The evening breeze in the countryside carried the scent of dried grass. Scorching clouds rolled in from the horizon, dyeing the sky a light golden red and covering everything in the courtyard with a layer of soft gauze.
Xie Zhao had a broad back and the back of his neck was tanned to a wheat color. Despite his large stature, he insisted on sitting on the steps to eat, with his long legs stretched out far away.
"Stubborn." Cheng Yaoyao remembered his grandmother's evaluation of Xie Zhao and couldn't help but snickering. He gently kicked Xie Zhao's lower back with his toes, "Hey."
Xie Zhao remained indifferent.
Cheng Yaoyao looked at the floor, the blue bricks were polished smooth like a mirror, Xie Fei cleaned it very cleanly every day, and then she sat down. She was very close to Xie Zhao, and she seemed to be able to feel the heat from Xie Zhao's body.
Cheng Yaoyao turned his head to look at him. Xie Zhao's deep cheeks were red, and a palm print was faintly visible. What was more conspicuous were the several marks on his arms, all of which were caused by being beaten with a feather whisk. They were raised one by one, and it was obvious that Grandma Xie had shown no mercy at all.
Xie Zhao lifted the bowl to his lips and drank the mung bean soup in a few gulps. Cheng Yaoyao took the opportunity to say sweetly: "I can't finish mine, I'll give you half."
“No need.” Xie Zhao wiped his mouth and bit off a large piece of the dim sum. The muscles on the side of his neck moved as he chewed, his Adam’s apple moved, and he swallowed the dry food forcefully.
Cheng Yaoyao narrowed his eyes: "Xie Zhao, look at me."
Xie Zhao paused, raised his eyes and looked at Cheng Yaoyao. He met her soul-stirring peach blossom eyes, which were full of water and reflected him.
Cheng Yaoyao raised his chin and said slowly: "I'll count to three...three!"
Xie Zhao raised the bowl.
Cheng Yaoyao hummed with satisfaction and poured the mung bean soup in his bowl into Xie Zhao's bowl.
Cheng Yaoyao suddenly raised his voice: "Are you listening to me?"
"Hmm?" Xie Zhaohuang came back to his senses and met Cheng Yaoyao's ferocious expression. He nodded subconsciously.
"I didn't know grandma would beat you so hard..." Cheng Yaoyao saw the scars on his face and couldn't get angry anymore. He hummed softly, "You are not allowed to be angry after drinking my mung bean soup. You are also wrong..."
The warmth of Xie Zhao's palm seemed to still remain. Cheng Yaoyao lowered his voice and mumbled vaguely at the last sentence. His face turned a little red, which was obscured by the sunset glow.
Xie Zhao also had an unnatural look on his face. He gulped down a few mouthfuls of mung bean soup, his eyes fixed on the ground, as if a flower had bloomed there that was more beautiful than Cheng Yaoyao.
Cheng Yaoyao whined. She rarely showed weakness to others, let alone Xie Zhao, who always obeyed her. He was indifferent to her kindness. Cheng Yaoyao glared at Xie Zhao and began to get angry.
"I'm not angry." Xie Zhao suddenly raised his eyes and looked at her, and said in a low voice.
Cheng Yaoyao was caught off guard and said in a daze, "Ah?"
Her dazzling little face showed such a silly look, like a kitten showing its claws and thinking it was very fierce. Xie Zhao repeated seriously: "Yaoyao, I won't be angry with you."
"Well, well, well... why didn't you pay attention to me just now..." Cheng Yaoyao felt his face flushed under Xie Zhao's gaze. He was like a kitten with its belly turned over. His voice became soft and he spoke incoherently, "I'm angry..."
"Well, it's my fault." Xie Zhao saw Xie Fei peeking into the kitchen, and resisted the urge to touch Cheng Yaoyao's cheek. He said, "Mung bean soup is delicious."
The little kitten not only turned over its belly, but also rolled over happily. Cheng Yaoyao took Xie Zhao's bowl and said happily: "I'll get you another bowl!"
Xie Zhao couldn't help but curl up the corners of his lips. His heart felt like it was being pinched by a little claw, making it numb and itchy.
The two reconciled, Cheng Yaoyao became more talkative, and took the opportunity to tell Xie Zhao that the village wanted two people from the Xie family to guard the melon field. Xie Zhao frowned and remained silent.
