As they watched the truck drive away, the crowd chattered, asking, "Li Xiu, where did you get all this?"
"Li Xiu, this stuff isn't cheap. How did you manage it?"
"Li Xiu..."
Listening to the jumble of questions, Li Xiu pulled out a pack of cigarettes and passed them to the smokers. He laughed and said, "I'm not that capable. The last time I went to the county to buy things, I found a lost kid outside the department store. The child couldn't even talk yet, just cry. I didn't know what else to do, so I bought him a few pieces of candy to calm him down. I held the kid and waited at the entrance for a good while before his family finally showed up. They seemed pretty important. When they asked me what I needed, I just said I was building a house to get married. They tried to give me money, but I refused. It was such a small thing, how could I take money for it? And now, look, they've sent a thank-you gift!"
Li Xiu gestured at the recently unloaded goods, spinning a complete fabrication. Everyone knew he didn't have any money, so if he suddenly did, there had to be an explanation. In a village this small, if someone so much as farted, the whole village would know about it in half a day. There wasn't a single person who didn't know he had left his family with practically nothing. Building a house, holding the beam-raising ceremony, getting married, buying things for his future wife—none of it could be hidden. Besides, he didn't want to just scrape by. With a story like this as a cover, it wouldn't be so conspicuous if he came by other things in the future.
The village chief, standing in the crowd, frowned. He didn't say anything, but shot Li Xiu a glare before turning and walking away.
Li Xiu called over to Li Bao, telling him to take a few people and deliver the glass to Carpenter Sun's house. He and Carpenter Sun had already agreed that he would make the windows and furniture for the house. "Tell Carpenter Sun to store the glass at his place for now, and I'll go see him tonight. Be careful when you carry it, don't break it!"
After giving instructions to Li Bao, he told Li Hua and the others who were working to keep an eye on the cement tiles. Recalling the look in the village chief's eyes as he left, Li Xiu's own eyes narrowed. He exchanged a few words with the crowd and then headed in the direction the village chief had gone.
Before long, he saw the village chief by the small river at the edge of the village. "Uncle."
"You went into the mountains!" Ge Dayu scowled, glaring at him before Li Xiu could say a word. "Everyone knows there are good things in Daqing Mountain, but during the three years of natural disasters, not a single person dared to go in there. It's not just the wolves, but the snakes and all sorts of creatures, and there are no paths. Once you go in, you get lost. The village elders warned us that we should sooner starve to death than enter the mountains, otherwise not even our bones would be found."
"Uncle, I had no choice. You know my situation. I can't let my future wife become a laughingstock, can I?" Li Xiu explained softly.
"For your future wife, you'd throw your life away!" Ge Dayu exploded. 'He's only met the girl once, just how smitten is he?' "Things are what they are right now! If you're careful with your money, you'll have enough to build the house and get married. You could take on a little debt to cover the rest! Work hard for a couple of years and you'll pay it off. Did you really have to risk your life for this?" he berated Li Xiu.
"Uncle!" Li Xiu looked at the incensed Ge Dayu and said calmly, "I know all that. The Yue Family isn't picky, and my fiancée is a good person. I just want to prove myself. My fiancée is wonderful, and I don't want her to suffer any grievances. Uncle, I'll be careful. I have to stay alive to marry her and bring her home!"
Ge Dayu pointed a finger at him from a distance but said nothing. He knew whatever he said would fall on deaf ears. Suppressing his anger, he finally said, "Have you never seen a woman in all your past lives? Risking your life just to get married."
"Uncle, it's not just about getting married. I'm just crazy about her. I just want to treat her well, and then treat her even better!"
"Fine, you win. I think you're about to catch up to Guo San," Ge Dayu said, so exasperated he laughed.
Guo San was famous for miles around for being henpecked. It wasn't that he was particularly fond of his wife; it was because his father-in-law was a butcher from the old society who had nine sons and only one daughter, who married Guo San. Guo San's nine brothers-in-law were all burly, thick-waisted, and unreasonable, and his wife was the same. Guo San himself was short and scrawny. He couldn't even win a fight against his wife, let alone his brothers-in-law. Once, the couple had an argument and his wife beat him up before running home to her parents. The next day, his nine brothers-in-law and his father-in-law came over and gave Guo San a thorough thrashing. After that, Guo San could never hold his head high in front of his wife again, and he became renowned far and wide for being henpecked.
"Uncle, my fiancée is reasonable, understanding, and everyone who meets her praises her. How can Guo San's wife even compare to mine?" Li Xiu protested. That shrew of a woman wasn't even worthy of carrying his fiancée's shoes.
