Before Li Xiaohan could dwell on her thoughts for too long, the well-digging master showed up right on time. 

The well digger’s surname was Han, and he brought along his two apprentices.

Upon entering, Master Han didn’t say much. He walked around Li Xiandong’s property, tasted the weeds growing in various corners, and rubbed the soil dug from different spots. After just a cup of tea’s time, he picked a spot for the well—five feet southeast of the kitchen door.

In truth, not every place is suitable for digging a well. Having a spot on your property that’s fit for a well is an incredible stroke of luck.

Once the location was confirmed, the rest was straightforward. Things like the price, meals, and other arrangements had already been discussed between Li Xiandong and Master Han, so everything was officially settled.

Master Han and his two apprentices picked up their shovels and began digging with force. After one hour, they had dug a circular pit four feet deep and four feet wide.

Then Master Han grabbed a coarse cloth bag and jumped into the pit. But instead of digging deeper, he began carving footholds into the wall of the pit.

The two apprentices stood by and watched him attentively.

None of them spoke. The master didn’t explain anything, and the apprentices didn’t ask.

The real mark of Master Han’s skill, in fact, lay in how he walked a single lap around the property and chose the exact spot for the well. That ability—to determine whether a place could yield water—was the essence of a true well digger’s craft. But from the moment he arrived until now, Master Han hadn’t mentioned this once.

For a moment, Li Xiaohan clearly realized how challenging it was for skills to be passed down from master to apprentice in ancient times. No wonder there were sayings like, “It takes three years to learn a craft, three months to refine it, and whether you succeed depends on your skill,” “If you can’t handle hardship, you can’t be an apprentice,” and “Three years for scissors, five years for knives.”

She couldn’t help but miss the days in her previous life when teachers practically tried to cram knowledge into students’ heads.

She couldn’t really say which way was better—there were too many historical and social factors involved.

But the sharing of knowledge truly does make life better and more colorful.

Thanks to her previous life’s accumulated life skills, even after being transported here, she was able to significantly improve her family’s way of living.

Once Master Han finished carving the footholds, he came back up and let one of the apprentices continue digging. Meanwhile, he and the other apprentice assembled a simple pulley system to haul the soil out, bag by bag.

By noon, the three of them were covered in sweat and dirt.

Madam Wang and Li Xiaohan had prepared lunch using the leftover chicken, fish, and pork from the night before, along with freshly stir-fried cabbage.

At this time, no one thought leftovers were unhealthy. Instead, everyone was pleased there were several kinds of meat. Even if the portions were small, it was still a rare and hearty meal.

The three were very satisfied with the food, though they refused to go inside and dirty the new, shiny furniture. Instead, they squatted by the well to eat.

Li Xiandong joined them, while Li Xiaohan and Madam Wang stayed in the kitchen. From behind the open kitchen door, they heard Master Han say happily, “Master Li, I think your well will hit water soon. The soil we just dug out already feels damp.”

“That’s great news,” Li Xiandong said with a wide smile.

By afternoon, the dug-up soil was being hauled out bit by bit and dumped outside the house. With so many people going in and out, word quickly spread through the village that the Li family was digging a well.

In Pingshan Village, digging a well was a big deal. Only well-off families had their own wells—like the village chief’s household or the third great-uncle’s family. Even the old Li family home had no private well.

Families without wells had to fetch water from the communal village well.

Summer wasn’t too bad, just a bit tiring. But come winter, when people wore thinner clothes, hauling buckets of water was a freezing ordeal.

It was hard for the men fetching water, and freezing for the women doing laundry. To save effort, most people rinsed their clothes once in the river before bringing them home.

But river water in winter was bone-chilling, and washing vegetables or laundry by the river with cold wind howling made one’s hands ache from the cold.

Having a well at home made a huge difference. Well water stayed warm in winter and cool in summer. Men didn’t have to carry water far, and women didn’t have to freeze their hands.

However, digging a well was expensive.

It was said that the better the digger, the more likely they were to produce a good well, but they were also very expensive. A single well could cost as much as building a tiled house.

Some people had tried to save money by hiring cheaper diggers, only to spend ten days digging with no water in sight. The money was gone, and no well to show for it.

So when word got out that Li Xiandong was having a well dug, many villagers came to watch. In fact, it was likely the same group that had come by in the morning—some of them were still holding their (finished or half-finished) fruit-picking tools.

They chatted, weaved, and watched the digging process—a bustling, lively scene even more festive than yesterday’s holiday.

“Brother Xiandong, your days are getting better and better,” a young man said enviously, giving him a thumbs-up.

