TSWPF -Chapter 148 Surprise

Li Qingling and Liu Zhimou had thought something had happened to Li Qingning. Startled, they rushed outside to check—and to their surprise, it was the old man and Dahe who had returned.

Seeing them truly brought joy.

“Grandpa, Dahe, why are you back? Why didn’t you tell us before coming?” Li Qingling ran over, her expression bright with happiness.

She had previously sent a letter to the old man, informing him that she and Liu Zhimou intended to get married.

Since she hadn’t received a reply, she thought he must have been busy and hadn’t had time to return. But unexpectedly, they had snuck back and given her such a huge surprise.

The old man cast Li Qingling a sidelong glance and said in a slightly annoyed tone, “You only decide to get married and suddenly think to inform me? Why would I need to tell you when I come back?” He was displeased because such a major matter was settled without consulting him in advance.

Was the old man angry?

Li Qingling twitched the corner of her mouth. She quickly walked over, linked arms with him, and smilingly shifted the blame onto Liu Zhimou. “Grandpa, if you want to blame someone, blame Zhimou! It was all his idea.” She had originally planned to wait until she was at least sixteen to marry, but Liu Zhimou was so impatient.

Since he was in such a hurry, she had no choice but to agree.

The old man gave Li Qingling a glance and snorted coldly, “It’s already decided; saying more is pointless.” He turned to have someone bring down the luggage he had brought.

Li Qingling’s eyes widened at the sheer amount of luggage. Was Grandpa moving the whole house back? Why so many things?

Dahe, who had been talking with Li Qingning, explained, “Sister Qingling, all of this is grandpa’s betrothal gift for you.” As soon as Grandpa heard Xiaoling would be getting married, he had arranged many things to bring back as her betrothal gifts.

“Ah? This much?” Li Qingling was shocked—how much money must this have cost? She had been planning for a simple ceremony!

“Grandpa, are there gifts for me too? Are there?” Li Qingning’s eyes widened as she looked at each trunk, her face full of envy.

So one could receive so many things when getting married? If only she had married earlier, she would have had just as many gifts!

“Grandpa, maybe I should get married too, and you can give me some of them, okay?”

Li Qingning’s naive words nearly made the old man and Dahe laugh themselves sick.

The old man scooped Li Qingning up in his arms and laughed heartily. “Silly girl, you’re still too young. Wait another ten years!” Seeing how much she had grown, “When Ningning gets married, Grandpa will prepare even more betrothal gifts for you—more than your sister’s.”

Hearing this, Li Qingning counted on her fingers. Realizing she would have to wait ten years, her little face fell. “So long? Can’t I get married sooner?” If she could marry sooner, she would have been rich already.

With so many valuable items, she could buy all sorts of delicious food.

Li Qingling’s forehead practically sprouted three black lines. She reached out to tap Li Qingning’s head and scolded her, “Your hair isn’t even fully grown yet, and you’re talking about lifelong love—aren’t you embarrassed?”

With such a carefree personality, she truly worried her little sister might have trouble finding a husband.

“What’s there to be embarrassed about? Sister, you’re going to marry big brother,” Li Qingning replied confidently.

Upon hearing this, Li Qingling tapped her head again. “Wait until you’re as old as me before you talk about marrying!” All that running around learning nonsense had her worried sick. “Grandpa and Dahe must be tired from the journey. Come inside and sit down. Once I’ve tidied up the room, you can rest.”

In this era, there were no airplanes or trains, only slow, bumpy horse-drawn carriages—a truly miserable experience.

And the old man was older now; she worried his health might not handle it.

“Ningning, come down quickly. Grandpa is tired from the journey, and you’re grown now—you can’t let him carry you.”

Although playful, Li Qingning was sensible. She immediately let the old man put her down, held his hand, and walked into the house, even pouring water for him herself.

The old man’s eyes crinkled with joy. Being with these kids was truly incomparable.

“Grandpa, you’ve been away so long. Did you miss me? I missed you so much,” Li Qingning said sweetly, resting her chubby hands on her little chin.

Since she could talk, her words had always been sweet, capable of completely melting people.

The old man, having quenched his thirst, placed the cup down, rubbed Li Qingning’s head, and nodded, saying he had missed her dearly.

