Transmigration: I Have Storage Space in the Apocalypse
Chapter 518 - 513 Returning to Hometown Troublesome Matters 48【Mass Release 42】

"I know, Brother Ting, I know it all! I just feel a bit of heartache, I’ve long since given up on that thought!" Wang Chunmei squatted down, covered her ears, cried out, and finally bowed her head sobbing.

Covering her tearful little face, her hidden thoughts revealed by her cousin, she felt a mix of annoyance and shyness.

"Chun Mei—okay, Brother won’t press you, I just want you to see clearly—he is really not the right man for you."

Xie Yuting sighed, patted his cousin’s head, shook his head, and walked away sighing.

However, neither the siblings noticed that behind the wall, another figure was also sitting quietly, their shadow stretched long by the setting sun...

Yan Jinsu returned home, just as Zhou Xiuhua left the kids with the old man and turned to the kitchen to boil some water, only to see Ni running like she was chased by a fierce wolf, slamming the courtyard door shut behind her.

She looked behind her in surprise and asked:

"Why are you late today? Were there wild dogs chasing you? You’re all sweaty from hurrying."

Zhou Xiuhua’s words were purely in jest; she clearly knew well that her Third Son’s Wife, who would even dare to take on wild boars, would not fear the village dogs.

"Mom, there were no wild dogs outside, but there were some naughty kids!"

"Oh, who?" Zhou Xiuhua was baffled, but still helped to take the game from her hands.

"They said they were from the seven branches, the four branches. Oh~ and from the Zhou Family house."

"What happened?"

"What else? They saw my game and wanted me to take them up the mountain!"

Zhou Xiuhua was taken aback and then quickly shook her head, advising earnestly:

"Ni, you can’t naively agree to this. The old villagers here have a taboo about going up the mountain, and since you are a new bride, if the gossip-mongers catch wind of it, they’ll spread all sorts of nasty rumors."

Most importantly, her son was in the military, and if this matter got misconstrued regardless, it would not be conducive to their military family’s unity!

Having lived in the military community for over half a year, Zhou Xiuhua had indeed made money and gained much insight!

In the neighboring area, one in ten households belonged to the military, frequently emphasizing that ’military marriages’ should be protected and united.

Granny Zhou may be naive, but she has learned to mimic this. Moreover, both Mr. Xie and Granny Zhou were no fools and could understand things clearly.

"That’s right, Mom, the moment they brought up the topic, I outright rejected them and ran back here!"

"Exactly, that’s how it should be!" Yan Jinsu’s words made Zhou Xiuhua completely relieved, thinking simultaneously: My little Ni is cautious, how could she possibly agree to such things.

But two days later, she was about to be massively contradicted by her own thoughts!

"Why so much game today?" Zhou Xiuhua remarked, as Yan Jinsu typically brought back three, but now she was holding five.

"I ran to the eastern part of the village today; the mountain paths there are steeper, and there’s more wildlife. Seeing some plump ones, I caught two extra, thinking, if my second sister and them come over, I’ll cure these and send them back with her; Da Hong and the others love it."

"Good, your second aunt is thoughtful. I’ll thank them on behalf of Da Niu and her sisters’ behalf."

Laughing, Zhou Xiuhua spoke again.

"Mom~"

"Just kidding, I know you too well."

"Mom, let’s stew some tuber fleeceflower chicken soup today, it’s good for clearing heartfire and dampness."

"Sure, whatever you do is fine. Xiao Wu will smell the aroma later and bring his little stool over by himself."

"Good timing, he can nourish himself with us, and I won’t miss a little girl’s snack." Yan Jinsu replied nonchalantly, knowing from her mother’s words that Granny Zhou must be thinking about the grandchildren, which made her add more water with enthusiasm.

Seeing this, Zhou Xiuhua left cheerfully, "Take your time, I’ll go check on Xiaojiu and Xiao Shi, your Dad can’t handle those two kids."

"Okay!" Yan Jinsu hummed a tune in response, the simple notes lingered in the kitchen, and without knowing when, it had attracted Xiao Wu and Xiaoqi.

Xiao Si also wanted to go, but Xiaojiu had been clinging to him all day, and every time he let go, Xiaojiu looked like he was about to cry, and Grandpa wouldn’t let him leave.

The three of them, staying in the main room, silently practiced walking.

Having just returned home, Zhou Guoqing found the atmosphere at home off. He rubbed his head and, facing his Dad’s stern face, timidly said, "I’m back," only to see his father unusually not scolding him but just disdainfully glanced and continued fiercely smoking his water pipe.

"Alright, old man, stop worrying, let’s eat first. Guoqing, go tell your sister to stop what she is doing and have dinner~~"

"Oh!" Zhou Guoqing looked towards his dad confusedly, but his dad avoided eye contact altogether, giving him a bit of a headache.

Zhou Guoqing had no choice but to have dinner first.

Due to the agricultural busy season holiday, he and his sister had come home, while his elder brothers, having larger families, had set up their own small households. In the Zhou family, this was very common; with many sons, the elderly usually lived with the eldest son, but sometimes with the youngest, depending on the parents’ wishes.

However, living with the second son was less common. Zhou Guoqing had a younger sister, and his two older brothers were almost ten years older; their nephews were already seven or eight years old, so now only he and his sister lived with their parents.

After dinner, if it were usual times, Zhou Guoqing would have run off out of sight.

But this time, his dad kept smoking his water pipe, filling the room with choking smoke, and he did not understand that his dad was worried, thinking he could just wash up and sleep.

"Mom, what is Dad worried about?" Zhou Guoqing squeezed next to his mom, who was also busy making cotton shoe inserts, and asked quietly.

"What else could it be, there have been livestock losses and crop damage in the village these days, but the culprit can’t be caught, he’s really getting the heart fire."

"Is there a wild animal attacking the village?" Zhou Guoqing asked with a hint of excitement in his tone.

"What, you hear about wild animals in the village and your heart leaps for the hunt?" Zhou Weihai, hearing his younger son’s tone, immediately knew his temperament and scolded him angrily.

Zhou Guoqing shrank back, retorting carefully: "Not at all, Dad, am I not worried about the village’s property? Eliminating threats for the people is the duty of us youths!"

"Ridiculous, duty my foot, you just stay home, if you dare go into the mountains, I’ll see if I don’t break your dog legs!"

Zhou Weihai was already annoyed, hearing his son’s righteous indignation made him slap his forehead hard.

"Ouch~~ Dad! Why are you so violent, always rough and without any quality!" Zhou Guoqing cried out in pain, already retreating behind his mom.

"You little rascal, always thinking about going into the mountains! As if I, your dad, don’t know what you’re really thinking! If you keep this nonsensical behavior, I’ll send you back to town to study—"

Zhou Weihai, with eyes wide and fury at its peak, yelled at his younger son.