When night fell, the light in the mountain village lit up little by little. It was sparse and sparse. A group of children were running around on the threshing floor on the other side of the pond. Dry tobacco rods, occasionally knocking on the bluestone steps beside him. Dong Zhu and Geng guard also sat under the big tree by the pond for a while, chatting for a while.
"... Originally, I thought that this uncle was the weak-tempered one in the rumors, but then the more I looked at it, the more I felt that it was not quite right. Of course, a scholar is still a scholar, but he has to look like this. Now he is in Jiangning City. , Speaking of the uncle in the family named Ning Liheng, who doesn't know. My boy is also studying in the school now, and he was praised by Song Mao and Song Zhizhou last year, tsk... My old Geng family has never been literate, if it wasn't for the Su family, How could that kid have the opportunity to read and write, if it wasn't for my uncle, how could that kid be praised by someone like Song Zhizhou..."
Not far from the mourning hall was noisy, Geng guard patted his thigh and talked about these things with the driver named Dong Zhu.
"You don't know, the uncle is a real gentleman. He doesn't like to be in the limelight. He never goes out with those talented people who are famous for their prostitutes, drinking, etc. It's really good for the second lady. Look at him. What kind of people are there? Li Pin and Li Dexin, this is a real genius... How does he go to class in class? He never loses his temper, doesn't say a heavy word, and those boys are also a little unruly. , but they read books well, and even so, they read better than those boys before..."
"I, Geng Lie, don't know big characters. I thought that Mr. was strict. He was praised by Song Zhizhou last year. I was very happy. Then one day that kid came back and talked about the things in class, and I felt something was wrong. Comparing with you guys, you guys can't help but consciously hang up and beat them hard. Later, my uncle told me once, saying that this is not necessary. This is the bearing of a big man, convincing people with virtue. , convince people with talent and learning…”
"In the past, Mr. was strict, and those boys shook their heads and read books, it was useless. Now those boys are making troubles, but they are really convinced of this uncle. Talking to people all day is what Mr. said, what our husband said, haha, There were times when that kid came up to me and said this kind of thing, tsk... It really makes sense when you think about it. You see, when you come to this village this time, when you visit this house and visit that house, you talk and do things to deal with the advance and retreat, compared to the eldest man There's nothing wrong with it. You may not see it at first, but slowly you realize that this is really the benefit of learning, and there are few people in the family who can compare to the uncle... "
Geng Lie looks bold and fierce, but he is modest to his own people, and he doesn't speak quickly. Dong Zhu sat next to him and looked like his son and nephew. He was silent for a while, and then he said, "I heard that the uncle was beaten when he first entered the mansion, right?"
"Well, Xue Jin from the Xue family probably took advantage of no one to shoot a brick... Damn, no one saw it at the time, if I caught it then, even if it was the Xue family behind him, I would have to beat him to death. Then you can't sue the official... But then the uncle also severely humiliated him, hehe... Oh, by the way, you should have entered the palace by then... "
"Yeah." Dong Zhu nodded. "Not long after I entered the mansion, I heard people talk about it, but I'm not very clear. But... Uncle Geng, since Uncle Geng is so powerful, why did he join the family?"
Geng Lie thought for a while: "This matter is a bit complicated. First, the old lady had an agreement with the uncle's grandfather. Second, the foundation of the Su family is now relatively strong, and the second young lady also has the ability and has a strong temper. I don't know. How did we talk about it at the beginning? Actually, one of the reasons we think is more likely is... Hehe, before we got married, the second young lady went to see the uncle in private. Whatever happened, the uncle agreed anyway... Not to mention the second miss, just to say that the girls around the second miss, Chan'er is so caring, Juan'er is fine, that girl Xing'er... She's pretty and pretty, but it's too pungent... "
Among the three maids, Chan'er is caring, Juan'er is lively, and Myolie, as a one-year-old older sister, sometimes quarrels with people or something. Geng Lie and Geng Lie had also quarreled a few times over some minor issues, but they didn't care about each other, but they were naturally a little funny and annoyed. After speaking for a while, Geng Lie patted his shoulder.
