Xu Mingzhu had been too naive. Those transmigration novels were all lies.
The mountains were completely barren. Forget wild boars or rabbits; if someone found even a handful of edible wild vegetables, Xu Mingzhu would give them a thumbs-up.
Judging by the novel’s timeline, she should be close to selling the family house. By now, she had already gambled away just about everything of value in the household. To make matters worse, she still owed the male lead ten taels of silver.
After wandering around for quite a while without finding anything she could sell, Xu Mingzhu sighed and resigned herself to helping Xu Ming’an with his work. Once they got down the mountain, she would think carefully about ways to make money. If she still couldn’t come up with anything, she’d head into the city tomorrow and see what opportunities she could find there.
Xu Ming’an hadn’t expected his pampered younger sister to actually help him. After all, she had always been an expert at slacking off and shirking work. Sure enough, she must have set her sights on the wages he was about to earn.
“What are you staring at? Let’s finish up and head back.”
“Got it.” Xu Ming’an was feeling gloomy. The thought of all the money he’d earn from hauling stones ending up scattered across gambling tables by his sister drained all his enthusiasm. He was still hoping to save enough to get married someday. At this rate, who knew if he’d even be able to find a wife by the time he was thirty?
Thirty years old… By then, the widow from the neighboring village would probably be pushing forty. He wondered if she would have remarried by then.
Xu Mingzhu had no idea the person beside her had already let his imagination run so far ahead. She was busy calculating ways to make money when her fingertips accidentally brushed rough tree bark.
Just as she was about to pull her hand back, a sweet fragrance drifted into her nose. She paused and looked up at the crooked old locust tree nearby. Halfway up the trunk was a hollow, dark opening surrounded by a dense swarm of buzzing bees.
A beehive!
Xu Mingzhu’s eyes lit up. Honey was a genuinely valuable commodity.
Xu Ming’an had already bundled the firewood. Seeing Xu Mingzhu staring blankly at the tree, he frowned and urged her on. “What are you looking at? Let’s go. It’ll be dark soon, and the mountains aren’t safe at night. Mother will worry.”
“Second Brother, keep your voice down.” Xu Mingzhu grabbed his arm and pointed at the tree hollow. “Look. Isn’t that a beehive?”
Xu Ming’an followed her finger. His eyes brightened at first, then quickly dimmed. “That thing can sweeten your mouth, sure, but its stings hurt like hell. Wu Er from the village was stung to death by bees. We’d better go home.”
“We’re not going to force it.” Xu Mingzhu’s mind was already racing. “Second Brother, go gather some dried mugwort and pine needles. The more, the better. I’ll stay here and keep watch.”
Though puzzled, Xu Ming’an saw how serious she looked. If he refused and she later complained to their mother, he wouldn’t have an easy time of it. So he quickly returned with a large bundle of mugwort and pine needles.
Xu Mingzhu found a large rock sheltered from the wind and piled the mugwort and pine needles together. Then she struck her flint and set them alight.
As smoke rose, she carefully carried the smoldering bundle beneath the locust tree. The smoke drifted upward, and the wild bees buzzed about in confusion, fleeing into the distance. None of them paid the hive any attention.
Once most of the bees had dispersed, Xu Mingzhu found a long stick and cautiously poked the hive out of the hollow.
The honeycomb tumbled down. Golden, translucent honey gleamed beneath a layer of white wax. A rich sweetness instantly filled the air, making anyone who smelled it swallow involuntarily.
Neither of them dared linger. They wrapped the comb in several layers of clean leaves, stuffed it into their basket, grabbed their firewood, and hurried down the mountain.
The moment they got home, Xu Mingzhu shut the door tightly and took out the honeycomb. There were two large pieces. Amber honey dripped through her fingers, looking irresistibly appetizing. She held a chunk out toward Xu Ming’an. “Try some.”
Xu Ming’an glanced at her, then took a bite. The sweetness exploded across his tongue. Before he realized it, he had taken another bite. With his cheeks puffed full, he mumbled, “So sweet.”
“Of course it is. It’s wild honey.” She broke off a piece and placed it in a bowl, then put the rest into a basin. “We’ll take this to the city tomorrow and sell it.”
Xu Ming’an looked doubtful. “This stuff can really be sold for money?”
Xu Ming’an still found it hard to believe. To him, honey had always just been something sweet to eat. It had never occurred to him that it could be sold for money.
