Chapter 24 Losing
Money Fang Dihua was of course working.
It was the consensus of the members that they would not take leave unless it was necessary, and that they would not be delayed from going to the fields to earn work points unless it was something important.
Lu Shaocai threw the bicycle that he used to treat as a treasure to the end of the field, and ran to the field wearing his big leather shoes that were polished to a shine and covered with a layer of dust, shouting as he ran: "Auntie, Auntie!"
Fang Dihua, who was deaf, naturally heard it, but she just kept her head down and ignored it.
How could she not know about what Lu Shaocai and his wife were doing?
They went all over the village and even went to nearby villages to buy chickens, ducks, eggs, and noodles. How could the members not make a fuss about such a sensation?
Fang Dihua just smiled coldly after hearing this, saying that it had nothing to do with her family and asked everyone not to pay attention to it.
She and the old man made it very clear that they would only repair the tomb and not cause any trouble to the government.
Didn't these two idiots understand?
Of course, they didn't understand, but they just deliberately didn't listen, and they took advantage of him being the younger generation to do whatever they wanted. They
really didn't take advantage enough.
The eldest uncle gave the third son a job, and the second house gave Lu Shaocai a job. Isn't this fair? Besides, if the third son was not outstanding, his uncle would not take him.
Anyone with a little shame would know that it was fair, but this couple is greedy.
They still want to make money from Shaotang's matter, why don't you go to heaven?
This is because the third son is fine. If the third son really has any problems, Fang Dihua will beat them half to death.
Lu Shaocai rushed over, and a woman who was close to Fang Dihua pretended to accidentally hit his foot with a hoe. Lu Shaocai screamed in pain and rolled on the ground. He didn't care about the curse and quickly got up to chase Fang Dihua.
"Auntie, what's going on?"
Fang Dihua: "What's the matter?"
Lu Shaocai was so anxious that his face was covered with mud and sweat, "Shaotang's memorial service! Where is my second uncle? Where are the leaders of the county commune?"
Fang Dihua glared and spoke fiercely, "Boss, have you been blinded by greed or has your heart been blackened by something? How many times have I told your second uncle not to do it, not to do it, and not to burden the country! Don't you understand what I'm saying? If you don't believe it, go and ask the brigade secretary and the team leader what your uncle said. We always keep our words and there is no need to change."
The women who were working around did not dare to be lazy, but they all listened with their ears erect and looked at them with squinted eyes.
The team leader in charge of the women's work immediately ran over and said with a smile: "Second aunt, Accountant Lu, why don't you go to the field to talk?"
Lu Shaocai glared at him with a frown, "Do you have the right to interrupt me when I'm talking to my aunt? Go away."
The accountant is the third in command of the team, in charge of important matters such as work points and food distribution. He has great power, and Lu Shaocai usually bullies him.
The team leader was frustrated and shouted at the women to work quickly and not to be lazy, "Deduct work points! The accountant is watching."
Lu Shaocai was very anxious. It was not just about money, but also about why the leader didn't come?
This was his face and the stepping stone for him to be promoted to the commune!
"Auntie, isn't that just a humble talk? Who really means that? My third brother is a martyr after all. He sacrificed his life for the country. He should have a memorial service. When the leaders of the county commune come to pay their respects, why don't we set up two tables? You..."
Are you stupid?
Fang Dihua ignored him.
Lu Shaocai: "Auntie, what about my uncle?"
Fang Dihua was busy digging the land.
Lu Shaocai sneered: "Auntie, are you deliberately plotting against me? Didn't my uncle go to the county to hire someone? Why are you pretending?"
Fang Dihua: "Yes, yes, you are right. I am still busy, don't waste my time."
Lu Shaocai was really angry, "Then the paper delivery man is here, you have to pay him, and the chickens, ducks and fish that I ordered have also been delivered, you have to pay him."
The chickens, ducks and fish were all inquired from the surrounding members' homes. It was hard work to buy so many in one night.
Zhao Meifeng was so tired that her waist and back ached.
