Chapter 188: The Jiang Family
“Sister, I… I’m sorry.”
Facing such a gentle sister who seemed able to include all of him, Jiang Xiaotong was deeply touched.
“Although the Jiang family has no blood relation with you, they treated you as their own without any neglect, so it’s understandable that you can’t bear to part with Older Brother and Elder Sister.”
“No matter if you choose to stay or go back to Xiangnan with me, you are still the closest person to me and that won’t change.”
She gently ruffled his hair a couple of times, then Su Ning took his hand and continued walking back. Seeing his even more troubled expression because of her words, she couldn’t help but smile.
Thinking about his current age, she still spoke up and gave him a few clear choices.
“If you stay, if you miss Sister, you can write me a letter or call on the telephone, or even come to Xiangnan for one or two months.”
“If you go with Sister but are worried about the Jiang family, I’ll make arrangements before leaving to ensure they won’t have to worry about food and clothing in the future as much as possible.”
“Of course, there’s also a way that’s best for everyone, which is to take them with us and go back together.”
“This… is this possible?”
Hearing this, Jiang Xiaotong abruptly stopped in his tracks and looked incredulously at his newly acquired sister, his widened phoenix eyes full of the expression “can it really be like this?”
Amused by his cute and dazed appearance, Su Ning couldn’t help but stretch out two fingers to pinch his cheeks.
The skinny little face had little flesh, and due to long-term exposure to wind and sun, it lacked the smoothness a boy should have and was even rough.
Heart aching, she changed from pinching to stroking, and when she noticed the scalding temperature under her hand from his embarrassment, she cleared her throat and naturally withdrew.
“There’s nothing that can’t be done, as long as they are willing to leave their homeland. With the things Maternal Grandfather left us, just a fraction of your share could support many of them.”
“The brigade leader on the team is our clan elder, so household registration transfer and homestead land approval won’t be a problem.”
“Then, then I’ll go back and ask Older Brother and Elder Sister.”
“Good.”
Sure enough, with a clear direction, the confusion and hesitation in Jiang Xiaotong’s eyes immediately dissipated, and his steps became much lighter.
……
When the two returned to the Jiang family’s thatched hut, it was just getting dark.
Jiang Xiaojun saw the joy radiating from his little brother’s face and eyes upon return, feeling relieved yet unable to stop the sourness in his heart.
“You came back just in time, the meal is ready and I was just about to go call you.”
Zhang Ze, who had gone to the beach again to try tide pooling, had also returned and was sitting upright in the courtyard. Seeing people return, he immediately stood up and couldn’t help but inquire with his eyes.
Seeing her nod subtly in affirmation, the corners of his lips hooked up, easing some of the seriousness on his face.
The northern seaside night weather was like jumping straight from autumn into winter.
On the heated kang was placed a kang table of moderate size, and the meal on the table was the best things Jiang Xiaojun and Jiang Xiaoman could take out from home for hospitality.
For them, this was the richness only seen during festivals, and even then the two worried whether it would make Little Copper Coin’s real sister feel it was shabby and leave a bad impression.
As if seeing the awkwardness on their faces and the anxiety in their hearts, Su Ning smiled even more brightly and said gratefully, “Thank you, thank you Older Brother Jiang and Elder Sister Jiang, this is the first time we’ve eaten so much seafood.”
“Yeah, river fresh is rare enough usually, let alone so much seafood. It smells so good just sniffing it!”
The shrewd Zhang Ze quickly followed to help ease the atmosphere, and the faces of the few people in the room slowly showed smiles as they visibly relaxed.
“Comrade Su, Comrade Zhang…”
“Call me Ning Ning. You are Little Copper Coin’s brothers and sisters, so I am too. We should be one family. Older Brother Jiang and Elder Sister Jiang, you don’t mind having one more little sister, right?”
“If you think highly of me, just call me Brother Zhang.”
“How could we!”
Jiang Xiaojun and Jiang Xiaoman shook their heads in unison, somewhat flattered.
To be honest, after they left earlier, both couldn’t help but worry.
The other party was clearly a girl from a big city, and without the connection through Little Brother, she might look down on them from the bottom of her heart and despise them.
Unexpectedly, it was all just their own assumptions.
“Older Brother Jiang, what were you about to say earlier?”
“Well, I just wanted to say, Su—cough, Ning Ning and Brother Zhang, eat more of this sea cucumber, it’s good for the body.”
