At 5:17 a.m. the next day, it was still dark. Zhou Wenzhong woke up from bed, put on his clothes and shoes, opened the door of his house and ran to the toilet outside the compound.

Why does it tell time so accurately? There is a clock in the main room.

In fact, it doesn't matter whether there is a clock or not. Music is played on time every day in a large factory nearby. When you hear the song, you will know what time it is.

Some people live near the school, which is more convenient.

The most convenient thing is to live next to the military station, and you can calculate the time according to their wake-up number and lights-out number.

Otherwise, how can people who cannot afford watches and clocks still live?

The big clock in the Drum Tower has not been reproduced yet. And when a nearby factory plays music, you can guess the time.

Thanks to the fact that the door was not allowed to be locked, otherwise Zhou Wenzhong would have been suffocated to death.

Five minutes later, Zhou Wenzhong ran out of the toilet, tying the rope around his waist and breathing heavily. He shivered from the cold when the breeze blew.

The sound of a bicycle chain came from far and near. Zhou Wenzhong stood there and waited for a while before he saw the person coming clearly. It was Xu Damao! He didn't show up at the hospital meeting yesterday. He should have some tasks in the factory. Next time

Gone to the countryside.

[Is Xu Damao a villain? Zhou Wenzhong has 8 insights into villains.]

Rule 1: Say hello frequently and talk less.

Article 2: Don’t take the initiative to interact with others, but don’t refuse to interact with them.

Article 3: Don’t have a deep friendship, but don’t break up the friendship.

Article 4: You can give benefits to villains, but you cannot take advantage of them.

Article 5: Don’t enter the circle of villains, and don’t let villains enter your own domain.

Article 6: Don’t help him, and don’t stop him at the same time.

Article 7: No advice, no participation, no discussion.

Article 8: Let it develop and fend for itself.

……………

"Brother Damao, why are you back just now? As soon as I heard the sound of the bicycle, I knew that it was Brother Damao who was definitely back! No wonder the neighbors nearby said: Brother Damao is the most promising in our yard."

Xu Damao took a closer look at Zhou Wenzhong. This boy is very sweet today!

"It's you! What's wrong with your face?"

Only then did Zhou Wenzhong realize that he hadn't washed his face yesterday and there was still blood on his face.

"Oh, this. You can't tell outsiders. You have to keep it a secret for me!"

"Hey, I'm so strict with my mouth. Tell me, were you beaten by someone outside? Don't worry, I'll let you vent your anger."

"Well... forget it, Brother Damao, don't make random guesses. Anyway, it wasn't my dad who beat me. I'll go back first."

After speaking, Zhou Wenzhong hurriedly ran to his home.

"Hiss... No! There's something going on here! I must have missed the big event yesterday! I'll have to find someone to ask about it later."

Xu Damao pushed the factory bicycle and walked towards the courtyard.

Zhou Wenzhong envied Xu Damao very much! He was handsome, well-spoken and open-minded in his work. The most important thing was that Xu Damao had a job!

………………

At 6:30 in the morning, Ma Guihong finished her busy breakfast. This was not prepared for "idle workers". Even families with formal jobs do not enjoy the treatment of everyone having breakfast.

There were four people sitting at the dining table. Zhou Deming was holding a large pancake made of stick noodles, and Zhou Wenxin was eating a black pancake made of sorghum noodles. Zhou Wenxiu ate half of the pancake, and Ma Guihong gave her half of the large pancake to Zhou Wenxin.

Even if they want to go to school, they will be hungry at noon after breakfast, or they will not eat in the morning and wait until noon to eat. Anyway, there is only so much food. It doesn't matter if they eat early or late.

At this time, Zhou Wenzhong was rummaging through boxes and cabinets looking for his junior high school diploma. After rummaging through all his belongings, he sorted out a piece of paper that looked like a certificate. This was the junior high school diploma, and he quickly put it in the storage space.

After searching for a long time, I didn’t get a penny! I felt contempt for my predecessor. I opened the door and walked into the main room.

"Boss, if you don't go to school, don't eat. Save the food for your younger brothers and sisters. Your father will come back at noon and take you to work at the food station. Mom will make you a vegetable dumpling and you can take it with you to eat."

"oh."

Zhou Wenzhong watched the four people at the dining table devouring their food. After taking out the porcelain bowl and pouring hot water, he returned to the bedroom and sat down at the desk.

"Sign in."

[Ding…Sign in successfully! Today’s reward is 4 cornmeal steamed buns, 1 tael of rapeseed oil, and 1 pack of Pegasus cigarettes. It has been placed in the storage space.]

"Wow! What a smoke! Pegasus cigarettes are 28 cents a pack. I heard that this pack of cigarettes has a mellow taste.

An ancient saying goes: Salt brings strength, and oil brings spirit. Let’s not talk about whether we can eat enough. At least without these two things, can people not get sick? Even an animal knows how to lick salt cubes."

