Beautiful step by step

Chapter 53

Another ordinary morning in Jiuquan County, a small village outside the city where the morning fog has not cleared.

Rows of low earth embryo houses in the rice paddies, surrounded by a few brick and tile houses like stars arching the moon.Brick and tile houses hung in strings of braided corn, and a few chickens walked in the yard, grabbing the scattered corn kernels to eat.

In the wide courtyard in front, a thin man was driving a donkey and turning a mill.With a creaking sound, a slightly obese woman in Tsing Yi walked out of the side room that was emitting smoke.The woman scooped up some ground cornmeal and asked while mixing the flour:

"I heard from Shi Lang's wife that Thirteen Lang and his wife went to the city the day before yesterday, and they didn't come back yesterday."

The man picked up the dry tobacco on the grinder, took a sip, expressionless: "Brother Heng should be back."

"Then why don't you ask someone to go to the city and tell him about Brother Yun. These two brothers are also very hard-working. Back then, Brother Heng took the place of an adult in the clan. They are both motherless children, you The patriarch should take more care."

The patriarch breathed out a puff of smoke: "The Zhou family is tightly suppressed above, and I can't help it. Brother Yun, don't you want to go, do you want Brother Cong to push him?"

Brother Cong is their youngest grandson. He is only five years old this year. He is cute and smart. He is the happy fruit of the family.

The woman lowered her head, covering her face with guilt.Life is not easy for the poor, well, she'd better take care of her own family first.

Wei Wei slept very well last night, better than any other time.

The reason is that Yan Heng's mood is better than before.He had been dealing with the affairs of the Zhou family's army in the yamen, and he didn't come back until dinner, and then he went to the dark room in the backyard before dinner, and the depression that had been shrouded in him for many years was relieved a lot when he came back.

The whole night, under the moonlight in the courtyard, he accompanied her to make boxing gestures.When he got excited, he imitated praying mantises, monkeys and other animals with his climax boxing skills. He squeezed his five fingers and shook them in front of her, making her laugh all the time.

Until before going to bed, she covered herself in the quilt, her shoulders still twitching.Going to sleep with the warmth around her, she slept soundly all night, and woke up the next morning in exceptionally good spirits, even going to Yanjia Village couldn't destroy this good mood.

"How is the Yan family?"

In the carriage, Wei Wei and Yan Heng were sitting face to face, a chess set was placed on the small square table, swords and swords were on both sides of the Chu River and the Han border, Yan Heng was currently one pawn ahead.

"It can't be said to be good, nor can it be said to be bad. Everyone has their own selfishness."

Picking up the cannon and letting it go casually, Wei Wei said firmly, "You're upset."

Yan Heng was surprised, the chess piece fell to the wrong place, this time Wei Wei became more determined: "Why?"

Yan Heng lowered his head and looked at the chessboard with a gloomy expression. Anyone could see that his mind had wandered somewhere.

"Ah, Yan Baihu came to the door the day before yesterday, so he must have come prepared."

"Come prepared?"

Yan Heng nodded, and slowly analyzed to her: "Yan Baihu is not a person who is used to condescending. I bought this house with Brother Bo'an a year ago, and I would pick up Ah Yun to live with him every time we rest. Both he and the Zhou family know this place, and they are angry if they are angry, but they have never been here once."

Wei Wei recalled many abnormal things about him: "So the night before last, when I said to let the arrogance of killing them first, you hesitated, because you thought of this?"

Yan Heng didn't deny it. Seeing that she felt a little guilty, he explained: "Later, I thought about it. With the nature of the two of them, it's impossible for them to change their minds even if I ask. Since the result is the same, let's leave it alone." They're fine too."

He also had a point.

The carriage turned a corner, and a gust of wind lifted the curtain, revealing a piece of golden stalks outside and a small village deep in the stalks.

"Has Yan Family Village arrived?"

"That's it."

With a wave of Wei Wei's white hand, the entire chess game was disrupted.

"Ah Heng has something on his mind. After playing all the way, there is no winner or loser in the end. It will be considered a draw."

Looking at the pieces scattered on the chessboard, Yan Heng recalled today's situation for no reason.There is more than one Zhou family in Jiuquan County, and now she is like Ah Mao's hand, powerfully shaking the deep-rooted Zhou family and reshuffle the situation here.

Everything starts from scratch, and it is still unknown who will win, but he does not want to make a wedding dress for others after all.

"arrive."

Wei Wei pulled out the shoes from under the seat, just about to put them on his feet.After getting into the carriage just now, she curled her legs and leaned on the carriage as if her bones had sprained.

"Change this pair."

Yan Heng took out a pair of boots from under his seat, which were similar to the pair he was wearing now, except that the color had turned into bright red, which matched the red embroidered clothes she was wearing today.

"The dirt roads in the village are no better than the brick roads in the city."

Wei Wei stretched out his hand to take it, but he avoided her hand with his big palm, and bowed and half knelt in front of her.Warm big hands grabbed her ankles and gently tucked her feet into the boots.

