Chapter Fifteen: A Horse

After returning home, Fa Cai saw Cai Yun looking very happy and asked her, “Weren’t you excited to see Da Zhi?”

“Of course I was. Everyone said he was dead, so I never expected he was still alive.”

“I heard he’s not married yet. Is he still waiting for you?”

“That’s right. He wants to take me away. He’ll come to talk to you tomorrow.”

“Do you want to go with him?”

“I want to hear your opinion first.”

“Ever since you married me, we haven’t had a single good day. If you want to leave with him, I won’t stop you.”

“Then I’ll go with him. This is Da Zhi’s compensation for you.” Cai Yun took out ten yuan that Da Zhi had given her and handed it to Fa Cai.

“What? You’re really going to leave with him? How can you just abandon the kids like that?” Fa Cai grew anxious.

“The children are descendants of the Chen family. I feel safe leaving them with you.”

“Descendants of the Chen family? Didn’t you tell Wang Hongbing that Gou Dan was his son? He even came to the house and acknowledged his son right in front of me. How can you still say they belong to the Chen family?”

“Fa Cai, you’re strong in body but simple in mind. This is clearly a trap set by Wang Hongbing, and you’re walking right into it.”

“I’m simple-minded all right, but not like Wang Hongbing—educated, clever, and cunning. That’s why when his wife just went back to her parents’ home, you rushed straight into his bed.”

“Stop talking nonsense. I told you, I went there for tutoring.”

“You two always exchange sly looks. Do you think I don’t see? As soon as his wife leaves, you can’t resist and run off to sleep with him.”

“Did you see me sleeping with him?”

“I saw Wang Hongbing’s shoulder was bitten and bleeding. I didn’t expect you two were that wild together.”

“How do you know it was me who bit him?” Cai Yun challenged Fa Cai.

“That night, you were inside for a long time and didn’t come out. The next day his shoulder was bitten. Who else could it have been besides you?”

“He already said it was a dog bite. Are you deliberately insulting me?”

“I only heard about a dog biting his leg, never about his shoulder.”

“So what if I bit him?”

“You finally admitted it. Why did you bite him?”

“Because we were playing and having fun. I couldn’t help myself and bit him. Happy now?”

“Didn’t expect you two really did it.”

“How can you not understand? That’s not what I meant.”

“Why are you so defensive? If you didn’t do it, you wouldn’t be afraid of people talking.”

“All right, I know you’re jealous. From now on, except for attending group study sessions, I won’t go to see Wang Hongbing alone anymore. Will that put your mind at ease?” Cai Yun said.

“Then will you still go with Da Zhi?”

“I told you, you’re simple-minded. I’m your wife and mother of four children. Could he do such a thing? Could I go with him? Use your brain.”

“You said yourself you’d go with him.”

“I was joking. You took it seriously.”

“Then what about the ten yuan?”

“Da Zhi gave it for the children.”

“Don’t give him any money. We don’t want his money,” Fa Cai said firmly.

“I didn’t want it at first, but when I saw he was angry, I had no choice but to take it.”

“Then let’s just say we borrowed it temporarily. We’ll pay him back someday.”

“Let’s use this money to buy a front door and install it. A house without a door doesn’t look like a home.”

“Winter’s coming. We should make a padded coat for Gou Dan.” Fa Cai immediately thought of Gou Dan.

“This is a padded coat worn by a mute. It’s too worn out. I wanted to patch it up for Gou Dan, but we don’t even have a patch at home. Now with this ten yuan, a big problem is solved.”

“Your first love really cares about you, giving you ten yuan all at once so generously.”

“He gave it for the children, not for me.”

“It’s all the same.”

“I asked you to give Gou Dan a proper name. Have you thought about it?” Cai Yun asked.

“I consulted Teacher Yang. Since he was born during the Awakening of Insects, he suggested Chen Yuchun.”

“That name sounds like a girl’s name. I don’t like it.”

“I feel the same. You should name him.”

“How about Yujun?”

“Does it have a meaning?”

“He seems to like military uniforms. When he grows up, let him join the army and become an officer like Da Zhi, bringing honor to the Chen family.”

“Good! A man’s ambition lies beyond the horizon; serving in the army defends the homeland!”

That night, Cai Yun couldn’t sleep. Tossing and turning, memories of her childhood and the roads she had traveled flashed through her mind.

In early 1938, after the Japanese army occupied Fengyang County, they implemented a scorched earth policy. Cai Yun’s parents and younger brother were killed by the invaders. Orphaned, she fled with villagers to Wangjiayu Village in Dian County, where the Chen family took her in.

Though life was tough with the Chen family, everyone was kind and treated Cai Yun well.

Li Dazhi from the village, upon learning she was an orphan, sympathized deeply. Although his family was better off than the Chens, they were not wealthy.

He often saved some food to give to Cai Yun, who never refused despite being hungry.

Cai Yun couldn’t swim, so whenever they cut pigweed, Dazhi went into the water to cut it while she gathered it on the bank. They worked together seamlessly.

