The Complete Works of Lu Xun's Novels

Chapter 12

He suddenly raised one hand and counted with his fingers, eleven, thirteen, even this year's sixteen, none of the examiners knew how to read articles, it's a pitiful thing, so he couldn't help laughing.However, he became angry, and suddenly took out the authentic handicrafts and sample notes from under the cloth of the schoolbag, took it out, and walked out, just as he approached the door, but saw that his eyes were bright, and even a group of chickens were laughing at him, so he couldn't help but feel a twitch in his heart Jumping wildly, I had to retract inside.

He sat down again, his eyes were extraordinarily twinkling; he saw many things, but vaguely—the collapsed sugar tower-like future lying in front of him, and this future only widened again, blocking his vision. all the way.

The smoke from other houses had died down long ago, and the dishes and chopsticks had been washed, but Chen Shicheng didn't cook yet.The miscellaneous surnames who live here know the old rules. Whenever they encounter the year of the county examination and see such a look after the results are released, it is better to close the door as soon as possible and not to meddle too much.At first, human voices were cut off, and then the lights were turned off one after another. Only the moon slowly appeared in the cold night sky.

The sky was as blue and green as a sea, and there were some floating clouds, swaying as if someone had washed chalk in a brush wash.The moon cast cold waves of light on Chen Shicheng. At first it was just like a newly polished iron mirror, but this mirror mysteriously illuminated Chen Shicheng's whole body, and reflected the shadow of the iron moon on his body.

He was still wandering in the yard outside the house, his eyes were quite quiet, and his surroundings were also silent.But the silence suddenly became disturbed for no reason, and he heard a hurried whisper in his ear:

"Bend left and right..."

He shrugged, and when he listened, the voice repeated again:
"Bend right!"

he remembered.This yard was the yard where Yeye and his grandmother enjoyed the cool air on summer nights when his family was not so carved.At that time, he was only ten years old and had a child of zero. He was lying on a bamboo couch, and his grandmother sat beside the couch and told him interesting stories.Yi said that she once heard from De Yi's grandmother that the ancestors of the Chen family were extremely rich, and this house is the Zuji. The ancestors buried countless silver coins, and the lucky descendants will definitely get them, but it has not been found yet.As for the location, it is hidden in the middle of a riddle:

"Bend left and right, walk forward and back, measure gold and silver regardless of fighting."

As for this riddle, Chen Shicheng often secretly speculates about it in normal times, but it is a pity that he just thinks it makes sense, but immediately feels that it doesn't fit.Once, he was sure that it was under the house rented to the Tang family, but he never had the courage to dig it out; after a while, he felt that it was too different.As for the few old excavated traces in his own house, they were all hesitant behaviors after the previous few visits. When he saw it later, he still felt ashamed and ashamed.

But today the iron light covered Chen Shicheng, and he came to persuade him softly. If he hesitated occasionally, he would give him serious proofs, coupled with gloomy pressure, so that he had to turn to his room again. look away.

The white light was like a white round fan, flickering in his room.

"Finally here too!"

As he said, he hurried into the room like a lion, but when he stepped inside, there was no trace of the white light, only a barren old room, and a few broken desks were not in the dark.He stood calmly, and slowly fixed his eyes again, but the white light clearly appeared again, this time it was wider, whiter than the sulfur fire, and fainter than the morning mist, and it was under a desk near the east wall .

Chen Shicheng ran to the back of the door like a lion, reached out to touch the hoe, and bumped into a black shadow.He was a little scared for some reason, and he lit the lamp in panic, and saw that the hoe was nothing but leaning on it.He moved the table away and dug up four large square bricks with a hoe. He squatted down and saw that it was fine yellow sand as usual, but he pulled his sleeves and crawled away the fine sand, revealing the black soil underneath.He was extremely careful and quiet, digging down one hoe after another, but the night was too quiet after all, and the sound of sharp iron touching the soil was always dull and unbelievable.

The pit was more than two feet deep, and there was no urn mouth. Chen Shicheng was anxious, and there was a crisp sound, which made his wrist hurt. The tip of the hoe touched something hard; , a large square brick is below.His heart trembled violently, and he concentrated on digging up the square brick. The bottom was also covered with the same black soil as before, and after he had loosened a lot of soil, the bottom seemed to be infinite.But suddenly I touched a small hard object, round, probably a rusty copper coin; there were also a few broken magnets.

