Grandma Sun thought the little baby was frightened. Suddenly waking up in a stranger's house, seeing unfamiliar surroundings, unfamiliar people—even adults get scared, let alone a little baby. She held the baby in her arms, soothing in a gentle voice.
"Don't be scared, don't be scared, grandma is here, don't be scared, are you hungry? Grandma has cooked some porridge, it's almost ready..."
"Aunt"
Before Grandma Sun could continue, a thunderous shout of a man came from the courtyard outside, 'buzzing' deafeningly. Lantian Jue found the voice familiar but couldn't immediately recall who it was. Grandma Sun responded and, instructing Lantian Jue to lie down and rest well, went outside.
"Aunt, how's the baby doing? Feeling better? Has he woken up?"
Mo Yuanle, holding a handful of herbs, hadn't gone to the fields but instead went up the mountain to gather herbs in the afternoon; he is the village doctor, with medical skills passed down through his ancestors. Not working in the fields, he still earns work points. In his youth, he joined the army and fought against the little devils, got injured in his foot during the war, and after the victory of the war, he voluntarily retired and came back, receiving a monthly salary of about twenty yuan, which was more than enough for him and Zhao Li to spend.
Mo Yuanle, holding the herbs, went to the water tank under the grapefruit tree, beside which there was a wooden tub; he drew water into the tub to wash the herbs.
Grandma Sun glanced back into the house, as if afraid that Lantian would hear, and muttered in a low voice, "Just woke up, saw me and pounced over, straight away calling 'grandma' and clinging on tightly without letting go. Poor little thing, so young, I wonder how much suffering he endured to survive. Sobbing quietly in my arms, it is heartbreaking to watch." Grandma Sun's eyes gradually moistened, and she pounded her chest with her dry palms.
"Lao Wu, Aunt wants to adopt this child, what do you think?"
Mo Yuanle was startled, everything was happening too suddenly, in just half a day everything changed.
A child collapsed at the entrance of the village, as he heard from Cha Hua, who had passed by the village entrance coming back from the fields, glanced and then reported it back to him, at that time Cha Hua even expressed pity for the child. Later, the village chief came, arranged for the villagers to take care of him, the person didn't want to bring him home, and the village chief left with a roll of his eyes without saying more. His aunt came back from the fields, saw the child was too pitiful, softened her heart and took him home, planning to wait until the child woke up, feed him, and then send him away.
"Aunt, have you really decided, do you truly want to adopt this child?" Mo Yuanle was actually not very supportive; his aunt, over sixty years old, at such an age with her health not good, barely earned a few work points from the fields, just barely enough for her own sustenance, with no savings at home, and if she fell ill, it was always him quietly aiding her. His aunt was too proud to owe anyone, and it was only by using the leverage of how his aunt had cared for his parents that he managed to take care of her. Adding another mouth to the family could well bring illness to the old lady.
Grandma Sun looked back into the house, her eyes brimming with tears and she brought over two stools, helping him pick and wash the herbs together, "You didn't see how the child was calling me 'grandma,' it was so heart-wrenching. Besides, it's too quiet at home, having a child will lively things up. People, as they get older, they get more afraid of the silence."
Mo Yuanle's words 'If you really like him, I'll help you adopt him' got stuck in his throat, unable to speak them out.
Mo Yuanle thought for a moment. His aunt was making sense. With such a big place at home, it was indeed lonely for the elderly to live alone. Having a child around could prevent her from feeling too solitary.
In case something happened to the old lady, it would be good to have someone to send messages. Whether the child stayed at his place or at his aunt's, it didn't matter as he would be the one supporting them.
"Alright, then it's settled. I'll mention this to the village chief later and pick a good day to welcome her into our home. It's been sunny for a month, nearly to the point of death by heat. Quite a few villagers suffered from heatstroke. The child is fortunate; as soon as she arrived at our home, it started to rain, which was a relief."
"Absolutely, she was born to be part of our family." Grandma Sun was all smiles when her granddaughter was praised. "I'm wondering if the child is perhaps too upset, which might be why she's crying? Lao Wu, come inside with me to check if she's feeling uncomfortable. Given she's new and unfamiliar with our place, she might be keeping her discomfort to herself." Considering this possibility, Grandma Sun had no desire for idle chatter and pulled Mo Yuanle toward the house.
"When she wakes up, she can tell me if anything's wrong. She even gestured with her hands when she came around. She was unconscious in the morning but got better by the afternoon. Even immortal medicine wouldn't work this fast. Lao Wu, tell me, how could it be that after a nap she's all better? It still worries me."
"Aunt, don't worry. I checked on her before; the child was just extremely tired and hungry, probably hadn't had food or drink for a few days, and the heat was too much. She's okay now, so don't worry. We'll feed her some porridge later and after some rest for a few more days, I guarantee you she'll be lively and jumping around again."
Ignoring the discussion outside, Lan Tian lay back on her bed, pondering who the visitor might be. Her grandpa had five or six siblings; most died at the hands of the 'little devils', leaving only two brothers, the second and the fourth, with her grandpa being the second.
Since her grandpa went to join the army, Fourth Grandpa rarely visited. When her grandpa was still alive and enlisted, the family maintained a superficial connection. After her grandpa passed away and Fourth Grandpa's family lost the financial support, their lives deteriorated, and their kinship completely broke, treating each other like strangers in the village.
Grandma Sun became a widow, and not many people in the village liked visiting them, with only two or three families keeping in touch regularly, including Uncle Fifth.
It's been a long time, and Lan Tian couldn't clearly recall his voice; it sounded both familiar and unfamiliar. Uncle Fifth's appearance was also a blur.
Besides grandma, the kindest people to her in her previous life were Uncle Fifth and Fifth Aunt. After grandma passed away, they often delivered grain, oil, and mountain goods to her at the troops, handing them to the soldiers at the gate, without even stopping for a drink before they left. Lan Tian never got to see them even once.
Since she was little, she was afraid of Uncle Fifth. Whenever she saw him coming from afar, she would hide, never daring to meet them until they left, and then she would sneak to the gate and watch.
If she were to mention her greatest regret in life, it was not being able to serve her grandma fully. The second people she felt she owed were Uncle Fifth and Fifth Aunt. This time returning, she was determined to take good care of the three elders until the end.
While planning how to prosper in her dreams, she also felt this dream was too real, so real it was hard to believe. Happiness came so suddenly, she wanted to see if it was truly a dream, and pinched her face.
Lan Tian pinched hard, using all her strength, causing her to hiss sharply from the pain, tears welling up in her eyes, reminding her of the intense pain she brewed.