Ruan Xi put away the wine ticket, carried the wine gourd, and left the old tailor's house in a very good mood. The schoolbag on his back was bulging, containing three pieces of peach cakes and the two books he had to carry every day.
She was still on her way back to Fengyan Village and met Ruan Jie, and then the two of them went hand in hand to find Ling Yao.
Ling Yao was also waiting for them at the usual place, holding the book he usually read.
Seeing Ruan Xi and Ruan Jie coming over at about the same time, he put away his book, stood up, sorted out his state and mood, and prepared to continue teaching Ruan Xi and Ruan Jie.
In fact, he only went to school for a few years. After following his parents to Fengming Mountain, he had no more school to go to. But he had already finished junior high school content when he was in the city, and he taught himself after arriving at Fengming Mountain.
It is easier for him to teach himself because his parents can teach him.
Whenever he doesn't understand a point of knowledge, he goes to his parents and they can always provide more relevant knowledge points, so the knowledge he possesses is not just at the junior high school or high school level.
But no matter how much knowledge he had, he had never been a teacher, so when he taught Ruan Xi and Ruan Jie, he taught based on his own feelings. As for whether his teaching method is correct or whether he teaches well, he himself doesn't know.
Ruan Xi and Ruan Jie knew nothing about teaching, and had no idea whether he taught well or not. Of course, it’s good to have someone to teach them, they are not picky. Anyway, I will just keep learning and learn as much as I can.
For Ruan Jie, elementary literacy would definitely not be a problem.
The three of them sat down beside the stone, and Ruan Xi and Ruan Jie first consolidated and memorized a poem they had learned yesterday. After consolidating what they had learned yesterday, Ling Yao opened the textbook and continued to teach them new content.
Ruan Xi pretended to be very serious, listening carefully to every word Ling Yao said and not being distracted.
After she finished learning today's content, she relaxed the expression on her face and felt relieved.
After closing the book, Ruan Xi stood up and stretched his muscles. Then he went to his schoolbag and took out the brown paper bag inside. He turned to Ling Yao and Ruan Jie and said, "I brought you some delicious food today."
Ruan Jie looked at the brown paper in her hand and asked curiously, "What's delicious?"
Ruan Xi kept it a secret and said nothing. He walked closer to Ling Yao and Ruan Jie and unfolded the brown paper in his hand bit by bit. The aroma of peach cakes wafted out of the paper package, and the golden cakes with black sesame seeds appeared before my eyes little by little.
Seeing the peach cake wrapped in brown paper, Ruan Jie blinked her eyes, trying not to swallow her saliva, and asked Ruan Xi again: "Sister, where did you get the peach cake? It's hard to buy, right?"
Ruan Xi smiled without saying anything, picked up the top piece of peach cake and placed it in front of Ling Yao.
Ling Yao naturally felt embarrassed to always eat her food, and each time it was not ordinary and cheap food. But every time he met Ruan Xi's gaze, he couldn't help but obey and reach out to take it.
Ling Yao took the first piece, Ruan Xi gave the second piece to Ruan Jie, and ate the third piece himself.
Then the three of them sat side by side on the stone, eating the crispy and sweet peach cakes together, watching the sun sink lower and lower in the western sky, slowly dyeing the blue sky into brilliant colors.
After eating half a piece of peach cake and satisfying his craving for snacks after not having them for a long time, Ruan Xi turned to look at Ruan Jie and said, "I'm going down the mountain to the commune tomorrow. Do you want to go with me?"
Going to the commune? Ruan Jie was slightly stunned, "Why are you going to the commune suddenly?"
Ruan Xi took a bite of the peach cake and said, "Master is craving for wine, so he asked me to get him half a pound of wine. I also want to go to the town for a walk. I'm so bored being stuck in this mountain every day. Don't you want to go?"
Ruan Jie hesitated for a moment while eating the peach cake, looked at Ruan Xi and nodded slowly, choosing to be honest, "I don't really want to go."
Once before, she and Ruan Xi followed Liu Xinghua to visit her third aunt’s home. They walked for two days along the mountain road to reach the commune. They walked with tears in their eyes and almost died of exhaustion on the road. It was a very unpleasant feeling, and she will remember it for the rest of her life.
