In Yinxing’s simple worldview, if someone gave her food, she had to return the favor and share her food with them as well.
Although everyone didn’t want the child’s food, Yinxing was too enthusiastic and insisted that they take one. Since it wasn’t anything very precious anymore, these uncles, aunts, grandpas, and grandmas each took one or two peanuts.
“Oh my, little girl, you’re really too polite. Then I’ll just taste one.”
“That’s right, that’s right. It’s not easy for a little girl like you either. Look at how skinny you’ve become, you need to eat more.”
“This peanut really is huge…”
Before the grandfather could even finish his sentence, the auntie beside him swatted his arm and glared at him, stopping the rest of his words.
“The little girl gave you food to eat, and it still couldn’t shut your mouth, huh?”
The grandfather chuckled, realizing he had said the wrong thing and feeling a bit embarrassed. “How could that be? I’m just really happy to have something to eat.”
With that, he tossed the peanut into his mouth and chewed it with a loud crunch. The next second, he froze.
Wait, why was such a huge mutated peanut kernel this delicious?
The peanuts with a 28% pollution value he bought last time were not only smaller than this, but their taste was simply incomparable to this peanut!
The auntie sitting next to him looked at his dazed, eating expression and couldn’t help finding it a bit funny.
“Look at you, all excited just over eating a peanut. How did you end up looking like this? So lack-of-class.”
When the grandfather saw her expression, he couldn’t help reaching out his hand toward her. “If you’re not going to eat yours, give it to me, I’ll eat it for you.”
Naturally, the auntie wouldn’t agree. Seeing him act like this clearly meant there was something fishy going on. She swiftly shoved the peanut kernel into her mouth and chewed away.
Mhm!
This peanut is so delicious!
Almost the moment it entered their mouths, everyone on the bus who had received a peanut kernel from Yinxing shared the same thought, their eyes shining as they tasted the wonderful food.
“Little girl, where did you buy this peanut? What’s the pollution value? It really is delicious!”
“Ain’t that the truth? It’s been how many years since I’ve eaten peanuts this good? I almost forgot what peanuts tasted like, but today I remember!”
“Yeah, yeah! Little girl, do you sell this peanut? How much are they per jin?”
An auntie nearby felt a sense of injustice and couldn’t help but interject with a retort, “It’s not like I’m saying anything, but how many peanuts does the little girl even have? You go right ahead and ask her how much they are per jin, isn’t the girl going to eat?”
The person who had just asked the price looked a bit embarrassed. “Look at what you’re saying. I’m not buying many either, I just want to taste them. I saw the little girl still had quite a few, so I wanted to ask if she could spare some. My big grandson hasn’t tasted such normal food since he was born, so I just thought about bringing him some to try.”
As soon as this person finished speaking, it instantly made everyone in the carriage feel the same way. Who didn’t have younger generations in their family?
Especially those born after the catastrophe, who had truly never lived a single normal day. Deep down, the adults felt quite heartbroken for them.
At that moment, they completely forgot what they had been thinking just moments before—that they shouldn’t take things from this little girl.
Of course, Yinxing couldn’t actually sell the things to them. Just purifying that one handful of peanuts had already made her feel somewhat exhausted. If they wanted to buy more? Her little life would probably end right here on the spot.
“Do you guys want to buy them? I bought them for 5 points a jin, but the pollution value is 50%. Are you sure you want them?”
Her words had just fallen when they immediately elicited an astonished cry from the auntie next to her: “What? 50%? How is that possible? A pollution value of 50%, how can this still be eaten?!”
“Yeah, yeah, little girl, don’t lie to us! The ones you just gave us to eat definitely didn’t have a 50% pollution value!”
Yinxing shrugged with a helpless expression, pulling the opening of the peanut bag in front of her a bit wider. “If you don’t believe me, you can taste them again. Only that first handful of peanuts had a low pollution value.”
Someone refused to give up. The grandfather sitting in front of her reached out and took one. “The little girl doesn’t mind grandpa eating another one, right?”
Yinxing nodded very decisively, indicating it was fine to eat.
But the moment he tossed it into his mouth and bit down, the next second brought forth a horrifying sound of vomiting.
“Blech—ptoo ptoo, yue…”
On the face of the auntie behind him was an expression of disbelief, as if she were saying, *Could it really be that exaggerated? Are you trying to trick us?*
“Then should I taste one too?”
Immediately following that, a new round of vomiting sounds rang out. The auntie’s painful expression was as if she had just eaten crap.
At that point, someone grew curious. “Is it really that hard to eat?”
“If you don’t believe it, taste one yourself. Did you really think we’d lie to you?”
They truly had no need to put on an act like this just for a single peanut kernel. They had all watched Yinxing get on the bus alone carrying her back-basket; nobody was her plant or accomplice.
It looked like the little girl had genuinely given them the best-tasting peanuts earlier. When they thought about how the little girl had bought this whole bag of peanuts just for that one handful of good stuff, only to have it eaten by them instead, their hearts felt so guilty.
This little girl’s heart was far too honest and straightforward!!!
Thus, by the time Yinxing got off the bus, the things she was holding in her arms were even more than before.
It was just a few peanut kernels, yet they were traded for so much in return, making her feel a little embarrassed~
By the time she finally managed to walk back home, her whole body was practically exhausted to the point of collapse. She had bought everything else, but she had completely forgotten water, and she was dying of thirst.
The corner of her clothes was hooked by the vines of the little morning glory, as if it were asking her if she was alright.
Yinxing curled the corners of her lips, raised a hand to stroke its leaves, and couldn’t help sighing, “I’m alright. Thanks for guarding the house, nobody came by, right?”
The little morning glory stretched out its vines and wrapped around her fingertips, as if saying it had guarded the house well and asking to be praised right now. “Little flower is amazing, I’ll reward you later. Let me get something to eat first, otherwise I really won’t make it.”
She grabbed a small handful of peanut kernels, purified them slightly, and shoved them into her mouth. While her head spun, she desperately stuffed things into her mouth until her stomach was filled to the brim and her head felt all woozy.
Mustering up her last shred of energy, she unfolded the folding army cot she bought today. Ignoring everything else, she lay down on it and fell asleep the moment her head hit the pillow.
For so many days, she finally had a proper bed!
She slept deeply this time, all the way until dusk fell, completely unaware when someone arrived outside.
She truly had no idea what she had done all day today, where she had gone, or that it was all under someone’s control.
Ever since she returned from the market, she had stayed inside the whole time without a single sound or movement. This inevitably made people suspect that something might have happened to her inside the room.
When Ling Xiao appeared, there was no sound at all. It wasn’t until he drew close that the little morning glory sensed something was wrong. Its vines instantly grew very thick and highly aggressive. The upright branches and leaves stood high like an arrow about to leave the string, and its target was the man walking closer and closer.
“Little thing, not scared anymore?”
His fingertips were wrapped with silver-purple lightning. Although it was only a tiny, thin streak, the violent energy made the little morning glory lose its nerve.
It remembered now: why was this terrifying man back again?