My Gold Rush Career Begins in 1984

Chapter 6 Departure
The day was spent chatting around the fire and enjoying two hearty meals.

In the days that followed, Zhou Jingming didn't go anywhere. He wanted to ferry his father across the river for a while so that his father could stay home and warm himself by the fire, so that his old, cold legs wouldn't hurt.

Zhou Detong was still a little uneasy and decided to follow up for a day to see how things went.

As he led Zhou Jingming up the bluestone steps toward the ferry, the clatter of his heels against the stone steps, the rhythmic thud mingling with the murmuring of the river, became a unique morning melody for the ferry.

The riverbed, littered with jagged stones during the dry season, was still sturdy and steady as Zhou Detong carried the boat pole.

When he reaches the willow grove where the boat is moored, he will first squat down and stroke the rope tied to the crooked willow tree with his calloused hands, as if greeting an old friend. Only then will he untie the knots in the hemp rope soaked in river water, and the wooden boat will gently rock itself, like a water bird that has been awakened, ready to embark on a new voyage.

Mornings and evenings are the busiest times.

The students are on winter break now; otherwise, those dozens of students would have to make several trips back and forth every day to and from school and to cross the river.

But they are not idle now. Many villagers have to go to town to sell some of their own produce to earn some money to supplement their household income, or to buy some daily necessities.

Therefore, in the early morning, the cabin was always filled with bamboo baskets of green vegetables, earthenware jars of fermented soybean paste, leaf-wrapped rice cakes, and eggs and duck eggs that had been collected for many days and carefully tied with straw in baskets...

When I came back, it was mostly oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar.

Of course, the items that need to be transported by wooden boat are not very heavy. When the quantity is large, the villagers will choose to walk seven or eight miles upstream to cross an old stone bridge over the river.

Also, on rainy days, when the river rises and the current is too strong with large waves, they would choose to cross the old stone bridge when they needed to travel.

Zhou Detong always gets up very early every day and doesn't finish his ferry service until it gets dark.

The boats were ready at the ferry dock, and not long after, villagers arrived at the dock.

Many people saw Zhou Jingming yesterday. The news of his return has spread throughout the village. When people pass through the ferry, they will make a point of stopping at their doorsteps to greet and inquire. Even if they don't see Zhou Jingming, they will deliberately raise their voices when speaking to Zhou Detong.

A graduate of a worker-peasant-soldier university with a formal job earning fifty or sixty yuan a month would definitely be considered a person of status and position in the countryside.

Zhou Detong's smile never seemed to stop, not even from morning till night.

Today, when we saw Zhou Jingming take over the boat pole and ferry Zhou Detong across, everyone teased him quite a bit.

"Hey, college students are coming to row the boat? Is that even feasible?"

"This kind of thing is probably not as fun as using a pen!"

"We've got something to brag about today! College students are personally rowing the boat. How many people have ever had this kind of treatment!"

"Jingming, aren't you in geological exploration? Why don't you come and explore this area and see if you can find any treasures?"

"If I remember correctly, he's twenty-six years old, time to start looking for a wife. Come visit me sometime, Yu-Chih's home too..."

"It's perfect timing that you're back. My family is slaughtering a pig for the New Year tomorrow. Remember to come over for the pig-slaughtering feast tonight..."

The barrage of words left Zhou Jingming somewhat overwhelmed, but he still tried his best to deal with it, saying nice things when he needed to, finding good reasons to refuse when he needed to, and even cracking jokes when he could.

After working for more than an hour and seeing off almost everyone, Zhou Detong took the boat pole from Zhou Jingming: "You've worked up a sweat and your shoes are wet. You take a rest and I'll paddle you across!"

This time, Zhou Jingming did not refuse and handed the boat pole to his father.

Zhou Detong's hands, which held the pole, were bronze in color, with thick knuckles like old tree roots, and his palm lines were inlaid with river mud that could never be washed away.

In Zhou Jingming's memory, when they were children, the two siblings would go boating with their father when they had nothing to do. When the boat reached the middle of the river, their father would put a bamboo pole across his shoulder and let the two siblings watch the fish swimming under the water. Their silver scales shimmered in the sunlight, like a handful of broken diamonds sprinkled on the water.

Unfortunately, there was still no sunshine today, and a light drizzle was falling, making the river water murky and obscuring anything underwater.

But he still remembers that his father always liked to hum Sichuan opera when he was rowing the boat. His hoarse voice, mixed with the sound of the bamboo pole breaking the water, created ripples on the river.

Zhou Jingming sat in the boat, smiling at his father: "Dad, won't you sing a song?"

