River City Story

Lin Yan grinned while sitting in the clinic called "Jianghu Doctor" at the entrance of the alley.

"Lao Jiang, be gentle with me!! Ouch!! It hurts! It hurts!!"

Lao Jiang, the doctor in the clinic who pretended to be wearing a white coat, smiled and slowly applied ointment on Lin Yan's elbow.

"It's not a big problem. Don't touch it when you go back. Be careful not to be bored all the time. Eat less spicy food, and less fish and shrimp."

After hearing this, Lin Yan nodded with tears in his eyes, thinking that there happened to be a fish in my house...

His left elbow was scalded by the hot soup with two small blisters, one of which was torn by his hand on the way to the clinic, and it was very painful.

Cai Hengyuan was just a child, and he hurt his partner. He was a little scared, and he was full of doubts about Lao Jiang's medical skills, so he wanted to take Lin Yan to the public clinic at the teacher's apartment.

"Small injury, I have to go home with my brother for dinner, you should go back quickly." Lin Yan walked towards the old ancestral hall with his left hand, He Zhengxi followed behind, at first glance, he was even taller than Lin Yan Be stronger.Cai Hengyuan stood behind the two brothers who had just successfully formed a team, and suddenly felt that he was a little redundant. He pinched the hem of his clothes and was at a loss.

"...That's fine, what happened today is my fault. Make up lessons, if you don't like to come, forget it." He said.

Lin Yan waved at him and said, "Okay, then I'll see you at school on Monday."

Cai Hengyuan looked at Lin Yan's handsome figure swaying farther and farther away, and for a while he couldn't understand the meaning of his stay at the clinic door. He didn't say a word, stared blankly for half a minute, and left with a depressed expression.

He Zhengxi and Lin Yan returned to the old ancestral hall together. On the small square table in the middle of the courtyard, the poor fish in the pot still exuded a strong and attractive smell.Lin Yan strode forward, straightened the pot with one hand, and ordered He Zhengxi to take a towel to wipe the table, and the two sat down quietly.

"It shouldn't be cold right now. Try your brother's and mine's cooking. Don't say it's unpalatable." Lin Yan didn't smile on his face, but there was expectation in his eyes. He took out a piece of tender fish maw with bamboo chopsticks and handed it over to In front of He Zhengxi.

"Rice and fish can't be eaten together, you know, or you'll get caught by the fishbone." Lin Yan made a gesture of wiping his neck towards He Zhengxi, "You'll die, understand?"

Who is He Zhengxi?He has been on the road to being trafficked since he was five years old. Except for his name, approximate age, home address, and parents, all information such as his parents has become a vague memory.At such a young age, he thought that in this short and complicated life, he was used to the warmth and coldness of human relationships.Not long ago, he escaped from the hands of human traffickers and ran to Xicheng. He suffered a lot and saw no matter how disgusted he looked.So when He Zhengxi saw Xu Jialin hiding by the trash can, he grabbed his leg and was reluctant to let go.

He stared closely at the fish meat held by Lin Yan with bamboo chopsticks in front of him. The crystal clear and lovely fragrance was overflowing. The little Great Wall in He Zhengxi's heart, which was not stable at first, immediately collapsed. He was about to cry when he grinned, Lin Yan With sharp eyes and quick hands, he saw the opportunity and stuffed the meat in with a chopstick.

"Oh, oh—!"

"Is it delicious?"

He Zhengxi narrowed his eyes, and gave Lin Yan a thumbs up in satisfaction, and Lin Yan patted He Zhengxi's small shoulder with a "teachable" face.

"From now on, I will hang out with my brother. If you have a bowl with my brother, you will have a mouthful. Work hard."

He Zhengxi held back his tears, and smiled obsequiously: "Hey, you said this, my little brother is at your disposal, but I also want a bowl, not a mouthful."

Lin Yan: "It depends on your performance."

They ate this meal quite quickly, of course, the person who was fast mainly refers to He Zhengxi, who swept away thousands of troops, as if he hadn't eaten seriously in several lifetimes.

Lin Yan, as the unlucky child No. [-] whose father doesn't love his mother and doesn't love him, immediately felt sympathy for He Zhengxi, the new unlucky child No. [-].But sympathy is sympathy, whoever washes the dishes will do the cleaning, he knows everything in his heart.In the past, Lin Yan did most of the housework by himself. Now that he has a helper, he can finally relax a bit. Moreover, although the kid He Zhengxi is younger than himself, he is quick in doing things, and he is not pretentious. He is still very courageous of.

Overall, it's easy to get along with.

