The conversation concluded amidst the steady rhythm of the night rain.
Deep into the early morning hours, Liang Xiaoqing drifted into a deep sleep, her body naturally gravitating toward Jiang Xu to absorb the shared warmth between them.
The heavy quilt layered on top was substantial and pressed down snugly. Liang Xiaoqing tucked the corners tightly beneath herself, preventing a single draft of cold air from infiltrating the bedding.
When she finally blinked awake, her entire body was pleasantly warm—even her feet, which were usually the hardest part of her body to heat up, were radiating heat.
A chorus of chirping birds drifted in from outside the window, and the blinding intensity of the morning light forced Liang Xiaoqing to pry her eyes open.
With her hair in a messy tangle, she felt around for her glasses and slid them onto her bridge. Her vision shifted from a hazy blur into sharp focus, revealing Jiang Xu lying face-to-face with her. They were resting remarkably close, and more importantly, Jiang Xu was already awake.
The freshly awakened young girl had rosy cheeks and wide, luminous eyes. Her long, thick eyelashes fluttered continuously with every blink, framing dark, ink-black pupils that mirrored her own sleepy reflection.
“You’re awake, Teacher Liang.”
Warm breath brushed gently against her face, accompanied by a raspy, delicate undertone in her voice.
“Ah…” Liang Xiaoqing instantly snapped awake, bolting upright as she noticed the bright daylight flooding the room outside.
Bathed in the morning light after the overnight storm, the leaves of the pomelo tree outside the window shone with a vibrant, glistening green, and the sun already hung high in the sky, filtering its rays through the dense foliage.
She rubbed her disheveled hair, sitting in a daze for a moment before the memories of yesterday came rushing back. Before she could speak, however, Jiang Xu crawled out from under the covers like a little caterpillar.
“The early bird gets the worm,” she murmured smoothly. With practiced efficiency, she put on her clothes, hopped out of bed, slipped on her shoes, and stood waiting by the bedside.
She was so small, standing there with an air of absolute obedience. A ray of sunlight slanting through the window caught her shoulders, illuminating the lingering warmth-induced blush on her cheeks. In that quiet moment, Jiang Xu finally looked her age.
“Teacher Liang, are you going to sleep a bit longer?”
Leaning against the edge of the bed, she lightly touched the topmost quilt. “If not, we should fold the bedding and take it back to Mom.”
“Oh…”
Being questioned like that by a young girl made Liang Xiaoqing’s face heat up. It wasn’t anyone’s fault except that Jiang Xu spoke with the poised maturity of a miniature adult, inadvertently making Liang Xiaoqing feel like the irresponsible one.
Scrambling out of bed in a fluster, Liang Xiaoqing tried to salvage whatever dignity remained of her “good teacher” persona by smoothing down her hair and pulling her riding-up hem back into place. However, because she had slept fully clothed, one of her denim trouser legs had hiked up above her ankle while the other remained down.
It was the first time she had ever appeared so unkempt in front of a student—an image that hardly projected authoritative dignity. Straightening her expression to look more serious, Liang Xiaoqing bent over near the edge of the bed, hooking her left leg as she reached down to unroll her pant leg.
Just like the night before, her short top crept upward once more, exposing a sliver of creamy, slender waist.
Jiang Xu blinked twice, quickly shifting her gaze toward the pomelo tree outside the window.
Several pomelo trees grew right in the muddy courtyard. They were hardy and easy to maintain, and in a few weeks when they fruited, there would be pomelos to eat.
Just like Jiang Xu herself.
Jiang Dagao always said she was easy to raise; as long as you threw her a scrap of food, she’d survive.
A humble sapling that had somehow grown into a sturdy tree, sheltering this ramshackle mud house built years ago.
Jiang Xu tried to imagine what she would look like one day when she finally grew full, protective wings of her own.
Gazing quietly at the faint morning light in the distance, she politely kept her eyes away from Liang Xiaoqing. It wasn’t until Liang Xiaoqing finished adjusting her pants that Jiang Xu walked over to the corner of the bed to fold the blankets.
Yet Liang Xiaoqing was not someone easily ignored. Slipping into the outer jacket she had used to dry Jiang Xu’s hair yesterday, she looked down at the girl’s profile with a puzzled expression.
