Chapter 635 A Difficult Opening
Zhou Yimin carried Qianqian to the old locust tree at the west end of the village. There were still traces of couplets pasted on the tree last year.
Qianqian was restless in his arms, her little hands reaching for the hanging dead branches, and the sugar residue on her sleeves rubbed against his cotton jacket, leaving a sticky mark.
"Slow down, don't fall." He had just lifted Qianqian up when he heard the sound of footsteps behind him, accompanied by the baby's babbling.
Before I could turn around, Qianqian in my arms suddenly giggled and pointed her little hand forward.
Zhou Yimin turned around and saw Xie Yumei walking forward with a little boy about four years old. The girl was wearing a washed-out blue cloth jacket, her hair was neatly combed and tied with a red rope. The little boy was wrapped in a half-worn tiger-head cotton jacket and holding a half-eaten steamed bread in his hand.
"Xie Yumei, long time no see!" Zhou Yimin walked forward to greet her with a smile. Qianqian in his arms had already stretched out her little hand to hook the corner of Xie Yumei's clothes.
Xie Yumei was startled by the greeting and subconsciously protected her brother behind her. Turning around and seeing that it was Zhou Yimin, her tense shoulders relaxed and a shy smile appeared on her face: "Comrade Zhou, it's been a long time since we last met!"
She pushed her brother forward and said, "Xiaobao, call me Brother Zhou."
Xiaobao, wearing a tiger-head cotton-padded jacket, hid timidly behind his sister, with only his black grape-like eyes showing. He stared at Qianqian in Zhou Yimin's arms and whispered "Brother", his voice as thin as a mosquito's hum.
Zhou Yimin teased Xiaobao and took out a piece of fruit candy from his pocket and handed it to him, "Here, New Year candy."
Xiaobao glanced at his sister, and when he saw Xie Yumei nod, he quickly took the candy, held it in his palm, ran away two steps, and squatted on the ground to study the pattern on the candy wrapper.
Xie Yumei looked at her brother's back, her lips curled up: "Thank you, Comrade Zhou!"
She looked up at Qianqian in Zhou Yimin's arms, "Is this Qianqian? She was still a tiny baby in swaddling clothes the last time I saw her. Now she's grown so tall."
"That's right, very naughty." Zhou Yimin pinched Qianqian's little face. The little girl was stretching her hands to grab the red string at the end of Xie Yumei's hair. "Where are you going?"
"Bring Xiaobao out to bask in the sun. It's so stuffy in the house." Xie Yumei glanced at the village entrance, where several elderly people were gathered to bask in the sun.
"He's always talking about wanting to go out and watch the firecrackers. The big one we set off yesterday was so loud that he even talked in his sleep in the middle of the night."
The two walked side by side to the river. Qianqian and Xiaobao quickly became familiar with each other. One clapped her hands in Zhou Yimin's arms, and the other chased her own shadow on the ground, and her silver bell-like laughter echoed on the snow.
"Xie Yumei, are you used to living in Zhoujiazhuang?" Zhou Yimin slowed down his pace, his tone full of concern.
"Are the children listening well in class? If you have any difficulties, don't keep them to yourself. Tell me."
After all, it was me who brought her from the city and introduced her to the village primary school to teach children to read. It is only right and proper that I should take better care of her.
Xie Yumei was stunned when she heard this. She clenched the coarse handkerchief in her hand tighter and her eyes turned slightly red.
She lowered her head and kicked the stones at her feet. Her voice was so soft it sounded like a sigh. "Comrade Zhou, I still have to thank you. Otherwise, I can't imagine what my life would be like."
The wind blew snowflakes past. She gathered her brother's cotton-padded jacket and continued, "I'm a refugee. If you hadn't brought me to Zhoujiazhuang and found me this teaching job, I might... I might have just married anyone and lived out my life in some remote corner."
Zhou Yimin responded: "As for what happened there, it's a win-win situation for us!"
Xie Yumei nodded and didn't say anything more.
Zhou Yimin felt warm in his heart as he looked at her shining eyes when she talked about the children.
A thin layer of snow covered the river's ice. A few children were skating in the distance, their laughter drifting in the wind. Xie Yumei looked out at the bustling scene and suddenly whispered, "Comrade Zhou, I'm planning to copy my textbooks again in the spring. Some of the pages are worn out. I might need you to bring me some paper when you go into town."
"No problem." Zhou Yimin agreed readily, then added, as if remembering something, "Is there anything you need in your life? If you're short of food, oil, salt, or winter clothes, tell me."
Xie Yumei's face turned red, her fingers twisted the corner of her clothes, and her toes dug a small hole in the snow.
She hesitated for a long time, her voice as thin as a mosquito's hum: "Comrade Zhou, if possible... could you give me another bag of milk powder?"
As soon as she said this, she lowered her head even lower, and her ears turned red enough to seem like they were about to bleed.
After drinking the bag of milk powder that Zhou Yimin gave me last time for a month, Xiaobao's face has become visibly rounder and he coughs less. Now he keeps saying "sweet milk" every morning.
