Chapter 3 Chapter 3 Listen to Balu?Or listen to the devil?
The devils are coming, followed by soldiers from the Huangxie Restoration Society, the devils wear steel helmets, and the members of the Restoration Society have white cloths on their heads. Xie Laoshuan's woman said that one of them is a wolf and the other is a embarrassment. .
Tweety'er thought the same way at first, and saw the devil killing people, but when a devil greeted her with a smile, she became suspicious.This laughing devil is not ugly at all. When he killed Fool Guo that night, he looked like an evil ghost in an old story. But when he saw him in broad daylight and said hello with that smiling face, Tweety was not so afraid of him anymore. , although it's a bit... hateful, but I'm really not that afraid of him anymore.She naturally thought that as long as you don't mess around in front of the devil like Guo fool, the devil will not raise such a big gun at you.They are just like those wild dogs at the entrance of the village, don't use sticks to provoke them, they won't bite you.Tweety made sure of one thing that day, and Lao Dan planted another one in her stomach.After she was sure about this matter, she suddenly felt that the responsibility was heavy. What kind of devil's traitor, it is serious to live and give birth to this.
The devil came to a place tens of feet away from the entrance of the village, looked around on a high slope, looked around for a while, and turned to Banzi Village.This time there were a lot of people, a dozen devils stood scatteredly under the big locust tree with no feet in the mud, and two traitors ran over to call the villagers on the hillside.The one who went down was naturally Mr. Yuan Bai, and the turtle monster moved a bench to follow.Mr. Yuan Bai sat down after saying a few words, and the bench sank into the mud.The devil didn't mind, they all stood up and talked to him.Tweety and the villagers tiptoed on the slope to watch.They saw a devil bowing to Mr. Yuan Bai, and the traitor Liu bowing to the devil. Mr. Yuan Bai still sat, but slightly arched his hands, as if laughing a few times.The devil turned away and Mr. Yuan Bai walked back with his head down.It was really hard for the turtle monster to hug a bench, the mud only missed half of Mr. Yuan Bai's calf, but almost reached the turtle monster's waist.Seeing Guo Tietou pretending to be in a daze in his mother's arms with his eyes squinted, Cui'er went down to take the turtle monster's bench.The Shanxi woman was even more discerning, and she took a step forward to help Mr. Yuan Bai, her mouth was as sweet as honey.
The traitor Liu translated for the devils and said that the devils want to build a post at the entrance of the village. If we can help them build it and cook for them, the devils will help us clean up the village and fields.The traitor Liu made it more clear: You have to help if you help, and you have to help if you don’t help. The devil is being polite, you have to be sensible.
"Is this true?" Xie Laoshuan's woman couldn't hold back anymore.Mr. Yuan Bai didn't say a word, he rarely answered other people's nonsense.
"Does that devil still kill people?" A woman also asked.
"As long as you don't fight against them, you should not kill them. I can't say for sure what will happen in the future, but what to do now is related to everyone's livelihood. I can't be the master of everyone. Folks may wish to express their opinions." Mr. Yuan Bai added sat down.
"Will you give me money?" Xie Xiaolan asked in a low voice.
"What are you thinking about? Your head was pinched by your milk?" The Shanxi woman said disdainfully, "If this is the case, let's help. The village has no men, so where can we get the strength to clean up the village and fields? As long as the devils don't kill people, As long as we don't resist, then we can communicate in a friendly manner. Why is life not life? It's better than the village and the land, right? Isn't it?" The Shanxi woman looked at Mr. Yuan Bai, and Mr. Yuan Bai only looked at herself Muddy legs and feet.The Shanxi woman looked back at everyone again, and seeing that there were more people nodding than those who were silent, she raised her voice: "As long as the devils keep their word and stutter, I think that's how we live. We'll talk about the future and don't listen to them." , I think everyone will starve to death soon."
"That's being a traitor..." Tweety muttered.
"What is a traitor?" Someone asked immediately.
"It's working for the devil." Someone answered immediately.
"If we don't do it, won't we starve to death? If we work, we can live, and the fields will be saved. We haven't cheated or harmed anyone. What are we doing? The government took our men away, leaving only A few white slips, and the white slips were not redeemed, and they all ran away after slapping their buttocks, who is the traitor?" The Shanxi woman's tongue seemed to have been rubbed with chili oil, and she spoke quickly and ruthlessly.
"Shanxizi is right..." the women chirped.Tweety only looked at Mr. Yuan Bai.Mr. Yuan Bai bowed his head and said nothing, the mud on his legs dried into powder in the blink of an eye, and fell off in pieces.
The water receded quickly, and the mud dried faster than Mr. Yuan Bai said.In the severe drought, the folks in Banzi Village watched the boundless yellow mud gradually crack and crackle in the sun, forming a magnificent chessboard.The Yellow River has entered a distant ancient road, and the Daizi River flows stubbornly in the mud crevices.The devil's cart brought tools and animals, mounted strange machines, dug the old well at the entrance of the village, and dug out dozens of baskets of black and yellow soil.Cool water gushed out from the old well again, without the strange look of being poisoned.Mr. Yuan Bai glanced at it and said, "The water is drinkable."
A few ghosts worked for a long time, and when they saw the water was produced, they seemed happier than the villagers. One of them took the hammer and nails dexterously, and typed a few words on it.Everyone stretched their heads to look, there were three characters in total, but it was "Yi Kamei". Mr. Yuan Bai twirled his beard for a long time, and didn't understand what it meant.The traitor Liu naturally recognized it, saying that it was the name of their captain, and the captain was Kazuki Tanaka.Mr. Yuan Bai twirled his beard again, asking whether the tortoise said "gui" or "qiu"?
Don't worry about what to read, the devil has engraved it on it, and no one dares to touch it.The traitor Liu said that if anyone of you moves these three words, be careful that your head falls to the ground.The villagers didn't care, since they didn't have a name before anyway, they didn't care what the well was called, as long as it could produce water, it was a good well, and it was still an old well in Banzi Village.As long as the devil doesn't take this well as his own, and you have to pay for drinking water, let him call it whatever you want.The devil's cart brought large sheets of oilcloth, and distributed them to the villagers one by one.Everyone scrambled to pick it up, excitedly rolled up under their armpits, whether they were sleeping on the mountain or in their own broken houses, they could sleep with this thing.
Mr. Yuan Bai circled the well three times and silently followed the traitor Liu.Cui'er hugged Yougen and the oilcloth, took the donkey back home, cleaned up the mill, put Yougen on it and fell asleep, took off her outer jacket, rolled up her sleeves, and gave a soft cry as if puffed up, Started packing up the sleeping house.The house was in a mess, but it was nothing more than dirt.Cui'er tossed and tossed for quite a while, and the kang was finally cleaned up. Although it was still damp, under the sun, I believe it would be dry tomorrow.She first moved the soil full of the house into the yard in baskets, piled up like a hill, and then swept it carefully with a broom. After laying a brand new oilcloth on the kang, she felt relieved.The clothes I can find have been washed in the river and are being dried on the sweet-scented osmanthus tree. Tonight I can sleep peacefully on my kang, or count the stars in the sky in the courtyard, looking forward to another tomorrow.