Sitting a head taller than him, Wei Wei could clearly see the seriousness in his eyes under the long eyelashes.It seems that the most important thing in the world at this moment is to help her put on her boots.

While she was in a daze, Yan Heng had already flattered the two boots, opened the curtain and jumped off the carriage, and then stretched out a hand towards her.

Jumping down with his hands, his feet landed on the ground, Wei Wei took two steps lightly.There is a thin layer of cashmere inside the boots, which is just right for this season.The soles of the boots are thick and soft, making them extremely comfortable to walk on.

"Where did Ah Heng buy the shoes? I think they are more comfortable to wear than your official boots. When we go back, we will buy you two pairs together. By the way, we will buy a few more pairs for Mother and Ah Yun."

After thinking about it, she added in her heart that she also had to get a pair for Shizi.

On the way to Liangzhou, she received a letter from Mother Wei's family.Not only did he mention that Shopkeeper Chen often sent people to visit her, but he also said that the prince took great care of Ah Yun who was studying at Yishan Layman's place, and even sent someone to give them hairy crabs.She has complicated emotions about the son, it seems that he used all his good luck on reincarnation.He came from a wealthy background, and he himself is not a dandy, and he can even be regarded as a motivated child who studies hard, but everything doesn't go his way.

In any case, Shizi took good care of her.She can't enjoy the care of others in vain, she can only go in and out.The Wu family is the Wu family, and the eldest son is the eldest son. Even if there is no affection between men and women, she will not lack the affection of brother and sister.

As soon as he figured it out, he heard Yan Heng say, "The boots were made by Wulan's mother."

"Mother Ulan knows what size I wear?"

Yan Heng half put his arms around her waist, helping her to avoid a bumpy rut: "I know."

Thinking of him holding her feet and making all kinds of shameful movements when he was on the bed, Wei Wei blushed and stared down at her toes.This pair of shoe stickers and the shape of her feet are extremely delicate, and it must have taken a lot of labor.They have only been in Jiuquan for three days, and they already have ready-made boots to wear. When did Yan Heng ask Ulan's mother?

While being moved, she thought that since it took so much labor, this kind of boots were destined not to be given away casually.Ulan's mother said she would stay and do things, but she never regarded her and Batu as people.

"Mother Ulan's work is meticulous. If Ah Mao wants to give it away, I'm afraid it will have to wait for a while. However, the leather in Northwest China is in good condition. I ate roasted whole lamb a few days ago, and there are still a few sheepskins left. Wait for the next market. Ah Mao can choose something else and send it to the capital together. Not only Niang and A Yuna, Duan Wang's Mansion, but also Zhenbeihou Mansion and Liu's Mansion, also send some to the capital together."

Although there are no shoes, it is also good to have leather.

Wei Wei walked forward carefully, the road in Yanjia Village was really not that difficult.The dirt road has been soaked in summer rain, and it is full of potholes. In some potholes, the water has not completely dried, and there are some footprints embedded in the mud.

This is not the most difficult walk, it is the autumn harvest, and some people are drying the grain on the road.Either corn, or millet sorghum, the grain was evenly spread on the road, blocking their carriage going forward.

"Just run over it."

Wei Wei somewhat disagreed: "Isn't this trampling on other people's food?"

That's something to import.

"It's okay, the grain has to be sieved again after it's dried. Needless to say, the food you eat at home must be sifted clean. If the government finds out that it's mixed with sand, the consequences will be very serious."

After finishing speaking, he sighed: "Although Zhou Qian's family is strict with the desperate people, it is not without benefits. At least the grain stored in Jiuquan's warehouse is definitely clean enough. It's a pity that these reserves were not used by him in a proper place .”

"Aheng, what will Zhou Qianhu do with it?"

Yan Heng was a little confused. Although he was promoted to Wupin Zhenfu, what should such a big official be in charge of, and how should he manage everything. Now he has no regulations at all.Just like now, although he has captured Zhou Qianhu, he has enough reasons to punish him.But how to judge the sentence, and how to report it after the sentencing, no one pointed out that he really didn't know anything.

"I do not know."

Wei Wei was taken aback for a moment, and understood his difficulty.This is the difference brought about by birth. A young official from a family of officials and eunuchs has looked after his elders since he was a child.In such an environment, it is natural to become an official after hearing and seeing.Not to mention that once they become official, the elders in the family have already prepared a team.Settling accounts, managing files... all the chores in the officialdom are done by others.

But Yan Heng has no one to help him, he has to do everything himself from the beginning.

"Are there files in the yamen?"

Yan Heng's eyes lit up: "Ah Mao is saying?"

"Just like Ah Heng thought, look through the files in the yamen and find a few familiar cases. See how the sentence is severe and how it is sentenced. After reading it, you will almost know it. That's right..."

Wei Wei paused, and she found that she had neglected a very crucial fact all along.

Seeing that she stopped talking halfway through, Yan Heng looked over suspiciously.

Under his eager gaze, Wei Wei asked bravely, "A Heng can read."

After parking the carriage in front of a small courtyard, Yan Heng looked at her rather strangely: "I wrote the banquet list that I gave to Auntie."

