Then she suddenly remembered something. "Wait, I seem to remember Sheng Xia saying she would be here this month, so..."
No sooner had she finished speaking than the women burst into tears. "Comrade Sheng Xia, where are you!"
"Achoo!" At the same time, at the back door of the Textile Factory, Sheng Xia sneezed and muttered, "Who’s talking about me?"
She rubbed her nose, washed her hands, and began to set up her stall.
"Sheng Xia, are you saying this is the house we’re going to live in?" Half a month had passed in the blink of an eye. Sheng Haifeng and Xia Yuhe had finished tidying up their home and finally had time to follow Sheng Xia to the city to see the house they would be living in.
When they saw the four-story building standing before them, along with a courtyard even larger than the one they had back in the village, they were completely stunned.
"Sheng Xia, how much is the rent for this place?" Xia Yuhe, still cradling her granddaughter Qingqing, looked on in a daze.
Was such a house really something a family like theirs could live in?
"This house is mine; there’s no rent," Sheng Xia quickly explained to her parents.
"You bought it? Where did you get so much money?" Sheng Haifeng and Xia Yuhe were even more worried upon hearing this.
Although they lived in the village, they knew that most houses in the city were allocated by the state. Privately sold properties were rare, and even a house on the outskirts of the city would cost thousands of yuan.
Not to mention that this was a building with a courtyard right in the city center on Yonghe Road—it probably wouldn't sell for less than ten thousand yuan.
Even if their daughter had kept her job before the divorce, she wouldn't have been able to save up enough money for a house like this, even if the three of them went without food or drink. They were terrified that their daughter had gone down the wrong path just to be filial to them.
"My dear daughter, we mustn't engage in speculation or profiteering!" Xia Yuhe pulled Sheng Xia close, the concern in her eyes ready to overflow.
Sheng Xia had considered whether to hide the fact that the house was hers, but one lie would require countless others to cover it up. If she said it was rented, would they not eventually need to see the landlord? That would be exhausting to keep making up excuses.
So, Sheng Xia decided to solve it once and for all. She would come up with a reason that would account for this courtyard and, indeed, anything the System might reward her with in the future.
"I didn't buy it. Someone gave it to me." Sheng Xia began to tell her parents the story she had spent days refining.
She reached out to take her daughter from Xia Yuhe’s arms and said, "Mom, have you forgotten about my uncle?"
Xia Yuhe was a late-in-life child born to Sheng Xia’s grandparents. Originally, they had only one son, but he disappeared at age 16 when he went out to sea. After losing their only son, they didn't have Xia Yuhe until they were in their forties.
In her past life, Sheng Xia never heard any news about this uncle even into her seventies, so she decided to attribute all the rewards the System gave her as gifts from this long-lost uncle.
From today on, the System would be her long-lost uncle.
"You mean... your uncle has been found? Where is he?" Xia Yuhe’s body trembled at the news that her brother, whom she had never met, had actually been found.
Seeing her mother like this, Sheng Xia felt a deep ache in her heart. Her uncle’s disappearance had been her grandparents' greatest regret until the day they died.
Fisherfolk were accustomed to people vanishing at sea, and in their hearts, they knew the chances of survival were slim. But as long as no body was found, they always clung to a sliver of hope.
Sheng Xia’s grandparents were the same. Even on their deathbeds, they were still telling Xia Yuhe to remember her elder brother and telling Sheng Xia to remember she had an uncle. They said if he ever returned, they should acknowledge him and go to their graves to tell them the news.
Xia Yuhe had never forgotten her parents' final instructions. Now, suddenly hearing her daughter say there was news of her brother, how could she not be moved?
"He’s abroad. Didn't Grandma and Grandpa always say that Uncle was an incredibly strong swimmer? He’s alive because of that gift. He can’t tell us exactly what he does abroad, but since he can’t come back himself and can’t live in the house in the country, he gifted it to me, his niece."
Sheng Xia kept her explanation vague, but it was enough to spark their imagination.
"That's right, Mom and Dad always said my brother was a great swimmer, better at holding his breath underwater than anyone else," Xia Yuhe said, crying and smiling at the same time.
"This is wonderful. Let's go buy some of the things Mom and Dad liked and tell them the good news," Sheng Haifeng added, equally thrilled.
Neither of them doubted their daughter. If it wasn't a gift from her uncle, how could she afford such a large house? Her uncle must have extraordinary talent, having gone off to perform secret missions and contribute to the country. They had heard of many nameless heroes like that, who couldn't even contact their families while they were missing.
Not being able to contact him didn't matter; just knowing he was still out there was enough.
"Right, let's buy a pork knuckle and some mung bean cakes—Mom and Dad loved those," Xia Yuhe wiped her tears and said.
"And some Erguotou! Your dad couldn't go without that!" Sheng Haifeng laughed, wrapping his arm around Xia Yuhe’s shoulder.
Sheng Xia watched her parents, who were clearly much happier than just a moment ago. Her heart was a bit conflicted—a sense of guilt for lying—but remembering her mother in her previous life, who would occasionally mutter about her missing brother even while suffering from dementia, Sheng Xia felt relieved. At the very least, her mother wouldn't have to carry that regret to her grave.
"Grandma, Grandpa, don't cry!" Little Sheng Qing, held in Sheng Xia’s arms, saw her grandparents crying and reached out her tiny hands to wipe their tears.
"We aren't crying; Grandma and Grandpa are just too happy," they said, their hearts softening completely as they felt their granddaughter’s tiny hands against their eyes.
"That’s right, it’s called 'tears of joy'," Sheng Xia taught her daughter.
"Tears of joy!" Sheng Qing repeated, her pronunciation clear and precise.
"Our Qingqing is so smart," the three adults praised the little one together.
"Qingqing wants mung bean cakes too!" Hearing the praise, the little girl’s eyes curved into crescents as she asked for a reward.
"You little rascal! Alright, we’ll buy you mung bean cakes later!" Sheng Haifeng and Xia Yuhe playfully tapped the little girl’s nose. The previously emotional atmosphere was completely broken by her childish words, leaving only the sound of the family’s laughter.
"This pond is quite nice. We can fill it with seawater later and raise some small fish or shrimp—it could save us a lot of money." Once the origin of the house was settled, the family of four opened the door to tour their new home. Sheng Haifeng was particularly interested in the pond in the courtyard.
"That's a great idea, Dad. You could invite some friends over, have a little drink, and sit here fishing for shrimp." Sheng Xia’s main priority was simply making her parents happy.
"What do you mean, raise them? We can pick up seafood just by stepping out the door. Why raise them here? It'll just smell," Xia Yuhe said, already eyeing the pond and flower beds. "Doesn't this have lotus plants? There must be lotus roots in there—that’s another dish to eat."
"And the rest of the land in the courtyard, we’ll plant some vegetables. That way, our family of four won't have to buy vegetables at all."