Chapter 24 Sister Yaya

  After my aunt finished her work in the main hall, she went into the house and started chatting with my parents. Talking about the recent situation at home, the two women seemed to have endless things to say. My uncle went to the outer room to light the kang and prepare to boil some hot water. "Chunxia, tell your sister-in-law this first. I'll boil some hot water for you. Yanzi, find some snacks for the children. Don't let them sit there idle."

  My uncle's square but skinny face was full of wrinkles from smiling. After filling the kang, he hurried into the house and stood at the door, leaning against the door frame and started chatting with Fang's mother.

  Seeing Fang Qing sitting on the kang and warming her hands, she had grown up so much. The uncle was filled with emotion. "I can't believe that in the blink of an eye, the child has grown up so much! When I came back that year, she was still a little kid, and she was scared to tears by the geese in the yard. Now she has grown into a big girl!"

  After saying that, the uncle looked at Fang Qing again. "Do you remember your eldest sister? She will be back from class soon. When she comes back, let her take you out for a walk."

  Fang Qing smiled and nodded. She grabbed a handful of peanuts from the plate and stood in the yard to get some fresh air.

  My aunt's yard is not big, but there are a lot of things. To the west stood a row of straw huts, neatly stacked with logs more than a meter tall. Nearby, some hay was piled, and a few hens clucked and hopped about, searching for a place to lay their eggs.

  Further ahead, near the door, was the pigpen, where two pigs, one large and one small, huddled together for a nap. Next to that was a small shed. Fang Qing knew without even looking that it was her uncle's toilet. Though Fang Qing felt a little unaccustomed to it, every detail echoed her memories of her past life, causing her to feel a sense of nostalgia.

  To the east was a small vegetable garden, now covered by the university, leaving it bare. Fang Qing trod on it a few times out of boredom and was about to take a step forward when a woman behind her suddenly shouted,

  "Don't go any further! That's the cellar!"

  Fang Qing retracted her foot and turned to see a thin girl in a red cotton-padded jacket standing at the door, carrying a common green canvas bag. Her face flushed from the cold, she tilted her head to examine him.

  "Who are you? How did you get into my vegetable garden? Get out now! We won't compensate you if you break anything!"

  Fang Qing was amused by the girl's accent. Looking at her cousin in front of her with a pretty face and bright eyes, she finally found a sense of familiarity.

  "Sister Yaya, I'm Qingqing. Don't you recognize me?"

  As soon as Fang Qing finished speaking, the girl was obviously stunned. She took a few steps forward to look at her carefully. The more she looked, the bigger her smile became. Suddenly, she hugged Fang Qing and stomped her feet with joy.

  "It turned out to be you, you naughty girl! I was wondering whose child was so unruly and stepped into other people's gardens. Hahaha, it turned out to be you, you bad boy, who is still as destructive as when you were a child!..."

  Fang Qing was infected by her cousin's smile. Seeing that her hands were cold, she hurriedly pulled her back into the house to warm up.

  The two sisters always have endless things to talk about when they are together. The aunt knew that several of them had not eaten lunch, so she quickly prepared a table for dinner and asked Daya to go next door to tell the second sister's family to come back for lunch at noon.

  My second uncle's house was next to my eldest uncle's, but they both worked at the nearby brickyard during the day, so there wasn't usually anyone home.

  But upon hearing that my younger sister's family had returned, my eldest aunt's dinner hadn't even finished yet when my second uncle and his family rushed back.

  Another wave of excitement erupted. Fang Qing watched his mother and uncles weeping over each other, feeling even more guilty. If it weren't for him, perhaps my mother would have been able to come back every year to see my uncles...

  My eldest and second uncles were delighted and drank a couple of cups with their meal, but my second uncle, who had work to do in the afternoon, refused to refill his glass after two.

  "Xia, where are you staying tonight? If you haven't decided, come to our compound. Your second son is out working, and your eldest is helping out in the county. We have a room available. If you don't mind, I'll be back to clean it up in a while."

  My eldest uncle waved his hand, "No, I'll be fine here. You two must be tired after a long day, so don't try to compete with us..."

  In the end, Fang Qing and his family stayed at my eldest uncle's compound. After dinner, my second uncle left a few dollars, saying he'd buy food for the children, and hurried out.

  The sky suddenly turned overcast in the afternoon, and soon a heavy snow began to fall.

  Daya was wrapped up like a ball by Faqing, and then she took Fang Qing to the yard to build a snowman.

  Fang Qing laughed so heartily, as if she hadn't in years. A group of children chased each other around the yard, slowly chasing each other into the village, where they had a snowball fight around the jujube tree...

  They didn't build a snowman, but each one rolled into a snowman on their own. Finally, they returned home with red noses, only to be chased around the yard by their aunt with a broom...

  That night, Fang Qing slept exceptionally soundly.

  The cotton quilt, the heated kang, the late-night conversations between his aunt and mother, the large tabby cat curled up at his feet, and the reflection of the heavy snow outside the window, everything seemed particularly warm.

  The next morning, Fang Qing was awakened by a chill on her neck. Opening her eyes, she saw her cousin slyly placing her hand under her blanket. "Get up, lazy cat! The sun's already burning your butt!"

  Fang Qing awoke with a start. Turning around, she saw she was the only one still fast asleep on the kang (the bed). Everyone else's luggage was neatly folded and piled inside.

  Embarrassed, she sat up, only to lie back down again, chilled by the cold.

  Her cousin watched her movements, her hand covering her mouth with a smile. "I knew you'd be cold. I just lit the kang, and I've warmed up your cotton pants and jacket. Hurry, put them on while they're warm!"

  Fang Qing was deeply moved, as if her cousin had always been so thoughtful and considerate. In her previous life, after something happened to her, her cousin volunteered to travel to the city overnight to care for her ailing mother. She often counseled and encouraged her to overcome her depression.

  But at that time, she was too lost to think clearly to listen. Then, her eldest brother's accident shattered her last bit of strength.

  Fang Qing watched his cousin busying around, his eyes dazed for a moment. He slowly sat up and put on his clothes, then let his cousin get him a basin of warm water and let him wipe his face.

  Such a good cousin must have a good home. In her previous life, she had heard that her cousin was married far away. The husband was an alcoholic and seemed to treat her very badly. Now that she was reborn, she would never let her cousin suffer any more in this life. She must see her cousin live a happy life.

  "Thank you, Sister Yaya."

  "Hey, thank you to me, it's too formal! Get up quickly, breakfast is ready, waiting for you..."

  Coarse grain porridge with pickles, and her aunt cooked a few eggs to share with Fang Qing and others, while she ate corn rations, smiling happily.

  Fang Qing couldn't bear to see her relatives treat her so harshly, so she made an excuse that the doctor forbade eating eggs, and forced the egg into her aunt's mouth.

  "This child, you are really...Okay, auntie will eat it for you. Which doctor said that you can't eat eggs anymore..."

  After dinner, her mother packed up and took Fang Qing and others out, ready to go up the mountain to visit the old man's grave. Ancestor worship in the village is a major clan event, and during those days, people are not allowed to move around. Therefore, they have to burn incense in advance to comfort their ancestors.

  Walking on the mountain road, Fang Qing looked into the distance and suddenly remembered his previous life.

  (End of this chapter)