The devil said that the tarpaulin was just enough to make do with it, and there were many flooded places, so they couldn't raise so many things at the moment, and the war was still at a stalemate, and everything was still unclear. , Repair houses, rebuild homes for everyone.I don't dare to believe this, and I can't count on it. Even if I count on it, there are conditions attached.But this is hope after all, Tweety saw it on everyone's faces.It's not the same as expecting the men to come back, but it's one.Mr. Yuan Bai always pulled his face, as if he had eaten two catties of loess.He must have been unhappy, but he didn't object.What did he go to talk to the devil about?What is he thinking?There is also that traitor Liu, who looks fair and clean, with kind eyebrows and kind eyes, but he is a little bit shrunken, and when he sees the devils, he lowers his half. Will he have any news about Lao Dan and the others?
The courtyard wall on the right was half collapsed, and the neighbor’s house on the left collapsed. The old couple seemed to be made of paper, and they still disappeared in the muddy water up to their knees. An exhausted old dog was half buried in the sand. , Eye sockets are full of sand.Tweety rested for a while, fed You Gen the meal that he made in the morning, and then carried the soil from the yard out of the door.It was a huge project, and she was dizzy from exhaustion. She felt hungry, but driven by some unknown force, she had to finish it before setting off.
The villagers are busy with their own work, and rows of dirt hills are piled up on the village road.I don't know who's cooking smoke rose, filling the ruined village, Tweet was infected by the smell, and stood on the half-collapsed earth wall and watched.Many folks are watching from their respective walls.The smoke came from Mr. Yuan Bai.The stove and kang head of his house are higher than the pan, and even higher than the window sills of many people's homes. You have to climb a ladder to cook, cook, and sleep. I don't know why the old man repaired such a strange thing.The cooking smoke smelled strange, neither straw nor wood, but pungent and burnt, like the hair in someone's crotch was burning.Tweety'er immediately understood that the old man must have burned the oilcloth given by the devil, this stubborn old man was as hard as a rock despite his silence.
The folks went back to their respective homes and went to sleep in the courtyard.There are three Guo family mothers and daughters who live in the left neighbor. The daughter is ten years older than Tweety. She is a poor man married from Majiaying. The two girls are both in their teens. car.Tweety exchanged pleasantries with them across the wall, feeling that she did not have the responsibility and ability to defend her neighbors' homes.Cui'er also saw Guo Tietou running past the door with the agricultural tools picked up from other people's houses on his back, and thought that men are such things, whether they are crazy or stupid, they are the top things to do at this time.
It was dark at night, and the people in Banzi Village were sleepy with dogs and dogs. The crows, sparrows and owls disappeared as if they were drowned.Cui'er curled up on the kang with Yougen in her arms, and a small fire was lit in the room.This is an undefended Banzi village, with doors and windows open and blankets covered. She wonders why she is not afraid.The cries did not appear on the hillside, but only after returning to the village.The old woman next door whimpered non-stop, crying like crying, crying like crying, talking to herself helplessly with tears, driving away the terrible tranquility in this night.Her two girls didn't say a word, and they didn't comfort the endless mother.
Gunshots came from outside the village, which seemed to be the direction from which the devils came.But the sound hit the hillside a few times, and Tweety couldn't tell where it came from.Obviously there was only one sound, but it felt like it didn't stop for a long time, from the ears to the heels.The gunshots silenced all sounds, the cries from next door stopped, and the sighs in the dark disappeared. Everyone remembered that night on the hillside, and a vague figure fell in their minds.Cui'er was so frightened that she covered You Gen's ears, and after a pause for a long while without a second sound, she slowly straightened up, stood on the kang and looked out.From the direction the devil came from, torches staggered, flashlights were waved, human voices suddenly started, and then there was the sound of horseshoes.There was another shot, and Tweety saw bullets cut through the night sky and hit a dark tree to the east.Everyone in the village babbled, and when Tweety saw countless low figures on the wall, she also fell down, as if she had been hit.A few more bullets flew by, and the devil's shout reached the entrance of the village.There were also different gunshots confronting them. This situation made Cui'er both comforted and frightened. Presumably the devils were not chasing people from the village, but would the people being chased run to the village and cause harm?
Three or four people entered the village, running fast with one foot deep and one foot shallow, firing guns as they ran.The men and horses behind also arrived in an instant, bringing more gunshots and shouts.The torches were inserted into high places one by one, and a skinny devil jumped onto half of her earthen wall, the torches in his hands crackling.You Gen let out a sudden cry, and the devil twisted his body and picked up the gun. His tense face seemed to be broken, but he relaxed after holding the screen for a while.He also said something to Tweety before putting away his gun, straightened up and waved to the distance.Just as he was about to go down, a shot was fired from somewhere in the dark, and it pierced through his head. The blood that burst out sprayed on the torch, and the torch seemed to be poured with oil, and it jumped up.The devil fell heavily off the wall and landed on the soft soil nest.Tweety smelled the smell of loess and blood.The torch went out, but the cries of more devils drew nearer.
Yougen wailed desperately, causing Tweety to be frightened.Three or four devils yelled and jumped into the yard, yelling and fiddled around. The donkey neighed in fear, and was shot by the devil. The donkey knelt down whimpering, and the yard smelled like urine.The open window suddenly went dark, and a figure with a gun jumped onto him. The muzzle of his gun was steaming, and his body smelled sour.Tweety was so frightened that she hugged Yougen and shrank in the corner, shouting words that she couldn't understand.
"Where? Where?" the devil yelled.Tweety remembered that she pointed randomly, and the ghosts at the window suddenly disappeared, revealing the starlight of the day, and they huffed out of the yard.A few more shots were fired, and everything went back to darkness.Tweety hugged Yougen, the child was already tired from crying, but she started crying so loudly that she couldn't hear anything outside.The villagers must have heard her cries, but they were quieter than the darkness.Yougen's little hand reached up, touched her face full of tears, and babbled.Cui'er knew that the child was sensible, so she wiped away her tears and kissed him on the face again and again.She didn't know if the devil had taken the corpse away, she didn't dare to look at it, and she didn't dare to think about it, she didn't know what kind of person would fight the devil in such a night, she just wanted to hold the child through the night .The water has receded enough to go on the road, so she has to go to her mother's house, where there may be no flood, and there is the last home there.
"They are ghosts." Yougen said in his mother's arms.
"Don't be afraid, ghosts won't eat us." Cui'er hugged him and touched his warm forehead.
