Wang Ying began to drool at the mention of taro. It wasn’t that she was greedy—it was just that the Seventh Brigade didn’t grow taro, and yet here was a pleasant surprise: they had managed to get some from the commune.
Wang Ying said excitedly, “Bury the taro under the stove. Help me put in two for now.”
She was already thinking about dipping the taro in white sugar later that evening!
Xu Shuang had originally been annoyed at how the brigade was handling things, but seeing Wang Ying so cheerful and entirely focused on the taro, his anger dissipated. He grumbled and rubbed her hand with mock frustration. “Come back early.”
Wang Ying watched him walk off, then tucked the food container under her arm and returned to the house.
Cheng Shufen looked on with envy in her eyes. “That was your husband just now, wasn’t it? He treats you so well.”
Wang Ying divided up the dough-drop soup and gave each of them a steamed bun. “Of course. Why else would I marry him?”
The dough-drop soup was made just right. Xu Shuang hadn’t used too much oil or salt—not because he was stingy, but because he saw that both of them had been exposed to the cold for too long, and who knew what other illnesses they might have. At a time like this, a light and simple soup was the best option.
The hot soup had a poached egg in it, with a sprinkle of chopped green onion and a touch of sesame oil on top.
Cheng Shufen, though clearly starving, maintained her grace. She sipped the soup slowly and elegantly.
But the younger girl, Xiaoyu, couldn’t hold back—she gobbled down her food, stuffing her mouth in large bites. Even the way she ate the steamed bun seemed almost fierce.
Wang Ying watched with amusement, thinking that this little girl’s style was definitely a mismatch with Cheng Shufen’s.
Cheng Shufen finished her soup and explained, “Of course we’re different. I was trained to play female leads in opera. She trained as a martial-role actor until she was nine.”
As she spoke, a distant look came over her face, as if these memories had only just happened yesterday. “She studied the martial roles for a few years, but then couldn’t keep up anymore. Her parents wanted to take her home, raise her a bit, and then marry her off. But she didn’t want that—she insisted on staying with me to switch to female roles.”
Xiaoyu, having eaten half a bun, reluctantly offered the other half to Cheng Shufen. Cheng Shufen fondly stroked her head but didn’t take it.
After eating Wang Ying’s food, Xiaoyu no longer looked as guarded or defensive toward her as she had earlier.
“They don’t treat me well at all,” Xiaoyu said, her eyes shining like brilliant stars. “They want me back just because I can’t earn money at the opera anymore. They want me to stay home and take care of my younger brother.”
“I’m not going back!”
Cheng Shufen sighed with emotion. “After my incident, Xiaoyu insisted on coming with me.”
To be honest, if it hadn’t been for having someone to care for, Cheng Shufen wasn’t sure she would have made it through.
She had been performing on stage since she was thirteen or fourteen. With her striking appearance and strong vocal skills, she’d risen to fame early. After the founding of the country, she joined the Peking Opera Theatre. Having sung for so many years, she couldn’t even imagine what life would be like without opera.
Luckily, Xiaoyu had followed her, giving her a new purpose after losing her previous way of life.
Wang Ying asked Xiaoyu, “So your name is Xiaoyu—what’s your surname?”
Xiaoyu replied stubbornly, “My surname is Cheng. Just call me Cheng Yu!”
Cheng Shufen, holding the child who had followed her for thousands of kilometers, said, “Nonsense, your surname is clearly Hu.”
Xiaoyu retorted, “After what happened to you, they wouldn’t even let me go home. I don’t want their surname! I’ll go by Cheng now.”
Wang Ying didn’t argue. She said, “Alright then, Cheng Yu—what’s your plan from here on? Your master can’t work in the fields, and our brigade won’t grant her work points, though she will get food rations. But you’re a minor—you won’t get any rations at all.”
The girl who had just been like a little tiger suddenly froze. She hadn’t considered that following her teacher here would lead to such complications.
“I—I can work too, can’t I? I can earn work points and give them to my teacher!”
Wang Ying shook her head. “That probably won’t work.”
At Cheng Yu’s age, no matter how capable she was, she was still just a child. The other commune members likely wouldn’t approve.
