Chapter 55

Chapter 55

The bride's escort party had been directed to other rooms to rest. Where the bride was, only children kept trooping in to ask for wedding candy. Shen Wendong and Zhao Xuehai were there with their younger siblings.

Zhao Qingying, with a candy already in her mouth, was urgently digging through Zhao Xuehai’s pockets, stammering: “Candy, candy, m-mine!”

Zhao Xuehai grinned mischievously. “I'll keep it safe for you, I’ll give it back later.” He made a goofy face at Shen Banyue and the others. This “I’ll keep it safe for you” trick was clearly learned from his mom, since just a couple of days ago he was complaining that she had brazenly pocketed his New Year’s money using excuses like paying school fees or buying pencils.

However, for little Zhao Qingying, having her New Year’s money taken away was fine, but candy was out of the question. She raised her little hand and swatted at Zhao Xuehai several times. “Bad brother! No candy, Dad will spank you!”

Zhao Xuehai shrugged nonchalantly. “I’m not scared.”

Zhao Qingying glared at her shameless brother, then turned and pattered over to Shen Banyue, throwing her arms around her. “Little Yue the Hero, hit him!”

Zhao Xuehai: “...”

Shen Banyue tugged on "Little Black Girl’s" two little braids, smiling. “If I hit him, will you share the candy with me?”

Zhao Qingying thought for a moment, then nodded readily. “All for Sister Yue!”

Zhao Xuehai: “...”

This vexing little sister, always siding with outsiders.

Shen Banyue raised an eyebrow and held out a hand toward Zhao Xuehai. What else could he do? He could only obediently hand over the candy.

Zhou Yaoyao, who had been sitting there watching the show, cracked up. “Zhao Xuehai, you’re so tall, yet you’re afraid of Little Yue? It seems Little Yue really is a great hero.”

Zhao Xuehai didn’t see anything wrong with that. “Of course! Little Yue is really strong, I can’t beat her. Besides, I can’t fight her anyway. If I do, she won’t include me in any fun stuff later!”

Zhou Yaoyao scooped up a handful of candy to share, then pulled several red envelopes from her pocket, distributing them one by one. “These are the promised matchmaker thank-you red envelopes. Little matchmakers, Comrade Shen Guoqing and I thank you for playing cupid and tying the red thread!”

Each envelope contained two mao, which was truly a “big red envelope” in those days.

Zhao Xuehai jumped three feet high. “Wow, I have money again!”

Xiao Wei felt a bit embarrassed. “Do I get one too?” He had just arrived today by coincidence and thought he wouldn’t get one.

Zhou Yaoyao smiled. “But you’re a little matchmaker too! And Xiao Zhuzi and Little Stone as well. Your uncle said that when the family sends them things later, they’ll also send them a matchmaker red envelope.”

Xiao Wei immediately grinned widely. “I’m a little matchmaker too.”

Zhao Xuehai put one arm around Xiao Wei’s neck and the other around Xiao Jie’s neck. “Come on, brothers, let’s go set off some firecrackers. Hehe, I got a string of small firecrackers from Brother Guoqiang, I’ll give you a few each.”

As their group headed out, the children clamoring outside the door immediately surged back into the room.

Shen Banyue glanced back at Zhou Yaoyao, who was distributing candy to the children, and thought to herself that the bride was like a game NPC. Every child had to come “check in” and receive a little reward. Haha.

Lin Mian also looked back at Zhou Yaoyao, then suddenly frowned and said, “Why can’t children get married? Then we wouldn’t have to be separated.”

Shen Banyue was bumped by a child rushing in and didn’t hear clearly. She rubbed her ear and asked, “What did you just say?”

Lin Mian shook his head, lowering his gaze. “Nothing.”

His friends were leaving one by one. Who knows, maybe Sister Yue and Xiao Dizi would also be found and taken back by their parents someday. Then he would be all alone. If children could get married, he could marry Sister Yue, at least then he could be with her.

