Chapter 98: Doll’s Journey Home

The doll lay on the ground, deep in thought. Ever since being tossed aside by its Little Master, it had been lying here. It pondered whether it should just walk back on its own. Clearly, its Little Master wanted it to remain a perfectly ordinary doll… but it had been left on the ground for far too long, hadn’t it?

Surely… its Little Master hadn’t forgotten about it?!

The doll felt its whole world darken. As a doll, it had to stay by its Little Master’s side! Reaching a firm decision, it rose from the muddy earth. The doll set off on its little arms and legs, heading straight toward the direction of Cheng Luyun’s house.

Huang Family Village was exceptionally quiet at night. No villagers wandered outside; not even a single light could be seen. The doll trudged all the way back from the Back Mountain without encountering anyone. It felt it had done an excellent job. But upon reaching the doorstep, it fell into a dilemma—should it enter the house, or wait outside?

It decided it should play the role of a doll kindly returned by a good Samaritan. If it simply walked inside on its own, the cleanliness-loving Master would surely despise it!

It honestly wasn’t its fault. If its Little Master hadn’t thrown it on the ground, it wouldn’t be covered in filth. The doll desperately wanted to explain this to its Master. But for now, with its tiny, less-than-seven-days-old brain, the best plan seemed to be waiting at the door.

The doll sat down on the doorstep. Before sitting, the cleanliness-loving doll even brushed off the spot where it intended to sit. Then, carefully smoothing its skirt, it settled down gingerly—just like any ordinary doll, leaning against the wall, utterly motionless.

The doll spent the entire night in the night breeze outside the door. By early next morning, it was covered in dew. Still, it continued diligently pretending to be an ordinary doll, waiting for its Little Master to come outside and find it. Not long after daybreak, someone opened the front door. The doll perked up, its eyes growing even more alert.

But the first ones out were a flock of ducks, quacking noisily as they rushed past. The Little Master chased after them, not even glancing at the doll before running off to the neighbor’s house to play with her little friends.

After that came the human who lived in the Master’s house. Carrying a basket on her back, she emerged. Unlike its Little Master, she spotted the doll immediately.

A slightly awkward expression crossed the human’s face. The doll didn’t know what she was thinking—only that in front of her, it absolutely had to pretend to be an ordinary doll. Otherwise, neither the Master nor the Little Master would let it off easily.

To ensure its short existence so far could continue, the doll resolved to play its role perfectly.

Huang Wei stood at the doorway, locked in a staring contest with the doll that was pretending very hard to be ordinary. If, when she’d opened the door, it hadn’t turned its head to look at her, its act would have been flawless. But frankly, its mere presence on her doorstep was already incredibly eerie.

It was impossible not to think of those horror movie dolls that, no matter how many times you threw them out, would appear back in your house bright and early the next morning.

Sighing, she picked the doll up from the ground and dropped it into the basket on her back.

If possible, she’d rather not interact with such things at all. She still wanted to be an ordinary person. But Chengcheng had run off just now without even seeing it, and in its current filthy state, Cheng Luyun definitely wouldn’t let it into the house.

Moreover, she didn’t want the first gift she’d given Chengcheng to be destroyed by Cheng Luyun just like that. Since she was heading to the pond to gather pigweed anyway, she might as well take the doll along and wash it there. It was covered in mud and grass scraps—plain water would clean it right up.

“Chengcheng, slow down!”

She called out her name, quickening her pace to catch up.

Sometimes, she wished she weren’t so perceptive. Then dealing with this doll wouldn’t be such a hassle.

When she reached the pond, the three little girls were herding ducks while playing games. She took the doll out of her basket. First, she brushed off the grass scraps, little twigs, and debris stuck to it. Then, scooping up water, she scrubbed the doll clean.

Finally, she laid it on the grassy bank to dry in the sun.

Throughout this process, the doll’s expression kept changing. When she brushed debris off it, it wore a pained look. During the washing, it had a struggling expression. Once laid on the grass to sunbathe, it shifted to pure bliss.

Huang Wei frowned as she tidied it up. She really, really didn’t want to see so many expressions on that doll’s face.

After finishing with the doll, she turned to gather pigweed. Meanwhile, Huang Chengcheng was being asked by Little Ya “when can I play with the doll?” Only then did she remember—she had no idea where she’d thrown the doll ages ago.

Her expression instantly crumbled. That doll was a gift from Mommy! If she lost it, Mommy would be so heartbroken!

Seeing Huang Wei gathering pigweed, she immediately ran back to yesterday’s spot and searched and searched, but couldn’t find the doll anywhere. Figuring Huang Wei would head home soon to make breakfast, she hurried back. Sniffling, tears streaming down her face, she ran up to her, ready to apologize—when she saw her pick up the now-dry doll from the ground.

