cloud temple phoenix hairpin

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"Mother, I'm already in good health, so I don't need to bring food to the house anymore."

Ming Yu opened the door and was asked to go down, but was suppressed by Jiang Shi again.

"It looks much better than yesterday. But since it's delivered, let's use it first."

Ming Yu nodded.

Chunyuan hurriedly handed over a delicate Ge Kiln purple-mouthed iron-footed pot, which contained clean bamboo salt.

The Ruan family is very rich, and all their daily use is extravagant and beautiful, even the bamboo salt that cleans the mouth is also very particular.It is said that my grandfather learned it from an eminent monk in a temple when he was a businessman outside the East China Sea.Put the net salt into the bamboo tube in the bamboo garden planted by yourself.The bamboo needs to grow on the west bank of the water for three years, seal it with alpine loess, put it into a kiln made of the same alpine loess, and burn it with pine wood for five hours.After the bamboo tube is burned out, only the purple salt stick is left.After crushing, it is calcined again, and this is repeated eight times. When it is calcined for the ninth time, turpentine is sprinkled into the kiln to raise the fire. At this time, the salt is burned into a liquid state.No more, no less, nine times to get the fragrant bamboo salt.

I still remember that next year, when she was 11 years old, in the spring and summer, Emperor Zhengde lived in the Yiyuan of Rongyintang for the first time.After waking up and washing up, he didn't know whether it was intentional or unintentional, and praised, "The things used in the palace are not as good as those of the Ruan family." Ruan Hongsheng heard that from then on, his family's bamboo salt has been added to the tribute list every year.Ming Yu didn't realize it before, but now she realizes that this golden compliment that made her father feel a little complacent in the past is probably also a prelude to planting the root of disaster.

Seeing her staring blankly at the bamboo salt in the jar, Jiang yelled.Only then did Ming Yu wake up, she smiled, dipped her fingers in to clean her mouth, another girl beside her, Yu Qing, handed over a bright yellow copper basin, and Ming Yu rinsed her mouth.Jiang shi personally twisted the velvet towel and wiped her face and hands before watching Ming Yu eat her breakfast.

The maids packed away their utensils, and Jiang shi continued to chat with her until Chunyuan brought the concoction.Ming Yu took it and drank it in one gulp, without even frowning, but she was stunned by the Jiang family and the girls beside her. It wasn't until she handed back the bowl that Jiang family laughed: "My son, you really became a young adult overnight. I told you to drink medicine yesterday morning, and my mother spent a lot of time."

Ming Yu was startled, and then laughed: "Mother doesn't like me becoming an adult?"

"I like it, I like it. I wish my family Ayu would become a big girl earlier, and the dowry mother has already started preparations for you."

The girls all giggled, Ming Yu pretended to be shy and lowered her head: "Mother made fun of me."

In her previous life, she read too much about romance, and when she saw Tan Lang, she missed her life.In this life, she, Ruan Mingyu, will no longer lean against the window every night to face the bright moon, until her heart is like burnt incense, ashes, empty, and scattered, and she sits on the desk, blown away by the wind.

Jiang shi didn't know what she was thinking, so he patted her hand with a smile, and told Chunyuan Qiaoqin to take the little girls to serve her well, then got up and left.

After Mrs. Jiang left, Ming Yu was held down by Chun Yuan until she had a nap, and then she got up to comb her hair.She was still young, so Dan Lan, who was in charge of combing her hair and clothes, gave her a double bun.It's summer now, and after combing my hair, I was wearing a summer shirt with primrose yellow plum pattern jacquard silk on my body. I looked in the mirror casually, and saw that my cheeks were dizzy inside, my eyes were bright, and the corners of my phoenix eyes were slightly Upturned, thick eyelashes.Even though he is only ten years old, just looking forward, he already has an indescribably graceful and charming attitude.

In her previous life, Mingyu was very conceited about her appearance. Even though she knew that the man had no intention of treating her, she still fell in love with her wholeheartedly. She married her with great longing. At that time, she always thought that she would not worry about the man because of her appearance, talent and careful service. not tempted.Now that I have died once, I know that being a woman is an easy life, and her appearance and talent are second, and protecting her own heart is the right way.

Ming Yu was full of freshness and excitement about this home that she had dreamed about countless times before.For a whole afternoon, she wandered around the garden of the back house of Rongyin Hall under the surprised gazes of the maids behind her.Stepping on the sidewalk paved with aragonite in the pattern of ice-cracked plum blossoms, touching the exquisitely embedded rockery and lake stones, walking through the deep and winding corridors, and finally stopped at the pool that covers an area of ​​four or five acres.However, in early summer, there are already red and white lotus flowers exposed on the blue waves, weeping willows are planted around the embankment, and at the end is a boat-shaped double-layer water pavilion.

