1983, Northeast China

Chapter 38 The two of them... are they having an affair?

Chen Xiulan had already cut some old strips of cloth.

There aren't many old clothes at home. Those that can be mended still need to be mended, and only those that can't be mended are torn into strips.

If this had happened a few days ago, Chen Xiulan would have been reluctant to let it go.

But Huang Er's leg wound had just scared the whole family, and she knew that if she waited until the wound was real and then searched the whole house for a clean cloth, most of the cloths she found would be dirty.

Chen Shi took the old cloth that he had picked out from next to the sewing basket and divided it into several piles according to its width.

"Sis, boil these and put them in an enamel mug. Use this to bandage small wounds in the future; don't just use dirty cloths."

Chen Xiulan nodded, "I'll remember."

Aunt Wang was sewing shoe soles when she heard this. She looked up and said, "I still have half an old undergarment at home. It can't be used to mend clothes, but the fabric is soft. I'll bring it over tomorrow."

"And some liquor," Chen Shi said. "Not much, just a small bottle will do. If Uncle Zhao doesn't have any, I'll trade some fish or hides with someone else."

Li Cheng sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), shaking his finger that had been pricked. "Wouldn't you say I'm the first hero in this emergency kit?"

"You're the first scourge."

Ya Ya covered her mouth and giggled.

Xiaoman stirred in the cradle, and Yaya quickly stopped laughing and gently pushed the rope.

Aunt Wang suddenly put down her work. "Oh, by the way, Old Ma's wife told me today that her dog, Dahuang, had a litter of puppies, the ones with white tail tips. Are you still thinking about getting them?"

Ya Ya's ears perked up immediately. "A puppy?"

She looked at Chen Shi, her eyes filled with longing, yet she carefully hid it, not daring to speak.

Chen Shi asked, "Do you want it?"

"Yes!" Ya Ya answered quickly, afraid that if she was even a second late, Chen Shi would change his mind.

"Raising a dog isn't just about picking up a toy to amuse you," Chen Shi said. "An extra mouth means an extra mouth to feed. Puppies also need to survive the winter, have a kennel, and be trained to behave."

Ya Ya nodded, "I can remember! I'll teach it!"

"Alright!" Chen Shi said, "We can't just take it for free. We'll trade it with some dried fish and bran."

Ya Ya nodded vigorously, "I can eat one less bite."

"Don't talk nonsense. Dogs eat dog food, you eat yours. We're not short of food for you."

Chen Shi patted Ya Ya's head. "Raising a dog isn't about saving you food; it's about teaching you how to take care of it. Feeding it, adding water, not picking it up randomly, and not letting it crawl into the stove ash—can you remember all of that?"

Ya Ya's little face turned serious. "I can remember."

Li Cheng joined in the fun, "What's that dog's name? White Tail? White Tip? Little White?"

Aunt Wang rolled her eyes at him, "We haven't brought them back yet, you'd better finish naming them first."

After finishing the rice in his bowl, Huang Er looked up and glanced into the house, as if he understood the word "puppy," or perhaps he was just wondering if there was any left in the bowl.

Ya Ya took it as if it understood and earnestly negotiated with it, "The puppy is here. If you don't want it to come in, then let it wait for you outside, okay?"

Yellow Ear shook its ears, its front leg wound twitched, and it retracted its claws.

Seeing this, Chen Shi became even more determined to add a puppy to the family, as the Chen family could not rely on just one old dog in the future.

Amidst the laughter and chatter in the room, Chen Shi's mind remained preoccupied with the matter at the east end.

All he could see in his mind was Gu Cheng's back as he rode his bike into the alley.

If it's a proper interrogation, it's against the rules to go at night without a brigade leader present. If it's a short interrogation, they should be out in half an hour.

Chen Shi put down the sequins he had cut and got up to put on his cotton-padded coat.

Yellow Ear, which was lying on the ground, also raised its head, its ears perked up alertly.

