"You really aren't going!" Zhou Zhen teased his little daughter.
"I really don't want to go!" Zhou Shaojin was very determined, "You take my sister with you!"
Zhou Chujin really wanted to go, but Zhou Shaojin didn't want to go, so she hesitated for a moment and decided not to go either.
"Sister," Zhou Shaojin tried her best to persuade Zhou Chujin to go out for a walk, "Dad rarely comes back, and there will never be such an opportunity again. I really don't like to go out so far, you and Dad should go out and have fun! If you are worried, I will go and tell Dad to bring the wife along, then you should be relieved now, right?"
"What's the fun in being with her?" Zhou Chujin muttered.
"She's pregnant, so she definitely won't go out with father. She can rest in the house, and you can go around with daddy, and you don't have to worry about me." Zhou Shaojin personally helped Zhou Chujin pack her things for going out. Zhou Chujin couldn't persuade her, as he really wanted to go out with his father. She took Li with her and gave Zhou Shaojin a thousand instructions before getting on the carriage with reluctance.
Zhou Shaojin waved vigorously at her sister, and waited until the carriage drove out of the gate before she turned back to the upper room.
Chun Wan said, "Miss, are we really doing needlework at home?"
"Of course it's true!" Zhou Shaojin joked about the Spring Festival Gala and took out a piece of paper and spread it on the desk.
She promised to draw a swaddling cloth pattern for Cheng Xiao's unborn baby. According to the calculation, Cheng Xiao would be born in a month, so she wanted to start drawing the pattern as soon as possible so that the people in the sewing room could start sewing as soon as possible.
Chunwan was a little bit unconvinced, but Zhou Shaojin sat at home motionless for the whole day. It was not until the lights were turned on and Zhou Chujin came back with Zhou Zhen that she rubbed her shoulders and put down her pen.
Zhou Zhen took Zhou Chujin to Jiming Temple, located on the northern foot of Jiming Mountain.
"It's very spectacular!" Zhou Chujin seemed a little excited. "It is said to be bigger than Baoen Temple... You should go and see it... I also saw a statue of Guanyin sitting facing south and north. The couplet on the niche reads 'Ask why the Bodhisattva sits upside down, sigh that sentient beings refuse to turn back'... Uncle Wang, who went with my father, said that apart from Jiming Temple, only Longxing Temple in Zhengding has a statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva similar to this one..."
She told her sister about her experience at Jiming Mountain.
Zhou Shaojin listened with a smile on her face, and felt that she had gained a lot today - she had drawn a picture of a baby to swaddle Cheng Xiao's child, and she would be able to give it to Yuan when she got back.
Li was a little bored.
While Zhou Zhen was reciting poems and composing couplets with others and enjoying the beautiful scenery, she could only sit in the temple's side room and wait.
Zhou Chujin could also follow and look around.
Fortunately, Zhou Zhen did not go out with his friends from the next day, but took Li, Zhou Chujin and Zhou Shaojin to visit several friends.
Only then did Zhou Shaojin realize that his father had several close friends in Jinling City.
After a few days, it was the sixth day of the New Year.
Zhou Zhen first went to Jiuru Lane to say goodbye. At noon, the family gathered together for a meal and started packing in the afternoon.
Zhou Shaojin looked at the crabapple trees planted by his mother in front of the steps and felt reluctant to leave.
Zhou Chujin's heart was also filled with sadness of parting. She put her arm around her sister's shoulders, followed her sister's gaze and looked at the lush crabapple tree, and remained silent for a long time.
In the evening, Zhou Zhen called his two daughters to the study. He wanted to say something, but looking at his sensible eldest daughter and well-behaved younger daughter, he didn't know what to say. He personally brewed a pot of tea and asked Zhou Shaojin and Zhou Chujin to taste the tea.
Before dawn on the seventh day, the lights in the Zhou family's ancestral home were lit one by one.
Li Changgui ordered the maids and servants to move the boxes and cages of Zhou Zhen and his wife. Ma Fushan checked Zhou Zhen's carriage in the stable, and Ma Fushan's family helped Zhou Shaojin and her sister pack up.
The dry food had already been prepared. After Zhou Zhen had breakfast, Cheng Mian and Cheng Lu arrived.
They are here to see Zhou Zhen off.
The three of them stood in the yard and talked for a while, and several of Zhou Zhen's friends also came over.
As everyone was chatting and laughing, the time came.
The carriage stopped at the gate, and Ma Fushan came over to invite Zhou Zhen to get in.
Zhou Chujin and Zhou Shaojin saw Li off to the carriage. Zhou Zhen exchanged a few words with the people who saw them off and got into Li's carriage. Cheng Mian, Zhou Shaojin and others got on the sedan chair and sent them out of the city.
After Zhou Zhen and a few friends said goodbye, he told his two daughters: "Write to me if you have any problems. If you don't have enough money, tell Ma Fushan. Don't let yourself be wronged. When I'm settled there, if time permits, you can stay with me for a few days."
Zhou Chujin and Zhou Shaojin couldn't help but burst into tears.
Li hurriedly advised: "Young ladies, please stop crying and ruin your makeup. Let's go to Baoding Prefecture to have fun in a few days."
The Zhou sisters nodded and watched their father and stepmother's carriage go away. Then they returned to Jinling City with Cheng Mian, Cheng Lu and several of Zhou Zhen's friends.
Cheng Lu had the title of a juren, and he was also in charge of the Cheng clan school, so he was also well-known in Jinling. Zhou Zhen's friends were also scholars, two of whom were very familiar with Cheng Lu, while the others had only met Cheng Lu a few times or had only heard of his name, but with Zhou Zhen's relationship, everyone quickly became familiar with him. Cheng Lu invited them to Jiangdong Tower for a drink.
