WBSGVS Chapter 109

When the news reached the Tang family, they all thought it was a joke and didn’t take it seriously. Only Tang Sisheng gave a serious warning to the person: “Don’t joke about San Ya!”

The person, flustered, replied, “It’s true! The girl is alive. She just came down from the mountains, we all saw her with our own eyes. Dazhu even called her, and she responded. She’s alive!”

The Tang family: “???”

Tang Ersong, who also thought it was a joke and had stayed silent, took a deep breath and asked excitedly, “Really? Where is she?”

“She’s on the way to the town. She just borrowed a bicycle from the village head. You should go see for yourself,” the person pointed in a direction.

Tang Ersong immediately ran off.

But he was a step too late. Qing Li, who had borrowed the bike, had already ridden off at full speed, carrying dried and processed medicinal herbs from the mountains, heading towards the town.

He didn’t even catch a glimpse of her. In a daze, he turned to the village head’s wife and asked, “Sister-in-law, did San Ya come to borrow a bike?”

The village head’s wife, equally stunned, nodded. “Yeah, my goodness, she’s been in the mountains for over two months, and she’s still alive?”

“That’s great!” Tang Ersong exclaimed with joy, looking toward the town. Even though he couldn’t see anything, tears of excitement welled up in his eyes.

After calming down, he felt puzzled. “If San Ya is alive, why hasn’t she come back? What’s she doing in the mountains?”

The village head’s wife gave him a strange look but didn’t say anything.

Was he really that clueless?

She thought bitterly to herself, if she could live so well in the mountains, grow taller and healthier, even become fairer, why would she want to come back to a home where she couldn’t even eat eggs and might get beaten by Qian Guiying?

But still, it was impressive that she could live so well!

No one responded to him. After the excitement subsided, Tang Ersong, still filled with confusion, headed back and remembered how his wife often went into the mountains at night. She probably knew, right?

With this thought, he hurried to where Li Lanhua was working.

When he arrived, the villagers, stirred by the news of San Ya, were surrounding Li Lanhua, eager to find out what had happened. Tang Ersong pushed through the crowd, pulled Li Lanhua aside, and urgently asked, “San Ya didn’t die, you knew, didn’t you? She’s in the mountains? Why didn’t she come back?”

Li Lanhua shook off his hand coldly. She had been distant for the past two months, and at first, Tang Ersong had thought she was still grieving the loss of their daughter. But now, something felt off.

She spoke, “Come back for what? To starve? To get beaten by your mother?”

“What nonsense are you talking about?” Tang Ersong furrowed his brows.

“Nonsense? Every time San Ya made food, she had to save a little for the ancestors at home. It wasn’t much. How many times did she not go hungry?” Li Lanhua retorted, “Do you think your mother wouldn’t beat her if she came back after disrespecting the ancestors?”

Tang Ersong was completely speechless. He stared at Li Lanhua in shock and suddenly realized how unfamiliar she seemed.

She no longer had the gentle look she once had.

But everything she said was true. She didn’t want more children because she was afraid that, like San Ya, their family could live well, but their child would suffer. She couldn’t do anything about it, and it was her fault for not being capable.

Tang Ersong’s face heated up, and he shouted, “Stop talking!”

“Then you shut up!” Li Lanhua coldly replied, then bent down to continue cutting rice in the field.

Tang Ersong stared at her indifferent back, feeling lost. The excitement of his daughter’s return was gone, and as the others who worked with him congratulated him, he could only force a smile and nod, then quickly left.

Staying in front of Li Lanhua felt like being stripped of all dignity.

With the bicycle, the trip from the village to the town, which originally took three hours on foot, now only took one hour.

But the bike was too big, with a bar in the middle. Qing Li had been training for over two months but still found riding it exhausting. By the time she reached the town, she was drenched in sweat.

She parked the bike in front of a pharmacy.

At that time, while the city had Western doctors who used all sorts of instruments, in more rural areas, traditional Chinese medicine was still more common because it was convenient and effective, with herbal remedies that could easily heal ailments.

When Qing Li entered, there were still people picking up prescriptions, and the business seemed good.

One of the staff noticed her and asked, “Little girl, what medicine are you looking for? Let me see the prescription.”

Qing Li took out the herbs she had packed neatly in newspaper and laid them out in front of the staff, smiling, “Do you accept these?”

The staff’s eyes lit up as he examined the herbs. There were three kinds, all commonly sold in the shop but not often seen, and they were all well-preserved. He asked in surprise, “Where did you get these? They’re processed so well!”

“The doctors at the brigade health center taught me,” Qing Li replied. “Can you take them?”

“Of course, of course,” the staff said immediately, beginning to weigh the herbs. Since the moisture had been removed, they weighed less, but the herbs were still worth quite a bit.

By the time Qing Li came out of the pharmacy, her bag was full, though in this era, having money was useless unless you had the right tickets.

She walked around a bit more, successfully purchasing some of the daily-use tickets.

With the tickets in hand, she could now go for the big shopping spree.

After finishing all her purchases and enjoying a long-awaited meal at a state-run restaurant, she immediately returned home.

