Flip the table and divide the family property! Take his wife and daughter into the mountains and eat

On the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, the weather was freezing cold.

Although the festive atmosphere of the New Year has not yet fully developed, the stale smell of gossip under the old locust tree at the entrance of Kaoshantun Village has already wafted for two miles.

This place is the village's "intelligence center".

A group of old women and idlers, with their sleeves tucked in and necks hunched, were gathered in a circle, like a flock of crows waiting to see a joke.

Surrounded by people spitting and talking, was Old Lady Zhao.

She was wearing a patched old cotton-padded coat today, but that didn't diminish her haughty demeanor.

Although the second son, Zhao Shanhai, disappeared after going to the commune to "report" that day, rumors were flying all over the village that he had been driven away and become a vagrant.

But in Grandma Zhao's words, the story took a completely different turn.

"Oh dear, sister-in-law."

Liu Dazui, from the east end of the village, was cracking sunflower seeds, his triangular eyes revealing a strange, unsettling look.

"Why hasn't your second son shown up yet? Erga from the next village went to the commune on business, and when he came back, he said he saw your second son being chased out by the gatekeeper like a dog..."

"That's utter bullshit!"

Old Mrs. Zhao jumped up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, her face red and her neck thick with anger, and she cursed:

"Ergazi has conjunctivitis! What does he know?"

Old Mrs. Zhao spat hard on the ground, puffed out her chest, and began to spout nonsense with a straight face:

"My second son was chosen by a high-ranking leader! He was... he was seconded! Do you even know what a secondment is? It means he's being sent to the provincial capital for important business! How could a small commune like ours possibly accommodate such a big shot like him?"

"They just sent me a message yesterday saying they're too busy with official business to come back. They'll be back in a jeep after the New Year!"

Those around them exchanged knowing glances, but no one dared to point it out.

After all, the old lady from the Zhao family was notorious for her tantrums and throwing tantrums, and nobody wanted to mess with her.

Seeing that she had tamed the crowd, Old Lady Zhao became even more enthusiastic.

In order to elevate her second child, she habitually began to relentlessly suppress her "disobedient" eldest child:

"Hmph, unlike that heartless eldest brother Zhao Shanhe! He disowns his own mother after the family split up; he deserves his bad luck!"

"Bad luck?"

A bystander, Wang the Cripple, chimed in, "Didn't Shanhe build a big tiled house? It looks quite impressive."

"Impressive my foot!"

Old Mrs. Zhao sneered, her expression so vicious it was as if it were the home of an enemy:

"It's just an empty shell! I've heard the whole story; he spent every last penny of his money building that dilapidated house! Even the windows were installed on credit!"

She lowered her voice and vividly described the rumor:

"You wouldn't believe it! Last night I passed by and heard that little bitch Lin Xiu crying inside! She said she had no rice, no flour, and couldn't even afford dumpling wrappers for the New Year!"

"That's karma! Make him separate from the family! Make him so unfilial! This is what they call—living in a new house but starving, freezing to death, that bastard!"

"Tsk tsk tsk..."

A collective gasp rippled through the crowd.

In this day and age, what rural people fear most is not having money for the New Year.

If what Old Lady Zhao said is true, then Zhao Shanhe's family is going to have a tough time getting through the New Year.

"If you ask me..."

Liu Dazui curled his lip: "Young people just don't know their own limitations, always trying to act like they know everything. Now look what they've done, they've been exposed."

The more Old Lady Zhao spoke, the more excited she became, as if she could already see the Zhao Shanhe family kneeling at her door begging for food:

"Just wait! By New Year's Eve, when the three of them can't even afford to light a fire, they'll have to come begging to me! At that point, I won't even give them a drop of swill..."

"Sizzle—sizzle—"

Old Mrs. Zhao hadn't even said "No drink" yet.

A piercing, extremely loud electrical sound suddenly emerged from the snow at the end of the village road, stabbing into everyone's ears like an awl.

Immediately afterwards, a loud, hoarse voice, with a strong sense of the times, amplified by the loudspeaker, instantly drowned out the wind and snow, and forcefully choked Old Lady Zhao's scream back into her throat.

"As we mentioned last time! The Three Heroes and Five Gallants went down to Jiangnan, punishing evil and promoting good all the way, how impressive they were!"

This is too much of a commotion.

It wasn't the kind of sound a small semiconductor device hanging on your waist could produce; it was more like the village's loudspeaker had come to life and started playing on its own.

