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Wild Grass Racing
墨書 Inktalez
In the midst of the fervor of "Smashing the Four Olds," the new year of 1970 arrived quietly, with a week passing by in the biting cold wind. In the remote mountainous region of southwestern Hunan, secluded people stubbornly continued to use their own calendar, marking it as the 30th day of the 11th month of the lunar year 1969. At the foot of the mountain, several old houses built during the Guangxu period lay quietly.
At noon, wisps of smoke began to rise from the blue tiles on the roof as the laborers from the production team returned home after a long day of work. They needed to quickly grab a few bites of hot rice to gather strength for the hours of farming that lay ahead.
Suddenly, from the wooden house nestled beside the bamboo grove, a series of cries echoed, and I witnessed the first ray of light in this world. The fifth Grandma, who had come to assist with the delivery, skillfully wrapped the six-and-a-half-pound baby in a tattered piece of cotton cloth and carried it into the main room. My grandfather, who had dedicated himself to grassroots land reform in the early days after liberation, was bowing respectfully toward the empty space in the middle of the wall while murmuring something.
"Uncle, Qingmei has given birth. He is the first boy in our family's De character class."
fifth Grandma's hearty voice rang in Grandpa's ears, particularly loud and filled with a special joy. It spread from the hall to the lower courtyard, then to the upper courtyard, and extended to the entire Zhu Shan Bay.
Grandpa turned around, took the package from fifth Grandma's hand, and his rough hands caressed my tender face. He lifted a corner of the cotton pad to look at the small object between my legs, a gleam appearing on his face. As he handed me over to the rapidly approaching grandmother, he spoke loudly, yet seemingly to himself:
"Yes, we have a new baby boy in our family. It's the 'De' generation. What name should we give him?"
Following the generation order of "Zhen, Chun, Cheng, Shi, De, Yun, Hui, Ji, Ming, Liang," since the two ancestors of the Zhen generation were assigned to Zhu Shan Bay, the population has been thriving. When I was born, the De generation had already reached the eleventh position. However, the lower house was a bit quiet. Not to mention that my grandfather's several cousins had no successors, but also his six brothers, the eldest three of whom had no children. In the new era, the three grandfathers worked hard all their lives and had quite a few children, but among my father's generation, there were only five. According to age, my father is the eldest of the De generation in the lower house.
As the first boy of the De generation born in the lower house, my birth relieved the elders and choosing a name for me would become a banner of joy for them.
Over a hundred kilometers away, my father, who was teaching deep in the mountains of the neighboring county, returned home. Since my mother and I were safe, a family meeting was immediately convened to discuss my name.
Grandfather spoke first: "We have moved from the New House to Zhu Shan Bay. The child is the first in the lower courtyard's De character class, so we should choose a name based on our lineage."
Father chimed in: "Yes, the people in the upper courtyard always bully us because we are fewer in number. I hope this child can help suppress their arrogance. Right now, the People's Liberation Army is quite formidable; how about we name him Dejun?"
Mother lay half-reclined on the bed, her voice soft yet imbued with a sense of determination as she said slowly, "We are in a new era. Chairman Mao advocates for breaking the Four Olds. Even in the countryside, people like Fourth Uncle are naming their children 'Qingxin' and 'Supporting the Military.' My child cannot be any less."
"Not following the generational naming is fine," Grandfather said, recognizing the validity of Mother's words and expressing his stance first.
After a long moment of contemplation, Father suggested, "How about naming the child 'Biaosong'?"
Dad finished speaking and looked at Mom, his face filled with joy and pride. Under Dad's gaze, Mom nodded knowingly, and the couple smiled at each other, coming to an agreement without planning: "This name is good!" Grandpa, upon hearing Mom's words, was very happy and said, "Let's call him Biaosong, so that the child can be as majestic and powerful as a little tiger!"
Mom said softly, "Dad, we're talking about '飙' (biāo), not the '彪' (biāo) you mentioned."
Grandpa, who had only attended night school during the land reform and learned a bit of literacy, didn't quite understand and said, "Not this '彪,' could it be '标' (biāo)?"
Dad reached out, took out a piece of paper from grandpa's cigarette pack, and then pulled out a pen from his jacket pocket, writing a big "飙" on the paper.
Looking at her grandfather's puzzled expression, Mom straightened up and said clearly, "Dad, there’s a reason we chose this name for the child."
Dad raised his hand and replied, "Mei, you just gave birth and need to rest. Let me handle this."
"The name we chose has a significant origin. The character 'biao' has a deep meaning; everyone is currently studying Chairman Mao's Selected Works and his poetry. This character comes from the last line of a poem he wrote, 'Butterfly Love Flower: From Tingzhou to Changsha'—'The wild gale falls from the sky.' It has quite a momentum! The character 'song' is also meaningful. There are tall pine trees everywhere in the mountains behind our house; they are easy to nurture. Moreover, Marshal Chen Yi also wrote a poem titled 'Green Pine,' which begins with the lines—'Heavy snow presses on the green pine, the green pine stands tall and straight.' Right now, it’s snowing, and we hope the child can grow strong and upright under the onslaught of heavy snow!"
Hearing Dad's explanation, Grandpa, although still not quite understanding, happily slapped the bed board and said, "Let's name the child Biaosong!"
Grandpa's slap startled the sleeping child, who cried out. Outside the window, the howling north wind seemed to grow stronger. Dad excitedly shouted:
"The storm has come down from the heavens for me!"
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