Chen Ping'an was very familiar with this kind of look, just like when he was a child, he looked at Liu Xianyang the same way. At that time, Liu Xianyang was the king of children in Xinghua Lane and Ni Ping Lane, catching snakes, birds and fish, as if he was the king of the world.
There was nothing Liu Xianyang couldn't do. Later, some of Liu Xianyang's peers who originally worked as followers also went to Long Kiln as apprentices, and more of them worked as waiters in various grocery stores in the town, or helped relatives.
As Song Jixin said, only the most unpromising people would dig for food in the crop fields. In the end, he was the only one who was still mixed with Liu Xianyang.
Chen Ping'an took the three slab fish given to the girl and strung them together with a few ragweed through the gills. She took the string of fish and picked it up. It was a little light and didn't feel like it would be enough.
With a plate of fried fish with green pepper, she tilted her head and glanced at the creek puddle, full of expectation. Chen Ping'an understood and apologized: "I want to make soup for the fish I caught next to replenish my friend's health, so I can't give it to you.
."
The girl pointed to the open package not far away and indicated that the pastries could be exchanged for fish. Chen Pingan shook his head and said with a smile: "No, the pastries are delicious and can fill the stomach, but they are not as nourishing as fish soup."
The girl nodded and did not force anyone to do anything. She sat back silently, carefully placed the fish at her feet, and then continued her great cause of "sitting back and taking advantage of the mountain."
Although Chen Ping'an was curious about her identity, he didn't ask too much. Looking at her dress, she didn't look like a lady from Taoye Lane on Fulu Street, but she looked a bit like the young lady next door. She was delicate and delicate.
She didn't like to talk. Chen Ping'an was suddenly worried. She couldn't be a maid who stole things from home and went out to eat. I heard that the rules in those big houses were very strict. Liu Xianyang and Song Jixin always liked to talk contrary to each other.
This incident is an exception, but Liu Xianyang's statement is very scary. He said that in those houses with high walls, if the maids and maids walk incorrectly, they will be beaten by the housekeeper who has an eye like a snake hawk.
His legs were broken and he was thrown to the street outside the wall to die. Song Jixin said that Liu Xianyang was spreading rumors, which was not an exaggeration. It was just that the maids and grandmothers in our family really walked like cats and could not hear any sound. At that time
When Liu Xianyang caught a glimpse of the maid Zhigui who was having fun at the side, he immediately became angry and cursed Song Ji Xin Goose, what kind of goose is that? Can your goose talk?
Chen Pingan finally caught seven or eight slate fish, and the bamboo basket was shaken by them. The pale boy knew that he was almost at his limit. The spring water was so cold that it penetrated deep into his bones. The most important thing was of course his injured left hand.
Unable to bear it, Chen Ping'an quickly jumped off the green stone cliff after landing for the last time, and got into the grass beside the stream. He made a rustling sound. It didn't take long before he pulled out three or four types of grass, and many grass roots were attached.
I picked up a piece of ordinary pebbles in the palm of my hand, holding the soil in my hand. After returning to the stone cliff, I found a small natural pothole the size of my palm on the stone cliff. After wiping it dry and wiping it clean, I began to gently pound the herbs. Soon,
It turns into a ball of green paste, and the juice exudes the unique fragrance of spring waterside weeds.
With his back to the girl, Chen Ping'an took a deep breath, gritted his teeth, and began to dismantle the cotton cloth on his left hand. Sweat quickly broke out on his forehead, covering the cold stream water that had slipped from his hair. The bloody wound, although much smaller than before the bandage,
The white bones were visible, and it was better, but it was still shocking. When Chen Ping'an came, he didn't expect that his left hand would touch the stream, so he didn't prepare cotton strips. Before that, all he could think about was that snake gallstones could make money and catch fish to make soup.
It was at this time that I realized that I had made a big mistake. The young man was a little confused. Suddenly, a palm appeared in front of him, with several dry and clean strips of cloth spread out. It turned out that the girl in green had torn off a piece of cloth at some point.
Cutting off the sleeve tube, Chen Pingan smiled miserably. He didn't care to be polite to the girl. After applying herbs to the wound on his palm, he brought it close to his mouth, bit one end with his teeth, tightened it with his right hand, circled it twice around the back of his hand and tied it with a knot. A series of actions, methodical,
It is also like a butterfly circling a branch, dazzling onlookers.
After the bandage was completed, Chen Pingan slowly raised his right arm to wipe the sweat from his face. His two arms were shaking uncontrollably.
The girl in green squatting nearby raised a thumbs up towards Chen Pingan with a "You are awesome" expression on her face.
Chen Pingan pointed to his eyes with his right hand and said with a wry smile: "It actually hurts so much that I shed tears."
