The courtyard door opened, and an old man with gray hair and a white beard on his chin looked at Aoki with his eyes, and said after a while: "It's Aoki, right?" Come on in! What's the matter? ”

Aoki smiled and asked, "Grandpa Li, is Uncle Cultivator at home?" I asked him something. He suddenly regretted it a little - he should have come at night, who has free time during the day?

"In, in! Come on in. Ploughing the fields, the green wood under the small green mountain is here. The old man shouted into the main room, and turned around and walked under a date tree, where a stone table was set up, and four tree stumps were placed around it. A round sieve was placed on the table, and a pile of soybeans was piled up in it. The old man sat down, bowed his head and kept picking through the sieve—presumably selecting bean seeds.

Aoki looked at the six large brick houses in front of him, and he was very envious, and he thought that it would be good if he could live in such a house at any time.

Just as he was thinking about it, in the middle of a primary-colored wooden door, the voice of the village chief Li Gengtian came out: "Aoki, come in." Something came in and said. ”

He walked through the gate and saw the village chief sitting at the square table in the hall, holding a booklet in one hand and a large abacus in the other. Above the hall hangs the middle hall and two couplets of the pine crane Yannian, and Aoki doesn't know what is written, but he feels that this hall has a gentle and elegant atmosphere that is different from other villagers.

Li Gengtian is a person who has studied for a few days, and he has an elegant bearing that a cropper does not have, so he has some prestige in this Qingnan Village.

He was in his forties, his face was cleanly shaved, and when he looked up and saw Aoki coming in, his eyes flashed, and he beckoned, "Aoki, come, sit down!" Sit down and talk about something. With that, he closed the booklet in his hand.

Aoki blushed slightly, sat down on the bench at the bottom, and plucked up the courage to ask, "Uncle Cultivator, I just want to ask, is our village going to run a school?" ”

Li Gengtian looked at him in surprise and replied, "Yes! There is an old Xiucai surnamed Zhou who has settled in our village. I just want to ask him to teach the children in the village, and I don't have to go a long way if I want to study. Just so that Zhou Xiucai can have a bowl of rice to eat - he can't farm! What's the matter, your family ......"

His puzzled eyes embarrassed Aoki even more!

Also, his family doesn't look like anyone wants to study at all. Although Chrysanthemum is still old, but the girl rarely studied, besides, because of that face, Chrysanthemum will not come to the village a few times a year, and will definitely not go to school; I'm so old......

Alas, sticking out the head is also a knife, and shrinking the head is also a knife!

He looked up sharply and said to Li Gengtian: "Uncle, I also want to come to study." Although I'm older, and I don't go to the top exam, it's good to recognize a few words, it's better than a black eye! ”

Li Gengtian was very surprised - this baby still has this insight!

He smiled with satisfaction, "That's a good thing, Aoki!" If you can have this idea, it means that you are willing to be motivated. What's the matter, some of those old talents are forty or fifty years old, and they are still studying hard for exams, wanting to earn a reputation! You are only fifteen or sixteen years old, even if you start studying from now on, work hard to take the Xiucai exam, and you will not be able to succeed in the future exam! ”

Aoki was embarrassed by what he said, but the village chief didn't laugh at him, which also made him feel a lot more at ease. He asked carefully, "Uncle, how did you collect that bundle?"

Li Gengtian replied: "Zhou Xiucai doesn't value this bundle either, just a bowl of rice to eat." Those who have money will be given fifty yuan a month, and those who have no money will be given some rice grains and vegetables and meat. But people don't pay attention to it, so we have to respect our teachers, and we can't just run to study without giving anything. ”

Aoki has it in mind! If he really doesn't have any money, he will go up to the mountains to hunt some game, go down to the river to catch some fish and shrimp, and then bring some food from his family.

Then I asked some questions about the time and place of school.

Li Gengtian told him that he was going to repair the old ancestral hall in the village and use it as a school, so it would take a few days before the class could start. Then he said to him: "Since you want to come to study, then you can also contribute, and come tomorrow to help repair the ancestral hall - the ancestral hall still needs some manpower." ”

Aoki hurriedly agreed, and then said goodbye.

He thought that the ancestral hall was not far from the village chief's house, and it would be a good way to go back from there, so he turned over to take a look.

Out of the courtyard gate of the village chief's house, follow the path by the courtyard wall, and go west.

Aoki was walking briskly, and from the courtyard of a nearby house ran out a slender girl, wearing a red dress, very eye-catching.

"Brother Aoki, wait!" The girl threw herself behind him and called eagerly.

Next door to the village chief lives Sun Jinshan's house, with a large courtyard surrounded by three tiled houses. This girl is none other than his daughter, Sun Liu'er.

Aoki stopped and looked at Sun Liu'er who followed closely in surprise, wondering what she was looking for.

When he was a child, because his face was too ugly, the girls in the village didn't like to interact with chrysanthemums very much, and he didn't have much contact with these girls because of his sister; Now that I have grown up, and I live far away, I can't see these village girls twice a year, and the two sides can be said to be very strangers.

