【Fictional era, please do not compare to real history.】
【To all the lovely girls who add this book to their shelves—may all your wishes come true, and may blessings fill your lives~】
August 1975, the He family’s small Western-style mansion in South City.
Three-year-old Luoluo crouched behind a pot of lucky bamboo taller than she was. Her big round eyes were wide open, filled with confusion and fear as she watched the adults arguing in the living room.
“You’re taking her with you tomorrow. If you can’t, then give her away. Our He family can barely protect ourselves—we’re not raising this burden for you!”
Old Master He slammed his cane hard against the floor, staring coldly at Sheng Manzhu.
“The Lin family would never allow me to bring a little girl when I remarry. She may be Guangyuan’s only bloodline, but I’ve already taken care of her for so long. I’ve done right by Guangyuan.”
Sheng Manzhu’s voice was equally icy.
Though He Luoyao was her daughter by birth, the child’s surname was He—not Sheng, and certainly not Lin.
Why should she alone be responsible for her? Why should she drag along a burden when remarrying?
He Guangyuan had been dead for three years. She had stayed loyal as a widow for three years, doing her best to care for his only daughter.
She believed she had already fulfilled every duty owed to him and to the He family.
Now the He family had been reported and was about to be exiled to the countryside. If she didn’t remarry now, was she supposed to suffer alongside them?
The He family clearly had the means to send all the children away. The other children had each been given a sizable share of assets before leaving.
Yet they insisted on leaving He Luoyao to her.
If Luoyao had been given an inheritance too, then maybe—for the sake of the money—she would reluctantly negotiate with the Lin family about bringing the girl along. After all, it was only one extra mouth to feed.
But now? No money, yet they expected her to take over this burden? Dream on.
“If even your He family won’t keep your own flesh and blood, then neither will I,” Sheng Manzhu declared firmly.
Old Master He struck his cane again and issued his final ultimatum.
“You’re her mother. If you won’t raise her, who will? I don’t care what you do, but tomorrow you will take her out of the He family!”
With that, he stopped acknowledging them and walked straight out the door.
Sheng Manzhu was furious. She stomped her foot, swayed her hips, and went upstairs to continue packing.
Only after the living room had gone completely quiet did Luoluo wobble out from behind the flowerpot.
She didn’t know what had happened at home. The adults had been arguing every day lately, and every time she hid behind the flowerpot, not daring to make a sound.
After two days of fighting, all her older brothers and aunts disappeared. Grandpa and the uncles rushed out every day, while Mother kept packing things.
She knew Grandpa didn’t like her the way he liked the boys. Although Mother never deprived her of food or clothes, she never hugged or kissed her like Nanny Wang did, nor told her stories.
Everyone said her father died the moment she was born—that she was a “jinx” and a “burden.”
But what was a “jinx” and a “burden”?
Could you eat them? She was so hungry.
And why had Nanny Wang, who treated her the best, disappeared too?
Luoluo sat alone in the empty living room, her big eyes blinking blankly as she waited and waited for everyone to come eat lunch.
But after waiting a long time, with her tummy growling loudly from hunger, she still didn’t see anyone.
Unable to endure it anymore, Luoluo sniffled and dragged over a small stool that felt heavy for her. Stumbling clumsily, she made her way to the kitchen.
Panting with effort, she climbed onto the stool and stood on tiptoe, groping around on the counter.
“Ah, pancake!”
Her eyes lit up when she found half of a cold flatbread.
Quickly clutching it in her tiny hands, she took a huge bite. Dry crumbs stuck all around her mouth as she chewed with effort, her chubby cheeks puffed out like a little squirrel’s.
While holding the pancake with both hands and nibbling carefully, she tried to climb down from the stool with her short little legs.
But her legs were simply too short. One foot swung into empty air instead of touching the floor, and she lost balance, falling backward heavily.
Clang—!
With a dull crash, the back of Luoluo’s head slammed hard into an aluminum bucket beside her. She landed sprawled on the floor, all four limbs up in the air, still clutching the half-eaten pancake tightly in her hand.
“Waaah—! It hurts! Nanny Wang… waaahhh—!”
The intense pain and fright instantly made her burst into heart-wrenching sobs.
She cried so hard she could barely breathe, her tiny shoulders shaking pitifully.
After crying for quite a while, her throat growing hoarse, still no one came.
Sniffling, she struggled to crawl back up on her own, instinctively reaching a little hand to the back of her aching head.
The spot felt wet and sticky.
She pulled her hand back and saw tiny specks of blood on her fingertips.
“Blood… waaahhh! Luoluo is bleeding! Nanny Wang… Mama… sob sob…”
Her little face turned pale with fright, and the crying she had just managed to calm exploded again, filled with panic and helplessness.
“So noisy!”
Suddenly, an irritated voice sounded beside her.
Luoluo’s crying abruptly stopped, turning into a tiny hiccup.
With tears all over her face, she blinked in confusion and looked around. Droplets still clung to her long eyelashes.
“Who? Who’s talking?” she asked timidly through her stuffed-up nose.
No one answered.
Luoluo rubbed her eyes, looked down at the pancake still in her hand, and subconsciously took another little bite while continuing to glance around with watery eyes.
Then suddenly, she saw a little turtle slowly crawling out of the overturned bucket.
“Wow!”
For the moment, Luoluo forgot her pain and fear, completely captivated by the tiny turtle. Her bright eyes stared at it curiously.
“What is this thing?”
She carefully poked the hard shell with one finger.
“Dummy. You don’t even recognize a turtle.”
A disdainful voice came from beneath her finger.
“Turtle?” Luoluo repeated doubtfully. Then her eyes suddenly brightened as she remembered something.
“Ah! You’re the ‘stupid turtle bastard’ Mama always talks about?”
The voice under her hand instantly became furious and loud.
“You’re the bastard! Your whole family are bastards!”
“I’m Luoluo. I’m not a bastard.”
Luoluo didn’t find it strange at all that the turtle was talking. Instead, she very sincerely introduced herself.
She looked at the tiny remaining bite of pancake in her hand, then at the little turtle on the floor. Her small face filled with struggle and reluctance.
After a long while, as though making an enormous sacrifice, she finally held out the last bite of pancake to the turtle.
“I’ll share my pancake with you. Will you be Luoluo’s good friend?”
“I don’t eat pancakes. I eat meat.”
The little turtle proudly turned its head aside.
Luoluo looked troubled.
“Luoluo wants meat too… but nobody cooks any.”
“I don’t need cooked meat,” the turtle said smugly.
Luoluo waved her chubby little hands anxiously.
“No! Eating raw food makes your tummy hurt! If you get sick, you need medicine and injections—they’re bitter and painful!”
“No it doesn’t! I always eat raw meat!”
The offended turtle stretched its neck out angrily.
Luoluo became even more anxious. She stood up, hands on her tiny hips, and shouted:
“It does hurt! I always eat cooked food!”
A turtle and a toddler began fiercely arguing over meat that didn’t even exist yet.
Just then, Sheng Manzhu walked into the kitchen with an impatient frown.
“He Luoyao, what are you screaming about in here all by yourself?”