Chapter 4
In the woods, light and shadow danced, and a breeze rustled the leaves around them.
Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the branches, falling on the girl who was squatting on the ground, crying with tears and snot streaming down her face.
The girl looked to be only a teenager, yet she had already blossomed into a graceful young woman. Her profile, illuminated by the sunlight, was as beautiful as a painting. A gentle breeze ruffled her hair, making her appear incredibly endearing.
Xiang Wan buried her head in her arms, her shoulders heaving as she cried, oblivious to the stares from the nearby woods.
*
Even though they were only a few cypress trees apart, ten-year-old Chen Yan was terrified as he watched the crying girl.
He had come out to pick herbs for his grandmother, but he never expected to see people from the city. The girl from the city was very pretty, but he never expected her to be so timid; she was so frightened by a goose that she stepped in cow dung.
Chen Yan was worried that she might step into a trap meant to protect against wild boars in the mountains, so he followed her silently. However, he did not expect that she would throw away her shoes and socks after stepping in cow dung.
He felt cold even wearing a cotton-padded coat, let alone her barefoot.
He intended to ask her if she was lost, but instead saw her shouting in the woods, scaring away all the birds in the trees, and even startling him.
He intended to leave, but as he turned around, he heard the girl from the city squatting on the ground, crying very sadly.
His mother-in-law had said that when girls cried, boys should comfort them. Although he was only ten years old and didn't know why, he knew that what his mother-in-law said must be true.
Chen Yan was still hesitating whether to go over, but after a while he noticed that she seemed to have stopped crying...
Perhaps she was tired from crying, Xiang Wan finally lifted her face from her arms, sobbed twice, and then took out a handkerchief from the pocket of her woolen skirt, trying to wipe away her tears.
She had just wiped away her tears when she felt a gust of cold wind blow against her face.
She only wanted to get some fresh air when she got off the bus, so she didn't wear a coat. The wind made her so cold that she sneezed.
In addition, her right shoe and socks were covered in cow dung, and she would rather freeze to death than wear them again. Her right foot was still bare, and she was so cold that she wondered if it was below zero outside.
Because her legs had gone numb from squatting for too long, Xiang Wan rested on the ground for a while.
She sat on the ground in a daze, and just as she was about to get up, she noticed a shadow slowly moving towards her.
Thinking it was the goose that had been chasing her earlier, Xiang Wan looked up very slowly, only to see a very pretty little girl looking at her curiously.
Seemingly feeling that Xiang Wan was cold, she handed her the cotton shoes in her hand, indicating that she should put them on first.
The child across from me was wearing an ill-fitting pink cotton-padded jacket. He was thin and small, and the shirt and jacket underneath didn't look very good either. He must have come from a poor family and was wearing clothes that his relatives didn't want.
The shirt was washed until it was almost white, which showed that the person who washed it cherished it very much and loved cleanliness.
The girl didn't speak, but Xiang Wan's eyes lit up when she saw her.
It's her!
In his previous life in Lijia Village, after the car broke down, Wang Yidong and the driver Lao Zhang went to find the villagers for help. At that time, Xiang Wan was attracted by a stray cat outside and got out of the car. Just like today, she was so frightened by that evil fat goose that she fell flat on her face.
The only difference is that in the previous life, I fell into a pond, while in this life, I stepped in cow dung.
She couldn't say which life was more fortunate, but the winters in her previous life were colder; wearing damp, cold snow boots was colder than not wearing any at all.
Xiang Wan also took off her shoes and socks, and a little girl came over to give her cotton shoes to wear. It was because of those cotton shoes that she decided to sponsor Lijia Village, and choosing to sponsor Zhou Chengze was just a coincidence.
As a result, she never saw the little girl who gave her the cotton shoes again until she died in her previous life.
But to her surprise, she saw her again on her second try.
Although it was just a minor incident, in her previous life, whenever she saw Zhou Chengze, she would occasionally think of that little girl.
Xiang Wan looked at the little girl and asked gently, "Little sister, what's your name?"
She was someone who had lived a second life, and given that the little girl in front of her looked thin and small, it was perfectly normal for her to call her little sister.
However, when Chen Yan heard her call him "little sister," he realized that she had mistaken him for a girl. Although he didn't say anything, the look in his eyes faded a bit.
Although he was only ten years old, he knew that he was not a girl, but a strong and upright man.
He was thin and weak from a young age, and was often mistaken for a girl by outsiders who mistakenly entered Lijia Village.
Because the children in the village always mocked him for being as thin as a girl, he hated being called a girl and also hated being praised for his good looks.
He had initially been somewhat curious about this outsider from the city, but now he had preconceived notions and regarded her as a bad person.
However, Xiang Wan, on the other side, was completely unaware of this. She thought it was an unexpected surprise, but when she saw the evil fat goose that Chen Yan had hidden behind his back, the smile on her lips completely froze.
It was obvious that the evil fat goose recognized her too, and kept flapping its big wings and squawking at her.
"..."
Xiang Wan frowned and glared fiercely at the fat goose.
The two, one human and one goose, were on the verge of exchanging blows when Chen Yan took a small step to the right, subtly blocking their path.
He glanced at Xiang Wan first, then whispered to the goose behind him, "Green Feather, don't squawk."
"..." Xiang Wan's brow twitched, her expression remained unchanged, but her heart was in complete turmoil.
Green hair?
Could it be from Luo Binwang's poem "Ode to the Goose"?
But why would she name that evil fat goose?