Waiting until the clock rang seven times, Zhou Wenzhong opened the bedroom door and took a look. The people who had just eaten were no longer at home. They all went out. Those who should go to work went to work, and those who should go to school went to school. My predecessor's mother also went out.

Went to look for some casual work.

Zhou Wenzhong ran to the chest of drawers in the main room, opened the glass and took out a ceramic jar. After opening it, there was a slightly cyan salt, some of which had become damp and formed into large salt blocks. He reached in and took out 2 pieces of salt, and then

He put the jar back in its place and ran back to the desk in the bedroom.

I was already so hungry that I felt panicked and my legs were trembling a little.

Take out a steaming cornmeal steamed bun. It’s quite big. This steamed bun must weigh four ounces this time, right? Cornmeal is a fine grain! Cob noodles are a coarse grain!

Take the wowotou and rub it on the salt block, add a few drops of brown rapeseed oil and stuff it into your mouth.

"It's soft, fragrant, and sweet! With the addition of rapeseed oil, it's like a cornmeal steamed bun! It doesn't irritate your throat at all, and it's very easy to swallow. As long as you feel hungry, everything you eat tastes delicious!"

"belch……"

The two men were full as soon as they finished eating, and they drank another bowl of boiling water. Zhou Wenzhong picked his teeth with his fingers. He stood up, rubbed his stomach and moved around. After walking out of the room, he went to the locust tree where he had left last night.

The third aunt said hello: "Wen Zhong got up so early, why don't you want to sleep more?"

"So it's the third aunt? I knew it was you as soon as I heard the voice, but you have a fragile voice. That's what happened. My dad found a job for me yesterday. I went to the grain station to help people move things around. After all, it was okay.

I can earn a few bucks to supplement the family income."

The third aunt held a small bundle of dried vegetables in her hand. It was hard to tell what kind of vegetables they were. She washed them in a basin and put them in another basin to soak.

"It's good that you can work. It means you have grown up. Don't make your father angry like yesterday."

"Hey, I remember the third aunt."

Zhou Wenzhong's legs jumped, he grabbed the tree trunk with both hands, and used all his strength to lift it up, his face turned red.

"Uh...huh. Uh...huh."

Maybe it was because I had a lot of bowel movements in the early morning, or maybe it was because I ate less just now. This time I did two pull-ups, loosened my hands, and slipped down from the tree trunk.

"How old are you to play the swing there?"

"No, I think this tree trunk is still a bit high. I want to lower it a little. Later, my mother can tie a rope here so that everyone can dry their clothes."

"You are such an honest and filial boy. You even want to help your mother with the work even if you don't have enough to eat."

"If you can do more, just do more. It's useless to save your strength. Anyway, it will grow back tomorrow."

"I didn't notice it. You're not a big person, but you're very reasonable in your reasoning."

"When you touch gold, it's like gold, when you touch jade, it's like jade. It's all thanks to Teacher Yan and your education."

"You are really good at talking."

"Shall I help you carry the basin into the house?"

"Don't bother me. You should go back to your house and rest. Save some energy so you can move things for others at noon."

"Hey, I listen to you. There are only three aunts in this courtyard who love me."

If Zhou Wenzhong returned home after saying a few more polite words and helped others with work, wouldn't they be allowed to say a few polite words and then give him a piece of corn?

He kept asking: "Let's stay and have some food together? How can we eat while we don't even have a food stamp? If we don't pay for food stamps to eat, we will definitely offend Yan Bugui."

At 9:20 a.m., Zhou Wenzhong took out a small bench from home and sat in the front yard against the wall to bask in the sun. Many people who have been here in the past few years have suffered from rickets or anemia, although Zhou Wenzhong has already

The age of onset has passed.

But! Basking in the sun can be said to be the most suitable maintenance method for poor people like Zhou Wenzhong.

There are so many benefits of sunbathing in winter: stimulating hematopoietic function, improving skin tissue, preventing osteoporosis, and enhancing the body's immunity...

The main reason is: free.

What else can you do if you don't bask in the sun? You'll get hungry if you move. Moving less can save food.

Zhou Wenzhong just leaned against the wall and reached out to grab his tattered cotton-padded jacket. He didn’t know what kind of fabric it was made of. The cotton-padded jacket on his body covered the mainstream colors of this era, black, blue, and blue. Moreover, the cotton-padded jacket was also made of fabric.

There are patches on the balls, shoulders, elbows, and cuffs.

The black cotton trousers were also covered with blue patches on the knees and hips. The trouser legs were torn, and his ankles were still exposed when he sat down.

One foot is wearing black cotton shoes, and the other foot is wearing dark blue high-top five-eye cotton shoes with striped suede. It always exudes a fashionable atmosphere. There is no rubber sole on the sole, and the thread has been cut long ago.

There are loofah pulp, tattered newspapers, and some rags inside.

Bend over and tie your own socks. There are three types of socks: cloth socks, woolen socks, and nylon socks.
To be continued...