"...Some people say that jailers and prisoners are like wolves and sheep. There will never be friendship between them. Nonsense! Humans have feelings, so what's wrong with jailers? Jailers are also human beings, with emotions, desires, and relatives and friends!"
Ye Xiaotian seems to have returned to the prison of the Ministry of Criminal Justice, and is plausibly brainwashing the prisoners and rectifying the names of the jailers: "Master Yang was imprisoned three years ago, and Xiaotian, I was also a jailer three years ago. Since then, Master Yang has been a jailer." He often taught me how to draw divination signs and taught me the principles of life.
'The eyes are the palace of the owner of the field and the house, and they are beautiful and distinct. If the yin and yang are dry and the bones are exposed, the parents' family wealth will always be empty', this is a hexagram in "Sackcloth Physiognomy" that Master Yang taught me to memorize. Let's not talk about this for now. In short, Mr. Yang appreciates me very much. He also said that I have an extraordinary appearance and will be rich all my life. "
Ye Xiaotian said: "That day, the imperial court issued a decree that Mr. Yang was going to be executed the next day, so I bought a few cents of wine for Mr. Yang and ordered some small dishes to go with the wine. It was very dark in the prison and it was still raining outside. , I lit a candle, under the candlelight, Master Yang burst into tears..."
County magistrate Hu, Mrs. Yang, the chief manager of Sanshou and all the guests who came to express condolences listened to him in a daze. Ye Xiaotian is like a most dedicated actor, very devoted to the performance.
Ye Xiaotian had a look of sadness on his face, and he said sadly: "Master Yang said: 'Oh my god, I have been in prison for three years, and all my old friends and relatives have disappeared. Only you, you are my old friend. When the old man was dying, there was only one person he couldn't let go of, and that was my daughter, the old man entrusted her to you, okay?'"
When she heard "I have been in prison for three years, all my old friends have disappeared, and my relatives have disappeared", Madam Yang's cheeks became hot, and she lowered her head in shame. Lifting it up, because the movement was too fast, it seemed to hear the joints of the back of the neck crack.
In the upper courtyard of the hall, there was a moment of silence.
"Dang... Dang Dang Dang Dang..."
A suona bounced a few times on the ground. It was dropped by a musician playing the suona in the corner. A monk who was chanting raised his cymbal and rubbed his bald head, looking left and right. The unparalleled woman was weeping, but at this moment she stared at Ye Xiaotian with a pair of misty tearful eyes.
Ye Xiaotian let out a long sigh, raised his head and said: "Xiaotian, I come from a humble background and a poor family, so naturally I am not good enough for a noble daughter of the Yang family, but Mr. Yang said that after this catastrophe, he has already investigated the world. What do you think is a rich family?" , is not as good as being a Taiping family..."
The more Ye Xiaotian spoke, the more emotional he became. When he lowered his head again, there were tears in his eyes, and he was moved by the nonsense he made up.
Yang Lin has always been at odds with his husband and wife, and he is very aware of his wife's dislike for his beloved daughter. He knows that as long as he dies, his wife will definitely abuse his beloved daughter. As for Ye Xiaotian, Yang Lin appreciated him very much.
Ye Xiaotian is kind to Yang Lin, and Yang Lin, who is obsessed with physiognomy, believes that Ye Xiaotian will live a peaceful and prosperous life, so... when Yang Lin is dying, considering the family situation, it is reasonable for Yang Lin to make such a decision that seems a bit weird to others up.
Ye Xiaotian looked at County Magistrate Hu, and said in a deep voice: "Master Yang... ah no! My father-in-law also said in the letter that he wanted Xiaotian to pick up his wife and mother-in-law and return to Beijing to take care of him wholeheartedly. My father-in-law is dying. At the time, the most worrying thing was that the family did not get along, so that the legacy would be a laughingstock!"
Ye Xiaotian added this sentence because he thought that if he only took that pretty young lady away, she would be worried about his old lady, and she would have to cry all day long, and maybe even feel resentful towards herself, so it is better to take her away with her No matter how poor the family is, there is no more than one woman's ration.
County magistrate Hu looked down at the suicide note, then looked up at Ye Xiaotian, he was speechless, only the beard under his chin trembled.
Ye Xiaotian said in his heart: "Old man, I have given in, I have already given in, I don't even want five hundred taels of silver, and I want to take away your thorn in the side, don't bully people too much, killing people is nothing more than nodding your head , you have to be forgiving and forgiving!"
Hu Zhixian thought about the contents of the letter, and then thought about what Ye Xiaotian had said. Looking at Ye Xiaotian's calm expression, he felt that it was extremely absurd, and his mind was a little confused. Can you say it so sincerely
Do you deny what he said and just tear up the letter? It's not impossible, but in this way, others will inevitably feel suspicious, and if they believe Ye Xiaotian's words, it will be very detrimental to their official reputation.
If it involves the division of family property, then go all out to break the trust and kill people, and ignore the rumors of others. But now Ye Xiaotian doesn't want anything, and even solved the thorn in his side for him, why not agree
Hu Zhixian's eyes flickered for a moment, and suddenly he laughed.
