carved heart

Chapter 1
It was rumored that Mu Yanghou carried a whip with him, called the Blood Drinking Whip, no matter what his status was, he would whip it first when he got angry.

It's early spring, and the peach orchard in Gongcheng bears new fruits. The small green fruits hang on the branches, green and full, like a round little jasper.There are still peach blossom petals on the ground, pink and white, like the rouge on the cheeks of a cardamom girl.

A pair of cotton shoes stepped on the petals, and the skirt embroidered with begonia flowers in apricot rose gently.

It was a girl who was born like a flower and jade, with two willow-leaf eyebrows curved, and a hint of shyness in her dark pupils.She stopped suddenly, smoothed the folds on the sleeves, and then stroked the hairpin on the black hair, for fear that there would be a little mess.

Jiang Xuan laughed lowly: "Even if Xi Shi is alive, seeing Sister Ah Yin, she can only feel ashamed."

Ah Yin shot her a look, pretended to be angry and thumped her, and said, "You know how to laugh at me!"

Jiang Xuan looked into the distance and only said: "It's my sister's fault. My sister punishes me here to watch out for my sister so that my sister and Xie Lang can reminisce about the old days."

How could Ah Yin not be able to hear it, but at this time the time was running out, she gave her another look, and then she lifted her skirt and hurried into the depths of the peach garden.

"Ayin!"

The eyes of the young man not far away suddenly lit up, and he walked in front of Ah Yin in three steps, looking up and down, left and right, the girl in front of him with handsome eyebrows, with indescribable joy.Ah Yin pursed her lips and said with a smile: "Stupid idiot!"

When Xie Shaohuai was called out like this, he smirked: "Yes."

The first time he saw her five years ago, he seemed to be possessed by her. She was as beautiful as a cloud, but he only wanted to marry her.

"A Yin, my mother has finally let go, and will send a matchmaker to the Yin family to propose marriage tomorrow."

Hearing this, Ah Yin couldn't help being overjoyed, and said, "You really let go?"

Her family is just a small family, and the family has some savings, which was obtained from the Yin family's grandfather in the business, and Xie Lang is the youngest son of the county magistrate of Gongcheng. Although the two hit it off, the marriage was still undecided until Ah Yin grew up to be a [-]-year-old girl.

Xie Shaohuai nodded and said: "After the marriage proposal, I will immediately ask my mother to choose a good day to marry you. We have been looking forward to it for so many years, and finally this day has come."

Ah Yin smiled, and said, "Look at how impatient you are."

He held her hand, unwilling to let go.

"Ayin is the cinnabar mole in Shaohuai's heart, how can Shaohuai not be in a hurry?"

The two talked about their own words again, and when Jiang Xuan couldn't help but came to urge them, the two reluctantly separated.Xie Shaohuai watched A Yin leave, his eyes were dazed, as if he couldn't get enough of it no matter what.After Ah Yin disappeared from his sight, he sighed melancholy.

His mother's words are vivid in his ears.

"...What kind of ecstasy soup did she give you? Then Mrs. Yin doesn't think about her status? Marrying into our family as a concubine is already flattering her, and she still wants to be a real wife? Son, if she really wants to enter our Xie family I really want to marry you, how could she not want to be a concubine? Sigh, don’t kneel down, get up, mother is afraid of you... Let’s see, it’s impossible to be a regular wife, but it’s also possible to marry as a regular wife. No, you are the direct son of our Xie family, so you cannot give the position of wife to Yin. Yin's mother is a sensible person. I have sent someone to point out her mother. Look, her daughter is a big girl now. , if someone marries, they have burned incense in their previous life, not to mention people like us. You heard from my mother that after she got started, the raw rice will be cooked, and she will never regret it."

He muttered to himself: "I hope Ah Yin won't annoy me."

Taoyuan is located in Taoshan.

Taoshan used to be called Gongshan, but after it was bought by the Shangguan family in Suizhou, it changed its name and it was called Taoshan.Ah Yin was used to going out with his grandfather since he was a child, and he was very familiar with this Peach Mountain. He knew many trails and trails, and he avoided the guards of the garden with ease, and went down the mountain with Jiang Xuan.

It was getting dark, but Ah Yin was not walking fast.

Jiang Xuan said: "Sister, if you don't walk faster, I'm afraid Madam will be unhappy."

