Chapter 3: Wanqing’s Plan

At the break of dawn, Wanqing woke up to the sound of a rooster crowing. Her sister, Wanru, had already gotten up.

Wanqing felt that she should walk around more instead of lying in bed all the time. She tried to get up and take a few steps, but her head still ached slightly, and her legs felt light and unsteady, as if she were walking on cotton. Her whole body was weak.

However, after a few more steps, she seemed to adjust and felt that it was manageable.

Supporting herself against the wall, she slowly made her way out of the room and stepped outside.

Unlike the polluted air of the modern world, this era had no car exhaust or industrial fumes—the air was incredibly fresh.

Taking a deep breath, Wanqing immediately felt refreshed.

Her mother, Madam Li, saw her and quickly urged her to go back inside. “You hit your head and haven’t fully recovered yet! You can’t be out in the wind, or you’ll end up with chronic headaches!”

Seeing her daughter’s indifferent expression, Madam Li continued to persuade her. “You’re still young and don’t understand the suffering of long-term illnesses. I would never harm you!” She stepped forward, intending to help Wanqing back to her room.

“Got it, I’ll go back now. Mother, you go on with your work.” Lin Wanqing didn’t believe that just walking a few steps outside the house would cause any lasting harm. However, she understood her mother’s concern and didn’t want to upset her, so she obediently returned indoors.

At noon, her sister brought her lunch—a bowl of porridge and a piece of flatbread that her siblings had saved for her.

Two days passed like this, and Wanqing couldn’t stand lying around any longer. She decided to return to the main hall and eat with the family. That way, her siblings wouldn’t have to save their bread for her.

At the dining table, she would at least get one piece of flatbread. If she stayed in her room, she would only get porridge.

And so, three days after arriving in this world, Lin Wanqing finally appeared at the dining table.

Her presence didn’t stir any reaction from the others—not even a perfunctory “Wanqing, you’re feeling better?” To them, her existence or absence made no difference. Aside from her immediate family, no one cared.

Wanqing silently grumbled to herself before reluctantly going to find her mother.

The Lin family had more than a dozen members, so meals were eaten at two tables—one for the men and one for the women.

The table wasn’t very large, and space was limited, but they all squeezed in as best as they could.

Wanqing sat on her small wooden stool and waited for the meal to begin.

As soon as the plate of flatbreads was placed on the table, before Wanqing could even get a clear look, her eldest and second aunts swiftly grabbed one each and stuffed them into their mouths.

Wanqing, caught off guard: …

Are they bandits?

She turned to look at her mother—goodness, Madam Li was still calmly sipping her porridge.

So composed!

Seeing that her eldest cousin Wanzhen and second cousin Wanjun had also taken flatbreads, Wanqing finally couldn’t hold back.

What’s the big deal about grabbing food? Who doesn’t know how to do that?

She stood up, grabbed three flatbreads—one for herself, one for her mother, and one for Wanru.

It was just a simple action, yet suddenly, everyone’s eyes were on her.

Unbothered, Lin Wanqing held her partially eaten flatbread and slowly drank her porridge. She had already taken a bite—surely they wouldn’t snatch it back now, would they? That would be way too shameless!

The flatbreads were small, and even with porridge, they weren’t enough to fill her up. Her eldest and second aunts often found excuses to take her mother’s share, knowing that Madam Li was soft-spoken and wouldn’t stand up for herself. This had been going on for a long time.

But why should that be the case? Why could they eat while her mother had to go without?

Madam Tian, the family matriarch, already disliked Wanqing, and now she felt like she had caught her doing something wrong. She glared at her with sharp, triangular eyes and slammed her chopsticks down on the table. “Taking three flatbreads at once—what do you think you are, a starving ghost reincarnated? Do you think our Lin family has ever let you go hungry?”

Wanqing, worried that her mother might immediately bow and apologize, quickly spoke up before Madam Li could say a word. “Grandmother—what are you saying? I’m not eating three flatbreads myself. I took one for Mother and one for Sister. They haven’t had any yet.”

“If she wanted one, wouldn’t she take it herself?”

“Of course she could take it herself, but I just wanted to be filial to her.”

