Old things in the south

Chapter 2 Hui'an Pavilion (1)
一
The sun came in through the big glass windows, shone on the big white paper wall, shone on the three-drawer table, and shone on my little bed.I woke up, and I was still lying on the bed, looking at the many small, small dust flying in that ray of sunlight.Mama Song came over to dust the window sill and the table. With the dancing of the feather duster, the dust in the sunlight increased and the dancing became more lively. I hurriedly pulled up the quilt to cover my face, because I was afraid that the dust would choke me and cough.

Mama Song’s feather duster came to dust my little bed in her turn. She dusted all the corners and corners of the little bed. The handle of the duster hit the bed rail and rattled. I wanted to scold her, but she spoke first:
"I haven't slept enough!" She said, and she lifted my quilt, and my whole body in fleece jacket and trousers was exposed, and I sneezed twice immediately.She forced me to get up and dress me.The printed twill padded jackets and trousers are all newly made; the trousers are so ridiculous that they can stand upright, and you can tell how thick the cotton is.

Ma was sitting by the stove combing her hair, leaning over, with a lot of hair running down the nape of her neck, and she was grating and grating, and on the stove was a bottle of rose-colored hair oil, and it was cold and the oil was congealed. , Always put it on the stove to melt before it can be applied.

It is bright outside the window, and there are a few birds that are not afraid of the cold on the dry and bare branches.I was thinking, when will the tree be full of leaves?This is our first winter in Beijing.

Mom still can't speak Beijing dialect well, she is telling Song Ma what to buy today.Mom wouldn't say, "Buy a catty of pork, don't be too fat." She said, "Buy a catty of pork, don't go back too much."

After combing my hair, Mama Song wiped my hair with her oily hands, and also braided two braids for me.I saw that Mama Song was about to go out with a basket, so I hurriedly called her:

"Mother Song, I'll go shopping with you."

Song Ma said, "Aren't you afraid of the lunatics in Hui Nan Guan?"

Song's mother is from Shunyi County, and she can't speak Beijing dialect well. She said "Hui Nan Guan", my mother said it was "Hui Wa Guan", and my father said it was "Fei An Guan". I followed the children in the alley Speaking of "Hui'an Pavilion", I don't know which one is right.

Why should I be afraid of the lunatics in Hui'an Pavilion?She smiled at me yesterday!She had such a funny smile, and if Ma hadn't held my hand tightly, I would have walked over to see her and talked to her.

The Huian Pavilion is at the very front of our alley. Up the three-story stone steps, there are two large black doors recessed, with a plaque on the door. When passing by, my father taught me to read: "Fei'an Guild Hall".Dad said that the students living there are all from "Fei'an", studying in college like my uncle.

"Also at Peking University?" I asked my father.

"There are many universities in Beijing, and Tsinghua University! Yenching University!"

"Could you go to Fei'an—no, Hui'an Pavilion to play with the uncles?"

"Do it! Do it!" I knew that no matter what I asked for, my father would use this Hakka phrase to refuse me.I think one day I will step up those three steps and walk through the dark door.

I have seen the lunatic in the Hui'an Pavilion several times. Every time she stood at the door, Mom or Song would squeeze my hand and say softly, "Crazy!" Looking back, they pulled my arms hard to stop me.In fact, that lunatic is not just a big girl with a big braid of Chinese pine, just like the big girl of the Zhang family and the Li family!She always stood leaning against the door wall, looking at people passing by.

Yesterday, I went shopping with my mother to the Fozhao Building in Luoma City. My mother went to buy duck egg powder for face rubbing. As for me, I just like to eat the Bazhen plum there.We came back from Luomashi Street, walked through Weiran Hutong, Xicaochang, and arrived at Jingwozi in Chunshu Hutong. The alley where we lived was diagonally opposite Jingwozi.As soon as I entered the alley, I saw the lunatic in the Hui'an Pavilion. She was wearing a purple cotton-padded jacket, black velvet fur, a row of bangs on her head, and a big red velvet rope tied into her braid. Throwing the big braids forward, playing with the ends of the braids with both hands, staring blankly at the old locust tree in the yard opposite.There were a few crows on the dry branches, and there was no one in the alley.

Mom was lowering her head and muttering, she must be calculating how much she bought today, so that she could report the bill to her carefree father, so Mom had already reached the "Huiwa Pavilion" without noticing.I followed behind my mother, kept watching the madman, and forgot to walk.At this time, the lunatic's eyes fell from the locust tree and happened to see me. Her eyes were fixed on me, as if she was looking for something in my face.Her face was pale and bluish, the tip of her nose was a little red, probably from the cold wind, her chin was pointed, and her two thin lips were tightly closed.Suddenly her lips moved, her eyes blinked twice, she was smiling, as if she was about to speak, and she stretched out her braided hand to me, beckoning me over.For some reason, I shivered greatly all over my body, and followed, I followed her beckoning and smiling to walk towards her. ——But Mom turned around and pulled me suddenly:
"What's the matter, you?"

