Zhang Xiaopaw took the white cloth, spread it in his palm, and saw three words written on the white cloth. He didn't know much about words, but he happened to know these three words, because these three words were his name: Zhang Xiaopaw.

The handwriting is beautiful, I think it was written by a woman.

For some reason, seeing these three words, Zhang Xiaopaw's heart throbbed suddenly, as if he was being held by a big hand, painful and suffocating. He looked up eagerly at the old village chief, and he knew that these three words must have something to do with his biological parents.

The old village chief seemed to know what Zhang Xiaopaw was thinking, nodded at him, and said, "These three words are indeed left by your relatives, but they are not written on this white cloth, but written on the ground with a reference pen." I felt that this was the only clue to your identity, so I rubbed it down and traced it on this white cloth. Today, when you are an adult, I will leave it to you for safekeeping. ”

"Village Chief Xie is a great favor to Grandpa. Zhang Xiaopaw kowtowed heavily, holding the white cloth, he couldn't help but have a sour nose and red circles, this was the first time in his life that he felt that his parents were real.

The old village chief stroked his beard and continued: "I look at the handwriting, Juan Xiu is soft, so I guess it should be left by your mother." Put it away, don't get dirty. In the future, it is the key to finding relatives and recognizing ancestors. As the saying goes, the love of parents is far-reaching. Your parents abandoned you here, perhaps out of some kind of desperation, and it was the best decision they could have made for you. Taking a step back, even if it's not, don't be annoyed with them and hate them. Life in the world, but only for decades, should be happy and chic, should not live in resentment and hatred. Do you understand?"

"Village Chief Xie's grandfather taught, and the pawn understood. Zhang Xiaopaw nodded vigorously, taking the old village chief's words to heart word for word. He folded up the white cloth, tore off a piece of cloth from his body, wrapped it up, and then put it in his arms and put it away.

"That's the first thing I'm going to explain to you, and then the second. The old village chief said, "Today you are an adult, you should take the table word, but your parents are not here, we can't make decisions for you, so we have to ask your opinion, whether to take it today or wait until you find your parents?"

"I take it today. Zhang Xiaopu said without hesitation, "Although my biological parents are not here, all my close relatives are here, so I can't be the master." I hope that the elders will give them names. ”

"In that case, I will give you a word. The old village chief nodded and said, "You are famous for Zhang Xiaopaw today, and the words are very useful." The pawn can go to the field to farm when he unloads his armor, and he can attack the city and break the ground, kill the enemy and capture the king, which should be of great use. ”

"A pawn is a big deal. Zhang Xiaopaw thought lightly in his mouth, and his eyes couldn't help but light up, and he hurriedly kowtowed and thanked him: "Thank you for the name." ”

"Hehe, okay. The old village chief nodded with satisfaction, this was what he thought of after thinking about it for several days and nights, and he was very happy to see that Zhang Xiaopaw liked it, and said: "Next is the third thing, since you have taken the table word, you should be included in the family tree, life in the world, when you have roots and a home, you can't be like duckweed." It stands to reason that you should find your biological parents and return to your ancestors. The road to finding relatives is endless, or it can be found in a day, or ten years, or even a lifetime. If you can't find it in your lifetime, what should you do? You grew up in Liujia Village, and this is your home. I discussed with all the village elders, and they all agreed that you would enter the village tree of Liujia Village, and you will have your own lineage and spread out. What do you think?"

"Really—really?" Zhang Xiaopaw looked at the old village chief in disbelief, wondering if he had heard it wrong, the old village chief actually allowed him, an outsider, to enter the village tree of Liujia Village, or to be in his own vein, it was like a dream.

But you must know that in this world of strict clans, rootless people are equivalent to wild people who jump out of stones, and they will be despised and despised wherever they go, even if they are captured as slaves, or even beaten to death on the street, no one will say a word for you, and it can be said that it is difficult for a rootless person to take root in the spectrum.

"Really. The old village chief nodded.

Bang bang bang –

Zhang Xiaopaw kowtowed nine times firmly, and choked up excitedly: "It's all arranged by the village chief's grandfather and the village elders." Great kindness, Zhang Dayong dare not forget it in this life. ”

"Okay, well, I wish you to get married as soon as possible and spread your branches. The old village chief gave his blessings.

Zhang Xiaopaw had tears in his eyes, and suddenly hugged Niu Dawa who was kneeling beside him, and shouted happily: "Dawa, I have roots! I have roots! Haha——"

"Haha-you have roots! You have roots!Haha-" The baby rejoiced with him, laughed together, and yelled together.

"I, Zhang Dayong, have roots!" Zhang Xiaopaw roared angrily in the sky, as if to tell the world.

