After returning from the mountains, Li Long planned to rest for a couple of days. He just felt a little lazy and did not much want to move. After breakfast and taking the children to school, he stayed at the Purchasing Station, listening to the remaining resellers gossip.
Occasionally, someone returning from selling goods at the Border Crossing would come to chat with Li Long too. The place was like a base camp. Now and then, a once-familiar face would appear, greet everyone with a smile, hand out cigarettes, and talk about what they had been through lately.
On December 19, the sky was overcast. Li Long even checked the weather forecast. China Central Television's forecast said most of Northern Xinjiang would have rain or snow.
Li Long felt like laughing. It was already December. Where would rain come from? The County Television Station forecast snow overnight. Before dark, Li Long tidied up the yard and protected the dog kennel and such. He also weighed down the canvas covering the jade with stones.
In particular, the big, plump jade baby carving had been covered with canvas since winter began and left untouched. Stone though it was, it could not withstand weathering and still needed protection.
That night, Li Long woke in the middle of his sleep and heard pattering on the roof. He was puzzled. Could snow really make that much noise? It was not hail.
But he did not dwell on it and went back to a deep sleep with his wife in his arms. At daybreak, he got up to use the toilet. As soon as he pushed open the door, cold air struck his face, with raindrops mixed into the chilly wind. It was actually raining in the middle of winter!
An unpleasant memory suddenly flooded his