In the days that followed, Yu Li would head into the mountains whenever she had free time.
Every morning, after having breakfast at the Fu household, she would fetch water, water the vegetables, chop firewood, and complete the household chores. Then, she would go to the Yu household for another breakfast before heading into the mountains.
Yu Li completely treated this great mountain as her personal food reserve. Whenever she was hungry, she would forage for food in the mountains.
It was currently the season when all kinds of wild fruits were ripening. She ate mostly wild fruits from the mountains, finishing those on one side and then moving to the other. Once that side was done, she would return to the first side after a few days when the fruits had ripened again.
To Yu Li’s disappointment, she had not encountered any animals in the mountains.
Not to mention the tigers, wild boars, and other fearsome beasts the villagers spoke of with dread—even a wild chicken or rabbit was nowhere to be found, which was truly strange.
Of course, this might also be because she hadn’t truly ventured deep into the heart of the mountains.
Every day, she would enter the mountains in the morning and make sure to descend before nightfall. Given her current physical condition, this schedule didn’t leave her with enough time to go deeper into the mountains.
The reason she didn’t choose to spend the night in the mountains was simply because it wasn’t necessary for now. Additionally, due to her night blindness, encountering any unexpected situations in the dark would be troublesome.
Half a month passed like this, and Yu Li noticed that she had finally gained some weight.
She no longer looked as emaciated as a skeleton spirit.
It wasn’t just her—those in the second branch of the Yu family also visibly gained some weight. They were no longer sallow and thin like refugees. Especially Yu Jin, Yu Yin, and Yu Zhu, the three sisters. As they were at the age of physical growth, the improved diet had clearly made them more spirited than before.
When the villagers saw the Yu Jin sisters washing clothes by the river, they couldn’t help but comment on their noticeable changes.
“Jin Niang and her sisters seem to have gained a little weight.”
“That’s not gaining weight; that’s finally having some flesh. They’re no longer so thin that touching them would hurt.”
“Exactly. They used to be so thin it felt like they’d be blown away by a gust of wind, and you wouldn’t be able to pull them back.”
“Kids are like that—when they lose weight, they lose it quickly, and when they gain it, they gain it just as fast.”
Some were puzzled. “But isn’t this the height of the scorching summer? With so much work to do in the fields and the oppressive heat, most people slim down by the end of the season. How come these girls not only didn’t lose weight but even managed to gain some?”
“They were already thin enough. If they lost any more, what would they look like?”
“I think it’s because the Yu family’s meals have gotten better.”
“How could that be? You all know the Yu family has to support two scholars. Aside from Yu Laoda and his family who live in the county town, the rest have to count every grain of rice they eat. How could they let the girls eat freely?”
“Why not? Once, when I went to the Yu family to borrow something, I saw them eating. They were eating well! The girls were having thick porridge, not just watery rice soup.”
“Really? How could Grandma Yu let the girls eat like that? Isn’t she known for being the most frugal?”
When the word “frugal” was mentioned, everyone couldn’t help but laugh.
Calling her “frugal” was an understatement—it was really stinginess.
The Yu family was notoriously patriarchal and didn’t see girls as people worth caring for. Especially since the second branch had four daughters, the Yu family valued them even less. Giving them a bit of rice soup was already considered generous.
The fact that Yu Jin and her sisters had gained some weight was perplexing to the villagers. They couldn’t figure out why the Yu family had suddenly become willing to feed the girls.
As they were talking, Old Madam Yu happened to pass by. Someone called out to her.
“Aunt Yu, Jin Niang and the others seem to be looking much better lately. They’ve even gained some weight. Are you all eating well these days?”
Old Madam Yu’s face stiffened, and she spat, “Shoo, shoo, what does what my family eats have to do with you?”
Coincidentally, Aunt Guihua was also there. She had always been at odds with Old Madam Yu, and seeing her pull a long face, she seized the opportunity to provoke her, speaking in a peculiar tone, “Oh my, Auntie, your temper is really something else.” Her eyes darted mischievously. “Could it be that your family has been eating so well lately that it’s causing your temper to flare up?”
Hearing this clearly suggestive remark, the crowd could barely hold back their laughter.
Someone as stingy as Old Madam Yu, who would raise a ruckus if the girls in the family ate even an extra grain of rice, must surely be heartbroken now that Yu Jin and her sisters had gained weight.
The fire in Old Madam Yu’s heart flared up instantly. She pointed at Aunt Guihua and started cursing her out. If the people around hadn’t held her back, she might have even gotten physical.
Aunt Guihua, of course, didn’t dare fight her.
She knew that Old Madam Yu wasn’t afraid of physical altercations. It was said that back in her younger days, she often fought with her sisters-in-law. Even now, in her old age, she could still tussle with other elderly women.
After throwing a few barbs, Aunt Guihua quickly left.
Before leaving, she cheerfully added, “As parents, you can’t be too biased! Don’t keep working your children and grandchildren like oxen to feed the bloodsucking main branch. Aren’t we all born to parents? Don’t we all have children of our own? Always being squeezed like this—who would tolerate it? If it were me, I’d have split off from the family ages ago…”
Old Madam Yu shouted furiously, “You lazy old hag, just you wait! I’ll tear your mouth off…”
Seeing Aunt Guihua run away, Old Madam Yu could only return home fuming.
When she got back, she saw Yu Jin and her sisters in the kitchen cooking something. A strong aroma wafted through the air, making her stomach rumble. She went to take a look and found that they were frying eggs.
