Lin Ruxia hurried out of the kitchen and noticed Song Erbao and Song Sanbao looking at her with complicated expressions. Feeling a bit guilty, she asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Mom… will you really treat us well from now on?” Song Erbao asked cautiously.
“Of course. You’re all Mom’s treasures—how could I not treat you well? It was Mom’s fault before. I thought you were eating fine at home.”
In the family, Lin Ruxia held a special position. She didn’t like eating in the main hall, so unless it was a holiday, Mother Song would always prepare a separate meal and send it to her room—and it was the best food in the house. Her treatment was similar to that of the fourth brother when he studied at home. Even the daughters Song Dajiao and Song Xiaojiao couldn’t compare to her.
The reason Mother Song favored Lin Ruxia was threefold: first, Lin Ruxia was educated; second, her husband Song Zhicheng was promising; and third, Lin Ruxia could bear children—she was either pregnant or giving birth almost constantly.
“Come, let’s go get some eggs,” Lin Ruxia said, leading the two children back to the room.
“Let’s take fifteen eggs—one for each person, and one for your grandparents too.” She took out the twenty eggs they had just received and handed fifteen to Erbao and Sanbao, asking them to bring them to the kitchen.
“Isn’t that too many? I don’t want one—save it for you to nourish your body, Mom!” Song Sanbao immediately put on a filial act.
Lin Ruxia couldn’t help but smile inwardly. He clearly didn’t want to give it up—his eyes were glued to the eggs—yet he was trying to appear obedient. The contradiction was almost comical.
Among all the children, Song Sanbao was the most scheming and articulate. The original host used to favor him occasionally, giving him candy. Yet ironically, after the family split, he dropped out of school and mixed with local hooligans. Eventually, he was beaten and crippled, then abandoned on a mountain where he froze to death.
“Alright, stop that. Mom will go to town tomorrow—there’ll be plenty of things to buy. Why fuss over an egg?” Lin Ruxia pushed the eggs back into his hands. “Hurry and take them to your grandma before it gets dark.”
“Okay then! Brother, let’s go!” The two boys ran toward the kitchen.
Lin Ruxia then searched through the original host’s stash of food and found milk candies, red dates, leftover mung bean cakes, and some dried meat…
She grabbed the dried meat, opened the bag, and tasted a piece—only to find it wasn’t very good. “Forget it, I’ll just give it to the kids.”
When she stepped outside, she saw Song’s eldest brother and Father Song smoking, while Si Bao and Wu Bao were watching over the younger ones. The courtyard was lively, and the kitchen even more crowded as each family cooked separately after the split.
Lin Ruxia didn’t want to cause trouble, so she sat in the courtyard watching the children.
Suddenly, Twelve Bao rushed toward her, shouting, “Mom! Mom!” Si Bao tried to stop him but failed. In his memory, their mother disliked them—except for Sanbao and Wubao, none of the children were allowed to get close. Once, when Seven Bao ran toward her, she had kicked him away and warned them not to approach her, saying they were too dirty.
As Twelve Bao lunged at her, Lin Ruxia quickly set the dried meat aside and caught him. He was wearing a grimy shirt of indeterminate color, his hands sticky and filthy.
Suppressing her discomfort, she held his hands and said, “Careful—how did you get so dirty?”
“Mom, I’m sorry! I didn’t watch him properly. If you want to punish someone, punish me!” Si Bao pleaded nervously.
Lin Ruxia felt a pang in her heart. “He’s my son too—why would I hurt him? Don’t worry.”
Twelve Bao squatted down, picked up a piece of dried meat that had fallen to the ground, and stuffed it into his mouth. Shocked, Lin Ruxia tried to stop him, but he shook his head stubbornly, covering his mouth.
“Sweetheart, that piece fell on the ground—it’s dirty. Spit it out, and Mom will give you a clean one, okay?”
But instead, Twelve Bao swallowed harder. The dried meat got stuck in his throat, making him cough violently. Lin Ruxia quickly patted his back until he finally spat it out.
Just then, Five-year-old Si Ya rushed over, picked up the fallen meat, and ate it before anyone could stop her.
“Si Bao, Wu Bao—quick, get some water!” Lin Ruxia called out urgently.
Soon, the water arrived, and after drinking, Twelve Bao stopped coughing—but then burst into tears. “Meat! I want meat!”
His crying set off the others, and soon the entire courtyard echoed with wails.
Feeling like the culprit, Lin Ruxia quickly grabbed the bag of dried meat. “Don’t cry, sweetheart. There’s plenty more here—don’t want that dirty piece, okay?”
She wiped her hands with a handkerchief, broke a piece of meat in half, and fed him. “Your hands are too dirty—eat with clean hands next time, or you’ll get sick.”
As Twelve Bao happily chewed, the other children stared intently at the meat. If not for their fear of her former authority, they might have rushed forward.
“Si Bao, go wash your hands and feed the others.”
“Okay!” Si Bao ran off quickly.
After washing, he looked much cleaner. Lin Ruxia handed him the whole bag and asked him to distribute it—one piece for each child, with the leftovers shared among them.
There were over twenty children in the household—three from the eldest branch, six from the second, and twelve from the third.
When Si Bao went into the kitchen to share the rest, Second Sister-in-law insisted on saving the meat for her son.
“Er Ya, San Ya, give me yours—I’ll save it for your brother!”
Hearing this, Lin Ruxia, who had just come to wash her hands, couldn’t help but feel speechless at their blatant favoritism toward boys.
“Why should I? This is mine!” San Ya snapped, recalling her past life where she had been sacrificed for her younger brother.
“He’s your brother—you’ll have to rely on him in the future!” her mother argued.
“Why should I give in just because he’s my brother? No one should rely on anyone!” San Ya retorted.
An argument broke out, and San Ya stormed out, passing Lin Ruxia with a cold snort.
Lin Ruxia felt awkward and chose not to intervene. She returned to her room, reflecting on how her good intentions had backfired.
Soon, Erbao came to call her for dinner.
“I’ll eat with you all,” she decided.
When she entered the main hall, the room fell silent—everyone was stunned.
After all, Lin Ruxia had never eaten with them before.