“You, honestly, don’t we have meat at home? Why did you have to provoke Lan Sisi and her brother? Now look, you fell, didn’t you?” Lan Aijun complained while applying medicine to Yu Shi.
“I didn’t fall on my own, that little wretch kicked me!”
“She’s that small and you’re that big. You think she could kick you? Besides, there isn’t even a footprint on you. You are not even telling me the truth,” Lan Aijun said, clearly unconvinced.
Yu Shi felt wronged to the point of tears. Lan Sisi had used the top of her foot to kick her, so of course there was no mark left behind. Why was it so hard for her to tell the truth?
…
After returning home, Lan Sisi cleaned the pig intestines. The smell drove Lan Sinian and Lin Ruihai far away, but Lan Sisi did not mind. Soon enough, those two would know just how delicious it was.
After the intestines were cleaned, half were stir-fried over high heat, while the other half were braised with various spices. The aroma in the air was overwhelmingly rich, and both Lan Sinian and Lin Ruihai could not help swallowing their saliva.
Once the intestines were served on the table, the two of them felt as if their faces were being slapped repeatedly. It was simply too delicious.
The bowl of intestines that had been given to Aunt Sun’s family was also eaten clean, to the point that Aunt Sun later came to ask how it had been made, though that was a matter for later.
Back in the farm, Lan Sisi harvested a large amount of cotton.
The soft, fluffy white cotton was thrown into the textile machine. After selecting the form and choosing quilts, she waited a few minutes, and two brand-new cotton quilts were produced. They were still slightly warm to the touch. The outer covers came with the machine, made of soft fabric that felt like touching a cloud. Lan Sisi could already imagine how comfortable it would be to sleep under such quilts.
Lan Sinian had already grown accustomed to the things Lan Sisi occasionally took out, while Lin Ruihai was still kept in the dark. After all, he was an outsider whose background was unknown. No matter how good-looking he was, Lan Sisi would not lower her guard.
Even so, she still spent money to buy him a cotton quilt and a set of new clothes.
Lin Ruihai touched the soft quilt and the new clothes, a smile appearing at the corner of his lips. Then he took out a letter from beneath his pillow. It had been sent by a friend. As expected, they all believed he was dead, and that person had taken over his family’s business under the pretense of acting in his place. Fortunately, he had sensed something wrong in advance and had entrusted some important things to his friend for safekeeping.
His friend advised him to avoid the situation for now and recover his strength. Once enough evidence had been gathered, it would be time for him to return.
Lin Ruihai gave a bitter smile. His injuries had mostly healed, but he found himself growing increasingly attached to this peaceful life. He had not even told Lan Sisi and her brother that he had recovered, just to stay a little longer. However, this could not continue indefinitely. After some thought, he picked up a pen and wrote a letter to his friend.
No matter how complicated everyone’s thoughts were, New Year’s Eve still arrived as scheduled. Following the customs from her previous life, Lan Sisi prepared fried meatballs in advance, cured some preserved meat, and used animals and crops from her farm to cook a full twelve dishes. There were both fish and meat, with excellent color, aroma, and taste, and the entire house was filled with the fragrance of food.
Lan Sinian pasted Spring Festival couplets on the front door, while Lin Ruihai cleaned the house thoroughly. On the first day of the new year, sweeping was not allowed, as it would sweep away wealth.
Once the dishes were set on the table, Lan Sisi took out fresh fruit juice made from farm fruits and poured a cup for each of them.
“Happy New Year.”
“Happy New Year.”
“Happy New Year.”
The three porcelain cups clinked together in midair, carrying their good wishes.
Laughter filled the house. Lin Ruihai felt completely relaxed, both physically and mentally. He did not know why, but as long as he was in this home, he felt especially at ease.
There was no television at this time, and naturally no Spring Festival Gala to watch. Lan Sinian pulled Lan Sisi out into the courtyard to set off fireworks bought from the town. Under the dim moonlight, the glow of the fireworks illuminated her smiling face, which seemed even more dazzling than the fireworks themselves.
Lin Ruihai did not even notice that his gaze had been following Lan Sisi the entire time. The smile in his eyes lost its distance and became softer.
At this time, in the Lan family’s old house, everyone also sat together, but the dishes were much more modest. There were eight dishes in total, six of which were vegetarian, and the only two meat dishes contained just a few slices of meat.
Liu Guihua first picked a few slices for her two grandsons, then gave two slices each to her two sons, and finally took one slice each for Lan Tianzhu and herself. There was almost no meat left in the bowl.
“Didn’t we just divide meat? Why didn’t you cook more? It’s the New Year, Meili and Hehua haven’t even had any yet,” Lan Tianzhu asked with a frown as he looked at his two granddaughters.
Yu Shi was also somewhat dissatisfied. They only ate meat once a year, and each time she could only have some meat broth. However, seeing that her son had gotten meat, she felt slightly better.
“What meat do girls need? It’s a waste. The remaining meat can be preserved. Junsheng and Guangming can eat it for several more meals. And Hehua is in town, do you think the factory would let her go without meat? Just eat your food. Even meat can’t shut your mouth,” Liu Guihua rolled her eyes.
The kitchen key was in her hands, so she alone decided what could be eaten. Lan Tianzhu sighed and said nothing more.
