Chapter 36: Learning to Swim

In this era, technology wasn’t as developed, and people’s entertainment options were far fewer than in later times. Watching movies was one of the few forms of entertainment, but it was also a luxury. A movie ticket costing one and a half cents was not something everyone could afford.

Even though Lin Wei’s family had a decent income, no one would go to the movies frequently. In fact, this movie was the first one this year for everyone except Lin Wei.

As for Lin Wei, the last movie she saw was arranged by her workplace, so she didn’t have to pay.

Thus, when the six of them entered the theater, they were all excited, and there were plenty of other excited people in the theater as well, creating a buzzing atmosphere.

But as soon as the movie started, the discussions stopped. Everyone focused intently on the big screen.

As the movie unfolded, soft sobs began to be heard in the theater. It was a war film about the resistance against the invasion. Although the ending was good, the journey was heartbreaking.

Lin Wei and the others were no exception, their eyes turning red.

Though their lives were stable now, most of them weren’t unfamiliar with the horrors of war.

Liu Dan, the oldest at 31, had been old enough to remember that the war hadn’t completely ended when she was young. Yang Yi, Deng Xiangyun, and Zhao Li, who were around the same age, had all experienced the Korean War. Zhao Li, in particular, came from a village close to the battlefield, where people lived in constant fear. On the day of victory, many around her were so moved that they cried.

Lin Wei was the youngest and technically hadn’t lived through any wars. She was too young during the Korean War, and later, with the war further south, she didn’t experience the same fear, especially since her country was in a stronger position, and there wasn’t as much panic.

But Lin Wei had married a soldier. Even though the scale of the naval battle earlier that year was small and short-lived, she had still been worried for several days.

Having experienced war made one realize how precious peace was. When looking back at that history, the emotions became even more overwhelming, which was why they all cried so much.

As a result, by the time they returned, their eyes were all swollen.

When they reached the residential area, everyone they passed assumed they had been bullied. If it hadn’t been for Zhao Li quickly explaining, they might have grabbed a weapon to demand justice.

After the explanation, although everyone understood why they had cried so much and felt that if they were in their shoes, their eyes would probably be just as swollen, that didn’t stop them from joking about it, and the story quickly spread throughout the neighborhood.

That evening, everyone in the residential area knew that the six of them had gone to the movies and cried their eyes out.

Because they had been asked so many questions on the way back, Liu Dan and the others didn’t rush home. Instead, they went to Deng Xiangyun’s house to settle the money and divide the wire. They planned to wash their faces there and return home once their eyes had calmed down, so their families wouldn’t worry.

Since they were all going to Deng Xiangyun’s house, they didn’t need to calculate the money separately. Lin Wei, who needed the wire, went there as well.

Yes, she didn’t want her family to see her and get worried.

Deng Xiangyun was speechless: “… Don’t my family worry about me?”

In fact, her family didn’t worry at all, because they weren’t home!

The front door was wide open, and when they entered, they found no one inside. Deng Xiangyun thought they must be in the backyard or upstairs. But after searching the entire house, she couldn’t find anyone. When she came downstairs, her face darkened.

Yang Yi thought she was worried and tried to comfort her: “Maybe they went to someone else’s house?”

Zhao Li added, “Yeah, Instructor Zhou is an adult. He won’t get lost. Besides, this is a military family area; everyone knows each other.”

Deng Xiangyun, in a bad mood, said, “I’m not worried about him. I’m angry that he went out and didn’t lock the door. Even if he doesn’t lock it, why not at least close it? I made sure everything was fine when I left, and now this… so careless!”

Since everyone had already entered and assumed there was someone at Deng Xiangyun’s house, even after they realized that Zhou Jianhai wasn’t there, they didn’t think much of the open door.

It wasn’t until Deng Xiangyun pointed it out that they realized.

“That’s really not right. When he comes back, you need to give him a good talking to,” Liu Dan said. “By the way, did anything go missing from your house?”

Though the security in the residential area was good and there weren’t any thieves, it was still a good idea to check when the door had been left open.

“No, nothing’s missing,” Deng Xiangyun shook her head. She had already checked.

