Chapter 19 Chapter Nineteen

Lin Hong was immersed in her own happiness. Her handsome husband drove her to the knitting factory every morning on a fashionable and shiny eternal card. After she entered the factory gate, she turned her head again and again, and saw Song Gang supporting her every time. The bicycle stood there reluctantly waving.In the evening, when she walked out of the factory, she would see Song Gang smiling happily.Lin Hong didn't know that Song Gang had secretly helped Baldy Li behind her back. When she found out, a month had passed. The first time Lin Hong found out that Song Gang had no money or food stamps in his pocket, she couldn't help smiling. Lin Hong took out twenty cents and two taels of food stamps and put them into Song Gang's pocket without saying a word.Song Gang stood aside without saying anything. Seeing Lin Hong's sincere smile, Song Gang felt uneasy.

Lin Hong didn't know that Li Guang was like a robber, taking money and food stamps from Song Gang's pocket every day.She added money and food coupons to Song Gang's pocket day after day without a single day's interruption.Lin Hong was happy at first, thinking that Song Gang knew how to take care of his body and that he should go buy something to eat when he was hungry.Gradually, Lin Hong felt strange. In the past, Song Gang was reluctant to spend a penny, but now he spent all his money every day without leaving any change.Lin Hong thought that no matter what Song Gang bought, there would always be some change left.Lin Hong looked at Song Gang suspiciously, but Song Gang's eyes were evasive, and Lin Hong finally asked him:

"What do you eat every day?" Song Gang's mouth opened, but he didn't speak.Lin Hong asked again, Song Gang shook his head and said that he hadn't eaten anything.Lin Hong was stunned, Song Gang avoided Lin Hong's eyes, and uneasily told the whereabouts of the money and food stamps: "Give it to Baldy Li." Lin Hong stood silently in the middle of the room. Only then did she realize that Baldy Li was already a beggar. The bastard broke in again.Lin Hong counted with her fingers, and Baldy Li took away almost six yuan in a month, and she couldn't help but shed tears of sadness.Lin Hong repeated "six yuan" in her mouth, and she said that if she saved money, it would be enough for two people to live for a month.

Song Gang sat on the edge of the bed with his head down, not looking at Lin Hong.It was not until Lin Hong cried and asked Song Gang: Why did you do this? Song Gang raised his head, glanced at Lin Hong, and said softly: "He's my brother." "He's not your real brother," Lin Hong said. "Even your real brother, he should support himself." "He is my younger brother," Song Gang disagreed with Lin Hong's words, and continued, "He will support himself in the future, and my mother will take care of him before she dies..." "Don't mention your stepmother." Lin Hong shouted to interrupt Song Gang.

Lin Hong's words made Song Gang sad, and he also shouted: "She is my mother." Lin Hong looked at Song Gang in surprise. This was the first time Song Gang had yelled at her after marriage. Lin Hong silently shook her head.When Lin Hong said "stepmother", Song Gang suddenly cried out sadly. After Lin Hong was startled, she felt that she might have said something wrong, so she stopped talking, and the room fell into silence. Song Gang sat there with his head bowed. At this moment, the distant past came like snowflakes. The shared experience he and Baldy Li seemed to be a road in the snow, slowly extending to the present, and then suddenly disappearing.Song Gang was full of thoughts, but at a loss, he didn't know what to think, as if the white snow covered all the roads, and also covered all directions.Song Gang didn't return to his thoughts until he lowered his head and saw Lin Hong's two feet standing in the middle of the room.He saw that Lin Hong's shoes were old, and the trousers on top of the shoes were old, and he knew that the clothes on top of the trousers were also old.Thinking of Lin Hong's daily frugality, Song Gang felt uncomfortable. He felt that he shouldn't have given money to Baldy Li without telling Lin Hong. At this moment, he felt that he had indeed done something wrong.

