in spring

Chapter 9

Chun Ying was stared at by him for a few times, and felt a little hairy, thinking that she had said the wrong thing?
The mustache asked with a smile: "Little girl, have you ever read?"

Of course I have!Just as Chunying was about to answer, she suddenly remembered her current identity and hurriedly changed her words: "What does this have to do with you?" She turned around and left.

The mustache stopped her with a smile: "Come on, since you guessed it and came before me, this lamp belongs to you." After saying that, he stuffed the carp lamp into Chunying's hand.

Chunying was taken aback: "But did you guess this?"

"I can guess again. Let this be my apology for offending you just now." Mustache waved his hand nonchalantly, then looked up at the other lanterns.Chun Ying felt something was wrong: "Your friend bumped into me, what does it have to do with you? Why do you need to pay? Besides, I don't need you to pay." She wanted to return the lamp again.

Mustache smiled slightly, pointed to a revolving lantern with the enigmatic words "Spring and Autumn" on its face, and said to the stall owner: "For a year and a half, there is no winter and no summer."

Before Chunying understood what he meant, the stall owner had already offered the lamp with a smile: "You guessed again." The mustache took the lamp and looked at it, then turned to Chunying with a smile and said, "My lantern is I want to give it to my little nephew, although your carp lantern is good, it is not as delicate as this one, but it would be a pity to lose it. Please help me dispose of it, how about it?"

It's hard for Chunying to refuse now, she took a few glances at him, then imitated her mother's Protestant etiquette, and gave her a blessing: "Then I will be very grateful."

The mustache nodded with a smile, and Shi Shi ran away with the lantern.Chunying watched his back, looked down at the lamp in her hand, and felt a little joy in her heart.

When Lu's mother saw her lamp, she heard that her daughter specially guessed the lamp, and her face was also full of joy.Ziyu covered her mouth with a smile and said, "Your second daughter is really caring. Tete came back with a lamp, and she knew it was for you at a glance." Mother Lu nudged her and handed the lamp to her husband: "Take it back and put it away. I'll play with my son tomorrow. Be careful not to break it."

Lu Yougui took the lamp and sighed: "Why didn't my daughter get me one?"

Chunying panicked: "I only had time to guess this one..." Ziyu smiled and pulled her away: "What are you afraid of? Your father was just talking to you, come on, let's eat Yuanxiao."

Chunying followed her tremblingly, and when she turned her head, she was relieved to see that there was no displeasure on her father's face. At the same time, she was also a little depressed. If she was her biological parents, why would she need to worry about these things?

A group of them bustlingly came to a small food stall on the corner of the street, where they sold hot and fragrant Lantern Festival with eight or nine kinds of fillings.The boss is a young couple who seem to be familiar with Yu's daughter-in-law, and also recognize several daughter-in-laws in the team. Seeing that there are many people coming, they specially sent an extra pot of sweet-scented osmanthus wine rice balls.

Each child was given a bowl of four Lantern Festivals. Chunying got four kinds of fillings: sesame, mung beans, sweet-scented osmanthus and bacon. The faint aroma of wine, after eating a bowl, warms the whole body.Mother Lu specially used a spoon to scoop up a large spoonful of balls into her husband's and daughter's bowls, but when it was her turn, the balls had already been divided.

Chunying scooped some back for her, and then sat by the side to eat while listening to people whispering about the boss and his wife.The couple seemed to be servants of the Hou Mansion. The man did not know what he did wrong, so he was beaten and kicked out. The woman was originally the girl in front of the young master, and was promised to the man by the family before. Seeing this, she desperately begged her master to let her use her years of savings to redeem herself and come out to marry a man.The woman's family was angry at her for taking her own initiative and wanted to sever ties with her. The young couple now only rely on selling food on the street to earn a few money.

The Yu family asked the young daughter-in-law in a low voice if there were any gangsters coming to make trouble recently.The little daughter-in-law lowered her head and whispered: "There were two quarrels in the twelfth lunar month. Brother Deng almost didn't get into a fight with anyone. I had to stuff some money before sending those people away."

The Yu family sighed: "Are your parents still angry? If they were willing to stretch out their hands, how could they have reached this point? After all, they are their own flesh and blood. No matter how angry they are, after two years, they should be gone. yes."

The little daughter-in-law stood aside with her hands down, but didn't speak.Seeing this, the Yu family hurriedly pushed her: "What did I say last time? Since your old lady refuses to help, why don't you ask the young master? He has always been kind, and you have served him since childhood. How could he not agree? As long as the eldest young master tells the yamen, are you still afraid that someone will come and make trouble?"

