A shadow is not a ghost

"Then you steal food from the family, beat your elders, and make fun of them," Old Man Zheng gritted his teeth as he spoke of making fun of his elders, his blood rushing to his head.

He had lived for fifty-eight years and had never encountered anything so outrageous, all orchestrated by his own granddaughter.

How could his family produce such an unfilial son?

He took a few deep breaths to keep himself from being blinded by anger. "You're pretending to be stupid just to get revenge on us?"

Zheng Nanle held up an index finger and shook it. "Grandpa, I didn't take revenge on you."

She sighed sadly, "I didn't want to either. I'm just a pitiful and weak little girl who just wants to live a comfortable life. Why are there so many bad people who want to harm me? I have no choice but to use my own little tricks to protect myself."

What a clever trick!

Old Zheng gritted his teeth.

"Alright, your family won't interfere with your marriage anymore. You can decide your own marriage. But Er Ya, shouldn't you do some chores? You're a grown woman, not a two or three-year-old child. We can't let your elderly grandparents and distant uncles support you, can we?"

Zheng Nanle smiled and said, "My biological father supports me. His pension can support me for several years, it's four hundred yuan."

Old Zheng's brows furrowed, realizing she had seen the passbook.

He looked up and saw sunlight streaming in from the window beside her, making her eyes appear dark and deep, as if they were two round, black stones.

The face is still the same, but the demeanor, the eyes, and the smile are completely different.

His gaze shifted slightly, and the sunlight frosted the ground, casting a black, human-shaped shadow.

It's not a ghost.

It is not afraid of the sun, but it has a shadow.

Is it really Er Ya?

But her expression was so unfamiliar.

“You’re not my Er Ya, you have no right to use my son’s money,” Old Man Zheng probed again.

“Grandpa, I am. I am Sanya, born from Erya. This world is too cold, and the experience of just waiting to die is too terrible. Erya didn’t want to face it anymore, so she threw me out and let me see this world that she still loves in her place.”

"When I'm happy and she realizes that the world is still warm, she will come out again."

Zheng Nanle was laying the groundwork for Er Ya's return later, and also warning Old Man Zheng not to think that Er Ya would bully Er Ya when she came back. If he bullied Er Ya, she would come out and bully him.

Old Zheng remained silent.

He had actually heard of this before; honest people who are bullied to the extreme can undergo a drastic personality change.

There was a man in the village ahead of him who was bullied by his biological father and stepmother since childhood. Later, he married and had a son. His son had no milk to drink after birth, so he wanted to borrow a boat from his biological father to go fishing. He was willing to give one-third of the fish he caught as boat fare. Even so, his biological father did not agree under the instigation of his stepmother.

His son was born prematurely and was already weak. He hadn't been eating enough and then caught a cold. His wife couldn't bear the blow and went insane. She went to the river to catch fish every day, and one day she wasn't watching him and fell into the river and died.

The man silently buried his wife, and one night, he killed his own father, stepmother, and all his younger siblings.

You should know that he is usually extremely filial and rarely argues with his biological father and stepmother; he just quietly does his work.

Old Man Zheng was terrified, and a murderous intent arose in his heart.

This Sanya is too unpredictable. Who knows if she might suddenly act like that honest man, sneaking up to their bedside in the middle of the night and killing the entire Zheng family.

But considering Sanya's fighting prowess, Old Man Zheng suppressed his murderous intent and tried to appeal to her emotions, "Weren't your grandparents good to you? Like Old Lady Zhang in the village, her granddaughter was sent to the mountains to be fed to wolves as soon as she was born. Our family at least raised you, didn't we?"

"This is the family's financial situation; we're not targeting you on purpose."

Zheng Nanle grinned foolishly, looking quite innocent and kind. "I understand. Everyone else can eat their fill, but I'm starving every day. I have several thousand yuan in savings, but not even five cents to buy me some Analgin to reduce my fever or bandage the wound on my forehead."

"Everyone in my family has new clothes to wear, but I'm the only one who has to pick up my older siblings' unwanted clothes year after year. In the dead of winter, I don't have any cotton-padded clothes, and I have to break the ice to wash the clothes at home."

"You didn't earn any work points," Old Man Zheng said, but before he could finish, he met Zheng Nanle's knowing and cold eyes, and the words of his righteous indignation suddenly fell silent.

Did Er Ya really not earn any work points?

no.

It's just that I don't care.

“Er Ya, you have to understand, there are so many people in a family, Grandpa and Grandma can't possibly take care of everyone. If you're hungry, just say so, or you won't.”

Meeting Zheng Nanle's mocking gaze, the old man shut his mouth again.

Didn't Er Ya say that?

I've said that before.

Since her biological mother passed away, who cares?

The wild fruits and eggs she painstakingly found on the mountain would be taken away by the adults and given to her younger brother.

Furthermore, the Er Ya at this moment is not the same Er Ya. She will not be moved by his words. Just by looking at her insightful eyes, you can tell that his words are useless to her and will only make her feel more embarrassed.

"You can leave now. I'll keep them in check and they won't bother you anymore."

Zheng Nanle smiled obediently, got up and walked out.

She said nothing, but that made Old Man Zheng even angrier. She mocked him with a smile, saying that he could do it, but he hadn't done it before. He was letting the whole family bully a weak little girl like Er Ya.

Old Zheng clenched his fists.

Why should he do it? She's just an insignificant granddaughter. Even if she's married off, the dowry will only be a few dozen yuan. It's not worth investing his energy in her for such a small amount.

His face darkened, and he slammed his fist on the table in anger.

Grandma Zheng entered the house at this time. She went to the box containing the grain first and saw that more than half of the white rice was gone. There was only a little bit of the snacks that she was reluctant to eat. She was heartbroken.

