Chapter 11

Jiang Li’s ladder was still unfinished. After roasting the bamboo for the handrails, holes needed to be drilled. Given the current conditions—no electric saws or other tools—all the work was purely manual. The ladder, several meters long, required at least eight or nine rungs.

Jiang Li wasn’t particularly skilled at such delicate work, so she devised a method: she took a piece of wood about the thickness of a rung and heated it over the fire, then used it to burn holes into the bamboo. If the holes turned out too small, she would trim them with a knife, speeding up the process somewhat.

The ladder might not be very pretty when finished, but that didn’t matter. It just had to be functional.

Just then, the elderly couple from Qiu Village appeared in front of the dilapidated thatched hut, and Jiang Li was deeply focused on her task.

Mrs. Zhao looked at the bamboo scattered haphazardly by the door and smiled, asking Jiang Li, “Madam Jiang, what are you making?”

Jiang Li looked up at the unfamiliar woman’s face—she didn’t recognize her. But the man beside her was Qiu Cunzheng, whom she did know. Seeing the two together, she guessed this was his wife.

“Auntie, I’m trying to make a ladder. The roof leaks on both sides, and I thought to find some grass to cover it, but we don’t have a ladder, so I’m making one for convenience.”

Qiu Cunzheng looked up at the shabby thatched roof. Zhao Jiaxiu stepped forward, observing Jiang Li as she burned holes in the bamboo.

“Aren’t you afraid the holes will end up too big this way?”

Jiang Li smiled, raising the stick in her hand. “No, this is thinner than the rung I need. I might have to trim it with a knife later.”

Mrs. Zhao watched her, recalling some rumors that seemed partly true, partly not.

“Can that really work?”

“Let’s see. I’ve never made one before.”

Mrs. Zhao liked her attitude—if you don’t know how to do something, learn by trying first, think for yourself and get your hands busy.

“That’s the spirit.”

The elderly woman sat on a nearby stone and helped steady the bamboo.

“Thank you, Auntie.”

Mrs. Zhao smiled. “No need to thank me. You just arrived in our village. Stay a while, and you’ll see, people here are easy to get along with. If you need anything, someone will lend a hand.”

Qiu Cunzheng circled the rundown thatched house. When he returned, seeing his wife already helping, he folded his hands behind his back and approached.

“Jiang Shi, I took a look at your house. The mud bricks over there have already cracked and shifted.”

Jiang Li looked in the direction he pointed—another room.

Still, she was a bit stunned.

“Is it going to collapse?”

“Yes.”

Jiang Li sighed deeply. If that part fell, the roof would cave in, making this room uninhabitable.

“I was thinking of patching the roof for now, to get by for a while, but if it’s going to collapse, that’s too dangerous.”

The elderly couple suddenly fell silent. Even building a new thatched house would cost a lot of silver coins, but the three of them—a widow and two children—were struggling just to eat.

“Why don’t you move to the left side? There’s no rain or strong wind now, so it should hold up for a while longer.”

Qiu Cunzheng instructed, and Jiang Li nodded.

“Did Old Xue leave behind a bow?”

At this question, Jiang Li understood why the elderly woman had told her to wait and couldn’t help but smile wryly.

“Your mother-in-law says you’re secretly keeping weapons, as if you’re planning rebellion.”

Jiang Li: “...”

“She said the bow was brought back from the military by Old Xue. Show it to me, and if it is, it must be turned in. If not, you can keep it.”

The bow was well made, but Jiang Li didn’t think it qualified as a weapon. She got up, went inside, and fetched the bow.

Qiu Cunzheng took it, glanced at it, then smiled and handed it back.

“Keep it for use. This bow isn’t a military weapon, but the wood is good.”

Jiang Li took the bow, examining it closely. Not knowing much about wood, she casually asked, “Uncle, do you know what kind of wood this is made from?”

“Ebony, also called dark sediment wood. It’s believed to ward off evil spirits and is quite rare.”

Mrs. Zhao sighed in relief.

Life was hard now. If people starved to death in the village, it wouldn’t be good for anyone. She hoped everyone’s days would improve.

The bow caused no trouble, and after a while, the elderly couple left without mentioning hunting.

In the Xue family courtyard, the elderly woman hummed a tune, in high spirits.

When Xue Chengju returned that year, he had explicitly told them not to take the bow out. It was a secret. Upon close inspection, the wood was no ordinary material. The second son said it might have been brought back from the military by the eldest brother. If it was seen by others, they might lose their heads.

She was eager to see whether Jiang Li would lose her head over it.

Qiu Cunzheng and his wife went to the Xue family courtyard. As soon as they entered, the elderly woman invited them to sit.

Zhao Jiaxiu heard the voices, opened the door, and smiled at Qiu Cunzheng’s wife.

“Second Aunt, please come in.”

Mrs. Zhao looked at Zhao Jiaxiu and cheerfully walked over. “Jiaxiu, are you home?”

“I won’t sit. Your second uncle has something to discuss with your mother-in-law. After that, we’ll leave. There’s work to be done at home.”

Zhao Jiaxiu hurried off to fetch two cups of honey water and brought them over. “Sit down and talk, have some water to soothe your throat.”

She was quick and brought out two cups and two low stools, so they had to sit to drink.

