Chapter 15 14

Around the Mid-Autumn Festival is the most beautiful time in Beiping.The weather is just neither hot nor cold, and the length of day and night is evenly divided.There is no yellow wind blowing from Mongolia in winter, and there is no torrential rain with hail in dog days.The sky is so high, so blue, and so bright, as if telling the people of Peiping with a smile: In these days, nature will not threaten or harm you.The blue of the western mountains and the northern mountains has deepened a bit, and every evening they are covered with various colors of clouds. During the Taiping period, high-rise and street stalls on the street, as well as fruit shops, displayed fruits that only the people of Peiping could name one by one.All kinds of grapes, all kinds of pears, all kinds of apples are enough for people to see, smell and eat, but what’s more, with the special gourd-shaped gourd that is beautiful, smells and tastes delicious Chinese jujubes, sweet and crisp little white pears, white crabapples as big as bonuses, crabapples and papayas that are only for smelling, and champagne seeds with gold stars all over the body, together with those for worshiping the moon. The pillow-shaped watermelon with gold paper strips and the yellow and red cockscomb flowers make people no longer care about enjoying the food, but can no longer tell which smell is better, which color is more beautiful, and the slight Some drunk!

Those fruits, no matter in the store or on the stand, are all arranged so beautifully, the hoarfrost on the fruit skin has not been rubbed off at all, and they are all arranged in three-dimensional patterns with fragrance, which makes people feel that those fruit sellers They are artists who make beautiful things more beautiful.Besides, they can sing!They carefully set up the stalls, and then sang the melodious "Guo Zan" with a crisp voice: "Oh--for a dime, you just pick a bunch of my little white pears, the skins are tender, The water is sweet, without any bug eyes, my little tender white pear!" The singing voice trembled in the fragrance, matching the music of the apple and grape, making people slow down, listening, watching and smelling Beiping The beauty of autumn.

At the same time, the plump chestnuts from Liangxiang, wrapped in fine sand and molasses, are frying on the side of the road, and even the firewood smoke under the pot is fragrant. Outside the door of the "big wine vat", fat and tender mutton is being stir-fried with snow-white scallions; a bowl of wine, four taels of meat, and two or three cents can get you drunk.Sorghum-red river crabs are packed in mat baskets and sold along the street, and people who can enjoy them will go to Zhengyang Tower to lightly crack the hairy crab legs with a small wooden hammer. At the same time, in the middle of the "fragrant" fruit stalls on the street, there are still so many stalls of rabbit masters, with powder-faced and painted bodies, and rabbit masters with flag umbrellas behind them-big and small, all equally beautiful Some are riding tigers, some are sitting on lotus flowers, some are carrying shaved heads on their shoulders, and some are carrying bright red wooden cabinets; these sculptures have planted the seeds of beauty in the hearts of thousands of children.

At the same time, Fengtai, which feeds on flowers, began to transport autumn chrysanthemums with large leaves to the city one by one, and the gardeners in the park and the art chrysanthemum family who love beauty also prepared to spend more than half a year of hard work and labor on them. The exotic flowers and species cultivated open "chrysanthemum exhibition".There are so many kinds of chrysanthemums in Beiping, and the styles are so strange that they are enough to be the best in the world. At the same time, young students who are as proud and handsome as spring flowers are rowing from Tsinghua Garden, from Haidian where lotus liquor is produced, from the southeast and northwest cities, to Beihai; Some fragrance.

