1940s: I supported my wife and sister-in-law by hunting.

He Er was still a little hesitant. "They just lost their parents. Besides, this kid is really unlucky; he's destined to bring misfortune to his parents. Aren't you afraid of bringing him home?"

Liangzi's mother rolled her eyes at her husband. "What a joke! Don't you know your son doesn't have a wife? Can't you put food on the table?"

"If Liangzi is already eighteen and still can't get married, our He family line will be cut off, and that means the He family line will be cut off too."

"I'll tell everyone that I have a kind heart and took in Hongying, who has no parents. Who can find fault with me? Just wait two or three years, and you'll be happy when I have a grandson."

He Er nodded. "I'll do whatever you say."

She immediately put on a compassionate and kind act, quickly squeezed to the front, and kept saying that Hongying was pitiful, that no one cared for her or loved her, and that she was the only one with a soft heart who was willing to take the child in.

"Oh dear, Hongying is suffering so much!"

"Her parents are gone just like that, and the house is burned to the ground. How will this little child survive? I truly feel sorry for her! If no one wants her, I'll take her in! It's just an extra pair of chopsticks and a bowl; I don't mind the extra burden!"

Liu Dayou, who was in charge of the village, had lived most of his life and had seen all kinds of people's scheming and intrigue.

One glance and one listen to her words, and I immediately saw through her little scheme.

In front of the whole village, they didn't give her any face at all, and directly confronted her, leaving her humiliated.

"You better shut up right now. The girl's parents just died. Keep your thoughts to yourself and let her bury her parents first."

Having his little scheme exposed in public, He Erjia's face flushed red and then turned pale. He was so embarrassed that he dared not utter another word.

But the way she looked at Hongying was exactly the same as how she looked at her future daughter-in-law. The more she looked, the more she liked her. She was overjoyed. This girl was definitely going to be Liangzi's wife.

Everyone in the village knows it.

What decent family's daughter would want to marry her cleft-mouthed good son?

In addition, He Erjia is very fond of children, and she goes wherever there is trouble. Her mouth is full of filth, and anyone who gets involved with her will be unlucky.

Thirteen-year-old Liu Hongying is young, but she is sensible at a young age.

She saw through Aunt He's feigned enthusiasm at a glance.

She ignored them, turned around, bowed to the villagers who had helped put out the fire, collect the bodies, and worked all night, and thanked them.

····

Everyone had left, and three corpses lay in the courtyard.

Liu Hongying's legs went weak, and she sat down on the ground with a thud, burying her head and crying again.

Chen Gaoshan had been traveling all day and was starving; his stomach was growling loudly.

The villagers dragged the three dead horses back to the village and stood around them, not daring to move them. They all turned to Chen Gaoshan and asked him what to do with them.

After all, the horse was captured by someone else.

Chen Gaoshan wasn't stingy either.

"I'll keep two of the horse's hind legs for myself, and you can divide the rest among yourselves."

They were robbed by the local bullies, by the bearded men, and by the Russians. They never saw meat in their homes. Hearing this, they all got excited.

Even though three members of the Liu family died, and everyone was saddened, life still had to go on, and they still had to fill their stomachs.

The villagers immediately got to work, cutting open and deboning animals right there in the open space in front of Aunt Zhao's house.

Adults were busy, and children were watching. In no time, with so many people and quick hands, the meat from the three whole horses was divided up, and each family received a large piece of horse meat.

Chen Gaoshan squatted on the open ground of the dilapidated courtyard, picking up the big horse leg.

Peel off the outer skin clean, and then make a slit along the meat.

He pretended to reach into his satchel and rummage, but actually took out fine salt, Sichuan peppercorns, and dried spices, and rubbed them onto the horse meat little by little.

After applying the seasoning, he piled up dry firewood, lit it, and placed the horse meat on the fire to roast.

The flames flickered, licking the skin until it sizzled and dripped oil into the fire with a crackling sound.

Soon, the aroma of meat filled the air.

He just asked Aunt Zhao if Uncle Zhao had come before. Aunt Zhao said that he came last year, but was driven away by the militia. Some people in the village went south to work as laborers.

No wonder there's a beard here; it turns out it wasn't completely liberated.

····

Liu Hongying squatted by the wall, her little face covered in tears, her eyes swollen shut.

Chen Gaoshan looked at her dejected appearance.

"Girl, look at the meat, doesn't it smell good?"

Hongying nodded, her eyes fixed on the sizzling horse meat, but she didn't move.

Are you hungry?

Chen Gaoshan broke off a large piece of the tenderest meat and held it out to her. "Eat it."

Hongying shook her head, tears welling up in her eyes again.

"I...I can't eat...my parents...Brother Qiusheng..."

Before he could finish speaking, his throat tightened.

