A jinx, me? But I bring good fortune to my whole family!

The knocking sounded three more times, calmly and evenly spaced.

Gu Jianguo's throat tightened, and he kept his hand on the door latch without moving.

Su Xiulan hugged Nuannuan and shrank further into the kang (heated brick bed), her arms wrapped tightly around Nuannuan, making Nuannuan's ribs ache.

Gu Xiaoan had somehow managed to pull a carrying pole from behind the door and held it horizontally in front of him, his palms sweaty and slippery from gripping it.

The main room was eerily quiet, with only the crackling of the oil lamp wick.

Gu Da'an stood silently behind Su Xiulan, but took half a step forward, shielding his mother and sister behind him.

Nuannuan nestled on Su Xiulan's shoulder, able to hear her mother's heart pounding. She reached out and patted Su Xiulan's back, whispering, "Mommy, Nuannuan's here."

Su Xiulan bit her lip and remained silent, resting her chin on Nuannuan's head, her whole body tense.

"Who?"

Gu Jianguo finally spoke, his voice very low, as he asked through the crack in the door.

Could it be someone from the Lin family?

There was a moment of silence outside the door.

"Gu Jianguo, it's me, Gao Yuan, open the door."

It was a high-pitched voice.

Gu Jianguo's hand paused on the door latch for two seconds. Instead of relaxing, he became even more nervous.

It's strange that Gao Yuan drove up at this time.

He pulled out the latch, and the door opened a crack.

Gao Yuan stood at the door, his military cap pulled low, with a jeep parked behind him, its hood steaming.

What made Gu Jianguo's heart skip a beat was the person behind Gao Yuan.

An officer, not tall but standing ramrod straight, with stars on his shoulder insignia much higher than Gao Yuan's.

Gu Jianguo had served in the military, so he recognized the shoulder insignia.

How could someone of this caliber appear in their village?

The officer stepped into the courtyard with steady steps. He glanced around the courtyard and finally turned to the main room.

Gu Jianguo blocked the entrance to the main room and refused to move.

"Comrade Gu Jianguo," Gao Yuan cleared his throat, "This is Director Zhou from the Military Region's Equipment Department. He came here today specifically for some business."

Director Zhou, Military Region, Equipment Department.

Hearing those words sent a chill down Gu Jianguo's spine.

The first thought that flashed through his mind was a piece of iron.

The items arrived as soon as they were delivered; that's incredibly fast.

He didn't show it on his face, but stepped aside to let her pass.

Director Zhou walked into the main room and scanned the room with his eyes.

Su Xiulan sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) holding Nuannuan, her face pale and her lips trembling.

Gu Xiaoan gripped the carrying pole and leaned against the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), his knuckles cracking and his teeth clenched tightly.

Gu Da'an stood at the very back, without saying a word.

Nuannuan peeked half her head out from Su Xiulan's shoulder and looked at the person in military uniform.

"Little Green, what does that person smell like?"

"The smell of iron, machine oil, and gunpowder," Xiao Lü shuddered. "This kind of person is not to be trifled with; don't mess with him."

Nuannuan pulled her head back in.

Director Zhou didn't rush to speak. He stood in the middle of the main room and looked around. Finally, his gaze passed over Gu Jianguo, over Su Xiulan, and over Gu Xiaoan, and landed on the tallest boy at the very back.

"You're Gu Da'an?"

The whole family was stunned.

Su Xiulan opened her mouth, then closed it again.

Gu Xiaoan loosened his grip on the carrying pole, his face clearly showing his inner thoughts.

Gu Jianguo turned to look at his eldest son, then turned back, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly.

Looking for Da'an?

This guy drove all the way here in a military vehicle, looking for his family, Da'an?

Gu Jianguo's mind raced for a while, but he just couldn't figure it out.

Director Zhou took something out of his shirt pocket.

A component.

It's not big, about the size of a walnut in the palm of your hand, but its structure is frighteningly complex, with gears nested within gears, several irregular grooves in the middle, and threads on the edges.

Gu Jianguo glanced at it but couldn't tell what it was.

Su Xiulan was completely clueless.

Gu Xiaoan took a closer look and shook her head.

Director Zhou held the parts up, pointing them in Gu Da'an's direction.

