Costume Mountains and Rivers

Shen Peinan couldn't resist him, so he walked in from under his arm. Mo Qinghe, carrying a handfull of presents, stepped across the threshold in one step. As soon as he entered the door, he was suddenly suffocated by a stench and nearly fell over. Now, I saw a dilapidated shack-like house with bare walls, and the only small window was pasted with old newspapers, which was rattling by the wind, and the light shone into the dark room through the gaps in the newspapers. The only furniture is an earthen kang and a mud stove, and an empty gourd is thrown.

Rain leaked everywhere in the house, and the dripping rain drenched the kang thoroughly. A thin quilt was as black as a piece of linoleum. When I looked closely, there lay a woman who looked like a rotten shrimp, with a rotten stench all over her body. Flies were buzzing around her, the lips and eyelids of a face were almost rotten, there was a big sore on the corner of the mouth, the black and red flesh was turned out, only three or two teeth were missing, and they were bared out in white with.

Mo Qinghe gasped in shock at the scene in front of him, Shen Peinan stopped him back, endured the stench, and walked forward first, lifted a corner of the linoleum, and the fly lying on the woman's face was disturbed , flying around with a buzzing sound.

Shen Peinan threw down the quilt, clapped his hands, turned his head and said to Mo Qinghe: "I'm out of breath."

Mo Qinghe let go of her hand, and the paper bag she was carrying fell to the ground.

"A Niang, A Niang..." He strode forward, Shen Peinan turned around to block him with his body, and said in a low voice: "Be quiet, I'm not sure if this is..."

Mo Qinghe suddenly stopped moving. He raised his head and looked quietly at the earthen wall at the top of the kang. Shen Peinan then turned his head, following his line of sight, he saw a glass photo frame hanging upright on the wall, with a black and white picture framed on it. The photo is a half-length photo of a beauty in a cheongsam. The glass is covered with thick dust. It can be vaguely seen that the person in the photo has plump lips, thick eyelashes, and a pair of amorous and melancholy eyes.

The second half of Shen Peinan's sentence choked in her throat. The forehead, eyes and bridge of the nose of the person in the photo all resembled Mo Qinghe very much. She put one hand into her fluffy curly hair, raised her chin slightly, and looked charming She smiled softly, but her eyes showed a childish look, like an innocent girl who is trying to learn how to flirt with adults.

Shen Peinan could see such a smile on Mo Qinghe's face countless times a day. He knew it was useless to say anything, so he sighed, turned around and rubbed Mo Qinghe's shoulder, and said, "My condolences."

There were chaotic footsteps outside the courtyard, and five or six patrolmen in black uniforms and big caps rushed in, pushed one by one to the bed, and stepped back holding their noses in disgust, Dai Changming held his umbrella tall , with a fat belly, led two foreign doctors through the small courtyard, called Mr. Shen in one voice, entered the door and saw the scene in front of him, opened his mouth wide and looked at Shen Peinan, unable to say a word.

Mo Qinghe and Shen Peinan were ordered by the doctor to retreat to the door. Dai Changming directed the group of people in the room to splash disinfectant and pack things up. The police station has always been very efficient in handling affairs, and a tin box was packed in a short while. After sending it to the two of them, Mo Qinghe looked at Shen Peinan, and seeing that the other party had no intention of stopping him, he stretched out his hand to open the box and inspected the items inside one by one.

There were some children's things in the box, a pair of old tiger-head cloth shoes whose color could not be seen clearly, a copper coin necklace tied with red string, and a small padded jacket. Mo Qinghe found some haircuts from the bottom of the box with shaking hands The yellowed photos were all about a delicate little boy, and in one of them, he was sitting obediently on A Niang’s lap, with a red dot on his forehead, and he was holding his mother’s arm with his slender fingers.

Mo Qinghe looked at the photo in her hand, squeezed out a wry smile for a while, and said to Shen Peinan: "Aniang can't take me home to eat dumplings."

"I'll go out for a walk." He handed the photo back to Shen Peinan heavily, held up the umbrella, and before he could answer, he turned and walked towards the rain curtain.

Shen Peinan ignored him and walked back into the house. Dai Changming moved a horse and sat on it. When he saw Shen Peinan coming in, he pointed to the stretcher with the body on the ground, wondering: "The doctor said that he died in the morning, let's burn it. It was raining too much, and I was afraid that there would be infectious diseases if I buried it.”

Shen Peinan walked around to the stove and lifted the lid of the only big black pot. The inside was empty, a few grains of mouse droppings had been dried, and there was a black rice jar at the bottom of the stove. No, a nest of bright red mice had just been born, and the female mouse squatted aside, staring at him vigilantly with mung bean-like eyes.

