The Zhao father and son were terrified. Gold was good, but in this day and age it was a deadly thing!
Zhao Dahu swallowed hard and said, "Dad, what should we do!"
After thinking for a while, Zhao's father said, "Your mother and I will hide the things in a bit. You take Aiguo and Shuqing to Donglaishun first."
Zhao Dahu nodded and said, "Keep this a secret from Shuqing and Aiguo. The fewer people who know, the safer it is!" Although Zhao Dahu usually acts loud and boisterous, his wife makes the decisions on important matters, so he definitely needs to give her some guidance on this.
Zhao Dahu nodded, adjusted his expression as he left, and said with a smile as he opened the door, "Son, come on, Dad will take you to Donglaishun Hot Pot!"
Zhao Aiguo exclaimed happily, "Thank you, Dad! Thank you, Mom! Grandma, let's go!"
Just as Zhao's mother was about to take a step, Zhao Dahu said, "Mom, let's go by bicycle. My bike can only carry the two of them. You and Dad go together!"
Zhao's mother sighed and said, "Then you all go first. I'll go check on this old man. Why hasn't he come out yet?"
Zhao Dahu led Wei Shuqing and Zhao Aiguo away. Leaving that aside, let's talk about Zhao's mother, who came in with a smile. "Old man, why aren't you... ah!" She then covered her mouth tightly with both hands, realized something was wrong, and pointed at something on the kang (heated brick bed). Looking at the front door, she stamped her foot, quickly ran over, carefully locked the door, locked it again inside, drew the curtains, and whispered, "Are you trying to get yourself killed?! What are you two doing?! You dare bring this stuff home! Worth money, not your lives?!"
Mr. Zhao said with a wry smile, "This isn't something Da Hu and I took; it's something our grandson bought for five cents!"
Zhao's mother stared in surprise at the opened box, swallowed hard, and then asked, "Is it that box?"
Mr. Zhao nodded. Mrs. Zhao thought for a moment, then chuckled and said, "Our grandson looks just like the lucky boy in those paintings, and he really is lucky! Alright! Hide him in the old spot, and use it as his dowry for his future wife!"
The couple, like thieves, carefully wrapped the large yellow croakers one by one. They dug open the uninhabited kang (heated brick bed) hole in the west room, pried out the bricks from the wall, stuffed the contents back in, and then crawled out and put everything back as it was.
After washing it clean, they hurriedly headed towards Donglaishun. Wei Shuqing and Zhao Aiguo were unaware that they had an extra 7.1 jin of gold in their home. If discovered at this time, it would be a terrible matter. The whole family could be severely injured, if not killed.
During the meal, the group drank some wine and chatted and laughed. When Zhao Dahu handed Wei Shuqing a watch, Wei Shuqing was so moved that she cried. After the meal, Zhao Aiguo asked in a low voice, "Why is my mother crying after receiving a gift? Shouldn't she be happy?"
Zhao's mother smiled and tapped his little head, saying, "He's crying tears of joy!"
Zhao Aiguo still doesn't understand why he should be happy. Why is he crying? Women are such a hassle. He'll happily eat his fill here and then go home.
The situation at the Qi family's place was far less pleasant. Qi Zhifang had just finished cooking for Li Maocai at his house, only to be thoroughly taken advantage of by him. Li Maocai took out a large denomination bill, a stack of tickets, and a receipt, placed them on the bedside table, and then straightened his clothes, saying, "The New Year is almost here. Li will come back after the fifteenth of the lunar month."
Exhausted, Qi Zhifang said, "Okay, I understand!"
Li Maocai patted Qi Zhifang's face and said in a lewd manner, "Buy more food to nourish yourself, otherwise you're too thin and won't feel good to touch!" Then he left.
Qi Zhifang numbly dressed, grabbed her money, and headed back. The next day, she didn't even eat breakfast before buying canned goods, candy, and pastries. She rode to the reservoir, showed the permit to the guard, and went into the reservoir's quarry. Xiao Hu, wearing a tattered cotton-padded coat, was moving stones when he felt a burning gaze on him. He turned around and saw Qi Zhifang, carrying a large bag, looking at him with tears streaming down her face.
Xiao Hu threw the stone and walked away, with Qi Zhifang following closely behind. When they reached an empty space, Xiao Hu angrily said, "What are you doing here! Are you stupid? I'm someone you should be avoiding like the plague right now, what are you doing here?"
Qi Zhifang, her lips trembling and her nose red, sobbed, throwing down the bag and throwing herself into Xiao Hu's arms. "Brother Xiao, how long are you going to keep lying to me? You're divorced, you're free! We have no problems..."
Xiao Hu pushed her away and shouted angrily, "Nonsense! Get out of here!"
Qi Zhifang went all out and shouted, "I'm not leaving! I know you have feelings for me. We didn't dare cross the line before, so why shouldn't we now?"
Xiao Hu said with a headache, "I'm a criminal now..."
"You're not innocent. You've been framed, and the truth will come out one day. I believe you!"
Xiao Hu squatted down, grabbed his hair with both hands, and said, "Why are you doing this to yourself! What are you wasting your time on me?"
Qi Zhifang walked over and hugged Xiao Hu, saying, "Brother Xiao, please don't refuse me. I've survived all these years thanks to your support."
Xiao Hu sighed, feeling frustrated. "I'm not capable of giving you a stable life, I..."
Qi Zhifang reached out and covered his mouth, shaking her head. "You made sacrifices all those years ago, now it's my turn. I'll show you my determination!"
As they spoke, the two arrived at his cell. Qi Zhifang took out the items one by one and said to Xiao Hu, "I haven't used up what you gave me before, but now I have enough. You need to take good care of yourself. I'll be waiting for you outside. If one year isn't enough, then two years; if two years isn't enough, then three years; if three years isn't enough, then ten years; if ten years isn't enough, I'll wait for you for a lifetime."
She then stepped forward, kissed Xiao Hu, grabbed the bag, and left. Xiao Hu stood there stunned for a long, long time, tears streaming down his face.
After the New Year, Qi Zhifang went to the supply bureau to find Lao Liang and asked for some more supplies. Li Maocai also gave her some, which she saved up. She would visit Xiao Hu from time to time, and Xiao Hu went from initially refusing to eventually compromising.
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