Cai Damei disapproved. It was the winter month, and outside was dry and bitterly cold. What wild vegetables could possibly be found? It wasn't worth risking someone catching a chill.
"I just want to go and have a look. If not for vegetables, I could gather some firewood. Charcoal is hard to buy now, and firewood is expensive too. Other families in the alley have been to the outskirts. I'd like to see for myself." Ye Yunniang explained her thoughts.
Hearing this, Cai Damei didn't try to stop her further, but instructed, "Make sure you wear your bracelet and ring."
"Yes."
Returning to the front courtyard, Ye Yunniang packed clothes for Li Ping—a cotton-padded jacket and boots for winter, and a pair of fur gloves.
There was even more food: a jar of freshly ground walnut powder, a jar of chili sauce, a crock of stir-fried pickles... Ye Yunniang gathered all the edible items, packed them, and placed them into carrying baskets.
Tong Mo looked at the four full large baskets. "Li Ping will be back in eight days. There's no need for this much. He's just one boy, he can't eat all this."
"If he can't finish, you eat it."
Tong Mo was pleasantly surprised. "You prepared some for me too?"
Ye Yunniang: ...Well, one could say that.
Since it was prepared for him, no matter how heavy, Tong Mo wouldn't find it a burden. He lifted two baskets in each hand and left.
After seeing Tong Mo off, Ye Yunniang washed the small stone mill, wrapped herself up warmly, and began grinding dried chilies into powder.
Once ground, she portioned it into small packets and placed them where she could most easily reach them.
At night, Ye Yunniang suddenly woke with a start, gripping the long knife under her pillow. She opened her door and walked towards the children's room.
The children were sound asleep.
Ye Yunniang cautiously moved towards the back courtyard.
In the back courtyard, several shadowy figures were moving about.
Soon, one person was standing while the others lay fallen on the ground.
The standing figure was revealed by the moonlight to be Luo Xin.
Luo Xin turned and said to Ye Yunniang, "Madam Ye, the thieves have been caught. You may go back and rest."
"Oh, alright. Thank you for your trouble." Ye Yunniang didn't ask about the thieves and turned back to the front courtyard.
After Ye Yunniang left, Luo Xin gestured. Several subordinates hidden in the shadows emerged.
"Take them back. Interrogate them strictly."
"Yes."
Ye Yunniang returned to the front courtyard, checked on the two children once more, then went back to her side room to rest.
At the beginning of the Yin hour (around 3-5 AM), Ye Yunniang opened her eyes and went to the kitchen to busy herself.
After seeing the two children off, Ye Yunniang got herself ready, shouldered a basket and carried a sickle, arriving at the mouth of the alley.
At the alley entrance, Hongyan, Qiongniang, Aunt Fang, Chunxing, and her daughter Daya were all there.
"Am I late?"
"Not at all, perfect timing," Qiongniang answered with a smile.
"Just thinking about gathering wild vegetables today, my Daya was so excited she couldn't sleep last night. She woke me up in the middle of the night this morning," Chunxing said with a laugh. Beside her, Daya, embarrassed, hid behind her mother.
"Let's go," Aunt Fang said, being the eldest.
Their destination this time was Aunt Fang's maternal home, where there were several hillsides. Wild vegetables could be found there.
The group, carrying baskets on their backs, walked towards the city gate. Along the way, they encountered many others with baskets and sickles heading out of the city.
"Auntie."
Ye Yunniang turned, surprised. "Lingling." She looked around but didn't see any other Zhou family members.
"Are you going outside the city alone?"
Zhou Lingling gave an affirmative hum.
"Does your aunt know?"
"I told Grandma."
Ye Yunniang didn't ask further. She turned to Aunt Fang and the others. "Aunt Fang, I won't be going with you all today. This is my aunt's granddaughter. I'm not comfortable with her being alone."
"Come with us. She's just a young girl, she won't gather much," Aunt Fang invited.