A Yin seemed to be lost in thought as if he had never heard of it.

Jiang Xuan sensed Ah Yin's inappropriateness, and asked softly, "What's wrong with sister? Did you quarrel with Xie Lang?"

Ah Yin came back to his senses, shook his head slightly, and then smiled wryly: "I'm afraid there will be a quarrel sooner or later. Just now, Xie Lang's words were quite evasive. If my guess is correct, my marriage with him must not be that simple."

Jiang Xuan let out an "ah" and asked, "What do you mean by sister's words?"

Ah Yin said: "Xie Lang is a simple person, the few times he disagreed with me is related to his mother, this time his mother must have said something to him. It is impossible for Xie Lang's mother to let go of this marriage so early."

It took Jiang Xuan a while to understand, and said in amazement: "Sister, what do you mean Xie Lang's mother has agreed to this marriage?"

Ah Yin shook his head: "There must be deceit in it, but I have some doubts. Judging from Xie Lang's tone, it seems that my parents have agreed, but my mother has never wanted me to be a child. She will never agree."

When Ah Yin returned home, it was already dark.

The population of the Yin family is not small. After Grandfather Yin passed away, the two houses were separated. Under the care of mother Qin, it is considered to be in good order.

The old man who guards the gate is called Qin Weng, and he is a distant relative of the Qin family.

Qin Weng opened the door for Ah Yin, and Ah Yin said sweetly: "Thank you, Uncle Qin." Qin Weng smiled so that his eyes narrowed into slits.Jiang Xuan asked Ah Yin: "Sister, do you want to go to Madam's room first?"

Ah Yin said: "Well, I'll go tell my mother that I'm back, and my sister doesn't need to follow me." After a while, she took out a small thing from her sleeve pocket, about an inch in size, and it was carved in the shape of a monkey's head. She said: "Send it to Brother Hao's room, and say that I got it by accident today, and then you carefully observe what is different in Brother Hao's room."

Jiang Xuan received it in the palm, and saw the monkey head core carving clearly by the moonlight.

She said with emotion: "My sister's skills are becoming more and more exquisite, and the outside is not as good as half of my sister's finger."

Ah Yin said with a smile: "If you study hard and practice hard, you can do the same."

After finishing speaking, Ah Yin waved his hands, turned around and walked into Qin's room.As soon as she entered the door, Qin yelled: "You damn girl, where did you go?"

"Mother, I told you that I dreamed about my grandfather last night, and I just went to offer incense to my grandfather this morning."

How could the Qin family not know her daughter's temperament, saying that she was offering incense to her grandfather, how could she not return home until night after offering incense?But Qin didn't point it out, she calmed down after shouting a few words, waved to Ah Yin, and said: "Come here, mother bought you something good."

Qin opened a wooden box, which contained a pair of gold hairpins.

"Mother went out today to melt the gold bracelet given by your grandmother, and found a craftsman to make a pair of gold hairpins, which can be worn when you get married. Ah Yin, only a mother can treat you so well in this world. When you get married in the future, don't forget about your mother."

Ah Yin asked calmly: "Mother, but is there any movement from the Xie family?"

Qin said with a smile on her face, "Tomorrow is a good day to propose marriage."

"Mother, Madam Xie really let go?"

Qin Shi frowned, and said: "Our Ah Yin is very kind, and if you want to marry you back, you must use the gift of a regular wife." Qin Shi closed the wooden box and said earnestly: "I see that the young man of the Xie family is willing to wait for you. You have been sincere for a few years, Ah Yin, if a man really has you in his heart, it doesn't matter whether he is a wife or a concubine, they are all the same, but the names are different."

Speaking of this quarrel, Qin couldn't help but look out of the window.

Not far away, Second Aunt Lu's high-pitched voice said something, which made Yin Xiuwen laugh out loud.Qin's face was gloomy, and he said: "Lu is a broom star. Since she entered the house, not only did she overwhelm your grandfather, but also made your father not want to make progress. If you marry someone, you must never flirt with your husband-in-law in the future." , must be virtuous and virtuous, and manage the family business."

When mentioning Mrs. Lu, Mrs. Qin was full of complaints and talked for half an hour before letting Ah Yin go back.

Ah Yin went back to the room.