"Huh?" I was a little confused.Mom took a look at the madman and said:
"Why are you shivering? Are you afraid—are you going to drown? Go home!" My hand was tugged hard by my mother.

When I got home, I was still thinking about the appearance of the lunatic.Isn't her smile funny?What would happen to her if I talked to her—I said, "Hmm!"I thought blankly, I was too lazy to eat dinner, because I had eaten too much Bazhenmei.But after dinner, Mom said to Song Ma:

"Yingzi must be scared." Then he made me a bowl of sugar water, told me to drink it, and ordered me to sleep under the covers. ...

At this time, my braids were done, and I chased Mama Song to buy vegetables. She walked in front, and I followed behind.Her disgusting big black cotton trousers, so thick, so fat, and tied at the bottom.Others told Ma that old mothers in Beijing were very good at stealing things. When they stole rice, they put it into the trouser pockets along the waistband of their trousers in handfuls, so that they just fell into the tied trouser leg tubes and would not leak out.I was thinking, is there any white rice from my family in Mama Song's fat trouser legs?

Passing by the Hui'an Pavilion, I looked inside. The black door was wide open, and there was a briquette stove in the doorway, and the madman's mother and father were cooking something by the stove.Everyone called the lunatic's father "Changban Laowang", and Changban was the caretaker of the guild hall. They lived in a room facing the street.Although Mama Song doesn't allow me to watch madmen, I know she loves to watch madmen, and asks about madmen, but I'm just not allowed to listen to them.At this moment, Mama Song was also looking into the Hui'an Pavilion, just as the lunatic's mother raised her head, she and Mama Song said at the same time, "Have you eaten? You!" Papa said that Beijingers are free all day long, no matter what time When we meet, we always ask if we have eaten.

A few steps south from the entrance of the alley is Jingwozi, where the ground is full of water, and some places have formed thin ice. The wheelbarrows come and go one after another. It's so loud, it's so harsh, I'm going to plug my ears!In Jingwozi, two people were fetching water from the deep well, and the water was poured into a large sink, and the person who pushed the water collected the water in the large sink and sent it to each house.Next to the well lived a friend of mine—a girl who was as tall as me.At this time, I stopped beside Jingwozi and said to Mama Song:
"Mother Song, go shopping for vegetables, I'll wait for Niuer."

Niuer, I first saw her in the oil and salt store.That day she held two bowls in both hands, took a big one, and bought sauce, vinegar, and green onions. The clerk teased and said, "Niu'er, you will only be allowed to leave after singing a few words!" With tears in my eyes, my hands were shaking, and the vinegar was about to be spilled. I was so annoyed that I couldn't express it, so I rushed to Niuer's side and asked them with my waist:

"Why?"

In this way, I met Niuer.

Niu'er has only one braid, which is yellow and short, like the tail of a puppy my mother bought for me at the Earth Temple.The second time I saw Niu'er was when I was watching fetching water by the well.She came over and stood beside me silently. We both smiled at each other, not knowing what to say.After a while, I couldn't help touching her little yellow braid, she smiled at me again, pointed to the back, and said in a low voice:
"You live in that alley?"

"Well." I said.

"What door is it?"

I stretched out my fingers to do the math:

"One, two, three, four, the fourth door. Come and play with us."

She shook her head and said, "There are lunatics in your alley, Mom won't let me go."

"What are you afraid of? She doesn't eat people."

She still shook her head with a smile.

When Niuer smiled, there were two small swirls on the flesh on both sides of her nose under her eyes, which was very beautiful, but Song Ma actually said to the shopkeeper of the oil and salt shop:
"This kid looks handsome, but he's a little thin. His eyes are too bright and always watery. Look, there are two puddles of tears under his eyes."

I like her unspeakably in my heart, and I like her so gentle, unlike Song Mama who scolded me when I was in a hurry: "Dance again? After a while, he whispered: "I'm going back, my father is waiting for me to hang my throat. See you tomorrow!"

I have met Niu'er by the well nest several times, as long as I see the red padded jacket and trousers flashing over there, I am full of joy, but today, I have been waiting for a long time and I have not seen her come out, I am very disappointed, my velvet There is also a small bag of Bazhen plum hidden in the pocket of the gown, which is for Niuer to eat.I felt it, and it became hot, and the wrapping paper was torn and sticky, and I had to be scolded by Mama Song when she was washing the clothes.

