The sky was gray and it rained for three days, only stopping after the old tailor was buried.
Ruan Xi wore a straw hat, a linen coat and a raincoat, and walked back to the tailor shop in the mud. Ruan Cuizhi walked beside her and held her hand, subconsciously rubbing it gently from time to time to soothe her mood.
She and the old tailor had only been together for half a year, and they rarely talked to each other. There was almost no emotional interaction. She felt very sad just helping to serve him, let alone Ruan Xi.
Ruan Xi's eyes were red and she kept walking without talking.
He was the only son in three generations of the old tailor's family, and he had no relatives as he had never married or had any children.
His funeral was organized by Ruan Cuizhi, Ruan Changsheng and Ruan Xi, and those who came to pay their respects were all from several nearby villages. Not many people were really sad, after all, the old tailor was very old.
Ruan Changsheng caught up with them from behind, and when he came to Ruan Cuizhi and Ruan Xi, he asked, "Are we going to the tailor shop or home?"
Ruan Cuizhi turned to look at Ruan Changsheng and said, "Xiaoxi and I will go back to the tailor shop to pack up first, and then go home after we're done."
Ruan Changsheng nodded, "Okay, then I'll go back first."
After walking a short distance, the three of them parted ways, and Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi returned to the tailor shop.
Ruan Xi planned to clean the house inside and out and close the business for the next month.
All of the old tailor's personal belongings in the house had already been packed up and buried with him. I went back to the shop, opened the door and went into the house. Now when I look at the house again, I always feel that it is cold and empty.
Ruan Cuizhi and Ruan Xi took off their hats and linen clothes and tidied the house inside and out.
When there is a funeral, the house is a mess and you have to clean it up.
Ruan Cuizhi packed up for a while and said to Ruan Xi, "I don't know where Da Mi went. I haven't seen her come back in the past few days."
Then, just as Ruan Cuizhi finished speaking, Ruan Xi's hand, which was using the broom to dig under the bed, suddenly froze.
She took out Da Mi who was lying under the bed and found that Da Mi's whole body was completely stiff.
Ruan Cuizhi came over and saw Da Mi, her eyes dimmed and she took a deep breath.
After a long moment, she whispered, "It went with Master Song."
There were no injuries on Da Mi's body. It was most likely that she starved herself to death.
Ruan Xi didn't say anything and put Da Mi away carefully.
After cleaning the house, she put Da Mi in the bamboo basket, took the shovel and went to the old tailor's grave again.
She dug a small hole nearby, put Big Mi in it, and then buried it with a shovelful of soil, making a small mound.
The tailor shop was closed for a month and the door was locked.
Ruan Cuizhi hasn't been to the tailor shop this month and has been working in the production team. Ruan Xi occasionally went over to sit alone in the yard for a while, but she spent most of her time with Ling Yao, accompanying him in herding pigs and reading books with him.
She planned to let her mind clear for a while before moving on with her life.
Because being with Ling Yao makes her feel most comfortable, she comes to see him every day.
Two people sat on the hillside watching the pigs grazing.
Ling Yao's schoolbag usually contains things, and today it contains two rare candies.
Holding the candy in their mouths, the sweet milk flavor slid down their throats, and the two of them lay on the hillside looking at the sky above their heads.
The summer sky is clear blue and the floating clouds are as soft as cotton candy.
If you tear it off and take a bite, it might also taste milky.
Ruan Xi thought so.
Then, before the taste of milk in my mouth had completely disappeared, I suddenly heard a hurried cry.
Ruan Xi sat up and looked in the direction of the sound, only to see that it was Ruan Jie looking for her.
Ruan Jie ran up to her and said breathlessly, "Sister, someone came to our house to look for you. They said they were relatives of the old tailor."
Hearing this, Ruan Xi was slightly stunned, and hurriedly stood up to say hello to Ling Yao, then followed Ruan Jie home.
