Chapter Two: There Should Be Hope
As the sun began to set, it cast long shadows of those returning home late. Tang Huaya carefully carried a tattered cloth bag, her face free of its usual sorrow, now radiating a smile.
When they found the first place where the squirrel hid its food, the squirrel seemed to be determined to fight them. It would peek out whenever they saw it, always holding different nuts in its hands. One after another, it managed to provide Shen Zhiyi with food for more than half a month, and the debt she owed the squirrel grew larger and larger.
"This is a loan, and you'll have to pay it back later," Shen Zhiyi said seriously.
"Yeah, I just didn't expect that squirrel to be so generous," Tang Huaya replied with a smile.
The two chatted and laughed as they returned to the dilapidated house. The sight of the green leaves sprouting from the seedlings in the corner of the house added a touch of life to the lifeless environment.
Just as Tang Huaya was about to hide the rag bundle at the very back of the straw bed, Shen Zhiyi stopped her, took out a wooden basin from the corner, poured out half of the grain, and stuffed it back into her hand, teasingly saying, "We'll split it in half; this debt can't be borne by one person alone."
"Okay, let's carry it together!" Tang Huaya said, her eyes glistening with tears, her voice choked with emotion yet tinged with a smile.
Shen Zhiyi immediately changed the subject, saying, "As you can see, I still have seedlings to transplant, and the compost from the mountains to move down. There are still many things waiting for us."
"Yes!" Tang Huaya nodded firmly.
The next day, as dawn broke, Shen Zhiyi, who was used to waking up early, slowly walked to the door and found that the humidity in the air was much better than the day before, and the weather was warming up faster than expected.
It seems that starting to cultivate bok choy seedlings in advance was the right choice.
With the food borrowed from the squirrels as a base, plus the cycle of bok choy and cucumbers, they can survive until the peppers grow and can be sold, thus temporarily achieving a state where they have no worries about food and drink.
Shen Zhiyi ate some nuts for breakfast and began to transplant the cultivated bok choy seedlings to suitable locations in the yard. Seeing the area she had previously planned filled with green seedlings, her good mood soared. No difficulty in life could defeat her anymore!
"Zhiyi, something terrible has happened!" Tang Huaya's voice came from afar, filled with anxiety, "The seedlings... the seedlings have been destroyed!"
"What?" Shen Zhiyi was immediately startled and stood up.
After catching her breath, Tang Huaya continued, "Come with me quickly and take a look. I don't know how to fix it either."
"Let's go!" Shen Zhiyi hurriedly asked, "Which Miao area is it?"
"Peanuts," Tang Huaya called after him.
"You rest for a while, I'll go take a look." Shen Zhiyi was very anxious. She had only grown five peanut seedlings at the time, since their uses were not as safe as chili peppers, so she could only plant a few for the time being.
The temperature in the mountains was pleasant, and Shen Zhiyi quickly made her way to the peanut seedling field. From a distance, she could see that the fence was not badly damaged, so it must have been a sensitive animal that was interested in the tender seedlings...
She had a general idea of what to do.
Now, standing before the fence, the soft earth was imprinted with the footprints of the culprit, the rabbit. Fortunately, some tender seedlings could still be saved. Shen Zhiyi immediately began to clean up the gnawed leaves and dig out the ones that had been eaten and whose roots were broken...
Of the five plants, only three were able to continue growing.
As long as the seedlings remain here, it is inevitable that other animals will come to harm them.
The simple fence was no match for her, and it was unrealistic to expect her to stay there indefinitely. She had been too naive and forgotten that there were wild rabbits and other animals in the mountains.
But how could she be willing to give up the high-quality soil that was already available in the mountains so easily!
"Zhiyi, how are things on your end?" Tang Huaya called out as she walked over.
Shen Zhiyi looked up and saw Tang Huaya and her father coming over together. Her eyes lit up, and she waved over with a smile, saying, "The situation isn't too bad!"
She has helpers, so it's no big deal!
