Chapter 116 - 115: The Elder’s Gift
As the horse-drawn sleigh drew near, everyone saw that it was Zhou Mancang driving it with two strangers, and they all stared at them in surprise.
"Mancang, who’s this? Where are you headed?"
"Mancang, is it true a tiger got into your old house? Were you the one who fired the gun?"
"Mancang..."
A group of people surrounded Zhou Mancang, all talking at once. He glared and shouted:
"Make way! My cousin’s in a hurry to get somewhere. This is my cousin and his girlfriend. A tiger got into my house yesterday, and my cousin was the one who fired a shot to scare it off!"
"Stop crowding around, move aside."
A man stepped out from the crowd, looking at Zhao Wendong with a puzzled expression.
"You... are you the leader who traded grain for my eagle?"
Zhao Wendong and Lin Zhiyin both had scarves wrapped around their faces, covering everything but their eyes. Hearing this, Zhao Wendong looked over and immediately broke into a smile.
"Ah, it’s Brother Old Qi. That’s impressive. You can recognize me even like this?"
"Hehe, I’ve just got sharp eyes. Leader, are you a relative of Mancang’s?"
Zhao Wendong had a pretty good impression of the man. Besides, he had the man to thank for Xiaojin, who was on the sleigh. So, he politely rose from his seat on the sleigh to speak with him.
"Don’t call me Leader. Just call me Dongzi. Zhao Yinhua is my aunt. Brother Old Qi, do you have enough grain to get by?"
Zhao Wendong was just making polite conversation, but his question drew a sigh from Chen the Seventh. The surrounding crowd also began chattering amongst themselves; some said he deserved it, while others called him unlucky. It took Zhao Wendong a moment to understand what had happened. Apparently, Chen the Seventh had been too conspicuous after trading for the grain, making such a show of it that the whole village knew.
Then, his parents, brothers, and sisters had all come to his door to borrow grain. With one person borrowing a bit here and another there, the grain was nearly gone before he’d had it for any length of time. He stubbornly refused to lend out the last of his life-saving supply. As a result, those who didn’t get any grain from him accused him of being heartless and stingy, watching them starve. In the end, he was damned if he did and damned if he didn’t.
Zhao Wendong patted his shoulder. ’Human nature is complex and multifaceted. Situations like this are unavoidable. This is why I’ve always been so cautious about helping the villagers. Do too many good deeds, and what you get in return isn’t always gratitude. You have to be careful about the timing and your methods.’
"It’s alright, Brother Old Qi. With your skills, you can definitely get more grain. Just make sure you learn your lesson for next time!"
Who would have thought that these words of comfort would make Chen the Seventh’s face darken as he looked like he was about to cry.
"Sigh, Brother Dongzi, that’s what I thought too! I figured I’d trap another eagle and trade it with you for some grain to get through the winter. But who knew? Yesterday, I finally managed to lure in a Golden Roc with my rabbit, but that roc was like it was possessed! It dodged my snare and just snatched my rabbit away. Now I’m left with nothing!"
As he spoke, he slapped his thigh in frustration while the nearby villagers watched him with unconcealed glee.
"Serves you right, Chen the Seventh! Always showing off how you use a live rabbit to catch eagles."
"You wouldn’t even eat those big radishes yourself, you fed them to the rabbit. Got it nice and fat, and for what? It still got snatched away, didn’t it?"
"Old Qi, did you just eat it yourself? What kind of Golden Roc knows how to dodge a snare?"
Zhao Wendong and Lin Zhiyin remained silent. They exchanged a look, a tacit understanding passing between them. Zhao Wendong coughed to stifle a laugh, gave Lin Zhiyin a meaningful glance, and then turned to question Chen the Seventh.
"So, uh, Brother Old Qi, what time yesterday did your rabbit get snatched?"
"It was just before dark!"
Hearing this, Lin Zhiyin’s hand went to the cotton quilt covering Xiaojin’s cage. She lowered her head, trying to hide a smile.
Zhao Wendong scratched his head. ’This has to be Xiaojin’s work, no doubt. I can’t believe this little guy holds such a grudge. After being tricked last time, it was determined to get its revenge. Xiaojin had already been caught in a snare once, so of course it would know how to dodge one from Chen the Seventh!’
"It’s okay, Brother Old Qi. My condolences. I believe in you!"
