1 A faint blue mercury lamp.Quietly looking down at the thin figure staggering past below it. The boat watchers at the fishing port wharf rang the safety gong ninety-nine times.There are no vehicles or pedestrians on the bridge in the shadow of the lights.This small street of the seafood trading market is always quiet at night, and it is no longer noisy and dirty during the day.However, the unique fishy and salty smell of Laoxie Bay is always lingering, making Zhao Laogong feel extra damp and cool when walking on the bridge.The old man came home from the shipyard in Old Hekou.Something happened to the family, and from his anxious and heavy gait, it could be seen that something serious happened to the Zhao family.

Zhao Laogong hunched his waist and walked staggeringly, the mast light he was holding in his hand trembled uncontrollably.In the cold silver gray of the street lamps, the light of the masthead lamps appeared weak and blurred.The two light sources teased Zhao Laogong, who was in a bad mood, gradually growing him up, and then shortening him mercilessly.The wind was roaring again, and the head of the wind beat the old man so hard that his eyes hurt, and he also urged the brown and black wave head under the bridge to whine, splash, and splash evilly.Everything is in a foggy state of smog, sea fog.Based on the old man's experience, the sea fog can tightly wrap the three-storey small building beside the road, which means that Tianhehai has exhausted all his strength and is brewing an unprecedented storm surge.

When people are unlucky, the salt jars at home are full of maggots, and even taking a breath of cool air will stuff their teeth.Zhao Laogong lived tenaciously to the age of seventy-two with his only remaining front tooth.It has been rare since ancient times for a person to live to seventy, and now the old man has a mouth full of dentures, which is a happy age.But his family of five did not bring the old man the blessings he wished. Instead, he dazzled and let out a sigh of old age: These days, these bastard days, are just a bunch of stupid days. ! The old man had three sons, the eldest son Zhao Zhentao can be said to be the glory of their Zhao family.Zhentao was adopted by Zhao Laogong, but he was very filial to his adoptive father.Zhentao not only went to university, but is now the director of the Provincial Government's Office of Opening Up to the Outside World.Everyone in the village praised Zhao Laogong: You are nothing as a ship master. The greatest honor in your life is that you picked up such a son!This is a blessing from your accumulated virtues in your previous life.The second son, Zhao Zhensheng, was in the navy and unfortunately died when he went to the Nansha Islands to perform a mission.Both the eldest daughter and the second daughter got married, and only the third daughter, Zhao Haiying, and the fourth daughter, Zhao Siju, remained at home.The third son, Zhao Xiaole, is the one that worries the old man the most.Zhao Laogong originally wanted to pass on his ancestral carpentry skills to this child. This boy was born to withstand the wind and waves, and he couldn't stay in Xushui. A true fisherman.Three years ago, someone rented Xiao Le's pot-bellied toad boat to resell illegal salt, and he was also implicated and sent to prison.In the spring of this year, as soon as he was released from prison, Zhao Laogong gave him the motor sailboat he made by himself, and asked him to earn money to marry a wife.

Xiao Le's fiancée Zhu Zhu originally loved him. They got engaged before Xiao Le was imprisoned, and the two families agreed that Xiao Le would get married when he was released from prison.At the very moment when Xiao Le was released from prison, the Beilong Dagang at the head of the village broke ground and started construction. Zhu Zhu entered the port preparatory office and became a worker.Zhao Laogong has a question that can't be erased: Zhu Zhu's child has delayed the marriage again and again, did Zhu Zhu change his mind in the blink of an eye, or that little boy from Beilonggang took the girl's soul?Anyway, Zhu Zhu, who has become a worker, can't look down on the fisherman who is going through the waves in the sea.Yesterday Zhu Zhuniang sent a matchmaker to the house to withdraw the marriage, and Zhao Laogong's family was in chaos.Holding the gourd head, Zhao Xiaole yelled in pain and anger: "I got out of the account, if you are unkind, don't blame me for being unrighteous! I will kill your whole family!"

His voice was like thunder, resounding in the heads of the whole family.Zhao Laogong trembled, raised his hand and slapped him tremblingly: "You bastard, that's all you have to do!" The slap made the scar on Zhao Xiaole's right leg protrude like a pepper, and he growled stubbornly. : "I don't accept it, my mother can't swallow this breath!" At this time, the younger sister Siju who was standing aside said: "Xiao Le, don't be angry, you see what Zhu Zhu has become, a whole ugly little rich woman, let her twist her ass in front of those big money! Don't worry about not being able to find a wife."

The expression on Zhao Xiaole's face suddenly came alive, and he yelled as if he was fighting against someone: "I don't believe it, I have to find a wife in Beilonggang!" After speaking, he walked out of the house humming. Zhao Laogong sat on the chair slumped, unable to say a whole sentence for a while.At this moment, the old man suddenly felt a kind of austerity that he had never felt before, which was purely the austerity of the parents. Tonight, Zhao Laogong was on duty at the shipyard, and when it was midnight, he suddenly received a call from Siju from home. She told Dad in a panic, saying that Xiaole drank too much wine at night and sharpened a kitchen knife , After grinding, he left with a murderous look on his face.After hearing this, Zhao Laogong's heart hung in his throat, his dark and thin old face was flushed with suffocation, and slowly turned blue again.He walked home without a word. "Xiao Le, Xiao Le, you enemy, you can't kill people!" Zhao Laogong muttered.

The night is blue, a deep blue, turning into the open space of the North Street, it is an ambiguous black.Zhao Laogong tripped over something, staggered and fell, and fell into a patch of scattered lights.He got up from his panic, grabbed the mast light, and suddenly looked up to see that the port construction site was still bustling with construction.This non-stop sound day and night completely broke the purity and tranquility of the small fishing village in the past.Wet mud and sand on the ground covered his ankles, and the mud and sand in the shadow of the lamp turned into a messy paste, gray, bubbling paste.The old man found that the fragments of the stars were reflected in the sand, and the crackling sound when the stars were broken was crystal clear, one by one.

If Beilong Dagang hadn't taken away his daughter-in-law, Zhao Laogong still had a good impression of the development and construction of the seaport.This big port should have been built a long time ago. When he was a child, he heard from his father that on September 22, 1912, Mr. Sun Yat-sen, the leader of the Revolution of 1911, was in Huangxing.Accompanied by Song Jiaoren, he came to Laoxie Bay for inspection, and personally designed the blueprint of Beilong Dagang.He also heard from his father that at that time the beach was muddy and it was difficult for people to get off. His father led the family's red-maned horse and asked Mr. Sun to ride on it.Mr. Sun smiled and rode on the big horse of the ancestors of the Zhao family, and inspected the beach very happily.It is said that he also took away a mass of black mud here.Later, the warlords built a port here, but it failed; the Kuomintang built a port, but it failed; the Japanese devils built a port, but it still failed.why?He couldn't tell the specifics, he only knew that they were all afraid of the storm surge in Old Crab Bay.Now is the time to test the Communists!The township head and the village head said at the mobilization meeting that Beilong Dagang is the leading project in the Bohai Rim Economic Development Zone in our province, and its completion will also drive our land, and our place will become a small Shenzhen!

