The woman who is sending a child must have both a son and a daughter, and wear red clothes to send auspicious signs to women who are devoutly praying for a child during the Shangsi Festival.
In the old woman's basket were clay dolls wrapped in red thread, also known as gourds, and dyed red-shelled eggs.
The clay doll is chubby, only the size of an egg, wearing a bright red bellyband and holding a bunch of gourds in his arms. The gourds are connected by roots and vines, with the big gourd carrying the small gourds, symbolizing endless generations of descendants.
A red rope is tied between the clay doll and the red-shell egg, making them a pair.
After buying the pair, the woman ate the eggs, untied the red string and tied it around the belt of the man seeking a child, then put the gourd in her purse and pray to God to help the man conceive and have a child as soon as possible.
Under the expectant gaze of the concubine and the auspicious words of the old woman, Jiang Changning picked a pair from the basket and untied the red string that tied the eggs.
King Jin knew that Jiang Changning didn't like to eat boiled eggs like this, so he waited for her to peel the shells and said, "Give me half."
"I have brought some pastries. If you are hungry, let someone serve you some." said the toffee.
"Mother, giving birth to a child cannot be done by the princess alone. My son also needs to contribute." Prince Jin said seriously.
The Toffee felt embarrassed by his blunt words. She coughed lightly and turned her head away uncomfortably.
Jiang Changning looked at the King of Jin who was winking at her, smiled, handed him half an egg, and said silently, "Thank you.
King Jin silently replied: "In the evening."
Jiang Changning turned his head away and ignored him.
When the concubine saw that the couple had eaten the eggs and Jiang Changning had put the gourd in his pocket, she was satisfied and moved forward with Princess Kang Ren.
The couple followed side by side, enjoying the scenery along the lakeside path.
"Ningning, do you know the legend of Hongluo Lake?" asked King Jin.
"Tell me and I'll know." Jiang Changning said with a smile.
"In ancient times, there was a black fish that cultivated itself into a spirit by the lake. Instead of doing good deeds, it harmed its neighbors. On every full-moon night, it would catch and eat young boys and girls to increase its magical power. The people were miserable because of the harm it caused and complained bitterly," the King of Jin told the story.
Jiang Changning followed him obediently, listening with great interest.
The purpose of the King of Jin telling this legend was: "I heard that as long as you pray to the lake, you can get what you want. What does Ningning want?"
"I am living a good life now, and I have nothing to ask for." Jiang Changning smiled, "What about Yong Zhou?"
King Jin stared at her with deep affection in his eyes, "I have a request. I ask the Red Snail Fairy to let us be husband and wife for all eternity."
Jiang Changning was about to speak when he heard someone shout, "Brother Prince Jin."
Looking back, I saw that it was Prince De and his wife.
Most of the people who come to Hongluo Lake for sightseeing are couples.
Prince Jin was extremely depressed about this troublesome couple.
Prince De came over and politely called out, "Hello, cousin."
"Hello, Prince." Jiang Changning bowed half-way in return and stepped behind Prince Jin.
"Brother Prince Jin, I am hosting a Qushui Liushang banquet at Hongluo Villa. You and your cousin's wife should come over and have a seat." Prince De invited.
"No, we are here to accompany our mother and we will be back to the city soon." Prince Jin declined.
"Is that so? Then let's meet again some other day." Prince De said with a smile.
"Okay." Prince Jin smiled faintly.
Just as Prince De and his wife left, Qin Zhaoxi, Xie Baoyin and their group came from another road.
Qin Zhaoxi bowed and said, "This subordinate greets the Prince of Jin." After a pause, he said, "This subordinate greets the Princess of Jin."
Xie Baoyin also followed him and knelt in greeting.
The King of Jin smiled and said, "Master Qin, there is no need to be so polite."
"Mrs. Qin, there's no need to be so polite." Jiang Changning supported her lightly and saw that there was a hint of smoke between Xie Baoyin's brows and a faint blue shadow under her eyes.
