Chapter 47

"Chapter 47: Ding Si Fu"

"Zhang Shi quickly picked up Ding Xiang, wiping her face, armpits, and back with a damp cloth."

"Ding Xiang opened her eyes and said, 'Mom, I just had a dream. I was flying and there were red apples.'"

"Zhang Shi smiled, 'Xiang Xiang must be craving red apples and dreaming of flying. Our apples may not be red, but they're very sweet. Let's eat now, and have apples in the afternoon.'"

Indeed, Ding Xiang longed to fly and craved red apples, but those weren't the reasons for her dream. She felt incredibly exhausted, even more so than after walking back from the town.

Perhaps it was related to excessive sweating and having strange dreams.

Mrs. Zhang stood up, shooed the birds out of the room, and carried Ding Xiang to the main hall for a meal.

Ding Xiang quickly finished her noodles and listlessly said, "Xiang Xiang wants to sleep more."

She desired to continue sleeping, hoping to resume the dream she had just had.

The dream felt so real, as if she were actually there, reminding her of the previous dream about Mother Li. She had many dreams in her previous life and a few in this one, but none were as vivid as these last two.

It was quite strange.

Mrs. Zhang carried her daughter to the kang bed and removed her outer clothes.

Ding Xiang fell asleep quickly and slept until Mrs. Zhang woke her up.

She shook her groggy head, having had no dreams this time.

She then remembered that before having those two incredibly vivid dreams, she had sweated profusely and smelled particularly fragrant.

Yes, that must be it. She hadn't sweated or smelled fragrant just now, so she didn't have that kind of dream.

Mrs. Zhang wrapped Ding Xiang in a large cloth and took her to the kitchen, "Mother has boiled hot water to wash your hair and bathe you. Xiang Xiang, remember, don't exert yourself too much or wear too many clothes. You must wear the medicine pill every day. If you start to sweat, go to a place with few people. You can't let others know you have a fragrant scent on you, there are bad people..."

Ding Xiang agreed after each of her mother's statements.

Mrs. Zhang kissed her, "Xiang Xiang is such a good girl. We'll have apples later."

"Sour, I don't like it, brother likes it."

Though rare for her to eat fruit, Ding Xiang liked the slightly sour apples. But she felt so loved in this home, she wanted to share some with her brother. If she didn't mention the sourness, most of the fallen apples would end up in her mouth.

Ding Zhuang was reluctant to share her favorite things with others.

Just as she finished dressing, the courtyard door sounded.

It was little Ding Zhen.

The three-and-a-half-year-old occasionally visited the second house alone, speaking sweetly.

"Second Aunt, I've come to take Sister Xiang Xiang."

Mrs. Zhang smiled, leading her to the yard to sit with Ding Xiang under the eaves, then cut two small pieces of apple to feed them.

"How's your mother's health?"

"Good. Mother is going to have a little brother for me; our family will have a boy."

Zhao Shi was pregnant again, and everyone in the third house eagerly hoped for a son.

Mrs. Zhang said with a smile, "Today, Second Aunt bought pig's feet and meat, inviting your grandpa and dad over for drinks."

Ding Zhen jumped up, "I'll go tell my grandma right now." She then asked, "Second Aunt, will you invite me for meat too?"

Mrs. Zhang laughed heartily, "Of course, you're invited."

Ding Zhen wanted to take Ding Xiang with her to her house.

Mrs. Zhang, not daring to let Ding Xiang go out alone, smiled, "Xiang Xiang's hair is still wet, she can't go out. Zhen'er, come back later to play with Xiang Xiang."

Ding Xiang felt quite frustrated. Despite being known for her precocity, her family, doting and protective, never allowed her to step outside the courtyard alone or out of an adult's sight.

When Ding Zhen returned, she and Ding Xiang played together, folding handkerchiefs.

In reality, it was Ding Xiang leading the little girl in the game.

The little girl was somewhat disheartened.

"Xiang Xiang is so smart; her tofu block folds are even better than mine."

"Oh dear, the plates you folded are better than mine too. Let's not play with handkerchiefs anymore. How about throwing stones instead?"

A tofu block was a handkerchief folded twice into a small square, and a plate was made by folding the corners of the small square inward.

Ding Xiang preferred the harmless folding of handkerchiefs to playing with dirty mud and stones.

She led Ding Zhen to Mrs. Zhang to get two pieces of rock candy to eat, and after finishing their candy, they resumed folding handkerchiefs.

In the evening, Ding Xiang, along with Ding Zhen and Heizi, waited at the doorstep for people to arrive.

From a distance, she saw a little boy limping along. The boy was very short, resembling a child just over a year old.

He stumbled and fell to the ground, then struggled to stand up again.

A few other boys nearby shouted loudly, "Little cripple, little cripple..."

It was Ding Si Fu.

Ding Si Fu seldom came out, and this was only the third time Ding Xiang had seen him, always from a distance.

Ding Zhen called out loudly, "Si Fu, come here, we have rock candy for you." Then she whispered to Ding Xiang, "Er Fu Brother and Si Fu Brother are nice, but San Fu Brother is the worst. He's greedy, likes to hit people, and even tried to break my grandpa and dad's clay pots. Ugh."

The main house and the third house had occasional interactions, and the children from the main house were more familiar with Ding Zhen.

Ding Si Fu approached, limping slowly. He was thin, his clothes tattered, but his face was clean and more delicate than his three brothers. His eyes sparkled brightly, a sign of his intelligence.

Unfortunately, his limp leg also affected his physical development.

Ding Xiang felt a pang of sadness. She and he shared a kindred plight, both harmed by villains due to negligent care in infancy. She was kidnapped; he had his leg broken. But she was fortunate to be rescued by Ding Zhao, while he had no one.

As Ding Si Fu drew near, he greeted softly, "Sister Zhen, Sister Xiang."

His smile was shy. He then opened his thin little hands and said, "Sister Xiang, I don't have a needle in my hand, I won't prick you."

Ding Xiang gave him a big smile, "I know Brother Si Fu won't prick me," and stuffed the rock candy she had into his hand.

Ding Zhen also pushed her candy into his hand, cautioning, "Eat it quickly, before Brother San Fu sees and tries to take it."

Ding Si Fu popped the candy into his mouth, his eyes squinting in sweetness.

Mrs. Zhang came out with two slices of cooked meat for the little girls. Seeing Ding Si Fu there, she paused.

Ding Si Fu softly greeted, "Second Aunt."

Mrs. Zhang hummed in acknowledgment, offering a slice of meat to Ding Xiang first.

Ding Xiang refused, pointing at Ding Si Fu, "Give it to Brother Si Fu, he's so thin."

Ding Zhen also said, "My meat should go to Brother Si Fu too."

Mrs. Zhang, moved by compassion, fed the meat to the frail Ding Si Fu.

For Ding Si Fu, it was his first time savoring meat in such large bites, an indescribably delightful taste.

Was this what ascending to heaven felt like?

Suddenly, Ding Zhen pointed towards the village entrance, "My grandpa, dad, Second Grandpa, Second Uncle, Brother Li Chun, and Brother Li Ren are coming back."

The two little girls and Heizi ran towards the village entrance together.

Ding Si Fu glanced at the now-empty doorway and then at the receding joyful figures. The taste of the meat lingered in his mouth, but the happiness had faded. His nose turned sour as he limped back to his home.

After dinner, having seen off the members of the third house, Ding Zhuang and his son sat with Ding Xiang in the courtyard, engaging in casual conversation.