Zhao Laogong slowly became excited when he heard it.I thought that it was my turn to repay the debt owed in my previous life in this life.He has been pulling big saws all his life, and has been making wooden boats all his life. He can still see tall and big foreign ships when he is old.Zhao Laogong suddenly felt that this world was worth seeing, and that the world also had a living life.The old man's affection for Dagang has another meaning. I heard that the eldest son, Zhao Zhentao, is very fond of Dagang. The leaders of Beilong City went to the provincial capital to set up projects and run funds, and they all looked for Secretary General Zhao.

Small rice-shaped things were always flying in the night sky, bumping into Zhao Laogong's face and neck numbly.It's a sea mosquito.The mosquitoes in Laoxie Bay are bigger than those in other places, and when they bite on the body, red bumps immediately swell up, which are extremely itchy.At this time, he saw a sea fire lit next to the shed on the construction site. The flames were not too big and the smoke was not too small, and the sparkling lights of the stars shook and fell into the sea.There were a few young men who were on the night shift pumping water, talking and joking there. A tall, thin man was playing the harmonica with his waist down. The harmonica with two notes collapsed was accompanied by the thick throats of a few young men who were tone-deaf, and roared on the empty beach:

O deep ocean-- Why don't you appreciate it? O deep ocean-- Why are you restless? The sea breeze pickled the singing soggy, and the nesting seabirds flapped their tired wings and flew away.Zhao Laogong listened to the singing with a foreign air, delicate and petty, like shitting on his stomach.At the same time, he thought bitterly: the sea in Laoxie Bay is ungrateful, it's his mother's restlessness, it changes its face when it says it changes, it bites people when it says it bites, it's wild!How many days have you been here?Don't look at the waves in front of you as docile as a woman, when the storm surge comes, you will be unable to find the store with your pig's head in your arms!Dog days!After Zhao Laogong finished cursing in his heart, he also left these working children far away.He turned his head and looked at them again: It’s not easy for these children in the city, because the lonely time goes by without a story; if there are stories, they can’t be sung. There are many stories in this world that cannot be just spoken. Sing or talk can pass.Let’s just talk about the sea, Zhao Laogong is not only a famous master in Laoxie Bay, but also a brave sea bumper.When he was very young, he drilled in the sea. With the enlightenment of an oar and a grain of salt, he wandered across Jiaozhou Bay and approached the essence of the sea inadvertently. As soon as he raised his head, he saw some birds flitting across the night sky and whining sadly. At this moment, he thought of his little heart-warming things at home again.His wife left early, and Zhao Xiaole was the old son, so he spoiled him too much.This kid usually sings in his mouth: Take the wine of love, it's crazy and delicious.I seem to be walking alone in this life, and my enthusiasm has been exhausted by you.He is too infatuated with Zhu Zhu, and once he is infatuated, it is very easy to run all the way to the dark.He is not small, but he is still like a child in his heart, and he doesn't care when he gets angry.You don't even think about it, is it worth it to take your own life for that precious girl of Zhu Quande?The old man hoped that Xiao Le would wake up suddenly the moment he raised the machete and rein in his horse.The prodigal son will not be exchanged for gold! This is early spring, and the night air is cold, and the climate at this time is colder than winter.Zhao Laogong shrugged his neck and walked for half an hour. He estimated that he would be home in half an hour.The old man knew that his age was beyond his reach, so he could only procrastinate and move around.The road on Xiaobei Street is easier to walk, because this is where the well-to-do households in the village are concentrated.Most of the windows in the rows of small buildings are already dark.Even in the dark, the old man can feel the majesty and majesty of the small building.If it is daytime, the music and singing voices played by the stereo tape recorder will float on the road, and the old man even memorized the title of a song (A good man lives a safe life).On this day, will a good person have a safe life?If good people are safe forever, then Zhao Laogong's house will not cause too much trouble tonight. Hopefully it was a false alarm.The old man looked at the small building on the side of the road, feeling an indescribable feeling in his heart.His family is still living in a very old ordinary brick house. If his family had built their own small building early, maybe Xiao Le would not have smuggled salt with others, would not have been imprisoned, and his daughter-in-law would not have died. It will make him worry.The old man pinched his fingers and made the calculations. These people who lived in the small buildings were all big boat owners.The boatman is paid, but his life as a shipbuilder is still very shabby.My wife didn't live a comfortable