Chen Ping'an grabbed his small stool and entered the dark and gloomy alley.0

He suddenly squinted his eyes.0

An emaciated little girl was standing outside the courtyard.0

She subconsciously stepped back before looking up and carefully observing Chen Ping'an's expression. She had already thought up many excuses, yet surprisingly didn't dare to utter a single word at this moment.0

"Where are those books?" Chen Ping'an asked.0

The little girl blinked before shaking her head in earnest and replying, "I don't know!"2

As if afraid that Chen Ping'an didn't believe her, she put on an aggrieved expression and explained, "The battle between you and those bad people was so violent, and that man and woman also walked out from this alley back then. How could I dare to return? I obediently sat on the small stool the entire time, but I couldn't see you anymore afterward, so I didn't wait for you to return and hurriedly ran away instead. I was afraid that those bad people would come back for me."0

Chen Ping'an waved his hand, signaling that she could leave. He didn't want to see this scheming little girl anymore.1

However, the skinny little girl appeared extremely pitiful as she continued, "I'm begging you, can you please let me stay for a meal before shooing me away?"1

As it turned out, she had smelled the fragrance of food.0

Chen Ping'an ignored her, locking the gate after he entered the courtyard. Cao Qinglang had surprisingly prepared dinner for himself. The little boy was intelligent and dutiful, and even though he had never cooked before, he had seen his parents cook many times in the past. Now that he was forced to cook for himself, the dishes that he made naturally wouldn't be delicious. However, they would at least be edible.1

In fact, Cao Qinglang had cooked for himself for the past two days.0

Chen Ping'an never went over to help, and he would often choose to leave the courtyard whenever Cao Qinglang entered the kitchen. Today was no different.0

In the past, the little...0