On the day of Laba Festival, the weather changed suddenly and a biting cold wind blew.
Cheng Ji came over wearing a grey squirrel fur coat, her face red. She did not go into the house, but stood under the veranda, looking at the dead branches of the pomegranate tree that were blown here and there by the wind, laughing. She asked Zhou Shaojin who came out to greet her, "Do you think it will snow this year?"
Zhou Shaojin's memory was still stuck in the snowy winter in the capital, and he was stunned when he heard this.
Cheng Ji sighed and said, "It didn't snow last year. I hope it will snow this year. Then we can build a snowman!"
You are an adult, but you still care about these things.
Zhou Shaojin hurriedly invited her to come in and sit down: "…It's too cold outside."
"It's better to be cold." Cheng Ji said with a smile, "It's just right to drink porridge when it's cold." Then he asked her, "What do you use to make your porridge?"
"Lotus seed rice, peanuts, red beans, longan, coix seed rice..." Zhou Shaojin said as he and Cheng Ji entered the house, "What's wrong?"
There were two braziers lit in the room, and the hot air hit Cheng Ji's face, making his breath stop.
She cried, "What are you lighting so many braziers for?"
"It's too cold." Zhou Shaojin said, "I stayed in the quilt for a long time before I felt a little warm."
Cheng Ji opened his eyes wide and said, "You don't know how to use a hot water bottle."
"The hot water bottle doesn't help." Zhou Shaojin said, "I just feel too cold."
Unlike in Beijing, where the heating is on and everything you touch is hot.
Cheng Ji was a little speechless, and said, "When will Jiying come? When I came out, Sister Shi was delivering Laba porridge. She said it was made with glutinous rice, rhubarb rice, red fragrant rice, black rice... a total of eight kinds of rice. It is more refreshing than ordinary Laba porridge. I wanted to try it first, but I was afraid that you would be waiting, so I hurried over without even taking a look. If I had known that Jiying was not coming, I should have come later."
Zhou Shaojin was furious.
Zhou Chujin walked in with her apron untied, and said with a smile, "I've already cooked the porridge on the stove in the tea room, and we can eat it when Jiying comes over."
Zhou Shaojin nodded.
Cheng Ji jumped up and said, "Didn't you say you cooked the Laba porridge? Why did cousin Chu Jin cook it?"
"Do you know how to make Laba porridge?" Zhou Shaojin glanced at Cheng Ji and said, "Ingredients like lotus seed rice, red bean, and coix seed rice need to be soaked a day in advance... I got up at 6 a.m. today and kept stirring the porridge with a spoon, fearing that they would stick together. If I had known this, I should have worn an apron to greet you!"
Cheng Ji chuckled, pulled Zhou Shaojin's sleeve, and whispered, "At worst, I can treat you to Qi Fangzhai's water chestnut cake."
Zhou Chujin laughed when he heard it.
The room was bustling with activity when Shi Xiang came in and said, "Miss Jiying is here."
"Please ask her to come in quickly." Zhou Shaojin said, and lifted the door curtain, and Ji Ying walked in by herself.
She wore a rose purple floral bodice with a willow yellow Hangzhou silk jacket underneath. Her jet-black hair was casually tied up in a bun, and she wore a pair of pearl earrings on her ears. She also held a gift box in her hand, as if she was going to someone's house to pay New Year's greetings.
Zhou Shaojin couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Ji Ying looked at Zhou Shaojin in confusion.
Zhou Shaojin was afraid that Jiying would misunderstand that she was laughing at her, so she hurriedly said, "I see that you look like you're visiting a neighbor's house. It's not even the New Year yet! Even if it is the New Year, you don't have to be so polite to sisters who live in the same alley, right?"
Jiying finally understood.
She gnashed her teeth and said, "Qin Ziping, just wait and see if I can punish you when I get back!"
Zhou Shaojin asked curiously, "What does this have to do with Manager Qin?"
"This is what he prepared for me!" Ji Ying pointed at the gift box, "Eight major items from Qi Fang Zhai. I said I didn't want them, but he forced them on me, saying that this is the custom here!"
Everyone laughed.
Zhou Chujin gently told her: "The more gifts, the less blame. But today is a small gathering among sisters, so there is no need to be so polite. If you really want to send something, just pick out your favorite food and bring it over if it looks good to them."
Jiying thanked him repeatedly.
Zhou Chujin saw it clearly now.
Even though Ying looks cool and charming in this episode, she is just like Zhou Shaojin, a carefree person.
She told Shi Xiang to bring the porridge, and several people sat around the round table in the hall.
Shi Xiang brought in the porridge and was saying some auspicious words when Cheng Yi came over.
"It smells so good!" He sniffed. "You were hiding here drinking porridge without even calling me." As he spoke, his gaze on Ji Ying changed from amazement to fixation.
Jiying frowned.
Zhou Shaojin coughed and said, "Cousin Yi, what do you want to talk to me about?"
"I can't come to you if I have nothing to do." Cheng Yi's eyes seemed to be fixed on Ji Ying, and he said absentmindedly, "You should have cooked more than just this little porridge, right? Serve me a bowl to try! I want to see how it is different from what my mother cooks."
Cheng Ji couldn't stand it anymore and simply kicked Cheng Yi.
Cheng Yi covered his calf with his hands, frowned, and wanted to say something to Cheng Ji, but he glanced at her from the corner of his eye and swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue. Then he let go of his calf, brushed off the corner of his clothes as if nothing had happened, and said, "A good man does not fight with a woman. I won't argue with you."
