Su Yueheng hesitated for a few seconds. “Wouldn’t that be too much trouble?”
Lu Sangning broke free from her grandmother’s grip on her ear, ran over to Su Yueheng, took her hand, and gently swayed it. “It’s no trouble! Sister, you can sleep with me tonight—I’ll show you around!”
Seeing the girl’s delighted smile, Su Yueheng looked up at the kind expression in the old woman’s eyes and nodded lightly. “Thank you, auntie.”
Being in an unfamiliar place, staying at someone’s home was better than a guesthouse.
The smile on the old woman’s lips deepened. She glanced at Su Yueheng chatting with her granddaughter, her sharp eyes filled with an unshakable hatred.
Seeing the child of an old acquaintance again—she hadn’t expected that the acquaintance was already gone.
Sister Bai Shuo, rest assured. I will take good care of Yueheng and treat her like my own daughter.
The old woman quickly composed herself, and her gaze toward Su Yueheng softened even more.
Su Yueheng felt that something was off about the way the old woman looked at her, but with the little girl distracting her, she didn’t think too much of it.
At the entrance of the military family compound, the old woman took Su Yueheng to register.
Holding her wrist warmly, she smiled and said to the guard, “Comrade, this is a distant relative of mine. She’ll be staying at my house for a few days. We’re here to register.”
When the soldier on duty looked at Su Yueheng, a flash of amazement crossed his eyes. Seeing her smile slightly, he became a bit flustered. “Alright, auntie. Just have her sit here and fill out the registration.”
“Okay~”
After entering, Su Yueheng thanked the old woman gratefully. “Auntie, thank you. Otherwise, if I had come alone, I’d probably be questioned a lot.”
She wasn’t afraid of being checked—just found it troublesome.
The old woman smiled. “It’s nothing.”
By the time they got back, it was already time to prepare lunch.
The Lu family house was a small two-story building with a large yard and its own vegetable plot, filled with lush green plants full of vitality.
Next to the garden was a hand pump, and near the wall was a chicken and duck coop.
Su Yueheng was a bit afraid of chickens and ducks, so she subconsciously stepped back a couple of steps when entering.
The old woman pointed at the little girl and complained, “If this girl hadn’t run off, I wouldn’t have had to go looking for her. We’d already be eating by now.”
Lu Sangning quickly acted cute. “Grandma, I was wrong. I thought the woman Uncle was going to marry wouldn’t treat me well, so I got angry and ran off. I won’t do that again~”
Then she turned curiously. “Where’s brother? I want to introduce him to the pretty sister.”
The old woman tied on an apron. “Go find him. He was already back when I went looking for you.”
Lu Sangning huffed proudly. “I’m not going to find him.”
Then she smiled at Su Yueheng. “He’s either upstairs or next door. Sister, I’ll show you around!”
Su Yueheng withdrew her gaze and smiled naturally. “No, I’ll help auntie cook first. Then you can show me around later, okay?”
As she spoke, she took out two White Rabbit milk candies and handed them over. “Go find your brother first.”
Lu Sangning’s eyes lit up as she stared at the candies. “Thank you, sister!”
Even being refused, she couldn’t get upset with someone so beautiful.
Wait—if this sister became her aunt-in-law, that would be great. Her uncle was handsome, and this sister was beautiful.
If her uncle adopted her and her brother, wouldn’t this pretty sister become her stepmother?!
Wonderful!
The more she thought about it, the happier she became. Taking the candies, she ran off to find her brother and share the “good news.”
Seeing that Su Yueheng could persuade her stubborn granddaughter, the old woman felt satisfied. “That girl is spoiled because her uncle dotes on her. I didn’t expect her to listen to you.”
Su Yueheng smiled lightly. “Auntie, let me help you.”
As she rolled up her sleeves, she looked around. “Auntie, where can I wash my hands?”
“Outside. If you want to help, just add firewood. Your hands will get dirty anyway—you can wash them afterward.”
Su Yueheng thought for a moment and nodded. “Alright~”
She followed the old woman into the kitchen and immediately saw the familiar large stove—something she had spent a lot of time with in her previous life before the reforms.
She froze for a few seconds. She had done this before in her past life, but in this life, she technically didn’t know how.
The old woman was secretly observing her and noticed the fleeting confusion in her eyes, assuming she didn’t know how to do it, and was about to speak—
But Su Yueheng spoke first. “Auntie, I… I’ve never seen this at home before. Could you teach me?”
“Of course.”
The old woman smiled and handed her a clean apron. “Yueheng, wear this so your clothes won’t get dirty.”
“Okay, thank you.”
Su Yueheng was a striking beauty—about 165 cm tall, with a well-proportioned figure.
Even a simple worn apron looked elegant on her.
The old woman praised her, “As expected, beautiful people look good in anything.”
Su Yueheng smiled shyly, not minding the environment. She casually pulled over a stool and sat by the stove. “Auntie, I’m ready.”
The old woman nodded. “You feed the firewood like this. This pot is for rice, so the fire can be stronger. For stir-frying, the fire shouldn’t be like that…”
Adding firewood was simple. After a few demonstrations, Su Yueheng got the hang of it.
The old woman, curious about Su Yueheng’s mother, asked casually while cooking, “Yueheng, how much do you know about your mother?”
Su Yueheng shook her head. “My mother passed away when I was born. My father remarried before I could remember, so I’ve always treated my stepmother as my real mother.”
She found the old woman’s interest unusual and asked, “Auntie… do you know my mother?”
The old woman paused slightly, then nodded. Her tone carried regret, and a hint of nostalgia flashed in her eyes. “Your mother, Bai Shuo, was a progressive youth. She fought for the country’s future. We met in Shanghai—she broadened my thinking and became my spiritual support. She taught me why we live.”
“She showed me where the future of the nation lies and used strategy to navigate between different forces, rescuing many of our comrades.”
“The last time we met was in 1945, and we parted ways in the capital. Later, I heard she got married—to the second son of the Su family, a wealthy patriotic capitalist. I thought she would live well, so I didn’t keep track.”
“I never expected…”
Her voice choked.
Holding back her tears, she turned to the shocked Su Yueheng and forced a smile. “Yueheng… auntie still doesn’t know—when were you born?”