After persisting for a month, the earth became flat.She finally decided to go.The donkey became as thin as a sheep, and one eye was bloody from a mosquito bite. It licked the back of her hand, as if it knew it wanted to go on a long journey together.Tweety carried Yougen on her back and led the donkey out.She went out in fear, letting the timid donkey avoid the dead dog on the ground, and hurried to the entrance of the village.It was still dark, and the torches at the entrance of the village were brightly lit, and two rows of strange iron nets were set up on wooden forks, and behind them stood soldiers with guns, which were different from devils.
"What are you doing? Go back!" a soldier yelled.Tweety was taken aback for a moment, but she didn't turn her head. Since she is Chinese, she should ask her a question.
"What is this? I want to go back to my mother's house." Tweety said.
"Go back to my mother's house, someone killed the prince. No one in this village is allowed to leave until I figure it out." The soldier put away his gun, as if he felt that the words were a bit serious, and said, "This is what the prince said. , we carry out the order."
"It's been a month, and you don't distribute food anymore, so when can you leave?" Tweety still didn't give up.
"As soon as you see that the barbed wire is gone, it's fine. The food is coming soon." The soldier said with a sense of concern, and the other soldiers also looked kindly. They were wearing the same clothes as the soldiers who took Lao Dan away. Tweety Just get excited.
"Are you from the national army? My men were taken away, wearing the same clothes as yours. Do you know where they are?" Tweety's eyes became sore after she finished speaking, and she burst into tears.
"We used to be, but not now." Da Bing said with a slight sigh, showing two golden teeth in his mouth, "Go back, live well, and wait for him to come back."
"Then can I come back?" Tweety cried and sat on the ground, holding You Gen in her arms.
"As long as you live, you can come back... We are doing this, isn't it just to live, to go back?" The Golden Tooth Soldier fell silent after finishing speaking, and stood at attention beside him with his gun poked.Tweety'er saw two ghosts walking slowly, with a tall man leading the way.Dawn came, and it was getting brighter. Tweety could see their faces clearly. The one behind her had a pear-like birthmark on her left face, and she was smiling at herself the day before yesterday.The Yali devil looked at her, and said a few words to the tall devil, who then said a few words to the gun-bearing puppet soldiers, telling them to move away from the barbed wire.The tall devil came slowly.Tweety saw the blood stains on his suede shoes, and guessed that he also entered her yard yesterday.
The tall devil walked up to him, fished in his trouser pocket, and took out a few colorful candies.He lowered his body, took You Gen's little hand, and gave it to him with a smile.
"Sugar, sugar." You Gen opened his hand and shouted happily.
"Don't...cry, I will...well...get up..." The devil said to Yougen while gesticulating. He looked serious, as if he was persuading his family.
"This is captain Kazuki Tanaka from our gun tower..." Jin Yabing said.He was immediately scolded by Tanaka.
"Go..." Kazuki Tanaka pointed to the distance.
Tweety nodded aggrievedly, stood up quickly, smiled and nodded to him, then nodded to Yali Devil.Root hastily peeled off the candy and ate it, his eyes sparkling with excitement.After walking for a while, Tweet turned her head and saw Yigui Tanaka walking up and down the village entrance alone, looking at the big locust tree filled with mist.Banzi Village brightened up behind him. Although it was desolate and dilapidated, smoke rose again.
Walking softly all the way, every foot seems hard, but the mud is still wet deep inside.The donkey sank after walking for a while, and Tweety carried the child on her back and led the donkey to walk under the mountain.There were refugees in rags and ragged clothes on the road, and there were many dead bodies on the roadside.This road is full of dead bodies, and a large group of crows are circling, vying for the delicious food in the wilderness.Tweety'er saw dozens of dense white bones, the bones were as bright as a knife pick, and where the crow passed, there was no meat left.There are also large graves on the road, but there are not many people crying about the graves, and there are no tomb cards and burning paper stones in front of the graves.Tweety gritted her teeth and walked forward without saying a word. She wondered why she couldn't hear the cry.The road back to her mother's house was rushed without traces, but she remembered those trees, the appearance of those hills, and the direction of the sun and wind.There are many sticks of smoke rising in the wilderness, black, yellow and white. These smokes make Tweety feel better. Although they are pungent, they smell much better than corpses.On the road, I also saw a convoy of devils. They struggled forward in the mud, shouting and pushing carts from time to time. The legs of the devils were all muddy, and the sun flag was stained with mud. Some of them were looking around with guns, and their bayonets were still shiny.Tweety knew what they were afraid of, and also knew that they had no time to pay attention to the fleeing people, and they still had to go forward to chase after her old lady.
Tweety walked for a day on the journey that was supposed to take two hours, and when she couldn't walk anymore, her mother's family Shangbangzi Village was just around the corner.This is a low-lying place, the flood is merciless, more than half of the village has been turned into ruins, and fireworks are ignited behind the village.Tweety slumped on the ground limply, the fireworks showed that there were many dead people.Her family's house was originally higher than the village, but there is no trace of it now.And Tweety could no longer shed tears, she wanted to grit her teeth and move forward to meet any terrible days.
Shangbangzi Village was not as badly damaged as Banzi Village, and only two rows of houses on the east side were destroyed, but the whole village was empty, and scattered farm tools could be seen everywhere. The village road was stained with blood, and there were dead wild dogs and donkeys.A burning chariot was a charred charcoal, and the horse crouched in a blackened mass.Tweety led the donkey forward tremblingly, not knowing what happened here.There was Gen sitting on the back of the donkey and looking around, and a rooster was standing on the roof staring at them. Seeing that it was vicious, Tweet coaxed it, but the rooster was unmoved, like an eagle.This is a lively village, more than half of them are landowners, and there are seven or eight big households. Cars come and go on weekdays. Hawkers and matchmakers like to drill in. There is a wealth here that Banzi Village does not have.
Some houses had their doors open, many doors and windows were smashed, tiles in the yard were worn out, and boxes and cabinets were thrown to the ground. Some houses were burned with skeletons and ashes, and the thick earthen walls were burned black.Tweety came to the front of her house with trembling legs, and was terrified to see the shattered gate, which seemed to be... blown up by something, and the apple tree in the yard was burnt to nothing.The door of the main room was open, and everything that could be burned was burning, and billowing black smoke billowed from the frameless windows.
"Mother, what's the matter?" Yougen hugged her leg.
Tweety collapsed on the ground again, she didn't have the courage to step into the door, she didn't dare to guess the fate of her parents.She wanted to cry, but what was the use?The village was empty, except for the desolate mud, the ruins of destruction.Tweety'er touched the wet soil, which was greasy, and raised her hand to see that it was blood-colored. Only then did she realize that she was sitting on a pool of colorless bloodstains.She jumped up in fright and slapped with tears.The donkey was frightened by her and snorted around her.There are roots but don't feel anything, just babbling and pointing to the distance.Tweety looked and saw thick smoke curling low on the threshing ground outside the village. The smoke was black and reddish, unlike wheat stalks and corn stalks that were bluish white.Surrounded by crows, the smoke wafts a strange smell.She lowered her head again, and found a long line of blood hidden in the soil stretching over there. There were bloodstains like this at the door of every house. A smoking threshing floor.Tweety looked at the courtyard she was familiar with again, and for the first time felt that it was completely unrecognizable.The fire in the house was burning hot, and the flames swept across the blue tiles, making a crackling sound.She knew that her natal family was gone, and so was her hope.You Gen pulled her to go there, Tweet hesitated for a moment, then led the donkey.