The way to establish a relationship between children is always simple and fast, and they can become confidants with a bite of food.

This time, Xu Jialin probably did something reliable.Lin Yan sat on the small stool, clasped his ankles with his hands, rested his chin on his knees, and watched He Zhengxi busily washing the dishes and cleaning the table, feeling a little refreshed in his heart.

He Zhengxi ran out of sweat, and was about to raise his hand to wipe it off, when a towel flew over in front of him, he grinned: "Brother, does your elbow still hurt?"

"It's okay, it doesn't hurt, it just feels like a fire." Lin Yan straightened up and tried to turn his arms twice. It would take a while for the place where the blisters were broken to dry up and scab.

"Oh, by the way, you are very experienced, and you know how to wash with cold water."

"We have rich experience in survival." He Zhengxi packed up the bowls and chopsticks and put them back in the back room. When he came back, he wanted to move the table, but was stopped by Lin Yan. "Rest, I'll come, you are still young, you can't move it."

He Zhengxi felt unconvinced: "Why, my arms are as thick as yours, and you are also a child?"

Lin Yan immediately became unhappy when he heard the words, and he glared at He Zhengxi: "You kid is laughing at me."

With previous experience, He Zhengxi soon realized that he was about to make his parents angry again, so he quickly apologized: "No, no, let's move together, let's move together!"

Lin Yan snorted softly, he felt that He Zhengxi was too glib and didn't want to talk to him anymore, but He Zhengxi always wanted to chat with him, Lin Yan had no choice but to cooperate.

The two children talked to each other inside and outside the house. Although the topic was not nutritious, it made the originally empty small yard lively and lively.

After the meal, Lin Yan stretched out the pile of dirty clothes that belonged to He Zhengxi soaked in the basin little by little, and began to scrub one by one.

"Brother, I can do laundry, but your arm is still injured." He Zhengxi skillfully moved to Lin Yan's right leg, squatted down, and shrunk into a small ball.It's just talking, but it doesn't mean to reach out to help. Lin Yan is also a child, how could he not know what this little brother is thinking.

He laughed while rubbing his clothes: "When I first came here to live, I washed my own clothes every day, not to mention how tired I was. They always said that I was short, maybe I was really short, you are different, you have I hope to grow taller. When you grow to 1.8 meters, wash it for me."

When he said this, his immature and lovely face was simple and calm.If an adult sees it, they will be surprised. This 10-year-old child can also bring people a sense of security.

He Zhengxi hesitantly responded, leaning on Lin Yan's leg with confidence and began to doze off.

On such a sunny noon, he felt some indescribable emotions from the young man beside him.But he is only 7 years old and does not know the complex meaning of this emotion.There are awkward concerns in it, and Lin Yan's helpless compromise on his past life as a child.He just hopes that he can grow up to the 1.8 meters that Lin Yan said.He also hopes to live with this elder brother whom he has only known for half a day.

After Lin Yan finished washing for the first time, he wanted to stand up and change the water, but there was a human-shaped pendant on his leg, and he couldn't move it.

"I want to sleep in the room, and I'll go there after I finish washing the clothes." He tried hard to tear He Zhengxi's hands off his shorts, but the child hugged him tightly, so Lin Yan pinched his fingers and pinched the pendant face.

"Oops, it hurts..." He Zhengxi jumped up covering his face, pouted aggrievedly.

"You just pretend." Lin Yan lowered his head and concentrated on washing the clothes, with skillful techniques comparable to adults.He Zhengxi ran to the steps and squatted and stared at it for a few minutes. Seeing that Lin Yan didn't talk to him again, he had no choice but to go back to the room to take a nap.

Lin Yan didn't know how long He Zhengxi had worn this set of clothes, and no matter how many times he washed them, dirty water could still be rinsed out.At the end of the wash, his arm was sore and sore. At this moment, he realized that he had said such a big thing, "Wait for me to wash it when you grow to 1.8 meters", and he must have lost his mind.

Lin Yan worked desperately for an hour, and finally got He Zhengxi's pile of rags carelessly done.After resting for a while, he ran to Xu Jialin's room again, dragged the quilt out to bask in the sun.Xu Jialin didn't care about these details of life, even if there were mold and insects, he still slept well, which made Lin Yan unbearable.It's just that every time he helps Xu Jialin dry the quilt, he always finds a few colored books and covers under the mattress, but it's all trivial. Lin Yan has grown from being ignorant and shocked to being used to it now, and his growth can be described as huge. .

