After a long day at school, Lin Mei returned home to the familiar smells of cooking. Her father was wiping sweat from his brow after working in the fields, while her mother carefully stirred a pot over the fire.
Her younger twin brothers, full of energy even after a day in the sun, were already running around the yard.
"Lin Mei! Come eat!" her mother called.
The family gathered at the simple wooden table. Dinner was modest, as always: corn porridge, steamed corn, and radish pickles. Lin Mei's father carved a small piece of steamed corn and placed it in her bowl, smiling."You're getting taller," he said. "Eat well so you can keep studying."
Lin Mei smiled softly, picking at her porridge. Her brothers chattered endlessly, finishing their meal quickly and running outside to play in the fading sunlight. Their laughter echoed across the farmhouse yard, filling the air with life and energy.
Once dinner was done, Lin Mei quietly excused herself. She carried her bowl back to the small outdoor kitchen sink and washed it carefully. Then, slipping past the courtyard, she climbed the narrow steps to her own little room.Her room was small but cozy. A single bed lay against the wall, a wooden desk sat under the window, and a small shelf held her textbooks and notebooks. The soft light of a paper lantern cast a warm glow over the walls. Despite its simplicity, Lin Mei loved her little space-it was her corner of the world, where she could think, dream, and plan.
She glanced at her brothers' room across the yard. It was divided into two smaller spaces, one for each twin, separated by a thin wooden wall. Their laughter and occasional teasing carried faintly through the walls. Lin Mei shook her head with a fond smile.Sitting at her desk, Lin Mei ran her fingers over the jade bracelet hidden under her sleeve. Its faint warmth pulsed against her skin. The bracelet seemed almost alive, waiting for the right moment.
She leaned back in her chair and daydreamed. Could it really be true? The planting space... the fields... the voice?
Outside, the wind whispered through the bamboo and corn stalks, and the evening sky turned a deep shade of purple. Lin Mei's room, small and simple as it was, suddenly felt like the starting point of something magical, a doorway into a world she could never have imagined.Her thoughts drifted to tomorrow, to school, and to the hidden fields that waited silently under the touch of her bracelet.
A soft laugh escaped her lips. Maybe... just maybe... I should try it tonight.