That’s how children are – once their wounds heal, they forget the pain. For some reason, Gu Linchen noticed that the child didn’t resist him as much as in the morning, and he unconsciously smiled genuinely. Feng Ge’er, watching all this, felt like he was dreaming. Ever since his husband woke up yesterday, he had been so kind to him and the child, and everything felt surreal. He wished time could just stop at this moment.

Gu LInchen’s mother brought the food to the table. “Dinner’s ready, stop standing there and come eat,” she called out.

Gu Linchen picked up Xige’er and looked at Feng Ge’er, saying, “Let’s eat first, we’ll have fruit after.”

Feng Ge’er, feeling a little embarrassed under Gu Linchen’s gentle gaze, quietly replied, “Okay.”

The family of three entered the kitchen and sat down with Gu Linchen’s mother. Gu Linchen looked at the three bowls of rice soup on the table, a dish of pickled vegetables, and a plate of green leafy vegetables. He didn’t know where to start. He watched His mother begin to drink the rice soup while Feng Ge’er, sitting beside him, also used his chopsticks to give some vegetables to Xige’er, signaling him to eat.

“Chen’er, why are you just staring? Go ahead and eat! You didn’t eat in the morning, the flatbread was eaten by me and Feng Ge’er,” His mother reminded him as she noticed him not moving his chopsticks.

“Alright, Mother, you eat first, don’t mind me,” Gu Linchen replied.

He picked up his chopsticks, grabbed a bit of vegetables, and put it in his mouth. As soon as it entered, he felt it wasn’t right. What kind of vegetable was this? It had no oil or flavor, and it was worse than food for pigs. His previous good manners stopped him from spitting it out, so he swallowed it down, feeling like his entire body was off. He picked up the bowl of porridge in front of him. Although it was called porridge, there were barely any rice grains. His bowl even had the most rice of all the bowls.

This was the worst meal he had ever eaten in his life. He thought to himself that he needed to change this situation immediately, or else he would suffer. After finishing the meal, Gu Linchen returned to his room feeling frustrated. He closed the door, took out the gold bars and ginseng from his clothes, and placed them on the bed. It seemed that he would need to exchange these things for silver money soon. The gold bars couldn’t be taken out all at once, as his reputation was already bad. If he pulled out something like this, people would think he had stolen the wealth of some rich family, and he would certainly end up in jail. In this feudal society that devoured people, there would be no place to cry for injustice. It was safer to sell the ginseng for money. With this thought, Gu Linchen put away the gold bars and wrapped the ginseng in some cloth, placing it in his pocket.

In the evening, the men who had gone out to work returned home. Gu Linchen sat by the door, watching as smoke rose from the chimneys of each thatched house. There was no electricity here, and the farmers finished their dinners before it got dark and went to bed early to save on oil lamps.

His father also returned from work, covered in dust. Seeing Gu Linchen sitting at the door, lost in thought, he asked, “Chen’er, are you feeling better? If your head hurts, you should go inside and lie down.”

“I’m fine, Father,” Gu Linchen stood up and looked at his father, who was dirty from work. He said, “Father, go wash up. Mother and Feng Ge’er are making dinner, and there’s hot water ready for you.”

“Alright.” His father didn’t linger and passed by Gu Linchen, heading to the kitchen, where he stood at the door.

“You’re back. Hurry, go inside and get your clothes. I’ve prepared hot water for you. Go wash up quickly, dinner will be ready soon,” His mother said as she looked at Gu Dalan at the door.

“I’m going now,” Gu Dalan replied.

Feng Ge’er was helping to tend the fire while Xige’er sat next to him. His mother instructed Feng Ge’er to keep an eye on the pot and went to prepare hot water for Gu Dalan.

The four adults and one child sat around the table for dinner. It was the same porridge as at lunch, with pickled vegetables, a plate of green vegetables, and a bowl of vegetable soup added. Gu Linchen looked at the same meal. The others ate with their heads down, showing no complaint about the food, but he had no appetite at all. He didn’t even know how he managed to finish the rice soup earlier.

Once everyone had finished eating, Feng Ge’er stood up, took a bowl of something dark from the stove, and handed it to Gu Linchen, saying, “Your medicine. You can drink it now.”

Gu Linchen froze. How could he have forgotten about that? He really wanted to just close his eyes and faint, poor stomach. He didn’t move. Four pairs of eyes were fixed on him. Just as His mother was about to speak, Gu Linchen took the bowl from Feng Ge’er’s hand and drank it down in one go. The temperature of the medicine was just right, and it wasn’t as bitter as the one from yesterday—probably because it had been boiled multiple times.

After everyone had finished their meals, His father pulled out thirty wen from his pocket and placed it on the table, saying to his wife, “This is what I earned today. Tomorrow, take it to Doctor Li to pay for the medicine for Chen’er.” He looked at Gu Linchen and continued, “And get another prescription for him.”

Gu Linchen panicked upon hearing this. “No need, Father! I feel much better now. I don’t need more medicine. Really.”

Gu Linchen truly didn’t want to drink any more. He had spiritual spring water, which worked much better than that dreadful medicine. There was no need to spend the money.

His father looked at him for a moment and then shifted his gaze. “Alright, we don’t have much money left. Let’s save it. But you need to behave from now on. Don’t do anything reckless again,” he said in a deep voice.

Gu Linchen was relieved to hear him agree. “Don’t worry, Father. I won’t make you worry anymore. I was too reckless before, but I’ve figured things out now. I have a family, and I need to think more for you both.”

Gu Linchen spoke sincerely.

His father nodded. “It’s good that you’ve thought this through. We really can’t handle another incident.”

Gu Linchen immediately replied, “There won’t be a next time!”