After a long time, seeing Song Gang bowed his head and remained silent, Lin Hong got angry again, and she said: "say something." Song Gang raised his head, looked at Lin Hong sincerely and said, "I was wrong." Lin Hong's heart softened all of a sudden, and she couldn't help sighing when she looked into Song Gang's sincere eyes.Then Lin Hong began to comfort Song Gang. She said many things, saying that six yuan was nothing and regarded it as being stolen. Just stop hanging out with Baldy Li.While she was talking, she took out two cents and two taels of food stamps from her wallet, and put them into Song Gang's pocket.Song Gang was very moved when he saw it, and he said to Lin Hong:

"I don't need money anymore..." "You need it," Lin Hong looked at Song Gang and said, "You must spend it on yourself." After the two of them lay in bed that night, they continued their usual sweetness.Song Gang hugged Lin Hong lovingly, and Lin Hong enjoyed Song Gang's love for her like a stream of water, with a sweet smile on her face, and the smile was still on her face after she fell asleep. When Song Gang was off work the next day, when Song Gang rode his bicycle to the knitting factory to pick up Lin Hong, Baldy Li, who had already sat down at the gate of the county government, saw him and immediately jumped up to stop him.At that moment, Song Gang's heart skipped a beat. He pinched the brakes and stood on tiptoes to stabilize the bicycle. Hearing Baldy Li's sloppy footsteps approaching, Song Gang was suddenly afraid that he would ask for money again.This Baldy Li stretched out his hand, and said boldly:

"Song Gang, I haven't eaten or drank all day..." There was a "buzzing" in Song Gang's mind. He habitually put his hands into his pockets and grabbed the money and food coupons inside. Then he blushed, shook his head and said: "Not today..." Baldy Li was greatly disappointed, he stretched out his hand towards Song Gang and withdrew it, swallowed his saliva and said dejectedly, "I swallowed my saliva for a whole day, and I'll swallow it for another fucking night..." At this moment, Song Gang took out the money and food stamps in his pocket by some mysterious act, and handed them to Baldy Li who was full of disappointment.Baldy Li was startled at first, then he laughed, and cursed when he took the money:

"Damn it, you've learned to play tricks on people too!" Song Gang rode away with a wry smile.The moment Song Gang was most worried about that night came before dinner. Lin Hong reached into Song Gang's pocket and found that the money and food stamps were gone.This time Lin Hong was looking forward to touching them. When she was sure that there was no money or food stamps, she suddenly panicked. She looked at Song Gang with some fear, hoping that Song Gang would tell her that he spent it himself this time.When Lin Hong's hand reached into his pocket, Song Gang closed his eyes in pain. When he opened his eyes and saw Lin Hong's frightened eyes, Song Gang said in a trembling voice:

"I'm wrong." Knowing that Baldy Li had taken away the money and food stamps again, Lin Hong looked at Song Gang in despair, and shouted angrily: "Why are you doing this?" Song Gang was ashamed. He wanted to explain what happened, but when the words came to his lips, the same sentence remained: "I'm wrong." Lin Hong was so angry that she burst into tears. She bit her lip and said, "I just gave you the money yesterday, but you are going to give it to Baldy Li today. Can't you wait a few days before giving it to him? Can't you make me happy first?" God?"

