Chapter 20 Big Yellow
Cheng Ying eventually bought Old Yu's house for three hundred yuan.
Old Yu initially asked for 600 yuan. It wasn't that no one in town wanted to buy his house, but because someone had hanged themselves in that house, and he refused to negotiate a lower price, his house remained unsold for seven or eight years.
Now, Cheng Ying promised to take care of his great-granddaughter after his death. She accompanied him to the town commune, women's federation, and street leaders to sign an agreement and watched him make a will. He eventually sold the house to Cheng Ying at half the price, and the two went to the county housing management bureau together to register and transfer the land deed.
Over the next few days, Cheng Ying, along with Wan Shuhui, Cheng Xue, and a few people hired by Old Yu, cleaned the house thoroughly, repainted it, repaired any damaged parts, rewired the electrical wiring and water pipes, replaced the broken windows, and ordered new household appliances. They moved into the newly renovated house, adding pots, pans, a stove, and other furnishings. The house finally looked presentable.
Standing in the living room, looking at the neat and tidy room, Wan Shuhui said with great satisfaction, "This house looks quite decent after being cleaned up. It's just that Xiaoying, why did you have to buy this house where someone hanged themselves..."
Wan Shuhui was a traditional rural woman from the countryside. She was superstitious and feared ghosts and gods. When she heard Cheng Ying say that she had bought Old Yu's house in town, she complained a lot. She said that Cheng Ying had money and could buy a better house if she wanted, so why did she have to buy a house where someone had died? Moreover, she promised Old Yu that she would take care of his great-granddaughter after his death.
Cheng Ying smiled faintly at this and pointed to the grape trellis in the corner of the backyard, saying, "Mom, putting everything else aside, Grandpa Yu's house is so big and spacious that each of us could have our own room without any problem. There's also a storefront in front, facing East Street. Wouldn't it be nice if you could do some small business there when you have free time? Besides, the grapevines in the backyard are always laden with fruit. The grapes are sweet and juicy, and taste great. We can eat grapes every year, and if we can't finish them, we can sell them at the grocery store. Isn't that great?"
As for helping Grandpa Yu take care of his great-granddaughter, I feel sorry for Grandpa Yu's family. They are an honest and upright family of teachers. His son and daughter-in-law were my and Xiaoxue's teachers when I was little. When Xiaoxue and I were starving, Teacher Yu would secretly share some sweet potatoes with me.
As the saying goes, a drop of water in need should be repaid with a spring of water. I have received teachings from Teacher Yu and eaten food given to me by him. Within my ability, I would not mind helping to take care of Grandpa Yu's great-granddaughter.
I've seen his great-granddaughter; she's a very well-behaved and obedient girl. If Grandpa Yu passes away, without her parents' protection, you know very well what a young girl like her would face. Mom, I don't want to see that happen. We're all from the same town; we should help each other if we can. Besides, Grandpa Yu sold me the house for half the price; I think it's a good deal.”
These words silenced Wan Shuhui. She was a soft-hearted person and knew what a naive young girl would go through without the protection of her parents and family.
She couldn't bear to see the little girl suffer such inhumane treatment, so she stopped talking about the house and Cheng Ying's promise. Anyway, she wouldn't be staying in the house permanently; it would be Cheng Ying's place. Cheng Ying was a girl with her own ideas, so she could do whatever she wanted.
Three days later, after Cheng Ying finished her training at the county post office, she put on a dark green collared summer short-sleeved shirt for postmen, a matching skirt that reached her calves, and a pair of thick-soled black cloth shoes that Wan Shuhui had sewn for her. She wore a peaked cap with a red five-pointed star on her head, a canvas shoulder bag with the word "Post Office" printed on it, and carried a large mailbag in her hand as she appeared in front of the branch manager.
She actually wanted to wear pants, but the dress code for female postmen was different from that of male postmen in those days. The rules and regulations required female postmen to wear conservative long skirts. It wasn't until the mid-to-late 1980s that female postmen were gradually allowed to wear pants. She couldn't wear pants even if she wanted to, so she had to compromise.
Her father used to travel the Mashan postal route, which involved climbing mountains and wading through rivers. To make it easier to climb mountains and walk along mountain paths, Cheng Jiantong always wore liberation shoes.
Wan Shuhui felt that it would be very uncomfortable for Cheng Ying, a young woman, to wear liberation shoes while running the mail, so she worked overnight to make her a pair of thick-soled, multi-layered shoes.
The soles are made of multiple layers of fabric with fine stitches, making them breathable and comfortable to wear. Wan Shuhui also specially added gears to the soles, similar to those on liberation shoes, so that even on rainy days, Cheng Ying wouldn't have to worry about slipping and falling down the mountain while walking on the mountain path.
She suddenly appeared before the branch manager of the town's post office. The branch manager was taken aback for a moment, looked her up and down, and then laughed. "You've finished your training? Good. This uniform looks better on you than your dad's. If you're ready, you'll start delivering mail tomorrow. I'll draw you a map of your dad's delivery route. You need to come to the post office at five o'clock tomorrow morning to pick up your letters and packages. Remember to take the bicycle you're assigned with you when you leave. Oh, by the way, you can ride a bicycle, right?"
Each postman is assigned a bicycle, allowing them to deliver letters and packages to recipients as quickly as possible.
