Chapter 4

As the saying goes: auspicious snow foretells a bountiful year. Liu Feiyang was no longer too concerned about how next year's crops would fare. He couldn't be said to have grand ambitions, but he was certainly not a petty person. From the day his parents passed away, he matured overnight. Though he didn't have many thoughts, he knew he had to protect the land under his feet and live a prosperous life, refusing to let others gossip about him behind his back.

Now, with the two children and a pair of pliers, his house and land were gone. The future was a problem. If he wanted to continue living in this world, he had to find a way out. According to his thinking, he at least had to live a decent life.

His body was once again covered by the snow.

The second child sat beside him, still sobbing, completely listless, with no energy left, curled up into a ball.

"Phew..." Liu Feiyang took a breath.

The northwest wind had dried the last bit of moisture on his lips, causing them to crack and bleed. His face was frozen red and purple.

"Crack..." He stood up.

The snow that had initially fallen on him had melted and frozen his clothes. Now, the thin layer of ice was being squeezed off.

"Big man, what good does crying do? Let's go home and pack our things. Even without a house, we can sleep under a bridge. Without land, we can still earn a living with our strength. Look at the sparrows; even in winter when there's no food, you don't see many of them starving to death in the snow." Liu Feiyang regained his composure, knowing that life must go on.

He reached out and grabbed the second child by the collar, pulling the small, frail body up and scolded him.

"Also, your parents gave you legs, not to kneel to others. They don't want you to be short of stature. Stand up straight! I don't believe we'll starve to death..."

"Brother Yang..." The second child slowly raised his head, tears still on his face, his eyes filled with helplessness.

"Hold it in, let's go home!" Liu Feiyang said, dragging him forward.

The snow in the sky was cleansing the dust in the air, and the snow on the ground was filling their footprints, their figures becoming increasingly blurred. The bloodstains from earlier were also covered...

When they returned home, the woman was already standing by the kang, directing a few strong men from the village to move things out.

Her life hadn't improved since she got married. Her house was still made of mud walls, and now she couldn't wait to get her hands on Liu Feiyang's brick house.

The few men were taken aback when they saw Liu Feiyang return, hesitating to continue their work.

The woman stood on the kang, hands on her hips. "Feiyang, don't blame me for being in a hurry. You know my relationship with Sanhu. He used to come to my house for meals. Now that he's gone, I feel uneasy sitting at home, as if Sanhu is still on the kang. It's the New Year, and I'm not heartless. If you want to stay, you can stay at my place for a few days, and after the New Year, you can figure things out."

"No need..." Liu Feiyang didn't dare to look at her.

He also wanted to cry. This place, after all, was the root of the old Liu family. It was a sin to let it be destroyed in his hands. He felt some self-reproach.

"Don't touch the box on the kang. I'll take it myself. You can throw away anything else that you don't like!" Liu Feiyang said, taking off his shoes and climbing onto the kang.

The kang was very hot, almost scalding his feet.

The woman walked over in two steps, chin up, and asked in a mysterious whisper, "Is there anything valuable in there?"

"Priceless treasure!" He lifted the small box in his hand and was about to leave.

"Tsk... If you said there were some gold trinkets, I'd believe you. But priceless treasure? You're just fooling around..." The woman crossed her arms, shaking her head. "I know what kind of person Old Liu was. He even tried to court me once, but I saw through him. He was just a quiet farmer, never destined for greatness..."

Liu Feiyang heard this and stood still, his teeth grinding. He didn't turn around.

"Aunt, respect the dead. No matter how insignificant my father was, you shouldn't speak ill of him. It's like if I said Sanhu was always stealing chickens and eggs, would you think it was nice to hear? No matter what they did in life, once they're dead, they shouldn't be spoken of. In the future, when I pass by Sanhu's grave, I might even bow, out of respect!"

He said this firmly and left without looking back.

"Hey, hey... What did he mean?" The woman, seeing him leave, jumped up on the kang and asked the others, "Is this brat asking for a beating? Does he think I'm easy to bully?"

Actually, the box contained just a few photos.

Photos of his parents' wedding, his full moon, his first birthday, and up to his sixteenth birthday, spanning nineteen years, from black and white to color...

And two black and white headshots.

Liu Feiyang carried the box, standing at the crossroads, hesitating, unsure of what to do next.

"Brother Yang, where are we going?" The second child followed behind, the blood on his face washed away by the snow.

Where to go?

It was like Shakespeare's question: to be or not to be, that is the question!

He hesitated for a long time, then took out the money from his pocket—six yuan and three jiao.

Without a response, he walked resolutely to the village entrance, where there was a small store. Inside, there was yellow paper. He used the six yuan and three jiao to buy two bundles of yellow paper, giving one to the second child.

"Take it, burn it for our parents. After that, I'll take you to the city to make a new start!"

"Okay..." The second child obediently took it and followed silently.

The two retraced their steps along the path where they had caught fish. The graves were on a hillside. According to rural customs, those who died violently could not be buried in the family cemetery. His parents' graves stood alone, with no tombstone, just a mound.

Liu Feiyang knelt before the graves, lit the yellow paper with a match, and then handed it to the second child. His parents' graves were further inside.

The smell of burning yellow paper was unique and sorrowful.

He watched the flames, throwing the yellow paper in one by one, his eyes gradually reddening.

"Father, Mother, your son is unfilial. I've lost the house and the land..." His lips trembled, and tears began to fall.

"From a young age, you taught me that we are farmers, but the grain we grow feeds hundreds of millions of people. We are no less than anyone else. We must stand tall and speak with confidence! I've lost the house and the land, but I don't regret it. You said that we are farmers, but there are some things we must do..."

"Caw, caw..." The mountains were empty, and only the crows called.

"Father, Mother... Your son is leaving. I have no face to stay here, but rest assured, I will burn paper for you on Qingming, the anniversary of your death, the 15th of July, and during the New Year. Thank you for bringing me into this world and letting me experience life..."

As he spoke, Liu Feiyang suddenly broke down, the long-suppressed words pouring out.

"How did our happy family end up with just me? Father, I promised to dye your hair when you got old. Mother, I told you I would help raise my children. How could you leave me like this..."

He pressed his forehead to the ground and wept bitterly.

"I'm scared, I'm scared to be alone in this world. I'm just a child... Father, Mother, I miss you! I miss the dumplings you made, and the willow branches you used to hit me... Father, Mother, I'm unhappy, I'm not doing well. I want to lie on the kang and wait for you to bring me food..."

He shouted until he was hoarse, then lifted his head and opened the box.

Inside, the photos appeared one by one. The first was a black and white wedding photo of his parents, both looking young and innocent, younger than he was now. He held the photo, trembling.

Watching his parents age in the photos, the young man and the young woman grew older, and a child appeared, with an innocent smile. The child grew, and the parents aged...

It wasn't so much that time aged them, but that the child aged them...

He cried as he looked at the photos, memories flooding his mind. His father's frown, his mother's smile, but now, they were all gone.

He began to cry and roll on the ground in the snow, releasing all the pain and委屈 he had accumulated over the years.

After about an hour, the yellow paper was almost gone. He wiped his tears with his sleeve and said tearfully, "Father, Mother, if there is a next life, I will still be your son. Please don't die so early, let me take care of you..."

He saw someone approaching in the distance, knowing it was the second child returning after burning the paper. He took a deep breath, stood up, and looked at the graves. "Father, Mother, I'm leaving. Not for anything else, but because I am a man who can shoulder responsibilities. I must live a life that I can be proud of, for myself!"

He turned and left, descending the hill...

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