The Original Shen Jianan

Jiang Hongmei was determined to bring about her own downfall, and Shen Jianan was more than happy to sit back and watch. He leaned against the doorway, smiling as she kept digging herself deeper.

By then, the gossipy women at the foot of the mountain were trembling with rage. They planted one hand on their hips, pointed at her, and let loose a stream of abuse.

"You little brat, what nonsense are you spouting? Who's slandering anyone?!"

"Exactly! You never do your work properly. All you know how to do is flutter those fox eyes and seduce men wherever you go. Now you're turning around and accusing us of making things up? Have you no shame?"

"Isn't that a pointless question?"

Niu Chunhua rolled her eyes at her good friends Zhao Hongying and Li Zhaodi, then sneered at Jiang Hongmei, who stood halfway up the mountain path. "If she had any shame, she wouldn't be calling out 'Jianguo~~ Gu Yu~~' all day long!"

As she spoke, she imitated Jiang Hongmei, reaching up to tug at the two short, thick braids hanging over her shoulders. She put on a coy expression and called, "Jianguo~~ You're so mean!~~ Gu Yu~~ I'm only doing this for your own good~~"

"Hahahaha!"

The two women doubled over with laughter at her ridiculous act. "Chunhua, stop imitating her! That voice of hers twists and curls all the way up to the sky, enough to make a man swoon. You sound like a cow in heat. It's terrifying!"

Zhao Hongying shot Jiang Hongmei a disdainful glance. "You'll never learn to act like a vixen, no matter how long you try!"

"Hahahahahaha..."

Li Zhaodi and Niu Chunhua burst out laughing again at her words, bending over with mirth and completely losing their composure.

"You—you're vulgar, filthy, and shameless!"

Seeing the three of them humiliate her like that, Jiang Hongmei's eyes reddened with fury. "Jianguo and I are clearly just close friends! Gu Yu is my fiancé—"

"Hongmei! Stop talking!"

Seeing that she was still going to argue with the three loudmouths below, Zhao Jianguo anxiously stood by the secluded courtyard wall and beckoned to her, speaking in a low voice. "Don't you know what Sister-in-law Chunhua is like? If you offend the three of them too badly, you'll regret it. Understand?"

"Zhao Jianguo, what nonsense are you talking about?!"

Jiang Hongmei protested, never expecting him to say something like that. "They're the ones in the wrong! Why should we just let it go?"

With that, she ignored his dark expression, turned back toward the people below, and shouted at them again.

"Niu Chunhua, Zhao Hongying, Li Zhaodi, I'm telling you, this isn't over!"

She turned sideways, straightened her back, and shouted down at them, "I'm going to the Commune in a bit to ask the secretary to judge this fairly. I'll ask him what should be done about people slandering me, saying I'm carrying on with my fiancé Gu Yu's son behind his back!"

The three women froze at her words, then burst into laughter. "Hahahaha! Go on, then! Hurry up! We'll all be watching!"

When they heard Jiang Hongmei say that, they laughed so hard they sat right down on the ground. Was this woman out of her mind? Anyone in the entire Red Flag Commune who wasn't blind could see that Zhao Jianguo liked her.

As for Zhao Qiancheng himself, he didn't care for her, but because she was a high school graduate from a big city, he had turned a blind eye to his eldest son seeing her and often looked after her.

Everyone knew about it. They might have been unhappy, but Zhao Qiancheng was the Brigade Secretary, and he held everyone's livelihood in his hands. They didn't dare say much, so they pretended not to see.

Now she had been eating for free and was still trying to flip the table and loudly declare she wouldn't stand for it. With Zhao Qiancheng's temperament, how could he possibly let her off?

"You—you..."

As Jiang Hongmei watched them laugh more and more brazenly, she trembled with rage. She searched her mind for a long time but couldn't find the right words to fire back, so she turned to her grim-faced friend, hoping he would help her set things straight.

"Jianguo, they've gone too far. They're making up things about the relationship between you and me, and between me and Gu Yu, and they're being so nasty about it. We absolutely can't let people like this stay in the brigade. We have to report them so the team can deal with them properly."

Zhao Jianguo nearly went mad when he heard that. He used to think Jiang Hongmei was sweet and innocent, untouched by the ways of the world. But now, after hearing her say that, he could only think she had a donkey for a brain.

At that moment, he almost wanted to kick her down the mountain and let her break her neck. It was a minor matter. All he had to do was privately speak to the husbands of those three sharp-tongued women, and they would surely get beaten when they went home. They wouldn't dare gossip again.

Everyone understood the unspoken rules. These days, especially in the countryside, people wouldn't make a fuss over a man and woman's conduct unless they had no other choice.

