After the spiritual energy was restored: Goddess girlfriends came knocking.

The next morning, Cang Yao hurriedly went out, before Lin Chu could even express her surprise.

A short while later, he rushed in again in a flurry.

"Lin Chu, Lin Chu, guess who's here!"

Lin Chu looked up, but before she could answer, Cang Yao had already turned and run out again.

When she came back in, there was another person behind her.

A girl who looked about twelve or thirteen years old, wearing a light blue shirt, with a round face and two small braids, was being dragged into the courtyard by Cang Yao, who was pulling her by the wrist.

Cang Yao has a slender figure and a charming face, but she also has a somewhat naive and innocent look on her face, making her seem like someone who is easy to fool.

Xiao Xiao, on the other hand, was completely different. Her eyes were shrewd, and she looked around warily, clearly much smarter than her sister.

Her expression was somewhat awkward, her steps were unsteady, but her eyes quickly scanned the yard before finally landing on Lin Chu.

Lin Chu stood up.

"This is--"

"My sister, Xiaoxiao." Cangyao pushed Xiaoxiao forward. "I've mentioned her to you before."

Lin Chu nodded and smiled at Xiao Xiao.

"Hello Xiaoxiao, your sister often talks about you."

Her small lips moved slightly, as if she was hesitating about what to say.

Finally, he managed to squeeze out a single "Mmm" before lowering his head.

Cang Yao, standing nearby, slapped her anxiously: "Say something! Aren't you quite talkative at home?"

Xiao Xiao glared at her, then quickly glanced at Lin Chu before lowering her head again.

Lin Chu put down the book and walked towards the kitchen.

"You haven't had breakfast yet, have you? There's still some porridge in the pot, let me get you a bowl."

He went into the kitchen, leaving only Cang Yao and Xiao Xiao in the courtyard.

Xiao Xiao tugged at Cang Yao's sleeve and lowered her voice.

"He's different from what I thought."

"What's different?"

Xiao Xiao thought for a moment, but couldn't find a suitable word.

She had previously drawn countless portraits of this man named Lin Chu in her mind, and none of them were very flattering—a conman who kidnapped her sister, a smooth-talking scholar, or a stern-faced moralist.

But the person standing in front of her just now was a young man in a shirt, with gentle features.

"It's just different," she muttered.

Lin Chu brought out the porridge, placed it on the stone table, and took a pair of chopsticks.

"Sit down, don't stand."

Xiao Xiao sat down on the stone bench and lowered her head to drink her porridge.

Cang Yao sat down beside her, resting her chin on her hand as she watched her drink, a smile curving her lips.

After taking a few sips, Xiao Xiao suddenly looked up at Lin Chu.

"you--"

"Um?"

"You're the one who kidnapped my sister." Xiao Xiao lowered her head, her voice muffled. "Every time she goes back, she can't stay for more than a day before running back here. I don't even have time to say a few words to her."

Cang Yao laughed out loud from the side: "You little rascal, how can you talk like that?"

Xiao Xiao snorted: "My sister used to stay home with me all the time, but ever since she went with you, I'm always alone at home."

Seeing her younger sister's sullen face, with her little mouth pouting high, Cang Yao quietly patted her bottom.

Lin Chu paused in her actions, looked up at Xiao Xiao, her eyes gentle, her tone tinged with helplessness: "It's my fault. Xiao Xiao, just treat this place as your own home from now on."

……

In the days that followed, Xiaoxiao stayed in Qinghe Village.

She was a little uncomfortable for the first two days.

She sat quietly during meals, eating only when Cang Yao served her food, and not touching her chopsticks unless Cang Yao served her food.

When Lin Chu spoke to her, she answered quickly and briefly, as if she would be at a disadvantage if she said even one more word.

But her eyes were always looking.

She saw Lin Chu get up every morning, first water the flowers in the yard, and then go to the kitchen to cook porridge.

When Cang Yao got up, the porridge was already served and the chopsticks were set out.

She saw Lin Chu reading under the locust tree, and Cang Yao moved a stool to sit next to him and picked vegetables.

The two of them were doing their own thing, occasionally exchanging a word or two in a very soft voice.