At the same time, those well-educated Peiping people have been preparing to give boxing gifts to their relatives and friends since the beginning of August.Shops on the street use all kinds of wine bottles and moon cakes with various fillings to dress themselves up like bright brides; even those shops that don't sell gifts have to join in the fun and hang up banners for the big discounts during the Autumn Festival. Silk strips, welcome the autumn of Peking. Autumn in Peking is a paradise on earth, maybe a little more prosperous than heaven! Mrs. Qi's birthday is August 13th.Without saying anything, the old man hoped that this day would be as lively as previous years.Every year, birthdays are followed by holidays, and even if he is a little uncomfortable, he must struggle to express joy and excitement.After the age of sixty, the joint celebration of birthday and Autumn Festival has almost become his religious ceremony - on this day, he must wear the clothes he loves most; The silver coins given out are given to the children who congratulate him on his birthday; he must kindly ask his relatives and friends about their lives, and then give encouragement or advice one by one according to his life experience; he must pay attention to observation and teach every guest Eat up, and check out the fruits or snacks he doesn't like very much and give them to the children to take away.He is an old birthday star, so he must do all the kindness, politeness, and generosity that an old birthday star should have, so as not to teach the guests to complain secretly because of dissatisfaction, and thus shorten his life span.After his birthday passed, he felt tired; although he also showed that he was very concerned about how everyone celebrated the Mid-Autumn Festival, he only regarded it as the end of the birthday in his heart, but it was not too important, because the birthday belonged to him, and the festival belonged to everyone He created this family, including the population and property, so he should be a little selfish.

This year, ten days before his birthday, he has not slept well at night.He knew very well in his heart that with the Japanese occupying Beiping, he really shouldn't expect birthdays and festivals to be as lively as in previous years.Even so, he was unwilling to give up hope easily.Wasn't Qian Moyin captured by the Japanese military police, and there is no news so far?Who knows how many more days I can live!So, isn't it a happy event to be alive?Why not have a happy birthday?Thinking about it this way, he not only hoped to pass his life, but also hoped that this time would be twice as lively as any previous one—whether it was possible or not!Maybe, this might be the last time!Besides, he must have known that he had never offended the Japanese. Could it be that the Japanese—however unreasonable—wouldn't allow an honest man to celebrate his seventy-fifth birthday?

He decided to take a look on the street.He could see clearly what the Beiping street market should look like during the autumn festival when he closed his eyes; there was really no need for him to go to the street.However, he wants to go out, not to see the autumn festival market that he knows, but to see if there is a festive weather in this year's market.If the streets were as lively as usual, he would undoubtedly be able to celebrate his birthday happily.And the Japanese occupation of Beiping by force is nothing serious. On the street, he didn't smell the fragrance of fruit, didn't meet a few people with gifts in their hands or on their shoulders, and didn't see many moon cakes for the Mid-Autumn Festival.He used to walk very slowly, but now he can't walk up at all.He imagined that there were no fruits in the city because there was no peace outside the city, and nothing could enter the city.He also knows that the scarcity of moon cakes is a sign that everyone dare not celebrate the festival.He suddenly felt a little cold all over.In his mind, as long as the Japanese did not interfere with his own life, he could not think of hating them.As for state affairs, just like the Japanese, he always thinks that they are far away from him and don't need to bother.He just wants to live in peace and celebrate his birthday happily; he feels that since he has failed anyone, he should enjoy the right to peace and happiness!

Now, he understands that Japan has not allowed him to celebrate his birthday! Given that old man Qi has experienced many hardships, his little eyes are not willing to shed tears easily.However, now his eyes are a little bit blind to what is in front of him.He has lived to be seventy-five years old.If the children cry because of a little trouble, the old people will think of the close relationship between age and death because of a little trouble, and it is not easy to control their tears. When the old people and the children can no longer cry, the world will change Either it is the most peaceful time, or it is the most terrifying time.He found a bean juice stand, and he sat there for a while, feeling a little better.

He started walking home.On the way, he saw two rabbit stalls, both of which had many colorful rabbits of different sizes.In previous years, he would take his son, or grandson, or great-grandson to stand in front of such a stall for an hour, admiring, criticizing, and buying one or two small and finely crafted clay rabbits. .Today, he walked alone in front of the stall, and he felt lonely.At the same time, in previous years, the Rabbit Lord’s stall was set up together with many fruit stalls, which made people see two different things, and they were quickly connected together—supplied Rabbit King with fresh fruits.Because of this combination of concepts, a beautiful, peaceful, and joyful picture of worshiping the moon is immediately drawn in people's hearts.Today, the stalls of the two rabbit masters are isolated, and there are no delicious and delicious fruits on both sides, which makes Old Man Qi feel strange and even a little scared.

