Chapter 9: The Dowry

Meng Nian looked at the dilapidated old house, unspeakably uncomfortable, here carried the whole childhood, at that time her parents were very busy with work and had no time to take care of her, so she could only live with her grandparents in the countryside, every day was simple and full of happiness, going to school during the day or laughing and playing with friends, at night grandparents will tutor homework to educate themselves on how to behave in the world, the happiest thing every day is to listen to grandpa tell history, those historical figures have become vivid in grandpa's mouth, people will not feel bored when they listen to it a hundred and ten times, when she was a child, the most afraid is that grandma taught her etiquette, she has not understood why she wants to learn this, other friends do not learn, Every time she protests, she will be scolded by her grandparents, if a girl has no manners, she has no soul, but she likes the stories told by her grandfather. Meng Nian touched the bricks and tiles here, they all accompanied him through the best childhood, and I don't know when I will be able to come back in the future.

When Fan Fan first came to the countryside, everything was fresh, and he was having fun on the side, pulling the weeds in the yard for a while, picking wild flowers, catching butterflies, and chasing birds, these are all fun that cannot be seen in the city, Meng Nian shook his head and said: Fan Fan, you just play in the yard and don't walk around, mother goes to the back room to get some things.

Fan Fan looked at Meng Nian with sweat on his head and said, "Okay, Mom, you go and get busy, I won't walk around." After that, I went to the grass to find something.

Meng Nian walked into the back room with a hoe and shovel, and her grandmother told her before she died: Grandpa left her a dowry before he died, and it was under the Taishi chair where grandpa often sits. Over the years, she never thought about digging it out and taking a look, she just felt that she didn't need this, and now that she was going abroad, she didn't know when she would come back, and she felt sad when she thought of it.

The ground of the old house is made of soil, it is pressed very tightly, as hard as a stone, Meng Nian knows how painful this fall is, when he was a child, he didn't fall less, every time it was a blue and a purple piece, and it would be swollen for a few days if it was serious, Meng Nian moved away from the Taishi chair, waved a hoe to plow the ground, there was no change in the ground when a hoe went down, and after digging for a while, he only dug a little, Meng Nian waved his sour shoulder, and muttered in his mouth: This soil is really strong enough.

Fan Fan didn't know when he came to his side, squatted on the ground and said: Mom, what are you doing?

Meng Nian turned around and smiled and said: Dig up the treasure!

Fan Fan said excitedly: I'm here to help too, okay?

Meng Nian sat on the ground and said, "Okay!

Fan Fan smiled slyly and said, "But the treasure will give me a share!"

Meng Nian took Fan Fan in his arms and tickled it and said, "Okay! You calculate me."

Fan Fan itched so much that he couldn't do it, hehehe laughed, and finally had to beg for mercy.

The mother and son frolicked for a while and continued to dig for treasures, and after digging for a while, they finally saw the box, and Fan Fan saw that the box was dug and the whole person shouted excitedly: Mom, dig it, dig it.

Meng Nian smiled and said: Yes, yes, I dug it, come and help my mother carry it up. The box is relatively heavy, Meng Nian can move it alone, she just wants Fan Fan to participate in digging up the treasure for fun, sure enough, when Fan Fan heard that his mother asked him to help carry it, his whole face was a satisfied smile, and the little short hand carried the bottom of the box, and he used the strength of breastfeeding, this was the first time Meng Nian saw his son's appearance, and he couldn't help laughing.

The mother and son carried the box aside, Meng Nian filled the soil back into the hole, stepped on it with his feet, and poured some water on it after the soil was compacted, and then used a shovel to grind the soil more tightly, so that it would be similar to before after drying, and then moved the Taishi chair back.

Fan Fan poured the box for a while, but he couldn't open it, so he turned around and asked Meng Nian for help: Mom, this treasure box can't be opened.

Meng Nian pointed to the lock and said: You can't rely on brute force, you see if there is a lock here, so only the key can be opened.

Fan Fan looked at Meng Nian with clean eyes and said, "Then do you have the key?"

Meng Nian shook his head and said, "Although I don't have the key, I have this!" After speaking, he waved the hoe in his hand.

Fan Fan shook his finger and said:

o,

o, you can't rely on brute force, before he finishes speaking, Meng Nian raised his hand and swung it down with a hoe, the box was made of wood, and it cracked when he went down with a hoe.

Fan Fan stretched out his fingers and took out a string of pearl necklaces from the gap, his eyes lit up, and said to Meng Nian: Mom, you must look good when you wear this, and after speaking, he compared it on his chest.

Meng Nian was already speechless for her son, although she was young, but sometimes she really didn't talk like a child should have, and she used tools to open the box, which was full of jewelry, this was the dowry given to her by her grandparents, Meng Nian couldn't help crying when she looked at the box full of dowry, and fell on the pearl necklace drop by drop, making the original lustrous pearl become crystalline, Fan Fan looked at the crying mother and sat on the ground at a loss to comfort her: Mom, don't cry, I'm so uncomfortable.

Meng Nian remembered that Fan Fan was still by his side, wiped his tears with his hand and said: Mom is fine, don't worry about Fanfan, these are the dowries left by grandpa to mom, and mom misses them a little.

Fan Fan put his arms around Meng Nian's neck and said: Do they like their mother?

Meng Nian stopped what he was doing and said, "Of course, I'm the pearl of their palm, Nuo, just like this pearl."

Fan Fan kissed Meng Nian's cheek and said: You are also my baby.

Meng Nian picked up a pair of earrings and compared them next to his ears and said: Fanfan, is it good-looking?

Fan Fan took the earrings in Meng Nian's hand and said: It must look good, my mother looks good in anything, come and I will put it on for you. After speaking, he brushed the hair next to Meng Nian's ear, carefully hung the earrings, and kept praising with his small mouth: It looks good, and after speaking, he kissed Meng Nian's face, Meng Nian's face showed a happy smile, no matter what happens in the future, as long as Fan Fan is by his side, it is enough.

Meng Nian counted the contents of the box, and found a delicate wooden box at the end, which contained yellowed photographs of her childhood, with Kim Zhengyi and Secretary Wu, as well as several children her age, and pictures of the theater.

Where is this? It's beautiful. Fan Fan asked

Meng Nian looked at Fan Fan and said: I don't know, my mother forgot.

Fan Fan pointed to the little girl in the photo and said: Is this a mother?

Meng Nian nodded

Fan Fan pointed to the wooden box and said, "What is this?"

Meng Nian looked down and saw that it was a letter, the letter was wrapped in a cowhide envelope, Meng Nian opened the envelope, this was an engagement letter, it was a doll that her grandfather set for her, and there was half a jade pendant in it.

Fan Fan stepped on his feet to see what was written on it, but he didn't know any of the words on it, what was written on it by his mother, and finally Fan Fan asked, driven by curiosity.

Meng Nian shook his head and said: It's nothing, it's just the motivational words of grandpa telling her mother to study hard and work hard.

Fan Fan saw that it was not interesting, the treasure digging also came to an end, the sleepy insect also came, and kept yawning, Meng Nian looked at the sleepy son and couldn't help laughing, hugged him, coaxed, and soon Fan Fan fell asleep, Meng Nian put the child on the Taishi chair and continued to pack up the dowry, she looked at the marriage book and put it away, what age is it.

Meng Nian packed all the dowry and threw it into the trunk, and then made some of her grandmother's specialty dishes, which may be the last meal she will eat here.