Chapter 14

In the morning, the two little ones woke up earlier than her and had already gone outside to wash up.

Shen Ning returned to the room and saw that his sister-in-law was awake. He eagerly approached the bed, both happy and shy, telling Sang Luo that he had dreamt of making money to buy food last night. Sang Luo realized that she wasn’t the only one who was happy.

Instantly filled with motivation, she threw off the covers and got out of bed.

Shen Ning saw Sang Luo getting up and turned to walk around the stone where the bowls were placed. When he came back, he handed Sang Luo a bunch of straw roots, saying, “Sister-in-law, here, my brother and I picked these this morning!”

These were ancient versions of makeshift toothbrushes made from the roots of a plant called white straw. By peeling off the outer layer, they could be chewed for oral hygiene due to their high fiber content, which poor families valued for cleaning teeth and mouths.

Sang Luo had experienced using them yesterday.

Seeing that the siblings had even prepared hers, she smiled and rubbed Shen Ning’s head affectionately, saying, “Thanks.”

She took the straw roots and went out to wash them up.

Upon stepping outside, she noticed that the ramie she had soaked in the pool last night had already been taken out. Shen An was using the ramie extractor she borrowed from the Chen family to extract the fibers. Despite his young age, his movements were remarkably skillful.

Sang Luo was somewhat surprised; this wasn’t something one could become proficient in at a glance. But considering Mr. Li’s character, it wasn’t so surprising after all.

Shen An’s eyes lit up when he saw Sang Luo awake. “Sister-in-law, can we go set the fish traps now?” He had been eager since waking up.

“Sure!” Sang Luo smiled. “Let me finish washing up, and then we’ll go.”

Shen An and Shen Ning were delighted, and while Sang Luo was still washing up, the siblings went ahead to prepare.

With experience this time, the two children put away the tools efficiently. One retrieved the empty basket they had brought back the night before, while the other carried a broken clay pot used for cooking rice. To avoid using the basket, they prepared to set up two more fish traps.

The traps set at night yielded better results in the morning, although the fish they caught this time were not particularly large. Nevertheless, the three of them were quite satisfied.

Shen An and Shen Ning cherished the fish and shrimp, even pouring water into the clay pot to keep the fish alive longer. Sang Luo allowed them to do as they pleased.

However, when they returned home, Sang Luo knew they would have to clean the clay pot thoroughly to use it for cooking. They couldn’t leave it with the fishy smell, especially since they would need it to prepare food to sell in the next two days.

Shen An also understood this, so when they got home, he asked Sang Luo how to handle the fish and shrimp.

“We’ll keep three or four fish for lunch, and the rest we’ll serve in individual bowls. I’ll use them later. As for the shrimp, wash them and boil them in the clay pot. Then we can use the stone slab from last night to dry them. Keep the water used to boil the shrimp.”

Though Shen An didn’t know how Sang Luo planned to arrange the half-bowl of fish, he didn’t mind following her instructions.

They still had porridge for breakfast. Perhaps because they now had a means of obtaining food, when Shen An saw Sang Luo fetching rice, although he still felt a pang, he managed to resist the urge to grab a handful back like he did the day before. Nonetheless, the expression on his face was still quite colorful.

Sang Luo found it amusing and took a moment to educate them, “Don’t feel sorry for the rice. They say one should eat heartily in the morning and sparingly at night. If you want to have a good body and energy throughout the day, you can’t skip breakfast.”

Shen An blushed, “Sister-in-law, I didn’t say anything.”

Sang Luo smiled, skimming off the foam from the hot water boiling in the clay pot where the shrimp had just been cooked. She then added the rinsed rice and stirred it occasionally.

When the rice was cooked to perfection, she added a bit of salt and some finely chopped wild onions, filling the air with such a fragrance that the two children couldn’t help but sniff and salivate.

Fresh river ingredients were truly exceptional.

The shrimp’s freshness and the aroma of the onions combined to create a delicious savory shrimp porridge.

It was a pity they didn’t have ginger; otherwise, it would have been even better. However, for three people who had been eating wild vegetables every day, such a delicacy was beyond reproach.

