The next morning,
The sky was slightly bright,
Gu Dong woke up,
She looked inside the bed,
She leaned against the wall and sat up. She first tucked the Ai Cao in,
Then she quietly put on her clothes and walked out.
She had experienced too many things during the day,
The Ai Cao did not sleep well that night,
She dreamed repeatedly. There was the loving smile on her mother's face on the day she went to Zhuangzi in her previous life,
Her father did not smile, but patted her on the shoulder and told her about growing up. There were also dreams that she was still in the Ai family, living in fear and trepidation. The members of the Ai family either hit or scolded her,
They revealed their cannibalistic faces.
Fear, fear, unwillingness, and despair that she wanted to resist but was unable to do so. The Ai Cao looked at the Ai family that was like a ferocious beast and wanted to escape,
She finally broke free and ran to the door of the courtyard. When she opened the door, she saw Gu Dong. She was filled with surprise,
She reached out to pull Gu Dong,
Only to find that..,
Gu Dong looked at her with a half-smile,
There was a strange smile on his face that no one could see through.
Boom! The Ai Cao felt as if she had been struck by lightning,
She was covered in cold sweat,
She woke up in shock.
The slight movement behind her let her know that Gu Dong had woken up and was getting out of bed. However, because of the nightmare just now, she did not move. She was still curled up in the blanket, quiet.
The way Gu Dong looked in the dream just now was exactly the same as when he mocked her for no reason yesterday. This Gu Dong not only made her feel unfamiliar, but also a little uneasy.
After coming here for so long, the person she was most familiar with was Gu Dong. After experiencing so much, unknowingly, she had already developed a reliance on Gu Dong in her heart.
But did she really understand Gu Dong, Gu Dong?
These days, what she saw was only one side. The fear and tribulations of the other world made her unknowingly open her heart to Gu Dong, who had treated her well.
But now? Reality gave her a sudden blow. Fortunately, the door was only slightly ajar.
The Ai Cao lay under the blanket and thought about everything. From the fear in the dream, to the confusion in the life now, to the strange little Zhuangzi that appeared out of nowhere.
Did ghosts and monsters really exist? When she was an Ai Zhi, her mother had always believed in the existence of things. Many people prayed to the gods and Buddhas. Sometimes, what they prayed to was not that the gods could really help them, but that they would feel at ease.
However, after going from one world to another, the Ai Cao had no choice but to believe it based on its own experience. However, other than the fact that the world had changed and she now had a small manor, she had not seen or felt the slightest bit of a deity or ghost that had the ability to transcend reality and control all of this.
He couldn't figure it out. He couldn't understand.
However, worrying about this and that was useless. She was still alive. As long as she was not dead, life had to go on.
Without destruction, there would be no construction. The Ai Cao's mentality changed greatly at this moment. There was a kind of strength and confidence that was tinged with sadness.
When she went to work in the morning, the Ai Cao worked even harder. She did not want to be a burden and did not want to be an outlier. She wanted to rely on herself.
However, the way she worked made Gu Dong, who was working together with her, angry.
"What's wrong with you?" Gu Dong leaned closer to her, bent down, and said in a low voice, "Are you stupid? Do you not want your arm anymore?"
The Ai Cao did not want to pay attention to him and looked at him.
The rising sun hung in the eastern sky. It seemed to coat the man with his back facing her with a layer of Buddha's light. The Ai Cao was in a daze and her heart trembled. She did not know if it was because she had stayed in the village for too long, but at this moment, she actually felt that Gu Dong was very handsome. If someone were to ask her what she imagined her future husband to be, it would definitely be Gu Dong's current appearance.
He bent his waist slightly, and his body was leaning towards her. His thick eyebrows were slightly furrowed. Although his face was full of impatience, it could not hide his concern. Although he had a small problem, he was a responsible man who could make people feel safe.
In the early autumn morning, the morning breeze blew. Not only did it blow the leaves in the distance, but it also blew the nearby villagers and the Ai Cao's heart. There were slight ripples, and it swayed slightly.
