Chapter 41
Li Zhongxia reached back and touched the child's furry little head. The child saw that his father did not call him a fool, but touched him affectionately, so he looked up and smiled at him happily. I forgot about the fact that I broke my leg and couldn't walk.
"Does Leilei know what courage is?"
"...I'm just brave." After thinking for a moment, he added: "I dare to do anything."
Gu Yan slapped his forehead with his hand, what is this, where did he hear this out of context? Li Zhongxia smiled and rubbed the brat's head until it became even hairier.
"Being brave means not fearing danger and difficulties, and not flinching in the face of difficulties and obstacles. What are you doing today? You disregarded your own safety and even your life because of a kid's ridicule. Do you think this is bravery?"
The little guy was stumped by the question. He tilted his head for a long time without saying anything. My mother told me to have my own opinions and not be influenced by others. But teachers also teach children to be brave. Oh, Dad said, this is not bravery. So what do you call this?
The couple didn't rush him. Gu Yan took out the biscuits he had brought and handed them to the man, and the two of them drank some cold water.
Leilei was also a little hungry. Seeing his mother eating, he wanted to eat but was a little afraid. He did something wrong today, but he couldn't figure out exactly what he did wrong. After hesitating for a while, he asked his mother pitifully.
"Mom, I'm hungry too. Can you give me one piece?" He said this but quickly made a reservation for fear that she would not agree. "I'll think while I eat, and maybe after I'm done I'll realize where I went wrong."
"Sure. A full stomach gives your brain more energy. Lei Lei might figure it out right away."
Half a pound of biscuits was eaten up in a short while. The two adults clapped their hands, and Gu Yan took a few gulps of water from the kettle. It's so hot today, I'm sweating like I'm in a sauna.
Although the road from the commune to the county town was a dirt road, it was paved with a mixture of compacted white soil and iron gangue. The road surface was also wide, and the speed of the horse-drawn carriages began to increase.
Li Zhongxia sat on the front shaft of the cart. Seeing that it was too sunny, his wife took a bed sheet to provide shade for the child. Pointing to his back, he said, "Lean on me. You're too tired."
She leaned against the man and sighed as she looked at the little guy sitting steadily. "This little bastard is really troublesome. It is much harder to raise than big and small flowers."
Li Zhongxia patted her on the backhand: "It's good for boys to be curious. There's nothing wrong with wanting to be a brave man. Leilei is still young, and many things are difficult to teach him. Take your time."
Gu Yan nodded in agreement: "If you explain it in detail, he won't understand. If you explain it in detail, he won't take it seriously. He knows it now, but he will do it again next time. If someone slaps him, he will forget everything."
"No, it's the teachers who taught the kids to be brave. They laughed at me and called me a coward, but I don't want to be a coward."
You actually refute it? Gu Yan loosened his grip, and the bed sheet fell on him, wrapping up the child's small body. The little fellow reached up and pushed, and she had quickly lifted it up again.
"So what do you think is a coward?" Your father probably thinks of you as his eldest son and thinks you can understand reason. Let me just talk about this little question, I hope you can understand. Don't do stupid things just because of what others say.
"…A coward is someone who doesn't dare to do things that others dare to do."
"Wrong. Sister Dahua dares to climb a tree several meters high to pick locust flowers, but Sister Xiaohua doesn't dare. You and Sister Xiaoya don't dare either. Does that make you a coward?" Seeing that her son still didn't understand, she changed another example.
"You dare to catch chickens in the chicken coop and help your sister pluck their feathers. But your sister Niuniu doesn't dare to do this. Is your sister Niuniu a coward?"
"No. My sister is still young. She will dare to do it when she grows up." The little girl said this and realized where she was wrong. Those high jumpers are bigger than him, so they must be stronger than him!
"Mom, I was wrong. When I grow up, I will compete with them."
Gu Yan gritted his teeth and Li Zhongxia smiled. I'm so angry at this stubborn little brat.
