Chapter Thirty-Three: Moving In

Han Li had just learned about the firewood situation from Aunt Zhang and hadn’t even had a chance to thank her when Aunt Wang, standing nearby, spoke up.

“Comrade Han, when you’re gathering firewood, stick to the outskirts. Don’t venture too deep into the mountains.”

“If you get lost, it’s not the end of the world. Once people notice, they’ll organize a search party, and you’ll just suffer a bit.”

“But if you run into wild animals, that’s really dangerous. If it’s wolves or wild boars, as long as you can climb a tree quickly, you might survive.”

“But if you come across bears, leopards, or wild martens, you’re doomed. Those beasts can all climb trees.”

“And they know how to hide. Without experience, you could walk right up to their mouths and not see them.”

“Besides, there are traps in the mountains, set by people. Most traps aren’t too dangerous.”

“But if you step on a trap meant for wild boars, it can snap your leg in half.”

Han Li shivered at Aunt Wang’s words. Stepping into one of those traps would mean instant disability—and then you’d get sent back to the city.

Aunt Zhang added, “Comrade Han, all of this is true, but on the outskirts you’ll only find a few rabbit traps at most.”

“No one dares to set wild boar traps on the outskirts. If you’re caught in one, no one would help you even if you were beaten to death.”

Aunt Wang continued, “After the autumn harvest, you should gather some corn stalks as well, or you won’t have anything to start a fire with.”

After thanking the two aunts, Han Li met up with Hao Hongmei and her companions when work ended that morning.

Both groups had received similar news, and they agreed to go up the mountain together to check things out after their afternoon shift.

When afternoon came, Han Li strapped a basket to his back, took two ropes, and set off with Hao Hongmei and her friends.

At the foot of the mountain, he was surprised to find the place bustling. Teenagers from the village were searching for wild fruits and gathering firewood, and many housewives were heading in the same direction.

Everyone’s purpose was similar: digging for wild vegetables, collecting firewood—anything to make life easier.

Han Li suggested, “There are plenty of people on the outskirts. Let’s split up—the more we stick together, the less firewood we’ll find.”

“You two should stay together and not go deeper. If anything happens, just shout for me.”

Gathering firewood sounded easy, but doing it was anything but pleasant. You had to constantly bend down to pick up branches and sticks from the ground, gather them into a pile, then tie them up with a fresh branch or vine before hauling them home.

Some carried them directly, some dragged them, some tied them up and carried them on their backs, others used a shoulder pole.

Everyone had their own method to get their firewood home.

After a while, Hao Hongmin and Yang Xiuying gave up on gathering firewood. Instead, they used their fruit candies to barter with the children for firewood.

Helping to gather a small bundle earned a piece of hard candy; a large bundle got them a piece of hard candy plus a tangerine sweet.

For these teenagers, bending down to pick up sticks was nothing—they didn’t feel any back pain. Amid their playful antics, they traded firewood for sweets, so the kids abandoned their search for wild fruits and gathered firewood at lightning speed.

Hao Hongmei and her friends hired the children to collect firewood and went off to learn how to identify wild vegetables from the village housewives.

After splitting up, Han Li gathered all kinds of firewood, big and small, and occasionally broke up large branches and logs to store them in his decomposition space.

When he got back to his yard, he gradually stored the firewood in his shed.

Unknowingly, Han Li’s decomposition space was piled high with firewood—his source of happiness for the winter.

As dusk settled, Hao Hongmei and her friends called him down from the mountain.

Han Li tied up two large bundles of branches, took one in each hand, and started home.

Hao Hongmin and her friends each carried a small bundle on their backs and dragged another, and they were quite pleased with themselves.

“If only we’d known two pieces of candy could get these kids to help, we wouldn’t have traded with the villagers,” they laughed.

“We spent several dimes on firewood these past few days—think about it, we lost so much, several times over!”

Han Li smiled but didn’t comment. By the time they returned to the yard, it was already quite dark.

Han Li lit a fire in his stove to dry out his fire walls and heated brick bed sooner.

Watching the orange flames flicker to life, he felt a deep sense of calm.

This was his home, the beginning of more than two thousand days of life ahead. Bit by bit, he needed to adjust his mindset.

The next day, the carpenter came to help them install the street gate as well as the doors and windows for the house.

They also delivered the custom bed mat, bed table, bed cabinet, cupboards, and a large storage chest.

When the street gate was finally installed, the house was officially complete, and Han Li decided it was time to move in.

He went to the youth commune and moved all his belongings and food into his new home.

Hao Hongmei and Yang Xiuying had grown restless over the past few days, so they were even more eager than Han Li.

Han Li lit the kerosene lamp, its tiny flame illuminating the whole room.

He was making up the bed, wiping it clean, laying out the bed mat, placing the bed cabinet to the side, and stacking the bedding on top.

Normally, the heated brick bed served as the living room sofa, the bed table as the tea table for guests, and when it was cold, visitors were invited to sit on the bed first.

At night, he’d pull the bed table aside, lay out the bedding, and sleep comfortably.

Only then did he realize how much was still missing. The area around the bed needed to be lined with newspaper, otherwise the bedding would quickly get dirty.

He needed a countertop next to the stove in the outer room; otherwise, he’d have to cut vegetables on the bed.

A countertop was easy enough—he’d find some stones outside and break down some wood to build one himself.

But for lining the walls with newspaper, he’d have to go to the county town and fetch some from the recycling station.

He also needed a large water jar, an essential item, which he’d have to buy in the county.

If he wanted to pickle vegetables for the winter, he’d need a couple of pickle jars or small water jars as well.

His new home was nice but took up too much space—the yard was especially long, at least an acre.

He had to hurry and cultivate these plots; soon it would be time to plant cabbage and radishes for the winter.

In front of the main house, Han Li planned to plant two fruit trees, so he could enjoy the shade in summer and eat the fruit.

Speaking of winter vegetables, the cellar needed to be dug in advance. With all these tasks, the house was full of endless chores.

Just as Han Li was pondering what else he needed to buy in the county, the street gate was knocked on.

Han Li stepped out of the house and had to walk a distance to the gate. Oh—the gate faced south, occupying the southeast corner.

Hao Hongmin’s gate also faced south, but theirs was on the southwest corner.

Han Li opened the door—it was Hao Hongmin and Yang Xiuying. At this hour, not cooking—what could they be here for?

“Han Li, we still need a lot of things at home. We’re planning to take a day off tomorrow and go to the county. Do you want to come with us?”