Chapter 25: Paying Hu Laoshi
I said: "Let's do this, tonight on the eel fishing, tomorrow morning we all get up early in the morning, on the Handan City to sell the eel, it is said that now eel is also quite a lot of money, a catty of several tens of dollars it, we will sell the eel money to Hu Laoshi is not on it, not only do not have to pay out of their own pockets, but also appears to be fair, you guys say, how about it?"
Everyone you look at me, I look at you, all think this idea is good, Chen Jin smiled and slapped his thigh, said: "Yinle, you fucking really stingy stingy to the home, really cunning enough."
"Fuck, am I being stingy?" I glared and said, "A catty of eel don't much, sell forty dollars not? We have to catch two or three pounds of eels this night, right? We can sell more than a hundred dollars. If we give it to Hu Laoshi, he will be happy."
"That's right! It's settled." Chang Yunliang hehehe a music, said with a wicked smile: "We can not say directly to Hu Laoshi pay wages, or this old man face can not pass, but also embarrassed to ask ah, we have to say that filial piety to his old man, but also have to tell him, in the future, as long as the brothers have a good hand, will be squeezed out a bit of pocket money to him, hey, but also have to say that the old man is not easy, widowed one, we are the three good students, moral and ethical. These three good students, good moral character, especially for such a long time, Grandpa Hu took good care of us, we have to know the kindness of repayment, ah, guaranteed to Hu Lao Si was touched by the tears are out, to that time, Hu Lao Si and then go to do something, guaranteed to kill, do not say that the old to the young, right? With the evil thing to do battle, he Hu Lao Si quasi protect us."
Brothers immediately nodded, have rushed Chang Yunliang thumbs up, Chen Jin is more happy to laugh, scolded: "Your dog is simply a dog-headed military division, more cunning than your father."
"Where where, overpraise." Chang Yunliang immediately arched his hand at us, then with a frown, he cursed at Chen Jin, "Your father is the one who is cunning, you dog day."
"Haha ……," we all burst into joy.
Everyone's interest is high up, immediately hit the flashlight, take the guys and gals began to find turn eel bag, open fishing!
Don't say, this eel also really give us a long face, which an eel package there are not empty, or one, or two, there around waiting for us to fish them, there is an eel package there actually surrounded by three eels, only to catch one after the other two scared away only.
That night, it was really a great harvest! No need to weigh, we just hand carry a few eel bag, we can be sure, definitely not less than four pounds of eels.
If this is sold for money, how much will be sold? All to Hu Laoshi? We are a little bit reluctant to give up, and finally discussed, why don't we just do this, after selling the eels, if it exceeds two hundred dollars, we will eat and drink a meal in Handan, and give the rest of the money to Hu Laoshi.
That's it!
In fact, that night if we insisted on two more hours, we can definitely catch him two more pounds of eels, but a few brothers are sleepy, we are not iron man, see has been more than two o'clock in the morning, we still have to go to Handan in the morning it, must not hurry to go back to a little squinting a sleep?
Brothers also did not go home to sleep, in the middle of the night to shoot the door of the family is not like that, and we were parents have been on us not to ask, so to speak, even if we are a few of us for no reason suddenly evaporated and disappeared for four or five days, the parents do not even pay attention to, for the simple reason that this group of mixed children may not be to where the blind fooling around to go it.
There is always a place to rest, Yao Jing's old house is the most suitable place.
Sometimes I think, if Yao Jing's family did not have that old house for us to fool around with, Yao Jing's personality, perhaps we kicked him out of the organization, where to allow this kid to hang out with us all day long ah?
That night before going to bed, we discussed a few tomorrow must rush a big morning, to the Handan city to sell a good price.
But brothers are tired, this sleep, no wake up. In the end, or people seriously ill Xue Zhigang ran to drag us all down from the bed, when I was dreaming, dreaming of a donkey arching a big mouth biting me to the north of the ground drag, I'm anxious ah, when the donkey such a thing also dared to rough up with my old man? Has it become a spirit?
We did not hesitate, although we are lying on the ground, but our two legs kicked the donkey's stomach, and cursed: "Dog day, dare to bite the old man! I kicked you to death and stewed to eat ……."
As a result of this donkey day thing was I kicked even cursed: "dog day silver music, you crazy?"
I heard not right ah, this donkey how to curse it? Hey, that voice and Xue Zhigang like, I pondered, this donkey really into the essence, hastily rubbed his eyes, want to see clearly this in the end is a donkey into the essence of learning to speak it, or Xue Zhigang let the donkey essence into a donkey model.
