Chapter 6

Xu Jiaojiao shook her head. “Mom, after eating this roasted sweet potato, I won’t have room for a roasted egg. Don’t bother.”

“Then I’ll save the egg to make you a pancake for lunch,” Mother Xu said, nodding thoughtfully. She cheerfully pulled up a stool and sat beside Xu Jiaojiao.

No matter what, my daughter needs to eat more eggs to build up her strength.

Xu Jiaojiao smiled and gently warmed her hands by the fire basket. After a moment, she reached out to poke the roasted sweet potato.

“Roasted sweet potatoes taste best when they’re hot. Eat it quickly!” Mother Xu urged.

Xu Jiaojiao cautiously picked up the sweet potato, testing its temperature. Once she was sure she could hold it, she began peeling off the skin.

“I’ve finished measuring you. Go warm yourself by the fire!” Father Xu called out from across the room, having finished measuring Qin Jiashu for new clothes.

Qin Jiashu obediently set down his small hands and walked over to stand beside Xu Jiaojiao. Holding the slightly charred sweet potato high, she effortlessly wrapped an arm around him while peeling it.

Qin Jiashu froze, caught off guard by the sudden embrace.

“Xiao Shu, eat this,” Xu Jiaojiao said, placing the peeled sweet potato in his hand.

He stared blankly at it, utterly bewildered.

He had thought his aunt was going to sell him today, but instead, she was giving him a roasted sweet potato.

“Xiao Shu, eat quickly! Blow on it first so you don’t burn your mouth,” Xu Jiaojiao instructed.

Qin Jiashu turned to look at her, then at the steaming sweet potato. He cupped it in both hands and offered it to her mouth.

“Do you want Aunt to have the first bite?”

He didn’t speak, but nodded.

Xu Jiaojiao chuckled and took a small bite. “Mmm, it’s delicious! Xiao Shu, try it!”

“There’s another one here!” Mother Xu exclaimed, seeing the two share the sweet potato. She thrust a second one into Xu Jiaojiao’s hand.

Sun Zhaodi, who had been about to reach for the sweet potato, awkwardly withdrew her hand.

“Sister-in-law, you should have it,” Xu Jiaojiao said, noticing her movement and offering it to her.

“No, Baisui should eat it! I’m not hungry,” Sun Zhaodi replied, her face flushed with embarrassment.

This roasted sweet potato had been specially prepared by her mother-in-law for her daughter. If the daughter didn’t eat it and she dared to, she would surely be scolded.

“You eat yours. She just finished breakfast,” Mother Xu said, pushing Xu Jiaojiao’s hand back.

These sweet potatoes were roasted for her daughter. If Sun Zhaodi wanted some, she could roast her own.

“Yes,” Sun Zhaodi nodded awkwardly.

Xu Jiaojiao glanced at her, then at Mother Xu, who was frantically gesturing with her eyes. Reluctantly, she accepted the sweet potato.

“Is it good?” she asked, holding Qin Jiashu close.

The little boy ate with delicate movements, his small mouth working like a tiny hamster.

He nodded. He often ate roasted sweet potatoes, but they were usually burnt or undercooked. This was the best one he’d ever had!

“I never thought you’d be so kind to this child, Baisui,” Sun Zhaodi said resentfully, watching the happy pair.

This delicate, sickly sister-in-law not only gave the boy a sweet potato but also bought fabric to make him new clothes. It was truly a miracle.

“It’s because he’s so well-behaved!” Xu Jiaojiao said, eating with one hand and patting Qin Jiashu’s head with the other.

Qin Jiashu looked up at her. When he met her tender gaze, a smile blossomed in his eyes.

“Hey, why hasn’t he said a word since he came in? Is he mute?” Sun Zhaodi asked suspiciously, her tone dripping with malice.

Xu Jiaojiao’s smile faded. “Sister-in-law, Xiao Shu just doesn’t like to talk much.”

“Really? I haven’t seen him open his mouth once. I thought he was mute!” Sun Zhaodi said deliberately, emphasizing the word again.

Qin Jiashu furrowed his brows. “I can talk.”

“That’s right, our Xiao Shu can talk!” Xu Jiaojiao said happily, bending down to kiss his cheek.

“You little rascal, you’ve smeared his face with firewood ash!” Mother Xu glared teasingly at her daughter.

Xu Jiaojiao had gotten ash on her lips from the sweet potato and transferred it to Qin Jiashu’s face.

Perhaps out of affection for Xu Jiaojiao, or because the family had no grandchildren, Mother Xu extended her warmth to Qin Jiashu.

“Come here, Grandma will wipe your face.”

Qin Jiashu turned to Xu Jiaojiao, instinctively seeking approval.

“Go ahead! Let Grandma clean your face,” Xu Jiaojiao encouraged.

Only then did he approach Mother Xu. She pulled a handkerchief from her pocket and gently wiped his face.

