At the corner of the alley, Feng Wan suddenly stopped and turned to look at Shen Mingzhu.
“Any regrets?”
Shen Mingzhu shook her head vigorously, tears welling up again. “No regrets… He was an idiot, I was scared… I was really scared…”
“Then don’t cry.” Feng Wan roughly wiped her face with her sleeve. “Tears won’t save your life. From today on, your life is in your own hands.”
Shen Mingzhu nodded, sniffling.
Only then did Feng Wan release her tightly clenched left hand—her palm was drenched in cold sweat, and the handle of the kitchen knife was slick with it.
Heaven knew how nervous she had been just now. Although she had the Spatial Dimension as her Golden Finger, she couldn’t just conjure weapons in public. If it had come to a fight, her malnourished body might not have been a match for Shen Baoguo.
Luckily, she had managed to bluff her way through.
Steadying herself, she took Shen Mingzhu’s hand and continued forward. According to the original host’s memories, not far from the textile mill was a large courtyard where an elderly woman lived. She was a kind-hearted old lady, and her children were cadres. They should be able to stay there for the night.
After walking for a while, she found a secluded corner and asked Shen Mingzhu to wait. Pretending to relieve herself, she slipped into the Spatial Dimension.
On the day she transmigrated, she had discovered a faint red birthmark on her left palm. With a single thought, she could enter a massive warehouse filled with supplies she had stockpiled in her previous life while preparing for the Divine Chef competition—rice, flour, grains, oil, meat, eggs, vegetables, seasonings, dried goods, and even complete sets of kitchen utensils and dozens of cookbooks.
Time stood still in the warehouse. Items remained exactly as they were when stored, no matter how long they stayed.
The few things she had scavenged from the Shen family were nothing compared to the supplies in the Spatial Dimension—barely a drop in the bucket. But even a mosquito’s leg had meat on it, and she didn’t want to leave anything for that family.
After storing the items in the Spatial Dimension, she took out two thick cotton coats. When she emerged, Shen Mingzhu was huddled in a corner, hugging her arms and shivering so hard her teeth chattered.
“Let’s go.” Feng Wan draped a cotton coat over her and handed her a water bottle. “Drink some hot water first.”
Shen Mingzhu took it in a daze. The cotton coat was thick and warm, and the hot water seemed to breathe life back into her. She glanced at Feng Wan. With everything so well-prepared, her sister must have planned this long ago. As for herself… she was just someone her sister had taken along on a whim, unable to bear seeing her bullied. Her sister… was a good person.
“Sis, where are we going?”
“Don’t ask.” Feng Wan took a few gulps of hot water herself. “Just follow me.”
Shen Mingzhu didn’t dare say more. With her body warmed and her heart somewhat calmed, the two continued on their way.
After walking for about ten minutes, they finally reached a large courtyard. Feng Wan steadied herself, released Shen Mingzhu’s hand, walked up to the courtyard gate, and knocked.
After a long while, movement came from inside. The door opened a crack, revealing a wrinkled face.
“Hello, Grandma Liu!” Feng Wan forced a pale, humble smile and nodded. “I… I’m the daughter of Shen Baoguo from Workshop Three at the textile mill up ahead. Today, my parents had a fight and kicked my sister and me out. I know your son is a leader and your family are good people. I… I just wanted to ask for a cup of hot water.”
The old woman squinted at her for a long time, then looked at Shen Mingzhu behind her. With a sigh, she opened the door fully.
“Come on in.” She turned and walked inside, her back hunched. “Go sit in the room. I’ll fetch some water. It’s late at night—you two girls shouldn’t be wandering around. There’s an empty room here. If you don’t mind, you can make do for the night?”
“Not at all, not at all. Thank you, Grandma Liu.”
It was clear the old woman had noticed their predicament, though she hadn’t said it outright.
The small courtyard wasn’t large, but it was tidy. The empty room was a bit simple—just a wooden plank bed, a table missing a leg, and two stools. But the window paper was new, and the floor had been swept clean.
“No one lives here,” Grandma Liu said. “Water comes from the public faucet at the alley entrance. The toilet is in the corner of the yard. You can borrow my stove, but I’m only letting you stay for one night.”
Grandma Liu usually had little to do. She had seen Shen Mingzhu before and wasn’t very familiar with Feng Wan, but she had heard some rumors from the textile factory—about a child who had been switched in the countryside being brought back. However, it seemed she had recently been registered to go to the countryside as an educated youth. Otherwise, Grandma Liu wouldn’t have dared to take them in so casually on such a late night.
Feng Wan readily agreed and even pulled Shen Mingzhu to kneel and kowtow to Grandma Liu. The latter was startled—her two sons were successful and held official positions, however small. If word got out that ordinary people were kowtowing to her, what would people think?
Grandma Liu helped them up and gave them another look. “Girls, couples fight at the head of the bed but make up at the foot. It has nothing to do with you younger ones. Still… you should go home.”
Feng Wan nodded with a smile. “Yes, we’ll go back tomorrow. Don’t worry.”
The old woman didn’t ask any more questions, just nodded. “Rest early. If you need anything, let me know. I’ll help if I can.”
The door closed, leaving only the two of them in the room.
Shen Mingzhu sat on the hard plank bed, watching Feng Wan pull things out of her canvas bag—which didn’t look big but seemed capable of producing everything: bedding, a pillow, a thermos flask, an enamel mug, and a pack of noodles.
“Sis,” she finally couldn’t hold back, “you… did you plan this all along?”
Feng Wan paused while making the bed. “Yes,” she said. “From the day they told me to go to the countryside to get married, I knew I couldn’t stay in that house anymore.”
Shen Mingzhu lowered her head. “I’m sorry… if I hadn’t taken your place…”
“It’s not your fault,” Feng Wan interrupted. “Even without you, they would have found some pretty excuse to sell me off. The goods Wang Xiulan brought are about to start a family, and the little bastard she and Shen Baoguo had is about to graduate and look for a job. There’s no room for us.”
After finishing the bed, she turned to look at Shen Mingzhu. “Let me ask you: when you found out they were going to marry you off to that fool half a month ago, why didn’t you run?”
Shen Mingzhu bit her lip, tears welling in her eyes. “I… I didn’t dare… I didn’t know where to go…”
“And now?” Feng Wan stared at her. “Do you regret it? You’ve already run away. My household registration has been transferred anyway, so going to the countryside is inevitable. What about you? What are your plans? If you want to stay in the city, I can take you to the neighborhood committee tomorrow to see if we can figure something out?”