Chapter 109: Chapter 97: A Rotten Ship Still Has Three Thousand Nails

Zhou Yan shot up from his bed in a jolt. Without even putting on shoes, he ran downstairs. The hallway was dark, and—THUMP—he crashed headfirst into the stairway wall. He didn’t make a sound, just braced himself against the wall and charged down the rest of the way to pull open the door.

The sky was still dark, and the rain was still falling with a steady pitter-patter.

Zhou Jie stood at the door in a straw raincoat, holding a flashlight. Hearing the noise, he aimed the beam at Zhou Yan. He was startled to see him barefoot with blood trickling down his forehead. "Zhou Yan, what happened to your head?"

Zhou Yan had no time to worry about that. His eyes were red with anxiety as he grabbed Zhou Jie’s hand. "Jie, what did you just say? My family’s house collapsed? Where are my parents? Where’s Momo?"

"The house collapsed, but everyone’s okay!" Zhou Jie quickly replied. "They all got out!"

Zhou Yan let go of his hand, his legs giving way. He had to lean against the door to stay upright. Only now did he start to feel the pain in his forehead.

’As long as everyone’s okay, who cares if that old house collapsed.’

’Man, that almost broke me.’

"You need to stop the bleeding on your forehead. Should we go to the clinic?" Zhou Jie asked, his face full of concern.

"It’s nothing, just a scratch. I’ll go put on some shoes and head back to the village." Having regained his composure, Zhou Yan took the flashlight from Zhou Jie. "Wait here for me."

"Oh," Zhou Jie grunted, stepping further under the eaves and wiping the water from his face.

Zhou Yan found a mirror to check his forehead. A bump had formed above his eyebrow, and the skin was scraped. A trickle of blood had run down past the corner of his eye. It looked a little gruesome, but it was nothing serious.

There was a small bottle of iodine in the kitchen. He dabbed some on with a cotton ball to disinfect the cut. The rain wasn’t heavy, so he put on a bamboo hat, grabbed his bicycle, and went out.

"What’s the situation? When did it collapse?" Zhou Yan asked Zhou Jie on the way.

"It happened after midnight. There was a huge crash—half the village heard it. My dad was worried, so he got up to look. He woke up Hao and me to help. He said it was your family’s house that collapsed and told me to hurry and get you." Zhou Jie kept pace with him, offering reassurance. "Don’t worry, everyone’s safe. Your Fourth Uncle got your Fourth Aunt and Momo out. Eldest Uncle, my dad, Third Uncle, and your Fourth Uncle are all there. It’ll be okay."

"Okay," Zhou Yan nodded, but he pedaled even faster.

’The house collapsing in the middle of the night... Mom and Zhou Momo must have been terrified.’

"Slow down, the road’s really slippery..." Zhou Jie was having trouble keeping up. He shouted from behind, but in a moment, even the beam from Zhou Yan’s flashlight had disappeared from view.

When Zhou Yan reached Zhou Village, he could see from a distance a dozen or so flashlight beams sweeping back and forth over his family’s home, where a dense crowd of dozens of people had gathered.

"Zhou Yan’s back!"

Someone spotted Zhou Yan and shouted.

Zhou Yan stopped his bike and saw his uncles, cousins, and fellow villagers in the crowd.

Zhou Weiguo was wearing a tank top and holding a shovel, soaked to the bone by the rain.

His Second Uncle, Zhou Ze, was covered in mud, looking as if he’d just crawled out of a swamp.

Zhou Hongwei had also come, along with his father and grandfather.

Everyone was holding a tool of some kind; they must have rushed over the moment they heard the news.

Zhou Yan looked toward the house.

What was once a relatively spacious house was now a ruin, with only half a rammed-earth wall still standing. It was completely unrecognizable.

Zhao Tieying and Zhou Miao stood barefoot in the courtyard, staring at their collapsed home with dazed, helpless expressions.

A house they had lived in for over twenty years... to have it collapse just like that was something no one could accept in a single moment.

"Mom! Dad!" Zhou Yan ran over and threw his arms around them both.

"Zhou Yan... our house... it collapsed..." Zhao Tieying looked up at him, her voice hoarse. It was impossible to tell if the moisture on her face was from tears or the rain.

"It’s okay! As long as everyone is safe, that’s all that matters. If the house collapsed, we’ll just rebuild it later!" Zhou Yan patted her on the back. She felt ice-cold. He quickly took the bamboo hat from his head and placed it on hers.

Zhou Miao also put an arm around her shoulder to comfort her. "That’s right. Zhou Yan is right. As long as we’re okay, that’s what matters."

Zhao Tieying nodded, her emotions calming slightly.

