Gudong. In the Northeast dialect, the word means "quietly vicious."
Actually, Zhao Youcai's nickname, Zhao Ernian, came from his older brother, Zhao Youfu.
Speaking of Zhao Youfu, Zhao Jun's uncle had a bitter lot in life. He'd been sickly since he was a child, lacking the usual boisterous energy of a kid. He was always listless, so the neighbors started calling him Zhao Nian.
When Zhao Youcai came along, he was perfectly healthy, but as a child, he was also listless, disliking movement and conversation.
Seeing the state of the two brothers in the Zhao Family, the villagers simply started calling Zhao Youfu "Zhao Danian" and Zhao Youcai "Zhao Ernian."
Being quiet was one thing, but as Zhao Youcai grew a little older, the villagers discovered the boy wasn't just quiet—he was vicious, too. The very definition of "quietly vicious."
There's an old saying in the Northeast: A quiet person has a "gudong" heart.
That saying fit Zhao Youcai to a tee.
Zhao Jun would never forget that in his past life, after this very same group hunt, he and Li Baoyu had returned empty-handed.
When they got home, Li Baoyu was immediately thrashed by Li Dayong. But as for Zhao Jun, other than two slaps and a few curses from Wang Meilan, nothing else happened at first.
As for Zhao Youcai, he didn't say a single harsh word. On the contrary, he fussed over his son, anxiously checking Zhao Jun for injuries. He even comforted him, saying he was still young and inexperienced, and it was perfectly normal to come back empty-handed from a hunt. He said that if Zhao Jun trained hard, he would surely become a great Hunter one day.
His father's "kind and benevolent" reassurance brought Zhao Jun immense comfort.
But that very night, a little after one in the morning, while sound asleep in his own room, Zhao Jun was suddenly subjected to a savage, merciless beating.
Zhao Jun, who had been dreaming, went from being groggy with sleep to being stunned by the blows in an instant. Powerless to resist and with nowhere to run, his desperate pleas for mercy were useless.
This beating was far more vicious than the one Li Baoyu had received; it left Zhao Jun unable to even get off the kang for two full days.
But what infuriated Zhao Jun the most was the sight of his "kind and benevolent" father the very next morning, coming to his bedside on the kang and fussing over him with that hypocritical look on his face.
"Eldest Son!" Suddenly, Zhao Youcai spoke.
"Dad, yes?" Zhao Jun quickly put on an obedient expression.
Zhao Youcai said, "You've been running around all day and must be tired. Have your mother heat up some water so you can soak your feet, then get to bed early."
'It's over.' A chill ran through Zhao Jun. 'This old fox is still going to give me a beating.'
However, Zhao Jun wanted to try and get out of it. He agreed, saying, "Okay, Dad. I'll listen to you and get to bed early. Tomorrow morning, I'll take some of the wild boar meat to my eldest sister."
Zhao Jun's eldest sister, Zhao Chun, was already married and lived in Yongsheng Village to the west.
Yongsheng Village and Yong'an were only a few miles apart, so a round trip didn't take much time.
But if Zhao Jun was going to visit Zhao Chun, he couldn't show up with a bruised and swollen face, could he?
"Oh!" Wang Meilan was overjoyed. She smiled and said, "My dear son is growing so considerate! Your eldest sister treats you the best, so you absolutely should take her some meat."
"Yes, yes." Seeing that he'd successfully fooled his mother, Zhao Jun was secretly delighted. He kept up the act, saying, "I heard pig's trotters are good for milk production, so I made a special point to ask Baoyu, and he gave me all four of them."
Wang Meilan was even more pleased to hear this. While it was true she doted on Zhao Jun most, she had never been harsh with her three daughters. They were her own flesh and blood, after all.
Her eldest daughter had just given birth, and she worried about her constantly. She just couldn't get away from the house to visit Zhao Chun often.
"Alright, alright. Son, you take all four trotters tomorrow, and pack some extra meat for your sister, too."
"You got it!" Seeing he was about to get away with it, Zhao Jun nearly laughed out loud. He quickly struck while the iron was hot. "I'll leave early tomorrow, then. I want to spend some extra time with my little nephew."
