Chapter 7: Yi's Parents and Their Siblings and In-laws

"Yes, yes."

After greeting her elders obediently, the little girl went to sit down beside her niece and nephew.

"Little Aunt."

The two children greeted her. The three little cuties sitting together were truly adorable.

Liu Guoxiang brought out the breakfast she had kept warm on the stove for the three children: a small bowl of sweet potato porridge and one egg for each of them.

"Oh! Eggs!"

The three children clapped their little hands in delight. "We have eggs!"

"Little sister, these are the eggs your Second Sister-in-law brought to help you regain your strength. The three of you should eat them together."

"Thank you, Second Sister-in-law."

Yi Rongkun thanked the woman in her fifties sitting under the eaves with perfect manners. Yi Shichun and Yi Shitian followed suit, saying, "Thank you, Second Sister-in-law."

"Hahaha..."

The siblings' words amused everyone present. "These two children still don't understand the family hierarchy; they're calling her 'Second Sister-in-law' just like their little aunt does. Hahaha..."

Liu Guoxiang was caught between laughter and tears. She patiently instructed the two children, "Your little aunt’s Second Sister-in-law is your Second Grandmother. You two should call her Second Grandmother." To make it easier for them to understand, she taught them again, "Now say: Thank you, Second Grandmother."

"Thank you, Second Grandmother." The siblings understood and quickly repeated it obediently.

The Second Sister-in-law, Xie Xingfang, smiled at the three children. "Good children, all of you. Eat quickly, or it will get cold and won't taste as good."

The three children agreed obediently and buried their heads in their breakfast. A spoonful of porridge, a bite of egg—they were clearly enjoying it immensely.

Interstellar Livestream Chat:
[Ahhh, these eggs look so delicious! Why don't we have such delicacies in the Interstellar era?]
[Don't even think about it, upstairs. Not only does the Interstellar lack eggs, but we can't even cook half a bowl of porridge.]
[Exactly. So many botanical schools have tried to research plants that can produce food, so why has it never succeeded after all these years?]
[Heh...]

Mentioning the so-called "botanists" of the Interstellar era, the netizens couldn't help but utter this sound, which held countless layers of meaning. It was a word interpreted differently by everyone; one could ponder it for themselves.

[Begging our little ancestor streamer to look at the chat! Let us know if the ingredients there can be traded.]

A user with the screen name *#IGotAncestralGenes#* posted: [If you can't trade ingredients, trading some dirt and water to me is fine too.]
[If that doesn't work, catching some of that pouring rainwater to trade with me would be okay too!]
[Please, little ancestor!]
[Wow, what does "Ancestral Genes" in your username mean? Can you explain?]

*#IGotAncestralGenes#* replied very concisely: [Farming.]

Unfortunately, there was no land to farm in the Interstellar era. No one knew who had selected these planets in the first place, but nothing could grow on them—it was both hateful and a pity.

Perhaps the outcry from the Interstellar netizens was too loud, stirring the system into action. It immediately issued a new task: "Ding! Please, Host, start learning basic knowledge and strive to become a qualified Interstellar streamer as soon as possible."

After finishing breakfast, the voice in Yi Rongkun’s head sounded again. Yi Rongkun opened her mouth to ask a question, but the voice immediately coaxed, "Little Host, don't speak out loud. Just think about what you want to say in your head."

*My goodness, it’s so exhausting to have a host who doesn't understand anything.* If she let its existence be known, could its host even survive?

Yi Rongkun blinked her wide, bewildered eyes, staring at the rainwater falling from the eaves, unsure how to react.

"Little sister, what's wrong?" Seeing her grandson and granddaughter playing on their own while her youngest daughter sat motionless on her small stool, Liu Guoxiang asked with a hint of worry as she crouched before her.

Yi Rongkun blinked her large eyes and asked, "Mom, the Bucket said..."

The system panicked: "Ahhh, little Host, don't talk randomly!"

"Eek!"

Startled by the system's screech, Yi Rongkun instinctively threw herself into her mother's arms. "Mom, I'm scared."

"Don't be scared, don't be scared, Mom is here." Liu Guoxiang hugged her little daughter's soft body and soothed her gently, "Be good, don't be afraid."

System: "..." Children are the hardest to deal with.

It adjusted its code and reorganized its language to communicate with its little host: "Little Host, when I talk to you, please don't say it out loud. Just think it in your head, okay? Also, if you learn to read, I'll reward you with candy. Do you want that?"

Candy?

Hearing this, Yi Rongkun's eyes lit up astonishingly. She tried asking in her mind as the system instructed: "Really? But I can't see you, so how will you give me candy? Are you lying to me?"

System: "No, the system never lies to its host."

"What is a 'Host'? Why do you keep saying 'Host'?"

"Youngest Sister-in-law, could it be that the little sister was frightened silly yesterday?"

While Yi Rongkun was secretly communicating with the system, one of the women sewing under the eaves spoke up, "Why does the little sister look a bit dull?"

"Fourth Sister-in-law, how can you say that about my little sister?" Liu Guoxiang glared at the woman unpleasantly. "She is your own niece, after all; can't you wish her well?"

"How am I not wishing her well?" The Fourth Sister-in-law, Ou Guiying, retorted with dissatisfaction. "If I didn't wish her well, I wouldn't have brought rice to your house today. Honestly, no good deed goes unpunished. Rongqun, come home with me."

As she spoke, Ou Guiying packed up her sewing, grabbed her own young daughter, and turned to leave. Because the Yi brothers were considered small landowners before the liberation, their houses were all connected, allowing them to travel between homes internally. Therefore, Ou Guiying and her daughter didn't have to worry about getting wet in the rain.

The young girl being pulled along, Yi Rongqun, looked back and smiled at Liu Guoxiang, "Youngest Aunt, don't mind my mom; she just doesn't know how to speak properly. Actually, my mom cares about the little sister a lot."

"You dead girl, why are you saying so much to them? They don't even appreciate it."

Seeing the Fourth family about to leave, the Eldest Sister-in-law, Fan Yadi, and the Second Sister-in-law, Xie Xingfang, were caught between laughter and tears. "Oh my, we're all family; why leave just because of a spat?"

"Exactly, we're all family; why make things so awkward?"

The Fourth Sister-in-law was a very strong-willed woman who often relied on her tall and sturdy build to bully her sisters-in-law. However, she didn't do anything too extreme; she just liked to snatch up the easier tasks when it was time to work, just to earn a few extra work points. The other sisters-in-law knew her temperament and usually let her have her way. Thus, while they quarreled and bickered, they would never stand by if something real happened.

That was why, after what happened yesterday, they had brought some good things to visit today and were sitting together sewing and chatting. They had barely sat down when they were already arguing and leaving in a huff. Fan Yadi and Xie Xingfang naturally felt the need to offer a few words of persuasion.

"Hmph!"

Ou Guiying paused her steps but didn't turn back, huffing lightly, "I came here specifically bringing rice from my own home to see the little sister, but some people just don't appreciate kindness."