Zheng Qinglan was walking on a small path in the field. The rice in the field had been harvested, leaving only the stubble of different heights. Some tender green grass grew on the stubble, tender and dripping. It was not yet time to plant wheat, so most of the farmland had not been plowed. He was carrying a briefcase with a pen and paper, as well as the two steamed buns he had taken from the canteen in the morning. These were his lunch, and there was also a bottle of water. He was holding a bamboo stick in his hand. As he walked, he used the stick to sweep the weeds in front of him so that the dew would not wet his clothes. However, as time passed, his pants were still wet. It was still early September. Although the sun wasn't bright in the morning, Zheng Qinglan already felt a little hot. He took off his coat and put it in his bag. He walked in the empty wilderness with only a shirt on. As far as the eye could see, there were quite a few small farmhouses. Most of them were modern red brick houses. Some of them had a family on the top of a mountain, while others had a few families in a village. Zheng Qinglan walked towards a house of the Shan family and knocked on the door. A man opened the door with a whip in his hand and a wooden plow behind him. He stared at Zheng Qinglan suspiciously.
"Hello, I'm from the county cultural center. I'm here to collect folk songs.”
"Gathering wind? What gathering wind? I've never heard of it.”
"I'm here to collect some folk customs and folktales.”
"We have to work in the fields. Besides, listening to the story was decades ago.”
"Is there anyone here who is particularly good at telling stories?”
The man thought for a moment and said," Yes, there is. I just don't know if he can talk about it now. We often heard him talk about it when we were young." Here, it's just ahead." As he spoke, he pointed the whip at Zheng Qinglan.
Zheng Qinglan looked in the direction he was pointing at. There was a mountain there. It was very high, probably the highest mountain in the area. There was a large forest at the foot of the mountain, and some roof tiles could be seen vaguely. It seemed that there were at least twenty to thirty families there.
The man's words confirmed Zheng Qinglan's judgment." There are more than 20 families there. I moved out from there. There are several old people there. We often listened to their stories when we were young. You can ask them."”After saying goodbye to the man, Zheng Qinglan walked into the village. There was a stone mill and a pair of stone rollers at the entrance of the village. They were all made of bluestone. Zheng Qinglan was very familiar with these items because he had seen them in his place. He had seen adults use them when he was young. The millstone and the millstone had obviously been abandoned for many years. The wooden stake between the millstone and the millstone was gone, but some rotten residue was left inside.
Zheng Qinglan walked into a house made of mud bricks. The owners were an old couple. When they saw the guests, the old woman quickly brought over a wooden chair with mottled paint.
"Is there anything you need?" the man asked.
Zheng Qinglan repeated what she had said to the man. The man hesitated for a moment and said,"There are a few people who can tell stories here. Brother Zhang San next door and Brother Luo from the north of the village used to be famous for their storytelling. When it rained or snowed, we would tell stories for an entire day. There were a lot of people listening, but we always felt that it was not enough. "Now, no one listens. We haven't talked for many years. We're old and our memory is bad. We don't know where we lost a lot of things and can't remember them for a while.”
"I'll pick the one you're most familiar with."
"Little comrade, it's not that we don't want to talk about it, but this old man still has a mission. He has to herd the cows. Otherwise, our son and daughter-in-law won't be happy.”
"Old man, just say what you want to say. Why did you bring up your son and daughter-in-law? You don't even have anything good to say. If they hear this, you deserve to be treated badly. Cows were the treasure of rural people and could not be neglected.”
"Then I'll go with you to herd the cows. The two of us can talk together. You won't be lonely, and I can complete the mission.”
"Then what are you talking about? You're a city scholar, so why are you following behind a cow?”
"Grandpa, you're welcome. I'm also from the countryside. My home is in Shangyou Village next door. I've done this many times when I was young.”
"Then, I'll have to trouble you."
"It's not that I've been wronged. I've caused you trouble.”
