Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

Zhou Rui found the bowl in the kitchen and quickly returned to the east room, where Zhou Jiutian and his wife were already sitting up.

"Grandpa, Grandma, you're up? Here, let me serve you some soup. I put a few ginseng roots in it; although they're not very old, they still have a blood-nourishing effect."

Zhou Rui makes up all his lies on the spot, he just spouts them off, and nobody can deny that he didn't put them in. Can't find it? If you can't find it, it's because it's been stewing for too long and dissolved into the soup.

Zhou Rui stirred the soup in the earthenware pot with a ladle, and the aroma became increasingly rich, spreading through the kitchen to the west room and even outside.

Tian Xiuying in the west room and the others listening to the commotion outside all smelled it, and they kept swallowing.

Unconsciously, Tian Xiuying left the west room and arrived at the door of the east room. She wanted to go in but didn't know how, so she hid behind the door.

Squeak... The soup spoon scraped the bottom of the earthenware pot, making a harsh sound. Zhou Rui scooped out the soup, filling two large bowls.

Zhou Dashan's eyes turned green with envy; they hadn't left him a single thing. At that moment, he only thought of himself, not of his wife who was still waiting for news in the west room.

"Here you go, Grandpa and Grandma, don't rush, drink slowly." Zhou Rui handed two bowls of soup to Zhou Jiutian and his wife.

Zhou Jiutian was no longer in the mood to speak. He only stammered a couple of times before quickly picking up the bowl. He didn't even use a spoon and started gulping down the food.

Zhao Xiumei was somewhat thoughtful, and said timidly, "Ruiwa, thank you, thank you for coming to see us."

However, he still didn't dare to look Zhou Rui in the eye when he said this.

Zhou Rui didn't care; he didn't care whether he thanked him or not. Nothing could change his attitude; he was just acting.

Watching Zhou Jiutian and Zhao Xiumei gulp down the soup, occasionally scooping up some minced meat and mushrooms with their spoons, Zhou Dashan's mouth kept watering.

He had to swallow frequently, otherwise his mouth would be full of saliva.

"Dad, Mom, you two shouldn't eat anymore. Changhai said that eating too much is bad for your health. I think I'll put the rest in the cupboard and eat it tomorrow."

Zhou Dashan couldn't resist any longer and took the large bowl from Zhou Jiutian.

"Where did they say that? Changhai never said that. Cough cough..." Zhou Jiutian said while dodging Zhou Dashan's hand, and choked instantly, spraying soup and meat crumbs all over the kang (a heated brick bed).

This really broke Zhou Dashan's heart. This old man, isn't this a waste?

"Yes, Changhai told me outside the house, you didn't hear it. Mother, you should stop too. Changhai said your illness is worse, you should eat less."

Zhao Xiumei was not like Zhou Jiutian. When she heard her son say that, she was caught between not being able to drink the soup and not being willing to put it down. She was stunned for a moment.

"You still want to fool your father? Changhai definitely didn't say that. Honey, drink up. Ruiwa worked hard to make this soup. Drink it and you'll get better."

Zhou Jiutian didn't care about anything else when it came to food, and he shouted loudly with great energy.

Bang! The door to the east room was suddenly pushed open, and Tian Xiuying walked in with her hands on her hips.

"What, are you saying my man is lying to you? To be honest, Changhai was just saying this to avoid upsetting you two."

Tian Xiuying spoke loudly, as if that would intimidate her father-in-law. While speaking, she deliberately glared at Zhao Xiumei, signaling her to put the bowl down immediately.

Zhao Xiumei was timid and was immediately frightened by her daughter-in-law's gaze. She felt like the bowl was a hot potato and was about to throw it onto the kang (a heated brick bed).

"Uncle, Aunt, what's going on between you two?"

Seeing that it was his turn to go on stage, Zhou Rui quickly cut in and recited his lines extremely loudly so that the people outside wouldn't miss them.

"My grandparents are sick, and Uncle Changhai said they need to take some tonics. I've made this stewed meat soup with ginseng in it; it's sure to help them get better. You can't stop me from eating it, can you?"

