◎Grain◎
Tao Hua wanted to pick fruit, but she was afraid of tigers.
Moreover, Tao Hua kept feeling that something wasn’t quite right. If entering the mountains was so dangerous, why did Wei Dahu look so calm and composed? In his words, going into the mountains was as ordinary as the village men carrying hoes to the fields.
She didn’t speak, so Wei Dahu took it as her agreement. Having a wife was wonderful. In the past, he could only go into the mountains alone, but now he could bring his wife along. Just the thought of having someone to talk to and keep him company filled his heart with joy.
The deep mountains were abundant with food. Every year, ripe fruits were only nibbled on by birds, with no one to pick them. Once fully ripe, they would all fall to the ground, rot, and enrich the soil. There were countless edible wild vegetables, hazelnut trees grew in clusters, and after the rain, mushrooms covered the mountains, too many to gather. Especially the fish in the mountain streams—their meat was firm and delicious, and a simple roast over a fire made for a delightful meal.
Though the deep mountains were dangerous, they also held many benefits unknown to ordinary people.
He would never let her get hurt.
Chatting along the way made the journey anything but dull. A young girl, newly married and now a wife in another family, had moved from a familiar environment to a completely unfamiliar one, her heart filled with anxiety and unease… Before her marriage, Tao Hua had also felt restless and uncertain, wondering what her future husband’s temperament would be like, whether her father-in-law would be strict, how well she would get along with the family’s relatives and elders, and whether there were any overly competitive or domineering personalities among her peers… Yet, in just one short day, all her worries had already dissipated.
Tao Hua thought she must have married into a very good family.
Aside from the remote location, the dangers, and her husband’s peculiar habit of digging into snake dens… there was nothing else to complain about.
When they returned home, Old Man Wei was still sitting in the yard, splitting bamboo strips. Tao Hua called out, “Father.”
She pushed Wei Dahu aside and went straight to the kitchen to fetch a bowl of cold water. From the cupboard, she brought out a jar, scooped some honey with a wooden spoon, mixed it, and brought it to the yard. “Father, take a break and have some water.”
Old Man Wei put down the bamboo strips upon hearing this and nodded. “Don’t worry about me. Go about your own business.”
Wei Dahu carried a large sack of grain from his father’s room, and Tao Hua followed him into the kitchen. Wei Dahu tossed the grain sack onto the floor, and Tao Hua looked up at him, asking, “Is this this year’s newly harvested grain?”
Wei Dahu nodded. “Our house has few rooms, so the grain is stored in Father’s room—his room is bigger. From now on, we’ll keep it in the kitchen so it’s more convenient for you to use.”
Tao Hua nodded.
Back when she was with the Qian family, her mother had been in charge of the rice and flour. The amount used for each meal was strictly measured. The idea of leaving a sack of grain in the kitchen for free use was an unimaginably bold move.
She silently calculated how much grain a family of three would need for a meal. Considering her husband’s appetite, which required a basin-sized bowl, she steeled herself and decided to add more coarse grains when cooking later. Their family would rely on this grain for the entire year. If they didn’t eat frugally, they might not make it until next year’s harvest.
Tomorrow, tomorrow she would also “enter the mountains”!
Picking fruit was secondary. She would go along to see if there were any edible wild vegetables or the like, perfect for digging up and bringing home.
No matter how terrifying tigers were, in times of famine, hunger was far worse. When people had nothing to eat, even if they were bitten to death by a tiger, they would try to tear off a few mouthfuls of its fur before dying.
And for poor families, famine was almost an annual occurrence.
“This year’s harvest is decent. After paying the taxes, what’s left should last us about two months.” Wei Dahu scooped half a ladle of water and gulped it down in one go.
“Only two months?!” Tao Hua, who had been stuffing kindling into the stove, nearly dropped the pine needles in her hand at his words. She widened her eyes and stared at Wei Dahu.
Wei Dahu almost choked. “Wh-what’s wrong?”
“The new grain from this year’s harvest is only enough to feed our family for two months??”
Tao Hua stuffed the kindling into the stove, crossed two dry firewood sticks over the flames, patted the dust off her hands, and stood up. She walked over to Wei Dahu, pulling him to go see the remaining grain stored in his father’s room.
She needed to see it with her own eyes to truly grasp the situation.
Wei Dahu took her to his father’s room.
Several large sacks of unhusked grain were neatly stacked in the corner. At first glance, it seemed like a decent amount. Based on Tao Hua’s years of experience managing the kitchen, if they exchanged the newly harvested rice for coarse grains in town and the family of three ate frugally, supplemented by foraging for edible wild vegetables in the mountains, they could probably make it until next year’s harvest.
However, after witnessing her husband’s appetite firsthand, she couldn’t bring herself to say, “If we eat sparingly, we can make it until next year.” During breakfast that morning, her father-in-law had also eaten heartily. With two big appetites in the household, no matter how much she saved on her own portion, it wouldn’t make up for their consumption.
How were they going to survive after two months?!
Tao Hua looked as if the sky were about to collapse, her fingers trembling. The two mouths in this household were simply too ravenous…
Tao Hua felt like crying but had no tears left. The thought of running out of food in just two months left her utterly at a loss.
For once, Wei Dahu showed a spark of cleverness. Seeing her pale face and unsteady stance, he quickly reached out to grasp her shoulders, steadying her shaky legs. “Tao Hua, don’t panic. Why are you so worried? I’m here, aren’t I? Our family has always gotten by like this every year with little land and not enough grain. I’ll just go to town and buy more. Tao Hua, don’t be afraid. I won’t let you go hungry.”
