"Thank you, Grandpa Village Chief, for finding us such a wonderful house. You even know we don't have enough money right now and are willing to let us pay you back later. Er Ya likes Grandpa Village Chief." Her words made the village chief laugh heartily.
Back inside the house, Lin Jianguo asked Er Ya in confusion, "Don't we have money from selling ginseng? Why did you tell the village chief that we don't have any money and agreed to owe it to him?"
Er Ya had already come up with a reason: "Dad, think about it. We just separated from the family, and we're already spending so much money on a house. Auntie will definitely think that Grandpa or Grandma secretly gave us the money. They'll probably make a fuss about it. Let's wait a few months before paying it back. Then we can say it's money you and Mom earned, and they won't have anything to say." She said, shaking her head like a little adult.
Lin Jianguo thought about it and realized that Er Ya's words made sense. He was really afraid of his sister-in-law's shrewish ways. He patted Er Ya's head and said, "My daughter is really too smart."
We've chosen a house and completed the transfer of ownership, but we can't move in yet. After all, no one has lived in this house for many years. Cobwebs cover the ceiling, and you get dusty hands everywhere you touch. We need to clean it up before we can move in.
The family of three looked forward to a better life in the future and worked hard to clean the house inside and out.
The move started. Actually, there wasn't much stuff: a wooden bed, an old box, and some tools for getting out of bed. It was all done in one trip.
When they took the grain, Old Mrs. Shen's face was so dark it looked like water was about to drip from it. She stared at them intently, as if afraid they would take away not a single grain.
When giving out cabbages, they would only give the bad and small ones. When the family divided the property, they said they would give 20 catties, but Old Mrs. Shen was stingy and only gave 15 catties at most. She refused to give any more.
"That's all. Take it or leave it. Do you want your mother to starve to death if you take it all?"
Jiang's mother was too lazy to argue with her over a few pounds of cabbage, since she knew she couldn't win the argument anyway. She picked up the cabbage, and Lin Jianguo, carrying the grain, left the house.
Upon arriving at their new home, Jiang's mother told Er Ya to go outside and play while she busied herself in the kitchen preparing lunch.
As soon as Er Ya stepped outside, she saw several children playing in the mud not far away, laughing and joking. Disdainful of joining their game, she turned and walked towards the small river outside the village.
Er Ya walked to the edge of a reed bed, and the sound of her footsteps startled a flock of pheasants. Wow! How come there are so many pheasants!
Er Ya carefully parted the reeds on the ground, and lo and behold, there were four or five white wild eggs lying inside, smaller than normal eggs. Er Ya quickly rolled up her clothes, carefully put the wild eggs inside, and excitedly went home.
"Mom, look what I found!" The voice came before she even got home.
Jiang's mother was making the dumpling soup that Er Ya had made last time. This dish was quite easy to make and didn't consume much food. Just then, she heard her daughter's excited shouts. When she went over to take a look, she saw that there were several wild eggs: "Such big wild eggs! Where did you find them?!"
Er Ya said they were found in the reeds, and she asked in bewilderment, "That place is frequented by the village children several times a day, and they've never heard of pheasants there. How come there are so many wild eggs?"
Er Ya chuckled to herself, it seemed her lucky charm was working again.
Er Ya clenched her fists and made a gesture of gratitude: "It must be that God knew I wanted to eat eggs, so He sent them to me. Thank you, God."
Holding Jiang's mother's hand, she said sweetly, "Mom, put these eggs in the dumpling soup, it'll taste the best."
"You child, you don't know how to manage a household at all. If you want to eat, I'll just put one out for you, and I'll cook one for you every day." Touching her daughter's pale and thin face, she knew she had to nourish her daughter. Look at that little face, there wasn't a bit of flesh on it.
"Mom, put them all in. You're pregnant with your little brother, so eat more nutritious food. Your little brother will be smart when he's born. I can always go back tomorrow and bring you a few more."
Unable to resist her daughter's pleas, Jiang's mother gently pinched Er Ya's nose and said, "You little glutton, do you think those wild eggs are waiting for you to pick them every day? If you want to eat them, I'll listen to you and put them in for you."
Er Ya thought to herself: Maybe those wild eggs are just waiting for me to collect them every day.
The dumpling soup is ready. Adding an egg really makes it different. It's the first time Er Ya has ever eaten an egg here. She scooped out a big mouthful and put it in her mouth. It was so delicious. She quickly ate it all up and shouted, "Mom, I want more!"
Jiang's mother looked at her daughter, who was eating heartily, with amusement: "Don't eat too much at once, or you'll feel uncomfortable later. If you like this, I'll make it for you again tomorrow."
Despite saying that, looking at her daughter's thin body, she still scooped out a spoonful for her. Her daughter was almost five years old, but she still looked like a two or three-year-old child. Old Mrs. Shen didn't like girls and had never let Er Ya eat her fill. Now that they were separated, she was determined to do her best to raise Er Ya to be plump and healthy.
After lunch, Er Ya carried her basket and prepared to go up the mountain again. The food allocated to them would be good enough to last for two months if they ate it sparingly, not to mention that her mother was still pregnant with twins. Once her little brother was born, there would be even more expenses. She needed to work twice as hard and think of some business opportunities.
After Jiang's mother finished washing up, she had nothing to do at home, so she went up the mountain with Er Ya to see if there were any wild vegetables and to dig some back.
Er Ya led Jiang's mother on a walk and on, and they came to the pine forest they had visited before. It was the lean season, and the vegetables for the year had not yet been planted. Most people's homes were short of vegetables, and even if they did, they were tired of eating cabbage every day.
When Er Ya went to town last time, she found that these wild mushrooms were selling very well. Today, she plans to pick more and take them to town to sell tomorrow. There are many wealthy people in town, and she is sure to get a good price by selling them to restaurants.
Jiang's mother stared at the mushrooms in front of her, her mouth agape in astonishment. How could there be such a large patch of mushrooms here? Had no one ever discovered it before?
Forget about anything else, I grabbed Er Ya and we squatted down to start digging for mushrooms. We had to hurry and pick as many as possible before anyone noticed, so we could snatch them all when someone came. It was safer to put them in our own basket first.
Luckily, I brought a big basket with me when I went out. I originally wanted to dig up more wild vegetables, but now I can use it to hold mushrooms.
Er Ya sang while picking mushrooms:
"Red umbrella,
White pole,
After eating, we lay down on the board together.
Lying on a plank, sleeping in a coffin.
Then we'll bury the mountain together.
Buried on the mountain, the mountain cries out in despair.
The whole village came to eat.
There's an umbrella for every meal.
The whole village lay down on the planks.
The planks were left unburied, so they were all left to dry in the sun...
To be continued!
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