Hunger for a hundred years

Chapter 16 (16)
Thinking of this meaning, He Da felt very cold, if they couldn't make it through, it would be even more impossible to take him in.But, if he doesn't stay here, where can he go?He Da found the key in the hinge of the door——Farmers in the Qingxi River Valley like to hide the key in the hinge of the door when they work uphill or go to the market—open the door and enter the house, pick up the broom and clean the house After cleaning, he wiped off the chicken droppings on the straw stool. The dried chicken droppings could not be wiped off with a broom, so he used his fingernails to pick them off.After all this was done, Yang Guangwu and Mrs. Liu hadn't come back yet. He went to the back room to see that Yang Cai was not tied to the bed, so he must have taken him to the slope.He Da was sad for a while, and tears welled up.When his parents were alive, he and his younger brother He Er were often taken to the slopes by them.
This was not the time for him to miss his parents, and it was not the time for him to cry. He wiped his tears with his sleeve and went into the cowshed.

He once heard Yang Guangwu say in Hejiapo that he would buy a cow when he returned to Lijiagou in the future.

The cowshed was empty, and even the land had been scraped to fatten the crops, which proved that they did not raise cattle.Without cattle, He Da felt that he had no reason to stay.He walked slowly out of the house, locked the door, and put the key back.

Before I knew it, I arrived at my mother's grave.

There is almost nothing left of the mother's grave.

He Da squatted down, "Mom. Mom. Mom." He cried in such a monotonous manner.

Wandering outside for a long time, walked through the corners he was familiar with, and stood for a long time at the place where his mother was poked down by the yellow stick.When the sun was westward, He Da turned back to the back of Yang Guangwu's house.There were clouds of black smoke on the ridge, which proved that they had been cooking.Without thinking too much, He Da walked to the front of the house from a dirt road covered with grass and dung, and called out, "Dad."
Yang Guangwu, who had put his head into the stove and blown the fire, retracted his neck when he heard the shout, and rubbed his eyes that were swollen with tears from the firewood smoke. When he saw He Da under the eaves of the street, he opened his mouth wide in disbelief. After a while, I said, "Are you here?"
It seemed that he didn't notice that the house was cleaned at all.

He Da didn't dare to say a word.

"Why are you here?"
"I got into trouble in Hejiapo. Dad accepted me."
Yang Guangwu came out and asked, "You're not as big as my dick, what's wrong with you?"
He Da narrated the incident of accidentally lighting someone else's house on fire.However, he made a small but very critical change. He knew that Mrs. Chen had quarreled with Mr. Yang Guangwu, so he said that what he lit was Mrs. Chen's house.

Yang Guangwu laughed loudly, "You are promising," he said, "I accept you!"
Apart from crying, He Da couldn't say a word.Yang Guangwu looked down at his face, and said angrily, "What are you crying about?" He Da called out again, "Daddy!"
Not long after, Mrs. Liu came back. She connected Yang Cai to herself with a back strap, and carried a hoe on her shoulder. When she saw He Da, she unexpectedly didn't say anything.

It turned out that this family was about to break up again, and both Yang Guangwu and the Liu family needed a fresh reconciling agent.

For the first ten days after He Da went there, the family was safe and sound, except that Yang Guangwu no longer slept with Mrs. Liu, but climbed upstairs to sleep; A piece of bamboo was spread on it, and a bed was built; the smoke and fire in the four seasons of the year made it impossible to see what kind of wood the purlins were.More than ten days later, the cold atmosphere turned to the other side: Yang Guangwu and Liu Shi both seemed very hot, and they would fight if they had any disagreements.Mrs. Liu never let Yang Guangwu beat her like Xu Lian did. As long as Yang Guangwu did something, Liu would immediately retaliate. Sometimes, Yang Guangwu just scolded her, and she would grab a broom or a shovel and throw it at her.

As soon as they fought, He Da trembled with fright.The two were not only beating each other until their noses and faces were bruised, but they were also smashing up the house and the nest that He Da relied on to make a living.He couldn't understand why they were fighting for no reason.

At that time, the Fourth Red Army led by Zhang Guotao and Xu Xiangqian had already forcibly crossed the Jialing River and marched westward; most of the 33rd Red Army led by Wang Weizhou had been transferred, leaving only a small group, wandering in the Daba Mountains, holding on to the base while growing stronger team.

Their main stronghold is still Wanyuan Luowen Town.

One day, when He Da came back from chopping firewood, he saw some strangers sitting under the eaves of the street, wearing octagonal hats and straw sandals, talking to Yang Guangwu.Seeing He Da, a man ran over immediately, took off the firewood from He Da's back, and said in surprise, "You can carry such a heavy weight?" He Da smiled embarrassedly.

These few people are here to develop the Boy Scouts.The task of the boy scouts is to walk with the Red Army and become soldiers when they grow up.Yang Guangwu agreed with He Da to join the Boy Scouts.

