A heavy rain has just hit this mountain town. At this time, the sun has shone all over the mountains, but the rain and fog have not dispersed. The fog lingers in the mountains and forests, like a fairyland. A rainbow hangs on the eastern horizon, and the mountains, forests and fields The dust was also washed away by the rain, revealing a fresh and soft figure;
This is a border town surrounded by mountains. It is called Meilin Town. It is named after the plum forest in the southeast of the town. Several low mountains in the east of the town are connected to the north and south sides. There is a large lake in the south. , coincidentally, there is only a small river in the town that runs from west to east. Although it is a small river, people in the town call it Taojiang. On weekdays, the water in the Taojiang River is less than knee-high, but it forms a small river in Lujia Village. There was a large lake called Xiangyun Lake. In the whole town, only the plum forest could lead to the outside world. After the spring rain, the fishermen were taking out the newly woven fishing nets from the cabin and hanging them to dry. There were several farmers working, without oxen, just relying on human power to plow the fields;
The town is sparsely populated. Standing on the top of the mountain in the west, you can have a panoramic view of the entire town. The town consists of three small villages, namely Liujiacun, Lujiacun and Baiyun Village. Among the three villages, Liujia Village in the east has the largest population, but it only has more than ten households. Liujia Village mainly makes a living by farming. Lujia Village in the south has roughly the same population as Liujia Village, but it is because of its proximity to the lake. It is more "rich" than Liujia Village. To say it is rich is just that there is more fishing than Liujia Village. The town's market is also located in Lujia Village. It is said to be a market, but it is nothing more than a relatively wide yellow mud road paved with cobblestones in the center of the village. There are a few thatched shops on both sides. On weekdays, families in the town trade simple daily necessities with each other. The Baiyun Village to the west is different from these two villages. There are only five families in this Baiyun Village, and each family has a different surname: one family is an Orion, surnamed Li, and the other family makes a living by cutting firewood. It’s funny. The family that makes a living by cutting firewood happens to be named Chai. One family is a blacksmith with the surname Wang. Another family is a carpenter with the surname Chen. They usually build some furniture and farm tools for people in the town. There is also a family with the surname of Chai. He makes a living by collecting herbs, and his surname is Ling.
It is such a small town that is almost isolated from the world. Even bandits are not willing to visit it on weekdays. If you come to a place where you have to pay for travel expenses, except for being poor and destitute, the people in the town are also living leisurely and contentedly;
As for Baiyun Village, due to the terrain, it is backed by mountains and has almost no fields, so the villagers have no stable source of food. Except for the hunter family, which is slightly better, the other families are living in poverty. Especially the family named Ling. There are only two old men in their seventies and a baby of twelve or thirteen years old living together. The old man is old, and people in the town call him Old Man Ling. They don’t know what his name is, and the family This little baby in his early ten years is his grandson, named Ling Yun. This baby is also pitiful. He has lost his parents since he was a child. He is more than ten years old, but he can't even wear straw sandals. On weekdays, he goes barefoot in the mountains and forests with his grandfather to collect herbs, and after drying them, he takes them to the market to exchange for some rice noodles. Oil, salt and the like. If you are lucky, you can also pick some wild mushrooms or dig some small tree roots to fill your stomach. More often, you need to go hungry and go to the town to beg for food, relying on everyone's charity to make a living. , and for this reason he became familiar with everyone in the town;
At noon that day, the grandfather and grandson were about to go home with a small bag of rice they had exchanged for today's herbs, but their return home was delayed by the sudden heavy rain. The rain had just stopped. Thinking that the old woman was still at home waiting for the rice they exchanged for cooking, Old Man Ling urged his eldest grandson to hurry up and hurry home. Old Man Ling was trembling in front with a rice bag on his arm. , although spring has begun at this time, the temperature in this mountain col is still extremely cold, and it is even bitingly cold after the heavy rain. The wet straw sandals on Old Ling's feet couldn't bring any warmth to his thin feet. At this time, he was thinking about going back as soon as possible to let the old woman make porridge to warm him up, which was just the time for these pair of soon-to-be- Warm the frozen soles of your feet over a fire. But behind him, Ling Yun was playing in the puddles with his bare feet. His little face was red, and he seemed not to feel a trace of cold. From time to time, he picked up stones on the ground and walked into the lake, causing waves of excitement. The ripples swayed into the distance.
