Chapter 8: She Would Rather Have Pork Ribs

Has the sun risen from the west, or is it raining blood from the sky?

"There are only two people in my house. If it wasn't Liangliang who made it, then who else could it be?"

Zhou Lanping did not like others looking down on her daughter at all. No matter how good other people's children were, they were still other people's. No matter how flawed her own child was, she was still her treasure. Besides, her Liangliang wasn't truly useless; look at how delicious the braised pork ribs turned out.

Strutting with pride and a glowing face, she carried the bowl over to Grandma Wang’s place.

When Grandma Wang’s grandson, Wang Dongdong, saw the ribs, he started drooling. He grabbed a piece with his hand before Grandma Wang could even stop him. Wang Dongdong devoured the ribs like a starving wolf, his eyes darting from the piece in his mouth to the ones still in the bowl, terrified that someone else might take another piece.

"Sigh..."

What else could Grandma Wang say? It was already in the boy's stomach; she couldn't exactly make him spit it out.

"Why are you being so polite with me, Auntie Wang? You haven't given my family any less. If I were to eat your food, these few dozen bowls of ribs wouldn't even be enough."

Zhou Lanping knew exactly what Grandma Wang wanted to say, so she interrupted her quickly. Otherwise, if they spent time going back and forth, the food would get cold.

"Look at you being so formal. We're neighbors; if I don't help you, who else would I help?"

Although Grandma Wang said this, her eyes crinkled with joy as she watched her grandson eat with such gusto. The child had been a picky eater lately, refusing this and that. Now that he was finally eating so happily, she couldn't possibly snatch the food from his mouth.

"Auntie Wang, I'll head back now. As for this bowl..."

Zhou Lanping was still thinking about her bowl. She didn't have many at home; if she lost one, she might not have anything left to serve food in.

"I'll bring the bowl over to you in a bit."

Grandma Wang looked at the meat broth, thinking it smelled delicious—she could dip some steamed buns in it later before washing the bowl and returning it.

Grandma Wang sent Zhou Lanping off with a smile and insisted on stuffing a large apple into her hand. In this day and age, apples were a rare commodity. The only reason Grandma Wang’s family had apples was because her son worked in the provincial capital and often brought back rare items.

Zhou Lanping really didn't want to take the apple; she felt ashamed to accept such an expensive gift. But the moment she thought of Liu Liang, she had to thicken her skin and take it back.

She hid the apple in her sleeve, running home like a thief. Only after she had closed the door did she pat her chest in relief.

"Liangliang, look what Mom brought back for you!"

Like she was presenting a treasure, she took the large apple out of her sleeve and placed it in front of Liu Liang. "Put this in your schoolbag and eat it at school tomorrow."

She looked at her daughter with a pleading expression, terrified that she might refuse.

Liu Liang reached out and took the apple, looking thoughtful.

Fruit was very expensive in this era, especially where they lived, as they didn't grow apples locally. An apple like this was truly not something a family like theirs could afford.

It was possible that a single apple could be traded for a pound of pork ribs.

One apple for a pound of ribs.

Having lived through an era where a hundred yuan could buy two pounds of meat, the current meat prices made her eyes turn red with envy.

If she could, she would rather have the ribs than the apple.

She brought the apple to her face and sniffed it. The skin was a bit wrinkled, perhaps it had been sitting for a long time and wasn't fresh, but the scent shouldn't be bad—it was a sweet, apple fragrance.

Also, eating it at school tomorrow... she hadn't told Zhou Lanping yet that she didn't want to go to that school anymore. Why should she go when there was a teacher who targeted her and looked down on her at every turn?

However, she didn't plan on telling Zhou Lanping about these things yet. She wanted a few days of peace to calm down. For now, she still wanted to figure out why she had been reborn.

Regardless of the reason, she was grateful to the heavens for letting her live again—to live in an era where she still had her mother.

"Liangliang, aren't you going inside to do your homework? Um, we don't have many bowls left at home."

Zhou Lanping asked cautiously. This wasn't like her daughter's usual temperament; just yesterday she had been slamming doors and bowls, nearly breaking every bowl in the house. What was she going to break today?

Could she please not break any more bowls? If she kept going, there really wouldn't be any left to use.

Liu Liang stood up. Just as she was about to leave, she turned back and picked up the apple, even though it was a bit shriveled.

When Zhou Lanping saw Liu Liang take the apple, her eyes couldn't help but crinkle into a smile.

As long as she liked it—yes, as long as she liked it. It was rare for this child to like anything. She didn't have the ability to buy her anything good.

Finally, the child liked something, and she was happy for her, even happier than if she were eating it herself.

After Liu Liang closed her bedroom door, Zhou Lanping took the things she had brought back and placed them on the table, taking out the students' homework and textbooks.

She had to finish grading these assignments and prepare for tomorrow's lessons.

A small lamp, not particularly bright, had accompanied Zhou Lanping for a long time. She had been an elementary school teacher for nearly ten years, working by the light of this very lamp.

The door opened softly again. Liu Liang stood at the doorway, still holding the shriveled apple, her eyes darkening.

The small electric light cast a bit of brightness over the table. Zhou Lanping was still sitting there, organizing her lessons for the next day. It was already around ten o'clock at night.

There was no television in the house, and no particular noise, only the rustling sound of her pen touching the paper from time to time.

She was so focused that she didn't even hear the sound of the door.

Until a bowl was placed in front of her.

Only then did she look up, a bit dazed. When she saw Liu Liang’s face, which resembled her own by fifty percent, she couldn't help but grin. Only now did she realize why she had lacked that sense of intimacy with Xu Jiajia.

It turned out that without the blood connection, without the resemblance, there was no intimacy.

This feeling of being connected by blood was one of gratitude, and also one of being moved.

"Why aren't you asleep yet?"

Zhou Lanping had assumed Liu Liang was already asleep. Children couldn't handle staying up late, and Liu Liang had always gone to bed early. As for her homework, she didn't let her mother manage it, so she assumed it was already finished.

"I'm going to sleep in a bit."

Liu Liang pushed the bowl toward Zhou Lanping. Her lowered eyelashes hid her thoughts. When she raised her eyelids again, her eyes were clear as water—black pupils that were larger and darker than others, which made them look deep and mysterious, making it hard to guess what she was thinking.

"You drink this."