Cang Yao looked up at him halfway through her task, and he happened to be looking over as well. They smiled at each other and then continued doing their own thing.

She saw Cang Yao standing beside Lin Chu wiping the dishes while Lin Chu was washing them.

Cang Yao was cooking in the kitchen, and Lin Chu was helping her chop vegetables.

Xiao Xiao sat under the locust tree, watching their backs from afar.

The oil lamp in the kitchen cast two shadows on the wall, swaying gently.

Cang Yao said something, and Lin Chu chuckled softly, but Xiao Xiao heard it.

She looked down at the embroidered shoes on her feet.

These shoes were made for her by Cang Yao. There's a little turtle embroidered on the shoe surface, crooked but very cute.

She suddenly realized that this man wasn't so bad after all.

A week later, Xiaoxiao started taking initiative in doing things.

First, they rushed to wash the dishes.

Cangyao said no, she said that since she had eaten someone's food, she should do something in return.

I've started learning to cook again, but I keep making things worse than helping.

After Cang Yao chased her out of the kitchen, she moved a stool to the doorway and watched, muttering, "Too little salt" and "Too much fire."

She insisted on washing Lin Chu's clothes, drying them, folding them neatly, and placing them on his bed.

Lin Chu said thank you, and she turned her face away and said "just in case," but the corners of her mouth turned up slightly.

A few days later, the village aunties discovered the new little girl.

"Oh, Yao's younger sister? She's so pretty!" Aunt Qin grabbed the little girl's hand and looked her up and down. "Both sisters are beautiful."

Xiao Xiao blushed at the praise and tried to pull her hand back, but Aunt Qin held it tightly and she couldn't pull it away.

"What's your name?"

"Little one."

"Xiaoxiao? That's a nice name, so cute." Aunt Qin took a handful of peanuts out of her pocket and stuffed them into her hand. "Take these and eat them, they're homegrown."

Xiao Xiao held the handful of peanuts and paused for a moment.

When she was in Longting, no one except Cang Yao ever fed her.

Two days later, Aunt Wang brought over a new pair of cloth shoes, saying they were made for Xiaoxiao.

Two days later, Aunt Sun brought over a bowl of pickled radishes and told Xiaoxiao to try them.

Aunt Zhao brought over a red hair tie, saying she would braid Xiaoxiao's hair.

Xiao Xiao stood in the courtyard, holding the cloth shoes, pickled radish, and red ribbon in her arms, not knowing what to say.

Cang Yao laughed from the side, "Just accept it, they love giving gifts."

Xiao Xiao carefully put the items away one by one, and muttered, "The people here—they seem a little different?"

Cang Yao rubbed her head without saying a word.

After a while...

That evening, Lin Chu returned home and smelled a burning odor as soon as she entered the courtyard.

Thick smoke billowed from the kitchen. Xiao Xiao stood in front of the stove, holding a spatula, her face covered in soot. Inside the pot was a dark, indistinct mass of something.

"I wanted to make an egg pancake." She looked at Lin Chu, her tone somewhat annoyed, "but it doesn't seem quite right."

Lin Chu walked over, looked down at the contents of the pot, and extinguished some of the firewood on the stove.

"If the heat is too high, the egg mixture will burn as soon as it hits the pan. Put the oil in first, and once the oil is hot, then add the egg mixture. Keep the heat low."

Xiao Xiao listened attentively, cracked two more eggs, and tried again as he instructed.

It broke again when I flipped it this time, but at least it wasn't burnt.

During the meal, Xiao Xiao deliberately placed the tattered egg pancake in front of Lin Chu.

"Try it. It doesn't look very appealing."

Lin Chu picked up a piece and chewed it.

"good."

Cang Yao chuckled beside her.

Xiao Xiao was puzzled, but when she saw Lin Chu pick up a second piece, the corners of her mouth slowly turned up.

After dinner, Cangyao went to wash the dishes, while Xiaoxiao tidied up the table in the yard.

She saw Lin Chu sit back down under the locust tree and start reading a book. After hesitating for a moment, she walked over.

"Brother Lin Chu".

Lin Chu looked up. This was the first time she had called him that.

"Um?"

"It's nothing." She turned and left.

After saying that, he quickly went into the kitchen.