Shen Rushan, blowing on his steaming bowl of noodles, reacted first: "Fortune-telling!? There's a blind fortune-teller on North Street who charges a fortune per reading. Ji Nian, maybe you should set up a stall too."
Typical Shen Rushan—always thinking about money.
Ji Nian, without batting an eye, declared that this skill was for private use only and couldn’t be monetized.
Over at the table, Ji Tingzhou, slurping his noodles, shot her a glance, his expression dripping with skepticism.
Shen Rushan, however, was intrigued. He scooted closer to Ji Nian, extending a hand toward her. "Then tell me, will I be rich someday?"
Ji Nian pretended to study his palm, murmuring something cryptic before looking up with an air of wisdom. "Can't see that far ahead."
"But judging by your palm lines, you’ll definitely go to college."
Shen Rushan nearly dropped his noodles. "Seriously!?"
College—a word that existed only in TV dramas for him, given that he hadn’t even attended elementary school yet.
"Absolutely," Ji Nian affirmed with a nod.
Then she turned her gaze to Zhiliao, who had been watching her.
Zhiliao’s attitude had softened considerably since their first meeting. Every time she applied the techniques Ji Nian taught her, they fit her so naturally it was as if they’d always been hers.
Though she never said it aloud, Zhiliao was deeply grateful. Earlier, she’d even piled extra ham into Ji Nian’s bowl when serving the noodles.
"Zhiliao-jie, you’ll become a legendary master someday, with more money than you could ever spend."
Ji Tingzhou snorted inwardly, thinking, She didn’t even check her palm—just fooling kids.
Ji Nian, sharp-eyed, immediately pointed at Ji Tingzhou before he could school his expression. "And you—you’ll have a daughter!"
Ji Tingzhou nearly choked on his noodles.
"Pfft—really!?"
Shen Rushan, momentarily distracted from the word "college," turned to stare at Ji Tingzhou.
Even Zhiliao arched a brow in his direction.
Da Gen wagged his tail and plopped down beside Ji Nian.
"Impossible," Ji Tingzhou retorted without hesitation.
"Why not?"
"You just said you can’t predict things too far in the future."
So you were paying attention after all, Ji Nian thought.
"Exactly. This isn’t far off."
"Shen-ge goes to college, Zhiliao-jie becomes a master, and you become a dad. Bright futures all around."
Ji Tingzhou: "……"
Shen Rushan turned away, shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter.
Wei Yang, glancing between Ji Nian and Ji Tingzhou, set down his empty bowl and clapped. "Congratulations on the baby girl."
He’d picked that up from TV.
Ji Tingzhou looked positively livid.
Why did Shen Rushan get to go to college, Zhiliao got to be rich, and he was stuck with a kid?
Besides, Ji Tingzhou couldn’t imagine himself ever settling down with someone.
"Fraud," he spat, angrily finishing the last of his noodles.
Ji Nian gazed at him with exaggerated sympathy.
"At least you’re good—when you’re mad, you still finish your food. Unlike someone I know who storms off mid-meal and has to be coaxed back."
Ji Tingzhou frowned.
Who’d refuse to eat just because they were angry?
What kind of wasteful, spoiled brat needed coddling over something like that?
"Pathetic," he scoffed.
Then he caught Ji Nian wearing a disgustingly smug grin.
Ji Tingzhou: ?
Shen Rushan, noticing Ji Nian’s expression, recalled her earlier mention of a "dad."
If Ji Nian and Xiao Zhou were really twins, then Ji Nian’s father would also be Xiao Zhou’s father, right?
But Xiao Zhou didn’t seem the least bit interested, though he did want to know more details.
If Ji Nian had a good relationship with her father, maybe Xiao Zhou could leave too.
That way, he could ask Xiao Zhou to help look for his own family.
“Ji Nian, are you close with your family?”
Hearing Shen Rushan mention family, Ji Nian nodded, her smile turning genuine.
“Mm.”
“I live with my dad, my aunt, and my older brother. We also have two dogs at home.”
“You have an older brother?”
