Chapter 36: Flood and Rescue

Lin Yue didn’t know about the family’s legal troubles. She delivered the things to Aunt Su’s house, took a walk in the yard, and pointed to the empty cowshed, saying to Wang Xiuxiang, “Sister-in-law, I’ll put the stuff in here for now. We won’t need it for a while, and it’ll be in the way inside the house.”

Wang Xiuxiang understood the situation at home and knew they didn’t have much space. She went inside the cowshed to check it carefully. It was built simply, but thankfully the roof didn’t leak. A low wall was built on the side facing the yard, though it was a bit leaky. It should be fine after a good repair. She tidied up the cowshed and helped Lin Yue put the things inside.

There were still many things left at home, and Lin Yue would have to make at least two more trips. She didn’t care that her clothes were already wet and was about to go back to get more things, but Wang Xiuxiang stopped her. “Shouchang is back. Let him go with you. The rest are big items, you can’t move them yourself!” Lin Yue could actually move them, but she didn’t dare say it.

Zhang Shouchang heard his sister-in-law’s voice, came out of the house, grabbed a raincoat and straw hat, put them on, and said cheerfully, “Sister-in-law, I’ll go with you.” He and Lin Yue each pushed a handcart and went back to Lin Yue’s house together, moving the remaining items one by one onto the handcarts.

They worked together seamlessly and quickly packed up the remaining odds and ends. Only a cast iron pot was left with no place to put, so Lin Yue strapped it to her back.

Seeing Lin Yue’s appearance, Zhang Shouchang laughed out loud. He reached out to take the pot from Lin Yue’s back, laughing, “You look like a turtle! Quickly put the pot on my handcart. We can both hold it, it shouldn’t fall off.” Lin Yue laughed, “Oh, it’s fine. It can help me shield the rain too.”

The courtyard door creaked open, and the two looked up to see a man in military uniform standing at the door, holding a black oilcloth umbrella. It was none other than Zhang Yuandong! Lin Yue asked in surprise, “How did you come back?” Zhang Shouchang also greeted him, “Little Grey, why are you back today? Didn’t you just come back a few months ago?” Zhang Yuandong’s face immediately turned black.

He didn’t say anything, walked over to Lin Yue, took the pot off her head, found a more stable position, and placed it on top of the pile of miscellaneous items on the handcart.

Zhang Shouchang didn’t know why Zhang Yuandong was unhappy. He nervously scratched his head, not daring to call him by his nickname anymore. Without waiting for Zhang Yuandong to ask, he explained, “Yuandong, you don’t know, there’s been too much rain this year. The reservoir might flood. I’m helping my sister-in-law pack her things, and we’re going to stay at my place for a while.” Zhang Yuandong nodded and said, “Let’s go.”

Zhang Yuandong had sent her a few letters in the past few months, and Lin Yue felt she was no longer afraid of this formidable figure. It wasn’t the time to talk privately, so she didn’t say anything more.

Now that someone was helping her push the cart, she excitedly ran to the corner, picked up a chicken coop that looked like a miniature thatched hut, and followed the two men out, wobbling.

Zhang Yuandong turned his head, glanced at the strangely shaped chicken coop in Lin Yue’s arms, and twitched his lips. Not only was the chicken coop oddly shaped, but it was also soaked by the rain. Wasn’t she uncomfortable holding it in her arms? He reached out to take it, but Lin Yue refused.

She held the chicken coop in one hand and took Zhang Yuandong’s black cloth umbrella with the other, raising her arm to hold it over him.

The rain was falling too hard. The three of them walked in silence back to Aunt Su’s house.

As soon as they entered the house, they hadn’t even had time to take off their raincoats and straw hats when they heard a faint “rumble” coming from afar.

Everyone in the house was startled. Zhang Zhiqiang slapped his thigh and exclaimed, “Damn it, the dam has broken!” He remembered that when he went to notify everyone last night, no one had moved yet. It had only been one night, and he was afraid that many people hadn’t had time to pack their things.

Zhang Zhiqiang was so anxious that his hands were shaking. He quickly found his raincoat and straw hat, put them on quickly, and didn’t forget to instruct the people in the house, “Shouchang, you come with me to see what’s going on. Shouliang, you take the gong and go to the street to notify everyone to close their doors and windows. No one is allowed to come out and watch the commotion! Tell them that our village is located on high ground. Except for the few families living in the south of the village, everyone else will be fine as long as they stay indoors! And you women, stay at home, take care of the children, and don’t go out!” He kept giving instructions while his foot was already stepping out of the door, rushing into the rain.

Zhang Yuandong shouted, “Uncle, I’ll go with you!” Then, he quickly took off Lin Yue’s raincoat and straw hat, put them on himself, and chased after him.

In a blink of an eye, only the women and children were left in the house.

It was only mid-morning, and the sky outside was gloomy. Aunt Su’s house was located in the north of the village, a certain distance from the south end. Besides the initial rumble, no other sounds of flooding were heard. The world was silent, only the howling wind and the roaring rain.

But the more they couldn’t hear any other sounds, the more anxious everyone in the house became.

