Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

"What do you mean by 'runaway bride'? This is the territory of New China. Where would a runaway bride come from? There are only women comrades who are protected by the Marriage Law and can make their own decisions about their marriages."

Zhang Aimin took half a step forward, his shoulder directly blocking Zhao Laoguai's path, showing no intention of backing down.

As the production team leader, he didn't believe anyone would dare to repeat the old tricks of kidnapping people in broad daylight.

Old Zhao was so angry that his hands trembled. He gripped his pipe and slammed it hard on the bluestone block. The sparks from the tobacco spun in the wind and went out.

His neck was as stiff as a donkey pulling a millstone: "I don't understand anything about autonomy or not. This is a family matter of the Zhao family. Even if the commune cadres come, they can't interfere with the Zhao family's affairs."

"Why can't we interfere? Chen Datou and Zeng Ping got their marriage certificate openly and legally. Their marriage is protected by the national marriage law, and the People's Government is behind them."

Zhang Aimin's voice suddenly rose, drowning out the whispers in the courtyard. Everyone in the village standing in the alley outside the courtyard heard what he said clearly.

"Get a marriage certificate? Who issued the certificate? Who approved the note?" Old Zhao could barely hold his pipe and stumbled forward half a step.

"I approved it."

Zhao Youzhi's voice slowly came from behind the crowd. He walked slowly to the front of the crowd in his cloth shoes, without any expression on his face, and just stood there in front of Zhao Laoguai.

"Boss?" Zhao Laoguai's eyes widened. He thought it was Zhang Aimin who was secretly up to something, but he never expected that the village secretary Zhao Youzhi would undermine him.

"Zhao Youzhi, what gives you the right to issue her a letter of introduction? She's a widow of the Zhao family!"

Zhao Laoguai stopped calling him "cousin" altogether, his finger almost poking Zhao Youzhi's nose, and he spat all over the other man's face.

"If she wants to remarry, the entire Zhao family must agree; it's not up to outsiders to interfere!"

"You yourself said she's a widow." Zhao Youzhi raised his hand to wipe his face, his tone still as steady as an old well at the foot of a mountain.

"A widow is someone who has lost her husband. Whether she remarries or not, and whom she marries, is entirely her own freedom."

"What kind of logic is it that just because someone is a widow, they have to be tied to this dilapidated courtyard by your Zhao family and work like a slave for the rest of their life?"

"Besides, in the more than ten years that Zeng Ping has been a widow, has any member of the Zhao family ever given her even half a bag of grain, half a foot of cloth, or a single penny for her child?"

"No, the foundation of the room she lives in belongs to our Zhao family."

While things were raging and chaotic on one side, Zhou Rui had already slipped away to the east end of the village.

He knew better than anyone that even if Zhang Aimin and Zhao Youzhi talked until their lips were sore, they could only temporarily suppress the anger of these stubborn old men; they couldn't change their ingrained beliefs.

To break the deadlock completely, the Zhao family must first be thrown into disarray.

The energy that brought us together today has dissipated. From now on, everyone will be preoccupied with their own daily needs, and no one will be in the mood to get together and cause trouble again.

He squatted behind the fence of Zhao Changshan's house, a wicked smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

The pile of firewood in the yard, which was more than two meters high, was the winter firewood that Zhao Changshan had saved up for half a year. He piled it up in the yard because the kitchen couldn't fit it all.

Zhou Rui scanned the room with his senses and confirmed that no one was inside.

His methods are underhanded, but they absolutely cannot result in anyone being killed.

He lit a fire with a dry twig and gently tucked it under the woodpile.

At first, only a few wisps of smoke appeared, but within half a minute, small orange-red flames began to lick upwards along the dry firewood.

Zhou Rui glanced at the fire, then turned and ran towards the alley entrance.

He had to call for help to put out the fire quickly; if the fire spread to the roof beams, he wouldn't be able to get over it himself.

As soon as he turned the corner of the alley, he started shouting at the top of his lungs. His voice was so shrill that even his childhood friends, who had grown up fishing together, couldn't recognize him.

"Fire! Zhao Changshan's house is on fire! Come quick, help put out the fire!"