The fire was burning secretly in the pile, which was a pile of charred people piled up like a hill.Those outstretched arms, the gaping mouth, the expression frozen in pain, and that horrible smell.A half-year-old child was lifted out of the fire with two scorched hands, and roasted in mid-air into a strip of crystal yellow bacon.A woman whose upper body was still intact turned to ashes below her chest and abdomen. When Tweety looked at her, the ashes collapsed, and a string of black and red fell from her chest cavity.Tweety was so frightened that she hurried away and walked half a circle around the crowd.She couldn't find the figures of her parents, but she recognized some familiar neighbors. She no longer had the courage to look for them, so she knelt down on the donkey's legs.As soon as she lowered her head, the contents of her stomach poured out, and she didn't realize the danger of the situation until she vomited everything.This must be the work of the devils, right?Why are they doing this?Why is it different from the ghosts in Banzi Village?But the devils were nowhere to be seen, and there was no trace of their presence, and there were no strongholds like Banzi Village around. What was going on?
Cui'er didn't know if her parents were in that pile of charcoal. She didn't even dare to look at the pile of things, but she didn't dare to leave. Where else could she go?Go back to Banzi Village?Continue to sleep next to the devil?Or go forward along the main road, the county is over there.But what about the county seat?The orphan and widow have gone, isn't there only a way to beg for food?If this is the case, what can I do if I have roots?
Beyond the threshing floor is the boundless wilderness, the sky is misty.Behind them are dead villages that will soon be reduced to rubble.Gen squatted next to the donkey and soaked the shit, the smell made Tweety cry.She wiped him with dirt, and felt at ease when she hugged him in her arms. A voice called her: For this child, go back.
A series of horseshoes sounded from a distance, the hooves hit the iron palm, and there was a strange smell in the air.Cui'er hurriedly picked up You Gen, and saw four big horses turning off the road and heading straight for here. They were four tall horses with four devils on them.Cui'er was shocked, picked up You Gen'er and ran away.The donkey was stunned for a moment, then followed Xiao Dian'er in pursuit.The hoofbeats of the devils approached, they yelled, and one of them was laughing.The two horses took a few strides and immediately blocked Tweety'er's way. The dirt they stepped on made Tweety'er's eyes blinded.Tweety turned her head and ran again, bumping into a leg wearing a riding boot after only a few steps.There was a sharp pain in the head, like being hit by something.Looking up again, she saw that four horses had formed a well, tightly surrounding her. The one in front of her was holding a sheathed saber, and she was squeezing a disgusting face.These devils were big as pony horses, with guns on their backs and scary knives.A devil took the reins of the donkey and tied it to a ring on the horse's buttocks.The devil in the front pulled the rein and spoke arrogantly to Tweety.Of course Tweety didn't understand, so she could only hold the child and shake her head.The devil next to him laughed and chattered with the others, so all three devils giggled, but the one in front of him had a stern face, as if he had just crawled out of a coffin.He said a few words to the others, and they stopped laughing. The devil in front of him pulled the horse's head and walked past Tweety.The two devils drew out their knives reluctantly, and slowly approached Tweety.The devil pulling the donkey looked at the pile of smoking corpses motionlessly.
Cui'er suddenly understood that the devil was going to kill someone.It doesn't matter why, the eyes of the two approaching devils were already murderous, and the slender knife was slowly raised.But she couldn't move her legs anymore, she could only curl up on the ground and hug the ignorant You Gen, pressing him under her body.
"Sugar, sugar." You Gen stretched out his hand to the devil.
"It's over, it's over..." Cui'er hugged Yougen, despair slipped through her heart, but she suddenly felt relieved.Parents are dead, Lao Dan is probably gone, so let them go.Seeing that Yougen's eyes were wide open, she stretched out her hands to cover them.Tweety felt her heart stopped beating and her breathing stopped. Looking at the one-foot-square loess around her, she smelled the strong stench of death.
There was another gunshot, crackling like firecrackers, Tweety heard the swishing sound from far to near, the two devils in front of him were bleeding, and even their horses were full of holes from the bullets.The three devils around Tweet all fell off their horses, the one with a straight face was anxious, but he didn't run away, he drew out his saber and rushed towards the direction of the bullet.A dozen or so people stood up on the hillside not far away, and they couldn't tell what kind of army it was. They pointed big guns at the last devil.The devil galloped up the hillside, shouting like killing a pig.One of the gang had a pistol, raised his hand and shot, the devil fell headlong, rolled twice on the hillside and stopped moving.Those people stood on the top of the slope and looked around, and it took a while to walk towards Tweety.Cui'er was still terrified. Anyone who dared to kill devils and didn't dress like a national army must be a bandit.
"What are you doing? Are you from this village?" The man with the pistol was wearing a melon skin hat, and his hands were behind his back on the horse, as if he was tied up.
"This is my natal family." Cui'er hurriedly said, "I'm from Banzi Village. The man was arrested and beaten by the devils. The village was washed away by the flood. When I came back here, it's like this..." Cui'er hurried Speaking of the situation, they saved her, which is naturally a savior.Tweety said so much that she choked up.She knew that crying to the saviors was a kind of gratitude, although they were not moved.
The man in the melon cap looked around, licked his lips and said, "The devil has killed the whole village. Wherever you came from, you should go back."
"Why did the devils kill people? Why did they kill them all? The devils in Banzi Village are not like this..." Tweety cried, but she still couldn't stand up.A strong man supported her arm, and Tweety stopped lightly.
"Are you a devil... how can you be sure? They killed hundreds of thousands of people in Nanjing City, and the Yangtze River is blocked by dead people..." Guapi Maohu stared at her with brown eyes, "We are a little late, The devils started attacking you and the child, they must have thought they missed two of them."
"Maybe I'll spoil it before I kill it..." An ugly face stretched out beside her, with a mole the size of a rabbit droppings on it.
"Well, maybe, the devil likes this." The man pushed the face away.
"It's not black, it's like white flour." The person behind the melon cap said.
"Kill her, or we will be easily exposed." Another person said.He galloped his horse and squeezed to the side of the melon cap.This face was even more frightening. A scar slanted from the forehead to the lower lip, slashing a face that wasn't ugly at all.
Gua Pi Mao took a look at Scar, and grabbed the rein of the horse as if hesitating.But Scar pulled out the knife in a jerk, and rushed towards Tweety like a devil.The knife didn't look sharp, with rust on it and broken teeth, but it still frightened Tweety and made her hug Yougen tightly again.It's over this time, but she can't figure it out, why the devil wants to kill her, and the savior also wants to kill her?
