4

As the saying goes，it is not uncommon to see quarrels in a family with more than ten members.More than 20 people lived in Laogu and Laotai's family，so the fruits they ate in a month were the whole fruits from all the trees in a ridge；and their clothes made of leaves and grass in three days were the entire grass pulled out from a slope.Three meals a day and nine meals for three days consumed all the wild fruits in the front and back of Luofeng Mountain，and even the green vines and thatched grass were all pulled out.When it rained or snowed，the family could do nothing but hide in the cave and suffer the hunger and cold.Ten sons were dizzy with hunger，and ten girls shivered with cold.The couple felt as painful as knives wringing their hearts and their stomachs being fried in oil.

Laogu said to Laotai，“I plan to take ten boys out to find a place with more fruits and trees.As soon as we settle down，I'll come back to fetch you and our girls.”

Hearing this，Laotai shook her head like the fruit swaying in the wind and said to Laogu，“It is snowing heavily outside；even the stones and clods are frozen hard.How can you and the sons stand it？In such rough days，where can you find fruits and trees？We'd better think of other ways out.”

The ten sons and the ten daughters，like the magpies returning to the nest，said to their parents at the same time，“Luofeng Mountain and Luoyan Cave were the places where father and mother gave birth to us and brought us up.We love here and will never leave here.Even though there is nothing to eat now，we'll try to bear the hunger with our teeth closed.When the rain stops and the snow melts，we will go out to search for food and clothes.As soon as we find something to eat and wear，we will take them back and store them in the cave.Then，with food and clothing，even in rainy and snowy days，our family will not suffer cold and hunger any more.”

Hearing those words，Laogu and Laotai felt as sweet as drinking honey.The father praised the children for being ambitious，and the mother praised them for being clever.Even the white crane，perching in the cave，beat its wings and praised the children.

Flapping the wings，the white crane said to the couple and their children，“We have been living side by side for a long time.Now that you have difficulties，I'll try to help you stop the rain and the snow.Tomorrow，you should send all children out to search for something to avoid hunger and cold.You will be happy if they find it！”

All of them were surprised and overjoyed to hear that，and they were as happy as drinking ten bowls of honey and eating a hundred kinds of fruits.

One night，when the family were asleep，the crane king flew out of Luoyan Cave and made a long and loud sound to the sky.Instantly，tens of thousands of white cranes flew in all directions.Under the lead of the crane king，they kept flying in the sky，like a shuttle.They flapped their wings while singing.Before dawn，the rain stopped，the snow melted，and the green hills and waters and the boundless appeared again.