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

Sister-in-law Hongxia was speechless. Xiulan was too honest. She was saving every penny of her own food for a girl she had picked up!

"You...you have such a temper..."

Sister-in-law Hongxia didn't know how to offer advice; these days, everyone was struggling financially. She turned to the little girl and asked, "Your name is Nuannuan, right?"

Nuannuan had been listening intently for a long time; although she was young, she was quite perceptive.

The person who just arrived didn't insist on sending her away, so that's a good person!

"Hello Grandma, my name is Lin Nuannuan!"

The little girl's voice was crisp and clear, but suddenly she remembered something and quickly changed her words.

"However, I am now my parents' child, and my name is Gu Nuannuan."

After speaking, the corners of her mouth turned up, revealing two shallow dimples.

"Oh, she's quite the smooth talker, very charming."

Sister-in-law Hongxia's heart softened. She gently rubbed the warm little face and her tone became much gentler. "No need to call me Grandma, just call me Auntie! It's our first time meeting, so I don't have anything special to offer. I'll bring you a pound of flour later, and your mother can make you some meat buns, okay?"

"Auntie, you're so kind!"

Nuannuan was so happy she wanted to clap her hands, but as soon as she raised them, Sister Hongxia noticed that the child's little hands were wrapped up like rice dumplings.

"What a tragedy! Which family is responsible for this? Such a young child, and his hands and feet are frozen like this."

Looking at the blood-soaked strips of cloth, Hongxia felt a pang of sadness.

If it were an adult, they would have cried out in pain by now.

Su Xiulan's eyes darkened, her voice full of heartache, "It's all frostbite, and many places are oozing pus. Xiao An and I applied some badger oil, hoping it will heal faster."

"This little baby is suffering."

Sister-in-law Hongxia didn't linger. She picked up the rabbit and stuffed it into her basket. "Let's use this instead, so no one sees it and your mother-in-law won't cause trouble again."

"I'll have my husband bring the frostbite cream later. That stuff is really effective, and it'll save the kid from suffering."

Su Xiulan couldn't accept things for nothing, so she insisted on going with them to get the grain. In the end, Sister Hongxia even gave her a little more, almost two pounds of flour.

Back home, Su Xiulan quickly got to work.

First, he kneaded the dough and let it rise. Then he slaughtered the rabbit and handled its fur with extra care, muttering to himself, "This fur is nice, so soft. Once it's dried, I'll make a warm little vest for Nuannuan. She won't be afraid of the cold winter!"

Choose the tenderest rabbit meat, chop it up, mix it with the heart of a cabbage, and soon you can enjoy a fragrant meat bun.

Su Xiulan cut half of the remaining rabbit meat into a pot to cook, and salted the other half, wrapped it in several layers of cabbage leaves, stuffed it into a jar, and saved it to eat in a few days.

Even the cornmeal she got in exchange was carefully divided and hidden. She only kept a little over a pound in the kitchen, afraid that someone would covet it.

Last night, she called the children over again, her expression extremely serious. "Xiao An, Da An, you must keep the fact that Nuan Nuan can understand the old crow's speech a secret. You must not utter a single word about it. Do you all understand?"

Xiao An nodded vigorously and made a gesture of covering her mouth, while Da An continued carving wood without even lifting her eyelids.

Although Nuannuan didn't know why, she obediently covered her mouth and agreed, just like Xiao An.

In Northeast China, winters are so cold that they feel like iceboxes if you don't heat a kang (a traditional heated brick bed).

Nuannuan and Xiaoan climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed) to play.

"Second Brother, when is Daddy going to wake up? The sun's already shining on his bottom!"

Nuannuan looked curiously at the man who was still unconscious and motionless. Her new mother had said that this was her father.

"Daddy is so lazy, Nuannuan has been up for most of the day."

Hearing Nuannuan's innocent words, Xiao An's bright eyes dimmed, and she picked at the hole in the kang mat with her fingers. "I don't know..."

"Oh, why?"

The little girl stretched out her tiny, rice dumpling-like hand and gently touched the man's ashen face.

"Dad is injured, and the doctor doesn't know when he'll wake up."

Xiao An lowered his head, his voice trembling with tears. He had grown taller this year, but was timid. His grandmother had cursed his father more than once, saying that he would be better off dead.