"If we use existing lathes, what is the minimum number of steps required to perfectly replicate it and keep the error within one-tenth of a hair's width?"

The main room fell silent.

Gu Jianguo didn't understand the question at all. He had never heard of a lathe, a process, or one-tenth the thickness of a hair.

Su Xiulan was sweating profusely with anxiety, and Gu Xiaoan was also pounding with worry. She even forgot to put down the carrying pole in her hand, and her eyes darted back and forth between her elder brother and Director Zhou.

Nuannuan squirmed in Su Xiulan's arms and whispered in Su Xiulan's ear, "Mommy, stop pinching Nuannuan, my arm hurts."

Su Xiulan then realized that she had hugged Nuannuan too tightly and quickly loosened her grip.

Gu Da'an walked out from behind, went up to Director Zhou, and reached out to take it.

He pinched the part between his fingers, flipped it over, and then flipped it over again.

He rubbed his fingertip along the grooves of the gear and pressed it against the edge of the groove.

Less than ten seconds.

He raised his head and spoke.

"Five Paths".

The sound was soft and dry, but clear.

"Lathe, milling, boring, grinding, and finally manual fine-tuning."

He paused for a moment, then added another sentence.

"During the third boring, the feed rate should not exceed 0.02, otherwise there will be vibration marks on the groove wall."

No one spoke in the main room.

Su Xiulan's mouth was open, her hand resting on Nuannuan's back, and she forgot to move.

Gu Jianguo stood there, his legs so heavy he couldn't move. He stared at his eldest son, his mind buzzing.

What is turning, milling, boring, grinding, what is feed rate, what is vibration mark?

Where did Da'an learn that from?

Director Zhou put the parts back in his pocket, bent down to open his briefcase, and pulled out a document.

The paper was crisp and had a red stamp on it.

He handed the document to Gu Jianguo.

"Comrade Gu Jianguo".

Gu Jianguo reached out his hand, paused in mid-air, and then took it.

He glanced down at the first line of text and froze.

Recommendation letter for special admission to the Department of Mechanical Engineering, National University of Defense Technology.

National University of Defense Technology.

Gu Jianguo not only recognized those five words, but he had also heard of them when he was in the army. What kind of place was that? It was the most prestigious military academy in the country, a place where even the children of battalion-level officers might not be able to get in.

The letter of recommendation clearly states that the person being recommended is Gu Da'an.

The recommending organization's red stamp was neatly square.

Gu Jianguo held the paper, his hands trembling so badly that he could barely read the words. He blinked several times to make sure he wasn't mistaken.

"Director Zhou... are you referring to my Da'an?"

"Yes," Director Zhou replied crisply.

"This is a direct recommendation from the military region," Gao Yuan said from the side. "It skips all the usual procedures. After enrollment, they will be treated as reserve officers."

He paused for a moment, then added a sentence.

"This kind of treatment has never been seen before."

Su Xiulan couldn't hold back.

She covered her mouth, and tears streamed down her face.

Su Xiulan's shoulders trembled as she cried, but she still couldn't make a sound. Her voice had been ruined the night before, and her tears splattered all over her warm little jacket.

Nuannuan reached out and wiped her face: "Mom, you're crying again. This is the third time today."

Gu Xiaoan's eyes also reddened. He wiped his eyes hard with his sleeve and sniffed deeply.

"My brother is going to university, or is he being specially recruited for a military academy?"

His voice trembled as he turned to look at Gu Da'an.

"Brother, did you hear that? You're going to college!"

Gu Da'an stood there expressionless, but his fingers moved slightly along the seam of his trousers, rubbing his index and middle fingers together a couple of times.

Nuannuan saw it; she knew that Da'an-gege acted like this when he was happy.

"I'm so happy, Da'an-gege," Nuan Nuan smiled at him.

Gu Da'an looked down at her, his lips twitched but he didn't smile, but the look in his eyes changed.

Gu Jianguo read the letter of recommendation three times, looking at every word and touching the red seal. After confirming that it was genuine, he carefully placed the letter on the kang table, leaned over and took several deep breaths while supporting himself on the edge of the table.

Throughout the day and night, from losing Nuannuan to finding her, from the metal sheet to the knocking on the door, his heart had never been at ease. Now that he was finally relieved, he almost couldn't stand up.

Director Zhou closed his briefcase, fastened the buttons, and straightened up.

