There is a large ridge that undulates for several miles to the south of Tielou Village in my hometown. Hundreds of acres of terraced fields in the north of the ridge extend to the outside of the village wall. Everyone calls this place the Southeast Slope.
In the 1950s, when the sun set, people standing here could clearly see the mountains on the north bank of the Yellow River and the swaying branches and leaves of the thousand-year-old cypress trees on the south bank.
At that time, in early winter and spring, my friends and I would climb to the top of the Nanzhai wall and watch the geese fall and fly in the wheat fields.
In the afternoon, the high-flying geese will slowly land in the endless wheat fields. When we saw the wild geese about to fall, we hurriedly slipped down from the village wall and ran there to play with the wild geese. No matter how hard you yelled and chased them, they would not fly away, but would just jump and run around while quacking. When the leading goose cries, the flock of geese take to the sky, gradually forming a herringbone formation and flying into the distance. Sometimes the geese spend the night here and fly again at dawn.
As the saying goes: The wild goose is said to be a prosperous place for books and accommodation. This place is also a geomantic treasure.
This hot land has a bumper harvest every year and is the granary of the village.
When I was a child, when people were short of food and cattle were short of grass, we would often go to the southeastern slopes to cut grass. He loves to eat, and he can cut off a bunch of heads in a short time.
While mowing the grass, I kept an eye on which wild jujubes were on the needle branches and where there were wild wolfberries. Picking them off would be a feast for the eyes.
When encountering "Luo Luo Scallion", I quickly dig out the root with a sickle, pat away the soil, and put it into my mouth, which is sweet and delicious when chewed!
In the 1960s, a few days after giving birth, my wife smelled the smell of fennel and aniseed, and was suddenly weaned. The baby cried, and the whole family was anxious. I heard that the root of "Luluo Onion" and " "Mummy" fruit can help with lactation, so I ran to the southeast slope to hoe and pinch. Unexpectedly, I didn't step on my feet firmly, so I fell down and fell flat on my back. I turned over and went up to dig again.
In those days when the new term "milk powder" was not heard, thanks to the roots of "Luo Luo Onion" and "Mom Duo" wild fruits boiled in water and taken on the southeast slope, Jiao Er regained the ability to drink milk. With milk to eat, the emergency is solved.
There is a road leading to Luoyang City in the middle of the southeast slope. When the reform and opening up was just started, the team planted several acres of cantaloupe on the roadside in order to improve the economy. When the melons were ripe, the children crawled under the melon vines. Touch the melon, divide it and eat it to satisfy your craving. The old man had a bad temper. When he saw a child passing by the melon field, he yelled and chased him away, but the children ignored him. It was not illegal to cross the road. Melons are often lost and no one can find out who picked them.
Later, when I saw the old man who was well-connected with me, he saw children wandering on the roadside. He would smile and shout: "Come on, darlings. I know what you little greedy cats want to do. Come on." ! Find a good melon for each of you and take it home to eat. Don’t let the captain come and criticize us.”
These “monkey boys” are embarrassed to go back after eating the old man’s melon. Playing in the melon field, I never heard of any missing melons.
Today’s southeastern slope, with the Xiaolangdi Special Line passing through the middle, half has been converted into factories and residential buildings, while the other half remains as it was, with lush green spaces and an oxygen bar.