I don’t know when he became aware of my relationship with Meng Dongxue. Maybe it was because I was able to answer him for everything he asked me about Meng Dongxue these days. And most of the content of our chat has something to do with Meng Dongxue. There is no better daughter than a father. It seems that the little secrets I kept in my heart were discovered so easily.
However, Uncle Meng's words seemed to be a statement. Although my career was a problem, he still recognized me as a person and left everything to Meng Dongxue's own choice. So I also told Uncle Meng that the relationship between Meng Dongxue and I is actually still better than good friends at the moment, and has not really reached that point. If we need further development, we will definitely tell Uncle Meng.
That night, Uncle Meng and I chatted until very late, and his tone was always very gentle. But ever since he revealed this, I have always felt uncomfortable and on pins and needles. Every word he said seemed to be inquiring about my life experience, so I also confessed my life experience, even the process of my apprenticeship and who my master was. It's just that I still skipped the part where I was arrested. Although I was wronged, it was not a glorious thing after all.
I said goodbye to the Meng family that night and said I would go back today while I could still buy ferry tickets. Before I left, Uncle Meng gave me a lot of snacks and candies that Meng Dongxue liked, as well as some beautiful clothes. He had prepared these things in the past few days and asked me to hand them over. Auntie also took out some food stamps and money and handed them to me, asking me to bring them to Meng Dongxue. If I needed anything, call or write home. Then, when Uncle Meng turned his head, Auntie secretly gave it to me. In a letter, she said it was her letter home to Meng Dongxue, and she asked me to bring it to her and not to open it without permission.
Although I am not a gentleman, I really have no interest in opening other people's letters privately. Could it be that just because I know how to exorcise evil spirits and catch ghosts, I look so miserable in the eyes of my aunt? But I couldn't bear to say anything. I just took the letter silently, squeezed it, and wrote a thick letter. I told my aunt, don’t worry. A man must do what he is entrusted by others. Although he has never attended a new school, he still read a few sages’ books when he was a child. He knows how to be trustworthy and self-disciplined, open letters privately, etc., you No more worries.
Since when I disembarked a week ago, I knew that the evening boat only leaves at 12 o'clock every day. If I rush to the dock at this time, I still have time to buy a ticket. So that night, with big and small bags in hand, I jumped on the boat 10 minutes before the boat sailed.
I still fell asleep and woke up on the deck in the wind and waves after a whole night of tossing. When the ship docked in the morning, my chest was so tight that I felt like vomiting all the time. So I found a place to have breakfast and then went to visit Master. But in front of Master's door, the door was locked. There is a piece of folded paper sandwiched between the cracks on the door. It was specially left for me by Master, knowing that I would come home to look for him when I came back. The content of the letter said that Master went to Hubei again about three days ago, saying that he was going there to visit an old man in the world. This old man was a person that Master had long admired, but he had a perverse personality. , Master had been turned away several times before, so he persevered and went again this time.
Then I recalled that Master went on a sightseeing trip a few days ago, and probably one of the stops was this old man’s home. Master also wrote at the end of the letter that this old man’s surname was Qin and he lived in Hankou. He hoped that he could have the chance to meet him this time. It seemed that there was nothing I could do about having lunch at Master's place, so I went to the supply and marketing cooperative and bought some large white steamed buns, planning to rush back to the village. I happened to eat steamed buns on the way and treated them as dinner.
In the past week or so, although Meng Dongxue lived up to her trust and took good care of her father, and even "overfulfilled" the task and allowed Uncle Meng to resume work, these things did not give me a sense of responsibility. A very happy feeling. The reason is also that Meng Dongxue's mother seems to be quite dissatisfied with my identity and career. And since Uncle Meng was able to guess the relationship between Meng Dongxue and I, then Auntie, let alone me, naturally knew about it. However, she didn’t say a word to me on this issue. I don’t know because she didn’t bother to communicate with me. Or do you know that Meng Dongxue and I can't make it to the end? Because of this, I have a lot of ideas.
She entrusted me to give the letter to Meng Dongxue, and also deliberately told me not to peek at it. First of all, I thought she knew that I would never do such a thing, so she must have had an ulterior motive for saying so. So there should be some content in this thick letter home that is related to me.
