Chapter 29 28 In Charming Black's Orchard

At this time, the street was slowly getting dark, but Ren Guozhong still walked lightly. He turned around in the small alley on the west side, and he could still hear people talking at the door of several houses.Because all the dogs in the village were tied up, it was even more quiet, only the chirping of insects in the wild, the cry of frogs in the distance, and the humming of mosquitoes around you.Ren Guozhong walked into an orchard. There was no starlight in the forest, and it was all black.He tilted his head to look at the ground, and stretched out his hand to grope in all directions, for fear of bumping into the fruit tree.After walking for a while, my eyes had just gotten used to the darkness, but I saw a bonfire in front of me.The fire led him there. He had already heard the sound of water gurgling in the foreign well. He knew he was right, so he stepped on the ground and hummed the leather spring softly.

The closer he got to the fire, the happier he seemed to be. He thought curiously: "Why is this pustule so timid, he doesn't even dare to go home. I want to scare him." The fallen leaves and wild moxa piled up into a small pile, and the fire burned slowly inside.The thick smoke rushes upwards, but hits the dense leaves again, and the smoke spreads out in all directions, like a thin transparent tent.But now there was nothing to see, only a stinging smell of smoke.There was a faint circle of light around the fire, and one or two nearby tree trunks were seen, and a hut could be discerned nearby.Ren Guozhong walked closer to the fire, but he didn't see anyone. He went to the hut and called out again, but no one answered.He turned back and walked back, but there was still no sound, only the sound of an ax chopping wood in the distant forest, and even the bonfire was blocked by fruit trees, so he couldn't see anything.He didn't feel a layer of panic, and when he was trying to find out the direction to go home, he suddenly found a red light not far away, who was smoking there, and he asked happily: "Who is it?" But no one agreed, and the red light went out.He became troubled again, and rushed forward again, but something caught him under his feet, and he fell on top of something.I got up and took a closer look. It turned out that there were more than a dozen bamboo baskets lined up here, and I couldn't walk through them.At this moment, a human voice sounded from the dark place: "I met a ghost, what are you running around here, and the fruit is crushed." Ren Guozhong could tell that this was Li Zijun's gardener. Old man Li Baotang.He was also a little angry because he stumbled, but he had to hold back. He called: "Uncle Baotang, how about you old man, you hid under the tree to watch people wrestle, and you said you crushed the fruit! Let's find Li Brother, did he go home again?"

The old man didn't agree to him, he just came out to inspect the crushed fruit, and tidied up the few bamboo baskets.Ren Guozhong had no choice but to ask again: "Where is Brother Li?" The old man still didn't agree, but raised his head and looked straight behind Ren Guozhong.The firelight reflected on those two dull and stubborn eyes, the kind of dullness and expressionlessness made Ren Guozhong very surprised.He wanted to ask further, when a tall figure suddenly appeared behind him, and said slowly, "Is it Lao Ren?" Ren Guozhong jumped back unconsciously, grabbed the slender man, and said loudly:

"Oh! It's easy to find me. Where are you hiding!" "Don't shout! What's the matter?" Li Zijun took out a cigarette and handed it over. "Oh, it's nothing. I haven't seen you for a few days. I came to see you. I know you're also uneasy—" He was hit on the waist by Li Zijun, and couldn't continue. "Have you eaten yet? We haven't eaten yet. We won't be going back tonight, Uncle Baotang. Your old man will go back to the village and bring some food and quilts. It's much cooler in the garden than at home." It's comfortable!" Li Zijun leaned on a tree trunk, reached out to pick a fruit, and threw it to Ren Guozhong, "Here, see how big this gourd ice is!" "It's just that there are many mosquitoes," Ren Guozhong pressed hard on his forehead I slapped it, "Others say that your fruit is beautiful this year. This garden is really big."

"It's not enough to make a lot of knots. Now I sell seven or eight loads a day and get back five to sixty thousand yuan. After deducting the expenses of hiring labor, there are only thirty to forty thousand yuan left. It's not enough to pay back the spring wages." When did the old man quietly leave them. "You have to sell this fruit quickly. No matter how cheap it is, it's better than giving it away for nothing. Get as many as you want." Both of them squatted down. Li Zijun looked around in the darkness and asked in a low voice, "Is there any news? I live here like a dead person, I don't know anything."