A rubbing eyes I woke up, a few brothers and sisters are looking at me straight happy, and I was lying on the brick pavement of the house floor. Grandma, feelings just now is a dream it.
Look at the outside, the day has dawned, Chang Yunliang look at the watch, have been nine o'clock in the morning.
Brothers rushed home to ride a bicycle to go back home in a panic even breakfast is not eaten, want to eat to estimate the home of the pot are cleaned, even the soup is not left.
When the eight people gathered together in a hurry, a few brothers and sisters laughed, each even a piece of decent clothes have not changed, are still wearing big pants and undershirts, above all dirty, all the mud and dirty water left behind the imprints.
We are at least going to Handan City, is not to go back to change clothes ah?
A few brothers discussed, said go to hell, change a vest we are not city people, so the ground, more reflective of our eels are fresh, just caught from the head of the water, perhaps the city people see us dressed like, eels on the sale of a high price it.
So a large group of people so dressed in dirty, unkempt riding a bicycle to Handan City.
Do not say, really let a few of us to the right, eel sold a good price. Originally, we arrived in Handan Bushi East Street that unreasonable but has quietly formed a street of fresh agricultural products in the alley, the morning market has long been retired.
A few of us found a spacious place, put the bike a stop, directly loaded with eels to unlock the cloth bag on the ground, and then a few brothers and sisters into a half circle, clamoring and shouting: "eel cluck, fresh eel cluck ……".
As a result, the people passing by all walk around us, avoiding far away. I wondered what was going on. To buy or not to buy eel is one thing, but if people avoid us, that is we have a problem. A closer look I kind of understand, we all wear big undershirts and pants, not to mention the clothes on the dirty, even on the body face, but also stained with mud points, would have been dry, the wind and fire all the way to ride a bicycle to Handan, we have long been sweating, so that the mud points and wet, and the body also exudes the unique kind of fishy smell of rice paddies and canals in the water! …… This is not enough, a few people to stand there, all of them are dilettantes like, holding a cigarette spraying fog, talking that the voice of the big people can be some small store in the alley hanging signboards shock down, people do not avoid us to go is strange.
So I hastened to greet everyone on the side to go, squatting to the root of the wall, here to stay with me and Chang Yunliang two people to greet on the line.
Everyone listened to my opinion have to think so, nature will not refuse, are far away from the two of us, squatting to the root of the wall like a bunch of beggars like nonsense Kanshan.
I and Chang Yunliang two people this pressure voice, slow and methodical shouting to sell eels, there are pedestrians passing by to our side of the more than a couple of eyes, the two of us will be full of smiles greeted: "ouch, auntie, come to see, we just caught from the rice paddies in the eel, fresh it, each alive and well, you come to see, cheap it … … …"
"Hey, uncle, come and see the eels? I've heard that it's an aphrodisiac ……"
"Hey, what's up, big brother? How about some eels? How many? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no,…… why not? What are you talking about? I don't see that I don't have a scale with me."
……
We really did not do this kind of stall business, but the good thing is that the eel is good, our dress and appearance, is really so, so finally there is a restaurant owner's wife looked at our eel, asked us how much money, I immediately opened the palm, said: "fifty-five, a price!"
"Fuck, how do you make your own decisions? This is everyone's, no no no, eighty! Less than eighty will not be sold!" Chang Yunliang immediately in the side of the child huffing and puffing said, at the same time also rushed to the brothers over there to greet: "Is it brothers?"
"That's right, a night without sleep, fifty-five you motherfucking silver music to sell, poor crazy?"
"Eighty I do not want to sell it!"
"I think it's about right, this woman also want ……"
……
A bunch of guys in the distance under the wall uproar, the boss's wife is not annoyed, said with a smile: "You guys are really lively, but also quite good at doing business, there are singing red face singing white face, to see your eel fresh, the size of the size of the head is different, does not seem to be raised, really from the field to catch, I do not haggle with you guys, sixty-five a catty, you guys! If you sell, just pass the scale."
"Ouch, this is not good, how to give us seventy-five ah."
"No sale, no sale!" Yao Jing got addicted and shouted at the side.
"Screw you, if you don't sell it, you'll eat it raw for me?" Chen Jin punched him in the head, "Sold, sold, eh? Where to find the scale to go ah?"
