Linxia

Chapter 141, Storytelling

That night, because of the affairs of Mr. Ou's family, guests from my eldest uncle's family and second uncle's family came, and I didn't have time to prepare a good meal. I just made some meat and vegetable soup and ate it hastily with sesame seed cakes.

In the eyes of Fang Lin's family, it is just a simple meal. But in the eyes of his uncle, second uncle, cousin, sister and younger cousin, it is a delicacy that can only be eaten during festivals, and they enjoy it very much.

After meal.

Fang Lin said, "Our house is small and there is no room for us to sleep, so we booked an inn. Uncle, Uncle Two, Chuanhui, Hezi, Sister Cao'er, Xiaoxiao, you are all tired today, from the journey and the things that happened at night. I won't say much. I will take you to the inn to rest. After you have rested, you can have fun in the next few days."

"Linzi, the store is important and the business can't be delayed. Cao'er and Xiaoxiao can go and play, and Chuanhui and Hezi can forget about it." Uncle Fang Boxian said.

Second uncle Fang Zhonggui also said: "Yes, Linzi, I know what you mean, but there is no need to be polite. They are here to do the work."

"The branch is still under renovation, so there's no rush. While you two are here, let's go for a walk. There's a Liu Mazi storytelling show tomorrow. Let's go and listen. It's a unique show in the city."

Tomorrow Liu Mazi will tell the story of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" for the first time, and he has specially invited Fang Lin for this purpose. It is also a coincidence that he came to my eldest uncle's house and my second uncle's house.

As for the adapted drama of Qinghuan Xiaoju, I heard that it is a fireworks play. The combination of fireworks and drama sounds interesting, but the progress is slow and it will take some time.

……

The next day, Fang's mother got up early in the morning and said to Fang Lin, "Mrs. Ou went through that last night, so why don't you go listen to a book to change your mood?" Fang Lin naturally agreed.

Fang's mother was kindhearted. She went to see Mrs. Ou without having breakfast. They were all fine at first, and Mrs. Ou said, "Okay, I'll go after I finish my hair after dinner." But after dinner, when she went to see Mrs. Ou, she refused to go, saying, "I can't go. It's embarrassing to be seen like this. People will look at me with disgust and laugh at me for nothing."

"Then let's not go." Mr. Ou had no choice but to agree, and in the end the old couple did not go.

The whole family went out, and many people greeted Fang Lin on the road.

Fang Chuanhui, Fang He, Fang Caoer, and Fang Xiaoxiao were already shocked yesterday. Today, it was the turn of eldest uncle Fang Boxian and second uncle Fang Zhonggui to be shocked.

Fang Lin explained the reason, it was because of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms".

My uncle Fang Boxian praised me: "Linzi is very capable. He has even written a book."

Second uncle Fang Zhonggui was more thoughtful and more shocked. Seeing that Fang Lin had such a reputation in the provincial capital, he knew that Fang Lin might have said less in the letter and that the villagers still underestimated him.

Although he didn't know the significance of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", he could tell from other people's reactions that it was extraordinary. Especially when he heard from Fang's mother that the prefect had written the preface, he looked at Fang Lin deeply and exclaimed, "Our Fang family has produced a unicorn!"

Yishun Teahouse.

Along the way, Fang's father, mother, and Fang Lin all praised Liu Mazi for his good storytelling. But when they actually arrived at the place, Fang Chuanhui, Fang He, Fang Cao'er, and Fang Xiaoxiao actually saw Liu Mazi, they were a little disappointed. Because Liu Mazi looked really ugly, with a black face, a scar, and an ugly face. He looked lazy and absent-minded. If no one said anything, he would never be associated with a storyteller. It would be more appropriate to say that he was a street thug.

However, my eldest uncle and second uncle have different opinions.

"This person is really capable." said the second uncle Fang Zhonggui.

"Yes!" Uncle Fang Boxian also nodded.

You can tell from the attitudes of the people around you. Liu Mazi is sitting with his legs crossed, and a servant is standing beside him, bowing his head and serving him tea from a plain porcelain cup. The servant wipes the table again and again with a white towel, fearing that there is something wrong with the hospitality.

How could others respect him so much if he had no real ability but such appearance? Or, if others still respect him so much because of such appearance, it means he must have real ability, great ability!
Seeing Fang Lin and his group, Liu Mazi immediately stood up, walked over quickly, said a few words to Fang Lin, and said that he would treat them to a special seat and put the money on his account.

