“Are these really my clothes? I have my very own thick, warm coat now?” Heidan’s eyes sparkled as he hugged his new winter clothes tightly. “Sister Song, this coat is so warm. I’m so happy! Now I won’t have to be afraid of the cold this winter.”
Heidan couldn’t stop chattering, sharing his joy with Song Wei. She had given him all the clothes she’d prepared. Some were made from her old clothes that Li Juan had helped alter, and two were brand-new winter coats.
“These are all yours, Heidan,” Song Wei said warmly. “Now find a place in the cabinet to keep them. Once it gets cold, you’ll be ready to wear them.”
“Okay!”
After the initial happiness wore off, Heidan’s eyes filled with tears, and he suddenly burst into sobs as he clung to Song Wei. His small shoulders shook as he let out all his pent-up sorrow.
“Thank you, Sister Song. I finally have my own clothes, and I won’t have to worry about waking up because of the cold anymore…”
He poured out his fears and his struggles, breaking down in a way he hadn’t allowed himself to before. Growing up in such a tough environment, Heidan had learned to be strong, never complaining or seeking comfort. But now that someone was finally showing him kindness, he no longer had to keep up his defenses. Seeing other children who had someone to run to when they were upset had always made him feel left out, but now, he finally had someone he could turn to, too.
Song Wei gently patted his head. “Tomorrow, we’ll get up early, and you’ll train with me. That way, you can stand up to anyone who tries to bully you. And if you can’t, you come to me, and I’ll take care of it for you.”
Heidan sniffed and nodded with determination. “Mm!”
Three days before his wedding, Luo Yecheng finally scraped together enough to pay for the bicycle coupon. When he handed over the money, his face was dark and sour, but Song Wei barely gave him a glance before taking the money and leaving.
On her way up the mountain with Heidan, she noticed a group of kids catching crayfish by the water. Leading the group were Captain Li’s two children, who waved energetically when they saw Song Wei and Heidan.
“Sister Song, Heidan! Come help us catch crayfish!” one of them shouted.
Song Wei waved them off. “No, you go ahead. We’re here to find something else.”
Heidan, watching the kids excitedly splashing in the water, leaned over and whispered, “Sister Song, what if they catch all the crayfish?”
“Are you craving more?” Song Wei asked, smiling.
Heidan nodded, a little sheepishly. “The crayfish is really tasty…”
“Yes, it’s delicious but it uses up a lot of oil. Do you think people around here would be willing to spend that much oil on crayfish? Without enough oil, it won’t taste as good. I bet they’ll get tired of it after a couple of days.”
Understanding only half of her answer, Heidan nodded in agreement. He trusted whatever Sister Song told him.
Just then, a young boy with bare feet ran over, calling out, “Sister Song, do you still want to pick grapes like you said?”
“Oh, I’d almost forgotten about that!” Song Wei replied, looking at the boy. “Where are they? Lead the way, then!”
The boy, Shuanzi, happily led the way, chatting with Heidan along the trail.
“Heidan, did I tell you? Lin Youcai got in trouble! He snuck one of Lin Youfu’s eggs and some sugar to brag about, and when he got home, he got caught. His grandmother’s health hasn’t been great since a fight she got into a while back, and after scolding him, she fell and couldn’t get up. But Lin Youcai still got a couple of smacks before they let him go.”
Shuanzi’s story held Song Wei’s attention, wishing she’d heard sooner and could have witnessed the family drama firsthand. Seeing the Lin family’s chaos would’ve been priceless. Heidan, though, just shrugged it off. He didn’t care for the Lin family.
After a short walk, they arrived at a thicket of wild grapes. There were clusters of dark purple grapes clinging to the vines, with some fallen to the ground. A few birds were pecking at the grapes but not many.
Song Wei picked one, but as soon as she bit into it, her face scrunched up from the intense sourness.
Heidan looked the same. “They’re so sour!”
Shuanzi, unfazed, shrugged. “If they tasted better, I’d have picked them already. Do you still want them?”
“Yes, we’ll take them,” Song Wei replied. “Shuanzi, help me gather as many as you can, and I’ll cook you an egg later.”
“Really?” Shuanzi’s eyes lit up as he sniffled and proudly patted his chest. “Don’t worry, Big Sis! I’ll get it done!”
It didn’t take much to win the little guy’s loyalty.
“I can pick a lot too!” Heidan added eagerly.
“I’ll make you an egg too,” Song Wei promised.
Heidan blinked, surprised. “But you already made me an egg this morning.”
After trading fish and crayfish for eggs and sugar, Song Wei had treated Heidan to sugar-boiled eggs for breakfast, and he’d enjoyed the sweetness of it.
Shuanzi was a bit envious—he hadn’t had an egg in days. With a new burst of energy, the two boys began dashing around the grapevines, determined to gather as many as they could.
Song Wei joined them, moving carefully through the vines. She planned to make grape jam with these grapes, adding plenty of sugar to balance out the sourness.
As she picked, she noticed a small valley not far from the grapevines. Inside were bright red berries hanging from spiky bushes—wild goji berries.
Goji berries not only added flavor to chicken stew, but they also fetched a good price. The hospital would pay 2.4 yuan per kilogram for them, as Song Wei had learned from their herb-buying list.
“Heidan, stop with the grapes and come help me pick goji berries!” she called.
The grapes could wait.
Heidan immediately ran over. “These berries?”
“Yes, pick the small red ones. Shuanzi, you help too, and I’ll make you two sugar-boiled eggs.”
At the mention of eggs, Shuanzi instantly abandoned the grapes, announcing, “I’ll pick them faster than anyone!”
The three of them spent a good two hours in the valley, carefully gathering every last ripe berry. Song Wei guessed they had around 15 kilos by the time they were done.
“All right, let’s finish picking those grapes!”
With two large baskets filled to the brim with grapes, Heidan had no time left to collect firewood for Gao Le and Zhao Su that day. Since he followed Song Wei every day to gather food from the mountains, he often brought back the smallest haul of firewood, which meant he earned the least money. But seeing the growing stash of food in his room brought him a satisfaction that money couldn’t match.
On the way down, Song Wei bundled up a load of firewood herself, bringing it along with them as they made their way home.
Leave a Reply