This was a sign of being plagued by bad luck—she was going to die soon!
Startled, she twisted her little neck, looking at this one, then that one.
Finally, she burrowed into Yang Lihua's arms, stretched out her chubby little hand, and waved it over Yang Lihua's head again and again.
Yang Lihua's initial surprise had passed, and she finally noticed her daughter was different from before…
She seemed… more lively!
She tested the waters with a question, "Zhuzhu, are you better? Call for Mama. Say 'Mama.'"
Zhuzhu's curiosity was interrupted, and she pouted her little pink lips in grievance.
But seeing the earnest hope in Yang Lihua's eyes, she answered in her milky, childish voice, "Mama!"
Yang Lihua got her response and went wild with joy.
She opened her mouth to say more, but tears came pouring out first. "Zhuzhu is better! Zhuzhu is better!"
Zhuzhu didn't understand why her human mother was crying, so she quickly pressed her soft, bun-like face against her mother's.
She reached out her little hand, trying hard to wipe away her mother's tears, but the more she wiped, the more they flowed.
The whole family had watched from start to finish and was now completely stirred up.
"Whoa!"
"Wuwu, Zhuzhu is better!"
"My little sister is alive—no, no, my little sister isn't slow anymore!"
"Little sister, I'm your third brother! Say 'third brother,' third brother!"
Zhuzhu mimicked in her milky voice, "Fird bwother~"
From Old Master Tai down to the youngest, Tai Yongyue, everyone was in tears.
But no one had time to wipe their tears away; they all crowded around Zhuzhu, talking nonstop.
The boys were practically rolling on the floor to let out their excitement.
You see, since birth, Zhuzhu had been like a porcelain doll—she could do nothing but swallow.
Everyone in the village urged them to abandon Zhuzhu, but no one in the family could bear to.
No matter what, as long as Zhuzhu was alive, the whole family would take good care of her.
Heaven has eyes!
Who would have thought that with this one knock, Zhuzhu would suddenly become sharp?
"Zhuzhu, I'm your grandpa!"
Old Master Tai was missing half of his left arm. He carefully used his intact right arm to hold his little granddaughter, choked up, and gently tickled her little face with his beard.
Zhuzhu was ticklish and giggled.
Her big eyes curved into crescents, and the little bun on her head swayed back and forth like a leaf—utterly adorable.
Tai Jizu had inherited Old Master Tai's build—very tall—but he was as thin as a bamboo pole.
At this moment, he plucked up the courage to take his daughter from his father's arms. His rough, calloused hand felt her forehead, and finding it not hot, he felt even more at ease.
"Zhuzhu, I'm your daddy. Grow up well from now on—don't be afraid of anything!"
Zhuzhu lay on her daddy's shoulder, listening to him choke up, and her little heart felt warm!
So this is Daddy? So this is home?
How wonderful!
She happily hugged her daddy's face and gave him a big kiss.
Smack!
The soft kiss from his milky-scented little daughter sent Tai Jizu's tears streaming down, but he was afraid of scaring her, so he frantically wiped them away.
"Me too, me too! Zhuzhu, I'm your big brother!"
Tai Yongan was already fourteen. He was even thinner than his father—like a stick.
But his head was big, which made him look a bit comical overall.
He wanted to hold his little sister but didn't dare, so he could only stretch his neck out as far as it would go in desperation.
The third brother, Tai Yonglu, and the fourth brother, Tai Yongyue, were eight or nine years old. Having gone hungry for years, they were very short and small, with big heads and thin little necks. Like mice, they tried desperately to squeeze to the front but were blocked outside.
The two were clever, though. They let out a loud wail, and while everyone was stunned, they finally darted forward.
"Rascals!"
Everyone scolded with laughter.
Just then, Liu Dongniang walked in quickly carrying a clay bowl. "The egg custard is ready—hurry and give Zhuzhu some nourishment!"
Yang Lihua carefully picked up the spoon, avoiding the chipped edge of the bowl, scooped up some egg custard, and brought it to her daughter's lips.
