After listening to the poem recited by Li Xiaoning, Lin Xi couldn't help but blush, but she was secretly happy in her heart. Although Li Xiaoning was just praising her beauty, she couldn't tell that he liked her in his tone.
Lin Xi was so excited, and standing on the top of the mountain, she naturally had the feeling of "seeing all the mountains at a glance, and the sky is so comfortable". She couldn't help but open her arms, close her eyes, and spin around to her heart's content.
Li Xiaoning couldn't help but stare straight. Until Lin Xi stopped, he was still staring at him without moving. Lin Xi felt a little embarrassed by him. She lowered her head and said coquettishly: "Hey, what are you looking at? Follow me. She looks like a pervert." The beautiful breasts that rise and fall due to the breath and the ecstasy in her eyes. She is really charming.
"The most tender thing is the gentleness of the lowered head, like the shyness of a water lotus that cannot bear the cool breeze..." Li Xiaoning couldn't help but read out the love poem again.
"Okay, okay. I know you are a great talent in the Chinese Department. Shouldn't these poems be read to your girlfriend Lu Xiaomei?" Lin Xi said shyly.
"It's over. Lu Xiaomei and I have broken up." Li Xiaoning blurted out, but subconsciously concealed what happened between him and Cheng Xiaoxi.
Hearing that Li Xiaoning had broken up with Lu Xiaomei, Lin Xi's eyes suddenly flashed with joy. At this moment, Li Xiaoning suddenly had the urge to rush forward and hug Lin Xi into his arms. But just as his steps moved, Cheng Xiaoxi's figure appeared. It flashed through his mind. He immediately calmed down and said sadly: "It's getting dark. Let's go back."
As the saying goes, it's easier to go up a mountain than it is to go down. In addition, it was Li Xiaoning's first time to go up this mountain. After it got dark, he couldn't tell the direction. The two of them got lost while walking.
Finally, we reached the bottom of the mountain. The night had darkened. The autumn wind blew, and the woods made whimpering sounds.
Lin Xi had never seen such a scenery. She only felt that the forest was like a sea. It was really unfathomable. She didn't know how many robbers, beasts or ghosts were hidden. She couldn't help but become scared. Coupled with the cold wind at night, she couldn't help but hug her arms. The arms trembled.
Li Xiaoning walked into Lin Xi. Just as he was about to take off his coat, Lin Xi's body came closer. His arms wrapped around her shoulders uncontrollably. Their hearts beat faster involuntarily...
Just like that, Li Xiaoning hugged Lin Xi and walked forward, one foot deep and one foot shallow. Suddenly Lin Xi pointed to a bright light in front of her and said, "There's a house over there."
The two of them quickened their pace. When they got closer, they discovered that it was a dilapidated wooden house. The siding of the wooden house was made of thin branches. The light coming from inside was a bit dim. It was probably an oil lamp.
Li Xiaoning was about to let go of his arms and go forward to knock on the door, but his right hand was grabbed by Lin Xi. He had to continue to hold Lin Xi and walk to the door. He stretched out his left hand to knock on the door.
"Who is it?" An old voice came out.
"Auntie, we got lost when we went up the mountain. We want to stay overnight." Li Xiaoning said.
With a "squeak" sound, the wooden door made of pine boards opened. An old woman with white hair appeared in front of her. "Come in, kid. It's very cold outside. Don't freeze."
Li Xiaoning and Lin Xi walked into the house and found that there were actually two rooms in the cabin, but they could be seen at a glance. The inner room was a bedroom with a simple wooden bed. There was no quilt on the bed, only two shabby raincoats. Two children were lying on the bed. He was looking at Li Xiaoning and Lin Xi with wide eyes. One was four or five years old and the other was three or four years old. Lin Xi smiled and waved to the two children. The child was shy and immediately hid in the raincoat. But then he lifted the raincoat. Open a corner and peek out secretly.
Apart from a bed, there was only one big wooden barrel in the house. Lin Xi's eyes suddenly felt pity. She had never seen such a poor family in her whole life.
The old lady opened the barrel and took out two sweet potatoes from it. She walked to the iron pot on the fire pit and said, "For those of you who haven't eaten yet, I'll cook some sweet potatoes for you."
Li Xiaoning couldn't help but feel moved. He walked to the barrel, opened the lid and took a look. He found half a barrel of sweet potatoes and corn cobs inside. Looking around again, he found a few unrecognizable green plants thrown next to the iron pot. There was nothing else edible in the house.
Looking at the two skinny children on the bed, Li Xiaoning couldn't help but burst into tears. She choked and asked, "Auntie, this is what you usually eat."
"What will you eat if you don't eat these?" the old lady said as she added water to the pot without raising her head.
Li Xiaoning asked again: "Is there anyone else at home? Where are the child's parents?"
The old lady washed the sweet potatoes with water and answered: "My son fell to his death while going up the mountain to clear the land. My daughter-in-law went out to do some work."
"Still doing things so late." Lin Xi asked in surprise.
