wood builder

Tang Guoguo felt a little regretful. She typed back and forth in the WeChat dialog box in an attempt to resume the discussion.

But seeing Gu Zhaodi next to her put down her phone to take a nap, she didn't seem to want to continue the topic, so she deleted all the words again.

Recalling the scenes of attending classes with Gu Zhaodi these past few days, Tang Guoguo always felt that she and she were in two different worlds.

She is smart and knowledgeable. Tang Guoguo needs to watch videos repeatedly and write notes to remember all the course content. But Gu Zhaodi can point out the mistakes in her notes after just listening to the explanation briefly.

Not only that, Tang Guoguo also discovered that although Gu Zhaodi looked cold on the outside, she was actually a helpful person on the inside. Not only would she give up her seat to a pregnant woman on the subway, and help an old woman cross the street on the sidewalk, but she would not refuse even if the children running street stalls on the roadside asked her to buy hydrogen balloons.

Tang Guoguo got along very well with her, and they talked more and more.

Therefore, when she saw Gu Zhaodi smiling and touching the child's head one second, and hanging up the phone with her mother expressionlessly the next second, Tang Guoguo could not understand it at all. Such a person who was soft on the inside but strong on the outside How can a person be so indifferent to his mother?

Ever since, a self-righteous sermon blurted out:

"Gu Zhaodi, why don't you always answer your aunt's calls?"

"Mom gave birth to us, raised us, and helped us plan our lives. We should love her well! If there is any misunderstanding, we should explain it clearly, otherwise mom will be very sad."

"And you seem to like children very much, so your brother"

At this point, Gu Zhaodi, who had been walking quickly in front, suddenly stopped and turned around angrily. She was so scared that she quickly covered her mouth.

But Gu Zhaodi just said coldly: "Wait for the taxi here."

Then he held the hydrogen balloon and stood under the tree without saying a word.

Tang Guoguo lowered her head and rubbed her hands for five minutes before waiting for a taxi.

After getting in the car, the two of them had no communication.

When she originally shared her harvest with He Ying, Gu Zhaodi's mood had already begun to ease, but she didn't expect that she had poured cold water on her. Now she didn't even bother to look at herself.

Thinking of this, Tang Guoguo wanted to pinch her thigh.

But is there anything wrong with my own thoughts?

"Almost there."

"Don't stand out when you go out, and don't cause trouble to others."

These two sentences are what her parents say most to her. They love themselves so much, and what they say must be the truth. Then what's wrong with saying these things to your friends?

However, Gu Zhaodi and He Ying seemed angry.

what to do? ? ? Ahhhh! ! !
  Tang Guoguo roared in her heart and shouted for help!
  But she didn't know that Gu Zhaodi beside her was not angry with her at all.

She said nothing and had a cold face.

It was just because her mother kept sending WeChat messages telling her that July 7 was her brother’s first birthday, and her grandfather planned to hold a banquet in the village. He hoped that Gu Zhaodi, the eldest granddaughter, could attend on time. In order to express her expectation for her return, her mother also said that everyone is waiting for her to compete with her younger brothers and sisters to see if her Baguazhang skills have improved!
  But Gu Zhaodi knew that her attendance was completely unnecessary. Grandpa just didn't want to lose face on such an occasion.

Mom also said that her grandfather and grandma have been very good to her recently, and they will ask for her opinion on big and small matters in the family. The relationship between the sisters-in-law and sisters-in-law is also much harmonious. The uncles and aunts are more convinced of dad, the eldest brother, and they often ask for her opinion when there is something important in the association. , Dad will speak as the heir of the Gu family’s Baguazhang, and everything is developing in a better direction.

But these were brought to this family by her younger brother and have nothing to do with her, Gu Zhaodi.

The baby whose appearance she couldn't remember at all had not experienced the hardships of practicing martial arts since childhood, had not been beaten with a feather duster by his father, and had not been scolded by his grandfather. He had already surpassed her by thousands of times before even making a formal appearance. hundred times.

So, what does her hard work count for?
  The bruises on her body, the calluses on her hands, the sprained lumbar spine, as well as her indifferent character, all because she was a girl, became worthless.

but.

But Gu Zhaodi no longer cares about these.

What Grandma Jiang said before she passed away made the ice in her heart slowly begin to melt. She had begun to try to understand her parents, but she found that she simply couldn't do it.

She really wanted to know.

Why did the mother tell herself that her brother’s birthday was July 7nd, but she didn’t remember that her daughter’s birthday was July 22th?
  Gu Zhaodi didn't want to ask, because if she did, her parents would scold her for being petty. She had even thought of their lines.

"Isn't it just a birthday?"

"You haven't lived much in these years, why don't you spend it with your brother?"

"That's almost enough. Why worry about it so much?"

Yes, why worry so much?

After all, she has never looked forward to birthdays since she was eight years old.

Whenever she thinks back to July 7, when she was eight years old, Gu Zhaodi can’t help but think of the sticky, suffocatingly hot weather that day. It's already very hot in Hebei in mid-July, but because her mother will cook a lot of her favorite dishes today, and her father will buy her a birthday cake, she will run home directly after school, sweating profusely in the heat and feeling happy.

