Ma Erniang's Splendid Pastoral

Chapter 31
After waiting for a long time, seeing that it was going to be dusk, Ma Qiguang was annoyed and disheartened, thinking that if he was in Beijing, he would have called a group of people to occupy the well , but also let these untouchables drink.

The yamen of Yunshui Town is so small that there are only five rooms at the front and back. The front three rooms are used to handle the town's official business, and the back two rooms, one is the document storage room, and the other is the place where several small officials eat and take lunch breaks. The Ma family occupied it, and the petty officials all went home to eat and rest.

The rest room was divided into three rooms, where the elders and younger ones lived. As expected, he was a high-ranking official from the capital. Order' lives.

As the sky darkened, Mrs. Ma sighed, walked to the door in person, and said to the eaves: "Mr. Hua—"

"Ma'am—" Hearing calling herself, Ma Hua quickly got up from the stone bench and walked to the old mistress.

"How long has Goro been gone?"

"I left at noon."

"Why haven't you come back yet?"

"I'll go and have a look right away."

"Ok!"

Ma Hua thought that the old mistress would let the servants go, but in the end she had to run as an aunt herself. Tired and hungry, Ma Hua was really unwilling to reconcile, but she didn't dare to refute, so she walked out of the yamen to find her son. .

Isn't there still a servant, why should my son go to fetch water, Ma Hua muttered as he walked, with a look of dissatisfaction.

After dealing with the water issue, Mrs. Ma really couldn't think of anything else to deal with, so she entered the separated room with a bitter face, and saw the old man half lying on the bamboo chair, squinting his eyes, sighing loudly, but The old man couldn't open his eyes.

Really able to hold her breath, Mrs. Ma was so angry that she said: "Master, the second child is going to Xing'an Mansion, can your disciple named Yao take care of him?"

The old man on the bamboo chair didn't seem to hear.

"Are you talking?" Mrs. Ma's voice was a little louder: "The little officials in the yamen don't have much food left, if this continues, they will starve to death."

"It doesn't matter if you starve to death, so that you don't live like a ghost." Just when the old lady thought that the old man would not speak, he spoke, but it was extremely dejected.

"You are ruthless. If Yi Hui dies of starvation, our Wang family will be peerless."

Peerless?Ma Chengzu suddenly opened his old eyes, and Mrs. Ma took a step back in fright, "Master, what are you doing?"

"Hehe..." Ma Chengzu sneered, "What's the difference between this and Peerless!"

"Master, you can't think like that!"

"Then what do you think?" Ma Chengzu laughed at himself coldly.

"My lord, you have to think about it this way. If the emperor can bestow the surname Ma today, he can bestow the surname Wang tomorrow."

Ma Chengzu looked at him blankly as if he didn't know his wife who had lived with him for decades.

Mrs. Ma felt uncomfortable being looked at by him, "Master, no matter what, we have to live first."

Withdrawing his gaze, Ma Chengzu narrowed his eyes.

"Master, you should say something!"

"If you have something to eat, give it to the grandson first!"

In ancient times, filial piety was the first priority in everything. No matter what food, clothing and clothes the family had, the old people came first. What Ma Chengzu said meant that he would be ranked behind the eldest grandson in the future.

"Master——" Mrs. Ma felt her heart ache. This old man couldn't understand what she said, "It doesn't matter who eats first, there must be food!"

Ma Chengzu opened his eyes for a while, the empty eyes made Mrs. Ma jump in fright, and then closed them again.

"Old..." Before Mrs. Ma could call out, he waved his hand and signaled her to go out, he was going to rest.

Damn old man!Mrs. Ma was so angry that her heart ached. Is it so difficult for you to beg Yao Zeliang?What are you afraid of him, no matter what, he was your student?It's a pity that she can only think about these words in her heart. She is still afraid of facing serious and upright men.

Guo Daping walked carefully all the way to the town, shrunk his head and looked around, and found that no one was paying attention to him, so he quickly slipped to Zhangji Cooking Cake Shop, in front of the palm-sized door, a middle-aged man was sitting on a small bench shaking a cattail leaf fan, squinting his eyes repose.

"Shop... shopkeeper..."

The shop owner opened his eyes: "What do you want?"

"Is there...is there any water?"

The shop owner looked Guo Daping over and over, but didn't say anything.

Guo Daping remembered Erniang's advice, "My mother came here last night."

It turns out that I have already been here, no wonder I know that there are water and cakes sold here, the shopkeeper replied lazily: "Yeah!" humming and shaking the cattail fan, waiting for the next step.

"Listen... I heard that a bamboo tube costs two... two coppers, right?"

"Hmm!" The owner of the small shop continued to hum, looking sideways at people, making people feel uncomfortable.

"I...buy two more cooking...cooking cakes." Guo Daping said as he spread his hands, and the four copper coins in his palms were covered with sweat.

See copper?The owner of the small shop got up happily, and called inside: "His mother, bring out the water and cakes."

After a while, a generous woman walked out, holding a bamboo tube in one hand and two cooking cakes in the other, "Where's the money?"

Guo Daping quickly gave the copper to the shop owner.

"Empty bamboo tube."

Guo Daping hastily stretched out his hand, leveled the empty bamboo tube, and the woman poured water into it, "See, it's full, a lot of your water."

"Yes, yes, thank you, ma'am." After making the bamboo cover, Guo Daping took the cooking cake with the other hand, looked at his clothes, and wanted to hide them, the tattered clothes had holes, and they could be covered there.

At last, the store owner understood what this kid was thinking, and pulled a straw, "Use it to cover it up."

"Thank you, shop owner." Guo Daping thanked quickly.

"Don't thank you, next time you come to buy it, there will be no more."

"Ah..." Guo Daping was stunned.

"We are almost out of food." The shopkeeper sighed.

"Oh..." Guo Daping turned around sadly, thinking to himself, how can I live in those days when I can't even buy water and food with money.

Ma Hua supported his wounded son, "When you were in Beijing, you were very capable. When did you ever lose a fight?"

Ma Qi touched the blood from the corner of his mouth with his bare hands, glancing at the old aunt, he didn't even bother to talk to her about the situation in Beijing, what's the market price now, it's not a big deal if he wasn't beaten to death by these untouchables just now.

"Why don't you talk?" the old aunt asked, looking at the empty bucket.

Ma Qiguang snorted coldly, "What did you say?"

"If we didn't get any water, my wife will definitely not let us go."

Guo Daping shrugged and walked along the street corner, and fell into Ma Qiguang's eyes, what was he doing with the straw in his arms, while shaking, he saw the bamboo tube and cake covered by the straw, and he went He stuffed the barrel to the old aunt, and ran over with his legs.

Guo Daping was scared when he saw Ma Qiguang, but when he saw him trotting towards him, he realized that he had seen his things, so he was so frightened that he ran out of the town.

"You naughty little bastard, stop, stop—" There was water and food, how could Ma Qiguang let Guo Daping go, and ran after him all the way.

(End of this chapter)