“You—” Madam Tian was so furious she couldn’t even form words. No one had ever challenged her like this before. She wanted to throw something, but with so many people around, she hesitated. Then, glancing at the plate of flatbreads, she grabbed one without thinking and hurled it toward Lin Wanqing. “Eat, eat, eat! All you do is eat! Fine, I’ll give you enough to eat!”

Wanqing widened her eyes as the flatbread landed directly in her bowl. She couldn’t help but marvel—this old lady might be getting on in years, but her throwing accuracy was impressive! It was on par with the homeroom teacher in her past life, who had a knack for hitting inattentive students with chalk erasers.

Still, she wasn’t angry. Instead, she smiled and cheerfully picked up the flatbread from her bowl and placed it into her mother’s. In a crisp, clear voice, she said, “Thank you, Grandma!”

The entire table, including those who had been watching the spectacle unfold, suddenly froze.

Madam Li panicked even more. She immediately stood up, trying to soothe Madam Tian. “Mother, Wanqing just recovered from her illness, her mind is still muddled. Please don’t hold it against her.” As she spoke, she hurriedly took the flatbread Wanqing had given her and placed it into Madam Tian’s bowl.

“I don’t think she’s muddled at all—she’s grown some nerve! She’s even daring to talk back to her elders now! No manners at all!” Madam Tian glared and shouted.

The commotion at the women’s table was loud enough that the men’s table could hear it, but since it was a dispute among women, the men refrained from interfering.

Lin Heng and Lin Zhiwen, Wanqing’s uncles, simply lowered their heads and ate silently, pretending not to hear.

To prevent Madam Tian from blaming Lin Wanqing further, Madam Li grabbed her daughter’s hand and urged her to apologize.

Wanqing sighed internally. She knew that their third branch of the family couldn’t change their situation overnight. Apologizing was unavoidable. But she wasn’t a child—she understood that those who achieve great things must know when to yield. Saying a few words of apology wasn’t a big deal.

Following Madam Li’s lead, Wanqing said, “Grandmother, I’m sorry. I hit my head, so my brain isn’t working too well. Please don’t hold a grudge against a child like me.”

“You…! Is that how you apologize?!”

The others were just as shocked. They had never known Wanqing to be so eloquent.

Her eldest and second aunts stared at her with wide eyes. Had this child really been addled by illness? She had always been quiet before—what had gotten into her today?

Even her three sisters-in-law, who were holding their children, looked at her in disbelief. Was this really the same girl from the third branch? When did she become so quick-witted?

“Mother, my head feels dizzy,” Wanqing suddenly said, noticing that Madam Tian had been pushed to the brink of exasperation. She figured it was time to end the scene before things escalated too much. She deliberately wobbled, making herself look weak.

Then, closing her eyes, she fell directly toward Madam Li.

Startled, Madam Li quickly caught her, and Wanru, worried for her sister, immediately rushed to her side. Wanqing peeked out of one eye and gestured subtly for Wanru to grab the porridge and flatbreads. With the onlookers still in shock, the sisters quietly slipped back to their room.

Once inside, Wanqing instantly sprang back to life, hopping around energetically.

Madam Li, however, was thoroughly shaken. The events of that dinner had completely upended her understanding. When had her daughter become so sharp-tongued?

Her youngest daughter had always been weak in health, quiet in nature, and a bit stubborn—otherwise, she wouldn’t have sneaked into the chicken coop for eggs and ended up getting hurt. But today, she had apologized without hesitation. That was too unusual.

But…

Madam Li shook her head, deciding she was overthinking it. Girls naturally became more obedient and understanding as they grew older. No matter what, Wanqing was still her daughter, and she would protect her.

She resolved that the incident with the stolen egg and the head injury would never happen again.

Before long, Wanqing’s father, older brother, and younger brothers returned. Seeing that the three women had left the dinner table early, they hurried through their meal, worried about Wanqing’s health.

When they saw that she was fine, they all let out a sigh of relief.

Her father pulled half a flatbread from his sleeve and handed it to Wanqing. Her older and younger brothers followed suit, each offering half a piece to the three of them. Wanqing hadn’t eaten enough earlier, and though the flatbread was dry and unappetizing, she wasn’t about to let her stomach suffer for it.

