That evening, when Yang Yongxian returned home from school, Li Xiuxin was fast asleep in the room with the door closed.
It was already cold in October. In the evening, the north wind blew loudly outside and the leaves were rolled up.
Li Xiuxin naturally had more reasons not to step out of the house. Yang Yongxian looked back, sighed inwardly, put his books and teaching materials back in the house, and then went to the kitchen.
However, she was surprised not to find the familiar and busy figure of Liao Meiying in the kitchen. In the kitchen, the pots were cold and the stove was cold, and Mrs. Jin was sitting at the door of the kitchen in a daze.
"Mom, where is Mei Ying?" Yang Yongxian came over and asked.
When Jin saw Yang Yongxian, his eyes flashed with excitement. He quickly pointed to the backyard, screamed twice, and made a few gestures.
Yang Yongxian understood. Mei Ying was called to the backyard by her grandma.
"I'm going to the backyard to take a look." Yang Yongxian hurried to the backyard.
In the backyard, the door to the east room was open, and Mr. Liu happened to come out of it.
Seeing Yang Yongxian approaching, Liu smiled.
"Yongxian is back? I just want to go to the front yard to find you. Come on, come on, your grandma is waiting for you to ask questions. Come in, come in!"
Mrs. Liu spoke in rapid succession, turned around and went back to the east room.
In the east room, Old Yang sat at the table and smoked a cigarette in silence. Mrs. Tan sat on the bed with her legs crossed, with a dustpan beside her.
Liao Meiying sat sideways, holding a ball of thread in her hand, and was helping Tan sort out the thread with her head buried in her head.
The room was very peaceful, not as depressing and solemn as Yang Yongxian imagined, and he breathed a sigh of relief.
When he came up, he bowed politely to Lao Yangtou and the Tan family and said hello, and then his eyes fell on Liao Meiying.
Liao Meiying raised her head and gave him a gentle smile, then blinked to reassure him that she was fine.
There was also a smile in Yang Yongxian's eyes, and he was slightly touched by the mutual care and tacit understanding between the couple.
Beside him, Ms. Liu's eyes were darting around, naturally taking in the young couple's interaction thoroughly.
Mrs. Liu put her hands on her hands and smiled, "Oh, I said, Mom and Dad, you two are really worried."
"Look, our young couple Yongxian and Mei Ying are in a good relationship. You smile at me and I smile at you. Then Li Xiuxin has no ability to ruin their relationship. A concubine is a concubine and she cannot be put on the stage. Things can only come out occasionally to disgust people..."
Old Yangtou and Tan found it easier to listen to the first few words of Liu's words, but they started to listen less to them later on.
"Okay, you go and have a rest on the side. Your mother has something to ask Yongxian, so don't chirp!" Old Yang interrupted Liu's words.
Mrs. Liu shut her mouth knowingly and sat down quickly.
Tan's sewing dustpan was at arm's length, and there were other balls of thread in it that had not been sorted out.
Mrs. Liu pretended not to see it and only looked at Yang Yongxian.
Old Yangtou said to Yang Yongxian: "Yongxian, you have been teaching for a day and you are exhausted. Sit down and talk."
Yang Yongxian nodded, then came to the table and sat down properly.
"Master, grandma, I wonder if you two have come over to see your grandson and Mei Ying. What do you want to tell them?" he asked after sitting down.
Old Yangtou smiled and said: "It's nothing, I'm just excited. I want you two to come over and chat with us to relieve our boredom. You also know that this man is old and aged, and he always wants to be more lively. !”
After hearing this, Yang Yongxian stood up quickly and said with a guilty look on his face: "My grandson is unfilial. He can't come over often to relieve his boredom. He is busy all day long but does nothing. My grandson is ashamed!"
Lao Yangtou waved his hand: "Don't be like this, you are a good boy and a responsible man. Grandma and grandma know that."
"Besides, you go to school every day to teach the children and solve their doubts. This is not just doing nothing, this is a great thing that benefits the village!"
Yang Yongxian smiled bitterly, but did not argue.
Old Yangtou said again: "Sit down and talk, stop standing, you're tired!"
Yang Yongxian sat down again.
Here, Mrs. Liu has been looking at Yang Yongxian with straight eyes, or else tilting her head thoughtfully, sometimes frowning, sometimes shaking her head.
Sometimes there was a cry of regret, and sometimes there was a hint of worry.
This aroused Yang Yongxian's curiosity.
"Fourth Aunt, why have you been looking at me like this since I came in? Is my face not washed? Is it stained with pen and ink?" Yang Yongxian asked.
Ms. Liu was startled.
She found that the eyes of Old Yangtou and Liao Meiying were also directed towards her, and Mrs. Tan immediately scolded her unhappily: "As the fourth aunt and an elder, why are you always looking at the younger ones? Are you still shameless? "
Mrs. Liu said 'ouch' and quickly explained with a smile: "Old lady, what you said is really making people laugh to death. I look at Yongxian, and the other eldest girls and the little daughter-in-law look at Yongxian, then The meaning in the eyes is different!”
"I'm looking at Yongxian out of the elder's concern for the younger generation. Old lady, you are blind and can't see it. You haven't seen Yongxian's complexion. It's really very bad!"
After hearing this, Mrs. Tan's entire attention fell on Yang Yongxian's complexion, and she had no time to reprimand Mrs. Liu.
"Is Yongxian looking bad? Mei Ying, tell me!" Tan said quickly.
Liao Meiying glanced at Yang Yongxian and then at Lao Yangtou, and found that both Yang Yongxian and Lao Yangtou were secretly shaking their heads towards her.
Is this telling her not to tell the truth?
Beside her, Ms. Tan was urging her again, so Liao Meiying hesitated, looking embarrassed.
This aroused Tan's anger.
"You all bully the old lady and I can't see clearly? Old man, tell me!" Ms. Tan said loudly.
Lao Yangtou said as he put tobacco into the dry tobacco pole: "Maybe he is tired. He looks a little tired, but it is not as scary as the fourth wife said."
Yang Yongxian also hurriedly said: "Yes, during this period, the school students' classes are coming to an end, and I am busier than usual. Grandma doesn't have to worry about me."
Mrs. Liu said: "Oh Yongxian, the fourth aunt knows that you are trying to comfort your grandma and don't want her to worry about you."
"But you have to know it yourself. Is it possible that you don't have a bronze mirror in your house? Take a good look at yourself. You've shed a layer of skin like this, and your eye sockets are sunken. La!"
After hearing what Liu said, Tan couldn't sit still.
"Yongxian, come here, come to me!" said Tan.
Yang Yongxian came forward quickly.
"Squat down!" Tan ordered again.
Yang Yongxian did as he was told.
Mrs. Tan leaned forward, put her hands on Yang Yongxian's shoulders, groped along his neck and towards his face, and then used her hands that were as withered as dead branches to touch Yang Yongxian's face inch by inch...
"You kid, why are you so thin? You're all skin and bones!" Ms. Tan was anxious and distressed.
