"Wait for me! I want to go to the river too!" Xiaolan's clear voice was like a wind chime on the eaves. She put the rabbit basket on the stone table, and a sweet potato rolled out of the basket with a "glug".
Fu Yucheng turned around and smiled: "Come quickly, or the little fish will hide in the reeds."
Xiao Lan picked up the sweet potatoes and stuffed them into the basket. The bamboo rabbit ears cast dappled shadows in the morning light, and the words "Xiao Lan" on the bottom of the basket were soaked with dew.
Nian'an ran fast, clutching the fishing net rope. Her tiger-head boots splashed through puddles, and the tassels of her tiger-shaped bib brushed against the grass, picking up a piece of burr.
"Slow down," Fu Yucheng reached out and grabbed him. "Don't drag the fishing net on the ground, or it will tear and you won't be able to catch any fish."
Nian'an pointed at the white ducks in the distance and chuckled. The silver longevity lock on her chest jumped around happily, startling the ducks into quacking and plunging into the middle of the river.
Jiang Jianhua lifted the lid of the steamer in the kitchen, and the aroma of mung bean paste wafted over the threshold.
She added a spoonful of osmanthus sugar to the sand, and fine bubbles appeared when she stirred it with the wooden spoon.
"Mother, please taste if it's sweet enough?" She scooped up a spoonful and held it to Song Yushuang's lips. The mung beans in the bamboo tray gleamed with an emerald light in the sunlight.
Song Yushuang smacked her lips: "Add another half spoonful of sugar, the children love sweets."
Yun Tangyin was filtering red bean paste through a fine sieve when she heard this and said with a smile, "When I make mung bean cakes later, I'll carve some little tigers on the molds, which will match Nian'an's bib perfectly."
The willows by the river drooped with green tendrils. Fu Yucheng taught Nian'an how to use the fishing net: "Hold onto this rope and scoop it into the water like this."
Nian An imitated this and threw the net into the river, splashing water all over his face, which made Xiao Lan clap her hands.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Fu Yucheng cast his fishing rod, and with a gentle flick of the reed pole in his hand, he caught a small, silvery fish.
"Put Nian'an in the fish tank," he said, placing the fish into Xiao Lan's bamboo basket. "These are called minnows; they're the smartest to keep."
Xiao Lan squatted on the bank and drew circles with a twig: "Second Uncle, I still have the grasshopper cage you taught me to weave last year."
She suddenly pointed to the water and exclaimed, "Look! So many little fish are gathering here!"
Nian'an waved the net wildly, startling the fish and scattering them, but he was so happy that he jumped up and down, and a few drops of river water fell from the pom-pom on his tiger-head hat.
By the time the sun reached its zenith, the bamboo basket was already half full of small fish.
Fu Yucheng packed up his fishing gear: "It's time to go back. If we stay any longer, we won't be able to eat hot mung bean cakes."
Nian'an, however, clung to a smooth pebble and refused to leave. The stone, chilled by the river water, reflected his rosy cheeks.
“These are called Yuhua stones,” Fu Yucheng put the stones into his pocket for him, “wash them when you get home and I’ll put them under your pillow.”
As the sweet aroma of mung bean cakes wafted through the courtyard, they stepped through the shade of the trees to enter.
Jiang Jianhua was unmolding the steamed cake. The emerald green square was imprinted with a tiger's head, and the tips of its ears were even dotted with rouge.
“Come and have a taste,” she said, stuffing a piece into each of the children’s hands. “They’re fresh out of the steamer, so soft.”
Nian'an took a bite of the cake, and the red bean paste stuck to the corner of her mouth, making it look like a whisker added to a tiger's bellyband.
Aunt Zhang, carrying a bamboo basket filled with freshly picked cucumbers, came to visit: "I came because of the aroma! What are you making?"
Seeing the mung bean cakes on the stone table, her eyes lit up. "They look so pretty! Jianhua, with your skills, you could open a shop in town!"
Jiang Jianhua smiled and put a few pieces into her basket: "Take them back for your grandson, to eat with freshly brewed chrysanthemum tea, to cut through the richness."
Fu Yuanshan was carving a wooden basin in the yard, planning to make a new home for the little fish.
He planed the wooden board smooth, carving wavy patterns on the edges: "Drill a few small holes in the bottom of this basin so that water can drain out and be replaced with fresh water."
Nian'an leaned closer to look, and his finger got pricked by a wood shaving. His little mouth twitched as if he was about to cry, but Fu Yuanshan quickly took out a wild jujube and stuffed it into his mouth: "A man doesn't cry. Watch your second uncle make you a fish tank with wheels, and you can push it around everywhere."
Under the locust tree in the afternoon, Song Yushuang told the children ancient stories.
Nian'an lay on her lap, playing with the pebbles, while Xiao Lan dried small fish in a rabbit basket.
“Once upon a time, there was a little tiger,” Song Yushuang said slowly, “who loved to eat mung bean cakes. One day, he ate too many and turned into a round ball…”
Nian'an immediately patted her stomach, making everyone laugh.
Fu Yucheng was grinding new wheat beside the millstone, and the wheat grains turned into snow-white powder under the stone mill.
"I'll make barley porridge this afternoon," he said, wiping his sweat. "The aroma of fresh barley is incomparable to that of old barley."
Yun Tangyin brought over mung bean soup: "Take a break before you get busy. This soup has rock sugar in it, so it's nice and refreshing."
She looked at the flour that Fu Yucheng had ground, "Enough to make two steamers of steamed buns. Send some to Zhou Desheng's family; his wife even sent some pumpkin cakes last time."
The evening glow painted the fence red, and Nian'an's little fish tank was finally finished.
Fu Yuanshan put some aquatic plants into the tank, and the small fish swam happily inside.
“I’ll go collect some more duckweed tomorrow,” he said, wiping the sawdust off his hands. “The fish and insects are hiding in there; we don’t need to feed them breadcrumbs all the time.”
Nian'an lay on the edge of the tank, lightly touching the water with her finger, startling the small fish into scattering. The shadow of the silver longevity lock shimmered like broken silver in the water.
Jiang Jianhua sprinkled some osmanthus flowers into the thick barley porridge for dinner.
Nian'an held the bowl and drank with relish, occasionally picking up a bite of stir-fried cucumber, her little face as red as a ripe wild date.
Fu Yucheng picked up a fish ball for Yun Tangyin: "Eat more. These fish balls were made by Aunt Zhang. They taste pretty good."
Yun Tangyin smiled and nodded: "I'll learn to make some pickles tomorrow, they'll go perfectly with porridge."
As the moonlight climbed to the top of the locust tree, Nian'an yawned while holding a tiger plush toy.
Jiang Jianhua took off his shoes and noticed a small mark on the pebble in his pocket: "Why didn't you put this stone in the fish tank?"
Nian'an mumbled, "Sleep, keep me company." Song Yushuang placed the stone beside his pillow, saying, "Let it keep Nian'an company and let him have a sweet dream."
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