When everyone saw Song Wei come out, several aunts winked and nudged her suggestively.
Song Wei knew exactly what they meant. Even with her thick skin, she couldn’t help but blush.
“Alright, that’s enough teasing. The young lady is still shy.”
When these folks got together, their conversations often turned risqué, and Song Wei had occasionally overheard some of it.
But as a newlywed, she was still a bit bashful.
Those accustomed to farm work were quick and efficient—even the educated youths had honed their skills over time.
Soon, all the dishes were prepared.
Including those from the educated youth quarters, three tables were set up in Lin Zhen’s home that morning, and the remaining food was nearly finished off.
When it came to washing dishes, Lin Zhen and Song Wei didn’t lift a finger. The aunts and educated youths pitched in, and everything was quickly tidied up.
The snow in the courtyard, trampled and dirty, was shoveled away by the men and discarded outside.
The courtyard was now completely clean. The next snowfall would leave a pristine white blanket.
By the time the guests were warmly seen off, the entire morning had passed.
Song Wei was now fully the mistress of this household.
In the afternoon, she went to retrieve her belongings from the educated youth quarters.
There wasn’t much—just some clothes and similar items.
Since her engagement to Lin Zhen, Song Wei had been gradually moving things like grain and supplies from her mountain hunts to his place, much like a squirrel storing nuts for winter.
All the food and similar items were already here.
It could be said that even before marriage, aside from not sleeping here at night, most of her daily necessities and food were stored here.
When it was time to leave, everyone at the educated youth quarters felt quite reluctant to see her go.
Liu Linlin held onto her arm. “Song Wei, with you gone, it feels like our quarters will become so much quieter.”
The others nodded in agreement.
Song Wei smiled. “It’s not far at all. Besides, I’ll still bring Ping’an over to study with you all.”
Without any troublemakers around, everyone was now united in their goal of studying hard for the college entrance exams. The atmosphere in the educated youth quarters had never been more harmonious.
As they left the educated youth quarters, Lin Zhen carried most of the belongings on his back. The two walked side by side, one tall and one short, greeting fellow villagers along the way. In truth, it wasn’t much different from before they were married.
Three days after the wedding, there was no real need for a formal homecoming visit.
The brigade leader arrived at Lin Zhen’s home with a few others, there to borrow the fishing net.
The fish they had brought back earlier had made everyone envious.
With few winter activities aside from tending to the vegetable sheds, the fishing expedition had the entire brigade buzzing with excitement.
Lin Zhen didn’t refuse and lent them the net directly.
Their whole family, along with the wolves and foxes, followed the crowd to the reed lake.
“Fishing today—using such a large net in winter is a first for us. Who knows how much we’ll catch?”
“I heard that net is meant for catching sea fish—like the massive ones in Song Wei’s photos. It’s really something.”
Song Wei glanced at the crowd. “Wow, seems like the entire brigade is here.”
There were so many people, almost as many as during the movie screenings.
Lin Zhen said, “Aside from those who genuinely can’t make it and infants in swaddling clothes, I’d say everyone who could come is here.”
“Lin Zhen, why are you standing back there? Come over and show us how to set this up!”
The brigade leader pulled Lin Zhen over to take charge.
Song Wei wore her military greatcoat and a Lei Feng hat, her ears tucked snugly inside, hands tucked into her sleeves.
Even standing on the ice, she felt warm.
Those around her looked enviously at her military coat.
“That’s such a nice coat—sturdy material and good-looking too.”
In those days, anything associated with the military was considered stylish and impressive.
Song Wei said, “Our country will keep getting better. Maybe someday everyone will be able to wear coats like this.”
“That’s right, our country will only improve.”
When it came to patriotism, people of this era were genuinely fervent.
Even without knowing exactly how the country would develop, they firmly believed it would keep getting better.
The strong, young men chipped away at the ice, creating holes with rhythmic clinks. Women, the elderly, and children watched from the sidelines.
As the ice was broken open, they tossed some food into the holes, just like last time. After waiting a while for fish to gather, they cast the net.
Standing on the ice was still bitterly cold, and many began stamping their feet and rubbing their hands to keep warm during the wait.
“When are we pulling the net up?”
“Is that all there is to it—just lowering the net like this?”
“Will we actually catch fish?”
“Of course! Didn’t Lin Zhen and Song Wei catch fish like this for their wedding banquet?”
Amid the murmurs and discussions, Lin Zhen estimated the time was about right and said to the brigade leader,
“Uncle Lei, time to pull up the net.”
The brigade leader immediately rubbed his hands together.
“Everyone, get ready! We’re pulling up the net!”
With his booming shout, a group of strong young men eagerly grabbed the net and began hauling it in.
“It’s heavy—there are fish inside! Must be quite a few!”
Their usual fishing methods were simple: those who were good swimmers dove in to catch fish by hand, while others tried their luck with rods.
But those methods were slow and yielded little.
On a good day, they might catch a few.
The entire reed lake was usually fished only near the shores—no one dared venture to the center.
It was only when the lake froze over that they dared to come out here.
But unless they were truly desperate for meat, few would brave the cold to fish in winter.
As a result, the lake was teeming with fish, including plenty weighing around ten jin each.
The net wasn’t just heavy—they could feel the vibrations of fish thrashing and struggling against it.
Though they hadn’t seen the fish yet, everyone was already beaming with excitement.
“Quick, put your backs into it!”
The onlookers forgot their chatter, their eyes fixed eagerly on the scene, offering enthusiastic but unhelpful advice.
The brigade leader shouted, “Quiet! You’ll scare the fish away!”
“How can the fish escape once they’re in the net?”
The brigade leader retorted, “What, you think we’re only casting the net once?”
That shut everyone up.
Song Wei didn’t join in the effort.
This wasn’t about strength.
With so many people involved, even those with less strength wanted to pitch in—mostly for the thrill of it.
Never underestimate the allure of fishing and netting for men.
With everyone’s combined effort, the net was finally hauled up.
“Fish! There are big fish!”
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