New ink fragrance in old times

Lin Mo's eyes searched for Lin Sizhe's figure in the snow-covered yard. However, his eyes swept across every corner, but he still couldn't catch the familiar figure.

Shen Xin frowned slightly, clearly worried about Lin Sizhe's whereabouts. He turned to Hua'er and asked, "Where's Silang? Why can't I see him?"

Huaer looked up, with a childish seriousness on her face: "My brother went to the toilet, saying that his stomach was not feeling well."

Shen Xin nodded, a hint of worry flashed in his eyes, but he remained calm.

Time seemed to slow down at this moment, and every second seemed particularly long.

At that moment, Lin Mo's sight suddenly caught a faint sound of movement—Lin Sizhe was slowly stumbling towards him from the other end of the yard. His body was unconsciously curled up, his face as pale as paper, his hands tightly clutching his stomach, his brow furrowed, his eyes filled with pain and helplessness.

Lin Sinan and Lin Siheng walked hand in hand behind Lin Sizhe.

Seeing this, Shen Xin quickly walked to Lin Sizhe's side, squatted down, gently stroked Lin Sizhe's head with her hand, and asked softly: "Silang, where do you feel uncomfortable? Tell mother, mother is here and will help you."

Lin Sizhe looked up, tears glistening in his eyes, his voice weak and trembling: "Mom, my stomach hurts. I just went to the toilet, but... I couldn't poop."

After hearing this, Shen Xin had some guesses in her mind. She sighed softly, reached out and touched Lin Sizhe's round belly, and said with a hint of reproach but full of love:

"I told you not to be greedy. Every time you see something delicious, you forget yourself. Now you know it hurts, don't you?"

Although she said this, there was no blame in her eyes, only heartache.

As he spoke, Shen Xin scolded Lin Sizhe while carefully taking his hand and leading him into the kitchen.

In the kitchen, the firewood was burning brightly, making crackling sounds, adding a bit of warmth to this cold winter day.

Shen Xin settled Lin Sizhe next to the fire. He first scooped a bowl of water from the hanging pot, poured it out, and asked Lin Sizhe to drink a few sips first, hoping to relieve his discomfort.

Han Suniang and Lu Yue, who were standing by, saw this and cast concerned glances at Shen Xin. They asked, "Sister-in-law, what happened to Silang? Why did he suddenly complain of a stomachache?"

Shen Xin sighed softly, a look of helplessness and heartache on his face. "This kid must have had an upset stomach again. Look, I'm trying to think of a way to help him."

After saying that, Shen Xin turned and left the kitchen. When he came back, he had a small ceramic jar in his hand. The jar was glowing slightly, looking quite mysterious in the house.

Lin Mo and the others stared at the pottery jar curiously, their hearts filled with doubts and curiosity.

Shen Xin first put her palms close to the fire to warm them up, then she gently lifted Lin Sizhe's clothes, revealing his round, white and tender belly, which still had some marks of kneading on it, making him look particularly cute.

Then, Shen Xin used chopsticks to gently scoop out a small piece of unknown paste from the pottery jar.

The paste is golden in color, with a faint luster, like a small gem, exuding an attractive fragrance.

She carefully placed the paste in her palm and began to rub it vigorously until it slowly melted into a warm liquid.

Lin Mo squeezed closer to Shen Xin curiously, his eyes fixed on the pottery jar, afraid of missing any details.

He watched the golden paste slowly transform in Shen Xin's hands, his heart filled with confusion and curiosity. He couldn't help swallowing, his eyes fixed on the paste in the jar, secretly wondering: What kind of ointment is this? Why does it smell like honey? I wonder if it's edible?

Just as Lin Mo was immersed in his own reverie, Shen Xin had already begun to massage Lin Sizhe's belly in a clockwise rotation with skillful techniques.

The liquid slowly seeped into her skin as she moved, and the air seemed to be filled with a faint scent of honey, which was both refreshing and soothing.

Lin Sizhe cried out in pain, his small body twisting restlessly in Shen Xin's warm embrace, as if every twist could take away a little pain and make him feel a little more comfortable. His childish face had lost its former rosy color and turned extremely pale, but his bright eyes still sparkled with a child's unique playfulness and curiosity.

