Chapter 2: Three Little Rascals – A Wash and a Chance

Su Luoluo looked at the cloud cakes on the ground.

The cloud cakes shouldn’t be poisonous, after all, they were from a two-year-old toddler… cough… what a sin! Just thinking about it made her blush.

Xiao Lei believed this wicked woman wasn’t so kind. Usually, she wouldn’t even give them a sip of water, but now she was acting strangely, giving Niuniu food – it must be poisoned.

This wicked woman was so vicious; she must want to poison them to get rid of them and seize the family’s belongings.

Niuniu squatted down, her dark little claws picking up a cloud cake from the ground.

Su Luoluo was about to say it was dirty and tell her not to eat it.

But before she could speak, Niuniu a sound of eating and ate the cake in one bite. It was just a simple cake, yet she seemed to be savoring a delicacy.

Su Luoluo was stunned.

“Niuniu, spit it out!”

Xiao Lei, worried about poison, was extremely nervous. He pinched Niuniu’s mouth, trying to dig the cake out.

Niuniu closed her mouth tightly and shook her head.

Xiao Fan was also anxious. He couldn’t speak, but fearing his sister’s death, he could only hold Niuniu’s hand, tears welling up in his eyes.

“It’s not poisonous. I got it from Wu Sao’s son at the village entrance.”

Su Luoluo helplessly explained.

The original owner had absconded with the family’s money, ready to escape with her luggage. But at the village entrance, she saw Wu Sao’s two-year-old son eating cloud cakes on the steps. She rushed to grab them, tripped, hit her head, and passed out, delaying her escape plan.

Hearing this, Xiao Lei stopped trying to pry open Niuniu’s mouth.

It wasn’t that he believed Su Luoluo, this wicked woman, but that while she was unconscious, Wu Sao came to scold her for stealing her son’s cakes, and it was the eldest aunt who kept apologizing to Wu Sao.

The cakes were stolen from Wu Sao’s son, so they should be safe.

Su Luoluo went outside and surveyed her surroundings.

In front of the house was a yard enclosed by a low mud-brick wall.

There was a poplar tree by the wall, and some chives, ginger, garlic, chili peppers, and vegetables were planted further ahead.

A large pile of branches and firewood was stacked in the corner of the yard. In the countryside, every household used straw and firewood for cooking.

This mud-brick house had three buildings, all built around the yard: one for the eldest uncle and his wife, one for her, and one that served as a living room where they ate and rested.

Her mother-in-law and younger brother-in-law’s rooms were separated from the living room by a mud-brick wall, creating two bedrooms.

The kitchen was simply enclosed by a mud-brick wall in front of the living room, with a thatched roof made of straw and stalks to provide shade and shelter from the rain.

Su Luoluo frowned fiercely. This family was truly poor.

How did she get into this book? She didn’t want to be in this book! She still had a long string of zeros in her bank account, money she hadn’t spent yet – it pained her.

Looking at this house, it vividly illustrated the saying, “My neighbors always say I’m a nuisance because I’m so poor.”

Her heart ached even more.

Three little sprouts cautiously peeked out from inside the house, stealing glances at Su Luoluo.

Xiao Lei felt that the wicked woman was strange today. She didn’t show disgust or a ferocious face, and didn’t beat them.

Su Luoluo spent most of the afternoon sitting in the yard, pondering how to return to her world, but she didn’t plan on committing suicide to go back. If she really died, it would be a complete loss.

The three little ones were well-behaved. Xiao Lei swept the floor with a broom, Xiao Fan collected trash with a broken dustpan, and Niuniu was busy catching insects in the vegetable patch.

Su Luoluo turned her head and saw the three little ones. Her mood was complex. In the book, these three children had a very tragic fate.

The door of the opposite mud-brick house opened, revealing Su Luoluo sitting in the yard. Then, with a “bang,” it closed again.

Uh…

Was she that scary?

Her sister-in-law shrunk back into the house as soon as she saw her.

Wait…

She seemed to have forgotten something.

Her appearance in the book…

Su Luoluo abruptly stood up from the wooden chair, ran to the water jar, lifted the wooden lid, and looked at her reflection.

A large water jar was placed in the center of the yard, the family’s water source.

Every household in the village had to fetch water from the well at the village entrance.

The person in the water…

Her head was wrapped in white gauze.

Her facial features and face shape were similar to her real-life appearance, except for a large red birthmark under her eyes. Her face was also covered with red rashes and blisters, densely packed, almost covering her entire face.

Su Luoluo gasped.

This… was too ugly.

Even she found it jarring.

Worse than poverty was ugliness, and she had both.

She was numb.

Su Luoluo quickly checked her pulse. Thankfully, she didn’t have any strange disease. The red rashes and blisters were just an allergic reaction. This body was weak, so the allergic reaction was severe.

