Chapter Twenty-One: Are You Truly Following Me, or Li Xiangyang?

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Returning home from the county town, night had already fallen completely. Li Xiangyang led the donkey to his second uncle’s courtyard.

“Xiangyang, you’re back?” Second Uncle poked his head out. “So late?”

“Yeah, got held up on the way.” Li Xiangyang handed over the reins. “Thanks for lending me the donkey cart.”

“How much did you sell it for?” Second Uncle asked casually.

“Forty-six.”

“That much?” Second Uncle’s eyes lit up, then he lowered his voice. “Well...”

Li Xiangyang had anticipated this and took eight yuan from his pocket. “Second Uncle, this is the money I owe you. Please count it.”

Second Uncle took the money and carefully counted it twice by the moonlight, then nodded in satisfaction. “Alright, you’re a promising lad.”

“I’ll be off then.”

“Hey, come by more often,” Second Uncle called after him. “By the way, your eldest uncle...”

“I’m going there now.”

Li Xiangyang turned toward his eldest uncle’s house.

On the way, he felt the remaining money in his pocket and calculated silently.

He still owed his eldest uncle six yuan and fifty cents, plus fifteen yuan to Uncle Li for the house repairs.

“Who is it?” came a voice from the courtyard.

“Eldest Uncle, it’s me, Xiangyang.”

“So late?” Eldest Uncle opened the gate. “What’s the matter?”

“Here,” Li Xiangyang pulled out the money. “This is the six yuan fifty I owe you.”

Eldest Uncle took the money, his expression softening. “You’re thoughtful, boy.”

Leaving Eldest Uncle’s home, Li Xiangyang quickened his pace toward Uncle Li’s house.

In this bitter cold, the house had to be fixed.

“Uncle!” Li Xiangyang called at the gate.

“Who’s there?” Uncle Li’s voice came from inside.

“It’s me, Li Xiangyang.”

The door opened, and Uncle Li appeared in a worn cotton jacket. “Xiangyang, it’s too late. We’ll have to wait until tomorrow to repair the house. I’ve prepared the materials, but when I stopped by your place earlier, no one was home.”

“I hunted a wild boar in the mountains and sold it in town. Here’s fifteen yuan for the repairs. I’ll trouble you again tomorrow,” Li Xiangyang said, touched.

“No trouble at all,” Uncle Li smiled. “You’re a hardworking kid, earning money and taking care of your family. That’s better than wasting your days. Alright, head home. I’ll bring some men over first thing in the morning.”

Back home, his mother was still waiting.

“So late getting back?”

“Yeah, I’ve cleared all the debts.” Li Xiangyang took off his cotton jacket. “Uncle Li will come to fix the house tomorrow.”

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His mother nodded, but her eyes were red.

Li Xiangyang understood what she was thinking.

They had borrowed a lot over the years just to get by.

Now, finally paying it all off gave them peace of mind.

“Mom, you should go to bed early,” Li Xiangyang said. “We have to get up early tomorrow.”

Sitting by the warm kang stove, he watched his mother and sister asleep, contemplating his next plans.

The repairs would take a few days, during which he needed to find more game.

The New Year was only about twenty days away; he had to prepare something nice for his mother and sister.

None of this was difficult; as long as the weather held, the mountains would provide game.

Life would surely get better and better.

At dawn, Uncle Li arrived with several young men.

With their help, progress on the repairs was swift. From morning until noon, the old roof was stripped away.

Li’s mother had specially saved some wild boar meat and stewed a large pot.

The aroma soon drifted far and wide.

“Xiangyang, you’ve really got skill now. Wild boars in winter are dangerous. Even with skill, you have to be careful,” Uncle Li said with a mouthful.

“I know, Uncle. You eat more,” Li Xiangyang offered a piece of meat. “Brothers, don’t be shy.”

Just as they were eating, voices came from outside the yard.

Li Xiangyang looked up and saw Su Yan and Wang Ming passing by.

They had come back from the youth work point to fetch some things and slowed down when they smelled the meat.

