Shuangling: Braving the Rapids

Yue Chuan was still in a daze when Ah Huang suddenly darted down the hillside, the dog leaping and bounding through the snow, leaving a trail of paw prints.

In the blink of an eye, Ah Huang rushed over, its tail wagging like a propeller, barking and leaping at Yue Chuan—it hadn't seen its old friend for over a month and was really bored.

Yue Chuan was in a terrible state. He was knocked flat on his back by Ah Huang and fell into a snowdrift. In an instant, his face and neck were covered with ice shards, and he was so cold that he felt like his soul was leaving his body and his spirit was ascending to heaven.

"You little bastard! How dare you ambush me! I'll teach you a lesson you won't forget!"

Yue Chuan spat and cursed, then suddenly used his elbow to grab the dog's neck. The next second, he grabbed a snowball and smeared it on the dog's face. Ah Huang was no longer a young man, otherwise he wouldn't have suffered such a loss. Even so, it was still struggling with all its might, and as its limbs twitched, snowballs flew everywhere.

And so, the man and the dog twisted themselves into a pretzel shape in the snow, a truly cringe-worthy sight.

After they'd had their fill of fussing, Yue Chuan scooped Ah Huang out of the snowdrift. Just as he was brushing the snow off Ah Huang's fur, Qin Yunhai and Qin Geda strolled over from the hillside. Both were bundled up in bulky sheepskin coats, with limp wild rabbits dangling from their shoulders.

"Xiao Chuan'er, you're on holiday, right?" Qin Yunhai grinned, his lips chapped from the cold. "Just caught a few rabbits. I'll butcher them later and have your dad stew them!"

"Yes, Second Master!"

Yue Chuanchong and Ah Huang winked and happily took the rabbit from Qin Yunhai's hand. The three of them and the dog walked around to the corner of the sheepfold and laid all the prey flat on the open-air giant bluestone table.

On the wall next to the table, a steel wire hung for hanging sheepskins. In addition, an iron tripod was welded on, displaying all kinds of slaughtering knives. This place was always filled with the smell of mutton and fish; it was Qin Yunhai's slaughterhouse for killing chickens and sheep. This was his livelihood, and dealing with a few rabbits was a piece of cake for him.

Before long, several rabbit skins were hanging on the wire, and the offal that had been removed went into Ah Huang's dog food bowl. The best parts were left for Qin Shuangling to prepare himself; just thinking about tonight's wild game made my mouth water!

As dusk fell, the two families gathered in Yuechuan's courtyard. Earthenware bowls held dark brown rabbit meat, served with sesame flatbread and pickled radish dumplings. Everyone ate with gusto, their mouths greasy, and slurping sounds could be heard from time to time.

"Hey! Are you laying eggs in the corner? There's a stool here! Come sit down!" Qin Shuangling never spoke properly; even though he was concerned about the other person, his tone was harsh.

The iron tower didn't move, but instead held the spicy rabbit head and gnawed on it, making "smacking" sounds.

Everyone stifled their laughter and turned away—this simpleton's habit of eating by the wall is probably incurable.

After nightfall, many villagers gathered again at the base of Qin Yunhai's house. The old rafter had not yet been burned out, and everyone still needed it to provide light and heat.

Hearing the commotion outside, Yue Shan shoved her bowl into the kitchen, grabbed Ai Min and Yue Chuan by the back of their coats, and dashed out the door. The little girl muttered, "Hurry! Hurry! There won't be any room left if we stay any longer!"

Once the three of them had secured their spots, Yue Shan began to coax and plead with her uncle and brother to play the lantern riddle game with her.

Dizzy from the firelight, Qin Aimin casually tossed out an old riddle: "Blue stone slab, blue stone slab, a bright lamp hangs on the blue stone slab, is that right?"

"The starry sky!" Yue Shan blurted out, then pouted and complained, "Uncle, why are you still trying to fool me with the same old questions!"

