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Chapter 5: Zhang Youen\nLi Bailian plopped back into the warm blankets, her stomach gurgling and growling hungrily. She suddenly realized that this body had not eaten since noon yesterday!\n
In ancient times, commoners typically did not have a lot of food to spare, as a result, they only ate two meals a day, breakfast and lunch. They woke up early to eat and worked well into the evening, which then they would head directly home to sleep.\n
Ever since the banquet started, everyone from Third Branch scurried from chore to chore, with no time to breathe or eat. In the Li Family, the Third Branch worked the hardest and did the most chores, but was always given the least food.\n
Now that the sun had risen high up into the sky, all the open seats at the lavish banquet had already been filled and they still had to go serve guests while being at the guests’ beck and call. Naturally, it was normal that one would be hungry by now!\n
Bailian carefully contemplated and thought about her dimensional space. She could vaguely feel a tingling sensation at the space between her eyebrows. Almost as if she was a giant staring down at her space from a bird’s eye view, she was able to freely “look” within her own dimensional space, a one-of-a-kind out-of-body experience that only she could experience.\n
Currently, Li Shu was leisurely lying next to the flourishing chestnut tree near the wooden cabin. The plump rat was currently happily nibbling on a ripe chestnut that had fallen to the ground.\n
There were more than a dozen, lush trees in the vicinity of the wooden cabin, almost all of which were ripe fruit trees just waiting to be picked. Using her thought power, she exerted quite a bit of mental control before finally successfully reaping a dragon fruit, which then materialized, ripe and fresh, into her awaiting hands.\n
Bailian’s eyes lit up with glee, the vibrant red of the dragon fruit looked very enticing, the fruit itself was as big as several fists put together! Bailian delightedly began to peel the ruby skin off of the fruit and began munching on the delicious white insides without another word. \n
As a previous secret service agent, time was always of the utmost importance, so she always quickly scarfed down her meals during missions. This large and plump dragon fruit was quickly gobbled up by Bailian, with not so much as a scrap remaining.\n
Bailian, using her mental power, sent the dragon fruit’s peeled skin scraps into her dimensional space and wiped the corners of her mouth with her sleeve. It’s not like she was purposely trying to be unhygienic, but alas there was no cloth or towel for her to use ah!\n
While feeling very satisfied with her meal and aching belly, Bailian continued to sort through the original owner’s memories. Every time Zhang Youen appeared in memory, she would get a headache just looking at him. \n
In the original owner’s memories, the only time she had gotten to eat a good meal until she was full was actually at Zhang Youen’s home, the same celebrated young scholar who was attending the banquet merrily going outside.\n
During an especially harsh and unforgiving winter blizzard, Zhang Youen’s father, seeing that there was no food left at home, trekked into the mountainside to hunt for sustenance. He was hasty and reckless in his journey and ended up falling into an unmarked trap. Luckily, the Third Master Li was nearby, also hunting, and hearing a loud noise and a man yelling for help, he rescued Zhang Youen’s father safely home. \n
Therefore, the powerful and well-built Third Master laboriously carried Zhang Youen’s father, who had just been about to freeze to death. At that time, Zhang Youen’s name was actually Zhang Fugui. Out of gratitude for this timely savior who had saved him from the brink of death, Zhang Youen’s father changed his son’s name in respect for Third Master Li.\n
Zhang Youen’s father, Zhang He, was well known for his kind nature and understood the Confucian principle that one must always repay a person’s kindness! As a result, he invited the Third Branch for a wonderful and hearty dinner while also deciding that his son was to be engaged to Bailian as a form of further thanks.\n
Unfortunately, the heavens were not fair and a year later, Zhang He passed away due to a relentless physical illness. However, in his will, it stated that the engagement must not be broken.\n
Obviously, Bailian did not want to be bound by this burdensome marriage and now that Zhang Youen had become the top scholar, who knows how many girls would be willing to be his wife! Besides, I was made into a joke today, there’s no way this marriage is still happening!\n
Bailian silently prayed to the heavens. Widow Zhang and son, please annul the engagement and free me from this torture ah! \n
After she was done praying to the heavens, Bailian drowsily laid down onto the rigid and hard bed that somehow felt very comfortable. With a warm blanket snuggled around her cold body and a heavy, full stomach, Bailian drifted into a peaceful slumber.\n
“Fifth, wake up and eat something!”\n
Dazedly, Bailian awoke with a start after hearing her kind grandmother’s voice and opened her eyes to the blurry sight of an extremely tired and weathered face coming into focus.\n
Grandmother Li Ciying helped support Bailian into a more comfortable sitting position and then placed a worn-out porcelain bowl onto the crooked table. Although the bowl was chipped in multiple places, it was still clean and acceptable to Bailian.\n