Seeing Li Xiu get so defensive, Ge Dayu couldn't help but laugh. He had been fond of his own wife back when he was young, but not like this. "Alright, alright, your fiancée is wonderful. She hasn't even married into the family yet, and you're already calling her 'wife' this and 'wife' that."
Li Xiu chuckled. "But she is my wife! Oh, right, Uncle, the beam-raising ceremony is on October 8th. You and Auntie—no, wait, I mean, you and Sister—should both come and help entertain the guests!"
"Get lost! Call her Auntie. You can change how you address her when you've actually married your bride and brought her home!"
"It's going to happen sooner or later!" Li Xiu said with a mischievous grin.
Ge Dayu looked at Li Xiu's mischievous grin and said gruffly, "Go on, get back to your work. I need to go home for lunch. It's already noon."
When Li Xiu got back home, Ge Er Ya already had lunch ready. Seeing the scrambled eggs on the table, Li Xiu knew perfectly well she had heard the news.
"Eldest is back. Quick, wash your hands and eat," Ge Er Ya said, hurrying to greet him when she saw him return.
Without a word, Li Xiu washed his hands and sat down. He glanced at his four younger brothers at the table, his brow furrowing almost imperceptibly. "Who's watching the materials?" he asked.
When Li Hua didn't answer, Li Man quickly said, "Li Bao and Li Guo are there!"
Li Xiu asked again, "Have they eaten?"
Li Yi looked up at his expressionless eldest brother, then glanced at his silent second brother, and said softly, "Second Brother had them eat first. We only came back after they went to take over."
Li Xiu nodded and said no more.
"Big Brother, why didn't you tell the family you saved the child of some high-ranking official?" Li Hua asked, looking at the silent Li Xiu who was about to eat.
"That's right, Eldest! You saved someone's child and didn't even tell us. How high-ranking is that official? Could he get someone a job in the city? Look at Second Brother, he's already nineteen and still doesn't have a wife arranged..."
"Mother, I didn't save any child. I went into the mountains," Li Xiu interrupted Ge Er Ya. He knew what his mother was thinking without her having to say it, and he had no intention of indulging her any longer.
CRASH! Everyone looked up. It was Second Brother Li who had dropped his bowl on the floor.
"Husband, you..."
"You shut up!" Second Brother Li roared, pointing a trembling finger at Li Xiu. "You went into the mountains? Into Daqing Mountain?"
At the mention of Daqing Mountain, everyone except Li Xiu froze, staring blankly at him.
Li Xiu glanced around the room, slowly picked up his chopsticks, and said while starting to eat, "Yeah, I did."
"Eldest Son!"
"Father, can you let me eat first? I'm hungry." Li Xiu didn't want to listen. He didn't want to hear any of it right now. 'Where were you people before? It's too late to say anything now.'
After everyone finished the tasteless meal, Li Xin cleared the table. They all sat there, waiting for Li Xiu to speak. With a slight smile, Li Xiu asked nonchalantly, "What do you want to hear? What do you want me to say?"
'Our eldest son is estranged from the family,' Second Brother Li thought bitterly. In reality, he didn't understand his eldest son at all. For so many years, the boy rarely spoke at home, just quietly buried himself in work. It wasn't until the family property was divided that he felt something was wrong, but he couldn't put his finger on what. Only now did he realize that his eldest son resented them. "Eldest Son, you can't go into Daqing Mountain. People die in there," Second Brother Li said in a heavy voice.
"I know. I know you can't go into Daqing Mountain. And then what? The family property was divided. Now I'm building a house, holding a beam-raising ceremony in October, and getting married next spring. What am I supposed to use to support a family, to support a wife and children?" Li Xiu said calmly.
Looking at him, Ge Er Ya asked with some bitterness, "Eldest Son, are you blaming your mother for not giving you money? But Mother isn't capable, Mother also..."
"Mother, I was the one who agreed to it. I agreed to divide the family property this way. You and Father raised me, and I don't blame you. I'll marry my own wife and raise my own children. If something really happens to me, I'll accept my fate!"
'What could possibly happen? I studied under Uncle Ge for six years, and I lived to be almost seventy in my past life. If I still managed to get into trouble after being so careful going into the mountains, my four grandchildren would probably laugh themselves silly at my grave.'
"Don't overthink it. I still have a ton of things to do. I'm leaving." Li Xiu stood up without a backward glance and left the room full of people behind.