life with him for a few days. She got cancer four years ago and passed away.People by the sea rarely get cancer. It is said that people who often eat seafood will not get cancer.My wife is reluctant to eat crabs and prawns, and always eats those leftovers. It seems that she came to this world to eat leftovers at Zhao Laogong's house.At this time, the wrinkled yellow face of his wife appeared in front of the old man's eyes again, and he couldn't help feeling deeply sorry for his wife and son.The old man also wanted to build a beautiful small building, but he was afraid that Xiao Le would be idle after he was released from prison, so he built a medium-sized motor sailing boat with years of savings, and spent more than 100,000 yuan.This money is usually given by the eldest son Zhao Zhentao, filially by the daughters, and the rest is earned by the old man in the shipyard.He felt that his hope of moving into the small buildings in his lifetime was shattered, but he didn't hate those newly built small buildings and the farmers who lived in the small buildings because of this.Shouldn't some people get rich first?Some people get rich early and some people get rich late. Ten fingers are not evenly stretched out!What Zhao Laogong is not convinced is that there are many dubious and bad things among the early rich people, let's say Ge Yuqin who contracted the shipyard in the village, this bitch is poisonous! In the whole village, people like Ge Yuqin are the most unconvinced by Zhao Laogong, but he still has to work for her. People who don't know the inside story think that it is Zhao Laogong's money in the hands of that woman. In fact, the old man is worried about those three. Four apprentices.Zhao Laogong gave up several times, and Ge Yuqin threatened to say, "You old bastard, if you walk away, I will kill you apprentices!"Zhao Laogong was afraid that his apprentices would lose their jobs, so he had to bear with it.He knew that he couldn't squeeze much oil out of his old bones, and Ge Yuqin, a slut, was trying to figure out something else about him. There is a shadow of history in the eyes of this old woman, and this shadow has turned into a deep, deep hatred.Zhao Laogong has realized that this hatred is deeply hidden in her bones.He remembered that Ge Yuqin was a round younger than him, so he was sixty years younger this year, right?This woman is fat, without many wrinkles on her face, and her eyes are the best.This pair of medium-sized triangular eyes are black and bright, although she has suffered from eye diseases in the past few years, her eyelashes have almost fallen off, her eyes are full of bloodshot inflammation all day long, her hair is not only gray, but also so sparse that it cannot be closed. The back of her head was bound, but her eyes remained sharp.She is the daughter of Ge Qi, the sea bully in Laoxie Bay.In the year before liberation, Ge Qi and his family fled by boat, by sea.As the director of the peasant association, Zhao Laogong led the villagers to chase on the sea and captured Ge Qi and his youngest daughter Ge Yuqin. Ge Qi's eldest daughter Ge Yumei and eldest son Ge Ruigao escaped in another boat. Ge Qi was killed by the government, and Ge Yuqin married the fisherman Sun Luoguo after growing up.Sun Luoguo Fuqian has never touched women at all: they were not on the list of people's communes distributing relief food; during the Cultural Revolution, Ge Yuqin was criticized and swept the streets, and Sun Luoguo was with him; Died in a car accident.Sun Luoguo has no appearance, but Ge Yuqin gave birth to him three beautiful daughters.The fortune teller said that Ge Yuqin was born with a hard life and was not an ordinary person. She was doomed to great fortune and wealth in her later years. In the early days of the reform and opening up, Ge Yuqin really started shaking, and it was just as good as the situation said.She made her fortune in an oil shortage in Old Crab Bay.Diesel was so tight that year that many motor sailing boats could not go out to the open sea, and could only walk in the near sea, and the village was in a hurry.Ge Yuqin saw it right, and asked her connections to get the oil; what's even more clever, she didn't sell the oil when it was shipped to Laoxie Bay, but traded it for seafood.With all the fresh goods in this sea area in her hands, she drove up the prices and made a lot of money.She went downhill to start a company and became the general manager. Over the past few years, she has become more and more prosperous. She has her own fleet and bought out the shipyard in the village.Zhao Laogong also heard that Ge Yuqin had moved his company to the city and bought a small villa in Beilong City.The company also supplies materials to the construction site in Beilong Dagang, and the money is rolling in.At first, Zhao Laogong scolded bitterly in his heart: "Damn her a grandma!"Every year when the eldest son Zhao Zhentao goes home to celebrate the New Year, the old man always speaks ill of Ge Yuqin.Zhao Zhentao smiled and said that this is a market economy, and the Eight Immortals cross the sea to show their abilities.Slowly, the old man seemed to lose his original regret and anger. At this moment, the regret and anger in Zhao Laogong's chest were transferred to Zhu Quande's family.Zhu