Cheng Yaoyao said, "Grandma is old and little girl is timid, so I'll go." "You?" Xie Zhao glanced at Cheng Yaoyao with a strange look on his face.
Cheng Yaoyao puffed out his chest and said, "Why? Do you think I'm incapable?"
"No." Xie Zhao shook his head, the smile in his eyes widened, and said, "It's hard to look after the melon fields. I will discuss it with the captain tomorrow to see if we can postpone it."
Cheng Yaoyao considered himself a member of the Xie family. Xie Zhao thought about this and felt his heart boiling again.
A large pot of green bean soup and several dishes were swept clean, and Xie Fei and Cheng Yaoyao cleaned up the kitchen together. Cheng Yaoyao also pickled some sour cucumbers and basil plums himself to eat tomorrow.
Xie Zhao chopped a pile of firewood in the yard and reinforced the cucumber rack - the cucumber vines grew so fast that they broke two of the racks. Xie Zhao cut a few thin bamboo poles and fixed the cucumber rack in a cross shape, and plowed the soil in the vegetable garden.
Not only cucumbers, but other green vegetables also grew exceptionally luxuriantly, with garlic leaves growing tall and tomatoes almost crushing the branches. There were also a few plump pumpkin vines that aggressively spread into the territory of the cabbage.
This was planted by Cheng Yaoyao. Last time, Cheng Yaoyao boiled the old pumpkin for seeds and fried the pumpkin seeds. She planted the remaining pumpkin seeds in the vegetable garden, and Xie Zhao helped her spread some fertilizer.
Xie Zhao frowned slightly. Pumpkins like cool, humid weather. Planting pumpkins in summer is against common sense. It takes at least a week for pumpkins to sprout. Now, in less than ten days, the pumpkin seedlings are growing so well?
The vegetable garden was originally divided into three ridges, but now it is a bit crowded because the vegetables are growing so well. Xie Zhao dug out two pumpkin seedlings and planted them under a Chinese toon tree nearby. He also built a frame for the seedlings to climb on to prevent the pumpkin vines from damaging the Chinese toon tree.
Cheng Yaoyao held the basin and poured some water on the pumpkin seedlings. He then poured the remaining water for Xie Zhao to wash his hands, saying, "Young pumpkins are the most delicious."
Xie Zhao stretched out his hand, letting the cool well water wash away the dirt on his hand, and smiled, "Pumpkins don't bear fruit so quickly."
"Hmph, then let's pick some pumpkin flowers and make soup." Cheng Yaoyao stuffed the basin into Xie Zhao's arms and pouted again.
Although the pumpkin was not available for the time being, the watermelon was already frozen. To cool off at night, Xie Zhao took out the basket from the well. Water droplets appeared on the green and patterned melon skin, which felt cool to the touch.
The watermelon was placed on the cutting board and cut open. The skin was very crisp and split into two halves with a snap. Red juice flowed out with the sweet fragrance of watermelon, and the juicy red flesh was pink and sandy at first glance!
Grandma Xie is old and cannot eat watermelon, so only Cheng Yaoyao, Xie Zhao and Xie Fei sat in the yard eating watermelon.
"As soon as you swallow it, the smell of smoke disappears, and when it enters your teeth, there is a sound of ice and snow." On a summer night, sitting in the yard, enjoying the cool breeze, eating big mouthfuls of cool and sweet watermelon, there is no greater enjoyment on a summer night than this.
The watermelons at this time are not big, but they are very sweet, not greasy, and the juice rushing into the throat is refreshing and thirst-quenching. The watermelons are cut into pieces, and everyone holds a piece and eats until their face turns pink, and the watermelon juice flows down their wrists. No one minds it, and after eating, they wash it with cold well water, which is so refreshing!
Cheng Yaoyao used to eat seedless watermelon, which was naturally cut into small pieces by a servant and served to her with silver skewers. This was the first time she tried this grand way of eating, and it was quite fresh.
Cheng Yaoyao held a piece of watermelon in her hand and started chewing it from the sweetest part in the middle of the flesh like a squirrel. She had a small face and buried her whole face in the rind. She ate until her cheeks and mouth were covered with pink watermelon juice and spat the seeds into the bowl. The watermelons these days are good in every way except that they have a lot of seeds.
