In the evening, my sister Tian Jing came to take over with a lunch box and said with a smile: "Brother, I took 3,000 yuan from home and just saved it." ”

"Where did you get the money?" asked Tian Baojun.

Tian Jing wrote lightly: "Oh, the freight of the truck he just picked up yesterday, isn't he waiting for the money here, I'll take it and save it first." ”

Tian Baojun was silent.

When feeding his mother, Tian Baojun saw a red and swollen piece of his sister's hand, and he was puzzled, grabbed his sister's arm, frowned and asked, "Did he beat you?"

Tian Jing looked flustered, covered the injury with his hand and said, "No, I touched it." ”

Tian Baojun rolled up the sleeve on his sister's arm and saw that it was bruised, and his anger suddenly came up, and he said angrily: "I'm looking for him! Why are you beating someone?"

Tian Jing hurriedly grabbed her brother's clothes, and said in a panic: "Brother, don't make any more trouble, hit twice and hit twice, the more troublesome things go, I can't stay in that home, it doesn't matter if I go, what should the child do?"

Tian Baojun stood on the edge of the bed panting, looking at the old mother on the bed, and then looking at the injury on his sister's arm, he felt that tears were about to burst out of his eyes, turned his back, and said after a while: "Sister, it's hard for you, brother will find a way later!"

Tian Jing smiled and said, "It's okay." ”

Tian's mother, who was lying on the bed, said weakly: "Don't ...... Cure it, let me die. ”

The brother and sister suddenly changed their expressions, forced a smile and comforted their mother, so that they finally covered up the past, and only then opened their mouths to eat a few bites of food.

When Tian Baojun went to wash the lunch box, the pager rang, picked it up and took a look, and the message was "81", which was the code agreed by several old comrades-in-arms. "81" means August 1, the meaning of Army Day.

Tian Baojun didn't want to reply to this call, 20 years after demobilization, someone organized a comrade-in-arms association, and many comrades-in-arms in Guhe Town often organized gatherings, and they often moved around with each other.

In the first few years, these comrades-in-arms got along very well, and they usually developed and struggled in their respective fields, but after a long time, this "circle" changed its taste.

Among these comrades-in-arms, some have developed well and become big money in the company, but most of them are average.

With the difference in class and status, there is a difference in the ideas between people, and the party slowly turns into a comparison and show-off.

Although Tian Baojun's salary as a police officer over the years is still passable, there are old and young, and everyone's small family is supported by their own salaries, and it is a little difficult to bear these people's courtesies, so they deliberately alienate these comrades-in-arms.

Gradually, these comrades-in-arms also realized Tian Baojun's coldness, and they usually called him symbolically at drinking parties, and some people privately talked about him as a policeman, and he looked down on these old comrades-in-arms with high eyes.

Tian Baojun didn't reply the first time he paged, the other party called three times in a row, Tian Baojun said in his heart, this is not idle drinking, there must be something wrong with someone, although he is tight, it is not good to pretend to be a fool in the matter of etiquette, he came to the phone booth at the entrance of the hospital, and replied to the call on the pager.

"Hey, Baojun, what are you doing? I called back so late, and my brothers are waiting for you. ”

As soon as Tian Baojun heard the voice, he knew that it was Huang Xuewen, and when they met him last time, they heard that he was not very good, and he lost money in business several times.

"Oh, it's a study of literature, what's wrong, isn't there something wrong with a comrade-in-arms, you have to be courteous, I've been ...... recently. I'm a little tight on hand, you help me put it on, and I pay you back. ”

"No, no, what's the ceremony, it's just to get together with you, nothing else! Haven't we seen you for a long time? Big policeman, we know you're busy, it didn't take a week to find you, Xiaojian and Haozi are here, come over quickly, let's have a good drink and two glasses, in the Qinglin Restaurant on Renmin Road in the center of the town." ”

Xiaojian, Haozi, Xuewen, the relationship between these three people and Tian Baojun has always been very good, but Tian Baojun's life has been unsatisfactory in recent years, and he is a little deliberately estranged.

“...... No, I ...... My mother is sick, I'm in the hospital now, I'm worried about money, how can I have the heart to drink?"

"You're, you're a policeman, you still don't have money? Don't play Tai Chi with your buddies, I'll treat you, and we'll go to the new disco in town after drinking in the evening." ”

"I didn't talk to you, really, can I still joke with my mother?"

There was a murmur on the other side of the phone, and after a few seconds, he said: "Baojun, I just told my brothers, which hospital is it in? Is the town hospital serious? You wait for us for a while, let's go over now and see if we can help." ”

"Don't use it, my sister takes care of it, the doctor said, my mother is a chronic disease, as long as the medicine is not used, it will be fine slowly." ”

"Are you alright?"

"It's fine. ”

"If it's really okay, let Xiao Jing watch, you can come over, didn't you just say that you are short of money? ”

Tian Baojun's eyes lit up when he heard this, he really had nowhere to find the iron shoes, and it took no effort to get it, and he was worried about where to borrow the money, so he sent it to the door, and hurriedly responded: "Hey, okay, Xuewen, thank you in advance, then I'll go over immediately." ”

I hung up the phone and paid, and rode my bicycle directly to Qinglin Restaurant.

Entering the room to greet and sit down, Tian Baojun found that compared with the last time they met, Huang Xuewen was not an exaggeration to describe it as a rebirth, a very fitting gray suit, shiny leather shoes, and a motorcycle key on the table, the key was printed with English Honda, Tian Baojun knew, this is a Honda motorcycle, pure imports, more than 30,000 units.

