The Leisurely Life of a Peasant Woman in the Tang Dynasty

Tang Youyou led Tang Jin and Tang Xiaoya towards the towering tree. The closer they got, the more majestic the tree became. The sunlight could hardly penetrate its dense branches and leaves, casting a huge shadow under the tree.

"Wow, it's so cool!" Tang Xiaoya ran to the shade of the tree and spun around happily.

Tang Youyou put down her backpack and carefully observed the tree. The bark was rough, bearing the marks of time, the trunk was straight, and the wood looked very hard, indeed a good material for wood carving.

"Mom, can we cut down this tree?" Tang Jin looked up, his eyes gleaming with excitement.

"Cut it back? Silly boy, how can we cut down such a big tree?" Tang Youyou smiled and touched Tang Jin's head, "However, we can look around here to see if there are any suitable branches to use."

"Okay!" Tang Jin and Xiao Ya immediately began to search around with great interest.

Tang Youyou also joined the search team. While carefully observing the surrounding trees, she reminded the two children: "Don't go too far, always pay attention to safety."

"I know, mother!"

The children's clear responses echoed in the quiet forest. Tang Youyou continued searching with confidence. Before she knew it, she had walked to a place some distance away from the children.

"Jin'er, little girl!" Tang Youyou raised her head and looked around, but found that the child was no longer visible.

"Jin'er! Xiaoya! Where are you?" Tang Youyou's heart sank suddenly, and she began to shout the children's names loudly.

All that responded to her was the empty forest and the calls of a few unknown birds. Tang Youyou forced herself to calm down. She recalled the way she came and tried to find the way back.

However, this forest was too unfamiliar to her, and the surrounding scenery looked similar. She became more and more confused and panicked as she walked.

"Jin'er! Xiaoya! Where are you? Answer me when you hear your mother's voice!" Tang Youyou's voice had become hoarse, but she still did not give up shouting, hoping that the children could hear her voice and hope to find them.

At this moment, there was a rustling sound in the distance...

The rustling sound was getting closer and closer, and Tang Youyou's heart was in her throat. She held the hatchet tightly in her hand and stared vigilantly in the direction of the sound.

"Ouch——"

A low roar came from the bushes, and a huge wild boar suddenly rushed out and headed straight for Tang Youyou.

"Mom, be careful!"

At the critical moment, Tang Jin pushed Tang Youyou away, but was knocked to the ground by the wild boar.

"Jin'er!" Tang Youyou exclaimed and quickly got up, only to find that the wild boar had opened its bloody mouth and was biting towards Tang Jin.

"Don't hurt my brother!" Tang Xiaoya bravely rushed forward, picked up a stone on the ground, and smashed it hard at the wild boar.

The wild boar was hit by the stone and let out a painful howl, but pounced on Tang Xiaoya even more angrily.

"Beast, stop!" Seeing this, Tang Youyou rushed forward regardless of everything, swung the hatchet, and chopped it hard on the wild boar's back.

"Ouch—" The wild boar screamed again, blood gushing out from its wound, staining the surrounding grass red. It struggled painfully for a few times before finally falling to the ground, motionless.

"Jin'er, Xiaoya, are you okay?" Tang Youyou hurried to the children and anxiously checked their injuries.

"Mom, I'm fine." Tang Jin got up from the ground, dusted himself off, and smiled to comfort Tang Youyou, "Luckily, I have thick skin and wasn't hurt by that beast."

"Mom, I'm fine too." Tang Xiaoya also ran over and hugged Tang Youyou's legs tightly.

"It's good that you're okay, it's good that you're okay." Tang Youyou hugged the two children tightly, and her heart finally settled down.

After this thrilling encounter, Tang Youyou became more cautious. She continued to look for wood with the children, but no longer went far away, but always kept within each other's sight.

Finally, they found some suitable branches in a relatively open area. Tang Youyou chopped the branches with a hatchet, tied them up, and prepared to take them back.

"Mom, look!" Tang Jin pointed at a tree not far away and exclaimed in surprise, "There seems to be something carved on that tree!"

