Chapter 1: Seongnam (5)

Pushing the income that they never dreamed of, Cheng Xiaojiu and Wang Ermao walked with extra energy. There are five or six miles from the dock to the donkey alley where the two live, and they actually arrived with a stick of incense. made an appointment to go to the boat together tomorrow morning to "earn a lot of money", and the two teenagers returned home separately. As soon as he opened the door, a string of laughter immediately came out of the courtyard of Wang Ermao's house, and people felt warm in their hearts, and they wanted to come over to have a good time. And the Cheng family next door to Ermao's house is still quiet, except for Cheng Xiaojiu's brisk footsteps and heavy wheezing, it can't stir up the slightest extra sound.

Sighing secretly, Cheng Xiaojiu poured the rice into the clay jar in the outhouse. Then, cautiously looking around, he carefully shoved the money under the wooden slump where he slept. In order to avoid being discovered at a glance, he covered the copper coin with several pieces of torn clothes and rotten socks that could no longer be worn. I made sure that even if a rat came in, it would be smoked to death by the smell of sweat emanating from the tattered clothes and socks, and my heart finally settled down. He sighed in a low voice, then took a basin of cold water and went to the sun to wipe his body.

He knew that his mother was asleep again, so he didn't dare to make too much noise. Since the beginning of summer, my mother's body has become weaker and weaker, and sometimes I can get confused when I squat on the ground and burn the fire. Lang Zhong said that he was suffering from ischemia, and he needed to buy some ginseng, ejiao and other things to make up for it. But now in this family, in addition to a few clay pots, which also belong to the mother and son, even the iron pots with cracks on the stove are begged from relatives, how can they make up the money to buy ginseng?!

Every time he thought of this, Cheng Xiaojiu felt that he was growing too slowly, and he couldn't grow up overnight, so that his mother suffered so much. Although my mother always comforted him and said, 'Don't worry, don't worry, people's luck is early and late, if you have this thought, your mother will be very happy!' But Cheng Xiaojiu is really afraid that when he finally has good luck, his mother has turned into a handful of loess in the suburbs!

Fortunately, I made two dollars today! While wiping away the sticky sweat from his body with cold water, he thought with relief. With two pieces of money, I can at least straighten up my chest and go to the pharmacy to grab two decoctions for my mother. Maybe, the truth is really like what Lang Zhong said, my mother is just weak, and if I drink a bowl of ginseng soup, I will immediately get rid of the disease!

After his mother was cured, he could go to Beijing with confidence and find an errand with his grandfather's old friend in the army. There is a way that is 30 years in Hedong and 30 years in Hexi, who stipulated that Cheng Xiaojiu is the life of carrying a big bag at the dock for the rest of his life? If you rely on your own strength to get some military exploits, maybe you will be able to attract the attention of His Majesty the Emperor and wash away the grievances suffered by Grandpa back then!

After all, he is still a young man, and the future is always full of hope. Thinking that maybe within a year or two, this family would come out of adversity, and the dark clouds in Cheng Xiaojiu's eyes slowly dissipated. While cleaning the mud and sweat stains on his body, he recalled what he had seen and heard today. Not only did he encounter a strange weather today, but the few people he met were all mysterious. Even Chengbo, who is most familiar with him, is very different from his habits today. It was as if after being hit by a hailstorm, the whole person changed. From stingy to generous, from arrogant to easy-going. From the eyes of a dog, become kind and kind!

Thinking of the smile on Chengbo's face when he handed out rice to himself, Cheng Xiaojiu couldn't help but shiver. As a half-grown child who experienced the vicissitudes of the world prematurely, he is far more sensitive to human feelings than his peers. In other words, he didn't believe that Cheng Bo, the steward of the Zhou Mansion in the township, who was famous for his treacherous and stingy, really paid him double in order to thank him for taking the lead in covering the grain ship with lacquered cloth. He believed that there was something else hidden behind the old guy's smile. Those eyes, in particular, always reminded him of a lone wolf he encountered while walking at night last spring. That's what the beasts of the mountains look at when they stare at their prey. Confident, calm, and chillingly deep.

