Chapter 5
As a married couple for decades, Old Man Chen quickly understood his wife's intention and cooperated, standing quietly and listening attentively.
They didn't have to wait too long before they heard Sang Luo's low voice inside, asking Shen An and Shen Ning to drink some sugar water as well. Then, a smile appeared on Mrs. Chen's wrinkled face, and she signaled her husband to leave quietly.
Sang Luo had no idea that she was being secretly observed by the old lady. She felt that her strength was gradually recovering and she had escaped the crisis of sudden death, so she naturally noticed the two children who were as thin as bamboo poles.
Thinking that my life was saved by these two little guys, it goes without saying that I feel grateful and warm.
Chen An and Shen Ning were really scared this time. At first, when Sang Luo asked them to drink the sugar and salt water, they shook their heads and refused to touch their sister-in-law's "life-saving food". But when Sang Luo smiled and said that she was really much better and that she could cook some porridge in a while, and that she was sure and certain that she would not die of illness or hunger again, and put the bowl to Chen Ning's mouth, the little girl swallowed her saliva, looked at her sister-in-law and then at her second brother, and took a sip tentatively.
Sweet and slightly salty, it was originally a very strange taste, but Chen Ning usually only got three or two small wild fruits like raspberries and black rice on the mountainside, and there was no sweet taste anywhere else. Just touching his lips with it made him feel so beautiful that his eyebrows and eyes curved.
She only took a small sip and passed the bowl to Chen An: "Second brother, it's sweet, you drink it too."
Ever since Chen An heard that his elder brother had passed away, he had been acting like a little adult and always taking the lead over his younger sister. But when half a bowl of sugar water was handed to him, his true colors were revealed.
After all, he was still a child, how could he refuse the sweet water that was placed in front of his mouth?
The last bit of mulberry in syrup was not eaten, and the brother and sister shared it all, taking turns to eat.
Chen An was the older brother, so he would only take a sip each time, mostly giving it to Chen Ning. When the last sip was given to him, the little guy stopped pretending to be an adult, and after drinking every drop, he naturally licked the bottom of the bowl. He even added water to the clay pot that had been used to boil the sugar water, shook it and rinsed it once, and then boiled the water in the pot once before finishing it.
Sang Luo didn't think it was shameful. In those days when people could starve to death, this was a very normal thing.
She was an orphan in her previous life. She was admitted to the hospital due to illness only one year after graduating from college. After a series of examinations, she found out that she would not live long.
If she was born in a wealthy family and could spend several million on hospital treatment and maintenance, Sang Luo might be able to survive a few more years.
But she didn't have millions to spend, so she decided not to suffer that. She buried herself in her bed and cried for two days. After thinking for three days, she handed in her resignation, used her savings from part-time jobs and stall sales since college, and a year's work after graduating from college, did a lot of research online, visited several places, and finally found a mountain that she liked. She bought a dilapidated house that had been abandoned for a long time, and settled down in the mountain while renovating it.
I live the life that I once longed for and only dared to long for.
Sang Luo has lived in the mountains for five years, and most of the time she is alone. She has neighbors, but they are a little far away and most of them are left-behind elderly people. The young people and children have all gone to the city for work and school.
So Sang Luo doesn't have many opportunities to come into contact with children.
At this moment, looking at the two little siblings who are friendly and take care of each other, I feel warm.
There is nothing wrong with living in the mountains. Compared to the last few years of her life in her previous life when she was spent in pain, she should be healthy now after at least some recuperation, and she has two companions.
Being poor is not scary. As long as you have hands, feet and brains, there is always a way to make money.
Sang Luo felt that this was good enough, and God really gave her a good fortune.
By the time the three of them had drunk their fill, it was already dawn. Sang Luo had also recovered her strength, and at least she could walk around the house without blacking out and falling down.
She didn't take it lightly. After a short rest, she called on the two younger ones to help her run errands, wash the clay pots, collect spring water, wash rice and cook porridge.
Real white rice porridge, without any wild vegetables mixed in.
When Shen An and Shen Ning saw Sang Luo grab a handful of rice from the cloth bag and give it to them to wash, they were stunned.
Neither of the two little ones moved. They just stared blankly at the rice in the clay pot and then at Sang Luo.
Shen An pursed his lips and said, “Sister-in-law, if you eat like this, these food will be gone in a few days.”
His face was full of disapproval.
Shen Ning, who was standing by, saw his brother speaking and nodded in agreement. His little head was like a chicken pecking at rice. He looked at Sang Luo without saying a word, but his eyes seemed to be saying: Second brother is right, sister-in-law, please take some back.
