Xiaoyao Xiaojunhou

Chapter 474 474. Goofing off
After eating the "New Year's Eve dinner", Zhu Xiuyuan and others rested for a while, then set off together to the largest courtyard in the main house.

Now, the sky is completely dark, and the lanterns on the corridor are dancing with firelight, illuminating the corridor and the entire courtyard.

Zhu Xiuyuan and the others walked to the corridor in front of the courtyard and stood there, facing the wide courtyard.

The corridors on the left and right, as well as the corridor on the opposite side, were already full of people. The housekeepers, servants and maids in the mansion had eaten a sumptuous New Year's Eve dinner early and came here to wait.

The corridors are bustling with activity, and the servants and maids no longer need to be quiet at this moment, nor do they need to maintain their usual standing postures, just feel free to do so.

He gathered in groups in twos and threes, chatting, eating snacks distributed in the mansion, and glancing at the wide courtyard from time to time.

It seems that the servants and maids in various corridors are like spectators.

The wide courtyard in the middle is the stage for performances.

Everyone gathered here in a lively manner, just waiting for the show to begin.

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Dong Cheng suddenly looked up to the sky and smiled, stroking his goat's beard.

"Why is daddy laughing?" Dong Shuyu wondered.

"The mansion is so lively today, life is in full swing, lanterns are decorated..." Dong Cheng stroked his beard and raised his head slightly to recall, "In the past, such a lively scene in Jiangzhou was when your mother was celebrating her birthday..."

Dong Cheng didn't finish his sentence, but he stopped midway. His hand stroking his beard also stopped, and his raised head lowered.

Apparently they were thinking of Dong Shuyu and their mother, who passed away more than ten years ago.

Nowadays, there are often lively scenes, but the people of the past are buried in the loess forever!

"Daddy, today is New Year's Eve, everyone is bustling with excitement, Daddy, don't think about such unhappy things!"

Dong Shuzhen temporarily let go of Zhu Xiuyuan's hand, ran over to help Dong Cheng, and made herself into a "little cotton-padded jacket."

"Dad, I believe that my mother's spirit in heaven will be happy to see us like this."

Dong Shuyu also supported Dong Cheng, one on the left and one on the right with his sister Dong Shuzhen.

"Hahahaha... I felt this, but it disturbed your mood..." Dong Cheng laughed again, hearty. His wife had been dead for more than ten years, and he had actually put her down long ago. This time I just expressed my feelings.

"My father-in-law, you're welcome. This Jiangcheng uncle's mansion is no different from the Dong's mansion in Jiangzhou. Why do you want to disturb the excitement? My father-in-law, and Shuyu, you two must treat this place as your home!" Zhu Xiuyuan smiled. road.

"Hmm..." Dong Cheng nodded.

Dong Cheng has no children, only two daughters, and this son-in-law is his half son, so the son-in-law's home is his home.

Dong Cheng can accept Zhu Xiuyuan's statement.

But for Dong Shuyu, he was a little embarrassed to speak out.

She seemed not to have heard those words and remained unmoved. She just held Dong Cheng's hand and lowered her head there...

In fact, her heart was already filled with waves. Although she understood rationally, Zhu Xiuyuan's words did not mean what she thought.

but……

"Father-in-law, the time has come, my son-in-law sees that everyone has been waiting for a long time, so the 'Ting Liao' should start?" Zhu Xiuyuan asked again.

He didn't seem to notice that Dong Shuyu didn't reply to what he just said.

"My son-in-law, you can make the decision!" Dong Cheng said with a smile.

Zhu Xiuyuan nodded, turned around, and waved to Yan Dashan.

At the same time, Dong Shuzhen finished her "little cotton-padded jacket" performance, let go of Dong Cheng's hand, ran up to stand side by side with Zhu Xiuyuan, held his hand again, and rested her head on his arm.

When Dong Cheng saw this, the corners of his mouth twitched slightly, and he felt a little disappointed.

He couldn't describe this feeling, but there was a modern saying that suited his current mood: The little cotton-padded jacket he had raised for more than ten years was passed away by a man called his son-in-law!

Feeling lost for a while, Dong Cheng was soon relieved.

Because "a girl should get married" is an iron rule for him since ancient times!

His little daughter will leave him one day, so what if she is lost again!

Now that he can live with his daughter and son-in-law, he is very satisfied.

Dong Cheng, who was a little satisfied, accidentally glanced at his eldest daughter Dong Shuyu next to him. She was holding his hand and lowering her head in thought. He turned his head and couldn't see her face.

As soon as he saw his eldest daughter, Dong Cheng's heart moved and he couldn't help but think of the two kinds of fine wines brewed by Zhu Xiuyuan, Zhenjiu and Jade Wine...

Dong Cheng looked up at his son-in-law's back, then turned his head to look at his eldest daughter Dong Shuyu.

