C14 Dinner

Put down the elementary school textbook, Tao Huizhen felt tired in her eyes, She arranged the textbook neatly and neatly and put it in a canvas pocket. Only then did her red cheeks reveal a look of relief. The tea village in front of her was quiet. She gently opened her mouth. Gazing into the distance. Preparation for lessons had become an essential part of her life. She liked to use the natural light to prepare for the lessons. She did not want to turn on the lights in the bamboo house at night to affect Dao Xiaotong's rest.

Dao Xiaotong slept very early every day. Tao Huizhen gradually got used to Dao Xiaotong's work and rest. However, Tao Huizhen did not sleep so soundly. She woke up two to three times every night. She was often bitten by mosquitoes and could not sleep. Although there were mosquito repellents in the bamboo building, to her. . . Their effects were limited. Her mother had said that she liked mosquitoes more.

At night, if Tao Huizhen woke up, she wouldn't be angry. She raised her head to look at the back window of the bamboo building, and the sky full of stars appeared before her eyes. It was a beautiful and gorgeous scene that couldn't be seen in the depths of the city. Tao Huizhen treated this breathtaking scene as a gift from nature.

The bear tail of the Big Bear, the famous Big Dipper, spanned half the deep space in the north. The Milky Way sprinkled down a milky white belt of light in the night sky. This night sky was so beautiful that it shocked Tao Huizhen and made her intoxicated. The stars accompany me to sleep. The depths of the mountains weren't completely filled with poverty and poverty, and people were good at discovering a beautiful side. Tao Huizhen always thought this way. She pulled the blanket tight. She closed her eyes again. That small oval face. . . A satisfied expression.

Some people said that the lights of the city replaced the starlight at night. On the other hand, Tao Huizhen's thoughts were different. Not a single light could replace another type of light. It only appeared to be slightly weaker under an even stronger light, but when the light of the city was extinguished, the weak starlight could also be as vast and dazzling as the night sky at this moment.

In other words, the starlight had never been replaced. It had always been lit in the night sky of Dai Village, but it seemed insignificant under the lights of the city. As Tao Huizhen thought of this, she could hear Dao Xiaotong's well-proportioned breathing beside her ears. She could not dream for the whole night.

However, that night, Tao Huizhen heard an extremely tiny sobbing sound. Dao Xiaotong was crying secretly in the darkness opposite her.

The sunlight in front of the hanging bamboo house was about to land on the back of Qingshan. The light became dim. Tao Huizhen put the canvas bag containing the textbooks on the small table and got up. She stretched her arms over her head, straightened her body, and stretched her muscles. Oh, without practicing dancing, her body had become much stiffer. She sighed.

"Teacher Tao, dinner is ready. " Dao Xiaotong poured two bowls of glutinous rice from the big pot. The Dai villagers were all outside setting up a stove and starting a fire to cook. Dao Xiaotong almost took charge of the daily cooking work. Most of the time, she and Tao Huizhen were the only ones eating here. Sometimes, Elder Li would come over too.

When Elder Li did not come, he would take a portion of the glutinous rice and vegetables from here. When he returned to his small apartment, he would cook for himself. The food for today was glutinous rice and sour bamboo shoots. It was probably the same yesterday. What could they eat? This depended on what the parents of the village students sent over. They were never picky about food. With the hundred families eating fruit. Most of the time, it was glutinous rice and fermented sour vegetables. This was the most common food at the Dai villagers' table. Occasionally, there would be some "meat and meat. " That feeling was no less than adding a chicken leg for dinner.

In Da Tea Village Primary School, 28 students studied and did not spend a single cent. Elder Li had once said to Tao Huizhen that it was not that they did not spend, but that they could not afford it. The child's family did not have money. Some people's families did not even have a single dollar. He said that Tao Huizhen definitely wouldn't believe him, but that was the truth.

A hint of bitterness appeared on Tao Huizhen's face as she listened quietly.

Elder Li said that the people in the mountains. . . Even if they had no money, they could still eat their fill. There were always some things to eat. They can be exchanged for labor. Be it himself or Dao Xiaotong. . . Be it Officer Wang or the Department of Education. . . As for the teachers, including Tao Huizhen, and everything that these people had done. . . They had not asked for anything in return. If they had to ask for something in return. . . After eating the food sent by the children's parents, Elder Li smiled calmly. He said that he also had an inexplicable pride in his heart. This was the most important thing. This was the spiritual pillar!

"I feel that if someone can deliver food to me every day, I can feel that there are different people who care about me every day. This also makes me very satisfied. " At that time, Tao Huizhen smiled and said. She used her chopsticks to dig out a mouthful of sauce and put it into her mouth.

"Teacher Tao's mindset is very pure. Old man, I know that you definitely haven't eaten such poor food before. But you didn't say. " Old Li understood everything.

That time, it was Tao Huizhen, Dao Xiaotong, and Elder Li who had dinner together. That day, the parents of the child had sent glutinous rice and millet sauce over. There was nothing called food at the dinner table that night, so the food was very simple. Dao Xiaotong did not say anything even after she organized the meal. She felt very helpless.

That night, Dao Xiaotong held the scattered money in her wallet and cried silently. She did not cry for herself, nor for Tao Huizhen.

