Seventies Sweetheart: From Breakup to Billionaire-Chapter 177: How Could Mom Give Up on You

As Aunt Ge entered the house, Lin Xiang vaguely heard the sounds of someone wailing inside.

The cries rose and fell, clearly indicating there was more than one person inside.

"Mom, just give up already. Consider it a release for both me and you." The man lay on the bed with hollow eyes, his voice devoid of any emotion.

Aunt Ge wiped his hands and face with a cloth, chiding, "We’ve already gotten through the hardest times, and your condition is visibly improving. How can you ask me to give up on you now?"

"There’s no money left at home."

"Aren’t I out there earning... Oh heavens, what are you up to again!"

"Mom, my brother is right. Just let the two of us go. My life only brings you shame; I can’t drag you down any further!"

Aunt Ge took the girl, who was trying to hang herself, down from the stool and placed her on the bed, her eyes red, "I won’t allow you to speak such nonsense! We’re not the ones who did anything wrong; why should you have to sacrifice? Mom isn’t afraid of what others say. As long as you both are alive, there is hope in my heart. But if you keep seeking death, you might as well take Mom with you!"

The brother and sister, hearing Aunt Ge’s cries, fell silent. Yet in their similar eyes, there was no longing for life.

They feared that if they sought death, their mother would follow them.

Lin Xiang was unaware of the commotion inside. She was sitting on a bench in the courtyard, observing the situation of this small compound.

This was a standalone compound, not very large. Besides the main house, there were rooms to the east and west. To the west was a separate small kitchen, but it clearly hadn’t been used in a long time, as dust covered the door.

Once Aunt Ge had settled the two children, she came out carrying two cups of water.

"What kind of house are you looking to rent? I’m familiar with this area; I can take you to look around later."

Lin Xiang held her cup of water, "Auntie, is this house yours?"

"It was left by my ancestors. Originally, the house next door was also ours, but through the years... now only this little yard remains. But with just me and my two children, three people are enough to live here."

Lin Xiang pointed to the rooms on either side, "Is anyone living here now?"

"The east room used to be my daughter’s, and the west was my son’s, but now they both live with me in the main house, so these are empty now..." At this point, Aunt Ge’s eyes lit up, "Why not stay at our place? I won’t charge you rent, just need a favor."

"My son was injured in the army a few years back and his leg is not well; he can’t get out of bed. I have to go out to earn money, and there’s no time to look after him, leaving early and returning late. I just hope once you move in, you can help bring him lunch at noon. I’ll take care of everything else when I return. How does that sound?"

Not having to pay rent was enough to attract Mrs. Lin. She quickly agreed, "Sure! After my girl goes to school, I’ll be home with nothing to do, so I can deliver the meal to your child."

Aunt Ge clapped her hands, "That would be wonderful! Hold on, I’ll clean up the room right now. Isn’t Xiaolin going to school? You two can have separate rooms and won’t disturb each other."

"Alright, we’ll go back and pack up the bedding and such, and come over first thing tomorrow morning."

Lin Xiang: ...

She hadn’t even spoken, and her mom already agreed?

Although she had a good impression of Aunt Ge, wasn’t this renting arrangement too casually made?

"Why are you still standing there? We need to pack up our things! The day after tomorrow we need to report to school, so we have to tidy everything up tomorrow."

"...Okay."

The mother and daughter had just left the Ge Family when the door next door opened and a head popped out, "Hey, young comrade, wait a minute!"

Lin Xiang stopped and turned to face the person, pointing to her own nose, "Are you calling me?"

The person quietly left the house, closed the door behind them, glanced at the tightly shut door of the Ge Family, and lowered their voice to speak to Lin Xiang, "Are you two looking to rent a house? Let me tell you, the fengshui at the Ge’s isn’t good. You’d better not rent from them!"

Lin Xiang smiled politely, "Comrade, we’re not encouraged to believe in superstitions now. If the Red Guards catch on, we might get criticized." 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Although openness had increased recently, past shadows still lingered over people’s minds, and things better left unsaid were approached with caution.

The woman quickly changed her tune, "Their family’s reputation isn’t good. Her daughter...tsk tsk. You’re a young girl, too, better be careful not to pick up bad habits from her daughter!"

"How about this, if you rent from me, I won’t charge much, just two yuan a month. How about that?"

Mrs. Lin, who had been silent in the background, immediately grabbed Lin Xiang’s arm and began to walk away.

Trying to charge her for rent?

Not a chance!

"Dear, don’t listen to that person’s gossiping. Mrs. Ge is a good person, and her children are well-behaved too. That person is just jealous, let’s not entertain her!"

"I understand, I’ll listen to you."

The mother and daughter returned home, and after dinner, they both retired for the evening.

The next morning, after breakfast, the two carried their bedding and set off for the city.

On the way, they came across Sun’s ox cart and, after paying two cents, rode into town.

Fortunately, Aunt Ge’s house wasn’t too far away, and after walking a little over twenty minutes with their bulky bags, the mother and daughter finally arrived at Aunt Ge’s place.

To welcome them, Aunt Ge hadn’t gone to the market that day and helped arrange the bedding and other items after they arrived.

"The east room gets better light, so I moved the table there. When Xiaolin comes home from school, she can do her homework on it."

The table was clearly old, with legs of uneven length, but Aunt Ge placed half a brick underneath it to stop it from wobbling.

"Thank you, Aunt Ge."

"Oh, don’t mention it. Without your suggestion, I wouldn’t have been able to start my pancake business."

Their household had three mouths to feed. Without any income, the whole family would have to eat nothing but air!

Lunch was simple. Aunt Ge rolled a pancake for each of the mother and daughter and cooked two dishes. Without salt or oil, the taste wasn’t much, but Lin Xiang and Mrs. Lin didn’t mind.

Mrs. Lin took a bite of the pancake and asked Aunt Ge, "Should we bring some to the children?"

"They’ve already eaten, don’t worry about them. Please, eat first."

As soon as she finished speaking, a loud thud came from inside the house.

Aunt Ge dropped her pancake on the table and rushed inside immediately.

"Why did you fall? Get up quickly!"

But the person on the ground had no strength, and Aunt Ge alone couldn’t lift them back up.

Mrs. Lin put down her pancake, "Let me have a look."