The sun was shining brightly in the sky in May, and it was very hot and sultry. It was as hot as a stove, making people almost cooked. Even the wind was hot and unbearable.

It was already noon, and most people had already had lunch, including the people in Zhaojiacun.

Farmers have a lot of work in the fields. Most of them bring food to the field ridges to eat, and then work after a short break. Some people are too afraid of the heat and can't stand it, so they run to the big banyan tree at the entrance of the village to enjoy the cool weather. There are also some men. Take a swim in the river to cool down.

One characteristic of the nearby villages is that there is a century-old banyan tree at the entrance of the village with luxuriant branches. After dinner, the elderly in the village like to go there to cool off and chat, and the children also like to play under the tree with their companions.

Zhaojia Village is surrounded by mountains, with green mountains and beautiful waters. It has a population of about one hundred households, with two surnames: Zhao and Wang. The majority of them are surnamed Zhao, so it is called Zhaojia Village.

After Zhao Man rested for half an hour, he said, "Mom, Ah Xiu, it's too hot. Please take a rest while I work first."

I don't know if it was because the weather was too hot, but Wanxiu felt depressed and uneasy. Her face was sunburned and she looked miserable.

"Aman, I don't mind. Mom, are you hot? Do you want to take Brother Chuan back to have a rest and come back when the heat subsides a little?"

Wanxiu touched the forehead of her son, who was sleeping soundly under the tree. Seeing that his face was red, she thought he had a fever. Fortunately, his forehead was not hot, so it was a false alarm.

When Mrs. Cui saw her daughter-in-law's expression was not good, she said, "Axiu, sit here and relax, don't tire yourself out."

Hearing this, Wan Xiu felt warm in her heart. Her mother-in-law was very kind and considerate, and she treated her as her own mother.

Mrs. Cui muttered again: "You should have carried Brother Chuan and Sister Ling back together before. It's better to lie down at home than here."

Although this little daughter-in-law doesn't talk much, she has a good temper. Mrs. Cui likes to talk to her.

Seeing that his mother and daughter-in-law were getting along well, Zhao Man felt happy and felt that the weather was no longer hot and he was full of energy.

This warm scene was broken by shouts in the distance.

"The Aman family is in trouble, something serious is going to happen..."

A tall man rushed over, his dark face covered with sweat, and he was panting so hard that he couldn't speak a complete sentence.

"Brother Zhu, what's going on? Don't be impatient. Speak slowly."

"It's a matter of life and death, can I not be anxious? Your house is on fire, and your girl is still inside, you..."

Hearing this, Zhao Man's expression changed drastically. Before he could finish speaking, he jumped out of the field without even wearing any shoes and ran towards home.

"Ling'er."

Wan Xiu's legs went weak and she almost fell to the ground. She didn't care about anything and ran towards home. She was so anxious that she even dropped one of her shoes without noticing.

When Zhao Man returned home, a group of people gathered around his door, putting out fires and watching the excitement, and it was noisy.

The fire was so strong that bucket after bucket of water could not put it out.

"Where is my Ling'er?" Zhao Man asked anxiously.

"Maybe it's still inside. Your door is so strong that you can't even kick it open."

Zhao Man didn't care about anything, picked up a bucket of water, poured it on himself, and kicked him with all his strength.

There was a "boom".

In the eyes of others, the door that could not be opened or broken was kicked to pieces by him.

As soon as I entered, I saw a little man lying on the ground.

"Ling'er." Zhao Man picked up his daughter on the ground and rushed out.

As soon as he ran out of the door, a pillar came down, almost hitting him.

This thrilling scene was seen by Wan Xiu, who had just returned. She was so shocked that her legs softened and she fell to the ground. She wanted to get up, but her legs were sore that she could not stand up.

She rolled and crawled to her husband's side.

Zhao Man laid his daughter flat on the ground and shook her, "Ling'er, wake up, daddy is back."

The little girl's eyes were closed tightly and she remained motionless. Zhao Man tried to pinch her, but it didn't work.

"Ling'er, wake up, open your eyes and see, I am your mother, don't let anything happen to you, how do you want me to live?" Wanxiu cried.

"Axiu, go find Dr. Wang, our Ling'er will be fine."

Zhao Man was very panicked. Seeing that his wife was about to cry and faint, he comforted her with a few words. He had better legs and feet, so he should go find a doctor.

As soon as he stood up, he staggered a few steps and almost fell to the ground.

"Doctor Wang is here." someone shouted.

When he saw Zhao Man carrying his daughter out, someone had already called Doctor Wang for him.

Some people continued to help him put out the fire, and the fire had been extinguished by the time the doctor arrived.

"Uncle Wang, help, save my daughter."

As soon as he saw Doctor Wang, Zhao Man immediately stepped forward and pulled him over.

