Ye Shizhi was amused by his words, and for a moment, the invisible distance between them seemed to vanish.
“What do you want for dinner? I’ll pick some vegetables and take them home.”
She put the money away and stepped out.
All the chores around this home had been done by the original owner. The lush green vegetables in the field had all been grown by her, while her parents hadn’t lifted a finger.
If Ye Shizhi didn’t take some now while no one was watching, there might be nothing left later.
There was silence for a while, so she looked back and repeated herself.
“What do you want to eat? Speak now, because you won’t get anything otherwise.”
Jiang Sinian: “…”
“Never mind, I’ll decide.”
Seeing him still stunned, Ye Shizhi didn’t bother arguing.
Inside, Jiang Sinian lingered on the phrase “going home.” It had been so long since he’d heard those words.
His father had died when he was five. Being alone all those years, he didn’t even know what “home” was—just that there was somewhere to live.
He thought he had long been indifferent to such things, but her words made his eyes warm, something quietly flowing in his heart.
He had to admit—he liked the feeling.
Outside, Ye Shizhi found a basket and began picking vegetables, taking only what was needed.
At that moment, Ye Hongdong quietly crouched beside her, helping.
“Do you want to say something?”
Ye Shizhi noticed his hesitation several times; he seemed to want to speak but held back. She couldn’t stand it any longer.
Ye Hongdong hesitated, his face flushing. “Sis, why did you suddenly come back?”
After hearing him, she realized he hadn’t believed her earlier explanation at all. She stopped her movements and looked at him.
“I’m pregnant.”
Out of trust, she still told him.
Ye Hongdong had considered many possible outcomes—Jiang Sinian forcing or threatening her—but never this one.
He stammered, “Th-that means… going back?”
“小Hong, don’t tell Mom and Dad about this yet.” She didn’t want them bothering her during the pregnancy.
“Okay, got it.”
“Good boy.”
Ye Shizhi patted his head in approval.
Ye Hongdong’s face turned completely red. “Sis, I’m not a kid anymore.”
“But to me, you’re still the little crybaby who’d cry if you fell,” Ye Shizhi teased.
But Ye Hongdong didn’t take the bait; he stopped picking vegetables and ran off instead.
“Ha ha ha ha!”
Hearing Ye Shizhi’s laughter, he ran even faster, slamming his bedroom door behind him.
When Jiang Sinian came out, Ye Shizhi grabbed a few eggs from the kitchen and put them in the basket. After years of hard work, these things were rightfully hers.
“Carry this.”
She stuffed them into his hands without hesitation, then walked to Ye Hongdong’s door and knocked.
“小Hong, I’m leaving now.”
After a while, a soft “Mm” came from inside.
“What’s wrong with him?”
Jiang Sinian was curious for once.
Ye Shizhi teased him: “Probably shy.”
It was around four in the afternoon. After a short walk home, it would be time for dinner.
“Going home, I’m cooking tonight.”
She hadn’t cooked in a long time, but with a chef for a father, she’d absorbed many recipes, enough to manage.
Walking side by side with Jiang Sinian, she vaguely heard movement behind her and turned.
“Sis! Sis!”
Ye Hongdong ran up from afar, wind blowing his hair back, calling her.
“This is for you.”
He handed her a small package, staring at her intently. “I’ll be back at school the day after tomorrow, but I’ll come see you when I can.”
Then he turned and ran off, waving his hand.
The boy’s figure disappeared around the corner, fading into the orange glow of the setting sun.
Ye Shizhi opened the package, paused at its contents, then folded it back up.
“You don’t want to take it?”
On the uphill path, Jiang Sinian bent and extended a hand to her, watching her steadily.
Ye Shizhi followed his strong hand upward, looking at his handsome, unaware face, and teased, “Why would I think that?”
He didn’t withdraw his hand. “Your parents may pamper your little brother, but aside from tuition, daily expenses are tight. Since his grades are stable, any leftover money he can give you means he earned it outside school.”
“Since you figured that out, it’s natural you wouldn’t want it.”
Yes—thinking of this money reminded Ye Shizhi of Ye Hongdong’s story. When the original owner had gone to the city after running into that young man, Ye Hongdong followed.
Unfortunately, by the time he arrived, the original owner had already been sold. After some detours to find her, Ye Hongdong personally sent the trafficker back to justice.
When he found the original owner, Jiang Sinian had already taken the child a few hours earlier. He knew she had a child and, seeing her lifeless body, personally buried her despite parental objections, cutting ties immediately afterward.
Once the original owner was settled, he stopped attending school, and after knowing Jiang Sinian took the child, secretly went to check on him.
Unburdened, he followed the trail north, eventually getting caught in the underworld and dying there.
Ye Shizhi still remembered the few detailed passages about him:
The boy, often mocked for his poor family, always held hope for the future. Resilient and quiet, he faced life without yielding, full of hope… Yet it all ended before Ye Shizhi’s lonely grave. Kneeling, head bowed, silent sobs drifted away with the wind, leaving only a bowed, solitary figure.…When he secretly visited the child, knowing Jiang Sinian deliberately left him, he gently touched the child’s bright eyes as if seeing another person. Leaving all his savings as a gift, he left in anguish, frozen in the street corner. That child, once a crybaby, later learned to secretly shed tears too.
“No, Jiang Sinian, this money has to be taken!”
Ye Shizhi wanted to laugh but couldn’t.
She placed her hand in his, letting herself be guided by his strength.
Naturally, their hands parted with quiet coordination.