"The formalities aren't urgent. Captain Gao will assist you with them. Just get ready; a special car will come to pick you up."

After he finished speaking, he turned and walked out.

He paused for a moment when he reached the gate of the courtyard.

He turned his head and glanced at the little girl on the kang (a heated brick bed) with her hair in a small bun and rice gruel stains around her mouth.

"This kid is good; he's a promising talent."

Gu Jianguo was standing up while holding onto the table when he heard this, and his back straightened abruptly.

What does this person know?

Gu Jianguo was about to ask a question when Director Zhou had already stepped out of the courtyard gate, with Gao Yuan following behind. Gao Yuan nodded to Gu Jianguo without saying anything more.

The jeep's engine roared, and it drove off, crunching over the gravel.

A cloud of dust rose from the dirt road at the entrance of the courtyard.

Gu Jianguo stood at the door, watching the car disappear around the corner of the alley, his fingers unconsciously gripping the door frame.

The message was personally delivered by Li Dashan to each household's doorstep.

"Gu Jianguo's son, Da'an, has been specially recruited by a military academy! The National University of Defense Technology!"

Li Dashan's voice boomed from the east end of the village to the west end. He shouted all the way, and would bang on the wall twice whenever he passed by someone's house.

The entire Gujia Village was in an uproar.

"Military academy? That idiot from the Gu family... that Da'an?"

"My God, the National University of Defense Technology? What kind of school is that?"

"I heard they only recruit a handful nationwide, even the battalion commander's child couldn't get in!"

Under the old locust tree at the village entrance, several old men squatted there smoking their pipes, looking at each other.

"Gu Jianguo has really hit the jackpot!"

Someone took a puff of smoke, exhaled, and shook their head.

"What a pity, it has nothing to do with Grandma Gu and the others anymore, the relationship is severed."

No one responded. Old Mrs. Gu had suffered a stroke and could no longer speak clearly. She couldn't even afford to eat with Gu Jian'an and Zhang Aidi. She had driven them to such a state back then, and now that they were successful, she was too ashamed to approach them.

-

The day the school sent a jeep to pick up Da'an, the entire village road was packed with people.

A dark green Jeep was parked in front of the Gu family compound. Its body was polished to a shine, and two small red flags were stuck on the front of the car, fluttering in the wind.

The driver, a young soldier, got out of the car, saluted, and took Da'an's luggage, putting it into the trunk.

Da'an stood at the gate of the courtyard, wearing the new jacket that Su Xiulan had altered overnight.

Su Xiulan stood to the side, biting her lip, rubbing her hands repeatedly on her apron, seven or eight times.

"Da'an, eat well when you get there, don't go hungry. I've packed your cotton-padded coat in my bag..."

Da'an didn't say anything, but lowered his head and straightened the straps of his canvas bag.

Gu Xiaoan rushed out of the house, clutching a paper package in her hand, and shoved it into Da'an's hand.

"Brother, eat this if you get hungry on the way. It's a pancake Mom made, still warm."

Da'an took it.

Gu Jianguo stood at the very back, not moving forward, with his hands behind his back and his back ramrod straight.

Nuannuan popped out from behind Su Xiulan's legs, tilting her little face up.

"Big brother."

Da'an squatted down.

Nuannuan took a piece of candy out of her pocket, stood on tiptoe, and stuffed the candy into Da'an's pocket.

Big brother, you need to keep warm.

Da'an rubbed his index and middle fingers together along the seam of his pants.

He reached out and touched the warm little tuft of hair, his lips moving slightly, "Wait for me!"

Nuannuan nodded obediently.

The jeep started moving, and people on both sides of the village road quickly moved aside.

Nuannuan took two steps to catch up, but her short legs meant she couldn't run very fast, so Su Xiulan scooped her up and pulled her back.

The car turned a corner and disappeared. Su Xiulan couldn't hold back anymore; she hugged her daughter, covered her face, and started sobbing.

Nuannuan patted her on the back like a little adult, "Mommy, big brother is so capable, he made us wait for him!"

After Da'an left, the villagers didn't disperse. Gu Jianguo invited the people who had helped look for the child a few days ago to his house, while Su Xiulan led the women in cooking in the kitchen.

