Bai Qianqian and Zhao Anyao found a yam plant with a thick vine and decided to dig it up. Using the same cleaver she had brought for chopping firewood, she began to clear the soil.
The yam was stubborn. After nearly an hour of digging, Bai Qianqian accidentally sliced through the root. By the time she finished, the yam had broken into three pieces, though it was still quite large.
After filling the hole back in, she set her sights on the next plant. Zhao Anyao placed the harvested yam into his small basket, his face flushed red from the effort. His eyes, however, sparkled with excitement as he followed her on this “treasure hunt.”
The two got so caught up in the digging that they completely forgot their original reason for coming up the mountain.
They found several more plants, carefully selecting only the oldest-looking ones. Bai Qianqian finally stopped once Zhao Anyao’s basket was half-full.
By the time they headed down, the mountain was deserted. Bai Qianqian struggled to carry the bundle of firewood all the way home, their clothes caked in mud and soaked with sweat.
Once back, she boiled a pot of hot water for Zhao Anyao to bathe in first. While he washed, she went to scrub the yams clean and slice them.
After tidying up, she started a pot of yam and minced meat porridge in the kitchen. Bai Qianqian had Zhao Anyao, fresh from his bath, watch the fire while she went to wash off the grime herself.
When she returned, the porridge had already filled the air with a savory aroma.
Bai Qianqian rarely made porridge because it wasn’t filling enough, and she feared waking up hungry in the night. But Zhao Anyao’s stomach was delicate. Although he had been eating better lately, he’d only gained a little flesh on his face; his body was still heartbreakingly thin. She wanted to feed him more yam to nourish his gut.
The porridge was thick and hearty, the minced meat adding a rich depth to the flavor. Zhao Anyao eagerly finished two bowls, and he would have squeezed down a third if Bai Qianqian hadn’t stopped him, fearing he would overeat.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Before Bai Qianqian could even finish her own bowl, there was a rapping at the door.
“Oh, is that you? Is my cotton-padded jacket ready?”
Recognizing the mute girl who had agreed to sew her clothes, Bai Qianqian warmly invited her inside.
But the woman looked distraught. She pressed the deposit Bai Qianqian had previously given her back into her hands and made a series of frantic gestures.
Bai Qianqian couldn’t understand the girl’s gestures and assumed she was backing out of the deal.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, her tone sharpening. “We had a deal. I’d pay you in copper coins to sew my clothes. Why are you changing your mind now?”
Seeing Bai Qianqian’s displeasure, the mute girl grew even more frantic. She simply grabbed Bai Qianqian’s arm and tugged her toward the door.
Bai Qianqian finally caught on. She turned to give Zhao Anyao a few quick instructions before following the girl outside.
When they reached the girl’s home, she pointed first to the Du family’s house, then to the clothes. Bai Qianqian finally understood why she had been dragged here.
The mute girl’s life had been a tragedy. She lost her mother at seven, and by eight, her father had remarried. Her stepmother had tormented her ever since, and once the woman gave birth to a son and a daughter of her own, the girl was no longer welcome in the family home.
Logically, her life shouldn’t have been so hard. Her father, Du Xun, was the village’s only Tongsheng scholar and taught at a nearby school. But Du Xun was fanatically superstitious. He believed his daughter’s muteness was an ill omen from birth. After his first wife died, he became convinced the girl’s “hard fate” cursed her family.
Once he married again and had a son, he drove her out, forcing her to live in a nearby abandoned thatched hut.
The official excuse was that the mute girl’s presence would bring bad luck to her younger brother. To save face, Du Xun let his new wife maintain the dilapidated thatched hut and occasionally bring her food, making a public show of their “charity.”
Since the other villagers had children of their own, they were all eager to send them to the nearby school where Du Xun taught. No one dared to complain or question his treatment of his daughter.
Thus, the mute girl had lived alone in that hut for two years.
This was why she had accepted the sewing job without hesitation, even though everyone else in the village shunned Bai Qianqian.
“Open up!” Bai Qianqian pounded on the Du family’s front door once she understood what the mute girl was trying to tell her.
“Who is it?” The voice was Madam Zhou, the girl’s stepmother.
When she saw who was outside, Madam Zhou’s face twisted with disdain. “What do you want?”
“Did you steal the cotton jacket the mute girl was sewing for me?” Bai Qianqian asked, looking down at the plump woman who stood a head shorter than her.
“What are you talking about? I never took your clothes!” Madam Zhou’s voice shrilled with indignation. “Madam Bai, if you’re going to try and cheat me, at least remember whose house you’re standing in!”
Madam Zhou had no intention of admitting it. After all, Bai Qianqian’s reputation in the village was abysmal. Even if the villagers knew she had stolen the jacket, no one would ever take her side. She felt no guilt, only annoyance.
Madam Zhou had misjudged Bai Qianqian. The woman had no patience for games and cared only for results. Seeing that the stepmother had no intention of returning the clothes, Bai Qianqian simply shoved her aside and stormed into the house.
“Hey! What do you think you’re doing? Who let you in?!” Madam Zhou scrambled to her feet, ignoring the pain from her fall as she tried to block the intruder.
“What’s all this?” Du Xun had been eating with his children, assuming Madam Zhou was handling the disturbance outside. He jumped in surprise when Bai Qianqian suddenly burst in.
“You’re a scholar, yet you let Madam Zhou steal from others!” Bai Qianqian snarled, pointing a finger at him. “Return the cotton jackets, or I’ll smash everything in this house!”
“What are you talking about? When did we ever take anything from you?” Du Xun was completely bewildered, his mind racing to keep up with her accusations.
“Xiu’er gave those to us as a gift!” Madam Zhou quickly threw the mute girl under the bus. “Just because you claim they’re yours doesn’t make them yours!”
The mute girl’s hands flew up in a frantic series of gestures, but she was powerless to explain.
Du Xun finally remembered the two cotton jackets. Madam Zhou had brought them to him, claiming Xiu’er had sewn them as a token of filial piety. He had been pleased, thinking the girl was finally showing some maturity.
He never expected someone to barge in and cause a scene over them.
“Do you have any proof that those jackets belong to you?” Du Xun knew Madam Bai. She was a woman despised by the entire village, and he assumed she was just trying to bully them out of their clothes.
“Proof? They’re mine! Why should I need proof?” Bai Qianqian retorted. “The Du family is unbelievable—stealing from others and then demanding proof of ownership. I’m done wasting my breath. Give me the clothes, or don’t blame me for what happens next!”
With a sudden movement, Bai Qianqian flipped their dinner table. Bowls of soup and water crashed to the floor.
“You! I’ll fight you for this!” Madam Zhou had never encountered anyone so fierce. Seeing their entire family meal ruined, she flew into a rage.
“You think I’m afraid of you? You took advantage of a mute girl just to steal my clothes!” Bai Qianqian snarled. “Half the village saw her accept my commission! You picked the wrong person to cheat.”
Though Madam Zhou was a large woman, she was no match for Bai Qianqian’s current strength. With a single blow, Bai Qianqian slapped her to the ground.
Du Xun’s face flushed with fury as he watched Bai Qianqian strike his wife right in front of him.
“How dare you be so crude and insolent!” he roared. “Quick! Go get the Village Head! We can’t let her run wild and hurt people in our village anymore!”