It is said that the monkey and Zhuqing laughed and played by the river, and felt very happy physically and mentally. Just when he was thinking about returning, Zhu Qing suddenly said, "Brother, look, there are people over there." ”

The monkey turned his head and saw a man carrying a bucket three hundred meters to the west, slowly walking through the beach towards the river. This man went to the river to fetch water. Is there still anyone living in this place?

At this time, the slanting sun fell in the river, and the river was brilliant. The reeds on the riverbank are already half a person high, and the water chestnut aquatic plants at the water's edge exude a fresh smell with a slightly fishy smell. Outside the riverbank is a large undeveloped wasteland, with weeds and small trees.

Suddenly, the man who was carrying the bucket back fell down, and it took a long time to get up, return to the water's edge, refill the water, and walk back again.

Zhu Qing said: "It seems to be a very old person. ”

The monkey said, "Let's go and see." The two of them took their horses and walked along the sandy beach by the river.

The old man carried the bucket up the riverbank.

As I got closer, I could see that there was a small shack in the grove by the river, and the old man who had just carried water was busy in front of the shack.

He was hunched and slow, almost unable to move at all.

The monkey and the bamboo green wrapped the reins around the horse's neck, patted the horse's back, and the two horses went to graze themselves. The two of them slowly walked to the front of the shack and stood down.

The old man suffered from severe asthma, and every gasp he took was a high-pitched salad sound in his throat.

His clothes were in tatters, and his pants were full of holes. I just fell, and a bucket of water got all the torn pants wet.

His hands groped around his waist for a long time, and finally pulled out a black withered vine, which was the waistband of his trousers.

Then he took off his trousers and put them on the bush in front of the shack, trying to dry them. He was naked, his legs had been reduced to two hemp stalks, and his grayish, flabby skin was wrinkled and wrapped around his bones.

When he hung his trousers on the bushes, he saw two soldiers, a man and a woman, standing in front of the shack.

The old man's first instinct was to grab the pants that were hanging on the bushes. Then he hurriedly stretched a skinny leg into his pants.

I don't know if it's because he can't stand steadily, or if there are too many holes in his pants, his toes are stuck in a hole, and when he kicks, the hole widens again.

Now the old man panicked, and hurriedly sat on the ground, stretching his legs into his torn pants.

Zhu Qing turned his face away. The monkey saw that the old man did not have a pair of underwear to cover his shame!

The old man finally put on his trousers, and he tried to get up to get his trouser belt, but he didn't get up several times in a row.

The monkey hurriedly stepped forward and helped the old man up. The old man smelled of sweat, musty, old oil, and urine.

The old man finally got his belt and fastened it. At this point, his asthma grew louder. But the old man still nodded to the monkey and Zhu Qing in the interval between his breathing: "Master Jun forgive me for being rude, I didn't know you would come." ”

The monkey said, "Old man, you don't have to apologize, it's we who have to apologize to you." We've got you covered. ”

The old man nodded: "It's been a long time since I've heard anyone speak to me like this. The two military masters are good people. I'm so ashamed. ”

The monkey said, "Don't say that, old man, I know you only have this pair of pants." ”

The old man shook his head: "Master Jun, I only have half of these pants, and the other half belongs to my wife." When I wear it, she doesn't come out, and when she wears it, I just stay inside and doesn't come out. ”

The old man's words were like hammers, hitting the hearts of the monkey and Zhuqing hard.

An old lady's voice came from the shack: "Boss, who are you talking to?" ”

The old man gasped and said, "Here are the two military masters." ”

The old lady said, "Don't confront them, they will beat you." ”

The old man said, "I'll talk to the military master well." ”

The old lady said, "You tell the military master, take whatever you like." ”

The old man turned his face to the two and said, "Two military masters, you can take it if you see something." ”

The monkey seemed to have been slapped in the face, his face was hot, and he hurriedly said, "Old man, we are not the kind of team that grabs things. We are the Eighth Route Army, a team that fights Japanese devils. ”

"Oh!" The old man said indifferently. It seems that figuring out what an army is for is pointless to him. He said: "Actually, I really can't come up with anything here to honor the military master. Don't be angry, Master Jun! ”

The monkey opened its mouth, but could not say anything.

Zhuqing wanted to go in to see the old lady, and bent down to enter the shack. The old lady's panicked voice suddenly came from inside: "Master Jun, don't, I'm eighty years old......"

The old man gasped and rebuked the old lady: "Dead mother-in-law, that's a woman, it doesn't matter!" ”

Zhu Qing felt ashamed of being stripped of his clothes.

The highest part of the shack could not stand upright, and the foul air inside would knock people down.

She quickly adjusted to the darkness inside. He saw an old lady who was almost naked, and hurriedly pulled the tattered sheet covering the lower half of her body to her upper body. But the lower half of the body was exposed again, and he hurriedly pulled the lower half of the body again.

Her shriveled ** only has two pieces of skin left, hanging on her chest!

Zhu Qing hurriedly turned around and ran out, but the tears couldn't be stopped anymore and flowed out.

The old man hurriedly said: "The dead woman is not sensible, Master Jun, don't be like her." ”

The monkey said, "Old man, can I sit down and talk to you?" ”

The old man hurriedly brought over a piece of wood, wiped it with his sleeve, and blew it: "Master Jun, please sit down." ”

The monkey said, "Old man, can you tell me how you have come here?" ”

The old man said, "We have nowhere else to live. ”

The monkey said, "Is there anyone else in your house?" What about your son? ”

The old man shook his head and said with some sadness, "I don't know where my son is." Since I'm too old to work, he doesn't come. It's useless to come, I don't have anything for him. ”

The old man's face was full of sorrow, and he did not know how to express his misfortune and sorrow. His words were staccato and fragmentary, but in the end Monkey and Zhuqing understood. If you sort out his words a little, then that life story is like this.

His old days were not like this. At the very least, there is no need for the old couple to wear a pair of torn pants. His family originally had more than 30 acres of land, which was left by his ancestors. Life is not rich, but you can eat a full stomach and wear cotton pants in winter.

The bad luck began when he gave birth to a son in his forties. That kid was so delicious from a young age. When he grew up, he never worked, and he was proficient in eating, drinking, prostituting and gambling. More than 30 acres of land were quickly lost. The ancestral house also lost. still forces the old man to work every day to earn money for him to spend.

Once, when he stole a pair of jade bracelets from her mother's dowry, his mother said two words to him, and he kicked his mother's leg off. His mother was paralyzed for more than 20 years. Later, when my father was too old to work, he went to steal from other people's things.

When he was caught and beaten, he came back and beat his parents.

On a dark and windy night, the old man carried the paralyzed old woman on his back and built a shack to live in this wasteland. I've lived here for more than ten years, and I don't know what happened to their son now.

The old man said, "My son is a good boy, but he was spoiled by bad people. ”

The monkey said, "Old man, if I catch your son and shoot him, will you agree?" ”

The old man knelt down: "Master Jun, you must not." My son is just a little lazy and doesn't have anything else wrong. Please spare him a dog's life! ”

The monkey pulled up the old man and touched his whole body, and there were only two silver dollars left. He said, "Old man, you can use this money to buy some food and clothes." ”

The old man saw a snake and jumped away at once, forgetting his asthma: "Master Jun, how can this be done!" Money is useless to me. I won't be able to walk down the street and I'll die halfway through. God bless you, you are a good person. ”

The monkey said, "Let's go." ”

The two summoned Snow Fly and Peach Blossom Horse, stepped on the war horse, and galloped away.