Chapter 23: This Baby Is No Longer Clean

While feeding egg custard to Lele, Grandma Zhao thought to herself, What else could it be? There’s meat and eggs—how could it not taste good?

If any little rascal dared say it wasn’t tasty, she’d just take it and eat it all herself, not leaving a single grain of rice for them.

Lei Jun scooped a bite of rice into his mouth with his chopsticks and chewed it carefully.

Mmm, every grain of rice was soaked in the rich sauce. The taste of vinegar came through, carrying a hint of salty fragrance.

Even the potatoes and mushrooms inside exuded an irresistible aroma. Every bite lingered on the tongue.

“Really good. The rice, potatoes, and mushrooms are all infused with the flavor of cured meat. It feels like there’s meat all over my mouth—so fragrant!”

Lei Yu nodded in agreement. “Mhm, Second Sister-in-law, this is just too delicious. This is the best rice I’ve ever had.”

“That’s right, Yueyue. Eating your cooking every day lately, even I feel like I’ve gained weight.” said Sister-in-law.

“With meat, eggs, and this much oil—if you don’t gain weight, I might just slap you for wasting food.” Zhang Guihua said with a laugh.

Lei Jun turned to look at his own wife when he heard that. Indeed, she had gained some weight, and her complexion had grown noticeably rosier lately.

“Hehe, Mom, Second Brother’s wife cooks so well—how could we not put on some weight? Just look at Qingyun, he’s plumper now.”

Suddenly being mentioned, Lei Qingyun: …

He hadn’t gotten fat! He was just… rounder!

After finishing her meal, Zhang Guihua reluctantly set her chopsticks down. If their situation weren’t so tight, she honestly would’ve licked the bowl clean.

Si Yueyue: …

Once Lei Dashu was full, he took Lele into his arms to personally feed him the egg custard, so his wife An An could eat in peace.

Just look at little Lele—he was eating egg custard, but his eyes hadn’t once left the clay pot rice in front of Grandma Zhao.

After being handed over to the old man, Lele still squirmed in protest. But a small arm couldn’t overpower a big thigh—eventually, he had to obediently eat the custard.

Zhang Guihua also took over feeding An An her egg custard, letting Si Yueyue enjoy her own meal. An An wasn’t fussy at all—she ate whatever she was given, well-behaved and quiet.

…

After Lele finished his egg custard, Lei Dashu thought to wipe his grandson’s mouth. But Lele turned his head away and wouldn’t let him.

Following Lele’s line of sight, Lei Dashu saw that the boy was still eyeing his grandmother’s bowl, and he couldn’t help but chuckle.

Hearing his grandfather laugh, Lele turned his head toward him and then pointed at Grandma Zhao’s bowl, saying: “Zz…”

Seeing this, Lei Jun also burst out laughing. He said: “Lele, you can’t eat that. Right now, you can only eat egg custard. You’ll have to wait till you’re older for the rest.”

Lele didn’t understand what “wait till you’re older” meant. He only knew that stuff smelled delicious—and he wanted to eat it.

“Ah… zz… mm…” The tiny hands tugged at Grandpa’s shirt with all their might, and the soft little body leaned toward Grandma Zhao.

Startled, Lei Dashu quickly caught hold of Lele, afraid the child might accidentally fall to the ground.

“You, you, why are you so greedy?” Grandma Zhao tapped the tip of Lele’s nose and said.

Little Lele thought Grandma was going to give him something tasty, so when she reached out her hand, he opened his tiny mouth in anticipation.

“Hahaha… With this kind of appetite, what will we do with you later, hmm? Someone could trick you away with a single piece of candy.”

Lei Jun shook his head with amusement. “That won’t happen. Our little guy might be a bit greedy, but he’s smart. He only eats what family gives him, right, Lele?”

“Ah… mm…”

Lei Dashu immediately carried Lele away. He turned back and said to the old lady: “You finish your food. I’ll take Lele outside for a bit, or else the more he stares, the hungrier he’ll get.”

Hearing that, Lei Jun also took An An—who had already finished eating—from his wife’s arms.

An An and Lele nestled into two broad chests, looking especially small and adorable.

Once outside, Lele’s attention was successfully diverted by Lei Dashu, and he no longer fixated on food.

His eyes were full of the rising smoke from the cooking fires, lush greenery, and a world teeming with life… The colorful world dazzled the little one.

Lele looked at Grandpa and pointed to the persimmon tree in the yard. “Yeh… mm…”

“That’s a persimmon tree. In a while, it’ll bloom and bear fruit. When the time comes, Grandpa will pick some for Lele to try.”

