Yu Yin watched as Yu Xiaoqiu stormed into the room looking for malted milk powder.
It was only then that she had a chance to take a good look around her new home.
In fact, the Yu family home where Yu Yin now lived wasn’t the original Yu family residence, but rather the house built by the biological father of this body before he got married.
Later, her parents passed away one after the other, and the female supporting character was adopted by her eldest uncle, who then took possession of this house for his own use.
The house was large, built in the style of a northern-style courtyard compound, with a spacious courtyard immediately beyond the main gate.
On the left side of the courtyard was a large open area, currently used to store the miscellaneous belongings of her eldest uncle’s family.
Near the side rooms on the left, a woodshed had been built; the female supporting character had been abandoned there after falling off the cliff.
Yu Yin stared at the woodshed for quite a while before looking away.
Her gaze shifted to where she was now sitting—this was the kitchen and washroom.
The kitchen was set further back, while the washroom was toward the front.
The space between them was used for washing dishes, doing laundry, and other such tasks.
Directly opposite the courtyard gate was the main hall, with two rooms on one side and one room on the other.
All three of these rooms were currently occupied by the eldest branch of the Yu family: one for Uncle Yu and his wife, one for their youngest son who was studying away from home, and one for Yu Xiaoqiu.
Actually, the female supporting character had originally shared a room with Yu Xiaoqiu, but after Yu Xiaoqiu pushed her off a hillside, they feared she might not survive and dumped her in the woodshed.
This family is utterly depraved.
Just as Yu Yin finished surveying the house, Yu Xiaoqiu finally emerged from her room carrying a glass jar.
She emerged, cradling the glass jar carefully and reluctantly, and as she stepped out, she even shot Yu Yin a glare because she was so heartbroken over parting with it.
To anyone unaware of the situation, it would’ve looked as if Yu Yin were eating her flesh.
Curious to see what malted milk powder looked like, Yu Yin followed her inside.
Yu Xiaoqiu hurriedly clutched the glass jar and backed away nervously, asking warily, “What are you up to?”
Yu Yin was at a loss for words: “What could I possibly be up to? Of course, I’m here to watch you make me some malted milk.”
“Oh, and I want it a bit thicker. I certainly don’t want the malted milk to be clearer than water.”
Yu Xiaoqiu, who had planned to just dip a tiny bit to get it over with: “……”
Her expression grew even more sour, but she still did as Yu Yin asked, reluctantly scooping out a spoonful.
She said “a spoonful,” but it wasn’t even full.
Yu Yin wasn’t in the mood to coddle her; she snatched the milk powder and scooped two generous spoonfuls into the bowl.
“Ah! What are you doing? Are you crazy, scooping that much?” Yu Xiaoqiu felt as if she’d been stabbed in the heart; she reached out to slap Yu Yin.
Yu Yin dodged to the side, evading her hand and tossing the glass bottle back at her.
Fearing the bottle would break, Yu Xiaoqiu frantically caught it.
Yu Xiaoqiu was truly furious and threatened loudly, “Yu Yin! If you break it, I’ll kill you!”
Yu Yin shot her a cold glance. “Fine then. After I’m dead, the police won’t even have to look for the real culprit.”
Yu Yin thought it would be just fine to settle the old score—pushing her off the hillside—at the same time.
Yu Xiaoqiu: “…..”
As if someone had grabbed her by the throat, she fell silent and stormed off to wash the dishes.
She claimed to be washing dishes, but Yu Yin felt she was taking her frustration out on the bowls and chopsticks, clattering them about as if she didn’t care if she broke them.
But that was none of Yu Yin’s business.
They weren’t hers, after all, so she didn’t care.
With Yu Xiaoqiu out of the way, Yu Yin picked up the thermos from the stove and poured hot water into a bowl.
The moment the hot water hit the bowl, a sweet, unfamiliar fragrance filled the air.
Yu Yin liked this kind of sweetness—a cloying sweetness with a sweet fragrance that made her feel as if she were soaking in sugar.
