World Within the Bell (1)

"Doggy! Doggy!"

The urgent calls came one after another, waking Doggy from his sleep.

He rolled over on the hard plank bed, rubbed his eyes, and scrambled up.

Smacking his lips, Doggy felt that something was strange.

He had had a long, bizarre dream last night, yet now he could not recall a single scene from it.

The calls from outside forced Doggy to stop trying to remember. He hurriedly threw on an outer garment and went out.

A middle-aged man was sharpening a knife in the small courtyard. Hearing Doggy's running footsteps, he said without looking up, "Breakfast is on the table. After you eat, go work in the fields. Your father is going hunting with the hunting party today."

"Yeah!"

Doggy answered instinctively, then felt that something was wrong.

But he could not say what was wrong.

"What are you standing around for?"

The rough-featured middle-aged man barked, "Don't miss the right time. Our rations for next year depend on those three mu of land!"

Panic rose in Doggy's heart, and he hurried back into the house.

On the little table sat a bowl of cooked sweet potatoes and a small dish of pickled vegetables.

He grabbed a sweet potato, skillfully peeled off its rough skin, and wolfed it down with the sour pickles.

As his rumbling hunger was gradually filled, many memories from the past surfaced in Doggy's mind.

His name was Chen Ergou. He had just turned fifteen this year. His mother had died early, and he had always lived with his father, Chen Qiaoshan.

Little Stone Village, where father and son lived, had more than a hundred households and four to five hundred villagers. It counted as quite a large village.

Chen Qiaoshan was a member of the village hunting party and often followed them