Chapter 5 Section 4

It had been snowing continuously for several days, and last night the north wind suddenly blew again, and the wind became stronger and stronger, roaring and shouting like tens of thousands of horses galloping, shaking the whole house trembling. The child on the bed was awakened by the sound of the wind, and stared blankly at the large glass window, which was gradually turning fish-belly pale, with wide, terrified eyes.The thin gauze curtains on the windows blocked the not too bright light outside, making the room even darker. The child didn't move at all, just stared at the window in a daze, looked at it, suddenly called "Mom" in a high-pitched voice, and then howled loudly.

The door opened with a bang, and a short, fat woman with big hands and feet came in.He knew it was Mama Ding.Mama Ding went to the bed and covered his mouth, and asked in a low voice, "What's wrong with you? Are you dreaming?" "I'm afraid, I want my mother..." the child sobbed. "It's here again, didn't I tell you? Your mother is dead and buried in the ground. She will never be with you again, nor will she come to this house. You can't find your mother again. From now on, Mama Ding will always be with you, just like your mother." Mama Ding first patted her chest, and then held the child's two little hands rubbing his eyes with her stubby hands.

The child was full of doubts, and opened his eyes even more surprised. He stared at Mama Ding for a while, and then cried aggrievedly: "Ding's mother is different from my mother. I want my mother... My mother is not buried in the ground. I heard her come to look for me yesterday. I heard my mother call: 'Give me back my doll, give me back my doll.' My voice is 'Baby, Baby', and it was you who stopped me, gagged me, and prevented me from running out to find my mother..." "Shut up, what nonsense are you talking about? How can there be such a thing? Why can't you tell what is real and what is a dream? Stupid! The things you said are all dreams, aren't they real."

"That's not a dream, it's real. I heard my mother calling me: 'Baby, baby', very loudly." The child said stubbornly. "Nonsense, it's a dream, it's not real, it's nothing like that. Your mother died a long time ago, buried in the ground, and turned into a ghost. If you call a ghost again, she will come and catch you." Mama Ding said with a smile on her flat, round face. Menacing look. The child was stunned for a while, then suddenly burst into crying: "I don't care, I want my mother, I want my mother..." "Shh, why are you still arguing? If you keep arguing, I'll pinch you. Are you afraid of waking up your grandma?"

The child didn't seem to hear Mama Ding's words, and kept crying to find her mother. "You are crying, you are crying, you are really a spoiled child, and you won't listen to any good things told to you." Mama Ding said angrily.A hand stretched into the bed, and then the child named Doll cried more sharply: "Don't twist my leg, it hurts..." "Raised by a bitch..." Following the cry of the baby, Mama Ding's murmured curses, there was a sound of footsteps getting closer. The baby stopped crying, turned around, and saw his grandmother standing at the entrance.

The grandmother, with her waist-length hair loose, wore a satin dressing gown that fell to her feet and shone across her body.Her oval face was not at all as red and white as usual, refreshed, but with a light bluish yellow color, and the eye sockets were darker and black.She stood still, covering her mouth with one hand and yawning. "What happened to him? He was crying and screaming?" Grandma asked Mama Ding. "He said he was looking for his mother!" Mama Ding replied softly.Standing up and walking to the side of the grandmother, he lowered his voice and murmured for a while.The baby could only vaguely hear: "...he knows everything about that woman's troubles, this child is so smart! You can't be fooled..."

With her waist straight and her thin lips tensed, the grandmother walked slowly to the bed, lowering her eyes to stare at the doll on the bed.Under the sharp eyes of the grandmother, the doll immediately became quiet. "Didn't I tell you not to talk about looking for your mother again? Did you forget? Your mother is dead and buried in the ground. You scream for nothing, and she can't hear you. Good boy, there is a grandma who loves you, and there is Mama Ding took you, what else do you want Mama to do? The baby is a big child, so you have to be sensible, how embarrassing is it to shed tears?" Grandma winked at Mama Ding, intending to ask her to go out.Mama Ding went out, and the moment she left the room, behind her grandmother, she pointed to the doll's small and thick mouth that was shaped like a meatball.The baby immediately returned a knowing look, and promised not to reveal the secret of her twisting his thigh.

