My sister broke off her engagement to marry someone richer? My older sister married me and became in

The sky darkened completely, and Hongshitun seemed to have been doused with thick ink, so quiet that only the smoke rising from the chimneys of each house remained.

Lu Qingshan, carrying an empty sack, walked along the frozen dirt road back to the gate of his own yard.

The kerosene lamp was lit inside the room, its dim yellow light seeping through the paper windows, carrying a hint of warmth.

He pushed open the door, and a whiff of air mixed with the aroma of food and worry rushed out.

"Qingshan! You're finally back!"

Wang Guifen was the first to jump off the kang (a heated brick bed), rushing to him in three steps, grabbing his arm and looking him up and down.

"Are you alright? Has anything happened in the city?"

Lu Qingshan shook his head: "It's alright, Mother."

On the kang (a heated brick bed), Lu Changgui sat cross-legged, his brows furrowed, his lips moved but he didn't say a word.

Grandpa Lu puffed on his pipe, the embers flickering and reflecting off his wrinkled face.

"How is it?" the old man asked in a hoarse voice as he exhaled a puff of smoke.

"Sell that bit of bear meat?"

Wang Guifen looked at her son nervously and asked cautiously, "How much did you sell? Is it enough for you to get a wife?"

Lu Changgui also turned his pleading gaze to the old man.

The old man tapped his pipe on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and said in a deep voice, "Don't worry if you can't sell them. I... I still have a few old connections. At worst, I'll risk my reputation and take you to the black market. I can't let your wife suffer."

Hearing his family's words, Lu Qingshan felt a warmth in his heart.

They never considered how much the goods were worth; they thought it was just a deal worth a hundred or two hundred yuan, and their minds were preoccupied with worrying about his wedding.

He didn't say anything, and threw the empty sack on his back onto the ground.

Then, he turned around, walked behind the door, and slammed the wooden bolt shut with a loud bang.

The three people in the room were all stunned.

"Son, what are you doing?" Wang Guifen's voice was tinged with panic.

Lu Qingshan didn't answer. He walked to the window and pulled the tattered cloth that was being used as a curtain all the way up.

The entire house was instantly isolated from the outside world.

Lu Qingshan's voice was calm as he pointed to the earthen bed.

"Father, Mother, Grandfather, please sit on the kang (heated brick bed)."

The family of three, not understanding what was going on, obediently shifted their bodies, squeezed together, and watched him nervously.

Lu Qingshan walked to the kang (a heated brick bed), and amidst the puzzled gazes of his family, slowly reached out and put his hand inside his thick cotton-padded coat.

He fumbled around for a while and pulled out something wrapped in layers.

Wang Guifen's heart was in her throat.

Lu Changgui held his breath.

Old Master Lu narrowed his eyes, staring intently at the cloth bag.

Lu Qingshan placed the cloth bundle on the kang (a heated brick bed) and slowly untied the knot tied on the outside.

Layer upon layer.

When the last layer of cloth was lifted, four stacks of "Great Unity" bundles, neatly bound with paper rope, appeared under the dim light.

"Money!" Wang Guifen cried out in disbelief.

When the whole family's mind goes blank.

At that moment, Lu Qingshan did something they would never forget for the rest of their lives.

He grabbed the four stacks of money as if he were holding four bricks.

Then, he suddenly collapsed onto the kang (a heated brick bed).

"Splash—"

The crisp, dense sounds, like hailstones hitting the roof, instantly filled the entire room.

Four hundred brand-new ten-yuan bills cascaded down like a waterfall, spreading out on the worn-out kang mat.

A huge pile of banknotes.

Under the light of the kerosene lamp, it emitted a breathtaking glow.

Time seemed to stand still at that moment.

The room was deathly quiet.

The only sound was the crackling of the firewood burning in the stove.

The pipe that Old Master Lu had in his mouth fell to the ground with a "thud," scattering ash everywhere, but he was completely unaware.

Lu Changgui's mouth was agape, his eyes were wide like copper bells, and he made a "hoarse" sound in his throat, like a fish out of water.

Looking at the red banknotes covering the kang (a heated brick bed), Wang Guifen felt like she was dreaming.

A full half minute passed.

Wang Guifen seemed to have lost her soul, and slowly, very slowly, she stretched out a hand.

Her fingertips trembled so much that she missed touching the sea of ​​money several times.

Finally, her fingertips gently touched the edge of a banknote.

That realistic touch felt like an electric current instantly coursing through my entire body.

"what!"

She withdrew her hand as quickly as if she had been burned; her lips trembled, and she couldn't utter a complete sentence for a long time.

"My son... my son..."

Her voice sounded like she was crying.

"This...this...this is all money?"

She asked a pointless question, and tears were already streaming down her face.

"This...this...this could...collapse our kang (heated brick bed)..."

Seeing his family members' discomposure, Lu Qingshan finally managed a faint smile.

He reached out and gathered the scattered money together, piling it back into a small mountain.

Then, he raised his head, met three pairs of eyes filled with shock, ecstasy, and disbelief, and calmly uttered two words.

"four thousand."

"What?" Lu Changgui shuddered, as if struck by lightning.

"Four...four..." He pointed at the pile of money, his tongue tied, unable to utter the word "thousand".

"Four thousand yuan," Lu Qingshan repeated, his voice clear and strong.

He pushed the money in front of his parents.

"Father, Mother, Grandfather."

"I have enough money to get a wife."

"We have enough money to build a new house."

"From today onwards, our family's good days are just beginning."

"boom!"

Wang Guifen could no longer hold back. She grabbed the pile of money, lay down on the kang (a heated brick bed), and burst into tears.

That wasn't a cry of sorrow, but the joy of finally seeing the light of day after a lifetime of suppressed emotions.

Lu Changgui stared blankly at the pile of money, then looked at his son, his eyes reddening. This honest and simple man covered his face with his calloused hands.

Only Old Master Lu.

He silently picked up the pipe that had fallen on the kang (a heated brick bed), refilled it with tobacco, and lit it with a match.

He took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.

Amidst the swirling smoke, his cloudy old eyes gleamed with a light never before seen.

"Good...good lad..."

"I am a descendant of the Lu family!"

Having lived two lives, Lu Qingshan looked at his parents, who were crying tears of joy, and heard his grandfather's trembling yet proud praise. He felt as if a huge rock that had been pressing on his chest for two lifetimes had finally been lifted to the ground.

He slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, straightening his spine section by section.

For the first time, he truly felt the meaning of God giving him a second chance at life—not for his own advancement, but so that there would be no more tears and sighs in this dilapidated house.

The old man took two more puffs of his pipe before slamming it heavily against the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).

"Alright, stop howling, don't let the neighbors hear." The old man's voice was still trembling, but he had regained the dignity of the head of the family.

Wang Guifen wiped away her tears.

Lu Changgui also sniffed and looked up at his father with his red and swollen eyes.

The old man looked at the pile of "United Yuan" banknotes on the kang (a heated brick bed), then gazed intently at Lu Qingshan: "Qingshan, this money is yours to earn. Tell me honestly, how do you plan to divide it? How do you plan to spend it?"