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

(I) A Long Journey in the Morning Light

As the first hint of dawn appeared on the horizon, the sound of oxcart wheels rolling across the ground echoed in the Chen family's courtyard. Chen's father stuffed the last bite of bread into his mouth, brushed the crumbs off his hands, and said to Chen Dashan, who was loading food and water bags onto the cart, "Dashan, you're coming with me to buy fruit tree saplings later. The village head and the others are leaving today, so we need to hurry."

Chen's mother hurried out of the kitchen, holding two meat patties wrapped in oiled paper. She stuffed them into her husband's arms, her face showing some worry: "Can you make it back today? This trip to the neighboring county is quite far."

Mr. Chen took the cakes and put them away, patting his wife's hand: "Try to come back today. You'll definitely be home by tomorrow at the latest. Don't worry, there are many of us, the village head and Er Mu are all here, we can look after each other." He paused, glancing towards the east wing, "Thank you for your hard work at home."

"Don't worry, we've got you covered at home." Chen's mother nodded, then turned to her eldest son, "Dashan, take good care of your father on the road."

"Yes, Mother," Chen Dashan replied calmly, having already checked the harness of the oxcart. His old leg injury had healed considerably since spring; although he couldn't walk as nimbly as before, daily walking and driving the cart were no longer a problem.

The father and son said no more. Chen Dashan gently shook the reins, and the old ox obediently started moving. The oxcart creaked and groaned as it drove out of the courtyard, gradually disappearing into the village road where the morning mist had not yet dissipated.

Chen's mother stood at the courtyard gate for a long time, watching until the figure was completely out of sight, before turning back into the courtyard. Su Xiaoyin and Su Xiaoqing had already gotten up and were drawing water from the well to wash up. The four children were still fast asleep, with soft snores coming from the main room.

"Mother, have Father and Brother left?" Su Xiaoqing asked, wiping her face.

"They're gone." Mother Chen rolled up her sleeves and began tidying up the stove. "Where's Xiaohe?"

"She went to set the fish trap, saying she'll be back to accompany us to the wilderness later." Su Xiaoyin spread the washed wild vegetables on a bamboo sieve with quick movements. "Mom, let's pickle some of these freshly picked wild vegetables. There aren't many left from last winter's pickling."

Chen's mother looked at the fresh and tender dandelions, shepherd's purse, and wild celery, and nodded, saying, "Okay, pickle them all. I'll clean out the pickling jar in a bit, and you can pickle them when you come back from the wilderness."

Just then, Chen Xiaohe's voice came from outside the courtyard: "Sister-in-law, Xiaoqing, let's go!"

(II) Initial Exploration of the Barren Mountain

Su Xiaoyin and Su Xiaoqing quickly shouldered their baskets, greeted Chen's mother, and followed Chen Xiaohe toward the barren mountain that his family had just bought.

The warm spring sunshine bathed us, the roadside weeds had already sprouted tall, and countless unnamed wildflowers bloomed here and there. After walking for about 15 minutes, a gentle slope came into view—this was the Chen family's barren hill. Unlike the surrounding neatly cultivated fields, this hillside remained wild, overgrown with shrubs and weeds, but the soil looked thick, and the sunny side received plenty of sunlight.

"This is our mountain." Su Xiaoqing stood at the foot of the slope, looking up at the mountain with a look of wonder in her eyes. Although she had already gotten the land deed back and had been here several times, each visit still felt different.

Chen Xiaohe chuckled, quite proudly: "That's right! One hundred and fifty mu! We'll clear out these flat areas at the foot of the mountain first, and plant soybeans this year. We'll gradually develop the land on the mountain; we can plant fruit trees and medicinal herbs there later."

The three began their ascent up the mountain. Chen Xiaohe led the way with a machete, clearing away the thorns that blocked their path. Su Xiaoyin and Su Xiaoqing, quick-witted and sharp-handed, soon filled half a basket with wild vegetables.

"There are so many medicinal herbs on this mountain." Chen Xiaohe pointed to a clump of plants with small purple flowers. "Is this Bupleurum chinense? And over there, it looks like Saposhnikovia divaricata."

Su Xiaoyin squatted down and carefully picked a few large Bupleurum chinense plants with intact root systems: "We'll only pick the big ones, and leave the smaller ones to grow slowly. This is our own mountain now, so we can't just dig them up whenever we see them like before. We have to think about a long-term, sustainable approach."

"Sister-in-law is right." Chen Xiaohe scratched his head. "By the way, you said you saw some toon seedlings last time? Where are they?"

Su Xiaoqing pointed to a patch of mixed trees to the east: "There are a few saplings over there, about knee-high. Xiaohe, do you think we can dig them up and plant them on our own mountain? That way, we can have toon trees to eat every spring."

"They should survive." Chen Xiaohe walked over and carefully examined the few tender seedlings. "Toona sinensis isn't picky about where it grows. When Dad and my older brother come back, we'll ask them. If it's okay, we'll transplant it to that sheltered, sunny spot on the hillside. Not just Toona sinensis, if we come across any other fruit tree seedlings, like wild apricots or wild jujubes, we can transplant those too."

Su Xiaoyin laughed and said, "Then we'll have to keep an eye on it in the future. If we can really grow a fruit orchard, we can not only eat it ourselves, but also sell the surplus for money."

"Exactly!" Su Xiaoqing said excitedly, "Toona sinensis is so expensive in spring! And there are wild apricots, which can be made into dried apricots; wild dates can be dried and used to make porridge."

As the three of them gathered wild vegetables, they discussed the future of this famous, barren mountain, becoming increasingly animated in their conversation. Their baskets gradually filled up; besides wild vegetables, they had also collected some high-quality medicinal herbs.

While resting, sitting on a flat, large rock, Su Xiaoqing asked Chen Xiaohe, "Xiaohe, how's the furniture you and your brother are doing? Is the order with Master Qin finished?"

"Almost done." Chen Xiaohe took a sip of water. "Just the final polishing and oiling. After we finish this busy period at home, my brother and I will set up a stall at the market. Just in case someone takes a liking to your craftsmanship!"

Looking at Chen Xiaohe's sun-tanned face, Su Xiaoyin said gently, "Xiaohe, your craftsmanship is quite good now. The bamboo box with a lid that you wove last time had fine stitches and a novel design; it sold the fastest at the market."

Chen Xiaohe smiled somewhat embarrassedly: "It's all thanks to my older brother's meticulous teaching. But I've thought about it myself, and I think I might be more dexterous with my hands, more suited for fine carving. I've discussed it with my older brother; from now on, he'll mainly be responsible for the basic shapes, and I'll assist him. We'll do the carving together. As for the money we earn..."

He paused for a moment before continuing, "I said it would be split 40/60, with my fourth brother getting 60%. But my eldest brother said to stick to the old rule, 50/50."

Su Xiaoyin said seriously, "Just do as your older brother said, split it fifty-fifty. We're brothers, there's no need to haggle over that extra ten percent. Although you're still learning the craft, you've put in just as much hard work. From now on, it'll be the same as before: you'll pay your share of the family business, and the rest will be split fifty-fifty between you two brothers. As a family, the most important thing is to be harmonious and support each other."

Hearing this, Chen Xiaohe felt a warm glow in his heart and nodded emphatically, "Yes! I'll listen to my sister-in-law!"

As the sun rose higher, the three carried their bountiful harvest home. The barren mountain stood silently behind them, seemingly stretching in the spring sunshine, silently bearing the family's hopes for the future.