When Zhang Xiaopaw calmed down from the excitement, the old village chief held a wicker in his hand, surrounded Zhang Xiaopaw and Niu Dawa, the wicker hit them lightly, and said while beating: "You two are adults today, you should remember the kindness and filial piety of your parents first, you should shoulder the responsibility and have the courage to take responsibility, you should be fearless of difficulties and have the courage to fight, you should benefit people and the world and have dedication, and you should be worthy of your heart and live happily." I don't ask you to do good every day, but you are born as human beings, and you must do good. ”

"Remember the teachings of the elders!" Zhang Xiaopaw and Niu Dawa kowtowed.

"Alright, get up. The old village chief said.

The two stood up and saluted, turning back to the crowd with adult excitement.

The old village chief knocked on the ground with his cane, smiled, and resumed the seriousness of the sacrifice. Everyone knew what the village chief was going to talk about next, and they couldn't help but fall silent. The sudden change in atmosphere made the children, who were not yet aware of their troubles, look at their parents at a loss, and what they got was the gesture of their parents to silence.

"Don't hunt in spring, don't cut down in summer, raise mountains and forests, and raise children and grandchildren. The admonitions of our ancestors have been passed down from generation to generation, and we have not dared to violate them for more than 600 years, and we never imagined that they would be destroyed in our hands. Hey—" The old village chief sighed, very sad and sad, but then smiled with relief, and said: "The admonition is dead, the person is alive, the death is to obey the admonition, and the flexibility is to live, I expect the ancestors to understand and forgive us." Okay, without further ado, let's get straight to the point. The drought is in charge, and the officials don't care whether we live or die, and if we want to survive, we can only find our own way. Our Liujia Village has been farming and hunting for generations, but now the fields can't be planted, so there is only one way to hunt. So if we want to survive, we have to go into the mountains to hunt. The grain tanks of every household have bottomed out, and they have even been eaten, so it is urgent to select a hunting team today and enter the mountains tomorrow. ”

"Old village chief, just name it directly, whoever is called by the big guy won't frown. ”

"yes. It's too much trouble to draw lots. ”

The villagers of Liujia Village are friendly and united, and the more difficult it is, the more they can hug each other.

The old village chief waved his hand and said, "It's arbitrary and unfair, so let's catch lots." Of course, there are a few who cannot participate in the lottery. Those who have only children in the family, those whose wives are pregnant, those who have no children in the family, minors, those who are over fifty years old, and those who are infirm and sick. I know everything about every family, and no one wants to get by. ”

Those who did not conform to the rules, but secretly fought ghost ideas, immediately complained.

The old village chief ignored the men and beckoned to a man who came forward with a wooden box. The box was placed on the ground, and directly above it was a fist-sized hole, and along the hole, you could see that there were many small paper balls inside.

"I've counted, and there are sixty-three who qualify—"

"Grandpa the village chief, have you counted me?

As soon as the old village chief spoke, he was interrupted by Niu Dawa's shouting, he had just held a ceremony today, for fear that the old village chief would forget.

"Forget it, forget it. The old village chief glared at Niu Dawa angrily, and then continued: "There are sixty-three paper balls in the box, and there are thirty paper balls with 'one' written on them, and the one who draws 'one' will enter the hunting team." ”

"Ah, old village chief, is there a mistake, how did you choose thirty people to enter the mountain?" someone asked in surprise, it stands to reason that the more the better.

The old village chief frowned and said, "What is terrible in the year of disaster is not natural disasters, but people's hearts. If all our strong laborers go into the mountains, what if bandits and bandits come to the village to loot? I heard that the south was in chaos, and they were all hungry and red-eyed, and they were all grabbing food everywhere. If the officials let it go, it won't be long before we come here. Therefore, the burden on your shoulders that stay at home is much heavier than that of those who go into the mountains. In addition, the physical exertion of going into the mountains is large, and we need to eat enough to have the strength to hunt, and we don't have much food, which is not enough to support more people to hunt in the mountains. ”

"Don't talk nonsense, listen to the old village chief. Niu Dawa's father, Niu Yao, shouted loudly, walked to the box, reached in and grabbed a paper ball, unfolded it, and immediately smiled, and said: "Haha, it's one, Lao Tzu's luck is good." ”

"Damn, who told you to catch it first? An open-chested man shouted. After scolding, he kicked over the right hand side of the one that met the conditions for drawing lots, and the one on the left side of the left side that met the conditions for drawing lots with one arm, killed the two competitors with lightning speed, and rushed to the side of the box with lightning and thunder, reached into the box and took out three paper balls, and said to the two people who fell to the ground and were still confused: "Brother, I will help you two catch together." ”

After that, the three paper balls were dismantled together, the first one was zero, and he threw it to one of them, the second one was also zero, and he threw it to the other person, and the third one finally opened one, and he immediately laughed wildly.

