Chapter 12: It's About to Rain

As a result, Ling found nothing.

“It’s okay. Since we’re already here, there will be plenty of time to wander around the mountain in the future. Who knows, maybe I’ll find something good eventually.”

Tong An’nian stretched and comforted herself.

On the other side, by the time Old Master Tong and the others returned, it was already pitch black outside.

They had intentionally waited on the mountain until now to avoid prying eyes.

They carried bamboo baskets on their backs and hauled sacks between them in pairs; even Tong An’xin and the others had brought back heavy loads.

“Did you finish digging?” Old Madam Tong asked, looking at Old Master Tong while helping to move the sweet potatoes into the cellar.

“Finished. It’s all here. With these sweet potatoes, we won’t have to go hungry all winter. Sigh, I just don’t know what the fellow villagers will do.”

Although Old Master Tong was happy about the extra food, he was worried about whether the villagers had enough to eat.

The harvest was almost due, but because of the drought, this year’s yields were bound to be poor. His family would certainly survive with these sweet potatoes, but what about the others?

Tong An’nian sat on a chair, swinging her short legs, watching the busy crowd and listening to their conversation.

Old Master Tong was worried about the people in the village, but what if those families had their own grain reserves?

Would they think about the fact that others might have nothing to eat?

And if they found out the Tong family had enough grain to last the winter, what would they do?

Tong An’nian felt she had seen enough instances of people returning kindness with enmity and acting like ungrateful wretches; even among fellow villagers, one had to be on guard.

When Tong An’nian woke up the next day, everyone was already up. With the family’s food supply issue resolved, everyone’s faces were beaming with joy.

“It’s already autumn, so why is it getting hotter and hotter?”

Seeing Tong An’nian come out, Ning Qingqiu walked out with a wooden basin, ready to help her wash up.

“Indeed,” Tong Zhengyang replied gloomily.

Tong An’nian looked up at the sky. It was indeed hot. Logically, as autumn approached, the early mornings should be cool, but instead, there was a wave of stifling heat. It seemed as if…

“Master, there will be heavy rain by tomorrow at the latest.” Ling understood what Tong An’nian was thinking, so it explained without her having to ask.

“So that’s how it is.” A smile tugged at the corners of Tong An’nian’s mouth.

However…

She turned to look at their house. She wondered if the roof could hold up. After a year of drought, if it rained, it would surely be a downpour.

If they didn’t fix the roof now, she feared that while it rained heavily outside, it would be raining lightly inside.

“Grandpa’s Nianbao, let Grandpa give you a hug.” Tong An’nian’s body suddenly lifted into the air. She looked down at Old Master Tong, who had picked her up.

“Grandpa, fix…”

“Fix what? Did something of yours break, Nianbao?” Old Master Tong gently pinched Tong An’nian’s small face, which hadn’t shown much improvement despite several days of nourishment.

Tong An’nian didn’t speak; she pointed her small finger at the roof. Old Master Tong followed her gaze.

“Is Nianbao asking to fix the roof?” Old Master Tong looked at her, and she nodded obediently.

The whole family looked up at the roof. It hadn’t rained for a year, so they hadn’t thought about repairing it. Tong An’nian’s sudden suggestion made them all feel quite strange.

“Our roof really hasn’t been repaired in a long time. Even though it hasn’t rained, it would be troublesome if it snowed.”

After a moment of silence, Tong Zhengye picked up where Old Master Tong left off, and the others nodded in agreement.

They acted as soon as they decided. Since they had food stored at home and weren’t worried about going hungry, everyone, young and old—except for those cooking—began preparing materials to repair the roof.

Tong An’nian trotted on her short legs to the kitchen, where the fourth daughter-in-law, Song Yu, and Ning Qingqiu were busy preparing breakfast for the family: boiling sweet potato porridge and steaming wild vegetable buns and some sweet potatoes.