Seeing that she had left with Ruan Jie, Ling Yao hurriedly drove the pigs back home, locked them up and went back to Ruan's house.
When Ruan Xi and Ruan Xi returned home, they saw a white-haired old lady and two middle-aged men sitting in his house.
The faces of the three people were all unfamiliar; she had never seen them before.
Ruan Xi didn't know how to greet them, so she asked, "You guys came to see me?"
After asking, but before the three people could answer, Ruan Zhigao and Ruan Changsheng suddenly came back, followed by Ruan Cuizhi and Sun Xiaohui. Sun Xiaohui went straight to the small kitchen opposite, and Ruan Zhigao and three others stood beside Ruan Xi.
Liu Xinghua came out of the room and said, "He said it was a relative of the old tailor who came to look for Xiaoxi."
There was something interesting to watch. Sun Xiaohui stuck her head out of the small kitchen, her ears standing up longer than a rabbit's.
The three people opposite seemed very arrogant. The old lady looked at Ruan Xi and said, "Are you the little tailor?"
Ruan Xi looked at her and replied, "I am the little tailor."
The old lady didn't beat around the bush. She spoke slowly but firmly, "Then I'll have to trouble you to take out the key to the old tailor's house and return it to us. Although the old tailor has no children or descendants, he still has us as his relatives. His property shouldn't fall into the hands of an outsider like you. What do you think, girl?"
Ruan Zhigao and Ruan Changsheng both looked at Ruan Xi, both with puzzled expressions in their eyes.
Ruan Cuizhi was an insider, and without showing any doubt on her face, she asked, "How are you related to him?"
She had asked the question sincerely, but the moment she asked it she realized that it sounded a bit choking.
The old lady was indeed displeased, and said in a harsh voice: "My grandmother is the old tailor's great aunt. How can I be his relative? We are blood relatives after all, so the property is naturally ours."
Ruan Cuizhi concentrated and calculated, the old tailor's cousin was not very far away. In other words, his great aunt and his grandfather are cousins. If the old tailor had children, his grandchildren would be almost five generations away.
After the calculation, Ruan Cuizhi laughed dryly and said, "Cousin? You can't really be considered a relative, right? If you are really considered a relative, I never saw you come to serve the old tailor for a day, and you didn't even show up at the funeral..."
The middle-aged man next to the old lady suddenly stood up and said, "It's a little far, but our ancestors are related by blood after all. No matter how far we are, we are much closer than you. This girl has no blood relationship with the old tailor, so the family property should not belong to her!"
Ruan Zhigao had been silent the whole time. After hearing this, he looked at Ruan Xi and asked, "You two have been talking for a long time. From what I heard, you mean that the old tailor gave you everything in the house?"
Ruan Xi looked at Ruan Zhigao and nodded, "Yeah."
Ruan Zhigao looked at Ruan Changsheng and then at Liu Xinghua, and both of them said they didn't know.
Sun Xiaohui's eyes almost popped out when she heard these words in the small kitchen opposite - the old tailor had so much property, not to mention the pots and pans, but also the house, yard, sewing machine and various tools, all of them were given to Ruan Xi? !
People in the countryside are all poor. Compared with other families, the old tailor's family is considered to be wealthy!
Oh my God! Such a huge family business, but the old man actually gave it all to Ruan Xi? !
She had always thought that it was given to the production team!
Being a disciple is such a good deal!
Suddenly she remembered that Ruan Yuejin was also an apprentice of the old tailor. If he had not given up before the New Year and had persisted for another half a year, he would have been able to get a piece of the pie now. Sun Xiaohui suddenly felt a lump in her heart and almost suffocated.
She held her chest for a long time to steady her breathing, and continued to listen to what the people opposite her were saying.
The middle-aged man on the right of the old lady stood up again, looked at Ruan Xi and said, "We don't want to make any more trouble. My mother is old and it's not easy for her to come here. Just give us the key and we'll be done."