Cheng Yu clearly felt defeated—she hadn’t expected that her presence would become a burden to her teacher.
That’s when Wang Ying shared her idea. “Behind the place you’re living is a mountain. Our brigade relies on the mountains. I forgot to introduce myself—I’m the barefoot doctor of our brigade. I often go up the mountain to gather medicinal herbs.”
Cheng Yu’s eyes lit up, her face full of anticipation as she looked at Wang Ying.
Wang Ying was amused. “Alright then, you can follow me to collect herbs. I’ll talk to the brigade leader, and for the herbs we gather, I’ll convert them into food rations for you. How does that sound?”
Cheng Yu didn’t hesitate. “Yes, I’ll do it!”
She added eagerly, “I used to train as a martial role actor—I’m really agile! I can climb really high!”
Wang Ying smiled at her, and Cheng Shufen was full of gratitude. She hadn’t expected such good fortune—being sent down and still encountering someone as kind as Wang Ying.
Children warm up quickly. As soon as they’re given a little kindness, they can forget all the hardships they’ve endured. Before long, Cheng Yu was already calling Wang Ying “Sister Ying.”
“Sister Ying, does this mean I have to learn traditional medicine from you? Do you think I can learn it?”
The little girl had entered the Peking Opera Academy at a young age. She barely knew how to read, let alone anything else. Now feeling the weight of earning food for her teacher, she was suddenly nervous.
Wang Ying answered firmly, “Of course you can.”
With that, the evening ended in cheerful chatter. Wang Ying took her food container and then fetched a spare quilt left behind by the original owner of her house. It was old, but the cotton had just been fluffed a few days ago—good enough for now.
Cheng Shufen was at a loss for words in expressing her gratitude, but Wang Ying cut her off. “Come spring, your little girl here will be climbing the mountain with me. Consider this an advance.”
Cheng Yu declared with ambition, “I’ll definitely do well! You’ll see, Sister Ying!”
Wang Ying smiled and set the quilt down. It was too late at night to set up the heated brick bed, and even if they had one, they couldn’t keep it burning all night—not only was there no firewood, but most importantly, they couldn’t risk being seen.
Wang Ying was thankful that her house was near the back mountain, and the place assigned to Cheng Shufen wasn’t far. That would make it easier to look after them.
“The food ration from the brigade is taro. I don’t think you can survive on just that, so I’ll bring you something else in a few days—enough for three to five days at a time. You’ll need to start cooking here too…”
But Wang Ying didn’t intend to provide all their meals. If she took full responsibility for feeding them well, she wouldn’t be able to keep her position for long.
“Tomorrow, I’ll have my husband come over to help build a simple stove for you. The rest is up to you.”
Cheng Shufen was deeply moved. “That’s already more than enough. Thank you so much!”
Wang Ying sighed and left.
The broken-down house couldn’t hold in any warmth. Cheng Shufen held Cheng Yu close in the bed. Neither had ever been to such a cold place before. The quilt Wang Ying had given them wasn’t large, so the two of them had to sleep tightly huddled together.
Cheng Yu, already drowsy, whispered as she hugged Cheng Shufen, “Sister Ying is really nice. Teacher, I haven’t had white flour in so long.”
That bowl of dough-drop soup was the best thing she had ever eaten.
Cheng Shufen stroked her hair lovingly and said, “Then we shouldn’t take other people’s kindness for granted, right?”
Life in the countryside was hard too. Wang Ying had given them two bowls of soup and steamed buns—that was already an incredibly generous act. Even though they’d ended up in such dire straits, meeting a kind-hearted person like Wang Ying was something to be grateful for.
Cheng Shufen said, “Go to sleep now. Tomorrow we’ll get up and clean this place up. We can’t rely on others for everything.”
Cheng Yu nodded eagerly. “Okay! I understand.”
Through the drafty window, Cheng Shufen looked outside. A thin layer of snow covered everything, though the afternoon snow had stopped. The shimmering snow was unexpectedly beautiful.
Cheng Shufen began to feel strength returning to her body. She hadn’t seen enough of such beautiful sights.
Even though her students had abandoned her and had led the destruction of her costumes, even though she was now left with only this one girl, Cheng Shufen no longer felt her life was over.