At about two o'clock, Lin Yan finally remembered that he still had homework to do on the weekend, so he ran back to his hut to get his schoolbag.When he entered the door, He Zhengxi had already woken up and was lying on the bed playing with the mosquito net. When he saw Lin Yan, he immediately burst out into a quite bright smile.

"Your smiling face is brighter than a searchlight." Lin Yan raised his hand to cover his eyes, took his schoolbag and ran back to the yard again.Seeing him leave, He Zhengxi rolled on the bed a few times, rubbed his eyes and got out of the bed, walked out, walked a few steps and came back, carefully folded the blanket, straightened the sheet, and then lifted his foot again. go out.

Lin Yan made troubles at school, but he always finished his homework seriously, and his handwriting was very neat and tidy, so composition was often a bonus item.Even if the writing is off topic, the teacher can always make up some points.He Zhengxi could also read some characters, but he hadn't studied systematically. He could memorize ancient poems, but it was difficult for him to read texts.It's just that he always stays by Lin Yan's side and doesn't move. Lin Yan has nothing to do with him. He can only study for a while by himself, and then help He Zhengxi read a few paragraphs. , Copy it for him.

When Xu Jialin strolled into the small courtyard with two roast chickens and a bag of stewed meat in his hands, what he saw was such a scene of brothers and sisters respectful and obsessed with learning. He was moved and wiped away old tears in his heart.

What a harmonious two brothers, he doesn't need to say a word, and naturally, he has no position to say at all.I'm afraid even Lin Yan's grade this year, and how many classes the school offers, Xu Jialin would have to look through the child's schoolbag to find out.Thinking of this, he was a little ashamed, so he bent his back and tiptoed, and sneaked into the house quietly.

Lin Yan spends most of his study time in a daze, but he can always put on a serious and diligent appearance.

He Zhengxi pinched the end of a pencil and looked at him for a long time, finally couldn't help but asked, "Brother, what are you thinking about?"

Lin Yan turned his face away, patted the book and said, "Study hard, otherwise."

He Zhengxi groaned, and said, "I don't believe it."

Lin Yan stretched out his hand: "Return the pen and paper."

He Zhengxi immediately clasped his hands together and said, "Brother, you study too hard, but you still need to rest more."

This is a growing sycophant, Lin Yan thought to himself.

However, what He Zhengxi said was right, he had been thinking wildly all afternoon, and his mood was not very high.

Xu Jialin was going on a long trip and stayed at home by himself, he was not happy at all, he hated being alone.Although there is one more He Zhengxi now, how long can he stay in this broken courtyard?Lin Yan didn't know what to do.Maybe, soon a family will come and take him away.

Who wouldn't like a healthy and intelligent boy?If Xu Jialin finally sent He Zhengxi to the orphanage, there might be a long line of people waiting outside to adopt him.

However, He Zhengxi himself would not understand Lin Yan's thoughts. From now on, he just watched Lin Yan with his face on the side.The expression on the face of this newly recognized brother changed three times in a second, and each one was more exciting than the other.He found it very interesting, and was engrossed in watching it, but Lin Yan suddenly turned his face away.

He Zhengxi's eyes widened and he smiled innocently, and leaned in front of Lin Yan and called obediently: "Brother."

Lin Yan frowned: "?"

"You will teach me how to read and write in the future." He Zhengxi said with a smile.

"You really have to start studying. After the summer vacation, you will go directly to primary school. If you don't study early, you can't keep up. That feeling is not human... Hey, but you are smarter, and you are not in a hurry to move forward in the first grade." Lin Yan answered seriously, and He Zhengxi moved closer.

"Will you go to a school with me?"

Lin Yan pushed him away and said with disgust, "Even if it's the same school, I'll be in fifth grade after summer vacation."

"I'm not familiar with the place, so I need you to take care of me. Besides, I haven't been to kindergarten, and I don't know a single word. I'm lonely." He Zheng looked pitiful in his suit, and his tone was rhythmic. If an aunt passed by at this time, she would probably have been told a lot of tears and snot.He pointed his fingers, finished speaking aggrievedly, and then sang again.

"Hey, the north wind blows, the snowflakes fall, I am the cabbage seedling in that field..." While singing, I observed Lin Yan's reaction from the corner of my eye.

Lin Yan had seen through this younger brother a long time ago, and he was unwavering about it, snorted and said: "Stop acting, a street child who has eaten his last meal and never finished his meal, how did you learn such things? How about rhyming, why don’t you write poems to sell art, and you can earn some pocket money yourself. Where do you need to go to kindergarten, the kindergarten teacher is too tender in front of you.”

