After coming back to her senses.
Liu Lijuan asked Liu Qingsong in shock, "Were all these fish caught by you this morning with Little Mochi and Hongxia by the river?"
If that were really true, then the three of them had far too much luck, didn't they?
"Yeah, all caught this morning." Liu Qingsong confirmed.
He did not explain how he caught them. He did not want to, since knowing too much about some things would not benefit his second elder sister.
"Hehe... Second elder sister, aren't we amazing?" little sister asked happily.
"Truly amazing." Liu Lijuan scooped up a handful of Wild Diaozi Fish from the large water vat, delight in her eyes. "This many fish should provide our family with side dishes for half a month. Oh right! Qingsong, did Eldest Sister bring the rice you cooked?"
The reason she asked this.
Was because Little Mochi had come over.
Of course, none of their other relatives or friends had helped them as Eldest Sister had, when their family was at its most desperate.
Yet—
"The rice wasn't from Eldest Sister. What she brought was sweet potatoes." Liu Qingsong pointed toward a sack of sweet potatoes in the corner of the kitchen as he answered.
"Oh? Then where did the rice come from?" Liu Lijuan frowned.
If someone had stolen it, they would have been in serious trouble. Their parents had been taken away for Reform Through Labor, and the villagers throughout the Production Brigade already looked down on their family.
"I traded some scrap steel from home with Blacksmith Wang for the rice, and got a small bag of sweet potatoes too." Liu Qingsong, seeing through Liu Lijuan's thoughts, immediately explained.
He had to explain. With their parents gone, his second elder sister was now in charge of the household, and she had the right to know about everything in it, down to the smallest item.
"I see!" Liu Lijuan nodded, relieved.
To think he knew to trade scrap steel for food.
It seemed her Qingsong had grown up.
Still, every item traded away from the house was one less item they had. This couldn't go on forever. Once there was nothing left to trade, their family would likely go hungry again.
The thought left Liu Lijuan deeply troubled.
She didn't even know what to say anymore.
When she spotted two Wild Diaozi Fish turning belly-up in the large water vat, she snapped back to attention, rolled up her sleeves, and pulled them out.
She set them on the chopping board and was about to gut them.
Beside her, Liu Qingsong lifted the pot lid and poked the large softshell turtle steaming inside with his chopsticks.
It was not cooked yet, so Liu Qingsong picked up the lid and covered the large iron pot again.
Liu Lijuan had watched the whole scene. Once she realized what she had seen, she asked in stunned disbelief, "Qingsong, you caught a softshell turtle this morning too?"
"Yeah." Liu Qingsong nodded.
"Then why steam it? Wouldn't it be better to sell it and trade the money for food? A turtle this big could fetch at least two or three yuan, or a dozen or so pounds of rice." The more Liu Lijuan spoke, the darker her expression grew, and her tone turned stern. "You really are a spendthrift. Don't you know what state our family is in right now?"
She was not obsessed with money.
It was that without careful planning, they'd be going hungry down the road.
She knew the consequences of hunger all too well. She had to plan ahead and seize every opportunity to trade for food.
"Aiyo! Second elder sister, is trading for food all you can think about?" Liu Qingsong found this somewhat exasperating. To stop her from nagging further, from fussing over a single turtle, he scooped up Little Mochi, who was nestled against his leg, and used her as a shield. "Truth is, this turtle was caught by her. We don't have the right to sell it."
"Really?" Liu Lijuan froze.
Little Mochi had caught a softshell turtle?
This... this was real?
She felt like she must be dreaming!
"Yeth, thecond auntie! Thith turtle, I caught it mythelf." Little Mochi replied in her babyish voice, her small face earnest. "It... it even tried to bite me before, tho I'm gonna thteam it and eat it!"
"Alright then!" Liu Lijuan had nothing left to say.
Little Mochi had caught the softshell turtle.
Naturally, she had the right to decide what to do with it.
Liu Qingsong smiled at Liu Lijuan's expression. After setting Little Mochi down, he asked, "Second elder sister, have you eaten lunch yet?"
"I have." Liu Lijuan picked up the kitchen knife and began preparing the Wild Diaozi Fish. "Since you, Hongxia, and Little Mochi found something to eat at home, I'll return the small bag of Sweet Potatoes I borrowed from Eldest Uncle's House later."
"Sure! While you're at it, bring two Diaozi Fish to Eldest Uncle—one for him and one for his Youngest Son's wife." Liu Qingsong walked to the large water vat, chose two large Wild Diaozi Fish, and strung them together with Rice Straw Rope.
