He Wanqing crouched down and gently stroked the wolf cub’s head.
“Since you don’t want to eat these, then hurry and recover. Once you’re healed, you can go hunt for food yourself.”
The little wolf silently wagged its tail at her, as if responding.
Night gradually deepened, yet when they looked up, not a single star could be seen in the sky.
Sitting beneath his family’s treehouse, the village chief worried quietly.
Would they even be able to continue traveling tomorrow?
Suddenly, a gust of wind swept through the trees, making the branches rustle loudly.
Then heavy raindrops began falling once more.
Village Chief: “……”
The next day, the weather remained just as uncooperative.
Helpless, the village chief could only announce that they would depart once the rain stopped.
Quite a few families who had spent only one night in their treehouses were secretly delighted—even hoping they could stay here another night.
But those without treehouses looked miserable.
The ground had already been damp before. Sleeping on it for one or two nights was manageable, but any longer and even healthy people would catch chills.
Widow Liu happened to be one of the unhealthy ones.
That morning, she couldn’t even get up.
It was her daughter Cuihua who sensed something was wrong. After entering the shelter, she found Widow Liu flushed red with fever and impossible to wake.
Terrified, Cuihua immediately ran to fetch Old Madam Chen.
After drinking a bowl of medicine, Widow Liu finally regained consciousness, though her entire body felt weak.
In her condition, there was no way she could continue traveling.
So after hearing the village chief’s announcement, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Since they couldn’t travel in the rain anyway, He Wanqing left her third son behind to guard the treehouse and took the others out mushroom gathering while wearing rain capes.
They hadn’t gone far before running into many other villagers apparently doing the same thing.
“Jianshan’s mother, those mushrooms your family cooked yesterday smelled amazing! My grandson insisted I come gather some.”
So that was why.
He Wanqing reminded them,
“Some mushrooms are poisonous. Be careful and only pick the common kinds.”
The woman replied confidently,
“Don’t worry. I used to gather mushrooms in the mountains all the time. I won’t mistake them.”
Hearing this, He Wanqing merely smiled faintly before leading her children off in another direction.
Because so many people had come out gathering today, it didn’t take long before their basket was already more than half full.
On the way back, they encountered Old Madam Ye and Madam Ye gathering mushrooms too.
“Grandma.”
“Auntie.”
The children all greeted them politely, while He Wanqing merely nodded slightly.
Just as they were about to pass by—
Little Six suddenly warned her.
“Host, there are two poisonous mushrooms in their basket.”
He Wanqing paused mid-step.
Then she walked over to the two women and casually glanced inside the basket.
“There are poisonous mushrooms mixed in there. Who exactly are you planning to feed those to?”
Madam Ye instantly exploded in anger.
“What nonsense are you talking about?! Everything we picked is edible!”
He Wanqing didn’t get angry.
Instead, she directly reached into the basket and, guided precisely by Little Six, quickly pulled out two mushrooms.
“These two. They look similar to common edible mushrooms, but if you examine them carefully, they’re different. If you don’t believe me, take them to Auntie Chen and ask.”
Old Madam Ye’s brows furrowed tightly enough to trap mosquitoes.
A-Ming spoke earnestly,
“Grandma, my mother wouldn’t be wrong. These must be poisonous mushrooms. Don’t eat them.”
“Enough. Throw them away and let’s go home.”
The first sentence was directed at He Wanqing; the second at Madam Ye.
Just as He Wanqing prepared to discard the mushrooms, Madam Ye snatched them away and glared fiercely.
“You say they’re poisonous, so they’re poisonous? I’ll go ask Auntie Chen myself!”
He Wanqing spread her hands.
“Suit yourself.”
Then she turned and left.
Ye Jianshan followed with his brothers, though inwardly he felt puzzled.
Why had Mother walked over there as though she already knew poisonous mushrooms were inside the basket?
But… was that even possible?
After scratching his head for a while, he eventually gave up thinking about it.
