Chapter 5: The Great Boaster

“Do you have industrial coupons for the blanket?” the salesclerk asked.

“I do.” Lin Zhao pulled out several industrial coupons from her satchel.

After purchasing everything she needed, she left amid the envious glances of several salesclerks.

Older folks might think she was wasteful, but which young girl didn’t envy her having endless money to spend?

After leaving the supply and marketing cooperative, Lin Zhao went to the state-run restaurant and bought meat buns—luckily, twelve were left, and she snapped them all up.

She left light, but returned weighed down with bundles; staring at the endless road ahead, she felt weary—but thankfully, she was naturally strong, so carrying all this wasn’t a burden.

Halfway home, she heard someone calling her name from behind.

Lin Zhao turned and saw a girl in her early twenties cycling toward her, shouting: “Lin Zhao.”

This was the first time Lin Zhao had met the protagonist’s stepmother from the book since her awakening.

Su Yuxian.

She was Lin Zhao’s foil.

Though she knew she couldn’t blame Su Yuxian, seeing her still stirred something uneasy in Lin Zhao; scenes from the book flashed through her mind, making it impossible to pretend nothing had happened.

She was the foil—dead, yet still dragged out for “whipping the corpse”!

How unfair!

Lin Zhao screamed inwardly: Don’t come any closer.

But she couldn’t stop Su Yuxian from approaching.

“Lin Zhao, you’re in town too? Hop on, I’ll give you a ride.” Su Yuxian dismounted, the net bag hanging from the handlebars swaying back and forth.

Lin Zhao only wanted to stay as far away as possible from the book’s protagonist: “No thanks, I’ve got too much to carry—I’ll walk slowly.”

Hearing this, Su Yuxian glanced casually at Lin Zhao’s bundles, and the amusement in her eyes dimmed slightly.

Everyone in the brigade envied Lin Zhao’s life, and of course she was no exception; seeing Lin Zhao haul home so many bundles, she couldn’t help feeling sour.

But this woman was foolish—she didn’t even care for her own son; when she grew old, she’d end up worse off, possibly even begging on the streets.

“I see. Well then, I’ll go ahead. You walk slowly.”

Lin Zhao replied: “Alright.”

Su Yuxian smiled at her, stepped on the pedal with her left foot, took a few strides, mounted the bike, and soon vanished from Lin Zhao’s sight.

Lin Zhao felt a flicker of pity in Su Yuxian’s eyes just now.

Pity?

Given their current situations, that made no sense.

Must’ve been a mistake.

Lin Zhao didn’t dwell on it; she had no interest in the book’s plot—she only wanted to raise her children safely and keep her family unharmed.

Fengshou Brigade, village entrance.

Erzai stared eagerly down the path, telling Dazai: “Brother, why hasn’t Mom come yet? She’s so slow.”

“Mom’s carrying things, so she walks slowly,” Dazai said, eyes fixed on the road to the county town—he’d never been to the county town before; he wondered if Mom would take him next time she went.

Erzai thought his brother made sense; he sighed and squatted on the ground, playing with a stick.

He hadn’t played long when his brother shouted “Mom!”—by the time Erzai looked up, Dazai had already vanished from the spot, sprinting toward the distant figure.

“Brother, wait for me!” Erzai leapt up, feet like whirlwheels, running fast.

Lin Zhao saw the two children sprinting toward her, recognized them as her own, and shouted: “Slow down, don’t fall!”

Dazai slowed at his mother’s words, but Erzai was unstoppable—his determination to reach the meat buns overrode all caution, and in a blink he passed his brother.

Seeing his brother overtake him, Dazai sped up again.

Lin Zhao, watching the whole scene: “...”

Erzai dashed up to Lin Zhao, looked up at her expectantly: “Mom, are there meat buns?” His mouth watered at the word “meat.”

That meat-obsessed brat.

“Yes,” Lin Zhao scowled at Erzai.

She was nearly cooked alive from heat and exhaustion, and this kid didn’t care for his own mother—only thought of his meat buns.

Dazai took the bundles from Lin Zhao’s hands: “Mom, let me carry them.”

Lin Zhao’s eyes softened with a smile; her heart felt as sweet as honey.

“No, they’re heavy—I’ll carry them myself.”

Dazai refused to let go, his face stubborn: “I can help Mom.”

“I can help Mom too,” Erzai seized every chance to assert himself, just like his brother.

Seeing how determined the brothers were, Lin Zhao gave them the lighter bags, saying: “Fine, you two are thoughtful—I didn’t buy you new shoes for nothing.”

Erzai’s eyes lit up instantly: “New shoes? You bought them for us?”

Dazai also looked at his mother expectantly.

Lin Zhao looked down at their cloth shoes—blackened, with big toes sticking out; clearly, Gu Mu had been too busy lately to mend them.