But what are you afraid of at the moment? Cheng Xiaojiu smiled and poured these messy thoughts into the yard along with the sewage. This family is already easily patronized by thieves, so it is not afraid of other people's calculations at all. If Chengbo wants to take advantage of himself, then it is even better, as long as he is willing to pay enough price! Cheng Xiaojiu didn't have a high price for selling for himself in his heart, so he could ask him to do anything if he had two full meals a day for the mother and son, and then ask a good man to prescribe medicine to adjust his mother's body and bones. Including the upper knife mountain and the lower sea of fire.

Putting the wooden tub down and turning around, he was ready to go into the house to cook. only to find that the mother didn't know when she had stood at the door of the house. While looking at himself with a smile, he greeted: "Xiao Jiu is back." Did you find a job to do today? ”

"Mother, I found a big job! Look at it, look at ......! Cheng Xiaojiu hurriedly put up his sweaty clothes, walked a few steps quickly, and held his mother's arm.

"My little nine is capable!" Cheng Zhu didn't know what his son wanted to show him, so he turned around with a smile under Xiao Jiu's support.

Her eyes fell on the open rice jar, and she was immediately startled. Oh my God, most of the valus of white rice is lying there quietly, and the luster emitted between the particles makes people feel so warm! But it can't be a half-grown child's day's wages! It is impossible in the peaceful era, let alone this time of chaos!

Holding the edge of the rice jar with his palm, Cheng Zhu's whole body began to tremble. She didn't want to suspect that her son would steal and rob. She believes that she has been taught by words and deeds for many years, and she will never be able to teach a little thief! But the origin of this pot of rice is indeed beyond common sense, and she can't help but not doubt it. My heart was sour, and tears immediately blurred my eyes. Through the hazy tears, she saw her son's excited smile, his solid body, and the skin on his chest, which was still white but rough.

This body should not be doing rough work, blaming himself for being useless, actually believing the words of those liars, always wanting to "fish" the husband who was stuffed with the army from the place of death. As a result, not only has her husband not been heard from so far, but her only son has become a thief in order to feed himself!

"Mother, mother, what's wrong with you?" Cheng Xiaojiu was startled by his mother's tears, and asked with innocent eyes.

"Mother, mother is happy. It's been a long time since I've seen so many meters! Cheng Zhushi stretched out his hand and wiped it on his face, pretending to respond with a relaxed smile. Mother, I'll cook you a dry meal. We just have a few pickles at home, and we will also steam them for you to eat! ”

"Hmm!" Cheng Xiaojiu didn't believe his mother's lies, but he wasn't ready to debunk them. He is sure that by observing his words and feelings, he can see where his mother is unhappy. If you do something wrong, you will quietly change it back and promise not to make your mother sad again!

Cheng Zhu touched his son's head lovingly, and sighed secretly in his heart. The son has grown so tall that before he knows it, he actually has to stand on tiptoe to touch the top of his head. After eating, pack up his things and let him run. I look at him a few more times now, and when the mother and son parted at night, they may never see each other again.

"Mother, mother, why are you crying again!" Seeing the stream-like tears rolling down his mother's face, Cheng Xiaojiu became more and more panicked. Half-crouched down, stared into his mother's eyes and asked.

"It's okay, it's okay, my mother will cook for you!" Cheng Zhushi hurriedly turned his head sideways and wiped the corners of his eyes vigorously. She told herself to be strong and not to be a burden to her son. The yamen has always been dark, there is no money to do it, and no one can come out. The son just wants to give himself a full meal, he shouldn't go into that kind of place, and he shouldn't bury his life for a meal. After all, he is only sixteen, and he is only sixteen years old!

"I'll light the fire!" Cheng Xiaojiu couldn't ask for a real answer. I had to squat sullenly in front of the stove, pull out the ashes with fire chopsticks, and find a few fire primers buried under the ashes. Unable to afford expensive fire folds, he has been using this method to save money. Every time I finish cooking, I cover a piece of charcoal with ash to make a fire primer, so that the next time I cook, I don't have to relight the fire. But this method will make the house very hot, and it will be fine in the winter, but it will be unbearable in the summer.

