Arlo walked up and tugged Aurora to her feet, only to find that the back of her hand had been cracked and flooded with blood from the woman’s whip.
And the frostbite cracked wound, also spilled blood stains.
Before Arlo could say anything, Aurora drew back her hand and turned to run into the house.
Arlo stood still, but he seemed a little embarrassed and superfluous.
Watching her enter the house, Arlo then withdrew his gaze and looked angrily at the woman, “Although you are her family, but domestic violence, but also a violation of the law. You can be arrested as well! If there is a next time, there will be no forgiveness.”
A warning was given before he left Aurora’s house.
When he returned to Vivian’s door, Morris was still chopping wood and the men were no longer at the door.
Instead, smoke rises from the kitchen chimney in the front yard, where Vivian’s mother is apparently preparing lunch.
Arlo took a cigarette out of the box and handed it to Morris, “First day I learned that all that tendon meat is for chopping wood.”
Morris took a cigarette, Arlo lit him a cigarette, he took a puff and exhaled a light wisp of smoke at Arlo, “That little dummy, not even eighteen yet.”
Arlo who was looking down to light his own cigarette suddenly stunned, froze for two seconds, continued to light, slowly said, “Talk to me about this what.”
“That little mind of yours is too obvious.” Morris said, raising an eyebrow and lifting his chin, gesturing to his pocket.
Arlo looked down and realized that the box of frostbite cream he had bought was too long, with the word “frostbite” written on it.
Arlo and Morris looked at each other and leaned against a tree, smoking in silence.
Morris flicked the ashes and reminded, “She dropped out of high school before she finished, and she’s mute, so you need to think about that.”
“I want to sponsor her to continue her education.”
“Is the sponsorship out of charity, or is it purposeful?”
Morris knew Arlo too well.
He had never been interested in women, and he was too busy working every day to have time for children. He didn’t have time to meddle in the affairs of people he didn’t care about.
“I’m not as sordid as you think.” Arlo snorted.
Morris laughed but didn’t say anything, “Then I’ll arrange for her to be sent to X City.” He said “X City” on purpose.
Because the place where Vivian lives is X City.
“X City is not as good as L City in the empire, since second brother wants to help, why not send her to L City.”
“Oh, L City …”
Morris said grimly.
The corners of Arlo’s mouth twitched slightly, “You … me … I just think she’s a dud, L City is the imperial capital, the big places are more inclusive schools. It’s good for her.”
“Okay, listen to you.” Morris naturally understand Arlo’s mind, and is not good to say anything more.
But Arlo again admonished, “Never, never let Philip that chatterbox know, otherwise still do not know he …”
“What thing can not let me know? Bored gourd, you do not fucking treat me as a brother, right.”
The two were talking when Philip came out of nowhere.
Arlo looked back and saw Danny and Philip walking over.
Philip said, “Damn you, sneaking around all morning, what are you doing behind our backs and not letting us know?”
Morris took another puff of his cigarette, which he lost the bottom of his eyes, twisted it out on his toes, picked up his axe and continued chopping wood.
Piqued by curiosity, Philip scurried over and stood in front of Arlo, asking, “What is it that I can’t know about?”
“Nothing.”
Arlo, with a cigarette in one hand and one hand around his chest, turned away and looked the other way.
He didn’t move, but when he turned around, he exposed the contents of his pockets to Philip.
Philip pulled out the medicine box from his pocket, “Frostbite cream? Yo, tsk tsk … a little interesting ah.”
“Give me back my stuff!”
Arlo reached out to grab it, Philip put it directly behind his back, “I’m just not giving it back. Oh, I know. Just now Morris here with Vivian also mentioned this little girl named Aurora in the village.”
“Oh~~ hahahahaha, Aurora, yo yo yo, this is good.” Philip was sincerely happy for Arlo, but still punched him in the chest, “No conscience. This kind of thing has to be carried behind my back.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. She’s mute and a little girl under eighteen, and I’m just trying to sponsor her for school.” Arlo snatched the frostbite cream from her hand, put it in his pocket, and walked away.
Danny didn’t say anything.
Instead, Philip inclined his head to look at Morris and asked, “Second brother, what’s the situation? Mute, not yet 18 years old? This … is not a farce?”
The man two ears do not hear outside the window, a mind only want to chop good wood.
Simply do not take care of Philip, Philip soporific, shook his head, “Forget it, I’ll go find the little pepper to inquire about it.”
…
Before noon, Morris finishes chopping the wood and arranges it neatly, as if compulsively.
When he was done, he was ready to go inside with his axe.
Vivian came out just in time to see that he was done, so she couldn’t help but feel warm and fuzzy and jogged over, “Good job. I’ll take the axe.”
She said, while taking away the axe from Morris’s hands.
But at this moment Vivian just saw, Morris right hand heart has worn out three blisters.
She put down the axe and grabbed Morris’s hand, looking at the three bulging almost translucent blisters, heartbroken, “all worn out like this, why do not know how to rest?”
Vivian grabbed his left hand again, and again, there were three blisters.
When you think about the fact that he didn’t work before and now he’s chopping a pile of firewood all by himself in the morning, Vivian felt guilty.
“You wait here for a while.”
Vivian trotted into the house with the axe, and then trotted out with Morris’s jacket and came around behind him, “Here, put your clothes on.”
She took the initiative to dress Morris.
The man reveled in it and enjoyed the ultimate treat extraordinarily.
He stretched out his hands, dressed, and saw Vivian take off the scarf from his neck, “Here, put on the scarf, or else it will be easy to catch a cold later on when the sweat is dispersed.”
Morris saw her wrapping the scarf for him, even though it was red, and he didn’t mind it at all.
Then Vivian took his hand and walked towards the road, “Come on, let’s take you to town to buy some medicine.”
Morris was tempted to refuse, because it was just a blister, not enough to mention.
But he wanted more than anything to get some privacy with Vivian, so he followed her onto the road, drove a car, and headed straight to town.
The road, Morris sitting in the passenger side, inclined head, gaze a moment to watch Vivian, in a very good mood.