He wanted to buy two rabbit masters for Xiao Shun'er and Niu Zi.Soon he changed his mind again--buying things for the children in this age?However, before he could make up his mind, the stall operator, a skinny man in his thirties, stopped him with a smile on his face: "Take care of the old man!" Judging by the smile on his face, With the gentleness of his voice, old man Qi could see that even if he didn't buy his goods, but just chatted with him for a while, he must be very happy.Old Man Qi didn't stop, he wasn't in the mood to buy toys or gossip.The thin man rushed over and said, "Take care of it! Cheap!" Hearing "cheap", almost instinctively, the old man stopped.The thin man's smile widened even more. If he had been worried just now, he seemed to have let go of his heart now.He smiled and sighed, as if to say: "I have caught a God of Wealth!"

"Old man, sit down for a while and rest your legs!" The thin man pulled the bench over and wiped it with his sleeve. "Let me tell you, it's been on display for three days, and it hasn't been opened yet. What do you think about this year? The goods are all made in one summer, can you not sell them? But..." Seeing that the old man had already sat down , He quickly got to the point: "Come on, you old man, take my two big ones and sell them at a loss! What do you want? This pair, one riding a black tiger, the other riding a yellow tiger, It's very good! The play is really authentic!" "To buy for two children, you have to buy exactly the same one, so as not to quarrel!" Elder Qi felt that he was trapped by the skinny guy, so he had to use words to prevaricate. "Some are the same, you can choose!" The thin man decided not to let the old man go. "Look, do you want two black tigers, or a pair of lotus seats? The price is the same, I'll sell it cheaply!" "I don't want such a big one! The child is small, but the toy is big, and it is easy to fall!" The old man pushed the thin man back again, feeling a little happier in his heart. "Then you can choose two small ones, that's it!" The thin man decided to make this business. "The big ones and the small ones have the same price, because the small ones are detailed, so if you save materials, you won't save labor!" He gently picked up a little rabbit less than three inches high, and put it in the palm of his hand to examine it carefully: " Look how meticulous the work is!" The little rabbit is indeed meticulous: the pink face is so smooth, the eyebrows and eyes are so delicate, even a seventy-five-year-old man can't help but love it like a child.There is no rouge on the face, but only a thin line drawn on the small three-petal mouth, which is red and oiled; the two slender white ears are lightly painted with a little light red; A kind of handsome appearance, it seems to be Huang Tianba among rabbits.Its upper body is wearing a vermilion robe, and from the waist down are emerald green leaves and pink flowers. Every leaf fold and petal is carefully dyed with a bright and even color, making the green leaves and red flowers sparkle. Old Man Qi's small eyes sparkled.However, he knows how to control himself.He couldn't be seduced by this little clay thing and spend money casually.He would rein in his money like a horse on a precipice--that was the first reason he had a family. "I think, I'd better pick two that are not too big and not too small!" He could see that those medium-sized toys were neither as mighty as the large ones nor as exquisite as the small ones, and of course the price was also high. Appropriate. The thin man was a little disappointed.However, with the self-cultivation that a Peking peddler should have, he kept his disappointment tightly sealed in his heart, and he was not allowed to let it out. "Choose whatever you like, it's just a gadget anyway, it doesn't mean much!" It took the old man twenty-five minutes to choose a pair.It took less than twenty-five minutes or so to negotiate a price.The price was negotiated, and he sat down again--he would not take out the money until he had to; money was as safe in his own pocket as a dog on a leash. The thin man is not in a hurry.He would like to have such an old man sitting here as a billboard for his obligations.At the same time, when the deal was completed, they became friends. He said to the old man what he had in mind: "If this goes on like this, my little bit of craftsmanship must be completely lost!" "Why?" The old man took out his hand to touch the money bag again. "Look, if I can't sell all my goods this year, will I still prepare like a fool for next year? No! If it goes on for a few years, this craft will not stop rooting? Don't you think so?" "How