between clouds and mud

Chapter 2
A mid-air whistle sounded, and the dragon boat race began.On the wide river, five dragon boats were flying off the string like arrows. On each boat were a dozen strong men paddling hard. Village women and old people stood on the bridge and shouted, and boy scouts ran on the bank to cheer.

Hong Nier excitedly followed the crowd, but she didn't forget about Xiao Liu, so she left a sentence: "Xiao Liu, you stay here, I will tell your father to pick you up later."

He followed the large group without looking back, and the high spirits of Xiao Liu, who was left behind, slowly died down.She couldn't keep up with the crowd, and the excitement gradually moved away from her.

But she was not willing to be left where she was, so she walked forward slowly with shaky steps.

Slowly she caught up with the first person, and Xiao Liu happily called out, "Brother Cheng."

The back figure walking in front of her turned around under the moonlight by the bridge, Zhang Chengnian slowly swung the stick in his hand, apparently unexpectedly there was a little tail behind him: "You walk really slowly."

"But I caught up with you, you were the first to be caught up by me, I will catch up with the second one, and catch up with everyone." Xiao Liu was not convinced, and she started bragging: "Maybe I can catch up with the dragon boat."

Zhang Chengnian is already ten years old, so he won't care about a six-year-old kid.

An older child would not like to play with a younger child, but at this moment, it is rare for him to have the patience to wait for a little turtle who can brag.

After she finished speaking, she became frustrated. She knew she was slow, but her heart was already wishing to fly over. She held expectations, and her expression was earnest: "Can you carry me?"

"No." Children like to play pranks, Zhang Chengnian looked at her clumsy appearance, and deliberately played tricks like teasing the grasshopper in his jar, both of which made him feel very satisfied.

Under the moonlight, the two walked along the side of the river. Although she walked very hard, she could already see the lively fire not far away, and there were still white spots flopping in the river.

"Brother Cheng, are you going to school too?" Xiao Liu couldn't help but continue to ask.

"Ah."

"Hong Nier's father said that going to school is useless, why do you still go to school?"

Zhang Chengnian didn't want to answer this kind of question. Girls always think very simple and boring. They only think about washing and cooking, getting married and having children.

But Xiao Liu is still tireless: "I still have to herd cattle after school, so why don't I continue to herd cattle?"

"You won't be able to herd cattle until you go to school." Zhang Chengnian finally refuted her, he said firmly.

Xiao Liu still couldn't understand the look in his eyes at the moment, her vocabulary was limited, so she didn't know how to describe it.

She was attracted by the water splashing in the river again: "Brother Cheng, what are they doing? It's so lively."

"Catch ducks." After catching ducks, the show was almost over, Zhang Chengnian was calculating in his heart, because he didn't like the excitement.

He unhurriedly broke down the willow branch on the river bank, and there was a green worm lying on the leaf. With a flick of his skillful fingers, the little caterpillar fell into the grass, and there were still circles of worm eyes on the branch and leaf.

Xiao Liu still couldn't understand his dialect, so he always called Brother Cheng.

"Sister, I'll see you off." He casually wove a ring of willow branches and grass, and he put the ring on her head.On the grass ring are slightly trembling willow leaves, as well as colorful ropes lifted by the wind and long black hair intertwined.

After the dragon boat was over, the crowd on the bank gradually thinned out, and the adults went home one after another with big smiles and fat ducks.

Lao Liu is good at water, he caught too many ducks to hold, so he generously gave a few ducks to his fellow villagers, and kept one in each hand for his own food.

The husband and wife greeted each other, but they couldn't see Xiao Liu among the group of returning children, and their hearts skipped a beat.

Fang Nier was still immersed in the excitement of catching ducks, and she didn't know what to ask.

Fang Nier's father just took away the sixth duck, and he felt guilty.He lost his temper on the spot, rolled up his sleeves, and beat up his little Nier, and he didn't forget to hold the duck in his hand tightly when he struck.

A few well-meaning villagers acted as peacemakers and separated the father and daughter.But a nine-year-old already has a strong sense of self-esteem.Tell her her butt to bloom in front of her classmates and friends, crying with shame and aggrieved.

Hong Nier belatedly remembered that Xiao Liu was still waiting at Dengxi Bridge.

So the husband and wife borrowed a flashlight and searched for it while shouting.

The two even looked at the calm river. Xiao Nier was too young to walk steadily, so the husband and wife quickened their steps.

But I walked back and forth twice and didn't see anyone. Now I was really anxious, scratching my heart and liver like ants on a hot pot.

