Even if he had already made plans to take one step at a time, but seeing the empty thatched hut in front of him, Song Fengchen couldn't help but spit out sour water in his heart.

I think his old man had struggled for decades before pulling himself out of the quagmire. Although there was no heart-warming person to follow, he still had a good time. How dazzling he returned to before liberation.

Song Fengchen retracted his gaze from the hole the size of the roof pot mouth, sighed, and resignedly picked up the moldy bedding and walked outside.

Take your time. With his weak body, don't even think about repairing the roof. It's better to take advantage of the sun outside to wash and dry the quilt and clothes.

There are no wells in Yuexi Village, and all domestic water is taken from the big river outside the village. Song Fengchen walked all the way and met many villagers, but no one talked to him, they were all far away from him as if they had seen a ghost.

Song Fengchen himself found a fairly spacious place to put down his things, then climbed to the foot of the mountain and picked up a bunch of dry branches. There are matches at home, but it should have been a long time since the boxes were moldy, and a small half box was wasted before lighting one.

When the fire started, Song Fengchen took the quilt apart, took out the quilt and put it on the fire to bake, and threw all the quilt into the water.

Soap and washing powder are not available, so I can only use a wooden stick I picked up to beat the clothes vigorously. The family who took the predecessor and sent it back only promised to give him a ration, and nothing else. The bedding and clothes were forcibly recovered by the predecessor from the family.

Two hours after finishing this, Song Fengchen slumped on the ground, his face pale. He touched and sang Kong Chengji's belly, his eyes fell on the clear and waveless river, thoughtfully.

At sunset, Xu Shujian got off work, and when he hurried to the river bank, he saw this scene—

Song Fengchen was lying on a big rock by the river with his limbs spread out, his face covered with a torn straw hat. Standing on the right hand side is a bamboo pole, with a thin thread attached to the end of the bamboo pole, which looks like it was removed from something and stretched crookedly into the water, with only a handful of leaves tied to the water inlet.

Xu Shujian frowned slightly. Because the river outside Yuexi Village was too turbulent, there were few fish and shrimp in the river. Right now this place is the only slow-flowing part of this big river—the other big place is occupied by the children of the village because the water level is relatively shallow.

At this moment, the villagers will not easily let go of anything that can be imported. It's just that older laborers have to work in the fields, and it is impossible to focus all their energy on the insignificant production in the river. After all, work points are the guarantee of a family's ration.

Therefore, the task of staring at the river naturally falls to the children in their teens. Generally speaking, if you save for seven or eight days, the small fish and mussels that the children catch can be made into a bowl of delicious fish soup. And this is the main source of meat for most people in Yuexi Village throughout the year.

Xu Shujian, an outsider, naturally did not dare to grab food, but several seriously ill elderly people in the family couldn't eat wild vegetable papa all day with him. He could only focus on this place right now.

Xu Shujian runs here every evening, because the water here is relatively deep and children in the village generally don't come here, so he can get something more or less every day.

But I didn't expect that this place was already occupied today, and the other side seemed to be a famous rogue in the village. If he enters the water at this time, he will inevitably disturb the other party's fishing, and then it will cause unnecessary disputes.

Thinking of this, he pursed his lips and turned to leave.

At this moment, the leaves on the fish line on the river surface shook up and down, and the light from the corner of his eye hit this scene, and Xu Shujian subconsciously asked to remind him.

The next moment, Song Fengchen got up on the bamboo pole next to him and lifted it up, a palm-sized crucian flew out of the water.

He stretched out his hand and lifted the torn straw hat on his face, feeling a few real qi flowing in the dantian, and he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Recapture the sense of breath, which means that his next days will be a lot easier.

His gaze shifted to the struggling crucian hung on the hook, and a smile appeared in his eyes. This was the only thing he had gained from lying here for nearly four hours. Although he was not big, he could guarantee him today. Stuttering at night is enough.

Only then did Song Fengchen look behind him following the shallow breathing, and then he was taken aback.

Song Fengchen thought, this child is so beautiful!

He was standing there, wearing ordinary earthy gray clothes, his face was as clear as water, and his eyes were warm and calm. Even with an old bamboo basket on his back, he could hardly conceal the gentleness of his scrolls.

Song Fengchen nodded slightly at Xu Shujian, put away the bamboo pole, and picked up the neatly stacked clean clothes with his free left hand, turned and left.

As he walked, he found out the part about Xu Shujian from Song San's memory.

