"Are you awake, Mother?" Du Yuncai asked, her small hand pressing cool against Jiang Li's forehead.
"It's just the fever. Don't worry." Jiang Li smiled and kept her voice soft.
Chen Guiying moved a stool closer and sat where the light reached. "She must rest. You did too much yesterday, girl."
"She was fine yesterday." Jiang Li's smile stuck. "Just wore herself out." She let her fingers twitch against the blanket until the tremor stopped.
Outside, a pig grunted and the gate rapped against its hinges. The sound made Du Yuncai jump.
"The pig again?" Chen Guiying stood. "I can't go—my back won't—"
"Give me five minutes." Jiang Li swung her legs off the mat and forced the weight into her feet. A cold sweat prickled her scalp but she hid it with a breath. The room smelled of sweat, dried dye, and last night's porridge.
"This little one needs feeding." Du Yuncai's voice climbed. "I'll help, I promise."
"No, stay." Jiang Li knelt and tied the girl's hair back with a thin strip of cloth. "You stay and watch the door. If anyone comes, you call me."
Du Yuncai frowned. "Mama?"
"Mama," Jiang Li said, and the word stuck in her like a small coin sliding into a clay jar. She touched the child's cheek once, careful and quick. "Go on. I'll be back before the sun climbs."
Chen Guiying lifted a battered bowl. "You take