"Yu'er, don't worry about me, you can go play with Zhen'er and Xian'er!" Dong Cheng said with a smile.

Dong Cheng's words suddenly "activated" her.

She raised her eyes slightly and saw Zhu Xiuyuan and her sister Dong Shuzhen standing side by side directly in front of her.

Dong Shuzhen held his hand and leaned her head on his arm, rubbing and rubbing, shaking and shaking, moving and moving, causing the hair accessories on Dong Shuzhen's head to sway...

Dong Shuyu withdrew his gaze, glanced at Dong Cheng, but did not move, and smiled slightly: "No, my daughter is here to accompany Daddy."

Seeing this, Dong Cheng couldn't say anything more, calmed down and prepared to enjoy the lively feast that was to follow.

The sky is getting darker and darker.

The lanterns on the corridors emitted soft light, illuminating the people on the corridors everywhere.

The chatter of the servants and maids became louder and louder, and the place was noisy and lively.

But Zhu Xiuyuan waved his hand, summoned Yan Dashan, and casually ordered: "It's almost time, let's start!"

Yan Dashan said "yes" and immediately left to make arrangements.

Everyone gathered here to watch an activity called "Ting Liao".

The so-called "Ting Liao" is to burn a brazier in the courtyard and then put it into a bamboo tube. The bamboo tube burns and makes a crackling sound.

This is "Firecracker".

There is no such thing as "fireworks" in this world, because gunpowder was "invented" by Zhu Xiuyuan, and it has been classified as a secret and cannot be taken out of Shenleifang.

Therefore, activities such as making fireworks and setting off firecrackers cannot be done this year...

Crackling!

Crackling!

The "Ting Liao" activity began. In the huge courtyard, there were more than a dozen huge braziers placed. Charcoal was placed in the pots and firewood was added. The flames shot up as high as a person!
A dozen "torches" burned blazingly, emitting fierce light and heat, illuminating the surrounding corridors. However, the light emitted by the lanterns on the corridors was incomparable.

Among the dozens of "torches", there were several brave young men walking through them. They all held a large pile of bamboo tubes, trotting through and throwing bamboo tubes into each brazier.

The crackling sound kept coming!

Compared with firecrackers, the sound of bamboo tubes exploding is not very loud, but when many bamboo tubes explode together, the formation is quite amazing.

"Ah!" "Ah!"

The little maids in the mansion covered their ears and fell back, screaming, looking frightened.

The more courageous boys took turns holding a pile of bamboo tubes, walking through the courtyard, and dropping the bamboo tubes.Sometimes he even made fun of the frightened little maid, just for fun.

On Zhu Xiuyuan's side, everyone was watching peacefully, with smiles on their faces, feeling the hustle and bustle of this moment.

This is how it should be on New Year's Eve.

But Dong Shuzhen couldn't stay idle any longer.

"Husband, I'm going to throw the bamboo tube too. Look at the crackling sound. How fun it is! The boys walked between the braziers, and the smiles on their faces never stopped..."

"Okay, but you have to pay extra attention to safety. Look at your long hair and ribbons. Don't let it float up and be ignited by the fire in the basin." Zhu Xiuyuan finally agreed.

"Don't worry, husband, everything will be fine!"

Dong Shuzhen was so excited that her limbs trembled wildly. She hurriedly let go of Zhu Xiuyuan's hand and dragged the confused Xia Wu. The two masters and servants rushed to the boy who was distributing bamboo tubes.

Today, Dong Shuzhen wore a long white dress, which was flawless and eye-catching. Xia Wu is the eldest maid in the mansion, so her dress is naturally very recognizable.

So the two masters and servants held hands and ran like a beautiful scenery, instantly attracting the attention of most people.

"Xian son-in-law, what are Zhen'er going to do?"

Dong Cheng raised his eyebrows, looked at the direction Dong Shuzhen ran, and then looked at Zhu Xiuyuan and asked.

"Father-in-law, madam... they are going to put the bamboo tube in."

The black line on Zhu Xiuyuan's forehead hadn't dissipated yet, so he hurriedly turned around to answer.

He always felt that he was Dong Shuzhen's accomplice in doing bad things, and he felt a little embarrassed to face Dong Cheng.

When Dong Cheng heard this, he was so angry that his hands and feet were trembling slightly, which was immediately noticed by Dong Shuyu who was supporting him.

The corner of his mouth twitched for a long time, and finally he could only hold back this sentence: "Zhen'er... what a nonsense!"

"Xiuyuan, don't indulge Zhen'er too much." Dong Shuyu said, "The more you indulge her, the more misbehaving she will become, and something will happen one day!"

"Yes, my father-in-law is right, Shuyu is right." Zhu Xiuyuan handed over his hand, "Please rest assured, my father-in-law, my son-in-law will strictly control my wife in the future..."

