Tao Xiaodong is covered in dirt every day, and he also has a handful of dirt in his sweater and hat.
"Uncle Tao, drink some water." The eleven- or twelve-year-old boy took two bottles of mineral water and put them next to Tao Xiaodong and talked to him.
Tao Xiaodong took a sip and drank half the bottle. He was thirsty for a long time.
He has been here for several days, and the boy is familiar with him. He squatted on the stone beside Tao Xiaodong and watched the hook machine work. Tao Xiaodong asked him, "Where's your dad?"
"My dad went out with the car to buy something, do you have something to ask him, Uncle Tao?"
Tao Xiaodong waved his hand: "It's okay, just ask casually."
He was sitting on the rock, the boy was squatting, it was cloudy and the sun was shining. Men like to watch engineering homework in their bones, and there are not many people who don't like to watch these when they are young. Tao Xiaodong smiled and asked the child next to him: "Do you like it? I liked these when I was a child."
The boy laughed too, quite shyly, and said, "It's okay."
Tao Xiaodong wanted to chat with him for a while, but the phone rang and he took it out of his pocket.
"Rhubarb." Tao Xiaodong picked it up and asked him, "What's wrong?"
"It's okay, I just had dinner with Qiao Wei and the others, what are you doing?"
"I'll stay and watch the work on the construction site." Tao Xiaodong took another sip of the water, holding the phone between his shoulders and ears, "Finished? What did the show crew say?"
"What else can I say, it's enough to give them face. If I don't like it, I'll turn my head and leave." Da Huang snorted, "Is this manager's name not loud enough?"
Tao Xiaodong said with a smile, "It's so loud."
In fact, Tao Xiaodong, the deputy director of the program group, met, had a meal together, and talked. At the beginning, he went there with Da Huang, just to meet the people there. He had to personally see what was going on and the process. After that, he withdrew.
Da Huang didn't take it seriously from the beginning, Tao Xiaodong told him about it, Da Huang said "Hi", "You still need this kind of little work? What are you doing?"
If Tao Xiaodong is half a businessman, then Huang Yida is a ten percent businessman. He understands tattooing, but he doesn't know how to do it, and he won't. He has been with Tao Xiaodong for so many years, and everyone in the circle knows him. When talking about tattoos, he asks Mr. Tao, and when he talks about business, he asks Mr. Huang.
It is definitely not a bad thing for Mr. Huang to go out and sit on the jury seat. This is the founder of Dongda Field.
He is better than Tao Xiaodong when it comes to recording a show, and he doesn't offend anyone and doesn't touch himself. As soon as the program aired and the name was released, it goes without saying that the influence of Dongda Field in the tattoo circle, it is enough to have a position, and the effect of the program group will be achieved. The people in the circle also understand that this is what they came out to deal with, and they still didn't invite Tao Xiaodong, let alone Tao Xiaodong, they didn't even have a serious tattoo artist.
"Ten days from the next recording, I'll be back tomorrow, and I'm still wearing powder on the show, giving me a big acne." Da Huang laughed and scolded, "I'll have to take care of your sister-in-law next time I come. Want to remove makeup?"
It's too funny to say this from his mouth, Tao Xiaodong smiled and said, "I have wet wipes, next time you bring a bag."
"Wet wipes? How useful?" Da Huang asked.
"Is it alright? I haven't compared anything else. Anyway, that's what I got rid of." Tao Xiaodong said.
The word "makeup remover" really doesn't come out of my mouth. Sometimes when he goes out for events and photo interviews, someone will spread him some powder. If he is interviewed in a magazine, he has to be finer, and he has to play with eyebrows and shadows. Tao Xiaodong, after all, is the scene of the scene, and there are many times when he shows his face.
The two rough gentlemen are talking about this kind of topic on the phone, and the picture is too beautiful. Tao Xiaodong couldn't take it anymore and said, "It's alright, stop chatting."
The two chatted happily on the phone for a long time, as if they were ill, and then hung up.
Tao Xiaodong can't do without rhubarb, and many people can't do without him. In the past, he left for a year and a half, and many people said that he lived a free and easy life. In fact, he is not free and easy at all. He is very dependent on these relationships. In addition to his younger brother, there is Rhubarb, Tian Yi, and many close friends. Tao Xiaodong has never been a free and easy person. He is always afraid of losing, and he cannot afford to lose important people.
"Uncle, is it cold over there now?" the boy asked him.
