Since the peanuts were planted, Chen Jixing has continued to give full play to the enthusiasm and expertise of taking care of the crops last year, and he has to go to the peanut field almost every day to watch for a while, rain or shine.

Sometimes it's squatting down to pinch the dryness and wetness of the soil, sometimes it's wondering whether to fertilize, and sometimes it's looking at the whole field, hoping to see peanut seedlings break through the soil first.

As for what is planted in this field, except for the village chief Chen Jifa, as well as Da Niu Ma and Zhao, the rest of the people don't know about it. Regarding this point, Chen Jifa and Ye Feng had surprisingly the same thoughts.

Since it is not yet certain whether the trial will be successful, let's keep it a mystery for now.

This kind of behavior makes the ordinary villagers quite puzzled. In their opinion, Chen Jixing was chattering during this time, buying such a good piece of land but not planting corn, and doing so much preparatory work in the early stage, and now it is so empty, which is really a bit of a waste.

After about seven or eight days, when Chen Jixing came to this land again, he was pleasantly surprised to find that in just one night, many new sprouts had emerged in the field. The round leaves, tender green and green, look very cute from a distance.

The villagers who thought that Chen Jixing planned to leave the land empty all the time were even more curious, and when they passed by, they all came forward to ask, saying that they had never seen this kind of village marriage.

"This is just a kind of flower and plant, which Ye Feng wants to plant, and I don't know what it's called."

For the curious, Chen Jixing always replied like this.

This was originally what Ye Feng taught him to say, and it was also the unified voice of everyone. Anyway, peanuts are originally herbaceous plants, and they will bloom after planting in the ground for more than a month, and the flowering period will last for more than two months. Therefore, if it is said to be flowers and plants, the villagers should not doubt it.

Sure enough, after asking a few times, slowly, everyone stopped asking, but the rumors that Chen Jixing's family was a loser spread again in Chenjia Village. Of course, openly and secretly, Aunt Cha and the Fan family did not make any less contributions.

It is rumored that in the eyes of the villagers, Chen Jixing's family is abnormal, they are no different from idiots, such a large piece of land does not grow food, but uses it to grow flowers and plants.

But there is no way, you can only do it in a hurry, this place belongs to other people, what people like to do, it has nothing to do with people.

As for those pots of pomegranates, they have got rid of the original barren growth environment, out of the shade of tall trees, and now they can breathe freely, enjoy the rain, dew and sunshine to their heart's content, and have their own piece of the world.

At such an age, coupled with sufficient nutrients, flowering and fruiting are just around the corner.

The slowest growing trees in the backyard are the ginkgo biloba and pines and cypresses, which don't show how much they have grown except for the new leaves that are green and full of life.

Here, Chen Jixing's family planted hope, and their lives were prosperous and full of hope. But on the other side, Qingshui Town, which is about 200 miles away from Chenjia Village, is about to encounter a terrible disaster that is rare in a century.

Because of this disaster, the historic ancient town of Qingshui Town was destroyed, and countless people who have lived here for generations have either had to leave their hometowns and go to other places to join relatives and friends, or they have since become beggars, begging along the road just to survive.

That's fine, it's still alive anyway.

Many people also died in this disaster.

But also because of this disaster, in a sense, Ye Feng was fulfilled: although he was psychologically "far away" with his biological parents all his life, he was finally close at hand.

Perhaps, many people will say that they would rather choose to be geographically far away from the world, but also psychologically close at hand.

But as far as Ye Feng is concerned, he would rather choose geographical proximity.

Psychologically, it is just a spiritual thing, and the human heart, like Hemingway's fisherman, can be defeated but cannot be conquered.

So, the distance in the heart is far away. As long as we live close to each other, we can see each other every day and see each other well, and that's it.

This year was the second year that Ye Feng came to Chenjia Village, and it was also the first time he had experienced such a terrible thing in his two lives: an earthquake.

In hindsight, there were actually signs of everything.

The night before the earthquake, villagers living near Houshan heard strange animal calls. It's just that this sound is not like the usual screams of anger or excitement or excitement, but as if frightened.

In addition, many villagers' chickens, ducks, cattle and sheep are restless, and they refuse to enter the circle no matter how they drive them, but desperately run out of the house. Many people feel so hot that they can't sleep, and their hearts are irritable.

Some people even say that the winter of the previous year was so warm that you hardly felt any cold, which is also a sign.

But strangely, Ye Feng didn't feel any omen.

In modern times, as common sense is well known, if he sees, feels, or even hears about these signs, he can quickly judge the impending earthquake, so as to warn and reduce casualties.

It's a pity that everything happened before you knew it.

In the evening of this day, because dinner was early, and because the weather was too hot, the Ye family sat at the stone table and chatted.

