Chapter 84: Fear

In previous years, the period around Laba Festival was the windiest, snowiest, and coldest time of the year. This year, the weather was unusual—there was less snow, but the wind remained strong and the cold just as biting.

Wen Nuan Nuan reminded Leng Xiao that after the hides were tanned, they should only be used to make leather boots and snow hats for the four of them. She felt reassured only after seeing Leng Xiao nod in agreement.

She had given the same reminder to Eldest Brother earlier.

Her own heavy cloak, padded jacket, snow hat, hand warmers, and leather boots were already quite complete. In fact, she even had two sets of snow hats, hand warmers, and leather boots. Since she rarely went out on rainy or snowy days anyway, having more would just be wasteful.

Second Brother and Little Brother only had one pair of roe deer leather boots between them, taking turns wearing them to go out on rainy or snowy days. Leng Xiao and Eldest Brother’s situations were likely not much better. They were the ones who needed these leather goods the most.

After seeing Leng Xiao off, Wen Nuan Nuan hurriedly turned and dashed back into the house!

It was really cold!

“Sister-in-law, the soup is ready. Where should I put it?” Leng Yun emerged from the kitchen, standing under the eaves. He held the red clay small stove wrapped in a cloth, with a small iron kettle bubbling away on top.

“Put it next to the long wooden table in my room. Little Brother, bring your paper and pens to my room to practice as well,” Wen Nuan Nuan said quickly before rushing back inside like a gust of wind.

Left behind, Leng Yun stood there blankly, thinking, It’s not that cold, is it?

The cotton clothes made with this year’s new cotton were so warm.

Entering the room, a wave of warmth greeted her, making Wen Nuan Nuan relax completely.

In the past, her life depended on air conditioning. Now, she declared that her life depended on the kang!

Outside, it was minus ten or even dozens of degrees Celsius, with the north wind howling and water freezing instantly. But inside, it was as warm and cozy as spring. She only needed to wear inner clothes and cotton garments—not even a padded jacket was necessary!

No longer did she have to bundle up in bulky clothes and still shiver from the cold.

Wen Nuan Nuan thought, Could this be considered experiencing central heating?

Cheerfully, she took out Peach Crisp, Hundred-Fruit Cake, Cloud Slice Cake, sesame peanut brittle, and patterned soup candies, arranging them on a bamboo tray to create a small tea snack platter.

Leng Yun brought in the red clay small stove and iron kettle and set them down, noticing Wen Nuan Nuan arranging the tea snack platter.

When he returned to his room to fetch his paper and pens and came back, he saw Wen Nuan Nuan arranging sweet potatoes, potatoes, frozen pears, and tangerines.

“Sister-in-law, let me do it!” Leng Yun, sharp-eyed, took the wire mesh, lifted the iron kettle aside, placed the wire mesh over the charcoal fire, and positioned the sweet potatoes and potatoes in the center where the heat was strongest, with the tangerines placed to the side.

The frozen pears were placed in a small wooden bowl on the table.

He had been doing these tasks frequently lately and was already quite skilled at them.

Sister-in-law’s room was farther from the stove, so logically, it shouldn’t be as warm as their room. Yet, they all felt that Sister-in-law’s room was the warmest—not just warm, but also comfortable!

He just couldn’t understand why Eldest Brother chose to squeeze onto the same kang with him instead of staying in the spacious, bright, and warm room.

Clearly, Eldest Brother didn’t seem very willing either.

But since Sister-in-law didn’t mention it and Eldest Brother seemed displeased, he didn’t dare ask.

“Today, I made small-pot pear soup. It’s sweet and sour—would you like to try it?” Wen Nuan Nuan watched as Leng Yun finished his tasks. She was surprised that he wasn’t paying attention to his usual favorite foods but was instead lost in thought.

Little Brother was a foodie almost on par with her.

What could be more important than eating?

At his young age, nothing was more satisfying than a good meal.

Hearing her question, Leng Yun snapped out of his thoughts, pushed aside his doubts, and a smile spread across his little face. “Sure! What’s small-pot pear soup? Is it different from rock sugar snow pear soup?”

“There’s not much difference. This one has a few dried plums and aged tangerine peel added, making it slightly sourer. It clears the throat, moistens the lungs, and cuts through greasiness, so most of the pastries paired with it today are sweet.” Wen Nuan Nuan picked up the bamboo cup on the table, poured a small sip, and handed it to Leng Yun to taste.

