flawed

Chapter 13 Take a Bath

That night, both of them had a good night's sleep.

Early the next morning, Jiang Yu was about to run away with his string of empty bottles, but Qi Nuliang grabbed his arm: "Don't run around today, come out with me."

"Where to go?"

"Do you know where the gas goes?"

Qi Nuliang checked the kitchen yesterday, and it was empty.The stove, iron pots and basins were probably sold by Jiang Yu as scraps, leaving only a few bowls.It’s impossible to cook without a fire. Besides, it’s so cold that you need hot water to take a bath and wash your face.

After having breakfast together, Jiang Yu took him to the place where he paid the gas bill.

I only found out after I went to the local area to inquire. Two years ago, Jiang Yu's family didn't do the plumbing renovation in this area, so the gas couldn't pass through.If you want to connect now, you have to ask someone from the gas company to come and lay the pipeline first, which will cost several thousand yuan.

Jiang Yu saw that Qi Nuliang was a bit embarrassed to hear the expense, so he tugged on his sleeve and took him to a place that sold gas tanks: "My family used to burn this."

Dozens of cans of gas are more in line with their current situation.

Qi Nuliang bought a can of gas.There are still many old gas stoves in this place, so he picked out a second-hand one by the way.In order to save a few yuan for the delivery fee at the gas station, Qi Nuliang took the gas tank away by himself.Jiang Yu followed behind him, holding the steel gas stove.

When they got home, they connected the gas and the stove, and the moment they were successfully ignited, the two of them looked at each other at the same time, and after a while, they both saw the warm flames in each other's eyes.

Qi Nuliang turned off the fire: "Let's go and buy a pot."

On the way to buy a pot, Jiang Yu suddenly said without thinking: "The stove in my house, when he sold it, he only gave me 20 yuan, which is the same as the one you bought today, but he asked you for 100 yuan."

"They want to make money."

"If I knew it earlier, I wouldn't sell it."

Hearing that there was a bit of self-blame in these words, Qi Nuliang grabbed the man forcefully and rubbed his head twice.

Jiang Yu shrank his neck, feeling a little puzzled.But that bit of self-blame was wiped away by the man.

After buying pots and pans and a rice cooker, the two returned home with their hands full, and it was already noon.At noon, it was too late to start a fire, and Jiang Yu led him to eat a bowl of beef noodles.

In the afternoon, Qi Nuliang led Jiang Yu to get a haircut.

The haircutter turned his greasy, hard hair inside out and showed it to Qi Nuliang: "These white spots are full of flea eggs, please shave your head."

Jiang Yu sat on the chair, lowered his head severely, grabbed his trouser legs with both hands, and his ears were red from the bottom of his neck to his neck.

"Look, look, it's still alive." Wearing reading glasses, the master grabbed the bug, pinched it with his nails, and said with a "crack" sound, "If you cut this hair, you need to spray it. Well shaved."

"Shave it?" Qi Nuliang asked Jiang Yu with his head buried, "I'll buy you a hat, and your hair will grow back in spring."

Jiang Yu pursed his lips tightly, grabbed his trouser legs even harder, and shook his head.

"He doesn't want to shave, forget it, you just cut it shorter for him."

Jiang Yu was pressed in front of the sink to wash his hair. He washed his hair over and over again. After three times, white foam appeared.The master joked about this head, he was at a loss.

After he had his hair cut, the master gave him an idea how to kill the eggs on his head.You need to pat the scalp with insecticide, cover it with a plastic bag, and repeat it several times for a month, until all the eggs on the scalp have hatched.

It could be seen that Jiang Yu was embarrassed by the fleas on his head.Qi Nuliang didn't say much, but he went to the pharmacy to buy flea medicine as soon as he left the barber shop.

Then he went to the clothing store and bought two sets of clothes, shoes and socks for Jiang Yu inside and out.When they returned home, they each carried two big bags.

As soon as Qi Nuliang got home, he mixed powder on Jiang Yu's head as the barber said, and covered it with a plastic bag.Then sprinkle the powder in every corner of the room, especially the bed board and wardrobe of Jiang Yu's bed.

The kettle on the stove was turned on, and the new kettle made a sound like a flute, whining.

Qi Nuliang flushed a big bucket of hot water, and asked Jiang Yu to take off his clothes and soak in the bucket.

The boy's bony chest was covered with black flowers, so dirty that it appeared an uneven gray.He tried dipping his toes into the water, and it was a little hot, but Qi Nuliang pressed him firmly, and some water splashed out.

Jiang Yu squatted in the barrel, unable to move any more. He grabbed the edge of the barrel with his fingers and rested his chin on the back of his hand. A pair of sea otter-like eyes followed Qi Nuliang's figure around.

The door of the toilet was closed, and the room was gradually filled with water mist, and the small dirty glass became more blurred.

After soaking for a while, Qi Nuliang came in again, holding a bath towel.

The boy's shame came out again, and he stretched out his hand: "I will wash it myself."

