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The situation of the Wen Family Brothers was even worse than that of the Li Family. The Wen Family had only one blanket for three people to share. Although one was a teenager and the other two were children, it was still insufficient for three people to cover with just one thin blanket. Even with all the clothes they could wear layered on their bodies, they still felt cold. The chill from outside was almost enough to freeze them solid. Wen Zixia moved all the firewood in the house to the bedroom to warm his two younger brothers. As the firewood burned down, the cold outside seemed to seep into the house even more. It was unrealistic to go out and gather more firewood in such conditions. What would they do when the firewood ran out? Burn books? Wen Zixia shook his head vigorously; books were their greatest treasure and could never be burned. He opened a crack in the window to look outside, worry furrowing his brow.
Crystal snowflakes were blown in through the window crack by the wind, landing on Wen Zixia's face, which felt cold as they quickly melted away.
It was snowing? There was a saying that "a timely snow promises a good harvest," but for poor families like theirs, who had neither food nor clothing, even a timely snow held no hope. This snowfall could take many lives, and the three brothers wondered if they could endure it. They only hoped that their two younger brothers would survive this snow without falling ill.
"It's cold," Wen Zixue murmured softly. Wen Zixia hurriedly closed the window tightly to reduce the cold air entering the room, and the temperature inside rose slightly. Wen Zixue finally stopped shivering but still felt very cold. Children were frail and easily susceptible to frostbite; Wen Zixue was fine for now, thanks to Wen Zixia's decisive action of burning all the firewood for their warmth.
"Big brother, will we make it through this winter?" Wen Ziyu asked, his eyes filled with confusion and despair. He understood their situation better than Wen Zixue did and knew how difficult it would be for them to survive this winter.
Wen Zixia suppressed his worries and spoke calmly, as if he had confidence: "We will. As long as I'm here, I will ensure you both can welcome spring safely."
"Brother, you don't have to comfort me," Wen Ziyu replied pessimistically. "If I freeze to death, just bury me hastily and give all my clothes to my younger brother."
"What nonsense!" Wen Zixia snapped angrily. "I'm not dead yet! What are you talking about dying for? I punish you to memorize 'The Analects' three times; do you have any objections?"
Wen Ziyu quickly shook his head and took the copy of 'The Analects' that Wen Zixia handed him, starting to recite from the beginning.
Wen Zixia sighed with relief; as long as Wen Ziyu focused on memorizing instead of worrying, he wouldn't dwell on negative thoughts anymore. Suddenly, a knock echoed through the air, sounding abrupt and loud in such a cold atmosphere. Wen Zixia's heart stirred as images of the Li siblings flashed through his mind. Something must have happened to them; just like an adventure from a storybook, he couldn't ignore it as someone close to them. However, he wouldn't pry; it was their family's business. Besides, given their relationship with the Li Family, they had also benefited from it—otherwise, he would have starved long ago.
When Wen Zixia opened the door, he found Li Yishu standing outside. She wore a long coat that looked very warm despite not being able to tell what material it was made from, and she carried a large bundle in her hands.
"Li Yishu! What brings you here? Come in quickly!" Wen Zixia pulled her into the room where the fire was burning. Li Yishu looked at the fire pit and felt that it wasn't much warmer inside than outside. Wen Zixue huddled under the blanket, shivering—Wen Family's house was quite old compared to Li Family's brick home; their mud walls had cracks that let in cold air despite being patched up with rags and other materials. Li Yishu silently thanked "Deity" for sending extra cotton clothes; without them, the Wen Family Brothers might not survive this winter.
Li Yishu placed her bundle on the bed and opened it up to reveal two cotton jackets which she handed over to Wen Zixia and Wen Ziyu respectively. Finally, she took out another jacket and walked over to Wen Zixue, pulling him out from under the blanket and helping him put on the cotton jacket.
These three jackets were from Hanno's time when she wore them with her parents when she was only seven years old. The girl's jacket hung loosely on Wen Zixue while both Wen Ziyu and Wen Zixia wore their parents' old clothes that dragged down below their knees—perfectly fitting for them.
"So warm!" Wen Zixue exclaimed as he tilted his head and rubbed his face against the cotton jacket on his shoulder; he felt an overwhelming sense of happiness akin to when they had meat to eat just days before.
"Li Yishu! Where did you get these three jackets?" Wen Ziyu asked with a smile; his previous despair had vanished upon seeing Li Yishu's arrival which brought him hope. "Though they do look a bit odd."
"As long as you have something warm to wear, why ask so many questions?" Wen Zixia interrupted his brother's inquiry and turned to Li Yishu. "Li Yishu, do you have enough firewood at home? I can go gather some tomorrow and bring some over for you."
