Having successfully dropped another bombshell at the old family home, Jiang Jianguo was in a great mood.
Jiang Tangtang, having watched another lively scene, was also extremely happy.
“At the speed Dad is causing trouble, we should be able to split from the family very soon,” Tangtang muttered to herself.
She trotted over to Jiang Jianguo and tugged at the corner of his shirt. “Dad, what are we going to do today?”
Seeing his daughter in such high spirits, Jiang Jianguo couldn’t resist pinching her little cheek and said, “Seeing your dad getting scolded, are you that happy?”
“No～ Tangtang thinks Dad is amazing! You scolded them all away by yourself. Grandma is so fierce, but now she can’t even win an argument against you.” Tangtang looked at Jiang Jianguo with an expression that said, “My dad is the best” and “I admire you so much.”
Jiang Jianguo’s mood improved even more; he straightened his back even further.
“Aha! So Dad likes this routine! This dad is still too young. If I use a bit of ‘rainbow farting’ (flattery) in the future, I’ll have him wrapped around my little finger,” Tangtang thought, displaying an even more admiring look on her face.
Jiang Jianguo thought that since he wasn’t going to work in the fields anyway, he might as well take Tangtang up the mountain.
The father and daughter happily prepared to wait until the others had left before heading out. Meanwhile, mother Lin Wanting shot them a resentful glance, as she still had to go to work.
This time, instead of sneaking around the crowds, the pair walked toward the mountain with a swagger, even greeting the people heading to the fields enthusiastically.
“Old Third, haven’t seen you at work for a few days, and you’re not going today either? What are you and your daughter planning to do?” someone called out to Jiang Jianguo from behind.
Jiang Jianguo turned around and saw that it was Auntie Guihua, the village’s famous “Big Horn” (gossip).
“Oh, Auntie Guihua! I’m taking my daughter up the mountain to wander around. I’m hoping to find some mountain goods to trade for something to nourish my little girl.”
“If you keep skipping work like this, you’ll be ‘drinking the northwest wind’ (starving) by the end of the year,” Auntie Guihua said with some concern.
“Sigh, don’t mention it. Even if I earned full work points, it wouldn’t end up in my mouth anyway. Look at us, father and daughter—we’re skin and bones! We aren’t getting enough to eat, so we don’t have the strength to work. I’m just heading to the mountain so my daughter can have something decent to eat.”
Jiang Jianguo continued to pour out his grievances to the “Big Horn.”
“You know my father and mother better than anyone. The porridge we and the Second Brother’s family drink is so thin you could use it as a mirror. Look at us, then look at the eldest brother’s son, Yaozu—he’s shining with oil! Compared to him, we look like refugees.”
Auntie Guihua thought about Jiang Yaozu’s appearance and chimed in, “It’s true, that child is quite white and plump. Even in the city, you rarely see that.”
“Exactly! He’s fourteen or fifteen now, doesn’t plan on going to school or working. He eats the best of everything every day, while we starve and do all the work, and it all ends up in his belly. A while ago, our Tangtang got sick, and my mother wouldn’t even give us an egg. My heart aches! He gets to eat well whether he works or not, and I can’t get enough to eat even if I do work. Before the autumn harvest, I thought I’d better head up the mountain to see if I can scavenge something to supplement our little family, so we don’t pass out from hunger during the harvest.”
Hearing this, Auntie Guihua nodded in understanding: “Your life isn’t easy, either. Hurry along, then. I have to go to work now.”
Both were very satisfied after this exchange. Auntie Guihua had heard the gossip she was looking for, and Jiang Jianguo had used her mouth to spread the signal that he wouldn’t be working before the autumn harvest—and he had done so in a perfectly reasonable way! He was portrayed as the weakling forced to rebel against oppression.
No doubt, before noon, everyone in Jiang Family Hollow would know that Jiang the Third’s family was starving and forced to take to the mountains for food.
Listening to the conversation, Tangtang admired her dad immensely!
“Dad, if we split from the family, where will we live?” Tangtang felt this was something to consider now. They couldn’t exactly sleep on the street after the split!
