Gu Jin turned around and left without waiting for the boy to respond.
Now alone in the room, An Mingji ate the bun with one hand and held the glass in the other as he watched Gu Jin leave.
An Mingji's bright-looking eyes darkened as Gu Jin disappeared from his sight.
There was a mix of pride, stubbornness, and also a darkness that did not belong to someone of his age in his eyes.
Gu Jin had left, hence she did not see what was wrong with him.
She did not know that An Mingji was no longer the innocent boy he used to be. He had been abandoned, living as an outcast, beaten up, and insulted.
Once Gu Jin left the room, she glanced at the recliner in the courtyard. Her grandfather was nowhere to be seen.
She looked at the room at the end of the house; the door was shut, which meant that her grandfather had returned to the room.
If she wanted to let An Mingji stay, she would have to talk to her grandfather, get his permission, and visit the police station to go through with the procedure.
She walked over and gently knocked on the door.
"Come in," her grandfather replied from the inside.
Gu Jin pushed the door open and saw her grandfather lying on a bed made of earth, a "kang", where coals were burned deep in its interior cavity to keep its user warm during wintry days.
Her grandfather could not stand the cold, hence there was a "kang" in the room for him to stay warm throughout the winter.
"What's this about, Jin?"
The old man was not very close to Gu Jin, but he treated her well.
Gu Jin entered the room and closed the door behind her before she went up to her grandfather.
"I have something I would like to discuss with you, Grandpa."
He took a long hard look at her, then sat up on the "kang" with his leg crossed. At the same time, he pointed at the spot beside him. "Sit down."
Gu Jin sat down in front of the "kang" and fixed her eyes on him, noticing his murky yet wise-looking eyes. "I would like to keep An with me, Grandpa," she said, keeping her head low.
She did not want to look at him because she did not want her grandfather to see her soul—a soul that did not belong to her age.
"Are you sure about this?"
There was a sense of disapproval in her grandfather's voice.
Gu Jin nodded. "I've thought it through. I will adopt An, and I will share my rations with him."
"How can you afford that? Do you know the situation that you're in now? Have you forgotten why you haven't gone to school?"
Gu Jin creased her brows slightly, realizing that she was supposed to go to school in May.
She had not been going to school because rations had not been forthcoming. Teachers and students alike had stopped classes.
Distant memories came to mind, but those things had nothing to do with adopting An Mingji.
Gu Jin looked up at her grandfather. "I have thought it through, Grandpa. I remember one of the students once said that as soon as someone reaches the age of eighteen, he or she can apply for a separate household registration.
"I'm thinking about asking the village head to overstate my age by two years and applying for a new household registration. Then I will let An Mingji stay under my household registration so that I can share my rations with him."
Her grandfather said nothing. Picking up his pipe, he lit the tobacco and took a puff.
Smoke quickly filled the room, yet none of them spoke.
Gu Jin's grandfather looked at her. He could not deny that she had a pretty face, unlike their other family members.
All the villagers knew that this girl was not their biological child.
Nevertheless, the Gu Family had been raising her for sixteen years, and they had affection for her.
It upset him when he heard that Gu Jin wanted a separate household registration.
Gu Jin seemed to quickly sense something when she noticed her grandfather's gloomy face.