Volume One, Chapter 20: Many Have Frozen to Death; Send Over Quilts

The tone was like a flower bud blooming in the midst of winter, revealing new life.

“Qin Fan! Whatever you need, or whatever you want, I can find it for you,” said Wan’er Dongfang with righteous conviction, her voice filled with unwavering determination.

“Wan’er, are the people you want to save somehow connected to you?” Qin Fan asked, having some knowledge of Wan’er Dongfang’s identity. She was supposed to be a special forces soldier of their era, so logically, she shouldn’t have so many emotional ties.

“Actually... the reason I’m staying here is because there are people closely connected to me. They’re not my family, but they’ve surpassed family,” Wan’er Dongfang revealed. “Now, with the heavy snow and the frozen earth, I want to save them.”

“I see,” Qin Fan nodded, finally understanding. He hadn’t expected Wan’er to be so sentimental, willing to go to such lengths for a group of unrelated people.

“Don’t worry, Wan’er. The clothing issue is just a small problem. Give me a few days, and I’ll prepare everything you need,” Qin Fan assured her.

...

Qin Fan pondered all night.

In this blazing summer, wanting to buy quilts was difficult. He hadn’t seen any place selling quilts or padded clothes.

Early the next morning.

“Brother Fan, get up! Breakfast is ready!” Qin Yao called early from outside his room.

“Alright! Coming right now.”

At the dining table.

Qin Fan was still thinking about where to buy enough quilts.

“Hey! Dad, do you know where to get good quilts?” Qin Fan asked, still unfamiliar with this.

“Quilts? What’s the matter? It’s only June. Are you already preparing for winter?” Qin Yong looked at him.

“Yes! Little Fan, it’s not even cold yet, and you want to buy quilts? Besides, we already have quilts at home!” Li Ping was also puzzled.

“Brother Fan, are you really buying quilts?” Qin Yao asked.

“Yes, but not for me—it’s for my friend,” Qin Fan explained.

“Is your friend really that afraid of the cold?” Qin Yao asked.

“No, it’s just early preparation for winter,” Qin Fan smiled awkwardly.

“I see. But quilts are something we don’t really have access to; they’re usually made within the village,” Li Ping said.

“Brother Fan! I know where you can buy! And you can buy a lot of quilts there!” Qin Yao said, putting down her chopsticks.

“Really? Little Yao, are you sure?” Qin Fan wasn’t doubting her, but she was quite young.

“Really! My classmate’s family sells quilts. I heard his dad makes five or six thousand yuan a month from it. Besides, their cotton is the best in all of China, grown right in Luo Province,” she said.

...

Although Qin Fan wasn’t sure if Qin Yao was telling the truth, Luo Province was indeed known for having the best cotton in China.

It might be true what his cousin said. Suddenly, Qin Fan thought it might take only one day to prepare warm clothing for Wan’er.

“Cousin! If your classmate really sells quilts and can supply me with a large quantity, I’ll buy you a phone as a reward,” Qin Fan said, relieved to have found a source. Online options weren’t practical—good ones were hard to maintain, and cheap ones didn’t last.

Quilts straight from the factory had to be better.

“Brother Fan! But it’s vacation now, and they’re in the city. I’ll have to wait until school starts to contact them!” Qin Yao said.

“School? That’s too late!” Qin Fan frowned. He needed them soon, and in large quantities. By the time school started, thousands might have already died on Wan’er’s side. This worried him deeply.

“But Brother Fan, I think he left me a phone number, saying I could call if I wanted to visit him in the city.”

“Phone number!”

“Yes!”

Qin Fan nearly forgot. Business dealings always required a phone.

Qin Yao handed him the number.

“Little Yao, you really are my lucky star!” Qin Fan said, taking the phone and dialing the number. He soon reached the father of the child.

...

“Mm-hmm, yes! I need a large number of quilts. If you give me a 30% discount, I can buy 500 pieces from you,” Qin Fan said.

“What? 500 pieces!” The middle-aged man on the other end was stunned. He had been struggling to sell his quilts, so an order this large was a godsend.

“Boss! No! Sir, are you sure you want 500 quilts? It’s still summer,” Wang Defa asked cautiously, unable to believe it. Such a large order was no small matter.

