Shanghai Embroidery Lady

Chapter 111
Xinghuatian Hutong is covered with fallen leaves, and the autumn wind blows in gusts, blowing the yellow leaves down, and even the dead leaves on the ground are also rolled up, flying like butterflies.An old man in a felt hat took a big broom and slowly swept the fallen leaves, leaving lines of brooms on the ground.The sky is high and blue.

A little boy ran out from the yard, picked up a greenish-yellow leaf from the pile of fallen leaves that the old man had just swept, raised it over his head, and squinted his eyes slightly to look at the sun.The little boy held up the leaf for a while and looked at it, then pouted his mouth in frustration, walked to the old man and muttered: "Grandpa, the chrysanthemum you raised can bloom in the sun, why is the leaf still yellow in the sun? "

The old man touched the little boy's head with a smile, and said, "Because chrysanthemums bloom only in autumn, and leaves fall only in autumn."

The little boy was overjoyed suddenly and said: "Will Sister Yezi fall in autumn? Then she will come to see me?"

Amused by the little boy's words, the old man took off his hat and patted the ashes on it, saying, "Jiaqi, as long as you eat well and take medicine, Elder Sister Yezi will come to see you."

The little boy's eyes suddenly lit up, and he jumped with joy: "Grandpa, Sister Ye Zi is really here!"

Shen Jiaqi trotted over like a deer, not far away, Ye Zijin and Meng Haoxiang came hand in hand, seeing Jiaqi running, Meng Haoxiang hurried forward to hug him, afraid that he would be like last time.

"Big brother, I remember you, your name is so difficult to write." Jia Qi curled her lips and said.

Meng Haoxiang scratched Shen Jiaqi's nose, and said with a smile: "You still can't write, which means you haven't made progress."

Shen Jiaqi said unconvinced: "I can write, whoever said I can't write, I don't care about writing your name."

Ye Zijin flashed a bunch of candied haws bought at the entrance of the alley away from Shen Jiaqi's eyes, Shen Jiaqi's eyes lit up immediately, and she reached out to grab it.

Ye Zijin quickly took back the candied haws, pretending to be serious and said, "Why should I give it to you?"

Shen Jiaqi grinned, "Sister Yezi is the best, the best!"

Ye Zijin said with a satisfied smile: "The mouth is so sweet, here it is."

Shen Jiaqi happily took the candied haws and began to lick them. While licking, she proudly said: "My mother is the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, the most, my mother's all right!" grimaced.

Meng Haoxiang praised: "Crossing the river and tearing down the bridge, you are smart and can be built."

At this time, he heard a few deliberate coughs not far away, Ye Zijin saw the master standing in front of the door waving at them, Ye Zijin walked towards the master with a large box and a small box of things.

"Master, I've come to see you. How has your health been all these years?" Ye Zijin saw that Master's face was radiant and energetic, and he was holding a big broom. His body seemed to be much stronger than before.

Master Shen looked at her, then at Meng Haoxiang who was coming, and said with a smile: "I don't know how comfortable my life in Peiping is, and my back pain is better. Speaking of which, I have to thank you for being a good apprentice, otherwise I would really I'm going to stick to that old shop and die alone."

As Master Shen spoke, he led the two of them into the courtyard, and Shen Jiaqi, who was sitting on Meng Haoxiang's shoulder, shouted: "Father, Mother, Big Brother and Sister Ye Zi are here!"

Guixiang and Shen Kangtong came out of the room after hearing the sound. The two couldn't help but greet Ye Zijin and Meng Haoxiang to come in and sit down.

The jujube trees in the courtyard are covered with jujube fruits that look like pigeon eggs, and one or two slender vines extend from the withered grass under the trees, and a few purple morning glories grow on the vines.A flock of tamer pigeons flew past under the blue sky, and some of them landed on the gray tiles of the roof, cooing.

There are a few newly made tables and chairs in the room, and Shen Kangtong was chiseling patterns with a tool just now.Ye Zijin saw that Shen Kangtong could carve such an exquisite pattern on an ordinary wooden chair, and praised: "Brother Shen is very skilled. Fortunately, you didn't learn tailoring, otherwise you would lose a good carpenter."

