Chapter 8: I’ll Listen to A-Jie

After finishing her exploration of the space, Qiao Nian decided to take a bath before going back out to sleep. Once back in her room, she began undressing and headed straight for the bathroom—without even considering whether there’d still be hot water available in this space.

Back in her previous life, their village had been a key state-supported medicinal herb cultivation base. Because of that, it had received a lot of policy benefits. A few years before her death, the village had already been connected to natural gas. Qiao Grandmother had even renovated the family’s small Courtyard to make things more comfortable for when her granddaughter returned during school breaks. So, even though they lived in the countryside, their daily comforts weren’t much different from those in the city.

Shhh—shaa, shhh—shaa…

Warm, clean water flowed over her body. Qiao Nian let out a sigh of relief, murmuring to herself, “Home really is the most comfortable.” But as soon as she said that, she suddenly realized something was off.

Staring at the stream of hot water gushing from the showerhead, it finally hit her—there was hot water in the space.

So many good things had happened today, she could barely contain her joy. Qiao Nian hummed a cheerful, nameless tune as she scrubbed off layers of grime from her body, then lathered herself in body wash. After rinsing off, she felt her skin even looked a shade whiter.

According to her memory, Huaizhou Prefecture was in the north, where winters were bitterly cold. Villagers typically didn’t bathe all winter long. The original Qiao Nian was no exception—she hadn’t bathed in over four months. Qiao Nian felt like she’d just scrubbed off half a jin of dirt.

She pulled out a set of undergarments from the cabinet and put them on, then slipped the patched outer garments back over. Though the clothes looked worn, they were well-washed and didn’t feel uncomfortable at all.

By the time she left the space, it was already dark outside. Everything was quiet, and Qiao Nian was nearly too tired to keep her eyes open. She lay down in her clothes, but before long sat up again—the bed was just too hard, every joint ached from lying on it.

Luckily, her space contained four or five sets of bedding that her grandmother had prepared in her past life. With a single thought, one complete set appeared on the bed. Qiao Nian quickly spread it out and lay down again. Only then did she feel truly comfortable.

She made a mental note: once she earned some silver, the first thing she’d do would be to improve their meals. The second would be to replace all the bedding in the house.

When she opened her eyes again, daylight was already pouring through the windows. “Oh no, I overslept!”

Qiao Nian jumped out of bed, pulled on her shoes, and didn’t forget to stash the bedding back into her space. She opened the door and stepped out just as Ping’an entered the Courtyard, carrying a bundle of firewood on his back.

“A-Jie, you’re up! Quick, go wash up—there’s food left for you in the pot,” he called out.

Qiao Nian answered sheepishly and darted into the kitchen, completely missing the scornful look Lin Shi was giving them from under the opposite eaves.

She quickly washed up in the kitchen. When she lifted the pot lid, she found two flatbreads and a bowl of porridge. She touched them—both were still warm. Picking up the bowl, she took a sip. It was bland, but still filling. She followed it with a bite of flatbread.

Ping’an came in just then, having finished stacking the firewood. “A-Jie, is the food still warm? Want me to stoke the fire and reheat it?”

Qiao Nian shook her head. “No need. It’s still warm. Did you and Grandmother eat already? I woke up late this morning—it won’t happen again.”

“Grandmother left early. She said she and Uncle Village Chief will eat once they get to town. I already ate. And A-Jie, we’ve split from the second household now. From now on, you can sleep however long you want. Grandmother and I won’t say a word.”

As he spoke, a shaft of morning light streamed in through the window, casting a soft glow across his face, making the earnest look in his eyes even clearer.

Qiao Nian’s heart warmed. She smiled and nodded, then said, “Are you heading up the mountain again later? I’ll go with you. We can dig up some wild vegetables—I’ll make vegetable cakes for lunch.” With that, she started eating in earnest.

The mountain behind their village was called Twin Peaks Mountain, named for the two peaks standing side by side. People from nearby villages mostly foraged and hunted in this area.

Beyond those two peaks, however, lay the vast Ten-Thousand Mountain Range of Huaizhou—towering ridges stretching for thousands of miles. It was said to be teeming with large wild animals and swarming with snakes, insects, rats, and ants. Even the best hunters from surrounding villages didn’t dare venture too far in.

Even staying within the inner areas of Twin Peaks Mountain, there were risks. Many hunters avoided it altogether. With a stroke of bad luck, one might encounter a large predator and never return.

