Chapter 11

“Asked you to cook and you nearly burned down the kitchen! Why didn’t you get yourself killed in the fire?”

As soon as Song Chunzhi looked up, she saw an elderly woman with white hair and a short, stocky frame brandishing a firewood stick and charging across the courtyard with surprising agility. In front of her, Song Chunhua was being chased in circles, sobbing and trying to explain.

“I didn’t mean to! It wasn’t on purpose…”

A glance toward the kitchen shed revealed black smoke curling into the air. It looked like only a small fire had started, nothing too serious.

The chaotic scene in the courtyard was all too familiar to Song Chunzhi. In the past, she had been the one being beaten. Now it was Song Chunhua’s turn. Oddly enough, it felt pretty satisfying. She pulled a handful of red-tinged sour jujubes from her pants pocket and munched on them while watching. The sweet and sour taste spread in her mouth, washing away the bitterness of old memories.

“She definitely did it on purpose. She just didn’t want to cook. Song Chunhua is lazy as can be. Even gets our eldest sister to wash her clothes. Shameless…” Song Jiawang, his pudgy face full of excitement, stood by fanning the flames with his commentary.

“You rotten girl! Still dare to run? Let me beat you to death today!” Chen Xiuying grabbed a handful of Song Chunhua’s hair and struck her repeatedly with the stick while hurling curses. “You even make others wash your clothes. All you do is eat and contribute nothing. Worthless!”

“Ah… ow… Grandma! I didn’t mean to. The firewood slipped while I was preparing the vegetables. It hurts…” Song Chunhua cried out as she took hit after hit, begging nonstop, “Grandma, please don’t hit me… please…”

“You’ll never learn if I don’t beat you,” Chen Xiuying growled, her old face twisted with rage. She struck again and again. “You lazy brat who won’t even wash her own clothes. How did our Song family end up with someone like you? I should beat you to death.”

“Big Sis!” Just as Song Jiawang was enjoying the spectacle, his beady eyes caught sight of Song Chunzhi standing at the gate.

“Eldest Sister, save me…” Song Chunhua looked over toward the gate, desperation written all over her tear-streaked face. She called out to Song Chunzhi, her voice full of pleading, completely forgetting any past conflicts between them. She still hoped her sister would protect her as she used to.

But she didn’t know that this Song Chunzhi was no longer the same person she had known.

“Chunzhi, stay out of this and go cook,” Chen Xiuying snapped without even lifting her head. When she noticed Song Chunhua daring to ask for help, she yanked her hair harder and dug her fingers into her flesh, putting all her strength into it. Her attitude was clear: even if her sister had returned, she wouldn’t hesitate to keep beating her.

“Grandma, you just got back, so maybe you haven’t heard yet,” Song Chunzhi said softly, lowering her eyes. Her tone sounded distressed as she looked at Song Chunhua, whose eyes were full of hope. “This morning, Chunhua and Mother were burning joss paper in the house, and the village chief came and took Mom away. You’d better discipline her properly, or who knows what kind of trouble she’ll stir up next.”

“What? Mom got taken away?” Song Jiawang was stunned. He quickly turned to look at Song Chunhua. Though young, he knew that burning joss paper was forbidden. The teachers at school had taught them it was a superstitious practice.

“What did you say?”

Chen Xiuying froze at the news, shock giving way to fury. She slapped Song Chunhua hard across the face, then kicked her to the ground and landed a few more blows while shouting, “Burning joss paper? You’ve really got some nerve. Why didn’t they take you away too? You’re all nothing but trouble. Why don’t you all just die!”

“Waaah… Grandma, I didn’t burn the paper, it was Mom…”

“And you couldn’t stop her? Useless thing. Get out of my sight!”

Song Chunhua’s protest only made Chen Xiuying angrier. She lashed out with two more smacks before suddenly raising her head to glare at Song Chunzhi. Her tone turned anxious.

“Chunzhi, your father… is he okay? That Zhao Wanmiao burning joss paper had nothing to do with your dad, right? Why isn’t he home?”

“I don’t know… It was Chunhua who stayed home today. She should know,” Song Chunzhi replied hesitantly, her round almond eyes looking innocent and confused. She shrank her neck and played dumb.

“Idiot…”

Chen Xiuying scowled at her as if she were looking at a quail. Her face was filled with disdain. How could their family be full of such useless people? Misfortune must have followed their bloodline. She turned her attention back to Song Chunhua and shouted.

“Where’s your father?”

“Dad… Dad left this morning and hasn’t come back yet.”

Song Chunhua trembled, her body still sore. Sniffling, she looked up at Chen Xiuying, tears filling her eyes. She was scared too. She hadn’t dared go out to ask around because she had been with Zhao Wanmiao when they burned the joss paper. If the village chief remembered and came after her too, she’d be doomed.

“What? He hasn’t come back since this morning?”

Chen Xiuying cried out in surprise. She immediately forgot about beating Song Chunhua and turned to Song Chunzhi.

“You go…” she started to give an order but rolled her eyes halfway through the sentence. Tossing the firewood stick to the ground in frustration, she muttered, “I’ll go myself. You better stay here and cook. If I come back and there’s no food, you’ll be sorry.”

