His father, Zheng Xiaoti, is 77 years old this year. You see his tousled gray hair, combined with his tall and strong physique, it's hard to believe his age. The figure is tall, the back of a gibbon, and the steady pace when chopping wood seems to be still chopping fire.
The firm and sonorous tone when you speak will remind you of the veterans of the Anti-Japanese War.
Lao Zheng can be regarded as a rough man for forty years, and he still lives a nourishing life. He experienced the reincarnation of several generations, and the pentagon was dilapidated and only a corner of the crop field remained.
When he was young, the Zheng family was a well-off family in Zhuangnai. Three happy events were organized for the eldest brother, second brother, and fourth brother, and the whole village was brightened up with lights. Who knew that the good times would not last long, and it seemed that for no reason, the family fortune quickly turned from prosperity to decline, and no one knows the reason until today.
When his wife died of illness, the table for the banquet had already been sold out, and it took a lot of scraping together to complete the funeral. Since then, he has become what everyone calls a "poor egg".
Then the years passed, and the Zheng family's cattle and horses gradually grew stronger. Zheng Xiaoti carried this crumbling crop field alone, and his back and forth were still as hard as iron.
Now looking at the door in a unit, although life is ordinary, life is gradually improving. But he always remembered in his heart that those silent help when he was poor at the beginning, this debt of affection, he Zheng Xiaoti will definitely repay it.
The year of my grandmother's death was a period of embarrassment for the three generations of the Zheng family. The eldest son has just been married for a few years, and the second son's dowry dinner has only gone through a round, and the younger one is even younger.
The already poor family of nine was burdened with heavy debts from three marriages at once. Zheng Xiaoti was having fun in the bitterness, thinking that life would always get better.
Unexpectedly, the good times did not last long, and the grandmother, who was only in her 80s, suddenly fell ill. Zheng Xiaoti, who got along with her day and night, was on duty in the unit, and when he received a call from home, his legs were weak and he almost fell, and his lips trembled for a long time without speaking.
As he hurried home, his eyes were hazy with tears, and he saw his grandmother lying on a dilapidated marching bed, her eyes closed, and her face as white as paper.
The funeral expenses were nowhere to go, and Zheng Xiaoti used up the family's belongings, and in the end he could only borrow money from relatives and friends in the village. He has always swept thousands of armies, but at this time he can only kowtow and petition over and over again.
Fortunately, everyone still remembers the kindness of the past, retreated from the difficulties, and tried to help save expenses. However, even so, after the funeral, the Zheng family still owed a large amount of money in their accounts.
On the day he saw off his grandmother, Zheng Xiaoti stood in front of the grave, tears blurring his vision, and he vowed to pay off this debt no matter what.
As soon as grandma's funeral ended, Zheng Xiaoti began to count the past accounts. He pulled out the old ledger from the attic and went through the pages of the beneficials of the mourners.
Cremation paper for one dollar, cash for thirty or fifty yuan, and white envelope for up to one hundred yuan...... He carefully recorded every amount.
Zheng Xiaoti's character is extremely tenacious, and although the gifts of these mourners are not considered great kindness, every penny of them is firmly remembered in his heart. He made a vow to repay the gift - even if he has been poor for decades, he will one day double this personal debt.
So in the following years, Zheng Xiaoti has been carefully preserving this personal account book. He first had his wife properly wrapped in a handkerchief and locked in the back of the closet; Later, in order to prevent the rats from being damaged and forgetting by themselves, I copied a copy and put it in a small book to check at all times.
This debt seems to have become the heaviest burden on Zheng Xiaoti's heart, and it is also the driving force that pushes him forward.
In the past 30 years, there have been white things in the neighborhood of Zhuangli, and Zheng Xiaoti has never let his children leave empty-handed. No matter how tight his life is, he will stuff a few pieces of cash in the wallet of his eldest son and sister-in-law, and ask him to go to mourn respectfully with a generous gift - he has never forgotten the favor of decades ago.
Time flies, and thirty years have passed in the blink of an eye. Although Zheng Xiaoti is old, his love account book is still firmly remembered in his mind. When the children saw their father's almost stubborn appearance, they couldn't help but persuade him to let the past pass, why bother to go through the old accounts.
At first, Zheng Xiaoti also hesitated. He thought that time had passed, and those old friends had long been forgotten; Although the hometown has changed, everyone is still a fellow countryman, and it is better to face the future than to worry about the past.
But this thought did not last long in his mind. Zheng Xiaoti hid in the attic alone, flipped through the yellowed little notebook. These relatives and friends who passed by were all bosom friends who had gone through the most difficult period of his family.
Although there are not many gifts, it is also Lou Yan's help to send carbon in the snow. I can't tell how much it will cost to pay for this kindness.
"My sons and daughters don't understand how valuable this friendship is. Zheng Xiaoti muttered in his heart. He remembered the phrase "CS is CS" taught by his teacher when he was studying, and fell into a deep self-struggle.
This may be regarded as pedantic by people today, but for him, it is the most basic faith between people. In the end, Zheng Xiaoti pinched his thigh fiercely, and it hurt his heart, so he made up his mind to pay off the debt completely.
So he told his children again to repay all the kindness they had given thirty years ago at the current standard: for one dollar cremation, twenty dollars would be given; A white envelope of fifty yuan will be given for thousands of dollars...... Even if everyone said he was stupid, this time, Zheng Xiaoti chose to listen to his own voice.
At the end of the story, I can't help but feel that people like Uncle Zheng Xiaoti are gradually disappearing from our world. The sense of trust between people is getting thinner and thinner, and many people can turn their backs on their former friendships for the sake of small immediate interests, and they are reluctant to pay off the personal debts of dozens of yuan.
However, it is precisely with people like Uncle Zheng Xiaoti that this society seems warm and harmonious. His almost restrained attitude and admirable moral integrity have made our generation feel the power of integrity.
The relationship in the world should be long-lasting, and each of us should inherit and carry forward this spirit. In today's society, such a force is urgently needed to correct the behavior of some people who are eager for profit and promote the progress of social relations.
I hope that in the years to come, more models like Zheng Xiaoti will emerge, so that the word "righteousness" will not be silent in the long river of history.