"Second Uncle is still waiting to take over Dad's job!"

"Why should I?"

With her cheeks puffed out from the warmth, Xiao An looked even more dejected. "Grandma has been making a fuss about it several times already, saying that if Dad doesn't wake up before the New Year, his job will go to Second Uncle!"

[He can wake up!]

[Wow, you idiot! You can wake up!]

Suddenly, a rough, hoarse cry came from outside the window.

Nuannuan's eyes lit up, and she suddenly turned her head.

The old crow had flown back sometime earlier and was now perched on the windowsill, its small, black bean-like eyes looking remarkably bright.

Nuannuan pointed to the old crow on the window, "Second Brother, the bird's come to see me again! Let it in quickly!"

Nuannuan tried to slide down the slope in a hurry, but her short legs couldn't reach the ground, and her hands couldn't exert any strength. Like a little turtle that couldn't turn over, Xiao An couldn't help but burst out laughing at her clumsy appearance.

He quickly got off the kang (a heated brick bed) and hugged the little girl.

"Oh dear, little sister, don't move, it's cold outside. I'll go catch... no, please! But that crow, it's not a bird!"

Nuannuan tilted her little head, her short legs trailing behind like a little tail, and asked, "Isn't a crow a bird?"

Su Xiulan, who was carrying a basin of water in, chuckled when she heard this. "A crow is a kind of bird."

Nuannuan had a "I'm so smart" expression on her face, and her little chest was puffed out.

Xiao An scratched his head, feeling that his sister's brain wasn't quite working, but he wouldn't mind.

The curtain was lifted, the door opened, and a cold wind blew in as the old crow scurried in.

It landed on Nuannuan's shoulder with practiced ease, nuzzling its head against Nuannuan's little face.

"Nuan Nuan, speaking of which, this crow is actually your savior," Su Xiulan said with emotion. "If it hadn't been tugging at my clothes so hard, how would Mommy have found you, my little darling? Mommy will get some cornmeal; you should treat it to a good meal!"

Nuannuan obediently took the corn noodles that had been doused with hot water and offered them to the old crow's beak.

Nuannuan was carrying a small basin when the old crow saw it and cawed excitedly.

[Baby is happy, baby smells good.]

"You're a good bird, eat more." Nuannuan poked the crow's feathers with her cloth-wrapped hand.

Glug...

Xiao An's stomach growled too, and his face flushed red as he stared longingly at the crow's... food. He really wanted to eat too.

Su Xiulan said with concern, "I cooked some corn porridge, you two have some to tide you over. Da'an, come and have some too."

"Don't eat too much. The big meat buns and rabbit meat will be ready soon. I won't be responsible if you overeat and get a stomachache."

Upon hearing that there was food to eat, Xiao An ran faster than a rabbit.

Nuannuan finally got to drink some warm corn porridge again. It was so thick and delicious.

The little girl drank obediently by herself, sipping the soup slowly. After finishing, she stuck out her pink little tongue and licked the soup off the edge of the bowl clean.

It tastes so good! New moms are so kind, even giving Nuannuan big meat buns to eat.

The dough rises quickly, and it steams quickly too. Before long, a rich aroma of meat wafts from the pot. The moment the lid is lifted, ten plump buns are squeezed together, looking incredibly tempting.

Several children gathered around the stove, swallowing hard.

Although there's less meat and more vegetables, these days, meat is considered a real treat.

Nuan Nuan wanted to reach out, but her claws were unusable.

Su Xiulan quickly picked out the largest one and put it in a bowl. "Give this to Nuannuan first, and let it cool down a bit before eating it slowly."

She took another one, broke it in half, and handed it to her two sons, saying, "You two are grown up now, you can't fight with your sister for it. Just have a taste."

She wrapped the remaining eight in a clean piece of cotton cloth, intending to hide them in the cupboard to soothe the children later.

With a loud bang, the already flimsy courtyard gate was kicked open, and the door panels almost fell apart.

"You bastard surnamed Su, you just kicked me out, and now you're secretly eating meat at home!"

The sharp, cutting voice was deafening: "You heartless, despicable slut, so unfilial! Aren't you afraid of being struck by lightning?"