Jiang Xu turned her head slightly, meeting her gaze.
Hesitating for a second, Liang Xiaoqing finally spoke up: “The weather is getting colder by the day. What are you going to do if I take the quilt back?”
Based on everything she had witnessed last night, Liang Xiaoqing could easily guess that Jiang Xu’s status in the household wasn’t high. Still, Wang Cai’s heartfelt words earlier had moved her quite a bit; even if Wang Cai couldn’t call all the shots, surely she wouldn’t truly mistreat Jiang Xu over small domestic necessities.
“If I don’t bring the quilt back, Jiang Dagao will beat me.”
Hearing those words, the fragile spark of hope that had just ignited in Liang Xiaoqing’s chest plummeted right back down. She felt as though she had said the wrong thing, completely at a loss for how to comfort the young girl’s heavily burdened heart.
Silently, Liang Xiaoqing stepped forward to help Jiang Xu fold the quilt. Neither of them spoke a word as the room fell into a heavy silence.
Once the bedding was neatly folded, Jiang Xu whom Liang Xiaoqing already privately regarded as a stubborn little vault of secrets picked up the quilt, which looked larger than she was, and headed toward the door. Watching her, a sudden surge of emotion stirred in Liang Xiaoqing’s chest.
“Jiang Xu.”
She called out to stop her.
Jiang Xu paused in her tracks. Liang Xiaoqing walked over, took the bedding from the girl’s arms, and carried it right back to the bed.
Following her steps back, Jiang Xu tilted her head in quiet confusion.
With a soft smile, Liang Xiaoqing instinctively reached out to ruffle her hair. The present-day Jiang Xu was painfully thin and short, standing roughly around the height of her chest.
“Wait a second,” she said, looking down as she unhooked the hair tie from her wrist and looped it around her fingers. She always kept a small comb tucked inside her jacket pocket. She had Jiang Xu stand with her back to her. “Let me brush your hair. It’s a bit tangled.”
With that, she gently ran the small comb through Jiang Xu’s hair from top to bottom.
Jiang Xu’s hair texture wasn’t the best, but fortunately, it didn’t tangle too badly, and the strands caught a faint shimmer in the sunlight.
Wrapping the hair tie around her fingers twice, she secured it neatly in Jiang Xu’s hair. Jiang Xu cooperated completely without fidgeting, allowing even a simple ponytail to turn out remarkably well-done. Liang Xiaoqing assumed her own hair-styling skills had improved, completely unaware that it was simply because Jiang Xu had such a well-rounded head shape that any hairstyle looked good on her.
“All done.” Liang Xiaoqing gave Jiang Xu’s ponytail a playful tug and nodded in satisfaction. “You’re a big girl now, you know. You’ve got to take good care of your appearance.”
Teasing her gently, she scooped up the bedding from the edge of the bed and headed for the door. By the time she reached the top of the stairs, Jiang Xu, who had been standing there in a daze, finally snapped out of it and followed behind her at an unhurried pace.
Something felt very strange about the house today.
When Jiang Xu stepped out, Liang Xiaoqing and Wang Cai had already finished talking. Even stranger still, Wang Cai was insisting that Liang Xiaoqing stay and have breakfast before leaving.
Wang Cai was never one to make a fuss; whatever Jiang Dagao forbade, she absolutely never did. Even as Jiang Xu’s mother, she had no power to change that reality.
Liang Xiaoqing’s arrival at their house had already deeply displeased Jiang Dagao, so it made no sense why Wang Cai was trying so hard to keep her. And Liang Xiaoqing that perpetually empathetic teacher was being just as stubbornly persistent about staying.
“Sister Wang, you really shouldn’t have. I can manage just fine on my own.”
“Teacher Liang, you’re our guest. Just have a seat.”
“…”
Downstairs, the two women exchanged polite pleasantries over serving the food. Jiang Xu descended the stairs in silence, the creaking, groaning steps making quite a racket. Liang Xiaoqing looked up toward the staircase and greeted her with a smile.
“Jiang Xu.”
The teacher who had looked so unkempt just a short while ago had transformed entirely after a simple freshening-up, radiating a vibrant, professional teacher’s aura once more. More importantly, her cheeks held a healthy flush. Without a speck of makeup, she looked clean and elegant, her eyes curving into sweet crescents when she smiled.
