"Mom, what do you want to say?" Yin Xiaoman asked.
Zhang Jinfeng didn't say anything, but reached into her arms, fumbled in the inner pocket of her cotton-padded jacket for a long time, then carefully took out two eggs that were still warm from body temperature and put them in her hand.
"Crack some eggs and give some to the two children, and have some for yourself."
After saying that, Zhang Jinfeng sighed and pinched Yin Xiaoman's arm: "Look how thin you are. Don't force yourself. If you have nothing to eat, go ask your parents for it. Don't bother with your sister-in-law. We are not dead yet! As long as we have something to eat, you won't starve."
Yin Xiaoman looked at the two white eggs in his palm and was a little dazed for a moment.
He couldn't even remember what he said to Zhang Jinfeng or how she left.
She didn't expect the old couple would treat her like this.
They gave Yin Xiaoman food yesterday, but Yin Xiaoman wasn’t too moved.
First of all, in the original owner's memory, this is a common occurrence.
Secondly, she felt that the main reason was that the two old people were so excited when they suddenly heard Dabao talking, and they were excited for a moment.
There is nothing for her to be grateful for as grandparents love their grandchildren.
But when the old lady gave her the eggs just now, she asked her to eat some as well.
Yin Xiaoman could tell from the tone and expression that there was no pretense and that what he said was sincere.
She may not care about two eggs, but the thoughtfulness made her feel a little uncomfortable.
As far as Yin Xiaoman can remember, his parents had passed away, and he grew up following his grandmother, stumbling along.
Grandma was very kind to her, but it was limited.
After all, in those days, just filling one's mouth took up all one's energy, and no one would deliberately show affection to a child.
Once in the palace, one has to be even more cautious at every step and be extremely careful every day, just hoping to save one's life and survive until the time to leave the palace.
Although I can't say that everyone around me is an enemy, it's impossible for me to be unprepared.
For at least more than ten years, Yin Xiaoman didn't feel that there was anyone he could confide in.
She has an indifferent personality, is alert inside, and has a strong sense of proportion in everything she does.
I don't try to make friends with others deliberately, and I don't try to take advantage of others.
Those who are greedy for bargains will die quickly. This is the truth she has summed up after many years.
If the old couple still treated the original owner the same way and just sent some food to the two children every now and then, Yin Xiaoman would think it was normal and would feel at ease.
But their sudden kindness to her made her feel——
A bit overwhelmed.
She tightened her hand holding the egg, frowned subconsciously, and felt annoyed.
"We have to send something else."
After reciting this sentence silently, she pursed her lips and walked to the kitchen.
Yin Xiaoman first moved out a small stone mill she had found before, wiped off the dust on it, poured in a spoonful of coarse corn grits, and ground it into fine cornmeal.
Then, while the two little ones were still asleep, he went back into the palace's small room and scooped half a bowl of milk from the pottery jar that had been put back in place.
Before leaving, she thought for a moment and picked up a few pieces of the milk cake on the table.
Those snacks were placed in the small house, and it seemed that they were not affected by the passage of time. After a few days, they still looked as if they had just been made, and the milk cakes were still slightly warm.
After coming out, he poured the milk into the cornmeal, broke the milk cake into pieces and kneaded it in. Yin Xiaoman skillfully pinched out a few holes.
It’s the same nest, but this one looks much better than the one that Dabao gave her before.
After lighting the fire and steaming the steamed dumplings, Yin Xiaoman went back to the house to wake up the two children and ask them to wash up.
When I came back after finishing my work, the dumplings were already steamed.
After taking out the steamed buns, Yin Xiaoman cooked some thin white flour paste according to Zhang Jinfeng's instructions. He beat an egg into the paste before serving and made a pot of mouth-watering egg noodle soup.
Just when the two little guys had cleaned themselves up, tidied the kang, and were about to go out to help, Yin Xiaoman came in with breakfast.
"Go get the dishes."
Yin Xiaoman placed the ceramic basin filled with noodle soup and the winnowing basket filled with rice dumplings on the prepared kang table while giving instructions to Dabao.
But for a long time, no one said a word.
She couldn't help but feel a little strange.
Normally, this little guy would run very fast without any instructions. What happened today?
She couldn't help but turn her head and look at Dabao who was standing on the edge of the kang.
As a result, she saw the two little guys standing there stupidly, staring at the food she placed on the table, as if they were stupid.
"Everyone go sit on the kang." She sighed and gave the order again.
Dabao seemed to suddenly react. He said "Oh", turned around and was about to run out, but Yin Xiaoman grabbed his collar and pulled him in.
