Chapter 9 The Maternal Family Returns to the Village

Upon hearing this, Qin Xiaoruo immediately shook her head, "Although there are many herbs on the mountain, they are all common ones, hardly worth much money. What's more, with more pickers than herbs, I don't think it's worth neglecting the farm work for the small amount of money we could make from the herbs. It's fine for me to go gather them alone."

She felt rather embarrassed to eat and live here without contributing to the work, so going up the mountain to gather herbs was a good way to pass the time. Of course, she definitely couldn't go to the less crowded areas again.

But she wondered why Fu Hanwen would quit such a good job as Protector in Qingping City when the master's family held him in high esteem.

"Xiao Ruo is right. We should finish the work in the fields before heading to the mountain," said Lady Guan, who hadn't expected Xiao Ruo to speak up, yet her words were exactly what Lady Guan had wanted to say.

Fu Hanwen had not returned by the afternoon, and Lady Guan and the others went back to the fields. Qin Xiaoruo was playing hopscotch in the yard with Changer when she suddenly heard a child outside calling for Changer.

Upon hearing the voice, Changer ran out, "Huzi? Come in quickly!"

Huzi was dragged into the yard by Changer, and when he saw Qin Xiaoruo, he shyly greeted, "Aunt Xiao Ruo."

This Huzi did not look fierce at all; his sallow complexion was a clear sign of malnutrition.

"Aunt Xiao Ruo is teaching me to play games. You should join us, Huzi," said Changer excitedly.

Huzi was his best friend, and he had just been telling Aunt Xiao Ruo that he wanted to invite Huzi over to play together.

"No, I've come to see Aunt Xiao Ruo..." Huzi stuttered and glanced at Qin Xiaoruo, "Your father has returned. He wants... he wants you to go back."

Qin Xiaoruo was stunned. She had thought she would never see her biological family again in this lifetime.

"Huzi, did you see my father?" Qin Xiaoruo asked with mixed emotions.

"No, it was Brother Ah Fu who told me to come get you," replied Huzi crisply.

The memories of the original host flashed through her mind, and the "Brother Ah Fu" Huzi mentioned was Qin Fu, the son of the original host's stepmother, Lady Woo.

In the memories, her father Qin Anshun had indeed cherished his daughter dearly. Unfortunately, he broke his leg while gathering herbs in the mountains a year ago and became unable to care for himself. Since then, Lady Woo had taken control of all household affairs.

The memories showed that Lady Woo had dumped all the chores on the original host, keeping her busy like a spinning top every day. The villagers had witnessed everything, earning her the reputation of being "industrious and capable."

"Aunt Xiao Ruo..." Seeing Qin Xiaoruo frowning in silence, Huzi thought he'd said something wrong and upset her, and he looked up at her timidly.

Qin Xiaoruo pulled herself from her thoughts and smiled, "I understand, thank you, Huzi."

"Aunt Xiao Ruo, may I go back now?" Huzi looked to Qin Xiaoruo, waiting for her nod before daring to leave.

"Changer, you play by yourself for a bit. Auntie has to go out and take care of something, alright?" Qin Xiaoruo asked as she touched Changer's head.

Changer nodded understandingly, "Okay, Changer will be good."

The reason why Qin Xiaoruo decided to go back was because of her father, Qin Anshun.

In the original host's memory, Qin Anshun truly loved his daughter. However, although Qin Xiaoruo inherited the original host's memories, she couldn't empathize with this familial affection. Instead, she felt varying degrees of fondness for the Fu family, which she found quite peculiar.

Qin Xiaoruo arrived at the east end of the village and stood outside a familiar yet strange courtyard for a long time before finally opening the gate and walking in.