The moment Zhou Daya moved, she saw Li Chuyuan had already dashed into the courtyard, startling the chicks into peeping cries as they scrambled under the old hen.
He paid no attention to anything, rushed into the house, and shut the door.
Zhou Daya ground her teeth in anger.
She’d give that little brat a good talking-to later.
Chen Xiaoman looked toward where Li Chuyuan had disappeared, her small face full of worry.
Inside the house, Li Chuyuan took a writing brush out of his cloth bundle and spread white paper out on the table.
He had to write a hundred sheets of characters to calm down!
He picked up the brush, dipped it in ink, and began writing carefully on the paper, stroke by stroke.
Gradually, his mind settled, and his characters got better and better.
He didn’t even notice when someone came into the room.
When he finished the last stroke, he let out a long breath.
He blew the characters dry, carefully folded them and put them into his cloth bundle, then jumped down from his chair. Turning around, he saw Chen Xiaoman lying beside his mother, watching him.
He glared at Chen Xiaoman.
Chen Xiaoman hesitated, then broke into a grin, giving him a bright smile.
Li Chuyuan paused, then grew even angrier.
Did she think smiling prettily would make him give up his own bed?
He looked at Zhou Daya, displeased. “Mother, she’s sleeping in my spot.”
Zhou Daya said, “There’s no spare room in the house, so you two will have to sleep together with us. You two sleep in the middle, and your father and I will sleep on the two ends, so neither of you falls off.”
Li Chuyuan turned and called out to Old Li, “Father!”
Old Li shifted toward the edge of the bed and patted the empty space. “Chuyuan, come here, sleep with your father.”
Chen Xiaoman also scooted closer to Zhou Daya. “Brother Chuyuan can come sleep here.”
Li Chuyuan turned his head away with a “humph.”
“Mother, I haven’t eaten yet.”
Zhou Daya pointed to the stool by the table. “You were writing, so I didn’t call you. The corn mush is set there, there’s hot water at the stove, go scoop some and wash up yourself, then get to bed early, it’ll be dark soon.”
Li Chuyuan let out a wail. “Why does she get to eat egg noodles, and I only get corn mush?”
“This is Xiaoman’s first day here, she needs to eat well. From now on she’ll eat the same as us.”
Zhou Daya said soothingly.
Old Li nodded along. “Right, right, no more white flour and eggs from now on.”
Chen Xiaoman said at once, “I’ll eat corn mush too, from now on.”
Li Chuyuan was overcome with grief and indignation.
But Zhou Daya wasn’t even looking at him, and hugging Chen Xiaoman close, said cheerfully, “Xiaoman, off to sleep now.”
Chen Xiaoman answered, lay down obediently, and closed her eyes.
Zhou Daya took a palm-leaf fan and waved it over her, again and again.
Old Li said happily, “Chuyuan, hurry up and finish, then come fan your father. It’s really hot tonight.”
Li Chuyuan picked up his bowl and chopsticks and walked unsteadily out of the room.
Sitting in the gradually darkening main hall, he shoveled a mouthful of the corn mush, already gone cold, into his mouth.
His whole mouth tasted of corn.
Waah, waah, waah…
Mother had a daughter-in-law now and didn’t want her son anymore…
He finished the corn mush bitterly, then went and drew his own water to wash up, and when he came back to the room, all three of them were already asleep.
Li Chuyuan crept softly up onto the bed.
Once he lay down, still feeling upset, he squeezed himself closer to his father’s side.
He absolutely refused to sleep next to Chen Xiaoman!
He had to find a way to get his parents to send her away!
Li Chuyuan clenched his little fists and quietly made up his mind.
Once his breathing evened out, Zhou Daya raised her arm and fanned both children at the same time.
Old Li rolled over, quite displeased. “You’re treating Xiaoman better than our own Chuyuan.”
“I’m doing it on purpose, to make Chuyuan suffer a bit.”
Zhou Daya said calmly.
“Once he’s suffered a little, he’ll understand what kind of hard life Xiaoman has lived, and he’ll be better to her from now on.”
Old Li snorted. “How could this girl matter more than our son.”
Zhou Daya smacked him with the fan. “Xiaoman just found our family a way to earn money, and you’ve got no conscience at all?”
“Five strings of cash!”
