Chapter 26
As for the question of who Kong Dongdong would sleep with, Lu Qin narrowly won in the end.
The next morning, Lu Qin discovered that his brother-in-law's icy face was almost melting. He had been working behind his sister the entire time and could not see the two of them at all.
Lu Qin's eyes hurt from watching this, so he carried his poor nephew and ran to the brigade square.
In the 1970s, celebrating the Chinese New Year was still a novel experience. Once the New Year started, scolding of children almost disappeared, and the atmosphere was filled with joy and happiness.
On the brigade grounds, a group of boys gathered secretly. Niu Dan wiped his nose with the back of his hand. "Let's make a deal first. No one can complain. Whoever complains is a puppy!"
"Yes, if anyone complains, we won't play with him anymore!"
They turned and glared angrily at the kid in the blue cotton-padded jacket in the corner, accusing him, "It was you who complained to them the day before yesterday and got us beaten up. My butt still hurts."
Goudan's face was red from the cold, and he was so anxious that he almost cried, "It's not me, it's not me."
"Who else could it be but you? You were the only one who didn't come that day!"
"Yes, it's you!" The chattering voices accusing him came one after another.
Lu Qin saw a group of children surrounding a little kid from a distance. Oh, he was so young, is this bullying?
"What are you doing? So many people are bullying him."
Suddenly, an adult's voice appeared, startling them. Seeing that it was the "debtender," they scattered. Although they envied the "debtender" for having a bicycle, they also held a grudge and had not forgotten how he had gotten them beaten up before.
Lu Qin looked down and saw Kong Dongdong watching him. He wanted him to learn something good and put on a teaching posture. "Aren't you two usually on good terms? Why are you bullying your friends?"
Someone was brave enough to say, "He's a snitch! We don't want to play with a snitch!"
Lu Qin thought to himself, you little brats are quite opinionated, "What did he file a complaint about that made you so angry?"
Niu Dan was pushed to stand up and said, "We stirred up a hornet's nest here that afternoon. We didn't bring him with us, so he went home and complained, and we got beaten up."
Lu Qin was about to say something when he suddenly recalled what the old lady had shouted when he came back on his bike. He also saw the child with chapped face who was about to cry.
He cleared his throat and said, "I can prove that he really didn't do it. You saw me riding a bicycle that day."
The boys recalled that day and remembered how they envied Kong Dongdong. They said in unison, "I saw it!"
"Your grandma and her friends were looking for you that day. If they knew you were here, they would still look for you."
Their little heads turned in circles, half believing and half doubting.
Lu Qin put forward the correct values at the right time, "Look at how uncomfortable it must be for someone to be so easily suspected without any proof."
For a moment they all looked at their friend, and seeing that he was so sad that he was crying, they all lowered their heads.
The boy in the blue jacket had shining eyes when he looked at Lu Qin.
Lu Qin looked away uncomfortably, seeing the bamboo poles and branches, "What do you want to do?"
The child had lost most of his wariness of him because of what happened earlier. "Stirring up a hornet's nest!"
Following the direction they pointed, his eyes, which had been careless at first, suddenly lit up.
Lu Qin glanced down at his nephew again, seeing him staring at his peers eagerly. He bent down and put him down. Kong Dongdong was still very scared for a moment, and nervously grabbed his thighs with both hands. His short jacket had slipped up a lot, revealing his wrinkled cotton pants. Lu Qin pulled his clothes back on and pushed him towards the crowd, "Look, the brothers are all happy to play with you."
Seeing the anxiety in his little eyes, he said, "I won't leave here. Uncle will stir up a beehive for you."
He was already eager to try it out. The hive on the tree was a pancake-shaped, vertical shape with hexagonal cells, not an irregular, mud-coated sphere. So there was a 90% chance it was a beehive. He'd heard a few kids say it was a wasp that day, so he followed suit and called out to the ladies. He might even be able to harvest some honey from this kind of hive.
