As Lu An'an and Lu Yanli stepped into the courtyard, they looked around and realized that the village chief's courtyard was much more dilapidated than Uncle Niu's.
Lu Yanli asked tactfully, with a puzzled tone, "Village Chief, your place looks... more primitive than Uncle Niu's house?"
The village chief closed the door, a warm smile on his face, and explained, “It’s just my grandson and I living in this yard, so I’m too lazy to tidy it up anymore. Besides, it’s fine as it is now. Every brick, tile, plant and tree in this yard was arranged by my wife and me when she was alive. Whenever I see these things, I feel particularly at ease and satisfied.”
The village chief slowly surveyed his familiar yet slightly weathered courtyard, a hint of nostalgia welling up in his eyes.
Lu An'an gently interrupted the village chief's reminiscence: "The village chief just said that you have a grandson?"
The village chief snapped out of his daze, nodded, and called into the inner room, "Xiao Shi, we have guests. Come out and greet them."
As the words fell, the curtain was lifted, and a six- or seven-year-old boy walked out with a wary look in his eyes.
He walked to the village chief's side, his little hand tightly gripping the village chief's sleeve, his clear and bright eyes looking at Lu An'an and the other person in front of him with curiosity and vigilance.
Lu An'an looked at the delicate-looking child in front of her and greeted him gently, "Hello, Xiao Shi!"
Xiao Shi didn't reply, still watching Lu An'an warily, his fingers tightly gripping the village chief's clothes.
Seeing this, the village chief's eyes flashed with affection. He patted Xiao Shi's head with a touch of doting and said softly, "Say hello to your older brother and sister. Your sister will give you some milk candy."
Upon hearing this, Lu An'an glanced at the village chief, a subtle hint of surprise flashing in her eyes.
Is there a hidden meaning in this old man's words?
She took two candies out of her pocket, shook them at Xiao Shi, and said softly, "Want some candy, Xiao Shi?"
Xiao Shi's gaze lingered on the milk candy for a moment, hesitated for a second, then nodded and used sign language to express to Lu An'an and Lu Yanli: "Hello, older brother and sister, my name is Xiao Shi, thank you, sister, I want to eat candy."
A dark glint flashed in Lu An'an's eyes. She squatted down again, her tone full of gentleness: "Okay, then come and get it."
Xiao Shi looked up at his grandfather, shook the village chief's hand, and asked with his eyes. Only after receiving his grandfather's permission did he slowly move in front of Lu An'an and open his palm.
Lu An'an grabbed his wrist, placed two candies on it, and said with a smile, "Eat them."
Xiao Shi took the candy, his eyes lit up, and he made a "thank you" gesture before happily running to his grandfather's side, a genuine smile finally blooming on his face.
The village chief patted Xiao Shi's head as he ate candy, and asked Lu An'an with a smile, "Miss Lu, what do you think of Xiao Shi?"
Lu An'an slowly stood up, her gaze meeting the village chief's deep eyes. After a moment of silence, she smiled gently: "That's good. She seems to be a very well-behaved and obedient child."
So, is the village chief trying to convey to me that Xiao Shi is the only normal child among these children?
It seems he really did figure out what I was doing.
Lu Yanli's gaze flickered almost imperceptibly as he stared at the village chief, a thoughtful look crossing his eyes.
Is the village chief a friend or foe? What was his purpose in inviting the film crew to shoot the documentary?
His gaze slid over Xiao Shi, who was eating candy, and then he remembered the children who couldn't make a sound. A thought flashed through his mind: Did the village chief want to save those children?
As he was deep in thought, he heard Lu An'an beside him ask expectantly, "Village Chief, what are we having for lunch?"
"Food is essential for survival; a full stomach makes for a better job. I'm starving; I'll eat lunch first."
Lu Yanli's lips twitched. Was he really getting old? It was one thing to be unable to accept his sister's ever-changing identities, but now he couldn't even keep up with her rapidly changing thought processes.
Lu An'an was unaware that her second brother had begun to doubt her. She was looking at the village chief with bright eyes, as if hoping that the village chief would conjure up a Manchu Han Imperial Feast the next second.
The village chief paused for a moment, then shook his head with amusement. He then said gently to Lu An'an, "You and Xiao Shi should go inside first. I'll go and prepare some delicious food so you can taste the authentic flavors of our village."
Lu An'an's eyes sparkled with anticipation as she sweetly replied, "Yes, village chief. Thank you for your hard work, village chief."
After saying that, she took Xiao Shi's little hand and led him into the house.
Lu Yanli looked at his sister who had forgotten him, and silently followed her inside with a desolate feeling in his heart.
He found a place to sit down, rested his chin on his elbow, and watched his sister and Xiao Shi build with blocks for a while before softly asking Lu An'an about their plans: "An'an, what are we going to do after we finish eating?"
Lu An'an was bending over and building a block castle with Xiao Shi when she heard this. Without even looking up, she replied, "Didn't the village chief say that finding sources of income is our task? Let's go find some sources."
Yunling Village relies on the mountains for its livelihood, so their normal source of income must be from the mountains. During lunch later, subtly hint to the village chief to check if there are any problems with what's coming from the mountains.
Lu Yanli nodded in agreement. Yes, it seems that the old man, the village chief, is temporarily on their side. This is a good opportunity to test whether he is truly good or not.
As the two were deep in thought, suddenly, the curtain was lifted slightly, and the village chief, with his rear end sticking out, pushed the curtain open, turned around with a smile, and walked in carrying a dish in each hand.
"Come on, the food is ready. Come and eat. I'll go to the kitchen and bring the rest of the dishes over."
Lu Yanli quickly stood up and followed the village chief out, saying, "Village chief, let me go with you to collect it."
After all the dishes were served, the village chief wiped his hands and warmly invited Lu An'an and Lu Yanli to join him.
"Hurry up and pick up your chopsticks. Try my cooking and see if it suits your taste. Our little ten has been praising my cooking to the skies."
Lu An'an took a bite of the delicious-looking dishes on the table, and her eyes lit up instantly. She gave a thumbs up, her smile full of admiration: "Village Chief, this is chef-level!"
Upon hearing this, the village chief looked up and laughed heartily twice, then happily invited the two to eat.
Halfway through the meal, Lu An'an, picking up some food, casually asked, "Village Chief, my brother and I would like to go for a walk in the mountains after we finish eating, is that alright?"
The village chief paused slightly as he fed Xiao Shi, the hesitation almost imperceptible, but his smile remained warm: "Sure, go ahead, but the mountain path is difficult to traverse, so be careful, you two."
After a moment of silence, he seemed to just remember something, lightly patted his forehead, and with a hint of feigned realization in his eyes, reminded the two: "Oh right, I almost forgot, there's an area on the mountain that's been cordoned off. I heard there have been bear sightings recently, so you two mustn't be too curious and wander over there. Safety first."
Lu An'an nodded and assured, "I understand, Village Chief. Don't worry, we definitely won't go."
Okay, got it. We'll definitely go there.
Let's go see if there's a bear or Bald Qiang (a character from Journey to the West).
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