“You wretched girls, how dare you waste my eggs! These eggs were meant to be sent to the county for…”
Just as she was scolding them, Yu Li came out of the main room and stood under the eaves, silently watching her.
Old Madam Yu’s voice faltered, her lips trembling. She didn’t know whether to continue scolding or not.
Yu Li said expressionlessly, “Grandma, I tLao’er Sister to fry them. Would you like some as well?”
Old Madam Yu felt her breath catch in her chest. Fear ultimately got the better of her, and she turned and stormed into her room, locking the door behind her. She then pressed herself against the door, both inhaling the tantalizing aroma of fried eggs and listening to the commotion outside.
Damn it! The eggs she had saved up for days to send to her eldest and second grandsons in the county were now wasted—she didn’t even know how many had been used up.
Wait, her cooking oil must have been wasted too!
Not long after, Old Madam Yu heard Yu Li sending the three brothers of the third branch, Yu Jingzhong and the others, off to chop wood. Her heart ached, but she still didn’t dare go out.
What infuriated her even more was that Yu Jin came over to knock on the door.
“Grandma, there’s no grain left to cook dinner. Could you bring some out?”
Why wasn’t there any grain left for dinner?
Of course, it was because Yu Li had eaten it!
Yu Li had come back from the mountains early today to bring some food for her three younger sisters. Seeing how hungry she was, Yu Jin had cooked the family’s dinner for her first. Now, they had to get more grain from Old Madam Yu to prepare the evening meal.
Old Madam Yu’s lips trembled violently as she handed over the grain for the evening. Her heart bled as she did so.
Ever since the family started preparing an extra breakfast for Yu Li every day, the grain consumption had visibly increased. Worse still, her appetite was enormous—she consumed a significant amount.
Old Madam Yu felt that things couldn’t go on like this. If this continued, Yu Li would eat the family into poverty.
Old Madam Yu finally couldn’t hold back and said to her husband, “Old man, you’d better come up with a way to stop her from going back to her maternal home to eat. If this goes on, our grain might not last until the autumn harvest.”
Old Master Yu sat in silence, smoking his dry tobacco pipe.
He had always enjoyed smoking, but recently he had been smoking much more frequently, his expression growing more severe. Through the rising smoke, his eyes were clouded with gloom.
After a long while, Old Master Yu said, “Tomorrow, let Laosan go to the city and deliver some grain to Laoda and his family. While he’s there, he can ask Laoda for advice.”
Every month, their family sent grain to the city, fearing that Yu Laoda, along with Yu Jingde and Yu Jingli, who were studying there, might run out of food. Grain in the city was expensive, so eating what the family sent was more cost-effective, saving a bit of money.
Old Madam Yu hesitated. “But… would this disturb Laoda and the boys? Jingde and Jingli are studying there—we can’t let these trivial matters distract them.”
To her, nothing in the world was more important than the two grandsons’ education.
Old Master Yu sighed. “There’s no other choice.”
Over the past half-month of watching with a cold eye, he had seen the situation clearly. That granddaughter was shameless, doing things without the slightest regard for decorum. The old and the young in the Fu household were either too weak or too lenient to restrain her, allowing her to behave so brazenly.
She had clearly figured out that her mother-in-law, Zhou Shi, was soft-hearted and unable to manage her new daughter-in-law. That’s why she dared to go back to her maternal home every day.
If she were in the Yu family, which daughter-in-law would dare to act so arrogantly? The old woman would have long since slapped her into submission and taught her to behave with her tail between her legs.
Old Madam Yu was still reluctant. Thinking of the eggs and oil wasted today, she gritted her teeth and said, “I’ll go too. I’ll speak to Laoda personally.”
Old Master Yu nodded. “Alright, talk this matter through with Laoda and have him come up with a solution.”
—
Yu Li felt that life had become promising recently.
Ever since Fu Wenxiao had said, “In the future, I’ll have Mother cook more food,” Zhou Shi had indeed been preparing larger portions for every meal. Adding to that the breakfast she ate at the Yu household and the food she foraged from the mountains, her energy needs were being well met.
After over half a month, she had finally adjusted to her current body and roughly understood why she had been feeling unwell.
It wasn’t due to heatstroke but because her body was awakening.
This state was very similar to when she had awakened as a genetic warrior in her previous life, a process that required a massive amount of energy. Energy could be obtained through medication or supplemented through food.
In her previous life, new humans didn’t immediately become genetic warriors upon birth—they had to awaken first.
Yu Li had awakened at around the age of ten in her previous life.
She remembered being very unwell at the time, lying in the hospital for three days in a dazed, semi-conscious state before finally waking up and officially becoming a genetic warrior.
She hadn’t expected that even after changing bodies, she could awaken again.
Or perhaps it was her soul that had altered this body, allowing it to awaken.
However, she could feel that although awakening was possible, her power had been significantly weakened. She knew this because she hadn’t grown weak enough to fall into a coma, a condition that usually indicated a greater strength upon awakening.
Because of this, she hadn’t realized at first that she was undergoing an awakening.
Even if she awakened, her strength would likely not reach one-tenth of what it had been in her previous life.
Though slightly disappointed, she felt grateful to be alive again, especially in a world free of pollution.
This was a gift from the heavens.
She wasn’t greedy and was quite satisfied with her current life.
—
However, just as Yu Li was working hard to adapt to her awakening body, Fu Wenxiao fell ill again.
In the middle of the night, while Yu Li was sound asleep, she instinctively reached out to stifle the breathing beside her. But when her hand touched a burning hot surface, she was instantly jolted awake.
How could a person’s skin be this hot?
Yu Li quickly realized that the man beside her was sick.