Life didn’t change because they dug up gold—at least not on the surface. They still lived as they always had.
Although the matter wasn’t spoken about openly, the brothers in the family all knew about it, and they were told not to tell anyone. If outsiders found out, it would definitely bring disaster.
The family already had experience keeping secrets. They were quite satisfied with their current life, especially the daughters-in-law. Although the Zhao family lived frugally, the household was harmonious. The brothers didn’t have conflicts, the sisters-in-law got along well, the mother-in-law wasn’t harsh, and the father-in-law had a good temper. The whole family worked together. Even if they ate wild vegetables and thin porridge every day, they still found life enjoyable.
So whether it was gold or not, since they hadn’t seen it with their own eyes, it all felt unreal. After hearing about it, they put it out of their minds.
Instead, they cared more about reclaiming land.
During this period, the three Zhao brothers took turns going to the “immortal land” every few days to clear land, working so hard they barely had time to rest. There was even gossip in the village—people said Zhao Sandi was unreliable, going out at night for who knows what, then yawning all day. Some even saw him fall asleep in the fields while working.
Time passed quickly in their busy days.
By late autumn, the heavens finally showed mercy, and a few light rains fell over several days. During those days, everyone in Wanxia Village, young and old, ran outside to stand in the rain, laughing. It was like long-awaited relief—their worried faces finally showed smiles.
That year, it had been dry since May. The fields lacked water, and the family had to carry water from the river every day to irrigate them. Without that effort, they would have had no harvest at all.
Not just a poor harvest—nothing at all.
Later, the riverbed kept dropping until the sand was almost exposed. The villagers could no longer sit still. They sent several young men upstream to see what was happening, worried that another village had blocked the water source.
In times of drought, everyone only cared about their own fields. Cutting off water to downstream villages was not uncommon. In the past, villages had even fought and formed grudges over this.
But when they went upstream, they found that those villages were also suffering from drought. The entire Tongjiang Town—even the whole Guangping County—was short of water. It wasn’t just Wanxia Village.
So it wasn’t people causing trouble—it was the heavens.
There was no solution but to pray day and night. Finally, in late autumn, the rain came.
After the autumn rain, it suddenly felt like winter overnight. The weather turned cold quickly.
The Zhao brothers went into the mountains every day and, by early winter, had already prepared all the firewood needed for the entire season. It was stacked neatly under the eaves and in the backyard—enough to last until early spring.
After preparing the firewood, Old Man Zhao took Zhao Dashan back into the mountains to look for suitable timber to build a house. This made the villagers gossip again, thinking the Zhao family was planning to build a new house. After all, the family kept growing—there were more and more grandchildren, and in a few years even Zhao Xiao Wu would be of marriage age. With so many people crowded into a few old houses, it was hard to even turn around without stepping on someone. Building a house during the winter, when farming work was light, seemed like a good idea.
Some people even offered to help. In the village, whenever a family had a big task, others would come help. Although there was no pay, meals were provided.
At this time, every household was saving food. Doing some labor in exchange for meals was a good deal.
Old Man Zhao regretted it a bit. If he had known, he would have gone to the mountains at night to carry timber. A few days ago, Zhou Damao from the same village saw him in the mountains and kept asking questions. After returning to the village, Zhou spread the news everywhere that the Zhao family was building a house. Recently, there had been no peace at home because of all the inquiries.
And now, someone asked again.
Old Man Zhao was in the yard sorting the wood he had cut—thick and straight, not easy to find. The man who spoke had just come down from the back mountain, holding a wild chicken. As soon as he spoke, Old Man Zhao turned the conversation around: “Liu Laosi, you caught a wild chicken? Where did you set the trap? I’ll go try my luck tomorrow too.”
Liu Laosi panicked at once. The Zhao family was like locusts—wherever they went, nothing was left. He had finally caught this chicken after much effort, and the place was secret. He planned to set more traps there.
He stammered, “Just… in the back mountain valley. Uncle Dagen, my wife is waiting at home. I’ll head back now.” Then he hurried away.
Old Man Zhao scratched his head and laughed. “Back mountain valley, huh? Trying to hide it from me.”
“Where did you cut these two trees?” Wang asked, sitting under the eaves making shoe soles. She glanced at the two thick logs in the yard. The father and son had searched the mountains for days to find suitable timber, finally locating two pine trees that looked to be twenty or thirty years old.
Since it was for building a house for their daughter, they wanted to use good wood.
After several months of hard work, they had cleared three mu of land in the immortal place. Recently, they had been busy diverting water from a stream to irrigate it, and only finished everything yesterday. Now the three of them planned to build the house they had delayed for so long and also monitor the conditions inside to prepare for planting seedlings.
They were being cautious because the conditions there were unpredictable.
Even Old Man Zhao, who had farmed his whole life, couldn’t understand how the seasons worked there. There was no pattern at all.
They could only take things step by step and test carefully. Seeds were precious. During famine years, people would rather eat tree bark than use their seeds. As long as they kept seeds, there was hope for next year. If they ate them, there would be nothing left.
Old Man Zhao didn’t dare take risks. At least half the family’s seeds had to be saved for spring planting next year.