"What are you competing for? Who dares to jump from a higher place?" The brat actually nodded. Gu Yan gritted his teeth and said, "What if both of you fall to your death?"
"Ah?" This time the little guy was startled, covering his mouth and widening his eyes.
"Next time someone wants to compete with you in a diving pool, will you jump in? If you don't jump, you're a coward. Will you jump or not?"
"I won't jump. I will drown if I jump into the water." The brat knew what drowning was. Of course, it was also the result of Gu Yan's experiment with the big basin.
"So, bravery is never gained through meaningless competitions, nor is it brave just because others tell you that you are brave. If you can get up on your own after falling down, that is bravery. If you protect your sister and help her take away the caterpillar that she is afraid of, that is also very brave. As you grow up, you will encounter many difficulties on the road, and if you can overcome them one by one, that is also a very brave performance."
"Okay, I understand." The little guy nodded, thought for a moment and said, "I won't listen to them next time. If I don't know what to do, I'll ask my sister."
"You can think about it yourself first, and then ask if you really don't understand. Also, don't do dangerous things because the consequences are serious. Sometimes you can't bear it. For example, if it was higher this time, you jumped down and died. There would be no chance to do it again."
"Mom, I know."
Gu Yan looked up at the sky and said to herself, "Will a beating help them remember?" The parenting books she read were all imported from foreign countries in later generations. Perhaps they were not suitable for this era?
"It's quite clear, don't worry. Leilei is not the kind of naughty kid who would tear off the tiles. He will understand things soon if he is taught slowly."
"Mom, please don't hit me. Leilei will be good." The little guy looked up at her and said, "I remember. Don't do anything dangerous."
Well, it’s not all bad. In fact, Gu Yan was just talking and didn't really want to do anything. Although this brat loves to be encouraged by outsiders, how could she bring herself to do that to the soft and adorable little dumpling.
I arrived at the hospital around 3:00 p.m. and went straight to see the doctor with the letter of introduction. After examination, it was diagnosed as a fracture. When the bone was adjusted, the little brat cried in pain and hugged Gu Yan with tears and snot all over her clothes.
Li Zhongxia cooperated with the doctor and held the child down to prevent him from moving, so as to prevent the repositioned bones from being dislocated again. When everything was over, he was covered in sweat.
The two adults comforted the child again, and when the little guy stopped crying, Li Zhongxia went to the cafeteria to get food, while Gu Yan held him in the corridor and waited.
"There's no bone soup. But there happens to be mutton offal today, so I ordered two servings. There are also two steamed buns, let's eat them and then go back. I'll feed Leilei, you eat first."
Gu Yan pushed his hand away and pointed to the bench under his buttocks. "Just put it here. I'll hold him and we'll eat together."
Li Zhongxia didn't listen to her this time. He reached out and took the child from her arms and put him next to her. "I'll feed him, you eat quickly. It's been so long since this morning, and he's only had a few biscuits to eat, so he must be hungry."
Okay, Gu Yan smiled and picked up the steamed bun made of three-grain flour and ate it with mutton offal. Since she came here, she has become a mother. I have become accustomed to putting my children first in everything. Apart from his two daughters, he was the first person who cared about her and even cared about small matters like whether she ate first or later.
The carriage bumped along the way and arrived home at dusk. After settling the child, Gu Yanshui didn't even have time to drink a sip before he went to catch a chicken and kill it to feed the child. I couldn’t buy pork bones in the county town, but chicken should be fine.
"Where are you going?"
“Kill the chicken.”
Li Zhongxia reached out and took the knife from her hand. "You forgot that you are married. Why do you want to do everything by yourself? Wife, you make me feel insignificant. I protest."
"Hehe..." The woman smiled gently and stood on tiptoe to kiss him. "Hurry up and work. If you want to show your presence, you have to work harder, otherwise no one will see you."
"Yes, I'll be there right away."
