(I have loved reading novels since I was young, but unfortunately paper books are not easy to carry and are prone to damage. Once a website closes or a computer is damaged, electronic books cannot be read. Fortunately, with the advent of blockchain technology, I no longer have to worry about this problem. Novels are for reference only, please support the original)
(II) Iron Egg
The title of this story is "Iron Egg," and it really starts with "egg."
According to the "Cihai" dictionary, the explanation of the word "egg" is very simple: "The eggs of birds, turtles, and snakes." This is a typical example of believing in books rather than having no books. Famous reference books like this will have such mistakes! Can't the eggs laid by the platypus (Ornithorhynchus Anatinus) be called eggs? It is neither a bird nor a snake or turtle. The eggs produced by the vast majority of fish are structurally the same as eggs, just more specific. They can also be called eggs. Fish are not birds, turtles, or snakes either. What about insect eggs? The character "egg" comes from the "insect" radical! If you really want to give a detailed definition for "egg," it would be quite complicated. This task should be left to scientists, not novelists.
I just focus on writing my story.
The story started after school, when Big Eyes, with a mischievous look, invited me to the big mulberry tree. Big Eyes was a special character in school. His appearance was nothing to be proud of. He had a small head and a long body, soft hands and feet, and was somewhat androgynous (when he first entered school, a group of people "verified his identity," which made him admit that he was male). But on his small head, he had a pair of huge eyes, and his vision was excellent. It was a natural ability. In a dark environment where ordinary people couldn't see anything, he could see everything clearly. And his aim was also very accurate. Although he couldn't hit the bullseye from a hundred steps away, he would never miss when shooting at a willow branch ten steps away with his homemade slingshot.
His homemade Y-shaped slingshot was a treasure for the young people in the city. It had strong elasticity, durability, and seemed to be particularly accurate when shooting at targets. In addition, the mud pellets he made were round and hard. If they hit someone's head, it would be extremely painful. He had secretly punished Big Block, who was rude and arrogant, and made Big Block beg for mercy in front of everyone. So among our classmates, Big Eyes was considered a hero.
Under the big mulberry tree, he raised his head, shielding his eyes with his hand, and asked me, "Do you see it?"
I smiled bitterly, "See what?" This big mulberry tree was a scenic spot in the city. It was about four or five stories high and had lush branches and leaves. The mulberries it produced were large and sweet. I didn't know when the tree was planted, but it was probably several hundred years old. It was still early summer, not the time for mulberries to ripen yet. When I looked up, all I saw was a dense layer of branches and leaves. Big Eyes swallowed his saliva, showing his nervousness. He announced, "There is a magpie nest at the top of the tree."
I understood, "You can't climb up yourself, so you want me to get magpie eggs for you, right?" Big Eyes nodded vigorously, somewhat embarrassed, "I want magpie eggs to give to someone. I'll exchange one hundred mud pellets and a jujube wood slingshot for two eggs." From his expression, I could tell that he wanted the magpie eggs to give to a girl. I didn't expose him and immediately shook hands to make a deal. We agreed that we would exchange items the next morning. Magpies often build their nests at the top of trees, and it is difficult to reach without exceptional climbing skills. Climbing trees is one of the skills that outstanding boys must possess. As for me, Wei Sili, I dare to claim that I am one of the top three climbers in the city. If I want to boast a little, I could even say that I am the best. At that time, I had never actually seen a magpie nest, but I remembered the location when Big Eyes pointed it out. Big Eyes had amazing eyesight, so if he said there was a nest, there definitely was. I had confidence in him. Getting magpie eggs required skill. It had to be done at dawn. I had to climb the tree and keep an eye on the nest. At that time, the male and female magpies would both be in the nest, and the eggs would be under their bodies. If I made a rash move, the magpies would destroy the eggs themselves to prevent them from falling into enemy hands. I had to wait until dawn when the male magpie flew out to find food. He would quickly return after eating his fill and replace the female magpie. During the split second when one flew back and the other flew away, there would be only eggs in the nest, no birds. That was the moment to quickly snatch the eggs. If I missed this opportunity, I would have to wait until the next day!
