Chapter 17 Chapter fifteen

Lao Luo just hid behind the suitcase.Walter and I spread some blankets there to keep his paralyzed body from hitting the floor hard.He was so paralyzed that even if he wanted to crawl out, he might not be able to move.However, he was afraid of being exposed, so he never tried to come out.Every night when the train moved, we opened the suitcase and either helped him to sit against the corner, or put him on the cot, and watched him want to sit or continue to lie flat.Walter insisted on giving the bed to Lok, so I insisted on giving the bedding to Walter, so I went back to the sleeping corner to get the saddle.

Within two days of living with us, Lao Luo was shaking so badly that he had trouble speaking.Walter returned to the train at noon to deliver food to Lao Luo. Seeing that he was in a bad condition, he ran to the animal tent and told me, but August stared at me, and I couldn't go back to the train. It was nearly midnight, and Walt and I were sitting side by side on the bed, waiting for the train to activate.As soon as the train moved, we pulled the suitcases away from the wall. Walter knelt down, put his hand into Lao Luo's armpit, and pulled him into a sitting position.Then he took a bottle out of his pocket.

Lao Luo's eyes fell on the bottle, and then quickly moved to Walt's face, tears welled up in his eyes. "What is that?" I asked quickly. "What else? Wine, of course, real wine, good wine." Lao Luo reached for the wine bottle with trembling hands.Still supporting his body, Walter uncapped the bottle and brought the bottle to the old man's lips. Another week passed, and Malena was still living in seclusion in the wing room.I was so anxious that I just wanted to see her, and I kept thinking about how to peep through the window so that no one would bump into me.Fortunately, I still have a little sense and didn't do anything stupid.

Every night, I lay in the corner of the smelly saddle, reliving our last conversation, every precious word.I tormented myself along the same trajectory, first to the unbelievable ecstasy, then to the bottom.I understood that all she could do was ask me to leave the wing, but even so, I was terribly uncomfortable and tossed and turned annoyed at the thought until Walter told me to be quiet and not to disturb his sleep. The convoy went and went.Most of the time we stay in a town for one day, but we usually stay two days on Sundays.On the way from Burlington to Keokuk, Walter swam copious amounts of whiskey and finally got out the name of Old Locke's son and where he lived when the father and son last communicated.After a few stops in the troupe, Walter always went to town after breakfast, and didn't come back until the performance time was approaching.By the time we got to Springfield, Walter had already contacted Luo's son.

At first he was unwilling to admit that Lao Luo was his father.But Walter persevered, and day after day he went into town, telegraphing and communicating with him.The next Friday, the son promised to meet us in Providence and take the old man to live with us.In other words, the current accommodation method will continue for several weeks, but it is a way out after all, and it is the best arrangement so far. In Terre Haute, the beautiful Lucinda died suddenly.Uncle Allen grieved, but recovered quickly and began planning a farewell ceremony for "our beloved Lucinda." An hour after the death certificate was issued, Lucinda's body was placed in the sink of the hippo carriage with twenty-four black Pershmers with feathered heads.

Uncle Ailan climbed onto the seat with the coachman, almost collapsed in grief.After a while, he shook his finger, indicating that Lucinda had to start the farewell procession.So, the horse-drawn cart slowly passed through the city streets, and all the members of the world's largest circus of the Benzini Brothers who could still be seen on the stage followed on foot.Uncle Ailan had a gloomy face, weeping for a while, covering his face with a red handkerchief and weeping for a while, occasionally peeking up, trying to gauge whether the speed of the parade could attract the crowd, the more people the better.