If she didn't have to go, she really didn't want to go.
But there are exceptions to everything. She looked at Ruan Xi and said, "But I can go with you."
Ruan Xi shook her head. "That's not necessary. If you don't want to go, and you go just to accompany me, that would be boring. If you cry and say you don't want to go halfway, I'll still have to take care of you."
Before Ruan Jie could say anything else, Ling Yao suddenly said, "Can I go?"
Ruan Xi turned around and looked at Ling Yao, "Do you want to go?"
Ling Yao nodded, "Yeah."
Ruan Xi looked at him and smiled, "Okay, let's go together."
The sun was setting over the top of the mountain, and it was almost time to go home. Ruan Xi, Ruan Jie and Ling Yao got up, packed their things, caught up with the full pigs, and went back to the village together.
They parted ways halfway, Ling Yao drove the pigs back to the stilt house, while Ruan Xi and Ruan Jie returned to their own homes.
Ling Yao returned home and drove the pigs back to the pen. He then went into the house, put down his schoolbag, washed his hands and started cooking. For dinner today, he washed the rice and cooked porridge, then steamed three corn buns on top of the porridge and added some side dishes.
Ling Zhiyuan and Zhou Xueyun came back from work, washed their hands and ate the ready-made food.
After leaving the crowd and returning home, Zhou Xueyun spoke more, but Ling Zhiyuan was still basically not talkative, as if he had said everything in his life when he was in the city.
But there wasn't much to say, so we were silent most of the time.
Ling Yao had long since adapted to this atmosphere at home, from the previous depression to the current numbness. But there have been some different colors in his life recently, and he can't help but want to break free from the large gray in his life.
So he finished his meal, put down his bowl, lowered his brows and said, "Mom, I want to go down the mountain to the commune tomorrow."
Zhou Xueyun was stunned when she heard this, "What are you going to do in the commune?"
You have to know that in the past few years since coming to Fengming Mountain, Ling Yao has always been very obedient and has never caused any trouble to them as parents. Not to mention going down the mountain to a distant commune, he had never even been to the nearby villages.
Ling Yao said: "It's too boring to stay in the mountains. I want to go out for some fresh air and see the outside world."
Zhou Xueyun stared at him and spoke in a gentle voice, "With whom?"
Ling Yao raised his eyes to look at Zhou Xueyun's eyes, then quickly lowered them again without answering.
Zhou Xueyun was silent for a moment, and then she speculated: "Secretary Ruan's granddaughter?"
She knew that Ling Yao had only been in contact with this one girl recently. He had carried her back from the valley before, and later the girl gave him eggs and candies. If I were to date someone, it would most likely be with her.
Ling Yao lowered his eyebrows and pursed his lips without saying anything, which was considered as his agreement.
Zhou Xueyun looked away at the wall made of old wooden boards, took a deep breath, and said in a low, warm and deep voice, "You are not allowed to go."
Although the words were spoken softly, they could not be refuted.
Ling Yao still kept his brows lowered and said nothing, rubbing his fingers together gently.
Zhou Xueyun looked back at him for a while, then continued in a soft voice, "How close are you to her? Didn't I tell you not to get too close to the villagers? Too many people will lead to gossips. You promised me."
Ling Yao raised his eyes to look at her, and after a moment he said, "I want to go."
Zhou Xueyun frowned instantly and stared at Ling Yao's eyes, "Ling Yao? What did you say?"
Ling Yao's eyes were firm, and he did not shy away from the question, "She is my only friend here."
"friend!"
Zhou Xueyun suddenly slammed the table as if stimulated, and said loudly: "Our family has been through so much, do you still believe that there are true friends in this world? There are only friends who stab you in the back!"
Ling Yao confronted Zhou Xueyun, "She is not."
The false calmness and composure that Zhou Xueyun had worked so hard to maintain was about to collapse. She didn't want to lose control in front of Ling Zhiyuan and Ling Yao, so she lowered her eyebrows and bit her lip, and when she was about to lose control of her emotions, she stood up and walked out.
Ling Zhiyuan put down his chopsticks, took a deep breath, and stood up to leave.
He walked out the door, down the wooden steps, and followed the figure's back to find Zhou Xueyun.