But children can’t.

Lin Mian walked out of the courtyard feeling a bit dejected.

Seeing his crestfallen look, Shen Banyue was puzzled. She casually asked Xiao Dizi, “What’s wrong with your Brother Mian?”

Xiao Dizi looked at Lin Mian’s retreating back and sighed. “Brother Mian must be hungry. His little tummy is rumbling, he really wants to eat at the banquet.”

Shen Banyue was amused by her. “I think the one who really wants to eat at the banquet is you!”

To be fair, the Shen family had splurged this time, buying a lot of meat. The chef they hired was also well-known in the surrounding villages. The mouth-watering aroma had been wafting around for quite a while. Not just the children, even the adults had their mouths watering.

Unfortunately, it was still early before the banquet started.

The busier things got, the less welcome children running around were. A group of children had just set off one firecracker at the entrance before being shooed away to the threshing ground by the busy adults.

The children chatted about what had happened recently while setting off firecrackers. Of course, it was mainly the two chatterboxes, Zhao Xuehai and Xiao Jie, telling Xiao Wei about everything that happened after he left: the educated youths fighting, watching movies, the criticism meetings, catching and grilling fish on New Year’s Eve... Xiao Wei listened, wide-eyed, and finally sighed, “I wish my family could move to Xiaodun Brigade.”

Xiao Jie squatted on the ground, chin in hands, and also sighed. “I want to move to Xiaodun Brigade too. My mom doesn’t have to work. My mom and I can move here, and my dad can just earn money outside. He’s often not home anyway.”

How “filial.”

Zhao Xuehai also stopped lighting firecrackers and squatted beside them. “Are you leaving tomorrow?” He rarely looked so glum. “Will we never see each other again after this? I wonder how Xiao Zhuzi and Little Stone are doing now. Ah, being a kid is so hard. We don’t have money for bus tickets, and even if we did, the adults definitely wouldn’t agree. Otherwise, I’d take the bus to visit Xiao Zhuzi and Little Stone.”

Shen Wendong squatted on the other side. He was a rational, planning-oriented child. Hearing this, he said, “We can start saving money from now on. Then when we’re a bit older and can travel by ourselves, we’ll have money for tickets.”

Lin Mian then said, “We can set a goal, like how much to save each month. Little by little adds up. I think we can save at least one yuan per month. That’s twelve yuan a year, and one hundred twenty yuan in ten years. In ten years, we’ll definitely all be able to travel by ourselves.”

Xiao Dizi tilted her little head curiously. “Travel by ourselves?”

Lin Mian paused, then added, “Except Xiao Dizi.”

In those days, teenagers of sixteen or seventeen were considered able-bodied laborers who could earn work points. Xiao Dizi wouldn’t qualify. In ten years, she’d only be fourteen, still a young girl her family would need to worry about.

The children all sighed that ten years sounded impossibly far away. For them at that moment, it seemed like they could never grow that old. But soon they were chattering excitedly about what life would be like ten years later.

“I want to join the army, like Uncle Liao, be a soldier who protects our home and country, wear a green army uniform, so impressive!” Zhao Xuehai said proudly.

“I want to test into high school. After finishing high school, if there are job openings, I’ll take the exam to become a worker. If not, I’ll come back and farm, be a Brigade Cadre,” Shen Wendong said.

Xiao Jie stood up and wiggled his waist, laughing. “I want to join an opera troupe and perform. When I was little, my mom took me to see one, it was so fun!”

Xiao Wei looked around blankly at everyone. “I haven’t thought about what I want to do later. My mom says I should study hard and later take over her job at the factory to be an office clerk. I don’t know what a clerk does. But I will save money. I’ve already saved seventeen yuan, five jiao, and three fen.”

As soon as he said this, Xiao Wei immediately became the target of envy and jealousy from Zhao Xuehai, the “pauper.”

“Why do you have so much money?!”

