LAVW – Chapter 83 Family Relations

Even if it was just a calf, it was still a large animal weighing several hundred pounds.

And since cattle could be stubborn and temperamental, people in Shengli Village who weren’t familiar with handling them would never easily take charge of another household’s cow—unless the rope was firmly held in their hands, only then would it feel secure.

Under everyone’s gaze, Chen Niu had no choice but to step forward.

Shi Qian noticed his difficulty moving and also understood that Chen Niu’s suspicion had now been cleared. After all, he had taken two solid kicks from him for nothing. So Shi Qian obediently crossed over the field ridge on his own and walked up to Chen Niu.

“Well now, behaving quite well.”

One villager raised his kerosene lamp higher, the lamp puffing black smoke, and by its dim light tried to look over the sweet potato field.

The few who followed were also concerned, wanting to see how much of the crop had been damaged. They figured it was just a calf, and in such a short while, how much could it really eat?

But when they lifted the lamp for a look, the person nearly dropped it from his hands.

A patch of the sweet potato field—the tender leaves had all been stripped bare. Judging by the area, this was definitely not something that could have been eaten in just a moment.

“Are you sure it just got out?”

“It must have been grazing here half the night.”

“Or else it hadn’t eaten for three to five days and went crazy from hunger.”

The villagers, having spent so long helping to search for the calf, now suspected Chen Niu of being dishonest.

In truth, Chen Niu was even more shocked than they were. He remembered very clearly that he had fed the calf that evening. Just like when he had shut the courtyard gate—he was sure he had closed it properly!

Even if his memory had been fuzzy from being kicked, he couldn’t possibly have made such a mistake.

Ridiculous. Something was off.

Shi Qian, upon seeing the field, also felt like a huge glutton and quietly shifted to hide in a corner.

Chen Niu nearly bolted when Shi Qian brushed against him, only to realize that Qian Niuhua was just staying close as if frightened. That eased his nerves a bit.

Chen Niu explained, “Whose cow isn’t fed daily? You all know how I usually take care of Qian Niuhua. It’s not like you haven’t seen it.”

“Before going to bed, I clearly fed it. At night, it should’ve been ruminating. But instead, it was starving.”

As he spoke, he stretched out his long leg, pulling up his pant leg: “Tonight was really strange. Out of nowhere, it gave me two hard kicks. Look, the marks are still here. Normally, Qian Niuhua doesn’t have such a temper.”

They held the lamp closer and indeed saw the marks were quite heavy.

“Mo~ Mo~” Shi Qian mooed softly.

It was all a misunderstanding.

Shi Qian even raised a hoof, wanting to nudge Chen Niu gently, but Chen Niu quickly dodged aside.

Just in case, he tightened his hold on the calf’s neck.

Shi Qian stayed still, gazing with wide eyes toward the quarters where the educated youth lived.

It seemed there were more people now, including two who looked different from the usual villagers.

With their arrival, no one cared anymore how many sweet potato leaves the calf had eaten.

At worst, they’d just harvest that patch of sweet potatoes earlier.

Meanwhile, a few who were especially hungry and short on grain quietly took advantage of the chaos, sneaking the two mounds of sweet potatoes Shi Qian had dug out earlier and slipping them back home.

Most of the people moved toward the educated youths’ quarters. Zhang Peyue, leaning on her crutches, stayed behind with Chen Niu who was watching the calf.

Chen Niu glanced at the elderly woman who usually couldn’t be bothered with village affairs, curiosity flickering in his eyes.

Zhang Peyue swept her sharp phoenix eyes at him: “Watch.”

She didn’t ask why Chen Niu, with the calf in tow, wasn’t heading back.

After all, in Shengli Village, everyone knew that Chen Niu’s eyes often secretly strayed toward the educated youth Lin Nanyin.

Only he himself didn’t realize that everyone else already knew.

Naturally, Shi Qian also drifted closer toward where the educated youths were.

But since he wasn’t tall, he could only hear the voices without seeing anything.