"Yeah." Dong Cheng nodded slightly.

But Dong Shuyu sighed secretly, she knew very well in her heart that Zhu Xiuyuan's words were probably just casually coping.

"Hahahaha...Xia Wu, hurry up...hahahaha..."

Suddenly, in the courtyard in front, bursts of laughter like silver bells came from among a dozen torches as tall as one person.

Needless to say, this is Dong Shuzhen’s laughter.

When everyone heard Zhu Xiuyuan smiled bitterly and shook his head, Dong Cheng's face darkened, and Dong Shuyu sighed secretly again.

Half an hour later, Ting Liao's activities ended.

Everyone was in high spirits, they talked enthusiastically with each other, and dispersed in twos and threes.

Zhu Xiuyuan and the others went on without stopping, and then went to the next activity——

Send God!

It’s quite simple to send a gift to God, there’s nothing much to say.

Soon after the farewell ceremony was over, Dong Shuzhen clamored to go to the street to watch the "Exorcism Show".

The "Exorcism Opera" is similar to the "Beijing New Year's Eve Parade", with strange music, strange dances, and various gorgeous performances, which is very lively.

"I won't go. You young people go and have fun. Pay special attention to your safety. The streets must be crowded with people now. Be careful not to get lost!" Dong Cheng waved his hand.

"The street is too noisy and there are too many people, so I won't go either. Zhen'er Xiuyuan, you go, be sure to bring a few more people with you." Dong Shuyu also shook his head, indicating that he would not go.

So in the end, the only people who wanted to go to the streets to watch the "Exorcism Show" were Zhu Xiuyuan and Dong Shuzhen.

In addition, they also brought Qiu Wen, Xia Wu, Yan Dashan, dozens of Jinwu guards dressed in casual clothes, and dozens of warriors summoned by Yan Dashan to secretly protect Zhu Xiuyuan and his group.

Quickly getting ready, Zhu Xiuyuan took Dong Shuzhen and others with him and rushed out of the house to the streets, heading straight to the Qinhuai River, the most lively and prosperous place in the capital.

The location of Jiangcheng Bofu is actually very close to the Qinhuai River.

You only need to walk half of Xufu Street, walk a few steps on Dongpailou Street, and then pass the Wende Bridge. After crossing the bridge, you will reach Chaoku Street!
Walk a few steps further west and you will reach the entrance of Pipa Lane and Wuyi Lane.

very close!
Zhu Xiuyuan and the others boarded the carriage at the gate of the mansion and walked along Xufu Street and passed through Dongpailou Street. When they were about to pass Wende Bridge, the carriage stopped.

But it turned out that there were too many people in front of them, and the carriage could not pass at all.

So Zhu Xiuyuan and the others decided to come down and walk. They could also enjoy the night view of the Qinhuai River along the way.

"There are too many people on the street now. You have to keep up." Zhu Xiuyuan got off the carriage and stood on the edge of the street, giving instructions to everyone.

"Especially for you, my wife, you must stay close behind your husband and never get lost. Do you understand?"

"Well, I understand. I promise to follow my husband closely and never get lost!" Dong Shuzhen nodded like a chicken pecking at rice.

After Dong Shuzhen finished speaking, she suddenly tightened her grip on Zhu Xiuyuan, slightly hunched her neck, and looked around with her two big eyes, alert.

Zhu Xiuyuan saw this, twitched the corner of his mouth slightly, and finally smiled and touched her head.

"Then there are you two..." Zhu Xiuyuan looked at the two maids Qiu Wen and Xia Wu again, "Xia Wu, you know kung fu, but you have to protect Qiu Wen. Let's do this. You two will hold hands all the time. Get started so you don’t get separated.”

"Uh-huh!"

The two maids nodded repeatedly.

After giving instructions to the three girls, Zhu Xiuyuan turned to face Yan Dashan: "Da Shan, you must be very alert, and your brothers must also be in good command. Let's do this. If there is nothing unusual in this trip, I will reward each of you with 100 taels!"

"Thank you so much, my benefactor. Please rest assured, I know the pros and cons." Yan Dashan handed over his hand.

Only then was Zhu Xiuyuan satisfied. He turned around to face Wende Bridge and waved, "Then let's set off now!"

After speaking, he should walk to the bridge first.

Dong Shuzhen grabbed his hand and naturally followed him step by step.

Behind them were two maids, Qiu Wen and Xia Wu. Among them, Xia Wu held Qiu Wen tightly.

Yan Dashan was at the front to clear the way.

The left and right wings and the back are all people from the Uncle House, surrounded by Zhu Xiuyuan and the others, forming a relatively loose circle...

In this "formation", the group plunged into the crowded Wende Bridge.

【Ask for a recommendation ticket】

(End of this chapter)