Cheng Yaoyao ran to the door and opened it, then pulled out the bolt with great effort. Suddenly, a hand reached out from behind him, took the bolt steadily and placed it against the door.
Cheng Yaoyao didn't think much and opened the door.
"Sister Yaoyao!" Two little baby voices rang out at the same time, and then they gasped in unison as if frightened, staring at the back of Cheng Yaoyao in horror.
Cheng Yaoyao didn't think much about it and said with a smile: "Mingming, Goudan, why did you come so early today?"
Mingming's face turned pale. She stared at Xie San, who had a cold face behind Cheng Yaoyao, and was about to cry: "I... I..."
Xie San: “…”
Cheng Yaoyao turned to Xie San and said with a smile, "These are Goudan and Mingming. They are helping me to cut grass for the pigs."
"Them?" The murderous aura around Xie San faded away, and a hint of weirdness appeared on his expression.
"Yes!" Cheng Yaoyao smiled at Mingming and said, "Goudan, Mingming, this is Third Brother Xie, you know him, right?"
Xie San nodded to the two children and turned back to the house. Seeing Xie San's tall figure disappear at the door, the two children relaxed and said to Cheng Yaoyao happily: "Let's go to the woods to find cicadas. There are especially many in the morning! Do you want to come?"
Cheng Yaoyao said, "I have something to do. I'll come find you guys after lunch."
"Okay then." Gou'er and Mingming picked up Cheng Yaoyao's basket and said, "I'll help you get the pig grass."
Cheng Yaoyao said: "Wait for me!"
Cheng Yaoyao ran into the kitchen, took out the stir-fried cicada monkeys and dried waxberries that he had made yesterday, and handed them to Gou'er: "This is the cicada monkeys you caught yesterday. I fried them. You can take them and share them with your friends. This is the dried waxberries."
"Wow!" Goudan's eyes lit up and he could smell the aroma of oil through the lunch box.
Mingming was a little embarrassed: "Mom said I can't eat other people's things."
"These are the cicada monkeys you caught together. They don't belong to others." Cheng Yaoyao said with a smile, "You also helped me to cut pigweed and pick cicadas, right?"
"Sister Yaoyao is right!" Goudan unconditionally supported what Cheng Yaoyao said, and pulled Mingming, who couldn't wait to go eat with everyone, "Sister Yaoyao, let's go, come early this afternoon!"
Xie San changed into work clothes and came out, looking at Cheng Yaoyao with a strange expression: "Is this your...man?"
"Yes!" Cheng Yaoyao put his hands on his waist, looking very proud, "They helped me pick pigweed, catch cicadas, and even caught a lot of cicada monkeys!"
Xie San resisted the urge to pinch her cheek and picked up a basket: "Let's go."
Cheng Yaoyao was surprised: "Where are you going?"
Xie San grabbed her wrist and pushed the door open without questioning: "Catch cicadas and pick up cicadas and monkeys."
It was still early in the morning, the sun had not yet fully risen, the air on the mountain was cool and fragrant, a deep breath was filled with the sweet scent of gardenia. Cheng Yaoyao followed Xie San up the hillside, humming and groaning in displeasure.
Even though he had told Goudan and the others that they would help him, Xie San still insisted on dragging her out.
The two of them walked for a short while before they came to a forest. The trees were tall and straight, and the forest was extremely cool. The morning light fell into the forest like strands of silk, as moving as a Nordic oil painting.
"Are there any cicada monkeys here?" Cheng Yaoyao walked under a Pistacia tree and took a closer look. There were a few empty cicadas stuck to the trunk, but more cicadas were higher up. "Too high! I can't reach them!"
Xie San was not in a hurry to pick the cicadas. Instead, he took out a roll of tape from the basket and wrapped it around the tree.
Cheng Yaoyao came over curiously. The tape was clearly used, dirty and covered with sawdust, and no longer sticky. Xie San wrapped the tape around the tree trunk about a meter above the ground and tied a knot.
Cheng Yaoyao asked curiously, "What are you doing?"