Ruan Xi took a deep breath and looked at the mother and her two children in front of him, who could be said to be a group of three scoundrels.
The old tailor left the shop to her because she inherited his craft and could continue his business and solve the problem of making clothes for the people in the mountains. If we give the shop to these people, we will have nothing.
She had no greed for the old tailor's property. After all, she would not stay in this mountain forever. She had only one thought in her mind - since the old tailor had given her the item, she had to protect it well and not let anyone ruin it.
So she said bluntly, "The family property belongs to my master. He gives it to whoever he wants. How dare you, such distant relatives, come here to ask for the family property? My master has been ill for more than half a year. Has any of you come to take care of him for a single day? Did you pay a penny for the funeral? Did you buy the coffin board or make the shroud?!"
Ruan Xi's voice became louder and louder, and in the end he almost scolded.
I didn't expect that a little girl like her could say such a thing. The old lady and her two sons were so angry that they widened their eyes and said, "What kind of nonsense are you talking about?! Family property has always been given to blood relatives. Outsiders can't take it, and they shouldn't take it! If you don't take the key, we'll have to break the lock!"
Ruan Xi stared at the old woman, "Go and try to smash one! This is my home now! If you dare to smash it, I will let Secretary Wang take people to arrest you and take you to the Mass Dictatorship Office! Master handed me the key in front of all the cadres in the village! I don't believe that there is no law in this world, and people like you can do whatever you want!"
The two middle-aged men felt dizzy after hearing what she said, and they all looked at the white-haired old lady.
The old lady was not disappointed. She snorted and said, "Family property should be inherited according to bloodline! Even if the king of heaven comes, it is still the same! You are an outsider, and a girl at that. How dare you take someone else's property!"
Ruan Cuizhi stood next to Ruan Xi and said, "If you don't agree, go find Secretary Wang!"
The old lady was choked. If she wanted to find Secretary Wang for help, she wouldn't have come here on her own. It was because it didn't work to find Secretary Wang first, so they came here themselves, wanting Ruan Xi to hand over the keys directly.
Ruan Zhigao and Ruan Changsheng also reacted at this time, but Ruan Zhigao said nothing. He simply dropped the hoe in his hand, turned around and left, and came back a moment later with a rifle in his hand.
He pointed his gun at the old lady and her two sons and said one word: "Crawl!"
The old lady was a little scared when she saw him holding a rifle, but she still managed to say, "Who are you trying to scare?"
Ruan Zhigao fired a shot at the ground without saying a word.
The shot frightened the old lady so much that she almost fell over, and her two sons were even more frightened. Even Sun Xiaohui, who was sitting opposite, was frightened to the point of shuddering all over and her heart almost jumped out of her chest.
She had always said that the two old people in her family and Ruan Changsheng were bandits, and it turned out they were right!
Ruan Zhigao held the gun and asked again: "Get out or not?"
The old lady was so frightened that she hadn't recovered yet, and her two sons were also frightened.
Seeing that the three of them were silent, Ruan Zhigao raised his gun and suddenly roared: "I ask you whether you want to get out or not?!"
The two middle-aged men were startled. Seeing him raise the gun again, they hurried to help the old lady and said in unison: "Don't worry, uncle. Let's get out of here. Let's get out of here right away."
As he said this, he ran away, crawling with the old lady.
After the three men left, Ruan Zhigao went into the house and hung up his rifle. He came out and sat down at the table and said, "What a bunch of cowards. How dare they come to fight for our family property. They think our Ruan family is easy to bully. They act like old ladies."
Liu Xinghua sat down at the table, "Will they really break the lock?"
Ruan Zhigao said, "I think they are just bluffing. They probably don't dare to do that. If you act a little tough, they will immediately become cowardly. They didn't even come to the old tailor's funeral. What kind of relative are they? They are just greedy for the family property and come here to take a chance."
