Qin Shuli stood still, mischief flashing in his half-hidden eyes. Yi Zhonghai surely had no desire to look for someone to support in his old age right now.
"Master Yi, looking for me?"
Yi Zhonghai was wrapped tightly in padded cotton jacket and trousers. He walked past the moon gate and stopped against the wall to block the wind.
"Little Qin, I heard your dad was taken away by the devils. It's been almost ten days now. Could he be dead?"
"Yi Zhonghai, you're such a grown man, and you don't even know how to speak human words? Your dad just died! Your whole family is dead!
No, wait, your dad really is dead!"
Qin Shuli snapped right back. Even if his father really couldn't come back, even if he really was dead, you couldn't say that in front of an eight-year-old child. The son of a bitch definitely wasn't up to any good.
"You...!"
Yi Zhonghai forced down the rising anger in his chest, squeezing a kind smile onto his stiff face.
"Little Qin, you misunderstood. I figured your family doesn't have an able-bodied laborer, and I was worried you might go hungry, so I specially came up with a way for you. Why are you getting so worked up?"
Qin Shuli's eyes, the only part of him visible, sized up Yi Zhonghai.
He had been married to his wife for quite a few years and still didn't have children. The couple had tried countless folk remedies—surely they weren't starting to scheme already, were they?
Besides, this sort of matter should be discussed with his mother, not him.
"Alright then, let's hear it!"
Joy flickered in Yi Zhonghai's heart. A child is a child; having something to eat matters more than anything else.
"Your family doesn't have any income, but your house is big. Coincidentally, Uncle Jia's children in the middle courtyard are growing up, and a single room is too cramped for them.
I can act as a middleman for you two, and have the families do a swap. Uncle Jia will make up the difference in cash, so if your family spends sparingly, you can at least hold out for a few years.
In a few years, you'll be older too, and won't this household be able to stand on its own?"
When he finished, he even put on an expression that said he was truly looking out for their family.
Qin Shuli sneered inwardly. What a bloody pipe dream! The Qin family has a separate courtyard with three main rooms and two wing rooms. After Qin Dazhu fixed it up, it could sell for at least four hundred Silver Dollars right now.
If the Jia Family had that kind of money, wouldn't it be better to buy something directly in the middle courtyard? Why would the three of them still be crammed into a single room?
He had no idea what Yi Zhonghai was really plotting.
"Master Yi, our house is not up for trade. My mother, younger siblings, and I will take care of ourselves."
Yi Zhonghai knew there wouldn't be a result on the first try. Which family would agree to trade a courtyard for a single room?
But it didn't matter. When the Qin family couldn't survive anymore, they would naturally agree.
"Little Qin, think it over carefully. It's cold outside, you should head back first!"
Watching Yi Zhonghai leave, Qin Shuli banged on the courtyard gate. "Mom, I'm back, open up!"
The Qin family's front gate was right next to the main room, so if the knocking was loud enough, people inside could hear it.
Before long, the sound of creaking footsteps came from the courtyard.
"Second Brother, lift me up quickly, I want to open the door for Big Brother!"
Hearing Third Child's eager urging, Qin Shuli's reproach melted into tenderness.
"Big Brother, you can come in now!" Third Child's voice was full of cheers and leaps.
Pushing open the door, Qin Shuli saw the two of them standing not far away, looking at him with shining eyes.
"Shuping and Shufan are wonderful, both able to help Big Brother open the door!" Qin Shuli turned to slide the door bolt into place, turning back to speak as he scooped up a little child in each arm and walked toward the main room.
Qin Shufan wrapped her arms around her big brother's neck, pressed her little face close, and said in a soft, sweet voice,
"Big Brother, Second Brother is so strong! He was able to hold me up so I could reach the door bolt, and then we opened the door!"
Qin Shuli glanced sideways at Second Child, who had been silent the whole time. "Shuping is a good kid, taking such good care of Younger Sister, but you're just a little baby yourself. If anything comes up, tell Big Brother, you hear?"
"Mm!" Qin Shuping nodded heavily, yet blurted out, "Big Brother is a baby too!"
Qin Shuli smiled without a word, entered the main room, and set the children down. "You two go to Mom's room first, I'll be right there!"
After the twins left, Qin Shuli first carried the potatoes and Chinese cabbage to the cellar, piled the coal against the outside corner of the wall, and put the rice in the kitchen.
Then he started a fire in the kang. With family members either sick or very young, a cold could turn into a major disaster.
When everything was done, Qin Shuli washed the rice and set the porridge to boil. Rice in this era had a very rich fragrance, and the moment the water in the pot started to boil, the scent drifted outward.
A patter of footsteps sounded, and Third Child rushed into the kitchen dribbling saliva.
"Big Brother, are you cooking?"
Right behind him was Second Child, following closely with arms outstretched to prevent Third Child from tumbling.
Qin Shuli walked out from behind the stove and pulled the twins over to the spot where the fire was burning—it was warm there.
"Today Big Brother made white rice porridge for you two. Want to drink some?"
"Want to." Third Child drooled all over the floor. "I want to drink it with Dad, Mom, Big Brother, and Second Child!"
The twins didn't know where their father had gone; they only knew he hadn't come home for many days, but sensibly, they hadn't asked.
Wang Yueshu had dressed and walked to the kitchen door, watching the three children huddled close together, a sour ache in her heart.
Ever since the twins were born, her health had never been right. Most of the family's money went toward buying medicine for her, leaving them in extreme poverty.
Who would have thought that right after the Spring Festival, her husband would be dragged away by the devils, leaving his life or death unknown to this day?
"Shuli, come here for a moment!" Wang Yueshu knew the twins wouldn't understand, but her oldest son was only eight years old; he couldn't possibly earn money.
Yet the rice in the pot and the warmed-up kang both required money. She couldn't sleep without getting this cleared up.
Seeing that the porridge in the pot was almost done, Qin Shuli stood up, put out the fire under the pot, and led the twins into the bedroom.
"Mom, is your health better?"
Noticing Wang Yueshu's rosy complexion, Qin Shuli spoke up first.
Wang Yueshu pulled the children onto the kang and tapped Qin Shuli right between the eyebrows with a single extended finger. "You little slippery devil, don't try to change the subject."
Then she asked sternly, "I'm asking you, where did the money to buy grain and coal come from?"
Qin Shuli's expression stiffened, and he hesitated. "Mom, don't worry about where the money came from, anyway I didn't do anything bad!"
"That won't do, I have to know!" Wang Yueshu was no illiterate rural woman; back in the day, she had attended university.
You could tell just by looking at the names of the three siblings—they certainly weren't chosen by Qin Dazhu.
Realizing he couldn't bluff his way through, Qin Shuli had no choice but to tell the truth. Pulling Wang Yueshu away from the twins, he whispered, "Mom, I ran into three devils outside and robbed them!"
Wang Yueshu was startled. "Have you lost your mind, kid? You even dare to mess with the little Japanese devils? Did they see your face?"
This pivot was a bit too fast; Qin Shuli had thought he was about to get chewed out thoroughly.
"No, all three devils died, nobody found out!"
Wang Yueshu breathed a sigh of relief, stroked his head, and said, "Don't ever do that kind of thing again. Making money is my job.
Even if your dad really can't come back, I'll still raise the three of you kids!"
Qin Shuli didn't argue, deciding to wait until he got some more money before talking. "Mom, how do you plan to make money?"
"I just went to the middle courtyard to find Master Yi, hoping he could help me find a job at the Rolling Mill!"