And in Fu Wenwen's arms at this moment was Lin Feng's two-year-old son, Lin An.
At this point in time, Fu Wenwen had only been married to Lin Feng for two months. The day after returning and holding a wedding with Fu Wenwen, Lin Feng had returned to the military camp.
After Lin Feng and Fu Wenwen held their wedding banquet, Lin Mu had directly separated Lin Feng from her, only giving Fu Wenwen an old house. Lin Mu would deliver grain once every three days.
Lin Mu looked down on Fu Wenwen, believing that Fu Wenwen had deliberately framed her son to force Lin Feng to marry her. Especially since Lin An, who had been raised by Lin Mu, was not being cared for by Fu Wenwen, Lin Mu disliked her even more. Every time she wanted to take care of Lin An, Fu Wenwen would let her take Lin An away. Lin Mu had no choice but to secretly provide for Lin An.
"Are you alright? Do you feel unwell anywhere?" Fu Wenwen asked softly, looking at Lin An in her arms, who was filthy but unresponsive.
She wanted to put Lin An down, but Lin An's small hands clung to Fu Wenwen's clothes, refusing to let go. Fu Wenwen gritted her teeth and used the water缸 to stand up.
Supporting herself, she went to the kitchen. There was only a pot of freshly boiled water. Fu Wenwen carried Lin An and brought the wooden tub of scalding hot water into the yard, mixing it with cold water from the water缸 to make it warm. "Xiao An An, I'll give you a bath. Can you be good and not move?"
After Fu Wenwen finished speaking, she looked at Lin An for a long time but received no response. She sighed helplessly, not even knowing if he could understand her words.
However, when she reached out to put Lin An down, Lin An released his grip on her clothes. Fu Wenwen was allowed to remove his wet clothes and place him in the wooden tub.
Fu Wenwen took out the soap that the original owner had been reluctant to use and thoroughly washed Lin An from head to toe. After three buckets of water, Lin An transformed from a black mud doll into a clean, fair-skinned child.
This black mud had actually acted as a protective layer. Lin An, who ran outside every day, surprisingly had no scars on his body, indicating the excellent efficacy of this black mud.
Looking at the naked toddler in front of her, Fu Wenwen let out a heavy sigh of relief. Fortunately, the temperature was moderate and the sun was good. Otherwise, after washing for so long, she was afraid Lin An would catch a cold.
Fu Wenwen carried Lin An into the room and found a slightly clean set of clothes to put on him. Then, supporting herself, she returned to the kitchen. Looking at the last bit of grain in the rice bin, Fu Wenwen once again experienced the hardship of a clever cook being unable to cook without rice.
She put the last bit of rice from the rice bin into the pot and tried to start a fire. She fiddled with it for a long time, getting herself covered in dust and grime. Her body was so weak that she couldn't even strike a spark.
A small hand suddenly reached out, took the firewood from Fu Wenwen's hand, and easily started a fire in front of her.
Fu Wenwen lowered her head in shame. Her body was so weak now that she couldn't even start a fire. A toddler over two years old was more capable than her.
"Thank you, Xiao An An." Fu Wenwen stroked Lin An's soft hair, feeling the texture while also scolding herself. She had to take good care of her body.
After successfully cooking a pot of porridge under Lin An's guidance and feeding herself and Lin An, Fu Wenwen took Lin An to bed. Lying in the covers, she pondered what to do next.
As she thought, her weak body could no longer hold on and she fell asleep. Lin An lay quietly beside Fu Wenwen. Seeing that she had fallen asleep, Lin An got up, climbed out of bed, and walked to the Lin family's house, knocking on the door.
When Lin Mu opened the door and saw Lin An, she put the grain she had already prepared into the little fellow's arms. The cloth bag, about the size of a fist, in Lin An's arms was his day's ration.
Lin An hugged the grain and walked away. Lin Mu, however, noticed the change in Lin An and raised an eyebrow. "An, did that woman give you a bath?"
Lin An nodded and turned to walk home.
Lin Mu watched Lin An's retreating back, muttering, "He's almost become a mute. He can't even speak anymore."
Lin Mu thought for a moment, then turned and went to the granary again, fetching three catties of fine rice and three catties of corn, and delivered them to Fu Wenwen and Lin An's home.
When she opened the rice bin, she saw Lin An pouring the grain she had just given him into the rice bin. Lin Mu raised her eyebrows but said nothing. After putting down the grain, as she passed the room, she saw Lin An lying next to Fu Wenwen, the two of them sleeping soundly, one big and one small.
She muttered, "Lazybones," rolled her eyes, and left.
She really couldn't stand Fu Wenwen. Giving Lin An a bath didn't mean anything.
After waking up from a nap, Fu Wenwen felt much better. As she was about to turn over, she suddenly felt a small hill beside her. Looking down, she saw Lin An sleeping soundly beside her, still clutching the corner of her shirt.
Recalling that Lin An had almost drowned that morning, although he hadn't spoken, she could feel that he had been quite frightened. Fu Wenwen covered him with the quilt, letting him sleep longer.
Fu Wenwen recalled the current plot. Su Xiaoxiao should be asking the Fu family for money in her name at this time. It was from this point that Su Xiaoxiao's life in the village began to improve.
Using the money her family gave her to support herself and Liu Zihua. Hmph.
She had to get the money back.
The original Fu Wenwen, in the book, felt 'dirty' after being bullied by a man and knew that her beloved Liu Zihua couldn't possibly marry her, so she became self-abandoning.
She was not the original Fu Wenwen. Thinking of the plot in the book, Su Xiaoxiao had not told her situation to the Fu family, but instead claimed that she was seriously ill and needed a huge amount of medical expenses.
The letters would take about a month to arrive. Her parents should be sending her money these two days. At this time, her parents were still sending money to Fu Wenwen, not Su Xiaoxiao. All mail would be delivered to the village head's house. Just as Fu Wenwen was about to leave her house to go to the village head's house, her clothes were suddenly pulled by a small force.
Looking down, she saw Lin An, his head bowed, holding onto her clothes.
"I'm going to the village head's house. Are you coming?" Fu Wenwen squatted down, extended her hand to Lin An, and asked.
Lin An silently put his small hand into Fu Wenwen's. Fu Wenwen smiled, took Lin An's hand, and walked out the door.
"Oh, aren't you from the Lin family? I haven't seen you in a few days. Where are you going?" As soon as she stepped out, Fu Wenwen was met with everyone's attention. In those days, everyone was working in the fields. People like Fu Wenwen who stayed home and didn't work were rare.
"...Yes, Aunties, you're busy." Fu Wenwen didn't know who the woman speaking was, she just nodded friendly in response.
Fu Wenwen, holding Lin An's hand, walked away generously. The group of women were stunned. Fu Wenwen usually ignored them. Today, she actually responded? And called them Aunties?
Did the sun rise from the west?
Fu Wenwen didn't know the way very well, though she had some vague memories. Fortunately, she had Lin An. After telling Lin An, he took the initiative to lead Fu Wenwen through several turns to a house built with blue bricks.