Chapter 91: Returning to the Village for the New Year — Part 1
Given Sheng Wanze’s career in the military, the family could absolutely not afford to let him be labeled as unfilial. Such a reputation could ruin his standing.
On the first day of the New Year, the family set out early in the morning to catch the bus back to their ancestral hometown. They had two bicycles at home, but that wasn’t nearly enough for five people, so the bus was their only option.
The journey was even more exhausting than the commute to the city. For Sheng Wanyan, this was her first real glimpse of the countryside in this era. Grandpa and Grandma Sheng had once owned a home here, but they had moved away years ago when Father Sheng secured his position in the city.
Because they rarely returned, the old house had fallen into disrepair. Fortunately, the village chief of the Red Flag Second Team was a decent man; he often asked his wife to help sweep and air out the place.
Grandpa Sheng’s own biological brother, however, was not nearly as kind-hearted. Uncle Sheng had approached Grandpa Sheng several times, trying to convince him to “lend” the house to his eldest grandson’s family. His argument was always the same: “Grandpa Sheng, as the boy’s second uncle, you might as well let him stay there. He can look after the place for you since you only visit for five or six days a year.”
Grandpa Sheng had flatly refused every time. He had built that house with his own two hands when he was a young man. Back when the family property was first divided, his own mother had been blatantly partial, leaving Grandpa Sheng with an old shack that was practically collapsing. He and Grandma Sheng had toiled for years to tear it down and rebuild it. Though it was a simple mud-brick house, it was clean and sturdy, even if it had grown a bit musty over the years.
He knew all too well how these “loans” worked. To put it nicely, it was a temporary stay; but as the years passed, the line between guest and owner would blur until the house became theirs. Besides, if his grand-nephew needed a roof over his head, that was a problem for the boy’s own parents to solve. Why should it fall on him, the second uncle, to provide?
After a bumpy bus ride of over three hours, the family finally reached the Hongqi Commune. From there, the only way to reach the village was by ox cart.
Wanyan surveyed the Hongqi Commune of the 1970s. The countryside was profoundly backward; everything felt slow, difficult, and incredibly inconvenient. Since it was the first day of the Lunar New Year, several villagers were waiting with their carts to ferry travelers home.
“Dad, isn’t that Uncle Sheng from our village driving that cart over there?” Father Sheng asked.
He had sharp eyes and recognized the man instantly. He had hitched a ride in that same cart many times as a boy. He was surprised to see that Uncle Sheng—who was nearly his father’s age—was still manning the reins.
Grandpa Sheng looked over and nodded. He and Uncle Sheng were old friends; back when he lived in the village, their families had been very close.
“That’s him. Hurry over, don’t keep them waiting.”
Grandpa Sheng hadn’t seen his old friend in a long time, and a surge of nostalgia hit him. As they approached, Uncle Sheng let out a booming laugh.
“I was starting to get anxious! I thought you old city folks had decided not to come back this year!”
In the Red Flag Second Team, almost everyone shared the surname Sheng. They were all part of the same clan and usually stood united.
“How could I not come back?” Grandpa Sheng huffed, though his eyes were bright. “This is my root!”
“Yes, yes, I know. And this must be your granddaughter? Has she really grown this much?”
Uncle Sheng peered at Wanyan. She had stayed in the village for a few years as a toddler, but her father had moved the family to the city by the time she was three. Wanyan had visited occasionally as a child, but those memories had long since faded.
Uncle Sheng marveled at her. It seemed like only an instant ago she was a little girl running through his house to beg for treats; now, she was a beautiful young lady. He couldn’t help but think how lucky the family was—every child they produced seemed more promising than the last.
“That’s her,” Grandpa Sheng said proudly. “Wanyan, call him Uncle Sheng. You practically lived at his house eating his candy when you were little.”
“Hello, Uncle Sheng,” Wanyan greeted him with a polite smile.
Uncle Sheng’s eyes crinkled. “Good girl, good girl. Come on, climb up! Let’s get you all back to the village.”
He was delighted by her well-mannered greeting. A small part of him felt a twinge of regret that all his own grandsons were already married; otherwise, he would have fought to keep Wanyan as a granddaughter-in-law.
Father and Mother Sheng helped the elders onto the cart first. Once they were settled, Father Sheng climbed up and pulled his wife and daughter after him.
As the ox cart plodded along, Wanyan tried to enjoy the scenery, but the jolting ride soon made her backside ache. There wasn’t much to see beyond endless stretches of mountains and winter fields. Along the way, they picked up a few other villagers heading in the same direction.
Everyone recognized Grandpa and Grandma Sheng, and the cart was soon filled with curious questions about city life. Eventually, the gossip turned toward the marriage prospects of the Sheng children. When the villagers learned that Sheng Wanze was already married, a chorus of disappointed sighs followed.
“Sheng’s wife, your daughter is truly a beauty,” one woman remarked to Mother Sheng. “She’s twenty now, isn’t she?”
Mother Sheng smiled, bracing herself for the inevitable. “Yes, she is.”
“She’ll be twenty-one after the New Year! Why hasn’t she picked a husband yet?”
“If you wait too long, you’ll be left on the shelf. Isn’t the family worried?”
“Exactly! My daughter was married by sixteen,” another added. “The older a woman gets, the less she’s worth in the marriage market.”
The gossiping began in earnest. Mother Sheng kept her expression neutral; she knew this was simply how people in this era thought.
“My son is twenty-two and works at the commune,” one offered. “Perhaps we should set up a blind date?”
“My grandson is a fine choice too,” another chimed in. “Same age as your girl and a teacher at the commune school!”
They were practically ready to call a matchmaker on the spot. A girl with Wanyan’s looks and city credentials was a prize everyone wanted for their own family.
To nip the interest in the bud, Mother Sheng decided to reveal that Wanyan was already spoken for. “There’s no need to worry. My daughter already has a partner.”
“What? She’s engaged?”
“The last time you were here for the wedding, didn’t you say she was single?”
“It’s a recent development,” Mother Sheng lied smoothly. “She’s been dating one of Xiaoze’s comrades for a few months now. They’re planning to finalize things after the New Year.”
Mother Sheng had no intention of letting anyone in the village target her daughter. She had lived in the countryside as a girl; she knew that while the people could be simple and honest, a family could also be torn apart over a single scrap of food. She also knew that a mother-in-law in the village who didn’t bully her daughter-in-law was as rare as a phoenix. Her daughter had the means to live a better life; why should she let her suffer?
“So your future son-in-law is a soldier too? What’s his rank?”
“And I heard your son became a battalion commander. Is that really true?”