Quande is the lighthouse keeper of Old Crab Bay and his drinking buddy. He has three sons and a precious daughter.Zhao Laogong knew his family background, and in Zhao Laogong's simple and honest words, if the division was re-divided, the two elder brothers would still be poor peasants.He knew that Zhu Quande was an honest man, but he couldn't be the master of his wife's spicy flowers.La Hua is a vain girl, and Zhu Zhu is her favorite. She always feels that her daughter is a bit aggrieved to marry Xiao Le, so she flatters Ge Yuqin and sends Zhu Zhu to the seaport to work as a worker.Zhao Laogong's heart is like a mirror, it must be these two girls who persuaded Zhu Zhu to withdraw from the marriage. Zhao Laogong walked to the gate of Zhu Quande's courtyard without knowing it. He stopped his feet and listened to the movement in the courtyard with his breath held.The courtyard was quiet, and there was no sign of murder and robbery.Could it be that Xiao Le ran away after finishing his work?Zhao Laogong listened for a while, and suddenly heard two extremely unpleasant coughs from Zhu Quande, and his heart gradually calmed down.He sighed softly and walked away. Zhao Laogong arrived home after walking and thinking.The lights were on in the house, but no one was there. The old man felt something was wrong, his body collapsed and he became limp.The girls must have gone out looking for the bastard.Did you find Xiaole?He wandered around inside and outside the house in a state of suspense in his heart, then came out with a slump. The lights jumped out, poking many loopholes into the dark village night.Zhao Laogong could see two rows of tall and straight tree trunks on the side of the small street by the light.The locust trees in early spring have just sprouted, and the buds cannot be seen with the eyes.Next to the tree trunk was a crooked broken wooden boat. After squinting his eyes, he saw that it was a big-bellied toad boat built during the production team.This boat was built by him, Mr. Zhao Laogong. After wandering in the boundless sea for more than thirty years, he was finally laid off with honor.Zhao Laogong was not sure where to go, so he couldn't help but look at the boat a few more times: the paint on the boat plank was peeling off, the pitch pine was already weathered, and his mouth was grinning out of shape.Zhao Laogong has built countless ships in his life, and spent almost every day in labor during the seventy-two years of his life.Swallowing the powder of wood to build boats, I kept watching the big boat exuding the fragrance of wood sailing slowly along the old estuary to the sea.He has no time to lament and stay in love, and never asks about life, what exactly did shipbuilding bring to his life?There is no time to appreciate and enjoy my own creation.On this unusual night many years later, he actually stared blankly at the old boat he had built.He remembered that when the boat was built, his wife was pregnant with Xiaole.Xiao Le's mother, with a big belly, came to the shipyard in Laohekou to deliver meals.He and his men hauled the boat into the water with crowbars and cables.They shouted very loudly: Hey yo hey yo, hey yo hey yo—— At that time, someone told Zhao Laogong that the baby's mother was coming, and told him to stop shouting, for fear that it would shock the fetus in the woman's belly.Zhao Laogong wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead, and said carelessly, don't be afraid, let him listen to the name of labor, maybe this little boy can be a good material for going into the sea!Hahaha!So a louder chant sounded on the tidal flat.Sure enough, Lao Gong said that Xiao Lezi was born to be a worm in the sea.People at sea are wild, and people at sea are ruthless. Zhao Laogong really couldn't find a reason to go out, so he took out a mahogany pipe to smoke, and waited for his daughters or Xiao Le to arrive while smoking.He wandered around the pot-bellied toad boat, from the bow to the stern, and finally found what he should have in his memory.I remember that after Xiao Le's mother left, the apprentices surrounded him and laughed: "Zhao Chuanshi, do you think the baby in his mother's belly is a boy or a girl?" Zhao Laogong said confidently: "He is a great guy!" People giggled and shouted: "That's not sure." Zhao Laogong raised the ax and chisel in his hand and shouted: "You don't believe me? I will carve a sea eagle on the bow of the boat for my son!" He sculpted his eye sockets as he shouted, and soon an eagle with spread wings was carved. It's done.Eagles are used to suppress evil, and later fishermen all scrambled to use this boat.Zhao Laogong also knew that this was the best eagle he carved in his life. The old man stretched out his arm and touched it with his big callused palm. The eagle drum was still there.The old man's fingers had already picked the eagle's wings, and the crisp and dry sea mud was nestled on the wings, and the mud skin fell straight down.His fingertips traced along the eagle's wings to the eagle's head, and suddenly there was a kind of excitement in his heart, a kind of emotional excitement similar to the occasional emotional excitement for his son.He clearly felt a cold swishing water flow through his rough fingertips and spread all over his body.This