Chapter 296 Extra 12 (Lin Ting)
Lin Ting was born in a rural area of Hunan Province in 1938. He was the seventh of eight siblings and had a younger sister. He was twenty-one years younger than his oldest brother, and even his oldest nephew was one and a half years older than him.
Lin Ting was very smart since he was young and knew the importance of reading and writing. Seeing that my family had to spend money to hire someone to help write clothing bags every Ghost Festival, I begged and pleaded with my family until I got the opportunity to go to school.
Because his family was poor at the time, Lin Ting did not go to school until he was nine years old. But it only took him three years to finish junior high school.
However, just as he was preparing to enter junior high school, the family's financial situation became more difficult. His father spread his hands and sighed: "Manzi, studying requires three loads of millet. I can find a way to get it together, but I really can't afford three dollars a year. Don't blame me."
Lin Ting also knew that his father worked as a farmhand for the landlord Huang and earned only two dollars a year.
In desperation, Lin Ting had to drop out of school and go home to help with farming. Despite the hard life, he did not give up studying and often took time to read after finishing farm work.
Although life is hard, fortunately Lin Ting and his family are still living in peace.
But after finally surviving the war and starting a life as the master of the family, Lin Ting's father died of illness.
Lin Ting had originally packed his bags and was ready to join the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea, but because of his father's death he had to stay at home to serve his mother and take care of his sister.
As soon as their father died, the brothers started to divide the family property.
Actually, it’s true that a big tree has many branches.
Several of the brothers have already married and had children, and the sisters have also married. Now only Lin Ting and his younger sister are left in the family who have not yet started a family. It is indeed inconvenient for a family of dozens of people to live together.
After some distribution, Lin Ting finally got a residential plot, three acres of responsibility land, and his mother and sister who depended on him for survival.
In order to provide his family with a shelter from the wind and rain, Lin Ting made full use of the remaining building materials at home and quickly built three simple thatched houses with his own hands.
From then on, their family of three finally had a place to live.
From then on, no matter spring, summer, autumn or winter, Lin Ting would wake up on time every morning when it was just light, and then go to the fields without hesitation to work diligently on the precious three acres of contracted land.
Although his life was very hard and simple, he always maintained an optimistic and positive attitude and never complained. He worked hard during the day, and read books with the help of the faint light of an oil lamp after nightfall, and patiently taught his sister how to read and write.
When the village cadres learned that Lin Ting was not only well-read but also quick-witted, they praised him highly and invited him to serve as the village accountant.
Lin Ting accepted this rare opportunity with great joy.
Therefore, Lin Ting had to do his accounting work with all his heart and also take care of household chores.
He treats every task diligently and meticulously, and this high level of professionalism has won unanimous recognition from all villagers.
As time flies, Lin Ting gradually grows into a steady and determined man.
Because of his diligence and ability, Lin Ting has become a well-known capable person in the village.
Not only did he build a mud brick house by himself, but he also married his sister to a well-off family last year, and he also took good care of his elderly mother.
However, such a smart and capable man has always been single, which makes Lin's mother and the people in the village worried about him.
One day, the matchmaker in the village found Lin Ting and said that the Zhou family in the neighboring town of Lushui was a good family. Their youngest daughter, Zhou Qing, was virtuous, diligent and capable, and the two were of similar age, so why not meet each other?
After hearing this, Lin Ting was moved and agreed to the marriage.
On the day of the blind date, Lin Ting changed into new clothes and went to the barber shop in town to get a haircut.
He arrived at the agreed place early and saw a girl in a blue shirt and black pants from afar. Although the clothes were not new, they were washed cleanly.
The girl had a pair of bright eyes and two sweet dimples when she smiled. Lin Ting fell in love with her at first sight.
Zhou Qing raised his head to take a look at this well-known capable man, then lowered his head shyly.
When the matchmaker saw the two of them like this, he knew there was something going on, so he sent them out and let them talk alone.
With blushing faces, the two walked to a quiet place. Lin Ting found a flat stone, took out a handkerchief, spread it out and put it on the stone for Zhou Qing to sit on.
After Zhou Qing thanked him, he handed his handkerchief to Lin Ting and let him use it as a cushion when sitting.
After the two sat down, Lin Ting talked about his work, and Zhou Qing shared his family affairs.
They found that they had a lot of common topics and were full of expectations for the future.