So he nudged his head forward, squeezing his way to the front.

This suited Chen Niu perfectly, making it look as though he had deliberately driven the calf forward.

Some in the crowd cast him strange looks, but Chen Niu was completely unaware.

Following behind, Zhang Peyue felt uneasy. Her foolish grandson didn’t know how to avoid suspicion, yet here he was pushing forward.

Shi Qian paid attention to the few standing outside the house: one was the village secretary, Xu Youguang; another looked like a women’s federation cadre who had come to comfort Lin Nanyin. After whispering a word to Xu Youguang, she went inside.

The other was a young man—the captain of the local security team—with a red armband on his sleeve.

Xu Youguang greeted him politely: “Captain Zhao? You’re home today, didn’t go to the county?”

“Yes, stayed home drinking. Heard the commotion, so I came to check.”

The young man’s face was a bit flushed, carrying a trace of alcohol, but his clothes were neat and buttoned all the way up.

“You’re sober enough?” Xu Youguang asked. “If you’re clear-headed, then I’ll leave it to you.”

“I’m fine.” The sturdy Zhao Kang nodded briskly. “Two cups of wine are nothing.”

Then his expression grew serious. “No need to waste words. I already understand the general situation. I had two villagers check outside as well. Once you finish calming the young woman, I’ll go in to investigate and ask a few more questions.”

“I’ll head inside first.”

Xu Youguang nodded, waved over a young girl from the crowd, and went in with her.

Shi Qian noticed it was the village secretary’s youngest daughter, Xu Guozi—a round-faced girl, looking quite young.

Right now, with her face taut and worried, she looked rather like the women’s federation cadre who had gone in earlier.

Zhao Kang waited outside. When he turned, he saw the crowd had grown again and spotted Chen Niu with Qian Niuhua by his side.

Before he could speak, someone else hurried over.

“Captain Zhao! We found a jacket—looks like it belongs to a young woman, and there seems to be blood on it!”

At that, Zhao Kang immediately led the way to the spot where the jacket was found, a group of people trailing behind.

Back at the jacket, Shi Qian noticed someone carefully pointing out the bloodstains and felt completely exasperated.

That was his blood!

Qian Niuhua stepped forward, pressed a hoof lightly beside the jacket, and acted a little frightened: “Moo~ Moo—”

Chen Niu reacted quickly this time, eyes lighting up in shock and relief: “Qian Niuhua, you saw something? Do you recognize who it was?!”

Shi Qian turned, deliberately showing the spot where he had scraped himself when he fell.

“Moo.”

Look at the wound—the blood’s mine.

Because of his fur color, the scrapes on Shi Qian’s body weren’t obvious unless one looked closely.

And since everyone was using kerosene lamps with reddish light, they hadn’t noticed.

Only Zhao Kang had a flashlight. Under its beam, the not-so-shallow scrapes finally stood out.

“Heavens! That’s a nasty fall.”

“To get hurt like that—it must’ve either been from quite a height, or while running fast!”

“Could it be that it tripped over this jacket?”

For a moment, the crowd buzzed with speculation. Looking at the calf’s scrapes, they felt pain just imagining it. The wounds stretched across its body, red and swollen upon closer inspection.

Shi Qian didn’t dare expose his intelligence in front of so many people. He just stepped twice more on the coat, but not too hard, looking every bit like a timid little coward.

After all, the calf had been raised by hand. Chen Niu was both angry and distressed. “Why did you run out here in the middle of the night?”

“Chen Niu, didn’t you say morning glories are unlucky tonight? Maybe it saw something ahead of time?”

“I heard cattle can be spiritual, too.”

“What nonsense are you talking about? This is socialism now—we don’t believe in ghosts and goblins!” Zhao Kang scolded sharply. His face hardened as he raised his voice: “Chen Niu, what are you doing bringing a cow out in the middle of the night?”

Chen Niu hadn’t expected the question. He froze a moment, then answered, “The cow ran out. I came to look for it.”

Zhang Peyue added quickly, “And with the help of several neighbors, we found it so fast. Thank you, everyone, for your kindness.”