Xie San quickly wrapped around the trees one by one, "Wrap them with tape so the cicada monkeys can't climb up. You can just come and pick the cicadas tomorrow."
"That's a good idea!" Cheng Yaoyao looked at Xie San in admiration, "You're really smart!"
Cheng Yaoyao took the tape and entangled with Xie San on the tree trunks. Cicada monkeys usually crawl out of the ground and climb up the tree trunks at night. When the cicada monkeys encounter the smooth tape, they have no choice but to stay below the tape and shed their shells. When they come back the next morning, they only need to pick up cicadas.
Otherwise, cicadas will try to climb as high as possible on the tree trunks. If children want to pick up cicadas, they either have to climb trees or make homemade tools to hook the cicadas down. This is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and it is easy to break the cicadas and make them worthless.
Seeing that Xie San was doing it very well, Cheng Yaoyao asked curiously, "Did you always pick up cicadas and sell them for money before?"
"I've done everything to make money." Xie San answered casually with tape tangled in his hands.
Xie San answered calmly, but Cheng Yaoyao felt sad. What kind of life did Xie San lead from childhood to adulthood?
Cheng Yaoyao leaned towards Xie San and whispered, "I picked up a lot of cicadas. I can sell them for money and buy you some meat."
Xie San's lips curved coldly and he said, "Okay. When I come back from driving school, I'll help you pick them up every day."
After a pause, he added, "I'll help you with the work, too."
"The children are helping me." Cheng Yaoyao picked up the cicadas that were within reach from the tree trunks and placed them carefully in the box.
A gaze that was hard to ignore fell on his face. Cheng Yaoyao looked up and met Xie San's narrow dark eyes. Xie San had no expression on his face, but Cheng Yaoyao could see that he was unhappy.
Cheng Yaoyao deliberately asked: "What are you doing? Staring at me?"
"..." Xie San turned around, reached out, picked the cicada from high on the tree trunk, and walked to another tree to look for cicadas.
Cheng Yaoyao bit his lip, but couldn't help laughing after a long while. He scratched his cheek with a slender finger and said, "You are jealous of a child. Shame on you."
"..." Xie San looked around and saw that there was no one around. He suddenly walked over and pulled Cheng Yaoyao into his arms.
He was tall, with strong arms, and he squeezed Cheng Yaoyao's slender waist so hard that she leaned back softly.
Cheng Yaoyao's eyes trembled slightly, her cheeks flushed, and she stared at Xie San without saying anything. Xie San looked deeply at her rosy lips and said seriously: "Wait for me. When I come back, I will help you with the work."
"I will make money and I won't let you suffer at all."
"I will love you."
One sentence after another, the voice as hard as metal became lower and lower, and the last sentence was spoken right next to Cheng Yaoyao's ear. His breath sprayed hotly on Cheng Yaoyao's earlobe, and the small earlobe like white jade turned pink little by little under his gaze, looking very delicious, making people want to put it in their mouths and taste it.
Cheng Yaoyao's legs felt weak. He grabbed Xie San's collar and whispered, "Those are just kids..."
"Even children are not allowed to do that." Xie San said without hesitation.
Cheng Yaoyao saw Xie San's Adam's apple move and his breathing became rapid.
Little Lotus Leaf started to act up again. Cheng Yaoyao thought, why else would she want Xie San to kiss her so much?
But in the end, Xie San didn't touch her.
Xie Sangan was quick and efficient at all tasks. In a short while, he had picked up a box full of cicadas and started catching cicada monkeys.
The best time to catch cicada monkeys is probably at night, but the sunlight doesn’t penetrate into this woods, and the cicada monkeys, without sunlight, scramble to burrow into the ground.
There are many small pores on the ground around the tree roots, some large and some small. Each cicada will dig several holes, and Xie San is very experienced and his digging is accurate.
Cheng Yaoyao looked at the cicada monkeys with tears in her eyes. She actually didn't want any cicada monkeys at all! But seeing that Xie San was not conspicuous, but his eyes inadvertently revealed a trace of treasure, she had no choice but to generously give him a big compliment and a sweet smile.
