Qingshan Town in Hongxing District, to which Lincun Village belonged, was about a hundred kilometers from Jiangcheng. Half the route was highway and half was uneven country road. The Santana rolled over sunken stones, yet the journey was fairly smooth throughout.
Occasionally a swaying bus rose and fell on the road, shaking as if drunk. One glance through the window was enough to see the crowded people inside, and even chickens and ducks flying about.
Lin Wan had originally planned to take a taxi to the Jiangcheng bus station, then ride a bus back to Qingshan Town. Once in town, there would be many acquaintances, and she could basically catch a tractor back to her hometown village.
This route was bound to be more arduous. Buses were usually packed with people, poultry scratching at one’s feet, the smell of chickens and ducks mixed with all kinds of calls, swaying back and forth on the uneven road. It was truly…
Sitting in the passenger seat of the car, Lin Wan faintly withdrew her gaze. In the spacious carriage, comfortably leaning against the leather seat back, she suddenly felt that the man beside her was truly thoughtful.
Lin Wan again remembered the uncle Fu Mingjun had spoken of. Businessmen were always attentive to everything. Regardless of likes or dislikes, when they handled matters, no one would be dissatisfied.
Just like now.
The Santana sped along the whole way, yet steadily, until after driving on the highway, Fu Xiuhuai deliberately slowed down somewhat, so that Lin Wan still did not feel jolted.
“Up ahead turn left…” Lin Wan stared closely at the road home and was just about to remind him how to turn around when she saw Fu Xiuhuai had already made the choice.
The man held the steering wheel with both hands, eyes on the road ahead, turning deftly, as familiar with the route as if returning to his own home.
Not only this one place. At subsequent forks in the road, Fu Xiuhuai also drove skillfully. Lin Wan, a local, was completely useless.
Even after passing Qingshan Town, Fu Xiuhuai surprisingly knew clearly even how to get to Lincun Village.
Lin Wan could no longer sit still, full of curiosity: “How do you know how to drive this road?”
Fu Xiuhuai held the steering wheel and slowed down on the final stretch of bumpy mountain road. Hearing this, he said: “I came before.”
“You’ve been to Lincun Village?” Lin Wan could not help but be astonished.
“Mm.” Fu Xiuhuai turned his head and gave Lin Wan a deep look.
After Lin Wan’s surprise, on second thought, Fu Mingjun had also come to Lincun Village before. That his uncle had come too seemed not so bizarre after all.
The car tires slowly rolled, raising wave after wave of dust in the mountains, attracting a group of children to follow behind, chasing the road as if watching a spectacle.
Lin Wan leaned out the window for a look. Seeing several familiar faces, she quickly told Fu Xiuhuai to stop the car.
“Sister Wanwan!”
“It really is Sister Wanwan! Sister Wanwan, you’re back!”
“Have you finished university? Is university fun?”
“Wow, this car is so pretty! It’s a four-wheeled car!”
Lin Wan leaned over, grabbed two handfuls of candy from the plastic bags in the back seat, and handed them out: “Tiedan, Tiehua, Niuniu… you’ve all grown taller. Tiehua, share the candy with everyone.”
“Wow, so much candy.”
“Thank you, Sister Wanwan!”
Two handfuls of colorful candy were placed in Tiehua’s hands: WoWo milk candy, White Rabbit creamy candy, Xu Fu Ji crispy heart candy… making the group of children’s eyes shine.
A moment later, the car started again. This time it stopped steadily at the gate of Lin Wan’s uncle’s house, the home of Lin Guofu’s elder brother Lin Guoyou.
In Lin Wan’s memory, the last time she had come home was more than half a year ago, during the New Year in January. Missing her family, as soon as the car stopped she immediately opened the door and ran toward her aunt, who was drying a yard full of corn.
“Auntie!”
Lin Wan trotted over to Zhou Guihua’s side, affectionately wrapping her arms around her aunt’s arm. On her face was a rare expression of a little daughter.
