8

“…You give this to Brother Bei.”

Chen Nan couldn't help but pout: "Sister Xiao, if you had come earlier, you could have given it to him in person."

She doesn’t want to see her brother! She really doesn’t want to!

After joking, she returned to her seat and said, "My brother seems to be sick lately! I don't know who provoked him. One moment he has a cold face, and the next he smiles as if he's free..."

She moved closer: "Could he have gotten involved with something he shouldn't have?"

Realizing something, Chen Nan shrank back, hugged himself tightly, and muttered softly: "Children's words are innocent, children's words are innocent, nonsense..."

Chen Bei laughed? Xu Xiao didn't believe it: "Are you sure it was Brother Bei who laughed?"

She remembered that Chen Bei laughed only a few times, most of which were probably when he successfully played a prank on Chen Nan.

Although he has been a quiet person since he was a child, at least he would laugh often.

"I really laughed, but it was a very sinister laugh."

Xu Xiao imagined it, but then gave up; she couldn't imagine it. It had only been about 50% like a ghost, but with that smile, it had become the King of Hell.

That's not just asking for life, it's asking for life directly!

The things were delivered, and she didn't plan to stay: "Let's go, I'm still needed over there."

Chen Nan did not try to persuade him to stay, but nodded, just like a chick pecking at rice, not knowing what to do with his head but just keeping it lowered.

Halfway through the walkie-talkie, Chen Shiyou said something to Xu Xiao, telling him not to rush to Chenjia Village, as he would be fine in the back mountain.

Surrounded by two villages, the back mountain is not small and the mountain road is steep. Even locals rarely go up there.

Xu Xiao felt relieved and turned to walk towards the Xu family.

Today is a rare day off, and every household has lit firewood.

White smoke curled in the air, and footsteps and barking of dogs could be heard outside the yard, one after another, without a moment's pause.

Listening to the noisy music, she was able to calm down for a rare moment. She didn't feel the urgency to hurry up, nor did she have any resentment left over from her past life.

Quietly, just walking on the country path, neither hurried nor slow.

The wind is cool and slow, blowing gently across your face, bringing with it a hint of good harvest.

Before she could calm down for long, the Xu family's yard was right in front of her.

Can't escape, can't leave.

When she pushed open the wooden door, the Xu family members were together. When they heard the sound, they looked up and looked at her.

Captain Xu frowned and swallowed his words of blame: "A Xiao, I heard that you drove away the matchmaker?"

Chen Hong and her sisters-in-law stood up together and quickly pulled Xu Xiao to sit down.

"Dad, maybe Xiao has his own ideas!"

"Yes, Ah Xiao is an intellectual, his vision must be better than ours."

The two men sang in unison. Father Xu and second uncle pulled their women, still looking a little embarrassed.

Driving away the matchmaker is not a trivial matter. To put it mildly, it is ignorant, and to put it seriously, it is lawless. If others knew about it, the Xu family would be in trouble.

Therefore, they did not stop their women from saying this, and they were also reminding the old man not to treat it lightly.

The old man is famous for doting on his granddaughter.

Among the four children, Xu Xiao was the only one who was spoiled since childhood. If it weren't for the accident, he would still be studying in the county.

It is not common for a rural family to support a girl's education.

The premise is that everything is voluntary on the part of the Xu family.

In the past, Xu Xiao also thought that the Xu family treated him well, but after living for a lifetime, he should be more insightful.

For example, she could feel the Xu family's shared hatred of the enemy, which was a belated judgment and restraint of her.

Pressing her fingertips against her temples, she asked softly, "Comrade Ji Hong and I have no relationship, so do we have to be tied together?"

Must she marry him, have children, and lose her whole life?

Rather than being saved, she would rather not have been saved, so that she would not be entangled by the so-called grace and chastity.

She asked this question a lifetime late, but she finally asked it out loud.

The two women's faces were filled with joy, which they couldn't suppress at all, but Xu's father and second uncle looked furious.

Xu Xiao ignored them and only looked at Captain Xu, who was the real boss. She opened her mouth and repeated, "Do we have to tie them together?"

Two strangers, their fates linked together because of a ridiculous favor?

Captain Xu was indeed capable of holding onto his position. Even after hearing such unorthodox words, he didn't get angry.

He looked at his two daughters-in-law and said, "Go in and check the fire."

The women were reluctant, but they did not dare to disobey their father-in-law, so they had no choice but to get up and go into the west kitchen.