The old lady didn't answer. Lin Xi picked up the rusty kitchen knife and chopped the sweet potatoes into the pot.
"It hasn't been peeled yet," Lin Xi said subconsciously. Li Xiaoning hurriedly pulled her to prevent her from continuing. He knew that the old lady didn't peel it not because she was unhygienic, but because she simply couldn't bear to peel it off. Sweet potato skins can also satisfy your hunger.
The old lady could obviously tell that Lin Xi must be a girl from a big city. She didn't argue with her. Instead, she continued to pick up firewood and matches to light the fire.
"It's already the 21st century. How can there be such a poor family?" Lin Xi also had tears in her eyes and whispered in Li Xiaoning's ear.
Li Xiaoning did not speak. At this moment, he only felt a wave of sadness. As the mayor of Pingshan Town, the people under his rule lived such a difficult life. But just now, he was still thinking about the messy things with Lin Xi. It was really too difficult. It shouldn't be.
When the old lady finished her work, she came over and said, "Sit down. We have to wait for a while."
Li Xiaoning and Lin Xi sat down on the simple wooden bench. They couldn't help but ask: "How much food can be harvested in a year? Is it enough to eat?"
The old lady's wrinkled face was full of sorrow. She didn't look at Li Xiaoning. Instead, she cursed as if she was talking to herself: "What if we don't have enough food? We farmers are just pigs." They are just animals. They work hard for a year. The grain they collect is not included in the imperial grain and national tax. They also have to pay the town government this kind of fee and that kind of fee. It is really peeling off our skin and squeezing our blood."
Lin Xi is the daughter of a high-ranking cadre. The man she likes is also the mayor of this town. She subconsciously resisted the old lady's "rebellious" words. She said, "Although your son is gone, your daughter-in-law is still there. She is also a young labor force. No matter how much the town government charges, our family shouldn't be like this."
"It's not like this. Then what can it be like?" The old lady looked at Lin Xi coldly.
"You can't do some side business to make some money." Lin Xi said according to her own thoughts.
"Why do you think my daughter-in-law is going out so late?" the old lady said angrily. Then she cried, "My old woman has no ability. Let my daughter-in-law do such a shameful thing."
"Didn't your daughter-in-law go to make money? Why is she embarrassed again?" Lin Xi asked in confusion.
Li Xiaoning vaguely thought of what was going on, and pulled Lin Xi to stop her from asking any more questions.
Then the room became silent again. Only the sound of water in the iron pot was sizzling.
After a while, the water in the pot boiled. The old lady walked over again, picked up the green plants on the ground, picked them briefly, rinsed them in the water, and then threw them into the pot. Li Xiaoning then I know they are wild vegetables.
When eating, Lin Xi looked at the dirty white porcelain bowl and the sweet potatoes stewed in oil-free and salt-free water at first. She was not willing to move her chopsticks. She just symbolically picked up the wild vegetables that looked pleasing to the eye and slowly put them on. When I put it in my mouth, I found it to be extremely delicious.
"Xiao Ning, these wild vegetables are delicious. I have never eaten such fresh wild vegetables." Lin Xi said with a smile on her face.
"This is pure natural green food. Of course it is delicious." Li Xiaoning said with a smile as he devoured it.
A smile appeared on the old lady's bark-like face and she said: "You city people are used to eating big fish and big meat. Your intestines are already filled with oil, so you think these things are delicious. We eat them because we have no choice."
"Grandma, are there many wild vegetables like this on the mountain?" Lin Xi asked with her big eyes flashing.
"More. Why not more? My old lady picked these all by herself." The old lady said one after another.
"Then when I go back, I must bring some back. My father will definitely be willing to eat it, and my little friends will also want to let them try it." Lin Xi said happily.
Li Xiaoning had something on his mind, so he couldn't be as carefree as Lin Xi. He asked the old lady again: "Has the town government taken your money to raise funds to build roads?"
"Those bastards usually don't remember my old lady, but when it comes to collecting money, they never miss it." The old lady began to curse again.
A cold light flashed in Li Xiaoning's eyes. He originally planned to dismiss He Dongliang from his post. But now it seems that it would be too cheap for the grandson. He asked again: "How much did your family charge?"
The old lady said expressionlessly: "That bastard He Dongliang said that there are four people in our family. One person is two thousand. Four people are eight thousand."
"Eight thousand." Lin Xi's eyes widened and she said in disbelief. "Mother-in-law, do you have an eight thousand friend in your family?"
"That bastard He Dongliang also knows that I don't have any at home. He just wants to bully my miserable wife." The old lady started crying again as she spoke.
At this time, even Lin Xi could tell what was going on. Her face was full of disbelief. She frowned and said, "Does this kind of thing still happen now? Isn't this what the landlords and rich people did in the past? Like Same as Huang Shiren."
"Huang Shiren is a thousand times stronger than them." The old lady was crying and cursing. "Why don't God open his eyes? Why don't you strike all these bastards with thunder?"