Wei Wei still keeps the list, and the words on it are indeed beautiful.It's not the kind of strong and good-looking, but horizontal and vertical, the clarity and correctness of the special font for the college entrance examination model test paper.

"Is that written by Ah Heng?"

She felt that she had asked a very stupid question, Ah Yun was such a master student, as his brother from the same mother, how could Ah Heng be an idiot.

"Well, I forgot to tell Ah Mao that my mother is literate, and she taught me these things. There are a few copybooks in her dowry..."

After speaking, he pushed open the door of the small courtyard, seemed to notice something frowning, and walked to the stone mill by the well.From the soil under the stone mill, I took out two booklets for stepping.

"This is the copybook my mother used when she taught me how to read."

Wei Wei took it, but there was no handwriting on the cover, only a vague stamp.Opening the inside, there are some large European characters written on some yellowed pages.The strokes are sharp, and each stroke seems to penetrate the back of the paper. As an amateur, she can't see how good the handwriting is, but she only knows that the handwriting is beautiful, better than some calligraphy masters she has seen before.

Such a beautiful copybook was a dowry brought by Webster, so it was used to grind stones.Yan Baihu really didn't take Webster's seriously.

"This is where Ah Yun and I lived before."

Yan Heng pushed open the door next to the kitchen on the west side, saying it was a door, but it was actually a few pieces of rotten wood.The wood was still a little transparent, and it would rot if she kicked it up with her strength, it couldn't protect against wind and rain at all, let alone guard against thieves.

But there is no need to guard against thieves in this room, the decoration in the room is very simple, a large earthen kang covered with grass, and firewood piled up to the roof is placed on the open space under the edge of the kang.Yan Heng's walking steps were a bit too big, and the unstacked firewood rolled down and rolled directly onto the bed.

I have heard that Ah Yun was treated harshly, but I am far from the shock of being there.

This house is not a place for people to live in. The bottom of the overpass where beggars sleep is more luxurious than this.The only fortunate thing is that the kang is connected to the kitchen next to it. Although it is sweltering in summer, it will not be too cold to light a fire in winter.But because of this, there is a smoky smell in the house all the year round.She began to feel that maybe at first Ayun's charcoal complexion was completely smoked out.

"When I'm at home, the firewood isn't so messy."

Yan Heng was saying that in the past, firewood would not hit people.Wei Wei thought of something else through this sentence: "Ah Heng used to chop firewood when he was at home?"

"Well, it doesn't matter. Except for the wealth of the patriarch's family, basically every household in Yanjia Village, half-grown children have to work in the fields, and collect firewood during the slack. The more work, the stronger the strength. At the beginning, I joined the army to help I'm quite busy."

After explaining calmly, he continued: "This place is not very easy to live in, we just come back to have a look, and we have to go back to the city tonight. Although this is against the rules, I think the patriarch and the clansmen will understand."

For some reason, Wei Wei always felt that there was a tinge of rejoicing in his words.

"Actually... in the capital where we lived in the past, rights and obligations were relative. The eldest son inherited the family property of the big family, and the eldest son also had to take care of his parents. Yan Baihu's family property must not be left to you and A Yun. We are not here It should be fine here. Well, it seems that someone is coming outside."

When the two walked to the door, they saw a yellow and thin girl walking in with a fat baby on her back, and a woman followed behind them.The two children's eyebrows and eyes are very similar to Zhou's, and they can recognize Wei Wei with just one glance. They should be the elder sister and younger brother that A Yun said.

"Ah Mao, these are the younger sister and younger brother from the Zhou family."

Yan Heng took a step forward and walked between the two of them. The yellow and thin girl shrank a little when she saw him.But the fat baby on his back showed no sign of fear.Almost riding on his sister's neck, he bared his teeth and claws at Yan Heng.

"This is my home, why are you here again?"

Wei Wei looked at the little meat ball, usually a child of this age is always cute and chubby.However, the child in front of him had already been stained with viciousness that shouldn't be in his eyes at his age. Even if she got rid of her prejudice against Zhou, she still couldn't like her.

Yan Heng ignored him, but turned to look at the mother-in-law in front of him: "I'll take your sister-in-law home to have a look, you go to boil some hot water first."

The brat on the back screamed, "Don't go."

"I want to see it within a cup of tea."

Leaving this sentence behind, Yan Heng directly dragged Wei Wei into the main room.Contrary to the firewood room just now, the inside of the main room, which looks inconspicuous from the outside, is extraordinarily rich.The furniture is all newly made, and the tea bowls are made of fine porcelain brought from the south, and there is even a huanghuali beauty couch near the bedroom.

Yan Heng entered the back room, took out a brand new bed sheet, and stretched it out to the beauty's couch: "Ah Mao, rest here for a while."

Under his persistent gaze, Wei Wei had no choice but to lean on it.When the mother-in-law brought water in, she washed her face, and when she looked up, she saw the yellow and thin girl standing in front of her, biting her lip and staring at her, hesitant to speak.

(End of this chapter)