Chapter 27: Oh My! The Madman Came to My House!

Ming Dai had already asked for directions to the brigade leader’s house earlier, so she led Zhou Sinian straight there.

On the way, a few dogs, alerted by the noise, rushed out barking aggressively to assert their territory. However, the moment they saw Zhou Sinian, they let out pitiful whimpers, tucked their tails, and scrambled back to where they came from.

Ming Dai couldn’t help but give him a thumbs-up.

As expected, in front of Zhou Sinian, all beings were equal!

By the time they arrived at the brigade leader’s house, the oil lamp inside had already been extinguished.

She knocked on the door, and after half a minute, someone answered while opening it.

“Who is it at this hour?”

Ming Dai grinned and said cheerfully, “Auntie Huang, is that you? I’m the new educated youth, Ming Dai. I’m here to return the flatbed cart.”

Auntie Huang was momentarily stunned before recalling who she was.

Since her husband, the brigade leader, had already told her about Ming Dai’s situation, she felt pity for the poor girl. Without hesitation, she pulled her inside.

“Oh, my dear girl, why did you bring it back so late? Aren’t you afraid of getting snatched away by wolves at this hour?”

Ming Dai quickly shook her head. “Auntie, I’m not alone. There are two of us, so it’s fine.”

Auntie Huang chuckled as she stepped aside to make room, assuming Ming Dai had come with another educated youth.

“Bring the cart in first. Let’s talk inside—”

But just as she turned her head and saw the tall figure pulling the cart, the rest of her sentence—something about having some tea—got stuck in her throat.

Oh my! The madman came to my house!

Ming Dai didn’t notice Auntie Huang’s stiffness. As she helped push the cart inside, she asked, “Auntie, where should we leave the cart?”

Still in shock, Auntie Huang unconsciously stammered, “P-put… put it in the stable…”

Ming Dai followed her instruction and gestured for Zhou Sinian to pull the cart over.

Once it was settled, she turned back and saw that Auntie Huang was still standing frozen at the door.

Puzzled, she asked, “Auntie?”

Auntie Huang finally snapped out of it. She hurriedly shut the door and hesitantly shuffled forward.

Before she could say anything, Ming Dai spoke first. “Auntie, all the tools are still on the cart, nothing’s missing. Is Uncle already resting? Is it convenient for us to go inside?”

Auntie Huang swallowed hard and nodded stiffly, her gaze darting toward Zhou Sinian, who stood silently beside Ming Dai.

The madman showed no intention of leaving—how could she possibly say no?!

With the same heavy feeling as if she were heading to a grave, she reluctantly opened the door. Inside, the whole family was sitting on the heated brick bed, chatting idly in the dark.

“Who is it, old woman?”

Liu Dazhu asked while puffing on his tobacco pipe.

Ming Dai immediately responded upon hearing his voice. “Uncle, it’s me, Ming Dai. I came to return the cart.”

“Oh, it’s you, girl. Come in, come in, sit on the kang. Really, coming out so late at night—aren’t you afraid of getting snatched away by wolves all by yourself?”

Ming Dai chuckled. “I wasn’t alone.”

Liu Dazhu was about to assume she had come with another educated youth, but before he could speak, Ming Dai’s next words made his pipe fall straight out of his mouth.

“Zhou Sinian came with me.”

“Clang!”

Liu Dazhu’s precious tobacco pipe fell to the ground.

“You said who?”

Auntie Huang swore that in over thirty years of marriage, she had never heard Liu Dazhu’s voice so high-pitched.

In the darkness, Ming Dai’s eyes curved into a smile, but she still responded with feigned uncertainty, “Zhou Sinian?”

Silence fell over the room.

Just moments ago, Liu’s youngest grandson had been restless, wanting to run outside to play. Now, he obediently lay down without a single peep.

Zhou Sinian, as always, was incredibly effective.

At that moment, Zhou Sinian’s gaze was drawn to the tobacco pipe lying on the floor, its bowl catching and losing the dim light. He stepped forward, picked it up, and stared at it with intense focus.