"Forget it, her family is ruined, her mother's family is gone, and there is still one in her belly, she won't tell." Guapi Mao took out a cigarette pot and smoked.
"That's unstoppable. The whole family of the stinky old five in Liu Siying was killed by devils, and he even turned into a traitor." Scarface raised the knife by himself.
"Sugar, sugar." Yougen stretched out his hand again.
Hearing their frightening words, Tweety grabbed Yougen and burst into tears, and sat down with a puff when her legs failed.She didn't know how many times she sat down, but she couldn't help it.
"Don't cry! Watch out for the devil!" Scarface pointed the knife at her head fiercely.Tweety couldn't stand this, she cried even harder.
"Come with us? We killed the devils, they won't give up." Guapi Mao finally decided, "You can't live alone."
"What are you taking her for? Feeding our food." Scarface raised the knife and said in surprise.
"I can't afford a few...take it away." Guapi Mao smoked the pipe a few times, then pointed to the two horses on the ground and said, "Unload some meat and go."
"Are you the national army or... bandits?" Tweety said, wiping away her tears.She didn't know where the strength came from, and she stood up all of a sudden.What a hell of a day.
"It's not... let's go, ride the donkey, and stop talking." The melon hat smiled at her for the first time, and turned the horse's head away.The devil's things were picked up by them. They were all naked, bleeding was still bleeding from the gun holes, and the loincloth was stained with blood.
"Throw it into that pile and let them burn it too. The devil's meat is tight and it burns vigorously..." Scarface said.
The four naked devils were thrown into the burning corpse, and they sank into it like mice into a wheat stack.The flame jumped up suddenly, and the blue light burst out, bursting with crackling sparks.Seeing this, Cui'er wanted to cry again, but was urged to get on the donkey, and the rein of the donkey was held in the hands of the person in front.As soon as the donkey walked against the wind, she couldn't cry.These people carried guns, rode horses, and those with big knives all looked fierce.But they all dressed like beggars, with scar faces and two different shoes.They took the devil's two horses, cut off eight meaty horse legs, cut off some large pieces of meat, and tied them to the horses in lumps.After everything was tidied up, the melon cap reminded them to wipe the blood off the horse's legs, covered the blood on the ground with soil, and headed west.
A lower pocket tells Tweet that they are anti-Japanese guerrillas, which belong to the Nationalist Government, but they are different from the troops that Lao Dan went to join.The relationship between the Communist Party and the Kuomintang is not clear in a sentence or two. Anyway, before the devils came, they beat and killed them, and after the devils came, they hugged and cleaned up the devils.The person wearing the melon cap is called Li Ergou, and he is the captain of the guerrillas.
"I know Banzi Village. There is a river at the entrance of the village, and there is a famous gentleman." Xiadouchi said.
"Our village was washed away by the flood." Tweety said, "That gentleman is Mr. Yuan Bai, he is a man of God. He said that our place was not washed too badly."
"Everywhere is better than you, Yaojiadian Township, Cornfanger Township, Liusihe Township, dozens of villages have been wiped out, and there is no living person." Xiadouchi said, "I know this. I don’t know, maybe there are dozens of townships and counties, hundreds of villages, this person, the Dead Sea has gone.”
"Why did you open it up? Mr. Yuan Bai must have opened it up by ourselves." Tweety asked again.
"Well, the old man has bright eyes. It was picked up by the Kuomintang. He thought he could stop the devils. He doesn't care about the lives of the common people..." He rubbed his sweaty forehead.He had a square nose like a lock, thick lips like tiles, and a thick neck with bulging muscles and strange scars.
"Do you know where my men are?" Tweety lingered on this question for a long time. They are all beating devils, so they should know something, right?
"Sister, their troops have all retreated to the southwest. The days you mentioned should have been in the Xiaoma River area, where they fought for several days and nights..." Xiadouchi stopped the words, "This battle is not a one-day battle. What happened in two days, maybe how many years, sister, you have to make up your mind and raise this child well."
"Why is my life so hard..." Cui'er wanted to cry again.
"Sister, think about it, your fate has been counted..." Xia Douchi sighed, "Maybe one day, your man will come back..." After saying that, he stopped his horse and ran Run to the front of the line.
"Is this not bad?" Tweety muttered to herself.With Gen sleeping soundly in her arms, she felt that what the lower pocket teeth said made sense.
More than a dozen horses speeded up, and Tweety also made the donkey go faster.On the hillside in the distance, there is a small person waving a red cloth in his hand.Shining sunlight emerged from the gloom, shining on the bare hillside.The red cloth is extremely dazzling, jumping like flames, this scene seems familiar, the old Dan once finished his work, waving his red belt and jumping on the field ridge, Tweety was moved by this kind red, and a new feeling rose in his heart hoped.
"I'm home, let's eat meat..." Everyone shouted excitedly.Li Ergou reined in his horse, waved to Tweet who was behind, and they galloped towards the hillside.
"Mother, is there any candy there?" Yougen looked at Tweet cheerfully, Tweet's eyes soured, and he patted the donkey's buttocks, and the donkey happily ran away.