Fang Dihua looked at him as if he were some dirty thing, "My nephew, are you really stupid or vicious? Your third brother is gone, do you think your uncle and your aunt are in the mood to curry favor with the leaders by this? To hold banquets and entertain guests by this? Do you think your third brother is going to get promoted?" If it
was Father Lu, he would definitely not be embarrassed to quarrel with his nephew in front of outsiders, let alone scold him. But Fang Dihua was different. She had always been fierce and tough, and she would scold anyone who scolded her. Why would she care about this?
Lu Shaocai's face instantly turned red, purple, and then black, "Auntie, you, you..."
Fang Dihua: "Go away, don't delay my work."
Lu Shaocai: "Auntie, then you have to give me money, I spent more than a hundred in total."
Fang Dihua just thought he was talking nonsense.
Lu Shaocai was really angry. It was easy to control auntie before, but now she can't control her?
Haha, maybe she thinks that since Lu Shaotang is dead and she doesn't rely on her father to be a military officer, she thinks she doesn't owe him anything, right?
But don't say it.
When he came back from the capital, he could sit in front of Old Man Lu's door and cry about his misery for a job, but now he couldn't squat on the ground and complain to Fang Dihua, because she was worse off than him.
If he squatted down and said that he was not loved by his father and uncle, Fang Dihua would hit him with a hoe.
He even felt guilty that if his father hadn't sent Lu Shaotang to be the most dangerous soldier, Lu Shaotang might not have died. Otherwise, why did Lu Shaotang get into trouble when the old man's second son was fine?
It must be that good things are given to his own son, and bad things are given to his nephew.
If he were in the old man's position, he would do the same, so he thought the old man would do the same.
So he didn't dare to make trouble.
The other women pointed and laughed at him. He felt embarrassed and quickly left on his bike and ran away.
He went to the nursery first. Brother Lu and Brother Lu were there. The two
brothers had not finished repairing the tomb before breakfast today. They hurried to finish the work assigned by the captain in the afternoon and came to repair the tomb now.
My parents said that repairing the tomb would be the end of it. Now there is no ashes to bury, and they are reluctant to put clothes and bedding in a cenotaph, so they put Lu Shaotang's birth date in a wooden box and put it in the tomb first, and rebury it after finding the body.
The eldest brother Lu didn't feel anything. He just did the tomb repair when his father asked him to do it. He picked up a shovel and did the light work. The hard work was done by the second brother Lu. The second brother Lu was a silent old ox. Yes, a tall and handsome old ox.
He was also a taciturn person who didn't like to talk. He was busy working all day. He and the third brother had been close to each other for a longer time since childhood and had a deeper relationship. The thought that the third brother might not have him made him feel heartbroken and he didn't like to talk.
He always expressed his feelings through actions. He repaired Lu Shaotang's tomb into a perfect shape, without a single weed on it, and it was also very close to his parents' tombs.
Seeing him secretly wipe his tears several times, the eldest brother Lu scooped up some dirt and threw it at the second brother Lu's feet, whispering: "Second brother, don't cry, the third brother is a tough kid."
He still remembered that when he was a child, he was lazy and didn't want to do the work, so
he asked the second brother to help him. The third brother, who was only a little kid, dared to jump out and kick his calf and scold him for being a big lazy guy. He deliberately threw the third brother on the grave of the great grandfather, but the third brother was not afraid. He even ate grass sprouts here and took snakes out of the grave to stew meat at home.
How dare the King Yan take him in?
People don't want him, and they think he is noisy and difficult to manage.
The two brothers were building the tomb here, the paper ties were chattering over there, the people who were watching the excitement were also curious and gathered around to watch, and there were also old people who taught the two brothers how to build the tomb.
At this time, Lu Shaocai rode over and said to the eldest and second brothers Lu: "Old brother, do you have money? Pay the money for the paper ties."
The eldest brother Lu looked apologetic and said, "Brother, I don't have a penny on me. You know my mother is a thief."
People are afraid of others saying that they are a thief, and they are also afraid of others saying that their mother is a thief, but the eldest brother Lu is not afraid, because Fang Dihua is a thief to him.
The money given to him is really not as much as that given to Lu Ping.
Seeing the excitement, the old woman spoke up, "Why, wasn't it your elder brother who bought it for Shaotang?"
"Yes, why do you need money for it?"
"Hey, you are still so calculating and scheming.