"Dad, where’s Momo? Why don’t I see her?" Zhou Yan asked, looking around.

"Don’t you worry, Momo’s fine," his Second Uncle spoke up. "Zhou Hao carried her over to your grandmother’s place. The house collapsed, and she didn’t even wake up. She’s sleeping like a log."

"Good!" The weight on Zhou Yan’s heart finally lifted. ’As long as everyone’s safe, the collapsed house can be rebuilt sooner or later. And it’ll be even better and bigger than before!’

"Come on, Mom, Dad. Let’s go to Grandma’s and change into some dry clothes first. This rain is too cold. Everyone’s getting soaked. It’ll be a real problem if people catch a cold."

"There’s no point standing guard over this ruined house. We can wait until morning, after the rain stops, to see if there’s anything to salvage. Then we’ll just tear it down and rebuild!" Zhou Yan helped Zhao Tieying and Zhou Miao walk away. The two of them were still not fully back to their senses; he had to be the one to step up and take charge.

This autumn rain was cold, and it wasn’t just his family—dozens of men were standing out here, getting soaked.

’It’s not like he could ask them to spend the night digging out a pile of broken cabinets and old cookware, could he?’

"That’s right. Go get changed and dry your hair first!" Eldest Uncle Zhou Qing added.

Zhao Hong came over with two pairs of sandals for them to change into.

"Shoes, we have shoes!" Zhao Tieying said.

Only then did Zhou Yan notice that his mother was clutching the two pairs of leather shoes he had bought, along with a small wooden box.

Comrade Zhou wasn’t empty-handed either. He had a cloth bag slung over his shoulder—the same one he used when he went out to butcher cattle. It was stuffed full, presumably with his butchering tools.

’Well now, looks like the essential tools of production and the family fortune were successfully rescued.’

’The older generation is always so reliable.’

"Fourth Aunt, wear these for now. Leather shoes are a pain to clean once they get dirty, and you’ll just get them caked in mud," Zhao Hong said, taking the two pairs of shoes from her. She covered them with a piece of the straw raincoat and had them put on the sandals.

Zhou Yan looked at his uncles, cousins, and all the relatives of the clan. He bowed deeply, then straightened up and said in a clear voice, "Uncles, cousins, aunts, and sisters-in-law, on behalf of my entire family, I, Zhou Yan, thank you for rushing here to help in the middle of the night. In the future, if there’s anything you need from me, Zhou Yan, just say the word, and I will do my best to help."

"It’s too cold today, and the rain is heavy. Everyone, please go home first, change your clothes, dry your hair, and drink some ginger soup. Make sure you stay warm. I will come to your homes later to thank you all personally."

Zhao Tieying and Zhou Miao, who had just put on their shoes, stared at Zhou Yan, somewhat lost in a daze.

’This child... he can already run the family now!’

"We’re all family, what’s there to thank us for!"

"Exactly! It’s what we should do!"

"Go on, take your mom and dad to get into some dry clothes. We’ll come back tomorrow after the rain stops to see about digging through the rubble."

The crowd replied with smiles, their eyes filled with relief and approval as they looked at Zhou Yan.

’The boy is sensible and knows how to be grateful. Even after getting soaked in the rain in the middle of the night, it made their hearts feel warm.’

The lights were on in the old matriarch’s house. The dim, yellow glow seemed especially warm on this cold, rainy night.

In the main hall, one half of the door was closed. Two basins of charcoal fire were placed in the center of the room, and everyone felt a wave of warmth the moment they stepped inside.

On a chair to the side were two sets of dry clothes and two dry towels.

The matriarch emerged from the kitchen with a tray holding six bowls of steaming brown sugar ginger soup. "Fourth Son," she said, "take Tieying to dry her hair and change clothes first, then come drink some ginger soup."

"Yes, Mom," Zhou Miao replied. He took the clothes and guided Zhao Tieying toward an inner room.

"You got here quickly," the matriarch said, glancing at Zhou Yan with a smile. "Go, change into some of your youngest uncle’s clothes. They should fit you. Then come have a bowl of ginger soup."

"Yes, Grandma!" Zhou Yan replied with a smile.

"Zhao Hong, drink your ginger soup, then go home and change. Tell the others to change and then come over to warm up by the fire, drink some soup, and discuss what to do," the matriarch then instructed Zhao Hong.

"Okay, Grandma." Zhao Hong nodded, took the bowl of ginger soup the matriarch handed her, blew on it, and took a sip. She felt her body warm up immediately.

Zhou Yan couldn’t help but marvel inwardly. ’Grandma is truly someone who has seen it all. Holding down the fort, she’s not the least bit flustered, arranging all the logistics perfectly and keeping everyone’s spirits up.’

