ID No. 019

Chapter 40: Go to the market

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The thirteen taskers were divided into three groups according to age and gender, and given three names.

Three big gingers, six ginger people, and four ginger seedlings.

They all have the surname Jiang. They are Jiang family.

Jiang Da, Jiang Ren, and Jiang Miao. The relationship between these three people is obvious at first glance, but it still needs to be confirmed.

The smoke in the room became heavier, making people feel uncomfortable.

The village chief was about to leave, and Wang Kuanyou said politely: "Village chief, please tell us more about setting up a stall. We have never set up a stall before, so we don't really understand the rules here."

"There are no rules. Just go to the market and buy and sell."

The village chief opened the small bag that fell under the long pipe, twisted out a small handful of tobacco from it and stuffed it into the copper pipe in front.

"There are stalls all around, not only in our village, but also in other villages. When the time comes, we will learn from others."

The village chief's attitude was very friendly, so more people asked questions.

"Then how do you sell it?"

A voice came from among the girls. She was Wang Xiaobei, the shortest of the four. She had a bun on her head, big black-framed glasses, a thick cotton pajama set on her body, and a pair of fluffy pink bunny cotton slippers on her feet. She looked very homely.

The village chief said: "You have never sold anything, but you have bought something before. You just do what others ask you to pay."

"Take a look, don't miss it if you pass by!"

Wang Xiaobei lowered her voice and spoke like a man: "Is this okay?"

The village chief was amused by her and looked at her as if he were his granddaughter: "Okay."

Wang Xiaobei put her arm around Xiang Tiantian's. The two girls of the same age had formed a small group. They whispered something in each other's ears. Xiang Tiantian mustered up the courage to ask the village chief: "Then we can do whatever we want to attract customers?"

Others were curious too.

They have all been to the night market. There are not many busy stalls. Generally, in addition to the good things on the stalls, the vendors also have their own skills.

“Sure, sure.”

The village chief waved his hand and said, "You can sell whatever you want, as long as customers can buy the goods."

This makes the girls feel more or less happy, as they have their own advantages.

Especially the model Da Yan, she has long legs, big breasts and a pretty face. Her appearance is the most outstanding, like a proud swan.

On the male side, the one who can sell things with his looks is Chen Yang. He was stared at several times by the other male comrades. He was so handsome and yet so miserable. Wouldn't this make the sisters, aunts and grandmas who came to the market overflow with maternal love

They looked at the four women again. The brothers, younger brothers, uncles and grandpas would look at the beauties and flirt with them, but I'm afraid not many of them would pay money in the end.

Because it's not easy to hide some private money.

Chen Yang asked: "Village Chief, what time will we set up the stall tomorrow?"

"Meet me at four o'clock."

The village chief said, "You must set up your stalls before 5:30. You can find something to eat at noon. Everyone must watch their own stalls. At 9 o'clock in the evening, we will close the stalls and count the goods."

Chen Yang asked again: "Are all the stalls placed together?"

"Let's spread them out." The village chief let out a puff of smoke all over his face. "Many of the goods are duplicates. How can we sell them together?"

Chen Yang glanced at Chao Jian. Should they separate? No, they can't be too far apart. They are partners. How can they communicate if they are too far apart

Besides, he is afraid of ghosts, and only the other person can make him feel safe.

Since that unfounded trust emerged, they have never acted alone.

This made Chen Yang feel resistance without even thinking about it, and the degree of resistance was extremely strong, far beyond his expectations.

Chen Yang took a deep breath to suppress his annoyance: "What are the prices of the items?"

The village chief said, "They are all on the cargo list. They will be distributed to you when you gather, one copy for each person."

"Grandpa." Wang Xiaobei even changed the name and said sweetly, "Do I have to sell it according to the price listed there?"

"No need," said the village chief, "You can sell it at a higher price if you have the ability." He added, "I still say that, you can sell it as you like."

"Does the stall have to be set up every day for three days?"

"Yes, that's how the market is." The village chief put the ashes from his pipe on the door and shook his head amiably, "You young people, really are so imaginative, asking this and that, and thinking so complicatedly about selling something."

Wang Xiaobei muttered, "Grandpa, let's talk about the name. We will definitely not be used to it at first, and it will be easy to call it wrong. Can you let us..."