While Cheng Yaoyao was eating one piece of watermelon, Xie Fei had already eaten two. She took the rare opportunity to tease Cheng Yaoyao: "Sister Yaoyao eats watermelon so slowly, and even spits out the seeds."
"I'm done!" Cheng Yaoyao hurriedly swallowed the melon flesh, throwing away the piece of melon rind that he had finally finished eating.
Xie Zhao handed over a new piece and said, "Yaoyao eats cleanly, eat slowly."
Cheng Yaoyao lay on the bamboo couch, swinging his legs: "Yes, I eat cleaner than you!"
Xie Fei pouted and said that her brother was partial to her, so Xie Zhao handed her another melon before he comforted his sister.
Cheng Yaoyao held the melon proudly and took a bite. The melon flesh was cool and crispy, but... Cheng Yaoyao lowered his head and took a closer look. The melon flesh was bright red and all the seeds had been removed.
Xie Zhao put down the thin bamboo stick in his hand, took a piece of watermelon and ate it as if nothing had happened.
After eating the watermelon, the rind and seeds were picked up and thrown away. Xie Zhao brought water to clean the ground to prevent the rind and watermelon juice from attracting mosquitoes. The remaining half of the watermelon was hoisted back into the well and stirred.
After taking a shower, Xie Fei went back to her room to sleep, and the task of preparing a bath for Cheng Yaoyao naturally fell back on Xie Zhao.
Cheng Yaoyao followed Xie Zhao closely with an oil lamp in hand, and said coquettishly, "A few days ago, Xiao Fei accompanied me to take a bath. She went to bed early, so I had to finish the bath quickly every time."
"..." Xie Zhao forced himself not to think about the image of Cheng Yaoyao taking a bath. When would she realize the danger? Such private words should not be told to him.
Especially... when I'm alone.
After getting all the water ready and leaving the oil lamp on in the room, Xie Zhao said to Cheng Yaoyao before closing the door: "Take your time to wash. I'll be at the door."
"Okay." Cheng Yaoyao closed the door gently.
The sound of water gradually came from the room, and Xie Zhao leaned against the door and waited patiently. He only took a bath in a basin of cold water, but Cheng Yaoyao was very delicate, and each bath could take half an hour. The weather was still hot now, and when it got cold, I didn't know how she would be able to bear it.
Xie Zhao frowned and had an idea in mind. The door was pushed open, and hot air mixed with the scent of roses came out. Cheng Yaoyao was wearing a pure white nightgown with her hair tied up. Her lips and teeth were even redder and whiter, and her skin was so moist that it seemed to be dripping with water under the moonlight.
"I'm done washing." Cheng Yaoyao said as he covered his mouth and yawned, with a drop of water hanging on his eyelashes.
Xie Zhao hummed and took Cheng Yaoyao's hand away from rubbing his eyes: "Are you sleepy?"
"Yeah." Cheng Yaoyao nodded vigorously. In order to pick up Xie Zhao today, she got up early, which was rare. She had been playing until now, so it would be strange if she wasn't sleepy.
Xie Zhao said, "Go back to your room and sleep. I'll clean up here."
"Hmm..." Cheng Yaoyao answered hesitantly, walked slowly back to the door of his bedroom, turned back to look at Xie Zhao, and whispered, "There are mosquitoes in the room."
"I'll get you some mugwort later." Xie Zhao didn't even turn his head.
Cheng Yaoyao: “……!!!”
Cheng Yaoyao slumped on the bed, not wanting to talk anymore.
After Xie Zhao tidied up the room, he took a bunch of burning mugwort and walked into Cheng Yaoyao's room. Cheng Yaoyao was already lying face down on the bed with his dark hair scattered all over the bed.
Xie Zhao used mugwort to fumigate every corner of the room, and finally walked to the bedside and called softly, "Sister?"
Cheng Yaoyao was motionless, as if she was asleep. This posture... would suffocate her. Xie Zhao thought, and gently turned Cheng Yaoyao over. She was still holding a small bamboo pillow in her arms, with her eyes closed, her rosy lips slightly flattened, and she looked aggrieved.
Xie Zhao stared at her for a long time, so long that Cheng Yaoyao's eyelashes trembled like a frightened butterfly. Xie Zhao asked in a low voice: "Are you asleep?"