“Uh!” This caught Jiang Jianguo off guard. He hadn’t expected things to go so smoothly, so he hadn’t planned for that, but fortunately, it wasn’t too late.
Jiang Jianguo lowered his head and told Tangtang: “Dad hasn’t thought of that yet, but after we come down from the mountain, we’ll wander around the village and have a look!”
Tangtang nodded obediently, deeply pleased with their progress.
They made their way slowly up the mountain, aimlessly picking herbs, wild vegetables, and mushrooms.
Jiang Jianguo suddenly thought that if they split the family, winter would be arriving soon, which would require a large amount of firewood. If they didn’t have enough, the winter would be unbearable. Usually, the firewood they gathered was kept at the old house, and he doubted they would get much of it during the split. They had to prepare some themselves.
“Tangtang, pick up some firewood while you’re at it, and we’ll store it at our ‘secret base’ for later.” Tangtang nodded—she really did need to stock up; she didn’t want to freeze to death in the winter.
The father and daughter ran all over the mountains, busily moving the firewood they gathered to the secret base in trip after trip.
Tangtang was small, so while she couldn’t do the heavy lifting, she was exhausted!
“Dad, let’s take a break, I’m so tired!” Tangtang, unable to take it anymore, helplessly called out to her father.
Jiang Jianguo turned around and saw his daughter’s little face flushed red, panting heavily.
“Alright, let’s sit for a while.” He pointed to a large rock nearby. “Tangtang, you sit there!”
Jiang Tangtang hurried over and sat down.
Feeling a bit hungry, she said to Jiang Jianguo, “Daddy, I’m hungry.”
Since gathering firewood had consumed a lot of energy, Jiang Jianguo decided to head back to their “secret base.”
Seeing his daughter still looking a bit worn out with a scrunched-up little expression, Jiang Jianguo scooped her up with one arm and headed toward their “secret base,” dragging the bundle of dry branches he had just gathered with his other hand.
Once they arrived at the “secret base,” Jiang Jianguo busied himself with starting a fire.
“Daddy, what are we eating?” Jiang Jianguo pulled a cold, roasted sweet potato from his backpack and handed it to Jiang Tangtang. “Here, make do with this for now. I’m going to wash the wild vegetables and boil some soup. Don’t wander off, okay? If you need anything, shout for Daddy; I’ll be right there by the small stream.”
With that, he took the wild vegetables and a small, battered pot he had bought from the waste recycling station and headed toward the stream.
Jiang Tangtang peeled the sweet potato and took a bite, but it was a bit dry and hard to swallow. She decided to wait for her father to return so she could eat it with the wild vegetable soup.
She began looking around. Suddenly, there was a rustle in the bushes nearby. She felt a mix of fear and excitement, wondering if it might be a pheasant or a wild rabbit. But then, what if it was a snake? She didn’t dare to act rashly.
So, she quietly backed away a few steps, then took off running toward where Jiang Jianguo was.
Finally spotting him, she rushed to his side and whispered in his ear, “Daddy, there was a sound in the bushes over there. I didn’t dare look.”
Jiang Jianguo picked up the mostly washed vegetables and led Jiang Tangtang back.
When they reached the edge of their “secret base,” Jiang Tangtang pointed to the spot where she had heard the movement. “Daddy, it was right there.”
Jiang Jianguo poked the bushes with a tree branch, and suddenly, a rabbit darted out.
Jiang Jianguo was caught off guard and let it get away, so he hurried to give chase.
Then, a miraculous scene unfolded.
The fleeing rabbit suddenly slammed into the large rock beside Jiang Tangtang and knocked itself unconscious.
Jiang Tangtang was stunned. What was happening? Could it really be that simple? Was this a real-life version of “waiting by the tree for a rabbit”?
Jiang Jianguo, however, looked as if he had expected it all along, convinced that his daughter was truly blessed.
He said to Jiang Tangtang, “Daughter, you’re amazing! We caught another rabbit. My daughter really is a lucky star.”
It made Jiang Tangtang question reality—could she really be a lucky charm? Even she was starting to believe it herself.