Li Xiandong chuckled sheepishly but didn’t deny it. “You’re still young—take it slow.”

“Mm,” the young man nodded firmly.

These days, quite a few men in the village see Li Xiandong as someone to look up to. After all, the land division couldn’t really be hidden. When it comes time to plant winter wheat, it’s obvious where each field is and how big it is.

That’s why there was growing resentment toward Madam Chen, his stepmother, and whispers that Li Shengli had been unfair when dividing the household.

Now that Li Xiandong’s family was thriving, it was a real slap in the face to Li Shengli, who had insisted on kicking them out.

Even the village elders had begun to mutter. If he hadn’t split from the eldest son, things might be different. The eldest was capable and hardworking. Just look at Li Xiandong’s household—their life was clearly turning around. Li Shengli was short-sighted and lacked foresight.

While Li Xiandong’s family was thriving, others naturally grew more resentful.

Madam Chen, for one, was not pleased. She had thought splitting off her stepson’s family would cause no stir.

Who would’ve thought that her previously unremarkable stepson would suddenly get lucky, build a new house, buy new furniture, and now even start digging a well?

It was as if that family, after moving out, was now like a fish returning to the sea—completely in their element. And her own petty calculations only made her look more foolish in comparison.

Even Li Shengli started to harbor resentment. People in the village had begun to distance themselves from him. All she could do now was pin her hopes on Li Changrong passing the county-level exam.

Thinking of Li Changrong, Madam Chen paused and made a bowl of egg water, which she carried to the east wing, where Li Changrong was studying diligently. Perhaps because of all that had happened, Li Changrong had become even more withdrawn. At this point, Madam Chen no longer knew what her eldest grandson was really thinking.

Afraid to disturb him, she quietly placed the bowl down and left. She didn’t see that Li Changrong, who had been staring at his book, hadn’t turned a page for a long time. His brows were furrowed, and his expression showed impatience.

That bowl of egg water was left untouched until it went cold.

After leaving, Madam Chen went to find Li Shengli, saying with comfort, “Changrong is really promising. I just brought him a bowl of egg water, and he didn’t even lift his head—he was so focused on reading.”

Li Shengli was repairing a hoe at the time. Upon hearing this, he immediately stopped and said irritably, “Then don’t bother him while he’s studying.”

“I know. I’m not someone who doesn’t understand these things. I was just afraid Changrong would exhaust himself. He’s our family’s hope now…”

Before she could finish, Li Shengli cut her off harshly. “If you know, then stop nagging. Go make lunch.”

Madam Chen froze, her chest rising and falling with suppressed frustration. She couldn’t let it out and could only swallow it back down before turning away with a heavy heart.

After the family separation, the household chores once handled by Madam Wang were now left undone. With no other choice, Madam Chen and her daughters-in-law had to divide the tasks among themselves.

Madam Chen took over kitchen duties. The younger Madam Chen, who used to handle the kitchen, now took care of the two pigs and other livestock. Madam Ye was assigned to do the laundry.

In fact, it wasn’t just the women’s work that increased. The men had more to do as well.

In the past, Li Shengli only had to act as overseer while Li Xiandong efficiently handled everything. Li Shengli could get away with doing the easier tasks.

After the separation, Li Shengli thought he could still supervise like before, just replacing Xiandong with Xiannan. But things didn’t go as smoothly. Nothing went terribly wrong, but something always felt strange.

Take the hoe he was using now—its weight and balance felt completely wrong. It was inefficient and awkward. After much thought, he realized that no one had maintained or repaired the tools since the family separation.

He originally meant to ask Xiannan to take care of it, but then noticed that the jar of rice seed they were saving for spring had gone damp.

The three men of the household tried to figure out where the problem came from or who was at fault. Maybe it was everyone. Maybe it was no one.

In the end, they had no choice but to urgently send Xiannan and Xianxi into town before the Lunar New Year to buy new seed. Otherwise, the prices would go up after the festival.

With no other choice, Li Shengli had to repair the hoe himself. It took him half a day, and he was thoroughly frustrated.

Then Madam Chen came to talk again, and naturally, Li Shengli grew even more impatient.

Now, he deeply regretted splitting up the family. If they hadn’t split, they could have made a big profit from the eucommia bark. The household wouldn’t be so disorganized either.

But the separation documents had already been signed, stamped, and filed. There was nothing Li Shengli could do but grit his teeth and endure it.

Still, out of everything Madam Chen had said in her roundabout way, one point was true: their family’s greatest hope now lay in Changrong.