"Little Zheng, we don't have to be polite. My surname is Tan, because I like to tell an old saying, which is a story. You can understand it. My sons call me Uncle Tan Gu, and my grandsons call me Lord Tan Gu. As we call each other, we mix together with Pangu, who created the world. Now, they all call me Uncle Pangu or Lord Pangu. Come, let's each have a small stool and a straw hat. When the sun is strong and it hurts, I'll bring a long rope and tie the cow up. It can eat the grass and can't run away. We can tell stories in peace.”
Lord Pangu released the cow from the cow pen and untied the rope around the cow's neck. The two of them chatted as they walked out of the village.
"Little Zheng, I used to like to sing opera. Every time we were idle, we would organize a group of people to beat the gongs and drums and put on our costumes. You might not believe me, but once we heard the gongs and drums, we would be energetic. One of our old brothers was sick in bed and couldn't get up. When he heard the sound of the gongs and drums, he said to his wife,'Help me up, I want to go to the opera.' Once he arrived at the scene, half of his illness was gone. Sigh, now that there was no one to watch the show, there was no one to sing. Such a good thing was ruined. Our costumes are old goods from decades ago. It's hard to buy those things no matter how much money you pay. In the past, we had to take them out to dry every June. Now, these things are useless and no one cares about them. Some of them are moldy, some are rotten, some are eaten by worms, and some are bitten by rats. There is no decent one left. It's really a pity.”
"Sir, don't look at me just because I'm young. I was also a theater fan when I was young. I followed the adults to your village to watch the show. I must have seen your show.”
"That's for sure. As long as you've come to watch it, you've definitely seen my acting. I'm the main character. To be honest, as soon as I go on stage, all the ladies and wives are staring at me. Let me tell you, my wife only followed me because she liked my acting.”
"Then you must be good at singing the drama of a talented scholar and a beautiful woman, that's why you hooked auntie's soul.”
"They sing all kinds of plays. There are jokes and sad scenes. Of course, there are scenes of talented scholars and beautiful women. Oh, here we are. We'll tie the cow up here with a long rope and we'll go over there in the shade. It had been so many years since they last talked, so she didn't know if they could still talk about reunion. What is the most familiar? Yes, let me tell you the origin of our village name first.”
"Your village name has a history?"
"Of course, his background is not shallow. Listen carefully.”
Although Qin Shihuang had built the Great Wall back then, he felt that the Great Wall was ultimately made of bricks. It would collapse one day after being exposed to the wind and rain. It could not be compared to the stability of steep mountains. However, the local mountains were only that high and would not grow up. Qin Shihuang wanted to move the mountains from other places to the place where the Great Wall was built and pile them on the original mountain. In this way, even if the wall built on the mountain collapsed, it would be very difficult for outsiders to break in with such a high mountain. Only an emperor like him could think of this. He thought about it day and night, but he never thought that he would really be able to move a Heavenly Deity. One night, Qin Shihuang dreamed that a god said to him," If you want to drive a mountain, you have to have a divine whip. This whip should be made of the divine wood on Kunlun Mountain, and the whip rope should be made of the silk thread twisted from the seven-colored clouds, the light of day and night, and the heavenly silkworm silk. After it is made, it should be placed in the Eight Trigrams Furnace of Taishang Laojun for forty-nine days. When it is used, it should use the blood sacrifice whip of the nine boys and nine girls.”When the God said this, he thought that Qin Shihuang would be stumped. He did not expect him to agree. He had lost so many people in conquering the six dynasties, building the Great Wall, and building his own tomb. What were these ten or so children to him? So he ordered the necromancers under him to look around for the things needed to make the divine whip. However, these things were only said by the gods in Qin Shihuang's dream. Even Qin Shihuang himself could not figure out what they looked like. Where could those alchemists get them? These people were worried to death. However, they did not dare to run. They knew about Qin Shihuang's laws. Just like that, batches of people were sent out, but only a few returned. Qin Shihuang had no interest in these people. He only cared about his empire and his divine whip. Later on, some great immortal showed mercy and actually gathered all these things. After the divine whip was made, Qin Shihuang forcibly recruited nine boys and nine girls from the people to sacrifice to the whip. After the whip sacrifice ceremony was completed, Qin Shihuang gently tested the whip. For a moment, sand and stones flew, and black clouds covered the sky. The common people thought that the gods were angry, and they were so scared that they could not stop praying. Qin Shihuang experienced the power of the divine whip and laughed happily. With the divine whip, who could touch his country?