After all, it could damage the brigade's reputation, affect future evaluations and collective benefits, and make it harder for young men and women to find spouses. So even the villagers, rough as they could be, sometimes knew where to draw the line.

But she just had to go looking for trouble, inviting insults and making enemies, blowing the whole thing up. Wasn't she practically handing the other side a weapon to use against her?

And there was one more thing: he was starting to wonder whether Jiang Hongmei was truly stupid or simply heartless. He had practically held her in the palm of his hand every day, yet just now she had called herself Gu Yu's fiancée and him nothing more than a close friend.

To hell with being close friends! So this idiot had been treating him like a backup. Why should he keep waiting on her?

The more Zhao Jianguo thought about it, the angrier he got. He made up his mind then and there to stay away from her from now on and stop being a fool.

Jiang Hongmei had been waiting for him to help her get even. When she saw that she had laid down her challenge ages ago and he still hadn't answered, frustration welled up inside her. She opened her mouth and called out again, her words full of irritation, with none of her earlier gentleness left.

"Zhao Jianguo, what are you standing there spacing out for?"

She pointed at the people below and snapped at him. "Those shrews have been talking nonsense down there for ages, slandering us and saying we're involved. Instead of speaking up to clear things up, you just keep hiding over there. Are you even a man?"

She kept nagging, and Zhao Jianguo could no longer hold back his anger. He roared at her, "Shut up! You have a pig's brain! A pig's brain!!"

Before his voice had even faded, the passionate love Zhao Jianguo felt for her surged up again, swiftly drowning out what little regret and resentment remained in his heart.

His furious gaze instantly turned lovestruck, but the last shred of reason left in his mind made him so agitated that he raised a hand and pounded his head hard.

He felt as if he were splitting in two. For a moment, he had no idea how to face the woman he loved.

Jiang Hongmei, meanwhile, was so shocked by his scolding that she felt as if the sky had fallen. She stared at him in disbelief, tears clouding her almond-shaped eyes. "Ji-Jianguo! You—you yelled at me?!"

She staggered a few steps, clutching her chest, and questioned him. "Jianguo, how can you be so fickle? Didn't you say before that you hated the Commune's gossipy women spreading rumors? @$@¥#@¥$..."

"Can you stop talking?"

"Why? I @$@¥#@¥$..."

Jiang Hongmei's voice made Zhao Jianguo's head buzz. His headache worsened, and his expression grew darker by the second. He wanted nothing more than to escape at once. So he did. He abruptly stood up and, while Jiang Hongmei was still chattering away, lowered his head and barreled past her, sprinting down the mountainside without looking back and quickly disappearing from the pile of rocks.

That move left Niu Chunhua and the others, along with Jiang Hongmei halfway up the mountain, completely dumbfounded. They all stood there, at a loss for what to do.

Shen Jianan, who had been watching from the sidelines, glanced at their foolish expressions, and the corners of his mouth twitched uncontrollably. "Um... Jiang Hongmei, Zhao Jianguo's gone."

He straightened up and took two steps forward, pointing down the mountain as he stifled a laugh and kindly reminded her, "Aren't you going after him? He just left you here and ran off."

At his words, Jiang Hongmei's heated head finally cooled a little. Only then did she realize what she had just done. It was hard to accept, and she felt terribly wronged. She shouldn't have spoken to Zhao Jianguo that way, but he had gone too far!

Weren't close friends supposed to understand each other? She had yelled because Niu Chunhua and those gossipy women were spreading rumors about the relationships between the three of them. She had lost her temper in a moment of anger.

If Zhao Jianguo had stood by her just now and helped her deal with the shrews below, she wouldn't have flown into a rage and said such hurtful things.

Besides, he was far more in the wrong, wasn't he? As her close friend, and as a man, he hadn't stood up for her when she was being bullied. Instead, he had hidden by the wall without saying a word. And in the end, he had even called her a "pig brain"...

Waaah! That was too much! Jiang Hongmei couldn't help crouching on the ground and covering her face as she sobbed. For some reason, at that moment, she wanted Gu Yu so badly!

When Niu Chunhua and the others below heard her wailing again, they were exasperated and couldn't help yelling, "Is she sick or something? Why does she cry every chance she gets?"

"Don't you know she's made of water?"

"Bullshit! When she was yelling at the eldest Zhao just now, she was bawling like a sow breathing fire. How was she made of water then?"

Li Zhaodi and Zhao Hongying doubled over laughing. "Hahahaha! A sow breathing fire! Chunhua, how do you come up with these things? Hahahaha..."

