Chapter 118: Song Jing’s Mind

Chapter 118: Chapter 118: Song Jing’s Mind

At the dinner table, Widow Xie asked Ji Huan how she had gotten through the previous night.

Ji Huan repeated the story she had told Hu Liang earlier, but she didn’t mention being with Song Jing.

It wasn’t that she didn’t trust them, but something like that was impossible to explain properly. It was better to just keep quiet since no one knew anyway.

She had intentionally avoided mentioning Song Jing, but Hu Liang brought him up first.

"Did you see Song Jing on your way back?"

Ji Huan’s hand paused as she was picking up food. She dodged his question, asking nonchalantly, "Why the sudden question about him?"

"Well, yesterday Dacheng and I were rushing around looking for you, and we ran into Song Jing. When he heard you were lost, he helped us search for a long time. But then, somewhere along the way, he disappeared too. We were wondering if he’s alright."

Ji Huan froze.

"You’re saying... he went looking for me?"

"Yeah, and Brother Song seemed really worried," Hu Dacheng chimed in, his words muffled by the steamed bun he was chewing.

Ji Huan had repeatedly reassured Widow Xie before, so the older woman’s mind didn’t jump to any untoward conclusions. She just sighed, "That boy has such a warm heart."

Ji Huan nodded along, but inside, her heart was in turmoil.

’Could it be that while searching, Song Jing found the tracks where I tumbled down the slope, and then deliberately rolled down himself just to find me?’

’What I thought was a coincidence, what seemed like a chance encounter, was actually orchestrated by him?’

’No wonder he reacted so strangely when I asked him why he’d fallen down.’

’That fool...’

’Does he have any idea what a huge risk he was taking?’

’Did he ever consider what would have happened if I wasn’t at the bottom? What if there hadn’t been a cave? And what if he could get down but couldn’t climb back up?’

Ji Huan’s mind was a complete mess.

Putting everything together, if she still couldn’t figure out Song Jing’s feelings for her, she’d be no different from an idiot.

It was precisely because she knew that she...

"Wan, Wan..." Hu Liang waved a hand in front of Ji Huan’s face, curious. "What are you thinking about?"

She had zoned out mid-conversation. He’d never seen her like this before.

Ji Huan snapped out of her daze and gave an embarrassed smile. "I guess I’m a little tired... What were you guys just saying?"

"Mom said that after dinner, we should go over to the Song family and see if Song Jing is back. He helped us out, after all. It’s only right that we let them know we’re safe."

Widow Xie said, "Since Wuan is tired, you and Dacheng can go. Just pass on the message."

"Um..." Ji Huan lowered her eyes, idly poking at the rice in her bowl with her chopsticks. "You don’t have to go. I happened to run into Song Jing on my way back. He’s fine, completely fine."

"Oh, is that so..." Hu Liang looked at Widow Xie.

"If he’s fine, then don’t go." Widow Xie’s heart ached for the children. They had been through a rough night—frightened, hungry, and cold. The most important thing was for them to get some sleep.

When Ji Huan and Dabao got home, she hastily heated the kang, took off their damp cotton clothes, and placed them at the head of the kang to dry. Then, she quickly burrowed under the covers.

For the past day and night, she had been on edge, walked so far, and even carried Dabao on her back. She hadn’t felt it at the time, but once she lay down, she realized her arms and legs felt like they didn’t belong to her anymore.

It wasn’t just physical exhaustion; more than anything, it was mentally draining.

She didn’t want to think about anything now. She just fell onto the bed and went to sleep.

She slept straight through until evening, and Dabao woke up around the same time.

Both of their stomachs were rumbling with hunger. It was time to make dinner.

Ji Huan’s whole body ached terribly, and she couldn’t be bothered to move. It would be one thing if she were alone, but she couldn’t let the child go hungry.

After a difficult internal struggle, she finally crawled out from her warm blankets. Just as she finished getting dressed, she heard a knock at the courtyard gate.

Ji Huan hurried out to open the gate and was met with an unexpected blast of cold air that took her breath away.