Deng Xiangyun had only been slightly angry when she noticed Zhou Jianhai had left the door open, but she quickly let it go. She remembered the task at hand and asked Lin Wei for the wire.

Because they were going to eat and watch a movie, it was inconvenient to hold it in their hands. Of all the six, only Lin Wei had brought a big bag, so Deng Xiangyun asked her for help.

After finding the wire, Deng Xiangyun used scissors to cut it. Liu Dan, Zhao Li, Yang Yi, and Chen Bamei each took a piece. They weren’t long, but there was more than enough for hats.

After dividing the materials, they counted the money. It wasn’t much, but none of them were interested in the small change. Though Deng Xiangyun suggested they skip it, they insisted on paying her.

After finishing the calculations, they checked their eyes in Deng Xiangyun’s mirror. Seeing that they weren’t too swollen, they each returned home.

Lin Wei also went home, only to find the same situation at the Zhou family’s house: the door was wide open, and no one was there.

Had these two made an appointment?

While wondering, Deng Xiangyun came over and asked if Zhou Jianhai and Xiao Shitou were at her house.

“No, but my door is also open. They should have gone out together, but I don’t know where.” Lin Wei replied, putting her bag on the sofa and pouring herself a cup of tea. She greeted Deng Xiangyun, who was standing at the door, saying, “Don’t worry about them. Since the door’s open, they can’t be far. They’ll probably be back soon.”

However, Deng Xiangyun didn’t answer. She shielded her eyes with her hand and looked outside. After a moment, she pointed in one direction and asked, “Is that your Zong Shao?”

“Where?”

Lin Wei stepped out of the house and looked in the direction she was pointing. She saw Zong Shao standing in the water, arms crossed, watching three dark shadows… no, children, splashing around.

“It’s him. Mingming and your Xiao Shitou are also there.”

Lin Wei hurried across the beach and stood at the water’s edge, calling out, “Zong Shao.”

Zong Shao turned his head when he heard the voice but didn’t come toward the shore. Instead, he looked down and said something. The next moment, Mingming, who had been splashing around, came out of the water, wiped his face with his hands, and cheerfully called out, “Mom, I can swim now!”

As he spoke, he swam a few strokes until the water became too shallow to swim, and he started running instead. He ran until he jumped into Lin Wei’s arms.

“My clothes!” Lin Wei groaned but still hugged her son. She looked up at Zong Shao and asked, “What made you suddenly decide to teach them how to swim?”

Zong Shao, holding Ruirui in one arm and leading Xiao Shitou with the other, walked over to Lin Wei and said, “It’s hot, so we came out to cool off. Since they wanted to follow, I decided to teach them. When did you come back?”

“Just got back. I knew it! I wondered why the door was open when you went out.” Lin Wei said, wiping the water off Ruirui’s face. “How’s the swimming going?”

Ruirui replied, “I can swim now.”

“I can swim too! And I can float on my back, like this.” Mingming said as he lifted both hands and mimicked the backstroke.

Lin Wei was astonished. “How long have you been swimming? You learned so quickly!”

“Mingming is really talented. He learned almost immediately,” Zong Shao said, placing Ruirui down. He then changed the subject, “But Ruirui did well too. Among beginners, she’s learning quickly.”

“Wow, you’re both so impressive!” Lin Wei cheered them on, giving both kids a thumbs-up.

After receiving praise from her mother, Ruirui simply smiled and gently pressed her lips together, accepting the compliment modestly. Mingming, on the other hand, humbly said, “I’m not that great, just average!”

Lin Wei: “…” If I hadn’t seen your proud tail wagging, I might have believed you.

Her gaze shifted to Deng Xiangyun, who was wiping Xiao Shitou’s face with seawater. Lin Wei remembered to ask, “By the way, didn’t Instructor Zhou come with you?”

Deng Xiangyun glanced over at the mention of Zhou.

“He’s with us,” Zong Shao said, turning around and gazing toward the sea. After about half a minute, he pointed in a direction, saying, “He’s over there.”

Lin Wei followed his finger but saw nothing. “There’s no one there.”

“That black dot is him,” Zong Shao replied.

