Chapter 12: Moving Out
Chapter 12: Moving Out
As soon as they stepped out, Lu Jiajie commented, "Big brother, Xin Xin has changed a lot."
Lu Jia Guang nodded in agreement. "Not only has Xin Xin become more decisive, but she also stands up for herself now. That mother-daughter pair won't be able to bully her anymore."
He was glad for the change and felt that all the hardship they had endured was worth it.
There was a knock on the door while Lu Jiaxin and Xue Mao were cleaning the house. When they opened the door, they found a middle-aged woman standing there. She introduced herself as Mrs. Li from the neighborhood committee. "Is this house yours, young lady?" she inquired.
After examining the woman's work badge, Lu Jiaxin replied, "This house was left to me by my mother. I was afraid that my stepmother would take it away if she found out, so I didn't dare come earlier. Now that I can't bear living under the same roof as her anymore, I've decided to move here."
She had no qualms about sharing her family issues. Besides, these neighborhood aunties were well-informed, and even if she didn't tell them, they would likely uncover her story within a few days.
Mrs. Li, having witnessed similar situations in the neighborhood committee, offered a word of advice. "Young lady, you should transfer your household registration here as soon as possible. That way, your stepmother won't be able to control you with marriage arrangements."
Grateful for the woman's kindness, Lu Jiaxin thanked her and assured, "I'll transfer my registration as soon as I settle in."
Mrs. Li noticed Xue Mao and asked, "Will the two of you be living here from now on?"
Lu Jiaxin explained Xue Mao's relationship with her. "Auntie, I've recognized him as my sworn little brother, and he'll be living here with me from now on."
Mrs. Li recorded their information and smiled. "My house is just two doors down. If you need anything, feel free to come and find me."
After expressing her gratitude and seeing Mrs. Li out, Lu Jiaxin resumed cleaning with Xue Mao.
An hour or so of cleaning left them both hungry. Since the kitchen was devoid of any pots, pans, or utensils, they decided to eat out. Luckily, there were plenty of small restaurants in the area, and they soon found one to their liking.
Lu Jiaxin ordered braised fish, sauteed hollow vegetables, and tomato egg drop soup. She didn't have a big appetite, but Xue Mao devoured three bowls of rice and finished off the dishes before he was satisfied.
As they exited the restaurant, Xue Mao commented, "The food at this restaurant is too expensive. Sister, let's cook our meals from tomorrow onwards!"
"We'll start cooking once we buy the necessary pots and utensils tomorrow," Lu Jiaxin agreed.
Cleaning was exhausting work. After tidying up the side rooms, Lu Jiaxin slumped into a chair. "We just need to clean the kitchen, and we're done. As for the three rooms in the back, we can tackle them another time when we have more free time."
Xue Mao, on the other hand, felt no fatigue at all. This was his sister's house, and he could live here until she got married. "Sister, you go and rest. I can handle the rest," he offered.
The master bedroom was already furnished with a bed, wardrobe, dressing table, and chairs. Later, they could move the furniture from her room to Xue Mao's, eliminating the need to buy additional pieces.
Understanding that Xue Mao would feel uncomfortable if she didn't let him help, Lu Jiaxin nodded. "I'm going to bed. You can rest too if you get tired. We own this house now, so there's no rush to finish everything at once."
Her body hadn't fully recovered yet, and she felt exhausted after doing some light work. She attributed this to not taking proper care of her health in the past, and thought about finding a doctor for a thorough check-up.
There were no bedding or blankets in the house, but fortunately, Lu Jiaxin had brought along some old clothes for cleaning. Xue Mao had insisted on keeping them as rags, and now they came in handy.
They had spent three days on the hard seats of a green train, enduring both the noise and the poor environment. Upon arriving, they had rushed straight to the compound, with Lu Jiaxin on edge the entire time, fearing that her disguise would be discovered. Now that she had relaxed, she fell asleep as soon as she lay down.
When she woke up, more than three hours had passed. Stepping out, Lu Jiaxin found the compound quiet and asked, "Xue Mao, has my fifth brother not arrived yet?"
Xue Mao paused from his work and wiped his sweat as he replied, "Not yet. Big brother went to borrow a vehicle, but he might not have been able to get one."
Lu Jiaxin was concerned about not having their belongings moved in that day. She would have to sleep on a wooden plank, and Xue Mao didn't even have that luxury. Just a short nap on the wooden bed had left her with a sore back and aching waist, and she doubted she could get up the next morning if she slept on it all night.
Xue Mao brought up another issue he had noticed. "Sister, there's no toilet here. When I needed to relieve myself, I couldn't find a place and had to go outside."
Fearing that Lu Jiaxin would misunderstand, he quickly added, "There's a public toilet outside, but it's too dirty. You definitely won't be used to it."
Lu Jiaxin realized she hadn't paid attention to that detail. "Then we should buy a couple of chamber pots. Otherwise, it'll be too troublesome to go to the outdoor toilet at night," she suggested.
Having lived with Lu Jiaxin for over a month, Xue Mao knew how much she valued cleanliness. "Sister, we can't keep living like this. Let's set up a stall as soon as possible and save up to build a toilet," he proposed.
After accounting for the transportation and travel expenses, they had around 200 yuan left. This was enough to set up a small stall. As for Lu Jiaxin's money, he hadn't even considered it.
As they were talking, they heard Lu Jiajie's loud voice from outside, "Xin Xin, Xue Mao, open the door. I'm here to move things in."
On one occasion, Xue Mao had been so exhausted that he fell asleep without locking the door. As a result, the pot they had bought, along with half a bag of grain, had disappeared. Ever since then, he had gotten into the habit of locking the door even when they were at home.
Lu Jiajie carried a bed board into the house and stopped Lu Jiaxin from going out. "Xin Xin, your body hasn't fully recovered yet. Take care of yourself and rest. There aren't many things to move, and your two brothers and I can manage with a few trips."
Indeed, Lu Jiaxin's body was still weak, and she didn't insist on helping.
Soon, Xue Mao returned with two wooden buckets containing pots, pans, utensils, and a knife—all the essentials for the kitchen. He beamed as he announced, "Sister, we can cook our own meals from tomorrow onwards once we buy some rice and flour."
Lu Jiaxin was pleasantly surprised. When Lu Jiajie brought in bedding, she asked, "Fifth brother, did you buy all these things?"
Lu Jiajie smiled and shook his head. "No, they're from the department store where Third Uncle works. They're defective products, so we got them at a great bargain."
Lu Jiaxin had inspected the items in the bucket earlier and, although she hadn't examined them closely, she was certain they were all new. However, she wasn't naive. Having navigated the corporate world for many years, she knew how things worked.
What surprised her was that, in addition to the kitchenware, there were also two summer bedding sets, a thermos, a kettle, cups, toothbrushes, towels, and other daily necessities.
Lu Jiajie smiled and explained, "Xin Xin, Third Uncle prepared all these things for you."
"He's so kind?" Lu Jiaxin asked, taken aback.
Lu Jiajie laughed and said, "Even if your big brother and I wanted to buy these for you, we wouldn't have had enough money. Xin Xin, that woman is good at putting on an act, and Third Uncle might be fooled by her. But you're his only daughter, and he'll definitely leave his money and property to you in the future."
He and his big brother had to hand over most of their wages, so they rarely had more than a yuan or two left. These items added up to several hundred yuan, an amount they couldn't even come close to even if they sold their blood.
(End of Chapter)
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