"Divine Child? Why not January?"
The climate here bears many similarities to the places Han Cheng lived before.
Han Cheng recalled the future months and compared them to those here.
After careful consideration and comparison, the moon drawn by Hei Wa on the clay slab was bracketed by Han Cheng from the third black shadow in the first row to the second black shadow in the third row, with the word "October" written above.
The next group was bracketed with the word "November."
From the stones, he understood the meaning of these three consecutive black shadows, indicating the three nights when stars were visible but the moon was not.
Han Cheng knew that these three days recorded by the stones were the nights of the 29th, 30th, and 1st, or the 28th, 29th, and 1st.
In theory, the moon disappears entirely on the night of the 30th or 29th; in reality, its shadow is hardly visible on the nights before and after.
Although he had some understanding of the year, month, and stones, he had never truly experienced the calendar system of the future. Therefore, when he learned that Han Cheng wanted to divide the months based on this, he naturally assumed that the first month to appear should be January.
After organizing his thoughts, Han Cheng finally spoke to the stones, "January is the beginning of the year and also the first month of spring… The ice and snow will gradually melt, and the grass will turn green…"
The stone tilted its head for a long time, then nodded vigorously.
After carefully recalling the scenes outside when he drew the moons, which were classified as October by the Divine Child, he felt that they were too different from what should be seen in January according to the Divine Child.
After figuring out this problem, a new question arose in his mind.
"Why isn't this one New Year's Day?"
The stone pointed to the circle in the middle and asked.
Underneath this circle, Han Cheng used a fine stone pen to draw the word "Fifteen."
The Shi Tou was puzzled. In its understanding, the biggest, roundest, and brightest moon should be the most beautiful, so New Year's Day should be when it occurs.
Han Cheng felt a bit overwhelmed. This curious and questioning youth sometimes was endearing but sometimes made people want to shut their mouths.
Fifteen is fifteen. Since I can remember, the moon on the fifteenth has always been the roundest. Why so many questions?
Han Cheng wanted to say this to the Shi Tou, but could only think about it in his heart.
After some thought, he could only explain it with phrases like "New Year's Day is the beginning of January, and everything in the world grows from small to large…"
Han Cheng felt a bit dizzy from all the explanations as he spoke. Strangely, the Shi Tou seemed to have a look of understanding.
This scene suddenly reminded Han Cheng of the situation when his high school history or political teacher explained multiple-choice questions: "Choose option B."
Then, after various explanations, linking the text to other knowledge, the students thought the teacher was right and the answer to the question should be option B.
Then, in the next class: "Students, the answer to the question I discussed last time was wrong. It should have been option D…"
After a round of explanations, the crowd again found that it all made sense…
This whole situation seemed quite amusing when Han Cheng thought about it.
What Han Cheng was doing with the Shi Tou now was quite similar.
With the premise of knowing the answer beforehand, one could always find some reasons to align with it.
Especially in matters where subjectivity was intense.
After setting October and November, the remaining five days were marked with question marks. These days were not good: either it was snowing or cloudy, there were no stars at night, nor was the moon visible, so the stones could only use question marks as placeholders.
According to the calendar he had created, which he wasn't sure was accurate, today was already the sixth day of the twelfth month.
Han Cheng thought so.
The calendar's appearance let him know what time it was now, giving him an inexplicable clarity.
As he thought this, a sudden thought made his heart tremble.
The year was almost over on the sixth day of the twelfth month, and New Year's was just around the corner.
That day was full of family reunions and joy everywhere; just thinking about it made people unable to help but yearn for its arrival.
Although many people complained that New Year's was losing its traditional flavor, there was always that anticipation deep down.
Especially now, not knowing whether he had traveled to prehistoric times, another dimension, or a "Primitive Human Protection Zone," Han Cheng, who was far from his original era, couldn't help but feel his heart racing as he realized that the year was coming to an end.
The New Year, a festival that made countless Chinese people yearn for it, willing to travel thousands of miles with bags full of things, standing in the aisle for a day and night to return home, was now fiercely impacting Han Cheng's heart, this wanderer away from the group.
Whether rich or poor, everyone went home for the New Year.
At home were aging parents, eagerly awaited children whom they hadn't seen for a year, roots of their own, and the charm that made them feel at peace.
That's why those who worked away from home rushed back like migrating birds. Even if they could only stay home for two days, they had to return from afar.
A steaming bowl of dumplings made by mother, a cup of tremblingly poured wine from father's hand, and the voices of children calling for their parents were all enough to wash away the hardships of the journey, making everything feel worthwhile.
All the ups and downs, joys and sorrows of working away from home would be washed away by this festival and place called "New Year" and "Home," rejuvenating tired souls and giving them the courage to face the hardships of life.
With a not-so-strong heart and not-so-solid shoulders, they would carry a relatively warm space where there was "New Year," "Home," parents, children, and the warmest vigil in the depths of their hearts and the firmest strength.
The sudden thought of the New Year flooding into his mind made Han Cheng's emotions uncontrollable, tears streaming down his face uncontrollably.
Shi Tou, seeing the Divine Child silently crying, immediately became confused, wondering if it was because its moon painting wasn't good enough or if it had asked too many questions.
The little primitive man, who didn't understand the Divine Child’s mood, felt so uneasy and hesitant, timidly called out, "Divine Child…"
Han Cheng tried to control his emotions, wiping away the tears on his face, closing his eyes tightly a few times, and squeezing out a smile, saying to Shi Tou, "It's nothing, I just got some wind in my eyes."
The Shi Tou, puzzled, touched its head. Was there wind just now?
It pondered in confusion.
Its heart also relaxed a bit. At least now it knew it wasn't the one who made the Divine Child cry.
But deep down, it still secretly thought that maybe it shouldn't ask the shaman so many questions in the future.
However, soon after, the uncomfortable feeling of holding back unanswered questions resurfaced in its mind, making it hesitant again.
This made the little primitive man's heart extremely conflicted.
Han Cheng calmed his emotions a bit, instructing the Shi Tou to continue drawing the moon in this way without stopping.
Shi Tou, which usually seemed a bit mischievous, nodded vigorously.