Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Shen Banyue had been holed up at home these past few days and had even gained a little weight, so she no longer looked as dark, thin, and refugee-like as before. However, she was still quite slim, and her skin remained darker than that of most children. This was especially noticeable since she was always toting around the fair and tender Xiao Dizi, making the contrast particularly striking.

Hu Caidie wasn't familiar with the village children and was unaware that the child before her was the little hero frequently mentioned by the villagers lately. She simply felt an instinctive dislike and looked down on children who clearly grew up in the fields.

Even though her hometown in H Province was just a nowhere small city.

Even though when she first came to the countryside, she had chanted slogans like "Where the Chairman points, I advance; I go up to the mountains and down to the countryside to carry out the revolution" and "The hearts of educated youth are linked with the hearts of peasants; together we compose a brilliant chapter."

But not long after arriving in this small mountain village, the novelty wore off, replaced by the pain of no return and the despair of being trapped.

Normally, Hu Caidie wouldn't pay any attention to children she considered dirty, but today, this child's words had startled her so much that her heart nearly leaped out of her throat.

She forced a dry laugh. "You mean the other big brothers at the educated youth quarters? No need, no need. I feel much better now. I can just slowly make my way down with this walking stick."

Hu Caidie inexplicably felt there was a deeper meaning behind the child's smile. She shook her head, thinking it must be her imagination.

"Ah, so we can't go look for rabbits anymore?" Zhao Xuehai said dejectedly, hanging his head.

Shen Wendong looked at Hu Caidie, then at Shen Guoqing, who was hurriedly walking toward the mountain path. With an air of premature maturity, he said, "Definitely not. Otherwise, it would just be Brother Guoqing and Educated Youth Hu alone. My dad says when an unmarried man and woman are alone, it's asking for trouble. One careless move and they might have to get married."

He secretly glanced at Hu Caidie, thinking to himself that this Educated Youth Hu was strange and he didn't want her as a sister-in-law.

Hu Caidie: "..."

What did that blatant look of disdain in his eyes mean, this country bumpkin brat!

Zhao Xuehai was much more straightforward. "Wow, that won't do! My mom said she wants to introduce my aunt to Uncle Guoqing! My aunt is much prettier than Educated Youth Hu! If they get married, I can see my aunt every day. She's really nice!"

He even nudged Lin Mian with his elbow. "It's better if Uncle Guoqing marries my aunt, right, Lin Mian?"

Lin Mian glanced at Hu Caidie, his little face cool and expressionless as he nodded curtly. "Mhm."

The choice was easy between an unfamiliar, strange older sister and a friend's very nice aunt.

Hu Caidie: "................"

She was furious.

These country bumpkin brats!

What she thought would be a simple matter had turned out to be troublesome at every turn. Hu Caidie simply decided to give up. After hobbling along for a bit, she said, "My foot seems a bit better. I'll go down the mountain myself. Weren't you all going to look for rabbits? Go ahead."

The kids wouldn't stop to wonder how her foot could recover so quickly. Especially Zhao Xuehai, who, upon hearing they didn't have to look after her anymore, immediately cheered up. "Let's go find rabbits, let's go find rabbits! I know where there are lots of rabbit holes."

Shen Wendong hesitated. "If we go look for rabbits, won't it just be Educated Youth Hu and Brother Guoqing alone again?" His attitude of not wanting Hu Caidie as a sister-in-law couldn't be more obvious.

Zhao Xuehai said, "Pfft, Brother Guoqing left ages ago! He's probably busy rushing home to make stools for Xiao Yue and the others. He left really fast, whoosh whoosh."

Hu Caidie stumbled, nearly twisting her foot for real this time.

Shen Banyue gave her a deep look and chimed in, "Then let's go look for rabbit holes."

Xiao Dizi immediately looked up. "Wabbit!"

"Yes, cute little rabbits just like you." Shen Banyue pinched her little cheek and followed Zhao Xuehai, who had already dashed off like a hyena while they were talking.

The children ran around the mountains for most of the day without catching so much as a single rabbit hair. In the end, it was only thanks to Shen Banyue's quick eyes and swift hands catching an unlucky pheasant that happened to be passing by that the kids cheered and skipped their way down the mountain—

Zhao Xuehai was in charge of the cheering, the others were in charge of the skipping.

—

"My goodness, did you kids raid the wild pheasant nests up on the mountain? You caught another one!" Wang Guizhi quickly put down her work, took the pheasant, and weighed it in her hand. "Quite plump too."

