The little one's purse connects the two worlds, turning a desolate village into a paradise.

As the sun gradually climbed overhead, Ya Ya finished her meal and wanted to go find the shopkeeper to deliver the straw sandals her grandmother had woven.

But Grandpa Fang wouldn't allow it.

He knew that the time was reversed over there, and if he went there now, it would already be midnight over there. He couldn't let Ya Ya go. He stared intently with his old eyes and a stern face.

Ya Ya knew that Grandpa Fang was doing it for her own good, so she stopped making a fuss about going. When she saw Grandma Liu going to the river to pick cattails, she happily followed behind with a small basket.

Cattails are a treasure of the mountains; they can be used to weave baskets and straw sandals. Apart from the ones we gave to the shopkeeper, we haven't officially sold any yet. This time, we'll gather more and, while the sun is shining, thoroughly dry and neatly arrange the cattails for future use.

Other villagers went up the mountain in twos and threes, some picking wild vegetables, others gathering mushrooms and searching for bamboo shoots.

Zhao Hu set up several traps on the mountain and checked them every day.

Ya Ya and Grandma Liu walked along the riverbank. The river water was crystal clear, reflecting the clouds in the sky.

The further they went into the denser reeds, the more lush and vigorous the grass grew, reaching over half a person's height, rustling softly in the wind. Grandma Liu, worried about the sprouts getting hurt, would frequently reach out to clear away the grass blocking the child's path.

As they walked, Grandma Liu suddenly stopped, gently tugged at Ya Ya, and gestured for her to be quiet.

She slowly squatted down, her rain boots gently sinking into the river mud. She reached out and parted the layers of cattail leaves, immediately spotting a small duck nest hidden deep in the grass. It was lined with soft, dry grass, and inside lay several wild duck eggs, their shells speckled with pale bluish-gray, round and clean.

Ya Ya held her breath, her eyes wide with surprise and delight.

Grandma Liu wasn't greedy; she only picked two to give the child a taste of something new, and left the rest hidden in the cattails, waiting for the mother duck to return and hatch the ducklings.

"Hey! Nannan, the egg you brought back, have the village chief bring it over later so the mother duck can incubate it too, don't waste it." Grandma Liu suddenly remembered this and whispered to Ya Ya.

She was afraid she would forget to pick the grass later.

"Okay!" Ya Ya replied crisply, picked up some dry grass, wrapped the two duck eggs, and put them into her little basket.

After tidying up the duck eggs, the two continued walking into the denser area, picking out the slender and tough cattails.

Grandma Liu is old, so she has to get up and rest after pulling for a while.

Ya Ya followed along, pulling at the leaves. As she pulled, a lush green leaf appeared at her feet. It wasn't very tall, only reaching Ya Ya's knees.

Ya Ya lifted her foot and stepped on the grass with her little rain boots. The grass roots were still a bit brittle, and they crunched underfoot.

Children in the village are not allowed to go to the river alone, and she doesn't recognize any of the wild vegetables growing there.

Hearing the commotion, Grandma Liu glanced over at Ya Ya and was overjoyed to see a large patch of water celery hidden under the cattails!

The emerald green stems are tender and fresh, and the leaves are plump and covered with water vapor from the river surface.

"Oh my, this is a good thing!" Grandma Liu led Ya Ya aside, picked a clump of water celery and examined it carefully. Besides water celery, there was another kind of poisonous hemlock that looked similar by the river. Its leaves were thin and sharp, and it had a pungent smell. You must never touch it.

Grandma Liu held the vegetable in her hand, noticing that the stems at the bottom of the vegetable were purplish, the leaves were wide and round, and the aroma was fresh, which put her at ease.

A sea of ​​green came into view, and she couldn't suppress the smile on her face. Her daughter was such a lucky baby; she could find such a wonderful thing so easily.

I've been eating a lot of meat lately, so eating more water celery can help clear heat, detoxify, and aid digestion!

"Grandma, what's this?" Ya Ya also pulled one out and held it in her hand.

"This is water celery. It grows by the river and absorbs the essence of the river water. It tastes crisp and has a slightly sweet flavor. It's delicious stir-fried or stewed with small fish."

Ya Ya's eyes lit up when she heard that. So there were such delicious vegetables by the river!

It's sweet and delicious, as if it's absorbed the essence of the river!

She wants to pick some to take to her aunt and fairy sister, and also share some with the shopkeeper. If she happens to run into the fishmonger, she'll give him a little bit too.

Perhaps the river's spirit can make my uncle a little smarter and more clear-headed.

Thinking of this, she imitated Granny Liu and carefully picked the water celery.

As Grandma Liu picked the water celery, she carefully shook each clump in clear water to remove the mud and small insects hiding under the leaves.

"Slow down, little girl. Don't touch the back of the leaves. The vegetables by the water are prone to harboring leeches, and they can bite you and cause a welt."

Ya Ya paused, glancing at the few plants she had picked.

"Grandma...is it...is it this bug?" Her face was a little pale, and she could indeed see a slimy bug under the leaf.

Grandma Liu looked down and saw that it really was a small leech. She quickly took the vegetables from Ya Ya's hand, shook it hard in the river, and the leech fell into the water with a "plop" and floated away.

She quickly squatted down, pulled up Ya Ya's little rain boots to check, and then gently pulled up her clothes. Seeing that the trouser legs were wrapped tightly and the leeches couldn't get in at all, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Looking up, Grandma Liu saw that Ya Ya's lips were slightly pursed and her face hadn't recovered yet. She felt both sorry for Ya Ya and amused, and gently coaxed her, "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid. It's good that you weren't bitten. There are a lot of leeches by the water, and they're so slippery and annoying. You go stand over there and I'll pick them off."

Ya Ya responded softly, took two steps back, her eyes still fixed on the patch of water celery, feeling both afraid and somewhat unwilling.

She's not a timid child, it's just... this bug looks so disgusting.