Shen Peinan was annoyed, threw the pot lid back with a bang, walked two steps in the room, suddenly raised his hand and slapped himself, cursing: "I'm so irritable that I don't want to be beaten, that's all he thinks about, now Well, there's nothing left."

His slap was real and sharp, and he grinned for a long time before he regained his strength. Dai Changming was shouting slogans to direct the four policemen to carry the stretcher. It’s messed up. After receiving the news yesterday, I should take a look at it before sending a telegram. I didn’t expect it to be like this..."

Shen Peinan worked hard to move his facial muscles, but he didn't answer. He and Dai Changming belonged to different systems, and no matter how angry they were, they couldn't get angry with each other, so he waved his hands to express his understanding, and said in a deep voice: "Find some managers to take care of the funeral. Now, Beiping is your territory, you can figure it out, I can trust you." After speaking, he patted Dai Changming on the shoulder, picked up an umbrella by the wall, and strode out.

The courtyard was in a state of uproar. The division heard that Shen Peinan and his car were trapped in the inner city by the heavy rain, so they hurriedly dispatched a military jeep to pick him up. The policemen were busy maintaining order, and the neighbors heard that People died nearby, and the military was mobilized. One by one, they put down their work and ran out knee-deep in sewage to watch the excitement. A group of children with snot-nosed bubbles hid at the entrance of the alley and looked in, like a row of tall and short Uneven water ghosts.

When the patrolman carried Zhao Silian out, everyone was panicked and curious. They first acted very surprised, expressing that they didn't know anything about it. After inquiring each other about the whole story, they all nodded and lamented that the world was getting worse. The policeman who carried her was getting closer. , the crowd watching the bustle turned pale with fright, covered their noses, and scattered back with a huff.

Shen Peinan walked out of the courtyard all the way, and saw Mo Qinghe in a small alley, squatting under a crooked jujube tree in a daze, Shen Peinan walked over the water, waited for a while, saw that he didn't move, leaned over and touched him On his forehead, he said: "It's all done, let's go back."

Mo Qinghe raised his face, an umbrella couldn't stop the rain from all directions, the water droplets flowed from the hairline, dripped down his face, and gathered in one place on his chin.Shen Peinan couldn't see him like this, sighed, and reached out to him: "I've let you down."

Mo Qing held his hand and stood up, still pursing his lips and staying where he was, Shen Peinan didn't urge him, took out the cigarette box, lit a cigarette, handed it to Mo Qinghe, took another one out and lit it , holding it in their mouths and inhaling, each holding an umbrella, hiding in the blue smoke and silently watching the rain curtain outside the umbrella.

A group of children in cloth jackets at the alley had had enough of the excitement and were playing and splashing water on each other. Hearing the laughter in the distance, Mo Qinghe suddenly said: "It's okay, I understand, even if I see you Mom, I can't do it all over again."

"When I was more than ten years old, someone fell in love with me and said that as long as I followed him, I wouldn't have to spend my days in teahouses. If I didn't agree, I would never be able to make my way in Beiping." He turned his head and stared into Shen Peinan's eyes, "It's better For a while, he got bored and introduced me to others, and later, in order to survive, he also talked to many people."

"Yun Yang is right. You people's hearts are the easiest to change. If we don't try our best to climb up, we will be trampled into the mud. At that time, I had nightmares every day, dreaming of living in a dilapidated room. In the yard, I fell down my throat, got dirty, and no one knew when I died, until, until..." He looked up at the rain clouds as thick as cotton wool in the sky, and said in his heart, until he had a new belief, he and Liu Chu joined the organization together, but he couldn't go on, he couldn't go on, Mo Qinghe's voice was choked up, Shen Peinan didn't like to hear about his romantic past, and said with a dark face: "It's all over, little Mo , you are the most positive and optimistic person, don't think like a little girl, and look forward."

Mo Qinghe shook off his hand, gritted her teeth and said, "What's in front, tell me what's in front?"

Unbearable, he covered his face with his hands, immersed in dark memories, the pain of lying under someone else for the first time, the scene of the worker's night school, the declaration of joining the party, the joy of receiving the task, the confusion when he found himself in love with Shen Peinan, Mo Liuchu's departure, the quietly rotten A Niang, he walks on the edge of a knife every day, one day, he will make a choice, he will meet with the only relative and lover in this life...

