Chapter 118: The Fat Man’s Approach
Upon arrival, Zhou Sinian chose a small slope as the spot for ice sledding today.
At the signal, the children began transporting snow with their little ice sleds, while Zhou Sinian took responsibility for compacting the snow.
Before long, the small slope transformed into a natural slide, perfectly connecting to the ice surface below.
When Zhou Sinian smoothly slid his ice sled from the slope onto the ice, the children erupted in excited cheers, drawing the attention of everyone on the ice.
Everyone felt this was far more entertaining than simply ice skating.
Ming Dai also thought Zhou Sinian was quite clever; with the slope’s momentum, his sled sped far without needing to be pushed with a stick.
After Zhou Sinian slid down again, the other children cheered and lined up at the slope.
Their little faces were flushed red from the cold, yet no one cut in line or pushed; they were all very self-disciplined, sliding down one after another.
“Ming Dai! Ming Dai! Look at me! Look!”
Ming Dai was engrossed in watching, but when she heard someone calling her, she turned to see Zhou Sinian waving his stick, spinning wildly on the ice in place, leaving those nearby stunned.
Seeing how much fun he was having, Ming Dai felt tempted and waved at him.
Zhou Sinian revved up and quickly glided over on his sled.
“Zhou Sinian, let me try it!”
Ming Dai asked eagerly, and Zhou Sinian generously helped pull her sled up the slope. Following behind the children, he cautioned carefully, “You have to wait your turn.”
Ming Dai looked at the two nervous little ones ahead and reluctantly nodded.
Only then did the two kids feel reassured and turn around to watch the people ahead slide down swiftly.
When it was Ming Dai’s turn, she had just settled on the sled when Zhou Sinian said, “Ming Dai, I’ll help you!”
Before she could understand, Zhou Sinian gave the sled a powerful push, launching her forward.
Terrified, Ming Dai shut her eyes tightly, screaming as she sped down.
She could still hear Zhou Sinian’s excited shout beside her: “Ming Dai! Go for it!!”
Ming Dai thought, “Go for it my foot!!”
At the bottom of the slope, Ming Dai and her sled flew off entirely!
After a brief moment of weightlessness, she crashed onto the ice, sending nearby people scrambling to avoid her.
Fortunately, the ice was thick and the sled sturdy, and Ming Dai was lucky to land safely.
Due to inertia, the sled didn’t stop but continued rushing toward the center of the river.
Ming Dai screamed continuously, desperately trying to brake with the stick!
However, it was utterly useless!
“Ahhhh! Everyone, get out of the way!! Get out of the way!! I can’t stop!!!”
In the end, she left all the other sleds far behind, successfully sliding to the middle of the river.
When the sled finally came to a halt, Ming Dai heard nothing but the pounding of her own heartbeat in her ears; her soul lingered in the air, not yet fully returned.
***
Eventually, an excited Zhou Sinian woke her up: “Ming Dai! Was it fun? Want to go again?”
Ming Dai quickly shook her head: “No, no, no!”
She wiped the frost that had formed on her eyelashes and signaled for Zhou Sinian to help her up.
She was simply too weak in the legs.
Though a bit disappointed, Zhou Sinian respected her wishes.
The two returned to shore and happened upon the team leader’s family.
Sister Huang was also playing with the sled, pulled along by Liu Laifu—fun and safe, making Ming Dai envious.
“Xiao Ming Zhiqing, you’re amazing! I’ve never slid this far before!”
Ming Dai gave an embarrassed smile at Sister Huang’s praise.
Oh, the fright she’d just experienced!
Boys tended to be more reckless; soon, only Zhou Sinian and a few boys played this high-speed downhill game, while the girls switched to one-legged hopping games.
Ming Dai brought out her secret weapon: two one-legged skates, which were actually just heavy ice blades.
She strapped them on, tested her balance a few times, and once steady, glided smoothly, quickly becoming the brightest star among the crowd.
She felt a little proud—it was worth all the practice she had done in her space, despite many falls.
