The first night of living together went relatively safely.
The autumn harvest is over, there's no need to work, and Jian Dan isn't in a hurry to get back to work.
In addition, I didn't go to bed early yesterday and woke up in the middle of the night. I didn't sleep well after that. When I woke up, I felt very tired. I lingered in bed and didn't want to get up. Who knew that I would fall asleep again in a daze.
When I opened my eyes again, my first feeling was that I felt much more relaxed.
I got up to touch the thermal underwear under the mattress, and what I found was a pair of little hands?
Jian Dan was so frightened that she immediately shrank back, only then belatedly realizing that there was another person in the room.
Turning my head, I saw the little girl sitting in the corner of the kang (a heated brick bed), her quilts folded up, leaving only simple bedding lying across the edge of the kang.
For some inexplicable reason, I felt a blush creep up my face.
"Hey, why didn't you wake me up? Are you hungry?"
I put on my clothes, folded the quilt, and casually touched the kang (heated brick bed). Well, the warmth from last night was almost gone.
"Are you cold? Wait a minute, I'll go start a fire, it'll be warm in a bit."
Add water to the large pot, light the fire, and the child has already gotten down to the ground. I glanced at her briefly, didn't chase her away, and instead chatted with her about everyday things.
"What would you like to eat for breakfast? Is porridge okay? Or would you like some steamed egg custard? Or steamed buns?"
The Sheng family had lived a good life, but given the child's age, he probably doesn't even remember it.
Anyway, those two are definitely not having a good time lately. Just listening to them talk about it made her swallow hard. She was already hungry, and the more they talked, the hungrier she got.
However, this child wasn't stupid. He might not understand the meaning of living under someone else's roof, but he was still self-aware.
"Anything is fine, my sister's cooking is delicious."
He quickly scooped out a handful of millet, rinsed it deftly, poured it into another pot, then took two burning firewood from the stove and placed two pieces on top. The pot quickly began to steam.
The millet porridge quickly started bubbling, so I stirred it to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pot. I then placed a steamer rack over the pot. Since the porridge probably wouldn't be very filling, I also heated up a few steamed buns.
"Ha, then let's have millet porridge and steamed buns today, okay?"
I covered the pot on one side, and the water in the other pot boiled over. While pouring water into the thermos, I also added half a pot of cold water to neutralize the hot and cold water. I scooped it out a couple of times and poured it into the washbasin.
"Come wash your face, it's time to eat."
Xiao Xinxin and her siblings were even younger, so they simply and directly placed the washbasin by the door.
"Here you go, this is a towel for drying your face. By the way, do you know how to brush your teeth?"
Most people wouldn't care about this, but thinking about Sheng Zhiyuan and Xiao Xinxin's politeness yesterday, I simply think that they should pay attention to details.
Sure enough, the little head nodded obediently. That's good. A clean child always gets more points than a messy one.
"Okay, here's the toothbrush and toothpaste. Can you do it yourself?"
Her little hands gripped the towel and rubbed her cheeks vigorously a few times, turning them instantly red. Her little mouth, however, remained stubborn.
"Yes, I'm all grown up now."
I simply went up and pinched the barely noticeable little chubby cheeks.
"Okay, you've grown up, you're amazing. Do you want to eat?"
He was saying "toothpaste" in a muffled way.
"Yes, yes, yes, I want some..."
Washing your face is like slow motion, brushing your teeth is like double speed—whoosh, whoosh, hey? Done.
He even ran up to Jian Dan and showed off his little teeth.
"Look, it's all white now."
"Okay, okay, bye-bye, get on the kang and get ready for dinner."
There were only two of them, and they weren't in a hurry to eat, so they simply set up a small table on the kang (a heated brick bed).
Each person gets a bowl of millet porridge that's simmered until it's almost mushy, topped with a thick layer of golden rice oil that looks incredibly appetizing.
The small basket contained several small steamed buns, glistening with oil, and their aroma wafted straight into my nose.
Finally, add two small plates of pickled vegetables.
Jian Dan wanted to bring out salted duck eggs, but the salted duck eggs she had on hand wouldn't be ready to eat for another month or so, and she felt bad about treating everyone at the table differently. Fortunately, the pickled vegetables were also quite good, and the cucumbers were crisp and refreshing. With a bowl of porridge, it was incredibly satisfying.
Xiao Xinxin ate without looking up. After drinking half a bowl of porridge, he glanced at the steamed bun next to him, then at Jian Dan, but didn't dare to reach for it. He hadn't known for a while whether the food he ate last night was real, or whether he would be sent away today. He was filled with anxiety from the moment he got out of bed this morning.
I glanced at it briefly, ate another bun, and there were two more in the small basket. They weren't very big, so I simply pushed the basket over.
"I'm full, this is yours."
The child immediately looked up, her mouth agape and her big eyes widening. She hadn't eaten these buns many times before; were they really going to give them all to her?
"What's wrong?"
Simple asked in confusion,
"You're full after just one bowl of porridge? Why didn't you eat the steamed buns?"
The little hand holding the spoon tightened its grip even more.
"Sister, are the steamed buns for me too?"
"Of course, it's just the two of us at home, who else would we give it to if not you? Eat up, eat your fill, Tiger will be coming to play with you later."
The child looked puzzled again, then, as if struck by a sudden thought, a chill ran down his spine.
"Brother Tiger, who is it? Are they here to arrest me?"
Simple sighed again.
"Why are we arresting you? Tiger is the young man who came yesterday,"
Seeing that she was still confused, I simply clicked it.
"The handsome young man who gave you a bath yesterday?"
The child's eyes widened, and he waved his hands repeatedly.
"No, no, no, let's go, let's go!"
A simple smile.
"Oh dear, Xin Xin doesn't like it? Never mind then, I won't let him come over."
Children are the most innocent; they can be easily tricked into revealing information in just a few words.
"Sister, he's a boy, I'm a girl, so you can't watch me take a bath."
"No, no, Brother Tiger, you also have a younger sister at home named Xiaohua. You can call her Sister Xiaohua."
He has a younger sister, so his feelings for you are purely platonic.
His little brain was clearly blank; what was even more unexpected was that he came over right after he finished eating.
"Sister Jian, we're here! Where's little Xin Xin?"
The tiny child, holding a bowl bigger than her head, struggled to step over the threshold and place it on the stove. Watching it land safely, she broke out in a cold sweat.
Simple and even praising,
"Wow, little Xin Xin is so clever! She can help her older sister with chores now!"
In that short while, the two brothers, Tiger and his brother, entered the house.
"Sister Jian, can I take Xin Xin out to play?"
Simple didn't answer, so she looked down and asked the little one.
"Do you want to go out and play? There are many children your age in the village. Why don't you go out and see the world with Brother Huzi? I'll let Jixiang and the others go with you, okay?"
Little Xinxin didn't react, but Tiger got excited first.
"Sister, are we really allowed to take the puppy out?"
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