Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

"Sister-in-law Xinghua, where's my brother Dazhu? I haven't seen him anywhere." Zhou Rui glanced around the room and saw that Wang Xinghua was the only one on and under the kang (a heated brick bed), so he asked casually.

"I went to the pigsty on the back slope to shovel manure." Wang Xinghua's hands didn't stop; she was unbuttoning Xiao Niangao's cotton-padded jacket.

He said he was bored at home during the winter and couldn't sit still, so he might as well go to the team to earn some work points.

The kang (heated brick bed) inside was scorching hot. Xiao Niangao was wrapped in a thick cotton-padded coat, and even though she had only been inside for a quarter of an hour, fine beads of sweat had already appeared on her forehead.

Zhou Rui nodded. Zhao Dazhu was known in the village as a diligent person.

If it weren't for his worry about his wife and daughter at home, he would have packed his bedding and gone into the mountains to earn extra money when the forest farm was recruiting temporary workers two months ago.

Logically speaking, Zhao Dazhu's parents both live at the edge of the village, so they could easily send Xiaoyan there to be looked after by the elderly.

But recently, his sister-in-law secretly cut back on Xiao Yan'er's food rations, giving the eggs meant for Xiao Yan'er to her own son.

The whole village knew about it, and from then on, Zhao Dazhu refused to send his daughter there no matter what.

"What happened to that mark on your brow bone? Did you get injured on the mountain?"

Wang Xinghua folded Xiao Niangao's thick cotton-padded coat and put it at the end of the kang (a heated brick bed). When she turned around, she noticed that Zhou Rui had a small section of eyebrow missing from his brow bone, and the light red mark looked creepy.

In fact, this injury had already healed long ago for Zhou Rui. He was exposed to the wind and sun in the mountains, and his self-healing ability was much stronger than that of ordinary people.

The only thing missing was the cut from the black bear's claws, which scraped off a small patch of my eyebrow and hasn't grown back yet.

Zhou Rui casually touched his brow bone, laughing nonchalantly, "Hey, how could I be injured? I just got scratched by a branch sticking out from the side when I went into the mountains, it's nothing."

When he returned from the mountains, he told everyone this, without mentioning the dangers there, for fear that his wife and children at home would be filled with anxiety.

Wang Xinghua was not as easily fooled as Lin Qiuyue. She had lived in the village for more than ten years and knew that no man who went into the mountains had his eyebrows scraped off by tree branches. She immediately gave him a sidelong glance.

"Don't try to fool me. Be extra careful when you go into the mountains. Remember your wife and children are waiting for you to come back and take care of them. Don't be reckless."

"Hey, sister-in-law, I remember it all." Zhou Rui nodded with a smile, knowing better than anyone else that this was genuine kindness.

As the sun began to set in the west, Zhao Dazhu returned with his shovel before noon.

During this winter season, it's rare for the team to manage to gather even half a day's worth of work. The sooner they finish, the sooner they can go home; nobody wants to linger in the freezing cold.

At noon, the two men ate a dish of pickled radishes, a plate of scrambled eggs, and drank a small amount of loose liquor.

Although Zhao Dazhu is six or seven years older than Zhou Rui, the two get along well and are both honest and straightforward.

They can chat about everything from spring planting to winter hunting, without exaggeration.

After finishing his meal, Zhou Rui didn't rush to leave. He sat cross-legged on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and played with the two little girls while chatting with Zhao Dazhu about the latest happenings in the village.

Old Liu's pig at the village entrance has gotten fat, the wild hawthorns on the back hill have turned half red, and they even talked about what letters the postman delivered to the educated youth last week.

"Ruiwa, what time is it?" Zhao Dazhu asked suddenly, rubbing his pipe in his hand.

Zhou Rui glanced at his watch: "It's just past three. What, do you have work to do this afternoon?"

"It's already three o'clock, why haven't you gone to pick An'an up from school yet?" Zhao Dazhu suddenly became anxious, slammed his pipe on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), and kept glancing at Wang Xinghua.

Zhou Rui saw right through him, but pretended not to understand his thoughts, suppressing a laugh as he teased him: "Hey, no rush. We agreed this morning that Mao Mao would hitch up the sled to pick them up. I saw that Xiao Yan missed me, so I'm staying here to play with her a little longer."