"No, I didn't... It was Changhai who said to eat less, because all medicines have some toxicity..." Zhou Dashan hurriedly explained.

"I think you're talking nonsense. This is meat broth, not medicine, so what poison could it have? Look, my grandparents only drank a few sips of this soup, and their complexions have become rosy. That means it has replenished their qi and blood."

Zhou Rui seized on the loopholes in Zhou Dashan's words and launched a fierce attack, while also constantly making up lies. Zhou Jiutian and his wife's faces were a little red, but that wasn't from the tonic; it was because they had put too much pepper in and were starting to sweat.

"I think it's because you and your wife can't stand seeing my grandparents doing well, so you're not letting them eat. Are you two planning to keep it for yourselves?"

Seeing Zhou Rui getting entangled with Zhou Dashan and his wife, Zhou Jiutian hurriedly drank a few more sips and gestured to Zhao Xiumei to drink as well.

Upon seeing this, Tian Xiuying panicked and reached out to snatch Zhou Jiutian's bowl.

"Dad, we're not lying to you, it really is what Changhai said. Ruiwa isn't here, he doesn't know, you can't just go along with this nonsense."

"Auntie, what are you doing? Why are you trying to steal Grandpa's soup?" Zhou Rui shouted loudly from the side, but didn't step forward to help.

Thump, gurgle, clang... The bowl fell onto the kang (a heated brick bed), rolled to the ground, and shattered.

"Oh, my soup!" Zhou Jiutian cried out, tears welling up in his eyes as he saw the soup and meat scraps scattered on the ground.

Squeak, snap.

"Ouch, who's on top of me?"

"Get up, get up quickly."

"Which scoundrel touched my chest?"

Suddenly, the main door was pushed open, and six or seven figures rolled around on the ground, leaving behind a pile of gourds.

The door to the east room hadn't been closed since Tian Xiuying pushed it open, and the people outside rolled into the outer room, making eye contact with the people in the east room.

A cold wind blew in from outside, freezing everyone inside, their eyes fixed on the group of people who had suddenly barged in.

"What's going on here?" Zhou Rui asked, feigning ignorance.

The group remained silent; it wouldn't be right to say they had secretly come to Zhou Dashan's house to peek through the door just to watch the excitement.

It's true what they say, lazy people are often clever; they can come up with all sorts of ways to be lazy, and this time is no exception.

"Well, we heard that Zhou Rui's grandparents are seriously ill, so we thought we'd come and visit them."

"Then what are you doing?" Zhou Dashan was completely baffled, but he had a bad feeling about it.

"We were just about to enter when we tripped and fell." Since one lazy person started it, others followed suit and made up stories.

"No, why are you asking so many questions? I'm telling you, Zhou Dashan, we heard it outside just now. You and your wife can't stand seeing your parents doing well. You even tried to snatch the soup that Ruiwa brought up to nourish them."

Sister-in-law Shufen was quite assertive; after standing up, she quickly grasped the key point.

"No, we didn't rob..."

Zhou Dashan panicked. If these words got out, what would become of his reputation? Although he didn't have a good reputation to begin with, it couldn't get any worse.

"You still say there's nothing? What's this on the ground? You ungrateful wretch, you're being unfilial!" The old woman, who was fighting alongside Sister-in-law Shufen, pointed at the ground and scolded loudly.

Zhou Dashan's face turned red, his hands waved, and he stammered, unable to speak. If he couldn't explain himself, he would be truly finished.

"What's wrong with you people? Why aren't you sleeping at home in the middle of the night? What are you doing here meddling? Get out!"

Tian Xiuying is quite domineering and has never lost an argument, so she didn't bother to explain herself this time.

That's it. Zhou Dashan's mind went blank. Was this the time to kick someone out? If he didn't explain things clearly, the matter would be set in stone.

"Oh no, oh no, Uncle Dashan!"

An urgent cry came from outside the yard, immediately drawing the attention of those inside the house.

"What's wrong? What happened?"

Zhou Dashan, as if grasping at a straw, shouted loudly outside. As long as he could divert everyone's attention, no matter what the matter was, it couldn't be worse than being unfilial.

"Oh no! Zhou Ji has been arrested!"