Ruan Xi didn’t know how long she had slept. When she was woken up by Ling Yao, most people in the playground had already left. She opened her eyes dazedly, and it took her a long time to remember that she was watching a movie on the playground of Tianfeng Middle School.
Ling Yao told her: "It's over."
Ruan Xi forced himself to wake up, and realized that he had fallen asleep while hugging a tree. She blinked and looked at Ling Yao, speaking with a heavy nasal tone, apologetically: "I'm really too tired."
Ling Yao's left hand was still holding her arm to support her. He thought she was sad because she couldn't watch the movie, so he comforted her and said, "It's okay. You can watch it again when you have a chance. Anyway, they are always the same movies."
Ruan Xi just felt that it was a bit inappropriate to fall asleep while watching a movie with him. She didn't feel anything about not being able to watch the movie. She yawned and said, "Let's go back to sleep."
When she got down from the tree and walked back, she asked Ling Yao again: "What is this movie about?"
Ling Yao naturally still felt that she was regretful. After all, this was her first time watching a movie. Unexpectedly, she was so tired that she fell asleep not long after the movie started, and she slept so soundly that she couldn't be woken up even if she was called.
So Ling Yao told her the content of the movie in detail, "It is about the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea. A political commissar of the Volunteer Army named Wang Wenqing went to the front line for inspection. On the battlefield, he met his old comrade's son Wang Cheng. Wang Cheng said that he had a sister named Wang Fang, who was also in the army. Later, Wang Cheng died in the battle. Wang Fang was in the art troupe. After meeting Wang Wenqing, Wang Wenqing recognized her as his daughter who had been separated from him eighteen years ago..."
Ruan Xi listened to him finish the movie and nodded, "I know. It's about a father and daughter who were separated for many years and met on the battlefield. The father helped his daughter to continue fighting, and they recognized each other in the end."
Ling Yao nodded: "Yeah."
Ruan Xi twisted her neck and said, "I'm really tired after walking for two days. I'll come back to watch it when I have a chance."
Ling Yao saw that she didn't seem to care about this matter too much, so he relaxed.
The two of them returned to Ruan Cuizhi's house while talking. Ruan Xi's uncle and cousins had already washed up. Ruan Xi greeted her uncle and exchanged a few brief and polite words, and then her uncle went into the house to sleep.
The original body had very little contact with her uncle and cousins. In the past, Ruan Cuizhi went back to her parents' home once a year, and they could see each other when she returned to the mountains. They hadn't seen each other in recent years, so it was inevitable that they felt estranged, and there was no way they could be very enthusiastic.
Ruan Xi didn't care. After all, after this meeting, she didn't know when they would meet again. She will stay here for one night and go to the winery to buy some wine tomorrow and then go home.
But Ruan Cuizhi was still good to her niece. When Ruan Xi and Ling Yao went to the movies, she took out Ruan Xi and Ling Yao's clothes to wash. After washing, she hung them to dry for a while and then ironed them. Now they are dry.
Ruan Cuizhi handed the clothes to Ruan Xi and Ling Yao and said to them, "While you were going to the movies, I took out your clothes to wash them. They are now dry. Take a shower and go to bed early. It's getting late."
Ruan Xi wanted to talk more with Ruan Cuizhi and ask her on Liu Xinghua's behalf how she had been doing in recent years. Living in a town, where daily necessities are much more abundant, should be much better than living in the mountains.
But time was too tight tonight, and Ruan Xi didn't have a chance to talk much with Ruan Cuizhi, so he just agreed, washed up, washed and hung up the dirty clothes, and went to bed first.
According to Ruan Cuizhi's arrangement, Ruan Xi shared a bed with her three cousins, while Ling Yao shared a bed with her cousin. It was much better than sleeping in the wild. Ruan Xi and Ling Yao both slept soundly.
Knowing that they were very tired after walking for two days, Ruan Cuizhi did not wake them up the next morning and let them sleep until they woke up naturally. Ruan Xi and Ling Yao woke up naturally, it was almost noon.