"Brother, don't you go away and hide? You are counted as having a lot of land in the village, and you have been a chief armorer, so be careful in everything." "En!" Li Zijun raised his hands to support his head that just wanted to hang down, even in the faint firelight, he could see his paleness.He was silent for a long time, and then sighed again: "Alas! God knows, Xu Youwu and Qian Wengui are not the ones who are wronged by our Jiachang!" Ren Guozhong also heard that when he was a chief, he had to send salary to several big men in the village, and send food to each family. The big township asked for 50,000 yuan, and this person added 20%.The common people scolded him when they couldn't afford it, saying that he was worthless, and if he didn't give it to them, they arrested him and said they would sue him in Daxiang.A group of people dragged him to ask for money, and everyone colluded to win him.These people were all in contact with the Japanese, or with the traitors, and he dared not go there.But Ren Guozhong didn't sympathize with these things. He still said: "No one is to blame now. Uncle Qian is a member of the resistance. Jiang Shirong made his fortune by being a chief. He is still the head of the village. No one will touch them. Only You, you have money but no power, so we worry about you. You try your best not to offend others, but you still end up with many enemies. You still have no idea? Now the enemy is Zhang Yumin, who used to be a long-term worker for you. Will you not offend him?"

Li Zijun couldn't think of words to answer, so he lit another cigarette and smoked vigorously.Feeling very helpless in his heart, he opened his eyes and looked around, as if there were many people ambushing in the depths of the darkness, waiting to catch him when the time came.He unconsciously sighed again. Ren Guozhong also searched into the darkness, and a cool breeze came from there. He leaned closer and said in a low voice: "Nowadays is a world without kingly law! This is called pulling carrots. Last year, pulling carrots Xu Youwu, after all, is a capable person. He saw the opportunity early, and even moved away. Well, maybe one day he will come back to take revenge. This year, old man Hou was pulled out, and the Bodhisattva of Hou old man did not bless him. He paid a hundred shi for grain. Right now, look! It’s even worse than last year. Three more people came down from the province, and Chen Wu from Mengjiagou was also killed. Finally, no one was killed in our village last year. , I don’t know how this year will be? Sigh!”

The night wind shook the leaves, and Li Zijun's heart was pounding.He was a timid person at first, but after hearing what Ren Guozhong said, he became even more impatient, and couldn't help crying out from his heart: "Oh my God! What do we want to do? How many acres of land do we have? Didn't we steal it?" It came, didn’t it was snatched, or left by our ancestors? Now it makes us suffer! Old Ren! What do you want us to do!” "Look at you, keep your voice down." Ren Guozhong stood up and walked around the fire, but he still didn't see anything. The night was very quiet, so he came back and quietly comforted the flustered man. The young landlord: "What are you afraid of? You are not the only rich man in the village. Everyone works together to find a way. Like your tenants, there are many people with the same surname. After all, they are all family members. They don't care about favors." , You also have to think about the way forward. Can the Eighth Route Army last forever? One day the 'Central' Army will come. You have to ask them to go to activities, and it’s enough to keep hiding in the garden?"

"Alas!" Li Zijun had already sat on the ground, spread his hands, showing a look of complete despair, after a pause he said again: "Oh! Lao Ren! What kind of family, what kind of affection, It’s unreliable! Now I’m kowtowing on all sides, so I’m afraid I won’t do it, alas!” "Then tell them honestly, and ask them if they want to die in the future! Brother! The Pingsui Road is blocked again, and the Eighth Route Army has surrounded Datong. Do you think the 'Central' Army will come? Hmm..." Suddenly footsteps were heard on their left, and both of them jumped, and both stopped talking.Ren Guozhong took a step back and stood in the darker darkness.They held their breath, and slowly heard the man approaching. The old man Li Baotang carried a bed and a basket, and came out from the dark place.He put the basket in front of Li Zijun without saying a word, and walked towards the hut.Li Zijun pretended to be concerned and asked, "The road is not easy, it's very dark tonight. Uncle Baotang, come and eat a piece of pancake."

He has opened the basket. "There is nothing on the road, and there are militiamen checking the posts. They check around this garden and outside that garden, saying that they are afraid that someone may not tie up the dogs and let them come out to spoil the fruit." The two exchanged glances in secret.Ren Guozhong stood still for a while, and when he heard the old man walk into the house, he seemed to be on the kang, so he quietly pushed Li Zijun, turned around and disappeared into the darkness.