Xiaojian and Haozi are also brightly dressed, and when they talk and talk, they seem to be looking at Huang Xuewen, as if they are suddenly half a head shorter, and they have completely lost the equal and harmonious relationship between their comrades-in-arms in the past.

The dishes on the table are not only hard dishes, but also very chic, and the wine is also good wine, aged by mountains and rivers, a bottle of seventy or eighty, plus two boxes of Chinese cigarettes.

With a sweep of his eyes, Tian Baojun estimated in his heart that this meal plus tobacco and alcohol would cost at least five or six hundred yuan, and it was about to catch up with his monthly salary, so he couldn't help smacking his lips.

After a few glasses of wine, Huang Xuewen squinted his eyes and said, "Baojun, I just called you and heard that the old lady is sick, how is her condition?"

"Alas!" Tian Baojun sighed and said: "Chronic cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases require long-term medication treatment, but this disease is not life-threatening, it is economic...... It's a bit unaffordable, and now I have to take more than 100 inpatient drugs a day, so I'm worried!"

"Hehe, buddy, isn't it just about money? Huang Xuewen took a puff of cigarette and puffed out thick smoke from his nose.

Tian Baojun was a little embarrassed, and said hesitantly: "Listen to the doctor, it may be ...... At least...... There must be one or two thousand. ”

"Haha, buddy, I thought it was a lot of money. Huang Xuewen turned his head and said to Xiaojian: "Tomorrow morning, you take 30,000 yuan and send Baojun to the hospital." ”

"Okay, Brother Wen. Xiao Jian nodded.

Tian Baojun was uneasy in his heart, waved his hand and said: "You don't need so much, you can learn literature, 20,000 yuan is enough, this money ...... I'll save for a while, and I'll pay you back. ”

Huang Xuewen pressed Tian Baojun's hand and said: "Baojun, don't see me, what is our relationship? Comrades-in-arms are a friend of life and death who crawled out of the trench, didn't the old platoon commander say that on the battlefield, it is a friendship that can give each other's backs to each other, you can use this money, I don't care if you want it, when you have it, when you pay it back!"

Tian Baojun's face was red and white, "That'...... Thank you then. You...... You've done me a great favor, so I won't say anything, I'll toast you. ”

Huang Xuewen picked up the wine glass and said with a smile: "That's right, come, do it." Let's eat and drink well today, and we have to have a good time. Xiaojian, Haozi, let's take Baojun to the 'rocket artillery' karaoke to play in a while, get a few girls, let's have a good time......"

After saying that, the three of them burst out laughing.

Tian Baojun said embarrassedly: "Forget about that place, I'll ...... Public officials, it's not appropriate to go to that place. ”

Huang Xuewen stopped laughing and said, "What's wrong? The police can't entertain and entertain? Let me tell you, the girls over there are beautiful......

"No, I'm going to go to you, I'm ...... I still have to take care of my mother in the hospital. Tian Baojun made an excuse.

"Oh, yes, I forgot about this stubble, then I eat, you go to the hospital quickly, and we will also go to see the old man and buy something by the way." Huang Xuewen said with a straight face.

"No, no, I'm grateful to lend me money. Tian Baojun said with a smile.

Huang Xuewen smiled: "That's okay, you're welcome." ”

Tian Baojun smiled and said, "Hey, good." ”

After drinking a few more glasses of wine, Tian Baojun couldn't help but ask, "Xuewen, Xiaojian, Haozi, what kind of business are you doing now?" It's very good, I see that Xuewen's motorcycle key is Honda King, I've seen this motorcycle, I heard that one costs 20,000 or 30,000 yuan." ”

Huang Xuewenyun chuckled lightly and didn't speak, Haozi leaned over and replied: "In the past two years, we have followed Brother Wen to run a teahouse in the town, and the business is very good." ”

"Is this business so profitable?" asked Tian Baojun.

"It seems that you don't know about the things here, now that everyone has money, it's normal to talk about business, play mahjong, drink a pot of tea, and spend 1200. Haozi said.

"One hundred and ten yuan?" Tian Baojun pondered these four words, "A pot of tea costs one hundred and ten yuan?"

Haozi was just about to speak, Huang Xuewen waved his hand, and Haozi immediately shut up.

Huang Xuewen lit another cigarette, squeezed out a smile and said, "Baojun, come, drink and drink." My teahouse is called the Old Man Teahouse, it's on Erma Road, Baojun, when you have time, go over to play with me and get you a pot of good tea to drink. ”

Tian Baojun picked up the wine glass, and wanted to ask again, but when he glanced at Huang Xuewen's gloomy face, he seemed to be a little taboo about the teahouse, so he didn't speak.

After a while, Huang Xuewen's face eased, and he gradually smiled, as if he had forgotten what had just happened, Tian Baojun excused himself to go back to the hospital, and Huang Xuewen and the three of them were polite and sent Tian Baojun to the door.

Standing at the door of the hotel, watching Tian Baojun ride a bicycle and drift away, Huang Xuewen sneered.

"Brother Wen, do you really get money for Baojun? I see that he can't get up to the Year of the Monkey and the Horse Moon, didn't he take the money and throw it into the pit?" Haozi asked puzzled.

"Hehe, this money is not spent in vain. Huang Xuewen narrowed his eyes.

"Brother Wen must have a backhand. Xiao Jian said with a hand.

Huang Xuewen snorted coldly, and said with a smile: "Go back, and then finish the rest of the wine, we should return karaoke to karaoke." ”