Daily Life in the 70s-Chapter 188: Taking a Car

Luo Dahua simply pulled her younger daughter aside, warning her not to embarrass them, because the four adults in the carriage had already turned their faces away, pretending to have seen nor heard nothing.

Usually, everyone was on good terms, doing laundry together in the yard, chatting about family affairs, and even on the way there, they had been talking and laughing, as close as anything. But now, with self-interest at stake, the attitude towards a companion with two children had turned to indifference.

Yang Peimin glanced at Luo Dahua, who was silent, and the Red Army wife, who seemed about to speak but stopped, and sighed to herself. They were embarrassed to say anything because they had children with them, but deep down they were hoping to get their kids on the carriage, to spare them the fatigue.

They had not planned to bring the children on such a long journey, but the children were too young to be left at home unwatched and they couldn’t set their minds at ease.

For adults, the journey of more than ten miles might not seem much, which could be covered in less than three hours at a brisk pace; but with two children, one three years old and the other two, and their mother carrying dozens of pounds, they had to carry both the children and the goods, not knowing if they would arrive by dark. She checked her watch; it was just past 2 PM.

Yang Peimin walked up to Brother Li, who was leading the ox, and asked if he could come back to give them a ride later.

Brother Li, who appeared to be in his thirties and looked like he was taking his family to town for errands, had an honest face. When Yang Peimin asked him politely and earnestly, he scratched the back of his head, seeming embarrassed, and said, "I—I’m called Li Dashu. This ox cart belongs to the collective. My child today suffered from severe diarrhea until he was completely drained of energy and spiritless. The whole family was terrified, and we called the village doctor, but he couldn’t do anything, so my wife and I hastily borrowed the ox cart to rush to the town’s health clinic. This is my wife; the doctor has already seen him, and the child’s diarrhea has stopped. The doctor said it was due to drinking unclean water and advised us to be more careful... We’re now in a hurry to return the ox cart to the collective. These two ladies are also from our village, they came to the Cooperative Society to shop, and we just gave them a lift on the way. This—this young lady, I—I don’t know if the collective would allow another loan."

The honest big brother spilled all the details about his situation.

Yang Peimin followed his gesture toward a woman, his wife, holding a child of just over two years old. The child was pale and frail, sucking on his fingers, lethargic and gazing blankly at the passing travelers with large eyes; he looked like he still hadn’t recovered his spirits, which tugged at her heartstrings.

She took out a package of date pastries from her rough cloth bag, wrapped in oil paper, with four pieces inside. She handed it over to the woman holding the child, saying, "Sister, fingers are dirty; don’t let the child eat them. Is he hungry? I have two pieces of pastry here, let him eat these first. A child shouldn’t go hungry."

The woman seemed startled and glanced at her once, then at her husband, before quickly responding, "Younger sister, no need, no need, these are precious, how could we just take something from you."

The child had already seen the white, smooth pastry emitting a sweet aroma in her hand, and his eyes couldn’t move away from it. Saliva flowed down along the fingers stretched into his mouth, and one hand was already reaching out to grab it.

Yang Peimin’s hand still held out the pastry in front of the woman, gently speaking, "Sister, please take it. You see, the child is hungry. I’m not giving it to him so that we can get a ride, nor am I asking Brother Li to come back again. If you really can’t come, it’s fine. Please, take the pastry. I have a few young nephews at home, around your son’s age. We dread it when children fall ill, we suffer seeing it ourselves. After being ill, he hasn’t eaten well, has he?"

The woman was still hesitant, still glancing at her husband’s expressions. However, her son had already snatched the pastry from Yang Peimin’s hand and stuffed it into his mouth, his mother too late to stop him. She looked up at Yang Peimin apologetically, "Younger sister, I’m sorry, look at the child, he..."

Yang Peimin thrust the remaining three pieces of pastry into her hand, "It’s okay, sister, please keep them. This is a date pastry, and it’s fine for him to eat. Let him take the rest home, it’s very appetizing."

Then, noticing the other children around her eyeing her eagerly, especially Mrs. Cui’s two grandsons who were already crying, making a scene, and tugging at their grandmother, and Luo Dahua’s daughter Xiao Niu who stopped crying and was timidly looking at her, Yang Peimin also took out a package, handing out a piece to each of the other children.

Li Dashu, rubbing his hands and watching his son devour the pastry, was embarrassed but thanked Yang Peimin, "Younger sister, thank you. You see, I’ll go back and talk to the collective..."

Yang Peimin hurriedly said, "It’s okay, it’s alright. If Brother Li is busy and can’t come back, could you please ask if someone else is willing to come? I can pay for their trouble, we can’t ask you to make the trip for nothing."

Li Dashu shook his head repeatedly, "We can’t take your money, younger sister."

"Brother Li, if you say so, we really would feel uncomfortable. Take a look and see if there is a family in more difficult circumstances who might need this little subsidy; let them come for us. We don’t have much to offer, but a small remuneration or even food that would suffice for two meals will do. Please don’t stand on ceremony with us."

Luo Dahua also stepped in to aid the conversation, "This younger sister of mine is really straightforward and can’t stand owing favors. She always finds a way to repay them so she can feel at ease. Just consider it helping us out."

The two of them knew just what to say to the honest Li Dashu, who felt it would be wrong to agree but couldn’t find the words to object, leaving him with no choice but to nod heavily, reluctantly agreeing.

The two village women from his cart were already recommending their own family members for the job, suggesting they could come for another trip.

With arrangements made, they urged Li Dashu to head back quickly.

After they left, the Red Army wife suggested, "Let’s walk along and wait."

Yang Peimin, feeling a bit embarrassed, said to the group, "Sorry, I didn’t consult with everyone before I spoke to Brother Li about the money. I will cover the cost when the time comes."

Luo Dahua quickly said, "We all have a share in the ride, so how can we let you pay for it alone? Isn’t that right?"

The Red Army wife nodded in agreement.

But another Military Wife, Kong Ya, disagreed, "It was the sister-in-law’s fault to begin with for making her own arrangements without consulting us. So it makes sense for her to bear the costs alone."