Huang Chengcheng’s sniffling, tearful face froze, little teardrops hanging mid-fall. Not knowing why she was crying, Huang Wei brought the doll over and crouched down before her. She reached out to wipe her tears and asked what was wrong.

“Bwa…” She sniffled, pointing at the doll in Huang Wei’s hand. “Mommy… how, how is it here? I thought I lost it…”

She hadn’t expected she was crying over this. She handed the doll to Chengcheng, who instinctively took it, clutching it tightly. Because it was a gift recovered from being lost, she hugged it with crushing force, pressing it firmly against her small body.

A pained expression flickered across the doll’s face. Clearly, being squeezed so tightly wasn’t comfortable. But Huang Wei pretended not to see.

Oh, come on—she couldn’t possibly speak up for the doll, could she?

“You didn’t lose it. It was at the door this morning. Chengcheng ran out too fast and didn’t see it.” She reached out and wiped away the little teardrops clinging to the corners of Chengcheng’s eyes. She then pinched her nose and wiped her runny nose clean. Afterward, she wiped her hand on a leaf and rinsed it in the pond.

“Let’s hurry home for breakfast.”

Hearing this, Huang Chengcheng finally broke into a smile. She waved toward Big Ya and Little Ya, calling them to head home together. Holding her mommy’s hand, she hugged the doll and bounced along at the very front, skipping all the way home.

Once home, Cheng Luyun had already set up the coal stove to cook pig feed. Huang Wei glanced at the pigweed she’d gathered and felt their fate was truly pitiful.

With Sister Cui’s help, as soon as she stepped out with Big Ya and Little Ya, Cui came over to help knead dough. Bit by bit, Huang Wei tested how much Cui could assist. She discovered Cui could help her knead and do preliminary prep work, but everything after the dough had rested—that she had to do herself. Still, thanks to her, cooking time was cut significantly. She could prepare many elaborate breakfast dishes.

Even the soybeans had been soaked by Cui first thing in the morning.

Using her machine, she blended several large cups of soymilk. Though the principle was unclear—the beans soaked by Cui, soymilk made by the machine—if the step of actually operating the soymilk machine was done by Sister Cui, the result would be inedible. She had to do that step herself.

But since soaking the beans didn’t require her, making soymilk became much simpler.

Before starting the soymilk, she made several steamer trays of soup dumplings, setting them on the earth stove to steam before moving on to other tasks.

Breakfast done, Sister Cui set off with Big Ya and Little Ya. The family of three finally had their own breakfast time. The drink was soymilk, the main dish: Dan Dan Noodles.

Making truly delicious Dan Dan Noodles wasn’t easy. It required a precise blend of seasonings: soy sauce, vinegar, sesame paste, Sichuan pepper powder, superior broth, lard, and red chili oil. Nothing could be missing. Most importantly, plenty of vinegar—without enough, Dan Dan Noodles simply couldn’t shine.

She loved that spicy kick, and neither of the other two disliked it. A bowl of Dan Dan Noodles down, and her stomach immediately felt warm and cozy. Her whole family ate with great enjoyment. As for whether there were any players who didn’t eat spicy food… that was beyond her consideration.

Besides the noodles, her soup dumplings were also top-tier. Cheng Luyun and Chengcheng had tasted them before, and now, eating them again, they found them just as delicious. The dumpling skins were thin, the filling generous. The glistening broth—rich with lard—washed away the lingering spice from their mouths while carrying the savory sweetness of the pork.

A bite of pickled cabbage, a sip of soymilk—a beautiful day began with a good breakfast.

After breakfast, Huang Chengcheng took her doll and ran off to play with Big Ya and Little Ya, as usual. Huang Wei watched Cheng Luyun. This person hadn’t called her by name all morning, leaving her heart itching with longing.

Grabbing a little stool, she scooted right next to her while she was washing dishes and couldn’t resist speaking up. “Ah Yun… call me, won’t you?”

Cheng Luyun’s slender fingers held the loofah sponge. Dampened, it became exceptionally soft. Under her practiced motions, it washed away oil and grime from the bowls and chopsticks. Loofah sponges were rarely seen in cities anymore, but in the countryside, every household kept them as a dishwashing treasure.

Water dripped from the bowls and chopsticks into the basin below. Hearing her words, Cheng Luyun’s fingers paused. She raised her head to look at her—and found her staring intently, a silly grin plastered on her face.

Seeing her like this, Cheng Luyun decided not to give her what she wanted.

She’d nearly finished washing. Stacking the dishes upright to drain, she stood up, preparing to head to the kitchen. Huang Wei immediately rose from her stool and followed step for step, like a little tail.

Finding her utterly exasperating, Cheng Luyun finally spoke. “Brother Wei, move aside.”

The non-existent dog ears atop her head drooped. “Why ‘Brother Wei,’ though?”

She let out a huff and brushed past her.