The two parted ways, Zhou Laoliu continued to search by the river, Fuying went home to see if Xiao Nier came home?

Under the moonlight, although the boy's back is thin, his figure is firm.He walked very slowly, and the little girl who was lying on his back held his shoulders tightly.

Fuying shouted excitedly and chased after him.

Both of them were in a bit of a mess, with a puddle of muddy water that hadn't completely dried up on their bodies.

"Auntie, Xiao Liu fell into a mud puddle." When Zhang Chengnian carried her on his back, his body was also dirty.

"Thank you, auntie, come and hug me." Fuying's hanging heart finally fell, and she bent down to take her daughter.

"Auntie, don't get your clothes dirty, I can still move my back." Zhang Chengnian was a solid-minded child, and he lifted Xiao Liu up on his body to prove that he still had strength.

Seeing that Xiaoliu's wrists were tightly wrapped around Brother Cheng's back, Fu Ying didn't shirk her: "Brother Cheng, then you send your sister home, your uncle is still looking for Xiaoliu by the river, I'll call him go home."

As she spoke, she brightened up the flashlight again, and put it in Xiao Liu's hand. She warned anxiously: "Follow the road, be careful, your uncle and I will catch up in a while."

On the way home, the backs of the two children were slanted by the moonlight, gradually blending with the night.

During the daytime, the valley is quiet, and the little bean dings are locked in the school.As a result, the cicadas on the trees and the frogs in the pond lost their biggest natural enemies, and they made a lot of noise in the summer fields.

Zhou Lao Liu took Xiao Ni'er to the city for a run. When she left, she looked very depressed, and on the way back she was bouncing around happily.Sitting on the bus back home, Xiaoliu asked about Dad's school with great interest, and she asked curiously: What did Hong Nier and Brother Cheng say differently?

Dad asked her: "Does Xiao Liu want to go to school?"

She thought about it and nodded.

"But the school is very far away. It takes a long time to walk. Your legs will fall and you won't be able to walk."

Dad continued: "When you learn to walk, you can go to school. Xiao Liu will go and see who is right."

The originally lost face stretched out again, and she continued to nod, with sincere longing and sincere yearning in her eyes.

After getting off the bus, we still have to walk a long way and climb over half a hill.

When there was a short distance left, the father put down Xiao Liu in his arms and led him away.

During the half-hour journey, two staggered figures crossed the muddy path, and behind them were footprints, one deep and one shallow, one large and one small.

In the evening, Fuying sat by the bed shaking a cattail fan to enjoy the coolness, while her husband slowly burst the blisters on the soles of Xiaoliu's feet under the kerosene lamp.

Little Nier was snoring lightly, she was already fast asleep, when a mosquito sneaked up on her arm occasionally, it was flattened by a pair of rough and thick palms.Fu Ying wiped off the mosquito blood on her hands, and continued to sit by the bed and fan her husband: "What's wrong with Nier's legs? How much do you want to raise?"

Speaking of this topic, Fu Ying's face was a bit sad.

Zhou Laoliu dipped the silver needle in alcohol for a while. He held his daughter's little foot, which was only half the size of his palm, and squeezed out pus. Little Nier's skin was very delicate: "No money, The doctor said she was fine."

The doctor's examination said that there is no problem physically, and it is estimated that there are some psychological disorders.

When the weather is at its hottest, the little Doudings are on summer vacation.The children scattered all over the mountains and plains, those flying in the sky and crawling on the ground became vigilant, and even a few fish swimming in the river sensed the danger signal.

One after another, friends passed by Xiaoliu's house.Xiao Liu called them happily, and when Fang Nier saw it was her, she turned her face down unhappily, and said awkwardly, "Don't follow us."

There were only three girls of the same age in the village, and Xiao Liu stopped looking for them after being neglected a few times.The boys in the village ran around like monkeys, Xiao Liu followed behind them, and was left behind after a while.

Once everyone was playing hide-and-seek, because there was one less team member, so Xiao Liu was lucky enough to pull over to make up the number.

Zhang Chengnian is a master at hide-and-seek. As long as he wants to hide, no one can find him, but he can't hold back his teammates too much.Since Xiao Liu couldn't go too far, he could only drag her and hide in the closet.

The wardrobe is not strong and the space is cramped.But the two little guys are both thin and weak, so it is easy to hide. Seeing that Xiao Liu was still in place, Zhang Chengnian directly stuffed her in.

After a while, hearing the sound of approaching footsteps, the hearts of the two jumped nervously into their throats.The closet is actually the easiest place to be exposed. If there is enough time, he will definitely not hide here.

