After the meal, Wen Yanyu joined Jiang Keyan and Lu Mingxu to wash the dishes.
The three chatted on and off, their conversation wandering further and further off topic.
Jiang Keyan casually asked, "Yanyu, have you thought about what kind of person you'd marry someday? I mean, what kind of person do you like?"
The incident between Yanyu and Fu Hanchuan had caused such a stir. Back then, a bunch of people had wanted to curry favor with Fu Hanchuan by teaching Wen Yanyu a lesson, but Fu Hanchuan had personally turned them all away.
Fu Hanchuan didn't like Wen Yanyu, true, but their relationship was definitely no simple one. If he had wanted revenge, he would have taken it long ago.
Their families had worked together before. With Fu Hanchuan acting like such a hopelessly straight man, he and Yanyu definitely had no chance.
Judging by how clueless Yanyu was when Duan Mufeng showed him affection, he was most likely straight and had only ever had feelings for Fu Hanchuan.
Jiang Keyan chuckled.
If Fu Hanchuan didn't want him, he couldn't blame her for making a move, could he?
Still lost in thought, Wen Yanyu drained the water from a bowl and answered offhandedly, "I like gentle, responsible girls."
A girl as gentle as his family. Dad, Mom, his little sister, his sister's partner-all of them building one big family together.
They would be very happy.
Very happy.
Lu Mingxu's hands paused, and he glanced at Wen Yanyu in surprise.
Jiang Keyan nodded. Pretty much what she had expected.
Suddenly remembering Little Tiger, Wen Yanyu looked back at the children, who were already playing together, and swept his gaze over them.
"Xiao Shu, come here a moment."
The child whose name he had called pattered over to Wen Yanyu, his voice soft. "What is it, big brother?"
The child tipped his head back, his eyes blinking as he stared straight at the person before him.
"Where's your big brother Little Tiger?" Wen Yanyu rinsed the suds off one hand with clean water, then pulled out a tissue to wipe the grease from around the child's mouth.
He had wanted Little Tiger to apologize to Li Qianhua earlier, but before they had exchanged more than a couple of words, the boy had run off again.
Wen Yanyu felt helpless. Little Tiger wasn't his own child, after all. He couldn't really be too forceful with him.
"Big brother Little Tiger?" The child thought for a moment. "Big brother Little Tiger and big brother Xiao Mo went out to play with the others. Are you looking for him?"
Wen Yanyu shook his head and gently patted the child's head. "It's nothing. Go play. Don't let Li Qianhua fall."
"I won't!"
The child went back to the other children, and they started laughing and playing again.
Jiang Keyan teased, "Babe, you're so good with kids. I can play with them, but I absolutely can't look after them."
Wen Yanyu lowered his head and continued washing the dishes. "I helped look after my little sister after she was born, so I'm pretty used to taking care of children."
The children he had once cared for had also made him very fond of children.
A flicker of surprise passed through Jiang Keyan's eyes.
Didn't his information say...
[Baby has a little sister?]
[No, he doesn't?]
[I remember baby is, uh, well, on his own.]
[Maybe she isn't his biological sister.]
[He really is good with kids. The way he wiped that kid's mouth just now made me see my mom for a second (jk), hahahaha.]
[Baby likes girls?! Then I still have a chance!]
[Doesn't he like Fu Hanchuan? Before, he acted like he'd die if he couldn't be with him. What's going on?]
[As long as baby's come around, sob sob sob. Mommy kisses, mwah mwah mwah, kisses for baby, slurp slurp.]
Perhaps it was the lovely summer sunshine, or perhaps it was the natural relaxation after a meal.
Wen Yanyu naturally began recounting all sorts of amusing stories about the children, those old memories flashing through his mind.
His sister making him a crown of wildflowers, his sister and her friends squabbling over who would comb his hair, his sister standing on a little stool to cook for him, only to nearly blow up the pot.
He still remembered his usually gentle mother rushing out of her room in alarm, "breathing fire," his father teaching him and his sister how to protect themselves, his sister wandering around wearing their father's police cap.
The first time he had named a child, the first time he had taught a child to cook, the time he had caught several children swimming in the river and made them stand as punishment for an entire day.
"I really like having the whole family together. It's so happy." As Wen Yanyu spoke, those memories unconsciously filled his expression with boundless tenderness and happiness.
Remembering that he had volunteered in a disaster zone, Jiang Keyan assumed he had done volunteer work somewhere and looked enlightened.
"So that's why you're so good at looking after these little ones." Jiang Keyan laughed. "I absolutely love kids too. I have an older sister. She's a little fierce sometimes, but she's really good to me."
