CHAPTER 181: CHAPTER 181: PARCHED EARTH

The sun is nice today, so Jiang Hu deliberately chose such a warm day to go up the mountain, hoping it wouldn’t be too cold when digging lotus roots.

Of course, there’s another possibility, which is that the little pond on the mountain has already dried up, with no water left.

"Dad, how much farther is it?" Tie Dan was struggling to climb.

Jiang Hu carried the hoe and led the way, and slowed down upon hearing the question: "Do you want dad to carry you?"

Tie Dan’s eyes suddenly brightened: "Yes!"

He answered so decisively that even his steps quickened, and he ran a few steps to his father, opening his arms wanting to be carried.

Jiang Hu shook his head helplessly and placed the hoe aside: "Er Niang, could you carry this later?"

Er Niang was walking last with a backpack, watching over the children to make sure nobody lagged behind.

Qi Xi also tagged along, always walking beside the young master to prevent him from getting tired or falling.

Er Niang agreed and then looked down at Xiao Mi who was holding her hand: "Xiao Mi, are you tired? Do you want a piggyback ride?"

Xiao Mi shook her head: "Not tired, I can walk myself."

Xiao Xue and Liu Ze walked a little ahead, and as they passed by the hoe Jiang Hu had put down, Qi Xi promptly picked it up.

Er Niang asked again: "You’ve been looking around all the way, what’s happening? Did you see anything?"

If it were on a normal day, Xiao Mi would have been jumping and running to the front long ago, but today, she stayed alongside and kept looking around.

Er Niang even felt that this child was holding her hand to prevent her from falling while walking.

If Xiao Mi knew what her mother was thinking, she would certainly exclaim that her mother knew her well!

"Mommy, why are there no mushrooms on the ground?"

Xiao Mi blinked her innocent big eyes.

"There’s been no rain, where would the mushrooms come from?" Er Niang didn’t initially mind, but she scanned the surroundings and her brows lightly furrowed.

In winter, the grass and trees drying up is normal, but the soil should still have moisture, and the winter leaves need to be dried before storing.

The mushrooms Xiao Mi mentioned grow because the ground is moist, and there are usually many small mushrooms growing, especially the ones that aren’t edible, but they look quite good.

But now, kicking aside the thick dry leaves on the ground, everything is dry with no hint of moisture, let alone small mushrooms.

"Brother Hu." Er Niang called out.

Jiang Hu, who was carrying Tie Dan and playfully chatting, stopped and turned around: "What’s the matter?"

Er Niang kicked the dry branches and leaves on the ground: "Look, it’s so dry, there’s no moisture at all."

For a whole month and a half, there hasn’t been a drop of rain, where would the moisture come from?

Jiang Hu’s brows slightly furrowed, but then he relaxed: "Never mind, let’s not discuss that today. Let’s go dig the lotus roots first. The lotus root seeds can be stored for a long time, so there’s no worry."

They dug a well in their backyard, and it’s quite deep, with the water level consistently high, making Jiang Hu a little less anxious.

Liu Ze was positioned between the two, naturally hearing their conversation.

"Uncle Jiang, Aunt, don’t worry too much, even if there’s a drought, it won’t last long, and Mr. Xie has already planted a lot of sorghum near the county."

"There’s a large lake near Cheng County with plenty of water, and the sorghum planted won’t be bad, and the yield shouldn’t be low."

Liu Ze mentioned something that was unknown to Jiang Hu and his family, so they were quite surprised.

Jiang Hu: "Xiao Ze, how do you know so much? Aren’t you always in the village?"

Liu Ze smiled embarrassedly: "I exchange letters with my parents, and these things are what my dad told me."

Jiang Hu suddenly realized: "Oh right, I forgot, your parents are doing business in the county."

Liu Ze smiled softly, without refuting.

Jiang Hu felt a lot more relieved: "That’s great, I was worried before about the message not reaching Mr. Xie; it looks like Brother Zhang really helped out."

He communicated this to Zhang Hu a month ago and hadn’t contacted Zhang Hu since, so he didn’t know whether Zhang Hu had sent the message to Mr. Xie.

Judging by the current situation, it seems the message was indeed sent.

Liu Ze explained with a smile: "Uncle Jiang is different from others; whatever Uncle Jiang says, Constable Zhang and Mr. Xie will definitely take it seriously."

Xiao Mi touched her chin, glanced at Liu Ze, feeling that Liu Ze didn’t seem like a simple seven-year-old child, knowing too much!

If this were her elder brother or second sister, none would think so comprehensively.

But Xiao Mi’s muttering went unnoticed by Jiang Hu and Er Niang, who both relaxed considerably after hearing Liu Ze’s explanation.

After crossing a mountain, they soon reached the pond, which was located not too high or too low, just at a spot positioned a bit lower than the mountainside.

Upon putting down Tie Dan and taking a closer look, Jiang Hu raised an eyebrow: "The water here hasn’t decreased at all!"

Suddenly, there was great joy: "There must be a spring under this pond, and it’s not connected to the same water source as the river in the village, otherwise, there would be some change!"

With a few words, the others gathered around.

Tie Dan shouted first: "Fish, lots of little fish!"

Upon closer inspection, indeed, there were plenty of small fish swimming in groups.

Jiang Hu patted Tie Dan’s little head: "These fish swim too fast, hard to catch, let’s dig the lotus roots first."

The lotus leaves had dried up, breaking and floating on the water’s surface, yet the lotus pods still stood upright. Jiang Hu put on specially made leather water boots that came up to the waist like pants.

As Jiang Hu waded into the water, Er Niang reminded: "Be careful, Brother Hu, the water is cold."

They didn’t expect the water level to be this high; in the middle of winter, going into the water does require some courage.

Jiang Hu waved his hand: "It’s fine, not much work, it will be quick."

He went into the water with the hoe and first plucked the dry lotus pods. There were over a dozen, enough seeds to collect.

The pond wasn’t big or small; at least on one side, the water depth was significant, crystal clear and reaching quite deep, causing a kind of unease when gazed upon.

Luckily, the side where the lotus roots grew had water only reaching Jiang Hu’s waist, barely two inches lower than his water boots.

His sleeves were rolled up high with arm straps, first pulling out the dry lotus leaves and tossing them aside to avoid blocking the view.

Jiang Hu wouldn’t directly use his hands to dig in the water; instead, he used the hoe, just like digging the ground, to excavate the lotus roots bit by bit.

Luckily, there was little silt in the pond, with half the lotus roots exposed in the water, making it easy to tell where they were.

The lotus roots are hollow, and once the roots snap, they float up by themselves without much further concern.

Yet even with water boots, staying in the water like this was still rather cold, and using the hoe meant keeping part of his arm submerged.

Er Niang felt concerned and quickly directed the children to clear an area by the pond, preparing a bonfire so Jiang Hu could warm up as soon as he got out.