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

When they got home, the sun was already high in the sky. Chen's mother was using a rake woven from thin bamboo branches to dry the various mushrooms and wood ear fungus she had collected the day before and that morning in the yard. The late autumn sun brought just the right amount of warmth, slowly drawing out the moisture from these mountain produce, and the air was filled with the rich aroma unique to fungi.

"You're back? We've been waiting for you to have lunch!" Chen's mother straightened up, wiped her hands, and greeted them with a smile. But when she saw the heavy green bamboo on Chen Xiaohe's shoulder and the tightly covered small basket in the hands of the Su sisters, her eyes couldn't help but look more questioning.

"Mom! We've dug up several tender bamboo shoots!" Su Xiaoqing rushed forward, presenting the basket to Chen's mother like a treasure, and gently lifted the bamboo leaves and a few bamboo shoots covering it.

Chen's mother looked down and her gaze froze instantly—under the bamboo leaves, what could that snow-white, beautifully shaped thing be but bamboo fungus?! "This…bamboo fungus? You guys are so lucky! You even managed to find this!" She lowered her voice, both surprised and delighted. She quickly covered the basket and looked up at her sons, "This stuff is precious. We can't leave it here to dry. We have to take it to a shady, well-ventilated place behind the house and carefully air-dry it. Once it's dried properly, we can take it to restaurants in town or the county seat in winter; it'll be worth a lot of money!"

"Mother, you don't know," Chen Xiaohe put down the bamboo and excitedly continued, "If it weren't for my sister-in-law and Xiaoqing's keen observation and discovery in the pile of dry bamboo leaves, we would never have guessed that this treasure was hidden there! My brother and I also found a bamboo rat burrow, which looked quite interesting. I didn't bring any special trapping tools today, so I'll go back this afternoon to see if I can catch one!"

Mother Chen beamed with joy, finding her two daughters-in-law even more pleasing to the eye: "These two girls have sharp eyes and are very thoughtful; they're our family's lucky stars!" After thinking for a moment, she arranged, "Alright, Xiaohe, you go catch bamboo rats this afternoon, and I'll go to the bamboo forest with you. Xiaoyin, Xiaoqing, rest for a while after lunch, and then we'll go again. We can deal with the tender bamboo shoots you brought back later."

"Okay, Mom." Su Xiaoyin nodded in agreement, feeling a warm glow in her heart.

Chen Dashan, who had been quietly tidying up the bamboo, spoke up: "I'll be home this afternoon and get all this bamboo sorted out. Split it into strips where necessary, and take the dimensions for making frames. Once the doors and windows are completely installed and all these things are prepared, we should be able to move into the new house."

"Alright! Let's split up then!" Mr. Chen also came out of the house, and upon hearing the arrangement, he made the decision.

Lunch was simple but satisfying; everyone was looking forward to the afternoon's work and ate quickly. After a short rest, Chen's mother slung her basket back over her shoulder, took her small hoe and cloth bag, while Chen Xiaohe picked up the prepared bamboo rat traps and a small shovel. The Su sisters carried their small baskets as usual. The four of them set off again for the bamboo forest.

On the way, they encountered several women from the same village, gathered under the old locust tree at the village entrance, doing needlework and chatting. Seeing Chen's mother leading her son and daughter-in-law, one of them greeted them with a smile, "Grandma Chen, up the mountain again? A good harvest, huh?"

With her usual slightly shy smile, Chen's mother replied, "Yes, let's go take a walk over to the bamboo grove and see if we can dig up some tender bamboo shoots. The two new maids in the house said they're craving them, so I'll go help them find some."

She spoke vaguely, only mentioning the most inconspicuous bamboo shoots. The woman who asked the question didn't think much of it, just smiled and praised, "Your family is thriving and prosperous," before turning back to her own conversation.

Upon reaching the bamboo forest, the four tacitly split up. Mother Chen led the Su sisters straight to the area where the bamboo fungus had been discovered that morning, cautiously expanding the search area outwards. Chen Xiaohe, meanwhile, familiarly followed the path to the location of the bamboo rat burrows he remembered.

"Mom, let's look this way. We didn't go this way this morning." Su Xiaoyin pointed to an area where the bamboo was denser, the humus layer on the ground was thicker, and the sunlight was harder to penetrate.

Chen's mother nodded: "Okay, watch your step and follow me."

The three of them carefully pushed aside the crisscrossing bamboo branches and walked in. It was much quieter here, with a thick layer of withered yellow bamboo leaves accumulated over the years, soft and yielding underfoot. Su Xiaoyin squatted down and gently parted the seemingly ordinary pile of fallen leaves with a thin bamboo stick. Suddenly, a few different white leaves peeked out from under the brown leaves.

