Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

"They said it was indecent, like dancing a capitalist dance." Zhou Dashan buried his face in his neck, feeling too ashamed to face anyone.

"Why would someone arrest someone for dancing? I've been dancing the Yangko dance, and no one has come to arrest me."

"Didn't they already say it's a capitalist dance? It must have come from abroad."

Zhao Youzhi composed himself. The first charge wasn't too serious, but the second one, which was linked to capital, was in trouble. He was afraid of being labeled a capitalist roader, which would mean being locked up in a cowshed.

"How many people were arrested? What did the commune secretary say? How will they be dealt with?"

"Five people were arrested, including one woman. The Party Secretary didn't say anything, just told us to come back and wait for news. Because the tapes of their dancing were thrown into the river, no evidence was found, so they're just being held at the commune detention center, guarded by the militia."

"Since it's not settled yet, why don't you use your connections to smooth things over? If it's the former, then it's fine; at most, you'll just be fined and given a warning. But if you're convicted of being a capitalist roader, you'll be sent to a labor camp."

"Zhou Dashan, didn't you ask your third brother? He's a worker in the county; he must know someone there. Ask him to use his connections to talk to the Party Secretary."

"I looked, why didn't I?" Zhou Dashan's voice was full of resentment. "I begged and pleaded in the commune, finally managing to get through to the county using the commune's phone. But he said he wouldn't help, he couldn't bear the shame. Bah, that ingrate, that's his own nephew!"

"Then let's find other people, go back and discuss it. There must be connections we can make, instead of creating more trouble before we've even cleaned up our own mess. By then, the person would have been released long ago."

Finally, persuaded by the village chief, the four of them went home. They probably went around asking relatives and friends for suitable connections, but what they left behind for the villagers was endless gossip.

Today was quite a lively day. First, a group of young men held a slingshot competition, which they did quite well, providing entertainment for the villagers who were in the off-season.

Next, Zhou Chen and Chen Dabiao's parents caused trouble for Zhou Rui, which led to news that the two had committed a crime and been arrested. The villagers of Jiaolong Gorge could talk about this topic from now until the busy farming season, and could even make up countless versions to depict the love and hatred between the families.

In conclusion, Zhou Chen and Chen Dabiao are remarkable. Their crimes provided a compelling narrative for the villagers of Jiaolong Gorge, adding legal intrigue to their everyday gossip, and...

As one of the main characters in the story, Zhou Rui quickly slipped away when no one was paying attention, otherwise he would be in trouble if these aunties and grandmas stopped him.

Zhou Rui didn't dare bring An'an and Xiao Niangao with him. He just told Zhou Ping and then lowered his head and crawled out of the crowd.

Back home, Zhou Rui opened the courtyard gate, sat quietly in the yard, and enjoyed the warm sunshine.

Dodo...

Zhou Rui looked in the direction of the sound and saw Lin Qiuyue standing by the door, knocking twice on the open courtyard gate with a radiant smile.

"So happy, the split-up issue was resolved smoothly?"

Lin Qiuyue smiled and narrowed her eyes: "The process wasn't very smooth, but it was indeed resolved."

"That's good. There will be fewer troubles in the future, and life will become smoother and smoother."

"Thank you." Lin Qiuyue clearly didn't want to talk about the educated youth settlement anymore, and directly changed the subject: "I saw you winning the award at the village entrance just now, first place! That's amazing."

"Oh, you're here too. Winning this award isn't really that important, it's just to make my younger siblings happy, so they can tell others how amazing their older brother is when they go out to play," Zhou Rui said casually.

"Do you always talk this calmly? First place? When I was in school, I was so happy when I got first place in an exam that I was in a good mood for days on end."

"No, not really. Look how happy I was just now. I've just calmed down." Zhou Rui didn't know why, but he still really enjoyed chatting with this simple girl. Maybe it was because he didn't have to guess what people were thinking or flatter them; it was just for the sake of chatting.

"Oh, by the way, look how many sparrows I caught earlier, and I even won first place! To celebrate, I'll treat you to dinner. We'll have roasted sparrows."

"No, thank you. I have to go back and cook for Yang Ping later. It's my turn to cook today." Although Lin Qiuyue really wanted to come, she still declined. She couldn't leave Yang Ping alone.