mood contains the expectation for his son, the nostalgia for the past years, the self-esteem of an ordinary laborer and the worship of labor.The night was so dark that I couldn't see anything.He patted the board of the boat lightly with his hand a few times: Old man, do you still recognize me, Zhao Laogong?Eagle, can you still fly over the sea?Zhao Laogong couldn't help shedding hot tears.He didn't rub it, and let it crawl along the curved wrinkles to his mouth, astringent. A burst of crashing noise disturbed Zhao Laogong.He looked up and saw a bicycle coming towards him.He stepped out of the boat nervously. The cyclist jumped down and cried out in great surprise: "Daddy, daddy——" Zhao Laogong turned around and saw that it was his fourth daughter, Zhao Siju. "Father, you can make it easy for me to find, why are you squatting here?" Siju complained.When she was looking for Zhao Laogong all the way just now, she regretted that she should not have called her father.What should I do if I'm an old man, a black light, and a bumper? "Siju, Xiaole, where is he?" Laogong Zhao asked anxiously. Si Ju said: "He's fine, Dad, let's go into the room and talk!" Zhao Laogong turned around and walked home, cursing as he walked: "You son of a bitch, I'll break his leg later!" Entering the house, Zhao Laogong couldn't stop coughing: "You, where's your third sister Haiying?" Siju's eyes dodged and did not dare to look at her father's eyes: "Third sister, she, she, she is not at home. If she is at home, I will see Xiaole like that, and I won't feel numb!" Zhao Laogong asked suspiciously: "Did your third sister go to the provincial capital to find your elder brother?" Siju faltered and said nothing. Zhao Laogong muttered stubbornly: "Don't hide it for her. Potatoes are sweet potatoes, boneless goods! I don't worry about any of them. Tell me, is your third brother-in-law a decent person? He put you If my sister is beaten up like that, she still has to ask someone to run away for the boy. Didn’t he be able to become the secretary of the township party committee because he borrowed your brother’s credit? He became the secretary, how can our family benefit from him?" "Father, don't scold Third Sister. She has to bear the burden of humiliation. Isn't it for the sake of the children? The children are so old, divorce, leaving the family and entering the family, is it easy?" Siju said with a sigh. The cold air flows silently in the room, which is cool. Zhao Laogong lit another cigarette: "Oh, Haiying is tender. I know that your eldest brother is a person with roots in his heart. If your third sister says the sixteen o'clock of Datian, your eldest brother will not Do something that violates the organizational principles! Okay, let's not talk about Haiying. You haven't finished talking yet, has Xiao Le messed up?" Siju trembling lips said: "Father, I didn't show merit to you. If I hadn't been careful tonight, it would have caused a catastrophe! Don't you know Xiaole's bad temper? He drank a bottle of wine, his eyes It was all red. At first he hid in the house and listened to music. Later, I listened to the noise in the music in the outer room. I saw through the crack of the door that he was sharpening a knife, which scared me into a cold sweat. I knew he was It was for Zhu Zhu, so I called you, paged Zhu Zhu, and called Liu Lianzhong—" When she mentioned Liu Lianzhong, the tip of her tongue paused. Zhao Laogong knew that Liu Lianzhong was her classmate, a professional householder in Laoxie Bay engaged in hatching shrimp seedlings and crabs, and he was in love with Siju right now.The old man stared wide-eyed and asked: "Don't be so wordy, tell me quickly, what happened after the phone call?" Si Ju said anxiously: "When I was on the phone, Xiao Le came out drunk, yelling: 'Kill her, kill her!' and walked out. I rushed to stop him, Let him calm down. When he got angry, he knocked me down to the ground, and my forehead was swollen! I got up and chased him!" Zhao Laogong asked: "Have you chased him?" Siju blinked her long and dense eyelashes and said: "He went straight to Zhu Quande's house. When he was about to reach the gate of old Zhu's house, Liu Lianzhong happened to rush over. Liu Lianzhong is big and powerful, and he rushed to grab it With the knife in Xiao Le's hand, the two of them fought into a ball. When they hit each other, Xiao Le vomited, so much that he vomited all over his body." "This bastard, you committed crimes!" Zhao Laogong was chilled by his son's depravity. Siju fluttered her eyes and continued: "Father, Lian Zhong and I carried Xiao Le into Lian Zhong's car, and Lian Zhong took him to a simple bathhouse in the harbor and washed him. Lian Zhong said he took Xiao Le to him Go home, Xiao Le wakes up tomorrow, he wants to persuade him! Immediately afterwards, I will look for you all over the street." Zhao Laogong said: "I don't need you to worry about it. Oh, thanks to Lian Zhong. Someday I will call Lian Zhong over, and I will buy him a drink!" Siju pouted and said, "Is it enough to just drink? Isn't it because of your precious son?" Zhao Laogong yawned and said, "Damn girl, you twisted your elbows before he married you?" Siju blushed, and said angrily, "Father, who said you're going to marry him?" Zhao Laogong