"It's not safe for just the two of you in the wild either. There's safety in numbers," Qiongniang said, having been out a few times. She knew the outskirts held not only those gathering vegetables but also people who robbed goods or even kidnapped.
Ye Yunniang thought it over and agreed, pulling Zhou Lingling along to catch up with the group heading for the city gate.
Outside the city, they saw vast fields, all dry and cracked.
Occasionally, a field showed some green, but someone was always guarding its edge.
Every passerby was watched closely. The slightest approach prompted loud shouts to drive them away.
Some of the field guards would even curse loudly.
"You city folk, you have money to buy grain! Yet you come to steal our wild vegetables? Are you trying to drive us to our deaths?"
"You city people are all demons!"
"You're ungrateful wretches! Starving ghosts!"
...
Zhou Lingling, frightened, moved closer to Ye Yunniang.
"Is this your first time out?"
"Yes."
"Did your grandma really agree to you coming out?"
"I left a note for Grandma." As soon as Zhou Lingling said this, her expression changed.
Ye Yunniang stopped walking. "You didn't tell your grandma, grandpa, or your father."
"I mentioned it before. Grandma didn't agree. The family has been living on thin porridge for five or six days. Yan Yan cries from hunger, so I just wanted to gather some wild vegetables to bring back. I... I..." Zhou Lingling explained anxiously.
The people ahead heard their conversation.
Ye Yunniang sighed. "It's good that you're thinking of the family. But you mustn't deceive them. Leaving a note and running off—imagine how worried your grandma must be."
Ye Yunniang also blamed herself for taking Zhou Lingling's word so easily at the city gate.
She apologized to Aunt Fang and the others; she had to take Zhou Lingling home first.
"We're almost there. Gather a little before going back," Hongyan suggested.
"You go ahead. I need to get the child home first," Ye Yunniang refused.
"Alright then. Next time we'll go together, to Little Fang Village."
"Aunt Fang, I've caused you trouble." Ye Yunniang took out three steamed corn buns from her basket that she had packed for lunch. "Since I'm going back, you can have these buns for your midday meal."
She insisted on giving the buns to the others who tried to refuse, then took Zhou Lingling's hand and walked back towards the city.
At the Zhou family shop, Zhou Dong and Zhou Zhong were just about to go look for Zhou Lingling. Cai Xiaomei was endlessly blaming herself, and Zhou Yan was also wiping away tears beside her.
"Lingling—" Cai Xiaomei hugged Zhou Lingling and cried. "You nearly scared your grandma to death."
"Grandma." Only now did Zhou Lingling realize the distress her actions had caused the family.
Ye Yunniang recounted how she had encountered Zhou Lingling.
After crying, Cai Xiaomei held Ye Yunniang's hand and spoke.
"Yunniang, it's all thanks to you."
"Auntie, it's what I should do," Ye Yunniang said, waving it off. What she did wasn't worth such thanks.
"It's us adults who are no good. We lack the skill to earn money," Cai Xiaomei blamed herself.
The Zhou family had used the money borrowed from Cai Damei to stock up on goods, hoping to revive their business. But the drought was worsening, and the sundry goods trade was getting harder.
The price of rice and flour kept rising. Cai Xiaomei's health had been damaged by the anger over Zhang Cai'er's affair, requiring frequent doctor visits and medicine.
The Zhou family's days were becoming increasingly difficult.
Recently, they had reached a point where they could only survive on thin porridge each day.
Zhou Lingling blamed everything on herself, feeling it was all her fault for not keeping a better watch on Zhang Cai'er. She was single-mindedly thinking of how to find food for the family.
Hearing a neighbor talk about going to the outskirts to gather wild vegetables, she thought she could gather some to fill their stomachs.
Cai Xiaomei hadn't agreed.
Seeing Zhou Yan crying from hunger and her elders growing thinner, Zhou Lingling left a note and secretly went to gather vegetables.
Ye Yunniang returned home and told Cai Damei about the Zhou family's situation.
"Mother, let's send them some rice and flour."
