"Can you keep your word?"
…
Liu Yafang walked on the country road, pulled the headscarf on her cheek in the smoky snow, and put her cold hands into the sleeves of her cotton jacket again.
She was walking home with a clay basket hanging on her arm and her arms folded. The only sound on the quiet path was the crunching of her cotton shoes on the snow.
Whenever Liu Yafang thought of the question her uncle asked, her heart sank deeper and deeper, and her brows were tied in a knot that seemed impossible to untie.
To be honest: I have no idea.
Just as her uncle suspected.
Who had she been in charge of for most of her life? How could she possibly force others to obey her?
Oh! Her dog didn't even listen to her.
The old ladies in the village don't care whether their sons are willing or not, or where they are. When they think it's time for their sons to get married, they will go from house to house to find a fortune teller to choose one.
But she is my sister-in-law after all, not my mother.
The eldest sister-in-law is like a mother, the eldest sister-in-law is like a mother. Although people say that, can she really be like a mother?
Liu Yafang shivered in the cold wind. She was very sober at the moment, and felt a little regretful and blamed herself for what she said so decisively!
Thinking of my brother-in-law Bi Tielin, how could that be just an ordinary cannon?!
Knowing that it was not certain, she didn't understand why she was so stubborn in making such a big decision at that time.
…
Liu Yafang entered the entrance of Zhaojiatun Village. She sniffed her nose and tried to think about her uncle, the skinny old man who was almost curled up into a ball, to encourage herself.
As soon as she pushed open the big iron gate, the door to the house opened immediately, and hot steam came out from the ground outside the house:
"You're not delivering a ready-made quilt here. I think you bought the cotton and made it right away. You can just stay at your uncle's house!"
Liu Yafang put on a smile from a distance:
"What? They're making dumplings at home. They insisted that I bring some back for you two. I'm waiting for the dumplings to come out of the pot."
Bi Tiegang snorted in annoyance, and with the light from the outer room he glanced at his wife's big cotton shoes to see if they were soaked through, and muttered:
"This guy, I've been running to the village entrance so many times."
It's endless, isn't it? She's not like other old ladies who keep visiting.
Liu Yafang, who was already upset, looked even more upset.
"What do you want to see me for? I can't get lost." He asked casually as he entered the house:
"Well? I see three or five people hanging out outside, and it's snowing. Why are they hanging out outside chatting instead of staying at home and warming up on the kang?"
Bi Sheng frowned and stood silently in front of his mother. His voice was level and his face was serious as he said:
"We are discussing death. Someone died in our village."
"What?!"
…
The three of them sat at the dinner table, and Bi Sheng took three or four bites of a dumpling, which showed how little appetite he had.
After Liu Yafang heard what happened, and after hearing Bi Tiegang say that he had to go into the city to buy a train ticket, she was preoccupied and had no appetite at all. She used her chopsticks to stir the garlic sauce.
Bi Tiegang, however, thought that the mother and daughter were frightened to death, so he stuffed his mouth with dumplings one at a time and shouted as if nothing had happened:
"Oh, the filling is so greasy. Goudan, it smells so good, hurry up and eat it while it's hot!"
He also instructed Liu Yafang:
"After you finish eating, pack up. You don't need to pack too much, just two changes of clothes. Sew a couple of pockets in your pants to hold your money. Let's see, maybe Tielin is fine now. Don't let Yueyue and Dacheng wander around in Kyoto. It's almost New Year's, and no one goes to any restaurant! Maybe we can go there and bring them all back."
"If I could have come back earlier, I would have. Who would have stayed idle and not rushed home? And I have two sets of clothes, and I wonder how much it would cost. Oh, how much is the fare for this trip?"
Bi Tiegang didn't understand that Liu Yafang didn't want to go to Kyoto, so he ignored her, but someone else did.
There was a creaking sound, followed by the sounds of stomping feet and the door opening. Bi Jinzhi stamped the snow off her cotton shoes, rubbing her hands together, and asked in a sharp voice:
"What the hell? Where are you going?"
Bi Tiegang was stunned and stood up with chopsticks in his hand: "Why are you here? It's the middle of the night, why do you come home at this time?" He stretched his neck to see if Fu Guo was following him, but he didn't see him.
Bi Jinzhi was fine, but Bi Tiegang was a little disappointed.
It's winter, and it gets dark early in the Northeast. There's nothing else to focus on when it comes to making money!
Bi Jinzhi rubbed her hands vigorously. Her face hurt from riding her bicycle against the wind, and her hands were itchy. She felt a little dizzy from the cold wind and air conditioning, but she didn't forget to get straight to the point and shouted:
"Brother, did something happen in your village? It's spread all over the county. Oh, it's so creepy. It scared me!"
"Why are you so scared? I'm not out working! But you, riding your bike over the mountain so late at night, what if you got robbed? Especially you, you always love to show off!
I'll go buy the tickets later and go to Kyoto to find Tielin the day after tomorrow.
Have you eaten yet? If not, eat it while it’s hot.”
Bi Jinzhi choked, choked by her brother's rapid-fire barrage of words.
She waved her hand and went straight to the kang in her slippers, retorting, "Why would you go to Kyoto if you're not serious? You're talking about that thing! I hear you're just as upset as me, aren't you, sister-in-law?"
Liu Yafang's eyes have been shining since Bi Jinzhi entered the room. It was like someone giving her a pillow when she was sleepy.
…
Bi Sheng pursed his lips as he packed his schoolbag, stuffing all the books for higher grades in it. The young boy was in a very depressed mood.
Just as he lay down on the kang with his head facing outward, he heard his father in the east room loudly scolding his mother:
"You old woman, I think you deserve a beating! Who gave you the guts to agree to this? My opinion on Tielin's matter doesn't count, so who do you think you are?"
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
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