Five years ago, three villagers had already lost their lives to a tiger attack. Three years ago, a hunter was mauled by a pack of wolves. Not long ago, Qiao Laoda encountered a black bear and was killed. These incidents had long since served as stark warnings to the surrounding villagers—deep mountains were dangerous and not to be ventured into lightly.

Thus, even though Huaishu Village was nestled at the foot of the mountains, the villagers mostly managed to avoid starvation—but little more. Due to a lack of education and limited access to outside news, their lives remained far from prosperous. Families like the Qiao Family were common sights in the village.

By the time Qiao Nian and Ping’an headed into the mountains, most of the early risers who had gone out to collect firewood had already returned home. The mountain path was quiet and empty. Qiao Nian glanced around constantly, hoping to spot any useful medicinal herbs or edible wild vegetables and mushrooms.

At first, there was nothing special in sight. The mountain was mostly covered in wild grass. The outer areas had already been foraged daily by the villagers, making it difficult to find much. Still, Qiao Nian occasionally spotted a few fresh and tender wild vegetables and quickly dug them up, placing them in the basket she carried on her arm.

That basket, in fact, had been borrowed from Lin Shi early that morning—Ping’an had gone to ask for it. Lin Shi had initially refused, but Qiao Hai ended up calling her back, forcing her to relent. Ping’an didn’t care what they were up to; once he got the basket, he took off without another word.

As the two ventured further in, the trees and undergrowth became noticeably denser. After walking a bit more, Qiao Nian spotted a patch of prunella vulgaris not far off, with a few plantain and dandelion plants sprouting nearby.

Delighted, she picked up her pace, heading straight for the herbs. Since it wasn’t yet the optimal time to harvest plantain or dandelion for medicinal use, she ignored those and focused on the prunella. Selecting only those that looked healthy and full, she dug them up one by one and added them to the basket.

“A-Jie, this stuff isn’t edible. Why are you digging up so much of it?” Ping’an asked in confusion.

“Ping’an, this is medicinal herb. Don’t you remember that one time we ran into Physician Li from the village on the mountain? He was digging up this very plant. He said it could be used as medicine,” Qiao Nian said, pulling out an excuse to convince him.

Ping’an scratched his head. They had indeed bumped into Physician Li many times before, but he had never paid much attention to what was in the man’s basket. “A-Jie, you’re so observant. From now on, I’ll be more attentive to things around me too. Let me help you dig.”

Back when Qiao Mother was still alive, she often said that Ping’an was smart but not meticulous. So Ping’an didn’t think much of it—he simply assumed he had been careless again.

Qiao Nian smiled, quite satisfied with her little brother’s reaction. If she knew just how much he had started imagining and reflecting on things, she would’ve been even more pleased.

By this time, it was already late April. The mountain was lush and green. Firewood near the mountain’s edge was hard to come by; the bundle Ping’an had collected that morning was only possible because of his speed. Now, with both of them searching together for prunella, they also picked wild vegetables along the way.

Their pace picked up. There was plenty of prunella in this area, and it wasn’t long before they had filled the basket. Seeing that the sun was already high, the two began making their way back. Qiao Nian planned to return after lunch to dig up even more.

“A-Jie, do you really think these herbs we gathered can be sold for money?” Ping’an couldn’t help but ask on the way home.

Qiao Nian replied, “We’ll gather more this afternoon. Tomorrow morning, we’ll head into town and ask around. If someone in Lin’an Town is willing to buy them, it’ll be a new source of income for our family. If not, we’ve only spent some effort—nothing lost. I’ll think of another way.”

She paused, then asked, “Ping’an, do you believe in A-Jie?”

“Of course I believe in A-Jie,” Ping’an answered with utmost seriousness, turning to look at her.

Qiao Nian gave him a gentle smile. “Then A-Jie will definitely make sure you and Grandmother live a good life. I won’t be weak like before. Mother taught us many things—plenty of which can be used to earn money. I plan to put that knowledge to good use. Do you agree?”

Ping’an nodded without hesitation. “Yes. I’ll do whatever A-Jie says.”

By the time the siblings returned home, Hua Guixiang still hadn’t come back. But there were voices coming from the western wing—it sounded like Qiao Jiaojiao had returned, and Lin Shi was speaking with her.

Qiao Nian was curious. Wasn’t she still unmarried? How could she be spending the night elsewhere? Ancient folks didn’t seem as conservative as she had expected.