Niu Ding Niu Mao saw Chen Wu and his wife go out of the palace gate, followed from a distance, and followed them to the foot of the mountain.

Niu Mao said, "Niu Ding, I didn't see anything abnormal, this couple is as usual, are we still following?" ”

Niu Ding said, "If there is nothing abnormal in the next paragraph, we will go back." ”

Niu Mao said, "Niu Ding, how long has it been since my brother came out of the house? ”

Niu Ding said, "Think about it, it's been a month, what's wrong Niu Mao?" ”

"It's nothing, I just think that today is the Zhengyuan Festival, it's been a month since the two of us came out, and I'm also thinking about the old lady at home, Niu Ding, you see, this matter is over, can we go to the market to buy something and go home to see the old lady at home?"

When Niu Ding heard Niu Mao say this, he also felt that the days had been long, and he thought that there was an old lady with impaired mobility at home, so his heart trembled. Then he said, "Niu Mao, I'll give you some money here, you go to the market to buy something, I'll finish it here, and I'll go back by myself." ”

As he spoke, he took out some money from his bosom and gave it to Niu Mao. "Alright then, Niu Ding, remember to go back when you're done."

Niu Ding Niu Mao separated. Niu Mao went to the market alone.

After an hour, Widow Ding and Lilac also came down the mountain, but Lilac shouted to her mother, Widow Ding, that she had a stomachache and wanted to find a place to make it easier, and then let Widow Ding go back alone. When Widow Ding saw that Lilac seemed to be pretending to be deliberate, she said to her, "Lilac, remember not to be crazy outside for a long time, and go home early in the evening." Dead girl, I don't know what the hell I'm looking for in my head? Go ahead, my mother will go first. ”

Lilac really lied to Widow Ding that she had a stomachache, but in fact, she wanted to go to the market, so she made an excuse.

Although Chen Busi was very annoyed in his heart, he was still a little relieved to see his father and mother today, as well as Lilac and Lilac Niang.

The crowd of people coming and going to Hantan Temple is still endless, and he took Chen Busi to the back door of Hantan Temple, "Don't think, this door leads to a small road under the temple, but now the path is barren, and the gravel and weeds cover the road, you remember to go down the mountain carefully, don't stay too much on the road, the stilt insects in the mountain are powerful, don't touch everywhere." ”

"Okay, I don't remember much, since that's the case, then I'll go down the mountain."

Buliang pushed open the back door, the door creaked open, Chen Busi looked at Buliang, and said, "No, I don't know when I will see you again, take care." Buliang also looked at Chen Busi, and said reluctantly, "Take care, don't think." Remember to come back often in the future. ”

"Okay. Not a lot. ”

Chen Busi carried the package on his back and walked out of the back door of Hantan Temple. I didn't look at it from afar.

Niu Mao since the separation from Niu Ding, a person went to the market, the market of Weiyang Mountain is also very lively, all kinds of vegetables and fruits, fish and meat, a dazzling array of cloth, sachet colored paper, jewelry, balm powder, paper man kite, dessert hot sauce, oil tea wood, steaming buns, a tavern full of people, bursts of shouting.

Niu Mao is different from Niu Ding, Niu Ding wears meticulous and clean, but Niu Mao is sloppy and sloppy, although they are brothers, but the two are very different. Therefore, Niu Ding is often unaccustomed to Niu Mao because of this, just like Niu Mao often says, Niu Ding is Niu Ding, Niu Mao is Niu Mao, and the essence is a little different.

Niu Mao came to the market and first went to buy a few large steamed buns, because he was dressed sloppily, and the vendor who sold the buns once thought that he was asking for food. The cow that provoked him was full of anger.

After packing the buns with paper, Niu Mao walked a few steps, and a fortune teller next to him said to him, "This big man stays, I see that your eyes are full of red light, and the top of your head is bubbling, revealing some bad signs, can you sit down and let me count?" ”

Niu Mao glanced at him and ignored him, "You only have red eyes and bubbling on the top of your head, and your family is red with red eyes and bubbling on the top of your head." He scolded and swore in his mouth, but he didn't care.

Niu Mao didn't want to stay in this market for long, so he went to the butcher shop and bought a roast chicken. Then, in a happy mood, I walked home.

Niu Ding Niu Mao's mother lives alone, although the action is not good, but every time Niu Ding Niu Mao comes back, she will bring a lot of things, enough for their mother to eat for a month or two, and will leave some money, telling the old lady If she wants to eat something, she will ask someone to go to the market to buy it. Their old lady always doesn't dislike life and rarely asks people to go.

