Going Home

"Such a good girl. Come on, look at the presents Uncle bought you." Holding Jingjing, Ye Huan opened the trunk. There were two big cardboard boxes, each stuffed with plush toys of all sizes.

"Wow, so many Tibbies! Thank you, Uncle." Jingjing planted a kiss on her uncle's cheek. "Mwah~"

"Haha, such a good girl." Ye Huan lifted out one of the boxes and went back inside. "Grandpa, Dad, Mom, Sister-in-law, I'm home."

"Just in time. Wash your hands and get ready to eat," his mother said.

"Okay!" Ye Huan put down the box and Jingjing, went to wash his hands, then came back and sat down.

"You bought so many toys," Bai Jie said, looking at Ye Huan.

"There aren't that many. They just look big and take up space. I hardly ever go away, so of course I had to bring Jingjing some presents." Ye Huan smiled.

"Have a drink?" Grandpa asked.

"Sure, I'll have a little with you, Grandpa." Ye Huan was rather tired from the drive, too, and nodded. A little alcohol would help him sleep.

His parents and Bai Jie finished eating early, then went to wash up and rest, since they had to get up early to work tomorrow. Ye Huan kept Grandpa company over drinks, while Jingjing behaved herself, lying on the sofa playing with her toys.

"Grandpa, hang on. The money's in the car." Remembering it, Ye Huan went out and brought in a large bag of cash. "Should I put it in your room?"

"Keep it at your place for now. People are always coming and going downstairs," Grandpa said without even looking at it.

"All right." Ye Huan bounded upstairs and once again tossed the money into his space for safekeeping. He could take it out when Grandpa needed it.

He had bought twenty jin of gold bars in total. After adding in the 200,000 yuan paid to the construction crew's boss to build the woodland cabin and the 100,000-yuan advance payment for Bai Jie's house, he still had around 4.5 million in his account, enough for his needs.

Once everything at home was taken care of, he would basically have nothing left to spend money on. His father had paid for the greenhouses, chicken coop, pigpen, and the rest with the money from selling vegetables, without asking him for any.

"I went to look at that cabin. It's really nice, hehe. I cleaned it for you," Grandpa told his grandson, sipping his liquor.

Though the old man pinched pennies when it came to himself and his children, he really did not stop his grandson from spending money. Otherwise, he would not have thought of selling the medicinal formula back then so his grandson could come home instead of suffering out there.

"Hehe, I got used to roaming the mountains with you when I was little, Grandpa. I really do like the feeling of living in the mountains, so I had them build me this cabin. I checked it. It's completely safe. Even a storm worse than the last one wouldn't affect it," Ye Huan said with a smile.

"Mm, I checked it. The materials are solid, the foundation's deep enough, and they used plenty of materials. Earthquake resistance isn't a problem either." Grandpa nodded. There were hunters' cabins in the forest, too, and he had often stayed in them when he was young, but compared with his grandson's... forget it. There was no comparison.

In the past, he would certainly have called spending 200,000 yuan on such a tiny house squandering the family fortune. Now, well, it was just that.

"I'll stay there tonight, hehe, and see how it feels." Ye Huan was very excited.

Seeing that Jingjing was sleepy, he picked her up and carried her back to the little house. His sister-in-law was asleep. He gently laid Jingjing on the bed, covered her with a light blanket, closed the door behind him, and left.

Grandpa finished sipping his liquor, ate some rice, and leisurely returned to his room, too. Ye Huan cleared the table, told Saihu to guard the house, and took a platter of leftover peanuts and pig's ear. With Xiaobai in tow, he headed toward the cabin on the hill behind the house.

He pulled open the steel-bar door, pushed open the wooden door, and reached out to switch on the light. There before him was the scene of his dreams. He set the platter on the ledge by the glass window on the separate side, took a dozen beers from his space, shut the doors, pulled over a chair, and opened the curtains. Then he sat there, pouring his own drinks and drinking by himself.

Xiaobai had grown quite a bit and could no longer be held in his arms. Like Saihu, Xiaobai lay at his owner's feet. Ye Huan turned off the light and looked at the woods and scattered starlight outside, taking a sip of beer and a bite of meat. It felt so good words could not describe it. It was a pity there was no light rain or snow; that would have made it even better.

Ye Huan had no idea exactly how late he drank. In any case, when he grew tired of drinking, he climbed into bed and went to sleep without even going to cultivate. By the time he woke up, it was already broad daylight outside.

He checked his phone. It was almost nine. He got up, washed, and then took Xiaobai down to have breakfast.

Although it was still summer, the mountain woods were really cool at night, even a little cold. Fortunately, Ye Huan had not opened the doors or windows, and a light blanket had been just right.

Winter would be even better, especially if it snowed. He could light the fireplace and roast a few little sweet potatoes. That feeling, heh...

Ye Huan daydreamed as he walked down the hill, chuckling foolishly.

"Uncle, I want to stay in the mountains, too." When Jingjing saw her uncle return, she hugged his leg and spoke.

"All right, all right. Tonight, Jingjing can stay in the mountains with Uncle." Ye Huan picked up the little girl and smiled.

"Mm-hmm! You're the best, Uncle." Jingjing smiled happily.

Ye Huan had breakfast. His father had gone to deliver vegetables, and his mother and sister-in-law were working in the fields. With nothing to do, Ye Huan took Jingjing and Xiaobai for a stroll around the village and, while he was at it, to check on Jingjing's house. How was the foundation coming along?

Saihu had gone out with Grandpa, which was why Ye Huan wanted one of his puppies to raise himself. Although Saihu obeyed him, Grandpa had raised him. Besides, Ye Huan had given Saihu plenty of Spirit Spring Water, so he would let him stay with Grandpa.

Counting the days, Little Flower was almost due to give birth. Ye Huan was quite looking forward to the puppies. Little Flower was gentle, and Saihu was powerful and imposing. He wondered what their puppies would be like.

Although Xiaobai was good, too, he was a wolf. Besides, Ye Huan still intended to let him go back and inherit his father's property someday, so he did not count Xiaobai as his private property, but as a companion at most.

Dogs were different. That was why, after coming home, Ye Huan had wanted one or two dogs of his own. He had considered buying them online before. German shepherds, border collies-any of those would do.

Later, when he learned Little Flower was pregnant, he gave up on that idea. Chinese rural dogs were good, too: loyal and well-behaved. He had always been very fond of Saihu.

He believed that, nurtured with his Spirit Spring Water, Saihu's puppies would certainly be stronger than their father.

Carrying Jingjing and bringing Xiaobai along, he arrived at the site of Jingjing's house and saw the workers hard at work, the place bustling with activity. They had not expected to land several jobs at once on this trip into the mountains, and everyone was full of drive.

When they had been renovating Ye Huan's house earlier, there had been many restrictions on their working hours, so they had not been able to work freely. Although the family had been very welcoming, people doing this kind of work liked to get it done in one sustained push.

Now things were better. They could finally roll up their sleeves and get to work. This house had three main rooms, three utility rooms, and front and back yards. Even in the countryside, it was no small job. Most importantly, once they finished this house, there was still a two-story house to work on.

The last time Da Huzi came home, worried that Grandpa would begrudge spending money on building a house, he had privately given Ye Huan 200,000 yuan and asked him to help oversee things. If there was anyone in this world he still trusted, it was probably only Brother Huan and Grandpa.