Zhou Xueyun sat on a rock, enjoying the evening breeze. Her ear-length hair brushed against her cheeks, and her face showed calmness. I have experienced and swallowed all the hardships that I could and could not endure over the years. What else can I not digest?
Ling Zhiyuan sat down next to her and enjoyed the evening breeze with her.
I don't know how long they sat like this before Ling Zhiyuan spoke, saying calmly, "Let him go if he wants to. He hasn't been anywhere in all these years and has been trapped in this place. Let him go out and get some fresh air."
Zhou Xueyun sat there without saying a word, her eyes slightly squinting as the evening breeze blew.
Ling Zhiyuan added, "He came here with us when he was nine years old, and he's thirteen now. Are you really not going to let him interact with anyone in his life and just let him stay alone for the rest of his life? Aren't you afraid that he'll get sick? He's still a child."
Zhou Xueyun blinked in the wind and subconsciously tightened her clenched fingers.
She is an adult. She has knowledge, culture and the ability to think. How could she not know how hard Ling Yao's life has been over the years? He is her own son. Doesn’t she feel sorry for him and want him to live a carefree life?
She is scared! She doesn't dare!
Ling Zhiyuan reached out and squeezed Zhou Xueyun's hand, trying to make her relax. "It's rare for him to make a friend. He knows better than us whether it's sincere or not. Let's not worry about it, okay?"
Zhou Xueyun said nothing, let go of his hand, stood up and left.
This was the first time Ling Yao had made Zhou Xueyun angry in the four years since he arrived at Fengming Mountain. At night, lying on a small bed made of wooden boards, listening to the sounds of Ling Zhiyuan and Zhou Xueyun turning over and their breathing, he did not feel sleepy for a long time.
He felt no regrets and did not reflect on himself. He felt that he should not have been so willful as to want to go down the mountain to the commune. He should not have suggested going down the mountain to Zhou Xueyun and argued with her even though he knew that she would be angry.
He is still determined now - he must make friends with Ruan Xi.
From the time he was nine years old to now, his life has been gray, so gray that he doesn't feel alive at all. He was like a walking corpse, never laughing or talking, and wouldn't move at all when being bullied or beaten.
It was only after he met Ruan Xi recently that he started to smile, and his gloomy life finally had a different color.
She was like the sun, glowing all over, and he felt happy just by looking at her.
He was not very old, but he endured so much suffering silently without even shedding a tear. This was already beyond what he could bear at his age. Deep down, he also longed to live a free and unfettered life like other people of his age.
Other people of his age only lived in poverty, but he was miserable from the inside out.
The wind blew through the roof, the fat pig turned over, Ling Yao took a deep breath and closed his eyes.
He went to bed late at night and still got up early the next morning.
Ling Zhiyuan and Zhou Xueyun got up earlier than him. Zhou Xueyun was lighting a fire behind the stove to make breakfast, while Ling Zhiyuan was standing outside the chicken coop with a broken porcelain basin, feeding the chickens.
Ling Yao rubbed his eyes to clear his mind and went to fetch some water to wash.
After washing up, they sat down to eat. No one in the family of three spoke. The only sounds on the table were the sound of chopsticks hitting dishes and the crisp sound of kohlrabi being chewed. After dinner, Zhou Xueyun collected the dishes and went to wash them, and Ling Yao didn't even have time to reach out.
Ling Yao felt that Zhou Xueyun should still be angry, but he did not admit his mistake or apologize.
He turned to his bed to pick up his school bag, but when he reached the bed he found something stuffed inside. Doubt flashed through his mind, he bent down, opened the lid of his schoolbag, and reached in to take something out.
Just as my fingers touched the things inside, I suddenly heard Zhou Xueyun say, "I packed some dry food for you to eat on the road, and some clean clothes. The mountain road is difficult to walk on in some places, so be careful on the road and have fun in the commune."
Ling Yao's fingers froze, but he did not change the movement of bending over, and turned to look at Zhou Xueyun.
Zhou Xueyun put away the washed dishes, picked up her apron to dry her hands, took off her apron and hung it up, then walked towards Ling Yao. He walked to the bed, picked up the schoolbag, put it on Ling Yao's shoulders personally, and tidied his clothes.