His mother, listening to them, wiped her tears. She was just a woman, spending her whole life taking care of her husband and child. Feng Ge’er, sitting nearby, lowered his head, seemingly lost in thought.

After a few days of recovery with the spiritual spring water, Gu Linchen’s body had finally recovered. As he walked out of the house, he saw Xige’er playing in the yard alone.

“What are you looking at?” Gu Linchen walked over and squatted by the fence, looking with Xige’er.

“Father,” Xige’er stood up and looked at Gu Linchen, “It’s ants, they’re moving.”

Gu Linchen smiled and said, “Xige’er is really smart, you know the ants are moving!”

“Mm,” Xige’er shyly smiled and nodded. This child was very sensible. He didn’t make noise or cause trouble. When His mother and Feng Ge’er were busy, he would play alone in the yard, sometimes even helping Feng Ge’er gather firewood.

After spending a few days together, the child was no longer afraid of him.

Gu Linchen picked him up, and Xige’er smiled brightly. He was so happy. Over the past few days, His Father had given him delicious fruits every day, smiled at him whenever they met, and even hugged him. He really liked the current version of his father. He wanted His Father to know how much he liked him, so he took action. He wrapped his small hands around Gu Linchen’s neck and buried his head in his chest.

Gu Linchen felt the child’s affection for him. He pinched Xige’er’s small face, which had little fat on it. “What a lovely child,” he said. The father and son walked happily down the winding path, looking harmonious from afar. Not far ahead, they ran into Gu Mu, who was coming down from the mountain carrying a bundle of firewood.

“Uncle Mu,” Gu Linchen called out.

“Mm.” Gu Mu, who hadn’t liked the original Gu Linchen, acknowledged him briefly without stopping, walking past him.

Gu Linchen didn’t get upset by Gu Mu’s reaction. Holding Xige’er, he continued walking forward. Soon, they saw his mother, Feng Ge’er, and a young man, each carrying a large bundle of firewood. Gu Linchen walked up, took the firewood off his mother’s back, and placed Xige’er down.

“Mother, let me do it. You help Feng Ge’er,” Gu Linchen said as he took the bundle off his mother’s back.

“Ah? Be careful, don’t hit your head,” His mother cautioned.

“Don’t worry, Mother,” Gu Linchen reassured her.

“Grandma, Mom, Uncle Xiao He,” Xige’er greeted them. The young man was Li Xiao He, Feng Ge’er’s only friend in the village. Li Xiao He had married into the village from another, not far from Gu Linchen’s family. The two young men were often together and got along well.

Li Xiao He walked ahead, and when they reached a fork in the road, he bid goodbye to Gu Linchen’s mother and Feng Ge’er and went off in another direction. Feng Ge’er walked in front with the firewood on his back, Gu Linchen’s mother helped him with the bundle in the middle, and Gu Linchen, carrying the firewood and holding Xige’er’s hand, walked behind.

Soon after they returned home, His father also came back from the town.

“Why are you back so early today?” His mother asked as she saw Gu Dalan entering with a large sack.

Gu Dalan put the sack down and said, “There weren’t many things to do today. I bought some rice and flour, you can make something with these tonight.”

His wife opened the sack and saw a small bag of fine rice, a bag of white flour, and a piece of meat. How much did all this cost?

Gu Dalan, noticing her surprised expression, quickly explained, “Chen’er’s body needs to be well-nourished to recover. The fruits I took to town also sold for almost an ounce of silver.”

“An ounce of silver, that much?” His wife was astonished.

“Yes, and they sold really well. The wealthy people in town bought several pounds each. They sold out in less than an hour,” Gu Dalan happily replied.

A few days ago, when Gu Linchen took peaches and apples from his space, the whole family thought they were delicious. They looked much more tempting than the ones sold in the town. They asked Gu Linchen if there were more on the trees in the mountains. Of course, there were. Gu Linchen had gone to the mountains the previous day, pretending to gather firewood, but actually harvesting more from his space. Although his mother wanted to go with him, Gu Linchen refused, saying he could move faster alone and didn’t want to stand out.

Gu Linchen looked at the fresh pork and thought of making Dongpo pork, but the ingredients weren’t enough. However, he could still make stir-fried pork.

“Feng Ge’er, take some of this rice and steam dinner. Mother, let me cook tonight, I’ll show you what I can do.”

“Th-this… Chen’er, you’re not running a fever, are you? Don’t scare your mother!” His mother looked at Gu Linchen in disbelief. When had her son ever cooked before? She reached out to touch his forehead, but Gu Linchen grabbed her hand.

“I’m fine. I just learned a little from an elder before, but I’ve never actually cooked. I don’t know if it’ll taste good or not,” Gu Linchen said.

His mother was about to say something when Gu dalan interrupted. He looked at Gu Linchen and said, “You cook tonight. As long as it’s edible, that’s fine.”

Gu Linchen thought to himself: It’ll definitely be edible. In his previous life, he didn’t like having other people around the house. Plus, with his busy and unpredictable work schedule, he mostly cooked for himself. To satisfy his own stomach, he even went to a five-star hotel he managed to learn cooking from the head chef for a while.

Gu Linchen walked into the kitchen and saw that Feng Ge’er had already steamed the rice. Gu Linchen found garlic shoots, garlic, and Sichuan peppercorns in the kitchen, but there were no chili peppers or ginger. He turned to ask Feng Ge’er, “Do we have chili peppers and ginger at home?”

“What’s chili? Ginger is something the medicine shop has. We don’t have any at home,” Feng Ge’er asked, confused.

Gu Linchen explained, “Chili is a small, red, pointed one,” as he demonstrated with his hands. In the end, Feng Ge’er said they didn’t have any. He had never seen them.