Chapter 11: Uncle

There were many companions today. Besides Wanru, there were also Huzi and his sister Hehua. This was Wanqing’s first time going up the mountain with so many people.

Huzi was tall and sturdy, with sharp, bright eyes. Standing next to him, Zhiwen appeared half a head shorter and even more slender.

Hehua was an enthusiastic and outgoing girl, quite different from her elder sister Wanru, who was quiet and refined. With a crisp and lively voice, she smiled and asked Wanqing, “Wanqing, I heard you go up the mountain every day now and always come back with something?”

Since Wanqing’s family had split off, her mother sometimes asked her to bring back some homegrown vegetables, so Hehua knew a little about their situation.

Wanqing smiled and said, “Sister Hehua, today you and Brother Huzi will also have a great harvest!”

“Hehe, then I’ll have to thank Qing’er in advance!”

“My sister is amazing now!” Zhiqin puffed out his little chest and said proudly.

Wanqing glanced at Zhiqin helplessly. Just because she had caught two rabbits last time, he was acting as if she had taken down a tiger. Lowering her voice, she softly reminded him, “Can you be a little more low-key?”

Hehua and Huzi didn’t mind. They figured Wanqing was just in better health now.

The wild rabbits, mushrooms, and chestnuts they had collected these days were most likely found by Zhiwen and Zhijin. After all, Zhiwen and Huzi were the ones who often roamed the mountains.

As they chatted while walking, they soon arrived at the chestnut trees. The ripe chestnuts had fallen to the ground, and everyone eagerly began gathering them.

Zhijin, however, was distracted by thoughts of wild rabbits. He was only half-heartedly picking up chestnuts, constantly glancing at Wanqing, hoping she would give the order to check the traps.

Wanqing shook her head, thought for a moment, and then called Zhiqin over, whispering, “You and Brother go ahead. I’ll stay here with Big Sister to collect chestnuts.”

Zhiqin nodded, leaned over to whisper a few words to his brother, then told Brother Huzi before the two of them left.

When they reached the traps, they saw that another wild rabbit had been caught. Zhiqin was so excited that he shouted in delight, while Zhiwen was pleasantly surprised—another one! He quickly picked up the rabbit, tied its legs, and placed it in the basket before resetting the trap.

Before they even got back to the chestnut grove, Zhiqin started shouting from a distance, “We caught another wild rabbit!”

Huzi and Hehua were a little puzzled. Was it really that easy to catch wild rabbits?

Zhiwen explained to Huzi that they had caught another rabbit in their trap.

Huzi said, “What kind of trap? Let me take a look later.”

“Sure,” Zhiwen replied before continuing to pick chestnuts.

…

Before long, everyone’s baskets were full. Seeing that it was getting late, they decided to head back home.

Since there were many of them, they ran into some villagers on the way down.

Even though they had covered their baskets with a layer of wild grass, it was hard to hide how full they were. Curiosity got the better of the villagers, and someone asked, “What do you have in your baskets?”

“Chestnuts.”

Zhiwen and the others didn’t try to hide it. After all, it would be impossible to keep it a secret—tomorrow, someone would surely follow them up the mountain. They might as well be upfront about it.

“Where did you collect so many chestnuts?”

“On the mountain.”

The villagers: Of course, it’s from the mountain! But they wanted to know the exact location!

That question went unanswered. If they wanted to know, they could follow them tomorrow.

The group happily returned home, where their youngest brother, Zhiyuan, greeted them at the door. “Big Brother, Big Sister, you’re back!”

Madam Li heard him and came out from the kitchen.

“Mother, we caught another wild rabbit!” Zhiqin couldn’t help but cheer.

They hadn’t had meat in a long time. Seeing the rabbit made their mouths water. Even Wanqing, as an adult, found it hard to resist, let alone the two little ones, Zhiqin and Zhiyuan.

“Mother, let’s keep this rabbit for ourselves this time,” Wanqing said quickly before Madam Li could decide otherwise.

Madam Li paused for a moment before nodding. “Alright, your father and uncle are both here today. We’ll cook it for the family.”

“Uncle is here?” they all asked in unison.

“Yes! He’s helping your father build a woodshed in the yard.”