Hearing them insult her again, Jiang Hongmei leaped to her feet, glaring at them through her tears. She threw her head back and shouted, "You've gone too far!"

Then, amid their insults, she fled down the mountainside in tears, making a desperate escape for the Educated Youth Station. Only then did Niu Chunhua and the others exchange glances and let out a sigh of relief. They knew Jiang Hongmei wouldn't go complain to Zhao Qiancheng for the time being. They glared at Shen Jianan halfway up the mountain, then hurriedly left.

The boy pursed his lips in exasperation and was about to turn back into the courtyard when he saw Gu Yu slowly approaching from the distance with a handful of wild scallions. His brows lifted in delight, and he waved enthusiastically. "Brother Gu! Brother Gu!"

At the sound of his voice, Gu Yu looked up and saw Shen Jianan standing on the mountain path. His stern features softened at once. "Don't stand by the edge. Go inside and wait for me."

Shen Jianan shook his head. "I'll stand here."

Then, with half the mountain between them, he started chatting with Gu Yu. "Brother Gu, too bad you got here late. You missed quite a show."

"What show?"

Gu Yu walked up the mountain path and looked up at him. Shen Jianan grinned. "Jiang Hongmei and Zhao Jianguo came to ask you to repair the roof again. They said some really nasty things, so I splashed them with water. Zhao Jianguo got so angry he wanted to hit me, but... I talked him down in the end. Then Niu Loudmouth and the others happened to come by..."

"Ha!"

Gu Yu reached the halfway point and asked curiously, "Who's Niu Loudmouth?"

"Niu Chunhua!"

The boy called back, his big eyes dark and bright with excitement and satisfaction. "I was afraid Zhao Jianguo would slander you and me again, so I deliberately said some ambiguous things. Niu Loudmouth heard and assumed the two of them had gone up the mountain to sneak into the grass together, and then... uh!"

He broke off, awkwardly scratching his head. Then he looked up and cautiously studied Gu Yu. "Brother Gu, you won't be mad that I treated Jiang Hongmei that way, will you?"

"I'm not mad. They started it, and I've put up with her and Zhao Jianguo long enough."

Gu Yu stepped closer and lifted his chin slightly, signaling for the boy to go inside. Hearing him say that and seeing that he really didn't seem the slightest bit reluctant, Shen Jianan happily nodded and headed in, continuing to recount what had just happened.

"Nicely done."

Gu Yu's lips curled into a smile, and he gave him an approving glance. Then he crouched by the spring, washing the vegetables as he said, "Get me a basin."

"Oh!"

The boy nodded, then added, "Brother Gu, but I've already made dinner."

Even so, he obediently ran into the kitchen and brought out a basin, setting it down in front of Gu Yu. Then he crouched beside him to help. Gu Yu gently pushed his hand away. "I can do it. Don't you like eating these wild scallions? I'm washing them so I can toss them for you."

Hearing they were for him, Shen Jianan was delighted. "Thanks, Brother Gu. But I want to save them for the next meal, so we can save a dish."

"It's fine. There are more."

Gu Yu glanced up at him, then continued washing. "I found a patch near the Cattle Shed. There's enough for you to eat them ten times over."

"Oh, is that so? Then I won't save them."

The boy stopped hesitating. When Gu Yu had washed the last scallion, he picked up the basin and stood. "You rest. I'll toss the wild scallions."

With that, he hurried into the kitchen. Gu Yu smiled and shook the water from his hands before following him inside. Seeing him mixing the scallions in a bowl, Gu Yu stepped forward, lifted the food cover from the table, and served two bowls of thin porridge. He set out the chopsticks, then sat at the table and quietly watched the boy working by the stove, warmth filling his eyes.

"Brother Gu, just wait a moment. It'll be ready soon."

Shen Jianan chopped the wild scallions and put them into a bowl. He tossed two dried chili peppers into the stove opening and roasted them over the embers, which had not yet gone out. When their skins were slightly charred, he used a stick to rake them out and smacked them hard against the stovetop a few times.

After brushing the ash from the chilies, he held them between his palms and rubbed them briskly into flakes. He poured them into the bowl of scallions, seasoning everything with salt and mixing it thoroughly before bringing it to the table.

"Brother Gu, go ahead and eat. I'll wash my hands."

"We can wait a little—"

Before Gu Yu could finish speaking, Shen Jianan ran out of the kitchen. A few breaths later, he came racing back in and sat down beside him.

Watching him dart in and out like a rabbit, Gu Yu found it amusing. He reached out and slid one of the bowls of porridge in front of the boy. "Eat up. You've been hungry all day."

"Mm! You eat too."

