Chapter 284 - 276: Do You Belong to Huangtuo Village?
Chapter 284: Chapter 276: Do You Belong to Huangtuo Village?
The Hu Family
"Zhi, why aren’t you sleeping? What are you so busy with at this hour?" Uncle Hu had woken up and was heading to the outhouse when he noticed the kitchen light was still on.
Bai Zhi was in the middle of rolling the proofed dough into a long log, which she then cut into small sections with a knife.
She wiped the sweat from her brow and said with a smile, "Meng Nan and Jin Xiao’an are leaving tomorrow. I’m making them some food for the road."
"Oh," Uncle Hu said. "Need any help? I can tend the fire for you."
Bai Zhi waved her hands. "No, no, it’s fine. I can manage on my own. You should go back to bed. I’m almost done here."
Uncle Hu didn’t insist. He simply nodded and went back to his room.
In his room, Hu Feng, who had been meditating, slowly opened his eyes. He waited until he heard the door to the next room close, then opened his own and stepped out.
A sweet aroma of food filled the air. The night was deep, but a full moon hung high in the sky, bathing the backyard in a bright, silver light.
"You’re making so much. Will they be able to eat it all?"
Hu Feng’s voice rang out abruptly, startling her so badly that she nearly cut her finger.
She put down the knife and whirled around to face Hu Feng, who was standing in the doorway. Her eyes were wide. "You scared me half to death! What are you doing sneaking around in the middle of the night?" ’How does he walk without making a sound? Does he use Qinggong all the time?’
Hu Feng sauntered into the kitchen and plopped down on a small stool by the stove. He glanced at the fire and casually tossed in a couple of pieces of dry firewood.
"So you *do* know it’s the middle of the night?" he said. "It’s just for two people. Do you really need to make this much?" His gaze swept over the steamer baskets on the stove. The three-tiered stack was already more than half full.
Bai Zhi said, "Meng Nan is a young master from a noble family in the Capital City. On his return journey, I expect that besides the escort from the government office, people from his own Meng Family will come to meet him. It’s better to make too much than not have enough."
She resumed her work, her eyes focused on the dough in her hands, but she didn’t stop talking. "Hu Feng, what if one day you get your memory back and, just like that, you turn out to be a rich young master like Meng Nan? When you think back on this time, will you feel like living this way was a humiliation?"
Hu Feng didn’t look at her, his gaze fixed on the dancing flames in the stove. "Why are you so sure I’m a rich young master? For all we know, I could just be an ordinary person."
Bai Zhi shook her head. "There’s no way you’re an ordinary person."
Hu Feng raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And what makes you so sure?"
She paused what she was doing, set down the knife, and tapped her own head with a finger. "Intuition. My intuition tells me you’re someone of no ordinary status. You don’t belong in Huangtuo Village. You’ll leave, sooner or later."
Hu Feng looked up at her, meeting her earnest gaze. Her eyes were beautiful, like the brightest star in the night sky. In his moments of helpless confusion, they always brought him a glimmer of hope.
"And what about you?" he asked. "Do you belong in Huangtuo Village?"
The hand she was using to cut the dough stilled. A flicker of bewilderment appeared in her eyes—uncertainty about the unknown path ahead, about her own future. Everything seemed to be going smoothly for now, but she knew this kind of peace couldn’t last.
’Whether in this strange world or the other one she knew so well, there was no such thing as lasting peace and tranquility.’
’But so what? That was life, wasn’t it?’
Her daze lasted only a moment. A faint smile touched her lips as she glanced sideways at Hu Feng’s intense gaze. "Of course. For now, you and I both belong to Huangtuo Village. As for the future... that’s a problem for the future. You just have to live life one day at a time. No one knows what the next moment will bring."