There is nothing to do in the long afternoon, Mingyu remembers that she used to visit Hexiang here to read and paint.At that time, I didn't know the beauty of this day, and sometimes I complained about being bored.Only now do I know that even sitting quietly on the bank and watching the lotus with the wind is a kind of peaceful happiness.

Dinner time.

The Ruan family has many branches.Except for the uncles of the same grandfather, Ruan Hongtian is the only child of Mrs. Ruan herself, so she has always lived in the Suixi Garden of Rongyin Hall.Ruan Hongtian is a well-known filial son who respects his mother in every possible way.The old lady is getting older, and she doesn't come out much every day. She only has dinner together every few days. Usually, she is accompanied by Mama Rong, who was married before, and Dongmei Dongxue.

When Mingyu arrived at the dining hall, she saw that it was already full of maids and women waiting for meals, and her concubine sister Ruan Mingpei, who was two years younger than herself, had also arrived, her eyes were wandering around, and when she saw Mingyu, she immediately greeted her with a smile , Called "Sister".

Ming Pei was born to the deceased Aunt Liu, whose appearance followed her mother's, with almond-shaped eyes and a cherry mouth. Although she is small in stature, she is already a perfect embryo of a beauty.Aunt Liu was a concubine of the Jiang family before she married, and later she gave birth to Ming Pei, and she was raised as a concubine.It's just that her fate was poor, and her body has been in poor health since she gave birth. She relied on medicine to survive until Ming Pei was six years old, and then she fell ill.For the past two years, Ming Pei has been following the Jiang family.Jiang's family was born in a scholarly family, he is gentle and gentle, and he is very attentive to this concubine's daughter, her food, clothing and upbringing are the same as Ming Yu's.It's just that Ming Pei didn't know if she was taught by Aunt Liu in the past, and she was quite scheming.Knowing that she is a concubine, she always feels that the servants in her family treat her differently from that elder sister, and her father prefers her elder sister, so there is a knot in her heart.It's just that she didn't show it on the surface, and she was full of flattery when she saw Ming Yu on weekdays.

Ming Yu remembered that in the second year after she got married in her previous life, she knew from Jiangzhou's letter that Ming Pei also married the son of an official's family in the city as the principal wife.At that time, Ruan Hongtian had already been appointed as the prefect, and with such wealth, the other party not only did not dislike Ming Pei's status as a concubine, but he came to ask for marriage first.And when her father was convicted a few years later, without the cover of Rongyintang's Gaowa, even she, the prostitute who married into the Hou's mansion, would end up like this, she thought it would not be any better.

Mingyu didn't like to see her temperament before, so the relationship between the two sisters was only average.Now that she has lived her life again, she sees Ming Pei very differently. In her eyes, Ming Pei is just a child, and even those frictions, thinking about it now, are not the reason for life and death.As an adult who has died once, if he can't even let go of this little thought, then his life will really be in vain.Thinking of this, he nodded and smiled at her, and said "sister".

Ming Pei just called her for the occasion, seeing that this elder sister was not as indifferent to her as before, she was a little surprised, and when she stood beside her, she couldn't stop stealing a few glances.

Ming Yu waited quietly for a moment, then heard the sound of the bead curtain being pulled in the front hall, and the sound of walking with a cane on the ground.Knowing that someone was coming, he lifted his spirits, suppressed the slight nervousness in his heart, looked over, and saw Mrs. Ruan wearing a woad pattern and gray hair on her temples, standing on crutches and surrounded by Jiang's He and his father Ruan Hongtian, followed by Dongmei Dongxue and other little girls from Suixi Garden.

Ruan Hongtian is around thirty at this time, in the prime of his life.Ming Yu remembers that when she was young, she always felt that her father was the most heroic man in the world.Looking again, the same is true.The current father is young and handsome, with a heroic style in every gesture.The reason why I fell in love with that misunderstood person in my previous life was that I begged my parents to marry me in every possible way. I'm afraid it's just that I vaguely saw the shadow of my father in that person, right?I remember that when I was young a few years ago, I would often throw myself into his arms, and he would lift himself up high, and stab her in the face with his bearded face, and the father and daughter kept laughing.Later, when I got older, I changed to not being so affectionate.Thinking about it now, I feel extremely nostalgic in my heart.

