At this time, all the juniors were kicked out, leaving only the four brothers and sisters of the Cheng family and the eldest sister-in-law Du Yumei, and the family meeting began.

Seeing the eldest brother and the second brother sitting cross-legged on the edge of the kang, and did not beckon himself to go to the kang, Cheng Jia'an could only sit on the small bench opposite the kang head "obediently", like a prisoner waiting for trial, waiting for Cheng Jiaguo, as the head of the family, to speak.

Cheng Jiaguo, the eldest brother in his early sixties, wore a crumpled blue cloth worker's hat on his head, holding an oily poplar tobacco pouch and pot, smoking dry tobacco without saying a word, and his wrinkled black face was gloomy and dripping oil.

Aiming at Cheng Jia'an's rustic dress, the anger in his heart will not come to one place.

Look, this is the consequence of not listening to the old man, this family counts three generations from above, and finally has Cheng Jia'an, a lone seedling who doesn't have to work hard in the field, why did he have to marry a rural aunt back then, and the good horse doesn't eat back grass, isn't this forcing himself to retreat to a hard life!

Look at it again, more than ten years have passed, what Cheng Jia'an was at the beginning, and what he is now, even the help he has given to his family in the past few years has been much less.

Hmph, something that doesn't grow!

Cheng Jiaguo has this attitude, and the second brother Cheng Jiamin is no better, smoking coldly, and has no intention of helping to ease the atmosphere.

Only the little sister Cheng Jiali, who has always been close to Cheng Jia'an, looked at him with pity in her eyes, hid to the side and kept twisting her fingers, her palms were full of sweat, but she didn't dare to speak first.

In fact, there is no woman in this family who can speak.

Cheng Jia'an rubbed his hands back and forth with an embarrassed face, and looked up at his eldest brother nervously.

Sister-in-law Du Yumei's half buttocks lightly rested on the edge of the kang, carefully accompanying the silent brothers, and for a while, the atmosphere in the already dark and shabby earthen house became even more depressing.

Watching the eldest brother finish smoking a bag of cigarettes, Cheng Jia'an remembered the peony cigarette in his pocket, hurriedly took it out for the eldest brother to put on the kang table, and said with gritted teeth: "Big brother, smoke this." ”

Cheng Jiaguo glanced at the cigarettes on the kang table hatefully, and didn't pay attention to Cheng Jia'an, still picked up his dry tobacco and stuffed it with tobacco leaves.

Du Yumei bit her lip and stepped forward to persuade: "His eldest brother, Jia'an specially brought you back drops, or just smoke this, people are all hearted." ”

Cheng Jiaguo ignored it at all, and instead let out a cold snort.

Then he knocked the cigarette pot on the kang table, stared at Cheng Jia'an on the small bench, and said angrily: "Hmph, look at that, my heart rises (extremely angry) after I am angry!" Tell me about it, our old Cheng family is such a glamorous drop, and he is more or less a city hukou. At the beginning, he refused to listen to me, and he had to marry a rural mother-in-law (stubborn) to find fault for himself, you see, what kind of confusion has he become now (embarrassed)! ”

Cheng Jia'an didn't say anything, and he didn't want to explain anything. Life is one's own, this is the same as wearing shoes, whether it is bitter or sweet only you know.

What's more, in his opinion, being able to marry Li Xiulan should be the virtue he has accumulated for eight lifetimes in his previous life. If it weren't for the virtuous and strong Li Xiulan who worked hard to manage the whole family and accompanied him through those difficult years, he Cheng Jia'an still doesn't know what life will be, how can others understand.

Seeing that Cheng Jia's silence was silent, Cheng Jiaguo glanced sideways, and didn't want to dwell on the past, so he directly picked out the topic: "Calling you back is the matter of our family's grave move." The township has notified several times, and the cemetery has been marked. Although life in the township has been better over the years, you also know that our family has always had a thin foundation, and your second brother and little sister and I have nothing left in the family except for feeding this group of cowards......"

As he spoke, Cheng Jiaguo paused his words and stared at Cheng Jia'an with burning eyes.

has no culture and no city government, all the thoughts in my heart are on my face, and the meaning is very clear, it is nothing more than entangled in money, just waiting for Cheng Jia'an, the "rich man", to have a consciousness.

Mu Ne is Mu Ne, but it doesn't mean that he is stupid, not to mention that Cheng Jia'an has long known in his heart, isn't it just the money that should be relocated to the grave, can't we go out, not for others, at least to do a filial piety to the deceased parents.

"Big brother, I understand!" Cheng Jia'an nodded.

Cheng Jiaguo froze, exhaled a rough breath, his eyes fell on the red peony cigarette box on the kang table, and reluctantly picked out one, and smoked it.

Now that the words are clear, and Cheng Jia'an also agreed, there will be no idle topics in the future, there is too much talk, and it is still himself who is blocked by his heart......

In Xifeng Township, the night gradually darkened, and there seemed to be a choking earthy smell in the air.

When the eldest brother was steady, Cheng Jia'an, accompanied by his second brother and younger sister, returned to the ancestral house where he lived when he was young.

It is said to be an ancestral house, but in fact, it is a half-sized "courtyard", and three earthen houses are erected miserably. Even so, this is a very decent old house in the whole village.

