Cen Huaian didn't say anything at first, secretly looking at Chuxia's face, he felt that his mother seemed to know everything.

He said "hmm" and pursed his lips tightly. He didn't know whether it was right or wrong, but he was still uneasy in his heart.

So his big eyes kept looking at Chuxia.

Chuxia sighed, and suddenly felt that she had a long way to go.

"Keep picking."

Chuxia didn't ask Cen Huaian to go back. Since he likes to be self-reliant, this is a good thing.

But telling a lie and running away secretly without telling the adults, this is not so easy.

She took a breath, then got up to find the people who helped find the child, thanked these neighbors, and told them that the child was found.

These are all favors, and they must be repaid.

Chuxia went back to the garbage dump behind the paper mill and saw Cen Huaian picking up waste paper very quickly into his torn sack. Some people thought he was in the way and pushed him.

Chuxia immediately walked over and pushed the short woman away, her face was very fierce: "There are so many places, why don't you pick up the waste? An adult bullies a child! Are you shameless?"

The woman also bullies the weak and fears the strong. She looked up at Chuxia and saw that she was wearing a beautiful and clean shirt and pants. She was obviously an employee of the factory. She had a fierce face and was holding a wooden stick. She felt timid in her heart. The person who wanted to curse swallowed his words and muttered to go to the side.

"Mom."

Cen Huaian looked at her.

Chuxia was using a stick to dig up the garbage while bending over to cut paper. When she heard Cen Huaian's voice, she said unhappily, "What are you yelling for? Pick up the garbage quickly!"

Cen Huaian didn't know what he felt in his heart, but he felt very warm, just like the roasted sweet potatoes that Bangge gave him in winter, warm and sweet.

"Yeah!" He responded loudly and lowered his head to pick up the waste paper quickly.

Don't underestimate the job of picking up rubbish. Bending over for a long time is also very tiring.

Chuxia's physical strength is not as good as Cen Huaian and other children. She picked up the garbage for a while and then took a rest.

When she was resting, she saw a boy of eight or nine years old talking to Cen Huaian.

The boy didn't look like a child at all. Chu Xia felt that he was similar to Cen Huaian whom she had seen when she had just crossed over. There was a fierceness in the corners of his eyes and eyebrows, and his eyes were alert and ready to prey at any time.

He should be the leader of the children picking up the rubbish.

Later, when they continued to pick up garbage, they saw that the children all obeyed the orders of this eight or nine-year-old child, and Chu Xia knew that she was not wrong.

It was not until the sunset that the afterglow of the sunset fell on the garbage heap that Chu Xia said to Cen Huaian: "It's time to go home, let's go."

Cen Huaian's torn sack could no longer be lifted, and Chu Xia couldn't lift it either. The two of them dragged it to the eight or nine-year-old boy together.

"Brother Bang, this is what I picked up today."

Bang tied the sack neatly and said, "Okay, let's follow the old rules."

Chuxia looked at Bang. He had a smile on his face, but his smile also had a wild and unruly taste. In this era, this kid is likely to be a tyrant in the future.

It depends on whether he walks the right path. In the 1980s and 1990s, there was only a thought difference between good and evil.

And there are many people who go astray. After all, the beast of desire has let out the fence, and how many people can take it back?

Under the temptation of money and the flattery of friends, how many people can continue to stay sober?

Her son is the one who went astray in the book.

Walking home in the sunset, Chuxia was so tired that her waist could not straighten up.

She held Cen Huaian's hand and asked, "Who else is in Brother Bang's family?"

Cen Huaian shook his head, "I don't know."

"When did you start picking up rags with him?"

"Last year."

At that time, Cen Huaian was so hungry that he couldn't stand it. Seeing Brother Bang eating a delicious bun, he followed him down a street.

Brother Bang asked him if he wanted to eat?

He didn't hesitate and immediately snatched the bun from his hand.

Then Brother Bang took him to pick up rags.

Picking up rags depends on luck. When luck is good, you can earn a few cents a day and buy steamed buns. When

luck is bad, you don't have a penny and you're hungry.

Sometimes you have to fight, because picking up rags also requires competing with others for territory. Cen Huaian used to fight hard, but after following Brother Bang, he became even more fierce.

But Cen Huaian didn't tell Chuxia about these, and Chuxia didn't ask him.

Why ask? They were all bad memories. She knew with her toes how hard Cen Huaian's life was at that time.

Her hands were very dirty, and so were Cen Huaian's. The two of them went to the family compound and washed their hands in the bathroom on the first floor before going to their own home. When

they arrived at the door, they saw Brother Luo squatting at the door of her house, smoking a cigarette with an impatient look on his face, and his other hand was clasped on the wall.

Seeing Chuxia, he stood up and complained: "Where have you been? You asked me to deliver something, but when I arrived, no one was there! Do you know how long I have been waiting?"

Chuxia opened the door and looked at Brother Luo without a good face: "What's wrong with waiting? You were very happy when you spent my money!"

Brother Luo was also annoyed: "Do you always bring up this matter? How much did I spend of you? I have my own salary!"