The old man suddenly turned around and walked towards her with a hunched back. His face, which was covered with gray age spots, pressed towards her, and every wrinkle on his face was twisted.

"It can't be wrong! The name can't be wrong!"

Wang Xiaobei stepped back in fear, and Xiang Tiantian, who was holding her arm, fell down with her.

"Ah—Xiao Bei, you!"

Xiang Tiantian found that the old man was staring at her. She opened her mouth in horror and pinched Wang Xiaobei with her fingers.

The village chief pointed at Wang Xiaobei and asked Xiang Tiantian, his eyes bulging with horror: "What did you call her?"

"Ginger... Ginger... Ginger seedlings." Xiang Tiantian shivered.

"Yes, yes, Jiang Miao," Wang Xiaobei kept saying in a trembling voice, "I am Jiang Miao, I am Jiang Miao, I am Jiang Miao, I am Jiang Miao..."

The room was filled with cold air, making people's hands and feet feel cold.

The village chief straightened up, his expression returning to his previous kindness: "The most important thing is to say the name, but you guys don't take it to heart and don't listen to the old man's words."

He glanced at the thirteen people and said, "Big Jiangs, Jiang people, Jiang seedlings, remember your names."

Some were trembling, some were nodding, and some were silent.

Before leaving, the village chief said, "After bringing back this batch of goods, including the cost and labor, everyone who sets up a stall must earn at least 60 in these three days, and our village will be profitable."

"You all need to work hard and find a way to sell the goods."

No one spoke after the village chief left.

Is it that you can’t call the wrong name, or that you can’t be called the wrong name, or neither

To be on the safe side, they'd better remember their own names and everyone else's names as well, and not make any mistakes.

Otherwise, I don’t know what punishment I will face.

"It was so scary." Wang Xiaobei said with lingering fear, "I was almost scared to death." She glanced at Xiang Tiantian, "Fortunately it's not tomorrow yet, otherwise if you called me like that, I might have already..."

Xiang Tiantian covered her mouth, tears streaming down her eyes: "I'm sorry."

"It's okay, it's okay. I know you didn't mean it." Wang Xiaobei hugged her.

The other two women did not huddle together. They stood separately, looking very unhappy.

Several men started chatting.

"Are we the only ones like this, or are all the vendors like this..."

“Probably both.”

"There are 25 people running the stall in this village. The women are all called Jiang Miao, the older men are called Jiang Da, and the younger men are called Jiang Ren."

"A family of three."

"It could be a ghost."

Everyone fell silent. Everyone understood that judging from the village chief's reaction, the first two words could be directly removed.

Chen Yang leaned towards Jian and decided to recite his name several times in his mind at night.

Ginger people, Ginger people, it’s scary if I think about it too much.

"Let me tell you the task instructions now." Wang Kuanyou pulled out two long, wide benches for everyone to sit on.

Everyone sat over there, and when Chen Yang saw that there were no more seats left, he pulled Chao Jian to sit on the kang.

Chen Yang leaned close to Chao Jian's ear and whispered, "Our mission is to set up the stall for three days and everyone will earn at least 60 yuan."

Chao Jian: “Yeah.”

Chen Yang was thinking about the taboos and rules that might appear in this mission. The name was the first, most obvious and most important one. He would revolve around it and start from it.

"You are a ginger, and I am also a ginger, don't call me the wrong name."

Chen Yang was whispering to Chao Jian, when he suddenly realized that others were looking at them. He asked with a puzzled look.

Everyone looked away silently.

Wang Kuanyou took off his backpack and put it on his legs, his hands casually resting on his shoulders: "The hint is two sentences in total."

“The first sentence is, make more money.”

"What's the other sentence?"

Wang Kuanyou's expression was a little subtle: "Exclamation mark."

Everyone: “…” That’s also a word

Make more money.

!

This is the mission information that Wang Kuanyou obtained.

Li Ping, one of the Jiang brothers, said in dissatisfaction: "Make more money? What kind of a crap tip is this."

He runs a small supermarket. He gets up early and works late every day. He is exhausted like a dog. He thinks about how to make money every day. Does he need a reminder? Who doesn't want to make money

The others didn't say anything, but the expressions on their faces revealed their doubts.

Among these people, several belong to the 996 group. They work like this all year round just to make money, which has almost become the meaning of their lives.

