Twenty-four,

That year, my mother had just given birth to a sister. No, it was not the little sister you had ever met, but my eldest sister. She was not very beautiful, but she was so cute, and she was round everywhere, like a doll on New Year's paintings.

My mother loved her very much and named her Xiaoling. Every day I could hear my mother screaming at Xiaoling and making her laugh, although my sister was not yet old at that time.

But my sister was born in a bad time. That year, locust plague and hail attacked the village one after another, and my sister became the only newborn baby in the village who lived for three months.

"What's wrong with the other kids?" Amy felt it was difficult to stabilize her trembling voice.

Shen'er looked at her for a while and lowered her eyes, "I said, don't ask, it's not good for you to know something, so it's better not to know it."

"Where is Xiaoling? Why haven't I seen her before?"

Shen'er bit her lip and left two deep tooth marks on it.

That night, my father finally took Xiaoling away. I remember that my mother knelt down and kowtowed him, and the kowtowed her so hard that she broke her skin, but my father still hugged Xiaoling out without saying a word. The moment he walked out, my mother suddenly chased her out like crazy and grabbed her trousers. I heard her shout: Is it good to use me and use my life to exchange for her? In this way, there will be no more mouth to eat at home.

But her father threw her mother away, and her head hit the threshold, and she fainted.

Later, my mother woke up, but I never saw a smile in her eyes again. I often think that Xiaoling is the child who loves to laugh the most. When she left, she took away all the laughter and joy of the family.

After telling Xiaoling's story, Shen'er was silent for a long time. Just when Amy thought his story had been finished, he suddenly smiled bitterly and continued to say it.

After a few years, the little sister was born. She didn't have a name yet. Her mother wanted to call her Xiaoling, but her father refused to let her. He said that this name can always bring back bad memories of him.

"What are you afraid of? Are you afraid of retribution?"

I remember my mother replied with a sneer after hearing her father say this.

I originally thought that the birth of my little sister could bring some anger to this family. Although she is not Xiaoling, she can somewhat convey some of her mother's longing for Xiaoling. But I was wrong, because the same fate seemed to fall on her again.

My father and mother quarreled over this matter all day long and even fought. I saw that my mother was getting more and more purple every day because my father vented too much anger on her.

This anger was not only because of Xiaoling, but also because of her mother's increasingly neglect of him year after year.

"Do your father want to send your little sister away?" Amy asked.

"Um."

Amy breathed out and a relaxed smile appeared on her face, "Luckily, your father died, otherwise she would have suffered like Xiaoling."

This sentence made Shen'er laugh. He turned to Amy, "Yes, you said it right, but fortunately he died. I remember that day, there was a lot of thunder in the sky, but my mother made the fire in the stove strong. She wanted to make rice oil for her sister. My mother had little milk, and my sister was always so hungry that she cried, so she cooked the rice to her. My mother also gave me a bowl, and my sister and I were all muddy, and my mother laughed. It was the first time I saw her laughing in so many years."

"Is rice oil so fragrant?" Amy swallowed.

"It smells good, I'll cook it for you when I get home."

Shen'er suddenly stopped talking because he heard Susan's shouting. She was obviously looking for Amy and was already a little anxious.

"Let's go." Shen'er stood up, stretched out a hand at Amy, and his sleeves shrank. His thin wrists were exposed, something was on them, flashing in the setting sun with a fine and gentle light.

***

"I originally planned to leave overnight, but my foot was sprained at this time. It's so unlucky." Susan rubbed her swollen ankle dejectedly, and gently pinched Amy's round face. "What should I do? Mommy originally promised you to go back today, but she was just in a hurry to find you and sprained her foot. Now she can only stay here for a few more days."

"I think Amy is quite willing to stay here," Zhao Zimai squeezed his eyes at Amy, and soon a layer of mist floated between his eyebrows. "But this place is not very safe. You two should move to an inn outside the village to live. Although the environment there is a little worse, at least..."

"I don't want to go to the inn. I want to be with Brother Shen'er. Brother Shen'er wants to make rice and oil for me?" When he heard that Zhao Zimai was going to stay in the inn by himself, Amy was sweating in a hurry and grabbed Zhao Zimai's hand and wandered desperately.

Susan shrewd at her and hurriedly said to Zhao Zimai, "Mike, why is it unsafe here? Is it because Miss Mu said...resentful?"

Zhao Zimai was inconvenient to say anything in front of a few children, so he just nodded to Susan, but the worries in her eyes made her feel a little worried.

"Then...will we go now? But my feet can't move now..."

"You don't have to leave, just stay here. Whether it's resentment or evil spirits, you can't find this place." Yu's voice came from the door. She stood with the door frame, holding the medicine for Susan in her hand.

Zhao Zimai stood up and turned his eyes on her calm face, "Madam, why did you say that?"

Yu came over and gave Susan the medicine bowl, smiled sadly at Zhao Zimai, "There is a source of injustice and the debt is a master. Our family's debt has been paid off. Sir, do you think?"

After saying this, she turned her eyes to the coffin in the yard, "Tomorrow will be buried, and from then on, I have nothing to do with the pickled matters in this village."

There was a suppressed ruthlessness in her tone. Zhao Zimai heard it, but said nothing, and just said softly, "It's good, after all, it's more convenient to recover from injuries at home. Thank you, Madam."

After saying that, seeing Amy beside him jumping three feet, he touched her soft hair, frowned and looked out the door, "Where have Miss Mu and the others gone? Why haven't you seen anyone?"

"Young Master, you scolded me, and you are in a hurry to find someone now?"

After Baotian finished speaking, he felt a cold look at him, so he stuck out his tongue and shrank behind and stopped talking. It was said that Cao Cao arrived. At this moment, Mu Xiaowu's crisp and bright voice came from outside the door, "Young Master, you are back, I happen to have something to say to you."
Chapter completed!