The smile on Tao Xiaodong's face has not been put away, he nodded and said, "It must be cold for you, we are used to it."
"I've never seen snow before. I want to go to your north to see snow in the future." The boy said with a smile.
"Then you can go to college and go to college. You can watch it anytime in the winter. There is always on the roadside."
The boy thought about it, shook his head and said, "I can't, I can't live without my dad."
Tao Xiao looked over at him from the east side. The farthest gate the boy had ever left was the county seat under the mountain, and his living space all year round was this mountain. Tao Xiaodong raised his hand and touched his head, touching the soil. The two laughed and didn't speak.
The boy's father was a principal, and there were a lot of students in the elementary school on this mountain, more than a hundred in total. More than half of them are blind children.
The principal is fifty years old. He has been on TV once before and has been interviewed by many documentaries. He himself is semi-blind, disabled with low vision and needs a vision aid. In the original documentary, he said that he needed teachers and books, but now a few teachers can't support it. Government funding often fails to come down, and his own money has been put into it over the years.
The school was originally a primary school on the mountain. All the children who went to school here were the children from the village on the mountain, as well as a few visually impaired children from the county below. During the interview, he said that Braille paper is very expensive, and there is no Braille printer on the mountain. A Braille book requires several children to take turns to touch, and it is a bit difficult for him to teach these blind children by himself.
After the broadcast, social donations were indeed made, but at the same time, more blind children from poor families were sent up. The small dormitory in the backyard of the school was no longer enough to live in. He used to take care of the blind children in the dormitory by himself, but after there were too many students, he could no longer take care of them.
Tao Xiaodong came here for the first time five years ago and brought two Braille printers, several tons of Braille paper and many Braille teaching aids. He also built the large row of dormitories at the back of the school.
In the following years, Tao Xiaodong's support for this side has not stopped, because his primary school on the mountain is not as difficult as it used to be.
The row of bungalows in the classroom was built by the villagers many years ago. For too many years, the most edge wall has fallen off bricks, and it looks like it can collapse at any time. This time, Tao Xiaodong directly pushed it, rebuilt the teaching area, and the children collectively took a holiday.
Tao Xiaodong came suddenly this time and did not contact the principal in advance. I went to the show group with Da Huang before, it's not far from here, so I stopped by to have a look.
Come here and work from morning to night every day, mixed with soil.
At night, he lived in the school teachers' dormitory. The principal made an empty bed for him. The sheets and pillows were specially prepared for him with new pulp that had not been washed.
Tao Xiaodong took a shower in the public bathroom at night and returned to the dormitory to receive news from Tang Suoyan.
- Haven't booked the flight yet
It has been two days since the last call, and Tao Xiaodong still can't think of Tang Suoyan.
After the initial emotions subsided, I was able to see things clearly, and I was able to understand things clearly from beginning to end. Tang Suoyan was passive from beginning to end that night, and he was always awake.
This is too embarrassing, either embarrassed or awkward after doing intimate things, or embarrassing. Losing self-control in front of a sober and calm person, he was unable to hold himself back, and he performed a vulgar pantomime himself.
Tao Xiaodong sat on the cot and replied: Not yet.
Tang Suoyan replied quickly: OK.
Tao Xiaodong put down his phone and sat silent for a while. There is also a teacher in the dormitory, a senior boy from the Normal University, a senior, who volunteered to teach the children English without getting paid.
He is a bit introverted and doesn't talk much to Tao Xiaodong. He turned over and fell asleep, Tao Xiaodong went down and turned off the light.
Before he could get back to bed, the phone rang.
Tao Xiaodong glanced at the screen, it turned out to be Tangning.
This is quite surprising, Tao Xiaodong thought about it, walked out, and went outside to answer the phone.
After picking up the phone, I called "Doctor Tang" first.
Tao Xiaodong found a stone to sit on, and the night light was on over the house. The workers were resting now, and he was alone outside.
Tangning called him "Xiaodong", her voice was quite unexpected, it sounded hoarse. He may also feel that his voice is not very pleasant, so he cleared his throat before continuing, "Have I disturbed you to rest?"
"No rest, what's wrong with Dr. Tang?" Tao Xiaodong asked.
"You can call me Tangning," Tangning said.
Tao Xiaodong said "OK" and then asked, "Is there anything you want to do with me?"
With their relationship, it is naturally impossible for them to contact each other. The only time they were in contact was when they had a dinner date, or because of Tang Suoyan.
