Chapter 71: Chapter 62: Going to Wancheng
While Grandpa was securing the sacks layer by layer with hemp rope, Xiao Man ran back into the house and checked everything over. It was clear Grandpa had already inspected the place before her and taken all the necessary precautions. The kitchen was swept clean, the embers under the stove were covered with cold ash, and a large pot of congee—enough to last Grandma for several meals—was ready. The thermos, which Xiao Man had just filled the night before, contained water boiled from the spiritual spring water. She had poured half of it into Grandpa’s bamboo flask, leaving the other half for Grandma, which would be enough for a day.
Xiao Man stepped out of the kitchen and heard Grandma telling her to hurry. Grandpa was giving Grandma a few last-minute instructions, telling her to keep the door locked and not let Liu Fengying or Mo Laoer in if they came to cause trouble. He added that he’d already asked their neighbor, Second Granny Qiu, to come check on her when she had a moment. Grandma said she understood and urged them to leave quickly. It wouldn’t be good if they waited until dawn when there would be too many prying eyes to see the large cart full of goods.
Seeing Xiao Man settled on the oxcart, Grandpa raised his whip and gave a shout. The oxcart began to move with a CREAK, CREAK, setting off for Wancheng.
’I know it takes four or five hours to get to Wancheng by public bus from here,’ Xiao Man thought. ’In this era, the roads are all gravel. Some sections are too far from the maintenance stations and are poorly kept, leaving the surface riddled with potholes. The bus isn’t very fast either. Still, the road conditions are actually pretty good overall—wide enough, without any steep slopes or dangerous, sharp turns. If this were the future and the road was paved with asphalt, even an economy minibus could probably make the trip in two hours. And that’s not even mentioning a high-end car. In an emergency, you could probably get from our village to Wancheng in under an hour!’
But now, sitting on the slow-moving oxcart, Xiao Man mentally prepared herself. ’At this speed, it’ll probably take the entire day!’
At the slightest incline, Grandpa would get off and walk, or go around to the back to push the cart, worried about overworking the ox. At first, as Xiao Man watched the sky turn from dark to light and saw the fields and mountains, draped in a veil of mist, gradually come into view, she found it all rather fun. ’What a purely beautiful, rustic atmosphere!’ But once the sun rose, its heat making her dizzy, she grew frustrated. Frowning at the big water buffalo plodding along, head held high, she grumbled internally, ’You need to understand, you’re not a snail! Can’t you speed it up a little? Get us to Wancheng sooner!’
Seeing Xiao Man squinting, Grandpa thought she was sleepy. He took out a piece of blue homespun cloth. "Your Grandma said if you got sleepy, you should use this to cover yourself. We’re still a long way from Wancheng. Lean against those sacks, cover your head with this, and get some sleep."
Xiao Man used the blue cloth to shield herself from the sun but didn’t sleep. Instead, she started talking with her grandpa to pass the time. "Grandpa, when you used to go to the city to sell herbs, did you always take the oxcart? How come I’ve never seen you bring the oxcart back to the Mo Family Courtyard to load the herbs?"
"How could I let you all see? Your dad and second uncle... oh, from now on, you should at least call them ’uncle.’ Just call them First Uncle and Second Uncle. They only know that I gather herbs and sell them piecemeal to the commune or the county acquisition station. If they knew I was transporting them in bulk like this to Wancheng, they would’ve been eyeing my stash long ago! It’s not that I’m deliberately trying to hide it from them; I was thinking we could all go on as a family. But there’s still your grandma. Her eyes are bad, so I have to make some plans for her... I had wanted to teach your uncles to identify some herbs, but they weren’t willing to learn! In the past, when I didn’t have many herbs, maybe just three or four sacks, I’d take the public bus too. I’d pack them up at the reservoir, carry them down the mountain, and wait for the bus outside the village. I could tie the herbs to the roof of the bus, but it was a bit of a hassle. Tying everything down takes time, and it’s not good to keep a whole bus full of people waiting."
"So, taking the oxcart is more convenient, right? But it’s so slow. Grandpa, my feet are cramping up!"
"Nonsense! You’re sitting on the cart, not walking. How could your feet be cramping?"
