Xu Tongzhou always felt that something was wrong with his mother's expression. In his impression, his mother was never such a talkative person. But he was still young, and when he heard his mother talking about the funeral, he subconsciously thought that his mother was worried about his second uncle's matter, afraid that they would conflict with each other, so he nodded and promised: "Don't worry, mother, I will take good care of my brother and won't let him wander around!"
Zhang Linghui nodded, praised him for being obedient and sensible, reached out to help him straighten his collar, then helped Nanny Zhang to stand up and slowly walked out.
Xu Tongji leaned against the window and tilted his head to watch her leave the yard, then turned to Xu Tongzhou and said, "That's great! Mom is finally getting better. When Dad comes back, we can go to the other village to play together again."
Xu Tongzhou's attention was attracted by his younger brother. When he finished speaking, he turned around in a hurry and accidentally bumped into the pen holder. He called the maid to come in and tidy up the pen in a headache.
The house was quiet, even the servants looked cautious. Xu Tongzhou breathed a sigh of relief and helped his younger brother review his lessons.
When the light coming through the window gradually dimmed, he asked the maid to put away the books and took his brother to find his mother. Although his second uncle was in trouble, since his grandmother was back, the whole family must have dinner together. He didn't know why, but he always felt uneasy and just wanted to stay with his mother.
Xu Tongji followed him closely, like a puppy wagging its tail.
When they arrived at Zhang Linghui's yard, Xu Tongzhou turned around and pulled his brother to quicken his pace. As soon as they entered the door, they saw people in the yard rushing back and forth in a panic.
Some were running out, some were running in, and some were wiping their tears.
He was shocked and stood outside the door in confusion for a moment, looking at the chaos in the yard, and subconsciously clenched his brother's hand.
Xu Tongji also looked confused, tilting his head and looking up at him: “Brother, what are they doing?”
Zhang Linghui usually hates noise the most, so her yard is always very quiet. But at this moment, these people don't care at all. Aren't they afraid that their mother will get angry
Xu Tongzhou frowned, his heart beating fast, and he took his hand and quickly walked into the yard.
No one around paid any attention to them until they were all on the stairs. Then Xu Tongzhou grabbed hold of them, causing him to stagger and nearly fall.
He turned around in surprise and saw Mother Li's anxious face.
"Oh my two young masters, why are you two here?" Mother Li was very anxious, but she forced a smile and coaxed them to go out first: "There is something going on here, can you take the young master back first?"
Before Xu Tongzhou could say anything, he saw Nanny Zhang lift the curtain and walk out with tears on her face.
He was startled and didn't bother to talk to Mother Li. He shouted at the top of his voice: "Madam Zhang!"
When Aunt Zhang saw the two of them, her tears immediately flowed more violently, but she reluctantly wiped her tears with her sleeves and hurried over: "Why are the two young masters here? This is not the place for you two to come, please go back first..."
Everyone had the same attitude. Xu Tongzhou was full of suspicion. He shook his head and refused: "I want to go find my mother. Where is my mother?"
Mother Li coughed suddenly.
Nanny Zhang quickly grabbed him and said with great force, "No, the two young masters should go back first. The adults are busy. Be obedient and don't let the wife worry."
Xu Tongji also realized that something was wrong. The tension among the adults infected him. He looked at this and that, and suddenly started crying, shouting for his mother.
Mother Li hurriedly picked him up and tried to comfort him. While she was busy, Madam Xu and Second Madam Xu came in from outside, looking anxious. When she saw Xu Tongzhou and Xu Tongji were both there, her face darkened. She quickly stepped forward and took Xu Tongji from Mother Li's hands, and asked gently, "Why are you here?"
Xu Tongji's tears were still on his face. When he heard his grandmother's question, he pursed his lips and said honestly: "I came to see mother, but mother ignored me."
Madam Xu sighed: "Mother is not free now, you can come over when you are free, okay?"
Xu Tongji was confused, but Xu Tongzhou's hands and feet were cold. He thought of Zhang Linghui's sudden visit and what she said in the afternoon, and asked Madam Xu with his eyes open: "Grandma, what happened to my mother?"
Madam Xu frowned and paused before saying, "Nothing, grandma will go in and take a look. You guys should be obedient and go back first. You are the older brother, you should be more sensible and take care of your younger brother. Don't let your younger brother get scared. Go back."
Xu Tongzhou had no choice but to lead Xu Tongji out of the yard, looking back every few steps.
Mrs. Xu had already walked in through the opened curtain.
I don’t know why, but at this moment, Xu Tongzhou suddenly felt his heart beating very fast. He turned around hesitantly, suddenly quickened his pace, and ran into the house.
His movements were so fast that even Mother Li couldn't stop him.
Mrs. Xu sighed in the room: "This child was fine this morning, why is he so depressed?"
His heart skipped a beat, Xu Tongzhou turned the screen and saw Zhang Linghui lying on the bed.
She was still wearing her afternoon clothes, her hands hanging limply over the edge of the bed, and she looked like she was asleep.
But if she was asleep, why was there so many people crying and talking, but she didn't make any noise? Mothers are most afraid of noise, so how could she sleep with so many people around
He walked forward in a daze and accidentally knocked over a vase beside him.
The noise startled both Mrs. Xu and Second Madam Xu so much that they turned around and saw him. They were subconsciously stunned.
It was Mrs. Xu who reacted the fastest. She immediately called Tongzhou, walked up to him, covered his eyes, and took him out.
However, Xu Tongzhou refused to leave. He was in so much pain that he couldn't breathe. It seemed as if something was blocking his chest and his throat was stuffed with cotton. He tried hard to break free from Mrs. Xu's hand.
Seeing him like this, Mrs. Xu burst into tears and choked up, saying, "Poor child!"
Zhang Linghui was unconscious on the bed. The last ray of light outside the window disappeared. The lanterns in the corridor lit up one by one. When the wind blew, bursts of heart-wrenching cries of children were heard.
Almost at the same time, Su Yao had almost finished checking the account books. He came out of the meeting room, stood in the corridor and took a look at the newly replaced lanterns.
The lantern was newly made and looked much brighter than the round lanterns of the past. It swayed gently in the wind. Yan Cao smiled and said, "This is from Mr. Shen. He said that this kind of lantern is the most popular in Jiangsu and Zhejiang now. It's very beautiful, and it's indeed better than the ones we hung before."