Outside, there was a grand scene of family recognition.

Old Master Song looked at his son and walked towards him step by step. He placed his rough hand on his face and suddenly knelt down.

Kneeling on the ground, the old man tore at his chest, seemingly wanting to say something, but he couldn’t get the words out.

The old man buried his head in the dirt and pounded the ground with his fists, again and again.

The feeling of grief choked him, and it was only then that people could feel the joy of his son returning from the dead.

Old Lady Song and Song Laosan (Song’s third son) weren’t really happy.

Don’t be fooled by the fact that the old lady was crying the loudest—Su Xiangwan had heard professional mourners cry louder and more heartbreakingly than her.

What the Old Lady Song was doing wasn’t crying; it was a performance, a skillful display.

“Mom, is that person really my dad? I don’t like him at all.” Gou dan spat out the blood in his mouth and muttered.

Lu Dan peered through the crack in the door and watched, “He’s been holding onto his mom.”

Although the man was tall and handsome, the children had never met him, so they didn’t feel any connection.

Su Xiangwan didn’t care about the things outside. She lifted the tarp from the tractor’s cargo bed to see what valuable things were inside.

Standing on the tractor, she let out an exclamation.

The so-called treasures really were great treasures.

There were at least a dozen radios and several large flashlights in the bed.

Though they were all old and broken, in the 1960s, these were valuable items that couldn’t even be bought with a ticket.

“Mom, Mom, I smell something delicious, I can’t describe it, but it smells so good.” Gou Dan whispered.

Su Xiangwan followed the child’s gaze and uncovered the tarp. Her heart skipped a beat.

In the corner, there was an oilcloth wrapped around several large bundles of cured meat.

Good gracious, the Red Star Commune hadn’t fed pigs for several years in order to increase grain production and meet the national purchasing quotas.

Even though Su Xiangwan hadn’t smelled meat in the two months she had been here, poor Lu Dan and Gou Dan had never eaten meat in their lives.

Smelling the meat, all three of them were already drooling.

“Big Brother, let me tell you, this is what happened between Big Sister-in-law and Zhao Guodong…” Outside, Song Laosan’s voice could be heard.

Apparently, Song Qingshan had come back to see his wife and children, and Song Laosan was busy sowing discord.

“You two, use all your abilities. Today, no matter what your grandma and third uncle say, don’t let them succeed.” Su Xiangwan encouraged her two children.

Now was the time to act smart and use them to manipulate the man.

“Donkey Dad, are you back?” After discussing things with the children, she suddenly pulled the door open and dragged Song Qingshan into the yard.

The handsome man furrowed his brows, seemingly surprised by the nickname.

“Donkey Dad,” such an unusual title.

At the same time, Song Laosan tried to squeeze in through the door, “Big Brother, is this your tractor? I saw it was filled to the brim. Tell me, what’s inside?”

Before Song Qingshan could answer, Su Xiangwan tore him inside and slammed the door shut.

“Sister-in-law, this isn’t right. That’s my big brother’s tractor, why is it in your yard?” Song Laosan knocked on the door urgently.

“We’ve already separated. Song Qingshan is my husband. The tractor he brought back is obviously staying in my yard. What does it have to do with you?” Su Xiangwan shouted loudly.

With a clang, she slammed the door shut.

“I’m back.” Song Qingshan’s voice was deep and low.

Su Xiangwan remembered everything from her previous life except for Song Qingshan.

She had no impression of him at all.

How should she act?

If she was too enthusiastic, would he think she had changed?

“Qingshan, you don’t know, but your wife has been doing some shameful things.” Old Lady Song now remembered the time when Su Xiangwan had collided with her.

She felt like she had broken two ribs and could barely breathe from the pain.

Lu Dan and Gou Dan instinctively ran to push the door.

“Open the door. That’s your grandma; it’s not right to leave her outside.” Song Qingshan said.

Lu Dan and Gou Dan exchanged glances but refused to open the door.

It was Su Xiangwan who pulled the door open herself.

Old Lady Song, holding onto one of them like an old woman, said, “You’ve been dead for two years, and she’s been making a scene every day. Little Zhi Zhi was either going to starve to death or be strangled…”

“That’s because you didn’t give money for my mom to buy formula for Zhi Zhi,” Gou Dan said, his voice hoarse and dark as usual.

This child had really changed a lot in the past month.

“She was even involved with your second brother… Didn’t she start making a fuss about separating? As soon as the separation happened, she got close with Comrade Zhao. Otherwise, why would she leave the big house and come to this desolate place, where not a soul lives? Wasn’t it all for convenience…”

Old Lady Song hadn’t finished speaking yet when Gou Dan jumped up and shouted, “Nonsense! My mom and Comrade Zhao are clean and innocent. It’s Comrade Zhao who has been trying to marry my mom, but my mom has never agreed.”

Old Lady Song had been complaining all the way, but this child seemed to burst her balloons, deflating her accusations one by one.

There was a crowd of onlookers outside, and they all burst into laughter.

With Song Qingshan’s return, things had changed.

It was perfectly acceptable for Su Xiangwan to remarry, and in this case, the Song family didn’t have a leg to stand on.

But only Song Laosan was still making a fuss, stomping his feet: “What do you mean there’s nothing? I’ve been guarding here every night, catching people…”

“What, if you’ve got nothing to hide, why are you guarding your sister-in-law’s door?” At that moment, a woman in the crowd suddenly shouted.

Song Laosan was immediately silenced.

Lu Dan shouted, “What’s he guarding? He’s guarding our money!”

Su Xiangwan understood that Song Laosan was trying to slander her, but she didn’t have the chance to speak when an authoritative voice rang out.

