Healing His Paranoia

chapter 06 : Feeding

The pork ribs was done by Atin.

The hot oil sizzled in the pan as the evenly coated pork ribs were dipped in the egg batter and sugar, sliding in, making a crackling sound.

In less than half a minute, the ribs were fried to a golden crisp.

Ginger, vinegar, fragrant leaves, and star anise, each with its own unique flavor, were mixed in fixed proportions, along with two or three sweet and sour plums, soaked in the cool well water with the ribs.

The small flame simmered at the bottom of the pot, the soup rolled gently in the pot, patiently waiting to infuse the flavor, slowly reducing the sauce, and a perfectly sweet and sour pork ribs dish was ready.

It was hot, shiny, and had a strong aroma.

Even my parents, who claimed not to like meat, couldn't resist the temptation and picked up a piece with their chopsticks.

As they bit into the elastic skin and meat, they felt the rich layers of sweetness and sourness, reluctantly chewing on the edges for a long time.”

Half a bowl of watery porridge and a sweet potato went into her stomach.

Only when the ribs were eaten clean, not a single strand of meat left, did she solemnly pick up the second piece.

Ating had a bowl to herself, with a total of five ribs.

Two were eaten at the table, leaving three, which her parents refused to take no matter what.

She hid them away, planning to eat them in the middle of the night.

The ribs were cold, but if she got close, she could still catch a whiff of their fragrance.

It was not right to give away something rare and precious that her parents had worked hard to buy.

But in her past and present lives, Ating had already experienced two deaths in less than three days, and she didn't want to witness a third, especially not with a boy her age.

Pushing the door open, she was met with the deep darkness of the night.

The door of the neighboring room was still half-open, and Ating easily slipped inside.

The room was even darker than outside, with everything becoming indistinct and ambiguous shapes, one here and one there.

She cautiously moved her steps, completely unaware of the two pairs of yellow eyes lurking under the wooden ladder.

Her knee hit the rough wood, and Ating felt her way like a blind person, identifying the octagonal chair and Eight Immortals table that every household had.

She placed the ribs and sweet potato in the center of the table, feeling slightly relieved.

As she was considering whether or not to say something to the missing boy, a large mass of shadow suddenly pounced on her.

He was attacking her.

In the blink of an eye, Ating was pinned to the floor, unable to move, with something soft under the back of her head.

The pressure on her blister caused a searing pain.

“Mmm...”

Instinctively, she pushed him away with both hands.

This strange shadow moved agilely and swiftly, with long and powerful limbs.

The ribs on his back and abdomen were slightly arched, like an angry beast, and he accurately lowered his head to bite her wrist.

The warm wind blew open the door, and the cold moonlight spread on the ground.

Atin finally saw those eyes again.

Pure amber color, both beautiful and wild, filled with fierce hostility.

The teeth were not as beastly, they were white and even, but the force was excessive.

Atin noticed that he was hostile towards her, with a face full of contempt and indifference, like a cat treating a mouse in its palm.

So she didn't dare to move, trying to repeat yesterday's greeting, “I am...

Atin, do you remember?”

He stared at her sharply and fixed his gaze like a cage.

“Pork ribs.”

Atin turned her head, hoping he would look at the ribs on the table, and said softly, “I won't catch you, I will bring you ribs to eat.”

She felt that he was not affectionate, maybe because he had been scared by the son of the village chief.

However, he completely ignored her words, only the movement of his Adam's apple going up and down, and occasionally blinking his eyelids, proving that he was not a sculpture.

Atin frowned in distress, thought and thought again, and two words gently overflowed from her lips, “Lu Xun...”

“Meow!”

Another small black shadow jumped down, its soft fur brushing against her cheek, making it itchy.

“Lu Xun...?”

“Meow!”

The cat responded, and the pointed human ears on its body twitched, resembling another big cat.

He didn't recognize her, but he recognized this name and this soft voice.

Lu Xun suddenly loosened his grip, leaned down, and the cold tip of his nose touched her nose.

He moved slightly and faintly smelled a strange, sweet, and soft scent.

She is alive, completely different from the decaying smell on that woman.

She has two big eyes, detailed and black, with a faint layer of water shimmer.

She is also alive and vivid.

“Meow!”

His cat hisses at him ferociously.

He gives her a cold glance, releases his grip all of a sudden, and gradually retreats back into the shadows under the stairs.

No one can find a trace of him in his territory.

Ating covers her head and gets up.

Indeed, she can't find him, and she has no intention of provoking him again.

She steps back, cautious and fearful, slowly exiting the house.

Her heart beats rapidly, thumping, fortunately not the unhealthy “hoo hoo” sound from her past life.

Ating lifts her left hand and discovers a deep bite mark around her delicate wrist.

No matter how much she rubs or how clear the well water is, the profound mark and the fresh redness cannot be removed.

It's exactly the same position where the black cat bit her in her past life...

The faint dawn breaks at 4:

30 am, and Ating's door bangs.

“Wake up, wake up, hurry up!”

Lin Yuchun rushes down the stairs and orders Song Yuqiu, who has just washed his face, “Did you sharpen the pencils?”

Hurry, hurry!”

She didn't even have time to wash her face, she hurriedly lit the fire and quickly fried the eggs.

