The Eldest Daughter of a Rural Family-Chapter 42 - Wild Persimmons in the Mountains (2)_1

“Can you make baskets?” Pei Qin asked Lady Fang, setting down the wild persimmons.

Lady Fang looked at the wild persimmons wrapped in clothing and nodded.

“I’m not very good at it.”

“As long as it can hold things!

You guys eat first, I’ll go get those persimmons!” Pei Qin put on her outer garment and continued up the mountain.

San Ya promptly followed along.

Halfway there, San Ya stopped walking and tugged at Pei Qin, lowering her voice, “There’s a wild chicken, elder sister!”

Pei Qin listened closely, scanning her surroundings, gripping the stick in her hand tightly.

After searching for a while, Pei Qin looked somewhat disappointedly at the gray-yellow figure that scurried up a tree in the distance.

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“It’s so fast, and it can climb trees too, it’s a squirrel, we can’t catch it at all!

Let’s go!”

San Ya looked on regretfully and followed after her.

As they walked, Pei Qin suddenly stopped.

“Go!” she said, heading straight for the tree where the squirrel had been.

San Ya was puzzled.

Pei Qin reached the bottom of the tree and quickly climbed up, pulling out a bunch of pine cones, sunflower seed shells, and walnut kernels from a tree hole.

“Let’s eat these as snacks when we get back!”

“Elder sister!

How did this stuff end up in the tree hole?” San Ya asked curiously.

“This here is the squirrel’s food storage for winter,” Pei Qin said as she rubbed a piece of walnut kernel and tossed it into her mouth.

San Ya looked at the dry fruit in her pocket.

“But if we take this, the squirrel will have nothing to eat!”

“We are almost starving to death, we can’t worry about them!

Not eating their flesh is already being good to them!” Pei Qin patted her head, plundered a few more tree holes, and filled two large pockets full before they wrapped up the wild persimmons and headed back.

Treats were scarce in their home, and even when available, they rarely reached the siblings.

When the dried fruits were brought home, San Ya and Si Ya were reluctant to eat them, and Pei Wendong dared not.

“We could sell these for money, better not to eat them!” Si Ya looked at the small pile, which could be sold for two copper coins and buy four assorted wheat flour buns.

“We’ll get more next time.

Let’s just eat what we have today!” Pei Qin had already begun to eat.

“Eat!” Lady Fang hesitated for a moment, then addressed everyone.

San Ya glanced at Pei Qin, took a handful to Lady Fang, and then gave some to their youngest brother.

Only then did the family start to eat.

As evening fell, Pei Qin leaned against the cave wall and lit a fire at its entrance.

Lady Fang was knitting a basket by the light of the fire.

Pei Qin brought more stones and piled them at the entrance, arranging the gathered firewood in a circle around them to fend off wild animals, should they come.

Lady Fang worked through half the night, her messy thoughts finally settling down with the cold wind and warm fire.

Looking at the several children who had fallen asleep, she added another round of thick, dry firewood to the fire before leaning against the straw pile and falling asleep.

The next day, as soon as the sky began to brighten, Lady Fang got up and saw that the fire had gone out.

She was about to rekindle it.

“No need to light it.

Let’s pack up and go!” Pei Qin yawned, stretching lazily.

“Alright!” Lady Fang packed the wild persimmons into the baskets they had woven and woke up Pei Wendong and the others.

“Shouldn’t so many people go!

We could save a few copper coins for the trip.” Si Ya suggested as she looked on.

“It’s a whole day’s journey!

Everyone goes!

There’s no food in the mountains, and it’s not safe.” Pei Qin rubbed the nine copper coins in her possession and, with a wild persimmon on her back, called out.

“Everyone should go!” Lady Fang wasn’t comfortable with the idea of them splitting up.

Si Ya pursed her lips and said nothing more.

Stepping on the morning frost, the family descended the mountain and set out toward the county town.