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But Yun Cuihe and Lu Xinghe saw the swelling clearly.
Yun Cuihe furrowed her brow and looked at Chu Yue with concern, “How did your foot get swollen? You should see a doctor.”
Chu Yue shook her head. “Mother, it’s nothing. I’ll put a cold compress on it later. It should go down tomorrow.”
When Lu Xinghe heard this, he quickly took a towel, wet it with water, and wrung it out until it was damp. He handed it to Chu Yue.
“Go ahead and apply it.”
Then, thinking that it would be inconvenient to apply a compress outside, Lu Xinghe walked over and scooped Chu Yue up in his arms, carrying her into the house.
This action startled Chu Yue, and she let out a soft gasp.
Yun Cuihe watched their backs and covered her mouth, laughing. Her worries lessened a bit.
Lu Xingping’s eyes followed Lu Xinghe until he entered the room. His gaze remained fixed on the closed door. Yun Cuihe saw him and glanced at him.
“You’re just a kid. Why are you so curious? Go do your work. Dry the medicinal herbs and then go help Xing’an in the kitchen. Your sister-in-law probably got hurt because her shoes didn’t fit. I’ll continue making shoes for her.”
Lu Xingping scratched the back of his head and chuckled.
“Alright, Mother.”
Being held in Lu Xinghe’s arms, Chu Yue’s whole body was stiff, and her face was burning red.
Lu Xinghe put her down on the kang and reached out to grab her foot, but Chu Yue pulled it back.
She reached for the towel in Lu Xinghe’s hand.
“I… I’ll do it myself.”
Knowing that the girl was shy, Lu Xinghe didn’t force her. “Then you go ahead and apply the compress. I’ll go outside and see if there’s anything I can help with. I’ll bring you dinner later. Just don’t get out of bed for now.”
Chu Yue lowered her head and nodded.
“Okay.”
Lu Xinghe glanced at her and went out.
At that moment, Lu Shoucheng arrived outside the courtyard.
“Xinghe.”
Lu Xinghe looked up. “Fourth Uncle?”
He hurried forward to open the gate. “Fourth Uncle, are you here for something?”
“Where’s your mother?” He said, lifting his head and calling out to the house, “Third Sister-in-law, are you home?”
Yun Cuihe, who had just started sewing the soles of a pair of shoes, heard the voice and had to put down the shoes and come out of the house.
“Shoucheng is here.”
Lu Shoucheng sighed. “Third Sister-in-law, Father asked me to tell you to bring Xinghe and his brothers to the old house tomorrow.”
Yun Cuihe looked confused.
“Is there something wrong?”
Lu Shoucheng sighed. “Well, it’s about the split. Recently, your elder sister-in-law and second sister-in-law have been bringing it up to Father and Mother.”
Yun Cuihe was surprised.
“Father agreed to split the family?”
Before, when they had been demanding that their parents let their family separate, Father had refused at first. He said that as long as their parents were alive, they wouldn’t split the family.
Later, they had made such a fuss that he had no choice but to agree. Now, both of his parents were still alive, and they were going to split the family. It was probably because they were tired of being nagged by the elder daughter-in-law and the second daughter-in-law.
Lu Shoucheng nodded.
“Yes. Today, Elder Sister-in-law mentioned it, and Father agreed. But even if we split the family, we should still live with Father and Mother. They’re getting old, and I wouldn’t feel comfortable leaving them alone.”
Yun Cuihe quickly said, “Of course. Father and Mother are almost sixty years old. They need someone to watch over them.”
After Lu Shoucheng finished speaking, he turned around and left the courtyard.
“Hey, Shoucheng, stay for dinner.”
Lu Shoucheng waved his hand as he walked.
“No, I’ve already eaten at home. I won’t bother you.”
Lu Xingping ran out of the kitchen and stood beside Yun Cuihe, looking at his fourth uncle’s retreating figure. He asked in a low voice, “Mother, why are they calling us to the family separation? We’ve already separated, haven’t we?”
Yun Cuihe patted Lu Xingping’s head. “Don’t worry about why they’re calling us. They’re calling us, so we’ll go. You’re all their grandchildren. If they give us anything, we’ll take it. If they don’t, we won’t fight over it. As long as we get something, we’ll be good to our grandparents in the future.”
She sighed.
“Life is just like that. It’s just one lifetime. Why bother with this and that? It’s better to live comfortably. At least you’ll be happy.”
With that, she went into the kitchen to cook.
Lu Xingping, half understanding and half not, replied with an “Oh” and went back to the room.
Chu Yue took off her shoes, sat on the kang with a cold compress, and listened to the conversation outside. She couldn’t help but feel a sense of sadness.
Every family has its own problems.
After a while, Lu Xinghe walked in with a basin of cold water.
He took the compress that Chu Yue had been using for a while and soaked it in the cold water. After wringing it out, he put it back on Chu Yue’s ankle.
“Are you hungry? Mother is already cooking. I’ll bring you the food later.”
She had only had a bowl of rice soup for lunch, and she had walked such a long way. The little food she had eaten was probably gone.
Chu Yue took the compress. She said softly, “It’s okay. I’m not that hungry. You’re the one who’s probably tired and hungry. You only had a little for lunch, and you carried me all the way.”
Lu Xinghe squatted down and pinched the girl’s cheek.
“You’re still worried about me. Is your foot better?”
Looking at his handsome face, Chu Yue’s face flushed. She nervously swallowed.
“No… not yet.”
Lu Xinghe smiled and stood up.
“I’ll go get you something to eat.”
After Lu Xinghe left, Chu Yue covered her face, feeling her heart pounding.
A short while later, Lu Xinghe brought her food.
A bowl of thick rice porridge, a small dish of fresh green vegetables, and a fried egg.
Chu Yue looked at the egg in the bowl and was surprised.
“I just need the porridge and vegetables. Give the egg to Mother. Her body is weak. She needs to eat more nutritious food.”
Lu Xinghe placed the porridge and vegetables on the table and moved the table to the edge of Chu Yue’s bed.
“Mother specially fried this egg for you. Just eat it. She guessed you would refuse, so she made a bowl of egg drop soup. Everyone will be able to eat eggs tonight.”
Chu Yue felt warm inside.
“Thank Mother for me.”
…
After resting for a night, Chu Yue woke up the next morning and found that the swelling around her ankle had gone down. There was still a little soreness inside, but she could walk without any problem. She just had to avoid making any large movements.
After breakfast, the family was going to the old house.
Yun Cuihe looked at Chu Yue’s foot with some worry.
“Yueyue, can your foot handle such a long walk?”
Before Chu Yue could answer, Lu Xingping, oblivious to the situation, took over his mother’s words. “Anyway, Big Brother is strong. If you can’t walk, just have Big Brother carry you. Why are you worrying about that, Mother?”
Lu Xing’an rolled his eyes. Xingping was too clueless.
He thought his mother would scold Lu Xingping, but to his surprise, she just nodded and said, “Yes,” and then walked towards the gate.
Lu Xing’an: ???
…