I felt very bored, so I walked home. I originally thought that if I saw Niuer today, I would tell her a good idea. Walk across the alley to my house, so I don’t need to pass through the Hui’an Pavilion, and I don’t need to be afraid of seeing crazy people.

I lowered my head and thought about it, and walked to the entrance of the Hui'an Pavilion.

"Hey!"

scared me!It is the madman.Biting his lower lip, he looked at me with a smile.Her eyes are bright, and when she smiles under her eyes - just like Song Ma said, there are two tear holes!I want to see her clearly, how long ago I wanted to see her clearly.I couldn't help but walked up the steps facing her eyes.The sun shone on her face, which was often pale, but today it was bright.The hand tucked inside the short padded jacket reached out to hold mine, it was so warm and soft.I looked in the alley at this time, no one passed by.It's so strange, I'm not afraid of the madman now, but I'm afraid that people will see me holding hands with the madman.

"How old are you?" she asked me.

"Well—six years old."

"Six years old!" She called out in surprise, lowered her head, and suddenly raised my braid to look at my neck, looking for something. "No." She murmured to herself, and then asked me:
"Did you see our little Guizi?"

"Xiaoguizi?" I didn't understand what she was talking about.

At this moment, the lunatic's mother came out from the gate, frowning and saying anxiously:
"Xiuzhen, don't scare the little girl!" She turned to me again and said:
"Don't listen to her, she's talking nonsense! Go back! Your mother won't be relieved when you turn around. Uh—do you hear me?" She said, shaking her hand, telling me to go back.

I looked up at Madman and knew her name was Xiuzhen.She took my hand, shook it lightly, and didn't let me go.Her smile increased my courage, and I said to the old man:
"No!"

"Little southern barbarian!" Xiuzhen's mother also laughed, pointing lightly at my forehead, this must be a scolding sentence, just like my father often said to his mother in a contemptuous tone, "they are North boy ghosts" It's the same!
"It doesn't matter if you play here, someone is looking for your family, don't rely on our girl recruiting you."

"I won't tell you!" Why do you have to tell me so?I know what to say and what not to say.Mom had a gold bracelet and kept it in her little jewelry box, and I never told Dad.

"Come on!" Xiuzhen pulled me in. I thought I was going to play with my uncles who went to college in the deep courtyard. It turned out that she took me into the concierge where they lived.

The room is not as bright as my house, the glass windows are very small, there is a big kang next to the window, and a low kang table is placed in the middle, with work and sewing boxes piled up on it.Xiuzhen picked up an unfinished dress from the table, looked left and right at me, and then happily said to her mother who came in:

"Mom, you see, what I said, it just fits! Then open the collar." Then, she found another rope and wrapped it around my neck to measure. Zhang Hua, Hua'er is a big white and fat doll with no clothes on, holding a big ingot in his hand, riding on a big red fish.

Xiuzhen turned to me and saw that I was looking up. She also looked at the painting with my eyes, and said in the same way:
"Look at the kang and see how fat our little Guizi is. He was only eight months old at that time, riding a big goldfish, going around the house, playing without eating, just doing the shopping..."

"All right, all right! No--shame-shame!" Xiuzhen was talking happily, and I was also confused when I heard it. The leader of the class, Old Wang, came in and gave Xiuzhen an impatient look and said her.Xiuzhen ignored her father, and pushed me to take off my shoes on the kang, leaned closer to the painting, and just said:

"I didn't eat, I didn't wear clothes, so I ran outside, always anxious to find her father, I didn't listen to her no matter how many times I said, I said wait until I made some more clothes and put them on! This year's The undershirt is done first, and the vest is just about to be sewed with buttons. This padded jacket will be ready as soon as the collar is opened. But what is the rush! It makes people wonder, what happened..." she said He kept talking and stopped talking, with his head down, thinking about the puzzling thing, and was in a daze all the time.I think she is playing "play house" with me, right?Didn't her mother say she was talking nonsense?If you want to play house, I have a set of gadgets, small watches, small abacus, and small bells, all of which can be used to play together.So I just say:

"It's okay, I'll give the watch to Xiao Guizi, and she will go home at a certain time when she has the watch." But——At this moment, I remembered that my mother would send Song's mother to find me, so I said, "I want to go home too." gone."

When Xiuzhen heard that I was going to leave, she stopped being dazed, and followed me off the kang, saying, "That's kind, thank you in advance! Seeing Xiaoguizi call her back, it's cold outside, so she said I wouldn't scold you." She, don't be afraid."

I nodded and promised her that there really seemed to be such a little Guizi that I knew.

(End of this chapter)