It's just that Song San and Xu Shujian haven't had much contact, and they don't know much about Xu Shujian. I only heard that the other party was an educated youth who was sent here last year, with someone covering him, and the shot was quite generous. There are a group of sickly prisoners in the ‘cattle shed’ in Yuexi Village. One of them is Xu Shujian’s grandfather, who came here to take care of his grandfather.

When Song Fengchen returned to the river and planned to take the rest of the quilt back, the person who was still standing on the shore had already got into the water, leaving only a ball of clothing to throw randomly on the rock Song Fengchen had lay on before.

Song Fengchen's gaze stayed on the white figure in the water for a short while, followed by a frown.

Although it is like spring all year round, it is only in March, and the temperature during the day is slightly higher. When the temperature comes down at night, you have to lie in the quilt.

What is Xu Shujian's entry into the water for, catching fish?

This can't match Song San's memory with the words "Luxury".

As if thinking of something, Song Fengchen shook his head and sighed.

Thinking of this, the light from the corner of his eye suddenly fell on the coal pile with sparks left beside him—

When Xu Shujian swam ashore with two mussels, the fire next to the rocks was thriving.

Xu Shujian's face was startled, and his gaze swept over the now empty tree branch that was still hanging on a bedding before he went into the water, and reacted immediately.

Song San?

It seems to be a bit different from what he had in mind.

Xu Shujian thought, a cool breeze blew over, interrupting his thoughts instantly.

His lips were white, and he skillfully took out a cloth towel from the bamboo basket to dry his body, put on his clothes, and decisively leaned to the fire to dry his hair, before he hurried back.

Pushing open the dilapidated wooden door, facing a row of chase huts, there were seven people living in a thatched hut of less than 30 square meters, five of them were sick, and there was a violent cough from time to time, and the smell of the house was not bad. Think about it.

Xu Shujian didn't dare to open the door for ventilation. The wind was strong at night, and he was afraid that these patients would catch cold again. It would be more than just worse.

"Grandpa." Xu Shujian put down the bamboo basket on his back.

"Shu Jian is back. I just gave the old man a few shots, and he has gone to bed by now." The only one who spoke to him was Zheng Dehui, the only healthy old man in the house.

The people living in this thatched hut were divided into two groups. One group was Zheng Dehui. The four were formerly well-known scholars at home and abroad. They arrived here seven or eight years ago. Although they survived by chance, they broke their bodies early. .

The other group is Xu Shujian's grandparents and Zhao Chengyu, all of whom were in Yuexi Village last year. Xu Shujian's grandfathers Xu Junmin and Zhao Chengyu were both high-ranking government officials before, and were implicated and knocked down three years ago. The two had been serving sentences on the collective farm before, and they were calculated to be exhausted. Thanks to their friends and relatives, they were sent to Yuexi Village to save their lives.

Zheng Dehui, who was limping on one foot, took the bamboo basket in Xu Shujian's hand and saw two mussels on top of a pile of wild vegetables. A hint of apology flashed in his eyes: "This is what you exchanged for the money with the Chen family again?"

In the past, Xu Shujian was in charge of their food based on his ample hands. After all, he could receive cash and various tickets from outside within a short interval of time. At that time, Zheng Dehui could comfort him in his heart and wait for someday to turn over. We must repay them well.

But the situation is different now. Zheng Dehui knows that Xu Shujian and the others have not received a letter from outside for three months.

Just from the sharp decline in the food level in the past two months, I know how difficult Xu Shujian is now.

"It's okay." Xu Shujian said: "It's not that several grandpas are very sick. They have to eat some meat to supplement their nutrition."

He didn't show up on his face, but he felt bitter in his heart.

He still has a little cash here, but it's life-saving money, and he won't use it as a last resort.

As for raising the four of Zheng Dehui, it is one aspect that he can't bear to watch them go to death. More importantly, Zheng Dehui knows medical skills. The five patients in the house can survive because of his superb acupuncture and moxibustion.

Before Xu Shujian had plenty of money, Zheng Dehui was rescued, and he served delicious food and drink, and the conditions of these five people have improved. As a result, the letter outside was broken, Xu Shujian was struggling, and their condition repeated again.

At this juncture, the most important thing is not to cut off the hope of survival of these patients. As for other things, Xu Shujian can't or dare to think about it.

He comforted himself and comforted Zheng Dehui and others: "The days will be better. I will dig more wild vegetables and come back every day. It is not a problem until May. Tartary buckwheat will be ripe by then... By June, the mushrooms in the mountains will grow. Yes, with last year’s experience, I have memorized all the mushrooms I can eat, and I will definitely have a good harvest this year..."

Listening to Xu Shujian's muttering, the hearts of everyone present slowly fell.

Life will be better!

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