No matter how thick the snow, it would still melt when spring came.
And with someone as kind as Wang Ying, she hadn’t been left to freeze to death in the wind and snow.
When Wang Ying got home, the taro had already been in the stove for nearly an hour. She rubbed her hands and face to warm up, and as soon as she felt the heat returning to her body, she couldn’t wait to eat.
Xu Shuang peeled the taro for her and scooped a small spoonful of sugar from their rapidly dwindling sugar jar into a bowl. Wang Ying gleefully dipped the taro into the sugar. The warm, sweet taro made her smile from ear to ear.
Xu Shuang saw how happy she was eating and brought over a basin of hot water. “Soak your feet while you eat.”
After being out in the cold for a long time, even the soles of her feet were freezing. At home, Wang Ying didn’t like wearing cloth shoes; she always felt cold.
“That pair of slippers you mentioned—our mom said she can finish them in the next couple of days. It’s a pity the brigade didn’t catch any foxes this year. Otherwise, we could’ve made you a fur collar with fox fur.”
Wang Ying felt this was already great. “Cotton slippers to wear at home are just fine. That little jacket I took apart should make quite a few, right? The three of us—one pair each.”
The original owner had an old cotton-padded jacket that had been worn for years. The cotton inside had already turned stiff. Grandma Xu made her a new one, and the old one, now too small and tattered, had just been left in the trunk.
A few days ago, Wang Ying got fed up with her feet getting cold from just wearing cloth shoes around the house all winter, so she pulled out the old jacket with the idea of making some cotton slippers. But her sewing skills only covered basic mending—she really couldn’t make soles. Grandma Xu took over the task herself, volunteering to make a pair of warm indoor slippers for her.
After finishing the taro, Wang Ying was already half full, so Xu Shuang brought over dinner—some porridge—and the two of them had porridge with wowo (steamed cornmeal buns).
Wang Ying sighed that they still hadn’t achieved the goal of eating white flour meals every day. But thankfully, Xu Shuang had good cooking skills, and even the wowo tasted special.
The dinner table was anything but quiet—they chatted about what they each had seen and experienced that day.
Wang Ying brought up Cheng Shufen and her student: “Here’s what I’m thinking. After spring starts, I plan to find a spot in the back mountains that not many people go to, and try cultivating some medicinal herbs. That little girl seems pretty sharp and nimble—has some skills, too. I’m thinking of having her help me watch over the herb patch. She followed her teacher to the countryside, but the brigade probably won’t be able to give her a formal role. I don’t think giving her money would be appropriate either, so I figured I’d provide some inconspicuous food or grain in exchange. What do you think?”
Wang Ying wasn’t hiding her sympathy for the pair, but she also genuinely thought Cheng Yu was a good fit.
After all, she had the spiritual spring (灵泉), and she’d always wanted to try some new methods. The mountains in their brigade were a treasure trove, but even the richest trove needed years for medicinal herbs to grow. If they only harvested and never replanted, in a few years they’d run out of resources.
Wang Ying thought she could open a small patch for herbs or scatter seeds around different spots—as long as she remembered where, she could come back and harvest later. And with the spiritual spring helping, it was unlikely anything would die. Hadn’t that skinny pig put on more than ten pounds in just a few days? Clearly, her golden finger was the real deal.
But she couldn’t do the herb farming alone—she couldn’t stay up in the mountains all the time, not when she still had patients to treat down below.
Finding help, though…
Xu Shuang had her own job. She could lend a hand occasionally, but not for long stretches.
Grandma Xu was elderly and struggled just to climb the mountain, let alone watch over a herb patch.
The brigade folks all had their own work to do in the fields. And Wang Ying didn’t trust easily—she was wary of loose lips. There just wasn’t anyone suitable.
Looking at all this, Cheng Yu—with no relatives here, some skills, and no one watching her every move—seemed the best option.
“I’ll go talk to the brigade leader and explain that Cheng Yu doesn’t get a grain ration and is too young for most jobs. I’ll say I’ve taught her to recognize some herbs, and she’ll gather them for me in exchange for a bit of grain.”
She figured Tian Youfu, the brigade leader, would appreciate the heads-up.