These days, work ended early, and Shen Dechang had already returned home. He was sawing wood with Shen Guoqing. Wang Guizhi directed him to boil water while she fetched a knife from the kitchen and made quick work of killing the pheasant.

"I still have the feathers from the last pheasant. Later, combine them with this one's, Guoqing, and make a few shuttlecocks for the kids to play with."

Wang Guizhi soaked the chicken in hot water, then went inside to fetch a vegetable basket. "Come on, you kids wash these vegetables and the mushrooms you picked yourselves. Wash them properly, mind you. If there's any sand left, be careful it doesn't chip your teeth."

Then she pointed at Zhao Xuehai and Shen Wendong. "You two, hurry home and let your families know. Come back and bring your younger siblings too." Zhao Xuehai also had a sister about the same age as Shen Wenkai.

The two of them hopped and skipped away.

Wang Guizhi had everyone neatly organized with her instructions. Only then did she pull up a stool, sit down, and start plucking the feathers rapidly. "These feathers have to be plucked while the water's hot. Oh right, Guoqing, what were you saying just now? You wanted to find that thing used to cure fright when you were little? Oh, my dear son, can that thing even still be around nowadays? We're not supposed to talk about such things now."

Shen Banyue broke off a yellow cabbage leaf for Xiao Dizi to play with. While washing vegetables, she asked, "Why does Little Uncle want to find something for curing fright? Did you get scared by something on the mountain?"

It couldn't possibly be that he got scared in the village, could it? But thinking about it that way made sense. Earlier on the mountain, he had looked distracted and absent-minded.

Wang Guizhi glanced at her younger son, both amused and exasperated. "Honestly, child, you're a grown man now, still afraid of those things?"

This sounded like there was gossip!

Shen Banyue was curious. "What is Little Uncle afraid of?"

Wang Guizhi glanced at the half-closed courtyard gate and lowered her voice. "Afraid of ghosts and monsters."

"Ah?"

Shen Banyue couldn't help but quickly turn to look at Shen Guoqing. Who would have thought? You, a big, strapping young man with thick eyebrows and big eyes, are actually afraid of ghosts and monsters. So it turns out the "Destroy the Four Olds" campaign didn't manage to destroy those demons and monsters in your head!

Shen Guoqing flatly denied it. "I'm not. I just suddenly remembered and asked casually."

Did Wang Guizhi not know her own son's nature?

"He was still little back then. We lived on the east end of the village. There was an old granny neighbor who was a spirit medium. She would often tell all sorts of ghost and monster stories to the kids. Kids are like that—both scared and love to listen. Oh my, I didn't know about it at first. It was only one night during a thunderstorm when I got up to close the window that I found out he was so scared he didn't dare sleep at night."

Thinking about it now, Wang Guizhi still felt both angry and amused. "Later, when he went to study at the commune, I heard he once got so scared at school he cried. Luckily, his teacher was a classmate of Guo Qiang's and personally rode his bicycle to bring him home."

Shen Banyue: "..."

Going to study at the commune must have been for middle school. Looking at it this way, Comrade Shen Guoqing was genuinely quite timid. This contrast with his usual image was, well, quite significant.

She really wanted to laugh, but seeing Shen Guoqing's flushed face, she decided to spare him some dignity. Just then, she heard Lin Mian ask seriously beside her, "So, does Little Uncle think Educated Youth Hu is a monster?"

Shen Banyue thought Shen Guoqing would shake his head. Instead, she saw his eyes light up as he asked Lin Mian with a look of shared understanding, "Xiao Mian, do you also think Educated Youth Hu seems like a fox spirit?"

Lin Mian frowned, thought it over seriously, and said with a grave expression, "Educated Youth Hu is quite strange, but I don't know if she's a fox spirit."

Shen Banyue: "......................"

Do you even hear what you're saying?

Keep talking like this, and the Revolutionary Committee members will come charging in.

No, she finally understood why Shen Guoqing had been acting so strangely on the mountain.

So it turns out that when they fell to the ground earlier, Shen Guoqing was actually wrestling with Educated Youth Hu, the suspected fox spirit? And he ran so fast not because he was afraid of rumors with a female educated youth, but because he feared being ensnared by a fox spirit?

Just imagining the scene—Educated Youth Hu putting her all into her seductive act, while Shen Guoqing, the one she was trying to seduce, was busy suspecting her of being a fox spirit... No, she couldn’t hold it in anymore.

Shen Banyue finally burst out laughing—"Hahahaha!"

—

Zhao Xuehai went home and brought back Little Black Girl Zhao Qingying. Shen Wendong went home and not only brought back his younger brother Shen Wenkai but also his shameless father, Shen Zhenhua.

