The group was delighted to hear this. Although they were from the city, since they were going to the countryside, this little bit of trouble really didn't matter. Li Yan even struck up a conversation with one of them.
"Auntie, are the chestnuts inside these burrs just edible chestnuts?"
The auntie was immediately amused.
"You silly child, there's still a layer of skin on it. Just peel off that skin and you can eat it."
Are chestnuts and other similar fruits plentiful in your city? How are they prepared?
Everyone has relatives in the countryside, and Li Yan has certainly experienced the consequences.
“We’ve eaten it a few times. My uncle and his family always picked it from the mountain and steamed it or boiled it in water when cooking. If we had sugar at home, we would add a little bit to give it a sweet taste.”
Just talking about it makes me crave it.
"I can never get enough to eat."
I heard that some families even use sugar to make it, but they have to use clean coarse sand, and it uses a lot of sugar. My classmate's family has made it before, and they said that when it's done, even the outer skin is sweet, and it's especially easy to peel. It's crunchy and breaks apart with just a pinch. When it's hot, it's sweet and sticky, and it's so delicious.
But my mom never made it, saying that three months' worth of candy wouldn't be enough for just one indulgence. Sigh!
His tone was full of regret.
When can we have some roasted chestnuts?
The auntie who was speaking just now is now speechless.
"That sugar is a precious commodity; using it to fry this stuff is such a waste."
"The candy's all stuck to the crust and sand, isn't it? You can't even get it into your mouth. There's more you could eat in your mouth, so why are you still thinking about it?"
They chatted and worked at the same time without any delay. Li Yan and the others were also curious about this, and besides, they chatted...
"Auntie, our place here, nestled against the mountains, is really much better than the city."
You have no idea how difficult it is to get mountain produce in the city. If you have good relatives, you're lucky; they might occasionally bring over some vegetables or something, like mountain produce, mushrooms, and wild greens. But you wouldn't believe it if you brought this stuff home; the neighbors would be staring at you like crazy.
My auntie made me laugh.
"Really? Hahaha, not many families in our village have relatives in the city, so I really didn't know."
I've heard people say that city dwellers don't like letting relatives from the countryside visit, saying they're afraid of what? That they'll try to freeload off them.
"Hey, that's someone else."
You know, Auntie, there are good and bad relatives, right? Some relatives are willing to send you vegetables or mountain produce, and whether they like it or not, it's something new for them.
Besides, aren't these things mutually dependent?
I don't believe that your relatives in the city look down on you, yet you're still so eager to please them, sending them all the good stuff you have.
Auntie, don't you think that makes sense?
Trying to freeload? Isn't that just insulting people?
Who could support themselves and would willingly go to someone else's house to eat and take things?
"Exactly! It's not like everyone in the countryside likes to take advantage of others,"
"To put it bluntly, life is tough in the city, and it's tough in the countryside too."
Workers in the city received cash invoices and grain rations, but the grain rations were limited and often unavailable.
Sigh, even if you have money and tickets, you'll still go hungry if you can't get anything.
In our rural areas, yes, there's no grain ration; we all rely on work points. You see, even at times like these, it's much better than being in the city. We can still come to the mountains to find some food, so we don't just starve."
Upon hearing this, everyone around nodded in agreement.
"Isn't that right? Isn't there someone from the next village who works in the county?"
I heard that at the beginning of autumn, there was nothing left in that county town, and you could only buy a tiny bit of grain.
They're just a young couple, and they don't do much besides work, so it's alright. If they don't have any food, they can just drink porridge. As long as they have something in their stomachs, they won't starve.
Who would have thought that at this time, his wife became pregnant? Well, at that time, pregnancy was indeed dangerous, and with no other options, he returned to the countryside.
His parents still had a few kilograms of grain left, which they had deliberately saved up from winter to autumn.
After summer, the house was infested with insects, but no one dared to touch it. They thought that if they really couldn't survive, the whole family should have a full meal before they died, and they didn't want to starve to death.
Hearing this, the old couple didn't say a word and took all their savings. They lay there on the kang (heated brick bed), starving to death.
A few seconds of silence followed.
"I heard that too. I heard that after that person went back, he stopped worrying about his family."
After the autumn harvest, the villagers hadn't seen them for several days. When they went to their homes, they found that both of them had been dead for several days.
Lin Zhaodi turned pale upon hearing this.
Is this true?
Thinking about it this way, although her family didn't let her live the same life as her younger brother, they didn't let her go hungry.
"It's true, it's all true."
The surrounding villages are all in similar situations; even the best-off village next door, Liujia Village, isn't much better off.
For a moment, everyone fell silent; even the few men pacing back and forth nearby remained quiet.
Many hands make light work.
Seeing that all the chestnuts with their shells on were almost picked clean, and with the sun already starting to set, Liu Weimin simply called for everyone to take a break.
"Did everyone bring some dry food? Let's eat something first. We have so much food to bring down the mountain, we can't go hungry."
After we finish eating, we'll collect the walnuts from the trees in front of us, and then we'll head down the mountain.
This work can't be done in a day. There are still some good things up the mountain; we'll come back tomorrow.
The topic we just discussed was too heavy, and the pleasant atmosphere from the morning never returned; everyone ate in silence.
Li Yan and the others also noticed, and dared not make a sound. They took out their dry rations and leaned against the tree to eat and rest.
He swallowed a simple cornbread and couldn't eat anymore, so he got up and stretched his legs.
It must be said that the scenery on the mountain in autumn is quite nice, with perfect sunshine and a pleasantly cool breeze.
As I walked, I drifted further and further away.
Now, Jian Dan is standing not far from the crowd, staring blankly at the things on the ground.
Seriously, isn't she supposed to be playing the female lead?
Or was it God's pity that she was born into this lean era, and this was a special compensation for her?
Is this meant to help her save all living beings?
The path was laid out before her, leaving her no time to think.
He turned around and shouted loudly.
"Uncle Village Chief?"
"Why?"
Liu Weimin was discussing with a few men about going down the mountain later when he heard the shout. He instinctively answered, then realized what was happening.
"Hey? Who called me just now?"
The people around looked at each other, and for a moment they didn't even notice who was missing.
Li Yan and the others looked around but couldn't see any familiar figures. They stood up and searched around but still couldn't find them. Then, they looked down and thought back to the voice they had just heard. It really did sound a bit like the person in the voice.
Who isn't here?
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