The woman followed directly behind the hippo caravan, dressed in black, and pressed the corners of her eyes with a lace handkerchief from time to time.I was a little behind, and there were crying men in all directions, and tears were intertwined and shining on every face.Uncle Allan once promised that the person who performed the best would get three dollars and a bottle of Canadian whiskey.You have never seen such a sad scene, even the dogs howling. Nearly a thousand townspeople followed us back.When Uncle Allan got up from the caravan, they fell silent. He took off his hat and hugged it to his chest, took out a handkerchief and pressed his eyes, and delivered a heartbreaking speech, so sad that he almost lost control.In the end, he said that if he had had the right to call it a night, he would have canceled the evening show for Lucinda, but he couldn't, it was out of his hands.He is a man who keeps his promises, and when Lucinda was dying, she held his hand and said that she was about to die, and she asked him to promise, no, it was a vow not to disrupt the routine of the regiment because of this, so that she could watch the circus Thousands of people in the regiment were disappointed.

"After all..." Uncle Ailan paused, pressed his heart with one hand, while blowing his nose miserably, looking up at the sky, letting tears roll down his cheeks. Women and children in the crowd wept in the open.A woman near the front row raised her hand to her forehead and fell down. The men on both sides hurriedly supported her. It can be seen at a glance that Uncle Ailan took a lot of effort to stabilize his emotions, but the trembling of his lower lip still couldn't be stopped.He nodded slowly and continued: "After all, as our beloved Lucinda knows well...the show must go on!"

The show that night was so full that the usual seats were sold, and the handymen spread hay in the arena for the audience who could not fit in the seats, which is the so-called "hay field". Uncle Allan opened with silence.He bowed his head, weeping a genuine tear, and dedicated tonight's performance to Lucinda; Lucinda's great selflessness is the only reason we continue to perform in the face of death, and we want her to take it for granted. Rong—oh, yes, our love for Lucinda is higher than mountains and deeper than seas, so though we mourn and our hearts are broken, we will rise up and fulfill her last wish and make her proud of us.Dear uncles and aunts, we will present an amazing performance that you have never seen in your life, and let us bring you laughter with the programs and artists we have gathered from all over the world, including tightrope walking, acrobatics, and top trapeze people??

About a quarter of the way through the performance, she stepped into the animal tent.Before the people around me murmured in surprise, I felt her coming. I put Bobo on the floor of her cage, and turned around to see, she was right there, wearing a pink sequined dress and a feather headdress, she was gorgeous.She unbridled the horses and set them down on the ground.Only one was still tethered, a black Arabian called Potts, supposed to be Silverstar's partner.It was visibly sullen. Leaning against Bobo's cage, I was fascinated. The horses had been riding in the same carriage every night, from town to town, looking just like ordinary horses, but now they were no longer the same.They exhale and snort, with their necks held high and their tails cocked.They form two dancing groups, one black and one white.Malena faced them with a long whip in each hand.She raised a whip, swung it over her head, and backed away, leading them out of the mantle.These horses were completely free, with no bridle, no bridle, no girth, nothing.They just followed her, shaking their heads and kicking their legs forward as if someone was riding on them.

