When Fang Rui came out after washing his feet, she was still sewing. Under the smoky oil lamp, she worked one stitch at a time, making fine, tight rows as she squinted with effort.

The thread in a loving mother’s hand becomes the clothes on her wandering child’s back.

For some reason, Fang Rui suddenly recalled this poem, and a warmth flooded his heart.

"Mom, it’s getting late. You should sleep."

He firmly took the needle and cloth from her and blew out the oil lamp. "Mom, it can wait until tomorrow. Get some rest!"

"Oh, you silly boy... All right, all right, I’ll listen to you!"

Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family couldn’t refuse Fang Rui, so she just shook her head with a resigned sigh and returned to her room, guided by the moonlight from the window.

Fang Rui watched his mother go into her room, then smiled and went back to his own.

On the bed, Fang Ling was sleeping restlessly again. She had somehow ended up lying sideways, and the thin blanket that was supposed to be covering her stomach had been kicked to the floor. Still, she slept as soundly and sweetly as a little piglet.

"This girl!"

Fang Rui chuckled, picked Fang Ling up to straighten her out, tucked the corner of the blanket over her belly, and planted a kiss on her cheek before lying down beside her.

As the night deepened and the sound of nameless insects filled the air, he too drifted off into dreams.

...

「The next morning.」

"Mom, the food is so good today," said Fang Ling.

"Does it taste so good you can’t keep your mouth shut?" Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family said, tapping her on the head.

In truth, she had only added a tiny bit of lard when stir-frying the wild vegetables, but that alone made them incredibly fragrant.

"Mmm-hmm!"

Fang Ling shoveled rice into her mouth with her chopsticks, slurping away while her eyes remained fixed on the vegetable dish.

"If you like it, have some more." Beside her, Fang Rui smiled and placed a large helping into her bowl.

In the end, the three of them ate every last scrap of the half-bowl of stir-fried wild vegetables.

Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family even used a sorghum flour pancake to wipe the bowl clean of every last bit of oil, rubbing it over and over until it was spotless—so clean you could see your reflection in it.

It hardly even needed washing.

...

「Later that morning.」

The Fang Family was frying soybeans, and the enticing aroma wafted far and wide.

"Brother!" Fang Ling cried, running inside as she sniffed the fragrant air.

Outside, a few other children were staring with longing, their mouths watering. Among them was Nannan, the Third Lady’s daughter.

"Here, take these and savor them." Fang Rui grabbed a handful for Fang Ling and stuffed them into her pocket.

"Thank you, Brother!" Fang Ling jumped for joy and eagerly popped one into her mouth.

CRUNCH!

As she bit down on the soybean, its rich, nutty flavor exploded on her taste buds, making the little girl’s big eyes curve into smiling crescents.

GULP!

Outside the door, a collective gulping sound was heard.

Fang Rui wasn’t stingy with the neighborhood children outside. He waved them over. "Come on!"

"Tiezi, you get five."

"Xiaoshan, here’s yours."

"Ah Huai, go ahead and eat."

"Nannan, good girl."

...

It wasn’t that Fang Rui was unwilling to give more. But in times like these, with resources scarce and a drought ongoing, giving out three to five fried soybeans was already a grand gesture. Any more and people would start whispering behind his back that he was being foolishly generous.

For Nannan, the Third Lady’s daughter, however, Fang Rui secretly gave her a small handful.

"Don’t tell anyone," he whispered.

"Thank you, Brother Ah Rui!"

Nannan blinked, then skipped away to play with the other children.

"Brother Rui, one good turn deserves another. Why don’t you take some over to Third Sister’s place?" Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family said, scooping out the fried soybeans.

"Okay, I’ll take them to Third Sister."

Fang Rui took a small bowl of soybeans over to the Third Lady’s House.

"Third Sister, I brought you some fried soybeans."

"These are a real treat."

"It’s not much, just a little something to taste. Don’t mind that there isn’t more, Third Sister."

"Oh, Brother Rui!"

The Third Lady shot Fang Rui a look, her every movement full of charm. "Using my own words against me from yesterday, are we?"

"I wouldn’t dare," Fang Rui said with a smile, taking the empty bowl and turning to leave.

