Accidentally-Born-C38

Chapter 38

Guihua quickly prepared lunch, and as Mingbei, who had been running around outside all morning, entered the door, he immediately smelled the aroma of fish filling the yard. Without even washing his hands, he darted into the house: “Sister-in-law, you’re stewing fish today?”

Zhenzhen, carrying a large plate of fragrant fried salmon, was walking into the house. Seeing Mingbei’s eager expression, she deliberately held the plate under his nose: “Take a sniff, sister-in-law says this is salmon, we don’t have this kind of fish here. It must have gone off course during migration, and it’s great that Li Mingzhong came across it.”

“Delicious!” Mingbei swallowed, looking at the fish with a silly grin. Zhenzhen gave him an exasperated look: “Then hurry up and wash your hands.”

Mingbei quickly agreed and went to the water vat in the yard, scooping out two ladles of water into a basin. He grabbed a towel and scrubbed the oily sweat off his face, then carefully washed his hands and nails before splashing the remaining water into the yard. He didn’t even wipe his face and dashed back into the house.

Guihua brought out the fish roe, lightly salted, and placed it on the table. She grabbed a towel and handed it to Mingbei: “You’re already grown, and you’re still so careless.”

Mingbei grinned foolishly, staring at the golden fish roe on the table: “Is this fish roe? Why is it so big?”

Guihua smiled and glanced at him: “This is a good thing. Before the liberation, only high-end restaurants in Ice City had this dish.”

Mingbei listened and picked up a piece with his chopsticks, chewing a couple of bites before frowning: “Sister-in-law, you forgot to cook it, this is raw, it’s a bit fishy.”

Guihua smiled at him: “This kind of thing is best when it’s fresh and unprocessed. If you cook it, you’ll ruin it.”

Zhenzhen, used to eating raw fish and even sashimi in her past life, felt no burden eating the raw roe. After tasting it, she smacked her lips: “It feels like it should be paired with some kind of sauce.”

Guihua patted Zhenzhen on the forehead with a smile: “You really know how to eat, but we don’t have those kinds of things at home.” Zhenzhen nodded: “I know, it’s fine this way. Let’s steam some rice for dinner, it should go well with that.”

When Li Laotai and Wang Sufen heard the roe was raw, they both grimaced. They glanced at the plate, then at Zhenzhen: “Won’t this upset your stomach?”

Zhenzhen quickly pushed the plate toward them: “Try it, next time we might not get this fish.”

Wang Sufen stepped back a bit, picking up a piece of fried fish and placing it in her bowl, eyeing the roe with fear: “I’ll stick to the fish meat. I’m not brave enough to eat raw roe.”

Li Laotai took even more direct action to show her stance, pushing the roe towards Zhenzhen without even glancing at it. Zhenzhen looked at her family with a hint of regret but didn’t directly persuade them. The salmon roe was a delicacy in later years, known as one of the world’s three great treasures. It is rich in eighteen types of amino acids, eight vitamins, and nine trace elements that the human body cannot produce. Its nutritional value is extremely high.

Li Laotai and Wang Sufen had both suffered hardships when they were young. Although life had improved in recent years, the wear on their bodies couldn’t be easily restored. Zhenzhen had brought back this fish with the intention of nourishing them.

Seeing Zhenzhen looking a little disappointed, Guihua got off the bed: “There’s still another batch of roe. If not, I’ll scramble it with eggs and some green onions.”

Wang Sufen stopped her: “Don’t bother, there’s fish, right? Let’s leave the roe for you guys.”

Guihua put on her shoes with a smile: “It’s a rare treat, and it’s nutritious. Mother and grandma should at least taste it. Plus, scrambled eggs are quick, just two or three minutes, not much effort.”

Li Laotai took a bite of the fried fish and said to Wang Sufen: “See, this kid knows how to eat. Fried fish really is different from stewed. It’s a bit oily, but no big deal.”