This man's name is Li Dashan, he is rough and heroic, and Niu Yao, the father of Niu Dawa, is the two most experienced hunters in the middle-aged people in the village.

The old village chief was so angry that he blew his beard and glared, and the crutch slammed on Li Dashan's body, asking him to put the paper ball back in the box and smoke it again. Li Dashan hugged his head in pain, and simply swallowed the paper ball into his stomach, making the old village chief helpless.

Coaxing-

As soon as this case was opened, it was all messed up. screaming and scolding, fists and kicks combined, like a group of barbarians.

Niu Dawa was punched and kicked eight times and nine times, and was even grabbed by a turtle grandson to the crotch of his pants, which hurt so much that his face was green, and finally he couldn't get close to the box within one step, how could he be lucky, picked up a paper ball on the ground, opened it and saw that it was a one, and immediately yelled to identify himself, and then learned from Li Dashan to swallow the paper ball into his stomach.

"Good brother, you just stay at home and take care of the village, and wait for me to go into the mountains and catch a bear for you to eat. Niu Dawa covered her crotch with one hand and patted Zhang Xiaopaw's shoulder with the other to comfort her.

Zhang Xiaopaw did not meet the conditions for drawing lots, and he did not dare to violate the rules set by the old village chief, so he could only stand by and watch.

"I'm going into the mountains. Zhang Xiaopaw finally couldn't bear the restlessness in his heart, shook off Niu Dawa's hand on his shoulder, strode to the old village chief, and said in a firm tone: "Grandpa the village chief, I want to go into the mountain." You know, I was born with great strength, and I have great use in the mountains. ”

The old village chief didn't look at him, shook his head and said, "You are a lone seedling, and you have the responsibility of inheriting the ancestry, so you are not allowed to enter the mountain." Besides, as I said earlier, staying at home to defend against thieves is even more useful. ”

Zhang Xiaopaw pursed his lips, he had never heard of thieves making trouble nearby since he was a child, and he felt that the old village chief was alarmist. Seeing that the old village chief had no intention of giving in with a straight face, Zhang Xiaopaw could only be cheeky, holding the old village chief's arm and begging coquettishly: "Village chief grandpa, please, let me go into the mountain." ”

The children in the village all know that this is a nirvana against the village chief's grandfather, as long as they don't make a mistake of principle, they can always ask the old village chief for forgiveness. Zhang Xiaopaw didn't use this trick less when he was a child, but he grew up over the years and was embarrassed to use it again. At this time, the old trick was repeated, although the cheeks were hot, but the skill was not reduced. Holding his arms and not shaking them a few times, the old village chief disarmed and surrendered.

"Stop, stop, my old bones can't stand your tossing like this, and if you shake it again, it will fall apart. The old village chief shouted angrily, pulled Zhang Xiaopaw a step away with a crutch, and scolded with a smile: "Stinky boy, do you know how to be ashamed? They are all people who want to marry their daughters-in-law and start a family, and they also learn the trick of opening crotch dolls." What's the matter, could it be that after marrying a daughter-in-law, you will let your daughter-in-law hold her and pee? Haha-"

Zhang Xiaopai's old face was flushed, and he was so ashamed that he wanted to find a crack in the ground to get into, but now was the critical moment of the struggle, and he couldn't escape from the battle, so he simply thickened his face, pretended not to hear anything, and said cleverly: "In front of your old man, Uncle Niu is a child, let alone me." Anyway, I don't care, if you don't agree with me going into the mountain, I'll stick to you all day long. ”

The old village chief didn't take his stubble, but pointed at the crowd with a crutch, and said, "Looking at Xizi's happy appearance, he must have grabbed a place to enter the mountain." His baby was born less than 100 days ago, and I went to see it on the day of the full moon wine. I just heard that the little doll was infected with a cold yesterday, coughed and had a fever, and tossed all night. I'm going to go into the mountains tomorrow, and the doll is sick, so I don't know if Kiko can hunt with peace of mind?"

"Hmph! To be a father you have to have the responsibility and responsibility of being a father, how can you leave the baby alone when she is sick, I will talk about him. Zhang Xiaopaw couldn't help but laugh and said.

"Pay attention to proportion, don't lose his face. The old village chief whispered. It's just that his advice seems to come a little slowly, and when he opened his mouth, Zhang Xiaopaw had already rushed into the crowd and arrived in front of Li Rongxi, without saying a word, he punched him in front of him, and then took advantage of Li Rongxi's stunned state to snatch the paper lot in his hand, and ran away.

The old village chief looked straight at the flower and said, "Young people now, the anger is great. ”