Captain Xu frowned: "Ah Xiao, an engagement is not something you can play around with. You and Ji Hong were originally--"

Xu Xiao raised his head, a hint of sarcasm on the corner of his lips: "Does the Ji family know about this?"

"Ji Hong is really willing to marry me?"

"Why did he marry me?"

"Why should I marry him?"

Second Uncle couldn't help but slam the table. He roared, "Xu Xiao, what's with your attitude?"

Father Xu lowered his head timidly and whispered, "Ah Xiao, don't talk to your grandfather like that."

Filial piety at this time was like going back a hundred years, extremely feudal.

"Ah Xiao, so you don't want to get married?"

"No!" Why did she get married, just because he saved her?

Captain Xu smiled, still without any anger in his eyes. He stared at the girl opposite him with drowsy eyes: "But Ah Xiao, don't you like him? Can you tell Grandpa what happened?"

That's how it was, Xu's father and second uncle played the good guy, and Old Man Xu played the bad guy, so she believed everything.

Unfortunately, she won’t believe it this time.

Xu Xiao lowered her head, pretending to be aggrieved, her voice choked with sobs: "He has Zhao Ling by his side, I won't marry him, Grandpa, I won't marry him!"

So that's how it was. The three of them breathed a sigh of relief.

Captain Xu scolded him harshly, "Nonsense! It's just a joke from that group of people. That Ji Zhiqing is one in a million. Grandpa is very relieved that you can marry him. Don't say anything out of spite, girl."

Although he also called her "girl", there was obvious tenderness in Chen Shi's eyes. He felt pity and admiration for Xu Xiao, who was carrying a secret at such a young age.

But Captain Xu's eyes were calm, even a little indifferent.

To him, "girl" was not an affectionate name for the younger generation, but was simply a way to show his kindness.

Out of anger?

Xu Xiao smiled and did not refute.

Looking around, the three men, father and son, sitting in the yard were arrogant and acted like the heads of the family.

He glanced at the three women in the kitchen. They were cooking with their heads down, but their clothes were obviously much older.

Even her stepmother Chen Hong, who has a fierce personality, is obviously much older than Xu's father.

But she is three years younger than Xu's father.

This is the fact. The oppression that the family brings to them is the hard work from dawn to dusk, the cooking for the whole family even when they are dizzy with hunger, and the beads of sweat on their foreheads and necks that they don't have time to wipe away.

The 1970s was an era of labor, and also an end of the year that was about to usher in earth-shaking changes.

Xu Xiao lived to be eighty years old, and lived into that rapidly developing technological era, but it was not until her death, when she was half paralyzed, that she completely let go of her responsibilities.

Taking care of her husband, 80-year-old Ji Hong looks very young, just like she is in her 60s or 70s. Even her old bones can still dance square dance with Zhao Ling.

Her children are already in their fifties, and perhaps her only insistence was waiting until she was thirty to give birth to the twins.

So, her children disliked her old appearance, disliked the smell of firewood that could never be covered up on her body, and disliked that she was not as knowledgeable as Zhao Ling, but she could have gone to college too!

"Excuse me, I'm looking for Xu Xiao."

A clear voice interrupted Xu Xiao's memories and brought her back to reality.

It was Chen Bei, wearing military green clothes. He looked at the people in the yard with indifference. His eyes swept over Xu Xiao who was sitting alone on the side, and then there was some warmth in his expression.

From Chen Bei's clothes, Captain Xu recognized that he was a garrison a few miles away, and his superiors had also instructed him not to disturb them casually.

He stood up and hesitated: "Why are you looking for my Xiao?"

Xu Xiao stood up. She might have a conflict with the Xu family, and every time she did that it reminded her of those nightmares.

When she reached Chen Bei, she called out, "Brother Bei," and then turned to Captain Xu and said, "Grandpa, this is Chen Bei. I'm leaving first."

Captain Xu didn't recognize the name Chen Bei, but he knew Chen Nan, so it wasn't difficult for him to guess the identity of the person in front of him. He said excitedly, "Okay, okay, go ahead, go ahead."

Xu Xiao didn't want to reveal Chen Bei's identity, but she knew the Xu family. If she didn't tell them, it would be difficult for her to get out.

She doesn't want to break up with the Xu family for the time being, at least not yet.

"Let's go, Brother Bei."

"good."