This place is called Lijiayao, and it is a small village sandwiched between several small hills.The village is also a village with few people, most of them came from the guerrillas and the surrounding villages.According to Xiadouchi, all the men in this village were arrested to beat devils, many old people and children died of starvation, leaving a bunch of miserable women who should not be called to heaven.The guerrillas came and rescued them.他们带来粮食和牲口，也带来精壮的希望，白天男人们出去找食找事找鬼子，女人们就在村里料理吃喝，据他说这李家窑游击队带回个女人还是头一次。
“为啥开始要杀了俺？”翠儿禁不住问。
“乡亲们不可靠，鬼子给块干粮就能卖了我们，出过事儿。”下兜齿认真地说，“你运气好，留在那儿死定了。”
“俺要喝水。”有根对他娘说。
“过一会儿就有水了。”下兜齿拍了他一下，“娃几岁了？”
“三岁多了。”翠儿说。
“肚子里还有一个？”
“两个多月了。”
“唉，我的孩子要是不死，也和你大小子这么高了……”下兜齿又摸了摸有根的脸，宽大的下巴晃了晃。
说是游击队，也就三十多号人，二十多匹马，十几支长枪短枪，烂得和生锈的锄头似的。据说还有一门宝贝般的小炮，却没炮弹，唯一的一炮打鬼子车队时瞄高了，炸死山坡上一只野羊。翠儿惊讶这游击队的寒酸，他们逮啥穿啥，大热天有人穿个棉袄，也有人把鬼子的军服反过来穿，还有的干脆就是一条灰床单儿，中间挖个洞套在头上，麻绳腰上一勒就上了马。要是不拿枪，这帮叫花子还不抵板子村的后生气派。翠儿原以为这定是个宏伟的山寨，山门威武，卫兵林立，里面有吃喝不完的鸡鸭鱼肉。可进去了才知道这地方的破败。村子没有像样的地方，村口的狗瘦得站不住。迎接他们的人面露菜色，仿佛一个屁便能崩倒。一张烂桌子上放着十多个破碗，里面只有凉水招待，还不够喝，因为没那么大的桶，只能倒干净再抱到井边打一次水。给李二狗的是一杯热茶，这就是至高的礼遇了。他坐在凳子上吹着浮叶，擦着汗水，一边喝一边看着翠儿。摘下帽子的脑袋丑陋不堪，几绺毛像横爬的南瓜藤盘旋着绕去脑后。翠儿被他盯得发毛，却不由笑了一下。
迎接的人欢呼着，马腿和马肉让他们流下口水。他们挠着头摸着脸，和队员们寒暄着，隔蹭着，体贴地问长问短，但眼睛都和脚下那些狗一样盯着马腿和马肉。刀疤脸儿背着两条马腿，咋咋呼呼地赶着他们，说这是拎着脑袋弄回来的，要听李队长安排怎么吃。
翠儿抱着有根下了驴，对几个瞪着她的人挤着笑。一个没牙的老头问了问有根的岁数，就闭嘴再不理她了。下兜齿说你也别理他们，李队长会有安排。
李二狗喝了茶就往里走，走了几步回头喂喂地唤她。翠儿忙抱着孩子跟过去。
“孩子饿了吧？”李二狗说。
来到一个塌去半拉的房子里，里面有一张烂桌子、几张高低不一的板凳，李二狗把枪挂去墙上，摘了瓜皮帽，又露出略微秃顶的头。他摸了摸头，看了眼纸糊的窗外，坐下从身上掏着，先是烟，然后是火柴，然后……真是一些糖果，翠儿被这糖果弄笑了，可见他最后掏出一支小手枪，拉来拉去地看着，便又绷起了脸。
“孩子放炕上，先坐下吧。”他头也不抬地说。
翠儿照做了。他放下枪，走到窗前喊着：“刘嫂，刘嫂！”
片刻，进来个糙汉般的女人，眼睛黄得像要流油，她战战兢兢地看着李二狗。
“把这孩子拿去喂一下，稀粥什么的，上次带回来的羊奶还有吗？”
“还有点儿，上午也煮了些豆馅儿，这时候能吃了。”女人的声音还不如长相，像咬着块土坷垃一样。
“哦？那也弄来点给我们吃，你带孩子去吧，再弄两大盆水。”李二狗淡淡说道，“让伙房做一条马腿，乡亲们牙都馋掉了，今晚给大家开开腥。”
刘嫂乐呵呵地应了，低头去抱孩子。翠儿忙站起来说：“我去喂吧，我去喂吧，他要喝水。”
“没事，你给她，她会上心的。”李二狗敲着桌面，半截烟熏了眼，边揉边看着她。这话像是安慰，一掂量更像命令。翠儿松开了手，刘嫂伸出粗壮的胳膊，熟练地抱起似睡非睡的有根，说：“放心，肯定给你喂饱了，你瞧这小脏脸，真耐看呢。”
刘嫂抱走了傻乎乎的有根，翠儿忐忑不安，站在门口看着她出了门，像魂也被抱走了。这事儿似乎哪里不对，却没法说出口，肚子咕咕乱叫，困意浮上额头，没了孩子的负荷，仿佛一下子便垮了。她意识到这是真正的可怜，是没有任何条件可讲的寄人篱下，说什么不说什么你都不重要，能给你口饭吃，能让有根吃饱一顿，比任何想法都重要。
“坐下吧？鬼子都见过了，帮你喂孩子你还怕？”李二狗一只脚跷上凳子，敞开了胸口，“这儿条件一般，还时不时要转移，一切只能将就。”
翠儿点了下头，心里泛起新的紧张。门又开了，四个女人端着两个大木盆进来，装了满满的水，一盆还是热的。还有一个女人放了些衣服在炕上。她们掩门出去，屋里又安静起来，盆里的水微微漾着，映着李二狗一张歪曲的脸。
“我先去有点事儿，你吃了饭，和孩子都洗洗吧，然后睡个踏实觉，其它事明天再说。”李二狗拿起手枪，又戴上了帽子，帽子一戴人就精神了，像年轻了七八岁似的，那腰杆和脸孔也威严起来。他出了门，背着手出了院子，哼着一段翠儿熟悉的豫剧。
刘嫂抱回了吃饱喝足的有根，还给翠儿带了一小碟豆馅、两个馍和一碟葱花炒蛋。翠儿不争气地流下了泪。刘嫂陪着她坐下，用一块湿布擦了翠儿的手，抱过睡着的有根。翠儿满含感激吃完了馍和菜，觉得要向这好心的大姐说声谢谢。
“谢谢刘嫂……”她说。
“不用谢，谢啥？再说了，都是李队长吩咐的……”刘嫂晃着有根，看着他红润的脸。翠儿突然想起下兜齿的话，这里的女人多没了孩子，刘嫂看有根的表情让她担心起来。
“还是我抱吧，猪崽子似的……”翠儿抱过了有根，为了不显尴尬，她忙又问，“李队长是哪里人？”