Xiao Wei explained calmly, “New Year’s money from my parents, maternal grandparents, paternal grandparents, and lots and lots of relatives. Also the money we got from digging up the ‘treasure,’ I saved it all.”

Zhao Xuehai, whose money always got “sucked away” by the supply and marketing cooperative as soon as he had any: “...”

Comparing people really makes you angry.

He didn’t want to talk to Xiao Wei anymore. He asked Xiao Dizi, “Xiao Dizi, what do you want to do when you grow up?”

Xiao Dizi declared righteously, “Eat at banquets. Eat at banquets every day.”

The children all burst out laughing. Zhao Xuehai clutched his stomach. “We can’t have Brother Guoqing get married every day, hahaha!”

Xiao Dizi argued logically, “Everyone can get married! Brother Xuehai, Brother Wendong, Brother Mian, Brother Jie, Brother Wei, all can get married! Get married every day, Xiao Dizi eats at banquets every day.”

This provoked another round of hearty laughter. “We’re children, we can’t get married!”

When they finally stopped laughing, Shen Banyue couldn't help but ask curiously, "Why didn't you ask what Lin Mian and I want to do in the future?"

Zhao Xuehai gave her a look that said, "Isn't that obvious?" and replied, "You're the great hero, and Lin Mian is a bookworm!"

Shen Banyue: "..."

Lin Mian: "..."

The kids were having a blast playing in the threshing ground, but when it was almost time for the banquet, they didn't wait to be called—they cheered and ran back on their own.

With so many children in the family, there was no need to bring extra tables or stools this time. Wang Guizhi set them up at their own table, which also included older kids like Shen Wenyi and Zhao Hui.

Zhao Hui and the others teased Shen Wenyi about being the "odd man out" abandoned by Shen Guoqing. Shen Wenyi shot back, asking if they had found partners yet. In response, Zhao Hui patted his chest and said with a grin, "Of course! I started seeing someone at the start of the month, and we're already together."

Shen Wenyi immediately felt a pang of jealousy and didn't even want to talk to him anymore.

He was kind of into Fu Yue, and both of them worked at the towel factory, but Fu Yue never spoke to him at work. She didn't talk to anyone else either, always keeping to herself. Shen Wenyi knew there were rumors about her family in the factory, and she might be afraid of involving him. Still, every time she acted as if she didn't know him at all, it left a sour taste in his mouth.

Thinking of this, Shen Wenyi picked up his bowl and took a gloomy swig of his drink.

Zhao Hui leaned in and asked, "Hey, I heard that the girl who was introduced to Guoqing before—the daughter of the accountant from Yangliu Brigade—found a partner who's a permanent worker at your factory, right?"

Shen Wenyi was at a loss for words. "How did you know that?"

Zhao Hui replied, "He Jiangang told me."

Shen Wenyi thought to himself that He Jiangang, despite his honest appearance, turned out to be a gossip too.

Zhao Hui pressed on, "I also heard that girl had words for you?"

Mentioning this, Shen Wenyi didn't even know what to say. He had heard rumors that the girl was unusual, but he never imagined she'd be that out there.

He had no idea how she found out he was related to Shen Guoqing, but one day, she stopped him at the factory gate and told him to pass a message to Shen Guoqing: "Don't think becoming a worker makes you special. There are plenty of workers out there. Liu Dandan has already found a worker as her partner!"

Then, right in front of him, she praised her partner from head to toe. Oh, and her partner was there too, looking incredibly smug after being praised.

In that moment, Shen Wenyi finally understood the sayings "birds of a feather flock together" and "every pot has its lid."

Of course, he'd have to be out of his mind to actually go and tell Shen Guoqing.

But He Jiangang had been there at the time, and Shen Wenyi never expected him to spread the story. Not that it mattered much—it didn't affect Shen Guoqing anyway. As for Liu Dandan, since she had done it, she probably didn't care whether it would damage her reputation.

