Liu Chunhua, the mother of Osmanthus, was once the daughter of a wealthy family. She lived a rather prosperous life when she was a teenager. Not only did she go to a women's school to read characters, she also studied painting and English. It is said that she ate steak with a knife and a fork. , is a very foreign character.

Pampered at home until the age of eighteen, Liu Chunhua married the eldest young master of the Wu family, who was similar to his own family, and gave birth to four sons and a daughter, and lived a comfortable life for a few years. When liberation came, people like the Wu family were the first to be criticized/fighted. After the whole family was dragged to the street to parade/show to the public, the family was dismantled and distributed to various places for reform through labor. Young Master Wu's family was sent to Beicha Forest Farm to work as a coolie.

A tattered, tattered earthen house, a tattered quilt with cotton wool exposed, this is all the belongings of the eldest young master of the Wu family when he first arrived at the forest farm, but in Beicha, it has been cold for four to five months, and the breath turns into ice. In the realm of the world, the family would have to freeze to death just by relying on this house and this broken bed.

Faced with such a predicament, Young Master Wu had no choice but to wipe away his tears, but Liu Chunhua was courageous. She risked her death while it was dark in the other courtyard where Young Master Wu used to rest while hunting in Beicha Forest Farm. Because this house is on the side of the border, it doesn't look very rich from the outside, and there are no neighbors in the front, back, left, and right sides, so it can be preserved.

Liu Chunhua found a few clean quilts, and went to the servant's room to pull a few tattered sheets and sew them on the outside of the quilts. He found a few pieces of thick cotton-padded clothes that were pressed in the box, and deliberately stamped a few tattered puddings and used them. A few nights, he moved to his small dilapidated house. When he came back for the last time, Liu Chunhua glanced at his unfinished hunting map, ordered a brazier and set it on fire. The small box was taken away.

Relying on the dozens of kilograms of rice and cotton jackets and quilts brought back from the other courtyard, the Wu family will not freeze to death and starve to death in this cold winter, and because the winter here is too cold, other people in the forest farm can not easily go up to the mountains to collect firewood and hunt. When they went out, some people nearby smelled the fragrance of the Wu family's porridge, but they looked pitiful, so they turned a blind eye, and no one reported them. Sometimes they even hunted too much prey, and they would throw a rabbit leg or a piece of roe deer meat at their house.

Mrs. Li knew the situation of the Wu family. When she brought Osmanthus back, it was the second year after the Wu family went to the forest farm for renovation. Mrs. Li saw Liu Chunhua as a weak woman, but she pulled up the wood to fight like a man. Strength, feel that this girl can't be wrong.

After Mrs. Li instructed Osmanthus to invite her mother to paint the kang qin, she went out to help Wang Sufen rub the dried corn with a smoking bag. Mingnan and Mingbei were both shirtless and grinding their eyes in the backyard. The rice is poured in, one is in charge of grinding, and when the two are tired, they will change positions.

Osmanthus did not come out with Mrs. Li, but instead found a rag to wipe off the ash on the kangqin and the box. Looking at the brand-new furniture in the room, Osmanthus couldn't help but be in a daze, until the old lady Li called her to cook, and then she came back to her senses.

Early the next morning, Osmanthus returned to her mother's house with some dry food to find her mother to paint the kang qin. Now Liu Chunhua, who is almost fifty, no longer goes up the mountain to pull wood, but does some odd jobs. In the past few days, all kinds of wild vegetables and fruits on the mountain are ripening in large areas. The forest farm is on vacation to allow workers to store grain and pull wood for the winter. Liu Chunhua also got a few days of free time. He came back with a basket of wild vegetables and sat at the door to choose vegetables.

"I didn't come back last month, why did you come back again?" Liu Chunhua looked at her without looking up: "Don't rely on your mother-in-law's goodness, you won't treat yourself as an outsider, if his family drives you back, our family doesn't have it. where you live."

Osmanthus bit her lip, went into the room and took a small stool to sit opposite Liu Chunhua, grabbed a handful of wild vegetables from the basket, pinched off the roots, and threw the selected wild vegetables into the pot on the side.