During her argument with Madam Tian, she had discreetly grabbed the piece of flatbread that had been thrown into her bowl. Unfortunately, Madam Li had returned it.

Hearing Wanqing’s regret, Madam Li didn’t know how to respond.

Her younger brother, Zhiqin, looked at her with admiration. “Sis, even in an argument, you don’t forget about food. You’re so smart.”

Wasn’t this just a matter of survival?

If he had experienced her past life, he’d understand!

If she had been given free food back then, she wouldn’t have touched it. But now? She wasn’t about to waste anything.

Madam Li divided the flatbreads, and the family gathered to eat.

“Qing’er, you shouldn’t have argued with your grandmother. She’s your elder, and you should respect her,” Madam Li gently advised.

Coming from the modern world, Lin Wanqing understood the value of respecting the elderly—it was an essential virtue! But that didn’t mean she could stand by and watch Madam Tian mistreat her mother.

“Mother, I wasn’t arguing with Grandmother. Don’t accuse me unfairly. She was the one who scolded me first—I was just reasoning with her,” Wanqing replied. She didn’t think she had done anything wrong. Even though she had apologized, she hadn’t lost this battle.

First, she had ensured that Madam Li’s flatbread stayed with them instead of being snatched by the other two branches of the family. If only Madam Li hadn’t returned the extra piece, they would have had even more food!

Second, while Madam Tian had been fuming, Wanqing herself hadn’t been angry at all. What was there to be mad about?

Women shouldn’t let themselves get too worked up—it wasn’t good for their health. Wanqing suspected that her grandmother probably had plenty of nodules from all her pent-up anger.

Of course, appearances had to be kept up.

She pouted and put on a pitiful expression as she turned to her father. “Father, can we separate from the family? I don’t want to go hungry or get beaten anymore.”

“Qing’er!” Madam Li was shocked. Having been raised with traditional values, she had never considered separating from the family. In her mind, filial piety toward one’s in-laws was an unquestionable duty.

Lin Heng looked at his daughter, his eyes full of guilt and sorrow. He felt he had failed his wife and children.

He wasn’t blind to Madam Li’s hardships over the years, but he had been powerless to change anything. The only thing he could do was work harder, earn more money, and hope that would make things better for them.

But life had not gone the way he had hoped. When he looked at his once-beautiful wife, now worn down and exhausted, his heart ached.

Separation… He had thought about it before. But…

Seeing that her father hadn’t immediately rejected the idea, Wanqing realized that it wasn’t entirely hopeless. She didn’t push the issue further, knowing this wasn’t something that could happen overnight. Instead, she turned to her siblings and said, “If we separate, we’ll live on our own. We won’t have to worry about going hungry.”

She understood that pushing too hard wouldn’t work. But as long as she planted this idea in their minds, given time, it would take root and grow.

That was enough.

For the first time, her siblings seriously considered the possibility of separating from the family.

Hearing Wanqing’s vision of a life after separation, they found themselves longing for it.

Especially her older brother, Zhiwen, and her older sister, Wanru—their eyes lit up.

Yes! They could do all sorts of work themselves. If they had their own household, they wouldn’t have to endure so much unfairness.

Madam Li, however, looked troubled as she glanced at Lin Heng. She worried that this would put him in a difficult position, so she quickly urged the children to bed. “It’s late. Go get some rest.”

“Alright.”

“Mother, you and Father should rest soon too.”

The family members returned to their respective rooms.

As soon as they were alone, Wanru put on a stern expression, like a little adult, and questioned her sister. “How did you even come up with the idea of separating? Grandpa and Grandma are still alive—how could we split from them?”

“Big Sis, just tell me—would separating be a good thing or not? As for Grandpa and Grandma, even if we separate, they’ll still be our grandparents. We’ll still fulfill our duties to them.”

Wanru thought about it. If they really could separate, it would be wonderful. But… was it even possible?

On the other side, Zhiqin turned to his older brother. “Big Brother, do you think we can separate? Would Grandpa and Grandma ever agree?”