Chapter 32: The Spirit of the Archway

In the afternoon, Lin Wei visited Liu Dan, Yang Yi, and Zhao Li separately, telling them that Deng Xiangyun was willing to teach them how to make hats and asking if they wanted to learn.

The three of them were overjoyed and readily agreed.

Yang Yi asked, “Should we go to find Comrade Deng to learn now?”

Zhao Li, who was more informed, said, “Isn’t there a guest at Xiao Deng’s house? Does she have time today?”

Liu Dan also asked, “Should we prepare some fabric and needles and thread first?”

Lin Wei replied, “Deng Jie thinks that if you want to learn, you can go over and check out the styles today. After deciding which kind of hat you want, you can prepare the materials. And if you run into any difficulties while making it, you can always go and ask her.”

The three of them thought this was a good idea. “Should we go now?”

Lin Wei said, “Let’s go now. The sooner we see, the sooner we can decide.”

Although Deng Xiangyun said she would teach them for free, the three didn’t want to go empty-handed, so they stopped by the supply and marketing cooperative and bought some fruit to bring along.

Fruit on the island wasn’t expensive, and carrying it as a gift was quite respectable, making it a good choice for giving.

Before Lin Wei went to find Liu Dan and the others, she had already told Deng Xiangyun about this, so when she saw them all coming together, Deng Xiangyun wasn’t surprised. What surprised her was that they didn’t come empty-handed.

However, Deng Xiangyun didn’t hesitate too long. When she greeted them to come inside, she said, “You’re all here, you don’t need to bring anything.”

Of the three, Liu Dan was a bit more familiar with Deng Xiangyun, and she laughed, “We bought it on the way here, and it wasn’t much.”

Zhao Li almost burst out laughing, thinking to herself, we almost walked a perfect equilateral triangle from your house to the supply and marketing cooperative and then to your home—how could that be called on the way?

But Zhao Li didn’t speak up to ruin the joke. Instead, she jokingly said, “In the past, when people went to learn from a teacher, they had to bow and serve tea, and also bring clothes and shoes. We wouldn’t dare compare ourselves to the old ways, but since we’re learning, we shouldn’t come empty-handed.”

Liu Dan smiled and said, “That’s right, in ancient times, a teacher was a teacher even for a single word. You’re our teacher of hats.”

Deng Xiangyun, who was pouring tea for the four of them, was startled and quickly said, “No, no, we’re just exchanging ideas, I’m not a teacher.”

“Alright, stop teasing her, Deng Jie is shy, if you praise her too much she won’t know how to teach,” Lin Wei said as she took a sip of tea and looked around before asking, “Isn’t Eighth Sister home?”

Deng Xiangyun explained, “Xiao Shitou and the others said they were going to play at the beach. I was worried, so I sent Eighth Sister to watch over them.”

“Is Eighth Sister the new girl in your family?” Zhao Li asked curiously, “Why did she come alone?”

“Yes, she’s from Ah Hai’s aunt’s family, and she’s ranked eighth, so we call her Chen Bamei,” Deng Xiangyun explained. Then, with a long sigh, she added, “This child has had a hard life!” and went on to tell the story of the marriage arranged for Chen Bamei by her family.

However, Deng Xiangyun didn’t tell the whole story. She only mentioned that Chen Bamei’s parents didn’t investigate thoroughly and only realized that the man was unsuitable after the marriage was arranged. The man had abused and killed his first wife.

Although Chen Bamei’s parents were a bit biased toward boys and were greedy for the bride price, they still felt sorry for their daughter. After finding out the truth, they wanted to cancel the engagement. But the other family was influential, and they feared that canceling the engagement might hurt their daughter, so they arranged for Chen Bamei to be sent to the Zhou family through an introduction letter from the village.

Deng Xiangyun wasn’t trying to excuse Chen Bamei’s parents. Instead, she was considering that if Chen Bamei’s parents really had ill intentions and tried to accuse them of abducting Chen Bamei, they could maintain the moral high ground.

After all, they had sent their daughter to them for refuge, and now if they turned around and accused them, it would look ungrateful.

As for whether Chen Bamei’s parents would admit to the situation, Deng Xiangyun wasn’t worried. After all, Chen Bamei had the introduction letter.

The village where Chen’s family lived had issued the letter, so anyone claiming that Chen Bamei was sent without parental consent would have a hard time proving it.

Deng Xiangyun had also considered the fact that despite all the bad deeds Chen Bamei’s parents had done, they still gained a reputation for loving their daughter. This made her feel somewhat uncomfortable, but she had concluded that in life, nothing was perfect. A bad family was like quicksand—the more you struggled, the deeper you sank.

