Chapter 6

Cheng Cheng did not like to work and wanted to play.

However, Tang Yanhua was very good at coaxing her. He lied to her that he was going to the mountains to pick wild fruits, but in fact, he was carrying a basket to pick up pigweed and firewood.

Tang Yanhua taught her how to identify pigweed, which pigs could eat and which could not. When he saw wild vegetables and leaves, he would ask her questions. Cheng Cheng became interested.

When he was collecting firewood, he coaxed her that he was going to start a fire to roast sweet potatoes. Cheng Cheng was very enthusiastic when she heard that.

Of course, when the work was done, Tang Yanhua would fulfill his promise and bring her to the forest to pick fruits, or bring two sweet potatoes or potatoes from the basket for her to roast.

It was not difficult to find good food in the wild, especially for children in the countryside. There was nothing that they could not eat.

In spring, there were all kinds of flowers, such as rhododendrons and wild lilies, which could be picked and fried.

There were also bamboo shoots in the bamboo forest, which could be picked and cooked by her mother as a salad or dried to be braised in soy sauce.

Honeysuckle, also known as honeysuckle, could be used to make tea after being dried.

Fresh fern moss was best used to make pickles.

In summer, bamboo worms could be caught and roasted.

There were streams everywhere in the mountains. Small fish and crabs were easy to catch. When they were collecting firewood, they would catch a small bucket and bring it home for their mother to fry.

In autumn, the fruits and melons were all ripe. It depended on whose eyes were sharper and whose hands were faster.

In winter, it was cold and there was nothing left. However, there were still sweet potatoes and potatoes that were brought to the mountains to start a fire and roast. They would be snacks for the day.

Tang Yanhua carried a large basket while Cheng Cheng carried a small basket. Every afternoon, they would go to the mountains to pick pigweed.

Everyone who saw them praised these two children for being obedient, diligent, and sensible.

Tang Yanhua was a handsome man when he grew up. When he was young, he also looked like a very standard boy.

He looked a little like his father.

His father was old now and did not care about his appearance. He often went to the fields and wore dirty clothes full of mud. His hair and hands were gray, but when he was young, he was not bad looking.

He was 1.8 meters tall.

Tang Yanhua had a slightly angular oval face, and his bones were clearly defined. Very?

He had a pair of beautiful eyebrows that were neatly grown. The tips of his eyebrows flew straight to his temples. Even a knife could not trim them so naturally and neatly.

His eyes were not very big. They were double inner single eyelids, but on his face, they were very suitable to match with his facial features.

His nose was very straight, and below it was a red, diamond-shaped mouth. When he pursed his lips, he looked very serious.

Cheng Cheng was over five years old, and her appearance had also grown up. She had a small round face, a sharp chin, and big black eyes. The way she looked at people was as pure and quick-witted as a deer's. Her soft little mouth made her soft and coquettish when she spoke, making her soft and adorable.

Cheng Cheng said, "My surname is Tang." "No, your surname is not Tang, your surname is Cheng. You are a member of the Cheng Family." Cheng Cheng heard the other party's sarcastic tone, so she ignored them and turned to run away.

The next time people saw her, they came to her again. "Where are you from?" Cheng Cheng said, "I was born by my mother." The other party said, "You were not born by your mother, you were picked up by your mother." Cheng Cheng said angrily, "You were picked up by your mother, I am her biological daughter."

Tang Yanhua was very protective of his sister. Whoever teased Cheng Cheng, he would get angry. He seriously told the other party, "Don't make this kind of joke, it's not fun at all." If the other party did not change, he would take his sister away and not let Cheng Cheng hear such unreasonable and hurtful words.

When the villagers saw this, they laughed again. "She's really a child bride. She hasn't even grown hair yet, but you're already so protective."

Tang Yanhua did not know that Cheng Cheng was not his biological daughter, and Cheng Cheng did not know either. She just thought that the adults were talking nonsense.

But Tang Huaijin's wife was angry when she heard this. She did not allow others to say, "The child is still young!"

Tang Huaijin's wife said, "Those words are so unpleasant to hear."

When the villagers saw that she was angry, they gradually stopped talking.

The primary school in the village was only the first and second grades. In the blink of an eye, Tang Yanhua graduated from the second grade and went to the town to study in the third grade.

Tang Huaijin and his wife were worried. Originally, Yanhua could take care of his sister at home. Now that Yanhua was studying, the two of them had to go to work every day. There was no one to take care of Cheng Cheng.

After thinking about it, Tang Huaijin's wife said, "Why don't we send her to the village to study in the first grade first?

During the day, she has classes with the teacher. At noon, let her go to Wang Yaopo's house for lunch. After school, let Wang Yaopo take care of her.

I'll go over personally another day and tell her about it. "

When Tang Yanhua started school, Tang Huaijin found some free time and steamed a tray of steamed buns. He took it to Wang Yaopo and asked her to help him.

Wang Yaopo naturally agreed.

After dinner, Tang Huaijin's wife went to the room where the child was sleeping and told Cheng Cheng about it.

Cheng Cheng was unhappy when she heard this. "I want to go to school with my brother."

She had been with Tang Yanhua for a long time and was very attached to Tang Yanhua.

Tang Huaijin's wife took a pear and coaxed her to eat. "That won't do. The school in town is strict. You can't go with them."

Cheng Cheng begged Tang Yanhua again. "Brother, take me to school. I don't want to be alone at home."

Tang Yanhua said, "No, the school in town is very far away.

You have to get up at six in the morning and walk for more than an hour.

Can you get up at six in the morning? "

Cheng Cheng really wanted to go. "I can get up. Brother, I want to go."

Tang Yanhua was a little hesitant and said, "We don't get out of school until half past six in the evening. It'll be past eight when we get home. It'll be dark.

