09/eng_cont/i_0007.txt

Chapter 7 Zhongjiawan.

"Thank you very much. I'll give you these two hair flowers. Don't dislike it." Tian Sisi handed the hair flowers in her pocket to Zhong Meiying. She didn't want things that others had worn.

Zhong Meiying didn't dare to touch the flower. This was a good thing that even if she had money, she couldn't buy it. Zhong Yuying was proud of this flower for a whole month! When Tian Sisi saw this, she put her hair into her hand, pulled her two brothers away, and shouted back to her, "Don't forget about me!"

Zhong Meiying stuffed the hair flower into the bag of her cotton-padded jacket as a rare gift, preparing to give it to her sister. My sister is going to meet someone this year. She will definitely be more beautiful wearing this hair flower, so she can find a good family. Zhong Meiying hid her hair and looked at Tian Sisi's back as she walked away. She was so beautiful! She looked envious, but not jealous.

Zhong Meiying's father, Zhong Shancai, was a hard-working farmer. He taught his children from an early age, "Don't be jealous of other people's food and clothing. If you want to live a good life, you have to rely on your own hands." His brother Zhong Liangcai (Zhong Yuying's father) had a good life at that time. He didn't want to covet his brother's glory. Even if his family ate braised vegetables, he didn't even think of going to his brother's house for help.

Zhong Shancai is a very enthusiastic person. Unlike his brother Zhong Liangcai, who only interacts with wealthy families, Zhong Shancai will help any family who has trouble. Therefore, Zhong Shancai is very popular in Yuequan Village. During the land reform, due to his relationship with Zhong Liangcai, he had to be classified as a middle peasant jointly and severally. It was the village cadres of Yuequan Village who took the initiative to propose to the work team above to classify him as a poor lower-middle peasant. Only then did Zhong Shancai's family live a peaceful life.

Therefore, although Zhong Meiying envied Tian Sisi's good clothes, she would not try her best to defraud Tian Sisi's things like Zhong Yuying did. Zhong Meiying hurried to the Ciannan River, thinking about washing the clothes early, and when she got home and gave her sister the hairpin to wear, she went to the village to help Tian Sisi publicize her name change. After taking other people's things, she had to do the work for others. She was not the supercilious wolf like Zhong Yuying.

No one in Yuequan Village knew how old the old camphor tree was. The oldest old man in the village said that the old camphor tree was this big when he was a child. He also said that the old camphor tree had spiritual powers. The Japanese wanted to set fire to the tree, but as soon as the fire was lit, a thunder struck, killing the Japanese soldier who was burning the tree, and scaring the Japanese away.

However, the old camphor tree left a big hole that was as deep as one person. At first, everyone thought that the old camphor tree would not last long. However, year after year, the old camphor tree is still lush and green, and its branches and leaves are growing more and more prosperous. People in the village like to gather under the old camphor tree when everything is going on. Even learning the quotations of ** is also done under this tree.

Children in the village also like to come here to play, because there is a large square under the old camphor tree, which is a place where villagers dry rice, hold meetings, show movies, perform dramas and other collective activities. Children also choose this place to play, so the most lively place in Yuequan Village has to be here.

At this time, there were already many children gathered here, large and small. Most of the children had patches on their cotton-padded jackets and wore thin trousers. Some children even only wore a pair of trousers and single shoes with their toes exposed. Only a few children wore new clothes. These children seemed to belong to the better-off families in the village.

There was still a thick layer of snow under the old camphor tree because there was not enough sunlight. The children played happily on the snow, playing snowball fights and building snowmen. None of them were afraid of the cold. Donghua proudly took out a large handful of firecrackers from his bag, raised them towards the children, and shouted: "Let's set off the firecrackers!" The boys were immediately attracted, and each one of them looked at the red firecrackers in Donghua's hand eagerly.

Donghua took out another cigarette from the bag, lit it with a match, and set off firecrackers with the children. Of course, it was Donghua and Tsinghua who lit the fire. The other children just watched from the side, or helped bury the firecrackers in the snow, watching the lit firecrackers blowing up the white snow everywhere, and they all shouted happily.

