RBI1960 Chapter 16

As soon as those words left his mouth, it was like a bomb dropped on Jiang Dachuan’s entire family—the old man had made up his mind to completely cut them off, regardless of whether they lived or died.

Off to the side, Zhao Hong couldn’t help but feel a trace of satisfaction. Who knew her daughter better than she did? She could only blame herself for not raising her properly. Her daughter was as soft as a sticky rice ball, and with a husband like Da Hai, who was too nice for his good, how could they possibly protect those granddaughters of hers?

Sure, now they had a son and were starting to act a bit tougher, but just now, when that brat from the second son’s family bullied San Ni, did they stand up for their daughter? Not at all. Zhao Hong saw it clearly—if this continued, the second son’s family would be walking all over them again before long.

But the old man of the Jiang family was different. A hardened retired soldier, the kind of man who meant what he said. Everyone here heard what he just said. If he went back on it now, he’d be completely disgraced.

Zhao Hong did some mental math. The granddaughters were still young, and the grandson was still a baby—this was the prime time to teach them right. She planned to visit often. No way was she going to let those kids grow up to be like their parents. A whole family of pushovers would just end up getting bullied to death.

While Zhao Hong was busy plotting, Fan Xiaojuan nearly fainted from shock after hearing the old man’s words.

They had come today hoping to win his forgiveness, but that brat had blurted out everything that was said at home, completely offending the old man. She could already imagine how furious her husband would be when they got back.

And without the old house, how were they supposed to get by? Was she supposed to be like Gu Dongmei, working the fields every day, exposed to the sun and rain? Just the thought made her heart fill with resentment.

“Dad, you mean that? You’re cutting ties with me and your grandsons, Ai Guo and Ai Dang?” Jiang Dachuan kept his head lowered, hiding the expression in his eyes. His voice was dark and heavy.

“I don’t need a son like you. Look at you two, what kind of mess did you raise those boys into?” the old man snapped. It was a moment of anger, sure, but he didn’t lack grandchildren—there was no need to make a granddaughter marry into the family just to carry on the name.

He looked again at the two older grandsons, already thoroughly spoiled beyond repair, and made up his mind—he wouldn’t let the youngest end up the same way.

“Fine! You said it yourself—don’t come crying later!” Jiang Dachuan raised his head, his cold glare sweeping across Jiang Dahai’s family and lingering on him for a long time. Ever since they were kids, his older brother had always been the “good” one, the one their parents favored. It had taken him a lifetime to finally surpass his brother at something, only for the guy to go and have a son to one-up him again.

Jiang Dahai was born to ruin him. If Jiang Dachuan existed, why did the world need a Jiang Dahai? In that moment, he silently swore: he’d make their parents regret this and beg him to come back.

“Let’s go.” Jiang Dachuan grabbed one of his sons by the arm and dragged him away, ignoring the boy’s wailing.

Fan Xiaojuan stood stunned for a second, then saw the dark expressions on the old man’s and Miao Sanfeng’s faces. She stomped her foot and shouted, “Dad, Mom, Dachuan didn’t mean it—he’s just upset! Don’t take it to heart. I’ll go talk to him.” Then she rushed off after her husband and sons.

The room fell silent for a while until the old man finally said, “Alright, let’s eat before the food gets cold.”

He picked up his chopsticks like nothing had happened, and only then did the others start eating—but the lively atmosphere was gone.

“Mom, can you hold the baby for a bit?” Gu Dongmei handed her child to her mother-in-law, who was only too happy to oblige. She set down her chopsticks and cuddled her little grandson, her mood visibly brightening.

Of the three sons, the eldest was her favorite, but that didn’t mean she didn’t love the second. Still, thinking about how her second son had raised those two boys into what they’d become, she felt a mix of emotions.

Gu Dongmei dug up some wood ash from the old stove in the kitchen and used it to treat San Ni’s injury. Things had been so tense earlier that she didn’t dare move a muscle for fear of upsetting the old man.

Wood ash was a common home remedy—everyone kept some around. It could stop bleeding and prevent infection, an old-fashioned method handed down from earlier generations. It was much cheaper than going to the clinic for ointment. Fortunately, San Ni’s wound wasn’t deep. Gu Dongmei cleaned her hands and sprinkled the ash on the cut.

San Ni obediently let her mother treat the wound, holding out her scratched hand while continuing to gnaw on two chicken bones. At four years old, her teeth were still small and yellowed, like grains of millet. Even though the chicken had been stewed until tender, she still couldn’t bite through the bones and could only scrape them with her teeth, trying to get a bit of flavor out.

