Rebirth in the 50s: The Couple with the Hidden Space

Zhang Guoqing and his son walked into the twilight and returned home to find Zhou Jiao spreading out clothes and supplies bought from Huaihai Old on the kang, choosing one.

Zhang Guoqing circled around the back door, dropped his things, and carried his son to the main room, slowing his steps nervously. He wondered what kind of "welcome" his wife had prepared for him?

"Cough, cough..." Zhang Guoqing stood at the door of the west room, coughing a few times to remind the foolish woman standing there with her hands on her hips, shaking her head in deep thought!

Zhou Jiao turned her head, surprised but quickly restrained her smile, and pointed fiercely at the father and son duo: "Alright, you abandoned your wife and mother. Speak! How should you be punished?" 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Little Ping’an spread his arms toward her, pouting in a cutesy voice, "Mom, I missed you so much. There were all sorts of things inside; you almost didn’t get to see your son."

Hearing this, Zhou Jiao couldn’t bear to blame them; she quickly picked up the child and lifted his clothes, asking anxiously, "Was it dangerous? Are you hurt? Where do you feel uncomfortable? Tell Mom quickly."

Seeing Zhou Jiao’s usually calm face turn pale with fear, Ping’an realized the joke went too far and stood obediently for her to examine, winking at his dad when she wasn’t looking.

Zhang Guoqing glared at his son, and quickly took off his shirt, saying, "Wife, look at me, we’re both fine, not a hair is missing."

Zhou Jiao, still worried, had him turn around again. Seeing that even his back wasn’t injured, she went to unpack their luggage and discovered that his clothes had been torn by branches, letting out a sigh of relief.

Ping’an, adept at reading expressions, saw her face soften and quickly complained before she could get angry, hugging her legs, "Mom, I’m starving and thirsty. For days it’s been nothing but dry food and meat, and the meat had a terrible smell; I almost threw up."

Since finding out that the father and son were unharmed, Zhou Jiao certainly knew what this little imp was up to.

It was nothing more than seeking comfort. Picking up the child, she glanced at Zhang Guoqing with amusement, "There’s water in the yard; go wash up. You stink!"

Zhang Guoqing moved closer with a cheeky smile, "This is manly! Did you miss me?"

Ping’an giggled while looking between the two, his eyes twinkling.

Zhou Jiao gave him a sidelong glance, carried the child outside, and once he’d finished fetching water, handed their son over for a wash. She rushed into the west room to tidy up their change of clothes and served up food and juice.

After scraping his bowl clean and drinking his cup of juice, Zhang Guoqing patted his belly and sighed, "Finally back to the land of the living!"

Zhou Jiao, feeding the child while watching him, asked, "Was it dangerous this time?"

"With Mr. Wang and others around, it wasn’t dangerous, but having a child with me made my nerves tight."

Ping’an swallowed his food and retorted, "Dad, I wasn’t a burden. I reminded you several times. If it weren’t for that fool, I could have brought back a sable!"

"Finish eating before you speak." Zhou Jiao looked at Zhang Guoqing with suspicion, "What happened? Again, it’s that kid from the Wang Family?"

Zhang Guoqing shook his head, "He meant well, but he missed the shot! Son, finish your food and rest up."

"Alright, I’ll eat a little and take a nap. Dad, don’t forget there’s still stuff in the backyard to sort out."

Zhou Jiao frowned, "Caught plenty again? Last night, I spent all night plucking pheasants and rabbits; I almost couldn’t finish."

Zhang Guoqing watched his wife’s frown of worry, laughing freely, "This trip we didn’t catch much wild game; it’s not safe to carry it around with the smell of blood. The Wang Family surely doesn’t lack meat; we went mainly for the good stuff!"

Zhou Jiao nodded in understanding. The Wang Family had already collected ginseng and deer antler; what was left was probably the goat’s blood they kept remembering.

Zhang Guoqing briefly recounted the three-day two-night journey, mentioning the beasts encountered. As for the tigers and leopards seen, he skipped over them if he could.

An hour later he was done, having drunk three large bowls of tea during the time.

Zhou Jiao said with a smirk, "Looks like the mountains aren’t so scary; someday we should visit them."

That statement startled the smug Zhang Guoqing, so much that he choked on his own saliva. This silly girl wouldn’t really sneak into the mountains, would she? Once inside, she might never come back out.

Humph, that’s what you get for glossing over things... Smart!

Seeing her expression, Zhang Guoqing felt nervous and shifted his gaze to the pile of clothes on the kang, quickly deciding to change the subject and discuss tomorrow’s plans once he had the items tonight.

"Is this meant to be gifts?"

Zhou Jiao nodded and told him about Aunt Tiezhu’s family giving them a kilo of pork belly today.

Zhang Guoqing raised an eyebrow, "Giving out expensive gifts?"

How could Zhou Jiao not understand the basics of social interactions?

She shook her head, "No. I just had time, so I planned to prepare a present for the second sister’s son’s first birthday so we won’t have to send anything back later."

Zhang Guoqing lazily sorted through things, "For the second sister, just reciprocate the gift she gave Ping’an for his first birthday. Find a random pillowcase for the third as a wedding gift; I’ll deliver it when it’s dark. His family is cousins with Huizi’s family; just don’t give a bigger gift than what was given for Huizi’s marriage."

Ping’an, listening to the entire conversation, yawned sleepily, "Dad, don’t send anything. Tomorrow morning, go catch some fish in the river to send over."

Zhang Guoqing’s eyes lit up, and he exchanged a smile with Zhou Jiao. What a great idea!

Once one is given, others marrying in the village who don’t receive a gift might feel slighted—after all, they’re the Old Zhang’s family, why show favoritism?

Fish are fine since they’re team resources and he’s not selling them. For village weddings, everyone can get a bite, so who wouldn’t be pleased?

Zhang Guoqing picked up the child, gently patting him, "Sure. We’ll do as you say. The house is very safe; close your eyes and rest. Later, we’ll go together."

Hearing Zhang Guoqing hum a lullaby, Zhou Jiao, who hadn’t rested well in the past few days, also felt a bit sleepy. She put things into space and fell asleep.

Zhang Guoqing looked at the big and small figures on the kang and couldn’t help but laugh softly.

Early the next morning, Zhang Guoqing took the fishing net, walked upstream along the river, and finally reached a pond in a grassy area, catching a mix of small and medium-sized river fish.

He left the small fish to fry into dried fish with flour and took the twenty-odd palm-sized fish to Zhang Tiezhu’s house. It’s not that he minded the trouble, but there weren’t any big fish nearby. During the worst drought years ago, you could see the riverbed, so how long has it been since then? Where would the big fish come from!

Approaching noon, Mr. Zhang and Mother Zhang also returned to the village for the wedding banquet. Learning that the youngest son’s family would return to school in the next couple of days, they busied themselves again.

After spending the day in the county with his parents, preparing their rations and supplies, it was time to leave again. Faced with another separation, Mr. Zhang and his wife were reluctant but fortunately managed to hold back their tears.

As Mother Zhang said, if they missed their son and grandson, they could go to Beijing. Besides comforting words, what else could they do?

The county couldn’t hold him; as parents, they could only hope everything went smoothly and safely for their child outside.