It had been raining for three days straight, and Su Zhen hadn’t set up her stall for three days either.
Believing that spring rain was as precious as oil, Mrs. Song donned a raincoat and bamboo hat and rushed to plant the last of the vegetables in the light drizzle.
Su Zhen and her siblings tried to persuade her for a long time, but it was no use. They had no choice but to put on their own bamboo hats and raincoats and help with the work.
After tidying up over the past while, the vegetable garden at home was now very neat. Mrs. Song had even used a long stick as a guide to create a straight, orderly path, with the surface compacted using wooden stakes so it wouldn’t turn muddy even in the rain.
The vegetable garden was divided into two rows. The inner row was planted with various types of beans, along with some sorghum and corn seeds obtained from neighbors. The outer row was filled with commonly grown and eaten vegetables: scallions, garlic sprouts, radishes, sweet potatoes, and peanuts. Some seeds were bought by Su Zhen from the city, while others were exchanged with neighbors.
Mrs. Song’s health was still weak, and before she could finish planting the sorghum, her face turned pale, and she began trembling uncontrollably.
Su Zhen felt both heartache at her suffering and frustration at her stubbornness. She quickly brewed some ginger soup, made Mrs. Song drink it hot, and settled her into bed for a good sleep. Only then did Mrs. Song start to feel better.
With the rain, there was nowhere to go. A-Qiao, bored out of her mind, climbed onto the bed and snuggled up next to her mother. Before long, the little girl’s breathing became steady and even—she had fallen asleep too.
Su Zhen sat by the bed, looking at the noticeably fuller cheeks of the mother and daughter, and felt a surge of deep pride.
Although she had never raised children herself nor experienced the love of parents, she was now experiencing both here. It truly felt like she was raising a child with her own hands.
And such a well-behaved, adorable little girl at that, just like a kitten.
Just as she was thinking this, the door to the main room was slammed open, and a whirlwind-like figure rushed in.
Su Zhen’s gentle expression instantly turned helpless and exasperated. She stood up, accurately grabbed the newcomer’s ear, and dragged him firmly out to the eaves.
“You rascal! Can’t you be a bit steadier? You’re twelve years old already, still acting like a wild monkey!”
Compared to the well-behaved A-Qiao, this younger brother truly was like a mischievous monkey from Mount Emei. If it weren’t for the fact that the three siblings looked quite similar, Su Zhen would have suspected that Su Anyu was a child the Song couple had picked up.
Su Anyu realized he had caused trouble and stuck out his tongue, lowering his voice but unable to hide his excitement. “Sis, I just saw Goudan and the others going up the mountain to pick mushrooms. Why don’t we go too?”
After three days of continuous rain, mushrooms were sure to have sprouted all over the mountain. If they went too late, they’d definitely miss out.
Su Zhen glanced back at the sleeping Mrs. Song and A-Qiao, then looked at the gradually lightening rain. “Let’s go!”
Despite hurrying, they were still too late.
From the foot of the mountain to halfway up, they didn’t even find a single mushroom stem. Instead, mushroom pickers were everywhere, far outnumbering the mushrooms.
Su Anyu’s excitement had worn off, and he aimlessly swung a small stick left and right.
Su Zhen didn’t restrain him, treating him as the vanguard for scaring away snakes.
She stood under a banyan tree, looking at the faint figures ahead and glancing around at the still-sparse woods. Then she turned and walked in another direction.
Su Anyu saw this and quickly caught up. “Sis, haven’t we already checked this side? There’s nothing here.”
Su Zhen trudged forward with her head down. “I remember coming this way when I went into the mountains with Dad two years ago. Beyond that thicket of thorns, there’s a huge stretch of grassland!”
It was precisely because the thorny thicket was so large that many people couldn’t be bothered to cross it, allowing Su Zhen and her father to get lucky back then—they found a rabbit burrow and brought home several baby rabbits!
Since they hadn’t found any mushrooms anyway, what if they could stumble upon another great find this time?
Su Anyu’s excitement surged again. Swinging a small stick, he cleared the path ahead and used a machete to carve a narrow trail through the thorny thicket.
As soon as the two emerged from the thicket, they couldn’t help but gasp in amazement.
This was no ordinary grassland—it was a treasure trove!
Beneath sprawling low shrubs were clusters of tiny mushrooms, along with bright red raspberries and small purple wild berries whose names they didn’t know.
Su Anyu froze for a moment before letting out a joyful cry. Tossing aside his stick as he ran, he spread his arms wide, ready to embrace the mushrooms and berries.
Su Zhen chuckled but didn’t immediately start picking mushrooms. Instead, she turned back to carefully close the gap in the thorny thicket. Such a wonderful spot—better to keep it hidden from others if possible!
The two busied themselves separately—one gathering mushrooms, the other picking berries. Su Anyu hadn’t tasted so many sweet wild berries in a long time. He grabbed a handful and tossed them all into his mouth, stems and all. The berries were still cool from the recent rain, not dirty at all but refreshingly chilled and utterly delicious.
Su Zhen’s basket quickly filled with various kinds of mushrooms. To her greatest surprise, she discovered a lingzhi mushroom larger than her palm beneath a fallen log.
Such a large wild lingzhi was rare. If sold at a pharmacy in town, it could fetch at least five taels of silver!
The light rain had stopped at some point without them noticing. Both their baskets were full, yet neither wanted to leave.
“Sis, this really is an amazing place! Let’s come back in a few days!”
To be honest, Su Anyu didn’t want to leave at all.
Su Zhen stood up and gazed into the distance. This mountain bordered Su Family Village on one side, while the other side stretched far away—though she didn’t know where it led. How wonderful it would be to explore further.
Just as she was thinking this, Su Zhen’s sharp ears caught the sound of rushing water not far away. Could it be a river?
Su Family Village did have a river, but that one meandered in from the neighboring village. She’d never heard of a second river near their village.
Exchanging a glance, the two shouldered their baskets and followed the sound.
After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, another thorny thicket appeared before them.
This didn’t faze Su Anyu. Finding a sturdy branch, he quickly cleared a small path through it.
Beyond the thicket, the view opened up to reveal a broad, wide river with clear water flowing steadily onward.
“This river is much wider than the one in our village!” Su Anyu couldn’t help but exclaim.
Su Zhen nodded in agreement. “It looks like this might be the upstream section of our village’s river.”
Probably it flowed down the mountain, circled through the neighboring village, and then returned to Su Family Village.
“Sis! There are fish in this river!” Su Anyu was already rolling up his pant legs, ready to wade in and catch fish. “I’ll grab a couple to take home. We can have stewed fish tonight!”
Su Zhen quickly grabbed his arm. “It just rained—the water’s too cold. There’s no rush. Let’s come back another day when it’s warmer! That’ll give the fish more time to grow too!”
Su Anyu pouted but kept himself busy. Since he couldn’t fish in the river, he turned his attention back to the thorny thicket to search for more treasures.
Sure enough, he managed to find a nest of wild pheasant eggs—seven in total!
“I’ll catch a wild pheasant too, so we can hatch a brood of chicks!” Su Anyu cheerfully went off to search for the pheasant.
Su Zhen watched with amusement when suddenly she noticed a small bundle hanging from a dead tree branch upstream.