Fu Xiuhuai lagged a few steps behind, watching from afar this seldom-seen lively side of Lin Wan. He could not bear to go up and disturb her, only silently taking out the large and small bags of gifts from the back seat.
“Wanwan! Brother Huai!” Lin Chengwei came out from the inner room carrying a harrow, ready to go out to work. Seeing the two people appear in the yard, he was momentarily overjoyed.
Family reuniting was an extra surprise.
Lin Chengwei hurried to the fields to call back his father Lin Guoyou, who was harvesting corn, and also found a villager about to go to town to send word to his second younger sister Lin Hong, who was still working at the sugar factory.
Lin Wan held her uncle with one hand and supported her aunt with the other, her brows and eyes smiling into curved moons. She did not forget to call out: “Elder brother, quickly help carry the things.”
Zhou Guihua was small in stature, but because she worked year-round she was very strong. Due to too much wind and sun, she visibly looked five or six years older than Chen Qiuhong of the same age.
It was just that her facial features were different. Zhou Guihua patted Lin Wan’s hand kindly and lovingly: “You girl, just coming back is enough. Why buy things? Wasting money for nothing. Work is not easy, earning money is not easy. Don’t spend money recklessly. Save it well…”
“I know, Auntie.” Lin Wan supported Zhou Guihua’s shoulder and went inside, immediately admitting her fault, firmly resolved not to change.
A bit of a smile appeared on Lin Guoyou’s dark face. He greeted Fu Xiuhuai behind them into the house, then hurried out again to buy meat and alcohol.
“Has Wanwan grown taller? By the way, where is my nephew? How many months?” Lin Chengwei brewed several cups of tea and did not forget to tease the third sister he had watched grow up.
Lin Wan smiled and shot her elder brother a look: “Elder brother, I’m already 21… cough cough, 22 years old. What growing taller? Don’t treat me like a child.”
“Of course you’re a child. I didn’t expect you’d already have a baby.” Lin Chengwei said with some emotion. “But Brother Huai is thirty, so he really should hurry up and become a father. I’m twenty-seven, and my child is already four. I’ve gotten ahead.”
Hearing her son speak without any filter, Zhou Guihua got a headache: “Dawei, what nonsense are you saying! You never act properly all day long. Fu… Xiuhuai, don’t mind him.”
Fu Xiuhuai wore a smile and naturally would not mind: “Dawei is absolutely right. It really is that I am anxious.”
Lin Wan felt her face warm hearing this, but vaguely felt something was off.
A few seconds later, she finally reacted. She quietly moved close to Lin Chengwei, who was rummaging through the cabinet for candy and pastries to entertain guests, and whispered: “Elder brother, what did you call him? Brother Huai?”
By seniority, shouldn’t Fu Xiuhuai be his brother-in-law?
Lin Chengwei laughed brightly, flashing a mouthful of white teeth: “Your man is older than me. If he were an ordinary person, I’d take advantage and call him brother-in-law. But with that aura, could I say it? Don’t worry about our business. He treats me as his elder brother-in-law, I treat him as my brother. Each manages his own.”
Lin Wan: “…”
Seeing her elder brother’s attitude, Lin Wan could not help being curious: “Elder brother, you’re quite satisfied with Fu Xiuhuai?”
Lin Wan remembered that when she was dating Fu Mingjun in her junior year, she had only briefly mentioned it to her family during the New Year. Except for her aunt, the others did not know Fu Mingjun’s name and identity.
Lin Chengwei shook his head and swayed it, somewhat emotional: “I wasn’t satisfied at first. An old man eight years older than you, I was really ready to hit someone… But Brother Huai is different. He really has ability. Look at his appearance and aura. He handles everything in every aspect. You girl have good taste.”
Even the hardest-to-deal-with elder brother had been won over? Lin Wan marveled.