He put the letter away with a smile, stuffed it into the sleeve, and said calmly: "Sure enough, that's what was said in the letter. From the old man's point of view, this move is a bit absurd. However, my sister-in-law has always been willful, so it's no wonder he made this decision. Since my sister-in-law is dying, how can I disobey this old man? Sanshou, go and invite the young lady here."
Just as a smile appeared from the corner of Ye Xiaotian's mouth, it immediately froze like frost on the window sill: "Miss? Isn't the lady right in front of you, where else can I invite you?"
Ye Xiaotian hastily turned his head to look at the pretty woman with five flowers tied up, that woman was also staring at him with a pair of beautiful big eyes, but her face was too soft and charming, even with a shocked expression, she was still tender and pitiful. charm.
Ye Xiaotian felt confused for a while: "This... what's going on?"
…
When Madam Yang heard such a strange will, she immediately said angrily: "Brother, this matter is really inappropriate. He must have been foolish to make such a last wish. My sister is different..."
County magistrate Hu's face darkened, and he shouted: "I am not only your elder brother, but also the county magistrate of Jingzhou! Now I am not interfering in your family affairs as your elder brother, but as the magistrate of Jingzhou to settle a public case." , you don't need to say too much!"
County magistrate Hu is really upset, isn't it a good way to deal with it? This girl is a little ignorant. Yang Lin's will clearly stated that a house, 50 acres of good paddy fields and a shop in the south of the city should be divided among his beloved daughter. Hmph, this Yang Lin, who thought he had been imprisoned for three years, still kept his word in this family
Now that Ye Xiaotian built a ladder for him, why not take the opportunity to go down, is it necessary to force this kid surnamed Ye to jump over the wall and tell the truth about the will in public, embarrassing everyone? Women and Taoists, unreasonable!
Mrs. Yang rarely saw her elder brother being so stern to her, even though she was full of reluctance, after being reprimanded by him, her heart trembled, and she dared not speak again for a while.
※※※
A three or four-year-old girl staggered into the yard, her round pink face was like a cute red apple. The little hand was held by an old woman with an unkind face, and she walked timidly.
The girl's hair is tied in two bundles and tied into small braids facing the sky. She is graceful and curly, and her horns are always curly. She looks very cute. Wearing a paddy field garment made of various fabrics, like a colorful cassock, it looks more and more innocent.
The little girl had a thin white ribbon tied on her forehead, and a white ribbon around her waist. She seemed to be keeping a filial piety. She looked timidly at the people in the yard, and suddenly saw the woman with five flowers tied up and as soft as water. , Immediately burst into tears.
She broke free from the old woman's hand, ran over staggeringly, hugged the woman's thigh, and cried loudly: "Mom, mother, you big villains, let go of my mother!"
The little girl was terrified, since she and her mother were kicked out of the Yang Mansion and lived together in the small desolate courtyard at the corner of the alley, she has never been separated from her mother. Unexpectedly, two fierce old women suddenly came to Yang's mansion yesterday, and they forced her back to Yang's mansion.
They said that her father was dead, and they tied a white belt for her to wear mourning. They also said that her mother was a humble concubine, not worthy of mourning for the master. She was so scared in the Yang family mansion alone. Now Finally met her mother.
"Far away, far away..."
When Shui Wu saw her daughter, she immediately burst into tears. Her arms were tied behind her back, so she had to squat down and gently rubbed her cheek against her daughter's little face. The daughter was crying, and she was also crying. The tears of the two covered each other's cheeks. Many condolence guests turned their heads away when they saw it.
Ye Xiaotian's eyes were bigger than a cow's: "Miss Yang...Miss Yang...is she so big? Yang Lin, that old thing with a neck buried in loess, his daughter is still a little brat!"
The corners of Ye Xiaotian's mouth twitched a few times, and he cried out in grief and indignation in his heart: "How could I have thought that the precious daughter of a white-haired old man was only three or four years old? Counting forward, when he was imprisoned, this girl was the most He's only one year old at most, so smart, pretty, and cute!"
In fact, in all parts of the north and south, it is common for daughters to marry at the age of 13 or 14, especially in the south. As for taking concubines, taking a young girl as a concubine is something that literati and bureaucrats are very keen on. This is not unknown.
It's just that Yang Lin's old guy is too old, and he has been in prison for three years, so Ye Xiaotian's thinking went into a misunderstanding, thinking that Yang Lin's concubine was at least ten years ago. When he saw the young Shui Wu, he took it for granted that she was Yang Lin's daughter.
Seeing this scene, Ye Xiaotian wanted to cry but had no tears: "God, you can strike me with a thunder, don't play tricks on me like this!"
If he had known that the Shui Wu girl who looked like an unmarried girl was actually Master Yang's concubine, then he would have said that Yang Lin wanted to send the concubine to him in order to repay his kindness.
It is very common for literati and bureaucrats to give concubines to each other, and it is called elegant. On the basis of this custom, if he said that Yang Lin was worried about the suffering of his concubine after death, and in order to repay the kindness of knowing him, he gave him a concubine as a gift, which was far more reasonable than taking a four-year-old little loli as his wife, but now …
Ye Xiaotian looked at the yellow-haired girl who was hugging her mother's thigh and crying so much that she burst into tears, and couldn't help but feel like crying too. It was very tangled to think that even if this little yellow-haired girl was to be his child bride-in-law, she would have to raise her for at least ten years, and her egg shattered on the ground.