Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

The next day, as the sun climbed over the treetops, the able-bodied young men of the village, emboldened, went to the fields with their sickles to earn work points, their shouts echoing across the ridges of the fields.

Liu Qingguo took He Wu up the mountain to hunt. Zhou Rui didn't go, but to ensure their safety, he sent out Da Huang and Da Bai.

Under the centuries-old locust tree at the village entrance, several elderly people who could no longer walk had already gathered. They held their grandchildren in their arms and puffed on their pipes, the smoke rings swirling around the branches.

Zhou Rui, holding the soft little gosling in one arm and leading the bouncy little rice cake by the other, swayed as he approached.

He was incredibly sweet-talking, and he carried newly bought cigarettes in his pocket, offering them to everyone he met. After going around in circles, even Sixth Master, who usually didn't like to talk to people, smiled and raised his hand to accept them.

"Sixth Master, are you resting in the sun? Seventh Madam Liu, the little baby in your arms is as chubby as a dumpling. Whose grandson is this?"

"Oh, it's Ruiwazi! Taking your two little nieces out for a walk again?"

Sixth Uncle tapped his pipe and chuckled, teasing, "Why don't you go to the fields and earn work points? You can't just hide here and slack off."

"Third Grandpa, I'm not being lazy!" Zhou Rui pulled Xiao Yan'er closer to his chest, his voice so loud that the surrounding elderly people could hear him clearly.

"Yesterday I went hunting in the mountains with Brother Qingguo. We ran around all day and got blisters on the soles of my feet. I only had half a day to rest today."

"The roe deer meat that our whole village got yesterday was hunted in the mountains by Qingguo and me. Otherwise, how could we have had such a fresh bite?"

An old woman nearby chimed in, "I was saying that the stewed roe deer meat yesterday smelled so good it wafted through half the village, but my husband said it was a bit tough."

"That's right, I don't like this tough stuff, I prefer that oily, fatty kind." Zhou Rui continued, a hint of regret on his face.

"Speaking of which, yesterday Uncle Big Head and that girl Little Locust Blossom found a really fat badger in the back hills. The meat was absolutely delicious when stewed!"

"I was thinking of trading two pounds of roe deer meat for a piece of meat with him, but he just wouldn't have it."

The third grandfather frowned. "Little Locust Flower? Is that the girl whose parents died early and who had to raise her younger brother?"

"She's just a little girl, why would Big Head take her into the mountains?"

"That's right, how could I just snatch it? It was only because she was a little girl who ran around doing all that I managed to get it." Zhou Rui deliberately lowered his voice and moved closer to the crowd.

"However, I saw something rather underhanded yesterday."

"Zhao Changshan and a few militiamen also went over. When they saw the fat badger, they immediately asked to take it for free, saying they wanted to take it back home to have with their drinks. They wouldn't give the badger anything at all."

"Chen Datou originally wanted to argue a bit, but he was stopped by the people around him. If it weren't for me and my friend passing by and Qingguo intervening, the badger would have been snatched away on the spot."

That morning, Zhou Rui was like a little bee buzzing around a flowerbed, going wherever there was a cluster of flowers.

After chatting with the old man under the old locust tree, he took the child and went to the group of women washing clothes by the well, then wandered to the open space at the end of the village where grain was being dried, and told everyone, without embellishment, about how Zhao Changshan and his men had tried to rob the badger for free the day before.

At this moment, Chen Datou's gang of hooligans, who had been drinking until late last night, were still snoring on the earthen bed with their eyes closed.

Zhou Rui essentially planted the seeds of his words in the ears of the entire village beforehand.

He never steals or robs in the village, and his words are always reliable. The villagers trust him far more than they trust Zhao Changshan and his gang of tyrannical thugs.

Once Chen Datou and the others wake up in the afternoon, they'll add fuel to the fire and complain about it. In less than half an hour, the story will have spread to every corner of the village.

As for when Zhao Changshan returns from hunting in the afternoon, he will definitely hold a grudge against him once he finds out that it was Zhou Rui who spread the word.

As Zhou Rui carried the two babies home, he looked up at the distant mountains and curled his lips into a slight smirk.

Let him hold a grudge if he wants; he's not going to eat me alive, is he? If he dares to come knocking on my door, my dog, Da Huang, and my dog, Mao Mao, will be the first to object.

As the sun began to set, the mountain wind blew the yellow dust from the field ridges into the village, and the shouts of workers finishing their shifts could be heard from afar.

Zhao Changshan had a rifle slung across his shoulder, but his hands were empty. The four militiamen following behind him looked completely listless.

His trousers were covered in tears from the thorns, and his face was covered in bits of grass, clearly indicating that he had spent most of the day in the mountains without catching anything of any decent prey.

As soon as he reached the village entrance, he saw several old men squatting against the wall smoking pipes. Their eyes drifted over to him and then quickly looked away, huddled together and whispered among themselves, glancing at him in between their words.

"Hey, see that? Captain Zhao's back. Did he catch a good amount of wild produce today?"

"How could that be? Captain Zhao wouldn't need to go to any trouble himself; he's already pocketed that fat badger from the back mountain."

Zhao Changshan stopped abruptly, his face instantly darkening. He had led his men into the mountains before dawn this morning, but hadn't even found a trace of a badger's den. Where did this fat badger come from?

Just as he was about to ask further questions, he saw Granny Wang from the east end of the village walk by carrying a basket for sewing shoe soles, muttering to herself.

"No wonder there was such a big commotion yesterday. For a piece of meat, they even trampled on the reputation of their cousins. Their hearts are too twisted."

These words were like a needle, piercing Zhao Changshan's temples and making him throb. He instantly realized that someone was smearing him behind his back.

He gripped his hunting rifle tightly and headed home. Just as he turned the corner from the old locust tree, he bumped into Chen Datou, who was leading seven or eight shady-looking men, squatting by the threshing ground eating sunflower seeds.

They spat sunflower seed shells everywhere, and while they were eating them, they were cursing loudly enough to be heard halfway down the street.

"What the hell? You think you can just rob us for free just because you're a militiaman? Do you think we're made of clay?"

"If it weren't for Big Head Brother's desperate protection, we wouldn't have even gotten a sip of meat soup yesterday. I bet Zhao Changshan's hunting bag is empty today; he's just not destined to have this fat kill!"

"If anyone dares to bully my buddy again, we brothers will storm their house!"

Zhao Changshan stood behind the tree, so angry that he almost ground his back teeth to powder.

He had been running around in the mountains all day and was already furious. When he returned to the village, he found that the whole village was talking about how he had used his status to steal badger meat and then splashed dirty water on people when he failed to get any.

Now even Chen Datou and his group dare to openly curse him; his face is practically being slapped into the ground.

Just as he was about to roll up his sleeves and rush over, his henchman quickly grabbed him tightly: "Captain, don't go! Can't you see everyone around is watching? If you rush over now, it'll just confirm their rumors that you're abusing your power!"

Zhao Changshan was so angry that his face twitched. He had no choice but to turn to his two cousins ​​behind him and whisper his instructions.

"Xiao Jie, Xiao Gang, you two go and find out what happened. Why are the villagers saying we're bullying others?"

"Also, who spread the story about Chen Datou and Xiao Huaihua? Did any of you say it?"

"No, we never said that." Zhao Jie, Zhao Xiaogang, and the other two waved their hands in denial.

"I was exhausted when I got back yesterday. I handed over the two rabbits and went home. I didn't stay outside at all."

"Yes, Captain, we're not the kind of people who gossip, we wouldn't spread rumors."