readsfreenovel Chapter 289 The Little Deaf-Mute of the Era 5
Chapter 289 The Little Deaf-Mute of the Era 5
Liu Yuxi ate a bowl of steamed egg custard and fell asleep in her mother's arms. She had plenty of time to think later, so there was no rush.
When she woke up the next day, the room was empty. Judging from the brightness, it was almost noon. She released her spiritual power. There was no other way; she guessed she would have to rely on her spiritual power to explore her surroundings for the rest of her life.
Seeing her mother cooking in the kitchen, I didn't know if she hadn't gone to work or had just come back from work. Her older brother and sister were lying on the bed inside the room. Hmm, they must have been beaten pretty badly.
His older siblings are not young anymore, and what they did this time was indeed wrong. Sometimes children need to be disciplined when they do something wrong, otherwise they won't remember it.
It was summer, and Liu Yuxi was wearing a tank top and boxer shorts. Without changing, she crawled backward off the bed, put on her little cloth shoes, and ran into the yard, calling out, "Mom! Mom!"
Her mother heard her shout and ran out of the kitchen, picked her up and carried her to the kitchen, and made her sit on the woodpile by the stove (the firewood in the kitchen was mostly pine needles, fallen leaves, and dry wheat straw, while the large pieces of firewood were piled up in the yard). Her mother then started a fire.
"Er Ya, are you hungry? Mom made you some steamed egg custard. You can't run around like that anymore. What will Mom do if you get lost?" Niu Xiaolan hadn't expected any response from her daughter, but she still hadn't recovered.
Liu Yuxi would call out "Mom!" every now and then. Her mother would turn around and look at her, and she would grin at her mother, and her mother would smile back.
Before long, her grandparents, uncle and aunt, father and uncle all returned. Her mother heard the noise, brought over a basin of water, and the group washed themselves in the basin.
Soon after, her grandmother and aunt came into the kitchen and helped her mother carry the food to the yard. In the summer, they ate under the shade of the trees in the yard because it was too hot inside.
Several older siblings also limped out to eat. All three of them had swollen eyes, probably from crying a lot yesterday. Liu Yuxi called out to Liu Yumei, "Big Sister!" Usually, besides her mother, this older sister was the one who took care of her the most. Since she would have to find a way to talk to people in the future, she should still greet her from time to time.
When Liu Yumei heard her sister's voice, she recalled what happened yesterday and couldn't help but cry again. In fact, when her grandmother couldn't find her little sister yesterday, the three of them started to get scared. When so many people went to look for their little sister in the afternoon, the three of them cried at home.
They were all afraid of losing their little sister. Although they were beaten up last night, their little sister was found. They realized their mistake and promised they would never lose their little sister again.
She ran to Liu Yuxi and hugged her. Liu Yuxi pretended to be a child and laughed. "Alright, it's time to eat. Put your little sister down," the old woman said.
The three children ate their meal standing up, and their bottoms were swollen. They'll probably have to eat standing up for a few more days.
Today, Liu Yuxi's lunch consisted of half a steamed bun made from mixed flour and a bowl of steamed egg custard. Niu Xiaolan fed her, and she didn't say she wanted to eat by herself. However, while eating, she would point to the steamed egg custard and say, "Egg!" When her mother nodded, she would smile and say, "Delicious!"
"It's good that Er Ya didn't get scared. Is Er Zhu's family still home this afternoon? Let's check again. If Er Ya is free tonight, you can go back to work tomorrow!" Zhang Dani was completely relieved to see how busy the little girl was, even while eating, and said to Niu Xiaolan.
"Okay, Mom. After we finish chores at home this afternoon, I'll take Er Yatou to dig some wild vegetables and gather some firewood," Niu Xiaolan replied. It wasn't that she was carefree, but people at this time of year already had a hard time surviving. As long as everyone was safe, the matter would pass and life would go on.
"Okay, keep an eye on Er Ya. If she can't handle it, then don't bother digging for wild vegetables." Zhang Dani was worried that yesterday's events might leave a shadow on the little girl, and she might remember it again when they got to the foot of the mountain.
"It's alright. Er Yatou seems to be doing well today. She didn't say a word for the past few months, but she started talking yesterday and hasn't stopped talking all day. If she gets scared later, I'll bring her back." Niu Xiaolan was actually a little worried, but Er Yatou couldn't stay away from the foot of the mountain forever. With her watching over her, she felt more at ease.
"Alright then." Zhang Dani didn't say anything more. That was someone else's biological mother, not as close as her. This was only possible in Liu Family Brigade; in other villages, when Er Yatou first became deaf, she probably would have been abandoned. Sigh!
In the afternoon, after her mother finished her chores at home, she left the three children at their old home and took a basket and carried Liu Yuxi to the foot of the mountain.
The closer they got to the foot of the mountain, the more her mother watched her, afraid that she might react in any way. She pretended not to know, but would still call out "Mom" from time to time. When her mother nodded, she would just grin like an idiot.
It was late afternoon, and it was still very hot at the foot of the mountain. Niu Xiaolan carried Liu Yuxi directly into the woods, took out a thin rope about five meters long from her basket, tied one end around Liu Yuxi's waist, and the other end around her own left hand.
The knot on Liu Yuxi's body was tied behind his back. Don't underestimate a child like him. If you tie it in front, there are only two outcomes: either the rope will be untied, or it will become a dead knot.
Liu Yuxi looked down at the rope around her waist, sighed inwardly, and thought, "Oh well, I'll get used to it."
Niu Xiaolan dug up a wild vegetable and put it in Liu Yuxi's hand, then stuffed a small wooden stick into her hand and gestured for her to learn how to dig one like the one in her hand. The original owner had also dug wild vegetables with her older brother and sister. While looking at her mother, she grinned with her not-yet-fully-grown little teeth and said, "Digging vegetables!"
Her mother smiled and nodded, saying, "Yes, you and Mom can dig together!" As she spoke, she bent down and started digging for wild vegetables, glancing up at her every now and then.
She followed her mother, searching for wild vegetables on the ground. Every now and then, she would dig up a wild grass that looked like a wild vegetable. She was so young, how could she possibly dig up the right ones?
Seeing that she was honestly digging for wild vegetables, her mother only pulled the rope from time to time, and the rest of the time she focused on digging for wild vegetables.
The mountains here aren't particularly high, but there are many peaks stretching together, so there are some wild animals in the mountains, but it's rare to encounter large ones like wolves or wild boars. They do exist, but they're mostly deep in the mountains.
Villagers often encounter pheasants and rabbits when they go up the mountain, and even teenagers can find wild eggs and bird eggs.
She was looking for an opportunity. The food wasn't good enough for her; she was too young and her voice was too thin. Even the steamed buns made from two kinds of flour for lunch tasted a bit rough to her. She had wild chickens and wild eggs in her space, and she wanted to find a chance to smuggle some out. She could suffer less if she could. It would be easier when she grew up.
Her mother led her along, digging and walking, picking up any dead branches they encountered. Soon they reached a place where there were some bushes not far away. Using her mental power, she controlled a pheasant nest in the bushes, placed a dozen or so wild eggs inside, and put a hen on top of it, controlling the pheasant to nest there.