"Bang, bang bang…"

 

In the howling cold wind, a thinly dressed little boy nervously knocked on the door of a house.

 

It was New Year's Eve, and laughter could be heard from inside the courtyard.

 

"Bang, bang bang…"

 

After waiting for a while without any response, the little boy raised his hand and grabbed the door handle, gently knocking a few more times.

 

"Hoo…"

 

It was too cold, so after knocking on the door, he immediately put his hand to his mouth and exhaled, warming himself up.

 

Not only his hands, but his feet in straw shoes were also numb from the cold.

 

"Who is it?"

 

Fortunately, at this moment, someone in the courtyard finally responded.

 

The little boy's face brightened.

 

"Second Uncle, it's me."

 

He quickly replied.

 

"Squeak…"

 

Not long after, the courtyard door opened, and a middle-aged man with a kind face stuck his head out from the crack.

 

"Oh, it's Taiping. What's the matter coming so late?"

 

The middle-aged man asked the little boy.

 

"Second… Second Uncle… We ran out of charcoal at home. I want to borrow some charcoal from you and I can go to the mountains to chop firewood in the coming spring. I will definitely repay you."

 

The little boy said with a hint of embarrassment, avoiding eye contact.

 

"How much is a few pounds of charcoal worth? Just wait here, I'll get it for you!"

 

The man waved his hand and readily agreed.

 

"Taiping, have you eaten?"

 

After taking a few steps, the man suddenly stopped and turned to ask the little boy.

 

"I… I… I have eaten… but Grandpa… Grandpa hasn't…"

 

The little boy tightly held onto his clothes, and his voice became almost inaudible towards the end.

 

Seeing this, the middle-aged man sighed lightly, then smiled and said, "Taiping, wait here. Second Uncle will be right back."

 

"Okay."

 

The little boy nodded gently.

 

At this moment, another gust of cold wind blew by, causing the little boy to shiver, but he didn't feel as cold inside.

 

"Taiping!"

 

Not long after, the middle-aged man came out with a dustpan in his hand.

 

"Take it."

 

With a breath of white air, Second Uncle walked quickly to the courtyard gate and stuffed the dustpan into the little boy's arms.

 

The little boy looked down and saw that besides a few pounds of charcoal, there were also four steaming white steamed bread in the dustpan.

 

"Second Uncle, I…"

 

Looking at those big white steamed bread, the boy felt a bit anxious, but after not eating for a day, he couldn't help but swallow his saliva when he saw those white steamed bread.

 

"Take it!"

 

The middle-aged man smiled kindly.

 

"Erniu, why are you still lingering in the courtyard?"

 

Just then, a sturdy woman walked quickly to the courtyard gate.

 

When the little boy and the middle-aged man saw this woman, their faces changed.

 

"Taiping… Taiping came to borrow some charcoal."

 

The middle-aged man smiled awkwardly at the woman, avoiding her gaze, full of fear.

 

"Second… Second Aunt."

 

The little boy called out to the woman.

 

The woman first glared at the middle-aged man, then looked at the little boy, and finally her gaze fell on the dustpan in his hands.

 

When she saw the steamed bread placed on the charcoal, her face immediately darkened.

 

"These steamed bread were left for Little Hu. You can't even bear to eat them yourself, but you're being extravagant!"

 

The woman glared fiercely at the middle-aged man, then angrily grabbed two steamed bread.

 

"Mom, is the roast goose ready? I want to eat roast goose, not plain steamed bread!"

 

At this moment, a chubby boy wearing a new cotton jacket walked out of the house. When he saw the steamed bread in the woman's hand, his face immediately turned displeased.

 

"Son, why did you come out? It's cold outside, quickly go back inside and don't catch a cold."

 

The woman hurriedly walked towards the chubby boy with a worried expression.

 

"Mom, I don't want plain steamed bread, I want roast goose!"

 

The chubby boy stomped his feet unhappily, as if he was about to cry.

 

"Alright, alright, alright, the roast goose will be ready soon. These steamed bread are for Huang."

 

The woman coaxed the chubby boy with a doting expression, then casually threw the two steamed bread under the eaves into the dog cage.

 

"Ah…"

 

Seeing this scene, the middle-aged man frowned, then sighed helplessly.

 

The little boy looked at the steamed bread being gnawed by the dog, bit his lip, then hugged the dustpan with charcoal tightly, and looked up at the middle-aged man with a smile.

 

"Second Uncle, thank you, I'm leaving."

 

"Be careful on the way, remember to leave a crack in the window when burning charcoal at night, and help your grandpa cover him with a blanket."

 

The middle-aged man waved his hand.

 

"Xu Erniu! If you don't come back to the house, don't even think about sleeping on my kang tonight!"

 

The scolding voice of the woman came from inside the house at this time.

 

"Coming, coming!"

 

The man quickly responded, smiled awkwardly at the little boy, and then closed the courtyard door.

 

After the courtyard door closed, the last trace of light in the snowy ground disappeared, and the whole world was engulfed by the darkness of the night. Only a small light could be seen in a thatched cottage not far away to the east.

 

"With this charcoal and two steamed bread, Grandpa will definitely get better."The little boy in the night didn't feel scared. He huddled his head, murmured a sentence with a smile, and then tightly held a basket of charcoal and two white steamed breads, hopping and skipping towards a small earthen house lit in the night.

 

***

 

In front of the small earthen house.

 

"Squeak……"

 

The little boy pushed open the door.

 

"Taiping……is that you?"

 

As soon as he entered the door, an old, hoarse, and somewhat weak voice came from the room lit by the lamp.

 

"It's me, Grandpa."

 

The little boy rubbed his frozen face hard, managed to squeeze out a smile, and then quickly walked to the door, lifted the curtain and went in.

 

As soon as he entered the room, a strong smell of herbs hit him in the face.

 

Because there was no fire, the temperature inside the room was no different from outside.

 

At the far end of the room, there was a bed made of several wooden boards. Under the worn-out quilt that revealed the cotton stuffing, an old man who was so thin that only skin and bones were left curled up.

 

"Grandpa, Second Uncle lent me a few pounds of charcoal and gave me two white steamed breads. We'll roast them and eat them later."

 

The little boy Taiping poured the charcoal into the stove while speaking joyfully to the old man on the bed.

 

"Good……good……"

 

The old man nodded with a smile.

 

Although the old man was exuding an aura of decline, his cloudy eyes regained their luster as soon as he saw the little boy Taiping.

 

"Taiping……these years……with Grandpa……you've suffered."

 

The old man looked at Taiping with a loving gaze, and murmured with difficulty.

 

"Grandpa, I'm not suffering, not at all."

 

Taiping, who had lit the charcoal stove, looked up, grinned at the old man and shook his head.

 

"Silly boy, such a silly boy……if it weren't for you taking care of me these years, Grandpa would have been gone long ago……"

 

The old man reached out and touched Taiping's little head, sighing with a face full of pity.

 

"Grandpa, don't say these unlucky things, you will definitely live a long life."

 

Taiping shook his head vigorously while roasting the steamed bun.

 

"Taiping, have you ever heard of Immortals?"

 

The old man suddenly asked Taiping.