“My arm is fractured, I can’t cook,” Song Chunzhi said casually, ignoring Chen Xiuying’s order. “Uncle Ye said if I don’t take care of it properly, I’ll end up disabled…”

“Useless thing!” Chen Xiuying, who had just reached the doorway, nearly tripped over her own feet when she heard this. She cursed bitterly. “Watch that girl cook, and if anything happens to the kitchen again, wait and see how I deal with you all when I get back!”

“Second Sister, hurry up and cook already. I’m starving!” Song Jiawang, his chubby face full of impatience, urged Song Chunhua. When he saw the slap marks on her face, he actually felt pleased. Their mother always snuck good things to Song Chunhua, and he had long been fed up with it.

“Wuuu… wuuu…” Song Chunhua only let out a breath of relief after Chen Xiuying left. But when she heard Song Jiawang’s words, all her bottled-up frustration came pouring out. She crouched down, hugging her knees, crying miserably.

“Still crying? Go clean up the kitchen already. Look at the mess inside. Do you still want to eat dinner or not?” Song Chunzhi said lightly as she listened to her sister’s sobs. She turned around, found a burlap sack in the firewood shed, and headed back into her room.

She first took out the cloth bag that Commander Gu had given her. Opening it, she found bread, canned sweets, and even some foreign-packaged goods with English letters on them. Song Chunzhi was shocked. She had rarely even seen such things, let alone eaten them. Commander Gu had been incredibly generous.

She poured the sour jujubes from the bamboo basket into the burlap sack and hid both bags under the bed. Then she picked up the half-basket of wild vegetables and headed back out.

“Big Sis!”

Seeing Song Chunzhi come out of the room, Song Jiawang hurried over with a grin on his face. His beady black eyes were full of expectation. In the past, whenever she went up the mountain, she would bring back treats for him, sour berries, young roots, red hawthorn fruit…

“My arm’s injured. I can’t climb trees with one hand,” Song Chunzhi replied, immediately understanding his intentions. In the past, she always shared whatever she brought home: half to Song Jiawang and the rest to Song Chunhua. But thinking of how, in her previous life, Song Jiawang had overheard their mother switching the admission letter yet kept quiet about it, she felt all the kindness she had shown him over the years had been fed to a dog.

Hearing that he wouldn’t be getting anything, Song Jiawang pouted and said with clear displeasure, “Big Sister, you better not end up like lazy Chunhua. Even if you’re hurt, you still have to do your share. You can’t just eat for free.”

“You’re not exactly starving at home, are you?” Song Chunzhi shot back without mercy, then headed to the kitchen. She hadn’t eaten much since morning and was already starving. As she gnawed on a steamed bun, she started directing Song Chunhua on how to cook. If she left it all to her sister, they might not get to eat even by tomorrow.

Meanwhile, Chen Xiuying rushed straight from the Song home to the village chief’s house. Along the way, she ignored all the people who greeted her. She knew they were just there to watch a spectacle, not offer help. Bursting into the courtyard, she started wailing loudly.

“My son! What his wife did has nothing to do with him. He can’t get in trouble over this!”

“Xiuying, what are you yelling about?”

Grandma Sun, who had been cooking in the kitchen, came out and frowned when she saw her. Chen Xiuying was known throughout the village for being a troublemaker. She quickly tried to calm her.

“My Xingguo… where is he? He didn’t burn any paper money! It was Zhao Wanmiao! Why did you arrest my son too?” Chen Xiuying blurted out the moment she saw Grandma Sun, eyes darting around to find Village Chief Song Qingde.

“Stop shouting. Lower your voice,” Grandma Sun hushed her, pulling her toward a corner. “Your Xingguo is fine. He just went along to help handle the situation. Go home for now. They should be back soon.”

“Xingguo’s really alright?” Chen Xiuying was skeptical. After all, feudal superstition was a serious offense. Zhao Wanmiao deserved punishment; she should’ve been more careful. Getting caught red-handed was just plain stupid.

“Don’t worry,” Grandma Sun said, patting her hand in reassurance. The village committee didn’t want to blow this incident out of proportion either. If they were officially labeled for promoting superstition, they’d be pushed to the back of the line when the village handed out supplies during New Year. That would be a real loss.

Only after watching Chen Xiuying leave did Wang Cuiqin poke her head out of the kitchen and speak to her mother-in law, Grandma Sun.

“Mom, you have no idea how arrogant Zhao Wanmiao was. When I caught her in the act, she even told Dad she had to finish burning the paper. She really needs a good lesson, or she’ll definitely try it again.”

“That Zhao Wanmiao never used to seem so bold,” Grandma Sun muttered, feeling something was off. “She’s always been fiery, sure, but when it came to real trouble, she used to shrink like a turtle. What’s gotten into her this time?”

Still, when she thought of Song Chunzhi, she nodded with approval. That girl usually stayed quiet, but when something happened, she handled it without hesitation. She was a good one.

By the time Song Xingguo returned home, the sky had already gone dark. His head hung low.

“Dad, you must be starving. Come eat something,” Song Chunzhi called out quickly when she saw him enter. Gone was his usual domineering air. Instead, he seemed defeated. She figured he must have had quite the day.

“Dad, is Mom alright?” Song Chunhua hurried over, her little face still marked from the beating, eyes full of urgency. She didn’t even notice that Song Xingguo’s expression changed the moment she mentioned Zhao Wanmiao.