People need food to survive; if they don't eat, their bodies won't be able to take it.
Qiu Xu and Qiu Ling'er followed closely behind Qiu Yan, picking up firewood from time to time.
Qiu Yan and her two companions searched around the nearby mountain for a long time, but all they could find were trees.
Could it be that the three of them are going to have to rely on their own resources to survive tonight?
As she walked, her attention was drawn to a few dead tree trunks ahead.
Outside the dead tree trunk, there was a tangled mess of hops.
Qiu Yan casually picked up a stick, parted the clumps of hops, and saw patches of dark wood ear mushrooms.
Two white mushrooms were growing on the side of the tree trunk. It must be because of the recent rain.
Qiu Yan, who had just been frowning, curled her lips into a smile as she looked at the withered tree trunk in front of her.
She finally felt more at ease.
There were only two mushrooms, but quite a few wood ear mushrooms.
Wild wood ear fungus is both food and medicine; it can be used for nourishment and is considered very precious.
Qiu Yan looked around and saw no passing villagers.
The two children, seeing Qiu Yan fiddling with the hops, ran over curiously.
They were excited to see their sister find wood ear mushrooms and quickly began picking them in a flurry of activity.
Suddenly, a pheasant cackled in the distance, flapped its wings twice, and flew off in a flash, disappearing from sight in an instant.
It seems that Qiu Yan's actions startled the pheasant.
Qiu Yan wanted to chase after him; she wanted to eat meat.
However, the distance is too far.
With her current physical condition that's holding her back, it's impossible for her to catch up with the pheasant.
Where there are pheasants, there are probably eggs.
Thinking of this, Qiu Yan turned around and said to Qiu Xu, "Xu, you and your sister pick wood ear mushrooms here, don't wander off. I'll go check ahead."
Upon reaching the jungle ahead, Qiu Yan carefully searched through the branches.
A moment later, her eyes lit up when she saw the haystack in front of her.
In the haystack, the bluish-brown wild eggs were huddled together.
Qiu Yan picked up an egg and examined it against the sunset.
There are eight fresh, unhatched eggs in total.
Looking at the wild eggs, Qiu Yan smiled for the second time; God was still looking out for her!
She searched for a long time in the vicinity and was fortunate enough to find another nest, this time with two more birds, making a total of eighteen.
She used her dress to hold the eggs and turned to look for Qiu Xu and the other person.
When Qiu Ling'er saw the wild eggs her sister had picked up, her mouth watered.
She had never eaten eggs before and longed to try them.
Before, every time she saw her older cousin and older cousin eating eggs, her mouth would water.
Qiu Xu helped put the wild eggs on the ground and was also happy. He remembered that the last time he ate eggs was five years ago when his father passed away.
He was only five years old at that time.
The three of them circled the dead tree branch several more times, filling the basket to the brim.
Finally, they finished picking all the wood ear mushrooms.
It was already getting dark, and they were hungry and thirsty after working for so long.
Qiu Yan wrapped the eggs in her pocket again and carried the firewood on her back. Qiu Xu carried a basket, and Xiao Ling'er followed beside Qiu Yan with a small mushroom. The three of them started to go home.
As they walked, Qiu Yan held Ling'er's small hand tightly, afraid that the little girl might accidentally fall to the ground.
Qiu Ling'er was well-behaved and sensible, and did not worry her older sister.
Qiu Xu kept raising his hand to gently support his head, his face deathly pale. He was feeling dizzy due to his head injury.
Qiu Yan took the basket from Qiu Xu's hand with her other hand and said to him, "Xu, let's rest for a while before we go."
Qiu Xu shook his head and snatched the basket. "Sister, I'm not tired. It's getting dark soon, and the road at night is dangerous. We can't stop."
This child, despite being seriously injured, is so resilient; he has such a strong sense of responsibility at such a young age.
She snatched the basket back again, saying, "Ah Xu, you hold your sister's hand."
Qiu Xu finally gave up and instead held his little sister's hand tightly, quickening his pace.
By the time the three of them got home, it was already getting dark.
The three of them were exhausted and hungry, and their throats were parched.
After arriving home, Qiu Xu sat against the wall.
Qiu Ling'er nodded, dozing off. She could even fall asleep while walking. As soon as she entered the room, she lay down on the bed. "Sister, I'm hungry."
The two children have limited physical strength, and it's already quite an achievement that they managed to come back.
With no pot, no water, and no roasted sweet potatoes, Qiu Yan stared blankly at the empty stove opening.
My sister is hungry too.
What will they eat for dinner?
Just as I was thinking this, the courtyard gate creaked open from the outside.
Qiu Yan instantly became alert, and Qiu Xu and Qiu Ling'er stood up at the same time.
Qiu Xu forced his eyelids open, his spirits recovering somewhat.
Qiu Ling'er hid behind her sister, her little hands trembling.
Qiu Yan breathed a sigh of relief when she saw who it was.
She was weak and trembling all over. If Madam Yang came looking for revenge, it would be quite a hassle. "Ah Xu, Ling'er, don't be afraid, it's Aunt Ye."
Seeing the three children's reaction, Madam Ye sighed deeply. The three children were terrified of Madam Yang; even her small gesture had elicited such a reaction from them.
It's clear how vicious this Yang woman must be.
She glanced at the wild eggs and wood ear mushrooms on the ground, feeling a pang of envy, but that was all.
The three children are so lucky!
"Qiu Yan, your aunt saw that your house was dark, so I brought you an oil lamp. It's so late, and you don't have any pots or bowls. You must be hungry. I also brought you three flatbreads, made with wild vegetables. Don't mind them." As she spoke, Ye handed the items to Qiu Yan.
When she returned from digging for wild vegetables, she heard about Qiu Yan and the other two's ordeal and couldn't help but feel compassion.
In just one afternoon, the news that Qiu's stepmother was going to sell her granddaughter spread throughout the entire village.
Looking back five years ago, when my family of three first moved to Lingnan Village, we had nothing, and no one to help us.
Just now, Mr. and Mrs. Qiu came over, but left in a huff because they couldn't find Qiu Yan and the other two.
Mrs. Ye knew that the couple's visit was definitely not for anything good.
She guessed that the three children might have gone out in the afternoon to avoid them.
Qiu Yan hesitated for a moment, but finally accepted it. "Thank you so much, Auntie. We are so grateful to you, how could we possibly find it unworthy?"
It's easy to add flowers to brocade, but difficult to provide charcoal in the snow. Qiu Yan could tell that Aunt Ye was a good person.
She knew that Aunt Ye's family wasn't having an easy time either. Now that Aunt Ye was saving her own food rations to feed them, she was extremely grateful.
She never liked to take advantage of others, so she immediately took out three wild eggs and some fresh wood ear mushrooms and handed them to Mrs. Ye, saying, "Aunt Ye, these are all things we picked in the mountains. Please take some home and eat them."
Madam Ye hurriedly refused, saying that she had only given the food to the three children out of pity, and she couldn't possibly turn around and take their things back.
"You silly child, we're neighbors, why are you being so polite with your aunt?"
Unable to refuse any longer, Ms. Ye reluctantly agreed to Qiu Yan's insistence and took a handful of wood ear mushrooms home.
Not long after Ye left, she quickly brought over a large bowl of boiled water for the three of them to quench their thirst. She then gave them some instructions on safety matters before departing.
Meeting a kind neighbor in a foreign land is a heartwarming experience.
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