Gazing at the female teacher who seemed so entirely out of place in her home, Jiang Xu’s mind was racing, deep in thought. She wondered when Liang Xiaoqing would finally have to leave.
Jiang Dagao’s uncompromising attitude had made everything abundantly clear, and Wang Cai was powerless to resist him.
For Liang Xiaoqing, this was bound to be an extremely thorny predicament.
Yet looking at Liang Xiaoqing’s captivating, bright smile, Jiang Xu kept her thoughts to herself and remained silent.
Reaching the bottom of the stairs, she instinctively turned her steps toward the kitchen out of habit. The family raised a few pigs, which served as one of their primary sources of livelihood. With Jiang Lun still away at university, the sheer weight of his tuition alone was enough to crush Jiang Dagao.
Ever since she could remember, the moment Jiang Xu opened her eyes in the morning, her first task was always to check if the pigs needed feeding. Since Wang Cai did all the household chores entirely by herself, cooking breakfast and preparing pig swill in the morning was a massive undertaking. Sometimes, when Wang Cai was run ragged with exhaustion, Jiang Xu, as one of the household’s children, had to learn to shoulder the responsibility. Over time, feeding the pigs had naturally become her duty.
Her first task upon waking up every day was to head straight to the large iron pot in the kitchen to scoop out the feed. On top of that, she had overslept today; she risked getting an earful of abuse from Jiang Dagao, and Wang Cai would inevitably suffer alongside her. If Jiang Dagao didn’t take his anger out on Jiang Xu, he would use Wang Cai as his punching bag.
Three bowls of thin rice porridge sat on a wobbly wooden table that Jiang Dagao had cobbled together himself years ago.
The rich, comforting aroma of rice drifted past Jiang Xu’s nose on wisps of steam, bringing out the natural fragrance of grain cooked over firewood. Jiang Xu’s small nose twitched as she glanced at the table and discovered that, alongside the three bowls of porridge, two extra dishes had been set out: a plate of steamed buns, a bamboo sieve full of pan-fried flatbreads, and a large bowl holding several steaming, roasted sweet potatoes.
Rural folk were known for their simple hospitality, and guests were always treated to the best food available. It was just a pity that Jiang Xu’s family was desperately poor.
Even when bringing out the most lavish food they could muster to host a guest, it still looked rather meager.
Wang Cai wore an apron tied around her waist, her sleeves rolled up high, and even her hair was combed back with absolute neatness.
She walked over, pulled Jiang Xu toward the dining table, and sat her down on the same long wooden bench beside Liang Xiaoqing.
Wang Cai sat on the opposite side.
Looking down at the rice porridge in her bowl, which was visibly thicker than usual, Jiang Xu noticed how the food on the table emitted a purer, richer fragrance the closer she got. Just looking at this simple spread was enough for Jiang Xu to imagine how ungodly early Wang Cai must have gotten up to prepare it.
“Let’s eat first, Jiang Xu.”
Wang Cai urged Jiang Xu with a gentle smile, then motioned for Liang Xiaoqing to dig in as well.
Liang Xiaoqing nodded and picked up a steamed bun, placing it into Jiang Xu’s bowl. “Listen to your mother.”
Wang Cai glanced at Jiang Xu and said, “Your dad already went out to the fields, and I’ve already fed the pigs. Eat while it’s hot, and eat your fill.”
Jiang Dagao had once cursed Jiang Xu as an ungrateful wretch because she rarely cried, rarely smiled, and wasn’t close to Wang Cai—a cold-hearted wolf cub that could never be truly tamed. Because of that, he would beat and scold her with ruthless severity.
Whenever he beat her, Wang Cai would stand off to the side, her body trembling as she watched through her tears. Only after Jiang Dagao’s temper had flared out would she come over to check on her.
In this household, Jiang Dagao was supreme, followed closely by her older brother, Jiang Lun.
Deep wrinkles lined Wang Cai’s face. Jiang Xu watched as those faint creases stretched all the way up to Wang Cai’s silver-threaded temples.
She murmured a soft “okay” and quietly began to eat.
