Lu Yao broke the steamed bun in half, giving one half to Song Zixuan and the other to Song Ziyang.
In a low voice, she instructed them,
“Walk behind me while you eat. Don’t let anyone see you.”
As she spoke, she pressed the buns into their hands.
Song Zixuan froze for a moment.
Looking at the white-flour bun in his hand, a complicated look flickered through his eyes. He glanced at the slender figure ahead of him. One hand gripped the bun tightly while the other slowly clenched into a fist.
Song Ziyang was still young and innocent. The moment he saw food, he broke into a grin.
“Big Brother, Stepmother gave us food! Has she become a good person now?”
His eyes sparkled with excitement as he looked at his brother.
Song Zixuan didn’t answer.
He lowered his gaze to the bun while his stomach growled nonstop. His heart was locked in fierce internal struggle.
Without receiving a response, Song Ziyang’s attention returned to the burning hunger in his stomach. Unable to resist the temptation any longer, he opened his mouth and took a huge bite.
The soft, fluffy bun carried the fragrance of wheat.
Song Ziyang closed his eyes in bliss.
Watching his younger brother eat so happily, Song Zixuan finally gave in.
He cautiously raised the bun and took a tentative bite.
It was the most delicious thing he had ever eaten in his life.
At first, he ate in small, restrained bites.
Soon, however, he lost control and began devouring it in large mouthfuls.
When Lu Yao turned around and saw the two boys standing there, greedily eating their buns with expressions of pure enjoyment, a doting smile appeared on her lips.
After finishing their buns, the boys looked up and discovered Lu Yao watching them.
Song Zixuan’s face instantly turned red.
Embarrassed, he wished he could crawl into a crack in the ground.
Song Ziyang, on the other hand, ran naturally toward Lu Yao.
His face lit up with excitement, revealing two rows of tiny white teeth.
“Stepmother, where did you find such delicious buns?”
“Did little sister get any?”
Lu Yao gently rubbed his head.
His wound still hadn’t been bandaged, but since they hadn’t yet entered the forest and the area wasn’t safe, they needed to keep moving. He would have to endure a little longer.
Taking Song Ziyang’s hand, she quickened her pace.
“As long as you listen to me, I have plenty more.”
“But we have to keep it secret. We can’t let anyone know, or they’ll come and steal it from us. Understand?”
Song Ziyang had completely lowered his guard by now.
His small hand tightly held one of Lu Yao’s fingers.
After carefully looking around to make sure no one was listening, he nodded solemnly.
“Don’t worry, Stepmother. I won’t tell anyone.”
“We’ll eat secretly!”
Lu Yao smiled warmly.
“Our Ziyang is so smart.”
Receiving her praise, Song Ziyang felt as if he could fly.
He thought his stepmother had suddenly become so gentle.
Her smile was sweet.
Her voice was soft.
…
His vocabulary was too limited to describe it properly.
But that didn’t stop him from completely revising the image of his stepmother in his mind.
Earlier, Lu Yao had fed Song Ziyu half a carton of milk.
The little girl was heartbreakingly thin.
Lu Yao had already decided she would nurse her back to health no matter what.
After drinking the milk, Song Ziyu yawned.
Her little head began drooping repeatedly as sleep overtook her.
Lu Yao carried her onto her back and took a bandage from her space.
Using it as a makeshift sling, she secured Song Ziyu against herself.
This way, the child could sleep more comfortably, and Lu Yao wouldn’t tire as easily.
By now, Lu Yao had already walked quite a distance.
When she noticed Song Zixuan still awkwardly trailing behind, she knew he hadn’t fully accepted her yet.
However, with the two younger children already leaning toward her side, she felt winning over Song Zixuan was only a matter of time.
Thus, she didn’t bother forcing the issue.
Holding Song Ziyang’s hand, she strode after the main group, occasionally glancing back to make sure Song Zixuan didn’t fall too far behind.
The refugees traveled continuously for another three hours.