"Okay, okay, Mom will go heat the water for you now." As she spoke, Wang Meilan started to get off the kang.
Just then, a smiling Zhao Youcai suddenly spoke up.
He said, "No need. I get off work early tomorrow, so I'll be back by noon. I'll take it to Dachun after lunch."
When Zhao Jun heard that, his heart sank. "Dad, if you get off early, you should just rest at home! I can go by myself," he said anxiously.
Zhao Youcai looked at Zhao Jun and smiled. "Then we'll go together, father and son."
Zhao Jun was speechless. He mumbled a dejected reply and returned to his room.
Watching Zhao Jun's back disappear through the doorway, the smile on Zhao Youcai's face widened. 'The little rascal is getting crafty,' he thought.
Not long after Zhao Jun got back to his room, Wang Meilan came in with a basin of water and a towel. After reminding him to get some rest, she left him alone.
Just as Zhao Youcai had said, running through the mountains all day was exhausting. The hot foot soak washed away his fatigue, and a wave of drowsiness hit him immediately.
Zhao Jun disposed of the foot-washing water and hung the towel to dry in the yard. Then he went back to his room, shut the door, and propped a stool against it.
The stool wasn't meant to barricade the door, but to act as an early warning.
He was so tired from the long day that his eyelids felt heavy. Not sleeping wasn't an option. Zhao Jun decided to go to sleep now and wake up in the middle of the night to stand guard. The moment Zhao Youcai burst in, he would jump out the window and run for it.
With everything settled, Zhao Jun turned off the light and crawled under the covers, still fully clothed. Within two minutes, he was snoring.
Less than five minutes after Zhao Jun fell asleep, in the east room, Zhao Youcai put down his water cup and started to get off the kang.
"Going to the outhouse?" Wang Meilan asked casually.
"Nope," Zhao Youcai said. "Going to see our son."
"Hm?" Wang Meilan paused, asking curiously, "Don't you usually go in the middle of the night?"
"Heh heh..." Zhao Youcai chuckled. "I always go late at night, so the kid's gotten wise to it. Better to get the beating over with early, so he can get some real sleep afterward."
"Alright then." Wang Meilan gritted her teeth. "That little hellion needs to be taught a lesson! Don't let him get away," she said fiercely.
It was no wonder Wang Meilan, despite her innocent, wide-eyed looks, had turned traitor. The main reason was that Zhao Jun was just too infuriating. If he wasn't disciplined properly, he might get into serious trouble on the mountain one day, and then it would be too late for tears.
Zhao Youcai didn't answer. A cold glint flashed in his eyes as he slipped on his shoes and shuffled toward Zhao Jun's room.
Zhao Youcai was the head cook at the Forest Farm. Years of chopping ingredients and tossing heavy woks had given him incredible strength, especially in his hands and arms.
When it came to arm wrestling, he was number one out of the nearly one thousand people at the Forest Farm.
He arrived outside Zhao Jun's door. Listening to the snores coming from behind the thin pinewood panel, Zhao Youcai gently pushed, controlling his strength, and felt something blocking the way.
Zhao Youcai knew that none of the doors in their house had locks. 'The little rascal must have blocked it with a stool.'
'My son's growing up.'
A gratified, fatherly smile appeared on his face. He suddenly put his weight into it, shoving the door hard. As it swung open, the stool was sent sliding across the floor.
The bang of the door was accompanied by the clatter of the falling stool.
Zhao Jun was jolted awake. He had been asleep, but for less than ten minutes, so he wasn't yet in a deep slumber.
'Could Mom be looking for something in my room?'
But then he saw a dark shadow lunging toward him. Zhao Jun scrambled up, diving for the window to push it open.
Just then, Zhao Youcai pounced onto the kang, his hand shooting out to grab the back of Zhao Jun's collar.
'I'm done for! Should've slept naked.' Just as he pushed the window open, Zhao Jun was yanked back onto the kang. He frantically rolled over, pulling the quilt from beneath him and wrapping it tightly around himself, holding it in place with both hands.
WHUMP!
WHUMP!
...
A series of muffled thuds echoed through the room—the sound of Zhao Youcai's fists slamming into the quilt.