Shen Zhenhua didn’t come empty-handed either. He brought a net bag of wild kiwis and a small bag of fine flour to chip in for food.

Xiao Jie and the others had already returned from their "wild" adventures and were chattering curiously around Shen Zhenhua. Some asked what this was, some asked how to eat it, and others said they’d tried it before... You could tell just by listening that these kids came from all over the country.

"They’re still raw. Let them ripen for a couple of days before eating. Let’s eat first!" Wang Guizhi came out of the kitchen holding an enamel mug. "You kids, go wash your hands now!"

Zhao Qingying, nicknamed Yingzi, followed Wang Guizhi closely. "Granny Wang, I washed my hands. I want to eat, eat chicken!"

Just like her brother, she was clearly a foodie with a big appetite.

"Alright, alright, go sit with Wenkai. Xuehai, hurry up and take care of your sister."

Zhao Xuehai grinned and took his sister’s hand. "Come on, let’s find a seat quickly. Hehe, isn’t your brother good to you? I brought you along for chicken!"

"Brother’s good!" Yingzi nodded emphatically, pointing her little finger at Shen Banyue. "I want to sit next to this sister!"

"Alright, alright, let’s sit next to Xiao Yue the Hero!" The siblings plopped down on Shen Banyue’s left side.

Lin Mian, who had just finished washing his hands, walked over. He glanced at little Yingzi and Zhao Xuehai on Shen Banyue’s left, then at Xiao Dizi on her right. His long eyelashes lowered, and he went to sit on the other side of Xiao Dizi.

Shen Banyue didn’t mind who sat next to her. She was just highly allergic to the cringe-worthy nickname "Xiao Yue the Hero" and couldn’t help asking, "Who on earth gave me this nickname?"

Almost all the kids instantly looked at Shen Guoqing.

A slow realization dawned on Shen Banyue. So the traitor was within their own ranks?

Shen Guoqing chuckled. "One day at the wheat-drying ground, everyone was talking about how you were the Little Hero who bravely fought the bad guys. I just casually said, 'She’s not just a little hero, she’s a Great Hero!' Later, the kids started calling you that. It sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?"

Shen Banyue narrowed her eyes slightly and said with a smile, "Then Uncle is the fox-spirit-fearing coward!"

Though no one understood why "coward" was prefixed with "fox spirit," Shen Zhenhua, as Shen Guoqing’s uncle, could easily list examples one, two, three, and four about his fear of ghosts and monsters. With Wang Guizhi chiming in from time to time, by the end of the meal, Shen Guoqing’s embarrassing past had been thoroughly exposed.

A world where everyone was happy except Shen Guoqing had been achieved.

Before bed that night, while Shen Dechang was in the outhouse, Shen Banyue slipped into the old lady’s room. She told her in detail about overhearing someone planning to follow Shen Guoqing up the mountain and the odd behavior of Hu Caidie after they met her on the mountain.

After all, she was still in a child’s body and couldn’t get too involved in certain matters. Since it was confirmed that someone really wanted to target Shen Guoqing, it was better to tell Wang Guizhi directly.

Telling Shen Guoqing was useless—he hadn’t even considered that possibility. It was better to let him stay immersed in his suspicions about monsters. He’d probably avoid Hu Caidie from now on.

As for Wang Guizhi, this old lady was formidable. Shen Banyue believed she could handle things perfectly.

Sure enough, Wang Guizhi understood immediately. A sharp glint flashed in her eyes but was quickly concealed. She patted Shen Banyue’s messy, tousled hair and said, "Thank you for telling Grandma this, Xiao Yue. It’s fine. I know now."

She didn’t even need to tell the girl not to spread the word. These kids had likely been through a lot and possessed a maturity beyond their years. The fact that she’d come in while avoiding Shen Dechang showed she wouldn’t tell anyone else.

She’d even figured out Shen Guoqing’s temperament and hadn’t bothered telling him, the person involved.

Wang Guizhi smiled to herself, thinking that dividing the family had indeed stirred up some people’s ambitions. It was about time to start looking for a match for Guoqing.

—

Shen Banyue was still hung up on not catching any fish. Since the streamside was still a "restricted area," she once again set her sights on the mountain stream behind the cowshed.

"The fish there are tiny, only as thick as my finger. Even if we catch them, they’d barely fill a tooth gap," Zhao Xuehai complained all the way. "We’d be better off going to the back mountain again. Last time we found several rabbit holes, right? Even though there were no rabbits then, maybe they were out and have returned today?"