The egg custard had no oil in it, but it was still golden, soft, and tender—looking quite tempting.
Zhuzhu instinctively opened her mouth and gobbled it down in one bite, happily squinting her big eyes.
So yummy!
She tried to lean forward again, wanting more.
Yang Lihua was delighted and quickly sped up her feeding.
"Gururu!" Just as Zhuzhu was happily eating, a stomach rumbled emptily from beside her.
Tai Yonglu and Tai Yongyue each covered their mouths with one hand and their stomachs with the other, their faces flushed red with embarrassment.
"I'm not hungry—I just… I just need to go to the outhouse!"
"Yeah, I'm not hungry either!"
The two boys spoke firmly, but their eyes had a mind of their own, glued to the egg custard and unable to look away.
Old Master Tai's heart ached at the sight.
His two grandsons had grown this old without having eaten more than three eggs in their lives.
Even as hungry as they were, they still didn't fight their little sister for it…
Yang Lihua hesitated, wondering whether to share some with her sons and nephew, but Zhuzhu raised her chubby little hand, scooped up some egg custard, and tried to offer it to her brothers.
Tai Yonglu and Tai Yongyue quickly hid behind their grandfather, only stretching out their skinny little hands to wave frantically.
Yang Lihua's eyes reddened. She quickly fed all the egg custard to her daughter, then handed over the empty bowl.
Only then did Tai Yonglu and Tai Yongyue happily dart out, take the empty bowl, and take turns licking it…
Zhuzhu had never seen anything like this.
Why was she eating egg custard while her brothers had to eat the bowl?!
Old Master Tai, afraid of frightening his granddaughter, quickly went to support his second grandson, Tai Yongning, who had been lingering at the edge, and brought him forward.
Tai Yongning was twelve years old, a head shorter than his elder brother. He wore two layers of old clothes and trousers. Because one leg was disabled, he could barely stand with the aid of a crutch.
Perhaps because he rarely went out, his face was ashen, and his complexion was extremely poor.
He carefully hid his crutch, then raised his hand wanting to hold his little sister, but hesitated.
Zhuzhu blinked her big eyes twice, noticing that the black aura above this brother's head was even denser than that of the rest of the family.
She quickly leaned her chubby little body out of her mother's arms and proactively hugged her brother, pressing close to him.
The soft, tender, gentle touch on his cheek made Tai Yongning's eyes redden, and tears streamed down one after another.
Zhuzhu opened her little mouth in confusion, thought for a moment, then tried hard to nudge her little head under her brother's hand.
Why is brother crying?
Brother, hurry up and pat my head!
She was a Four-leaf Clover Spirit, the luckiest little one.
If he patted her head, everything would get better!
Tai Yongning didn't know his sister's thoughts. Afraid his rough hands would snag her hair, he quickly dodged away.
But Tai Yonglu and Tai Yongyue watched with envious eyes. They threw down their bowls and crowded forward, shouting.
"Little sister, Third Brother will go catch you a fish and make you soup. Let Third Brother pat your head too."
"And me, Fourth Brother wants to pat it too!"
With that, they reached out their hands and quickly tousled their little milk-ball sister's braids into a messy, crooked mess on top of her head.
Yang Lihua quickly swatted away the boys' mischievous hands.
She cradled her daughter protectively in her arms and said, "Alright, don't scare your sister. There are so many people in the family; she'll need a while to get familiar with everyone."
Tai Yonglu and Tai Yongyue let out dry chuckles, then flapped their tattered cotton-padded jackets and ran off.
Yang Lihua wanted to say something, but her arms suddenly grew heavy.
It turned out that the chubby little girl who had been playing just moments ago had fallen asleep in that short span of time.
Her plump cheeks were pressed slightly flat, squeezing her little mouth into a half-open grin, with drool glistening…
Third Master Tai had been standing outside the door listening to the commotion and had nearly been knocked over by the two boys just now.
He laughed and scolded his old brother, "That river outside the village—by summer, even the shrimp have been scooped out clean. In this freezing, snowy weather, where are they going to catch fish?
"Those two little rascals are just daydreaming!"