Niu Ding Niu Mao is also very angry about this every time.

Niu Mao came back this time, and there was no cow ding. His wife stayed outside the house, alone, Niu Mao saw it and felt very sad.

"Mother, I'm Niu Mao, I'm back. Why are you staying at the door again? ”

"Niu Mao, why did you go home by yourself, what about your brother Niu Ding?"

"Mother, Niu Mao is Niu Mao, Niu Ding is Niu Ding, Niu Ding still has some things to do, so my Niu Mao came back first. Let's go, let's go inside, I'll go to the market and buy your favorite roast chicken. With that, Niu Mao led the old lady into the house.

Niu Mao helped the old lady to the bed and sat down, put the roast chicken on the table, and then tore off a chicken leg and gave it to the old lady. "Mother, you eat first, when the cow comes back, we will eat together, there are big buns here, meat filling, and then eat the buns after eating."

The old lady took the chicken leg and said to Niu Mao, "Niu Mao, you go and pick up the burden and go to the distant river to fetch a bucket of water, the water at home is almost running out, and I will use it for cooking later." ”

Niu Mao said, "Okay, mother, then I'll go." ”

"Remember to pour the rest of the water into the pot." The old lady instructed Niu Mao.

"Okay, I remember."

Niu Mao took out the picks from the fire room, took two buckets, and went out. After walking half a mile through a small forest, Niu Mao came to the river, fetched a bucket of water with a bucket, and filled it full. But at this time, he found that the two ends of the picker were different, and after thinking about his mother's words, he only needed to fetch a bucket of water. So he took a large stone from the side, put it in another bucket, and found that it was just right. I was very proud.

Lilac, after parting from her widow, was about to go to the market, but she walked along the river, and walked through the woods, and got lost.

At that time, Niu Mao was by the river, and the bucket was filled with water, and he was filling another bucket with stones, when Lilac approached and asked, "Uncle, how is this market going?" ”

Niu Mao saw the cloves, approached and a fragrance came to his nose, which was the fragrance of the cloves. "I said sister, this mountain forest is hidden, why do you hang out as a girl? You don't know if I'm a good person? If you encounter something unscrupulous, do you have to regret that your girl has suffered a loss? I'm Niu Mao, not Niu Ding, I'm just in my thirties, why do you call me uncle? ”

Lilac listened carefully, this man in his thirties looked like a man in his forties and fifties called Niu Mao, and it seemed that he had a brother named Niu Ding, but this Niu Mao was dressed in old clothes, his hair was unkempt, and his beard hung on his cheeks.

At this time, Lilac had no choice but to say, "Brother Niu Mao, my little woman met a good person Niu Mao today, just now I really had a bad look in my eyes, and I made you unhappy, please don't be surprised?" Just wandering around for a while, I couldn't find the main way to the market through the woods. ”

Niu Mao said, "What's the girl's name?" ”

Lilac said, "Lilac." ”

Niu Mao puffed up, picked up the burden, and then said to Lilac, "Lilac, follow me, go forward, and I'll show you the way when you get there." ”

Lilac hurriedly said, "Thank you, Brother Niu Mao." Lilac stared at Niu Mao curiously, "Brother Niu Mao, what is the use of carrying some stones in this bucket?" Niu Mao said, "It's useless, as long as there is a bucket of water, the empty bucket is empty, I think the empty bucket is not stable, so I threw a few stones." ”

Lilac pursed her lips and smiled, "Brother Niu Mao, you can give half of that bucket of water to the other." Niu Mao thought it was the same when he heard it, but he was not happy that this girl laughed at him. What do you know? With all my strength, I don't care about these stones. My mother said that just a bucket of water is enough. ”

Lilac didn't dare to say anything more. The two of them slowly walked in the direction of Niu Mao's house.

Since Chen Busi left Hantan Temple, he has also stumbled and stumbled on the way down the mountain, which is difficult and dangerous. He did not dare to stay for a moment, and when he reached the foot of the mountain, he saw a pile of burned ashes, and painted his face with ashes, because he still felt that it was right to be cautious.

Chen Busi came out from the foot of the back mountain and went around, but he didn't find the avenue, so he slowly approached the river, passed through a forest along the riverbank, and saw a path. After being away from home for so long, I couldn't find the way I used to go, and I even got the wrong direction, so I followed the path, hoping to meet a family so that I could ask for directions.