“Do you think I’d lie to you?”

Erzai bluntly called her out: “Mom, you used to lie to me and Brother all the time.”

Lin Zhao denied it: “I never did.”

Erzai said: “You used to sneak eat cookies and told us you didn’t eat any.”

“...” Embarrassing memory. Lin Zhao cleared her throat and spoke softly: “I did it for your own good—cookies aren’t good for kids. I ate them secretly so you wouldn’t beg for them.”

Erzai laughed loudly: “Mom’s lying! Me and Brother aren’t kids anymore—we don’t believe you.”

Lin Zhao had no face left; she smiled faintly: “Oh? If you’re not kids anymore, then you don’t deserve these new shoes I bought—shall I give them to Sanzai and Sizai instead?”

At this, Erzai instantly lost his bravado: “Mom, Mom, I’m a kid, I’m a kid!”

Dazai thought his brother was dumb—Mom bought these shoes for them, not for Sanzai and Sizai, who couldn’t even fit into them; Mom was just teasing him.

Lin Zhao wiped sweat from her face and led the way forward: “Hurry up, let’s go home—it’s sweltering.”

The two boys followed behind, energized by the thought of new shoes.

Back home, the three of them put down their things; Dazai rushed into the kitchen and quickly returned with a bowl of cold boiled water: “Mom, drink.”

Lin Zhao had been thirsty from the walk; her throat felt like smoke—she gulped down several mouthfuls before calming down.

Then she patted Dazai’s rosy cheeks, her gaze gentle: “Thank you, Dazai.”

At that moment, Erzai brought over a basin and said to Lin Zhao: “Mom, wash your face.”

The twins knew their mother well—they knew the first thing she’d do upon returning home was wash up. To get to the meat buns faster, the two boys treated her like a landlady.

Lin Zhao accepted their care without guilt.

Only after washing her face did she feel truly comfortable.

“Finally, relief—I’m exhausted. I need a bicycle.”

Next time I write, I’ll make Gu Chenghuai find a way to get me coupons!

Dazai hesitated, asking: “Mom, is the county town fun?”

“It’s fine once you get used to it—probably fun for kids like you,” Lin Zhao sighed and smiled.

Dazai wanted to ask if Mom would take him to the county town next time, but the words died on his lips.

“Mom, can you take me and Brother to the county town?” Erzai grinned at Lin Zhao.

“If you’re good, it’s not out of the question,” Lin Zhao pinched Erzai’s cheek—the boy was thin, his face lacking flesh, but soft—perfect to pinch.

Erzai, being generous, let her pinch him, grinning with a row of bright white teeth.

“I’m good, Brother and I are both good, right, Brother?” He looked to his brother, bolstering his side.

Dazai nodded, gazing at Lin Zhao with adoration.

Erzai added quickly: “It’s a deal—liar’s a puppy.”

The clever little brat made sure to set a formal agreement with conditions.

“Alright,” Lin Zhao replied with a smile.

Dazai smiled too, lips pressed together.

Lin Zhao beamed: “If you help me with chores, I’ll reward you two little men with good things.”

The boys were used to chores and gladly traded labor for rewards.

But...

“What kind of reward, Mom?” Erzai asked eagerly.

“Anything you eat or use—you can choose later,” Lin Zhao knew she wasn’t built for hardship; better to cultivate the children.

Erzai thought that was fine, but he didn’t forget his brother: “Brother, what do you think?”

Dazai nodded: “I think it’s fine.”

He and Erzai already did chores; Mom offering rewards in return was her way of being kind to them—he understood.

Preschoolers without kindergarten had just completed their self-negotiation.

Erzai stared at the bags Lin Zhao brought back, speaking with perfect confidence: “Mom, where are the meat buns? I’m hungry.”

Lin Zhao reached into the bag, rummaged around, pulled out two buns, and handed them to her sons.

“Meat buns!” Erzai shouted.

Dazai was happy too, but he was a reserved boy—he didn’t show excitement, only his eyes, so like Lin Zhao’s, curved with delight.

Erzai had never eaten a meat bun before, and these were bought by his mother—meaning even more. Remembering how villagers said Mom didn’t like them, he glanced around and called to Dazai: “Brother, let’s go play.”

Dazai was his twin—he knew what Erzai was planning the moment he lifted his butt.

He too wanted to prove to everyone that Mom loved them.

So he told Lin Zhao, then ran out the door with Erzai.

They ran straight to the big banyan tree at the village edge; this tree, two hundred years old, had sprawling roots and branches, standing tall and vigorous.

Under the tree, a group of children squatted with their backsides in the air, catching cicada nymphs.