"Second miss and uncle are indeed a match made in heaven. In the future, the Su family must be picked up by second miss. You are still young, work hard, and if you can be a steward in the future..."
With such encouragement, Dongzhu nodded and said yes. Not long after, the night had come, and the crowds came in and out of the mourning hall. The farmers who had nothing to do at night gathered, and it became more lively. The time passed, and then it gradually became less and less. The young girl is in it, the uncle is there occasionally, and occasionally not.
Dongzhu only entered the Su Mansion last year. For him, who was originally in the countryside, being able to enter the city and work in such a high-profile family has a "very powerful and novel" experience for everything he sees. Feel.
One by one courtyards, one by one rules, those stewards seem to know everything, and the rest of the people, no matter their age, seem to be very powerful. I occasionally hear them talk about who this is, who that is, and how high their status is. Or hear the legend of the literati in the city. In short, it felt like an existence beyond his reach.
I often hear from people in the mansion that the second young lady is the most powerful person in the mansion - of course, except for a few masters - he has no chance to see the powerful second young lady, but the maids around the second young lady are not. I have seen it several times.
The girl who always smiles and looks good in training is Chan'er. Although she looks younger than him, she still has to call her "Sister Chan" when she sees it. The one called Juan'er seemed quiet and serious when she gave orders, she didn't show much expression, she didn't laugh much, but when she got angry and had a gloomy face, it was a little scary. Sister Xing'er is usually gentle when she orders things, but it's scary when she occasionally has friction with other people. Once I saw her arguing with a steward of the third room, talking one by one, and never giving in... Obviously she is too Girl, how dare you argue with such a powerful steward and win in the end, this matter makes Dongzhu feel really powerful.
Relatively speaking, it was the little sister Chan who caught Dong Zhu's attention more. In fact, she didn't say much. She came over a few times and ordered things and left. While walking, he stretched his waist and muttered something. Occasionally he saw her jogging all the way, and occasionally he saw her bouncing beside the uncle, and he thought... Sister Xiaochan's smile is so beautiful, of course. , other than that, there are not many other ideas.
On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, he drove her out in a carriage, but he couldn't say anything, just told her his name. Later, she still remembered that she had met her a few times in the house, and she had greeted herself, and she called him "Brother Dongzhu".
There are also some servants in the mansion pursuing a certain maid, but such a thing is not in his consideration. Second Miss's three maids, in the mansion, are similar to those of stewards. Now he is neither used to the word "pursuit", nor does he feel that he has this status. Of course, when Xiaochan was coming back this time, he was assigned to drive. He originally wanted to say a few words of comfort that morning, but he was clumsy, and he couldn't say it when he set off.
In the past few days in Nanting Village, he always felt a little empty in his heart. He actually didn't have much to do, just feed the horse and maintain the carriage. Occasionally, together with Geng Huyuan, I accompany my uncle to visit various families. The uncle is really amazing. If you don't think you can say those words, it sounds simple, but it feels like it is so natural. As Geng Huyuan said, it is also a matter of being respected by people with knowledge.
Sister Xiaochan will sleep in the same room as her uncle, which is what it should be, and he doesn't think there is anything wrong with it. But some empty thoughts are always difficult to restrain. Time passed, and it was getting dark. When he went to look again, the uncle and Xiaochan were no longer in the mourning hall, so he went back to the resting place all the way, and when he passed the yard on the uncle's side, he saw the lights were on. He stood outside and watched for a while. Uncle's shadow was sitting by the window, probably writing or something, but Sister Xiaochan's figure didn't seem to be inside.
Turning to the small courtyard where he and Geng Huyuan had been arranged to live, only then did he realize that there was some movement on the other side of the carriage. He went over suspiciously, and a little Chan in white and plain clothes climbed out of it, holding something in her hands. When he saw him, he nodded: "Brother Dongzhu."
"Uh, Sister Xiaochan... Heh, who I thought..."