“Of course! I definitely want them. And I’m telling you, I might need even more in the future. If you don’t believe me, fine. I know many quilt factories. If it weren’t for my cousin saying yours is the best, I wouldn’t have called. My friend needs only the finest quilts,” Qin Fan said firmly.

“Well...” Could this really be a big client? Missing this opportunity would mean losing tens of thousands of yuan.

Wang Defa clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.

“Alright! Sir, I can deliver 500 quilts for you. But such a large order—you know how business is. What if...”

“I understand. I can give you a deposit first. Two hundred yuan per quilt, so for 500 quilts that’s 100,000 yuan. I’ll give you 40,000 yuan now and the rest when the goods arrive, how about that?”

“40,000 yuan!” Wang Defa was shocked. Usually, the deposit for 500 quilts wouldn’t exceed 10,000 yuan, and here the buyer was offering 40,000.

“Alright, alright!”

Soon after, Qin Fan added him on WeChat and transferred 40,000 yuan directly to his account.

“Sir, I’ll start preparing the quilts immediately. You’ll have them in two days.”

...

“Little Fan, you just gave 40,000 yuan at once!” Li Ping said worriedly.

“Yes! Although this person is known to Yao, isn’t that too much? People’s hearts are mysterious. This isn’t like our village. If this person runs off, 40,000 yuan will be lost,” Qin Yong said, feeling his son was not cautious enough.

Qin Yao suddenly felt guilty.

“Brother Fan... I...”

“Ah, Dad, Mom, there’s no problem with the deposit. It’s just 40,000 yuan! Besides, once the money’s paid, he can’t run off easily. It’s not easy to find someone these days. We can just report to the police if needed. Don’t think I’m stupid—I recorded all our calls,” Qin Fan said.

Of course, Qin Fan wouldn’t just hand over 40,000 yuan without precautions. If the man ran off, he’d be the big loser.

“Alright, Little Yao, you did great. Looks like the quilt problem is solved. Dad, Mom, today is your last day of exams. Go get your driver’s licenses, and after that, we’ll go eat something good to celebrate. The Seven-Star District just opened several new places—fried chicken, lamb noodles, and even a buffet.”

“Alright, since you said so, as your father, I definitely want to treat you well,” Li Ping said.

“That’s right, Little Fan, I want to enjoy a good meal with you too,” Qin Yong added.

“Little Yao, once you change your clothes, come with us to the city,” Qin Fan said.

Qin Yao shook her head.

“I’d rather study some more! I want to get into a good school so I can repay Brother Fan someday.”

Qin Fan knew her temperament.

“Hey! What’s the point of not coming? I’m your brother, and if I don’t treat you well, I’m not worthy of being your brother.”

“Here!” Qin Fan pulled out a bag from behind him, on which was written ‘Fierce Girl.’

“This dress is for you. I don’t know if it’ll fit, Little Yao, but you should try it on.”

“For me?” Looking at the sky-blue dress, Qin Yao was excited, but then quickly calmed down.

“Brother Fan, I can’t keep taking your things. I can’t just accept gifts for no reason. Besides, I know this brand—it costs at least a few hundred yuan.”

Qin Fan really wanted to scold the Qin family for how they had raised Qin Yao.

“Little Yao, I’m your brother. Buying you clothes is only natural. If you refuse, it means you don’t respect me as your brother.”

“That’s right! Little Yao, we even bought you new shoes!” Li Ping pulled out a brand-new pair of sneakers. The cute pair instantly won over Qin Yao.

But within moments, tears welled up in her eyes.

“Thank you... Uncle, Aunt, Brother Fan.”

“Little Yao, no matter what others say, to me, you’re my real sister,” Li Ping said, holding her close.

“Yeah! If we had the money back then, we would have adopted you. Now Qin Yong took you away and made you suffer.”

Li Ping’s heart ached as he embraced her.

“Alright, no more crying over good days. Change into your new clothes and we’ll go out to eat as a family of four!”

Qin Fan laughed heartily.

Hearing “family of four” warmed Qin Yao’s heart. At Qin Yong’s house, she often ate alone outside.

“Little Yao, go change into your new clothes!”

“Okay!”