Chapter 20.2

Ruan Changgui looked at Sun Xiaohui, holding his breath, unable to speak. This matter had indeed frustrated him for several days. That day, he smelled the fragrant spicy chicken all night but didn’t have a single bite, not even a taste of the sauce. It was truly unpleasant.

Seeing him silent, Sun Xiaohui continued, “You treat her as a niece, but she treats us as outsiders, even enemies. If the old tailor only teaches our Yuejin, and in the future, Yuejin brings back delicious food and wages, making them envious and drooling, wouldn’t that be satisfying?”

Ruan Changgui couldn’t say anything, lowering his head and biting into a piece of cabbage, making a crunching sound.

Even young Ruan Yuehua understood the conversation and suddenly shouted, “Mom is right! We should eat meat and not let them have any! Make them drool and cry!”

That day, he had cried all night, and his fifth uncle and cousin had laughed at him!

Sun Xiaohui shushed Ruan Yuehua, “Keep your voice down; don’t let your grandmother hear. I don’t want to argue with her.”

Ruan Yuehua, knowing how formidable his grandmother was, pursed his lips and stayed silent.

After a while, Ruan Yuejin suddenly said, “I will.”

This frustration indeed needed to be vented.

In the adjacent room, Ruan Zhigao, Liu Xinghua, Ruan Changsheng, and Ruan Jie were also having dinner. They heard Ruan Yuehua’s voice but couldn’t determine what he was saying. They weren’t interested in what Sun Xiaohui and Ruan Changgui were saying; their minds were occupied with Ruan Xi.

Ruan Zhigao, eating, said, “If Xiao Xi didn’t get delayed on the road, she should be at the commune by now.”

Ruan Changsheng, looking displeased, said, “My niece isn’t very considerate. She goes to the commune to have fun but doesn’t consider taking her fifth uncle. I treat her so well, always giving her the best food. If she took me, I could carry her, and we’d reach the commune in a day.”

Ruan Zhigao rolled his eyes at him, “Sure! You can fly!”

Ruan Changsheng chuckled, “Of course.”

Then he wondered aloud, “What do you think she’s thinking? Lately, she loves playing with that silly boy from the stilt house, even taking him to the commune. Besides being good-looking, that silly boy is just… a fool!”

Ruan Zhigao couldn’t be bothered with him, and Ruan Jie spoke up from the side, “Fifth Uncle, Ling Yao isn’t a fool. He just looks a bit dazed. Looking dazed doesn’t mean someone is stupid. My sister says he’s adorably dazed.”

“What does ‘adorably dazed’ mean?” Ruan Changsheng rolled up his sleeves to show off his arm muscles, “A man should look like a man!”

Liu Xinghua almost couldn’t resist hitting him and quickly said, “Hurry up and eat. Even eating can’t shut you up.”

Ruan Changsheng put his arm down and snorted, “Your granddaughter got taken away, and you don’t even know.”

Liu Xinghua glared at him, “What nonsense are you talking about? A thirteen or fourteen-year-old kid, what do they know?”

Ruan Changsheng pointed directly at Ruan Jie, “Ask her, ask her if she understands.”

Ruan Jie slapped his hand, “Fifth Uncle, just eat your food!”

Ruan Changsheng got even more excited, “See? She won’t even let me talk!”

Ruan Zhigao, really annoyed by his noise, suddenly kicked him hard under the table, making him yelp, “Do you know how annoying you are? Shut up!”

Ruan Changsheng rubbed his leg and fell silent.

The table was quiet for a moment, then Liu Xinghua spoke again, “I heard that today Sun Xiaohui took Yuejin to Jinguang Village to find the old tailor to become his apprentice, carrying half a basket of eggs. When Yuejin came back just now, I saw the eggs were gone.”

Ruan Zhigao was slightly surprised and looked at Liu Xinghua, “What? He wants to be a tailor too?”

Liu Xinghua said, “Seeing Xiao Xi bringing home grapes, roosters, and wages, someone got jealous, probably to the point of bleeding. Taking advantage of Xiao Xi being away at the commune for a few days, they sneaked off to find the old tailor to become his apprentice.”

Ruan Zhigao: “Yuejin is also your grandson. Don’t say such sarcastic things. If he can learn, it’s his own ability. It’s good for our Ruan family if all the grandchildren are successful.”

Liu Xinghua: “If he genuinely wants to learn the craft, I have no objections. I’m just afraid Sun Xiaohui has bad intentions, instigating Yuejin not to learn properly and thinking of ways to bully Xiao Xi.”

Ruan Changsheng chimed in, “If he dares, I’ll be the first to hammer him!”

Ruan Zhigao thought about Sun Xiaohui’s recent behavior and sighed, “If she continues to cause trouble behind our backs and drags Yuejin down with her, I’ll do what I said and kick their family of four out, letting them fend for themselves!”

Liu Xinghua couldn’t help but sigh, “How did we end up raising such a person as our second son?”

