Ye Xiaohua had never been able to understand why that man surnamed Sun and Qin Xiulian, who had clearly dealt a lethal blow to the original silly girl and would never have given her a chance to survive, failed to finish the job. The girl couldn’t swim and was on the verge of drowning—so how did she end up back on the shore?
That dream just now was so realistic that her back still felt damp. Startled by the genuine sensation of suffocation from the dream, some memories finally surfaced.
It was that face from the dream—a person who had suddenly appeared and saved her. Then, in her confusion, she had accidentally snatched something very important from him. Ye Xiaohua felt ashamed just thinking about it; if she ever had the chance to meet her savior again, she feared she would be too embarrassed to speak to him.
However, thinking of that young brother, he truly was a man as elegant as an immortal.
She searched through the accidentally recovered memories for his appearance. She remembered that the moment the silly girl opened her eyes, she saw a handsome, graceful youth in white. At that time, Ye Xiaohua was still a fool, and her way of showing favor was just a little bit simple and childish, and then…
The young brother had gotten angry and flown away with his sleeves fluttering in the wind.
If she didn’t truly possess this memory, Ye Xiaohua would have thought she had just imagined a story.
Patting her face, Ye Xiaohua tried to sober up. Let’s just assume that handsome young brother was an immortal who happened to descend to the mortal world once; she probably wouldn’t see him again.
But… things were just that coincidental.
The next morning, the first thing Ye Xiaohua did was check the kitchen. She was slightly disappointed; although the mountain thorns tasted very similar to unripe hawthorn, they weren’t quite the same. After cooling for a night, they hadn’t solidified, but it wasn’t a total loss—the fruit jam was sweet and sour and still tasted quite good.
In the morning, Ye Xiaohua fried a few pieces of the meat she had marinated the night before. She cut some heated buns in half, stuffed them with the meat and some vegetables, and spread a little of the fruit jam on them. A simple burger was born.
Little Douzi had never seen a bun eaten this way. It wasn’t just novel; the most important thing was that it was delicious. The little fellow ate two large buns in one go.
He patted his belly and let out a burp. “Sister, where are we going today?”
Ye Xiaohua planned to go to the mountain today, but she didn’t intend to take Douzi with her. The mountain was too dangerous, yet she truly didn’t feel at ease leaving Douzi alone at home.
After thinking it over, Ye Xiaohua made two more simple burgers and took Douzi to Guan Qiu’s house.
Guan Qiu wasn’t there; only his wife, Sang, and their two children were home—the older one was the same age as Ye Dou, and the younger one was still being held in her arms, not even a year old.
Sang was clearly surprised to see Ye Xiaohua. “Xiaohua?”
Ye Xiaohua guessed that Guan Qiu wasn’t home; otherwise, with his kind heart, he would have surely stood up for her during yesterday’s scene. “Auntie Seven, I… I’m going to the back mountain. Can Douzi stay at your place for half a day?”
Sang was stunned. With such fluent speech, how could this be the girl who used to be a fool?
“Why are you still going to the back mountain?” Sang asked with concern. “The back mountain is so dangerous; you really shouldn’t go anymore. Don’t go anywhere today. Your Uncle Seven will be back in the afternoon; if he knew I didn’t stop you from going to the back mountain, he’d be furious with me.”
Although Sang appeared fierce, she was actually very warm-hearted. Come to think of it, if she hadn’t agreed, Guan Qiu wouldn’t have been able to bring them those two buns earlier.
“It’s alright, Auntie Seven. I’ll be right back. I was fine last time, wasn’t I? I won’t go deep inside.”
“That still won’t do.” Holding her child, it wasn’t convenient for Sang to pull Ye Xiaohua, but her anxiety was genuine. “Besides, you…”
“I… I am not a fool anymore. Shh, this is a secret.”
If she couldn’t trust the family of Uncle Seven, Ye Xiaohua really didn’t know who else in this world she could believe.
Sang’s mouth fell open, but she quickly calmed down. She couldn’t hide her joy, but she cooperated by lowering her voice and whispering, “Your Uncle Seven told me that day that you weren’t a fool anymore and that you were playing your grandmother and eldest aunt for fools. I didn’t believe him. But look, I’m busy with these two kids all day and can’t get out to see what’s happening in the village. Xiaohua, your Uncle Seven didn’t lie to me—you really aren’t a fool anymore?”
Ye Xiaohua nodded solemnly. If she didn’t come clean, she feared Sang wouldn’t let her go to the mountain today no matter what.
“Mm, I’m truly not a fool anymore.” As expected, she was right—Guan Qiu had known for a while.
Little Douzi chimed in, “Auntie Seven, my sister is really not a fool anymore! She used to almost burn the house down when she cooked, but now she cooks so well. If you don’t believe me, try this!”
Ye Xiaohua brought out the food she had brought for Sang, along with some fruit jam. It wasn’t appropriate to ask someone to watch Douzi and show up empty-handed.
“Where did you get all this?” Sang asked as she took a bite. It really was quite tasty. “Hmm, it is delicious. There’s meat inside, and vegetables too?”
Seeing Ye Xiaohua nod, Sang asked again, “And what is that sweet and sour stuff?”
This time, before Ye Xiaohua could answer, Douzi took the lead. “That’s the fruit jam my sister made. Is it good, Auntie Seven?”
“It’s good.” Sang looked at Ye Xiaohua in disbelief. The shocks she had delivered this morning were truly significant; just a moment ago, she had nearly dropped the baby in her arms.
“Do you believe my sister isn’t a fool now?” Douzi asked with a hint of pride and showing off.
Actually, so many things had happened in the village that even if Sang hadn’t seen them with her own eyes, she had heard a general account. If Ye Xiaohua were truly a fool, how could she be so lucky as to make those people suffer defeat every time?
She deeply admired her husband. She had agreed to marry him because he was learned and different from ordinary people; otherwise, given the conditions of Guan Qiu’s family, how could he have married such a good wife?
Therefore, Sang trusted Guan Qiu’s words implicitly, but the only thing she hadn’t dared to believe was when he told her a few days ago that the silly girl didn’t seem so silly anymore.
Like everyone else, she thought it impossible that someone who had been a fool for so many years could suddenly get better, fearing that she would remain dim-witted for life.
Finally, Sang nodded. “It seems she really isn’t that silly anymore. But Xiaohua, going to the back mountain has nothing to do with whether you are silly or not. That place is treacherous. Listen to your aunt—you really shouldn’t go.”
“Auntie Seven, since I’m not a fool anymore, I’ll definitely be able to come back. If I don’t go to the mountain, what will my brother and I eat or drink?”
This sentence effectively blocked all of Sang’s arguments. She wasn’t stingy, but life was hard for everyone, and she couldn’t afford to be generous.
Sang patted Ye Xiaohua’s hand. “Xiaohua, you must come back. Otherwise, I won’t be able to answer to your Uncle Seven. Why don’t you reconsider? Our life isn’t rich, but we can still support you for a while.”
Ye Xiaohua smiled. Relying on others was not as good as relying on oneself; living on handouts was not a long-term solution.
“Don’t worry, Auntie Seven. Maybe I’ll be back before Uncle Seven even returns.”
With that, Ye Xiaohua walked away confidently, afraid that if she lingered any longer, she would delay her trip to the mountain even more.