Everyone was pleased at the thanks.

A neighbor from the Chen family said politely, “Think nothing of it. Every household would do the same.”

“Exactly, when everyone lends a hand, anything can get done.”

“We’re all villagers here—family.”

Hearing this, Zhao Kang said slowly, “What a coincidence, though—happened to be right at this time.”

His words brought silence. Some remembered the calf had overeaten earlier, and the timing didn’t add up. Awkwardly, someone spoke up, bringing the matter to light.

After saying it, the person felt it sounded like they were accusing Chen Niu and quickly explained, “I didn’t mean anything by it, but what we saw with our own eyes was just like that.”

It was a fact Chen Niu had been kicked, but no one else had seen when the cow got out.

Chen Niu realized they were starting to suspect him.

He grew anxious. “How could it be me? How could I possibly—”

He wanted to say, how could he possibly treat Lin Nanyin that way.

But even if he said it, it sounded powerless, like nothing at all.

“It wasn’t me!” Chen Niu declared firmly.

Listening to Chen Niu’s useless protests, Shi Qian wasn’t worried.

He recalled that after modifying his body, grazing had only taken him a couple of bites—at most a minute or two.

Running from the Chen house to here was a bit of a distance. Even at full speed, it would take him three to five minutes.

But by the time he arrived, there was nothing left on the ground except a coat.

And since he had heard what must have been the very first cry for help, that meant the “culprit” had left within just a few minutes before his arrival.

Meanwhile, Chen Niu and the old lady had also started calling for help around the same time. It was impossible for Chen Niu to have gone there and back in that timeframe. That much could be reasoned out with just a little thought.

Thinking that he had almost caught the person, Shi Qian was frustrated that, because of Chen Niu’s presence, he had overlooked the danger near Lin Nanyin.

At the time, he thought Lin Nanyin was safe since Chen Niu was nearby and hadn’t planned to leave.

Who would have guessed the criminal thug was a fake all along?

If he hadn’t modified his body, he wouldn’t have wasted those few minutes. But without the modification, he would have just been a weak little calf…

And there was no way to explain everything clearly to Chen Niu within such a tight window of time.

There were many things Shi Qian couldn’t tell the locals. Just as there were rules that bound systems like 1958, there were also rules that bound him.

A neighbor spoke up for Chen Niu: “We searched all the way from the other side of the village—that’s no short distance. Didn’t that fellow just run off over here? Chen Niu would need legs like the wind to catch up.”

“I’m just making a reasonable suspicion. Isn’t it strange for something like this to happen in the middle of the night?”

Zhao Kang pressed further: “Then how did the cow get out in the first place?”

Zhang Peyue looked at the young man. “Captain Zhao, you’ve never raised cattle, have you? They’re clever. But your suspicion isn’t unreasonable. Let’s carefully check the timing.”

Zhao Kang nodded and asked the others, “Did anyone see someone acting suspicious?”

Most villagers lived close together, so any unusual sound in the night was easily noticed.

And since so many had been woken up and come out, maybe someone had run into something.

At that, people began thinking, and a few even spoke up.

One man spat, “I was half-asleep. My wife shoved me out to see what was happening. I’d only just woken properly.”

A few others admitted they’d already gone back inside. Zhao Kang took out a small notebook and wrote down the details people reported.

After a while, the village accountant arrived, hastily throwing on a coat.

He had only recently married, and hadn’t gone to sleep yet. He had both seen the light from people looking for the cow and heard Lin Nanyin’s first cries for help. But he’d taken a moment to get ready, so he came later.

With this, suspicion against Chen Niu was temporarily cleared.

But as more people gathered, Xu Youguang, thinking of the work that still awaited them in the morning, pulled Zhao Kang aside and began shooing people away:

“What are you staring at? Go home and sleep!”

“Tomorrow’s a full day of autumn harvest. Don’t blame me for scoring you harshly if you slack off. Don’t say I gave you too few work points!”