I was embarrassed to the boss's wife said: "This, we did not sleep all night, home did not go back, in a hurry to come, the scale rod did not bring, or, we estimate the catty, to give a roughly Qi got."
The boss's wife probably already saw that we do not have a scale, said with a smile: "Well, this estimate on the catty I'm good, earlier I was in the supply and marketing agency is to sell miscellaneous grains, a weighing can know how much weight, absolutely one or two are not bad." Saying that, the boss lady reached out to the eel bag picked up, carried two, said: "five catty six two, a little bit with no difference, you do not believe that you can find the scale a go."
"Believe ah, how can I not believe it, look at you is an expert!" I immediately nodded my head with a smile on my face and said, thinking that we estimate that only five pounds is less than it, people say five pounds and six taels, we made a lot of money.
To this time, Yao Jing this kid running over, a stretch of the hand said: "three hundred and sixty-four."
This dog day really a villain, counting account can be really fast!
That for the boss's wife laughed, without saying a word, took out his wallet to us to count the money, in the end is to open the hotel to do business, the price said well, a penny are not willing to give us, and froze out of a whole bunch of money, gave us three hundred and sixty-four dollars, not much more than a penny, a penny not less.
At first, I thought that this woman would directly pull out four hundred dollar bills, and then said: "Do not look for it, so it is."
In the end, the boss's wife even took our eel bags with her and said, "Where would a seller not give away bags? Do I have to carry a rice bowl to buy rice?"
We were speechless.
In the end is to earn money, than we planned a lot more, a few brothers immediately excited around the hands of money Chang Yunliang grabbed to discuss whether we are hurrying to rub a meal to go, the guys but stayed up all night, did not eat breakfast it.
That day, a few of us for the first time to drink beer, and drink a lot, for this back when riding a bicycle are not stable.
When we returned to the village, the streets and alleys of the village, not even a shadow of a person, so hot days, are hiding in the house lying on the cool mat to take a nap.
Mockingbird desperately screaming in the trees, noisy a few of us drank the guy restless, we even unanimously decided to go immediately to the north of the rice paddies, to find that corpse toad to strip it alive and roasted to eat, did not think about that thing on the body of a poisonous.
The good thing is that we are still sober, remember that the rest of the money is to give Hu Laoshi as a salary, so a few people dazed and confused broke into Hu Laoshi's home, Hu Laoshi who was taking a lunch break was startled, thinking that these several drunken guys are not to come to raid the house, each shouting, full of excitement and excitement look.
When we dumped the money on the kang of Hu Laoshi's house, Hu Laoshi was dumbfounded, staring straight at the money, he really needs money, this thing for a magician in the early eighties, too hard to come by.
Let us afterward has been feeling uneasy in the heart is, when we were drunk, the last night on the discussion to say polite words are forgotten, also do not take into account Hu Lao Si's face, we speak out, grabbed us to give Hu Lao Si's money the real idea method to say out.
"You say you are so old is not easy, a few of our hands a little money, all relief you." Chen Jin is so said.
I said, "What the fuck relief, really can not speak, this is between friends to take care of each other, Grandpa Hu, you are although the age of the old, but, but we are considered to forget years of friendship, this is not, there is money we spend together."
"Right right." Chang Yunliang immediately said, "This is a few brothers stayed up all night last night under the bag eel fishing earned, all, all to you, who let us, is, is a buddy."
Hu Lao Si cried and laughed and said, "Messed up, generation is messed …… up."
"Messy ah." Xue Zhigang glared and said, "You don't think you're at a disadvantage, if you really talk about seniority, you still have to call me uncle, is not, is not it?"
Hu Laoshi was dumbfounded, Xue Zhigang said is the truth, really according to the village seniority row, he really have to tube Xue Zhigang called uncle, but from other family row over, Xue Zhigang also have to tube me called uncle, and I called Hu Laoshi grandfather, this is not bullshit? The …… rural generation is so messy.
Liu Bin said: "less talk about those, those useless, I can tell you Hu, Hu Lao, grandfather, we are, this is for you to open the salary, who, who can not white power, the village, the village does not pay, we a few out of this later you are, is a paid worker, the salary you also receive as usual, but you have to work seriously, to stand up to the organization, oh no, to stand up to the We ……"
"Well, must do a good job, do not have ideological pressure, ideological baggage, oh, this is a meaning …… we are your strong backing, this, well, what else comes?" Guo Chao did not know what to say, turned his head and asked, "Yinle, Chen Jin, Yunliang, the three of you then continue to say ……"
At this time, the three of us have long drawn down the cool mat on Hu Laoshi's bed, spread on the ground, three people lying on it huffing and puffing.
