Return to 1983 Hunting Xing'an Mountains

Chapter 766 One Family's Joy, Another's Sorrow: Friends Gather
Chinese New Year is all about visiting relatives, gathering for food and drinks, and everyone raising their glasses in a lively celebration, with smiles on everyone's faces.

At this moment, the Wang family's old house was also quite lively. Yang Jun called over Li Feng and Da Laba's families, and set up three tables in the east room.

After the children had eaten and drunk their fill, they went off to play in the street, while the others chatted idly by the door.

Somehow the conversation turned to the Chang brothers, which made Chang Lihong very angry. She slammed her hand on the table and cursed, "They're hopeless!"

"Lihong, don't be angry. Their poor performance has nothing to do with you. Why are you so upset?"

Chang Li said with red eyes, "I'm not in a hurry, it's just that during the New Year, how can I act tough at my father-in-law's house? I'm getting more and more eccentric as I get older!"

Li Feng sipped his drink and said, "Didn't you break off all ties with them before? Why are you worrying about this?"

Chang Lihong paused, glanced at Li Feng, and remained silent. In the end, she was still somewhat soft-hearted.

Yang Jun laughed and said, "We are related by blood, after all. How can we just sever the ties? Besides, we all live in the same village. Even if we don't have family ties, we still have some feelings for each other."

"Hey, whoever gets involved with these two brothers is doomed. Lihong, take my advice, you really shouldn't get involved. Li Feng only started getting better this year..."

Before the loudspeaker could finish speaking, Zhang Guifang stopped him. Ma Liu raised his glass and said, "Then let's not talk about this anymore, let's have another drink."

"Got it."

After finishing his drink, Yang Jun asked, "I heard that Er Ning is going to raise bees in the back mountains this year? Will he have the time?"

Ma Liu nodded: "He probably doesn't have much time. Last year, Hu Zi went to Dongshan to learn beekeeping from me, so this job will probably be handed over to him. I didn't ask him the specifics... If it were my previous personality, I would have turned around and left. But after getting to know you guys these days, I've found that people really are social animals. Now, if I don't have a drink with Lao Zhao and Lao Yang every day, I feel uneasy. You tell me what's going on with this."

"Haha, absolutely! As long as we get along well, the more we spend time together, the better it gets. If we don't see each other for a few days, we miss each other quite a bit."

"Yes, Grandpa Ma used to be quite solitary, but now he looks kind and gentle."

Ma Liu touched his face: "Oh my god, really? Is it true?"

"It's definitely true! The first time I looked at you, your face was drooping longer than a donkey's. Oh my god, this scared me. I was wondering if I hadn't explained myself clearly enough and offended you."

"Hahaha, you're really finished..."

After exchanging a few jokes, the loudspeaker chimed in, "I heard a bit about Er Ning's beekeeping business. He said he ordered 50 beehives from his father-in-law and had his uncle clean up the beekeeping area on the back mountain last year. Old Jiang, Li Feng, and I went to help out."

Li Feng nodded: "Yeah."

"This job is unlikely to be easy. If there's anything you need, just say the word, Uncle Ma, and I'll be right there."

Ma Liu smiled and nodded: "You're all talk, but when it comes to getting things done, you're really reliable. Good job!"

Yang Jun grinned, raised his glass, looked around, and said, "Shall we toast Erning from afar? To be honest, if it weren't for Erning's help back then, I would definitely be finished by now, let alone marry such a good wife as Cuiping?"

The loudspeaker nodded: "That makes sense. If it weren't for my brother, our family would still be quite poor. Now my son is learning a trade in the city, so we don't have to spend any money, which saves us a lot of worry."

Li Feng silently raised his glass and said with a smile, "I will remember this friendship for the rest of my life. I can't say anything insincere, but it's all in the wine."

Ma Liu waved his hand generously: "You guys are all brothers, so you can say whatever you want. I just have one thing to say: let's drink!"

"Hahaha, drink!"

I had a great time drinking today, feeling happy and a little carefree.

Everyone made money last year, how could they not be happy?

One family is happy while another is sad. In the Zhao family in Beitun, only three old women and a few children are left. They didn't eat much of their New Year's Eve dinner yesterday, and hardly anyone came to visit them.

Old Zhao's wife said with a worried look, "Eldest son's wife, has your eldest brother gone to the street to ask? When will he be able to come out?"

"They won't be able to get out anytime soon; I reckon they'll have to wait until spring."

"Spring? What use are those three then? We've been cleaning up the house, both inside and out, and we're not making any money, we're even losing money. Ugh, what a mess."

"Mom, logically speaking, Guofeng and Guoqing were just gambling, so it shouldn't be a big deal. I heard that the Chang brothers from Qing'an Village have been released. However, on New Year's Eve, the two brothers went to their father-in-law's house for dinner and beat up their wives' third aunt's husband. Then their father-in-law tied them up and took them to the police station..."