I've never seen her perform.Those of us who work behind the scenes don't have that kind of luck, we don't have that kind of leisure time.But this time no one can stop me.I bolted Bobo's door and slipped down the open canvas passage that connected the animal tent to the big canopy.The ticket seller who reserved the seat glanced at me and ignored me when he saw that I was not a note.His pockets jingled and filled with money.I stood beside him, looking at the three performance areas near the back of the canopy. When Uncle Ai Lan introduced her to the stage, she stepped forward and turned around, holding up her double whips, waving one of them, and took a few steps back.Two herds of horses hurriedly followed her. Malena slid into the central performance area, and the horse followed her, kicking high, pranced into a black cloud and a white cloud. She took her place in the center of the performance area, flicking her whip lightly into the air.The horses trotted around the field, five white horses first, followed by five black horses, and after two full circles, she shook the whip.The black horses pick up speed until each black horse is trotting shoulder to shoulder with a white horse.The whip flicked again, they slowed down and lined up, forming a black and white team. She moves tiny, pink sequins shimmering in bright lights.She made a small circle around the center of the performance area, waved her double whips, and gave instructions. The horses continue to circle, first the white horse rounds the black horse, then the black horse rounds the white horse, and always returns to black and white formation. She drinks and they stop.She said something, and they turned around until their front hooves touched the sleepers outside the performance area.They walk sideways, with their tails towards Malena, their front hooves always on the sleepers.They circled a full circle before she gave the order to stop again.They lowered their front hooves and turned to face her.Then she called Midnight to come forward. Midnight is a handsome black horse.It is a purebred Arabian horse with only white hair on the forehead.She spoke to Midnight, holding both long whips in one hand, and stretched out the other towards Midnight.It pressed its muzzle and nose to the palm of her hand, its neck arched and its nostrils wide open. Malena stepped back, raising her whip.The other horses looked at her and started dancing on the spot.She raised the other whip, swinging the tip back and forth, and Midnight stood on her hind legs, front legs tucked in to her chest.She was yelling something, it was the capital opening her voice in the performance, and then she strode back.Midnight follows her, advancing on her hind legs while waving her front legs into the air.She made Midnight walk around the arena on its hind legs, and then signaled it to put down its front legs and stand up.Another round of the whip, and Midnight bowed her head, knelt down on one front leg, and stretched the other front leg to the side.Marlena saluted deeply, and the crowd went crazy for it.Midnight still maintained the posture of saluting, Marlena raised two whips and waved, and the rest of the horses turned around on the spot with their hind legs as the axis. More cheers, more cheers.Malena raised her arms high and turned to different directions one by one, so that the audience in each area had the opportunity to pay tribute.Then she turned to Midnight and rolled up on its slumped back with ease.It stood up, arched its neck and carried Malena out of the tent, followed by the other horses, split in half again by color, and rubbed against each other to get closer to their mistress. My heart is beating wildly.Despite the roar of cheers from the crowd, I could still feel the blood rushing through my ears.The love was born spontaneously and overflowed, almost bursting my heart. That night, with Old Locke drunk and Walter snoring on the bedding, I left the cell and stood looking at the backs of the show horses. I take care of these horses every day, clean their stables, collect water and food for them, brush their hair, and make them ready for performances.I check their teeth, comb their mane, and feel their legs to see if their hooves are warm.I give them treats and pat their necks.Like Queenie, they became the animals I got used to seeing.But after seeing Marlena's performance, the way I saw them changed forever.These horses are a part of Malena, a part of her that is with me here and now. My hand reaches over the partition, resting on the midnight shiny black buttocks.It was sleeping, but it woke up grunting when I touched it, and turned around to look. As soon as it saw me standing there alone, it turned its head back, dropped its ears, closed its eyes, shifted its weight, and rested one hind leg. I went back to the sheep house to see if Lao Luo was still breathing.Then I lay on the saddle mattress and dreamed a dream that would probably destroy my soul, a dream with Marlena. The next morning, at the warming table: "Look at that," Walter said, raising