Although it was late autumn with winter approaching soon, the sun still felt quite warm. The moisture from a recent light rain had vanished without a trace in no time.
Second Grandpa Li, with nothing to do, strolled around the village with his hands behind his back, urging every household to stock up on firewood quickly. The weather’s temper was beyond mortal prediction—snow might fall overnight, plunging them directly into winter.
The well in the corner of the Tang Family’s yard finally held about two feet of water, delighting Li Qiushuang immensely. She cranked the wooden pulley, drawing up bucket after bucket of water, then swiftly dismantled the old padded trousers bought in the city. She washed the outer fabric clean, aired and fluffed the cotton padding, and beat it loose.
Even the new cotton and fabric intended for sewing a new padded jacket for her little daughter were placed under the sun as well.
Aunt Wu from South Street and Sister-in-law Kang, who lived at the foot of Dongshan, came visiting together. Seeing how busy Li Qiushuang was, they rolled up their sleeves and pitched in.
Aunt Wu, large-framed and in her forties, had a straightforward personality and a loud voice. Picking up a wooden stick to beat the cotton padding, she joked, “Qiushuang, you’re playing favorites too! Buying old padded clothes for yourself and the boys, yet making new ones for the little girl. Aren’t you afraid the boys will throw a fit?”
Li Qiushuang shook her head with a smile and replied, “Chuan Ge’er is sensible and doesn’t argue, while Hai Ge’er only cares about eating. They don’t mind these things. Besides…” She paused, then added, “Besides, the old lady used to always scold Tang Bao’er as a money-loser, unwilling to give her even an extra bite of Bran Cakes. That child suffered a lot. Now that I’m in charge of the household, I just want to be better to her.”
Sister-in-law Kang’s husband, Tang Kang, was of the same generation as Tang Chuan, making her a niece-in-law in front of Li Qiushuang. Seeing the conversation turning somber, she quickly comforted, “Auntie is right. A girl only enjoys life in her parents’ home; once she marries into her husband’s family, she won’t have such freedom. So, she should be pampered more now. Besides, Tang Bao’er is such a darling child. She’s not even as tall as a Dou Chuzi, yet she goes up the mountain every day to gather firewood—she’s truly capable.”
Aunt Wu chimed in, full of envy. “Yes, that girl often finds good stuff, making everyone in the village wish they could follow behind to pick up some bargains, but they’re too embarrassed. They can only toss and turn restlessly at night.”
Sister-in-law Kang and Li Qiushuang both laughed at this, but their laughter soon gave way to heartache.
Times were too lean these years. To survive, every family racked their brains just to fill their bellies.
They remembered the good old days when the mountains were teeming with wild produce—anyone who wasn’t lazy could return with a full basket every time.
But alas…
Li Qiushuang took a moment to boil half a gourd ladle of chestnuts in the kitchen and insisted that Aunt Wu and Sister-in-law Kang share them. Unable to refuse, the two women happily carried them home in their aprons.
Needless to say, they couldn’t bear to eat them themselves and were taking them back to delight their children…
Li Qiushuang was no exception. She shelled the remaining bowl of chestnuts and saved them too, waiting for her children to return and eat.
Tang Tian, accompanied by her simple-minded brother, gathered two bundles of dry firewood as usual each day. She also watered the bean sprouts in the cellar three times—morning, noon, and evening—and in her spare time, boiled medicine for her elder brother and cooked in the kitchen. She was constantly busy, running around in circles.
But no matter how busy or tired she was, she never let her mother lift a finger.
Going into the mountains to gather firewood allowed her to secretly stash things into her Space.
Watering the bean sprouts in the cellar was crucial to the family’s livelihood.
Preparing medicine for her eldest brother required the use of Space Spring Water, and it was best for her to handle it personally.
Cooking was an even more important matter. If her frugal mother took charge, the coarse rice porridge would be so thin you could see your reflection in it!
In both her past and present lives, aside from survival, if there was one thing Tang Tian cared about more than anything, it was a single word: food!
As long as it was within her means, she was determined to eat her fill and eat well!
Only with a full stomach did she have the mind to focus on other matters.
So, while she had held back before, after this trip to the city for supplies, she gradually began to loosen up, cautiously testing the waters by secretly transporting resources from her Space.
For instance, adding chopped wood ear mushrooms to the coarse rice porridge or swirling in some egg drops!
Or when simmering chicken soup, adding a bit of the high-yield potatoes and carrots stored in her Space, finely diced to look appealing, fill the stomach, and make it hard to identify exactly what they were.
Tang Hai, that silly boy, devoured his food noisily every time, never bothering to question what he was eating.
As for Tang Chuan, he had noticed long ago, but since his mother said nothing, he pretended not to know.
And so, meal after meal, the complexions of the family of four visibly improved, shedding their sallow and emaciated looks, with their sunken cheeks filling out a bit!
One day, after Li Qiushuang had finally finished making winter coats and trousers for the family, she started going up the mountain with the children to gather firewood.
The mother and her two children managed to gather four large bundles in a day, which was quite a lot, but compared to the massive firewood stacks in other village households, they were still lagging behind.
Remembering the harsh winter cold and that growing bean sprouts required a warm room, making firewood essential, Tang Tian suggested buying some from the villagers.
Li Qiushuang had been considering the same idea, so when Second Grandpa Li wandered by their door, she stopped him.
“Second Uncle, we’re really short on firewood at home, and I have a bit of spare money. If you’re not too busy, could you help us spread the word among the villagers? Our family is willing to pay one copper coin for two bundles of firewood, or ten bundles for one pound of coarse rice, to build up a stockpile. Let’s see who might have the time to take on this work?”
Before Li Qiushuang had even finished speaking, many people rushed over, shouting eagerly.
“Me, I’m willing! Give me the job!”
“And me! I don’t need money, coarse rice is fine!”
Second Grandpa Li quickly scolded the crowd, yelling, “What’s all the shouting? Speak slowly! Chuan Ge’er’s mother is right here—it’s not like she’s going to run away!”
The crowd glanced at Li Qiushuang and the little girl standing behind her, looking somewhat embarrassed as they chuckled and took a few steps back.
Only then did Li Erye seem satisfied and asked on behalf of everyone, “Chuan Ge’er’s mother, how much firewood are you planning to get?”
Just as Li Qiushuang was about to respond, Tang Tian cut in.
“Second Grandpa, we want five hundred bundles!”
Five hundred?!
Everyone was taken aback. An ordinary household typically needed around two hundred bundles to get through winter, yet the Tang Family, with just a mother and three children, needed more than double that…
This was unexpected for Li Qiushuang as well. She frowned at her daughter, but the little girl blinked frantically at her, clearly having other considerations in mind.
Recalling her daughter’s extraordinary abilities, Li Qiushuang steeled herself and nodded in agreement.
“Yes, Second Grandpa, our family needs five hundred bundles of firewood. The children are still young, and I don’t want them going into the mountains again. I’d rather trouble the villagers to help us gather a larger amount all at once.”
Li Erye silently calculated—this would require fifty pounds of coarse rice. His heart ached at the thought.
But he couldn’t make decisions for the Tang Family, so he simply said, “Alright, it never hurts to stock up on more firewood.”
After saying this, he discussed with the villagers and finally selected ten diligent and honest workers, assigning fifty bundles of firewood per household.
Indeed, many hands make light work. The matter was settled in the morning, and by sunset, over fifty bundles of firewood had piled up outside the Tang Family’s gate. Each bundle was large and consisted of high-quality branches as thick as two fingers—the kind that burns brightest and hottest.