Not far from the road, the house surrounded by green brick walls was about half an acre in size. There was a pond in front of it, and there were four or five families scattered around. Seven or eight lights were lit in the quiet night, outlining the outline of the near and far scenery.
Shen Huai and Chen Dan walked closer to the house. Suddenly, a dog barked from the darkness, making people realize that there was a dog crouching behind the courtyard door. Perhaps it was because the footsteps did not stop, but the dog at the courtyard gate barked fiercely again, trying to dissuade outsiders from approaching the courtyard.
Chen Dan saw Shen Huai stop in front and guessed that he was afraid of being bitten by a dog. She explained,"Jinzi is very timid. He is a golden retriever that Haven caught from the city when he was alive. When it heard the footsteps of strangers, it only dared to bark twice. After knowing them, it became docile. But it's strange. After Haven't died, Jinzi hasn't made any noise for more than half a month. He's been lying behind the courtyard door all day, staring at passersby, as if waiting for Haven't to come back…"
Shen Huai whistled.
This whistle sounded a little dull in the silent night, but when the whistle was heard, a black shadow darted out from the darkness and pounced on Chen Huai.
Chen Dan was shocked. She thought that Jin Zi had gone crazy and wanted to bite Shen Huai, but she couldn't block it in time. She could only watch as Jin Zi pounced in front of Shen Huai before she fiercely retracted her foot.
Jinzi hesitantly looked up at the person in front of him, and then tentatively sniffed him, as if he wanted to smell a familiar scent from this person in front of him... The whistle was so familiar, but the smell of this person in front of him was so strange. Jinzi was confused, and it seemed that it was unwilling to let the familiar whistle disappear just like that. It whimpered.
Chen Tong also thought that Jin Zi wanted to bite Shen Huai. How could he let Shen Huai be bitten by a dog? He jumped out of the car and lifted his leg to kick at Jinzi, wanting to kick the danger away from Shen Huai.
"No!" Seeing that Chen Tong was about to walk over, Shen Huai couldn't stop him. He raised his leg and stepped over, blocking in front of Jin Zi. Chen Tong did not even know how to kick the dog. Shen Huai's calf was kicked, and he could not help but turn around and shout at Chen Tong,"It just doesn't know me. Why did you kick it?”
Chen Tong was frightened by Shen Huai, and Chen Dan was also at a loss for what to do due to the sudden change.
Shen Huai also knew that Chen Tong had kicked out in a hurry because he was afraid that the dog would bite him. However, at this moment, he could no longer suppress the emotions in his heart. He squatted down and hugged Jinzi, who was in a daze, and cried uncontrollably and silently...
The moment Jin Zi was hugged by Chen Huai, he still wanted to struggle, but suddenly felt that this kind of hug was so familiar. His sparkling eyes looked at the large tears falling on the face of the person in front of him. Although he was confused, he still leaned over and stuck out his tongue to lick his face twice. Salty tears were not delicious, so he did not struggle to escape, but immersed himself in this familiar hug.
Shen Huai did not blame her for Chen Dan's vigilance and caution. He also felt that she should be. Knowing that she was a good woman who kept her integrity, Shen Huai also controlled himself from approaching Xiao Li and Chen Dan too abruptly. However, the more rational he was, the more he suppressed the complicated emotions of not being able to recognize his family members in front of him. He actually collapsed inadvertently.
Gold still recognized him! As Shen Huai thought about it excitedly, his tears could not be stopped. They fell down and covered his face.
Chen Dan and Chen Tong were dumbfounded. Shen Huai had been so awe-inspiring when he had stunned the " yellow-faced cat " Wang Gang before dark. Who would have thought that he would be hugging a " strange " dog and crying so bitterly? Fortunately, it was night, so their image was not completely ruined. However, it still scared Chen Dan and her brother, and they did not know what to do.
"Brother?" A timid shout suddenly came from the courtyard door.
"Oh, it's us." Hearing Xiao Li shouting in the courtyard, Chen Tong thought that she was calling him. Only then did she come back to her senses and reply.
It was also Xiao Li's timid shout that seemed to have an ethereal sound in his soul, waking up Shen Huai's uncontrollable emotions. He turned around and saw that the lights in the courtyard had lit up. The light shone on Xiao Li's thin and fair face, and it was obvious that her eyes were filled with confusion and unconcealable disappointment. Could it be that Xiao Li had also heard the whistle he had whistled when he called out to Jinzi?
Jinzi was eight months old. She had beautiful fur that was as tall as Shen Huai's knees. She wagged her tail and barked at Xiao Li, who was standing in the courtyard, as if telling her," He was the older brother.
Xiao Li stood in the light and couldn't see the tears on Shen Huai's face. She looked at Chen Dan, Chen Tong, and Secretary Shen, who had helped them at the steel mill in the city, standing at the intersection. She thought that the familiar whistle she had heard just now was an illusion.
Although Xiao Li was disappointed, she still opened the courtyard door and asked,""Why are you back so late? Ah, what happened to Brother Chen Tong's face?”
