Chapter 2, The Battle of Destiny
The village chief, accompanied by a group of villagers, arrived at the field. After carefully examining the marks around the bamboo basket, the village chief let out a soft sigh, pointed at a series of footprints, and said in a low voice: "The child has been taken away by a wolf"
The heart-wrenching cries echoed repeatedly on the hillside. Two little girls, who were digging wild vegetables on the opposite slope, exchanged a glance. They dropped their shovels and the small bamboo basket that was not yet filled with vegetables, and ran over as if flying. Seeing their mother’s face smeared with sweat and tears, and the bamboo basket that had been placed on the ridge of the field, now empty and with even the bedding that had been at the bottom vanished, the two little girls were as stunned as their mother.
Zhen'er is almost one year old, and this child is growing so fast that the bamboo basket can hardly contain him anymore
Putting down the hoe in her hand, Lei Zhen's mother stretched her back, which had become slightly sore from long hours of labor. After wiping the sweat from her forehead with a towel, she slowly walked towards the ridge where a large bamboo basket and a water jug were placed. Only when she looked at her increasingly strong son did this woman, who appeared much older due to the early loss of her husband and already had a few strands of white hair at her forehead, show a hint of joyful smile on her face
Only four words, Lei Zhen's mother was already in tears, and she suddenly began to pound the ground frantically. She cried out hoarsely: "I am sorry to you, Tu, I am sorry to the Lei family, it was I who lost the child! I am useless, I truly am useless, how could I have left the child there, allowing the wolf to take the child away... How can I face you, how can I face my parents, how can I face the ancestors of the Lei family!" I am useless, I truly am useless, how could I have left the child there, allowing the wolf to take the child away... How can I face you, how can I face my parents, how can I face the ancestors of the Lei family!
Leizhen's mother sniffed forcefully and replied, "Let's go home and cook sweet potatoes"
Ah?
This was an absolutely unexpected response, and everyone present widened their eyes, gaping in astonishment at the figure of Lei Zhen's mother. The woman, who had just been unable to support her own body, at this moment, surprisingly made an effort to straighten her back again. She inhaled a breath of cool air and softly said: "If my son was indeed taken away by a wolf, the small blanket wrapped around him surely wouldn't have been eaten as well, right? Since we haven't found that blanket, my son is very likely still alive. Even if he was truly eaten by a wolf, even if he is left with just a bone, I will find him back!"
Feeling her legs go weak, Lei Zhen's mother involuntarily fell to the ground. She sat there foolishly for a full five minutes before suddenly calling out in a voice that was seven parts trembling and three parts weeping: "Daughter, where are you? Come back quickly, your brother is lost..."
The entire village searched for three days and nights in the surrounding mountains. When they finally returned in groups, facing the hopeful and pleading eyes of Lei Zhen's mother, the villagers, covered in grass and bearing scratches, silently shook their heads. Lei Zhen's mother's face grew increasingly pale.
She had clearly tied her son with a thin rope inside a bamboo basket. With the strength of a baby not yet one year old, it was impossible for him to break free from the constraints of that thin rope. Looking at the rope that hung down in the bamboo basket, torn in two by some unknown object, Lei Zhen's mother suddenly began to run around frantically. She carefully turned over the grass, searching every possible hiding place nearby where a child could be concealed, but she found nothing. Her son, who was not even one year old, had truly disappeared!
After wandering around for several hours with her two daughters, the woman, who had suddenly lost her son and felt as if her legs were sinking into cotton, devoid of any strength, suddenly came to her senses and called out to her daughter: "Daughter, quickly go back and ask Uncle the village chief to come help!"
Until the dark canopy once again enveloped the entire sky, such a peculiar group would tread through the night, returning to their home with the * map * book, and the cooking smoke would slowly rise above that small adobe house.
When the last group of villagers returned to this small mountain village with empty hands, they lowered their heads in front of the woman whose face had lost all color. Like madmen, they followed their neighbors, running in the mountains for three whole days and nights without a grain of rice. The mother, faced with this desperate outcome, no longer had the strength to support her body and fell heavily to the ground with a thud
Everyone stared blankly at the woman who had lost all hope and strength in life, even the strength to stand. No one spoke; in fact, they had no idea what to say at that moment, as they all clearly understood what it meant for a widow to lose her only son. She could cry out loud, go home, cover her head with a quilt, and sleep for three days and nights, but life must go on, and she would eventually recover slowly. What should be said, for they all knew what it meant for a widow to lose her only son. She could cry out loud, go home, cover her head with a quilt, and sleep for three days and nights, but life must go on, and she would eventually recover slowly. If she were lucky enough, she might even remarry a man who, though perhaps poor or with some minor flaws, was honest and kind, willing to treat her two daughters well.
Habitually pouring a bowl of water from the water jug, when Lei Zhen's mother turned to look at her son sleeping in the bamboo basket, her eyes suddenly widened, and her hands loosened. The porcelain bowl she was holding fell onto a protruding rock, making a crisp sound of "bang".
On the ridge of the field, in that large bamboo basket, Lei Zhen listened to the soft chirping of the crickets, inhaling the gentle mountain breeze that brought with it the most primal fragrance, growing slowly day by day
At that moment, Lei Zhen's mother was trembling all over, for what she saw was an empty bamboo basket; her son had actually disappeared!
She reached out to wipe away the mixture of sweat, tears, and mucus on her face, and slowly stood up. She looked at the village chief and asked, "Has no one in the entire village found Lei Zhen, nor the bedding wrapped around him?"
However, very soon, the cries of Lei Zhen's mother suddenly ceased
This secluded little mountain village, which retains its natural simplicity, has almost all the villagers mobilized. They move in groups of three to five, weaving through the mountains, and even at night, one can see the flickering pine resin torches swaying on the slopes. Some of the more resourceful villagers have even brought along a rattle, a favorite toy of their children, shaking it as they search around, hoping that little Leizhen will hear it and respond with even a single cry.
Yes
When the long-lost smoke from the kitchen once again wafted above the small adobe house, the villagers looked at this house with a hint of unspoken admiration... This woman is fighting! She is battling against her own fate, and she is fighting against the fate of her son, which may have already been predetermined!
The village chief looked at the woman who had been completely frightened, standing there as if she had lost her three souls and seven spirits. He let out a soft sigh and said to the villagers beside him, "Notify everyone in the village to prepare; those who can help should come out to look for the child"
Every morning, beneath the black sky, when only a faint pale light breaks through, a woman carries a hoe and holds a bamboo basket in her hand as she walks towards her farmland. Lying comfortably in the world created by the bamboo basket is Lei Zhen, a robust and likable figure who is sleeping soundly. Behind this woman, two small, thin girls follow closely; one holds a water jug and the dry food for lunch, while the other clutches a tiny shovel.
Her voice is very soft, but when a mother finds herself with no retreat and her instinct to protect her child is fully awakened, her voice carries a determination that can almost split gold and shatter stone.
Seeing Lei Zhen's mother nodding, she unexpectedly turned back towards the village with her two daughters. Fearing that this woman might do something foolish, the village chief urgently asked: "Miss Lei, what are you planning to do?"
The child's father