Shen Jianan smiled, picked up his bowl and chopsticks, and served Gu Yu a generous helping of shredded potatoes first. "Brother Gu, try some. See how it tastes."

Gu Yu nodded. "Anything you make tastes good."

He never denied it. Shen Jianan had come from Hai City, and his parents were both cadres, but they had taught him all the basic life skills. Of course, that didn't include farm work like planting fields or transplanting rice seedlings.

After all, one of them was a head nurse at a hospital, and the other was a production director at a tractor factory. Their child didn't need to do that sort of hard labor.

But fate had other plans. Although his parents were capable, they had never had considerate elders or siblings. Shen Jianan's grandparents favored his uncle's family. The person originally supposed to be sent to the countryside had been his cousin, but his grandparents and his uncle Shen Congwen had secretly switched the names in one fell swoop, without telling Shen Jianan's family.

They only informed the family of three a few days before departure. Shen Jianan's parents were furious on the spot and said they would find someone to switch the names back. But the two old people threw a fit, ran to the gate, lay down on the ground, and rolled around, deliberately crying loudly to draw a crowd.

In those days, filial piety came first. Besides, Shen's father was at a crucial point in his career, and he absolutely couldn't give anyone a reason to use against him. After weighing everything, the sensible Shen Jianan agreed to their demand on the spot, promising to go to the countryside in place of his cousin Shen Jiabao.

Shen's father couldn't bear to let the son he cherished suffer. He refused outright, no matter what. In the end, Shen Jianan had to kneel and beg him, saying he didn't want this matter to ruin his and his mother's careers. Only then did his father reluctantly agree.

However, he took the opportunity to make a demand: Shen Jianan's grandparents and uncle's family had to move out. Those bloodsuckers would never agree, and they started making a scene right away.

Shen's father was ruthless too. He said that if they refused, they could all die together. There were only three people in his family, but they could take six others down with them, so it would be worth it.

After saying that, he picked up his briefcase and headed out to report them to his superiors. Shen Congwen was frightened pale on the spot and hurried to stop him, promising they would move out at once. Only then did Shen's father reluctantly turn back into the house, where he made another demand.

He asked his parents, "Mom and Dad, would you rather receive your retirement money in one lump sum, or have your son pay you every month?"

The old couple didn't understand what he meant and asked him to explain. Shen's father replied coldly, "If I pay you in one lump sum, you take the money and leave with Big Brother and Sister-in-law. Don't come looking for Shu Lan and me again.

"If I pay you monthly, you still can't come back. Leave me an address, and I'll send the money every month. From now on, we won't visit each other as relatives, until the day you both die."

"Congfeng, you—you're cutting ties with us?"

Grandpa Shen could hardly believe his ears. Thinking he must have misheard, he gasped in agitation and cursed his unfilial son, looking as if he were about to faint.

Shen Congwen and his wife, along with their two children, hurried over in fright to help. They rubbed his back and poured him water. Anyone who didn't know better would have thought they were preparing for a funeral banquet.

Shen Congfeng watched them but remained calmly seated, unmoving as a mountain. His father's health was tougher than the iron door of a tractor at the factory. If he wanted to die, he'd have to wait at least another twenty years.

As for his wife, Shu Lan, she had even less to say. If not for her husband's sake, she would have argued with them long ago. And little Shen Jianan had inherited the best of both parents, so he wasn't going to say much either.

Sure enough, after putting on a show for ages and realizing the audience wasn't buying it, they tried another way to torment them. Grandpa Shen demanded an outrageous sum, insisting that his younger son pay 5,000 yuan in retirement money all at once, along with a house.

Shen Congfeng said nothing. He stood up, went to the kitchen, and took a cleaver, hiding it behind his back. Then he hurried back to the living room. While everyone stared in confusion, he slammed it onto the dining table. Pointing at the gleaming blade, he sneered at the trembling family.

"I'm making this clear right now. Shen Congwen and I will split your retirement money equally. I'll be generous and calculate it according to the usual retirement standard for most families in the city.

"I'll give you two sixteen yuan a month. My half is eight yuan. Twelve months a year, and I'll assume you'll live another thirty years. That comes to 2,880 yuan.

"I'll round it up and give you 2,900. Take it or leave it. If you don't want it, go ahead and make a scene. If we lose our jobs, you won't come out of this any better."

"You—you unfilial son!"

Shen's mother hadn't expected her younger son to be so heartless and disregard filial piety. She was so angry she began cursing him. "How did I give birth to such a troublesome wretch? If I'd known you'd turn out like this, I should have held you down in the chamber pot and drowned you—"

"Sorry, but you don't get that chance anymore!"

