Chapter 7: Cooking and Going to School

Zhang Wanwan was secretly overjoyed. This dream was so beautiful; if only it were real.

In a daze, Zhang Wanwan felt someone calling her. Thinking she was waking up, she opened her eyes immediately, only to be startled to see Mother Zhang already standing at her bedroom door. "Stop sleeping. If you keep sleeping, you won't be able to fall asleep tonight. Mom is going out to buy some groceries; hurry up and wash your face to wake yourself up."

Zhang Wanwan nodded blankly. Even after Mother Zhang left, her heart was still pounding wildly. She casually tore off the bandage on her finger and, staring at her flawless, unblemished skin, silently chanted, "Spirit spring water, appear." Immediately, fine, dense beads of water appeared on her hand. She then chanted, "Spirit spring water, vanish," and those water droplets disappeared without a trace. It was as real as could be. Zhang Wanwan wept with joy, hugging her quilt and having a good cry before she finally calmed down. Thinking that she couldn't let Mother Zhang notice anything unusual, she immediately went to the bathroom and took a shower while she was at it.

When Mother Zhang returned, she had many more plastic bags in her hands. She said happily, "I usually buy groceries in the morning. This is my first time going to the market in the afternoon, and I didn't expect things to be cheaper than in the morning. I saved a few more yuan."

The market Mother Zhang spoke of was newly planned. In the past two years, third and fourth-tier cities like Pu City had begun urban planning, with demolition and construction happening everywhere. The previously chaotic market stalls had all been moved into the newly built market. With the renovation, stall fees had gone up, and vegetable prices had risen significantly. Mother Zhang was a frugal person, so it was no wonder she was so happy to hear such news.

Hearing this, Zhang Wanwan felt a sour ache in her heart. In her past life, her parents worked themselves to the bone to pay off debts. Just as they had finally finished paying everything off through extreme frugality, they were burdened with heavy financial pressure because she was immature and insisted on attending a private school. By the time she finished her three years of high school, Mother Zhang was diagnosed with cancer. The impoverished family was hit even harder. Mother Zhang felt pained by the monthly medical expenses and gave up after a year of treatment, refusing to go to the hospital no matter what. She relied on medication every month to get by, but even so, the family still owed a lot of debt. Because of this, Mother Zhang became even more depressed, and her condition didn't improve but instead grew worse. Thinking of this, Zhang Wanwan wanted to slap herself hard, swearing that in this life, she would definitely ensure her parents lived a good life and enjoyed their later years in comfort.

"Mom, let me help you with dinner. You've been running around all day, you must be tired. Go rest." Zhang Wanwan stepped forward to take the bags. Mother Zhang didn't refuse, though she nagged about her prioritizing her studies. Her smile, however, couldn't be hidden, and instead of going to sleep, she followed Zhang Wanwan into the kitchen to watch her tinker around.

She had assumed her daughter, who had never lifted a finger, wouldn't even be able to tell sugar from salt. To her surprise, Zhang Wanwan wasn't flustered at all in the kitchen. She first picked and washed the vegetables, then cleaned the pot, handling everything in an orderly fashion. Mother Zhang, who had been indifferent at first, now had to pay attention.

Zhang Wanwan chopped the garlic cloves, ginger, and scallions, then looked up and asked Mother Zhang, "Mom, just stir-frying a plate of cabbage and a plate of scallion eggs is enough, right?"

Mother Zhang nodded dumbly. She had only bought one head of cabbage, a bunch of scallions, and two duck eggs; there wasn't much else she could make besides those two dishes. What amazed her was how skilled Zhang Wanwan looked at the stove.

"Girl, have you been sneaking into the kitchen before?" Mother Zhang asked curiously.

Zhang Wanwan couldn't find an excuse, so she could only nod obediently.

Mother Zhang mumbled a bit but ultimately said nothing. She just stood quietly outside the kitchen watching, offering a reminder or two where Zhang Wanwan hadn't thought of something, which counted as teaching her how to cook.

With her back to Mother Zhang, whenever she wasn't looking, Zhang Wanwan would secretly drip a tiny drop of spirit spring water into the rice pot. Watching the water disappear into the pot, her heart felt a little lighter. She wondered, if she subtly improved her parents' health this way, would her mother avoid the same fate as in her past life?

Just as the meal was ready, Father Zhang returned. As soon as he entered, he said with an exaggerated expression, "Eh? What delicious thing are we making today? I smelled it from downstairs!"

Mother Zhang scoffed at him, laughing and scolding, "You sure have a sweet tongue. Your daughter cooked today; she handled all the food. Go wash your hands and eat."

"Hey! My girl is amazing!" Father Zhang gave Zhang Wanwan a thumbs up and happily went to wash his hands for dinner.

He had thought Father Zhang was exaggerating, but after one bite of rice, Mother Zhang's expression changed. She said in utter astonishment, "Why does this rice taste different today? It's strangely delicious."

The rice was the same rice, the water was the same tap water, and the pot was the same pot—how could the taste be so different?

Mother Zhang looked left and right, up and down, but couldn't figure it out.

Father Zhang said proudly, "I told you! You didn't believe me when I said my girl was amazing!"

"Eating won't even plug your mouth!" Mother Zhang put a chopstick of cabbage into Father Zhang's bowl and glared at him, but though she didn't say it, she admitted in her heart that Father Zhang was right.

Whether it was an illusion or not, after the couple finished the dinner Zhang Wanwan made, they both slept exceptionally well. Mother Zhang usually had to get up twice every night, but this time she slept until dawn, feeling incredibly refreshed.

When people sleep well, their tempers improve too. Mother Zhang was humming a tune while cooking the next morning.

Zhang Wanwan was woken up by the pendulum clock outside. Seeing it was only six o'clock, she wanted to roll over and go back to sleep, but the commotion outside made it impossible. She had no choice but to get up, brush her teeth, wash her face, and recite some Chinese and English. She finished breakfast before seven and headed out to school.

It only took ten minutes to bike from her house to school, and morning study hadn't started yet.

Stepping into her familiar alma mater after so many years, Zhang Wanwan was filled with emotion. Following her memory, she found her classroom, but felt awkward the moment she stepped inside. She only remembered who her deskmate was; she couldn't remember where she sat at all.

Just as she was hesitating about what to do, her deskmate rushed in like a whirlwind.

Feng Ying greeted Zhang Wanwan with a bright smile, "Morning, beauty!"

Zhang Wanwan gave a helpless, bitter smile and rolled her eyes at her. Feng Ying knew Zhang Wanwan was thin-skinned and couldn't take a joke, so she immediately backed down, dragging her back to their seats. Zhang Wanwan went along with her, letting her do as she pleased without a word.

The moment they sat down, the male students around Zhang Wanwan came over to ask for her weekend homework. They were blunt about it, too: "Beauty Wanwan, lend me your test paper to copy."

Zhang Wanwan had no choice but to give it to them. This situation existed in every school and every class, let alone in this public middle school in a zoned district. The quality of the students was uneven; good students were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns, and most were just there to slack off with terrible grades. Out of ten classes in each grade, less than half the students were actually studying. The rest would cause trouble for the teachers during class, either secretly playing basketball or gathering in groups to discuss cosmetics, looking like flashy bar girls. Expecting these students to do homework was harder than reaching the heavens. Living a second life, she knew it wasn't right to let people copy her homework, but she wasn't stupid enough to refuse and offend people. Anyway, the high school entrance exam was only three months away; by then, everyone would go their separate ways and have no more contact. She would just endure it and it would pass.