Costume Mountains and Rivers

Shen Peinan's bedroom door is inlaid with a small piece of frosted glass, revealing a light yellow light, which lasts until the sky turns white and then goes out. Mo Qinghe can't fall asleep when he listens to the movement in his room. He wants to knock on Shen Peinan's room. He asked him where his aunt was now and how she was doing, but he knew that Shen Peinan didn't have time to discuss his affairs, so he could only endure the anticipation and anxiety in his heart and wait for the dawn wholeheartedly.

The sound of rain was pattering all night, and the drowsy sky and heavy rain clouds made it impossible to judge the time. Mo Qinghe rolled over and over on the bed with the soft duvet in her arms. Western landscapes flashed in front of my eyes one by one.

The courtyard in winter, the strict master, the never-ending hunger, the endless beatings, he recited the script, waiting for A Niang to fulfill her promise to pick him up during the Chinese New Year, remembering the last, It is also the deepest impression—the high-heeled shoes clicking on the ground, the half-worn silk cheongsam embroidered with a light yellow peony flower, and a cigarette hole burned, which cannot stop the beauty.

At the age of fifteen or sixteen, he had a chance to officially appear on the stage. He stood on the stage and took the curtain call. He bowed to his seat one after another, and finally got off the stage, excitedly going to the backstage to find Mo Liuchu. Mo Qinghe pushed aside the crowd and said loudly: "Liu Chu, look at today's seat, today's Caier, we are going to be popular! We are going to be popular!" !"

When the congratulatory crowd dispersed, he stood by the table, lowered his head and slowly adjusted the costumes, and said softly: "Just keep singing like this, maybe Aniang will see me, maybe she will come after a while I'm here."

He doesn't smoke opium, and he doesn't like to gamble. He pretended to be a woman since he was a child, but when he grows up, he can't lift his spirits towards real women, and he hasn't even visited the Eight Great Alleys.Carefully saving the money he earned, in the small courtyard, watching a gas lamp, he and Liu Chu looked at each other with a smile, thinking happily, if A Niang came to see me one day, I would be able to make money to support her.

Later, when he got older, these words gradually stopped, and he knew in his heart that this was an unreasonable thought. A Niang might remarry, might die, might have left Peiping long ago, in short, he was not wanted.But she doesn't want him, and he can't let her go. After all these years of suffering, A Niang has already become his spiritual support. As long as she is here, he has a way out.

When she gave birth to him back then, she was unable to support him, but now that he has the ability, he has to honor his mother.

He rolled over and got out of bed, turned on the bedside lamp, dragged out a locked suitcase from under the bed, took out flannel boxes of different sizes from it, opened them one by one, and put them on the bed to examine them one by one.

A snow-white round pearl, a gold bracelet made by melting two phoenix hairpins, a sparkling diamond necklace, a emerald green emerald ring set with small diamonds as a set, three or four pairs of gold earrings and Several gold necklaces are women's jewelry, which he bought with his own money.In addition, there is a bank deposit book. Mo Qinghe did the math. In addition to the 5000 yuan he gave to Hang Yunyang to buy a house, he also has seven to eight thousand yuan in deposits and some stocks with good gains, which is enough for an ordinary Women of the upper class live a life of no worries about food and clothing in Peiping.

While wrapping the things in cardboard boxes, he thought, this is what he owes to A Niang. If A Niang is not doing well, he will take care of A Niang. If A Niang marries again, she will live a prosperous life. , or he dislikes his reputation and refuses to recognize him, he just keeps a souvenir and takes a look at it from a distance, never disturbing A Niang's current life.

After packing a package, Mo Qinghe opened the cabinet and looked for clothes one by one from the glass box at the bottom of the box. After looking at it, she still felt that she was too young, so she put them all back again, planning to go out early in the morning. The silk and satin shop chooses the best materials for the meeting gift.

He rummaged through the boxes and packed the things, and before he knew it, it was already dawn outside. Shen Peinan had a business to do. After lying on the bed for two hours, he changed his clothes and went out. When he walked to the door of Mo Qinghe's room, he opened the door and went in when he heard the sound. Passing through the small living room, seeing the suitcase thrown open on the floor, and the jewelry placed on the bed, he couldn't help laughing.

"I ran away from home because I rummaged through boxes and cabinets early in the morning?" Shen Peinan walked over, sat down by the bed, picked out a gold ring, took Mo Qinghe's hand to put it on, and said with a smile: "I don't remember you Love these little bitch things."

