Siheyuan: Black and steady Gou Laoliu

Tianjia Village, Fangshan.

Tian Guixiang, who desperately wanted to escape from the suffocating place but had no idea where to go, finally decided to return to her parents' home.

A few years ago, Tian Guixiang's parents passed away one after another. In addition, her life in her husband's family was not satisfactory, so she almost cut off contact with her relatives from her mother's side.

However, this time when she came back, she was warmly welcomed by her eldest brother's family, which made Tian Guixiang feel the long-lost warmth of family love and comforted her broken heart to a certain extent.

Tian Guixiang knew very well that her eldest brother's family's good attitude towards her must be related to the valuable gifts she brought with her, but none of that mattered.

As for the reason for going back to her parents' home to visit relatives, she had thought about it yesterday afternoon.

What she told her eldest brother's family was that she had been dreaming about her deceased parents appearing in her dreams recently, which made her unable to eat or sleep well these days, so she rushed back to see them.

In fact, Tian Guixiang is just soft-hearted, but not stupid.

What's more, if you marry a chicken, you follow the chicken; if you marry a dog, you follow the dog. Following a shrewd person like Yi Yinbi, you will become more shrewd by observing and learning from him.

You know, yesterday when she made up her mind to escape from that suffocating place, she went to get a letter of introduction.

After returning to the familiar place, several acquaintances who grew up with Tian Guixiang came to visit, and they chatted happily about all sorts of things.

Gradually, Tian Guixiang smiled more and more, and her laughter became louder and louder. The depression that had been pent up in her heart for the past few days had long been thrown away after she returned to her parents' home.

Although she had not been back to her parents' home for many years, Tian Guixiang did not treat herself as a guest. She did the housework without any hesitation and helped her sister-in-law share a lot of the housework.

In the afternoon, she took the initiative to collect grass for the pigs.

Perhaps because she was in a good mood, Tian Guixiang always felt relaxed and comfortable when picking grass for pigs.

Walking on a country road, Tian Guixiang vaguely heard someone calling her, and the voice seemed quite familiar.

She looked in the direction of the voice and recognized the man. She couldn't help but feel a mixture of thoughts and emotions.

Because this person was Wang Tieshan, her childhood sweetheart.

They were in love with each other back then, but Wang Tieshan's family was an outsider, with no parents to help him, no brothers or sisters, and his family was poor.

Naturally, Tian Guixiang's parents did not agree to this marriage, and the two were separated.

At first, Tian Guixiang felt very uncomfortable, but as time went by, she became more open-minded.

However, when she saw Wang Tieshan again this time, Tian Guixiang couldn't help but think of another way of life. If she had married Brother Tieshan, perhaps she would not have suffered so much hardship and pain.

There is no medicine for regret in life. Tian Guixiang took a deep breath, adjusted her mood, and walked towards where Wang Tieshan was.

She thought it was just like meeting old friends and chatting for a while.

I haven't seen him for many years. The strong young man has now become a sloppy old man. When they stand together, they no longer look like people of the same age.

Wang Tieshan was digging the ground. When he saw Tian Guixiang coming over, he seemed a little nervous. He tidied up simply because he didn't want his old friend to see him in such a sloppy state.

You know, in the past, when Tian Guixiang returned to her parents' home, Wang Tieshan would also say hello, but the two of them would just say a few words from a distance and then go about their own business.

After all, both of them already had families, so they had to pay attention to the impact and avoid being seen and gossiped about, which led to the two of them becoming the most familiar strangers.

When she got closer, Tian Guixiang suddenly didn't know what to say, but she heard Brother Tieshan speak first: "Guixiang, when did you come back?"

"I came back this morning." Tian Guixiang smiled slightly. Seeing that Brother Tieshan had dug a large area of ​​land, she couldn't help but feel distressed, so she persuaded him with concern:

"Brother Tieshan, you are still so efficient in farm work, but you must take care of yourself."

When she was chatting with people before, she heard that several people of her age had passed away;

Wang Tieshan is well-known for his hard work. When he was young and strong, this was of course no problem, but as he got older, if he continued to work so hard, he would definitely be ahead of his peers.

"It's okay. I've gotten used to it over the years." Wang Tieshan smiled naively. "I should have no problem living to 60."

After he finished speaking, he suddenly remembered something and asked hurriedly, "Guixiang, how many days can you stay this time?"

"It's a rare opportunity for me to come back, so I plan to stay a few more days this time."

Wang Tieshan was delighted and pointed to the mountain: "There are wild fruits and mountain products on the mountain at this time of year. I'll pick some for you to take back."

Although many years have passed, he still remembers clearly what she likes to eat.

After hearing this, Tian Guixiang couldn't help but feel touched, because she knew very well that Brother Tieshan was not just being polite, he was serious.

But the two of them just need to exchange a few words. If they get too close, people may gossip about them.

What's more, Brother Tieshan is also married. His husband goes up the mountain specifically to pick wild fruits and products for other women. If you put yourself in his shoes, which woman would not be angry?

Thinking of this, Tian Guixiang smiled and waved her hand to refuse: "Brother Tieshan, don't bother. Just take a rest when you have time."

After being rejected, Wang Tieshan looked frustrated and reluctantly said:

"Guixiang, I have no relatives in this world now, so you can be considered half of my relative. We met this time, and I don't know when we will meet again. I give you something, and you keep it. It also makes me feel that I still have a relative in this world."

Tian Guixiang's eyes suddenly widened, and she asked in disbelief: "Brother Tieshan, where are your wife and children?"

"My wife died of illness a few years ago. My eldest son was drafted by the Bakas and never came back. My youngest son joined the army and died in battle."

Wang Tieshan's tone was very flat, as if he was telling someone else's story.

"Alas, things in this world are unpredictable, Brother Tieshan, don't be too sad." Tian Guixiang couldn't help but let out a long sigh. She thought her life was miserable enough, but who knew that Brother Tieshan's life was even more miserable.

"It's all over." Wang Tieshan grinned and waved his hands, then suddenly laughed bitterly at himself: "Maybe I really am what people say is a doomed lonely star."

Tian Guixin felt very upset when he saw that his childhood sweetheart was having a harder time than he was.

Thinking of the fact that they were both miserable people in the world, she pursed her lips and said solemnly: "Brother Tieshan, from now on I will be your relative."

Upon hearing this, Wang Tieshan immediately beamed with joy and said gratefully: "Guixiang, thank you for giving me a family again!"

As he spoke, his eyes became moist and he looked like he was about to cry with excitement.

Then, Wang Tieshan pointed out a place with plenty of pig grass to Tian Guixiang. After Tian Guixiang left, he happily returned home carrying his hoe.