Chapter 34 A pleasant green shadow on the waves

Walking towards the foot of Dongfang Mountain in summer, the mountain villages remain the same, the land and vegetation remain the same, only the houses have changed a bit, the adobe brick walls are gone, replaced by tiled walls or gray cement walls.The path felt narrow and narrow, and when I walked barefoot on the dusty dirt road for a while, the dust was hot and burned my feet, and the leaves of foxtail, malan grass, plantain and cocklebur on the roadside were covered with a layer of dust. Dust, red dragonflies, and tiger dragonflies take off and land. They often land on the bean stands supported by bamboo poles in the vegetable field. Sometimes the green-winged grasshoppers jump up from the grass, revealing the red wings under the green wings.There is a long grasshopper, commonly known as a shoulder pole hook, whose head is shaped like a wooden shoulder pole hook, and it makes a rattling sound when flying.In the vegetable ditch, the water pumped up by the water pump

It flows carelessly, sucked in by the thirsty soil.On the watermelon fields with carved leaves, there must be a melon shed like a stilted building, on which shirtless men lie. In the summer afternoon, the air is scorching hot, cicadas call on the branches of poplar or willow, the leaves of the pumpkins climbing on the slopes are drooping, magpies sing in the air at the foot of the mountain, echoes in the valley, echoing above the village, Or a magpie landed on the crown of a huge camphor tree.At that time, I picked up the navy shirt with blue stripes and put the collar on my head, and the hot prickly heat was painful like an ant bite.This is the road leading to Yuanmen Reservoir, a huge reservoir at the eastern foot of Dongfang Mountain. The water quality is cool, with empty mountains and deep valleys, and rippling clear waves. This is where I spend my summer.Walking this road again now brings back the memories of the past, the blazing heat, the coolness, the quiet summer afternoon, I suddenly feel the years, like a stream in a stream by the side of the road, flowing away a little bit, the longing The time of growing up has been covered with moss on the pebbles like a stream, and everything is gone. From Beijing to the foot of Dongfang Mountain, things are different, some kindness, some sadness, and mixed feelings come to my heart.

Walking to a village entrance, there is a square pond, half of which is clear water and half of which is green waves, and the green waves are duckweed and aquatic plants.I instinctively salvaged from memory, did I fish in this pond when I was young?No.However, I have fishing experience in the rivers, lakes and ponds that surround the east, west, south, north and south for tens of miles.Luoqiao Lake, Sike Lake, Wang Ren, Golden Lake, Dawang Lake, Huajiao Well... the water in my memory and the youthful time of running around with a pole come to my mind again. Suddenly, I found that the water plants in the pond, the green shadows rippling in the clear waves, were not water plants, but water spinach!The spinach with lanceolate leaves, even under the hot sun, their pointed leaves are still upward, clusters of tender green, and they grow vigorously.What a fresh water spinach, its top leaf tip is like a sharp blade, its roots are immersed in water, there are clouds in the water, and there is blue sky in the gaps in the clouds.I stared at the planting of the pond in a daze. In the densely populated parts of the water spinach, there were a few mossy foam blocks supporting the water spinach, so the water spinach grew densely with each other.

At this time, a middle-aged man came, wearing casual loose shorts and a short-sleeved shirt, slippers, and holding a cattail fan, walking leisurely.I can't remember if there was such an acquaintance, or even if he was an acquaintance, he might not be able to recognize me.I just heard him say, man, there is no need for anything, you see, I only have this house, this pond, the water spinach can be pinched by myself, and the fish in the water can be caught by myself. Isn’t this life?I was so happy that I met a Tao Yuanming today.What he said is true, there is a house in the countryside, with a pond at the front of the house, and she retired to grow some water spinach, raise some fish, pick vegetables, and fish. This kind of leisure life is very rare, especially the mentality.

A gust of wind blew out the cry of cicadas on the weeping willows on the opposite corner of the pond, causing ripples on the pond.Under the weeping willow, there is a bamboo raft, and two half-cut bamboo springboards are tied to two car tires, with an oar on it.After saying that, the man went to untie the rope that tied the row, paddled, and leisurely swung to the side of the water spinach, and slowly picked up the water spinach.This hermit who came back from nowhere, he only pinched the two-inch-long tender tip of the water spinach, pinched it very neatly, pinched a handful full, placed it neatly on the bamboo springboard, and then pinched again.Not far behind him, a fish leaped and caused a spray of water.

I left to go.Leaving the pond, the air suddenly heated up, cicadas began to scream hotly again, leaving the coolness of the water, sweating on the forehead again.Really good water spinach, I think.This kind of water planting method originated in Guangdong in the south. In the old days, on large areas of water in lakes, ponds or river bends in Guangdong, farmers put a bamboo raft and tied water spinach to the bamboo raft. The water spinach climbed vines, and silver whiskers grew on the vines. The white roots and new seedlings gradually cover the bamboo rafts, a big green, watery water spinach, picked by the farmers and carried to Guangzhou City to sell.

At the foot of Dongfang Mountain, I spent a long time here when I was young. There is a railway at the foot of the mountain. At night, I looked at Dongfang Mountain under the moon. I once thought in my heart that I must get out of this mountain when I grow up. Going, the mountain is in the north, and I am in the south. Looking out of the window at night, there is a light on the eastern mountain, and there is a temple there.To the west of Dongfang Mountain is Changle Mountain. Changle Mountain is a stone mountain with no vegetation. It stretches for dozens of kilometers and is covered with gray and white rocks. The factory where my parents and I worked is at the foot of Changle Mountain.However, Dongfang Mountain is lush and green. There is a road between the two mountains, which leads to Wuchang, the provincial capital.