Wang Sufen nodded: “You’re right. It’s fine to eat like this once in a while, but eating it every day would be too much oil. Fortunately, our family grows plenty of soybeans, so we don’t rely on oil for cooking. If it were other families, they wouldn’t even think of using oil for frying anything.”

As they talked, Guihua finished scrambling the eggs with the fish roe. Li Laotai, understanding that this was a gesture from her granddaughter and daughter-in-law, took a bite and after a moment, nodded: “It’s crunchy, quite tasty.”

Zhenzhen also offered a piece to Li Muwu, who was drinking: “Dad, you should try some too.”

Li Muwu immediately smiled broadly: “Ah, my eldest daughter knows how to take care of me. Eat, don’t mind me.” Then, he glanced at Mingbei, who was eating non-stop, and said with distaste: “Look at your brother. He’s so grown up, but all he does is eat.”

Mingbei quickly laughed awkwardly and poured his father a cup of wine. Only then was Li Muwu satisfied and nodded. Li Laotai didn’t have much of an appetite, eating only two pieces of fish and a pancake before feeling full. She wiped her mouth and discussed with Li Muwu: “It’s already September. We should let Zhenzhen go to school.”

Li Muwu looked at his little girl and felt a little heartache: “She’s so small, will she be tired from school? Other children start school when they’re seven or eight years old. Isn’t she too early?”

Li Laotai sat down cross-legged and instinctively reached for her pipe, but Zhenzhen quickly pressed her hand down: “Grandma, we’ve already agreed not to smoke indoors, it’s bad for the child.”

Li Laotai laughed awkwardly and let go: “I just forgot, I’ll go outside in a bit.” She set the pipe aside and discussed with Li Muwu: “Don’t be fooled by how young Zhenzhen is. She’s very sharp. Mingbei teaches her to recognize words every day, and after saying them twice, she remembers them. I think she’s just been playing around at home, not learning much. If she goes to school, she can learn more.”

Zhenzhen blinked with a bit of grievance: “Grandma, I’m not just playing around. I never come back empty-handed. Even when I’m picking mushrooms, I pick bigger ones than others.”

Li Laotai glanced at her with understanding, and Zhenzhen quickly smiled awkwardly, stuffing more fish roe into her mouth. Li Muwu thought for a moment and nodded: “If your mother thinks it’s fine, let her go. It’s like playing. If she can’t keep up, we can always repeat the year.”

Zhenzhen nearly choked on the fish roe in her mouth. She gave Li Muwu a resentful look and said indignantly: “I’m not like my fourth brother, how could I repeat a year!”

Mingbei had failed two subjects last year and didn’t dare to enter the house. Li Laotai was so worried about him, she discussed with the school and had him repeat a grade. This was often a topic of conversation at home.

Actually, Mingbei wasn’t dumb, but he was too playful. Before, with Mingnan looking out for him, he would at least do some homework after school, and could review before exams. Ever since Mingnan went to high school, Mingbei had become like an untamed horse, always looking out the window during class and wandering the mountains behind the school during breaks. After school, it was even worse—he would only come back when it was dark, always either hunting in the mountains or fishing in the river, never focusing on his studies. Even in the dead of winter, he was restless, often sneaking out with Li Mingzhong to chase rabbits.

In this era, children rely on self-discipline to go to school and do their homework, while the adults are too busy with chores both inside and outside the house to pay attention to how well the children are learning. Moreover, although Li Mu Wu and Wang Sufen had attended night school and can barely recognize a few characters, middle school textbooks are like ancient texts to them. Therefore, whether Ming Bei finishes his homework or not, or what he learns at school, the adults at home are clueless. At most, they tell him to study hard, but beyond that, they don’t know how to manage him.

Li Laotai has four sons and many grandsons, and they are all clever. However, there are few who are as hardworking as Ming Dong and Ming Xi. Ming Bei is the first one to play so much that he had to repeat a grade.

Li Laotai glanced at her grandson, who seemed to want to bury his face in the bowl, which further solidified her decision to send Zhen Zhen to school: “We can’t let Ming Bei teach Zhen Zhen anymore. Zhen Zhen is so smart; if she learns from him, she’ll end up as foolish as him!”