Qin Aimin rubbed his eyes and continued, "A dot, a long horizontal line, a stroke pointing south, three little red soldiers, sitting on a stone, guess a word."

"It's the character '应'! We've already talked about this!" Yue Shan jumped up and answered, it seems this riddle still didn't stump her.

"The Forbidden City—guess the name of a contemporary writer?"

Aimin increased the difficulty, which immediately confused Yue Shan. The girl racked her brains for a long time, and finally, in desperation, she used her elbow to violently strike Yue Chuan's ribs.

Yue Chuan, a high school student, had long lost interest in these old-fashioned word games. Now, after being poked in the back by his sister, he had no choice but to reveal the answer: "Lao She! The one who wrote *Camel Xiangzi*!"

Yue Shan knew neither Lao She nor anything about "Rickshaw Boy." She tossed her braids and started chattering, "This doesn't count! We didn't learn it in our textbooks! No way! Let's do it again!"

While the little girl was making a fuss, many more people came to the campfire. No wonder, on this dark winter night, who wouldn't want to come over to join in the fun? Without electricity, chatting around the fire and guessing riddles is the best way to pass the time.

Aimin's flowery riddles had long since bored the gentlemen. So, a few of the older men started a separate discussion, choosing to tell jokes with a hint of risqué humor.

Leading the group was the well-informed and eloquent Captain Qin Laishun. He had a few drinks at dinner and was slightly tipsy, but his spirits were high. "Come on! I'll give you all something exciting, I guarantee you'll never guess! 'Bending over with your butt in the air,' what's the idiom?"

As soon as he said that, everyone knew that Qin Laishun was up to no good. The old men all gave a wicked smile, and the women quickly pulled the children away.

"See what I told you? There aren't many educated people in the village. Alright, alright, whoever can guess the answer, I'll give them this pack of cigarettes for free!" Captain Qin was good at controlling the situation and was also the best at enlivening the atmosphere. His shout stirred up the emotions of everyone present.

At this moment, it was Qin Ergou, the number one bachelor in Qin Family Village, who made his appearance. Having been humiliated by Qin Laishun during the day, he was determined to get his revenge.

This guy deliberately coughed twice to whet people's appetites before shouting, "Looking up at the sky with your butt sticking out—you're blind!" After saying that, he even stuck out his butt and gestured, almost causing his belt to come undone.

The men laughed so hard they slapped their thighs, while the young wives were so embarrassed they hid behind them. Some of the more hot-tempered ones even gave them a few words of criticism.

Qin Ergou's shamelessness was as thick as a city wall corner. Ignoring the women's curses, he brazenly sauntered up to Qin Laishun, snatched the entire pack of cigarettes from his hand, and said, "Thanks for the cigarettes, Captain Qin, hehehe!"

He hurriedly lit a cigarette, took a few puffs, and became even more excited. He stroked his mustache and shouted, "Now it's my turn to ask a question! 'A couplet pasted on the thigh'—guess two characters!"

Qin Ergou was a lewd man by nature, and probably only he could come up with such a wicked riddle.

Seeing that no one could guess the answer, Er Gou laughed smugly, then touched his crotch and revealed the answer: "Haha! You couldn't guess, could you? It's called 'Flesh Gate'!"

Upon hearing this, the women's faces instantly darkened, and Qin Laishun, standing to the side, was also quite displeased. It wasn't because of Er Gou's dirty joke, but because he was unhappy that the other party had stolen his thunder. At this moment, Captain Qin really wanted to kick Qin Er Gou's smug butt a couple of times, but before he could do so, several old hooligans took the opportunity to start a commotion.

"Ergou, that's well said! Give us a few more!"

Once Qin Ergou gained power, his dirty jokes became increasingly outrageous.

"To rub salt in one's crotch—a waste of time!"

"Fishing in a latrine—you're asking for trouble!"

……

Er Gou asked and answered himself, grinning widely while spitting everywhere. In an instant, the atmosphere of the entire campfire gathering was completely ruined by this old bachelor.