The first rays of morning sunlight filtering through the large glass windows told Chen Yang that he had overslept again.
Beside him on the small bed, the baby girl and Chen Hao were tangled up, already burrowed beneath their pillows.
The baby girl’s little blanket had long since been kicked off somewhere, while Chen Hao had wrapped himself in his blanket like a cocoon. Both were still fast asleep, snoring away.
Shen Xue had already gotten up, but the lingering scent of her presence remained in the covers. Chen Yang smoothed out the rumpled sheets and stretched, feeling refreshed.
He pinched the baby girl’s little cheek, pulled her blanket up to cover her tummy, then patted his son’s round head. The middle-aged man hummed a little tune as he got up to wash.
Perhaps the favorite thing for any father to do upon waking was to touch his children, and then, very likely, to wake them up, endure their crying, and be scolded by his wife who rushed in.
Fortunately, both little ones were sleeping soundly and weren’t disturbed by him.
A new day, collecting fish, collecting fish!
His father-in-law had gone to Liuhewan to collect fish, and his mother-in-law was helping Shen Xue collect from their own brigade, already filling several buckets.
After washing up, Chen Yang hurried over to help weigh the fish. Shen Xue handled the calculations and payments, while his mother-in-law went to cook. Soon, the two little ones would wake up and need breakfast.
“Today, Panti’s father came. I saw his expression wasn’t quite right. Father said that this girl, Panti, ever since we’ve been away, she’s been the earliest to arrive every day. It’s likely something happened at home.”
“Everyone knows about this girl’s situation. She’s such a bright spark for learning, I don’t know what her mother is thinking.”
Later, only a few people trickled in to deliver fish. Shen Xue nudged Chen Yang’s waist with her elbow. Last time Liu Shiyun came to the village to persuade Luo Yuzhen to let Shen Panti go back to school, Shen Xue had been present.
She had taken Shen Panti’s situation to heart. She was a mother herself, and Yan Yan, her precious daughter, was the apple of her eye.
Shen Xue couldn’t understand why Luo Yuzhen would act that way. Aren’t they all her children? What difference does it make if they are boys or girls?
Hearing Shen Xue speak, Chen Yang frowned. He felt an indescribable sympathy for the girl who had a tragic fate yet loved life so actively, only to be forced by her mother to endure the hardships brought by her younger brother.
In this era, perhaps there were countless girls like Shen Panti in rural areas across China.
Chen Yang still remembered when he first started collecting fish, he asked Shen Xue why she didn’t go to school. She had smiled and said that if the family couldn’t even afford to live, what was the point of studying.
He saw no trace of resentment towards fate’s unfairness on Shen Panti’s face; instead, there was a sense of nonchalance.
Back then, Chen Yang had decided that he would help this girl, change her fate from her past life, and help her get into university!
“Panti and Uncle Youshu have also caught a lot of fish these days. They’ve earned at least one to two hundred yuan. If that girl hides even a little, it should be enough for her to go to school.”
Chen Yang didn’t know what had happened, but he remembered teaching that girl. This money absolutely could not be given entirely to her biased mother.
“Let’s have Father deliver the fish later. You should go with the old village head to Panti’s house to check on things.”
“That girl breaks my heart. We have a daughter too, and seeing this mess makes me feel truly uneasy.”
Shen Xue, thinking of her own baby girl, felt great sympathy for Shen Panti’s plight. Moreover, Shen Panti was the only student Chen Yang had taught in Shenjiaba Village. She hoped Chen Yang would help that poor girl.
“Alright, when Father gets back, I’ll go find the old village head.”
Chen Yang also wanted to help Shen Panti. That girl was truly a good prospect for learning.
She should be going to university, not being dragged down by her mother and brother for her entire life, digging in the dirt.
Even years later, she would still be forced to support the family of her unpromising brother.
After finishing the fish collection, the two little ones also woke up. After a flurry of activity to wash and feed them, Shen Futang and Liu Maosheng returned with the fish they had transported.
Her father-in-law didn’t say much. Most people of the older generation were kind-hearted, but they were too cautious and didn’t dare to interfere in other people’s affairs.
But if Chen Yang wanted to help Shen Panti, Shen Futang wouldn’t stop him. Without a word, he led Liu Maosheng and the others to the fishery station to sell the fish.
Chen Yang also found the old village head, and together they went to Shen Panti’s house.
Luo Yuzhen was notoriously shrewish throughout Shenjiaba Village. She had given birth to eight daughters, and as a mother, she never looked them in the eye, yet she was lucky.
Except for the ones given away, the daughters at home were all sensible. Even the youngest, Niandi, knew to follow others to cut pig fodder and earn work points for the family.
This woman, however, had focused solely on having sons. For years, other than lying on the kang to nurture her pregnancy, she had never worked. It was no wonder the family’s finances were so poor.
That mud-brick yard was even more dilapidated than Chen Yang’s previous home. The windows of the rooms where the several girls lived were broken, and they had haphazardly pasted some paper to cover them.
“Teacher Chen, Old Village Head, why have you come?”
As Chen Yang entered the yard, Shen Panti was teaching her younger sisters to weave bamboo cages. Her father, Shen Youshu, was a basket weaver, which was why they had woven many bamboo baskets and placed many fish in the river.
Shen Panti and her sisters had learned some basket weaving from Shen Youshu since childhood, and the bamboo baskets they wove looked quite convincing.
Seeing Chen Yang and Shen Fuguo arrive at their home, the girl quickly hid her hands, which were full of nicks and cuts, behind her back.
She never feared hardship, but she didn’t want the person she respected most to see her unsightly hands.
“Did you give all the money to your mother?”
“It’s almost August. Students in the second year of high school aren’t even on summer break; everyone is rushing to study for the college entrance examination. Teacher Liu even came to your house, and you still don’t seem anxious.” Su Dan Novel Network
Seeing Shen Panti’s flustered appearance, Chen Yang knew something must have happened. At this time, high school only had two years. Shen Panti was supposed to be in her second year this year.
Everyone else was desperately studying at school, while she was at home weaving bamboo cages. He couldn’t bear to see her repeat the path of her previous life, so he criticized her out of his desire for her to succeed.
“Teacher Chen, I…”
Shen Panti clenched her fists behind her back, tears welling up in her eyes.
She was always strong in front of others; she wouldn’t shed tears in front of outsiders.
But facing Teacher Chen, who had always cared about her, she couldn’t help herself. Only in front of Chen Yang could she show her vulnerable side.
“I knew this girl wouldn’t dare to hide money, so it must be you, this man who lives off his wife, corrupting her.”
“Chen, have you no shame? My daughter is seventeen this year. I’m telling you, there are men in Qianmen Village who want to propose. If you dare to ruin my daughter’s reputation, be careful, I’ll smash your door in.”
“If Shen Xue can’t control her man’s pants, don’t blame me for stepping in.”
Just then, hearing the commotion in the yard, Luo Yuzhen, with her bulging belly, strode out, cursing loudly.
Hearing her curse Chen Yang, Shen Panti’s face instantly turned ashen.
She could tolerate all her mother’s harshness and exploitation, but she couldn’t stand her mother insulting Teacher Chen!
Because he was the only person in this world who genuinely wanted to help her, without expecting anything in return!