Along the way, villagers from several other villages joined them, causing the group to swell several times in size.
Only a little past noon did they finally reach a deeper section of the forest.
The village heads walked at the front of the procession, shouting:
“Everyone can rest for a while!”
“Eat some food and rest your feet!”
“We’ll continue after a short break!”
The moment the group stopped, people collapsed onto the ground.
Curses immediately filled the air.
Some cursed Heaven for being blind, bringing years of drought.
Others cursed the barbarians.
“There hasn’t been a harvest in years! What grain is left for them to steal?”
Meanwhile, patrol teams took turns guarding the entrances to the forest to prevent barbarian scouts from entering.
Lu Yao led the three children to a clearing some distance away from the crowd.
It wasn’t too close, nor too far.
The spot was perfect.
She could also take the opportunity to disinfect and bandage the boys’ wounds.
Their resting place was roughly thirty meters from the main group, with trees blocking the view in between.
Whatever she did there was unlikely to be noticed.
Lu Yao took iodine and bandages out of her space.
She first disinfected Song Ziyang’s wound, applied medicinal powder, and carefully wrapped it with a bandage.
To finish, she even tied a pretty little bow.
Touching the bandage on his head, Song Ziyang flashed her a sweet smile.
“Thank you, Stepmother!”
Lu Yao lightly rubbed the bridge of his nose.
“No need to thank me.”
From the side, Song Zixuan watched their intimate interaction and deliberately turned his face away.
Lu Yao stood and walked over to him.
Looking down at him, she softened her voice as much as possible.
“You’re injured too.”
“You need treatment.”
“Lift your chin a little. Let me disinfect the wound.”
Song Zixuan simply turned his back to her.
Though Lu Yao was annoyed, she reminded herself that all of this was the original owner’s fault.
She could only coax him patiently.
“Zixuan.”
“I know you’re still angry with me.”
“How about I apologize?”
“I shouldn’t have hurt you.”
“But you can’t ignore your health because of that.”
“If you fall sick, what will happen to your younger brother and sister?”
Song Zixuan was stunned.
This woman was actually apologizing to him?
The sun must have risen in the west.
Her words made sense.
If he became ill, who would protect his siblings?
After thinking it through, Song Zixuan slowly turned around.
Even so, his expression remained cold and distant.
Lu Yao ignored the sour look on his face.
Using iodine, she carefully cleaned and treated the cut at the corner of his mouth.
Seeing that half his face was swollen, Lu Yao mentally cursed Old Madam Song’s ancestors all over again.
How could she hit such a small child so viciously?
As Song Zixuan felt Lu Yao’s gentle touch, his heart pounded uncontrollably.
Her expression was focused and serious.
Her hands cradled his face as though she were holding some precious treasure.
A tiny crack quietly appeared in the hard protective shell around his heart.
After finishing the treatment, Lu Yao took out the coarse grain and wild vegetable cakes Song Hongsheng had given her that morning.
She split them in half and handed one piece to each boy.
Then she took out another white-flour bun, broke it in two, and gave each child half.
With a serious expression, she instructed them:
“Zixuan, Ziyang.”
“Hide the white bun inside your sleeves.”
“Hold the cakes in your hands.”
“When you eat, secretly take bites from the bun inside your sleeve.”
“Don’t let anyone see.”
The boys were clever.
As soon as Lu Yao explained, they understood.
Song Zixuan silently followed her instructions.
Song Ziyang, however, leaned close to Lu Yao’s ear and whispered:
“Stepmother, are you worried someone will start eyeing our food?”
“Don’t worry.”
“I’ll be very careful.”
“I won’t cause trouble for you.”
His warm breath tickled her ear, making it itch slightly.
Lu Yao almost laughed.
But hearing his words also made her heart ache a little.
The child still hadn’t completely accepted her.
Even so, Lu Yao was confident.
Sooner or later, all three children would come to rely on her.
She would make them understand that she truly cared for them from the bottom of her heart.