many years?" The old man's heart turned cold. "The three eastern provinces... haven't they been lost for several years?" "Hmph!" The old man's hand trembled a little, he quickly took out the money and handed it to the thin man. "Humph! A few years! I've been buried in the dirt!" After finishing speaking, he almost forgot to take the pair of mud rabbits, and was about to walk away, if the skinny man hadn't handed them over carefully. "Years!" he muttered to himself as he walked.Muttering these two words in his mouth, the eyes in his heart have already seen that his coffin will probably be carried out of the city gate guarded by Japanese soldiers, and his descendants will live in Beiping where there are no rabbits; With the disappearance of Master Rabbit, many cute and unique things in Peiping must also be wiped out!He couldn't think of a term like "subjugation and misery" to give a simple and powerful conclusion to the depression and concern in his heart. He only felt that "the root of it" was "extremely" no matter who it is or what it is. wrong!In his mind, which has been active for seventy-five years, he seldom uses "ten" to describe anything that is wrong.Even if sometimes he feels the need to use "ten" as a description, he always tries to reduce it to nine or eight points, so as not to arouse his anger and cause any drastic action; Deal with anything with anger.He didn't read any books, but he always thought that the method of not getting angry when he suffered a disadvantage was taught to him directly by Confucius or Mencius. As he walked, he reduced the "10" score.He is seventy-five years old, "old and weak", and he must suppress his anger.Before he knew it, he had reached the sheepfold and found his home like an old horse with half-closed eyes.Walking outside Qian's house, he couldn't help thinking of Mr. Qian Moyin, and immediately felt that "10 points" could not be reduced.At the same time, he felt that it was very inappropriate to hold two rabbits in his hands; what happened to Mr. Qian, was he beaten to death by the Japanese, or was he suffering torture in prison?The friend's life and death are unknown, and he still has the heart to buy a rabbit baby for his great-grandson!Thinking of this, he almost admitted that Young Master Qian's death of a carload of Japanese soldiers and his grandson Ruiquan's escape were all reasonable actions. The door of number one opened.The old man was taken aback.Almost instinctively, he took a few steps forward; he didn't want the people from the Qian family to see him -- he was holding Master Rabbit in his hand! After walking a few steps, he regretted it.Based on his friendship with old man Qian, is this how he avoids his friends' family members?He immediately slowed down and looked back in shame.Mrs. Qian -- a dwarf woman in her fifties who is gentler than a butterfly and more pitiful than a lamb -- is standing outside the door.A small blue cloth bag was tucked under her left armpit, and she looked at the big pagoda tree and then at the blue cloth bag with her two deeply recessed eyes, as if she had lost her way in front of her own house.Old man Qi turned back.Mrs. Qian's right hand pulled up a bit of her gown - a very old and very long gown, so long that it covered her feet - she seemed to be turning backwards.The old man rushed over and called Mrs. Qian.Mrs. Qian didn't move, she just stared at him blankly.The muscles on her face seemed to have forgotten how to express, only the eyelids slowly opened and closed. "Mrs. Qian!" The old man called out again, but couldn't think of anything else to say. She, too, could not speak; the utter misery left a blank space in her heart. The old man took a few breaths before asking, "How is Mr. Qian?" She lowered her head slightly, but she didn't cry; her tears seemed to have been used up long ago.She turned around quickly and stepped over the threshold.The old man followed in.In the doorway she found her voice, a hoarse voice of music that had lost its words: "I have asked everywhere, but I can't find out where he is! Uncle Qi! I am a person who never steps out of this threshold all year round, but now I have searched all over Nine City!" "Where is the young master?" "Hurry up, hurry up! Father was arrested, younger brother was martyred, and he is sick; his illness is exacerbated. He hasn't eaten a bite or spoken a word for three days! Uncle Qi, if the Japanese use cannons to attack the city It's better to be flattened than to entrap people like this!" At this point, she raised her head.In her eyes, instead of tears, there was a fire of anger; she couldn't stop blinking, as if she was being burned by