Chapter 53.2

Pear Blossom stayed silent for a while, not fully understanding. But when she remembered what Dong Yun said about her and Qin Dabao being a good match, her heart sank. If the other person didn’t like her, there was no way they would want to be close to her. Even if her Chenghuan points were at the maximum, it would be useless.

The system asked, “Do you want to add these three points to Chenghuan?”

Pear Blossom thought for a moment and then replied gloomily, “Add them to wisdom.”

The system felt like it had been splashed with cold water. It thought the foolish girl had finally come to her senses, but instead, she was still as dense as ever.

After Pear Blossom added all three points to wisdom, the system resignedly said, “Host, your current points are 78, with 22 in wisdom, 22 in physical strength, 34 in reputation, and 0 in Chenghuan. Please continue to work hard!”

Looking at the increasing proximity to the second lottery, Pear Blossom felt a little comforted, though her mood was still not great….After finishing up, Dong Yun sat dazed on the bamboo couch in the room. Fubao had been running in the field all morning and was now exhausted, sleeping with a flushed face, murmuring Pear Blossom’s name in her sleep.

It was rare for Dong Yun to be in such a trance, especially after everything she had been through—so many cruel and merciless events.

She had thought that having Fubao was enough, that staying in this village, working from dawn to dusk, raising Fubao to grow up, and living an ordinary life would be enough for her. A life of quiet contentment.

But when did her heart start to no longer be satisfied with that? Dong Yun couldn’t pinpoint the exact time. She was a human, with emotions, desires, and the need for love. Refusing others’ closeness didn’t mean she didn’t need it, but that she was afraid to want it.

But when someone with a passionate heart approached, she wanted to push them away, only to be melted by their warmth the moment they touched her. It wasn’t that it couldn’t be extinguished, but she was unwilling to give up, longing for that small bit of warmth.

In the neighboring large courtyard, Mrs. Zeng and Zeng Guangjin were busy grinding the rice. In previous years, the rice would be sent directly to Mrs. Zeng’s granary, and Dong Yun would only keep enough for her and Fubao’s daily food. Since Dong Yun relied on her own money for living expenses, if she didn’t want to do something, Mrs. Zeng wouldn’t dare ask her. Therefore, aside from busy farming seasons, her life was relatively easy.

Later, when Fubao woke up, seeing her mother was too lazy to play with her, she went next door to watch Uncle grind rice.

She lay there, unable to fall asleep, until it got dark.

After Fubao had dinner, Dong Yun got up and ate the leftover steamed cake from the morning. After thinking it over, she decided to go and talk things through with that silly girl.

At least tell her that what was said today about her being a good match with Qin Dabao was not her intention.

Just as it happened, Fubao returned from the East Courtyard. Dong Yun looked at her plump little face and asked, “Shall we go find Pear Blossom to play?”

The girl liked playing with Fubao, and having her daughter as an excuse, even if she wasn’t too happy, Dong Yun thought it wouldn’t be disrespectful to Fubao.

Dong Yun hadn’t expected that one day she herself would need to use her daughter’s favor to get something done.

When Fubao heard they were going to find Pear Blossom, she danced in joy. So the mother and daughter held hands and walked towards the foot of the Eastern Mountain.

Unexpectedly, Mrs. Xiong told them that Pear Blossom had gone to the sunning platform alone and wasn’t home. She then wanted to send Erniu to find the eldest sister.

Dong Yun smiled and said, “It’s no big deal. I just wanted to ask her to bring Fubao a skewer of candied hawthorns if it’s convenient when she comes back tomorrow.”

Mrs. Xiong quickly agreed, “I thought it was something important. Don’t worry, when she’s back, I’ll tell her. There will definitely be candied hawthorns for Fubao.”

Upon hearing that there would be candied hawthorns, Fubao was even happier, twisting in her mother’s arms. She suddenly thought of her little friend, Dog (Goudan), and quickly said to her mother,

“Mama, get two skewers, one for Dog.”

That night, after her daughter came back and told her about the buns, Dong Yun was happy that she had a little friend of her own and agreed to her request, “Alright, two skewers.”

On their way home, as the mother and daughter were about to turn into the fork leading to the Zeng family, Dong Yun suddenly changed her mind and said to Fubao, “Fubao, let’s go to the sunning platform to find Pear Blossom.”

Upon hearing this suggestion, Fubao clapped her hands in excitement, “Yes, yes! But Fubao can’t see the road, Mama, carry me.”

Dong Yun smiled and lifted her daughter onto her back, teasing her, “You’re getting heavier, more like a little pig.”

Fubao pouted in protest, “I’m not heavy! When Pear Blossom carries me, she doesn’t think I’m heavy at all!”

Dong Yun chuckled at her daughter’s words and continued teasing, “Do you like Pear Blossom that much?”

Fubao immediately answered without hesitation, “I like her! I like Pear Blossom a lot!”