Mo Qinghe felt underestimated, pulled her hands back, and closed the flannel boxes one by one.

When Shen Peinan saw this pile of things, he had an early understanding, picked up a heavy gold bracelet, weighed it, and said in a deep voice: "Nowadays, people of the slightly western style don't like this anymore. I'll come back early in the afternoon and bring You go to a foreign company to pick out the best ladies' watch."

He looked around in the room and saw piles of colored clothes piled up on the head of the bed, and said again: "I don't bring any clothes, first go and see what kind of person your aunt is."

Mo Qinghe looked at Shen Peinan, nodded, took advantage of the opportunity when he turned his head, gently wiped the corner of his eyes, and asked: "Is she doing well?"

Shen Peinan said: "I just received a telegram from Mr. Dai in Jinan yesterday, and I haven't had time to ask him. There is a dinner at noon today. Let's talk about it after we meet and talk. Don't rush to pack things, lest people make people laugh if you are too polite."

Mo Qinghe smiled, fiddled with the clasp of the pearl necklace, pursed her lips and said, "Do you think your family is as big as yours? What's so light about etiquette? I'm used to living a good life and don't know the sufferings of the people. If it's not desperate, Who will sell their son to sing in an opera?"

It was rare for him to speak without baring his teeth and claws. His thick eyelashes drooped down, and his manner was beautiful. Shen Peinan looked at him quietly, and then felt that he hadn't seen him for more than ten days. He really missed him, wanted to hear him grind his teeth, and hold him I have to work on my little ass, and sleep for a day and a night after work, but no, I can't let go of my strength, I have to strike while the iron is hot, first deal with the old warlords in Shandong, so even if this little bird is full of blood He still couldn't care less about him, feeling aggrieved by being left out in the cold.

Shen Peinan stroked Mo Qinghe's temples, and said in a low voice: "If life is not good, you don't need to pay for another place, just take it home and live here."

Mo Qinghe was so startled that she turned her head all of a sudden: "That won't work, even the old mother of the opera singer will be brought home to make offerings, and if it is spread, it will make people laugh."

Shen Peinan glanced at his watch and realized that the time was running out, so he stood up and pushed Mo Qinghe's forehead, frowned and said, "I'm not enlightened, you don't sing anymore, what kind of actor am I playing, I'm just raising a wife."

After he finished speaking, he threw a gold bracelet in his hand to Mo Qinghe, and left without looking back. Mo Qinghe sat on the edge of the bed, leaning forward, with his hands crossed on his knees, as if In a daze, a smile line on his lips gradually deepened, and finally he couldn't help it, and grinned.

Mo Qinghe calculated the time, stayed at home in the morning to catch up on sleep, packed up after lunch, and specially changed into a dark gray woolen suit without a trace of dust, wearing a thin long windbreaker, like a person working in an official office Commissioner, when the top hat was pressed, no one would recognize him. After dressing himself up, he sat in the living room and waited intently for Shen Peinan to come back.

The rain was getting heavier and heavier. Just after noon, there was a sudden thunder, and lightning and fire dragons pierced the dark sky. Lao Liu ran to the backyard to collect the birdcage. When he came back, his robe was completely soaked. The big sunflower parrot was frightened. While flapping his wings in the cage, Lao Liu wiped the water from his face and kept sighing: "This year's rain is terrible. If it's autumn, I'm afraid it will be flooded for a while."

It was raining heavily outside the window, turning into white mist, drifting with the wind, and couldn't see anything clearly. The little yellow cat was afraid of thunder, and nestled in Mo Qinghe's arms like a chubby warm velvet plaster, wagging its tail, No matter how you pull it, you can't pull it off.

A car drove up from the depths of the rain and fog. The wheels split the water and stopped in the yard. The driver didn't move, but Shen Peinan jumped out of the car himself, walked into the living room in three steps, and pulled Mo Qinghe Just walking outside, the little yellow cat was thrown onto the sofa and meowed angrily.

Seeing that most of Shen Peinan's shoulders were wet by the rain, Mo Qinghe hurriedly said: "It's raining so much, let's go another day."

Shen Peinan's expression was serious, and he urged him as he strode forward: "Hurry up, it's too late."

Mo Qinghe was carrying paper bags, and was almost screwed into the car by Shen Peinan all the way. The car braved the heavy rain and muffled thunder, and drove eastward with dripping water. The road was empty, and occasionally there was a pedestrian who was too late to take shelter Blown crookedly by the strong wind.The further you go east, the narrower the walk, and the more crowded and dilapidated the market. The car stopped at the side of the road when it reached Deshengmen Street. The water is at least two feet deep, and it must have flooded our car."

