Chapter 8

Hearing they were going to cut hemp, the children's eyes lit up.

"I know where to find it, I'll lead the way!" exclaimed Shen An.

Shen Ning was also excited, "I’ll grab a stick. I know how to beat the hemp too!"

For children, the most fun is in the activity itself.

Even without seeing any results yet, just following Sang Luo in various tasks had already started to bring a sense of safety and joy to the children.

They excitedly prepared, each one bustling on either side.

The wild hemp Sang Luo mentioned was actually the ramie commonly used for weaving fabric in those days.

At this time, many mulberry and hemp plants were cultivated by people, with each household owning several fields of them. The silk, cotton, and hemp cloth produced were partly contributed to the state and partly used for personal needs.

Items like silk and cotton were too valuable for farmers to use themselves. They were usually taken to the county to be exchanged for money, or even used directly as a form of currency in barter trade. The farmers, working hard throughout the year, could only afford to wear rough hemp clothes.

Since some mulberry and hemp plants were cultivated, there were also wild, ownerless ones. When the Shen family divided their property, the main house didn’t receive any mulberry or hemp fields, not even a single rice paddy. Now, Sang Luo could only consider harvesting wild hemp.

In her previous life, during the five years Sang Luo lived in the mountains, when she wasn’t suffering from her illness, she found various ways to entertain herself and was somewhat self-sufficient.

Thanks to her smartphone and the internet, as well as the elderly neighbors in the mountains, she learned many things. Sometimes she even uploaded videos of her new skills to a video-sharing website. Her small account was quite popular, keeping her connected with the outside world and providing entertainment, as well as some income.

Among the skills she learned was the old craft of weaving.

In fact, it’s not just that she could weave; the original owner of her body knew how to weave as well.

Of course, taking the kids to harvest hemp now wasn’t for weaving. Currently, Sang Luo lacked many things and had no capability to produce cloth. Every household in the village had a loom, but the women needed them for their own use, so she couldn’t borrow one.

After harvesting the hemp, she could only process it roughly, making it into spun yarn. Sang Luo planned to take the spun yarn to the market and see if she could exchange it for one or two water basins.

"After all, she was planning to rely on selling miraculous tofu for some provisions. While the ingredients were abundant in the mountains and there was no shortage of plant ash, what could she make with just one clay pot and three bowls at home? It was hardly enough to fill their own stomachs."

"Given that she couldn’t do any heavy labor for the next few days, processing hemp – a task she could do while sitting at home – seemed like the perfect activity. The two little ones could also lend a hand."

……

"The siblings knew the nearby mountains, relatively safe for the village, very well. They chatted about where to find ramie, guiding Sang Luo to each spot."

"Since they were heading towards the village, they occasionally encountered villagers who curiously looked at Sang Luo."

"Everyone in the village knew about the Shen family’s separation, but before or after the split, Sang Luo seldom interacted with the villagers. Recently, there were rumors that Shen An and Shen Ning often begged for food at Shen San’s house, clearly indicating they were out of provisions."

"Seeing Sang Luo out and about, those they met on the way treated it as a novelty. Those familiar with Shen An and Shen Ning would stop to chat, learning that they were off to cut hemp, then walk away with a tsk-tsk of interest."

"They can hardly fill their bellies, yet they bother with hemp cutting, engaging in such futile tasks."

Of course, Sang Luo didn't recognize these people, nor was she aware of their thoughts. Even if she knew, she wouldn't have cared.

They soon reached their first destination. Harvesting hemp wasn't a tiring task. Before their family split, the siblings had helped in their family's hemp fields, so they didn't need Sang Luo's guidance. In fact, they were more adept at this work than Sang Luo herself.

However, Sang Luo's physical condition was still poor, given that her original body had been gravely ill to the point of death. Although she had consumed salt-sugar water and some rice porridge, it was barely enough. After a morning's work of physically demanding hemp cutting, she gradually became weak, her hands starting to tremble.

Shen An, observant, took over the work, insisting Sang Luo rest. The siblings efficiently harvested a patch and gathered two bundles of hemp before heading home.

These two bundles were insufficient for much yield, but Shen An didn't ask Sang Luo to make a second trip. "These are the fields where the village kids often play. Shen Ning and I can handle it. You should rest at home."

