After preparing lunch, Luan Hongmei came back carrying her load.
The old mother looked very happy. Tian Mi leaned over to take a look and saw that, sure enough, all the radishes in the basket had been sold.
"Is the meal ready?" Having spent the whole morning guzzling food, Luan Hongmei was now thirsty and hungry. There were people selling cakes in the market, but she couldn't bear to buy any and just sat there waiting for them.
Tian Mi had already come out of the kitchen with warm water. She walked faster when she heard this: "Drink a few sips of water first. The meal is ready."
After Luan Hongmei took the water, she leaned forward to take the shoulder pole and basket, and did not forget to warmly invite the neighbor's aunt who came back with her mother: "Fourth aunt, come eat at home too."
Most people in the same village are relatives. Although they are neighbors, they can still be considered as relatives to some extent.
Fourth Aunt waved her hand: "No, the eldest girl is cooking at home."
"Why is there sugar in the water?" Luan Hongmei drank half a bowl in one breath, smacked her lips, and handed the remaining half bowl to her old sister to drink.
Tian Miren was already in the kitchen. Upon hearing this, she shouted, "I bought some candies and made some water for you to sweeten your mouth."
What she didn't say was that the reason she soaked it in water was because she knew her mother's character very well, and if she gave her candy, she would save the candy for her cheaper older brother. The reasons were all ready-made, such as she didn't like candy or something.
In fact, how could anyone not like sugar, especially when a large portion of the population is starving
Sure enough, although Luan Hongmei felt distressed, she looked proud. When she took the empty bowl, she did not forget to show off: "You damn girl, you only know how to waste money. It's not a waste to give me this good thing to eat."
The fourth aunt knew the character of the elder sisters and rolled her eyes at her: "Just act like that. Isn't it good for a daughter to be filial?"
As she spoke, she bent down and picked up the shoulder pole. Her luck was not good today, and half of the vegetables in the basket were still unsold. "I'm going back. I'll ask the Red Soldiers to dig a small cellar for you this afternoon."
"Okay, come at three o'clock and we'll have dinner at home in the evening." Luan Hongmei was not polite.
"What cellar are you digging?" Tian Mi came out to call her mother for dinner, and asked curiously after hearing this.
Luan Hongmei pressed the well water a few times, washed her hands and replied: "It's not a cellar, it's just a big hole dug, and the radishes in the field have to be harvested."
Tian Mi suddenly realized that in her memory, at this time of year every year, the leftover radishes and cabbages would be buried in the ground, and then dug out and used to make steamed buns during the New Year.
She was speechless and pulled a rag to wipe her mother's hands: "Why bother others? Just ask big brother to dig it. Isn't it a favor to ask someone for help?"
Tian Hongxing is often not at home because of his job. Luan Hongmei, a thin woman, treats herself as a man.
"How could your elder brother do this? He is a scholar." Luan Hongmei picked up the bowl and took two bites, looking as if it was a matter of course.
Haha, I have ten thousand swear words and I don’t know whether I should say them or not.
"By the way, where is the red fabric you bought? Go show it to me."
Tian Mi
Because of a piece of red cloth, Tian Mi was nagged so much that her head hurt. If she hadn't been quick on her feet, she might have been beaten.
When they were digging the small cellar in the afternoon, her two younger sisters went to join in the fun. She did not go out to see for fear that Ms. Luan Hongmei would never stop.
Of course, she was also thinking about something, and since it was a rare time for her to be alone, she dug out several old notebooks, saved up three sheets of paper, and began to write a letter to her elder sister.
The eldest sister Tian Yu is 32 years old this year. She has been with the army for 8 years. When she left, she was only 12 years old.
The distance of more than 2,000 kilometers would take seven or eight days just by train, which is simply unimaginable for most people who only move around in the county.
Also because the distance is too far, since joining the army, my eldest sister has never returned except for sending things every year.
As I recall, my eldest sister Tian Yu loved to laugh, and because she was the eldest sister, she was a worrying person.