Qi Nuliang firmly pressed his neck and began to rub his back.The dirty things soaked in hair are easy to rub off, and the mud flakes fall into the bucket like snowflakes, staining the water in it gray.

In previous winters, my mother would scrub him every now and then, fearing that he would catch a cold, so she would put a basin of hot water in a big basin and let him sit in the water, rubbing and talking to him at the same time.His mother's words were gentle, and the strength of her hands was also very gentle. Every time he was comfortable scrubbing, he would feel drowsy.

However, the man just rubbed silently and vigorously, and the rough towel fell on his back like a whip.

And Jiang Yu also frowned, gritted his teeth, and endured silently until his gray skin was rubbed into pink.

Pot after pot of boiling water was brought in, mixed with cold water, and washed over him.The window panes were covered with a thick mist.Jiang Yu stared at a point in the mist, thinking of the scene of pig slaughtering in the nearby village during the Chinese New Year.

The big dead pig was placed on the table, and pots of boiling water were poured on the pigs.The mist was lingering, and the stench from the pig's body was scalded away, and then the hair and dirt on the pig's body were scraped off with a plane, revealing the white pork.

Villagers go to such lengths to clean a pig because they all want to eat its meat.And why is this man doing these things?

Qi Nuliang was kind to him, Jiang Yu knew it.For this, he didn't have any gratitude, and some were just at a loss.Why is this man doing these things?What the hell is he trying to do?Jiang Yu didn't understand.

But it's just that he doesn't understand. He hasn't reached the age to think deeply, and he doesn't have the ability to refuse others' kindness to him.

For the first time in the winter months, he was so clean.It seems that a few catties of dirt have been washed away, and the whole person feels lighter, and put on comfortable and warm new clothes, as if he has become a child with a mother again.

Only the hands and feet with chilblains, which are usually unconscious, are so painful and itchy after being soaked in hot water so hard.

Qi Nuliang brought chilblain ointment and applied it on him.While wiping the frostbite on his face, Jiang Yu raised his chin, and saw his own face through the man's dark, glass-bead-like pupils.A small, white sheet, somewhat strange, like a piece of white paper torn off casually.

After applying the medicine, Qi Nuliang asked him to hang it to dry, and endured the itch not to scratch. After speaking, he also boiled a pot of water and took it into the bathroom to take a shower.

When he came out after brushing his hair, he saw Jiang Yu stretched out on the sofa, drying his hands and feet, as if he had fallen asleep.The winter afternoon sun shone in through the window, just covering the child's face and hair, which was already half dry.

It has been a few days since he found Jiang Yu, only from this seemingly sleeping face, Qi Nuliang finally saw a little carefree and innocent appearance of a child, very peaceful and peaceful, without the tension like a small animal on his usual face And dodge, also two points less dull and stupid because of seldom interacting with others on an equal footing.

From this point of view, Jiang Yu is a very beautiful child.In Qi Nuliang's eyes, he has completely inherited all the advantages of Yao Huilan's appearance, and made those excellent places his own, and he does not appear feminine because of his beauty.

He walked over and touched Jiang Yu's arm: "Wait until your hair is dry before going to sleep, be careful not to catch a cold."

Jiang Yu suddenly opened his eyes, nervousness and dullness returned to his face.He stared blankly at Qi Nuhao for a few seconds before looking away: "I'm not sleepy."

"Don't worry, let's go to the vegetable market to buy something to eat together."

As soon as he got the food, Jiang Yu turned over and sat up, and stuffed his feet into the newly bought sneakers.

Qi Nuliang took out a few pairs of socks from the clothes bag that he hadn't had time to pack, and pulled a pair to Jiang Yu: "Put on the socks first."

Four or five o'clock is the time to buy vegetables and cook, and the vegetable market is overcrowded.Vendors yelled and hawked, residents bargained, and the noise was abnormal.

Qi Nuliang is a character who doesn't know how to bargain, and Jiang Yu is even more of a jerk.But they quickly found a way to follow behind some aunts and sisters, and when others finished bargaining with their teeth, they went up again and asked the hawkers to sell them at the same price.

When passing by the butcher's stall, Qi Nuliang bought a good piece of meat without saying a word.

The ten-year-old child was just growing up, and just after giving Jiang Yu a bath, the skin-wrapped bones seemed to press against his chest, which made him feel a little uncomfortable.

The next step is to go to the food store to buy rice and noodles.Seeing that Jiang Yu always went to the beef noodle shop, he thought that he might like noodles, so he bought several handfuls of dried noodles.While waiting for the shopkeeper to load the goods, Qi Nuliang noticed the sound of selling candied haws outside, and the child turned his head to look outside.

After repeating it several times, Qi Nuliang couldn't help laughing, and handed Jiang Yu the change that the shopkeeper gave him.

Jiang Yu raised his head, with that dull look in his eyes again, as if he didn't know what he was doing.

"Go buy strings of candied haws."

Jiang Yu still looked at him dully.

"Buy me a bunch too."

The author says:

Today is clean and pretty (*^▽^*)