Divorced woman with child travels through time

After walking about two miles to the right and turning a corner, they saw a house. Chen Wenfang led the child over, feeling a little uneasy. What if she couldn't understand what they were saying?

"dong dong dong"

"Who is it?" A moment later, a neatly dressed woman in an indigo dress, around thirty years old, opened the door. She had a round face, a kind and friendly appearance, and thankfully, her speech was somewhat Mandarin with a slight Wuhan accent.

"Hello, Auntie," Chen Wenfang greeted softly with a smile.

"Who are you??" The other person looked her up and down. "You're a refugee from famine, aren't you?"

“Oh, no, no, I came to visit relatives. My husband’s family name is Chen. My relatives live at the house just around the corner. I came over to say hello to you,” Chen Wenfang said.

"Oh, you're from Wang Erniu's family! Sister Chen, what's your relationship to him? My husband's family is Liu, you can just call me Aunt Liu," Aunt Liu said quickly. "Come in and sit down, this must be your child, he's so handsome."

"Aunt Liu, you're so kind," Chen Wenfang said, leading her child out. "My son is over four years old, his name is Xuanyu, and he calls Grandma Liu."

"Hello, Grandma Liu," Chen Xuanyu said very obediently.

"Hey," Aunt Liu said with a smile, patted him, went into the room and grabbed a handful of peanuts to serve the guest. The two sat down and started chatting.

“I’m his cousin. Last year, her husband’s family fell ill, and their property was seized. She had no choice but to leave to seek refuge with relatives. This cousin was the only one she could find, but when she found his house, she couldn’t find him. Do you know where his family went?” Chen Wenfang lied. She had no choice; she couldn’t just sleep outdoors. As she spoke, she looked around Aunt Liu’s house. It had two side rooms and two main rooms, all very clean and tidy, fully furnished—a standard, well-off family. There was also a chicken coop in the yard, with quite a few chickens.

"Wang Erniu's family, a couple of years ago I heard that Emperor Zongde's brother rebelled. When he took his wife back to her parents' home, they got separated. His son was still young. Last year, I heard from people who returned to their hometown that they saw his wife in the south. He took his son to look for his wife. We haven't seen her for so long. I wonder how she is doing." Aunt Liu sighed with emotion.

"So that's how it is. My aunt actually got separated from me. My cousin and I haven't seen each other for almost 10 years. I didn't know so much had happened to him. I hope he can find my aunt and come back safely together," Chen Wenfang said.

"Aunt Liu, your house is so clean and tidy. You're clearly a very capable and thrifty person."

"Not at all," Aunt Liu said, beaming with joy at the compliment.

Chen Wenfang used to work in sales. She was very good at praising people when meeting clients, but she was very quiet when she was alone. She was probably an extroverted but introverted person.

"I'm telling the truth, people as good as you are rare these days."

"You child, you must not have much to eat since you just arrived. Why don't you eat here later?" Aunt Liu warmly invited her to stay.

"Won't this be too much trouble for you?"

"It's no trouble at all, what's the trouble?" Aunt Liu said with a smile.

"You sit down, I'll go pick some vegetables," Aunt Liu said, getting up to go to the vegetable garden next door.

"I'll lend you a hand," Chen Wenfang said with a smile.

"Okay, sure."

Chen Wenfang let the children eat peanuts in the house. She then went to the vegetable garden with Aunt Liu.

"Aunt Liu, your cabbages are so well grown! I can't grow them this well at home. I'll ask you for your advice later."

"It's not difficult at all. You can ask me anything about growing vegetables in the future," Aunt Liu said with a beaming smile.

. . . . . .

Later that evening, Aunt Liu's two sons returned with Uncle Liu. They greeted each other. Uncle Liu's name was Liu Hai, around 35 years old, of medium build, and very honest. His eldest son, Liu Qinghe, was 15 years old, and his second son, Liu Qingshui, was 13 years old. Both children were good-looking, dark-skinned and strong. The whole family looked alike, as if they shared the same face.