Early the next morning, while Qiaoyun stayed home to tend the fire and cook, Jiang Zhi took out the oak jelly she had prepared the day before, packed it along with seasonings into a small basket, and set out.
Xiao Man and Er Rui had been busy building the kang and repairing walls since yesterday, and she wanted to check on their progress while delivering some food.
With everyone taking refuge in the mountains and no harvest from the fields, the existing grain wouldn’t last long. To survive, they had to share whatever other means they could find.
The mountains were abundant with Cyclobalanopsis acorns. Moreover, once the temperature rose and spring rains fell, plants would sprout, and food would gradually become more plentiful.
Although the soil here was thin, the area was vast, with wild trees and shrubs everywhere. While it couldn’t sustain the entire village of over a hundred people, it was enough to support two families.
When mother and son arrived at Xiao Man’s home, the family was having their meal. Nini was holding a bowl, sipping thin porridge in small mouthfuls, while Xiaoman’s grandfather frowned bitterly, biting on a charred bamboo smoking pipe.
Xiao Man was in the corner of the shack, wiping the face and washing the hands of someone still in bed.
Seeing the two visitors, Xiaoman’s grandmother hurried over to invite them to join the meal.
Xiao Man’s family hadn’t brought much furniture either, but Xiaoman’s grandfather had fashioned tables and chairs from stones and wooden stakes.
On the table were several bowls of watery porridge so thin one could see their reflection, with a bowl of dark pickled vegetables in the center.
Jiang Zhi had sharp eyes and immediately noticed that the porridge contained only a few grains of millet, mostly consisting of finely chopped grass roots.
They really were digging up grass roots to mix with coarse grains!
Alas! This family, old and young, was already saving grain by eating grass roots. How would they endure for long?
Jiang Zhi placed the small basket she had brought on the table and took out two large bowls of sliced oak jelly noodles, already seasoned. “Auntie, this is the qinggang liangfen I made. It’s already seasoned, and I brought it especially for you to try.”
Xiaoman’s grandmother stared at the two heaping bowls of food. Regardless of what “qinggang liangfen” meant, the sight of something as smooth and edible as tofu brightened her eyes. Yet she felt too embarrassed to accept it and declined, “Sister-in-law, you… you’re also short on grain. One bowl would be enough…”
Er Rui chuckled foolishly, “Grandma, don’t worry, just eat it! My mom made a lot of Qinggang Powder. We can’t finish it all. Xiao Man saw it too—the pit is already full of soaking acorns.”
Xiaoman’s grandmother wore a bewildered expression. “What’s full of soaking? And it’s all edible?”
Nearby, Xiaoman’s grandfather also turned his head, his frown deepening as he looked at the dark jelly. His teeth were poor, and even when the grass roots at home were finely chopped, he couldn’t chew them properly.
If he didn’t eat, he’d go hungry. Apart from drinking thin broth to stave off hunger, Xiaoman’s grandfather could only swallow the grass roots whole, scraping his throat painfully.
Xiao Man, who had been in the corner, overheard Er Rui’s words. He quickly finished wiping his elder brother clean and came over. Peering at the table, his eyes widened in astonishment. Pointing at the two large bowls, he asked in disbelief, “Aunt Jiang, is this what you made from soaking the acorns? It’s really edible?”
Having spent several days at Jiang Zhi’s home, he had naturally seen the dark, glossy acorns soaking in the earthen pit. When he asked about them, he was told they were for eating. He had laughed foolishly at the time, saying they’d be bitter, astringent, and possibly poisonous. He never imagined they could actually be turned into something like tofu.
“Xiao Man, try it and you’ll know—it’s delicious!” Seeing the family’s apprehension, Xu Errui eagerly encouraged them. He had already eaten a large bowl of the steaming jelly before leaving home and still craved more.
Beside them, Xiaoman’s grandfather said gravely, “Sister-in-law, thank you for bringing food to our family. This old man is grateful. Xiao Man’s grandmother, share it with everyone. Let’s eat!”
Since it was brought to our doorstep with good intentions, whether it was poisonous or not, bitter or astringent, we had to eat it.
After speaking, Xiaoman's grandfather, as if facing death with equanimity, first brought a bowl to himself, picked up a strip with his chopsticks, and put it into his mouth.
Spicy, salty, fragrant, and with a hint of sourness—no astringency—it really tasted quite good.