The more Tian Mi thought about her elder sister's kindness, the more she felt that going to her sister was a good idea. Even when she wrote the letter, the emotions in it became more sincere.
When Tian's father came back in the evening, it was already dark.
Seeing people coming back, Tian Mi, whose stomach was growling with hunger, immediately led her sisters to the kitchen to serve food.
Tian Hongxing looked unhappy. He walked around the house and asked with a frown, "Where's the boss? Hasn't he come back yet?"
Luan Hongmei handed him a bowl filled with sweet potato porridge. She curled her lips when she heard this: "Changqing is a filial child. He has been accompanying his grandparents these days. What's wrong with you?"
Tian Hongxing obviously didn't believe this. He snorted coldly and picked up his chopsticks to eat: "It's been a mess outside recently. You let the old and young run out like crazy."
"How well behaved is our eldest son Changqing? How can you, as his father, talk like that?" Luan Hongmei's face darkened as her eldest son was her life.
Tian Hongxing did not respond to his wife's words. His eldest son was spoiled. He had thought about disciplining him when he was young, but his parents and wife protected him. Whenever he did something violent, there would be crying and noise in the family.
Fortunately, the younger son Xiangyang is well-behaved and sensible, and he is also smart. Sometimes, he even feels that it is a blessing for the younger son that his parents do not pay attention to him.
The head of the family was in a bad mood. Except for Tian Mi, the other children all buried their heads in eating and dared not even breathe.
Seeing her husband's face dark and silent, Luan Hongmei slapped him in dissatisfaction: "I'm talking to you, why are you so angry? Did Changqing provoke you?"
Tian Hongxing had no choice but to speak: "Someone died in Shengli Village today."
"What? How did someone die? Whose child is it?" Luan Hongmei was no longer angry and asked curiously.
Tian Mi and others also looked up.
Thinking of the young life that was salvaged today, Tian Hongxing sighed: "Do you remember the former Landlord Yao?"
Tian Hongxing nodded: "It was her who committed suicide by jumping into the river."
"How could that be? I remember that girl is two years younger than our second girl, right? Why is that?"
"Why else? It was just rumors. I don't know who was so ruthless that insisted that the girl had gold jewelry and gold bars hidden."
Tian Hongxing did not elaborate on what happened next, but Tian Mi and the others could already guess roughly what happened.
"Can you convict her of those gossiping?" Luan Hongmei repeatedly said it was a pity that she was a good girl, and then looked at her husband hopefully.
Tian Mi pursed her lips, feeling that this matter was uncertain.
As expected, Tian Hongxing shook his head: "This matter is not easy to handle. The law cannot punish everyone. There are few clean people in a village. The key is that the girl committed suicide, and the letter she left behind did not say who forced her to do it. She did admit that there was indeed gold left at home, but she took it with her into the river."
The little girl from the Yao family was labeled as one of the five black categories because her ancestors were landlords. After so many years, she was left with only a little girl. Life was already difficult and anyone could step on her. Now those unfounded rumors were the last straw that broke the camel's back.
This kind of thing is not an isolated case, it is a tragedy of the times. When Tian Mi read historical materials in the past, she did not feel much, but when she was in the present moment, she just felt a sense of panic in her heart.
"Is there really gold?" Luan Hongmei's attention was diverted by the gold.
Tian Hongxing picked up a piece of dried radish and drank a mouthful of porridge: "Who knows? Anyway, no one saw it, but someone must have gone down to the river to salvage it recently. I'm afraid something will happen. You keep an eye on the boss."
Having served as a police officer for decades, Tian Hongxing still had some working ability, but he was too upright and rigid. He would not accept a gift of even an egg, and he did not know how to flatter others. As a result, after decades, he was still a small police officer.
But this did not affect his ability to judge cases. When he found the suicide note, he knew that it was a trap set by the Yao family girl. He didn't know how many people were blinded by the gold and went down to the river to salvage it.
Luan Hongmei didn't understand what her husband meant, and she was still thinking: "Why don't I go back to my parents' home? My eldest brother has been fishing all his life, so he's a good swimmer."