Shen Congfeng looked at her coldly. "If anything, you should be grateful you gave birth to me. Otherwise, you and Dad and Shen Congwen's family couldn't have come to the city, let alone lived such comfortable lives.

"You've all asked me for money, and I gave it. You wanted jobs, and I arranged them. You wanted to attend good schools, and I got you into good schools. But you never once tried to improve yourselves. Every day, you used my name to swagger around the factory and the school. If people didn't know what kind of person I was, and if my in-laws hadn't helped, you might have gotten us all shot long ago."

Their faces burned with shame at his words. Sarcasm flickered in Shu Lan's eyes as she took the initiative to speak up. "Congfeng and I have supported this whole family, and in the end, we've barely got any savings left. On top of that, we're being accused of being unfilial.

"Let's do this. I'll borrow some money from my family for you, then find a witness so we can draw up a written agreement and explain the reasons to everyone. I hope you'll take the money and move out immediately instead of staying here and making us sick. After all, this house was my dowry from my family."

After a moment's thought, she added, "If you refuse to leave, I'll call the police and have them explain things to everyone. We can all go down together, for all I care."

Everyone's expression changed at her words. In the end, they didn't dare act so outrageously and agreed to the couple's demands.

After that, Grandpa Shen took the money. In the presence of several neighbors, he and his wife signed an agreement with the family of his eldest son and Shen Congfeng and his wife. Then they packed their belongings and left the younger son's house.

By then, it was time for Shen Jianan to go to the countryside. His parents held him and cried without stopping. In the end, they repeatedly told him to take good care of himself and promised they would find a way to bring him back once he had spent a year there and Shen Congfeng's promotion was secure.

But Shen Jianan had been in the countryside for a year and a half. His family often sent money and supplies, but his parents never mentioned bringing him home. The boy acted cheerful on the surface, but he had hidden away and cried several times.

Gu Yu had also noticed that the boy, who used to spend money carelessly and was a picky eater with a sweet tooth, had started saving money over the past two months. He was even trying to get used to foods he usually found hard to swallow.

The change wasn't great, but at least it showed he was trying. The boy's sunny, positive attitude had deeply affected Gu Yu. Some hope for the future began to grow in his previously anxious and despairing heart, and he started making preparations for every possibility.

He brought himself back to the present and praised the boy again. Shen Jianan lifted his chin a little smugly and said, "I think so too."

He wasn't humble in the slightest. Gu Yu couldn't help laughing. Then he put another helping of shredded potatoes and cold wild scallions into the boy's bowl. "Eat up. Once you're full, get some rest early."

"Okay!"

Shen Jianan nodded happily and polished off the sweet potato and corn porridge in his bowl with the two side dishes.

Gu Yu was a little surprised. "Weren't you full at the Commune at lunchtime?"

"Yeah!"

Shen Jianan answered calmly, then served himself another half bowl of thin porridge. "I've thought it through. I can't keep living the way I did before. If I wear my body down, I won't just be unable to return to the city—I might not even survive."

He said that because he knew the original Shen Jianan was picky and usually ate like a cat. Since he had such a good appetite today, Gu Yu was bound to wonder, so he came up with an explanation that sounded convincing.

Sure enough, Gu Yu's eyes softened with relief when he heard him. "Good. As long as you understand."

After a moment, he added, "Don't worry. I won't let you go hungry or get pushed around from now on."

He finished speaking and bent his head to eat quickly. Shen Jianan thought there was something a little strange about his words, but soon the shredded potatoes Gu Yu added to his bowl distracted him, and he forgot all about it.

"Thanks, Brother Gu!"

The boy thanked him while wolfing down his food. Watching him shovel porridge into his mouth, Gu Yu's eyes grew warmer with amusement. Then he lifted his bowl and drank his porridge without saying another word.

After they finished eating, dusk gradually settled in. Gu Yu lit a stalk of sunflower, the kind people in the countryside used for lighting, and told Shen Jianan to lock the door and rest at home. He was going to visit the Cattle Shed.

As soon as the boy heard that, he knew Gu Yu was going to see those elderly people again. He didn't say much, only asked him to wait a moment. Then he rushed inside, found an aluminum lunchbox, and went to the kitchen. He scooped all the remaining sweet potato and corn porridge into it and handed it to Gu Yu.

"There's only half a box left, but it'll still give them something sweet to eat. Be careful when you take it over. Have them eat it quickly, then bring the lunchbox back."

At his words, Gu Yu's fingers tightened unconsciously around the lunchbox. The tips of them gradually turned white, rubbing against the box with a faint rustle. "All right."