Forget it.
Maybe Mother had simply guessed by coincidence.
After they left, Old Madam Ye and Madam Ye also quickly returned to their treehouse.
The moment they set down their things, Madam Ye grabbed the two mushrooms and hurried away.
“Mother, I’m going to ask Auntie Chen.”
Old Madam Ye sighed softly.
Old Master Ye had just climbed down from the treehouse and looked confused.
“Who upset you this time?”
Old Madam Ye snapped irritably,
“No one! If you’ve got nothing to do, reinforce the wooden bucket. All you ever do is sleep around doing nothing. I must’ve owed you something in my previous life!”
Old Master Ye had merely wanted to show concern, only to get scolded for no reason.
Instantly unhappy, he stomped off loudly, though his wife didn’t spare him a single glance.
Angrily, he began slapping the wooden bucket loudly.
Just then, Eldest Uncle Ye returned carrying firewood.
“Father, is the bucket broken?”
“Otherwise why would your father randomly start fixing it? The bucket’s broken and nobody even thought to repair it. You’re already old enough to be a grandfather and still so immature!”
Eldest Uncle Ye: “……”
Was his father in a bad mood or something?
When Madam Ye found Old Madam Chen, the latter was organizing the herbs she’d just gathered.
“Auntie, please look at these two mushrooms for me.”
“What’s wrong with them? Don’t they look fine?”
Old Madam Chen glanced casually and initially saw no issue.
Madam Ye said resentfully,
“That woman He Wan said these mushrooms are poisonous. I knew she was talking nonsense!”
“Wait. Let me look more carefully.”
Just as Madam Ye prepared to storm off and demand an explanation from He Wanqing, Old Madam Chen stopped her.
Picking up one mushroom, she examined it from every angle before bringing it closer to smell.
“She wasn’t wrong. These really are poisonous.”
Madam Ye’s heart skipped a beat.
“How is that possible? Back in our old hometown, didn’t we gather mushrooms like these all the time?”
“They look similar, but they’re not the same species. Even I almost mistook them.”
Old Madam Chen’s expression turned serious.
“This won’t do. We need to warn everyone immediately. If someone eats them by accident, it’ll be terrible.”
That woman had actually been right?!
Madam Ye felt deeply unsettled.
“What happens if someone eats them?”
“In mild cases, diarrhea. In severe cases, unconsciousness.”
Madam Ye’s face paled slightly.
Unexpectedly, that woman had helped them avoid disaster.
How strange.
Very quickly, Old Madam Chen informed the village chief about the poisonous mushrooms.
The village chief treated the matter extremely seriously and immediately went door to door carrying the mushrooms as examples while warning everyone.
When he arrived at He Wanqing’s treehouse, their mushrooms had already been washed and prepared for cooking.
“Jianshan’s mother, quickly check whether you picked mushrooms like these. They’re poisonous and absolutely cannot be eaten.”
Ye Jianshan immediately recognized them.
Weren’t these the same mushrooms Mother mentioned earlier?
So they really had been poisonous.
“Thank you for the warning, Village Chief. We already checked our mushrooms carefully. We don’t have any of these.”
After returning earlier, Ye Jianshan truly had inspected every single mushroom one by one, afraid poisonous ones might’ve gotten mixed in.
“Good. I’ll go warn the next family.”
He Wanqing barely cared about the incident.
With the system around, poisonous mushrooms could never end up in their basket anyway.
Just as the village chief prepared to leave, he turned back around.
“Oh, right. I forgot to mention—we’re not departing today either. We’ll spend another night here.”
There was no helping it.
Rain still drizzled steadily outside, and compared to traveling through rain, staying put was the better option.
He Wanqing had no objections.
Her family had a treehouse after all.
But Widow Liu, already ill and lacking a treehouse, felt utterly hopeless.
If she spent another night sleeping on damp ground, she wasn’t sure she’d survive it.