Liu Chunhua was silent for a moment, then asked her in a hoarse voice, "What's the matter with you when you come back this time? He really doesn't want you anymore?"

"No?" Osmanthus still lowered her head, "I'm getting married and will have a wedding at the end of the year."

Liu Chunhua couldn't help laughing, she looked at Osmanthus, and her tone suddenly became light: "Old Li's family is good, and you are lucky to catch up with such a marriage."

Osmanthus chose the last dish, looked up at Liu Chunhua, and asked in a low voice, "Mom, can you help me draw a kangqin?"

Liu Chunhua's smile froze on her face, with a bit of sarcasm: "I don't know how to draw, I'm just a wood puller." She stood up quickly, and was about to walk into the house with the basin, but Osmanthus got up and quickly stopped her. She: "Mom, this is the biggest happy event in my life."

Liu Chunhua lowered her head and looked at the wild vegetables in the pot, her expression unclear, Osmanthus couldn't help crying, and said in a choked voice, "Then the painting should be regarded as a dowry given to me by my mother?"

It seemed that this sentence touched Liu Chunhua, she raised her head and glanced at Osmanthus, and laughed self-deprecatingly: "When I got married, it was only 200 silver dollars, a box of gold and silver jewelry as a dowry, and my daughter actually had this picture. Painting is enough."

"Mom..." Osmanthus called in a long voice, with a bit of pleading in her voice.

Liu Chunhua looked at Osmanthus, and finally couldn't bear to reject her any more: "Okay, I'll draw for you, who told me to be sorry for you, this is what I owe you."

After pouring a basin of water, Liu Chunhua washed his hands and face clean, and combed his hair neatly and neatly behind his head in a bun. She opened the box, took out a washed white but neat and clean clothes and put it on, and finally took out the small box from the bottom of the box that she had treasured for more than ten years. At that time, Liu Chunhua took it out and rubbed it.

Liu Chunhua found a ragged furoshiki, wrapped the box in it, took out a small piece of white paper with charcoal and wrote a note, and then left with her daughter.

Osmanthus has been in the Li family for ten years. This is the first time that her mother's family has come to the door. As soon as Mrs. Li heard the door open, she greeted him and went out. She and Liu Chunhua were polite in the yard. Mingnan and Mingbei came out to see it. Even Zhen Zhen stretched her neck hard and looked out the window.

Seeing this, Wang Sufen smiled and tapped lightly on her forehead: "Such a small person will still be watching the fun." As she said that, she picked up Zhen Zhen and went out.

Zhen Zhen also knew the identity of Osmanthus' family from the few words of her family. She looked at Liu Chunhua curiously, and saw that she was wearing clean clothes and combing her hair meticulously. Straight back to that station is very energetic.

Wang Sufen smiled and let her go inside: "My dear, come to sit in the house. It's the first time I've seen you in so many years. Osmanthus looks like you."

Liu Chunhua had a faint smile on his face: "I have always wanted to come and see you, but you also know that my family is not good, and I am afraid that I will cause trouble for you. Besides, when you bought sweet-scented osmanthus to raise it, it stands to reason that sweet-scented osmanthus and my family are in trouble. It doesn't matter anymore, it's you who are kind-hearted and let her bring things home to see us from time to time, we are already very content, how can we be a family with you with a big face."

When Wang Sufen heard this, she didn't know what to say. Madam Li took out a cigarette bag from her waist, stuffed some cigarette leaves into it, struck a match, lit it, and took two puffs before slowly saying, "Since we often let When Osmanthus goes back, she doesn't mean to let her not recognize you, don't think about it so much, go in and have a drink and rest."

Liu Chunhua thanked again, and then followed Mrs. Li into the house. Wang Sufen put Zhen Zhen on the kang, and let Osmanthus speak with her. She went to the kitchen to boil a pot of water and poured a bowl of sugar water. go in.

Liu Chunhua is well-educated, his speech is clear and coherent, his voice is extremely gentle, and even drinking sugar water has a posture of drinking afternoon tea.

