Chapter 3

Xu Jiaojiao simply picked up Qin Jiashu and retreated to her room, where she lit a candle and set up a small table for their meal.

The kitchen and other rooms were empty and drafty. Xu Jiaojiao’s room was the only one at the Zhiqing Compound that was somewhat well-maintained and windproof.

Xu Jiaojiao served Qin Jiashu his rice and placed it before him.

“Xiao Shu, hold out your hands,” she reminded him.

Qin Jiashu stared intently at the rice, instinctively extending his hands.

Xu Jiaojiao rolled up his thick sleeves and folded back the long ends of his padded jacket.

“Eat,” she said, handing him a pair of chopsticks.

Qin Jiashu sat on the edge of the bed, awkwardly gripping the chopsticks. He glanced at Xu Jiaojiao for a moment before lowering his head to eat.

“Don’t just eat rice. Have some soup and pumpkin,” Xu Jiaojiao said, placing a piece of soft, stir-fried pumpkin on his plate.

The little boy had never been taught proper manners. When Qin Zhengye visited, he only ensured Qin Jiashu was fed—never correcting his chopsticks technique.

Everything Qin Jiashu knew, he had learned on his own. During their first meal together, Xu Jiaojiao had scolded him and slapped his hand when he struggled to pick up food with his clumsy grip.

Since then, he had avoided eating with her altogether.

“You’re not holding your chopsticks right,” Xu Jiaojiao said patiently, correcting his grip. “Like this—make sure the tips are aligned.”

Qin Jiashu was thin, his small hands clutching the chopsticks like chicken claws. He tried his best to follow Xu Jiaojiao’s instructions.

“That’s right, just like that.”

A spark lit up in Qin Jiashu’s eyes. He tentatively reached for a piece of pumpkin with his chopsticks.

As he picked it up, he kept glancing at Xu Jiaojiao. When she didn’t stop him or scold him, he placed the piece in his bowl.

Having successfully picked up food with chopsticks, Qin Jiashu looked up at Xu Jiaojiao with a hint of excitement.

“So clever,” Xu Jiaojiao said, reaching out to stroke his soft hair.

Outside, the weather was freezing, but the candlelit room felt warm and cozy despite the dim light.

After dinner, Xu Jiaojiao swiftly cleared the dishes and took them to the kitchen.

With no lights at night, she gave up on washing the dishes. Instead, she picked up a large red thermos, poured hot water into a washbasin, and carried it into the room for Qin Jiashu to wash his face and hands.

Qin Jiashu had eaten carefully and diligently, but being young, his mouth and hands were inevitably smeared with rice and food.

Xu Jiaojiao wiped him clean, then washed her own hands as well.

Her quilt wasn’t warm enough, and worried about the cold if it snowed that night, she pulled out the new cotton-padded coat the original owner had bought from the Supply and Marketing Cooperative and spread it over the bedding.

Qin Jiashu had already been dried off and tucked into bed. Children’s bodies radiate heat, and the bedding quickly warmed up.

Shivering from the cold, Xu Jiaojiao hissed as she slipped under the covers and swiftly pulled Qin Jiashu into her arms.

“So cold…”

“……”

Qin Jiashu, held tightly by Xu Jiaojiao, was startled and uncomfortable. His neck stiffened as he tried to turn his head to look at her, but fear kept him frozen in place.

“Let’s sleep.”

With the bitter cold and nothing else to do, Xu Jiaojiao blew out the candle on the bedside table and burrowed deeper into the quilt.

Having just arrived, she had expected to struggle to fall asleep, especially since it was only seven o’clock.

But her body was too weak. After bathing the child, cooking dinner, and braving the cold, she was utterly exhausted. Holding Qin Jiashu, her eyelids grew heavier and heavier.

Qin Jiashu lay still against Xu Jiaojiao, his nose filled with the faint, pleasant scent of his aunt.

The warmth of the quilt was unlike anything he had ever experienced.

After the candle was blown out, only the soft sound of breathing and the howling of the cold wind outside remained.

Xu Jiaojiao cradled Qin Jiashu protectively in her arms, sleeping soundly.

But young Qin Jiashu dared not sleep. He lay motionless, wondering if he was dreaming, and only drifted off slowly after a long while.

The next morning.

Xu Jiaojiao woke to the damp chill in the air. Qin Jiashu, already awake, stared up at her with wide eyes.

He had woken earlier and, seeing that she was still holding him, quietly breathed a sigh of relief. Afraid of waking her, he had remained still, his body nearly cramping.

“Morning, little guy,” Xu Jiaojiao said, stretching lazily and nuzzling her cheek against the boy’s face.

Sleeping with Qin Jiashu and several layers of extra blankets had kept them warm through the night.

Qin Jiashu shrank back slightly, his small hands and feet fidgeting against the sheets.

After nuzzling him, Xu Jiaojiao glanced at the clock beside her pillow and saw it was past eight.

“It’s cold. Do you want to stay in bed a little longer, Xiao Shu?”

She gently lifted a corner of the blanket to get up, but when she saw Qin Jiashu scrambling out of bed despite the cold, she quickly pressed the blanket back down on him.

