Chapter 55: Unexpectedly, There’s a Soft-Shelled Turtle

After everyone had eaten their fill, Village Chief Zhao and Team Leader Nie took their leave and headed home. Yet Zhao Jing stayed behind, playing with the little ones, Guazi and Tiny. No matter how much the chief coaxed, she refused to go. When asked why she wouldn’t leave, her answer was unexpectedly blunt: she hadn’t finished eating the meat at Tiny’s house. The chief was left awkwardly embarrassed. In the end, persuaded by Zhao Dongkui, he departed ahead.

The other relatives began to say their farewells as well; after all, it was April, the time for plowing and sowing. Zhao Geng didn’t leave right away. Instead, he stayed to help tidy up the house. The old mud-brick dwelling had been uninhabited for years—leaks in the roof and cracks in the corners needed urgent repair. Otherwise, when the rainy season came, Dongkui and his family would be in dire straits.

Liu Dazhao had intended to lend a helping hand, but Zhou Qiuxiang wouldn’t allow it. Their family had to rush home before dusk; otherwise, she’d fret over the pigs in the pen and the chickens in the coop. Of course, with so many people, it was impossible for everyone to spend the night at Dongkui’s place—there wasn’t even a decent bed to sleep on!

Before leaving, though, they needed to plow the few acres of Dongkui’s farmland. Although their in-laws had sent over a cow, the animal was so small it could barely pull the wooden plow. So, they called upon Black Calf to help.

Liu Xing understood his mother’s intentions and led Black Calf down to the fields. He quickly fastened the wooden plow and looped the yoke around Black Calf’s neck. Yet he didn’t take up the task himself; instead, he handed it over to his father. It wasn’t that he couldn’t do it, but the wooden plows from the eighties, though fitted with iron blades, were much less efficient than the advanced iron plows of later decades. In appearance and practicality, they simply couldn’t compare.

This wasn’t his father’s fault—it was the era’s. Change would come, but only gradually. So for now, he stood on the ridge, watching.

As his father plowed, mud loaches and large eels surfaced from the furrows. Liu Xing dashed into the old house, grabbed a bamboo basket, and followed behind, picking them up. If enough were gathered, they’d make a delicious supper.

At the doorway, Zhao Geng observed this scene and smiled. He turned to Dongkui, who was handing him straw, and said, “Son, your little brother-in-law is quite clever, isn’t he?”

“He’s more than clever,” Dongkui replied honestly. “Did you notice the braised pork and ribs on the table earlier? He bought them with his own earnings. Without him, your son wouldn’t have been able to afford meat.”

The words stung Zhao Geng a little. “Don’t exaggerate. Liu Xing’s just a sixteen- or seventeen-year-old kid. How capable could he possibly be?”

Before Dongkui could retort, Zhao Geng descended the stairs. “Let’s not talk about it. As long as you can manage after splitting the family, I’m satisfied as a father. It’s time for me to go home and let the cattle out, or your mother will start scolding again.”

“Alright,” Dongkui agreed, knowing his father’s standing at home.

“By the way, where’s Dongju?” Zhao Geng looked around.

“Is there something you need?” Dongkui asked.

“Mm.” Seeing Liu Dongju washing dishes in the kitchen, Zhao Geng brushed off the dust from his clothes and walked over. Dongkui followed.

“Dad, did you have enough to eat at lunch?” Dongju greeted him with a smile, though her expression was a bit reserved.

Her smile put Zhao Geng at ease, and he couldn’t help but smile in return. “Daughter-in-law, you’ve suffered over the past half month. It’s all my fault. Please forgive me.”

“Dad, don’t say that. We’re family—we don’t talk like outsiders,” Dongju replied quickly.

Zhao Geng nodded with relief. He pulled a jade bracelet and a bundle of bills from his pocket. “Your mother asked me to give you this, and here’s twenty yuan. Take it, no need to ask why.”

Dongju panicked. “I can’t accept this.” The jade bracelet had once been promised by Dongkui’s mother, Li Qing, as a wedding gift for Zhao Wuliang’s future bride. Suddenly being given the bracelet now, she feared Zhao Wuliang would resent her.

“Don’t worry,” Zhao Geng reassured gently. “I know what you’re worried about. Leave it to me—I’ll handle Wuliang.” He placed the bracelet and money in Dongju’s hands, sighed deeply, and turned to leave the kitchen.

“Dongkui, go see your father off,” Dongju, after a moment’s hesitation, tucked away the bracelet and money, then took the remaining pound of meat and a large basin of river crabs from the wall and handed them to her husband.

Dongkui understood and hurried after his father, carrying the gifts.

Zhao Geng was teasing Tiny, “Come home with grandpa, all right? Grandpa will make egg custard for you tonight.”

