Tranquility

In early spring, under the dark night, a small room was crowded with many people, and the flame on the lamp base became smaller and darker, and seemed to be extinguished, just like the woman on the kang who kept losing her life. General vitality.

She was wearing coarse cloth clothes that were tangled into a mess of indistinguishable colors, her hair was disheveled, and the quilt covering her body was already soaked in blood, exuding a disgusting strange smell, and her pale face could not conceal her peerless appearance .

At this moment, she looked lovingly at the little baby on the pillow, but her cold fingers reached out to the two children on the other side. She slowly and reluctantly turned her head, this simple action seemed to exhaust her. With little energy left, she looked at the two children with anticipation in her eyes, "Mu, Yun'er, live well and take good care of your little brother."

The older boy nodded with a sob, but the younger boy held the woman's finger, gasping for breath in pain. He wanted to say: "Your brother killed you, why should you take care of him?" But his chest felt tight, no matter what No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't make a sound. He was anxious and felt that it was becoming more and more difficult for him to breathe...

In the darkness, Tang Yun suddenly opened his eyes, and there were still traces of the painful struggle in his eyes.With a sigh of relief, he no longer remembered that this was the first time he had such a dream since the accident.

That day he was suffocated by a cow, and he thought that he might not survive. At that moment, he thought a lot about what to do with his younger brother, what to do with his elder brother, and his father. Suddenly, a forgotten memory appeared. When he came out, it was the deepest and most unwilling memory when he was three years old, just as real as the dream he had just dreamed.

It was only for a moment, and the next moment he was pulled out, fresh air poured into the abdominal cavity, dispelling his suffocation, and also driving away his mother.

Maybe, at that time, he was going to die, and it was his mother who blamed him for not taking good care of himself and his younger brother, so she used that memory to call him back.

In fact, it is a bit far-fetched to think so, but Tang Yun stubbornly thinks so.He quietly took out his hands from under the quilt, clasped his hands together, and facing the dimly lit window at dawn, closed his eyes and said to his mother, "Mother, I will live well and take good care of my brother."

After saying this, he felt a lot more at ease, and tucked the quilt up for his younger brother, and became confused again.

Soon, the cock crowed and the Tang family got up to start another busy day.

Tangning was very irritable and tossed and turned in the bed. Ever since the damn rooster arrived at their house, he hadn't slept in for a day. Being woken up by the rooster every day was really uncomfortable.

After Tang Yun's accident, Tang Carpenter somehow became indifferent to Mrs. Tang. It was useless to please Mrs. Tang. Originally, it was not his turn to worry about the elders' affairs, and it was none of his business if they made trouble. Good thing for their brothers too.

It's a pity that the good times didn't last long. Half a month later, Mrs. Tang was diagnosed as pregnant, and the situation turned upside down.Carpenter Tang circled Mrs. Tang all day long, but Mrs. Tang either ignored her or wept silently.The moment she cried, Carpenter Tang was in a hurry, so what if his precious son was ruined by crying.So Carpenter Tang became a loyal dog, and he could think of picking off the stars if Mrs. Tang wanted them.So, Mrs. Tang just wanted to raise some chickens to lay eggs to supplement her health, so of course it was fulfilled.Auntie Tang just wanted some chicks, but Carpenter Tang bought a rooster that had just grown, two pullets that had just laid eggs, and of course a few chicks as well.

So the whole yard suddenly became lively. The rooster roared when there was nothing to do, the hen clucked from morning to night, and the chicks sang and cheered in chorus. to chicken shit.

Thinking of this, Tangning became even more irritable. His good impression of his father had finally gone downhill like a roller coaster. Sure enough, lecherous and soft-hearted men are most likely to be dominated by their wives.

Regarding Tang Carpenter's wife, his stepmother, Tangning felt contempt, resentment and loathing in her heart.Originally, he didn't pay much attention to his stepmother's small actions, especially after Tang Yun's incident, he had great ambitions in his heart, and he didn't even bother to care about them. For the petty gains that his stepmother cares about, he mostly just smiled. Pass.But the stepmother always came out like a fly and buzzed a few times from time to time, which was very disgusting.

