The pile of pumpkins filled three large baskets. Gu Yu carried two of the bigger baskets on his carrying pole, while Tang Jiao’s back basket was relatively smaller.
Even little An’an had a tiny pumpkin in his small basket at Gu Yu’s insistence. Tang Jiao strapped it to her chest, while An’an carried his own basket on his chest as well.
Tang Jiao found this a bit annoying—the weight still fell mostly on her shoulders, and An’an’s basket blocked her view. In the end, after the “authority of motherhood” prevailed, little An’an reluctantly compromised, and his small basket was strapped to Gu Yu’s carrying pole.
The return journey was difficult. Gu Yu handled it well; after multiple trips carrying heavy loads, his skill with the carrying pole had become quite refined. The weight, though significant, was manageable for him. Tang Jiao, on the other hand, struggled. She hadn’t carried such heavy loads before, and adding An’an’s weight made it even harder.
Her stamina had improved considerably recently, but this path was truly rough, and the pumpkins exceeded their estimated weight—together, they must have weighed over 200 pounds.
Still, it was a good problem to have. The heavier the load, the more trips they could make, and they kept going, tired but happy. Eventually, seeing Tang Jiao struggling, Gu Yu insisted on strapping An’an to himself.
They couldn’t keep track of how many breaks they had along the way, but finally, the family arrived back at their cave.
By now it was past noon, and the water supply inside the cave was running low. After resting a bit, Gu Yu went to fetch water and also retrieved the fishing traps they hadn’t collected the day before.
They had a small foldable handcart with tiny wheels. It worked fine on flat ground, but any unevenness made it practically useless. Their storage options were limited—pots, water bottles, and storage boxes. Tang Jiao cleared out a medium-sized storage box for hauling water, but the handles weren’t very sturdy. One person couldn’t carry it when full, and two people lifting it would strain the weak handles.
Luckily, the water source wasn’t far from the cave. Gu Yu and Tang Jiao spent some time clearing the path of weeds, filling holes with soil, and placing flat stones where needed, making a narrow but passable route. With that, the little handcart could just barely be pulled along, saving them a lot of time and effort. From then on, Gu Yu could fetch water alone.
While Gu Yu went to the river, Tang Jiao used the remaining water to wash her and An’an’s hands and faces, let the two little ones play, and started prepping the pumpkins. She peeled, deseeded, and cut the pumpkins into chunks—some for porridge with rice, and some left with skins on to steam later with chestnuts.
She carefully separated the seeds from the pumpkin flesh, set them aside to dry, and saved them for planting next year, ensuring “pumpkin freedom” in the future. Extra seeds could also be dried and roasted—they were delicious and reportedly had insect-repelling properties.
By the time Gu Yu returned with water, Tang Jiao’s preparations were complete. With water in hand, they lit the fire and started cooking.
The catch from the fishing traps was impressive this time: two large fish about the length of an arm, along with some small fish and shrimp.
Gu Yu had cleaned and prepped all the fish and shrimp. Tang Jiao set aside one large fish for their meal today, while the other would be salted and dried for storage. The smaller fish and shrimp were also salted and roasted until dry—this had become their standard way of preserving them, convenient for eating on the go, though a bit tough on the teeth.
For lunch, they enjoyed pumpkin porridge, steamed pumpkin, raw chestnuts, fish stewed in the iron pot, and some simply stir-fried wild greens. Tang Jiao even treated them to three wild pears they had picked and stored earlier. The pears had thick skins and could last a long time, so they weren’t eaten often.
After prepping the fish for storage, Tang Jiao had Gu Yu cut half of one fish into pieces, then marinate it with salt, cooking wine, ginger, and wild onions. Once marinated briefly, it would be ready for stewing once the porridge was done.
When the porridge was ready, she heated the wok, added oil, then sautéed scallions, ginger, garlic, Sichuan peppercorns, and star anise until fragrant. She added the marinated fish pieces and lightly seared them until the skin set. Then she added cooking wine, vinegar, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, and some fermented watermelon bean paste, stirring everything evenly. Hot water from the thermos was added to cover the fish, and the mixture was brought to a boil over high heat before simmering on low. Once the sauce had thickened and the flavors had fully absorbed, she increased the heat to reduce the liquid slightly and sprinkled in a handful of wild onions. The result was a fragrant, delicious stewed fish—simple, homey, and infused with the flavor of Mom’s cooking.
Little An’an couldn’t wait for the main course and had already started nibbling on pumpkin, chestnuts, and porridge. They tasted wonderfully sweet and delicious! But as the aroma of the stewed fish slowly wafted through the cave, the pumpkin and chestnuts in their hands suddenly seemed less enticing.
Both adults and the little ones crowded around the fire pit, mouths watering, unable to resist. Eventually, the whole family gathered around the iron pot to eat.
The fish was tender, flavorful, and yet firm and succulent. The sauce was rich and savory, with minimal bones, so An’an could eat easily without fuss. Everyone was so focused on the meal they couldn’t even lift their heads!
The stew would have paired perfectly with buns or flatbread, but they had none. Still, the family ate with great enjoyment and deep satisfaction.
After the meal, the sky suddenly darkened, and the wind picked up. Tang Jiao worried about rain making it difficult to fetch water, so she cleared a large storage box for Gu Yu to fill with water for two more trips.
Gu Yu went off to get the water, while Tang Jiao collected all the solar-powered devices they had left outside for charging, bringing them into the cave. She also moved everything near the cave entrance to the inner corners to prevent it from getting wet in case of rain.
As she worked, she thought about blocking the cave entrance—it was becoming urgent. The weather was getting colder. Although autumn and winter mostly brought strong northwest winds, their cave faced away from the wind, but the large entrance still offered poor insulation.
By the time she finished tidying up, Gu Yu hadn’t returned yet. She told An’an to stay put and not wander around while she went down to organize the firewood.
The open area below their cave had now been cleared to over 100 square meters. Wild grass, shrubs, and small trees had been removed, leaving only a few larger trees untouched. The removed vegetation was piled up to dry, ready to be used as firewood later.
Tang Jiao gathered the dry wood and tied it into bundles, so that when Gu Yu returned with water, they could bring the firewood into the cave and store it safely.
When Gu Yu came back, Tang Jiao had already bundled everything. He carried it into the cave and neatly stacked it in the designated firewood area.