After speaking, he found a big black umbrella from under the seat, jumped out of the car first, and opened the car door graciously. The umbrella surface was crackling under the bean raindrops. The driver looked around and saw the umbrella under a shed on the side of the road. A ragged coachman was squatting, smoking a dusty cigarette butt from the ground, and hurriedly called him over. As soon as the coachman saw the business, he came to pull the cart with a cigarette butt in his mouth.

The crooked tarpaulin on the roof of the rickshaw could not stop the pouring rain at all. Mo Qinghe and Shen Peinan were sitting in the car, holding an umbrella together, still drenched in the rain, their buttocks It was icy cold underneath, and the coachman was dripping thigh-high sewage, wiping the water on his face one by one, while struggling to pull the cart forward.

This area is different from the suburban villa where Mo Qinghe lived. Ever since Beijing was renamed Beiping, rich households have moved south in batches, and the entire inner city has become a slum. When it rains, the entire block turns into a sewage pond mixed with livestock manure and garbage.The rickshaw drove through three alleys in a row and stopped in front of a courtyard. The driver turned his head and showed his yellow teeth. When he said that, Shen Peinan jumped out of the car and gave Mo Qinghe a hand. The two plopped into the water together.

A gust of wind blew past, and there was a sound of puffing, the canopy of the umbrella was blown away, leaving only a bare umbrella handle in Shen Peinan's hand, the black tarpaulin was like a big bat with outstretched wings, being swept by the wind, flying like a bat. high.

Mo Qinghe was drenched in the rain, standing at the gate of the courtyard, looking at the dilapidated houses inside, she suddenly didn't dare to go inside.

He is familiar with this kind of place, he is more familiar with this kind of place than anyone else, all the performers in Tianqiao live in this kind of courtyard house, the lonely old woman from the east family, the old girl with epilepsy who cannot get married from the west family, and the blind old man holding arms Girl, carrying a ragged bag, walking around the streets singing Dagu Shu. When he and Liu Chugang left their master and set up their own houses, they shared a dilapidated house with a few seniors. They lived in this kind of place, and spent the day in teahouses. Li worked hard with his throat pulled, wore a piece of clothes he saved after half a month of starvation, humbled himself to make the rich man smile, came back at night covered in sweat, and took turns pouring slop and cleaning the toilet, knowing what he was .

The door of a room opened with a creak, a man and a woman, holding their trouser legs, filled the basins with water, and poured them out one after another. It was raining heavily outside and lightly raining inside the house. That man with bulging eyes, big teeth, bare black and thin arms, saw two uninvited guests at the door, and shouted at the top of his throat, "Hey, who are you looking for?"

Shen Peinan said: "Does Mrs. Mo live here?"

The woman didn't even think about it, splashed the water in the basin, and said impatiently: "Mr. Mrs., I found the wrong one, there is no such person!"

The man stopped his movements when he heard the words, stood up with his waist supported, and asked the woman: "That Zhao Silian at the back seems to have said that her husband's family name is Mo. Someone just asked me about her yesterday..."

The woman's complexion suddenly changed, and she turned the washbasin towards the door: "Go in, you quickly get rid of that stinky woman, it's really bad luck if someone else can't live in the house... "

After speaking, he was still not relieved, picked up a broom, swept the water out, and said cursingly: "Why is my husband's family not my husband's? If you say she came from a rich family, isn't she just an aunt who escaped and is being chased every day?" She hides here and there. When I first moved in, I knew she was not serious when I saw her gorgeous appearance, but it’s just that, after staying for two days, one man after another came to the house. Now that she is sick, how can one of them Still willing to come…”

Shen Peinan didn't listen to her nonsense anymore, and pulled Mo Qinghe in, walked through the first large courtyard, bypassed a small gate, and entered another courtyard, the northernmost one was closed, but the gate was not closed. Lock.

A rickshaw bell rang outside the courtyard, as if there was another visitor, and the woman's high-pitched voice was vaguely heard: "Hey, why are you here again? I just paid taxes the day before yesterday, and I don't have a single grain of rice at home. I really can't afford it." paid..."

Shen Peinan pushed open the door of the hut, took a look inside, froze, turned around suddenly, stopped Mo Qinghe at the door, and said in a low voice: "It's not this one, go back, we found the wrong one."

Mo Qinghe pushed him stubbornly, looked into the depths of the dark hut, and said softly: "Let me have a look, let me have a look."