Chapter 15

In the evening, it started to snow again, so cold that even the water for washing pots was freezing.

Jiang Jiang squatted at the door, holding a stick and drawing on the ground.

She couldn’t write, so she copied the little figures she had seen at Shi Xiaoyang’s place, waiting for someone to return but not seeing anyone yet.

Recently, it had been snowing frequently, and thick snow had piled up on the mountains. As night fell, Lin Youqing had ridden his bicycle out, but the road was slippery and difficult.

When He Guijuan came out of the kitchen, anxiety creased her face as she asked her daughter, who was by the jujube tree, “Jiang Jiang, has your dad come back yet?”

“Not yet,” Jiang Jiang replied.

“He might be staying for dinner at the commune. Let’s not wait; let’s go back and eat.”

Just as He Guijuan took Jiang Jiang’s hand, a sudden loud “rumble” came from the south, shaking the ground like an earthquake. He Guijuan’s heart trembled, and she instinctively tightened her grip on Jiang Jiang’s hand.

It wasn’t until they reached the village entrance that they realized there had been an avalanche.

The sky had turned completely dark, and the village was submerged in darkness. Villagers had gathered in the open space to light a fire for warmth and light, with cries and wails piercing through the crowd from time to time.

The heavy snow had blocked all the roads leading out of Dongxi Village, turning it into an isolated settlement. Several households were buried under the snow, and a few women were crying loudly, grasping the team leader Zhou Youquan, lamenting that their loved ones had been buried by the snow.

Panic had engulfed the entire Dongxi Village and the Luling Commune.

“Mom, my dad…” Jiang Jiang’s face turned pale. When the avalanche struck, Lin Youqing was likely on his way back.

“Maybe he’s still at the commune. Don’t worry…” He Guijuan’s vision went black, and she nearly collapsed. Luckily, Jiang Jiang was quick to catch her.

After steadying herself and observing the chaotic scene around her, He Guijuan knew she had to act. As a government worker and a doctor, it was her duty to step up and stabilize the situation.

“Everyone, please don’t panic. Quiet down. The priority is to rescue people. If anyone has snow shovels at home, bring them over…”

“Where is Lao San? Where’s Lao San?!” Lin Laotai finally noticed that Lin Youqing was missing.

“Brother Youquan, is there any way to contact the commune?” He Guijuan asked the team leader.

“The snow has blocked all the roads; there’s no way to get through… Is Secretary Lin at the commune?”

“He… might be on his way back.”

Lin Laotai closed her eyes and fainted.

“Mom, Mom…”

“Quick, pinch her acupoint!”

There was another wave of commotion among the crowd.

Eldest Brother Lin carried Lin Laotai back home. Being just a little girl, Jiang Jiang felt she couldn’t be of much help here, so He Guijuan decided to take her back with her.

The Lin family’s home was centrally located in the village and built very sturdily, so the avalanche hadn’t affected much. When Lin Lao Er and his wife returned from the village entrance, they remarked that it was too cold and that they had gone back to the cave to sleep since there wasn’t much to do.

After settling Lin Laotai in, Eldest Brother Lin said to his wife, “I’ll go find out if there’s any news about Lao San and see if I can help with anything. Sister-in-law is still over there, so keep an eye on Mom.”

“Okay.”

Eldest Brother Lin braved the wind and snow again, stepping out into the cold.

Meanwhile, Zhang Yueju snuck the blanket around Old Madam Lin, sighed, and recalled that she still had a bit of brown sugar and millet left in her own room. Her husband had brought it for her when he returned from his last trip.

Zhang Yueju had suffered severe blood loss, giving birth to their son, Tiezhu, and her health had been fragile ever since. Her husband cared deeply about this, always looking for an opportunity to bring home some brown sugar for her whenever he could.

The weather outside was freezing, and with the snow still falling, she worried that prolonged exposure to the cold could lead to a lasting ailment.

Since she had nothing else to do at the moment, she decided she might as well cook some millet porridge with brown sugar, adding a bit more ginger to ward off the chill for everyone.

When Old Madam Lin opened her eyes, her gaze fell upon her granddaughter, Fengyin, who sat by the edge of her bed.

“Any news from your Third Uncle?” Although Lin Youqing had repeatedly clashed with her over Jiang Jiang, whom she believed brought bad luck to the family, he was still her own flesh and blood. He had always been her pride and joy.

The mere thought that something might have happened to him made Old Madam Lin’s entire body tremble.

“None,” replied Fengyin.

“Grandmother,” Fengyin continued, “Third Uncle hasn’t been to the commune for days. Why, of all days, did he suddenly have business there today and run into an avalanche?”

“What do you mean…?”

“It has to be Jiang Jiang, that misfortune-bringer, cursing my Third Uncle! It wasn’t enough for her to cause the death of her own parents; now she wants to ruin him, too.” Fengyin covered her face and began to cry. “Ever since she came into our home, first, Grandmother, your back was injured, and now Third Uncle has met with an avalanche…”

Wiping her tears, Fengyin clenched her teeth, “She’s nothing but a walking curse; wherever she goes, disaster follows.”

Meanwhile, He Guijuan had told Jiang Jiang to go back to sleep. But Jiang Jiang was weighed down with thoughts and couldn’t even consider rest. She sat in the kiln for a while, and when she came out, she saw a candle flickering in the kitchen. With nothing else to occupy her, she headed to the kitchen to help with the fire.

The fire was burning in the kitchen, keeping it relatively warm, and a pot of food was left on the stove, still warm. It had been set aside specifically by He Guijuan for Lin Youqing.

Jiang Jiang was deeply worried about Lin Youqing.

Others had always cursed her as a “misfortune-bringer.” At first, she used to defend herself, insisting she wasn’t one, but after hearing it so many times, she’d grown numb to it. Yet now, with the avalanche and the complete lack of news from Lin Youqing, she couldn’t help but wonder.

Was she really a bringer of misfortune?

Had she truly brought harm to her father?

Seeing the troubled look on Jiang Jiang’s face as she added wood to the stove, her small face glowing red in the firelight, Zhang Yueju’s heart softened. She reached out and gently patted Jiang Jiang on the head.

“Is Jiang Jiang worried about her father?”

“Your father will certainly be safe.”

Jiang Jiang nodded in response.

Just as Zhang Yueju was lifting the pot lid, intending to add the freshly rinsed millet to the pot, Old Madam Lin stormed in, grabbed Jiang Jiang from the stool, and struck her hard across the face.

“You misfortune-bringer!”

“My son treats you well, doesn’t he? So why would you curse him like this?!”

Zhang Yueju was taken aback and hurried to free Jiang Jiang from Old Madam Lin’s grip. “Mother, what are you doing?! We don’t even know if Third Brother was caught in an avalanche, and even if he was, what does that have to do with Jiang Jiang? She’s just a child!”

“Spare her!! This little wretch—I should never have let her into our Lin family! If anything happens to my Third Son, I… I’ll make sure you, this cursed misfortune-bringer, pay with your life, a thousand cuts if it comes to it!”

“You’ve already caused your own parents’ deaths and stolen jewelry from Zhou Fugui’s wife, and yet that wasn’t enough! Now, you seek to ruin my Third Son, too! You wretched, snake-hearted brat!”

Watching Old Madam Lin’s furious tirade, Fengyin couldn’t help but smirk.

Serves her right, she thought. That’ll teach her to try to take my place.

The slap left Jiang Jiang’s head buzzing.

Her cheek throbbed with stinging pain, and after a long moment, her tears and snot finally started to pour uncontrollably down her face.