Chapter 9: Longing from a Past Life

The Bai family was very small, so small that it consisted of only one inner room.

The inner room was short from east to west but long from north to south, with the two beds Bai Lu mentioned placed at the southern and northern ends respectively.

The southern bed was only one and a half meters wide, shared by Bai Lu and Bai Shuang, while the northern bed was larger, occupied by Liu Yue’e and her husband.

Tonight, Lu Fan slept on the smaller one-and-a-half-meter bed, while Bai Lu and Liu Yue’e shared the larger northern bed. Near the small bed, a piece of iron wire was stretched with a red checkered bedsheet hanging from it, serving as a divider.

The night remained hot. Lu Fan first took a shower in the courtyard, then returned to the small space behind the bedsheet.

Just as he lay down, he heard footsteps approaching quietly, stopping right opposite the bedsheet.

His heart raced uncontrollably. Could it be so urgent? If the other party came in, should he refuse, or...?

At that moment, Bai Lu’s voice sounded softly, “You’re sweating in those clothes tonight. Let me wash them for you. They’ll be dry by tomorrow, so it won’t affect you wearing them.”

Lu Fan silently handed over the folded shirt and pants from the pillow to her and said, “Thank you.”

“It’s nothing... oh, you’re welcome!”

The girl behind the sheet seemed even more nervous than Lu Fan. She hurriedly took the clothes and ran out.

Lu Fan stretched out on the bed, gazing at the pale moonlight outside the window, listening to the sound of water flowing and the quiet whispers of mother and daughter. The scene felt unreal, like a dream.

“Bai Shuang, if you knew I was reborn and changed your sister’s fate, you’d be so happy!” he thought.

“In the future, you won’t have to suffer so much. You won’t lose Mom and Dad, and you won’t have to rely solely on your sister.”

“By the way, in this lifetime, you’ll still call Old Lu and Old Xia ‘Mom and Dad,’ but we probably won’t return to the way things were before.”

When Lu Fan woke again, daylight was bright. His clothes hung on the iron wire, already dry.

He sniffed them and caught a pleasant scent of laundry detergent.

Dressed, he came out to see Bai Lu sitting on a small stool, mending the shirt Liu Yue’e had torn the day before.

Seeing him, Bai Lu gave a sweet smile. “You’re awake? Are you hungry? I’ll prepare some food for you.”

Lu Fan pressed his hand down. “No rush, I’ll eat later. Where’s your mom?”

“She went to the hospital today to pay fees and to ask the Third People’s Hospital to invite the attending physician from the big hospital to schedule the surgery.”

“Can she manage on her own?”

“She should be able to. She used to handle hospital matters herself. Now that we have money, it probably won’t be so difficult.”

Lu Fan nodded and shifted the topic.

“You dropped out in your second year of high school. It’s a pity. Have you ever thought about continuing your studies and taking the college entrance exam?”

Bai Lu shook her head. “I won’t go back.”

“Money won’t be an issue anymore, and you don’t need to worry about other factors. Just listen to your heart. If you want to continue studying, you can.”

“Forget it. I’ve fallen behind in my studies. If I go back to school, I’ll probably feel out of place. I think I know enough culture — enough to read books and do math. I don’t have much yearning for university life.”

“That’s because of your family’s past circumstances. That won’t be a limitation anymore. You’ll probably change gradually. But it’s okay. You’re still young. If you want to study later, you can anytime.”

Bai Lu hesitated, then lowered her head and whispered, “My mom said that once my dad’s illness is better, I’ll follow you around, taking care of you — mending your clothes, washing up for you.”

Lu Fan was silent for a moment, then nodded and said softly, “That’s fine.”

“If you’re by my side, maybe you can help me. I plan to find a simple business to run after college, and I’ll definitely need someone I trust to help look after things.”

“Can I do it?”

“Of course you can. You’re the best professional manager.”

Hearing Lu Fan’s words, the shyness vanished from Bai Lu’s face, replaced by a radiant glow.

Breakfast was simple white porridge accompanied by leftovers from last night.

As Lu Fan sat down at the table, the food was brought out. He wanted to help, but Bai Lu wouldn’t let him move, even placing the spoon in his hand.

Lu Fan thought that if he stayed still, she might feed him.

After eating, Lu Fan suggested going for a walk in Jiangcheng city, and Bai Lu readily agreed.

Jiangcheng was the capital of Jiangnan Province, administratively divided into five districts and three counties. The five districts were Dongping, Baoshan, Donghu, Longgang, and the Industrial Development Zone; the three counties were Changle, Anhe, and Anyuan, with a permanent population of over twelve million.

At present, only Baoshan, Donghu, and Longgang could be called Jiangcheng’s urban area, as these three districts were the most commercially developed. The other two districts were only recently upgraded from rural townships and were far behind in development.

Lu Fan rode a bicycle, observing the buildings along the street. Few buildings exceeded five stories, and reaching ten stories was a hallmark of the city.

Between Dongping and Baoshan, large expanses of farmland still remained.

Looking at these fields, Lu Fan’s eyes gleamed with tears of joy. He couldn’t help but shout loudly,

“Why do my eyes often fill with tears? Because I love this land deeply.”

“You like Ai Qing’s poetry too?” Bai Lu sat on a beam, slightly raising her head.

“Yes, I like this one. I love this land, though I’ve forgotten the other parts.”

“If I were a bird, I should sing with a hoarse throat, about this land beaten by storms, this river forever surging with our grief and anger, this endlessly blowing furious wind, and that incredibly gentle dawn coming from the woods…”

Bai Lu began reciting softly, her voice melodious and emotions perfectly controlled.

“Mm, beautiful. What else do you remember? Recite another one for me.”

Bai Lu cautiously glanced at Lu Fan again, seeing only his determined profile — a straight jawline, slightly pressed lips, a high nose bridge, sharp brows and bright eyes, neat sideburns, and short bangs swaying softly in the wind.

She looked, enchanted.

“How can I let you meet me at my most beautiful moment? For this, I have prayed before Buddha for five hundred years, begging Buddha to let us form a mortal bond. Buddha then transformed me into a tree, growing by the path you must pass, solemnly blooming flowers under the sunlight, each a hope from my past life…”

As Bai Lu recited this poem, her tone changed to one as gentle as water, like a breeze brushing the heart.

When she spoke of past-life hopes, Lu Fan’s heart trembled involuntarily.

He looked down and saw a pair of autumn-like eyes gazing at him.

Thousands of words filled his heart, but only one word escaped his lips:

“Sis!”