Shen Kangtong scratched his head and said with a smile: "Your junior sister dares to say this in front of my father, are you afraid that the old man will be unhappy?"

Master Shen took a sip of tea and pointed to Comrade Shen Kang: "Your father, I can think through it now. I don't have a son, how can I live such a good life with my grandchildren? Thanks to you learning carpentry, otherwise What a waste of my tailoring skills."

Ye Zijin and Master's family have not seen each other for a long time, so naturally they have endless things to say.Seeing Meng Haoxiang sitting and drinking tea alone, Shen Jiaqi took a wooden carved Monkey King and walked up to Meng Haoxiang, saying, "Do you think this sculpture looks like Monkey King?"

Meng Haoxiang looked seriously at it pretendingly, nodded and said, "It's very similar to your stubborn monkey."

Shen Jiaqi asked curiously: "Big brother, didn't you learn from my father before, can you carve Monkey King?"

"I do not know."

"Then can you carve pigs and eight precepts?"

"nor will"

"Then can you carve a sand monk?"

"will not"

…………

Shen Jiaqi finally gave up and continued to ask, and said with a look of disgust: "You don't know anything, which means you haven't made progress. It's really rotten wood that can't be carved, so when will you learn to carve sister Ye Zi?"

Shen Kang almost couldn't spit out the same sip of tea, Gui Xiang hurriedly pulled Shen Jiaqi over and taught, "Kids, don't talk nonsense."

Meng Haoxiang glanced at Shen Kangtong in embarrassment, Ye Zijin looked at the strange eyes of the two in confusion, Master Shen just smiled and drank tea.

Ye Zijin accidentally saw the wooden doll in Jia Qi's hands, and suddenly remembered that a few years ago on the train from Beiping to Shanghai, a wooden lump fell out of Meng Haoxiang's box, and was laughed at by Xiao Jia Qi. worse than...

It turned out that Meng Haoxiang wanted to carve her... Ye Zijin was suffocated for a moment, her mind was spinning a thousand times, she didn't know what to say, and she fell silent there.

Shen Kangtong hurriedly said to Gui Xiang: "Go and get out this year's newly brewed Sophora japonica wine, I'm going to have a good drink with Boss Meng and my junior sister tonight."

In the evening, a kerosene lamp was lit in the yard, and six people sat around a round table to eat.Guixiang made some special dishes, although they were light and light, such as stir-fried seasonal vegetables mixed with cucumber and radish, but they were also very refreshing to eat.Because there were guests at home, Gui Xiang went to buy sauced meat and mutton, and steamed puff pastry, which made Jia Qi happy.

Shen Kangtong picked up a glass of Sophora japonica wine and said to Meng Haoxiang: "Boss Meng, I respect you for this glass of wine. You have to take good care of my junior sister, without her our family would not be able to reunite."

Meng Haoxiang also poured a glass of wine, "Brother Shen, you are welcome. You are my own, so don't call him Boss Meng. I will definitely follow your order. I will drink this glass of wine first as a respect." And do.

Shen Kangtong said with a smile: "With your words, I can rest assured that my junior sister will leave it to you. When will you invite me to a wedding wine?"

Ye Zijin's face blushed, Gui Xiang quietly stepped on Shen Kang's same foot under the table.

Meng Haoxiang poured another glass of wine by himself, smiled faintly, and said, "Zijin is now the owner of Shen Ji Huafu Store, I'm going to call her Boss Ye, she's very airy, it's not easy for her to agree to marry me. "

Ye Zijin glared at Meng Haoxiang, and said awkwardly: "Don't listen to his nonsense, there is nothing..."

Master Shen said slowly while picking up vegetables for his grandson: "Zijin, you don't need to be so concerned about my old shop. Don't learn from me. At the beginning, I was only thinking about carrying forward Shen Ji's craftsmanship. I don't even care about my family, and now I know that home is the most important thing to care about when I am old. Don't delay your life's important affairs because you are busy with business, I won't allow you to do this."

Meng Haoxiang added with a smile, "Even Master Shen said that, do you think we should publish it in the newspaper this time?"