He Zhengxi quickly changed his new expression, waved his fist and said: "Yes, yes, you are right, what am I doing, I just learn more from you, you are much better than me! From now on, the two of us can be the duo on the street and go out with dignity!"

"Take a break, everything is boring." Lin Yan felt that He Zhengxi's vocabulary was extremely rich, and if he answered him one sentence, he could say ten more sentences, and a step could be used as a slide.

The two children came and went like talking about cross talk, Xu Jialin listened with great interest, and at the same time he was very emotional.They are clearly at an age where they can nestle in their parents' arms and act like a baby, but these two children already sound like half-adults in their words.It's just that, even though he has such emotion, Xu Jialin seldom looks for reasons on himself, or can only feel a little guilty like when he just returned home.In his point of view, if he can give two children a bite to eat, his task will be completed, and he will complete it beautifully.After all, he himself has already lived like this, and there is really not much he can do.

Although He Zhengxi was more mature than his peers, he was still a child after all.There are no toys, no game consoles in Lin Yan's room, and he can't even find a comic book. The 7-year-old boy who has been excited all day is beginning to feel bored at this time.In the past, his time was mainly used to fight wits and bravery with human traffickers, and he really couldn't take it easy. Now that he has reached a relatively comfortable place, his hands and feet are still in a state of idleness with no place to rest.

"Can you stop swaying?" Lin Yan put the book down and shouted at the figure in the room who couldn't stop.He Zhengxi was suddenly startled by the roar, he turned around, stepped forward and hugged Lin Yan's leg again.

"Brother, don't you usually watch cartoons or something?"

Lin Yan frowned and thought for a long time, and suddenly realized that it really seemed to be...

"Don't tell me, I haven't paid attention to this matter, and I really don't watch it very much. However, there is a TV at home, and Uncle Xu occasionally watches the news. I rarely watch it and am not interested."

"Oh..." He Zhengxi was a little frustrated, he left Lin Yan with a pitiful back, turned around and went to play in the yard again.

Seeing He Zhengxi like this, Lin Yan felt a little sad.I am already too far away from the life of a real child, and I live with worry every day, but He Zhengxi is different from him, he can play around, act like a baby, and even play his temper, and grow up like a normal child.

He sighed, and shouted to He Zhengxi: "Hey, don't play in the water, I'll turn on the TV for you, but I don't guarantee if there are any cartoons."

"Really?!" He Zhengxi ran over with his wet paws, and hugged Lin Yan's shoulder.

"At this time, I remember that the local TV station should broadcast cartoons." Lin Yan walked into the main room with He Zhengxi on his back, and opened the TV cabinet.For a while, it was dusty.While cleaning up, he said, "Uncle Xu lives in the back room. You usually watch TV at a lower volume, so as not to disturb that sleeping god."

Speaking of Xu Jialin, Lin Yan's eyes suddenly became more imperceptibly lonely, and he even lowered his tone of voice, "...But, he will go away tomorrow, so you can be a little more presumptuous."

He Zhengxi's thoughts were all on the TV. He was still young, so it was difficult for him to fully understand Lin Yan's emotions.

The two concentrated on playing with the TV, but they couldn't get a clear picture, and the screen was covered with snow patterns. Although Lin Yan was an expert in life, he couldn't do anything about electrical appliances.The random dialing was unsuccessful, and the two brothers were a little frustrated.

"Yo? Watching TV." Xu Jialin came out with a teacup at the right time. He raised his hand to rub the hair of the two of them one by one, and stood behind them with his long arms stretched out.I don't know which button to press, but there is a picture.

"Oh!" He Zhengxi turned around a few times happily, then stretched out his fingers to point at the subtitles on the screen, turned his head and asked Lin Yan: "What does this read? I don't know it."

Lin Yan answered him sullenly: "Detective, let me know." At this moment, he began to feel that having a younger brother is also very good, and he can show his knowledge and ability as an elder brother. This is how his confidence and sense of accomplishment come from.

It's a pity that He Zhengxi was not very interested in literacy because of the cartoons. He only read it with Lin Yan, and then went to watch TV intently.Lin Yan felt bored, so he shrugged his shoulders and planned to prepare dinner.

Xu Jialin has to leave early tomorrow morning, this meal tonight can be regarded as practice, Lin Yan is thinking about what kind of dishes are more auspicious.Although, as a child, he didn't understand these things, and his cooking skills were very limited.

Xu Jialin stood beside him. He had been watching Lin Yan for a long time. Seeing that the child was about to go out, he knew that he was going to fire. He hurriedly blocked Lin Yan's arm, but unexpectedly, he encountered the previous burn.