Her home was a staff dormitory assigned to her father's workplace. The space was small and there was no air conditioning. The only electric fan was placed by her mother in front of Gu Zhaodi's desk.

When she saw Gu Zhaodi coming home early, she said, "You do your homework first, and you'll eat when your dad comes back."

Gu Zhaodi smiled and said, "Okay."

Then I finished my homework amidst the squeaking sound of the electric fan, the choking cough of my mother, and the sizzling sound of the spatula cooking. At this time, her father also came back, carrying the cream cake that she had longed for.

"Look, Di Di, your grandpa asked dad to bring you this. It's your favorite birthday cake." Dad put the cake on the folding table when he came in.

Mom came out with the dishes and said with disbelief in her tone: "When did your dad think so highly of Didi that he still buys cakes? It's not easy!"

"Yeah! I didn't expect it either!" Dad laughed naively, "Come on, Dad will open it for Didi, light candles, and make a birthday wish with Didi!"

"Well, open it quickly! Our Didi is already eight years old, and we have just eaten the birthday cake bought by grandpa!" Mom took off her apron and held Gu Zhaodi in her arms.

Gu Zhaodi felt that she was the happiest person at that time!

She clapped her hands while looking at the cake box that was about to be opened, imagining whether it would be flowers or a castle on the cake?

But when the box is taken away.

There were no flowers or castles on the cake. The car made of blue cream was half collapsed, and the name on it was the name of my uncle's cousin.

The father was stunned for two seconds and hurriedly explained to the mother: "Oh, her second uncle's child had a birthday yesterday. Dad said that he bought too many cakes and it would be a waste if he didn't eat them. Besides, isn't this cake crooked? I'll give it to him. Just give it a push.”

It was okay if I didn’t push it, but when my father pushed it, the already shaky cake suddenly became unrecognizable.

The mother raised her hand and overturned the cake to the ground, shouting: "I know your parents are nothing! Didn't I just give birth to a daughter? What happened to the daughter? The daughter can't even have a birthday cake, right? What do you mean? How to eat cake? Aren’t they just disgusting people?!”

"What you said is too much!" Dad also lost his temper and knocked the folding table crookedly with two palms. The dishes on the table, along with the plates, bowls and chopsticks, hit the ground with a "splat".

When my mother saw this, she smashed whatever she had at hand: "I can't live this life!" Next, everything visible in the kitchen and bedroom was smashed by the two of them.

"Mom and dad, stop quarreling! You can eat the cake!" Little Gu Zhaodi didn't understand why. Mom and dad were fine one moment, but in the next moment they were like two enemies fighting. She only knew that it was all because of the birthday cake, so she She cried and shouted, grabbed the cream and stuffed it in her mouth, "The cake can be eaten, I will eat the cake, please stop arguing! Woohoo!~"

But when her mother saw this scene, she became even more furious. She pulled Gu Zhaodi's collar and yelled, "Eat, eat, eat! You know how to eat! Your father and mother don't even treat you as a family member, so you still have the nerve to eat!!"

Dad's face became even more ferocious: "Cry, cry, cry! Just cry! My daughter is so delicate!"

While the two fell in love with each other, they did not forget to curse each other.
  From then on, Gu Zhaodi would also celebrate birthdays, but she never had birthday cakes again. She would tell her parents every time that she was allergic to cream, but they actually believed it and never bought it for her.

But she will never forget the cake she ate while crying that day. The cream was so sweet and the tears were so salty.

As for birthday wishes
  Birthday wishes be damned!

The suffocating and painful memories were brought back to the depths of her mind by the vibration of messages on her phone, and Gu Zhaodi opened WeChat.

It was He Ying’s message: [I thought about it, and I still think I should fight with the crew. This is not a similar problem, nor is it causing trouble for Cheng Bo. It is our rigorous attitude as future practitioners of ancient architecture. I think both the crew and the construction unit will understand. 】

Tang Guoguo also changed her mind instantly: [Yes, I agree. But I think it’s better to tell Teacher Ye first. 】

[Well, that’s a good idea. ] He Ying thought for a long time and then added, [But we should still prepare all the materials so that we can be more convincing when negotiating with the crew. 】

Gu Zhaodi thought it made sense: [Then let's prepare the information first, and then go negotiate with the crew after returning from BJ. 】

He Ying: [Okay! 】

Tang Guoguo: [Yeah! 】

No one asked He Ying why she was so persistent. Only she knew what kind of struggle she had to go through to make such a choice.

Because every time she wanted to ignore this matter, her grandfather's words, "It must be restored as it was before. We must show what it was like in history." would echo in her ears.

That was the last time her grandfather taught her how to draw blood, and it was also the last time she saw her grandfather's stern look.

A few days before the big earthquake, He Ying met a little brother at the Baoen Temple restoration site. This little brother's grandfather, Grandpa Liang, was a very good friend with her grandfather. Grandpa Liang made a special trip from BJ to Sichuan, invited Grandpa He Ying to finish the final ground work, and then went to BJ with him to participate in the maintenance of the colorful paintings in the Qian Gallery of the Summer Palace.

