Chapter 14: Once Upon a Time

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“Head of the household, you—you’d better come inside with me.”

With the children watching, Madam Jiang pulled Bai Xiuming away.

“Huh? Yue-niang, what is it? Can’t you say it out here?”

Bai Xiuming followed behind her, looking anxious. He had only gone to the stream behind the hill to fetch water. Could something have gone wrong again?

Bang—

The door slammed shut.

“Big Sister, has something happened to our family?”

Ergou glanced aside at his calm older sister. He could not shake the feeling that the adults were hiding something from them.

“Nothing’s wrong. Come on, let’s get the fire started and make dinner. I’ll show you all a little of what I can do tonight.” Bai Ruyu smiled.

She turned and headed for the kitchen. It seemed that Mother and Father would not be coming out anytime soon, so preparing dinner was the most important thing.

The three children looked at one another.

“Big Sister, you know how to cook?” Little Ya asked in surprise.

Third Boy scratched his head. “Big Sister can even tie your hair for you. What’s so strange about her knowing how to cook?”

“…”

Ergou glanced at them both and said nothing.

He hurried to catch up with his sister.

Inside the kitchen, Bai Ruyu looked around.

The stove was built from yellow mud. Beside it stood a wooden cabinet, along with a rice jar and a water vat. In the center by the entrance was a large wooden table, covered with a cutting board and all sorts of odds and ends.

“Big Sister, what are you making? Let me help.” Ergou came in, rolled up his sleeves, and asked.

Bai Ruyu lowered her eyes to look at him. A flicker of surprise passed through her gaze, and after a moment she smiled.

“Start the fire. Tonight, you can all have a taste of your sister’s cooking.”

Third Boy and Little Ya came running in after him.

“Big Sister, we want to help too.”

Seeing them, Bai Ruyu glanced around the kitchen and picked up a basin of wild greens from the wooden table.

“You two can sort the greens.”

The two little ones happily carried the basin to the doorway and sat down to pick through the vegetables.

Ergou got the fire going. Smoke began to rise from the iron pot, and Bai Ruyu poured in a ladleful of water.

The pot immediately began to hiss.

After scrubbing it clean, she added coarse grain rice mixed with the white rice she had secretly slipped in. She poured in water, covered the pot with a wooden lid, and sealed it with strips of cloth.

Then she opened the wooden cabinet beside her and took out a slab of pork belly weighing roughly two pounds.

In truth, both the white rice and the pork belly had been purchased by Bai Ruyu from the System Shop. White rice cost fifteen gold coins per pound, while pork belly cost thirty.

She suddenly felt that the prices in the System Shop were anything but cheap.

Faced with the unexpected appearance of the pork belly, the three children wore three entirely different expressions. Bai Ruyu casually came up with an excuse.

Clearly, one of them believed her.

Another did not.

Ergou pressed his lips together and silently tended the fire, his gaze occasionally straying toward his busy sister.

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“Hm? What smells so good?”

Bai Xiuming and Madam Jiang came in from outside the kitchen one after the other, sniffing the air.

“Father, Mother, take the dishes outside. The rice will be ready soon.”

Bai Ruyu served the dry-fried pork belly, leaving a little lard in the bottom of the pot, then turned her head and smiled at them.

She promptly added the blanched wild greens, stir-fried them quickly, and seasoned them with salt, her secret blend of spices, bird’s-eye chili, and vinegar.

“Yue-niang, don’t you think your parents were a little too harsh?”

Seeing how deftly their daughter moved, Bai Xiuming frowned.

He was happy to learn that her grandparents had not only cured her, but had also stayed behind to teach her certain skills.

But now, seeing with his own eyes the daughter he had raised so carefully since childhood, sweating over the stove as she prepared dinner, he inexplicably felt a pang of heartache.

And then there were the skills she had suddenly acquired.

Whenever he thought of that, he felt restless and uneasy.

“Father, Mother, come on. It’s ready.”

Bai Ruyu served the wild greens and called out when she saw the two of them standing there distractedly.

“Ah? All right, all right.”

Bai Xiuming took the plate from his daughter, then carried the dish of dry-fried pork belly away from the stove.

Madam Jiang filled a basin with rice and urged the children to wash their hands first.

“You little muddy kittens, go wash your hands before you come eat.”