“Oh,” he murmured, lying back and pulling the quilt up to his chin, leaving only his small face exposed.

So well-behaved! Xu Jiaojiao thought, shivering as she shook out her clothes and stomped her feet to put them on, hissing through her teeth.

The southern winters were brutal. The saying “heating relies mainly on shivering” wasn’t a joke.

The cotton-padded coat draped over the headboard was icy cold. It offered no immediate warmth, but at least it blocked the chill.

“Hiss,” she muttered, wrapping the coat tightly around herself and shivering for a moment before summoning the courage to open the door.

She peered out into the courtyard, half-expecting a blanket of snow. Instead, the sky remained a gloomy gray, with only a thin layer of frost on the ground.

“Xiao Shu, want to help Auntie make breakfast, or hide under the covers until it’s ready?” she asked.

If he had shoes, she wouldn’t have asked—he’d get up on his own when he was done sleeping.

Qin Jiashu didn’t answer. Instead, he threw back the quilt and started pulling off his socks, letting his actions speak for him.

“Why are you taking off your socks?” Xu Jiaojiao asked, hurrying over to stop him.

He pursed his lips and looked up at her.

Xu Jiaojiao retrieved yesterday’s thick padded coat, helped him put it on, and wrapped it tightly around him. She then carried him out and sat him on a low stool.

She crouched before the stove to start a fire, rinsed the rice, and put it on to cook porridge.

After heating water, she scalded the overnight dishes clean.

Realizing they had no pickled vegetables, she grabbed a sweet potato from the adjacent room, diced it, and added it to the porridge.

While it simmered, she boiled more water and took Qin Jiashu to the courtyard to wash up.

“Step into Auntie’s shoes for now,” she said, handing him a pair.

He couldn’t wear them properly, of course, and kids often tripped in adult shoes. In this cold, that would hurt. Letting him borrow them temporarily was the best option.

“After breakfast, Auntie has to go to town. Can you stay home alone, Xiao Shu?” she asked over the simple table.

He was busy eating and only looked up after a pause, then nodded.

“Auntie will be back before lunch.”

Qinjia Village wasn’t far from the county town—about a forty-minute walk, then an hour-long bus ride.

The thought of the long mountain path already made her legs weak.

Thankfully, the walk was still ahead of her, otherwise, the money and ration tickets Qin Zhengye had left behind might have been squandered already by the body’s original owner.

—

After breakfast, she returned to her room and organized the money and tickets.

“Little Shu, lift your foot so Auntie can measure how long it is!”

He obediently extended his foot. She used her fingers to measure it—it was just the span of her right hand.

“All done,” she said, tucking his small foot back under the blanket.

“Be good while Auntie’s gone. If you get sleepy, take a nap.” She tucked in the quilt, gave his head a quick pat, and left.

Xu Jiaojiao left the Zhiqing Compound and trudged along the muddy mountain road. The misty weather had turned it into a quagmire.

Halfway to town, she waited for the county bus. While waiting, she broke off a stick and scraped the thick yellow mud from her shoes.

The bus soon arrived. Xu Jiaojiao waved to the driver and boarded, buying her ticket.

Few passengers were traveling in this cold weather. She took a middle seat by the window.

The road was bumpy, and the bus crawled slowly.

She had wanted to nap, but the jolts kept her awake.

Over an hour later, she got off at the bridge pier and, after regaining her balance, headed to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative.

She had plenty of clothes herself. This trip was for Qin Jiashu.

“Can one adult shoe coupon buy two pairs of children’s shoes?” she asked the saleswoman knitting behind the counter.

The woman looked up, eyed her appearance, then finally stood. “Yes, it’s possible.”

“I’ll take these yellow calfskin shoes and these gray cotton ones,” Xu Jiaojiao said, handing over a shoe coupon.

“I need this length for the shoe size,” she added, gesturing with her fingers.

The saleswoman, a mother herself, smiled. “How old? Boy or girl? Want a size up?”

“He’s three. A boy. Just give me ones that fit well, not too big,” Xu Jiaojiao replied with a smile.

The woman nodded, wrote the receipt, took payment, and packed the shoes.

“Thank you,” Xu Jiaojiao said, then moved to the next counter to buy clothes.

She picked a thick, earth-toned cotton-padded jacket, a plain gray crewneck sweatshirt, and thick corduroy pants.

Then she bought two jin of wool yarn and five feet each of thick cotton fabric in military green and pale yellow.

She didn’t buy much—just essentials. The original owner’s father was the village’s funeral clothing tailor, known for his skill. Xu Jiaojiao planned to take the fabric to him and have two warm jackets made for Qin Jiashu.

As for the yarn—she’d knit a sweater to pass the time. There was no TV, no books, and the cold was unbearable. Knitting seemed like a good use of time.

After buying clothes and shoes, Xu Jiaojiao strolled over to the pastry section.

Pastry coupons were no longer required, so she bought one jin of bubu gao and one jin of walnut pastries.

Just before leaving, she remembered Qin Jiashu’s frostbite. She detoured and bought a jar of frostbite cream.