Qin Sang was very calm:
"He's not small; he's eight years old. If his sister can sleep there, why can't he?"
This rabbit meat was still too bland. If only she could add soy sauce, chili, and cumin. She definitely had to find a way to bring those out openly when she had the time.
After finishing the meal and cleaning up, Qin Sang prepared for today's main event: making mosquito coils.
The rest of the family had been itching with curiosity all day, just waiting for Qin Sang to arrange how and when to start.
Kneading the mulberry fluff was the hardest and most tiring task, so Qin Sang naturally handed this job to her two sons.
The charcoal powder had already been ground yesterday. Qin Sang took out some cornstarch to use as a binder, claiming she had specifically bought it in town yesterday.
There was also realgar powder, which was very effective at repelling insects.
Qin Sang arranged for Third Sons Wife to use bamboo splints to make several scrapers. They needed to be small; using a kitchen knife would be too much effort.
She also needed to make several compression molds so that a uniform shape, size, and thickness would make them more marketable.
Third Sons Wife understood what Qin Sang wanted after hearing it just once. Qin Sang discovered that when it came to making things, Third Sons Wife was even cleverer than her two sons. After all, she was a child from a carpenter's family and had been influenced by what she saw and heard since childhood.
The two children followed Eldest Brothers Wife to pick leaves—large ones to be used as paper for placing the mosquito coils. In this era, paper was a precious commodity; using it to dry mosquito coils would be too extravagant.
Once the mugwort fluff was kneaded and the large leaves were brought back, the two sons began mixing the 'mud,' adding cornstarch, realgar powder, and charcoal powder to form a paste.
Like making steamed buns, they rolled it into long strips and then used a knife to cut them into small dough balls. These small balls were placed on the large leaf molds, pressed into flat circles, and then cut using the molds Third Brothers Wife had made.
Finally, they used the small scrapers to remove the excess mosquito coil paste from the outer ring. Once they dried and could be lit, the mosquito coils would be a success.
They didn't finish making a hundred coils until the middle of the night, but no one complained of being tired. On the contrary, their eyes shone with excitement. Eldest Girl and Si Jin also clamored to help press the paste and make coils, using small bamboo knives to scrape with utmost seriousness.
Qin Sang decided it would be better to make the mosquito coils in the afternoon tomorrow. The light from the oil lamps at night was too dim. Once or twice was fine, but if they did this long-term, the whole family would end up nearsighted. She could provide glasses, but would they dare to wear them?
That night, Qin Sang was the only one in the family who slept soundly.
The others couldn't sleep because they were all wondering if these mosquito coils, made like playing with mud, could really be sold for money. Tian Wenmo couldn't sleep either.
He was hot, tired, and thirsty. Not to mention the mosquito bites, he was also worried about rats. At the slightest sound, he would sit up, and the constant 'clap-clap-clap' of him swatting mosquitoes never ceased.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door of the woodshed:
"Little Five, are you asleep? It's Big Brother."
Tian Wenmo had been terrified, but hearing that his big brother had come to find him, his heart felt sour but his fear vanished. He pulled open the woodshed door:
"Big Brother?"
Tian Dazhuang held a lit mugwort stick in one hand and a ceramic bowl in the other:
"This is for repelling mosquitoes. Place it carefully; don't burn down the woodshed. This bowl has rabbit meat with dry rice underneath. Your sister-in-law specifically kept it for you, fearing Mother wouldn't let you eat tonight. I didn't expect it to actually... hurry and eat. It's still edible even though the weather has cooled down."
Tian Dazhuang handed the bowl and chopsticks to his brother. As Tian Wenmo smelled the fragrance of the food and meat, his nose stung. Previously, he had looked down on this big brother the most, yet he hadn't expected that now, when he was most tired, hungry, and miserable, only his big brother was willing to care for him.
"Eat quickly. After you're done, I need to wash the bowl and put it back so Mother doesn't find out.
If Mother arranges for you to work tomorrow, don't be stubborn with her. Big Brother will help you; it won't tire you out. If you ruin your health from hunger, you really won't be able to study in the future."
Tian Dazhuang whispered his reminders while helping him find a place to set the mugwort stick.
The scent of mugwort quickly filled the small woodshed, and the annoying sound of mosquitoes vanished. Tian Wenmo took a bite of the food and said softly:
"Big Brother, you go back. I'll wash the bowl and put it back myself."
Tian Dazhuang was stunned: "You'll wash it?"
Tian Wenmo said with some embarrassment and annoyance, "It's just washing a bowl. I can even read and write; how hard can washing a bowl be? Big Brother, don't look down on people."
Seeing his brother was angry, Tian Dazhuang hurriedly left. Since childhood, he had been particularly afraid of his brother getting angry or crying, because whenever he did, Mother would take her anger out on him, saying he didn't care for his brother properly as the eldest. Being beaten and scolded was a common occurrence.
As Tian Dazhuang walked back to his own shack, he suddenly scratched his head. Wait, Mother doesn't just hit and scold people randomly anymore...
Throughout the night, the heat made her wake up repeatedly. Between waving a cattail fan and wiping sweat, Qin Sang deeply missed modern times with air conditioning.
Before dawn, Qin Sang was awakened by the sound of a gong. Her heart skipped a beat. A gong at this hour—had something happened in the village?
She put on her shoes, got out of bed, and left the room. Tian Sangui and Tian Dazhuang had also heard the commotion and gotten up. They both accompanied Qin Sang toward the Village Chief's house.
As the sky began to brighten, many people had gathered at the Village Chief's house. Only then did Tian Yougen stop hitting the gong:
"Everyone, hurry home and grab your tools. We're going to Wen Family Village later to demand an explanation."
Someone asked:
"Village Chief, why grab tools? Are we going to fight? What happened?"
The old Village Chief walked out tremblingly and said loudly:
"This morning, my You Gen went to the river to fetch water for the fields, but there was no water in the river. He walked upstream and found that the people of Wen Family Village had blocked the water. They don't want us downstream villages to survive!
I've already sent You Di and You Cai to notify several nearby downstream villages. We'll go to Wen Family Village together later to demand an explanation."
After the Village Chief's explanation, the villagers all became agitated. How could they not be angry? Right now, they relied on that little bit of river water for everything. With the upstream blocking it, how would they water the fields? With such a fierce sun, the crops could wither and die in a single day.
Furthermore, once the river ran dry, it was very likely the village wells wouldn't produce water either. This would drive people to their deaths.
Qin Sang couldn't stay out of it. Although she didn't lack food or water, living in this era meant she had to adapt to the survival rules of this society. If everyone in the village went and you didn't, then if your family encountered an emergency later, you'd have to handle it alone.
However, Qin Sang didn't plan to get too deeply involved. With that little bit of water in the river, it wouldn't last long anyway if it didn't rain. So the fundamental problem wasn't whether the upstream was blocking the water, but when the Heavens would let it rain.
"Da Zhuang, San Gui, you can go later, but you are not allowed to take the lead. The Village Chief and the others will handle the negotiations. You're young, so it's not your place to speak.
Also, if a fight really breaks out, you aren't allowed to rush forward. Try to hold the other villagers back too. It's not worth losing your lives over this little bit of water."
Qin Sang returned home. The rest of the family was up, all worried about what to do without water. Qin Sang wasn't in a hurry. She carried a pumpkin to the kitchen and, seeing Eldest Brothers Wife come in, instructed:
"This pumpkin is edible. Scoop out all the seeds and dry them to save; we'll plant them ourselves later. Use this pumpkin to cook porridge this morning. It'll be ready for them to drink when they get back."