But where should he go? At that time, although Qin Shihuang destroyed the six countries, the world was not peaceful. The Xiongnu often harassed the west and north, and the south was not peaceful either. It could be said that the east, west, north, and south were not at ease. If land was not possible, Qin Shihuang thought of the sea. At that time, there was a large mountain in the East China Sea. So Qin Shihuang brought people to the East China Sea, but when he waved the whip, there was no movement at all, not even a small splash. Qin Shihuang was shocked. He put down his dignity as an emperor and knelt on the ground to pray to the gods. The gods told him that the Dragon King of the East Sea would not let go. They said that these mountains were the property of the East Sea. If he wanted to move them now, he had to exchange them with tributes. The tributes were pigs, cattle, sheep, and exotic flowers and fruits. In addition, he had to have 1,000 boys and girls. Qin Shihuang naturally agreed to such a request. He sent his men to plunder all the families within a radius of more than 100 miles, regardless of whether they were officials, civilians, or gentry. However, he was still short of two pairs of boys and girls. After much persuasion, he found someone to stab two pairs of boys and girls to make up the number. Only then did the Dragon King of the East Sea let him go. However, the Dragon King of the East Sea secretly seized some small islands.
Just like that, Qin Shihuang drove a large mountain from east to west. When he passed by one place, one place would be destroyed. When he passed by two places, two places would be destroyed. On that day, when they arrived at our territory, Qin Shihuang was tired. He and his large army stopped to rest and stuck their whips into the ground. When a young local man saw that Qin Shihuang did not care about the lives of the people, he thought about how many families were destroyed and many people were uprooted by Qin Shihuang's construction of the Great Wall and mausoleum. He took advantage of the opportunity to replace his real whip with a fake whip and then burned it. Qin Shihuang woke up and picked up the whip to continue driving the mountains, but the mountains did not move at all. He was so angry that he lashed three times in a row, making three big holes in a mountain. These three holes can still be seen clearly, but they can only be seen from higher mountains. Later on, Qin Shihuang found out that the whip had been replaced, so he arrested everyone nearby and threatened to kill everyone if they didn't hand over the whip. That young man stood up to save the people. Qin Shihuang wanted to push him into the sinkhole, the place where he had stabbed the whip. It was unfathomable and terrifying. The young man's new wife was willing to die with him, so Qin Shihuang pushed them both into the sinkhole. Unexpectedly...
Master Pangu stopped talking and picked up his pipe to smoke. Zheng Qinglan was so anxious that she couldn't wait for Master Pangu to finish smoking so that she could continue. However, Master Pangu smoked slowly as if he didn't see Zheng Qinglan's anxious look at all. After smoking the pot of cigarettes, Lord Pangu slowly wiped the ashes off the pot and wiped the pipe with a piece of cloth. He smiled at Zheng Qinglan and asked,""How is it? You're not in a hurry, right?" "Sir, tell me quickly. My heart is about to jump into my throat.”"There's no rush. Storytelling is like storytelling. You have to keep the listener's appetite hooked, the more the better.”"Sir, my appetite has long been whetted by you. Hurry up and tell me.”"Guess what?" Zheng Qinglan shook her head. "I didn't expect that after a few months, this couple would actually come back. Don't you think it's strange? It turned out that this Tiankeng was connected to the underground river. After the couple fell into the water, it was pitch-black and they couldn't see anything. Thankfully, the couple encouraged each other. When they were hungry, they would grab food from the water; when they were thirsty, they would drink water from the river. After floating in the underground river for a long time, they suddenly saw a glimmer of light and were washed out. After a few months of traveling outside, they finally returned to their hometown. Thankfully, there were always people helping them on the way. They did not suffer much. Everyone thought that they would definitely die if they fell into the sinkhole, but the couple actually came back alive. It was really fate. It seemed that the heavens still took care of good people. Without the divine whip, Qin Shihuang couldn't chase the mountains away, so the mountains were left here. The mountain that he whipped three times was the tallest. Because it was whipped by Qin Shihuang when he was angry, it was named Emperor Hen Mountain. Later, the common people hated Qin Shihuang more and more for being inhumane, so they changed the first two words, and this mountain became Emperor Hen Mountain. Later, I don't know which dynasty or which generation it was, but it was called Black King Mountain. This name is quite realistic. From afar, the mountain is dark and secluded. We named it Black King Village according to this mountain. During the cultural revolution, it was renamed Dongfeng Village. A few years ago, during the place name survey, it was changed back to Black King Village. At that time, I was also telling the place name survey officer about this origin.”