Of course Tian Sisi would not play such a childish game. She watched it for a while and found it really boring. Donghua's firecrackers were just dismantled from a long string of firecrackers at home. There were no tricks, unlike the fireworks of later generations, which were diverse and beautiful.

"Tian Zhaodi, do you want to play building a snowman with us?" A girl in somewhat shabby clothes came up timidly and asked.

Tian Sisi, who was bored, raised her head when she heard the sound, and saw five or six girls not far away, all of whom looked about the same age as her. There was nothing to do anyway, building a snowman was not bad, so she nodded, and the eyes of the girl who asked the question suddenly lit up., just now Zhong Lanying encouraged her to ask Tian Zhaodi, she thought she would be scolded by Tian Zhaodi. Tian Zhaodi usually didn't treat the children of rich peasants and middle peasants like them, but she didn't expect that Tian Zhaodi agreed to play with them today. How nice!

The girl was flattered and led Tian Sisi towards them. The other girls smiled flatteringly at Tian Sisi and gave her the best position. These girls were all dressed in rags. One girl had a big hole in her knee, her big toe was exposed, and there were frostbite on her hands and face. Tian Sisi felt cold just looking at it.

She took out a handful of fried peanuts from her pocket, which she caught when she went out. She originally wanted to eat them as snacks when playing, but seeing so many girls, she felt that they should need them more. Sure enough, when the girls saw the peanuts in Tian Sisi's hands, their eyes brightened with eagerness. They didn't even have enough to eat at home, and they couldn't even think about the peanuts. Even if there were a few, they were eaten by the men in the family, and girls like them couldn't even touch them.

Tian Sisi divided the peanuts among them evenly and watched them eat with a smile. There were not many peanuts at all. Five or six people could only share three or four peanuts per person. They carefully peeled the shells and put the pink peanut kernels into their mouths religiously. They chewed them slowly, savoring the fragrance of the peanuts and reluctant to swallow them. "It's so delicious!" The youngest girl sighed with satisfaction.

Tian Sisi felt a little bitter. How have these so-called children from middle peasants and rich peasants ever enjoyed the blessings of middle peasants and rich peasants? Although everyone's living standards in this era are similar, these children with poor background have a harder life. Not only do they have to endure physical hunger and cold, they also have to suffer the rejection and glare from others.

Tian Sisi's wife, Zhong Juying, used to be a landlord. Zhong Juying often recalled the bitterness and sweetness in front of Tian Sisi, telling her the sad history of her youth. It didn't matter if she didn't have enough to eat and received cold looks. The most uncomfortable thing is that no matter how outstanding you are, as long as you have a headBecause you are labeled as a landlord, you have no role in choosing the women's captain. No matter how good your grades are, you can't go to junior high school, and you can't marry into a good family. The person who comes to see you is either a widower, a disabled person, or an old man who is one year older than you.

Because of this, even though her mother was the most outstanding girl in Yuequan Village at the time, she always looked down upon her. She became an old girl and hurriedly married her scumbag father. As a result, Tian Sisi had been accustomed to the quarrels and fights between the two of them since she was a child, which cast a shadow on the marriage, leading to her divorce within two years of marriage.

Alas, Tian Sisi sighed, I wonder how my mother is doing now? Will she be sad? She should know a little bit. Although her daughter is not very lively, she is still obedient. I should feel uncomfortable for a while, right? Tian Sisi is not worried about my mother's old life. Less than a year after divorcing her scumbag father, my mother remarried. Although she did not have children, the man she remarried was quite good. He was a gentle and elegant university teacher who treated Tian Sisi very well. The man's two sons were also intellectuals and respected her very much. I guess my quality of life in her later years should not be too bad!

All the other girls finished their share of peanuts. Only the girl in the shabbiest clothes ate one and hid the remaining peanuts in her jacket pocket. When Tian Sisi looked at her, she blushed and smiled sheepishly. Tian Sisi also smiled at her. This girl probably wanted to take the peanuts back to her family. She is so sensible!