Green smoke and water vapor curled up from the stove, temporarily separating the eyes of the mother and son. The room became silent, and the sound of rice rolling in the pot was clearly audible. Standing in front of the stove and thinking about it for a while, Cheng Zhu reopened the lid of the pot. First, use a wooden fence to remove the medium-cooked rice from the pot, and then carefully scoop the rice soup into a clay pot with a bamboo scoop. Then, put a ladle of water in the pot again, set up the steamer, and prepare to steam the rice dry.

In the past, at this stage, it was always necessary to dress up wild vegetables in the rice side. Cheng Zhu habitually stretched out his hand to the vegetable basket, but quickly retracted it. She decided to have a luxury and give her son a meal of plain white rice before parting. Only those who are full can walk fast, and the vegetable dumplings are not hungry, in case the son is hungry on the way, there is nowhere to find food in the barren mountains and mountains.

Cheng Xiaojiu silently watched his mother busy on the stove. As far back as I can remember, the mother and son hadn't eaten such a luxurious meal for at least two years. My mother always said that life should be a long time. Can't eat today regardless of tomorrow. As long as the days go on, there is hope for the future. Although she was so adamant many years ago, "Mrs. Hope" is still long overdue.

The rice was cooked quickly. Pickles and wild vegetables are mixed into a plate, and the flowers are very appetizing. Cheng Xiaojiu took a big bowl of rice from his mother's hand, and sighed and pulled out his stomach. After working for a long time, he was indeed a little hungry, so that the rice bowl in his hand was at the bottom, only to notice that his mother had been looking at him in a daze, and there was only an empty bowl in front of him.

"Mother, why don't you eat? Hurry up and eat it, this rice is fragrant! Cheng Xiaojiu put down his chopsticks, chewed, and asked vaguely.

"Mother, let's eat. Slow down, there's a lot in the pot! Cheng Zhu smiled lovingly, snatched his son's rice bowl, and added a big spoonful of rice. Then he stood up and slowly walked to the clay pot on the stove to scoop the rice soup inside.

"Mother, do you eat it dry!" Cheng Xiaojiu hurriedly jumped up from the table to stop his mother from filling her hunger with rice soup. The rice soup at home has never been wasted, but he can't do it when he eats dry rice by himself and lets his mother drink rice soup alone.

"Mother eats, mother first drink a bowl of rice soup to moisten!" Cheng Zhu smiled and agreed, but the pottery bowl in his hand refused to be handed over to his son to add rice.

"Mother, there are many meters. There were ten buckets of rice in the tank. The Chengbo of the old Zhou family appreciated my hard work, and specially told the family to not deduct one or two. Tomorrow I'll go to work for another day, and they promise to give me another bucket and a half of rice! In order to let his mother also eat dry rice, Cheng Xiaojiu reported loudly.

"Are you saying that this rice was earned by you working for the old Zhou family?" The pottery bowl in Cheng Zhu's hand trembled, and he almost didn't fall to the ground. My son is not a good liar, even if he is forced to be a thief by life, it is impossible to make up the way of food so perfectly! Could it be that he really made good luck? The mother shouldn't have doubted him from the beginning? Cheng Zhu's eyes narrowed sourly, and his eyes were full of hesitation.

"Of course. Did you hear the thunder outside? In an instant, Cheng Xiaojiu understood the reason for his mother's tears, and explained with a smile: "At that time, I was the first to brave the wind and rain to help their family cover the grain ship with lacquered cloth, and they thanked me, so they gave me a reward of ten buckets of rice." By the way, it's not just me, Wang Ermao of the family next door also got ten buckets. Originally, the reward they proposed was five buckets, but the two of us rushed to the front, so we got the most! By the way, there are two hangs of money, two hangs of full meat, you see, you come and see. He jumped up from the dining table, ran to the wooden collapse in three steps and two steps, and peeled off his tattered clothes and socks, revealing the warm luster of the flesh. With such a big two cranes, I borrowed the car to push it back. From the dock to our house, many people have seen it! ”

