Chapter 3: Gathering FirewoodSeeing Mrs. Su finally emerge, Granny Zhao hurried over to meet her. Noticing that she kept walking without taking the children along, Granny Zhao felt a flicker of surprise but didn’t ask anything.Outside the house, the children watched as their mother walked right past them. She moved so quickly that she didn’t even glance back at them, leaving them deeply disheartened. They stared after her retreating figure until she disappeared from sight.“Eldest sister, Mother is gone,” Lin Qingsong mumbled, his head lowered and voice choked with emotion.He understood more than his younger siblings—he knew their mother had remarried and now belonged to another family.Lin Qinghe reached out and patted his head. “Yes, but don’t be afraid. Your eldest sister is here, and I’ll take good care of all of you.”She gently touched each of them in turn. Even before this, Mrs. Su had been a hands-off parent—she only gave birth but had little patience for raising children. The younger siblings had all been brought up under Lin Qinghe’s care.Among the three younger siblings, only Lin Qingbai, due to his frail health, spent more time at home and had more interaction with Mrs. Su. The other two had practically grown up following Lin Qinghe around like shadows.“What about Mother?” Lin Qingbai asked hesitantly.Lin Qinghe smiled softly. “We all live in the same village. If you miss her, you can go see her. If she misses us, she’ll come back to visit. It’s not far—we can see each other whenever we want.”She wasn’t wrong. With a little effort, they could see each other every day. The Wang family lived in the center of the village, while their house was closer to the back hills. Though there was some distance, it wasn’t far at all.Hearing her words, the younger ones breathed a sigh of relief. Their mother had remarried, but that didn’t mean they’d never see her again. The earlier sense of reluctance and sorrow began to fade.“Qingbai, you’re not strong, and you’ve been crying earlier. Go back inside and rest for a while. Don’t wear yourself out and get sick.”Lin Qingbai nodded listlessly, lowering his gaze. He was still upset—earlier, he had wanted to go with his mother, but she hadn’t been willing to take him.“Qingmiao, you go inside too and stay with your third brother. Don’t run outside.”Lin Qingmiao nodded firmly. She had no desire to follow Mrs. Su to the Wang household. She had grown up by her eldest sister’s side and couldn’t bear to be separated. Besides, Butcher Wang’s daughter, Wang Qiuhe, had pulled her hair a few days ago and scolded her, saying she’d just be eating for free if she went to the Wang family.“Eldest sister, are you going out?”“Yes, your second brother and I are going to the back hills to gather some firewood.” Living near the hills had its advantages—collecting firewood was much more convenient.Hearing this, Lin Qingsong immediately perked up. With their father gone and their mother remarried, life had to go on. He knew he should do more to help support the family.Just as they were making arrangements, a voice called from outside the courtyard gate.“Qinghe, are you home?”Lin Qinghe recognized the voice at once and hurried toward the gate. “It’s Aunt Guihua! What brings you here at this time? Please come in.”“I won’t come in. I just brought some vegetables for you all. I just heard your mother left—are you children doing alright?” As she spoke, her eyes scanned Lin Qinghe’s face. Seeing that she seemed composed, Aunt Guihua felt a little more at ease.Lin Dazhuang had died saving her son Zhu Zi. Although she had given five taels of silver to the Lin family, she still felt uneasy at heart. Now that Mrs. Su had remarried, leaving only the children behind, she worried about them and thought to come check on them.“How can I always accept Auntie’s things?”“It’s nothing valuable, just grown in our own fields. I hope you won’t mind it.” For farming families, vegetables weren’t worth much, but the Lin family had no land and had to buy everything they ate. Bringing some vegetables was exactly what they needed.“How could I mind? They say it’s good to give and take. I’ll accept Auntie’s vegetables and have Qingsong bring you a bundle of firewood later.”“There’s no need for that.” Tang Guihua quickly spoke up to stop her, then added, “Child, why be so polite with me? Things in this world don’t always go as one wishes, but there’s no hurdle that can’t be overcome. If anything happens at home, just come and say so. With me and your Uncle Zhao here, we can always lend a hand.”Lin Qinghe nodded: “Alright, thank you, Auntie. If anything happens at home, I’ll definitely come find you.”“That’s more like it. Well, you must have things to attend to, so I won’t disturb you any longer.” After saying this, she left a basket of vegetables and went on her way.She came and went like a gust of wind.Watching her walk away, she slowly withdrew her gaze.Their father had died saving Aunt Guihua’s son Zhu Zi. Zhu Zi’s surname was Zhao, and he was the village chief’s grandnephew. This was Zhao Family Village, where most villagers were surnamed Zhao, with only a few outsiders. Among them, the Lin family and Butcher Wang’s family were considered outsiders.The Lin family had no relatives in the village, so when Mrs. Su wanted to remarry, no one stepped forward to stop her. That was why she was able to marry so smoothly.After seeing Aunt Guihua off, she carried the basket of vegetables back and placed it under the eaves. Taking a bundle of straw rope in one hand and a firewood knife in the other, she instructed her younger siblings to close the door properly, then took Lin Qingsong to the back mountain to chop firewood.With no income at home, they couldn’t sit idle and deplete their resources. Chopping more firewood to take to the county town could earn them a few coins, though it was hard work and didn’t pay much.She had been raised by Lin Dazhuang, running all over the mountains with him since childhood. Lin Dazhuang wasn’t one to stand on ceremony, raising his daughter like a son. He taught her some martial arts, as well as how to hunt, shoot arrows, and other skills a hunter would know. What she lacked now was experience, and she was still young and not strong enough.At the back mountain, Lin Qingsong vented his frustrations, swinging the firewood knife fiercely as if pouring all his discontent into the wood.After letting him chop for a while and seeing no sign of him stopping, Lin Qinghe finally spoke up: “Don’t use too much force, or you won’t be able to lift your arms tomorrow. If you can’t help, all the work will fall on me.”Lin Qingsong paused at her words, taking them to heart, and slowed down his chopping.“Elder Sister, what are we going to do from now on?” He didn’t quite believe what Mrs. Su had said either. Once she married into the Wang family, how could she still care for them? Those words were just to fool the two younger ones.“We’ll chop firewood to sell in the county town. That should bring in a few coins. I’ll also go into the mountains to see if I can catch any game. Don’t worry too much. With me here, we’ll manage to get by.”Lin Qingsong nodded upon hearing her words. Selling firewood was no problem—he could handle the task of chopping wood. As for going into the mountains to hunt, he could also accompany his elder sister. Compared to those who knew nothing, they at least had a good understanding of the mountain terrain and knew how to avoid danger."Elder Sister, you don’t need to worry. I’ll grow up, and things will get better when I do.""Alright, I’ll be waiting." Lin Qinghe smiled, her eyes filled with relief. When their parents were still around, he had been a carefree young boy. After all that had happened, he had suddenly matured a great deal, learning to take responsibility. That was a good thing."Things are tough now, but our lives will gradually improve. With me here, I’ll make sure you never go hungry."Lin Qingsong listened to her words and remained silent for a long time. In his heart, he thought, Elder Sister isn’t afraid of hardship at all, but Mother couldn’t bear even the slightest bit of suffering.The siblings chopped a considerable amount of firewood. Lin Qinghe bundled one load and had Lin Qingsong deliver it to the Zhao Family. The rest, they made several trips to carry back to their courtyard.

Eldest Sister of a Farming Family: Managing the Household, Farming and Opening Shops