If they really succeed by relying on their blood relationship, wouldn't that be a huge profit?
Ruan Changsheng stood beside Ruan Xi and asked, "Did you really give them all?"
Ruan Xi looked at him and nodded again: "Yeah."
Ruan Changsheng took a deep breath and said, "I didn't expect this old man to be so loyal."
Ruan Zhigao said again: "The old tailor gave it to you, he must trust you, you must treat it well."
Ruan Xi responded: "Grandpa, I will."
When Ling Yao ran to Ruan's house, some people had already gathered around to watch the fun.
Seeing Ruan Zhigao go to the militia captain's house and get a rifle, and solve the problem simply and roughly without saying a word, he did not go up to find Ruan Xi again, and went home with the other onlookers.
Not long after the crowd dispersed, Ruan Changgui, Ruan Yuejin and Ruan Yuehua arrived home one after another to have lunch.
While sitting at the dinner table, Sun Xiaohui told Ruan Changgui what she had heard before dinner with a very rich expression. After she finished speaking, she stared at Ruan Yuejin, her face livid with regret, and gritted her teeth and said, "How about you just hold on for another half a year?"
Ruan Yuejin is very clear about himself and said directly: "I don't know how to flatter others."
It is not easy to serve someone. You have to worry about everything from eating, drinking, defecating and urinating, and do it for half a year. Wouldn't it drive you crazy? Especially the old tailor, who is mean and speaks harshly, is even more difficult to serve than ordinary old people!
Sun Xiaohui still gritted her teeth: "You are useless!"
Ruan Yuejin: "I am doing quite well in mining now."
Ruan Changgui: “…”
This idiot is really a loser!
Ruan Xiyuan didn't want so many people to know that the old tailor gave his property to her, but because the old tailor's distant relative came to make a fuss, everyone in the village knew about it.
These people were jealous and envious of her. Some also said that she was very scheming and cunning despite her young age - she tricked the old tailor into doing things for her, not only learned the skills from him, but also got all of his belongings in the end.
If this happened to someone else, they would never dare to do this in their dreams.
But Ruan Xi doesn't dream, he just does things.
After being driven away by Ruan Zhigao at gunpoint, the old tailor's distant relative did not dare to break the lock of the tailor shop, and never came to Jinguan Village and Fengming Village again. They live far away, and it is not easy for them to walk over such a long mountain road.
After a month of relaxation, Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi returned to the tailor shop and started taking regular jobs.
Because it was closed for a long time, many people came when it first opened.
Ruan Xi and Ruan Cuizhi worked in the shop during the day, and returned to their own home to eat and sleep at night, instead of sleeping directly in the shop. They always felt that as long as the old tailor was still around, this place should be kept for him.
After working a day at the tailor shop, when Ruan Xi got home for dinner, he handed Ruan Changsheng a note, asking him for a favor. "The shop is short of something. Uncle Wu, can you help me get some in town? I'll pay you."
Ruan Changsheng was willing to do the job of running errands for money, so he took the note and said readily, "Leave it to me."
So he got up early the next day and went to town with the money given by Ruan Xi.
He runs very fast. He can cover a distance that takes an ordinary person two days in about one and a half days.
But he is not made of iron. When he is very tired at night, he will find a place to close his eyes and rest for a while.
He found a haystack to rest that night, and spread a pile of straw on the ground, which made him feel soft when sleeping.
But just as he had pulled the straw and was about to go to sleep, he suddenly heard a throat clearing, followed by a whistle.
So he didn't lie down, but turned his head to look in the direction of the sound, and saw a man sitting next to a pile of corn stalks not far away. In the moonlight, he could see that he was a young man, wearing a tattered military uniform and an old military cap.
Ruan Changsheng ignored him and continued to lie down.
After lying down for a while, he became curious again, so he turned sideways and looked at the young man.
The young man held a cigarette in his hand, put it under his nose and sniffed it, looking like he was enjoying it very much.