Although I got enough sleep, I felt a little embarrassed. After all, this is not my home, and it is not appropriate to sleep like this at a relative's house.
Seeing Ruan Xi was being polite, Ruan Cuizhi just smiled and said, "What's the big deal? Just sleep a little longer if you're tired. It's okay."
But this wasn't just sleeping a little longer, this was sleeping half a day longer.
Although Ruan Xi felt embarrassed, she did not act overly politely with Ruan Cuizhi. After all, she was her aunt.
Because it was almost noon, she did not go out with Ling Yao, but stayed at home to help Ruan Cuizhi with chores.
Ruan Cuizhi was making lunch, and Ruan Xi and Ling Yao were squatting beside her, getting up to help if there was anything.
Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi took this opportunity to have a chat.
Ruan Cuizhi was also concerned about her family, so she asked Ruan Xi first: "Xiao Xi, how are your grandparents doing recently?"
Ruan Xi smiled and said, "Everything is fine. I can eat and drink, and I can roll up my sleeves and fight."
It is no longer possible to walk up the mountain road for another two days because my legs and feet no longer have the stamina.
Hearing the word "fight", Ruan Cuizhi asked curiously, "Fight? With whom?"
It's been a while since the incident happened, and Ruan Xi feels relieved now. "You don't know, my second uncle and second aunt had a fight over the separation and we moved out to live separately. Before that, my second aunt even wrongly accused me of stealing, and I was beaten by my grandmother."
Ruan Cuizhi had been with Sun Xiaohui for some time and knew that although her sister-in-law looked honest on the surface, she was actually very cunning. There was nothing in this world that she didn't want to take advantage of, and there was no loss that she was willing to suffer.
Fortunately, Liu Xinghua was able to calm her down and was not afraid that she would cause trouble.
Ruan Cuizhi didn't say anything to Sun Xiaohui, she just asked Ruan Changgui why he wanted to divide the family. After thinking about it, she figured out the answer. She then asked, "Is it because your fifth uncle is going to get married and he doesn't want to share the burden?"
Ruan Xi nodded, "You guessed right."
Ruan Cuizhi took a deep breath and didn't say anything bad about Ruan Changgui. She just continued to ask, "So has your fifth uncle found a date? Has a date been set? When are you getting married?"
If Ruan Changsheng gets married, she will have to go back to her parents' home no matter what.
Ruan Xi shook her head and told her, "It's not settled yet."
Ruan Cuizhi: "He is old enough to say it, and if he is engaged, he can almost get married."
Ruan Xi nodded, "Grandma has found a matchmaker to look after it, it should be soon."
Ling Yao was an outsider and didn't know anything about the Ruan family, so he couldn't join in the conversation and just sat aside without saying a word. But Ruan Xi would take special care of him and look at him from time to time so that he would not feel left out and embarrassed.
Then she looked at Ling Yao several times and found that Ling Yao was staring at Ruan Cuizhi.
At first she didn't think anything of it, but later she felt that Ling Yao was a little abnormal. So she looked at him inquiringly, then followed his gaze to look at Ruan Cuizhi, and saw that Ruan Cuizhi had a wound on her arm.
Ruan Cuizhi was working, and every time she stretched out her arms, purple bruises appeared on her wrists.
When Ruan Xi and Ling Yao were staring at her arm, Ruan Cuizhi also realized it, so she quickly pulled her arm back, a look of embarrassment flashed across her face, and she pulled her sleeve down.
She pretended nothing had happened and continued, "It's settled. Ask your fifth uncle to deliver a message so I can go back early."
Ruan Xi raised his eyes to Ruan Cuizhi's face and replied after a moment: "Yeah."
In fact, she really wanted to ask Ruan Cuizhi about the injury on her arm, but seeing that she was trying hard to cover it up and obviously didn't want her to see it, she held back and didn't ask.
During lunch, Ruan Xi and Ling Yao huddled at the corner of the table without saying anything, and no one else at the table spoke either. Only then did Ruan Xi realize that the family atmosphere in Ruan Cuizhi's home was very bad, especially her uncle, who always had a gloomy face.