The girl turned her head and glanced at the large basket and green bamboo fish basket that the boy had woven, feeling a little confused.
Chen Ping'an looked embarrassed, "Those stones can make money, and catching fish is also very important."
The girl was confused, but she still didn't speak. Her eyes were a little blank, and she turned her head to stare at the sparkling stream.
The gurgling stream rubbed the rocks above the water, making a splashing sound.
At that moment, the starry sky was bright, the world was lonely, and it seemed that there was only a pair of boys and girls in the world.
Chen Ping'an's body gradually became quiet and stable, and his originally rapid breathing began to slow down subconsciously and turned into long and continuous breathing.
It's like a stream that has experienced flash floods and turned into a stream that dries up in spring and autumn.
This quiet transformation did not bother the young man at all. It happened naturally and naturally.
Chen Ping'an knew that his wet body could not be blown by the cold wind of early spring for too long, so he had to quickly return to the town to change his clothes. Naturally, the boy did not understand the health care and pathology in the medical books, but he was the boy who was most afraid of getting sick in his life.
, I have long developed a keen intuition about the changes in the four seasons and the adaptation of my body. So I quickly put on my straw sandals, tied a fish basket around my waist, carried the basket on my back, waved to the girl in green, and said with a smile: "I
Let's go, girl, you should go home early."
As Chen Ping'an walked down the stone cliff, he couldn't help but turn around and remind: "The water is very deep on the covered bridge, so be careful not to slip on your feet. When going home, it's best to lean on the side of the paddy field, even if
If you fall down, it's better to be covered in mud than to fall into the stream..."
As Chen Pingan was talking, he suddenly realized that what he said was a little unlucky. It didn't sound like a good word, but it was the kind of curse words that Gu Can's mother in Mud Bottle Lane was best at. Chen Pingan quickly understood
Shut your mouth, stop nagging, speed up your pace, and run north towards the town.
The basket is very heavy.
But the boy in straw sandals was particularly happy.
After untying the almost dead knot in his heart, Chen Pingan felt for the first time that he wanted to live well and well.
For example, you need to be rich!
If you can afford Spring Festival couplets with the unique fragrance of ink, painted door gods, and meat buns from Madam Mao’s shop, it’s best to buy a cow and raise a brood of chickens like Song Jixin next door...
The girl in green is still "digging" tirelessly, with a serious look on her face. Every time she picks up a new pastry, she seems to be dealing with a life-or-death enemy.
When she was competing with a piece of peach blossom cake, her body suddenly stiffened. When she realized that something was wrong, instead of running away, she opened her mouth wide and swallowed most of the cake. Then she clapped her hands and sat there helplessly waiting to die.
I don't know when a man appeared. He was not tall, but he gave off a strong and solid appearance, but he would not be mistaken for a village farmer, because the man's eyes were so dazzling that people did not dare to look directly at him.
The man looked at the broken-patterned package that only had the "foot of the mountain" left, with a look of helplessness on his face. He wanted to teach her a lesson, but was reluctant to do so. He silently looked at his daughter's stubborn look of admitting punishment when she made a mistake, and he felt even more distressed.
, it seems that I am the one who made the mistake.
The man really wants to say something to ease the atmosphere, for example, my dear, if you are hungry, just eat over there at the Sword Furnace Thatched Cottage. After you finish eating, your father will go to the town to buy some for you tomorrow.
But when the words came to his lips, the man who was naturally reserved couldn't say them out. He held his tongue tightly as if every word was critical, and he didn't know how to comfort his daughter.
At this moment, the man felt that he was not as capable as the straw-shoe boy, but at least his daughter didn't have to be so nervous.
The girl in green suddenly raised her head and asked, "Dad, why didn't you accept him as an apprentice?"
The girl took the initiative to speak, which relieved the man.
Although the man had a straight face, he had already sat down next to his daughter and explained: "That kid has a good temperament, but his foundation is too bad. Even if his father accepts him, he will be attracted by his brothers all at once.
Keep the distance and no matter how hard you try, you can only watch the gap getting bigger. If there is another Senior Brother Liu coming by then, why bother."
The girl in green had a sad expression on her face. I don't know whether it was because she heard about "Senior Brother Liu" or because the boy in straw sandals passed by her.
The man hesitated for a moment, but still did not intend to hide her, lest she go astray or spoil the saint's plan, "Besides, this young man is so ordinary, but in a small town, he seems very special. Xiu'er, you probably don't
I know that this child's natal porcelain was broken very early, so he became like a lonely ghost, without the protection of his ancestors. At the same time, all kinds of strange things that are not easy to detect will happen. This is also
The reason why Song Jixin and the woman chose to be his neighbors, otherwise Song Jixin would not even be able to live in Fulu Street due to his status? It is obviously impossible."