fireworks.The old man froze for a while.He wanted to help her very much, but everything was too big for him to do his best.If these sufferings fell on others, he would simply judge: "It's fate!" However, he couldn't use these words to judge the matter in front of him, because he did know that the Qian family They are all 110% good people and absolutely should not be tortured like this. "Now, where are you going?" She looked at the blue cloth bag under her armpit, her face twitched, and then she raised her head, determined to suppress her shyness: "I'll go Dangdang!" Immediately afterwards, her face showed a slight smile, but From extreme exertion, a little smile is like a little sunshine trying to shine through behind thick clouds. "Hmph! Normally, I'm a little afraid to buy things with money, but now I'm going to pawn shop too!" Old man Qi got a chance to help: "I, I can lend you a few dollars!" "No, Uncle Qi!" She said so resolutely that a sharp voice came out of her hoarse voice. "We've had a long time! Mrs. Qian!" "No! My husband never asks for help all his life, and I can't..." When he is not at home..." She couldn't finish the sentence. She wanted to be strong, but she also knew the price of being strong.She suddenly changed her words: "Uncle Qi! Look, how is Mo Yin? Can he still be alive? Can he return it?" Old Man Qi's hands trembled.He couldn't answer her.After thinking for a long time, he said in a low voice: "Mrs. Qian! Shall we go and ask Guan Xiaohe?" He would not say: "The person who untied the bell or the one who tied it", but his tone and expression helped him, Teach Mrs. Qian to understand what he meant. "Him? Begging him?" Her eyebrows rose a little. "I'll go! I'll go!" Old Man Qi hurriedly said. "You know, I hate that guy too!" "You don't have to go either! He's not a human being!" Mrs. Qian would never say a single dirty word in her life, "not a human being" has already exhausted all her resentment and curses. "Ah, I have to go to the pawn shop quickly!" She said, and walked out quickly. Old man Qi didn't understand her at all.She, such an honest, well-behaved, and shy woman, turned out to be so resolute, fierce, and brave!He was stunned for a while, seeing that she had already left the gate, and then he remembered to follow her.When he went out, he wanted to stop her, but she had already turned the corner—she didn't pay attention to closing the door, the door that was always tightly closed!The old man sighed, and for some reason wanted to throw a pair of clay things in his hand on the thick trunk of the big locust tree.However, he was not willing to do that.He also wanted to go in and have a look at Young Master Qian, but he couldn't pull himself together, he felt his heart was in a panic! When he reached the gate of No. 3, he wanted to go in and see Mr. Guan, and intercede with Qian Moyin.However, he had to think again.His willingness to rescue Mr. Qian was out of sincerity, but he never wanted to hurt himself by saving others.Having lived in his seventies in a society that is not very easy to deal with, he knows what it means to be cautious. At home, he seemed too tired to keep going.After handing the two toys to Xiao Shun'er's mother, he walked into his room without saying a word.Xiao Shun'er's mother was only focused on picking up and looking at the two clay objects, and didn't pay attention to the old man's expression.She said: "Hey! There is also a rabbit seller!" After she finished speaking, she regretted it; her tone was clearly a bit contemptuous of the old man, almost saying: "You still have the mind to buy things, in this Year and month!" She felt uncomfortable.In order to hide her not knowing what to do, she called Xiao Shun'er: "Come on, Grandpa is here to buy you rabbits!" Xiao Shun'er and Niuzi came running like two arrows.Xiao Shun'er took a mud rabbit, and the little girl put her index finger on her lips, watching the rabbit inhale, her face flushed with excitement. "Why don't you go in and thank the old man?" Their mother said loudly. Niuzi also took Mr. Rabbit over, held it in both hands, and walked into the old man's house with her brother. "Grandpa!" Xiao Shun'er laughed so much that she even moved her eyebrows. "You bought it?" "Grandpa!" Niuzi wanted to express her thanks, but couldn't find anything to say. "Let's play!" The old man said with half-closed eyes, "I played this year, but next year..." He swallowed back the second half of the sentence. "How about next year? Will you buy bigger, bigger, bigger next year?" Xiao Shun'er asked. "Big, big, big, right?" Niuzi followed her brother. The old man closed his eyes tightly and did not speak back.