Chapter 249: “unless It’s Bad News”
In that instant of falling, his waist cracked with a creak.
Zhao Old Man tried to crawl up, but a stabbing pain came from his old waist, and he fell back into the mud pit again.
The wind was cold, the rain chilling, and he felt himself to be utterly unlucky.
He hated Zhao Liuniang with venom.
His mouth spewed unclean curses.
“You money-losing good-for-nothing, unfilial rotten thing, relying on your husband’s family to disgrace this old man of yours, just wait for me, sooner or later I’ll make your mother pay…”
He cursed for quite a while until the tattered cotton-padded jacket on Zhao Old Man was completely soaked, chilling him so much that his upper and lower teeth clattered together, making a da-da-da-da-da sound.
Only then did he think to shout for help.
“Is anyone there? Help! Help!!!”
Zhao Old Man shouted, but in such heavy rain, who would come out? Even those hurrying along passed by hastily, and with the rain so loud roaring in the ears, no cries for help could be heard.
Unable to call anyone, Zhao Old Man had to think of a method to save himself. He crawled upward bit by bit, his speed as slow as a snail.
He finally crawled out and, to shelter from the rain, huddled under a thick tree.
Zhao Old Man was drenched all over, shivering from the cold, his brain foggy and dazed.
He was lucky; before passing out, someone passed by.
The man wearing a bamboo hat saw a figure under the tree and halted his steps. On such a rainy day, a person suddenly appearing was quite frightening.
But luckily, he had enough courage.
Muttering red quotations, the man bolstered his courage and stepped forward.
Zhao Old Man sensed someone and awoke from his daze, a glint flashing in his sullen eyes.
“Save me, save me.”
He grabbed the passerby’s trouser leg and pleaded.
It was a human life after all, so the man said nothing, took off his bamboo hat, put it on Zhao Old Man’s head, and carried him on his back.
Zhao Old Man’s waist was injured, and even a slight tug made him cry out in pain.
“Easy, my waist!!”
The man lightened his movements, thinking to himself, what trouble.
For the sake of it being an elderly person, he didn’t say it aloud and instead shouted loudly, “Where’s your home?”
Zhao Old Man named the brigade.
Hearing it was the same direction, the man’s tense expression eased.
“In such heavy rain, why did you go out?”
At these words, Zhao Old Man remembered the things he had scraped up and began to struggle.
“My things, my things…” he shouted anxiously.
The young man carrying him stopped, wiped the rain from his face, feeling irritated. “What things?”
He had given the bamboo hat to Zhao Old Man; his own hair was all wet, icy cold, and he was freezing, desperately wanting to go home and warm by the fire.
“In the channel, things my daughter gave me in filial piety.” Zhao Old Man said.
“In such heavy rain, forget the things, you need to get home and shelter from the rain.” The man shouted.
At this point, he somewhat regretted stepping forward.
This person was pure trouble!
“No, my things.” Zhao Old Man struggled vigorously.
The young man couldn’t hold him and had to set him down first. With the mindset of seeing the rescue through to the end, he went down into the channel to find the things the troublesome old man had mentioned.
Luckily, his shoe legs were tied with waterproof urea bags, or he wouldn’t have gone into the ditch.
Helping others had its limits.
Being young and strong after all, the young man dragged the things from the channel.
“These, right?” he shouted.
The rain grew heavier, bean-sized raindrops falling on his head, stunning his senses.
“Right.” Zhao Old Man pulled them to his side.
The young man hoisted him up again and trudged step by step through the mud toward the brigade.
The rain had been falling for a good while; the dirt road was all wet. Stepping down sank into it, and pulling out took great effort. Carrying a drenched person made it even harder.
The young man’s face was wet; he didn’t know if it was rain or sweat from exhaustion. He only knew to keep going forward, wanting to get home quickly.
Coarse earthworms emerged on the dirt road, toads hopping freely.
No one on the road, stretching endlessly into the distance.
The young man gritted his teeth and quickened his pace.
Zhao Old Man couldn’t help sighing, “You really need a son; having a son is truly great.”
His terrible experiences in Fengshou Brigade flashed in his mind, wrinkling that tree-bark face of his.
The young man: “?”
He said nothing, walking with difficulty.
Luckily, he was used to heavy labor, strong, and could carry a person, stepping forward one footprint at a time.
Time passed.
The young man’s hair was soaked through, his upper jacket drenched.
Finally, they reached the brigade where the troublesome old man lived.
“Which way to your house?” The young man turned his head and shouted loudly.
Zhao Old Man was nearly asleep and was jolted awake by the voice.
He vaguely pointed in a direction.
“Straight ahead.”
The young man: “…” This was a true grandpa.
He resignedly kept going forward.
At last, he saw someone passing hurriedly.
He hurriedly called out to the person, his voice still hoarse.
“Wait!”
The person about to run home stopped abruptly and looked over. “What?”
The rain was so heavy, they had to shout to be heard.
