New Year's Day

For the next few days, Zhang Cai's family was preoccupied with digging a well. Fortunately, on the sixth day, the water everyone had been eagerly anticipating was finally found. This arduous task was completed just before winter set in, bringing a collective sigh of relief. As Zhang Cai was busy settling the wages for the well diggers, and Zhang Xiaolong and his two brothers were repairing the path from the fields to the wellhead, the gloomy winter clouds gathered overhead, and a few snowflakes, like grains of salt, began to fall, heralding the arrival of winter.

The first snow had fallen, and the cold wind grew fiercer. It wasn't long until the New Year.

Zhang Cai was very content this year. He had acquired more land for the family and dug a well. From now on, this land wouldn't fear drought. With proper care, it should become the main source of the family's food supply. Therefore, as the end of the year approached, he instructed Guo Sufi to prepare more New Year's goods so the family could celebrate properly. His mother-in-law was also getting old; each year was a year to cherish. In recent days, his mother-in-law's health had worsened significantly, spending half the day in bed. He wasn't sure if she would make it to the next New Year. Thinking of his own parents and then his father-in-law, his heart burned with anticipation for a fulfilling New Year.

New Year's goods for a farming family were easy to procure. What was considered abundant was mostly variety, with only a small quantity of each item. In terms of variety, most of it consisted of dried mountain goods from everyday life, with only a very few items purchased by Zhang Cai from a distant market. Because of his mother-in-law, Zhang Cai had bought some unfamiliar foods this year, which made Zhang Xiaolong and his brothers envious, eager for the New Year to arrive so they could taste them. Guo Sufi, in addition to busy preparing for the New Year, spent most of her time visiting familiar relatives in the village and sometimes inquiring in neighboring villages. Her main concern was her eldest son's marriage. However, judging by her fluctuating expressions, sometimes somber and sometimes joyful, things didn't seem to be going as smoothly as imagined.

Time flew by as the Zhang family busied themselves, and the New Year was finally upon them.

On the day before the New Year, as everyone gathered around the stove, discussing the next year's harvest, the condition of the fields, and Zhang Xiaolong's future wife, they suddenly heard noisy shouts from outside the village. The entire area had descended into chaos. "Could it be bandits raiding the village?" Zhang Cai's mind immediately jumped to that conclusion. But it shouldn't be. Guo Village was small, and the Guo family was a minor clan. Every household was poor, and the bandits who ruled the nearby mountains never came to this desolate place. Why would they come today without reason? Even so, Zhang Cai didn't dare to be careless. He called his three children, grabbed hoes and other iron tools, and cautiously stepped out of the house. The Zhang family's half-height wall allowed him to see the situation in the village at a glance. Many people were gathered, talking, and some were running. However, they were all familiar faces. Although everyone looked a bit panicked, a hint of relief and schadenfreude could be seen. Zhang Cai found it very strange. He instructed his three children to return inside and put away their "weapons," then went out himself to gather information. Zhang Xiaolong and his two brothers naturally didn't want to be idle and also slipped out, mingling with young people their age.

There were quite a few people in the village, standing or sitting in small groups, all discussing one matter. Zhang Cai walked up to a group of old men who were smoking dry tobacco and speaking loudly with gestures. He saw Liu the Blacksmith, who was usually quite familiar with him, and patted his shoulder, saying, "Old Liu, what's going on? Why is it so chaotic?" Liu the Blacksmith was quietly smoking. Seeing Zhang Cai asking him, he tapped his finished pipe on the ground, refilled his pipe with new tobacco from his pouch, carefully lit it, and took a deep drag before saying in a muffled voice:

"Brother, you know One-Eye, eighty li north of our village, the bandit who occupies West Cui Mountain?"

Zhang Cai replied, "I know him. He's the biggest bandit within a hundred li radius. How could I not know him? But they always operate in the richer areas to the north. Why did they come here?"

Liu the Blacksmith took another puff of his pipe and said, "Yes, do you remember a while back, Mr. Wu of Xin Village dug up a chest of treasures when he was digging a well?"

Zhang Cai suddenly understood, "You mean, they..." Zhang Cai didn't ask further. He already knew the reason. Wealth attracts trouble. Such a conspicuous, enormous fortune had attracted the attention of bandits. What good outcome could there be?

Guo the Butcher, standing nearby, saw Zhang Cai fall silent and squeezed over, saying mysteriously, "It's not just that. Mr. Wu was initially hopeful and denied having anything, saying it was nonsense. So, One-Eye drove Mr. Wu's entire family, dozens of people, into the ancestral hall and sent men to turn Mr. Wu's house upside down. As a result, they found a pile of treasures in the vegetable cellar and at the bottom of the well. One-Eye, enraged by Mr. Wu's deception, set the Wu family's ancestral hall on fire, burning dozens of people alive. Not a single one escaped. Fortunately, Xin Village is slightly better off than us. They are all poor people, so One-Eye didn't trouble anyone else much. When these bandits left, they also shouted at the villagers to be careful and not to report them to the authorities, or they would make everyone in Xin Village pay with their lives."