Zhou Rui waved his hand dismissively: "It's okay, just call Yang Ping to come along. There's plenty of food, we can't possibly finish it all."

"Hehe...you're so funny. Okay, I'll go get her right now." With that, she took off running.

An'an and the others returned, followed by the brothers Ping'an and Shunli. Zhou Rui had prepared everything needed for the barbecue, bringing out all the spices he had bought over the past few days. At this moment, Lin Qiuyue arrived with Yang Ping. Yang Ping didn't seem awkward at all; that's the boldness of a Northeastern girl.

"Comrade Zhou Rui, I've come to freeload a meal. Is there anything I can help you with?"

"They're here. You two can lend a hand. Grind these spices into powder using a mortar and pestle, and put one in a bowl. I need to go and deal with the sparrows." After saying that, he called Zhou Ping, and the Liu brothers boiled water for the sparrows and plucked the feathers from the cormorant.

While the adults were doing their work, An'an took care of Xiao Niangao. However, she wasn't entirely well-behaved; she would occasionally slip over to Lin Qiuyue's side and talk to her. She especially liked this educated youth from the south; her voice was soft, gentle, and very kind.

Soon, the sparrows and ospreys were ready. Zhou Rui placed the skewered ingredients on the grill, skillfully turning them over while evenly sprinkling on the freshly ground spices. As the charcoal fire gradually heated up, oil began to seep from the surface of the sparrows, and the aroma gradually spread.

Everyone sat around the grill, their eyes fixed on it.

Yang Ping gave a thumbs up: "Comrade Zhou Rui, your cooking skills are absolutely amazing! It smells so good even before I've tasted it."

"Yeah, I've never smelled barbecue this good in Shanghai," Lin Qiuyue chimed in.

"Brother, are you done?" An'an asked, biting her finger and drooling.

Although Zhou Ping, Liu Pingan, and Liu Shunli didn't say anything, they kept swallowing as they looked at the sparrows and cormorants on the shelf and grilled fish.

Sparrows are small, but they cook quickly. When Zhou Rui distributed the sparrows to everyone, they couldn't resist taking a bite immediately. Zhou Ping, in particular, didn't even blow on them before taking a bite.

"Ouch..." Zhou Ping covered his mouth.

"Why are you in such a hurry? I've never let you go hungry before." Zhou Rui reached out to tap his head as usual, only to find that he couldn't reach it.

In the end, the two female educated youths were the first to eat it. Yang Ping didn't say anything, but showed her support for Zhou Rui's cooking skills with her quick actions.

Lin Qiuyue, on the other hand, was much more refined. After blowing on it to cool it down, she took a small bite and chewed it slowly. However, her squinted eyes and extremely satisfied expression were the true expression of her enjoyment of the roasted sparrow.

"Second brother, you eat." An'an blew on the sparrow in her hand twice and handed it to Zhou Rui's mouth.

Zhou Rui smiled warmly, his neat teeth only tearing off a small piece of meat from the edge. "My An'an is so much better, unlike Pingwa, who only cares about eating himself."

At first, everyone was sitting on stools, but later they had to stand on the ground because their bloated stomachs made it impossible for them to sit. In particular, Zhou Rui grilled several more fish later, and their crispy skin and tender inside made them unable to stop eating.

"I can't eat anymore. This is the first time I've eaten so much since coming to the countryside." Yang Ping held her lower back, completely unconcerned about her appearance.

Zhou Rui was a little puzzled and tilted his head to ask, "Didn't that badger you ate enough the day before yesterday?"

"Don't even mention it! After rendering the oil, there were about seven or eight pounds of badger meat left. Those men fought over it fiercely after it was stewed, only eating the meat and not the vegetables. Qiuyue and I didn't get much. If only we had eaten separately earlier!"

"Stop talking." Lin Qiuyue tugged at her sleeve, seemingly still concerned about the overall reputation of the educated youth.

"You're so kind-hearted. They even wanted to share your badger oil today, even though they didn't contribute a single penny."

Despite her constant complaining, Yang Ping was eventually dragged away by Lin Qiuyue. Zhou Rui packed up everything; there were still more than twenty sparrows left, which he divided into two portions. One portion was given to Liu Ping'an and his brother to take back, and the other portion was given to Fifth Grandfather by Zhou Ping.