Yu Yin leaned in to take a closer sniff, then examined the thickness of the mixture in the bowl. It seemed too thick—almost impossible to stir.
So she rummaged through the cupboard, found a larger bowl, poured the malted milk powder from the small bowl into the larger one, and then added water to the larger bowl.
When the bowl was nearly full, Yu Yin picked up a spoon to stir.
As she stirred, the malted milk powder dissolved.
Once dissolved, the malted milk powder was a pale yellow color and smelled absolutely wonderful.
The sweet, fragrant aroma was irresistible to the taste buds.
Yu Yin couldn’t resist leaning in for a whiff, and just then, she sensed an unmistakable gaze from beside her.
She straightened up, turned around while cradling the bowl, and asked with a half-smile, “You want some too?”
“What do you mean ‘I want some too’? This is mine to begin with!” Yu Xiaoqiu glared angrily at the large bowl Yu Yin was holding. “Besides, you’ve put so much malted milk powder in it—what’s wrong with giving me half?”
“So what?” Yu Yin found the bowl too hot to hold, so she shifted it between her thumb and four fingers, cradling the rim and bottom. “If you want it, Cousin, just take it all back.”
“I’m in no rush to get back on my feet anyway.”
Which meant: if she didn’t recover, there’d be no marriage exchange.
Yu Xiaoqiu was already heartbroken and seething with frustration.
Now that she saw Yu Yin threatening her, she felt even worse.
She felt that Yu Yin had changed.
Yu Yin definitely wasn’t like this before.
In the past, Yu Yin would do whatever she told her to do; if she raised her voice even slightly, Yu Yin would give in to everything.
But now—
Could it be that Yu Yin had also been reborn?
Yu Xiaoqiu’s brow twitched, and she shot a sharp glance at Yu Yin.
Her eyes brimmed with suspicion. “Yu Yin, what do you think Chen Maocai’s future will be like?”
“What do you mean, ‘what will it be like’?” Yu Yin knew exactly what she was probing for.
This reborn female lead was truly ridiculous and laughable.
She had clearly been blessed by heaven with a second chance at life—an opportunity others wouldn’t get even in several lifetimes.
Yet she refused to make the most of it, instead betting her entire life on a single man.
Not only did she place that bet, but she was even willing to risk someone’s life in the process.
I wonder if Heaven regrets giving someone like her a second chance.
“It’s just…” Yu Xiaoqiu stared intently at Yu Yin’s face, not missing the slightest change, “It’s just whether you think he’ll become successful in the future.”
“Successful?” Yu Yin seemed to smile.
But it was so fleeting that Yu Xiaoqiu wasn’t sure if it was just her imagination.
“Cousin, you’re not thinking of swapping marriages with me just because Chen Maocai is going to make it big in the future, are you?”
“So your so-called apology was fake too, then?”
Oh no!
Yu Xiaoqiu was so preoccupied with Chen Maocai that she’d forgotten some things shouldn’t be discussed openly.
“I didn’t.”
“Don’t talk nonsense!” she denied immediately.
“Fine, if you want to drink malted milk, go drink it outside.”
“That smell is driving me crazy. If you won’t let me have some, then you go outside.”
“Don’t get in my way while I’m washing the dishes.”
She spoke flusteredly, and in her panic, Yu Xiaoqiu didn’t grip the bowl she’d picked up from the floor tightly enough as she went to wash it.
Immediately, there was a loud “clang.”
The bowl shattered.
Yu Yin: “……”
Yu Xiaoqiu: “……”
Yu Yin could no longer hold back the mocking smile on her face; the corners of her mouth curled upward.
To avoid being noticed, Yu Yin had no choice but to walk out the front door, holding the large bowl.
No sooner had Yu Yin stepped out the door than the sound of enamel hitting the ground came from inside.
Well, now they really were a pair.
“A guilty conscience.”
“Such petty behavior,” Yu Yin muttered sarcastically.
……
Once outside, the first sight to meet her eyes was the crisscrossing houses of Cuizhu Village, rising and falling in varying heights.
Some were built with blue bricks, while others were made of mud bricks.