Liu the Blacksmith said, "Fortune and misfortune are unpredictable. Just a few days ago, they thought they were rich, and now their whole family is wiped out. It's tragic~"

Guo the Butcher continued, "It wasn't a complete annihilation. Mr. Wu's sister-in-law returned to our village yesterday to see her parents and didn't go back today, so she escaped. It was only when someone reported the news earlier that she learned what happened and sent people to investigate. Moreover, according to the person who reported the news, when the mountain bandits left, they dragged a woman on horseback. Her face couldn't be seen clearly, but she was likely Mr. Wu's daughter, who was fancied by the mountain bandit and taken up the mountain, perhaps to become his wife."

Zhang Xiaohua and his two brothers had been standing behind their father. Hearing the villagers' words, they felt an inexplicable chill. They had heard of the bandits' wicked deeds before, but it was always just talk. Now, it was happening right beside them. Mr. Wu was someone they had met; he had even taught Zhang Xiaohua to recognize a few characters when he was young. Now, he was gone, burned to charcoal. Although they hadn't witnessed it firsthand, it filled them with sadness and fear. Zhang Xiaohua unconsciously rubbed the bracelet on his left wrist and thought to himself, "Fortunately, what I dug up wasn't real treasure. Even if it were, I would never tell anyone, to avoid bringing disaster upon myself and my family." The principle that innocence is no protection when one possesses wealth, and the bloody reality of it, deeply impressed itself upon the young boy's heart.

The three brothers told Zhang Cai they wanted to go to Xin Village to see for themselves, but Zhang Cai did not agree. After all, the New Year was approaching, and encountering bloodshed would be very bad for the luck of the coming year. Moreover, Mr. Wu's home in Xin Village was now a scorched earth, a tragic scene that was frightening to behold. It was estimated that government officials should have already arrived there. Going there might even attract a lot of trouble.

As they spoke, the entire village dispersed. After all, other people's lives had come to an end, and their own lives had to go on. Even farmers understood the principle of minding their own business. Darkness fell, and their New Year was fast approaching. It was time to tidy up their moods and attend to their own affairs.

Zhang Cai and his three children returned home and saw his mother-in-law and Guo Sufi warming themselves by the stove. He recounted the events in Xin Village to them. Both women listened with great shock. They both prayed to heaven, hoping that the souls of the departed would be reincarnated soon, and also hoping that such a disaster would never befall their own family. By the time it was completely dark and the house was lit with oil lamps, Zhang Xiaohua's grandmother was still muttering, "Fortune and misfortune, fortune and misfortune."

The same New Year, Guo Village was far less lively than in previous years. Under the cover of night, only children played with lanterns. Only they were unaware of the world's dangers, allowing their natural instincts to take over. Most of the villagers, like Zhang Cai's family, after eating a sumptuous New Year's Eve dinner and tidying up the year's hard work, while hoping for sweetness and happiness in the new year, harbored a trace of gloom in their hearts. Thinking of Mr. Wu's fate and this world of the strong preying on the weak, it was inevitable to have the thought of "I am the fish." Looking at the vast world, they didn't know how to protect their family's peace and security.

The New Year's Eve, which should have been lively and noisy, passed by quietly. Whether others in the village dreamed of happiness, joy, harvest, or sweetness, Zhang Xiaohua only had a flickering thought, a flicker that seemed to gain a hint of clarity.

The New Year for farming families was actually very simple. Besides visiting each other, there was only the market day in Lu Town in the distance. Starting from the third day of the New Year, a street in Lu Town became a bustling "fair" for the surrounding villages. Everyone wore new clothes, brought their families, and carried money pouches slightly heavier than usual, coming here to experience the New Year's atmosphere.

Zhang Cai's family stayed home, with Guo Sufi needing to take care of Zhang Xiaohua's grandmother. Zhang Cai took his three children to Lu Town for the fair.

Lu Town was about thirty li south of Guo Village.

Lu Town did not have many streets, and it was not very lively on normal days. Finally, with a New Year's gathering, everyone unleashed the energy they had accumulated throughout the year, turning one of Lu Town's streets into a scene of bustling activity. This was a north-south oriented street, relatively wide, and appeared to be Lu Town's main thoroughfare. On both sides of the street were many shops. Regardless of the type of business, trade was good. The doors were wide open, with many people entering and exiting. Shop assistants stood inside and outside the stores, greeting passing customers. There were also many itinerant vendors carrying their small livelihoods, displaying them on the street and incessantly shouting to attract the surging crowd. Normally, if a shop assistant saw someone blocking the entrance, they would surely ask them to move. But today was an exception. Everyone was out looking for a living. To win the New Year's favor, no one would fall out over trivial matters, and they would even wish each other good luck.

As a result, the already not-so-wide street became even more crowded. And Zhang Xiaohua, who had come to the fair with his father and brothers, didn't know where to look with his eyes.