in spring

Chapter 120 Meeting the Three Young Masters Again
Chunying and Hu Fei went home all the way, and peddled along the way, and did a few businesses, but Hu Fei was a little listless, and he didn't even peddle loudly. Seeing this, Chunying advised him to go back earlier and forget about it. Today The weather is not good, the sky is gloomy, the wind is strong, maybe it will rain.Hu Fei didn't say anything, just nodded in response.

When they got home, Mrs. Wei and Mrs. Wei were a little puzzled when they saw that they came back early, and they were even more surprised when they saw the wound on Hu Fei's face.Chunying briefly explained the matter, and took out some potion for Hu Fei to rub. Granny Wei arranged for lunch early, while Gong Wei went out to find acquaintances, and asked about the background of Uncle Qing.

Hu Fei seemed a little absent-minded, and went back to sleep after a hasty meal.Chunying stretched out her head to look around while she was doing needlework in the courtyard, seeing that he hadn't left the room, she felt a little more uneasy.

In the evening, Mother Lu came to see her daughter and brought some newly made autumn clothes along the way.Chunying hurriedly welcomed her mother to her room, and hurried to make tea.

Mother Lu said: "I'm not a guest, what kind of tea did you make? Just now I had wine at your uncle's house, so you can find some olive kernels to pour water for me to eat."

Chunying agreed, remembering that her second uncle still kept a small packet of aged Furen, she hurriedly searched for it, took a few capsules and mixed them with boiling water, and brought them to her mother.

Mother Lu took a few sips of cold air, fanned the heat on her face with her hand, and said, "How are you doing these days? Seeing that your second uncle has been away for a long time, and the weather is getting colder, you live in It's not a problem here, why don't you just move back home?"

Chunying was pleasantly surprised at first, and then hesitated: "Is it possible? Didn't you mean... to pretend that I was seriously injured and needed to recuperate? The second uncle has only been away for a month, so is it too urgent?"

Mama Lu shook her head and said, "You have been injured for a hundred days, and you have avoided it for nearly half a year, which is enough. I will go back tomorrow and tell you that your injury is almost healed, and you will move back home in a few days." .”

Chunying was naturally very willing, but she couldn't let go of Hu Fei's side, so she didn't answer for a while.She thought of Widow Cui who came to inquire about the news. Although she never met again, she went out almost every day. Who knew what the other party did when she was not around?So she asked: "Mom, how much does Aunt Cui know about my affairs? Does she know that I am recuperating at someone else's home?"

"Her?" Lu's mother frowned, "Who has time to talk to her? Now that she doesn't live in the same courtyard, she only sees those women in charge, how can she talk to us?" After a pause, she still took a point He said proudly: "However, your father is highly valued by Xiao Chen's steward. Recently, she dare not show me face anymore. Last time, she specially sent a pack of chestnut flour cake, saying that her daughter got it in the mansion. Bring it here for me to taste. Pooh! She thinks I'm a village woman who has never seen the world? It's just a few pieces of chestnut flour cake, who doesn't have it? It's worth showing off in front of others, so that she can show that she is a girl. How decent is it?"

"Really? It's really hateful!" Chunying echoed her words casually, and then asked, "Did she say anything when she brought the cake? It's nothing, she won't come to the door, right?"

"It's a bit weird to talk about it." Mother Lu leaned closer to her daughter, "She always pestered me that day, asking about your father's errands, and asking if your sister was doing well in the house—it's really strange, she Ben was working in the mansion. Doesn’t she know if your sister is okay? Ask me what I do? —— Later, I asked about your second uncle, why he didn’t live in the back street, but rented a house outside. That's really hard to take care of..."

Chunying's heart tightened: "Then how did you tell her?"

Lu's mother showed a malicious smile: "What are you talking about? Why should I tell her? I sent her out on the pretext of something, and said loudly in front of everyone at the door that she was a widow and asked about a single A man's residence is not a serious matter. Although my second uncle is not young, he has never married a wife, so why should he be married to a big girl? Don't you think so?"

