Chapter 86: Remembering Childhood

In the east wing, Zhang Guofu tucked the children into bed, covered them with quilts, and lay down himself. Huang Cuilan looked at the pile of things, sorted them according to type, and packed them into a trunk. “The kids’ father, there’s so much stuff here. We won’t need to buy any fabric for New Year’s clothes. I saw how warm the army coat looked on Little Brother, and I’d been wanting to ask him to bring one for you. Now you’ve got one, so you won’t be cold this winter. Look at all these things—later, you should go around the village and see which families have mushrooms or other local specialties, and buy some as a return gift for Xiao Wu’s mother-in-law.”

Zhang Guofu nodded and told her to hurry up and get into bed. “I know. Besides mushrooms, dried wild pheasant and rabbit meat are rare in the city. I’ll go check it out later. This family seems honest, and his grandfather really hit it off with our dad. Let’s get some sleep—we’ve been busy all day and have to get up early tomorrow. The good liquor and cigarettes Xiao Wu gave us, give them all to your dad. If I want a drink, I’ll ask him for it.”

Huang Cuilan got into bed, gave him a playful thump, and laughed. “You really are something. You already gave out so much today. Xiao Wu doesn’t have much left either—a bottle for my dad is enough.”

“You didn’t see how much stuff there was. It took us big men two trips to move it all, and both cars were packed full. Everything was bundled up tight in bags and boxes. He really is a golden child. Luckily, no one in the village saw. There were two cases of liquor—Old Second and I figured about forty bottles. You and Jiaojiao should get along well. With so much stuff, we really owe them a big favor.”

“I know. She’s always been well-behaved and good to me, better than Old Second’s wife. I’m not greedy. We’ll treat them as we should.”

In the second son’s room, Zhang Guoqiang tried on the army coat—it really was warm. “Stop looking at the stuff, just pack it all up. Wash the kids and get them to bed first.”

Lin Juhua packed everything into a trunk, but still felt uneasy and locked it with a key.

“Why are you locking it? No one in our family has their eye on your things. If anyone comes, it’ll be to see Xiao Wu’s room,” Zhang Guoqiang said, amused at her fussing.

Lin Juhua shook her head, looking at him with a face full of grievance. “I’m not afraid of anyone except my mother. I bet now that she’s heard Jiaojiao’s grandfather is here, she’ll be over in a couple of days. If she sees this stuff, she’ll take it for sure. Shi Tou hardly has any clothes. Do you think I did something wrong in a past life? Why don’t I have any family I can rely on?”

Zhang Guoqiang poured out some water to wash his feet. “Who you’re born to is up to heaven. Don’t worry. If my mother’s here, your mother-in-law will be too embarrassed to take anything. See if there’s anything you can give her.”

“There’s nothing I can give them. Everything here is rare, even if you have money you can’t buy it. The fabric and cotton need a lot of ration tickets, and the liquor is rare too. I can only use it to build relationships, not give it to my mother. If you’d married a wife like Big Sister-in-law or Jiaojiao, our branch of the family wouldn’t be the poorest. It’s my bad luck—my family doesn’t help, and I can’t help you either.”

“The kids are already so big, why say things like that? I’ve never thought you were worse than them. Don’t worry, I know what’s what. You’ll have good days ahead.” After saying this, Zhang Guoqiang thought of what Xiao Wu had secretly told him today, and couldn’t help but feel happy for himself, keeping a low profile.

Seeing how the officials treated Xiao Wu today, he realized this kid had gathered all the younger generation of the county leaders together. He’d only heard before that her grandfather’s family was powerful, but didn’t expect them to be so impressive. No wonder all the men want to get ahead.

This silly kid really is blessed. Tomorrow, he’d ask him if he’d known all along that marrying Jiaojiao would lead to this day.

“Heh, my days are good now. I’m not comparing with them—I’m doing the best in the village.”

Zhang Guoqiang laughed heartily, hugged Lin Juhua, and gave her a kiss. “That’s what I like about you—you know how to be content. We don’t compare with others, just live our own lives well.”