Old Zhao's wife sneered, "Heh, those two brothers are no joke, they deserve to be shot! But Guofeng and Guoqing didn't do anything wrong, and we can't even get them to do that by spending some money?"

"Didn't we just pay money to get it done before? Now we've run into trouble again."

"...We can't spend the New Year inside the fence, can we? Eldest daughter-in-law, do you think those two brothers have offended someone?"

"If we're talking about who they've offended, there are too many to count. Not to mention those further away, there are two families in Qing'an: the Tang family who do free labor, the Xu family who manages the threshing ground, and the Wang family in Nantun..."

"Alright, alright, stop talking. You're making my heart race just calling out names. Hey, has Lao Guo come out yet?"

“He went in with my dad, so he can’t be released so early. Besides, his case was more serious, and he was sentenced to a longer term than my dad.”

Old Zhao's wife was speechless. The three women really couldn't think of any other solutions, so they resigned themselves to their fate.

"Eat quickly. Tomorrow, you two should take the kids home and stay for a while before coming back. Your parents have worried a lot about you. Take those bottles of wine from the cellar back with you."

……

The following day was the third day of the lunar new year.

Xu Ning went to bed early last night and woke up around 6 a.m. For the first time ever, she helped her mother add firewood to the stove and then went to the outhouse to take care of her business.

Xu Laonian, Wang Erli, Yang Yusheng, and Liu Daming stood in front of the sheepfold, their eyes shining as they stared at the sheep, muttering something from time to time.

"What are you staring at here for?"

Yang Yusheng laughed and said, "Your dad is thinking of roasting this sheep."

"Roasted lamb? That's fine, but we don't have the equipment. Where can we get an oven big enough to hold such a large lamb?"

Old Xu curled his lip and said, "Idiot! We have a big vat at home, just stuff the sheep into the vat."

"If my mom knew this, she'd definitely stuff you in a vat!" "Damn it, you kid, it's your friend coming over today. If it were anyone else, would I go to all this trouble? Don't you know what's good for you?"

Xu Ning waved his hand: "Stop messing around. If you really push your dear Zhen too far, she might actually shove you into a vat."

"Damn it, go feed the dogs! Go away, stop making a scene."

Xu Ning turned around and quickly went to the north kitchen, where he complained to Liu Lizhen. When Azhen learned that Xu Laonian was going to roast the lamb in a large water vat, she grabbed the stove hook and rushed out.

"Xu Chunlin! If you dare to ruin my vat, I'll make sure you're soaking in it! Do you believe me?"

Seeing Liu Lizhen's menacing approach, Xu Laonian stared blankly for a couple of seconds before quickly hiding behind Yang Yusheng, shouting, "Zhen, I was just saying that! Don't listen to this little brat spreading rumors. Would I ruin my own family's jar?"

Wang Erli and Liu Daming looked at him suspiciously, "Brother (brother-in-law), are you going to ruin my family's jar?"

"Hey, damn it, no, you two idiots, shut up!"

Liu Lizhen snorted, "Don't be so cocky, or I'll twist your head off."

"I know, I know. Go back and prepare dinner. Third Brother is hungry."

Liu Lizhen squinted and said, "Don't use Third Brother as a shield."

Yang Yusheng waved his hand and said, "Sister-in-law, Dalin was wrong in this matter. You should punish him if necessary. Don't hold back because of me."

"Oh my god, Third Brother... why are you like this too?"

"Haha, when in Rome, do as the Romans do."

The morning was spent in farce. When the food was served, Xu Laonian sat down at the table, his eyes radiating a murderous aura that could have scared Xu Ning to death. But Xu Ning didn't even glance at him, continuing to do as he pleased, and discussing with Xu Long about taking Yang Yusheng for a mountain run the next day.

"Third Brother, I'll take you hunting livestock tomorrow! Do you believe me?"

Yang Yusheng laughed and said, "Dalin, Erning is much better at handling livestock than you. It's not a matter of belief, but a matter of ability."

"Hey, Third Brother, you have no idea what happened last year when we were hunting wild boars. I killed two of them with a sledgehammer. It was pitch black, you couldn't see your hand in front of your face..."

Listening to Xu Laonian boast about the past, Yang Yusheng's smile remained unchanged, but he still preferred to run in the mountains with Xu Ning, since it was indeed quite interesting to hunt dogs with Xu Ning.

After the meal, Liu Daming sat under the eaves sharpening his knife, while Wang Biao and Liu Tianen brought out a large basin, a kang table, and a shelf, and placed them next to the vegetable garden.

