After fleeing the famine, my older sister and I married the brother next door.

"Father, take all the money. The yamen is open for business today, right? Go buy the barren mountain as soon as possible, so you can have peace of mind." As dawn broke, the aroma of corn porridge wafted from the kitchen. Mother Chen packed warm flatbread into a cloth bag for Father Chen to eat on his journey, giving him these instructions repeatedly. Her face held a solemn expression of having made a major decision, mixed with anticipation for the new business she was about to acquire.

Father Chen nodded silently, carefully tucking the heavy old money bag containing the family's accumulated thirty-five taels of silver into the innermost pocket of his robe. He checked it again to make sure it was secure before taking the food bag. "Okay, I'll go meet the village head now. Don't worry, the marriage contract will definitely be processed."

When Chen's father arrived at the village head's house, several people had already gathered in the courtyard. Besides the village head, there were two other families in the village who were slightly better off and also interested in acquiring more land. After exchanging greetings, they all wore similar expressions—a mix of trepidation and anticipation, but above all, the deep-seated yearning and reverence that farmers have for the land.

The group walked together toward the town government office. Father Chen remained silent the whole way, his mind racing with the matters he had discussed with his family the day before. Buying the barren mountain was a much larger undertaking than buying barren land, meaning more investment and a longer wait. But now the family had more hands to man, the children were older, and Gongzhong had accumulated some skills over the past two years through embroidery, selling mountain products, and carpentry; it was time to plan for the more distant future. He had been eyeing that gently sloping, sunny barren mountain, which connected to their familiar land, for more than just a day or two.

Upon arriving at the yamen, they explained their purpose, and the clerk in charge didn't give them much trouble. In those days, the government was eager for people to reclaim wasteland and barren mountains to increase land tax revenue. According to procedure, they needed to send someone to measure the land first. So, Chen's father and the others accompanied two yamen runners and a clerk back to the village and went straight to the barren mountain they had chosen.

The mountain wasn't steep, but it had been neglected for years, overgrown with shrubs, thorns, and weeds, interspersed with some worthless miscellaneous trees. The constables, carrying measuring poles and ropes, roughly circled the area, while the clerk recorded their observations. Mr. Chen followed, silently estimating the numbers. Finally, back at the yamen, the clerk rattled off a number on his abacus, followed by platitudes like "the mountain land is barren," "cultivation is difficult," and "there was almost no yield in the first few years." Mr. Chen knew this was a ploy to solicit favors. He was prepared; without a word, he took out an extra tael of silver he had prepared and, under the guise of handing over documents, quietly slipped it into the clerk's hand, whispering, "It's hot; you constables have worked hard. Here's a little something for tea."

The clerk's fingers twirled, a smile spreading across his face, and his writing became more relaxed. The final measurement was over 160 mu, but the land deed only listed 150 mu. Mr. Chen knew the truth but didn't point it out. When asked whether to use a "red deed" (officially registered with the government, bearing the official seal, offering the best protection of ownership) or a "white deed" (a private deed, cheaper but less secure) for the land tax, Mr. Chen answered without hesitation: "Red deed."

The formalities were completed, and four brand-new land deeds, stamped with the bright red seal of the government office, were in hand, the ink still wet. The other two families who had come with them, having bought small plots of wasteland, were also beaming with joy, handling their deeds as if they were precious treasures. On the way back, one of them couldn't help but ask Chen's father, "Dad, this is quite a big deal! You've bought an entire mountain in one go! What are you planning to plant? This mountain land will take a lot of work."

Mr. Chen carefully put away the land deed, smiled upon hearing this, and his deep wrinkles revealed a sense of peace: "It's not a big investment, it won't empty our savings. This mountain connects to our existing land, so it's convenient to take care of. I'm thinking of clearing out the flat area at the foot of the mountain first and planting some soybeans. As for the mountain, we'll have to take our time to prepare it; we can't rush it. We need to finish the spring planting in the cultivated land first before we have time to manage this. I haven't figured out exactly what to plant yet, maybe I can see if I can get some fruit tree seedlings to plant, so that in a few years, the children can have an orchard to pick fruit to eat. I'll have to go to the county town to inquire about it then."

His words were simple and unpretentious, without any grand pronouncements, yet they conveyed a clear plan and a profound sense of hope.

Carrying the red deed representing 150 acres of mountain land, Chen returned home as the sun was nearing its zenith. Inside the main room, the family had been waiting anxiously. Upon seeing Chen's father enter, Chen's mother was the first to greet him, her eyes filled with eager anticipation. Chen's father didn't keep them in suspense, taking the red deed from his arms and spreading it out on the table.

"It's done, the red deed." Father Chen pointed to the numbers and the vermilion seal on the land deed. "It measured more than 160 mu, and they gave an extra tael of silver as 'tea money,' so the land deed says 150 mu. Including the land purchase tax, it cost a total of 35 taels."

"Thirty-five taels!" Chen Xiaohe gasped, then became excited. "One hundred and fifty mu! Dad, our family is now a wealthy household with mountains and land!"

Chen Dashan, more composed, carefully examined the land deed and asked, "Father, have you taken out all the money from the public coffers? Is it enough to get by? If not, Xiaohe and I still have some money we saved from selling embroidery and woodenware last time."

Mother Chen patted her chest, feeling a pang of regret for spending such a large sum, but her eyes sparkled: "We've saved some money from the family over the past two years, and we've used it all this time, but we've kept some for daily expenses and emergencies. You should keep your own money safe; there will be many expenses in the future, like buying seedlings. If you really run into financial difficulties, I won't be polite to you."

After drinking a large bowl of cold tea, Chen's father wiped his mouth and began to talk about the upcoming arrangements: "The Lantern Festival is just a few days away. You should hurry up and prepare the bamboo and wooden utensils, hair ties, and embroidery. Once the stalls are set up for the Lantern Festival, our whole family will have to get moving. While the spring planting is just finished and the fields aren't too busy yet, let's first clear the land at the foot of that barren mountain that we plan to cultivate."

"Liaohuang?" Su Xiaoqing asked curiously.

"Yes," Mr. Chen explained, "we set fire to the weeds and shrub stumps on that piece of land. First, it saves us the effort of clearing it, and second, the ashes from the fire are good fertilizer. Once the fire is out and the ground has cooled down, we can use an ox to lightly plow the land and plant soybeans. Soybeans aren't picky about the soil and they also fertilize the field, so they're perfect for it."

Chen Dashan chimed in, "Okay, Dad. We'll start preparing as soon as the lantern festival is over. The weeds are thick, so we'll have to be extra careful when burning them. We'll choose a windless day and clear a firebreak around the area. Xiaohe and I will go get it done in advance."

Chen's mother also asked, "Have you spoken to the village head?"

"They said so," Chen's father nodded. "The village head's family also wants to get some fruit trees. They said they'll go to the county town or even the prefecture to look at fruit tree seedlings in a few days. I'll go with them then and pick some seedlings that are suitable for our mountainous terrain, easy to grow, and produce sweet fruit. We can't just rely on grain for this mountain; we need to combine short-term and long-term goals. Once the fruit trees are grown, that will be an income every year, and we can also leave some property for our descendants."

Sunlight streamed obliquely through the entrance to the main room, falling on the brand-new red contract, making the vermilion mark seem to carry warmth. The family sat together, eating a simple lunch, but their discussion revolved around important matters full of power and hope, such as clearing mountains and planting trees, and clearing wasteland for sowing seeds.