Once, a wild dog bit Cai Yun’s leg, causing it to bleed. Dazhi pressed his mouth to her wound to suck out the blood, warning that the dog might be rabid, and if its saliva entered the body, there would be no cure.

Cai Yun felt happy to have an older brother like him watching over her.

Over time, their feelings deepened; they were inseparable.

When news spread of Cai Yun and Dazhi embracing and kissing, her foster parents realized the seriousness of the situation and changed their attitude, thinking she was bringing shame to the Chen family. They firmly opposed her relationship with Dazhi.

Her foster parents were ill and the family struggled. The marriage prospects of their two sons weighed heavily on them. They planned to have Cai Yun marry their second son, Fa Fu, to become the Chen family's daughter-in-law, though they never said it outright.

After the incident with Dazhi, her foster mother tried to persuade Cai Yun, saying Fa Fu was handsome and liked her, and that their ages were compatible. Thus, they decided to marry her off to Fa Fu.

Her foster father explicitly told her that she would consummate her marriage with Fa Fu next month.

Cai Yun, always obedient, refused this time. She said she was too young.

Her foster father replied that many girls her age had already married.

But Cai Yun remained adamant, saying she was already Dazhi’s woman. Saying this, she ran out crying.

Her foster mother chased after her, comforting her that marriage could wait a couple of years.

Not long after, Dazhi left to join the army.

Until August 1945, when Japan surrendered, Cai Yun thought Dazhi would come back to marry her, but no news ever arrived.

Two years later, most girls her age in the village had married and had children.

Her foster mother again brought up marriage to Fa Fu, but Cai Yun still refused. She felt she had already kissed Dazhi and was his woman; she could not betray him.

One summer night, her foster mother, seeing Cai Yun asleep, thought she was grown up enough.

She took away all Cai Yun’s clothes and coverings, then let Fa Fu in, pushing him onto the bed, saying, “Tonight, you’ll make a child with her.”

She then locked the door.

Fa Fu hurried to stop her from locking the door, but it was too late. With the door locked, he had no choice but to sit on the bed.

Fa Fu’s mother had repeatedly urged him to “turn uncooked rice into cooked rice,” but he always said he couldn’t. This time, it was clear his mother was helping him complete the task.

Fa Fu had liked Cai Yun since childhood, but had always regarded her as a sister.

When his parents decided to marry him to her, he was so excited he couldn’t sleep all night.

Yet he was unwilling to force himself on her because he knew Cai Yun still held Dazhi in her heart.

Looking at Cai Yun sleeping so beautifully, he immediately felt his breath quicken, blood boil, and his heart pound loudly against his chest. He lost control and suddenly lunged at her...

Outside the door, Fa Fu’s mother listened secretly. When a sudden noise and shouting came from inside, she excitedly clenched her fists and shook them in the air, shouting, “It’s done!” Her long-held anxiety was finally relieved.

But the good times didn’t last. What happened next left her utterly disappointed...

After the Huaihai Campaign ended, news came from the army comrades that Dazhi had died. But Cai Yun refused to believe it, insisting that he was still alive.

It wasn’t until early 1950 that Dazhi’s parents began urging Cai Yun to stop waiting. Only then did she start to waver.

One afternoon, her foster father came home and found Fa Cai and Cai Yun struggling inside the room. He pushed the door but couldn’t open it, immediately knowing what was happening inside—just what he hoped for.

He quickly bolted the back and front doors, then stood guard outside the room.

Because of poverty and looks, Fa Cai was twenty-six and still unmarried, with villagers mockingly calling him “Chen the Bachelor.”

Her foster father thought Fa Fu was younger, handsome, good-tempered, and skilled as a carpenter, so he believed Fa Fu would find a good match in the future. He wanted Cai Yun to marry Fa Cai but found it difficult to say so outright—Fa Cai’s actions suited him perfectly.

After some time, Cai Yun’s foster father smiled, knowing from experience that Fa Cai had succeeded.

Soon after, Cai Yun became pregnant, and the two officially became husband and wife.

Though poor, her foster parents still prepared two sets of clothes and some furniture for Cai Yun’s wedding. Marriage was a lifetime affair, and since Cai Yun was an orphan, they didn’t want to treat her unfairly.

But Cai Yun had her own idea. She said the front door was too rotten and that they should save the money to replace it first. Clothes and furniture could wait.

Her foster parents were pleased, thinking Cai Yun was not only beautiful, smart, and capable but also sensible and family-oriented—a good daughter-in-law.

What Cai Yun didn’t expect was that her foster parents had a horse carved on the new door.

They told her, “The Chen family has been poor for generations, always hoping for a better life. We’ve been striving for this, but life only grows harder. Now you’re the eldest daughter-in-law of the Chen family and you were born in the Year of the Horse, so we had a horse carved on the door, hoping for immediate success!”

Cai Yun gently touched the vivid carving and smiled at her foster parents. “I like it,” she said, making them very happy.

From then on, every time Cai Yun locked or opened the door, she would look at the horse, feeling the heavy burden and great pressure on her shoulders.