However, due to what had happened earlier that morning, as soon as she reached the village entrance, someone saw her, and the news spread quickly. Tang Ersong blocked her path.

He was sharp enough to realize she was returning the bike, so after hearing she was back, he immediately went to the village head’s road. As soon as Qing Li came out, he saw her.

“San Ya!” Tang Ersong rushed up, carefully examining the girl in front of him.

Though she looked quite different from the girl he remembered, only two months had passed. Her features hadn’t changed much. After a closer look, the familiar feeling returned, and he happily said, “San Ya, you’ve been in the mountains these two months?”

Qing Li glanced at him and replied flatly, “Yes.”

Tang Ersong furrowed his brows, feeling somewhat uncomfortable: “Why are you living in the mountains? Aren’t you afraid of being eaten by wild animals?!”

Qing Li replied, “Clearly, I’m not eaten by wild animals right now, but if I stayed at your house, I’d probably be eaten by your mother.”

Tang Ersong: “…”

He felt like San Ya was more difficult to handle than his wife now and couldn’t help but say, “How do you talk like that? I’m your father!”

Qing Li gave him a surprised glance, “Oh, so you still remember you’re my father? Dad, other kids can go to school, why don’t you give me money? School starts in two months, and I need to go.”

Tang Ersong’s eyes widened. “What school does a girl like you need to go to?”

Qing Li replied, “They say women can hold up half the sky now. With your outdated views, do you want me to report you to the Women’s Federation?!”

Tang Ersong was enraged. “What do you know, little brat?! Come back with me and apologize to your grandmother…”

Qing Li rolled her eyes and walked past him, not bothering to argue. She’d rather go back and gather more herbs; the hottest time was approaching, and many herbs that hadn’t grown well before were now ready. With the strong sun, they would dry quickly, and she could process them soon.

Tang Ersong blinked, then realized San Ya had already run off, so he immediately chased after her.

As soon as he ran, Qing Li ran too.

She was a completely different person now compared to when she had entered the mountains. After two months of good food and training every morning and night, she was in excellent physical condition. She easily left Tang Ersong behind and plunged into the mountains.

When Tang Ersong re-entered the mountains, despite the good sunlight, the deeper he went, the darker it became, and he didn’t dare to go further. He could only turn back in frustration.

Qian Guiying had also heard that San Ya was alive. When she heard that San Ya had returned from the town during her afternoon nap, she had been waiting for her.

That girl had been gone for over two months, running off to the mountains. What an audacious child!

She’d had her pride hurt for so long!

With a chicken feather duster in hand, Qian Guiying was ready to deal with the child. However, when the courtyard door opened, and Tang Ersong entered alone, her eyes widened. “Where’s San Ya?”

Tang Ersong frowned and said coldly, “She ran back into the mountains.”

“Back to the mountains? Why didn’t you bring her back?” Qian Guiying asked, surprised.

Tang Ersong replied, “Mom, that’s deep in the mountains. How could I go in there?”

“You useless thing!” Qian Guiying scolded him angrily.

Li Lanhua, who had been listening inside the house, nodded in agreement. Useless thing!

Tang Ersong glanced at his mother helplessly. He was used to being scolded by now, and it didn’t bother him anymore. He lowered his head and went back to the house, where he was met with his wife’s cold face. He didn’t feel like saying anything.

His mother didn’t like him, his wife didn’t like him, and now even his daughter didn’t like him.

He used to have some vitality, but now it was fading. He lay on the bed, sighing like an old man in his seventies or eighties.

Qian Guiying returned to her room to rest, frustrated and unable to vent her anger. She lay in bed, feeling irritable and sweating profusely.

Just then, Tang Tiantian called, “Mom! It’s so hot!”

Qian Guiying had to fan herself and go to her daughter’s room, but still, she wasn’t satisfied. She called out to the old man next door, “Head of the house!”

“Huh?” Tang Dashun mumbled, groggy from sleep.

Qian Guiying asked, “How do you think that girl could survive for two months in the mountains? And she still hasn’t come back? Could there be other people in the mountains?”

Tang Dashun replied gruffly, “Why do you care about this? It’s good she’s not back. The food in the commune is getting scarcer. Fewer people means more food for us.”

Though the commune was helping feed the children with communal meals, he’d heard that life in the commune was getting worse, and one day they might not be able to provide meals anymore. If the child were at home, they’d have to take care of her themselves, which would be a burden.

This reasoning made sense, and Qian Guiying felt a little better.

Tang Tiantian blinked and listened to her parents talk. Suddenly, she asked, “Mom, what do you think San Ya is eating in the mountains?”

Oh, right. What was she eating?

Qian Guiying snapped out of her thoughts. What could she be eating in the mountains? There were no crops or grains; just wild animals and fruits.

The villagers who had seen her said she had grown taller, whiter, and fatter.

People around the mountains knew that those who lived off the mountain could survive on it. If it weren’t for the national restrictions on hunting, people would have already been going up there with guns to hunt rabbits and pheasants.

So, for San Ya to still be alive, she must have been eating meat!

Wow!

No wonder Li Lanhua looked so healthy. She must have been going to her daughter’s place every night to eat meat!