The old man was pulled unsteadily by him and almost fell to the ground.

Knowing that he was anxious, Doctor Wang did not blame him and ordered: "Take Ling Yatou into the house and everyone can disperse."

Seeing this, Wanxiu quickly carried her daughter into the house.

Zhao Man saw that his wife had taken the lead and bowed to everyone, "Fellow folks, thank you for your help today. I will come and say thank you when you are free in a few days."

"Man Man, fellow villagers don't need to be polite to us. Girl Ling will be fine. We won't delay you. You can go in."

Everyone left with interest, some people still wanted to watch the fun and kept looking in the distance.

"Uncle Wang, how is Linger?"

"She has inhaled a large amount of smoke, which has entered her lungs. The situation is not optimistic. She will have repeated fevers and will be fine when she wakes up. If she fails to wake up, her life will be in danger."

The Zhao couple were so frightened that their faces turned pale, and they prayed, "Uncle Wang, you must save Ling'er."

"I'll prescribe some medicine first. You take the medicine according to the prescription, and then I'll teach you how to lower your temperature. I'll come back tomorrow to take a look."

Zhao Man took the prescription and went to grab the medicine. Wanxiu had just changed her daughter into clean clothes when Mrs. Cui walked in, "Axiu, how is Ling'er?"

With tears in her eyes, Wanxiu choked and said, "Mom, Ling'er will be fine. Where is Brother Chuan?"

"I put him in my house and he's not awake yet."

A cough interrupted their conversation.

The little girl on the bed suddenly opened her eyes.

"Ling'er, you're awake, it's great." Wanxiu shouted in surprise.

Zhao Ling was still a little confused. She had a headache, chest tightness, and an itchy throat. "Water..."

Wanxiu quickly fed her water. After drinking a few glasses of water, she felt much better and her mind became clearer.

Wasn't she burned to death? Where is this? Underworld? She was dreaming, why did she see her mother-in-law and grandma who were younger than before.

"Mom, grandma, I miss you so much." She said aggrievedly.

Her voice was as weak as a kitten's, which was pitiful. Mother-in-law and daughter-in-law held her and cried bitterly.

At first, Zhao Ling thought she was dreaming. The dream was so real that she thought she was reunited with her family in the underworld. It wasn't until she saw her own hand and pinched herself that she was sure she was alive again.

"Damn it, who did this? It's evil!" A sharp and mean voice came from outside.

Chapter two

Hearing this familiar voice, Zhao Ling felt a strong hatred in her heart. She was holding on, but she fainted after being stimulated.

Wanxiu was startled. She was getting hot again, and her brows were filled with sorrow.

"Mom, I'm going to fetch some cold water. You've been worried all the way. I'll take care of Ling'er. You can go and rest first."

"Old lady, I'm still strong. I'm looking at Ling'er."

Countryside people get married early, usually when they are fourteen or fifteen, and no later than eighteen years old. If you are not married by the age of eighteen, you will be called an old girl.

Although Mrs. Cui is called Mrs. Cui, she is only in her forties, which is still relatively young for her age.

As soon as Wanxiu walked out, the people outside saw her and immediately said: "Brothers and sisters, how do you look after the house? I was not at home for just one night, and you made the house look like this. What a sin! Our family is already poor. , how can I live after this?"

The speaker had a loud voice, and she deliberately shouted loudly as if she was afraid that others would not know.

The woman has slanted eyes, a black mole between her eyebrows, a rectangular face, and is twenty-six years old. She usually speaks harshly and looks a bit mean-spirited.

She has a very strong and domineering temperament, loves to take advantage of others, likes to be lazy, and leaves all the heavy work to Wan Xiu.

She always used the excuse that her waist was not good and pushed heavy tasks such as carrying water and rice to Wan Xiu or Mrs. Cui, while she rushed to do light tasks such as feeding chickens and picking vegetables.

Mrs. Cui gave birth to two sons. The eldest son, Zhao Fu, is now twenty-eight years old and is away from home. He is studying in a school in the town. He is a scholar and has a very stubborn temper.

He has never passed the Tongsheng test since he was eighteen years old. His wife is the Ma family with the mole between her eyebrows, and her maiden name is Ma Yuanyuan.

The couple has two daughters and one son, the eldest daughter Zhao Chun, now nine years old; the second son Zhao Bai, now seven years old; and the youngest daughter Zhao Hua, now six years old.

The second son, Zhao Man, is twenty-six years old, and his wife, Wan, whose maiden name is Wanxiu, is twenty-four. The couple has a son and a daughter. The eldest daughter, Zhao Ling, is six years old, and the youngest son, Zhao Chuan, is three years old.

