Jian Yi didn't stay at school all day, and every weekend or when she was free, she would go to the homes of the poorer people on the island to help out with what she could. Accompany the children to catch the sea, or help mend fishing nets, and sometimes help with household chores.

The life of the island's inhabitants is difficult, especially for families without young adults. Some children are happy for a while because they get a candy, and some people are satisfied with getting a new pair of shoes and cherish them carefully.

Although life is hard for the fishermen here, their faces are often filled with heartfelt smiles. It's as if the less you have, the easier it is to be happy.

Jian Yi helped mend the fishing nets at Grandma Ren's house on this day, and went to catch fish and pick up seafood with Xiao Ren's sister and brother. In the evening, he returned to Ren's house with two heavy buckets, refused Ren's meal as usual, and dragged his tired body home after a busy day.

Far away, I saw Zhou Qi standing at the fork in the road to school, and occasionally passing by villagers greeted him, he smiled back, and chatted with a few words skillfully. As the sun sets, the surrounding land of dwarf houses is gilded in a hazy gold.

Jian Yi's figure appeared in sight, and he looked over. When she approached, he said goodbye and walked with her down the path back to school.

The setting sun stretched the figures of the two long, and Zhou Qi looked sideways at Jian Yi and asked, "Where did you go today?" ”

He thought she was just going out for a walk, but no one came back until the afternoon. He went out and walked around the village, but he couldn't find anyone, so he stood at the intersection and waited for her.

"Didn't go anywhere." A simple answer.

Zhou Qi stopped talking with interest. Back at school, Jian Yi didn't say anything, planning to boil water and take a bath before getting food. But when I came out of the shower, the simple table was already ready for food. The seafood he brought back today, the chicken stewed mushrooms on the small stove are still steaming.

Surprised by the sumptuous meal on the table, Jane looked at him and asked, "Where did you get your chicken?" ”

Under the light, the lines on Zhou Qi's face softened, and he took a bowl of white rice and handed it to Jian Yi, and said slowly: "The villagers on the island gave it." ”

The villagers here also raise chickens and ducks, but people are reluctant to eat them until the New Year's holidays. Jian Yi looked at him, pursed his lips tightly, and said, "How can you accept other people's things casually?" ”

It must have been sent in gratitude to his villagers.

She was a little annoyed, a chicken said to Zhou Qi that it might not be nothing, but it was someone else's ration, or a child's clothes. She has been here for a few years, and she never accepts anything from the villagers. Even if someone had to stay, she would return what they needed every day at the price.

"I didn't take it casually, I gave money and they wouldn't accept it, and then I bought something from the small store and sent it over." Zhou Qi replied.

Jian Yi's anger subsided, and he felt that he had just gone too far, and said in a low voice: "They are all living very hard, and their lives are very poor. At the end of the year, the whole family can change into new clothes, even if it is a relatively wealthy family. ”

Zhou nodded and asked a few questions about the fishermen's lives. Simply answered them one by one.

The dishes on the table are obviously too hearty compared to the usual ones that Jane eats alone. Since she came here, she hasn't even eaten so many dishes during the Chinese New Year, and she is a little unaccustomed to it at this time.

People who don't usually cook have very good skills. The chicken stew with mushrooms is very fresh, and several seafood dishes are cooked locally and authentically, so I should have asked someone for advice.

Jian Yi ate a meal that was more sumptuous than the Chinese New Year's Eve dinner, cleaned up the dishes and chopsticks after eating, and Zhou Qi sent another cup of tea to relieve the greasy. She silently turned the fire on the small stove vigorously, and her face was red under the light of the fire.

Although the temperature here is high during the day, the temperature difference between day and night is large, and the house is damp and cold at this time.

"Do you really want to stay here for the New Year?" Jian Yi looked at Zhou Qi, his eyebrows were very gentle, and he lacked the decisiveness and fierceness that he usually had in the shopping mall.

Zhou Qi blew on the cup and said, "Of course it's true." After a slight pause, he continued: "It's the same everywhere I spend the New Year. ”

No, he's alone everywhere. The Chinese New Year is a reunion for others, but for him it is no different from usual. Although his father had happily invited him over the years to celebrate the New Year and his mother had called him, he had never felt at home.

Jian Yi was silent and didn't speak, but after a while, he still spoke: "Every day when the Chinese New Year is approaching, the villagers on the island will go ashore to buy New Year's goods. This is the time for the last outlying island. After the coming year, the ship will see a good day and an auspicious day, and many times it will be after the Lantern Festival. In order to have smooth sailing in the coming year, no one will come out of the ship during that time, no matter how high the price is. ”

She thought that Zhou Qi would hesitate a little when she heard this, but she didn't, he just simply hummed.

Jian Yi was a little sullen and stopped talking.

When the two were drinking tea, Zhou Qi began to talk about the changes in the people around her over the years, and even her phone number has changed since she was here, almost cutting off contact with the outside world. Of course, I didn't know that Zhou Jining had a daughter, and I didn't know that Luo Yu had a second child, let alone that Ah Jin was also married.

Maybe it's because you've been here for too long, and when you hear him mention it, Jian Yi has a feeling of being out of the world. Zhou Qi said at the end, paused for a moment and then said: "In September last year, I also met Jiang Nan. ”

I haven't heard this name for too long, and Jian Yi couldn't help but be stunned. Jiang Nan...... That was a long, long time ago.

Zhou Qi didn't look at the trance on her face, and then said: "She went to the branch to apply for a job and happened to meet me." She asked me for your contact information and asked me to apologize to you on her behalf. Say that she has always been grateful for your kindness to her, and has always felt guilty that she caused you to lose your job at that time. ”

It was actually quite sad at the time, but now her heart is very calm. She lowered her head and said lightly, "That's all in the past." "No, if Zhou Qi didn't mention it, in her memory, she would have almost forgotten Jiang Nan.

Not 100% of the kindness you give will be reciprocated. This is the truth that she learned after a long time. But that doesn't affect anything.

She was silent for a moment, then asked, "Is she okay?" ”

Jiang Nan back then was also a hard and motivated little girl.

"Okay, a good job. His father's five-year prison sentence for theft three years ago was a relief for her. After waiting to come out, you should be honest. ”