Chapter 62: Chapter 62: Shen Family Village
In the end, they didn’t find any crabs, but they did find a tiny, black fish with a little tail.
It was the smallest fish Yun Jiao had ever seen, and it looked very strange.
"What kind of fish is this?"
She scooped up the little fish to show her brothers.
Yun Xiaowu said, "It’s a tadpole. It’ll grow into a frog or a toad."
Yun Linhai and Shen Yunlian walked over too.
Yun Linhai was surprised. "There are still tadpoles at this time of year?"
"They probably hatched late," Shen Yunlian said.
If it were the breeding season, the entire creek would be full of these little black tadpoles swimming everywhere.
But now, there were only a handful.
"You can’t eat this."
Yun Jiao let out a disappointed "Oh."
As they continued walking deeper into the mountains, her excitement lasted for a little while before she quickly grew tired.
The sun was strong, and walking wasn’t as comfortable as swimming.
Her short legs grew sore, and she was thirsty.
Soon, Yun Jiao was like a wilted, dehydrated little fish.
"Mama, I want some water."
Shen Yunlian handed her the water bottle. "The water’s almost gone. I remember there’s a spring up ahead. Let’s go get some water and take a rest."
They had already been walking for an hour.
They still had another half hour to go.
Yun Jiao felt better only after drinking her fill of the sweet, cool spring water.
For the rest of the way, she was almost always being carried or given a piggyback ride.
Yun Xiaowu and the other boys were full of energy. Taking turns carrying Yun Jiao on their backs, they could still scamper up the mountain path for a good distance.
「They finally arrived at Shen Family Village.」
As they passed by some fields, they could see people working in them.
When these people saw the group approaching on the road, they temporarily stopped their work to look.
"Xiao Lian, you’re back?"
Shen Yunlian smiled and greeted them. She knew almost all of these elders.
"Xiao Lian, you brought your daughter back this year? She’s so lovely! I’ve never seen such a pretty child."
Among the people from her maiden family, only Shen Yunlian’s parents and brothers knew about Yun Jiao’s situation. To everyone else, they said she was Shen Yunlian’s biological daughter.
She had given birth to so many children that no one would doubt it.
Shen Yunlian held Yun Jiao’s hand and taught her how to address each person they met.
Yun Jiao was well-behaved. Her large, dewy eyes looked at the strangers as if trying hard to remember their faces. Then, she followed her mama’s lead, calling out to the elders in her soft, sweet voice.
"Grand-auntie."
"Grand-uncle Shen."
...
There were so many people, and the titles for most of the elders were the same.
After greeting everyone, Yun Jiao also received some small gifts.
A small handful of peanuts and melon seeds, a cucumber, some cherry tomatoes, and two plump eggplants or some unknown wild fruits.
Many others didn’t give her anything, because the visit was sudden and they weren’t carrying anything with them.
Yun Jiao wasn’t picky about food. She would even take a bite out of a bitter melon before scrunching up her little face and giving it to her mama to cook.
After saying goodbye to the villagers, Yun Jiao picked up an eggplant and took a big, CRUNCHY bite.
Shen Yunlian: ...
’Oh well. She can eat that too.’
"Jiaojiao, eggplant tastes better when it’s cooked. You could have eaten the cucumber or the cherry tomatoes."
’Why did she have to pick the eggplant to munch on?’
Yun Jiao mumbled a slow "Oh." The eggplant in her mouth made her soft, fair cheek bulge out into a small, fleshy, round bump.
Yun Xiaowu poked it.
Yun Jiao, who was in the middle of eating, froze. She glanced at her Fifth Brother, then slowly moved the wad of eggplant to her other cheek.
Yun Xiaowu chuckled. ’My sister is so cute and funny when she eats.’
Setting aside the half-eaten eggplant, she started eating the other things.
She popped the cherry tomatoes into her mouth one by one.
She counted them, gave one to her papa, mama, and each of her brothers, and still had two left for herself.
’Perfect.’
Then she handed out the cherry tomatoes.
"There’s only one cucumber, so I’m not sharing it, okay?"
She discussed it very seriously with her papa and mama.
They were both amused. "Alright, alright, you don’t have to share. Go on and eat. Your grandma has some at her house too."
Yun Jiao’s eyes lit up.
"Then... does Grandma’s house have cherry tomatoes?"
She loved sweet and sour cherry tomatoes.
"Yes, and I’ll make you some sugared tomatoes then."
Yun Jiao replied cheerfully, "Okay!"
When they arrived at the house, they found the door locked and no one home.
It made sense. During the day, almost everyone in the village was out working in the fields.
And in an era without mobile phones, finding someone relied purely on shouting at the top of your lungs.
"Dad, Mom, where are you..."
To make his voice carry farther, Yun Xiaowu climbed the large pear tree in front of the house and started shouting too.
"Grandpa, Grandma..."
The amazing thing was, family members could always tell who was calling.
If they were in a nearby field or on a closer part of the mountain, they would hear and respond.
If no one answered after a few shouts, it meant they weren’t nearby.
Fortunately, a response soon came from the mountain behind the house.
"Coming, we’re on our way back..."
Yun Jiao was squatting on the ground, poking at ants with a small stick. Every so often, she would look up at the green-skinned pears hanging from the tree, her face a picture of craving.
"Fifth Brother, can I eat a pear?"
"They’re not ripe yet," Yun Xiaowu said.
Yun Jiao said in a serious tone, "I think they’re ready to eat."
"Should I pick one for you to try?" Yun Xiaowu asked.
He picked a larger pear and climbed down. Yun Jiao eagerly reached out to take it.
She took a bite. It was a little tart, but edible.
The pear was juicy and had a hint of sweetness. Yun Jiao ate with great satisfaction.
She glanced at the ants on the ground she had been tormenting earlier and placed a small piece of pear skin in front of them.
A small black ant tasted it, wiggled its antennae, and ran off. But it soon returned with a line of black ants, which swarmed around the small piece of pear skin.
"Auntie, Cousins, Jiaojiao..."
A cheerful shout came from the mountain path.
Yun Jiao looked up. It was her cousin.
He was wearing a patched blue shirt and dusty, loose-fitting gray pants with the cuffs rolled up to his knees. His skin was slightly dark, he had a buzz cut, and he was two years older than Yun Xiaowu. His face was lit up with a huge smile.
"Cousin."
Yun Jiao called out softly.
She had met her cousin before, but not many times.
Because of the distance, they only visited each other for important events or holidays, seeing each other only three or four times a year.
Shen Xiuyuan bounded down the mountain from some distance away, his movements as fast as an excited husky.
In the blink of an eye, he was in front of them. After greeting Yun Xiaowu and the others, he swept up Yun Jiao before she could even react.
"Jiaojiao’s here too! Jiaojiao, you finally came to my house! I’ll take you to play in the mountains."
Yun Jiao furrowed her little brow and pressed her hands against Shen Xiuyuan’s face, trying to fend off her overly enthusiastic cousin.
"It’s been so long, Jiaojiao! I really missed you. Didn’t you miss me?"
Shen Xiuyuan’s eyes sparkled, and he was as cheerful as a big dog wagging its tail.
If Yun Jiao had said no, his eyes would surely have dimmed, and he would have drooped his tail and ears like a poor, big dog abandoned in a storm.
In the end, the soft-hearted Little Yu nodded.
"Mhm, I missed you, Cousin."
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