Ming Bei couldn’t hold back and weakly rebutted, “How am I foolish?”

“If you aren’t foolish, how did you repeat a grade? You are the only one like that in our family!” Li Laotai retorted fiercely. Ming Bei shrank back. Thinking about the upcoming family gathering during the New Year, where they would undoubtedly bring up his grade repetition, he felt like the fish in his bowl had lost its flavor.

Seeing Ming Bei’s dejected appearance, Zhen Zhen leaned over and whispered to him, “Brother, let’s go play in the mountains. I’ll take you to a good place.” Upon hearing this, Ming Bei’s eyes lit up. Despite Zhen Zhen being younger, every time they went up the mountain together in the past two years, they stumbled upon many good things. Ming Bei always felt like he had wasted over ten years of mountain trips.

The moment he heard his sister mention going to the mountains, Ming Bei immediately forgot about his failed exams and grade repetition. He grinned and pulled out a pancake, “Then I need to eat more; I’ll get hungry easily on the mountain.”

Li Laotai looked at him in worry, “This kid is so carefree. Two years ago, when Old Li’s grandson graduated from middle school and failed to get into the water decomposition factory, he couldn’t get in. I was hoping you could get into high school, then you’d definitely have no problem getting into the factory.”

Ming Bei nonchalantly responded, “Others with just middle school education can get into the factory. It must be because Li Xiaozi didn’t do well on the test. Besides, if I can’t get in, it’s no big deal. Worst case, I’ll go to the Hongwei Commune to haul wood, or to the Greater Xing’an Mountains. My brother’s classmate, Wang Huozi, went to the Greater Xing’an Mountains this year, and he says he makes a lot of money.”

Li Laotai immediately frowned, picking up her pipe to scold him, “Do you even know how tough the Greater Xing’an Mountains are? There’s no one there, just mountains and trees. It’s colder there than here, and for seven or eight months of the year, it’s winter! How can anyone live there?” After a pause, she continued to persuade him, “I know the pay is high in the Greater Xing’an Mountains, but it’s a tough life. Look at your uncle from next door; he came back after a few years, and he’s completely worn out. Stop being so wild.”

Ming Bei shrugged off the criticism, unaffected. Li Mu Wu silently took a sip of wine, “There’s still another year. If you can’t get into high school, you can try your luck when the wood decomposition factory opens up recruitment. If that doesn’t work, you can take over my job at the grain store and carry sacks. Anyway, Ming Xi is already in the army, and Ming Dong will graduate from college and find a job. Ming Nan will go to the water decomposition factory once he finishes high school.”

The wood decomposition factory, which the state invested over 40 million yuan to build in Beicha, is a large plant specializing in wood processing and comprehensive utilization. It occupies a large part of the town’s area, and within it, there are several branches, workshops, a factory school, a cinema, a hospital, a liquor factory, and a bathhouse—a small city built around the factory.

This excellent factory, along with its wages and various benefits such as cinema tickets and free baths, attracts anyone with at least a middle school education in Beicha. They all hope to be able to get in.

Li Laotai became more and more troubled, looking at Ming Bei eating and playing without a care in the world, and she couldn’t bear to scold him too much. After the meal, the siblings filled two pots with water and went up the mountain.

Ming Bei had always been wild in the mountains, but when it came to climbing, he couldn’t match Zhen Zhen. She darted agilely between the trees, occasionally climbing up to pick wild fruits, and leapt skillfully from one branch to another.

Ming Bei watched in envy. When he tried to climb the tree himself, he looked at the gap between the two trees, then at his position, and immediately chickened out. He reluctantly climbed down, shouting at Zhen Zhen, “Be careful not to fall from the tree! Why are you so bold?”

Zhen Zhen laughed, slid down from the tree, tugged at her coat, and grabbed Ming Bei’s hand as they ran through the forest. When Ming Bei used to go up the mountain, he always had to carry a stick to push away the weeds and thorns. But every time he went with Zhen Zhen, she always found a path that was easy to walk, and he never needed his hiking stick.

