Chapter 010: You Say I'm Crazy for Fishing?

Inside the house, Zhao Yue’e was busy cooking soup. Their home, unlike Miao Qin’s, had no separate kitchen. Even in the biting cold of winter, the cooking area needed to be warm. The downside was that the smoke was suffocating and unsafe.

Su Yanwen placed the basket directly in front of Miao Qin. “Cook it all.”

Zhao Yue’e looked at the contents inside, her voice growing excited. “It really is millet.”

“So much of it—enough to last half a month.”

If only they could gather a bit more wild vegetables, maybe they could stretch it even longer. Su Yanwen was stunned—how could they survive two weeks on so little? Could one even enter the mountain with a body in such poor condition?

In his urgency, Su Yanwen grabbed the millet without even washing it, pouring it all into the pot.

Zhao Yue’e’s eyes immediately reddened.

“I wanted millet porridge—that’s not just an adjective,” she said, her voice trembling.

Su Yanwen’s emotions surged.

Zhao Yue’e sniffled, stirring the porridge quietly and adding two extra bowls of water.

Caor’s eyes fixed intently on the vegetable basket. Inside were fresh wild greens. She glanced between the vegetables, the little rabbit, and her mother, but dared not speak.

Su Yanwen understood—this little girl wanted to feed the rabbit. Such a tiny creature would perish without food.

“Caor,” Zhao Yue’e gently shook her head, clearly sensing the girl’s thoughts. “No. This little is only enough for two or three days’ digging.”

“It will last two or three days,” Su Yanwen said in surprise.

Only a handful of wild vegetables, twenty or thirty stalks, and bitter to boot—how could that feed them for days? God, was there any hope for survival?

“Feeding the rabbit?” Both mother and daughter looked at him in disbelief.

Su Yanwen’s voice rose sharply. “Do you want me to repeat myself?”

Caor was upset but dared not argue; her eyes reddened with distress as she said wisely, “It’s snowing again. Mother’s hands are frozen and sore; she can’t find any…”

“Daddy, I only want one leaf…”

“I said all of it.” Su Yanwen’s tone turned harsh. “Those wild vegetables are for feeding the rabbits. Lazy woman, you’re even thinking of the rabbits’ food?”

Caor trembled in fear.

“We humans can’t even eat, and you want to give it to the rabbits? Have you thought about what we’ll eat tomorrow? Can we even survive this winter?”

Zhao Yue’e wiped her tears angrily but didn’t dare snatch anything away, only crouching there and crying. When her mother cried, Caor cried too. Taking the wild vegetables, she choked out, “Daddy, don’t scold mother. I’ll give it to the rabbits.”

She hurried off to feed the rabbits, and thankfully, the rabbits ate.

As the millet porridge thickened in the pot, its aroma filled the air—far more fragrant than any millet porridge Su Yanwen had ever tasted.

Zhao Yue’e ladled a full bowl and placed it before Su Yanwen.

“Daddy, eat.”

“Mother says if you eat this, you’ll gain weight and your hands won’t bleed anymore.”

Caor handed him chopsticks and stood nearby, eyes fixed unwaveringly on the porridge, licking her lips and swallowing hard.

---

Su Yanwen tasted it. The flavor was indeed excellent. There was something meaty in the porridge, adding a savory richness.

“You two eat too,” Su Yanwen said with a smile.

Neither moved.

Seeing his smile, Zhao Yue’e’s face paled further. When she finally spoke, her ears flushed red. “W-why are you suddenly so kind?”

“Are you… are you thinking of something again…”

She didn’t continue. Who knew what she was thinking now?

Su Yanwen, accustomed to this kind of teasing, replied casually, “Yes, yes, you’re right.”

Zhao Yue’e suddenly choked up, quickly ladling two bowls, handing one to Caor.

Then she said, “Caor, eat quickly. After dinner, we’ll sleep at Aunt Zhang’s house, okay?”

“Mom,” Caor pouted, looking hurt. “I don’t want to.”

“Every time I sleep at Aunt Zhang’s, when I come back, you’re all bruised.”

“Mom hurts so much. Daddy… Daddy wants to hit Mom.”

“I want to stay and protect Mom.”

