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

In the north, winter is traditionally a time for hibernation.

It's freezing cold outside, and the northwest wind is like a knife, stinging your face. Even a short walk outside can freeze you to the bone. What can you do?

Unable to do anything, I could only stay at home obediently, huddled on the kang (heated brick bed) and get through the days.

The days are very short in winter here.

It gets light late and dark early; by four o'clock in the afternoon, it's already pitch black. The only sounds in the village are a few barks from dogs and the howling wind in the ravines.

entertainment?

Don't even think about it.

When it gets dark, people can only stay indoors. Lighting lamps is expensive because of the oil. Most families sit in the dark, chatting and gossiping on the kang (a heated brick bed).

Fortunately, they have enough houses to not have the whole family crammed onto one kang (a heated brick bed).

But other families in the village don't have that kind of situation. Many of them are large families, young and old, crammed together on a large kang (heated brick bed), separated by a tattered cloth curtain. Even if they live with their parents-in-law, they have to make do with what they have to do and don't have many rules.

Anyway, I'm so bored in winter, all I do besides eat, sleep, and have kids is haveta.

In those days, every village had a few households with guns, just waiting for a heavy snowfall to take them to the mountains. So, apart from hunters, the only other option was to wait for winter fishing.

This village is located deep in the mountains, with a total of only fifty-six households.

He had almost figured it out from the memories of the integration. Last year, the peaceful life had just ended, and before things had calmed down for a few days, the old Russian took over again. Anyway, there had never been a shortage of people managing their mountain village, and life had always been tight. They had never really had a moment of relaxation.

The days are short, so meals are eaten early.

Around 3 p.m., the family gathered in the parents' room for dinner.

An old wooden table was placed on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), with a basket of freshly steamed cornbread, a dish of pickled vegetable strips, and a large pot of sauerkraut stewed with potatoes, topped with a few slices of fatty meat, glistening with oil. In those days, this was considered a pretty good meal.

This kind of food, even in the village, is almost as good as what a landlord would eat; ordinary families rarely even have a speck of oil in their food.

He reached out and picked up a steamed bun.

The color was even darker than he remembered from his childhood; he hadn't tasted this for many years.

After hesitating for a moment, I still took a big bite.

Mmm, it tastes just like before.

I still don't like it.

I chewed it a couple of times; it was dry and made my throat hurt.

The flour at this time is coarsely ground, and it looks like it's mixed with a lot of sorghum flour. The texture is coarse and astringent, and you can tell without even thinking that this is the staple food in the family all year round.

What about the noodles I ate this morning?

No wonder he specially rolled out noodles this morning; it turns out his family needs his help.

Looking at the other four people at the table, they were eating with great relish.

Especially his wife Lianhua, and Xinghua's sister-in-law next to him, kept eating and stuffing their mouths into their mouths, eating quickly and heartily. They were truly big eaters and good at enjoying food.

In this day and age, a physique like that is obviously good for childbearing, with a stable foundation, a good appetite, and the ability to carry a heavy load of food. Go ahead and have a baby.

He hadn't even finished eating one cornbread when the other four people had already finished one and picked up a second one.

Seeing him dawdling and swallowing slowly, lacking his usual enthusiasm, his wife Lianhua frowned immediately.

Gao Shan is usually a big eater. He has a great appetite and can easily finish a large bowl of food in one meal, slurping it down like a little piglet.

What's wrong with me today?

He looks so listless and doesn't even want to eat. Could it be that something unclean washed away his food?

Thinking about it, Lianhua reached out and put a piece of fatty meat into his bowl.

"Shanzi, eat up! Eat more vegetables, you can't keep up with the energy."

As she spoke, she turned to look at her mother-in-law, Chen Liu, and swallowed the cornbread in her mouth.

"Mother, Shanzi might have been affected by something. He's been spacing out ever since last night. I've tried calling his soul back, but it didn't work. Why don't we ask Aunt Wang Er to come and take a look? She's always very good at seeing things."

After listening, Chen Liu put down the cornbread in her hand, pondered for a moment, and nodded in agreement.

"Alright, tomorrow I'll finish the paperwork with your second uncle first, then I'll ask Aunt Wang to come over and take a look. Many people say her method works."

His heart skipped a beat when he heard that.

My goodness, those shamanistic practices and spirit mediumships are really sinister. If they actually discover something is wrong and find out everything about him, then we're all doomed.

Thinking of this, he dared not dawdle any longer and quickly swallowed the whole cornbread in his mouth.

He quickly waved his hand, pretending that nothing had happened.

"Mom, why waste that money? Don't listen to Lianhua's nonsense, I'm fine, really! It's just that Dad won't let me go up the mountain with him, and I feel really upset, so I'm making a fuss."

Chen Liu looked at her silly son and then picked up another cornbread and stuffed it into his hand.

"It's not that your dad doesn't want you to go, but once you have a son and someone can carry on your family line, who will stop you? Hurry up and eat, then go back to your room and sleep. Don't just stand here talking nonsense."

Well, before I could even say two words, I got another scolding.

He kept his head down and didn't say a word, but out of the corner of his eye he saw Wang Xinghua and Wang Lianhua beside him. The two sisters would glance at each other from time to time, and then secretly look at him, their eyes darting around, looking very shrewd.

Those two women are probably plotting something again.

As for what his mother mentioned during the day, discussing which room he would sleep in at night.

Forget it, I'm too lazy to think about it. Let nature take its course.

····

Lotus and Apricot Blossom were both honest and hardworking women. After the meal, they didn't rest. One of them picked up the table and wiped the kang table with a rag, while the other took the leftover vegetable soup and cooked some porridge for the two hunting dogs they kept at home.

As a man who shared the house with both the first and second wives, he naturally received very good treatment. After finishing his meal, he went back to his room and collapsed onto the kang (heated brick bed).

Why do I suddenly feel like I have no purpose in life?

"Shanzi, get up and soak your feet in hot water."

He saw Lianhua come in carrying a basin of hot water, and he quickly sat up and moved to the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).

I just put my foot in, and I almost got scalded to death. "What the hell are you doing? Are you trying to remove my hair with this hot water?"

"Don't be so fussy, I haven't even added cold water yet, what's the rush?"

As she spoke, she added a ladle of cold water to the wooden basin, tested the water temperature, sat on a small stool, reached out and put her man's big feet into the basin, and vigorously rubbed the back of his heels.

"Shanzi, I thank you on behalf of my sister for what happened today. I'm sorry you had to go through all that trouble."

What? Feeling wronged?

What's he complaining about?

He couldn't be happier about this.

"There's nothing I can do. I'm a man, after all. You said I can handle it. I can manage the two of you, but if there's another one, my back will be a bit of a pain."

Upon hearing this, Wang Lianhua immediately bristled and reached out to pinch his thigh hard.

"You're really dreaming. Why not another one? Why not seven or eight? Do you even have the life to enjoy this? You can't afford to feed so many mouths. Aren't the two of us serving you enough? You're so happy you're practically drooling. Why don't you light a rocket on your butt? Are you trying to fly to the heavens? I knew you men were all the same, always wanting more than you have. Are two of you not enough to make you so smug?"

Chen Gaoshan covered the spot where he had been pinched. Damn, he actually reacted.

"Speak properly, don't resort to violence. I'm just giving an example. If you crush me, you won't be able to use it anymore."

Knowing she was in the wrong, Wang Lianhua pouted. "Shall I rub it for you?"