The old woman heard her granddaughter’s words, "That little rascal is smart after all. If he causes any trouble, Grandma will give him a good talking-to so he won't dare speak a word outside."

This was about Chi Wu. Towards her own granddaughter, she was unconditionally supportive.

The old woman glanced at the cloth bundle. "Yingzi, what is this for?"

Cheng Ying looked at her grandmother, completely baffled. Was this the same progressive old woman?

It didn't seem like a grave matter at all. She saw the old woman pick up a handful of wool. "What a pity for such clean wool, it can't see the light of day."

Cheng Ying followed her grandmother’s lead. "Grandma, can you make it into socks for me? I can wear them on my feet, and no one will know."

The old woman nodded. "That’s one way to handle it, though it’s quite illicit."

Cheng Ying looked at her own ragged clothes. Indeed, pure wool items were something she didn't possess, so starting with her feet made sense.

It truly was illicit. And a waste.

Then she heard her grandmother say, "Yingzi, this is what they call stolen goods. When you have something good, but can’t use it for its proper purpose, we need to take fewer risks in the future, understand? It’s not worth it."

Cheng Ying obediently nodded. Her grandmother’s way of teaching was certainly unique.

Cheng Ying took off her shoes and sat down next to her grandmother on the kang bed. "I'll listen to you, Grandma."

The old woman smiled with satisfaction. "My Yingzi is the most obedient."

Then she started twisting the wool into rope, intending to make something out of it required first turning the wool into yarn.

Cheng Ying sat by the kerosene lamp, learning from her grandmother how to twist the wool.

She couldn't help but wonder if Song Dandan also spent half the night twisting ropes after shearing the sheep.

When Cheng Ying had learned enough, the old woman blew out the kerosene lamp.

Mother and daughter sat on the kang, twisting the thread in the dark. For Cheng Ying, it was a bit difficult.

Her grandmother lived so frugally, even using the little kerosene so meticulously.

The old woman stroked the soft, fine wool in her hands. "Yingzi, don't do this anymore. You must have frozen your hands washing the wool."

Saying this, the old woman reached out and touched her granddaughter’s hand. Clearly, she was feeling pity.

Cheng Ying looked at the still-white wool in the moonlight. Wasn't it true? If she had washed this with water, it would have taken half the day!

This was hard to admit. "Grandma, it’s fine. I had Chi Wu wash it. That boy is meticulous; I didn't expect him to wash it this white."

This was, in a roundabout way, a compliment for Chi Wu.

The old woman’s hands, rubbing the yarn, paused. "Hmm, that’s fair, considering I let him build the fire."

Cheng Ying opened her mouth, not understanding her grandmother’s logic. She actually made such a young child cook over the fire, and considered that being good to him?

The old woman looked at Cheng Ying’s mouth. In the moonlight, it was just a shadow. "Silly girl, do you think your grandma genuinely dislikes that little rascal and just has to torment him? Look at his padded coat; there’s hardly any cotton inside, mostly straw. If I hadn't made him mind the stove, he would have frozen to death."

Cheng Ying looked at her grandmother, feeling deeply conflicted. One shouldn't judge a book by its cover. With that appearance, the old woman didn't look like a kind person at all, yet the things she did were so heartwarming.

Chi Wu would probably never know his grandmother's true intentions. "Grandma, why go through all this trouble for nothing? Why don't you re-stuff his cotton coat tomorrow?"

The old woman snorted. "Why should I try to please him? I’m not counting on him for anything in return. Besides, our Dun doesn't even have padded trousers yet."

Alright, the latter part was definitely the truth. Even if the old woman was kind-hearted, she certainly had her own priorities. Chi Wu was definitely at the bottom of the list.

Cheng Ying thought she had overestimated the degree of her grandmother's benevolence.

Mother and daughter continued twisting yarn together in the night. The north wind howled against the windowpanes, but Cheng Ying’s heart was warm.

The material conditions here were indeed lacking, but the spiritual life was rich—having a grandmother who doted on her, and a mother who secretly gave her things to eat.

Cheng Ying didn't know when she fell asleep. When she woke the next morning, there wasn't a single strand of wool left on the old woman's kang, showing how thoroughly she had cleaned up.

Following routine, amidst the bitter fragrance of corn porridge, a new day of life began.

After the adults had eaten and left for work, the old woman took the youngest grandson, Dun, to deliver eggs to the production team.

Chi Wu was left outside feeding the chickens and tidying the yard.

This work wouldn't be finished before midday.

Cheng Ying closed the door, slipped back into the room, and instantly entered her space.

Outside, Chi Wu glared fiercely in Cheng Ying’s direction. He had never seen such a lazy girl. And her thinking was problematic too. With that thought, the force with which he swept the ground increased, sending clouds of dust flying across the yard.

Cheng Ying entered her space. The sweet potatoes she had buried yesterday had already sprouted. The squash seeds buried yesterday had also sprouted, and the cabbage and radishes brought in yesterday had all flowered.

Cheng Ying pinched her own face hard. Stupid! Why did you plant the radishes and cabbage? What could possibly grow from them? They just flowered, of course.

Cheng Ying looked at what was before her, not feeling too rushed. Flowering was good; flowering meant setting seed. In the future, perhaps she could grow a small field of cabbage and a large patch of radishes. No rush. We are not in a hurry.