his arm to poke me in the ribs. "Look at what?" He pointed it out to me. August and Marina are sitting at our table.This was the first time they had dinner in the kitchen since she was injured in an accident. Walt looked me over and said, "You can handle it?" "That goes without saying." I was unhappy. "All right, all right, just care about it." He said.We walked past the ever-vigilant Ezra to our respective tables. "Good morning, Jacob," said August.I put the plate on the table and sit down. "August. Malena." I nodded to them one by one as a greeting. Malena glanced up, and then returned to the plate. "Good weather, how are you?" August said, attacking a pile of scrambled eggs. "I am OK, you?" "Amazing," he said. "How are you, Marina?" I asked. "It's better, thank you for your concern," she said. "I saw your performance last night," I said. "yes?" "Yeah." I said, shaking off the napkin and spreading it on my lap, "That's really... I don't know how to describe it, it's amazing, I've never seen such a performance in my life." "Really?" said August, raising an eyebrow. "Never seen it?" "No, this is the first time." "Really." He stared at me without blinking. "I thought you decided to join the circus after seeing Marlena's performance, Jacob. Am I wrong?" My heart pounded in my chest.I hold the knife and fork, the fork in my left hand and the knife in my right, just as my mother does. "I lied," I said. I poke at the end of the sausage and start cutting, waiting for his answer. "Please say it again, I didn't hear you clearly," he said. "I'm a liar, I'm a liar!" I slammed down my knife and fork with a piece of sausage still on it. "Is there a problem? Of course I never heard any class before I jumped on your train." Brother Zini. Has anyone ever heard of the name of Brother Banzini? The only circus I have ever seen in my life is Brother Linling, they are really amazing, amazing! Do you hear me?" The surrounding area was eerily quiet.I looked around, terrified.Everyone in the room stared at me.Walter opened his mouth wide, Queenie's ears were pressed against her head, and a camel hummed in the distance. Finally, my eyes returned to August.He's staring at me too, the edges of his mustache quivering.I pressed my napkin against the edge of my plate, wondering if he would leap over the table and jump at me. August's eyes widened.My hands are clenched under the table.Then August laughed out loud, so hard that his face was flushed, he pressed his stomach with one hand, and laughed out of breath.He laughed and howled until tears rolled down his cheeks and his lips quivered with gasping. "Ouch, Jacob," he wiped his cheek, "Ouch, Jacob, I think I misjudged you. Yes, I just misjudged you." He chatted loudly, blew his nose, and wiped his nose with a napkin. Face. "My God," he sighed, "My God." He cleared his throat, picked up his knife and fork, scooped up some eggs with the fork and put them down, laughing again. Others resumed eating, but they were reluctant, just like when I kicked a person out of the venue on my first day as an official in the regiment, the onlookers were reluctant to leave.I couldn't help noticing the look of apprehension on their faces as they resumed eating. With Lucinda's death like this, there's a big hole in our regiment's lineup of freaks, and that hole must be filled.All the big circuses have fat girls, so we had to have one too. Uncle Allan and August scoured for signs, calling and telegraphing every time they stopped, trying to lure a new fat girl.But the fat girl known by others is either satisfied with her life, or she can't trust Uncle Ailan's reputation, so she always refuses to come.Two weeks later, after traveling to ten places, Uncle Ai Lan was already so anxious that he simply went directly to a rather impressive woman in the auditorium.Unfortunately, she was the superintendent's wife, and as a result, Uncle Ailan didn't bring back a fat girl, only a bright purple dark circle and instructions to leave the city. The police gave us two hours.The entertainers immediately fled into the carriage.As soon as the handymen were woken up, they ran like headless chickens.Uncle Ailan was out of breath, his face was turning purple, and when he saw someone who was not moving fast enough, he hit the ground with his cane.Tents fell down in a jiffy, trapping people inside, and then the workmen who were tearing down the other tents had to stop what they were doing and go