With such a loud thunder, such a bright lightning, and two halves of the sky with a clear sky, and a line of dark clouds in the middle, who can be indifferent in the entire Pavilion Tao City? Cheng Zhushi looked at his son in a daze, wanting to laugh, but he couldn't laugh. After a while, he put the rice soup aside, covered his mouth with his hand and whimpered: "You, you are not afraid of lightning strikes." You kid, you're bold! ”

"Hey, hey, hey!" Cheng Xiaojiu explained clearly the misunderstanding with his mother, and his heart immediately relaxed. "What are you afraid of, aren't I fine?" He said with a smile, reaching out and pouring the leftover rice soup from his mother back into the clay pot, and refilling the bowl with a full amount of dry rice. "Growing up, I have never done anything immoral. How could Lei Gong hack me? Hurry up and eat while it's hot, when it's cold, the rice won't be soft! ”

"Just eat, just eat!" Cheng Zhu glanced at his son apologetically, sat back at the table, and took a big bite of rice. This is earned by her son to honor her, and when her son grows up, he can feed the family. She chewed happily, her heart full of pride.

Lest his mother leave a knot in his heart, Cheng Xiaojiu told all of today's experience while eating. From the beginning to prevent the disaster for Wang Ermao, to the two bullying batons on the ship, to how the lightning and thunder in the sky, the wind and rain, all the way to how the trader surnamed Zhang recruited people to help with a lot of money, and how he took the lead in rushing to the deck. And so on, with gleefulness and triumphantness.

Cheng Zhu listened quietly, and there was a hint of appreciation in his eyes from time to time. The son is very much like his father, bold, responsible, helpful, and a little clever in his character. If his father were still around, he would have been able to get him a good job. Thinking of this, she felt very unwilling in her heart. Such a smart and kind son should not be reduced to a power stick. He should have his own piece of the world, with a golden helmet on his head and a brocade robe, not someone who can't afford to wear even a pair of decent shoes.

After eating, the mother and son cleaned up the dishes and chopsticks. In the past, it was Cheng Zhu's study time for her son Xiao Jiu, and she would do needlework, smiling and listening to those chapters and sentences that she didn't understand at all. But today, the mother doesn't want her son to continue to work hard. She smiled and pulled out an unpatched gown from the package, and took out a pair of cloth boots with a thousand needles and hundreds of bottoms, and gently placed them beside her son.

"Put him on, scoop two buckets of rice from the rice jar, and send them to your father-in-law. Let him taste the freshness too. If my mother guessed correctly, what you got back was Huguang's new rice. In Cheng Xiaojiu's suspicious gaze, the mother smiled and admonished.

"Go and deliver rice to the one surnamed Zhu?" Cheng Xiaojiu, who rarely contradicts his mother, immediately frowned, "Mother, what do you think." The surnamed Zhu doesn't care about this at all. No matter how good you are to him, he will not take a fancy to our mother and son! ”

"What are you talking about?" Cheng Zhu's face rarely raised on the floor, and he reprimanded in a low voice: "No matter what, he is also your elder, you can't be so big or small." Looking at her son's aggrieved gaze, her heart softened for no reason, put away her anger, and added with a forced smile, "Go, listen to my mother's words, people's hearts are flesh and blood." If you treat him better, he will treat you better. What's the matter, the two families have changed the eight characters, your cousin is a scholar, even if he wants to regret his marriage, he may not be able to pull his face. ”

Only in the last sentence, Cheng Xiaojiu thinks that his mother is on the point. He really couldn't pull his face to regret his marriage. But before our family improves, he won't marry Xinghua to me! ”

"You kid!" Cheng Zhu poked his son's forehead with his finger and sighed: "Thirty years in Hedong, thirty years in Hexi." Who can say that after death, our family will not get better again in your hands! He's your father-in-law and your cousin, and if he can pull you along, you'll have a smoother future! ”

"Looking for his help, it's better to find the stove prince behind the door!" Cheng Xiaojiu muttered in a low voice. But he didn't dare to collide with his mother again, so he took his clothes and dressed neatly. Then I saw that the white rice that I had worked hard all day and might not be able to earn was scooped into my mother's pocket and given away, just in exchange for a slim hope.

And some people's hearts, are they really fleshy? He didn't believe it, not at all.

Drinker's note: Where are the flowers, where are the flowers?