This shout completely drowned out all the noise in Chen Datou's yard, and everyone in the yard, whether they were facing off or just watching the commotion, turned to look at the east end of the village.

From the direction of Zhao Changshan's house, a thick plume of black smoke billowed into the sky with the north wind, soon turning half of the pale blue sky gray.

"Quickly, get a bucket and fetch water."

"Go and have a few people dismantle the fence next to us to make a firebreak."

"Don't let the fire rise onto the roof."

A group of people rushed out noisily, not even bothering to go around the courtyard gate, and ran directly eastward by stepping on the ridges of the fields and crossing the fence.

In winter, fires are a major disaster in the village. With the north wind so strong, if one house catches fire, half the village will suffer as a result.

Zhou Rui didn't squeeze into the fire; he just stood a short distance away and watched quietly, without the slightest panic.

When he lit the fire, he deliberately chose the outermost corner of the woodpile, calculating that it would burn at most half a pile of firewood, so that by the time everyone put out the fire, it wouldn't even touch the edge of the eaves.

"Knock knock knock".

"Who is it?" Chen Datou heard the knocking in the yard, his whole body tensed up, he gripped the hoe behind the door and asked in a low voice, showing no intention of opening the door.

"It's me, Zhou Rui."

Zhou Rui's voice came through the door. Chen Datou quickly unplugged the door and pulled the person inside, then turned around and clicked the door shut again.

He had been arguing with Zhao Laoguai in the yard, and the sweat on his back had already soaked through the inner layer of his cotton-padded coat. Now that everyone had left, he belatedly realized that his legs were weak.

"Brother Rui." The curtain in the inner room was lifted a crack, and Zhao Xiaoni, who had just woken up, peeked out and called out timidly.

This child is usually shy and speaks in a whisper, like a mosquito buzzing.

"Xiao Ni is awake. Haven't eaten yet?" Zhou Rui reached into his cotton-padded jacket pocket and pulled out a piece of fruit candy.

The candy wrapper was warmed by his body heat and was soft; he had tucked it in with him before leaving home that morning, intending to use it to coax the neighbor's little kid. It came in handy now.

Xiao Ni took the candy with her slender, willow-bud-like fingers. Her fingertips trembled violently as she whispered a thank you, clutching the candy as she retreated to the doorstep.

Chen Datou led him to the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), and hurriedly reached for the thermos on the table. The half-cup of hot water he poured out was still steaming.

"What's going on outside? Why did everyone disappear in the middle of the commotion?"

He kept his voice very low, and kept glancing towards the courtyard gate, afraid that the Zhao family would turn back halfway.

"It's alright, the woodpile at Zhao Changshan's house caught fire, and the whole village went to put it out."

Zhou Rui picked up his cup and took a big gulp. He had gotten up before dawn to take his younger siblings to school in the commune, and he hadn't even had a sip of hot water since then. He was extremely thirsty.

"Fire? Everyone in our village has been keeping a close eye on fire prevention lately, how could a perfectly good woodpile catch fire?" Zeng Ping came out from the inner room, her face still showing signs of panic.

Chen Datou looked up at Zhou Rui, just in time to meet his gaze drifting towards the roof.

Zhou Rui was staring intently at the spider on the web on the roof beam, showing no intention of responding.

Chen Datou understood instantly. He moved his mouth but didn't make a sound. He mouthed two words: "You're the one who did it."

"What if they cause trouble again after they finish putting out the fire?" Chen Datou still frowned, feeling that this method could only solve the immediate problem.

"Don't worry, today's fire has calmed down most of their pent-up anger." Zhou Rui put the empty cup on the table.

"Zhao Changshan's family burned half a stack of firewood for the winter for no reason, and he himself was so distressed that he jumped up and down."

"Those members of the Zhao family who are usually close to him have to stay and help him clean up the mess; they don't have the energy to cause trouble for you."

"As for the remaining stubborn old folks, once the fire is out, Secretary Zhao will take them directly to the brigade headquarters for a lesson on marriage law."

"After a few times, people's morale will drop, and you won't be able to gather so many people to block your way anymore."

"From now on, you'll at most bump into them in the village and overhear a few whispered words behind their backs. No one will dare to block your door and snatch them anymore."