Through the curtain of rain, the figure was indistinct.
The young man took a few steps forward to shelter under the eaves. He set down Zhao Old Man and said with a sigh of relief, “This grandpa is from your brigade, right?”
Up close, the villager recognized Zhao Old Man’s familiar face.
“Yeah, that’s our village’s Zhao Grandpa. What’s wrong with him? Did you hit him?” The speaker looked suspiciously at the young man.
The young man stared in disbelief. Just as he was about to speak, a gleam flashed in Zhao Old Man’s turbid eyes. He grabbed the young man’s drenched cotton-padded clothes and shouted, “Right, this guy who hit me!!”
“Pity me at such an old age, pushed into the channel, wrenching my waist, ouch, it hurts me to death…” He wailed.
The young man was dumbfounded.
Stunned in place.
It took him half a day to recover.
He turned to look at Zhao Old Man, his expression serious. “Grandpa, you must have it wrong. You fell into the channel yourself; I saved you.”
“No, you pushed me.” Zhao Old Man stressed. “My waist is injured; you have to compensate me.”
The young man was shocked.
Wasn’t he doing a good deed? How did he suddenly become the culprit?!
He had a bellyful of curses he wanted to spew.
“I didn’t push you; you fell when I passed by.” The young man’s emotions were still stable; he just thought this old grandpa had a bad memory.
“It was you who pushed me. If not you, why would you carry me back? It was you; you have to pay up, or don’t think about leaving.” Zhao Old Man clung tightly to his jacket, playing the rogue.
The commotion outside alarmed the people inside the house. The family put on rain gear, rushed through the rain curtain, and came to the door.
“What’s going on? What happened? In this heavy rain, not going home, what are you doing here?”
The young lad who had witnessed the farce truthfully described the situation.
The person who had just come out looked down at Zhao Old Man sprawled on the ground. “You were really pushed by someone?”
Zhao Old Man was very angry, straightening up to argue with him, but before he could rise, he cried out in pain.
“Ouch, it hurts me to death.”
He sucked in a cold breath and said, “If not him pushing me, how would I have fallen? It was him who pushed me.”
The young man hurriedly said, “I didn’t push you. How can you be like this? I kindly carried you back, and you frame me. Where do people like you exist? This is a real-life Farmer and the Snake. I’m the farmer, and you’re that ungrateful snake!”
The more he said, the angrier he got. With one strong pull, he yanked back his gripped leg.
Zhao Old Man’s waist hurt terribly; he didn’t dare use force.
He shouted to the villagers, “Quick, hold him! Make him pay! At least… at least five yuan. He hit someone; no pay, no leaving!”
Zhao Old Man’s reputation was rotten; the villagers weren’t sure whether to believe him.
At this hesitant moment, the kind-hearted young man angrily punched Zhao Old Man, snatched back his bamboo hat, and bolted away.
He didn’t even return the things Zhao Old Man had grabbed from his own daughter.
The young man shouted as he ran, “No good deed goes unpunished; you old thing will get retribution sooner or later!”
Seeing him take his things, Zhao Old Man anxiously slapped his thigh. “My things—!”
But he only saw that figure quickly disappear.
Fuming with rage, he glared at the villagers. “What are you all standing around for? Go catch him! He took my things!!”
A young lad from the village said, “He ran so fast; with rain this heavy and mud at every step, how to chase!”
The eaves’ owner nodded. “Yeah, not easy to chase.”
In truth, he half-believed, half-doubted Zhao Old Man’s words.
This black-hearted old man probably wanted to scam that young lad just now.
Utterly rotten to the core.
They couldn’t let a kind heart be disheartened, could they? No chasing, no matter what!
“Forget it; treat those things as a gift of gratitude. He at least brought you back.” He said.
Zhao Old Man was so angry he nearly keeled over.
“That was my daughter being filial to me!” He lay on the ground, his whole body feverish, face red like he’d drunk wine, eyes also red.
Filial piety?!
The people present sneered inwardly.
Robbed, more like?!!
“So what to do? The person’s gone.” The young lad shrugged, his words infuriating. “We don’t even know which way he went; where to chase? We don’t know him either. Besides forgetting it, what method is there?”
His words one by one made Zhao Old Man’s head fill with blood. Burning fiercely, he directly keeled over.
“Oh, what now?” The young lad saw he’d angered Zhao Old Man into fainting and paled in fright.
The house owner squatted down, pinched Zhao Old Man’s philtrum, felt him still burning hot, and exclaimed, “He’s feverish!”
They lifted Zhao Old Man, took him back, stripped off his wet clothes, covered him with that stinking rotten quilt, and boiled herbs for him to drink.
“Should we call the health worker?” The young lad suddenly asked, remembering Zhao Old Man mentioning a waist injury.
The response was another person’s headshake.
The other’s words were grave.
“Rain this heavy, where to get a health worker? And if we do, who pays? You?”
The young lad shook his head hurriedly. “…Why me? I have no money.”