Thinking of this, Li Shengli put down the hoe that still didn’t feel quite right and quietly walked to the window of Changrong’s room to peer inside.

Good. Changrong was studying seriously. Li Shengli finally nodded in satisfaction.

At last, something was going well.

Inside, however, the book propped up in front of Li Changrong hid his increasingly furrowed brow.

When will this ever end?

…

Li Xiaohan had no idea that her family’s new well had caused such a stir.

But even if she knew, she wouldn’t care.

That branch of the Li family was rotten at the root. Every thought and scheme was focused on their tiny plot of land—always scheming, always trying to do less and get more by undermining other family members.

Even the smartest of them, Li Changrong, was no different.

In the book, he had Scholar Zhu as a mentor, and later even attended a private school in the city. But in the end, he made a name for himself through so-called filial piety.

What an empty title filial piety was. If only he had put in the effort to earn a bit of a name for himself—or, if he hadn’t had the talent and had instead settled down to run a school—Li Xiaohan might have looked up to her cousin a bit more.

But she’d forgotten where the money he used to gain a foothold in the city came from in the book. In truth, she strongly suspected that her father had found real ginseng, and that money had simply been pocketed.

Now that her father no longer went into the mountains, even though they’d earned some profit from harvesting eucommia bark, it still wasn’t enough to support a scholar’s education.

The kind of life described in the book was no longer possible for the old household.

This world wasn’t fully described by the author—but that didn’t mean nothing else happened just because it wasn’t written.

Li Xiaohan had realized that this world had a logic of its own, and people like them, with no name or importance, would keep moving forward along that logic.

This was a real world.

Rather than say the author created it, it would be more accurate to say that the moment it came into existence, it was beyond the author’s control. The author merely captured and recorded a sliver of one person’s story—everyone else lived out their own lives within the spinning gears of this world.

Because of that, Li Xiaohan no longer cared about the old house. Her own branch of the family was doing better and better. And without a common outsider to unite against, the old house would eventually fall apart on its own.

Time would prove everything.

Li Xiaohan was currently pondering the fact that Sanqi wouldn’t be ready for harvest for another three years, and the eucommia bark had mostly been harvested. The next batch would have to wait until the trees matured again.

What could her family do now that was both safe and could provide a sustainable income?

She couldn’t think of a good money-making plan for the time being, but there was something that required spending money, which they could start on right away.

“Father, once our well is dug, will it be like the public wells in the village?”

In Pingshan Village, the public well had a well platform surrounded by mud. Since people fetched water year-round and often washed vegetables nearby, it inevitably turned into a muddy mess.

To avoid dirtying their feet, villagers had built a small path out of stones.

“Mhm,” Li Xiandong nodded.

“Father, you’ve seen the well at Renhetang in town, haven’t you? The ground around their well is all paved with bluestone tiles—it looks clean and tidy. You should ask the workers how that’s done. We just built a new house and dug a new well. We’ve already spent so much money; it’d be a shame if the yard stayed muddy and messy.”

Li Xiandong seemed to have a sudden realization and nodded repeatedly. This house was his pride and joy. “You’re right. That makes sense.”

Master Han, who had sent an apprentice down the well and was currently resting nearby, spoke up: “Master Li, that’s easy. Once the well hits water, you can build a drainage ditch beside the well to carry the water out of your courtyard. Then just lay down a layer of bluestone tiles on top. I guarantee your place will be just as neat and clean as those in the city.”

“It’s not even a difficult job. If you trust us, you can go buy the bluestone tiles and gravel. Once the well’s done, my apprentices and I can take care of it for you. It won’t take long—one day and it’ll be done.” Master Han was eager to take on the work.

The meals here were good, the boss was kind, and payment was always on time. Master Han was more than willing to stay an extra day.

“Alright,” said Li Xiandong. “Better to entrust it all to you than get someone else. I’ll go to town and buy the stones before you finish up here.”

“No rush, Master Li. I reckon we’ll hit water in a few days, probably when we’re two zhang deep. After that, we’ll need to let the muddy water drain for a couple days before we clean the well. You can go to town then. It’s winter now, and most construction has slowed down. The tile yards in town don’t have many orders, and you don’t need a large quantity, so you’ll have plenty of time.”

Master Han could already tell this family wasn’t short on money. That young woman in the kitchen was always roasting and drying eucommia. Everyone in town knew eucommia was profitable.

But this household had only three members. If the man went into town, only the two women would be left at home, which wasn’t ideal. He’d probably need to invite someone to watch the house, and that meant owing a favor. Why go to the trouble when the job wasn’t urgent?

