In Nannan's memory, she couldn't remember how long she had been wandering.

She only remembered that when her father and mother were gone, it was still very cold.

At that time, she also had a very warm little jacket, but later the little jacket was snatched away.

She has eaten rotten vegetable leaves, and she has also eaten the leftover overnight vegetables in the restaurant, and she is often chased and bullied by other children, because those people think that she has no father and mother at such a young age, and she must be a broom star.

No matter how she explained, people didn't want to see her.

Even the owner of the steamed bun shop, when he saw that she was pitiful, gave her a few steamed buns, there was disgust in his eyes, and he would occasionally mumble a few words.

Only this young man, not only did not dislike her, but gave her steamed buns to eat, but also was extraordinarily gentle.

So she wanted to follow the boy.

She knew that this big brother was a good person.

It's just that Nannan, who didn't wait for the young man's answer, saw the hesitation in the young man's eyes.

She also understood that she was abrupt.

I couldn't help but slowly bow my head, and my eyes became lost.

"Nan Nan knows, disturb the big brother." She turned around, heartbroken, and wanted to leave.

"Why are you so anxious?"

The young man suddenly grabbed her little arm, "I haven't even spoken yet, you're leaving, how do you know that I don't want you to follow?" ”

"That ......" Nan Nan raised her head suddenly, turning from sadness to joy.

"I'm just worried that if you follow me, you may not be able to live well, maybe it will be very hard." The boy sighed.

"You are not afraid of hardship!" She said hurriedly.

"Well, you don't have relatives, and neither do I, but God let us all survive again, and then we will be relatives from now on. I'm an older brother and you're a younger sister, okay? The boy put his hands on her shoulders and said with a smile.

"Brother...... Brother? "I was stunned.

"Well, let's go, I'll take you to find a place to wash, your face has become a little cat." The boy scratched her little nose with his fingers, and there was a hint of ridicule in his gentle eyes.

She let the young man take her hand and walk forward, only replaying in her mind what the young man had just said, and the warm smile.

She felt that the sky was much brighter.

……

Dead.

In the firewood room in the backyard of a blacksmith workshop in the east of the city, Nan Nan sat on a mat in a wide coarse linen robe, stretched out her hand from her sleeve and sniffed it, and touched her little face, and the corners of her mouth were filled with a very happy smile.

After being brought back by her big brother in the afternoon, she was settled here.

The eldest brother first helped her take a bath, and then helped her wash her hair, which was clean and refreshing for a long time, and the fragrance of mulberries made Nan Nan feel familiar.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of the young man coming back from the door after cooling his clothes, and she hurriedly moved to the corner of the bed to make room for the eldest brother.

"Aren't you sleepy?" The young man took off the towel and wiped his hands, and when he looked back and saw that her eyes were clear and full of energy, he couldn't help but smile and ask.

"I'll wait for my brother to finish his work before we sleep together." The voice is crisp.

The boy was dumbfounded, quickly cleaned up, took off his shoes and sat on the edge of the bed.

Nan Nan immediately pasted it, and grabbed the sleeve of the young man's shirt with both hands. Such an action fell into the eyes of the young man, as if he was afraid that he would run away.

"Okay, go to sleep, tomorrow I'm going to work in the blacksmith shop in front, you can play here by yourself during the day, don't go out casually, go to the front shop to find me if you have something."

When the young man covered her with the quilt, she couldn't help but blink her eyes and asked, "Can I go to work with my brother?" ”

"Haha, the blacksmith shop is full of hard work, how can you do it as a girl?"

"But I want to help my brother." Nan Nan grabbed the corners of the quilt with both hands, and her small body shrank downward, revealing only a pair of eyes, and her voice was muffled.

"You're still too young, when you grow up, I'll let Aunt Zhang teach you how to sew clothes and embroider, and you can earn a salary when the time comes." The boy patted her little hand and told her to sleep in peace and not think so much.

"Okay, I'll grow up soon." Nan Nan's eyes were firm, and she said vigorously.

At this time, it was suddenly dark in the firewood room.

It turned out that the teenager had blown out the oil lamp.

The brother and sister lay side by side on the pillow, and Nan Nan couldn't help but quietly tilt her head to look at this brother who had just known each other for less than a day.

After a long day of contact, she already knew that her brother's name was Ling Su, and he was an apprentice and helper in the blacksmith shop.

Like her, she has no relatives.

But the difference is that Ling Su was born delicate and thin, but she was born with great strength.

The owner of the blacksmith shop was able to recruit a boy like him, who was only ten years old, because he took a fancy to his brute strength that was not inferior to that of an adult man. Over time, maybe he can beat two or three people with the amount of iron he can beat.

The shop is nominally in charge of food and housing, with a salary of 30 yuan a month, but in fact, it only takes care of two meals in the morning and evening, and lives in this backyard firewood room.

However, this is already a rare condition for an orphan like Ling Su.

Most teenagers like him, without parents and relatives, have become street beggars.

The work in the blacksmith shop is very busy and tiring, and it is basically manual work, and Ling Su has to go out to buy food by herself when she is hungry at noon every day.

That's why you can only meet you during the day.

……

"Nannan, shall I give you a name?" In the darkness, Ling Su suddenly spoke.

Nan Nan was stunned: "I have a name, my name is Nannan." ”

Ling Su was dumbfounded, this little girl took other people's pronouns for her as her own name.

He didn't explain much, only said: "My name is Ling Su, this name was given to me by the owner of the blacksmith shop, what is it...... Corn is good for people, let me remember who gave me food, don't forget this kindness.

You're my sister, so I'll give you a name for what you eat, what do you like to eat the most? ”

"I ...... I like to eat meat buns. Nan Nan thought for a moment and replied.

The main thing is that the best food she can remember is meat buns.

After hearing this, Ling Su couldn't help laughing: "That's not good, you can't call you Ling Baozi, right?" One for the other. ”

"I only remember the meat buns......"

She was a little depressed, and she really couldn't think of anything to eat.

She had picked up some leftovers outside the restaurant before, and they seemed to taste good, but she didn't know what they were.

"Do you like meat so much? That's Ling Xiang. Woad can be boiled and eaten with any kind of meat, chicken soup can be cooked, goose meat, pork meat, dog meat can be eaten, and the taste is still very delicious. ”

"Really?" Nan Nan's eyes lit up, and she couldn't help but swallow her saliva, a little greedy.

Obviously, she didn't care what her name was, only heard the various flesh in the last half of the sentence.

"Then it's decided, in the future, you will be called Ling Xiang, and your nickname will be Nannan. When the winter comes, I've saved up enough money to take you to a stew. ”

"Uh-huh! Good! ”

Nan Nan ...... Oh no, it's Ling Xiang now, she shrunk into the quilt and nodded vigorously, full of anticipation.

The brother and sister chatted in the moonlight, and gradually, their voices quietly calmed down, and they fell asleep one after another.

This night, Ling Xiang slept exceptionally peacefully.

Following.

Ling Xiang opened his eyes in a daze, his divergent gaze gradually converging on the thatched roof of the firewood house, and then he was stunned for a while.

"Brother!"

Suddenly, as if she remembered something, she sat up as soon as she was boneless, looking left and right and not finding Ling Su's figure, her little face was suddenly full of panic.

She hurriedly jumped off the haybed covered with a mat, pushed open the door and ran out without even putting on her shoes, and was relieved only when she saw Ling Su washing her face in the courtyard.

But then she deflated her mouth again, walked behind Ling Su barefoot, rubbed her eyes and grabbed Ling Su's clothes, and was aggrieved: "Brother, why didn't you call me when you woke up, I thought you were missing like your father and mother." ”