dhibooks Chapter 8 Chapter 8
Chapter 8 Chapter 8
Chinese people's attitude towards feudal superstition is no less metaphysical than feudal superstition itself. When it works, feudal superstition is a good thing left by the ancestors. When it doesn't work, it is the dross of socialism.
It's just that this time, the dross played a role on Zhao Nan's side by mistake.
The Mrs. Wang from the village head sprinkled a handful of white powder on Zhao Nan's head, and circled him three times and back three times, talking about the Jade Emperor, the Queen Mother, and Zhao Nan immediately regained his spirits.
Zhao Changming and his wife observed for many days in fear, but they didn't find anything unusual about Zhao Nan, so they relaxed, and they made a tacit agreement: never mention anything about Zhao Dong's family in front of Zhao Nan again.
"Mom, I wish you a happy birthday!" Zhao Nan put a birthday hat on Wang Zhiyun, and handed over a long and thin roll wrapped in colored paper: "Here, birthday present!"
"Thank you Nannan~" Wang Zhiyun asked with a smile on his face, "What is it?"
Zhao Nan scratched the back of his head, he was not ashamed to say, but Zhao Changming answered for him: "Do you still need to ask? It must be another portrait of you."
Everything has pros and cons, and the gloomy painting that frightened Zhao Changming and his wife also made them discover Zhao Nan's talent: Zhao Nan has extraordinary insight and imagination in painting, as well as an enviable The ability to express what is in the mind with a brush.
After that time, Wang Zhiyun enrolled Zhao Nan in painting classes during the summer vacation, unlike other parents who just want their children to learn something so that they can show off in front of relatives and friends during the Chinese New Year.Zhao Changming and Wang Zhiyun made careful inquiries and chose the best one within their abilities.
The one Zhao Nan went to was a professional institution, and it was good anywhere, except that it was far away from home.
Fortunately, Wang Zhiyun is an elementary school teacher by profession, and he has plenty of time during the summer vacation. Wang Zhiyun picks up and drops off classes three afternoons a week, year after year. Now Zhao Nan has gone by himself.
"It's pretty good, Changming, look, I look better than last year's picture." Wang Zhiyun couldn't tell what was good, but he felt a lot more comfortable looking at it: "Our Nannan is getting better and better."
"Give me a look," Zhao Changming untied his apron and took his seat, "Nannan has been studying here for almost six years, right? I remember you already have five in your drawer. Well, it should be right, it's the first one." Six years, one card a year..."
Zhao Changming looked left and right, and couldn't understand how much Zhao Nan's painting skills had improved, but he felt that his daughter-in-law looked better the more she looked, and she didn't look like someone who was about to forty at all!
"It's been six years. Nannan is in the first grade of junior high school. She's an older child. It's just that the school is too far away..." Wang Zhiyun's eyes showed a hint of reluctance, but he quickly hid it. Today is her birthday, so it's not easy to let them Grandpa is not happy.
"Daughter-in-law, come and make a wish." Zhao Changming quickly changed the subject and lit the candles one by one.
Wang Zhiyun's wish is slowly being realized, and Zhao Nan's middle school life is going well.
Zhao Nan was chubby when he was a child, and he looked as lovable as the doll holding a fat koi in the New Year paintings, but when he grew up, he completely changed his appearance but was just as lovable.
He was like a bunch of winter bamboo shoots buried in the ground, held back for more than three years, and finally popped up in the second semester of the third grade, and then got out of control, and he was pulled up like a bamboo pole for a month. They can all grow one centimeter taller. When she graduated from elementary school, Zhao Nan was already 1.7 meters tall, standing out from the crowd of little boys who follow the development of boys.
"Zhao Nan, Zhao Nan, wait for me..." Zhao Shenglan chased Zhao Nan dragging a big suitcase.
Zhao Nan was wearing a white short-sleeved T-shirt, loose blue school uniform pants, and an army green backpack on her shoulders. Zhao Shenglan stopped her, and she was too lazy to lean against the ginkgo tree on the campus path, shaking her hands school uniform jacket.
"Hurry up, short legs..." Zhao Nan urged impatiently, but still took the suitcase in Zhao Shenglan's hand: "It's not moving, I just go home for the weekend, why are you bringing so many things?" ?”
"It's too much, here is just a change of clothes, I haven't brought anything else..." Zhao Shenglan pulled her hair back, revealing a smooth forehead and bright eyes, and there were two shallow dimples on her non-smiling cheeks .She tied her long black and flowing hair into a high ponytail with a flower rope wrapped around her wrist, and then jumped into the sunshine in front of her.
Not far away, a few brats walked more and more slowly with their shoulders crossed, their small eyes couldn't stop aiming at Zhao Shenglan who was wearing a small skirt.
"You stinky girl, put it on!" Zhao Nan tied her school uniform jacket around Zhao Shenglan's waist, feeling that it wasn't enough, blocked Zhao Shenglan with half of her body, and glared at the boys.
"Oh, Zhao Nan, what are you doing, I don't want to be around this, it's so ugly!" Zhao Shenglan is clever and tall, and has inherited all the advantages of Zhao Changsheng and Gu Xiaoxiao, and she can tell at a young age that she will be a great beauty in the future.She is an extremely clever little girl, beautiful and self-aware, thinking about how to dress up every day.
"Zhao Nan, Zhao Nan! Zhao Nan is your name?!" Behind Zhao Shenglan tied the sleeves of the school uniform, and tugged at Zhao Shenglan's slippery ponytail. "I'm your brother, call me brother! Otherwise, I won't go home with you in the future, you can pull the box by yourself!"
Along the way, Zhao Nan sent Zhao Shenglan home first.