said: "That's right, I only have this old girl left, whoever wants to marry it depends on how capable she is! Hehe——" Siju looked at the watch on the wall: "Father, it's half past two, go back to your room and sleep." Zhao Laogong stubbed out his pipe, and couldn't help poking his head out. The fog outside the window was getting thicker, gushing up and down like a thick fog curtain.He said with some concern: "I see that the sea is in trouble. I'm afraid there will be a storm surge these days! Go to bed quickly, and take care of your breeding plant tomorrow morning." Si Ju said disapprovingly: "Father, I'm so old, go to sleep." Zhao Laogong finally moved his thin body and walked out. When he reached the door, he turned his head and said, "Turn around, tell your elder brother to come back, and teach Xiao Le a lesson!" Zhao Laogong didn't even take off his clothes, he just lay down on his back and pulled a quilt to cover him.He is small in stature, full of bones and tendons, and compact.The old man tossed and turned, unable to sleep, and the past weighed down like a heavy night.He wasn't thinking about Xiao Le, he was thinking about the feeling when he was standing beside the old boat at the door.The true feelings that the old man slowly eroded flowed out from the bottom of his heart again, and he suddenly felt that he had not lived in vain in this life, that he had not lived in vain—— The old man couldn't think any more, and he grabbed the quilt and choked up. 2 That night, Zhao Zhentao, who was far away in the provincial capital, also fell into a crisis. In fact, Zhao Zhentao, the director of the Provincial Office of Opening up to the Outside World, has been having an ominous premonition for the past few days: for him, there may be a storm.Sure enough, as soon as he sent away the foreign businessmen of the Australian agricultural inspection team this afternoon, Deputy Minister Geng of the Organization Department of the Provincial Party Committee talked to him and dismissed him as the director of the foreign affairs office.The provincial party committee decided to send him to the young cadre training class of the Central Party School to study.Zhao Zhentao nodded without asking why, and silently went back to his office to pack his things.The comrades in the foreign affairs office who got along with him day and night were all surprised, only Zhao Zhentao knew everything here in his heart. Three days ago, Zhang Lixin, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee Secretary Pan Hongsen, secretly revealed to him a secret, saying that both Secretary Pan and Governor Fu Huaichang had received a letter of accusation against him. He should be mainly responsible for the hunting and wounding accidents of foreign businessmen in the city; the second is about the issue that he ran funds for Beilonggang, Beilong City, his hometown, saying that he took bribes.At that time, Zhao Zhentao was trembling with rage, and cursed aggrievedly: "False accusation, purely false accusation!" Zhang Lixin was brought up by him when he was the Secretary of the Provincial Youth League Committee, and he recommended it to the General Office of the Provincial Party Committee.He persuaded Zhao Zhentao a few words, asked him to write a defense material, and he handed it to Secretary Pan of the Provincial Party Committee, and told him to be more careful about the villains around him.Zhao Zhentao's head thumped, and he immediately understood what was going on.He thought, since the top leader of his unit failed to understand his subordinates, then he should suffer for himself! Back home at night, Zhao Zhentao put a bagful of things on the table and looked up to see his wife Meng Yao was making dumplings while talking with his third sister Zhao Haiying.Zhao Haiying turned her head and saw Zhao Zhentao walking into the room first, she called out kindly: "Brother, brother is back!" Zhao Zhentao braced himself up and said, "Here is Haiying?" He slumped down on the sofa.His face was like a frost-beaten eggplant, black and purple. Meng Yao saw her husband's depression at a glance, and saw his big bag on the table, so she asked in surprise: "Zhentao, your complexion is not good, what's wrong with you?" Zhao Zhentao lit a cigarette and smoked dully: "I've been dismissed!" Both Zhao Haiying and Meng Yao were taken aback, especially Haiying.She came all the way behind her father's back to ask her elder brother to do something. Now that her elder brother has been dismissed, her hopes have come to naught. She asked in a tearful voice, "Brother, you, did you make a mistake?" Meng Yao wiped the flour off her hands with her apron, walked up to Zhao Zhentao and said, "Zhentao, tell me first, why did your superior dismiss you?" Zhao Zhentao waved his hand: "Don't ask, I have a clear conscience, and I am not afraid of ghosts calling me. Let me go to the Central Party School to study, and I will study as I study!" Meng Yao blinked and said, "Did the letter suing you play a role? No, I'll take you to find your father. You don't have to be an official. This is a big issue of right and wrong that must be clarified! You will leave a bad impression on the leader. Even if Zhao Zhentao has three heads and six arms, it is difficult to hold his head up." Zhao