Chapter 45

Each family is preparing in their own way, unbeknownst to Sang Luo.

In the newly built yard, those who came to help have returned home to prepare for the busy farming season. Only Chen Youtian is still working tirelessly, determined to finish the new bed he promised to make for Shen An before the housewarming feast, with saws and planes flying.

Sang Luo, along with the two children, is also busy cleaning and tidying up the main house. Items like the pile of firewood, previously cluttered, are now neatly stacked under the eaves outside the kitchen. The old buckets and the old tile pot they used have already been moved to the kitchen, leaving only the simple stove and the stone slab used as a table, which they are currently clearing out.

Chen’s mother-in-law and Qin Fangniang came together to return the rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar that Sang Luo had previously brought to their house and had not finished using.

Qin Fangniang comes every morning to pick up supplies, but it’s Chen’s mother-in-law’s first visit here. After asking Sang Luo, she looks around the newly built house, her smile deepening into creases at the corners of her eyes: “It’s quite nice, really feels like a home now. Raising a few chickens and ducks will make it even livelier. Whether you sell the eggs or eat them, it's all good.”

Sang Luo, delighted, responds: “I have been planning that. The extra bran from rice milling needs to be put to use. But it’s not the season for hens to lay eggs, and it’s hard to buy chicks now. I was thinking of asking around the village if anyone has half-grown chickens for sale.”

Chen’s mother-in-law raises an eyebrow: “I’ll ask around for you.”

The Lu family has more people, so they have more bran left over from rice milling, which is why they raise more chickens than families with fewer members.

Sang Luo, joyfully: “That would be great. If you could ask around, it would be perfect. If not, I’ll have to try my luck at the eastern market in the county.”

Sang Luo had seen ducklings for sale in the western market recently, fluffy and adorable yellow chicks, but for now, they rely on the mountain spring water near their house for daily use. She worried that bringing ducks home might contaminate their water source, so she decided against it for the time being.

Chen’s mother-in-law took on the task of finding chickens and then turned to other matters. Qin Fangniang then smiled and asked, "We came to ask if there's anything we can help with for the feast at your house. Do you need any assistance?"

Sang Luo waved her hand, "You have enough on your plate already, and you've helped me a lot. I can manage the preparations. On the 25th, I won't be going to the western market. I need to check with you how you plan to arrange it, whether you’ll be setting up the stall or busy with the autumn harvest."

“It's harvest time; the market stall will have to wait until after the harvest is over,” Qin Fangniang replied without hesitation. The crop in the fields is a top priority and cannot be delayed.

Sang Luo nodded, "Okay, if you plan to resume the stall after that, just let me know. In the next few days, we’ll go to the county because I need to purchase some heavy items. Uncle Chen might need to help carry them."

A stone mill, which she couldn’t handle alone.

Living in the mountains has its perks, but transportation is challenging, especially with heavy items.

Qin Fangniang readily agreed, "No problem, it’s just a bit of lifting. We'll call him when it's time."

In recent days, Sang Luo had been adding household items, carrying something back every day. Qin Fangniang didn’t pry into what she was buying, assuming they were ordinary household necessities.

Meanwhile, Chen’s mother-in-law had finished her inspection, even peeking into the bathroom. She saw a clean, covered chamber pot and remarked, "That’s quite neat and convenient, no need to fumble to the outhouse in the dark anymore."

After her tour, Chen’s mother-in-law got to the point, "On the 25th, Fangniang will be busy harvesting, and I'll be cooking at home. I’ll be free in the afternoon and come over to help you. The Lu family will likely be busy in the fields too, but I think their grandmother will also come in the afternoon."

She also mentioned that the three families would bring some vegetables from their gardens to avoid Sang Luo having to buy extra from the county, and then bade farewell to return home.

……

After seeing the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law off, Sang Luo finished tidying up the main house. She left the two kids at home and, with a basket on her back and a sickle in hand, stepped out herself.

Picking sour dates was a daily task for her, and today was no exception. After collecting the dates and placing them in the main house, Sang Luo turned her attention to the tools Chen Youtian had left on the ground.