Shen Wenyi tried to brush it off and change the subject, but another young man overheard and chimed in, "That girl from Yangliu Brigade—wasn't she introduced to Guoqing by Auntie Liu? Right, Rui?"

Yes, Zhao Rui was also at this table.

Auntie Liu was too embarrassed to show up for the wedding banquet, so Zhao Rui came with his son instead. His son was around the same age as Xiao Jie and the others, so Wang Guizhi sat him at this table as well.

Zhao Rui was already feeling awkward, and this young man's comment only made it worse. He looked uncomfortable as he mumbled, "It's a happy occasion. Why bring up the past?"

The whole Liu Dandan affair was bad enough, but then, when the commune showed a movie, the scandal involving Zhu Juncai and Huang Xiuli broke out. Auntie Liu didn't know where to hide her face.

She had only introduced two girls to Shen Guoqing, confidently claiming they were carefully selected. Yet, one turned out to be unreasonable, and the other was scheming. Anyone who didn't know better would think she had some deep grudge against Shen Guoqing.

Auntie Liu felt wronged. On the surface, both girls seemed like good matches—one was pretty, and the other had a job. How was she supposed to know they'd turn out like this?

But regardless of what she knew or didn't know, her two-decade reputation as a matchmaker was ruined. Since then, only one person had asked her to introduce someone—and that was to help them deceive others.

After the Zhu Juncai incident, Wang Guizhi completely cut ties with Auntie Liu. It wasn't that they became enemies, but she would never seek her out unless absolutely necessary.

As Zhao Rui recalled these unpleasant memories, he couldn't help but think of his own headache of a sister. Despite the delicious food on the table, he couldn't eat a thing and also picked up his bowl to take a gloomy swig of his drink.

The children, of course, knew nothing of the adults' troubles. All they knew was how joyful it was to attend a banquet. Today's feast even had fish and meat—a whole large fish and a big bowl of braised pork. This was truly the most delicious spread they had ever eaten!

After several rounds of drinks, the newlyweds came out to greet the tables.

When they reached the table of the eldest branch, Shen Ailin suddenly threw his arms out to block Zhou Yaoyao's way. "Auntie, I want a red envelope."

Zhou Yaoyao stopped in her tracks, then smiled and said, "Sure, eat first. After you're full, I'll give you one later."

Shen Ailin refused to let her pass. "I want it now."

Zhou Yaoyao's smile faded slightly. Shen Guoqing frowned and was about to say something when Lin Xiaohui walked over and handed a red envelope to Zhou Yaoyao. Zhou Yaoyao gave her a grateful smile and passed the red envelope to Shen Ailin. "Here, now go eat. The food will get cold soon."

But Shen Ailin took the red envelope, tore it open, pulled out the ten-cent note inside, and said angrily, "You gave those wild kids twenty cents each, but only ten cents for me! There are so many of them, and they got so many red envelopes. You should give me one yuan—no, two yuan!"

Shen Guoqing shot a look at Shen Guoxing and Hu Huaihua. "Big brother, sister-in-law, are you just going to let your child act up like this?"

Hu Huaihua snorted and said, "Guoqing, why do you have to be so harsh? Ailin is your own nephew. He's just happy you're getting married. What's wrong with asking for a red envelope? Even if it weren't your wedding day, as a worker in a state-owned factory, is it too much for your own nephew to ask for two yuan to buy some snacks?"

Shen Guoxing slammed his hand on the table and shouted, "That's right! You're a worker now. What's wrong with giving your nephew two yuan? We're brothers, after all. All of you have someone to support you, someone to help you plan. You've all become workers. Only me, only me—your eldest brother—am still a peasant. Waaah... I'm useless! I've failed my poor dead mother!"

His cheeks were flushed, and his eyes were unfocused—clearly, he was drunk.

The once lively courtyard suddenly fell silent.