Even though Shen Huai's heart was in pain, he was able to regain his senses. He wiped the tears off his cheeks and smiled at the scared Chen Dan,""I also had a dog to accompany me since I was young. Jinzi looks too much like it. I grew up on a farm with my mother. I didn't have any playmates, and that dog was the only one who accompanied us through the most difficult times. When I was 12, my mother passed away due to illness. That dog stayed with me for another year before dying of old age. After that, I grew up alone until now, without even a friend…"
Chen Dan would not doubt his half-truths when Shen Huai was crying like that. Her vigilance and caution towards Shen Huai completely collapsed at this moment. There was a soft spot in her heart that was moved by the unrestrained emotional venting of the person in front of her.
" Chen Tong, you go in with Xiao Li first…" Chen Dan was afraid that Shen Huai would be embarrassed if others saw him like this, so she asked her brother and Xiao Li to go into the courtyard first. She wanted to stand with Shen Huai in the dark for a while longer.
Strangely enough, Jinzi did not pay attention to Xiao Li's cries. Instead, it stood meekly beside Chen Huai, occasionally sweeping its tail at his trousers.
Shen Huai stood on the mud by the roadside. At this time, he felt that he had been kicked by Chen Tong. His calf bone was aching faintly. He rolled up his trouser leg and saw that there was a bruise.
" Chen Tong really doesn't know how to weigh the pros and cons." The light was very dim, and Chen Dan could squat in front of Shen Huai just to see where Shen Huai's leg had been kicked. She leaned over to take a look and stretched out her hand to press on the darker skin. She raised her head and asked Shen Huai," Does it hurt?"”
"Chen Tong was afraid that I would be bitten by Jin Zi before he lifted his foot. I was also anxious and shouted at him. Help me tell him later." Shen Huai said, pretending to be relaxed.
He didn't mind Chen Tong's kick. He just wanted to get over it as soon as possible. He felt the coldness of Chen Dan's fingers on his little feet. Chen Dan was so close to him. Her face was like a lotus emerging from the surface of the dark water, and her eyes were so clear. Shen Huai smelled the faint fragrance coming from her body, and his excited emotions gradually calmed down. His heart was warm, and he restrained the urge to hold her in his arms.
After he had calmed down, Shen Huai and Chen Dan entered the courtyard. Chen Tong and Xiao Li were already preparing dinner inside.
Chen Dan and her husband, Sun Yong, had a bad relationship after they got married. Later, they simply lived in the single dormitory above the town reception station. It was only because they had to accompany Xiao Li recently that they temporarily moved to the old residence.
The old house was empty. It was a small water plain surrounded by ponds on three sides and a ridge of earth leading to the road on one side. There were no other houses within two to three hundred meters. Just two people and a cowardly dog living in such a house, it was quite scary at night.
Even if Shen Huai happened to rent a house in Meixi Town, Chen Dan wanted to bring Xiao Li to live in town and let the old house stay there. It was just that Jinzi, who was used to being wild in the countryside, was not easy to raise in the dormitory of the town reception station. She hesitated and could not make up her mind.
Shen Huai wanted to rent the entire house and also promised to put Jinzi in the old house for him to take care of. Chen Dan and Xiao Li could come over to see it at any time, and this problem was solved.
Xiao Li did not care much about things. No matter how strong she was, she was still a girl of fifteen or sixteen years old. These days, she had a habit of relying on Chen Dan. Naturally, Chen Dan made the decision for her to rent a house.
Chen Dan originally did not want to get too close to Shen Huai, afraid that he would have any thoughts about her. The closer she got, the deeper she would fall. However, when she saw Shen Huai hugging the gold and crying, this layer of worry and defense suddenly collapsed.
She knew that Shen Huai looked extremely glorious, young and promising, but he must have suffered unimaginable pain in his heart, which was why he had unintentionally let his emotions out so freely. Although Shen Huai looked quite ugly when he cried, such a person made her feel at ease and real.
Thinking of Shen Huai's appearance just now, and seeing that Jin Zi had stayed by Shen Huai's feet the entire night, enjoying his caress very freely, Chen Dan's heart was warm. How could she refuse to rent the old house to him?
After the matter of renting the house was settled, Chen Dan and Xiao Li refused the rent no matter what. Shen Huai put 600 yuan on the table to cover the three-month rent and said,
"I came to Meixi Town to be a cadre. If I live in a house for free and don't pay rent, it won't make sense. This is also in Meixi Town. With such a big courtyard and the land outside, the rent is only 200 yuan per month. It's really cheap for me. As for the rental of the house, help me draw up a lease and inform the village. Don't let the neighbors see a stranger like me and think that I'm a thief. If they beat me up, I won't be able to complain…"
Shen Huai's words always had a persuasive force that could not be rejected. Since she couldn't refuse, Chen Dan decided to be Xiao Li's main representative and collect the rent. Although the city steel factory had promised to pay Xiao Li's living expenses and tuition fees on a monthly basis before she started working, the price of goods had risen sharply these days. The monthly living expenses were only around 120 yuan. In fact, life would be very difficult. Chen Dan's salary was not high either.
If he rented out the old house, he would be able to earn an extra 200 yuan a month. His life would indeed not be so tight.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。