Return to the 1982 Staff Compound

Chapter 33 The Story of Time

After the night wind woke him up, he rubbed his cheeks. This time it seemed... he was really dead.

He put his hands in his pockets, with his schoolbag and cloth bag hanging on his chest. The night in the county town was very quiet, with the occasional barking of dogs. People returning home late were all in a hurry, and from time to time a bicycle would pass by him with a clanging sound.

This area is much safer than the area near Nanmen Station. Not only is it chaotic there, but there are also many open-air restaurants and night stalls. Gangsters like to hang out in places like that.

He told his parents yesterday that he would be home late today, so he was not in a hurry. When he reached East Street, a bicycle behind him slowed down with a "squeak".

I turned around and saw that it was Zhang Yougen. His face was still red, and he asked with a smell of alcohol, "Why did you just get here?"

"I wandered around and ate too much." Qiu Huoming answered honestly.

"Look at what you have accomplished. I'll go back first. I'm so sleepy..." As soon as he finished speaking, he stepped on the accelerator hard and drove forward quickly.

Such a lively day is so nice. Qiu Huoming raised the corners of his mouth and quickened his pace as he looked at the waxing moon in the sky.

The little yellow dog at the gate of the compound heard the noise and came over wagging its tail. Qiu Huoming squatted down and saw leftovers in its bowl. He reached out and touched its little head, "Your food is good."

When I got home, the light under the kitchen eaves was on, and there were tiny flying insects hovering around.

Hearing the noise, Chen Suniang opened the door and said, "Huo Ming, you are back. I have boiled hot water for you. Go take a bath."

"Oh, okay." Qiu Huoming quickly took off his coat, found some clothes to wear to sleep, tucked them under his armpits, took a dry towel, walked into the kitchen, and threw them all into his washbasin.

The kitchen was large, so the bathtub was placed on the floor. He picked up the thermos and poured two bottles of hot water into it. The hot steam filled the kitchen. He leaned over to scoop cold water from the water tank filled with alum next to him and mixed it several times. Then he took off his underwear, sat in the bathtub with his body bent, and began to scrub his body.

It is always inconvenient to not have a shower. The bungalow area is a no-man's land. You can still build your own house here now, but the restrictions will be tightened in a few years. It is better to wait until you have money and build a bathroom next to it.

At present, small cities do not have the concept of septic tanks, let alone standardized production and installation processes. The bathroom is only for taking showers. If a household boiler cannot be installed, you need to prepare your own water tank to take a shower.

The water gradually became cold, and Qiu Huoming put away his thoughts. After drying his body, he changed into clean clothes, half bent over and moved the water in the bathtub to the door, and poured it into the sewer at the door.

My hair was still wet after I dried it. After returning to the small room, I looked at the time and it was almost ten o'clock.

He didn't want to learn something tonight, so he could learn better if he could relax and work hard.

He counted the posters in the cloth bag and found there were seven in total. Sister Hong was indeed generous.

Qiu Huoming looked at these posters and had an idea in his mind.

Give away posters based on the number of tapes the customer buys.

When I go to the cinema to see Sister Li tomorrow, I will ask her if she has any extra Shaolin Temple movie posters and put them in the bag.

He leaned back and retrieved the guitar from the end of the bed.

I’ve been listening to a lot of music these days, and I feel a little itchy.

He adjusted the strings and began to play softly.

"The blooming flowers in spring, the wind in autumn and the setting sun in winter, the melancholy youth, I used to think so ignorantly, the windmills turn every day in the song of the four seasons... The flowing water takes away the story of time and changes a person, in that sentimental and first waiting youth..."

After singing the song "Story of Time", I felt sleepy.

He hung up his guitar and rubbed his short hair. Short hair dries quickly, so his hands were no longer wet.

In the kitchen, Chen Suniang was cleaning the water stains he left behind and soaking his dirty clothes.

He was lying on the bed, thinking in a daze, should he buy a washing machine?

The next day I asked about the price of the washing machine, and it would cost more than 3 yuan even with the ticket, so I gave up the idea immediately.

After Chen Suniang sold a chicken yesterday, she went directly to the bamboo craftsman at the door and bought a bamboo cover. The cover looked like an inverted large bowl that was transparent from top to bottom and leaked air.

There was a layer of coal slag on the mud ground behind the firewood room door. The lucky chicken chosen to lay eggs was standing on the coal slag, eating the chopped vegetable leaves in the basin with its head down. It was kept in a hood during the day and driven into the firewood room at night.

Coal slag can absorb moisture and odors, and it is also easy to clean up chicken manure, just shovel it away.

The hen laid the first egg on the first night she arrived.

Its position in the Qiu family is stable.

The tungsten filament light in the kitchen was on. Seeing the light rain in the sky, the little sister screamed, ran back to the room, got the plastic sheet and put it on the chicken coop. Only then did she feel relieved. The egg last night was also taken by her. Suddenly there was a living creature in the house, and she was most concerned.

Nowadays, without mobile phones and the Internet, children are more intimate with nature and small animals.

Qiu Huoming was walking on the drizzling street, carrying his schoolbag on his shoulder and holding a thick umbrella in one hand. There was only a faint light in the sky and everything around him was hazy and drowned in the wet air. He was wearing the Huili shoes given by his elder sister, which were more non-slip than cloth shoes.

When he thought of his eldest sister, he began to worry again. His brother-in-law was a driver in a fleet with good income. He was also good to his eldest sister. However, he had a mother who raised him since he was a child and also lived with the young couple.

Normally, the eldest sister never complains about things at home, but Qiu Huoming has taken psychology courses and read countless non-fiction works, so the eldest sister is afraid that it is not easy for her to live in her husband's family.

Since one party has kept these things secret, as a younger brother, it would be inappropriate for me to meddle in their affairs. If I say too much, I might even be suspected of instigating trouble.

But no matter what, her mother's family is the most solid support for her. He wants to make it clear to her that no matter when she comes back, home is still her home and she doesn't need to endure any grievances. Even if his ability is limited, as a younger brother, he will do his best to help his sister.

Not far ahead, at the entrance of the vegetable market, a breakfast shop had a rain shelter facing the road, with a lamp hanging at the connection, swaying gently in the wind.

Qiu Huoming's brows had just relaxed when he saw a familiar figure sitting under the shed.

Ding Yu held a bowl of firewood wontons and buried his head in eating. The strong peppery taste accompanied by the aroma of the broth made Qiu Huoming, who was sitting downwind, swallow his saliva.

This guy is really something. He never has the same breakfast every day.

As soon as I walked up to him, I saw him raise the bowl and drink the last sip of soup, then wipe his mouth with his hand and let out a satisfied sigh.

"Is it delicious?"

"It's delicious!" Ding Yu turned around and saw Qiu Huoming, and immediately stood up with a smile, "Huozi, I wanted to wait for you to eat together, but I'm too hungry and can't hold on. Do you want to eat? I'll treat you."

"I've had breakfast, let's go." Qiu Huoming said and walked forward holding an umbrella.

"I don't have an umbrella with me. Slow down and hold it for me."

Ding Yu slid under Qiu Huoming's umbrella and tried to hook Qiu Huoming's shoulder with one hand.

The finger slipped down without hooking, "Huozi, have you grown taller again?"

Qiu Huoming calmly slapped his hand away, hooked his hand around Ding Yu's shoulder and said, "It seems to be too high. Have you heard of a kind of people called Hobbits? They are just like you..."