Outside stood Hu Ximei, a basket hooked over her arm, wrapped up tightly in an old cotton jacket.

"My second and third brothers are still sleeping. My mom guessed you’d probably sleep this late too. She said you must be exhausted and told me to bring you some food, to save you the trouble of cooking."

Widow Xie was indeed a boisterous woman in many ways, but when it came to being thoughtful, she had a way of truly warming one’s heart.

Ji Huan closed the courtyard gate and led Hu Ximei into the house.

Hu Ximei removed the old cotton jacket and opened the basket lid, taking out a large bowl of congee, a dish of stir-fried shredded pork, a few steamed buns, and two boiled eggs.

Ji Huan and Dabao quickly washed up and sat down to eat.

"Ximei, would you like some more?"

Hu Ximei sat on the edge of the kang, swinging her legs and shaking her head. "You two should eat while it’s hot, Sister Wan. I already ate at home before I came."

Ji Huan paid her no mind. She put down the steamed bun she was eating, grabbed another one, broke it open, and began stuffing it with shredded pork.

Hu Ximei grew anxious and quickly waved her hands. "Sister Wan, you know we bought meat for the New Year... I really have eaten already."

Giving no room for argument, Ji Huan pushed the makeshift meat-stuffed bun into her hands. "Still trying to fool me?"

She knew, of course, that the Hu Family had bought meat. But she knew even better that with two sons missing and in peril, Widow Xie would have had no heart to prepare a big New Year’s Eve dinner, even though it was yesterday.

She probably only brought herself to stir-fry a meat dish today because she saw that they had all returned safely.

Widow Xie was habitually frugal and wouldn’t have made much. She had mentioned that more than half of the meat they bought was to be cured and saved for the summer.

The portion brought for her was likely half of all the meat they’d cooked. The remainder wouldn’t be enough to fill the gaps between the teeth of Hu Liang and Hu Dacheng when they woke up. It’s just as they say: a growing boy will eat you out of house and home.

Hu Ximei was a sensible girl. Of course she loved meat, but what made her different from Dacheng was that she never made demands and was used to yielding to others.

This wasn’t to say that Widow Xie favored her sons over her daughter. Rather, in a society that generally prioritized men, a girl’s compromise and deference had seemingly become instinct, a rule to live by.

Ji Huan couldn’t stand it, but she was powerless to change it.

"Hurry up and eat. Good things should be shared with everyone. Your second and third brothers wouldn’t want to eat it all by themselves either."

It was just that most boys naturally lacked a certain perceptiveness and sensitivity. When Hu Ximei said she had already eaten, they would believe her without a shred of doubt.

"Sister Wan..." Hu Ximei had barely spoken when her eyes reddened.

Her family was poor. For as long as she could remember, she had rarely eaten anything good. Much of the time, she couldn’t even get her fill of the unappetizing black-flour buns.

Her second and third brothers had to work, and work required energy, so naturally, they had to eat more.

Xiao’an and Hua were still young, and children couldn’t go hungry, or they would get sick and wouldn’t grow tall.

So she could only give way, and she did so willingly.

But every time it happened, she truly felt wronged. She felt that if even one person in the family noticed her sacrifice and praised her for being sensible, she wouldn’t feel so aggrieved.

She knew she shouldn’t think that way, but she just couldn’t help it.

The reality, however, was that none of what she hoped for ever happened. Everything she did was seemingly taken for granted.

Only Sister Wan, from the day she came to the Hu household, always remembered her whenever there was anything good, always making sure she got a share.

It was the first time she had ever experienced the feeling of not being overlooked, of being cared for by someone.

It was also Sister Wan who was the first to notice her inner turmoil.

But she didn’t scold her for being selfish or for daring to compete with her brothers and nephews. She just told her that good things should be shared by everyone.

Hu Ximei lowered her eyes, clutching the meat-stuffed bun tightly with both hands. She raised it to her lips, and with the very first bite, tears rolled down her cheeks.

When she looked up again, she revealed a set of white teeth, her smile exceptionally bright.