A jinx, me? But I bring good fortune to my whole family!

A bad feeling suddenly welled up in Zhang Aidi's heart.

She took two steps back, staring warily at the bowl of grain.

But her stomach was throbbing with hunger. She hadn't eaten for a day and a night, and was feeling dizzy and lightheaded from hunger.

She staggered into the west room, where Gu Jian'an was lying stiffly on the kang (a heated brick bed), his face flushed red, and he was still humming something.

I called out several times, but there was no response.

Zhang Aidi was both angry and resentful. She couldn't count on this man at all!

She was so hungry that she was almost losing her senses.

She returned to the yard and glanced at the pot of grain one last time.

Who cares! Eating is the most important thing, no matter what! Even if it's rat poison, I have to fill my stomach first!

Of course, my family is very poor now, we can't even afford to eat, so who has the money to buy rat poison?

She picked up the earthenware basin, poured the grains into a water ladle, drew well water, and scrubbed it vigorously several times until the faint fishy-sweet smell was almost gone, only then did she feel relieved.

She deftly started a fire, rinsed the rice, and added enough water to the large iron pot.

Soon, the long-lost aroma of rice porridge wafted from the kitchen.

……

The Gu family's new house.

Nuannuan was squatting in the corner, with a small handful of golden cornmeal in front of her.

A little gray mouse was holding a kernel of corn, its cheeks bulging from eating, and its little eyes were squinting happily into slits.

"Squeak! Delicious! So delicious! A hundred times better than that rotten grain!"

While eating, the little mouse told Nuannuan about the thrilling scene that had just happened.

"Squeak! That wicked woman! She cooked the poisoned grains! Squeak! Luckily we ran fast, or we would have been poisoned to death!"

Nuan Nuan understood, and her little brows immediately furrowed.

"Bad woman, you're going to hurt people," she muttered in a childish voice.

"Wow! Human cub, are all your uncle's family brainless? They can't even figure out how to poison someone properly. If your grandma and uncle eat this, then there'll be a good show to watch!" In his mind, Little Green's ginseng tendrils waved excitedly.

Nuannuan ignored it, grabbed another handful of cornmeal, and generously shared it with the other little mice that had come running after smelling the aroma.

Just then, several cawing sounds came from above.

Little Black, the crow with whom Warm Warm Contract had a landing on the wall with several companions.

"Little Blackie, come and eat too!" Nuannuan looked up and waved to it.

The crows didn't hold back either, swooping down to snatch food from the mice.

The courtyard suddenly became lively.

Nuannuan loves listening to these little animals chat; it's even more interesting than the gossip told by the village aunties and grandmas.

"Caw! Caw! I see it! I see it! That old woman, her leg is healed! She can walk again!" A crow snatched a large piece of cornmeal and cawed triumphantly.

"Caw! Not only can she walk, but she also took her eldest son with her to the mountain near your house!" another crow added.

"Haha! They even brought five or six old women with them, all talking nonsense, saying they're trying to call back the soul! It's hilarious, I think it's their whole family who should be calling their souls back!"

As the leader, Little Black concluded, "Alright! In short, that old woman has ill intentions! Little master, you'd better be careful!"

Nuannuan's little ears twitched, and she heard everything they said.

Has the old lady's leg healed? And she even went to their mountain to call back her soul?

A hint of curiosity flashed in Nuannuan's big, warm eyes.

She wanted to go see what was going on!

The little baby patted the cornmeal crumbs off his hands and took a few quick steps, eager to run outside.

"Nuan Nuan, where are you going!"

Gu Xiaoan grabbed his sister by the back of her collar and lifted her up.

"Brother, let's go watch dancing!" Nuannuan swung her little feet in his arms.

Upon hearing this, Gu Xiaoan's mind raced.

Bad grandma, calling back the soul, their family's mountain.

These words together can't mean anything good!

"No, it's dangerous outside, you can't go." Gu Xiaoan said sternly, trying to assert her authority as an older brother.

"Brother, come with Nuannuan." Nuannuan hugged his neck, rubbed her face against his, and used her charm to win him over.

Gu Xiaoan couldn't stand this; her heart melted instantly.

"...Just one look, then I'll be right back!"

"good!"

The brother and sister sneaked out of the courtyard and headed straight for the North Mountain.

Before we even arrived at our destination, we heard a series of ghostly wails and howls.

In their newly leveled plot of land, ready for planting vegetables, Old Mrs. Gu was leaning on a cane, giving orders with a vicious look on her face.