Cheng Shufen was easier to handle—she’d get the same treatment as any other educated youth sent down: hauling manure, working, and being sent to commune meetings when needed. Tian Youfu wasn’t the type to make things harder than necessary—he’d give her the rations she was owed.
But Cheng Yu was a child. Technically, she hadn’t even been officially sent down. You couldn’t just assign her work—it wouldn’t be proper. And giving her grain would be even trickier—the brigade’s rations were strictly accounted for.
Wang Ying said, “I think the brigade leader will agree.”
If Wang Ying taught her a bit about herbs and she gathered them without causing trouble or appearing in front of others too much, that alone would be a big win.
Xu Shuang agreed—it really did seem like Cheng Yu was the most suitable.
“As long as you think it’s a good idea.”
Wang Ying replied, “But I still need your approval—we’d be feeding one more person.”
She believed that in a relationship, basic family atmosphere was essential. That meant decisions had to be discussed together.
Xu Shuang said, “I think it’s fine. We’ve got a decent stockpile for this winter. We can take care of them for a season. Just… when you go over, don’t be too obvious about it.”
Wang Ying grinned. “Don’t worry. I’ll bring food every three to five days. Didn’t they get taro from the brigade? I’ll just stack a few on top, and put some vegetables and coarse grains underneath. Nothing too noticeable. I’ll help them set up a stove and paste up a couple of newspapers on the windows.”
Other things, like clothes, she wouldn’t give—too conspicuous. But she could help find something to store water in. Otherwise, fetching water every day would be a problem.
The next morning, Wang Ying had breakfast, bundled up tightly, and headed over to see Cheng Shufen.
When she arrived, she found both Cheng Shufen and Cheng Yu already busy at work.
The floor in Cheng Shufen’s room had been cleaned, and her bedding—though shabby—was neatly folded. Cheng Yu had found a long wooden plank somewhere and was using it to clear a path through the snow in the yard.
Technically, the brigade was supposed to organize snow-clearing squads, but Wang Ying knew full well they’d never come sweep this place.
Cheng Yu had been working since early morning. Children had boundless energy—she was flushed and steaming.
Wang Ying brought breakfast for the two of them—each got a wowo (corn bun) filled with salty pickled radish, and a bucket of steaming hot cornmeal porridge.
Not fancy, but enough to stave off hunger.
Cheng Yu chugged hers down in one go. The wowo was a bit scratchy on the throat, but it was salty and flavorful—delicious.
“Ying-jie, early this morning, an old woman secretly came over to peek at me and my teacher… it was the same one who argued with you yesterday.”
Wang Ying immediately guessed it was Li Chunjuan. “What did she come for?”
Cheng Yu looked annoyed. “She crouched at the door to watch us, then muttered something and walked away.”
It wasn’t hard to guess—Li Chunjuan probably thought Wang Ying would be giving the two some kind of special treatment and was hoping to catch something she could report.
Wang Ying had already heard that after she left yesterday, Li Chunjuan was quite upset, thinking that giving Wang Ying four work points a day was too much and unfair.
“Ignore her. She’s got a screw loose.”
Li Chunjuan’s intentions were nasty. If Wang Ying didn’t take good enough care of them and something happened, she’d be blamed. But if she took too good care of them, people would start talking—saying she was getting too close to a reform-through-labor criminal.
Wang Ying thought to herself that this aunt was truly a nuisance—like some nasty bug crawling on your foot, not biting but definitely disgusting.
Cheng Yu, having eaten, was full of energy.
Wang Ying instructed her, “Don’t worry too much about the outside. It’s not a bad thing if it looks a little messy. Just focus on tidying the room you’re living in and sealing the windows and doors well, so it’s not too cold at night. No need to worry about the other room next door.”
Then Wang Ying went to the brigade office to report the details of her arrangements to Tian Youfu. He was quite pleased—this was exactly the kind of appropriate distance to maintain.
Reform-through-labor criminals couldn’t live too well, but Tian Youfu also didn’t want to make life harder for them on purpose.
“You’ve handled it very well. Just keep doing it like this in the future.”
