Chapter 3

Tian Lai Di was puzzled and stuffed a few more wooden sticks into the stove before asking, “Why bring this up all of a sudden?”

Tian Mi fanned the air vent beneath the coal stove with a banana fan. “It’s not that sudden; I just think your health isn’t great, and farming is tough on you. If you have an education, it would be good to work as a substitute teacher in the future.”

Tian Lai Di didn’t believe this and pouted. “High school graduates aren’t that rare; there are several in the village, and even more in town. Our family only has Dad eating public grain, and he’s just an ordinary police officer without any connections. Even if there were good jobs, we wouldn’t be able to compete with them.”

Tian Mi hadn’t expected to convince her sister in one go, and she couldn’t help but laugh at her sister’s feigned maturity. “You know about connections?”

“I’m young, not stupid. If jobs were really that easy to find, how come you and Dage, both high school graduates, haven’t found one?” As soon as the words left her mouth, Tian Lai Di felt they were inappropriate and quickly looked up to gauge her sister’s expression, worried she had hurt Tian Mi’s pride.

However, Tian Mi didn’t think much of it. Seeing the little girl’s guilty expression, she teasingly asked, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Er Jie… you’re not mad at me, are you?”

“Why would I be mad?” This little girl had such a timid nature.

Tian Lai Di stared at her sister for a while, confirming that Tian Mi really wasn’t angry, before revealing a shy smile and quietly explaining, “You were really trying hard during the autumn harvest; everyone in the village said you wanted to run for the Production Team Leader.”

Upon hearing this, Tian Mi couldn’t help but twitch her lips in disbelief and paused from putting the greens into the boiling water. She picked up the vegetable basket and asked, “Who spread that rumor? I don’t know anything about production; how could I possibly run for Production Team Leader?”

“Then… do you want to compete for the Women’s Director position^[1]妇女主任 – Director of the local committee of the Women’s Federation?”

Tian Mi choked, rolling her eyes at the little girl and gritting her teeth. “No! Absolutely not!”

“I don’t believe you! If you really had no thoughts about it, how could you sneak out every night for a whole week to cut rice?” Tian Lai Di wore an expression of someone who had seen through her sister’s little secret.

Tian Mi…

Taking a deep breath, Tian Mi curled her lips into a feigned smile and said word by word, “Sister is just being like Lei Feng^[2]A soldier in the People’s Liberation Army who was the object of several major campaigns in China. The most well-known of these campaigns in 1963 promoted the slogan “Follow the examples … Continue reading, doing good deeds without leaving her name, you understand?”

“But… you left your name! Now, who in the village doesn’t know about the good deeds you’ve done?” Tian Lai Di mumbled.

“…”

Well, great.

There was no way to clear her name now.

Tian Mi decided to end this pointless topic. There was no way to explain it, so she might as well get back to work.

She picked up a nearby rag, wrapped it around the clay pot, and moved it away from the coal stove. Noticing that the wood inside was almost burned up, she set the clay pot down on the ground and added a few more pieces of wood to the stove before putting the pot back on.

As the water in the clay pot boiled again, she found herself distracted while adding the greens.

In fact, she hadn’t lied earlier; the original Tian Mi was a sincere and good girl. If she had been a bit more savvy, she wouldn’t have been bullied by scumbags her whole life.

In the early 1970s, fields hadn’t been allocated to individuals, and farming was a collective effort of the entire village.

Only Tian Hongxing ate public grain in the Tian family, while the rest had rural household registrations. During the harvest, girls also had to work in the fields.

During this farming season, the original Tian Mi was simply trying to learn from Lei Feng’s selfless dedication, which was why she worked with the group during the day and snuck out to toil at night for an entire week.

After a session of such labor, even a strong person would find it tough, let alone a twenty-year-old girl.

By the time her family realized she had fallen ill, they had no idea what the original Tian Mi had been up to.

Then, somehow, the news spread.

Only Tian Mi, who inherited the original’s memories, knew that the original girl didn’t just fall ill; she actually died suddenly.

However, since it happened at night, she had time to travel back, so no one noticed that the pure and passionate girl was gone.

Thinking of this, Tian Mi felt a bit gloomy and lost her mood for chatting. She pursed her lips, picked up a pair of chopsticks, and moved the cooked greens into a bowl of cold water nearby.

=

There was a persimmon tree at the entrance of the Tian family’s home.

According to the elders, it had quite a few years behind it.

Tian Mi wasn’t knowledgeable about plants, but looking at the stout and tall persimmon tree with its branches thick and sprawling, laden with dense, deep orange fruit, one could guess its age.