The young man's eyes curved as he smiled. "Go on!"

"Mm!"

Gu Yu answered, then stepped out through the courtyard gate. Shen Jianan followed close behind, and they left the courtyard together. Only after watching the other man make it safely down to the foot of the mountain did Gu Yu turn back, return to the courtyard, and close the gate.

He went inside, carried all the clothes they had changed out of that day to the spring, and scrubbed them clean. Then he hung them on the bamboo pole in the corner of the wall to dry. Only then did he relax and stretch his chest, walking back into the house as he thought about what to do next.

Since he had ended up in such a maddening, brainless novel, he couldn't just sit back and wait for things to happen. Shen Jianan had never thought of harming anyone, but he wasn't about to let a lousy book and two lunatics dictate his fate, either.

If he didn't prepare in advance, and Zhao Jianguo and Jiang Hongmei made up, he and Gu Yu would be the ones to suffer. That would be a matter of life and death, not something to take lightly.

Gu Yu left the pile of rocks and headed straight left, toward the end of the village. The brigade's cattle shed stood on a vacant plot at the end of the village, across from the Reed Marsh and right beside the mountain. It had been built there because there were no decent roads in any direction.

If anyone stole livestock, they would have to climb over the steep, unbroken mountain range or take a boat across the river. Otherwise, they could only leave by going through the village along the main road. That would make it easy for people to spot them, which would be as good as asking to be caught.

There was another reason, too. In recent years, the Red Flag Commune had taken in quite a few special cases—people who had been criticized and sent down. No matter where people like that went, they were a headache.

The commune officials feared they would refuse to obey orders and try to escape. They also worried the people might spread undesirable ideas and influence the villagers' thinking.

After weighing things carefully, the officials built the cattle shed there and assigned those people to work and watch over the livestock. That way, they could kill two birds with one stone.

When Gu Yu had first arrived, he had stayed there, too. Later, his aunt begged her husband to find a way to move him. He didn't know what strings had been pulled, but less than half a year later, Zhao Qiancheng had kicked him out to live in Half-Mountain Courtyard.

Still, Zhao Qiancheng hadn't done it out of kindness. The place had once been used by a landlord's family to store odds and ends. A few years earlier, after the family had been persecuted too harshly, they had lost hope, twisted straw ropes, and all hanged themselves from a tree.

At first, nobody knew what had happened. It wasn't until the next day, when no one showed up for work, that the villagers went looking and found five bodies hanging from the tree like links of sausage. The weather was hot, and swarms of flies were already circling them.

The villagers were badly frightened. They immediately gathered a group of strong young men to take the bodies down. They also cut down the tree, carried it to the pile of rocks at the foot of the mountain, and burned everything to ashes.

The sight of that family's deaths had been deeply etched into the villagers' minds. Even after all those years, they weren't as frightened anymore, but the memory still unsettled them. So when someone later pulled strings to help Gu Yu, Zhao Qiancheng had tossed him into that place.

Still, it had given him a chance to catch his breath and recover. Back when he had lived in the cattle shed, people would often slip a sack over his head and beat him savagely for no reason while he slept.

Once, when he fought back fiercely, someone had struck his left shoulder with a manure fork used for scooping pig waste, leaving several bloody holes the size of thumbs in his back. If the elderly men next door hadn't heard the commotion and struggled over with their last strength, shouting and trying to help, he might not have survived.

But his injuries were severe, and the weapon had been covered in filth. The weather was hot, so his wounds still became inflamed and suppurated. Fortunately, one of the men in the cattle shed was a skilled doctor. He told Gu Yu the names and appearances of several medicinal herbs and had him sneak up the mountain to pick them and treat his injuries. Gu Yu slowly recovered.

After that, he grew close to the elderly men. Their circumstances were even more complicated than his, and it was terribly difficult for them to get so much as a hot meal or a drink of water.

To repay them for saving his life twice, Gu Yu often saved some of his rations for them. Sometimes he picked wild fruit and vegetables for them, or hid in the mountain to roast a few birds and bring them back for everyone to enjoy. He hadn't stopped, even after moving to Half-Mountain Courtyard.

Looking at the cattle shed, Gu Yu gathered his thoughts, put on a smile, and hurried inside. The old men were each holding a broken bowl and drinking wild-vegetable gruel. Calling it gruel was generous: there wasn't a single grain of rice in it, only wild vegetables and rice bran. His heart ached, and tears welled in his eyes as he choked out, "Grandpa, didn't I give you cornmeal? Why are you eating this again?"

The men who heard him hurriedly set down their bowls and beckoned to him with smiles. "Little Gu is here! Come over and sit."