Exchanging a smile, Su Ning and Zhang Ze both picked up their chopsticks without hesitation and took the sea cucumber from the big mishmash he pointed to.
With their actions, Jiang Xiaojun couldn’t help but widen his smile, shedding his pretense of maturity and appearing somewhat honest and straightforward.
After the meal, even Jiang Xiaoyuan, who had always been hostile toward her, couldn’t help but drop his guard and whispered proudly to the little brother beside him, “Your real sister seems pretty nice.”
Not only prettier than Xiuqin Sister in the village, but with such a good temper, not at all like the city girls they met while begging in the city.
Those self-righteous, superior looks at them like stinky bugs in the gutter—he would never forget them in his lifetime.
So when he heard little friends say their biggest wish was to marry a city girl as a wife, he always scoffed.
Now, if it’s like Little Brother’s real sister…
“Young man is talking to you, what are you thinking?”
“Ah, nothing, nothing!”
“Nothing and your face is red like a monkey’s butt?”
“Shut up!”
Watching the two little ones laughing and playing, everyone’s expressions became even more relaxed.
Because the Jiang family room was small and not convenient for hosting overnight, Su Ning and Zhang Ze declined their good intentions and decided to first return to the county town guesthouse.
After seeing the two off out of the village and returning home, Jiang Xiaojun finally asked the question he had been holding back.
“Little Brother, what are you thinking now? Any plans?”
“Older Brother.”
Jiang Xiaotong raised his head and scanned the family: Jiang Xiaoman didn’t speak but nervously clenched her fists, Jiang Xiaoyuan also looked at him anxiously and eagerly with full eyes of impatience.
“Older Brother, I want to change back to the Su surname.”
“That’s fine, it’s just a name. Besides, since you’ve acknowledged Sister, changing surname is only right.”
Changing name and surname meant he really wanted to recognize ancestors and return to the clan, acknowledging the Su family and Sister.
From knowing the Su family had only one child from Mother, and now only Sister left, whether he returned or not, Jiang Xiaotong wanted to tell her in this way.
From now on, she was no longer alone.
“Older Brother, can you all come back to Xiangnan with me?”
“Ah?”
“Back to Xiangnan?”
Exchanging glances, Jiang Xiaojun turned to him puzzled and asked, “Little Brother, why do you think that?”
“I don’t want to separate from you all, and I don’t want to see Sister alone.”
“Alone?”
Birth mother gone, birth father too? No elders at home at all?
“Mm.”
That scum was better off not existing, better off dead than alive!
Jiang Xiaotong nodded heavily without blinking, without any hesitation, “They’re all gone.”
“This…”
No matter how miserable they were, they at least had each other, but Su Ning… who could imagine someone with such a warm smile had always been orphaned and alone.
Somewhat sighing and somewhat heartbroken, Jiang Xiaojun sighed and patted his still youthful shoulder, making a difficult decision.
“Little Brother, if you want to go back with her, then go. No need to feel bad about it. If you miss us, you can always come back. Home is here and it won’t grow legs and run away!”
“Older Brother!” “Bro, what are you saying!”
“Then you two tell me, should we really force Little Brother to stay? Will he be happy in the future? Or are you both willing to go to Xiangnan together?”
Gold nest or silver nest, not as good as our own thatched nest.
If not absolutely necessary, who would choose to leave their homeland?
Relatives and friends are all here, home is here— no matter how reluctant, could they really leave for unfamiliar Xiangnan?
For a moment, the room fell into silence until after a long time, low sobs that could no longer be suppressed came.
……
Just back at the guesthouse, Zhang Ze sent her to the room, hesitated for a moment, and still spoke up, “Ning Ning, from Little Copper Coin’s appearance…”
“I have it handled. Brother Zhang, I’ll go out tomorrow morning and be back before breakfast. Don’t worry.”
“Where to? I’ll go with you.”
“No need, I’ll just go early to the supply and marketing cooperative to see if I can buy some things. It’s only two steps from this guesthouse, no big deal. You haven’t rested these past two days, so sleep well tonight.”
No matter how strong the body, can’t keep pushing like this. Besides, if she didn’t go out alone, how could she bring out things from the space without anyone knowing?
Although Jiang Xiaojun and the others raising Little Copper Coin wasn’t for these returns, she couldn’t not show her appreciation.
Therefore, Su Ning spoke firmly, leaving no room for discussion.
Thinking that the supply and marketing cooperative was just across the street from the guesthouse, indeed only a few steps away, Zhang Ze nodded in agreement.
