Doctor Li hadn't felt the close presence of his grandson by his side for a long time. His tone softened, and he reached out to hug his grandson back.
The longing of several years was vented from his body in this instant, as if nothing could stop them.
"Grandpa, are these herbs you're preparing for Mr. Lu's fiancée?"
After the hug, Doctor Li started grinding the medicinal powder. Xiao Zhan, who had been around these herbs since childhood, naturally knew a thing or two.
Doctor Li wasn't stupid. He quickly understood the hidden meaning in his grandson's words. He put down the grinder in his hand, looked up at him, and asked, "Who did you hear that from?"
"I happened to run into Mr. Lu on my way back today. We came to the village together. They're at the village head's place now. They should come to see you later," Xiao Zhan replied.
Upon learning that Wen Sining had arrived, the old man got up from the small stool, went back to the main room, closed the doors and windows, and stood alone in the pharmacy.
What's wrong with Grandpa?
Xiao Zhan sensed something was amiss.
His gaze fell on the wooden hut behind him. After hesitating for a few seconds, he stood up from the chair.
"Grandpa."
"Don't come in."
Doctor Li opened the wooden box, inside which were some old items. He took out an old pocket watch from under the yellowed papers, wiped off the faint dust on it, and flipped open the cover with his thumb.
There was a photo of a woman inside the pocket watch. If you looked closely, she bore a faint resemblance to Wen Sining.
Doctor Li put the pocket watch in his pocket, then put the wooden box back in its original place.
"Grandpa, what were you just doing?" Xiao Zhan waited at the door.
"Go to the village head's and invite Miss Wen here."
"Now?"
"Yes."
Although Xiao Zhan was filled with curiosity, he still went to the village head's to fetch the person.
Wispy green smoke drifted from the rooftops into the sky and blended with the clouds on the horizon.
Xiao Zhan walked on the bluestone slabs he hadn't walked on for years, counting his steps like he did in his childhood.
"You came just in time. The old hen is just cooked," the villagers warmly grabbed Xiao Zhan's arm and pushed him towards the dining table.
The only empty seat at the square dining table was next to Wen Sining. If he sat down, he would have to sit close to her.
"Miss Wen, my grandpa would like to invite you over. He probably has something to tell you," Xiao Zhan didn't immediately respond to the village head but first stated his purpose.
Although Wen Sining didn't know what it was about, she couldn't wait.
"Now?" Trying to suppress her excitement, Wen Sining seemed reluctant to leave the local chicken in front of her.
Following her gaze, Xiao Zhan was surprised by the food she was so reluctant to part with. "It's okay. You can go after you finish your meal."
As he replied, the village head's wife brought over clean bowls and chopsticks and placed them in front of Xiao Zhan.
"You've lost weight. There's no meat on your face anymore," the village head's wife chattered at Xiao Zhan. "Your grandpa must be heartbroken seeing you like this."
If he hadn't become a star, Xiao Zhan might have been as respected as the doctor.
As he ate the drumstick the village head's wife had fed him, Xiao Zhan put it into Wen Sining's bowl. "Such a delicious thing should be enjoyed by the guest."
The drumstick took up most of the bowl. Wen Sining held her chopsticks awkwardly, not knowing where to start.
"These chickens are free-range. They eat natural grass and insects in the fields. They taste much better than the ones raised in cages in the city. The drumsticks are especially chewy," Xiao Zhan was afraid Wen Sining wouldn't eat it and turned himself into a food expert.
The drumstick passed through two bowls. Facing the gazes of four people, Wen Sining raised and then put down her chopsticks.
"Let Tiantian eat it," she said.
She picked up the drumstick with her chopsticks, and it landed in Tiantian's bowl in an arc.
Tiantian already had a drumstick in her hand, and her little mouth was greasy. Seeing another one, she happily said, "It's so delicious!"
"Eat more if you like it," Wen Sining said, taking the opportunity to stroke Tiantian's forehead.
After getting rid of the "bomb" of a drumstick, Wen Sining let out a sigh of relief. Just as she was about to take a few mouthfuls of rice to fill her stomach, another piece of meat flew into her bowl.
Her first reaction was that it was Xiao Zhan. She had already prepared words to decline in her mind, but she found that the chopsticks came from the right instead of the left.
Keeping her head straight, Wen Sining couldn't ignore the person on her right.
Did he think he had to fulfill the obligation of a fiancé and give her a chicken wing just because Xiao Zhan had given her a drumstick?
In a daze, Wen Sining stuck her chopsticks into the chicken wing.
The village head's wife frowned and put down the bowls and chopsticks in her hand when she saw the straight chopsticks.
"Miss Wen," Xiao Zhan leaned towards Wen Sining. Before she could recover from their close proximity, he pulled out the chopsticks and said, "Let's eat."
With the chopsticks in her palm, Wen Sining looked up and noticed the disgust in the village head's wife's eyes.
What had she just done?
Wen Sining bit her tongue in annoyance and apologized with a guilty look under the village head's wife's disgusted gaze.
The meal didn't go smoothly. During the meal, Lu Luochen was extremely protective of the food. One-third of the basin of chicken ended up in Wen Sining's bowl. Some was put there by Lu Luochen, and some by Xiao Zhan.
The two men treated Wen Sining like an object and decided her fate regardless of her reluctance.
The chicken still piled up in the bowl, untouched by Wen Sining. She left the dining table.
"You're very lucky," Xiao Zhan said to Lu Luochen.
The word "lucky" hadn't appeared in Lu Luochen's mind since he grew up. Her appearance had created a gulf between him and Yun Chutong.
Lu Luochen put down his chopsticks and retorted sharply, "Mr. Xiao seems very envious."
"Of course. No one likes unhappy things. I'm very envious that you can have such a cute and well-behaved fiancée," Xiao Zhan admitted.
He and Wen Sining had played house when they were kids. He had promised that after he learned his skills, he would find her as soon as possible and marry her.
Now that they had grown up, everything was different from when they were kids. He seemed to have found her, but the so-called fiancé had made the two approaching boats go their separate ways.
Lu Luochen suddenly laughed. "It's a pity that the professional ethics of an idol is to stay single."
Halfway through, as if to get verification, he turned to look at Wen Sining beside him and asked, "Right?"
The entertainment company might have required the stars to stay single before their debut and made them sign an agreement. Once they became top stars without a strong backer, they had to be as pure as a monk.
"Can't stars fall in love?" Wen Sining asked naively. She deliberately avoided answering Lu Luochen's question directly.
Looking at Wen Sining's evasive look, Lu Luochen stroked her hair and asked, "Do you want to find someone to try?"