"You have to be good, and you have to promise grandma that you will never quarrel with your mother again. Otherwise, grandma will get angry and punish you to kneel. Aren't you afraid?" "Scared." The baby looked at her grandmother timidly.He is very afraid of his grandmother losing his temper, and he has also tasted the taste of being punished.Once grandma got angry, no one in the family dared to speak out. "That's it. If you are obedient, I will buy you a car, a train, a gun, and a Daguan knife." "Soldiers who can ride horses are also needed, and airplanes that can run." The child added.

"Yes, there are soldiers on horseback, airplanes that can run, and what else?..." Grandma promised many other things, and the child named Wawa finally burst into tears. "Remember, don't talk about looking for your mother again. Remember?" "Remember, I won't look for it anymore." The baby said in a daze. "When a person dies, there is nothing left, and you can't find it if you look for it. Having a grandma with you, is it better than your mother? Does your mother have money to buy you stuff?" "No, only grandma." Doll said with a silly smile.

The doll really stopped clamoring for her mother.He followed his grandmother wholeheartedly.But grandma is a busy person, and she either invites some grandmas over to play cards, or visits some other grandma's house.When grandma was not at home, Ding's mother came to take care of him. He knew that Ding's mother was amazing, so he was always very good, doing what should be done, and not doing what should not be done.For example.He can't squat on the ground, his feet can only step on the stone path in the yard, and he can't step on the dirt to dirty his shoes.His palms should always be kept clean and washed at all times.He must be polite to people. The first thing he does after waking up every day is to go to his grandmother's house to say hello, and say respectfully: "Grandma is good."