Especially after she became pregnant, Xu Shi gained confidence in her heart and acted without any scruples.Just two days after the pregnancy was diagnosed, he clamored to eat meat, and in the name of caring for his brothers, he told everyone to have a good meal. Carpenter Tang felt that his wife was a virtuous wife, and she did not forget to care about her own children. Son of the front.However, Carpenter Tang had to go out to work that day, and he had no time to go to the town to buy meat, so he asked Tang Mu to go to the town.

What Mrs. Tang gave was a money bag, Tang Mu took it without counting it, so he went to the town like this, but the money in the money bag was not enough to buy a few taels of meat, or the meat he bought was only enough for one person to eat.Tang Mu is honest, but it doesn't mean he is stupid. How can someone who can do clever work have a stupid brain?He immediately figured out the little scheme of his stepmother, even though he was pure-hearted, he also became dissatisfied with his stepmother.You said that this stepmother abused her stepson, which is a heinous crime, right?No, she was just calculating a few stutters, but she just made people panic.Tang Mu himself had no money in his hand, so he couldn't do anything if he wanted to put money in it. Besides, he also stopped his breath, changed his mind, and bought all the money for pig offal that others didn't want. I just bought some pork liver and lungs to replenish the dog's body - my younger brothers haven't seen any oil stars, and the dog still drinks bitter medicine all day long.Besides, pork liver and lung are also pork.

When Tang Mu first entered the door, Mrs. Tang noticed that the pig's internal organs were on his hands, and she immediately pulled her face down.Although Tang Mu told himself that he shouldn't, his mood still got better involuntarily.Suddenly, Mrs. Tang seemed to have changed her face, smiling brightly like a spring flower, and said to Tang Mu, "You are honest, you must have heard someone say that pork liver and lungs are very nourishing, so you bought this. It's just that the fish is fishy. It's very, it's what people eat during confinement, I'm just pregnant now but I can't eat it, hehe, you are too impatient."

Tang Mu was baffled by what he said. Seeing Tang Ning who was behind Aunt Tang blinking at him vigorously, he was puzzled when Tang Carpenter's voice came from behind him, tinged with anger, "I want you to buy meat, why did you buy this meat?" Things, you are trying to get cheap, but your mother can't eat these."

Tang Mu froze, feeling even more embarrassed, could he say that the money is not enough?Can you?

When Tang Mu didn't know how to explain it, Tang Ning suddenly interjected, "I don't blame big brother, I asked him to buy it. This thing is just a bit fishy, ​​but it's actually very nourishing. It's also good for pregnant women. As long as the fishy smell is gone, it will be fine." , I happened to know how to remove the fishy smell, so I asked my elder brother to buy these."

Although Tang Ning might not be the youngest son anymore, Carpenter Tang still loved him very much, and what Tang Ning said made some sense, so he snorted and told Tang Mu to do what Tang Ning said.

Luckily, Tangning really knew how to get rid of the fishy smell, that is, flush more water, add more salt, and secretly drip some wine.At dinner, the pork liver and pig lung soup left everyone unsatisfied, and the unhappiness just now seemed to disappear.But actually, that's where it really started.

Tang Mu honestly explained the whole process that night, and Tang Yun and Tang Ning felt depressed after hearing that.As soon as Tang Mu said the words, he felt at ease, and fell asleep, leaving only the two Tang Yun brothers scratching their heads and trying to figure out how to deal with their stepmother.Tangning really didn't want to make trouble for her stepmother, but if she endured this time, her stepmother would only go too far. He had to make her stepmother restrain herself.Moreover, if the stepmother gave birth to a son, she would no longer be an outsider in Carpenter Tang's heart. Carpenter Tang would only favor her and the youngest son more and more. When the stepmother had a son to take care of her, she would not be concerned about their brothers. Maybe it won't be a matter of a few taels of meat by then.

However, the stepmother is also a mother after all. In this country where filial piety rules the world, the stepmother is the one who takes the initiative. She doesn't treat her stepson harshly. Tangning and the others can't sanction the stepmother. Not only can't fight back, but she has to be respectful , filial piety.The two brothers thought about it all night but couldn't come up with any solution.

They spent the whole night thinking about dealing with their stepmother, and Mrs. Tang also spent the whole night thinking about how to recover from yesterday's defeat.So, when they got up the next day, the three brothers received a notice from Carpenter Tang that their mother was pregnant and could not work, so Tang Mu stayed at home to do housework and take care of their meals, making sure that their mother had good food and drink. .

