The Abandoned Daughter's Second Chance

Liang Xiaoju was a diligent, good child. After idling for two days in her great-uncle’s large courtyard, on the third day she was already asking Xiao Man to take her out to work.

They were both young girls on the cusp of adolescence. The production team’s rice was ripe, but the order to start the harvest hadn’t been given yet, so the team had no use for part-time labor. This meant there were no work points to be earned. Their family also hadn’t bought any chicks, ducklings, or piglets yet, so there was no need to forage for wild greens. Since they couldn’t stand being idle, the only thing left to do was go up the mountain to chop firewood.

But Grandma, worried about accidents, stopped them from going up the mountain. She said that Secretary Mo had brought four or five bundles of firewood with his ox cart for the housewarming banquet, and there was still some left—enough to last for a while. Besides, Grandpa would be bringing more firewood back on his own tomorrow.

Xiao Man understood what Grandma was thinking. It wasn’t as if Grandma didn’t know her; she’d been working since she was a child, so an accident wasn’t likely. Grandma was simply worried about Liang Xiaoju. If something were to happen to her, it would make things awkward between the families.

Liang Xiaoju rolled back and forth on a long, clean stone slab under the pear tree, shouting at Xiao Man, "It’s so boring! No one ever comes here. I’m bored to death!"

Xiao Man shrugged. "This is just how it is. We have a small family and live a bit out of the way. During the day, everyone is out working and has no time to visit. How can it compare to your big, lively family? Are you starting to miss home?"

Liang Xiaoju shot her a wary glance. "I don’t miss home! My house is lively, sure, but it’s too noisy! This is better. It’s peaceful!"

Xiao Man was amused. ’This girl is such a contradiction.’

Seeing that it was still quite early, Xiao Man went to talk it over with Grandma. "I’ll take Xiaoju out for a little while. We won’t go to the stone mountain, just to the dirt hills to cut some thatch grass. Is that okay?"

The newly renovated kitchen had a fuel-efficient stove, which required firewood to be chopped into small, foot-long pieces that could just be tossed in. Kitchens with these stoves were usually cleaner.

Thatch grass could also be used as fuel, but it was generally for large earthen stoves. It was perfect for setting up a big iron wok to cook pig slop or simmer a large pot of porridge. However, kitchens with those big stoves were inevitably filled with flying ash and impossible to keep clean. The open stove mouth and the surrounding walls would be scorched black by the smoke and flames.

Their family didn’t have a large stove yet, but cutting a couple of loads of thatch grass to keep on hand would be useful for kindling.

Grandma was also worried Liang Xiaoju might actually get sick from boredom, so she instructed Xiao Man, "Alright, you can go. Be careful with the sickles, and don’t carry heavy loads. Just tie up two head-sized bundles of grass each. That’ll be enough!"

Liang Xiaoju was thrilled to hear she could go out. She and Xiao Man readily agreed, and the two of them grabbed sickles and wooden carrying poles sharpened at both ends before leaving the house together.

Once outside, they had to interact with the villagers. Between the housewarming banquet and the scene Liu Fengying had caused, Xiao Man had become a known figure in the village and even gained a bit of popularity. Everyone she met on the road greeted her. Even the dogs running along the village path wagged their tails when they saw her. Xiao Man kept a smile on her face, feeling better than she had in a long time.

Of course, Liang Xiaoju didn’t know that because of the abuse Xiao Man had suffered from Liu Fengying since childhood, she had also been looked down upon by the villagers. Xiaoju just assumed Xiao Man had always been this popular, and her gaze filled with even more envy and jealousy.

The jealousy between children, with a few rare exceptions, is mostly just that—jealousy, without any deep-seated malice. Liang Xiaoju fell into this category.

Xiao Man knew Liang Xiaoju could be a bit willful and dramatic, but she wasn’t a bad person at heart. The previous night, as they were sleeping, Xiao Man was suddenly pulled awake in the middle of the night. In her groggy state, she heard Liang Xiaoju mutter, "If you fall off the bed, I’m not going to bother with you!"

’Sharing a bed, it was very likely that Liang Xiaoju had pushed her to the edge. But the fact that Xiaoju had pulled her back in time showed that she had a good heart.’