After Liu Chunhua drank the sugar water and handed the bowl to Osmanthus, he thanked Mrs. Li again and stood up: "Where is the kangqin? I'll go and see what it looks like, so I can figure out what to draw."

Mrs. Li said, "I want you to take a break and see it tomorrow. You are impatient."

Liu Chunhua shook his head: "I'm used to work, but I don't get used to it after a break. Besides, my eyes are going to get cold today. There must be a lot of things in your family. How can I stay here all the time."

When Mrs. Li was buying sweet-scented osmanthus flowers, she had contact with Liu Chunhua once, and she knew that this person was somewhat sensitive and inferior because of the dramatic changes in her family background. She didn't continue to persuade, she got off the kang and led Liu Chunhua to the backyard: "The house at the back was arranged for their young couple. Earlier, it was prepared for Dongzi and his fourth uncle. Later, his fourth uncle married from Bingcheng. Daughter-in-law, this house is vacant."

Mrs. Li opened the door, and Liu Chunhua took a look inside. Although the house was a little smaller, the layout was the traditional style of Beicha. As soon as you entered the door, there was the kitchen, with a room on the left and right.

Mrs. Li pointed to the east room: "Let Dongzi and Osmanthus live in the east room, and the west room will be reserved for Mingxi." Liu Chunhua walked in and looked at the layers of paper on the wall, as if it had just been pasted. how long. The box made of red pine is placed on the ground, the style is simple but strong, and the Kangqin is the same, there is no color from top to bottom.

Liu Chunhua looked at the brand-new kangqin with wood grain, and his face showed a bit of love: "At first glance, it is a good wood. Many people like to use that kind of tedious decoration when they make cabinets. According to me, this kind of simple and generous is better. Showing the most authentic beauty of wood."

Wang Sufen was a little confused. The carpenter just picked up the most common style to fight because he was still working in the business and didn't have that much time. How could it be a good thing when Osmanthus' mother said it.

Excitedly opening the box, Liu Chunhua checked his paints one by one. Seeing that some of the paints inside were dried up and some had faded, he couldn't help feeling a little distressed: "It's been stored for too long, I'm afraid it won't work well, but there are so many kinds, so just adjust one. The tone will not be biased. Madam, what kind of painting do you think it is painted on? Is it plum orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum or Qingsong and Aoxue?"

Mrs. Li was also stunned by her question. It took a long time for her to react, and she quickly said, "Painting festive ones, either big red peonies or lotus flowers, just look at the lively ones."

Liu Chunhua paused with his hand picking the paintbrush, looked up at the kangqin, and seemed a little regretful: "This wood is heavy in color, and it might not look good with peony."

"It's okay." Mrs. Li smiled: "The young couple will draw this when they get married."

Now that the old Li family had an idea, Liu Chunhua didn't talk any more, but she hadn't painted for many years, and when she got a pen, she asked Mrs. Li for some old newspapers. There are two familiar hand-painted pictures on the newspaper.

Mrs. Li and Wang Sufen didn't bother her, they let her paint in the house, and when it got dark, they asked Osmanthus to call her over for dinner, and arranged for her and Osmanthus to sleep in the same room at night.

For the first time in ten years, the two of them slept together. They lay side by side and didn't fall asleep. Suddenly Liu Chunhua asked, "I think you are not very happy these two days. Is there something wrong with the marriage?"

Osmanthus was silent for a long time, and then said sullenly, "I don't see any joy in Brother Dongzi. I'm afraid he doesn't want to get married."

"Have you asked him?" Liu Chunhua turned to look at her: "What if he really doesn't want to marry you? You just give up?"

Osmanthus stared at the black ceiling without speaking for a long time.

The next morning, Mrs. Li just woke up and called from Donglijian to the kitchen to scoop up water and wash her face. Looking at the neatly dressed sweet-scented osmanthus, she asked casually, "Why did you change your clothes and where are you going?"

"Honey, I want to open a letter of introduction to Bingcheng to find Brother Mingdong!"