“Foolish child, I’m having you a little brother, okay?” Zhao Yue’e comforted her gently, blowing on the hot porridge and feeding it into Caor’s mouth.

That fragrant bite of millet porridge instantly warmed the chill in her stomach.

Caor’s eyes shone with wonder, unable to believe how delicious the porridge was.

Watching them eat nearly half a bowl, Su Yanwen felt a sense of relief. Whatever was left could be saved for later, dinner or even the next day.

His hand was injured, making hunting in the mountain difficult.

When Su Yanwen had once competed in survival contests, he had faced the same problem—an injured hand meant no hunting.

But one hand could still do many things—like fishing or setting traps.

He tightened the cloth wrapped around his hand; blood had seeped through. Medical care in this era was truly poor.

He stepped outside the yard for a walk.

Outside, the snow still blanketed the ground, thick and deep, sometimes higher than a person.

The body of Da Huang still lay in the yard. Everyone knew it had been poisoned. Who would dare eat it?

Eating it was tantamount to signing one’s death warrant.

But to Su Yanwen, it was a treasure.

He hurriedly dragged it to a hidden spot and buried it in snow.

This was a natural refrigerator; at least before spring, the dog’s meat would not spoil.

Villagers came and went outside.

At this time, many were out searching for anything edible. After all, in these years of famine, no family had rice to cook.

“Look, it’s Boss Su!”

“Oh, better stay clear. I heard he’s gone mad from the snow spirits, even cutting his own flesh to feed Young Master Zeng.”

“Yeah, and he drugged his wife and daughter, trying to poison them.”

“Didn’t you hear what Miao Qin said? He even wants to eat her flesh today.”

“Good grief, he’s not mad—he’s possessed by the snow spirits!”

“Stay away from him!”

Ah, these rumors.

Why did they sound so believable?

---

Seeing the villagers pointing and whispering, Su Yanwen turned and bellowed at them.

Sure enough, the villagers shrank back in fear and hurried away.

Exactly as he wanted.

Whoever provokes me, I’ll go mad at them. Now I’m left in peace.

“Boss Su, you out looking for food?”

It was Aunt Zhang.

Behind her were two chubby boys, about five or six years old. They seemed used to Su Yanwen’s bullying, hiding behind Aunt Zhang when they saw him.

“Yeah,” Su Yanwen nodded, pushing his injured hand forward.

Aunt Zhang understood—he was hurt and couldn’t hunt.

Thinking of Zhao Yue’e and Caor, she softened her voice and whispered, “There are a few trees east of the village. The bark smells nice and is edible.”

Eat tree bark?

Su Yanwen gave her a hostile look. “You kidding me?”

“Boss Su, don’t be ungrateful. Our Huzi found it. I haven’t told anyone but you.”

“Why eat bark? I want meat,” Su Yanwen said, exasperated.

He pulled out a sewing needle he had brought. “I’m going fishing. Fish soup tonight.”

Aunt Zhang rolled her eyes, looking at him as if he were an idiot.

“Tch, fishing? You?”

“If you could catch fish, would the men in this village be eating bark?”

Fishing?

At the mention of fishing, the villagers who had just scattered gathered again, chattering.

“Boss Su, are you out of your mind?”

“The river ditch in the village is frozen solid! How can you fish?”

“Yeah, the ice is a foot thick. Where would any fish be?”

“Old Wang in the village wanted to fish too but didn’t see a single fish shadow and ended up frozen to death by the river.”

Su Yanwen shrugged. “It’s fine. If you’re scared, I’ll go.”

“Fishing, what’s so hard about it?”

The villagers looked at him like he was a fool.

Su Yanwen strode toward the riverbank.

Behind him, the villagers’ malicious voices faded into the distance.

“If he catches a fish, I’ll never eat fish again.”

“Yeah, fish must be stupid to get caught by him.”

“When he goes, if he dies, Zhao Yue’e will be a widow. I’ve been watching her for a while now.”

“If he goes, you’ll get some too. Young Master Zeng will be the first to try.”

Perhaps the loudest voice was Aunt Zhang’s rough shout.

“Are you even human? That bastard may be a scoundrel, but he’s still a living man. Are you just going to watch him walk to his death?”

“Boss Su, come back!”

“There’s no fish in that river, only water ghosts that take lives!”