That afternoon, several of us slept in Hu Laoshi's house until evening.
When I woke up, Hu Laoshi was sweating at the table drawing charms. Originally, this was nothing, as a magician, it seemed to be a normal thing for him to draw talismans. But since I realized that Hu Laoshi was an unquestionably illiterate person, seeing him drawing charms again made me feel a bit ridiculous.
Originally I thought I woke up first, call up a few other buddies, but a look at them, all crowded in the cooler with eyes open to see Hu Laoshi drawing talisman it, and face are hanging a deep meaning of the smile.
The whole fucking in the heart to laugh at others Hu Laoshi it.
Since everyone is awake, we naturally have to discuss the matter tonight, since it was decided that Liu Binniang personally, to provoke the corpse toad, and then let the black cat out of the protection of Liu Binniang, and hands to kill the corpse toad. Then the important thing is to persuade Liu Biniang, let her agree to go to the northland rice paddies at night, this does not seem to be difficult, Liu Biniang is good to talk, and has been sickly for so many years, with such a very likely opportunity to let her regain her health, she is certainly willing to try, she now has no regard for, it is said that there are a few times that she has also committed suicide, it is just very strange that the suicide fails, and is often at the most critical time to be I think there are only two scenarios. I think there are only two cases, one is that she simply do not want to die, deliberately make these people can find the suicide behavior to, or also show that they do not want to involve the family, would rather die determination to, so that the villagers and family members are touched, can help her more. I feel despicable for thinking this way, how can I think this way about others?
Secondly, it is most likely that the black cat is at work, this dog day thing is to live to torture Liu Binniang, let her live to suffer it.
For a person who has failed to commit suicide several times, as if to take risks for her, it should be a matter of eagerness, if this time the matter is successful, she may be able to regain her health, and her family to enjoy a better future together. If she fails, it's not a big deal. She even longs for death.
But for us, the heart is more or less a little uncomfortable, in case Liu Binniang has been poisoned by the corpse toad, and the black cat did not handle it, that is not to let her suffer one more crime?
Liu Bin is very firm on this, his love for his mother, resulting in his for that black cat has a deep-seated hatred. After so many years of suffering through, Liu Bin from the inside has become a little cold, calm, he felt that any opportunity can not be missed, even if it is a risk, it is worth doing, after all, the mother of such a life, from the rational point of view, it is better to die.
A few of us feel the need to go to Liu Bin's home together, together to tell this matter to Liu Bin's parents to listen to, or let Liu Bin himself to talk to his own father and mother, so that his own mother to go to risk their lives to play life, even if he is well-intentioned, he is the right sensible rationality, but human nature, it is a little bit of a reason to say.
Persuade Liu Binniang this is one thing, there is another important thing, is to find out where the corpse toad hiding place, after all, no one can guarantee that now, the corpse toad it will still be hiding under the Zhou family grave, then we directly carry a spade to spend a little effort from the paddy field under the grave to dig it out on the line.
This matter, let Hu Laoshi to do it, he is very confident, a look of confidence. Or maybe he was already confident, or maybe, this old boy has money, with the support of our gang, confidence doubled …….
A few of us were a little embarrassed when we thought of the words that we had babbled before going to bed because we were drunk.
The good thing is that Hu Lao Si also did not mention, and embarrassed to mention, and even more can not afford to give up those money, so several of us also pretend to forget their drunken nonsense.
This is a good phenomenon, Hu Laoshi can have confidence, the momentum is enough, then we have a little more certainty of victory.
And Liu Bin Niang aspect, also as we expected that, in a group of young people's persuasion, quickly agreed to, Liu Bin father heard, and even want to go with us to help, was we dissuaded down, add what mess ah? In case you are also poisoned by the corpse toad, then this family will be ruined.
Preparation work is very smooth, which makes our hearts are full of hope of victory, feel inevitable, depending on the black cat has no talent, to kill the corpse toad dry, or, whether the corpse toad will burst out of the strong counterattack power, to kill the black cat. Both results will satisfy us.
Of course, the best result is that both of them lose their lives, and it would be better if both of them die together.
However, what happened that night seemed to have deviated greatly from our previous plan, making us a bit surprised, a bit caught off guard, and nearly causing a major disaster ……