When it comes to investing in and building factories, there are always more solutions than problems."

"That would cost a lot of money..."

"Money isn't the issue," Qin Feng said. "The issue is how to truly help our hometown, rather than doing more harm than good."

Qin Jianguo looked at his son with a complex expression. He knew his son was now very wealthy and powerful. His son's willingness to work for their hometown made him very happy.

"If you want to do it, Dad supports you," Qin Jianguo said. "But don't rush it, take it slow. Learn more about the situation first."

"Mm." Qin Feng nodded.

The car drove out of the village and back onto the county road. Qin Feng glanced back at the Qin Family Village as it gradually disappeared into the distance.

That ordinary village was the starting point of his life. Now that he has the ability, he should give back to this land and to these villagers.

It's not for showing off, not for fame, it's simply because... this is home.

The roots are here; no matter how lush the leaves are, they cannot forget the roots.