Ye Zijin glanced at Meng Haoxiang angrily, and said, "Good idea."

When he was a little tipsy from drinking, Shen Kangtong got up on the spur of the moment, and sang his favorite Peking opera "Xie Yaohuan" in a frenzy. Brave, filial and heroic, he is an unrivaled strange man..."

The chrysanthemums in the courtyard are fragrant and pleasant, drinking the sweet Sophora japonica wine, listening to the soul-stirring Peking Opera, everyone talking together happily, just in response to the saying "Wait until the yellow chrysanthemum wine is ripe, and you will be drunk and intoxicated." Jin suddenly felt a long-lost feeling of home.Looking up at the night sky, there was a bright moon in the sky tonight, Ye Zijin thought that Zizheng might be in a corner of Beiping, looking at the same moon.

After bidding farewell to Shen Kang's family, Ye Zijin and Meng Haoxiang returned to the hotel.This hotel is quite different from the Lan Mansion where I lived in Beiping last time. This time I stayed in an authentic courtyard house.

Ye Zijin returned to her room, and when she saw the bed covered with brocade quilts, she couldn't help but lay down. After climbing the mountain for half a day today, her calves were sore and swollen, and her whole body was limp. She just wanted to lie down under the quilt. sleep in.

At this time, there were several knocks on the door, Ye Zijin listened carefully, and after two more knocks, she got up impatiently and went to open the door.

When I opened the door, there was no one there.Ye Zijin just thought that she heard it wrong, and just about to close the door, a tall and straight figure suddenly flashed into the room quickly, Ye Zijin just wanted to shout out, but was covered by that person.

"Sister, it's me..."

Ye Zijin was stunned, staring blankly at the person in front of her, tears streaming from her eyes.

Zizheng is a little thinner than before, and he does look as energetic as Lu Bo said. His original childish face has a little more stability, and he looks more and more like a man.

Ye Zijin held his younger brother's face and looked at it again and again, choked up and said, "Where have you been for the past six months...I'm really worried to death..."

"Sister, I'm in front of you right now, don't cry, it's my fault that made you worry." Zizheng comforted Ye Zijin while wiping away her tears.

Ye Zijin gradually calmed down and asked, "Can you go back to Shanghai now? Can you go home with me?"

Ye Zizheng hesitated for a moment, and said: "Sister, I can't go back to Shanghai. In fact, I came to say goodbye to you today. I'm going to Nanjing tomorrow."

"What are you going to Nanjing for?" Ye Zijin was startled.

Ye Zizheng said in a low voice: "I have a mission. The party has entrusted me with a very important mission. I must go to Nanjing."

"Then when will you be able to go home?" Ye Zijin tightly held Zizheng's hand and would not let go.

Ye Zizheng didn't dare to look at her sister's expectant eyes, and there was a trace of helplessness and reluctance in her eyes, "I don't know... Sister, don't worry, I will contact you through Lu Bo, you must take good care of yourself. Meng Haoxiang Is he treating you well? I think you came to Peiping with him."

When Ye Zijin thought of being separated from Zizheng again, she was worried and sad, so she couldn't care less about talking about Meng Haoxiang, so she hurriedly asked, "Where do you live outside, do you eat well, do you dress warmly, will you be in Nanjing?" What's the danger? You must tell me if you have anything..."

Ye Zizheng interrupted her sister cruelly, trying her best to conceal her reluctance and distress, and said, "Sister, I'm fine. Don't worry, I'll be fine. I'll go back to Shanghai to find you after I finish my mission. I can't Staying here for too long, sister, I have to go..."

Ye Zijin followed Zizheng to the door, but she was still reluctant to let go. She had a thousand and ten thousand worries in her heart, but she still had to let her brother leave.

"Sister... I'm leaving." Zizheng lowered his voice, his throat trembling.

"Well, you must be careful in everything..." Ye Zijin watched her younger brother leave, and watched Zizheng's back disappear into the vast night, she covered her mouth to keep herself from crying, tears streaming down her face.This farewell, I don't know when we will meet again...

(End of this chapter)