Chapter 20

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Grandma used to dislike him and his sister, so when the big boys had a special meal with eggs, they never got any. Even during the New Year, when everyone was supposed to have one egg each on the first day, Grandma insisted that he and his sister had woken up too late and didn’t get any.

Thinking of those times, his nose tingled and tears nearly fell.

He wiped his eyes with his hand and grinned at Jiang Li. “Mother, don’t worry. From now on, I’ll take care of feeding the chickens.”

Jiang Li raised an eyebrow. “You’ll take care of everything?”

Xue Man nodded eagerly. “Yes, all of it.”

“All right then.”

“No, no, I want to manage it myself.”

Jiang Li smiled. “How about you two manage it together, and take care of my two little ones too?”

The siblings nodded enthusiastically.

There were four and a half young chicks. On the first day, they were moved to a new place. Jiang Li didn’t let them out, keeping them all inside the chicken coop. She went into the mountains to cut half a basket of alfalfa and tall grass.

She tossed a handful into the coop, and the chicks lowered their heads and pecked continuously.

Jiang Li breathed a sigh of relief; she had been a little worried the chicks wouldn’t eat the grass.

If they did, it would at least get them through a few days.

Once the chicks got used to the place, she would let them out to forage for bugs.

After bringing home the chicks, Xue Man and A Ning were so excited they kept circling the coop.

Jiang Li didn’t stop them; a little attention wouldn’t hurt, and it would help the chicks get familiar with their little owners.

She left the two to watch the house while she hurried to the fields at the foot of the mountain.

The surface soil was dry and parched. Some bean seedlings had pods hanging from them, but they were shriveled.

Jiang Li dug into the soil with a hoe, turning over the bottom layer, which was a bit better than the surface, but still lacked moisture.

If it stayed like this, they might not harvest a single bushel of beans this year.

If the drought continued, causing a widespread crop failure, grain prices would undoubtedly soar, making it either too expensive or impossible to buy food, even with money.

Either way, she felt it would be terrible.

Carrying her hoe, Jiang Li hurried back home.

Seeing her troubled expression, Xue Man and A Ning felt uneasy.

“Mother, what’s wrong?”

“I checked the bean seedlings in the field. We might not get any beans this year.” She stopped there, put away the hoe, and picked up her hatchet.

“Xiao Man, start a fire in front of the house. I’m going to cut some bamboo.”

Xue Man quickly obeyed, leaving the chicks to go gather dry wood for the fire.

Jiang Li swiftly cut bamboo and dragged it back without delay.

She quickly trimmed the bamboo branches, burned some bamboo, split it into strips, and began making arrow fletchings.

Since she had to burn bamboo, they had a simple lunch of roasted sweet potatoes.

Sweet potatoes roasted over a wood fire smelled fragrant and were soft and sweet—such a taste brought a special fondness, rooted in memory.

After lunch, once the arrow fletchings were done in the afternoon, Jiang Li took a nap.

She stayed home while the two little ones went out together to catch bugs for the chicks.

When she woke up, they hadn’t returned. Jiang Li dug out fifteen copper coins from the corner of the wall, intending to give that money to Mrs. Zhao before heading into the mountain.

Though they hadn’t asked for money, she felt she couldn’t just not pay.

After putting away the coins, she washed her face with cold water, and just then, the two children came back.

They hadn’t caught many bugs, but their faces were rosy from the sun.

Still, their happy appearances were infectious.

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“You two stay here. I’m going out for a bit.”

The two were so engrossed in feeding the chicks they didn’t ask where Jiang Li was going.

Jiang Li went to find Mrs. Zhao, but she didn’t want to go to that old courtyard. She had seen Mrs. Zhao and her daughter going up the mountain that morning and waited at the mountain entrance. In less than half an hour, she saw Mrs. Zhao and Xue Xiaoduo coming back down.

Mrs. Zhao was much older than Jiang Li, but given her status, she hesitated to call Jiang Li sister-in-law, and Jiang Li found it hard to address her as fourth brother’s wife.

But Xue Xiaoduo smiled sweetly and called out, “Auntie.”

Jiang Li smiled in reply.

Mrs. Zhao asked, “Are you heading into the mountain at this hour?”

Jiang Li said, “I purposely waited here for you.”

“Is there something you need?”

“Thank you and Uncle Si for bringing us the water buckets; it really helped us in our hour of need. Please accept this.” Jiang Li handed over ten copper coins she had counted beforehand.

Mrs. Zhao opened her palm, surprised as she looked up at Jiang Li.

“We’re the children’s uncle and aunt; it’s only right.”

Jiang Li replied, “It’s already kind of you to think of us. We can’t let you go to any trouble. I heard from Xiao Man that his uncle sells his crafts in the county.”

Mrs. Zhao smiled wryly. “It’s just to supplement the household. We don’t charge family for using what we make.”

“Besides, you don’t need this much.” Mrs. Zhao counted out four coins, returning them.

Jiang Li awkwardly refused, but Mrs. Zhao pressed the money back into her hands, and Jiang Li finally accepted.

This was their first real interaction, and through the exchange, they got a bit of a sense of each other’s character. Jiang Li thought, if she couldn’t approach Xue Chengwen, she could at least ask Mrs. Zhao.

Hesitating, she asked, “Does Uncle Si know how to make a steamer basket?”

