Chapter 10
Sunrise and sunset, dawn and dusk.
On the fifth day after acquiring the hoe, Shu Wanxiu finally cleared away the weeds in front of and behind the thatched house, and cultivated all the suitable places for planting vegetables and sowed the seeds.
The weather has been fine for the past few days, and people are drying the rice they harvested earlier but didn't dry properly at the threshing ground every day.
Ever since Shu Wanxiu learned about this, in addition to clearing the wasteland every day, she would also take some time to help everyone at the threshing ground with Shu Shouyi.
Sometimes it's helping to turn the crank of the winnowing machine to sift out the ash, straw, and shriveled grains mixed in with the dried rice. Other times it's when people are collecting rice and storing it, so I'll fill a basket with dry rice and help them transport the rice, trip after trip.
Although her abilities and time are limited, and she may not be able to help every household, people have seen her actions and have become much closer to her.
Shu Shouyi's condition is improving day by day. Because he often goes down the mountain to interact with the children in the village, he has made many playmates of the same age with whom he can play.
That evening, Shu Wanxiu happened to be helping the village chief Pang sift his grains. She was covered in grain dust, but Chen Sanhe insisted that she stay for tea. Unlike the plain water she served to others, this tea was made with real tea leaves and brewed with boiling water.
The ash from the grains would make his skin itchy, so Chen Sanhe told his daughter-in-law Chen Lian to take Shu Wanxiu to the well to wash her face and hands with cold water. He then went into the house, grabbed two handfuls of roasted beans and two handfuls of fresh chestnuts, and gave half of them to Shu Shouyi, telling him to cover them with his clothes and eat them slowly while sitting down.
When Shu Wanxiu finished washing up and came over, he had to give her the remaining half.
I came down the mountain to help with the work in order to repay everyone's kindness. It's unreasonable to repay only half a bit and then eat so much of their food in return.
Despite Shu Wanxiu's frantic efforts to push and block, her face flushed red, she couldn't stop Chen Sanhe's movements in the slightest.
She forcefully placed the two objects on Shu Wanxiu's lap, then clapped her hands, accomplished her mission, and plopped down in a chair.
Across from her, Shu Wanxiu hurriedly picked up the fried beans one by one from her lap and put them into her hand. Chen Sanhe watched, took a sip of tea, and started chatting with her about everyday things.
“These past two days I’ve been at home watching the grain dry, while your Uncle Pang went to the mountain to the west to store firewood for the winter. He went deep into the mountains and found these chestnuts in a certain area.”
"Don't underestimate this little one. The skin is hard to peel, but it's crunchy and sweet when eaten raw! If you like noodles, you can bury it in the ashes while cooking."
Shu Wanxiu unconsciously slowed down her movements and picked up where Chen Sanhe left off, "Whether chestnuts are crisp or soft, I think they are delicious. Back when I was at home, there were chestnuts and pine cones to pick in the mountains at this time of year. Everyone in my family preferred to eat pine cones, but I preferred chestnuts."
Recalling those past events, Shu Wanxiu had a smile on her lips.
However, Chen Sanhe didn't notice this; she only asked curiously, "Pine cone? What's that?"
There are pine trees to the south, but the pine cones they produce are small and contain no fruit.
Shu Wanxiu knew long ago on her journey to escape famine that the pine trees here no longer produced pine cones. In fact, many people from the south had no idea that the pine trees in the north could produce edible pine cones.
She patiently and meticulously explained these differences to Chen Sanhe, even gesturing: "The pine cones where I'm from can be this big, but the pine cones inside are this tiny..."
"Oh...then the size, isn't it about the size of fried beans? What does it taste like?"
"It has the fresh scent of pine trees, and a touch of sweetness."
Chen Sanhe smacked his lips twice. "Next time I go into the mountains, I'll have to find out why the same trees don't bear fruit in the south but do in the north?"
Sensing the childlike earnestness in her tone, Shu Wanxiu's eyes crinkled into crescent moons with laughter.
“Don’t laugh, your aunt has been found. You, you, you,” she pointed to Shu Wanxiu, Chen Lian, and Shu Shouyi in turn, “you can all get a grain.”
Even Chen Lian, who was standing next to her, couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Shu Wanxiu did offer her thanks in advance, saying she would "await good news."
The next day, Shu Wanxiu watered the vegetables she had planted in the morning dew. After breakfast, she took Shu Shouyi into the mountains to collect firewood to store for the winter.
"Don't look around, stay close to your aunt, and watch your step."
Although they had been living halfway up the mountain for many days, their usual activities were limited to the area below the mountain and around the house. The aunt and niece always went up the mountain together.