As she ate, she listened to the casual chat between Wang Cai and Liang Xiaoqing, while simultaneously dreading the mountain of backbreaking chores Jiang Dagao was bound to dump on her once she headed out to the fields later.
Wang Cai’s cooking was actually quite good; Jiang Xu ended up polishing off two large steamed buns and a flatbread in one go. Even Liang Xiaoqing ate more than usual, repeatedly praising Wang Cai’s culinary skills.
Ever since she had dropped out of school, her days were meant to drag on in this dead, stagnant way, and Jiang Xu sometimes wondered what her future would possibly look like. But looking at Wang Cai’s current state, she couldn’t even muster a single fantasy about tomorrow.
She never expected that the one to shatter this stagnant peace would be the teacher she had barely crossed paths with.
After breakfast, Wang Cai pulled Jiang Xu up to her dilapidated little room and packed a few of her clothes into a bundle.
Wiping her reddened eyes, Wang Cai pressed a cloth pouch into her hands. “Good girl, don’t blame Mom.”
From that moment on, Jiang Xu felt completely in a fog.
At an hour when she should have already been out working in the fields, Wang Cai didn’t urge her to leave at all. Instead, she kept showering Liang Xiaoqing with expressions of gratitude and parting requests.
The sun hung high in the sky, turning the brilliant blue expanse into something resembling a flawless sapphire dotted with a few lazy, drifting clouds.
Before Jiang Xu could wrap her head around what was happening, her hand was caught in Liang Xiaoqing’s warm grip as they walked down the potholed, muddy mountain path, crossed Shuiqing Bridge, and traveled smoothly from one side of the Shuiqing River to the other.
The rugged, winding mountain trail gradually gave way to a wider, flatter road, and the number of pedestrians steadily increased. Passersby would occasionally call out a cheerful greeting to Liang Xiaoqing: “Teacher Liang!”
Still in a daze, Jiang Xu saw a neat, expansive building loom into view ahead. Its pale gray walls bore the bold characters “Shuiqing Middle School.” Peeking inside from the outside, she could see the concrete sports yard and a fluttering red flag atop a tall flagpole. Jiang Xu had once run across that very ground.
However, their destination wasn’t the school. After walking a bit further with Liang Xiaoqing’s hand still firmly holding hers, they passed by lush, green trees and rows of buildings, finally coming to a halt in front of a structure tucked away at the very end of the complex. An iron gate painted in faded, chipped green opened up to reveal a moderately sized concrete courtyard. Two towering cypress trees stood sentinel on either side of the yard, growing taller and grander than the pomelo tree back at home.
Sunlight dappled the ground in shifting patterns of light and shadow, swaying gently in the breeze. Jiang Xu gazed up at the three-story building in front of her. Its exterior had once been painted green, but like the iron gate, the paint had weathered, faded, and peeled away in patches.
The green iron gate creaked as it was pushed open, and someone emerged from inside—a stylishly dressed woman in her early thirties. Looking at Liang Xiaoqing, she laughed and said, “Xiaoqing, you’re back! The rain was pouring down so hard last night, and since you weren’t around, I was worried sick…”
Liang Xiaoqing smiled back. “Sister Man, I’m a grown adult, what could possibly happen to me?”
Yang Man walked closer, glanced at Jiang Xu, and shook her head with a light chuckle. “You, honestly…”
Jiang Xu recognized her. She was her former homeroom teacher from when she still attended school.
After exchanging a few casual words, Yang Man clicked her way briskly up the stairs in her low heels.
Watching her disappear into the stairwell, Liang Xiaoqing turned around, bent down slightly so she was at eye level with Jiang Xu, and looked right into her eyes.
The walk down the mountain had left Jiang Xu’s back slick with sweat, and her palm was damp where Liang Xiaoqing held it.
Dappled sunlight fell across Liang Xiaoqing’s face. Because they were face-to-face at eye level, Jiang Xu could see her features with absolute clarity.
Liang Xiaoqing looked warm as well, a thin layer of perspiration glistening on her temples. That pretty face, magnified right before her, wore a gentle smile, and her voice sounded exceptionally soft.
“Jiang Xu, I’ve accepted your mother’s request. Would you like to stay here and live with me for a while?”