After reading comic books all morning, Xue Fu's eyes were a little tired.
She closed her eyes and rubbed them.
The lunch they ate was prepared by Gu Chong in the morning; all they had to do was heat it up over a fire.
As usual, Gu Chong would be back around this time for dinner.
So Xue Fu sat at the door, intending to wait for Gu Chong to return.
But Gu Fei came over and said to her, "Sister, go eat. Brother said he might be back late today, so don't wait for him."
"Ah...I see." Xue Fu glanced at the door a few more times, then pursed her lips. "Alright."
She thought, "Nothing should happen."
Xue Fu was a little worried.
This year is 1976, and the market has not yet been opened.
Speculation is a very serious matter.
Her worries were quite obvious, so Gu Fei comforted her instead.
"Sister, brother is very smart."
Gu Fei used to worry every time her brother went out.
Gu Fei used to think that he was the one who dragged his brother down. If it weren't for him, his brother could have lived a good life on his own with the work points he earned. He wouldn't have needed to take risks to support his family and him.
However, Gu Chong discovered his idea and he was severely scolded by his brother.
They said he was just looking for trouble and was always thinking about random things.
If his brother told him to have nothing to do, he should clean the house, do laundry, and learn to cook. When he was busy, he wouldn't have time to think about these random things.
Gu Fei: ...
But what my brother said makes sense; when you're busy, you don't have time to think about these things.
With her brother always arriving home safely, Gu Fei gradually felt relieved and less anxious.
"If my brother knew that I was worried about him, he would be very happy."
Just as Xue Fu was worrying, she heard Gu Fei say something like that, and her face suddenly turned bright red.
"Don't tell your brother this."
Gu Fei's fair face suddenly broke into a sly smile: "Hehe, my brother said something similar too."
Xue Fu: ?
"What did you say?" Xue Fu asked in surprise, her mood becoming somewhat complicated yet lighthearted. "Did your brother say something about me?"
Xue Fu swallowed, suddenly feeling a little nervous.
What would Gu Chonghui say to his younger brother?
How could he tell these things to his younger brother!
They're corrupting children!
But Gu Fei, such a young child, possessed the excellent quality of keeping his mouth shut, and Xue Fu couldn't get any information out of him about what Gu Chong had said to him.
“Sister, I can’t tell you,” Gu Fei said. “If I tell you, then I’ll tell brother today too. Hmm… one for one.”
The little guy is very smart.
Xue Fu: "...Then forget it!"
Since Gu Chong didn't come home for lunch, Xue Fu and her younger brother finished their meal and sat in the courtyard to digest and rest.
Gu Fei glanced at the sky.
It rained a little this morning, and the weather is quite cool now.
"Sister, are you going to go dig for wild vegetables with me this afternoon?"
Xue Fu nodded: "Okay."
Since there's nothing else to do, I can dig up some wild vegetables to eat tonight.
Xue Fu had eaten Gu Chong's cold wild vegetable salad before; it was very refreshing to eat in the summer.
Xue Fu asked, "Where should we dig?"
"Are you scared, sister, about going to the back mountain?" Gu Fei asked.
It had been raining for the past few nights, and Gu Fei wanted to see if any wood ear mushrooms or other similar plants had grown on the hill behind the house.
Xue Fu had never been up the back mountain; she had only ever gathered firewood at the foot of the mountain.
She was a little scared after hearing from others that there might be ferocious beasts such as wolves and wild boars in the deep mountains behind the mountain.
However, Gu Fei said, "We'll only search in the outer mountains, not deep in the mountains. If you don't want to go, you can just stay home and read."
Gu Fei did not force her.
Xue Fu thought for a moment and shook her head.
The villagers often go to the outer mountains to collect firewood and dig for wild vegetables. The outer mountains have been cleared clean, so the probability of encountering wild animals is very small.
Moreover, since Gu Fei was going, Xue Fu subconsciously felt she needed to take better care of the child, even though Gu Fei, at ten years old, was far more mature than her in terms of self-care.
"I'll go with you."
After deciding to go, Xue Fu asked excitedly, "How are we going to dig for wild vegetables?"
Xue Fu had never dug for wild vegetables before.
"We need to get a small hoe." Gu Fei found two baskets, a sickle, and a small hoe.
Gu Fei said, "Sister, watch me dig for a while, and I'll teach you how to identify wild vegetables first."
However, thinking of wild mushrooms, Gu Fei suddenly became a little worried and instructed, "Sister, you can pick other things later, but don't pick mushrooms. I'm afraid you won't be able to recognize them."
Xue Fu immediately thought of the cases of people experiencing hallucinations after eating wild mushrooms, and obediently nodded: "Yes!"
She absolutely won't pick it up!
After resting for a while, the siblings picked up their tools and headed towards the back of the mountain.
The Gu family lives close to the back mountain, right at its foot, making it very convenient to go up the mountain.
Gu Fei said that as long as you don't go too deep into the mountains, it's safe outside.
Xue Fu remembered the meat that Gu Chong had brought back from home and asked Gu Fei, "Were the pheasants and rabbits that your brother brought back caught in the outer mountains, or did he go deep into the mountains?"
Gu Fei was speechless for a moment, his eyes darting around.
Then Xue Fu understood.
My heart softened again.
Is it worth taking such a risk? What is Gu Chong thinking?
Xue Fu sighed silently.
"Your brother is amazing!" Xue Fu praised him while changing the subject, "So, where should we begin?"
They've already gone up the mountain. The trees here are tall and dense, blocking most of the sunlight, making it much cooler.
However, there are a lot of mosquitoes; they immediately bite people as soon as they see them.
Xue Fu swatted several mosquitoes, and her palms were covered in blood.
Gu Fei used a sickle to rummage through the nearby bushes, then shook his head: "We need to go a little further in; this area has all been dug up."
Xue Fu went over to take a look, and sure enough, the ground here had been turned over, and the turf had been dug up.
Xue Fu: "Okay."
They walked further into the mountains, where the light became dimmer.
Gu Fei searched around and finally found the wild vegetables he was looking for under the tree.
"Sister, over here!" Gu Fei called out to Xue Fu, gesturing for her to come over.
"Sister, just find grass that looks like this. I'll dig up the rest," Gu Fei instructed.
Xue Fu nodded.
She looked down at the wild grass she had dug up, trying to remember its characteristics.
My younger brother said this is sow thistle.
Its blades are serrated and somewhat long and thin. Xue Fu thought they looked a bit like radish leaves in the ground, and they were quite easy to identify.
Xue Fu gained confidence and buried herself in the search.
As Xue Fu was digging with great enthusiasm, she heard her younger brother suddenly call out to her softly.
"Sister, come here for a second."
Gu Fei, standing under the tree, lowered his voice as if he had discovered something, and Xue Fu instinctively became cautious as well.
She quietly walked over, thinking that Gu Fei had found something good.
As Xue Fu walked to the tree, she followed Gu Fei's gaze and saw Sun Yu sneaking up the mountain.
"Sister, he was also an educated youth, right?" Gu Fei asked softly.
Xue Fu nodded.
"What is he going to do...?" Xue Fu muttered to herself.
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