บท 4: Chapter 3: The Collapsing Image
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Seeing Xu Niannian wasn't as fierce anymore, Xu Duoyu, still young, didn't have such complicated thoughts.
In his mind, since sister had told him to drink it, she probably wouldn't hit him.
His dark little hands stretched out to grab the sides of the bowl and pulled it towards himself.
"Duoyu, put it down!" Xu Zhicheng yelled in alarm.
Xu Duoyu's black glistening eyes stared at the sugar water and egg inside, wishing he could gulp it down in one go.
Upon hearing his second brother's voice, he looked at Xu Zhicheng bewildered, his small hands clutching the earthen bowl tightly, unwilling to let go, holding it as if it were a precious treasure, even licking his lips, his eyes sparkling with anticipation.
"Second brother, sister said she won't drink it," hope filled his large dark eyes.
Xu Zhicheng was furious, when had this lazy bone ever kept her word.
Xu Zhicheng loved his younger brother and definitely didn't want to see Xu Duoyu get beaten later, "Sister, you better drink it yourself."
As he spoke, he reached out to grab the bowl from Xu Duoyu's hands, but Duoyu's little hands held onto the rim of the bowl stubbornly, gazing defiantly at Xu Zhicheng, refusing to let go.
Xu Zhicheng didn't let go either, and the two of them ended up at a stalemate, with the eldest, Xu Zhiqiang, watching, his eyes stinging with distress.
In this household, only the three brothers were truly related.
Their parents favored the sister, treating their three sons as if they were less than human, reserving all the good things in the house for the sister.
Being poor, they could only eat twice a day and were never full, with each only getting half a bowl, and that too was coarse grains.
It was different for the sister, who didn't have to do anything and still got to eat three meals a day, better than what they had.
As a child, he too had envied her; even though he was only a year younger than his sister, the difference in their treatment was like heaven and earth.
He had cried and made a fuss, but each time his tears and tantrums only led to their mother's beatings, while Xu Niannian had never been touched by their mother from childhood to adulthood.
Eventually, he grew accustomed to it.
Sugar water with egg was a rare delicacy; he had never had it since he was born, yet Xu Niannian could eat it every few days.
With a lump in his throat, Xu Zhiqiang said, "Duoyu, let go."
He swore that he would one day give his younger brothers a better life.
Xu Zhiqiang being the eldest, his words carried more weight than Xu Zhicheng's.
Reluctantly, Xu Duoyu could only let go of the bowl.
But his eyes seemed glued to the egg.
Watching this scene, Xu Niannian sighed internally, thinking how inhuman the original owner of the body had been. Initially, she was worried about being exposed for behaving differently and had considered putting on an act.
Now, however, she could no longer feign indifference. How could she bear to be stern knowing how pitiful these children were?
"Duoyu, have it, I don't want to eat," she said, her voice much softer as she told Xu Zhiqiang, "Don't be stubborn, I told Duoyu to drink it."
After she spoke, Xu Niannian realized that her three brothers were staring at her as if they had seen a ghost.
Especially Xu Zhicheng, who was looking at her suspiciously, his eyes seemed to ask, "Is this really my sister?"
Xu Niannian knew acting too out of character would arouse suspicion, so she casually concocted an excuse, "I hit my head earlier and forgot many things, I only remember your names. You can tell me about them when you have time."
At these words, Xu Niannian could clearly feel Xu Zhicheng's body stiffen suddenly, but she didn't care.
She knew why he reacted like that, as the bruise on her head had come from his push.
Xu Zhiqiang's lips quivered, "Have you really forgotten?"
"Mhm, I can't remember, I only know that you guys are my younger brothers," Xu Niannian lied through her teeth without batting an eye.
Meanwhile, Xu Duoyu, taking advantage of the others' distraction, cautiously hooked the bowl toward himself with his finger and sipped a mouthful of the egg soup.
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The sweet taste instantly made Xu Duoyu squint his eyes in satisfaction, the brightness in them filled with disbelief, as if he had tasted a delicacy from the mortal world.
Xu Niannian, seeing his gluttonous kitten demeanor, couldn't help but feel a tinge of heartache, reminded of her own childhood.
She had lived a lonely life, and though she later made a lot of money, she could never make up for the absence of familial affection.
Now that she had this opportunity, Xu Niannian suddenly felt somewhat grateful, grateful that although she had lost her wealth, she had gained the family members she so longed for in her previous life.
At first, she was unhappy about being reborn into such a poor family, but now she felt it was quite good.
She was determined to change her younger brothers' perception of her, she would be good to them.
"Zhiqiang, tell me about your sister's past!" Xu Niannian casually brought up a topic, trying to get closer to Xu Zhiqiang.
But she realized Xu Zhiqiang's gaze became even stranger, a look of wanting to speak but stopping himself.
Xu Niannian then grasped how foolish her question had been.
The original owner of her body always bullied these three brothers, by asking Xu Zhiqiang to talk about her past, wasn't she asking Xu Zhiqiang to recall how she used to bully them?
Xu Niannian felt somewhat helpless, but the question had already been asked, she couldn't take it back.
So Xu Niannian pretended not to see the resentful look in Xu Zhiqiang's eyes.
Xu Zhiqiang wondered whether Xu Niannian really had forgotten or was merely playing with him, his eyes carrying a hint of scrutiny.
Xu Niannian also knew that no matter what she said, Xu Zhiqiang wouldn't easily trust her, her only hope was that he would gradually change his opinion of her over time.
Xu Zhiqiang hesitated for a moment, then pulled out a stool opposite Xu Niannian and began to tell her about her past, though his attitude wasn't very serious.
The only reason he complied was for fear that Xu Niannian might go mad and hit someone again.
However, what he talked about were the occasions when Xu Niannian had been normal, not mentioning any instances where she had bullied the three brothers.
This was his way of preparing for both possibilities.
If Xu Niannian wasn't truly forgetful, he wouldn't get scolded for this approach, and if she really had forgotten, then even better, maybe she would change her past habit of hitting and scolding them at the drop of a hat.
Xu Niannian hitting or scolding him didn't bother him, his concern was her bullying the other two brothers, who were still so young; even Xu Zhicheng, the oldest of them, was only nine years old.
They couldn't withstand her torment.
While he spoke, Xu Niannian took the chance to observe her younger brothers carefully.
The eldest, Xu Zhiqiang, bore some resemblance to her in facial features, but his skin was rather yellowish.
The second brother, Xu Zhicheng, looked like their father, Xu Dawei, and wasn't as handsome.
The youngest, Xu Duoyu, because he was still little, didn't resemble anyone in particular, his eyes were big, but he was very thin and also dark.
Yet the three brothers shared a common appearance, all of them wearing patched clothes; there were so many patches that the original fabric was hardly visible anymore, and they all looked malnourished.
In contrast, her own clothes, although made of coarse fabric, had no patches.
In those times, clothes without patches were already considered quite good.
Even Xu Dawei and Yang Cuihua were wearing patched clothes.
After talking for a long while until his mouth was dry, Xu Zhiqiang noticed Xu Niannian was still staring at him, and he couldn't help feeling apprehensive.
What was she planning to do?
Xu Niannian, resting her chin in her hand, saw that Xu Zhiqiang had finished speaking and even casually poured him a glass of water.
Suddenly, Xu Zhiqiang looked at her as if he had seen a ghost.
Xu Niannian calmly said, "Drink some water."
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