After she was done, she took a deep breath, her eyes and tone gentle, "Have fun."
Ling Yao suddenly felt a sharp pain in his heart and his eyes turned red.
Zhou Xueyun smiled gently, took out another fifty cents and a few food coupons from her pocket, stuffed them into his hands and said, "My parents are not capable, and our family doesn't have much money. Keep them and go to the commune to buy some delicious food."
Ling Yao refused to take the money and said in a hoarse voice, "I don't need money."
Zhou Xueyun stuffed the money directly into his pocket. "You go out with girls, do you want them to spend money? It's a rare occasion to go out, so don't think about saving money."
Ling Yao didn't take out the money anymore. He looked at Zhou Xueyun and said, "Thank you, Mom."
Zhou Xueyun raised her hand and touched his head, "Go quickly."
Ling Yao nodded at her, ran out the door with his schoolbag on his back, jumped down the stairs and ran away.
Ling Zhiyuan shouted behind him: "Be careful on the road."
Ling Yao's voice floated over the hillside: "I know, Dad!"
After breakfast, Ruan Xi also packed dry food and some clothes into his schoolbag. She had an old military canteen with the paint peeling off at home, so she filled the canteen with warm water and put it on her shoulders to carry it.
Seeing her packing these things, Liu Xinghua asked, "Why are you taking these things to the old tailor's house?"
If his family doesn’t let me eat lunch, then I can just come back and eat. Are they not allowed to drink water either?
Ruan Xi didn't tell her in advance that she was going to the town, and Ruan Jie didn't say anything, so she explained to Liu Xinghua: "The old tailor is craving for wine, and asked me to go to the commune to get him half a pound of wine. It will take me four or five days to go back and forth, right?"
Liu Xinghua was stunned when she heard this, and frowned, "Go to the commune?"
"Yeah." Ruan Xi nodded. "It just so happens that I'm feeling bored too, so I want to go down the mountain to play a little and visit Third Aunt's house. If you have anything to say to Third Aunt, I'll pass it on for you."
Liu Xinghua subconsciously replied, "What do I want to say? Please help me see if she is doing well."
After saying that, he realized that he had taken the wrong question and asked hurriedly, "Will Xiaojie go with you? Why didn't you tell me earlier? If you had told me earlier, I could have asked your fifth uncle to take you. You have never been to the commune by yourself since you were a child. The mountain roads are not easy to walk on. Is it possible? If not, I will go to the construction site to find your fifth uncle and ask him to take you. I will feel more at ease then."
Ruan Xi held Liu Xinghua and said, "It's okay. There is only one way to the commune. You won't get lost. I've been to Third Aunt's house with you before, and I remember how to get there. And I'm not going alone. I have someone to accompany me. Don't worry."
Liu Xinghua was still worried: "Who is it?"
Ruan Xi said, "The son of the family living in the stilt house."
"The kid from the city?"
"Yeah." Ruan Xi nodded.
Liu Xinghua thought for a moment and said, "He has only been here for a few years. He is not as familiar with this mountain as you are."
Ruan Xi smiled at her, "Then he also came here by walking along the mountain road."
He patted her hands and said, "It's okay. I'm fourteen, not four years old. I will definitely find the commune."
Talking more would just waste more time, so Ruan Xi didn't plan to chat with Liu Xinghua any longer.
She opened her hand and held it in front of Liu Xinghua, smiling and saying, "Grandma, I borrowed half a pound of wine tickets from Master, and planned to bring some wine back for Grandpa, but I don't have any money, so can you..."
Liu Xinghua understood and without hesitation, she took out a rolled-up plaid handkerchief from her body. When she opened the handkerchief, some banknotes were neatly placed inside. She directly took out the largest denomination banknote and gave it to Ruan Xi, and also took out a few food coupons for her.
Ruan Xi didn't take it, but just said, "Why would I need a dollar? Half a pound of wine is only about 30 cents."
Liu Xinghua stuffed the money and tickets directly into her hand, "Don't you want to eat something? It's not easy for you to go out, buy yourself something delicious. This money is earned by yourself, spend it freely."
