Clutching the cornbread in her hand, Xu Niannian didn't eat it after all.
The skinny and petite Xu Duoyu stood at her door, his scrawny little hand scratching the doorframe, staring eagerly at the cornbread in her hand, yet only looking, not daring to speak.
He still remembered that just drinking a bowl of sugar water with an egg had almost gotten him thrown to the dogs by Mom.
Xu Niannian was very fond of children, especially since this Xu Duoyu was her actual little brother in this current body, making her feel even more compassionate towards him.
She squatted down and gently waved to Xu Duoyu, "Duoyu, come to sister."
Xu Duoyu stood there dumbfounded, not daring to move, his big black eyes wide open.
Xu Niannian's voice became even more gentle, "Come here, Duoyu, sister will give you cornbread."
As she spoke, she even shook the cornbread at him.
Ultimately, being young and having gone so long without a full meal, Xu Duoyu couldn't resist the temptation and walked over to Xu Niannian with his little belly sticking out.
Xu Niannian laughed as she scooped him into her arms, but the action was so sudden, and since Xu Duoyu had long been bullied by Xu Niannian, he was so frightened that he opened his mouth to wail.
Fortunately, Xu Niannian quickly covered his mouth in time.
Xu Duoyu stared at Xu Niannian with wide, panicked eyes. Was sister going to bite him again?
Unable to scream, Xu Duoyu's tears fell drop by drop.
Seeing this made Xu Niannian's heart ache, she hurriedly wiped his tears away, "Why are you crying? Sister isn't going to hit you."
It took a while to coax the little guy, and Xu Niannian, smiling, stroked his fuzzy radish-like head and handed him the cornbread.
"Here, Duoyu, be good, you can't cry anymore, okay?"
Xu Duoyu looked at Xu Niannian foolishly. Sister wasn't going to hit him?
Children are forgetful and don't have many twists and turns in their thoughts. Seeing Xu Niannian handing him the cornbread and telling him he could eat it, he cherished the bread like a precious gift.
Xu Niannian saw him use his lean hand to wipe away tears and then look at her with eager eyes, holding the cornbread, "Sister, will Mom throw me to the dogs?"
Xu Niannian was taken aback, not expecting this question, and for a moment she was at a loss whether to laugh or to feel sad, "No, you just don't tell Mom, and it'll be fine."
The eyes of Xu Duoyu immediately lit up, and after squirming a few times in her arms, he broke free and ran outside with the cornbread, shouting as he ran, "Second brother, bread, cornbread..."
Xu Niannian listened, feeling an inexplicable warmth in her heart.
What a good child, not even having enough to eat himself yet still thinking of those who were kind to him.
It seems Xu Zhiqiang and Xu Zhicheng did not dote on him for nothing.
When Xu Zhicheng saw the cornbread in Xu Duoyu's hands, he frowned and asked, "Where did you get that?"
No wonder Xu Zhicheng was suspicious; honestly, in their home, nobody would be willing to give a cornbread to the three brothers to eat.
Such snacks were not something they could ordinarily have.
Cornbread might not be considered a rarity in other households, but their family was just too poor.
Holding up the cornbread, Xu Duoyu replied with simple honesty, "Sister gave it to me."
"Sister gave it to you?" Xu Zhicheng clearly didn't believe it.
But considering that Xu Niannian was even willing to give them sugar water with an egg to drink, maybe it really was from sister.
Could it be that sister had truly changed for the better?
In the late afternoon, around five or six o'clock, Xu Niannian saw Xu Zhicheng with a basket on his back, holding Xu Duoyu's hand as they were about to go out.
She quickly pulled Xu Zhicheng aside, "Where are you going?"
Given that Xu Niannian had given Xu Duoyu a piece of cornbread that day, Xu Zhicheng's attitude toward her had softened a bit.
"We're going up the mountain to dig for wild vegetables."
"Dig for wild vegetables?" Xu Niannian's eyes immediately lit up; she loved wild vegetables.
"I'll go with you guys."
