silent age

The open-air food stalls in small county towns are the busiest at night. From six o’clock, guests come table by table. A few boxes of beer and two boxes of dice can make this group of men and women who have just been liberated from work cheer and applaud. all night.It wasn't until one or two o'clock in the middle of the night that the noise of this group of people gradually stopped, and they left one after another supporting each other.

After Bai Sihuan cleaned up the mess at the last table, he shook the dusty rag and threw it on the cabinet. After washing his hands, the day's work was done.

Old Li, who was wearing a white vest, came out and handed Bai Sihuan a cigarette as usual.

The thin cigarette in his hand was different from the usual one, and Bai Sihuan asked suspiciously, "Nanjing Xuanhemen?"

"The fat woman left behind just now. I can't bear to buy such expensive cigarettes." Lao Li sat on the steps and started smoking, sucking up half of them in one gulp. I don't know what those people think."

Sitting next to Lao Li, Bai Sihuan smoked the expensive cigarettes with an average market price of 19 yuan a pack together with him, staring at the blinking yellow street lamp, thinking that tomorrow he must hire that person to work in the street lamp management office The guests went to ask someone to change it.

"You're from a big city. Have you ever seen the life of a rich family? The kind that's especially rich." Lao Li put his cigarette in his mouth, and painted the rich man he imagined with both hands, or should I say him. Fantasy future, "Driving a luxury car of a famous brand, living in a big villa with three or four floors, there must be more than one wife, one at home can be seen, and there are a few coquettish ones outside. The figure, the figure is so good!" Lao Li put his hands together In the air, he drew a pear-shaped figure.

Bai Sihuan seemed amused by him and laughed out loud.

Lao Li poked him with his elbow: "Am I wrong? Isn't that what you've seen? Have you ever seen it!"

"I've seen it." Bai Sihuan exhaled a thick puff of smoke, and now he would no longer be choked to tears by the smell of smoke.As if embellishing what Lao Li said, he said without a serious tone, "He drives a big luxury car, lives in a big villa with a fountain garden, has more than one wife and more than one child, and has two at home. Raising three outside. My son only recognizes one, and they don’t care about whether the others live or die. I only smoke cigarettes that cost more than 8000 yuan. When I smoke, I have several sets of smoking sets with different textures. The lighter must use diamond-encrusted Catier.”

Lao Li smiled and shook his fingers at him: "Scholars know a lot!" He lay down on the floor without fear of getting dirty, closed his eyes, touched his exposed belly and said, "Oh, what a pleasure that is!" what a day."

What a cool day that must be.

Bai Sihuan exhaled a puff of smoke into the sky, the smoke dispersed mistyly, and memory climbed up in the snow-white mist thread, and the past years appeared in front of him like frames of paintings unfolding.

"Hehe, you came early enough. The rich are different, and the efficiency is high. Come, come, people are here, don't send them back after you bring them back!" The messy woman took the 14-year-old The son was dragged out of the narrow house and thrown to two men in black suits outside the door.

Bai Sihuan who was thrown out shouted: "Mom!" With crying, his eyes were flushed.

The woman turned her head and entered the room, took out Bai Sihuan's schoolbag, and threw it on him unceremoniously: "Don't call me mom! From now on, you will have someone else be your mother! Get out!"

The eight-year-old boy, who was hiding behind the woman and pulling the woman's ripped nightgown, looked at the two men in suits and leather shoes in front of him. Realizing that his brother was going to live a rich life, he held his mother's hand and said, "Mom, I too want to go!"

The woman closed the faded and moldy mahogany door, and the scolding resounded throughout the old dilapidated alley: "Where are you going? I don't want to see if I'm alive! Go back to your room!"

At the age of 14, Bai Sihuan was kicked out of the house by his mother, and two strange men were asked to take a luxury car that he had never ridden before, and leave the alley where he had lived for 14 years, and go to the alley that he had never been to for so many years. Bustling location.

It was also from the moment he walked through the shikumens and left the alley that his mother's scolding and yelling at him last night, "Go back and find your father" was not a joke.

He can't remember the scene of that year clearly, it was probably early summer, the women in the alley were still wearing flower suspender skirts, poking their heads out from the glass windows on the second floor, putting their hands into their skirts and buttoning their underwear while watching Follow these rare bright people in and out of this forgotten alley.

The double shadow of the sycamore tree flew past the car window, Bai Sihuan tightly held the schoolbag in his arms, from getting on the car to getting off the car, he didn't dare to take a deep breath.

The moment he got off the car, he didn't even dare to raise his eyes to look around, the palace-like white foreign villa in front of him dazzled his eyes in the sunlight.

The maid was the first person he met in this "palace". She opened the iron gate, took Bai Sihuan from the hands of the two men, and led him through the fountain garden and into this "big palace". The so-called home.

The moment the door was opened, a dreamlike and gorgeous scene shocked his eyesight, and strange voices rang in his ears endlessly.

"Hmph, you came to tell me about this just after I came back? Don't you think I'm not annoying enough outside?" The short-haired woman with heavy makeup came down the big metal staircase.

The maid brought Bai Sihuan forward and said, "Ma'am, he is...he is Mr.'s child."

The short-haired woman with a small face lingered on Bai Sihuan for a second, and said to the butler beside her, "I said, why is your temper so hard today? He's already done what he did first. Do you still care about my feelings?"

