happy event

Chapter 14
The middleman was overjoyed, and went back directly to find Dong Rong and said congratulations, and finally explained the situation, and the four of them went to the outside of the city together to see the boundaries.

The yard that the old man wants to rent out is two miles away from the west city gate. There is a small garden outside the front and back, which seems to mean that the sparrow is small and has all internal organs.According to the old man, the owner of this small courtyard is a merchant who traveled far away. I don't know if he made a fortune or had an accident, but he hasn't returned for many years.The old man was ordered to stay in the house at the beginning, and he hadn’t received the monthly silver from the owner’s house for several years. Before that, he didn’t dare to make the rent without permission, but these few months coincided with the time when the only son in the family fell ill, and he was in urgent need of silver. Some money to tide over the difficulties.

Dong Rong walked around the yard and was very satisfied with the lotus pond in the backyard and the abandoned pond outside the courtyard wall.In the future, if the ice is made in the pool, it will be done just by digging a shallow ditch to discharge the waste water to the pond outside.Moreover, this yard was originally lived by merchants, even if outsiders saw ice being transported out of this yard, they would probably only think that the owner of the yard started a business of selling ice, instead of guessing that the ice was freshly made that day.

The old man offered two taels of silver a month, and Dong Rong felt that it was not expensive, so she didn't counter-offer, and paid two months' rent directly.The middleman hurriedly wrote the deed, and the three parties pressed their fingerprints so that they could be used as evidence in case of future disputes.The old man was worried about his son, so he took the money and left with his luggage, leaving Dong Rong to clean up the yard and settle the sundries he had bought before, and then hurried to the village with Shazhu.

At this time, the sun had already set on the west hill.Sister-in-law Liu was standing under the big tree at the head of the village, watching anxiously. At her feet was a bundle of neatly bundled requiem grass, green and verdant, exuding a faint fragrance.Seeing Dong Rong and Sha Zhu approaching from afar, she breathed a long sigh of relief and said with a smile, "You guys are back, I thought...haha, it's okay, just come back, just come back."

Dong Rong guessed that she must be afraid that she would get into trouble by escaping, but she didn't point it out stupidly. She just thanked her with a smile, and then took out twenty Wen coins and stuffed them in.

Sister-in-law Liu squeezed the copper coin in her hand until she narrowed her eyes in a smile, and said politely, "It doesn't need to be so much, fifteen coins is enough."

Dong Rong also counted on her to help cover it up, so naturally she would not be stingy with the few pennies, so she threw the requiem grass to silly Zhuer to carry, stepped forward to affectionately took Sister-in-law Liu's arms and went home together.

Sister-in-law Liu was also very obedient, and in front of Mrs. Cao, she praised Dong Rong for being diligent, and she would definitely be prosperous in the future.Although Mrs. Cao pursed her lips and refused to believe it, she rarely smiled when she saw the bundle of requiem grass on Sha Zhu's shoulder.

After running around for a day, Dong Rong and Sha Zhu'er were both very tired. After dinner, they hurriedly washed the dishes and then climbed onto the kang and fell asleep.Early the next morning, the two went out with Sister-in-law Liu as usual, and then went straight to the city.

Dong Rong's custom-made copper box was very simple, and the blacksmith rushed to make it in one night. When Dong Rong came to the door, he ordered the little apprentice to push the cart to deliver the goods directly to the small courtyard outside the city.

Dong Rong took a silly column to fill water and sprinkle saltpeter powder, and after a long time, she made half a box of ice cubes.Dong Rong instructed Sha Zhu to smash a corner of ice with a wooden hammer, then smashed it into fine pieces and put it in a ceramic bowl. Finally, poured a spoonful of honey and dozens of cooked sesame seeds, and a simple bowl of shaved ice was ready.The shattered ice is transparent and crystal clear, topped with golden honey and black sesame seeds, just looking at it makes people salivate.

Silly Zhu had been busy all morning and he was so hot that he saw Dong Rong bring the ice bowl to him, so he took a large spoonful and swallowed it into his stomach without thinking.Cold, sweet, and fragrant, the three flavors are mixed together, slowly sliding down the throat, no matter how much heat is accumulated in the heart, it will disappear without a trace in an instant.Sha Zhu couldn't help but narrowed his eyes with a smile, and kept eating mouthful after mouthful.

