TNIBFT -Chapter 51 My Egg Noodles

In the snow-covered village, with sparse houses scattered around, Ye Tian’s figure looked particularly lonely against the white expanse.

Hearing his daughter’s voice, Ye Tian turned his head.

At this moment, Ye Shuangxue’s little face was pink and delicate. With the better food these past few days, her cheeks had filled out a bit, making her look even more adorable. Her big, black eyes stared at him anxiously. Ye Tian waved his hand, pretending to be angry: “No respect for your elders.”

“Call me Dad!”

Ye Shuangxue lifted her chin and said cheerfully, “On the way back, there’s a big puddle with ice on it. But you can’t be tempted to walk on it, because it’s about to crack—you’ll fall in. Got it?”

Ye Tian: …

She knew so well… obviously this little one had already tried it.

Ye Tian felt a headache coming and muttered, “I still want to live a few more days, so you can take care of me when I’m old. Don’t worry.”

He waved his hand and turned to leave.

Ye Shuangxue beamed, her eyes sparkling like stars, and continued shouting after him, “I’m not worried about you!”

“I’m afraid you’ll fall in, and then I won’t be able to eat my egg noodles tonight.”

“My egg noodles.”

A warmth spread through Ye Tian’s heart.

His daughter was stubborn and tough, but by blood, she could forgive him so easily. The original owner of her body had abused her for years, beat her for years, yet she had already forgotten it.

She could easily forgive the one who hurt her—simply because that person was her father.

This was his daughter: cute and domineering.

Wild yet kind. Words as beautiful as they are couldn’t fully express Ye Tian’s love for his child.

Thinking of how the children’s fates would turn out in the future, his expression darkened. Shen Jie was the Child of Destiny; no matter how the story changed, some events would inevitably drag him back onto his original storyline. With Shen Jie strong, the other children would be weak. Right now, with nothing in his hands, if Shen Jie entered the City Lord’s Mansion and gained power, that would be the final outcome for Ye Tian and his children.

He had to stop Shen Jie, preferably sending him away immediately, to prevent future troubles.

If Shen Jie could manipulate Xiao Xun’er, so could he.

According to the book, at this point in time, Shen Jie had already entered the City Lord’s Mansion. By the coming spring, Sifang City would experience a harsh late frost, and the nomadic Daxia Kingdom would seize the opportunity to plunder the people of the city. Before that, Ye Tian needed to make money and stockpile food to survive.

…

Elsewhere,

Watching Ye Tian’s lonely figure, Ye Shuangxue’s little face fell as she turned and entered the courtyard.

A group of children’s eyes fell on her, complex emotions flickering across their faces.

Some were afraid.

Some were curious.

And some envious.

They had overheard the conversation between Ye Tian and Ye Shuangxue. None of these children could imagine a world where a child would call their father by his full name and speak to him like that—it almost seemed like talking to a friend.

Tao Ling’er, seeing Ye Tian leave, was furious and utterly confused by his behavior.

This matter had to be told to her father and to Shen Jie.

Tao Ling’er ran into the backyard. Seeing her leave, Ye Yunting looked at his classmates crouched on the ground, curious about them. After a moment’s thought, he said to the group, “My tooth hurts. Those of you who can eat candied hawthorn—can you share some with me?”

The group was stunned, unable to believe it.

Someone asked, “You’re really going to share it with us?”

“We even bullied you yesterday.”

“Yeah!”

“Just now, he gave it to Sister Ling’er… I thought he was trying to curry favor with her…”

Most children are naturally kind-hearted. Those who have been reading the classics since childhood are especially well-behaved and proper.

Ye Yunting’s small face lit up with a gentle smile as he said, “The Master said, classmates are friends; though food may be precious, compared to friendship among classmates, it is trivial.”

The little kids stared at the bright red hawthorn berries, the sugar glaze shining like crystal. Forgetting about Shi Hao behind them, they blushed and stepped up to Ye Yunting. Ye Yunting took one off and gave it to him. The little boy’s face instantly lit up with joy. “It’s really sweet! Three wen for one stick! My father has never bought me this. Yunting, your father is really good to you all.”

“Yeah, your father is nothing like the rumors.”

The other children crowded around, eager to taste the candied hawthorns, and kept praising Ye Tian.

Ye Yunting’s small face darkened slightly, showing an awkward smile.

Someone continued, “If my father knew I fought at school, he would spank me without hesitation, and then scold us for being poor and causing trouble outside. He’d make me kneel and maybe even skip dinner tonight.”

“Yes, my mother would do the same.”

The children nodded frantically.

Ye Yunting handed one to each child, and even those who hadn’t gotten one yet came over to talk. In an instant, the classmates grew much closer.

“Your father even made your schoolbags! I’ve never seen schoolbags like these. We’re actually a little envious.”

“Everyone says your father is a scoundrel, that he’s lazy, sloppy, and beats you daily, treating you like livestock. I used to cry and my mother would scare me, saying she would send me to Ye Tian’s house. Seeing him today, it’s all wrong.”

One of the kids spoke up.

Ye Yunting’s mind was full of Ye Tian’s smiling face. Ye Tian was indeed different from before—but also different from everyone else.

Could it be that he had been somehow broken by being beaten?

Ye Yunting couldn’t figure it out. This version of Ye Tian was actually quite good—but expecting him to recognize it was impossible.

Elsewhere in the city, in a dilapidated, remote little house:

“Cough… cough…” A woman with graying hair, pale lips, and a haggard face coughed violently, one hand over her mouth, the other pressed against her chest.

Shen Jie sat on the edge of the bed, gently patting her back. His expression showed some impatience, though his demeanor remained respectful.

The woman before him was his biological mother, Liu Ruyan. Once one of the most beautiful women in the imperial city, for some reason she gave birth to him and entrusted him to the Shen family, then disappeared. They had only reunited last month.

He felt little emotion toward his mother, only stunned by the identity information she brought.

When her coughing finally subsided,

She gasped for air, a thin sweat forming on her forehead, weakly turning to Shen Jie. “It’s my fault. I dragged you down. If I hadn’t been incompetent, you wouldn’t have ended up like this… even beaten in the streets…”

Liu Ruyan’s withered hand touched her son’s cheek, her gaze full of guilt and remorse.

Such an outstanding child, because of her, was deprived of the life of a noble and now lived worse than a commoner.

He couldn’t even attend school, and his adoptive parents, finding out he interacted with her, had expelled him. Liu Ruyan’s heart ached, tears welling in her eyes.

“It’s not your fault, Mother. I’m useless. I couldn’t get the money to buy medicine for you.”

Shen Jie bowed his head in shame, grief written on his face, then lifted it and said, “If I could enter the City Lord’s mansion, I could see the City Lord, tell him that you’re still waiting for him, and he would surely find the best doctor for you.”

“It’s all my fault… so long and still no way to help.”

Shen Jie reproached himself, feeling miserable.

Seeing her son like this, Liu Ruyan made up her mind. “Even if we can’t enter the City Lord’s mansion, Xiao Haoyang will surely leave the mansion. For your future, I will personally wait for him.”