At around three o'clock in the afternoon, Comrade Xu scooped a bowl of old duck soup from the pot, soaked some crispy rice, finished it in a hurry, and got up to go to the fairing for his mother.
Originally, his mother disagreed, but he insisted. In addition, he was 17 years old and would go out to find a job to make money in a few days, so Ge Xiaozhu hesitated and agreed.
The main reason was that her fever had not gone away and she was really tired.
The polder that needs flood control is very long. Comrade Xu has already asked clearly about the part of the polder that the people of Xujia Village need protection from. It is in the village.
And the village...he knew where it was.
On the way to the village, he thought about what he should do in the next one or two years.
First go to the county town to find a job and earn some money, because the county town is not far away and it is convenient to take care of your family.
When you have enough money, you will think of ways to start a small business. As for what kind of business?
He also has a few ideas in mind, but because he doesn't have the capital to do it yet, he is not in a hurry to make a decision immediately. In short, the most important thing at the moment is that he has a stable income.
At least it can ensure that the younger siblings can continue to study and the whole family can eat and drink without worries.
Along the way, he was thinking about these things and walked more than ten miles on the muddy road, and finally arrived at the village in his memory.
Not long after entering the village, the door of a low mud-walled toilet on the roadside was pushed open.
A fat young man with a round head and a round head walked out carelessly while fastening his trousers. When he raised his head, he met Comrade Xu's eyes.
The moment their eyes met, Tongdao Xu was stunned.
It's not that this fat boy looks so special, but because the moment he saw this fat man, a memory that had long been dusted by Comrade Xu suddenly opened up.
The fat man in front of him was very familiar to him.
They used to play together when they were little.
But we never played together again, because in 1998, this fat man, Xu Tonglin, died.
One of them died a long time ago and he grew up young. Tongdao Xu naturally gradually forgot about it and could not think of it often.
But the fat man in front of me... is still alive and well.
So the moment he saw Xu Tonglin just now, the hairs on Xu Tongdao's back stood up, and a kind of fright of seeing a ghost in the daytime suddenly exploded in his heart.
He was very brave for not turning around and running away immediately.
"Eh? Xiaodao? You're here too? Hehe, that's good! It's great that you're here now. I finally have someone to keep me company... Hehe, that's great, great!"
After Xu Tonglin was startled, he immediately walked over with a bright smile, put his arms around Xu Tongdao's shoulders, and smiled very happily.
He is the same age as Xu Tongdao and went to school together from childhood to adulthood.
By this time, Xu Tongdao had calmed down.
Knowing that Xu Tonglin is not dead at this time, it is not because he has seen a ghost.
Of course, seeing Xu Tonglin alive again, Xu Tongdao had very complicated feelings in his heart.
There is joy and also regret.
If possible, he certainly wanted to change Xu Tonglin's fate, and did not want him to die young at the age of 17.
In his memory, although Xu Tonglin was a little fat, he was a pretty good person.
He is cheerful all day long, has no temper, and is still warm-hearted.
When they were young, they played together and went crazy together, spending almost all day together.
He remembered... that when Xu Tonglin was on duty for his father on the polder, he slipped and fell into the river. When he was fished out, he was already dead.
"When did you come?"
Xu Tongdao asked Xu Tonglin.
Because he remembered that Xu Tonglin fell into the river and drowned on the first night when he went to the fair for his father.
When talking about drowning, Comrade Xu felt helpless.
Their Xujia Village is close to the dozens of miles long Xihe River. The boys in the village who are about the same age as him have basically learned to swim since childhood.
For example, he himself learned it at the age of 8.
But Xu Tonglin never learned how to swim. Every time we went to the river to play together, this guy always stayed in the shallow water area with the girls. He soaked in the water every summer, but he never learned to swim.
"I came here in the morning when my dad came home. Someone asked my dad to do something. Hey, he asked me to come here to hang out."
Xu Tonglin put his arm around Xu Tongdao's shoulders and talked carelessly while walking forward.
His father was a bricklayer, and occasionally people would ask him to do work and earn money. Therefore, his father asked Xu Tonglin to come to Weishang, and Xu Tongdao completely understood.
After all, going to the fair is compulsory and there is no money to be earned.
In the countryside, adult laborers must first make money.
After all, you have a family to support.
But Xu Tongdao thought: If Xu Tonglin's father knew that Xu Tonglin was going to the fair this time, he would die. Xu Tonglin's father would definitely say nothing to let his son come to the fair.
"Are you tired? From morning to now...if you are tired, go home first! Ask your mother to come and replace you."
Xu Tongdao tried to suggest to Xu Tonglin.
But Xu Tonglin laughed and shook his head, "No! There's nothing to do on the fairway anyway. I'll just hang out here for a few days, which is good! Hehe, it was a bit boring at first, but now that you're here, isn't that good?
That’s it! Hehehe..."
Xu Tongdao couldn't think of any other way to persuade him, so he had to give up, but he had already made up his mind that he would stay with Xu Tonglin the whole time tonight. Whenever he saw this kid in danger, he would do anything to save him.
…
When he followed Xu Tonglin to a large courtyard, he saw many people from Xujia Village at a glance.
Some men gathered together to smoke and chat, while some women sat together, chatting, knitting sweaters, or picking up shoe soles.
Seeing him and Xu Tonglin appear together, many people looked over.
Most people looked at him with a slightly strange look, as if they were looking up and down and re-examining.
Questions and jokes were thrown at me.
A man asked: "Huh? Xiaodao, your boy also went to the fair? I heard that you bullied Jinshan today? Hehe, I also heard that you beat up that boy Xu Hengbing? Is it true or false? When will you eat it?
Are you a cruel person?"
The other man chuckled and said: "Be careful what you say, or this kid will fight you hard..."
A woman asked with a smile: "Xiaodao, where is your mother? Why did you let your child go to the fair?"
…
There were a lot of words being said, but Tongdao Xu just glanced at them calmly and didn't answer a word.
It's the same sentence: Years of hard life have long made him develop the habit of being taciturn. He doesn't like to talk unless necessary.
He and Xu Tonglin walked under the eaves, found a place, and sat on the ground with their backs against the wall. Xu Tonglin was still asking in a low voice: "Hey, Xiaodao! Did you really beat that little son of Xu Hengbing today? Hey! You
That’s okay! That guy is usually very cute, if I wasn’t afraid that I couldn’t beat him, I would have cut him long ago!”
Comrade Xu smiled lightly and said, "Who asked him to rob my things?"