Wang Ying took the opportunity to bring up Cheng Yu. Tian Youfu sighed, “That girl is really hard to deal with. If she were eighteen already, we could at least ask the commune for advice. But she’s underage, and no matter how we try to arrange things, it’s all a hassle.”
Wang Ying carefully suggested, “How about this—when spring comes, I teach her some herbal knowledge. Our brigade doesn’t feed her, right? So she can go up the back mountain to look for medicinal herbs on her own. Of course, I won’t pay her for them, but I’ll give her some grain from my family’s private plot.”
Tian Youfu was thrilled—finally, someone like Wang Ying who could help shoulder responsibilities, unlike that troublemaker Li Chunjuan who made everything worse.
“That would be amazing!”
At least it kept the girl settled and avoided further arguments over her food rations.
With the matter resolved, Wang Ying felt a lot better. She asked the brigade for some coal and firewood, since Cheng Shufen and Cheng Yu lived in a broken-down house. Without firewood, they could freeze to death.
Tian Youfu hesitated for a moment but eventually agreed to give them a little—not much, just enough for a bit of heat at night. A small amount of coal was also allocated.
Wang Ying was content. A little was better than nothing. Her own family could afford it, but getting it through official channels avoided drawing suspicion.
Tian Youfu even sent a few people to help rebuild the yard wall. Calling it a wall was generous—they just piled snow and poured water over it to freeze it solid.
This kind of ice wall would only last through the winter. It blocked the wind and kept wild animals from attacking the isolated house. By spring, the ice would melt, and it wouldn’t matter anymore.
Building the ice wall caused quite a stir—children came running, yelling and laughing, wanting to touch it.
“Hey, whose kid is that? Take them home! Their hands are bare and they’re sticking them in the ice!”
“Hey hey hey! Don’t lick the ice block!”
“What’s the brigade leader thinking, making us build a wall for reform-through-labor people?”
“Who knows? Other brigades just ignore them.”
“Well, it’s not a bad idea. This place is so remote, if a wild boar or wolf came down from the mountain, they wouldn’t survive.”
“Yeah, I peeked inside their house earlier—there’s barely anything. Without a wall, they really could freeze to death.”
…
Cheng Yu was both curious and nervous. She hid behind the door watching them build the wall. She had seen snow in Beijing, but never this much snow! And they could build a wall out of it!
Cheng Shufen didn’t go out either. Their social status was too low—if they went out, someone harsh might scold them to their face.
Seeing Cheng Yu hiding behind the door, her eyes filled with curiosity, Cheng Shufen felt a deep bitterness. She didn’t know when her niece would be able to walk openly among others again.
After arranging everything, Wang Ying took Xu Shuang with her to visit Wang Yongshun’s house.
Wang Yongshun was just eating—on the table was a bowl of cabbage and potato soup and half a bowl of white noodles with lard.
The white noodles were for Wang Yaozong, but when he saw the plain soup, he got angry, put on his hat, and stormed out.
When Wang Yongshun and Li Chunjuan saw Wang Ying walk in, they were stunned. They thought she’d never set foot in their home again.
Wang Ying raised an eyebrow as she walked in. “Uncle, having a meal? You’re eating well today.”
Wang Yongshun’s face immediately darkened—he knew this visit wouldn’t be good.
Wang Ying clicked her tongue twice and pulled something out of her pocket.
Wang Yongshun frowned the moment he saw it. No one knew that note better than he did.
It was the written confession he had been forced to sign on Wang Ying’s wedding day!
Wang Ying waved the note in front of them, her tone full of smugness.
Li Chunjuan’s heart skipped a beat. “What are you doing with that?”
Wang Ying smiled with clear mockery. “Aunt, I think we should settle this account, don’t you? You caused a scene on my wedding day. Did you think I was just going to let that go?”
To be honest, in the days since the wedding, Wang Ying hadn’t even thought about bringing this up.
But who told Li Chunjuan to keep causing trouble?
She had leverage on them, and they still had the nerve to show off in front of her.
Wang Yongshun tried to hold his ground. “That piece of paper doesn’t prove anything.”
All it said was that they had slandered her. If they had written a confession, it also meant Wang Ying had already forgiven them. Bringing it up again didn’t change anything.
