Chapter 4

Chapter 4

She used to cook different dishes for her grandmother at home all the time, so making a few home-style meals was second nature to her.

Before long, two steaming hot dishes and a soup were ready: stir-fried cabbage with vinegar, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, and radish soup with minced meat.

The aroma wafted directly into their noses, and the two little ones stared intently at the food, unable to control themselves, yet pitiably afraid to move.

The three of them exchanged glances for a few seconds. The two children shyly picked up their small stools and retreated, making way for Yan Xue to exit the kitchen, but they remained rooted to the spot, not moving.

Yan Xue was initially puzzled, but seeing them like this reminded her that the Original Owner never allowed the two children to eat at the table. They couldn’t even eat in the room, only waiting for her to finish before having some leftover soup and dishes in the kitchen.

They were just small children, and no matter how smart, the longing in their eyes couldn’t be hidden.

Yan Xue brought out the rice bowl, then took three bowls and three pairs of chopsticks, gesturing to them.

“Put your chopsticks and bowls in the room.”

A few minutes later, all the food was arranged in the room. The two children’s stomachs began to rumble again, and they clutched their bellies, about to run out.

Yan Xue called for them to stay and eat, but they didn’t listen, their small figures scrambling outwards.

Yan Xue easily stopped them, grabbing one by each hand.

With this stop, Yan Xue noticed that the two children’s clothes hung loosely on them. She wondered how starved they must have been over the past three months.

These clothes were from the Wei family, and children were supposed to be growing rapidly. These clothes were from three months ago, and now they were still so much too big.

Meanwhile, the two children squeezed their eyes shut, thoroughly panicked. Were they still going to suffer a beating today?

After a long moment, the anticipated beating did not arrive.

“Sit down and eat, don’t make me use my hands.”

Since gentle words weren’t very effective, she figured they couldn’t blame her for acting vicious.

What Yan Xue didn’t know was that even her feigned wickedness, as she shoved chopsticks into the children’s hands, was nowhere near a tenth of the Original Owner’s cruelty. Instead, her face held an incongruous, strange expression.

Wei Sixiang held his chopsticks, afraid to move his hands. He nudged his brother under the table and whispered, “Brother… can… can we eat?”

He felt that Mom was acting strangely today.

Not only was Mom strange, but the food was also strange. Why did today’s food smell so good, so fragrant that his mind was filled with pictures of the dishes, unable to think of anything else?

Yan Xue saw their small movements but said nothing, merely serving each of the two children a full bowl of rice and placing it in front of them.

Under the table, Wei Siao held his brother’s hand. The two children huddled together, leaving Yan Xue’s sides conspicuously empty.

Yan Xue wasn’t in a hurry. She just pretended to look at the two children coldly and threatened, “Eat quickly, or you’ll be washing dishes tonight!”

If one listened carefully, the true meaning of those words could be understood, but the two children were too young, and their minds were too preoccupied to process the nuances. They only understood that Yan Xue was saying they would suffer if they didn’t eat.

So, the two children furiously shoveled rice with their chopsticks. The difference was that Wei Sixiang’s cheeks were already puffed out.

Wei Siao, on the other hand, ate large mouthfuls of rice while still maintaining an inexplicable elegance, a quiet dignity for his young age.

Their rumbling stomachs were filled with warm rice.

The two children’s eyes involuntarily darted towards the dishes. They dared not pick up any food, only sniffing the aroma and shoveling rice with more vigor.

Yan Xue watched them, then smiled bitterly. She spooned a large serving of scrambled eggs with tomatoes into each child’s bowl. “Don’t just eat rice, hurry and eat your vegetables. All these dishes must be eaten clean.”

A long time passed.

The meal was eaten until the plates and bowls were sparkling clean, without even a drop of soup left.

At first, the two children ate very nervously, stealing glances at her as they shoved food in. But as they ate more, they no longer had the energy to sneak peeks.

Yan Xue didn’t know how many times she had told them to eat slowly within half an hour, so much so that she herself ended up eating very slowly.

“Is it good?” Yan Xue asked casually, looking at the two children.

Wei Sixiang, being simple-minded, nodded decisively. “It’s delicious, delicious, it smells so good!”

This was the first time he realized that the things from the dark kitchen could be made so appetizing.

Yan Xue’s eyes crinkled in a smile at the praise, and she turned expectantly to look at Wei Siao.

Wei Siao’s face suddenly flushed red. He didn’t want to admit that the bad woman’s food was delicious, but the taste really was…

After a two-second pause, he calmly replied, “It’s just average.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, his sleeve was tugged by his younger brother. He immediately felt he had said the wrong thing.

Wouldn’t the bad woman kick them out into the cold for saying that? He didn’t mind, but he couldn’t implicate his brother. He nervously smacked his lips, wanting to change his words.

His younger brother, Wei Sixiang, also looked at Yan Xue with a nervous expression.

Like two little puppies with furrowed brows.

“Pfft—”

Yan Xue couldn’t help but laugh. Why were these future big villains so cute when they were little?

It made her ‘old mother’s heart’ overflow.

“Alright, you two go to bed, turn on the TV and watch for a bit. Make sure to cover yourselves with the blanket, or I’ll beat you when I get back!”

Yan Xue said, pretending to wave her fist. After she finished, she took the dishes into the kitchen to wash them.

In the room, the two children didn’t understand but still complied.

On the bed, Wei Sixiang whispered, cupping his face and leaning on his brother, “Brother, what do you think happened to mom today? She actually let us eat today and didn’t beat us? Brother, I’m so full today, and it was really delicious. Why did you say it was just average? Didn’t you think it was tasty?”

His tender voice accompanied his wide, blinking eyes.

While speaking, he accidentally bumped his brother’s leg, making Wei Siao wince and softly hiss in pain.

Frightened, Wei Sixiang quickly drew back, his voice tearful, “Oh, Brother, your leg injury isn’t better yet, does it hurt a lot?”

Wei Siao frowned and used his small hand to wipe away the tears from his brother’s face. The wound did hurt a lot.

It was from the last time the bad woman hit him with a rattan cane. It tore his pants, blood and fabric mixed together, but he hadn’t cried out even once.

After a long silence, he firmly comforted his brother, “Little Xiang, don’t cry. It doesn’t hurt. You’ve forgotten what dad said. We have to be strong.”

Wei Sixiang’s tears wouldn’t stop. “But, but I saw it yesterday, Brother, your leg was still bleeding, and you couldn’t sleep at night because it hurt so much. I always bump into you, and the small bed is too small… I don’t want to be here, I miss home so much.”

The word ‘home’ felt so strange.

The two children knew what a home was, but they didn’t understand how one day they were suddenly chased out of their own home.

At first, they even counted the days, thinking they would be able to go home after at most ten days.

They never expected that so much time had passed, and not only could they not go home, but they were also beaten every day. Even the children in the village mocked them as wild children thrown into the mountains.

But they weren’t.

Wei Siao hugged his brother, his eyes also red.

—Ding ding ding.

As the brothers hugged each other, feeling sad, the phone by the bed suddenly rang.