"..." Xiang Wan belatedly realized—
That evil fat goose belongs to her family!
So it turns out I had a past life and this one too. What I thought was timely help was actually the culprit atoning for his sins!
And yet, for the sake of those cotton shoes, she sponsored the entire Li family village, and was entangled with that scoundrel Zhou Chengze for the rest of her life!
This discovery was like a bolt from the blue, a devastating blow to Xiang Wan, who was already cold and hungry.
My heart sank completely.
Xiang Wan was completely devastated. She looked at the cotton shoes the little girl handed her, then glanced at the evil fat goose behind her, and for the first time felt as stupid as a donkey.
"I was truly blinded by a single leaf."
She spoke very softly, but Chen Yan thought she was talking to him: "What?"
Xiang Wan closed her eyes and did not answer her question. After a while, she opened her eyes and unceremoniously took the cotton shoes from her hands.
She glanced at it before putting it on, and then fell silent.
These can hardly be called cotton shoes. The shoes must have been worn for many years. Some cotton stuffing was stuffed inside the single shoes, and that's how she got her cotton shoes.
In the dead of winter, how could a child not be cold wearing so little? Yet she actually gave her her cotton-padded shoes to her.
Xiang Wan wanted to say something, but felt she really didn't know what to say. She looked at her feet, which were only wearing thin socks, after she took off her cotton shoes.
The socks looked quite old, with a hole in the toe area. When she saw me looking at her feet, she seemed a little embarrassed and pulled her feet back a bit.
Xiang Wan hesitated for a moment, then quietly put on the girl's cotton shoes and made her put on her own cotton shoes that were stained with cow dung. After all, the child hadn't done anything wrong, so exchanging cotton shoes was considered to make up for the two of them.
Ultimately, it all comes down to that evil fat goose. Thinking of this, she turned around and gave the goose a cool look. With its owner around, she wouldn't bother with the goose.
Little did anyone know that Chen Yan would take her 'angry glare' as a signal, thinking that this city girl wanted to eat his green hair.
The goose eggs that Green Hair laid were meant to nourish her mother-in-law's body, so Chen Yan couldn't let her succeed. Thinking this, he hid Green Hair behind his back.
His movements were very discreet, and even Xiang Wan didn't notice. She pointed to the snow boots next to the cow dung not far away, indicating that he should wear those: "Kid, I'll wear yours, you wear those."
Chen Yan was stunned when he heard this. He looked at the obviously warm cotton shoes and didn't move. When she told him to put them on, he thought she wanted him to pay for them because they were covered in cow dung.
He saw the whole thing—she was so scared by Green Hair that she fell into cow dung. He had already caught Green Hair, but she kept running forward, and he couldn't stop her no matter how much he called out to her.
When Chen Yan saw her fall on the cow dung, he felt a little guilty, which is why he gave her his cotton shoes to wear.
Seeing that she wanted him to pay for the medical expenses, he became worried. His mother-in-law didn't even have money for medical treatment. What should he do if she asked him for money?
He was still worried when he felt his left foot being lifted up. He lost his balance and instinctively tried to grab something, but ended up grabbing Xiang Wan's ponytail.
She didn't know when she arrived, yet she was so close to him.
Chen Yan felt uncomfortable and tried to back away, but she held him down so he couldn't move.
Unlike the dry hair of the villagers, her hair was smooth and shiny, unlike theirs.
Chen Yan dared not touch her again, so he moved his hand away from her hair and put it on her shoulder. He was still wondering what she was going to do when he felt his left foot being enveloped in warmth.
He looked down and saw that she had put her cotton shoes on him.
He didn't understand why this city girl insisted he wear her shoes. He looked at her incredulously and tried to take them off, but Xiang Wan pressed him down forcefully: "Don't move, kid."
Chen Yan actually stopped moving. After putting his shoes on, Xiang Wan looked at him and said in a fierce tone, "Kid, because your goose dirtied my shoes, take me to your house and pay me back."
'As expected, we're going to lose money.' Thinking this, Chen Yan became worried that his mother-in-law would have to sell something again.
The family doesn't even have money to buy medicine, so what valuable things can they sell?
He pinched his thigh hard, blaming himself for being so disobedient. His mother-in-law had clearly told him to keep the green cat at home, but he insisted on bringing it out. Now look what happened, he'd scared someone and had to pay compensation.
Thinking of his mother-in-law's withered hands, Chen Yan sadly shut his mouth and didn't say anything more, just kept his head down and followed behind Xiang Wan.
On his way home, he wore her shoes, which were the warmest cotton shoes he had ever worn in his life. They were not only very warm, but also soft, like walking on a cotton field.
But the thought of losing money later made him unhappy.
Led by Chen Yan, a local from Lijia Village, they quickly emerged from the woods. When they reached the car, Xiang Wan glanced around and noticed that Wang Yidong and Uncle Zhang hadn't returned yet.
They should be in Lijia Village. Since they would definitely have to stay in the village tonight, Xiang Wan didn't wait any longer and went straight to Chen Yan's house.
On the way, she looked at the silent little girl and asked, "Little one, what's your name?"
Kid?
Chen Yan glanced at her indifferently upon hearing the voice, subtly sizing her up. This city girl looked almost the same as him, yet she always called him "little devil."
Moreover, it's obvious that her eyesight isn't very good, yet she calls him "sister." Who is her sister?
But he was too lazy to explain to her, so he didn't refute her and simply answered her question: "My name is Chen Yan."
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