Ming Yu was excited, and took half a step forward, called "Grandma" first, and was about to call Dad again, when Ruan Hongtian saw Ming Yu, walked a few steps to her, looked at her and said with a smile: "Ah Yu can All right? If your feet are still weak, rest for a few more days."

"Girl Yu followed her mother to do a good job of falling into the water. With her mother's kind heart, the Buddha will naturally bless her."

Before Ming Yu could answer, the old lady had already said something indifferent.

Back then, the old lady wanted to marry one of her distant nieces to her son, but Mingyu's grandfather begged for such a marriage.Moreover, the Jiang family only gave birth to Mingyu after entering the family, and Ruan Hongtian has no intention of taking another concubine since the former concubine disappeared.So for so many years, Ren Jiang has served her in every possible way, and the old lady treats her with a layer of veil, so she naturally doesn't like Ming Yu.

"It's all good. Don't worry, Dad."

Seeing that Jiang's expression was a bit gloomy, Ming Yu was also sad in her heart, pretending not to see it, she nodded and smiled at Ruan Hongtian.

Ruan Hongtian smiled, patted her on the shoulder and said, "Go up and sit down."

Ming Yu waited for the old lady to sit in the main seat, and the parents sat on the left and right respectively. Then they sat, and Ming Pei also sat on her back.

When the Ruan family eats, they pay attention to not talking.The dishes were brought up one by one, but after tasting a few chopsticks, some of them were withdrawn without even moving.After Mingyu ate half a bowl of fragrant rice and two meaty chicken rolls, his stomach was already full.

"The duck feet are simmered so crispy that they can be eaten."

The old lady suddenly said something.Mama Chen, the cook standing at the door, was overjoyed when she heard it, and immediately said, "It is boiled carefully with mulberry firewood, which can make the meat rotten better than ordinary firewood, and can also digest the poison."

The old lady nodded slightly: "I have a heart."

"Okay. Go back to the accountant to pay the reward."

Ruan Hongtian immediately said to Chen's mother.Mother Chen was overjoyed and bowed again and again to thank her.

Ming Yu quietly looked at her grandmother, and saw that her face had remained calm since she sat down.The [-]th day of next month will be her [-]th birthday. Her father, who has always been filial, will make a big fuss. Not only the city, but also people in several nearby cities will be alarmed. The birthday banquet of the [-]th birthday of the old lady of the Ruan family, which surpassed the queen mother's birthday, was gradually no longer envied by others, or regarded as a topic of conversation after dinner with jealousy.Now all the matters must have been arranged almost, even if she wanted to persuade her father to restrain himself a little at this moment, it would be too late, and she couldn't think of any suitable excuse to dissuade him from performing filial piety.

Ming Yu was thinking about the past in a daze, and everyone at the table had finished their meals. The maids removed the dishes and brought out dark-scented tea made from Layue Zaomei for purifying the mouth.

"Hong Tian, ​​for my birthday next month, just set up a few tables and invite some old friends from the same family. You don't have to be too extravagant. I know you always like to fling your sleeves. I persuaded you before, so you took some. I don't Say you are the same. Now that I am old, I can’t control you. I am half buried in the ground, and I haven’t seen my grandchildren until now, so I don’t care about the big ostentation you make.”

The old lady took a sip of tea, spit it out into the copper basin handed over by the girl, pressed her mouth with a handkerchief, and said slowly.

Seeing her grandmother taking the opportunity to hit her mother again, Ming Yu felt a little sad.Looking at his father, seeing Ruan Hongtian's calm expression, he said with a smile: "Mother's thoughts are naturally known to a son. Mother can rest assured that there is no big show. But I have prepared it for the occasion. It is too shabby, and my son is afraid of being killed by others." Said behind my back that I was not filial."

The old lady hummed and said, "That's good. I'll be back." As she spoke, she seemed to stand up slowly.Mrs. Jiang hurried over to help, reaching out her hands, but the old lady didn't even look at it, she took Dongmei's hand behind her, and then got up.Jiang shi stood there, and withdrew his hand slightly in embarrassment.

After everyone dispersed, Ming Yu took her girl back to Yilu Building, washed and changed clothes, sat in front of the window and read a book by the light, but her heart could not calm down.

There are still ten years before Rongyin Hall collapses.Ten years is a long time for some people, but for Ming Yu, it seems like tomorrow is coming.The disaster of the Ruan family did not happen overnight.She wanted to plan ahead and prevent the passing of time, so the first thing she faced was her grandmother's birthday feast.Although the preparations are complete, if possible, she still wants to work hard.

(End of this chapter)