Chapter 1

The north wind howled, and the sky was filled with large, feather-like snowflakes. The Li family's elderly grandmother sat in the kitchen, adding firewood to the stove while puffing on her tobacco pipe, a hint of worry visible on her face. Suddenly, the cotton door curtain was lifted, and the Li family's third and fourth sons, Li Mingnan and Li Mingbei, burst in from outside, bringing with them a gust of cold wind and fluttering snowflakes.

Upon seeing their grandmother sitting by the stove, Li Mingbei began shouting before even removing his thick gloves: "Grandma, my brother and I caught two fish!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, the old woman jumped up from the stove, tapped the bottom of her shoe with the tobacco pipe to clear it, and grinned: "Really? Bring them over here; I haven't seen a fish in ages."

Li Mingnan handed the two carp, each weighing over two pounds, to their grandmother. He then grabbed the ladle, scooped some cool water from the water tank, and drank it in large gulps.

"Even last summer, we didn't catch fish this big," the old woman said, flipping the fish back and forth, unable to hide her smile. "Your mother is about to give birth, and your eldest brother is tired from his studies. I'll stew the fish to help them both recover."

Li Mingbei hummed in agreement and asked, "Do you think Mother will give us a little sister this time?"

Thinking of her many grandsons, the old woman sighed with a bit of frustration: "I hope it's a girl this time. Just looking at you bunch of little troublemakers who can eat your family into poverty gives me a headache."

Li Mingbei chuckled and huddled with Li Mingnan near the stove to warm up. Suddenly, the two boys sniffed the air, exchanged glances, and grabbed the stove poker to fish out two roasted potatoes, charred and fragrant. Ignoring the heat, they hurriedly picked up the potatoes, blew on them, peeled a little skin, and took big bites.

The old woman turned around to see her grandsons already gnawing on half of the roasted potatoes. Normally, she would scold them, but today, with two big fish brought home, she didn't feel stingy. Instead, she jokingly scolded, "What a sight you two are! Go to the west room to eat. Call Guihua out to stew the fish."

The boys responded, juggling the still-hot potatoes between their hands as they shouted, "Sister-in-law, Grandma wants you to come out and cook!"

From the west room emerged a young girl with a sleek black braid. Seventeen or eighteen years old, her face was lively and full of spirit. While washing her hands, she asked, "Grandma, what's for dinner?"

"Stewed fish! And cabbage and potatoes!" the grandmother said loudly, leaning on her cane.

Although the two boys called Wu Guihua "sister-in-law," she wasn't yet married to their eldest brother, Li Mingdong. Wu Guihua came from a landlord family and had a tough life due to her background. When she was seven or eight, her family, unable to afford food, tried to sell her, but no one was satisfied with the deal. By chance, the Li family's grandmother passed by and saw that Guihua was pretty and had a good temperament. Knowing the Lis were kind-hearted, both families agreed to exchange Guihua for half a sack of soybeans, raising her as a child bride.

Guihua had lived with the Li family for ten years. At first, she attended school for a few years and learned to read a little. By thirteen or fourteen, she stopped schooling to help with housework.

The grandmother sat on a small stool in the kitchen, watching with satisfaction as Guihua quickly cleaned the fish and removed the scales, pouring a bit of oil into the pot. Pleased, she stood up and said, "Make it fragrant. Dongzi hasn't had meat in ages."

Guihua answered cheerfully, flicked her braid behind her, and quickly began slicing potatoes. Suddenly, a sharp cry of pain came from the eastern room. The grandmother forgot her cane and rushed over in a hurry, asking anxiously, "Dongzi's mother, is it starting?"

"I've been in pain for a while; I think it's time," said Wang Sufen, enduring the pain while clutching the bedding and adjusting her breathing.

"Oh dear! How could you keep that to yourself?!" The grandmother looked and immediately shouted, "Mingbei, go find your third aunt to help!"

Li Mingbei grabbed his fur hat, wrapped his coat tightly around him, and ran out into the cold. Hearing the commotion, Guihua quickly boiled a kettle of water and brought all the prepared supplies into the room.

The northern mountain village was sparsely populated, and although the Li family lived in town, neighbors weren't close by. Luckily, Li Mingbei was swift on his feet and soon reached his third aunt's house.

Liu Xiulan, the grandmother's third daughter-in-law, was stirring corn porridge when she heard barking dogs. Standing up, she told her son, "Guangzi, see if it's your second uncle's boy."

Her son peeked out and confirmed, "Mom, it's brother Bei."

"It must be that your second aunt is giving birth." Liu Xiulan wiped her hands and called for her eldest son, "Mingrong, watch the pot. I'm going to your grandma's house."

By the time Liu Xiulan arrived, Wang Sufen was already close to giving birth. After washing her hands, she took over and reassured the grandmother, "Mother, you can rest; I'll handle this."

The grandmother sighed with relief, wiping sweat from her forehead. "I'm too old for this now. I delivered Mingbei myself back then."

As Wang Sufen pushed through the pain, a baby's cry suddenly rang out. Liu Xiulan laughed joyfully, "Mother, it's a girl!"

"Really? Let me see!" The grandmother eagerly looked at the clean baby girl wrapped in a small cotton blanket. Smiling widely, she said, "A girl at last! I thought I'd never hold a granddaughter after having four sons. I've been surrounded by grandsons all my life!"

In the kitchen, Guihua prepared dinner—stewed fish, cabbage and potatoes, corn porridge, and corn flatbread. One fish was stewed with tofu and noodles, while the other was made into a nourishing soup for Wang Sufen.

When Li Muwu, the father, returned from work and heard about his daughter, he couldn't hide his excitement. "Drink more soup," he said to his wife. "It'll help our girl get enough milk."

Wang Sufen smiled weakly, "At my age, I barely have milk left. We'll need to get some goat milk for her."

Li Muwu nodded. "Tomorrow, I'll see if I can register her and get some formula and sugar from the supply station."

That evening, the family gathered for dinner. Li Mingdong, the eldest son, ate modestly, leaving the best parts of the fish for his brothers and grandmother. Outside the eastern room, the baby's cries echoed softly, and Li Muwu smiled proudly: "My little girl is awake."