“李队长，呦，那可是个厉害的人……”刘嫂说完，突然冷了脸，看着桌上的空盘子发呆。但翠儿没听懂这驴唇不对马嘴的回答，想再问，刘嫂却起了身。
“你洗一下吧，孩子也洗洗，瞧你们脏的，这些天定是折腾坏了……我先去了。”
说罢她收拾了盘碗，低着头出了门。翠儿还想说声谢谢，却看着那背影害怕起来。
翠儿放下有根，出门看了看。黄昏的门口没人，路口也没人，村里飘来肉汤的味儿，狗都在那边汪汪叫，想必村民多围在那里口水横流。翠儿退回来，从里面插了门，先给有根扒光洗了，扔到炕上去睡。再脱去自己满是泥土的衣服，痛快地洗了个干净。她在盆里不敢久坐，心中总有莫名的忐忑。擦干出来四处张望，这才明白刘嫂留下那些衣服的缘由。内衣还好，上衣和裤子不男不女，但穿上还挺合身。她再把自己的和有根的衣服全洗了，挂在院子里一根绳上。她摸着湿漉漉的头发，看了看晴朗的夜空，衣服明早就会干了，今天这一切和做梦似的，明天该怎么办呢？
翠儿给有根盖好被子，觉得从里到外疲惫不堪，每一根骨头都抬不起来，眼皮像碾子一样碾过眼球，她挣扎了几下，每一次都看向那让她紧张的门口。门口什么都没有，村子静得和板子村的夜晚一样。风吹进有缝的窗户，翠儿再没有力气忐忑不安，沉沉地睡去了。
梦里的板子村依旧温暖，梦里的炕头仍然宽阔，梦里的老旦依然不知疲倦，每一次都将她塞得满满的。她怕吵醒了熟睡的有根，咬着被角低低呜咽。她想提醒老旦肚子里真的还有一个，别把孩子鼓捣坏了。可她不舍得这醉入骨髓的快乐，它比恐惧更能令自己一片空白。她渐渐睁开了眼，眼前幻变着五颜六色和一些说不清缘由的闪光。她感到老旦猛地加快了，于是又闭上了眼。可闭上眼却更明亮，她看见无边的麦田上，太阳正发出紫色的光芒。一声长长的吆喝在原野喊着，云彩飞一样掠过，她飞上了云端，听到雨雾嘶嘶作响。她变成了雨水和风，淋漓在干渴的大地，吹拂在光秃的山峦。她还是忍不住地叫起来，世界一下子被这叫声击碎了，也将她的梦击碎了，她猛然又睁开了眼。
身上的人流下火烫的汗，剧烈的喘息像低低的雷鸣。他将她紧紧地压在下面，捏在手里，戳在里面，他稀疏的头发拂着她汗津津的脸，浓重的烟味浸透了夜晚的凉意。她感到一只老鼠在里面突突乱跳，吐出火热的口水，她发觉自己的双臂紧紧抱着他，压得自己都喘不过气。
翠儿眼前一黑，像掉进了冬天的菜窖。她想掀开身上的人，却连手指都动弹不得，她唯一的气力能用于流泪，她只眨了下眼，就觉得什么都流了出来，像流干了这辈子所有的泪。
“哭个啥？能活着比啥不好？”翠儿听出了这个声音。
“俺肚子里有孩子。”翠儿哭着。
“出来还早着呢，你身子壮实，惊不了。”他蠕动着。
“愿意你就留下来帮我们做事，不愿意你明天就走。”李二狗直起身来，翠儿感到身上空了，下面也空了，整个人在炕上都空了。她扭头看着有根。他睡在平坦的炕角，翠儿看不到他的脸，只看到一只张开的小手伸在月光里，像他刚出生时那样。有根的上面挂着李二狗的手枪袋子，它在墙上拉出吓人的影子。但翠儿并未因此害怕，她如今觉得没什么可怕的了。她也知道自己在梦里被那快感击碎，身体成了她最痛恨的敌人。她任凭它在羞愧和失落中冷去，等着汗水流下干硬的土炕，等着喘个不停的李二狗平息呼吸，等着……也许什么也没有等，这是个无依无靠、无家可归、无期无盼的夜晚，再发生什么，又有什么不同呢？
李二狗坐起身来，在炕头点燃烟锅。那背影不如老旦宽阔，却和他一样结实。翠儿不由得去看刚才在她里面的东西，它却藏在阴影里寻觅不着。她又为自己的眼羞愧着，就把头扭向另一边，李二狗的瓜皮帽和衣服挂在墙上，黑乎乎地像挂着个人。烟雾在炕上飘着，味道呛人，却有些亲切。翠儿伸手去摸自己的衣服，但手能及之处都没有，于是她抬头看，炕上也没有，它们不知道被扔去哪里。她知道自己赤条条躺在炕上，但毫无办法，而且她在这世界除了有根和肚子里的孩子，已经是赤条条的了。
“你好看，我不要你，别人也要。”李二狗说。
“你们是啥党？”翠儿哆嗦着问。
“共产党。”
"What do you mean?"
“就是好人。”李二狗说完在炕头磕了烟锅放去一边。他顺了顺头发，看了看翠儿，又看了看有根，就像一块大石头样爬了过来。翠儿惊慌起来，可她一动都不敢动。她感到李二狗又硬硬地起来，在那里上上下下地拱着。翠儿咬着牙关，却咬不住那里，那个东西像条热乎乎的蛇，三拱两拱又火辣辣地进去了。
“别想你男人了，不想他，你就能活下去了。”李二狗严严实实地盖住了她。翠儿侧过脸去看着有根，见那只小手缩进了黑暗里，心中叹了口气。
醒来时已是中午，房屋里空荡荡的，炕头的有根不知去处。翠儿惊叫一声弹起来，衣服不知何时到了身边，她忙穿好要出门去找，却见刘嫂抱着有根进了门。
“呦，妹子醒了？看你睡得那么好，就没叫你了。孩子自己下了地出了门，想是又饿了，俺就带他去吃了点东西。”刘嫂将有根抱给翠儿，翠儿仍然有些惊惧，上上下下看着孩子。有根哼哼哈哈地笑着，嘴角还有稀粥的嘎巴。
“谢谢刘嫂，俺真是累坏了。”
“那可不，这些天定是没睡个好觉，昨晚又折腾一宿。”刘嫂带着坏笑拍了她一把，拍得翠儿出了一背的冷汗。是啊，昨晚都做了什么？她的脸燃烧起来，不知怎么应对这句话。
“妹子别多想，李队长睡过了，就有照应了。”刘嫂带着奇怪的口吻说，“你也是个苦命的，但比俺还强点，俺连孩子都没了……”刘嫂说着便捂了嘴，眼睛汪汪地湿了起来，翠儿不知如何是好，只抓着她的胳膊轻轻晃着。
“算啦，说这些干啥？妹子你饿了吧？跟我来，去吃点儿东西，今天没准还有活儿干，对了你叫个啥？”刘嫂终没让眼泪流下来，且略带提防地看了她一眼。
外边传来马嘶声，刘嫂快步奔出了门。翠儿也跟着去了，十几匹马正哗啦啦地经过门口，他们又背着枪挎着刀，叫花子一样奔村外去了。李二狗骑在中间，胯下换了鬼子的那匹大马，经过时他低头看了她一眼，像看个不曾谋面的陌生人。那顶瓜皮帽似乎打了油，弄得脑门都亮晃晃的。刀疤脸紧随其后，端着吓死人不偿命的脸孔。下兜齿骑在最后，他对着翠儿微笑了下，颇夸张地喝着瘦弱的骡子奋步疾追。这支骡马游击队飞一样蹿出了李家窑。翠儿见女人和老人们都在向他们挥手告别，像送老旦那时一样。她不知道要在这里待上多久，也不知道是否该像其他人那样盼着他们回来。
“他们去干啥了？”翠儿问手搭凉棚的刘嫂。