"Sit on the kang!" She reached out and pressed his head, then ignored them and turned back to the kitchen.
Erniu reached out and touched her brother, but her eyes seemed to be glued to the golden nest, and she was reluctant to even look at him.
After a while, he asked in a vague tone, as if he was still in a dream: "Brother, is this what mother made for us?"
Dabao pursed his lips and said nothing.
At this moment, he also felt that he had not yet woken up.
After all, how could there be such delicious food except in dreams?
No, Dabao shook his head again.
He took a deep look at the white flour paste with frangipani flowers floating in it, and the nest that exuded a sweet and fragrant smell that he had never smelled before...
Even in his dreams, he had never dreamed of such food.
When Yin Xiaoman entered the room with the dishes and chopsticks, he saw the brother and sister still standing by the kang, not moving at all, their eyes staring at the table in a daze.
She went over and slapped the two little butts: "What are you wasting time on? It will be cold soon."
After saying that, he picked up two nests, put one in each person’s mouth, and started to pour the porridge into their bowls.
After being slapped by her, the two little guys finally reacted and quickly got on the kang.
But after taking a bite of the wowo, Erniu suddenly burst into sobs.
Yin Xiaoman stopped what he was doing and raised his eyebrows.
Before she could ask, the little girl suddenly came to her side and hugged her arms tightly.
"Mom, is this a dream? I won't wake up from this dream, right? I don't want to wake up."
The little girl buried her face in the sleeves of her cotton-padded jacket, and her tears soon soaked her clothes.
Yin Xiaoman stared at the tear stains with a bit of disgust for a while, then reached out and poked Erniu on the forehead and pushed her aside.
He placed a bowl of hot porridge in front of her and then said slowly, "Go to bed early at night. It's already so late and you're still not awake."
Hearing this, Dabao, who had his head down, couldn't help but smile.
He couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.
How long has it been since he felt this happy since his father died?
After picking up the Wo-Wo and taking a bite, Dabao's hand suddenly froze at his lips, unable to move at all.
He just felt that the piece in his mouth was loose and soft, melting in his mouth, not irritating his throat at all, and had a sweet fragrance that he had never tasted before.
He was reluctant to swallow it and just hoped that this feeling could stay in his mouth a little longer.
It was a pity that he was a step too late to realize it. Before he could react, he had swallowed the piece of food unconsciously.
Dabao's eyes also became sore and hot.
He felt that he could especially understand his sister's thoughts at this moment——
I'm really afraid that this is just a dream and I'll wake up if I'm not careful.
Yin Xiaoman clumsily rubbed the brother and sister's heads and couldn't help feeling a little headache.
She didn't understand why eating breakfast could make the two children cry?
I ate better, but it caused me to get sick?
Probably too idle.
Yin Xiaoman nodded secretly in his heart, feeling that his judgment was correct.
When she first arrived at the palace, she was not much older than Dabao and was busy every day. How could she have the time to shed a few tears from time to time?
She decided to find something for the two children to do.
After dinner, Yin Xiaoman rejected Dabao's intention to help her with the work, and according to the original owner's memory, she dug out a dusty wooden box from the edge of the kang.
It looked like the box had not been moved for a long time, but it was locked. One could feel how much the original family valued it.
Yin Xiaoman reached under the box and indeed took out a small brass key.
She opened the wooden box and took out all the textbooks and notes that the original owner had kept since her childhood. On the bottom layer, she took out a booklet that she had bound herself.
The booklet was made by sewing white rough paper together with the thick thread used to sew shoe soles.
The white paper had turned yellow and the corners were a little torn, but it was neatly preserved without even the slightest curl.
It can be seen how much it was once cherished.
Yin Xiaoman opened the booklet and found that it was a handwritten enlightenment textbook.
The white paper was filled with the most basic and simple large characters written in regular script with a brush.
Although they are some of the simplest characters such as "人, 口, 手", they are written with great strength and you can tell at a glance that they are not written by an ordinary person.
She knew that this was written by the original owner's father to enlighten the original owner, and she also knew that this booklet would be destroyed by those who broke into and searched the house in a year.
The original owner fell seriously ill because this most precious relic of her father was destroyed.
Dabao lost his life because he ran to the mountains in the heavy snow to find food because she was bedridden.
Yin Xiaoman gently stroked the paper with his fingers, deciding to make the best use of it.
She motioned for the two children to sit down, wiped the table clean, spread the booklet on it and turned to the first page.
Pointing at the words above, he asked, "Do you recognize these?"
Dabao nodded hesitantly.
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