The village by the riverbank
43 forty-fifth

linhaixuey

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Fairy was Xia Zonglan's only daughter. Her grandmother was the head of the family. Her grandmother said that when a girl grew up and got married, studying was useless. Therefore, she had never studied since she was young. After she became sensible, she helped her grandmother with her work. Spinning, cooking, collecting firewood, picking wild vegetables. She was already sixteen or seventeen years old, but she was still the same as when she was young. She had a thin figure and yellow skin. However, that pair of slender eyes and the smile on her face often allowed her to stand together with the beautiful girls in the east of Xia Zhuang. That year, when she was seventeen, someone proposed marriage to her. The man was a veteran who had just retired from the army in Sigezhuang Town. He had fought in the war and made contributions.

Fairy's family and Ni 'er's family were in the east and west courtyard. Fairy went to find her in-laws, and Ni' er's mother suddenly realized that Ni 'er was no longer a child. Look at her. She was tall, with thick black hair, an oval-shaped face with a hint of red in her white skin, and a pair of bright eyes that always contained a kind smile. "You're already sixteen or seventeen years old, and you're still in third grade. It's time to find her a husband." Ni 'er's mother often thought so.

"You're always deaf and don't care about anything. The girl is already so old. It's time for her to find a husband.”Ni 'er's mother said loudly into the old man's ear.

Xia Zongshi had been deaf since he was young. He tilted his head. Although he didn't hear everything clearly, he could hear the meaning of his wife's quarrel based on his years of experience living together. A smile appeared on his face. His mustache moved a few times as he said," You don't have to tell me about the girl. You can discuss it with her sister and book it if you think it's good."”

"She's been honest and caring for her entire life. She doesn't care about anything. She's deaf in both ears and heart. She's the only old girl left. Shouldn't she think about it and find a good family?”Ni 'er's mother mumbled. She was also an illiterate woman, but because the old man was deaf, she was the one who made the decisions in the family, making her smarter than the average housewife. From the many facts she had learned from herself and the village, she knew that for a woman, what kind of in-laws she found and what kind of man she found would determine her fate. Therefore, as parents, helping their daughter take this step and get through this obstacle was the greatest concern and responsibility for their daughter. Ni 'er had a few older sisters in front of her, so the good and bad were all in the past. Ni 'er's last daughter had to choose her in-laws carefully. Whether it was his family or himself, he had to choose carefully. Sometimes, when she had nothing to do, she would often go from east to west, from south to north, from house to house, sifting through the young men in the village to find a suitable husband for her daughter. However, no matter how many times he counted, this one didn't work, and that one didn't work either. Only Zhang Qingfeng's eldest son, Awu, was most suitable. In terms of looks, he was one of the most handsome young men in the village. He was more than 1.7 meters tall, had broad shoulders and a strong body, and was a little handsome. What others could not compare to was his usefulness. At the age of 14, he had already driven a carriage to the Tang Shan City to pull a leg. Even an adult could not compare to him in terms of speech and handling matters. Ni 'er's mother thought to herself as a smile appeared on her face.

Although Elder Shi was sincere, it was not that he did not want his daughter's marriage. However, he was not thinking about his daughter's future, but himself. He had never worked since he was young. When he was young, he had worked with his brother, Xia Zongxian. Xia Zongxian was a shopkeeper in the northeast and had a lot of money. His family hired three or four laborers. After the two brothers split up, his daughters had all grown up. He had many daughters, and before they got married, the man helped them with the work. The older ones got married and left, the second and second ones got married and left, and the third and fourth ones came one after another. Old Fifth was working outside, and his partner was a business cadre. He could not take over the work, so he thought that he should find a good partner for Ni 'er, who could help him work before and after marriage.

One day, at three or four o'clock in the afternoon, he woke up after drinking and lay on the brick bed in a daze. The crisp crack of a whip reached his deaf ears and roused him from his half-daze. He thought to himself,'Ah Wu is back.' He sat up on the brick bed and filled a packet of cigarettes. As he smoked, he thought, Ah Wu was a good boy, useful and honest. If he gave Ni 'er's head to him, he wouldn't be able to endure hardship for the rest of his life. He wouldn't have to worry about the work at home, people, and cars. At this moment, his wife just happened to come in through the curtain. The old man called her over and said,"The other day, you were talking about Ni Tou.”Ni 'er's mother smiled when she heard that. He thought to himself,'This old thing doesn't care about the cold. He's really planning something serious. He even thinks the same as me!' So he said,"We'll find some time to talk to someone."”