The task prompt is a crucial link, but the information given is nonsense.

Who doesn’t want to make more money

Chen Yang suddenly said, "This information means that there will be fewer people."

Everyone looked at him in unison.

"The village chief said we have to make at least 60 yuan on average in three days. There are 25 people at the stall, so the total amount is 1,500 yuan."

Chen Yang licked the corner of his mouth that he had accidentally bitten and scratched, and said to himself: "With fewer people, the average amount of money earned will be higher, otherwise it won't reach that total."

He met the others' gazes: "The mission prompt is telling us that someone among us will die."

So make more money.

As soon as Chen Yang said that, the air in the room was sucked away.

The second clue is an exclamation mark, which emphasizes the first sentence, which means that a lot of people will die.

Name, name!

Remember your own name, don't call other people's names by the wrong name, and don't be called by the wrong name.

There must be something else besides the name that cannot be touched.

Wang Kuanyou expressed his thoughts: "From now on, it's best for people with the same name to stay together."

Xiao Xiang said calmly: "I agree."

Wang Xiaobei and Xiang Tiantian both listened to her. Although Da Yan was unhappy about having her attention diverted away, she also knew the situation and didn't say anything.

The four Jiang Miao went back to the next door together.

The three people in the room, Jiang Da, Liu Shun, Zhang Guangrong and Li Ping, were sitting on a bench.

Liu Shun touched his head, then walked back to touch his dark, rough face: "It's not dark yet, shall we go out for a walk?"

"Why do you want to go out?"

Li Ping felt in his pocket and took out half a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. He bit the cigarette butt with his teeth covered with gray and black smoke stains. When he was lighting the cigarette, he lost his grip on the lighter and it fell to the ground. He bent down to reach it, and the gold chain around his neck swung down with his movement.

"You were the ones who said this is not the real world, but a mission world. You were also the ones who said people would die. So why are you going out? Shouldn't you stay inside?"

Liu Shun explained to him seriously: "We need to familiarize ourselves with the environment here, and we also need to inquire about the Jiang family. We can't not take the initiative. We are afraid, but there is nothing we can do. We have no choice."

Li Ping said he would not go, and he did not allow anyone else to go, and all the Jiang people wanted to go with him.

Zhang Guangrong is an engineer. He is not good at diplomacy and speaks directly. He said sharply, "Then you should just stay here. Why do you ask us to do the same? If everyone is like you, who will find clues? Are we just waiting for them to fall from the sky?"

Li Ping's old face turned blue and red with embarrassment.

This is the truth, he is aware of it, but the problem is that he is really afraid. If he didn't feel that crying is inappropriate at his age, he would have cried like a few little girls when he came in.

The Jiang people had different opinions and were collectively silent.

Xu Dingyi was a fat man, sitting on the bench like Maitreya Buddha. Qian Qin had a face of a nerd, never spoke, and looked a little introverted and dull.

Chen Xishuang was pulling at the tassels on the sleeves of his denim jacket. He had been doing this for a while, and the tassels were pulled into a mess.

Wang Kuanyou was looking at Chen Xishuang's nails, which were a shiny light pink color, painted with the same nail polish as his ex-girlfriend. It took him a long time to fix his chin that was about to fall off.

"Let's go out too."

"Brother Shun is right. We have to investigate the Jiang family's affairs. This concerns all of us. We also have to pay attention to who is in the village and observe the expressions they make when they look at us."

"Mr. Chen, what do you think?"

Wang Kuanyou drew everyone's attention to the young man on the kang. It was he who revealed the information not long ago, and his strength was recognized.

Chen Yang said, "You guys go first. My friend's legs are not good, so he needs to rest for a while."

Several people understand that using crutches is a torture. You can't run, and you can't walk well. Coming here is really...

Li Ping was comforted by the boy with the crippled leg and followed everyone out of the house.

After the group of people went out, only two gingers were left in the room.

Chen Yang was pondering over the village chief's words and circled the words "average", "at least", "three days" and "profitable".

The bottom line is that each person earns 60. As the number of people decreases, it will be 80, or even 100 or more.

The average amount will be adjusted later based on the number of people, recalculated, and re-divided. The total amount must be sold.

The closer we get to the three-day deadline, the more urgent it becomes.

Chen Yang sighed. He definitely cannot steal or take things. Those who earn more cannot give their money to those who earn less. Every penny must be earned from the goods they sell.