She grew more confident, and though these blades weren’t as agile as real ice skates, she could still perform simple moves.
Coincidentally, Liu Yan had come along with Qi Zhijun to play. Originally, the two sat happily on the sled, but seeing Ming Dai’s graceful skating, Liu Yan felt a bit unsettled.
Qi Zhijun noticed too and suddenly recalled his days at the skating rink in the capital, growing even more gloomy. Tossing aside his stick and sled, he headed toward the shore.
Liu Yan was baffled, not understanding his mood, and clumsily followed, picking up the sled.
Sister Huang, seeing Ming Dai’s skill, tried the one-legged skates herself and asked Ming Dai to lead her.
Ming Dai happily took her around in circles on the ice; their laughter came in waves.
Most people around Liujiawan village couldn’t afford ice skates, but some from the commune could.
At this moment, a few people wearing ice skates were skating over from the commune to fish.
A pockmarked young man stared entranced at Ming Dai’s smooth movements in the crowd, his lecherous expression betraying his intentions.
A nearby fat man noticed and smiled ingratiatingly, “Brother Fa, how about I call her over to have some fun with you?”
The pockmarked man glared at him, “How vulgar! You should say ‘invite’, not ‘call’!”
The fat man laughed off the scolding and nodded eagerly, winking, “Alright, alright, I’ll invite this lady over to meet Brother Fa.”
The pockmarked man nodded approvingly, “And mind your manners.”
The fat man bowed and agreed, lumbering over to Ming Dai.
She was talking with Sister Huang and the others, explaining how to play.
Other women, seeing her glide so smoothly, wanted to try too.
***
Just then, a breathless voice approached, “Comrade, comrade, Brother Fa invites you to join him and exchange skating techniques.”
Ming Dai frowned and turned to see a face so fat his eyes were almost hidden—quite a rare sight these days.
He gestured toward a group across the river; one waved back—the obvious Brother Fa.
Ming Dai thought they were really bold; openly hitting on a young woman at this time was almost harassment, especially with Sister Huang and the others nearby.
Sure enough, without Ming Dai saying a word, Sister Huang pulled her behind her, and the others formed a protective shield, hiding Ming Dai securely.
“Ugh! You lazy fatso, what nonsense are you spouting! Who asked you to come ‘exchange’ anything? Exchange my foot! Let me give you an exchange, how about that!”
Sister Huang slammed the stick she held onto him, with the other women joining in, scolding and hitting him.
The fat man was dumbfounded, not even dodging.
He was from the neighboring Xiawan village and knew people in Liujiawan. Seeing Ming Dai was a newcomer Zhiqing, he guessed she had just arrived this year.
It was because she was a Zhiqing that he dared approach.
After all, the villagers of Liujiawan were notoriously hostile to Zhiqing.
But now, what was going on?
Had these women gone mad?
Why were they suddenly protecting a Zhiqing?
It had never been like this before.
Sister Huang and the others didn’t care; if you dared bully Xiao Ming Zhiqing, they’d beat you to death.
Their sticks rained down relentlessly, striking all exposed parts.
The fat man wailed and staggered, unable to stand, finally rolling and crawling out of the circle.
Ming Dai’s eyes shone brightly as she admired Sister Huang and the others. She had heard tales of these fierce women but had never seen them in action until now.
They were so satisfying to watch!
Seeing Ming Dai’s admiring gaze, Sister Huang and the others beamed, waving their sticks toward the group across the river.
“Brats, full of bad intentions, you’re no good.”
“Xiao Ming Zhiqing, be careful around here; these are the commune leaders’ spoiled brats, always looking to tease pretty young girls.”
“They even target Zhiqing; villagers here have been tricked by them before.”
“But don’t worry, always bring the crazy ones with you. They’re afraid of the crazy ones. As long as the crazy ones are around, they’ll keep their distance.”
Just as she spoke, a figure zoomed over on a sled—it was Zhou Sinian, looking stormy and urgent.
He had clearly seen the earlier commotion.
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