Two tables were pushed together in the yard, bowls and plates were laid out, and the aroma of chicken, duck, fish and meat filled the air.

Gaoyuan also came and sat in a corner, drinking his wine casually.

Nuannuan carried a small bowl around the yard, picking up food for one person and handing out steamed buns to another, her little mouth chattering away non-stop.

"Uncle Li, please eat more!"

"Aunt Liu, this chicken leg is delicious!"

The brigade leader drank a few cups, his face turned red, and his speech became a little slurred, but he was still thinking about the village. "Jianguo, your family's life is better now, but the people in our village... this year's grain harvest is just average, and we'll have to tighten our belts and live off our savings to get through the winter."

He picked up a piece of food, chewed it, and mumbled a reply.

"If only we could grow vegetables in winter, life would be so different."

The people at the table all sighed.

"Grow vegetables in winter? The ground's frozen solid, what can you grow?"

"Exactly, it's not like it's in the South..."

Nuannuan, carrying a bowl, strolled past and tilted her head when she heard this.

"Growing in greenhouses, you know."

Several people looked over.

"What?"

"Greenhouse!" Nuannuan put down her bowl and gestured with her two little hands. "It's a shed with a transparent cover on top. The sun shines in, but the wind can't get in. It's warm inside, so the vegetables can grow."

Li Dashan laughed: "Where did this girl hear that from?"

Gu Jianguo put down his chopsticks but didn't laugh.

He glanced at Nuannuan, then looked at everyone else present.

"Nuan Nuan isn't lying."

The table fell silent.

Gu Jianguo picked up the wine bowl, took a sip, and put it down.

"Plastic film, bamboo poles to build a frame, south-facing slopes are best. I've inquired, and people in the south are already doing this. They grow cucumbers and tomatoes in winter, and the price is more than three times higher."

Gu Chengye's chopsticks froze in mid-air. "Really?"

"Buyers are not a problem at all. Look at my vegetables, we can't even sell them all."

As soon as Gu Jianguo said this, everyone at the table widened their eyes in surprise.

Gao Yuan stood in the corner, holding a wine bowl. His lips twitched, but he said nothing.

-

Three years later.

In the winter of 1982, the town's road was extended to the entrance of Gujia Village.

The village road was completely covered with greenhouses, rows of white plastic films shimmering in the sunlight. Inside the greenhouses were lush green cucumber vines and bright red tomatoes, and even in the dead of winter, the greenhouses were steaming with heat.

Gujia Village has become a well-known greenhouse vegetable village in the province.

Countless people from the county, city, and province have come to interview us, and it's even been published in the provincial newspaper.

Gu Jianguo and Gu Xiaoan registered the town's first agricultural company, and the vegetables they grew were unmatched elsewhere, with prices rising year after year.

Gu Xiaoan is eighteen years old, tall and thin. He drives a small car all over town and is very quick-witted. The purchasing station manager in the county calls him "Director Gu".

Su Xiulan manages the household accounts, her abacus clicking away. Gu Jianguo is out running the market, while she stays at home, their roles clearly defined.

Nuannuan is eight years old and in the second grade.

She had grown quite a bit taller, but was still thin, with a fair complexion and two neatly tied braids. Her schoolbag was a cartoon cat bag that Gu Xiaoan had brought back from the provincial capital; she was the only one in the class with one.

She's now the darling of the village.

Wherever she went, people would give her food. Every household would save one cucumber from the first batch of cucumbers grown in the greenhouse.

Grandma Gu passed away two years ago. She was all alone when she died, and her body was discovered because it was smelling bad.

Gu Jian'an and Zhang Aidi separated their households and honestly farmed their small plot of land, making them the poorest family in the village.

Gu Jianping and his wife realized their mistake early and contracted ten greenhouses. After three years, they became a family with ten thousand yuan in income.

Old Mrs. Lin and her two paralyzed sons had long been driven out of Niulan Village, and no one knew where they went. Wang Guixiang went back to her parents' home and no one had seen her since.

The fourth son also didn't get married and has long since disappeared.

……

The 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month is the Little New Year.

After school, Nuannuan skipped home with her schoolbag on her back. On the way, she saw Little Grey squatting on the wall, his beard twitching.

"Little Grey!" Nuannuan waved to it.

Little Grey squeaked twice and ran off along the wall.