It's a waste of time to praise him." Lu Shaocai: "Go away, what are you making a fuss about?"
He forced the eldest and second brothers Lu to go home to ask for money, "I bought this for your third brother, how can you not pay?"
The eldest brother Lu: "You... didn't even discuss it with us."
Lu Shaocai: "Why didn't you discuss it? My aunt and I have already agreed, and your sister-in-law and your third brother's wife have also agreed."
The eldest brother Lu: "Impossible, my mother doesn't give the money because she doesn't agree. What does my third brother's wife have to do with it? She has cried and fainted several times at home."
In the eyes of the eldest brother Lu, Lin Shu is just a weak and helpless young wife. Apart from cooking and sewing at home, she is almost the same as the two children. Their parents don't let them come to the nursery for fear of conflict.
Mrs. Lu also told him that the third brother's wife had cried so hard that she fainted several times at home, and there were details about it.
Lu Shaocai's face turned pale, and he had to trick his brothers into paying for Lu Shaotang, "Brother, look, the third brother is buried today, and you just built a tomb for him, how shabby and undignified? You think he is buried down there alone, without a companion? When he goes there, will he have a place to live and a horse to ride?"
The eldest brother Lu looked at him and wondered, "Brother, what do you want to accompany him?"
Lu Shaocai: "......!!"
You idiot.
Second brother Lu: "My parents said there is no body, just a tomb, nothing else is needed."
Lu Shaocai: "What about these? I have ordered them all back for my third brother."
The eldest brother Lu suggested, "Isn't it time for aunt to be buried? Burn them all for her, let her enjoy the good life there."
Lu Shaocai: "..." For my mother's burial, two pieces of paper are enough, why should I burn more than ten yuan?
One yuan is enough for a poor peasant to live for two months!
The two brothers can't do anything about it, they don't have a penny.
Lu Shaocai was so anxious that he circled the tomb for many times like a donkey turning a millstone, but in the end he had no idea, so he had to discuss how to return the paper.
What can people do?
Someone was not happy, "Accountant Lu, if there is no such expense, don't act so arrogantly. What's the point of doing this? We give it to you, and you sell it to others? No one wants it."
"That's right, isn't your father a high-ranking official in the capital? His monthly pension is more than 200 yuan, and you can't afford to pay 10 or 20 yuan?"
"Why are you pretending all day long ?"
Several employees couldn't help but start talking. They didn't need to curry favor with Lu Shaocai, and it didn't matter what official his father was in the capital. If you don't give this money, they won't be able to settle accounts with the unit when they go back, so it's a problem.
Lu Shaocai's return from the capital to his hometown was a loss of face and humiliation. He felt uncomfortable and resentful. This was his unspeakable pain. Now that his scars were stabbed, how could he not get angry?
"What are you talking about? Do you believe that I will tell your director to fire you?"
"Accountant Lu, we dare not offend you. You have to settle this account with us, otherwise it will be difficult for us to report. The 15 yuan salary we get a month is not enough to live on." Several people said nice things again.
Lu Shaocai had no choice but to pay the money himself. He still needed two yuan, so he asked someone to go back and ask Zhao Meifeng for it.
Lu Shaocai felt so distressed and annoyed, so regretful, and he wanted to slap himself a few times.
Such a large amount of money, he had to pay it himself.
No, he had to write a letter to his father, telling him everything, letting him know how much his second uncle stole the money and how much he schemed against him, and he had to ask his father to save money for him.
After all, these paper money will be burned for grandpa and mother.
Lu Shaocai asked his eldest and second brothers to help put the paper money in front of the graves of Grandpa Lu, Grandma Lu and his mother, and he also used a shovel to pile up a small earth wall.
Big brother Lu: "What are you doing?"
Lu Shaocai sneered and said nothing, you don't spend a penny, so how can I let you benefit for nothing?
I must not let a trace of fire and smoke drift to your grandmother's grave so that she can enjoy the incense and bless you!
Grandpa can only bless me, because I burned it!
The old men and women watching the excitement were stunned. It was the first time they saw such a shameless operation.
Everyone was stunned by the big brother Lu's generosity. When the uncle and cousin were not at home, how many pieces of paper did he and his father burn for the grandmother and the aunt? How many graves did they visit? To
visit the grave, you have to fill the soil, offer sacrifices, burn paper, and kowtow. My family has never been left out.