With both parents backing him up, Shen Ailin became even more brazen. He hugged Zhou Yaoyao's leg and began to wail, "I want a big red envelope! I want a huge red envelope! Waaah... You don't love me anymore now that you have those wild kids! Waaah..."

Shen Guoqing tried to pull him away, but Hu Huaihua rushed over to block him. "You elders can't bully my son!"

As soon as she finished speaking, a small, thin figure darted out from the side, grabbed Shen Ailin by the collar, and dragged him all the way to the courtyard gate. With a flick of her wrist, she tossed him out of the yard.

Shen Ailin was completely stunned. Before he could even start crying, he looked up and saw Shen Banyue's face. With a gulp, he swallowed his tears.

This was the wild child even Zhao Jinshun didn't dare to provoke. Shen Ailin usually ran away whenever he saw her from afar in the village.

Hu Huaihua shrieked and chased after him. "Ailin, my Ailin! You damned little bastard! How dare you bully my son?!"

She tried to hit Shen Banyue, but before she could even touch her, she tripped over a stone and fell.

Shen Banyue closed the courtyard gate, slid the bolt shut, clapped her hands, and said, "Problem solved."

Every single person in the courtyard couldn't help but think to themselves at that moment: This little girl is really something else!

Shen Guoxing raised his hand high, but when he met Shen Banyue's dark, piercing eyes, he inexplicably didn't dare to slam it down. His drunkenness mostly faded, and after a long pause, he muttered, "How can you, a little girl, lock people out? We came to attend the banquet."

Shen Banyue rolled her eyes. "Weren't you here to demand money, get drunk, and cry about your mother? The feast is so delicious, and you're ruining it for us."

She waved her little fist. "If you cause any more trouble, don't blame me for being rude."

Most people dismissed it as childish talk, but the children didn't see it that way. Immediately, someone shouted, "Xiao Yue the Hero!" and soon, all the children who had come with their elders to the banquet joined in, chanting throughout the courtyard.

At the main table, Shen Zhenxing glanced at Shen Dechang. "Brother Dechang?"

Shen Dechang understood his meaning. His eyes dimmed as he stood up and slowly walked over. He looked at his grandchildren, then turned to Shen Guoxing and said, "You didn't become a worker, and you can't blame anyone else for that. Back then, Guizhi sent you to school, but you refused to go after just two years. Even though she's your stepmother, she has never treated you unfairly all these years. Your two brothers don't owe you anything either—in fact, they've helped you a lot. If you have any conscience left, stop making a drunken scene here. Take Hu Huaihua and Ailin home."

Shen Guoxing remained silent for a long time.

Suddenly, Shen Aihua picked up his bowl, quickly finished the food inside, set down his bowl and chopsticks, stood up, and said, "Dad, I'll go with you to take Mom and little brother home."

Shen Dechang looked at his second grandson. This child was usually quiet and well-behaved, so Shen Dechang rarely paid him much mind. Looking at him now, he suddenly realized the boy had grown taller again—already a tall, sturdy young man.

Indeed, he was a young man now; after the New Year, he would be eighteen.

Outside the courtyard gate, Hu Huaihua was still cursing up a storm, and Shen Ailin continued her loud, tearless wailing.

Shen Guoxing finally stood up. Without a word, he staggered toward the courtyard exit.

Liu Tingting gave Shen Aimin a light slap. "Let's go, this is so embarrassing." Shen Aimin hesitated, then got up and followed his wife.

Shen Aizhen glanced at Shen Dechang, suddenly stood up, swept the remaining pieces of meat and half a bowl of scrambled eggs from the table into her own bowl, picked it up, and left.

The other people at the table: "………………"

A wedding banquet turning out like this left the guests somewhat bewildered, yet with a faint sense of familiarity.

No wonder it felt familiar. The last time a wedding banquet descended into such chaos was during Shen Aimin's wedding, with all the pressure to adopt a child, threats of divorce, and family disputes.