She wiped away her tears in anger, taking out cornmeal while cursing, "That glutton, she does nothing but squander the family's food, eating and eating, she'll eat herself to death."

"Alright." Old Man Zheng was already in a bad mood, and hearing Old Woman Zheng's scolding only made him more annoyed. "Don't provoke her, or she might kill us with a knife in the middle of the night."

"She wouldn't dare!" Old Mrs. Zheng shouted sharply. After finishing her sentence, she walked to Old Mr. Zheng's side and asked cautiously, "She really dares to kill someone?"

"Who knows?" Old Zheng was unhappy, and it showed on his lips. His usual amiable demeanor vanished completely. "Anyway, don't provoke her. Don't you think you've been beaten enough already?"

Old Mrs. Zheng started cursing again, "Old man, I can't live like this anymore. Can't we send her away? I told everyone that she was unfilial and beat us, but no one believed me. They even told us not to argue with a fool."

"Is she an idiot? She's a tyrant. She just eats and doesn't do any work, she doesn't lift a finger, nobody's as comfortable as her. If an idiot lived like that, I'd want to be an idiot too."

"You think you can send me away? You saw what happened to me today?" Old Zheng suddenly remembered something else, "That sleeping potion, you really put it in the porridge?"

“I put it in, I put it in myself.” Old Mrs. Zheng suddenly remembered something, “It seems that the color of the drug was wrong, it was a bit dark. I thought it was because the light was too dim early in the morning and I saw it wrong.”

The two exchanged a glance, realizing that their schemes had long been seen through.

*

The midday sun was warm and inviting.

Zheng Nanle sat in a chair, basking in the sun with her hands tucked in. The sounds of roosters crowing, dogs barking, birds chirping, and the rustling of leaves in the wind created a peaceful and tranquil atmosphere.

Old Mrs. Zheng was making pancakes in the kitchen with her two daughters-in-law when Zheng Laoda and Zheng Laosi returned from bathing in the river. Zheng Sanhu and Zheng Sihu rushed over, each hugging an adult and calling them "Dad."

No sooner had he shouted than he ran off again. Zheng Sanhu asked directly, "Dad, what's that smell on you? It stinks!"

Zheng Sihou looked at Zheng Laoda and nodded vigorously.

Zheng Nanle's lips curled up slightly.

It's actually quite satisfying when a naughty kid's antics don't work on you.

Zheng Laosi rushed over and slapped Zheng Sanhu's butt twice, asking, "Where does it stink? Where does it stink?"

Upon seeing this, Zheng Sihou quickly covered his mouth and ran away, fearing that his father, like his fourth uncle, would come and beat him as well.

Old Zheng raised his hand to smell his arm, then sniffed next to Old Zheng's fourth brother, frowned, went back to his room, scooped out some of his wife's face cream, and rubbed it on his body.

Zheng Sihou came closer and asked, "Dad, what did you eat? You smell so good."

Boss Zheng, stay away from him. "Don't talk nonsense about what you can eat. It doesn't smell good."

The quiet courtyard has become lively again with the arrival of a few children.

Zheng Nanle opened his eyes and saw Zheng Erya looking at the interaction between Zheng Laoda and Zheng Sihu with envy in her eyes. He remained silent for a moment.

She can accompany Er Ya and help her grow up, but she is powerless to provide the affection that parents give.

"Sister, do you think my dad used to hold me like this when I was little?" Zheng Erya asked softly.

When Zheng Erya's father sacrificed his life, Erya was only five years old. Before his sacrifice, her father rarely came back, and Erya had almost no memories of him.

Zheng Nanle comforted her, "He definitely hugged you. Your father is a hero who protects our country. His chest is broad and strong. He hugged you and lifted you up. His arms are very strong, and his embrace is very warm. You were laughing happily in his arms."

When Zheng Nanle said this, she used her mental power. Following her words, Er Ya saw in her mind the image of her father tossing her, who was three years old, high in the air, and her laughing happily.

A happy smile involuntarily appeared on her lips.

Seeing Er Ya smile, Zheng Nanle breathed a sigh of relief.

Lunch was served by Grandma Zheng, as usual.

The first one to be divided was naturally Old Man Zheng, the second was herself, and the third one she originally wanted to give to the eldest son, but seeing Zheng Nanle looking over, she reluctantly handed it to Zheng Nanle. Then it was the eldest son, the fourth son, the eldest son's wife and the fourth son's wife, and finally the three little ones, each of them got a small cake.

Zheng Nanle took the pancake, sniffed it to make sure there were no extra ingredients, and then took a bite.

Hmm.

The mask of pain.

She had never eaten such a rough and unpalatable pancake.

I thought that since there was no pollution and less pesticides were used in the 1970s, the cornmeal I made would be fragrant, sweet, fluffy, and soft. Who knew that one bite would make my throat choke?

It tastes much worse than sweet potato rice.

Looking at the Zheng family members eating quietly, even the younger ones didn't protest, which clearly showed that this kind of pancake was a characteristic of this era.

Zheng Nanle's expression was slightly complicated.

She seemed to have read in a novel that cornmeal in those days was made by grinding the corn cobs together and then adding it in.

It turns out the author was being realistic, not exaggerating.

Zheng Nanle couldn't swallow it, but he didn't want to give it to the Zheng family, so he sat on the ground and pretended to eat without any expression.

After the Zheng family finished eating the pancakes, they moistened their throats with hot water, got up and went out to work. Zheng Nanle put the remaining pancakes in his pocket, tucked his little hands in, and went into the mountains to improve his meals.

On his return, he ran into Xie Xiaowu, who was stopping a pretty girl and said, "I don't mind that you're a slut, marry me."

Zheng Nanle: "???"

No, did the feces get into his head?