T1983 Chapter 1

In the shallow waters of the rice field, a group of half-grown men with their trouser legs rolled up were collecting snails to improve their food. In the rural areas of 1983, where supplies were scarce, having meat to eat was a dream for most people. It meant that if you wanted it, you’d have to find it by yourself.

 

Shu Ran’s elbow was suddenly bumped by his neighbor, Tian Erwa, who pointed at the bicycle slowly passing by the road: “Look! Isn’t that your brother-in-law?”

 

“Ah?” Shu Ran looked up and took a look. Yes, it was indeed Xu Shen.

 

The young man was about 20 years old, tall and handsome, wearing a white short-sleeved shirt and riding a Phoenix 28 bicycle. Not to mention the ride that was a rarity back in those days, the real show-stopper was the piece of meat hanging from the handlebars. It made people’s mouths water.

 

“Wow, your brother-in-law is so rich! I envy you.” Tian Erwa swallowed.

 

“Your family has meat to eat tonight.”

 

“Yes, Dingzi, I envy you so much!”

 

Shu Ran’s name here was Zhou Ding, going by the nickname of Dingzi. As the object of the entire village’s envy, Shu Ran was expressionless. Whether it was the bicycle or the pork, nothing could move him because he was a modern man from the 21st century. He only wanted to die and open his eyes back in his dormitory, even if it meant waking up at the crack of dawn every day.

 

Even though he once boasted that he’d survive back in the ’80s and ’90s, it didn’t mean that he wanted to be thrown here. Even the starting line was out of reach! How can some poor soul from the remote countryside make it in this life?

 

Xu Shen rode his bike to the edge of the field. He coincidentally looked at the men searching in the fields and realized one of them was his future brother-in-law. After thinking about it, he stopped and waved him over.

 

Tian Erwa immediately pushed Shu Ran: “Hey, your brother-in-law called you. Go quickly!”

 

Shu Ran didn’t know why he called for him, so he walked over reluctantly.

 

“What’s the matter?”

 

He didn’t call him brother-in-law. The family only agreed on the marriage a few days ago. They didn’t get the certificate, nor had a drink together, so why show respect?

 

Xu Shen had sharp eyebrows with starry eyes and looked cold when he didn’t smile. He glanced at the bamboo basket Shu Ran was carrying.

 

“Have you searched enough? I’ll take you back.”

 

Shu Ran also looked at his bamboo basket. It was heavy and he still had to walk one or two kilometers back home, so he decided to take the offer.

 

“Then wait a minute, I’ll wash it.”

 

There was a stream of water on the edge of the field. Shu Ran stepped into the water to wash his feet and the snails. He was tall and thin, and the clothes on his body were at least two years old. When he bent down, he revealed half of his white, slender waist, a dazzling sight in the sun.

 

Xu Shen averted his eyes and tightened his grip on the handlebars.

 

“Okay!” Shu Ran drained the water from his basket and prepared to climb on the bicycle. Unfortunately, he was not as strong as his fellow villagers who grew up climbing mountains and swimming in rivers all year long. After failing to get on, he stretched up his arm and asked Xu Shen for help.

 

“You, give me a hand.”

 

Xu Shen tilted the bicycle and reached out to hold Shu Ran’s hand.

 

After coming up, Shu Ran whispered: “Thank you.”

 

Xu Shen: “Come up quickly, the snails will die if you keep them in the sun.”

 

Shu Ran got on the bicycle without saying another word, with one hand holding the bamboo basket and the other one around Xu Shen’s waist. He didn’t want to, but the road in the village was bumpy, and he was afraid of falling.

 

It was not a big deal to hug his future brother-in-law, but Shu Ran’s arms were stiff, and his whole body felt like wood. All of that was because the man in his arms happened to be Xu Shen, the legendary villain from the 90’s.

 

Shu Ran grew up listening to stories about this man. In the mouths of his elders, Xu Shen was nothing short of a generational hero. He was insidious and cunning, both good and evil. He has done many good and bad deeds and was eventually arrested at a young age, losing his life in prison.

 

If nothing unexpected happened, Xu Shen should have already started doing business outside. What he did was unknown, but it must have been the type of business that brought fast money, something a sincere and honest villager would never think about. The type of business that allowed him to go back to his home village and marry a wife.