Nuannuan chased after him for a couple of steps but couldn't catch up. She pouted, snorted, and continued walking home.

As soon as I turned into the alley, I saw a military green jeep parked in front of the house.

Nuannuan paused for a moment, then rushed home excitedly.

The schoolbag pattered against her back, and her little braids swung back and forth.

The courtyard gate was open, and voices could be heard coming from inside the main room.

Nuannuan rushed into the courtyard and plunged into the main room.

"Big brother!"

Gu Da'an stood in the middle of the main room, wearing a military uniform. He was more than half a head taller than he had been three years ago, and his shoulders were broader. He was a completely different person from before.

He squatted down and reached out to touch Nuannuan's head.

"You've grown taller."

He uttered three words, his voice still not loud, but his expression softened.

Nuannuan rushed over and hugged his neck, hanging on him and swaying.

"Brother Da'an, you've lost weight! Have you been eating poorly? Mom made braised pork, you have to eat three bowls!"

Su Xiulan poked her head out of the kitchen, her apron covered in flour, her face crinkled with laughter, and her eyes were red.

"Alright, alright, let your brother sit down and have a drink of water first."

Nuannuan slid off Da'an and then noticed that there was another person in the main room.

A man was sitting in the corner.

He was in his early thirties, wearing a faded blue cotton shirt, with a thin face, high cheekbones, and very short hair. He sat on a stool with his hands on his knees, rubbing his fingers together incessantly.

Nuannuan looked at him and slowly stopped walking.

Little Green's ginseng whiskers trembled violently in her mind.

"A human cub..."

"Um?"

"This person's aura..." Little Green paused for two seconds, "...is the same as yours."

My heart skipped a beat.

Gu Jianguo came out of the inner room, walked to Nuannuan's side, and squatted down.

He didn't say anything, but put his hand on Nuannuan's shoulder and gently squeezed it.

Da'an spoke up.

"Nuan Nuan, his name is Lin Weijia."

Nuannuan's fingers gripped the backpack strap tightly.

"He's your biological father."

The main room was so quiet that you could hear the bubbling sound of water boiling in the kitchen.

Su Xiulan stood at the kitchen door, gripping the spatula tightly in her hand, motionless.

The man looked up at Nuannuan.

His lips moved several times, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down, before he finally managed to squeeze out a sentence.

"You...you're Nuan Nuan?"

Nuannuan didn't move.

She stood there, the red ribbon on her braid swaying slightly.

Da'an was standing nearby, speaking very softly.

"He didn't die back then. He was swept away by the water but was rescued and taken to the hospital. When he woke up, he didn't remember anything."

He paused for a moment.

"Later, I settled down and started a family there."

As soon as those words were spoken, the temperature in the main room seemed to drop a few degrees.

Su Xiulan's shovel fell to the ground with a clatter.

Nuan Nuan kept her head down, and no one could see her expression.

After a long while, she raised her face, her nose was red, her eyes were bright, and the corners of her mouth were pulled upwards.

"Nuan Nuan understands."

She walked up to Lin Weijia, tilted her head and looked at him for a while, then reached out and patted the back of his hand that was resting on his knee.

"It's okay, you didn't forget on purpose."

Lin Weijia's tears welled up instantly, and he bent over, his shoulders shaking violently, crying so hard he couldn't make a sound.

Nuannuan withdrew her hand, turned around and walked to Gu Jianguo.

She stretched out both arms.

"Daddy, hug me."

Gu Jianguo scooped her up and held her tightly. Nuannuan nestled on his shoulder, her little hands clutching the back of his shirt.

"A father is a father, and no one can take him away."

Gu Jianguo rested his chin on the top of her head, his throat constricted, and it took him a long time to utter a single word.

"Um."

"Nuannuan doesn't even remember what her father looks like anymore. You are my family!"

Su Xiulan, Da'an, and Xiao'an also came over and hugged Nuannuan tightly, choking back tears as they said, "Yes, we're family!"

Outside the yard, Little Grey was squatting on the wall, tilting its head.

Xiao Hei stood on the sycamore tree in the yard, its bright black eyes scanning the house.

In the corner of the wall, a small green ginseng root swayed gently in the soil.

"Human babies, they all love you very much."

Nuannuan looked at her family members beside her, and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly. "Yes, I love them too."

(End of the article)