The autumn colors were as rich as wine, making it the perfect time to eat persimmons.

Tian Mi had tasted one and honestly thought it might not have fully ripened; she couldn’t detect much sweetness and found it quite astringent.

According to her mother, Luan Hongmei, these fruits needed to be picked and left for a while to taste good. Of course, if one had the means, they could also coat them with a layer of liquor outside, which would ripen them faster.

Tian Mi didn’t understand the reasoning behind this, but she didn’t dare to use the family’s liquor, fearing she’d get scolded…

The two sisters lifted the square table from the main room and busily moved stools and served dinner under the persimmon tree.

As long as it wasn’t winter, the villagers liked to eat outside for the brightness and to save on kerosene costs, and the Tian family was no exception.

Hearing the commotion, Tian Hongxing and Luan Hongmei got up, slipped on their shoes, and stepped outside. Meanwhile, Tian Pan Di, who was still in elementary school, rushed back, pulling her younger brother Tian Xiang Yang with her.

The siblings had already received their sister’s promise in the morning, knowing there would be good food for dinner, so they rushed back, even breaking a sweat in the late autumn evening.

Now that they saw a large pot of rich, tempting fish soup on the table, their faces lit up with delight.

Tian Pan Di resembled her mother the most and had a fiery personality, despite being only 13 this year.

After washing her hands, she excitedly leaned close to Tian Mi and exclaimed, “Er Jie, I just saw Cousin Chun Xiu getting beaten by our Aunt. Did she go looking for that educated youth again?”

Their old aunt had married into a family with the surname Chen, but they lived at the edge of the village, while the Tian family was in the center.

Upon hearing this, Tian Mi felt no guilt about reporting it in private. In her memory, that educated youth Sun Jun from Suzhou was no good. While serving the soup, she replied with a laugh, “Probably. I saw Chun Xiu bringing food to Sun Zhiqing^[3]Educated youth the other day.”

“Hehe… I knew it! I don’t understand what Chun Xiu is thinking. Isn’t that Sun Zhiqing just a little white? He’s short and doesn’t look impressive at all. Our village boys are so much sturdier.” In the young Tian Pan Di’s mind, a man who couldn’t carry a load or work in the fields wasn’t a good catch.

This time, Tian Mi didn’t need to say anything. Luan Hongmei raised her hand and gave Tian Pan Di a light smack, scolding fiercely, “What nonsense are you spouting, you little child? Hurry and go call your big brother from your grandfather’s house for dinner. Let Lao niang^[4]I, this old woman. Form of self-address used by a conceited middle-aged or elderly married woman. Female equivalent of Laozi. hear you babbling like this again, I’ll make sure to teach you a lesson.”

Tian Pan Di grimaced at the smack. She not only looked like Luan Hongmei but had a similar fiery temperament. Unafraid of the warning, she retorted, “I’m not going! How could Grandfather’s house possibly lack food for my big brother? They must be eating meat!”

Saying this, the little girl looked indignant and plopped herself down at the table, picking up her chopsticks and preparing to eat dinner as if her mother’s words were just a passing breeze.

Luan Hongmei furrowed her brows and slammed her hand on the table, getting up as if to hit someone.

Seeing this, Tian Hongxing hurriedly stopped his wife, frowning as he scolded, “Enough! You two argue every day—when will it end?”

After saying this, he shot a glare at the stubborn fourth daughter, feeling a headache coming on.

A moment later, he shifted his gaze to his younger son, “Xiang Yang, go call your brother back for dinner, and take some fish soup to your grandparents while you’re at it.”

Tian Xiang Yang, who was only ten years old, was a delicate-looking little boy, resembling his father, Tian Hongxing. He nodded obediently at the command.

Tian Mi thought people nowadays were really something. A ten-year-old child walking over a mile carrying scalding fish soup without worrying about accidents—it was astonishing. She sighed, set down her chopsticks, and stood up, saying, “Dad, I’ll go with my little brother. That fish soup is too hot.”

Tian Hongxing nodded, “Alright, hurry back.”

=

Old Man Tian, Tian Xixin, was a barefoot doctor renowned for his acupuncture skills and had some fame across several nearby towns.

It was only because she lived in this era that Tian Mi realized not all traditional Chinese medicine practitioners worked in cow sheds.

This year, the old man was 68 years old, and his acupuncture skills earned him great respect in Chaoyang Village, but Tian Mi’s feelings towards her grandparents were rather lukewarm.

The reason was simple: the old man and his wife showed blatant favoritism.

They only liked their eldest grandson, Tian Mi’s elder brother, Tian Chang Qing.