Tang Youyou walked over and saw that there were indeed some strange symbols carved on the tree trunk, like some kind of mark.

"This..." Tang Youyou felt a little uneasy. What exactly did these symbols represent? Could it be that there were some secrets hidden in this forest?

Tang Youyou pulled the two children together and decided to go home immediately...

Tang Youyou's heart shuddered, and an inexplicable unease washed over her. These symbols were strange, like some kind of warning, or a totem. Not daring to be careless, she grabbed her two children and decided to leave immediately for home.

"Mom, what do those symbols mean?" Tang Jin asked curiously.

"I don't know either, but we'd better be careful." Tang Youyou's face was solemn and he quickened his pace.

After returning home, Tang Youyou was still feeling uneasy. She decided to go to the county government office tomorrow and tell the magistrate about her findings in the forest. Perhaps he could decipher the meaning of these symbols, or perhaps he could send someone to investigate to protect more people.

As night fell, Tang Youyou and his family sat around the table, enjoying a simple dinner. Although they had been frightened by the wild boar, the children's mood did not seem to be greatly affected. They continued to chatter about what they had seen and heard in the forest today.

"Mom, we picked up a lot of branches today and can make a lot of handicrafts!" Tang Xiaoya said excitedly.

"Yes, Mom, let's start tomorrow!" Tang Jin couldn't wait to show off his skills.

Tang Youyou looked at the children's expectant eyes, and her heart was filled with warmth. She smiled and nodded: "Okay, we will start tomorrow!"

Over the next few days, Tang Youyou's family got busy. They cut, polished, and spliced ​​the branches they'd collected, creating a variety of handicrafts. Tang Youyou was a skilled craftsman, incorporating modern aesthetics into traditional crafts. Her creations were both beautiful and practical, quickly attracting the attention of the villagers.

"Youyou, your craftsmanship is getting better and better. These things are so exquisite!"

"Yeah, Youyou, can you teach me? I also want to learn how to make these things."

Facing the villagers' praise and requests, Tang Youyou gladly accepted them. She taught everyone her production method without reservation, hoping to help the villagers increase their income.

The life of Tang Youyou's family seemed to have returned to a peaceful and harmonious track. However, what they didn't know was that a storm was quietly approaching...

"Mom, look, what that person makes is exactly the same as ours!" Tang Jin said in surprise, pointing to a stall in the market.

Tang Youyou looked in the direction of Tang Jin's finger, and sure enough, on a stall not far away, there were wooden toys and ornaments exactly the same as theirs.

"It's true!" Tang Xiaoya opened her mouth in surprise, "Mom, that person stole our craft!"

Tang Youyou frowned slightly, walked forward, picked up a wooden horse and examined it carefully. The carving was rough and the polishing was not smooth, and it was completely different from the ones they made.

"Big brother," Tang Youyou looked at the stall owner, a thin middle-aged man, "Where did you learn this Trojan horse?"

The man looked up at Tang Youyou, his eyes flickering, "This...I figured it out myself, what's wrong?"

"Mom, look at how guilty he looks. He must have learned this from us!" Tang Jin said angrily.

Tang Youyou didn't say anything, just put the wooden horse back into the stall, then turned and left.

"Mom, are you just going to let it go like this?" Tang Jin was a little unwilling.

Tang Youyou stopped and turned to look at the children, "Of course we can't just let it go like this, but we have to think of a better way."

After returning home, Tang Youyou gathered the three children together, "What do you think of what happened today?"

"Mom, we can't let that person take away our business!" Tang Jin spoke first.

"But we can't stop him from selling it, right?" Tang Xiaoya was a little worried.

Tang Youyou nodded, "Xiaoya is right. We can't stop others from selling things, but we can do better and make it easier for customers to distinguish them."

"How do we tell the difference?" Tang Jin and Tang Xiaoya asked in unison.

Tang Youyou smiled mysteriously, "We can..."

She lowered her voice and told the children her ideas. As the children listened, their eyes became brighter and brighter, and excited smiles appeared on their faces.

The next day, Tang Youyou and his family came to the market again. In front of their stall, there was a striking sign...