Everyone else silently ate the food in their bowls, as if they were used to it. No one felt that anything was wrong. Lan Hehua indeed had not lacked meat, and she had grown increasingly disdainful of Liu Guihua’s bland cooking. She kept thinking about the meal the director had treated her to, something called steak, a foreign dish, and how delicious it had been.
Lan Meili lowered her head and took a bite of cabbage that still carried an earthy taste, resentment building in her heart.
Early the next morning, Lan Sisi got up early to make tangyuan, filling them with sesame and peanuts, sweet and fragrant.
After breakfast, Lan Sisi also wrapped ten yuan in red paper as a red envelope for Lan Sinian. He grinned widely, showing his bright white teeth. Seeing this, Lin Ruihai also wrapped one, also ten yuan.
Lan Sinian took the red envelopes and ran out the door, eager to show them off to his friends. Only now had he shed his premature maturity and begun to resemble a child again.
It was originally a day for visiting others to give New Year greetings, but she did not want to go to the Lan family’s old house. Her mother had come to Chaoyang Village after being separated from her family during a time of hardship, so there were no maternal relatives to visit either. In the end, she took some gifts and went with Lan Sinian to visit Aunt Sun’s house next door, as well as the Village Chief’s home and Principal Zhong’s home.
On the way back, Lan Sisi saw someone kneeling in front of a house from a distance.
“That’s Zhao Laidi,” Lan Sinian said softly.
“Don’t kneel at the door. Get lost. So unlucky. I told you I have no money!” The person who came out was Hong Xiulian’s mother-in-law. She cursed as she spoke, spat near Zhao Laidi’s feet, and then shut the door.
Lan Sisi frowned and quickly walked over. In such cold weather, Zhao Laidi was dressed in thin clothing and kneeling on the icy ground, her body swaying as if she might collapse at any moment.
“Why are you kneeling here? Get up!” Lan Sisi and Lan Sinian worked together to help her up.
“Sister Sisi… save… save my mother. She’s sick, she’s almost dying,” Zhao Laidi said with great effort.
Lan Sinian carried Zhao Laidi on his back, and the group hurried to the address she gave. It was a dilapidated house, with wind leaking in from all sides. The interior was freezing. Hong Xiulian lay on a wooden plank bed without any padding, covered by a thin quilt. Her face had an unnatural flush, and when Lan Sisi touched her forehead, it was burning hot.
Lan Sisi made a quick decision. She went out briefly, took new cotton quilts and clothes from her storage, and first had Zhao Laidi put them on. Then she covered Hong Xiulian with a thick quilt. After that, she sent Lan Sinian to borrow the Village Chief’s tractor and to call Lin Ruihai, who was staying at home.
Zhao Laidi did not even have time to refuse before she was forced into the cotton clothes. When she hesitated to wear them, Lan Sisi only said one sentence, “If something happens to you, what will your mother do?”
Zhao Laidi silently put on the clothes. Warmth instantly wrapped around her, making her feel so overwhelmed that she almost wanted to cry.
“While they are not here yet, tell me what happened. It’s the New Year, why are you and your mother not at home, but in this broken house?”
Zhao Laidi fell silent for a moment before slowly speaking.
It turned out they had been driven out by Zhao Fugui and Hong Xiulian’s mother-in-law. The reason was that Zhao Fugui had brought the young widow home and acted intimately with her right in front of Hong Xiulian. He even dreamed of enjoying both women at once. Naturally, Hong Xiulian refused and made a scene, but as a woman, she was quickly subdued by Zhao Fugui. In the end, she was driven out. With nowhere to go, the mother and daughter moved into this long-abandoned house in the village. However, the house was too dilapidated to block out the howling wind, and combined with Hong Xiulian’s emotional exhaustion, she eventually fell ill.
The two of them had been cast out with almost nothing. They had no money to seek medical treatment. Hong Xiulian was proud and refused to let Zhao Laidi go beg that family, but after several days of illness with no improvement, her condition worsened. Eventually, she no longer even had the strength to speak.
Zhao Laidi grew anxious and finally decided to go beg Zhao Fugui. She knocked on the door for a long time, but the one who opened it was the young widow, dressed in her mother’s clothes, her belly slightly swollen and her complexion rosy. Thinking of her own mother, Zhao Laidi felt grief surge within her.
“Xiaofang, who is it? It’s cold outside, don’t let the child in your belly get chilled,” her grandmother’s voice came from inside, gentle in a way Zhao Laidi had never heard before.
“Mother, Laidi is here,” the young widow said with a roll of her eyes, clearly displeased to see her.
Hong Xiulian’s mother-in-law’s face darkened when she saw her. Upon hearing her purpose, she immediately tried to drive her away. In her desperation, Zhao Laidi dropped to her knees with a thud, but the people inside turned a blind eye. Hong Xiulian’s mother-in-law even found her presence unlucky.
From beginning to end, Zhao Fugui never showed himself, as if this daughter and his former wife were complete strangers to him, their lives and deaths having nothing to do with him. It was cold-blooded to a terrifying degree.
Inside the house, the coquettish voice of the young widow could be heard, along with Hong Xiulian’s mother-in-law’s laughter and Zhao Fugui’s satisfied chatter. They sounded like a harmonious family of three.
For a moment, Zhao Laidi’s thoughts were in turmoil. Combined with the freezing cold, she had nearly fainted when she encountered Lan Sisi and her brother.