This crap...
Forget it, the eldest brother Lu called the second brother Lu back home.
There were too many paper rolls, and the flames rolled up the air and swayed straight up, making a beeping sound.
Lu Shaocai knelt in front of the grave and chanted loudly to his grandparents, kowtowing and praying, asking them to bless him and
his children and grandchildren. Don't bless his stepmother and second brother! !
He was kneeling and praying when he saw a big cow of paper rolls falling on the graves of Lu's father and mother. He rushed forward and picked it out with a stick, and even spread his ten fingers to catch the ashes of the paper that flew over and pressed them on the soil on his mother's side. The second
house cannot benefit from it at all!
The paper rolls you burn can only bless yourself!
"Tsk tsk, this guy is really rare!"
"Why is he so stingy?"
"Of course, his second uncle gave him the accounting job."
Lu Shaocai: "Then my father arranged for Lu Shaotang to join the army!"
"Hey, big brother, why do you only buy paper money to burn for your grandma and mother, and not for your second grandma and Shaotang? When you were not at home, I don't know how much your second uncle burned for your grandma and mother."
"That's not a big deal. People should be open-minded and not stingy."
"Yeah, think about how much your second uncle protected you when you were a child. Without your second uncle, would you be able to live so comfortably?" "
When you were young, you mediated between the landlord's children. Wasn't it your second uncle who helped you?"
Lu Shaocai was so angry that he wanted to leave.
The old people urged him, "Bury the paper ashes. Don't let it cause a fire in such a dry weather."
Lu Shaocai was furious. I bought it and I paid for it. Why should I burn it for them?
He spent money and it was wrong for him to do so. Why should he be criticized? He couldn't reason with these old men and women who were too old to work, so he left angrily.
Several old people were sighing there, "Oh, this guy, you can tell a person's character by the age of three and his old age by the age of seven. He was stingy when he was a child."
"He was not that bad. He bullied the children of Second Uncle's family. Shaotang was only two years old at that time? How old is he now, twenty years old? When little Shaotang was eating a piece of hot pot, he snatched it and stuffed it into his mouth. Don't you think he is a scoundrel? Oh, Shaotang was really handsome when he was a child."
"I remember it too. He was greedy and mean when he was a child. He snatched the food that Second Uncle gave to the servants, and even pushed Laonian's rice bowl to the ground to prevent him from eating."
"This guy, he looks like a decent person, but he is really not the same. The good and the bad can be distinguished immediately. Second Master is really a good person, kind, generous, not vindictive, not stingy..."
Because of Lu Shaocai's action, several old people began to reminisce, digging up all the dirty things he did when he was a child, and then compared them and praised Old Man Lu.
Old Man Lu's reputation in the hearts of the people is much higher than when he was young and full of vigor.
Time is the best sedimentation, and time is also the best filter.
Especially when time sees the human heart, it makes people feel particularly emotional.
Lu Shaocai had sent away the paper-making staff, but Zhao Meifeng was still at home, what to do with the piles of chickens and ducks!
The chickens and ducks bought from the members' homes were all paid for!
They were not to be acquitted.
Now that the leaders were not coming, the banquet could not be held, so what to do with all the fish and meat?
She and her sons went out and bought a total of ten big fat chickens, ten ducks, thousands of eggs, and a dozen big fish...
Originally, she bought small old hens for two yuan each, but in order to bring them back as gifts for the leaders, she bought a lot of big ones, sixty or seventy yuan each.
She bought this with her own money. She had planned to steal it when the leaders came, and then take the opportunity to ask Fang Dihua for money!
At least two hundred yuan!
With the gifts and gifts, she must have earned more than two hundred yuan this time.
Who knew... that all the money went into her pocket.
"Are there any guests? When is the banquet? We asked for leave to come here and delayed our work points. We haven't eaten yet and we are starving! Hurry up and serve the dishes and meat!"
These were the guests that Lu Shaocai had invited by his sons, including his uncles, aunts, brothers from his grandmother's side, and his cousins and their wives from his aunt's side.
Zhao Meifeng's silent crying was earth-shaking!