Just like that, the two of them told their families and fell in love with each other.
Not long after, Lin Ting and Zhou Qing got married. Although the wedding was simple, it was full of warmth and happiness.
After marriage, the two of them did housework together, farmed together, and took care of the elderly and children together. Lin Ting is still the village accountant. He works diligently and responsibly and is deeply trusted by the villagers.
Zhou Qing became Lin Ting's good wife, keeping the house in order and taking care of Lin's mother meticulously.
Soon, they welcomed their first child, Lin Hui.
When Lin Hui was born, three years of economic difficulties had just ended, and both the country and individuals were tightening their belts to make ends meet.
Looking at his wife who was pale and thin, and his eldest son who was often crying for hunger due to lack of milk, Lin Ting could only grit his teeth and risk being criticized to go to the forest farm to find Old Man Li, whom he had met by chance, and exchange him for an old hen.
In the middle of the night, he cut a few pieces of chicken and put them in a clay pot. Then he took the chicken to the dilapidated cowshed of Landlord Huang's house and stewed it. He then quietly brought it back for Zhou Qing to eat, without even Lin's mother knowing.
Zhou Qing drank chicken soup for ten days in a row before her milk supply became sufficient to barely feed Lin Hui.
After this incident, the couple's relationship became better. But sadly, Zhou Qing became pregnant with two babies in a row, but both were aborted due to malnutrition.
Lin Ting was heartbroken, and could only try his best to comfort his even sadder wife and to buy things from everywhere to get her back in good health.
As the country adjusted its economic policies, the situation in the village gradually began to improve.
Zhou Qing became pregnant again in November 1966. This time she paid special attention to her health, and Lin Ting also went up mountains and down rivers to search for food, trying his best to take good care of her and the baby in her belly.
Fortunately, in the autumn of the following year, Zhou Qing gave birth to their second child, who was also their eldest daughter.
Because the child was born in autumn, Lin Ting named her Lin Qiu.
Perhaps it was because they had finally had the long-awaited child, that even though Lin Qiu was a girl, Lin Ting and Zhou Qing valued her more than Lin Hui, although on the surface, they treated the siblings equally.
In the next five years, Zhou Qing gave birth to another son and a daughter.
There are seven people in the family, young and old, but only Lin Ting and his wife can earn work points. Although Lin Ting is the accountant of the village and Zhou Qing is also in charge of the family's fields, the family's conditions are becoming increasingly tight, especially since Lin Ting insists on sending all the children in the family to school.
Others advised Lin Ting to let his two older children stop going to school and stay at home to earn work points, but Lin Ting gritted his teeth and refused to agree.
Whenever he had free time, he would go to work as a temporary worker in the coal mine where his brother-in-law worked in Zi County.
Zhou Qing was not to be outdone. She made straw bags, straw sandals, and firecrackers at home. Although she didn't earn much, it was enough to earn some living expenses.
Although life was still difficult, the couple worked together and strived hard for their family.
When the spring breeze of reform and opening up reached this remote rural area in Hunan Province, Lin Ting promptly seized the information he received from newspapers and radio, and boldly embarked on the road to wealth.
At night, he would catch loaches and eels with a flashlight, then carry them to town at daybreak, take a bus to the city, and sell them to restaurants.
After slowly saving some money, he began to collect eggs, bacon and dried vegetables from the countryside and then sold them in the city.
After a while, he accumulated a considerable fortune.
Seeing that Lin Hui failed to get into high school after repeating two years after graduating from junior high school, he spent money and gifts to send his son to the town to learn the craft from a mason.
After Lin Hui became an apprentice, building brick and tile houses became popular in the town. He seized the opportunity and secretly partnered with others to set up a prefabrication factory to produce cement bricks and cement boards.
Everyone only knew that Lin Ting was a capable man. Not only did he betray four junior high school students, he also spent money to send his four children to learn a craft from others. He also gave his deceased old mother a grand funeral.
When the children are ready to get married, he helps arrange their marriages.
When the youngest son got married, Lin Ting took the initiative to divide the family.
He and Zhou Qing finally had some free time to enjoy their grandchildren and family happiness.
Lin Ting thought that he and his wife would live out their lives in this village. But his wife was so angry with her son and daughter-in-law that she ran away from home and went to Pengcheng to live with her daughter. Lin Ting was worried about her and followed her.