Youngest Son.
Meaning the youngest son.
"Wait, no—giving Diaozi Fish to Eldest Uncle, I've got nothing to say about that, since he's helped our family a lot. But giving some to Eldest Uncle's Youngest Son's wife, I don't think that's necessary, is it?" Liu Lijuan turned to look at Liu Qingsong, confusion in her eyes.
"Why not? Eldest Uncle lives with Youngest Son now, and they share both meals and lodging. Do you think Eldest Uncle could have lent you those Sweet Potatoes without his youngest daughter-in-law's approval?" Liu Qingsong asked with a smile.
This.
It was social maneuvering.
If you didn't understand it, you'd suffer greatly for it.
Once Liu Lijuan understood Liu Qingsong's meaning, she was astonished. She could not understand how he had become more perceptive than her today.
But she didn't ask further about the reason.
Instead, she nodded. "Alright! I'll do as you say later."
"Then go wash your hands and eat now! Even if you already ate, come have a bit more. I made Pan-Fried Diaozi Fish for lunch, and Steamed Softshell Turtle too." Liu Qingsong said, reaching out to lift the pot lid.
The steam carried the fragrance of rice and the aroma of Steamed Softshell Turtle. Liu Qingsong grabbed a cloth and carefully lifted the Steamed Softshell Turtle from the pot.
Then sprinkled Chili Powder and Sichuan Pepper Powder over it.
"Wow, it smells so good!" little sister watched with drool practically running down her chin.
Little Mochi bit her index finger too, then toddled off on her Short Little Legs to fetch bowls and chopsticks.
"Slow down, don't run." Liu Lijuan followed right behind her to make sure she didn't trip and fall.
After bringing over the bowls and chopsticks, she set the Pan-Fried Diaozi Fish and Steamed Softshell Turtle on the small table.
Seeing the Pan-Fried Diaozi Fish golden on both sides, its aroma mouthwatering.
She hesitated a moment before grabbing a bowl and chopsticks and joining the meal herself.
She had meant to eat one small bowl, but after finishing three large bowls in a row, she still wanted more.
This was because their parents had been taken away.
Their whole family hadn't had a proper meal.
They had not even dreamed of meat dishes cooked with oil.
Liu Qingsong noticed that Liu Lijuan still wanted to eat, so he set down his bowl and chopsticks and scooped her another bowl of rice. "Second elder sister, eat as many bowls as you want at home. No one will say anything."
"That'th right, thecond auntie, eat the turtle meat, it'th tho tathty." Little Mochi also twisted off a turtle leg with her small hand and placed it in Liu Lijuan's rice bowl.
The reason she grabbed it with her hand.
She still did not know how to use chopsticks well.
Liu Lijuan knew this, so she did not take issue with Little Mochi. But as she looked at the food in her bowl and the younger siblings beside her, her eyes reddened. She covered her mouth and began to sob.
In the end.
She still couldn't hold it in and burst into tears.
"Second elder sister, what's wrong?" little sister asked, unable to help worrying at the sight.
Little Mochi also tilted her small head and asked, "Did thomeone bully you? Tell me, I'll go beat him up."
Liu Qingsong said nothing. He knew that second elder sister was crying because she could not adjust to the sudden improvement in their family's circumstances—the fact that they could now eat rice and fish.
After all, this had once been an unreachable wish.
The wish had become reality. Even he, before rebirth, might have been overwhelmed by the moment and lost control of his emotions.
Of course, this was also tied to the immense pressure weighing on second elder sister.
Now that the pressure was leaving her, not crying would have been strange.
Only by crying it out could the pressure on her ease a little, so she wouldn't have to keep suppressing her emotions like that.
Seeing tears streak Liu Lijuan's face, Liu Qingsong reached out and wiped them away, his heart aching. "Second elder sister, don't cry. Eat your food. You still have to report for work later and help repair the Embankment!"
With that said.
Liu Qingsong picked up the last piece of Pan-Fried Wild Diaozi Fish and placed it in second elder sister's rice bowl.
"Mm, mm." Liu Lijuan nodded repeatedly. Instead of eating the Pan-Fried Diaozi Fish Liu Qingsong had given her, she picked it up and passed it to little sister.
This silent act of affection.
Little sister was happy.
But she didn't keep it all to herself.
Instead, she divided the last piece of Pan-Fried Diaozi Fish among Little Mochi, Liu Qingsong, and Liu Lijuan. Then she picked up her rice bowl and ate heartily with her head bowed.
……