Xu Laonian and Wang Erli drove the sheep out of the sheepfold, tied their legs with ropes, and then Liu Daming, holding a sharp knife, stabbed the sheep. Blood quickly gushed out, and Wang Biao held a basin to catch the blood, while Liu Tianen stirred it with a stick to prevent it from congealing.

Next came the skinning and butchering, a task handled by Li Fuqiang and Wang Hu. They put the removed bones into a large pot to make soup...

Yang Jun, Li Feng, Da Laba, Lao Wei, Lao Jiang and others will not be coming today, because they were invited before the Lunar New Year. The main people coming today are the Sun family from Sandaohe, the Chai family from Wangxing, the Wu family from Wanye, as well as Chen Hedong from the provincial capital and Li Zhuang (Manager Li) who works at the pharmaceutical factory. Xu He was also invited, but he was too busy at the beginning of the year to come, and Xu Pao's health couldn't withstand the long journey, so they didn't come back.

Around 10 o'clock, Chai Bing, Chai Baotong, Chai Hongyan, and Third Sister-in-law came over. Seeing the sheepskin hanging on the rack in the yard and smelling the mutton in the pot, they were even happier.

Chai Bing always brought a lot of things when he came over, and today was no exception. In addition to soda and other items, Chai Bing also called Xu Ning to the empty West Second Room and took out a piece of clothing from behind his back.

“When your third sister-in-law went back to her parents’ home, there was a family in her village that made leather clothes. Your third sister-in-law thought this garment was nice and brought one back for you. Try it on.”

Xu Ning laughed and said, "Oh my god, it has to be my third sister-in-law! I've always liked leather jackets. Is this made of calfskin?"

"Yes, this dress is of the best quality. Your third sister-in-law said it's not a waste to wear it on you. If I, my eldest brother, or my second brother wore it, it would be a waste."

"Hahaha... It's great, it suits you perfectly. My third sister-in-law has excellent taste."

"If you like it, then just leave it here. Don't wear it outside."

Xu Ning blinked: "Okay, you're so thoughtful. Stay here a few more days, don't you have my older brothers at home?"

Chai Bing looked somewhat troubled and sighed, "I'd like to stay a little longer, but my family's winery expanded last autumn, and with that expansion, everything's in demand!"

“Oh, stay a few more days. Your older brother is at home. What could possibly happen? I’ll talk to my uncle about it, and that’s settled.”

"...Okay, don't say I agreed, just say you insisted on keeping me here."

"Haha, I know this guy scared you."

Immediately afterwards, Wu Haiquan, Wu Hailong, Wu Haitao, Pan Xiao, and others arrived. Just as they got out of the car to move their things, two more cars drove up from the north. They were Sun Liansheng, Lian Jun, Lian Xu, Jin Xiaoxia, Chen Hedong, Su Yawen, Li Zhuang, and a friend of Xiao Du, Yan He, and Xu Long from the night school.

Chen Hedong arrived in the city last night. Just then, Sun Liansheng drove Yang Qiuyan back to the city from Sandaohe, so Sun Liansheng helped arrange accommodation for the three of them. Today, they drove together to Qing'an.

Old Xu's family welcomed them into the house, where they sat in the east and west rooms and the reception room, chatting idly.

After joking around and flirting with her brothers and sisters-in-law, Xu Feng dragged Chai Hongyan and Su Yawen to the second room in the east wing to find Meng Ziyan.

Those who remained in the west room were all Xu Ning and Xu Long's buddies. Xu Long introduced Xu Ning to a friend from night school named Ye Xu, who had earned a second-class merit this year and was a squad leader in the municipal bureau. His rank was one level lower than Cheng Yang and Zhang Yuemin, but he had an uncle who worked in the provincial government.

Xu Ning started by making some small talk to lighten the mood, but before he could even get to the point, Ye Xu said, "Er Ning, I'm on good terms with your brother. I heard from him that you're planning to open a car repair shop in the city. How's it going? Is there anything you can help me with?"

"We're just about to get started. The location has already been agreed upon. All that's left is to build the factory and secure the resources for the car factory."

Sun Liansheng said, "When are you going to the city? I'll take you to visit the parts factories there. We should be able to negotiate some supplies."

Wu Haiquan asked, "I don't know anyone in Qing'an City, but if you need money, I can lend you some."

"Okay, thanks, Brother Quan. I have enough money now. I'll just ask you when I need it."

Xiao Du said, "Er Ning, the auto repair shop you set up is quite innovative. The city mentioned it at a meeting before and originally wanted to give you some support, but you know the current situation. We're basically feeling our way in the dark and don't dare to make a big splash..."

“I understand, Brother Du. The city told me before that although they can no longer provide overt support, they will still make things easier for me in some areas.”

Actually, there's no need to go into details about this; Xu Ning already knew the answer.

(End of this chapter)