Farming Family's Pocket Dimension: A Charmed Little Lady Comes to Farm

Chapter 28: Chapter 28: Good Things Must Be Hidden Away

As night deepened, Gu Fei fell asleep reading.

Mrs. Chen waited for Gu Zhang in the main room.

Gu Zhang didn’t hurry home until the middle of the night.

"You old fool, where on earth have you been? You didn’t even leave a word!" Mrs. Chen scolded.

Gu Zhang waved a hand. "We’ll talk tomorrow. The girl, Eldest Son, and I are going into the city. Let’s get some rest."

The old couple shared a kang bed with Gu Fei.

At the first crow of the rooster, Mrs. Chen got up. She had to quickly make breakfast so her husband and sons could eat before going into the city.

When she entered the kitchen, Li Chunhua was already there.

She was squatting on the floor, holding an oil lamp and staring blankly.

Mrs. Chen followed her gaze. On the floor sat two large sacks made of a material she had never seen before. There was writing on them, but since Mrs. Chen couldn’t read, she didn’t know what it said.

She walked over for a closer, puzzled look. Just as she was about to cut one open with a knife, Li Chunhua suddenly cried out, "Mother, be careful! I touched them. I think it’s grain inside."

Grain?

’Two sacks this big?’

Mrs. Chen’s eyes lit up. She carefully untied the thin cord at the top of the sack, and when she opened it, she found it was filled with brilliant white rice!

Mrs. Chen and Li Chunhua stared at each other, utterly stunned.

They untied the other sack. It was filled with white flour.

Mrs. Chen reached in for a handful. It was so white and fine.

After a long moment, Mrs. Chen’s voice trembled as she said, "Chunhua, you cannot speak of this to anyone outside the family."

Li Chunhua nodded emphatically. "Mother, I won’t say a word."

"Not even your own family! Do you hear me?"

"I won’t tell. I won’t tell anyone. Mother, you can rest assured. I understand the gravity of the situation." Li Chunhua grasped Mrs. Chen’s hand. "Mother, I think... this must be a gift from the Fairy. She saw we had no food to eat. Don’t you agree?"

Mrs. Chen nodded. "Of course. Even Little Cao said she was a little Fairy."

They shared a silent understanding. They knew that these things, just like the fruit from the previous night, were inextricably linked to Gu Fei.

Mrs. Chen looked around. "We have to hide this."

Li Chunhua suggested, "Mother, we should probably hide it in our rooms. Anyone can walk into the kitchen."

"Yes, you’re right. We’ll hide the flour in your room, and the rice in ours."

Huffing and puffing, the two of them hid the flour and rice. Then they scooped out a large bowl of flour to make breakfast.

Back in the kitchen, Li Chunhua let out another soft gasp. "Mother, quick, look! What’s this?"

On the cutting board sat a transparent bag filled with something gleaming white.

"Is this—salt?" Mrs. Chen opened the bag, dabbed her finger inside, and put it in her mouth.

’So sweet!’

"Chunhua, it’s sugar! Have a taste!"

Li Chunhua also dabbed some into her mouth. It really was sugar.

"How is this sugar so white?"

In those days, most families ate brown sugar. White sugar existed, but it was expensive, so common folk couldn’t bear to spend money on it.

Mrs. Chen hesitated for a moment. "Get a few eggs. We’ll make egg pancakes for breakfast. And we’ll add a little sugar."

Ms. Li hurried to get the eggs and began mixing the dough.

When Gu Fei woke up, the room was empty.

Shivering, she took off her clothes and changed into the apricot-yellow and emerald-green jacket and skirt her father had bought for her. Her hair was a hopeless case; combing it herself would be agony.

Once dressed, Gu Fei took a toothbrush and toothpaste from her space. With her hair still a mess, she went to the kitchen to ladle some water.

With the ongoing drought, the well was nearly dry. They could only draw one or two buckets of murky, muddy water each day.

Seeing her come in, Li Chunhua said hurriedly, "Getting water to wash up, little sister? Don’t move, I’ll get it for you."

"Thank you, Sister-in-law," Gu Fei said with a sweet smile, the aroma of pancakes wafting to her nose.