Ruan Xi didn't want to push the ball back and forth with Liu Xinghua, as it would take some time. So she put the money and tickets into her pocket, looked up and kissed Liu Xinghua on the forehead, then turned around and walked out, carrying her schoolbag and water bottle.
"Grandma, I'm leaving now."
Liu Xinghua followed her outside and warned her loudly: "Be careful on the road."
"Don't worry, it's okay."
Ruan Xi went out and walked down the mountain. When she arrived at the agreed place, Ling Yao was already waiting for her there.
When the two saw each other, they subconsciously smiled.
Ruan Xi walked quickly to him and said with a smile, "Have you been waiting for a long time?"
Ling Yao shook his head, "I just waited for a while."
After saying that, he stretched out his hand to Ruan Xi, "Let me carry your schoolbag and water bottle for you."
Ruan Xi looked down at her schoolbag and water bottle and said, "No, I can carry them myself."
Ling Yao said: "It's a long way to go, I'm afraid you can't handle it, so just give it to me."
Seeing that he was determined to carry it on his back, Ruan Xi compromised and gave him the water bottle.
The two of them carried their schoolbags, walked briskly, bathed in the first rays of morning light, and set out from here, walking farther and farther along the winding mountain road, sometimes hiding among the lush green leaves, and sometimes reappearing on the mountain road.
Ruan Xi didn't feel any pain at all because of the long journey and the rugged mountain road. On the contrary, she was a little excited. Her favorite outdoor sport is mountain climbing, otherwise she wouldn't have gotten into this situation accidentally on the mountain.
Before I traveled through time, I was very busy at work and my life pace was so fast that I had to rush to eat. I didn’t have many opportunities to put down everything I was doing and go out to play. So this trip out of the mountains was a relaxing and enjoyable journey for her.
Ling Yao walked up this mountain path four years ago, and all he could remember was pain. Because my whole family was sent down here at that time, and I had no mood to see the scenery in the mountains, so I don’t have any good memories of it.
But this time, walking down with Ruan Xi, he was infected by her positive state, and his heart was filled with sunshine. The dangerous rocks, green pines and cypresses, and even the terraced fields dyed red by the sunset glow became magnificent wherever he looked.
The scenery is picturesque, my mood becomes more cheerful, my steps become lighter and lighter, and I don’t feel tired at all.
Without watches or clocks, they didn't care about time. In their excited state, they didn't feel tired, so they had little time to sit down and rest. They waited until the sun was high in the sky and felt a little hungry before stopping to eat.
They found a clean stone on the side of the road and sat down. Ruan Xi and Ling Yao took out their schoolbags and water bottles and placed them on the stone, then took out the dry food in their schoolbags to fill their stomachs.
Tear open the steamed bun and put some pickled vegetables in it, it will taste delicious.
As long as you are hungry, everything is delicious.
I choked a little while eating the steamed bun, so I opened the kettle to drink some water. Ruan Xi gave the lid of the kettle to Ling Yao, poured water into it and let him drink it, while he himself took the kettle directly and drank directly from the edge of the mouth.
After eating and drinking water, Ruan Xi felt much better. He screwed on the lid of the kettle, put it aside, and lay down directly on the stone. My back was pressed against the stone through a thin layer of cloth, and the coolness seeped into my skin.
She suddenly tilted her head, looked at Ling Yao who was sitting next to her and asked, "Are you tired?"
Ling Yao shook his head, "Not tired."
Ruan Xi couldn't help laughing, "I see you are quite energetic."
Ling Yao was indeed very energetic and felt that he could walk for half a day without stopping.
He really didn't think the mountains were interesting before, but this time when he followed Ruan Xi down, he found that as long as his mood was different, even the most boring and monotonous, or even painful things could become very interesting.
Ruan Xi was not in a hurry to leave after finishing the meal. He lay down for a while to relax his body, then sat up and chatted with Ling Yao. He asked him for no reason: "By the way, what did your mother do when she was in the city?"
Ling Yao said: "Work as a doctor in the hospital."
As expected, this family is not ordinary citizens.
Ruan Xi thought for a moment and said, "Then your mother must love your father very much."
According to the original body's memory and her own impression, many people at that time tried to distance themselves from the other party in every possible way, and some even tried to step on the other party in order to prove their position and protect themselves.