The old man was quite skilled in medicine and had only one son throughout his life. Unfortunately, Tian Hongxing never quite grasped the art of traditional medicine, despite studying it for several years and failing to understand many herbs.

Later, when they had their first grandson, Tian Xixin named him Chang Qing.

“Chang Qing” meant “to dispel wind and stop pain” and “to relieve itching and swelling.”

It was worth noting that during that time, most boys were named things like Hongjun (Red Army), Weiguo (For the Nation), and Jianguo (Founding the Nation), but the old man chose a name from traditional medicine for his grandson, which implied he was selecting an heir.

However, with such high expectations, the pampered Tian Chang Qing couldn’t endure the hardships of learning traditional medicine. After so many years, he had learned nothing except how to be lazy and sweet-talk.

Tian Hongxing had brought it up to his parents, suggesting that their younger son learn since he was also a boy from the Tian family.

But the old man outright rejected it, leaving no room for discussion. His reasoning was infuriating; he insisted that his skills could only be passed down to the eldest grandson, saying that historically, the eldest grandson was the rightful heir.

The family may not have a grand reputation, but their rules were quite strict. Tian Mi had never seen anything like this. If one were to say they favored sons over daughters, they only liked the eldest grandson and treated the younger grandson the same way they treated the granddaughters.

There was no hatred, no harm, and certainly no joy—just indifference, as if they couldn’t see the other children.

The Tian family may have had various issues, but the one Tian Mi despised the most was Tian Chang Qing.

In an environment where most people struggled to have enough to eat, the old man and his wife frequently prepared special meals for their eldest grandson, sending food to Tian Chang Qing every few days, fearful that he might go hungry.

This wouldn’t have been a problem if it were their own money and they spent it however they liked.

However, in her memories, years ago, she had witnessed her little brother, who was just over three years old, eyeing her brother’s cookies with envy, not daring to ask for any and only watching wistfully.

Yet that idiot, Tian Chang Qing, would throw the uneaten cookies on the ground, callously ordering the little brother to pick them up.

That year, Tian Chang Qing was 19.

If it weren’t for the fact that they were living under the same roof, and she had to stay with the Tian family, Tian Mi’s former self would have surely stuffed that idiot into a sack and given him a good beating.

“Er Jie, what’s wrong with you?” Tian Xiang Yang noticed his sister suddenly pouting, her little face looking inexplicably upset.

Tian Mi snapped back to reality and forced a smile, “I’m fine. I just stepped on a toad this morning, and it’s still making me feel sick.”

Tian Xiang Yang, still looking puzzled, didn’t understand how a toad could be gross but didn’t ask any further questions since they had already arrived at their grandparents’ house.

=

The fourth sister, Pan Di, was right; Tian Chang Qing couldn’t possibly go without food. He was currently stuffing his face, grease covering his mouth.

“What are you two doing here?” The old lady, Cao Dahong, was a few years younger than the old man. Although she was no longer young, her facial features still hinted that she had been quite attractive in her youth. She was a clean person, her half-white hair neatly styled, and her clothes were tidy. Upon seeing her grandson and granddaughter, she merely lifted her eyelids and asked coldly.

Tian Mi had no intention of putting on a show of being a dutiful granddaughter. She walked a few steps to the table, glanced at the meat dishes, and placed the earthen jar down. “We brought some fish soup from home. Mom and Dad asked us to deliver it to you and Grandpa.”

“Hmm, your dad is a dutiful son,” Cao Dahong replied, her indifference giving way to a smile at the mention of her son.

Tian Mi curled her lips but said nothing. After greeting her grandparents, she took her little brother’s hand and left.

After walking a few steps, she could still hear the old lady using a loving tone to urge her 26-year-old grandson to eat more…

With her back to them, Tian Mi comfortingly ruffled her little brother’s hair while secretly rolling her eyes.

Just then, hurried footsteps approached from behind.

The siblings instinctively turned around and saw Tian Chang Qing, who had been eating voraciously moments ago, chasing after them with chopsticks in hand.

Tian Chang Qing wasn’t particularly handsome; he could only be described as delicate-looking, the kind of delicate a man could have—fair-skinned and refined. Plus, he had inherited his mother’s height, standing at about 1.7 meters.

However, with his grandparents’ pampering, while Tian Mi and her siblings were still wearing patched-up clothes, he had several sets of military uniforms and shiny leather shoes, looking quite respectable.

Tian Mi held no affection for him and was about to turn with her brother to leave.

But Tian Chang Qing quickly stepped in front of them, smiling ingratiatingly, “Er Mei^[5]Second younger sister, there’s a movie playing in town tomorrow. Are you going?”