Yet, there was a silver lining: the old woman’s sharp distress over the kerosene successfully diverted her from the lingering annoyance of the family division. “Hurry up and sleep, Yingzi, Grandma will be done soon enough.”
Cheng Ying replied, “Grandma, please rest. Wearing them tomorrow is the same; you’ll strain your eyes like this.”
The old woman spoke from the darkness, “What need is there for eyes? With contraptions like this, Grandma can manage even in pitch blackness.”
Well, Cheng Ying thought, no wonder the old woman was so protective of the kerosene. It turned out she could perform this task blindfolded.
Still, staying up late was bad for the elderly. “Grandma, forget about it, let’s go to sleep,” she urged, worried her grandmother’s body wouldn’t hold up.
The old woman insisted, “It’s almost done, it’s fine. Sleep now, good Yingzi. Back in my day, I even spun my own cloth; what is this little task compared to that?”
Cheng Ying couldn't win against her grandmother, and out of concern, she decided to stay with her.
Chatting with the old woman would be a way to ease her mind.
In the deep dark night, she kept the old woman company—one knitting socks, the other threading cords. Of course, interspersed with their quiet, intimate conversation.
Cheng Ying didn't even realize when she finally drifted off to sleep.
When she woke up the next morning, she found a pair of socks already on her feet.
She loved them so much she could hardly bear to put shoes on over them.
Upon waking, Cheng Ying noticed that her own mother hadn't gone to work.
Instead, she was outside in the annex cooking.
Her grandmother was nowhere in sight; she had apparently gone out somewhere.
Cheng Ying asked, “Ma, you don’t have to go to work today?”
Yang Zhi turned to her daughter and offered a smile. If one overlooked the roughness of her skin, there was still a certain appeal to her.
Seeing her mother like this, Cheng Ying felt less inclined to pity her tragic situation.
Yang Zhi replied, “Mmm. The New Year is coming soon, and there isn’t much work left at the brigade. Only the men are staying behind for the clean-up. The women don’t need to go.”
Cheng Ying wrestled internally with the thought of how they would eat.
Yang Zhi said, “Yingzi, there’s hot water in the basin outside, go wash up quickly, and call Grandma for breakfast.”
Cheng Ying closed her eyes. After all, the policies would soon change; they didn’t need to worry about that burden anymore.
Besides, seeing her mother toil so hard made Cheng Ying’s own heart ache. “Okay.”
After washing her face, Cheng Ying found her grandmother in the chicken coop, cleaning out the nesting boxes.
Cheng Ying stretched languidly in the doorway. Today was the day the family formally separated. Moving forward, Cheng Ying had faith that life would only get better.
This morning, her grandmother must have been feeling down during breakfast. “Grandma, time to eat. These chickens laid eggs so early today.”
Seeing her granddaughter, the old woman’s face brightened. “These things, if you take good care of them, they reward you. Grandma will make sure they are comfortable.”
Cheng Ying pursed her lips. “Grandma is the one who knows how to care for them best.”
Then, she pulled up the thick padding of her cotton trousers, revealing her ankles for her grandmother to see. Her eyes were full of triumph, “It’s just that the cold air still manages to seep in through the body.”
She quickly pulled the trousers back down. While the padding worked fine for keeping her feet warm, it couldn't be seen by others.
The old woman, seeing her granddaughter like this first thing in the morning, was so delighted she forgot all her troubles.
She stopped what she was doing. “You, you. Grandma will get you a couple of cloth strips later to tie your pant legs, and then the wind won't get in.”
Cheng Ying looked at her grandmother, then at the old woman’s own trouser legs—they were tied up, just as she had suggested.
Cheng Ying felt a pang of discontent. This way of wearing trousers was truly unsightly. Weren’t only little-footed old women tying their trouser cuffs?
Cheng Ying glanced at her own clothes. Although worn, they at least possessed a certain contemporary style. She absolutely refused to tie her pant legs like her grandmother.
Now she understood why the old woman always stood with her feet slightly apart—it was because of the tied cuffs.
Cheng Ying said, “Grandma, it’s time to eat. We’ll talk about the trouser legs later.”
The old woman smiled at her granddaughter; the girl, though young, already cared about her appearance.
She clapped her hands, swept the nearby broom over her padded clothes once, and then washed her hands before entering the house.
Her stepfather, carrying the water buckets, also returned.
He looked down at the old woman and called out, “Ma,” his voice low and mumbled.
The old woman didn't respond at all. Hearing Chi Yong call her 'Ma' must have caused her considerable inner turmoil. Chi Yong likely knew this too, which was why his greeting was so hesitant.
Still, they couldn't greet each other in silence.
Chi Yong’s expression remained unchanged; perhaps he was used to it.
Yang Zhi came out and addressed the three people outside. “It’s time for the meal. Ma, let’s eat.”
This deferential attitude from her daughter-in-law made Cheng Ying feel that her own mother was nothing more than a little lamb.
However, Cheng Ying desired family harmony; seeing her biological mother and grandmother get along meant peace for her.
The old woman entered the house first and sat cross-legged on the kang.
Cheng Ying climbed onto the kang and sat beside her grandmother.
Chi Yong, Yang Zhi, and Chi Wu remained standing on the floor, squeezing together despite the large size of the kang.
Cheng Ying dared not speak. Even change, she knew, wouldn't happen overnight.
The old woman addressed the whole group, “All of you sit on the kang. There’s plenty of room.”
Cheng Ying quickly shifted further inside.
Yang Zhi’s eyes reddened; it seemed she was accustomed to eating while standing all these years.
