Chapter 187: The Warmth of Ordinary Life

Chapter 187: Chapter 187: The Warmth of Ordinary Life

"I didn’t realize you were such a kid at heart."

Yin Ruxue’s lips parted slightly, a look of surprise on her face.

"I went through the same thing they’re going through now."

"They might look happy, laughing like that, but what they really want deep down is companionship."

"The root of it all is insecurity and loneliness."

Jiang Fan didn’t get up. His gaze drifted to the sky, suddenly growing distant.

"Back then, what I wanted most wasn’t to play with the other kids. I wanted to be part of the adults’ circle, to see what they were talking about and hear how they were planning our futures."

"These kids now are the same. They want to get closer to us, but they’re too afraid."

"That must be an exhausting way to live, isn’t it?"

Yin Ruxue paused for a moment before speaking.

"It wasn’t so bad."

Just as Jiang Fan was about to say something else, the director and Li Qian’Er walked over.

"Come on, kids, it’s time to eat."

Jiang Fan did a kip-up, springing to his feet. "Let’s go! Time to eat. You have to try the director’s cooking. I’m telling you, I grew up on it."

"It’s to die for!!"

Jiang Fan rubbed his hands together in excitement.

"Does the director cook for all these children by herself?"

Yin Ruxue found it hard to believe.

"She used to. Conditions have improved a bit, so now we have a cook and an assistant."

A smile touched Jiang Fan’s lips as he recalled the old days.

"Alright, stop daydreaming, you little glutton. Let’s go eat."

The director reached out and patted Jiang Fan’s head.

"Come on, dear, you too."

Taking Yin Ruxue’s hand, the director turned to Li Qian’Er.

"Qian’Er, go get the children ready for dinner."

"Okay."

"Mengmeng, don’t follow Mommy and Daddy. Go eat with the other children."

Jiang Fan said, glancing at Mengmeng who was about to follow them.

"Okay!"

He had thought the little girl might be upset, but to his surprise, she just made a face at him and darted off to join the line of children.

"That little rascal."

Jiang Fan chuckled and followed the director to the small dining room behind the kitchen.

Yin Ruxue looked around at the old, worn-down buildings as if she’d never seen anything like them.

"What’s the matter? Is it a new experience for you? A little different from the places you rich people live in, huh?"

Sitting at the table, Jiang Fan watched her with an amused look.

"I really haven’t. But I can tell things must have been very difficult here in the past."

"And you grew up in an environment like this?"

Jiang Fan nodded.

Just then, the director came over with bowls and chopsticks. "That’s right. This little fellow used to love sleeping right on that threshold."

"See this dent here?"

The director jutted her chin, drawing Yin Ruxue’s eyes to the spot.

"That’s from when he was startled in his sleep. He shot right up and slammed his forehead into the doorframe."

"He smashed a corner of the frame clean off. The amount of blood... it scared us half to death."

As she spoke of the past, the director’s eyes filled with affection.

"To this day, he still won’t tell us what on earth he was dreaming about."

All we knew was that after it happened, he would hide in a corner by himself and giggle foolishly from time to time.

"If he hadn’t seemed normal otherwise, we would have thought he’d knocked a few screws loose."

At that, Yin Ruxue finally couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing.

Dark lines seemed to appear on Jiang Fan’s forehead. "Grandma, please stop."

"Every time someone visits, you tell them this story. Every single time! Don’t I have any pride?"

"Pride, my ass. Now hurry up and eat."

The familiar movements, the familiar aroma of the food, the familiar person—it all filled Jiang Fan’s heart with warmth.

Though he’d grown up without parents, the director—Grandma—meant more to him than any other family.

"Come on, dear. You have to try my cooking."

Yin Ruxue had just sat down and picked up her chopsticks when the director began piling food onto her plate.

"Eat up, don’t be shy."

"Make yourself at home."

To be honest, the director’s cooking was a far cry from the five-star chefs she was used to.

But the warmth, the simplicity, the familial bond, and the simple charm of a home-cooked meal... she found herself completely captivated by it.

Nearby, Jiang Fan rolled his eyes as he shoveled rice into his mouth.

’You’re never this nice to me. You’re even piling food onto her plate. I’m your real grandson, you know!’

"Alright, alright, you too."

Helpless against his antics, the director dropped a few servings of vegetables into Jiang Fan’s bowl.

But before he could even react, the director was already piling more chicken and duck onto Yin Ruxue’s plate, building it into a small mountain.

"Grandma, could your favoritism be any more obvious?"

Jiang Fan grumbled, indignant.

"Eat what you’re given. If you don’t want it, you can go out back and handle the cleaning."

But this time, the director had no intention of indulging him.

He shoveled down the rest of his food as fast as he could, then got up and headed toward the back.

"Grandma, I really can’t eat another bite."

Yin Ruxue said, her face flushed with embarrassment.

She was normally a light eater, but in this single meal, she’d eaten as much as she usually would in an entire day.

She wouldn’t have dared to say anything if she wasn’t so stuffed she felt sick.

Sitting in the backyard and watching the show, Jiang Fan was doubled over with laughter.

He had noticed long ago that Yin Ruxue couldn’t eat much and was just forcing herself to keep going.

He’d just wanted to see how long the stubborn girl could keep it up.

"Oh, my... stop eating, dear, stop eating."

The director looked a little embarrassed herself.

"You’re still laughing? Get over here!"

"No, no, it’s okay. I’ll just go sit over there and rest for a bit."

Yin Ruxue rubbed her stomach as she walked into the backyard. Seeing Jiang Fan’s smug grin, she felt a surge of irritation.

Before she could say a word, Mengmeng came running over stealthily.

"Daddy, Mommy, there’s something I need your help with."

Seeing her cautious expression, the two of them exchanged a glance.

"What is it?"

Jiang Fan beckoned to her.

Mengmeng ran right into his arms.

"Can you guys give me some money?"