Chapter 57 - Nannan, Grandma's taking you home

"Nannan, these are freshly picked dates; they're very sweet, I've washed them. Would you like to have a taste?"

"Nannan, Nannan, I have a pomegranate here. It's sweet too, oh. I'll peel it for you!"

"I brought a few grapefruit slices…"

"I filled a bowl of sliced pickled carrots…"

Before Liu Yusheng knew what was going on, her little friends all gathered around her.

One by one, they looked at her eagerly, hoping to be the chosen one…

She didn't even know what her brothers told them.

"You rarely get to eat these stuff yourselves, do you?"

Country kids didn't have much to eat. It was rare enough for the family to buy a few pieces of candy occasionally, so what they looked forward to most was the season when wild fruits ripened in the mountains.

By then, they could pick fruits and taste the freshness, slaking their cravings.

This time, in exchange for the fruit wine, they must have taken out all the things they were reluctant to eat.

"Nannan, you eat it. We can pick them again if we want to."

"Yes, Nannan, you eat."

Liu Yusheng looked at them and stretched out her little hand, taking a little from each one, but couldn't consume all of them.

Even the little boy who was holding a small bowl and was a little timid and embarrassed, she ate a piece of sour radish in front of him.

It was so sour that she almost lost her teeth.

"Brother, I like to eat all of these."

The little friends turned their heads and looked at Liu Zhixia and Liu Zhiqiu.

"Alright, alright, come here. Everyone takes a sip. Don't drink too much ah." Lu Zhiqiu took out the water flagon, pulled out the cork and handed it to them.

Liu Yusheng, on the other hand, distributed the various fruits she was holding to her brothers. "There's too much stuff. I can't eat it all by myself, so brother help me eat some."

Liu Zhixia looked at her, then at the pomegranate in her hand. He didn't eat it, and instead stuffed it into his pocket.

When Liu Zhiqiu saw his brother's action, he paused eating his grapefruit, halved that part he didn't nibble on, and stuffed it into his pocket as well.

On the side, the flagon had been passed around in the little friends' hands.

Dabao licked his lips to relish the taste of the fruit wine and his eyes sparkled. "It has a grape flavor, sweet and fragrant, it's delicious!"

"Yummy! Zhixia, Zhiqiu, is this the kind of fruit wine that will be made in the winery in the future?"

"Can I have another sip? I drank it too fast and didn't even taste it!"

Liu Zhixia took back the flagon, laughing as he scolded, "Beat it! Zhiqiu and I haven't even drunk it yet. We only have half a flagon, no more than one sip each."

"Then can we have an exchange to drink it again later?"

"As long as you have something good to trade."

"Deal, don't go back on your word!"

With the crackling noise of the hay burning and the laughter of the children around the field, that autumn night was particularly cheerful and lively.

It was a rare night for them to be together, so the kids were unwilling to go home too early. After dividing the treats they brought with them, they played hide and seek among the piles of haystacks that were taller than the adults.

The two brothers hid Liu Yusheng in the pile farthest from the fire, using straw to make a good cover outside.

"Nannan, no matter who lies to you, don't come out by yourself, okay? Hide well."

They instructed their sister and ran in two separate directions, making a lot of noise all the way to confuse the cats.

In the distance, the cats were already on the move, and soon someone was caught.

Because Liu Yusheng was hiding far away, it was unlikely that anyone would be able to find her for a while, so she quietly raked the haystack to breathe.

Although the autumn night has begun to cool down, it was stuffy being buried in the haystack.

Through the crack, looking up to see the moon and stars, listening to the frogs and insects chirping, and "Gotcha!" in the distance, Liu Yusheng's small lips pursed into a shallow smile.

She yearned for such days in her previous life countless times, but never got it.

In this life, she was compensated, and she was grateful to the heavens.

She would cherish it and use everything she has.

Suddenly, she heard a splash.

Liu Yusheng frowned. The stack she was hiding in was very close to the river, and the sound was coming from the river.

What kind of person was still by the river at this late hour?

Was he bathing or had he fallen into the water?

The sound seemed to be closer to the bank on their side of the river. Liu Yusheng thought for a while, got out of the haystack, and walked towards the river.

As she got closer, she could vaguely see a shadow moving closer to the banks.

"Who's there?" He didn't look like he had fallen into the river, so Liu Yusheng stopped on her tracks at the shore, feeling wary.

The black shadow heard the voice, but didn't not respond. Instead, he swam faster to the shore.

Liu Yusheng pursed her lips, turned, and ran.

Before she took a step, a big hand stretched out from behind, covering her mouth tightly, and then dragging her into the river.

Then she felt a pain behind her neck and lost consciousness.

...…..

The whole Xinghua Village was in an uproar.

When the kids ran home, crying and saying that Nannan was missing, Grandma and Grandpa Liu almost passed out on the spot.

For the first time, the village was lit up at night. The sound of gongs struck by villagers, shouting, and dogs barking could be heard everywhere.

Some organized a team to search for her in the Qinghe River.

A village baby has gone missing, missing from a pile of haystacks by the Qinghe River.

The villagers guessed that the most likely possibility was that the baby ran amok while hiding and accidentally fell into the river.

Although, this speculation was extremely cruel and unbearable.

The women of the Liu family sat paralyzed by the river, crying miserably and hoarsely.

Grandpa Liu's face was pale, but he managed to endure his grief, and led people along the river to find her. As long as no body was found, he would never admit that his Nannan fell into the river and disappeared!

Liu Dalin and Liu Erlin led the young and strong people in the village, and dived into the bottom of the river again and again. Even without the strength to swim any longer, they still refused to go ashore, but were eventually restrained by the villagers.

This night, the Liu family suffered a fatal blow.

Even the entire Xinghua Village was filled with heavy sorrow.

How could Nannan, that clever, kind and lovely baby who brought them good fortune, suddenly vanished without a trace? How could they have not found even a body?

How did this happen!

When dawn was about to light the sky, Grandma Liu, whose tears had dried up and her soul emptied, suddenly stood up and ran towards the village entrance, with disheveled hair and red eyes, like a mad woman.

"Quick, catch up with Mrs. Liu! Don't let her commit suicide!" Village Chief Liu Jinfu shouted harshly, and took the lead to run after her.

Chen Xiulan, who also paralyzed on the ground, froze and averted her eyes, then, also ran up like crazy.

She knew where Mother was going.

The cabin, to the cabin!

Their Nannan liked to play with Axiu the most, so she must have gotten bored last night and went to the cabin to look for Axiu.

Definitely.

Nannan was at the cabin.

Nannan was waiting for her to take her home!

Grandma Liu stood in front of the cabin door and slapped the yard door hard.

"Nannan, grandma is here. Grandma's here to take you home. Come out, come open the door for me, I miss you! Nannan, Nannan…"