Old Li spread his palm open and waved it in front of Zhou Daya.
“We already earned back five hundred sixty coins today, and if we sell a couple more times, we’ll earn quite a bit more!”
The fan swatted his hand away.
Speaking of this, Old Li grew happy.
“The moment I said we’d buy Wupao at two catties per coin, the whole village couldn’t sit still. I bet we’ll be able to collect quite a lot tomorrow.”
Zhou Daya said, “That’s a lot higher than what we bought it for today.”
“We’re all from the same village, we have to let others earn something too.”
Old Li started calculating. “If the villagers can earn money, they’ll definitely be happy to keep selling to us.”
His craving for tobacco flared up, and he grabbed his pipe and stuck it in his mouth.
“We have to sell as much as we can early, or once the medicine shop finishes collecting, we won’t be able to sell anymore. Besides us, there are herb gatherers selling to the shop too.”
Zhou Daya nodded thoughtfully. “In a while longer, the Wupao will be gone.”
“Even if there’s still some, we won’t have time for it, farming season will be here.”
Old Li took a couple of pulls on his empty pipe and frowned.
Without tobacco, he felt uncomfortable all over.
Zhou Daya paused, then said, “Old man, next year I’ll plant you more tobacco.”
Old Li waved his hand. “Let’s sleep.”
The night grew deeper.
The sound of breathing rose and fell throughout the room.
In her sleep, Chen Xiaoman dreamed there was a very, very large gourd in front of her.
Facing her was the gourd’s dark, black opening.
She hesitated, then walked into the gourd’s mouth.
After a brief moment of darkness, everything turned bright.
Seeing what was inside, she cried out, “Wow!”
“How do you like my cave paradise?”
A white-haired old man sat cross-legged on a green gourd floating in mid-air, with a small gourd hanging at his waist.
Chen Xiaoman marveled, “So many gourds! Are you a gourd immortal?”
Half-Immortal Zhang’s mouth twitched.
Such a magnificent cave paradise, and all she could see were gourds!
Rather displeased, he bent down and lifted Chen Xiaoman up onto the flying gourd.
Chen Xiaoman’s eyes lit up. “Ooh, I’m flying!”
Finally, someone who appreciated it properly.
Half-Immortal Zhang’s mood improved considerably, and he carried Chen Xiaoman flying to the northwest corner.
There stood a mountain so tall its peak couldn’t be seen, water falling straight down its side to form a spectacular waterfall, giving off a rushing sound.
The falling water gathered into a large, mist-shrouded lake below.
“Do you know what this is?”
Half-Immortal Zhang lifted his chin and pointed at the lake surface, quite pleased with himself.
Chen Xiaoman nodded, excited. “Lots of water.”
The pride on Half-Immortal Zhang’s face froze.
Soon he grew angry.
“This is spirit water! See the white mist over the lake? That’s all spiritual energy!”
Chen Xiaoman thought for a moment, then asked him, “Can I drink the spirit water?”
“Of course, if ordinary people like you drink spirit water year-round, it can extend your life.”
Half-Immortal Zhang put on his lofty-sage air again, waiting for Chen Xiaoman’s admiration.
Sure enough, Chen Xiaoman said “Wow” again, “Can it make you live forever?”
The pride on Half-Immortal Zhang’s face cracked apart bit by bit.
“That… that’s not quite possible…”
Chen Xiaoman nodded. “Grandpa Half-Immortal, you’re already old.”
Half-Immortal Zhang was nearly choked with frustration.
So many people begged for his spirit water and couldn’t get it, and this little girl didn’t even appreciate it!
He refused to accept this!
The gourd carried the two of them instantly to below the spirit spring, to a stretch of black earth covering a good ten mu or more.
“See this? This is spirit soil.”
Chen Xiaoman frowned her little brows. “Grandpa Half-Immortal, your fields are all overgrown with weeds.”
“Those are medicinal herbs! For refining pills!”
Looking at the sparse, scattered herbs, Chen Xiaoman closed her little mouth.
Even the laziest person in Tunshui Village grew crops more lush than this.
Chen Xiaoman didn’t want to upset Grandpa Half-Immortal, so she changed the subject. “What are pills for?”
Now that was finally the right question!
Half-Immortal Zhang stroked his snow-white beard with delight. “Eating pills lets you cultivate immortality.”