Chapter 16
With a bang, Jiang's father hit Jiang Ning on the arm, then flew over and grabbed his daughter's arm tightly, frightened out of his wits.
His whole body was shaking.
If I had been a second late, no, half a second late, my daughter would have been gone.
She really wanted to commit suicide, without any hesitation.
She used such a big knife silently and cut her neck.
"What are you doing?" He shouted, "Your mother...your mother...just...just hit you a few times..." Jiang's father was shaking so much that he couldn't speak. "Don't you want to live? You are too angry. How can you be so angry...you bad boy..."
He held Jiang Ning's arms tightly and didn't dare to let go. He didn't dare to throw the kitchen knife in his hand away, for fear that the child would be upset again.
"Do you know what you were doing just now? Do you know how dangerous it was? How could you do such a stupid thing?" Jiang's father's mind was buzzing.
He didn't know what had happened. How could his daughter be talking to him peacefully and suddenly take a knife to slit her own throat?
"You are still young now, you don't know what you are doing. When you grow up, you will know..." Dad Jiang had no idea what he was saying.
He didn't know why she had such a strong resentment. Jiang Ning's situation was much better than other girls in the same village.
He also claimed to be a good father who treated his three children equally and did not favor boys over girls.
In her generation, she has three cousins and two brothers, and she is the only girl. They love her so much that they can’t wait to show their love for her. How could they favor boys over girls? If we talk about favoritism, her family is also partial to her.
Her grandfather has held her in the palm of his hand since she was a child. He held her in his hand for fear that she would fall, and held her in his mouth for fear that she would melt. He loved her only, not his other grandsons.
She is four years younger than her eldest brother and two years younger than her second brother. Since childhood, her two brothers did all the heavy work outside, and she only had to cook, wash dishes, and clean the house at home. She was not even allowed to tidy up the cows.
It was only in recent years, when she grew older, that she started to do the work of transplanting rice and harvesting rice, and that was only for a few hours in the morning and evening.
It can be said that among all the girls in the village, except for Lotus in the brigade secretary's family and Piano in the second room, she lived the most relaxed and happy life.
He didn't understand why she was living a good life and then had her throat stabbed with a knife.
Father Jiang's heart is still trembling with fear, and he said to her with great sorrow: "Even if I don't think about your mother and me, you should also think about your grandfather. If something happens to you, what will you ask the old man to do? If anything happens to you, your grandfather will probably die with you immediately."
Dad Jiang was really scared.
In his opinion, Jiang Ning was just young and angry with her mother, acting on impulse. After a few days, when the matter was over or when she grew up, she would look back on her behavior and would definitely regret it.
He would also have a good talk with Jiang's mother when he returned, telling her that she really shouldn't beat her child. The child has grown up and has self-respect, so how could she beat him like she did when he was a child?
He really couldn't do anything about his wife's bad temper.
At night, Jiang's father didn't dare to leave. He stayed in the little house, watching Jiang Ning without stopping for a moment.
It was the middle of the night and there was no one around, so it was quiet. Exhaustion and fear made Jiang Dad break out in cold sweat on his back, and he thought carefully about what Jiang Ning had said.
She said he was not worthy of being a father, which dealt a heavy blow to Jiang's father.
He sat on a bamboo chair, resting his forehead on his hands.
He knew that his wife had a bad temper and liked to beat their children, but which family in the countryside doesn't beat their children? Including himself, he was also beaten by Grandma Jiang when he was growing up.
The boys were naughty. When Grandma Jiang and her family were young, they were already very tired from work, so they had no energy to take care of the children. They would beat the children if they were disobedient.
In their minds, beating children is not a big deal. A little skin injury caused by a bamboo thread is also called an injury?
He recalled the scene of Jiang Ning wiping her neck. The decisiveness and determination in her action shocked and frightened him.
How come this girl is so brave? Why are you so irritable?
He sat on a chair, looking at his daughter sleeping quietly in the mosquito net.
There are a lot of mosquitoes in the mountains, especially in the bamboo forest behind the cottage. For the convenience of getting water, there is a flowing stream and a well in the bamboo forest. There are many mosquitoes near the water, and the mosquitoes in the mountains are even bigger and more poisonous. In just a short while, Jiang's father had a lot of bites on his arms and legs, but he didn't dare to hit them for fear of waking up his sleeping daughter.
He didn't dare to sleep, but Jiang Ning slept soundly.
After the sudden burst of strong desire subsided, all that remained was calmness.
After the calm, regret comes again.
She really didn't think about her grandfather.