There are also three people from the Jiang family, or ghosts, who will lead and carry out the entire mission.

Chen Yang looked at his partner and couldn't imagine what it would be like when he set up a stall.

"It doesn't matter if you don't hawk your wares. With your looks, you'll just have to sit in front of the stall and customers will come to you."

"If you're selling something, they'll ask you what the product is and how much it costs. Just tell them what it is and how much it costs. I don't think many girls will bargain with you. If they do, it's probably because they want to spend more time with you. Anyway, you..."

Chao Jian interrupted him: "How old am I?"

Father Chen: “…”

Chao Jian opened his hand that was touching his crutch and said, "Just focus on your own business. Don't worry about me."

Chen Yang was beaten for no reason. Before he could say anything, the other party asked him to get the bag of toilet paper from the kang.

The toilet paper we used to use when we were kids was the kind that came in sheets, very uneven and felt very rough.

Wiping my butt brings back childhood pain.

Chao Jian used toilet paper to wipe his crutch, replacing it with another piece of toilet paper after he finished.

Chen Yang rolled his eyes: "Is there dog shit on my hands?"

"Others have touched it, it's dirty."

Chen Yang's speechlessness turned into astonishment: "Which one?"

Did any of the missioners touch his cane? He didn't notice.

Chao Jian said with disgust: "Ugly."

Chen Yang twitched his lips. It was as good as saying nothing. In this guy's eyes, the whole world is ugly.

"Maybe I was scared by the small details in the previous mission. I feel like this one has a lot of pitfalls as well."

Chen Yang watched Chao Jian polish his cane until it was shiny. "Because as far as I can see right now, as long as I can find a way to make enough money, I'll be safe. It can't be that simple. If I make too much money, something bad might happen."

"It's easy for someone like you to sell a lot, so you have to be careful."

Chao Jian crumpled up the toilet paper and threw it into the dustpan in the corner: "I told you not to worry about me, just take care of yourself."

Father Chen nodded and said, "Tomorrow, you must observe all the goods on your stall and remember the quantity and types. If you have a good memory, you can also remember the people around you."

"Let's sell it for a day and see." Chao Jian stood up with the crutches, "Let's go outside."

Chen Yang walked beside him with his hands in his pockets. Yes, if there was a trap, something would have happened on the first day.

It's evening, and the chickens, ducks, and geese have not returned home yet. Some are thinking about life in the sunset, some are just strolling around, and some are hiding somewhere to make love.

The owners of each house were too busy to take care of them that day.

Chen Yang found that there was a table in front of several houses. He asked curiously, "What is that for?"

"Have you never been to market?"

A voice came from behind the tree. It was Chen Xishuang with fringed hair. He pouted and said, "I want to set up a stall in front of my house."

Chen Yang had never been there. He thought they were going to some town or finding a large open space to hold the event.

"Isn't that crowded?"

"That's the atmosphere we want." Chen Xishuang said with a smile, "We have a market on the first and fifteenth day of every month. The market is held in a fixed village. The road is wide and filled with stalls on both sides. People from surrounding villages will go there, some bringing things to sell and then using the money to buy what's missing."

"At that time, I loved going to the market the most. Even if my mother didn't buy me food or entertainment, I was willing to go. There were a lot of people walking there and back, it was very lively."

Chen Yang was listening to a story: "There is a market in Qingcheng."

Chen Xishuang said: "There have always been such things in the countryside."

Chen Yang went to look at those tables again. They were some of the 25 stalls.

I don’t know if it’s Jiang Da, Jiang Ren, or Jiang Miao.

"It's not tomorrow yet, so we don't have to be too nervous, right?" Chen Xishuang looked at the Chen family.

Chen Yang nodded, his eyes were on his mouth, and he couldn't help but said: "There is a lot of oil on your mouth."

Chen Xishuang pursed her lips and smacked a few times: "Lipstick, I just put it on."

Chen Yang: “…”

Yes, there is such a magical thing. The younger sister doesn’t wear makeup or anything like that, she is just a tough girl. He got in touch with her through a girl who pursued him at school.

Chen Xishuang smiled with his fox eyes: "Do you want to apply it?" He fumbled in his waist bag enthusiastically, "I have a new one."

"No, my mouth isn't dry." Chen Yang raised his hands and waved.