When the boys saw him trying to stab them, they said, "That's what we saw!"
Lu Qin didn't seem anxious. "If you really don't want me to poke it, there might be some honey in there. If I do, I might even be able to give you some to try."
Two minutes later, Kong Dongdong was being led away by Niu Dan and the others, with Lu Qin's voice reminding him from behind, "Take Kong Dongdong and run away. Hide well and don't come out."
"Got it," seven or eight children ran away.
Kong Dongdong followed a group of brothers who were not much older than him, fiddling with his legs, his little face flushed.
After the people ran away, Lu Qin took a deep breath. He remembered an article that said poking a beehive in winter was a surefire way to avoid danger. He hoped he wasn't lying.
He picked up the bamboo pole on the ground and covered his face with his coat.
The children in the distance stared wide-eyed as the "dragged-on" they were calling "dragged-on" picked up a bamboo pole and angrily poked upwards. It looked like a few tiny dots flew out of the hive. He swiped the pole a few more times, and as the hive fell, the black dots multiplied. The "dragged-on" took off running.
"The burden has run away, but where's the honey?" someone said.
"Shh, don't move. Don't you want to eat honey? His nephew is still here." The child holding Kong Dongdong was older. He looked down at Kong Dongdong and hugged him tighter.
Niu Dan said, "What if he doesn't want his nephew anymore?"
The ideas instilled in them by adults have become deeply rooted.
Kong Dongdong was still staring stupidly at the direction his uncle left, with his mouth wide open and not reacting for a long time.
Kong Yue was diving in Shahu Lake and greeting a few aunts. He looked up inadvertently and saw a man running quickly across the river with his head covered by clothes, followed by a buzzing thing.
“…”
Once he took off his clothes, he wasn't so blind that he couldn't recognize him as a brat.
It’s not customary to curse during the Chinese New Year.
Lu Qin ran from the upper reaches of the river to the lower reaches, and then ran back to the brigade square.
Seeing him, the children breathed a sigh of relief. After he told them they could come out, they swarmed over and chirped, "Is there any honey?"
Lu Qin whistled, "Of course I have it. Come on, come back with me and I'll give you half."
A bunch of kids didn't realize there was anything wrong with it.
Lu Qin picked up Kong Dongdong and went home, lying on his uncle's shoulder. When he saw a group of brothers following him home, his eyes lit up.
Sun Laimei and her friends were busy at home when they heard some chatter outside. They looked in the direction of the sound and saw Lu Qin holding Kong Dongdong, followed by a group of boys.
Sun Laimei was still wondering when she heard Lu Qin put Kong Dongdong down and said, "Auntie, these are Dongdong's friends."
The clever boy took the lead and said, "Yes, we are all Dongdong's friends."
When Kong Dongdong saw that his brothers were willing to play with him, his eyes lit up with excitement and his little face turned red.
When Sun Laimei heard this, she quickly invited them in.
Kong Yue turned his face away, pretending not to know what had just happened.
Lu Chunnong was observant and noticed what he was holding in his hand. He looked him up and down and found that the only difference was that his hair was a little messy.
Noticing his sister's gaze, Lu Qin grinned and indicated that he was fine.
Lu Chunnong finally put away her worries. In previous years, there were almost no guests at home during the Chinese New Year, and it was deserted. This year was the first time it was so lively. She wiped her hands, went into the house, and grabbed a handful of candy from the bag.
"Come here and have some candy,"
"Wow!" The children's surprised and happy voices came one after another.
When it was Niu Dan's turn, he said, "My grandma lied to me before and said your family couldn't afford candy."
Lu Chunnong didn't look embarrassed at all, and even smiled, "If anyone hasn't got it, tell me."
"good!"
When Lu Qin heard this, he cut the honeycomb that he was going to divide evenly into, but it was a little crooked. He picked it up as if nothing had happened and said, "Your grandma said that as long as you were obedient, she wouldn't beat you. Did she beat you?"