The little daughter-in-law said in a low voice: "It's so troublesome... It's not easy for the young master... Now he's married to grandma..."

Xiao Wu who was eating dumplings at the next table heard it, so he turned to her and said, "Sister Nandeng, our grandma is the most kind, and treats us very well. If you dare not go, how about I help you?"

"Don't!" The little daughter-in-law hurriedly stopped him, hesitated for a while, and then sighed, "It's not like you don't know what the eldest young master is at home. Why bother him? Brother Deng...you also know why he was arrested. kicked out..."

Hearing her words, the Yu family stopped talking, Xiao Wu curled his lips, and was about to say something, but paused, and gave up again, just buried his head in eating the dumplings.

Chunying listened endlessly, and couldn't understand what was going on. She wanted to ask, but she didn't know who to ask, and she was worried that it would attract attention, so she had to hold back her curiosity.She was suffocated, really unhappy.

Fortunately, Lu's mother and sister-in-law Ziyu were also discussing this matter, and they obviously knew more about it.

Ziyu asked softly: "How do I remember, this little daughter-in-law seems to be the Hongyu girl in the young master's house? When was she released?"

Mother Lu replied in a low voice: "It was two years ago. Her man was Nan Deng who was in front of the Second Young Master. He was kicked out because he offended the Second Young Master. Hong Yuyuan had a marriage contract with him, so she begged the Eldest Young Master's grace to redeem herself. Married. His husband and wife have been doing business on the street for some time, and they always move around. It turned out that they were still at the end of the back street, and they moved to other places after the second young master sent a message."

"Brother Nandeng? I remember that his father is used by Lord Hou. How did he end up in this situation?"

"Who knows? His father died of a sudden illness a few years ago, and his mother and sister were sent out of the village. Lord Hou never cared about the internal affairs, and his wife was always indifferent to their families. As long as someone helps to say something Well said, the second young master won't either... In the past, Brother Nandeng was also a majestic figure, but now he has a small stall on the corner of the street, and there are gangsters to bully him, tsk tsk... I'm afraid Hongyu has suffered a lot too! "

The two old sisters turned their heads to glance at the young daughter-in-law Hongyu, and both sighed when they saw each other's thin cheeks and hands that were no longer white and smooth.

Lu's mother lowered her voice and said: "It's also because she is confused. If she didn't redeem herself, she would at least be a daughter-in-law in charge of the mansion now, with no worries about food and clothing. If she really wants to come out, when the young master gets married, there will be grace from above. She insisted on leaving the house, not only the old lady and wife were unhappy, but also the whole family lost their dignity. Brother Nan Deng offended the second young master again, how can they live well?"

Ziyu shook her head: "Even if that's not the case, it's hard to live outside. The two of them have no roots and no jobs, Brother Nandeng only read some half-understood books, Hongyu only knows how to serve others, both of them It’s not bad to be able to have today without suffering. The life of ordinary people is not so easy after all.”

Both of them felt sorry for the little daughter-in-law, Chunying listened to it, and kept an eye on it.

It turns out that there is a way to redeem one's life by giving birth to a son, but to meet "Grace"?But when does this "grace" usually occur?Is there a limit to who can be given?

Is it really so sad to be free and become a common man?She is a little unbelieving.In any case, it is better to be free than to be a slave.

After eating the Lantern Festival, everyone paid the money one after another.Chunying noticed that Yu's family and Ziyu both gave a few more texts.Nan Deng returned it without saying a word, and then went back to the pot to work.Hongyu smiled and wished Yu's family and Ziyu a blessing, and seeing someone coming to eat Lantern Festival, she hurriedly greeted the guests.Chunying walked a long way before turning her head to see her wiping her husband's sweat carefully.

After watching the lights, it was already very late.A large group of men wanted to go back first, and maybe they would find a place to have a drink or two in private. Their respective wives gave them a lot of instructions before letting them go.

Chunying bid farewell to her father and younger brother, and followed her mother to join a group of daughters-in-law and little girls to participate in the activity of walking away from all kinds of diseases.Due to the strong wind at night, many people have put on cloaks or jackets, and most of them are white or close to white. , took out a small hand mirror to touch up her makeup.Chunying looked at Daqi and wondered if she should dress up nicely when she goes for a walk?

