Chapter 3
"I..." Chu Jiujiu's eyes were filled with innocence and confusion. She didn't understand the true meaning of the question and could only answer literally: "I am Chu Jiujiu."
Chu Shao looked at her expression and didn't say anything for a long time.
Chu Jiujiu couldn't move, so she simply stayed still and just stayed there obediently, turning her eyes from time to time, her gaze falling on the brown insect that suddenly jumped out.
Chu Shao tried to find something fishy on her face, but after a long time, he found nothing.
Chu Shao is actually not from Qingzhu Village. His real home is in the distant capital. Three years ago, when the capital was not yet in chaos, his parents had already smelled the wind. Without any buffer, his parents suddenly divorced. His mother took him on the train without saying a word, and they traveled all the way to this small mountain village nestled in the mountains and by the water.
Only after arriving did Chu Shao realize that this was his mother's hometown. Many years ago, his mother had finally left here to have a chance to go to college and escape an arranged marriage. Now that the movement had begun, she had no choice but to return, because this was the last piece of pure land that could protect her and her son.
While the urban movement was in full swing, the countryside wasn't much different. My mother refused to speak of the Chu family's affairs, earning her the reputation of a slut. The villagers recounted the incident for years, describing it as a serious offense, a reputation they considered worse than death. Little did they know that Chu Shao's father was a political commissar, his grandfather a military commander, and even his grandmother, a renowned landowner. Compared to these identities, a slut was nothing.
As soon as Chu Shao and his family left, their family collapsed. His mother was afraid to contact her family, and she had no idea whether the others were alive or dead. Now that his mother had passed away, Chu Shao's life in the village was extremely difficult. He ate stale rice, drank cold water, and slept on the cold ground. He managed to get through it, but what he feared most was that his life story would be exposed.
If it were really exposed, then all the suffering he and his mother had endured in the past three years would be meaningless.
After looking at Chu Jiujiu with a complicated expression for a while, Chu Shao suddenly loosened his hand. He lowered his eyes silently, not knowing what he was thinking. Chu Jiujiu stretched her stiff arms and legs, touched her stomach, and honestly said what she wanted: "Grandpa, I'm hungry."
Chu Shao was immersed in his own thoughts. When he heard this, he reflexively said, "Don't call me grandpa." But after opening his mouth, Chu Shao gave up because he was also hungry.
…
When his mother arrived in Qingzhu Village, she had everything arranged, including transferring her household registration and obtaining a residential plot. After some lobbying, she finally secured a plot with an abandoned house. Although the house was a bit old and dilapidated, it was still habitable after some repairs. Mother and son lived there for over two years until January of this year, when his mother unexpectedly passed away. Chu Shao was forced to move in with his grandmother. Now, his grandmother has decided to give the house to his second uncle's family.
Chu Shao was young and the villagers didn't allow him to live on his own, so he could only live with his grandmother. Even though his grandmother often beat and scolded him and didn't give him food, the villagers thought that as long as there was someone to take care of him, no matter how poorly, it was better than no one taking care of him.
My grandmother's surname was Zhang, and everyone called her Mrs. Zhang. No matter whether it was busy or slack season, Mrs. Zhang would only give Chu Shao two meals a day. Most of the time, the meals were rotten, forcing him to go up the mountain to find food when he was hungry. As time went by, he became more familiar with this mountain than with my grandmother's house.
Walking up the mountain in silence, Chu Jiujiu followed closely behind him, afraid that he would abandon her again. After a while, Chu Shao stopped, looked up at the treetops, lifted up his tattered jacket, rubbed it twice, and climbed up the tree.
After picking the last few yellow fruits, Chu Shao handed them to Chu Jiujiu, then wiped his slightly sweaty face and sat down against the tree trunk.
This fruit is called loquat. It usually ripens in June, but there are not many left in July. It's probably because the altitude here is high that the fruit ripens late, which is why Chu Jiujiu has only a few left. Chu Jiujiu had never eaten this before. She looked at it curiously for a while, then sat down next to Chu Shao and ate it carefully.
She had to peel the fruit before eating it, and because she was not skilled, her hands were soon covered with loquat juice. In Chu Shao's eyes, this was a waste. But Chu Shao just frowned and did not scold her.
Even though he himself was still hungry.
After a long journey up the mountain, Chu Jiujiu was really hungry. She finished the loquat in no time, then turned around and continued to look at Chu Shao with bright eyes.
Chu Shao: “…”
Chu Jiujiu had no concept of food scarcity. She thought that this era was the same as her own, where anyone with money could buy food. It was not until she looked at Chu Shao for two seconds that Chu Jiujiu realized that Chu Shao's clothes were really not that good. The edges of his jacket were torn, and there was a crooked patch on his pants. The shoes he wore were unheard of. They were actually a pair of straw sandals.
Chu Jiujiu finally realized a terrible truth. She was stunned for a long time before she asked cautiously, "Grandpa, is our family very poor?"
Chu Shao: “…”
poverty?
