Chapter Seven: The Purple Radish

"Alright, Father!" Liet replied with righteous vigor and dashed toward the field ridge. But as soon as the burly man turned his head, Liet made a funny face behind his back. Only when he saw Li Le laughing at his antics did he finally scamper down into the field.

The big man seemed to have caught something in Li Le’s gaze. He turned to glance at the boy’s retreating figure and cursed under his breath, “That little rascal!”

Li Le smiled but didn’t echo the sentiment. Instead, with sincere tone, she said, “Uncle, Liet is lively and strong. Among his peers I’ve never seen anyone as capable as him…”

Had it been in her previous life, Li Le had indeed seen plenty of children. But in this world, she’d only met a few youngsters and had no way to truly know how strong Liet was. Still, when facing a father, praising his son was always the right move.

As expected, hearing Li Le’s praise of Liet, Uncle Liu’s expression grew warmer, but he still smiled and replied, “Don’t listen to that brat’s boasting. He still has a long way to go…”

Li Le simply smiled and didn’t press the matter. Instead, she said, “Uncle Liu, I’ve just arrived in Cloud City, and I’m not familiar with many things. I wanted to ask you about Brother Bai…”

The man glanced at Li Le, hesitated for a moment, and then said, “Lele, since Yezi recognizes you as his sister, I won’t keep anything from you. After all, it’s nothing that can’t be spoken of openly…”

Li Le nodded solemnly, clearly valuing Brother Bai’s past.

The big man set his hoe aside and began, “Yezi’s parents passed away during the Dead Fog riot when he was still a child. Don’t be fooled by how sturdy he looks now—back then, he was just a scrawny little thing, always wearing a cold expression…”

“The people in the district couldn’t bear to see it. They’d support him in open and subtle ways, not for any reward, but simply because they couldn’t watch a child go hungry…”

“No one expected that the boy would be so stubborn. Every meal he received, every kindness he was shown, he remembered it all…” The big man smiled, his tone tinged with emotion.

“At first, nobody noticed. But later, everyone realized—whenever there was trouble, that boy was always the first to rush over, still wearing that cold face. Yezi just grew up, stumbling along like that…”

Li Le listened, enraptured. “And then?”

Instead of answering directly, the man asked, “You came back with him today, so you must know he’s in charge of a patrol team at the city gate, right?”

Li Le nodded, a faint sense of realization dawning.

The big man laughed heartily. “You probably don’t know yet how important the city gate is. In Cloud City, the one responsible for defending the main gate… that position is held by at least the district chief of Zone One.”

Li Le’s body stiffened, her voice faltering, “Are you saying… Brother Bai is… the district chief?”

Seeing her disbelief, the big man’s expression softened with a touch of pride and nostalgia. “That’s right. Surprised? Most of the people in the Thirteenth District didn’t expect it either. Bai Ye, who grew up eating meals from every household, grew strong as if blessed, surpassing most of his peers in no time…”

“In the end, he even became the chief of the Thirteenth District…”

Li Le slowly suppressed her shock, but upon reflection, so many clues had been right before her: the unusual deference the city gate guards showed Brother Bai; his cold, blood-tinged, iron-willed demeanor; how easily he had led her into the inner city; the countless greetings from residents of the Thirteenth District; and that extraordinary strength…

All these pointed clearly to Bai Ge’s unique status and power in the Thirteenth District. Perhaps she really had stumbled onto a treasure by sheer luck when she picked him out from the crowd. Li Le touched her nose, a wry smile in her heart.

Just then, there was movement at the field’s edge.

Liet parted the grass, carrying something on his back, and climbed out from the ridge.

Both Uncle Liu and Li Le turned to look. Uncle Liu seemed unfazed, but Li Le was utterly astonished, “Is that… a vegetable?”

She pointed stiffly at the enormous, purple, round root—at least a meter high and wide—on Liet’s back, and turned to Uncle Liu for confirmation.

What was this thing? Hadn’t she seen vegetables before? She was well-read—no one could fool her.

Uncle Liu nodded, smiling at her, “It’s not much, but take it as a token of my goodwill…”

By now, Liet had set the giant “root” onto the stone floor, making it look even larger.

Li Le hesitated for a moment, carefully choosing her words, “Uncle, I appreciate your kindness…”

She glanced again at the mud-caked root on the ground and said to the big man, “But… perhaps it’s better to leave it for another day…”

It was impossible for her to carry that thing back by herself…

Before she could finish her sentence, the boy piped up to the man, “Father! I know, Big Sis can’t carry it… I’ll go back with her!”

Li Le’s face darkened—what a cheeky child!

The big man was startled, then realized what Liet meant. He swung his large palm and smacked Liet on the back of the head, “Little rascal, mind your words! You’re punished to help your sister carry the vegetables back home!”

“And just wait till we get back—I’ll deal with you properly then!”

Liet had been about to retort, but hearing the second half of his father’s words, he shrank his neck and muttered, “Fine, I’ll go! Who’s afraid…”

His voice was defiant, but his attitude clearly wasn’t.

Li Le breathed a sigh of relief, glancing sidelong at Liet and feeling much better inside.

“Alright, Uncle Liu, I should head back now… Brother Bai is probably still waiting for me to eat.”

“Go on, then. When you have time, come play with Liet…”

Li Le agreed with a smile, and together with Liet—who carried the massive root on his back—set off toward the wooden cabin she recalled.

Along the way, Li Le couldn’t help but glance at Liet, amazed by the boy’s strength. Despite carrying such a heavy root, he walked steadily, even finding the energy to tease her:

“Big Sis… don’t be mad at me, okay? I only did it so Father wouldn’t scold me…”

Li Le turned a blind eye and replied coolly, “Oh…”

Liet sighed, “Big Sis… please don’t be angry… If you need help during ‘Geli,’ I’ll help out too, alright?”

Li Le remained unmoved, “Oh…”

Though they were similar in build, their ages were worlds apart. How could they possibly do ‘Geli’ together?

…

“You’re back? Come eat.”

Just as they entered the wooden cabin, Bai Ye’s crisp voice called out from the kitchen.

Before Li Le could step inside, Bai Ye was already carrying out two enormous bowls of food into the living room.

Li Le’s eyes twitched at the sight of those washbasin-sized bowls. She swallowed the words, “Let me help,” before they could leave her throat…

The sheer weight of those things was another matter entirely—if she spilled them, it would be terribly embarrassing.

Bai Ge set the two massive bowls on the wooden table. After glancing at Li Le to make sure she was alright, he called toward the doorway, “If you’re here, come in. Why linger at the door?”

Li Le paid no mind to what Bai Ge said to Liet at the door. She simply stared blankly at the two large bowls of food on the table. Clearly, the portion in front of her… was even bigger.

How could anyone finish all this? It would take a whole day!

The wooden door creaked open. Liet peeked in, the root still on his back, and said with a bashful smile, “Big Brother…”