They followed their daughter to see this prosperous city and felt that the village and here were like two different worlds.
At first, they considered themselves as just passers-by in this city, just coming to visit their daughter's family who had not been home for a long time, and to broaden their horizons.
But the request of his daughter and son-in-law and the pitiful look of his granddaughter made this city his second home.
Slowly, Lin Ting and Zhou Qing began to adapt to city life. They learned to use various modern facilities and made new friends. In this new environment, they rediscovered the joy of life.
It is worth mentioning that his favorite eldest daughter has a long-term vision and is better than his father.
Not only did she take advantage of the low housing prices to settle down in Pengcheng early on, allowing her family of three to successfully settle down, she also successfully brought her brother and sister to settle down in Pengcheng.
At the beginning, the old couple believed that their children and grandchildren would have their own blessings, and did not pay much attention to their son's housework. Later, they found that their eldest granddaughter's thinking seemed to have some deviations, so they decided to guide their grandchildren personally.
Every winter and summer vacation, he and his wife would bring their grandchildren to Shenzhen to broaden their horizons, or they would go back to their hometown during the holidays to urge the children to study.
Gradually, the children grew up one by one, and he and Zhou Qing also grew old.
When people get old, they want to return to their roots.
Lin Ting and Zhou Qing often sit on the balcony and reminisce about their life in the countryside, where they have the familiar land and fellow villagers.
Seeing that they were eager to go back home, the eldest daughter decided to take them back to their hometown.
The daughter and son-in-law renovated the old house, planted flower beds and vegetable gardens, and led the old couple to live a peaceful pastoral life.
In their hometown, they planted some vegetables and fruit trees and raised a few chickens and ducks. Every morning, they would go for a walk together, breathe the fresh air and feel the beauty of nature. In the evening, they sat in the yard, watching the sunset and recalling every detail of the past.
Although they are old, Lin Ting and Zhou Qing are still in good health. They enjoy a leisurely life as well as the filial piety and love of their children and grandchildren.
Unexpectedly, a global epidemic disrupted their peaceful old age.
After the outbreak, Lin Ting and Zhou Qing kept a close eye on the developments of the epidemic. They were worried about their children and grandchildren who were working hard outside, and they asked them to pay attention to protection. At the same time, they also actively cooperated with the village's epidemic prevention work, learned epidemic prevention knowledge, and contributed their own efforts to fight the epidemic.
Just when Lin Ting and Zhou Qing were still feeling fortunate that they had survived the outbreak at such an old age after the epidemic eased, they did not know that separation was quietly approaching.
In September 2023, Lin Ting lost his wife forever.
He cheered himself up and took care of Zhou Qing's funeral arrangements seriously. He thought that he had not been able to give her a lively wedding when they got married because of poor financial conditions, so now he hoped to let her go through this last journey in a dignified manner.
After dealing with Zhou Qing's funeral, Lin Ting looked much older. He often sat alone in a daze, recalling every moment he had spent with Zhou Qing.
His children were worried about his health, and his eldest daughter even took him with her wherever she went.
But whether he is in Shenzhen, in his hometown, or traveling to other places, he always inevitably thinks of his wife who has been with him for more than 60 years, because there are too many memories of them wherever they are.
With the company and arrangements of his children, Lin Ting became busy and gradually came out of his grief. He began to organize photos of him and his wife. Every time he saw a photo, he would think of the past with Zhou Qing.
During this process, he slowly accepted Zhou Qing's departure.
The days passed slowly, and in the blink of an eye, another spring, summer, autumn and winter came.
Gradually, all the grandchildren in the family got married and started their own families, and the fourth generation also grew up slowly.
Lin Ting looked at the white-haired old man in the mirror and truly felt the traces of time and the passing of life.
Gradually, he could no longer walk and could only move with the help of his children or be pushed in a wheelchair.
The duration of my sleepiness became longer and longer, and I often fell asleep while eating or watching TV.
When he woke up, he looked at the worry on his children and grandchildren's faces and could only smile and comfort them: "It's okay."
When his granddaughter came to see him, he suddenly had an idea and asked her, "Shanshan, can you draw me and your grandma in one picture?"
The granddaughter did not refuse and quickly brought the painting over.
Looking at the young self and Zhou Qing in the painting, Lin Ting smiled with satisfaction, and then murmured to himself: "Old lady, the children are all fine, and I am fine too. I will come to see you soon."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