Therefore, Deng Xiangyun believed that when encountering such a family, it was best to run as far as possible and not waste time trying to make things right. It was more important to live a good life.

If a few words of praise for Chen Bamei’s parents could make them leave her alone, it would be worth it.

If they didn’t let Chen Bamei go and came to accuse them, their current good reputation would collapse. On the other hand, if they sold their daughter and still expected to gain favor, people would naturally sympathize with her, and it would be easier to sever ties.

At the moment, Chen Bamei’s parents had a good reputation, but in the long run, it was Chen Bamei who benefited.

This was worth it.

Moreover, Deng Xiangyun didn’t keep praising Chen Bamei’s parents but pointed out their biased treatment of their daughter and how they were driven by greed for the bride price.

As a result, everyone felt a bit conflicted about Chen Bamei’s parents. They thought that although they had tried to make amends, if they hadn’t been greedy for the bride price, Chen Bamei wouldn’t have had to leave her home and come to Yanzhou Island.

As for Chen Bamei, everyone felt sorry for her.

Just then, Chen Bamei returned with the children.

Chen Bamei wasn’t very tall, standing just over 1.5 meters. While not particularly short for the South, she looked very thin due to long-term malnutrition. She appeared younger than her seventeen years, more like a fourteen- or fifteen-year-old girl.

Despite her youthful appearance, she had experienced a lot. When she walked into the house and saw so many strangers, she didn’t seem shy at all. Since she didn’t know everyone’s names, she just smiled and nodded at everyone.

Zhao Li, being the quickest to react, smiled when she saw her and said, “This must be Bamei. You look really lively!”

Because the children had just returned from the beach, Deng Xiangyun first sent them to the bathroom to wash their hands. Then, she introduced everyone to each other. Chen Bamei greeted everyone as she was introduced.

In southern dialects, the accents differ greatly, and some dialects are so different from Mandarin that they sound almost like a different language. People in the city might do better with Mandarin because they are used to it, but in rural areas, many people may go their whole lives without speaking it, and when they do, their pronunciation might be a little awkward.

Chen Bamei was like this. She could speak Mandarin, but her pronunciation was definitely not standard, and it was clear she felt a little embarrassed as she spoke, her cheeks tinged with red.

But her eyes were clear, and when speaking, she looked everyone in the eye, showing a sense of openness.

As the saying goes, “Birds of a feather flock together.” Lin Wei was kind-hearted, and the friends she had made were similar. Liu Dan and the others had different personalities, but they were all friendly.

They didn’t look down on Chen Bamei for her imperfect Mandarin. On the contrary, they admired her straightforwardness and all smiled and greeted her, offering her a seat.

Once seated, no one pressed Chen Bamei about her past but instead casually asked if she was getting used to life on the island.

After all, the island was part of the Lingnan region, and Chen Bamei’s hometown wasn’t far from here. The climate was similar.

However, even though her hometown was coastal, the village where she lived was a bit inland, so she hadn’t traveled by boat before. When she took the boat from Yangcheng, she started feeling seasick. When she got off the boat this morning, everything seemed tilted. She only felt better after taking a nap at noon.

Everyone present could relate to the topic of seasickness. No need to mention Lin Wei—she’d been lying in bed for two days on the ship.

Liu Dan and Yang Yi had similar experiences to Lin Wei. Their hometowns were both along the Yangtze River, and they had taken boats before joining the army. But the river was usually calm, and riding boats there was completely different from being out at sea. So, more or less, they all got seasick on the way over.

The worst off was Zhao Li—not only did she get seasick, she also got motion sickness from cars and trains. Unfortunately, her hometown was in Liaoning Province, so following her husband meant traveling from the far north of the country to its southernmost tip.

The journey from Liaoning to Yangcheng took over a week, switching from car to train, and she was nauseous for most of it. She had thought being on a ship might be a bit better, but it actually made her even sicker.

Because she got both car- and seasick, Zhao Li hadn’t been back home once since coming to the island with her husband.

Zhao Li said unless her husband was transferred off Yazhou Island, she’d be staying here for life.

Lin Wei laughed and said, “Don’t speak too soon! What if transportation gets faster and more comfortable in the future, and you no longer get sick? Wouldn’t you want to go out and see the world then?”

“Transportation that’s faster and more comfortable, and I don’t get sick on it? Is there such a thing in this world?” Zhao Li just couldn’t imagine it.

Lin Wei asked in return, “Why not? A hundred years ago, people mostly got around on foot, or at best by mule or horse cart. Now we have cars, trains, ships, and even airplanes. How can you be sure that in another fifty years, we won’t have even faster and more comfortable transportation?”