"My uncle has not been eating well these days. When I came here, I prepared some things and gave them to him to eat." Xiaochan nodded and smiled, holding a few durable pancakes and dried fruits. Then handed one over, "Brother Dongzhu is hungry? Let's eat one too."
"Uh, I, I..."
"Take it." Xiaochan smiled and put the cake into Dongzhu's hand, then waved, "Then I'll go back to the room first, see you Dongzhu brother, I have to trouble you tomorrow."
"No, no... no trouble..." Dong Zhu held the pancake and had a lot of things to say in his heart, but he couldn't say it, so he just watched the figure go past the yard over there.
In fact, she doesn't seem to have the usual smile, and her figure looks a little sad. However, when she got to the door of the room, she could still see her pause, with a smile on the corner of her mouth, and then she pushed the door and went in.
The silhouettes of the two moved inside. Dong Zhu held the pancake in his hand, stared at it for a long time, and then took a small bite. This pancake might be delicious to him in normal times, but it didn't seem to taste so good at this time. He just looked at the figure in the light on the opposite side, and felt a little emotion that was not strong but lingering no matter what. The ignorant love, lost in this summer night...
"This is what the old landlord did..."
In the room, Ning Yi sighed, and divided the pancakes and dried fruits on the table into two halves, and pushed the half towards Xiaochan: "I can't eat the meals that others have eagerly prepared. What happens when people find out?"
"It's okay to be known. In fact, my uncle is really amazing. He obviously doesn't like to eat, so he can eat all the time while sitting there..."
"Uh, is it obvious that I don't like to eat?"
"Xiaochan can see it, but others definitely can't see it." Xiaochan smiled, "I'm already full, uncle doesn't need to give it to me."
"It doesn't matter if it's good or not, in short, I tried my best to stuff it, and I'm full. Since you brought it here, it's your responsibility to eliminate half of it, so don't waste it."
"Then I'll be fine."
Xiaochan picked up the cakes and fruits and put them on Ning Yi's side, Ning Yi shook his head and negotiated: "No, no, I have brought too much, and now I will suffer a loss. We can calculate it according to the proportion and divide it into five parts. Chan, you have to share two shares, this can be traded... This one is too big, change it to a smaller one!"
The negotiation-like negotiation was going on intensely on the table, Xiaochan held the big fruit and protested with the other two small ones: "It can't be counted like this, this big one is worth two..."
"Then come up with a more reliable way of dividing. I don't think these pancakes are the same size. Look, your piece is obviously smaller, right... This is not good, you deliberately take advantage. "
"Uncle, if you want to let the big one come over, you have to take two small ones!"
"I have another way."
"Huh? What... woo..."
Xiaochan opened her mouth, and Ning Yi threw the big one in: "Okay, now the big one is gone, it's easier to divide now, we don't count the big one..."
"Wow, it's not sour when I cook it, I won't eat it (how can it not be counted, I ate it)..." Xiaochan protested while chewing hard.
"What if you eat it, it's you who eat it. And you can't even talk about it, and you are still learning to negotiate. What are you trying to say... Tsk, I don't understand it anyway. Okay, I'll continue to divide, You have the right to make an opinion, and I will refer to all the opinions you put forward..."
There is nothing to do, and they can only find some boring things for entertainment. The two of them eat in the room like a saw. It was only after the division was completed that Xiaochan realized that she had eaten more than half of it. She was usually a shrewd and capable gold medal girl, but she had nothing to do with Ning Yi. She took off her clothes, slept on the inside, and decided to ignore him, but after Ning Yi fell asleep, she couldn't help but move to the middle and hold Ning Yi's hand.
The night passed quietly, and the next day was buried for the deceased. Originally, there was a dinner in the village at noon and evening, but considering the cause of the flood these days, the victims who went to Jiangning could return to the city as soon as possible. After the burial and worship, Ning Yi and others said goodbye to everyone and were ready to set off.
At that time, the sun in the sky just became a little hot, and the carriage left Nanting Village and drove up the mountain road back to Jiangning. The weather in the mountains was dull, and soon after, dark clouds seemed to gather in the distance...