"Sir, are there really three openings in the Black King Mountain that you mentioned? Does the sinkhole really exist?"
"That's not fake. The three gaps on the Black King Mountain can be seen from afar. As long as you go up to the back of my mountain, you'll be fine. The sinkhole is like a well. It's very steep. I went there when I was young. I went there with more than ten of my old brothers. Each of us carried a bundle of rope, a torch, kerosene, and a three-battery flashlight. We went down a total of three people, but before we reached the bottom, the rope was not enough. The batteries we just bought shone a few miles away from the outside, but inside, they were like fireflies.”
"Why not use a torch?"
"We were going to use torches, but there were a lot of dead branches and leaves inside. We were afraid of fire. Also, the middle school teacher who went with us said that there might be a lack of oxygen inside. Fortunately, he went there that time. If he hadn't reminded us, we might have really been finished there. Two days ago, someone was digging a well here. One person went down but didn't come up. Another person went down to take a look but didn't come up either. Two people from the family went down at once. It was a pity. Later, the people who came to investigate said that there was no oxygen in the well. Being uneducated really killed people.”
"What did you see inside?”
"Withered vines, rotten leaves, groups of bats, and bird droppings all over the cliffs. Some of the protruding areas have bird droppings that are a few feet thick. A few years ago, I heard that a production team sent people to collect bird droppings as fertilizer.”
"What else?"
"Also, don't be afraid.”
"I'm not afraid."
"There are also piles of white bones of humans and birds. In the past, he had heard from the old man that when bandits captured someone and killed the hostage, they would push the person down. " It's really a scary place. Other than the bones, there are also the sounds of bats pricking our ears. Then there's the cold. We went down in big June wearing cotton jackets and trousers. When we came up, we were still shivering from the cold.”
"Is there really an underground river down there?"
" That's hard to explain. We didn't go down to the bottom, and we didn't hear the sound of running water. However, the walls of the well were wet, and water kept dripping down. It might be water that seeped down from above. The walls of the well were covered with moss, and it was extremely slippery. Stepping on it was like stepping on ice.”
Zheng Qinglan was not done yet. Master Pangu pointed at the cow in the distance and said,""Look, it's already full. It's our turn to eat. Look at the sun. It's lunchtime. Let's go, Little Zheng. I'll treat you. I can guarantee that the old woman has already cooked and is waiting.”
"I brought some dry food and water, so I won't disturb you.”
"What are you talking about? Leaving the guests outside while the host eats and drinks at home? Let's go home and eat together. Not only can we fill our stomachs, but we can also gain something else.”
"What harvest?"
"Let's go. We'll know when we get back."
Just as they reached the door, they saw Aunt Pangu looking at the village entrance. Seeing that the two of them had returned, Aunt Pangu scolded,"Old man, you still know how to come back. I thought you were lost outside. The older you get, the more confused you are. Look at the time. You only came back now and let the guests starve with you. However, today's cow is solid. Your son and daughter-in-law are going to buy you cigarettes and wine.”