The two men walked out of the courtyard surrounded by earthen bricks half a person's height, one in front and the other behind. Passing by a touch of red in the corner of the wall, Chen Bei paused and then followed.

Captain Xu was no longer excited, but a little scared. Seeing that Chen Bei just glanced at him, he felt relieved.

Uncle Xu was puzzled: "Dad, who is that person?"

"Chen Bei, Chen Nan... are members of the Chen family!" Father Xu murmured.

Captain Xu looked outside and saw that there was no one there. He felt relieved and said, "Shut up! Don't talk about Xu Xiao anymore!"

Chen Nan is a girl, but Chen Bei is not someone to be trifled with.

Even if they wanted to do something, they would have to wait until this man left, but he had not heard any news of the garrison leaving.

Second Uncle Xu grinned grimly and lowered his voice, "Dad! With that thing here, little girl Xu Xiao can't escape! Don't worry."

Father Xu didn't interrupt. After all, it wasn't his own child, so he didn't care. He even treated Xu Xiaosi closer than Xu Xiao.

Walking straight out of Xu's house, the two of them stood at the intersection. Xu Xiao looked up at the person next to him and asked, "What do you want to talk to me about?"

"There's a psychologist in the team, go see him."

"I don't want to go." She was emotionally unstable right now, and she was worried that she would say something she shouldn't.

"go."

"You do have traces of hypnosis on you," Fang Hui wrote a few lines in the notebook. Seeing Xu Xiao still with his head down, he laughed, "Are you still angry with Chen Bei? He cares about you, but you know him, he's not good at talking."

Glancing at Xu Xiao's dangling right hand, where there was an obvious red mark on his wrist, he hummed, "Do you need ointment?"

Chen Bei really doesn't have any sympathy for women. Tsk tsk tsk, after all these years, he's still like this.

"No need." Xu Xiao raised his head, a hint of cruelty flashed in his eyes.

She thought she was losing her mind, but it turned out that someone was playing a trick on her. She already had a guess as to who it was.

Xu family.

But she tolerated the Xu family for the sake of her mother and because Xu Han was her mother's husband.

Unfortunately, her tolerance became the fuel for their ambitions, and she ended up being the firewood.

"Brother Fang, when did you come?"

Fang Hui and Chen Bei were siblings from the same compound, and the Fang family sent him abroad to study very early on.

Fang Hui stood up and opened the door, letting the Chen brothers and sisters in. He leaned against the door and hooked his arm around Chen Bei's shoulder. "It was because this guy said there wasn't enough doctors that my dad sent me here!"

He hadn't been back home long, and had been planning to show off his skills, but his father had kicked him out to this godforsaken place. Fortunately, Chen Bei was there too!

This visit was a blessing in disguise. I was in need of a psychologist and he happened to be here.

Originally, he wanted to go directly to the garrison's territory, but Chen Bei dragged him to the educated youth site without saying a word!

Chen Nan's eyes lit up: "Brother Fang, long time no see. Sister Xiao, is she okay?"

Chen Bei followed and looked at him.

"Of course..." Fang Hui stretched out his tone. Seeing that Chen Bei was about to punch him again, he had to say, "A Xiao's problem is not serious. It's just hypnosis."

He stroked his chin, his eyes shining: "This man is a talent, he can actually do this!"

Fang Hui studied clinical medicine abroad, with psychology as a minor. His father didn't care about his abilities; Chen Bei just kicked him out with a single word.

Sometimes, he even suspected that Chen Bei was his father's son.

Fortunately, Chen Bei is not a quiet person, and he is not like his unreliable father at first glance.

Chen Bei: "...Have you broken the hypnosis?"

Fang Hui pulled Chen Nan back to Xu Xiao's side. He smiled ingratiatingly, "You know, this isn't something I'm interested in." Seeing Chen Bei clench his fists, he quickly added, "However, I know someone who might be able to solve it."

"Don't worry, the hypnosis on Ah Xiao is already very weak." He turned to look at Xu Xiao: "You are really a pervert. You can actually resist hypnosis."

Hypnosis is still a very mysterious thing in this era, and foreign countries have a firm grasp on it.

Xu Xiao lazily raised his chin and shot back: "You are a pervert."

She knew what was going on better than anyone else present. It was not that she resisted the hypnosis, but that the hypnosis in her body had weakened.

She wasn't the same person she used to be, so hypnosis wouldn't do much for her.

Thinking of something, she suddenly asked, "Is it possible to disturb the mind?"