Zhentao shook his head: "Meng Yao, even though I feel aggrieved, I don't want my father to know. The organization didn't deal with me, so let's treat it as a normal organization arrangement!" Meng Yao said stubbornly: "No, you can fool me. My dad can't afford to lose this man to you. There was a shout outside, saying that the son-in-law of Director Meng of the Provincial People's Congress made a mistake and was dismissed! Does that sound good!" Zhao Zhentao said angrily: "You are here again, haven't I told you many times, I am responsible for my own affairs. I have to do things on my own ability, I will not let people say that Zhao Zhentao is relying on my father-in-law Stupid idiot!" Meng Yao was trembling with anger: "You, you, don't want my dad, do you have a seat today? You have no conscience, you are a wolf who can't feed you!" She sobbed and cried. Zhao Zhentao said: "Look, Ms. Jiao has lost her temper again. Why are you crying? Didn't I die?" "Who do you think you are? You're dead, so we don't have to worry!" Meng Yao yelled angrily in a high-pitched voice, her eyes were red. Zhao Zhentao glared at his wife and let out a sigh of relief. Zhao Haiying persuaded: "Brother, sister-in-law is doing it for your own good, listen to sister-in-law!" Zhao Zhentao said angrily: "Go, you don't understand!" Zhao Haiying came to persuade Meng Yao again: "Sister-in-law, don't be sad, my brother has such a temper, don't you know him well?" She said, making dumplings by herself. Zhao Zhentao ruthlessly stubbed out the cigarette butt in his hand, stood up, stroked the woman's round shoulders with both hands, and said apologetically, "Look at you, don't be angry, maybe you are right. Go, talk to daddy, let me talk to you." The old man asked Secretary Pan to find out the truth. According to the routine, there are two kinds of people who are sent to the Central Party School to study, one is to stand aside and hang up; the other is to cultivate and cultivate for another purpose! Damn it, I Which one is it?" Meng Yao's gloomy face finally cleared up: "You, have you figured it out? As the saying goes, there are people in the court who are easy to be officials. In fact, your official position is too smooth, so you should stumble and wake up. Sober. You were only thirty-two years old and you were at the hall level." Zhao Zhentao said despondently: "It's going well, do the math, it's been eight years since you came out of the Youth League Provincial Committee, isn't it still standing still?" Meng Yao poked him on the forehead with her finger: "You, what an official fan! My father said a long time ago that if you are still working in the provincial capital, this is what the official means. If you want to go up, Then you have to go down to the grassroots level, work hard, lose a few pounds of meat, and show some political achievements. With political achievements and my dad’s ability, you have hope." Zhao Zhentao was stunned, and asked, "Why didn't your father tell me?" Meng Yao smiled: "I didn't let him say it! You know, I don't agree with you continuing to mess around in the officialdom. If I am admitted to Ball University in Australia this time, I won't come back after graduation. I want to put Men and women will also do it. How about you, learn English for me these two years, where will your final destination be, you know?" Zhao Zhentao said disapprovingly: "I know, how many times have you said it. You don't know if you will pass the exam, so you start planning the blueprint for me and Nannan?" Meng Yao said: "I am the best, you can see it." Zhao Zhentao didn't want to listen to his wife's nagging, and began to bury himself in sorting out the books and some award certificates brought back from the office.Meng Yao came over, looked down, and said, "Hey, where's the money in your drawer? You hand over the money in the small treasury!" Zhao Zhentao was slightly taken aback: "Where is the small treasury? I gave you all my salary! Don't lie to me, an honest man. Go and make dumplings, and let's go find the old man after dinner!" Meng Yao grumbled Laughing happily, she walked to Zhao Haiying's place to make dumplings. Zhao Zhentao hid in his study and tidied it up very carefully.He found a photo of himself and Meng Yao.He thinks it is the best photo of him and his wife, so it has been kept in his drawer.这是他们在武汉大学读书时照的，武大校园的优美是有口皆碑的：早晨的竹林里，绿绿的，还映出一层暗暗的红光，使得千姿百态的竹叶纤毫毕现，仿佛吹口气就能飘浮起来。不仅是背景好，他和孟瑶的神态也十分自然洒脱，富有青春的活力。孟瑶的脸相不是看一眼就动人的那种，可她有很白的皮肤，有一个俊秀的好身材，而且一颦一笑都有女性的温存和情调，带着一种难以说清的余韵。她穿着一件特别肥大的亚麻衬衫，一直搭到膝盖上；一双非常高档的白色休闲鞋。当时的赵振涛还是一个土里土气的小伙子，眉清目秀，骨骼肌肉都很发达，方方正正的脸膛，像一尊冷硬的石刻。那时孟瑶的父亲就是省计委的主任了，后来又当上了省委副书记。 是孟瑶造的他。他在北龙市，曾有过一股说不上成功的恋爱，使他对权势笼罩下的爱情有足够的警惕性，可他还是被这个女人俘虏了。眼下，赵振涛觉得孟瑶更加实际，她身上的余韵几乎消失殆尽了。她毕业后做了省师范学院的一名外语教师，兴奋点又由国内向国外发展，除了上课外，所有的时间和精力都花在考试和复习上了。她的目标是出国，痴迷得像中了魔法。赵振涛觉得她的一切努力都是徒劳的：像我们这样的人，到了国外能做什么呢？他又把这张照片珍藏了起来。 孟瑶让海英喊赵振涛吃饭。赵海英刚刚走过来，屋里的电话就响了。赵振涛抓起电话，一听就是家乡北龙市市委书记高焕章打来的。高书记深沉的男低音问道：“振涛吗？先说，你吃饭了没有啊？” 赵振涛回答说：“没呢，您是什么时候来的？到我家吃饺子吧！孟瑶刚刚包好三鲜馅儿的饺子！” 高焕章说：“振涛啊，我们这有一帮子人哪，你还是出来吧，叫孟瑶和孩子都来！我请你们全家吃饭。我还有急事儿找你呢！” 赵振涛喉咙里一阵酥麻：“高书记，您要是想我了，我就去，您要是找我谈工作、办公事，我就不去啦！” 高焕章在电话里骂开了：“你小子官儿当大了，是吧？跟我端架子摆谱儿是不？你小子还回不回北龙啦？小心我上门骂你！” 赵振涛支吾道：“您都说完啦？能不能让我说一句？实话跟您说，我被省委免职啦！” 电话里有一分钟的静音，高焕章粗重的喘气声，赵振涛能听个清清楚楚。过了好一会儿，高焕章才说：“这，这不可能，你干得好好的，怎么会被免职呢？你小子别逗我这个老头子！” 赵振涛缓缓地说：“见面我跟您细说。”他放下了电话。 