"Husband, we didn't idle there. Are my two old friends here?”Before Aunt Pangu could speak, a voice came from inside,""You came early. You chased the chickens around and went down to the pond to catch fish. You forced us to be servants for half a day. As the master, you're so carefree and happy. You moved a stool and hid outside to enjoy the cool, haha.”
"Come, come, Little Zheng. These are the two old friends I told you about this morning. They are two old opera fans and two storytellers. Two old friends, this is Xiao Zheng from the county cultural center. He's come to our village…to collect folk songs.”
"Greetings, my name is Zheng Qinglan. I'm from Shangyou Village. I'm here to learn from you.”
"Cough, what's there for us old antiques to learn? It's all in the trend now to play new things. Even if we sing old plays, we have to add new accompaniment.”
"Antiques are good. They are all priceless treasures.”
"Stop talking about this. I'm not hungry yet. Old man, move the table and put it under the shade of the orange tree.”
Lord Pangu brought out a short square table from the main room. This kind of table was not painted and was very common in the countryside. The top of the table was usually stained with oil, and the legs of the table were also black. This kind of table was usually quite old. If it was washed, it was really not easy to clean it. He had to sprinkle a lot of washing powder on it and rub it with a rag. At this time, he could only see black and greasy water flowing down. A rag could not be wiped a few times. It had to be rinsed in clean water a few times before it could be used again. This kind of cleaning was usually only done during the New Year. When she was young, Zheng Qinglan would take the initiative to wash the tables. At this moment, Lord Pangu had brought out such a table. However, it was very clean, just like how Zheng Qinglan had washed it when she was young. The four chairs that the two elders had brought out were also clean. Zheng Qinglan felt a sense of solemnity like the New Year and felt a little guilty. After the tables and chairs were set, Aunt Pangu put down the bowls and chopsticks and said,""All of you sit down. I'll serve the dishes. You don't have to do anything.”
"Alright, we'll all sit here and not move. Anyway, we have you, the old maid.”
Soon, the dishes were served. There was a plate of fried bacon with rice flour. The outer layer of rice flour was fried until it was golden yellow, and the bacon inside was bright. There was a large bowl of boiled fish. The fish soup had been boiled until it was milky white. The fish meat was tender and smooth. There was also a plate of fried eggs with chives, a plate of fried white lotus root, and a plate of peanuts.
"Sister-in-law, the main course hasn't been served yet. You can't be reluctant, right?”
"The old hen stewed vermicelli is here." Aunt Pangu used an porcelain bowl to fill a bowl full of chicken and vermicelli." Eat as much as you can. Don't leave the table if you can't finish it.”
"Sister-in-law, you're really particular as a landlord's daughter. You have bowls and plates, even using a bowl. Let me tell you, my house doesn't have such extravagance.”
"What? I'm sorry to make a fool of myself in front of the guests from the city. I don't have a whole set of food. I'll make do with it. You guys eat as much as you can. I still have half a pot of chicken here. I'm warning you, you're not a landlord anymore. I've taken off my hat for many years, and you're still calling me landlord. Be careful that Old Pangu won't sing with you anymore.”
"Him, unless you don't let him sing, he runs faster than me when I call him. Haha, Old Pangu, am I right?”
"Right my ass, let's drink!" Lord Pangu poured wine for everyone and said,""Two elder brothers, Little Zheng, I won't say any more nonsense. Come, drink!”
Zhang San Ye took a sip of wine and said to Zheng Qinglan,""Little Zheng, we've been brothers for decades. We're used to laughing and joking. If we don't, we'll get used to it. Don't laugh at us. Come, eat. These are all home-made. They're authentic rural craftsmanship. You don't have to say that many people in the city like these now.”
Second Master Luo also echoed,"Yes, yes, the original taste of the things passed down by our ancestors is still better."”
"Come, let's drink!" Lord Pangu raised his cup.
"Old Pangu, this wine of yours was given to you by your daughter and son-in-law during the new year, right? Aren't you heartbroken to take it out to show your respect to us now?”