Not only did his mother not do so, she also came to Fengming Mountain with him.
Perhaps in her heart, nothing is more important than being together as a family.
Ling Yao said "hmm" softly, thinking that there was nothing much to say about his family affairs, so he found another topic to ask Ruan Xi: "I heard that your parents haven't been back for a long time and have left you in the countryside, right?"
Ruan Xi actually felt that there was nothing much to say about her family affairs, and she seldom mentioned her parents to others. But now that Ling Yao asked, she just nodded and answered: "Yes, I grew up with my grandparents."
Ling Yao looked into Ruan Xi's eyes, "Will you miss them?"
Ruan Xi shook her head. "No, I don't even remember what they look like."
She said these words without any emotion. Not to mention her, her original body had no feelings for them, so naturally she wouldn't have any different emotions. Anyway, when it comes to people, it’s just mom and dad, nothing else.
Ling Yao didn't really understand, "Since they are not coming back, why don't they take you with them?"
Ruan Xi thought for a moment and said, "There was no way to take them with us at that time. Anyway, the situation was a bit complicated, and it was delayed. But it's normal. There are many children in the countryside. Some of them are given away when they don't want to raise them, and some are raised in other people's homes. Some men work in the town and it's not convenient to take them out. Their wives and children are all in the mountains."
In this era, unlike the later society, a family only has one or two children. Every family regards having, raising and educating children as a major matter that cannot be ignored, and several generations of a family revolve around one child.
There are many people living nowadays, and the purpose of raising children is to make sure they can survive and grow up.
Ling Yao then asked: "Do you have other brothers and sisters?"
Ruan Xi nodded, "Of course."
After thinking for a while, he said, "One sister and brother are not my biological children. They are the children left behind after my father's former squad leader died. The remaining two sisters and two brothers are my biological children, but I have never met any of them."
Ruan Xi felt that there was nothing much to say, so she stopped talking, stood up, picked up her schoolbag and said, "Okay, let's go, let's continue our journey. We'll get there early tomorrow and have something delicious to eat."
Ling Yao saw her stand up and didn't ask any more questions.
He carried his schoolbag and water bottle on his back and continued on his journey with Ruan Xi.
Two people were walking or jogging on the mountain path, climbing up the stone steps or sliding down the gravel slope. My legs were so sore from walking that I found a place to sit down and rest for a while. I opened the lid of the kettle, drank some water and took a breath.
When night fell and the mountains became dark, the two men had dinner and then continued on their journey.
Ruan Xi and Ling Yao stopped to rest because they were so tired and sleepy.
After resting for a while, Ruan Xi looked around in the moonlight above his head and felt that the surrounding environment was very familiar.
She carefully searched her original body's memory and remembered - there is a natural hot spring nearby!
This is the only hot spring on Fengming Mountain. The environment is very good and the girls on the mountain will make an appointment to come here to take a bath. Because Fengyan Village is quite far from here, Ruan Xi and Ruan Jie seldom come here, but they have been here twice.
Ruan Xi became happy and pulled Ling Yao away.
Ling Yao staggered when she pulled him, a little confused, "Don't you want to rest?"
Ruan Xi pulled him forward, her voice clear, "I'll take you to a good place first."
Ling Yao didn't know where she was taking him, but he found out after walking for a while. Under the moonlight, I saw a pool of water at the foot of the mountain. There was a layer of mist on the surface of the water, and water was flowing down the mountain wall, just like a fairyland.
It's late at night now, so there's no one here, and it's quiet with only the sound of running water.
Ruan Xi opened his lungs and took a deep breath, then told Ling Yao: "You can take a shower here."
The water is running water, with a constant flow of water flowing into the mountain wall, and the water in the pool is crystal clear.
Ling Yao was subconsciously happy when he heard that he could take a shower, but suddenly he remembered that Ruan Xi was a girl, and the expression on his face immediately disappeared before it even showed any emotion. His heart skipped a beat, but he didn't say a word.
Ruan Xi knew his character, so she didn't think much about it and just asked him, "Do you want to wash first or should I wash first?"
Ling Yao subconsciously said modestly: "You wash first."