"Ling Yun, it's getting late, hurry up!" Old man Ling urged impatiently from the front. Only then did Ling Yun hear the sound and looked up at his grandfather walking in front. He looked thoughtful and hurriedly chased after him. He went up and said, "Grandpa, are you cold? Put on my cotton-padded jacket!" As he said this, he took off his cotton-padded jacket and gave it to his grandfather. Although this cotton-padded jacket was old, it was fully patched. But there were no holes. When it was worn on Ling Yun, it almost covered his knees. The cuffs were a bit longer than Ling Yun's hands. He thought he had gotten it from somewhere. Old Ling took the cotton-padded jacket but did not put it on himself. He was about to put it back on Ling Yun and scolded: "You don't want to live, little kid? It's such a cold day that you're freezing, how can you explain to your dead parents!" Ling Yun pushed his grandfather's hand away, He said, "Grandpa, I'm not cold. Please touch my hand. It's warm." After hearing this, Old Man Ling pretended to believe it. He held his little hand and said, "Okay, okay, let me see your hand." Are your hands warm or not?" It didn't matter if he tried it, but it frightened old man Ling. He quickly touched Ling Yun's forehead and said to himself: "This child doesn't have a fever!" While he was thinking, Ling Yun suddenly pointed The lake shouted: "Grandpa, what do you think that is?" After hearing this, Old Man Ling quickly turned his head and looked towards the lake. The afternoon sun shone on the lake, making it particularly dazzling. The sun swayed with the fluctuation of the lake water. I was dazzled. At first glance, I didn't see anything unusual on the lake. I was about to ask Ling Yun what was going on when I heard someone on the shore shouting: "Someone has fallen into the water, come and save him!"
It is said that the grandfather and grandson came out of Liujiacun. In order to return to their home in Baiyun Village as soon as possible, they did not go through Lujiacun. Instead, they detoured to the opposite side of the lake, passed through the farmland on the lakeshore, and took the path to the west. The north and south sides of Xiangyun Lake The distance was only about one kilometer, and the cry for help shuttled through the open fields, instantly causing an explosion in Lujia Village on the other side. All the villagers ran out to help save people, and the fishing boats on the shore also started moving towards the lake. The center was drawn, but it was too far away and there was no time to save people. When they heard the cry for help, several villagers who were working in the fields on the north bank of Xiangyun Lake also put down their things and ran towards the bank. Although this Lujia Village is close to Not everyone knows how to swim in the lake, and in this cold season, if you jump into the water rashly, you may even get in. Everyone looked at the freezing cold lake and looked at each other, not knowing how to get into the water to save others.
In the midst of panic, Ling Yun suddenly jumped into the lake with a splash and swam quickly towards the center of the lake. Only then did Old Ling see clearly. There was a figure floating on the water in the lake, drifting towards the center of the lake. However, there seemed to be no movement. Apparently, he had fallen into the water for a while. While the onlookers were sighing, Ling Yun had already brought the drowned man to the shore, and everyone hurriedly pulled the two people out of the water. The person who fell into the water was a little girl of eight or nine years old. At this time, a fishing boat on the other side had also docked. Three young people jumped on the boat and pushed aside the onlookers. When they saw that the little girl was not breathing, they skillfully helped her lie down. One of them pressed the little girl's chest with both hands, and the other pinched the little girl's middle. After pressing for a few times, the little girl spurted out a large amount of water from her mouth and nose, coughing crazily, and kept coughing. He spit out water, obviously choking on a lot of water. The little girl's face was livid, her whole body was shivering from the cold, and her lips were turned purple from the cold. When several people saw her waking up, they hurriedly took off her clothes and wrapped her in a thin quilt taken from the cabin. Tongue comforted her while asking why she fell into the water.
Old man Ling on the side had no intention of caring about the person who fell into the water. The moment he saw Ling Yun jump into the water, he was completely lost. Not to mention that Ling Yun was just a kid of twelve or thirteen years old. Even an adult in his twenties and thirties might not be able to fish a drowned person out of the lake. Ling Yun's actions really frightened old man Ling. As soon as Ling Yun landed on the shore, Old Ling rushed over in panic, grabbed Ling Yun, touched his forehead, and then touched his shoulders with both hands. When he saw that he was standing in front of him intact, he let out a breath. Suddenly something came to mind, and he hurriedly put the cotton-padded jacket that Ling Yun had taken off back on Ling Yun. At this time, Ling Yun not only showed no sign of coldness, but his little face was still flushed, and he looked nothing like he had just come out of the cold lake. Seeing the worried look on Old Ling's face, Ling Yun comforted him: "Grandpa, I'm fine. Look, I'm fine now. I'm not cold at all!" Old man Ling looked at Ling Yun in front of him and was stunned again, as if he was remembering something.
At this time, the little girl's parents also rushed over. Her mother hugged her and burst into tears, while her father thanked the villagers who rescued her.