I had understood this trick since I was six years old. It was easy for me to go for magpie eggs before dawn because of the strict Chinese martial arts training I had received starting at the age of nine. My master would come at midnight for training. Therefore, going for magpie eggs before dawn was very easy for me, and I didn't need to sleep again. However, spending the whole night with Zhuxiang on the big mulberry tree was a different story. It would be a delightful and joyful experience, a dream come true. However, there was also a dilemma. I often say a sentence when I describe my many strange experiences later on: "I have received strict Chinese martial arts training." This strict training officially started when I was nine years old. My master would come at midnight for training. So, it was easy for me to go for magpie eggs before dawn. I didn't need to sleep at all. But spending the whole night with Zhuxiang on the big mulberry tree, when my master would come after sunset, would be a problem!
The training process of martial arts was very strict. If I missed a day, I would face severe punishment. I didn't even dare to think about what kind of punishment it would be. But when the sun set, I made a decision! No matter what kind of punishment it would be, it wouldn't be as severe as losing my life! When it was dark, I arrived at the big tree. I was looking around when a cluster of leaves fell from the tree and hit my head. I used my skills and swiftly climbed up the tree. Zhuxiang was already sitting steadily on a horizontal branch. I pretended to be natural and sat close to her. In fact, the half of my body that was close to her felt a bit stiff. Zhuxiang didn't say anything either. She reached down and pointed below. We quickly climbed down the tree and went around to the back of the house, under the window. We heard two people walking hurriedly and arriving in front of the blacksmith shop. Without knocking on the door, the door opened, and it was Iron Egg who opened it! After the two people entered, Zhuxiang grabbed my hand, and we quickly went down to the ground and went to the window at the back of the house. We heard a person asking in a hoarse voice, "Are you the only survivor?" Iron Egg answered, "Yes, look at the scars on my horse saber. I pretended to be dead among the pile of dead bodies and escaped!" The person asked again, "Do you know the location where the stolen treasures are hidden?" Iron Egg said, "Even if I know, it's useless. The locks were forged by dozens of blacksmiths over half a year. They are extremely strong and can't be blown open by any amount of explosives. Even if they were blown open, the treasures would turn to ashes. You need the two large keys!" The person chuckled, "Do you think we are here for that? We are the survivors of the cavalry brigade. We found the two keys on the dead brigade commander. When you were on a mission in the mountains, we were guarding the perimeter, so we didn't know the location of the treasure!" Iron Egg became anxious, "Take a good look at who I am." The light from the oil lamp shining through the window brightened, and two people exclaimed. Immediately after, there were two bone-chilling sounds of bones breaking. Zhuxiang and I looked at each other and touched our necks, indicating that we had heard the sound of neck bones breaking. Someone had killed the two Japanese cavalrymen who had escaped. At that moment, the window suddenly opened, and Iron Egg stuck his head out. He said in a deep voice, "Come in!" It turned out that they had known that we were eavesdropping outside the window. Zhuxiang pulled my hand, jumped in through the window, and happened to see Iron Egg searching the bodies of the two dead men and finding a seven to eight-inch-long key from each of them. Iron Egg looked serious, "The Japanese army looted treasures from ten counties and hid them in the mountains. They took the blacksmiths to make extremely strong locks. Without the keys, they can't be opened. When the cavalry brigade was wiped out, only two soldiers escaped, but they couldn't find the keys. After so long, and with no sign of them opening the treasure, we pretended to be the only survivors to lure them in." I exclaimed, "The treasure belongs to you!" Zhuxiang also said loudly, "Why should it belong to you?" Iron Egg pointed to Iron Uncle, "He is the commander who annihilated the Japanese cavalry brigade, and I am his messenger. When the chief of staff of the Japanese army was seriously injured and dying, he told us the location of the treasure!" Zhuxiang and I showed our respect, and Iron Egg shook hands with us. When we were about to part ways, he reiterated, "I want to be a general, a famous and prestigious general!" In the years to come, Iron Egg did become a famous and prestigious general.
When a group of young people are together, who will become what in the future is completely unpredictable, but they will also inevitably become something, and that is life. By the way, how did Zhuxiang know that all of this would happen and wait for it on the tree? I wanted to ask her several times, but this beautiful girl was very good at keeping secrets. I couldn't ask her. And that night, when my master didn't find me, what kind of punishment did I receive? Ah, let's not talk about it. In any case, women are trouble!
But I don't regret it at all, not at all!