“Go on home, don’t make a fuss here.”

The crowd dispersed, yawning as they headed back.

With the excitement fading, the exhaustion set in.

Like Shi Qian, who only now realized how much his scrapes hurt—ouch.

Counting as a family of three, not one of them walked briskly. All of them shuffled slowly.

Thankfully, the moonlight was enough to see the road clearly.

Shi Qian walked in the middle, watching the shadows on either side stretch longer than his own.

He found it strange—why weren’t the grandmother and grandson saying anything?

Shouldn’t the old lady be asking about Chen Niu’s leg? Shouldn’t Chen Niu be thinking to help his grandmother walk?

Under the moonlight, the little calf’s shadow looked left and right.

So busy.

Inside the educated youth dormitory.

Zhao Kang was questioning Lin Nanyin about every detail—when she first realized someone else was in the room, what happened in between, and so on…

In order to find evidence, the questioning had to be thorough.

But for Lin Nanyin, who had just gone through such a traumatic shock, some things were too difficult to put into words.

Zhao Kang looked troubled and cast a pleading glance toward the Women’s Federation comrade.

The female comrade quickly spoke up again, gently encouraging Lin Nanyin, urging her to stay strong and determined to identify “that person.”

After several rounds of questioning and answering, Zhao Kang asked with difficulty, “So, you didn’t see his face, nor clearly see the man himself — just a rough idea of his build, only a tall, broad shadow?”

“Then, do you remember if you left any scratches on his face or body?”

But lately, with all the farm work, Lin Nanyin had already trimmed her nails short for convenience in the fields, leaving no place for dirt to get caught.

She recalled uncertainly, “His… his hand, maybe his hand or arm might have scratch marks.”

“He was choking me, so I grabbed at his hands — that was the only way I could breathe.”

As she spoke, Lin Nanyin instinctively raised her hands to protect her throat, as though reliving that terrifying moment when she couldn’t draw breath.

“When you can’t breathe, you don’t have much strength in your hands,” Zhao Kang said softly to comfort her before continuing.

“Do you remember roughly how tall that shadow was? We can work from that.”

“The lighting in the room doesn’t change. We can test it with someone here, estimate his height.”

“Where were you standing when you saw the shadow?”

“Are you sure? Was it here?”

“Yes,” Lin Nanyin confirmed. She still remembered — it was the light cord that had saved her.

She hadn’t thought of how to save herself at all at the time, but by sheer luck, she had stumbled upon something that let her fight for her life.

But now she could hardly recall exactly how tall that shadow had been.

She had been far too terrified then to react clearly. In fact, it was the intruder’s movements that had been frighteningly quick and nimble.

The moment the light came on, the man bolted. By the time Lin Nanyin snapped out of it, she hadn’t even caught a glimpse of his figure.

Just how tall had he been?

Still shaken with fear, Lin Nanyin chose a height that seemed about right.

Zhao Kang stood on tiptoe to imitate a tall figure, then lowered his feet and immediately jotted it down in his notebook: “Half a head taller than me — there aren’t many men of this height in the nearby villages. Shouldn’t be hard to find.”

Encouraged, Xu Youguang immediately said, “Scoundrels who want to harass women like this, with such evil intentions, cannot be let off. We can’t let them ruin our village’s morals.”

“They must be punished severely!” The Women’s Federation comrade looked at Lin Nanyin’s neck, still covered in red marks, her face full of both heartache and anger.

“I’ll do my best,” Zhao Kang said solemnly, nodding.

“I won’t rest tonight. There are a few suspects. I’ll go question them one by one. I’ll strike while the iron’s hot, and break through their defenses!”

“Thank you for your hard work, Comrade Zhao.”

“Yes, thank you, Comrade Zhao!”

Zhao Kang tucked the small notebook and pen into his pocket, then straightened his back and walked out of the house.

Next came the question of where Lin Nanyin would sleep tonight.

The Women’s Federation comrade suggested, “How about coming to my place? I’ll have my husband and child sleep elsewhere.”