"I beat him." Niu Dan lowered his head.
"She said if you're obedient, she'll buy you some meat. Did she buy it for you?"
"No,"
Lu Qin spread his hands and said, "That's it."
Niu Dan put the candy in his pocket and suddenly felt that his grandmother was a liar.
Kong Yue listened to the brat's nonsense and rarely interrupted him.
Lu Qin handed him the cut honeycomb and said, "Go back and divide it among yourselves."
"good!"
Someone said, "Kong Dongdong, we'll come see you tomorrow."
They found Kong Dongdong to be very well behaved and quiet, much better than his younger brothers and sisters at home. The child was also very kind and even shared food with them.
Hearing his name, Kong Dongdong shyly hugged his uncle's legs.
A group of children came chattering and left chattering, and the yard returned to silence again.
Kong Yue took out an orange-flavored candy from his pocket and quietly put it into Lu Chunnong's hand.
Lu Qin raised his eyebrows, shifted his gaze, held the remaining half of the beehive, and asked his aunt if she had a jar.
Sun Laimei was curious, "Where did you get it?"
"On the tree. My uncle did it on the tree." This was Kong Dongdong's answer.
Lu Qin chuckled, "I let you go play with your peers, and you still interrupt. Do you think your uncle should reward you?"
As he spoke, he broke off a small piece of it, which was still covered with honey, and said, "Eat it slowly."
Kong Dongdong smiled, showing his small teeth, and reached out to take it. Just as he was about to put it in his mouth, he remembered what his uncle taught him, "Thank you, uncle!"
Lu Qin turned around and explained to Sun Laimei. Sun Laimei looked at the honeycomb and swallowed the words "Be careful" that were about to come out of her mouth. "I'll find it for you."
After taking out a jar and washing it, Lu Qin squeezed the honey into the jar and turned around to find his sister.
"Sister, this is a New Year's gift for you. I wish you to be younger and more beautiful in the new year." The blessing came out of her mouth.
Lu Chunnong accepted the jar of honey, and his beautiful eyes slightly raised.
Kong Yue felt mixed emotions when he saw the boy being chased by bees and running around the river, and stuffing the honey he had worked so hard to get back to his sister without even drinking a single sip.
Not heartless either.
The matter was not over yet, Lu Qin's eyes were already looking at him, and Kong Yue's eyelids twitched.
"Brother-in-law, Happy New Year to you too! May all your wishes come true in the New Year!"
Unexpectedly, it was just a simple blessing, but Kong Yue found himself vaguely relieved.
After returning to the room, Lu Qin quietly lifted the waistband of his pants as soon as he closed the door, and scratched it with his hands behind his back. The place where he was stung was itchy and painful. He should be glad that he was not stung on the face.
The new year began with Kong Dongdong making new friends.
Now that her son no longer had to leave home, Sun Laimei's smile never faded.
A very fresh start.
Days passed, and on the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, Kong Yue had to go to work at the County Public Security Bureau.
Lu Qin had been staying at home for several days and felt like he was going to get moldy. He wanted to go find Comrade Zhu Hong to make some money.
Early in the morning, Kong Yue changed his clothes and saw a figure wandering around in the yard. The young man was brushing his teeth and combing his hair while walking.
He narrowed his eyes and asked, "You want to go out?"
Lu Qin looked at himself in the small mirror he got from his sister. His face was the most important thing for him. "Yes,"
Seeing him carefully straightening every strand of hair, his temples jumped, "Where are you going?"
Lu Qin realized it later. He put down his toothbrush and reminded him, "Brother-in-law, I've passed the 17th day of the Lunar New Year."
Suddenly, he thought of something and took out a notebook and a pen from his pocket. He said seriously, "I'm going to society to learn knowledge."
“…”
Kong Yue opened his mouth and said after a while, "Don't cause trouble."
"Don't worry, I won't cause trouble." Unless someone else provokes him.