Gu Jianping stood to the side, holding a pair of Gu Jian'an's underwear in his hand, waving them around in front of a makeshift mound of earth.

Several other women from the village were gathered around the mound of earth, burning paper money and chanting incantations, seemingly singing something unintelligible.

This spectacle left Nuannuan and Gu Xiaoan speechless.

"What are they doing in our field?" Gu Xiaoan was so angry that she wanted to rush over.

Just then, Grandma Gu, with her sharp eyes, spotted Nuannuan hiding behind the tree.

She shuddered, instinctively shrank her neck, and looked up at the sky.

The sky was clear and empty; those annoying crows were nowhere to be seen.

Grandma Gu's audacity grew instantly!

She slammed the stick in her hand into the ground, pointed at Nuannuan, and started cursing.

"You little jinx! You cursed me! See, I told you! It's you! Ever since you came, our family hasn't had a single day of peace! My son is ruined by you!"

Her voice was shrill and sharp, startling the women who were trying to call back the souls.

Nuan Nuan peeked her little head out from behind Gu Xiao An, blinked her big eyes, and looked completely innocent.

"But Nuannuan doesn't live with you."

She tilted her head, counted on her fingers, and calculated very seriously.

"Nuan Nuan is a lucky star! With Nuan Nuan here, Daddy's leg is better, Mommy has stopped crying, Brother Da An can talk now, Brother Xiao An has become brave, we built a new house, and we ate lots of meat!"

The little boy's voice was clear and loud, and every word made Grandma Gu's face burn.

The women around couldn't help but whisper among themselves.

"You know what, the third brother's family is definitely getting better and better."

"Exactly, look at their newly built house, and look at the cars chauffeuring them around. Not everyone has that kind of good fortune."

Several teenagers who usually played well with Nuannuan also ran up from the foot of the mountain, just in time to hear Grandma Gu cursing.

"Grandma Gu, you're talking nonsense! Nuannuan isn't a jinx!"

"Yes! Nuannuan is so nice! She even gave us candy!"

The children all chimed in, speaking up for Nuannuan.

Grandma Gu's face turned a deep purplish-red, and she trembled with anger. Pointing at Nuannuan, she couldn't utter a single word for a long time.

Seeing that things were not going well, Gu Jianping quickly pulled Old Lady Gu along, called to the other women, and, carrying the dirty pair of underpants, slunk down the mountain.

The farcical attempt to summon the soul ended abruptly.

……

The Gu family's old house.

As soon as Gu Jianping helped the panting old lady Gu into the courtyard, they smelled a rich aroma of rice porridge.

The group had been hungry all day, and now that they smelled the food, their stomachs started growling uncontrollably.

They went inside, where a large iron pot on the stove was steaming.

A woman who was extremely thin was stirring the pot with a spoon.

"Zhang Aidi?!" Old Mrs. Gu exclaimed in shock, her eyes nearly popping out of their sockets. "Why are you back?!"

Zhang Aidi turned around, saw them, and her face showed no expression; she simply responded with a faint murmur.

She had been holding back a lot of grievances, but seeing the way Old Mrs. Gu looked like she'd seen a ghost, she felt a sense of relief.

However, Grandma Gu was not in the mood to argue with her right now.

She was so hungry.

The rice porridge, cooked until perfectly done, emitted an enticing aroma that made her mouth water.

"Perfect timing! Are you all hungry? Quick, get a bowl and have some to tide you over."

Grandma Gu was unusually generous and took the initiative to greet the women who were helping to call back the soul.

Everyone was quite happy, feeling that Old Lady Gu had finally changed her ways.

Gu Jianping was also starving, so he quickly grabbed a bowl and filled it with a large amount of food.

Zhang Aidi helped Gu Jian'an, who was groaning on the kang (a heated brick bed), up and fed him spoonful by spoonful.

For a moment, the only sound in the room was the slurping of porridge.

The large pot of porridge was quickly emptied.

Everyone ate their fill, and their faces showed a satisfied expression.

Grandma Gu patted her round belly, let out a burp, and then remembered the important matter.

She glanced sideways at Zhang Aidi, who was clearing away the dishes, and asked in an annoyed tone.

"Where did you get the rice? I didn't leave any for you."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Aidi's anger flared up again.

She slammed the bowl down on the table and began to complain irritably.

"Where else could it have come from? It's just that pot of grain you left in the yard!"

"Such good stuff, just left out in the yard! What a waste if mice and birds eat it!"