"If it wasn't for Little Zheng's face, I wouldn't have let you drink it. I'm already letting you off easy by letting you drink the three-course wine that costs 60 cents per catty. Come, Little Zheng, drink. Don't listen to these two old things.”
Zheng Qinglan took a sip and felt that it was similar to the one she drank at the golden pillar. This was probably the best wine that Master Pangu could offer. She felt both grateful and guilty.
Hot dishes and strong liquor. After a while, their faces were red and sweat was dripping from their foreheads. Their voices also became louder.
"I have to say that the current days are much better than the previous years. The harvest in the fields is also good, and there are three or two sons in the wallet. I don't have to worry about the pot or bowl anymore. However, some things are not good. For the first time, no one listens to the opera anymore. They all listen to the tape recorder and watch television. What was playing on the tape recorder? It was playing some foreign stuff and making a scene. It sounded awkward. I asked my son to buy a tape of an old drama without any messy accompaniment. He said that no one still sold such things nowadays. I thought he didn't want to buy it, so he lied to me. Once, I went out on the street and looked around a few times, but I couldn't find a tape that sold real old dramas.”
"It's like this, Sir System. There are indeed fewer people who listen to plays and watch plays nowadays. Most of the people who like old plays are old people like you. In order to adapt to the tastes of young people, some opera singers add electronic accompaniment. This is just an experiment, and it's not a fixed model.”
" That's true. Everyone has their own interests. The elderly like old antiques, and the young like new things. It's normal. I'm just worried that if this continues, the things passed down by our ancestors won't be passed down anymore. Look, are there still opera singers in our village? They're all old guys whose teeth are almost falling out. The youngest is almost over seventy.”
"The higher-ups are aware of this situation and are also seizing the time to collect and sort out these old things. Let's not talk about anything else. Our library has already recorded a few recordings of the old plays you mentioned. Because the area is too wide and we don't have enough manpower, we're only doing it in a few towns near the county.”
"Alright, brothers, we have to live well. Maybe one day, someone in the county will look for us.”
"Brothers, how about we sing a few times with the help of alcohol?”Lord Pangu suggested.
"Good, good!" Third Master Zhang and Second Master Luo echoed loudly.
"Keep your voices down. If your sons and daughters-in-law hear you, they'll blame you for being crazy.”Aunt Pangu reminded.
"Who cares about them? They play their own game, and we play ours. We have nothing to do with each other. If I don't like them, I'll hide. If he doesn't like us, they have to endure.”
"It's still the same old routine. Old Pangu will sing the young man, I'll play the huqin, and Luo Lao Er will sing the female role. Let's sing that part of 'Herding Sheep in Winter Moon'.”
"Okay, of course it's the best part. Firstly, we're treating the guests. Secondly, we want to use Little Zheng's mouth to report to the higher-ups. This good thing is about to be lost. We have to hurry up and save it, or it'll be too late.”
The three of them played the Huqin and cleared their throats. They brought Zheng Qinglan back to ten or twenty years ago.
In the winter, the wind blew, and snowflakes fell from the sky. The little girl lost her mother when she was three years old. Father married a stepmother for me.
When the stepmother came, the sky changed, and the delicate child became a bitter child. Ku Wa had a home and couldn't stay, so the sheepfold became my home.
Her stepmother was ruthless and had many rules. She was in charge of everything. Sheep can't grow fat. If they are fat, they will be scolded.
The sheep couldn't grow thin. If they became thin, they would be beaten with sticks. Sheep can't get out of the pen early, if they get out of the pen early, they'll get slapped.
Sheep can't be late to return to the pen, if they are late to return to the pen, the meat will bloom. Ku Wa had a father who couldn't control him, and his stepmother could grab him.
Father stole bread for us, stepmother knew and scolded him. Take away my two buns, Ku Wa's eyes often dazzled.
My mother is underground. My dear mother, look at me. Look at your precious baby.