“Mm… yeh…”

Wherever Lele pointed, Lei Dashu patiently explained. After each explanation, Lele beamed a wide smile at Grandpa, giving him full face.

Little An An sat in Eldest Uncle’s arms, seriously listening to every word Grandpa said, whether it was about trees or firewood…

Lei Jun lowered his head and looked at An An, who was wearing a serious expression while listening intently. He couldn’t help but lift the corners of his mouth into a smile.

“Bwah… bwah… ah!”

An An, watching Grandpa and little brother walk off into the distance, wiggled his little feet in Lei Jun’s arms. When he noticed his eldest uncle looking at him, he pointed toward the two people ahead.

Lei Jun had finally heard his eldest nephew call him “Uncle.” and instantly grinned like a fool. He leaned in and gave An An’s chubby little cheek a loud smooch.

Suddenly kissed, An An stared wide-eyed at his uncle, then leaned his chubby face against Lei Jun’s chest and rubbed against him.

An An’s thoughts: This baby is no longer clean…

Lei Jun’s thoughts: Whoa, my eldest nephew likes me this much? From now on, I’ll shower An An with even more kisses!

And just like that, a beautiful misunderstanding was born.

After rubbing his face once, An An figured the kiss had been wiped away, so he lifted his tiny hand and pointed toward Grandpa.

“An An wants to go to Grandpa and little brother?”

“Mm… yeh… puh… ah…”

“Oh, does An An want to hear what Grandpa’s saying?”

Little An An’s head was momentarily confused… That sounds about right, so he nodded his little head: “Mm…”

“Alright then, Uncle will take you there.” With that, Lei Jun strode forward, quickly catching up with the old man and Lele.

At the same time, little Lele was looking around with wide eyes, searching for his brother. After all, the two had never been apart since birth. Earlier, he had been too excited by the new sights to notice.

But once the excitement wore off and he couldn’t see his familiar brother anywhere, he began to feel uneasy and anxious. He couldn’t wait to start searching.

When he saw the silhouettes of his brother and uncle appear, he waved his chubby arms and called out to them eagerly.

“Guh… ah…”

“Oh ho! Lele’s missing his brother, huh?”

“Mm… dee… ah!”

The two little brothers exchanged an affectionate and friendly conversation.

Lei Dashu and Lei Jun burst into laughter from their antics.

Dong dong dong…

A series of loud gong sounds echoed through the air, startling both An An and Lele. The brothers looked around nervously, trying to locate the source of the sound.

Seeing the kids frightened, Lei Dashu and Lei Jun gently patted their backs, trying to comfort them.

“An An, don’t be scared. That’s the village gong. When the team leader hits the gong, it means it’s time to start work.”

“Bwah… mm… dong.”

“Mm-hmm, that’s right. Dong dong dong is the sound of the gong.”

“Ah… dong…”

“Hahaha… Come on, Uncle will take An An back to Mommy.”

“Ah… dee…”

“Mm, and little brother’s going too. Grandpa’s carrying you.”

Inside the house, the others had also heard the gong and were heading out when they saw the two grown-ups returning with the two little ones.

Grandma Zhao shot a look at the old man and her eldest son. “Where’ve you been? Don’t you know An An and Lele are supposed to be napping?”

Lei Jun replied with a sheepish smile. “Just took them out for a walk, told them a bit about the world, and kinda forgot.”

“Alright, alright, hand the kids over. You two go get to work, don’t waste any more time.”

“Got it.”

Si Yueyue and Grandma Zhao took An An and Lele from Lei Dashu and Lei Jun, then brought them inside to coax them to sleep.

The rest of the family headed out to the fields. They couldn’t delay—if they didn’t finish the work in the fields, they’d be stuck working in the dark later.

Since An An and Lele were still very young, and it was hard on Si Yueyue to look after them both, the family had decided to take the children to the fields too. They could help in whatever small ways they could.

At least they wouldn’t be getting into trouble at home. Si Yueyue was caring for the children day and night, and her energy was limited. If she got exhausted, the entire family would suffer.

After the two children were lulled to sleep, Grandma Zhao gave Si Yueyue a few more reminders before hurrying off to join the work.

Once the entire family had left, only Si Yueyue and the two little ones remained at home. The surroundings instantly became peaceful and quiet. Only the occasional crow of a rooster or the distant shouting of villagers reminded her that the world was still turning.

After a short while, Si Yueyue picked up the two children and entered the space. Over the past few days, she had taken quite a few things out, and the family had been enjoying the benefits of those supplies in one way or another.

She settled the two kids down on her 1.8-meter-wide bed, then headed over to the accessories section and picked out a watch. That way, even outside the space, she could keep track of the time.