NOVPUBYuanyuan didn’t sleep well that night. She thought she faintly heard some noise coming from next door. Rolling over, she pulled the blanket covering her belly up over her head and drifted back to sleep.
The next morning, she woke up sweating.
"Mom! Where’s the cricket I caught last night?!"
Without even brushing her hair, she jumped down and frantically searched the house for her cricket.
Her mother, busy cooking, glanced at her. "What cricket? That bug? I threw it away. Honestly, stop bringing every piece of junk into the house."
Yuanyuan’s eyes instantly welled up with tears. "Why did you throw my stuff away? I worked so hard to catch that bug—it was a gift for Sister Niannian!"
The child’s innocent words made Aunt Li chuckle. "City kids like cleanliness. Do you really think she’d want your dirty little bug? Enough nonsense. Come take this corn over to her."
"Just living with some burly man, who knows how she manages meals… Can’t believe her family let her come out here like this…"
Just then, Yuanyuan’s older sister, who’d been outside preparing chicken feed, waved her over.
Tearfully, Yuanyuan walked out, only for her sister to magically produce a jar from behind her back—inside was the very cricket she’d caught the day before.
Yuanyuan burst into laughter, her sadness forgotten.
"Hurry up, or you’ll be late for school," her sister urged softly, watching as Yuanyuan happily ran off with the jar. Her eyes held a trace of envy, but mostly wistfulness…
Meanwhile, hidden in the mountains, Wei Yang sneezed as he peered through binoculars at a small courtyard.
A male voice crackled through his earpiece: "You’re so loud."
Wei Yang scratched his nose. "Sumimasen, onii-chan."
"Keep imitating Shen Qingtang, and you’ll be sleeping in the bathroom from now on."
Wei Yang: "……"
Beside him, his comrade—codename "Number Two"—glanced at Wei Yang’s momentarily deflated expression and shook his head.
Compared to Ji Tingzhou, their boss was much easier to deal with.
Just a bit too chatty.
Chen Mo’s voice came through next: "Bread? That’s all she’s eating?"
Number Two thought to himself, Yep, and she can polish off two in one sitting.
Chen Mo sounded displeased. "How is Ji Tingzhou’s team taking care of her? The situation’s resolved—she should be back by now."
He seemed ready to airdrop a fully staffed house complete with chefs.
Number Two agreed silently. But Ji Nian herself wasn’t satisfied yet.
Over at Ji Nian’s place…
Right Two reported that Liu Yin had mentioned the items being folded papers, but since she was illiterate, she couldn’t decipher their contents.
The lead had gone cold.
Seated on a small stool in the yard, Ji Nian pondered her next move.
She’d already questioned Liu Yin thoroughly—from how she met Wang Zhiping to their marriage. One thing was certain: Wang Zhiping was hiding something. Liu Yin didn’t even know basic details about his family, claiming they’d had no contact in years.
Just then, the neighbor’s daughter, Yuanyuan, bounded in clutching a jar.
"Sister!"
Her eyes lit up at the sight of Ji Nian, and she scampered over, proudly presenting the jar. "I caught this cricket yesterday. It’s for you!"
Children expressed affection simply—giving what they treasured most to those they liked.
Though not fond of bugs, Ji Nian wouldn’t reject her kindness.
"Thank you, Yuanyuan."
She accepted the jar and, as a gesture of gratitude, retrieved two packs of chips (courtesy of Chen Mo’s luggage) for her. "These are for you."
Yuanyuan’s smile stretched ear to ear.
"Can I save one pack for my sister?"
Despite drooling over the chips, she remembered to ask.
Ji Nian had met her sister—a quiet girl, older than Yuanyuan, with similar features.
"Once I give them to you, they’re yours to decide."
Yuanyuan plopped onto a stool, tearing open the chips. She offered the first one to Ji Nian before munching happily, chattering away: "I shared the candy Brother He Xiang gave me with my sister too. Mom used to say he’d make a good son-in-law."
Her words tumbled out unfiltered. "Everyone in the village says Brother He Xiang’s going places—might even be our first college student!"
"When I grow up, I’ll go to college too and find someone like him. He’s way better than that meanie Wang Chuanchuan. He said his mom hid a box of super yummy cookies and would bring them for me."
"But when we opened it—no cookies! Just a liar. I’m never playing with him again."
Ji Nian had been lost in thought, but Yuanyuan’s rambling suddenly sparked an idea.
Her expression shifted subtly as she casually asked, "If there were no cookies, what was inside?"
Yuanyuan puffed her cheeks, still indignant over the betrayal of her snack dreams.
"Just some papers!"
Right Two caught on instantly, his gaze sharpening as he interjected sternly, "Where are those papers now?"
Startled by his sudden intensity, Yuanyuan flinched and buried herself in Ji Nian’s arms.
Ji Nian shot Right Two a look—I’ll handle this.
Taking the hint, he reverted to his usual stoic silence.
"Don’t be scared. He didn’t mean to frighten you."
Cuddled against Ji Nian, Yuanyuan’s eyes gleamed mischievously.
Hugging sister~ So soft and sweet-smelling!
"Yuanyuan, did you ever read what was on those papers?"
Ji Nian hardly expected her to have checked—the girl had been too fixated on the promised cookies.
To her surprise, Yuanyuan replied, "Huh? I don’t remember. Do you want to see them? I can go look!"
Ji Nian blinked. "You still have them?"
Squirming free, Yuanyuan beamed at Ji Nian’s widened emerald-green eyes, proud to deliver good news. "Yep!"
"I called Wang Chuanchuan a liar, and he got mad. He threw everything out and ran off."
"Seemed like a waste, so I gathered the papers and kept them in the firewood pile. They’re good for kindling."
This unexpected breakthrough made Ji Nian whisper a thanks to the heavens.
Even luckier—though dusty and crumpled, every single page was intact, now handed over by Yuanyuan.
Instead of examining them immediately, Ji Nian smiled at the girl. "You’ve helped me tremendously."
"Is there anything you wish for?"
Yuanyuan’s mind flooded with images of snacks, toys, and pretty dresses, her mouth watering.
Yet meeting Ji Nian’s gaze, she answered without hesitation: "I want my sister to go back to school."