“Er Ni, keep an eye on your sister. Don’t let her scratch the wound,” Gu Dongmei told her second daughter. Though Er Ni looked a bit upset, she still nodded.

After the meal, the men stayed in the main room chatting. Zhao Hong helped Miao Sanfeng clean up, while Gu Dongmei and Jiang Dazhen brought the kids into the bedroom to rest and talk.

Jiang Yiliu was placed nearby, and Meng Xiangxue crawled around beside him with great curiosity.

Besides his half-sister, Jiang Yiliu’s only cousins were three girls and one younger girl from his eldest uncle’s family, and two older boys from his second uncle’s family. What he lacked was a little brother.

And this little brother was fascinating—not only did he not need to eat, he even drooled!

Jiang Yiliu didn’t respond to the boy’s pestering, but didn’t stop him either. After all, mentally, he was now in his forties. Watching his once-mature and dependable cousin in his past life now reduced to a clueless little toddler gave him a surreal feeling.

In his past life, just before Jiang Yiliu took his nieces abroad, Meng Xiangxue had been promoted to company commander—a young man of notable achievements. Back then, tall and imposing, he felt more like a guardian than a cousin, always looking out for their family. Unfortunately, he had terrible luck in love. He fell for a vain woman who broke his heart, and by his thirties, he still hadn’t married, treating the military base like home.

Their aunt had often complained about it on the phone. Jiang Yiliu now had one more thing he needed to fix in this life—he wouldn’t let that woman hurt his cousin again.

“Big sis, second sis—look what Grandma brought us!” San Ni climbed onto the kang bed and pulled out some candy she’d carefully hidden in the quilt.

“One, two, three… eight, nine! Grandma gave us ten candies. My little sister and I already ate one, so there are nine left,” she said, licking her lips.

With only a few pieces of candy wrapped in a handkerchief, it was obvious how many there were. Jiang Dani smiled at her sister and said, “I’ve told you to practice counting! There are eleven pieces, not nine.”

Candy options were limited at the time. The local co-op store only carried basic fruit candies, peanut brittle, sesame candy, and the occasional milk candy, though few families splurged on that.

The fruit candies were the cheapest—brightly colored, round, and shiny like marbles. Kids loved them. Jiang Dani looked at the candies and noticed a few seemed prettier than the others. Without thinking too much, she picked the nicest one and popped it into Meng Xiangxue’s mouth.

“Why give it to your cousin? His grandparents buy him candy he won’t even eat. These are from your grandma—keep them for yourselves,” said Jiang Dazhen, worried since her nieces rarely got treats.

“It’s okay,” Jiang Dani said with a shy smile. She picked another candy and carefully bit off a piece before handing the rest to Er Ni. Er Ni did the same and gave the remaining bit to San Ni.

Their youngest sister had already had a small cup of sugary water today, so they didn’t give her any more sweets.

The rest of the candies were carefully hidden away again. With nine candies left, the sisters could share one every other day—enough to last more than half a month. The sweet taste in their mouths made life feel full of joy.

“Mom, this candy is amazing! Tell Dad to buy me some next time,” Meng Xiangxue said, eyes sparkling. He’d never had candy this good before—not even the chocolate his grandpa brought from the provincial capital.

Jiang Dazhen was surprised. Wasn’t her son usually uninterested in sweets? But she figured it was just a kid being fickle—tastes change every day.

“Little brother, when I buy candy, I’ll come visit you!” Meng Xiangxue promised. “I’ll bring so much candy, you guys won’t be able to finish it!” He stretched out his arms to show just how much, making everyone laugh.

San Ni was especially delighted, already dreaming about a life surrounded by mountains of candy.

Jiang Yiliu chuckled to himself. The truth was, there had only been nine candies. He’d secretly added a few from his spatial stash. He wasn’t ready to be too obvious just yet, so he was only making small improvements to his sisters’ lives. The one Meng Xiangxue ate was probably one of the better-quality fruit candies he’d added in. Hopefully, he wouldn’t be too disappointed when he tasted the regular ones.

After this incident, Jiang Yiliu reminded himself to be more careful when taking things out of his space. He had forgotten how precious things were in this era—people always counted them. Thankfully, it was San Ni this time. If it had been his eldest sister, she would’ve noticed the extra candy immediately.

Still, seeing the joy on his sisters’ faces from just one piece of candy, a warm feeling filled his chest. The uncertainty he’d felt since being reborn began to fade. With such a good start to this new life, and with his family by his side, what reason did he have not to keep going?