The setting sun dyed the cooking smoke of Wang Family Village a golden-red, and the stone roller under the old locust tree at the village entrance still held the day's residual warmth.
Shen Nanchu leaned against the roller, twirling a blade of foxtail grass between her fingers.
Pei Zhengnian stood nearby, his army-green figure stretched long by the sunset.
"What do you think we should do?"
"What do you want to do?"
They spoke in unison.
Pei Zhengnian turned around. The setting sun fell into his deep-set eyes, making his pupils gleam.
"This time, we need to leave them with an impression they'll never forget. Make those bastards' legs go weak just hearing the words 'Wang Family Village' next time."
Shen Nanchu raised an eyebrow, the foxtail grass spinning in her fingers.
"Oh? Does Regimental Commander Pei have another brilliant stratagem up his sleeve?"
Pei Zhengnian tilted his chin towards the mountain pass to the west, where the bluestone cliffs gleamed coldly in the twilight.
"There's been a lot of heavy rain lately. It's only natural for a few rocks on the mountain to become loose."
He said this in a flat tone, as if remarking that the wheat in the fields was ready for harvest.
Shen Nanchu snorted a laugh.
"That trick's hardly new. It's older than Uncle Wang's aged vinegar at the village head."
"You used the same move last time to deal with Feng Kangping and his crew. What, is that all the stock in Regimental Commander Pei's arsenal of tactics?"
A smile played on Pei Zhengnian's lips, not annoyed in the slightest.
"The old tricks might be old, but they work."
He lowered his voice.
"Besides, I have a follow-up move."
"Oh?"
Shen Nanchu grew interested, leaning in closer.
"Do tell."
"What do you think of the scarecrows in the fields?"
Pei Zhengnian gestured with his chin towards the rice paddies not far away.
In the sunset, several scarecrows wearing tattered straw hats swayed gently in the evening breeze.
"It's dark in the mountains, and the wind is strong. If they were to come to life..."
Shen Nanchu understood instantly, a sly glint flashing in her eyes.
"Playing ghost tricks? That's certainly fresher than throwing rocks."
She stood on tiptoe to look up the mountain. Twilight was already creeping up the slopes.
Although these were the times of 'Smashing the Four Olds', when faced with something science couldn't explain, who wouldn't feel a twinge of fear?
Thousands of years of ghost and deity folklore couldn't be shattered just by saying so.
"But it's still missing something."
Shen Nanchu remembered what she had seen on the mountainside earlier, and her eyes lit up.
"We need something to make them utterly convinced."
Pei Zhengnian raised an eyebrow, about to ask what, but Shen Nanchu waved her hand.
"Don't worry about that part. Leave it to me."
"As for the rest of the deployment, you know the drill. No need for me to say more."
"Alright."
Pei Zhengnian didn't press further, though the curiosity in his eyes deepened.
He knew Shen Nanchu too well. This woman either didn't act, or when she did, it was always a masterstroke.
"I'll have Xiong Lei and the others move the rocks and set up the mechanisms. Shall I go with you?"
"No need. I'll take Yunzhou."
Shen Nanchu called towards a spot not far away.
"Pei Yunzhou."
Pei Yunzhou, who was leaning against the car door catching his breath, immediately scurried over.
"Second Sister-in-law, you called?"
"Come up the mountain with me. Something good."
"Okay."
As she turned, Shen Nanchu winked at Pei Zhengnian.
"Tonight, I guarantee you'll be in for an eye-opener."
...
At the foot of the mountain, Yu Zhen sat on a rock massaging his cramped calf, a bellyful of anger with nowhere to vent.
His coarse cloth shirt was torn in several places, smeared with mud, grass stains, and, up close, carried the distinct smell of manure.
A souvenir from his headlong plunge into a manure pit that afternoon.
"Leader, the water's boiling!"
Feng Kangping carried a dented aluminum pot, tiptoeing his way towards Yu Zhen, stopping a full three meters away, not daring to get any closer.
The several Red Armband members following him also covered their noses, their eyes darting about, afraid of catching a whiff of that odor.
Yu Zhen's face flushed crimson, not from shame, but from rage.
He'd suffered no small amount of hardship in Wang Family Village today—eight falls and two encounters with manure. Finally making it to the foot of the mountain, only to endure his subordinates' disdain.
"What are you standing so far away for? Do I have lice or something?"
Yu Zhen bellowed.
Feng Kangping plastered a fake smile on his face, inching forward another twenty centimeters, just enough to hand the pot over.
"Of course not, Leader! It's mainly to avoid accidentally splashing this hot water on you."
Inwardly, however, he was grumbling: Worse than lice!
That smell could scare off a weasel from half a mile away!
The skinny fellow next to him couldn't help but interject,
"Leader, maybe while the water's heating, you could go wash up again in the stream?"
No sooner had he spoken than Feng Kangping shot him a glare.
Wasn't he just rubbing salt in the wound?
Yu Zhen indeed exploded.
"Wash? I scrubbed my skin raw in that stream!"
"It's all because you lot are useless, can't even take a village, making me suffer this!"
Feng Kangping hurriedly tried to smooth things over.
"Leader, please calm down. It's mainly that this village is... uncanny."
"Last time we went, we were chased by rocks rolling down the mountain. And that army wife, she looks soft and weak, but she's full of devilish ideas!"
His words were half complaint, half excuse.
The subtext was clear: See, it's not that I'm incompetent, the enemy is just too cunning.
Yu Zhen, however, wasn't buying it. He stared at the dark mountain silhouette in the distance, greed flashing in his eyes.
The higher-ups had promised: as long as he uncovered the secret in these mountains, they'd move him up a notch.
He was sick of this tiny county town of Ning'an.
He wanted to go to the capital.
Once in the capital, what wouldn't he have?
The light in Yu Zhen's eyes grew brighter and brighter.
"After we eat, we head up the mountain. There are so many of us, and we're armed. Even if we meet wolves, we'll strip them of their skin!"
Feng Kangping's heart sank. He was truly afraid of this Wang Family Village.
But seeing the ambition in Yu Zhen's eyes, he didn't dare refuse, only nodding and bowing in agreement.
"The leader is absolutely right! We have strength in numbers, we're sure to succeed!"
Inwardly, he was calculating: If something really happens later, I'd better run fast.
The other Red Armband members nearby started a fire to cook. The aluminum pot bubbled with a porridge of wild vegetables mixed with half a bag of cornmeal, its aroma gradually spreading.
Yu Zhen sniffed the air, temporarily suppressing his anger.
Regardless, filling his stomach came first.
...
On the other side of the mountain, twilight had already woven a large net.
Shen Nanchu led Pei Yunzhou along a forest path, their feet making soft rustling sounds on the fallen leaves.
The scent of pine needles filled the woods. Occasionally, a bird returning late for the night would flutter down, chirping incessantly.
"Second Sister-in-law, what are we doing up the mountain? It's getting dark, time to go home for dinner."
Pei Yunzhou muttered softly, though his eyes curiously scanned their surroundings.
"You'll know in a moment."
Shen Nanchu finished speaking and stopped.
She pointed towards the bushes by the path.
"Look, what's that?"
Pei Yunzhou followed her finger and saw several small insects resting on green leaves, their rears emitting a faint green glow, like little stars pinned to the grass.
"Fireflies!"
Pei Yunzhou's eyes lit up.
"Correct."
Shen Nanchu pulled some cut paper and a small roll of hemp string from her pocket. "We're going to catch fireflies and make lanterns."
Pei Yunzhou was utterly baffled.
"Catch fireflies to make lanterns? Don't we have electric lights at home?"
"You guess!"
"..."