’Xiao Man didn’t mind the idea of Liang Xiaoju staying; it would be nice to have another person around. But she knew it was unlikely. Grandpa might not object too strongly, but Grandma’s stance was firm.’

’It seemed Grandma and Xiaoju’s grandmother didn’t get along. Xiao Man remembered that when her Grand-Aunt had come in the day before, she hadn’t said a single word to Grandma from start to finish. And while Grandpa and the Grand-Aunt were arguing, Grandma had sat motionless under the eaves without going inside. When the Grand-Aunt left, Grandma didn’t make a peep!’

’Grandma had never been one to cause trouble. If Xiao Man hadn’t told her with her own mouth that she wasn’t Liu Fengying’s biological daughter, Grandma probably wouldn’t have been so insistent on bringing her over to live with them. Given the discord between Grandma and the Grand-Aunt, how could she possibly accept Liang Xiaoju?’

’After all, accepting Liang Xiaoju meant getting entangled with the Liang Family. If the Grand-Aunt started visiting frequently on the pretext of seeing her granddaughter, Grandma would be forced to deal with her and would lose her peace and quiet for good.’

’Grandpa listened to Grandma in everything, so the final outcome would probably be that Liang Xiaoju would just stay in Gongdao Village for a few days as a guest.’

’Xiao Man felt she should at least fulfill her duties as a host and show Liang Xiaoju around. It was also a good chance for her to be seen more by the villagers and make her presence known.’

Gongdao Village was a large village with five or six production teams. Each team had its own farming area, which included not just fields but also the mountains, forests, and hills allocated to the team. Xiao Man remembered that her family belonged to Production Team Three.

People from Team Three went to East Mountain to chop firewood. For cutting thatch grass, they went to the rolling dirt hills of varying heights to the west. East Mountain had long-burning alpine wood, while the dense thatch grass and low shrubs on the hills were also excellent for fuel. Among those shrubs were berry bushes, like the sweet rose myrtle—which the locals called *shanren* berries—that ripened around July and August. That was why women and children loved going to the hills to cut grass and pick *shanren* berries at the same time.

Xiao Man led Liang Xiaoju to a slope in their team’s work area. They first dove into the brush to look for *shanren* berries to eat. Ripe *shanren* berries were glossy black, about the size of a thumb. The plumper they were, the sweeter and more delicious. But you couldn’t eat too many. If your stomach wasn’t strong enough, eating too many would make you constipated!

So, Xiao Man and Liang Xiaoju didn’t dare eat too many, stopping after just twenty or thirty. By then, their lips, teeth, and fingertips had all turned a dark purple, stained by the berry juice. The color didn’t come off easily; it couldn’t be washed away and would only fade after three or four days.

In her past life, Xiao Man had been used to farm work, and cutting a couple of bundles of thatch grass would have been nothing to her. But having returned to this time in her current life, Xiao Man discovered she was out of practice!

Liang Xiaoju, however, was quick and efficient. She cut the grass, gathered it, and tied it up. Then, with a deft move of her carrying pole, a sturdy, neat, and well-formed bundle of grass was ready to go.

Xiaoju was already free to dive back into the bushes to pick more *shanren* berries, while Xiao Man was still struggling to tie her bundle. It had to be compressed and tied tightly; otherwise, if the rope came loose on the way, it would be a huge hassle to fix.

Liang Xiaoju emerged with two pockets full of *shanren* berries and saw Xiao Man still wrestling with her carrying pole and bundles. She couldn’t help but giggle and toss out a few taunts. Xiao Man ignored her, gritted her teeth, finally managed to thread the bundles onto her pole, hoisted it onto her shoulder, and started down the hill.

Liang Xiaoju was a year or two older, as well as stronger and more capable. Even if Xiao Man got a big head start, Xiaoju could catch up in no time.

In a playful race, the two of them headed back without resting. Carrying their loads, they went down the slope, crossed two shallow streams and a large expanse of fields, and made it back to the village in one go. They finally stopped in front of the large gate of the brigade headquarters, setting their bundles down on the roadside to catch their breath and rest their feet.