How sad grandpa would be if she died like this.
She was afraid that her death would cause her grandfather to die young and affect his lifespan.
Yes, this world is so beautiful, with the April sky, the May wind, the swaying summer lotus flowers, the fragrant autumn osmanthus rain, so many delicious foods and beautiful scenery, and grandpa.
Thinking of her grandfather, she felt as if a warm current was injected into her heart, filling her chest.
She lay on the bed and fell asleep happily and peacefully.
Mr. Jiang was bitten by mosquitoes and had to light several plates of mosquito coils before he finally felt better.
In the second half of the night, when he was sure that his daughter was sleeping soundly and would not get up to do anything stupid, he quietly got up, opened the door, and hid the kitchen knife, scissors, hatchet, and old knife.
He hid in the firewood pile behind the house, and hid it very deep. Even Grandpa Jiang's gun and the axe for chopping wood were hidden under the wall of the firewood pile by him, making sure that no one could find them unless he told anyone.
After such a sleepless night, Dad Jiang was tired and sleepy.
Jiang Ning, on the other hand, had a very good rest. After waking up, the moment when she cut her throat on impulse yesterday seemed like a distant dream and somewhat unreal.
Sometimes she couldn't tell whether it was reality or a dream. She didn't know whether yesterday was a dream, or today was a dream, or maybe both were dreams.
Jiang Ning looked pretty energetic when she woke up in the morning. Her eyes were bright and clear, and her face was rosy. She didn't look crazy and determined like she did last night. She was well-behaved and cute. Jiang's father breathed a sigh of relief and asked her with a cautious smile on his face, "Ning Ning, are you awake? What do you want to eat? I saw some crayfish in the tank. Daddy will cook some for you, okay?"
Thinking about the reason Jiang Ning was afraid of getting beaten and didn't dare to go home yesterday because of the crayfish incident, he quickly changed the topic and said, "Ningning, do you want to eat crabs? There are crabs in the mountain stream. I'll go catch some and fry them for you."
The crabs in the mountain stream are not big and they are all hidden in the cracks of the rocks. The stream water is clear and you can pick up crabs just by lifting the rocks. Many children in the village like to catch crabs and eat them when they are herding cattle.
Grandpa Jiang likes to make fried crabs for Jiang Ning.
Speaking of crayfish, Jiang's father thought of the half-full tank of crayfish in the broken tank at the door, and asked her with a smile: "Did you catch the crayfish in the tank? Why do you raise them in the mountains?"
Jiang Ning glanced at Jiang's father dimly and said, "I want to sell it for money."
Dad Jiang was stunned for a moment. He really didn't expect that his daughter would want to earn money on her own. In his mind, making money has always been the business of adults like them. He and Mom Jiang worked hard to earn money, paying off debts and supporting the education of the three children in the family.
Thinking of the more than 20 yuan he earned from selling crayfish yesterday, he said, "You do it, and Dad will help you sell it. I'll give you the money from the sales."
Jiang Ning smiled and shook his head and said, "No, I'll sell it myself."
Originally she had no money, not even for the ferry fare. Now her grandfather gave her all the money he had saved. Although it was not much, it was enough for a round trip boat fare.
Since it was not market time yet, Jiang Ning decided to go catch some crayfish.
Father Jiang had been thinking about catching some crayfish and selling them. Now that his daughter was selling them, he didn't want to compete with her for business, so he went back to fishing on the riverbank.
After two days of sweeping, the fish on the riverbank were basically wiped out, and the remaining small fish droppings were almost all picked up by the children at home during the summer vacation.
Dad Jiang fished for the whole morning but didn't catch any big fish. He only caught two black fish as long as his forearm. Dad Jiang simply released them and focused on catching some snails and river clams to bring back and keep in the yard.
When Jiang's mother saw Jiang's father coming back, she said with a grim expression, "You still remembered to come back? I thought you were dead out there!"
When Jiang's father heard the word "death", he thought of the incident yesterday when his daughter almost stabbed herself. He frowned and said, "How many times have I told you not to hit children? Why do you always hit her? Do you know that if I hadn't been quick yesterday, Ningning would have stabbed her neck with a knife? I'm sweating when I think about it now."
Jiang's mother was also frightened and cursed loudly, "This suicidal thing, I just scolded her a few words, how could I hit her? She ran faster than a rabbit and was looking for death? She was so young and dared to cut her own throat with a knife? If she wants to die, why doesn't she die quickly? Die early and have peace!"
"Keep your voice down!" Jiang's father yelled, "Your words are like knives. She has the strongest self-esteem at this time. Who can stand you scolding her like this every day?"