Chen Shicheng felt empty in his heart, sweating all over his body, scratching impatiently; at the same time, his heart trembled in the air, and touched a strange little thing again, which seemed to be roughly horseshoe-shaped, but the tentacles were very brittle .He concentrated on digging up the thing again, pinched it cautiously, and when he looked carefully under the light, the thing was stripped like a rotten bone, with a row of broken teeth on it.He had already misunderstood that this might be the jawbone, and the jawbone began to move in his hand, with a smile on his face, and he finally heard him say:

"It's over again this time!"

He shivered in shock, and at the same time let go of his hands, his jawbone fluttered back to the bottom of the pit not long before he fled to the yard.He peeked into the room, the lights were so bright, his jaw was so mocking, he was so frightened that he didn't dare to look over there anymore.Hiding in the shadows under the distant eaves, he felt more at peace; but in this peace, suddenly, he heard whispers in his ears:

"There is no...going to the mountains..."

Chen Shicheng seemed to remember hearing this kind of talk on the street during the day, and he didn't wait to finish listening to it before he suddenly realized it.He suddenly looked up to the sky, the moon had already disappeared towards the Xifeng Peak, and the Xifeng Peak, which was 35 miles away from the city, was in front of him, standing upright as black as a chao wat, and a huge white light shone around it.

And this white light is far ahead.

"Yes, to the mountains!"

He made up his mind and ran out tragically.After opening the door several times, there was no more sound from inside the door.When the lights froze, the big lanterns shone on the empty houses and potholes. After a few blasts, they gradually shrank to nothing, which meant that the residual oil had been burned out.

"Open the city gate..."

The terrified mourning voice with great hope, like a gossamer, screamed tremblingly in the dawn in front of the West Gate.

At noon the next day, someone saw a floating corpse in Wanliu Lake, fifteen miles away from the west gate, and immediately spread the word, and finally reached the ears of the dibao, who asked the countrymen to fish it up.It was a male corpse, in his 50s, with "white face and no beard" and no clothes or pants on his body.In other words, this is Chen Shicheng.But the neighbors didn't bother to look at it, and there was no relative to claim the corpse, so after being checked by the county committee, the local security guard carried it and buried it.As for the cause of death, of course, there is no problem. Stripping the dead body's clothes is a common thing, and it is not enough to be suspicious to murder: and it is also proved that Wu Zuo fell into the water before he was alive, because he had indeed struggled for his life at the bottom of the water, so it is very Every fingernail is full of mud from the bottom of the river.

June [-].

This article was originally published on July 19, 13, No. [-], Volume No. [-], of Shanghai "Oriental Magazine".

rabbit and cat

The third wife, who lives in the yard behind us, bought a pair of white rabbits during the summer for Yi's children to watch.

This pair of white rabbits seems to have left their mother not long ago. Although they are different species, it can be seen that they are innocent.However, he also erected his small red long ears, moved his nose, and his eyes looked rather suspicious. He probably felt that the place was strange after all, and he no longer had the peace of mind he had when he was in his hometown.If you go out to buy this kind of thing on the day of the temple fair, you can spend at most two dongs each, but the third wife spent one yuan because you asked the envoy to go to the store to buy it.

The children were naturally very proud, and shouted and surrounded to watch; the adults also surrounded and watched; a puppy named S also ran over, sniffed it, sneezed, and retreated a few steps.The third wife yelled, "S, listen, you are not allowed to bite him!" Then she punched him on the head, and S backed away, and never bit him again.

This pair of rabbits is always locked in the small yard behind the rear window. It is said that it is because they like to tear the wallpaper too much, and they often gnaw the feet of wooden utensils.There was a wild mulberry tree in this small yard, and the mulberry seeds fell to the ground. They loved it the most, and they didn't even eat the spinach that was fed to them.When crows and magpies wanted to come down, they bowed their bodies and flicked hard on the ground with their hind feet, and jumped up with a bang, like a cloud of snow flying. The crows and magpies hurried away in fright. I dare not come any closer.The third wife said that crows and magpies are not a big deal, at most they just grab a little food. The evil one is a big black cat, which often looks fiercely on the low wall, but it must be guarded against. Fortunately, S and the cat are rivals, or It's not like there's anything.

