Chuxia quickly tidied up, put on her new sweater and jeans, and lightly dried her hair, planning to wash it during the day.

If she washed it at night, it wouldn’t dry, and she’d end up with a headache since they didn’t have a hairdryer at home.

When Chuxia went out, Cen Huaian was sitting at the table with his back to the room, reading a book.

He wasn’t reading the nursery class material but rather a first-grade textbook that Chuxia had been teaching him.

Along with teaching him characters, Chuxia had also been teaching him pinyin.

So far, he had learned some of the vowels and consonants, so he could only read the parts Chuxia had already taught him.

Watching Cen Huaian’s back, Chuxia suddenly realized that he didn’t have many toys, nor had he ever asked for any.

She hadn’t noticed before, but Cen Huaian’s childhood seemed to be missing the word “toys.”

Other kids played with marbles, but he didn’t seem particularly interested.

The only game he played more often was a character recognition game.

This was something she hadn’t considered—Cen Huaian’s childhood was lacking toys, but she should have thought of it.

They couldn’t go out to buy any now, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t make some herself.

The games she played as a child, like Four-in-a-Row, Five-in-a-Row, Six-in-a-Row, and the Bamboo Man, were all things they could play at home.

She decided to think about it after dinner.

For dinner, Chuxia made fish soup.

The fish had been in the freezer, so it wasn’t very fresh anymore, but on a rainy day like this, a warm bowl of fish soup was perfect.

She also made millet and red date porridge, which was ideal for rainy weather.

“An’an, take this bowl of fish soup to Grandma Chen,” Chuxia said, remembering how Grandma Chen had taught Cen Huaian the towel fever-reducing method.

She also took a bowl to Sister Li’s house.

During the days she was sick, Sister Li had helped her a lot, often coming by to check on her and bringing hot porridge and buns.

When she saw Cen Huaian making medicine, she even scolded Chuxia for being too relaxed, worrying that the child might get burned.

After that, Sister Li wouldn’t let Cen Huaian carry the medicine anymore and would help take it off the stove herself.

Sister Li was the kind of person Chuxia would happily give ten bowls of fish soup to, let alone one.

When she brought the soup over, Sister Li’s family hadn’t finished cooking yet.

When Sister Li saw the bowl full of fish, she refused to take it, insisting, “No, no. There’s hardly any meat on a fish, and you’ve brought it all over here. What will you and An’an eat? We’re not lacking food over here.”

Chuxia could see her daughter and sons swallowing their saliva.

Clearly, they didn’t get to eat meat very often.

Even though Sister Li and her husband both worked, they had three kids to raise.

Her husband’s family was from the countryside, and he had several brothers.

Every month, they had to send money back home, and Sister Li would often visit her parents.

Although the family got by, it was tight.

They had enough to eat, but treating themselves to something special, like meat, was rare.

In the past, it wasn’t a big deal because everyone was in the same situation, raising large families.

But ever since Chuxia stopped giving money to her mom, she had been making stews with chicken or fish and adding meat to stir-fries.

The smell would make all the kids on the floor drool.

Now, if you asked them who they were most envious of, they would definitely say Cen Huaian, who got to eat delicious food every day.

As usual, Chuxia quickly emptied the meat into Sister Li’s bowl, smiling as she said, “You’ve helped me and An’an so much these past few days. You should eat this fish—no need to be polite!”

After Chuxia left, Sister Li’s daughter and two sons crowded around her, saying, “Mom, let us try a piece.”

“Shoo, shoo, greedy little things! Wait until your dad comes home, then we’ll eat.”

She then took the fish and locked it in the cupboard, knowing that if she left it out while she cooked, her three kids would devour it all, leaving not even a drop of soup.

When Chuxia got back home, Cen Huaian handed her a piece of fruit candy, saying, “Grandma Chen gave me this candy.”

The candy had been stored for so long that it had melted and stuck to the wrapper.

Chuxia took the candy and said, “Let’s not eat this one. I’ll give you a milk candy later.”

Cen Huaian didn’t mind at all and eagerly looked forward to the milk candy.

Under the warm, dim light, they happily ate fish and drank the hot millet and red date porridge.

They had no idea that the mother and child next door were watching them enviously.

“Mom, I’m hungry. I want to eat fish too,” the child said.

Guan Yan was also hungry as she hurriedly moved into the small room with her son, Qi Ming.

The room was almost bare, with just a bed and no other furniture, not even a coal stove for cooking.

Unable to prepare any food, she could only comfort her son, saying, “Just wait a bit, I’ll borrow some hot water and make you some malted milk.”

However, Qi Ming, only four years old, started crying loudly, demanding to eat fish and calling for his grandmother.

Guan Yan was frustrated, as her in-laws had spoiled him, making him difficult to discipline.

She had finally decided to stand up to them, realizing that if she didn’t start disciplining him now, he would grow up undisciplined.

Unfortunately, after confronting her in-laws, she and her son had been kicked out in the pouring rain, with her husband away from home.

As Qi Ming continued to cry and throw a tantrum, Guan Yan, desperate and overwhelmed, grabbed a borrowed broom and spanked him.

The crying only intensified, and Guan Yan broke down in tears as well.

In the family building, such incidents were common, so no one paid much attention to the commotion.

Meanwhile, Chu Xia and Cen Huai’an were completely unbothered, as they were busy playing a game called “Six Piece Chess.”

Unlike “Five Piece Chess,” which required many pieces they didn’t have at the moment, Six Piece Chess was simpler.

They drew a nine-square grid and placed six pieces around the perimeter.

The goal was to capture the opponent’s pieces by positioning two of your pieces against one of theirs.

Before starting the game, Chu Xia introduced a “Little Red Flower System” to reward Cen Huai’an.

Similar to the system at his kindergarten, where students earned flowers for good behavior and could exchange them for rewards, Chu Xia would award flowers for winning games, helping with chores, or receiving praise from teachers.

However, flowers could also be deducted for bad behavior, and he could trade them for things like money or candy.

Excited by this idea, Cen Huai’an immediately reminded her that he had just washed the dishes, earning his first flower.

Chu Xia smiled and drew a little red flower in a new notebook.

They then started playing Six Piece Chess, with the stakes of another flower on the line.

Cen Huai’an, initially unfamiliar with the game, quickly lost a piece but soon got the hang of it, making it difficult for Chu Xia to capture any more pieces.

As the game became a stalemate, Chu Xia checked the time and called it a night, telling him to finish the game tomorrow and practice his calligraphy now.

Chu Xia, who had been forced to practice calligraphy by her grandfather from a young age, insisted that Cen Huai’an also learn.

While she wasn’t a master calligrapher, she was more than capable of teaching him the basics.

As Cen Huai’an practiced, Chu Xia reviewed her study materials for an upcoming internal recruitment exam at the factory, envious of Cen Huai’an’s photographic memory.

Though she had a good memory, it still took her several readings to retain information, and she often needed to review it later.

As she was engrossed in her studies, there was a knock at the door.

Telling Cen Huai’an to continue practicing, Chu Xia went to answer it.

Standing outside were the mother and son who had just moved in next door, now wearing dry clothes.

“What can I do for you?” Chu Xia asked hesitantly.

Guan Yan, embarrassed and awkward, stammered, “Could I… borrow some hot water? I want to make some malted milk for my son.”

Chu Xia readily agreed, lending them her thermos of hot water.

Guan Yan thanked her profusely.

However, the next day, Chu Xia regretted her kindness when she learned that the mother was named Guan Yan and her son was Qi Ming—the exact names of the protagonist and his mother from the novel “Era of the Divine Merchant.”