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

She paused, her tone tinged with regret: "With less rain, the mushrooms on the mountain aren't growing. Every winter, our dried mushrooms and dried wood ear mushrooms are the best-selling mountain products. City people only care about these, and they're even more expensive than fresh ones. If there's still less rain this year, I'm afraid there won't be much to pick."

Upon hearing the word "mushrooms," Su Xiaoqing's stomach rumbled with anticipation, and she swallowed hard. "You're right! I'm really hoping to pick some mushrooms and make some mushroom-filled buns. Last year, Xiaohe ate five or six of the mushroom and meat buns I made in one go, and even I was stuffed. Just thinking about them makes my mouth water." Su Xiaoyin chuckled and gently tapped her with the handle of her hoe. "If you want buns, we'll make them tomorrow. We'll have Xiaohe buy some meat, a good mix of lean and fat, and chop it into filling. If that's too much trouble, we can just make vegetarian buns. All the vegetables in the yard are in season now—chives, bok choy, radishes—what can't we use? Chive and egg filling is delicious too, just as good as meat."

Su Xiaoqing nodded, then returned to the topic of the shop: "Sister, the main reason our shop is doing so well is because we have fresh vegetables. People from the neighborhood are willing to buy from us, not just because they're cheap, but mainly because our vegetables are fresh and crisp. It would be great if we could have fresh vegetables in winter too; business would definitely be even better then."

Su Xiaoyin laughed and said, "How could that be? It's so cold here in winter, with heavy snow, nothing can be planted in the fields. If it were our hometown in the south, it might be possible, as winters aren't that cold, and vegetables can grow. But it's impossible here. Winters are freezing, water freezes instantly, and anything you plant will freeze."

Su Xiaoyin was silent for a while, a thought that had been swirling in her mind for a long time. After a moment of contemplation, she slowly said, "Yes, it's just that the temperature is too low. But we can try growing vegetables at home. We can dig up the chive roots, plant them in a wooden trough, and put them in a warm place indoors. If they survive, we can harvest chives to eat in the winter. It's not like we're growing in a large field; it's just an experiment, so it won't take much effort. If it doesn't work, we can just plant them again next spring, so we won't lose anything."

Su Xiaoqing's eyes lit up, and she slapped her thigh, startling a grasshopper in the roadside grass, which jumped high into the air. "Sis, this is a great idea! Let's try it this winter. Chives, garlic sprouts, and scallions are easy to grow and don't mind the soil. We can also plant garlic; the garlic sprouts will grow back after we cut them."

Su Xiaoyin nodded, her tone resolute: "Okay, let's give it a try this winter. If it works, we'll expand next year and put more wooden troughs inside. Then we can have fresh vegetables to sell in winter, the only one of its kind in the whole county, so we won't have to worry about finding buyers."

The two sisters chatted as they walked, unknowingly reaching the back of the hill. The hillside was covered in lush wild grass—lamb's quarters, purslane, dandelions—a vibrant green that pigs loved. They squatted down and began cutting bunches of grass, filling their baskets in no time. After gathering pig feed, they went to the bamboo grove to collect bamboo leaves for making zongzi (sticky rice dumplings), filling their basket to the brim.

As the sun rose higher, sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

Su Xiaoyin straightened up, wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand, and looked at the sky.

"Let's go back. We still need to make lunch." She slung her basket over her shoulder and carried her carrying basket down the mountain.

Su Xiaoqing followed behind, her steps light and quick.

The aroma of mung bean soup wafted from the kitchen again, mingled with the fresh scent of new cloth, carried far on the early summer breeze. Days passed by like this, mundane and busy, but fulfilling.

----

When Chen Dashan and Chen Xiaohe returned home, it was already completely dark. The kitchen light was on, its warm orange glow streaming through the window and casting a cozy, square shadow in the yard. Su Xiaoyin was standing by the stove, stirring the food in the pan with a spatula, oil splattering and sizzling. Su Xiaoqing was squatting in front of the stove adding firewood, the firelight making her face glow red.

Chen Xiaohe parked his bicycle against the wall, went into the kitchen, lifted the pot lid, glanced inside, sniffed, and his eyes curved into crescents. As he scooped water to wash his hands, he said, "Sister-in-law, Xiaoqing, the shop got a big order today. Remember that old man who always comes to the shop—the one with the white hair who let you taste the braised meat last time?"

Su Xiaoyin was serving the vegetables when she paused, thought for a moment, and nodded: "I remember. He's very picky. He picks out every single vegetable and checks every single egg. If anything is even slightly not fresh, he won't take it. But he knows his stuff; he knows how good our food is."

Chen Xiaohe took the towel Su Xiaoqing handed him and wiped his hands, his voice filled with barely suppressed excitement: "It's him! His son runs a small restaurant in the county town, and he ordered twenty catties of vegetables for us to deliver tomorrow. Twenty catties! And he said that as long as we can maintain this level of quality—delivering vegetables every day that are as fresh as those sold in the shop—he will keep ordering from us."

Su Xiaoqing was setting the table when she heard this and almost dropped the bowl in her hand. Her eyes widened, the corners of her mouth curved wider and wider, and her voice rose a half octave: "Really? I thought that old man was particularly picky when he came to buy things before. I didn't expect his son to own a restaurant. He's helped us make connections."

"Indeed." Chen Dashan walked in from outside the kitchen, untied his tool bag from his waist and placed it behind the door. He washed his hands, sat down at the table, and took the bowl that Su Xiaoyin handed him. The bowl contained freshly poured mung bean soup, ice-cold, just drawn from the well. A layer of fine water droplets condensed on the bowl's surface, making it cool to the touch. "Luckily, our vegetables are good enough that he'd be interested, otherwise he would have turned down such a big order. Twenty catties of vegetables is no small amount. If we could produce that much every day, the shop could break even just from selling vegetables."

Su Xiaoyin brought the last dish to the table, took off her apron, and sat down. After listening to their conversation, her brows relaxed, a smile appeared on her lips, and her eyes sparkled. She sensed a deeper meaning in Chen Dashan's words—this wasn't just about twenty jin of vegetables; it was about a long-term, stable sales channel.

"Tomorrow morning, Xiaohe, I'll get up early with you. We'll deliver the vegetables to the old man first, and then go back to the grocery store. We can't delay his opening." Chen Dashan picked up his rice bowl and put it down again, looking at his younger brother with a serious tone. "The vegetables must be the best; we can't deliver leftovers, wilted ones, or ones with wormholes. The first delivery is crucial for making a good impression. If you make a good impression, things will be easier to discuss later."

Su Xiaoyin suddenly remembered something, put down her chopsticks, and her eyes lit up: "Xiaoqing and I picked a lot of bamboo leaves for making zongzi today. Tomorrow, take some to the old man and say that we picked them ourselves to use for making zongzi. We were thinking that since it's almost Dragon Boat Festival, we wanted to give them some to celebrate. It's not worth much money, it's just a token of our appreciation. He wants good luck, so he won't accept it for nothing."