Talking about the good growth of peanuts, chatting about the naughtiness of a thousand words, chatting about this year's hopes, and chatting about building a big house. Ye Feng even wanted to tell Ye Shi to go to see the doctor, maybe she already had greater hope in her stomach.

Suddenly, a violent shaking struck Ye Feng, making Ye Feng lose his mind for a moment, and he thought it was an illusion. But Ye Shi, who was sitting next to him, had already screamed, only to hear a burst of ping-pong thinking in the kitchen, Ye Shi just stood up and wanted to go into the kitchen to see what was going on, but he stumbled and fell to the ground.

Immediately afterwards, the chickens in the chicken pen "clucked" and some of them had fluttered and flew out of the chicken pen; The pigs also began to howl, tearing their throats as if they were about to be slaughtered; The air was filled with the smell of choking dust.

After a while, the frightened voices of the villagers could be heard outside the house.

Ye Feng reacted at this time, this is an earthquake.

Because I was sitting in the yard, except for the chicken pen or something, the whole yard was very empty, and the house was a thatched house, so it was safer to sit honestly than to run out of the yard and crowd or even trample with a group of people.

Ye Feng said his thoughts in time to appease the family, and the tremor stopped, and it lasted for about a minute.

The night was not destined to be peaceful.

The panicked villagers of Chenjia Village did not dare to fall asleep at all, fearing that such a terrible tremor would happen again in their sleep. Especially for those with dilapidated houses, the family would rather feed the mosquitoes outside than go into the house to sleep.

Some people's houses have fallen into disrepair and have long since been damaged by the earthquake and collapsed. Although the Ye family is also a mud-walled thatched house, it was only built after the separation, and it was only a few years before and after, so except for the newly built firewood house in the backyard that collapsed, the others were not damaged.

I spent the night in fear. There were also a few aftershocks during this period, but the tremor was significantly smaller than the first time, so everyone was not so panicked. After surviving it once or twice, I found a pattern and was no longer so afraid.

The next day, Ye Feng learned from Da Niu's mother that there were only four or five damaged houses in the village, and the rest either broke a few dishes, or the chicken, duck or pig pen collapsed.

In this era, there are no modern media and communication tools, and the villagers of Chenjia Village naturally do not know that Qingshui Town is not so lucky. Nor did they suffer such a trivial thing as a chicken pen collapsing or a dish falling.

Although most of the houses here are covered with blue bricks, after all, it is the epicenter, and after a strong earthquake, it has already collapsed.

The houses in the town, except for the government office, are safe and sound, and the houses of ordinary people can hardly find a few undamaged. The house collapsed, and it was late in the evening, and most people were either eating dinner or sitting in the house, and many were buried under the rubble.

The centuries-old town was completely destroyed by the earthquake in an instant. What was once a prosperous place is now a purgatory on earth.

Before the government sent rescue forces, those who were lucky enough not to be injured or affected by the disaster had already spontaneously organized themselves and quickly carried out rescue work. People who are not related to each other on weekdays are now reaching out like relatives.

The so-called grievances on weekdays seem so insignificant in the face of natural disasters.

Subsequently, the government sent a messenger to quickly join the rescue team.

It's a pity that the intensity of this earthquake is too great, and everyone's way to save people is limited to hand digging and planing. Due to the limited rescue speed and poor conditions, many people buried under the house still lost their lives and were not able to wait for rescue.

Those who survived, either with their homes destroyed or separated from their families, looked miserable in rags.

But the tragedy has not stopped.

God may have fallen asleep and had no time to pity the victims. The bodhisattvas also collectively turned a blind eye and did not use their magical powers to protect the victims.

Less than a day after the earthquake, just before it was dark the next day, a torrential downpour struck.

In the absence of relevant precautions and the lack of disinfection conditions, the hot weather and rain accelerated the decomposition of the corpses. Soon, the plague and the virus began to spread with the torrential rain, arrogantly pounced on the already very weak victims.

The people who already had no roof on their heads were simply worse off, but the epidemic still happened, and its lethality was simply devastating.

One after another, some people continued to have high fevers, and finally died of pain foaming at the mouth. The most common medicine for typhoid fever in the pharmacy has also changed from dozens of taels on weekdays to a few taels or even dozens of taels.

Medicine is like this, and even more so is rice, flour, grain and oil, etc., and the price has soared. Profiteers take advantage of the opportunity to hoard and raise prices, and the ordinary things that make ends meet on weekdays have become extremely precious at this moment.

Gradually, some people have to leave their homeland and leave the place that carries all their dreams. As for where they wandered, they didn't know at all, they just walked all the way and begged all the way.

As for how long you can live, it depends on the will of God.