“Where’s the black dot?” Lin Wei squinted her eyes, straining to see for half a minute, finally spotting a tiny black dot no bigger than an ant. “Is that Instructor Zhou? He’s so small?”

“He’s far away, so he looks small.” Zong Shao explained, noticing Deng Xiangyun was staring at the black dot without blinking. He paused and reassured her, “Old Zhou is a strong swimmer, he’ll be back soon.”

Deng Xiangyun gave a small smile and nodded. “Mm.”

It seemed that after seeing some figures on the shore, Zong Shao’s words prompted Zhou Jianhai to start swimming toward the shore. He swam fast, and in just two or three minutes, the ant-sized dot became as big as a bowl, and his shape and features gradually became clear.

When he returned, Deng Xiangyun finally relaxed, and Xiao Shitou shouted loudly, “Dad!”

Hearing the voice, Zhou Jianhai swam even harder, and soon he stood up in the water, wiped his face, and walked toward the shore.

While this was happening, Mingming was still narrating how he learned to swim, but when summarized, it could be reduced to just eight words — talented and learned it instantly.

Such a show-off!

Zong Shao, as the father, had no patience to listen further. He bent down and whispered in Lin Wei’s ear, “Do you want to learn to swim?”

Lin Wei wasn’t paying much attention, so she immediately responded, “Me? I’d rather not.” Exercise was never her strong suit, and she was afraid she wouldn’t be able to learn.

Of course, more importantly, if her son could learn so quickly, what if she struggled and still couldn’t learn? That would be so embarrassing.

It’s better not to learn, so she could maintain her dignity as a mother.

However, just as Lin Wei finished speaking, Zong Shao suddenly picked her up in a horizontal hold.

Lin Wei’s body lost its balance, and she gasped in surprise, gripping his neck tightly to steady herself. Seeing the sea getting closer, she had a bad feeling and quickly asked, “What are you doing?”

“Teaching you how to swim.”

Lin Wei immediately said, “I don’t—”

But before she could finish, she heard Zong Shao say, “Don’t worry, I’ll help you cheat. Even if you can’t learn, you won’t have to worry about embarrassing yourself in front of the kids.”

Her hidden thoughts were exposed, and Lin Wei, embarrassed, replied angrily, “Who said I can’t learn? It’s just swimming! I’ll learn it easily!”

“Is that so?”

Zong Shao hummed in response and then asked, “Should I let go now?”

Lin Wei looked down and realized that from her neck down, she was already submerged in the seawater. As Zong Shao let go of her, she began sinking.

Lin Wei’s eyes widened, and she clung to Zong Shao’s neck even tighter.

Zong Shao: “… Let go.”

“I won’t!”

Zong Shao glanced toward the shore and said, “There are a lot of people on the shore, watching us.” He added, “But if you don’t care, I don’t mind being held like this.”

I do care!

In this era, people were very strict about public conduct. Even married couples could face criticism if they were seen hugging or holding hands in public, let alone a close embrace like this.

Lin Wei, feeling shy, quickly let go of him and fell into the water, splashing around.

However, Zong Shao didn’t let her flounder for long and quickly grabbed her arm, pulling her back up.

Hmm, it feels like I can stand on the seafloor.

Once standing upright, Lin Wei realized the water wasn’t as deep as she thought. She had assumed it was deep enough to submerge her neck, but it was just because she was being held by Zong Shao, making her perception of depth much different.

Now standing, she noticed the water only reached her chest.

Realizing this, Lin Wei glared at Zong Shao. “You did that on purpose, didn’t you?”

Zong Shao, looking serious, replied, “You’re the one who was too nervous.”

Lin Wei immediately retorted, “But you were the one who pulled me in. I never planned on learning to swim.”

“My mistake,” Zong Shao admitted smoothly, then changed the topic, “But now that you’re in, aren’t you going to give it a try? Swimming isn’t hard at all. Once you master the technique, you can learn quickly. Look at Ruirui and Mingming; they only took a little over an hour.”

Hearing Zong Shao’s words and recalling how quickly the three kids had progressed, Lin Wei started to think swimming might not be so hard after all.

