Chapter 18: The Softshell Turtle Was for Release

Xiaomei brought her father’s breakfast and went to her grandmother’s house. Her uncle and aunt had already gone to work, her older cousin was at school, and her younger cousin—lazy as always—was still asleep.

She told her dad that she’d wake her little brother later and send him over for breakfast.

They would be eating lunch at her grandma’s place today, and her other grandma would bring the dishes over later.

Then she climbed onto her grandmother’s bed.

Because of an injection, her grandmother was still in a deep sleep.

Xiaomei first used a towel with warm water to wipe her grandmother’s face and hands, then gently massaged her hands and feet.

She wasn’t sure how to massage—Grandma’s limbs were just skin and bones. Every touch seemed painful. Holding back tears, Xiaomei asked her father, “Why is Grandma’s belly so big?”

It looked like all the flesh on her body had gone to her stomach.

“She hasn’t pooped for several days, and there might also be abdominal fluid,” her father, Wang Peigen, explained.

Xiaomei didn’t understand these things, but she knew that not pooping for days would make it hard and painful: “So what do we do?”

“If a healthy person is constipated, they can eat some bananas or something. But with your grandma, I’ll go get some internal and external medicine later,” Wang Peigen said.

The closer the person, the more careful one is with medications. Laxatives act fast, and Wang Peigen was worried his mother-in-law’s body couldn’t handle it.

At the hospital, there were doctors, and villagers blindly trusted them. But now they were home, and her belly had noticeably swelled in just a few days. Peigen had been afraid to act. But now even his nine-year-old daughter noticed it—he knew the problem was serious and could no longer avoid it.

He quickly finished breakfast and got ready to leave.

“Dad, Grandma told me to tell you to take her shift at 2 p.m. She has something to do,” Xiaomei reminded him.

“Got it,” he replied and left in a hurry.

Back at home, Grandma Wang washed the breakfast dishes and kept her grandson’s breakfast warm in the pot.

After finishing up, she rushed off to her second daughter’s house.

Xiaomei’s second aunt, Wang Peiying, was Grandpa’s daughter by his first wife.

Peiying had married Tian Shuiguan, an orphan in the village, and they had four daughters. The eldest was already working in the fields; the three younger ones helped with housework at home.

Grandma Wang had helped raise all four girls. Knowing she had to care for Xiaomei’s grandmother these days, Peiying and her husband had kept the younger girls home, not letting them visit the sick grandmother.

“Mom, what brings you here?” Peiying and her husband were just about to go to work when they saw Grandma Wang and quickly greeted her.

“I want the second and third girls to go to Meiren Leg and pick malantou, toon buds, goji tips, and scrape peach resin. I’ll pay one cent per jin for anything they bring. Take baskets and go now—I’ve already told Haijun’s mom. Before 2 p.m., bring everything to my place with Xiaomei. I’ll weigh and pay right away. The youngest girl will come with me. Eldest girl, make pancakes for your sisters, and let your parents go to work first.”

She then told the couple, “Don’t tell anyone about this. Some sent-down youths want to buy these. You all can have pancakes for lunch too—just make do for now. I’ll return the youngest girl tonight; Peigen will bring her home.”

“Mom, you’re busy already. I’ll come get her after work or let her return with her sisters,” the uncle quickly offered.

“Fine,” Grandma Wang nodded, and took the youngest girl along.

The eldest daughter was five years older than Xiaomei, the second was one year older than her, the third was one year younger than Xiaohua, and the fourth was only three.

In the village, whether a girl studied depended on the parents. If they were willing, the child went; if not, she stayed home. Those who did go relied on the teachers to keep them out of trouble.

Peiying’s daughters hadn’t gone to school—some weren’t old enough, and the older ones just didn’t go.

In contrast, the eldest aunt’s two sons both attended school.

Grandma Wang hurried with her granddaughter to care for the sick grandmother.

Near lunchtime, the grandmother woke up and saw that it was her in-law caring for her. She felt deeply moved and tried to speak words of thanks despite the effort.

Grandma Wang had always had a good relationship with her. After becoming in-laws, they grew even closer. Seeing her in this state made Grandma Wang feel terrible, so she tried to distract her with light conversation.

She cooked some rice porridge and scrambled eggs, coaxing the grandmother to eat a little. She also gave her a preserved plum to ease the bitterness in her mouth.

Grandma Wang told her that all the food had been gathered by Xiaomei: “Your granddaughter is something else! She even said she’ll find a way to cure you, pay off the hospital debt, and build a big house just for you. So, relax and focus on getting well—good days are still ahead.”