Chen Youtian wasn't a professional carpenter; he had developed the skill on his own, so his toolkit wasn’t extensive but included a few essentials. Among them was a curved knife, commonly used by villagers for chopping wood in the mountains.

Something crossed Sang Luo’s mind, and she inquired, “Uncle Youtian, are you using this curved knife right now?”

Chen Youtian, busy sawing wood, glanced at her and asked, “Do you need it?”

Sang Luo nodded eagerly, “Yes, I need it to cut some bamboo to make a broom.”

In the past, with just a small hut and limited resources, there was hardly any need for a broom. Anything that fell on the ground was simply picked up by hand. Too busy to bother making a broom, now with a front and backyard, a broom was essential. Making one now also allowed her to borrow Chen Youtian’s tools.

Chen Youtian was surprised, “You know how to make one?”

There was a common belief among the villagers that Sang Luo, who appeared to come from a well-to-do background, was too delicate for such tasks, not even knowing how to farm. So, her claim of knowing how to make a broom surprised Chen Youtian.

“Yes,” she affirmed. Making a broom wasn’t particularly difficult. During her years in the mountains, she had learned to create various household items using handcrafting techniques found online.

Chen Youtian still seemed skeptical, “Can you chop the bamboo yourself? Maybe I should help you with that, and you can make the broom afterward.”

Sang Luo smiled reassuringly, “No need, you focus on your work. I just need to borrow the curved knife for a bit.”

Chen Youtian silently nodded, “Take it and use it, I don't need it right now.”

Upon hearing that bamboo would be chopped, Shen An wanted to help but reconsidered after thinking about the tasks at home and decided against it.

Sang Luo took a sickle and left. About two or three quarters of an hour later, she returned, dragging a rather large bamboo pole and a branch of fir wood.

Seeing that Sang Luo had chosen a fir branch for the broom handle, Chen Youtian knew that her claim of knowing how to make brooms was probably true. The fir branch, being lightweight and a common choice in the village for broom handles, was a fitting choice.

When Sang Luo returned, the siblings eagerly gathered around. To make a broom, she first needed to chop off the bamboo branches. Sang Luo worked steadily but not quickly, which Chen Youtian observed with approval.

The trio worked together to strip the leaves. Without scissors for the next step, they still managed precisely with a sickle and a wooden block to chop off each branch.

Chen Youtian, amused, set aside his work to help. He sawed the fir branch to the right length, smoothed its surface after removing the bark, and sharpened one end, making a suitable broom handle and setting it aside for her.

Sang Luo prepared the smaller twigs with hemp rope in small bundles and sharpened a few thicker branches into bamboo pegs. Finally, with the broom handle Chen Youtian had prepared, she began the final binding process.

She wrapped the hemp rope tightly around several times, adding one bundle of twigs after another, meticulously working and applying sufficient force. Chen Youtian thought the finished product looked much better than most brooms in the village, which often seemed rudimentary by comparison.

Sang Luo tied the rope knot and drove in the prepared bamboo pegs, examining the broom with satisfaction.

Chen Youtian, uncharacteristically talkative, commented, “With your skill, you could even sell these brooms in the county.”

Sang Luo's eyes crinkled with a smile, “It seems I have another skill to earn a living with in the future.”

At that moment, she truly appreciated her previous years living in the mountains. Not only had she become more tranquil, but she also learned many practical skills.

Having finished the broom, she bundled the leftover bamboo twigs, arranging them neatly outside the kitchen where firewood was stored. Then, looking at the large bamboo pole as thick as her arm, an idea formed in her mind.

She walked outside, towards the spring by the mountain where they usually fetched water, and stared at it. The spring water flowed down the mountain side, and its source wasn't necessarily from atop the mountain, but more likely from a water vein within the mountain.

Consequently, although the flow of the spring was not large, it was consistent. After observing, Sang Luo returned to the courtyard, dragging the bamboo pole and marking roughly a length of fifty to sixty centimeters, asking Chen Youtian to help her saw it off.

Chen Youtian, though unsure of her purpose, didn't ask questions and complied with her request.