After saying that, he turned around to look around, then quickly turned around with his schoolbag on his back and went behind a protruding rock not far away.
I squatted down behind the rock. With nothing else to do, I picked a small wild flower at my feet and then kept squatting there plucking the petals.
After picking one flower, pick another one and continue picking petals one by one.
I didn't know how many wild flowers I had picked while squatting when someone suddenly patted my shoulder.
Ling Yao was concentrating on picking wild flowers when he was startled.
He came back to his senses, threw away the wild flowers in his hand, stood up, turned to Ruan Xi and said, "Have you...are you done washing?"
Ruan Xi didn't wash her hair, but she had changed into clean clothes.
She nodded to Ling Yao, "Go quickly."
Ling Yao responded and went downstairs carrying his schoolbag.
After he left, Ruan Xi inadvertently lowered her head and saw the ground under her feet was covered with yellow petals of small wild flowers.
The moonlight sprinkled down softly, and the shadows were very beautiful, so she spread her changed clothes directly on the grass, used the rocks next to her to block the wind, and lay down on the clothes to rest.
When Ling Yao came back from taking a shower, she was already asleep on the grass.
Ling Yao did not disturb her. He spread out his clothes and lay down one meter away from her. After lying down, he did not fall asleep immediately. Instead, he looked at Ruan Xi's face in the faint moonlight, with a smile on his lips.
After lying down for a while, he got up again, took off his coat, and carefully covered Ruan Xi's belly with it.
He wore a vest underneath and just went to sleep like that.
A breeze blew by, and petals fell from the grass leaves, and a few petals fell into the girl's hair.
In the early morning, the first wisp of smoke rises from the mountains, and the small mountain village wakes up to the sound of roosters crowing.
As the sky brightens, the sounds of pots, spoons, bowls and chopsticks create the fireworks of life.
After breakfast, Sun Xiaohui cleaned up the dishes and told Ruan Changgui that she would not go to the production team to work that morning.
Ruan Changgui knew what she was going to do, so he didn't say much and carried the farm tools to go to the gathering.
Sun Xiaohui washed the pots and bowls, took off her apron, and went to the main room to get the eggs she had borrowed for several days. Borrowing eggs is naturally faster than collecting them yourself. Now I have half a basket, so it won’t be shabby no matter who I give it to.
After she finished counting the eggs, she called Ruan Yuejin over and said to him, "Xiaoxi didn't come back last night. I asked her and she went to the commune. She's been away these few days, so it's a good opportunity for us to find the old tailor and become his apprentice."
She didn't go to work in the morning just to take Ruan Yuejin to find an old tailor to become his apprentice.
Ruan Yuejin looked at the half basket of eggs in front of him and said confidently, "Okay."
Sun Xiaohui smiled, took an old cage cloth to cover the mouth of the basket, took Ruan Yuejin's arm and went out.
The mother and son walked side by side to Jinguan Village, and all they talked about along the way was becoming apprentices. Sun Xiaohui was worried, but not too much, because she had full confidence in Ruan Yuejin and knew that her son would definitely not let her down.
What Ruan Xi can accomplish would definitely be easier for her son.
Sun Xiaohui was full of wonderful fantasies about Ruan Yuejin's future, all of which were reflected in the smile on her face. For example, she can also eat grapes, peach cakes, chickens, ducks, and pigs, and she can also get wages, and finally open an enviable tailor shop.
But when she was almost at the old tailor's house, she suddenly thought of a practical problem. She suddenly remembered that she had made a fool of herself by reporting Ruan Xi before, and the old tailor had stood up to support Ruan Xi.
Then it is very likely that the old tailor had a bad impression of her.
If Ruan Xi said bad things about her in front of the old tailor again, it would be even harder to say what image of her he would have in his mind. She felt that she could not take any risks, so she quickly handed the basket on her arm to Ruan Yuejin.
Ruan Yuejin caught the basket and was a little confused, "What's wrong?"
Sun Xiaohui tugged at the corner of her clothes and said, "I'd better not go in with you. I misunderstood Xiaoxi before... Anyway, just go in by yourself and don't tell me whose child you are. You just need to become his disciple. He looks at the person when accepting disciples, not the parents or family."