The only common feature was that all the roofs were gabled, constructed with tiles—a design suited to the frequent rain and need for drainage in the south.
Before she was transported into this world, Yu Yin had been from the south, and before becoming an orphan, she had often accompanied her parents back to their rural hometown to visit relatives.
Yu Yin’s hometown was very similar to Cuizhu Village; for a moment, she felt as if she had been transported back to her childhood.
Yu Yin remained lost in thought for quite some time.
It wasn’t until a cold breeze swept in, making her shiver, that she suddenly snapped back to reality.
By then, the bowl in her hand had cooled down considerably.
She’d managed to scrounge quite a bit of malted milk powder from Yu Xiaoqiu, and Yu Yin thought of Aunt Ye—she wanted to take some over so Aunt Ye could try it too.
But before she could reach the Ye household, a small stone was suddenly thrown from a pile of grass in the open space to her right.
The stone landed on the tip of Yu Yin’s toe, gave it a light bump, and bounced away.
Because the force was so light, and Yu Yin was completely focused on the malted milk powder in her hand, she didn’t notice she’d been hit by the small stone.
It wasn’t until a second small stone landed on her calf that Yu Yin turned her head in confusion.
There, peeking out from the thick weeds taller than a person, was a small head.
Yu Yin was startled. “You—”
Who was that?!
“Come here!”
The little head… no, wait—Zhao Ping’an, known as one of those black-listed types and a “wolf cub,” held out a hand so dark Yu Yin couldn’t make out its color.
After beckoning to Yu Yin, he immediately ducked back into the tangle of weeds, afraid of being discovered.
Yu Yin: “……”
It took her a while to piece together the memory of that little head from her own recollections.
He was the grandson of the village’s former big landowner, and since the policy changes, he’d been struggling to get by in the village.
He didn’t usually socialize with the villagers; the only reason he was familiar with Yu Yin was that she had saved him when he was just a few years old.
After that, the two unfortunate souls often helped each other out.
Of course, once Zhao Ping’an grew up, it was usually him who fed the hungry Yu Yin.
Yu Yin’s gaze fell on the malted milk powder, and a second later, she took it over to the grassy patch.
“Hold the grass back for me.” Yu Yin was struggling to part the waist-high weeds with one hand while holding a large bowl in the other.
Zhao Ping’an’s sense of smell was sharper than a dog’s.
Before Yu Yin even got close, he caught a whiff of a sweet, unfamiliar aroma.
He instinctively swallowed hard. As he obediently helped Yu Yin clear the weeds, the scent of the malted milk was so enticing—and since Zhao Ping’an had been busy since morning and had eaten nothing but a roasted sweet potato for lunch—
His stomach was now completely empty, and he was so hungry it was agonizing—it was growling loudly.
Far from being embarrassed, Zhao Ping’an stood on his tiptoes to lean closer to Yu Yin and asked, “What’s this?”
The boy probably hadn’t bathed in a long time, and after a day of hard labor, he was covered in sweat.
As he drew closer, Yu Yin caught a whiff of a sour, musty odor.
But Yu Yin didn’t flinch or show any sign of disgust; instead, she was unusually friendly: “Milk powder.”
“Where’s your water bottle?”
Zhao Ping’an’s eyes gleamed with the hunger of a wolf, mixed with surprise and greed. “It’s inside.”
He urged her, “Hurry up.”
“Don’t walk so fast—be careful not to let grass clippings fall into the bowl.”
Zhao Ping’an’s hurried movements seemed to be reined in by a rope, slowing abruptly.
Even the hand parting the weeds grew much gentler.
…..
By “inside,” she meant the very center of this wasteland.
Located near the foot of the mountain and off the main road, no villagers had built houses in this vicinity.
Apart from the Yu family, the nearest household was the Ye family.
This open space next to the Yu family’s property, having lain fallow for so long, had become an unofficial wasteland.
After walking for a while, the two reached the center of the clearing, where the ground had been trampled flat and various items were scattered about.