"Your mouth is dry and cracked."

Chen Xishuang thought of something, blushed and leaned towards Chen Yang, whispering: "Ask your friend to help you."

At Chen Xishuang's signal, Chen Yang looked at Chao Jian and asked, "How can you help me?"

He moved his crutch toward Jian.

Chen Xishuang took a half step back: "Oh, oh, oh... ah, I whimpered again. The current situation is not suitable, and I don't want to do it."

"It's okay. It's a personal characteristic. You don't have to force yourself to change it. Everyone can understand it."

Chen Yang said: "Thank you for the KFC incident."

Chen Xishuang said it was just a piece of cake: "I have also been harassed by a gay before. When I came downstairs, I saw your situation and approached you without thinking much. I didn't cause you any trouble, did I?"

Chen Yang shook his head. Suddenly, a series of agitated barking sounds came from behind.

“Woof! Woof woof woof!”

It was an old black dog with a few bald spots. It barked wildly at Chen Yang and the other two: "Woof woof! Woof woof woof woof woof—"

"What a ferocious dog." Chen Xishuang looked so scared.

Chen Yang said: "Some dogs are very powerful and alert, and will use barking to remind everyone that there are uninvited guests."

The dog kept barking at Chen Yang and the others.

Chen Yang stopped Chao Jian, who was getting agitated for some reason, and said, "Don't move your crutches."

"The dog owner should be here soon."

As Chen Yang was speaking, he saw a man running towards him from the corner of his eye. He was the man with a missing ear who was driving the ox cart earlier.

"Awang!" After scolding the dog, the man said to Chen Yang and the other two, "I'm sorry, my dog will do this when he sees outsiders, barking very loudly."

Chen Yang said it was okay. He watched the man drive the dog back. The wind blew his hair back, revealing the part where his ear was missing.

The scars are neat.

It was so neat that it didn't look like an ear had been cut off, but rather like... it had been plucked directly off.

Chen Yang got goosebumps.

On the other side, four girls picked a target and attacked.

The target was a little girl in a flowery dress. She was picking spinach in the vegetable garden alone. There were no other children or adults around her.

Great for approaching.

Wang Xiaobei volunteered to go. She pushed open the bamboo fence and walked in, stepping slowly towards the little girl: "Hello, little sister."

The little girl turned her head, raised her face and smiled crisply: "Hello, sister."

Wang Xiaobei winked at Xiang Tiantian and the other two with pride. She was popular with children, so she would take care of this matter.

"Why are you the only one picking vegetables? Where are your parents?"

"My mom cooks at home, and my dad waters the fields." The little girl picked up a spinach head and used her other hand to hold a pair of scissors, snipped off the roots underneath.

Wang Xiaobei folded her arms over her legs and leaned forward with her face tilted: "Then you came to the vegetable garden by yourself, you are so sensible."

The little girl lowered her head shyly: "Sister's shoes are so beautiful, can I touch the little rabbit?"

"Sure." Wang Xiaobei moved one foot towards her.

The little girl stretched out her dirty hand and then retracted it, wiping it on her clothes before touching it.

"The little bunny is so soft and cute."

"Yeah, same as you." Wang Xiaobei said, "Little sister, I want to ask you, who is Jiang Miao?"

The little girl suddenly stopped smiling.

The little girl who didn't smile made Wang Xiaobei think of many horror movies. She was a little scared: "You said I wouldn't tell anyone else. It's just you and me..."

Before she could finish her words, the little girl left with half a basket of spinach.

Wang Xiaobei lost the first battle and was so embarrassed that she couldn't even say a word.

But someone didn't let her pretend that nothing had happened. Da Yan laughed contemptuously: "You don't have the diamond drill, but you rush to take the porcelain job."

Xiang Tiantian stood up for Wang Xiaobei: "If you can do it, go ahead!"

When Da Yan took a glance, the pressure from her height of over 1.7 meters made Xiang Tiantian, who was over 1.5 meters tall, shut up.

Wang Xiaobei, who was standing by, looked into the distance and said, "Here comes a handsome guy."

This time it was Da Yan who got on. She unzipped her leather jacket, revealing her proud cleavage and slender waist, and walked towards the boy with her long legs wrapped in pencil pants swinging.

The chat went smoothly and the guy's eyes were glued to Da Yan.