This was a simplified version because it lacked silver ear fungus.

At the time, she had bought things in a hurry, forgetting many items. Some foods that were rarely eaten once or twice a year weren’t stored in the refrigerator either—they were seldom used and there wasn’t enough space.

Still, she had just tasted the small pot pear soup without silver ear fungus. Although it lacked the sticky, glutinous texture, it was quite refreshing and still very delicious.

Besides, she cooked these soups and broths every day mainly because the air was too dry and she needed to replenish some moisture. Drinking plain water always felt too bland, so she preferred these sour, sweet, and flavorful drinks. Authenticity didn’t matter—as long as it tasted good!

Leng Yun picked up the wooden cup and took a sip. His still-childish face lit up with a bright, beaming smile as he praised without hesitation, “It’s so delicious!”

Although Wen Nuan Nuan was already accustomed to her younger brothers’ exaggerated, enthusiastic compliments, hearing his approval still lifted her spirits. “Pour yourself a cup and let it cool over there. I need to get to work.”

Thinking of the tasks she had to do in the coming days, Wen Nuan Nuan hurried over to the wooden chest to fetch her sewing kit.

“Sister-in-law, what are you doing?” Leng Yun asked, puzzled.

Hadn’t the bed cover already been finished? Why was his sister-in-law still doing needlework?

“When we set off in June or July, it’ll be very hot. I’m sewing two sturdy hidden pockets inside your summer shirts to hold some loose silver for emergencies on the road.

Although the weather has been unusual this year, with these snowfalls, spring wild vegetables and mushrooms should still grow. When it’s time to forage in the mountains, we’ll have nothing else to do, so I might as well prepare these in advance.” With her portable refrigerator, she had plenty of food and money and didn’t need these, but the other four did.

Wen Nuan Nuan’s thoughts wandered further. She should bake some hard, dry flatbreads and fry some rice—essentially creating compressed rations—and sew sturdy cloth bags for the four of them to carry some with them. If they were forced to separate on the road, having only silver wouldn’t be enough.

But this wasn’t urgent. She could do it when there was leftover flour and rice.

Leng Yun’s childish face showed worry beyond his years. “Sister-in-law, will everything really be fine next year? This year’s weather has been completely different from before. In the village, kids around my age, like Da Shan and Er Gou, have all gone into the mountains.

They say that when it snows and they’re at home, they eat one meal of black flour and wild vegetable porridge. Only on days they go into the mountains do they eat two meals of porridge. And since there hasn’t been much snow this year, all the game meat and fur they’ve hunted have been sold for black flour and cornmeal. They hardly get any oily or meaty food.”

Their family also ate wild vegetables and cornmeal, but it tasted completely different from what he was used to before.

His sister-in-law would mix white flour with cornmeal, use chicken broth to cook hazel mushrooms, or braise wild vegetables with meat or dress them with oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar.

It was a world apart from other families’ meals and from how their own family used to live.

Wen Nuan Nuan wasn’t entirely confident about the next year either. Although she had already stored a lot of food and various supplies, some things were beyond human control.

Seeing the worry and fear on nine-year-old Leng Yun’s face, she—being an adult after all—managed to control her emotions well. Softening her voice, she comforted him, “Your Eldest Brother and the others are going into the mountains to gather ginseng for money, hunt game for food, and use the fur to make warm clothing, all to ensure our family’s safety. What we can do is prepare in advance and adapt to whatever comes our way.”

“Look on the bright side. Think about it—we have a carriage, food, and savings. We’re already much better off than most people. What’s there to be afraid of?!”

After hearing this, the worry on Leng Yun’s little face lessened, but his fear didn’t diminish at all. He stared at Wen Nuan Nuan with pleading eyes and begged, “Sister-in-law, promise you’ll never leave us, okay?”

Only in these past days had he come to realize that life wasn’t just about hardship, hunger, cold, and fear—it could also mean having enough to eat and staying warm.

He was just afraid, afraid that it would be like the nightmares he used to have—no big house, huddled in a drafty, broken thatched hut, no new cotton-padded clothes, no food, no charcoal fire, only endless cold, hunger, and worry about where the next meal would come from.

And of course, in those dreams, there was no sister-in-law either.

Back then, he thought he would give anything he could, just to keep his sister-in-law from leaving.