"So what, didn't you use my money for your daughter's schooling? Didn't you use my money for the delicious food and spicy drinks at home? Didn't you use my money for playing cards? All of them were given by my mother, and I have a share of every penny! Stop talking so much, hurry up and move, have you got the 100 yuan?"

Chuxia didn't be polite with him and directly reached out for it.

The 500 yuan Wang Yulan returned was not enough to cover the original owner's money, so Chu Xia had every right to ask Brother Luo for the money.

Brother Luo took out a handful of money from his pocket, some were dimes, some were one dollar, and some were large.

"Chu Xia, you... do you really want it?"

Chu Xia snatched it from him: "Who told you a lie. If you say 100, it's 100, not a cent less."

Brother Luo looked at the money, his heart was bleeding, all his private money was in it, and he was just short of it, so he asked his mother for it.

"Alas!" Brother Luo sighed, his chest was very uncomfortable, and he was afraid that Chu Xia would really go find his wife.

What's wrong with the second sister now? She is so unforgiving. It was better and more affectionate than before.

Chuxia had already counted the money, not a penny less, and took out two cents to give to Cen Huaian.

Cen Huaian took it immediately, thinking: It would be nice if my mother went to my grandmother's house to ask for money every day.

Brother Luo moved the TV and refrigerator in, and the neighbors in the corridor who had been curious for a long time gathered around and asked Chuxia if she bought a new TV.

Chuxia poured them some water with brown sugar in it, and smiled and said, "No. My parents wanted to get a new one, so they gave me this old one."

Brother Luo was angry and complained: Who wants to get a new one? If you didn't want it, who would give it to you?

When the TV was delivered, his daughter was still making a fuss at home.

The younger brother came along, but he was left alone to wait, and they all bullied him.

The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. When he went to install the antenna, he started banging on it. Chuxia walked over and said coldly, "You'll have to pay for it if you break it."

Brother Luo's hands trembled, and he almost lost his grip on the antenna. He was so scared that his heart stopped for a moment. After checking that it didn't fall, he patted his chest and breathed a sigh of relief.

But he didn't dare to bang it hard.

Black and white TVs were still a rare thing at that time. To buy one, a worker had to work without food or drink for more than a year.

But even this couldn't stop people from buying it. There were always people in the family compound who were doing well, or who gritted their teeth and saved money to buy it.

In a few years, more people would probably buy it.

But in the countryside, it is really rare. After all, some villages don’t have electricity at the moment, let alone buying a TV.

Sister Li’s family next door didn’t buy one. In the entire second floor, including Chuxia’s, only three families have one.

Cen Huaian also has the mentality of a child. When Brother Luo started to install it, he followed him. Wherever Brother Luo went, he went, staring at him while he installed the TV.

After the antenna was installed, Brother Luo asked him to turn it on to see if there was any picture. Cen Huaian was the first to run over. He

ran over but didn’t know how to turn it on.

Chuxia stood aside. She figured it out for a while and figured out how to turn it on. When she was a child, her family also had this kind of black and white TV.

When she turned on the TV, the picture was a little blurry. Even so, Cen Huaian, a child, watched without blinking.

He had never watched TV before. He only heard the kids in the yard say how good TV was and that the people on it could move.

Brother Luo adjusted it again and the TV became clearer.

The TVs at that time were not like those in the future where you could watch whatever you wanted. Now, apart from the central station, there were only a few local stations and the pictures were still in black and white.

But even so, Cen Huaian couldn't take his eyes off it.

Those kids didn't lie to him. The TV was really good and the people on it could really move.

He walked over and carefully touched the TV screen, wondering curiously: Why can these people move?

Brother Luo left. It was dinner time and the curious neighbors went home one by one to cook. However, there were always some children who didn't want to leave and wanted to watch TV here.

Chuxia had too many doubts about Bangge, the kid, and she must figure out the relationship between Cen Huaian and him.

Plus, she was too tired and didn't want to cook.

So she coaxed the children to go home first, turned off the TV, turned around and asked Cen Huaian: "How do you usually meet that Bangge?"

Cen Huaian, whose attention was attracted by the TV, suddenly woke up, raised his little face and frowned, looking at Chuxia hesitantly, not knowing whether he should tell her.

Adults don't like children playing with Bangge, saying he is a bad kid.

Only Cen Huaian likes to follow him, because Bangge can let them eat and protect them.

Unlike other adults, they would scold them as a group of little hooligans.

Doesn't his mother want him to follow Bangge?

Chu Xia knew what Cen Huaian was thinking when she saw his expression. She patted his head and said, "Don't think too much. I just want to ask him something. You promised me today and then ran away secretly. Let's settle the score when we get back! I won't blame him. You take me to find him. I'll treat you kids to a meal at the state-owned hotel."

The state-owned hotel's stewed noodles!

This was the first thing that came to Cen Huaian's mind. The fragrant, fresh and delicious stewed noodles. He swallowed his saliva and wanted to go, but: "That costs a lot of money."

"Your uncle sent me a hundred dollars today. You can't finish it. Let's go."

Cen Huaian had a small smile on his face. He might get beaten when he got back, but it would be worth it to eat delicious food with Brother Bang.