Everyone understood the situation, and she didn’t defend her son. Ruan Changgui supported Sun Xiaohui’s repeated antics. Without his tacit approval, Sun Xiaohui wouldn’t have dared act this way.

The couple was of the same ilk, but Sun Xiaohui was more scheming and took the lead in everything. Ruan Changgui stayed silent in the background as if he had nothing to do with it, but every incident was inevitably connected to him.

Ruan Zhigao said, “A dragon begets nine sons, and there’s always one bad egg.”

Ruan Changsheng burst out laughing at this and asked Ruan Zhigao, “Then what am I?”

Ruan Zhigao: “You’re a fly!”

Ruan Changsheng’s expression fell, “…”

Ruan Zhigao: “Never-ending, buzzing around…”

Ruan Changsheng: “…”

Holding her bowl, Ruan Jie looked at Ruan Changsheng’s face and laughed so hard she trembled.

Ruan Xi and Ling Yao finished their noodles at the stall and wandered around the street.

The original memory of the commune was vague, and Ruan Xi didn’t know where her third aunt’s house was. So, she asked around for her third uncle’s name and, as dusk deepened, found her third aunt’s house with Ling Yao.

Seeing the door half-open, Ruan Xi knocked on the door. No one answered, so she knocked again and called, “Is anyone home? Aunt, Uncle, are you home?”

After knocking, someone responded, “Who is it?”

Ruan Xi saw a woman with short hair in gray clothes come out of the house. It was her third aunt, Ruan Cuizhi, just a bit older. She smiled and said, “Third Aunt, it’s me.”

Ruan Cuizhi hadn’t returned to her parents’ home in recent years. She was momentarily stunned when she saw Ruan Xi. Then, her eyes lit up after a moment, and she grabbed Ruan Xi, saying, “It’s Xiao Xi! You’ve grown into a young lady. I almost didn’t recognize you.”

Girls grow quickly during these years, changing in height and shape every year.

Ruan Xi smiled and said, “You haven’t been back for a long time. Grandpa and Grandma miss you. They asked me to come and see you.”

Mentioning going back to her parents’ home, Ruan Cuizhi couldn’t help but sigh but didn’t say much. She invited Ruan Xi into the house. Seeing a young boy behind her, she asked, “Who is this?”

Ruan Xi introduced him, “My friend from the village.”

“Oh,” Ruan Cuizhi nodded, “Come in, both of you.”

Ling Yao politely greeted, “Hello, Auntie.”

Ruan Cuizhi led them into the house, took out two white porcelain bowls, and poured each one with boiled water.

After entering the house and drinking water, Ruan Xi noticed that Ruan Cuizhi was alone. It was quite late, and she was curious, so she put down the bowl and asked, “Where are Uncle and my cousins?”

Ruan Cuizhi suddenly remembered and said, “Oh, you came at the right time. Tonight, there’s a movie showing at the Tianfeng Middle School playground. Your uncle and cousins went early to get seats. Do you want to go see it?”

A movie showing?

Ruan Xi turned to look at Ling Yao, and they exchanged glances for a moment.

There were no movie screenings in the mountains, and Ling Yao hadn’t seen a movie in the four years since he went up the mountain. The original memory didn’t include any movie-watching experiences either. She had followed Liu Xinghua to town once before but hadn’t caught such a good opportunity.

After exchanging glances with Ling Yao, they stood up from the bench in unison.

Ruan Xi said, “Then let’s go see it too.”

Ruan Cuizhi stood up with them, “If you’re going, hurry up. There probably aren’t any good seats left now, and you’ll have to squeeze in at the back. You might not be able to see the screen. If you can’t see, just listen to the sound. Put down your things and go quickly. Come back after watching.”

Hearing this, Ruan Xi removed her backpack, and Ling Yao followed suit, removing his backpack and water bottle.

Ruan Cuizhi took their backpacks and water bottles and then remembered something, asking, “Have you eaten? If not, take some steamed buns from home to fill your stomach. I’ll make you some food when you come back.”

Ruan Xi quickly said, “Aunt, we’ve eaten. We still have some dry food in our backpacks.”

Ruan Cuizhi didn’t say anything more and urged them to go quickly. She knew that the children in the village had never seen a movie, and it was a rare opportunity, so she had to let Ruan Xi go and see it.

As someone who had already integrated into this era, Ruan Xi really wanted to see a movie, as if she had never seen one before. So she didn’t waste any time, grabbed Ling Yao, and ran out.

They had passed by Tianfeng Middle School while asking for directions to Ruan Cuizhi’s house, so they didn’t need to ask for directions again. They just ran straight towards Tianfeng Middle School.

With something new and exciting ahead, Ruan Xi and Ling Yao temporarily forgot their fatigue. When they arrived at Tianfeng Middle School, they saw the playground crowded with people. Because they were short, they couldn’t see the whole screen from the back, only the upper half.

Ruan Xi tried to stand on tiptoe, “I can’t see anything.”

