Reborn in 1966

Chapter Forty-Six: Exchanging Tofu

"On the 23rd, sticky candy; on the 24th, sweep the house; on the 25th, grind tofu; on the 26th, stew meat; on the 27th, slaughter the rooster; on the 28th, let the dough rise; on the 29th, steam buns; stay up all night on the 30th, and twist and turn on the first day of the Lunar New Year."

Although the "Destroy the Four Olds" campaign prohibited all folk activities, people had been living like this for decades, and the customs of celebrating the New Year were ingrained in their bones. What to do on a certain day was already a matter of convention. After the Little New Year, they had to get moving and prepare the things needed for the New Year. So, while the sheets were being aired out, Grandma weighed out a few pounds of soybeans and went to the production team's tofu shop to exchange them for tofu.

This year, Peihua was called over by his great-uncle to help again. Each production team had its own tofu workshop, but these workshops weren't open all year round; they only opened during the Spring Festival. After the New Year, one tofu workshop in the village would be open, making tofu every day. Some of it was sent to the county supply and marketing cooperative, and some was exchanged with villagers. Of course, the income went to the village. At the end of the year, the tofu workshop would find people from their own production team to help make tofu. Being able to help out wasn't just about getting work points; the main thing was being able to sneak a little bit of tofu. You know, with so much tofu being made at once, who could tell if there was too much or too little? If you just sneaked a bite or two, who would know?

Actually, grinding tofu is a very tiring job, and Peihua, who is already seventeen years old, does the same thing as people in their twenties or even thirties.

Seeing her grandmother carrying soybeans in a large gourd ladle to go out, Pei-yin quickly followed with her short legs, grabbing her grandmother's clothes. Grandma looked at her little granddaughter, dressed in a red coarse cotton-padded jacket and black coarse cotton-padded trousers, who seemed to have stepped out of a New Year's painting. Pei-yin held onto her clothes with both hands, looked up at her with a pleading smile, and said with a smile, "Oh, is Pei-yin going to buy soybeans with Grandma? Okay, Grandma will take you."

So, the two figures, one old and one young, walked hand in hand. The grandmother carried a ladle of soybeans, while Pei Yin held a small aluminum basin. The two of them slowly walked towards the tofu shop in the team.

The tofu shop was bustling with activity, filled with people coming and going to exchange tofu, chatting casually, and shouting loudly, creating a lively atmosphere.

Grandma carried a large ladle full of soybeans in one hand and held her granddaughter's hand tightly in the other, following behind the group of people in front. Peiyin, on the other hand, looked curiously at the tofu workshop. In the steamy heat, she could see a millstone in the corner and a donkey with its eyes covered by a black cloth pulling it. On the other side of the tofu workshop, there was a large pot with thick firewood burning underneath. The light flames licked at the milky white soy milk bubbling in the pot, and the whole tofu workshop was filled with the fragrant aroma of soy milk.

Outside the tofu workshop, the wind was biting cold, but as soon as you stepped inside, a wave of heat hit you. The workers in the tofu mill were all wearing thin clothes. Fourth Grandfather and his men set up a table at the entrance of the mill, on which was a large stack of steaming hot tofu. Looking at the white tofu and smelling its fragrant aroma, Pei Yin felt her salivary glands suddenly become much more active.

My great-uncle carried a steelyard balance with a pan for holding tofu hanging from the hook, and a white cotton bag for weighing soybeans. He weighed the soybeans and tofu, and the team's accountant would record the results in a notebook after he finished. Although busy, things were organized. My great-uncle was a very easygoing person; he could chat with everyone who came to exchange tofu. With the New Year approaching, and this year's harvest quite good, everyone could exchange a few jokes.

When it was Grandma's turn, she poured the soybeans from the ladle into a white cotton bag. Fourth Grandpa lowered the weight on the scale and gave the accountant a number. The accountant calculated a number on the abacus. Fourth Grandpa then cut a large piece of tofu with a bamboo knife, raising the weight on the scale. After putting the tofu in a small aluminum basin, Fourth Grandpa saw that no one else was coming to exchange tofu, so he cut a small piece and put it in the small aluminum basin. Peiyin looked at the accountant next to her, whose expression hadn't changed, and said to Fourth Grandpa, "Thank you, Fourth Grandpa."

When Grandpa and the accountant heard Pei Yin say "thank you," they both smiled and said, "Oh my, this child may be young, but she is very polite. Good child, no need to thank me. It's cold, go home with Grandma."

Grandma carried the aluminum basin filled with tofu, while Pei-yin held the large water ladle. The two of them held hands and slowly walked home.

As the grandfather and grandson walked away, the fourth grandfather whispered to the accountant, "Look at how polite this child is at such a young age. I think as long as the world changes, this family will definitely be able to rise again."

