He Xinglan took it—it really was from her uncle. Just from holding it, she could tell there was a good amount, enough for the family to live comfortably here for several years.
"Sit for a bit longer, then head back. I'll pack the clothes into a burlap sack for you so no one sees."
Yu Lian got up to gather things—some food, some daily necessities, some clothes. Finally, she had He Xinglan put on the military overcoat and carry the sack on her shoulder as she left.
Only mother and son remained in the room.
After eating, An'an looked at his mother and found her smiling warmly at him.
"Hmph!"
Yu Lian rubbed her son's reddened nose. "Cold? Mommy made you new clothes."
"I was cold before, but not now."
Yu Lian looked at her proud, sulky son and felt like she was seeing a miniature version of He Lin. She didn't want her son turning into a smug little brat.
"Do you want to sleep with me tonight? No answer means no chance."
"Okay, Mommy!"
His face lit up with excitement, but remembering he hadn't forgiven her yet, he changed his wording. "I'll allow you to sleep with me."
Yu Lian turned away, amused. This little bean was still easy for her to handle.
After a simple meal, Yu Lian looked at the dusty little boy with disdain.
"Mommy's giving you a bath. Take off your clothes now."
He Ning'an obediently sat on the small stool and stripped off his dirty clothes. It wasn't like he had much to wear anyway.
With that, Yu Lian pulled out a large wooden basin from under the bed like magic. She adjusted the water temperature and carefully washed her son clean. After the bath, she dressed him in clean, warm clothes.
"Mommy, my hair is dry."
After the bath, she had him sit by the stove, waiting for his hair to dry before his afternoon nap.
"Then come here."
The little guy was happy now, completely forgetting the rule he'd set in his heart—that he had to wait two days before forgiving his mother. That was already thrown to the winds.
He took off the little cotton shoes his mother had put on him and crawled into the blankets, hugging his soft, sweet-smelling mother as he slept.
Just a few seconds after lying down, the little guy started crying sadly. Between sobs, he asked his mother, aggrieved, why she hadn't wanted him.
Yu Lian had no choice. If she hadn't left the child with the He family, mother and son might not have seen each other for years. She held her son, patting and soothing him, explaining in simple words why she had walked away without looking back and left him with his grandparents.
He Ning'an understood and stopped crying. He hugged his mother tightly. "Mommy, An'an forgives you. You can't do that again. From now on, you have to discuss things with me, okay?"
The little brat had quite the demands.
"Alright, Mommy will listen to you. From now on, I'll always discuss things with you, and I'll never be apart from An'an again, okay?"
"Okay! Mwah—An'an loves Mommy the most."
"Alright, enough. You little chatterbox, go to sleep."
Outside, the north wind howled, but mother and son slept soundly in the warm blankets.
On the other side, the four people preparing to head out to work. He Xinglan had put on the cotton coat her sister-in-law had given her—it was much warmer than the one she was wearing.
"Brother, sister-in-law said this one's for you."
Her brother was tall, so this one fit him well. Their father was of medium build, so the black cotton coat suited him better. That way, each of them got one.
"See? I told you. An'an kept crying for his mother—my sister-in-law can't be that bad. A gentleman is judged by his deeds, not his thoughts. If you two won't wear them, give them all to me. I get cold easily anyway."
As she spoke, she pulled an envelope out of her old cotton coat.
"Here. My sister-in-law said she didn't touch a single cent. Dad, this is for you."
She tossed the envelope into her father's arms.
Then she started pulling things out of the burlap sack.
Rice, flour, cooking oil, and even soap and towels—plus four pairs of cotton-padded shoes, and biscuits and candy.
"With my sister-in-law carrying all this stuff up here, she must have been exhausted."
Li Ying's attitude softened at the sight of all this food. This was fine rice and fine flour—carrying it up the mountain was no easy task.
He Lin was suspicious. Yesterday she'd only carried a quilt and two small cloth bags. How could she have fit all this?
"How do you know she got it through legitimate means? Not from someone else?"
He Xinglan shot her clueless older brother a look. "Sister-in-law brought us all this stuff—can't you think well of her for once? We've got nothing left. What do you think she came all this way for?"
He felt his daughter made a good point, and the money in the envelope hadn't been touched. "Could it be… she thought of An'an and her conscience got the better of her?"
"Maybe. Thinking about it, sister-in-law's attitude has always been decent. Besides being money-hungry, there's not much to fault her for."
It was time. They stopped mulling it over, changed clothes, and followed the group out to chop firewood.
There were still over three months of winter ahead, and firewood was a critical resource.
This time they were heading to the edge of the deep forest, and it was all men. The women stayed behind at the farm to watch over the grain, mill flour, and press oil.
When Yu Lian woke up, she drank some Spirit Spring Water, and the discomfort in her body immediately vanished.
She went to the room diagonally across to ask around. Li Mengyao was lying in bed reading.
"They've gone to mill flour and press oil. Director Niu said we should rest today and join in tomorrow."
"Okay, thanks."
"Yu Lian, who were you talking to? I went out this morning and heard you talking to someone in your room. Do you have an old classmate at Hongxing Farm too?"
"My son."
Leaving those three words behind, Yu Lian left.
Li Mengyao just assumed she was joking.
She slept until the afternoon—by then, everyone had already been working for two or three hours.
While her son was napping, Yu Lian took out her iron pot and stewed cured meat with cabbage and potatoes.
The room was too small for stir-frying.
Anyway, when she'd arrived, she'd casually let it slip that she'd brought cured meat—unlike fresh meat, it wouldn't arouse suspicion.
Old cured meat needed to stew for hours.
He Ning'an woke up to the smell. "Mom!"
"I'm here."
"Can you help Mom with something? Go to the milling area and see if Grandma and Auntie are off work. If they are, tell them to come here to eat. But you have to be quiet—don't let anyone find out."
"Okay, I'm going now."
He put on his shoes, opened the door, and went out.
The wind was blowing hard outside, which kept the smell of her stew from drifting everywhere.
At the entrance to the mill, people were filing out one by one, heading to the cafeteria for dinner.
"Auntie! Grandma!"
Li Ying and He Xinglan almost didn't recognize their little treasure.
His hair was cut, he was washed clean, and he was wearing new clothes.
Li Ying was covered in flour dust, or she would have scooped up her little grandson for a good hug.
"Mom says for Grandma and Auntie to come eat—she's made dinner."
He Ning'an whispered, "It's meat. Hurry."
He ran ahead excitedly.
He Xinglan didn't mind—if there was meat to eat, she'd go.
Li Ying felt a bit awkward, because they still hadn't figured out Yu Lian's intentions.
"Come on, Mom. Free food—why not? You forgot we haven't had meat since we got here."
He Xinglan pushed her mother along, following their little nephew.
Soon, they arrived.
"Mom, we're back. Open the door, quick."
Yu Lian opened the door. "Lanlan, Mom, come in quickly."
The whole process avoided any prying eyes—Yu Lian was very careful.
"Have a seat. I'll slice the meat and then we can eat."
The room was filled with the aroma of meat, making mouths water.
Especially for the two adults.
Yu Lian brought out a basin of steamed buns with a rich wheat fragrance, and served thinly sliced, glistening cured meat.
She ladled out a bowl of cabbage and radish soup cooked with cured meat for each of them, the salty, savory scent wafting up.
Li Ying sat for a long time without picking up her chopsticks. "Yu Lian, why exactly are you…"