Zhao Wendong left him with that word of encouragement and quickly urged the big brown horse to get moving. He was afraid he would burst out laughing if they stayed a moment longer.
Only when they were a good distance from the village did Zhao Wendong and Lin Zhiyin finally burst out laughing. Seeing them doubled over with laughter, Zhou Mancang suddenly put two and two together.
"Wendong, don’t tell me Chen the Seventh’s rabbit was the one we ate last night?"
"Hahaha!"
At his words, Zhao Wendong and Lin Zhiyin laughed even harder.
Just as the big brown horse clip-clopped along, carrying Zhao Wendong and the others to the labor and reform farm to meet Lin Zhiyin’s parents, the large truck transporting the Hai Pangtou finally entered Beijing City and proceeded into the core district.
At each stop along the way, ten to twenty percent of the fish had been left behind. Even so, the shipment of Hai Pangtou that arrived was still two or three thousand jin. Seeing so many Hai Pangtou made the old man in charge of the core district’s food supply beam with joy. They could finally add a special dish to the Old Man’s meals.
A short while later, the Old Man finished his meeting and walked into the dining room. His eyes immediately fell on a plate of stewed fish on the table.
"Er Niu!"
His brow furrowed slightly. As his gaze fell upon his attendant, the smile vanished from his face.
"I’ve told ya time and again, we must share the good times and the bad with all the people, to get through these hard times together. Have ya forgotten my words?"
"The rule of no eggs and no meat, has it been tossed from ya mind after only a few days?"
"Take it away! I won’t eat it! Who brought this fish here? I want to ask ’em what they think they’re doing!"
Seeing the Old Man’s anger, Er Niu, who was standing behind him, quickly stepped forward and explained in a low voice, "This wasn’t specially procured. Our comrades from the commune caught it themselves. They caught over four thousand jin in a single boat and sent it specially for you. It’s a token of everyone’s goodwill. No money was spent, and it wasn’t a burden on the comrades."
"Really? Four thousand jin?"
A flash of surprise flickered in the Old Man’s eyes, his tone laced with a hint of suspicion. He immediately gave an order, "Bring the comrade responsible for this matter to me. I want to hear it from ’em face-to-face."
After listening to the report from the elder in charge and flipping through the documents sent from the various departments, the Old Man suddenly broke into a hearty laugh, his face filled with gratification.
"Excellent, just excellent! In the dead of winter in the Northeast, one boat and four people managed to catch over four thousand jin of fish. Our peasant comrades are truly remarkable!"
"With this kind of spirit, this kind of fighting strength, we can break through any hardship, no matter how great!"
"Alright, then. Today I’ll try the fish caught by this Comrade Zhao Wendong. We can’t let our comrades down, now can we!"
As he spoke, the Old Man picked up his chopsticks. He took a bite and nodded in satisfaction. He then proceeded to eat with great relish, finishing the entire plate of fish until it was clean.
Watching from the side, Er Niu felt a pang in his heart. ’The Old Man works day and night. He hasn’t eaten this much in so long.’
Putting down his chopsticks, he gently patted his stomach and said with a smile, "Been a long time since I had fish. Truly delicious. But I can’t just eat our peasant comrades’ fish for free!"
After speaking, the Old Man walked to the side, picked up a writing brush, and with strokes as fluid as a roaming dragon, he wrote four words on a piece of paper.
Man Can Conquer Nature!
He looked it over, nodded in satisfaction, then signed his name. Pointing at the calligraphy, he said to Er Niu with a smile.
"Deliver this to Comrade Zhao Wendong. Tell our ace fisherman to keep up the good work and strive for new heights!"
"Yes, sir!"
Er Niu saluted, then stepped forward and carefully collected the calligraphy. ’I can’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy toward this ordinary peasant, Zhao Wendong, from the report,’ he thought. ’What kind of insane luck does he have? His family’s ancestral tomb must be burning bright. From now on, as long as this Zhao Wendong doesn’t make any major mistakes, no one will dare to touch him.’
Zhao Wendong had no idea what a massive windfall was about to land on his head. At that very moment, he was being stopped outside the farm by two soldiers holding submachine guns.
"State your business! Back away now!"
The two young soldiers glared menacingly at Zhao Wendong, while several other sentries in the guardhouse behind them watched their every move with intense focus.