Reborn in 78, I made my fortune by working in the mountains, supporting three families on my own.

Children chased and ran through the gaps in the crowd, their laughter and screams blending together.

The women squatted down, some washing vegetables, others chopping meat, the sounds of knives clattering against the cutting board rising and falling.

Qin Changlin, Wang Shouguo, and his father-in-law, three middle-aged and elderly men, were busy chopping firewood in the corner of the yard.

The children played together, while the women chatted about this and that while busy with their work.

Some men were smoking, some were helping out, and some were just chatting under the wall. The whole courtyard was filled with the aroma of smoke and the lively atmosphere, a scene of prosperity and bustling activity.

When Zhao Lei returned, everyone looked at him.

"Hey, Lei Zi's back!"

"Sanshi, you're finally back!"

"Daddy, Daddy's home!"

Zhao Yupei ran over with her younger siblings and hugged their legs tightly.

"Peipei, take your younger siblings to play with the other children first. Dad has something to do."

Zhao Lei greeted everyone with a smile and a brief greeting.

He glanced around and introduced Tiger's mother, who was standing next to him, to everyone.

Upon hearing that she was the mother of Da Long and Xiao Hu, everyone became even more enthusiastic and pulled her to sit down on a long bench without saying a word.

Su Wanqing reacted quickly, handing over a cup of warm tea and saying softly, "Auntie, please sit here and have some tea to rest."

Xiao Hu's mother, Zheng Dongmei, took the teacup, smiled, nodded her thanks, and sat down somewhat awkwardly.

Wang Zongbao's mother was washing vegetables by the basin when she looked up and stopped what she was doing.

Hey, isn't this someone I know?

She immediately shook the water droplets off her hands and stepped forward to greet her: "Oh, Dongmei?"

"Long time no see. Your complexion... ugh, why do you look so bad?"

Wang Zongbao's mother is named Chen Dongmei, while Dalong and Xiaohu's mother is named Zheng Dongmei.

The two were about the same age and had met in the night school run by the production brigade.

Back in the night school days, a group of young men and women sat in a dimly lit classroom learning to read and do math, and they became acquainted over time.

Especially since they both share the same name, Dongmei, they became close sisters when they were young.

It's not surprising that there are many people of their generation with names like Dongmei, Chunlan, Qiuju, and Xiahe.

When the commune's roster was pulled out, there were several pages just for people named Dongmei.

Just like their children, most boys are named something like Jun, Long, Hu, or Shan, which are all imprints of the times on their names.

If a production team shouts "Jianjun!", four or five boys will jump out to answer.

However, as time went by, they each started their own families.

Some got married, some got married, and they each started their own families.

Men had to earn work points, and women had to raise children; when life got busy, they rarely saw each other.

Even though they were only separated by two production brigades, just over two ridges away, the two sisters hadn't seen each other for eight or nine years.

This time, I never expected to run into Zhao Lei at his house.

The two quickly struck up a conversation and couldn't stop talking once they started.

Zhao Lei stood aside and watched, nodding in satisfaction.

He was initially worried that if he brought Xiao Hu's mother over first, she would be unfamiliar with the place and might feel neglected.

Just as he was figuring out how to make the arrangements more thorough, he unexpectedly learned that he already knew Wang Zongbao's mother, which saved him a lot of trouble.

Just as Zhao Lei was in a daze, Qin Yuchan emerged from the kitchen wearing an apron.

Zhao Lei couldn't help but laugh when he saw her apron covered in flour and her holding a spatula.

Qin Yuchan frowned and scolded him, "Zhao Sanshi, what are you standing there for? Go help my older brother and the others!"

"Huh? What's wrong?"

"Didn't you see them moving tables and chairs outside?"

Qin Yuchan pointed a spatula at the courtyard gate: "With so many people coming to eat, how can we possibly use all this food? We'll have to borrow from everywhere else!"

Zhao Lei followed her gaze and looked around; it was indeed true.

There are only three tables and three sets of tables and chairs in the yard, which is far from enough.

I reckon they borrowed those two sets from Zhang San Gong's house for this little bit.

Zhao Lei then remembered that he had seen Brother Dashan and his group moving tables and benches on the ridge of the field from afar. It turned out they had gone to borrow tables and chairs from someone else.

Without further delay, he turned around and went outside to help.

The women were in charge of cooking, some stir-frying vegetables, others stewing soup, and the kitchen was filled with steam and the clatter of pots and pans.

The men were responsible for the physical labor: some moved tables, some chopped wood, and some carried water; each had a clear division of labor.

That's how people in the countryside are. When they work, everyone works together, helping each other out. It's a lively and enthusiastic effort, and no one tries to slack off.

After we finished our work, we would sit down together, drink, and chat.

Although life was hard, it was also simple and pure.

After Zhao Lei and Qin Dashan and a few other young men scraped together enough money and borrowed six sets of tables and chairs from several nearby houses, the yard was barely enough space.

Zhao Lei stood at the door and counted the heads.

There were quite a few people who came; the families from each household almost filled his small courtyard.

Later, when there was no more room, they could only set up another table in the open space at the entrance of the courtyard, and spread a plastic sheet on the table to make do.

The fact that Zhao Lei's family hosted a dinner party caused quite a stir.

Many people in the village already knew about it.

The people working in the fields straightened up to wipe their sweat, and when they looked up at the slope, they could see wisps of smoke rising from the roof of their houses.

It shot into the sky with a bright white color, making it particularly eye-catching.

Especially that brand-new two-story red brick building!

If you don't consider the terrain, his house is the tallest.

With its green tiles and red bricks, it stands out among the old houses with earthen walls and gray tiles.

As a result, some people who lived nearby finished work early and, carrying their hoes, would inevitably stop and exchange a few polite words with Zhao Lei as they passed by his house, asking if they could have a look around.

Zhao Lei waved his hand generously, indicating that it was no problem; everyone who came was a guest, and he was welcome to look around.

Around four or five o'clock in the afternoon, Zhao Lei's new house became a landmark building that attracted many onlookers.

Apart from his three ex-wives and some female relatives who were busy cooking in the kitchen, everyone else, young and old, men and women, followed Zhao Lei to the new house next door.

Zhao Lei pushed open the newly installed wooden door and led everyone to start by looking around the main room.

This house is a two-story red brick building, a square rectangular prism, upright and sturdy.

The exterior walls are made of brand-new red bricks, with neat and tidy mortar joints, unlike the old houses which are covered with yellow mud.

The floor of the main room was smoothed with cement, and it felt hard when you stepped on it, unlike the mud floor where you would leave a hole with every step.

As soon as people entered the house, they looked around and then started talking amongst themselves.

"Wow, this house is really impressive! No one in our production team has ever built a two-story red brick house before!"