to rescue them before they suffocated in the vast expanse of canvas.But Uncle Ailan was more worried that those people would cut a hole in the canvas with a knife to breathe. After all the horses were loaded, I went back to the show carriage to rest.I don't like the way the locals hang around the edge of the camp.Many of them carried guns, and I had an ominous feeling. I haven't seen Walter yet.I paced up and down in front of the open carriage doors, scanning the camp.The blacks retreated to the cars of the Flying Squadron early, and I'm afraid the mob will start with the red-haired midget instead. An hour and fifty-five minutes after being ordered to evacuate, Walter's face appeared at the door. "Where did you die?" I yelled. "Walter is back?" Lao Luo asked hoarsely from behind the suitcase. "That's right. Come on." I beckoned Walt to the car. "These people don't seem to be messed with." He didn't move, his face was flushed, and he was out of breath. "Where's Queenie? See it?" "no, what happened?" He was nowhere to be seen. "Walter!" I jumped up and chased him to the door. "Walter! Where else do you want to go? The five-minute whistle has passed!" He ran alongside the train, bending his head to look between the wheels. "Queenie, be happy! Sister, come here!" He stood up straight, stopped in front of each animal carriage, and called to Queenie through the gaps in the wooden slats, waiting for a response. "Quinnie! Here, sister!" she called, her anxiety growing. The whistle sounded again, and after the long warning whistle, the locomotive neighed and dashed. Walter's voice split, hoarse. "Quinnie! Where the hell are you? Queenie! Come on!" Ahead, a few people who hadn't gotten into the car jumped onto the flatbed truck. "Walter, it's all right! Don't look for it, it's too late if you don't get in the car." I called. He was deaf.He got into the flatbed truck and peered under the wheels of the boxcar. "Come on Queenie!" he yelled, then stopped, and stood up suddenly, dazed. "Quinnie?" He didn't address anyone. "Damn," I said. "Does he want to come back?" Lao Luo asked. "I don't seem to plan to come back." I said. "Then get him back!" he swore. The train moved forward, the nose pulled at the joint between the carriages, and the carriages shook. I jumped onto the gravel and ran forward toward the bed of the flatbed.Walter stood facing the locomotive. I touch his shoulder. "Walter, it's time to go." He turned to me, pleading eyes. "Where is it? Did you see it?" "No, come on, Walter. We've got to get back to the car." "No. I can't leave it, I can't." He was blank. The train began to rattle and rattle, power increased. I glance back.The locals, armed with rifles, baseball bats, and sticks, were rushing forward.I turned back to look at the train, long enough to gauge the speed, then count and hope I was right: one, two, three, four. I scooped up Walter like a sack of flour and threw him into the car.There was a crashing sound in the car.He yelped as he landed.I ran to the train, grabbed the iron rod by the door, let the train pull me for three steps, and then used my strength to flip into the carriage. My face brushes the ground.When I realized I was safe, I looked for Walter in case he hit me. He huddled in a corner and cried. Walter was in so much pain that he hid in a corner and let me open the suitcase and bring out Lao Luo.I reluctantly shaved him, an errand usually done in threes.Then I dragged him to where the horses were. "Ouch, all right, Walter." Lao Luo said.I put my hand in his armpit, trembling to put his bare ass on a bucket.Walter called that bucket bee bucket. "You did your best." He looked back at me and said, "Hey, can you lower me a little bit? Don't let me rock around for a cool breeze." I moved my feet and spread my legs wider, trying to lower Lao Luo while keeping his upper body from tipping over.Walter's height is just right for supporting Lao Luo's lower body. Usually he is responsible for the lower body, and I take care of the upper body. "Walt, come help me." A spasm swept through my back. "Shut up," he said. Lao Luo looked back again, this time raising his eyebrows. "It doesn't matter." I said. "It doesn't matter what it is," Walter snarled from the corner. "It's over! Queenie is all I have, don't you understand?" His volume dropped sharply to a whisper, "It's all I have." Lao Luo waved to me to signal that he was done.I dragged him half a meter away and let