“Alright then,” Li Xiandong breathed a sigh of relief. That would work best.

Then he remembered that if he left, only his wife and daughter would be home. That wouldn’t do. And if the workers had to stop for a day, it would delay the well digging. The weather was getting colder; if the ground froze, digging would become much harder.

Since the well workers didn’t want to eat inside the house, meals were prepared in two portions: one delivered to the courtyard for Li Xiandong and the workers, the other for Li Xiaohan and Madam Wang to eat in the kitchen.

Master Han and the others took a bite. They were having stir-fried cured pork with garlic sprouts tonight. The sprouts were fresh and tender, and the pork had just the right mix of fat and lean. That thin layer of fat was almost see-through and glistening with oil, it made the whole dish worth it.

There was also cabbage stir-fried in lard, soft and sweet, so tender it practically melted in the mouth without a trace of fiber. With food this good, the job was definitely worth doing.

Master Han was thoroughly pleased with the meals and silently decided to give his best effort. He couldn’t let a job like this tarnish his reputation.

While Master Han was enjoying the food, Li Xiaohan was also eating happily in the kitchen. Her body was only thirteen years old, the perfect age for growth. In this world, shaped by war, no one idealized frailty.

Besides, Li Xiaohan knew that another wave of upheaval would arrive soon. A strong body would mean a better chance of survival. So she ate with great enjoyment.

Just as everyone was eating, the door to the house was suddenly knocked on.

Since they were digging a well, it wasn’t unusual for someone to drop by, so Li Xiandong put down his bowl and went to open the door.

“Uncle Xiandong.” It was Uncle Dashu’s oldest son, Li Dazhuang, outside the door.

Li Dazhuang was carrying a basket of fruit on his back. “Uncle Xiandong, my father asked me to bring this to thank you for the fruit-picking tool.”

“Oh, no, no, you really didn’t need to. It’s just a little thing,” Li Xiandong waved his hands.

“Uncle, my father insisted you accept it. You know how he is. I’ll be going now.” Li Dazhuang dropped the basket and ran off, not even taking the basket with him.

He was seventeen this year. A few years ago, his father fell and broke his leg, and his mother was killed when something fell on her. Back then, they tried everything to save her. They even borrowed money from the clan to buy ginseng, but in the end, they still couldn’t save her.

Since then, the family had fallen on hard times, buried in debt. They struggled for years.

The fruit trees had become a thorn in their side. But when you’re poor, it’s hard to hold on to your pride. No matter how uncomfortable it was, they still had to take care of that patch of trees.

Yet, whenever it came time to harvest the fruit, his father would become even more gloomy.

As the eldest son, Dazhuang had taken on the burden of the family after his father was injured. But what could he do? All he could manage was to tend the fields and be a good son.

Still, it was just a drop in the bucket.

Now that Uncle Xiandong had taught them how to gather eucommia, they’d followed along and nearly paid off their debts. Dazhuang finally felt some relief.

And now, Uncle Xiandong’s fruit-picking tool had solved one more problem for his father. Dazhuang was truly grateful.

A basket of fruit couldn’t express the gratitude of their whole family. But they had nothing valuable to offer, so they simply picked out the best fruit they had.

When he heard Uncle Xiandong politely refuse, Li Dazhuang didn’t know how to respond. So he just left the fruit behind and ran off.

Li Xiandong looked at the basket of fruit that was left behind and could only bring it inside for now.

“What’s this? Who brought it?” Madam Wang asked curiously when she saw the extra basket of fruit. Li Xiaohan was also staring eagerly at her father.

“It was Dazhuang from Dashu’s family.”

“Ah, Dashu’s family.” Madam Wang and Li Xiaohan both fell silent. The tragedy that had struck their family still lingered heavily in their hearts.

“Later, pack up some flatbread for me. It’s a big gift—they deserve something in return,” said Li Xiandong.

“Alright,” Madam Wang responded.

After dinner, Master Han and his apprentices left. Li Xiandong took a half-basket of flatbread and an empty basket with him.

Unexpectedly, half an hour later, he came back with the same flatbread basket—but without the basket.

“Father, how did it go?” Li Xiaohan handed him a bowl of hot water.

“Your Uncle Dashu didn’t accept it.”

Li Xiandong sighed. “When I got there, your Uncle Dashu was burning the fruit-picking tool in the brazier for your Aunt Dashu. One after another. I didn’t try to stop him—just helped burn a few and came back.”

“Hard to stop someone when their heart is set,” Li Xiaohan murmured. “Then let’s just accept the gift for now and talk about it another time.”