The accountant nodded and said, "Yes, although I'm young, I've heard the elders in my family talk about Brother Shengsi's family. They all say they're a family that accumulates good deeds. I think they'll rise up sooner or later. Back then, Uncle Shengsi did a lot of good things for our area. Despite all the hardship these past few years, he hasn't become discouraged. Fourth Uncle, let's just wait and see; Brother Shengsi's family's good deeds are yet to come." Each production team had an accountant, who was essentially a custodian, responsible for recording the daily work points for each household and individual in their team. When distributing grain and money, they would calculate how much each person should receive, and naturally, this was where the accounts were kept. The custodian for Peiyin's team was also from the same family, and was of the same generation as Shen's father.

Although it was cold, the sheets and covers that were drying in the yard were all dry because of the good sunshine. After lunch, the yard was tidied up again, and the grandmothers and Shen's mother started sewing quilts.

Tian Lingling is pregnant, so she went home this afternoon instead of going to the factory for the holiday.

Grandma was very happy to see Tian Lingling return. Her daughter-in-law had just become pregnant, and she was worried that she wouldn't eat or sleep well while she was away. Now that she was home, she could cook something nice for her daughter-in-law, and she would feel at ease knowing that her daughter-in-law was eating well.

Although the house where my second uncle and aunt lived was always cleaned, the kang (a heated brick bed) was never heated in advance, so the house was still a bit cold.

When Grandma saw Second Uncle bring Tian Lingling into the house, she instructed Peihua and Peijun to help carry firewood to prepare for heating the kang (a heated brick bed).

Tian Lingling called out to the two boys and said to her grandmother somewhat shyly, "Mom, can I go back to my parents' house tonight?"

Grandma was taken aback for a moment, then quickly said, "Sure, why not? I'll help you pack some things later so you can take them to your mother's place. We haven't visited your family to exchange gifts before the New Year."

Uncle quickly said, "Mom, no need, no need. Lingling and I can just buy some things. How can we need you to help us prepare? We are both people who earn wages."

Grandma said, "Yours is yours, but this is a token of our affection from your father and me. Just help us deliver it."

After dinner, Grandma took a piece of frozen pork from the backyard, picked out two packets of pastries, put them in a basket, and handed them to Uncle Shen, saying, "Take this to your in-laws' house. I'll heat up the kang (heated brick bed) for you first, so you can sleep when you get back."

Uncle Shen agreed, carrying the basket in one hand and supporting Tian Lingling with the other, and walked towards Secretary Tian's house.

Lying on the warm kang bed at night, covered with a quilt that smelled of soapberry, Pei Yin let out a relaxed sigh. Shen's mother smiled and said, "You little rascal, you even know how to sigh now."

Mr. Shen poured the foot-washing water into the sewage bucket in the outer room, and came over with a smile, saying, "Yinyin, come and tell your father what's making you sigh."

Pei Yin didn't say anything, just smiled at her parents. She was only sighing because of the comfortable bed. What if they thought she was too precocious if she told them?

Shen's mother put her hand under the quilt covering Pei Yin and said, "You little body is so warm; the quilt is already so cozy in just a short while."

Shen's mother's hands were a little cold. Pei Yin smiled and wiggled her little body when her mother touched her. The mother and daughter played for a while, and then Shen's father finished tidying up and said, "Hurry up, I'm going to blow out the lamp."

Only then did Shen's mother lie down in the quilt next to Pei Yin, and Shen's father blew out the oil lamp on the kang table with a "poof," plunging the room into darkness.

Shen's mother said, "Look at his second uncle. Before he got married, he seemed like a carefree slacker, but after he got married, he's completely different from before."

Mr. Shen said, "People have to learn to grow up. Before Shengqin got married, he had his parents at home, so he didn't have to worry about anything. After getting married, the couple moved to the dormitory and had to plan everything themselves. So, he had to learn to grow up."

Shen's mother said, "Why is Tian Lingling going to stay at her parents' house? Doesn't that make you feel uneasy?"

Mr. Shen said, "The two of them are afraid of making things difficult for our mother. There are so many children in the family. If they make something good for Tian Lingling, then the children have to eat it too. It's not even the New Year yet, and there's only so little food in the house. What will they do if they run out of it?"

Shen's mother said, "I think his second aunt is a sensible person. Sigh, it's just that our mother probably isn't feeling very well."

Mr. Shen said, "Yes, even if Aunt Peihua is at our house during the day, she'll probably stop Mom from doing this or that. Life is too hard now. Otherwise, we should buy more nutritious food. There are so many elderly people and children in the family."

Shen's mother said, "There are no markets now, and we have to go to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy things. If there were a market, we could take our things to exchange for some other good things."

Mr. Shen said, "A country's overall strength can be seen from its economic circulation. Yueran, let's live a good life with our child. One day everything will be alright."

Shen's mother smiled and said, "As long as I'm with you and the children at home, I feel like I'm living a good life. Don't worry, no matter what difficulties we encounter, I will never give up our hope."

Pei-Yin, who was eavesdropping, thought it was very rare for her parents to see things so clearly during this period. What she admired most about them was their hope. As long as there was hope, there would definitely be a future.