After changing, Zhou Yan went next door to check on Zhou Momo. The little girl was fast asleep, a trickle of drool at the corner of her mouth, probably dreaming of something wonderful. He guessed she didn’t even know the house had collapsed.

After everyone had changed and come out, they gathered around the fire basins to warm themselves and drink the piping hot ginger soup. Their frozen bodies quickly warmed up, and the life returned to their eyes.

Zhao Tieying finished her bowl of ginger soup and let out a long sigh. There was still a trace of lingering fear in her eyes as she murmured, "As long as everyone is okay."

Zhou Miao, who was drying her hair with a towel, also nodded. "That’s right. The whole family being together and safe is more important than anything."

"That’s right. A rotten ship still has three thousand nails, and burnt bamboo still has green roots," the matriarch said with a smile, coming out from the kitchen. "As long as the people are here, a three-room house can be built in two years."

"You’re right, Mom," Zhao Tieying said, smiling as well.

As they spoke, the various uncles, older cousins, and their wives arrived. They left their umbrellas and straw raincoats in the courtyard and filed into the main hall.

"Grandma’s house is so warm," Zhou Jie said, rubbing his hands together.

"Here, have a bowl of ginger soup first," Zhou Yan said, quickly serving everyone.

A bowl of ginger soup warmed them up instantly.

The matriarch took the head seat, and the elders all sat on chairs. The younger generation, like Zhou Yan, either sat on low stools or stood.

In this family, whenever something major happened, the matriarch was the undisputed decision-maker.

The matriarch began, "Today, the Fourth Son’s house collapsed. It was sudden, and it’s a great blessing that no one was hurt. Starting tomorrow, after you’ve all finished your own important work, come and help dig through the rubble. See if we can salvage anything useful to reduce their losses."

"Will do!" everyone nodded in agreement.

The matriarch then turned to Zhou Hao. "Zhou Hao, it’s rare for you to be back. You just got married, and you have to return to your unit in a few days. You just stick to your plan and take Yueyue to Rongcheng for fun. One extra person here isn’t going to dig up any gold ingots."

"Grandma, I want to stay and help..." Zhou Hao started to say.

"Zhou Hao, listen to your grandmother," Zhao Tieying interjected, looking at him and Chen Yueyue, who stood beside him. "All that’s buried under my house is a few broken cabinets and a pile of old clothes. They aren’t worth much, and they’ll probably be useless even if we dig them out. You only get married once. Yueyue waited so long for you to come back and get married, and you made plans for a honeymoon. This will be one of your most important memories for decades to come. You need to understand which is more important."

Chen Yueyue was so moved she could only listen, her eyes welling up.

Hearing this, Second Uncle also nodded. "Just listen to your grandmother and Fourth Aunt. There are so many of us here at home, it won’t be a problem."

"Okay," Zhou Hao finally nodded, squeezing his new wife’s hand.

The matriarch continued, "Fourth Son, Tieying, tomorrow, clean out the east room. You’ll move back into the old family house for a while. Whenever you get the new house built, you can move back out."

"Mom, that’s... not very convenient, is it?" Zhao Tieying hesitated. According to the Zhou family’s rules, once you started a family, you had to move out. She felt it wasn’t appropriate for her family of four to move back into the main house.

’Building a house isn’t that simple. They only had a few dozen yuan to their name right now. Who knew how many years it would take before they could afford to build a new one.’

’Living in the old family house long-term would inevitably lead to some friction between the brothers. This went against the rules the matriarch herself had established.’

Zhou Miao didn’t speak, looking at Zhao Tieying and waiting for her decision.

"Tieying, just listen to Mom. Nobody could have expected something like this. Just come back and live here for a while," Eldest Aunt urged.

"That’s right. If you need anything, just come and get it from our house. It’s convenient being so close," Second Aunt added.

"Mom has already spoken, what’s there to be inconvenient about? We’re all family," Third Aunt chimed in.

Everyone tried to persuade her with kind words, all wanting to help the Fourth Son’s family get through this difficult time.

But Zhao Tieying just couldn’t get over the mental block. ’Weiguo just got his new post as head of the Armed Forces Department, and people are already starting to propose marriage matches for him. If potential partners found out that his older brother and sister-in-law were living in the family home with their kids because their own house collapsed, what would those young women think?’

’The family was thinking of them, so she couldn’t just think of herself.’

Zhou Yan listened for a while, figured out what his mother was worried about, and spoke up. "Mom, why don’t you guys move into my restaurant!"

"The upstairs of the restaurant is a huge, empty space. We can just hire a bricklayer to put up a couple of walls to make a room. Buy some bedding, and you’ll have a place to sleep."

"We can think about rebuilding the house after the New Year."