Several people responded without hesitation.
Cheng Mian was about to send Zhou Shaojin and her sister back to Jiuru Lane, and he apologized to them with a smile: "... I'll treat you another day."
The crowd refused and urged him to go back quickly: "… We will wait for you to come over before opening the wine."
Cheng Mian had no choice but to agree to send the Zhou sisters off and then rush to Jiangdong Tower, thus he was able to escape.
Zhou Shaojin pursed his lips and smiled.
Cheng Mian smiled and touched her head.
After returning to Wanxiangju, before she had time to change her clothes, Mrs. Guan, who had heard the news, came over supported by Mrs. Mian.
"You're finally back!" The old man held the sisters' hands and looked them left and right, asking over and over, "Is the new wife kind to others? Are you used to living in the Zhou family? What dishes do you usually cook in the kitchen? Did you have breakfast this morning..." As if they had been gone for eight or ten years, or had been abused by their stepmother.
Zhou Shaojin felt warm in his heart, and he hugged Old Lady Guan's arm with a smile, saying, "We are fine in everything, but we miss our grandmother and aunt very much."
"Look at this little girl, she only knows how to coax people!" Mrs. Miao laughed, but the corners of her mouth couldn't help but curl up.
No wonder Fan Liushi always taught her to be nice in her previous life, but she thought it was servile and didn't listen to a word. In this life, she listened to Fan Liushi's words and really made Aunt Mian happy. Aunt Mian was happy, and the servants around her became cheerful, the atmosphere became better, and they became more warm and considerate to her sisters.
It seems that sometimes you have to be a little sweeter.
Zhou Shaojin smiled and personally brewed a cup of Yunlin tea for Mrs. Guan and Mrs. Mian.
Old Madam Guan took a sip and said, "Not bad. I didn't expect that after not seeing you for a few days, our Shao Jin has learned how to make tea."
"I learned it from Daddy." Zhou Shaojin smiled with curved eyebrows, "Daddy also asked me to bring back several bags, saying that they were for my grandmother, my aunt, my uncle, and my cousins. I have packed them and will have someone deliver them later."
Old Mrs. Guan nodded with a smile.
Cheng Ji came over.
"You've been gone for days," she complained, "and you didn't even think of inviting me to your house!"
Zhou Shaojin didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and said, "I follow my father around visiting relatives every day, so how can I have time to invite you to my house? If you really want to go, my sister and I will go home to worship our ancestors on the first day of October, and you can just come with us then."
"You have to keep your word!" She wanted to pinky promise with Zhou Shaojin.
Old Lady Guan and others burst into laughter, and Cheng Ji's face turned red.
Seeing that they still had to clean up, Old Lady Guan and Great Lady Miao sat for a while and then left, telling them to go to Jiashu Hall for dinner that night, and said, "Don't leave, Jia girl, come over later."
Cheng Ji happily agreed, and together with Zhou Shaojin and her sister, they escorted Old Madam Guan and Madam Mian out of Wanxiangju.
Zhou Chujin left the boxes and crates all over the room and went to urge the maids to move the flowers.
Cheng Ji asked curiously, "What is this? Did you move it from Zhou's house? You won't live here for long. If you move a tree, it will die; if you move a person, he will live. Why move the flowers here?"
So for all these years, Zhou Shaojin has not properly decorated the Wanxiangju where he lives.
"It was left by my mother." She suddenly had an idea and said, "After my sister gets married, I will take it to the Liao family."
Zhou Chujin was shocked and said, "How can this be possible..."
Zhou Shaojin interrupted her sister before she finished speaking and said, "Why can't this be possible? You can definitely take better care of these flowers than I can."
Although she is better at growing flowers than her sister, her sister is more attentive than her.
She held her sister's hand tightly and said, "It's settled. When I get married, these flowers should be able to be divided into pots. When the time comes, sister, remember to give me a few pots."
"Shaojin!" Zhou Chujin's eyes turned slightly red.
Cheng Ji was yelling at the side: "Zhou Shaojin, you are amazing... You don't even blush when you talk about getting married!"
Zhou Shaojin was speechless.
The next day, she took two bags of tea and the picture of playing with babies that she had drawn for Cheng Xiao's baby and went to Hanbi Mountain House.
Mrs. Guo smiled and asked Feicui to take the tea leaves and asked about her daily life these days.
Zhou Shaojin answered each question respectfully.
Pearl ran in and said, "Madam, the master is back!"
Zhou Shaojin and Mrs. Guo were both very surprised.
Madam Guo asked hurriedly, "What happened? Why did he come back so soon? Didn't he say he would be back on the tenth day of August?"
"I don't know." Pearl smiled, "I saw that the old man was smiling and looked more energetic than when he went out. I guess there was nothing going on over there, so he came back early!"
Mrs. Guo nodded suspiciously.
Zhou Shaojin avoided the Buddhist temple.
Biyu brought some tea and snacks to entertain her.
Seeing a painting on her desk, he tilted his head and looked over: "This is... a picture of playing with babies, it's really well drawn... Each child is holding a jade pendant in his hand... There seems to be a pattern on the jade pendant..."
Zhou Shaojin smiled and said, "It's a picture of a monkey being sealed soon. It's for celebration."
"It's so beautiful!" Biyu praised it several times.
Zhou Shaojin asked Biyu, "Is the old lady talking to Cousin Xu?"
Jade smiled and nodded.
Zhou Shaojin hurriedly folded the pattern and handed it to Biyu: "Please give it to Madam Yuan for me. I'll go back first." Then, regardless of Biyu's attempts to keep him, he hurriedly left Hanbi Villa.
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Today's update, sisters.
O(∩_∩)o
PS: Today’s update on the Spirit Beast Egg is a little late, please wait and read it tomorrow morning!
※(To be continued)