It was almost dusk when we rushed back to the village. The work in the village does not distinguish between working days and weekends. For people in the mountains, every day is the same, and the same is true for educated youths. So when I opened the door of Aunt Xu's house, Meng Dongxue was sitting with the old couple, preparing to have dinner. Everyone was happy to see me back. I handed Meng Dongxue everything I had been asked to deliver, and then told her what had happened these days. They were all people who knew everything, so I didn't hide anything. I even told them about how I pretended to be a ghost to scare Lin Yuanchao and help Meng Dongxue's father resume his work.
Everyone was very happy and laughing after hearing this. So Aunt Xu took my bowls and chopsticks and asked me to eat with her. While I was eating, Meng Dongxue kept reading the letters written by her mother. I didn't say anything, but secretly paid attention to her expression. Sure enough, when she saw the second page, something was wrong with her expression.
It felt like she heard something that made her unhappy. This was not the expression a daughter should have when she received a letter from her mother in a faraway land. So I feel that what she is reading now should be related to me. It should be my aunt's opinions about me in the letter, and so on.
After reading the letter, Meng Dongxue looked a little sad and ate in silence. So I couldn't help but asked her what was wrong, was she worried? But she shook her head and said no, and continued to eat without looking up at me from beginning to end.
This feeling is actually very strange, especially when I am facing a girl I like. After dinner, Meng Dongxue cleared away the dishes without saying a word, and then said that she was not feeling well, so she went back to the room early, leaving me alone in the main room with my thoughts. At about eleven o'clock at night, I drank too much water and felt a little urgent to urinate, so I went to the toilet. When I opened the door, I heard a soft cry coming from Meng Dongxue's house.
If it were in the past, I would have asked with concern, but I didn't that day. It was obvious that Meng Dongxue was crying because of a letter from her mother. I stubbornly thought it was something related to me, but I was too embarrassed to verify it. Instead of doing this, let her face this by herself, just like Uncle Meng said, she is no longer a child and should have her own choices.
The days since then have been the same as before. Probably because of my worries, I always felt that Meng Dongxue started to avoid me intentionally or unintentionally. But several times when I asked her why you have been avoiding me recently, she said innocently that she didn't. So I don’t know if she has it or not. Maybe we both have some unspeakable words in our hearts, but we just didn’t discover it.
From the end of 1968 to the beginning of the summer of 1969, I successively made several larger orders. One of them even stayed in the city for more than half a month before returning. With the increase of time and experience, I have become more and more comfortable in doing things. This industry really requires practical experience to accumulate and grow rapidly. In the rest of the days, I still read and work, just like before. During these days, the relationship between Meng Dongxue and me was still the same as before. It was just that after I came back from her house that time, we became a little unfamiliar. Although I don't ask often and she vehemently denies it, the fact is that I feel like she is starting to drift away from me.
This also caused me to always be unwilling to stay at home when I had nothing to do. I always hoped that someone would come and ask me to deal with some ghost things soon, so that I could escape from this endless speculation. It's boring, I know it, but I can't help it. When I was the same age as her, I couldn't meet a girl like her. But when I was in love, she walked into my world like this. . For almost two years, our relationship has always been missing that finishing touch. Every time it finally warmed up, it suddenly became distant again due to other things.
I don’t like this feeling, but I can’t muster the courage to explain everything clearly, so I can only keep procrastinating like this. I feel so miserable that I can only divert my attention by reading books and taking orders. Even my temper is not as good as before. , every time I come across something related to Meng Dongxue, I always show that I care about it very much, but I still want to get angry.
In June, new educated youths came again. At this time of year, the village always becomes lively, and I am one of the many people who join in the fun.
One day I received a request from someone to go to the city for a few days, and I had to leave early the next morning. It is said that this time it was an old craftsman who was entrusted with the task. The strange things happening at home worried him and his wife. The night before I left, I sat in the yard and counted the stars in a daze, thinking about something in my mind. At this time, a voice suddenly came from behind:
"Brother Shan, are you free? Come and take a walk with me."
That's Meng Dongxue. She hasn't asked me to go for a walk for a long time. So I quickly stood up and said with a smile, OK, where do you want to go? It's getting late now, why do you want to go out for a walk at this time?
Meng Dongxue did not speak, but walked out first. I was very happy and followed quickly. The mountain village is very quiet at night. The two of us walked on the field without saying a word. From a distance, we looked a bit like ghosts.
But when I was thinking of saying something to resolve the embarrassment, Meng Dongxue suddenly reached out and took my hand.