She was a descendant of a ghost doctor. The red birthmark wouldn’t defeat her; she could make it disappear. She could improve her constitution and find the allergen.

Su Luoluo carefully searched her original owner’s memories for a possible allergen.

Her gaze fell on the willow tree in the yard.

Every time the willow fluff floated, the red rashes and blisters on the original owner’s face became particularly severe.

The original owner’s allergen was most likely this willow tree.

Su Luoluo picked up a hatchet from the firewood pile, strode to the willow tree in the corner of the yard, and swung the hatchet, chopping at the tree.

Fortunately, the willow tree trunk wasn’t very thick. After exhausting herself, Su Luoluo finally felled the tree.

Seeing the wicked woman fiercely chopping down the tree, the three little ones were frightened. Their small bodies huddled together as they timidly watched.

After the willow tree fell, Su Luoluo turned around and saw the three little ones, their faces displaying the same fear, their eyes filled with terror.

Uh… she seemed to have scared them.

Su Luoluo cleared her throat and walked towards them, intending to explain.

The three little ones took a big step backward, their bodies trembling.

Su Luoluo then remembered that the original owner had always abused the three children. To them, she was like a devil.

She stopped, “The house needs firewood, so I cut it down to dry.”

Xiao Lei didn’t believe the wicked woman’s words, but she didn’t hit them, so he didn’t bother to care what she was doing.

Seeing the children’s fear, Su Luoluo dropped the hatchet.

The three children were dusty and dirty, especially Niuniu. Her face was covered with dark patches, whether mud or snot, and her hair was matted. It was clear they hadn’t bathed in a long time. Su Luoluo couldn’t bear it.

She picked up a wooden bucket, scooped water from the large water jar with a gourd ladle, and went into the kitchen. The village used earthen stoves, so she had to start a fire to boil water.

Xiao Lei didn’t know what Su Luoluo was doing, but he knew that if he didn’t work, he would be beaten. He carried firewood into the kitchen to help start the fire.

“Cough, I’m enough here. You go play.”

Su Luoluo blushed.

She wasn’t so heartless as to make a six-year-old child work for her.

The wicked woman was really strange.

Xiao Lei put down the firewood, glanced at Su Luoluo, and turned to leave, knowing he would be beaten for disobedience.

Su Luoluo dragged out a wooden basin into the yard, poured in hot water, and adjusted the temperature with cold water so it wouldn’t scald anyone.

The three little ones stood side by side, shrinking their small bodies, their tender faces full of fear, unwilling to come over for a bath.

Xiao Lei’s face was tense. He didn’t believe the wicked woman would be so kind as to give them a bath; she probably wanted to drown them.

Seeing their genuine fear, as if they were about to cry, Su Luoluo couldn’t force them.

She took out another cloud cake from her pocket.

Oh my god, this was food snatched from a two-year-old toddler.

“Niuniu, come have a nice bath. If you have a bath, I’ll give you cake.”

She understood that Niuniu was the easiest to coax; all it took was food.

Niuniu timidly walked over, took the cloud cake from Su Luoluo, and ate it in large bites.

Xiao Lei was annoyed that he couldn’t stop Niuniu, worried that the wicked woman would harm her. He kept his eyes fixed on the wicked woman.

Older brother, eat.

Niuniu gave half of the cloud cake to Xiao Lei.

Su Luoluo looked at Niuniu. The child was three years old but couldn’t speak clearly. Her language development was delayed and needed more practice.

“I don’t like it. You eat it yourself.”

Xiao Lei pushed Niuniu’s small hand away.

Second older brother, eat.

Niuniu reluctantly looked at the cake, but she still offered it to Xiao Fan.

Xiao Fan swallowed his saliva and shook his head in refusal.

Niuniu was too young and didn’t understand much. Seeing that her two brothers didn’t want it, she ate it herself.

Su Luoluo took off Niuniu’s clothes, held her in the wooden basin, and washed her with soap.

The little girl was really dirty. Su Luoluo scrubbed her thoroughly, turning the clear water murky.

After washing, the little girl looked several shades whiter. In clean clothes, she finally looked presentable.

After pouring out the dirty water and refilling the basin, Xiao Lei finally believed Su Luoluo was giving them a bath. He pushed Xiao Fan forward.

However, he remained vigilant, watching from the side.

Xiao Fan, a shy boy, wanted to bathe himself but couldn’t speak to refuse. Su Luoluo forcefully held him down and scrubbed him clean.

When it was Xiao Lei’s turn, he insisted on washing himself.

“Can you wash yourself clean?”

Su Luoluo frowned, seeing that Xiao Lei was also dirty.

“I can.”

Xiao Lei glared angrily at Su Luoluo.

At this moment, a commotion came from outside, with heart-wrenching cries – something bad must have happened.