Dong Rong's current physique is not as healthy as in her previous life, and she dare not eat more cold food even if it is hot, so she just took a few bites and poured the remaining crushed ice in her bowl to Shazhu.Seeing how sweet he was eating, he smiled and said, "Now I don't have all the ingredients, so I can only make this simplest ice bowl. When the cherries and peaches are ripe, I'll make fruit shaved ice for you to eat. It tastes better."

Sha Zhu nodded with a simple smile, and replied, "This is the most delicious."

Dong Rong had no intention of arguing with him, and looked up at the high-hanging sun, hoping that it would come out to be on duty diligently every day.It would be best if the two-day Tomb-sweeping Day would also be sunny, so that she could go to the temple fair on the eighth day of April, the Buddha's birthday.

Mountaineering is hard work. If you see shaved ice that quenches your thirst, no one will buy a bowl with a few pennies.

Perhaps God also felt that it was too much to throw a little girl from modern times into this different time and space where birds did not lay eggs, and was eager to make up for it.So in the past few days, it has urged the sun to come out to be on duty every day. Even during the Ching Ming Festival, it did not shed a drop of rain, and the earth in the spring and April was steamed and roasted three points hotter than the scorching heat in August.

Dong Rong has been basking in the sun for the past few days and she is also beaming with joy, causing Granny Cao to often goug her out, and even reprimand her for being disrespectful to her ancestors on the day of offering sacrifices to her ancestors during the Qingming Festival.Dong Rong thought that the business was about to start, and she didn't want to disturb her, so she didn't reply, just bowed her head and said a few words.

I don't want her appearance to fall into the eyes of old man Cao, but she becomes sensible and general, and secretly scolds Mrs. Cao for treating her daughter-in-law better.Granny Cao was so angry that she almost hurt internally, but since then, she has never found fault with her daughter-in-law.

Finally, the eighth day of April finally arrived.This morning, after Dong Rong prepared breakfast, she put on the new dress that Aunt Cao sent her. Her hair was also tied in a simple and tight bun with a blue cloth ribbon, and her whole body was neatly arranged. , just waited for breakfast and hit the road.

Most of the peasant women stay at home to take care of the children and the elderly. Occasionally, they do some needlework to supplement the family when they are free. This is the only day in a year when they have the opportunity to go to the temple fair and kowtow to the Buddha to keep the family safe and sound. .Therefore, unless there is some important event at home, most old people will not stop their daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law from going out, otherwise it will inevitably leave a mean reputation when it is spread.

According to Granny Cao's thoughts, she really wanted to leave her daughter-in-law to do housework, so she took her daughter for a stroll.It's a pity that Sister Cao made an appointment with her daughter-in-law who was usually close to her, and Sister Cao was sick again, so she had to pretend to be generous and let Dong Rong go out.

Dong Rong is not that stupid and uninformed person. During breakfast, she mentioned in front of the whole family that she would pray for a safe talisman for Second Sister Cao and wish her a speedy recovery.This was exactly what old man Cao wanted, and Mrs. Cao's complexion improved a lot, and she told the silly Zhu to protect Dong Rong, and it would be even better if she could get ahead and offer incense to the Buddha.

April is a good time for the grass to grow and the warbler to fly.The wheat in the field has been cut clean long ago, leaving clumps of wheat stubble with a withered yellow color, which makes the corn seedlings stretched out between the wheat ridges look more green.

In her previous life, Dong Rong had never returned to her hometown since she went to the city to study. This pastoral scenery has long been buried deep in her memory, and now she really feels like lingering in such a beautiful scenery.For a while, she picked up a small stone and threw it into the field to startle many birds, and for a while, she picked up an early-blooming wild flower by the roadside and held it in her mouth.

Silly Zhu followed behind slowly, looking at the jumping and jumping woman in front, his eyes became more and more suspicious.

Although Dong's family can be regarded as half a scholarly family, but his little daughter-in-law was treated poorly by her stepmother, working hard all day in the mountains and fields, growing up with difficulty.This spring scenery is not to say boring, at least it will not be joyful and surprised, like a lady who is locked in a deep house all day long?

(End of this chapter)