The two of them ran for about an hour, finally reaching a place where human presence was rare. Zhenzhen sat down on the ground, opened her water bottle, and drank. Mingbei looked at the trees, each thicker than himself, and felt a sense of awe. “We sure walked pretty deep today. Have you been to a place this far before? I think you’re getting braver and braver. Aren’t you afraid the tiger will eat you? Should I tell Grandma when we get back?”

The red pine forest was an untouched wilderness, deep in which there were tigers, black bears, and the like. Because of this, even the hunters of Beicha usually didn’t venture too deep, only hunting some roe deer or rabbits near the outskirts, and the biggest prey was wild boars. Generally, when children went up the mountain, their families would warn them not to go too deep for fear of encountering wild animals.

Zhenzhen wiped the water stains off her mouth with a handkerchief and screwed the cap back on her bottle. After seeing that Mingbei had rested enough, she got up, found a stick, and parted the grass. A beautiful hunting knife appeared before them.

This knife was something Zhenzhen had found in the forest a few days ago. The handle was made from antelope horn, and the scabbard was made of rhinoceros horn, inlaid with turquoise, coral, and glass decorations. This exquisitely crafted hunting knife looked like an antique and might have been used by a noble from the Qing Dynasty.

Since the Cultural Revolution was just around the corner, Zhenzhen certainly wouldn’t bring such an eye-catching item back, so she had hidden it deep in the mountains and woods. Today, she only brought it out because she noticed Mingbei was looking a bit down.

Mingbei’s eyes lit up when he saw the hunting knife. He rushed over, hugged it to his chest, and wiped off the grass and dirt wrapped around it with his sleeve. Carefully, he drew the knife from its scabbard, and the sharp blade glistened coldly in the light.

“Sis, this knife is so beautiful, can you give it to me?” Mingbei didn’t care much for the jewels on the knife; what he loved was its sharpness.

“No,” Zhenzhen, who had just picked a wild fruit and was enjoying it, replied. “If you dare to take it down the mountain, I’ll tell Grandma and have her beat you.” She shoved a wild fruit into Mingbei’s mouth, then watched as he lovingly caressed the hunting knife. She added, “But when you go into the mountain with me, you can use it. Just don’t tell anyone, or I’ll never lend it to you again.”

Though he couldn’t show it off, just being able to use it in the mountain was enough for Mingbei. He grinned widely. “Don’t worry, sis, I won’t say anything.” He waved the hunting knife, eager to test it. “Let me see if I can find something good to show you my skills,” he said, running deeper into the forest.

Zhenzhen, leisurely eating and playing behind him, suddenly changed her expression and called out, “Not good!” In an instant, her figure vanished from the spot.

At that moment, Mingbei was hiding under a tree, holding the hunting knife with a pale face. He had only wanted to catch a wild rabbit or something, but he had had the misfortune of running into a tiger.

A spotted tiger roared and arched its back, seemingly ready to pounce at any moment. Mingbei felt his life might end there, when suddenly, a familiar voice came from behind him, “Bro, why did you wet your pants?”

—

The author has something to say:

Yesterday, I was thinking of sharing two fun stories with everyone today, but my brain isn’t working too well, so I only remembered one.

Speaking of Li Mingzhong, he actually has a proper name. When I was a child, the dog that Kaka raised was given a name in the same way. When I was about three or four years old, my dad brought home a purebred mountain red dog that was only about a month old. My dad asked me to give it a name, but I was too young and didn’t know how to name it. After thinking for a while, I decided to call it “LX Mei.” The first two characters were exactly the same as my name, and my cousins were all frustrated because everyone in the family had one character in the middle name, but no one could argue with me, so they had no choice but to accept it. However, my cousin was a bit clever. He suggested giving the dog a nickname, “Meimei.” After I called it that for two months, it became a habit, and I stopped calling it by the full name. In the end, their goal was subtly achieved.