Liu Dazhu watched in horror as his prized possession ended up in the madman’s hands, feeling his heart bleed.

Ming Dai quickly stepped forward and snatched it back. “Don’t take other people’s things. It’s impolite.”

The Liu family held their breath, afraid that the madman would suddenly fly into a rage and start beating everyone.

But something unexpected happened—Zhou Sinian didn’t resist. He simply let Ming Dai take the pipe from his hands and stood there obediently.

As Liu Dazhu held his pipe once more, he was too stunned to react.

Was this really the madman?

“Old woman, light… light the lamp.”

The brigade leader’s voice trembled. Before Auntie Huang could move, Ming Dai turned on the flashlight she had brought.

“Uncle, I have a flashlight.”

Bright light illuminated the room, and Zhou Sinian’s curiosity was piqued again.

This time, Ming Dai didn’t stop him. She handed him the flashlight and instructed, “Don’t shine it in people’s faces.”

Zhou Sinian indeed listened and kept shining the flashlight at the ceiling.

The Liu family members followed the beam of light with their eyes, seemingly not fully grasping what was happening.

“Uncle?”

Ming Dai’s soft call woke up Liu Dazhu. His old eyes settled on the little girl in front of him—barely reaching Zhou Sinian’s waist—yet she was somehow able to make the madman so obedient. How strange!

“Girl, is he better now? He’s actually listening?”

Ming Dai glanced at the man still fiddling with the flashlight and shook her head. “No, he still doesn’t listen. The only way to coax him is with good food. Fortunately, he enjoys the meals I make—if I promise him something delicious, he’ll cooperate. He’s been a great help, but we’re going through food too quickly. I plan to go to the commune after work tomorrow to see if I can buy more. If that doesn’t work, I’ll have to write a letter to my father’s superior.”

Auntie Huang looked at her with sympathy. Over the past few days, the madman had helped the young educated youth chop several carts of firewood. The villagers were envious—after all, such a strong laborer was rare, even in the entire Hongqi Commune. Some people had already been making sour remarks about it.

Now, hearing this, they finally understood what she had sacrificed.

Auntie Huang knew that the young educated youth had just received twenty pounds of fine grain, yet it was already running out?

That was unsustainable.

Liu Dazhu also understood that Ming Dai was the one bearing the burden. She had come to the countryside to work, yet before she could even earn any labor points, she was already taking care of an extra mouth she couldn’t shake off.

But there was nothing he could do. He could only nod and say, “Alright. Tomorrow, before we head to work, I’ll write you a permit, and Old Liu Laosan will take you to the commune. Zhou Sinian’s package should be arriving soon as well—you can pick it up for him while you’re there.”

Being able to ride instead of walking made Ming Dai happy, and the unexpected benefit of collecting a package was even better.

She smiled and thanked him, then took the bundle in her hands and handed it to Auntie Huang.

“Auntie, I just arrived, and Uncle has already taken such good care of me. I made some rice dumplings for you and Uncle to try. I’ll be relying on you both in the future. If I make any mistakes, please teach me.”

Auntie Huang looked at her husband before accepting the bundle.

“Take it, then. It’s the girl’s kind gesture. Come over for a meal when you have time. If you need to use the cart, just come get it.”

Ming Dai smiled and agreed before calling out to Zhou Sinian, who was still playing with the flashlight, to say their goodbyes.

Watching Zhou Sinian obediently follow her, the Liu family remained bewildered.

It was the first time they had ever seen the madman so well-behaved!

After seeing them off and locking the door, Auntie Huang was still amazed.

“The old saying is true—every person has their match! I’ve never seen that madman listen to anyone like this before.”

She wanted to share her excitement, but unfortunately, everyone on the kang bed was too focused on the package Ming Dai had brought.

Huang Dalian, the wife of the eldest son in the Huang family, was Auntie Huang’s distant niece from the same village. She had always been favored, especially after giving birth to two grandsons, Tiedan and Goudan. Because of this, she wasn’t afraid of her mother-in-law. Now, she smiled and said, “Mother, city folks sure cook differently from us country folks. How does it smell so good? Even your eldest grandsons can’t resist wanting a taste.”

