TCFSRMR |Chapter 2

“Should it be taken?” After everyone had left, a screen that no one else could see appeared in front of her. Shi Ying hesitated for a moment, then still slid from taking all to taking 90 percent beside it.

It wasn’t that she still had any feelings for Niu Erzhu and his wife. Mainly because with so much wheat, if all of it had, in broad daylight, turned into empty husks, it was hard to say what kind of strange incident it would be treated as.

It was safer to leave a little behind.

As Shi Ying walked through the wave of wheat, the bent-over stalks slowly straightened up.

The system space quickly transmitted a joyful tune symbolizing harvest:

“Ninety-two grains qualified.”

Before Shi Ying could react, the mechanical electronic voice rang again in her mind:

“Ninety-two seeds are qualified, baby is super awesome…”

Clearly, it was a tone without the slightest fluctuation, yet it rarely revealed a bit of guilt.

As a cosmic environment 001 system, it was of flawless quality, yet it had made the most foolish low-level mistake, accidentally binding to a terrestrial ancient human, and not only that, the other party was still a juvenile little cub.

The average lifespan of interstellar humans had already been extended to five hundred years. Such longevity not only did not lead to a population explosion, but instead the birth rate kept declining. In 001’s entire life as a system, this was still the first time it had the fortune to bind to such a cute little child.

According to interstellar law, all little babies had to receive all-around, most stringent protection from birth, and would also be accompanied by a specially made high-level childcare system. The honor of raising a child was something even the ordinary environmental monitoring 001 system would never dare dream of.

Under the shock and excitement, the 001 system that had just been bound instantly turned into garbled code. After accepting this heavenly surprise, 001 did not hesitate at all and directly forcibly transformed itself from an environmental monitoring system into a childcare system.

Interstellar law stipulated that no matter when, protecting the cub was the top priority.

It was just that, after all, it was not professional. It did not have any of the welfare benefits that the future interstellar society could provide to babies. Aside from the environment system’s built-in functions, such as providing culture fluid and other things that looked rather useless no matter how you saw them, it could only provide the baby with textbooks and knowledge that interstellar babies needed to learn from childhood to adulthood.

These basic knowledge items were all generic versions online; otherwise, it would not even have this little bit of stuff.

In other words, for the baby, its biggest function right now was companionship. Worse still, once its energy was exhausted, it would automatically return to the interstellar world, and it was not certain whether it could even accompany the baby growing up…

Yet the baby was unexpectedly capable. Such a tiny little thing had used culture fluid to grow ninety-two grains of wheat that met star-grade standards.

Wuwuwu, the baby was truly amazing.

It was this system that was too useless.

“There’s a place nearby called Shili Pu. My biological parents might be there…”

001 was stunned, 001 was greatly shocked.

In this era, people had all kinds of explanations for where children came from. Some said they were sent by the Lady Who Sends Children, some said they were dug out of clods in the earth, and even more absurdly, some said they were picked up from a garbage heap.

Previously, when it heard Qiu Guihua say that the baby had been sent by some cousin, 001 had thought that was just another new story about a child’s origins. So the baby actually wasn’t their child?

No wonder this pair of husband and wife had been so vicious to the baby and made her keep working.

That was truly hateful.

According to interstellar law, such parents must spend the rest of their lives in prison, and they would only deserve to end up drowned in the spittle of everyone in the entire interstellar world.

Luckily, luckily, the baby was a smart child and had actually discovered this!

And even found out where her biological parents were!

“Baby, go quickly, 001 supports you.”

After collecting the wheat, Shi Ying returned once more to the Niu family.

She still hadn’t eaten yet, and if she had to walk such a long way, she should at least bring some dry rations, right?

Quietly sneaking back home, Shi Ying went into the kitchen right away, found Qiu Guihua’s lard jar, and then took out white flour from the system space.

It should have just been extracted by the system for her. The white flour still felt a little warm to the touch, and even more fatal was that unique flour fragrance, different from anything she had ever eaten before.

Rich, thick, with the sweetness of spring rain and the warmth of sunlight inside…

In an instant, it was as if all the flavors had bloomed by her nostrils. It was clearly just a lump of dough, yet it already let one smell that wonderfully fresh aroma unique to food.

If not for her strong enough self-control, Shi Ying would almost have wanted to bury her entire face in the flour. It took quite a while before she reluctantly moved away from the basin, scalded half the dough with hot water, and kneaded the remaining half with cold water.

Finally, she kneaded the two doughs together, coated them with a layer of oil, and set them aside to rest.

During this time, Shi Ying really could not help it and grabbed a little wheat from the space to chew in her mouth.

First, because she was too hungry. Second, because after the white flour had been scalded with hot water, its fragrance became even richer and more lingering. Her body, after all, was that of a child, and being able to hold herself back until now had already been very difficult.

Shi Ying felt that children should have the self-awareness of children, and occasionally go along with a child’s nature. That was still necessary.

Only after she put it in her mouth did she realize that her decision was truly too wise. The wheat had already fully matured, so naturally it no longer had much moisture, but when chewed it still had threads of sweetness. Eating it felt a little like the dried fruit snacks from later generations.

