Chapter 86: The Iron During Steelmaking

Zhang Lan didn’t know where her daughter had learned that these items could repel mosquitoes. “Qianqian, will this work?”

Although Wang Qian didn’t know how effective it would be, she trusted her grandmother’s method. “Mom, don’t worry. I’ve heard Hongmei’s mom talk about this before. I think it will work.”

Here we go again, it’s Hongmei’s mom. Zhang Lan still couldn’t figure out how much her daughter had learned from Hongmei’s mom. However, after dinner, when she went back inside, she found that the mosquitoes were really gone. The effect was quite good.

Mingyuan and his brother also came excitedly to report the news. “Mom, there are no mosquitoes in our room anymore. We can sleep well from now on.” Resolving the sleeping problem made the children quite happy.

“Qianqian, send some over to your Grandpa Zuo tomorrow. I think there are even more mosquitoes over there, especially around the livestock pen,” Wang Zhenhe said.

“Got it, Dad. I’ll take some over tomorrow.”

At this time, Grandpa Zuo was also troubled by mosquitoes. Everyone in the room was up trying to swat them, but the oil lamp was too dim, and they couldn’t see the mosquitoes clearly.

“Ah, Old Zuo, I miss the mosquito net at home. It would be great if we could bring it here,” Wu Changyong said with some regret.

“Absolutely, I miss the taste of meat. I almost can’t remember it,” someone complained on the side.

Everyone had been eating pickled vegetables for so long. When fresh vegetables were available, they ate those. There was no oil or fat in their stomachs.

“Hey, guys, I heard that family members can come to visit us. It should be announced soon,” one person secretly shared the first-hand information with everyone.

“Old Chen, is what you’re saying true or false? Can we trust it?” Old Wu was also delighted to hear this news.

Old Chen looked outside and whispered, “I overheard them discussing it when I walked past the door. We’ll know for sure in the next couple of days.”

The group of old men, bored and idle, chatted until they were all drowsy and fell into a deep sleep, even though there were mosquitoes buzzing around. They no longer paid any attention to them.

The next day, Wang Qian appeared like a timely rain in front of everyone. Several old folks understood what she had in her hands. Even the elderly recognized how to use these items. “Young lady, you are truly our savior.”

Wu Changyong was extremely excited. The discomfort of not sleeping well and being bitten by mosquitoes was unbearable. Even for these experienced old folks, it was hard to endure.

Although Wang Qian didn’t know the old man in front of her, she politely addressed him, “Grandpa, you can use this for now. I’ll gather more and bring it to you later.”

Zuo Zanshan stood by with a beaming smile, watching Old Wu express his gratitude to their little girl. This old man rarely showed courtesy to others, so today was an eye-opener.

“Young lady, come over to play when you have time. Grandpa has many stories to tell. Come over, and I’ll tell you,” Old Wu said.

This time, Wu Changyong was using all his tricks to get Wang Qian to visit often. They had been here for a long time, and apart from seeing these old folks, they had no contact with people from outside. Suddenly seeing a lovely girl, especially one with a kind heart, how could he not seize the opportunity to keep her around? It would be nice to have someone to keep these lonely old men company, to alleviate their boredom, and to ease the pain of missing their loved ones.

Grandpa Zuo’s intentions were clear, and Wang Qian understood. She wasn’t a child anymore. She looked up with a smile and said, “Sure, I’ll come to see you often in the future.” After exchanging a glance with Grandpa Zuo, she turned and went home with the basket.

After tidying up at home, she went to the space. The corn cobs had already formed grains, and she felt that they could be roasted and eaten. The growth rate in the space was much faster than outside. She wanted to break off some corn to cook, but she hesitated.

They were short on food now, and the members rarely ate green corn. If they ate it, it would reduce the yield when it matured. She decided to wait until her mother returned. The wheat grains had started to form seeds, and the soil in the space was dry. She needed to fetch some water to irrigate the land.

She left the house with a basket, collected water and fish from the reservoir, and headed straight to the place where she had previously caught crabs. She planned to gather some items to sell in the city. At this time, the crabs had already laid their eggs, so there was less concern about catching them.

However, even so, she got pinched by the crabs. It hurt, but she didn’t let go. She kept them in a bucket in the space and then headed up to the east side of the orchard. She hadn’t been there before, so she decided to pick some wild vegetables and take a look. There was a long, narrow ditch, but the bottom was flat and open, as if it had been artificially flattened. It was surrounded by shrubs, and someone unfamiliar with the area wouldn’t know what was inside.