Chunying's expression was a bit strange.She wanted to laugh, but she felt that this was not very kind, but in the end she couldn't hold back, and laughed out loud: "How did Aunt Cui react at that time? She must be very angry? Mom, you have offended her ruthlessly by doing this." .”

"If you offend, you will offend!" Lu's mother rolled her eyes, "Who is afraid of her? I said it in front of everyone, it is fair and aboveboard! Many people heard it! If she wants to sue, I want to see what she can say. What kind of words! Could it be that she, a widow of a dead man, should quietly come to inquire about the residence of an unmarried man?" Then she snickered and said, "Since then, she has detoured when she saw me! Cui girl met me when she came home the other day, but she didn't give me a good face. This girl is a bit scheming, and she doesn't know how to coax her wife to make her a first-class girl. At that time, I just slapped it! How could you stare at me? Which girl would be as unruly as her?!"

Chunying frowned, and persuaded: "Although I don't know what happened in the mansion, but looking at Manru's posture, it is obvious that she is no longer the little girl she used to be. Mother, you should not confront them head-on." , in case they really want to harm you, father and second uncle are not at home, and I won't be able to go back for a while, my sister may not get the news in time to go back to save you and brother when the old lady is there."

"Okay, okay!" Mama Lu waved her hands impatiently, "What can they do? I didn't work in the mansion, and I didn't go out, so they have nowhere to plant them if they want to!"

Chunying opened her mouth, closed it again, lowered her head and thought for a while, and then said: "The so-called guard against others is indispensable. Cui's mother and daughter can't do it, but the housekeeper's wife can. In case they find a familiar housekeeper's wife What about giving you a hard job? You can't shirk it. Besides, Manru is favored by his wife. If he speaks ill of his father in front of his wife, his promotion next year will be ruined! Mother, you'd better stay away from them Right? Don't mess with them."

She has been working in the mansion for less than a year, and her biggest experience is that the struggle between people is really endless, and it is hard to guard against.She asked herself that she wasn't a fool, but that she didn't understand people's hearts well enough, she didn't know how many hidden losses she had suffered, how many disasters she had escaped, and finally left the house inexplicably.Manru is a ruthless person, and she has been involved in several incidents in Huanhuaxuan before and after. From this point of view, my old lady's brains may not be her opponent.Their Lu family still wants to live a good life, there is no need to stand in front of Cui Manru and become a roadblock that she wants to get rid of quickly, not to mention that she is in the limelight now.

Mother Lu thought for a while, and felt that her daughter's words were reasonable, but she still refused to believe that the mother and daughter of the Cui family, who had always been ignored by her, could really do anything to her.She drank a few more sips of tea, chewed two more Furens, spit out the dregs, stretched her waist and said, "It's getting late, I should go back, and I have to go to your uncle's house to pick up Xiaohu. Take good care of yourself here I'll take you back in a few days."

"Mother..." Chunying paused, gritted her teeth and said, "You can only tell the closest people when you go back, and don't rush to take me back. I am helping Brother Xiaofei in business now, and I have made some money. Qian, after going back, going out is not as convenient as it is now, let's wait a few days and talk about it?"

Mother Lu frowned and said, "You really went out with that little brother Hu to set up a stall? If someone recognizes you, our old Lu family's face is not very good-looking. It's a good thing for you to do needlework, why bother to go out with you to show your face?"

Chunying smiled: "Mother, don't worry, no one will recognize it. I have a sense of proportion in this matter." Now she has grown a lot taller, changed her hairstyle, and dressed very differently from when she was in the mansion. When my mother saw it, she was stunned before she realized it. How could others find out?Besides, she has deliberately avoided the surrounding areas of the Hou's Mansion, unless the people from Huanhuaxuan ran to her stall to talk to her face to face, otherwise she would not worry about being recognized.

Lu's mother said reluctantly: "Okay, be careful yourself. Your father sent a letter back from home, saying that things in the south were delayed, and he might not be able to return to Beijing until winter, so he asked me to pack some thick cotton clothes and send them there. .I've already taken on a few jobs, and I'm all acquaintances, so it's hard to push, so why don't you do one for your mother?"

