Reborn with a Space: Building a Fortune Amidst Famine

"Yuanyuan, what's going on?" Yang Minggang stood on the ground and asked.

"Tan Shaoting works in the Capital. Since it's close to home, I came back to have a look."

"You guys hurry up and go wash." Hu Chunhua urged them.

Yang Xue ran in like a gust of wind, and had already changed her clothes? She sat directly on the kang opposite the three children.

She watched the three kids with a smile, "Yuanyuan, your children are really lovely."

She tentatively reached out and touched Second's face.

The little guy frowned slightly.

"Yuanyuan, look, he doesn't want me to touch him."

"Your hand is too heavy," Hu Chunhua complained about this young woman.

"It's okay, Second really doesn't like being touched by others."

"Yuanyuan, do these three children include only this one little girl?"

"Yes, she's the youngest sister."

"Yuanyuan, I've never heard of anyone having triplets. You're truly amazing."

Hu Chunhua gave the not-so-reliable young woman a pat.

Yang Minggang and the rest of the men came in too.

Tan Shaoting chatted with them on a small bench to the side.

"Yuanyuan, when do you plan to leave?" Yang Xue asked with a smile, playing beanbag with the kids.

"We'll have to leave in a few days. Tan Shaoting has a lot of work." Mainly, we're not used to living in someone else's home.

"Yuanyuan, this is my sister-in-law, Zhou Minli."

"Hello, sister-in-law, you're really beautiful."

Zhou Minli blushed deeply, feeling quite shy being praised like this as a rural girl.

"Yuanyuan, my little nephew went to his aunt's house. If you stay a few more days, you'll see him."

"Tan Shaoting has too much work."

"Your big sister is getting married in October," Hu Chunhua said with a smile.

"I won't be able to make it to any of it."

"It's okay. Just coming back to see everyone is already very good.

Yuanyuan, watch the kids, I'll go make dinner."

"The four of us women can do it together, it'll be quicker. Let Tan Shaoting watch the kids."

With babies almost seven months old, someone must be around all the time as they can crawl now.

Hu Chunhua braved the rain to cut chives. Yang Xue kneaded dough, and Zhou Minli prepared the dough board, planning to make dumplings.

After dinner, the five of them were arranged to stay in Yang Xue's room.

The couple coaxed the three children to sleep. "Are you happy to be back?"

"Yes, very happy. Hu Chunhua was the first person to treat me well."

"Yes. If you want to stay a few more days, that's fine too."

Su Yuanyuan shook her head, "It's better not to! I'm not used to staying in someone else's home. Do we girls three accompany you to complete your task?"

"It's too dangerous."

"What danger could there be? We four girls can just wait for you, then we all head back together. You'll return, completing the task."

Actually, Tan Shaoting was quite tempted. This way, when he returned, he could continue his vacation, and even if not, he wouldn't have to go out. This way, he could spend every day with them, the four girls.

Also, if the children grow a bit older and Yuanyuan gets bored at home, the family of five could go out together.

He didn't take the task seriously; after all, it really wasn't a big deal.

"Yuanyuan, in the future, if I am on a mission and you four girls want to follow along, that's fine."

"Alright, we'll try to get used to it this time, then our entire family can move together." This made Tan Shaoting happy. If they really got used to it, the family could be together in the future.

The rain outside continued, a typical summer rainy day. But the next morning, when they woke up, the skies were clear.

Yesterday's rain was so heavy, so today they definitely couldn't work in the fields. Everyone stayed home.

The men took fishing nets to the reservoir. Since Su Yuanyuan was back, the household lacked pork, but they could kill a chicken and net a few big fish, which would be great.

Hu Chunhua sat on the kang, chatting about each other's lives over recent years.

Learning that Yuanyuan and Tan Shaoting were officially registered put her mind at ease, as it was recognized and protected by the state.

"You two must live well together," Hu Chunhua said earnestly.

"Don't worry, Aunt. I've got things under control."

"Yuanyuan, you're smart and sensible; life won't be hard for you."

For lunch, they had rice that Su Yuanyuan brought over, steamed rice. Actually, they had rice here too, locally called jingzi, which is upland rice, but the taste and texture weren't as good as paddy rice.

Hu Chunhua specially slaughtered a chicken, and around ten o'clock, Yang Minggang and the other men returned. The snakeskin bag was full of several big fish.

Being near the reservoir, fish weren't anything new, but such big fish were rare.

Yang Minggang cleaned and prepared the five big fish they caught, all stewed together in one huge pot.

At this time, there really weren't many seasonings or recipes for stewing fish, but this time Hu Chunhua added a fair amount of lard and dried chili peppers.

"Chunsheng, go call your Uncle and Aunt over for dinner," Yang Minggang instructed his youngest son.

"Yuanyuan, your Aunt's three sons are all married. Your Uncle directly divided the family for them, now it's just the two of them living here.

I think it's quite good. Once they all get married, I'll divide the family too."

"Mom, my big brother doesn't want to."

"Once they start their own small families, they'll be fine. Just look at how well-off your Uncle and Aunt are—if they have time, they help with the grandkids, if not, they take care of themselves."

Su Yuanyuan wanted to laugh, is the aunt trying to avoid looking after children? It couldn't be, Hu Chunhua was known for her good-natured personality.

Half an hour later, Yang Hongwen and his wife arrived.

Su Yuanyuan stood up with a smile, as she had planned to visit that afternoon.

"Yuanyuan, quite the grown lady now," Xu Chunjiao said, with a smile, grasping Su Yuanyuan's hand.

"Aunt, isn't she a grown lady now? She even has three kids."

Xu Chunjiao was startled, "Married?"

"Yes. Aunt, come in, let's see the kids. Their father is watching them." They had just woken up and hadn't been brought out yet.

Xu Chunjiao saw the three children and laughed, "My Yuanyuan is amazing. Had three, this saves a lot of pain, although a bit tiring to watch."

"Aunt, they've been pretty well-behaved."

Yang Hongwen came in too. Tan Shaoting greeted them both.

"These three kids are wonderful."

Tan Shaoting put the kids in a cart and took them to the courtyard.

The aroma was already coming through, chicken and fish, making it smell even better to people who seldom ate meat.

Today they split into two tables, one for the men. Yang Hongwen and Yang Minggang both drank.

They stuffed themselves with fish today, serving it straight into their own bowls.

"Chunhua's got a knack for cooking. The fish is well-seasoned."

Big fish with thick meat isn't easy to season, but this time the massive pot of stewed fish was really tasty.

Su Yuanyuan thought it was good too, she ate a big piece, nearly a bowlful. The three kids each had a bun on the side, as the fish was spicy, it wasn't given to them yet.