Thirty greenhouses, twenty types of vegetables.

An Guoming asked in confusion:

"How come there are twenty kinds?"

"Well, peppers alone account for several kinds. So, some share the same main category but are different sub-varieties."

"Long hot peppers, bell peppers, red chilies, string peppers—"

An Guoming stopped An Ning, showing that he understood.

After that, An Ning gave An Guoming a tour of every single greenhouse.

In the north, where only the first hints of spring had appeared, An Guoming got to experience a scene that was practically bursting with life.

There were all sorts of lush, green leafy vegetables; bright red and sunny yellow tomatoes; glossy purple eggplants; crisp green peppers; and prickly little cucumbers, still with their blossoms attached, as well as zucchini and more.

With every new vegetable he saw, An Guoming’s eyes lit up a little more. By the time he walked out of the last one, he was practically buzzing with excitement.

He was even more thrilled than when he was running his business down south.

"Ning, are you planning to sell all of this?"

"Yes. Guoping and I went out to sell some today."

An Ning shared the story of her and An Guoping’s sales trip, which only made An Guoming more excited.

High quality and scarcity—they had both on their side. The rarer something is, the more valuable it becomes.

It would be hard *not* to make a profit.

"Second Brother, are you leaving again this time?"

"I’m not leaving."

An Ning’s face lit up, her happiness visible to the naked eye.

"That’s great! If you’re not leaving, then you can be in charge of selling all of this."

"Right, right! I also have a lot of rabbits that need to be sold."

An Guoqing chimed in, and An Guoming nodded again and again.

"Alright, let’s go home and talk it over. We need to keep clear accounts, even between brothers. We’ll get everything arranged properly."

Naturally, An Guoqing and An Ning had no objections.

Once the tour was over, An Ning locked the gate, and the four of them prepared to go pick elm pods.

"Ning, will there be any trouble here at night?"

On his travels between the north and south, An Guoming had seen too much of human nature, especially its uglier side. He always prepared for the worst.

"I’ve arranged for people to stand watch. Three of them in total."

"But I’d still like to find a few good dogs, like Da Huang. That would definitely save a lot of trouble."

An Guoming wholeheartedly agreed, but he didn’t really have many connections in that area.

However...

"Let’s ask Jiang Xia."

"Mm, good idea."

In fact, An Ning had the same idea. If Jiang Xia hadn’t been away for a month to create a cover for her, she would have mentioned it long ago.

Thinking of this, An Ning felt an unfamiliar sensation in her heart. It wasn’t unpleasant, though; on the contrary, it made her a little happy.

Although she and Jiang Xia never mentioned that incident, they both knew it had really happened.

An Ning understood, above all, that Jiang Xia was helping her.

’Sigh, how exactly was she supposed to be a good friend?’

An Ning was a little troubled.

But her troubled thoughts were cut short just a few minutes later by a large elm tree.

"Guoping, you go up!"

An Guoping was entrusted with the important task of climbing the tree.

An Ning watched as An Guoping sized up the massive tree, took a running leap, and grabbed hold of a branch.

Then, like a monkey, he swung his arms with a powerful heave, got his legs up, and used the momentum to pull the rest of his body upward.

An Ning felt an itch to join in. How could she miss out on an activity like this?

"I’m going up too!"

An Ning was even more impressive. With a single leap from a standing position, she caught a branch. With what seemed like no effort at all, her entire body appeared to simply float upward.

Down below, An Guoming was overcome with envy.

"Why couldn’t I have inherited some of that strength?" he grumbled.

Standing by his side, An Guoqing said wryly, "I’m wondering the same thing. How come I didn’t get any of the brains?"

An Guoming mechanically turned his head, looked at An Guoqing, and gave him a thumbs-up.

"You win, Eldest Brother."

"What?"

An Guoqing’s one-word response only served to prove the point he’d just made.

Up in the tree, An Guoping was standing on a large forked branch, struggling to hook a smaller branch and pull it closer so he could strip off the elm pods.

As for An Ning...

"Ning, be careful!"

"Can that branch even hold you? Don’t go any higher!"

An Guoming and An Guoqing watched with their hearts in their throats, arms outstretched as if they could catch An Ning if she happened to fall.

"Eldest Brother, Second Brother, I’m fine! Don’t worry!"

An Ning even freed a hand to wave down at them, which nearly scared her two brothers enough to make them drop to their knees.

"Eldest Brother, I think we’ll be lucky just to get home alive."

"If Mom finds out about this, she’ll kill us."

An Guoqing agreed with a dopey nod. "Maybe Mom will spare my life for Hei Dan’er’s sake."

"But you’re definitely a goner."

An Guoming had a million "loving words from their mother" he wanted to share with An Guoqing, but he was interrupted by An Ning.

"Second Brother, where should I put these?"

"Throw them down, and I’ll catch them."

The moment he finished speaking, he saw everyone, both in the tree and on the ground, staring at him like he was an idiot.

He realized his mistake as well. The elm pods were light and fluttery; you couldn’t just toss them down.

Well, you *could* toss them, but he definitely wouldn’t be able to catch them.

"Heh heh, just kidding," An Guoming said, scratching his head in embarrassment.

At this crucial moment, An Guoqing came through, shouting, "Ning, put them in your pockets!"

"Okaaaay—"

An Ning’s reply carried a great distance.

Jiang Xia, who had just seen off his baby-faced childhood friend and was now having a heart-to-heart with Da Huang, heard the shout and followed the sound over.

He understood the situation at a glance.

"Gathering elm pods?"

"Makes sense. They’re tender and tasty this time of year."

An Guoming glanced back at him and asked, "You’ve eaten this stuff before?"

"Of course."

There was a time when Jiang Xia and Grandpa Jiang were in the village when they had it even rougher than the An family. So not only had he eaten these things before, he was usually the first person to eat them each year.

Up in the tree, An Ning and An Guoping began the work of stripping off the elm pods.

The three men and one dog on the ground winced and grimaced as they watched, their own bodies swaying along with the two in the tree, constantly afraid they might fall.

After stripping pods for a good while longer, all four of An Ning’s pockets were stuffed full, and she prepared to come down.

"Hurry and get down. Slowly, slowly."

An Guoming shouted. When An Ning landed steadily on the ground, everyone’s hearts finally returned to their chests.

"Let’s go. Time to head home."

"Eldest Brother, how do you eat this stuff?"

"Mom knows how to cook them."

The group was chatting as they walked away, but after about three steps, they all stopped, turned back in unison, and looked up.

An Guoping was still in the tree, sitting on a branch with his arms crossed. "I was just wondering," he said, "if I didn’t make a sound, when would you all remember I was here?"

"The result isn’t bad. You only made it three steps."

An Guoping grabbed a branch, jumped down from the tree, and clapped his hands together, smiling with a hint of satisfaction.

This time, they all headed back together.

As soon as they got home, An Ning and An Guoping pulled out the elm pods they had gathered to show Lin Cuihua.

Lin Cuihua sifted through them with her hand a couple of times and commented, "Not bad. You picked the tender ones."

"This stuff is only tasty when it’s tender."

Lin Cuihua gave instructions while An Ning and An Guoping washed the pods. Lin Cuihua then added a little cornmeal and some white flour, scalding the mixture with boiling water.

She kneaded the scalded dough evenly with the elm pods, shaped the mixture into small, cone-shaped buns known as *wowotou*, and placed them on the steamer.

As the fire burned, a fresh, clean aroma slowly began to waft out.

A head popped up over the wall of the An family’s courtyard.

"Sister Cuihua, are you steaming elm pods?"