The door creaked open, and when the owner of the house came out, it was a short, elderly woman dressed in thick clothes. She walked with a limp, stretching out the sleeve of her coat as she quickly opened the door.
As soon as the old woman opened the courtyard gate, she saw Lan Yamei without showing any surprise, as if she were used to it. She said to the older brother, "Are you here to ask for lodging?"
The older brother nodded, and Lan Yamei quickly said with a smile, "Auntie, I'm sorry to bother you so late."
The thunder in the sky grew louder and the wind became stronger, indicating that a heavy rain was imminent. Lan Yamei urgently needed a house to shelter her from the wind and rain.
The weather was bad; although it was early winter, a chill was in the air, making people shiver. The old woman quickly invited the two inside, saying, "The weather has changed, come in quickly." She opened the courtyard gate, and the two hurried in.
The courtyard is small; it's only about 20 steps from the fenced yard at the entrance to the main house.
Upon seeing a stranger enter, a boy of about eight or nine years old ran out of the left wing room.
Before the old woman could give any instructions, the little boy took the reins from Lan Yamei, led the horse to the eaves, tied it up, and fed it hay and water. Lan Yamei gave him a grateful look and followed the two into the house.
Lifting the cotton curtain, a small, old wooden table came into view, furnished with four benches, the table itself empty. An old incense burner, covered in dust, sat on a short incense table. On the wall hung a painting of a Taoist priest, his expression serene and benevolent. Lan Yamei glanced at it quickly; it seemed this was the main living area of the household.
The house was not large; the main room was in the middle, with a room on each side.
Just as they entered, a loud clap of thunder startled everyone. Immediately afterward, large raindrops began to fall in a cacophony.
The old man had intended to chat with passersby as usual. But glancing outside, he realized he'd get soaked if he didn't leave soon, so he said, "It's raining, I'm going home. Don't worry, young lady, my sister is a very kind person." With that, he started to walk away.
The old woman grabbed her brother's arm, took out a heavy cloth bag from behind the door of the main room, weighing about four or five pounds, and stuffed it into his hand, saying, "Take this. I just brought it back from the mountain this afternoon. I was going to send it to you first thing tomorrow morning, but since you're here, I'll take it back with me."
The old man didn't refuse. He took the cloth bag and held it tightly in his hand, saying, "Okay, okay, I'll go now. Xiaodou is still at home. He's terrified of thunder." After saying that, he carefully held the cloth bag to his chest and hurried out the door.
The old woman watched her brother leave, then instructed the boy to close the courtyard gate before turning to another room and smiling at Lan Yamei, saying, "Perfect timing, this room is empty, girl, you can stay here, my granddaughter and I will stay here." The old woman pointed to the room opposite as she spoke.
"Thank you so much, it's really too much trouble for you. I'm so sorry to disturb your rest so late." Lan Yamei was extremely grateful to the two hospitable elderly people.
“Young lady, everyone has their difficulties when they're out and about. If you can lend a hand, then do so. Don't take it to heart. To be honest, I'm also an old lady who believes in the Asura Immortal. Do good deeds and accumulate merit.”
He led Lan Yamei into the room for a look. Although it was an earthen bed with old quilts and very little furniture, except for a bench, the room was empty but very clean.
The old lady said warmly, "I'll go heat up some food for you. It's leftovers from dinner, so don't mind it. It'll fill your stomach." Before Lan Yamei could refuse, the old lady hurried off to do her chores.
Ever since that bad experience eating out, I feel guilty about eating food from strangers again. I secretly squeezed the unfinished pancake in my arms, sat down helplessly, and wondered how I could avoid eating it without hurting the other person's good intentions.
At this moment, a little girl lifted the curtain, poked half her head in, saw Lan Ya Mei, gave her a shy smile, and quickly withdrew her head.
"Little sister, come in. I have some pancakes here. Would you like some?" Lan Yamei rummaged through her empty pockets. Besides a few coins, all she had left were these pancakes. She couldn't very well give the child a coin when she really had nothing else to give her. This also reminded Lan Yamei that she should always carry a few candies with her when she goes out in the future.
Sure enough, upon hearing that there were pancakes, the little girl mustered her courage and walked in, her eyes bright and innocent, quite shy. After taking two steps, she stopped in place, her little hands clasped tightly together, looking very adorable and shy.
Lan Yamei pulled two pancakes from her bosom. The pancakes were glistening with oil and covered in black sesame seeds; even though they were cold, they still looked very tempting. Lan Yamei stretched out her arm and offered the pancakes to the little girl. The little girl hesitated for a moment, then took one and took a small bite. Immediately, the corners of her mouth turned up, her eyes crinkled with laughter, and she turned her head, calling out, "Brother..." before running out.
Hearing the two children sharing a pancake, Bluetooth Girl couldn't help but smile, feeling much more relaxed.
At that moment, a torrential downpour had begun outside the window. Looking out through the oil-paper window, the night was as black as pitch.
In Huludao, she was mentally exhausted and hadn't had a moment to relax. After being rescued, she hurriedly took a boat back to Lin'an without daring to rest. She rode her horse to settle accounts with the white-bearded old Taoist priest, only to find him gone. The exhaustion of the past few days was finally released at this moment. Lan Yamei unconsciously yawned, feeling sleepy.
The mud-brick house was warm in winter and cool in summer. Through the curtain, one could hear the old woman working the bellows to heat the food. Outside, two children could be heard talking intimately. The warm room and the dim light of the oil lamp made Lan Yamei feel drowsy. Not knowing when the food would be ready, Lan Yamei thought she'd take a short nap. She found her bed, but before she could even take off her shoes, she was asleep in less than ten seconds.
When I woke up again, it was the next morning.
Bright sunlight streamed in through the window, dappling the floor; it was a sunny day.
There were people moving around outside, and the soft, rustling sounds gradually became clearer. "Grandma, should we wake that lady up?"
"Look how sleepy she is. Let her sleep a little longer. She's just a child. Even if something really happens, we have to take care of her first. Yaya, go and put another ember under the stove. When your sister wakes up, the food will be hot. She didn't eat last night and must be starving."
"Grandma, I'll go feed my sister's horse some more hay so it can run faster when she sets off." The speaker was a boy.
"Alright, alright, you guys have all been won over by your sister's pancakes."
The sunlight shone directly onto the earthen bed, making Bluetooth Girl unable to keep her eyes closed any longer. She finally let out a big yawn and groggily opened her eyes. She discovered that she had somehow ended up covered with a thick quilt, and her shoes were neatly arranged on the floor.
"Sister, you're awake?" A head popped out from behind the curtain; it was the little girl from last night. Not understanding what Bluetooth was saying, someone happily called out, "Grandma, that sister has woken up!"
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