He seemed to know that Ruan Changsheng was looking at him. After smelling it, he asked, "Would you like one?"
Cigarettes are rarely seen on the mountain. Whenever people smoke, they smoke from a pipe.
Ruan Changsheng looked at him, "You give cigarettes to everyone you meet? You are so generous."
The young man chuckled and said, "One cent a stick."
Ruan Changsheng looked at him and thought for a while, "Are you... selling?"
The young man whispered, "Would you like one?"
Ruan Changsheng glanced and saw a sack next to him, which seemed to be filled with a lot of things. If he guessed correctly, most of them were things he took to the mountains to sell secretly.
After sweeping, Ruan Changsheng asked, "What else do you have in that sack?"
The young man asked back: "What do you want?"
Ruan Changsheng sat up and cleared his throat, "Do you have any matches? Or give me a cigarette first."
Hearing this, the young man took out a box of matches from the pocket of his military uniform, shook it in his hand and said, "One cent."
Ruan Changsheng lowered his head, took out a penny from his pocket and handed it to him.
Then when the young man reached out to take the penny in his hand, Ruan Changsheng quickly grabbed the young man's wrist, pulled him to the ground, and then pressed him to the ground.
Ruan Changsheng held him down and said with a smile: "You are quite courageous! You are just speculating and profiteering!"
The young man pushed him twice but failed to move him. He became angry and said, "It's none of your business! If you want to buy it, buy it. If not, forget it!"
Ruan Changsheng still smiled, "I can even get praise for taking you to the Mass Dictatorship Office."
The young man was not panicked, and said firmly: "What evidence do you have to accuse me of speculation? As long as the people wearing red armbands haven't caught me, you don't have evidence, so it doesn't count!"
Ruan Changsheng never did such things. He grabbed the young man by the collar of his military uniform and pulled him up, saying, "Let me see what's in your sack."
The young man said angrily: "I'll let you watch a ball!"
Ruan Changsheng snorted and reached out to grab the sack from the corn stalks.
The young man pulled his hand away to grab it, but Ruan Changsheng quickly grabbed his wrist and pushed him to the ground. This time the feeling of pressing was different from before. He was stunned for a moment and immediately let go of the young man.
After a moment's reaction, Ruan Changsheng said: "Female?"
The young man took the opportunity to grab the sack and ran away.
She thought to herself, if I had known this guy was so troublesome, I would not have said that to him. She often disguised herself and came to the mountains to sell things, secretly selling some scattered groceries for a penny or two. She had never met such a troublesome person.
Supplies were extremely scarce in the mountains, and what she did was also for the benefit of the people there, so they were all very polite to her. If you want to satisfy your craving or need something, you can spend a cent or two to buy something from her. If you don't want to buy anything, she won't say anything.
After all, it is not easy for everyone to go out of the mountains. She brings things to the mountains and sells them secretly, so that everyone can meet their daily needs without having to walk so many mountain roads. It can be considered a good deed.
But tonight, he tricked her and pushed her to the ground, wanting to arrest her and report her to the mass dictatorship office!
Bad seed!
When Ruan Changsheng saw her running away with the sack, he didn't even take a rest. He just stood up, patted his butt, and chased after her.
When he caught up to the young man, he reached out and grabbed her shoulders and asked again: "Are you a woman?"
The young man failed to shake his hand off, and slapped his hand hard a few times, saying, "If you don't want it, let it go!"
Ruan Changsheng looked at her face in the moonlight, "No, it doesn't look like her. How can a woman look like this..."
It was so dark that his face almost blended into the night.
The young man rolled his eyes at him and said, "What the hell is that to you!"
Ruan Changsheng laughed, "I don't smoke. Let me see what's in your sack. I'll definitely buy one."
The young man looked at him warily for a moment, "Are you not going to arrest me and take me to the Mass Dictatorship Office?"