He forced the meat into her hand, not caring whether she ate it or not; if she didn't eat it, it meant she wasn't hungry, and he had to eat anyway.

After I finished eating, I watched her stuff meat into her mouth.

Chen Gaoshan smiled as he saw that she was finally willing to eat. With his cooking skills, even just these seasonings would make the baked rice cakes delicious.

After crying her fill, Liu Hongying returned to the main room, took out two jade bracelets from the kang (heated brick bed) hole, and stuffed them into the older brother's hand.

"My family's belongings were all divided up by Eighth Master's people before, so I'm saving these two bracelets. Here you go, brother, thank you for saving me."

"Can we keep this?" The two argued for a long time, but in the end, they let her keep it herself.

This room used to be her room. Fortunately, the wardrobe wasn't burned. She secretly changed into a clean set of clothes. She had smelled the urine on her pants when she squatted down earlier, and then she remembered that her older brother had carried her on his back, so his clothes must have gotten wet too.

With her head down, she insisted on taking the older brother's coat, washed it, and hung it out to dry in the yard. She then rummaged through Qiu Sheng's house and took two pieces of his clothing, handing them to him.

The two of them squeezed into the half-burnt, dilapidated side room to make do. He could have gone to sleep in the storeroom, which was Qiu Sheng's room, but the girl said she was scared and insisted on staying with him.

Hongying tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall asleep no matter what she did.

Every time she closed her eyes, all she saw was her beard, her parents, and Brother Qiusheng. The more she thought about it, the more frightened and aggrieved she felt. She bit her clothes and cried softly.

Chen Gaoshan was wearing a cropped jacket and was so bothered by her that he couldn't sleep. He looked at the girl, who was thirteen years old and only a little over 1.4 meters tall, just below his armpits. Her skin was not very fair, but rather a wheatish color.

Yes, we have a baby.

He reached out and pinched her cheek; it was soft and felt really nice.

"Stop crying, or your eyes will swell up and you won't be able to open them. My name is Chen Gaoshan, and I'm from Heicheng. What's your name? How old are you?"

"My name is Liu Hongying, and I'm thirteen years old."

"Thirteen? Hmm, that's about what I expected."

Hongying looked up, her dark eyes meeting his. "Brother Gaoshan, will you leave me in the future? Will you abandon me?"

Chen Gaoshan was taken aback. "I still have my own path to walk, I need to find a team, to find the main force."

Upon hearing this, Hongying panicked instantly.

"What will I do if you leave? I'll have no one left at home, what will I do..."

"Don't be afraid, I'm here, no one will dare to bully you. I'll leave after I've settled you in."

Hongying bit her lip tightly, convinced that Brother Chen was a good person, better than everyone else in the village.

"I don't want to be settled, I want to stay with you!"

He was truly at a loss for words, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"I'm constantly on the road, suffering with me, not getting enough to eat or sleep, and it's dangerous."

"I'm not afraid! No matter how hard or dangerous it is, it's better than me doing it alone. I can work, I can do your laundry, cook for you, and tidy up the house. I can endure any hardship, and I will definitely not be a burden to you!"

The two of them chatted back and forth, talking about this and that.

As we chatted, my eyelids started to droop and I drifted off to sleep.

They slept soundly until dawn, only to be woken up by the crowing of the roosters in the village.

Early in the morning, the men in the village came over to help. After all, they had eaten someone else's meat, so it wouldn't be right not to help.

They carried the bodies, dug the grave, and piled up the mounds. After a whole morning of work, they finally buried Hongying's parents and Qiusheng's older brother.

Chen Gaoshan thought to himself, "Now I've finally finished helping this girl with her business. I need to continue on my way to find the main force."

To his utter surprise, Liu Hongying became completely dependent on him.

From the moment he returned from the cemetery, the little girl followed him everywhere he went.

He went to the river to wash his hands, and she followed behind.

He squatted by the roadside to smoke and rest, while she squatted quietly beside him.

You can't shake them off.

Liu Dayou, the old manager of the village, looked at Hongying.

"Hongying, your parents have been laid to rest, and you need to think about how you'll live from now on. You're too young to take care of the family on your own. I remember you have an aunt at the Xia family shop. If you really have nowhere else to go, go and stay with your aunt. She's family, after all."

Liu Hongying immediately shook her head.

"I'm not going to see my aunt. My life was saved by my elder brother from the bearded man. From now on, I belong to my elder brother."

"I have no home, no parents, and nothing to offer. All I have is my clean body. From now on, I will serve my elder brother like a slave, a maid, or anything else. I will do his laundry, cook for him, and follow him for the rest of my life."

These words stunned not only the men standing there, but also everyone else.

Even he was a little overwhelmed.

You can't say that. I don't have any special hobbies. I just treat her like a girl. Besides, with her around, it's actually inconvenient for me to use my space.

···