Scholars in the courtyard.

Chapter 1681 Spiritual Food
backyard.

Under the kerosene lamp, Qin Jingru was wearing a coat and a single layer of clothes underneath, revealing a lot.

At this time, he was sitting on the bed, guarding a wooden box which was filled with neatly arranged banknotes. He was counting and inventorying them one by one.

If what Jia Zhang asked Sha Zhu for before was pension money, then what Qin Jingru got from Sha Zhu was the money for selling her body.

Especially now that she has no income, she relies on the little money given by the Xu family every month to survive.

But how could that little bit of money be enough for her to live a good life?

When Xu Damao was around, we couldn't say that we ate meat every meal, but with Xu Damao's ability to make money, he could still improve the food every now and then.

And she doesn't have to do anything, just cook a meal at home.

It’s not like now. In order to make a living, not only do I have to wait for Xu Damao for ten years in vain, but I also have to work for the street office to earn that little money.

He also wants to maintain an improper relationship with Sha Zhu so that he can get benefits from him.

Sometimes, she felt that she was just like the people in the Eight Great Hutongs that the old people talked about.

The difference is that I only have one client.

And he's not a generous customer.

If she had a choice, she would rather this client be replaced by someone like Yang Xiaotao, what a pity.

When she came to this old city, she realized that people from the countryside are different from those who grew up drinking city water.

Especially in terms of temperament, she felt that she was no match for Lou Xiao'e, let alone Ran Qiuye.

The only advantage is age.

Even if he is one year younger, he is still younger.

But now she is not as good as she was when she was young. If another ten years pass, what capital will she still have?
"Jingru!"

Just as Qin Jingru was daydreaming, Xu Fugui's voice came from the door. Qin Jingru was startled, looked at the box in front of her, and hurriedly pulled the quilt beside her to cover it.

"Dad, I'm in the house."

Qin Jingru didn't have time to tidy up her clothes. Before she could open her mouth, the door was pushed open and Xu Fugui walked in with his hands behind his back.

"Dad, why are you here?"

Xu Fugui stayed on Qin Jingru for a while, then looked away.

But his eyes were always on Qin Jingru.

She has a fair face, a slim figure and wide hips. At first glance, she is a housewife who is good at taking care of children. I couldn't help but sigh in my heart.

That evil guy in my family, instead of living a good life with such a good wife, he made a mess of things and got himself into trouble. In the end, I have to help clean up the mess. He is simply an unfilial son.

"I heard that my house collapsed due to the earthquake, so I came to take a look."

Qin Jingru immediately understood what was going on and didn't find it strange. After all, the house needed to be renovated and cleaned, and the Xu family had to pay for it.

As for the national subsidy mentioned by the street office, that is only a part of it. It is impossible to pay out the full amount.

Besides, half of the house belongs to me, which means that if this half needs repairs, the money should be given to me entirely.

As for the fact that I am now living in Xu Damao’s half, so what? They are husband and wife. Do they have to sleep in separate rooms?

Anyway, if Mr. Xu is serious about this, she would just say that it is his own house that collapsed, so don't even think about the subsidy.

Fortunately, Mr. Xu did not mention the government subsidy this time, but instead looked around the collapsed wall of the house.

Then pick up the bricks on the ground.

He remembered that the walls of the house were newly built, but looking at the bricks used, they were dark red in color, clearly old bricks from a long time ago.

There is no doubt that this trick must have been done by his "very smart" son.

No wonder when he came to build the house, the wall was built overnight. It turned out that he was trying to fool his father.

It was because they used these old bricks, otherwise other people’s houses would be fine while theirs collapsed?

Damn it!

I cursed in my heart, but raising children is to prepare for old age and storing grain to prepare for famine. As a father, I have to bear the consequences of my own children's mistakes.

"Jingru, what are you going to do with this house?"

Qin Jingru stood aside, not knowing what to say.

Father Xu shook his head helplessly and asked Qin Jingru what knowledge a country girl had. Then he sighed and said, "Your mother and I are busy and can't come to help."

"I'll talk to Yan Fugui in the courtyard later and ask you to discuss with him and find someone to help build the house."

"Here's thirty dollars. Take it and use it."

Father Xu took out a roll of money with a painful look on his face.

This is most of their family assets.

But there is nothing we can do about it. If we don't repair it soon, the house will be soaked and ruined if it rains a lot in a few days.

When Qin Jingru heard that there was money to be made, she stepped forward immediately and said, "I know. I'll go find someone to repair the house later."

Father Xu nodded and prepared to go into the house and sit for a while.

Qin Jingru hurriedly stepped forward to serve tea and water, and her demeanor was very friendly.

"Jingru, you are a good daughter-in-law."

Holding the water cup, Father Xu couldn't help but sigh.

Qin Jingru pursed her lips modestly and sat aside with her head down.

"Well, I went to see Damao during the Chinese New Year."

"He is regretting it in there now."

Speaking of Xu Damao, Qin Jingru immediately twisted her fingers together and felt very conflicted.

To be honest, Xu Damao did not do anything wrong to her.

On the contrary, I cheated on Xu Damao many times and even took half of his house. In this respect, I felt sorry for Xu Damao.

But she had no choice. It was too difficult for a rural girl to move to the city.

"Da Mao said he's sorry for you."

Qin Jingru's fingers were clenched so tightly that they turned white.

"He also said that he knew you were willing to wait for him, and that he was grateful. He said that he would live a good life with you after he got out."

Qin Jingru's tears fell, but she was thinking in her heart, ten years, ten years.

Seeing Qin Jingru's expression, Xu's father knew he couldn't continue talking, so he drank some water and prepared to leave.

"By the way, Jingru, go see him when you have time."

Qin Jingru nodded silently.