The children catch them to play with them from time to time; they are very kind, with their ears pricked up, their noses wriggling, and they stand obediently in the circle of little hands, but they will slip away whenever they have time.Their night couch is a small wooden box with some straw inside, just under the eaves of the rear window.

After a few months of this, they suddenly dug the soil by themselves. They dug very quickly. With one grab with the front foot and a kick with the back foot, within half a day, a deep hole had been dug.Everyone was surprised, but when they looked carefully later, it turned out that one's belly was much bigger than the other's.They carried hay and leaves into the hole the next day, and they were busy most of the day.

Everyone was happy, saying that there was another little rabbit to see; the third wife imposed martial law on the children, and they were not allowed to catch them again.My mother also likes the prosperity of their family very much, and said that after the baby is weaned, she will ask for two horses to raise outside her window.

They have been living in the self-made cave ever since, and sometimes they come out to eat some food, but they disappeared later, but I don't know whether they transported food in advance or did not eat.After more than ten days, the third wife told me that the two rabbits came out again, and the rabbits probably died after being born, because the female one had a lot of milk, but there was no sign of it going in to feed the babies. .Yi was quite angry between his words, but there was nothing he could do.

One day, the sun was very warm, there was no wind, and the leaves were not moving. I suddenly heard many people laughing there. When I looked for the sound, I saw many people were looking at the third wife's back window: there was a little rabbit. , jumped in the yard.It was much smaller than when his parents bought it, but it was already capable of kicking the ground with its hind feet and jumping up.The children scrambled to tell me that they saw a little rabbit coming to the hole to poke his head, but he retracted immediately. It must be his younger brother.

The younger one also picked up some grass leaves to eat, but the older one seemed not to allow him, and often snatched them away, but did not eat them himself.The children laughed loudly, the little one was startled at last, and jumped into the hole; the big one also followed to the entrance of the hole, pushing his child's back with his front feet, and after pushing forward, he crawled through the dirt to seal it up. Hole.

Since then, the small yard has become more lively, and people have spied on the windows from time to time.

However, the small one and the big one disappeared altogether.At this time, it was cloudy day after day, and the third wife was thinking about being murdered by the big black cat.I said otherwise, because the weather was cold, so of course we all hid, as soon as the sun came out, it would definitely come out.

The sun came out, but they were all gone.So everyone forgot.

Only the third wife often feeds them spinach there, so she often thinks about it.Yi once went into the small courtyard behind the window, and suddenly found another hole in the corner of the wall. Looking at the old hole again, there were still many claw marks.If the claw marks belonged to a big rabbit, the claws would not be so big, and Yi became suspicious of the big black cat that often hangs on the wall, so Yi had to make up her mind to dig it out.Yi finally came out to get the hoe and dug all the way down. Although he was suspicious, he also hoped that he would meet the little white rabbit by accident. Well, the rest is deserted, there is no trace of the little snow-white rabbit, and his younger brother who has not come out of the hole.

Anger, disappointment and desolation made Yi no longer dig a new hole in the corner.As soon as he started, the two big horses rushed out of the hole first.Yi thought they had moved, and was very happy, but she still dug, and when she found out, there were also grass leaves and rabbit fur inside, and there were seven very small rabbits sleeping on it, all red in flesh. , eyes are not open.

Everything is clear, and the third wife's previous predictions are not bad.In order to prevent danger, Yi packed the seven small ones in wooden boxes and moved them into her room, and put the big ones in the box, ordering Yi to breastfeed.

From then on, the third wife not only hated the black cat deeply, but also disapproved of the big rabbit.It is said that before the two were killed, there should be more dead ones, because once they are born, there will never be only two, but because of uneven breastfeeding, the one who can't compete for food will die first.This is probably not bad, now two of the seven are very thin.So whenever the third wife had free time, she would catch the female rabbit and put the little rabbits on her belly one by one to drink milk, not how many there were.

My mother told me that Yili had never even heard of such a troublesome method of raising rabbits, and I am afraid that it can be included in "Wu Shuang Pu".

The White Rabbit's family is more prosperous; everyone is happy again.