Sang Luo took the sawed-off bamboo, stood it upright, and split it in the middle with her sickle.

Bamboo is relatively easy to split, neatly dividing into two halves. She took one half, removed the bamboo nodes in the middle with her sickle, creating an excellent water conduit.

She slightly trimmed both sides of one end and then cut a branch with a fork from a tree, heading straight to the mountain spring with these two items.

There was an inward curve in the mountain wall, where she usually collected the falling spring water, which was exceptionally clean.

This time, Sang Luo directly fitted the bamboo half as a conduit, and the spring water naturally flowed into and along the bamboo.

Perfect, this meant she wouldn't have to bend over and lean in to collect water anymore, making the process much easier. The water would flow outwards instead of clinging to the uneven mountain wall, simplifying even bucket collection.

She took the other forked branch, knocked it into the mud to match the bamboo's position, creating a perfect support. She inserted one end of the bamboo into the mountain wall, resting the other end on the branch. It was quite stable.

To ensure stability, she called Shen Ning to bring some hemp rope and secured the bamboo and branch together.

Shen Ning, watching the spring water flowing through the bamboo, was delighted: “Big sister, you're so clever! How did you think of such a water channeling method? This makes water collection much easier.”

Sang Luo's eyes curved into a smile: “We'll decorate it more, making it prettier. Let's dig this pit a bit larger and create a small pond.”

Shen Ning agreed and ran back to get a hoe.

The aunt and niece duo vigorously expanded the naturally formed pit by the spring to nearly twice its original size.

The originally clear water became slightly turbid, but it slowly cleared up again.

“Ning, call your brother and find some smooth stones to lay at the bottom of the pit. This will keep the water in the pit clearer.”

Knowing Shen An's curiosity, Sang Luo didn't go herself but delegated the task to the younger siblings while she went back to work on the remaining bamboo pole and some scrap wood.

Indeed excited, Shen An came out to find the once unremarkable spring had transformed remarkably, leaving him utterly fascinated. The siblings each carried a basket and went to the stream to look for pretty stones.

The variety of stones in the stream was truly abundant. In no time, they each returned with half a basket full, carefully placing each stone at the bottom of the pit.

The pit wasn't big, and after two trips, they had neatly arranged the stones at the bottom. The siblings then watched the turbid water in the pit get washed away, gradually becoming clearer.

Seeing this, Sang Luo came out and smiled.

"We can keep ducks now," she thought. "Collecting water for consumption is easier now, and we can use buckets directly. This small pond will be enough for a few ducklings to play around in."

She kept quiet about her plans for a surprise for the children the next day, merely suggesting with a smile, "You can pick some pretty flowers that grow well by the spring and plant them around the pond. It will look nice and the plants' roots will help stabilize the soil, preventing collapse."

The children, eager for this task, grabbed their small hoes and baskets and went off to find beautiful flowers and plants.

Chen Youtian, hearing the activity and having just finished a section of his work, came out to see and found the previously inconspicuous spring flowing down the mountain wall had turned into a charming scene. He remarked, "This makes using water much more convenient."

There was a spring behind his house too, from which they usually collected water. Thinking of replicating Sang Luo's idea at his home, he decided not to bother cutting bamboo and asked Sang Luo for the other half of the bamboo pole she had used earlier.

Sang Luo smiled and said, "Sure, feel free to take it."

She glanced at the sky and, not wanting to delay outside, went inside to prepare dinner.

Chen Youtian, seeing her heading to the kitchen, stopped her, "No need to cook for me, just eat yourselves. I'll eat back at my place. I've finished shaping the bed boards today. Tomorrow, I'll construct the bed frame and set it up, then it'll be done. I'll move the boards under the eaves for now. That's it for today; I'll come back tomorrow."

Saying so, he began tidying up.

Sang Luo insisted, but Chen Youtian waved his hand, "I'll be eating at your place in a couple of days anyway."

Adding a guest means adding a lot of extra work, which is more than enough trouble.

After speaking, Chen Youtian quickly gathered his things and left.