Before he could finish speaking, Zhao Dazhu jumped up, picked up Xiao Yan'er from the head of the kang (a heated brick bed), and then scooped Xiao Niangao, who was munching on a frozen pear, into his arms, stuffing them all into Zhou Rui's armpit.

"Alright, alright, you can have both kids. Go home and play with them."

Zhou Rui, holding the two cuddly little girls, was both amused and exasperated: "No, Brother Dazhu, why are you kicking people out? Am I really that unpopular with you?"

"They're showing a new movie at the threshing ground today. I made plans with your sister-in-law, so I have to go with her."

Zhao Dazhu wrapped his cotton-padded coat around himself and nodded seriously. "The educated youth from the village say this is called 'romantic romance,' so I have to take your sister-in-law to join in the fun."

Wang Xinghua blushed and gently patted his arm: "What's the rush! Our daughter hasn't even put on her thick cotton shoes yet, and you're already kicking her out."

Zhou Rui, holding the giggling little rice cake in his arms, instantly realized what was happening.

So, this couple is annoyed that he's just standing there, being a third wheel and ruining their date.

Zhou Rui deliberately put on a sullen face and pretended to sit back on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).

"So, I'm tampering with your date spot, huh?"

"Okay, I'm not leaving. I'll just stay here on your kang (heated brick bed) tonight. I'll go to the threshing ground with you two to watch a movie later and join in the fun."

Zhao Dazhu was so anxious that he reached out and grabbed his arm, spilling tobacco from his pipe all over half the kang (a heated brick bed).

"My little darling, don't be silly. Your sister-in-law has been looking forward to this movie for a week. If you stand in the middle, there won't even be room for the two of us to sit side by side."

Wang Xinghua blushed even more at his words, grabbed the broom from the kang (a heated brick bed) and gently patted his arm.

He turned around and pulled out two warm roasted sweet potatoes from the cupboard, stuffing them into the hands of the two little girls in Zhou Rui's arms.

"Don't listen to his nonsense. The sweet potatoes were just dug out of the ashes from the stove; they're very hot. Be careful on your way."

"Little Yan'er, can you keep these for me? Your brother Dazhu and I will visit you tomorrow and bring you two freshly roasted melon seeds."

Zhou Rui was so pestered by the two little girls that he had no choice but to take one in each hand and slowly walk back to his own yard.

He wasn't particularly interested in the old movie being shown at the threshing ground that evening, but then he thought that Lin Qiuyue, at her age, didn't have many other forms of entertainment, so maybe she was already looking forward to this movie.

At worst, I can just bring my two kids and squat on the sidelines, keeping her company and joining in the fun.

As soon as they stepped into the courtyard, they smelled the aroma of corn porridge wafting from the kitchen. Sure enough, Lin Qiuyue had already set dinner on the table, waiting for them to come back and start eating.

"Zhou Rui, shall we go to the threshing ground to watch a movie tonight?" Lin Qiuyue looked up at him, her eyes shining like stars.

"Go, go see."

Before Zhou Rui could reply, Xiao Niangao and Xiao Yan'er started banging on the stool and making a ruckus.

The two little girls didn't even know what the movie was about; they were only focused on the word "going out," and their little feet were swinging rapidly under the bench.

An'an burst in from outside the door in a flurry, threw her schoolbag on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), and was sweating profusely as she stamped her feet in a hurry.

"A lot of people have come from outside the village, and if you go too late, there won't be any seats left."

She didn't really understand the fighting and killing in the movies, but she knew that on movie days, vendors selling melon seeds would come to the threshing ground.

If you're lucky, you might even run into someone carrying a load of sugar figurines on a shoulder pole; it's incredibly lively.

"Go, all of you, leave no one out." Zhou Rui smiled and hung her schoolbag, which she had thrown on the kang (a heated brick bed), on a nail on the wall, and then served her a bowl of porridge.

"Where's your third brother? Why didn't he come back with you?"

"Third Brother said he's not hungry." An'an rolled up her sleeves, picked up the bowl, and shoveled rice into her mouth, her cheeks bulging.

My mind is full of plans; I'll take Xiao Nian Gao to see if they sell any sugar figurines later.