At lunchtime, Zhou Mazi hadn't planned on trying the wild vegetables, but they looked appetizing, so he took a bite.
"Who made this dish today?"
Zhou Mazi asked, taking a sip of his white liquor.
"Tastes good, right? Gu'er made it. I think it's delicious too."
Li Hua chimed in eagerly.
"It's better than your cooking. Look at you, you've been cooking your whole life. Is that stuff you make even fit for humans? You're not even as good as a young girl."
Zhou Mazi berated Li Hua as he ate.
Li Hua gave a hesitant smile and didn't reply.
"Mom, these wild vegetables are so fragrant. Did my sister pour the whole bottle of oil in?"
A flash of resentment crossed Zhou Feng'er's eyes. Even though she also thought it tasted fine, she just didn't want Zhou Gu'er to get any credit.
Zhou Mazi's eyes widened when he heard this. No matter how tasty, it was just wild vegetables. How could they use a whole bottle of oil on something so worthless?
"You damned woman, you're asking for a beating! You good-for-nothing spendthrift, don't you know how precious that oil is? What kind of delicacy is this that you dare to waste my oil on it? Are you tired of living here? If you are, then get the hell out!"
Zhou Mazi cursed, looking like he was about to get violent.
"No, no! Just one drop! I only dripped one drop of oil in!"
Li Hua quickly explained, covering her head, terrified her husband would strike her.
"Dad, I was the one who added the oil. It was just one drop. I know oil is precious too. I just saw that we didn't have many vegetables at home lately, so I dug up some wild ones. I was thinking you've been working so hard, so I wanted you to have something fresh to eat. Please don't blame Mom. It's my fault. I won't do it again."
Zhou Gu'er couldn't bear to see her adoptive mother get dragged into this because of her.
"Hmph, you spendthrifts. If I catch you putting two drops of oil in next time, you'd better watch out."
Zhou Mazi snorted, shot a threat, and went back to eating.
Li Hua breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that using one drop of oil was acceptable after all.
Zhou Gu'er knew Zhou Mazi wouldn't stay angry. The dish was delicious, and one drop of oil was no big deal. After all, there were now two extra green dishes on the table, and they tasted great. Zhou Mazi was happy to eat them.
Zhou Feng'er's eyes flickered. She knew she couldn't say another word right now, or her father might turn on her instead.
Zhou Duo'er glanced from side to side but said nothing.
Zhou Cai didn't care about any of that. If it was good, he ate more of it. Who made it and what it was made with had nothing to do with him. As long as he got his fill, he was happy.
By the time the meal was over and they were clearing the low table, both plates of wild vegetables were empty.
Zhou Gu'er smiled. 'Looks like this might actually work,' she thought. 'Selling some wild vegetables this season might really earn some money.'
The next day, after finishing her chores at home, Zhou Gu'er went to the mountains again. This time, she carried a back basket and a handheld one.
As Zhou Gu'er walked toward the mountain, before she had even reached her destination, she noticed a figure ahead of her.
From the back, it looked like a man. Zhou Gu'er didn't pay it much mind. 'We're all from the same village; of course other people come up the mountain,' she reasoned, and kept walking.
By the time she reached the foot of the mountain, Zhou Gu'er was almost right behind the man.
Perhaps hearing her footsteps, the man turned around.
Zhou Gu'er froze. It was someone she knew.
Truth be told, she didn't have a strong impression of most of the young men in the village. For one, too much time had passed and her memories were hazy; for another, she had little contact with them.
But she truly recognized the man before her. She had just seen him a few days ago—it was Sun Jiaming, the one who had helped her.
'What is he doing here?'
Zhou Gu'er found it a bit strange.
Sun Jiaming hadn't expected the person behind him to be Zhou Gu'er either, and he paused for a moment in surprise.
"Um... hello."
Zhou Gu'er greeted him.
In truth, her greeting sounded foreign to Sun Jiaming. They were from the same village, and though they didn't see each other often, people didn't greet each other like that. Usually, they'd ask if you'd eaten or make some small talk. 'This "hello" is a little strange,' he thought.
"Haha, it's Sister Gu'er. Are you here to gather vegetables?"
Sun Jiaming replied. Seeing Zhou Gu'er with both a basket and a back basket, he understood.
"Yes, gathering some wild vegetables. Brother... Brother Jia Ming, what are you...?"
Zhou Gu'er was still not quite used to it. 'Calling him 'Brother' after only meeting him twice feels a little weird,' she thought. But then she remembered this was how things were in the village. She had been away for so long that she'd forgotten.
"There are a few rows of chives over there. I'm going to see if they've sprouted yet."
Sun Jiaming pointed nearby.
Zhou Gu'er frowned. 'Planting chives so far out here? Wouldn't planting a small patch by the house be enough to eat?'
Sun Jiaming could tell what Zhou Gu'er was thinking with a single glance, and he chuckled.
"I didn't plant them on purpose. One year, I accidentally dropped a lot of chive seeds here, and I was surprised when they sprouted on their own the next year. I've never tended to them; they've been growing by themselves all these years. Don't be fooled by how remote and poorly located this spot is. The chives that grow here aren't like the ones we plant in our yards. These chives are tender and have a sweet taste—much more delicious than the ones at home."
Sun Jiaming explained to Zhou Gu'er.
Zhou Gu'er was a little surprised. To be honest, she didn't like strongly-flavored things like chives, celery, or cilantro.
She thought chives tasted awful, especially the later-season ones that looked thick and large but had a really unpleasant flavor. But from what Sun Jiaming was saying, these chives sounded pretty good.
"They're not ready to eat yet. Things grow slowly out here. I reckon they've only just sprouted. In about a month or so, when they're ready, I'll cut some for you. You'll know once you taste them."
Sun Jiaming smiled.
"Then thank you in advance, Brother Jia Ming. You should go take a look. I'll get to digging my vegetables."
Zhou Gu'er nodded her thanks. It was just a handful of chives, nothing rare, so she didn't refuse.
"Alright, I'll go check on them then. You carry on."
Sun Jiaming nodded and walked off.
Seeing Sun Jiaming head in that direction, Zhou Gu'er also started gathering her wild vegetables.
She only dug up the best-looking dandelions, leaving the small ones behind. For one, they could continue to grow; for another, digging up small ones was too much effort.
Of course, she wouldn't pass up others she came across, like maotui, fiddlehead ferns, cucumber-scented greens, and wild radishes.
"Why are you digging so many?"
Just as Zhou Gu'er was squatting on the ground digging up dandelions, a voice suddenly came from behind her.
It startled Zhou Gu'er so much she almost cried out. Once her heart settled, she let out a long breath and slowly stood up.
"Oh, it's you, Brother Jia Ming."
Zhou Gu'er hadn't expected Sun Jiaming to come over; she thought he would have gone straight home after checking on his chives. Then again, no one else had come by, so it couldn't have been anyone but him. Still, him speaking so suddenly was really frightening, mainly because she wasn't prepared for it at all.
"Yeah. Did I scare you? I thought you heard me walking over."
Sun Jiaming looked a bit embarrassed. He really hadn't meant to frighten Zhou Gu'er.
"It's fine, it's fine. I just wasn't paying attention."
Zhou Gu'er quickly waved her hands.