Chapter 18

At the edge of the Dongfeng Brigade’s reservoir stood the houses of the educated youth settlement. A dark figure limped toward one of the houses.

She quietly opened the door and tiptoed inside.

“Qinghan, what took you so long in the latrine?”

“I was about to go fish you out from there.”

Hearing her roommate’s voice, Zhu Qinghan nearly tripped again.

The room was pitch-black without any lights. Her roommate, Sun Fangfang, had a coat draped over her shoulders and was standing barely a step away from her.

“Fangfang, I had diarrhea. Just as I left the latrine, my stomach cramped up again, so I had to go back. It was like that, back and forth, several times.”

The conditions at the educated youth settlement were harsh. The latrine was built by the reservoir, and it indeed took some time to make the trip each time.

Sun Fangfang walked over to turn on the light, picked up the thermos, and poured herself a cup of hot water.

“Sigh… I really wonder when these days will come to an end,” she said, her eyes blankly scanning the bare room.

A few makeshift wooden beds were placed against the wall. The bedboards were hard, with only a thin mattress and patchwork quilts on top.

The window had a small wooden frame, pasted with yellowing paper, some of which had holes in it. When the wind blew, it made a “poof poof” sound.

Zhu Qinghan felt a pang of emotion too. Ever since she had come to Dongfeng Brigade as an educated youth, not only did she have to go to work in the fields every day, but she was also constantly hungry, never getting enough to eat.

She had recently been sneaking up the mountain at night and had just dug up a large sack of ji cong mushrooms (Termitomyces). She had planned to hide them in the reeds by the river and sell them at the commune later—but someone had discovered them!

She didn’t know whether the mushrooms were still there or not. She’d have to check behind that big rock tomorrow.

“By the way, why are there only two of you here? Where’s Jiang Xiuxiu?”

This house at the settlement was shared by Zhu Qinghan and her three roommates.

But right now, one roommate was sound asleep, snoring loudly, while another bed was empty.

“Right after you went out for your little walk, Jiang Xiuxiu was called away by Accountant Chen. He said she used to be a math teacher and had the best math skills among the educated youth, so he’s taking her to the neighboring village tonight to collect debts.”

Zhu Qinghan’s closest friend was Jiang Xiuxiu. They had come from the same place and were hometown friends.

“Accountant Chen? The one whose wife’s surname is Xu, with the big belly, about to give birth? The one guarding the warehouse?”

Sun Fangfang nodded.
“That’s him! But his wife doesn’t guard the warehouse anymore.
We’ve been working on the reservoir side and rarely go to the granary. I heard someone else is guarding it now.”

Zhu Qinghan felt uneasy. That Chen guy did look decent, but his wife was about to give birth—why would he take Xiuxiu to the neighboring village in the middle of the night? Why not go during the day?

“Alright, alright, Qinghan, go to bed. We’ve got to get up early tomorrow. I’m dead tired.”

Sun Fangfang finished her hot water and flopped back into bed, falling asleep instantly, while Zhu Qinghan sat alone in the room, her expression somber.

…

The next morning, Wei Yanzhen got up early and went to the kitchen to cook some lotus seed porridge.

Looking at the vegetables piled in the corner of the kitchen and the cured meat his mother had hung to dry, he felt something was off. It seemed like he and his wife hadn’t bought this much from the commune.

“Hey, lotus seeds? Where’d you get those from?”

Qin Ping had gone to bed early the night before, and now she was surprised to see lotus seeds.

“Mom, she can drink lotus seed porridge, right?”

“I also got some ji cong mushrooms. Pregnant women don’t have many dietary restrictions, right?”

When she saw the large sack of mushrooms, Qin Ping’s eyes lit up.

“Wei Yanzhen, you didn’t steal these, did you?”

“What have your father and I always taught you?”

Wei Yanzhen was stunned—his own mother was looking at him like she was about to turn him over to the authorities!

“Mom, I found those ji cong mushrooms last night.”

“And the lotus seeds—we picked them by the reed lake when I was out with my wife.”

Only then did Qin Ping breathe a sigh of relief.

“You should’ve said that earlier.”

“These things—Lan can eat them all.”

“But as for the ji cong mushrooms, it’s best to cook them in chicken soup. Take two pieces of that cured meat I made and trade them for a chicken at the Luo family next door.”

Qin Ping got busy making dough for pancakes.

Mother and son cooked together—Wei Yanzhen handled the lotus seeds, scooping a generous portion of rice and placing both in the pot, then slowly adding clean water.

The flames crackled merrily in the stove, licking the bottom of the pot.

As the water in the pot heated up and began to boil, the lotus seeds turned soft, and the rice released a rich aroma.

When Deng Zhilian got up, she saw Wei Xiaotian, Wei Yanzhen’s father, sitting in the main hall reading a book.

Meanwhile, her sister-in-law Wei Jinyue looked groggy, not quite awake yet.

“Sister-in-law, you’re awake?”

“Mom and my brother are in the kitchen cooking. They said once you wake up, you should wash up. We’re having lotus seed porridge today—it’ll be ready soon.”

Deng Zhilan took a towel and went to the well in the courtyard to wash her face.

This well had been newly dug since the Wei family moved in. The water was icy cold, and the moment it splashed on her face, she was wide awake.

Soon, the lotus seed porridge was served.

Deng Zhilan sat at the table to eat, and sure enough, her husband had real skill in the kitchen—even his porridge was expertly made.

The porridge was thick and creamy. She scooped a spoonful into her mouth, and the tender, sweet flavor spread across her tongue, warming her from the inside out—a perfect start to her morning.

Wei Yanzhen, on the other hand, didn’t care for savoring. He gulped down his porridge in a few mouthfuls, grabbed a piece of cured meat, and headed to the Luo family next door.

At that moment, Old Lady Luo was feeding the chickens.

The Luo family’s house was noticeably larger than the Wei’s, and their courtyard even had a vegetable patch, with beans and cucumbers climbing up trellises—everything looked full of life.

“Granny Luo, I live next door to you.”

“I was wondering if I could trade this piece of meat for one of your chickens?”

Old Lady Luo put down her feed bowl and looked Wei Yanzhen up and down, her eyes lighting up when she saw the cured meat in his hands.

“Wow, that looks like good meat. Sure, I’ll trade a chicken—but my chickens are all grain-fed, so you’ll have to offer a decent chunk.”

Wei Yanzhen smiled and handed over the entire piece of cured meat.
“Granny Luo, take a look. If it’s good enough, I’ll take a chicken.”

Old Lady Luo inspected the meat carefully, then nodded with satisfaction.
“Alright, you’re a straight shooter. Go ahead and pick one.”

Wei Yanzhen stepped into the chicken coop and chose a hen, grabbing it in one go.

Old Lady Luo called out,
“Word is your wife’s pregnant—go stew this for her, it’ll make a nice broth.”

Wei Yanzhen chatted with her casually for a bit, and his voice happened to reach Song Yitao, who lived in the Luo family’s woodshed right next to the chicken pen.

When she heard that Wei Yanzhen not only had cured meat, but had used it to trade for a chicken to make soup for Deng Zhilan, she could no longer hold back her jealousy. She jumped straight out of bed.