Her body spun around like a top in the small house, with the wind all around her.

Ating, still half asleep, walked out of the room and was swept to the door by the wind, where she washed up.

The same scene was happening next door at the Wang family.

Wang's mother went in and out, catching a glimpse of Ating and her mother, and greeted them from afar, “Xuechun, have you made breakfast?

Why don't you come to my house for a meal?”

“No trouble, no trouble.”

“You say that, but I'm going to trouble your family to take Juner to the exam.”

Lin Xuechun laughed and scolded, “What nonsense are you talking about?

Didn't I borrow the tricycle from your house?

!”

Wang's mother also laughed, and the topic shifted to Ating, “Oh, Ating, this dress looks so good on you.”

It was a light yellow dress with a single row of buttons, but the skirt was wide with two white trimmings.

The little girl had delicate and exquisite features, standing in the clear sunlight, looking clean and pure, almost transparent.

She seemed a little sickly, but it didn't overshadow her beauty.

“They say a woman changes a lot when she turns eighteen.

Ating has only been with us for a little over half a month, and even Aunt Wang couldn't recognize her, she's so beautiful.”

Aunt Wang was naturally eloquent, and she freely praised, “And this color, this style, I've never seen it before.”

“She lived in the city before, and it's different when you have a knack for things.

If you have time, can you make a dress for my Juner too?”

Lin Xuechun's face paused for a moment and then became lively again.

“When have I ever missed your goodness?

It's such a waste that you're always playing with your mouth instead of doing business!”

A-Ting was pushed into the room again, with white rice porridge, fried dough sticks, and a wrapped egg on the table.

“Haven't you sharpened the pencil yet?”

“I just bought the eraser last month, why is there only half left?”

“Do you have your bookmark?”

They had a chaotic meal.

Father Song Yuqiu was waiting at the door on an old tricycle, while Wang Jun impatiently dealt with his own mother.

The mother and son's voices alternated between being high and low, arguing fiercely.

A-Ting carried a canvas bag on her shoulder, with a big red five-pointed star reflected on the front, and the pencils and erasers neatly placed inside.

She closed the bag and said to Lin Xuechun, “Mom, I'm leaving.”

“Go on, go on.”

But within three seconds, she reached out and pulled her back like a baby chick.

“Did you bring your admission ticket?”

She frowned tightly.

“Take it out and let me see.”

She held the admission ticket and looked at it for a long time, pointing at the exam number and repeatedly instructing, “Look carefully at this long string of numbers, don't write it wrong.

Write your full name, write Song Qianxia, remember?”

A-Ting nodded obediently, obediently responded, and was patient.

Lin Xuechun repeated a few times, but couldn't think of anything else to say, so she waved her hand to shoo her away like swatting flies.

“Mom.”

Atin turned around against the light, gripping the straps with both hands and said in a firm and reliable tone, “Don't worry, I will get into high school.”

Lin Xuechun was stunned for a moment, then raised her voice, “I've lived half a lifetime, what is there to be afraid of?

Whether you can get in or not is your own business.

If you can't, then go plant rice and pull weeds in the fields every day, don't come crying to me.”

Atin didn't argue, sat on the small stool of the tricycle, waved his hand, and left.

“Hold the handle, don't look around!”

Wang Jun's mother shouted at her restless daughter, then clasped her hands together and recited “Namo Amituofo” as she walked back into the house.

Lin Xuechun no longer believed in gods or Buddhas.

She simply faced the sky, with a determined gaze, and said fiercely, “They say that heaven has eyes, if you haven't gone blind, then you better bless my Atin.”

This is what you owe me, what you owe our Song family.

The tricycle traveled on the bumpy dirt road, swaying and passing by households, and came across a glistening river.

Many women were washing clothes by the river, and they spotted Wang Jun.

“Jun'er, are you going to take the exam this early?”

“Study well and don't make your mom angry!”

“Come back as a top scorer!”

The farm women joked.

Wang Jun muttered quietly, “I have no choice, I'll just have to infuriate her.”

“And who's that little girl?”

Someone spotted Atin.

“Didn't you come to the village head's meeting yesterday?

This is the one from Lin Xuechun's family.”

“Why doesn't she look like it?”

“She's been out of sight for half a month and has gotten whiter.

Your eyesight is no good, you insist she doesn't look like it?”

“I forgot, Ating is taking the middle school entrance exam this year, no wonder Song Yuqiu is riding a tricycle,” “Song's Tingting is also taking the exam this year, just wait, Tingting's mom and Ating's mom are going to clash again.

These sisters-in-law are very lively.”

As they chatted, the woman who spoke earlier suddenly waved and called:

“Ating!”

No matter how she looked, she felt that the little girl was a thousand times more beautiful than the arrogant Ating.

She was unconvinced, so she tried to test her.

Everyone shook their heads and laughed:

“You don't know Ating's temper yet?”

Ating was notorious for ignoring people, even though she was just a little girl, she would roll her eyes at you at any moment, which was really annoying.

Halfway through the conversation, unexpectedly, Ating turned her head and waved with her slender white arm.

There was a bright, crescent-shaped smile on her face, which left the women dumbfounded.

Had Ating...

changed her ways?