Space Food Storage: Daily Travel

Last night, the village chief, Liu Mang, suppressed his excitement and went door to door to inform all thirty households in Liujia Village: each family should provide at least two strong men, pick up hoes, machetes, and backpacks, and not tell anyone! Tomorrow morning, they were to gather at Liu Daling's house at the foot of the mountain.

He decided that if he dug a lot of yams, he would distribute them equally, and his uncle must give him an extra portion!

The strong laborers in the village could not find food and did not dare to go to the mountains, so they all went to the town to do hard labor. Some people went out early and came back late, and a lot of people rushed to do it for 20 cents a day, so that they could at least buy some brown rice to survive.

It is difficult to find work, and sometimes you have to work for only ten or eight cents a day, including one meal.

At the hour of Mao, out of the thirty households, two did not show up. Seventy adults over the age of eighteen came, including Liu Yuhan's family, with the exception of Old Lady Jiang, Mrs. Li, Liu Yun, and Xiao Si.

Xiao Si was a little sad, so Liu Yuhan secretly gave him a piece of fruit candy.

All ten members of the family went to the mountain, and they planned to send some people out to continue digging Atractylodes or hunting.

Eighty people marched up the mountain against the dim sky.

When they got to the mountain, most of the people there were men, so there was no need for Liu Yuhan to show up.

Liu Shinan gave them yam leaves to identify. He found a yam nearby and taught them what to look out for and how to dig it. Liu Daling, along with Liu Xiaoman and a few others, were responsible for finding and marking the yam before sending the younger students to dig it.

After knowing how to identify and dig, everyone started working in a hurry, some here and some there, and agreed to gather at noon, and then slowly dispersed.

Liu Daling and his two sons, along with Liu Yang, joined the others in digging for Chinese yam. Liu Yuhan, along with her mother and the others, continued to pick Atractylodes lancea.

Liu Yuhan also discovered Schisandra chinensis, whose red fruits are edible and can be turned into medicinal herbs after drying to treat symptoms such as insomnia and nightmares.

We also found Zhimu, a famous Chinese herbal medicine that is very effective in promoting bowel movements and relieving constipation. It has many aliases in traditional Chinese medicine, including "mother grass" and "ground ginseng." We harvested the rhizomes of Zhimu, shook off the dirt, and dried them in the sun or oven without getting them wet.

Liu Yuhan also discovered Astragalus membranaceus, which has the properties of tonifying Qi and raising Yang, strengthening the exterior and stopping sweating, promoting diuresis and reducing swelling, promoting fluid production and nourishing blood, relieving stagnation and numbness, removing toxins and draining pus, and healing sores and promoting tissue regeneration. Wild Astragalus membranaceus is very valuable. Because Astragalus membranaceus is a deep-rooted plant, its roots penetrate deep into the soil, making it difficult to dig.

Liu was amazed to see that Liu Yuhan knew so many herbs and could even describe them one by one. She pulled her to a secluded place.

"Xiaohan, did you figure this out yourself or..."

Liu Yuhan looked at Liu in front of her, who was confused and uneasy, and decided to talk to her.

"Mom, do you believe me? Some of this I read in the book given by the monk grandfather, and some of it I dreamed of. During the days I was unconscious, I went to a place and saw many strange things. I learned a lot. There was a piece of land there that could be cultivated. Only I could see and enter it."

"In my dream, an old man with white hair told me that if I was kind and helped him, he would reward me with something. But I couldn't let anyone outside my family know, or he would punish me. This yam is what I dreamt about. I'm afraid I can't explain it clearly, so I'm keeping it from you. Mom, you won't blame me, right?"

Liu listened to her silently and forgot to close her open mouth.

She paused for a moment and then bowed to the sky again and again, silently chanting the words of the Tathagata Buddha, Amitabha Buddha, and Guanyin Bodhisattva, "Great Compassion and Great Mercy..."

Liu Yuhan...

At this moment, Liu had already determined in her heart that what the charlatan said was indeed true, and her child really had great fortune at the age of 13.

Liu grabbed her hand and said, "Silly child, you must be scared. How could I blame you? I always believe in you. But you can't tell anyone else about this except me, okay? Otherwise, what will you do if God blames you?" She continued to ramble on and on for a long time.

Liu Yuhan listened to her and said it would be a lie to say she wasn't moved. The Liu family was thinking about the original owner. Liu Yuhan nodded at her. She didn't want to be burned as a monster.

She understood the principle of being guilty of possessing a treasure. But since they were all family members who treated her well, she had to let the adults in the family know about some things slowly and ask them to help cover up a few things.

"Mom, you can tell Dad and Grandpa."

Liu was silent for a moment and then said, "I'll take care of it and tell your father and grandparents. Don't tell anyone else except us, understand?"

Liu Yuhan nodded again, and suddenly felt a lot more relaxed.

He took a piece of fruit candy from the space and put it into Liu's mouth. Liu was shocked and almost swallowed it in one gulp. She looked around cautiously and patted Liu Yuhan.

With a questioning look, pointing to the sky, Liu Yuhan nodded. Liu Shi couldn't help but want to worship again.

Liu Yuhan...

At noon, it was time to gather. Everyone came over one after another, smiling and carrying baskets on their backs. They chattered about their gains and said they wanted to walk a little further.

Of course, they also followed Liu Shinan's instructions, returning the soil to its original place and burying the yam's taproot. They didn't know if there would be a harvest next year. They put the yams they dug together and found a good harvest.

The village chief was grinning from ear to ear. He had tasted some yam from his father's mouth yesterday, and it was really delicious.