Previously, he had wanted Liu Zhimou and the others to accompany him to the capital, but the kids didn’t want to go.

He had no choice but to bring Dahe. Unlike the others, Dahe had a natural aptitude for studying, so he stayed by the old man’s side to learn medicine.

He passed on all his knowledge to him, ensuring a successor.

Dahe could now have a skill for self-defense and survival in the future.

“Grandpa missed me so much, did he bring me something?”

The old man laughed heartily. “Of course I brought you a gift.” He pointed to a trunk. “That one is for Ningning. Go see if you like it.”

Li Qingning cheered, jumped off the chair, and ran to the trunk, opening it with excitement.

Inside were all sorts of things: toys, jewelry, clothes—an overwhelming variety.

She shouted with joy, and only then remembered Li Qingfeng, Liu Zhiyan, and Liu Zhirou were not home and didn’t know Grandpa had returned.

“Grandpa, wait here. I’ll go call Second Brother and the others back.”

Without waiting for a reply, she dashed off.

Once she had gone, the old man chuckled. “Unknowingly, the girl has grown so much.”

When he left Niutou Village before, she wasn’t even speaking fluently!

Li Qingling sighed, “Such a wild child, running out at dawn and only coming back for meals. I can’t manage her.”

The little girl was cunning too. She would nod obediently when scolded, pretending to be sweet, but then immediately forget and continue as before.

Li Qingling had wanted to be stricter, but Liu Zhimou had said she was only four; let her play. In a couple of years, she wouldn’t be allowed so much freedom.

Li Qingling had no choice but to put aside her urge to strictly educate her.

“Children need to play. What else can they do?” the old man said. “I think Ningning is fine—clever and bright.”

Li Qingling realized that if he said more, the little girl could respond, and the old man would scold her; better to change the topic. She asked about the old man’s time in the capital.

He only reported the good news to her, saying all was well, and with Dahe’s company, he wasn’t lonely.

Relieved, she nodded, then turned to Dahe. “You’ve grown taller too,” she said, smiling. Perhaps the good food had helped him gain weight.

Dahe blushed slightly. “The meals at home were good. We could eat meat every day, so I grew taller.”

Li Qingling smiled and asked about his progress in learning medicine.

He said it was going okay.

“He has a natural talent in medicine. When taught, he can understand things instantly,” the old man said proudly, stroking his beard.

If Dahe lacked this talent, he wouldn’t have allowed him to study medicine.

“Study well with the old man. One day, become a divine doctor…”

Hearing this, Dahe felt embarrassed. “I’ve only learned a little. I can’t compare to Grandpa…”

Li Qingling waved her hand and confidently said, “I believe in you. Given time, you will surpass Grandpa.”

“That’s exaggerated. If becoming a divine doctor were that easy, the world would be full of them,” the old man scoffed. “Don’t corrupt Dahe with your words.”

“You may not become one, but that doesn’t mean he can’t. Haven’t you heard ‘the student surpasses the teacher’…”

And so, as soon as they met, the two began bickering again.

Liu Zhimou and Dahe exchanged a glance and shrugged helplessly, ignoring their quarrel and starting a conversation.

Soon, Li Qingfeng and Liu Zhiyan’s voices were heard outside.

“Grandpa… Grandpa… is it really you?”

True to form, they arrived before words could travel. Running into the house, they saw the old man and Dahe, greeted them warmly, and chatted excitedly.

Dahe had much to tell them about the capital. The three boys huddled together, whispering to each other.

Li Qingfeng and Liu Zhiyan listened, amazed at Dahe’s stories.

Liu Zhirou arrived last. Upon seeing the lively scene, she smiled and greeted Grandpa, then Dahe.

“Oh, Rourou, you’ve grown taller too,” the old man said kindly, patting her head. “Just a bit too thin.”

Having not seen the old man for so long, Liu Zhirou was very happy. She sat beside him and softly asked, “Grandpa, how long did it take you to travel from the capital? Were you tired?”

“I went overland first, then by water, quicker than usual. It took half a month, but it wasn’t too tiring.” Traveling only by land would have been more exhausting.

Seeing his face showed no fatigue, Liu Zhirou felt reassured and nodded.

As they talked, Old Li and the others arrived upon catching wind of the news.