Chapter 18: Could There Be Something Unclean?

"Then, can I just call you Yao Yao from now on?"

Yao Yao nodded with a beaming smile, readily agreeing, "Okay!"

Lu Mingyue patted her little head, telling her to sit in the living room and play for a while while she went to cook.

When Huo Minglei returned and discovered his sister had switched sides, he was so angry his face turned red. He quietly pulled his sister aside and hissed in exasperation, "How could you call that bad woman 'Mom'?"

Yao Yao looked at her brother with her clear, wide eyes and said with a hint of grievance, "But the auntie is really nice. She even bought me a beautiful hair clip; she isn't a bad person."

Most importantly, the auntie had returned with their father, and Yao Yao trusted her father, so she was willing to trust the auntie as well.

Hearing the tearful tone in his sister's voice, Huo Minglei's mouth turned down, and he stubbornly declared, "Well, I won't be bought by her!"

For the first time, Yao Yao disagreed with her brother. She hugged her hair clip and took two steps back without a sound. If her brother didn't like the auntie, then maybe the auntie could be all hers. Yao Yao loved the sweet, fragrant scent of the auntie and the feeling of her soft embrace. It was a sensation she had never experienced before. Every time her father hugged her, his stubble would scratch her face; while she loved her father, she didn't care for his way of showing affection.

A child's heart is simple: if you are good to me, I will be good to you. Having felt Lu Mingyue's kindness, Yao Yao was willing to open her heart to her.

In every child's mind, they should have the companionship of both a father and a mother, yet ever since she could remember, Yao Yao had never seen her mother. She had once asked her brother where their mother went, but he would never tell her, saying she would know when she grew up. Whenever she saw the other children in the residential compound being called home for dinner by their mothers, her eyes would always hold a flicker of envy.

Now, she was a child with a mother too. Yao Yao happily swung her legs, hugging the snacks her mother had bought for her and eating with delight. While she ate, she didn't forget to feed her brother.

"Eat, brother!"

The sweet, savory scent of the sponge cake wafted toward Huo Minglei’s nose. He glanced toward the kitchen, and seeing that the "bad woman" wasn't looking, he swallowed hard, his throat bobbing. He forced himself to look away and stiffened his neck. "I don't want any."

Yao Yao looked at him, puzzled. "Why? Isn't sponge cake your favorite?" As she said this, she stuffed a piece into her mouth—it was delicious.

Huo Minglei puffed out his cheeks and didn't speak. His sister was no longer the obedient, cute little sister he knew; she didn't even understand why he was angry. They were a family, and they should be on the same front. How could she be bought off by a mere hair clip and some sponge cake!

Yao Yao didn't think that much; the cake in her mouth was what mattered. However, she still felt bad for her brother and, taking advantage of his distraction, stuffed a piece into his mouth.

Huo Minglei didn't notice in time. The soft cake burst with flavor in his mouth, and he couldn't help but chew twice. When he realized what he was doing, his cheeks flushed slightly. He had promised not to eat it, yet here he was, chewing away so naturally.

Lu Mingyue, in the kitchen, was oblivious to the little boy's embarrassment, fully immersed in the joy of cooking. In her previous life, she had been a girl who loved to cook and work with her hands. She was adept in the kitchen, and the happiness of enjoying good food could wash away the fatigue of work. If conditions allowed, she even enjoyed a small drink after work to shake off the weariness of the day.

The vegetables in the garden weren't well-tended; some tomatoes had scars on their skin, and others had been pecked by birds. The two she had picked were the best-looking and most ripe. After she finished tidying up, she would have to give the garden some proper care. The vegetables were all natural and organic, grown with farm fertilizer, so there was no need to worry about pesticide residue.

Lu Mingyue diced the tomatoes, heated oil, added scallions to fragrance the pan, then tossed in the tomato bits, sautéing them until they became thick and pulpy. She added hot water and poured in the dough bits she had prepared, stirring them to keep them separate as they hit the pot.

Smelling the aroma drifting from the kitchen, Yao Yao scurried to the doorframe, staring longingly at the pot. Lu Mingyue ladled out a small spoonful, let it cool slightly, and handed it to her. "Yao Yao, help me taste if the flavor is right?"

Yao Yao's eyes lit up, but before she could nod, a voice came from behind her.

"No!"

Huo Minglei watched the bowl in her hand nervously, his mind filled with stories his friends had told. There was once a mother who hated her stepchildren and, after making their favorite sponge cake, laced it with rat poison, killing the children shortly after. Even though he was young, due to his family circumstances, he had learned the meaning of death early on. And the reason that mother hated the children was because they weren't her own!

Neither he nor his sister were the bad woman's biological children. What if she had poisoned their food?

Huo Minglei stared at the bowl, made up his mind, and snatched it away. "Isn't it just tasting for flavor? I'll do it!"

He gulped it down ravenously, finishing the dough soup in one go.

Lu Mingyue looked at him suspiciously. What was wrong with this child? Had he been possessed by something unclean? He had been acting strange ever since he walked through the door. If not for the current situation, she would have wanted to burn some incense to exorcise him.

After finishing, Huo Minglei felt only the sweet and sour taste of the tomatoes in his mouth. He smacked his lips and rubbed his little belly; there was no unusual sensation. Could it be that the poison hadn't taken effect yet? Was there still time to tell his father?

"Dinner's ready!" Lu Mingyue called out to Huo Zheng, who was boiling water in the yard.

Huo Zheng responded, threw one last log into the fire, brushed the dust off his clothes, washed his hands, and strode inside.

"There wasn't much in the house, so I just made some dough soup and a cucumber salad."

"This is already very good. Thank you, Comrade Lu. I'll clean up after we eat."

When Huo Zheng was alone with the two children, washing clothes and chopping wood were no problem, but cooking was his weakness. He either burned the food or left it raw. Once, the children had eaten his cooking and suffered from stomach aches for half the day, which terrified Huo Zheng so much he never dared to cook again, always getting meals from the cafeteria.

Since Lu Mingyue had taken on the chore of cooking, it was only right that he take responsibility for washing the dishes and clearing the table. Compared to cooking, these tasks were much simpler; he was the one benefiting, so he should be content.

Huo Minglei looked at his father nervously, struggling for a long time before gritting his teeth and saying loudly, "Dad, I have something to tell you."

Huo Zheng set down his chopsticks and listened patiently. "What is it, Leilei?"

Huo Minglei glanced secretly at Lu Mingyue. Seeing her look back at him, his heart tightened. He tugged gently on his father's sleeve and whispered, "Could there be something dirty in the food?"

The child thought he was being quiet, but he wasn't quiet enough. Lu Mingyue heard it too.