“Of course it can, though we’ll need to process it first. Second Brother, help me wash a few clean clay jars. And make sure to scald them with boiling water.”
“Got it.”
Xu Mingzhu strained out the beeswax and debris, then gently simmered the honey over low heat with warm water. Using fine mulberry-fiber gauze, she filtered it several times until the honey became crystal clear, free of even the slightest impurity, before pouring it into three clay jars.
By the time she finished, it still wasn’t dark.
Taking advantage of Mother Xu and her eldest sister-in-law being out gathering wild vegetables, Xu Mingzhu decided to prepare dinner. She opened several rice jars, only to find them all empty. She searched around the house again. Apart from the three flatbreads Song Ci had brought over earlier that day, all she could find was a handful of wild greens on the chopping board.
If she heated those flatbreads, everyone would undoubtedly split them into tiny portions and insist that she eat most of them. But they all worked so hard during the day. How could they go without a proper meal?
Looking at the thin and frail Xu Ming’an in the courtyard, she found it hard to believe he was nearly twenty years old. He looked more like a modern-day middle school student.
The original Xu Mingzhu had been completely consumed by gambling and romantic obsession. She had never paid attention to how the people who loved her were living. Once she started making money, she swore she would nourish them properly.
With no other options, Xu Mingzhu tore the flatbreads into small pieces. She boiled water in a pot, tossed in the bread crumbs, and slowly simmered them over low heat, stirring constantly until they became a thick porridge. Then she added a spoonful of honey and mixed it thoroughly.
The result was a pot of rich, hearty wheat porridge infused with the fragrance of grain and the sweetness of honey. Each of the four family members received a bowl.
Given their circumstances, Xu Mingzhu couldn’t make much else. For now, filling their stomachs was enough.
Soon, Mother Xu and Madam Zhou returned home.
Madam Zhou hurried to wash her hands. “Mother, have a rest first. I’ll wash the wild vegetables right away. We can have vegetable gruel tonight. Once Dazhu gets paid at the end of the month, things will get better.”
Meanwhile, Xu Mingzhu had already laid out the bowls and chopsticks.
Xu Ming’an called out, “Mother, Sister-in-law, Little Sister has already made dinner.”
“What? She made dinner?” The two women stood frozen in the courtyard for quite some time.
Xu Mingzhu pulled them to their seats. “There wasn’t any rice left in the house. Only three flatbreads remained, so we’ll make do with this meal for now. Tomorrow I’ll go into the city and see if I can find a solution.”
Mother Xu looked at the meal and felt a pang of heartache. “A Ci brought those cakes for you. Dry flatbreads keep for a while. Why did you cook all of them?”
Madam Zhou’s heart ached as well. If those flatbreads had been stretched with wild vegetables, their family could have survived four or five more days. Now that they had eaten everything in a single meal, they would truly have nothing left but wild greens.
Xu Mingzhu handed chopsticks to all three of them. “Mother, I already said this morning that we’re family. From now on, whatever you eat, I eat too. Come on, eat while it’s still hot.”
Mother Xu became even more convinced of what she had been thinking. Her eyes grew damp. Perhaps this was for the best.
Maybe after she’d lost everything… Maybe her daughter would finally come to her senses. Maybe she would return to the village and live an honest, down-to-earth life. Take it. Take it all.
Mother Xu cast one last glance around the courtyard. She had spent most of her life here. If the day came when she had to leave, she truly couldn’t bear it.
Just as Xu Mingzhu was about to tell everyone there was honey in the porridge, Mother Xu suddenly lowered her head and began to sob.
The other three immediately became concerned.
Xu Mingzhu hurried over and wiped away her tears. In her previous life, Xu Mingzhu’s parents had died in a car accident. Later, unable to bear the grief of losing their son in old age, her grandparents passed away one after another. Before she even graduated, she became an orphan. Even after her restaurant business flourished and brought her considerable wealth, no one was left to share it with. Now, experiencing the warmth of family again was the only thing that truly satisfied her since entering this novel world.
The original owner had failed to cherish them. But Xu Mingzhu did.
“Mother, what’s wrong?”
Mother Xu shook her head and said nothing.
Still worried, Xu Mingzhu gently reassured her, “Mother, don’t worry. In the past, you protected me. From now on, I’ll protect all of you.”