Ling Yao, who was taller than her, also couldn’t see the whole screen, “I can’t see either.” He tried to stand on tiptoe, thinking if he could lift Ruan Xi up so she could see the screen while he just listened. But when he turned around, he suddenly realized Ruan Xi was gone. His heart sank, and he quickly turned around, looked for her, and called out, “Xixi!”

After calling a few times without finding her, he heard Ruan Xi’s voice calling him, “Zaizai! Over here!”

Ling Yao tried to determine the direction of her voice, but with so many people around and the noise, he couldn’t pinpoint it. So he listened carefully and looked around.

Finally, he saw Ruan Xi in a tree.

It was a locust tree at the playground’s edge, with branches spreading out and green leaves like a canopy. The tree had already passed its flowering period, so there were no flower clusters. He ran to the tree and looked up.

Ruan Xi was sitting on a branch, looking down and calling him, “Zaizai! Come up here!”

Ling Yao responded and tried to find a way to climb the tree, but after several attempts, he couldn’t get up. He had never been a naughty child, never sneaking around, picking locks, climbing trees, or fighting.

Seeing he couldn’t get up, Ruan Xi climbed down a bit and extended her hand to him, helping him up.

Ling Yao grabbed her hand and finally managed to climb up, sitting face-to-face with Ruan Xi in the tree.

Catching his breath, Ling Yao said, “I didn’t expect you to know how to climb trees.”

Ruan Xi giggled, “It’s quite surprising, isn’t it? I can actually climb trees.”

This wasn’t her own skill but a memory in her body.

After they settled down and caught their breath, they looked down from the tree. Although they were a bit far from the movie screen, they could see the entire picture clearly. The sound was audible, thanks to the speakers. The movie hadn’t started yet. The projector’s light cast shadows on the white screen, and many children were playing with the shadows, some hopping around like rabbits, others making dove shapes with their hands.

Ruan Xi looked at the shadows on the screen and curiously asked, “I wonder what movie they’re showing.”

Ling Yao, who had come with her and hadn’t talked to anyone else, replied, “We’ll find out soon.”

Ruan Xi leaned her head against the tree trunk, “We’re lucky this time. I’ve never seen a movie before.”

Ling Yao said, “I haven’t seen one in a long time either.”

They sat in the tree for a while, waiting. Suddenly, the screen flickered, and someone shouted, “Everyone in front, sit down! Stop playing. The movie is starting!”

The children in front obediently sat down, disappearing from view.

The projector whirred, and the noise gradually subsided. The playground soon fell completely silent.

The nostalgic music began, and Ruan Xi perked up, watching the slightly flickering subtitles on the screen. Movies from this era seemed to have constantly flickering subtitles.

After the production company’s name, the movie title appeared. Ruan Xi read it aloud, “Heroic Sons and Daughters, adapted from Ba Jin’s ‘Reunion.'”

She turned to Ling Yao, “Have you seen it?”

Ling Yao nodded, “I saw it before, but I don’t remember the details.”

Ruan Xi smiled, “Then let’s watch it again.”

In an era with very few entertainment options, watching a movie twice, or even ten or twenty times, would never get old. Watching a movie was almost a sacred event; people watched whatever the projectionist showed. The projectionist’s job was a prestigious one, highly respected by everyone. Wherever a movie was shown, local officials would treat the projectionist to good food and drink.

Once the movie started, no one spoke loudly; even whispers were barely audible. Ruan Xi and Ling Yao stopped chatting, sat in the tree, and watched the screen from afar, immersed in the movie along with everyone else.

Ruan Xi was excited when she heard there was a movie to watch, but as she settled in, her excitement waned. She wasn’t watching a movie for the first time; she had seen countless movies before.

If it were truly her first time, she would likely be excited enough to watch the entire movie from start to finish, even if it played all night. But now, her initial excitement faded, and she began to feel sleepy.

After walking for two days and sleeping briefly near the hot springs, the movie couldn’t keep her excited, and it slowly became a lullaby.

Ruan Xi tried to stay awake, shaking her head to keep herself alert.

But after shaking her head a few times, it no longer worked. So she rested her forehead against the tree trunk, watching the movie screen and slowly blinking. Her eyes blinked smaller and slower until she fell asleep against the tree.

Ling Yao didn’t notice at first. Seeing her eyes closed, he called her name twice.

Realizing Ruan Xi had fallen asleep from exhaustion, he didn’t wake her. He found a comfortable position in the tree, holding her arm with one hand to prevent her from falling and placing his other hand under her face.

He used his palm to separate her face from the rough tree bark, preventing her from rubbing against it.

The movie’s sound echoed throughout the small town as Ruan Xi drifted into a dream on the old locust tree.

After a while, feeling uncomfortable, she moved her head slightly, rubbing her cheek against Ling Yao’s hand.

After a few rubs, she stopped moving and slept more soundly against his hand.

The movie’s sound was loud through the speakers. But to Ling Yao, the whole world seemed to quiet down.