"This kid looks promising." "The supervisor's wife taught well! She will shine in the family in the future." "You son of a general, that's the obvious truth!" Whenever someone flatters her in front of her like this, she just smiles proudly, and said lightly: "This kid has a good brain and is a promising man, just like his grandfather. Look at the back of his head, isn't he just like a supervisor, born rich and honored?" Xiang. The Liu family has such descendants, and I am also satisfied." "Are you still not satisfied with such a good grandson? Mrs. Superintendent." Almost all the people who listened would say such a flattering sentence with icing on the cake.At this time, the grandmother would look at him deeply, with encouragement and praise in her eyes, as if to say: "Did you hear that? Be a good grandson of grandma!" The doll is famous for its honesty and honesty, and the servants all know it.He will not fight wildly like other children, nor will he be mischievous. He is well-behaved and speaks elegantly, as if he was born a well-educated child.People praised him for this, and he himself knew how to be proud of it. In order to maintain this good reputation, he was cautious in his words and deeds. "You want to be a good grandson of grandma." Grandma often reminded him so. "Okay, I will be a good grandson of grandma." The baby agreed generously. In the doll's world, the grandmother is the most important and the person he admires the most.Whenever he saw people he knew or didn't know, and the flattering face and respectful attitude when he saw his grandmother, he couldn't help feeling an indescribable sense of happiness and pride in his little heart. "Grandma is amazing." He often thought so.I often look at my grandma with an expression of worship, imitating my grandma's speech and behavior. Grandma's hair is thick and long, and Mama Ding combs it for her every morning with a large horn comb. "Madam's hair is so nice, it's black and shiny, just like the black satin side of your robe." Ding Ma said while combing, and kept sighing. Wa Wa watched from the sidelines, looked at grandma's hair, and then at the black satin robe on her body, he felt that it was not the same at all, and he saw Mama Ding stuffing something secretly in the lapel of the jacket several times.Once, when Mama Ding was off guard, he reached into her lapel pocket and found two long white hairs. "Didn't you say that grandma's hair is as black as the satin side of a robe? How come there are such long white hairs? I have seen the white hair on grandma's temples a long time ago, but unfortunately grandma's eyes are not so good that she can't see." He said honestly said. "Hi! You bastard." Mother Ding often called him this behind his back, especially when he did something that displeased her.She looked angry, pinching his forehead with her stubby fingers. "Don't talk nonsense, it's not your grandma's hair, it's white silk thread for sewing clothes. Do you hear that? It's white silk thread for sewing clothes. If you talk nonsense, watch out for your legs." "I won't say, I know it's white silk thread for sewing clothes, Mama Ding." Doll said obediently and flatteringly.But he was asking in his heart: "It's really strange, why do you insist on saying white hair as white silk thread?" But he would never say this question, he was very clear about Mama Ding's methods and authority.Several times he heard Ding's mother tell the story of Lao Liang, the gardener, in front of his grandmother, saying that Lao Liang was greedy and lazy.As a result, grandma called Lao Liang to her and gave him a solid training.Qiyan Lao Liang works all day long and rarely even talks, he knows this for sure.Therefore, he knew that Mama Ding was not to be messed with. Their yard is huge, with several fronts and backs.There are corridors, fish ponds, small bridges and octagonal pavilions in the yard, as well as big trees much higher than the roof.Their gate was scarlet, with two great golden rings on it, and two stone lions at the gate.There are other houses in the alley, whose gates are smaller than theirs, and there are no stone lions at the gates.But there are little boys who are about his age in the family, and the baby has noticed it a long time ago. "Grandma, can I go play with them?" Doll tried to ask her grandmother. "Not good. Those children are very wild. You are a well-behaved child. Don't play with them, or you will be taken wild." Grandma said. So, the doll had no choice but to play in the yard, watch the gardener Lao Liang cut flowers and trees for a while, and sit in the pavilion and stand on the bridge for a while.Sometimes with a brush, I drew big trees, cats, and thrushes locked in cages in the corridor.Grandma praised him when she saw it: "This child is really skillful. He draws cats like cats and birds like birds." "Grandma, I'm tired of drawing and want to play with those kids outside." "I tell you that those children are all uneducated and can't be ignored. You should draw well! Grandma will hire you a teacher." The grandmother invited him a teacher on the third day after she said these words. The teacher, surnamed Meng, was wearing a long black cloth gown. The hair around his bald head and eyebrows that were half an inch long were as white as snow.Mr. Meng not only taught