Zhiwen set down his basket and ran to check it out. Cutting firewood was usually his responsibility, and he always stacked it in the yard to dry before storing it in the kitchen.

Now that their father and uncle were building a woodshed, he could store the firewood properly. That way, it wouldn’t get wet when it rained, and he could chop extra firewood in advance so they wouldn’t have to go up the mountain in winter.

“Father, Uncle!” Zhiwen called out.

Seeing that the woodshed still needed thatching, Zhiwen immediately decided to go up the mountain to gather straw.

Wanqing walked over to see her uncle. He was an honest and hardworking middle-aged man, clearly accustomed to farm labor. Together with Lin Heng, they had managed to build the woodshed in just half a day. Now, all that remained was to cover the roof and walls with straw.

“Father, Uncle, is the woodshed finished?”

“Yes, we just need to gather some straw to cover it,” Uncle Li Daqiang replied.

After finishing their work, the two men returned to the courtyard to rest. Wanru brewed them some chrysanthemum tea.

The chrysanthemum tea Wanqing had dried herself received unanimous praise from the family.

“Uncle, what brings you here today?” Wanqing asked. In her memory, her uncle rarely visited their home.

“I heard you all split from the family. Your grandmother was worried, so I came to see what’s going on.”

Their grandmother lived in Dongwan Village, not far from Xishan Village. News had traveled through the villagers, eventually reaching her.

“Uncle, tell Grandma not to worry. Our family is doing well.”

“That’s true. Your parents already told me how sensible and hardworking you children are,” Daqiang praised them.

“Uncle, we caught another wild rabbit today!” Zhiqin found the perfect moment to boast.

“Ah!”

Not only was Daqiang surprised, but Lin Heng was also taken aback. These kids didn’t even know how to hunt—how did they manage to catch another rabbit? Wild rabbits weren’t easy to catch.

“We made a trap!” Zhiqin eagerly recounted the details.

“Mother said we should keep this rabbit for ourselves. Father, hurry and butcher it!” Wanqing urged.

Lin Heng got up to prepare the rabbit, and Li Daqiang followed to watch. Meanwhile, Wanqing and Wanru went to the kitchen to help their mother cook.

Madam Li was already busy in the kitchen. Since her eldest brother had come to visit, she decided to take out the white flour Wanqing had bought and make steamed buns. She also stewed leftover pork intestines with radish and added a spoonful of soybean paste that Huzi’s mother had gifted them earlier. Once Lin Heng finished preparing the rabbit, it was put into the pot, and soon, the kitchen was filled with the mouthwatering aroma of meat.

At mealtime, the table was filled with a bowl of wild rabbit meat, a bowl of stewed pork intestines with radish, a bowl of cabbage, and freshly steamed white buns as the staple. The family ate happily, their laughter filling the room.

Seeing their smiles and the white buns on the table, Li Daqiang felt relieved. At least for now, his sister’s family wasn’t struggling too much. As for their farmland, that was a concern for another day. If needed, he would do his best to help them.

After dinner, Uncle said his goodbyes. Madam Li told him to reassure their mother not to worry—though they lived in a thatched house, they were now in charge of their own lives, and each day was getting better.

Li Daqiang still felt a bit sorry for his sister. Once a beautiful young woman, she had married into the Lin family and now looked frail and weary. He hoped her future would be less difficult. Taking the chestnuts Madam Li had packed for him, he hoisted the basket onto his back and strode away.

Once their uncle left, peace returned to the house. After tidying up the chestnuts, Wanqing suggested buying a few more baskets, as they had too few household items and needed to add more.

“No need to buy them. I can weave some,” Lin Heng said.

“Father, you can weave baskets?” Wanqing was surprised.

“I’m not very skilled, just the simple ones,” Lin Heng said modestly.

“That’s still impressive!”

“What kind of baskets do you need?”

Wanqing gestured with her hands, describing the shape and size. Lin Heng got the idea and went off to gather bamboo.

The siblings followed him to a nearby area to collect straw. With many hands at work, they quickly gathered enough for the woodshed.

As they stayed busy with their tasks, time flowed like water. Wanqing felt that the days were passing by so quickly.