However, bicycles can only be ridden on relatively flat village roads. The route that Cheng Jiantong ran was mostly through mountain villages, so he only used his bicycle to deliver mail to four streets and one village with flat terrain.
Cheng Ying said, "I can ride."
She can not only ride a bicycle, but also a motorcycle, a car, a sedan, and even a military tank and a helicopter, but that was in her past life.
"Then take away the bicycle your dad was riding," the branch manager said, leading Cheng Ying toward the logistics department behind the post office.
The post office had only four staff members and four bicycles. Cheng Jiantong usually delivered mail to the town and Qingshui Village first. After that, he would ride his bicycle back to his rented house, park the bicycle there, and then carry the heavy mailbag on his back to deliver mail and parcels.
After Cheng Jiantong's accident, his neighbor pushed his bicycle to the logistics department, where the branch manager who was covering for him rode it temporarily. Now that Cheng Ying is taking over Cheng Jiantong's job, the bicycle was naturally assigned to Cheng Ying.
The branch chief pushed a slightly worn old bicycle out of the carport and placed it in Cheng Ying's arms. "This bicycle is over twenty years old. Your father cherishes it. When he has nothing to do, he repairs the tires and parts. He often wipes the bicycle clean inside and out with a rag and uses the essential oil he doesn't want to eat to oil the bicycle chain. So even after twenty years, this bicycle is still very easy to ride."
Cheng Ying understood what he meant. He was telling her how much her father valued his job as a mail carrier and how much he cherished his bicycle, and that she should learn from him and take her work to heart.
She gripped the handlebars of the bicycle with both hands and said, "Branch Chief, don't worry. Now that I've decided to be a postman, I will definitely do this job well and will never lose any letters or packages. I will inherit my father's work ethic and deliver every letter and package to the villagers."
The branch manager laughed. "I'm relieved that you think that way. But are you sure you're going to deliver mail tomorrow and don't need me to go with you to help you get familiar with the route and the people?"
"No need," Cheng Ying shook her head. "I'm going to Uncle Yang's to get Da Huang now. I'll go with Da Huang to run the mail tomorrow morning."
Yang Dehai was Cheng Jiantong's best colleague. The two were about the same age, from the same town, and shared a house in the same courtyard. They had a lot to talk about. When Cheng Jiantong fell down the mountain and was hospitalized, Yang Dehai rode his bicycle to the county to visit him. Later, when Cheng Jiantong returned home, Yang Dehai also visited him twice with gifts.
Yang Dehai recognized Cheng Ying. When he saw Cheng Ying riding Cheng Jiantong's bicycle over, he wasn't surprised at all and said, "Yingzi, you're here to take Dahuang away, right?"
“Yes.” Cheng Ying parked her bicycle and walked into the farmhouse rented by Yang Dehai. She immediately saw Big Yellow lying under a locust tree in the yard, enjoying the shade and sticking out its tongue.
Dahuang is a genuine country dog, tall and strong with sturdy limbs, yellowish-brown fur, bright eyes, and two tufts of white hair above its eyes. It has a very heroic and majestic appearance.
It had been dozing off with its head resting on its strong front paws, but as soon as Cheng Ying entered the yard, it instantly opened its eyes, reflexively bared its teeth, and growled, trying to bite Cheng Ying.
But it heard a familiar sound from the bicycle chain Cheng Ying was riding, and it smelled familiar. It swallowed its growl, got up with a mixture of doubt and wariness, circled around Cheng Ying, and sniffed at her scent with its wet nose.
“Big Yellow, it’s me.” Cheng Ying reached out to Big Yellow. “Don’t you recognize me? I’m your little master!”
Dahuang was born two months before Cheng Ying joined the army. After it turned one month old, Cheng Ying took it with her to work in the fields and to find wild fruits to eat every day. The two spent more than two months together before Cheng Ying went to the army. Four years have passed since then. I wonder if Dahuang still recognizes her.
When Da Huang heard her call his name, even though he didn't remember her, he still wagged his tail enthusiastically at her.
However, it didn't come closer to her. Instead, it ran to Yang Dehai's side, raised its head, and stared at Yang Dehai with its clear black and white eyes, as if asking him, "Who is this person?"
Seeing this, Yang Dehai smiled and said to it, "She is your master, Cheng Jiantong's daughter, and also your little master. Your master is injured, so she will take over your master's work. From now on, you will go with her to deliver messages."
Whether Dahuang understood him or not, after hearing the name Cheng Jiantong, it let out a low whimper, stopped wagging its tail, and turned it down, looking very aggrieved.
Cheng Ying said to Yang Dehai, "It hasn't seen my dad for almost half a month. It must miss him. Uncle Yang, I'll take it back to see my dad in a little while so he can talk to it and let it help me with my mail deliveries, so it won't refuse to help me."
Yang Dehai nodded, "Okay, if you have time, have your mom come over and tidy up your dad's room, then find the landlord to cancel the lease. If you're not staying here, I'm planning to cancel this house and rent a smaller place to live."
“Okay, I’ll talk to my mom about it later.” Cheng Ying got on her bicycle and called out to Da Huang, “Da Huang, come with me to see my dad, your owner, Cheng Jiantong.”
Dahuang didn't move, and went to look at Yang Dehai again.
Yang Dehai pointed at Cheng Ying and said, "Go, go see your master!"
Da Huang then barked and ran towards Cheng Ying.
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