She knew that milk powder was very expensive and was locked behind glass covers on the shelves of the supply and marketing cooperative. Ordinary people couldn't even see it. If it weren't for her brother's health, she would never have brought up the matter.
Zhou Yimin was stunned for a moment, then smiled: "Is that all? No problem."
He thought it was something difficult to deal with, but when he saw Xie Yumei still lowered her head, he asked again, "Is there anything else? Tell me all at once, so I don't have to make another trip."
"I really don't have any more." Xie Yumei waved her hands quickly, a hint of gratitude and embarrassment in her eyes. "I usually eat in the cafeteria, so I don't have to cook. Although my salary is not much, it's enough if I save a little."
She paused, her voice more sincere, "You've been a big help by giving me the formula."
Zhou Yimin glanced at Xiaobao who was chasing Qianqian in the distance. The child's tiger-head hat was tilted to one side, revealing his little face with a healthy red.
"Then I'll take you home later." He looked at his watch.
"It's getting late. I have to take Qianqian back first, otherwise grandpa and grandma will come out to look for her."
Xie Yumei nodded quickly: "You should go back soon and don't let the old man worry about you. I'll take Xiaobao to play for a while and then go back."
She called Xiaobao back and asked him to say goodbye to Zhou Yimin. The little guy still had candy in his mouth and mumbled "Goodbye, big brother"
The candy wrapper in my hand rustled in the wind.
Zhou Yimin carried Qianqian home. The little girl was so sleepy that she kept yawning and rubbing her head against his neck.
As he walked to the gate of the yard with Qianqian in his arms, he saw his grandmother walking out the door with an apron in her hand. Her gray hair was a little messy due to the wind, and she was holding a dishcloth in her hand.
"You're finally back!" Grandma saw him and the anxiety on her face disappeared. She turned to scold him, "I was just about to go out to look for you. The food was almost cold."
She reached out and touched Qianqian's forehead. "It's windy outside, are you cold?"
Zhou Yimin walked in with a smile. Qianqian in his arms had already woken up and was stretching out her little hands to ask her grandmother to hold her.
"I rushed back just as I got to the village entrance. Look, I missed the hot meal."
Grandma took Qianqian and wiped her red face with her apron. She turned and walked towards the main room: "Wash your hands and eat!"
Zhou Yimin responded and walked to the water pump in the corner of the yard. He had just pumped out half a basin of water when the cold water splashed on the back of his hand, making him shiver.
Qianqian was in her grandmother's arms, clinging to the door frame and shouting "Brother, it's cold"
Grandma smiled and slapped him on the butt: "Don't make trouble, let your brother wash his hands properly."
When he wiped his hands and walked into the main room, the eight-immortals table was already fully loaded with food.
The stewed chicken soup in the large celadon bowl was steaming, and the oil gathered into golden rings on the surface of the soup. The steamed pork with rice flour was placed on a coarse porcelain plate, the meat slices trembling, and the sweet potatoes underneath had absorbed enough oil and water, glowing an amber color.
There was also a plate of stir-fried green spinach sprinkled with a few white sesame seeds, and next to it were two bowls of golden corn bread with flower pleats on the top made by grandma.
"This is the first lunch of the New Year, so we need to make more." Grandma put Qianqian on the edge of the kang and tied a small bib on her. "Your grandfather asked me to kill a chicken early in the morning, saying that he wanted to nourish you."
The old man was sitting at the table on the kang smoking a pipe. When he saw him come in, he knocked his pipe against the sole of his shoe and said, "Hurry up and sit down. I asked your grandma to save a chicken drumstick for you."
As soon as Zhou Yimin sat down, his grandmother put a piece of steamed pork with rice flour into his bowl and said, "Try this. I put a handful of extra glutinous rice in it. It's very fragrant."
Qianqian slammed the table anxiously, and reached for the basket of steamed bread with her little hand. Grandma pinched a piece of sweet potato and stuffed it into her hand: "Let's eat this, it's sweet."
Zhou Yimin picked up the steamed pork with rice flour and took a bite. The soft glutinous rice mixed with the aroma of meat spread in his mouth. He couldn't help but praise: "Grandma, your cooking skills are getting better and better."
Then, he picked up a chicken leg and put it into Grandpa's bowl, "Grandpa, you should eat more to replenish your body."
The old man took it cheerfully, and then passed the chicken leg to Qianqian's mouth, teasing her: "Qianqian, do you want to try it?"
Qianqian shook her head, holding the sweet potato in her little hands and chewing it happily, with a lot of sweet potato paste on the corners of her mouth.
Grandma poured Zhou Yimin a bowl of chicken soup: "Hurry up and drink some soup to warm yourself up. This chicken has been stewed for the whole morning, and the essence is all in the soup."
Zhou Yimin took the bowl of soup and took a sip. The delicious taste instantly spread throughout his body. He smacked his lips and said, "Homemade chicken soup is still the best. No restaurant in the city can make it this good."
"Of course," grandma said with a smug smile on her face.
The old man took a sip of wine, picked up a piece of spinach with chopsticks, and said slowly: "Okay, let's eat quickly!"
Zhou Yimin nodded: "I understand, Master."
The family ate and chatted happily.