Jiang's mother was also angry and said, "You can't even stand being scolded a few times. If you were born in someone else's family, wouldn't you have died many times?" She was really angry, but she didn't doubt that what Jiang's father said was false. It was because her daughter had been honest and stupid since she was a child, and she was afraid that she would really do something like slitting her own throat in a fit of rage.
She has been raised to the age of fifteen. If she works for a few years, she can earn a lot of money for the family. When she gets married in a few years, she can receive a lot of dowry.
Her family has spent so many years to support their daughter's education, shouldn't they ask for more in betrothal gifts?
She said, "I really didn't do anything to her. I just listened to her instigating you to use the farmland to raise those lobsters. I was so angry that I took the pole and chased her. Did I really hit her after I caught up with her? I was so angry that I wanted to teach her a lesson. You all saw what happened that day. I didn't hit her. Just for such a thing, she took a knife to her throat?"
Jiang's mother suddenly paused, thinking, could it be that she was afraid that she would hit her, so she cut her throat?
This girl can’t be so timid, right?
The more Jiang Ma thought about it, the more she felt it was possible. She had been terribly afraid of her since she was a child. To use the local dialect, she would be so scared that she would wet her pants.
Then I thought about how I had been talking back to her these days and wondered if studying was so important to her? Just by saying that she can no longer go to school, her personality changed drastically. Now she even dares to do something like slitting one's own throat. I'm also afraid that she will really die and that I have raised her to this age in vain.
Mother Jiang took a deep breath and said, "Tell her to go work with Yueqin obediently and bring me all the money for the New Year."
"All you do is work. What can you achieve by working? Aren't you just making money for others?" Jiang's father frowned and disagreed: "Let Ningning finish college, take the civil service exam, and eat government food. Who knows how prosperous she will be in the future. She and her two brothers can also help each other."
"Even if you can't be a civil servant, you can be a public school teacher. You can get a guaranteed income for life, which is much better than working part-time." Jiang's father said, "Don't listen to others' urging all day long to let your children work."
Jiang's mother was angry and said, "You are the only one who knows this. I don't understand! I don't know if it's good for a girl to be a teacher? But there are three people in the family studying, and we have to pay for all the high school tuition. Next year, the two older ones will go to college, and we have to prepare money for Songzi's wedding. Everything costs money, so how can it not cost money?"
Jiang Ma put down the clothes in her hand: "You can't just focus on the present, can you? It's okay for her to go to school now, but what about the future? Songzi and Jiang Bai are going to college soon. After college, they will be in their twenties and will get married soon. You must have a house to get married, right? Your family still lives in such a shabby house!" When Jiang Ma said the word "shabby", the disgust on her face was about to overflow the sky. She pointed to her own short and old house: "Look for yourself, which girl is willing to marry here?"
Father Jiang was silent.
Jiang Ma said, "You just know how to be a good person every day, so I'll be the bad guy." She looked very annoyed, "She's only fifteen years old. If she really wants to study, she'll be sixteen next year. Why can't she study? Yueqin's salary is so high, two hundred a month, which is two thousand four a year. With these two thousand yuan, Songzi and the others will go to college next year. We're so tight on our belts, and it's not a difficult job. Being a waitress, where you're not exposed to the wind or rain, you don't want to do such an easy job. Why don't you come with us to move bricks on the construction site? Let her move bricks for a year, and I guarantee she'll be able to go!"
In her previous life, Jiang's mother used this reason to convince Jiang's father, so that Jiang's mother did not stop Jiang Ning when dragging her onto the tricycle.
Later, Jiang Ning did come back to repeat the year.
Although Mr. Jiang didn't say anything, Mrs. Jiang knew that he agreed.
While hanging clothes to dry, Jiang Ma said, "I am her biological mother, not her stepmother. She has studied for so many years, and I have done my best for her. When her two brothers go to college and the family becomes well-off and she earns money, will I stop her from studying?" She added, "Okay, stop with your crap. Didn't you say yesterday that you were going to catch crayfish and sell them? Catch more crayfish in the next two days and sell them at the market." She also said, "If you can't sell them in town, take them to the city!"
Although Jiang's mother is reluctant to raise crayfish, she is not against money. Since these things can be sold for money, Jiang's mother naturally lets Jiang's father continue to sell them.
Their place is far away from their city, but very close to the neighboring city. It only takes two and a half hours to ride a bike across the ferry to get there.
If people here have any problems, they will not go to the city itself, but to the neighboring cities. Even when they buy houses later, most of them buy houses in neighboring cities.
