Rebirth in the 50s: The Couple with the Hidden Space novel Chapter 527

Chapter 527: Chapter 410: A Frost Strike

The old hen next door at Aunt Wang’s house started laying eggs and sent two eggs to Ping’an. Mr. Fang brought up the old topic again, asking Zhou Jiao to plant some vegetables and fruits on the plot by the flower bed, and even sent some vegetable seeds on purpose.

Zhou Jiao found it hard to say that they had already planted quite a lot in their own courtyard. Given Mr. Fang’s kind intention, she felt she should heed his advice. Soon, she and Ping’an, with nothing else to do, were busying themselves on that tiny plot of land.

Zhang Guoqing tilled the land well, allowing the mother and child to have their fun, thinking that any future harvest would be a pleasant surprise. It could also teach the child that farming is not easy.

With this mindset, the small plot of land was neatly taken care of by the family. With nothing else to do, Ping’an would stride with his little legs to the vegetable plot to check if there had been any sprouting.

As days went by, new sprouts appeared on the land. Weeding, fertilizing, the mother and child were careful, diligently waiting for the harvest.

Ping’an counted the days with his fingers every day, but unfortunately, no matter how smart the child was, he couldn’t figure out when they would mature. Zhou Jiao faced his thrice-daily questions by putting a coin in a bottle, having him take out one each day, and told him that when there were no coins left, the harvest season would arrive.

As Ping’an took out the coins one by one, an unexpected frost hit in the middle of the night. The temperature suddenly dropped sharply late at night, and the family, sleeping soundly, was completely unaware.

Coming out of the living room in the morning, Zhang Guoqing noticed something was wrong. He stepped outside to find frost covering everything. At first, he didn’t think much of it and continued to go out to exercise.

While running, he absentmindedly glanced at the wild grass on the ground. Finally, he remembered they had a large backyard full of outdoor fruits and vegetables, as well as a large portion of them in the village.

Realizing this, Zhang Guoqing started running back home. As soon as he entered the courtyard, he quickly went to check on his son’s vegetable garden. What he saw gave him a headache. The newly sprouted leaves and seedlings had all been frozen to death.

Quietly sneaking into the master bedroom, Zhang Guoqing nudged Zhou Jiao, telling her frost had come, and he needed to go to the village to check on their backyard. He asked her to think of a way to soothe their son.

Zhou Jiao mumbled sleepily but soon sensed something was wrong. As she recalled, even the late spring chill in the South never froze plants to death. Yes, she was in the North now. Startled, she got up, put on her clothes, and ran out the door, realizing Zhang Guoqing had already left in a hurry.

Ping’an’s vegetable garden was a total loss—just like their backyard and the newly planted crops in the village. Some things, if not contemplated deeply, don’t evoke fear. Seeing the frozen seedlings, Zhou Jiao felt a deep sadness. She wasn’t sure if she was mourning the mother and son’s hard work or something else.

Standing in the courtyard, Zhou Jiao recalled Mother Zhang’s recent proud expression imagining a full harvest. She remembered Lin Juhua’s hopeful face about the yield, and the gradually emerging smile of Old Captain.

She finally understood what it meant to live at the mercy of the weather. After all is said, it’s the common folks who suffer the most hardships. With this realization, she thought she should do something meaningful.

Meanwhile, Zhang Guoqing hurriedly pedaled his bicycle towards Zhang Family Village. The sky was gradually brightening, and as he passed fields, he saw many people squatting on the ground. Thanks to his keen hearing, he clearly heard sobbing from within. What kind of sobbing was that? It wasn’t the wailing of women or the crying of children, but the suppressed voices of household heads expressing unwillingness and venting their frustration about the future.

Zhang Guoqing held back his tears, trying his best to ignore it. Not far ahead was his home and his clan; he was unsure of what he was about to face.

On a piece of land in the east side of the village, villagers gathered early in the morning, men and women, old and young, some squatting, some sitting on the ground, with everyone focusing their gazes on the elderly man in the center.

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