At dinner time, a round wooden table was set up in the Lin family yard. The whole family sat around in a circle. Even Lin Hong, who was in town, hurried back, occasionally touching Lin Wan’s belly and whispering with her.
The Moutai Fu Xiuhuai had brought had its cap opened. Several cups of white liquor were poured. The dishes on the table were plentiful, and smoke curled around.
Zhou Guihua and Lin Guoyou, the couple, did the cooking. Everything they made was Lin Wan’s favorite food, except fish was not served.
“You used to like fish the most. These past few months you haven’t been able to eat it.” Lin Hong teased her younger sister. “Hold on.”
Lin Wan smiled and ate the twice-cooked pork her aunt had stir-fried, her mouth full of fragrance: “There are other things to eat. I don’t crave fish anymore.”
On this trip back, Lin Wan distributed one by one the clothes she had bought for family members. Every piece hit the family’s hearts. Only her uncle and aunt repeatedly told her not to spend money on things. Lin Wan let it go in one ear and out the other: “I know. Next time I definitely won’t buy anything.”
Lin Guoyou and Zhou Guihua felt somewhat comforted.
Not two seconds later, however, Lin Wan muttered softly again: “Wait until I save a few more months of wages, then buy again.”
Lin Guoyou & Zhou Guihua: “…”
Lin Wan smiled slyly and clung to her elders’ arms, acting spoiled. The dimples at the corners of her lips appeared faintly, and starlight dotted the depths of her eyes. It was a rare liveliness, and Fu Xiuhuai stared, dazed.
Around nine at night, the village sky was dark, and all around was silent. A fine drizzle began to fall.
Wind and rain mixed together, pattering against the glass windows, leaving little marks.
“I hurried to clean up your room. The quilt newly made for the New Year, still embroidered with peonies.” Zhou Guihua bustled about, having Chengwei and Lin Hong clean and change things together, and fixed up the small room where Lin Wan used to live.
The room of six or seven square meters was neither large nor small. The walls had been repainted and were fairly neat. A one-and-a-half-meter small bed leaned against the corner. Beside it was a desk with peeling edges. On the desk were still Lin Wan’s books from elementary school through middle and high school, stacked in a thick pile.
The family reminisced and spoke intimate words for quite a while. Deep in the night, when Lin Wan chatted about daily matters with her elder brother and second sister, Fu Xiuhuai listened to his mother-in-law Zhou Guihua say: “Wanwan has a stubborn temperament and is rigid too. Be more tolerant of her.”
Fu Xiuhuai smiled at this: “I have not seen her stubborn and rigid side. It would be nice to see it sometime.”
Zhou Guihua knew clearly in her heart: “She keeps everything inside. Others can’t see it. Back when my second brother and his wife left her in the countryside, she did not cry or make a fuss. Later, when they said they wanted to transfer her to us by adoption, she did not make a fuss either. If I hadn’t gone to cut pig grass, I wouldn’t have discovered her secretly hiding and wiping her tears.”
Fu Xiuhuai was silent for a moment: “Auntie, rest assured. I will not let her secretly hide and cry.”
“Your temperament is steady. I am at ease.” Zhou Guihua was satisfied in her heart. After smoothing the bedding, she immediately said, “I’ll go call Wanwan over. That girl and her elder brother and second sister can talk endlessly.”
After birth, Lin Wan had lived in her uncle’s home. She had been watched growing up by Lin Chengwei and Lin Hong. The two treated her as their own younger sister. When Lin Wan was nine and was directly transferred into the household register by adoption, the two were not old, and they were quite happy, thinking that now Lin Wan had truly become their own younger sister.
Lin Chengwei and Lin Hong, one having graduated elementary school and the other middle school, were both not very good at studying. Watching Lin Wan go all the way through the college entrance examination and into university, they were beyond happy. Every few days they even liked to send Lin Wan living expenses. Whenever they met someone, they would mention that they had a university-student younger sister.
On this trip back, besides bringing many good things for the family, Lin Wan had also prepared to discuss with her elder brother and second sister whether they should consider finding work in the city.