The elderly woman watched the fourth daughter-in-law sitting with Mrs. Zhao and felt displeased. Yet since Zhao Jiaxiu and Mrs. Zhao were family—Mrs. Zhao being Jiaxiu’s paternal aunt—and both Qiu Cunzheng and Mrs. Zhao had accepted Jiaxiu’s hospitality, she couldn’t send Jiaxiu away in front of Mrs. Zhao.

So she pretended not to see Jiaxiu.

“Old Lady Li, I’ve verified that bow. It’s not a military weapon, so your accusations against your eldest daughter-in-law hold no weight.”

“And the things you said in my courtyard—don’t say such nonsense again. Spreading falsehoods could get everyone in the village killed. You probably just dislike Jiang Li, but you wouldn’t want your entire Xue family dead, would you?”

Qiu Cunzheng’s expression was grave, his tone serious. The elderly woman wanted to say it was impossible, but hearing that everyone might lose their heads, she shrank back, still unwilling to accept it.

“That bow is just an ordinary ebony bow. We don’t have this wood here, but it’s common elsewhere—not anything rare.”

“Not even worth a few copper coins?” the elderly woman asked.

Qiu Cunzheng was speechless. Mrs. Zhao smiled wryly and teased, “Old sister-in-law, don’t tell me your eldest son came in a dream asking you to sell that bow for a few copper coins to send to him?”

Qiu Cunzheng shot his wife a sharp look. “Stop talking nonsense.”

The elderly woman’s face flushed.

“It’s nothing like that. It was left by my son. That temptress never lived with him a single day—how could she take it?”

Zhao Jiaxiu understood now. The bow was not returned, and yet someone had gone to complain. She couldn’t stand the elderly woman’s actions.

“Mother, Jiang Li and eldest brother never lived together. Why did you give Xue Man and Aning to her? Go and take them back to raise yourself.”

Following Zhao Jiaxiu’s words, Qiu Cunzheng said, “Old Lady Li, Old Xue is gone. He left those two poor children behind. Since Jiang Li is willing to raise them and the property has been divided, you should leave them alone. You live your life, and they live theirs. No interference.”

The elderly woman nodded.

“Ah, as long as it’s not a military weapon, that’s good.”

Mrs. Zhao said nothing further. After finishing their honey water, she and Qiu Cunzheng left without lingering.

After they left, the elderly woman did not yet lose her temper. Zhao Jiaxiu took the low stool back inside, giving her no chance.

The bow wasn’t retrieved, the complaint failed, and the elderly woman was left with bottled-up frustration. This time, her attempt to gain something had backfired, and she had no face to ask Qiu Cunzheng to help get the bow back.

She wore a stern expression, as if everyone owed her.

Meanwhile, at the dilapidated thatched hut, Qiu Cunzheng and Mrs. Zhao had been gone a long while, but Xue Man and Aning were still worried.

“Mother, will Grandma come to get the bow again?”

“Probably not.”

“Don’t dwell on that bow. Come help me hold this and see if the rungs fit.”

The two children hurried over when they heard Jiang Li needed help.

“Let’s finish this quickly. Prepare lunch. After lunch, Aning will take me to cut thatch, and Xue Man will watch the house.”

At the mention of lunch, the two children’s eyes lit up.

Jiang Li swiftly fetched a shortened bamboo tube, fitting it onto the burnt round opening on the ladder. Three or four were too tight to fit, so she shaved them slightly with a knife. Pressed in tightly, this was necessary for stability.

Once fully assembled, a simple ladder was complete.

Jiang Li hoisted it to the side of the house and leaned it against the wall. She climbed up, with Xue Man and Aning holding the base, watching her closely, afraid she might fall.

After trying it out, the bamboo ladder held well. Even with her weight, it didn’t bend or deform, indicating it could bear weight adequately.

After a morning of hard work, she was quite satisfied with her creation.

“Xue Man, light a fire inside and get a clay pot to fetch some water. Lunch will be porridge, thicker than breakfast.”

Xue Man went to start a fire to cook porridge, while Jiang Li and Aning tidied up the messy bamboo pile in front of the house.

“Mother, aren’t you making a broom with these bamboo branches? Isn’t this pile enough?”

Jiang Li looked at the pile, then at the girl in front of her, and smiled.

“A few brooms will be enough. You don’t need that many.”

There were still bamboo poles as thick as copper coins in front of the house. Jiang Li considered for a moment, then picked one up. She had Aning bring out some straw, and using it, she tied the bamboo branches and pole together.

She fashioned a bamboo broom.

Sweeping in front of the house stirred up a cloud of yellow dust. Aning quickly covered her nose and shouted for Xue Man to close the door.

Jiang Li laughed heartily, and Aning couldn’t help but laugh as well.

“Mother, this broom is too big.”

Jiang Li didn’t intend to tie it tighter. “Just sweep. Once the bamboo leaves fall off, it’ll get smaller.”

Inside the house, Xue Man stoked the fire to cook rice porridge. When Jiang Li entered, the smoke still hadn’t cleared. With no courtyard wall in front, that morning alone, the elderly woman and the Qiu couple had come by.

Jiang Li had a premonition that her hunting skills might attract more visitors.

So it was better to prepare food inside the house.

Xue Man watched as the rice porridge cooked, while Jiang Li took out the wild vegetables she had dug on the mountain from her basket and called Aning over to help wash them.

The three of them prepared lunch together.