Niu Mao's old lady nibbled on the chicken leg a few bites, then put it on the table, and went to the stove room to make a fire and boil water for cooking. The old man probably had a knee injury when he was young, one leg was slightly bent, he couldn't stand straight, he walked with a limp, and every time he took a step, he could feel that the old man was enduring the pain. The old man lit the stove, and firewood filled a furnace cavity. He sat down for a while, and when the momentum of the firewood stabilized, the old man stood up with difficulty and put the vegetable nests, water spinach, and dried fish and bacon in the bowl into the pot.

Chen Busi was passing by at this time, and saw that the door of the small courtyard was open, and a puff of green smoke came out of the roof, and he knew that there were people in the courtyard. "Anyone?" Chen Busi shouted inside through the wooden fence door.

Niu Mao's old lady heard the shouts outside and walked over slowly. Seeing Chen Busi, he said, "Young man, I heard you shouting just now, what are you shouting?" I'm the only old woman in the house, is there anything I can help with? ”

Chen Busi saw that it was an elderly woman alone, and her mental state was not very good, so he said to the old man very respectfully, "Old man, I probably went in the wrong direction, and I couldn't see the road I knew after walking for a long time. I hope you can show me the way and ask for a bowl of water again. ”

Niu Mao's old lady listened, then turned around and went to the stove room to walk, slowly, the old man entered the stove room, did not want the firewood in the stove room to collapse out of the furnace cavity, burning the dry wood in the house, the old man hurriedly picked up a wooden stick to fight the fire, but the fire became more and more vigorous, the barrel rope hanging on the stove room burned off, there were some dried fish and dried meat in the barrel, all the brains were sprinkled out, the barrel fell and smashed the old man's feet.

The sound of the barrel falling and hitting the ground reached Chen Busi's ears, the old man groaned, Chen Busi felt that something was wrong, the old man had been gone for a while, and no one had come out at this time, I was afraid that something had happened. So he walked towards the stove room.

The smoke filled the whole room, the flames burned beside the old man, the old man hugged his feet and groaned in pain, Chen Busi covered his mouth and nose with a package, and came in to look for the old woman, "Old man, old man," Chen Busi shouted loudly.

The old man heard Chen Busi's voice, "Baby, I'm here," and reached out to touch Chen Busi, Chen Busi also touched the old man in the smoke, and then pulled her hard.

"No, baby, I'm old, the barrel fell and hit my foot, and I can't stand up in pain, you better hurry up, my old man's life doesn't matter, you can't lose your life because of me." By the way, I have two sons, one is called Niu Ding and the other is called Niu Mao, if I die, tell them that my mother hopes that they will be well, do good deeds, can't do evil again, and don't miss my mother. When he died, he buried me here, and only here could I wait for my own son. ”

Chen Busi saw that the fire covered the entire house, and if he didn't go out again, he was afraid that even he would be burned to death. At this time, he threw away the package in his hand, used all his strength, picked up the old man, kicked the door frame down, and carried the old man out of the house.

Niu Mao and Lilac were walking on the road, Lilac looked up and saw smoke rising in the direction in front of her, and felt that something was wrong, so she came to ask Niu Mao, "Brother Niu Mao, look ahead, is there a fire in which house?" Niu Mao then raised his head and looked in the direction that Lilac said.

"Lilac, no, it's my house, let's go, there's an old lady at home." Lilac listened and let out an "ah". Then the two men quickened their pace. Niu Mao was almost running, still carrying a burden on his shoulders, and half of the water in the barrel was spilled.

"Brother Niu Mao, quickly put down the burden, I'll come, you go quickly, go quickly." Lilac said hurriedly to Niu Mao.

Niu Mao put down his burden at this time, and he didn't have time to speak to Lilac, so he rushed forward.

Chen Busi went out of the courtyard gate, dragged the old lady with Niu Mao to the side and sat down, the old man and Chen Busi's clothes were a little burned, Chen Busi lay on the ground and kept panting, and the old man leaned on the side and moaned. Just watching a good home crackle in the fire, endless sighs.

Niu Mao saw his old lady sitting on the side with a disgraced face, and her hanging heart fell to the ground, because Niu Mao's old lady was still alive, and she was not devoured in the fire, but only suffered some skin injuries. Niu Mao walked to the old lady in one step, "Mother, are you okay?" ”

"My son Niu Mao, my mother almost didn't see you." Then he began to cry.

"It's okay, mother, it doesn't matter, it's good to be alive, it's good to be alive." Niu Mao looked at the old lady's painful and runny appearance, and her heart was also very sad.

"Lilac, lilac," Niu Mao shouted back to Lilac in the distance. "Bring the water."