She originally thought that he was tired from watching the movie last night, so he was not enthusiastic. Now it seems that it has nothing to do with being tired or not. Her uncle just put on that face on purpose, and was even less polite than last night.
Ruan Xi couldn't help but wonder - did she come to his house for a meal and make her uncle unhappy?
But she said nothing at the table and just ate in tune with the atmosphere.
I didn't dare eat too much. I only ate half a bowl of rice and didn't ask for any more.
Ling Yao was also very considerate and ate less than Ruan Xi.
In this case, Ruan Xi didn't plan to stay at her third aunt's house any longer. After dinner, she and Ling Yao put away the clothes that had been hung out to dry, filled a kettle with warm water, and then said goodbye to Ruan Cuizhi and said they were going home.
Ruan Cuizhi saw why Ruan Xi was here, so she had to say to her, "It's not easy for you to come here, so why not wait a few more days before leaving? Your uncle is just that kind of person, he doesn't like to smile or talk to anyone, so don't take it to heart."
Ruan Xi pursed her lips and smiled, then looked at Ruan Cuizhi and suddenly asked, "Third Aunt, are you doing well?"
Ruan Cuizhi was slightly stunned by her question, then quickly smiled and said, "Of course."
Ruan Xi saw her expression and looked up at her for a moment. She suddenly pinched Ruan Cuizhi's wrist and pulled up her sleeve, revealing that her arm was covered with purple scars.
Ruan Cuizhi was caught off guard and hurriedly pulled her sleeves down again.
Ruan Xi's face darkened as he asked her, "He hit her, didn't he?"
Ruan Cuizhi continued to cover up, "No, I accidentally fell while working. Bumps and bruises are inevitable."
Ruan Xi still looked up at her, "He didn't let you go back to your parents' home in the past few years, right?"
Everyone in the village said that her third aunt Ruan Cuizhi was lucky. She left the mountains and married into the town. She lived a very comfortable and enviable life.
In the end, is this the most comfortable and good way possible?
Ruan Cuizhi wanted to continue to cover up, "The road is too long. It takes four or five days to go back and forth, and I can't leave my family without someone..."
As she spoke, her voice got stuck in her throat and she couldn't make any sound.
Then she controlled her emotions, looked at Ruan Xi and said, "Xiao Xi, I'm living a really good life. There's everything I need in town, and I'm well fed and well clothed. Don't tell your grandparents nonsense when you go back. They're old, don't let them worry about it."
Ruan Xi pursed her lips, looked into Ruan Cuizhi's eyes and didn't respond to her.
After a moment, she breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Third Aunt, I'll go back first."
Ruan Cuizhi wanted to keep her, but she couldn't say it, so she had to send her and Ling Yao out. When they left, she stuffed a few egg cakes into their bags and asked them to eat them on the way.
Ruan Xi tried to refuse it several times but failed, so she and Ling Yao took it.
The two left Ruan Cuizhi's house and went to the winery. Ruan Xi looked unhappy all the way.
Ling Yao walked slowly beside her, turned to look at her, and asked, "Is it because of the injury on your third aunt's arm?"
Ruan Xi walked forward with a sullen look on her face. "Although she didn't say anything, I could tell that she was having a hard time."
Last night the whole family went to the movies, except Ruan Cuizhi who was at home.
The wounds on Ruan Cuizhi's arms and her uncle's expression all told the story.
Her uncle didn't think highly of Ruan Cuizhi, so he ignored and neglected her, his niece from her mother's side.
She didn't care about her uncle's attitude towards her, but when she thought of the injury on Ruan Cuizhi's arm, she felt upset and angry. What made her even more frustrated was that her 14-year-old niece had no control over the matter.
Thinking of this, she took a deep breath, thinking about not bringing bad emotions to Ling Yao, and then she cheered up and said, "Let's go get some wine and go home quickly. We have to let my grandparents know about this."
Ling Yao looked at Ruan Xi: "But your third aunt asked you not to tell."