Some of these wanderers are seeking refuge with distant relatives, while others are really aimless and go wherever they go. And this, including the couple surnamed Xue that Ye Feng had saved in the ox cart before.

At this moment, Zhu seemed to have aged ten years in an instant, and the wrinkles on his face were deeper. After her painstaking persuasion and even the final angry scolding, Xue Laohan agreed to leave. After being married for so many years, let alone quarreling, the couple has never blushed even in the face.

But now in order to persuade the old man to leave, Zhu also had to "scold" him.

In fact, Xue Laohan was reluctant to leave here, and the reason couldn't be simpler: he always felt that his lost son would one day return to this home with his own memories.

So, if he moves away now, how can he find his son?

However, he knew that Zhu's words were correct. At this moment, in Qingshui Town, the plague is spreading, prices are skyrocketing, and it is no longer suitable for survival.

Moreover, he was already ill and had a heart leak, if he was contaminated with a little bit of plague, let alone reuniting with his son, even if he lived a few more days, it was a luxury.

But what moved Xue Laohan and finally decided to leave was Zhu's words: "You always said that your son would come back by himself, yes, I have always believed it." However, we have been waiting here for so many years now, and there is not even the slightest news. According to me, it's better to take advantage of the strength of our bodies and bones to go around and ask everywhere, maybe there will be news of our son. Wait any longer, until our legs and feet are not flexible, and we can't even walk if we want to. ”

Finally, after a long sigh, Xue Laohan made a final decision: "Hey, let's go, you're right." While I can still move, let's go outside and look for it. Even if you can't find it, even if you die on the road, it's better than staying here in despair for the rest of your life. ”

Because the couple was preoccupied with finding their lost child, they didn't think about tea and dinner for a long time, and they didn't do anything until they sat down and ate nothing. Later, in order to survive, I began to do my old business and make money to make a living.

Therefore, this family has no valuable belongings, and most of them were buried after the earthquake, and with the expenses of recent days, what is left is really limited.

Zhu just took a few sets of clothes and some important things, and left with Xue Laohan in their arms.

The couple was fortunate to leave, as the plague was still spreading. Seeing that the situation was getting worse and worse, the magistrate and several doctors knew that the epidemic could not be controlled, so three days after Xue Laohan and his wife left, they issued a death order of "only allowed to enter and not allowed to leave".

Zhu packed a total of four burdens, and Xue Laohan brought two by himself.

If you open the parcel that Zhu cherishes the most, you will find that it is not the title deed or gold and silver at all, but these things: a few pairs of shoes worn by children, a few sets of clothes worn by children, a rattle that has been stroked and deformed, a grasshopper woven from straw...

Zhu has always straddled this burden on his chest, even if he was resting on the road, he never untied it.

Those who remained in the town could only wait for death, but those who went out to wander or join relatives were no better. Along the way, the tragedy continued, and people continued to die on the way to hope.

When they encountered the one who died, as long as they saw it, Zhu and Xue Laohan were kind-hearted and couldn't bear to expose their corpses in the wilderness. Whenever such a situation is encountered, the couple can't bear the huge stench and bury it on the spot.

At first, the wandering victims were indifferent, after all, they couldn't live soon, and who had the heart to care about the dead.

Gradually, however, people began to join the ranks and help to bury the dead on the spot.

Yes, since we can't help them return to their roots, we will help them settle down and retain their last dignity. Although the burial place is very simple, it is better than exposing the corpse in the wilderness and being eaten by wild dogs and wolves.

As time went on, gradually, people kept dying, and people kept running to different forks in the road. The homeless crowd that was still very strong at the beginning is now only Xue Laohan and his wife.

Without him, it was only because they walked along the mountain, while the others chose the official road.

First, the official road is easy to walk, and there is no threat of wild beasts at night. The second is that there are horse-drawn carriages passing by from time to time on the official road, and when you are lucky, you can also get some food and even money.

And the reason why Xue Laohan and his wife chose to go to the mountain is because in their consciousness, their son must have been abducted into the mountain. If they were trafficked to a large family and lived a good life, they didn't have to look for it.

Go, perhaps, only to increase his pain.

A few days later, Ren was saving again, and the dry food they had brought was also gone. Water is good to say, you can find it anywhere. But food is extremely precious, and eating it all means starving.

But the road under his feet seems to have no end, completely ignoring the pain of people, and keeps moving forward.

Fortunately, it is out of the jurisdiction of Qingshui Town at this moment, and there are occasional villages on the mountain. Although it is not far away, the extent of the damage is far less severe than that of Qingshui Town.

Therefore, when you meet kind-hearted villagers and see the old and desolate Xue Laohan and his wife, they will also give a little bit of food.

Sometimes it's a sweet potato, sometimes it's a baked potato, or a bowl of boiling water. The husband and wife are all grateful to Dade, and with a persistent thought, they strive to move forward without flinching.