The girl thought carefully and said, "Dad, are you saying that he is a bit like fishing bait?"
The man touched her head and said, "Almost."
Then he said with a smile: "If we, father and daughter, are not the most careless swordsmen in the world about external objects, chance and luck, I might as well let him stay by my side to see if I can benefit you more."
The girl in green clothes was a little depressed and in a bad mood.
The man said with emotion: "Xiu'er, dad's words are rough and rude, don't think it's unpleasant."
The girl in green clothes still looks sickly and cannot lift her spirits.
The man thought for a while and pointed to the covered bridge in the distance that looked like a black dragon crossing the stream. "The construction of that covered bridge was a massive effort of the Great Li Dynasty, just to hold down that inconspicuous iron sword. Just imagine.
Suddenly, three thousand years later, a sword with a broken soul and no owner. After more than three thousand years, in order to suppress its remaining power, a dynasty still has to pay such a huge price, so
The thing you ask for is still just to let it rest for a while..."
The girl groaned, drooping her head, and kept glancing at the foot of the mountain with her peripheral eyes, and echoed absentmindedly: "It's awesome."
The man didn't know whether to laugh or cry, rubbing his forehead.
The sky is big and the earth is big, and eating is the biggest thing.
But the child’s mother is not such a woman, so whose will is this girl following?
The man patted his daughter on the shoulder and said softly: "Dad, go see someone. You can eat by yourself. No one will compete with you."
The girl suddenly raised her head and grabbed the man's arm. A red bracelet on her wrist shone brightly, showing the shape of a dragon connected from head to tail.
Like a living flame dragon wrapped around the girl's wrist.
The man said happily: "I finally have some conscience. Okay, don't worry, dad is going to see Mr. Qi."
The girl let go of her hand, immediately grabbed the cake, and wolfed it down.
The man was so angry that he had endured all the hard work until now, and finally couldn't help but muttered: "Eat, eat, eat. The bastard named Liu deserves a beating, but he really didn't say anything wrong. Sooner or later, he will have to eat."
She will become a plump fat girl! Who will dare to marry you as his wife then! Doesn’t dad want to grab a son-in-law?"
The girl stopped eating, holding the cake in her hands, and was about to cry.
The man ran away, turning his back to his daughter, but he did not forget to give himself a slap.
It's like this every time, and the success falls short.
————
In the middle of the night, Chen Pingan ran all the way back to Liu Xianyang's house. When he unlocked the door, he could hear the guy's thunderous snoring.
Such a big heart.
If it were Chen Pingan, he would definitely not be able to sleep well tonight.
First, he put the baskets and fish baskets in the stove built in the courtyard, and went to the side room on the right that Liu Xianyang had vacated for him. After Chen Pingan quickly changed into clothes, he returned to the stove in the courtyard and began to deal with the stone slabs.
Cut open the fish, clean it, put it on a clean porcelain plate, and cover it with another plate to avoid attracting snakes, rats, and insects.
Chen Ping'an picked out five or six of the most interesting snake gallstones from the basket and moved them to the side room where he slept.
I took a look at the long sword that Miss Ning put on the cabinet before, and it was still lying there peacefully.
After doing all this, Chen Ping'an was finally able to lie down in bed, his body gradually getting warmer, but the boy's eyes were bright.
On the one hand, there is a tingling pain in my left hand, and on the other hand, I feel no sleepiness.
But the real reason is that Chen Pingan knows the "unreasonableness" of those outsiders better than Liu Xianyang.
The young man did not dare to sleep to death.
So Chen Pingan didn't sleep all night, always paying attention to the movement at the courtyard door and the house door.
At dawn, Chen Ping'an got up and went to the kitchen, picked up the burden, and prepared to go back to the iron lock well in Xinghua Lane to pick up two buckets of water.
The sleepy Liu Xianyang was hiding under the quilt with only his head exposed. After hearing a slight noise, he shouted in a daze: "Chen Pingan, you got up so early? What are you doing?"
Chen Pingan said angrily: "Fetch water!"
Liu Xianyang shouted again: "If you meet Zhigui, say hello for me."
Chen Pingan was too lazy to pay attention to this guy.
Just as he was about to walk out of the courtyard, Chen Pingan suddenly heard Liu Xianyang say: "Chen Pingan, as long as you are willing to help, I will help you touch the rocks in the puddle later!"
Chen Pingan smiled brightly and said, "Good luck!"
Liu Xianyang rolled his eyes, even shrank his head into the quilt, and muttered: "You guys who are unloyal, only know that this trick works."
————
On the stone steps of the covered bridge, a middle-aged Confucian scholar sat alone. He sat there until dawn.
When the first ray of dawn appeared in the sky, he looked up and chuckled: "A thousand-year-old darkroom can become bright with just one light."