This strong woman has an incompatible and elegant name, Cheng Sutang.She is the real head of the Lin family, whether it is a son or a servant, even Lin Huan, the husband who built the house with money, has to watch her face all the time.

"Old Pei, did you buy the fried peanuts I asked you to buy this morning? Is it the one on Panyu Road I mentioned?" The second person who came down from upstairs was a boy who was only three years older than Bai Sihuan .Lin Siying, the eldest son of the family.

Bai Sihuan's mother's name was Bai Ying, and Lin Huan's eldest son was named Siying.The meanings that others didn't need to explain in detail back then are all included in these two names.

Cheng Sutang once hated the name of her eldest son, and wished to erase his name from the household registration book.

Lin Siying was wearing a pink T-shirt, and ran down the stairs bouncingly, took the bag of peanuts that Lao Pei got up to give, and when passing by Bai Sihuan, she looked at him curiously: "This kid is my third brother? "

The servant who has been afraid to move nodded.

Lin Siying grabbed Bai Sihuan's hand, poured a handful of peanuts into his hand, touched his head with a smile, and was anxious to leave.

Cheng Sutang, who was sitting at the table preparing to eat, asked sharply, "Where are you going?"

"Kingsley is coming to Shanghai to play, I'll go out with him!"

Hearing this name, Cheng Sutang's frown relaxed: "Go then, it's fun, does he have a place to stay at night? If there is no place, we can let him stay at our house."

Lin Siying waved her hand and said, "Don't be joking, he also has a house in Tan Palace, which is bigger than ours, and the location is better than ours. You let him live with us? Besides, his sister gave him a set of apartments in the French Concession." Small mansion, I'm going to try out birthday presents tonight. Let's go!"

Lin Siying opened the door of the villa, and the sun shone on Bai Sihuan's face.Bai Sihuan turned his head, a handsome big boy with a tear mole who came to the door at some time waved him, smiled like a piece of honey candy, and winked at him.

The door of the villa was closed, blocking the sunshine on Bai Sihuan's face and the smiling face of that pretty boy behind the door.

Bai Sihuan froze on the spot with his schoolbag in his arms, not daring to move, Cheng Sutang completely ignored this uninvited guest who was out of tune with this house, and had no intention of inviting him to a seat.

The third person who came down from upstairs was a long-haired girl, Lin Xianyan, Cheng Sutang's youngest daughter.She saw Bai Sihuan from far away on the stairs, and she overheard her father saying last night that he would pick up an older brother, so she was not very surprised by Bai Sihuan's appearance.

But she still glanced at Bai Sihuan curiously, then ran to her mother Cheng Sutang with the album in her arms, and carefully showed her the painting: "Mom, I drew it today."

Cheng Sutang didn't even look at it, and said in an extremely cold voice: "I'm eating, take it away."

Someone rang the bell outside the door. The butler looked at the video screen on the doorbell and said to Cheng Sutang, "Madam, it's Missy."

"Drive her away, every time she comes, she will only ask for money."

The people in this family misunderstood Bai Sihuan, in the small house where he grew up, there were always only him, his mother, younger brother Bai Yuancheng, and strange men who changed every once in a while.There were never more than four people in his family.

Bai Sihuan bent his knees, trying to move his numb legs.The maid next to him was obviously more resistant to standing than him, and she had not changed her posture until now, and she never even frowned.

The door of the villa was opened three times, and Bai Sihuan heard the barking of a dog.

Cheng Sutang, who had always kept a straight face, immediately burst into a loving smile when he saw the person entering the door.

She sat on the seat and waved: "Oh, my sweet baby is back, come and eat!"

A white Samoyed ran past Bai Sihuan, ran to Cheng Sutang's leg and wagged its tail.

The boy behind him sighed irritably after entering the door, and asked the maids: "How do you usually feed Karen? Today Karen is picking up unwanted bones to eat. If it eats well at home, it will take a while to go out." Want to eat that garbage?"

An inexplicable attraction that came from nowhere made Bai Sihuan turn his head away.

The youthful beauty suddenly came into Bai Sihuan's sight, causing Bai Sihuan's defenseless heart to beat violently.

He used to hear people say that the most beautiful people in the world are those who grew up in the gold pile.

The person in front of him confirmed this statement, or it should be said that he was more like a person carved out of gold.From top to bottom, there is no place that is not glamorous, and there is no place that is not delicate.There is no one place that makes people feel dizzy when they look at it.

Lin Heng, who was already in a bad mood, frowned when he saw the boy in the faded plaid shirt in front of him: "Where is the dirty boy?" Thinking of Karen running past him just now, Lin Heng frowned. Wrinkled even tighter, "Take my dog ​​to take a bath quickly, don't get dirty by him."

Cheng Sutang said: "Your father picked up a beggar on the side of the road."

The maid explained to the puzzled Lin Heng: "He is the son of Mr., your elder brother."

Lin Heng was stunned suddenly, and the hand that was adjusting the cuff buttons froze in the air.

He looked at the ragged boy again, the quality of his clothes made him refuse to look at his brother's face.He may have never seen such cheap and tattered clothes in his life.

It took nearly half a minute to digest this fact, Lin Heng sighed again, and ordered the servant: "Take it in and wash with Karen."