Whenever Wang Lun felt hungry, he would put a fish on a plate, grill it, and eat it. When he was thirsty, he would boil water in a small earthenware pot to make tea.

However, Li Ling, Liu Ruoxi, and Liu Ruoling, living in the earthen house, cooked delicious fish soup in an iron pot for every meal, and occasionally made tasty dumplings with acorn flour. Of course, they always made extra food, so there was always some left over. At this point, Liu Ruoling would always volunteer to wash the pots and pans.

Before, when Wang Lun was home, Liu Ruoling would boil water and wash the pots inside. But now that Wang Lun was out, Liu Ruoling started taking the pots outside to wash them. And every time, any leftover food in the pots would mysteriously disappear after washing. Li Ling and Liu Ruoxi knew perfectly well that Liu Ruoling had fed it to Wang Lun, but they didn't want anything to happen to him, so they would deliberately cook extra food each time. They even intentionally avoided mentioning washing the pots, afraid that they might accidentally let slip that Liu Ruoling had stopped washing them.

At first, Wang Lun didn't realize the problem, simply thinking they might have cooked too much. But as time went on, he gradually noticed something amiss. After all, it was impossible for the family to have leftovers every day. After some thought, he finally understood the reason—it turned out that Li Ling and Liu Ruoxi were deliberately cooking extra food each time they cooked, because they knew it was to feed the "little animals" outside the door. Thus, of the four, only Liu Ruoling remained unaware. She even thought she had successfully fooled her sister and Li Ling, feeling quite pleased with herself!

Aside from mealtimes, the four of them barely interacted. They used to play mahjong and cards together often, but they rarely do anymore.

That morning, Liu Ruoxi felt particularly cold after getting up. She opened the window and saw that the ground outside the mud house was wet, obviously it had just rained. She immediately remembered that Wang Lun was still living outside, and in such a cold winter, coupled with the rain, he must not be able to stand it. So, Liu Ruoxi quickly woke up Li Ling and asked her to think of a solution.

Li Ling listened to Liu Ruoxi's words in a daze, then suddenly perked up and asked, "How many days has he been gone?" Liu Ruoxi quickly replied, "Today is the fifth day."

After pondering for a moment with her head down, Li Ling said, "How about we just let it go this time? You're the one involved, what do you think?" Liu Ruoxi nodded in agreement. Li Ling continued, "Then go and call him back. I'll get up and make breakfast." Liu Ruoxi responded and turned to leave, but was stopped by Li Ling just as she reached the door. Li Ling picked up a fur coat from the kang (a heated brick bed) and draped it over Liu Ruoxi's shoulders, saying with concern, "It's very cold outside, don't catch a cold." Liu Ruoxi nodded gratefully, then opened the door and went out.

Li Ling didn't sit idle. Instead, she went to the shelf where acorn flour was stored, picked up a bowl, and scooped out a bowl of acorn flour. Then, she carried the flour to the hearth and used the still-warm water in the pot to mix it. This morning, she planned to make some meat broth noodles so that everyone could have a hot meal to warm themselves up.

Just as Li Ling was mixing the dough, Liu Ruoxi hurriedly pushed open the door, saying as she entered, "Sister Li Ling, Wang Lun doesn't want to come in, and he even has a fever." Hearing this, Li Ling frowned, a flash of anger crossing her eyes. She slammed the bowl down on the table with a sharp sound, saying, "He's gone too far! What does he want?" She stood up, preparing to leave. However, before taking a step, she suddenly remembered something and turned back to the shelf. On the shelf sat a rolling pin, a tool usually used for rolling out dough. Without hesitation, Li Ling picked it up. Standing behind her, Liu Ruoxi's heart tightened at Li Ling's action, and she swallowed hard. She knew that once Li Ling decided to act, she meant it.

In the Sichuan region, girls are usually very straightforward and like to solve problems directly. They typically start with a quick "Let me climb the Shu Road" (a metaphor for navigating treacherous terrain), hoping it solves the problem. If not, they'll resort to physical force. But Li Ling is now directly wielding a rolling pin, clearly prepared to take action. She has no idea what will happen next and can only silently pray that everything goes smoothly and that Wang Lun won't be so stubborn.

Li Ling gripped the rolling pin tightly, strode aggressively to the door, and kicked it open. Although the door was only slightly ajar, Li Ling had no patience to push it open; she only wanted to express her dissatisfaction in the most direct way. As the door was kicked open, a cloud of dust billowed, as if foreshadowing a fierce conflict about to erupt.

Wang Lun, who was lying down, was startled. He turned his head in confusion and found that Li Ling was standing next to him. Wang Lun secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that nothing serious should happen, and continued to look up at the roof of the shelter.

However, Li Ling had no intention of leaving just like that. She walked straight up to Wang Lun and said, "What, do I need to come and invite you myself?" Hearing this, Wang Lun shook his head helplessly, his voice sounding very hoarse: "You should go back. I won't go." After saying that, he turned his gaze back to the rooftop, as if there was something there that particularly attracted him.

Seeing that Wang Lun was resolute and unwilling to change his mind, Li Ling was also unwilling to give up easily. So, she started counting, hoping to force Wang Lun to submit to the pressure. Li Ling pointed at Wang Lun with a rolling pin and shouted, "One!" But Wang Lun remained unmoved, seemingly unconcerned about Li Ling's threat.

Li Ling was not discouraged. She continued calling out numbers, hoping to trigger Wang Lun's reaction. When she called out "two," Wang Lun still did not react at all, not even lifting his head.

Seeing Wang Lun's stubbornness, Li Ling finally couldn't hold back any longer. She raised the rolling pin in her hand and slammed it hard against the side of Wang Lun's bed. The blow made a loud noise, startling Wang Lun, who was lying on the bed, causing him to shudder violently. Even Liu Ruoxi, who was standing at the door, was startled by this sudden scene. She immediately rushed into the room, trying to stop Li Ling's actions.

Li Ling put her hands on her hips and said loudly, "What, aren't you going to get up? You'll only be willing if you're pressed against me, right?"

Wang Lun sat up with a helpless expression, muttering, "What are you going to do? I don't want to go back."

Upon hearing this, Li Ling flew into a rage and retorted angrily, "What? You think you've been wronged? You made a mistake and then came out here, and you still think you're right?"

Wang Lun first looked up abruptly, his face showing shock. Then, as if remembering something, he quickly lowered his head and whispered, "No."

Li Ling immediately slammed the rolling pin down again, this time hitting the bed with a loud "bang." She said fiercely, "Since you know you don't have it, why don't you get up and go back to your room? Seriously, do you want a beating?"

Startled by the rolling pin, Wang Lun stood up, muttering, "I'm not going back! I said I'm not going back, and I mean it!"