A short while later, beneath the fading glow of sunset, the family gathered around the table, swallowing eagerly.

“Big Sister, how did you make this meat? Just smelling it makes me want to take a bite.” Third Boy stared fixedly at the pork, saliva trickling from his mouth.

Ergou swallowed and shot him a sideways glance. “Why are you asking so many questions? Even if she told you, you wouldn’t understand. Just keep quiet and eat.”

Little Ya’s eyes darted around. In a small voice, she said, “Third Brother, speak more softly. What if someone hears us and tries to fight us for it?”

Watching the three children interact, Bai Ruyu could only laugh helplessly.

“This is cumin-spiced dry-fried pork belly, and these are vinegar-sautéed wild greens. Try them and see whether you like them.”

The wild greens should have been equally sharp with chili and vinegar, but Bai Ruyu was afraid the family had never eaten chili before and might not be able to bear it.

She had added only one bird’s-eye chili to give the dish a little flavor. She had no idea whether it would suit them.

“Mmm! This cumin pork is even better than cracklings. I’ve never tasted anything like it.” Third Boy’s cheeks bulged as he forced the words out between his teeth.

“Ugh… Why does this sting the throat? It’s sour and spicy—how strange! I don’t see any slices of ginger, either.”

Bai Xiuming took a bite of the vinegar-sautéed greens and could not help drinking some water.

“Hm? I think they’re delicious! This chili flavor is much better than ginger. It’s wonderfully fragrant!” Madam Jiang swallowed the greens in her mouth and reached for another mouthful.

By the end of the meal, Bai Ruyu had gained a rough understanding of everyone’s tastes.

Mother, Little Ya, and Third Boy enjoyed spicy food. Father and Ergou could not tolerate it.

After dinner, Madam Jiang cleared the remnants from the table while the three younger children helped her.

Bai Xiuming and Bai Ruyu sat in the courtyard, gazing at the stars.

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There was no denying that the air here was free of pollution. The stars filled the entire sky, seeming almost close enough to touch, while fireflies drifted through the courtyard in shimmering clusters.

Bai Ruyu gazed at the scene, lost in thought…

Once, long ago, she too had spent her days circling a stove. She too had sat in a courtyard with an old man and a little girl, watching a scene like this.

“Yujie, your mother has told me everything. Don’t worry. Aside from your mother and me, no one else knows.”

Just as Bai Ruyu sank into her memories, the man beside her suddenly spoke in a grave voice.

“Even if one day a blade is pressed against our throats, you must not look back. Just take your younger brothers and sisters and run.”

At his words, Bai Ruyu’s eyes suddenly grew hot.

“Father… I…”

“There’s no need to say anything. Your mother and I only want the four of you to grow up safely. No matter what you become, you will always be my Yujie.”

Bai Xiuming’s broad, rough hand settled on Bai Ruyu’s head, his eyes filled with a father’s tenderness.

Looking at the gentle man before her, Bai Ruyu pressed her lips together and lowered her head, remaining silent for a long while.

If one day you discover that I am not truly your daughter…

Will you still say those words then?

In a shadowed corner behind them, three furtive little figures gradually retreated.

Beside the privy, Third Boy angrily kicked a stone.

“Big Brother, they don’t trust us!”

Ergou hurried over and covered his mouth.

“Quiet! Father, Mother, and Big Sister are right not to tell us.”

Little Ya remained silent for a moment before lifting her head.

“Let’s pretend we didn’t hear anything tonight.”

Third Boy pulled Ergou’s hand away from his mouth.

“Why? Can’t we ask them what’s going on?”

“You idiot. Didn’t you hear what Father said? It might be a matter of life and death. The more we know, the more danger we might be in.” Ergou glared irritably at his foolish little brother, who cared about nothing but eating.

“Ah! That…” Third Boy’s face went pale, and panic crept into his eyes.

“We can’t help them, but we mustn’t become a burden, either. Do you two understand?”

Ergou looked from one to the other and spoke sternly.

“W-we understand!”

“Big Brother, don’t worry. I’m not like Third Brother. I definitely won’t hold anyone back.”

Only then did Ergou breathe a sigh of relief at their answers.

He was the eldest boy in the family after Father. No matter what happened, he ought to protect everyone at home.

Last time, he had failed to protect Big Sister. This time, no matter what it took, he would keep her safe.