Song Gang hated himself. He gritted his teeth and wanted to say something to hate him, but he still said these three words: "I'm wrong." "Stop talking!" Lin Hong yelled, "I'm tired of hearing it, you can only say these three words." Song Gang didn't dare to speak anymore, he stood with his head bowed in the corner of the room, like his father Song Fanping who was criticized during the Cultural Revolution.Lin Hong cried and talked, Song Gang stood there without any reaction, Lin Hong was angry and sad, she didn't want to pay attention to Song Gang, she lay down on the bed and covered herself with the quilt.After Song Gang stood silently for a while, he began to walk around the room. Lin Hong heard the sound of pots and bowls, and knew that Song Gang was cooking dinner.As the room gradually darkened, Song Gang finished dinner, brought the food to the table, and prepared the bowls and chopsticks.Lin Hong thought that Song Gang should come over and talk, but Song Gang sat down at the table, and then there was deathly silence again.Lin Hong bit her lip angrily. After a long time, the room became pitch black. Song Gang still sat there motionless, as if waiting for Lin Hong to wake up and get up to eat together. Lin Hong knew that Song Gang would always sit like this. If Lin Hong lay on the bed until dawn, Song Gang would sit in the chair until dawn.Song Gang sat there breathing very lightly, as if he was afraid of disturbing Lin Hong.Lin Hong began to feel sorry for Song Gang, and began to think of Song Gang's benefits, of Song Gang's love for her, of Song Gang's kindness and loyalty, of Song Gang's handsomeness... When she thought of being handsome and unrestrained, she couldn't help but pursed her lips into a smile, and she couldn't help but let out a soft cry: "Song Gang." Song Gang who was sitting in the chair stood up abruptly, but Lin Hong didn't speak after that, and Song Gang hesitated to sit down again.Lin Hong saw the reaction of Song Gang's figure in the darkness, she pursed her lips again and said softly: "Song Gang, come here." Song Gang walked to the bed, his tall figure bowed his head.Lin Hong continued to say softly, "Song Gang, sit down." Song Gang carefully sat down on the edge of the bed. Lin Hong took his hand and said, "Sit in." Song Gang sat in. Lin Hong pulled his hand to her chest and said, "Song Gang, you are too kind. I can't give you any more money in the future." Song Gang nodded in the dark. Lin Hong pressed his hand to her face and asked him, "Are you not angry?" Song Gang shook his head in the dark and said, "No." Lin Hong sat up, pulled Song Gang's other hand over, and said softly to Song Gang, "I don't want to say how bad Baldy Li is. He is a good man, and we can't afford him. You Think about it, how much does it cost for the two of us a month? We will have children in the future, and we have to raise our own children. We can’t bear the burden of Baldy Li. Baldy Li has no job, so he won’t be able to survive in the future, and he will cling to him You...Song Gang, I'm not worried about the present, I'm worried about the future, you think about our future children, you must sever ties with Baldy Li ..." Song Gang nodded in the dark, but Lin Hong didn't see clearly, she asked, "Song Gang, did you nod?" Song Gang nodded and said, "I nodded." Lin Hong paused and asked Song Gang, "Am I right?" Song Gang nodded and said, "Yes." After the stormy night, it was calm again, and Song Gang began to avoid Baldy Li in the following days.When Song Gang rode his bicycle to pick up Lin Hong from the knitting factory after get off work, he had to pass by the gate of the county government where Baldy Li was doing a sit-in.Song Gang avoided Baldy Li and took a long detour, making Lin Hong often stand at the gate of the knitting factory and wait and wait.In the past, Song Gang had been waiting there before Lin Hong stepped out of the factory gate. Now she stretched her neck and waited. All the female workers in the knitting factory had left, and Song Gang arrived in a hurry by bicycle.One day Lin Hong was finally upset, and sat in the back seat with a sullen face and said nothing, not saying a word to Song Gang on the way.Back home, Lin Hong began to blame Song Gang. She said that she was standing in front of the factory in fear, worried that something would happen to Song Gang on the road, and even wondered if Song Gang hit a utility pole and broke his head. Song Gang hesitated to explain. Why he was late, he said it was because he took a long way to avoid Baldy Li.After hearing this, Lin Hong immediately said loudly: "What are you afraid of?" Lin Hong said that the more people like Baldy Li are afraid of him, the more he will bully them.Lin Hong told Song Gang that she would still walk through the gate of the county government in the future. She said: "Don't go to see him, just pretend that there is no such person." Song Gang asked her, "What if he calls me?" "If you didn't hear it," Lin Hong said, "just assume that there is no such person."