Chapter 6: A Messy Stew

When Cao Xi arrived at the alley entrance, Wang Gyechuan and Wang Gyerui were already waiting there.

They were eating the rice they had begged for.

Cao Xi noticed chicken buttocks in their bowls and thought they were lucky.

Gyechuan looked at the bones and vegetable leaves in Cao Xi’s hands, confused.

“Where did you pick this up? The bones have no meat on them. Why did you pick it up?”

Cao Xi replied, “What do you know? This is my Qin Zhao’s dinner. No one will get to eat it later.”

Gyechuan scoffed and continued to let his sister eat.

As the sky darkened, Li Feng and the others gradually returned. Cao Xi, concerned about Qin Zhao, walked ahead of the group.

…

Qin Zhao was sitting all alone in front of the earth god temple, gazing out.

Cao Xi’s heart tightened, and she quickened her pace.

“Qin Zhao, I’m back!”

When Qin Zhao saw Cao Xi, the lifeless aura around him was instantly replaced with joy.

Cao Xi ran up to Qin Zhao.

“Qin Zhao, look what I brought back today.”

Cao Xi proudly displayed the fruits of the day, and Qin Zhao’s eyes followed every movement of hers.

Cabbage, bones—everything was laid out on the ground.

Finally, Cao Xi mysteriously pulled a steamed bun from her chest.

She waved the bun in front of Qin Zhao’s eyes.

“Steamed bun! Do you want to eat it?”

Cao Xi leaned closer to Qin Zhao’s ear and whispered, “I bought this.”

Qin Zhao, who had been staring intently at the bun, was shocked and looked at Cao Xi with disbelief after hearing her words.

“We’re having bone soup today,” Cao Xi said, as she took the items into the house and placed the bowl on the mud stove to heat some water.

Qin Zhao stared at the bones, which were cleaner than his own face, thinking, how are we supposed to eat this?

Before he could voice his question, he saw Cao Xi smashing the bones with a stone.

The bones were without meat, but the marrow inside was better than nothing.

Cao Xi washed the cabbage and began preparing dinner. Qin Zhao proudly pulled out a bundle of clean wild vegetables and handed them to Cao Xi, his face eager with expectation, silently asking for praise.

Cao Xi felt a pang of bitterness in her heart but smiled and praised Qin Zhao. “Qin Zhao is so smart. After seeing the wild vegetables once, you remembered their appearance—amazing.”

Qin Zhao’s face turned slightly red. “I was bored while staying in the temple, so I slowly moved outside. I wanted to pick some wild vegetables. Even if you didn’t find anything today, we won’t go hungry.”

Hearing this, Cao Xi almost shed tears. The life of wandering made Qin Zhao afraid to act recklessly.

Cao Xi took the wild vegetables. “Today we’ll have bone stew with vegetables. It’s just right to add these wild veggies. Qin Zhao is truly an amazing child.”

Although Qin Zhao didn’t like being called a “child” by Cao Xi, he still smiled shyly when he heard her praise.

As Cao Xi cooked dinner, everyone gathered around.

When Cao Xi took the marrow out of the smashed bones, everyone suddenly understood—it turned out bones could be eaten this way.

Li Feng, curious, asked as he watched Cao Xi stirring the marrow and vegetable leaves in the bowl, “Where did you get all this?”

“I picked it up at the market. These are the vegetables that the farmers didn’t want, and the bones I got from the meat stalls. Though there’s no meat, the marrow in the bones can be used for stew,” Cao Xi answered, smelling the fragrant dish.

Li Feng couldn’t help but praise her. “You’re amazing, you even thought of making food out of this.”

Cao Xi blushed a little from the praise. “I couldn’t find anything to eat, so I had to come up with something myself.”

Li Feng thought for a moment before saying, “You don’t need to provide our rations. Next time, we’ll also pick some vegetables. Can you cook it for us?”

After all, picking vegetable leaves was much easier than begging for food, and the main thing was getting to eat hot vegetables.

“Of course, but we don’t have a pot, and with so many people, there’s no way to cook it all.”

Originally, Cao Xi had intended to hand in part of her copper coins, but now that she heard they could work to cover the rent, she was naturally happy.

The aroma of the stew filled the room, and Li Feng and the others, unable to resist the temptation, could only look away and go outside.

Wang Gyerui, staring at the vegetables in her bowl, didn’t want to leave and quietly said to her brother, “Brother, I want to eat.”

Gyechuan glanced at her, then at Cao Xi, and in the end, still held Gyerui’s hand and walked out.

He knew Cao Xi wouldn’t give them food; even her younger brother hadn’t eaten, and there wasn’t much food to go around.

Once everyone had gone outside, Qin Zhao secretly sighed in relief, afraid they might snatch his dinner.

He quietly leaned close to Cao Xi’s ear. “Cao Xi, I didn’t eat the multigrain pancakes today.”