"Why are you in a daze again?" Gu Dong's slightly dissatisfied voice sounded in her ear.
The Ai Cao came back to her senses and gave him a sidelong glance. "It's none of your business!" Then she bent down and continued to do her work.
"Hey, you're all grown up now, aren't you!" Gu Dong was so angry that he looked like a loafer. However, although he said that, he saw that Mugwort was no longer as "crazy" as before. He rubbed his nose and thought about what happened last night. He knew that his wife was angry with him, so he didn't bother with her anymore.
After the morning work, the brigade leader asked everyone not to go back first. He had a meeting and had something to say.
On the roadside, the noisy villagers stood in groups of three to five and talked very enthusiastically. Most of the topics revolved around the Ai family's old woman bringing her grandson to "expose" Gu Dong as a thief.
In the end, no clear evidence was found in the Gu family's house. Was the Ai family framing Gu Dong, or did Gu Dong really steal the grain from the fields and hide it? Everyone in the village had their own thoughts about this.
In the village, other than the radical people like Zhang Xianglan, who naturally thought that Gu Dong's house should be searched. In fact, there were still some people who sympathized with the Gu family. However, they discussed it in private at home. After they left home, the child of a landlord was still the child of a landlord.
Something happened yesterday, and today they had a meeting. Did the brigade leader have something to do with this matter?
Just as the villagers were wondering if the brigade leader would help the Gu family, the Ai family, or the accountant's daughter, Zhang Xianglan, the secretary spoke.
"Stop arguing. Quiet down. Those over there, hurry up and stand properly! Hurry up and gather in the middle. The meeting is about to start. "
After the secretary finished speaking, the brigade leader took a puff of his tobacco pipe and waited for the crowd to quiet down. He then said slowly, "The autumn harvest is coming soon. Recently, a few fields in the village near the mountain have been robbed. The grain belongs to the country. If anyone dares to steal from the government, they will go to jail. However, some people are not organized and have no discipline. They are ruthless and bold. Therefore, the brigade leader has discussed it and decided that from today onwards, the village will be formed into a patrol team.
After the brigade leader finished speaking, the crowd was silent for a few seconds. Then, there was an uproar and a lot of discussion.
Obviously, no one had thought of patrolling. After hearing about it, some people supported it, while others opposed it.
Fu Guozhang had been a village leader for almost ten years. He had seen everything. He glanced at the "lively" crowd, twirled a handful of tobacco leaves, and waited for them to quiet down. What kind of people were in the village? What were their characters like? He had grown up in the village. Although he couldn't say 100%, he could at least say 70% to 80%.
The messy morning meeting lasted for almost an hour before it was dismissed.
From today onwards until the official autumn harvest, the men would need to form a small team to patrol the fields in the village every day. The women would take a break for a few days and prepare at home. Then, they would wait for the official autumn harvest in a few days.
Once the patrols started, it would not be easy to harvest corn. Looking at the expressions of the Ai family and the other families in the village, the Ai Cao knew that he could not do this anymore.
Although he did not know where the Zhuangzi came from, the food inside should be edible. If there was really no food at home, should he think of a way to get some?
The Ai Cao hesitated and looked at Gu Dong. However, he found that Gu Dong was not anxious or flustered at all. Instead, he looked very happy.
Why did he look so happy? Was he not afraid that there would be no food at home?
The Ai Cao had doubts in her heart. However, she did not intend to take the initiative to reconcile with Gu Dong, especially after he had scolded and scared her for no reason yesterday.
Gu Dong knew that he had gone too far with his wife yesterday. However, looking at the angry Ai Cao, who did not want to leave him, he could not bring himself to say anything.
Life was there for all to see. That was the truth. In this village, because of his composition, he was clearly not worse than others, but his life was one level lower than others. He did not want this to happen, but the reality was that he could not give the Ai Cao any guarantee. Since she was with him, she had to face things like yesterday, or even worse.