Tang Ning and Tang Yun listened with dark circles under their eyes, and said viciously in their hearts at the same time, they must show her a little bit.

After hearing "eat and drink well", Tangning suddenly thought of a good idea.After he got the bow and crossbow, he planned how to teach his second brother to use the bow and crossbow to hunt. Now the second brother was injured and was delayed, but he can eat fish if he can't eat meat.Now that the ice in the river has melted, it is a good time to eat fish, and fishing does not take much physical effort.

As soon as he thought of it, Tangning asked his eldest brother to take two bamboo poles left over from making bamboo arrows, thread them on with thin thread, and bend the embroidery needles to use them as fishhooks. Two simple fishing poles were then formed.The two of them walked towards the river with their fishing rods and baskets. They dug a lot of earthworms along the way, and found a shelter from the wind by the river. Tangning began to direct her second brother to string earthworms on the hooks. He wouldn't do it even if he died. After throwing the hook into the river, the two of them sat and basked in the sun leisurely.

Maybe it was just thawing, the fish just floated up to breathe, or maybe Tangning and the others were lucky. They caught a big crucian carp in one morning. Thinking that her stepmother used her pregnancy to get Tang Mu to join the gang at noon, Tangning felt proud and ate it at noon. Fish, eating fish is the most nourishing for pregnant women, if she can eat it.

So, at noon, a large bowl of crucian carp soup with some ginger and scallions was placed on the table. This kind of fishy smell was not a problem for Tangning, but it would be fatal for pregnant women who were in the period of morning sickness. The sister-in-law smelled the smell and vomited before serving the table.

Tangning, who let out a bad breath, happily ate the fish her brother had picked out. While eating, she glanced at Niuniu who was staring at him resentfully, and said to herself, "It's not that I don't give you fish, it's because you don't eat it." Knowing how to criticize, no one is to blame." Of course, he would not let his brothers criticize Niuniu, Tang Ning's actions over and over again had completely annoyed Tang Ning, so much so that he could not respect the old and love the young for Niuniu. thoughts.

Since then, as long as the Tangning brothers can catch fish that day, there will always be fish on the table at noon, steamed, braised, or soup, in various ways, but one thing remains the same: only ginger and onion are always served.As for what to eat for lunch for a pregnant woman who can't eat every time, that's not their concern.

Although doing so would be very bad for the child in Mrs. Tang's stomach, the three brats didn't realize that there was still a little life in Mrs. Tang's flat belly.They don't even understand pregnant women, otherwise they wouldn't bother a pregnant woman like this.

Mrs. Tang also complained to Carpenter Tang, but Tangning and the others were not afraid.They are young, so it would be good if they can get fish every day. They try their best to serve pregnant women. As for what pregnant women can eat, can you expect a few half-children to understand this?What?Want to eat meat?It's okay, the mother who is in charge of the family's money wants to give money, even if it is less, a piece of meat for each person is always enough.

After a few days of tossing around like this, Mrs. Tang also learned to be good, and asked Carpenter Tang to bring some snacks specially for her from outside, or gave Carpenter Tang money to bring back some meat, and only burned it for her to eat.For pregnant women, it's normal to have small burns.Tangning and the others didn't care too much, as long as she didn't mess with them, let Carpenter Tang know where the money was spent, and don't count their money, she could eat whatever she liked.In fact, the three brothers did not realize that the money made by Carpenter Tang belonged to their family.No matter how much Carpenter Tang spent on his stepmother, it was Carpenter Tang's own money, and it was only right and proper to spend it on his wife.

As a result, Mrs. Tang and the three brothers no longer ate in the same pot, and everyone did not interfere with the river, and the days went by like this.

Tang Ning, who was lying on the kang and thinking wildly, suddenly jumped up. He was so angry that he was quarreled by the chicken early in the morning. He almost forgot that today is the birthday of the second brother. The birthday of the second brother is three days older than him. The eighteenth of the month, the second brother is the fifteenth of March.Generally, farmers' families do not celebrate children's birthdays, but Tang Mu and Tang Ning still prepared a gift to celebrate Tang Yun's birthday, which also meant wishing him a full recovery.