Chi Yong sat on the kang, looking slightly uneasy yet maintaining composure. In Cheng Ying’s eyes, this stepfather was unusual—untroubled by honor or disgrace.
To react to such drastic shifts in treatment without changing expression suggested someone who had weathered significant ups and downs.
Alas, Cheng Ying worried for her biological mother’s future.
It wasn't so bad if a woman encountered a scoundrel; bitterness followed by sweetness allowed her to truly know a person, and she could eventually find happiness. The real danger lay in meeting someone with such subtle depth. If the woman couldn't extract herself, that would be true suffering.
This meal was likely the happiest one Chi Wu had eaten.
Though the old woman still kept a watchful eye on the porridge basin, and though Chi Wu’s portion was no different from yesterday’s—even when ladling porridge for Chi Yong, it was still only half a ladle—there was definite progress. They were sitting on the kang, after all.
In Cheng Ying’s view, the old woman wasn't intentionally shorting Chi Yong on porridge. It was more like a show of dominance, a warning intended for Chi Wu and his father.
After eating, the old woman patted her heavy padded trousers and said to Yang Zhi, “Clean up, and then we’ll go to the brigade to settle our work points. We’ll see if we should exchange them for grain or cloth. The New Year is almost here. We’ll make a new pair of trousers for Yingzi.”
Yang Zhi replied, “Ma, you go yourself. There are only a few days until the New Year, and I need to check the mountains to see what medicinal herbs I can find.”
The old woman’s narrow, triangular eyes flashed. “We’ve divided the household; how can you be ignorant of the family’s needs? Go with me to the brigade first.”
It was a pleasant phrasing, seemingly considerate of her daughter-in-law, but coming from the old woman’s mouth, it felt jarringly uncomfortable.
Yang Zhi said, “Mmm, I’ll listen to Ma.” Clearly, the woman was habituated to the old woman’s patterns of behavior.
As the New Year approached, everyone else had time off, but the shepherd did not.
Three hundred and sixty-five days a year, those sheep needed tending.
Her stepfather was the shepherd, meaning he worked year-round without rest.
The downside was never having a break while earning relatively few work points. The upside was that even without rest days, he earned something daily, and the work itself was light and not strenuous.
Chi Yong paid no mind to how the mother and daughter distributed the work. After eating, he took his shepherd's crook and headed off to work.
Yang Zhi had intended to clean the kitchen before leaving, but the old woman frowned. “Let that little rascal clean it. What kind of person is your second sister-in-law? If you’re late to the brigade when settling work points today, you’ll get nothing!”
The old woman understood her daughter-in-law’s temperament, but she was certainly exasperated by Yang Zhi’s lack of initiative.
Yang Zhi replied, “Yes.” This time, she hurried.
Seeing her daughter-in-law agree to everything without having a solid plan, the old woman worried. Her own years were advancing. Her granddaughter would have to depend on her mother, and if the mother was so clueless, how would the child avoid suffering? It was truly distressing.
Cheng Ying watched as the three adults left—her grandmother, her mother, and her stepfather—then swiftly slipped her shoes on and got off the kang.
She had been ordered by her grandmother to stay under the covers and recover. However, as a child, after one night’s sleep and a full meal, her strength had returned. “Chi Wu, did our family get any fish allocated?”
Notice how Cheng Ying directed her inquiries—the focus was entirely different.
Chi Wu’s movements while clearing the table were noticeably lighter than usual. “No, wasn’t the brigade settling work points today? I heard the village children say they would allocate them today.”
Cheng Ying frowned. “It’s been days, why are they only allocating them today?”
Chi Wu explained, “It’s the dead of winter; fish won’t spoil. Even if we got fish today, they’d surely save it for eating during the New Year.”
Saying this, he shot Cheng Ying a side-eye; the girl was truly greedy. Although even as he spoke, his own mouth watered at the mention of fish.
Cheng Ying teased, “You little punk, the fish we picked up together—you didn’t secretly eat it, did you?”
This wasn't uncharitable of Cheng Ying; it was Chi Wu’s gulping motion that looked excessively shifty.
Chi Wu’s face flushed crimson. He was not that kind of person. “I wouldn’t do such a thing! I hid the fish.”
In Chi Wu’s estimation, Cheng Ying was selfish, just like her second aunt, and disloyal.
Cheng Ying rubbed her nose. “Why didn’t you bring it home? Leaving it outside is so insecure.”
Chi Wu looked at Cheng Ying with distress. He had wanted to bring it home, but how could he explain it? He would have been soundly scolded. Moreover, Cheng Ying had been running a fever and sleeping the whole time; it would have been impossible to account for it. Thus, the fish had been a constant source of anxiety for Chi Wu, feeling unsafe wherever he kept it. For a child around ten, this was torture.
Cheng Ying reassured him, “But it’s a good thing we didn’t bring it out. Once they allocate the official share, we can bring ours out, and our family having fish won't seem unusual.”
Chi Wu inwardly agreed that Cheng Ying was right; it would be less conspicuous that way. Yet, his expression remained sour. He, an advanced young youth, somehow had his thought process aligning with this girl’s. He was being corrupted.
He lowered his head to wash the bowls on the stove stand and refused to speak to Cheng Ying again.
This was self-examination; truly a good child.
Knowing Chi Wu had a long stretch of work ahead, Cheng Ying walked into the east room, closed the door, and slipped into her spatial realm.
She sighed, gazing at the brilliantly blooming flowers within the space. Ah, if she relied solely on this space, her development potential would peak at being nothing more than a turnip vendor.