“No, she can stay with my daughter Guozi,” Xu Youguang offered.

“It’s more convenient for two girls to share. And my house is nearby.”

“That works too.” The Women’s Federation comrade nodded.

“Guozi is a girl I trust — a tractor driver from our village. She makes us proud.”

And, most importantly, she had a cheerful personality.

So Lin Nanyin was escorted home by Xu Youguang and his daughter Xu Guozi.

Once inside, Xu Guozi fetched a new blanket for her. “Lin Nanyin, here — this new one is for you.”

Seeing that it was bright red and brand new, Lin Nanyin quickly shook her head. “No need. Sharing with you is fine.”

They were both petite; one blanket was enough.

Seeing that the girl — timid as a rabbit — was serious, Xu Guozi put the blanket back.

With a smile, she said, “Alright then, I won’t stand on ceremony. I don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable.”

Looking at the round-faced girl who smiled like a red apple, Lin Nanyin felt a little relief.

The other girl didn’t seem to be overthinking anything, and even welcomed her warmly. Since nothing was asked or mentioned, she felt more at ease.

The two of them lay down. Xu Guozi waited until Lin Nanyin was settled before turning off the light.

Lin Nanyin didn’t want to waste electricity, but her heart still held fear.

Especially whenever she glanced toward the window, she couldn’t help but imagine someone trying to climb inside.

Before long, cold sweat broke out on her back, and her breathing grew uneven.

Noticing she was still awake, Xu Guozi asked softly, “Are you still scared? Don’t be. My family’s big — there’s plenty of us here.”

“I’m sweating,” Lin Nanyin admitted.

“Then wipe yourself off. I’ll get you some water.” Xu Guozi immediately got up and bustled off to the kitchen.

She brought back some water. Lin Nanyin wiped herself down, then lay back beside her.

Seeing that Lin Nanyin still couldn’t sleep, and unsure how to comfort her, Xu Guozi simply reached out and hugged her. “Don’t be afraid. I’m here. I can drive a tractor — I’ll run him over if he dares come again.”

With the warmth of another person by her side, Lin Nanyin cried quietly for a while. Then, exhausted from the day’s farm work, she finally drifted off to sleep.

She realized that she truly had gained strength through her days of labor in Shengli Village — otherwise, she might not have had the energy to fight back.

Xu Guozi, however, stayed awake longer out of worry for her.

Just before she fell asleep, Xu Guozi thought: If I had known Lin Nanyin was this easy to get along with, I’d have approached her sooner.

Normally, Lin Nanyin didn’t like to talk or interact with others. She spent all her time reading, and Xu Guozi had always assumed she was some aloof city girl.

Elsewhere, a little earlier that evening…

The calf led two elderly and frail folks back home, then buried its head back into the cowshed to eat grass.

Chen Niu: “?”

“Grandma, look!” Chen Niu said. “I told you, Qian Niuhua is acting really strange today.”

They had just ruined a sweet potato field. Even with a big stomach, a calf shouldn’t be able to eat that much—let alone such a small one.

Startled, Chen Niu quickly rushed back into the cowshed and grabbed hold of Qian Niuhua that was lowering its head to eat hay.

Shi Qian: “Moo~ Moo~”

It’s not like I want to eat so much, but I’m still hungry.

Shi Qian felt like his four stomachs were bottomless pits. The sweet potato leaves had been digested quickly, and now his belly was clamoring for more food again.

Zhang Peiyue looked worried. “Feel Qian Niuhua’s belly.”

Chen Niu reached out and touched it, then raised his head in shock. “It’s… it’s empty again.”

Chen Niu frowned. “Could it be that Qian Niuhua didn’t eat the sweet potato leaves?”

Zhang Peiyue countered, “If it wasn’t the cow, then was it you?”

Raw sweet potato leaves grew right in the fields. Only animals would eat them, not people.

There was no way such a coincidence could happen—that in the same plot of land, there’d be two thieves stealing food.

“But—” Chen Niu looked at Qian Niuhua, who was once again lowering its head to nibble on grass, and fell into confusion. “It doesn’t make sense.”

