spring dream

003

"Wen Qi, as long as I am here, no one will bully you."

"Don't worry, brother Xiao Xiao is the most powerful, and will always protect you."

"Whoever dares to touch Wen Qi, I will kill him."

Fuck that shit.

Xiao Er stood in front of the photo, clenched his fists, and took a long time to relax.He dodged his eyes, looked at the altars placed on both sides of the photo frame for a while, stared at the unburned Buddhist incense in the incense burner for a while, took two deep breaths, bent down to support his knees, and eased his emotions.When he looked up again, the corners of his eyes were very red, and his mood returned to calm. He slumped his shoulders, his arms hanging down by his sides.

He still put the bracelet by the woman's hand, and stood beside her with an attitude of admitting his mistake, his head downcast, speechless.As the time approached noon, Xiao Er closed his eyes and let out a long sigh, and said softly, "Aunt Lan, I'm leaving."

Stepping out of the door as if fleeing for his life, blocking his thoughts inside the door, Xiao Er tremblingly lit a cigarette and sipped it, and when his body was warmer, he lifted his feet and walked downstairs.

Going down to the second floor, I bumped into Uncle Wen who was carrying two bags of vegetables. Xiao Er subconsciously reached out to pick it up, but the man turned sideways to block his movement.

Xiao Er didn't move, his shoulders rubbed against the gray wall, and the smell of smoke gradually became stronger.Uncle Wen stood still for a moment, then continued to walk home.When the two of them crossed their bodies, Xiao Er took off the cigarette from his mouth and tapped twice with his fingertips: "I won't give up."

After hearing this, Uncle Wen stopped and turned his head to look at him. Xiao Er looked at him, and his grizzled temples tightened his heart.

After a long time, Uncle Wen took another step and went up two more steps. He said, "You should also have your own life."

Come out of the community where Wen's family lives, cross the street, go west along the road for a few kilometers, turn right and walk into the depths of Shengyang Hutong, there is a courtyard house.

Housing prices have skyrocketed in the past two years, and courtyard houses are even more popular. Not long ago, someone came to Xiao's house to evaluate the real estate. Mr. Xiao frowned when he heard that. Good guy, the things left by his ancestors are now worth tens of millions.

Recently, there have been many merchants who came to discuss business, and all of them were shut down. Anyone who came to the courtyard in the spring and had a look at it would still come if they hit a wall.

Inside the door, a circle of Chinese rose bushes are planted along the base of the wall, mixed with three or two roses. In front of the east and west wing doors are either jujube trees or pomegranates, and a few pots of cloves or crabapple are placed under the lush branches and leaves.A piece of land was dug on the west side of the main house, a layer of tiles printed with lotus leaves and flowers was laid, and two fat koi were placed in it, adding a lot of vitality to the courtyard——

This spring scene full of courtyards is Wen Qi's favorite scene.

Xiao Er closed the door with his backhand, and looked up, only the vast whiteness.He stood in place with his hands in his pockets, biting the smoke-scented cotton, and stared absently at the frozen surface of the pool. Wen Qi's shadow was lingering in his mind, and he was squatting by the side of the pond and reaching for the glistening pebbles at the bottom. .

"Shoer."

A voice brought back his wandering melancholy, Xiao Er blinked his eyes, did not look at the person, and stomped on the snow under his feet until it creaked.

"Master Xiao, make way." Lu Ran took off the scarf around his neck, scribbled it on Xiao E's neck, and then sighed, "The meal is in the kitchen. If you don't have an appetite right now, wait for Xiao Zhao to come back and give it to you." Let's eat hot."

Xiao Er hooked the cloth covering his mouth and nose with his index finger, and raised his eyes lazily: "It's almost Chinese New Year and you still go to work?"

Lu Ran smoothed the windbreaker on his body, and patted the snow on his shoulders twice: "It's the holiday on New Year's Eve, let's go."

Xiao Er lost his father when he was young, and his mother remarried and immigrated abroad. Mr. Xiao was afraid that his grandson would feel lonely staying in the empty courtyard alone, so he adopted Lu Ran and Lu Xiaozhao from the orphanage to accompany him to practice martial arts, study and go to school.

At first, I expected to bring back only Lu Ran. This child is honest and knows how to repay kindness. Mr. Xiao likes it very much. However, he still has another bond on him, and he is unwilling to be with a playmate who is three years younger than himself. The old man had no choice but to tie them up and take them back to Xiao's house.

Xiao Zhao has a name but no surname, Xiao Er saw that he was always sticking to Lu Ran, so he added Lu in front of his name in the account book, so Lu Xiaozhao held the brown book for days and nights and stuck it behind Lu Ran. , Keep calling "Brother" in his mouth.

At that time, Xiao E was a little embarrassed to think that when he grew up, Wen Qi should be given his surname, and he would keep saying "Brother Xiao Xiao" in his ears.

It's just that there is no such opportunity again.

Lu Ran started working after graduating from junior high school, and Lu Xiaozhao went directly to the teahouse to work on the Xiao family's business. The two brothers didn't want to live and eat in the courtyard for free, and put money under Mr. Xiao's pillow at the end of every month.These two people are very stubborn, but the old man can only let them do what they want.

Pushing open the door of the east wing, a white shadow flashed in front of Xiaoer's eyes, and something grabbed his trousers.He didn't care, and put a thick coat on his shoulders. Now that the snow had stopped and the sky was bright, he took out the recliner from the house and leaned against the pomegranate tree.

When he leaned back into the chair, the little guy had already got into his baseball uniform swiftly, crawled and puffed his body twice, his white nose sticking out of the neckline, and wetly rubbed against Xiaoer's chin.

Xiao Er pinched the nape of its neck and pulled it out of its clothes and put it on his lap, smoothing its hair. The slender body of the red-eyed ferret was coiled up, quietly enjoying the warmth of the owner's palm.

Consciousness gradually thinned, the sun clung to his brows and eyes, Xiao Er slowly sank into a dream, his brows were tightly furrowed.

Wen Qi's hands were tied behind his back with a rope, his face rubbed against the ground, his tears melted into the scarlet blood, and he shouted at Xiao E with all his strength: "Brother Xiao Xiao! Run! Leave me alone! Run!"