The three of them followed the path to the Lu family home.
Lu Ying pushed open the half-closed gate to the courtyard and called out loudly: “Grandma, Mom, we’ve brought Educated Youth Lin over.”
Soon, two figures emerged from the house.
One was an elderly woman with a head full of white hair and a slightly hunched back, looking to be in her fifties or sixties. Her expression was kind and benevolent, making it obvious that she had a good temperament.
The other was a middle-aged woman in her thirties with a sickly pale complexion. Her body looked especially frail, and she coughed after taking only a few steps. Although age and illness had affected her appearance, it was still easy to tell that she must have been an extraordinary beauty in her younger years.
Grandma Lu raised her cloudy old eyes and carefully examined Educated Youth Lin.
“Oh my, what a pretty little girl!”
Good heavens, she had lived for more than half her life and had never seen such a beautiful young lady before!
“Yes, she’s really lovely.”
Mother Lu covered her mouth and coughed twice. Her gaze was gentle as she looked over.
“The room has already been cleaned up. Put your luggage inside first, then come out and eat with us.”
Lin Wanwan waved her hands.
“No, no, you all go ahead and eat.”
“At this hour, the Educated Youth Residence definitely hasn’t finished cooking yet.” Mother Lu spoke softly before coughing twice more. “Don’t be so polite.”
Grandma Lu nodded in agreement.
“That’s right, girl. People are made of iron and food is steel. Miss one meal and you’ll go hungry. You have to eat!”
Since they had put it that way, Lin Wanwan found it difficult to refuse.
With the help of Lu Ye and Lu Ying, she carried her suitcase into the brick room.
The room contained only a few simple pieces of furniture: a bed, a small table, and a chair. A bedsheet had been spread neatly across the bed, carrying the scent of sunshine, as though it had been aired out not long ago.
Compared to the mud-walled room at the Educated Youth Residence with cracks running through its walls, this brick room was vastly superior. It had also been cleaned extremely well.
Having something to compare it to, Lin Wanwan was very satisfied with her current accommodations.
After taking a quick look around, she was called out by Yingzi and followed her into the main room.
At the far end of the room stood a large cabinet with all sorts of miscellaneous items placed on top. In the center was a square wooden table covered with steaming dishes.
A rich aroma drifted straight into her nose.
This smell—
Chicken soup?!
Lin Wanwan’s eyes widened as she stared at the basin of fragrant chicken soup on the table. She unconsciously swallowed.
Waaah…
These past two days, she had not dared enter the shopping mall space for fear of being discovered. She had been surviving on dry foods like buns and bread. They tasted good, but eating them constantly had become tiresome.
She had originally planned to sneak into the mall tonight and make herself something better to eat…
This chicken must have been the wild pheasant Lu Ye had caught on the mountain that afternoon, right?
Besides the chicken soup, there was also a plate of chicken stewed with potatoes. It appeared they had divided the pheasant into two portions, using half for soup and half for the dish. Their bowls were filled to the brim with sweet potato rice.
In the countryside, meals like this were usually seen only during holidays and festivals. When served to guests, they represented the highest level of respect and hospitality.
“Come, sit down.” Mother Lu’s eyes were gentle. “Don’t just stand there. Sit.”
Lin Wanwan had absolutely no resistance to gentle people.
Her eyes curved into crescents as she obediently sat down.
Five people seated around the table still left plenty of room.
Mother Lu picked up an empty bowl, ladled out a bowl of chicken soup, and placed it in front of Lin Wanwan.
“Don’t be shy. Eat. There’s hot water heating on the stove. After dinner, you can take a bath first.”
“Thank you~”
Lin Wanwan thanked her sweetly and took a small sip of the soup.
The flavor was incredibly fresh and delicious!
Her eyes brightened.
“It’s so good!”
“If it’s good, then drink more.”
“Aunt Lu, Grandma Lu, you should eat too. Don’t worry about me.”
Mother Lu and Grandma Lu looked at Lin Wanwan with eyes full of affection.