 

Shu Ran never imagined that his prospective bride would turn out to be the sister of the body he had transmigrated into. However, as far as he knew, his sister didn’t want to marry Xu Shen.

 

Everyone inside and outside the village knew that Xu Shen began mixing up in society from a young age. He never held a serious job for a day, so he was not a good catch. Moreover, his family was not good. He was raised by educated youths who went to the countryside, someone who had no mother or father. Who would dare to follow him?

 

The family of this body had seven or eight children to feed, all of them living in extreme poverty. Seeing that Xu Shen was willing to pay 500 yuan as a bride price, the patriarch gritted his teeth and allowed Xu Shen to marry his eldest daughter, Zhou Hui. Back in that era, an ordinary family could barely afford to pay two or three hundred yuan for a bride. Xu Shen took out 500 in a breath, so he must also be aware of his poor qualifications.

 

Zhou Hui’s appearance and temperament were top-notch in the village. She was a well-read girl who could do accounting jobs, and many young men wanted to marry her. Unfortunately, her family was poor, and nobody was as generous as Xu Shen.

 

Xu Shen arrived at the Zhou house with Shu Ran. Their talkative neighbor saw them and started yelling: ” Zhou Guodong, your son-in-law is here!”

 

Inside her room, Zhou Hui heard them and hid in the vegetable garden behind the house. She didn’t like a hoodlum like Xu Shen and instead wanted to marry an upright soldier. It was a pity that her parents already accepted the bride price, so the marriage was a sure thing. She’ll have to do it even if she was unwilling. If her family went back on their word, she was afraid a gangster like Xu Shen could make their lives a living nightmare just by calling over a few of his underlings.

 

Outside the fence, Xu Shen stopped the bicycle, took off the piece of meat from the front, and gave it to Shu Ran: “I have something else to do, I only came to deliver this. You can take it inside.”

 

Shu Ran looked up at him in surprise: “You, don’t you want to come in and rest, have a glass of water?”

 

“It’s quite hot today,” Shu Ran thought. Although I don’t like Xu Shen, it’s not like I… Shu Ran decided: ” Wait, I’ll go in and pour you a cup of cold tea.”

 

At that point in the day, his parents were still in the fields, doing farm work. There was only a group of children running happily in the house. Shu Ran walked in, filled a cup from the tea jar they usually used, and brought it out to the young man who had traveled thousands of miles just to bring them meat.

 

The other party glanced at him, took the cup full of cold tea, drank it, and returned it to Shu Ran: “I’m leaving.”

 

Shu Ran scratched his head and was in a complicated mood: “Since you came all the way here, do you have anything you want to say to my sister?”

 

Or is it that everyone is reserved these days and only becomes enthusiastic towards each other after marriage? In fact, he really wanted to know what was Xu Shen’s attitude regarding his sister. Was it a case of “I like her very much”, “I won’t marry anyone else but her” or “I’m already this old, let’s just make do with it”?

 

“…” Xu Shen was silent for a moment: “Just tell her that I sincerely want to get married and I’ll be good to her in the future.”

 

Shu Ran thought he liked Zhou Hui, so he couldn’t say anything else: “Okay, I’ll tell her.”

 

“Uh-huh.” Xu Shen turned his bike and left, with his back looking very cool. It was hard to find such a spirited young man in a remote place like that.

 

But Shu Ran knew Xu Shen was not a good man. If it was up to him, he wanted to return the 500 yuan his family accepted. But it was impossible. He was only eighteen years old, not the head of his family, and earning that amount of money in a short time was a pipe dream.

 

Shu Ran returned to the house with a heavy heart. Zhou Hui came back with a handful of vegetables and, upon seeing the piece of meat, sat down on a chair and sulked.

 

“Huh, our parents are just confused by the benefits!” According to her, there was no difference between this and selling a woman for fame and riches.

 

Could Xu Shen be a good husband? She was good-looking and had read some books. Her biggest hobby was reading so there was no way she could get along with such an uneducated hoodlum.

 

“Sister.” Shu Ran must be on her side: “Then what do you think? Will you accept your fate or fight?”

 

Zhou Hui sighed to her brother: “How can I fight? You still don’t understand the virtues of our parents. They don’t think it’s bad for Xu Shen to fool around outside. Instead, they think he gives them face.” In the future, no one will dare to mess with their family.