But the agreement between the two could not be fulfilled due to some accidents.

At that time, the weather was too hot and the humidity was too high, so the blood used to make the ground war fermented. In order to rush the work, someone proposed to use these fermented recycled materials to blend with fresh pig blood for secondary production, but my grandfather sternly rejected it.

Not only that, grandpa also severely criticized these people: "Although this is not a particularly famous scenic spot and there are not that many tourists, the treasures left by our ancestors cannot be wasted in our hands! We cannot build it into the Golden Palace. But at the very least we must ensure that it remains as old as it has ever been! Whatever it looked like in history and what craftsmanship it was, we must restore its original appearance!"

The little He Ying seemed to understand but still kept these words in mind.

Grandpa distributed the blood materials himself, and she kept watching.

She watched her grandfather put fresh pig blood in a large vat, pass it through an iron gauze basket, and pass the plasma out. Then use loofah pulp to rub the blood clot into thin pieces, and repeat it many times until the plasma becomes fine and free of impurities. Then he poured lime water into the blood plasma, stirred it evenly, and stared at it for two hours before the blood material was successfully prepared.

Grandpa asked her: "Are you afraid of Yingying?"

"Don't be afraid!" He Ying shook his head.

Grandpa nodded and turned around to show off to Grandpa Liang, "Old Liang, look at your grandson. He's afraid of getting blood tests. How can he take over from you in the future? No one can compare to my granddaughter!" He said and pointed again. All around, "Even the son of Xiao Chu's family was chased all over the garden by her! You have to watch your grandson later and don't get caught by my granddaughter!"

"What's going on if you catch me?" Grandpa Liang's beard curled up, "If you catch me, we'll have a baby kiss!" After saying that, he turned around and saw his grandson running out crying, so he stamped his foot, "Hey! This grandson Who are you following? If you see blood, you will wet your pants in fear!"

He Ying tilted her head and saw that the little brother had disappeared.

She continued to accompany her grandfather to boil the gray oil, boil the oil, and make the oil full. When it's time to comb the hemp, grandpa will ask He Ying: "Yingying, tell grandpa, what is the battle of one hemp and five ash?"

"It's just five coats of putty and a layer of linen!"

"Then what kind of building is this used for?"

"Used in general buildings!" He Ying replied loudly.

"That's right!" Grandpa combed the linen and asked again, "How much linen and how much dust should be used for the important parts of the palace?"

"One linen, one cloth and six ash!" He Ying replied.

"Then where else can this linen, one cloth and six ash be used?" Looking at Grandpa Liang's surprised expression, Grandpa was even more excited.

He Ying also lived up to the high expectations and said the correct answer: "It can also be used on the couplet plaque!"

As soon as these words came out, Grandpa Liang was full of praise: "I didn't expect your granddaughter to be so powerful at only eight years old. She turned out to be a genius! My grandson really can't control her!"

"Hahaha!!!"

Grandpa couldn't be more proud of that day in my memory.

The uncles and aunts around them were also performing their respective duties. Some used shovels to remove the oily skin on the surface of large wooden pieces, while others used tools to shovel open the gaps in the dried wooden pieces. After the gaps in the wooden pieces were torn and cleaned, they were removed again. Some people use wooden strips to last the seams and insert bamboo nails.

They all laughed heartily when they heard the conversation between the two grandfathers. Even the little boy who usually played hide and seek with him poked his head around to see what made everyone so happy.

But no one expected that a few days after Grandpa Liang and his little brother left, these busy and warm scenes would be forever fixed on that day.

Instead, there were oil splashing everywhere and broken beams. Grandpa could have run out of the hall, but because he caught the little boy on the beams, he never came out again.

From then on, the scene of her accompanying her grandfather to distribute blood could only be seen in her dreams.

But He Ying didn't expect that today, not only would she see it in the real world, but this scene would also be at the filming location of the "Master Craftsman of the Ming Dynasty" film and television base.

What surprised her even more was that when she saw such a scene again, she would actually run away.

If grandpa saw it, he would definitely laugh at her cowardice and timidity.

But not now.

She cast her gaze out the window, looking wildly at the endless sea of ​​red trees. The bright red, scarlet, and bright red tree crowns were struggling and blooming, trying to swallow her like an open bloody mouth, but she was no longer afraid in her heart. Because she knows that although she will face difficult battles in the future, she is no longer alone.

Because since they decided to negotiate with the crew of "The Ming Dynasty", Gu Zhaodi and Tang Guoguo have been sending information searched on the Internet to the group.

And just when everyone was discussing in full swing, Lou Xinyue’s voice message almost shattered everyone’s eardrums:

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh... "The God of Ming Dynasty"? Isn't that our Yuan Lei's drama? Their film and television base is in Tianyang?"

"What?! There's something wrong with their set?! How is this possible! I want to send this to Yuan Lei Chao!!"

"Mom will never allow this to happen!!!"