After registering, several people stood up and said to Yang Guangwu: "We will take your child away in half a month at most. He is walking on a bright road, and we will take him well. Please rest assured." Yang Guangwu Guangwu sent them out of the village in a loud voice.

For the next few days, He Da was always in a state of excitement. He was full of fantasies about his life after joining the Red Army.The only thing he regretted was that he and Yang Guangwu sent several soldiers out of the village, but they turned to an official road, and the soldiers only looked at Yang Guangwu and waved their hands.
The conflict between Liu Shi and Yang Guangwu intensified violently, and they fought several times a day, and they always fought until they collapsed to the ground before letting go.The family often looked at each other coldly, accompanied by Yang Cai's bewildered crying.He has seen a lot, and besides, he is about to become a boy scout. He Da is no longer afraid. Whoever picks up a kitchen knife or other lethal weapon first with Yang Guangwu and his wife, he will hug that person's arm and let the rain drop. His fist fell on himself.

He lives on his fingers, hoping that the Red Army will come to pick him up.

The long half month has finally passed, and there is no news at all.

He Da wanted to visit Luo Wenzhen several times, but Yang Guangwu refused to let him go.

Another half month passed, and there was still no sign of the Red Army.

One morning, Yang Guangwu, who had just gone uphill, suddenly turned back and said to He Da, who was sweeping the floor, "Hurry up to the Yogurt Mountain."
"do what?"
Yang Guangwu grabbed the broom and said hastily, "You'll know when you go." Yang Guangwu was so nervous that he couldn't even speak clearly.

He Da thought that something happened to Mrs. Liu, so early in the morning, Mrs. Liu left the house behind Yang Cai's back, and now she hasn't come back for breakfast.But, what did she do in Yogurt Mountain?Yogurt Mountain is far away, and there are no fields on it, only dry cedars all over the slopes; dry cedars are not trees, but grasses, as tall as a person, and where there is a lack of firewood, they are cut for firewood, and a large bundle is put into the fire hall, and the flames lick Even if it's over.Because it is a barren mountain, Yogurt Mountain does not belong to anyone. Usually, it is rare for Lijiagou people to go up there. To go there is to dig medicinal materials, bracken or hunt wild rabbits.Now is not the season to dig bracken. It is impossible for Mrs. Liu to dig medicinal herbs, let alone hunt wild rabbits. What are you doing so far away?

He Da asked suspiciously, "Do you want to bring anything?"
Yang Guangwu yelled dissatisfiedly: "Dragging! Take the machete and chop some bundles of dry firs and come back!"
It seems that nothing happened to the Liu family, but what He Da doesn't understand is that the dry firewood here is rotten in the mountains and no one picks it up. What do you need so many dry fir?
He Dacai arrived at Yogurt Mountain after walking for about an hour with a machete and a few sliced ​​bamboo strips.Except for the dense fir forests, there is no one in the surrounding areas. The pheasants that make their nests on the flat ground occasionally fly out of the forest, with a few fir leaves on their wings, and fly to another place in a fluttering manner.He Da felt extremely happy when he came to this deserted place. It is very easy to cut down the dry fir, and he can cut down a large area with one knife. He will not worry about not completing the task. He put down the machete and went to the place where the pheasants came out of the forest to search. Several pheasant nests were found, but they were all empty.Then, he sat down and looked at the green mountains.The wind blows gently, and the dry cedar forest makes a hard sound, but it makes this slope extraordinarily quiet. At some point, a rock eagle circles the sky with its giant wings, making a cry of "ga—ga—ga—" , into the sky.In fact, there was no cloud in the sky, and the pure blue sky was like a sad eye, staring at the child on the barren mountains.The black shadow of that rock eagle is like a drop of tear from the sky.He Da couldn't help thinking of his biological parents.Later, I thought about the fact that the Red Army asked him to be a boy scout. Why didn't they come to pick me up? ──But they will come!

He Da regained his energy, picked up the scimitar beside him, scooped up the Han Shan Shan with his left hand, and slashed down with the scimitar.

Soon, the few bamboo sticks he brought were used up, and there were six bundles of dry firs around him.

He carried a bundle, dragged a bundle, and walked back.

When we got home, the sun was already westward.Liu Shi and Yang Guangwu are both at home.Mrs. Liu was feeding Yang Cai, and Yang Guangwu was twisting hemp rope—when Xu Lian was around, Yang Guangwu would never do such tasks as twisting hemp rope.He Da thought that he would be praised for working so hard, but Yang Guangwu or Liu just gave him a sideways glance and ignored him.He Da felt a little sad, wiped his sweat while standing, and said, "Father, there are still four bundles left in the yoghurt mountain. I'll go and carry them back."
"no need."
He Da was at a loss and said, "It's already closed."
"Don't even if you're done."
After a pause, Yang Guangwu said again: "What do you want those x things for?"
He Da's tears were about to come out.