“This child is a bit thin. With proper care, he’ll grow up to be as handsome as you,” Mother Xu said, giving him a quick hug and straightening his shirt.

She knew her daughter’s health condition well. The doctors in the county had said childbirth might be difficult.

Privately, she hoped Xu Jiaojiao would raise this child well.

He had already suffered so much. Orphaned young, he’d fallen into the clutches of that vicious old woman in the Qin family. Who knew what he had endured?

“Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of him,” Xu Jiaojiao assured her. “I’ll bring him home for the New Year. You’ll see a lively, cheerful, healthy little boy.”

“Take care of yourself first!” Mother Xu said, more concerned for her daughter’s health.

Her youngest daughter had always been delicate. When she was born, she was as tiny and frail as a kitten.

Back then, she had almost given up hope. Now, in the blink of an eye, she was married.

Xu Jiaojiao smiled as she ate her sweet potato. “I know.”

Qin Jiashu, his face now clean, wriggled his legs and climbed back into her arms.

Creak. The door to the side room opened.

With little to do in winter, Xu Guolin, her eldest brother, had slept in. The tall man emerged, buttoning his coat.

“Brother.”

“You brought your little nephew too?” Xu Guolin noticed the boy in her arms.

Qin Jiashu tilted his head to look up at the tall man.

“Call me ‘Uncle,’” Xu Guolin said playfully, hooking a finger under the child’s chin.

Qin Jiashu shyly burrowed further into Xu Jiaojiao’s arms, though his eyes stayed fixed on him. Is he also an uncle?

“Brother, he’s shy. Don’t tease him!” Xu Jiaojiao said, holding the boy protectively.

Xu Guolin raised an eyebrow.

“Don’t confuse the child,” Mother Xu said with a smile. “He calls Baisui ‘Aunt.’ He should call you ‘Uncle.’”

“Hey, you’re right!” Xu Guolin realized. He had assumed the boy was his sister’s child and automatically adopting the role of uncle.

“Call me ‘Uncle,’” he repeated, bending down again, clearly enjoying the interaction.

“Uncle…” Qin Jiashu murmured.

“Good boy,” Xu Guolin said, ruffling his hair.

After he left the room, Sun Zhaodi stood up. “Mom, it’s getting late. Should I start lunch?”

Xu Guolin had missed breakfast, and she worried about him being hungry.

“Go ahead. And don’t forget to make an egg pancake for Baisui,” Mother Xu nodded.

“I won’t!”

The Xu family’s lunch was quite lavish: pickled cabbage stewed with taro, stir-fried potato slices, egg pancakes, and cabbage and tofu soup.

“Baisui, come, eat an egg pancake,” Mother Xu said, placing a plate in front of her.

Xu Jiaojiao picked up a piece and put it in Qin Jiashu’s bowl.

“You eat too,” Mother Xu said. She took the plate and divided half into her daughter’s bowl.

Faced with her mother’s overflowing affection, Xu Jiaojiao could only accept it.

She wasn’t the original Xu Jiaojiao, but since she had taken her place, she couldn’t let her parents suffer the pain of losing their daughter.

She had a duty to be the daughter they deserved.

—

After lunch, Xu Jiaojiao glanced outside. The weather was even colder and wetter than in the morning.

“Why don’t you stay here for a few days?” Mother Xu suggested reluctantly.

“Mom, I come back every day anyway. What difference does it make if I stay overnight?”

In the southern countryside, married daughters were treated as guests. Xu Jiaojiao didn’t want Mother Xu to worry about her relationship with Sun Zhaodi.

“Your brother will take you on the bicycle,” Mother Xu said to Xu Guolin.

“I’ll go get it,” he replied, heading to the storage room.

Having someone ride them back was far better than walking. Xu Jiaojiao was happy to avoid the effort.

“Thank you, Brother.”

Mother Xu followed him into the storage room and returned with a burlap sack.

“Inside is a small charcoal brazier I bought from the bamboo craftsman. It’s getting cold, so keep warm. You’re prone to headaches, so don’t use too much shampoo—it’s too alkaline. These herbal packets are from the Barefoot Doctor—they’ll clear dampness. Boil them to wash your hair.”

“These jars are pickled vegetables, just the way you like them. And these three empty IV bottles from your last clinic visit—use them as hot water bottles at night.”

“Thank you, Mom.” Every item had been prepared with care and thought.

Xu Guolin wheeled out the bicycle and lifted it out of the courtyard.

“The bag’s heavy, let me carry it out,” Mother Xu said, unwilling to let her daughter tire herself.

“Okay, Mom, you’re the best,” Xu Jiaojiao replied, leading Qin Jiashu outside.

“Baisui, you sit in the back. Xiao Shu, you sit in the front,” Xu Guolin said, arranging the seats.

“Do you think Xiao Shu can stay put?” she asked worriedly, eyeing the bicycle’s horizontal bar.

The mountain village roads were full of potholes and thick mud. If he sat on that bar, wouldn’t his little bottom get bounced to pieces?