“But you still have to take a boat to get off the island, right?” Zhao Li asked, then immediately shook her head. “I get seasick.”

“Well, if technology advances, maybe someday you won’t need to take a boat to leave the island.”

Yang Yi asked curiously, “If we’re not taking a boat, what else can we take?”

Thinking of the futuristic world described in the original book, Lin Wei blinked and said, “Maybe someday they’ll build an airport here, and we’ll be able to take a plane out.”

Zhao Li’s eyes went wide. “Take a plane? I wouldn’t even dare dream of that! You’ve really got imagination.”

Lin Wei didn’t argue with her. She just smiled and said, “Well then, let’s wait and see if that day ever comes.”

After the small talk, Deng Xiangyun went upstairs and brought down the notebook with the hat patterns.

The notebook Deng Xiangyun brought down wasn’t the one she usually used, but an empty one she had specially picked out after discussing it with Lin Wei. She had copied six hat designs into it for everyone to see.

Since it was meant for teaching, she had drawn each design from two additional angles and added extra details. This way, even someone with no design experience could more or less understand what the drawing represented.

Although no one present had formally studied design, they all had some experience making clothes and shoes, so they could understand the basic patterns easily. Just seeing the drawings, they more or less got the idea without needing much explanation from Deng Xiangyun.

And once they understood, they couldn’t stop praising her: “You’re amazing! You must have studied this, right?”

Deng Xiangyun didn’t hide it and said, “I studied painting for a few years before.”

Zhao Li asked, “So why’d you stop?”

But as soon as she said that, Liu Dan elbowed her, and Zhao Li quickly realized and said, “Sorry, I didn’t mean—”

“It’s fine, it’s all in the past,” Deng Xiangyun smiled. “Take a look—any design you’d like to try? Bamei, you too. If there’s one you like, I’ll make one for you.”

Chen Bamei quickly waved her hands, “N-no need, I don’t wear hats when I work.”

“Just because you haven’t worn them before doesn’t mean you can’t in the future,” Deng Xiangyun said. “Pick one—it’ll be like saying goodbye to the past.”

Chen Bamei wasn’t the shy type. She thought about it seriously and asked, “Cousin-in-law, can I make it myself?”

Deng Xiangyun smiled. “Of course.”

Even though Deng Xiangyun provided six designs, only Liu Dan chose a different one. Yang Yi and Zhao Li both liked the one Lin Wei had worn earlier and chose the same.

Chen Bamei had originally wanted to pick the same, but Deng Xiangyun thought another design suited her youthful age better. Taking the suggestion, she chose a different style.

Once the styles were chosen, everyone needed to prepare their own materials.

Although hat-making only required three things—fabric, thread, and fine wire—only thread was something everyone had at home, and it could also be bought at the base supply co-op. The fabric and wire had to be purchased in the county.

It was already late, so going to the county now wasn’t possible. After some discussion, they decided to go next Sunday.

…

Because Deng Xiangyun deliberately spread the story about why Chen Bamei came to them through a few people, no one hid it when they later heard related gossip—they shared everything they knew.

With everyone spreading the word, it took less than a day for the entire base’s family quarters to hear about what Chen Bamei had gone through, and most people felt sorry for her.

Of course, where there’s sympathy, there’s also self-righteousness. Some stood on a moral high ground and criticized Chen Bamei for running away from marriage. Gao Xiulian was a prime example.

Lin Wei happened to be talking to Chen Bamei in the yard when she heard Gao Xiulian’s high-sounding criticisms.

Chen Bamei was a diligent girl. After moving into the Zhou family’s home, she’d taken the initiative to do the laundry, cook, and care for Xiao Shitou.

Since she was willing to help, Deng Xiangyun let her. While she was happy to take Chen Bamei in, she hadn’t planned on treating her like a precious guest. Doing too much for someone often spoils them. Better to treat things plainly.

And Deng Xiangyun wasn’t letting her work for nothing—she paid her like a nanny. In those days, a nanny earned ten to fifteen yuan per month. She paid Chen Bamei the highest rate—fifteen a month—plus a new set of clothes each year. That was quite generous.

Of course, Deng Xiangyun told her that if anyone asked, she couldn’t say it was a salary. She should say it was pocket money from her cousin and his wife, and that she was just a relative staying temporarily.

Given Deng Xiangyun’s political background, she had to be especially careful.

Chen Bamei agreed to everything—except taking the money. She felt that the couple had taken a risk to shelter her, and if she took money for doing some chores, that would make her ungrateful.

Seeing how stubborn the girl was, Deng Xiangyun had no choice but to hold on to the money and said, “Fine, I’ll save it for you. When things settle down next year, I’ll give it to you in one go.”