While waiting for the dough to rise, she lit the stove and heated the oil. After the oil was hot, she poured it into the bowl of flour with salt beside it, then quickly stirred it with chopsticks, and in no time a small half-bowl of fragrant crisp oil mixture was done.

Shi Ying climbed down from the little stool she had been standing on. Just as she was about to knead the dough again, she turned around and happened to meet three pairs of eyes through the crack in the door, and sure enough, they were the three Gu Wei brothers?

Actually, as early as when Shi Ying was scalding the flour, the three brothers had already run over. It was really because this kind of unique aroma was something they had never smelled before. The three boys had been fooling around at home, so of course they had run over following the smell. Now, with the added fragrance of the crisp oil mixture, the three children truly could no longer move their feet.

When Shi Ying opened the door, she just happened to see the three brothers standing there, drooling.

“Daya…” Gu Weihong was already ten this year, broad-faced and sturdy-looking. Seeing that he had been caught, he became a little embarrassed.

The Gu family’s second son was called Gu Weidong. He was the same age as Shi Ying and was also eight this year. After all, he was a little younger than his older brother, so at this moment he kept craning his neck to look into the kitchen, wiping his drool again and again as he looked.

“Daya, what are you making? It smells so good.”

If the two older brothers could still hold themselves back a little, the youngest, Gu Xiaohu, had absolutely no reservations. He simply pushed open the door and ran in, pattering over.

“Big sister Daya, Xiaohu wants to eat.”

“Xiaohu…” Gu Weihong felt a little embarrassed and hurried to stop him. But as soon as he opened his mouth, saliva also ran out with it. His originally dark face immediately turned black-red.

“Weidong, go pick up firewood. Weihong ge, help me tend the stove. Xiaohu, sit properly. Sister will make you thousand-layer pancakes, okay…”

Shi Ying assigned them skillfully.

The three brothers’ grandparents were both gone. Their father, Gu Hongsheng, was the team leader and was busy all day, never home. Aunt Cui Lian was also an active Party member, even busier than Gu Hongsheng. Usually when the couple was not home, it was Gu Weihong who would haphazardly heat up a few corn cakes to get by.

If that meal could include soup and tasty stir-fried dishes, then it was definitely because Shi Ying had secretly gone over after finishing her own work to help make them.

At this moment, hearing there was something delicious, the three of them immediately seemed as if they had been injected with chicken blood. Even the youngest, Gu Xiaohu, laboriously dragged a dry branch from outside over.

While the three of them busied themselves, Shi Ying was not idle on her side either. First, she rolled the rested dough into a thin flat cake, then spread lard residue on it, quickly cut it into small squares connected in the middle with a knife, folded it up and pinched the seam shut, then used a rolling pin to roll it a few times, and a thousand-layer pancake blank was done.

By the time Gu Weihong had heated up the wok over there, Shi Ying had also finished making four thousand-layer pancake blanks on her side. She poured oil into the wok, and once the oil was hot, she put all four blanks in at once.

While she turned to make the remaining blanks, the steaming aroma drifted out with the cooking smoke. Gu Xiaohu, who had been sitting obediently on the little stool beside them, immediately could not sit still at all.

At home, their mother had not never made thousand-layer pancakes, but she had never made a fragrance like Big Sister Daya’s.

Tormented to the point of scratching his head and heart, he could not hold himself back any longer and actually sneaked a piece of raw dough into his mouth when Shi Ying was not paying attention.

“Gu Xiaohu, what are you doing? If you delay Big Sister Daya’s work, are you asking for a beating?” Gu Weidong turned around and was immediately a little furious. In just the time it took to say that sentence, he had wiped his mouth three times with his sleeve.

Ugh, he also really wanted to taste what that dough tasted like. Why was it still not cooked and already so fragrant?

Although the oldest, Gu Weihong, was still trying hard to control himself and do a good job of tending the fire, a strand of drool still accidentally fell out, splashing onto the burning firewood and making a “sizzle” sound before turning into a wisp of blue smoke.

By then Shi Ying had already finished the last four blanks. She looked back and saw that both sides of the thousand-layer pancakes in the wok had turned golden yellow, and knew they were done. She took a enamel bowl and set it on the stove, then handed the spatula to the already impatient Gu Weidong:

“They’re done. Scoop them out.”

“We can eat them?” Gu Weidong cheered and scooped all four pancakes out.

Gu Xiaohu did not even bother to speak. He simply leaned over and took a bite. Luckily Gu Weihong was quick-eyed and quick-handed, grabbing him at once.

“Don’t move around randomly…”

But it was still too late. They could only watch as Gu Xiaohu held a pancake in his mouth and tears in his eyes, his mouth clearly burning hot, yet he stubbornly refused to spit it out. With real strength, he proved what it meant for a foodie to be nurtured from childhood.

Shi Ying picked up the steaming thousand-layer pancakes and placed them on the cutting board, first making a vertical cut, then folding them up and making a horizontal cut. The golden thousand-layer pancake suddenly bloomed like a flower, and the fragrance wafting out became even more overbearing.

Only then did she look up and realize that the three brothers were all leaning over the cutting board, staring blankly at the pancakes.