Ruan Xi said, "How can I not tell you? Her husband thinks she is easy to bully and will continue to bully her in the future. I am a junior and a child so it is not easy for me to intervene in this matter, but my grandparents can intervene, and so can my fifth uncle. If my grandparents knew that Third Aunt was wronged here and I didn't tell them, they would be even angrier. This kind of thing must not be tolerated, otherwise the other party will only get worse. He must pay the price and learn a lesson!"
Ling Yao nodded after listening, "Then let's go quickly."
The two men quickened their pace and went to the winery, using the wine ticket and fifty cents to buy a pound of wine. After drinking, they didn't hang around in the town anymore, but rushed home without stopping. Although they were not very strong when they returned, they were not slow either.
Ruan Xi wanted to get home early so that he could tell Ruan Zhigao and Liu Xinghua about Ruan Cuizhi and ask them to support Ruan Cuizhi.
Ruan Zhigao and Liu Xinghua are too old to come out now, but Ruan Changsheng can be asked to take care of this matter.
With this matter in mind, Ruan Xi and Ling Yao walked even faster than when they came.
On the way here, I saw the scenery along the way, and on the way back, I had no other thoughts but to get home quickly.
Golden Crown Village.
Seeing that the sun was about to set, Ruan Yuejin wiped the sweat from his head in the field, packed up his things and returned to the old tailor's house. After entering the yard and putting down the farm tools at the corner, he said goodbye to the old tailor and prepared to go home.
The old tailor naturally didn't want to keep him, he just waved his hand and let him go.
Ruan Yuejin held his breath, trying not to show it on his face. He held his breath and turned to walk out of the yard.
After he went out, his face changed instantly, and he muttered and cursed: "You old bachelor, no wonder you can't find a wife."
He walked all the way home and sat down to eat, but the anger in his heart was still there.
Sun Xiaohui put some food into his bowl and asked him, "How was your day? Did the old tailor teach you anything?"
Ruan Yuejin held the bowl and said, "I was asked to work for a whole day at his house, in the fields and at home. He didn't ask me to do anything that was not tiring. He didn't even let me touch the edge of the sewing machine. Do you think he taught me a lesson?"
Sun Xiaohui frowned deeply, "You are asked to work again?"
I already worked for half a day yesterday, shouldn’t I start teaching the craft today?
Ruan Yuejin said, "He must be teasing me on purpose. He took the eggs but didn't teach me how to cook them. He kept asking me to do this and that. If he doesn't teach me tomorrow, I'll go to the brigade's revolutionary committee to find their secretary."
Sun Xiaohui was calm, "Don't worry. If you offend him, you won't be able to learn the craft anywhere else. What's the point of looking for the brigade secretary? If he's angry, he won't teach you the craft. The worst that can happen is that he will just return the eggs to you."
Ruan Changgui echoed, "Your mother is right."
Ruan Yuejin took a deep breath, took a big bite of the steamed bun, and chewed the old tailor's head in his mouth angrily.
After a tiring day, Ruan Yuejin went to bed early at night.
After falling asleep, he began to dream. In his dream, the old tailor turned into a gopher in the field. He carried a big hammer and hit the old gopher in the field. Every hit was accurate and the old tailor was dizzy and dazed.
He felt so good after smashing the things that he stood in the field, carrying the hammer and laughing.
Then, when I was laughing happily, I was suddenly slapped hard on the face, and I was woken up with a snap.
He was startled by the beating, opened his eyes and quickly propped himself up, still with a dazed look on his face, only to see Ruan Changsheng lying down on the other side of the bed, saying in a very harsh tone: "What the hell are you laughing at in the middle of the night!"
There were limited rooms and beds at home, so he, Ruan Yuehua and Ruan Changsheng lived in one room.
Usually, he and his younger brother Ruan Yuehua sleep on one side, and Ruan Changsheng sleeps alone on the other side.
Being woken up from a sweet dream was really annoying, but he saw that it was Ruan Changsheng who hit him, and he always knew that his fifth uncle was easy to fight with but not easy to mess with, so he didn't dare to get angry. He held his anger, put his head down and went back to sleep.