With such warm jackets now available, even going outside wouldn't be so freezing anymore. Thanks to their village's environment—though there weren't any mountains or rivers nearby—there was a small forest where they could gather dry branches during winter for firewood.
"Brother Wen," Li Yishu said, "I'll go with you."
Wen Zixia waved his hand to stop him. "I can go alone. At least we should do something to repay you and your sister for the food and clothes you've brought us, right?"
Wen Ziyu immediately chimed in, "Elder Brother, I'll go with you."
"I'll go too," Wen Zixue added stubbornly.
"Ziyu can come with me, but Zi Jue should stay home and wait for us obediently."
Wen Zixue pouted, "Why can't I go? I can help too."
Wen Zixia patiently explained to Wen Zixue, "I know you can help, but you have an important responsibility to guard the house. We can't let the oil and food we've hidden get stolen."
Upon hearing this, Wen Zixue felt a sense of duty and importance. Clenching his fist, he declared, "Don't worry, Elder Brother. I will do my best to protect our home."
Li Yishu and Wen Ziyu exchanged glances, thinking how easily he could be convinced!
"Brother Wen, my sister is still waiting for me at home. I need to head back."
Wen Zixia and Wen Ziyu accompanied Li Yishu out of the courtyard. Wen Zixia sincerely thanked him, "Li Yishu, thank you for bringing the cotton jackets."
These three jackets were a lifeline for the three brothers; with them, they could safely endure the winter.
Li Yishu chuckled lightly. "Brother Wen, what kind of relationship do our families have? There's no need for thanks."
Wen Zixia replied earnestly, "No need, but I will remember this kindness. The Wen family will never let down the Li family, no matter what happens."
Li Yishu understood that Wen Zixia was expressing his stance in light of their unusual situation.
With a grin, Li Yishu said, "Brother-in-law, my sister and I both understand your intentions. I'm off now!"
He cheerfully ran out and quickly disappeared from Wen Zixia's and Wen Ziyu's sight.
………………
At the entrance of the Hanno family's neighborhood, there was an old clothing recycling bin, with a sign stating that all donated clothes would be given to the mountain areas. After enjoying a hot pot meal, Hanno decided to drop off some old clothes at the recycling bin. However, upon entering her bedroom, she was taken aback—wasn't there supposed to be two large bags? How did one disappear? The rhythm of disappearance... Hanno's gaze fixed on the Porcelain Jar, recalling that she had carelessly tossed one of the bags onto it. So, had it been transported away by the Porcelain Jar?
"Can clothes be transported too?" Hanno squatted down and poked at the Porcelain Jar. "You really have quite an appetite."
The Porcelain Jar remained unresponsive. Hanno shrugged and stood up, grabbing the remaining bag before changing into her cotton shoes and heading downstairs to dispose of the old clothes. The act of tossing a large bag of old clothes into the recycling bin drew attention; the neighborhood security and residents coming in and out all smiled kindly at Hanno. She returned their smiles, realizing that there were indeed many good people in this world.
Once back upstairs, Mom Han and Dad Han had already turned on the oil heater, making the room warm and cozy. Mom Han brewed a pot of chrysanthemum tea and insisted that Hanno drink a large cup before letting her return to her room. Hanno had already sent the outline for her new story to her editor, Snow Vegetable, two days ago. Snow Vegetable was very interested in the story and urged Hanno to finish writing it quickly so that once Transmigration of Ji Xiaofu concluded, she could upload her new work.
Hanno opened a new document and began typing:
...Yue Junzhe stepped out of the bank with the last thousand dollars in her wallet. The original owner had excellent academic performance and had been accepted into Hong Kong Island University, but this thousand dollars was only enough for three months' living expenses; she couldn't even afford tuition fees. No wonder the original owner chose to commit suicide—a girl barely out of her teens with no money; what could she do? The original owner's father and stepmother were truly heartless; they were indirectly forcing her to death! Poor girl; hopefully, in her next life, she would be born into a good family with loving parents, never worrying about food or clothing, living as a happy princess.
But what about herself? Once this thousand dollars ran out, she would go hungry! Should she find a job to earn money? Let's not even mention how chaotic Hong Kong Island was in the early '80s—what if she got scammed? Looking for odd jobs in restaurants? Please, with low pay and high demands, Yue Junzhe—who rarely even washed a bowl in modern times—was sure she couldn't endure that hardship.
"The Ming Pao is getting less interesting," two middle-aged men walked past Yue Junzhe, their conversation catching her attention.
"Yeah, Gu Long hasn't released any new works since The Sound of Knives in the Wind Chimes two years ago; Wen Rui'an's Skeleton Painting has also concluded, and everything else is just lackluster."
"Exactly..."
Yue Junzhe's eyes lit up; she had found a way to make money!
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