"Big brother, what is that?"
Xiaoyan had been obediently watching Lu Qing as he worked. When he finally finished making the fishing rod, she couldn't help but ask curiously.
"This is called a fishing rod. It's for catching fish. Whether or not we have anything to eat today depends entirely on this."
Lu Qing swung the bamboo rod a few times, testing its feel. He seemed quite satisfied.
In his previous life, he had been a fishing enthusiast. Whenever the mood struck, he enjoyed making his own rods for fun.
He hadn't expected that such a hobby would actually come in handy here.
The little girl's eyes lit up instantly. "Big brother, you can catch fish?"
"Whether I can catch any or not is still uncertain. We'll have to try first. If we do catch some, we'll have fish soup to eat."
"Fish soup..." Xiaoyan was already lost in a daydream the moment she heard those two words, a little bit of drool appearing at the corner of her mouth.
"Big brother, let's go fishing right now!"
She was already bursting with excitement.
The last time she had fish was a long, long time ago — during the New Year, when her father had bought a big fish from the market.
In her memory, fish was incredibly delicious.
"Don't rush, we still need some bait first."
Bait wasn't hard to find. In a cool, fertile corner of the courtyard, Lu Qing dug twice into the soil and found exactly what he needed.
[Red Earthworms: Great helpers for loosening soil; may also have medicinal uses.]
Ignoring the information that appeared over the worms, Lu Qing gathered them into a bamboo tube.
He wasn't after medicinal herbs — he didn't know the first thing about medicine.
Sealing the tube with a small hole for air, he slung the fishing rod over his back, picked up an old wooden bucket, and set off with Xiaoyan, full of spirit and energy.
But just as they left the courtyard and hadn't gone far into the village, a woman called out to them.
"Lu Qing, you're up and walking again?"
The woman, carrying a bundle of freshly laundered clothes, clearly had just returned from washing.
Her voice was full of surprise.
Wasn't the Lu family boy gravely ill? Even Old Doctor Chen had said his fate was in the hands of the heavens.
How had he suddenly recovered and was now walking around outside?
Just last night, some villagers were still discussing when to prepare for his burial.
"Yes, Auntie Wang. I don't know how, but after sleeping for two days, I just started feeling better. I was able to get out of bed this morning."
Lu Qing replied in the same quiet, reserved tone the original host would have used.
Fortunately, the original Lu Qing had been a rather quiet and introverted boy, so mimicking him wasn't hard.
"My brother got better after drinking Grandpa Chen's medicine!" Xiaoyan piped in from the side.
Auntie Wang didn't bother noting any subtle changes in his personality. Seeing Lu Qing seemingly healthy, she smiled warmly.
"That's great. That's really great."
She sighed in relief.
A few village elders had come to see Lu Qing in the past two days, all saying he likely wouldn't make it.
People had been discussing what would happen to little Xiaoyan if Lu Qing really passed.
The elders suggested that one family in the village adopt her, while everyone else would chip in some money for her food and care.
Unfortunately, her own husband had come home and insisted on adopting Xiaoyan himself — saying that Lu Qing's father had once helped him during a time of famine, and he couldn't ignore the old man's last descendant.
Auntie Wang had been completely against the idea of taking in another mouth to feed. But she didn't dare contradict her husband directly, so she had only been praying that Lu Qing would pull through.
Now, seeing him recovered, she was genuinely happy.
Thinking of this, Auntie Wang spoke earnestly, "Lu Qing, you have to take care of your health from now on. Xiaoyan only has you left. If anything happens to you too, what will she do all alone?"
Lu Qing was a little surprised.
In the original host's memory, this Auntie Wang didn't seem like such a warm-hearted person.
Still, he responded politely, "I understand. Thank you for your concern, Auntie Wang. I'll take good care of Xiaoyan."
"Good, that's a good boy." Auntie Wang finally looked satisfied.
As long as Lu Qing stayed alive, her husband would drop the idea of adopting Xiaoyan, and she wouldn't have to worry anymore.
Now in a better mood, Auntie Wang noticed the rod and bucket the siblings were carrying.
"What are you two up to with that bamboo rod and bucket?"
"Auntie Wang, my brother and I are going to catch fish!" Xiaoyan said cheerfully.
"Catch fish?" Auntie Wang frowned in confusion.
With just a bamboo rod and an old bucket, how were they going to catch fish?
Then she remembered the Lu family's current situation and suddenly realized — these siblings were probably so hungry they had no choice but to go fishing.
Auntie Wang quickly said, "You must be hungry. Come with me — I still have some food at home. Lu Qing, your body just started getting better, don't go near the river and catch a cold again."
"Don't worry, Auntie Wang. We won't go into the river. We'll just try fishing from the bank," Lu Qing replied with a smile.
A free meal was always nice, but they couldn't rely on the villagers' charity forever.
No matter how kind people were, favors had limits — and those limits would run out someday.
"Fishing? You know how to fish, Lu Qing?" Auntie Wang asked in surprise.
She knew what fishing was, of course, but no one in the village was particularly good at it. Yet Lu Qing claimed he knew how?
"Just a little. I heard my father talk about it before, so I wanted to try it out," Lu Qing said.
Auntie Wang recalled that Lu Qing's father was somewhat educated and often traveled outside the village. He had seen far more of the world than most of them.
Maybe he really had learned something special.
Still worried, she added, "Even so, there's no rush. You just got better — you should be resting. Do you think fish are that easy to catch? If you sit too long by the river and get chilled, it'll be worse than going hungry."
If he fell ill again, given how weak he was, who knew if he'd survive a second time?
Lu Qing could hear the genuine concern in her voice and was a little touched.
"Don't worry, Auntie Wang. I'll be careful — I won't overdo it."
Auntie Wang tried to convince them again but saw she couldn't win, so she gave up. "Then promise me you absolutely won't go into the water."
"Okay. We definitely won't go into the river. Goodbye, Auntie Wang."
Watching the siblings head off, Auntie Wang suddenly had a thought.
"That's right, I need to tell that stubborn old man at home — the Lu family boy is alive, so he can stop talking about adopting that little girl!"
She hurried home, while Lu Qing and Xiaoyan continued on and soon encountered a few more villagers.
Each one was shocked to see Lu Qing alive and walking, asking how he recovered.
Every time, Xiaoyan would proudly answer that her brother got better after drinking Grandpa Chen's medicine.
People were amazed and began to admire the old doctor even more.
Old Doctor Chen's skills had truly reached a new level — he'd saved someone who was on the brink of death!
After expressing their amazement, the villagers were genuinely happy for the Lu family. With Lu Qing alive, their family line hadn't been cut off.
When they heard he was going to fish by the river, they all advised him not to touch cold water while still recovering.
Only after he repeatedly promised not to go into the water did they let him go.
But when they learned he was going to try fishing, their interest quickly faded.
Fishing? Everyone knew about that.
Some villagers had even tried it themselves.
After all, river fish were fat, delicious, and belonged to no one — who wouldn't be tempted?
But everyone who had tried eventually gave up.
Fishing was just too hard.
Most of the time, they could sit for half a day and catch only one or two small fish.
Even catching a big one once in a while wasn't worth the time.
Everyone had fields and chores to deal with — who had time to waste for a few fish?
Only someone like Lu Qing, whose fields had been abandoned and who had no grain left, would think of fishing to fill his stomach.
Understanding his desperation, they no longer stopped him. After a few words of advice, they went their separate ways.
But a few older kids, intrigued by the idea, decided to follow Lu Qing and see just how he planned to fish.