Chapter 14: An’an’s Background

Lin Meiru reminded, “Head of the family, give An’an some extra money. When she’s out, it’s reassuring to have some money on hand.”

“I’ll be careful,” Jiang Degui said as he pulled out a wad of money from his pocket, totaling about one yuan, “When you get to the county, don’t deprive yourself. Buy whatever you want to eat.”

Jiang An’an was surprised, “That’s too much; I only need a dime.”

In this era, a dime is worth more than ten yuan in the 21st century; a few cents could buy a bowl of noodles or several steamed buns. Especially in the village, one yuan was considered a fortune!

Jiang Degui directly stuffed the money into her pocket without further discussion, “Keep the rest as pocket money.”

If this had been a few years ago, Jiang Degui would have been reluctant to do this. But he had three good sons-in-law who always liked to give him some money for cigarettes and alcohol during holidays. He himself didn’t drink or smoke, so he saved up little by little, and now he had quite a bit of savings.

Besides, spending on his youngest daughter didn’t hurt at all.

“I just packed a bag of mountain goods, including dried radish, wood ear mushrooms, and dried hazel mushrooms. Tomorrow, take it to your second sister. Which is closer to the Women’s Federation, the supply and marketing cooperative or the Hongxing Community? Just go there. Don’t be silly running around the streets with a bag.”

Jiang An’an placed her hands on the table, listening intently, not finding it annoying at all.

In the end, Lin Meiru couldn’t take it anymore and interrupted him, “Our little girl is smart! An’an, finish your meal and hurry back to your room to sleep. The brigade leader just said we’ll leave at seven tomorrow morning.”

Jiang Shulan looked up, “Tomorrow morning, I’ll get up to boil you an egg and steam some white buns for you to eat on the way. An’an? Why are you frowning? Is your head bothering you again?”

The family was thrown into a bit of chaos.

Jiang An’an shook her head, “I suddenly understand about the ‘Marriage Law’ and filing lawsuits. Don’t you find it strange?”

She half-lowered her eyes, her hands tightly clasped together, her fingers turning white from the pressure.

The room fell into a moment of silence.

“Ahem! Your room is filled with all sorts of messy books; what’s so strange about that?” Lin Meiru spoke first, “Last year, you brought back a whole box from a pile of junk, and it scared your dad and me so much that we stayed up all night flipping through them, afraid there were banned books.”

Jiang Degui’s face lit up with joy, adding a few more wrinkles, “That’s why I say An’an is smart; in the past, books were so precious that you couldn’t afford them even if you went bankrupt. Now, you can pick them up from the trash for just a few dimes.”

“Tsk tsk! An’an is naturally good at taking advantage; she definitely won’t suffer in the future.”

Jiang An’an: …

No matter what, her heart finally felt at ease. No matter how much knowledge and ability she revealed in the future, it could all be attributed to the books.

Night.

Lin Meiru lay in bed tossing and turning, unable to sleep. She sat up and said, “Dear, if you’re not asleep, keep me company and chat for a bit.”

Jiang Degui sighed, “I know what you’re thinking. An’an is the daughter of a martyr, born with a natural hatred for evil and a kind heart. Over the years, An’an has grown more and more like her benefactor. Are you worried that those bad people might come back and harm An’an?”

Recalling the past, Jiang Degui’s eyes grew slightly moist, still unable to suppress his grievances after all these years.

During the nationwide famine in the 1950s, everyone had to tighten their belts to survive. At that time, Lin Meiru had just given birth to their third child, and her sister-in-law instigated a division of the family. Their mother took less than ten jin of corn and separated their family from the rest.

How cruel she was!

Lin Meiru had insufficient milk, and with two daughters crying from hunger all day, they had nothing to eat. All the wild roots and tree bark nearby had been dug up, and Jiang Degui could only risk going deep into the mountains.

After two days and three nights, just when Jiang Degui was about to starve, he encountered his benefactor, but unfortunately, he only learned that the benefactor’s surname was Shen before the bad people showed up…

“Those events have long been buried by time; you shouldn’t worry needlessly. It’s not like the authorities would only remember the benefactor sixteen years later and start sending people to investigate, right?” Under the cover of darkness, Jiang Degui quietly wiped away his tears.

“When An’an grows up, gets married, and has children, and has someone to rely on for the rest of her life, we’ll tell her the truth. Her parents were martyrs, benefactors of the Jiang family, and heroes of the people.”

Lin Meiru choked up, feeling a mix of pride: “Fortunately, An’an hasn’t been spoiled by us. Just look at how she’s thriving today; she’ll definitely become a little hero like her parents in the future.”

Jiang Degui was startled and quickly covered his wife’s mouth, “Pah pah pah! What nonsense are you talking about? As long as An’an can live a safe and sound life, she shouldn’t aim to be a hero!”

Lin Meiru felt regret.

“In a while, it’ll be the anniversary of our benefactor’s death. Prepare the incense and paper money quietly. This year, I plan to take An’an to pay respects.” Outside, the wind was strong, and the incense and paper money were remnants of feudal superstition; they either had to buy them on the black market or trade among villagers.

“Alright.”

“Get to bed early. Tomorrow morning, steam a few more white buns. An’an can share one or two with the public security comrades; we can’t let them help us for nothing.”

Although Lin Meiru felt a pang in her heart, she agreed. For the sake of her two daughters, a little food was nothing.

“About my mother and uncle…”

The night fell into a silence, only the sound of two shallow breaths could be heard.

After a long while, just as Lin Meiru was about to fall asleep, she suddenly heard her husband’s hoarse voice beside her:

“From now on, let’s just treat each other as ordinary relatives.”

Lin Meiru turned over, feeling a sense of schadenfreude as she thought: Haha! If the old lady hears her second son’s near disownment, she’ll probably be furious!

After the autumn harvest, the weather seemed to suddenly turn cold.

Frost covered the grass by the roadside, sparkling and warm in the morning sun.

Jiang An’an sleepily climbed onto the ox cart, holding a bag of warm white buns, leaving the Nanxi Brigade under the watchful eyes of her family.

The old yellow ox trotted forward happily with its four iron hooves, its steps steady. Compared to the slower but less bumpy tractor, the small village quickly became just a dot in the distance.

She patted her chilled cheeks, her sleepiness gradually fading, and finally took the time to look at the passengers on the cart.

Aside from her, the rest were young educated workers. Everyone took advantage of these two days of farming downtime to ride the free ox cart into town to stock up on supplies.

In the southern winter, the days are short and without heated kang beds. Families with means would burn charcoal or firewood for warmth, while poorer families had to rely on sheer willpower to get through. Therefore, if the young educated workers wanted to avoid the cold, they could only depend on themselves.

Thinking of this, Jiang An’an couldn’t help but be grateful that she had crossed over and become a local.

The eight steaming buns in her arms probably used up all the white flour at home, yet her parents didn’t blink an eye, fearing she would go hungry outside.

Her heart swelled with warmth, and Jiang An’an smiled slightly, determined to treat her new family better.

Suddenly!

The ox cart unexpectedly fell into a deep pit.

If Jiang An’an hadn’t grabbed the cart board in time, she would have been thrown out like the young educated workers on either side.

There were cries of distress as three unfortunate young workers scraped their hands and feet and bled a little; fortunately, the injuries were not serious.

In front, five or six large stones blocked the middle of the mountain road, and the left side, close to the mountain peak, was completely blocked by dirt.

“It’s a landslide! Everyone, retreat to a safe area,” a clear voice directed.