"I came back this time to retrieve the letters my mother left behind."

Seeing that Aunt Bai and Uncle Zhang were looking at Li Youran and Tang Lei with suspicion, Ajiu hurriedly said.

Upon hearing Ajiu's words, the two lowered their guard and warmly invited Li Youran and Tang Lei into the temple.

"In this remote mountain village, with its simple food and coarse tea, I'm afraid you two distinguished guests from the capital will not be used to it."

As the disfigured woman spoke, she brought out three bowls of hot scallion noodles, and then went to the kitchen to bring out a bowl of freshly stir-fried cured meat and wild game.

"Madam, you're too kind. It's a rare treat to be able to eat such wild game."

Li Youran knew that it was not easy to find noodles in the deep mountains, so he was pleased to see that the woman had brought out her best food to entertain him.

When the woman heard Li Youran address her as "elder sister," she paused, then looked at Li Youran with her clear eyes.

“I am already an old woman, how can I be worthy of being called elder sister?”

Bai Niangzi's voice trembled slightly. Ever since she was disfigured, for some reason her skin had aged faster than usual, and she looked no different from a sixty-year-old woman.

In this remote mountain area, it is rare to see outsiders. Even if you do see someone, you would assume she is an elderly woman, as it has been a long time since anyone has addressed her that way.

"I'm so sorry, I thought you were only in your thirties."

Li Youran said with a smile that she knew women liked it when outsiders called them younger, so she called Bai Niangzi "elder sister" as was customary.

"Eat quickly, the noodles are all soggy."

Ah Jiu's cheeks were bulging as he mumbled something to Li Youran.

"Aunt Bai, one bowl of noodles isn't enough. I'd like two more bowls."

Ah Jiu's eyes curved like crescent moons as she looked at Bai Niangzi. Bai Niangzi, who was originally called "elder sister" by Li Youran, was in a very good mood. Seeing Ah Jiu like this, she hurriedly smiled and responded. Before long, she brought over several bowls of noodles.

"It's getting late. You should eat and get some rest. I'll take you to get Ah Jiu's mother's letter tomorrow."

Tang Lei nodded to Bai Niangzi without saying a word. For some reason, he always felt that Ajiu and Bai Niangzi had an unusual relationship, and Bai Niangzi was very strange; it was difficult to guess her age.

"Ah Jiu, eat this bowl of noodles that You Ran and I have first. The noodles are still a bit hot."

Ajiu didn't think much of what Tang Lei said and nodded like a chick pecking at rice.

Actually, Tang Lei did this not for Ajiu's sake, but simply out of a sense of caution.

When it was time for bed that night, Tang Lei quietly slipped back into Li Youran's room and sat down to meditate on the table.

Li Youran, lying on the bed, knew that Tang Lei was worried about this place, so she didn't adhere to the rules about men and women not sharing a room and drifted off to sleep.

It wasn't until early the next morning that Li Youran was awakened by the crowing of roosters in the temple, and she realized that she had slept until dawn.

In the past, she certainly wouldn't have been able to sleep so soundly in an unfamiliar place.

Looking at Tang Lei, who was meditating on the table, she thought that he must know that someone was watching over him, which was why he was sleeping so soundly.

"It's dawn, would you like to rest in bed for a bit?"

Li Youran was touched to see that Tang Lei hadn't slept all night to protect her, so she said something to Tang Lei, who shook his head.

"I had already rested while meditating."

After Tang Lei finished speaking, he opened the door and left. Li Youran, curious about what the mountain temple looked like, followed him out.

The two-courtyard layout seemed a bit cramped and eerie. There was a well at the back of the courtyard, and a lot of fruits and vegetables were planted next to it, which was quite different from the temples that Li Youran had in mind.

However, it still has the appearance of a temple. There are a few sculptures and incense sticks in the main hall, indicating that the temple is not very popular.

However, the room was spotless, which showed that Uncle Zhang and Aunt Bai had put a lot of effort into it.

"I didn't expect you two to get up so early. I'll cook dinner after I finish cleaning."

Aunt Bai was wiping the sculpture when she saw that Li Youran and Tang Lei had already gotten up, so she hurriedly sped up her work.

Meanwhile, Uncle Zhang had already fed the chickens in the yard and was chopping firewood.

Seeing that Bai Niangzi and Zhang Bo were both busy, and that he was all alone with nothing to do, Li Youran felt bad and decided to help water the vegetables in the backyard.

Uncle Zhang wiped the sweat from his face with a worn-out towel and said to Li Youran.

"Many fruit trees are planted around the temple, and the distinguished guest may pick some fresh fruit to eat."

Just then, Ajiu also got up. He excitedly grabbed a basket and dragged Li Youran out of the temple.

Outside the temple, there were many grapevines planted without any trellises. Their vines climbed onto other tree trunks, and from a distance, each tree appeared to be laden with grapes.

What exactly happened to Aunt Bai's face?

Ah Jiu, who was picking grapes, paused slightly after hearing Li Youran's words, and then said casually.

"I've never heard her mention it."

"That's true. After all, it's a sad thing. You can't just reopen old wounds for others to see."

As Li Youran spoke, she took a bunch of grapes that Ajiu had just picked, and noticed that the grapes were covered with a white frost.

Li Youran looked at the dark grapes and thought they must be delicious, but didn't discuss the topic further.

Seeing this, Ajiu breathed a sigh of relief.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!