Seeing that everyone was almost ready, the members of the Yu family lit a stick of incense and walked in the front to lead the way, while everyone behind followed hand in hand.Chunying followed closely behind her mother, followed by Ziyu, followed by a somewhat familiar little girl, she vaguely remembered that it seemed to be someone from the yard next door.The little girl smiled silly at her: "I am Shi'er, do you still remember? I heard that you forgot everyone?"

Chunying laughed dryly, then pretended to look at the lights on the side of the road, distracting Shi'er's attention.

They walked all the way, and crossed every bridge. When crossing the bridge, some people would say something like "the ghost has run away, the disease is gone", and some people closed their eyes and prayed in a low voice that they would not get sick this year.Along the way, they also met other women suffering from all kinds of illnesses. They glanced critically at their clothes, needlework and jewelry, said something bitter, and then walked away. He cared, but walked over with his head held high.

Shi'er didn't dare to raise his head all the way, his blushing face just secretly looked up and smiled.Chunying felt that this kind of activity was interesting, just like when people were looking at her while shopping, she was also looking at others. She also learned a lot of popular ancient clothes and hairstyles by the way.

The moon slowly rose to the middle of the sky, and the moonlight sprinkled the ground like mercury.Most of the places they pass are busy cities, but occasionally there are quiet places, watching the shadows of trees on both sides of the road quietly reflected on the house walls and the ground, and the trees and shadows shake slightly when the cold wind blows, which has a special taste.

When the number of bridges crossed reached three, the city gate was not far in front of them.The little girls are not allowed to go, and the married daughter-in-laws are joking with each other, queuing up to the city gate to touch the doornails.The gate of the city had already been closed, there was no light in the opening, and it was pitch-black. Occasionally, someone would scream, saying that she had touched it, and everyone would congratulate her.Because if you touch the door nail, it means that you will give birth to a boy.When an older woman touches it, others will congratulate her for good luck.

Everyone returned home happily.Chunying also felt happy, and even walked briskly.On the way, some companions exclaimed that they had lost their hairpins, while others lost an earring. Others said a few words of comfort and pushed them away with a smile. Although the owner was distressed, he didn't say anything.Chunying was a little strange, so she asked her mother.Lu's mother smiled and said: "It's a good thing to lose the disaster." But judging by the look on her face, she clearly didn't mean to envy others.

Chunying wanted to ask again, but she heard Shi'er screaming behind her and threw herself on her, saying in a trembling voice, "There is a ghost behind..." Chunying hurriedly looked back, and sure enough, she saw a few yellow dots in the distance Flying in the darkness, he stammered: "This...there is a cemetery over there, right? Don't be afraid, this is not a ghost."

Mother Lu patted her on the head: "Of course it's not a ghost! Don't talk nonsense!" She glanced at those light spots and said, "It's just a greedy ghost at most." After saying that, she took the hands of the two little girls and left.Chunying staggered a few steps, turned around, but saw those light spots getting closer and closer to them, and could already see that they were actually a few figures holding small lanterns, touching something on the ground.She shivered, turned around and never looked at it again.

Back to the back street, it was already midnight.The Yu family forbade everyone to make noise, and asked them to return to their respective yards carefully.Chunying turned her head to take another look at the unextinguished lights in the distance, and stepped into the courtyard gate.

After the Lantern Festival, people in the back streets of Houfu returned to normal life.Those who have jobs in the mansion go back to work, and the newcomers are also preparing to enter the mansion.

Chunying was sweating profusely in the room to deal with a simple "Butterfly Love Flower" embroidery. Suddenly, she was startled by the sound of her mother opening the door. Seeing that her face was flushed with excitement, she asked, "What's wrong? What happened?" What's wrong?"

Mother Lu rushed to the side of the kang and said, "Someone from the mansion has come to pick up Cui girl, it's not Mrs. Fang!"

Mrs. Fang?Chunying blinked: "So what?"

"How about what?!" Lu's mother patted her on the head, "Of course I went to the housekeeper and begged her to take your errand back from Cui girl!"

Hey?Before Chunying could react, she was dragged off the kang by her mother, and hurried out of the house.

There was a back chair in the middle of the yard, an old woman sat on it, her legs raised, and a younger woman stood behind her, looking around.At the door of Cui's house, Miss Cui had already left the door with her bundle, and Widow Cui cried and told her to speak from behind.

Mother Lu took her daughter to the middle-aged woman and said, "Ms. Guan, the name on the register is my daughter's name. It was changed to that girl Cui because my daughter was ill. Now my daughter is well." , let her go?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Chun Ying was already dumbfounded.Miss Cui also stared at them blankly, her face pale.

(End of this chapter)