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

"Dad, Mom, Dashan, Xiaohe, you all rest for a while, dinner's ready!"

Su Xiaoyin hurried across the field ridges, carrying a heavy bamboo basket. Inside were the lunch she and Su Xiaoqing had hastily prepared that morning: a stack of golden, glistening cornbread pancakes, a steaming pot of pickled cabbage, vermicelli, and tofu stew, a small jar of homemade pickled radish strips, and a few boiled eggs. During spring planting, it's all about seizing the moment; the work piled up like mountains, and the family wished they could stretch one day into two. Mr. and Mrs. Chen, along with Chen Dashan and Chen Xiaohe, went to the fields before dawn and worked until the sun was setting. All the household chores, along with the four toddlers crawling around, fell on the shoulders of Su Xiaoyin and Su Xiaoqing.

Chen's mother straightened her aching back, wiped the sweat from her brow with the old towel draped around her neck, and called to the other three people in the field, "Come on, eat first! Food is the foundation of life; you need to eat well to have the strength." The group gathered under the shade of an old locust tree by the field, and without any formalities, sat down on the ground. The spring sun was already quite scorching, but a gentle breeze under the shade of the tree dispelled the heat of their labor.

Su Xiaoyin laid out the food one by one, watching her parents-in-law, husband, and brother-in-law wolf down their meals, feeling both heartache and satisfaction. She quickly served them soup and flatbread, saying, "Mom, once you've finished eating, put the bowls and chopsticks back in the basket and cover them with the cloth. I'll take them back with me when I bring dinner tonight. The children need someone to look after them, so I'll head back now."

"Hey, hurry back, be careful on the road." Chen's mother swallowed the biscuit in her mouth and instructed, "The children are the most important thing. You two sisters have to work hard on things at home."

Su Xiaoyin responded, picked up her slightly empty basket, and hurried home. The village road was deserted on a spring midday, save for the faint sounds of roosters crowing and dogs barking in the distance. Thinking of her children at home, she quickened her pace.

Back home, the courtyard was quiet. Pushing open the door to the east wing, she saw the four little ones lying side by side on the kang (a heated brick bed), fast asleep. Su Xiaoqing sat on the edge of the kang, her hands flying as she sewed an old jacket belonging to Chen Xiaohe, its cuffs frayed and worn. Hearing the noise, she looked up, smiled silently at her sister, pointed to the children, and then pointed towards the kitchen.

Understanding, Su Xiaoyin tiptoed out and went into the kitchen. Her and Su Xiaoqing's lunch—simple multigrain porridge and pickled vegetables—was warming in the pot. She ladled out a bowl, ate it with the pickled vegetables, and finished it in a few gulps, finally feeling a little more at ease. Just as she put down her bowl, Su Xiaoqing also tiptoed out.

"Sister, catch your breath and rest for a while." Su Xiaoqing took the bowl from her sister and said in a low voice, "I'll go to the tofu shop at the village entrance and buy two pieces of tofu. Didn't we catch some crucian carp in the river last night? Tonight we'll stew the smoked fish with tofu and make a pot of flatbread to nourish those who work in the fields."

Su Xiaoyin was indeed tired; her back ached, but she didn't lie down to rest. Looking at the children sleeping soundly on the kang (heated brick bed), she turned and rummaged through her sewing basket, finding several worn-out pieces of clothing belonging to Chen Dashan and her father-in-law. Spring plowing was physically demanding work, and it wore out clothes quickly; the knees of her trousers and the elbows of her shirts were often patched upon patched. She sat in the bright light by the doorway of the main room, threading her needle and carefully mending each stitch. The warm sunlight shone on her, and the coarse cloth in her hands carried the familiar scent of sweat and sunshine. Her heart gradually calmed down in this repetitive yet peaceful labor.

Su Xiaoqing quickly bought two large, white, and moist blocks of tofu. Seeing her sister mending clothes, she didn't disturb her and rolled up her sleeves to start kneading the dough. During spring plowing, the men expended a lot of energy, so their staple foods needed to be substantial. While kneading the dough, she took out some steamed and cooled egg custard from the cupboard, cut it into small pieces, and prepared it as a snack for the children when they woke up.

