However, Lin Nian deliberately avoided Qin Jiao, and the two barely exchanged a word all evening.
With Lin Nian around, it was inconvenient for Qin Jiao to check on her space. After packing her things, she fell into a deep sleep.
Early the next morning, Qin Jiao went to the station to catch a bus.
Lin Nian's hometown was very close to Qin Jiao's; they were from two neighboring villages.
Her student ID was gone, and she could only get a replacement after school started. That meant Lin Nian couldn't get a part-time job and had no choice but to go home first. As luck would have it, she ended up on the same bus as Qin Jiao, and her expression was incredibly sour.
Qin Jiao paid her no mind.
Qin Jiao's family lived in Three Families Village.
Three Families Village had three major surnames: Sun, Liu, and Qin. So, almost everyone in the village had one of these three last names.
As Qin Jiao was about to get off the bus, she passed by Lin Nian and said in a low voice, "Keep your mouth shut. If you dare to run your mouth, I'll make you experience the power of rumors, too."
Lin Nian froze.
But Qin Jiao just grabbed her travel bag, got off the bus, and headed for the Qin family's home.
The Qin family's ancestors had once been the wealthiest in Three Families Village. Though their fortunes had declined for unknown reasons, a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. They still had a lot of land and quite a few houses from the early years, so they were still considered a prominent household in the village.
Mr. Qin had five children in total. The first was a daughter who didn't survive. Later, he had two sons in a row, Qin Bogang and Qin Zhonghui. Qin Jiao was Qin Zhonghui's eldest daughter.
Afterward, Mr. Qin had another daughter and son. The daughter was named Qin Na, and the son, Qin Jiqun, was the youngest, making him the family favorite.
The eldest son, Qin Bogang, married Sun Li, whose family was from the county seat. She used her connections to get Qin Bogang a job as a worker in a factory.
His salary of over fifty yuan a month was considered quite good at the time.
The second son, Qin Zhonghui, married Su Yun, whom he had grown up with. The couple were both down-to-earth and hardworking. Once their children were a little older, they left to find work and earn money.
Qin Jiao's paternal aunt, Qin Na, was already married and living in the neighboring Shangshan Village. So now, Qin Jiao and her younger sister, Qin Shi, lived in the old family house with their grandparents and their youngest uncle's family of three.
However, the "old house" was actually two separate buildings. They were connected; after crossing a courtyard, there was another two-room building in the back.
The old couple lived in the east room of the two-room building in the back, as it was larger. Qin Jiao and her sister, Qin Shi, lived on the kang in the west room.
When Qin Zhonghui and his wife came back from their jobs, the whole family of four would have to squeeze onto the small kang in the west room.
As for the three-room, tile-roofed house at the front, it was left for Qin Jiqun's family of three. The west room next to it was supposedly kept empty for the eldest son's family to stay in when they returned for holidays.
In reality, however, Qin Jiqun and his wife had filled it with their things, essentially making the entire front house theirs.
After all, the eldest son's wife, Sun Li, detested the countryside and rarely came back, even for the New Year.
When Qin Jiao arrived, her Third Aunt, Feng Lan, was leaning against the main gate, cracking melon seeds while chatting with someone. "Well, if it isn't Little Nine, back for the holidays. Here to be a freeloader again, are we?"
Qin Jiao retorted, "My name is Jiao, not 'Nine.' It's okay to be uneducated, Third Aunt. It's a fixable problem."
Feng Lan's face changed. "You rotten brat! Feeling all high and mighty after a few years of school, are you? You're not getting into a university anyway. I'm going to tell your parents to stop wasting money. Supporting you is useless. It'd be better to marry you off early and at least get some bride price money for you."
The woman next to her said, "But their family only has daughters, right? That bride price money won't do them any good."
Feng Lan laughed smugly. "What do you mean, no good? They don't have a son, but our branch of the family does. Among the three brothers, my Xiao Tao is the only precious boy. When he gets married in the future, do you think his First and Second Uncles can just stand by and do nothing?"
Qin Jiao suddenly spoke up. "Third Aunt, how many peanuts did you eat?"
"What?"
"Nothing. It's just... the sun hasn't set yet. Don't be in such a hurry to start dreaming." She picked up her bag and walked inside, while Feng Lan turned to the other woman and said, "Was that brat just insulting me?"