But when Da Yan asked, "Is there anyone here with the surname Jiang?", the other party's reaction was the same as the little girl's. He seemed like a different person and left without saying anything.

Wang Xiaobei curled her lips: "Isn't it the same if you ask."

"That's right, I thought it would be OK, but it turns out there's no difference." Xiang Tiantian added insult to injury.

Da Yan zipped up her leather jacket, puffed out her chest and said proudly, "I know my charm very well. That man was also fascinated by me. He didn't say it because it was taboo."

“…” Don’t we know? You’re the one who wants us to tell you.

Xiao Xiang, who had not been involved from the beginning to the end, felt heavy in his heart. How could he investigate further since the villagers kept silent about the Jiang family

More than ten minutes later, several groups of people gathered on the roadside, and the answer was written on their faces: zero harvest.

Chen Yang told others about his concerns, telling them not to be careless and just think about selling things, the more the better, as there might be traps.

The fat man Xu Dingyi in the crowd took a few steps forward and said, "There will be a market tomorrow. Not many people will come out now. Most of them are busy at home."

Perhaps Chen Yang's repeated revelations had influenced him, leading him to choose to exchange information: "From what I saw, I counted seven men, five of whom were disabled."

Chen Yang immediately thought of the two coachmen, one who had lost an arm and the other who had lost an ear.

"What are their ages?"

“There are young people, as well as middle-aged and elderly people.”

"No women?"

Xu Dingyi's neck was dripping with sweat, and several grooves were pickled: "No, I met four women, none of them were disabled, and they were all fine."

Others also shared what they saw, and the situation was similar.

Everyone thought that the villagers would come out for the market tomorrow, so they would pay attention then.

We’ll talk about whether it’s a clue later.

The sky was dim, and the wind blew past a row of haystacks of varying sizes, sending some broken grass floating down and flying onto the ground and tree stumps.

There were three or five chickens leisurely foraging on the road.

The tranquil countryside scenery filled everyone's vision, and they were all inevitably fascinated by the scenery before them.

Chen Yang murmured: "Don't you think something is wrong?"

"Is there anything wrong?" Wang Xiaobei looked around. "Nothing seems to be wrong."

Chen Yang said: "Chickens will return to their roosts by themselves in the evening."

"Young man, it sounds like you've never raised chickens at home."

Li Ping said: "In some aspects, animals are just like humans. Some are slow-tempered and wild. Not to mention at this time, even after dark, some are still wandering outside. Some even run into other people's homes. We have to catch them one by one."

Chen Xishuang agreed, "Yes, my grandmother's chickens are like that, too. I have to look for them every day, and they don't lay eggs at home."

Chen Yang wanted to say something, but Chao Jian next to him suddenly walked in one direction with crutches, and he followed with a few big strides.

The others reacted and walked behind one by one. Not long after, they all stopped as if they were frozen.

Lots of chickens! A whole bunch!

"Why are there so many..."

"Oh my god, what are they doing..."

“Why don’t they reply…”

Everyone gradually stopped communicating and just watched the chickens walking back and forth on the road, refusing to go home.

There was something indescribably strange about this scene.

Chen Xishuang, who was standing at the back, recalled: "At that time, the two cows refused to come back either."

Everyone suddenly felt scared.

That feeling lasted until dinner time.

The village chief had someone cook for them and set up a large table.

Mushroom stewed old hen soup, tea eggs, braised pork, fried bacon with garlic sprouts, boiled fish, steamed pork with rice flour, sweet and sour spare ribs, and lush green vegetables.

They are all in large porcelain basins.

On the table were thirteen sets of bowls and chopsticks, thirteen wine glasses, a large bowl of rice with a lid on it, and a bottle of Erguotou.

Only half of the people sat down, and the rest either picked up the food from their bowls and ate it while sitting there, or didn't touch a single bite.

Xu Dingyi loved to eat, and he could not resist the food on the table. He ate with relish, his fat body shaking, his mouth full of meat oil: "This is as rich as the last meal before execution."

Li Ping, who loves wine, has already opened a glass of Erguotou: "Eat your food, even food can't stop your mouth!"

Liu Shun tried to smooth things over by saying, "Eat, eat. Let's eat well and stop arguing."

Wang Xiaobei and Xiang Tiantian on the opposite side each had a bowl of chicken soup and drank it in small sips.

