Chapter 5: We’ll Protect Auntie

“Coming!”

The two children answered in their crisp, childlike voices.

In no time, they were running into the kitchen with the sound of their little feet thudding against the ground.

Chang Ping sat properly on a stool by the table.

Chang An, however, struggled to climb up due to his short legs. After several failed attempts, Chang Ping reached out and hoisted him up.

The two children stared at the steaming bowls of noodles before them but didn’t start eating. Instead, they looked at Ye Xin Ran expectantly.

“Why aren’t you eating? Go ahead!” Ye Xin Ran urged.

Chang Ping hesitated but then extended a roasted dragon fly toward her.

“Earlier, I said I wouldn’t share the dragon flies because I was worried my brother would be hungry. But since you made us dinner, we’ll share one with you!”

The dragon fly was a little charred, with its tail entirely burned to a crisp.

Ye Xin Ran forced a smile, feeling a bit awkward. “I don’t like eating this. You… you shouldn’t eat too much of it either.”

Hearing this, Chang Ping withdrew his hand, his face showing a touch of disappointment.

“Oh, okay then.”

The boy lowered his head, looking pitiful and a little dejected.

Ye Xin Ran’s heart softened immediately. Should she just eat it to avoid hurting his feelings?

But she really couldn’t bring herself to eat it. Taking a deep breath, she ultimately decided against it.

“Let’s eat the noodles instead. Try it and tell me how I did!”

To ease the awkwardness, Ye Xin Ran picked up her chopsticks.

“Okay!”

The two little ones grabbed their chopsticks, their earlier gloom disappearing instantly.

The broth, thickened from boiling the noodles, coated the snow-white strands of noodles that were topped with thin slices of meat and speckled with a few green leaves. The aroma wafted up with the steam, tantalizing their senses and stirring their appetite.

The children buried their heads in their bowls, slurping noisily as they ate.

“Slow down, don’t burn yourselves!”

Watching the kids enjoy the noodles she made filled Ye Xin Ran with a sense of satisfaction.

Her own body hadn’t eaten properly for days, and the burning hunger in her stomach finally subsided after finishing her bowl of noodles.

Although the noodles were smooth and filling, the flavor was still plain.

The sugar and salt in the jars were nearly gone, let alone seasonings like pepper, star anise, or soy sauce.

With the right spices, the dish could have been even better.

“Auntie, this is so delicious!”

Between slurps, Chang An finally lifted his head to praise her.

Hearing this, Chang Ping also looked up and smiled shyly, adding, “It’s really good!”

“If you like it, eat some more, but don’t eat too much, or you’ll get a stomachache later,” Ye Xin Ran advised.

Chang Ping finished one bowl of noodles but still seemed hungry. However, he reluctantly put his bowl down, remembering that his older brother hadn’t returned yet.

“Are you full?” Ye Xin Ran asked, having finished her own half-bowl of noodles.

“Yeah!” Chang Ping nodded, still feeling unsatisfied.

Ye Xin Ran noticed he hadn’t eaten enough and said, “I saved your brother’s portion for him, what’s in the pot is just enough for the three of us.”

“Really?”

Chang Ping’s eyes brightened at her words.

“Really!” Ye Xin Ran smiled. “You can have more, or the leftover noodles won’t taste as good.”

Chang Ping happily served himself another bowl.

Since the topic came up, Ye Xin Ran casually asked, “Where did your brother and your second uncle go? Do they come home late every day?”

Chang Ping swallowed a mouthful of noodles and replied, “Big Brother is studying at the school in Dong Gou Village, so he gets home really late.

Second Uncle went up the mountain. He usually takes seven or eight days to return. When he comes back, he stays for a day.

This time, he stayed for three days because of the wedding, and then he left.”

When he mentioned the wedding, Chang Ping glanced at Ye Xin Ran.

Grandma Zhang had said that the woman Second Uncle married was both ugly and lazy.

Now that she had arrived, they probably wouldn’t have good days ahead.

But in reality, it wasn’t like that at all.

They had been in Yun Bian Village for almost a year, and this was the best meal he had ever had.

“So, you’re usually looked after by Grandma Zhang?”

Ye Xin Ran seemed to understand the situation at home.

Xiao Huai’an was raising three children alone. He worked to earn money, while the older one went to school, and the younger two were left in the care of their neighbor, Aunt Zhang.

“Yes!” Chang Ping answered.

“Is she good to you?”

Hearing the question, Chang Ping shrank his neck and slowed his eating, lowering his head as he said, “She’s pretty good!”

“She’s not good!”

Suddenly, Chang An, who had been quietly eating, spoke up.

At this point, he had finished most of his noodles and even drank up all the soup in his bowl.

Chang An wiped his mouth and looked at Chang Ping with a fierce expression. “Second brother is lying! Grandma Zhang isn’t good at all! Chang An still can’t get full, and she even hits Second Brother!”

Chang Ping set down his bowl and angrily shouted at Chang An, “You’re talking nonsense!”

Chang An wasn’t scared at all: “I didn’t!”

Seeing this, Chang Ping hurriedly covered his mouth, “Didn’t we agree? We can’t tell anyone, or Second Uncle will worry!”

Chang An bit down on Chang Ping’s hand, causing him to immediately withdraw his hand in pain.

Chang An glared with his small eyes: “But now we have a stepmother! She gives us hugs, gives us candy, and makes delicious noodles! We don’t need to be afraid anymore!”

“You don’t understand! She’ll leave! She’ll be gone in a few days!” Chang Ping yelled.

Chang An replied, “She won’t!”

Chang Ping insisted, “She will! Second Uncle said she never wanted to marry him. Once she’s better, she’ll leave!”

Upon hearing this, Chang An immediately looked hurt and upset.

She looked at Ye Xin Ran, her eyes full of tears.

“Stepmother, you’re not leaving us, right? Is it because I wasn’t good? If I listen from now on, I’ll give you all my candy, and you won’t leave, okay?”

Hearing this, Ye Xin Ran’s heart softened, her eyes stinging with emotion.

For the first time in her life, she truly felt what it was like to be needed by someone.

Xiao Huai’an and everything else seemed distant compared to this moment. How could anyone let a child like this feel sad?

“Stepmother is not leaving!” Ye Xin Ran replied.

“Really?”

Chang An looked at her in disbelief, and Chang Ping also stared at her, equally shocked.

Is it really true?

“My parents hit me, so I don’t want to go back. I’ll stay here with you, okay?” Ye Xin Ran said, gently rubbing Chang An’s nose.

“Your mother is a stepmother too? Our stepmother used to hit us,” Chang Ping asked, surprised.

“No, my mother is my real mother. But even though she’s my real mother, she’s worse than a stepmother,” Ye Xin Ran replied.

“Then Stepmother, don’t go back. Stay here. We’ll protect you,” Chang An said, clenching his small fist.

Chang Ping rolled up his sleeves and said, “Don’t worry, Stepmother. Chang Ping will protect you.”

“Okay! Then you two protect me, and I’ll cook for you. Let’s make a pinky promise!”

Ye Xin Ran said as she extended her pinky finger. The two children’s eyes lit up, and they both extended their pinkies, linking them with Ye Xin Ran’s finger.

“Pinkie promise, one hundred years, never change!”

Laughter filled the rundown courtyard.

But in the Zhang family’s house, just a wall away, the atmosphere was heavy.