"Oh, my daughter is finally back, let me have a look." Gu Xiaoxiao went to a morning market early in the morning, bought Zhao Shenglan's favorite food, and made a table of dishes, "Go and wash your hands, mom made it for you A lot of delicious food."
"Ma'am, I put Shenglan's suitcase here." Zhao Nan carried the suitcase into the house, "I'm going to see grandma if I have nothing to do, and then I'll go back."
"Oh, okay, let's go." Gu Xiaoxiao gave Zhao Nan a fake smile rather perfunctorily.
Zhao Nan took it for granted and didn't take it seriously. She put on her school uniform and went into the old lady's room.
The old lady has restrained a lot since she experienced the ruthlessness of his youngest son Zhao Changming.On the one hand, she understands that she still has to rely on her youngest son now, and the toughness in the village is also relying on his youngest son to make a lot of money outside.On the other hand, she is getting older day by day, and she has a sense of twilight fear. She knows that she will have to rely on his grandson Zhao Nan in the future.
So, even though she didn't like Wang Zhiyun very much in her heart, the old lady treated Zhao Nan even better than before.
Zhao Nan was sitting on the bedside of the old lady, holding a handful of peanuts and melon seeds that the old lady gave him. This was something that no one else could eat, and it was the old lady's only love for him.
"Grandma, I don't want it anymore. Look, I can't put it down..." Zhao Nan was so embarrassed that he didn't know where to put his hands. After thinking for a while, he got up and put them on the table next to him.
"My dad read the news that it's hot this summer, and he said he'll install an air conditioner for your room when he's free in two days." Zhao Nan got up, put on the straps of her schoolbag with both hands, and walked out without a trace, "If you still Let me know what is missing, and I will tell my dad later, and let him deliver it together in two days."
"Oh, there is no shortage, no shortage, nothing. Look at the hut I see, it is almost full of things your dad bought." The old lady glanced at the room, her shrewd little eyes flicked around, and it was full of things. Senile spots held Zhao Nan's hand with both hands, and said in a heavy tone: "Hey...the room is too small..."
When he got here, Zhao Nan finally couldn't stay any longer. He bid farewell to the old lady hastily, left the village, and got on the bus to go home.
Years ago, his uncle Zhao Changsheng's family came to pay New Year's greetings with a few bags of fruit, which was rare in a century. The night after that, Zhao Nan heard his parents, who never quarreled, quarreled all night.
The reason for the quarrel was a request made by Zhao Changsheng on the pretext of paying New Year's greetings: he opened his mouth to borrow 40 yuan from Zhao Changsheng, saying that he had taken a fancy to a house and wanted to move there before the beginning of spring.
40 is not a small sum for Zhao Changming's family who are now wealthy, but from the way Zhao Changsheng opened his mouth, it seemed that his younger brother would lend him the money without hesitation.
Gu Xiaoxiao came up with the idea of borrowing money, and the old lady didn't object, so she acquiesced.
"Mom, you don't want to leave my brother at home after dinner..." Zhao Shenglan complained after washing his hands.
"What do you know?!" Gu Xiaoxiao poked Zhao Shenglan with a chopstick in his hand, and continued to educate: "His father is not even willing to lend him 40 yuan to his brother, so maybe we still have to catch up with him? Stick a cold ass, your mother and I don't have such a thick skin."
"Mom, is that house really that expensive? Otherwise, let's borrow less, and maybe the second uncle will agree."
"What's the use of your second uncle's agreement? In the end, your aunt has to nod." Gu Xiaoxiao became irritable again when she mentioned Wang Zhiyun, knocking on the side of Zhao Shenglan's bowl and urging: "Eat!"
Zhao Shenglan hurriedly stopped asking further questions, and quickly changed the subject: "Where is my dad, isn't he not going to work this weekend?"
The little comfort Gu Xiaoxiao finally got from her daughter's return home was disturbed by Zhao Changsheng who was suddenly mentioned.
That house cost 40 yuan in full, and she just planned to borrow it all from Zhao Changming.
Zhao Changsheng took his father's idle job in the past, and he lived frugally throughout the year and couldn't save a few big children.He is not motivated, and several promotions in ratings have failed him. He is almost forty and still has such a small salary, and the family is getting more and more tight.
Gu Xiaoxiao thought about the little money in the passbook at home: it was saved for Zhao Shenglan to go to college in the future, and she couldn't move a cent!
"Shenglan, mom will be counting on you from now on. You are mom's only hope. Your dad will be like this all his life. He's a worthless guy. Mom just thinks that our family, Shenglan, will be admitted to college in the future. If you are capable, you will take your mother to a big city for two days to enjoy the blessings. Your mother and I have never been in vain in my life..." Gu Xiaoxiao said to Zhao Shenglan earnestly, her eyes fell on Zhao Shenglan as if she saw hope dawn.
She spoke affectionately, but Zhao Shenglan's heart was not touched at all.Saying it three times is as light as water, Zhao Shenglan's ears are numb from hearing these words, and he really can't express any more emotion.
"Mom, don't worry, if you don't pick up my dad and my grandma then, I will definitely pick you up!" She drew a bad check for Gu Xiaoxiao like a sloppy eye, and then began to feast.
Satisfied, Gu Xiaoxiao threw Zhao Changsheng, who made him feel bad just now, behind her, and began to pick up vegetables for Zhao Shenglan non-stop.
Children, in the hands of these parents who have failed in life, are shaped into a dream, a dream that they have been fantasizing about themselves but will never be able to reach. It seems that only in this way can they live and continue to face a messy life.
However, children are not appendages of their parents. They are an independent individual, an existence that faces difficulties, goes through wind and rain, and grows together with their parents.
Such a child is Zhao Nan and Zhao Feng.