The Entire Mountain Is My Hunting Ground

Zhao Jun tucked one sister under his arm and pulled the other by the hand, leading them into his room.

Then, Zhao Jun closed the door, lifted the two little girls onto the kang bed, and moved the low table—leftovers and all—over to the space beneath the window.

The food was inedible now. Fortunately, Zhao Jun was already more or less full, so he sat on the edge of the kang bed to comfort his two sisters.

Zhao Hong and Zhao Na, still a little shaken, both threw themselves into Zhao Jun’s arms.

Zhao Hong in particular, who had been an innocent victim in all this, felt deeply wronged after getting whacked four times with the broom head.

Zhao Jun stroked Zhao Hong’s little head, comforting her in a low voice. He promised that the next time he went down the mountain to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative or the big department store, he’d buy her a new outfit. Only then did Zhao Hong’s tears finally give way to a smile.

"You’re still the best, big brother!" Those words... probably came straight from the little girl’s heart.

’Still the best?’ Zhao Jun was taken aback, wondering where the "still" came from.

Logically, it wasn’t at all difficult for him to buy his sisters a few new outfits now.

He could afford ten, let alone just one.

But Wang Meilan wouldn’t allow it. She always said that children grew so fast they would outgrow new clothes after just a few wears.

And even though Zhao Na could wear the hand-me-downs, the house was still full of old clothes from when Zhao Chun and Zhao Jun were young. Their grandmother had sewn every last one of them, stitch by painstaking stitch, and they were made to last.

Just then, Zhao Na piped up from his other side with her own praise, "You’re the very best, big brother!"

Zhao Jun understood instantly. He patted Zhao Na’s little braids and chuckled, "Alright, I’ll buy you something too."

"Okay!" Even though Zhao Na was young, she already had a thick Northeast accent. Hearing that she was also getting new clothes, she beamed with delight.

"Big brother!" By now, not a trace of sadness or grievance remained on Zhao Hong’s face. Instead, it was alight with glee as she said to Zhao Jun, "You should get me a floral dress!"

"Okay, okay, I’ll get it," Zhao Jun said, nodding repeatedly. ’All her cleverness is saved for moments like this,’ he thought.

But his sister had made her request, so he had to follow through.

"Yay! Yay! I’m getting a floral dress!"

Even though they hadn’t seen it yet, Zhao Hong and Zhao Na were already celebrating. The two little girls cheered and jumped for joy on the kang bed.

In stark contrast, over in the east room, Wang Meilan was relentlessly whacking Zhao Youcai with the broom head.

When she first came in, she’d only taken a quick glance at the mess. But the longer she stood in the room, the angrier she became.

The floor was fine; it was paved with red bricks, so a little water wasn’t a problem. It would dry soon enough.

The New Year’s print on the wall was ruined, but whatever. Anyone would understand if they just said the little girls had gotten mischievous.

The real problem was Zhao Youcai’s clothes and the bedding on the kang cabinet—all of it was filthy.

’And I just washed them a few days ago!’

Wang Meilan raised the broom head and brought it down on Zhao Youcai, cursing as she hit him.

It had to be said, Wang Meilan showed some restraint. No matter how ridiculous her old man was being, he still had to go to work the next day, so she couldn’t hit him in the face. She limited her attacks to his body.

Besides, even though it was spring, the temperatures in the Northeast were still low, with a big drop from day to night.

At night, the rooms would get damp and cold, to the point where some of the elderly still wore their padded winter jackets and pants.

While Zhao Youcai wasn’t wearing a full winter jacket and pants, his clothes had a thin layer of cotton padding, which offered a good deal of protection.

Plus, the man was sturdily built and could take a few hits without issue. The problem was, his son and daughters were home, so he couldn’t cry out in pain even if it hurt.

But Wang Meilan kept on hitting and cursing, and the more she cursed, the angrier she became, and the more ferociously she swung.

Finally, Zhao Youcai couldn’t take it anymore. As Wang Meilan ranted about the freshly washed bedding being filthy again, he let out a low growl. "It’s not like you have to wash it! I’ll do it!"

"Oh! So you dare to shout back now!" Seeing Zhao Youcai bristle, Wang Meilan grew even more furious and raised the broom high. But then she suddenly recalled that Zhao Youcai had, in fact, been the one to wash the bedding last time. At that, some of her anger subsided.

Once her anger faded, a wave of exhaustion washed over her. ’Hitting people is surprisingly tiring,’ she thought.

Wang Meilan shot Zhao Youcai a fierce glare and let the hand holding the broom head drop to her side.

As her arm fell, the tip of the broom handle rested against Zhao Youcai’s leg, startling him into immediately swatting it away.

He had been half-sitting, half-lounging on the kang bed, with his side to Wang Meilan. If he hadn’t moved, everything would have been fine. But his movement pulled at his clothes, revealing something in his pocket to Wang Meilan’s eyes.

"Hey!" Both husband and wife were hopelessly obsessed with money. Wang Meilan only needed one glance to sense that what she saw was cash.

Zhao Youcai had a bad feeling. He quickly clamped a hand over his pocket and kicked his legs to scoot further back on the kang bed.

But Wang Meilan was already upon him with the broom head. Only then did Zhao Youcai realize that escape was impossible.

Wang Meilan pointed the broom at Zhao Youcai with one hand while prying his other hand off his pocket. From within, she pulled out a roll of cash.

Zhao Youcai cried out, "Your son gave that to me!"

"My son gave it to you?" Wang Meilan’s anger flared up again. She barked, "Why would my son give *you* money?"

"Your son..." Zhao Youcai faltered for a second before retorting, "Your son... isn’t he my son too?"

Wang Meilan shot back, "Then you should have said *your* son gave it to you!"

"I did say my son gave it to me!" At this point, the conversation was a complete mess. In his panic, Zhao Youcai had already forgotten his own words.

Wang Meilan was getting dizzy from the argument too, but she had the upper hand. She picked up the broom and gave Zhao Youcai two more whacks.

Zhao Youcai raised his arm to block the blows and then immediately went quiet, not daring to say another word. He sat leaning against the wall on the kang bed, rubbing his left elbow with his right hand, his eyes fixed pitifully on Wang Meilan as she counted the money.

But when he saw Wang Meilan finish counting and start to put the money in her pocket, Zhao Youcai couldn’t hold his tongue any longer. He whispered, "Our son gave that to me to show his respect."

"Nonsense!" Wang Meilan was instantly displeased. "Why would my son only give something to you? He hasn’t given me, his own mother, anything."

Zhao Youcai was speechless. But, desperate to save at least some of the money, he quickly said, "Doesn’t our son give all the money he earns to you? What about those several thousand yuan?"

"Is that money *for me*?" Wang Meilan grew even more annoyed. "That’s being saved for him to find a wife." As she spoke, she unrolled the cash, separated a large portion of it, and declared, "This money was clearly a gift for both of us. You were trying to swallow my share whole!"

With that, Wang Meilan flicked her wrist, tossing a one-yuan note and a fifty-cent note onto the kang bed. "Here, this is for you," she said. "Now hurry up and clean this room."

"I..." Zhao Youcai wanted to cry but had no tears. Thinking of Wang Meilan’s temper, he knew that if he dared say another word, he’d likely lose even this yuan and a half. So, he snatched up the money and hastily stuffed it into his pocket.