“What are you standing there for? Take them and eat.”

At Shi Ying’s command, the four children each picked up a piece of thousand-layer pancake and stuffed it into their mouths.

They ate with such ravenous eagerness.

After finishing several pancakes, the children were all round-bellied. Especially Gu Xiaohu, who by the end was eating while crying.

The thousand-layer pancakes were truly too delicious, but his stomach was too small and really could not fit any more.

Shi Ying did not know whether to laugh or cry, and fearing that he might upset his stomach, she did not dare let him eat any more.

After they finished eating, she had Gu Weihong tend the fire and then fried the last four pancake blanks as well. While they cooled outside, Shi Ying pulled out the broken schoolbag she had previously packed from the wardrobe. Inside were her few sets of clothes. She then found a piece of clean kraft paper and divided the thousand-layer pancakes into two bundles to stuff into the schoolbag.

“Big Sister Daya, are you going to the fields to deliver food? I’ll go with you.”

Full from eating, Gu Xiaohu now had boundless energy. Wherever Shi Ying went, he followed.

Shi Ying had already sorted out everything. She turned around and grabbed Gu Xiaohu, who had been running too fast and almost fallen over.

“No need, I’m not going to the fields.”

Saying that, she looked at the two brothers, Gu Weihong and Gu Weidong:

“I’m going to find my dad and mom. I’m leaving now.”

“We’ll go with you.” Gu Weihong clearly did not understand what Shi Ying meant. Showing two little tiger teeth, he grinned foolishly.

“I mean my biological dad and biological mom.” Shi Ying paused. “I heard Baby’s dad and Baby’s mom say it. They said my biological dad and mom are in Shili Pu…”

Biological dad, biological mom? Gu Weihong finally belatedly realized that something was wrong, and the silly smile on his face gradually froze.

Only Gu Xiaohu still did not understand what Shi Ying meant. He jumped and hopped as he shouted:

“I also want to go find my biological dad and biological mom…”

Gu Weihong was already completely stunned. Looking at Shi Ying, when he came back to his senses, he was clearly anxious, and grabbed Shi Ying’s hand at once:

“You want to leave our village?”

“Daya, you’re leaving?” Gu Weidong also started to panic, his arms around Gu Xiaohu tightening unconsciously.

The result was that Gu Xiaohu was squeezed so hard he directly burst into tears:

“Second ge, it hurts…”

Gu Weidong hurriedly let go, but he did not even have time to comfort Gu Xiaohu, and hurriedly said to Shi Ying:

“Daya, don’t go. Come to our house, okay? Let my parents be your biological dad and mom…”

Only then did Gu Xiaohu realize the seriousness of the matter. He immediately cried even harder with a loud “waaah”:

“Big Sister Daya, don’t go. I don’t want you to go…”

“Don’t cry, don’t cry.” Shi Ying’s eyes also began to turn red. She hurriedly and laboriously picked up Gu Xiaohu. “After I find my biological dad and mom, I’ll come back to see you.”

“But I don’t want you to go.” Gu Weidong kept saying only this one sentence over and over like a wheel rolling.

Although she felt somewhat sorry, Shi Ying still shook her head:

“This isn’t my parents’ home. I don’t want to stay here anymore. I want to go find my biological dad and mom…”

Saying that, she put on her schoolbag and lowered her head as she was about to walk out.

Obviously not expecting Shi Ying to be so determined, the three brothers foolishly made way. It was not until Shi Ying had walked out of the courtyard gate that they finally came back to their senses. Gu Weihong was the first to run over and grab Shi Ying.

Shi Ying turned back and only then discovered that Gu Weihong’s eyes were red, and his hand was desperately wiping at his face.

“Daya, wait a moment.”

After saying that, he ran back home like the wind, and very soon came out holding four eggs and several pieces of candy.

The eggs had been boiled early in the morning by Cui Lian. She had said that if they could not come back at noon, then the three brothers and Shi Ying could each eat one with coarse grain pancakes.

As for the candies, they had been brought back by Gu Hongsheng when he went to a meeting a few days ago. There were not many of them to begin with. After being divided among the four children, this was all that was left, and Cui Lian had put them away, saying they would be used to sweeten their mouths when they had a birthday.

Gu Weihong dumped everything out and, while crying, stuffed them into Daya’s broken schoolbag:

“Take these, take them all.”

Eggs, candy, either one was Gu Xiaohu’s favorite. If it were not for the fact that Cui Lian was too busy during the farm busy season, he would not even get to eat them. On ordinary days, if he saw his older brother taking them to send away, even if they were being given to his favorite Big Sister Daya and none were being left for him at all, Gu Xiaohu would definitely cry and make a fuss.

Today, however, was an exception. Ever since he had just heard second ge say that Daya was leaving and would never come back, Gu Xiaohu had been crying so much he could barely take it. At this moment, seeing Gu Weihong giving away things, Gu Xiaohu not only did not make a fuss, but instead cried as he pulled a broken-legged grasshopper out of his pocket and stuffed it into Shi Ying’s hand, sniffing as he said:

“Big Sister Daya, take it. Xiaohu won’t be by your side, let the General陪 you play…”