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Before bed, while there was still a bit of heat left under the pot, Madam Ye heated some water to wipe Qingtian down.
But the moment she undid the little girl’s clothes, she was overwhelmed—tears welled up and spilled over instantly.
She had thought Qingtian only had a wound on her forehead, but once the clothes came off, she realized the child’s entire body was covered in bruises and scars.
Her arms and legs were marked with dark purple bruises from pinching, and her back was streaked with horrifying red welts.
New wounds layered over old ones—just looking at them made one’s heart tremble.
Qingtian reached out a tiny hand to wipe away her tears and softly said, “Don’t cry.”
“Okay, Mother won’t cry.” Madam Ye bit back her sobs, carefully avoiding the injured areas as she gently wiped her clean.
Second Sister-in-law of the Ye Family had come over to help but burst into tears the moment she saw the child’s injuries.
“We’re all mothers ourselves—how could anyone be so cruel, to lay such a heavy hand on her!”
Under the flickering firelight, Madam Ye noticed something faintly dirty on the sole of Qingtian’s right foot and gave it a few extra wipes.
But it still didn’t come off. She leaned in for a closer look—and suddenly gasped.
“Oh my, Qingtian has a birthmark under her foot!”
Second Sister-in-law peered over. “She really does! Bright red—looks just like a little crescent moon.”
As they spoke, Third Sister-in-law came over, holding a few pieces of clothing in her arms. “Sister-in-law, these are Changnian’s clothes. They’ll probably be a bit big for Qingtian, but they’re clean.”
Second Sister-in-law quickly took the task upon herself. “She can wear them for now. Tomorrow on the road, I’ll find a moment to alter them for her.”
Seeing the three sisters-in-law bustling around Qingtian, Madam Guo couldn’t help but complain to Fourth Brother Ye, “I can understand why Eldest Sister-in-law would do that, but what are Second and Third Sisters-in-law getting all excited for?
“It’s not like they don’t have kids of their own. Why are they fawning over some wild child?”
Fourth Brother Ye was startled by her words and quickly whispered, “For heaven’s sake, my dear wife, don’t say things like that again!
“Mother has already agreed. From now on, Qingtian is Big Brother and Sister-in-law’s official daughter, no different from Changrui and Changxue.
“If Mother hears you talking like this, you’re going to get scolded again!
“Besides, just look at how pitiful Qingtian is!
“She’s suffered so much at such a young age. As her uncle and aunt, we should treat her with extra kindness!”
Madam Guo rolled her eyes so hard they nearly turned to the sky.
“Never seen anyone so eager to call themselves uncle to an outsider!
“And let’s not forget—we barely have enough food for ourselves!”
“She just handed over another whole bag—how are we supposed to survive the coming days?”
Fourth Brother Ye, however, responded carefreely, “Oh come on, with Mother around, what’s there to worry about?
“Besides, as long as the family stays together, there’s nothing we can’t get through!”
Madam Guo was so furious that she twisted his arm hard. “Are you stupid or what? You’re going to drive me mad!”
“Aiya, stop getting so worked up.” Fourth Brother Ye coaxed her with a grin. “First thing tomorrow, I’ll go out and look for food. Whatever I get, I’ll give it all to you.”
“Hmph, who wants your share?”
“I want you to have it, alright?”
The newlyweds, still in the sweetness of their early marriage, soon made up and were back to being lovey-dovey.
On the other side, Madam Ye had already helped Qingtian clean up and change into fresh clothes, preparing to take her to bed.
The Ye Family was a large household, headed by Old Madam Ye, with four sons, all of whom were already married.
Among them, only Madam Ye had been childless for years, and the Fourth Sister-in-law had just married in and hadn’t had time to conceive yet.
The second sister-in-law had given birth to the eldest grandson, Ye Changrui, along with a pair of twins—Ye Changzhao and Ye Changfeng.
The third sister-in-law, on the other hand, had two sons: Ye Changxue and Ye Changnian.
The names of the five grandsons were given by the village’s private tutor back when Ye Changrui was born.
It happened to be snowing heavily in the village at the time, and the tutor casually said, “If you’re using the generation name ‘Chang,’ then follow it with Rui, Xue, Zhao, Feng, Nian—it carries a good omen!”
Including Qingtian now, the family totaled fifteen members.
During their flight from famine, the Ye family had brought along two flat carts.
One was used to carry people, the other to transport their belongings.
At night, the old matriarch would sleep with the children on the cart, while the others spread out and slept around it on the ground.
The four brothers took turns pulling the cart and keeping watch through the night. So far, their journey had gone relatively smoothly.
By the time Madam Ye arrived carrying Qingtian, the five boys were already lying down in their usual spots.