him to read, recognize characters, draw with brushes, play chess, and play dongxiao, but also gave him the scientific name Weizu.He asked Teacher Meng: "Why is it called Wei Zu? Why not call it something else?" Teacher Meng explained: "Wei Zu has many meanings. It can be said that I hope you will work hard and make your grandma feel comforted. It can also be Saying that I hope you will be a good person, do great things, honor your family, and comfort your ancestors surnamed Liu, you can also say..." Grandma admired the name Wei Zu very much, patted his head and said: "Remember the meaning of the word Weizu well. You have to do it to succeed. From now on, no one is allowed to call him a baby, but Weizu." Following the grandmother's words, the doll immediately turned into Wei Zu. Every day, Wei Zu followed the 70-year-old teacher Meng to paint, write, recite Tang poems, read the Four Books and Five Classics, and play chess and Go. Teacher Meng is a person who can't get angry. He smiles all day long and recites poems when he has nothing to do.Teacher Meng always praised Wei Zu for being smart. Whenever he drew something, Teacher Meng would touch the sparse white beard on his chin, squint his eyes, and squirt his mouth, saying one sentence after another: "It's so good, it's so good, this is so good." The child is a bit talented." He trusts Teacher Meng and dares to tell Teacher Meng what others dare not say. "Mr. Meng, I dreamed about my mother last night." "Oh, you dreamed about your mother? How is she? What did you tell me?" Teacher Meng asked. "She didn't say anything, just smiled at me, I was about to hug her, she disappeared, and I woke up." "This is thinking about it every day and dreaming at night! Poor child, you miss your mother so much. Weizu, listen to Teacher Meng's words: You can't come back to life after death, so don't think about your mother anymore." Teacher Meng said Wei Zu embraced him and stroked his hand. Wei Zu was silent for a while, then asked leisurely: "Mr. Meng, you also said that my mother is dead?" "Huh! Isn't she dead? Everyone knows that she is dead." Teacher Meng pushed his sweat to comfort Zu, and stared at him strangely from a distance. "I knew she wasn't dead. One day she came and took me away secretly. My grandma took Lao Ding and Ding's mother and snatched me back. My mother hugged me tightly and called 'baby, baby'. Lao Ding is very strong, my mother can't grab him." Weizu's big furry eyes flashed, his small face was covered with melancholy, and he hugged his shoulders unconsciously, as if holding him like this could preserve his mother's embrace. His residual temperature.His mother's embrace was warm and soft, something he would miss forever and never want to forget. Weizu never expected Teacher Meng to say the same thing as others: "Son, that's a dream, it's not real. Your mother is dead, your grandmother told me, it can't be wrong." "Oh——" Weizu stroked his little head, and he had no choice but to believe that his mother was really dead. Everything he thought and saw was just a dream. Not long after, one day he was painting chrysanthemums in the study with Mr. Meng when he suddenly heard noise outside. "Liu Jixian's tortoise lied to me, and you snatched my child again. Is there any reason? Return the doll to me..." Hearing the voice, Wei Zu immediately put down his pen and listened carefully with a serious expression. "Why are you arguing all the time, woman? I gave you the money, and it was agreed face to face. Why don't you accept it again?" It was Lao Ding's voice. "Even copper tin can't separate our mother and child, so give me back my baby." "You feudal warlords are bullying others..." a man roared violently. "If you don't return the child, I'll sue it, take it to the court—" Weizu heard his mother call.He didn't know where the courthouse was, but he understood that she was not dead, and she was clamoring to take him back.In such a position, what should he do?Are you going back with mom?Or stay with grandma?He was sure he loved his mother.But there was that man next to my mother, that man had sneaky eyebrows, combed the old high jet hair, and wore an eye-catching red shirt, coaxing him to call him Dad.He saw what his father looked like from the photos he sent back from abroad.Dad was wearing a suit and tie, and a pair of glasses on his face.From that appearance, one can tell that he is a good person who doesn't make noise.It was different from the man in the red shirt, who couldn't stand up, couldn't sit still, and looked like he was about to fight when he opened his mouth.He clearly knew that the man in the red shirt was not his father, so naturally he didn't call. "This kid is a mixed breed, that kind of family can't raise good things." Because he refused to call him dad, the man in the red shirt said to his mother angrily. "Don't scold him! He's only a child. Ah! My poor little baby." The mother cried as she hugged him.Mother's tears are hot, and her embrace is also hot. Thinking of this, Wei Zu couldn't bear it any longer, pushed away the chair and was about to run outside.As soon as he started, he was stopped by Mr. Meng. "Weizu, don't run away, the teacher will take you with me." Teacher Meng's old face seemed to be covered with a layer of frost, and he was not smiling like