Both Lu Ye and Lu Ying had rather reserved personalities and were not fond of talking. Because their family was poor, they were also exceptionally sensible and obedient.
While Mother Lu found comfort in that, she could not help feeling that she had failed as a mother. She had been unable to properly care for her son and daughter and had instead relied on them to take care of her. She had never been able to enjoy the feeling of her children acting spoiled around her.
The moment she met Lin Wanwan, she felt that wish had finally been fulfilled.
This little girl was pretty and well-behaved. Her voice was soft and sweet, sounding almost like she was constantly acting coquettishly. It made people want to hold her in their palms and cherish her.
It was difficult not to like her.
Lin Wanwan had always been good at winning over older people.
As she ate gracefully, she chatted with Mother Lu and Grandma Lu.
“So you’re sixteen this year? Doesn’t that make you the same age as our Yingzi?” Mother Lu said with a smile.
“Huh??”
Lin Wanwan was shocked.
“Yingzi is the same age as me?”
She had always assumed Yingzi was younger than she was!
Mother Lu nodded, her voice filled with guilt.
“When I gave birth to her, the delivery was difficult. Then there was the famine. We didn’t have enough to eat, and I couldn’t produce milk. We could only feed her water and thin porridge. She didn’t get enough nutrition, so she grew much more slowly than other children her age.”
That was simply too tragic…
In her previous life, Lin Wanwan had often heard her grandparents talk about those famine years. They said life in the countryside had been terrible. There was no grain to eat, and even the wild vegetables on the mountains had all been dug up. People were driven to chewing tree bark and eating dirt, and many had starved to death.
She turned to look at Yingzi.
Lu Ying’s face remained expressionless, as though they were discussing someone else entirely.
“Her grandfather went hunting in the mountains to find food for us and ended up being killed by a tiger.”
Mother Lu’s eyes reddened. Beside her, Grandma Lu lowered her head and wiped away tears.
“After we finally survived those years, I fell ill again. Her father went into the mountains to earn money for medicine and accidentally fell off a cliff.”
“At that time, Xiao Ye had only just turned ten. He had to shoulder the burden of supporting the family and earn work points in the fields.”
Lin Wanwan was highly empathetic.
A vivid image immediately formed in her mind.
A skinny, undersized ten-year-old boy carrying farming tools much larger than himself, gritting his teeth as he repeatedly swung a hoe and worked seriously in the fields.
Waaah…
That was truly heartbreaking.
What had she been doing when she was ten years old in her previous life?
Oh right.
She had been learning dance, piano, painting, calligraphy, and etiquette. Each lesson had cost tens of thousands. The meals she ate had been specially prepared nutritional diets by a nanny earning a six-figure annual salary…
Lin Wanwan looked toward Lu Ye again.
Her eyes had turned red, making her resemble a little rabbit.
“…”
Lu Ye honestly did not feel much about it.
He barely even remembered those years anymore. He only remembered being too weak back then to earn many work points.
However, he had been clever.
He had often followed his grandfather and father into the mountains when he was younger, learning how to hunt. He frequently brought back game from the mountains. Combined with help from other villagers, the family had managed to survive, sometimes hungry and sometimes full.
As he grew older, his strength increased, and his hunting skills improved. Although they could not eat well every day, at least they no longer went hungry.
Whenever Mother Lu talked about these things in the past, Lu Ye would usually tell her to stop dwelling on them and focus on moving forward.
Yet now, noticing Lin Wanwan’s gaze, he found himself unable to say a single word of comfort.
In fact, he almost wanted Mother Lu to continue talking.
Pressing his tongue against the roof of his mouth, Lu Ye forcibly suppressed the emotions surging within him and said coldly,
“Mom, stop talking about it.”
Only then did Mother Lu come back to her senses. She wiped her tears and looked somewhat embarrassed.
“Listen to me, bringing up all this. Come on, eat. Eat more.”
“It’s okay, it’s okay.”
Lin Wanwan waved her hand.
Then she glanced at Lu Ye once more, sniffled softly, and resumed eating in small bites.