If what happened before had not happened, Jiang Changning would have definitely pulled her aside and asked her a few questions out of concern, but now he just turned a blind eye.
The two families had a distant relationship. After they had greeted each other, they were about to pass each other by when Princess Kang Ren came over with something in her hands. "Aunt, Aunt, I found a bird."
Princess Kangren was holding a shivering little bird whose feathers had not even grown fully.
Jiang Changning's biological knowledge was limited, so he couldn't recognize what kind of bird it was, and hurriedly shouted, "Your Majesty, come and take a look."
"Excuse me." Prince Jin nodded with a smile and went to Jiang Changning.
Qin Zhaoxi and Xie Baoyin didn't want to follow, so they chose another way.
Xie Baoyin sighed, not finding a chance to apologize to Sister Ning.
Qin Zhaoxi glanced at her, snorted coldly, flicked his sleeves, and strode forward.
"Young Lord?" Xie Baoyin looked at his back blankly, stunned for a moment before following him.
On the other side, King Jin looked at the bird carefully and said, "This is a hibiscus bird."
"Isn't Hibiscus a flower? And birds are also named after flowers?" Princess Kang Ren asked curiously.
Jiang Changning smiled and said, "Hibiscus bird is another name for canary."
"Its wings and legs are injured, it's so pitiful." Princess Kang Ren's eyes were full of distress.
"Although it didn't rain yesterday, there was a strong wind. This baby bird was most likely blown down from the nest by the wind." Jiang Changning carefully touched the bird's head.
"Aunt, can I keep it?" asked Princess Kangren.
"Of course you can raise it if you want, but I'm afraid it won't survive," said Jiang Changning.
"I will take good care of you." Princess Kang Ren looked at Jiang Changning pleadingly.
Jiang Changning covered the bird with a handkerchief. "It has no hair on its body, so we need to keep it warm. As for its wound, I'll find some medicine to apply to it when we get back home."
"Do we need to catch some more insects for it to eat?" asked Princess Kang Ren.
"Looking at it, it should have hatched not long ago. You can feed it some vegetable juice mixed with egg yolk." Jiang Changning had never raised a bird, but he had seen people raising birds, so he knew some knowledge about raising birds.
Prince Jin followed behind the two and listened to the aunt and nephew discussing how to raise birds.
Jiang Changning's words made perfect sense, and Prince Jin smiled. It seemed that his little princess had indeed read a lot of miscellaneous books.
But this bird was too fragile and died before it could return to the city.
Princess Kang Ren held back her tears and, following Jiang Changning's suggestion, buried the bird in the grove by the lake.
Seeing that she was in a low mood, Jiang Changning made up a canary story to comfort her, "Once upon a time, in a dense forest, there lived many small animals, and small birds flew in the sky every day."
Prince Jin, who was following the carriage, burst into laughter when he heard her story.
When they got home, the King of Jin said, "Princess, tigers also eat meat. Tigers will not teach foxes a lesson. They will only eat rabbits with foxes."
"Your Highness, this is a fairy tale. Fairy tales are for children. Have you ever seen a fox that can talk?" Jiang Changning said with a sidelong glance at him.
King Jin smiled and said, "Yes, yes, I am grateful for your advice."
"Remember to go to the street tomorrow and buy a bird for Kang Ren," Jiang Changning reminded.
Prince Jin reached out and hugged Jiang Changning, "Ningning, you will definitely be a very good mother in the future."
"Of course." Jiang Changning said confidently.
"How immodest you are." King Jin laughed.
"It's the truth, why should I be modest?"
"Well, that makes sense." Prince Jin agreed seriously.
Note: Canaries are not native to my country. They were introduced from foreign countries in the 19th century. This article is fictional and assumes that they have been introduced. The plot requires it, so please don't be too literal.
Why don’t I write about local birds? It’s because I like canaries, so I wrote about them based on my preferences. Please understand.
(End of this chapter)