On this day, the couple seemed to be lost, and stumbled to a mass grave only to find that the road was impassable.

At this time, the sky was already dark, and the unknown big bird kept making strange and ugly cries among the trees, which added a bit of horror to the already terrifying atmosphere.

It was impossible to keep going, and it was immediately impossible to see the road at all. After thinking about it, even though it was a mass grave, it could only stay here for one night. If it were someone else, he would be so frightened that he would not want to spend the night here.

However, Mr. and Mrs. Xue have experienced the pain of being separated from their son, experienced earthquakes, and have seen so many deaths these days. They had touched hundreds of dead people with their own hands, so how could they be afraid of burying them underground?

After finding a flat place, Zhu waited for Xue Laohan to lie down, and then began to prepare to rest next to him. When I lay down, I touched the burden on my chest and the shape of my shoes, and my heart was warm.

At any time, these old things are the strongest support for her to live.

Who knows, as soon as the two of them closed their eyes, they heard the sound of Si Suo Suo nearby. If you listen carefully, there seems to be a ** sound.

If it were an ordinary person, he would have been scared away, but for Xue Laohan and his wife, they were not afraid at all. They tried not to make a sound, but sat quietly, listening as hard as they could, in order to better judge whether the sound was made by a man or an animal.

After listening to it for a while, Zhu Shi felt that this sound must not have come from a dangerous large animal. The reason is very simple, if it is a ferocious animal, smelling them, it is impossible to resist not pounce and hunt for food.

Xue Laohan also believes that most of the people were thrown here before they could breathe, waiting for death.

Therefore, after thinking about it, Zhu slowly walked towards the pile of rotten corpses, and after looking for a long time, he still did not see the living thing, because he wondered if he had heard it wrong.

It's just that she was just about to turn around, but by the moonlight, she saw a small dark hand trying to pull other people's bodies up, and she also heard the faint ** sound.

Seeing this, Zhu shouted at Xue Laohan: "Dad, come here, there are still people alive here." ”

Hearing Zhu's shout, Xue Laohan walked over with some indescribable inner feelings. He was a little tired, after all these years. But Zhu is still like this, happy to do good.

When I got closer, I saw Zhu struggling to pull a child who was dirty and could only vaguely see his facial features, and judging by his description, he was only six or seven years old.

Since the loss of his son, Zhu has never held even one of his children, including the two children of his eldest brother's family.

Xue Laohan understood very well that this was the pain in her heart.

When I look at other people's children, I can always think of my own well-behaved son. And at this moment, she hugged a dirty child in the mass grave. Perhaps, this is instinct, this is a mother's instinct. Faced with a child on the verge of death, she must try to save her.

There was no way she could turn a blind eye.

Maybe it was because he saw his own kind, or because he felt that he was saved, and seeing the kind faces of Zhu and Xue Laohan, this child finally couldn't withstand hunger and fatigue, and fainted all of a sudden.

Seeing that the child fainted, Zhu was flustered for a moment.

But when I looked into it, the child's breath was still there, and when I saw her so weak, I immediately understood that the child was just fainting from hunger and tiredness.

At that moment, the couple divided labor.

No matter how dark the night was, Zhu stayed where he was and guarded the child, while Xue Laohan looked for water everywhere. At the moment, they can't give anything to eat to the poor child, but a little water is always harmless.

Besides, she was so dirty that she needed to be washed. Zhu sat on the grass and pillowed the child's head in the crook of his arm, half-standing so that the child could lie in his arms.

Maybe it was because he suddenly met a warm embrace, maybe he understood that someone had saved him, and the child in his arms was no longer **, but rubbed Zhu's chest and slowly fell asleep.

Xue Laohan finally found a half-broken clay pot, and by the faint light of the night, he stumbled to find the water source and fetched water.

As soon as I came back, I saw this scene: the little black and dirty child was lying in Zhu's arms, and it seemed that he was asleep. And Zhu's face was sweet and serene that he had never felt for so many years.

At this moment, he thought of his son.

In fact, Zhu also thought of her son, who had been lost for ten years. At that time, the child was very energetic and never seemed to know that he was tired. Although he can't walk or speak, he always waves his little hands happily.

When he was tired of playing, he was like this, lying quietly in his arms and sleeping. And at that time, I actually complained, complained that I was tired, complained that the child was naughty, and he must be disobedient when he grew up.

Thinking of this, the tears couldn't stop falling desperately, falling into his own clothes and on the child's face.

If she could turn back the clock, she wouldn't complain. Even if it makes her uncomfortable all night, she won't complain in the slightest. As long as the child can follow him in good health.

And because of these tears, the dirty child in his arms woke up.