A wave of dizziness washed over Chen Ke. When he opened his eyes again, he instinctively looked down and saw a chipped earthenware bowl in his hand. He was squatting on the ground with a plastic basin in front of him, on which was a large red flower characteristic of the era.
"Chen Ke, washing dishes again? If you ask me, your younger siblings are all grown up now, it's time for them to share the household chores. You come home from work so tired, and you still have to do this and that, how can your body handle it?" An older woman said as she carried a washbasin into the house.
Chen Ke had not yet received the memories, so he could only nod and agree.
The woman gave him a look of exasperation, "If you keep going like this, how will you ever find a wife!" She then shook her head and went inside.
Only then did Chen Ke get a clear look at his surroundings; it was a large courtyard that had been there for some time.
More than a dozen families lived in one courtyard, with one family living in a single room. Several generations were crammed into one room, with everything piled up inside, leaving no room to even step.
The courtyard was completely filled with belongings from various households. Bamboo poles were everywhere, laden with clothes of all sizes. Even the eaves had been converted into kitchens, filled with pots and pans. You can imagine how crowded the courtyard was.
At that moment, Chen Ke was squatting next to the only tap water pool in the compound, washing dishes. Not far behind him was the public toilet, and the smell of the sweltering summer air assaulted his senses.
Chen Ke quickly washed the bowl in the basin, poured out the water, put the bowl in the basin, and carried it away from the place.
But the moment he stood up, everything went black and he almost fell over. Chen Ke quickly grabbed the pool and it took him a while to regain his balance.
"System, receive the memory."
"Yes, Master."
The original owner's memories were like a monotonous black and white movie. When she was sixteen, her parents had an accident. Her younger brother and sister were still young. In order to support them, the original owner gave up her upcoming high school and went to work in a factory to replace her father as a porter.
However, he was too young, and if something happened to him while doing such heavy work, the factory would have a hard time handling it. So they discussed and arranged for him to work in the textile workshop. This job did not require physical strength, but it was long and tedious.
But in this day and age, a formal job in the city is something many people would kill for, so the original owner of this body naturally accepted it gladly.
So, the original owner, who was sixteen years old, not only had to take on heavy work every day, but also had to go home and take care of her younger siblings.
Four years have passed in the blink of an eye. I was always hungry and sleepless, working myself to the bone, and finally, today, without any warning, I left this world.
He had no wishes, no regrets, and his departure was abrupt.
Chen Ke walked home according to his memory.
The system asked him if he wanted to activate the service.
Chen Ke casually asked what kind of system it was. The system excitedly replied that it was the Holy Mother System. Chen Ke frowned and said, "Get away from me right now."
It doesn't sound like a good system at all.
Since the original owner had no wishes or regrets, why would he need a system in this world? He could just live a simple and ordinary life.
Crossing the courtyard, Chen Ke's current home is just around the corner.
Looking at the dilapidated wooden door of the single room, Chen Ke frowned and reached out to open it. Inside was a shed that connected to the eaves outside, which served as the kitchen. Compared to other people's fully open kitchens, theirs was much better, at least it could keep out the wind and rain.
Chen Ke placed the basin on the wooden table and looked at the messy and cramped kitchen. For the first time, he felt that coming directly from the previous world was too impulsive. He should have properly nurtured his primordial spirit in the space. After all, it takes time to adapt to sudden wealth and poverty.
"Brother, have you finished washing the dishes? Help me wash this dress, I need to wear it tomorrow." A young girl of about thirteen or fourteen years old poked her head out from the inner room and threw a blue and white dress to Chen Ke.
Chen Ke stood still, letting the dress fall to the ground.
Chen Yu, who was about to go back, suddenly turned her head, her eyes filled with dissatisfaction, and said in a drawn-out voice, "Brother, what are you doing? Hurry up and pick it up! The ground is covered in dust, and if you can't wash it off, it'll be a disaster."
Chen Ke covered the bowl with a bamboo mat, then stepped over the skirt and said, "Chen Yu, you're thirteen years old now, not three. From now on, you'll wash your own clothes."
Chen Yu could hardly believe that her doting brother was saying these words. She stomped her foot angrily, "Brother, are you still my brother? You used to wash my clothes, why are you suddenly making me do it now!"
"The past is the past, the present is the present." Chen Ke threw down a sentence and went straight into the house. In the eyes of the original owner, his younger brother and sister-in-law were still children.
The original owner of this body desperately wanted his younger brother, Chen Zhi, to go to high school and then university. He worked tirelessly to save money, but Chen Zhi kept saying he didn't want to study and wanted to go out and earn money.
The original owner thought that his younger brother felt sorry for him and wanted to earn money to ease his burden. He felt guilty and touched. Every time Chen Zhi didn't want to study, he would try to persuade him and coax him for a long time.
From Chen Ke's perspective as an outsider, Chen Zhi's reluctance to study was simply due to his unwillingness to learn; the rest was entirely the original owner's own imagination.
As for his youngest sister, Chen Yu, the original owner had a special kind of bias towards her, seeing only her in a positive light. He felt sorry for her lack of parental love and, as the eldest brother, he wished he could be both her father and mother, spoiling her like a "little princess" in their impoverished home.
Chen Yu is already thirteen years old, and he bosses his older brother, who has been working hard all day, around to do laundry, and he does so with a perfectly justified attitude.
Chen Kecai wouldn't tolerate them.
Chen Yu was so angry that her eyes turned red when she saw that her older brother suddenly stopped washing her clothes. Ignoring the dress on the ground, she turned and rushed out, slamming the door shut with a loud bang.
"Hey, Chen Yu, what's wrong with you? What if you smash the door?" Chen Zhigang came back from playing ball and looked at his angry sister, wondering what was wrong. He wondered if someone from the family had come and upset her. It couldn't possibly be her older brother, who was practically taking away the stars and the moon for her; he wouldn't have made her angry.
Unexpectedly, Chen Yu wiped away her tears and said angrily, "Big brother, big brother has changed. He doesn't love me anymore. He actually made me wash my own clothes!"
Chen Zhi secretly rolled his eyes. So she doesn't love him anymore? What kind of thirteen-year-old girl doesn't do laundry? Does she really think she's some kind of pampered young lady? Compared to him, his older brother is far too good to his younger sister; he's just biased!
“I’m telling you, you’re not a kid anymore. You’re throwing a tantrum just to wash your own clothes. If you make a bigger scene, people will laugh at you and how will you ever get married?” Chen Zhi said before pushing the door open and going inside.
Chen Yu gritted her teeth, stomped her foot, and ran out.
She compromised and did the laundry herself today, but tomorrow she'll be cooking, which she doesn't want to do. She doesn't believe her older brother isn't worried about her going out so late.
Chen Yu planned to find a conspicuous place to wait for Chen Ke to come and coax her.
As soon as Chen Zhi entered the house, he called out, "Big brother, big brother, where's the food?"
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