Fang Lin declined, saying that with so many of them, it would be more comfortable for three or four people to sit at a private table. In the end, Liu Mazi still invited them to sit at a private table.

This made the eldest uncle, the second uncle, as well as Fang Chuanhui, Fang He, Fang Caoer, and Fang Xiaoxiao feel shocked once again. It seemed that wherever they went in the capital, there were people who knew Fang Lin, and they were all so respectful to him, which left a very deep impression on them.

It can only be said that it was certainly not Fang Lin's intention to show off today, but the fact that he pretended despite having no intention of doing so and that others urged him to do so did indeed allow him to steal the limelight.

Fang He watched, and in his heart he shouted: "It's coming! It's coming! It's the same feeling as yesterday again!"

"Linzi wrote a book and it became like this. Everyone who sees him when he goes out is very enthusiastic. It's a bit annoying after seeing it too much!"

Fang's mother has gotten used to it lately. She says it's annoying, but her face is as smiling as a flower: "His father works at the dock, and he has benefited from it a lot... Once, Linzi went to buy vegetables with me, and the vegetable vendor recognized him and insisted on giving him money. Later, I found out that when I went to buy vegetables alone, the people I knew would also give me two more..."

What she didn't say was that she had to drag Fang Lin along to go shopping that time, and that's why she got this treatment. Of course, she wasn't just looking for that little advantage, but was actually out of the mentality of wearing fine clothes at night. How could I wear fine clothes at night and not be seen by others? I have a good son, how could I hide him at home and not let others know?

It is also for this reason that in the past half month, whenever Fang Lin came back, Fang's mother always liked to take him out for a walk, whether she had something to do or not.

As they were talking, the storytelling began. They all saw that when the storytelling began, Liu Mazi seemed to have changed into a different person in an instant. There was a little light in his hazy eyes, and he calmed down instantly. He spoke calmly, "As the world's general trend says, a long period of division will eventually lead to unification, and a long period of unification will eventually lead to division. At the end of the week, the seven kingdoms were in conflict and were incorporated into Qin..."

Today we are talking about the first chapter of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" "The Three Heroes Become Brothers at the Banquet in Peach Garden, and the Heroes Make Their First Merit in the Battle of the Yellow Turbans". The specific content has been slightly changed. Although there are some inconsistencies, it is more suitable for storytelling. In the beginning, the ups and downs of the voice instantly make the readers feel as if they are feeling the turbulent history coming at them; when it comes to Zhang Fei's appearance, the rough shout makes the wine jars next to him buzz; when it comes to the Peach Garden Oath of Brotherhood, the ventriloquism imitates the sound of peach blossoms and flowing water, which makes people seem to see the picture before their eyes...

I have to say that "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is a good book, and Liu Mazi was in good shape today and performed exceptionally well.

The audience quickly got into the story, and the whole place was silent except for the storytelling.

Fang Lin's family was fine. After listening to Liu Mazi's storytelling, they had no other thoughts.

Fang Chuanhui, Fang He, Fang Cao'er, and Fang Xiaoxiao, how could they have seen such a powerful storyteller? Each of them seemed to have been hit by a dimensionality reduction attack, extremely shocked, and intoxicated.

"No wonder they make so much money, amazing!" thought Uncle Fang Boxian.

"There are 360 ​​professions, and every profession has its top scholar. This man has made storytelling the best!" Second uncle Fang Zhonggui also thought.

After you finish a paragraph, pause.

"Good! Good! Good!"

There was a burst of applause from the audience, accompanied by discussions.

"If you want to tell a story, you still have to look at Liu Mazi!"

"Yeah, I've also heard other people tell the story of The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, but I feel like it's somehow inferior to Liu Mazi's."

"The Romance of the Three Kingdoms is a good book, and Liu Mazi's story is also good. It's really enjoyable to listen to these two good things together. The money I spent today was not wasted."

……

Here, all the members of the Fang family were also infected by this atmosphere and started to cheer. Especially when they heard Fang Lin's Romance of the Three Kingdoms mentioned in the discussion, they felt a strange sense, as if they were honored.

At noon, the big bowl of noodles with meat sauce that Fang Lin had ordered in advance was delivered. Coincidentally, the shop owner was also a fan of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, so the noodles were topped with extra meat sauce. Well, this time, my uncle, my second uncle, my cousins, and my older cousins ​​were not shocked. After all, they were so shocked that they were numb.

