Returning Home

Zhao Danshi's plan to go to H City was temporarily put on hold when he suddenly received a phone call that day.

An old, familiar voice came from the other end. After saying hello several times, it finally asked, "Yun Yun, is that you?"

So much time had passed, yet the moment he heard that aged voice, the kindly face buried deep in his memories surfaced once more.

Zhao Danshi's nose immediately stung. He took a deep breath and answered through a heavy nasal voice, "It's me, Grandpa. It's me."

The old man sighed. That sigh was like a heavy weight pressing down on Zhao Danshi's heart, making it ache with an indescribable sour numbness.

The old man reproached him over the phone, "You've graduated from university, haven't you? Why haven't you come back all these years?"

Zhao Danshi had fallen out with his family long ago because he was gay. He attended university in another city, and since enrolling, he had only gone back once—to handle his household registration transfer and related paperwork at the police station. While he was there, he changed his name as well.

It was inconvenient for Zhao Danshi to explain. He was afraid of frightening the old man.

But the old man said, "I already know about you. Don't carry such a heavy burden in your heart. That's just how life is. Yun Yun, all Grandpa wants is for you to be safe and happy. Nothing else matters that much."

Zhao Danshi choked up at once. Hearing him cry, the old man began to weep too. "All right, all right. You're already grown up, don't cry. Where are you now? How have you been? Grandpa will come see you."

"I'm in X City, and I'm doing quite well. Don't worry, Grandpa. I've graduated from university and found a pretty good job. After social insurance and the housing fund are deducted, I still take home more than six thousand a month."

"What about food and lodging? Isn't eating and staying outside expensive?"

"No, no, it's not expensive. The place I'm renting only costs a little over a thousand. My landlady is especially nice to me. Whenever she makes dumplings at home, she even asks me over to eat." Zhao Danshi halved the rent as he reported only good news. "I can save four or five thousand every month."

"Don't make yourself suffer out there. Eat when you should eat, drink when you should drink. Don't be too frugal."

"I know. Grandpa, how about you? How has your health been these past two years?"

"Pretty good. I can eat and sleep." The old man said, "Where are you spending the New Year? Why not come back home?"

Zhao Danshi's father and grandfather were both stubborn, hard-tempered men. They had been at odds since long ago and often argued, leaving their relationship extremely strained. When Zhao Danshi was young, they still saw each other fairly often, but by the time he was in his teens, they barely spoke at all. At most, they met once during the New Year.

Later, his grandmother died after suffering a stroke, leaving his grandfather all alone.

His grandfather could not bear to leave the old house, nor was he willing to live with his son and daughter-in-law. At least when Zhao Danshi left home, his father and grandfather had yet to reconcile.

Come to think of it, Zhao Danshi had not seen his grandfather in many years either.

He had not felt it before when they did not speak, but now that they were chatting, his homesickness was abruptly stirred up. Fighting back tears, he said, "Grandpa, I'm free right now. I'll come see you tomorrow."

The old man was overjoyed and asked repeatedly, "Really? You don't have to work tomorrow?"

"No. I haven't taken time off in a long while. I can apply for leave."

"Ah, good, good. What time will you arrive tomorrow? Grandpa will wash the blankets and dry them, so they'll be ready when you come home." The old man clutched the phone tightly. "Yun Yun, what do you want to eat? Grandpa will make it for you."

"Anything is fine. As long as Grandpa makes it, I'll like it." Zhao Danshi reassured him. "It'd be even better if there were meat."

The old man laughed heartily. "There is, there is! Braised pork knuckle, steamed ribs, red-braised chicken, pickled cabbage fish—Grandpa guarantees there'll be plenty."

The grandfather and grandson chatted on the phone for a long time. Zhao Danshi hung up reluctantly, then immediately took out his phone and booked a ticket home.

His hometown was a small village in the southwest, built against the mountains. The roads were not very accessible, and the village was relatively isolated. After taking the train, Zhao Danshi had to transfer to a bus, then to a small motorized tricycle. From the city to the county seat, then to the town and village, the mountain roads twisted endlessly. The journey alone took an entire day.

Zhao Danshi's father had been among the earliest to rise out of the countryside through education. He had tested his way out of that little mountain village, settled down in the city afterward, and almost never returned. Zhao Danshi had at least grown up with his parents in town, only coming back occasionally during winter and summer breaks to stay for a month or two.

The tricycle driver was waiting for passengers at a three-way intersection. They had to fill up the vehicle before heading back to the village.

Zhao Danshi was neatly dressed, and everything he wore was expensive. He looked entirely out of place in that small town.

The tricycle driver, Zhao Liwei, had nothing to do, so he smiled and chatted with him. "Young man, where are you from? Are you back to visit someone or see family?"

Zhao Danshi smiled. "I'm from here. I'm going home this time."

"Oh, no way, right? Who don't I know from these villages within ten miles? I've never seen you before. Which family are you from?"

"Manzigong's family. He's my grandfather."

Zhao Liwei suddenly understood. "No wonder you looked a little familiar. You resemble your grandmother."

Zhao Danshi smiled.

Zhao Liwei asked with interest, "How long are you planning to stay this time? Your grandfather has really been looking forward to you all coming back. I saw him going to the market early this morning to buy meat and vegetables. I was wondering which important guest he was preparing to entertain. Turns out you were coming home?"

Zhao Danshi said, "I'm not sure yet. I'll stay for a week first."

