Returning to the 1960s: Starting with Digging for Fo-ti

A pungent smell of dry tobacco drifted from the dirt-house (changed from Yellow Earth house). Two elderly men, Du Daqiang and Liu Chang’an, sat silently on the edge of the kang bed.

Several other members of the Du family were squeezed into the middle of the room, their brows furrowed in silence.

Ever since Du Jianguo agreed to take on the job of feeding the livestock for Sun Liu’an, Liu Chang’an had realized that Zhang Desheng’s goal had been achieved.

Feeling guilty toward the Du family, Liu Chang’an had taken the initiative to visit Du Daqiang’s home to figure out if they could find another way to help Du Jianguo make ends meet.

Du Jianguo, who was kneeling on the ground, quietly rubbed his sore knees and looked at his father with a bitter expression. “Dad, I’ve been kneeling for so long. Can I get up and rest for a bit?”

“Keep kneeling!” Du Daqiang glared at him fiercely, his voice full of anger. “You caused such a huge mess, and you still have the face to sit down?”

Du Daqiang’s chest felt tight with frustration. He nearly fainted from anger at this unfilial son. How had he raised such a thing?

Not only was he a gambler who wasted everything, but he was also not very bright. If the job of feeding livestock was truly worthwhile, the sharp-eyed villagers would have snatched it up long ago. It never would have fallen to him.

Yet this useless kid had happily taken the job.

Given Du Jianguo’s usual nature, he was surely thinking the job was easy and would allow him to slack off. Although they had split the household earlier and Du Daqiang had made harsh threats to never care for him again, when it came to this critical moment, seeing his son jump into a fire pit, his heart couldn’t help but ache. He still wanted to pull him out.

“Old Du, don’t be too upset,” Liu Chang’an said, seeing Du Daqiang so worried that his tobacco pipe was about to break. “A way will always be found when you reach the mountain. We won’t starve to death.”

Du Daqiang took a deep puff of his tobacco pipe and shook his head with a sigh. “I know my own son, Village Chief. If Du Jianguo had even a shred of ambition, I wouldn’t need to worry so much. Letting him starve is what he deserves, but my granddaughter and daughter-in-law still have to survive this winter.”

Liu Chang’an sighed as well, his tone heavy. “If we really have no other choice, we will help more. When the team distributes grain, I will try to allocate a bit more to their family.”

Du Daqiang nodded, his voice hoarse. “That’s all we can do. Later, I will also spare some of my own winter grain for this boy.”

As soon as these words fell, the eldest daughter-in-law immediately became unhappy. She jumped up, “Dad! We don’t have enough food for our own family. Second Brother has already split off and lives on his own. Why do you still need to manage him?”

She clutched her stomach and raised her voice. “I am three months pregnant with our second child and need nutrition! If you give grain to Second Brother, the eldest will not agree first!”

“Don’t try to threaten me with the baby in your belly!” Du Daqiang frowned, his tone hardening. “It’s only been three months. What’s the big deal? We can make up for it when spring comes!”

“Why not? I don’t want my child to be lacking when born!” The eldest daughter-in-law persisted with Du Daqiang. Just as the two were about to start arguing, Du Jianguo suddenly coughed, breaking the stalemate.

“Dad, don’t rush.”

He looked up at Liu Chang’an and added, “Uncle Liu, you don’t need to break the rules to give me extra grain. If you really want to help me, I actually have a method.”

Liu Chang’an’s eyes narrowed as he stared suspiciously at him. “What do you want to do?”

Du Jianguo cleared his throat and steadied his voice. “I remember you have a rifle at home, don’t you? Lend it to me, and I guarantee our family will survive this winter.”

“Don’t even think about it!” Liu Chang’an slapped the table and jumped up, his face turning iron blue. “You dare to set your sights on my gun?”

Liu Chang’an did indeed hide a rifle at home. It was an heirloom passed down from his ancestors and was a family treasure that he cherished daily. Hearing Du Jianguo ask for it, Liu Chang’an naturally refused to budge.

Seeing Liu Chang’an’s strong reaction, Du Jianguo knew there was no chance of getting the gun. He had to take a step back. “If you won’t give me the gun, then lend me your dog. That should be okay, right?”

Liu Chang’an’s expression softened slightly. He frowned and asked, “What do you want with a dog?”

“I want to go up the mountain to hunt and catch some wild game to get through the winter.” As soon as Du Jianguo explained his plan, the two old men in the room were left speechless with shock.

“Just you? You want to go up the mountain to hunt?” Several older women in the room couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

Even Du Jianguo’s own mother, Su Xiaomei, sighed, her tone full of helplessness. “Son, I know you caught a poisonous snake a few days ago, but that was mostly luck. You can’t count on bumping into snakes every day. You should be practical and think of a real method.”

Du Jianguo sighed internally. Of course, no one believed he could hunt. But it wasn’t their fault. In their eyes, he had always been a novice who knew nothing. It didn’t matter. Given time, they would see his true skills.

He turned to Liu Chang’an, his tone carrying a hint of provocation. “Uncle Liu, will you lend it or not? Don’t tell me you are too heartbroken to part with your dog. You say you want to help me through this crisis, but you can’t even spare a dog when it matters.”

“How are you talking to your Uncle Liu? Do you need another beating?” Du Daqiang immediately glared and cursed.

Liu Chang’an held Du Daqiang back and looked deeply at Du Jianguo. “Jianguo, think clearly first. Hunting is not easy. Our Xiao’an Village is near the mountains, but these few years of famine have left the nearby areas stripped of wild animals. If you want to fill your stomach by hunting, it is unrealistic.”

He paused, softening his tone. “I can lend you the dog, but I am afraid you will regret it later.”

Du Jianguo raised his voice. “Just lend me the dog. If I starve to death this winter, I will still remember your kindness.”

Liu Chang’an sighed heavily. “Since you have put it that way, come with me in a moment to lead the dog away.”

“Great! Thank you, Uncle Liu!” A smile instantly spread across Du Jianguo’s face. He didn’t dare stay longer, fearing Du Daqiang might get angry and hit him again. He followed Liu Chang’an toward his house.

When the hunting dog appeared in the courtyard of the Liu family, Du Jianguo’s eyes lit up.

It was a German Shepherd with sharp eyes. Although thin, its build showed great strength and looked like a great hunting material.

He couldn’t help but reach out to touch the dog’s neck, feeling joy in his heart. With this helper, the hunting harvest would surely be better.

After thanking Liu Chang’an several more times, Du Jianguo led the dog away. On the way, he tried giving the dog a few simple commands. To his surprise, although the dog had not received specific training, it was very intuitive and understood his meaning after just a few tries.

Du Jianguo was pleasantly surprised. The dog was too smart! Now that he had the dog, he was just short of a suitable bow and arrow. Since he couldn’t get the shotgun from Liu Chang’an, he needed a weapon for hunting and self-defense, so a bow was naturally the best choice.

Coincidentally, there were many trees growing in the ridges next to Xiao’an Village. They were both tough and elastic, making them perfect for making a bow.

Du Jianguo dove into the nearby woods and quickly found a stick slightly thinner than his arm. He slowly bent it and then took thick threads from the fishing net he brought from home, tying them securely to both ends of the stick. He stripped off the bark and carved shallow notches on both sides of the bow to fix the thread ends. A simple bow took shape.

Worried the strength was not enough, he added a rope wrapped around the bow arm. He pulled and tested it several times until the bow had some killing power. Du Jianguo aimed at a distant tree trunk and estimated in his heart: the effective range was probably about twenty-five meters.

He rubbed the rough surface of the bow. “Now, I am just waiting for a chance to test it in combat.”