Of course, this is inseparable from Cheng Jia'an's contributions, and it has therefore become the property that the second brother Cheng Jiamin wants to occupy.

Pushing open the courtyard door that didn't need to be locked at all, the second brother Cheng Jiamin began to chatter: "The third brother, you have also seen it, there are only three broken earth houses left by our parents, I live in the north house, and Jia Li lives in the east house when she comes back from her mother-in-law's house." Westinghouse used to be where my parents lived, but now I'm putting some messy things, and the kang there is a little old, but I can sleep, and you won't stay long anyway, so make do with it. ”

The journey back to his hometown was enough to toss, and he had to accept the cold reception of the two brothers when he came back, and he was indeed a little physically and mentally exhausted at this time, Cheng Jia'an looked at the old house where his parents lived and nodded: "Okay, second brother, why don't you go to bed early, and I'll talk about it tomorrow if you have something to say." ”

"Cheng Ni, my little sister will help your second brother pick up and pick up, live first."

Listening to the second brother's instructions, Cheng Jiali said obediently: "I know, I have already cleaned up when you eat, I'll go get some water for the third brother." Third brother, let's rest in the first house. ”

Cheng Jiali ran to fetch water, Cheng Jiamin yawned, waved his hand and turned his head into his house, Cheng Jia'an opened the familiar and unfamiliar door with his luggage.

Under the dim oil lamp in winter, the house looks cold, and if it weren't for the red pepper strings hanging in the corner, the whole room would even feel a little eerie.

Cheng Jia'an looked at the portrait of his parents' sketches hanging on the wall, and hurriedly lit the incense next to him, and kowtowed to his parents three times in a proper manner.

Cheng Jiali came in with a glass of water, watched Cheng Jia'an get up, and stared at his lonely cheeks for a long time.

This little sister who doesn't have much culture doesn't know how to persuade her, so she can only bite her lip and babble for a long time before bursting out with a helpless comfort: "Third brother, don't go to your heart." ”

Maybe the little sister is the only one in this family who can make Cheng Jia'an feel warm, but she is kind and gentle, she is also a hard-working person, and her husband died within a few years of marriage. The in-laws didn't want to see this Kefu's mother-in-law, and then they were kicked out of the door for various reasons, so they could only return to the ancestral house and live in widowhood.

Listening to the little sister's comfort, Cheng Jia'an smiled faintly and said indifferently.

"It's okay, I can figure it out!"

"Third brother, that ...... Can I make noise with you? ”

I haven't seen her for many years, even the little sister seems to be a lot unfamiliar, looking at Cheng Jiali's dodgy eyes, Cheng Jia'an smiled, and said gently: "Of course you can, what!" I haven't seen you for so many years, and you're still separated from your brother? ”

"No, no." Cheng Jiali bit her lip lightly and quickly waved her hand.

Among the four siblings, the third brother has the best and most harmonious relationship with himself, and the other two are much older than him, many times more like a father, and his temperament is intimidating and difficult to get close to.

Cheng Jia'an sat on the kang and looked at his sister with an apologetic but serious look, smiling bitterly. Then he took a sip of the water cup, but found that the entrance was very bitter, and there was an inexplicable strange smell, so he frowned and asked, "Well, why does this water smell like this?" ”

"This is waterlogged dam water, have you forgotten?"

Cheng Jia'an frowned: "Why are you still drinking this kind of mixed water after so many years?" ”

Cheng Jiali hooked the hair next to her ears and said bitterly: "There's no way, our place is already short of water, do we have to rely on the sky to eat." I have to wait for the crops with a little water, and there is no money to dig a well in the village over the years, and even if I have a money, I don't know where to dig the well. ”

Cheng Jiali smiled slightly and comforted: "Third brother, it's okay, I'm used to it." You send money to our family every month, and the money is managed by the eldest brother and the second brother, and they say that there is also my share here...... It's also thanks to you, we can come over those hard days smoothly. ”

"Hey, I see." Cheng Jia'an sighed faintly.

Cheng Jiali obviously didn't understand Cheng Jia'an's mentality, and persuaded wishful thinking: "Third brother, if you want me to say that you are out, don't come back, there is really nothing to wait for in this place." ”

Cheng Jia'an shook his head and said softly: "You will know when you go out, no matter how bitter it is, it is still your own home." ”

Cheng Jiali pursed her lips and said resentfully: "My parents are gone, is my home still that home?" ”

"Yes, my parents are gone, and this family is gone...... Cheng Jia'an was stunned, looked up at the posthumous photos of his parents on the wall, and felt a little stunned.

Yes, he has reached this age, and this is still his home.

Cheng Jia'an stood up, picked some of the red peppers on the wall, found a grinding trough, and pounded them up with a clang, chatting with his little sister while relieving the boredom in his heart.

Cheng Jiali looked at her brother's movements, her eyes lit up, and she leaned her head and asked with interest: "Third brother, you said in the letter that when you were in the group, you also used chili peppers to treat chilblains?" ”

The little sister's words suddenly stabbed the itch in the Cheng family's peace of mind, and then the boredom was swept away, and her face and eyes were full of pride.