Su Yan’s gaze swept through the open gate and caught sight of the table laden with food. A flicker of jealousy crossed her eyes.

In the past, whenever Li Xiangyang caught game, he’d always bring it to her first.

But now...

Wang Ming tugged her sleeve, signaling her to move along.

With so many people in the yard, entering now would only bring humiliation.

They walked a good distance away before Su Yan suddenly turned and shouted at Wang Ming, “Can you do anything right? When exactly are you taking me back to the city? Are you just trying to fool me?”

“How could I lie to you? My father made mistakes, but there’s still some loyalty left in him. Think of all those who owe my dad favors. As for cutting ties—that’s self-protection. He wouldn’t really disown me...”

“Then when, exactly? I can’t stand this rotten place a single day longer. Once we get to the city, I’ll give you whatever you want,” Su Yan yelled.

Wang Ming’s face darkened. “Why are you yelling at me? Do you want to be stuck here? Is it because you saw Li Xiangyang eating meat that you’re upset?”

“I’m telling you, I want to be with you. But when we go back is not up to me. You need to give me a definite answer today. If it takes three or five years, who will I choose? You or Li Xiangyang?”

“Of course I’ll choose you!” Su Yan was desperate. “But you have to show some ambition!”

Wang Ming was silent for a long time before suddenly asking, “What kind of ambition can you have in this place? Besides, I don’t know how to hunt. Hey, do you know how Li Xiangyang hunts?”

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“How else? Traps...” Su Yan suddenly realized something. “Right, he’s using a real gun now!”

“A gun! Yes, a gun!” Wang Ming’s eyes flashed with a ruthless gleam. “In that case...”

“What are you going to do?”

“Just wait and see the show.”

Su Yan watched Wang Ming’s dark expression, a flicker of unease rising in her heart. She feared he might do something extreme.

But thinking of Li Xiangyang’s current success, she gritted her teeth.

After all, Li Xiangyang no longer respected her or listened to her.

Back at Li’s place, the repairs continued.

Uncle Li and the young men worked vigorously, with Li Xiangyang helping all along.

Only after dark were the new crossbeams finally installed.

“Tomorrow we’ll put up the rafters and tiles. The day after, you can move in. It’s late and you have nowhere to stay—come to my place. My kang is big,” Uncle Li said, wiping sweat.

“That’s too kind...” Li’s mother hesitated.

“What’s there to hesitate about?” Uncle Li interrupted. “It’s freezing; you can’t sleep outside. Don’t worry, my house has plenty of rooms. Tonight, I’ll share the kang with Xiangyang, and you two can sleep with my wife.”

Li Xiangyang looked at his sister’s red, cold face and nodded. “Thank you, Uncle.”

After packing a few simple clothes, the three of them followed Uncle Li to his home.

On the way, Li’s mother scolded Li Xiangyang. “Why’d you tear down a perfectly good house to rebuild?”

“Mom,” Li Xiangyang sighed, “it has to be done. The beams were rotten. If we wait any longer, something bad could happen.”

Uncle Li chimed in ahead. “That’s right, sister-in-law. If we don’t fix it, it’ll be a disaster. Xiangyang’s a sensible boy—don’t blame him.”

At Uncle Li’s home, his wife had warmed the kang stove nicely.

“Come, come, sister-in-law, Xiaohua, get on the kang,” she greeted warmly.

As soon as Li Xiaohua touched the warm kang, she crawled under the covers and soon fell asleep.

Li Xiangyang and Uncle Li took another room to share.

“Xiangyang, I heard you’re hunting with a rifle?”

Inside the other room, Uncle Li stoked the fire and asked casually.

“Yes, bought it at the forest farm,” Li Xiangyang replied, helping prop the firewood.

“Hmm, you have to be careful with that. Don’t lose it. Also, make sure to find time to register it. These days, guns aren’t rare, but if one gets lost or someone gets hurt, it’s a huge problem.”

Li Xiangyang nodded. “Thanks for the reminder, Uncle. After the repairs, I’ll go to the county to register it.”