"That's true. Young people like you all have jobs outside and can't get away at all. But since you're back, spend some proper time with your grandfather. He's lived alone in the village all these years. It must be lonely."

Zhao Liwei rolled some home-cut tobacco in paper and sighed. "No one has it easy these days. The whole village is like this: young people go out to work, while the elderly are left behind. Usually it's all right when nothing happens, but if something does happen, no one answers when you call to heaven and no one responds when you call to earth. There isn't even anyone to lend a hand."

Zhao Danshi asked, "Are there many elderly people left behind in the village?"

"Of course there are! Some families leave both the elderly and the children here. Some have only old people left. Several nearby villages have turned into left-behind villages. How few young people are there around here? Let me put it this way: when the New Year approaches, little thieves keep targeting the countryside. They ride motorcycles around stealing chickens and whatever else they can get their hands on. Even if someone sees them, they aren't afraid. Those old folks have bad legs and can't catch them at all."

An incredulous expression appeared on Zhao Danshi's face. "How is that stealing? Isn't that outright robbery?"

"Exactly. They come to rob you. What can you do? They steal a chicken or take some cured meat. Even if you call the police, there's nothing the police can do once they get here."

"What then? Isn't that too dangerous? What if someone gets hurt?"

"What can you do? A cheap life is just a cheap life. Whoever gets hurt just has to count himself unlucky." Zhao Liwei sighed as well. "If there were more young people in the village, they could chase the thieves down and beat them up. Beat them into behaving, and they wouldn't dare come back. But now there are only old people left. There's no way around it..."

As they chatted, people gradually came over and got into the vehicle. Most of them carried things, either baskets or woven plastic sacks. The space at Zhao Danshi's feet was quickly stuffed full, and he could not even move his feet.

Zhao Danshi noticed that most of the people getting on were women, all women in their forties or fifties and older.

Zhao Liwei turned to ask an acquaintance, "Yazi Mei, how did your vegetables sell today?"

Yazi Mei smiled happily. Her dark skin made her teeth look even whiter, and the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes crinkled up. "Pretty well. I sold almost all my vegetables today, with only a few tomatoes left. Who's this young man? He looks awfully familiar."

Zhao Liwei chuckled. "Guess. He's from your village."

Yazi Mei narrowed her eyes and studied Zhao Danshi up and down for a long time, but she still could not recall which family he belonged to. "Young man, whose family are you from?"

Meeting that simple, honest smile, Zhao Danshi said, "I'm Manzigong's grandson."

"I knew you looked familiar!" Yazi Mei asked with a smile, "You haven't come back in many years, have you?"

The others in the vehicle heard this and turned to look at Zhao Danshi with interest. Yazi Mei smiled at him. "You're a handsome young man. You're practically the spitting image of your grandmother."

"Now that you mention it, he really does look like her. His grandmother was a famous beauty in all the villages around here when she was young."

"Yes. When his grandmother married into the village, we children even walked dozens of miles along mountain roads just to watch the excitement."

Someone asked Zhao Danshi, "Young man, are you studying now, or working?"

"I'm already working."

"Ah, where do you work? Do you have a girlfriend?"

Zhao Danshi answered vaguely, "In X City."

"X City is good. I hear people there earn a lot. Is that true?"

The villagers had no concept of privacy. They asked whatever they wanted, directly and without concern for what Zhao Danshi might think.

Zhao Danshi was questioned all the way there. They nearly dug up even his elementary school graduation exam scores.

The tricycle chugged along, and before long, they arrived at the village.

Zhao Liwei joked, "You haven't been back in so long. Do you still remember which way your grandfather's front door faces?"

"I remember." Zhao Danshi opened his wallet and pulled out two yuan in change. "The fare is two yuan?"

Zhao Liwei pushed his hand back. "Why would I take money from you the first time you ride in my vehicle? Hurry home. Your grandfather is waiting for you."

Zhao Danshi forced the money back into his hand. "You're running a business. How can you not take payment?"

Yazi Mei, who got off at the same stop, pulled out a wad of money from a hidden pocket in her waistband. Carefully, she counted out one one-yuan bill and two fifty-cent coins for Zhao Liwei. Then she turned and shoved several tomatoes into Zhao Danshi's hands, laughing brightly. "You've finally come back after so long. Auntie is treating you to some tomatoes."

"Ah, no, there's no need."

"It's all right, it's all right. Just don't dislike them. They may not look very pretty, but these tomatoes were grown by my family. They're sweet and juicy. You'll know once you taste them. Take them home and try them."

Zhao Danshi held five tomatoes and was just about to return them when she had already turned away with her basket on her shoulder.

Zhao Liwei started the vehicle again, chugging off with the remaining passengers toward the villages farther inside.

They had stopped on the main road, and Zhao Danshi still had to walk quite a stretch along a small path to reach his grandfather's house.

It was already past four in the afternoon. The sun outside was warm but not scorching. Standing in it, even sweating felt comfortable. Zhao Danshi looked into the distance. Fields surrounded him on all sides, with mountains farther away. The mountains nearly enclosed the entire village.

It was early autumn, and the mountains were lush and deep green, a soothing sight to behold.

Zhao Danshi carried his bag on his back and cradled the tomatoes as he headed down the path. Suddenly, Watcher said in his mind, "This place is really nice. There's plenty of energy here."

Time to farm~

This was still a slow-paced farming story, as before (~￣▽￣)~