"Wait."

The Third Lady called out to stop him, then emerged from her house with a new pair of cloth shoes. "These are for you, Brother Rui. Try them on."

They carried a faint, pleasant scent. Fang Rui accepted them but didn’t actually try them on.

’He was a man, and didn’t have the same hang-ups as a young woman about people seeing his feet, nor did he have athlete’s foot or anything... but taking off his shoes in front of a woman still felt a bit awkward and uncomfortable.’

"Third Sister, they look like a perfect fit. No need to try them on, I’m sure they’ll be great. Thank you."

’Why does that sound a little off?’

Leaning against the doorframe, the Third Lady watched him go. She froze for a moment, and then it dawned on her. "That cheeky boy... he actually dared to tease me!"

A playful, scolding laugh escaped her lips, and an alluring charm radiated from her, like a fruit ripening in midsummer—plump, fragrant, and utterly delectable.

It was a pity there was no one there to witness it.

...

「In the afternoon.」 The Fang Family had a habit of taking a nap.

Fang Ling would sometimes nap with Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family, and other times with Fang Rui.

On the bed, Fang Ling lay on her side, holding a single fried soybean. She was gnawing on it bit by bit with her teeth, savoring the flavor and making one bean last for a very long time.

And as she nibbled, the little girl fell asleep.

Lying next to her, Fang Rui felt something hard and lumpy under him. He reached down and pulled out a few fried soybeans that had escaped from Fang Ling’s pocket, and couldn’t help but smile and shake his head.

Through the crack in the door, he could see his mother in the main hall, sewing by the entrance.

Outside the window, the cicadas and other nameless insects buzzed and chirped, their cries rising and falling with all their might.

The summer days were long.

The chaos and evils of the world seemed blocked out, kept at bay. In the heat of such a day, time itself seemed to stretch and soften.

Fang Rui closed his eyes, and a sense of tranquility settled over his heart.

...

Time flew by in the blink of an eye, slipping away like sand through one’s fingers.

More than half a month passed in a flash.

In the county town, the price of grain was still rising, and business at Caozhi Hall showed no signs of picking up.

—With the world in turmoil, it was hard enough just to stay alive. Who had the money to see a doctor? Most people would rather just tough it out.

As the one running Caozhi Hall, Fang Rui was polite and courteous to all his neighbors, but in truth, he kept a certain distance from everyone.

The only exception was the Third Lady’s House, where he would occasionally visit. Their relationship was quite good.

The Third Lady wanted to put the Fang Family in her debt, while Fang Rui wanted to get on her good side to gather information. Their interests aligned perfectly, and they grew much closer than before.

Fang Rui also learned from the Third Lady that the county’s reserve soldiers had been deployed, but the exact situation outside the city walls remained unknown.

In secret, Fang Rui used the family’s savings to buy grain from the Black Market, little by little, like an ant moving its home. He hadn’t gone "fishing" again.

One bit of bad luck was that whenever he went to the Black Market, he would run into that tall, skinny guy peddling secret manuals three times out of five. Apparently, the man was a regular there, too.

Other than that, life for the Fang Family was calm and peaceful. Nothing of note occurred.

’Which made sense, really. In novels, things happened one after another, with an endless stream of conflict to drive the plot forward.’

’In real life, for ordinary, law-abiding folk, experiencing two or three major disasters in a lifetime was already extraordinary.’

’Of course, their ability to weather such risks was weak. A single major disaster could be a crippling blow, or even lead to the ruin of their entire family.’

However, these were not peaceful times. The world was on the brink of chaos, and the probability of encountering trouble was indeed much higher than before.

The only problem was that Caozhi Hall wasn’t bringing in enough to cover its expenses. Coupled with the grain purchases from the Black Market, the Fang Family had little money left—only some emergency funds.

That money absolutely could not be touched.

’So, if he wanted to keep stockpiling grain?’

’He would have to find another way.’

...

「That morning.」

Mrs. Xue of the Fang Family was sewing in the back room, while Fang Ling helped by twisting hemp thread beside her.

In the front room, Fang Rui was behind the counter, flicking the beads of an abacus.

Just then, two uninvited guests arrived.

...