As she walked along the ditch, a black stone caught her eye. It was quite large, pitted all around, and the lower half was buried underground. It felt metallic to the touch. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but she had a feeling it was iron. However, she had never seen such a large piece of iron. Even if it was iron, how did it end up here? Since it seemed like a good find, she couldn’t just leave it there. She cleared a space in the space and stored the item before heading home to ask about it later.

Once the small basket was full of wild vegetables, she leisurely made her way back. During dinner, she remembered the incident. “Dad, what was the ditch in the orchard used for in the past?”

Wang Zhenhe hadn’t realized it at first, but with his daughter’s reminder, he recalled and then smiled, “You’re talking about that place, I remember. It was the time of the large-scale steelmaking. Our brigade was involved in that. It’s a long story. At that time, I was only a few years older than Mingcheng. I remember the enthusiasm of the villagers. They brought all the iron and pots from their homes to be used for steelmaking. The most interesting part was that some families didn’t have much iron, so they even removed the locks from their cabinets and sent them to be melted in the steelmaking furnace.” As he spoke of the past, Wang Zhenhe seemed to be transported back to his childhood.

“Dad, what happened next? What about the things produced from the steelmaking?” Wang Qian quickly followed up with a question. She wanted to confirm if the huge iron block in the ditch was a product of the large-scale steelmaking period.

Wang Zhenhe shook his head. “Who knows? No one cared about what happened later. It seems that what was produced was all waste and of little use. I guess it was just discarded.”

Wang Qian was now completely certain that the huge iron block in her hands was left over from that time. Well, she had struck it rich this time. Although the iron block wasn’t worth much now, it was better than nothing.

Mingcheng and the others didn’t understand the situation and couldn’t interject, but Zhang Lan asked, “Qianqian, why did you suddenly think of asking about this?”

It seemed that her mother knew her well. “Mom, I was digging for wild vegetables in that ditch today and found it quite flat, so I was just curious.”

While the family was having dinner, a neighbor from their street hurried over. Zhang Lan called him “Third Uncle” because he was from the same brigade as her maternal family. His hometown was also in the mountains, but he had moved out with his wife and children after marrying a divorced woman.

“Zhang Lan, your mother is sick. My brother mentioned it to me when he came today. Do you want to go back and see her?” he informed.

Upon hearing that her mother was ill, Zhang Lan naturally felt anxious. “Thank you, Third Uncle. I’ll pack up and go back now.”

Upon hearing about his mother-in-law’s illness, Wang Zhenhe also felt worried. His mother-in-law had always been in good health, so her illness was definitely serious. “Wife, should I accompany you there?”

However, Zhang Lan shook her head. “No, we still have children at home. Here’s what we’ll do: I’ll take Qianqian back first, and you stay home to take care of the three kids. If nothing major happens tomorrow, I’ll come back. Be careful at home, okay?”

Mingcheng led his sister over and asked, “Mom, should we take leave to go and see Grandma?”

Zhang Lan understood that the children were concerned about their grandmother’s condition. She smiled and said, “No need. If something happens, I’ll send word for you to come over. Hurry and go to school. We’ll take care of grandma.”

After a quick tidy-up, Zhang Lan hurried to her mother’s home with her daughter. She had hoped to encounter some wild chickens or rabbits on the way to supplement her mother’s diet, but unfortunately, she didn’t find anything.

“Mom, don’t worry. I caught some river crabs and carp in the space this morning. We can use those to nourish Grandma,” her daughter suggested.

Her daughter’s thoughtfulness made Zhang Lan truly relieved. “Qianqian, when you go to your grandma’s house this time, bring back more things. I know that the crabs are coming out at this time. If your grandma is okay, I’ll take you to catch crabs at night. We can sell them for a good price. I’ll go with you then.”

Wang Qian remembered something else she hadn’t told her mother. “Mom, the corn in the space is ready to be roasted. Should we give some to Grandma to let her taste it? Also, I found a large iron block left over from the large-scale steelmaking period in the ditch this morning. I think it could fetch a good price. Should we sell it?”

Having a child who could earn money made Zhang Lan feel comforted, but at the same time, she felt more self-reproach and bitterness. Her daughter rarely played with others. Whenever she had free time, she was either helping at home or finding ways to earn money. These responsibilities had exceeded what a child could handle, especially a seven-year-old.

“Qianqian, won’t you be very tired?”

Wang Qian shook her head. “Mom, I can do it. I’m not tired.”

It was clear that the girl didn’t understand her mother’s concern. Not to mention that what she is holding, for  a child’s hand was quite heavy, they were about to leave the mountain. Mother and daughter entered the space and saw the wheat ears, which made Zhang Lan feel as sweet as honey. This would be their family’s staple food. She picked about ten corn cobs from the cornfield and put them in the basket. She also separated the river crabs and fish. She planned to take them out when they were close to her mother’s house.