The simple-looking man stood somewhat reserved beside Tang Huaya, so Shen Zhiyi took the initiative to say, "Uncle Tang, if I said I could dig traps to catch prey, would you believe me?"
"Huh?" Old Man Tang was dumbfounded. He glanced cautiously at Tang Huaya, grinned sheepishly, and said, "I believe you!"
Although Tang Huaya was largely to blame for this answer, it gave Shen Zhiyi a lot of confidence! If one or two people believe, then a third, a fourth…
"Alright, let's go find the village chief!" Shen Zhiyi waved her hand and headed down the mountain with great confidence.
"Huh?" Old Man Tang was stunned.
"Zhiyi, wait for me!" Tang Huaya quickly followed.
At the hour of Si (9-11 AM), the sunlight pierced through the clouds, leaving behind a dazzling array of colors in the sky.
Shen Zhiyi strode confidently to the village chief's door and knocked without hesitation, her voice brimming with enthusiasm: "Grandpa Village Chief, good news has come to your door!"
"Coming, coming! I could hear your voice even through the door." The village chief's voice came slowly from inside, and the courtyard gate opened at that moment.
Shen Zhiyi entered with a smile, and the people who were tidying up the winnowing baskets in the yard stopped what they were doing and looked over, their eyes clearly asking, "What good news is this?"
“I planted a batch of seedlings in the mountains yesterday, and this morning I found they’d been destroyed by rabbits,” Shen Zhiyi said with a smile.
"This is terrible, not a good thing!" Grandma Qin exclaimed, deeply concerned. "We need to replant the seedlings, right? What else can we do?"
Shen Zhiyi's smile was so endearing that it was impossible to find her annoying. The village chief's wife also looked worried and spoke gently: "It's fine to plant vegetables in the yard. Planting them in the mountains will only cause trouble sooner or later."
"Don't worry, Shen girl definitely has a plan in mind," the village chief advised, turning to Shen Zhiyi. "Alright, stop keeping me in suspense."
"The peanut seedlings that the rabbit ate today are actually peanut sprouts. Compared to peanuts, rabbits prefer cabbage seedlings. I have cabbage seedlings growing in my yard. They grow very quickly, and as long as the roots aren't damaged, they can continue to grow, making them the best choice for catching rabbits," Shen Zhiyi said with a smile.
"You mean, we're going to use tender seedlings to lure rabbits? How can we waste perfectly good vegetables like that?" Grandma Qin disapproved.
“Even if the rabbits eat it, it will still grow. In other words, we can exchange some leaves for a few rabbits. Isn’t that great?” Shen Zhiyi tried her best to explain her idea using economic principles.
"It would be good if we could get it, but I'm afraid we won't be able to," Grandma Qin said, frowning.
"Girl, are these the seeds you mentioned?" The village chief quickly grasped the key point and asked.
Compared to the cabbage seeds here, the ones Shen Zhiyi had were an advanced and improved version, a fact she couldn't lie about. So she nodded and looked expectantly at the village chief.
"I'll discuss it with your Grandma Qin," the village chief said, glancing at Grandma Qin before the two of them went into the house one after the other.
Shen Zhiyi turned around and met Tang Huaya's gaze, but the confident smile in her eyes did not disappear.
A short while later, the village chief and Grandma Qin came out. After they sat down, the village chief said, "After discussing it, we decided to try using the cabbage seeds from our home... Your seeds sound very precious. It would be such a waste to use them to feed rabbits."
This left Shen Zhiyi stunned. She hadn't expected this result, and she was overwhelmed with emotion.
"And my family too," Old Man Tang added.
Shen Zhiyi raised her hand and quietly wiped away the tears that were about to fall from the corner of her eyes, and said, "Actually, I had a selfish reason for thinking about catching rabbits, because I have a few seedling plots in the mountains. I not only need to make traps, but also build high fences to keep out other animals. So I should provide the seedlings."
"Then you must be thinking that the prey you get will be divided among those who did it," Grandma Qin said with a smile. "What a silly child."