Zhang Guoqing returned to his room, quickly washed up, and quietly tidied things before climbing onto the kang and hugging his wife. Finally feeling comfortable, he fell into a deep sleep. In her sleep, Zhou Jiao caught a familiar scent and snuggled her face into his chest. Zhang Guoqing chuckled at her lazy manner, carefully tucked the quilt around her, and glanced at his son, who was curled up like a little ball on the right. He closed his eyes and drifted off peacefully.

In the middle of the night, Zhang Guoqing was startled awake by Xiao Ping’an’s sudden wailing. Instinctively, he picked him up, got off the kang, grabbed the bottle, made some formula, and fed his son. Soon, seeing his son full, he burped him and changed his diaper. The boy fell back asleep contentedly. Zhang Guoqing suspected his son cried because his diaper was wet—he never cried during the day when he wanted milk.

Now he had figured it out: his son needed to drink milk every four hours or so, or he’d start moving his lips, looking for food, and if his diaper was wet, he’d cry. If you delayed, he’d cry even louder. Truly his son—so clever.

Zhang Guoqing gently laid him back on the kang and snuggled close. He started to worry about what would happen after he left tomorrow. His mother-in-law wouldn’t be able to help, so he’d have to talk to his own mother and make sure she stayed by Xiao Ping’an at night. He was really worried that if his son cried, the two women would sleep right through it. Even with all his moving around, Zhou Jiao never woke up—she just kept snuggling into his arms. Silly woman.

Before dawn, the sky was still dark and foggy, visibility less than ten steps, and the ground was covered with a thin layer of silvery frost. The biting wind made people shiver.

Someone was already up and exercising in the yard. Hearing the commotion, Zhang Guoqing got up, dressed, saw that Zhou Jiao and their son were still sleeping soundly, grabbed his toiletries, and headed to the kitchen. As expected, many people were already up. He greeted a few quietly as they went out for a run, then went to the kitchen to fetch hot water and washed up by the well.

After washing up, he put his things away and went to the backyard, finally spotting his mother. “Mom, isn’t it a bit early to be cooking pig slop?”

Mother Zhang poked the pigs with a stick and poured in the feed. “We have guests today. If I don’t feed the pigs, they’ll make a racket. Once they’re fed, they’ll be quiet and let Jiaojiao’s grandfather and the others sleep in.”

Zhang Guoqing picked up a big bucket and followed his mother. “Mom, I’m going out with the old man today. Tonight, make sure you don’t just let the two of them chat and forget to look after the baby. You have to keep an eye on Ping’an for me. I’m afraid if they fall asleep, they won’t hear him cry.”

Mother Zhang lowered her voice and laughed. “Silly boy, what are you talking about? They won’t sleep so deeply they can’t wake up.”

Zhang Guoqing got anxious. “Mom, Ping’an only wakes up once at night, around two or three in the morning, and then waits until dawn. Usually, he eats every three hours or so. If you’re not sleeping on the kang in the outer room, at least it’s warm. With three of you, someone will hear him.”

“Alright, I’ll sleep in your room tonight, don’t worry. You be careful out there, and try to control your temper,” Mother Zhang reassured him.

Zhang Guoqing nodded. “Just eat whatever we have at home, don’t save it for later. We can buy more at the end of the year. I’ve got plenty of ration tickets and money.”

“I’ve already packed up all the dried wild pheasant and rabbit. Take some with you first. I’ll have your dad collect more so you can send some to Jiaojiao’s uncles and aunts when you get back. Once your mother-in-law leaves, it’ll be easier—no more big bundles to carry.”

“Alright, you handle it. I’ll give you the money—buy more, we need to eat too. Gather some dried mushrooms and black fungus. I haven’t had time to hunt lately.”

Mother Zhang washed her hands and headed out. “It won’t cost much. If it’s not enough, I’ll ask you for more. I also want to see if anyone has good furs. In winter, it’s warm to sleep on, and her grandmother isn’t in good health—it’d make a good return gift.”

Mother and son chatted quietly as they worked. By the time they returned to the front yard, the sky was starting to lighten, the rooster was crowing, and there were sounds of villagers moving about outside.

Seeing nothing else needed doing, Zhang Guoqing returned to the west wing. Zhou Jiao was still half-asleep, eyes closed, feeding their son. When she saw him come in, she smiled at him sleepily."