Xie San was even more motivated after receiving the encouragement. He was not satisfied with just catching a basket of cicada monkeys and wanted to continue digging.
Cheng Yaoyao said quickly: "I haven't eaten mushrooms for a long time. I want to eat mushrooms."
"Okay." Xie San naturally said nothing, and then he covered the basket containing the cicada monkeys. "There are chicken mushrooms in the area near the inside. I'll pick some."
Cheng Yaoyao wanted to follow, but Xie San said, "There are a lot of mosquitoes in there. You wait here, be good, and don't run around. Call me if you need anything."
"I won't run around. This is not my first time picking mushrooms!" Cheng Yaoyao raised his chin.
Xie San looked at her with distrust, then picked up the basket and walked deeper into the woods.
Cheng Yaoyao wandered alone in the woods, looking for cicadas on tree trunks. No one had ever picked cicadas in this area, so Cheng Yaoyao picked up a few by himself. After working like this for a day, he could earn about a dollar, which was much more than working as a clerk.
Cheng Yaoyao was looking for it when he suddenly heard a voice talking outside the woods. It sounded like a man and a woman.
"Ayan, wait for me, I can't walk anymore..."
Four words emerged in Cheng Yaoyao's mind: Enemies often meet on a narrow road.
Cheng Nonuo still spoke in that timid tone, and her voice was a little hoarse for some reason, as if she hadn't had a drink of water for a long time, which sounded very discordant.
Shen Yan obviously thought so too, and said impatiently: "There were so many people in the field just now, and you insisted on calling me out. If others saw us, they would think something happened to us!"
Cheng Nonuo said quietly, "Ayan, you have been avoiding me since we moved to the dormitory. Do you not want me anymore? Or... are you still angry with me?"
Xie San was silent for a while, then said, "Don't think too much. How does the new family you moved into treat you?"
"Ayan, I really didn't mean it that day. I scratched you because I was so sad." Cheng Nonuo ignored Shen Yan's question and explained in a sad tone, "I have always regretted it. Looking at the wound on your face, I felt more pain than if I was injured myself..."
"No." Shen Yan's tone was a little shaky, and he said contradictory, "I think you have changed a lot."
"Do you think I've become ugly?" Cheng Nonuo's tone suddenly became a little excited.
"No." Shen Yan said hurriedly, "It's your personality. You used to be the most gentle and kind, but now... Nuonuo, don't be like this!"
There was a sound of fabric rubbing against each other, and when Shen Yan spoke again, his tone was breathless and much softer: "Don't be like this... I want to make things clear to you..."
"Ayan, I'm already yours." Cheng Nonuo's voice was so soft that it seemed like water could drip out of it, which was very inconsistent with her rough tone: "We..."
With a crack, the branches under my feet were broken, and the sound was particularly harsh in the woods.
"Who?!" The pair of wild geese were so frightened that they separated immediately. Shen Yan suppressed his panic and shouted, "Come out!"
Cheng Yaoyao hesitated for a moment, and Shen Yan had already rushed in, and saw Cheng Yaoyao standing under the tree at a glance. She was wearing pink clothes, with snow-white skin and red lips, standing under the tree, and the light and shadow fell on the ends of her hair, as if she was coated with a layer of glaze.
The angry look on Shen Yan's face suddenly turned into a look of bewilderment. He stammered, "Yaoyao? Why...why are you here?"
"Sister?!" Cheng Nuonuo also ran over and looked at her in panic.
Cheng Yaoyao hid the box of cicadas behind his back and looked at them with disdain, raising his eyebrows: "Why can't I be here?"
"Sister, you...you heard everything?" Cheng Nonuo seemed like she was about to cry.
Cheng Yaoyao glanced at Cheng Nonuo's face and was stunned. Cheng Nonuo's originally fair face seemed to be dried by the wind. Although it had not completely faded, it had become visibly rough and dark yellow, and her eyes had also become dim.
Cheng Nonuo is aware of the changes in her appearance and is now extremely sensitive to other people's gazes. Cheng Yaoyao's surprise is like a whip that lashes her self-esteem.