Shen Ning glanced at Sang Luo's pale face, hesitating for a moment, "Maybe we should dissolve the other piece of malt sugar given by Granny Chen and drink it?"

Consuming two pieces of sugar in one day was an extravagant luxury, not even dared during the festive New Year. Yet, Shen Ning vividly remembered Sang Luo's frightening condition from the previous day, valuing her well-being over the luxury of sugar.

Sang Luo had no concerns about the siblings harvesting hemp near the village and nodded in agreement, "Alright, you two go and cut more hemp, and I'll strip it at home."

As for consuming the remaining piece of malt sugar, Sang Luo, aware of her own condition, felt it wasn't urgent, "No need to rush eating the sugar; it will be useful later. Let's eat it together after you bring back a few more bundles of hemp."

"Miraculous tofu with a bit of sugar water would be a real treat for these two kids."

"Shen Ning didn’t catch the implied meaning in her words, only hearing her big sister talk about the three of them eating together."

"Recalling the slightly salty and sugary water she drank in the early morning, she swallowed instinctively, then, feeling embarrassed about her eagerness, quickly shook her head: 'I don’t need it.'"

"She wasn't sick or in pain; how could she take her big sister's sugar water?"

"Sang Luo smiled, letting the two children go cut the hemp while she herself sat on a stone outside the house and began to strip the fibers."

"The promise of food after work was the best motivation there could be."

"The two youngsters hurriedly descended the mountain and, within about an hour, returned with two large bundles of hemp."

"When the siblings went out again to cut more hemp, Sang Luo put aside her work, fetched some spring water in a clay pot from the mountainside, lit a fire under it in the kitchen, and dissolved the piece of malt sugar given by Old Lady Chen."

This time, she didn’t add salt to the sugar water, simply boiling it into a syrup before extinguishing the fire. She carefully carried the earthenware pot to the stone table on some thick leaves, waiting for the sugar water to cool down before checking the congealed state of the fairy leaf juice.

The proportion of wood ash water was just right, and the concoction had solidified nicely.

On Shen An and Shen Ning's third return, seeing the position of the sun, Sang Luo stopped them from going out again. Putting aside the hemp she was peeling, she called them over: “Go wash your hands and face, and then we can eat something delicious inside.”

"Something delicious to eat."

To Shen An and Shen Ning, these words sounded like a fantasy.

Ever since their elder brother left home, they hadn't heard such phrases.

However, recalling what their sister-in-law had said about sharing malt sugar water, the siblings quickly went to wash their hands.

When the three of them re-entered the house, without needing Sang Luo to say anything, the younger siblings' gaze naturally fell on the stone slab serving as a table, especially at the two shimmering green bowls placed on it, leaving them momentarily stunned.

"What is this???"

The bowls were the same, and so was the color, but now, the contents appeared deeper in color, a lush, glossy green.

With wide eyes, Shen An and Shen Ning turned to Sang Luo, "Sister-in-law, this couldn't be the leaf juice from earlier, could it?"

Sang Luo smiled, "Exactly, I told you it was edible. Let me cut it and you can try."

Taking the bamboo strip previously used for the malt sugar, she skillfully began to slice the tofu-like substance in one of the bowls.

Indeed, this bamboo strip was fashioned into a makeshift knife by Shen An with some help, although it was rarely used since their diet mainly consisted of wild vegetable soup which could easily be torn by hand.

Sang Luo expertly cut one bowl of the fairy tofu into small 2-centimeter cubes, then ladled some of the cooled malt sugar water from the pot into the bowl, just enough for a couple of spoonfuls, gave it a gentle mix, and scooped up a piece to offer to Shen Ning, "Ah Ning, try this first."

The jade-like substance, soft, chewy, and bouncy, gently wobbled on the wooden spoon.

The young siblings had never seen anything so appetizing; just the sight of it made them swallow in anticipation.

Shen Ning, no longer concerned about whether it was edible, took the spoon from Sang Luo and tasted it, immediately sensing its delicate fragrance.

The sweetness, the aroma, the refreshing bounce and texture were astonishing: "!!!"

"Brother, this tastes even better than the meat we had during the New Year!!!"