Old Madam Ye had saved a space beside herself just for Qingtian.
“It’s time to sleep now,” said Madam Ye as she bent down to place Qingtian onto the cart.
But Qingtian suddenly reached out and wrapped her arms around Madam Ye’s neck, burying her face in the crook of her shoulder. She didn’t speak, nor was she willing to let go.
“What’s wrong? Don’t you want to sleep with Grandma and your big brothers?” Madam Ye asked gently.
Qingtian shook her head and tightened her grip, hugging even closer.
Though the Ye family had all been kind to her, they were still somewhat unfamiliar in Qingtian’s eyes.
Especially at night—when everything felt more uncertain—the only person who brought her comfort was Madam Ye.
Old Madam Ye spoke up, “Changrui, scoot over to the inside.”
“You boys squeeze in a little. Let your big aunt lie down with Qingtian.”
The boys immediately began laughing and playfully jostling one another, making space.
Ye Changrui climbed to the far side and called out, “Good timing—the wind’s picking up tonight. If we squeeze together, it’ll be even warmer.”
“Qingtian, go on and thank Grandma and Big Brother!”
Eldest Sister-in-law Ye gently placed Qingtian beside Old Madam Ye, then squeezed herself onto the cart, lying on her side at the edge.
Qingtian whispered softly, “Thank you, Grandma. Thank you, Big Brother.”
“What a well-behaved child,” Old Madam Ye remarked warmly.
She had borne four sons herself, and those sons had given her five grandsons. So suddenly seeing this soft, tender little girl nestled beside her brought out a deep fondness in her heart.
Eldest Sister-in-law Ye nodded and said, “Exactly. I don’t even know why, but I just really like Qingtian from the bottom of my heart.”
Down below, Guo Shi let out a cold snort and turned over, tightly wrapping herself in her blanket.
Eldest Sister-in-law Ye pretended not to hear, gently patting Qingtian while humming a tune—some old lullaby with no name.
For Qingtian, it was the first time she had ever been cared for like this. She quickly drifted off into a sweet and peaceful sleep.
Ye Shi’s patting gradually slowed, and soon, she too fell asleep beside her.
By the time the moon reached its peak in the sky and the whole family was fast asleep, Guo Shi suddenly sat up and quietly crept over to the campfire.
Fourth Brother Ye, who was on night watch, saw her approaching and quickly lowered his voice. “Need to relieve yourself? I’ll go with you.”
“Shh!” Guo Shi hushed him as she pulled aside a pile of dry grass and took out a potato, tossing it into the fire.
“What are you doing?” Fourth Brother Ye was startled. He instinctively reached out to retrieve the potato but yelped in pain when the burning coals scorched his hand. “Ow! Why are you using one of our potatoes without asking?!”
“I’m hungry,” Guo Shi replied matter-of-factly. “It’s not like it’s some precious treasure. Why shouldn’t I eat one?”
Fourth Brother Ye wanted to protest further, but seeing she had already used a stick to push the coals over the potato, burying it, he swallowed his words.
He thought to himself that once she fell asleep, he’d sneak around and try to dig up a few replacements to cover for it.
The potato slowly baked under the hot embers, releasing a faint, slightly charred aroma that drifted gently in the night breeze.
A small smile finally appeared on Guo Shi’s face as she used a twig to pull the roasted potato out of the fire.
Though the family still had some food left, Old Madam Ye had insisted on strict rationing, mixing every meal with tree bark and roots to stretch their stores.
They had been eating like this the entire journey—so much so that even roasted potatoes, usually nothing to fuss about, had turned into rare and coveted treats.
Once the potato had cooled down enough to handle, Guo Shi split it in half and handed the smaller piece to Fourth Brother Ye.
But Fourth Brother Ye, unwilling to eat behind the family’s back, shook his head and said, “You eat it. I’m not hungry.”
“Hmph! Fine, suit yourself,” Guo Shi snorted, knowing full well what he was thinking. Without another word, she began chomping away with big bites.
She had barely taken two bites when—whack!—a stone flew right between the two of them and landed on the ground.
Fourth Brother Ye reacted instantly. He snatched up the fire tongs and leapt in front of Guo Shi to shield her. “Who’s there?!”
Voices emerged from the darkness, overlapping menacingly:
“Eating something so fragrant in the dead of night, huh?”
“Hand over all the food you’ve got!”
“Yeah, and all your grain too!”
Hearing multiple voices, Guo Shi was terrified. Without a second thought, she dropped Fourth Brother Ye like a hot coal and bolted back toward camp.
Fourth Brother Ye stood there dumbfounded. Who would’ve thought that the whole family could eat a wild pheasant in peace, but a secretly roasted potato in the middle of the night would bring such disaster!