No, our family is far worse off than the poor.
Chu Shao didn't say anything. Chu Jiujiu was shocked. It was over. They were really poor. Even her grandfather had accepted it.
No wonder grandpa didn't want her. Her arrival must have made this already poor family even worse off.
Chu Jiujiu looked shocked. Chu Shao glanced down and saw her dusty knees. He suddenly stood up.
Chu Jiujiu recovered from her frost-bitten state in a second, her legs moving incredibly fast, and she caught up in a few steps. Chu Shao, still a man of few words, led her to a gurgling mountain stream and said simply, "Go wash."
Chu Jiujiu understood immediately, squatted down immediately and began to wash her hands carefully.
Chu Shao: “…”
Chu Shao frowned and looked at her for a while, taking a breath, and then sighed resignedly. He walked to Chu Jiujiu, squatted down, and then scooped up the cool mountain stream water and splashed it on her knees.
Chu Jiujiu just lowered her head to take a look, then ignored it. She continued to wash her hands. After washing, she squatted down obediently and waited for Chu Shao to clean her wound.
Chu Shao's expression was serious. His knee still hurt a little, but Chu Jiujiu could ignore the pain. She said happily, "Grandpa, let's go pick some more fruit."
There are many fruits on the mountain, but no matter how many fruits you eat, it is difficult to feel full. Chu Shao glanced at her and said, "No, I'll go catch some fish."
Chu Jiujiu's eyes lit up. She turned around and looked around in the stream. "Wow, are there fish here? I want to catch some too. Grandpa, please teach me. Once I learn, I'll catch fish for you every day!"
The word "every day" made Chu Shao pause for a moment. He still didn't say anything. After making sure that the wound was clean, he rolled up his trouser legs, took off his straw sandals, and walked into the stream.
The stream wasn't deep, but it was extremely fast, constantly washing over her legs and making it harder to catch fish. With her grandfather ignoring her, Chu Jiujiu didn't dare to jump in. The water wasn't dangerous to Chu Shao, but it was much more dangerous to Chu Jiujiu.
Chu Shao didn't talk to her, nor did he let her do anything, which made Chu Jiujiu feel uneasy and worried. She always felt that she would be left behind. After wandering for a while, Chu Jiujiu decided to take off her coat first and then look around to see if there was anything edible.
After taking off her coat, Chu Jiujiu pulled the round object from her pocket. It was a necklace, a strange object strung on a string. It looked like some kind of fruit, or like the top half of a gourd. It wasn't a perfect circle, but a teardrop-shaped one. There was a pinky-sized hole at the top, as if it had been broken.
Chu Jiujiu held the necklace, which was almost as big as her palm, and searched her memory for a long time, but couldn't find it. Blinking, Chu Jiujiu decided to give up.
Anyway, it was given to me by my dad, so I might as well put it on first.
The necklace wasn't heavy, but it didn't really match the white school uniform she was wearing underneath. After her parents passed away, Chu Jiujiu could only barely take care of herself. All the clothes she wore were bought in the past, and the rest were a bit too small. Only this uniform she ordered from school was the perfect size.
She wore a white shirt with a pink plaid bow tie at the collar, a pleated skirt of the same color, black leather shoes, and knee-length white stockings. Dressed like this, Chu Jiujiu skipped around, her long, curly ponytail rising and falling with her movements, each strand of hair trying to tell her owner how happy she was.
She looked like a noble lady who had strayed into the mountains, or like a young elf who had always belonged here.
Chu Shao hadn't caught any fish for a long time. When he looked up and saw this scene, he couldn't help but straighten his back and take a few more glances.
Chu wine.
Chu Shao muttered to himself.
Chu...wine...wine.
Her surname is Chu, and she knows who is in the Chu family. She suddenly appeared here and stubbornly followed me who had nothing. She was well-behaved and humble, dependent and cautious. She said she was my granddaughter and that it was more than 50 years ago.
Is she crazy? Or am I crazy?
I heard that some people will go crazy if they are too lonely and live in their own world every day. For example, the crazy woman in the secretary's family always talks to the air and says that her husband is coming to pick her up.
Could it be that there is something wrong with my brain...
Suddenly, a delighted scream interrupted Chu Shao's increasingly deviated thoughts. He looked over reflexively and found that Chu Jiujiu had fallen to the ground at some point, and under her, there was a rabbit struggling frantically to escape.
The rabbit was so strong that Chu Jiujiu had to use her body to hold it down, while simultaneously holding onto its front legs tightly with both hands. The rabbit kicked the ground furiously, and Chu Jiujiu followed its rhythm and twisted her body madly. Her ponytail was unkempt, her clothes were dirty, her white socks had turned black, and her face was covered in mud and leaves. Seeing Chu Shao looking over, she exclaimed in surprise, "Grandpa, look, there's a rabbit! A rabbit bigger than your face—"
Chu Shao: “…”
Well, he's not crazy.
No madman could imagine such a terrible thing for himself.
No.
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