The city that Jiang Ma was talking about is the neighboring city.
Father Jiang originally wanted to make some snail meat sauce, but upon hearing this, he put all the snails in a basin to spit out the sand and took a bamboo basket to pick up lobsters.
When Ningning is sold in town, he will go to the city to sell.
The market day soon arrived. During the past two days, Jiang's father and Jiang Ning had saved up a lot of crayfish. They got up at dawn to roast the crayfish.
While Jiang's father was cooking, Jiang Ning went to pick cucumbers and green and red peppers, and also picked a lot of garlic to put in the crayfish as garnish.
One pot was not enough, so Jiang's father divided it into several pots. Jiang Ning simply made several flavors, including garlic, spicy, and fragrant. He filled a bucket of each and a pot of side dishes, and then hurried back to the boat.
Jiang Ning has to take a boat to go to town, but Jiang's father only needs to ride a bicycle to go to the neighboring city.
After hearing Jiang's father say that he was going to the neighboring city, Jiang Ning borrowed a scale from his aunt and rode on a bicycle: "Dad, you go to the town to sell, I'll go to the city."
She wanted to go to the city to buy some books and magazines that were not available in the town.
For the people here, the neighboring city is no different from their backyard. Many people go there and are very familiar with it.
Father Jiang was worried about her. "You should go to town. There are many people going to the market. It takes more than two hours to ride a bike to the city. This bike is not easy for you to ride."
Jiang Dad's bicycle is a 28-inch bicycle. It is tall and big, with a big bar in the front. For Jiang Dad, who is tall and has long legs, such a 28-inch bicycle is just right for him to ride. However, it is too big for Jiang Ning, who is short, thin and just starting to grow.
Father Jiang said, "If you ride on it, I'm afraid you won't be able to reach the pedals."
It was indeed out of reach. Jiang Ning got off the bike without saying a word to adjust the seat height. Jiang's father went over to adjust the seat to the lowest height for her and patted the seat: "It's still high. Come and try riding it."
Jiang Ning was ready to pass her legs through the hole under the big bar and ride sideways, but she didn't expect that after the seat was lowered, she could barely reach the pedals. She then tied two wooden barrels to both sides of the back seat of the bicycle. Seeing that she was stubborn, Jiang's father also came to help her.
He really didn't understand why his daughter had to run so far to the city. He said that it was much more convenient to go to town and they could get there just after getting off the boat. But he also discovered that his youngest daughter was as stubborn as his youngest son, and all three children he raised were stubborn.
This was also Jiang Ning's first time to ride a bike to a neighboring city. He used to drive back, and he didn't take this road. This road had to pass through many villages and towns. It took a long time to ride a bike to places that he could reach quickly by car before.
When she came across several towns with markets on the way, she got off the car to buy plastic bags and sold some lobsters. After she had rested enough, she continued to walk towards the city.
They set out before six o'clock and didn't arrive in the city until after eight o'clock. She was familiar with the neighboring cities, but not with neighboring cities in this era, so she asked how to get to the People's Shopping Mall.
Even decades later, the People's Shopping Mall is still located in the city center of the neighboring city and is very prosperous.
Although Jiang Ning's home is not far from the neighboring city, the two cities have completely different dialects. Fortunately, the two places are adjacent to each other and there are many marriages between the two cities. Although Jiang Ning cannot speak the language of the neighboring city, she can understand it. She also speaks Mandarin, so others can understand her. Soon, under the guidance of the enthusiastic uncles and aunts, they arrived at the People's Shopping Mall.
As expected of its location in the city center, there were a lot of people shopping at the People's Shopping Mall. Jiang Ning found a spot under the shade of a tree outside the mall, locked his car, opened two large wooden barrels and started selling.
There are many lobsters in the countryside but they are not common in the city, so Jiang Ning organized a tasting event. People who come to the People's Shopping Mall are generally not short of money and are mostly young people. After tasting it, they think it is delicious and feel embarrassed not to buy it, so they will buy one or two pounds. Jiang Ning also cut a cucumber strip and green and red peppers into each portion and mix them with them. Originally, one pound of lobsters can be mixed into a large bowl, which is very decent to buy home for cooking and drinking. It didn't take long for the two wooden barrels of crayfish to be sold out.
After selling the lobsters, Jiang Ning did not rush back. Instead, he went to the newsstand and bought magazines and periodicals such as "Wuxia", "Zhiyin", "Story Collection", "Youth Digest", and "Reader", including short stories and magazines that could serialize novels.
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