Chapter 44 ☆ Share a bed (Part 2)

Cheng Yaoyao’s eyes lit up, and she also picked a not-so-tall bayberry tree. The bayberries on this tree were dark red. She picked one up and put it into her mouth without even wiping it. She took a sip with her tongue, and the sweet and sour juice splashed in her mouth. The taste was indescribable.

Compared to Cheng Yaoyao’s taste, Tiedan and the other kids seemed particularly unrestrained. Goudan sat on the branch of an old tree with his legs apart, quickly pulling bayberries into his mouth with both hands, eating until his lips turned purple and the front of his clothes was stained with spots.

Little Tiedan couldn’t climb trees, so he hopped on his short legs under the tree. “Guoguo, Guoguo, give me a try!”

Goudan broke off a few large bayberry branches and threw them to Tiedan and Cheng Yaoyao, shouting, “You’re such a loser! You can’t even climb a tree!”

Cheng Yaoyao took two branches and, seeing Mingming standing with his hands behind his back and watching the others play on the tree, handed him one. “Can’t you climb a tree?”

“Climbing trees will tear your clothes,” Mingming said a little sadly.

Cheng Yaoyao winked at him and smiled. “Yes, let’s not climb the tree. It’s not worth it if our clothes get dirty.”

Mingming stared blankly at Cheng Yaoyao’s bright smile, and his eyes suddenly brightened.

Lin Weimin laughed out loud. “Haha, Goudan, why is your mouth so black?”

“You’re the same!” Goudan puffed up his cheeks, pursed his lips, and fired a bayberry seed at Lin Kaixuan, who was standing on another tree. Unfortunately, the distance was too far, and the seed crashed halfway.

This sparked the enthusiasm of the children, and they all used bayberry pits as bullets to spit at each other. Cheng Yaoyao, standing under the tree, was almost hit by the saliva-stained bullets and quickly ran away.

She deliberately walked to a distant bayberry tree and picked large and plump bayberries to put in her basket. There were so many bayberries that Cheng Yaoyao only picked the best ones and carefully placed them in the basket.

Lin Weimin noticed Cheng Yaoyao picking bayberries, climbed down the tree, and ran over to her. “Sister Yaoyao, why are you picking bayberries? If you eat too many, you’ll get a sour stomach. You can’t eat too many of them.”

“Yes. Sister Yaoyao, why not pick cicada shells? There are many trees there; why don’t we pick them?” When the children heard Lin Weimin’s words, they all agreed.

Cheng Yaoyao smiled mysteriously. “These bayberries can also be made into delicious food. You can help me pick them first, and I will bring the treats to you tomorrow when I make them.”

The children laughed and scratched their heads. Even if Cheng Yaoyao didn’t bring them delicious food, they would still be happy to help her.

The children had been climbing trees and picking fruit since they were young, so they were very good at it. Cheng Yaoyao was still worried about their safety, so she repeatedly told them not to climb too high. The children were very obedient and picked fruit smoothly for the whole afternoon without any problems.

Cheng Yaoyao picked up a few large palm leaves and spread them on the ground. The children piled the bayberries they had picked on the leaves, and soon two large piles were formed.

So the question was, how to carry the bayberries back? Except for Cheng Yaoyao and Tiedan, who brought backpacks, the other children carried small baskets for pig grass and wild vegetables. Everyone was puzzled, looking at the two large piles of bayberries on the ground with grass leaves as cushions. Had they wasted half a day’s effort?

Cheng Yaoyao suddenly had an idea and asked, “Is there any open space here that gets some sun?”

Goudan rushed to answer, “Yes, it’s behind the woods. There’s a stream, and the sun shines there.”

Cheng Yaoyao followed them to the back of the woods, and sure enough, there was a stream rushing down from the cracks in the rocks on the mountaintop. There were several huge rocks beside the stream, which served as natural drying grounds.

It was noon, and the sun was blazing, but the water was cool, and you could see fish swimming in it. Unfortunately, the fish were all the size of a finger due to the running water.

The boulders by the stream were hot from the sun. Cheng Yaoyao picked a few flat ones, washed them spotless, and directed the children to bring all the bayberries over. She quickly washed off the dust from the bayberries and spread them out to dry on the stones. These stones were very large, and the children went to pick them several times before they covered the stones.

Under the scorching sun, the plump bayberries quickly lost their moisture and began to wilt. Cheng Yaoyao turned the bayberries over to dry them more evenly.

A child asked in confusion, “Sister Yaoyao, are you drying the bayberries?”

“Yes,” Cheng Yaoyao nodded.

Goudan rushed to say, “What’s the point of eating them? When my mother was pregnant with my brother, she also made some dried bayberries. I ate them, and they were sour and dry.”

As he spoke, he shuddered, as if the sour taste was still on his tongue.

Cheng Yaoyao burst out laughing. “They’re not sour. You’ll know when I give you some to taste when they’re ready.”

The children looked at each other in bewilderment, obviously not believing that the dried bayberries could still be delicious. But since it was Sister Yaoyao’s request, they just rolled up their sleeves and did it.

In the afternoon, everyone was hungry and ate lunch under the shade of trees by the stream. Several children took out the dry food they brought from home. Lin Weimin, who came from a better family, had steamed buns made from grains, while the other children had dumplings made from wild vegetables and grains, which was the most common food in the village. Wild vegetables could also satisfy hunger.

Only Mingming was happily eating a wild vegetable dumpling bit by bit. He was very satisfied that he could play with his friends and no longer felt excluded.

Five children, three levels of rations, but they didn’t care. They all ate with big mouthfuls of satisfaction. Cheng Yaoyao took out the three-grain steamed buns she had brought, broke off half of one, and handed it to Mingming, eating the other half herself.

Mingming was stunned for a moment, staring at the half-steamed bun and not daring to take it. “Sister Yaoyao, I have dry food. My mother said that I can’t take other people’s food.”

“You helped me pick so many bayberries today. This is my reward to you. You will have the energy to help me after you finish eating it, right?” Cheng Yaoyao smiled and coaxed him.

“Yes, take it if Sister Yaoyao gives it to you,” Goudan said loudly. He was a little annoyed. Why didn’t he notice that his friend was eating wild vegetable dumplings? He looked at the steamed bun in his hand and saw that it was almost finished.

The afternoon sun grew hotter, but everyone’s enthusiasm for picking bayberries did not diminish. Goudan even ran home to get a few baskets to pack the bayberries.

Seeing that it was getting late, Cheng Yaoyao called the children to stop. It was so hot that she was really afraid the children would get sunburned.

The children were enthusiastic. “We’re not tired! If you think it’s hard, think about the 25,000-mile Long March^[1]refers to a historic military retreat by the Red Army of the Chinese Communist Party during the Chinese Civil War.! If you feel tired, think about the old revolutionary predecessors!” 

The corners of Cheng Yaoyao’s lips twitched. The village loudspeakers broadcast this message every day, and the children had learned it by heart.

After being exposed to the sun for an afternoon, the bayberries lost some moisture and shrank a lot. The children helped Cheng Yaoyao put all the bayberries into baskets. Together with the ones picked earlier in the afternoon, there were three or four full baskets.
The two children carried a basket of bayberries and followed Cheng Yaoyao home. It wasn’t yet time to get off work, so they avoided the main road and took the small alley to carry all the bayberries back to the Xie family’s house.