It turned out that this little girl was also from Lujia Village, and her name was Lu Mengyao. She had just finished lunch that day, and when the rain stopped, she and a few friends from the same village went out to play by the lake. Because the road was muddy and slippery after the rain, I accidentally slipped into the lake. It took a long time for several friends to realize that Lu Mengyao was no longer there. They looked around and found that she had fallen into the lake, so they hurriedly called for help. After asking about the situation of the little girl who fell into the water, the villagers turned to look at Ling Yun and his grandson. The two of them, because Ling Yun had grown up in these villages since he was a child, had eaten at almost everyone's house, and everyone knew him. When the little girl's parents saw that Ling Yun had saved their daughter, they wanted to take them home to eat. After dinner, we left to thank them for their life-saving grace. When Old Man Ling heard this, he declined politely: "Our grandson happened to be passing by here today. It's a little help, so you don't have to be polite. Besides, Yaoyao was rescued by everyone together, so you still thank her." Well, on weekdays, my grandfather and grandson are still alive today thanks to their constant support. Today, I, Old Ling, have to go back first because I have something to do, and the old woman is still at home waiting for us to send rice back!" After saying that, they pulled Ling Yun and continued to walk back to Baiyun Village. Seeing that Old Ling was in a hurry to go home, Lu Mengyao's parents didn't think much about it and said to their backs: "Since Uncle Ling is in a hurry, Come back, we won't force you to stay, let's come and say thank you another day!" Old man Ling didn't know whether he heard or not, and continued on his way without looking back. Ling Yun was dragged by him, so he could only turn around and wave goodbye to everyone while walking. .
It is about ten miles from Lujia Village to Baiyun Village, and the path is winding. There was no words all the way, and after walking for about an hour, the grandfather and grandson returned to Baiyun Village and walked straight home. The Ling family lives on the hillside. Going up the path on the hillside, on the left is a small hut with a height of one person. It must be a hut. After walking about ten feet further, you enter the courtyard. This courtyard It is surrounded by earthen walls and some fences, built to prevent wild beasts, but it seems to be of little use. There are two thatched houses with wooden structures in the yard, the larger one is the bedroom, and the smaller one is the kitchen. Although Old Man Ling's family is poor, the house is really well built, and the wood used is very strong and strong. It's just that it's been a few years, and it looks a bit old. The thatch on the roof has been replaced with new ones. There are some bamboo poles with cold clothes hanging randomly in the yard. There is nothing on the bamboo poles. It must be because it has just rained, so they have been put away. , there are a few chairs and old wooden benches under the eaves, and there is a small cave on the side of the house near the entrance of the yard. It doesn't look like it was dug manually. There is a fire inside, and a clay pot is set up on the fire for cooking. He was wearing something, and the smell was fragrant. As soon as the grandfather and grandson entered the yard, they smelled the fragrance. The people inside saw someone entering the yard and came out in search of a sound. It turned out to be a strong middle-aged man with a full beard and a body that looked like his tendons were about to fall off. , this person is the Orion Li Dongming from Baiyun Village. When Li Dongming saw Old Man Ling coming back, he shouted to him: "Ah, is Uncle Ling back?" Old Man Ling responded, but did not go over. He took Ling Yun into the house. Dongming saw this and smiled honestly. Laughing, he turned back to work in the cave. Hearing the sound of people, a head popped out of the kitchen window. It was a boy of fifteen or sixteen years old. He happily shouted to the two of them, "Third Grandpa, Ling Yun!" Ling Yun heard the sound. , looked back, smiled at him, and followed Old Man Ling into the house.
The two came to the house. There was a wooden bed and some simple furniture and supplies placed against the wall, but nothing else. Old man Ling put the small bag of rice on the table, turned around and untied a piece of clothing from the hemp rope hanging in the room, and was about to put it on Ling Yun. Unexpectedly, as soon as he untied the cotton-padded jacket, he found the clothes on Ling Yun's body. It was already dry. He was a little surprised, then touched his forehead, and said "Eh". Without saying too much, he hung the clothes back on the rope, handed the small bag of rice that he had exchanged for today into Ling Yun's hand, and said: " Take it and let your grandma make porridge, and let grandma put away the rest!" Ling Yun carried the cloth bag with rice out of the house and went to the kitchen. Old man Ling turned and entered the inner room and came to the corner. There were several old large boxes. The old man moved the upper boxes and opened the bottom wooden box. There were only some old clothes inside. He pushed aside the clothes, reached to the bottom of the box, and took them from inside. He took out a box wrapped in linen, half the size of a hand. He took the box, took two steps back and sat on the edge of the bed, looking straight out the window without moving, as if he was stunned.