I woke up the next day, washed up in a daze, and after dinner, I went to the old tailor's house with a feeling as if I was going to a grave.
He thought the old tailor would torment him for another day, but he didn't expect that when he arrived at the old tailor's house today, the old tailor didn't ask him to work anymore. Instead, he asked him: "Do you want to learn manual labor first, or do you want to work on the machine directly?"
Do you still need to think about this?
Ruan Yuejin said directly: "Of course, use the machine."
He spent so much effort to learn a craft just to learn how to use a sewing machine, because only his old tailor had a sewing machine.
If he wants to learn handicrafts, where can't he learn it? Who among his grandmother and his mother doesn't know how to sew?
Besides, sewing and needlework are feminine things, and are done by women. Why should he learn that?
The old tailor didn't say much and took him directly to the main house.
He sat down in front of the sewing machine, reached out and pulled out the top thread, took out the bottom thread, and finally removed the needle. He looked at Ruan Yuejin and said, "I will only teach you once. If you can't learn it, I won't teach you a second time."
Ruan Yuejin took a deep breath and said after a moment: "Only teach... once?"
The old tailor slightly raised his head and stared at him, with the bright top of his head standing out particularly. "Didn't you say that you are suitable to be a tailor? Can you inherit my craft? This is how I teach my apprentices. Will I only teach them once and not a second time?"
Ruan Yuejin cleared his throat and said with a breath: "Okay, just once."
The old tailor lowered his gaze, put down the sewing machine's presser, put his foot on the pedal below, and continued, "I'm afraid you'll waste my stuff, so I'll teach you the simplest way first, stepping on the machine in the air. You just need to keep the machine from reversing, that's all."
Ruan Yuejin stood and responded: "Okay."
The old tailor raised his hand to hold the wheel, and while demonstrating, he said: "Watch it, turn the wheel on the right with your hand, and step on the pedal at the same time to make the machine turn."
He is an old craftsman who has been operating sewing machines all his life. In fact, he can operate the sewing machine with just his feet without using his hands to turn the right wheel. So it seems easier for him to use his hands.
Seeing how easily he stepped on it, Ruan Yuejin blinked in confusion, "That's it?"
He even wanted to laugh - that's it? that's all?
The old tailor didn't waste any more time talking to him. He just stood up and gave him the high stool. "Come on."
Ruan Yuejin sat down in front of the sewing machine with a relaxed smile on his face. He put his foot on the pedal, held the right wheel with his right hand, and followed suit, turning the wheel with his hands and stepping on the pedal with his feet.
As a result, as soon as I stepped on it, the wheel in my hand turned the wrong way.
The old tailor slapped him on the back of the head and said, "It's upside down!"
Ruan Yuejin stopped laughing instantly. He covered the back of his head, restrained his expression, and even his tone. He only said in a low voice: "I'm just not familiar with it yet."
The old tailor was too lazy to pay attention to him and said that he would not teach him a second time. He just couldn't stand stupid people, so he turned around and went to the yard, saying casually: "You can figure it out on your own. If you break the sewing machine, you have to pay for it."
Ruan Yuejin was relieved to see him leave, to avoid him saying some harsh words here or even hitting him directly if he failed to do it once or twice. If he thinks about it himself, he will definitely be able to figure out the way.
But he thought about it for a long time, sweating profusely, but still couldn't figure out what was going on. The direction of the wheel was clearly correct, but how come when he let go of his hand and stepped on it, the wheel reversed? Was there something fishy going on?
The more he tried to figure it out, the more anxious he became. He looked at the broken sewing machine that was turning upside down and wanted to punch it twice. But because this thing was so expensive, he couldn't afford to pay for it if he broke it, so he had to bear with it.
When he went home for lunch at noon, Sun Xiaohui asked him how his studies were going. He wanted to save face, so he said, "Very well."
I came back in the afternoon to continue thinking about the ins and outs of it, hesitating between asking the old tailor for advice or not.
Finally, he couldn't help asking for advice, but the old tailor said to him directly: "I won't teach you a second time. If you can't learn it, just leave."