"My sister says that when I get married and we add a few more people to the family, it'll be even livelier." Jiang Keyan smiled as she spoke, her voice full of longing.
"My family really values family ties. Everyone gets together for New Year's, and the kids are all there with us too. Holidays are always especially fun."
"Next time, you can bring that little sister over to celebrate with us. My family would really welcome you. Our kids have all been brought up well too. They're all very well-behaved."
Birdsong drifted through the valley.
Wen Yanyu's hands paused. Suddenly, he froze.
Jiang Keyan's voice, the children's laughter, the running water beside his hands-all blurred endlessly in his ears.
The world seemed suffused with an indescribable absurdity and unreality.
Wen Yanyu looked up at the blazing sun, then quickly lowered his head again. For an instant, his expression went blank, the emotion in his eyes vanishing bit by bit.
The tearing sensation of past and present, memories and reality intertwining suddenly surged through his mind.
He suddenly remembered why he had held on until now.
He had to go home. His father, mother, and sister were waiting for him.
But.
Wen Yanyu, you forgot.
You lost your home long ago.
They were just a plot bug, a passage of text, a bug that had already been revised and deleted.
That omnipresent plot was still there. You had only returned to the original world. You were still cannon fodder. You had no home at all. They were long gone. You had lost your home long ago.
The brief freedom he had gained shattered completely at that moment.
You lost everything long ago.
As though a holographic headset playing beautiful scenes had been taken off, as though his brain's protective mechanisms had gone on strike at that moment, overwhelming helplessness and emptiness engulfed him completely.
Crack-crash!
The large bowl beside his hand was suddenly knocked over and smashed against the ground. His limbs went weak, his soul wailed frantically inside him, and Wen Yanyu instinctively bent down to pick up the pieces.
"Hey! Don't pick those up. I'll get a broom. There are tiny shards everywhere-you'll cut your hands!"
Jiang Keyan shook the water off her hands and hurried inside to fetch a broom.
Before Lu Mingxu could react, he had only just turned off the tap and looked around when he saw a wash of blood.
"Big brother, the shards!"
"Big brother, stop picking them up!"
Wen Yanyu looked up blankly and saw several children gathered around him. He instinctively smiled at them as he continued gathering the broken pieces. "It's all right. Be careful not to touch them."
Meanwhile, Duan Mufeng, who had come out with Jiang Keyan, saw the scene before him and rushed forward, seizing Wen Yanyu's wrist. "What are you doing!"
Duan Mufeng's pupils trembled. "Wen Yanyu! Let go! What are you doing? Why are you gripping all those shards! Let go! They're embedded in your flesh! Do you not want your hand anymore!"
[Has he lost his mind?! Why is he gripping the shards!]
[????]
[Holy shit, he's bleeding.]
[What new idea has this guy come up with to build his persona now? Unbelievable.]
[Is he a fucking idiot? Fine, pick up the pieces, but why is he gripping them?]
[Maybe he spaced out. His expression looked off just now.]
Wen Yanyu raised his head, his gaze meeting those worried eyes. In that instant, Duan Mufeng abruptly fell silent.
What happened?
Wen Yanyu lowered his eyes. The tiny fragments of the shattered porcelain bowl were embedded deep in his palm. Scarlet blood slowly seeped through the gaps between them and trickled down the lines of his palm.
One drop, then another. Drip, drip, falling onto the scorching ground.
Duan Mufeng's lips trembled slightly. He didn't know why he had suddenly rushed over, and now he could neither keep holding that hand nor let it go.
"Thank you. I'm fine."
Wen Yanyu pulled his hand back and casually removed the shards embedded deep in his palm, as though he couldn't feel the pain.
Scrapes and bumps were inevitable when playing in the village, but this was still the first time the children had seen so much blood. They all stood frozen in fright.
Lu Mingxu brought the first-aid kit out of the house, unable to keep the worry from his eyes. "Why were you gripping the shards?"
With his eyes lowered, Wen Yanyu politely declined Lu Mingxu's attempt to treat his hand, took the first-aid kit, and turned on the tap. Cold water washed the blood from his palm.
He unscrewed the bottle of iodine antiseptic and poured it directly onto his injured palm, his face expressionless.
The stinging made his brows crease slightly, but his expression soon returned to calm.
With his other hand, Wen Yanyu took out a cotton swab, gently spread the antiseptic evenly, applied ointment, then found some medical gauze and deftly wrapped his hand.
It was nothing more than an utterly ordinary little matter.
"I'm fine..."
"I just spaced out..."
"I remembered a dream from a long time ago..."
He had forgotten it was time to wake up.
Before you continue