When Chen Yang came out of the mall, he saw a blue floral dress.
From a modern perspective, this dress was incredibly outdated. But at the time, it was priced at 22 yuan.
Chen Yang thought for a moment and felt that with Lin Anyu's looks and figure, she would definitely look very beautiful in it. He silently wrote it down and walked out of the mall.
Besides buying fabric, Chen Yang also bought some vegetables, a bottle of sesame oil, and some pastries. Even better, he spent four cents to exchange for a cigarette coupon so he could buy his dad a pack of Daqianmen cigarettes.
Chen Yang had thought about it: if his father didn't accept the Daqianmen cigarettes, he would keep them for himself.
In total, Chen Yang spent thirteen yuan. Only five yuan was left. He tucked the five yuan into his waistband, hoisted his fully loaded basket, and returned to Niujiawan.
Back home, it was almost noon. After entering, he discovered that his father, Chen Yuanchao, was sitting in the yard, puffing on his pipe.
Facing his father, Chen Yang felt somewhat apprehensive. He put down the basket and looked around, but couldn't find his mother. Then he tiptoed up to Chen Yuanchao.
"Dad, where's Mom?"
"Your mother went to work in the fields. Where have you been gallivanting off to again?" Chen Yuanchao glared at him with annoyance.
Originally, Chen Yuanchao was supposed to go to the field to harvest sweet potatoes again that night, but Liu Shufang, understanding her husband's hard work, had insisted that the two of them take turns. So Chen Yuanchao stayed at home to look after Lin Anyu – and hadn't seen his son all morning.
Seeing Chen Yang carrying a basket that seemed full of things, Chen Yuanchao suspected the brat had gone to steal chickens and dogs.
"Dad, what are you saying? How could I steal something in broad daylight?"
"That's true, you're not that stupid –" Chen Yuanchao jumped to his feet, glaring with wide eyes. "You really went to steal chickens and dogs?"
Chen Yang was speechless. He opened his basket and took out twenty catties of millet and ten catties of rapeseed.
"Dad, take a closer look. Do we have any of these things in our village? Even if I wanted to steal them, there's no one to steal from."
To be honest, no single household in Niujiawan could gather that much millet and rapeseed.
Then Chen Yang took out a roll of bright blue new cloth from his basket. The brand-new material was so dazzling it hurt Chen Yuanchao's eyes – it looked like it was worth at least several dollars. His heart clenched suddenly.
"Chen Yang, tell me honestly, where did this cloth come from? Did you steal it?"
"Dad, if I stole anything, you can kick me out of the house."
"You think I don't want to?" As he spoke, Chen Yuanchao gripped his old pipe tightly.
Seeing his father was about to lose his temper, Chen Yang took a step back immediately.
"Dad, I traded these things in town for the wild rabbit I hunted yesterday. You can ask Mom if you don't believe me – she saw it."
"Hmph, your mother only sides with you!" Chen Yuanchao still didn't believe it.
"That beast is incredibly cunning – like a dirt mouse on the mountain, disappearing in the blink of an eye. How could you possibly catch it?"
That said, he felt unsure again when he thought about the pheasants his son had brought back before.
"You really caught a rabbit?"
"Otherwise, where would all this come from?" Seeing his father's tone had softened, Chen Yang shrugged.
Chen Yuanchao remained silent, squatted down again, put his pipe in his mouth, and watched as Chen Yang sorted out seasonings from the basket – vinegar, salt, and sesame oil.
Seeing his son had brought back things the family urgently needed, Chen Yuanchao's expression softened considerably. Maybe my son has really matured? he thought to himself as he smoked silently.
Chen Yang put away everything he had brought back, then walked back to Chen Yuanchao and took out the pack of Daqianmen cigarettes from his pocket.
"Dad, smoke this one!"
Chen Yuanchao looked up – and upon seeing the pack (not a bottle of baijiu, as he'd mistakenly thought), his expression became somewhat strange. He knew this pack cost 40 cents – enough to feed the whole family for two days.
Previously, when Chen Yuanchao and other villagers had helped the village chief build a cellar, the chief had given each of them a single Daqianmen cigarette as payment. They'd all praised him for his generosity. Now, his son held a whole unopened pack – it felt extremely surreal. Damn it, has my son really become successful?
Chen Yuanchao secretly bit the pipe's mouthpiece, but ultimately didn't take the cigarette. Instead, he asked how Chen Yang had caught the rabbit.
When Chen Yang saw his father asking questions, he didn't hide anything and briefly recounted how he had made the trap. After listening, Chen Yuanchao nodded thoughtfully.
"The trap you set is still a bit crude..."
"In that case, I won't take the cigarette. Give it to Old Man Pijia in the village and ask him for tips on making traps."
Old Man Pijia was a skilled hunter from Niujiawan. It was said he was very talented – every trip into the mountains guaranteed results. In his youth, he had hunted tigers and black bears single-handedly, and could even play around with a mad wild boar. Now he was getting old and rarely went into the mountains; when he had nothing to do, he played with his dogs in the yard. Some said he wasn't just playing – he was training them to be fierce hunting dogs.
Chen Yang remembered Old Man Pijia: he was very resilient, living past 100 and not passing away until 2000. He was only in his seventies now, but his eyesight was already failing – he could barely see at night.
"Dad, I'll listen to you. I'll go ask Old Man Pijia for advice right now."
His own father was giving him advice – it made Chen Yang feel extremely flattered. But compared to a pack of Daqianmen cigarettes, he had something better to offer the old man.
Before leaving home, Chen Yang went back to his room and put the spotted dove he had picked up on the mountain the night before into a cloth bag. Then he carried the bag towards the old man's house.
The bones of a spotted dove, ground into powder and boiled into medicine, could cure night blindness. Building a good relationship with the old man using a dove would be much more effective than a pack of cigarettes.
Without wasting time, Chen Yang left home. Based on memory, he strode confidently to the entrance of Niujiawan Village and found a courtyard nestled at the foot of the hillside – this was where Old Man Pijia lived.
Before he even got close, he heard several dogs barking in the yard. Judging from the noise, the old man seemed to be training them.
Chen Yang walked to the gate, knocked, and called out into the courtyard: "Grandpa, I'm Chen from the village. Do you have time? I brought you some good stuff!"