Shen Banyue declared herself a person with a plan. "That’s the next target."

"Fine, fine. Even mosquitoes are meat. Let’s catch a basket of small fish and ask Granny Shen to dry them into fish jerky for us." Zhao Xuehai talked himself into craving it.

Shen Wendong was speechless. "You just said they wouldn’t fill a tooth gap."

Zhao Xuehai argued confidently, "A little won’t, but if we catch a lot, it will. We might even find some snails."

Xiao Zhuzi and a few others were there today too, but they weren’t interested in fishing—mainly because they were younger, and Shen Banyue wouldn’t let them into the stream anyway. They carried baskets and sickles, ready to dig for bamboo shoots.

This was Xiao Zhuzi’s specialty, and he was very excited. "You catch fish, we’ll dig shoots, and we’ll make stir-fried shredded bamboo shoots with fish!"

Shen Wendong was puzzled. "Can fish be stir-fried with bamboo shoots? I’ve never had that."

The other kids also said they hadn’t tried it. Only Lin Mian, being more "worldly," thought carefully and said, "Is it stir-fried shredded bamboo shoots with eel? I’ve had that."

Shen Wendong and Zhao Xuehai knew what eels were, but according to them, villagers usually cut eels into sections and boiled them. They’d never had them stir-fried with shredded bamboo shoots.

Listening to these little kids chattering away, Shen Banyue found it quite amusing.

Mentioning stir-fried eel with shredded bamboo shoots reminded her of the never-ending drama of her transmigration. The last time she’d eaten this dish was over eight years ago in her previous life—the eel was tender, the bamboo shoots crisp, and the aroma was unforgettable!

"Let’s go, let’s go further upstream. If we can catch eels, we’ll have stir-fried fish with bamboo shoots tonight!"

Shen Banyue grabbed Xiao Dizi and bolted ahead. Zhao Xuehai followed, whooping excitedly, while Lin Mian and Shen Wendong hurried to catch up. Xiao Zhuzi and the others turned onto another path.

The further upstream they went, the narrower the stream became, but the water was deeper. Past the bamboo grove, the path beside the stream grew more difficult to navigate.

Shen Banyue estimated the kids’ stamina and stopped at a relatively flat area. Near the stream was a shallow shoal, and a bit further in was a deeper pool. The boys could play in the shoal with Xiao Dizi while she went solo into the deep pool.

The nickname "Xiao Yue the Hero" wasn’t entirely useless. At least the boys trusted their "Great Hero" unconditionally. No one even mentioned what would happen if she drowned in this remote mountain stream.

In her previous life, the entire planet was ravaged by pollution. Clean water was an extremely scarce resource, and there was no chance to jump into water and catch fish.

Shen Banyue took off her outer pants and shirt, solemnly handed them to Xiao Dizi, and asked her to take good care of them. The little girl nodded seriously, making Shen Banyue's heart melt. With a laugh, Shen Banyue turned and dove headfirst into the deep pool.

The cool stream water gently enveloped her body. Surrounded by pure, vibrant water, Shen Banyue felt a deep, bone-soothing comfort, especially where her powers flowed—it was as refreshing as cleansing her marrow.

Like a fish, she glided smoothly to the bottom of the pool. Sure enough, she saw plenty of fish as long as a handspan.

The villagers thought this stream was too shallow to raise big fish. Perhaps because of that, these fish had grown undisturbed to such a size.

Shen Banyue gently moved her arms, slowly approaching the school of fish.

As she neared them, her internal powers coursed rapidly. She channeled a burst of energy into her hands and swiftly clapped them toward the fish. The powerful force penetrated the water and struck the school. Seven or eight fish within range froze momentarily, knocked out cold.

Pulling out the net bag tied to her waist, Shen Banyue deftly scooped up the dazed fish.

A few minutes later, with a splash, Shen Banyue surfaced.

Zhao Xuehai waved excitedly. "Xiao Yue, Xiao Yue, we caught fish! Several of them! And we even found a crab!"

Then he remembered to ask about Shen Banyue’s haul. "Did you catch any fish?"

Shen Banyue answered simply, "Yes."

"Ah, really? Are they big fish?"

Zhao Xuehai took a few steps toward her, and the other three also looked over at Shen Banyue. Xiao Dizi, holding a wooden stick, piped up in a childish voice, "Sister, look! Fish!"

Shen Banyue quickly swam to the shore. As she climbed out of the water, she also lifted the heavy net—

There really were quite a few fish, almost too many for the net to hold.

Everyone on the bank just stared, stunned.

"So... so many?!"