Ruan Yuejin thought about it and said, "Okay then."
He continued walking forward with the basket in his hand, but after a few steps he came back and asked Sun Xiaohui anxiously, "What if he really doesn't like me? I heard that he speaks rudely and is very difficult to get along with."
Sun Xiaohui patted his shoulder and said, "He won't dislike you. That's just his personality and temper. He treats everyone the same. If he really says something unpleasant, just pretend you didn't hear it. Just remember that it's okay as long as you can learn the skill."
Ruan Yuejin took a deep breath and nodded, "Okay."
After adjusting his mood, he carried the basket and walked towards the old tailor's house. I walked to the gate of the yard and looked inside, only to see the old tailor sitting under the grape trellis in the yard, combing the hair of a big yellow cat with a comb.
While combing her hair, she muttered, "I've been used to living alone for most of my life. I asked that girl to come over every day, and she changed my habit. Now that she's not here all of a sudden, I'm starting to get used to it."
Big Mi: Meow~ (Didn’t you ask me to go to the commune to buy wine?)
Ruan Yuejin stood at the door and didn't quite hear what the old tailor was muttering. He took a breath to adjust himself, cleared his throat and walked into the yard. He walked directly to the old tailor and greeted him, "Good morning, Mr. Song."
The old tailor didn't look up, and continued to comb Da Mi's cat. He asked aloud: "Making clothes or altering clothes?"
Ruan Yuejin said without beating around the bush: "I don't make clothes or alter them. I want to be your apprentice and learn your craft. I want to be a tailor like you, tailoring clothes for people and serving the people."
The old tailor still didn't look up, "I already have an apprentice, I won't accept a hammer."
Ruan Yuejin insisted, "I can guarantee that I am more suitable to be a tailor than your current apprentice. She is not cut out to be a tailor at all. In the end, she can only do odd jobs and cannot inherit your craft."
The old tailor finished combing Da Mi's fur, raised his head and looked at Ruan Yuejin, his face full of confusion. After a moment, he opened his mouth and said, "Look at you, you look stupid and dumb. Have you ever touched a sewing machine? How dare you come here and fart, saying that you are more suitable to be a tailor than my apprentice?"
"She can't inherit my craft, but someone like you can?"
"Hah, get away from me!"
Even if he were twenty years younger, he wouldn't dare to say this!
Ruan Yuejin's face flushed with anger and his ears turned red in an instant due to the old tailor's scolding. He had never been scolded like this before, and the anger in his heart instantly rushed to the top of his head. His fingers clenched the handle of the bamboo basket and almost broke the curved handle.
The old tailor lifted Da Mi up and glanced at him impatiently: "Are you still not leaving?"
Ruan Yuejin clenched his fingers and held his breath, but finally he swallowed it, turned around and left with the basket.
After walking out of the yard, he took even bigger steps, his whole face filled with frustration and anger.
Seeing him coming out with the basket so quickly and looking so unhappy, Sun Xiaohui hurried over to him. Seeing that all the eggs in his basket were intact, she asked anxiously, "What's wrong?"
Ruan Yuejin's breathing fluctuated greatly, and he said angrily: "He just knows a crappy skill, what's so great about it! He's over seventy years old, and he's never found a wife in his life, and he's... mmm..."
Seeing that he was saying a lot of unpleasant things, Sun Xiaohui quickly raised her hand to cover his mouth.
After finally waiting for him to shut up, she let go of Ruan Yuejin's mouth and said, "Oh, I told you before we went in. He is just like that. He treats everyone the same. Why are you so anxious about him? Hearing some unpleasant words won't kill you."
Ruan Yuejin was still breathing heavily, and he stuffed the basket into Sun Xiaohui's hands. "I'd rather die than have a master like this! You have to learn this craft, but I won't learn it anyway. I'd rather go mining!"
After saying that, he walked straight forward. Sun Xiaohui chased after him. When she caught up with him, she grabbed his arm and asked him a soul-searching question: "Are you worse than that girl Xiaoxi? She, a little girl, can stand it, but you can't?"
These words touched Ruan Yuejin's nerves. He stood there, gritted his teeth, and slowly suppressed the rising blood.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