“Old Third, my martyr’s certificate has been mailed back home for two years now. If your sister-in-law wants to remarry, there’s absolutely no problem.”

It was Song Qingshan.

His voice was loud and commanding, overpowering all the gossip and whispers in the air.

By this time, Old Lady Song had already walked over to the tractor and pulled back the tarp. Her eyes immediately lit up. “Eldest Son, where did all these radios and flashlights come from? Are these yours?”

Though they looked a bit shabby, there were indeed radios, flashlights, and some unknown items.

Song Laosan’s nose twitched, and he sniffed the air. “Mom, there’s even meat! What’s this? I’ve never seen this before. Is this from the army?”

For years, New Xing Village hadn’t fed pigs, so pork was practically a legend here.

Song Laosan’s mouth watered.

“Quick, get the tractor back to our house. Eldest son must haven’t had meat in ten years. Let’s have a big meat feast tonight!” Old Lady Song said.

Song Laosan was lazy and had briefly learned to drive a tractor, but since his skills weren’t good enough to pass the exam for the tractor team, he jumped into the driver’s seat now, looking around. “Bro, where’s the gear lever? Where’s the gear lever, so I can drive it home?”

Su Xiangwan thought to herself, “Ugh, I’d be worried if you were to drive it away. I hid the gear lever a while ago.”

“The gear lever, where is it? Hurry up and get the tractor back home!” Old Lady Song urged.

Song Qingshan looked at Su Xiangwan.

She turned her head and was busy checking Gou Dan’s teeth, which had been broken, with blood dripping.

Song Qingshan pushed through the crowd and grabbed Goudan’s face. “Is this my son?”

Goudan, still furious from earlier, bared his teeth like a little dog, shaking his head and refusing to let Song Qingshan touch him.

Up close, Song Qingshan had a handsome and resolute face, though not as pale as Song Tingxiu’s.

But among military men, he was tall and strong, with a sturdy build.

Ludan must have looked exactly like him when he was younger.

At that moment, Song Qingshan turned around and pulled out a travel bag from the back of the tractor.

He took out a red medical kit, along with cotton swabs, alcohol, and iodine, clearly preparing to tend to Goudan’s wound.

Just then, Song Laosan reached out to touch something wrapped in army-green canvas in the back of the tractor.

It looked like something large and had a black hole and round tube.

“Old Third, what are you trying to do?” Song Qingshan suddenly shouted.

His voice wasn’t loud, but it carried an overwhelming authority.

“Bro, nothing, I just wanted to have a look…”

“Put it down!” The moment Song Qingshan spoke, Goudan quickly turned around and hid behind Su Xiangwan.

Song Laosan, who was usually fearless, was unexpectedly afraid of his brother.

He quickly put his hand down, though his greedy eyes still lingered on the tractor, and several daring villagers crowded in to see what was in the back of the tractor.

“Take your parents home first. I’ll handle the child’s wound,” Su Xiangwan said.

Reluctantly, Song Qingshan stood up, took his parents home first, leaving the crowd behind.

And so, a bunch of people arrived and left just like that.

Lu Dan, seeing his newly arrived father leave, quickly asked Su Xiangwan, “Mom, now that Dad’s gone to the old house, do we have to go with him? Shouldn’t we listen to what Grandma and Uncle Laosan will say to him?”

Su Xiangwan replied, “You can go listen, but I can’t. I need to treat Goudan’s wound.”

Goudan had broken a front tooth, and Su Xiangwan needed to find a way to stop the bleeding.

As she treated Goudan’s wound, Su Xiangwan also thought about the situation.

The root of her conflict with Old Lady Song had always been the accusation that she had killed her husband.

Now that Song Qingshan had returned, it proved that she hadn’t been responsible for his death.

If Grandma Song would just let go of her grudge and allow things to calm down, they could all live peacefully and separately.

But if Old Lady Song insisted on stirring up trouble, wanting the truckload of items, Su Xiangwan would give her not a social beating, but a beating of her own.

For now, she decided to wait and see, observing Song Qingshan’s attitude.

On the kang (a traditional Chinese heated bed), there were two large wooden boxes, their lacquer freshly painted. On the table, there was a small alarm clock.

Old Lady Song was dressed in clean clothes of good quality and wore a Longines watch on her wrist.

In contrast, Song Laosan’s family wore clothes made of plain, cool fabrics, without any patches.

Moreover, Song Laosan’s son, Song Fu, was wearing a pair of small leather shoes.

Such attire, in the current social context, would even be considered superior to that of city dwellers.

However, Song Qingshan immediately felt a pang in his heart.

He had just glanced at his two sons, and the simple cloth clothes they wore had at least seven or eight layers of patches.

After the family recognition, it was inevitable that the old lady would bring up the topic of the family division.

Of course, she wouldn’t admit that it was her who drove her daughter-in-law away.

Instead, she would bring up things like how Su Xiangwan had thrown cow dung on her head and knocked into her ribs, causing pain.

She would likely embellish and exaggerate these stories to make herself appear less unreasonable.

As she spoke, Song Qingshan listened, but he stood up and walked around, touching things here and there.

Especially, his eyes were fixed on the old lady’s wristwatch, looking at it thoughtfully.

“Mom, when we divided the family, how much did you give to Xiangwan? The subsidies and relief money I sent back a few years ago, did you split it evenly between the two families?” This man wasn’t fooling around; he went straight to the most important question.

The old lady was speaking with gusto, while Song Laosan was adding fuel to the fire.

Hearing Song Qingshan ask this, the two of them exchanged a glance and suddenly froze.

What had been divided?

It was like getting 400 yuan and leaving with nothing.

Even the old, worn-out cotton quilt and ragged blankets, the old lady hadn’t given to her daughter-in-law.