Father's Land Mother's River

Chapter 28 Tempest

In mid-August [-], Typhoon No. [-] was about to make landfall on the Liaodong Peninsula.

The black clouds condensed into a thick hard shell, covering the earth tightly, and the sky was as dark as if the day had been lost.It rained non-stop for two days and two nights, like a Kowloon spitting water.

The water in the soil layer was saturated, and a stream of mountain water roared and rolled down the slopes of the ravines, unstoppably washing away the gravel, vegetation and animal nests.

The Fuzhou River surged and overflowed its embankment, and the earth was soaked in muddy water more than a foot deep.A few sloping old willow trees by the pond are covered with flower-necked grass snakes that have nowhere to hide, like garlic braids hanging from the eaves.

On the third day, the typhoon swirled and swept across the trees, crops and houses, causing everything to shake.The torrential rain poured down like a pour, and the zenith seemed to leak a big hole. God was powerless to mend the sky, so he only buckled a large sieve, and let the earth tremble in the turmoil.

The thick old poplar trees that have grown for decades beside the road, because the root system on one side is underdeveloped, and the other side is soaked in the drainage ditch, were knocked down by the strong wind, lying on the road in rows.

The power was cut off and the traffic was interrupted. In the afternoon, the river continued to rise, and the yards of the houses on the lower ground had already been flooded.Later, after being notified by the relevant departments, the upper reaches of the reservoir opened to release floods, and they began to evacuate one after another, and went to live with relatives and friends temporarily.

Liu Xiaonan and his uncle carried all the household items that were afraid of being soaked in water onto the kang, and escorted the family to leave in the wind and rain. The mother and sister were taken home by Guan Deyu Guan Xiaoyun, and Yang Erya took the children to other people's homes.

Wading the poultry, livestock and large livestock to other people's homes for foster care, everything is settled properly, and they are covered in mud and water.He asked his uncle to leave too, and he stayed to guard the house.

The house was already flooded, so Liu Xiaonan simply opened the door wide, jumped onto the kang to dry herself, and watched the water level rise slowly.

He suddenly felt a little scared.If my father had supported me in raising fish last spring, I would have lost all my money in this flood. At this time, I would probably only be fighting for the sky, luck or misfortune?

The strong wind was still raging, the rainstorm was crackling on the window panes, the sky was getting darker and darker, and the house was pitch black.Liu Xiaonan lit a candle, and the firefly-like candlelight fluttered and flickered, beating weakly in the cold air brought by the **.

He moved a wooden box down from a high place, wrapped it tightly with plastic sheeting, and put it back on a safe and highest place.This wooden box was left by Gu Yu, and the books inside are well preserved, and it is the source of his spiritual motivation.

Since the conflict with his father last spring, he forced himself not to indulge in books, and learned to drive a ox cart from his uncle.Uncle went out to do bricklaying work, and he also went to work as a small worker, learning the survival skills necessary for farmers.

When I was free, I practiced wrestling with my fourth brother. Even though I knew how to practice, I couldn't beat my fourth brother, but I also strengthened my body and learned some self-defense skills.

When it was time for the autumn harvest, he was already able to take care of himself, and he could afford and let go of the work in the crop yard.The parents seem to be very satisfied, especially the father, who no longer picks his nose and eyes, but there are very few conversations between father and son.

Father didn't keep his promise.When the snowflakes were flying, he didn't lend him the second volume of "The Quiet River Don", and he didn't mention it to his father.

When the weather is fine, he will practice calligraphy on a bluestone slab in the yard, saving ink and paper as he writes.Others think that his behavior is weird and withdrawn, but they don't know that this is the moment when his thinking is most agile and active.

He is immersed in his own world, unrestrained and unrestrained.That distant dream brought him indescribable spiritual relief.

Liu Xiaonan took out a few manuscript papers from the old school bag hanging on the beam of the room, and lay down on the kang to read and revise by candlelight.This is the draft of a novel he just finished writing recently.

In winter, he was notified again by the township culture and education department.There is a shortage of private teachers in primary schools. If you love education, report to the village immediately.

This time he didn't refuse right away. After all, it was a profession. Although it was not the same as an in-service teacher, it would make his parents, Guan Deyu, Guan Xiaoyun and others look at him differently.

He did not ask his parents for advice, but asked himself over and over again whether he would like to regard teaching as a lifelong career.

Grandma said, there is no Mr. Guan after Mr. Guan, do you have the courage and strength of Mr. Guan?Also a private teacher, Mr. Cheng Yi laughed at the injustice of fate, and dared to use his own miserable experience as a negative teaching material to motivate students.Teacher Yue lost his own world and lost his true nature, but he never forgot his duty as a teacher.

