The house was turned upside down, and they spent the better part of the day fetching water and tidying up before it was finally in order.
The weather was warming up, and there was no longer a need to heat the brick-bed. However, Qin Xiangnuan wanted her own room, so she discussed it with Qin Xiangyang. After all, as they grew older, sharing a bed was becoming inconvenient.
Qin Xiangyang tidied up the small room next door, which had a brick-bed. Though small, it was sufficient for Qin Xiangnuan to sleep in.
It was almost time to start school again, and Aunt Hua’s business could now run smoothly without further help. Aunt Hua was a diligent person; she kept the store open in both the evenings and during the day. It must be said that Aunt Hua was really kind-hearted; she was not stingy toward her own sister. After making money, her sister would earn as well. Initially, it was five coins a day, but she felt like she was taking advantage of her sister, so she added another five coins to make it ten coins a day. That was US$ 300 a month; in a few years, the Qin Family could afford to build a house.
Qin Xiangnuan also thought about building a house, but there was no rush. They would wait until high school and build it near the middle school. That way, she and her brother wouldn’t have to suffer waking up early and returning home late during their three years of junior high school.
Qin Xiangnuan was now a first-grader, but Qin Xiangyang insisted on sitting together with his sister. He was nearly ten years old yet sitting in a first-grade seat, only because he was worried that his sister might get bullied, thus intentionally repeating a grade.
He was an overage primary school student, but Qin Xiangnuan wasn’t worried about her brother’s age. Usually, children started school late, and it wasn’t uncommon to have older students or those who had repeated years. In the future, the two siblings would continue their education from primary school onwards. It would also allow her to help with her brother’s studies.
Even though she hadn’t received much education in her previous life, she wasn’t scared of the curriculum up to the sixth grade of elementary school.
She deliberately wrote her name crookedly on the paper, but to the teacher, Qin Xiangnuan’s handwriting was better than that of most students. At least, it was neat and didn’t miss any strokes.
However, they had heard that the child couldn’t hear out of one ear and it was rumored to have been caused by her own father. They couldn’t help but sympathize with this slender, delicate, and well-behaved child.
Now, each month their income from the shop was around five to six hundred, so they had no financial worries. The siblings weren’t showy people; they didn’t talk much at school and usually just went from class to going home for meals, then back to school.
Whenever Qin Xiangnuan had free time, she would practice writing with paper and pen.
Qin Xiangyang lay on the table practicing a set of characters, but to be honest, he lacked the patience. After half an hour, his bottom hurt, so he truly admired his little sister. She could sit for more than an hour without changing position, but how could he know that, under the system’s challenges, Qin Xiangnuan had to spend more than ten hours a day inside the system.
She practiced her characters diligently every day.
Time passed idly by, and really, there wasn’t much to say. Qin Guohua had not troubled them again, not only because of the Village Chief’s warning but also because the reputation of the Qin Family in the village had crumbled. Just the spit from the villagers alone could drown them, and let’s not forget that Qin Xiangnuan’s ear was still deaf.