He decided to go back and clean the Liu family ancestral hall, buy some incense and candles, and worship it properly. The ancestor finally showed some spirit, allowing his uncle to help them find so much food.

The village chief asked everyone to rest for 25 minutes. After lunch, they continued their search. Groups of three or four found a shady spot to sit down and eat the vegetable steamed buns and black flour buns they had brought from home.

Normally, we don’t have lunch when we are idle at home. Today, since everyone has to work hard, we must eat a full meal to have the strength to work.

Liu Yuhan and the other ten people found a shady spot away from the crowd and gathered together. Liu took out a water bag and steamed buns from her backpack. The buns were steamed last night. They were made by mixing black and white flour.

Liu Shiliu gave 30 kilograms of white flour, but since there were many people in the family, they had to eat it sparingly.

The steamed buns were hard and tasteless. Liu Yuhan chewed them in small bites. Looking at little Xiaowu and seeing how his family enjoyed their food, he felt bad. After Mom told her grandparents, they could hide away and eat something good.

After everyone had rested, the village chief organized a group of more than ten people to carry some yams down the mountain and pile them up at his uncle Liu Daling's house. Another group continued to search and dig, and they gathered at 3 p.m. to return home.

Liu continued to gather herbs with the other children, while Liu Yuhan and Liu Yao went to fetch water from the same spot they had been yesterday.

She found an excuse to pick up more than ten eggs and a handful of leeks. When Liu Yao received the milk candy her sister fed her, she was so happy that her eyes were narrowed into slits. After eating, she carefully rinsed her mouth with water. This was a secret between her and her sister, and no one else could tell it.

Soon it was the afternoon, and the villagers were ready to go back home, packing all the yams into their backpacks. Two of the backpacks were filled with yams that had been accidentally dug up and then washed and peeled.

Everyone filled their water bags with water and walked down the mountain excitedly.

The sooner we get there, the sooner we can divide the food, so we can go home and cook for our family tonight.

There was a lively scene in Liu Daling's yard.

Almost all the old people, women and children in the village came over, looking eagerly at the yams piled in the yard, waiting to be divided.

They had all heard from the village chief or family members who went to dig yam that it was a filling food, and they were so jealous of the huge pile of yams.

The village chief stepped on a high rock and told everyone to be quiet. He explained how to distribute the yams, how to store them, and how to cook them. He said Liu Daling's family had kindly led them to find the yams, so they should share more. He urged everyone to be grateful. "You should eat the food first, and no one else in the village should tell anyone else. Tomorrow we'll go find Er'er..."

There were thirty households, and except for Liu Laizi's family and Old Xu's family who didn't come, that made twenty-eight households. According to the shapes and sizes of the similar ones, they were arranged in piles and divided into twenty-nine portions, each portion weighing about forty kilograms.

Liu Daling's family took two shares, and the peeled yams in one of the baskets were also given to his family. No one had any objections. Liu Daling's family had more people and more labor, so in fact, everyone was getting the better deal.

Everyone happily packed up the yams, ready to cook and eat tonight. There was also a backpack with the yams peeled, and no one asked any questions.

Seeing that everyone had gone home, the village chief asked Yan to bring a basket and put some peeled yams in it, enough for tonight's meal, and then asked her to take the children back and cook the yams first.

There was still a lot of peeled skin left in the backpack, so after telling Liu Daling and Liu Xiaoman about it, he prepared to share it with the two families who hadn't come. This was also what his father and uncle had agreed on, and Liu Yuhan saw it all.

The two families in the village who did not come were Liu Laizi's family, which only had him and his mentally retarded old mother. Liu Laizi was not called Liu Laizi before, but Liu Neng. He was tall and used to be a diligent boy.

When Liu Neng was 12 years old, his father went hunting in the mountains and was gored by a wild boar. His belly was pierced and blood was all over the ground. He died in a horrible way. The villagers carried him back. Liu Neng's mother, Xu, was six months pregnant at the time. Seeing her husband's tragic condition, she was so upset that she miscarried. The six-month-old baby was already born.

Xu lost two relatives in one day and went crazy, quietly.

She didn't make any noise or fuss, didn't cry or laugh, but she became the one who needed care.

The 12-year-old Liu Neng was forced to grow up. While doing odd jobs in the town, he met some second-rate guys in the town who instigated him to steal things in exchange for money.

Anyone who reaches out will be caught.

Once, twice, three times... He was eventually caught and beaten half to death. Because he was still young, he was thrown into jail for a month.

After he was released, his personality changed drastically. For ten years, he was always on the run, stealing and cheating. Even when he grew up, no one wanted to marry him. I don't know when everyone started calling him Liu Laizi.

His only best quality is probably that he is very considerate and caring towards his crazy mother, and he does not allow anyone to scold her. Otherwise, he will be the one who goes crazy.

Old Xu's family consists of Old Xu and his son. He also had a miserable life. He married a widow at the age of 30 and had a son at the age of 32. When the son was only two years old, the widow could not bear the hard life and forced Old Xu to sign a divorce agreement and ran away with the people in the town.

Old Xu had a hard time raising his son. His 18-year-old son, Xu Fugui, had not yet married. One day while working as a laborer, he fell from the roof of a house. A sharp piece of wood on the ground pierced his calf, and blood oozed out. The master of the house cursed him for his bad luck and sent him away after throwing him a hundred coins.

A fellow villager took him to the clinic, had the bleeding stopped, and bandaged him before taking him home. He drank some herbal remedies and lay in bed for ten days, but nothing had healed. I'm afraid it's tetanus.

The village chief lamented that his life was too difficult! These two families were either crazy or sick, and giving them food had to be done in secret.