“Hmph, you’re the lazy pig!” Emily thought to herself with disdain.

She secretly leaned close to Kevin Bolton’s ear and whispered, “Second brother, yesterday mom bought a lot of meat, such a big piece, it must be dozens of jin!”

The little girl gestured with her hands, her eyes sparkling with countless little stars. She sneaked a glance at Kevin Bolton, then lowered her head and murmured in a voice as soft as a mosquito, “I... I also want to eat a little, just one piece is enough.”

Emily spoke timidly, as if she had made a huge mistake. During this time, Kevin Bolton had been sick, and Mrs. Sullivan tried every way to buy some meat and eggs, but it was all given to Kevin Bolton. Emily was very understanding, eating cornbread and dried cabbage with Mrs. Sullivan and the others every day.

The little girl knew her second brother needed to recover, so she always swallowed her saliva in secret. But this time, mom bought so much meat, and the aroma of the boiling meat kept drifting into her nose. The little girl’s cravings were completely aroused, so she finally mustered up the courage to come over and make her request.

What’s wrong with a child eating a little meat! But right now, the whole family revolved around Kevin Bolton, so even this humble request seemed a bit excessive. Emily looked like a child who had done something wrong, head down, rubbing her clothes.

Seeing this, Kevin Bolton suddenly felt a lump in his throat—this was his own little sister!

“Come on, let’s go eat some meat with your second brother!”

Kevin Bolton took Emily by the hand and strode to the stove. Just then, Mrs. Sullivan and Lucy were both away. Kevin Bolton lifted the big pot lid in one go—steam billowed out, and a big chunk of meat rolled around in the boiling water, with a beautiful layer of oil floating on top.

Gulp. Emily couldn’t help but swallow. Kevin Bolton grabbed the meat with chopsticks in one hand and held a kitchen knife in the other. With one chop, he cut off a good two jin of marbled meat.

“Emily, go get a bowl, let’s dip it in soy sauce and eat!”

“Okay!” The little girl happily brought over a big bowl. Kevin Bolton cut the meat into finger-thick strips. There was no garlic, so he grabbed a few dried chili peppers, roasted them in the stove, then crushed them into the soy sauce.

All done!

The siblings grabbed the meat strips, dipped them in soy sauce, and ate heartily. Emily, though small, had a big appetite—half a bowl of meat disappeared in the blink of an eye. Just as they were happily eating, the door suddenly opened, and Mrs. Sullivan and Lucy came in one after the other.

Seeing the two siblings squatting by the stove, Mrs. Sullivan immediately widened her eyes. “You little rascals, this was prepared for your brother and the others to take to Guangning—how could you eat it all!”

Hearing mom’s scolding, Emily Bolton was instantly scared. Her cheeks puffed out, not sure whether to swallow the meat or not, so she could only look pitifully at Kevin Bolton.

Kevin Bolton smiled and said, “Mom, we’ve had it tough for so long. When I come back from Guangning, we’ll have good days ahead. Think of this as enjoying a little in advance, please don’t worry about it!”

As he spoke, Kevin Bolton affectionately patted his sister’s head. Emily broke into a big smile and happily swallowed the meat, sweetness welling up from her heart.

“Sigh, you haven’t even started living the good life and you’re already thinking about eating and drinking. You’re definitely going to be a spendthrift!” Mrs. Sullivan complained, but in reality, she had already given her tacit approval.

“Mom, don’t worry, your son won’t let you down!” Kevin Bolton said with a smile. “This meat must be over ten jin. We can’t finish it all on the road, so let’s eat some together!”

Kevin Bolton was about to cut more meat, but Mrs. Sullivan grabbed him and said sternly, “A poor family should be generous on the road—bringing more food is always right. I took three qian from the silver that Brother Liu sent, and finally managed to buy ten jin of beef and fifteen jin of pork. The beef is with Aunt Li next door—her braised beef is famous around here.”

As she spoke, Mrs. Sullivan took an oil-paper package from Lucy and said with a smile, “It’s so cold, it won’t spoil. Take it to eat on the road.”

The heavy package made Kevin Bolton think of his university days, when classmates would bring back big bags of local snacks from home, and he would feel a pang of envy. Now, he could finally enjoy it himself!

Home, family, the taste of happiness…

Kevin Bolton felt energized all over. “Mom, we’ll definitely get through this. We absolutely will!”

Seeing the determination in her son’s eyes, Mrs. Sullivan nodded with tears in her eyes.

……

“Brother Ke, come out quick and see how we’re doing!”

It was Frank Johnson!

Kevin Bolton hurriedly stood up and went to the yard, only to see George Johnson and Frank Johnson bundled up like bears. Behind them were two large wooden sleds, and next to the sleds were two mighty big yellow dogs, wagging their tails and sticking out their long tongues.

“This is all you prepared? No horses? At least get an ox!”

“How could we not have an ox!” Frank Johnson pointed at Kevin Bolton, then at George Johnson, and laughed, “Aren’t the three of us oxen!”

George Johnson scratched his head in embarrassment and said, “We wanted to borrow an ox cart or a horse cart, but they all require a deposit. Anyway, both of us are strong, so we’ll pull it ourselves. Maybe, probably, it’ll be fine!”

Chapter 8: Setting Off

Everyone sounded a bit guilty. Kevin Bolton stared blankly at the sleds and the big yellow dogs with their tongues out, a cold sweat breaking out on his forehead. He couldn’t help but start doubting his supposedly perfect plan!