Ruan Yuejin: “…”
The old tailor even mocked him, imitating his tone in the morning and saying, "That's it?"
Ruan Yuejin: “…”
You old bachelor, you old man, no wonder you can’t find a wife!
Ruan Xi hasn't left yet, how can he leave?
Ruan Yuejin naturally did not leave. He sat in front of the sewing machine and thought to himself for the whole afternoon. When he was really angry, he could not vent his anger on the broken machine, so he lay on the sewing machine and gasped.
After catching his breath, he stood up and continued pedaling. Then, when the sun sank into the western sky, he suddenly felt a wonderful connection between his hands and feet, and the wheel began to turn positively before his eyes!
Seeing the wheel turning, Ruan Yuejin was a little excited, so he tried it a few more times to grasp that feeling.
Every time the wheel turned in the right direction, he suddenly became excited, stood up from the stool and shouted.
After shouting, all his confidence came back, his eyes were shining brightly, he sat down in front of the sewing machine and continued to pedal the machine, listening to the sound of the sewing machine turning, sometimes fast and sometimes slow, he was in a very good mood.
He left the old tailor's house humming a song in the evening.
I walked back to Fengyan Village along the mountain road, and when I was almost home I happened to meet Ruan Xi who was returning from the commune.
In the past, he thought Ruan Xi was half a head shorter than him, but now he is a lot shorter than him.
He greeted Ruan Xi: "Big sister is back."
Ruan Xi has been on the road since yesterday noon until now. Even at night he only sat down to rest for a while and did not find a place to take a nap. She was so tired that her soul almost left her body. She had no mood to pay attention to Ruan Yuejin and only responded with a "Yeah."
Liu Xinghua heard Ruan Yuejin's words in the room and hurried out to take a look.
Seeing Ruan Xi coming back, she hurried over to take the wine gourd in Ruan Xi's hand, the schoolbag and the water bottle on her body.
Seeing Ruan Xi's tired face and dark circles under her eyes, Liu Xinghua said distressedly, "Are you exhausted?"
Ruan Xi didn't say anything. He went into the house, poured a bowl of water, and drank it all in one breath.
After drinking the water, she sat down on a stool. After a long pause, she said in a weak voice, "The gourd is filled with a pound of wine. Grandma, pour out half a pound for Grandpa to drink. I will give the rest to Master tomorrow."
Liu Xinghua said directly, "You are still thinking about whether he drinks or not, why don't you take a break."
Ruan Jie was lighting a fire behind the stove. Seeing Ruan Xi was so tired that she had trouble speaking, she said, "Sister, why don't you go to sleep for a while? I'll call you to eat when dinner is ready and Grandpa and Uncle Wu come back."
Ruan Xi shook her head, "Grandma, I have something else to tell you."
Liu Xinghua said, "If there is anything important that needs to be discussed now, go and take a rest."
Ruan Xi adjusted her breath and looked at Liu Xinghua, "I went to my third aunt's house and slept there for a night. My uncle didn't seem to welcome me, and I saw purple marks all over my third aunt's arms, as if she had been beaten."
Hearing this, Liu Xinghua was stunned.
Ruan Xi continued, "She said it was a bump, but I don't think so. She didn't let me tell you because she was afraid you would worry. But I think you must know about this, otherwise Third Aunt might be bullied all the time."
Who beat you up so you should hide it from them?
Liu Xinghua's eyebrows slowly knitted together, "How dare Liu Xiong bully my daughter?"
Ruan Xi: "Why would he be afraid? You and Grandpa have grown old these years and can't leave the mountains. The commune is so far away from us, it's not easy for Third Aunt to come back. He can bully us however he wants."
Liu Xinghua gritted her teeth in anger, "If he really bullies Cuizhi, I will fight him, Liu Xiong, to the death!"
Ruan Xi was so sleepy and tired that she tilted her head and propped up her face with her palms. She squinted her eyes and said, "Let's ask Uncle Wu to go. Uncle Wu has good endurance and is fast on his feet. He's also good at fighting. He's the most suitable person to go."