Cao Xi was surprised. “Why didn’t you eat? Have you not eaten all day?”

Qin Zhao scratched his head and smiled. “I was afraid you might not find any food and would come back hungry. I just thought we could eat together tonight.”

Cao Xi gently patted Qin Zhao’s head. “Go get those multigrain pancakes. Let’s eat them together.”

Qin Zhao glared at Cao Xi, who liked to be hands-on, then turned around and pulled a multigrain pancake from his bag.

Cao Xi broke the multigrain pancake and steamed bun into two halves, then divided them and handed one half to Qin Zhao.

“Let’s have a full meal today,” she said, before starting to eat by herself.

The bowl was filled with vegetables, and the marrow was already gone, but Qin Zhao still ate with great satisfaction.

“Cao Xi, your cooking is so delicious! It’s even better than dishes with meat,” Qin Zhao said, being picky with his food and never mentioning the wealthy life he had before.

Cao Xi noticed his puffed-up cheeks and smiled. “That’s because of Qin Zhao’s wild vegetables.”

The corners of Qin Zhao’s mouth lifted uncontrollably, and with half a steamed bun and half a multigrain pancake, his stomach was finally filled after so many days of hunger.

While waiting for the others to return, Cao Xi counted the remaining food.

She put the last multigrain pancake into her bag and told Qin Zhao to save it for tomorrow, insisting that he couldn’t go hungry.

Taking advantage of the moonlight, Cao Xi counted the copper coins.

“There are twenty coins in total. You keep ten on you, and I’ll keep the other ten.”

Qin Zhao tucked the copper coins into his chest.

Cao Xi smiled and pinched Qin Zhao’s ear.

“Qin Zhao is so smart, keeping wealth hidden and safe.”

When Li Feng and the others returned, they found Cao Xi holding Qin Zhao’s foot, applying medicine to his injury.

Li Feng, a little envious, ran over and joked, “Cao Xi, why don’t you make me your brother? I can pick wild vegetables too, and I’m strong enough.”

Before Cao Xi could reply, Qin Zhao, disregarding the pain in his foot, immediately stood up and pushed Li Feng away.

“Get lost. Who said you could be her brother? Who do you think you are to call her by her name?”

The group had only been together for two days, so tensions could easily arise, but this time, Qin Zhao’s reaction was a bit too extreme.

These beggars were all pure-hearted and kind. Cao Xi wouldn’t have easily let them stay, and she even went along with them to beg.

Cao Xi quickly interrupted Qin Zhao’s questioning. “Brother Li Feng was just joking. He didn’t mean to compete with you for your sister. Why are you so worked up? Apologize to Brother Li Feng.”

Li Feng, feeling a bit hurt, truly liked Cao Xi. He wished he had an older sister like her who would care for him the way she did.

He hadn’t expected Qin Zhao to react so strongly, and now he felt somewhat down and unsure of what to do.

“Qin Zhao, I was just joking. I didn’t mean to compete with you for your sister.”

Hearing this, Qin Zhao glanced at Cao Xi and then at Li Feng. He didn’t want to apologize, but Cao Xi kept staring at him with a pointed look.

Qin Zhao pursed his lips. “Sorry, Brother Li Feng. I shouldn’t have pushed you.”

And just like that, an awkward conflict was resolved.

In the quiet of the night, Cao Xi watched Qin Zhao sleeping beside her and thought to herself that one day, she would have to teach him the lesson that people must humble themselves when they’re under someone else’s roof.

The new day began with another round of begging.

Cao Xi was the last to leave the earth temple. Before she left, she told Qin Zhao, “If you’re hungry, eat the multigrain pancake.”

Qin Zhao eagerly agreed and asked, “Cao Xi, when can I go out with you?”

“Soon,” Cao Xi replied. “Once your foot heals, you can come with me to beg.”

After helping Qin Zhao adjust his clothes, Cao Xi hurried to catch up with the group.

Li Feng said, “You’re always comforting your little brother. You need to let him come out and beg too. It’s easy for a kid to find food.”

Cao Xi replied, “His foot’s injured. Once it’s better, I’ll take him with me.”

Li Feng laughed and said, “I really envy him. I wish I had an older sister to take care of me.”

Having siblings was definitely different. Big Yong and Big Zhuang were inseparable, sharing everything, and sticking together when bullied.

He wasn’t so lucky; all he could do was cling to Li Feng, since it was just the two of them, both lonely and vulnerable.

Cao Xi smiled and said, “We live together, so we all take care of each other. You can call me Sister Cao Xi.”

Li Feng grinned and replied, “I’ll pass. I’m afraid your little brother will get mad.”

“He’s just a kid with a strong sense of possession. Don’t take it to heart.”

Thinking about Qin Zhao’s temper the day before, Cao Xi couldn’t help but laugh.