There was a makeshift stove built from stones and mud, a pile of dry firewood, a bamboo drinking cup, and several muddy sweet potatoes.
One of the sweet potatoes had even been bitten into, with more than half gone.
Of course, there was also Zhao Ping’an’s battered military canteen, its original color now unrecognizable.
Upon reaching the clearing, Zhao Ping’an immediately ran over, picked up his canteen, opened it, and held it out to Yu Yin.
His expression was anxious and greedy, like a wolf that had gone hungry for a long time.
Yu Yin took the canteen but didn’t pour the malted milk powder in right away.
She shook the canteen, and the water sloshed around inside the dented container.
Yu Yin poured out the water.
Just as she was finishing, a withered leaf fell out of the canteen.
Yu Yin: “…..”
The corner of her mouth twitched. “Didn’t I tell you not to drink water from the river? You’re only supposed to drink boiled water.”
She paused, as if remembering something, and Yu Yin felt as though she were a mother scolding a disobedient child.
“Don’t you remember when you had a stomachache a couple of years ago and they found two worms in your stomach?”
Zhao Ping’an certainly hadn’t forgotten.
He hurriedly clutched his stomach and strategically backed away.
He remembered how he used to eat raw, cold, and unclean food all the time, which had caused several worms to grow in his stomach. The pain back then was so intense he almost thought he was about to meet the Zhao family ancestors.
If it hadn’t been for Yu Yin, who had secretly carried him to the cattle shed to find a doctor and given him deworming medicine,
Zhao Ping’an might have died from the pain long ago.
But remembering was one thing; actually doing it was another matter entirely.
Especially since Zhao Ping’an was the only one left in the Zhao family—he spent all his time and energy just trying to find food.
Where would he find the time to boil water?
Wasn’t the water from the river just as good to drink?
Feeling guilty, Zhao Ping’an looked up at the sky and down at the ground, refusing to meet Yu Yin’s gaze.
Yu Yin was both annoyed and amused. She shook the water out of the thermos to make sure there were no foreign objects left inside before pouring the malted milk powder in.
Zhao Ping’an secretly leaned over to look in Yu Yin’s direction. When he saw the sweet, beige liquid being poured into the thermos, he was as happy as if he’d already drunk the malted milk himself.
But his joy didn’t last long.
Watching the malted milk in the bowl dwindle, Zhao Ping’an furrowed his brow and rushed over to grab Yu Yin’s hand.
“That’s enough.”
Yu Yin pulled her hand away and explained, “I still have some to drink when I get back. Yu Xiaoqiu pushed me off the hillside, and she said she’d give me malted milk to help me recover. ”
“And you actually believe that liar?” Zhao Ping’an snapped. “If you pour any more, I won’t have any.”
Yu Yin paused for a moment and didn’t dare pour any more.
She hadn’t actually poured that much anyway—only about half.
Yu Yin handed the water bottle back to him.
Zhao Ping’an hesitated for two seconds, but took it anyway.
He felt very uncomfortable. He glanced around, then plopped down—only to land right on the raw sweet potato he’d taken two bites of earlier when he was hungry.
The sweet potato was hard, and the pain radiated through his buttocks.
Under normal circumstances, he would’ve been cursing up a storm by now.
But for some reason, standing next to Yu Yin today, he always found himself instinctively picking it up.
Zhao Ping’an wasn’t used to behaving this way; he held the thermos in one hand and shoved it toward his mouth.
Feelings of unease, guilt, and restlessness all vanished the moment he tasted the malted milk.
It was sweet.
And very fragrant.
It was the best thing Zhao Ping’an had ever tasted in his life.
“Is this malted milk?” Zhao Ping’an had a good memory and recalled the name Yu Yin had just mentioned.
Yu Yin took a sip as well and found it delicious too.
She replied with a smile, “Yes, malted milk.”
Zhao Ping’an: “It’s really good! Looks like that liar went all out to avoid being called a ‘despicable person’ in the gossip. She really spared no expense.”
Yu Yin: “……???”
Young man, I get the feeling there’s more to what you’re saying.