…
Throughout the winter, the Zhao family stayed busy building the house and tending the newly reclaimed fertile land.
Of course, outsiders didn’t know about this. The villagers kept gossiping, wondering what was wrong with the Zhao family this year. The men all seemed lazy—every time someone passed by, even at midday, one of them would be sleeping. One day it was Zhao Dashan, the next Zhao Ertian, then Zhao Sandi.
The three brothers seemed to be competing over who was lazier.
Some even said the Zhao family was about to split up—that the brothers were dissatisfied and were protesting against their parents.
As for the reason? Of course it was Zhao Xiaobao.
Everyone in the village knew how much Zhao Dagen and his wife favored their youngest daughter. Even the grandsons had to take a step back in front of her. Over time, how could the daughters-in-law not have complaints?
Some people had even seen Zhao Xiaobao eating rice porridge three times a day—not old grain, but fresh grain from this year!
In any household, that would cause conflict.
Some even said Zhao Dashan was gathering timber in the mountains to prepare for building separate homes after the family split.
The Zhao family, living at the foot of the mountain at the edge of the village, naturally heard all this gossip. Old Man Zhao was so angry he almost threw his shoes at them, cursing at home, “You’re the ones splitting up! Your sons will split up! Your grandsons will split up too!”
What old man could tolerate such talk? Saying his sons would split up was like wishing him dead.
Old Man Zhao couldn’t hold back. The next day, he went from house to house. With his seniority, even the village elders had to treat him with respect. When he showed up and made a scene, no one dared to confront him.
Those his age couldn’t stop him, and the younger ones could only stand there and take the scolding. If anyone dared talk back, he would immediately snap, “You can’t even sort out your own family’s problems, yet you gossip about others! If you’re so idle, go clear the snow in front of your house. Otherwise, if your father slips and falls, you brothers might end up arguing over who takes care of him—and that might lead to your family splitting!”
After that, who dared gossip about his family anymore?
No one even dared make a sound.
By midwinter, every household stayed inside to pass the cold season. The whole village became quiet—even Zhao Youcai’s old yellow dog didn’t feel like barking.
It rarely snowed in Tongjiang Town. According to the village elders, the last snowfall had been more than ten years ago. That winter, heavy snow blocked the mountains. After the long winter ended, some houses remained closed. When the doors were broken open, entire families were found frozen to death inside.
Poor people feared snow. Scholars might admire it and write poetry about its beauty, but for those without enough clothes or food, endless white snow meant freezing cold that could cost them their toes and ears.
After many years, Wanxia Village saw heavy snowfall again.
The Zhao family had plenty of firewood. As soon as the snow started, Wang forbade the children from going outside. They stayed inside by the fire all day.
Especially Zhao Xiaobao. Even though she wore thick cotton clothes, Wang didn’t let her get out of bed, keeping her wrapped in blankets all day, afraid she might catch a cold.
“The snow outside is getting heavier. When the eldest and the others come back, they shouldn’t go out anymore. Just stay inside until spring,” Wang said, setting aside her sewing basket with worry on her face.
In the past few days, despite the cold, Zhao Dashan and his brothers insisted on carrying firewood to town to sell to wealthy households. Normally, a bundle sold for a little over ten copper coins, but with snow, the price would be higher.
The brothers couldn’t sit still. Strong men weren’t afraid of the cold—they would rather walk farther to earn a few extra coins.
Wang wasn’t worried about their safety. The men in her family were all strong and intimidating—if they met trouble, the other party would suffer.
She was worried about the weather. The snow made her uneasy.
Old Man Zhao, sitting cross-legged on the bed, nodded. Feeling a chill in his knees, he pulled the blanket closer and looked at his daughter standing by the window. Hesitating, he said, “Well… I went in to check yesterday. The seedlings have grown enough. In the next couple of days, we can transplant them.”
Hearing this, Wang immediately felt warm again.
That place of Xiaobao’s was truly miraculous. Outside, the cold wind howled and snow fell heavily, but inside, it was like April.
A few days ago, Old Man Zhao had coaxed Xiaobao to “show her magic” and soaked the seeds they had saved this year. Unexpectedly, they sprouted the next day. Then Zhao Dashan leveled the land for planting, and the following day, Old Man Zhao sowed the seeds.
Under normal conditions, it would take at least thirty days for seedlings to grow.
But something strange happened.
After just a few days, Zhao Sandi went in, took a look, and came out shouting that they were ready to transplant!
Old Man Zhao thought he had gone crazy. How could they be ready so soon? The seeds had just been planted! Maybe Xiaobao hadn’t been pleased with him, and the little “immortal” was playing tricks on her third brother in a dream.
He didn’t believe Zhao Sandi at all, but the man insisted strongly.
So the next day, Old Man Zhao went in to see for himself. The moment he saw it, his legs went weak and he almost fell over.
Not far away, green seedlings swayed in the wind, like a scene from spring.
Looking closer, each seedling had four leaves and grew evenly.
Seedlings that should have taken a month to grow had matured in just a few days.
They really were ready to be transplanted.