Ruan Changsheng said, "I'm just trying to scare you."
The young man looked at him for a while and felt that he was trustworthy, so he squatted on the ground and opened the pocket of the sack.
Seeing her like this, Ruan Changsheng also squatted down, took out a flashlight from his schoolbag, turned on the light and shone it into the sack.
The young man's sack was indeed a grocery bag. There was almost everything in it, including a half-opened pack of cigarettes, fruit candies wrapped in colorful candy wrappers, buttons, rubber bands, hemp ropes, matches, thimbles, awls, snaps, zippers, all kinds of snacks, and even socks and rat poison!
Ruan Changsheng finally opened his eyes. He used his hands to dig at it with a flashlight and clicked his tongue.
The young man was a little impatient seeing him fussing for so long, so he asked, "What do you want?"
Ruan Changsheng did not answer but asked: "Where did you get these things?"
The young man looked at him and pulled the sack directly, "Why do you care where I came from? Do you want it or not? If not, I'm leaving."
Ruan Changsheng grabbed the sack and said, "Yes, yes, yes, yes."
After that, he took out two different colored fruit candies from the sack and asked, "How much is one?"
The young man held up a finger, "Two for a penny."
So Ruan Changsheng took out the penny and put it in her hand.
The young man packed the money and put the sack away. Without saying anything else to him, he threw the sack over his shoulder, hung it on his back, and walked away.
Ruan Changsheng did not rest either. He continued to follow her, walking beside her and talking to her: "It is fate that we met. What's your name? Which team are you from? Let's be friends."
The young man said without even turning his head: "I don't want to be friends with you."
Ruan Changsheng said: "Actually, I'm a nice person. I was just teasing you just now."
The young man turned around and looked at him. Seeing that he looked good, he asked, "Which brigade are you from?"
Ruan Changsheng said truthfully: "I am from the Fengyan Brigade, which is quite far from here."
After all, it took him a whole day to get here, and it was already late at night.
Seeing that the young man didn't say anything, he asked again: "What about you?"
The young man shook his head and continued walking forward, "I won't tell you!"
Ruan Changsheng: “…”
If she doesn't tell him, he will follow her. When she walks, he follows her. When she stops to rest, he will also stop to rest.
The young woman thought that Ruan Changsheng was planning to take her sack, so when she couldn't hold on any longer and needed to rest, she would dig a hole in the haystack, crawl in, hold the sack in her arms, and hide inside the haystack.
Ruan Changsheng just slept next to the hole she had dug.
The next morning, he woke up immediately when he heard any movement in the cave.
He watched the young woman crawl out of the cave, her face dirty and covered in dust, not looking like a girl at all. Moreover, she didn't have her hair in a braid, all her hair was hidden under her military cap, and her military uniform was men's, so she looked like a man!
The two looked at each other for a moment, and Ruan Changsheng came back to his senses. He drooped his eyelids and yawned, "Are you awake?"
The young man ignored him, continued to climb out of the hole, threw the sack over his shoulder and walked away.
Ruan Changsheng got up and followed her.
After only two steps, the young man suddenly stopped and asked him: "What do you want to do?"
Ruan Changsheng still said: "Make friends."
The young man looked at his face and thought for a moment, then said, "How about this, I'm tired and don't want to walk anymore. If you can carry me to town, I will be your friend. What do you think?"
Ruan Changsheng immediately bent down in front of her, patted his butt and said, "Come up!"
The young man was not polite, he just treated him like a horse, jumped on him like a monkey, and said, "Go!"
Ruan Changsheng straightened up and walked forward, and asked again: "Are you a man or a woman?" You really can't tell that she is a woman!
The young man put the sack on his back and rode him like a horse instead of lying on him. He said, "Why do you care if I am a man or a woman? You want to make friends with me, but you just want to know where I got these things. Do you also want to speculate?"
Ruan Changsheng said, "Hey!" "Not stupid!"
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