Chunying hurriedly responded, and dragged out a large bag of shoes from the box: "I gave this to my father and second uncle, mother asked someone to take it back with me?"

Lu's mother showed a smile on her face and happily agreed. Before leaving, she asked Chunying many things before leaving the small courtyard.

Chunying stood at the door, watched her go away, looked back at the "Wei House" at the end of the alley, hesitated for a moment, then turned around and closed the door.

In the early morning of the next day, Chunying got up to wash up, cleaned a few yards, and went to Wei Gong and Wei Po's place for breakfast, only to find that Hu Fei hadn't left the house yet.She looked at the rising sun in the sky, felt something was wrong, and hurried to knock on his door.

After knocking twice, the door opened, and Hu Fei came out with a pair of dark circles under his eyes, which startled Chunying: "What's wrong with you? Are you uncomfortable?"

"It's nothing..." Hu Fei pursed his lips and said with a smile, "Did the girl come over for breakfast? I'm going too."

Chunying looked at him worriedly: "Did you not sleep well yesterday? But what's bothering you?" He always got up early and went out, but it was really unusual for him to stay at home at Sishi.

Hu Fei just smiled and said: "The redness on his face hasn't gone away yet. I'm afraid that if I go into business at this time, I'll scare people away. Today I'll simply buy the mule back, and tomorrow I'll go sell it elsewhere. It's much easier."

Chunying thought it made sense, so she didn't ask any more questions, but seeing him calmly eating breakfast, calmly washing clothes, peacefully drying clothes and wearing old shoes, she always felt that something was wrong.

Hu Fei went out after finishing his work. Chunying wanted to follow, but he said: "Sister, you should stay at home. People outside are unpredictable. You may meet bad people when you are doing needlework at home. I Don't worry. The livestock market I went to today is dirty and smells bad, so it's not dirty, girl."

Chunying thought about it, so she gave in. Who knows that he went there for a whole day, and only came back after dark with a mule, but the mule is a good mule. The load is durable, and the two recently made smaller cargo boxes are actively wrapped around the mule's back with hemp rope.

The bottom of these two boxes is equipped with small wooden wheels, which are convenient for pushing on flat ground, and there are many hooks and ropes nailed on the outer wall for people to hang things on.Chunying and Hu Fei worked together to put the goods on top of the bag, and added water bags, dry food bags, broad-rimmed bamboo hats, medicinal oil and other items. After a final trial, the mules adapted well and walked fast and steadily. .Chunying was overjoyed, if she knew it would be so convenient, she should have suggested buying a mule from the very beginning.

Hu Fei just smiled slightly, and the next day, seeing that the redness and swelling on his face had disappeared, he wanted to go out to do business alone, and stopped Chunying: "I go out of the city alone, and I only need to pay a tax. If there are more, it would be better for the girls to stay at home, make more good purses, and make more nets, wouldn't it be better?"

Chunying thought that she would still be in charge of buying goods if she stayed in the city, so she agreed, but she was still a little worried, so she sent him all the way to Dongbianmen, bid farewell to him, and turned back alone.

Not far away, she caught a glimpse of a figure, which seemed to be Zhou Nian, was startled, and hurriedly chased after him.Unexpectedly, after turning a few turns behind him, the man inadvertently turned his head, and she realized that he had made a mistake. He only looked four or five points similar to Zhou Nian, but his temperament was completely different.

She was a little depressed, she hadn't seen Zhou Nian for half a year, and sometimes she thought about the days when she was with him in the past, she was a bit nostalgic, and she wanted to know how she was sent out of the Marquis Mansion back then, and what happened to him now?Has your identity been restored?
"Chun'er?" A surprised voice came from behind her, she turned around and was also surprised: "Third young master?!"

It was Li You, the third young master of the Hou Mansion who she had served, who came here, with a bit of surprise on his face: "Why are you here?"

(Okay, the third young master has come out...)
(End of this chapter)