Supporting her dizzy head, Widow Liu suddenly came up with an idea.
“Cuihua! Where did you die off to?! Hurry over here and help your mother up!”
With nothing to do that afternoon, He Wanqing had Ye Jianwen teach her characters again.
“Jianwen, how do you read this character?”
“Dou. As in Dou Yanshan.”
Because they were studying from the Three Character Classic, He Wanqing could still recognize the famous opening lines she’d heard before, but the later sections became unfamiliar.
Just as they were studying peacefully, Widow Liu and Cuihua appeared outside the treehouse.
Widow Liu leaned heavily against her daughter while crying dramatically toward He Wanqing.
“Jianshan’s mother, could you let your sons help build me a treehouse? Auntie Chen said if I sleep on the ground again tonight, my life may truly be in danger.”
He Wanqing looked at her coldly without the slightest reaction.
Noticing nearby villagers secretly peeking over, Widow Liu deliberately raised her voice.
“I truly had no other choice before coming to ask you. Please take pity on me.”
Her miserable cries were emotional enough to move bystanders.
But He Wanqing’s expression only grew colder.
“You getting sick has nothing to do with me. Why are you coming here crying and making a scene? Besides, yesterday I already had the village chief notify everyone that anyone willing to pay could learn how to build a treehouse. Yet I never saw you there. Did the village chief somehow forget your household?”
Her calm and logical words instantly froze Widow Liu.
They also made the surrounding villagers start thinking.
That’s right.
Anyone wanting to learn had simply paid money.
That’s what everyone else did.
Could Widow Liu be trying to learn for free?
That definitely wouldn’t do.
Wouldn’t that make all of them fools for paying?
Some villagers immediately began siding with He Wanqing.
“Widow Liu, that’s not proper. If you’ve got something to say, just speak properly. What’s the point of crying in front of someone’s home? If you want a treehouse now, no problem—just pay Jianshan’s mother fifty coins and she’ll teach you. Jianshan’s mother, am I right?”
He Wanqing nodded.
“Auntie is correct. Anyone who wants to learn can still do so. Cuihua’s mother, do you want to learn? Then pay fifty copper coins. I treat everyone equally.”
Widow Liu never expected the conversation to circle back to paying money anyway.
All her crying had been for nothing!
If she’d wanted to pay, why would she have staged this performance?
Seeing her remain silent for too long, He Wanqing snorted coldly.
“Looks like we misunderstood. Cuihua’s mother clearly has no intention of learning.”
Someone nearby sneered.
“Tch. I think she just wanted to freeload.”
Widow Liu flushed with anger.
Seeing He Wanqing refuse to yield, she gritted out bitterly,
“Who says I won’t pay?! Isn’t it just fifty copper coins? Here!”
She yanked a plain purse from her chest and hurled it toward He Wanqing’s face.
Fortunately, her strength was lacking, and the purse fell to the ground before hitting her.
Otherwise He Wanqing’s nose might’ve suffered.
Stopping A-Ming from bending down to pick it up, He Wanqing stared coldly at Widow Liu.
“This is your attitude when paying? If you don’t want to pay, take it back. Our family isn’t lacking this little amount.”
The atmosphere instantly became awkward.
Cuihua quietly released her hold on her mother, bent down to pick up the purse, then shyly glanced toward Ye Jianwen before handing it to him.
“Mother?”
“Count it.”
Very soon, the sound of clinking copper coins rang out.
“Exactly fifty coins.”
Ye Jianwen handed the purse to He Wanqing.
Seeing Widow Liu actually pay, several previously hesitant households also brought over money.
Thus He Wanqing explained the treehouse-building process all over again.
Afterward, everyone gradually dispersed.
Except Widow Liu still didn’t leave.
Just as He Wanqing prepared to drive her away, Widow Liu finally spoke.
“Jianshan’s mother, now that I’ve paid… I still didn’t understand any of what you explained. Could your sons directly build the treehouse for me instead?”