"It hurts! Old man Xu, your brute force!" Lin Yan jumped half a step forward, shaking off Xu Jialin's hand.

Lin Yan had many faces in front of Xu Jialin. Xu Jialin loved the grinning child like this, so he immediately apologized and said with a smile: "It's uncle's fault, show me quickly, what happened?"

"It's hot, who... I don't know, a man was arguing with my brother, and he pushed my brother, talking about making up lessons. I think that man is a beast in clothes." He Zhengxi nestled on a small bench Go online, watch animations, and pick things up.

Lin Yan was amused by his description, "a man", unexpectedly this kid is quite xenophobic. What's the matter with "dressed beast", a 7-year-old child, how did he know this word.

Xu Jialin also laughed. He guessed that "that man" was Lin Yan's classmate Cai Hengyuan. Lin Yan rarely played with his peers. Except for Cai Hengyuan, he never let other classmates into the house.

It's best for them to solve the children's affairs by themselves, not to mention that Xu Jialin is a person who doesn't care about family education at all.He really wants to be full of love and care for Lin Yan, but he has an unchangeable nature.Xu Jialin hastily ended the topic without asking any more questions. He took Lin Yan's shoulders and the two went to chat about dinner.

Facing the pile of cooked food that Xu Jialin bought back, Lin Yan's face was wrinkled with worry.The old refrigerator at home has been broken for a long time, the cooling effect is hard to describe, and the things will be rotten after another day.Lin Yan is poor and hates waste.

Xu Jialin said indifferently: "You think I bought it according to your appetite? You can eat the one watching cartoons, but you are only a few years old and worry about these trivial things every day. What do you do if you become a little old man?"

Do you think I am willing, isn't it because you don't even care about these trivial matters?

Lin Yan decided not to talk to Xu Jialin anymore, he couldn't argue with this reasonable person.Xu Jialin is the only adult he can rely on, he is like a family member, they know each other's personalities well.No one has zero flaws, especially Xu Jialin.But no matter how hopeless and decadent he is, Lin Yan just wants to hold on tightly, unwilling to let go even to the death.

This day's dinner was quite rich, but Lin Yan couldn't taste the taste after eating it.

Ever since he entered elementary school, Xu Jialin had to go out for one or two months every year, and after earning enough money outside and wandering around enough, he would return to this dilapidated ancestral hall to continue living.Xu Jialin had no concept of earning and spending money. When he went out in the first year, he brought back 5 yuan. Lin Yan was surprised. What kind of job can make people earn [-] yuan a month?He was a little scared, but he didn't dare to ask.At that time, Xu Jialin took out three stacks of money and gave them to Lin Yan to save them. It was only later that he realized that Lin Yan was just a child. Even if he went to the bank, the teller probably wouldn't help him open an account.

From that year on, Xu Jialin saved some money for Lin Yan every year. When the market was bad, he saved a few thousand yuan, and when the market was good, it was tens of thousands.Lin Yan never reached out to ask him for money, and the two of them didn't have any bigger expenses on weekdays. The money has been safely and securely deposited in the bank.

Lin Yan's left ear could not receive any sound at all, and neither the doctor nor the hearing aid could do anything, but as an elder, Xu Jialin still had some expectations.He really doesn't know how to educate children, but which parent doesn't want their children to be healthy?If you really have the opportunity to be cured, you can't do it without money, and now you have picked up a smaller one, and the burden has become a little heavier.Xu Jialin didn't know how many years he would be able to live in this ancestral hall. As an unlikely person, before leaving, he had to leave something for the two brothers.

Why do you have to find two burdens for yourself?Xu Jialin might not even be able to give an answer.

He never mentioned these thoughts to Lin Yan.Lin Yan was too thoughtful, Xu Jialin hoped that the child could live a simpler life.But he never considered that in fact, he was the culprit who caused Lin Yan to be overwhelmed.

At the dinner table, one big and one small had their own concerns, and He Zhengxi, as a temporary new member who had just joined, was grabbing the chicken legs and eating with satisfaction.He is still young, so he has almost no worries, even if he has, a full meal can make his mood better.

What are you going to do tomorrow?That's for tomorrow.

The moisture of the soil was once again in the yard, and the lingering rainy season was coming to an end soon.Lin Yan put down his bamboo chopsticks and carefully discerned the sound of raindrops falling. Then he stood up, opened the side door and walked into his bedroom, closing the window.

The author has something to say:

I'm going to work, why can't the holiday be longer.