Erzai marched over, proud and bold, one hand holding a meat bun, the other mimicking his grandfather’s posture behind his back. He didn’t dart into the group of children, just took a small bite, then shouted loudly to his brother: “Brother, these meat buns are delicious!”

Dazai also said: “They’re tasty—bite in and your mouth is full of grease.”

Meat buns...!?

Hearing those three words, the children’s mouths watered. They all turned their heads at once and saw the white flour buns in Dazai and Erzai’s hands—their eyes widened instantly.

“Twins, where’d you get those meat buns?” Tie Niu, the grandson of the brigade captain, dashed over to Dazai and Erzai, his face brimming with envy.

He’d eaten meat buns during the New Year—they were so good.

Dazai’s face glowed red, his voice twice as loud as usual: “My mom bought them for us!”

Erzai joined in loudly: “Mom also bought us return shoes for us!”

The children had never heard of return shoes; the older ones had heard of them but didn’t believe the twins’ mother would buy them such things.

The kid leader Changsheng sneered: “Liar! My mom says a pair of return shoes costs three or four yuan—three or four yuan can buy a lot of meat. Your mom doesn’t care about you, she’d never buy you return shoes. You’re the king of liars! The twins are king of liars!”

Erzai was furious. He bit hard into the meat bun, as if biting the person who insulted him, and puffed out: “I’m not a liar! Mom said she bought them for us!”

“Mom never neglected us!” Dazai also said angrily.

“Who believes you? My mom says your mom’s a lazy hag, does nothing but eat, and when she gets old, she’ll fall into a stinking ditch and drown.” The eight-year-old brat stuck out his tongue at Dazai and Erzai, deliberately provoking them, though his eyes kept glancing at their buns, swallowing saliva nonstop.

He refused to admit he was a little envious of the twins.

Erzai had a short temper. Hearing Changsheng’s words, he flew into a rage, shoved the bun into his brother’s hand, and lunged hard into the boy speaking—unprepared, the boy tumbled straight to the ground.

That wasn’t enough. Erzai raised his tiny fist, no bigger than a sandbag, and pounded the boy hard.

“You insult my mom! You insult my mom!” Each punch came with a shout, fierce and furious.

A passing youth saw the children fighting and found it amusing. He stood still to watch.

These little kids fought with a fierce, almost cute ferocity—faces contorted with maximum effort, teeth bared, as if they wanted to tear each other apart, but in truth, they had little real strength.

After fighting for a long time, not a single face turned red.

When he saw the two children start biting each other’s faces, the man stepped forward, grabbed each by the scruff, and forcibly pulled them apart.

“Enough, enough. If you bite each other’s faces open, you’ll never find a bride.”

“Especially you.” The youth looked at Changsheng. “You’re already ugly—if you lose a chunk of flesh from your face, you’ll become a permanent bachelor.”

Changsheng was furious, ready to bite him, stomping his foot: “Uncle!”

The man ignored him. Just as he turned to leave, he saw Lin Zhao walking toward them.

Sensing the odd atmosphere—Dazai’s face tight, Erzai’s blazing with anger—Lin Zhao asked in surprise: “What happened?”

They were fine when they left home.

Erzai had just finished fighting with an older kid. Seeing his mother, he felt guilty. He grabbed Dazai’s arm, his eyes pleading, silently begging his brother not to tell their mother about the fight.

Dazai didn’t want to speak either—fighting wasn’t a good thing.

But there were other children nearby.

Tie Niu spoke quickly: “Erzai fought with Brother Changsheng!”

Erzai was livid, glaring at him: “Tie Niu, why are you tattling?!”

Tie Niu looked confused, innocent: “I’m not tattling! Your mom asked!”

“Why did you fight?” Lin Zhao asked curiously. She didn’t think children fighting was anything unusual—children’s disputes should be settled by children themselves; adult intervention changed the nature of it.

Erzai lowered his head, silent, fists clenched tight, expression fierce.

Dazai’s face showed anxiety—he wanted to explain but didn’t know how, his lips turning pale with tension.

Seeing neither child would speak, Lin Zhao didn’t press. She only said: “Fine, don’t tell me. I’m going to the old house to talk about building a new one. Are you coming?”

Dazai froze. “Mom, aren’t you mad at us?”

“Why would I be mad?” Lin Zhao said coolly. “Which child doesn’t fight? I know you’re good kids—you never start fights unless provoked.”

Mom said they were good kids.

The gloom in Dazai and Erzai’s hearts lifted. Light sparkled in their eyes, their small faces glowing like the rising sun.

“Let’s go.” Erzai took half the bun from his brother’s hand, grinned, and sidled up to Lin Zhao, grabbing her hand. Seeing she didn’t pull away, he beamed with joy.

“Let’s go! Back to the old house!” Erzai’s voice brimmed with pure delight.