Hey~
Father Xu sighed and left.

As soon as they walked out of the Moon Gate, the sentimentality on Xu's father's face disappeared immediately.

Instead, there was a cold expression.

The scene when I entered the room appeared in my mind. Qin Jingru didn't look normal.

Besides, she is so young and at the age where she knows how to enjoy life. It is not easy for her to remain a widow for the past ten years.

If things go wrong, it will bring disgrace to the Xu family.

What worries him even more is that all his hard work in supporting the child ends up benefiting others and raising an ungrateful person.

"No, we need someone to help watch over this yard." Father Xu made up his mind and walked towards the front yard.

"Old Yan, are you home?"

I knocked on Yan Fugui's door, but it was Yan Jiecheng who opened it.

"Uncle Xu, my dad went to the street office."

"Jie Cheng, that's great. It's even better with you here."

Father Xu was very happy, as this was more suitable than Yan Fugui.

In the morning, the sky is bright.

Yang Xiaotao was leaning against a willow tree, snoring.

At this time, the willow trees have sprouted tender buds, and mist began to gather on the tender green buds. As the sun rose, it gradually became crystal clear.

Beside Yang Xiaotao, Wangcai, covered in mud, was lying down with his eyes closed and resting.

It was this mud that allowed Xiaowei to hide in the tree trunk and absorb the essence of the sun and the moon.

Around them, Wang Hao, Niu Jun and several others were either sitting or lying down, all of them covered in dust and soundly asleep.

Obviously very tired.

After a fierce battle, the batteries of the flashlights ran out, so everyone continued to rescue people under the moonlight.

By dawn, many people were tired and hungry and could not hold on any longer, so they looked for a place to rest.

That night, with the full rescue efforts of Yang Xiaotao and others, seven more sites were dug, among which there was a pregnant woman.

She and Chen Bin were in a similar situation, and had been able to survive until now by leaning on the table.

Fortunately, her house was made of mud and bricks, not cement, so the cleanup was relatively easy.

Coupled with Xiao Wei's secret protection, when the baby was rescued, the woman was grateful and said that the baby in her belly kicked her.

When he said this, he was obviously surprised.

The child is fine.

Click, tap.

The footsteps sounded in the quiet morning, but no one could hear them.

Wangcai just raised his head with his eyes closed, smelled something, and then lay down again to continue sleeping.

Today, there is more important work waiting for it.

Xu Mingying came over with a few women, looked at everything in front of them, and stopped.

They all knew that the people in front of them were too tired.

From yesterday afternoon till now, a total of 32 people have been rescued.

If so, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda.

On average, each of them will build a fourteen-story pagoda.

Especially those who came from the old city, they worked hard for their fellow villagers in this unfamiliar place.

This kind of emotion comes from the heart.

"Let's wait and let them sleep a little longer."

Xu Mingying held Miaomiao's hand and talked aside.

Several women nodded slightly.

Miaomiao even let go of her hand, walked to the big willow tree, squatted beside Wangcai, and gently combed his hair.

Wangcai didn't react either.

"Here it comes, here it comes~~"

"The convoy is coming, the help is coming~~~"

clang clang

The sound of a gong suddenly rang out, and the originally quiet scene suddenly became lively.

The sound slowly spread from a distance and then spread to even farther away.

The speed of sound is fully demonstrated at this moment.

From the first shout, the cry gradually spread to every corner of the entire Stone City like a wave.

Yang Xiaotao heard the faint sound of a gong and slowly opened his eyes. Behind him, Xiaowei was taking back energy from the tree trunk.

When I opened my eyes, I saw Miaomiao squatting there combing Wangcai's hair. The little girl was very careful and serious.

Yang Xiaotao stretched his body, and then more sounds came from a distance.

Gradually, more and more people woke up, stood up and looked into the distance.

Yang Xiaotao and his team had already strayed away from the rescue station, and they didn't know where it was. Last night, as long as Wangcai found a survivor, they would go to rescue him, so they had no idea where he was.

"Look!"

Xu Mingying suddenly pointed to the front left, and everyone looked over quickly.

In the distance, the sun rose from the horizon, as if a row of military green trucks rushed out from the sun and were moving quickly along the road.

And on the car, in addition to the red flags, there were also rows of soldiers.

"It's coming, it's really coming."

A man next to me suddenly murmured, and then he couldn't suppress his inner excitement and tears flowed down.

More local men followed suit, waving their arms and greeting from a distance.

More and more people began to cheer, and the long line seemed to have no end.

"Eat something. We need to save more people today."

Yang Xiaotao picked up Miaomiao, asked her to look at the oncoming convoy, and shouted loudly.

"it is good!"

"Okay, everyone, eat. After you're done, save more people."

Everyone seemed to be full of fighting spirit, and their spiritual food was replenished at this moment.

Yang Xiaotao sat aside, and Xu Mingying opened a lunch box, which contained three steamed buns and a piece of dried radish.

He picked up one and handed it to Miaomiao, then picked up another and gave it to Xu Mingying, and then ate the last one himself.

Everyone gathered together, eating steamed corn bread and drinking cold water, and their hearts were warm.

I can’t wait to finish eating and go to work.

Miaomiao took the steamed bun, broke it in half, and put the other half in front of Wangcai.

Wangcai took a look, then opened his mouth and swallowed the steamed bread, and then licked Miaomiao's little hand.

Yang Xiaotao looked at it, touched Miaomiao's little head and smiled, "Miaomiao, can you sing?"

“My father often taught me to sing.”

Miaomiao thought about it, lowered her head and thought of her dead father, her eyes became red again.

Yang Xiaotao reached out and held Miaomiao in his arms, "Come, uncle, let me teach you a song, okay?"

"Um"