"This, I don't care. This is your business. You two can discuss it properly." As the old man spoke, his back leaned against the quilt.

Speaking of which, this Awu was smart since young. Because of the war, she had delayed her studies. After school, he would herd cows and pigs at home to collect firewood. One year, his father, Zhang Qingfeng, picked up a money bag in Qiaodong, which contained more than 300 yuan. Most people would be happy to pick up so much money, but he was very uneasy, thinking about how anxious the person who lost the money was! Soon, two people came to the village, saying that they were from Liu Daokou in the east. They sold vegetables and went across the bridge to throw the money down. Whoever picked it up would be rewarded heavily. Zhang Qingfeng verified the evidence and confirmed that they were the owners, so he returned the money to them. The person was extremely grateful and took out some money to thank him. Zhang Qingfeng said that he did not want anything."What are you talking about? Hurry up and pack it up.”The owner left with gratitude, and the two families became friends.

In the autumn of that year, Zhao Hongbin, the eldest son of the owner, became the head of the household. He came to the door and said that there was a bumper harvest of cabbage at home and that he could not sell them all. He wanted Zhang Qingfeng to help buy a mule to sell vegetables. Zhang Qingfeng was honest and would grant any request. He bought a small mule at the market. It was purplish-red in color, not big, and very energetic. Zhao Hongbin looked at it and was very satisfied. He took it back. He promised to send the money over later. One to six days later, the money still hadn't arrived. Zhang Qingfeng was anxious. He went to Liu Daokou personally to ask for it, but it was still not there. He said that he would send it over when he had sold enough. He waited for another five to six days, but he still didn't come. Zhang Qingfeng went again, but he still wanted to delay. For more than twenty days, he sold the vegetables one cart at a time, but he did not give him the money to buy mules. Zhang Qingfeng knew that he had been tricked. Hence, he decided to bring the mule back. What if he brought her back? Even if he sent it back to the seller, it wouldn't do! A swindler was a swindler. He could do whatever he wanted. Good people couldn't do it. Good people had to be shameless. He had no choice but to borrow money from relatives and relatives. In the end, Zhang Qingfeng's family bought the little mule themselves.

Why did he buy a small mule? He started grinding noodles with Zhang Qingheng from the north. Later, Zhao Qizhuang's second uncle, Qi Yu, saw that the mule's legs were quite good and came up with an idea to run to Tang Shan to pull the legs. Therefore, his relatives and friends helped him buy an old rubber car and started to "pull the leg".

At first, it was his father, Zhang Qingfeng, who drove the car. Ah Wu was curious and sometimes followed his father to play in Tang Shan. Slowly, Ah Wu came to Tang Shan to run around and take a look. Tang Shan's train station, bus station, shopping malls, restaurants, hotels, and so on, he was more familiar with them than his father. On the way, his father sometimes gave him the whip and told him to learn to drive. Later, he gradually became the leader, and his father followed the carriage to protect the spirit beast. Later, when Ah Wu was 14 years old, he simply asked Ah Wu to go out of the car alone to "pull the leg". This was the only " public bus " that traveled back and forth from Tang Shan to Si Ge Zhuang and Xia Zhuang. People called him Little Gulp. Little Gazi's car was famous. With a lot of money earned back, the family's life gradually improved. Spring was not good, so Ah Wu bought highland wheat and noodles from Tang Shan. Zhuang Dongli began to lay the foundation of the house with earth, wood, and bricks. In 1954, when Awu was 18 years old, he had already become a famous young man in the village.

When Ah Hui came back from school, she ran to the kitchen as soon as she entered. This was already a common occurrence. He took the rice that his mother had left out from the pot. Four barnyard grass cakes and a bowl of bean noodles were placed on the north cabinet in the room. They were eating anxiously but did not dare to make too much noise. His mother and Second Sister-in-law of the Qi Family were sitting opposite each other on the brick bed, talking.

"Oh, you're eating right after you're back. You're so tight-lipped. Are you still going to eat dinner later?”The Second Sister-in-law of the Qi Family asked curiously when she saw that it was already past lunchtime for Ah Hui.

"He hasn't had lunch yet. He doesn't take his food when he goes to school. He always comes back early to eat at night.”his mother explained.

"Yo, can you skip lunch so late? Let's get the food."

"I said so too, but I won't take it. I won't take it no matter what. It's better if you don't take it. It saves me the trouble of hitting the right person."