“Have the chickens gone home yet?”

"I saw several villagers chasing them away with sticks. There was chaos everywhere."

"Let's not talk about this anymore. Let's drink the soup."

Wang Kuanyou picked up the large bowl of tea eggs and walked up to the people who had not eaten yet, asking them if they wanted one.

Da Yan is trying to lose weight and doesn’t eat dinner.

Xiao Xiang took a tea egg and said thank you.

Zhang Guangrong and Qian Qin didn't want it, but Chen Xishuang struggled anxiously, biting his lips and twisting his hands. After struggling for a long time, he gritted his teeth and said, "Take it away!"

Another one for losing weight.

Wang Kuanyou walked to the kang and said, "Mr. Chen, where are you and your friend? Do you want to eat?"

"I'll take two."

Chen Yang said this, but his hands grabbed four of them uncontrollably.

Wang Kuanyou: “…”

Chen Yang likes to eat tea eggs, but it is usually difficult to buy authentic ones, and he always feels that the ones he cooks himself are not as good. When the egg was served on the table just now, he swallowed a few mouthfuls of saliva.

If Wang Kuanyou doesn't come, Chen Yang will go to get it, and he won't be able to hold on for long.

Chen Yang peeled an egg, and when the shell fell off, which smelled like tea, the egg white was exposed. He knew it was tasty at first glance.

"Would you like to eat?" Chen Yangxian gave it to his partner's younger brother.

Chao Jian: “No.”

"Let's eat something." Chen Yang said, "Man is iron and rice is steel. If we don't eat, we will be hungry. We don't have any other snacks, and there are not many milk tablets. We can't eat anything."

Chao Jian's hand had already touched the milk slice. He paused and took it out: "Then give me half a bowl of rice, no vegetables, and some vegetable soup."

Chen Yang said, "Don't you want to eat tea eggs? These are very fragrant."

Chao Jian didn't want to pay attention to him.

The egg was not brought to him, he just said it with his mouth, and it was obvious that he was reluctant to give it to him.

Chen Yang finished two tea eggs in no time, patted the tea on his hands, got some rice, and mixed some cabbage soup for Chao Jian.

"Eat it."

Chao Jian took it and frowned critically.

"The cabbage tastes good. I tried it when I mixed it with rice for you, and it's not greasy." Chen Yang said this, and Chao Jian started eating.

Chen Yang found a plastic bag from somewhere and put the remaining two tea eggs in it, wrapped with toilet paper.

"It's better to stock up on some food." Chen Yang said, "Your pocket is big, you can carry it."

Chao Jian said coldly: "No, don't give it to me."

Chen Yang silently rolled up the plastic bag, tied a knot, and stuffed it into the boy's sports jacket pocket.

Chao Jian looked at his bulging pockets and couldn't even eat. His face turned dark. "I put this in there. It will get crushed when I sleep. You can take it."

"If it can't be crushed, I'll remind you." Chen Yang patted his crutch, "Maybe I'll eat it at night and won't be able to put it away for bedtime."

Chao Jian: “…”

The nights in the countryside are very quiet, and the smell of poultry and livestock blows in through the windows with the wind, which is particularly refreshing.

Four girls were lying on a kang, each face enveloped in the blue light of their cell phones. If there was any noise at this moment, they would look at each other and be frightened to death.

Xiao Xiang and Da Yan slept separately, far away from each other, which was a safe distance from strangers. Wang Xiaobei and Xiang Tiantian shared the same quilt, talking in low voices.

"I never go to bed without taking a shower, washing my hair, or changing my clothes."

"You might die, why do you care about this?"

After Wang Xiaobei complained about Xiang Tiantian, she sighed, "This is the first time since I got a mobile phone that I don't have wifi."

"… "

Da Yan deliberately threw her bag against the wall: "Can you please stop talking? It's so noisy!"

"Aren't you looking at your phone?"

"Then I'm annoyed too." Da Yan smelled the stinky feet and moved further away from them in disgust, "I don't have the same travel mentality as you."

"We don't have any..."

The sound of chattering came and went, and Xiao Xiang turned over and faced away from them.

The scene next door was completely different. The kang was very long, and nine adult men were lying on it, one next to the other, like skewers.

