Bai Fumei in the 70’s

Just like this, Zhao Lanxiang saw from a distance how He Songbai scalded the pigs, and then worked hard to split the pork bones. The knife fell to the hard bones, fast and fierce, and sometimes blood splashed.

He Songbai split the four pigs for more than an hour.

After he completed the task, Master He picked up thirty pounds of semi-fat and lean meat that looked particularly good for him.

He Songbai asked, "Can I pick some pig offals?"

His girlfriend likes to eat more offals than pork, and her trotters are prettier than fatty pork in his eyes.

Master He waved his hand briskly, "Choose whatever you want."

Anyway, offals can't be sold for a lot of money.

The pig-killing masters are tired and hardworking. They will be allowed to bring some pork back to supplement their health after finishing their work every day. Master He thought that he added another two pounds of fat into it, which would be counted as He Songbai's "hard work" for the day.

"If you want to split the pig skull, pick some and go back." Master He added a sentence, as if he feels that He Songbai was poor and shabby, and was a bit overwhelmed.

Pork skulls are not the same as pork ribs. Skulls don't have a bit of meat. You can get a lot for a few cents. They are packaged and sold at low prices to the poor masters, and they just took it casually if they wanted to go back to make soup and drink.

After He Songbai asked these words, he turned his head subconsciously, and he was shocked.

His girl was supposed to be staying at home at this moment and fell asleep sweetly, but she was watching him with tears in her eyes at the moment, not sure how long she has stood there.

He Songbai, who felt that he has "picked up the bargain" and was happy, lost all his pleasant surprises.1

His sour voice showed a bit of tension.

"You... why are you here?"

Zhao Lanxiang wiped away her tears and said, both distressed and angrily, "If I did not come, I don't know if you plan to come here every day to 'buy pork'."

He Songbai subconsciously pulled away a few steps and said, "I am dirty and smelly."

After that, a few drops of pig blood fall from his fingertips.

Zhao Lanxiang took out her handkerchief and handed it to him to wipe his face.

"I don't think it's too dirty, isn't it my man?"1

He Songbai hurriedly turned to the sink to wash his hands and wiped his face with the handkerchief. He was talking with Zhao Lanxiang while washing his face. There was a firm voice in the very low voice, "I know what you want to say, Tiezhu must have told you."

"I will do this job and I won't change it. Okay, wipe your tears. Did the scene of killing pigs too bloody and scare you?

In fact, when this clean and beautiful woman appeared in this dirty and smelly slaughterhouse, it would make people feel that the whole room seemed a little brighter.

The envious and jealous eyes thrown at him by those hardworking guys made He Songbai feel the difference between the cloud and the mud again. He is the smelly mud in the ground, destined to mixed in the mud all his life. And she is a pure and clean cloud, free and floating away at any time.

She suddenly appeared in such a place, and He Songbai was dirty, tired and miserable, at that moment it was really embarrassing.

Zhao Lanxiang burst into laughter, "You are really annoying, you know why I am like this."

He Songbai washed his hands and patted her head, "Go, pick something you want to eat."

Zhao Lanxiang found that she could not change He Songbai's thoughts, sighed faintly in her heart, and at the same time was convinced by his perseverance.

This is a kind of admiration for the strong. Obviously there are easy roads to eat and wait for death, but he chose to take the risk and speculate. He did it, and he chose the business of selling raw meat. Although bitter and tired, Zhao Lanxiang knew that his choice was right. Each resident's monthly supplies of meat has fattened the black market. Even her parents have to "visit" the black market every week in order to have a bite of meat.

Although the slaughterhouse is not large, Zhao Lanxiang glanced roughly there were more than a dozen pig heads. It can produce 3-4 kilograms of pork every day. Probably most of the pork from the nearby black market in some counties comes from this place.

"Okay." She answered.

Zhao Lanxiang turned to pick up a pile of heads and pointed to them. "Brother Bai, see if you can split it. There is a pig brain inside. This is a good supplement. When we go back, I will make soup for you."

He Songbai heard the words and picked up the big knife and split five pig skulls evenly.

"Enough? There are still many here."

"Enough, it is enough. One for each person, it is just right."

Zhao Lanxiang picked a leaf outside and wrapped the pig brain. He Songbai cut the bamboo sticks and put the pork and offals on the skewer, weighing them in his hands.

He gave all the thirty kilograms of pork to Tiezhu.

"When you go to deliver food, help me give it to Gousheng."

Liang Tiezhu responded. Seeing that it was not too early, he carries the pork and hurriedly disappeared into the night.

He Songbai handed over the remaining offals and the two pounds of pork to Zhao Lanxiang, and said in a deep voice, "Take it back and make something delicious. I'll take a shower. I'll return the bike later. Go back to sleep first."

Zhao Lanxiang nodded, but did not leave. She followed behind He Songbai, and there were many people coming and going from the slaughterhouse. The women behind He Songbai would jokingly ask, "Your woman?"

He Songbai nodded vaguely, and motion to the girl to walk faster.

He ran to the mountain stream in one breath and took a shower. After washing, he rubbed his dirty clothes. When he came out wearing wet clothes, Zhao Lanxiang was still there.

She said, "I'll go with you too. When you return the bike, let's go home with my bike, so you don't have to walk back."

The woman's stubborn and cool eyes stared directly at He Songbai.

He Songbai didn't know what kind of evil he was hit. Seeing her eyes, he didn't push people away, but instead accepted without saying a word.

He slowed down his bike, and said as he rides on, "The rain is so slippery, be careful."

"This turn caused me to fall a while ago."

Zhao Lanxiang couldn't help but bent her lips, but the next sentence made her frown again.

Soon they came to the residential building, He Songbai returned the car to Li Zhong.

Li Zhong said, "Yo, isn't this the girl selling bean cake? Kidney bean cake is very delicious.It's all sold out at once. You should make more when you have time."

Zhao Lanxiang nodded.

"How about loach crisp?"

Li Zhong doesn't know what loach crisp is, he only replied, "Anyway, you can take any delicious food and I will sell it for you. They are all my own brothers. The price will not be too low."

He was talking suddenly a bit against his will.

Last time he received other people's yam cake, stingyly reduced the price to seven cents and made him a lot of profit. After tasting the sweetness, Li Zhong especially wanted to develop Zhao Lanxiang, a craftsman, so that everyone would earn a share.

Zhao Lanxiang said, "Okay."

After returning the bike, Zhao Lanxiang pushed the Phoenix bike to He Songbai, and took the initiative to sit on the passenger seat.

"Brother Bai, hurry up, it's getting dawn. People can see me sitting in the back seat of your car, even ten mouths can't make it clear."

She held out her hand to hold the man's lean waist and pressed her face to his back.

The man's wet clothes were blown by the wind on the mountain all the way, and are now dry. The rough cloth smelled a little of acacia, a little fragrance, just like the smell on his body. Zhao Lanxiang tightened her hands and hummed the song gently.

"I would like to go against the current and snuggle next to her. There is a dangerous beach in front of me, and the road is long and long...

[T/N: The song is "Across the Water" by Teresa Teng, published in 1980. See below.]