Because of his father's romantic nature, besides the second aunt, he also took in a third aunt not long ago. The second aunt had a son and a daughter, and now she is favored by all kinds of people. She is crowded with the big house in the innermost courtyard. It is the second room.There are three rooms in the east, arranged in descending order, and Ah Yin's room is at the end.

Ah Yin pushed open the door, and Jiang Xuan had already returned.

Jiang Xuan is the orphan of Ah Yin's grandfather's deceased son, and grew up with Ah Yin since childhood. After his grandfather left, the Qin family didn't really want to raise someone idle. It was thanks to Ah Yin's lobbying that the Qin family reluctantly agreed to let Jiang Xuan stay. .

The relationship between the two is very good, they eat and live together, and are closer than sisters.

"But what did you find in Brother Hao's room?"

Brother Hao is Ah Yin's second younger brother, ten years old this year.Ah Yin also has a brother who is two years younger than Ah Yin. He liked to do business since he was a child. He left home four or five years ago to go out for a living, and only returned home during the Chinese New Year.

Jiang Xuan said in a low voice: "When I entered the room, Brother Hao was studying. The book was new, and the words Shouquan School were written on the cover."

As soon as these words came out, Ah Yin was stunned.

The spring cold swept across, and there seemed to be a thin crack in her heart, which made her shiver all over.Jiang Xuan asked: "Sister, why is her face so pale?" Ah Yin came back to her senses after a while, and murmured: "Shouquan Academy, how can we get in?"

She collected herself and said again: "It's getting late, sister go to bed first."

Jiang Xuan knew that Ah Yin was a man with ideas in his heart, so he made a pot of tea for Ah Yin without asking any further questions, and got into the bed first.Ah Yin took a sip of tea, the hot tea slipped down his throat and fell into the bottom of his heart, but his chest was still cold.

She has always known that her mother loves her two younger brothers the most. She is just a girl and cannot compete for her mother's favor in front of her father. Her marriage was sold.

Shouquan School is the most famous school in Gongcheng, and it is also known for its high threshold.

The masters of the school are all from Yongping, the capital city. The magistrate of Xie County of Gongcheng founded this school. Those who enter the school need to be recommended by prestigious people, and the annual tuition fee is 20 taels of silver. 20 taels of silver is enough for half a year's expenses for a small family. Their family is just a small family, and they can maintain their current life with the savings left by their grandfather when he was a businessman.

She lowered her eyebrows and narrowed her eyes.

After a long time, she took out a mahogany box from the cage.She sat down at the dresser and opened the box.

There are six small knives neatly placed in the box--hair file, flat file, flat cone knife, cone knife, pointed cone knife, and oblique knife.

This is the most precious thing left to her by her grandfather, an essential tool for nuclear carving.

She whispered: "Mother, you don't love me, I can only love myself..."

Before the rooster crowed, the Qin family got up.

The maid, Dongyun, fetched water for Mrs. Qin and helped her to dress up.The entire Yin family has only one maid, one handyman, and one janitor, Uncle Qin.Qin treats his servants well, and understands Dongyun's hard work in serving his family, and often rewards Dongyun with small extras.

Dong Yun is very grateful for this, serving the Qin family even more attentively than the Lu family.

"Take out the pair of Biyun hairpins. The Xie family is here to propose marriage today. We must not lose face to our Yin family."

Dong Yun gestured for a while with the Biyun hairpins, put them in the bun, and said: "Biyun suits Madam's grace the most. Madam wears this pair of Biyun hairpins, and she has an indescribable grace." Feeling refreshed, hearing Dong Yun's words, he couldn't help but smile from ear to ear.

"This little mouth can really talk." Fingers picked in the makeup box, and took out a pair of half-worn pearl earrings, "Our Yin family has a happy event today, and I will reward you."

Dong Yun quickly thanked him.

Qin's heart was genuinely happy.

Her daughter is [-] years old, and if the person she likes is Xie Jiaxiaolang, she will force her daughter to marry before she is [-] anyway. She can hear the gossip and gossip of the neighbors in the past few years.

But it's different now, the Xie family is finally coming to propose marriage!

Although being a concubine felt a little wronged to his daughter, Xie Jiaxiaolang was sincere and obeyed his daughter. Even if he married a regular wife in the future, his heart was still on his daughter's side.Originally, she did not want her daughter to be a concubine, but Brother Hao was supposed to go to a private school at the age of eight, but the master insisted that Brother Hao should go to the best private school, and asked people to visit everywhere, but he was not allowed to enter Shouquan School access.Now that the Xie family has opened their mouths, they can not only marry off their daughter, but also let Brother Hao go to Shouquan School, and even cover all the tuition fees for the next few years.