Zhou Detong shook his head: "What's so great about singing that?" Zhou Jingming insisted: "I want to hear it..."

Zhou Detong suddenly became awkward, more embarrassed than anything else: "Why do I feel like you're different this time? The things you say are giving me goosebumps. Are you hiding something from us?"

Zhou Jingming urged, "What could possibly be wrong with me... Sing, I really want to hear it!"

Zhou Detong hesitated for a moment, coughed twice, adjusted his emotions, and then opened his mouth to sing: "I love the West Lake in March the most, with the slanting wind and drizzle sending the pleasure boats on their way..."

This is a fisherman's song from the Sichuan Opera "The Legend of the White Snake," still in the familiar Sichuan dialect and with the familiar Shu flavor.

As the Lunar New Year approached, Zhou Jingming asked Zhou Xingyao and Liu Jianfeng to make a special trip to Jiangyang City to prepare New Year's goods, and to change their parents, sister and brother-in-law's clothes from head to toe.

In addition, he spent 335 yuan at the department store to buy a Shanghai L2400 tape recorder, as well as several Sichuan opera tapes and folk song tapes.

When they saw the cassette recorder, Zhou Detong and Shen Fengqin both stared at Zhou Jingming.

His eyes conveyed only one message: How can you spend money like this? You don't know how to save at all. What's the use of buying this thing? It can't be eaten.

However, when Zhou Jingming plugged in the tape recorder, inserted the cassette, and pressed the play button, the old couple's expressions softened.

He just wanted his parents to have something to keep them entertained even when he wasn't around.

Is money important? Yes!
But you can earn more when you run out, and you can earn even more. In the face of this long-lost family affection, there is nothing you can't bear to part with.

So, beside this monotonous ferry crossing, in that old house, a strained, drawn-out tune would often echo from time to time due to insufficient electricity.

During the Spring Festival, the town is very lively, but it seems to have little to do with the ferrymen. Because there are so many people coming and going in the town, they don't have time to join in the fun. But a sumptuous hot pot around the stove at home is enough to make up for everything.

Time passed quickly in the daily ferry rides, and before they knew it, it was the evening of March 3rd. Zhou Jingming invited Zhou Xingyao and Liu Jianfeng to his home and prepared a feast.

After eating and drinking his fill, Zhou Jingming kept a few hundred yuan for himself. After covering his expenses during this period, he had more than 1,500 yuan left. He gave 800 yuan to his parents and the rest to his younger sister, Hua Yao: "When I'm not home, you'll have to take care of Mom and Dad. You know Mom and Dad are reluctant to spend money. Use it if you need it. If you see Mom and Dad need anything, like if they're not feeling well, use this money to help them... Keep it safe!"

Zhou Xingyao looked at the stack of ten-yuan notes placed in front of her: "Brother, are you going back?"

"It's time to go. If I don't leave soon, everyone in the village will think I've lost my job and am going to stay here and make a living at the Huluzui Ferry. Even my parents are starting to have doubts!"

Zhou Jingming then took out the thin, carved gold bracelet: "When you got married, I couldn't come back, and I didn't prepare anything for you. This gold bracelet is worth more than a thousand yuan now. Keep it safe as a wedding gift from your brother. When you have children, I will prepare something else for you."

Remember, don't actually wear this. Keep it safe at home and don't let anyone see it, or people will covet it.

"Where did you get that gold bracelet?"

"Don't forget what your brother does. He finds gold, silver, and all kinds of ores. Getting this little bit of stuff is a piece of cake."

Zhou Detong was somewhat worried: "Son, you can't do anything illegal or disorderly."

"Am I that kind of person? Definitely not."

Zhou Jingming patted his chest and spoke confidently, dispelling the doubts of the others, but in his heart he thought: Going out this time is just being a rebellious son...

"I'll keep the money meant for taking care of Mom and Dad, but I can't take this gold bracelet. You keep it for your future sister-in-law!"

Zhou Xingyao was still hesitant to accept it.

"You don't need to worry about that, just listen to me!"

Without saying a word, Zhou Jingming stuffed the gold bracelet into her pocket, explained some details in detail, and only after seeing them off did he feel at ease enough to go upstairs to sleep.

Tomorrow is March 4th, the day the dragon raises its head, a very auspicious day. I hope this trip will have a good start.

The next morning, after eating the glutinous rice balls his mother had cooked early in the morning, Zhou Jingming took his father's old wooden boat to the other side. After saying goodbye to his parents, he followed the path covered with fine dewdrops on the weeds and came to the paulownia tree again to wait for the bus to Jiangyang. He felt very calm: "Altai, I'm here!"

(End of this chapter)