“Indeed, you should hurry back; your family must have missed you after all these years.” The elder nearby echoed, calling back his playful grandson.
Lin Ya smiled in acknowledgment, greeting people along the way as he followed the path imprinted in the original owner’s memory toward home.
The roads in the village were muddy; it had snowed a couple of days ago, and now the melting snow mixed with mud and remnants of firecrackers, making it dirty and difficult to traverse.
He finally stopped in front of a simple earthen house reinforced with red bricks; the chicken coop in the adjoining yard erupted in noise as the chickens sensed the presence of a stranger.
“Father! Mother! I’m back. Open the door…”
—
When that voice called out, the eldest daughter was huddled in the cold bed with her younger sister, trying to warm up. Their mother, Lin Yumei, sat at the edge of the bed, coughing softly as her hands worked on altering clothes she had brought when she got married, intending them as new outfits for her and her sister for tomorrow.
“Sister, I’m hungry…”
The eldest daughter patted her younger sister’s belly, pressing down gently as she said in a familiar, low voice, “It’s alright; I’ve got you covered. You’re not hungry anymore, right? Now close your eyes and sleep.”
“When we wake up tomorrow, there will be good food…”
“Really?” The younger sister pouted, a bit doubtful. She had just recovered from an illness and had been drinking rice porridge for days, which made her feel unsatisfied. Yet, she decided to believe her sister’s words and obediently closed her eyes to sleep.
Lin Yumei listened to her daughters’ conversation; her hand trembled as the needle pricked her finger, but she remained silent, feeling a pang in her nose as her eyes stung dry without shedding tears.
If only she weren’t so weak, they wouldn’t have to live like this.
But what could she do?
She had been forced into the countryside by her stepmother, married Shuigeng before the reform and opening up, and didn’t dare to leave after having children. She didn’t attend the college entrance examination, and now she had nearly forgotten the knowledge from school, with no place for her in the city.
Her husband left for the city to find work and never returned, leaving no trace of his whereabouts. Her in-laws resented her for having two daughters, and after her husband’s disappearance, they wished to throw the sisters out. With nothing to her name, she could only timidly stay and work hard for them.
But no matter how diligent she was, her mother-in-law and others always treated her coldly, constantly scolding her, and even her two children often went hungry.
Thinking of this, she halted her sewing and fell into a daze.
At that moment, a familiar voice came from outside the door, causing Lin Yumei’s frail body to tremble. She quickly threw off the covers, forgot to put on her shoes, and rushed to the door.
Upon opening the door, she recognized the man standing there in the faint light.
Lin Ya lowered the items in his hands, feeling a rare sense of helplessness as he looked at the woman who rushed into his arms, clutching his clothes and crying. He barely managed to say, “Don’t cry.”
This was the first time he encountered the original character’s wife being alive after traveling through so many worlds, but he had anticipated this situation before returning.
Inside the main room, two candles flickered as Lin Ya, Lin Yumei, the original owner’s parents, and their older brother and sister-in-law sat around the table, while the curious children were sent back to their rooms.
“Sister… is that our father?” The younger sister asked, holding the eldest sister’s hand and bouncing back to their room, her eyes shining with excitement.
“We have a father now; will we have enough to eat?”
The eldest sister drooped her eyebrows, feeling mixed emotions but ultimately allowing happiness to prevail as she softly responded with a hum. Remembering how that man used to buy food for her, she thought of the times she didn’t go hungry.
“Of course we will.” If they couldn’t eat enough, it wouldn’t matter if they had a father or not.
On the other side, although Granny Li and Old Man Shui were happy about their younger son’s return, they feared he might let something slip. They quickly gestured to their eldest son and pulled the two daughters-in-law to send them back to their rooms.
“Cheng Zi, your return makes your parents happy, but don’t let anything slip while outside. No one in the village knows you’ve been in prison all these years…” Old Man Shui coughed twice, glanced at his eldest son’s gloomy expression, and continued, “When that incident happened, our family lost a lot of money, thanks to your elder brother. Now that you’re back, that money… we’ll consider splitting it with you.”
Seeing Lin Ya remain indifferent, he added, “For now, just stay at home, and after the new year, your mother and I are thinking of dividing the household.”
“Sure, I have no objections.” Lin Ya smiled, observing how wild their ideas were about splitting the household right after he returned without even having a drink of water. But since he wasn’t the original owner, he didn’t need any of this and didn’t want to bother with it.
After the new year, he would take the original owner’s wife and children to the city.
His older brother, however, remained silent, and his real father mentioned splitting the family while his real mother was taciturn, which suggested their agreement. This family seemed to resent the original owner a lot; it could be assumed that the original owner’s wife and children had not fared well over the years.
What more could be said?
“It’s already so late, I’ve traveled all day. Let’s not discuss anything else for now. I don’t want any of the household items or the house money; you don’t need to share anything with me. After the new year, I’ll take them into the city to live.” With that, Lin Ya stood up, shouldering the burlap sack, ignoring Granny Li’s gaze.
Some items he had intended as gifts for them were now tainted by their attitude; he wasn’t in debt, so he certainly wouldn’t offer them now.
Still, he would give what was necessary; otherwise, they would accuse him of being unfilial. He could let go of the shoes and clothes, but the money was out of the question.
Once he left, he wouldn’t look back.
As Lin Ya stepped out of the main room, he saw the woman waiting by the door. He felt a bit awkward as he walked toward her, entering the room and shutting the door behind him.
“You… you these past years…” Did you really go to prison? They weren’t whispering, so Lin Yumei naturally heard. She simply never expected that the husband she thought was missing had actually been imprisoned.
Lin Ya didn’t elaborate much, just telling her that he had been deceived and ended up in jail. Lin Yumei didn’t pursue the matter further; after all, he was back.
“Father.” A soft, childish voice and the gentle touch of a small hand prompted Lin Ya to look down, where he saw a frail little girl tugging at his thick cotton jacket, a finger in her mouth as she gazed up at him.