The more she spoke, the lower her voice became, and her pronunciation became more and more unclear: "But it depends on what Third Aunt thinks. If she is willing to endure it and doesn't want to quarrel with Uncle, then there is nothing we can do. After all, they are husband and wife..."
As she spoke, her arm suddenly slid down, and her body tilted and she woke up in shock.
She couldn't bear it anymore, so she held up her eyelids and said, "Grandma, I can't do it anymore. I'm going to sleep first."
After saying this, she didn't care about Liu Xinghua and Ruan Jie's reactions and got up and went into the next room.
I went into the room, threw myself on the bed, tucked in the mosquito net, and fell asleep almost as soon as my pillow touched.
Liu Xinghua stood by the stove and gritted her teeth in anger, but she didn't say anything else. There were many things that children like Ruan Xi and Ruan Jie didn't know, and she couldn't tell Ruan Jie about it, so she could only wait for Ruan Zhigao to come back.
After preparing dinner with Ruan Jie, Liu Xinghua found the scale at home and used the hook on the wine gourd to weigh out half a pound of wine.
When Ruan Zhigao came back and walked to the door, he smelled the aroma of wine and asked directly: "Xiaoxi is back?"
Liu Xinghua was in a bad mood because of Ruan Cuizhi's matter. She didn't look happy at all. She just said "hmm" and turned to call Ruan Jie: "Xiao Jie, wake up your sister to eat."
Ruan Jie went into the room, only to find Ruan Xi sleeping soundly with the door of the tent tightly closed. She went to the bed and opened the mosquito net. She tried to shake Ruan Xi but failed to wake her up. She had no choice but to say, "It seems like my sister is too tired. I can't wake her up."
Liu Xinghua could understand that kind of tiredness, "Then let her sleep."
Ruan Jie nodded and sat down at the table. As soon as she picked up the chopsticks, she smelled the aroma of wine on the table.
It is not easy to have a sip of white wine. Ruan Zhigao was reluctant to drink more, so he only poured two or three sips into the small bowl. After pouring the wine, he looked up and saw Ruan Changsheng's eyes full of greed. He smiled and asked him, "Do you want to drink too?"
Ruan Changsheng was about to speak, but before he could finish his words, Liu Xinghua said, "He won't drink. We have something for him to do tomorrow."
Ruan Changsheng was stunned for a moment, then turned to look at Liu Xinghua: "Besides going to work, what else do you have to do?"
Liu Xinghua looked at Ruan Zhigao, then at Ruan Changsheng, and said angrily: "Your third sister was bullied by someone. I want you to go to the commune tomorrow to see your third sister and ask her what happened."
Hearing this, Ruan Zhi put down his hand holding the wine bowl and looked at Liu Xinghua, "Who bullied Cuizhi?"
Liu Xinghua kept silent with a tense face. Ruan Jie whispered beside her, "Sister said it was his uncle..."
Ruan Zhigao was stunned when he heard this, "Liu Xiong beat Cuizhi?"
Liu Xinghua bit her steamed bun and said angrily, "I don't know the details. Cuizhi concealed it and didn't want to tell you, but I think it's pretty close. I really regret it from time to time. I shouldn't have let Cuizhi marry him in the first place!"
Ruan Zhigao's face darkened. "What's the point of saying this now?"
Ruan Changsheng had been craving for the wine in Ruan Zhigao's bowl, but now he is not craving for it anymore. His face and eyes looked even darker than Ruan Zhigao's, slowly emitting murderous intent, like a ferocious tiger cub ready to eat people.
He picked up the porridge in front of him and took a big gulp, then said with a gloomy face: "I will go there tomorrow. If he really beats up Third Sister, I will never let him go. He really thinks that there is no one left in our Ruan family, and that Third Sister can be bullied by him at will!"
Ruan Zhigao picked up the wine bowl and took a sip of wine, "I'll go with you."
Ruan Changsheng said, "No, I can handle it myself. If you come with me, it will be slower. Besides, you are old and can't do any heavy work in the production team. You may not be able to walk to the commune now."
