The deep autumn weather in the Northeast is already very cold; sitting in the carriage makes it difficult to open one's mouth. The cold wind blows through Zhang Guofu's thin jacket; he shivers tightly, huddled up, bitterly focused on driving the carriage. For years, no one has planted trees along the road. Looking around, besides the harvested fields, all you see are patches of yellow grass. Along the road, except for the carriage, we haven't encountered anyone.
There's also a middle-aged man wearing patched clothes on the carriage. He is the doctor they specially invited to come this time. He wraps the coat he brought with him tightly around his body.
"Guofu, don't worry. It's very close to your family's place. How did your little brother get into trouble? Last time I heard he got married and already has a child. He's always been strong since he was a kid; how could anyone bully him?"
The middle-aged man on the carriage is called Zhou Zhongsheng. The villagers from ten miles around have already forgotten his name and just call him Doctor Zhou. People with illnesses in the village usually seek him out. Importantly, his medical skills are good, and he's the only one who can make house calls from the village health center, never making things difficult for people.
Zhang Guofu sighed and said, "My little brother never provokes others. Today, some chicken thieves from Upper Lin Village somehow got into our backyard and harmed our chickens. Fortunately, my dad heard the commotion and went out, otherwise, all the chickens would have died. We rely on those ten chickens to lay eggs to exchange for soy sauce and vinegar. We lost four chickens; my mother was so furious she lay in bed all morning. Those chickens are dearer to her than her sons. My little brother was so angered he went to those houses in Upper Lin Village to demand an explanation. Somehow it turned into a fight, and someone hit him in the back of the head with a shovel; he fell unconscious immediately. Now those families are still in the militia team, and my brother-in-law fainted and gave birth early upon hearing it. We don't know how things are now; my mother is urgently asking for your help to save them."
Doctor Zhou nodded, "You said it was Upper Lin Village, didn't you? Those families are notorious in the village, so poor even the rats aren't willing to enter, always stealing chickens and engaging in petty thievery. No one wants to marry their daughters into those families. I guess they'll be locked up for a few days and then punished by digging the river embankment in the village. Your brother was beaten for nothing; at most, the village will give some white flour as compensation."
As they talked, they entered the village in no time. The Zhang family lives at the east end of the village, near North Mountain. There's also a path leading there, so they don't have to go through the village entrance.
Their village has an elegant name, called Shen Nu Village, but after the Jiefang, the People's Commune demanded the elimination of superstitions. Later, when the village head saw many Zhang families living there, they changed it to call it Zhang Family Village.
Zhang Family Village is in a good geographic location, 20 miles from the town, and half an hour's walk east to reach the county town. The village is backed by two connected big and small mountains.
One is the Xiao Bei Mountain behind the Zhang family and the other is the legendary Daqing Mountain in the Northwest. According to the elders, this is a sacred mountain.
During the Guangxu Period in the Qing Dynasty, there was a Taoist temple on the mountain waist. Sometimes villagers would go up the mountains to hunt, and during the autumn harvest of fruits, they could see Taoists.
Later, as the world became increasingly turbulent, the Taoists in the Taoist temple decreased, and the last time they saw Taoists was just before Jiefang when the little devils swept the area of ten miles around.
Everyone could only flee to Daqing Mountain with their families, knowing there were wild beasts, but the little devils were more vicious. Later, it was the Taoists who helped kill the wild beasts, bringing them to the mountain pass, allowing the villagers to survive on the mountain.
Since the national liberation, gradually they haven't seen Taoists anymore, and the Taoist temple has become a ruin. After the liberation, the nation lacked materials; some families had many people and insufficient labor, so they had no choice but to search for food on the mountain. Occasionally, some encountered big animals and sometimes heard wolf howls, so gradually no one ventured deep into Daqing Mountain.
During the autumn harvest, picking wild fruits and mountain goods, everyone gathered only on the outskirts and North Mountain, not daring to go further.
The Zhang family is just at the foot of North Mountain, rare for having a house made of blue bricks and stone surrounded by walls, keeping out wild animals from the mountain. The Zhang family knows how to choose land; North Mountain, besides wild chickens and rabbits, doesn't have big wild beasts, so neighbors have gradually multiplied in recent years.
As soon as the carriage stopped, chaotic noises could be heard inside. Doctor Zhou hurriedly jumped off the carriage and rushed into the yard.
"Doctor Zhou is here. Quickly, come check on Xiao Wu. He just woke up and vomited. Doctor Zhou, check him out; this kid insists on seeing his wife. She's in the delivery room giving birth, causing chaos."
The mistress of the Zhang family, Mother Zhang, known as Huang Danou, hurriedly pulls her youngest son while calling out.
Zhang Guoqing shouted loudly, "Jiao Jiao, can you hear me? It's National Day. You must give birth to our child; we'll talk about anything after. Mom, let me in; I'm not at ease with my wife inside."
Huang Danou, infuriated, said, "You brat, don't add to the chaos. You are still a patient. How can you go up to help deliver a baby? No man goes into the delivery room. Quickly lie down in the main room; I'll call you once your wife has given birth."
"Wife, can you hear me? Jiao Jiao, you have to hold on; I'm waiting outside for you." Zhang Guoqing panicked, and stopped saying "us" and directly said "me," but no one paid attention. Usually, the young couple would mix up "me" and "us" in their calls. Who would have thought Xiao Wu's wife would be so shocked she'd give birth early? Fortunately, the due date was just a few days away.
Doctor Zhou felt Zhang Guoqing's pulse, then asked if he was feeling dizzy, and checked the injured back of his head. He told the anxious Mother Zhang, Huang Danou, "Nothing serious, this kid's body is strong. Rest more these days, don't rush to work, and nurture the body. If he wants to vomit in the next couple of days, let me know then."
Mother Zhang was overjoyed. This youngest son was her favorite, knowing from a young age to secretly put food from his late grandmother into her mouth. Even at a young age, he knew to look out for her in front of the old lady.
Growing up, he refused to let his mother do heavy or tiring work, and during festive occasions, stuffed the red envelopes, wild fruits, and candies into his mother's pockets.
This youngest son is more considerate than the two daughters in the family. Luckily, there's nothing wrong with his head, otherwise, she would demand blood from Upper Lin Village, even if it meant her death. The three sons in the family, only the youngest is a bit better.
The eldest is too honest, and his wife is also an honest person. The second one only cares about himself, and his wife is also troublesome. See, when Xiao Wu went to Upper Lin Village, he didn't follow, and the eldest wasn't at home; otherwise, he wouldn't need urging. He's like Zhuge Liang coming afterwards. Now who knows where he's gone?
When father and sons go to battle, brothers band together to hunt tigers. If brothers don't help each other, later he won't have the eldest and the youngest to rely on for help. Ah, children are debts...
Anyway, her husband and she had discussed it, and they two old folks will live with the eldest later. After the year, when spring arrives, they will divide the family; once the two sons move out, there'd be no conflicts leading to estrangement among brothers. They say distance makes the heart grow fonder, separation is good too. Secretly give some more money to Xiao Wu, so that they don't worry about him. The two old folks will help the eldest with work, and the eldest's burden won't be heavy. As for the second son, we've already arranged marriage; what more can we offer? Should we worry that he doesn't hand over the secretly earned carpenter's money to the old mother later? The other two sons submit all their earnings.