Wang Ying smiled calmly. “Maybe not. But if I hand this over and we start talking again about where that 80 yuan went…”
Wang Ying had already been hearing the noise next door for days—her good cousin Wang Yaozong had been scammed out of all his money trying to buy a second-hand watch, and he even got beaten up!
Wang Ying made things very clear: “It’s true I can’t do much to you, but I can make sure Wang Yaozong doesn’t get to go to school!”
No matter how much trouble Wang Yongshun and Li Chunjuan caused, they were still her relatives on paper, and even if things got ugly, others would just see it as a family dispute.
But Wang Yaozong was a different story. High school admissions now were by recommendation. He tried to engage in speculative trade just to buy a used watch, and the money was stolen from his own home. Then his parents couldn’t find the money and falsely accused someone else… Isn’t that more than enough reason to get expelled?
Wang Yongshun’s face darkened. “You wouldn’t dare!”
Wang Ying flicked the confession letter back into her pocket. “Let Auntie keep jumping around like this, and you’ll see if I dare or not.”
Wang Yongshun was aware of what Li Chunjuan had done yesterday, but he thought it was kind of satisfying to make Wang Ying and her husband feel a little disgusted. After all, their own life was so hard while the other couple was doing just fine—it was just annoying to look at.
But now that Wang Ying had laid her cards on the table, Wang Yongshun really didn’t dare push it anymore.
This girl would definitely do anything.
“…I’ll keep her in line,” Wang Yongshun finally said with a grim face.
Wang Ying replied, “Not just keep her in line—Auntie needs to come to her senses herself. I don’t care which one of you it is, but I’m planning to live my life properly. If you don’t mess with me, I won’t bother with you either.”
If you want to mess with me every few days, you better be sure you have the guts for it.
Wang Yongshun shrank his neck a little. “Okay, I got it.”
He then pressured Li Chunjuan as well. Li Chunjuan bit her lip so hard it tasted like blood, but she didn’t dare refuse.
Wang Yaozong was just about to graduate. If he got expelled now, what would they do in the future?
“…Me too. I won’t say another word,” she said through gritted teeth.
Hearing their promises, Wang Ying finally left, satisfied.
That document that Xu Shuang’s cousin had forced Wang Yongshun to sign turned out to be useful after all—an accidental win.
“What are we having for lunch?”
Xu Shuang led Wang Ying back home. “Taro chicken.”
Fresh taro stir-fried with half a chicken, then simmered slowly over low heat. The chicken came out tender, fragrant, and slightly spicy, and the taro was soft and full of flavor. The freshly butchered chicken was extra firm, and being free-range made the texture even better. The taro, stewed until it was fluffy and soaked in the red sauce, was arguably even tastier than the chicken.
The main dish was noodles, though not fancy—they used a mix of cornmeal and white flour to hand-roll them. The hot noodles were served with a generous spoonful of the taro chicken on top, the sauce clinging to the noodles and making the dish irresistibly delicious.
Wang Ying ate two big bowls in one go.
The only victim was one of the household chickens. But since it was winter and only one hen was laying eggs, eating the rooster wasn’t a big deal—they could get another chick in the spring.
Even though one hen laying eggs wasn’t quite enough, Wang Ying didn’t mind. They had other types of meat in the house anyway, so fewer eggs were no big deal.
Xu Shuang efficiently butchered the little rooster, split it in half, cooked one half, and stored the other half in a snow-packed ice pit outside.
The smell drifted next door, and by now, Li Chunjuan was already numb to it.
Ever since Wang Ying got married, she’d been eating well every single day.
Sometimes the delicious smell came from their house morning and evening!
Wang Yongshun looked at the cabbage and potatoes in front of him and completely lost his appetite.
The two of them sat in silence as the dishes on the table grew cold.
Not long after, Wang Yaozong finally came home. He quietly slipped through the door crack and was surprised to see Wang Yongshun and Li Chunjuan still sitting at the table.
“Where have you been?”
Wang Yaozong didn’t answer. He shuffled over to Li Chunjuan and revealed what he had in his hand—a completely dead little hen.
I am just a novice translator and Chinese is not my native language. I try my best to translate the chapters as accurate as possible.
If there are any mistakes then kindly comment and remind me. Your support means a lot.