"Who is it? Playing a radio in this freezing weather?"

Why is there such a loud commotion?

Everyone was stunned. They stopped talking and craned their necks, squinting as they looked out of the village.

Upon seeing this, everyone's expression froze.

Old Mrs. Zhao's hands, which were originally tucked into her sleeves, became stiff and claw-like.

At the end of the white, snow-covered road, a brand-new, gleaming black Phoenix brand "28-inch" motorcycle was steadily riding over, pressing down on the snow.

The man riding the bicycle wore a dog-skin hat and a neat sheepskin coat, his back ramrod straight. His spirit and energy seemed completely out of place in this drab village.

Zhao Shanhe.

But he didn't come back alone.

He returned with a "luxury convoy".

Two large strings of 1,000-shot firecrackers hung on the left side of the bicycle handlebars, their bright red color dazzling as the bicycle swayed.

Two heavy net bags hung on the right. The net bags had large openings, and you could clearly see that they contained canned yellow peaches, malted milk powder, and two bottles of "Beidacang" liquor that looked incredibly expensive just from the packaging.

Hanging prominently on the car beam was a transistor radio, its case brand new and its antenna stretched out long; the sound was coming from there.

"Ring ring—!"

Zhao Shanhe rang the bicycle bell.

That crisp sound was even better than a storyteller's voice; it was like a series of slaps across the faces of those gossiping people.

"My goodness..."

Liu Dazui dropped all the sunflower seeds in his hand with a clatter, his mouth agape wide enough to fit an egg.

"That's... Phoenix brand? Brand new? How much would that cost?"

But it's not over yet.

Behind Zhao Shanhe's bicycle, there was even a hired donkey cart following!

The old man driving the cart cracked his whip, his face beaming with joy.

The contents piled on the cart made the entire village hold their breath.

In the most conspicuous spot, a red cloth was covering the object, but when the wind blew, it revealed the dark metallic sheen and the golden butterfly logo underneath.

Butterfly brand sewing machine!

That was the "King of Dowries" that no young woman or married woman in the village could even dream of!

Next to the sewing machine, there were two whole bags of high-gluten flour (refined white flour), and on top of them was a whole pork carcass with ribs attached!

The pork was plump and strong, with white fat that was three fingers thick, and it looked like it weighed forty or fifty pounds!

There was also a roll of bright red floral cloth wrapped in newspaper, its vibrant color making the snow on the ground appear red.

How could this be the penniless pauper who "lived off the northwest wind"?

This is clearly a purchase from the county department store! It's like bringing back all the "good life" that rural people in those days could only dream of!

Grandma Zhao opened her mouth wide, making a "clucking" sound from her throat, like an old hen being strangled.

She was just spreading rumors that the eldest son couldn't even afford dumpling wrappers.

The next second, the boss pulled back a mountain of gold.

That sewing machine... she'd been talking to her husband about it for half her life, but she just couldn't bring herself to buy it!

That piece of pork... is enough for the Zhao family to eat for half a year!

And that radio, that bicycle...

How is that possible? Where did he get the money? Didn't he spend it all building houses?

"Da da da..."

The convoy is getting closer.

Zhao Shanhe saw the old locust tree, and he also saw his mother standing under the tree, her face as pale as paper, and the group of neighbors who had just been gloating but were now dumbfounded.

But he didn't stop.

He didn't even glance in that direction.

He pedaled hard, a faint smile on his face, humming along with the storyteller on the radio.

ignore.

This is the ultimate humiliation.

The wheels kicked up snow and sputtered past Old Lady Zhao.

On the radio, Shan Tianfang's signature husky voice was right at the climax of the song:

This is what they call: fortunes change every thirty years! Never underestimate a young person's potential!

Zhao Shanhe, carrying his "spoils of war," swept into the village like a gust of wind.

Only a string of crisp bell sounds, the passionate storytelling, and the mouthwatering aroma of pork lingered in the cold wind.

The village entrance was deathly silent.

Several seconds passed before Wang the Cripple swallowed, looked at Old Lady Zhao's face which was alternating between red and white, and muttered under his breath:

"Sister-in-law... this is what you meant by... not even being able to afford dumpling wrappers?"

"I think that piece of pork is heavier than your second son, a grown man!"

"puff--"

Some people around couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Grandma Zhao swayed, felt dizzy, her vision went black, and she collapsed onto her backside in the snowdrift.