These Days Finally Held Hope

Madam Zheng had not returned yet.

Shen Xiuhan put the rice and flour away in the jars, then hung the pork belly from a hook above the stove, closer to the firebox.

The smoke and heat would keep cats and rats away while smoking off the fishy, gamey smell.

Little Momo stuck to his side every step of the way.

Pinching several roasted fish bones between her fingers, she sucked the salty flavor from them in tiny mouthfuls, taking ages before she was willing to chew and swallow one.

"Brother, did you catch lots and lots of fish today?"

Shen Xiuhan crouched before the stove to light the fire, smiling without looking back. "Mm, I caught quite a few big ones."

"Then... how much money did they sell for?" Shen Momo leaned closer, her eyes brimming with curiosity.

"Why don't you guess?"

Tilting her head, Shen Momo thought seriously for a while before bravely holding up a number with her fingers.

"Ten big coins?"

Shen Xiuhan could not help laughing. Without another word, he took out a string of coins and gave it a gentle shake.

Clink, clink, clank...

The crisp collision of copper coins was as pleasing to the ear as heavenly music.

Staring at the long string of coins, Shen Momo's eyes grew rounder than the coins themselves.

"Wow, so much money!"

Shen Xiuhan took out her little pouch, added several coins until it made ten, then tucked it back into her hands. Deliberately lowering his voice to tease her, he said, "Here, this is Momo's share for joining in. Wealth must not be displayed. Hurry and hide it!"

"Mm!"

Little Momo's face turned solemn as she accepted the pouch with great seriousness. Holding it in both hands, she turned and pattered into the inner room to hide her money.

Her innocent, lively little appearance made Shen Xiuhan's lips curve upward.

Before long, he withdrew his gaze and began preparing the ingredients.

He had originally wanted to buy some soy sauce and braise the two Black Bighead Carp in red sauce.

But soy sauce was too expensive, and he could not bear to buy it.

So he simply chopped up the smaller fish for porridge and roasted the larger one over the fire.

He washed the rice and put it in the pot.

With a flick of his wrist, his knife fell, scaling the fish and removing its gills.

He pulled out the fish bones, cut the flesh into small pieces, and added them to the bubbling millet porridge.

He simmered it over medium heat for a quarter of an hour, lifted the lid, and sprinkled in a small pinch of coarse salt.

Then he let it stew for the time it took to drink a cup of tea.

The rich freshness of fish mingled with the fragrance of rice, instantly occupying the entire kitchen.

For the other fish, he removed the innards and saved them as bait for fishing.

He found a sharpened wooden stick, pierced the fish through from head to tail, and set it over the charcoal fire in the stove, slowly turning it as it roasted.

After only a quarter of an hour—

"Sizzle..."

The fat crackled softly. The fish skin had roasted to a crisp golden brown, its edges curling slightly as it released an enticing charred fragrance.

Shen Xiuhan evenly rubbed on a layer of coarse salt.

Done!

Just as he served dinner into the bowls, the crunch of footsteps on snow sounded outside.

Beyond the wicker gate—

Madam Zheng entered, exhaustion written all over her, a bundle of firewood still slung over her shoulder.

"Mother!"

Shen Momo immediately pounced on her and eagerly showed off. "Brother's back! He even bought Momo lots of delicious things!"

Madam Zheng froze slightly.

She unloaded the damp firewood in the corner by the kitchen wall. Before she could even brush the snow from herself, her nostrils twitched of their own accord.

A rich aroma of fish porridge rushed toward her, almost tangible.

Madam Zheng instinctively looked up—and her whole body went still.

There were several extra bags of grain in the rice jar, a thick strip of pork belly hanging over the stove, and on the chopping board sat a pot of rich fish porridge, a roasted fish sizzling with oil, and two salted duck eggs!

"Eldest... this, this is..."

Smiling, Shen Xiuhan briefly explained how he had gone to Little Path Bay to chop through the ice, encountered a school of Silver-striped Fish, and sold them for a good price.

Madam Zheng's eyes immediately reddened when she heard it.

She walked to the stove, looked at that strip of pork belly, and gently touched it. Then she turned to look at the bags of grain, her lips trembling as she remained unable to speak for a long while.

Little Momo tugged at her hem and raised the roasted fish bone in her hand as though presenting a treasure. "Mother, eat! It's so delicious!"