Fortunately, the sloppy Junzi was arranged to search the room, Junzi barely took a look at it, and then sprawled on the ground and swept under the bed in a dignified manner, before leaving without seeing anyone.

Xiao Liu and Zhang Chengnian who were hiding in the closet looked at each other for a moment, she gritted her teeth, and finally couldn't hold back a cry.

Junzi who had not gone far heard the sound and shot back. He opened the closet door and looked at the two surprises of buy one get one free.At the beginning, I couldn't help being complacent, and decided to check the closet carefully for hide-and-seek in the future.Later, Junzi would even carefully lift off the clothes to see if there was a villain inside the clothes.

"Why are you crying?" Zhang Chengnian pointed at her angrily.

Xiao Liu knew that she was in trouble, so she held her mouth and explained with sobs: "The house, it's a terrible house, it's locked and you can't get out."

Zhang Chengnian and Junzi briefly exchanged inexplicable eye contact, they knew that Xiao Liu was adopted by Uncle Zhou.

Had she been locked in the house before?
But the children don't care about these things, they just dislike Xiao Liu as a fool.

The follow-up this time was that no friends came to ask her to play, and Xiao Liu could only sit on the threshold in a daze as if he had been forgotten.

Until the afternoon of August, the weather was as hot as usual, but the wind was strong in the valley that day, the leaves rustled and even the tiny branches swayed.

Xiaoliu is holding a beautiful swallow kite, and the boys who are lying on the tree to catch grasshoppers are attracted. Fang Nier and Hong Nier pause the colorful wreaths they are weaving in their hands.

Driving Niuping, the little Doudings gathered together.His eyes were focused on the kite, so he was very envious.Kites are not rare, but this is the first time I have seen such delicate and light kites.

Daxiang was the first to ask to play, he pulled the thread and ran very fast, and the little Doudings chased after him.

The kite flew higher than the roof in his hand, hanging in the sky.

Although Fan Nier still doesn't talk to Xiao Liu, she finally doesn't reject Xiao Liu joining this group.

Six years old is the age of mental enlightenment, looking up at that kite, Xiao Liu's dullness and slowness are disintegrating little by little.

Zhang Chengnian also took the kite and ran around, was annoyed by Junzi behind his butt, and threw the kite to Junzi in disappointment, he saw Xiaoliu who was far behind.

Thinking of the little idiot who fell into the puddle last time, Zhang Chengnian took the initiative to coax him in a good mood: "Do you want my brother to carry it?"

Xiao Liu sat on the ground panting, and was pulled up by Zhang Chengnian who came over.There were still a few straws standing up playfully in her hair, she shook her head sharply and refused, shaking off a few straws like a bird.

Xiao Liu stumbled towards his little friend in the distance.

She smiled happily, and ran awkwardly, the speed of her feet began to increase, and she crossed the field.

The wind skimmed the golden color of the field, and there was a wave of wheat, the swaying branches were full of grains, the curved seedlings swayed in the wind, and the fragrance of rice that was about to mature came to the face.

She is not a cute, lovable, clever little kid, or even a dull, demented, clumsy little fool.With your protection, fortunately, she has grown into the healthiest and happiest little girl.

After returning home that day, the first thing Junzi did was to ask for a kite.

He is the youngest son, and his family named him Zhang Zhijun. At that time, he was proud to join the army, but not everyone was qualified. It can be seen that his family placed high hopes on him.Zhang Zhijun grew up with a lot of love since he was a child. As long as his parents can give him, he will never get anything.

But his father was not satisfied with the soldiers he made, he stepped on the ground and said that it was not as good-looking as Xiao Liu's kite, and it could not fly as high as Xiao Liu's kite.Annoyed by the quarrel, his father reached out to hit him.

Before the slap fell, the grandparents scolded his father, patiently coaxed the little grandson to eat, and asked Xiao Liu to lend him the kite to play next time.

Hearing the excuse, Junzi was so angry that he stopped eating.

"No, no. Let Xiao Liu give you the kite." The grandparents held the bowl and fed him with a spoon, coaxing the little grandson in a gentle tone.

The next day, Zhang Zhijun happily went to Xiaoliu's house to ask for a kite, but when he came back he had a deflated expression.Zhang Fang saw her younger brother bowing his head after cutting the grass. Next to the pile of firewood at home was a kite that was trampled to pieces by soldiers yesterday.

She was sitting in the yard chopping firewood, and her mother was still talking about how quicker her hands and feet were, and she thought of Xiao Liu's kite flying in the sky.

(End of this chapter)