Xu Zhicheng was obviously taken aback again, "Sister, you, you want to go?"
In the past, she hated going out the most. Could it be she forgot what happened before, and even her personality and preferences changed?
Of course, at Xu Zhicheng's age, even if he found it strange, he wouldn't think too much about it.
Although sister's personality had improved, Xu Zhicheng still didn't dare to contradict her.
Xu Niannian followed Xu Zhicheng up the mountain to dig for wild vegetables, her head still wrapped in a thick circle of coarse cloth.
On the way, they encountered several aunties, and Xu Niannian politely greeted each one.
The aunties didn't feel surprised either.
The previous Xu Niannian, in order to marry into a good family, cared a lot about her own reputation. Although she didn't do farm work, she claimed to others that she did all the household chores.
She was also very polite to outsiders.
Seeing that Xu Niannian was still so insincere with outsiders, Xu Zhicheng thought to himself that a leopard can't change its spots, always knowing how to please others.
Little did Xu Niannian know that, in her own little brother's eyes, just being a bit more polite to others was seen as currying favor.
Once they reached the mountain, Xu Niannian took a deep breath. The air in nature was indeed refreshing.
She saw that Xu Zhicheng's so-called vegetable picking was just yanking a couple of handfuls of wild chives.
After walking for a while, Xu Niannian suddenly spotted a small river and, dragging Xu Duoyu with her, ran over to it. After drinking some water by the riverbank, Xu Niannian smiled contentedly.
Moreover, this trip allowed Xu Niannian to spot something good. The rocks along the small river were covered with wild water fungus.
This was truly a treasure. Thinking about the meals at home where every time the only side dish was pickled vegetables, Xu Niannian's teeth felt sour.
As a foodie who had tasted delicacies from all around the world, how could she endure a life of eating pickled vegetables every day?
Without wasting words, Xu Niannian started prying off the water fungus with Xu Duoyu.
Xu Duoyu didn't understand anything and only knew that when Xu Niannian asked him to do something, he just did it. Being obedient always reduced the chances of getting beaten.
After Xu Zhicheng finished picking chives, he turned around and saw Xu Niannian squatting by the river with Xu Duoyu. He was so scared he quickly ran over, fearing they might fall into the river.
Although he knew how to swim, he couldn't save someone as big as Xu Niannian.
"Sister, what are you doing?" Xu Zhicheng hurried over and asked. Seeing her scraping something mushy on the rocks, he wondered, "What are you doing with that stuff?"
Having said that, the little bit of newfound respect Xu Zhicheng had for Xu Niannian vanished again.
Such a grown person, still playing with mushy stuff.
Xu Niannian, busy prying off water fungus, said, "I'm getting water fungus. We can have an extra dish today."
"Extra dish? Can you eat that stuff?" Xu Zhicheng asked in astonishment, automatically ignoring the fact she called the mushy stuff water fungus.
Xu Niannian nodded as if it were only natural, "Of course you can eat it…"
Mid-sentence, Xu Niannian suddenly remembered that the villagers had basically never eaten water fungus. She quickly changed her tune, "I read about it in a book at school."
Xu Niannian was the only high school student in the village. Being learned carried weight, and ever since the Gaokao was reinstated three years ago, in 1977, educated people were greatly respected.
Hearing that she had read it in a book, Xu Zhicheng didn't doubt it and looked at Xu Niannian with utter admiration. Indeed, educated people were different.
He also yearned to study, but it was a pity that his family would never support him going to school.
Xu Zhicheng didn't dwell on his sadness for long. Hearing that Xu Niannian said the mushy stuff was edible, he immediately joined the fray and helped gather it.
The three of them together soon gathered almost half a basketful. Hearing from Xu Zhicheng that there was plenty of it, Xu Niannian wasn't greedy and decided it was time to stop.
It was hot weather, and Xu Niannian took another handful of water to wash her face. Seeing many fish at the bottom of the river, she licked her lips longingly.
Meat. She felt like she hadn't eaten meat in lifetimes.