In April, the frost in the ground began to thaw, and the villagers gradually arranged strong laborers to start working. They first had to dig up the soil in the ground with a pitchfork, and then slowly break up the soil with a hoe. In this way, when planting crops, they could better absorb the nutrients in the ground and the wheat would be easier to survive.
In the midst of this busyness, a guest came to Shen Anning's house, a guest she had never expected.
After breakfast that day, Shen Anchen took his tools and went to work. He had almost finished the housework. Soldiers may have a bit of obsessive-compulsive disorder and can't sit still at all. Shen Anning thought that she could also let her second brother do some work in the fields to earn some money. Anyway, it would all be counted on her head, so some people would not be jealous of them because they were living too well.
Shen Anchen had just started working and his younger brother and sister were not yet at school. Shen Anning was taking them to change their sheets and quilt covers. The weather had been good in recent days and it was spring, so they still had to pay attention to hygiene.
So when Aunt Dashuan brought people to the door, everyone was a little surprised.
"An Ning, An Ning, are you at home? Relatives are coming to your house. They arrived at the village entrance early in the morning..." Aunt Dashuan's unique loud voice could be heard by Shen An Ning from a distance.
As soon as she walked into the yard, Ana Shen saw Aunt Dashuan with a woman in a headscarf. She couldn't see her face clearly at first glance, so she didn't know who she was.
"An Ning, just come out. Your relative aunt brought it to you. I still have to go and give your uncle Dashuan breakfast."
"Hey, Auntie, take care. You've worked hard."
When she saw the woman taking off her headscarf and revealing her face, Shen Anning was stunned and stood there.
“Shen Anning, long time no see.”
Seeing Lin Yi again, Shen An Ning didn't know how to describe her feelings. The person she hadn't seen for three years was wearing the homespun cloth unique to the Northeast and a headscarf, and seemed to have merged with everything around her.
"Sit inside first." Even though Shen An Ning had no good feelings towards the Lin family, she didn't know what it meant to let people stand in the yard. After thinking about it, she let Lin Yi into the east wing.
The two of them sat facing each other on the kang, and the silence was not broken until Shen Anxuan carried Xixi into the room.
"Sister, my brother and I are going to school. Xixi didn't eat much breakfast just now, and she says she's hungry now. Do you want to get her a biscuit?" Shen Anxuan said as he and Shen Zixi looked at Shen Anning's face very carefully, because Shen Anning was very strict about snacks on weekdays, especially for Xixi. She was afraid of tooth decay and rarely gave her snacks as long as she got enough nutrition.
"Sister Lin Yi." Shen Anxuan was very surprised when she saw who was sitting opposite her sister, but because of the upbringing she had received since childhood, she still opened her mouth and called out.
"An Xuan has grown so much. I haven't seen you for a long time. You've grown taller and more beautiful."
A few years ago, when Lin Yi and Shen An Ning were still good friends, she was very nice to the Shen twins. Whenever she met them, she would buy them food and drinks, spending her own pocket money and never feeling sorry.
So Shen Anning didn't stop her sister.
"Sister Lin Yi, long time no see. I still have to go to school and I'm almost late..."
"It's okay, go quickly, school is important."
Watching Shen Anxuan go out, Lin Yi looked at the little girl in Shen Anning’s arms, “Is this the child of your second brother’s family?”
"Lin Yi, it's all over."
Lin Yi was stunned for a moment, then lowered her head and smiled bitterly.
The Lin family is now in decline, and everyone pushes down when the wall falls. Although what the Lin family did to the Shen family in the past had nothing to do with her, the two families are ultimately in an antagonistic relationship. The Lin family broke their promise first, and it is ultimately their fault that the Shen family has fallen into this situation today.
"An Ning, do you know? Every bad guy will be punished. In the past, my grandfather did something that let your family down in order to get closer to the Lin family. Now, three years have passed, and the Lin family is also in trouble." Lin Yi spoke calmly about the Lin family's experience, like an outsider. Shen An Ning saw an indifferent look on her face.
"So you are also in Fangshan Town now?"
"No, I'm in the neighboring town of Jiangtun. I saw you and your brother at the market a few days ago. After asking around, I found out you were working in the countryside here."
Looking at Lin Yi, who was dressed differently from herself, Shen Anning asked, "You, how are you doing?"
"Just live a miserable life. After the Lin family was in trouble, I was the first person to be abandoned. In order to have a better life, they betrothed me to the distant nephew of the director of the Revolutionary Committee."
Shen An Ning didn't know how to comfort her, nor did she want to comfort her. She knew that what happened to the Shen family was not done by Lin Yi. She was at most a bystander and did not stand up to speak for her sister. But this was a matter between two families after all. Lin Yi enjoyed everything the Lin family provided her, and she should also bear everything after the Lin family's ruin.
Lin Yi looked at her former good friend, but she didn't say what was in her heart. Her family members were now undergoing forced labor in the cowshed, and she was married to a man who was nearly ten years older than her.
When she saw Shen Anchen in the crowd a few days ago, she seemed to see redemption. She asked many people before inquiring about Shen Anning's situation. Finally, today, she couldn't wait to go to her house. On the one hand, she hoped to see her, and on the other hand, she still had a glimmer of hope for the future. After all, Shen Anchen was a soldier, and she was married but didn't get a marriage certificate...
Now everything is impossible, and everything is just her imagination.
Shen An Ning was not a fool. Lin Yi's behavior was too abnormal, and Shen An Ning had guessed what her purpose was. So she secretly scratched the back of Shen Zixi's hand a few times. This was their usual signal. They were afraid that Shen Zixi would forget to call Shen Anchen by mistake outside, so they agreed on this action.
The little girl who received the signal moved her whole body, and was in a state of great excitement. She was suppressed by her aunt for so long and could not speak, so she was a little bit holding back.
"Auntie, when will Daddy come back? I got up late this morning and didn't see Daddy. Where did he go?"
Lin Yi looked at Shen Zixi in disbelief. Only then did she realize that the little girl's appearance did resemble Shen Anchen.
Shen Anning pinched the little guy's nose with amusement, "Your dad went to earn you something delicious, you didn't eat well this morning, don't do that next time, hear me, you're relying on your aunt to feel sorry for you, right? You always let your aunt talk, you clever ghost."
Shen Anning opened the kang cabinet and took out half a bag of trough cakes, "Lin Yi, have some. There's nothing else to treat you at home."
In the end, Lin Yi left Wangtu Village without eating anything or drinking a sip of water. When she came, she was carrying a cloth bag containing two pairs of shoes, but she did not give them away in the end.
Shen An Ning looked at her back as she walked away. If the Lin family had not taken advantage of her misfortune, they would still be good friends, and the girl's secret love might have come true, but now everything is different.
Sometimes not saying it out loud is the ultimate respect for each other.
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