Chapter 9

The Lu family’s house was a little far from the entrance of the village. It was behind Shangshi Village.

Shu Yu followed Sanya. By the time they reached the Lu family’s house, she had already grasped the layout of the village.

Shangshi Village wasn’t very big, and the houses were built without any pattern. Most of them were very old. Even the village head’s house was only a slightly larger mud house.

When they arrived at the Lu family’s house, Sanya rushed forward, pushed open the unlocked door, and shouted, “Father, father, I’m back.”

Shu Yu followed. After entering the house, she closed the door behind her and placed the basket in her hand in the corner of the courtyard. Only then did she look at the small courtyard.

It was really small. The entire yard was less than 15 square meters, and even so, it was filled with a lot of things. However, it could be seen that the Lu family was quite diligent and had tidied up well.

Shu Yu walked through the courtyard and entered the living room.

Sanya ran over, sweating profusely. Then, she whispered nervously, “Big sister, my father is not home. He might have gone out.”

“Is your family not around?”

Sanya shook her head, “They’ve all gone out to work. Big sister, can you wait here for a while? They will be back soon. I, I’ll get you some water.”

She then turned and ran to the kitchen. After a while, she came back with a chipped bowl that she placed on the table and pushed toward Shu Yu. Then, she said softly, “Big sister, I washed this bowl again. It’s clean. There are no cracks on this side, so it won’t cut your mouth. You’ve walked for such a long time, so you must be thirsty. Drink it.”

Even the best bowl used to serve guests was chipped. One could imagine how the life of this family was.

Looking at the leaking areas of the house and the slightly slanted walls, it looked like a dilapidated house that could collapse at any time to Shu Yu.

Shu Yu watched as the little girl tugged at her sleeves uneasily as if it was a sin to have given her water in a chipped bowl. She paused and reached out to stroke Sanya’s head, “Thank you.”

Then, she picked up the bowl and drank the water. She was stunned for a moment before she smiled and said, “This water is very sweet.”

The little girl was happy, “This is mountain spring water. My brother brings it from the mountain every day.”

What she didn’t say was that they usually didn’t have the luxury of drinking it at home. It was only used to boil medicine for her father.

Shu Yu wanted to ask about her family’s situation. Hearing this, she pulled Sanya to a stool at the side and sat her down. Then, she asked, “Do you have an older brother? Other than your father, you, and your brother, who else is there in the family?”

“And my mother and my grandma.”

“Then, do you have an older sister?”

At the mention of “older sisters”, Sanya’s mood inexplicably turned gloomy. She nodded slightly as she said, “I have two sisters. My eldest sister got married two years ago, and my second sister…”

She didn’t continue. She lowered her head and rubbed her sleeves.

Shu Yu could tell that this was how Sanya acted when she was uneasy.

Could it be that the second sister was referring to her? Did the little girl know about her second sister’s situation?

Shu Yu wanted to continue asking, but Sanya looked up and urged her again, “Big sister, drink some water. If it’s not enough, I, I’ll get you more.”

It was obvious that she did not want to talk about her second sister anymore. Shu Yu did not force her and quickly changed the topic, “Since there’s no one in your house, why isn’t the door locked? what if a thief comes in?”

Sanya blinked and shook her head, “There’s nothing in our house. My grandma said that even rats go around our house.”