Eat well.

It was mid-afternoon when the whole family left.

……

After leaving the teahouse, Fang's mother and Tian Xuan went to the market to buy vegetables. Fang's father, eldest uncle Fang Boxian, and second uncle Fang Zhonggui went there together. Fang Lin took Fang Chuanhui, Fang He, Fang Caoer, and Fang Xiaoxiao, and they all went shopping on their own.

The Fang family had been in the city for almost a year, and many things that were commonplace seemed very new to his cousins, who stared at them intently. This experience of taking them shopping was quite interesting. He did not favor one over the other, and just like the last time he took Fang Chuanhui and Fang Yuyu, he also bought many small things this time, such as chestnuts, sugar figurines, and candied haws.

Fang Chuanhui had been here once and felt such enthusiasm once, so it was okay; Fang He, Fang Caoer and Fang Xiaoxiao were very embarrassed, especially Fang Caoer. She felt extremely embarrassed when she thought about how she was the older sister and was being taken care of by her cousin.

Wait for them to come back in the evening.

At the door of the Ou family, Mr. Ou was holding Mrs. Ou's hand and talking about something. When he saw them, he greeted them and thanked them for what happened yesterday.

"It looks like he has walked out," Fang Lin thought to himself.

When they got home, Fang's mother took out a cleaned chicken and said she would send it to Mr. Ou's house to nourish Mrs. Ou's body.

——There are ready-made roast chickens for sale on the street, but she always prefers to make it herself, saying it is more economical.

Fang Lin went to deliver it, but Master Ou insisted on giving him money, otherwise he would not accept it.

After a while, he came out to fetch water and saw Master Ou cooking. He was covered in dust and his beard was covered in ash.

Because of what happened yesterday, Mrs. Ou was weak and was giving instructions at the side, calling him stupid from time to time. Mr. Ou just smiled and didn't refute.

As if feeling a little embarrassed to be seen by Fang Lin, Master Ou said as if to defend himself or to explain: "She served me for the first half of my life, so it's my turn to serve her. It's my due, my due!"

Fang Lin listened, smiled, and went back.

……

Tonight, the Fang family had a sumptuous dinner, with a big pot of braised chicken, a big pot of old duck soup, a bowl of sweet and sour fish, stir-fried pork with radish, roasted beef, fried tofu, fried eggs with green onions, stir-fried green peppers with fermented black beans, bean sprouts, etc., not to mention the vegetarian dishes.

My uncles Fang Boxian and Fang Chuanhui had come here last time and were fine. They knew that the food at Fang Lin's house was excellent, so they were not too surprised.

Fang He, Fang Cao'er and Fang Xiaoxiao opened their eyes wide, and then they realized what he meant by "eat something simple" yesterday. Today's meal was not simple at all, and it was much more sumptuous than the Chinese New Year's celebration in his family.

Second uncle Fang Zhonggui kept saying, "So many dishes, how polite!"

"There are so many of us here, and we all have big appetites. We can finish it! We can finish it!" said Fang's mother.

'Is this a matter of whether you can finish it or not?'

Second uncle Fang Zhonggui looked at the expression on Fang's mother's face and saw that there was indeed no reluctance at all. He knew that she was speaking from the heart. Only then did he realize that not only Fang Lin had become successful, but his younger brother's wife had also changed.

In the past, the fourth branch of the Fang family was also scheming against each other. Because Fang's father was very concerned about his reputation, the third branch would sometimes suffer a little loss, and Fang's mother would always be worried.

In fact, this is because of the different environment. In the past, when they were poor in Xiaohe Village, they had to fight for a little bit of food, let alone such a good meal, so they naturally felt pain. Now that the Fang family is better off, eating like this every day is nothing. Fang's mother is not stingy at all when she has money.

There are so many people, no one is idle, some are serving meals, some are serving dishes, and they are busy running around.

Needless to say, Fang Chuanhui was well taught by his aunt; as for Fang He, he suffered a lot in his studies and grew up and matured a lot in the small society of the school; Fang Cao'er and Fang Xiaoxiao were not valued at home and were used to doing all kinds of work.

When the dishes were served, Fang Chuanhui, Fang He, Fang Cao'er and Fang Xiaoxiao all felt that the aroma of the dishes went straight into their noses and they felt like drooling - it was not that they were useless, but there were simply so many delicious dishes that could only be seen during the Chinese New Year, and now it was already eight or nine months away from the Chinese New Year.

