Anxious and restless, Bai Xingguo sat in the house, fidgeting as if he were sitting on pins and needles.
"When did you get back?" he asked, looking at the man sitting beside him with trepidation.
Gao Zhijun guessed what he was thinking. It seemed his wife’s brother wasn’t too fond of him. "I’ve been back for a month."
This could be blamed on Bai Jiu. Originally, only Bai Xinghua knew that Gao Zhijun might still be alive, but under the threat of his sister, he hadn’t breathed a single word about it. No wonder Bai Xingguo was so startled.
The anxious Bai Xingguo set down the cup in his hand. A closer look would reveal that his hands were trembling. "Do you know about what happened?" he asked, full of fear.
Gao Zhijun nodded. "Yes, I know. Don’t worry, Xingguo, Bai Jiu and I are doing very well." If he accidentally scared Xingguo to death, all his recent efforts would have been in vain. "It wasn’t her fault."
His meaning was crystal clear. Not only did he not blame her, but he also stood firmly on her side.
Truth be told, Bai Xingguo was genuinely comforted by this. "That’s good. You didn’t see the scene back then. If she hadn’t managed to climb out herself, I’m afraid you would never have seen her again when you returned."
Sometimes, just thinking about it sent a chill down his spine. His little sister was lucky to be alive.
Gao Zhijun knew it without even having to see it. To be locked in a cage and thrown into the river in the dead of winter—she was indeed incredibly lucky. If it had been anyone else, they would likely be nothing but a rotting corpse by now.
"It’s my fault for wronging her," Gao Zhijun said. He blamed himself for the incident. If he had been more resolute back then and kept her by his side no matter how hard things were, none of this would have happened. He had thought that spending money would buy peace, but not only did it fail to do so, it had also brought her great harm. Fortunately, his current status was high enough to give her a better life and take her away from this place of sorrow.
Faced with such a sincere apology, Bai Xingguo was momentarily at a loss for words. Thankfully, the two children were present. Otherwise, the two grown men sitting face to face wouldn’t have known how long their awkwardness would last.
"Uncle Xingguo, when are we going back to see Grandpa and Grandma? And how long until Aunt Gaoli’s baby comes out?" Xiuxiu asked. She always remembered her loving grandparents and her incredibly nice aunt. Of course, she also remembered the baby that Aunt Gaoli’s mother had mentioned. She was going to be a big sister from now on.
Being asked about the child brought a bright smile to Bai Xingguo’s face. "It might be around the New Year. When the time comes, Xiuxiu will be a big sister." He knew how much she wanted to be one.
"I’ll be a big brother!" Zhengyang chimed in, not wanting to be left behind.
"That’s right, you’ll be a big brother," Gao Zhijun said with a smile, lifting Zhengyang onto his lap.
With the two children’s playful banter, the atmosphere between the two men significantly lightened.
"Mother sent me here this time to pick Bai Jiu up so she can stay at our place for a few days. She’s been back since early spring and working non-stop, so Mother was worried she might be exhausted," Bai Xingguo explained, not hiding the purpose of his visit.
"We really should go visit your parents. It’s my fault. I’ve been so busy these days that I completely forgot about it," Gao Zhijun admitted. He genuinely had forgotten.
He also didn’t know that his wife was now so close to her maiden family. He still remembered what his father-in-law had instructed him when they got married—telling him not to let her go back unless absolutely necessary. Even after she gave birth, they had only come over for a brief glance before leaving, afraid of bringing her any trouble.
"You just got back and have a lot on your plate. We understand," Bai Xingguo said. What else could he say?
When Bai Jiu returned, she saw her older brother helping Gao Zhijun cook.
"Oh, you know how to cook?" Over the past few days, Bai Jiu had grown much more natural around Gao Zhijun, shedding her previous tension and defensiveness. So much so that she even started teasing her brother.
"I just learned recently. You know Gaoli is pregnant, and her morning sickness has been terrible. If it weren’t for the dried wild silverberries you gave her last time, the baby in her belly would have suffered along with her." He had brought her this good news the last time he visited.
Because of the vomiting, Bai Jiu had consulted Aunt Peng and Aunt Li, learning about this specific fruit from them. She had then traded with the villagers to get some.
"That’s wonderful! As long as it helps. I’ll go trade for some more later." Hearing that the things she prepared were useful, Bai Jiu was absolutely delighted.
Having grown up in the village, Gao Zhijun knew about wild silverberries. They were a sweet and sour wild fruit beloved by the village children.
Right now, they were exactly in season on the mountain. "Don’t bother trading for them," he interjected. "I’ll go up the mountain this afternoon and pick some fresh ones for Xingguo to take back." He had nothing to do at home anyway, and she was reluctant to let him help in the fields.
Bai Jiu didn’t think much of it. If he wanted to go pick them, he could go; they weren’t anything particularly precious anyway.
"Alright, you can take Xingguo with you. It’ll be a good chance for the two kids to get some fresh air. I also heard you promised Gouwa yesterday that you’d take him up the mountain too." Bai Jiu had heard Qian Xiaojie mention it in passing while working today.
At the mention of this, Gao Zhijun’s mouth twitched violently. He couldn’t fathom how such a young child had already learned to compare himself with others. If he didn’t earn some face for Zhengyang, he feared this son of his would refuse to acknowledge him as his father. He had heard Zhengyang endlessly mention how Brother Zhou took Gouwa into the mountains, especially since they always came back with a haul.
"Yeah, Zhengyang said he wants to catch a rabbit." Gao Zhijun didn’t think rabbit meat was anything special; he found wild pheasant to be much tastier. He could stew it into a soup to nourish her, whereas rabbits didn’t have much meat on them.
Bai Jiu wasn’t stupid; she understood exactly what was going on. That brat of hers was actually showing off his dad.
"Good luck with that," she said. She didn’t have the skills for it, and the previous incident had left her terrified of taking the children up the mountain. If she could avoid it, she absolutely would not go up there again.
"Don’t worry, I won’t embarrass him."
Seeing how harmoniously his sister and her husband were getting along, the heavy stone in Bai Xingguo’s heart finally dropped.
"By the way, Bai Jiu, I came with a mission this time. Mother wants you to come home and stay for a few days," Bai Xingguo chimed in the moment the couple paused their conversation.
"I don’t have the time. I can’t get away, and the production captain won’t let me go." Although the rice seedlings had all taken root, there was still plenty of work to do every single day. Let alone staying for a few days—the captain would probably scowl if she asked for even a single day off.
"It’s fine, I’ll go ask for the time off. I haven’t accompanied you back to your family’s home since I returned. Leave the captain to me," Gao Zhijun suddenly offered.
Bai Jiu turned to look at him as she washed her hands, as if trying to gauge whether he actually had the capability to make the captain yield.
"Just relax. I at least have that much face," he said with utmost confidence.
If she could get some rest, she naturally had no objections. She lacked neither money nor food, so it would be wonderful to just laze around.
"Alright then, you go ask for the leave." Either way, she wasn’t going to go ask for a scolding herself.
She had no idea what was wrong with the captain lately; he always gave her a foul look whenever he saw her. The previous incident had nothing to do with her, and she couldn’t understand why he was pinning the blame on her. What did other people secretly selling collective grain have to do with her? And as for that hooligan, it wasn’t as if she had told him to act out. She really didn’t know what was going through the captain’s head to make him target her like this.