In the winter, his clothes were torn, and his bare feet were numb from the cold. When Uncle and Grandma came to see me, Stepmother praised herself,
Meat, rice, oil and noodles are provided for me, and I praise myself like a Bodhisattva. Uncle and Grandma picked me up and insisted on fighting.
She stomped her feet, shouted, splashed water, and scolded him. She ignored her and forced her uncle to go home.
Uncle and Grandma turned around and hit him with sticks. They grabbed and kicked him and cursed him. They were not allowed to make a sound and swallowed it down.
The life of a bitter child is more bitter than that of a sheep, and a sheep has someone to worry about. I have no clothes on my body and my stomach is empty. I don't know if I can go home this time.
After singing, no one spoke for a long time. Zheng Qinglan's eyes were wet. He felt deeply sorry for the poor child in the play. If it weren't for the fact that he was in someone else's house, he might have cried. Aunt Pangu kept wiping her tears with her hands. Zheng Qinglan looked at the three old men. They were sweating profusely and their eyes were filled with tears.
Aunt Pangu wiped her tears and said,""This old drama is so good. I can't get tired of listening to it. I can't help but cry when I hear this part. Old fellows, why are you all silent? Why are you acting like women? Come, let's continue eating and drinking. Aren't we singing? Don't take it seriously.”
Third Master Zhang said," Age really doesn't wait for anyone. I can't sing anymore. I really can't sing anymore. I can't breathe and my throat is broken. I can't even see the tune anymore. I have to ride a fast horse to chase after it."”
"Me too. My voice is floating. I don't feel it when I hum normally, but I can't sing properly. When I'm old, dog meat can't be served at the main table.”Second Master Luo replied.
"If you can't sing, then don't sing. Be careful that your son and daughter-in-law will come back and say that you guys are old evil things.”
Master Pangu was suddenly furious." I sing my own songs, and my son plays his own. I don't like his lousy music, so I didn't say I was going to smash his tape recorder.”
"Alright, alright, you're right. I said I can't win against you. Go and get angry with your son and daughter-in-law.”
"Yes, yes. Auntie, I'll help you collect them.”
"Sit down and rest. I'll do it myself.”
"Three uncles, thank you for your hospitality. I've really gained too much today. Now, I have to go back and write down what I heard and saw today. You guys go ahead and do your work. I'll take my leave.”
"Sure, sure. Come back tomorrow. Come to my house tomorrow.”Second Master Luo said.
"Sir, I'm really sorry to disturb you. It might take me some time to sort out today's things. How about this? I'll come and find you after lunch tomorrow.”
"Alright, remember that I owe you a meal. Come to my house tomorrow and I'll invite these two old friends over to accompany you.”
"Forget it. Xiao Zheng, you should come to my house tomorrow. Your son and daughter-in-law are both at home, so it's not convenient. My son and daughter-in-law have already moved out. There's only the two of us in this mud house.”
"Alright, then it's settled."
After leaving the village, Zheng Qinglan realized that the sun had already set. The meal had taken at least two to three hours. It was a huge waste for Zheng Qinglan, who usually ate quickly. However, he didn't think so at the moment. On the contrary, he felt that the meal was quite worth it. The dishes were one aspect, but more importantly, he had heard stories that he had never heard before. He had re-tasted old dramas that he had not seen for a long time and got to know a few old people who were full of stories. These were all rewards. Of course, there were still some doubts that he had not figured out. Perhaps there was a good story here. What was even more exciting was that it would continue tomorrow. He was looking forward to tomorrow afternoon.
The sky was blue and smooth, like a huge, flawless blue crystal. The sun had also put away its heat at noon and replaced it with a loving face. The sunlight was like a gentle warm gauze covering everything. The fields were as quiet as the night, and occasionally, the crisp sound of dry straw could be heard. Zheng Qinglan's mood changed from the uneasiness she felt when she walked this road in the morning to an unusually relaxed and open mood. Thank you, elders.
This book is provided by FunNovel Novel Book | Fan Fiction Novel [Beautiful Free Novel Book]