Especially for the second branch, the taxes this year are heavy, and Fang He has to go to school. Even though the school he goes to is relatively cheap, it does not teach the Four Books and Five Classics, but only teaches literacy and arithmetic. It is extremely difficult for a peasant family. The second branch has not seen meat in their house for a long time.

Second uncle Fang Zhonggui whispered to Fang He, Fang Cao'er, and Fang Xiaoxiao: "I know you want to eat, but you can't act like you're hungry. This is not your own home, so you should be more reserved when eating. Don't pick up the good dishes. You can only eat the good dishes when your third uncle and third aunt call you. Especially the meat dishes, don't use chopsticks to scoop them up..."

Fang Cao'er and Fang Xiaoxiao had already gotten used to it; Fang He felt a little aggrieved, as his idea of ​​having a good meal after looking forward to it for many days was dashed, and all that was left was civility.

At this time, Fang's mother poured the remaining chicken soup from the dish to Xiao Maoguaiguai. This scene shocked the uncle, the second uncle, as well as the cousins, especially Fang Xiaoxiao, who felt it was such a waste. She stared with wide eyes and almost couldn't help rushing up to snatch the food from Xiao Maoguaiguai.

The little cat seemed to sense the malicious intent, and it meowed, turned around, facing its butt towards this side, and blocked its small bowl behind it.

Serve the food and sit down.

Mr. and Mrs. Fang both invited people to start eating. The eldest uncles Fang Boxian and Fang Chuanhui were more normal, occasionally picking up some meat or vegetables. But the second uncle's family didn't pick up any and just ate radishes and tofu.

At this time, Fang Cao'er and Fang Xiaoxiao were eating and unexpectedly discovered that the radish was also very delicious - isn't it? They usually eat "red pot dishes" without oil at home, and suddenly they eat stir-fried dishes with oil, and the taste is naturally different.

They all had this thought in their minds: "Don't eat meat, these radishes, tofu and the like are quite delicious!"

Fang He went to school. It was not easy to study outside, and the food was not very good, but he felt satisfied.

So, I kept asking them to eat meat, but they agreed verbally and said they would serve themselves, but they just didn't eat it seriously. They finished half a bowl of rice and didn't take a single bite of meat.

Fang's father, Fang's mother, Fang Lin, and Tian Xuan couldn't bear to see this, so they picked up the dishes and put them into their bowls. There was soup and quite a bit of meat.

This made them try to refuse, but they couldn't refuse and kept thanking him.

Fang Xiaoxiao lowered her head, took a bite of the chicken, chewed it slowly, and savored it. She was reluctant to swallow it, and greedily wanted to keep the taste in her mouth for a while. At this time, she had only one thought in her mind: "The chicken is really delicious, even better than carrots."

How delicious was it? Tears came to my eyes. I wasn’t moved, nor was it because I thought of the hardship of Xiaohe Village. Tears just flowed naturally.

"Why are you still crying, Xiaoxiao? Your parents are not good to you. Don't want them anymore and leave them to be your daughter." Fang's mother touched her head and joked.

Poof! Fang Xiaoxiao laughed so hard that she spit out a bubble of snot.

Everyone at the table laughed when they saw it.

Fang Chuanhui looked at this scene and thought of his sister. The comparison between Fucheng and Xiaohe Village made him more determined. He wanted to settle down in Fucheng and bring his family over.

After eating a bowl, the second uncle Fang Zhonggui felt about 50% full, so he stopped: "We are full, you guys eat slowly." As he said this, he touched his three children under the table with his foot, asking them not to eat anymore.

Fang He, Fang Caoer and Fang Xiaoxiao all said they were full.

"You're not full, you're not full. We're family, and I know how much you eat." Fang's mother said, grabbing the bowl to serve herself some rice.

Fang Lin also said: "Yes, we are all brothers and sisters, why should we be polite?"

This time when the rice was served, Fang's mother simply picked out a lot of meat, handed it to them, and continued eating.

While eating and talking, they talked about what had happened in Xiaohe Village over the past six months, how the Fang family was doing, the conflicts between the Song and Bai families, and the people from the Chen family next door.

After they started talking and drank some wine, the adults gradually relaxed. Cousins ​​like Fang Chuanhui, Fang He, Fang Caoer and Fang Xiaoxiao also began to feel less restrained.

After eating for more than half an hour, the dinner finally ended in a lively atmosphere.

……

(End of this chapter)