Gu Yu nodded, wiped his tears with the back of his hand, and walked over. He opened the lunchbox hidden against his chest and scooped a little into each of their five bowls.

Li Mingda, the youngest of them, took the lunchbox with a smile. He ladled half a spoonful of water from the pot into it, swished it around, then brought it to his lips and gulped it down. Only then, looking satisfied, did he hand the lunchbox back to Gu Yu. "Little Gu, I'm making a fool of myself."

"Grandpa Li, don't say that. I'm just not capable enough to take care of you."

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

Lin Yanqing, sitting in the corner, set down his bowl and chopsticks and glared at him. "At a time like this, being able to take care of yourself is already something. How could you take care of anyone else?

"I've never approved of you bringing us things. You know that. It was easier to cover for you when we lived together.

"But now you've moved up the mountain, and bringing us food and supplies is too conspicuous. What if the child living with you sees and tells someone?"

"That's right, child. Don't bring us anything anymore. The cornmeal you gave us will see us through until the New Year."

Lu Jianfeng smiled. "When the rations are handed out, even if Zhao Qiancheng skims some off the top, we'll still have enough to get by. If we really run short, there are plenty of wild vegetables along the road. We can even gather duck eggs and catch fish and shrimp in the Reed Marsh across the way. We just have to be careful."

Old Liu Zhengjun, whose legs were in poor shape, and Xie Huai'an also chimed in. "That's right, that's right! Don't bring us anything else. What if you get dragged into trouble because of us?"

As the old men spoke, their eyes grew wet again. Seeing their distress made Gu Yu feel as if something were stuck in his chest. He hurriedly laughed and said, "Don't worry, everyone. Jianan is different from other people. He won't tell anyone. Today's gruel was the one he filled for me and told me to bring to you."

"W-what!?"

They all froze. Then they asked him, "We're here all the time, and we often hear the workers talking. They say that child is selfish and lazy, and that he never lets anyone get away with anything. How could he..."

"Grandpa!"

Gu Yu interrupted them, then asked with a bitter smile, "How do you think people talk about us?"

He sighed and went on. "Those people speak that way about Shen Jianan because he's weak and really can't work very well. But he's never tried to slack off, and he's been improving.

"Still, plenty of people keep saying he's faking it on purpose, then use that as an excuse to demand things from him. He's cheerful and knows right from wrong. He never covets what belongs to others, but no one can take so much as an inch from him, either.

"When they couldn't get anything out of him, they took what they wanted without asking—his food and daily necessities—and dressed it up with a lot of grand principles, saying educated youths should be united, care for one another, and help each other.

"Some went even further. Seeing how young and thin he was, they tried to bully him and set traps for him. But Shen Jianan dodged them all and found ways to get even. When they couldn't get the better of him, they went around ruining his reputation and complained to Zhao Qiancheng. Then they had him sent to live with me."

His heart felt both sour and bitter, but a hint of relief crept into his voice. "I'm a few years older than Jianan, but he's looked after me a great deal. Before, though, I don't know if I'd been possessed or what, but I kept losing my temper with him for no reason.

"But that silly kid never got angry, even when he was wronged. Every time, he'd just say with red eyes that he knew I couldn't control my emotions because my family had gone through such a terrible upheaval. He didn't blame me. He only asked me not to hit him. Heh..."

Gu Yu let out a laugh, but mist clouded his eyes. Seeing him like that, the others were deeply moved.

They had spent so long cooped up in the cattle shed that their minds had grown muddled. How could they judge someone by the rumors they heard?

Lin Yanqing sighed. "In that case, the two of you should take good care of each other from now on!"

"Mm! I will!"

Gu Yu smiled and stood. "Go on and eat. I'll get you some water and gather firewood."

He went over, picked up the broken bucket and rope from the corner, and walked out without looking back. The others opened their mouths, but in the end, none of them called him back.

The reality was right in front of them: even Li Mingda, the youngest among them, was sixty. Lin Yanqing, the eldest, was seventy-five that year. Lu Jianfeng was seventy-two, Liu Zhengjun seventy, and Xie Huai'an sixty-nine. On paper, they weren't quite too old to work.

But their bodies had suffered terribly in the past few years. If it weren't for the defiant spirit that kept them going, they would have been gone long ago.

Now, they were exhausted from working every day. Asking people with one foot in the grave to chop firewood and carry water would be asking too much of them.

So although they felt embarrassed, they could only let the child help. There was no point in being stubborn; they simply weren't up to it.

About an hour later, Gu Yu came back to the cattle shed in the dark, carrying a bundle of firewood on his shoulder and a full bucket of water in his hand.

