Just as the mother and son were arguing at home, Old Liu left the house carrying a large piece of meat.
This time, his timing was impeccable. From afar, he could see smoke billowing from the chimney of the small cabin.
As he approached, he noticed several game animals hanging from the trees, all covered in snow.
This meant that the occupant had seen his offerings each time but had never accepted them.
Old Liu tried to peek through the door crack to see what the person inside was doing, but suddenly felt a gun pressed against his lower back.
Old Liu froze, his words coming out in a stutter: "I-I mean no harm. I've come to bring you food. Look at you, you're so thin. We're all neighbors..."
The leg of meat lay by the door as Old Liu felt sweat forming on his back.
In the next moment, the gun he carried was confiscated, and he felt a chill on his neck as a long blade rested against it.
The other person had both knife and gun on him but didn't utter a single word.
Old Liu quickly dropped to his knees, immediately changing his tune. He said these game animals were to apologize, and he would never come back again, never.
Wen Qian frowned, contemplating whether her plan to kill him and then his family would go smoothly.
She could follow his footprints back, but would she return the same day?
If she killed him and then went over but failed to clean up thoroughly.
If someone avenged him later, could she sleep peacefully?
After some thought, she put away her knife but kept the gun pressed against his back. She told him to take everything he had brought and leave immediately.
Old Liu turned and ran with unprecedented speed, not even bothering with the chickens or meat, just continuing to run forward.
Wen Qian fired a shot into the air, telling him to stop. In his haste, he fell face-first into the snow.
Wen Qian pointed the gun at him, telling him to take his things away now. So, Old Liu crawled back.
Once she was sure he had taken all his offerings, Wen Qian told him to turn around and get lost.
Young Liu left the house, fuming and carrying a gun. Halfway, he saw his own father huffing and puffing back, carrying his belongings.
Stumbling and covered in snow, he was walking straight ahead without even noticing his son approaching.
"What are you doing?" Young Liu's voice nearly scared Old Liu to death.
Seeing his father's eyes bulging, Young Liu's mood improved considerably.
Seeing him carrying everything back, he knew Old Liu's plan had failed.
He wanted to leave, but it would have to wait until spring. In the meantime, it was best if this man didn't offend the neighbors.
If he truly angered the neighbors and implicated him, he might even have to deal with it personally.
Both being men, he could almost guess Old Liu's intentions. But except for his own mother, who felt this was an inescapable fate after so many years, anyone else could solve his problem with a single bullet.
Not knowing if this man would give up, Young Liu saw the pheasant his father had dropped on the road, picked it up, and followed him home.
Old Liu returned, both shocked and angry, not even noticing his wife's red eyes.
Having suffered outside, he didn't eat or wash, just stripped off his clothes and went to bed.
His wife was cooking, but annoyed by the noise, he threw a shoe that hit the wall and fell to the floor.
His wife startled, thinking her son had just offended his father and he was now venting his anger.
Young Liu couldn't stand such bullying at home, so he yanked off the blanket and dragged his father onto the floor.
Old Liu never expected his usually silent son to treat him like this. He sat on the floor, stunned for a while.
When he came to his senses, he shook with anger. Just as his wife came to pull their son away, he slapped her across the face.
In the past, when he was drunk or his wife talked back, he would hit her like this too.
But his blows were always light, only slaps, never fists.
However, he soon found his left cheek suffering a violent blow as Young Liu punched him square in the face.
In the past, Young Liu only fought back with words, but now he was using force too.
The two ended up grappling on the kang bed, neither willing to let go.
The wife, her face marked by the slap, tried to pull them apart but was kicked to the ground by Old Liu.
Young Liu grew even angrier. He straddled his father, pulled out the belt from his pants, wrapped it twice around his father's neck, and started to strangle him.
His lifelong wish was about to come true. He gritted his teeth, using all his strength.
Old Liu's eyes rolled back, and the grating sounds from his throat were chilling.
He had faced death twice in one day. He couldn't believe his own son would dare do such a thing to him.
He had forgotten that his son was already in his twenties. Before the calamity, he was still a child.
He didn't remember his son's birthday, only knowing that he came of age a few years back. His son had always been taciturn.
Now, he was unleashing tremendous strength to end his life. Old Liu felt he was about to die.
The next second, his wife threw herself over, wailing: "You can't do this! Killing your own father will bring divine retribution!"
"Then let's all die!" The darkness in his heart expanded infinitely until it consumed him entirely. After all, this wasn't the first time he had killed.
If killing one's father would bring divine retribution, shouldn't this father have been reduced to ashes long ago?
The next moment, the belt snapped. Old Liu collapsed unconscious and then lost control of his bladder.
The woman wailed, thinking her husband was dead.
Young Liu stared at the broken belt in his hands, dazed for a moment, thinking he had truly lost control without even checking what he was holding.
The cloth belt wasn't that sturdy, and Young Liu had no intention of a second attempt.
Hearing his mother's cries, he felt perhaps he shouldn't have stopped her from continuing her happy life.
The one who should leave was him, he was the extra.
Ignoring his heartbrokenly sobbing mother, Young Liu left for the adjacent room.
He decided that when spring came, he would leave this place forever.
The wife, crying, finally realized her husband was still breathing. With great effort, she lifted him onto the kang bed and wrapped him in blankets.
Old Liu, having been strangled and then lying cold on the ground, was both shocked and frightened. He developed a fever that very night.
Young Liu slept on an empty stomach, hearing his mother patting his door, saying Old Liu was burning up like coal.
He ignored her, turning over to continue sleeping.