 

That was it. Shu Ran had no choice but to accept the older generation’s worldview. He took the field snails and the piece of meat and went to deal with them, leaving Zhou Hui to think about her problems alone.

 

…………

 

In the evening, Zhou Guodong and his wife, Hu Jinhua, returned from the fields. Upon seeing the meat on the plate, they knew Xu Shen had come by: “Eldest girl, why didn’t Xu Shen stay for dinner?”

 

Zhou Hui avoided seeing Xu Shen, so she looked at Shu Ran.

 

“Dad, Brother Shen had something urgent to do. I didn’t dare keep him.” Shu Ran helped his sister out.

 

The eldest son, Zhou Qiang, who was enjoying the meat, said with his mouth full of grease: “This brother-in-law is so kind. He sent so many food stamps last time, and now even meat. Sister is so lucky! Is this all he gave? Is there anything else? I want to send some to Xuehua’s house later.”

 

Zhou Qiang’s darling was named Lin Xuehua. Zhou Guodong was so eager to marry Zhou Hui in order to save money for his eldest son’s marriage. The Lin family accepted a bride price of 200 yuan, which was more than enough. If they were frugal with Xu Shen’s money, they could also get a bride for their third son. The fourth and fifth children were both girls and the last two were still babies, with no teeth in their mouths. There was no hurry to prepare for their marriage.

 

Marrying off one Zhou Hui was such a profitable business that secured the future marriages of two sons. No wonder Zhou Guodong agreed without saying a word.

 

“…” Zhou Hui was holding her breath in her heart. Hearing what her eldest brother said made her put down the chopsticks with a bang.

 

Hu Jinhua was more sensitive as a mother. She immediately stared at her eldest son and said: “You can eat what’s on your plate. Xu Shen gave it to the eldest girl, why should she share it with the Lin family?”

 

Zhou Qiang spoke without using his brain. When his mother looked at him, he lowered his head like a quail.

 

Zhou Guodong also interfered: “My family is too poor to have one rice pot, and I have to slap my face to look fat. Lin Xuehua’s family wants to eat, but your siblings don’t?”

 

Shu Ran rolled his eyes secretly. He couldn’t expect anything from his elder brother. He was like this before even marrying his wife. After marriage, he’ll probably live the rest of his life afraid of her.

 

Although the parents admonished Zhou Qiang, Zhou Hui still couldn’t swallow it. Seeing them happily eating the meat, she turned around and went back to her room to cry.

 

The Zhou family looked at each other in silence for a long time. Zhou Guodong said resignedly: “The eldest girl is too spirited. It’s not easy to marry… A man like Xu Shen is a good thing. “

 

Hu Jinhua was worried. She wanted to put down the chopsticks and go check on her daughter, but she was still holding a baby in her hands, feeding him. Shu Ran ate quickly and said: “Mom, let me go check on my eldest sister. You continue to eat.”

 

Shu Ran sympathized with Zhou Hui, a woman living in that era. She clearly had her own thoughts, but there was nothing she could do.

 

“Sister.” In the humble room, the oil lamp emitted a faint yellow light. Shu Ran walked in and saw Zhou Hui holding a book, but she was not reading and instead had tears streaming down her face. Hearing her brother come in, Zhou Hui hastily closed the book, but Shu Ran already saw it. Inside it was Zhou Hui’s personal savings. Feeling frustrated and sad, this was the only thing that could give her peace of mind.

 

“Why are you here?” Zhou Hui wiped the tears from her face, not wanting to be seen like that by her brother.

 

“They went too far. I won’t take your money to marry a wife. I will plan and save for my marriage myself.”

 

Zhou Hui lowered her head and cried silently.

 

Shu Ran said: ” Xu Shen is not a good match.” The main reason was that he died early, barely in his 30’s. Zhou Hui was destined to become a widow after ten years of marriage.

 

“You…” Zhou Hui didn’t expect Zhou Qiang to act like that at the dinner table, even if it didn’t really matter to her. Being comforted by Shu Ran, she thought that this younger brother was the only one in the family with a bright mind, much better than their eldest brother.

 

Shu Ran gritted his teeth and said: “How about this? I’ll talk to Xu Shen. I’ll go borrow those 500 yuan from him and pay it back with interest in the future. You won’t get married.”

 

It wasn’t that Shu Ran simply wanted to be noisy. After all, Zhou Hui was the one who saved his life.