Dong Yun asked again, “What do you like about her?”

Fubao thought for a moment before replying, “I like that she likes Fubao, treats Fubao well, and gives me good food.”

Dong Yun pressed further, “Anything else?”

Fubao replied, “She’s strong and can lift Fubao high.”

“Is that all?”

Fubao said, “No, there’s a lot more… I can’t count them. Whenever I think of Pear Blossom, I’m happy. If I have bad dreams at night, Pear Blossom will beat the bad guys in my dreams, and then I won’t be afraid.”

See, the way children like someone is so straightforward.

Perhaps it’s because that silly girl is so pure and straightforward.

Dong Yun listened to her daughter’s chatter, and before long, they arrived at the sunning platform. Her gaze swept around, eventually resting on that silly girl, who was talking with two other girls, both about fifteen or sixteen, around the same age as her.

Recently, Pear Blossom had been the talk of the town, and the attitude of the villagers towards the Dagen family had changed drastically. They were now invited to participate in village decisions, and even the girls were eager to befriend Pear Blossom and Xinghua.

Dong Yun slightly narrowed her eyes, her gaze landing on the girl next to Pear Blossom. The girl was so close to Pear Blossom that she was almost in her arms, laughing so hard she was shaking, drawing attention.

That girl was Qingkui, a beauty among the girls their age in the village, and young men loved to flock around her.

Dong Yun had expected to see Pear Blossom looking gloomy when she arrived, but surprisingly, Pear Blossom was chatting happily with others. Dong Yun’s mood, which had been fairly good, immediately darkened.

At this moment, Fubao, who was on her back, shouted that she wanted to play with Pear Blossom. Dong Yun’s heart stirred, and she put Fubao down, pointing in Pear Blossom’s direction, saying, “

Look, Pear Blossom is over there. Go play with her. She didn’t have lunch with you today, so let her spend the whole evening playing with you.”

Upon hearing this, Fubao’s eyes lit up, and she immediately ran toward Pear Blossom.

Pear Blossom was chatting with a few girls when suddenly a soft, squishy little ball of flesh collided with her chest. She quickly lifted Fubao up, then looked around to find who it was.

Dong Yun, knowing Pear Blossom was looking for her, didn’t hide and stood there, smiling elegantly.

The frustration that had been building up in Pear Blossom all afternoon vanished the moment she saw that beautiful smile. No matter how upset she was, she couldn’t stay mad, but the feeling of grievance lingered. Not wanting to give in so quickly, she lowered her head and said to Fubao, “Why don’t you go play with Dog?”

Fubao, sitting on her lap, wrapped her arms around Pear Blossom’s neck, her little face resting against her neck, saying, “Pear Blossom didn’t have lunch with me today. I’m not happy. I want to stay with Pear Blossom all night.”

Pear Blossom, feeling the warmth of Fubao’s soft little face, felt her heart melt in an instant. She leaned her forehead against Fubao’s and said, “Alright, tonight I’ll stay with you, Fubao. I won’t go anywhere.”

Qingkui, who had been listening nearby, was unhappy and said, “Pear Blossom, you promised us you’d chat with us tonight.”

Pear Blossom replied, “It’s just you talking while I listen. I’ll just hold Fubao and listen on the side. It won’t affect anything.”

Zhang Chunsheng’s eldest daughter, Zhang Daya, also chimed in, “Children make so much noise. How can we chat properly? Isn’t Dog here? Let her go play with Dog.”

Pear Blossom stood up, holding Fubao, “Then you all chat. I’ll take Fubao to find Dog.”

She started to leave. The two girls, not sure whether Pear Blossom would return after taking Fubao to Dog or if she wouldn’t return at all, lost interest and turned to find other girls to hang out with.

Pear Blossom did indeed go to find Dog, but halfway there, she was intercepted by Dong Yun.

She only ate a bowl of rice before leaving today. Anyone with a discerning eye could tell she wasn’t happy. Her behavior was actually quite rude, but Pear Blossom was feeling distressed at the time and couldn’t stay any longer, so she had no choice but to leave in a hurry.

She didn’t know how Dong Yun would feel, since the other person didn’t know her true feelings. And if Dong Yun did know, it might make things even more awkward—after all, what woman would want another woman to like her? She might even think of herself as a freak. So her actions at lunchtime were indeed rude and inexplicable.

Thus, when she saw Dong Yun now, she still felt a bit embarrassed.It wasn’t good to just turn around and leave, so she steeled herself and called out, “Sister Dong.”Dong Yun stared at her for a moment before speaking. “Are you still angry with me?”

It was worse to bring it up, and Pear Blossom couldn’t help feeling a little wronged, her nose slightly tingling. She bit her lip and forced a smile, shaking her head.

“I’m not angry.”

Dong Yun raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

Pear Blossom clenched her teeth. “Really.”