Though her athletic ability wasn’t great, she wasn’t planning to rush it. If she couldn’t learn in one hour, she could try two or three hours.

Besides, mastering one more skill wouldn’t hurt.

Although the current social climate was more conservative and there wouldn’t be many opportunities to swim, after the reforms, there would be many more chances. In the ’80s, many people wore swimsuits to the beach for vacation.

Maybe by then, she could even follow the trend.

With this in mind, Lin Wei made up her mind, “Okay, I’ll learn!”

However, learning sports wasn’t about age; it was about talent. Children are usually more flexible and agile, giving them an advantage in learning compared to adults.

In learning to swim, Lin Wei definitely wasn’t as good as the three kids.

They splashed around in the water for over an hour and could already swim, with Mingming even learning backstroke. Lin Wei struggled all day, and by the time the sun set, she could only manage to splash around. Once Zong Shao let go, she panicked, and once she panicked, she couldn’t swim.

But the water felt so comfortable in this season.

When they finally got out of the water, Lin Wei was a bit reluctant to leave, but since it was getting dark and she was both hungry and tired, she decided not to continue.

Back at home, after a quick shower, Lin Wei went to change clothes while Zong Shao went to Zhou Jianhai’s house to bring the two brothers back.

Mingming, who had been carried back by Zong Shao, had spent the most time in the water of the three children. He had gone wild all day and was now very sleepy. When Zong Shao arrived, he was already starting to nod off, too tired to walk and whining for a hug.

Zong Shao, feeling soft-hearted, picked him up and held his hand, taking Ruirui back.

On the way, Ruirui asked about his mom’s swimming progress. They had been watching from the shore, and since they were brought back by Xiao Shitou’s parents, Ruirui hadn’t seen how well Lin Wei did.

Zong Shao recalled Lin Wei’s request when they returned and said, “She’s doing well.”

Though Ruirui wasn’t sure whether that meant she had learned or not, he quickly thought, “Since Brother can already swim on his back, Dad didn’t say anything about how good he was, so Mom must be even better than Brother!”

So, when Lin Wei finished her shower and came out, she was greeted by her youngest son’s heartfelt praise.

Lin Wei felt flattered and, only before bed, remembered to ask Zong Shao, “What did you say to Ruirui? Why did he suddenly say I was amazing?”

Zong Shao casually replied, “Nothing, he asked me how you were doing with swimming, and I just said ‘pretty well.'”

“That’s it?”

“Mm.” Zong Shao nodded, then asked, “Shall we continue practicing next Sunday?”

“Uh…”

Lin Wei hesitated. While the sea was nice and cool, learning to swim was exhausting, and choking on water was unpleasant. When she was learning, she hadn’t thought much about it, but now that she was lying in bed after a shower, she was feeling lazy and wanted to back out.

“However, directly saying she was giving up felt a bit embarrassing, so Lin Wei made an excuse and said, “Didn’t we plan to go watch a movie next Sunday?”

She thought it through: if she dragged it out for a week, maybe, just maybe, Zong Shao would forget about it.

However, Zong Shao’s response cruelly shattered her fantasy. He said, “It’s fine. A movie is only about an hour and a half. We can go in the morning, and still have time in the afternoon to practice swimming.”

Lin Wei’s mind raced. “Although we planned to watch a movie, surely we can’t just turn around and come back, right? We’ll need to have a meal too. The chef at the county’s state-run restaurant is quite good, and they seem to serve local specialties. The kids haven’t eaten there yet, so I should take them to try it…”

“Eating and watching a movie won’t take much time. Didn’t you guys come back by 4 PM today?” Zong Shao changed the subject, “And, Ruirui knows you’ve learned how to swim, and he really looks up to you. But if next time they want to swim with you, and find out you can’t swim at all…”

Lin Wei quickly interrupted him, “Alright, alright, I’ll keep learning, is that good enough?”

Lin Wei now realized that from the moment she had been tricked by Zong Shao into agreeing to learn swimming, she had boarded a pirate ship—there was no turning back.

It’s just swimming, right? For the sake of her dignity as a mother, she was all in!