“Mother, now that we’ve proven sweet potatoes aren’t poisonous, we have to tell the whole village. They need to dig up everything on the mountain before winter comes—otherwise the cold will ruin them.”
Yun Xi remembered clearly: sweet potatoes could survive autumn, but once deep winter arrived, they would rot or freeze.
“Yes, yes! I must tell your father right away. This is wonderful news—finally there’s hope for winter!”
Madam Yun hurried toward the door, eager to find Yun Dahai, but she bumped straight into him the moment she opened it.
“What’s the rush? You nearly knocked me over,” Yun Dahai grumbled.
“Heavens, you’re finally back! Quickly, try this and tell me if it’s good!”
Like offering a treasure, Madam Yun held up a freshly steamed sweet potato.
“What is this?”
The sweet scent drifting from it instantly caught Yun Dahai’s interest. Since the skin had been removed after steaming, he didn’t recognize it as the root everyone thought was poisonous.
“It’s called a sweet potato. Eat first—talk later.”
He took a bite.
Fragrance filled his mouth, soft and sweet, filling his entire chest with warmth.
He devoured the whole piece and even burped contentedly.
“This is delicious! Don’t hide it—where’d you get it? Are there more?”
“There are plenty! This thing is the root of the wild greens we’ve been eating all year—the ones everyone said were poisonous!”
“What? The root of those greens?”
Yun Dahai was stunned.
“Then how can you eat it? Where’s Xier? Did she eat any?”
“Father, it’s fine. These are edible—very edible. You’re supposed to eat the root, not the leaves.”
“Wait… does this mean Xier discovered it?”
Yun Dahai turned to her, eyes widening.
“Yes, Xier found it by accident and wanted to try cooking it,” Yun Xi replied—until Madam Yun immediately exposed her.
“You’re the silly one! The book clearly mentioned it, and you’ve read those books dozens of times. Why didn’t you say anything? We’ve been starving while sitting on a mountain of food! What kind of village chief are you?!”
“What?!”
Yun Dahai turned sharply to Yun Xi.
“You learned this from the books?”
“Yes…” Yun Xi answered weakly. “I found it while reading.”
Yun Dahai gave her a long, searching look but remained silent.
Then he exhaled, deeply moved.
“Xier… if this really is safe to eat, then you’ve saved the entire village.”
“I’m only offering suggestions. Father still has to convince the villagers. They might not believe it right away. Also, winter is coming soon—you must gather people quickly to dig up the sweet potatoes. If they stay in the ground too long, they’ll go bad. And you need to dig storage pits—sweet potato cellars—to keep them warm enough to survive the winter. But don’t dig everything. Leave some so they’ll grow again next year.”
Yun Xi shared everything she knew—but stopped before saying too much. She didn’t want to draw suspicion, but right now people’s survival mattered more than her secret.
“Good! I’ll go talk to everyone immediately. As for the storage cellars, Xier, think it through and teach me later.”
Yun Dahai practically flew out the door. His steps were light, full of relief and excitement.
At last—after months of fear and despair—there was hope.
People wouldn’t starve this winter.
No more freezing elders.
No more silent deaths.
Just thinking about it made him tremble with joy.
But as he left, he cast one more deep, unreadable look at Yun Xi.
He would need to speak to his daughter privately, he thought.
There were too many questions…
And Xier was no longer the same child she used to be.