We still have to walk at night.

You'll be scared. "

Cheng Cheng said, "I'm not scared. If you take me with you, I won't be scared."

Tang Yanhua still didn't want to take her with him. He felt that it was too troublesome to take her to school so far away. He said, "You walk too slowly. After walking for a while, you'll complain that your leg hurts. It's better not to go."

Cheng Cheng felt that Tang Yanhua deliberately didn't want to take her with him, so she sulked. "I hate you!"

Tang Yanhua hugged her. "Don't be angry.

I'll play with you when we get home. Besides, there's still the holidays. "

Cheng Cheng hit him with her small fist. "I hate you!

I hate you! "

She was very serious. She rode on Tang Yanhua and hit him. Tang Yanhua originally thought that she was just acting coquettishly. He didn't expect that Cheng Cheng would scratch the back of his hand and bite his neck until it bled. Then, she fell asleep angrily.

Before dawn the next day, Tang Yanhua got up, dressed, washed his face, took the lunch box prepared by his mother, and rushed to school with his schoolbag.

His parents had work to do. Because he was old, they didn't send him off.

After Tang Yanhua left, Tang Huaijin's wife woke Cheng Cheng up. She was still sleepy and crying.

Tang Huaijin's wife dressed her, fed her porridge, and carried her to Wang Yaopo's house. The two of them went out to work.

When Cheng Cheng arrived at Wang Yaopo's house, she saw that her father, mother, and brother were not there. She cried sadly. "Mom, mom, mom."

"Dad."

"Brother."

How could Wang Yaopo coax her?

Cheng Cheng sat on the bench, kicked her feet, and cried. She kicked off the tiger shoes and floral socks that her mother made for her with wool.

Wang Yaopo cried and coaxed her. She picked them up and asked her to put them on. She didn't wear them and even kicked Wang Yaopo.

Wang Yaopo was old and couldn't do anything about it. She could only let her be.

Wang Yaopo was hard of hearing. Anyway, she couldn't hear much. She bent her back and went to the vegetable field in front of the door to pull out the vegetables.

"Baby, be good. Don't cry. Grandma will cook bacon for you at noon." Wang Yaopo's old bones trembled as she pulled out the small vegetables on the side of the field.

She didn't forget to coax Cheng Cheng. "It's not that they don't care about you. They're busy.

Your brother has to go to school. Your parents have to go to work. Let's not delay them from doing their work.

You and grandma can cook at home. "

Cheng Cheng cried in the yard. Wang Yaopo worked with her back to her. She said to herself, "Baby, be good. Don't cry. Your mother will give you popcorn to eat later."

Cheng Cheng's voice was hoarse from crying. She still shouted at the top of her voice, "Mom."

"Brother."

Wang Yaopo's nagging was annoying. Cheng Cheng didn't like Wang Yaopo.

She was going to find her mother.

She sat on the bench and cried sadly for a while. Seeing that no one paid attention to her, she climbed down the bench.

She picked up her shoes and socks and put them on. She walked like a duck, flapping her small wings and stumbling out. "I want Mom. I want Mom."

"Baby, you have to be sensible to be liked. No one likes you when you cry all the time.

In a few days, when school starts, your mother will send you to school. There will be teachers to take care of you. "

Wang Yaopo's ears were really bad. Cheng Cheng had left the yard and walked far away crying. She was still talking to herself and didn't hear her at all.

It couldn't be helped. She was seventy or eighty years old. Although her body was healthy, her ears and eyes had deteriorated.

After a long time, she didn't hear any sound. She turned around and saw that there was no one. Cheng Cheng had run away.

Wang Yaopo was so anxious that she hurried out of the house to look for her.

Cheng Cheng followed the village road that Tang Yanhua often took her to find her mother. She cried and cried all the way.

When she reached the stone mill at the entrance of the village, she met the group of children from before. They were still jumping rope and throwing sandbags.

Da Zhuang was the little boy who took Cheng Cheng to play last time and gave her chestnuts to eat. When he saw Cheng Cheng crying, he discussed with the others and called her over. He asked, "Why are you crying?"

Cheng Cheng cried and said, "My mother is gone. My father is gone. My brother is gone too. I'm the only one left."

The children didn't want to play with her at first, but when they saw her crying pitifully like a cat and Da Zhuang interceding for her, they reluctantly said, "Don't cry.

What's there to cry about? Your parents have gone to work. It's not like they don't want you.

Come and throw sandbags with us. "

When Cheng Cheng heard that she could play with them, she stopped crying.

The children jumped rope and threw sandbags. When they were thirsty, they ran to a house not far away and used a gourd to scoop cold water to drink.

They also stole snacks from home, such as peanuts and walnuts, and shared them.

These guys were all very stingy. They peeled off a peanut and gave each of them a grain of rice.

Cheng Cheng played with them. When she got a peanut, she stuffed it into her mouth and ate it. Then, she ran around them like a dog.

This group of children was different from the previous group of children. Other than Da Zhuang and a few familiar ones, she hadn't seen the others before. They were probably new friends.

Some of them were old and some were young. Cheng Cheng asked Da Zhuang curiously, "Why aren't you guys studying?

My brother went to study. My brother is in the third grade in the village. He's about to enter middle school. "

Da Zhuang said, "Nonsense. He's in the third grade. It's still far from middle school.

We're studying in the village. School won't start until a few days later. "

Cheng Cheng said, "You're so stupid. My brother is younger than all of you. He's already in the third grade. You guys are only in the first or second grade."

Da Zhuang always got a duck egg in his exams. His grades were at the bottom and he was already three grades behind. When he heard her, he knocked her head and said, "What do you know?

You can't even read. "