Her peach blossom eyes suddenly opened, and met the smile in Xie Zhao's eyes that he had no time to hide. She sat up and pushed his face away angrily: "Go away!"
Xie Zhao was not prepared for Cheng Yaoyao's sudden change of attitude. He used one hand to block her from throwing tantrums, while whispering, "Don't be angry. What's wrong?"
You're asking even though you know the answer! Cheng Yaoyao was so angry that he said, "Go away!"
…
Xie Zhao had been in the city for many days, and that drop of blood could no longer satisfy Xiao Heye's needs. Moreover, Cheng Yaoyao had used up a lot of spiritual spring water to make dried Yangmei, and tonight's bath had consumed the last bit of the stock. If he didn't absorb some Yang energy tonight, he would be embarrassed tomorrow.
Xie Zhao did it on purpose! Cheng Yaoyao felt more and more wronged the more he thought about it. He bit Xie Zhao hard until he tasted the rusty taste.
Having absorbed enough Yang energy, Cheng Yaoyao was already extremely sleepy. He didn't care about Xie Zhao at all. He slept softly twice and fell asleep as soon as he closed his eyes.
Cheng Yaoyao had a good dream that night, leaving Xie Zhao alone, his blood boiling and unable to sleep all night.
The next day, Cheng Yaoyao got up refreshed. When he walked to the door, he saw Xie Zhao's back as he was seeing the captain out. Both Grandma Xie and Xie Fei looked a little solemn.
"What's the matter?" Cheng Yaoyao went to the yard to wash up.
Grandma Xie said, "Nothing. Something happened to someone in the village, so they asked Zhao Ge'er to drive the tractor into the city."
"Oh." Cheng Yaoyao didn't ask any more questions.
There was a large bamboo basket covered with dew-soaked grass in the yard, and another bamboo basket covered with ferns. Cheng Yaoyao opened the basket and saw that it was filled with black red waxberries.
"My brother picked them early in the morning." Xie Fei took the opportunity to praise his brother.
Cheng Yaoyao picked up a poppy, stuffed it into Xie Fei's mouth, and said with a smile, "You are the only one who talks too much."
While the two were arguing, Xie Zhao came back from outside, hurriedly changed his clothes and shoes, and said to Grandma Xie: "I have to go to the city, I don't know how long it will take to be back, don't wait for me to eat."
Grandma Xie nodded and said, "We are from the same village. If you can help, please lend a hand."
Xie Zhao tied the laces of his Liberation shoes and nodded.
Cheng Yaoyao said, "Are you going into the city? I want to go too."
"Don't go today." Grandma Xie said, "It's just for fun."
Cheng Yaoyao puffed up his cheeks: "How am I playing too much?"
Xie Zhao did not speak up for Cheng Yaoyao this time. He coaxed her in a low voice, "Don't go to a funeral. I'll bring you whatever you want to buy."
"I don't want to buy anything, I just..." Cheng Yaoyao winked at him.
Xie Zhao responded.
Cheng Yaoyao ran into the kitchen and put the dried berries and mushroom sauce she had made in the past few days into a basket, and told Xie Zhao: "Just follow the price we agreed on last time. That monkey is very smart, don't let him bargain you down."
Xie Zhaoren nodded with a smile and said, "I'll take you to the city to play next time."
After a pause, he continued, "Wait for me to come back and I'll take you to pick cicadas. Wait for me to come back and I'll help you pick the pigweed."
"" Cheng Yaoyao blinked his peach blossom eyes, and finally swallowed the words "Tiedan and the others will help me", and nodded: "Then you should come back earlier."
Grandma Xie asked in the yard, "Has Zhao'er finished packing?"
Xie Zhao responded, picked up the heavy basket with one hand and went out.
Cheng Yaoyao chased out of the kitchen, wrapped two steamed buns in oil paper and stuffed them into Xie Zhao's hand: "Take them with you on the road."
"Yeah." Xie Zhao took the steamed bun and stuffed it into his arms. He heard the captain's urging voice outside. Xie Zhao picked up the basket and went out without looking back. Grandma Xie stood on the doorstep and watched her grandson's back disappear before turning back and closing the door.
Cheng Yaoyao picked up 6 eggs from the nest and was so happy that he showed them to Grandma Xie: "There are really 6 eggs today, look at them!"