There were only two bowls left in the house that they could use. San Luo smiled as she served each of the siblings half a bowl, “You two eat first, I’ll go visit Grandma Chen.”

Carrying the half-bowl of fish, she left.

Shen An and Shen Ning glanced at each other, neither of them questioning what the fish would be used for.

Since her sister-in-law caught the fish herself, she would naturally decide how to use them. Besides, it was fine if they were given away, especially to Grandma Chen, who had saved their sister-in-law’s life.

Sang Luo did indeed take the fish to Grandma Chen, but it had nothing to do with repaying a debt or giving it away for free.

She was being bold and trying to exchange the half-bowl of fish for a piece of malt candy from the Old Lady.

“Fresh food, people might not buy if they don’t know the taste. I thought I’d bring some sugar water along to let them taste it first.”

It was a legitimate business tactic.

After hearing Sang Luo’s request, Mrs. Chen didn’t even take the bowl from her. She simply said, “Just wait here,” and went inside. After a while, she came out and handed Sang Luo two pieces of malt candy, “Hurry back, leave the bowl here. It’ll melt in the sun if you wander around outside.”

Sang Luo happily accepted, “Grandma, would you mind using this bowl for the fish?”

Mrs. Chen had already given out four pieces of malt candy in two days, feeling quite generous. However, she had seen for herself the situation at the main house of the Shen family. With just a bit of fish, she wasn’t sure if it had been caught in the stream all day. How could she ask for more food from the children?

Waving her hand to dismiss her, she said, “We don’t need this extra mouth to feed. Take it back and eat it yourself.”

Sang Luo retorted, “…As you say, then I didn’t need to ask for your candy? Then what am I? I said it was an exchange, and an exchange it shall be.”

With that, she headed to the kitchen, confidently calling out to Qin Fangniang, “Auntie Arita, could you please help me with a bowl?”

If the Old Lady didn’t accept something, Qin Fangniang wouldn’t dare to, either. She just peeked at her mother-in-law to gauge her reaction.

Seeing Sang Luo’s persistence, and not wanting to argue further, Mrs. Chen sighed and glared at Sang Luo, “Take the bowl and leave. If you’re not satisfied, I won’t give you any more tomorrow.”

Before, Sang Luo had been too shy to ask, but now, with a bit more confidence, she was like a monkey, climbing up without needing a pole to prop herself up. Mrs. Chen felt she had been swindled into this situation. Angrily, she scolded Sang Luo with a glance, “Taking a bowl isn’t enough for you to sell? Do you think money falls from the sky at the market? You can earn so easily.”

 In this village gathering, those who go are all from farming families. In times like these, few families are willing to spend much money on food.

Sang Luo felt embarrassed. “It’s not that. It’s just that if it’s one bucket, we have to carry it. We have to travel seven miles (about 3.5 kilometers) to the market.”

She pinched her thin arm. “Look at me, with this body of mine. Carrying a solid bucket of tofu for seven miles, my arms aside, I’d be exhausted.”

“So, I’m asking you to lend me another bucket. We can divide the load between two buckets and carry them more easily.”

Sang Luo smiled ingratiatingly at the old lady and raised a finger. “Also lend me a shoulder pole.”

The fawning manner…

Mrs. Chen nodded helplessly. “Fine, fine, come get it tonight.”

Then Sang Luo, acting like a sly monkey, piled up a bunch of favor cards and sweet words as if they cost nothing.

Mrs. Chen’s mouth twitched, struggling to contain her laughter, waving her hand to dismiss Sang Luo. “Alright, I have to set up my stall tomorrow; you have things to do today; hurry back.”

Sang Luo left Chen’s courtyard contentedly, carrying an empty bowl and two pieces of malt candy. She hadn’t walked far when she heard a sarcastic and somewhat exaggerated voice coming from around two corners.

Mrs. Li stood leaning against her own yard gate, raised her chin slightly, glanced at the empty bowl in Sang Luo’s hand, and smirked. “Did you change your begging place? How come you didn’t get anything?”