"I shouldn't have called you this," Tangning cleared her throat again, his voice was too hoarse, "It's too rude."
Tao Xiaodong said: "It's okay, what's the matter, you say."
Tangning paused, then slowly said, "I met with Brother Yan today..."
Tao Xiaodong opened his mouth, and it took two seconds before he opened his mouth. He didn't say anything, and only heard an "ah".
Tangning herself probably didn't want to make this call, so he spoke slowly, "I can't tell if what Brother Yan said to me is true or false, so I want to ask you, you two are together... Bar?"
Tao Xiaodong subconsciously wanted to say "no", but thinking about what he did that night, it was not hard to say. Before Tao Xiaodong could say anything, Tangning added, "I don't have any other intentions, I've separated from him... He's free to do whatever he wants."
Such a person who is very good at chatting, and now he is stuck, and I don't know what to say. Tao Xiaodong only said "I'm sorry" after a while.
"Don't say that." Tangning sounded like she took a deep breath, her voice was not too steady, "No one is sorry."
The two of them were not happy to talk, and neither side was easy to say. Later, Tangning paused for a while, then said, "Xiaodong, I want to ask... Are you planning to... No, what are your plans? Are you going to be together for something new, or... stay together in the future?"
The dark night in the mountains is very different from that in the city. Except for the small lights in front of him and the moon above his head, Tao Xiaodong can't see anything. There are lights everywhere in the city, street lights, and lights in residential buildings, which will always stay on. The darkness in the mountains is too quiet, and the quietness and tranquility are hidden in the boundless darkness, and it becomes boring after watching it for a long time.
Tao Xiaodong lowered his head on the phone and said, "Yan... I don't know what Dr. Tang thinks, let's see what he means."
"What about you?" Tangning asked directly.
Tao Xiaodong sat there, with several kinds of answers going back and forth in his mind, and finally said the truth: "I'm definitely not trying to be fresh, you also know my career, if I go for fresh, there are too many choices. already."
Tangning didn't speak for a long time.
Tao Xiaodong looked up to find the stars, but he couldn't see them. It seems that the air in the mountains is the same, and the place full of stars like when he was a child may not be there anymore. Now the child is not lying outside looking at the stars, and it is very pitiful.
Tao Xiaodong didn't know where his thoughts had turned, so Tangning said softly, "Got it".
Tao Xiaodong didn't know what to say, and it felt inappropriate to say anything.
In all these years, there were very few times when he didn't know how to speak, but when he faced Tangning, he felt really sorry. His emotions were very complicated. He had never had any negative feelings towards Tangning, but now there were some emotions that people couldn't express in their hearts.
Tao Xiaodong said: "Then you should rest early, it doesn't seem very comfortable to hear your voice."
Tangning gave a "hmm" and said, "It's okay, you should rest early, it's wasting your time."
Tao Xiaodong said: "Where is the word, it's too far."
Insects are noisy, but not loud. In such a quiet environment, two people in an embarrassing situation made an embarrassing phone call. They were also very polite to each other, and they politely asked to say goodbye.
It's funny too.
After hanging up the phone, Tao Xiaodong went back to the dormitory, listening to the breath that the college student was already asleep. Tao Xiaodong returned to his bed in the dark, and the phone vibrated again.
Tang Suoyan: I've been busy calling you, so you should rest early.
Tao Xiaodong replied: I called Brother Yan just now, go to bed earlier.
Tang Suoyan: I almost thought you blocked my number.
Tao Xiaodong smiled here and replied: How can you, what are you thinking about
Tang Suoyan: Change you to me, you can see what you want.
Quite a common sentence, Tang Suoyan said, Tao Xiaodong's nerves about some things in his mind are about to break again. He quickly changed the subject and said: Are you busy these days
This topic has turned a bit hard, not pretty, Tao Xiaodong doesn't care whether he is pretty or not.
Tang Suoyan: I'm not busy, just not very comfortable.
Tao Xiaodong immediately asked: What happened? What's wrong
Tang Suoyan: It has been snowing for several days, and my hand hurts badly.
Tao Xiaodong frowned and asked: Does it hurt even if it snows
Tang Suoyan: Hmm.
Tang Suoyan: Cold hands.
Tao Xiaodong still frowned: Do you still have the medicine? You scald your hands with a towel and put the medicine on it.
Tang Suoyan said: No more.