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墨書 Inktalez
Liu Qingxi was about to greet a few people when a sudden knock came from outside the door.
A deliberately lowered voice, somewhat hoarse, asked, "Is Qingxi home?"
The others exchanged glances, unsure who could arrive at mealtime.
"You all continue eating; I'll go open the door!" Liu Qingxi set down her bowl and chopsticks and stood up to head outside.
The fence couldn't block the view from outside. Since they were having stewed meat today, she feared attracting attention from the villagers, who rarely got to see meat.
The others moved their things into the room and closed the door, which was why they heard the voice asking from outside.
An elderly woman, around fifty years old, hunched over with gray hair and deep wrinkles on her face, stood at the door. Her murky eyes sparkled with light.
The aroma wafting through the crack of the door made her salivate. Suppressing her inner sorrow, she raised her hand to knock again.
Creak~~~~~~ The door opened from within!
Both the people inside and outside froze in surprise, a moment of silence ensued. The girl from the old woman's memories had changed; although only a short time had passed, Liu Qingxi's complexion was much healthier, her eyes brighter, and her skin fairer.
Liu Qingxi felt a pang in her nose. It seemed like in just a short while, the old woman had aged ten years: "Grandma, what brings you here? Have you eaten?" It turned out that the visitor was from the Qin family.
"I’ve eaten already, Girl. Don’t blame your grandparents; we had no choice!" Tears welled up in the old woman's eyes as she saw Liu Qingxi.
"Oh! By the way, this is something your grandfather and I saved up secretly. Life is tough for you two; at least eat a bit more!" The Qin family hurriedly pulled out a dark cloth bag from her bosom.
Although Liu Qingxi and her brother had been driven out of their home, they were still her grandchildren. She felt worried, guilty, regretful, and helpless—all sorts of emotions mixed together.
Inside the bag was a pound of food that the two elderly people had saved from their meager rations. Usually strict with them, Wang Shi and Jiang Clan didn’t allow them to visit.
Today, taking advantage of Wang Shi not being home, she found an opportunity to come by and see them.
Without reason, Liu Qingxi felt a wave of grievance wash over her in front of Qin Family. Memories of past hardships flashed through her mind, and tears flowed like a clear spring.
"Sister, who is it?" Liu Qingyan's clear voice jolted Liu Qingxi out of her reverie.
She touched the cloth bundle in her arms, which contained more than a pound of food. It turned out that someone still cared for them; she just didn't know how the two elderly people managed to hide from Wang's watchful eyes.
Suddenly coming to her senses, Liu Qingxi pulled at Qin Family, saying, "Grandma, come quickly! I stewed rabbit meat today; you should have some too!"
To her surprise, Qin Family shook her head like a rolling wave. "No, no, no, I've eaten already. You all hurry and eat; Grandma is leaving!"
She suddenly felt ashamed. Without them, the children were even doing better; they were eating meat now, while their family couldn't even afford to eat this much meat during the New Year.
Especially since Liu Qingxi held no grudges and continued to treat her with respect made her blush even more.
"Don't go, Grandma! You rarely come by; have a little before you leave!" Liu Qingxi insisted, not letting go.
Liu Qingyan stood dumbfounded beside them, unsure whom to advise. He still remembered being driven out; Qin Family only cried then and didn’t care about them anymore!
Now he didn’t want to bother with this grandmother either, but he couldn’t understand his sister's actions.
Unexpectedly, this made Qin Family even more reluctant to stay, especially with several children present. "If Grandma doesn't eat, you all go ahead and eat; I'm leaving now!"
Liu Qingxi was caught off guard as Qin Family broke free from her grasp.
"Wait, wait!" Liu Qingxi quickly grabbed a large leaf and picked up some pieces of meat with chopsticks, clutching the bundle as she chased after her.
"Grandma, don’t leave yet! Wait a moment!" The more she chased, the faster Qin Family walked away.
After all, she was over fifty years old. At the alley entrance, Liu Qingxi finally caught up with her. "Grandma, take this back to Grandpa for him to taste. I caught it on the mountain. Also take this food with you; Yan and I have enough to eat."
"Stop it! If Aunt finds out, there will be trouble!"
"No, no, no! I don't want this. It's for you, given by Grandma and Grandpa. You have to keep it!" Qin Family refused to accept any packages.
The children were sent away with not a single coin or grain of food. As elders, they couldn't help, and they certainly couldn't take food: "And this meat, hurry and take it back. We don't like eating it!"
"We don't like eating it," this phrase kept repeating in Liu Qingxi's mind, a familiar feeling surging forth. In a distant time and space, someone used to say this to her often, but that person was no longer around!
Two figures, with the same wrinkles, slowly overlapped, merging into the elderly person in front of her. Qin Family resembled her grandmother from her past life so much; every time she tried to get her to eat more delicious food, she would always say she didn't like it.
In truth, she was reluctant. Unfortunately, it wasn't until her grandmother passed away that she understood this; she really thought the elder didn't like eating!
"No! You take it all away!" Her tone suddenly became firm. She didn't want the scene to repeat itself; she didn't want to be in a situation where she wished to care for someone who was no longer there.
In a daze, she shoved everything into Qin Family's hands. With great strength, Qin Family could not push back and stood there holding several warm pieces of meat along with the package they had brought.
Not understanding why her granddaughter suddenly went crazy, thankfully it was just a moment before she returned to normal; otherwise, Qin Family would think she was seeing ghosts.
"No, Girl..."
"Grandma, you take these with you. There’s plenty more at home!" The timid hatred she felt towards Qin Family suddenly vanished.
Everyone has their own struggles; perhaps Qin Family truly had unspoken difficulties regarding those earlier matters. The resemblance to her past grandmother made her forgive Qin Family without principles.
"You keep this!" Qin Family insisted just the same.
In the end, unable to push back any longer, Liu Qingxi left behind that bag of grain.
Sigh.
The Qin Family sighed heavily, "Girl, don't blame us. Grandma wants you and your brother to have a good life. Also, there were so many people in the house just now."
The Qin Family hesitated to speak further. Liu Qingxi felt the deep concern from the elder and did not hide anything, "They are all good kids who play with Yan. They usually help us a lot, so I invited them for a meal!"
"Ah, that's good! It's only right!" The Qin Family smiled through tears, "You are a good child, but your fate is unfortunate. Grandma has no ability to help you much, and it's time for you to get married."
Looking at her granddaughter who was about to grow into an adult, the Qin Family felt even more guilty. Without parents and being driven out of the house, finding a match would be difficult!
"Grandma, there's no rush. Don't worry; I will definitely make sure Yan has a good life!" Liu Qingxi assured the Qin Family and also made up her mind.
"Good. Just remember that when living your life in the future, you can't be extravagant. A little meat is enough; save the rest for later. Even if you can't sell it in town, it can still help with household expenses. With so many people, how much meat do you need!"
The Qin Family had held back these words for a long time!
Liu Qingxi was at a loss for words. Their perspectives were different, and their approaches varied greatly. However, since the Qin Family was genuinely concerned about their lives, she did not refute them.
Watching the Qin Family slowly leave, Liu Qingxi turned around to head home.
At the corner stood a young man in white clothes, smiling as he looked at her.
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