Mr. Zhao has been dead for five years. Because Zhao Fu is the eldest son and a scholar, he is smooth and sweet-tongued. He always said that after being admitted as a scholar, Mr. Zhao will be the father of the scholar, and he will be filial to him and honor his ancestors. Therefore, Mr. Zhao Doting on him very much.

I don't like his second son who is honest, dutiful and taciturn.

Mrs. Cui has a cowardly temperament and regards her husband as her first priority. Although she is not partial, she cannot speak.

Now the brothers have not separated and live together. The Zhao family is not rich because they have to support a scholar.

Zhao Man had never read a book. When he was very young, Mr. Zhao asked him to do odd jobs to earn money for his brother to study.

There are seven rooms in the house, five of which are bedrooms. The master bedroom has the biggest and best light. It was originally occupied by Mr. Zhao and Mrs. Cui, but after his death, Mr. Ma coaxed her into giving up the room, and they were married. Lived in by myself.

The big house has the best and largest rooms, and the three siblings of the big house live in one room.

The second bedroom also has two rooms. Zhao Man, Wanxiu and Zhao Chuan live in one, and Zhao Ling lives in the other.

Zhao Ling's room was almost snatched away by Ma and allowed to be occupied by Zhao Bai.

Zhao Man, who has always been soft-tempered and good-tempered, Wanxiu had to be tough for his daughter to save her room.

One is a utility room, specifically for storing things, and the other is the kitchen.

Seeing Ma pretending to be yelling and thinking that she was crying in mourning, Wanxiu felt a sense of disgust in her heart.

Her daughter fainted again before she passed the critical stage, and she was so anxious that she broke into a cold sweat.

"Sister-in-law, can you please be quiet? Can you speak in a lower voice? Something happened to Ling'er. Her life or death is uncertain. She needs to rest. Besides, if the house is gone, we can build it again. If the people are gone, there will be nothing."

Seeing that her tone was a bit harsh, Ma couldn't believe that Wanxiu, who had always been weak, would choke her and dare to talk to her like this, and her eyes widened.

He muttered in a low voice: "A loser will die if he dies."

She stretched her neck and shouted loudly: "What are you talking about, brothers and sisters? Every penny is not spent. Your eldest brother has to take exams this year, and money is needed everywhere.

There are ten people in the family, and everyone needs to spend money, and only three of them can make money. The expenses are so huge, and half of the house is burned down. How can I survive?

Why is my life so miserable? Your eldest brother is not here, I take care of a whole family by myself, and you and your wife team up to bully me.

Where were you when your home was on fire? I've asked about it, and it turns out that your girl was the only one there at the time. It must have been that dead girl who was playing with the fire, otherwise the house wouldn't have burned down. "

Seeing her raking him down, Wan Xiu was so angry that his lips trembled and he was speechless for a moment.

This time the fire burned two rooms, one was the grocery room and the other was Zhao Ling's room. It had no impact on their big room at all.

When Zhao Man came back, he happened to hear her heart-breaking words. His heart had never been so cold, so cold that his blood seemed to be frozen.

He knew that Mrs. Ma didn't want to use money to repair the house. This was his sister-in-law whom he respected. In the past, he could tolerate it. He felt that they were all family members and blood relatives, so he just had to tolerate it.

Now that her daughter is in danger, she only thinks about money and doesn't get a dime.

The money in the family was originally kept by Mrs. Cui, but she was deceived by her, saying that she was the eldest son and that it was her responsibility to take care of the money. Mrs. Cui was afraid of her and did not dare to say a word.

Growing up, the money Zhao Man earned never went into his own pocket, and he had to hand it over.

He felt that it would be more appropriate for his mother to take charge of the family's accounts, but his eldest brother insisted on letting his sister-in-law take charge of the family's affairs. Since his eldest brother is like his father, he had no choice but to agree.

Now he didn't have a penny in his hand, so Doctor Wang asked him to get the money on credit first, and then make up the money after paying for the medicine.

"I won't take the money for repairing the house from my uncle. My sister-in-law can eat whatever she wants but not talk nonsense. My Ling'er is so good that she can't set fire to it. Please be kind to your uncle. The money for medicine this time is one tael. I'll take it." Money."

As soon as he came in, Zhao Man gave the medicine to his wife and asked her to fry it.

"What? One tael, why don't you go and grab it! The total money in the family is only five taels. Your family has spent one tael on the money-losing goods at once. It doesn't cost your life to ask for money."

Ma has always been arrogant, the most mischievous, and never rakes in money. Even though Zhao Man earns most of the family's money, she feels that it is all right.

Their second wife should make money for their first wife. It would be good if she could give them a mouthful of food. They are slaves.

She usually makes trouble and cheats, and realizes that her elder brother needs to study and has to hand it over to repair. Pens, ink, paper and inkstones are expensive, and the expenses are huge, excluding daily expenses.

saved over the years

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