Ji Nian glanced at Wei Yang, who was eyeing Ji Tingzhou’s bowl of soup with barely concealed greed: “Yeah…”
As if sensing Shen Rushan’s thoughts, she lowered her voice. “Sorry, I can’t contact them right now.”
A flicker of disappointment crossed Shen Rushan’s eyes, but he quickly perked up again.
“Won’t your family be worried if they can’t find you?”
They would.
In fact, they’d probably try to flip the earth upside down and shake it.
Ji Nian deliberately avoided elaborating on her family, keeping her answers brief.
If she said too much, her words might stick together.
After finishing their noodles, everyone started cleaning up.
Shen Rushan turned to Wei Yang and teased, “Look at how much you ate—enough for three Ji Nians.”
Wei Yang pretended to be sleepy, turning his face toward the wall, only for Shen Rushan to yank him back and whisper in his ear.
“This kid!”
Seeing him try to fake sleep to avoid leaving, Shen Rushan tapped his forehead and shooed him home.
At least he had a proper house—why was he so obsessed with Shen Rushan’s rundown shack?
Amid their bickering, Ji Nian followed Ji Tingzhou and Da Gen.
When they arrived, Ji Nian had just ducked inside when something suddenly flew toward her.
She instinctively flinched but forced herself to stay still once she saw what it was.
A small packet of thumb-sized cookies.
In Liuxing Street, where even instant noodles were scarce, these cookies were a rare luxury.
Ji Nian blinked. “For me?”
Where had he gotten them?
Ji Tingzhou didn’t confirm or deny it, just tossed over his shoulder, “You’re as skinny as a monkey,” before turning to wipe Da Gen’s paws.
Ji Nian: “……”
She glanced at Ji Tingzhou’s own stick-thin legs and wondered how he had the nerve to call her a monkey.
Then she looked down at the cookies again.
A thought struck her, and she dashed over to dig through Ji Tingzhou’s money jar.
Under his irritated glare, she opened it and found that most of the cash he’d earned from braiding hair was gone—only five yuan remained.
Now she knew exactly where the cookies had come from.
Since coming here, Ji Nian had indeed lost weight.
Even if she didn’t want to admit it, having grown up pampered in the Ji household, she really wasn’t cut out for hardship.
She hated eating cold steamed buns with water and disliked the taste of beef-flavored instant noodles. The hard bed didn’t help her sleep, which only made her appetite worse.
Others assumed she just ate little, but Ji Tingzhou had somehow figured out she was picky.
Running her fingers over the cookies, Ji Nian looked back at Ji Tingzhou, who was stubbornly avoiding her gaze.
“Let’s share them.”
Ji Tingzhou shoved a hand in his pocket, giving her a cool look. “That’s kids’ stuff.”
“I don’t like it.”
Ji Nian: “……”
Says the one who wolfed down beef noodles like his life depended on it.
“But I want to eat with you.”
She gave him her best pleading puppy-dog eyes.
“Please? Pretty please?”
Ji Tingzhou: "……..."
What the heck is "gougouda"?
A chicken?
I heard chicken tastes pretty good...
Now that he thought about it, he was actually getting a little hungry.
At his age, when he was still growing, even if he'd already eaten, it was easy to feel hungry again.
With a look of "you're such a hassle" on his face, he sat down beside Ji Nian.
He tore open the packet of crackers, and the two kids started eating, taking turns—one for you, one for me—while casually tossing a few pieces to the dog.
Late at night, when all was quiet.
Listening to the steady breathing beside her, Ji Nian carefully got up.
Da Gen's ears twitched, and his eyes opened.
Ji Nian raised a finger to her lips, signaling "shhh."
The big dog licked her finger and closed his eyes again.
Over the past few days, Ji Nian had become completely familiar with the surrounding area, and she had also learned where Zhiliao's house was.
Not long after stepping out into the night, she heard a furious roar from a distance:
"Worthless brat!! If I say you’re getting married, then you’re getting married! What the hell do you think I’ve been raising you for all this time!?"