But he didn't dare to cry, because after dark, Yang Guangwu and Liu Shi fought again.Before the fight, the two had neither spoken nor quarreled. How did they fight?For He Da, this is simply a mystery.

That night, they fought exhaustedly until midnight before letting go.

The next day continued to fight, still no warning.After fighting on and off for three weeks, Yang Guangwu finally divorced Mrs. Liu—in fact, Mrs. Liu left behind Yang's back and never returned to Yang Guangwu's home.

When only Yang Guangwu and He Da were left in the room again, Yang Guangwu kept saying that He Da was his disaster star, and He Da's mother Xu Lian was also his disaster star. The mole on the corner of Xu Lian's mouth was Calamity logo.His temperament became more surly, and he often laughed in the middle of the night, laughed for a while and scolded, and he was not satisfied after laughing and scolding, so he picked up He Da and beat him.

He Da is not afraid of his scolding, nor of his beating, but of his laughing.When he smiled, the walls of the whole room creaked, as if he was laughing.When Banbi smiled, he laughed along with him throughout the night!He Da often doubted whether Yang Guangwu was still a living person, "Maybe he has become a gangster," He Da thought, "I don't know when, he will suck my brain."
During that time, He Da formed a habit, as long as the rooster crowed three times, he would wake up, with his eyes wide open, guarding against Yang Guangwu coming to knock his head out.

But one night, Yang Guangwu neither laughed nor scolded, but quietly came to He Da's bed directly, pulled him up, stared at him with blood red eyes and said, "I knew it earlier, I should let you go." Those soldiers took you away for calculation!"
Only then did He Da know that it was a conspiracy for Yang Guangwu to let him go to Yogurt Mountain to cut dry fir.On that day, the Red Army in Luowen Town was about to set off and sent someone to pick up the boy scouts. Yang Guangwu got the news and sent He Dazhi away.Yang Guangwu told the Red Army soldiers that He Da was already dead. He accidentally fell off a cliff and fell to his death while chopping firewood.
Knowing the inside story, He Da didn't cry.He knew that Yang Guangwu was still a human being, not a grassroots bandit, and his fear eased a lot.But he was in a panic.Those two bundles of dry fir were still placed in a clump of bamboo in front of the house. The leaves and stems were all withered and yellow, and they were disgusting weeds.He Da suddenly came up with an idea: Go up to Yogurt Mountain to see if the remaining four bundles of dry firs are also withered?
He went the next day.Of course, the four bundles of dry fir had already withered, even more withered than the ones dragged home. He Da sat on the dry fir that he had cut down, feeling dejected.That day, there were no pheasants flying from the forest, nor rock eagles circling in the sky.In the vast mountain shadows in the distance, there are thunder formations.The wind blows, and the wet breath floats on the crowded and lonely tip of the grass.

He Da came down from the mountain, instead of going home directly, he secretly went to Luowen Town.

There has long been no shadow of the Red Army.

When autumn came, He Da was finally kicked out of the house by Yang Guangwu.From then on, he left the Yang family forever.

Along the Qingxi River, He Da wandered all the way, his hair had not been cut for a long time, it was long to the neck, and it was so dirty that it was caked into a cake.When he passed by the official road or the village road, some people joked to him: "Hey, baby, can you pawn it to me?" He knew that these people were just joking, so he didn't bother Promise; if you are hungry, you should say: "Give me a bowl of rice and I will give it to you." When stones and tiles were thrown at him, he covered his head and ran away.

Shuofeng runs from north to south, over the Qinba Mountains, like a hard crossbow, straight through the Qingxi River.This is the scariest season for Rangers.He Da arrived at Maoba. The mountains and wild waters here are very desolate than Lijiagou.There are about a dozen families living in Maoba, and the richest is Luo Guangquan. He has dozens of rice fields, but the land is thin and the harvest is not good.There are three people in his family: Luo Guangquan's mother and Luo Guangquan and his wife.Luo Guangquan's mother was blind and unable to do work. Dozens of grain fields and some dry land were all done by two young people, which caused Luo Guangquan's wife Geng's constant complaints.Therefore, when He Da appeared at the entrance of the village, Luo Guangquan's aunt took him to Luo Guang's family.Luo Guangquan agreed to accept him.

He Da only lived there for two months.He herds cattle, a pair of son cows; besides herding cattle, he also mows grass, digs fields, and tends winter paddy fields.The mountain seemed to be shrouded in the shadow of winter forever. When we went out in the morning, the black frost cracked the stones and made the soil hard. He Da was wearing rotten straw sandals and shorts (his pants were only above the knees, which looked like shorts) ), a thin shirt covered with mesh, and pulled the cattle uphill; when the sun rose, the ice and snow melted, and He Da came back stepping on the mud, there were only a few buckwheat cakes left in the jar.

These few buckwheat cakes are his food for the whole day.

(End of this chapter)