The chipped porcelain bowl held mostly vegetables and with one glance, one could tell that it was leftover food from the banquet. This signified that the banquet had come to a close and the Li Resident had become quiet once again.\n
The leftovers from the banquet were basically only simple, vegetarian dishes as the villagers naturally did not leave the sumptuous meat behind. It was a once-a-year chance to eat something expensive like meat!\n
“ I already…”Bailian almost spilled the truth that she had already eaten.\n
“Sweet child, you bled so much today, you need to eat delicious food to recover! I heard red jujubes can replenish blood vitality so I had your father go to the mountainside and pick some sour jujubes during his free time.”\n
Grandmother Li Ciying heartily placed the porcelain bowl laden with food in front of Bailian and then grabbed a pair of chopsticks. She picked a fresh and leafy vegetable before slowly raising the chopsticks to feed Bailian, her hands trembling and shaking from old age. \n
Bailian felt extremely touched and saddened by the sight and didn’t want her frail, weather-beaten grandmother to wait upon her. She hurriedly grabbed the bowl and chopsticks from her grandmother’s hands saying “I…I can do it myself.” \n
“I’ll go pour you some water,” Grandmother Li Ciying tottered to her feet unsteadily.\n
“Older Sister, are you still in pain?”. \n
Just as Grandmother Li Ciying left to fetch water, two little boys peered into the room. Between the two boys, one was slightly taller with bright-eyes, while the other was shyer and duller-looking. The taller boy was Yuhang, the eldest son of the Third Master and the younger brother of Bailian. The other inconspicuous boy was the second son and youngest child of the Third Branch.\n
“After sleeping for a while, it doesn’t hurt anymore,” Bailian grinned and beckoned the two boys to come close, “Come closer, sister has something to show you!”.\n
“Sister, what’s the matter?”\n
Yuhang took his younger brother and trotted over to sit on the edge of Bailian’s bed. It was obvious that both were trying to stay well-behaved, but he couldn’t help but salivate looking at the food in Bailian’s bowl.\n
Bailian naturally saw her younger brothers’ movements and beamed before bringing the chopsticks to Yuyang’s mouth.\n
Yuyang pursed his mouth seeing the chopsticks draw closer to his mouth and stepped back, furiously shaking his head: “…”\n
“Eat, Older Sister already ate earlier,” Bailian laughed at her brother’s actions thinking, this boy was really too stubborn ah!\n
Yuyang stubbornly refused to open his mouth, but his throat couldn’t stop swallowing and salivating at the food.\n
“Ai ya, I’m not hungry so just eat it! If you don’t eat, then I will just have to throw it away!” Bailian raised her eyebrows at Yuyang’s unwillingness and deliberately threatened him by holding the bowl as if she was just about to dump it on the floor.\n
Yuyang, seeing this, could only obediently open his mouth to eat the vegetables as it seemed like his sister was truly not hungry. He slowly munched on the vegetables, savoring the appetizing taste of fresh, green vegetables fried in pork lard. Although it was a simple dish, the Third Branch rarely got to eat such delicacies, it was hard to come by.\n
Seeing Yuyang savoring the vegetables so slowly and only eating after her threats, she felt her heart wrench in pity for her skinny sibling.\n
‘Come on, there’s also food for you.” Bailian picked up another pair of chopsticks and handed it to the bigger Yuhang.\n
Yuhang firmly pursed his mouth until it became a thin straight line and shook his head, “My older sister is sick, you naturally need to eat more!”\n
“You’re not eating it? Then I guess I can only throw it away!” Bailian made a motion to throw the dish away.\n
Yuhang, seeing that the dish was about to end up on the floor, nervously swallowed and grabbed the bowl from her hands before starting to voraciously devour the food.\n
“Here, eat some more.” When Bailian saw how fast the two boys were gobbling down the food and enjoying it so much, she gave Yuyang a pair of chopsticks as well.\n
Yuyang obstinately shook his head before dully saying, “Grandmother, mother, father”.\n
With the utterance of these three names, the boy abruptly stopped eating and ran to the far corner of the room, reluctantly watching his forgotten chopsticks and salivating at the untouched food.\n
Yuhang also followed and reluctantly, but determinedly assured,” Sister, you eat it! You can’t just give it to us…leave some for Grandmother, mother, and father!”\n
Obviously, the two brothers liked the green vegetables fried in pork lard so much, but they refused to take another bite despite Bailian’s threats.\n
Bailian, suddenly enlightened by the brothers’ refusals, realized that this must be how the daily lives of the Third Branch family played out, doing more work than a donkey, but still eating less than a chicken.\n
After all, there should have been a lot of leftovers from the banquet, but Grandmother Li Ciying only brought a small bowl of green vegetables, nothing more.\n
“Fifth, come and drink some water.”\n
While Bailian was still lamenting the fate of her family, Grandma Li Ciying shuffled into the room with a bowl of water. \n
“Grandmother, you eat some too, I just happened to be thirsty! ”Bailian nimbly took the bowl of water and then placed the green vegetables fried in pork lard into Grandmother Li Ciying’s wrinkled hands. \n