him lie on his side. "Hey, no way." Lao Luo asked me to wipe it clean for him. "Young lad like you, someone must miss you somewhere." "You don't know something." "You don't have a mother in your hometown?" Lao Luo said, not giving up. "Just a useless mother." "Don't say such things." Lao Luo said. "Why not? I was sold here when I was fourteen." He glared. "Don't put on a look of pity on me." He said nastily. "Anyway, she is always treacherous, who needs her." "What do you mean by selling it?" Lao Luo said. "Well, I'm not a farmer with this virtue, am I? You can leave me alone, okay?" He turned his back to us. I fastened Lao Luo's trousers, put my hand under his armpit, and pulled him back to the room.His legs dragged behind, his heels scraping the ground. "Hey, there is such a thing?" He said.I put him on the cot. "Do you want to eat?" I tried to change the subject. "No, I don't want to eat yet. It would be great if I could have some whiskey." He shook his head sadly, "I've never heard of such a cruel woman." "Hey, I can hear you. Besides, old guy, you're not qualified to make irresponsible remarks. When was the last time you saw your son?" Walter growled. Lao Luo lost all color. "Huh? Can't answer that, can you?" Walter continued outside. "What's the difference between your behavior and my mother's?" "Of course there is a difference. The difference is huge. Do you know what I have done?" Old Luo shouted. "You were drunk one night and mentioned about your son." I said quietly. Lao Luo stared at me for a moment, his face twisted.He raised his limp hand over his forehead, turning his face away. "Damn, die, I didn't know you knew, you should tell me." "I thought you remembered. Besides, he didn't say anything, only that you were going to wander." "'He only said'?" Lao Luo turned his head sharply to me, "'He only said'? What do you mean? Have you ever talked to him?" I sat down on the ground with my head on my knees.It looks like it's going to be a tough night. "What do you mean 'he only said'? Hey, I'm asking you a question!" Old Luo snapped. I sigh. "Yes, we have contacted him." "when?" "It's been a while." He stared at me, stunned. "Why are you looking for him?" "He promised to meet in Providence and take you back." "Oh, he won't. He won't come." Lao Luo kept shaking his head. "Old Luo—" "Why did you do that! Why?" "We have no choice!" I yelled back, shutting my voice and closing my eyes at random to stabilize my emotions. "We had no choice," I repeated. "We've got to find a way out for you." "I can't go back! You don't know about me, they don't want me anymore." His lips quivered and his mouth closed.He looks away.After a while, his shoulders began to twitch. "Damn," I said, and shouted out the open door, "Hey, thanks, Walter! You've been a great help tonight! I can't thank you enough!" "Shut your stinking mouth!" he replied. I put out the kerosene lamp, crawled back to the saddle, lay down on the rough surface of the saddle, and sat up again. "Walter! Hey, Walter! I'm going to bed if you don't come in," I yelled. no answer. "Did you hear? I said I was going to bed." I waited for a minute or two, then crawled across the floor. Walter and Lao Luo kept making noises that they could not cry all night, while I covered my ears with the pillow, trying not to listen to their voices. I heard Malena's voice and woke up. "Knock knock, can I go in?" My eyes snapped open.The train stopped, I don't know how I didn't notice it because of my sleep.Another reason for the surprise was that I dreamed of Marina, and for a moment I wondered if I was still asleep. "Hello, is anyone there?" I propped up my upper body on my elbows desperately to look at Lao Luo.He lay on the cot unable to move, his eyes wide open, full of panic.The inner door was left open all night.I jump up. "Ah, wait a minute!" I went out to meet her again, and quickly closed the door. She was already climbing onto the car. "Oh, hello." She looked at Walter, who was still huddled in the corner. "Actually, I came to look for you. Isn't this your dog?" Walter's head turned immediately. "Quinnie!" Marlena bent down to put the puppy down, but before she let go, Queenie broke free, landed with a bang, rolled and crawled into Walter's arms, licked his face, and wagged her tail violently. The center of gravity was unstable, and he fell backwards. "Oh, Queenie! Where have you been? Crazy. I'm worried to death, you crap!" Walter held out