Liu Xinghua knew Ruan Zhigao's health best and said, "You are old and weak, so don't try to show off. Xiao Wuzi is Cuizhi's brother, and he can still support her if he goes."
As she spoke, she looked at Ruan Changsheng: "But you can't act rashly when you get there. You must find your third sister and ask her about the matter. If it was really Liu Xiong who beat her, you must avenge her. She hasn't come back in recent years. Could he have beaten her only once or twice? He took advantage of the fact that your third sister married far away, so he dared to bully her!"
Ruan Changsheng nodded, "I remember it."
In order to allow Ruan Changsheng to go to town, Liu Xinghua packed clothes and dry food for him in the evening.
Ruan Changsheng got up very early the next morning, and when he was packing his luggage and preparing to leave, Liu Xinghua just got up. Liu Xinghua sent him out, then pulled him aside and said, "You'll see what the situation is. If it doesn't work, bring your third sister back."
Ruan Changsheng nodded while eating his steamed bun. "Okay, I understand."
After saying this, he didn't waste any time, but put on his schoolbag and water bottle and went down the mountain.
Liu Xinghua watched Ruan Changsheng walk away. When she turned around and went back into the house, she couldn't help but hold back a breath. She really wanted to beat Liu Xiong up herself.
She herself is a person who is not easy to deal with, but she gave birth to a daughter with a soft personality, and sometimes she would get angry at Ruan Cuizhi for not living up to her expectations.
Ruan Xi was so sleepy that she didn't wake up until noon the next day.
When she got up, her head was still dizzy. She stood at the basin, poured water to wash her face, and splashed cold water on her face for a long time before she slowly became more awake. After I woke up, my mind was still dull and I sat at the table in a daze for a while.
When Liu Xinghua and Ruan Jie came back from outside, they saw Ruan Xi sitting blankly at the table.
Seeing her like this, Ruan Jie couldn't help but greet her with a smile: "Sister, are you awake?"
Ruan Xi nodded at her stiffly, "Yeah, it feels like I've slept for a lifetime."
Liu Xinghua took a basin to wash rice and cook. "You must be hungry after sleeping for such a long time. Sit down and wait for a while. Grandma will cook right away. If you are really hungry, I will give you a steamed bun to fill your stomach. Do you want it?"
Ruan Xi looked at her and shook her head, "I want to eat rice."
I've been eating steamed buns on the road these days, and I really don't want to eat them anymore.
The rice had to be washed and steamed, so Ruan Xi sat at the table waiting, and at the same time tried to get his sleepy brain moving. It was not until dinner time that she regained her ability to think, and belatedly asked, "Is Uncle Wu out?"
Ruan Zhigao answered her: "I went to your third aunt's house."
Ruan Xi nodded, "Oh."
Just go.
Since Ruan Changsheng had already gone to deal with the matter, she put it aside for the time being.
After lunch, Ruan Xi took the gourd filled with half a pound of wine, carried his schoolbag and went out to the old tailor's house.
However, not long after she went out, she found Ruan Yuejin following her.
At first she didn't pay much attention to it, thinking that Ruan Yuejin was just going to look for his peers and happened to be going somewhere along the way. But all the way to the border of Jinguan Village, Ruan Yuejin still followed behind.
Ruan Xi was a little confused and stopped to wait for a while.
When Ruan Yuejin came to her, she stopped him and asked, "Why are you following me?"
Ruan Yuejin raised his eyes and glanced at her, "Who followed you? I went there to learn a craft."
Ruan Xi looked puzzled: "What craft are you going to learn?"
Ruan Yuejin straightened his chest slightly, cleared his throat and said, "Of course I learned the tailoring skills from the old tailor. Now I am also his apprentice, and I have been learning from him for several days. He said that I learned better than you."
After saying that, he rubbed Ruan Xi's shoulder and walked forward, as if this road belonged to him.
Ruan Xi turned her head and watched him walk away, pursing her lips and squinting her eyes, speechless.
During the few days she was away, Sun Xiaohui did something weird again?
What the hell is going on this time?
Let Ruan Yuejin be a tailor?
Steal her job?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
