The sky turned completely dark.
The crowing of roosters and the barking of dogs continued incessantly.
Jiang Mianmian lay in her mother's arms, feeling somewhat uncomfortable and clearing her throat.
Apart from her discomfort, the whole family looked very comfortable.
There was a sense of peacefulness in the air.
Her mother held her in one hand and chopped firewood with the other, "Clang, clang, clang."
Her father cooked over the stove, slicing unidentified leaves, "Scratch, scratch, scratch."
Her eldest brother carefully whittled wood with a knife, "Shh, shh, shh."
Her elder sister washed clothes, hammering them against a wooden board, "Bang, bang, bang."
The mountain chicken swam in the hot water in the pot, "Gurgle, gurgle."
Jiang Mianmian yawned.
She felt sleepy again.
Her eyelids couldn't resist closing.
Then she felt herself being laid down by her mother.
She knew it was a wooden basin.
A wooden basin crib, she watched her mother make it, filled with a pile of unidentified dry grass underneath and covered with layers of repeatedly washed rags on top. At first, she resisted, but lying down felt surprisingly comfortable, not prickly at all.
Her mother laid her down, and she woke up, opening her eyelids, but she didn't cry.
She was obedient.
She even did some stretching on her own.
Trying to use her hands to bring her feet to her mouth...
Then she felt the wooden basin being moved, and then she saw the sky.
Her elder sister brought the wooden basin next to her.
"Mom, I'll wash clothes and take care of my sister at the same time. You go lie down for a while."
Jiang Mianmian thought her elder sister had quite a bit of strength; she held the basin steadily, and she didn't feel any shaking.
Then she happily looked at the sky.
There were many stars twinkling in the sky, really many, and there was a little cool breeze, slightly more comfortable. At this moment, her sister stood up and covered her with a piece of clothing???
Jiang Mianmian wanted to protest, but she couldn't push away the clothing no matter how she twisted.
Instead, her sister looked at her and giggled.
Jiang Mianmian looked at her sister laughing, and when she laughed, her eyes resembled those of her handsome father, with curved eyebrows and eyes, quite beautiful.
Next, she watched the stars while trying to push away the clothes, and then she fell asleep again.
When she opened her eyes again, it was time for dinner.
The whole family gathered around to eat, without any rule of silence during meals and sleep.
Today, there was a big pot of wild chicken and vegetable soup on the table?
Looking green and smelling quite fragrant.
Her mother served the food, each person with a big bowl, and she handed a chicken leg to her father, "You still have to do heavy work, so eat more."
Her elder brother Jiang Feng then handed his bowl of chicken breast to her mother, "Mother, you eat more. Look at little sister, so thin and frail."
Thin and frail little Mianmian?
Then she saw her elder sister handing her bowl of chicken neck to her elder brother, "Brother, you eat. I snacked in Landlord Liu's kitchen today and am not hungry."
Finally, her father handed his bowl of chicken feet to her sister, "You like nibbling on these, so here you go."
Little Mianmian could only drink milk, watching the chicken meat go around in the family's bowls. If she hadn't heard those words earlier, she would really have felt that this was a family of pure and friendly love.
The family ate dinner very politely, chewing slowly... carefully chewing and swallowing the wild chicken bones.
After dinner, the family gathered to enjoy the pastries brought back by Eldest Sister.
Jiang Mianmian looked on eagerly, not wanting to dive in directly. She hoped tonight's milk would taste like osmanthus cake.
Once the adults finished, it was her turn. She sucked on the milk bottle with flushed cheeks, perhaps because Mother had eaten chicken, making tonight's milk seem a bit richer, or it could have been her imagination.
Just as Jiang Mianmian sucked hard, feeling like she had emptied it, there was a knock on the door.
The family quickly hid any evidence of their meal and looked innocuous, with Elder Brother going to answer the door.
In walked a woman clad in silk, her face heavily painted, quite intimidating.