"Stop, don't even think about it." Tian Hongxing interrupted his wife with a dark face before she could finish.
Seeing that his wife didn't understand what he meant at all and looked unhappy, Tian Hongxing sighed: "It's early winter now. Just wait and see. I think more people will die this time."
Human greed is terrible. The suicide note left by the Yao family girl has burned countless people's hearts.
The Chaoyang River is wide and deep, and accidents are likely to happen in the summer, let alone in the winter.
Moreover, based on his decades of experience, the gold thing is mostly fake.
After dinner.
Amid the sympathetic gazes of her younger sisters, Tian Mi was once again called over by her parents to talk, and the topic was a familiar one.
"It's not that your parents can't allow you to stay at home for a few more years, but a girl has to get married sooner or later. When she gets older, the good candidates will all be picked up, and the villagers will gossip about her. In short, you should pay attention to this matter." Half an hour later, the head of the family, Tian Hongxing, made the final summary.
Knowing that being stubborn is useless, and knowing how to deal with the current situation, Tian Mi claimed to be a hero, raised her pretty face, and said very obediently: "I will."
"Don't just talk and do nothing. Liu Xiangdong is such a good guy. I don't know what you, a dead girl, are thinking. City guys don't like him, and you still want to marry in Beijing?" Luan Hongmei really didn't understand what her daughter was thinking. Her family was just making a living in the dirt. No matter how ambitious she was, she still had to have the conditions to match him, right
There was no way to respond to this. Tian Mi really wanted to tell her mother that Beijingers also have two eyes and one nose, nothing special.
I was also afraid that if it continued like this it would never end, and I really thought she wanted to find someone in Beijing.
So she cleverly changed the subject and pretended to casually ask the question she had been pondering all night: "Dad, is there really gold in the river?"
Hearing this, Tian Hongxing didn't think much about it, just thinking that his daughter was curious. He took his red feet out of the wooden tub, took the towel handed over by his wife, wiped them roughly, and crossed his legs on the bed before replying: "I don't think there is anything in Chaoyang River. Large ships can't come in. But our county is by the sea, and there are all kinds of things on the seabed. I heard that many ships were sunk before liberation, and there are many good things, not only gold, but also antiques. Why are you asking this?"
"I'm not doing anything, I'm just asking out of curiosity."
“.”
In the next few days, just as Tian Hongxing had expected, many people went down to the river to fish for gold.
It was not until two strong and vigorous ruffians were drowned in succession without catching anything that the greed of the people was quenched and the river became peaceful again.
Tian Mi did not join in the fun. Even if there was gold, it would belong to the girl from the Yao family.
Besides, she was thinking about other things and had been waiting for the opportunity to go to the county town.
Because she met Liu Xiangdong at the post office last time, she couldn't help but think too much and always felt that the post office in the town was unsafe.
This speculation is a bit suspicious, but she would rather judge others with a gentleman's heart. What if that bastard really wants to do something bad, wouldn't she be at a disadvantage
In addition, she wanted to fish something out of the sea. She was tempted by gold or antiques, but that was just her temptation. She was more interested in fishing for valuable seafood.
But opportunities to go to the county town were hard to find, and two years after graduating from high school, she never went back to the county town.
Another week passed while we waited.
Perhaps the Bodhisattvas noticed her eagerness, but just when Tian Mi was thinking about whether to make up a lie to her family, one of the best female students in high school sent her a message, asking her to attend her wedding.
The moment she got the news, Tian Mi was so moved that she wanted to cry.
Not wanting her parents to know that she had money on her, she shamelessly asked her father for 1 dollar.
Then he packed up his things, put on his bag and ran away.
Looking at that anxious figure, if you didn't know better you'd think there was a vicious dog chasing you.
At the same time, more than 2,000 kilometers away, after visiting the old squad leader and going through seven or eight days of bumpy journey, Lou Luhui and his comrades finally returned to the army.
(End of this chapter)