By late December, the weather had turned much colder. During this period, the Wang family had worked quite cohesively – part of their Paopao Bamboo Shoots were sold to the purchasing station, while the rest found their way to the Black Market.
Over the course of nearly a month, they managed to save up about five hundred sixty yuan. The Wang family had almost completely stripped the mountain of its bamboo shoots, making it clear they couldn’t rely on this to build their house.
Fortunately, the Black Soil in the Space had yielded a bountiful harvest. She had made several trips to the Black Market herself, selling considerable amounts of grain, vegetables, and fruits, earning another four to five hundred yuan. Combined with their previous savings, it should be just enough to build two Adobe Houses for each family, with Black Tiles for the roofs.
As she absently poked at the ground with a tree branch while thinking, she saw Tiezhu rushing over in a panic.
“Grandma, grandma! Ninth Uncle is fighting with someone!”
“What? At this hour? How did he get into a fight?”
“I don’t know! Mom and I were waiting for Dad at the village entrance when we heard people fighting. When we looked, it was Ninth Uncle! Grandma, you should go check quickly!”
Tiezhu said while supporting Su Qing’s arm. Except for Sun Guiying who was in confinement after childbirth and Chen Yuzhen who was comforting Taotao, all the adults and children of the Wang family had gone out – some gathering firewood, others searching for Winter Bamboo Shoots. There was practically no one available to help Wang Yongqiang.
By the time the grandmother and grandson arrived, Wang Yongqiang was fiercely engaged in a fight with someone. Zhao Su’e nearby was extremely anxious, wanting to intervene but unable to break free from Zhou Chunxia’s grip.
“Shameless creature! Flirting with my brother-in-law while being intimate with others! I’ll beat you to death, you shameless thing!”
“Ah! Get away from me! Get away now!”
Wang Yongqiang was a street loafer. When he used to hang out with his good-for-nothing friends, he always thought he was something special, but in reality, he was just a weakling. Now that he was being pinned to the ground and beaten, he had no other recourse but to grab his opponent’s hair and yank it violently toward his own face.
By the moonlight, Su Qing could see that if no one intervened soon, the two young men might end up kissing.
After releasing Su Qing, Tiezhu picked up a branch from the ground and began whipping the person beating Wang Yongqiang.
“Get lost, you little bastard! I’m the son of the mining factory director! If any of you dare act tough, I’ll make you regret it!”
Su Qing’s eyes lit up from where she stood nearby. Just when she was worrying about not having enough money to build the house, here came the God of Wealth.
Su Qing looked around on the ground and found a fairly large clod of earth. Gripping it in her hand, she threw it at the young man beating Wang Yongqiang, not forgetting to instruct Tiezhu, “Good grandson, go help your mother! Grandma can handle things here!”
“Okay!” Tiezhu immediately let go and went to help Zhou Chunxia beat up Zhao Su’e.
After hitting the young man twice on the back, he raised his hand and – using the momentum – Su Qing swung the clod of earth in her hand directly at her own forehead.
“Ah~!”
“Mother!”
Wang Haifeng had just returned from selling goods at the Black Market. Hearing the sounds of fighting, he rushed over and saw his mother being knocked to the ground. Dropping the flatbed cart he was carrying, he charged forward.
“Mother, mother! How are you, mother? Please don’t let anything happen to you, mother!”
Wang Haifeng frantically examined the injury on Su Qing’s forehead. It was quite dark, making it genuinely difficult to see clearly. Anxiety made cold sweat break out all over his back.
Su Qing grimaced in pain, her forehead injury not too severe—the main issue was the back of her head. She hadn’t seen clearly when she fell earlier and had hit a rock. Now she felt dizzy, but her hand gently squeezed Wang Haifeng’s and she let out a soft “tsk.”
If there was one person in the Wang family with the most cunning, it wasn’t Wang Haiyang or Wang Weidong, but Wang Haifeng. However, he was used to being invisible and just wanted to live a peaceful life.
With that subtle squeeze from his mother, he immediately understood. Groping around on the ground, he finally found a rock and charged toward the young man. Anyone would be startled by a sudden additional attacker.
But as luck would have it, just as the newcomer rushed over with the rock, about to strike, he suddenly slipped and fell. The rock landed squarely on his own head.
“Ah—!”
“Hahahaha… Wang Yongqiang, look at your family of fools! Still trying to compete with me for Su’e? Damn it, today I’ll make sure you learn your lesson!”
“Ah—! Murder! Sixth Brother, Sixth Brother, are you okay? Zhao Su’e, you troublemaker! If you ruin our Wang family, don’t expect any good to come your way! Tiezhu, go check on your grandmother!”
“Grandma, wake up! Mom, is Grandma dead? Wuwuwu…”
Wang Yongqiang was still rolling on the ground in pain, but upon hearing Tiezhu’s cries and the insults from Zhao Su’e’s lover, he sprang up in a rage.
“You bastard! How dare you hit my mother and my brother? I’ll fight you to the death, you scoundrel… I’ll strangle you, pull out your hair, make you go bald!”
The commotion quickly caught the attention of the Hongxing Production Team’s Commune Members. Wang Haiyang, who had just returned from work, was summoned over. He was about to demand an explanation when he heard his wife and children’s voices, along with Old Ninth shouting for their mother.
Glancing down, he saw an elderly woman lying on the ground, with someone else nearby. Moving closer, he recognized Wang Haifeng, and his heart sank.
“Mom, Mom, how are you? Wake up! Sixth Brother, Sixth Brother, are you okay? Folks, hurry and hitch the ox cart! We need to get them to the town clinic—no, to the county hospital! Any delay could cost lives!”
Upon hearing “cost lives,” Wu Dakui’s legs turned to jelly. He backed away, ready to flee, but Wang Haiyang grabbed him by the collar.
“I’m Wang Haiyang, captain of the town security team. You’re suspected of attempted murder of two individuals. Come with me to the station.”
“Ah—! It wasn’t me! I didn’t kill anyone! The old woman’s health is poor—I just blocked her! And this man—I never laid a hand on him! He hit himself! Really, comrade, I’m not lying!”
“Hah, do you even believe that yourself?”
“Besides, you attacked my own mother and brother. Even if you don’t die today, I’ll strip a layer of skin off you!”
Wu Dakui and Zhao Su’e were immediately taken to the county public security bureau. With Wang Haiyang pulling strings, they were interrogated overnight. Meanwhile, Wang Baoguo, Qian Maizi, Wang Weidong, Liu Aijun, and all the other filial descendants rushed to the hospital. Seeing the old woman’s pale face and the bandage wrapped around her head, the more timid among them had already begun to weep.
Su Qing woke to find a circle of people gathered around her bed. Her head throbbed painfully as her gaze swept across the room, finally settling on Wang Weidong.
“Mother, mother, you’ve suffered so much.”
Wang Weidong’s voice trembled as he spoke these words. His mother hadn’t forgiven him yet – if she were gone, he would never find peace in this lifetime.
“Everyone else, please step out first. I have something to say to Third Son.”
Wang Baoguo wanted to stay, but Wang Juxiang pulled him out. Grandma was still weak – at times like this, they should just listen to what she said.
Only Su Qing and Wang Weidong remained in the hospital room, along with Wang Haifeng who was sound asleep nearby. Su Qing beckoned to him, “Third Son, your mother has an important task for you. The kind of life our family will have in the future depends entirely on you now.”