You know what? The Shen family's joyous occasions just never seem to go smoothly!

Shen Banyue had long since returned to her own table. With her chopsticks, she picked the meat from Zhao Xuehai's bowl and gave it to Yingzi. "Eat up."

Little Zhao Qingying's eyes immediately lit up. She grabbed the meat with both hands and took a big bite. Zhao Xuehai turned around, saw this, and let out a roar: "Little Black Girl, how dare you steal my meat! I already took a bite!"

Yingzi: "You're my brother! I don't care!"

Zhao Xuehai yelled even louder: "But I mind you!"

Everyone at the table burst out laughing, and those who heard from other tables joined in.

The tense atmosphere in the courtyard eased. Zhou Yaoyao nudged Shen Guoqing with her elbow and, smiling, raised her wine bowl. "Cheers, everyone!"

Soon, the lively atmosphere returned.

By the time the banquet ended and everything was cleaned up, it was already quite late.

As usual, the children shoved together bed boards to sleep in the same room as Shen Banyue and Dizi. Whether they actually slept was another matter; as soon as they finished washing up, they all piled into the room, and soon bursts of laughter and playful noise could be heard from inside.

The Zhao couple, who had been on edge for over half a month, finally saw their son and could finally relax. They went to bed early.

With the children vacating their room, Dai Xianghua could squeeze in for a night with Zhang's father, so he didn't bother going to someone else's house. However, before sleeping, he did chat for a while with Wang Guizhi and Shen Guoqiang.

"The traffickers we caught were mainly responsible for selling the stolen goods. There was an old woman named Cao who handled the abductions. Pulling up one radish brings up mud—this operation nabbed quite a few people from both upstream and downstream. But Xiao Yue and the others weren't actually abducted by these people. That Cao woman mainly operated within our province; the children she abducted were sent to other provinces. The people who abducted Xiao Yue and the others haven't been caught."

Dai Xianghua slightly furrowed his brow. "We couldn't get any other information about the children from the traffickers, making finding their families really tough. To be honest, the fact that these four children found their families so quickly was partly down to luck."

Wang Guizhi nodded. "You can say that again."

Dai Xianghua continued, "I've been thinking about it all day. Look, Xiao Jie and Xiao Wei are both from S Province, Xiao Zhuzi and Little Stone are from E Province. Could Dizi, like Lin Mian, be from Beijing?"

Shen Guoqiang said, "Speaking of Lin Mian, that child is precocious. He knows quite a few characters, so logically he should be able to provide a lot of information. How come his family hasn't been found yet?"

Dai Xianghua sighed. "That's right. He actually gave us quite a bit of information. We contacted the Beijing public security department through various channels, and their staff actually found his home."

He paused before continuing, "But his family situation is a bit special. His maternal grandfather was a major capitalist in Shanghai, with overseas connections. His mother passed away the year before last, and his father was transferred away from Beijing to the Northeast last year."

"Judging by the timing, it was probably not long after he was abducted."

Wang Guizhi and Shen Guoqiang's expressions immediately turned grave.

"His father transferred jobs through personal connections. People at his work unit don't even know exactly where in the Northeast he went, unless we check his file. But we're just searching for someone, and we don't have sufficient evidence to prove he is Lin Mian's father, so we have no grounds to access his personnel file."

Moreover, the child wasn't abandoned but abducted. Strictly speaking, his father is also a victim. Even the public security department couldn't investigate him arbitrarily.

That's why Lin Mian, who had leads, still hadn't found his family.

"Dizi is too young and has provided very few clues. But if she was also abducted in Beijing, the search scope might narrow a bit."

Dai Xianghua thought for a moment and said, "I want to take them to see those traffickers again, to see if we can find any more clues. If we still can't find their families, the county might have to consider the issue of placing them."

He looked at Wang Guizhi. "Whether to adopt a child, and which one, Auntie, you and Guoqiang might need to give it some serious thought."