Rebirth 1983: Building My Business Empire-Chapter 117 - 111: The Good Stepmother

Chapter 117: Chapter 111: The Good Stepmother

Lu Jiaxin had learned the Eight Silk Brocade, so Master Qian was ready to leave. He wasn’t returning to his hometown, but going to the Northeast to visit an old friend.

Lu Jiaxin asked, “Master Qian, when will you be back?”

Master Qian said he would stay there for a while, “My old friend is sick, and I don’t imagine he’ll make it over before the end of the year. If it’s early, I’ll return after the Lantern Festival; if it’s late, maybe in April or May.”

This trip was not only to visit an old friend but also to settle some past issues. In a few years, it might become difficult to travel long distances. He wanted to see those old pals and sort out some matters, so he wouldn’t have any regrets.

Lu Jiaxin said, “Master Qian, I hope you can come back soon. I still have things I’d like to ask you to handle.”

Master Qian was still quite willing to do things for Lu Jiaxin. Just for finding an intermediary, he had been paid two hundred. He spoke straightforwardly and was generous, which is why he liked employers like her, “What’s the matter?”

“I need to make a trip to the Ancient Capital. But it’s not urgent; we’ll talk after you’re back from the Northeast.”

“All right.”

Thinking about her own frail health, Lu Jiaxin said, “Master Qian, there are many precious medicinal materials in the Northeast. My body needs improvement, so if you come across rare medicinals like ginseng or deer antler, I hope you can purchase them for me.”

Master Qian said seriously, “Miss Lu, children can’t just take tonics indiscriminately. Over-nourishing can lead to serious problems. A friend of mine had a relative who, out of ignorance, gave deer antler to their six-year-old daughter. As a result, the medicinal properties were too strong, and the child’s mental capacity remained at the age of seven.”

Lu Jiaxin knew that the weak should not be overly nourished, “Don’t worry, Master Qian. I won’t take them recklessly; I’ll consult a doctor beforehand.”

With these words, Master Qian felt reassured, “If you trust me, give me five thousand yuan upfront. Once there, I’ll ask around, and I should be able to buy some.”

Having wandered the world and seen much, Master Qian knew that hunters with a bit of savings often kept some wild ginseng and wild deer antler for themselves. He couldn’t promise much, but getting some for Lu Jiaxin should be no problem.

Lu Jiaxin said with a smile, “Master Qian, you shouldn’t speak like we’re strangers. If I didn’t trust you, I wouldn’t have asked you to help investigate Ding Jing.”

The next day, Master Qian left, and when departing, Qian Xiaoxiao waved her hand with great flair, “Old man, bring back some good medicinal materials for brewing alcohol!”

Seeing her so relaxed, Xue Mao couldn’t help asking, “Don’t you feel a bit reluctant to part?”

It was only upon asking that he learned about Master Qian’s past. When he was young, Master Qian roamed around a lot. After getting married and having children, he still spent a lot of time away. It wasn’t until Qian Xiaoxiao was one year old, when her grandmother passed away and her dad had an accident breaking his leg and her mom remarried, that Master Qian stopped going out. However, he resumed going out frequently five years ago.

Xue Mao’s mouth moved faster than his brain, “Both your parents are still alive?”

Seeing Qian Xiaoxiao with Master Qian, he had assumed she was like him, with both parents gone. But his assumption made sense; generally, parents wouldn’t let their daughter run all over the place.

Qian Xiaoxiao shrugged and said, “My dad broke his leg, and after someone said the injury was incurable and he’d be bedridden for life, my mom took all the money from the house and ran back to her parents’ home. In just a few days, she remarried in the next town over. My dad didn’t even want to live back then, but he couldn’t bear the thought of leaving me alone. If he died, there would be nobody to take care of me. That’s when my grandpa came back. He took my dad to the provincial city for treatment, where he stayed in the hospital for more than two months, and then rested at home for over a year. After my dad’s leg healed, my grandfather found a new wife for him through a matchmaker.”

Looking at her face without a hint of gloom, Xue Mao curiously asked, “Hasn’t your stepmother mistreated you?”

Qian Xiaoxiao said with a smile, “No, not all stepmothers are bad. She’s very good to me and treats me like her own daughter.”

Of course, there were annoying aspects, “My mom likes to nag, saying I don’t act like a girl and that it’ll be hard for me to find someone to marry. I don’t like to listen to her complaints, so I went to live with my grandpa.”

Master Qian was quite eccentric and moved out to live alone after his son remarried. Unexpectedly, Qian Xiaoxiao was influenced by him and developed a liking for martial arts, and was also tough enough to endure the training. Seeing her potential, Master Qian taught her. After that, grandfather and granddaughter lived together.

Xue Mao felt she was quite fortunate, “And your birth mother?”

Qian Xiaoxiao said nonchalantly, “Before I was seven, I always thought she was my real mom. It wasn’t until I was seven that I found out she wasn’t. My grandpa said that blood relations aren’t all that important, and what matters most is who treats you well. So, it didn’t affect my relationship with my mom at all.”

“Last year, my birth mother suddenly showed up saying that she had had no choice back then and had been thinking of me day and night ever since she left. What do I care about her difficulties? Since she abandoned me back then, I might as well think of her as dead and don’t want to see her ever again.”

Being able to speak so freely required either great inner strength or having received enough love. Lu Jiaxin felt it was a combination of both.

Xue Mao praised, “Then your dad is quite good, unlike Sister Xin’s dad. After marrying his new wife, he stopped caring about Sister Xin and didn’t even seek justice for her when she was harmed to the point of nearly losing her life.”

Without hesitation, Qian Xiaoxiao said, “Then just consider him dead too.”

Lu Jiaxin couldn’t help but laugh upon hearing this, the words striking a chord with her, “You’re right, as far as I’m concerned, he’s dead.”

At mealtime, Xiao Qiu said to Lu Jiaxin, “Fifth Sister-in-law called earlier to say that she was going to see a house and told us not to wait for her for dinner.”

It was almost dark when Ma Lili returned. As soon as she arrived home, she went to find Lu Jiaxin to talk about the house she had seen that day, “The house isn’t as big as this one, but it’s a standalone with four large rooms, plus a kitchen and a firewood room. It’s just that it’s in the East City District, quite far from here, and the asking price is very high, at eighty-six thousand.”

Lu Jiaxin gathered that Ma Lili must like the house since she came to discuss it, but there seemed to be hesitations due to certain concerns. Lu Jiaxin asked, “Is there a courtyard?”

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“There is, but it’s only half the size of yours.”

Nowadays, courtyard homes are generally quite spacious, and with four rooms plus a yard and kitchen-firewood area, it’s definitely over one hundred and twenty square meters. Being located in the Second Ring Road area of the East City District, the price of eighty-six thousand is relatively high, but it would definitely not be a loss to buy it.

Lu Jiaxin inquired, “What’s the condition of the house? If it’s like mine, we should go for it. But if it’s all run-down, then we need to push for a lower price, as repairing the house will also cost a pretty penny.”

Ma Lili said, “The house is pretty much the same as this one, some parts are even better. It’s just too far from here and it exceeds my budget.”

Lu Jiaxin knew she was struggling with the price and said with a smile, “There are plenty of buses now, and it’s quick to get there by public transport. Don’t worry about going over the budget; a couple of days ago, Su Heming told me on the phone that Fifth Brother is doing very well. If Fifth Brother wants to work at his electronics factory, they’ll pay him a salary of three hundred a month.”

This was telling Ma Lili that Lu Jiajie had the ability to pay off debts, and he could clear a debt of three to four thousand in just one year.