his head for licking, and Queenie wriggled merrily. "Where did it go?" I asked Malena. "When the train left yesterday, it was running beside the train." Her eyes fell on Walter and Queenie. "I saw it from the window and asked Xiao Ao to get it on the train. Xiao Ao lay on the platform of the carriage and put the He brought it up." "August would do something like that? Really?" I said. "Really, Xiao Ao helped it, but it bit Xiao Ao back." Walter wrapped his arms around the puppy and buried his face in the puppy's fur. Malena looked at it for a while before turning around and walking towards the door. "Okay, then I'll go do my work." "Marlena." I reached for her arm. She stops. "Thank you." I bowed my head. "You have absolutely no idea how much it means to him, to us. Really." She cast a quick glance, smiled only slightly, and turned to look at her horse. "Yes, yes, I think I know." My eyes are wet.She got out of the car. "Tsk tsk tsk, it's really unexpected. Maybe he is still a human being after all." Lao Luo said. "Who are you talking about? August?" Walter leaned over and grabbed the handle of a suitcase, dragging it across the floor.We arranged the suitcases back to the way they were during the day, but Walter insisted on keeping Queenie in one arm and doing everything at half the usual speed. "He's not human." "Put the dog down, the door is closed," I said. "He saved your dog." Lao Luo said. "If he knew the dog was mine, he'd stand idly by. Queenie knew that, and that's why she bit him. Yes, you see through him, don't you, baby?" He raised the dog's chin so that the dog faced He, and then said in the tone of talking to a milk baby: "Yes, Queenie is a smart sister." "Why do you think he doesn't know? Marina knows." I said. "I just know there's not a human bone in that Jew." "Be careful with your stinky mouth!" I yelled. Walt stopped to look at me. "What? Oh, well, you're not Jewish, are you? Look, I'm sorry, I didn't mean that, it was just a swear word." "Yeah yeah, it's just a swear word." I was still yelling, "It's all swear words, I'm so sick of hearing it. The entertainers take the workers, the workers take the Poles, the Poles take the Jews, and Where's the dwarf? Hey, what are you talking about? Do you only hate Jews and workers? Or do you hate Poles too?" Walter blushed and lowered his head. "I don't hate them, I don't hate anyone." After a while, he added, "Well, well, I do hate August, but I hate him because he's a lunatic." "There is no way to refute this." Lao Luo said hoarsely. I looked at Lao Luo, at Walter, and at Lao Luo. "Well, I think you're right." In Hamilton, the temperature climbed into the mid-thirties.The sun relentlessly poisoned the earth, and the lemonade disappeared without a trace. The juice seller only leaves the mixer for a few minutes, and the lemonade is gone.He angrily went to see Uncle Ailan, convinced that the handymen did a good job. Uncle Ailan ordered someone to call the handymen to gather.Handymen emerged from behind stables and animal tents, sleepy-eyed, with hay upside down in their hair.I watched them from a distance, and it was hard not to see them look innocent. Obviously Uncle Ailan doesn't think so.He strode up and down, like Genghis Khan raising his voice as a school soldier.He yelled at them, counting the cost of the stolen lemonade, not only the raw material cost, but also the reduced sales profit.He said they would be deducted from their salaries if Lemonade was never seen again.He knocked a few people on the head, dismissing them.They went back to their resting places, rubbing their heads and looking at each other suspiciously. With just ten minutes to go until the doors open, the juice stand man redoes the lemonade with water from the animal tank.They picked out the remaining oats and licorice in the water, filtered it through the tights donated by the clown, and threw in the "floater", which is a lemon slice model made of wax, so that people mistakenly think that the lemonade town contains fresh lemons.At this time, a lot of bumpkins had already approached the venue.Don't know if the leggings were dry or not, but I did notice that everyone in the regiment was not sensitive to lemonade that day. During Dutton's time, Lemonade once again staged a missing story.The regiment also used the water from the animal tank to make a new batch, and it was not ready until the moment before the bumpkin entered the field. As usual, Uncle