“No, grandma will scold me,” Tiny replied immediately.

“From today on, she won’t—and she wouldn’t dare,” Zhao Geng pinched Tiny’s nose.

“Still, I won’t go. I need to help mama feed the pigs, watch the cattle, and earn money to buy meat,” Tiny said, tilting her little head.

“Alright then,” Zhao Geng murmured, moved by such a sensible granddaughter. He felt a sting at the corners of his eyes, almost on the verge of tears.

Seeing this, Dongkui couldn’t bear it. He said to Tiny, “Tingting, go play at grandpa’s house today. Daddy will pick you up tonight.”

“There’s no meat to eat at grandpa’s house. I won’t go,” Tiny declined gently.

“But this meat in my hand is meat, isn’t it?” Dongkui tied the meat and river crabs to his bicycle, leading the way home.

Zhao Geng, cradling Tiny, followed closely behind. Only now did he realize how harmonious and happy life could be if he changed his way of relating to his son and daughter-in-law. Sadly, he’d been blinded by stubbornness before and hadn’t known better. Now, thinking back, he was filled with regret.

At the kitchen door, Dongju’s smile faded as her husband and father-in-law left. She’d always found her father-in-law easy to get along with, but her mother-in-law… She didn’t know what to say. All she could hope was that Tiny’s return would bring good news when she came back.

“Sis, sis! Come see what I’ve caught!” Liu Xing’s excited shout rang from the fields.

Dongju turned to look and saw Liu Xing had caught a wild soft-shelled turtle as big as his palm. She grabbed an iron bucket and hurried over.

“Ha! This fellow is lively!” Liu Xing was delighted with his catch.

Dongju was pleased too. She took the turtle and put it in the bucket. “Brother, don’t go home tonight. I’ll stew this myself to nourish you.”

“I don’t want it. Better give it to brother-in-law,” Liu Xing said, climbing onto the ridge. “Besides, you have nowhere for me to sleep. It’s inconvenient.”

“Then take the turtle home. I don’t want it,” Dongju insisted.

“Alright!” Liu Xing didn’t stand on ceremony. “But I’ll tell you, you probably won’t finish plowing your fields today—there’s not enough time, so it’ll have to wait until tomorrow.” He meant that Black Calf would stay in the old village, but he, his parents, and Guazi had to go home.

“Yes, it’s almost five o’clock,” Dongju said, glancing wistfully at the western sun.

“How about I go to the market and buy you a new bed before leaving?” Liu Xing suggested, unwilling to see his sister suffer.

“I can’t spend your money. You need to save it for your bride,” Dongju replied. She knew Liu Xing had money, but she didn’t want him to spend it on her, for it was hard-earned.

“I’ve got plenty of time before I marry,” Liu Xing laughed, handing her the bamboo basket full of loaches and eels. “If nothing else, just think of it as a loan. When we make shoes and earn money, you can pay me back.”

Dongju hesitated. “Alright, it’s settled,” Liu Xing said, heading for the canal. After washing the mud from his hands and feet, he made his way to the market’s only carpentry shop. When he returned, he was carrying a newly packaged wooden bed.

Dongju, seeing this, hurried over, feeling both grateful and distressed. But Liu Xing needed no help—he skillfully assembled the bed in the main hall, then led Guazi and carried the turtle home on foot.

There was no other way. His father was still in the fields, and the bicycle had to be left behind. If he and Guazi rode it home, his parents would have to walk back at night and might not make it. So, considering their needs, he did what was right.

Dongju watched Liu Xing and Guazi disappear into the distance before returning to the kitchen to continue her chores. Suddenly, she froze. Reaching into her apron pocket, she found fifty yuan. The apron had previously been worn by Liu Xing, so the money must have been left by him. No one else would be so generous.

Touched, Dongju covered her mouth, her eyes red with emotion.

At the door, Zhou Qiuxiang, who was sweeping, noticed and asked, “Girl, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing, just got some dust in my eyes,” Dongju replied, brushing it off.

“Oh.” Zhou Qiuxiang didn’t think much of it and walked away with her broom.

Dongju carefully put away the money. Seeing Dongkui return on his bicycle, she hurried over. “Dongkui, my father’s been plowing for hours. Go relieve him, or he’ll wear himself out.”

“Alright!” Dongkui agreed.

“By the way, did our mother scold Tiny after she saw her?” Dongju couldn’t help but ask.

“She didn’t say a word,” Dongkui said, rolling up his sleeves. “But she took the pork and river crabs from dad and said there’d be an extra meal tonight.”

“That’s better,” Dongju smiled, understanding the meaning beneath Dongkui’s words, then walked away.

As the sun set, its golden rays lit up Dongju’s face, capturing her happy smile.

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