“Where will you get the money to buy grain…” Anyone who suddenly learned their food supply would only last two months would be overwhelmed.
How hard was it to earn money these days? Carrying loads at the docks for a whole day only brought in a dozen copper coins. Even the strongest body would be worn down after a year of that, and how much grain could those dozen coins buy? Instead of being comforted by Wei Dahu’s words, Tao Hua grew even more anxious. The thought of having to spend money to buy food for most of the coming year made her dizzy and unsteady on her feet.
“I’ll earn money by hunting. If I catch something rare, I can sell it to wealthy families in town for a good sum.” Wei Dahu smiled reassuringly, his steady voice and firm tone offering Tao Hua a sliver of comfort. “Tao Hua, don’t worry. Since you married me, I won’t let you go hungry. Really, you won’t starve. I’m an excellent hunter. Even Dad says I was born to be a hunter, destined to trouble the creatures in the mountains.”
Afraid she wouldn’t believe him, he led Tao Hua back to their room, pulled a wooden box from under the bed, and handed it to her.
Tao Hua opened it to find a few lonely copper coins lying inside.
“This is my savings box. From now on, I’ll leave it to you to manage.” Wei Dahu saw nothing wrong with handing his wife an almost empty savings box and earnestly promised, “Tao Hua, don’t worry. I’ll hunt more game to sell from now on. I’ll give you plenty of silver to save up for buying grain.”
"Can we buy land?" Tao Hua didn't disdain this savings jar that held nothing, only asking whether money could be used to purchase fields if they had any. With land comes grain, and since the fields would be their own, as long as they didn't encounter famine years, there would be harvests every year from cultivation. Buying grain with silver is expensive and ultimately not a sustainable long-term plan.
"If you want to buy land, I'll buy some once I earn silver." It's just that I don't like farming, Wei Dahu quietly muttered in his heart. Carrying a hoe all day to till the soil is utterly uninteresting—nothing compared to the thrill of being in the mountains.
However, he wisely kept this to himself. Tao Hua was currently filled with worry about future hunger; how could he bear to voice such concerns and add to her unease?
If not for the rampant wild beasts in the mountains making it unsuitable for growing crops, he would have taken Tao Hua into the hills right then to see the area he had his eye on. The land there was flat and fertile, with a small stream nearby for irrigation. Once cleared, it would be even better for farming than the fertile fields in the village.
It's just a pity that the deep mountains, teeming with wild beasts, are not suitable for growing grain. You could sow seeds today, and tomorrow they'd be dug up and eaten—wasting all that hard work.
Although Wei Dahu had confidently declared that he would go to town to buy grain once their household supplies ran out, with only a few copper coins lying in the money jar, Tao Hua couldn't help but use one less bowl of rice when cooking the midday meal.
All the grain was newly harvested this year. According to the household's practice of only having enough food for a little over two months each year, there was no such thing as old grain—not even coarse grains. She had asked and learned that the family had no habit of trading new grain for coarse grains.
While cooking, Tao Hua felt a pang of heartache and instructed Wei Dahu, who was sitting by the stove helping tend the fire, "Go to town another day and buy some coarse grains. We can't eat white rice every meal—we're not a wealthy family." Only those wealthy households eat polished white rice at every meal. Farming families mix coarse grains with their meals; how precious is white rice? It's only brought out to entertain guests when important visitors come.
At yesterday's wedding banquet, Sanhua had served her a large bowl of white rice. Tao Hua didn't know what the other tables were like, but she imagined they probably didn't use new rice for the feast—otherwise, she would have truly felt the pinch!
"Understood," Wei Dahu replied. The household didn't eat white rice every meal either; the coarse grains had been used up during yesterday's banquet.
Many families in the village only eat two meals a day, so breakfast is eaten late and dinner early.
The Wei household steadfastly maintains three meals a day—they simply can't manage without them. Wei Dahu eats a lot and gets hungry quickly. When he's alone in the mountains, he'll catch a wild chicken or fish from the stream to roast. With Tao Hua saving one bowl of rice at noon, Wei Dahu scraped the pot clean. Putting down his chopsticks, he said with lingering appetite, "Tao Hua, use two more bowls of rice for dinner. This wasn't enough."
"…" Tao Hua glanced up at Old Man Wei, who also looked unsatisfied. Seeing his son speak up, he remained silent.
The meaning was clear: listen to your man.
Holding her bowl, Tao Hua hesitated for a long moment before reluctantly nodding. "Alright."
"Tao Hua, your cooking is truly delicious. Dad's cooking is awful—the greens are all wilted and limp, just like the slop fed to pigs in Uncle's pigpen," Wei Dahu said, rubbing his stomach. Not eating his fill was truly uncomfortable.
Old Man Wei looked up. "You've been eating that pig slop for over a decade."
Wei Dahu glanced at his father, not daring to provoke the tiger further. He got up and went to the yard to tidy the bamboo he had chopped that morning—this afternoon, he needed to fence in the courtyard.
Tao Hua quickly carried the dishes and chopsticks to the kitchen. She wanted to ask Wei Dahu to take her to see the family's two mu of land later and also planned to clear a plot by the courtyard to grow some commonly eaten vegetables.
Looking out through the kitchen window, she saw that the weather was still hot this month. Wei Dahu, bare-chested, was bustling about in the heat. Old Man Wei stood nearby, digesting his meal while directing him to do this and that. The father and son occasionally bickered, creating a lively scene.
Tao Hua smiled and lowered her head to continue washing the dishes.