Aunt Su paced back and forth on the floor, her hands clasped together, silently muttering something. Lin Yue didn’t need to listen to know she was praying to the “Snake Goddess.”

She didn’t have the energy to dwell on such things at the moment. Her clothes were still soaking wet, and she didn’t feel like changing.

The rain had been falling so heavily for a while that the road to the reservoir was impassable. The village headman wouldn’t risk sending anyone to open the floodgates, and Lin Yue was equally hesitant to venture out to check the situation. She knew the dam breaking was only a matter of time and could only repeatedly remind Zhang Zhiqiang, the village headman, to make arrangements.

As fate would have it, just the night before, the second round of notifications had been issued, and this morning, the dam broke.

She sat on the edge of the kang, anxiously hugging her two children. Zhang Xiaomi also leaned her head against her shoulder, sitting quietly beside Lin Yue.

Wang Xiuxiang was also nervous, but she was used to taking care of others. She got up and went to the kitchen, bringing each person in the room a cup of sugar water, even the little ones.

The children were affected by the tense atmosphere among the adults and didn’t dare speak. They just lowered their heads and sipped their sugar water.

Holding a cup of hot water, Lin Yue finally felt her limbs less stiff and cold. Her expression softened, and she managed a smile at Wang Xiuxiang.

Wang Xiuxiang gave her a reassuring look, put her arm around her mother-in-law’s shoulder, and whispered words of comfort, leading her to the inner room. She stayed with her mother-in-law and engaged in some superstitious activities.

The wait was agonizingly long. It wasn’t until the children, unable to sit still any longer, started to play rough with each other that Zhang Zhiqiang’s voice finally came from outside.

Aunt Su heard the sound, hurriedly came out of the inner room, and ran to the doorway to look out. Lin Yue and the others followed her out, standing beside her to see.

The four little ones didn’t understand what was going on. They lined up at the window, peering out to see the commotion.

Zhang Zhiqiang, holding a shovel, came in from outside, grumbling. Behind him followed Zhang Shouchang, Zhang Shouliang, Zhang Yuandong, and Liu Zhishu’s eldest son, Liu Dejun.

Aunt Su quickly stepped aside from the doorway to let them in. The men took off their raincoats and straw hats at the door and entered the main room.

Aunt Su hurried to ask, “What’s going on outside? Why did it take you so long?” Zhang Zhiqiang took a big gulp of hot water and briefly described the situation in the village. “Everyone’s fine. A few families lost chickens, and Zhang Zhixiang’s grandson almost got swept away by the flood. Yuandong pulled him back.”

Everyone in the room was shocked. Aunt Su hurriedly asked, “How was it so dangerous? Our village is quite far from the reservoir, and the terrain is high. It shouldn’t be that dangerous, right?” Zhang Zhiqiang took a couple of puffs of his dry pipe, bent over and sat in a chair; his voice filled with uncontrollable anger. “When we got there, the flood hadn’t arrived yet. The families in the south of the village had heard the sound and those who hadn’t finished moving knew to run north. It was only Zhang Zhixiang’s family who didn’t take my words seriously. They hadn’t even decided where to go. When we got there, his wife was still reluctant to leave their belongings and was haphazardly packing their things. We tried to persuade them, but they wouldn’t leave.”

Aunt Su scolded, “They’re asking for trouble! What time is it? They don’t even know to look after themselves, and they’re still worried about their belongings!” Wang Xiuxiang moved two small earthen stoves, warming everyone by the fire. Hearing this, she couldn’t help but scold, “That whole family really doesn’t know what’s important!”

“There’s no way. They’re afraid of poverty. They haven’t had a good life these past few years. Zhang Shufu and his wife are notorious for being lazy. If it weren’t for our village… their family would have starved to death years ago! Now, asking them to leave their belongings and grain behind is like taking their lives!” Zhang Shouchang thought Zhang Yuandong didn’t know about the village’s grain situation, so he deliberately mumbled the last part.

Zhang Yuandong pretended not to hear, not even glancing in that direction.

Hearing this, no one in the room felt sorry for that family.

Liu Dejun even spat on the ground, “Serves them right! They should have done it earlier!” Zhang Zhiqiang looked at Liu Dejun sideways, just as he saw him use his shoe to grind the spit on the ground, he felt annoyed, snorted from his nose, and continued, “We finally helped them move their valuables out, and then we heard Zhang Sanniang wailing, saying her grandson was missing. We helped search everywhere. Finally, Yuandong climbed onto the aqueduct and saw the child. The flood was rushing fast. Thankfully, Yuandong was quick. He grabbed the child just as he was being swept away. Otherwise, the child would have been gone in a blink of an eye!”

“I was at the threshing ground on West Ridge at the time, and I saw it all,” Liu Dejun interjected. “You guys don’t know how dangerous it was! This kid Yuandong, he held a stick in one hand to block the water, and with the other hand, he grabbed the child’s arm and dragged him out of the flood! He pulled the child up, and they both fell into the ditch beside the aqueduct! I saw it all, it really scared me. This kid Yuandong is so daring. What if he hadn’t saved the child and had gotten himself caught in the flood too.