“Brother?” The girl glanced at Older Brother. Having grown up with Boy since childhood, she knew that without Older Brother’s permission, she was not allowed to take other people’s things.

　　“Be careful, don’t burn yourself!”

　　Boy patted Younger Sister’s head, looked at the shaobing vendor, and said, “Uncle Harris, I don’t buy rice or flour, so I don’t need these ration coupons. Please take them, I found them!”

　　Although the aroma of sesame wafted to his nose and Boy’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down, he stubbornly placed the ration coupons on the counter, making it clear that if they weren’t accepted, he wouldn’t take the shaobing.

　　“You child, what’s wrong with Uncle Harris giving you two shaobing to eat?”

　　Old Harris gave a wry smile. Having known this child for four or five years, he knew that if he didn’t accept the ration coupons, Boy really would leave with Younger Sister.

　　And he also believed that the ration coupons were indeed found by Boy, because in the past five years, he had never seen Little Boy take anything from others.

　　Shaking his head, Old Harris took out a piece of oiled paper, then took a shaobing from the side of the stove, put it together with the other two, handed them to Boy, and said, “Frank Quinn, Uncle Harris can’t take advantage of you. Three shaobing for five jin of ration coupons, here you go…”

　　“Thank you, Uncle Harris!”

　　The Boy named Frank Quinn didn’t refuse this time. He took the oiled paper, tore off half a shaobing and handed it to Younger Sister. Seeing Younger Sister wolfing it down, his tense little face finally showed a hint of a smile.

　　“What a hard life these kids have!”

　　After Frank Quinn and his sister left, Old Harris sighed. If he didn’t already have three children and an average family situation, he would have taken these sensible siblings into his home long ago.

　　Frank Quinn and his sister came to this urban-rural fringe area on the outskirts of Cangzhou five years ago. At that time, Frank Quinn was only seven, and his Younger Sister was just three.

　　It seemed the siblings had gotten off a passing train that stopped here, but no one knew where they came from.

　　Although Frank Quinn was very young, he had a strong sense of self-respect. By scavenging and collecting junk, he managed to raise his three-year-old Younger Sister all by himself. He never stole or robbed, and the adults living nearby always had a special fondness for this mature child.

　　Of course, while the Frank Quinn siblings were often held up as role models by adults to educate their own children, they weren’t very popular among the local kids. Whenever they took recyclables to the recycling station, a group of children would follow behind, calling them “junk kings.”

　　“Da Huang, your dinner is here.”

　　After walking for more than twenty minutes, Frank Quinn brought Younger Sister back to their “home.” A big yellow dog with a bald tail silently came up to greet them, rubbing its big head against the siblings, looking extremely happy.

　　Frank Quinn poured a bag of pig offal into the basin outside the door, then took Younger Sister inside.

　　This was a house right next to the railway tracks, with only one room. Since the trains had been rerouted, only one train passed by each day, so this section was no longer a priority for maintenance.

　　As a result, the house that used to be a rest stop for maintenance workers became dilapidated. Fortunately, it was made of brick and tile, so at least the walls didn’t leak wind. Otherwise, the two children really wouldn’t have survived the northern winter.

　　And fortunately, in the early 1990s, Cangzhou didn’t have the large population of homeless people that would appear later, so the Frank Quinn siblings were able to live in this cheap house.

　　“Jiajia, don’t drink raw water, it’ll give you diarrhea. I’ll pour you some boiled water.”

　　Back at their “home,” Frank Quinn saw Younger Sister about to drink from the water pipe used to fill the train’s tank and quickly stopped her. He picked up a tin thermos from the corner and poured a mug of water for the already-thirsty Grace Quinn.

　　“Brother, the shaobing is so delicious!”

　　The little girl licked her lips, catching a stray sesame seed, and stared at Older Brother’s green canvas satchel. She knew there was still a shaobing inside.

　　“Do your homework well. I’ll check it when I get back tonight. If you get everything right, I’ll reward you with a shaobing.”

　　Frank Quinn took the enamel mug from Younger Sister, gulped down the remaining water in one go, wiped his mouth, and took out two textbooks and a stack of used letter paper from the drawer of the three-legged table propped up with a brick, placing them on the table.

　　Although he had to scavenge for junk every day, since Younger Sister turned five, Frank Quinn had started teaching her to read and write. Now, at eight years old, Grace Quinn was at about a third or fourth grade level.

　　As for Frank Quinn himself, before his family’s misfortune, his father had already taught him many characters. With his intelligence and years of self-study, he had already mastered the junior high curriculum. If it weren’t for wanting Younger Sister to interact with more children her age, Frank Quinn wouldn’t have needed to send her to school at all.

　　“I know, Older Brother. Come back early!” Grace Quinn said coquettishly, shaking Older Brother’s arm, then obediently sat down at the three-legged desk.

　　“Don’t run around. If you’re sleepy, just go to bed.”