Only then did Fubao, belatedly noticing, reach out and touch Pear Blossom’s face, pulling up the corners of her mouth and saying, “Pear Blossom’s not angry, smile.”

Pear Blossom was speechless, opening her mouth to bite her hand, which made the young girl squirm, trying to keep her hand away from Pear Blossom’s bite.

At that moment, Dog heard Fubao’s voice and ran over, standing there with his little belly, gazing up expectantly.

Dong Yun said, “Your little friend is here to find you.”

Fubao hesitated but still tightly hugged Pear Blossom’s neck and said, “I’ll stay with Pear Blossom tonight.”

Pear Blossom set her down. “Go play, I don’t need you to stay with me.”

“Then wait for me to go back together…” Fubao replied. “Okay, we’ll go back together. I’ll carry you when we get there.”Only then did Fubao relax and happily run off with Dog to play.

At this point, Dong Yun finally had a moment alone with Pear Blossom. She subtly moved closer to her, cleared her throat, and said, “What I said earlier, I didn’t mean it. That wasn’t what I meant…”

Pear Blossom simply responded with a “Oh.”

Seeing her reaction, Dong Yun felt a bit helpless. She had just said she wasn’t angry, but did she really seem like she wasn’t?

“I won’t say things like ‘you’re a good match for someone’ again. You deserve someone great…”

Pear Blossom fell silent upon hearing this. Dong Yun realized she had said something wrong and quickly emphasized, “I won’t speak like that again.”

Pear Blossom didn’t know what to say, so she just gave a soft “Oh.”

Dong Yun felt that with this response, there was no way to continue the conversation. They stood there in silence.

At that moment, Promegranate approached, called Dong Yun, and dragged her away to talk.

Dong Yun had no choice but to turn back and call out to Pear Blossom, “Wait for me to go back with you later—”

Pear Blossom nodded but had no desire to speak any further, retreating into a dark corner.

About half an hour later, as the people in the square began to disperse, Dong Yun finally came back, holding Fubao’s hand.

As soon as Fubao saw Pear Blossom, she opened her arms, and Pear Blossom, as she wished, picked her up in a hug.

“Let’s go home~” Fubao shouted.

Along the way, aside from Fubao chattering non-stop, the two didn’t say much, only responding with one or two words when Fubao asked questions.

Dong Yun watched Pear Blossom’s blurry side profile, no longer as happy as before. A strange feeling filled her heart, a little sour, mixed with a hint of grievance. She wasn’t paying attention to where she was going and accidentally kicked a stone, stumbling and nearly falling. Fortunately, Pear Blossom, quick as ever, reached out with her arm not holding Fubao and pulled her back.

“Be careful, it’s dark,” Pear Blossom said, releasing her hand.

Dong Yun felt the warmth and strength of Pear Blossom’s hand leave her arm, and she felt a sudden emptiness inside.But then she heard the familiar soft voice of Pear Blossom: “If you can’t see the road, just grab my clothes like a cane.”

Dong Yun responded with an “Oh” and reached out to grab Pear Blossom’s clothes. However, almost as if by instinct, her hand swerved and caught the empty hand instead.

When their hands touched, she clearly felt Pear Blossom’s body stiffen. She didn’t let go but tightened her grip on Pear Blossom’s hand.

At that moment, Pear Blossom’s mind went blank. Her heart was pounding, and her hand—so soft and delicate—was against Pear Blossom’s palm. The warmth of their skin was pressed together.

When she was young, she had no close friends to play with, and as she grew older, she never had a confidante. Aside from her younger siblings, she had never held someone else’s hand like this. This was different from holding her siblings’ hands. She had never been this close to anyone with her palm so pressed against another’s.

She could feel her heartbeat racing from her palm to the other person’s. She wondered if the other person could feel it.

At that moment, Dong Yun said, “When we pass by my house, come in for a bit.”

Pear Blossom, her mind still in a daze, took a while to respond, “Oh, I’ll walk you to the door.”

Then she realized her voice was hoarse.”No, I mean you should come inside for a late-night snack. I got up early this morning and killed an old hen, especially to make a stew for you. But you—without saying anything—just slipped away,” Dong Yun said, feeling a little wronged.

She had never been this thoughtful toward anyone, including the steamed cake in the morning and the old hen soup at noon. Yet, Pear Blossom had chosen to disregard her good intentions.

Hearing this, Pear Blossom’s heart softened, and she felt a pang of guilt. She realized that Dong Yun had only casually mentioned it, yet she had taken it to heart. She softly said, “It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have just rushed off like that. Don’t be angry.”

Dong Yun heard her apology and felt her tone return to normal. She finally felt a little relieved, but still teased her, “You little ungrateful one.”

Pear Blossom’s heart fluttered at the tone of her words, and without realizing it, she tightened her grip on Dong Yun’s hand. The pressure caused Dong Yun’s hand to ache, but this mix of pain and numbness brought her a subtle, secret thrill. She gritted her teeth but didn’t make a sound.