Fortunately, there was a path made by villagers that led directly up the mountain. Although there were some weeds on both sides, it was possible to pass through by pushing them aside.
Shu Wanxiu walked ahead slowly to explore the way, not forgetting to give Shu Shouyi some verbal instructions.
"Okay, Auntie."
After walking for about 15 minutes, they came to a place with few weeds and a wide view. Shu Wanxiu stopped and took out a few chestnuts from her bosom.
"Your auntie is going to gather firewood around here. You just stand here and peel chestnuts. If you hear your auntie calling you, you have to answer her, okay?"
Yesterday, Chen Sanhe gave her a handful of chestnuts, but Shu Wanxiu only ate two or three. She put the rest away, planning to use them to keep the children from running around when she went into the mountains to collect firewood.
Shu Shouyi looked around for a while, then hesitantly accepted the offer.
Shu Wanxiu had no other good ideas. Gathering firewood required navigating all sorts of obstacles, which not only easily tore her clothes but also made her most afraid of encountering hornet nests.
"Sweetie, Auntie will pick it up where you can see it. You can call Auntie if you're scared."
Shu Shouyi nodded reluctantly.
Before stopping, Shu Wanxiu noticed a lot of dry branches on the ground. After settling Shu Shouyi in, she immediately bent down and went into the woods to pick them up.
At first, Shu Wanxiu could hear Shu Shouyi calling her even if she walked a little further away. Later, after she carried two loads of firewood to the roadside and told him to eat while guarding the firewood, he gradually felt at ease.
In about half an hour, they collected four bundles of firewood, the majority of which were dead camphor tree branches blown down by the wind, along with a small amount of pine and fir branches.
Remembering what Aunt Chen had said about Chief Pang finding a whole chestnut tree in the mountains, she also looked around carefully, but unfortunately, she didn't see a single chestnut leaf.
Having gathered enough firewood, Shu Wanxiu weighed her strength and decided against carrying two bundles back in one trip. Instead, she dutifully dragged one bundle with all her might, while Shu Shouyi went ahead to head home.
In this way, Shu Shouyi accompanied him on three trips. When it was time to set off for the last trip, Shu Wanxiu noticed that he was clearly not able to walk much.
The mountain road was difficult to travel, and besides, at this time of day, Shu Shouyi would normally be resting in his bedroom.
After weighing the options, Shu Wanxiu decided to keep him, but she gave him a lot of advice.
"Your aunt will be back soon. You are not allowed to go near the water, go into the mountains, or play with fire. You must go to sleep quietly."
Shu Shouyi agreed to all of them.
After watching him go into his room and fall asleep, Shu Wanxiu went out again.
The forest was lush and green. With her little tail gone, Shu Wanxiu gradually quickened her pace and eventually even started jogging.
The wind whistled in her ears, and birds in the trees were startled by her, flapping their wings and flying away.
I made the trip without any major incidents, but when I arrived home, my heart sank.
She noticed that the bedroom door, which had been properly bolted from the inside when she left, was now ajar. She immediately dropped the firewood and rushed into the room.
There was no one in the bed.
She even shook out the thin blankets piled together, but there wasn't a trace of Shu Shouyi.
After the initial panic subsided, she screamed at the top of her lungs.
"Uphold righteousness!"
"Shu Shouyi!"
"Where are you? Come out now!"
Despite her blood rushing to her head, her heart pounding, and her mind buzzing, there was no response for a long time.
As her legs weakened and she struggled to stand, leaning against the wall, on the verge of collapsing, a timid voice came from the corner.
"aunt."
The sound came from the stove. Shu Wanxiu turned her head and saw that half of Shu Shouyi's head was sticking out of the stove.
She didn't dare blink, and walked over as if stepping on cotton, her steps uneven.
Only after confirming that Shu Shouyi was alright did she blink her sore eyes.
"Why didn't you sleep well? Why did it take you so long to answer after your aunt called you so many times?" She held her breath, managing not to vent her anger on him.
The moment she realized the person was missing, she cursed herself in her heart as a sinner for all eternity. She condemned her carelessness with the most venomous and terrifying words. She wished she had just been carried away by wild beasts in the mountains and torn apart by wild ghosts.
"Auntie, I...I..."
Shu Shouyi was speechless. He wanted to explain, but his mind was still blank, and he didn't know what to say.
Noticing that Shu Wanxiu looked unwell, he hurriedly grabbed her clothes and pulled her toward the hearth where they cooked.
From afar, Shu Wanxiu saw a grayish-brown thing.
Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a dead rabbit lying on the ground?
The anger and fear in my heart suddenly turned into doubt and disbelief.
Finally, she opened her eyes and asked four words in a daze.
"What happened?"
A note from the author:
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