Sang Luo felt both amused and sad, and decided, "That's all. Go wash the rice and cook some porridge."
It was no use her making the decision; the two little ones still refused to move.
Sang Luo could only explain: "Don't worry, sister-in-law will find a way to get food, I promise!"
The two kids looked at her and still didn't move. It was obvious that after several months of getting along, Sang Luo's promise had zero persuasiveness.
Sang Luo sighed, "Look, I almost starved to death this time, didn't I? If you keep eating like this, not only me, but both of you will also collapse. Listen to me, wash the rice and cook a pot of porridge. We will have a good meal. When you have enough strength, I will take you out to find food. You can't save food by being frugal."
Shen Ning blinked her eyes. She didn't hear the long string of words that followed. She only heard the first sentence, "Sister-in-law almost starved to death this time." Shen Ning turned around and looked at her second brother.
Chen An also showed a conflicted look on his face, and it was obvious that he was wavering in his heart. After thinking for a while, he reached into the clay pot and grabbed a thin layer from the unstained part of the surface and put it back into the rice bag: "Cook these, I don't need to eat a lot."
Too sensible.
Sang Luo thought of herself when she was a child. She realized that it was the hardship in life that made her have such a personality.
She nodded and didn't force it.
Shen An and Shen Ning were obviously relieved, and did not give Sang Luo a chance to regret. They went out with the clay pot to get spring water to wash rice.
A big one and two children gathered around the simple stone stove, listening to the gurgling sound coming from the clay pot. Chen An took a wooden spoon and stirred it from time to time, waiting for the rice grains to tumble and bloom. Just smelling the fragrance of the rice porridge made him very greedy.
When it was time to distribute the porridge, it was Shen An, the chef, who took charge. Sang Luo got one spoonful, Shen Ning got a little less, and he only got half a spoonful.
The wooden spoon for scooping porridge was not very big. If it was placed in a modern, exquisite fist-sized bowl, it would only be enough to fill a shallow bowl. One spoonful for her and Shen Ning was still enough, but Shen An's half spoonful would only fill the bottom of a bowl in the rough bowl used in ancient times.
Sang Luo couldn't bear to watch, so she took the wooden spoon and shared a small portion from her bowl with him. Chen An was a little stunned. Sang Luo smiled and said, "Okay, little man, eat. I was very hungry before, and I can't eat too much. Eating small meals frequently is the right way to nourish the stomach."
The brother and sister looked at the steaming thick white porridge but still didn't dare to pick up their chopsticks.
Sang Luo looked at the little brother and sister and urged them, "Eat, but remember to blow on it so you don't get burned."
Chen An didn't say anything this time. Chen Ning looked at the porridge in the bowl and then at Sang Luo: "Sister-in-law, are you really going to eat it? This and the wild vegetables will be enough for us to eat for many days."
"Eat!" Sang Luo was very sure: "Take a rest after eating. When I have enough strength, I will take you to find food."
Her determined and confident look did give the two hungry children some confidence, even if this confidence was actually pitifully small. The aroma of the white rice porridge wafted straight into their noses, and the two little ones' hearts swayed towards Sang Luo's words!
eat! ?
Just have a full meal!
There were no stools and the bowls were too hot to be lifted, so the three of them half-knelt beside the stone table that they barely used as a table, lowered their heads and blew on the porridge in their bowls. When the porridge on the surface had cooled down, they carefully scraped off the top layer with chopsticks and ate it in small mouthfuls.
The two little ones ate with great care, and were reluctant to eat too fast. In between eating, Chen Ning couldn't help but turn his head and say to Chen An on the side: "Second brother, the white rice porridge is so delicious! I haven't had such delicious porridge for a long time."
He looked so intoxicated, as if the bowl contained not porridge but seafood and mountain delicacies.
But Shen An knew how long this long time was. It was before his eldest brother left home. Shen An's eyes were sore. He raised his hand to suppress them and smiled at his sister: "Eat."
I will make sure you have enough to eat in the future.
He only dared to think of this in his mind and didn't dare to say it out loud, because Shen An knew that he was still too weak and couldn't do it.
His mood was obviously depressed. He would only smile when Shen Ning looked at him, but his eating speed had obviously slowed down.
When Sang Luo and Shen Ning finished eating half a bowl of porridge, there was still a little half left in Shen An's bowl.
When Shen Ning looked at Shen An, Shen An put the bowl of porridge in the middle of the stone platform: "I'll give you the rest at noon."
Then she quickly went to wash the dishes, and came back to carefully cover the remaining two mouthfuls of rice porridge with another upside-down bowl.
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