I am full of grievances, have a disgusting face, and face innocent children, can I be qualified to be a teacher?Do you have the courage and ability to take on the great responsibility of teaching and educating people?
As if a bolt of lightning pierced through the darkness, in Shi Potian's mind, images of three teachers who had a profound influence on him stood up in shock.He quickly grabbed the pen and wrote two big words on the manuscript paper in ecstasy: teacher!
The editor Mr. Zhao Guangzhi said that it is best for beginners to write about people and things that are familiar and touching. Why not record the words and deeds of the three teachers?Why didn't you realize this before?

His young heart was pounding, and he stared at the word "teacher" on the manuscript paper for a long time. The images of three teachers with different personalities and destinies flashed in front of his eyes, as clear and clear as if he had just met them. separate.

Hot sweat oozes from the immature face that has not been taken off, and hot and magical sparks are shining in the silent eyes.His body trembled slightly with tension and excitement, as if he had finally found the key to open that mysterious door.

He made a decisive decision not to apply for a private teacher. First, he felt that he was far from qualified, and second, he could not deviate from his dream just to cater to others.

He knows that his decision will touch the nerves of many people, he will be criticized by many parties, and he will face a more severe test, but compared with his dream, what is it?Even if the head is broken and bloody, it will not hesitate.

The wind seemed to have weakened, but the torrential rain did not stop. The water level in the house rose to more than a foot deep, and the fire kang became an isolated reef in the sea.

The walls were covered with squirming woodworms, and several mice crawled along the walls to the roof of the shed, running and biting in terror.

The candle burned to the base, and the flame collapsed to one side.The wax oil flowed down the edge of the kang, dripping into the water with a hissing sound.

Liu Xiaonan lit a candle again, sat up and did a few chest stretching exercises to move her shoulders and arms that were sore and numb from lying on the kang for a long time, her eyes were still fixed on the manuscript paper spread on the kang.

This is the third revision of the manuscript of "The Master". The front and back of the manuscript paper are like a patch upon patch of clothing, with traces of smearing and revision overlapping.

He accepted the lesson of the first submission, no longer eager to show it to others, and settled down to revise and refine it repeatedly, so as to let his immature writing settle down a little.

He lay down on the kang, put a pillow on his chest, and finished and copied the third draft of "The Master", which was his last hope.

Knowing that he did not apply for a private elementary school teacher, maybe his father didn't want to have another confrontation with him, or maybe his father was really afraid that he would really run away from home, so his father moved out and his mother talked with him.

My mother was so confused, and my mother always insisted that he take over from his father and work as a worker in the mine.

He told his mother several reasons. Private teachers have no future. Teacher Cheng Yi is knowledgeable and has teaching experience. Hasn't he been able to become a regular teacher after working for many years?He went to work as a private teacher, and the farm work of the family fell on his mother alone. How could he bear to exhaust his mother for a temporary job with no future?

Everything will be fine if you can coax your mother, but it's better if your father can understand, and there's nothing you can do if you don't understand.

Things were far from as simple as he expected, and he ignored the existence of another restrictive factor.

Guan Deyu, Guan Xiaoyun, father and daughter were silent together this time, as if they felt that they had misjudged the wrong person before, and they no longer had any illusions about what he did.

Before the Spring Festival, he took the initiative to go to Guan Deyu's house to write couplets. Guan Xiaoyun didn't show up, and he didn't hear the sound of the sewing machine.

Guan Deyu kept praising him, and his brush calligraphy improved a lot.But the look in his eyes was weird, as if he was hiding something.

After the beginning of spring, there was news in the village that Guan Xiaoyun had a blind date. The man was a middle school teacher and a graduate of a normal college.

He was reluctant to believe it, but on a Sunday, he saw with his own eyes that male teacher accompanied Guan Xiaoyun to wash clothes by the river, talking and laughing affectionately.

He seemed to have been hit by a sap, and he was a little dizzy for a while.

He avoided it wisely, the ache in his heart rolled over his body like hot peppers, venomous pain from the outside to the bone.Xiaoyun is beyond reproach, it is because he is ignorant of flattery, because he is useless.

It's time for a rural girl to have a baby at the age of 21, and she is disappointed again and again. Is there any reason and merit to make Xiaoyun wait indefinitely?
His mother complained that he was stupid and stupid, and that any daughter-in-law he got could be snatched away by others.He pretended not to care much, and comforted his mother that he was still young and hadn't seriously considered marriage.