Directly build it for her?
What a shameless request.
“You think I’d make such an unprofitable deal? Those fifty coins only bought the teaching method. Of course, if you want my sons to build it completely for you, that’s possible too. One flat price: one tael of silver. Otherwise, forget it.”
Everyone nearby gasped.
“One tael for this lousy shelter? Why don’t you just rob people?!”
Widow Liu’s expression immediately twisted uglily.
“If you think it’s expensive, build it yourself. I’m not forcing you.”
He Wanqing refused to waste more words on her and simply turned around, continuing to study characters.
Widow Liu spat angrily on the ground before storming away, hips swaying so energetically she no longer needed Cuihua’s support at all.
Seeing this, many villagers thought inwardly:
Maybe getting angry really was beneficial.
Didn’t she suddenly seem much more energetic now?
Cuihua, red-faced with embarrassment, didn’t dare look at He Wanqing’s family and hurried away with her head lowered.
Unwilling to spend one tael on a treehouse, Widow Liu didn’t return to her own resting place.
Instead, she headed toward another treehouse.
“Brother Dayou, are you there?”
Hearing her call, Wu Dayou climbed down sleepily from his treehouse.
The moment he saw Widow Liu, he instantly became energetic again, his gaze sliding lecherously across her ample chest.
“Cuihua’s mother, what brings you here?”
Suppressing the disgust in her heart, Widow Liu forced a smile.
“Brother Dayou, could you help me build a treehouse? My health is poor, and Auntie Chen says I can’t keep sleeping on the ground.”
As she spoke, her eyes reddened slightly.
That pitiful appearance made Wu Dayou’s bones practically melt.
How could he possibly refuse?
“No problem. I’ll come over right now.”
“Brother Dayou, alone you’ll be too slow. Where’s your son A-Wa?”
“Fine, I’ll fetch him too. We’ll come together soon. Just wait for me.”
The final words clearly carried hidden meaning.
Widow Liu lowered her head shyly on the surface, while inwardly cursing him.
This disgusting man always demanded benefits whenever she asked for help!
On the way back, Widow Liu deeply regretted everything.
Since she’d ended up asking Wu Dayou for help anyway, she never should’ve gone to that bitch He Wan in the first place!
She’d wasted fifty copper coins for nothing!
The more she thought about it, the more painful it felt.
Then she spotted Cuihua sitting blankly inside their bamboo shelter.
Instantly furious again, Widow Liu rushed over and pinched her harshly.
“You useless thing! You can’t even fart properly all day long! What was the point of giving birth to you?! I should’ve drowned you in a urine bucket back then!”
Cuihua had heard such words since childhood.
By now, she was numb.
She didn’t move or resist at all, simply allowing herself to be pinched.
Eventually Widow Liu tired herself out, shoved Cuihua away, and lay down to rest.
Silently, Cuihua put on a rain cape, picked up a basket, and walked out.
Nearby, Gou Dan spotted her and immediately ran over to yank away her rain cape.
“Worthless girl, why should you wear a rain cape? Give it to me!”
Without the rain cape, Cuihua no longer wanted to return.
So she simply walked into the rain to gather mushrooms.
Fine drizzle slid slowly down her face.
Mixed together with the rainwater were her silent tears.
Dinner time—
He Wanqing’s family once again prepared an all-mushroom feast.
Besides yesterday’s dishes, they added a new one today: salt-and-pepper mushrooms.
The mushrooms had been fried until perfectly crispy before being sprinkled with seasoning salt.
One bite—
Crunch.
Absolutely addictive.
The children all ate with immense satisfaction.
He Wanqing herself enjoyed it greatly too.
Patting his stomach, A-Ming sighed happily,
“Mother, I never knew mushrooms could taste this good. I’ll cook them for you often from now on.”
“Good. Mother’s future meals will all depend on you then.”
A-Ming nodded happily before running off to prepare food and water for the little wolf.