usual at all. When Mr. Meng took his hand and walked to the moon gate between the two courtyards, his grandmother was already there.Her short figure in a dark green brocade gown was as straight and stiff as if made of steel. "Don't quarrel with them, they just want money, just give it..." Grandma told Lao Ding with a straight face.In a blink of an eye, seeing Mr. Meng brought him here, he immediately said unhappily, "Mr. Meng is not studying in the study with Zuzu, what are you doing here?" He and Meng Lao looked at each other, and they had no choice but to turn around and go back to the study.The moment he turned around, he saw Lao Ding, his mother, and the man in the red shirt, who tempted him to call him Dad, were walking out. He and Mr. Meng went back to the study, but both of them couldn't find anything to say, and they couldn't draw the chrysanthemum anymore.After a long time, he still spoke first: "Ms. Meng, do you know now? My mother is not dead, she is alive." "Yes! She is not dead. But, poor child, this situation is worse than her real death! Alas, you poor child!" Teacher Meng stroked Weizu's head and sighed. "Mr. Meng, I miss my mother, and I want to be with my mother." Wei Zu stared at Teacher Meng with his dark eyes in trust. "But I don't like the man in the red shirt. He told me to call him Dad, and I didn't." "Oh, you want to go see your mother?" "I kind of want to, but I'm afraid of the man in the red shirt." "Do you love grandma?" "Yeah. Love is love, but I'm also afraid. I'm not the only one who is afraid of grandma, everyone is afraid of grandma." "I think your grandma loves you, so just be a good child in front of grandma!" Teacher Meng sighed deeply again. "Teacher Meng, will you always follow me?" Wei Zu suddenly hugged Teacher Meng tightly. "Silly boy." Teacher Meng stroked Wei Zu's back again and again. "Mr. Meng is willing to follow you, but Mr. Meng is already in his early seventies, and you are not yet six years old." "It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter, I want you to follow me, always follow me." He hugged Teacher Meng even tighter. "Okay, okay, I'll follow you..." Mr. Meng said with a choked voice as if something was stuck in his throat. Unexpectedly, things did not go as planned by their teachers and students.Five or six days after saying this, my grandmother came to Mr. Meng's study and said: "Mr. Meng, my son has long sent a letter from a foreign country, telling us to go to Taiwan. I have never considered this issue. After all, Beiping is our home. We are used to living in it, and we are reluctant to leave. But now the war is getting tighter and tighter. The Northeast is over, and seeing that Beiping is going to be lost, I think it’s better for us to leave.” Sitting on the chair of the grand master, the grandmother said slowly and clearly: “Old Liang will take a sea boat from Tianjin to escort his luggage to Shanghai the day after tomorrow. He and Lao Ding, Ding Ma and Wei Zu will fly away next month, meet Lao Liang in Shanghai, and take a boat to Taiwan together. My son, Wei Zu's father," the grandmother pointed to him who was fascinated. "I'm going back to China in these two days and go directly to Taipei." "Grandma, what about Mr. Meng? Isn't he going with us?" Wei Zu was so anxious that he couldn't restrain his grandmother's sternness, so he rushed to ask. "Teacher Meng has her own family, a daughter and a grandson, so she won't go to Taiwan with us." The grandmother smiled and said peacefully, then turned to Teacher Meng: "Mr. I like to learn calligraphy and painting from you, and it would be great if I can keep learning, but unfortunately the war is too tight, we have to leave. Regarding the tuition fee, I can't underestimate Teacher Meng." Grandma handed a red envelope in her hand to Teacher Meng Weiwei trembling hands. "This is five months' salary. Take it, Mr. Meng! We don't leave until next month, and there are two or three weeks left. Mr. Meng can stay here until we leave. It's just that Mr. Meng doesn't want to leave and plans to live here That’s fine. The house is empty anyway, and only Lao Zhu and his wife are left here to guard it.” "No, I'd better live at my daughter's house!" Teacher Meng said with a mournful face. "That's fine, I won't force Teacher Meng." Grandma stood up with a polite smile on her thin lips. "Teacher Meng, you have to take good care of Weizu these days and don't let him out of this yard." "I know, Mrs. Supervisor." Teacher Meng stood up and replied respectfully. They got on the plane early in the morning.Teacher Meng sent it to the airport.From leaving the house to the waiting room, he has been holding his hand tightly.When the grandmother said: "Give me a salute to the teacher, thank you for your teaching, and say goodbye!" He threw himself on Teacher Meng and cried twitching.Teacher Meng stroked his shoulders with both hands, and said intermittently: "Cuizu, don't cry, listen to the teacher... You should practice painting well, don't be lazy, don't waste time, write to me when you arrive in Taiwan..." When the plane took off, he stretched his neck and looked down, wanting to take another look at Mr. Meng's figure in a black cloth robe.But he only saw the house and the tree, not Mr. Meng.The plane quickly went into the clouds.