Chen Shi reached out and gently patted its head. "You stay here and guard the house. I'm going out for a bit."

Aunt Wang and Chen Xiulan were sleeping in the inner room. Aunt Wang was a light sleeper, and she sat up as soon as she heard the noise. "Where are you going now?"

"Go borrow a small bottle from Uncle Zhao to fill with liquor tomorrow morning," Chen Shi said. "And while you're at it, ask about gathering firewood tomorrow."

Hearing him speak, Li Cheng also got up and said, "I'll go with you."

"You go to sleep."

"That won't do." Li Cheng kicked off his shoes. "If you get hit over the head, my mother might hit me too tomorrow morning."

Aunt Wang didn't refute it, clearly thinking that what she said made sense.

The two went out the door and headed towards the main group.

The snow-covered ground was tinged with blue by the darkness of night, and occasionally a dog barked in the distance, only to be quickly silenced.

The lights in the brigade's quarters were still on.

When Zhao Defa saw Chen Shi come in, he wasn't surprised at all. He pushed the oil lamp further into the table and said, "I knew you guys couldn't sit still."

"Hmm," Chen Shi said, "Gu Cheng hasn't come out yet?"

Zhao Defa remained silent.

This means it hasn't come out yet.

Li Cheng blurted out, "It's been over an hour already, hasn't it? Why are you asking questions for so long?"

"Don't shout."

From the back window of the brigade's house, one can see the east end of the village at an angle.

Tian Guizhi's house was half-blocked by two mud-brick houses, and only a section of light could be seen from the other side of the courtyard gate.

Zhao Defa lifted a small crack in the window paper.

"Look from here," he said.

It was cold inside the brigade's quarters; the brazier had long since gone out, and the little warmth left in the room had almost completely dissipated.

Li Cheng was initially quite energetic, but later he rubbed his hands together, shivering from the cold, and muttered to himself, "Could he be staying there now?"

"If you keep talking nonsense, you'll freeze outside," Zhao Defa said.

Li Cheng immediately shut his mouth.

10:20.

The door opened.

Gu Cheng came out first.

He straightened his hat and put his gloves back on, then stood inside the courtyard gate without leaving immediately.

Tian Guizhi followed them out, completely unlike her dramatic, suicidal behavior during the day.

From a distance, I couldn't see her expression clearly, but I could see that she was standing very close to Gu Cheng, one hand on the door frame, her body leaning slightly forward, as if she was saying something.

Gu Cheng turned halfway to the side, raised his hand and pressed down, as if he was annoyed by someone bothering him, signaling her to be quiet and stop talking.

Tian Guizhi took another half step forward. She raised her hand and casually brushed his shoulder.

Gu Cheng shifted slightly to the side, not by much, not in the way one would avoid strangers, but with a hint of impatience.

A widow was brushing snow off the police officers who came to question her in the middle of the night.

If this were done during the day, and the old women in the village saw it, they'd be gossiping about it for half a month.

But Tian Guizhi was skilled at it, and Gu Cheng didn't dodge it.

He could tell that the two knew each other.

Tian Guizhi's demeanor was completely different from how she faced Zhao Defa and Aunt Wang during the day.

She didn't throw a tantrum or cry. She stood beside Gu Cheng, as if she knew he could protect her, but was also afraid he would find her troublesome. She exuded a clingy and timid aura.

The bicycle bell rang softly once.

Gu Cheng still took the narrow path behind the drying ground.

They were very familiar with the process.

Once the sound of the car wheels had faded into the distance, Zhao Defa slammed the rear window shut.

After hesitating for a while, Li Cheng finally managed to blurt out, "Those two... they're having an affair, aren't they?"

Zhao Defa did not scold him.

Chen Shi did not respond to that statement.

Whether or not they're having an affair isn't the most important thing right now.

Two hours is a lot you can do and a lot you can talk about.

"This matter cannot be discussed publicly now."