Compared to the rough and hard-to-swallow grass roots, this smooth and chewy liangfen was like precious fine grain.
After taking a bite, Xiaoman's grandfather put it down, his previously tightly furrowed brows relaxing as he praised, "Delicious, truly delicious! Xiaoman's grandmother, give some to Da Zhu."
With Xiaoman's grandfather's approval, Xiaoman and the others immediately cheered up, each taking a taste.
Nini, like a little mouse hiding by the table, carefully picked up a strip with her hand, put it into her mouth, and sucked on the juice.
Xiaoman's grandmother had no time to thank Jiang Zhi. She hurriedly picked up a bowl of qinggang liangfen and walked to the corner of the shed, saying to her motionless grandson under the quilt, "Zhu, this is a good dish made by your Aunt Jiang. Your mouth is bland—have a bite."
As she spoke, she lifted the corner of the quilt, revealing the person inside.
Jiang Zhi had been here twice already, but each time she had only seen the motionless quilt and had never laid eyes on the actual person.
At this moment, if she hadn't known beforehand that there was a person inside, even though she had seen more patients in the hospital than most people, she would have been startled.
Da Zhu had been paralyzed for a year after getting married and was now just over twenty years old. His pale face and emaciated figure showed severe malnutrition.
Having been under the quilt all this time, his eyes seemed sensitive to light and were tightly shut. Weakly, he said, "I’m lying down and not hungry. I don’t need to eat. Save it for Grandpa and Grandma!"
Eating more meant more waste, and eating less could save food for the family.
To avoid troubling his elderly grandmother, he only drank a bowl of thin porridge a day to keep himself alive.
Xiaoman's grandmother urged anxiously, "Good grandson, just eat a little more! Your Aunt Jiang brought plenty. We have enough to eat, and Nini has some too."
The grandmother and grandson went back and forth over a bite of food, making Jiang Zhi’s heart ache.
When it rains, it pours; when the boat is broken, it meets a headwind. This unlucky child had never had anything go smoothly in his life.
In this era of material scarcity, coupled with the torment of illness, it was truly the worst luck imaginable.
Jiang Zhi took a few steps closer. "Da Zhu, just eat! This isn’t anything rare. I’ll bring more tomorrow."
Malnutrition had left Xu Da Zhu’s muscles too weak to show surprise.
Having grown up in the village, Xu Da Zhu had a vivid impression of this Aunt Jiang.
Every day, she either wore a gloomy face and ignored people or cried and made a scene, cursing anyone in the village when things didn’t go her way. No one dared to provoke her.
Now, speaking kindly, it was possible she would turn hostile with her next sentence.
Xiaoman's grandfather also spoke up. "Da Zhu, eat! As long as we have a bite to eat, you’ll have a bite too. When there’s nothing left, we’ll all starve together.
If you starve yourself now, you’ll just make our whole family die of grief."
Xiaoman remained silent, but the bowl he had been enjoying earlier was already set aside.
Xu Da Zhu wanted to speak and express his gratitude but lacked the strength. He could only nod slightly and whisper, "Grandma, I’ll eat."
Xiaoman's grandmother quickly fed him a bite. "That’s right. Even if you’re lying down, you still need to eat."
Nini, who had just been by the table, also came over with her bowl, leaning by the bedding and whispering softly, "Daddy, eat more. Nini isn't hungry."
At home, Qiaoyun was still cooking. Jiang Zhi only stood for a moment before leaving—the atmosphere in that shed was so oppressive it made her uncomfortable.
Fortunately, there is still genuine warmth in the world. Although Xu Da Zhu was ill, his family had not given up on him.
Merely lamenting life was useless; it was better to do something practical.
The kang and huoqiang (heated wall) in Xiao Man’s home had not yet been started. Xu Errui and Xiao Man had been busy all day yesterday, gathering slate stones and digging yellow mud, which they piled up in the corner of the shed.
Looking at this family’s situation, they truly needed a heated kang for warmth.
Although Xiao Man’s family shed, built with mountain stone cliffs as walls, was sturdy, it was far too damp and cold inside.
When they only stored charcoal there, it didn’t matter, but now that the whole family lived inside, it wouldn’t be long before each of them would suffer from bone-chilling cold and dampness.
Once they developed rheumatism or rheumatoid arthritis, even healthy people who weren’t paralyzed would end up bedridden.