He tilted his head slightly, looking at Shen Xin with eyes full of longing. He pointed at the clay pot beside him with his little hand, and said in a weak yet coquettish voice, "Mom, what is this? It smells so good, like the sugar-roasted chestnuts Uncle Wang sells. I want to eat this, so please give me a bite."

Shen Xin sighed softly, stretched out his finger, and gently tapped Lin Sizhe's forehead. There was a hint of tenderness in his words of reproach: "You, it's already this time, and you're still greedy. Your stomach hurts so much that you can't even stand up straight, and you still think about this thing. I think you only care about food and not punishment."

Lin Sizhe, however, seemed to have completely ignored Shen Xin's rebuke. Instead, he acted even more recklessly, his small hands tightly grasping Shen Xin's collar, his eyes filled with anticipation. "Mom, just give me a taste. Maybe it won't hurt anymore. Mom, you're the best. Just promise me."

At this time, Hua'er beside her also interrupted, a little puzzled: "Brother, why do you have a stomachache? We are all fine. Did you do something bad and your stomach is punishing you?"

Xing'er, who was helping Shen Xin pull Lin Sizhe's clothes, also asked, "Yeah, did you eat something else?"

Lin Sizhe's expression instantly became evasive, his eyes wandering, and he was obviously hiding something.

A mother knows her son best. Shen Xin looked at Lin Sizhe and guessed something in her mind.

While continuing to rub Lin Sizhe's belly, she asked softly, "Silang, did you eat something else? Tell me, I won't blame you."

Lin Sizhe shook his head like a rattle: "No, no. Mom, my stomach just hurts on its own."

Shen Xin knew that he couldn't get any truth out of Lin Sizhe.

She turned her gaze to Lin Sinan and Lin Siheng beside her, and Shen Xin asked gently, "Tell me, did your fourth brother eat something he shouldn't have?"

Lin Sinan looked at Lin Sizhe, then at Shen Xin, his face full of confusion and hesitation. He clearly knew something, but was afraid to speak out and anger Lin Sizhe.

At this time, Lu Yue, who was standing by, also joined in. Knowing Lin Sinan's personality very well, she sternly said to him, "Wu Lang, what did your mother tell you? You must be honest and not lie. Tell me, what did your fourth brother do just now?"

Lin Sinan's lips moved, as if he wanted to say something, but then stopped.

At this moment, Shen Xin coaxed, "Wulang, you said, Auntie will give you this to eat."

As she spoke, she shook the clay pot in her hand, which contained the mysterious paste used to relieve Lin Sizhe's stomachache.

Lin Sinan's eyes lit up, obviously attracted by the tempting paste.

But at this moment, Lin Sizhe suddenly spoke, his tone filled with urgency and desire: "Mom, I said, can you give me a drink?"

Shen Xin nodded: "Okay, but you have to tell me what you ate first."

Lin Sizhe hesitated for a moment, then finally rummaged through his pocket and pulled out a large, crystal-clear icicle. The icicle shone brightly in the firelight, which frightened Shen Xin.

When Lin Mo saw this scene, he thought to himself that something was wrong. He ran away from the battlefield as fast as he could and sat next to Han Suniang who was peeling corn kernels.

Han Suniang couldn't help laughing when she saw Lin Mo running away. She shredded the corn kernels and jokingly said, "Sanlang, Sanlang, what bad things have you done to make you run so fast?"

Lin Mo shook his head: "Mom, I'm just a little cold, come and warm yourself by the fire."

Han Suniang smiled and said, "You little rascal."

Lin Mo smiled and looked towards Lin Sizhe.

Shen Xin looked at Lin Sizhe with a smile, but that smile hid a hint of gnashing teeth. She asked with a hint of seriousness in her tone, "Silang, tell me honestly, where did this thing you eat come from?"

Lin Sizhe blinked, pointed to the backyard, and whispered, "It's by the well. I thought it looked good, so... I couldn't help but break it off and eat a little."