Madam Zheng crouched and took a small bite. The salty fragrance spread across her tongue, and the tears she had held back for half a month burst forth like a breached dam.

She raised a hand to wipe them away, her voice choked with sobs but her smile full of comfort. "Good, good. My son has grown up. You've become capable..."

A little later.

A fire burned in the crude hearth, dry branches crackling as the orange-red glow cast the three of their shadows against the wall.

The family of three sat around the kang table for dinner.

Madam Zheng and Shen Momo had not eaten a full meal in half a month, with not a trace of grease in their bellies. Shen Xiuhan had been running around outside for most of the day and was likewise hungry enough for his chest to stick to his back.

This dinner was devoured like a whirlwind sweeping away fallen clouds.

There was no unnecessary chatter, only the unceasing sounds of chewing and swallowing.

In the time it took to burn one stick of incense—

The three of them cleaned out an entire pot of fish porridge, one roasted fish, and one salted duck egg. They practically wanted to lick the bottom of the pot three times over.

Shen Momo ate until a fine sheen of sweat appeared on her forehead and a hint of color returned to her little cheeks. Contentedly patting her round belly, she said, "Brother's cooking is so, so tasty! It's even better than Mother's!"

Hearing this, Madam Zheng, who was clearing away the empty bowls, also looked surprised. "Now that you mention it... Eldest, when did you become so good at cooking?"

The former Shen Eldest had been dull and taciturn by nature. He could not exactly be called lazy, but he only knew how to bury his head in rough labor.

He had always believed that a gentleman should keep away from the kitchen, never stepping into it even once, much less making food so complete in color, aroma, and taste.

"After taking a trip to the gates of hell, I had to learn to hold up this household. I can't keep making Mother work herself to the bone in the future..."

Shen Xiuhan's expression remained unchanged as he casually brushed it off, then changed the subject. "By the way, Mother, how much spare money do we have left at home?"

At those words, the howling cold wind outside the window seemed to seep back into the room. The warmth that had only just risen in the thatched cottage instantly grew heavy.

Madam Zheng said nothing. Silently, she shifted one corner of the wooden bed, dug through the packed earth, and revealed a small wooden cover hidden beneath it.

From under the cover, she took out a small black earthen jar, then pulled a cloth pouch from within it.

Sitting before the kang table, Madam Zheng laid out the copper coins from the pouch one by one.

By the weak firelight, she counted them over and over twice.

Only after a long while did Madam Zheng let out a deep sigh. "It's all here... counted to the last coin, there are only ninety-one copper coins left."

Shen Xiuhan nodded slightly.

After thinking for a moment, he took out two full strings of coins and pushed them before Madam Zheng, comforting her. "Mother, keep this money."

"From now on, I'll go fishing by the lake every day. As long as we work hard with our hands and feet, we should be able to pay off our debts before long."

Looking at the heap of gleaming yellow copper coins, Madam Zheng nodded with reddened eyes and carefully gathered them together.

Then she fumbled around inside the coarse cloth pocket of her heavily patched clothes for quite some time.

Finally, she took out six copper coins.

This was the wage issued by the White Family Cloth Workshop.

She should have earned eight coins a day.

But ever since Shen Sanhuai had left, the overseer had found all sorts of excuses to dock one or two coins every time wages were settled.

Madam Zheng did not dare complain.

The pillar holding up the family was gone, and the only man in the household, Shen Eldest, had consumption. No matter what, she could not lose this job.

Silently gathering all the money together, she placed it back into the cloth pouch, tied it in a dead knot, and stuffed it into the small black earthen jar. Once again, she shifted the bedpost aside, dug open the dirt, and buried it beneath the corner of the bed.

By the time she finished, the night had grown deep.

Outside the window, snow began falling thickly again, rustling as it struck the thatch.

Shen Xiuhan added several sticks of firewood to the hearth and, not long after getting into bed, fell asleep with soft snores.

Shen Momo, full and satisfied, began to yawn as well.

Madam Zheng carried her little daughter onto the bed and held her in her arms. Before long, steady, sweet breathing sounded beside her ear.

In the darkness, Madam Zheng quietly wiped away a tear.

The days before had nearly driven her mad. She would often lie awake until dawn, listening to the wind outside the window howl like ghosts weeping.

But tonight, her heart had finally settled. She could finally close her eyes and sleep.

Shen Eldest's illness was better. There was food at home, and now there was income too.

These days... finally held hope!