"Mother! Xiaoqing! Look here!" Her voice was very low, filled with the excitement of discovering a treasure.

Chen's mother and Su Xiaoqing quickly came over, and sure enough, under the thick layer of dry bamboo leaves, there were several bamboo fungus of excellent quality. Some had fully unfolded their veils, while others were still closed buds, quietly hidden under the protection of the fallen leaves. If one did not search carefully, they would not have been able to find them at all.

"It really is! It's hidden so well!" Chen's mother was both surprised and delighted, and quickly gestured to the two of them, "Quick, be careful, don't damage the mushroom skirt. Slowly peel back the leaves from the side."

The three women immediately sprang into action, like scavengers searching for scattered pearls, their movements nimble and swift. Using this spot as a center, they carefully searched the surrounding area, not overlooking any pile of fallen leaves that appeared slightly fluffy or had a different color. Surprises followed one after another; this secluded depths of the bamboo forest seemed to have become a small "nest" for bamboo fungus, and they discovered quite a few more.

When no further clues could be found, the small baskets and cloth bags the three had brought were already half full of perfectly good bamboo fungus. Mother Chen roughly weighed them, her face beaming with undisguised joy: "I didn't expect so much! Once dried, it'll weigh at least two or three pounds! This is quite a sum!"

She cautiously looked around; the bamboo grove was quiet, save for the rustling of the bamboo leaves in the wind. She whispered to her two daughters-in-law, "Come, gather some clean bamboo leaves to cover these bamboo fungus, and put the small basket at the bottom of the carrying basket. If we run into anyone again when we get back, just say we dug up some bamboo shoots. Don't tell anyone yet. We'll come to this bamboo grove more often, quietly."

Su Xiaoyin and Su Xiaoqing immediately understood and nodded vigorously. They had already deeply learned the principle of not flaunting their wealth during their escape from famine.

Just then, a rustling sound came from the other side of the bamboo forest, and Chen Xiaohe emerged, his face flushed with excitement, carrying an old cloth bag tightly tied with straw rope, the bag still moving slightly.

"Mom! Sister-in-law! Look!" Chen Xiaohe lowered his voice impatiently, wanting to show off his achievements.

Chen's mother immediately interrupted him, glancing at the sky: "It's getting late, the sun is setting. Come on, let's go home! We can talk about it when we get home!" Her tone was decisive and left no room for argument.

Chen Xiaohe immediately fell silent, understanding his mother's meaning. He quickly stuffed the moving cloth bag into his large basket and covered it with some miscellaneous items.

Without another word, the four shouldered their harvest and quickly and quietly left the bamboo forest along the path they had come from. The afterglow of the setting sun cast long shadows on the mountain road leading home. Their baskets were heavy, containing not only the bounty of the forest but also a sweet secret—a secret about a better future for their family—that needed to be carefully guarded.

Back in the Chen family courtyard, after closing the gate, the tense caution finally eased slightly. Chen Xiaohe proudly pulled the cloth bag from his basket, untied the straw rope—inside were two plump bamboo rats with glossy, grayish-brown fur! At that moment, their mouths were gagged and their feet were bound, their small, beady eyes darting around in fear.

"Good heavens! You actually caught them! And two of them!" Mr. Chen came out upon hearing the noise and was overjoyed to see them.

"This bamboo rat is plump. If we clean it properly, we can keep its fur." ​​Chen Dashan had also come over at some point, took a look, and gave a fair assessment.

Chen's mother and her two daughters-in-law first took out the most precious bamboo fungus from their baskets and carefully spread it out on clean bamboo mats to air dry in a well-ventilated and shady spot behind the house, which they had already chosen. The tender bamboo shoots and mushrooms they picked along the way were taken to the front yard to be processed.

The courtyard was filled with the joy of a harvest and the busy atmosphere of activity. The unexpected harvest of bamboo rats, along with a considerable amount of bamboo fungus, gave the Chen family a surge of confidence and anticipation for life after the completion of their new house. The Su sisters, amidst this busyness and the joy of sharing secrets, felt even more deeply that they were not only new members of the family, but also those who brought good fortune and hope to it.

As night fell, the aroma of stewed mountain delicacies wafted from the Chen family courtyard. In the shady area behind the house, the white bamboo fungus was quietly transforming in the night breeze, preparing to become a bountiful source of warmth and security in the winter. Everyone believed that life, like this ever-accumulating harvest, would only get better.