Despite the pain, the grandmother smiled weakly at Xiaomei, moved by her words.

Seeing this, Xiaomei couldn’t hold back her tears. She quickly pulled her little cousin outside.

Before 2 p.m., Wang Peigen returned with a laxative. With everyone helping, they got the grandmother to take it.

Worried that Peigen might not be comfortable helping with bathroom needs, Grandma Wang spoke to the neighbor and told Xiaomei’s cousin Zongming to stay home and fetch help if needed.

Once all arrangements were made, Grandma Wang took Xiaomei and the youngest cousin back home.

Soon, Haijun’s little sister—called Xiaomeizi—and the two daughters from the aunt’s family arrived, each carrying three bundles of vegetables.

Grandma Wang weighed the vegetables first. The two nieces had picked 32 jin in total, mostly toon buds, with a little malantou and three jin of peach resin.

Altogether, it was 35 jin—at one cent per jin, that made 35 cents. Grandma Wang gave the second girl 40 cents and instructed her to take the youngest girl home: “Go straight home. Give the money to your mom. Go again tomorrow—the malantou was a bit old today, pick younger ones tomorrow.”

Xiaomeizi had even more—nearly 50 jin—but no peach resin. Clearly, her dad had helped too.

Since they’d agreed to give three jin of vegetables to Haijun’s family at the same price, Grandma Wang gave Xiaomeizi 62 cents total.

This made the little girl so happy she thanked Grandma over and over.

She then pulled out a softshell turtle, saying her mom had told her to give it to Grandma Wang.

Grandma Wang weighed it—it was over three jin—and smiled with satisfaction: “Thank your mom for me. I’ll pay her for the turtle tonight when she brings the chicken and eggs.”

Xiaomeizi beamed and happily left, especially after hearing there would be more business tomorrow.

Grandma Wang and her granddaughter sorted the goods. She gave Xiaomei a boiled egg to eat, and even brought out new clothes gifted by Zhou Huifang. Xiaomei changed into them and, based on her advice, undid her braids and tied her hair into a ponytail. Except for the yellow liberation shoes on her feet, she looked just like a modern city girl.

“These veggies are too heavy—save some for tomorrow morning,” Grandma Wang said as she packed the vegetables into bags. She also handed Xiaomei a small cloth pouch: “This is for the money. Be careful.”

One behind the other, Xiaomei carried the money pouch, stool, and scale. Grandma Wang carried the veggie and turtle bags. They “sneakily” headed to their backyard.

When no one was looking, Grandma handed everything to Xiaomei, and watched as Xiaomei disappeared after counting to three.

Once Xiaomei was gone, Grandma’s heart started pounding with worry. She couldn’t focus on chores.

After pacing in the backyard, she stomped her foot, fetched the leftover veggies and a small stool, and went to the backyard to sort them.

Xiaomei first went to Zhou Huifang’s shop, where she happened to be present.

When Zhou saw Xiaomei pull out a turtle, her eyes widened: “You want to sell this?”

Xiaomei nodded. “It’s wild. Grandma spent a lot on it. I don’t know how much it’s worth. Auntie, do you want it? Turtle is really nourishing.”

Zhou Huifang called inside, “Xiao Mao, bring a bucket and fetch some river water. We need to keep the turtle alive.”

Then she turned to Xiaomei: “I usually buy these to release them. How much are you thinking of selling it for?”

Xiaomei’s eyes lit up. “Auntie, what does ‘release’ mean?”

Zhou Xing, nearby, chuckled: “Your aunt is a devout believer. Whenever she sees turtles, she buys them to release into the pond at Xiyuan Temple. These ancient turtles live a long time.”

“In that case, I can’t take money for it,” Xiaomei said at once.

Zhou Huifang pinched her cheek. “No way. Your family paid a lot for it. How about this—I’ll give you 600 yuan. Don’t think it’s too little.”

“That’s too much!” Xiaomei said quickly. “A token of appreciation is enough.”

“Don’t be polite. She’s the boss lady—she’s got money,” Zhou Xing laughed.

“Shut up,” Zhou Huifang kicked him, then opened a drawer, counted out 600 yuan, and handed it to Xiaomei. “That’s all the cash in the store. I’ll go to the bank later to get more.”

She also noticed Xiaomei didn’t have a mobile phone—no WeChat or Alipay.

“Do you have chicken and eggs at home?” Zhou asked. “I’ve had a lot of people asking lately.”

“I’ll bring them tomorrow—we’ve got both,” Xiaomei smiled sheepishly. “I couldn’t carry them all today with the veggies.”

Since it was still early, Xiaomei left the vegetables at the store and went out to stroll around town.