Looking at Aoki's puzzled eyes, Liu'er, who was a little out of breath, calmed down and asked uneasily, "Brother Aoki, are you ...... What are you doing here? ”

Because she ran for a while, under Aoki's gaze, she was very shy, so her face was red, her eyebrows were picturesque, her eyes like an apricot kernel were moist and bright, and she was really beautiful with a new red dress that was rare in the countryside!

Except for chrysanthemums, Aoki had never seen a young girl so closely, and the indescribable beauty of youth dazzled his eyes.

He was in a trance—could it be that his sister's face would be so beautiful if there was nothing wrong with it?

Yes, definitely!

I remember when I was a child, my sister's appearance was also very cute, lying in the rocking nest, with a pink face. It's just that when she was more than a year old, her mother was busy working in the vegetable field, put her sister on the edge of the yard, spread a cloth on the ground, and let her lie on it to play, and I don't know what bit her face, so it became like this.

Liu Er saw Aoki looking at her blankly, her heart was happy and ashamed, and her face turned even redder. She whispered, "Brother Aoki, you ......" She didn't know how to speak, did she want to tell him to invite someone to her house to propose to her mother?

Aoki was shocked, woke up in shock, and saw that Liu'er didn't ask anything, as for what he was doing, why did he tell her? So he turned his head and left--the beauty of this willow pierced his heart, and after seeing it, he remembered the face of the chrysanthemum, and he felt cruel!

Seeing that he left without saying anything, Liu Er was so anxious that she was about to cry, she plucked up her courage and said, "Brother Aoki, you wait, I'll ...... I've got something for you! With that, he turned around and ran home.

Aoki strode away as if he hadn't heard.

When Liu Er ran over again with a cyan purse in her hand, where was the shadow of Aoki on the road! Looking at the empty path, Liu Er's tears flowed silently.

Why does he never look at himself much, but he takes great care of that ugly sister?

Thinking that when I was a child, once when the little children in the village got together to play, Aoki held his ugly sister Chrysanthemum, and didn't let go for a moment, carefully protecting it. If there is a baby laughing at the chrysanthemum, he will go up and beat people fiercely, so that all the little babies dare not laugh at the chrysanthemum in front of him, of course, behind the scenes is another matter!

Since then, she has always thought about how nice it would be if Aoki would also hold her hand like this and protect it carefully! This thought was for years. When I grew up, that trace of longing became the girl's feelings, and I always hoped that the boy could take his hand and walk into the cave room like this.

The young people in this village, in terms of appearance and character, belong to Zhang Huai and Aoki are the best, but Liu Er has been concerned about Aoki since he was a child, and his heart has already secretly promised.

It's just that Aoki has never been silent and rarely pays attention to her, which makes Liu Er secretly don't know how many tears she sheds. What's more, her mother is so greedy for money, and she asks people everywhere to marry her into a big family.

Seeing that this dream in her heart for many years was about to come to naught, she was not reconciled!

She was overjoyed to see the figure who had dreamed of many times walking by the door just now. In fact, she didn't know what to do when she rushed out, she just felt that if Aoki also liked her, then she wouldn't be facing her mother alone.

But will Aoki take care of her like he cares for his sister Daisy? He knew that his mother was going to marry him into a big family, would he come to help her?

Thinking that Aoki had left without saying a word, she felt hopeless - Aoki, he never seemed to notice him! Zhang Huai would also glance at himself a few more times from time to time, but Aoki ......

"Liu'er, what are you doing standing there?" Liu Erniang came out of the back room, saw Liu Er standing outside the courtyard in a daze, and asked loudly.

Liu Er hurriedly wiped away her tears and responded, "I didn't do anything!" Just talked to Meizi! She turned around and entered the courtyard and saw that Mrs. Hua and her mother were standing under the eaves of the porch after gossiping.

Hua Pozi looked at Liu Er, and couldn't help but praise again: "Liu Er's mother, you really don't have to pick this girl." really gave birth to a happy good look, and he will definitely be able to marry into a big family. ”

Liu Erniang said proudly: "No, there is a Tang master in Xiatangji, who wants to take a concubine, but Mrs. Wang has found me, and I haven't replied yet!" I always want to find someone with a good family background, who is young and handsome, and who is decent with Liu Er. This dead girl still doesn't appreciate it, and she has a tense face all day long! ”

The flower woman hurriedly shouted kindly: "Ouch! What a blessing this is. Others can't ask for it. Married to the set, in the future, there will be people who eat fragrant and spicy food, wear red and green, and have girls to serve them! ”

Liu Erniang reprimanded Liu Er: "Did you hear that? Your aunt said yes. As far as you want to marry a farmer, a few big suns, see if you can still be so smart? Don't go to embroidery miles yet. Your father and your brother will be back soon, and dinner will be made again. ”

Liu Er went into the room to embroider with a sour heart. She held an embroidered bandage, pondering while embroidering, how could she think of a way, go to Aoki's house, let him understand his own mind, and then he will defend himself!