Fortunately, he has a good medicine. The first draft of the novel "The Teacher" has been completed, and he is generally satisfied, at least he can move himself.

The pain has eased, so it's good to think about it from another angle.You don't have to feel guilty about Xiaoyun anymore, you don't have to think about how to fulfill the empty promise of "I will marry you when I am able to marry you", and it is easy to let go of the burden.

Xiaoyun has her own clear goals in life, and he has unrealistic dreams, one real and one false are not on the same track.He also tried to combine the two into two parallel tracks, but they were always separated by thousands of mountains and rivers, and there was no substantial progress for more than a year.

What makes me feel hurt?It's just poor self-esteem, which has been slightly injured.

When the candle was about to burn out again, Liu Xiaonan finished copying and sorting out the third draft, her wrists, arms, chest, back and back felt numb and swollen.He stood up with a flick of his wrist, wrapped the manuscript in a plastic bag, and put it in an old schoolbag hanging on the beam.

He looked at the water level, and it was still half a foot away from rising to the edge of the kang, but outside the wind stopped and the rain stopped, and the patter was intermittent.He was relieved, and lay on his back on the kang, flattened his body, and stretched his arms behind his head to relieve the soreness in his chest.

The candle was extinguished, and in the darkness, lines and pages of text rolled before his eyes, which were the drafts of his novels.He re-read the manuscript in his mind, carefully considering every detail, every line of text, and every punctuation mark.

He was very surprised that it was very difficult to memorize texts of hundreds of words before, but the draft of the novel with more than 1 words can be completely engraved in his mind.It seems that it is not a question of whether the memory is strong or not, but whether it is really hard.

Liu Xiaonan fell asleep naturally as if she was tired from reading.The storm stopped, and a colorful world appeared in his dream. He ran against the wind and swam from the river to the sea.
I don't know how long I slept, my hands felt cold, and I withdrew my hands and splashed the water on my face.I got up and found that the water level had risen to the edge of the kang, and there was only a layer of kang stone slabs between me and the flood.

He folded the quilt and put it on a high place, and waded out of the house.The typhoon has passed, the sky is full of shredded clouds, and the scorching sun shines on the vast ocean.

The flood seemed to be frozen, so there must be a high tide at the mouth of the sea, which hindered the flow of the flood.Floating on the murky water were broken tree branches, uprooted crops, and dead animals such as cats, dogs, and pigs.

The low wall of the vegetable garden is submerged under the water, and only half of the tall crops are exposed in stretches of fields.The trees on both sides of the river clearly mark the direction of the original river course.

Standing in the thigh-deep flood, Liu Xiaonan felt that she was a lonely boat in the vast ocean.

Someone called his name loudly, followed the sound and looked around, and it was the fourth brother sitting on the ridge of the house waving to him.He waded to the east courtyard, climbed up an apricot tree behind the house, stepped from the branch to the roof, and sat beside the fourth brother.The fourth brother handed him an ear of boiled tender corn.

Feeling a little hungry, Liu Xiaonan gnawed tender corn and said, "Fourth brother, you really know how to find a place, sit high and look far."

The fourth brother stared at the southwest and the lower reaches of the river and said, "How far can you see? Her family lives in the lower reaches of the river. I don't know what happened to her and her children. Will her house be washed down by the flood?" .”

"Who is she?"

"Who are you talking about?"

Liu Xiaonan suddenly remembered that the "she" mentioned by the fourth brother must be the young widow who had met him once.Fourth brother still misses her?
He has always felt that the inner world of the fourth brother is rough, simple and numb. He never expected that under the rough appearance, there is also an extremely weak side.

He looked at the fourth brother in surprise.The sun shines on the thick and rough side face of the fourth brother, half of which is yin and half yang, half of which is full of sadness, and half of which is frozen with longing.

Liu Xiaonan didn't know how to comfort the fourth brother, he could understand the state of mind of the fourth brother at this time, the pain and regret beyond comparison - why is he not like this?It's just that it's far less profound and far-reaching than the fourth brother.

The fourth brother suddenly turned his face and said, "Xiaonan, you must not be like the fourth brother. Don't let your ears get weak, you can do what others say, and you have to stand up to what you think, even if the sky falls. I've also heard about you, and no one can figure it out, and some people say that you are a dog who can't get on the big stage. I believe there must be your own reasons for this, and you didn't give it for nothing."

Liu Xiaonan was inexplicably moved. She didn't expect that the one who understood her best was the fourth brother who was farthest from her.

(End of this chapter)