Daily Life in the Countryside After Being Reborn
Chapter 160 - 3: Mountain Village Pleasures

Chapter 160: Chapter 3: Mountain Village Pleasures

The square table, though not spacious, was soon piled high with all sorts of eats, including lollipops coated in colorful candy, popping candy that all children love, liquor-filled chocolates, pork jerky, and a doll dressed in a princess dress, along with several skirts, sandals, and a sun hat.

In the heavy backpack, most of the gifts were for Xiao Xian. Zhuo Feng looked at the carefully selected dresses and shoes with regret. She hadn’t expected Xiao Xian to grow so quickly; it seemed the clothes could no longer be worn.

"I can’t accept these," said Xiao Xian. The first person she saw when she opened her eyes to the world was Zhu Shijun, and she had lived in Ge Village for four years, with the villagers and Li Ye from Miao Village being her family.

Zhuo Feng’s gaze instantly dimmed.

"Xiao Xian, take the gifts. It’s very impolite to reject someone’s gift," said Zhu Shijun, who had already entered the home, followed by a sweating Village Chief Jin.

"Oh," responded Xiao Xian. Grandfather often praised her for her independence, but also said she wasn’t very savvy about human relations. When she had just declined, Zhuo Feng’s injured expression made her immediately feel as though she had said the wrong thing.

"You’ve come," Zhu Shijun was prepared that Zhuo Feng would eventually find her way to the village one day. There is a natural toughness in the Zhuo Family’s blood. Xiao Xian’s father was like that, it’s just a pity that the people from their family lack guile and are easily exploited by others.

Seeing Zhu Shijun made Zhuo Feng rage, but in front of Xiao Xian, she didn’t want to create an awkward situation. From the interaction between the grandfather and granddaughter just now, it was clear that Xiao Xian held Zhu Shijun in great respect.

"Old man, who is this lady?" Village Chief Jin had seen a few odd folks with backpacks coming to Ge Village. Rather than stay at the perfect good village guesthouse, they preferred to stay in big tents on the mountain, claiming it was camping. But this young woman didn’t seem like she came for camping. He was close to the old man, and every Tomb-Sweeping, Dragon Boat, and Mid-Autumn Festival, he had never seen the old man go out to worship anyone. There was only one time the old man had a few too many drinks and kept saying, "They are all gone, all gone."

"She is Xiao Xian’s aunt, from Beijing," said Zhu Shijun. Xiao Xian’s dad had mentioned his sister before, and the siblings had always been close.

"From Beijing? She must be exhausted. Have a seat, have a seat. My house has two big carp fished out from the pond, let’s have them for dinner to welcome our guest tonight. Xiao Xian, come back with me. I’ll ask your auntie to bring some eggs for you." The village chief treated her as warmly as if she were his own guest.

Zhu Shijun likes cleanliness and quiet. Outside his house, apart from a pear tree and the half-acre of vegetables and watermelons he planted last year, there are no chicken coops or duck cages. The village chief got on well with the people from Miao Village and learned some fishing techniques from the Miao people, so he can catch a few big fat fish from the pond every now and then.

Xiao Xian acknowledged, still puzzled by what Zhuo Feng had just said. It was past 3 p.m., the downhill bus had stopped, and Zhuo Feng was "her" aunt; she couldn’t very well let her stay at a guesthouse.

As for the matter of going back to Beijing with Zhuo Feng, Xiao Xian hadn’t taken it to heart. In the past two years, to ensure the "sugarcane seedling" had food, she had secretly gone to Guiyang a couple of times. Around the flower and bird market, her red-bud was somewhat famous, and now she had about two hundred thousand yuan stacked in her space.

Villagers said that the richest family in the village was that of Mao Xiaochun, the big hot pepper farmer, claiming he was a genuine millionaire. In fact, Xiao Xian was much wealthier than him, but she had no intention of following the villagers and building any fancy houses, as living in four tiled rooms was cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

Once Xiao Xian stepped out, Sister-in-law Lian went to borrow some dry wood from the neighbors as they were running low in the Zhu Family’s kitchen. Zhu Shijun and Zhuo Feng were left in the house, which seemed oppressively heavy.

"You’ve raised Xiao Xian well," said Zhuo Feng, with a tinge of jealousy in her tone. Xiao Xian was still naive; if she knew her parents were involved because of Zhu Shijun, she wouldn’t be so close to him.

"Do you want to take Xiao Xian back? You should ask for her opinion on this matter," Xiao Xian is now ten years old. According to the law, Zhu Shijun is Xiao Xian’s maternal grandfather, and Zhuo Feng is followed by Xiao Xian’s paternal grandparents, who are direct relatives and enjoy equal rights as guardians. A ten-year-old child’s choice of a guardian should respect her personal wishes.