Seeing her heartless look, Grandma Xie shook her head, feeling both angry and amused: "Don't worry about being naughty. Come here, I have something to tell you."
Grandma Xie looked serious, which made Cheng Yaoyao a little nervous. When they walked into the room, Grandma Xie was sitting cross-legged on the bed, and Cheng Yaoyao was sitting on the edge of the bed.
"Yaoyao, where did you hear that college entrance exam thing from yesterday? How true is it?"
So that's what you're asking. Cheng Yaoyao heaved a sigh of relief and brought out the words he had thought of last night.
Cheng Yaoyao blamed all of this on a friend of his father who worked in the Education Bureau...
"Although I can't guarantee it 100%, it's about 70% sure." Cheng Yaoyao vowed.
Grandma Xie nodded and asked, "Do you really plan to go to college with Zhao Ge'er? Although Zhao Ge'er has been to school, he has never been to school like his father. I'm afraid that..."
Cheng Yuanyao said: "Don't worry, grandma. As long as Xie Zhao studies with me, he will definitely pass the exam in at least two years."
"What if you fail the exam?" Grandma Xie stared into Cheng Yaoyao's eyes.
Cheng Yaoyao tilted his head and thought for a moment, then said nonchalantly, "If you can't pass the exam, then you can't pass it. Studying is not the only option for you."
Grandma Xie thought she didn't understand, so she pointed out: "If you pass the exam and Zhao Ge'er doesn't, you two won't be on the same path anymore."
"How could that be?" Cheng Yaoyao said, "At worst, I won't go to school either."
"Child's talk!" Grandma Xie was amused by her and shook her head.
Cheng Yaoyao was so ignorant that he had no choice but to wait for Zhao Ge'er to fight for it himself.
Now let's get back to the topic. I discussed the review with Cheng Yaoyao for a while, and Cheng Yaoyao explained it very clearly.
Cheng Yaoyao's grandpa was one of the first batch of college students after the college entrance examination was resumed. Cheng Yaoyao grew up listening to his grandpa's stories about the college entrance examination. He still remembers the review material that his grandpa used to write down the questions for the high school entrance examination. Of course, Cheng Yaoyao didn't say anything about this, but just picked out some things to tell Grandma Xie.
Grandma Xie was a lady from a prominent family and was well-educated and literate, but she had never attended a foreign school. She could only teach her grandchildren how to read and write, and was unable to help them prepare for the college entrance examination. Naturally, the responsibility of tutoring Xie Zhao fell on Cheng Yaoyao's shoulders.
Cheng Yaoyao was very confident about this. After all, she was a college student in her previous life, so tutoring Xie Zhao would not be a problem.
Grandma Xie told Cheng Yaoyao and Xie Fei that Cheng Yaoyao would not have to do any housework in the future, so she could focus on organizing materials and reviewing her homework.
Xie Fei naturally had no objection and took the basket of waxberries to wash them. Xie Fei had been making dried waxberries with Cheng Yaoyao these days and had already learned how to do it.
Xie Zhao found a lot of books on the black market, but there were very few materials about college entrance examination review. After all, in a small city like Lin'an, high school students were rare, not to mention some precious review materials.
Where can I find review materials? Cheng Yaoyao pondered for a while, and his eyes lit up: The original owner's father must have a way! Cheng Yaoyao immediately wrote a letter to the original owner's father and planned to mail it the next time he went to the city...
College entrance examination review materials were secondary. Xie Zhao had never been to school and had to start from elementary school curriculum.
Cheng Yaoyao sorted the textbooks from elementary school, junior high school, and high school. Fortunately, there were not many subjects in those days: Chinese, mathematics, politics, and English. Two pens, two notebooks, and Cheng Yaoyao even ran to the yard to find a thin bamboo left over from Xie Zhao's basket making.
This bamboo stick was only as thick as a piece of chalk and about 20 centimeters long. Cheng Yaoyao held it in his hand and waved it, making a sound of wind breaking through the air.
Cheng Yaoyao placed the bamboo on the table with great satisfaction. Now he had the teaching stick, and everything was ready, except for the east wind!
Xie Zhao, who was concentrating on driving the tractor, suddenly sneezed and felt a gust of cold wind on his back.
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