Shen Yan's face also looked quite ugly.
Especially when he saw Cheng Yaoyao and Cheng Nuonuo standing face to face, one was as bright as a pearl, while the other looked skinny and small in comparison, the feeling of vaguely missing something made Shen Yan more and more irritated.
Cheng Nuonuo could hardly keep her innocent look on her face, and said to Cheng Yaoyao pitifully, "Sister Yaoyao, this is all my fault. It has nothing to do with A-Yan. Please don't tell anyone else."
"I'm not as boring as you." Cheng Yaoyao said coldly.
Shen Yan said: "Yaoyao won't tell anyone else. Let's go."
Cheng Nonuo refused. Cheng Yaoyao was always irritable and frivolous, and couldn't keep any secrets. Since Cheng Yaoyao had discovered it, it would be better to add fuel to the fire and make it known to everyone... Thinking of this, Cheng Nonuo simply reached out to pull Cheng Yaoyao's hand: "Sister Yaoyao, you..."
"Let me go!" Cheng Yaoyao still remembered the day she caught Zhang Xiaofeng and Shen Yan. The scar on Shen Yan's face was still there!
The two of them were pulling and tugging at each other. Shen Yan had not expected this to happen. Before he could stop them, a deep voice suddenly came: "Stop!"
Xie San threw the basket away, strode over with a sullen face, and protected Cheng Yaoyao behind him.
The young man in the torn coat was tall and strong, with sinister eyes. Cheng Nonuo was so scared that she took a step back subconsciously, biting her lip and said pitifully, "I... I just want to talk to my sister."
Xie San didn't even look at her, but turned around to look at Cheng Yaoyao with concern.
"I'm fine." Cheng Yaoyao shook his head.
Cheng Yaoyao's tone was coquettish, which was what Shen Yan was most familiar with, the way she acted coquettishly to people close to her. He immediately became jealous and asked loudly: "Yaoyao, why are you staying with this black five categories of the landlord's family?"
Xie San's muscles tensed and he looked at Shen Yan with sharp eyes, like a cheetah ready to attack.
Cheng Yaoyao stood in front of him and raised the corner of his lips to Shen Yan sarcastically: "I want to ask you first, what are you and Cheng Nonuo doing here?"
"..." Shen Yan was touched in the sore spot, blushing and unable to speak. It turned out that Cheng Yaoyao heard everything just now...
Cheng Yaoyao rolled his eyes at him and said to Xie San, "Brother Xie San, carry the things and let's go home."
Xie San picked up the basket and walked out with Cheng Yaoyao. When they passed by Shen Yan, Shen Yan deliberately stood at the exit without moving, looking at Xie San provocatively.
He looked at Xie San's ragged clothes and thought of his identity as a bastard, and couldn't help but feel particularly angry. Just based on him, is he worthy of being by Cheng Yaoyao's side?
Xie San walked towards him expressionlessly, and his tall and strong shoulders pushed him away. Shen Yan felt as if he had been hit by a truck, half of his shoulder was numb, and he staggered back several steps.
Cheng Nonuo hurriedly supported him: "Ayan, are you okay?"
Shen Yan pushed Cheng Nuonuo's hand away and cursed angrily, "Barbarian! Yaoyao, don't get too close to this kind of person! He is a member of the five black categories, a bastard! Think about your own identity!"
Cheng Yaoyao and Xie San walked away shoulder to shoulder without looking back.
On the way back, Cheng Yaoyao chattered to Xie San: "They are so annoying, they make a lot of noise, don't listen to their barking."
Then he asked, "What kind of fungus did you find? Show me."
Xie San remained silent throughout, just turning his head to face Cheng Yaoyao.
When they walked to the alley, they met other people going to work. Xie San took the initiative to distance himself from Cheng Yaoyao. The two walked one in front and one behind, looking like they had nothing to do with each other.
Many people greeted Cheng Yaoyao. Cheng Yaoyao slowed down and said a few words to them. When he looked forward again, Xie San had disappeared.
Cheng Yaoyao's smile froze on his lips.
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