赵海英一直站在大哥身边，静静地听着。她见大哥放下电话，就讷讷地说：“大哥，俺知道你特忙，今天心情又不好，你给俺三分钟的时间，听俺说几句，行吗，求求你了。”她咬住嘴唇，满脸是泪水。 赵振涛愣了愣：“海英，等大哥晚上回家再说行吗？” 赵海英说：“眼下说，正好是个机会。大哥，还是俺孩子他爹的事儿，齐少武在咱乡当书记，干得满不错，这回他是副县长的候选人。新补的四个候选人里只能上一个，求大哥跟高书记说说情，让他上去吧。他说，省里市里的活动费，十万二十万，他出——” 赵振涛顿时一脸火气：“这都是什么呀？花钱买官，我赵振涛最瞧不起的就是这种人！海英，你们不是离婚了吗？” 赵海英顿觉喉咙被阻塞了：“大哥，俺是跟这狗东西离了，可他不让俺见孩子，俺不能没有孩子啊！他说俺帮了他这一回，他就把孩子还给俺。”她说不下去了，一把一把抹眼泪。 赵振涛气愤地说：“这叫什么事儿啊？齐少武这种人还能当副县长？我看他这乡书记也当到头了！海英，你真是太善良了。你记住，孩子的事大哥给你办，给他跑官的事你就别管了，弄不好，他出了事儿咱们都跟着背黑锅。不说他了，海英，咱爹、四妹、小乐他们都还好吧？” 赵海英抬起泪眼说：“大哥，俺只想要孩子。” 赵振涛拍拍海英的肩膀：“去，跟你嫂子吃饭吧。我出去一下就回来。” 孟瑶在外屋都听见了，她推开门大声说：“振涛，你这人还有记性没有？你不是说，吃完饭去看我爸爸吗？怎么，那个大老高。一个电话你就颠颠儿地去了？你在他们手里不是没短处吗？那封匿名信里告你跑北龙港时，受了他们的贿赂！这冤不冤啊？” 赵振涛说：“咱脚正不怕鞋歪。高书记是我家乡的父母官，帮着建北龙港，是我愿意做的。老高说有急事找我，我也顺便跟他说说我的工作变动。咱爸那里明天再去嘛。” 赵振涛提上公文包，急匆匆地走了。 在天源大酒店里，赵振涛见到了北龙市的党政要员：除了市委高书记，还有年轻的市长胡勇、市委市政府的秘书长，以及北龙港的总指挥熊大进。赵振涛见到这些老朋友感到很亲切，在酒桌上端起酒杯的时候，就把眼前的烦恼，全跟着酒顺下去了。他涨红着脸说：“省委大院，都知道我赵振涛成了北龙市的办事处。高书记、胡市长，你们可听清了，我赵振涛沿街乞讨的时候，你们可得给碗粥喝呀！哈哈哈！” 高焕章笑着说：“小赵，你要愿意，我找省委潘书记去说，你就回老家干吧。我明年就得退了，你和胡市长，摽着膀子干一场，把咱北龙的贫困帽子彻底摘掉！” 胡市长附和说：“对，老书记说得对，振涛，你当书记，我继续给你拉套！” 赵振涛怯怯地摆手：“别别别，刚才我是一句玩笑话，你们可别当真啊。我哪有高书记、胡市长那两下子？如今我像银行里的呆账赖账，是该清理的那一类！这不，下个礼拜一，我就得到党校报到去啦。” 高焕章顿了顿，说：“我是真没想到哇，听说，有人诬告你？” 赵振涛摆摆手说：“喝酒，喝酒，今天不提那个，无官一身轻啊！到北京，换换脑子，也不赖嘛！” 胡市长说：“振涛老弟，你别放烟雾弹啊。到中央党校，那是镀金的地方，回来就升了。来，敬你一杯，先给你夸夸官！” 赵振涛就痛痛快快喝下去了。 回到省委招待处，高焕章把赵振涛拉到了自己的客房里。把门一关，赵振涛借着酒劲儿就跟高焕章说起了知心话，将诬告信的内容，将自己的想法，全盘托出。 高焕章愤愤不平地说：“如果省里对你另有重用，我不说啥，要是因为我们北龙港误了你的前程，我老头子心里不安哪！无论如何，明天我见到潘书记时要替你说说这个话！” 赵振涛显见着有了激动，抓住高书记的手：“老高，有您这句话，我赵振涛就知足啦！咱先不提我的事了，在酒桌上，您还留了一半的话没说。告诉我，你们这个大队人马开到省城，到底干什么来了？” 高焕章说：“四天后，咱北龙市通往北龙港的高速公路开通，盐化县城连接北龙港的跨海大桥也要举行通车典礼。我们是来请省委省政府和有关部门的领导参加通车典礼的！” 赵振涛喜形于色：“太好啦，祝贺你们啊！” 高焕章依然沉着脸：“唉，套用人家名人的一句话说，高兴的事儿都是一样的，困难的事儿各有各的难处啊！” 赵振涛一拐：“怎么？天下还有难倒你大老高的事儿吗？” 高焕章把牙花子嘬得山响：“唉，眼下是治理整顿的时候，银行紧缩银根，咱北龙港又是地方所属港口，实在支撑不住，已经停工下马了！” 赵振涛惊讶道：“哎，我听三妹说港口还施工呢！” 高焕章说：“那是瘦狗拉硬屎，强挺着哪！如果拉不到外资，等剪彩典礼一结束，就得停下来啦！咱停个一时半载的倒还不怕，我担心的是，我退下来之后，新班子能不能继续干下去。” 赵振涛果决地说：“千万不能下马呀！北龙港一停，多少矛盾的焦点就会朝你打来！当初上马时的背景，您比我更清楚哇。那样，连我这个局外人也脸上无光啊！” 高焕章眼圈黑黑的，双唇颤抖：“这我都想过了。” 赵振涛说：“老高，小胡跟您配合得怎么样？” 高焕章痛苦地摇了摇头：“我这阵儿预感不好。” 赵振涛心里沉沉的，盼着老高继续说下去，然而高焕章却咯噎一下子不说了。 3 四菊将屋子简单收拾了一下，这才洗脸、梳头。 四菊没有听见父亲屋里的动静，她正认真地照镜子。她从镜子里看出额头上有一块淤血，紫颜色的淤血，那是小乐抡她时跌在地上撞的，可这并不影响她俊秀美丽的脸庞。在她们四姐妹中，每个人的特点都很明显：大姐的端庄、二姐的泼辣、三姐的善良，而四菊呢，用大哥赵振涛的话说，则是集三个姐姐的特点于一身。她眼黑，脸白，嘴角处还汪着两个浅浅的酒窝。她这种妩媚端庄的俏美，足以回击任何一个男人轻佻的目光。 她上学时的成绩不错，可考大学那年，她落榜了。她与朱朱是同学，朱朱也是同一年落榜的。那时全家人都替她惋惜，大哥大嫂还专程从省城跑回老蟹湾，安慰她，劝她继续复习考学。大哥还说，可以给她找一所自费大学，三个姐姐、姐夫也都同意出钱赞助她。她是自尊心很强的姑娘，全家人越对她好，她就越难过。让她惊讶的是，父亲反而红着眼睛不说一句话。当时，三姐还没有跟姐夫分居，小乐又在蹲监狱，她想：爹大孤单了，他养儿育女，苦巴苦累地熬到今天，身边得有人照顾啊。那时，父亲用十分复杂的眼神打量了她一眼，这眼神让她的心很沉地跳了一下。就在这一刻，四菊对自己的命运做了最后的决定，她淡淡地说：“大哥、大嫂，姐姐、姐夫，你们的好意俺记一辈子，可俺这样一个乡下姑娘能出息到哪儿去？俺认命了，留在老蟹湾，替你们照顾咱爹！” 在场的人都惊呆了。赵老巩长满络腮胡子的老脸一抖，老泪纵横。大哥感动地说了一句：“小妹，你的心清澈见底啊！” 四菊依然不动声色地保持着那种必要的微笑：“咱老蟹湾就不能活人了吗？” 她这句富有挑战性的话，果真被应验了。她与几个同学合股搞起了海水养殖场，她被推举为场长，尽管每年的收入不多，可她终于有了自己的事业。她还被评上了县里的三八红旗手。在个人感情上，她也有自己的主意，她是个重情感的女人，她绝不用自己的纯情去做交换，绝不准自己更不准别人来亵渎它。就说刘连仲吧，她还在考验着这个剽悍的小伙子，她正带着新鲜和持久的情感，细细地打量着他。 想到这儿，她朝镜子里的自己笑了一下，因自己的痴态而感到有点不好意思。她把镜子收起来，上床睡觉去了。 四菊不像爹，她这一夜睡得很踏实。早上醒来，一抹亮光被淡蓝色的墨竹窗帘过滤后，就浅了，粉粉的，妖妖的，她玻璃瓶一样亮洁的脖子，红红地睡出细汗，脸上也好像泛起了好看的霞色。她听见爹的屋子里有了不小的动静，还听到了汽车刹车的声响，过后就是刘连仲瓮声瓮气的粗门大嗓：“赵大伯，俺送小乐回家啦，您夜里惦记坏了吧？” 接着就是爹的声音：“连仲啊，四菊都跟俺说了，多亏了你呀！不然这杂种还不知给俺惹出啥乱子来呢！” 四菊赶紧爬起来，利利索索穿好衣裳。她见小乐理亏似的走进屋里，惶惶地看了赵老巩一眼。 赵老巩瞅着小乐，气得脊椎骨都在痉挛，老人憋了一夜的话，像暴雨点子往他脸上砸：“你小子出息啦？露脸啦？你要是俺赵老巩的儿子，人家把你给蹬了，就自个儿长脸，活出个人样来！你喝两口猫尿，舞刀弄棒地耍光棍儿，算是哪门子本事？你闹你闹哇，俺看你小子非闹得戴大盖帽儿的送你一颗枪子，你就舒服啦！” 赵小乐闷闷地站着，喘息着。 刘连仲说：“大伯，小乐醒酒之后，俺劝过他啦，他也知道后悔啦，您就别说他啦。”说完，他就转身出去，到四菊屋去了。 赵老巩对小乐是不依不饶：“你不知道你是有前科的人吗？这几年的大狱，你白蹲了吗？你这次减刑，你大哥是求了人的！冲谁？不是冲你赵小乐，是冲你爹俺！你小子不骑骏马骑瞎驴，净走歪道，真出了大事儿，你大哥也保不了你！懂吗？” 赵小乐痛苦地扭皱着脸，瞅了爹一眼。 赵老巩看着儿子的可怜相，心软了：“孩子，别跟朱朱过不去，眼气没有用，要气就气你自己！傻不傻呀？你爹一辈子堂堂正正地做人，兴他人不仁，不兴咱不义！你爹都这把年纪了，说不定哪天一口气上不来，就撒手找你娘了，俺最放心不下的就是你呀！你说，你爹还图个啥？不就是想看着你成个家，平平安安的。” 老人说到这里顿了顿，抬起袖衫擦了擦眼睛：“你说，你对得起爹不？你要是不学好，俺到了九泉之下，咋跟你娘交代哪？唵？爹这辈子对得起你不——” 赵老巩说不下去了，呜呜地哽咽了。 赵小乐嗵地一声跪在老人脚下，从腰里抽出那把刀，双手捧到脑顶，声泪俱下：“爹，俺对不住您，今儿个这把刀给您，俺从今往后要是不成人，您就用这把刀将俺的手砍下来！” 赵老巩弯下身，接过刀，浑身剧烈地颤抖着，身子向前扑了一下，险些跌倒。 这里的声音都被对面屋里的四菊和刘连仲听到了。刘连仲想走过来看看，被四菊拦住了。赵四菊心里突然涌出一股暖流，刺激得鼻子有些发酸。小乐哥哥能不让家里人操心，老爹就会多活几年，这是她的心愿，等着她将来成了家，就把老爹接过去，小乐能管好自己就不错了。刘连仲不懂四菊的心思，抬手搭在四菊的肩膀上，讨好似的说：“四菊，俺发现你对这个家够上心的。你放心，等你成了俺的媳妇，俺会把他们爷儿俩照顾好的！” 四菊瞪着他说：“谁说嫁给你啦？” 刘连仲仓促地回应道：“你那双会说话的大眼睛告诉俺的。你会成为俺刘连仲的老婆。俺有这个自信！” 四菊问：“俺的眼睛？都说俺的眼睛清澈黑亮，黑眼睛是看不出什么的。你觉得，那是你自己的感觉，就凭昨天晚上？为小乐的事，俺会嫁给你？”她微微翘起了下巴。 刘连仲挪开手，目光很倔地射向四菊：“俺是凭自身的魅力来征服所爱的女人，俺不会像小乐那样。刀子是拢不住人心的，即便抓住人，也拢不住心。没有擦出一点火花来的婚姻，算是一流的吗？那又有啥意思呢？强拧的瓜不甜！俺早就跟你说过，俺是新渔民，要追求一流的婚姻！” 四菊笑模笑样地听着：“这个想法真不错，俺也赞成！不过，你没有正面回答俺的问题，你说，俺们能找到你说的哪种感觉吗？” 刘连仲眨眨眼睛，走过来，又一把搂紧了她：“四菊，俺觉得咱们的火候到了，嫁给俺吧。俺值相术，你的脸相有怪骨，骨头结构属于异相，俺也是异相，两个异相的人结合了，就能和和睦睦，要多幸福有多幸福，懂吗？” 四菊挣开刘连仲，捂着嘴巴笑个不停。 刘连仲茫然地看着她：“你，你笑啥？” 四菊说：“俺笑你也学会了空手套白狼。告诉你，傻小子，俺不是娇小姐。俺们劳动人民从不考虑嫁人是多么神圣，也就很少有嫁不出去的麻烦。俺不会像你说的那样，俺很实际，俺能随随便便地还俗嫁人的。” 刘连仲咧咧嘴说：“俺明白了，你想嫁个趁钱的。俺刘连仲在老蟹湾不算大款，也是个小款吧？” 四菊摇摇头：“你呀，继续努力，还差老鼻子呢！” 刘连仲如数家珍地说：“俺家有汽车、有房子、有养殖场、有存款，你还要啥？” 四菊用手点了他脑门一下，一字一句地说：“你这儿穷！” 刘连仲摸着后脑勺愣着：“别开玩笑！俺都糊涂啦！” 四菊念念有词地说：“你不是笨人。天下事情凡涉及到自己，咋就啥都模糊了，这叫当事者迷！” 这时赵老巩喊：“四菊，连仲，快到你们的养殖场看看吧，天儿不好，八成是狗日的捂着风暴潮呢！” 四菊和刘连仲答应着往外走。 赵老巩又盯着小乐吼：“你也去，帮着四菊干点活儿！” 赵小乐颠颠地跟着他们走了。 在去海边的路上，四菊听见小乐在和刘连仲悄悄地嘀咕着什么，有几句她是听清了，小乐还在为朱朱迟婚的事耿耿于怀。他是在和刘连仲商量，想先弄清勾走朱朱魂魄的小白脸是谁，然后再想个招子治治那个家伙。四菊装着没有听见，心里盘算着养殖场该怎样抗过风暴潮的事。 走到海滩养殖场的时候，早晨的海雾还没有散去，帆和船的影子都很模糊，潮音和海鸟的叫声也模糊着，凉飕飕的海风充斥着湿腥气的海滩。海面上有些骚动不安。四菊指挥着小乐和刘连仲将孵化室里的仪器装进大包里，又将三只舢板船抬到岸上。因为是早春，孵化场还没有孵化虾苗和蟹苗，要是秋天闹起风暴潮，怎样准备都避免不了损失。 四菊让小乐和刘连仲都回去了，自己准备做些善后事情。她蹲在大堤上，饶有兴味地听滩涂上鬼蟹拱泥打挺儿的噗噗声，她并不知道海里的天气说变就变了。她嗅到了一种很浓郁的海腥气，不由吃了一惊。狂风将她的喘息声一同吹向了远处，一人高的浪头铺天盖地地袭来。 发天啦！八级强台风卷起的风暴潮，席卷着扑向老蟹湾。