“还不是去干鬼子？现在又有汉奸了……”刘嫂放下手说，“每次都少几个，俺刚来的时候还有八十多个呢。”
“他们都是哪来的？”
“哪来的都有，就是李家窑的没有。一个个都是没家没业没老婆的光棍子，都是些不要命的，也都是些不要脸的……”刘嫂看了看翠儿，似乎还有话说，却留住了，“走吧，咱没事去收拾收拾伙房，他们回来都是饿坏的……”
刘嫂是三十里外嫁到下马坊村的人，翠儿听了她的故事，就觉得下兜齿说得没错。她的男人和两个孩子、公公婆婆、老爹老娘，一半死于洪水，一半死于鬼子，自己饿剩下小半条命，被这村儿的哨兵发现，一碗稀粥算是救了。半夜也是被人睡过几次，也不知谁是哪一个，反正都硬邦邦没完没了的。她倒也不忌讳，这狗日子让人什么念想都没了，这么着能活下去，没准还能再生个儿子，是儿子就行，管他是谁的。
刘嫂说这些事时异常平淡，就像说着别人的故事。她一边说一边淘米，对翠儿说的好鬼子丝毫不信，说那只是兽心还没起，起来后定是奸杀得人畜不留。刘嫂也笃定认为翠儿的老旦必死无疑，理由是李家窑的男人们就是如此。他们走了一周后，尸体被李二狗的游击队发现，说几十号人被两条绳子捆了手脚，成串躺在地上，几辆卡车将他们轧得头爆屎流的。鬼子对抗日的兵毫不留情，游击队的后生们也一样，捉住的必是一顿毒打，打不出什么便喂了狗。
“翠儿，这才刚开个头，你要心里有数。”刘嫂皱着眉看她，像怕她不信似的。
李二狗带人走后，村里只剩七八个拿枪的，他们吃饱喝足，一多半到各自的山头上放哨，剩下的看着一个大院子，那里放着粮食和肉，还有那门没了炮弹的小钢炮。女人们在村里走来走去，说着各自的辛酸史；老人们和板子村的一样痴呆，只要有太阳他们就有微笑。翠儿明白这是极平常的一天，她昨晚的经历也不是千古奇冤。从刘嫂那张脸看得出，这事再自然不过，它毫不出奇，它理所应当，它甚至天经地义，自己要觉得委屈了才是莫名其妙。
翠儿坐在陌生的院子里，看着窗户里那间依然陌生的房子，想着昨晚那个陌生的炕上那个陌生的男人。可她想着想着却流下泪来，翠儿听见自己撕心裂肺地哭。
她不记得这样哭过，她有默默地流泪，有低低地啜泣，可这一次哭得要死的心都有，死都不会比这哭更难受。她已不怕吵醒屋里的有根，不怕那些女人知道她昨夜的羞耻，她只想让这冰冷的世道知道她最后的绝望。她泪眼模糊地看着天空，曾经亲切的蓝天白云变得如此阴森可怖，亮晃晃的太阳也模糊起来。落满眼泪的地面刮过干呼呼的风，她听见风里全是“不活了”这三个字。天空还是那样的天空，大地还是这样的大地，怎么就不让人活了呢？
游击队是半夜回到李家窑的。村里的狗汪汪叫着，十几匹马急匆匆钻进村里。炕上的翠儿被马蹄声惊醒，一激灵坐起来。她不由得捂着前胸，看向插好的房门。不知因何，她暗自数着有多少匹马跑过，显然少了很多。她没法再睡，不知在怕什么，一晚上都在犹豫要不要拔掉门闩，可一直等到有根醒过来，也没人走近这院子。
晨光洒进了窗，推开门，鸡群在院里啄来啄去，空中有翠儿熟悉的味道。她拉开门走出去，见路上有两行隐隐的血迹。一个游击队员拎着枪飞奔过去，脸上结满黑红的血痂。翠儿循着血迹走去，她不需要壮胆，她想走去这血迹的源头，或是终点，那都是她的起点。
血迹一直伸到一个院子里。门虚掩着，翠儿正要推进去，刘嫂却端着盆水跨出来。她的前襟沾满污血，眼袋上托着满是血丝的眼，那一盆水又黑又红。见她来了，刘嫂咦了一声，像是害怕一样朝后看了眼。她推出翠儿，略慌张地拉上门说：“李二狗死了，被鬼子打死了。”
翠儿张着嘴愣了，不知该说啥，就看了眼那门槛，上面沾了好几道血。
“一共死了八个，抬回来三个。”刘嫂又说。
“李二狗呢？”翠儿望向门的缝隙。
“没抢回来，他被从马上打下来，几条狼狗咬碎了。”刘嫂拉着她走了几步，“他是队长，死了之后副队长就是队长，就是那个刀疤脸儿，可是他受了伤，十天半月好不了。”
“那，俺能干点啥？”翠儿淡淡地说。刘嫂擦了擦眼，眯着眼对她说：“你有孩子呢……”
“不碍事，没爹的孩子长得快，给点吃喝，有根已经自个能对付了。”
“那就伙着大家做做饭，洗洗衣服，掰掰玉米棒子吧……其它就没啥事了，除非男人们找你有事，也就真没啥事了。”
刘嫂后半句让翠儿一吓，却把她吓笑了：“刘嫂，啥事……又怎大不了的？你说是不？”
“就是，你要心宽，没啥事大不了的，还有啥比孩子娘的好好活着事儿大？”刘嫂也笑了。
下兜齿说，李家窑游击队几十号人和另一支国民党剩下的游击队合起来，要打一个排的鬼子埋伏，可埋的炸药没炸，游击队一顿乱枪，打死几个鬼子，可鬼子一通枪打过去，就干掉他们十几个。两支游击队分开跑，鬼子见李二狗骑着东洋马，疯了一样追这边儿。李二狗被一枪打下马，追上来几只狼狗，把他活活撕烂了。游击队一路奔命，好歹逃了。几个头儿非死即伤，一时半会儿出不了村了。
翠儿对这些故事并不在意，这和她没甚关系。只是那个李二狗，她还没记下他的模样，就这么给狗吃了，这叫什么事儿呢？翠儿不知是该庆幸还是喟叹，如果他没死，会不会在半夜推开那扇门，会不会又爬上那宽阔的炕，会不会又火辣辣占据着她的夜晚？翠儿常乱七八糟地想，遗憾里觉到凄凉，也不知这样的事还会不会发生。
纵是有这么大的事，李家窑并无板子村那样的紧张，鬼子不来光顾，伪军也不见踪影，游击队藏在这儿休养生息。李家窑像藏在雪原的野兔，只要不动，仿佛就不被发现。翠儿有更大的猜想，是不是鬼子走了？还是国军败了？但这念头没转多久，李家窑闯来个熟人，是板子村的郭铁头。
郭铁头进村时像个乞丐，光着脚弯着腰，脑袋上污泥腌臜地粘了几层，一扭脖子便往下掉块儿。他浑身臭不可闻，背着个满是窟窿的麻袋。端枪的哨兵捏着鼻子。郭铁头一眼就认出了门口的翠儿，却没说话，翠儿在门口洗着一张破床单，并没注意这个叫花子。郭铁头被押进那间屋子，刀疤脸和下兜齿问了他很多问题，在同意他加入游击队后，告诉他这里还有个板子村的女人。翠儿也被叫进去，她认出了洗完脸的郭铁头，知道了板子村的情况，才知道刚才那个叫花子就是他。
板子村口的鬼子炮楼盖起来了，住着十几个鬼子和十几个伪军。他们在帮板子村重建家园，整治田地，却也提出更多的要求。郭铁头被村里人告密，鬼子知道了他的来历，装疯子没了前途。虽是半路逃回来的，却仍是国军，伪军带着鬼子冲进他家