In truth, her legs had just gone a bit numb from sitting for so long. Xiao Man hopped off the oxcart and started walking alongside it. "Well, I’ll walk for a bit then," she said with a grin. "Get some exercise!"
Grandpa warned her, "Stay on the side of the road. Don’t walk in the middle, and watch out for cars!"
"I know." Xiao Man walked a half-circle around the front and back of the cart, then asked curiously, "Grandpa, where’s your mysterious black jar?"
Grandpa couldn’t help but chuckle. "It’s just a jar. What’s so mysterious about it?"
"You won’t let me look at it or even move it, so how is it not mysterious? You said that’s the thing that’s really valuable and that you were bringing it to sell. How come I don’t see it?"
"Mm, I brought it. It’s tied up inside this pile."
"Grandpa, what’s in the jar? Why won’t you let me see?"
"That thing... a little kid would be scared to see it!"
"What is it, really?"
Grandpa was speechless. Faced with Xiao Man, who was determined to get to the bottom of it, he was at his wit’s end. He had no choice but to say, "It’s something poisonous!"
"Dead or alive?"
Grandpa: ...
He paused for a moment before answering, "Dead. Soaked in strong liquor."
Xiao Man climbed back onto the oxcart and said, "Grandpa, can we not catch those things anymore? It’s too dangerous. If you get bitten, what will Grandma and I do?"
Grandpa looked at Xiao Man, surprised. "How do you know those things can bite?"
"Of course I know! Mo Linghui said her dad has a liquor jar with things like snakes and centipedes soaking in it, and that drinking the liquor can cure illnesses! Plus, I saw with my own eyes how Mo Qinghe’s dad, from the end of the street, caught a big red centipede, still alive, and stuffed it directly into a liquor bottle! Those are all poisonous creatures that can be used as medicine. I figured that Grandpa’s jar must have snakes and centipedes in it too!"
’The venomous creatures in the jar were more than just snakes and centipedes.’
Grandpa patted Xiao Man’s head. "Don’t worry. If Grandpa can catch them, it means I have my ways!"
"That’s not good enough! Even the best swimmers can drown, and hunters can get killed by wild beasts! Grandpa, if you don’t listen to me, I’m going to tell Grandma!"
"Okay, okay! Grandpa will listen. I’m listening, I’m listening! Just don’t tell your grandma, alright?"
Grandpa was both exasperated and amused to find himself completely wrapped around his granddaughter’s finger. "Grandpa used to guard the reservoir, and I kept these things up there. I won’t be at the reservoir next month; I’ll be living at home. So I won’t go catch them anymore. That way, you and your grandma won’t have to be afraid!"
"Hmph, that’s more like it!" Xiao Man took out the bamboo flask and gave Grandpa a drink, then pulled out some roasted sweet potatoes. She ate two and gave the rest to Grandpa. It was hard to say whether this meal counted as breakfast or lunch.
After eating, Xiao Man felt her energy return and continued chatting with her grandpa. "Grandpa, when you went to the city to sell herbs before, did you always go alone? You didn’t bring anyone with you?"
"Grandpa doesn’t sell his herbs to the acquisition stations, but to a private buyer. If the authorities found out about that, it would be a huge disaster!"
"Oh, that’s called ’speculation and profiteering’!"
"Keep your voice down! All my life, Grandpa has just used his own two hands to gather herbs and sell them. I’ve never done anything wrong!"
"I know, Grandpa. I understand!"
"Mm. It’s all thanks to our village being full of relatives and old neighbors. Everyone here values our community ties. It’s not like other places where people are always looking to start political struggles, arresting this person or that one, and reporting others for stirring up trouble over the most trivial things. Of course, it’s also because we have a good Party Secretary. The old secretary was a decent man with a lot of authority, and the whole village respected him. The current secretary is your Fifth Uncle Mo, and he’s shielded me from a lot of trouble. The family in the city that buys my herbs, for them to dare to make private purchases, they must have some backing of their own. Still, it’s always better to be safe than sorry. No one wants trouble, so both sides have to be careful and try not to let anyone else know. That’s why Grandpa always comes alone, without any companions."