Kong Yue actually understood his underlying meaning. "If you have any problems, please contact the police. I'm at the police station."
"Okay, I'm almost out of time. I won't chat with you anymore, brother-in-law." After saying that, he hurried back to the room and put on his coat.
"Sister, I'm going out." He stopped and shouted to her sister's door.
"Wait a moment," Lu Chunnong called her. A minute later, she came out of the house and handed him a military canteen. "There's honey water in it. Drink it on the way."
Lu Qin took the kettle and hung it on his body. He took a sip immediately. It was indeed different when he made it himself. He smiled and said, "Thank you, sister! Don't forget to drink it, sister."
Next, they took his uncle's ox cart to go out. Lu Qin realized belatedly that his brother-in-law was walking with him, so he quickened his pace and wanted to sit on the other side, but Kong Yue didn't let him get his wish.
"Yue boy, you haven't gone out yet?" This is what Uncle Lai Gen asked.
Kong Yue withdrew his gaze from the brat, but before he could open his mouth, Lu Qin spoke for him, "Uncle, my brother-in-law isn't going to the army. He's working at the Public Security Bureau now."
His voice was so loud that even the cows grazing by the roadside could hear it. For a moment, several aunties and sisters sitting there looked at Kong Yue, and it was unclear whether there was envy or regret in their eyes.
"Wow! Yue has made great progress!"
Kong Yue was under other people's gazes almost all the way, and had to answer a sentence or two from his aunt from time to time. She was too busy to pay attention to him.
As soon as the car stopped, Lu Qin jumped out impatiently, raised the pen in his hand, and said, "Brother-in-law, I'm leaving."
After Kong Yue finished replying to his aunt, he only saw the brat's back. Thinking that Zhang Erhu had already been arrested, he thought he wouldn't cause any more trouble. He finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Uncle Lai Gen tied the rope beside him and noticed his gaze. "Oh, you are worried about him. Don't worry, Lu Qin is a sensible boy."
Not knowing how he came to that conclusion, Kong Yue didn't explain. He just nodded to indicate he understood. After thanking him, he headed to the Public Security Bureau.
Qin Mingzhi was holding an enamel cup in his hand. When he heard the footsteps, he looked up and said Happy New Year. Then he asked him, "Kong Yue, is your brother Lu Qin free these days?"
Kong Yue walked to his seat and asked him: What's the matter?
He just said, "The Laiyang County Democratic Women's Federation, the Public Security Bureau, and the communes below are planning a 'Beware of Human Traffickers' campaign. According to my sister-in-law, Lu Qin can spot human traffickers at a glance; he must have some special skills. We'd like him to help spread the word."
His sister-in-law was on the Women's Federation side, and she immediately thought of Lu Qin and pushed him in front of many leaders.
Moreover, during the arrests of human traffickers years ago, they discovered that many of the abducted people were abducted in public under the pretext of being relatives. The public urgently needs to be instilled with knowledge of this aspect.
Qin Mingzhi explained the relationship to him and took a sip of tea. "This is a rare opportunity to show your face. If he's free, go back and discuss it with him. I think this guy is quite smart and can definitely handle it."
Kong Yue picked up the kettle and went out to fill it with water. He felt that he could agree to it without any discussion. Didn't he say before that he wanted to understand the dangers of society? Now was his chance.
But after taking two steps, he stopped again, put down the pot and walked to the other side.
Qin Mingzhi said, "Where are you going?"
"I'll go check on Zhang Erhu." There were still many follow-up issues he had to deal with.
The author has something to say:
The last day of February, and then the first 30 rows of red envelopes.
Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or provided nutrient solution between 2022-02-26 20:40:11 and 2022-02-27 12:19:40~
Thanks to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: Fatty, Don't Say 10 bottles; Huahuahuajiang 3 bottles; Little Rascal, I Love Reading, Late Clock, Changing Names Every Day 1 bottle;
Thank you very much for your support. I will continue to work hard!
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