The man turned around and picked up the kitchen knife to catch the chicken, and Gu Yan returned to the kitchen to boil water. In less than an hour, the chicken was washed, peeled, and put into the pot, then stewed with simple onion, ginger, and salt. Soon, the aroma of meat filled the air, and the children from the neighborhood were attracted and went back home. I thought the fragrance came from my own home.
The brat with a broken leg ate a big chicken drumstick for dinner and half a bowl of chicken soup with rice. The aroma made the children in the yard salivate with greed. Seeing that it was time to eat, several children stood at the door of the main room and sipped their saliva.
Gu Yan's mother and daughter usually received financial support, giving each child a little, and giving the rest to the neighbors in the yard.
"Oh, I'm so sorry. I can't eat chicken once a year, save it for Leilei to replenish his body. It takes a hundred days to heal a broken bone, so he needs to eat something good to nourish himself."
Wang Xiaomai from the east room pulled her son back and declined with a smile. Neighbors get along well with each other on a daily basis and will give each other anything new. But this thing is too valuable, and I won’t be able to give anything in return if I accept it.
"Take it. It's not much. Share it with the children. In this hot summer, nothing can be stored. Let the children satisfy their cravings."
"Okay, thank you. The naughty kids ate your chickens, let them go and collect grass for your pigs." You don't lack eggs either. My family doesn't feed pigs, so let them do this for you.
"Okay, I'll cut grass for Auntie's pigs." If there's meat to eat, what's the big deal about working?
"Well, then, auntie thanks you guys."
After putting the empty pot in the kitchen, Gu Yan sat down at the table and found that chicken was now placed in his bowl, which originally contained only rice. Turning his head to glance at Li Zhongxia, the man smiled and picked up a water radish with chopsticks. Point to the bowl and tell her to eat quickly.
It was as if she was back in her childhood, when she practiced martial arts and expended all her energy, and every time she ate, the adults would put the delicious food into her bowl.
She smiled back at him without any hesitation and started eating with the bowl in hand. Chicken soup with rice, you know what, it tastes really good for someone who hasn’t eaten meat for a long time.
That night, Gu Yan carried Niu Niu to the ear room. There is an old man in the main room who cannot take care of himself, and now there is Lei Lei who cannot move. We can’t leave a little girl like Niu Niu with the children. Otherwise, even if each of them drinks water once, the two grown girls would have to make several trips.
"Why don't you let Xiaoya and Leilei come with me to sleep over there? Now that we don't have a fire, there's plenty of room on the kang."
"Mom, do you want to take us all with you?" Xiaohua pouted and smiled at her. "Xiaoya and Leilei never get up at night. They almost always sleep until dawn. Why are you worrying about them? Niuniu is also very well behaved. Actually, I can take care of her. I'll make milk for her at night."
"No, if a child doesn't sleep well, he won't grow tall. I'll take care of Niuniu, you pay more attention to Leilei. If he feels uncomfortable or has any problems, get up and call me."
After the matter was agreed upon, Li Zhongxia was asked to look after the children's homework while she secretly went to feed the pigs with Niuniu in her arms. The little guy is still young and can't speak very well. Children have no memory before the age of five. If you coax her to play aside, the secret will not be leaked.
I came back and secretly listened for a while in the main room, and found that the man was actually talking about equations. This is next year's course, you are just forcing things. Through the window glass, Xiaohua was sitting next to her father, listening attentively. Well, this seedling is willing to let you pull it out, and maybe it asks for it on its own initiative. As long as you are happy.
After adjusting the coal and smothering the fire, she carried Niuniu back to the ear room. I poured water for the little girl to take a bath. The little girl loved water very much and was so happy that she sat in the basin and didn't want to get out. She was having a lot of fun playing with her little duck.
"Hey, honey, can we come out? Your skin will get wrinkled if you keep soaking in it."
"No."
"Then stand up and let mom give you some hot water."
When Li Zhongxia came in, the mother and daughter were seen, one in the water and the other squatting beside with a worried look on her face. The woman heard the noise behind her and turned around to pull him.
"Quick, quick, find a way to get the treasure out. I'll go make the bed."
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