Chapter 33: Rainy Day with a Bear Child

The rain was falling relentlessly, and it was already September in the Gregorian calendar.  Usually, the rainy season would have passed by now, but recently, the rain had been getting heavier and heavier, showing no signs of stopping.

Last year was a drought, and this year, there was an abundance of rain. This made Lin Yue think of an old saying: “A long drought is followed by a flood.”

She then felt that she was worrying too much. She remembered learning history, and famines only lasted for three years. By 1963, things had gradually improved in various parts of the country.

With this weather, it was naturally impossible to work. However, with so much rain recently, the team would arrange for people to patrol the fields every day to drain the water.

Today was Lin Yue’s turn. She and a few other members were responsible for the land on the west mountain.

The mountain path was muddy and slippery in the rain. No one dared to wear their good shoes; they all wore straw sandals they had woven themselves.

As they went downhill, they helped each other, not minding the difference between men and women.

After patrolling the mountain, they passed by the reservoir. Through the misty rain, Lin Yue vaguely saw figures on the dam. She looked closely and saw a group of children standing in a row on the dam.

The reservoir was full of water, and it had been raining frequently lately. The village committee had held a meeting and repeatedly emphasized the importance of not playing near the reservoir. Yet, these children ignored the warnings.

Zhang Shouchang cupped his hands to make a loudspeaker and shouted loudly for them to come down.

Unfortunately, they were too far away, and the rain was too heavy. The children on the dam couldn’t hear him. He was so angry that he picked up his iron shovel and was about to go up and give those little brats a few whacks.

Lin Yue was afraid of scaring the children. If they fell into the water, it would be a big problem.

She stopped Zhang Shouchang and called Zhang Shouchong and Liu Jianhua, who were with her, to go up to the dam and catch the children.

The dam was covered in green grass, which became even more slippery in the rain. It took them a lot of effort to climb up. They heard the children arguing: “Zhang Xiaoxi, you’re just a little girl. Don’t hang around with us boys all the time. We don’t want to bring you along!”

Hearing Zhang Xiaoxi’s name, Zhang Shouchong and Liu Jianhua both looked at Lin Yue.

Lin Yue knew that Zhang Xiaoxi had a bit of a tomboyish personality and always wanted to be the leader among the boys. Today, she had stumbled upon a conflict between the children.

She didn’t rush. She was amused watching the children squabble.

She heard Zhang Xiaoxi say with great confidence: “Zhang Xianzhi, you’re just a loser. You can’t even beat me, and you dare to reject me!”

The three of them laughed. Wasn’t this Zhang Shouchong’s younger brother’s son? Lin Yue and Liu Jianhua both looked at Zhang Shouchong again.

Zhang Shouchong shook his head helplessly. He was about to speak up to stop them when he heard his good nephew say: “So what if you can beat me? We just don’t want to play with a girl! If you want to join our boys’ team, you have to, you have to be able to pee standing up like us!”

Listen to that tone! Calling Zhang Xiaoxi a “girl” and referring to themselves as “our boys.” The three of them behind them listened and laughed until they heard the last sentence, almost choking on their own saliva. These kids were playing a bit too big!

Before they could stop them, they heard Zhang Xiaoxi simply reply: “Okay! Pee standing up, then pee standing up. You’re the one who said it. Let’s compare now!”

With that, the little brats all started taking off their pants.

Lin Yue couldn’t help but be shocked. She took a step forward, grabbed Zhang Xiaoxi by the back of her collar, and pulled her up.

She knew her little sister-in-law was a bit off track, but she didn’t know she was this wild. She was an eleven-year-old girl, and she didn’t even understand the difference between men and women. She was actually comparing peeing with a group of seven or eight-year-old boys! In just a moment, she had already pulled her pants halfway down. Lin Yue was so angry that she slapped her on the butt twice before putting her pants back on.

Zhang Xiaoxi was startled when she was pulled up from behind.

Lin Yue knew that Zhang Xiaoxi, at 11 years old, was already a handful. She couldn’t manage her, and if she did, Sun Hongmei would be at her door every day causing trouble. Luckily, she bumped into the twin brothers who were out looking for their sister before entering the village. Lin Yue quickly handed this hot potato to them.

Zhang Xiaoxi, seeing her two brothers, thought someone had finally come to support her. She started cursing again, using the same foul language she’d learned from Sun Hongmei.

The brothers exchanged glances and divided the task. One pulled her aside to scold her, while the other stayed to apologize to Lin Yue.