"Grandpa, I'm heading back. Go ahead and use these. I'll bring you more in a couple of days."

As he spoke, he lit the sunflower stalk he had left by the side, then quietly left the cattle shed beneath the cover of night.

Once night fell in the countryside, you couldn't see your hand in front of your face when you went outside. With no entertainment, the villagers had no choice but to stay home and sleep. But that night, Zhao Qiancheng, the village party secretary, had an unusually lively house.

It was because Zhao Jianguo had taken a bad mood home from Jiang Hongmei's place and asked his father to find him a pretty, capable wife. At once, Zhao Qiancheng perked up.

He had never thought much of Jiang Hongmei, who was all looks and no substance. But she had a good education, came from the Capital City, and sounded as if her family had connections. He had figured that the girl was a suitable match for his eldest son. Since his son genuinely liked her, he hadn't interfered much and had often looked after her.

Now things were looking up. His son had finally come to his senses, decided he didn't want her, and wanted to find someone else. How could Zhao Qiancheng not be pleased? He agreed at once.

"Mm!"

Zhao Jianguo nodded. His expression looked calm, but inside, his thoughts were churning with unease. He couldn't shake the feeling that he would regret losing Jiang Hongmei.

Still, he was absolutely unwilling to keep seeing her. He, Zhao Jianguo, wasn't crippled, and his family background wasn't bad. Why should he worry about finding a good woman?

Thinking about it, Zhao Jianguo firmly suppressed his reluctance and told his father what he wanted. "I don't have many requirements. She just has to be prettier than Jiang Hongmei, have at least as much education as her, come from a better family, and have parents who both work. Otherwise, I won't get married."

At that, Zhao Qiancheng's mouth twitched. If the man in front of him hadn't been his own son, he would have slapped him twice.

This wasn't looking for a wife. This was a clear case of not being able to have the woman he wanted, so he was looking for a substitute to make someone else jealous. Their Zhao family might have a decent standing, but only in the countryside. Even the children of city officials might not find a match as good as his son's demands. Wasn't he making things impossible for him?

Still, if he really found his son such a good match, perhaps the Zhao family could rise to new heights and become upper-class. His own position might even improve.

He was dreaming big, but his wife, Qin Fengying, wasn't having it. Why? The greatest success of her life had been marrying Zhao Qiancheng, thanks to her connection as a distant niece of the child's grandmother, and becoming the Women's Federation Director.

She dreamed of her husband climbing the ranks, ideally all the way to the Capital City. Then she could become the wife of a capital official.

But Qin Fengying understood that it was best to keep daydreams to herself. Saying them out loud could invite trouble.

Still, ever since Jiang Hongmei had come down to the countryside at the Red Flag Commune and gotten together with her son, her daydreams had grown longer and longer.

Qin Fengying kept imagining that once the young couple married, when Jiang Hongmei returned to the city, she would take Qin Fengying, Zhao Qiancheng, and the children with her to the Capital City. Then her in-laws could arrange suitable jobs for her and Zhao Qiancheng. That way, she wouldn't just be a capital lady—she would be a modern woman from the Capital City, too. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

But now Zhao Jianguo was saying he didn't want to be with Jiang Hongmei anymore. Wouldn't that ruin her hopes? She quickly steadied herself and tried to talk him around.

"Jianguo, aren't the conditions you just told your father basically a description of Hongmei?"

She covered her mouth and laughed, then patted her son's shoulder and said earnestly, "That girl may be a little proud, but what can you expect when she's pretty and comes from a good family?

"You're a man. What's wrong with giving her a little leeway? How can you decide to find someone else just because you had a disagreement? Isn't that just playing the field?"

"Bah! Shut your mouth! What nonsense are you spouting?"

Zhao Qiancheng glared at his wife and cut her off. Other people might not know what kind of woman she was, but he knew perfectly well. She thought people from the Capital City were above everyone else, didn't she?

Did she have any sense at all? If Jiang Hongmei were really that wonderful, would she have clung to Gu Yu when he'd fallen so low?

Other people might not see it and think that boy and Jiang Hongmei were close, but Zhao Qiancheng could see clearly that Gu Yu had a better relationship with that educated youth surnamed Shen than with her.

Besides, they said you should choose a virtuous wife. Jiang Hongmei seemed kind and sensible, but behind the scenes, she was a troublemaker with the brains of a pig.

Look at the Educated Youth Station. Of every ten arguments, nine started because she meddled and ran her mouth. The only other one happened when she wasn't around—that was the only way he knew she hadn't caused it.

How could someone like that be a suitable match for his eldest son? His wife had such narrow horizons.