Dao Xiaotong placed a small portion of stir-fried bamboo shoots on the table. The color was the white of the clear soup and the two bowls of glutinous rice were steaming hot.

"I'm hungry. " Tao Huizhen combed her hair and sat on the small stool. She sized up Dao Xiaotong's busy figure. Even though it was such a simple meal, she actually felt her stomach growling. It was better than not having any food and only eating the mayo sauce.

Dao Xiaotong finished her work. She picked up the chopsticks and said: "The glutinous rice today was sent by Ah Liang's father. There is a bamboo basket full of it. Wu Huiyan's mother sent over the sour bamboo shoots. "

"It's pretty good. These are all pure green foods. " Tao Huizhen said.

Dao Xiaotong did not sit on the bench. She squatted at the small table and ate like a foreign guest. Halfway through her meal, she suddenly said, "Teacher Tao, I'm going to the county tomorrow to cut some meat. I don't know if the fat is better or the lean meat is better. Which one do you like to eat? I heard from the Hu family that the fat is more appetizing. "

"Where did you get the money from?"

"Officer Wang gave it to me. I have 30 yuan of subsidy every month. I didn't spend a single cent. "

"Don't go. The money is for your train ticket to Beijing and Shanghai. Don't touch it. " Tao Huizhen said, "Elder Li is right. I ate meat today and wanted to eat it tomorrow. In the end, it was as if I didn't eat it. "

"But Teacher Tao has to eat meat every day in the city, right? You've been in class for the whole day without getting any meat on you. I'm really afraid that you won't be able to hold on. "

"Teacher Dao, you don't have to worry about anything. I'll eat whatever Da Tea Village has. Sooner or later, Big Tea Village will also be able to eat meat every day. " Tao Huizhen ate the glutinous rice with relish. Many a time, It wasn't that the villagers couldn't afford meat, but that they couldn't bear to eat it. How many meals of sour vegetables could a meal of meat last? At the bottom of it all, this was a problem of economic standards. Economic standards affected ideology.

Tao Huizhen did not want to be special. She came to Dai Village to teach. Teaching should be teaching, this was her giving up her dancing career. The reason she came to Dai Village. If she lived a little more hardship, it would make her more clear-headed. People had to do a lot of things every day. But the most important thing was to know where the center of gravity was. Tao Huizhen tilted her head and looked at Da Tea Village Primary School diagonally opposite her. Her center of gravity was there. The Five Star Red Flag was still fluttering in the afterglow of the evening.

Tao Huizhen always knew what she should do. The 28 students of Da Tea Village Primary School were being led by her alone. That was 28 responsibilities. Compared to what to eat, the education industry was extremely important.

"That's right, many years ago. . . Dai villagers couldn't even eat glutinous rice. The glutinous rice from back then. . . It's comparable to our pork now. I believe Teacher Tao's words. I believe in Teacher Tao's long-term vision. It won't be long before we can eat meat every day. " Dao Xiaotong imagined the taste of the meat. If there was a piece of medium-sized streaky pork for her, she would definitely use her best skills to cook it.

She would put the good streaky pork into the pot to boil water and cut it into pieces that were as thin as paper with a knife. She had never cooked such a dish before. She could only imagine it as best as she could. After cutting the slices, Put on the pickled vegetables and add some pickled bamboo shoots. Octagonal, salt, chili. Finally, she put the bamboo tube into the pot to steam. She knew that the taste would definitely be much more delicious than stir-frying the pickled bamboo shoots.

"Let's pray that we can add a drumstick tomorrow. " Tao Huizhen finished eating and put down her chopsticks.

Dao Xiaotong knew that the "drumstick" Tao Huizhen was talking about was. . . It was an optimistic metaphor. She stared at the contrast between Tao Huizhen's attire and her temperament in Dai Village. She thought of many teachers who had been here before and said, "Officer Wang said. . . In the face of the teachers from the city, we should offer the best hospitality. The teachers in the city are the hope of the village. It's not easy for you to come here. I don't understand. That night, I thought about it all night. I don't know what is the best. I just want to go to the county to cut a piece of pork. "

"Teacher Dao, it's the best now. " Tao Huizhen looked deeply into Dao Xiaotong's star-like eyes. Staring at her fair face which was inversely proportional to her rough hands, she could still clearly remember. . . The day she came to Dai Village, Dao Xiaotong had sized her up just like that. She hoped that Dao Xiaotong would understand. . . Even if she did not do anything, everything was already the most precious. The best, and no matter how much she did. . . It wouldn't change anything.

Tao Huizhen took the bowls and chopsticks from Dao Xiaotong and said, "I'll go wash the bowls. "

"No, let me do it. Teacher Tao. " Dao Xiaotong staggered behind Tao Huizhen and chased after her. Her hand accidentally touched the purse on her waist. The 53 yuan she had been thinking of had once again shouldered the heavy burden of her dream. She couldn't understand this matter. She didn't know what her intentions were, but she did it without hesitation.

Most of the time, she was like this, unable to figure it out. She did not know where the future hope of Da Tea Village Primary School was. Elder Li and Officer Wang both said there was hope, so she thought there was hope. Thus, she began to realize that whatever she did had meaning.