On the way home, the young couple walked one after the other, but neither of them said anything. No one knew whether they were competing with each other or with themselves. No one took the initiative.
When they reached home, the Ai Cao wanted to cook the leftover corn from yesterday. She hesitated in the kitchen for a long time, but in the end, she secretly took one out of the small Zhuangzi.
She did not dare to take too much, afraid that Gu Dong and Grandpa would find out. However, the two men at home did not say anything during dinner. Gu Dong was only responsible for bringing food home. As for how to arrange the food, it was completely up to the Ai Cao.
Looking at the four Ai Cao served, each of them took one. In the end, the last one was the bigger one that the Ai Cao took out.
"You guys eat? Grandpa, have another one. "The Ai Cao asked Grandpa Gu to eat more.
"I'm old. I can't eat so much." Grandpa Gu waved his hand, indicating that he alone was enough. He was herding sheep all day and did not do any heavy work. What was the point of eating so much?
The Ai Cao looked at Gu Dong. Gu Dong wanted to say that he also had enough. There was no other work today, so he should just stay at home and not eat so much. However, when he saw the Ai Cao's expectant eyes, he finally took the corn. Before he ate it, he split it into two and gave half of it to the Ai Cao.
The Ai Cao did not have a big appetite, but this was the first food she took out. Just now, she only secretly tasted a few corn kernels in the kitchen and did not taste it. Now that Gu Dong gave it to her, she took it without hesitation.
Looking at the Ai Cao who happily took half of the corn kernels, Gu Dong's lips curled up. He was in a good mood. His wife was able to eat a lot today. Her appetite was finally better than before.
In the morning, after Grandpa Gu finished eating, he went to herd sheep as usual. Gu Dong could not stay idle at home. Not long after, he went up the mountain with Fu Jiu, who came to call him. Only the Ai Cao was left at home. She quietly ran to the courtyard and closed the door. Then, she closed the door to the room and sneaked into the small Zhuangzi in the bedroom.
She looked at the cows, sheep, and pigs that she had fed yesterday and realized that they were much more energetic than before. Their cries were louder. Looking at the empty food trough, Mugwort felt that the reason why they were crying out loud when they saw her was probably because they were hungry.
After feeding the livestock, the Ai Cao ran to the warehouse and rummaged through it. Other than some old grains like peanuts, corn, soybeans, and sesame seeds, there was nothing else.
In the warehouse next door, other than the animal fur she saw yesterday, there were also two batches of cotton cloth and a few bolts of silk. Touching the smooth and soft silk, the Ai Cao's eyes reddened.
It was so familiar.
If it was in the past, she would not wear this kind of cloth, which should be worn by the head maidservants in the family. But now, even if she wanted to wear it, she did not have the chance. The villagers' clothes were all coarse linen with patches. If she dared to wear it, she would definitely be beaten up.
After leaving the courtyard, the Ai Cao wandered around. When she saw that the crops in the field were almost ripe, she could not help but feel happy.
With such a big plot of land, it would all be hers after the harvest. How much food would there be? It would not be like the villagers, who worked themselves to death and did not even have enough food to fill their stomachs.
With this Zhuangzi, they would not have to worry about food in the future! The excited mugwort hopped and jumped happily in the field.
He looked to the east and turned to the west. He was still in the fruit forest. He plucked a ripe persimmon from the persimmon tree. Not only was it big, but it also smelled sweet. He ran to the pond to wash it and took a bite. His mouth was full of juice. It tasted very delicious.
If she could bring it to Gu Dong … The moment she thought of Gu Dong, the Ai Cao realized that something was wrong! She seemed to have been in this place for too long. She hurriedly ate the rest of the persimmons and hurriedly came out of this space and returned to her bedroom.
She was only thinking about the novelty and happiness just now and completely forgot about the time. She had been here for so long. Gu Dong and Grandfather should be back by now, right?
When she came in, she even locked the courtyard door from the inside. What if they called for her or entered the house and found that she was not in? What would she do? The Ai Cao's forehead was full of sweat just thinking about it.
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