A flash of bright lightning flashed across the sky, the children screamed loudly, and were engulfed by a rumbling thunder. The policemen ran past them carrying stretchers, splashing the stagnant water everywhere with their crackling footsteps. Mo Qinghe looked Looking at the oilcloth bag that was being carried away on a stretcher, he squatted down slowly, and murmured: "My mother is gone, and Liu Chu won't wait for me anymore. I can't go back, and I don't want to go forward. Brother Shen, what do you say?" What's in front, what's in front?" He buried his face in his arms, trembling slightly, his thin shoulders looked very weak in the rain, the umbrella slid aside, and the pouring rain hit his face and On his body, the corners of his clothes were dripping with water.

Shen Peinan held a black umbrella and looked down at Mo Qinghe condescendingly. He wanted to say a few words of comfort, but after waiting for a while, he suddenly lost patience. He grabbed Mo Qinghe's arm and dragged him up forcefully. Mo Qinghe's vision was blurred by the rain, the only thing she could see was Shen Peinan's eyes, which were close at hand, staring at him fiercely.

"I don't know what's ahead, but it's better than what you've experienced." Shen Peinan put his body in his arms, leaned close to Mo Qinghe's ear, and whispered: "Your mother is gone, It's not a big deal, don't you want a big brother, from now on, forget about those bastards you met, Shaoxuan, follow me well..."

Mo Qinghe raised her head abruptly, staring at Shen Peinan in a daze.

Shen Peinan was amused by his appearance, held his two hands together, and shook them firmly. Mo Qinghe's hands were white and slender, soaked by the rain, and the veins on the back of the hands could be seen. Shen Peinan was like studying something interesting , squeezed his thin palm, looked over and over, raised his dark eyes for a long time, and said softly: "So your name is Mo Shaoxuan, it sounds nice, and you don't have any romantic atmosphere."

He looked away, wiped the rain off his face, cursed the weather a few times, and turned around to leave. Mo Qinghe reacted, trotted for two steps, and hugged Shen Peinan fiercely from behind.

Shen Peinan was unprepared, was knocked by him and almost rushed forward into the sewage pond, steadied his pace, turned his head and opened his mouth and cursed: "You son of a bitch is going crazy again!"

Mo Qinghe was unmoved, and hugged him tightly. Shen Peinan's body was warm and hot, and the military uniform was soaked by the rain. When he squeezed it hard, the cold water dripped down his wrist, and Mo Qinghe's upper and lower teeth rustled. Trembling, she squeezed a word through her teeth: "Brother Shen, do you love me? I want a correct word, and I want a correct word from you!"

As soon as he said it, he immediately regretted it. He suddenly remembered that there was a day when there was such a heavy rain. He and Shen Peinan were sitting in the car, and they also clamored for a response. He was not allowed to go home until midnight.

He realized that the question was out of place, and slowly let go.

Shen Peinan stared straight ahead without even looking at him, and simply replied: "Love."

Mo Qinghe choked for a moment, and let out a dumbfounded ah, with a raised ending, which was a question sentence. After a long time, she suddenly realized that she ahed again, this time with a lower tone, and it was an exclamation sentence.

Shen Peinan turned her head back, patted Mo Qinghe's wet head like a cat, pinched the cold back of his neck soaked by the rain, nodded and said: "I love you no less than you love me .”

His tone was low and soft, like a big brother comforting a wayward younger brother, and like an unquestionable promise. Mo Qinghe's cheek was pressed against Shen Peinan's back. At this moment, he was suddenly not afraid, and his heart was filled. He is not afraid of these nightmare-like alleys and courtyards, he is not afraid of losing A Niang and Liu Chu, and he is not afraid of the rainy future. If these are what he is destined to bear, let them come more violently!

He was immersed in excitement and sentimentality, with two arms around Shen Peinan's waist, and his forehead was rubbing against his back. Shen Peinan knew that he was a person who couldn't hide his emotions, and wanted to express his love for a child like him. Disdainful, with a straight face, just about to reprimand a few words, but the expression on his face did not follow the command, a smile overflowed from his lips, and he couldn't hide it, he lovingly held Mo Qinghe and hugged him around his waist She raised her face and sighed: "After Yu Qiao left, I thought that I would never trust anyone again...Xiao Mo, I have nothing against you."

Mo Qinghe's smile faltered, and without making a sound, he tightened Shen Peinan's grip.

The sky became darker, lightning tore through the sky covered with dark clouds, and muffled thunder rumbled in the sky.

A military jeep was parked at the entrance of the alley, and the soldier jumped out of the car and saluted the two of them.

Shen Peinan started to leave, but found that he was still being haunted by Mo Qinghe, turned his head and gave him a clue, and said impatiently: "Little bastard, don't you want to go home, and want to make me die in the rain with you?"

Only then did Mo Qinghe come to his senses, and slowly let go of his hand.