There was a hint of disdain in her voice, but Shen Zhiyi could still sense the deep affection she felt.
"That's how it should be." Shen Zhiyi muttered softly, knowing that she didn't have the right to make final decisions in front of her elders, so she could only shamelessly use her junior status to act coquettishly.
Grandma Qin helplessly pointed at Shen Zhiyi from afar, while the village chief next to her laughed so hard his face was covered in wrinkles.
This matter was settled in such an unexpected way.
After several days of sunny weather, the temperature was not as high as it should have been. The thatched house was being blown around by the wind, with the eaves curling up. With the help of Tang Huaya's family and the village chief's family, not only were the cabbage seedlings planted in the mountains successfully, but even the roof of Shen Zhiyi's half-broken house was repaired.
Upon learning that Shen Zhiyi had planted seeds in those plots of land in the mountains, the village chief wished he could run to the mountains every day. Of course, he would check on the wasteland behind her house every single day.
With the village chief and Old Man Tang chatting beside her, Shen Zhiyi felt as if she had returned to her days when she was studying for her master's degree.
That day, the village chief's cheerful voice came from outside the courtyard: "Girl, something good has happened!"
It's probably because Shen Zhiyi likes to say things like "good things" and "good luck," and people who have been around her for a long time also like to say those things.
Shen Zhiyi opened the courtyard gate, already prepared to welcome good news, her smile bright and sunny: "Let me guess, did you catch a trap in the mountains?"
She reached out and took the basket from the village chief's back, feeling its weight, but did not lift the tattered cloth covering it.
"Yes, how come you guessed right away?" the village chief laughed. "There's another basketful too."
"Then I won't close the door," Shen Zhiyi said with a smile, helping the village chief to sit down on a small stool in the yard.
Then Old Man Tang came in carrying a basket on his back, followed by Tang Huaya, who looked very nervous. She closed the courtyard gate with extreme caution, and then smiled and whispered to Shen Zhiyi, "There are six big rabbits and three smaller ones in all the traps. We need to sell the big rabbits as soon as possible. My dad said we can get a good price for them."
"That's good." Shen Zhiyi's mind returned to reality. Although she was confident about the trap, the time frame for reaping the rewards was a real test of patience.
Shen Zhiyi handed them some cooled boiled water, and the group sat in the shade of the courtyard talking.
"There are six big rabbits and three baby rabbits in the two baskets. I was going to give them all to you..." Before the village chief could finish speaking, Shen Zhiyi coughed lightly to interrupt him, then continued, "I didn't help much with making the traps, and even the cabbage seeds were provided by Uncle Tang and the village chief. These rabbits are actually not my responsibility. If you two elders are really so kind, then I can keep the three baby rabbits. With Huaya helping me, maybe the rabbits can survive, and then we—no, our whole village—won't lack meat to eat!"
Shen Zhiyi looked at the village chief with a serious expression and a determined gaze.
The village chief was silent for a moment, then said helplessly, "This arrangement will work."
Old Tang, standing to the side, nodded sullenly in acknowledgment.
Only after watching them leave with the baskets containing the large rabbits on their backs did Shen Zhiyi finally feel relieved. She then turned around and went with Tang Huaya to look at the little rabbits in their tattered basket. There were two white ones and one gray one, all huddled together, clearly frightened.
"Zhiyi, I didn't know you could raise rabbits?" Tang Huaya said in surprise.
Memories of the Academy of Agricultural Sciences flooded back, but Shen Zhiyi suppressed those irretrievable thoughts and laughed, "It's not me who raises them, it's me who teaches you how to raise them, and then we'll have an endless supply of rabbits to eat."
"Me? No, I..." Tang Huaya was about to explain her self-deprecation when Shen Zhiyi immediately interjected, "Huaya, you can do it! You're patient and meticulous; no one is more suitable than you!"
With Shen Zhiyi's deliberate guidance and encouragement, Tang Huaya seemed to have made up her mind and said, "Yes, I will definitely study hard."
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