Zhang Shouyi apologized to Lin Yue, “Sister-in-law, thank you for bringing Xiaomei back today. She’s not well-behaved. Shouren and I will definitely teach her well from now on. She said some inappropriate things today. I apologize to you on her behalf.”

This wasn’t the first time this happened. Although the brothers didn’t always come to apologize, Lin Yue had heard these words many times. She hadn’t seen any improvement in Zhang Xiaoxi, so she didn’t take it to heart.

Zhang Shouyi could see that Lin Yue didn’t believe him. He hesitated for a long time before finally mustering up the courage to say in a low voice, “Sister-in-law, don’t mind Xiaomei. She has some intellectual disabilities. She’s also been influenced by my mother and has gone astray. I will definitely keep a close eye on her from now on and prevent her from making mistakes.”

Lin Yue asked in surprise, “She has intellectual disabilities? How come I didn’t know?” It wasn’t surprising that Lin Yue was shocked. While Zhang Xiaoxi was a bit mischievous, she didn’t seem to have any other problems.

Since he had already spoken, Zhang Shouyi didn’t hide it anymore. He simply told Lin Yue, “Xiaomei was always slower than other children when she was little. My mother initially thought she was a fool and even took her to the hospital for a checkup. The doctor said it was probably just a slow brain development, something that wouldn’t be noticeable in everyday life. My mother didn’t want this to be known, fearing that it would be difficult for her to find a husband later. Even my elder brother doesn’t know.”

Sun Hongmei was only in her early thirties when she gave birth to Zhang Xiaoxi, and she was still healthy. Looking at Zhang Xiaoxi’s appearance, she didn’t seem to have Down syndrome either.

There are many reasons for a child’s slow brain development. The current medical technology was far less advanced than in later generations, so they probably couldn’t find anything.

However, she vaguely remembered someone saying that Zhang Xiaoxi was a premature baby, born after two days and one night. She wondered if that was the reason.

No wonder this big girl was comparing peeing with boys. Lin Yue had always thought she was just a tomboy.

Lin Yue simply listened to this matter and didn’t want to get involved.

However, she admired these two brothers. She could tell that they didn’t know how to handle their sister’s situation, but when she made mistakes, they would still take the initiative to stand up and apologize for her.

Lin Yue’s heart softened. She said to the brothers in a gentle voice, “If there’s nothing else, you should go home quickly. It’s still raining, and getting a cold isn’t fun.”

She didn’t stay any longer and left first. She still had to pick up her two little darlings.

When Lin Yue arrived at Su Da’s house, Zhang Shouchang had already returned and was talking to his parents in the main room about the situation at the reservoir, “If the rain continues like this, we might have to consider releasing water soon.”

Zhang Zhiqiang was so worried that his back was hunched over. He silently reached for his pipe, about to take a puff, but Su Da snatched it away, “What are you smoking for? You’ll choke the children!”

She turned to Lin Yue, who had just entered, “Xiaoyue, come in and change your clothes. Look at you, you’re all wet. Don’t worry about the kids. They’re roasting peanuts in the kitchen with my boys.”

Lin Yue had already heard Zhang Shouchang’s words at the door. She didn’t have any experience in this area, and she hadn’t thought about the water level in the reservoir today.

Seeing that Su Da was calmly greeting her, but her brows were filled with worry, she knew she was also very anxious about the heavy rain this year.

She quickly stopped her, “Auntie, don’t bother. Let them play by themselves. You should sit down and rest.”

Su Da, a bit absent-minded, mumbled, “Yes, yes, let them play by themselves. Xiaoyue, you sit down for a while. I have to go pray…”

Zhang Zhiqiang shouted, “Nonsense! There are people here. What are you talking about? I told you to be careful with your words. Your old woman just can’t control your mouth! If everyone in the village is as big-mouthed as you, the story of the Snake Goddess will spread to other villages sooner or later!”

Lin Yue…

She wanted to say, “Do you believe me when I say I didn’t know Su Da’s true meaning until you brought it up?”

Su Da felt a little embarrassed and muttered, “Xiaoyue is not an outsider, is she? I saved her back then. She’s like my own daughter…”

Lin Yue quickly said, “Uncle, Auntie is right. She doesn’t treat me as an outsider. I’m happy about it. Don’t be angry!”

She originally wanted to ask a few more questions about releasing water, but seeing the atmosphere was wrong, she didn’t dare to stay any longer. She quickly got up, called her two children, and said goodbye.

At the gate, she put little straw raincoats on her children. She could still hear Su Da complaining loudly from inside the house, “You didn’t even give me some face in front of Xiaoyue.”

Lin Yue didn’t listen anymore and carried one child in each hand as she went home.