“Bamboo steamer?”

Jiang Li shook her head slightly. “Wooden, like the water bucket but without a bottom or the handle on top. Just small ears on both sides. Inside, a bamboo hat-shaped piece that can be removed for cleaning.”

“I’ll talk to Duoduo’s father. He should be able to make it.”

“If possible, please make one for me. I’ll pay market price.”

Mrs. Zhao didn’t refuse.

She thought about how Jiang Li’s family had nothing when they separated and hesitated before asking, “Do you need household tools, like dustpans?”

Jiang Li nodded, “Yes, we do.”

“Understood.”

Jiang Li didn’t ask what she meant by “understood.”

As they parted, Jiang Li called to Xue Xiaoduo, “Duoduo, come visit A Ning at our house when you have time.”

“All right, Auntie. You come to my house too when you’re free.”

Jiang Li smiled in response.

But Mrs. Zhao clearly understood Jiang Li’s reason for waiting here—it was to avoid going to that smoky, chaotic courtyard.

Xue Xiaoduo looked at Jiang Li’s slender figure and asked Mrs. Zhao, “Mother, where did Auntie get the money?”

Mrs. Zhao frowned slightly. In this village, every household’s income came either from selling grain, eggs, or doing some handiwork—almost everyone had the same sources.

Jiang Li’s family had no eggs or grain to sell. As for hunting, last time she brought back two wild chickens and cooked them...

Mrs. Zhao thought for a moment and said, “Maybe Auntie saved some money before.”

She then warned Xue Xiaoduo, “Don’t tell anyone about Auntie giving me money, not even your brother.”

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“I know.”

Though young, Xue Xiaoduo had clearly heard the quarrels between her parents and grandmother. Her father sold his crafts and handed the money to grandmother, who favored the second uncle’s family, the Xue big boys.

She wasn’t foolish; she had no intention of telling anyone.

Jiang Li returned home, and the two children finally remembered to ask what she had been doing.

She smiled without answering directly. “Tonight, we’ll eat that half of the wild chicken.”

Hearing the word “meat,” their eyes sparkled.

Jiang Li had reheated the half chicken twice before; otherwise, it might have spoiled.

They each ate two pieces per serving, and the pieces with more meat were mostly eaten by the kids.

The rest was made into soup, and they picked at it until it was finished.

Last time they went into the mountain, there was nothing at home. Jiang Li brought two sweet potatoes and gnawed on wild sweet potatoes found in the fields. Though it filled them for a while, it wasn’t very satisfying.

This time, with flour at home, she planned to make two pancakes to bring along.

Since she needed to knead dough anyway, she made a bit extra and pulled some noodles to cook in the chicken soup later.

The only wild vegetable at home was spiny dragon sprouts. A Ning finely chopped them and brought them back. Jiang Li blanched them in an earthen pot before adding them to the chicken soup for better flavor.

Jiang Li rolled the noodles thin, and cooked in chicken soup, they tasted excellent. It was the first time Xue Man and A Ning had tried them, and they slurped the broth eagerly.

Jiang Li also ate heartily, finishing a full bowl.

The chicken meat, soup, noodles, and spiny dragon sprouts were all eaten clean.

Xue Man sat on the straw, happy yet melancholy.

Since they separated from the family, they hadn’t gone hungry. Each meal was filling, and mother’s cooking was delicious.

But the worry was that the grain they had carried back last time would soon run out.

Jiang Li glanced at Xue Man, looking toward the grain sack, and sighed. Her worried thoughts were plainly visible.

“Don’t worry. I’ll go into the mountain early tomorrow and might be gone for two or three days. Take good care of your sister, the chicks, and the house.”

Xue Man knew the grain and meat came from selling wild boar meat. Without that, they couldn’t have bought so much grain and would have to eat sparingly.

“Mother, please be careful in the mountains.”

Jiang Li smiled. “I know.”

After resting a bit, Xue Man took the bowls and pot outside to wash.

Jiang Li stood and checked what she needed to bring tomorrow. She realized she lacked a sack. Hunting was hunting, but if she didn’t catch anything, she could gather some wild vegetables and carry them back in a bag.

But there was no sack at home.

In this village, the only person she could ask to borrow one from was Zhao Qingzhu.

After pondering for a while, she decided to get up and try her luck. Whether she could borrow one or not, she would find out.

The siblings stayed to watch the house while Jiang Li went out in the dark.

Mrs. Zhao’s courtyard was lively, with children chasing each other and adults resting. Zhao Qingzhu was bored and was thinking of finding Jiang Li when Jiang Li arrived unexpectedly.

She handed Jiang Li a small bamboo stool and sat down beside Mrs. Zhao.

In the darkness, Zhao Qingzhu introduced her brothers and sisters-in-law to Jiang Li, who greeted them all politely.

Midway through, Old Mrs. Zhao suddenly laughed. “Qingzhu, after all that introduction, do you think Jiang lady will recognize them tomorrow?”

Everyone burst into laughter, and Jiang Li couldn’t help but smile.

She then got up to light a torch but didn’t go on with the formal introductions. A woman sitting beside Old Mrs. Zhao smiled warmly at Jiang Li.

“Jiang lady, I’m Qingzhu’s eldest sister-in-law.” Then she pointed to a nearby man, “This is Qingzhu’s elder brother, and beside him are his second brother and sister-in-law.”