But since then, I always feel desolate.Sitting under the lamp in the middle of the night, I thought, those two little lives were lost at some time without anyone noticing, without any trace in the history of biology, and without a sound.Then I remembered the old things. I used to live in the guild hall. When I got up early in the morning, I saw a mess of pigeon feathers under the big locust tree. No see, who knew that a life was ruined here?I once passed by the West Fourth Archway, and saw a puppy run over by a carriage and almost died. When I came back, it was gone and moved away. Pedestrians walked by. Who knew that a life was ruined here? Woolen cloth?On summer nights, outside the window, I often hear the long squeak of flies, which must have been bitten by a fly tiger, but I have always been indifferent to it, and others do not hear it...

If creation can also be blamed, then I think he has created and destroyed life too much.

With a howl, two cats fought outside the window again.

"Xun'er! Are you beating the cat again?"

"No, they bite themselves. He'll beat me there."

My mother has always disapproved of my abuse of cats, but now she probably suspects that I am going to do something wrong for Xiaotu, so she got up to inquire.But I am indeed a cat enemy in the word of mouth of the whole family.I used to kill cats, and I often hit cats, especially when they cooperate.But the reason why I fought was not because of their cooperation, but because of their yelling, which made me unable to sleep. I thought that such yelling was not necessary for cooperation.

Besides, the black cat harmed the little rabbit, and I am even more "famous as a teacher".I felt that my mother was too kind, so I couldn't help but gave vague and almost disapproving answers.

Creatures are so messed up, I can't help but rebel against him, although maybe it's to help him...

That black cat can't keep strutting on the low wall for a long time, I decided to think, so I couldn't help but glance at the bottle of potassium cyanate ① hidden in the bookcase.

October [-].

This article was originally published in Beijing's "Morning News Supplement" on October [-], [-].

duck comedy

Not long after the blind Russian poet Erashenko brought his banjo to Beijing, he complained to me: "Lonely, lonely, as lonely as in the desert!"

This should be true, but I have never felt it; I have lived for a long time, "entering the room of Zhilan, and not smelling its fragrance for a long time" ②, I just thought it was very noisy.However, what I call yelling may be what he calls loneliness.

I feel like there is no spring or autumn in Beijing.People who are old in Beijing say that the earth's atmosphere has turned northward, and it was not so warm here before.It's just that I always thought that there is no spring and autumn; the end of winter and the beginning of summer are connected, summer goes, and winter begins again.

One day was the end of winter and the beginning of summer, and it was night, and I occasionally had leisure to visit Mr. Airoshchenko.He has always lived in Mr. Zhongmi's house; at this time, everyone in the family is asleep, and the world is very quiet.He was leaning on his couch alone, his tall brows were slightly frowned between his long golden hair, thinking of Myanmar, the place he visited in the past, and the summer night in Myanmar. "This kind of night," he said, "music is everywhere in Myanmar. In the room, in the grass, and on the trees, there are insects singing. All kinds of sounds form an ensemble, which is very magical. There are always snakes singing in between:' Hiss!' But it also harmonizes with the sound of insects..." He pondered, as if trying to recall the scene at that time.

I can't speak.I have never heard such wonderful music in Beijing, so no matter how patriotic you are, you can't defend it, because although he can't see, he is not deaf.

"There are no frogs in Beijing..." He sighed again.

"There are frogs!" This sigh made me brave, so I protested, "In summer, after the heavy rain, you will hear many frogs, and they are all in the ditch, because Beijing is everywhere. There are grooves."

"Oh……"

After a few days, my words were actually confirmed, because Mr. Ailuoxianke had already bought more than a dozen Ke Douzi.He bought it and put it in the small pool in the middle of the yard outside his window.The pond is three feet long and two feet wide. It was dug by Zhongmi to grow lotus.Although I have never seen half a lotus growing in this lotus pond, it is really a very suitable place to raise toads.

Ke Dou was swimming in the water in groups; Mr. Ailuoxianke often came to visit them.Sometimes, the child told him, "Mr. Airosenko, they have given birth to their feet." He smiled happily and said, "Oh!"

However, becoming a musician in the pond is only one thing that loves Luo Xianke.He has always advocated self-reliance, and often said that women can raise livestock, and men should farm.So when he met a friend he knew very well, he tried to persuade him to grow cabbage in the yard; he also advised Mrs. Zhong Mi many times, persuading Yi to raise bees, chickens, pigs, cattle, and camels.Later, Zhongmi's house really had a lot of chickens, and they ran all over the yard, pecking at the young leaves of the brocade, probably because of this advice.

(End of this chapter)