Hungry people can't be choosers. Ah Hui was on the north cabinet by herself. In a short while, she had finished all the food her mother had left. Although the food wasn't that good, it was still delicious. Second Sister-in-law felt that she had spent quite a lot of time here. She had said what she needed to say. It was not good for Ah Hui to hear some things. "That's it, Second Aunt. I'll go back and take a look. You and Second Uncle can discuss it properly."”As she spoke, she got off the kang. Her mother sent her to the door. When she returned to her room, her mother went back to her needlework, feeling particularly excited. In her mother's eyes, her brother, Ah Wu, was still a child. Although he had been driving a carriage to Tang Shan since he was fourteen years old, he had grown taller and spoke like an adult, but he was still only a teenager. His family wasn't very well off, so it wasn't too late to wait two years for his wife. Therefore, she had no intention of finding a wife for her son in the next one or two years. However, now, there was no need for her to ask someone to plead for mercy or arrange for a wife for her son. Someone actually came to her door. How could she not be happy and excited? Thinking about the girl's side, she was one of the best in the village. That family, which was Shopkeeper Xian's brother, had a solid foundation, so the land reform was not affected at all. Now, they had a lot of rooms at home and a sister who was working outside. In all aspects, the two families could not compare. Now, she actually took the initiative to choose us to propose marriage. Doesn't that mean that we've been living like a family for the past few years? My child also looks like a human! As she thought about this, she couldn't help but feel relaxed. At this moment, Ah Hui had already finished eating and was about to wash the dishes in the pot. She glanced at Ah Hui and thought to herself that she would grow up in another four or five years. A smile appeared on her face.

In the evening, when her father came back, her mother told her about the matchmaking of Second Sister-in-law of the Qi family. "What did you tell him?" Zhang Qingfeng asked as he smoked.”His mother said,"I didn't say much. I said that I would wait for you to come back and discuss it with Awu. Then, I would listen to him."”Zhang Qingfeng didn't speak for a long time. He just kept smoking. The smoke that came out of his mouth and nose floated in the room like clouds.

Father did not like this marriage from the bottom of his heart. Xia Zongshi is Shopkeeper Xian's brother, and his family can't compare to ours. In the past, her family looked down on others. Now, we have a car at home. Awu is also like a human being among the young people in the village, but she is still different from others. She will not have any feelings for you. Therefore, he was not willing to marry her. However, on second thought, this matter was the children's own business after all. He did not know what Awu would think. Daren couldn't do it for him, lest he would be complained about in the future, so he said,"Don't rush to decide on this matter. Let's wait for Awu to come back and discuss it. The main thing is to see his opinion.”

In fact, Awu and Ni Tou had long been interested. For the past year, he had been driving a carriage to Tang Shan, and when he returned, he would sleep with Zhang Fengjiao in Jiao's hometown. Ni 'er lived in the east wing of the courtyard. Ah Wu often came back late and was not punctual. At first, Zhang Fengjiao would always answer the door at night. Zhang Fengjiao felt that it was too big and did not open it even if he knocked. He could only wait outside. Ni 'er, who was sleeping in the east wing, felt light and woke up as soon as the door opened. However, she was a lady, so why did she love to court him? One night, Elder Jiao was too tired during the day. Awu knocked on his door for a long time, but he did not wake up. Ni 'er, who was in the east wing, was especially anxious and went to open the door without caring. Awu was also waiting anxiously outside. When the door opened, he pushed it open and stepped inside. He thought that the person who opened the door was still the arrogant old man, so he pushed the person hard."Why are you sleeping so soundly?" So it was a girl. Awu was very embarrassed. She quickly said,"I'm sorry, I'm sorry."”From then on, almost every time he came back, Ni 'er would open the door. Sometimes, he even added,"Why are you back so late?"”Slowly, as time passed, a feeling of love naturally sprouted in their hearts. Ni 'er felt that Awu was more and more amiable and adorable. Sometimes, she counted from the east to the west, from the south of the road to the north of the road, and compared the young men one by one from house to house. In terms of looks and usefulness, she felt that no one was as good as Ah Wu. He was full of energy and walked as fast as the wind. He wasn't afraid of the wind and rain in summer and wasn't afraid of getting up early and going into the dark in winter. If she had such a husband in the future... As she thought about it, she smiled shyly. She took Ah Wu into her heart. During the day, when he drove, her heart followed him and she missed him. At night, she hoped that he would come back early. No matter how late Ah Wu came back, she was always the one who opened the door.

It was easy to be a matchmaker for such a marriage. The Qi family and the two sisters-in-law had a string of words, and it was said to be a kiss. From then on, Awu practically became a member of Ni 'er's family. He didn't spend much time at home when he came back from the car. He ate at Ni Tou's house during the day and slept at Zhang Fengjiao's place at night. When the farm was busy, he helped out with the work in the fields. Even the water in Head Ni's house was picked by Awu.