The speaker gave him a “with this, you still want to call a health worker” look, shook his head, put on his bamboo hat, and sauntered off.
Seeing him leave, the young lad shut the door and quickly left too.
In this way, Zhao Old Man’s waist injury was completely delayed.
The next day when he woke, he couldn’t get up.
In fact, his lower body couldn’t move at all.
Having barely endured the night, that face was ashen white, devoid of his usual vigor, like a flayed jackal.
He shouted and yelled.
Smashed things.
To no avail.
His daughter had been abused by him and wasn’t close to him; except at New Year, she never visited.
The neighbors were all at home; who could hear his voice?
He was a terrible person; no one came calling.
Zhao Old Man twisted his body, fell off the bed, crawled to the door, reached a wooden stick, and began knocking.
“Clang clang clang—!”
One sound after another.
Finally, someone heard and knocked on Zhao Family’s door.
“Old Zhao?”
Zhao Old Man had burned all night without even a sip of saliva, his voice hoarse and slurred.
He tried to make a sound, but failed.
Continued knocking.
The person at the door was puzzled.
After hesitating a good while, he pushed the door open and entered.
Seeing Zhao Old Man covered in mud sprawled on the ground, he hurried over. “Old Zhao, what happened to you?”
Zhao Old Man couldn’t speak, pointing to his waist.
The visitor had a decent relationship with him, told him to wait, called his own son, and helped Zhao Old Man onto the bed.
Then instructed his son to call the health worker.
Health workers at this time were mostly trained for a few months then posted, learning on the job while treating patients.
For Zhao Old Man’s severe condition, the health worker naturally couldn’t handle it.
He didn’t treat blindly either, prescribing some fever-reducing and painkilling medicine, suggesting the patient go to the county hospital.
Zhao Old Man was unwilling to spend his hard-earned savings; at this point, he thought of his several daughters.
…
The instant Zhao Liuniang heard the news, a dark thought bubbled up in her heart.
Why hadn’t he died from the fall?
Would such a scourge keep tormenting them alive?
Heaven’s eye was truly blind!!
Finding an excuse to send off the messenger, Zhao Liuniang pretended to know nothing and busied herself with her own affairs.
Yu Yu was still small, Lai Mei injured; how could she leave?
Lin Zhao heard about this from Gu Mu.
“Second Sister-in-law won’t go back, right?” she asked.
“No.” Gu Mu said. “Lai Mei was bullied that badly; if she goes back, she’s missing brains. Your Second Sister-in-law said from now on, treat it like she has no maternal family.”
Unless villagers reported a death, she wouldn’t set foot in Zhao Family again.
“Mm.” Lin Zhao said no more.
Looks like Second Sister-in-law was still clear-headed.
Gu Mu had been called by Lin Zhao to sew bedding; her hands were nimble, and in the time of speaking, one quilt was already sewn.
“Where to put the sewn one?” she asked.
Lin Zhao stepped forward. “Give it to me; I’ll put it in the cabinet, take it out when it’s colder.”
Gu Mu folded it neatly and handed it to her.
After the daughter-in-law left, she said to Yu Baoheng Bao, “Your mom really cares about you two. Look how thick that quilt is, six jin heavy; no matter how much it snows, you two won’t be cold.”
The twins were currently covered with a thin quilt; when it got cold, they’d take out the thick one to layer on top—unspeakably warm.
Yu Bao had touched that thick quilt; because of it, he no longer feared cold winter.
“Hee hee hee, my mama is the best, and her milk too.” The little friend held the enamel mug, drinking sweet malt extract, delighted.
Heng Bao knew the reason that to make the horse run, you feed the horse grass; he diligently brought Gu Mu a cup.
“Nana, drink malt extract; it’s super sweet. We each got a cup!”
Gu Mu was surprised. “…There’s mine too?”
“Yep.” Heng Bao said. “Everyone’s.”
Yu Bao: “My mama said sewing quilts is hard work.”
“What’s hard about sewing quilts.” Gu Mu’s mouth curved up; clearly very happy. “Sewing for our Yu Baoheng Bao, Nana isn’t tired at all, full of strength.”
She took the enamel mug, uncovered it, steam rising; she blew on it and took a sip. Her already warm body grew warmer, the warmth spreading to limbs and bones—unspeakably comfortable.
Gu Mu busied herself an afternoon, helping Third Branch sew several bedding sets.
Just about to go back and cook, Lin Zhao stuffed her with five jin of cotton.
Gu Mu was puzzled. “What’s this for?”
“For you all.” Lin Zhao said. “Your and Dad’s quilts aren’t warm anymore, right? We have extra cotton; stuff it in…”
Gu Father and Gu Mother’s quilt had indeed been covered for several years; the cotton was hard as a board, not very warming. When it got colder, they relied entirely on the kang; the kang was only comfortable right at bedtime, mornings with icy hands and feet.
Gu Mu took it without refusing, smiling. “Alright, your dad and I will cover a new quilt too.”