Then Cheng Ying looked at the space again. The initial haziness was now lifted by the radishes and cabbages on the ground. From the ground up to the height of the cabbage flowers, the area was no longer misty. These plants were like pillars supporting the separation of chaos.

Cheng Ying mused that if she managed to bring in a tree sapling, perhaps if the tree grew tall enough, the mist in the space would be lifted that high too. That would make the space look much tidier. Of course, all this remained to be discovered.

Cheng Ying scooped a ladle of water and poured it onto the squash vine. She had never seen such large, beautiful squash flowers. She wondered how big the resulting squash would be. Her heart was filled with anticipation.

In Cheng Ying’s space, there were now two springs, both dug by Cheng Ying herself. One was smaller, and Cheng Ying had put two barrels of clean water there for drinking. The other was the one originally used for soaking the wool.

Cheng Ying had experimented; the space was quite reliable. This water regenerated. She had drawn out so much water, but the level barely seemed to drop.

Cheng Ying pondered the times: everything belonged to the production team. What private things could she bring in? Looking at the springs, Cheng Ying set her sights on the river. The river was so wide, and the things in it were countless. You couldn't claim everything in the river belonged to the team, to the public, could you? Her own space produced flowering squash overnight; if she brought in two small fish fry, wouldn't she be able to drink fish soup in a couple of days? The thought alone made her drool. She was truly craving fish.

Cheng Ying flashed out of the space and rushed out of the east room.

Chi Wu, sweeping the yard, stopped mid-motion. Why was this girl coming out at this hour?

Cheng Ying snapped, "What are you doing? Hurry up, why are you dawdling?" She had the commanding air of a landlady. Chi Wu gritted his teeth and continued sweeping.

Cheng Ying looked at Chi Wu. She thought about going to the river for fish, but she couldn't go alone. She still needed this boy.

Her tone immediately softened. "Once you finish sweeping the yard, let's go out and play for a bit."

Chi Wu glanced at her from the corner of his eye, his look openly mocking. "Not going. Not going anywhere with you."

Cheng Ying glared. Damn it! It seemed the oppression wasn't enough; the boy still dared to challenge her. "Hmph, hurry up! If you don't go, I'll go cause trouble in your father's sheep pen."

Chi Wu’s indifferent posture instantly stiffened. He stared at Cheng Ying, his eyes blazing with fury. The sound of the broom scraping the dusty ground grew louder.

Cheng Ying looked at the dust churning up. This boy was doing it on purpose. But no matter what, this boy still had to follow her. As an adult, Cheng Ying had no sense of guilt about bullying a child; she was simply used to it.

After sweeping the yard, Chi Wu, under Cheng Ying's coercion, reluctantly led the way out.

To be honest, Chi Wu was afraid of Cheng Ying. This girl did things that were incredibly irritating; there wasn't a single thing about her that looked right. In the few days they'd known each other, Chi Wu could list three major offenses: first, forcing him to steal wool with her; second, forcing him not to scare the wolf cubs while demanding he receive work points for it; and third, her attitude toward his father yesterday had completely offended Chi Wu. She was too shameless! Therefore, Chi Wu hadn't had a good attitude towards Cheng Ying since early this morning. Chi Wu had already decided: stay as far away from this girl as possible from now on.

Cheng Ying looked at the narrow dirt road winding through the village. When would this turn into a concrete slab? She looked down at her tattered padded shoes. Not only was the outside covered in dirt, but her toes inside could scratch the soles. And Cheng Ying knew there was straw stuffed inside her shoes. She didn't know what kind of straw, but every morning, her grandmother layered fresh straw into her shoes, covered that with a piece of cloth, and Cheng Ying didn't dare object. But the soles of her feet felt terribly uncomfortable. "Chi Wu, let's go play by the river."

Chi Wu was impatient and didn't even turn his head. "The river is frozen over. What's fun about that?"

Cheng Ying said, "Can't we play on the ice?"

Chi Wu looked down, ignoring Cheng Ying. Cheng Ying looked at Chi Wu and immediately understood why the boy didn't want to play on the ice. If Cheng Ying's shoes were broken, Chi Wu's were ready to be thrown away. His big toe was poking through the sole, and even the patches were wearing thin. How could he possibly play on the ice in such shoes? Besides, his grandmother had mentioned last night that Chi Wu’s padded coat didn't block the wind, and the wind by the river was fierce. It was no wonder the boy reacted so strongly.

Cheng Ying said, "Okay, we won't go onto the ice, just walk by the riverbank. You can wait for me in a spot sheltered from the wind."

As soon as Cheng Ying finished speaking, Chi Wu snapped his head around. "What are you planning? I just remembered, the team is netting fish today. What scheme are you cooking up now? I’m not going."

Cheng Ying hadn't paid attention to Chi Wu's attitude; she only registered that the team was netting fish today. Her spirits instantly soared. Fishing in troubled waters—someone sending a pillow when she was sleepy; it was too timely. She grabbed Chi Wu. "Hurry up, let's go watch the excitement!"

Chi Wu looked utterly wronged. "I'm not going!"

Cheng Ying retorted, "You stubborn child! I'm just going to watch the excitement, why are you throwing a tantrum? You don't want to see it?"

Chi Wu said, "I want to see it, but I'm more afraid of you not behaving yourself." He had completely branded Cheng Ying as a saboteur.

Cheng Ying snapped, "Hurry up and go! Mind your own business whether I behave or not!"