And the other side is willing to marry as a regular wife. If you think about it carefully, it is considered to be enough face.

As soon as the time passed, Xie's family sent Li Po, the most famous local matchmaker, to the Yin's family to propose marriage.

Mrs. Xie was hindered by Xie Shaohuai's entreaties, and spent a lot of effort on the dowry gift, twelve loads of baskets flowed towards the Yin family like running water.Granny Li yelled at the door, attracting the attention of the neighbors, who recognized the manager of Xie's family behind Granny Li.

Yin Xiuwen and the Qin family had been waiting for a long time, and it could be said that they opened the door happily and welcomed a group of people in.

The two families have already reached a consensus secretly, and now inviting a matchmaker to come over is just a formality.

Yin Xiuwen has always been looking forward to his son being able to attend Shouquan School, and now his dream is about to come true. When talking to Granny Li and Mr. Xie, even his mustache revealed a burst of joy.The matchmaker mentioned two wedding dates, one in May and one in August, both of which are rare and good times.

Yin Xiuwen said without any hesitation, "Happy May."

The anxiety in his tone made Mr. Xie look slightly sideways, and withdrew his contemptuous gaze. He said lightly: "Our wife also prefers the eighth day of May. The date has been set. It's not early now, I..."

Suddenly, there was the sound of hurried footsteps.

A cyan figure appeared in the hall in a panic. Jiang Xuan's eyes were red from crying, and her face was frighteningly pale: "Old...master...husband...madam...it's not good! It's not good! Sister Ah Yin doesn't know what I'm sick, and I don't know what's wrong with my face... Master and Madam, go and have a look!"

Qin's complexion suddenly changed.

Yin Xiuwen looked at Mr. Xie almost instantly.Manager Xie didn't leave either, stood up and said gently: "Our Xie Manor has a good relationship with Dr. Zhou Zhang, Mrs. Li, go with Mrs. Yin to see, if Miss Yin has anything to do, I can invite Dr. Zhou to come over right away, so as not to Missed the illness."

Qin frowned lightly.

The manager of the Xie family was very tactful, the implication was to see how her daughter was sick, if she was seriously ill, the marriage might be put on hold for now.The Qin family was about to reject Li Po, but Yin Xiuwen gave Mr. Xie a grateful look, and said, "Thank you very much, Mrs. Li, this way please."

After the words had been spoken, Qin had no choice but to follow her husband's wishes and take Li Po to Ah Yin's boudoir.

As soon as she entered the boudoir, Qin Shi was dumbfounded.

She was still a beautiful daughter last night, but in just one night, her face, neck, and hands were densely covered with red spots the size of rice grains, and there was a thumb-sized red mark on her right cheek, which was bleeding.

Li Po suddenly understood, looked at Ah Yin's right cheek, and couldn't help but sighed regretfully.

Chickenpox can't be scratched casually, once it is scratched, it will leave marks. The girl of the Yin family didn't scratch it, she just scratched it in such an obvious place, and a good face was ruined like this. It's a pity that this delicate facial features face.

Qin's eyes were red, and she was about to step forward when Ah Yin covered her face and said in a sharp voice, "Don't come here."

Qin was afraid that she would scratch her face again, so she hurriedly said: "Okay, mother, don't let me go, don't scratch your face, it's just chicken pox, and it will disappear in a month and a half." Ah Yin said: "Mother, didn't my grandfather leave it for me? A room? Let me go there to recuperate, Brother Hao has not had chickenpox yet, lest I infect my younger brother."

Qin Shi was a bit hesitant at first, but when she heard Brother Hao, she said, "Alright, mother, please ask the doctor to go over there and let Jiang Xuan go with you."

When Grandfather Yin left, the two families separated, and Grandfather Yin specially left a dowry for Ah Yin.The second room was not happy at first, so why should the eldest granddaughter get a room?But after taking a look at the room, no one said anything.

The house was built at the foot of Cangshan Mountain.

Cangshan Mountain is the most desolate, less than two miles away from the house is dug full of barren graves, people passing by feel the wind blowing, not to mention living there, even if it is free, they don't want it.

(End of this chapter)