Nowadays, farming for a year could only guarantee food and clothing. Working outside for a month could earn as much as a farmer’s income for a year. The gap was truly too large. If there was a chance, she still hoped her family could live a good life.
But Lin Wan had just started working at the garment factory, so she could only pay more attention in ordinary times to whether there were recruitment situations. If there was something suitable, she would immediately contact her elder brother and second sister.
“Elder brother farms in the countryside, second sister is at the sugar factory. The treatment cannot compare with the city. It’s still better to go to the city to find work. There are more opportunities.” Lin Wan stated her thoughts and prepared to persuade them a little.
Hearing this, Lin Chengwei and Lin Hong looked at each other and smiled. Lin Hong pressed the back of her hand to her younger sister’s forehead: “No fever. Why are you saying the exact same thing again?”
Lin Wan was baffled. Then she heard Lin Chengwei laugh out loud: “You girl are really forgetful. Three months ago you said the exact same thing. Now you’re saying it again. We already agreed long ago. If there’s a chance, we’ll go into the city too! Anyway, Erhong’s job is almost settled. Didn’t Brother Huai say his elder brother’s steel plant has a position opening up and she can report there in mid-October? I won’t trouble your man. It’s not good to owe too many favors. I’m thinking of going into the city to do a little business too, see about selling some food, or go to a construction site and do some hauling or whatever.”
Surprised that she herself three months ago had said the exact same thing, Lin Wan then thought about it and understood.
Yes. No matter when, she would always make the same decision, wanting to slowly bring her family to the city too.
But Fu Xiuhuai had actually helped arrange second sister’s job?
Lin Wan did not dare ask too much, worried about exposing herself. After a little inquiry, she learned that second sister would report to the steel plant in mid-October. Although it was a temporary worker position, the wages were more than half again as much as a temporary worker at the sugar factory. She was happy for her too.
The three gathered in the room, chattering like three noisy mountain sparrows. Zhou Guihua, who came over, laughed hearing them: “All right. Wanwan just got back and is tired. You two stop clinging to her talking about factories and the city. There are still several days ahead.”
Lin Wan smiled and stood up: “Auntie is right. Better to rest early.”
When Lin Wan came out of second sister’s room and left with her aunt, she heard Zhou Guihua quietly ask her: “How have these few months of marriage been? In your letters you always say good, but I am always uneasy.”
This question truly stumped Lin Wan. She did not even have memories of the past year now. How could she know whether it was good or not?
There seemed to be no problem, yet precisely no solid feeling.
Seeing Lin Wan silent, Zhou Guihua sighed with emotion again: “You and that former classmate Fu… broke up, and now you’ve married his uncle. I was just worried his family would have opinions.”
“Broke up?” Lin Wan was stunned hearing this. “Auntie, did I tell you we broke up?”
“Of course. You came back once before the wedding, and that’s exactly what you said.” Zhou Guihua felt that breaking up with a partner and then turning around to marry the partner’s uncle made it easy for people to seize on for gossip. But since Lin Wan wanted to marry, and she herself had seen Fu Xiuhuai, she had not stopped it anymore. “You young people have big ideas and are not afraid of anything. I was just worried the Fu family would target you.”
“That did not happen.” Lin Wan asked a few more questions in detail. Hearing her aunt mention that she really had said she had already broken up, her heart could not help rising and falling again.
It was possible that she and Fu Mingjun had broken up. But even if they had broken up, how could she have married his uncle?
The Lin family members went back to their rooms and lay down to sleep one after another. Lin Wan walked a few steps to the door of her own room, pushed the door open, and saw the tall figure sitting at her desk.
The one-and-a-half-meter bed beside him was also made to look a bit smaller.
Compared with the broad big bed in the Fu family villa, big enough that even two people sleeping in it could be clearly separated, Lin Wan looked at this small bed, barely enough for two people, and suddenly felt somewhat panicked.