After mending the last piece of clothing, Su Xiaoyin rubbed her slightly sore eyes, stood up, and said to her younger sister, "Xiaoqing, you stay home and watch the kids. I'm going to take a walk in the back mountain to see if there are any fresh wild vegetables. We've been so busy this year that we haven't dried any wild vegetables yet. If we wait until Mom and the others finish spring planting, the wild vegetables will be too old."

"Okay, sis, be careful and don't go too far into the mountains," Su Xiaoqing instructed.

Su Xiaoyin slung her small basket over her shoulder, grabbed her little shovel, and went out. Not far from the back mountain, everything was bursting with life in spring. In the woods and along the edges of the fields, dandelions, shepherd's purse, wild garlic... grew in clumps and clusters, fresh and tender. She carefully selected them, her hands never stopping, and soon the bottom of her basket was covered with a thick layer of emerald green.

When she returned home with a basket full of wild vegetables, the children were already awake, being coaxed by Su Xiaoqing to play with small wooden blocks in the yard, their cheerful laughter ringing out. Su Xiaoqing had already shaped the risen dough into portions and was preparing to make pancakes. The two sisters exchanged a smile; one went to wash the wild vegetables, preparing a cold salad for dinner; the other went to gut and clean the smoked fish, preparing to stew it with tofu. In the yard, wisps of smoke rose again, mingling with the children's laughter, creating the most ordinary yet touching scene of a spring day in the countryside.

Day after day, the furrows in the fields stretched out under the sweat of the family, and the household chores were handled meticulously by the two sisters. Sowing, watering, tending to the seedlings… every step was done with utmost care and diligence, without the slightest slackening. Especially the newly purchased barren hillside, with its uneven terrain at the foot, full of loose stones and weeds, was particularly difficult to cultivate. New blisters appeared on Chen Dashan and Chen Xiaohe's hands, and their parents seemed to have bent their backs even more. But looking at the newly turned soil, exuding the fragrance of earth, and watching the seeds quietly sprout in the spring breeze and rain, all the fatigue seemed to be offset by this vibrant life.

After working tirelessly for more than twenty days, when the last seed was carefully buried in the soil and covered with a thin layer of soil, Mr. Chen, holding his hoe, looked at the land in front of him that had been the result of his family's hard work and hopes, and let out a long, deep sigh of relief.

"Finally... they're all planted." His voice was heavy with exhaustion, but even more so with the relief and satisfaction of accomplishing something significant.

Back home, Chen's mother looked at her sons, exhausted and nearly falling apart, and at her daughters-in-law, who had also lost weight but were still managing the household chores with great effort. She felt both heartache and relief. She clapped her hands and announced in a loud voice, "Alright! The most important task of spring plowing is finally finished! Everyone, take a good rest today, let all that fatigue drain you! Tomorrow, we'll cook a nice meal and treat ourselves!"

She turned to Chen Xiaohe, her eyes smiling, "Xiaohe, tomorrow morning, go to the market and buy a pound of fresh, well-marbled pork! We'll make dumplings tonight! Pure meat filling! Also, buy two big pork bones. There's still a little bit of bamboo shoot left in the cellar; tomorrow we'll stew a pot of bamboo shoot and pork bone soup to replenish the energy we've used up over the past twenty-odd days!"

"Make dumplings! Stewed pork bones!" Chen Xiaohe's eyes lit up at the news, and his fatigue seemed to lessen by half. "Mom, don't worry! I promise I'll buy the best meat!"

Although Chen Dashan didn't speak, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly, revealing the first truly relaxed smile he had shown in days. Su Xiaoyin and Su Xiaoqing exchanged a smile and began planning tomorrow's tasks of kneading dough, chopping filling, and seasoning. Even the four little ones playing on the kang (heated brick bed) seemed to sense the joyful atmosphere at home, laughing and babbling even more happily.