“Just feed it first,” Zhang Peiyue said. “It’s eating because it’s hungry.”

If an animal was full, even if it didn’t sleep, it would amuse itself. That was their nature.

Of course, some animals lacked self-control, but their Qian Niuhua had never seemed that foolish.

So Shi Qian was able to lower his head and continue eating.

While carrying in more hay, Chen Niu muttered, “Why is Qian Niuhua being so weird today, insisting on going out? It’s really strange.”

Zhang Peiyue was silent for a moment before asking, “Did you also want to sneak out last night?”

Chen Niu: “?”

“Why would I go out in the middle of the night?”

“To the river.”

These days, with all the farm work, it was the hardest time of the season. Every household was making sure their laborers ate properly. Compared to the usual sweet potato porridge or wild vegetable porridge, meals were much more filling now.

Eating well was the only way to endure the grueling work.

Even though she was a grandmother, Zhang Peiyue, at about fifty years old, still worked in the fields. But her health wasn’t good, so the work was especially exhausting for her.

Lately, though, the family’s dinner table had fish at almost every meal—whether boiled into soup or stir-fried—and they weren’t small fish either.

Chen Niu had said he caught them by the river while on his way to the fields. But during the day, the riverbank was full of people. Where could he possibly be finding fish to bring home every single day?

When she mentioned “going to the river,” Shi Qian’s big eyes noticed a faint blush appear on Chen Niu’s wheat-colored face.

If he weren’t standing so close, he wouldn’t have seen it at all—certainly not from where Zhang Peiyue stood, outside the cowshed.

Chen Niu muttered, “I didn’t go to the river. What nonsense are you talking about?”

Secretly observing, Shi Qian thought, Huh, seems like their family relations aren’t so bad after all.

The grandson’s blushing face was half-hidden in the dark cowshed, while outside, the grandmother’s gray hair shimmered under the night like flowing silver, cold and luminous.

Zhang Peiyue continued, “If you really had gone out to the river at midnight today, there’d be no way to explain it. You’d be waiting to get sent to labor reform.”

Chen Niu’s face changed.

Because—he had thought about sneaking out.

He had just planned to wait until it was really late, after Grandma was deeply asleep, so she wouldn’t find out.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have noticed the strange noise in the cowshed in the middle of the night.

“Our cow… really…”

Chen Niu asked half a question in shock, his gaze falling on the little calf munching grass, his eyes full of wonder.

Shi Qian: “Moo~ Moo~”

You’re welcome for me kicking you, by the way.

Answering too quickly, Shi Qian successfully drew Zhang Peiyue’s attention again.

The old lady looked at the calf who had just mooed and was now back to eating grass. She felt puzzled, too. But when she thought of their old ox’s loyalty, and recalled some of the rumors she’d heard, she could somewhat accept it in her heart.

She only warned her grandson: “Don’t tell anyone.”

At this time, stories were fine as stories, but you couldn’t risk spreading anything that sounded superstitious.

But Shi Qian was amazed. This grandma’s acceptance level is way too high!

She could actually accept that a Qian Niuhua had sensed danger ahead of time and even saved its owner.

Still, just earning “credit” like that wasn’t enough for Shi Qian.

He had no intention of truly living as a beast of burden—it was far too bitter.

So Shi Qian dropped the hay from his mouth, stretched his head out of the cowshed, and mooed toward the vegetable field: “Moo~ Moo~”

Chen Niu understood. “Qian Niuhua, you want to eat vegetables?”

Shi Qian nodded.

Chen Niu opened the cowshed door, planning to let the life-saving cow out to wreak havoc on the vegetable patch.

Zhang Peiyue ignored her tall, broad grandson. Her gaze stayed fixed on Qian Niuhua, then shifted briefly to the wall dividing them from the neighbor’s yard.

Turning back, she lowered her voice and asked, “You… can understand what we’re saying?”

It was normal for a cow to moo, but for one to nod—that was unnerving.