Qianqian was full after eating half a bowl of sweet potatoes. She crawled back and forth on the kang and played, grabbing peanuts on the table and stuffing them into her mouth from time to time, which made everyone laugh.
After dinner, grandma cleaned up the dishes, Zhou Yimin helped wipe the table, and the old man sat on the kang, smoking a pipe and playing a clapping game with Qianqian.
Zhou Yimin took a look at the sky outside. The sun was shining brightly, so he thought about quickly delivering the things to Xie Yumei.
He turned and walked into the wing room, where there were some things he brought back from the city.
He first found two bags of milk powder in a cloth bag. He had asked someone to get the milk powder with great difficulty. It was tightly packed and had exquisite patterns printed on it.
Then he took out five pounds of pork tied with straw rope from a basket in the corner. The pork was fat and lean and very fresh.
Finally, he found a piece of beef wrapped in brown paper, weighing about one pound. This beef was a rare delicacy that could only be eaten during the Chinese New Year.
Zhou Yimin put all these things into a sturdy cloth bag and lifted it. It was quite heavy.
He looked at the full bag and thought to himself: There is milk powder to nourish Xiaobao, and pork and beef to improve the meals for the siblings. These should be enough for Xie Yumei and Xiaobao to have a good New Year.
"Grandpa, grandma, I'm going to deliver something to Teacher Xie and will be back soon." Zhou Yimin greeted his grandfather and grandmother.
"Go ahead, go ahead. Drive slowly," Grandma urged, stuffing a few freshly roasted peanuts into his pocket. "Take these and eat them on the way."
Zhou Yimin responded and walked out of the house carrying the cloth bag.
The sunshine felt warm on his body. Occasionally, he would meet a few villagers strolling on the village path. They all greeted him warmly, and Zhou Yimin responded one by one.
He walked briskly, thinking about delivering the things as soon as possible so that Xie Yumei and Xiaobao could see these good things earlier.
After a while, he arrived at the door of Xie Yumei's house. It was a simple mud house with some firewood piled at the door and a few untidy window grilles on the windows, exuding a warm atmosphere.
Zhou Yimin stood at the door, cleared his throat, and called out, "Xie Yumei, are you home?"
There was a rustling sound in the room, and then the door creaked open a crack. Xie Yumei poked her head out and saw that it was Zhou Yimin. She quickly opened the door and said, "Comrade Zhou? Come in and sit down."
Zhou Yimin walked into the house carrying a cloth bag. The room was simply furnished with a worn wooden table, two benches, some miscellaneous items piled in the corner, and a thin layer of straw on the kang. Xiaobao was sitting on the kang playing with a little tiger made of cloth.
"I just finished my meal and thought of bringing something to you." Zhou Yimin put the cloth bag on the table. As the bag fell to the ground, it made a "bang" sound.
Xie Yumei saw the cloth bag and showed a surprised expression on her face, "Comrade Zhou, what are you doing..."
"There are two bags of milk powder in here for Xiaobao, as well as some pork and beef to improve the food during the New Year." Zhou Yimin said with a smile.
Xie Yumei's eyes suddenly turned red. She walked forward and opened the cloth bag with trembling hands. Seeing the milk powder, pork and beef inside, she couldn't help but cry, "Comrade Zhou, this... this is too expensive. I can't accept it."
"Take it," Zhou Yimin patted her shoulder.
"It's all right. It's not easy for you to take care of Xiaobao. It's the New Year, so he should eat something good. Besides, Xiaobao is in the growth stage, so drinking some milk powder is good for him."
When Xiaobao heard the word "milk powder", he climbed down from the kang, ran to Xie Yumei, pulled her clothes, and said with his little face raised, "Sister, milk powder, I want to drink milk powder."
Xie Yumei wiped her tears, squatted down, touched Xiaobao's head and said, "Xiaobao, thank Brother Zhou quickly."
"Thank you, Brother Zhou." Xiaobao said in a baby voice, but his eyes were fixed on the milk powder in the cloth bag.
Xie Yumei stood up and said to Zhou Yimin gratefully, "Comrade Zhou, I don't know how to repay your kindness to my sister and me."
"No need to repay me," Zhou Yimin waved his hand. "Teaching the children well is the best way to repay me."
He looked at the sky and said, "It's getting late. I should go back so that Grandpa and Grandma won't worry about me."
Xie Yumei quickly said, "Comrade Zhou, please wait a moment."
She turned and walked to the kang, took out a cloth bag from an old wooden box, and handed it to Zhou Yimin. "These are a few pairs of cloth shoes I made myself. If you don't mind, please accept them."
Zhou Yimin took the cloth bag and felt it was heavy. He opened it and saw three pairs of cloth shoes inside. The stitching was fine and the workmanship was exquisite. "I'm so sorry to have troubled you."
"It's no trouble," Xie Yumei said with a smile, "it's just a small token of my appreciation. You must accept it."
Zhou Yimin nodded: "Then I'll accept it, thank you."
He stood up and said, "I really have to go."
Xie Yumei saw Zhou Yimin to the door and watched his back gradually disappear into the distance, her heart filled with gratitude.
(End of this chapter)
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