Auntie Huang scoffed, “I think it’s your own greedy stomach acting up.”

Tiedan and Goudan eagerly clung to their grandmother, begging for a taste of the rice dumplings.

Meanwhile, the second son’s family remained quiet. Since they had only given birth to daughters—Xiao Xing and Xiao Tao—his wife, Zhou Pandi, always felt ashamed and kept quiet.

Finally, even Auntie Huang’s youngest son, Liu Laifa, spoke up, asking for some.

Only then did Auntie Huang, muttering complaints, unwrap the cloth covering the food.

Inside were two neat rows of six plump rice dumplings, each the size of a palm, round and perfectly shaped.

“For such a small girl, her hands sure are skillful! These look just right!”

Praising as she spoke, Auntie Huang picked one up—it was soft and springy.

She handed one to each of her two grandsons, one to her youngest son, and let her two granddaughters share one.

The last two rice dumplings were divided—one was given to the old man, leaving just one. Seeing the eager look in her eldest daughter-in-law’s eyes and then glancing at her second daughter-in-law, who had her head lowered, Auntie Huang sighed.

The eldest daughter-in-law, always good at handling situations, quickly said, “Mother, you should eat it. Laifu and I will just share a bite with the children.” (T/N: Just to clarify—Liu Laifu is the eldest son of the Brigade Leader, while Liu Laifa is the youngest.)

Auntie Huang nodded in satisfaction—her eldest daughter-in-law truly knew how to be considerate.

Before she could decide who should get the last dumpling, her eldest grandson suddenly shouted in excitement, “Meat! There’s meat inside!”

The younger grandson joined in, exclaiming, “Eggs! There are eggs too!”

Auntie Huang was stunned. She tore apart the dumpling in her hands and, sure enough, it had filling. Though she couldn’t tell what kind of meat it was, the glistening oil was visible even under the moonlight.

“Oh dear, how could she give such a generous gift! Quick, don’t eat it—return it to her!”

In the countryside, gifts were always exchanged in equal measure. But this gift from the young educated youth was clearly something they couldn’t afford to repay.

Hearing that the food might be taken away, Tiedan and Goudan panicked. They shoved the dumplings into their mouths and swallowed so fast they almost choked, their faces turning pale.

Tao, holding her dumpling, hadn’t taken a single bite yet. She planned to share it with her parents, but now that she was being asked to return it, she felt reluctant.

The youngest son, Liu Laifa, hesitated before reluctantly handing his dumpling back.

He was old enough to understand how hard life was for their family.

Seeing his grandsons crying after having the dumplings taken away, Liu Dazhu tapped his tobacco pipe, then squeezed the still-warm dumpling in his hand.

“Let them eat it. We’ll repay this gift slowly.”

Auntie Huang, also feeling sorry for the children, silently withdrew her hand.

In the end, only Tiedan, Goudan, Xiao Tao, and Xiao Xing ate the dumplings. Even Liu Laifa chose to save his share.

The next morning, for the first time, Liu Dazhu’s family had preserved sausage and egg in their thin porridge.

The dumpling skins were torn into small pieces and evenly distributed into each person’s bowl.

Sipping their warm, oil-slicked porridge, the Liu family felt determined—they had to earn full work points today!

T/N: Hi, this is SakuRa! Just a quick note for context—

In 1970s China, communes (公社, gōngshè) and counties (县, xiàn) were distinct administrative divisions. A People’s Commune (人民公社, Rénmín Gōngshè) was a rural collective unit that existed from 1958 to the early 1980s, overseeing agriculture, small industries, and local governance. Each commune was made up of multiple brigades (生产大队, shēngchǎn dàduì), which were further divided into production teams (生产队, shēngchǎn duì).

In contrast, a county (县, xiàn) was a higher-level administrative division under a province (省, shěng) or prefecture (专区/地区, zhuānqū/dìqū), governing multiple communes within its jurisdiction. While communes focused on collective farming and local management, counties oversaw a broader region that included multiple communes.