Cheng Ji's expression changed.
Zhou Shaojin was very embarrassed.
She herself had encountered this kind of thing before, so she naturally understood Ji Ying's annoyance. But the one who did this was her cousin who she had grown up with. Even if she kicked him out, he would probably stay here and refuse to leave, right
Zhou Shaojin winked at Shi Xiang and whispered, "Tell him that grandma is looking for him and send him away."
Shi Xiang understood, put the dishes and chopsticks outside for a while, then walked in again and said, "Second Master, Old An wants you to come over!"
Cheng Yi was quietly asking Zhou Shaojin who Jiying was, and he was suspicious when he heard this: "It can't be such a coincidence, right?"
Shi Xiang said aggrievedly: "Why would I lie to you! Grandma Shi is here to give us Laba porridge."
Usually at this time, Mrs. Guan would share the porridge with them.
Cheng Yi had no choice but to leave reluctantly.
Ji Ying took a deep breath and said, "If it weren't for the fact that he is your cousin, I would have slapped him a long time ago."
Zhou Shaojin and Cheng Ji both smiled awkwardly.
Zhou Chujin couldn't help but smile, thinking that Jiying was just as her sister said, very special.
Someone came in through the curtain.
Ji Ying and the others looked a little annoyed, and following the voice, they saw someone holding incense.
The three of them breathed a sigh of relief.
Chixiang reported, "General Manager Ma sent someone to bring a letter saying that the cotton ship from Jingzhou Prefecture will arrive at Dongjiang Bridge in an hour. I want to ask the eldest and second young ladies whether they should go to Pingqiao Street to wait or go there when they have time."
The Zhou sisters stood up at the same time.
Zhou Chujin turned around and pressed Zhou Shaojin into his seat, saying, "Go tell Ma Fushan, I'll go to Pingqiao Street and wait for him."
Zhou Shaojin anxiously called out "Sister" and was about to stand up.
Zhou Chujin exerted force with his hands and pressed Zhou Shaojin down again, saying, "Just stay at home and help me write a letter to my father when the time comes."
Zhou Shaojin knew he couldn't go.
Not to mention that Cheng Ji and Ji Ying were here, even if they were not here, the sisters' frequent return to Pingqiao Street would definitely attract other people's attention.
She wanted to stay and cover for her sister.
Besides, today is Laba Festival, and she has to pay her respects to her grandmother later. It’s impossible for the two sisters to not be at home!
"Sister," Zhou Shaojin looked up at Zhou Chujin, her clear, bright eyes full of concern, "You should go early and come back early. Grandma Shi will bring some porridge over, and I'll save it for you."
A hint of surprise flashed across Zhou Chujin's eyes.
She didn't expect that her sister actually understood what she meant.
Zhou Chujin couldn't help but laugh and said softly, "I see. You guys can have your porridge and don't have to wait for me. I'll be back as soon as possible."
The three of them stood up and saw Zhou Chujin out the door.
Cheng Ji asked, "Is your family still engaged in the cotton business? Why haven't I heard of it before? Shouldn't these things be handled by the steward? Why does cousin Chu Jin have to come forward? How about I tell my brother and ask him to send a steward to take a look?"
Jiying seemed to be thinking about something.
Zhou Shaojin knew that Jiying was suspicious, and looked at her and answered Cheng Ji's words: "Something happened at home, so I can go there. I don't need help for the time being. If I need anything, I will definitely ask you."
Cheng Ji nodded and sat down at the round table.
Ji Ying smiled at Zhou Shaojin with relief.
※
When Zhou Chujin came back, the lights were already on.
Unlike the joy she showed when she received Ma Ci's letter last time, she now seemed angry and tired.
Zhou Shaojin held Zhou Chujin firmly.
"It was really Xinlan who did it!" She was pale, but her cheeks were as red as if she had put on rouge. "Cheng Bai instructed her to do it... She thought her mother should marry Cheng Bai so that she could serve Cheng Bai... Cheng Bai promised to let her in after the deed was done, so she did it... I'm going to skin her alive..."
Zhou Shaojin said nothing.
My heart felt heavy as if it were a wet cloth and I couldn't breathe, and my legs felt soft and weak as if I was stepping on cotton.
Just because you like Cheng Bai, you can help Cheng Bai harm others!
She thought of Cheng Lu.
The hatred from her past life seemed to have traveled through time and ignited in her heart.
How could someone be so despicable and shameless? He killed her mother and now he wants to harm her!
And Lan Ting, since she discovered the conspiracy between Cheng Bo and Xin Lan, why didn't she tell her father? She kept pretending not to know. Did her mother scold her for no reason? Or did she punish her without knowing the truth? She didn't care about the old relationship at all, and she could actually watch Xin Lan get away with it with a clear conscience!
What are their hearts made of!
"Sister," Zhou Shaojin heard her own voice saying sharply, "Let the government sentence them properly. We can't just let them go! Mother died so unjustly!"
Zhou Shaojin couldn't help but feel tears in his eyes when he thought of his mother, whom he had no impression of.
"I know, I know." Zhou Chujin returned to his room and fell on the bed as if all his strength had been drained. "Repaying evil with kindness, how can I repay kindness? If someone has killed someone, as long as he puts down the butcher knife, as long as he reforms, as long as he cries and says 'I was wrong' a few times, he can be forgiven. Who would obey the law and be a good person? I will go to find Uncle Mian tomorrow. My father is too far away, so the Cheng family has to intervene in this matter."
Zhou Shaojin immediately said: "I'll write the letter right away."
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※(To be continued)