Jiang Mianmian thought to herself, though the family she was born into looked poor, at least they were decent. If she were born into this woman's family...
"What wind blew Sixth Auntie here? Come in and sit," Mother warmly called out.
The woman, feeling at home, took a seat and scrutinized the baby in Qin's arms, then gave Jiang Yu several looks over, remarking,
"Jiang Yu, you're truly beautiful, with your round and fair face. There's good news; I heard that the Lord from the provincial capital, Wu Lord, is recruiting. If Jiang Yu catches his eye, not only could she enter the provincial capital with the Lord and live a life of luxury, but the Lord will also pay handsomely!"
She extended her hand, turning it around.
On her middle finger was a silver ring, her chubby hand slightly swollen.
"Ten taels of silver, enough for your brother Feng to find a wife."
Jiang Mianmian continued staring at the ring, wondering if her finger would rot, then suddenly comprehended.
Was this human trafficking???
Perhaps Jiang Mianmian's eyes widened too much, because after the woman finished speaking, she stared at Jiang Mianmian and said,
"Poor thing, Feng's mother, even if we don't consider Feng, you must think about this little one. I heard she was born weighing just over four catties. There's an old saying, 'three die, four survive, five weak, six survive, seven healthy, eight robust.' Your child is dark and thin, not easy to raise. In the future, if she needs food or medicine, it'll cost money.
If Jiang Yu goes to the provincial capital to live a life of luxury, she could support her sister. At least it's a life..."
Jiang Mianmian... how did this involve her? She suddenly became agitated, struggling.
Mother held her tightly, rendering her completely immobile.
"Mother, just sell me, then buy delicious food and raise my sister to be as strong as me," Elder Sister Jiang Yu said.
At that moment, Jiang Mianmian felt a pain in her heart as if it were the heart of a newborn baby.
She cried loudly, her throat hoarse.
Before, she heard that her sister exposed her friend's ugly deeds just to snatch a kitchen job, thinking she was a bad girl. Now, she was willing to sell herself just to take care of her sister. How foolish, tap into that selfishness of yours!
Jiang Mianmian cried with all her might, nonstop.
But her abilities were limited, and her crying sounded more like wheezing.
It was as if she was about to suffocate.
Which startled the entire family.
"Auntie, we can't accommodate you. Please leave," Mother spoke up.
"Auntie, please leave. We won't sell our daughter," Father stated firmly.
Elder Brother simply escorted Sixth Auntie out.
Sixth Aunt stood at the doorway, venting her anger with curses, while spitting out a thick phlegm:
"You worthless bunch, can't even enjoy a bit of comfort, deserve to suffer in poverty for a lifetime. If Jiang Lao'er can manage to support your little ones, I'll eat three pounds of shit."
But nobody in the family paid any attention to Sixth Aunt's ranting.
Jiang Mianmian was genuinely scared, crying uncontrollably in anyone's arms, unable to stop.
She gained a firsthand experience of the family's environment.
It was too impoverished.
Jiang Yujie held her sister, gently swaying her.
"Don't cry, Mianmian. Big sister won't leave. I'll be with you every day, I won't leave again."
She spoke through tears as well.
If there was a way, who would willingly become a servant?
As Jiang Mianmian cried, she suddenly felt her vision blur—there was a spring within sight.
The spring was the size of a bowl mouth, gurgling with water, about the thickness of a finger. As the water splashed into the air, it disappeared without a trace.
Jiang Mianmian instinctively reached out to touch the spring water, and a drop of sweet water sprinkled onto her, tasting refreshing and crisp. As it entered her mouth, it was sweet and invigorating, and when it reached her nose, her baby-like nasal congestion instantly cleared.
Wow, the superpower of a time traveler!
She forgot to cry, gaping in astonishment.
And Jiang Yujie found that her sister, who she said wouldn't cry anymore, really stopped crying and even seemed to smile.
She smiled too, but tears flowed even more intensely.