Chen Bamei was not happy. “Even if you give it to me, I’ll pay you back.”

“Then consider it part of your dowry when you get married!” When she saw that Chen Bamei was about to argue again, Deng Xiangyun’s face turned stern. “That’s final. If you keep talking, I’ll get mad.”

Chen Bamei had to lower her head but still muttered, “Never seen someone so eager to give away money.”

Deng Xiangyun: “…This brat!”

…

Even though Lin Wei had stepped down from her position and Chen Bamei had taken over her duties, Xiao Shitou still spent most of his time at her house. And he never came alone—he always brought his big shadow: Chen Bamei.

There was no helping it. There were a lot of kids in the family quarters, but Xiao Shitou’s only close friends were the twins Mingming and Ruirui.

The twins were the same. Since they were identical twins, they looked almost exactly alike. When they first came to the island, kids came every day—not to play with them, but to look and touch them like they were rare animals. When it came time to actually play games, few were willing to include them.

The twins had some pride, especially Mingming. Back in Shicheng, he was the leader among kids his age. He might not have commanded a crowd with a word, but he at least had a dozen little followers.

But once they came to the island, kids had stared at them, touched them, but when it came to playing, they were dismissed as too young.

Shame!

Because his dignity had been wounded, Mingming firmly decided that even if those people came looking for him in the future, he wouldn’t play with them again.

Ruier, on the other hand, didn’t feel his dignity was hurt. He just didn’t like people looking at him like he was some kind of curiosity, and they also liked to touch him a lot, which was really annoying.

In any case, regardless of the reason, for now, the little trio of Mingming, Ruier, and Xiao Shitou was still solid.

So when Chen Bamei wasn’t paying attention, Xiao Shitou ran off to Lin Wei’s house. And over at Lin Wei’s place, it was the same — the moment she let her guard down, the two boys had gone off to the backyard to visit again.

Thanks to the kids’ interactions, Lin Wei and Chen Bamei also quickly became familiar with each other.

After getting to know her, Lin Wei felt that Chen Bamei was truly a good person. She might not be smart or particularly tactful, but her heart was in the right place.

After being abandoned by her parents and forced to leave her hometown to rely on relatives, she didn’t wallow in self-pity or resentment. Instead, she quickly kindled a yearning for a new life. Of course, part of that was thanks to Deng Xiangyun’s intentional guidance, but her own disposition played a big role too.

Lin Wei thought, if Chen Bamei could maintain that mindset, she’d probably do well in the future.

As she was thinking this, Lin Wei heard from the neighboring courtyard Gao Xiulian scolding someone indirectly:
“Some people, huh, so young and already shameless! Their parents arranged a marriage, and they just decided not to go through with it? I really don’t get it — if you didn’t want to marry him, what were you doing all that time? If you had any backbone, you shouldn’t have agreed in the first place!”

Chen Bamei had been through some things, but after all, she was still just a seventeen-year-old girl. Hearing Gao Xiulian’s words, her eyes immediately turned red.

The other military wives sitting in the courtyard were also stunned. They hadn’t expected Gao Xiulian to say something so shocking.

Living in the family compound, people usually tried to be somewhat considerate with their words. Even though Chen Bamei wasn’t a military wife, Zhou Jianhai was still her cousin. If not for her, then at least out of respect for him.

But Gao Xiulian, seeing that Chen Bamei’s eyes were red, gave a slight smile and raised her voice even louder:
“Since she was already engaged, she belonged to that family. No matter what the guy was like, she should have married him! It’s only because times have changed that someone can break off an engagement like that. A few decades ago, someone who did that would’ve been dragged back and drowned in a pig cage — or spit to death by everyone!”

Lin Wei couldn’t take it anymore. She reached out and patted Chen Bamei’s shoulder — the girl was biting her lip hard to keep from crying — then stood up and said:
“Some people, huh, their heads are stuffed with eighteen layers of foot-binding cloth, and they think everyone else should be like them, a little shrine of moral virtue!”

Gao Xiulian’s face darkened. “Did I say anything about you? I was just chatting — what’s it got to do with you?”

“How is it none of my business? Just listen to yourself — talking about drowning people in pig cages and spitting them to death! Anyone who didn’t know better would think our country’s laws are just for show, and people can be killed on a whim!” Lin Wei retorted sarcastically. “And you call yourself a military wife? With this level of awareness, you still dare to spout nonsense in public? I’m worried you’re dragging down the reputation of all military wives!”

Gao Xiulian was livid now, no longer bothering to pretend. She pointed at Chen Bamei and snapped:
“You’re sticking up for this tramp who ran away from marriage before even getting hitched, and you still have the nerve to say I’m the one disgracing military wives?”