Sweet Rebirth: The Little Healer

Zhao Nuan Yang was an art student and a skilled floral arranger. With his deft hands, he could arrange even the most common, unnamed wildflowers into beautiful and elegant flower baskets.

Zhao Nuanyue spent the entire day working without rest, weaving a total of ten flower baskets in various shapes.

That evening after dark, Zhao Nuanyue took the three baskets she was most pleased with and went to Li Guihua’s house. Li Qiong had some free time, so she went along with Zhao Nuanyue.

Li Minglan opened the door and saw Zhao Nuanyue and Li Qiong. Her eyes lit up, especially at the sight of the small baskets in Zhao Nuanyue’s hands. She immediately reached for one, holding it to examine it closely. ”Ms. Nuan Yue, did you weave this?” she praised.

”Yes, I did. Do you like it?” Zhao Nuanyue asked with a smile. ”If you do, it’s yours.”

”I do, I love it!” Li Minglan nodded eagerly. She slung the basket over her arm and ran to her mother. ”Mom, Ms. Nuan Yue gave this to me. Isn’t it pretty?”

Li Guihua was pleasantly surprised when she saw the small flower baskets. She was even more delighted when she realized they were woven from the village’s own willow branches. She asked hurriedly, ”Nuanyue, did you... did you weave these? Are they really made from our village’s willow branches?”

Zhao Nuanyue nodded. ”Yes, I wove them from the willow branches right here in the village. You can even control the shade of the color by how long you sun-dry them. There’s no need for paint, which makes them more pure and natural.”

”Wonderful, truly wonderful!” Li Guihua admired the basket, unable to put it down. She praised her again and again. ”Nuanyue, you’re so clever with your hands!”

Li Guihua wanted to ask Zhao Nuanyue to teach the other villagers, but she was a little hesitant to bring it up.

Zhao Nuanyue, who always enjoyed helping others, spoke up before Li Guihua even had to ask. She smiled gently and said, ”Aunt Li, ever since I arrived in Nianqiao Village, you, Uncle Miao, and all the villagers have taken such good care of me. I’ve been incredibly grateful. The other day, I heard that handicrafts can be sold for money. Since I know how to weave these baskets, I thought that if we could use these willow branches to benefit the village and its people, it would be my way of repaying you and Nianqiao Village for all your help.”

Hearing this, Li Guihua was so moved she wished Zhao Nuanyue was her own daughter. ’This girl is just too good.’

’Such high-mindedness!’

’Such a kind heart!’

’And to think, such a good girl is constantly being slandered behind her back by the likes of Liu Lanhua and Wang Cuihua. It’s utterly shameless. Now that Zhao Nuanyue is willing to share her basket-weaving method, I’d like to see if those other women still follow Liu Lanhua and Wang Cuihua around, wagging their tongues.’

Li Guihua excitedly gripped Zhao Nuanyue’s hand, at a loss for words. Finally, she managed to say, ”Oh, Nuanyue, you’re such a good child! A truly good person!”

”Heh, thank you for the praise, Aunt Li,” Zhao Nuanyue said with a small laugh. ”You can see what the village procedures are, but either way, I’m willing to teach everyone. As long as we clear it with the higher-ups and the policies allow it, life in Nianqiao Village will be even better this year!”

”That’s for sure!” Li Guihua nodded. ”I have you to thank for this. Miao Dahai and I—the entire village—we won’t forget you.”

Li Guihua couldn’t take her eyes off the flower baskets. She was eager to go to Miao Dahai’s house and discuss the matter of these handicraft baskets with him.

After leaving Li Guihua’s house, Li Qiong was quiet for a long moment before she finally said slowly, ”Nuanyue, I really admire you. You always find a way to use your skills to get what you need.”

”Heh, it’s only natural,” Zhao Nuanyue said with a nod. ”You know how it is. With my brother, and now a little sister to look after, I can’t just keep to myself if we want to live well in Nianqiao Village. You receive kindness and goodwill from others only when you do good things for them.”

”I know,” Li Qiong nodded. ”I understand that, it’s just... I don’t really have many skills. But you, Nuanyue, I’m realizing you’re talented in so many ways.”

”Heh, they were just hobbies, so I learned a bit,” Zhao Nuanyue said with a light laugh. ”Li Qiong, if you want to learn, I can teach you. It’s always better to have a little extra money and some ration tickets than to have empty hands.”

Li Qiong listened and nodded. ”You’re right. We don’t go hungry, but the money and ration tickets we’re allotted are next to nothing. I wouldn’t have to study every day, but if I could learn to weave these willow baskets from you and earn a little extra, that would be great. It would definitely come in handy if I ever need money for something.”

”Alright, I’ll teach you,” Zhao Nuanyue agreed with a nod. ”We’ll earn money together.”

As they walked, Zhao Nuanyue explained to Li Qiong how to select and collect willow branches of different thicknesses, how to dry them, and so on.

Li Qiong listened attentively, committing everything to memory.

After Zhao Nuanyue and Li Qiong left, Li Guihua went straight to Miao Dahai’s house.

Miao Dahai and his wife were in the middle of dinner with their son and daughter-in-law. When they heard Li Guihua had arrived, they quickly offered her a seat.

Li Guihua was not just Miao Dahai’s colleague at work; their families were also joined by marriage. With their children living and working away from the village, the two families had grown even closer.

”Jianguo’s mother, where did you get that basket?” Miao Dahai’s wife, Aunt Miao, was surprised to see Li Guihua arrive with a flower basket so late at night. ”The craftsmanship is exquisite! Is it made from willow branches?”

”Yes, you’re right, sister,” Li Guihua said with a smile. ”They’re woven from willow branches, the ones right from our riverbanks and ditches. But I’m not the one who made such a beautiful basket—it was Zhao Nuanyue. She heard that Wang Family Village can make wood carvings to sell to the shops or even count them toward their public grain tax. So, when she noticed our village has a lot of the right kind of willow branches—the Soft Willow that’s perfect for weaving—she made a few and brought them over to me. I think these baskets are wonderful! If we can sell them to the shops, then even our useless willow trees can earn us money. And what’s more, Nuanyue said she’s willing to teach us how to weave them.”

When Aunt Miao heard this, her eyes lit up. She looked at Miao Dahai and said, ”My, that Zhao Nuanyue is a very high-minded young woman.”

Miao Dahai thought for a moment, then nodded. ”Yes, that’s a great idea. Tomorrow, bring Zhao Nuanyue to the village office. Have her bring all her baskets. I’ll take them to the county and speak with the officials there. If this works out, our village will have another source of income.”

There were plenty of willow trees, especially along the riverbanks. In fact, branches often had to be trimmed to keep them from falling into the water, and they were usually just burned as firewood. If they could be sold for money instead, nothing could be better.

It was a perfect example of turning trash into treasure!

”Alright, I’ll bring Nuanyue over tomorrow so we can discuss it,” Li Guihua said happily. ’I really hope life in the village keeps getting better and better.’

After the spring planting was finished, the men continued to dredge mud from the river canals to make compost for the rice paddies that would be planted in June. The women stayed home, raising chicks and ducklings. Everyone bustled about, toiling and striving for a better future.