Chao Jian was at the innermost part, with a honeycomb-like earth wall on one side, Chen Yang on the other side, and Chen Xishuang on the other side of Chen Yang.

Those who have a good relationship and can chat with each other will lean on each other.

As the night deepened, I didn't know how much time had passed before several alarm clocks rang at the same time, and four more rings could be heard from across the wall.

It's midnight.

It's the next day.

Everyone's breathing paused for a moment. They were not used to the new titles for a while and could only lie quietly on the kang. No one fell asleep and no one spoke.

Chen Yang wanted to call out to Chao Jian, but he turned around to face him, his warm and long breath sprayed on his face, and he fell asleep.

Probably the only one who can still sleep.

"Your friend has a really good attitude." Chen Xishuang said beside Chen Yang.

Chen Yang was unable to refute.

"This is the first time I've seen someone who looks better than me," Chen Xishuang muttered, "and she's taller and whiter than me, her hands are longer than mine, and she even has more hair than me, what a catch."

Chen Yang was again unable to refute.

The young man put one arm across his body. He didn't try to push it away. It would be useless even if he did. He was sleeping in such a terrible posture.

No one else in the room made a sound.

"Uh... that..."

Chen Xishuang wanted to break the silence, but was interrupted by a sudden cough.

"Ahem..."

It’s Liu Shun, he’s the one coughing.

It is probably pharyngitis or rhinitis. Six out of nine people here have it.

"cough!"

At first everyone thought he just coughed a few times and didn't take it seriously.

But Liu Shun not only did not stop, but his coughing became more and more severe. Saliva came out of his mouth and fell all over his face and body. Soon, his whole body was shaking with the coughing.

Chen Yang tried to get up, but the arm was still pressing on him, with long fingers curled at his waist. He had no choice but to turn his head to look.

"I have a cold." Chen Xishuang scratched his Adam's apple, "I heard Brother Shun coughing, and I feel like coughing too."

As he said this, he cleared his cough a few times.

Liu Shun's cough was several times more severe than Chen Xishuang's, and it sounded muddy and labored.

Li Ping was sleeping on the right side of Liu Shun. Seeing him coughing, he didn't care about the quilt and hid to the side, for fear that his saliva would spray on his head.

"Shun, are you okay?"

Wang Kuanyou, who was lying on Liu Shun’s left, asked with concern.

Liu Shun was now unable to speak. He coughed and struggled to climb out of the kang, with half of his body hanging down. He kept coughing violently with his face pressed against the ground, his voice sounding like it was being torn.

It was like he was trying to cough something out of his body.

"Brother Shun, you can't do this, you should drink some water first."

Wang Kuanyou turned on the flashlight on his mobile phone, got off the kang, and pulled the yellow light bulb in the corner.

As soon as the room was lit up, Wang Kuanyou quickly poured a glass of water for Liu Shun. When he was about to help him up, his hand stopped as soon as it touched the other's body.

Because Liu Shun stopped coughing.

Wang Kuanyou brought over the porcelain jar with several broken pieces: "Here's the water, you..."

"Water is useless." Zhang Guangrong threw something over two people, "Let him eat this."

Wang Kuanyou caught it, it was half a piece of watermelon frost: "Brother Shun, I'll pick out two pieces of watermelon frost for you, you hold them in your mouth."

"Ugh..."

A violent coughing fit that was almost like vomiting broke out, and Liu Shun's body stopped shaking. Instead, it stiffened and straightened, with veins popping out on his flushed face.

"tui!"

Just when everyone was at a loss, he suddenly spat fiercely, as if he had used up all his strength.

A pool of bloody phlegm was spat onto the ground, and the people who were nearby were so disgusted that their hair stood on end.

"ah… "

But Liu Shun let out a long and comfortable groan, as if a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders.

He turned over, slowly fell back and lay flat, then fell asleep with faint gasps.

No one wanted to say another word, and everyone began to feel sleepy.

Wang Kuanyou poured out the water in the cup and returned to the kang. He turned over and over several times, and he really couldn't understand why Liu Shun, who was full of energy all day and kept chatting at night, suddenly started coughing like that.

"Maybe I caught a cold during the day," he comforted himself.

But…

Liu Shun is only in his forties.

Why did his body seem so thin when I touched him just now, as if his bones were sticking out

That shrunken body...

Just like an old man in his seventies or eighties.