In Awu's life, Ni Tou would wash the dirty clothes and mend the torn ones. There was no need to care about the family.

One afternoon, when the car was at home, Magezhuang came looking for it. The woman was about to give birth, and the fetal position was not right. She was afraid of dystocia and needed to go to Tang Shan to be hospitalized. It was very urgent. Her father agreed and asked Ah Wu to go pick her up. As soon as the car left, Ni 'er's mother found out that she was a gossipy old lady.

"How can this be? It's unlucky to pull a daughter-in-law who has a child. No matter how much money you give, you can't pull her.”The old lady looked very anxious and urged Ni 'er to stop her.

"D * mn, how can you say that!" Ni 'er was unwilling to move her head.

"You don't know anything. It's unlucky to pull this kind of leg. In the future, you will suffer along with me. At that time, it will be too late for regrets…Go, I will go with you. No matter what, I can't pull such a leg.”The old lady pulled Ni 'er's head and ran over like the wind.

His father sent Ah Wu out of the car and went to work in the fields. Only Ah Hui's mother and Ah Hui were at home. When her mother heard the noise outside, she got off the kang to welcome them. Ni 'er's mother kept muttering as she entered the courtyard and let go like a machine gun.

"Aunty, you're too insensible! Don't you know that it's unlucky to pull a woman who has a child? Men are careless, and old women don't understand this. No matter what, they can't pull it! He lived a peaceful life for good luck. No matter how much money you give, you can't pull out something unlucky.”

Her mother was a little vague, as if she had heard people say unlucky things. However, her father and Ah Wu said that they wanted to go, so she did not stop them. After hearing Ni 'er's mother say this, she felt that she had gained some supporters. He said,"That's right. It's not that I don't know, but how can I say it! Tang Shan is so far away. If you don't pull him, he won't either. Do you want the patient to walk there? Forget about the money. Saving the patient is more important.”

"How long will it take?"

"It's not that long ago, I'm afraid we've just crossed the bridge.”

"Hurry up and chase after him." Ni 'er's mother said decisively.

Her mother didn't agree to go to the beginning, but after hearing Ni Tou's mother's words, she became determined. Besides, Ni 'er's future daughter-in-law was here, so she had a new leader. Even if her father was angry, she still had something to say. Therefore, her mother told Ah Hui to chase after the car and asked Ah Wu to drive the car back.

Ah Hui did what the adults said. Seeing that Awu's car had already reached the bridge, they definitely couldn't catch up. They could only cross the river and intercept at Donghe Dam. The autumn river water was quite cold. Ah Hui did not care whether it was cold or not. She raised her clothes and crossed the river, stopping her brother at the Donghe dam. Ah Hui stood by the road.

"Mom said not to call her, but to drive the car back.”

"Go, go back quickly." Awu said anxiously. The car didn't stop.

Ah Hui had no choice but to come back and tell her brother's words to her mother, Ni Tou, and Ni Tou's mother. " When a general is outside, he will not accept the king's orders." Saving people was more important.

In the evening, Ah Wu picked up the pregnant woman from Magezhuang and prepared to go to Tang Shan. Ni 'er knew that there was no way to dissuade him. He had heard someone say that the grain grass could ward off evil spirits, so he got a lot of grain grass and spread it on the carriage.

At midnight on the third day, Awu drove back. The night was very dark, and one could not see their hands. There were four or five people in the car, and they were about to send them to Shi Gezhuang. Her mother asked Ah Hui and her brother to accompany her. After crossing the big river, the carriage arrived at Dongtuo. Little Scorpion suddenly stopped and did not take a step forward. Ah Wu told Ah Hui to get out of the car and lead the way. Ah Hui got out of the car and pulled the mule's rope. She couldn't see the road at all. It was as if her eyes were closed. Finally, she reached Shi Gezhuang. Along the way, it was unknown whether Ah Hui was leading the mule or the mule was leading Ah Hui.

A few days later, a middle-aged man came to the house and bought a lot of things. She said that after the pregnant woman arrived in Tang Shan that day, she was admitted to the hospital smoothly and gave birth to a child. At present, the adults and children were doing well. There was a car in front of them, but no one pulled it. Brother drove the car and saved the mother and son, saving their family. He was especially grateful!

This book is provided by FunNovel Novel Book | Fan Fiction Novel [Beautiful Free Novel Book]

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