Ailan gathered the handyman as a suspect.He didn't withhold people's wages. Threats withholding money were harmless anyway, and the handymen hadn't received half a dime in more than eight weeks.They forced them to take out the money bags hanging around their necks and hand over fifty cents as a fine.This time the handymen were really blowing their beards and staring. The Lemonade Thieves became a thorn in the side of the handymen.They intend to act.When we got to Columbus, a few workmen hid near the mixing drums, waiting for the thieves to show up. When the opening performance was about to start, August asked me to look at an advertisement in Malena's vanity tent.The content of the ad is to help Malena find a white horse for an unmanned horse show.She also needs one more horse, twelve of the original ones, in order to conjure up tricks more miraculous than ten horses, and miraculous is everything.Besides, Marina felt that Potts was getting frustrated every time he was left alone in the tent and couldn't go on stage with the other horses.These are what August said, but in my opinion, I either got back into favor after a kitchen tantrum, or August felt that one should not only be close to friends, but also to be close to enemies. I'm sitting in a folding chair with a bulletin board on my lap and a bottle of soda in hand.Malena adjusted her stage costume in front of the mirror, and I tried not to open my eyes to her.The last time our eyes met in the mirror, I gasped, her cheeks flushed, and we both looked away. August didn't notice, he buttoned his vest and chatted with laughter.Uncle Ailan suddenly broke in through the curtain. Marina turned around, annoyed. "Hey, I haven't heard of entering a woman's dressing tent, so I have to ask first?" Uncle Allen ignored her at all, walked straight up to August, and poked his chest with his fingers. "It's your short-lived elephant!" he growled. August looked down at the finger that was still poking on his chest, paused for a few seconds, proudly squeezed Uncle Alan's hand away with his thumb and forefinger, then took out a handkerchief from his pocket, wiped Uncle Alan's hand and sprayed it of saliva. "Sorry, I didn't hear clearly just now." He asked after wiping his face. "It's your short-lived thief elephant." Uncle Ailan roared, spouting August's face again, "It pulled up the iron stake that tied it and took it away, drank the damn lemonade, and then Go back and insert the iron stake back into the ground!" Marina quickly covered her mouth with her hand, but it was too late. Uncle Ai Lan turned around, his lungs exploded with anger. "Do you think it's funny? Is it funny?" She was pale. I got up and took a step forward. "Well, it's true—" Uncle Ailan turned around, put his hands on my chest and pushed me hard, making me fall backwards onto the suitcase. He turned to face August. "That dead elephant cost me a lot of money! It made me unable to pay the workers, so I had to figure out a way, and made trouble for the goddam railway company! What happened? That raisin lemonade!" "Ailan! Put some respect in your mouth, please remember that there are still ladies here." August said sharply. Uncle Ailan shook his head violently.He looked at Malena without remorse, and then turned to August. "I'll tell Woody to figure out the total amount of the damage and deduct it from your salary," he said. "You have asked the handyman to pay you back." Malena said quietly, "Are you going to pay back the money?" Uncle Ailan glared at her angrily, with a look of disgust on her face, so annoyed that I stepped forward and stood between them.He stared at me, gnashing his teeth angrily.Then she turned around and strode away. "What a bastard." Mariana went back to the dressing table, "You're running around, just in case you catch me changing clothes." August stood motionless, then reached for his tall hat and elephant hook. Marina saw his actions in the mirror. “你要去哪里？奥古斯特，你要做什么？”她说得很快。 他朝外面走。 她攫住他的手臂。 “小奥！你要去哪里？” “不是只有我一个要为柠檬水付出代价。”他摇掉她的手。 “奥古斯特，不要哇！”她再度攫住他的手肘，这回使了力，试图不让他离开。“奥古斯特，等等！看在老天分上，它又不懂，下回我们把它拴紧一点——” 奥古斯特挣脱她，玛莲娜摔到地上。他用嫌憎至极的目光看着玛莲娜，然后戴上帽子，调头就走。 “奥古斯特！别走！”她尖嚷。 他推开门帘走了。玛莲娜仍然坐在她摔倒的地方，愣住了。我目光从她身上游到门帘，又游回她身上。 “我去追他。”我朝外面走。 “不要去！等等！” “去了也没用，拦不住他的。”她的声音既空洞又微小。 “我可以放手试试看。上回我袖手旁观，我永远也原谅不了自己。” “你不了解状况！越拂逆他，他越凶暴！雅各，求求你！你不了解！” 我猛地回身面对她。“对！我使不了解！什么事都不了解！什么都不懂！可以麻烦你开个金口，为我说明吗？” 她眼睛圆睁，嘴巴也圆张，然后把脸埋在手里大哭。 我瞪着她，怔了。然后我跪下来，把她搂在怀里。 “噢，玛莲娜，玛莲娜——” “雅各。”她对着我的衬衫低喃，牢牢抓住我，仿佛我能阻挡她被卷进旋涡似的。