Rebirth: She is Ready for a Counterattack!

Li Xuemei shouted in the yard, "Come out and wash your face for breakfast, your grandmother has finished cooking."

The three of them came out amicably.

Li Qinghai and Li Zhaodi had already set up breakfast under the grape arbor, Gu Ruhai also sat down, and the family enjoyed a cheerful meal.

Originally, Gu Ruhai planned to take Li Xuemei and their four mothers back home, but Li Weimin returned with Gu Xiaojie, and upon seeing Gu Ruhai, his mood soured.

Li Weimin and Li Weiqiang, knowing the situation, suggested that since it was already late today, they couldn’t set up a stall, and since several families were present, they might as well have a reunion meal together, which would be a nice gathering.

Li Qinghai was, of course, willing, as elders always cherish their children being around them.

After finishing lunch, Gu Ruhai and his five family members returned home.

Seeing the chairs still in the yard, along with the mess in the house, the events of last night seemed vivid.

They tidied up a bit.

Gu Ruhai sliced a watermelon, as it’s watermelon season in the fields and one could easily buy them in the village. They themselves didn’t plant these, and all their land was rented out, since the family’s workforce was tied up with business, leaving no time.

They’re planning not to contract the land next year, leasing out the remaining few acres to villagers instead. The harvest should be sufficient for the family’s grain.

This would also save labor.

The children gathered around the table under the squash and string bean vine in the yard to eat watermelon, enjoying the cool shade.

Gu Ruhai handed a piece of watermelon to Li Xuemei, getting a look from her, and chuckled foolishly.

The more he looked at his wife, the more beautiful she seemed.

In these twenty-four hours, Gu Ruhai almost lost his family, how could he not be terrified inside?

After eating watermelon, Gu Xiaoqing spoke to Li Xuemei and Gu Ruhai, "Mom and Dad, there’s something I want to talk about, for you to consider. Though there’s still time, I think it’s better to think about it earlier."

Li Xuemei and Gu Ruhai stopped eating watermelon and looked at Gu Xiaoqing, knowing this child always had numerous ideas and that they were typically beneficial for the family’s future. The couple was used to hearing Gu Xiaoqing’s extraordinary thoughts.

They felt it was just as it should be.

Their daughter was simply smart.

"Go ahead."

"Mom and Dad, I’m planning to take the high school entrance exam next summer. I want to apply to a city high school."

Gu Xiaoqing first shared her plan.

Li Xuemei was startled, worriedly saying, "The scores for city high schools are quite high, not to mention you’d be going to school in the city alone as a girl. Your dad and I would worry; it’s not appropriate."

Gu Ruhai nodded too. Pampering the child was one thing, but sending their daughter to study alone in the unfamiliar city was unacceptable.

"Mom and Dad, I know you are worried about me, but I was thinking I shouldn’t go alone."

"Not alone? Then are we all going together?"

Li Xuemei joked, but after speaking, she felt maybe that’s exactly what the child intended.

Gu Xiaoqing nodded earnestly, "Yes, we’ll go as a family."

Gu Ruhai shook his head repeatedly, disagreeing, "That won’t do. The city is full of places where people only care about money. I haven’t been there, but I’ve heard people say money is everything there; unfamiliar and challenging for us as a family to survive. We might starve."

Li Xuemei didn’t immediately oppose; instead, she asked Gu Xiaoqing, "Xiaoqing, what are your thoughts?"

The child always had plans and wouldn’t speak carelessly. Besides, today at the Li Family’s, Li Xuemei herself considered leaving the troublesome Gu Family Village, so at this point, she was quite tempted.

But Gu Ruhai was correct too, they’d be heading to the city, not a nearby town or county. A large city wasn’t exactly where villagers could live.

The absence of family, land — how to survive there presented significant challenges.

Li Xuemei was not impulsive. She wanted to listen to Gu Xiaoqing’s ideas since she had some herself.

Gu Xiaoqing spoke confidently; she had been plotting this idea for quite some time and undoubtedly needed to present compelling arguments for relocating the family. Without a sturdy reason, the plan wouldn’t come to fruition.

"Mom and Dad, when I went to the city for the competition, I met Fang Shaonan, who was rescued with me previously, and visited their home. Aunt He is a welcoming person who invited you to visit their home when convenient.

Fang Shaonan showed me around many places and explained quite a bit about urban life. That’s how I got this idea."

By linking her thoughts to a credible source, particularly since Fang Shaonan was a city resident herself, who should know far more about urban life than Gu Xiaoqing, using Shaonan’s home situation enhanced persuasion and credibility.

Li Xuemei and Gu Ruhai certainly couldn’t verify the truth with He Cui.

Li Xuemei felt a bit trusting, seeing that Fang Shaonan and He Cui were indeed city folks, and city people always sounded trustworthy.

"I want to apply to City No. 1 High School; even if I can’t get into City No. 1, I want to apply to a city high school. They have higher promotion rates, and I want to go to university. Xiao Jie shouldn’t be delayed either, the quality of education in the city is better than ours, and Xiao Jie can receive better education there.

Don’t you see that Third Aunt’s Gu Xiaofeng and Gu Xiaomin are studying in Town High School? If it wasn’t good, Third Aunt wouldn’t have them studying there."

Li Xuemei believed these words and thought about sending Gu Xiaojie out as well.

At this point, Gu Ruhai was also intrigued. After all, Gu Xiaojie was the hope of this family.

Everyone hopes their child will succeed.

"But if Xiao Jie and I both study there, how would the two of us manage life? I’m fine; being in high school means boarding is possible, but what about Xiao Jie? Hence, if you and Mom and my sister all go to the city, you three could rent a storefront to continue your business. Meanwhile, I could start some novel food business—there’s no way we wouldn’t manage our lives.

This way you’d be able to take care of us while continuing business and making money. Eventually, my elder sister could even find a family to marry into in the city, which is better than here. Being elsewhere is better than being desired here."

It’s a newer path. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

Li Xuemei and Gu Ruhai were intrigued but still somewhat hesitant.

"Xiaoqing, housing in the city surely isn’t cheap? How much would that cost? What if we can’t earn?"

This concern worried Gu Ruhai. Supporting such a big family was a real issue.

While in the village, even without food, they could still manage with their home and land. Whereas in the city, without money, they’d lack even food.

Gu Ruhai was genuinely anxious, facing concerns about unfamiliar city life was completely reasonable. (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it on Qidian (qidian.com) with recommendation tickets or monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please read at m.qidian.com.)