Before entering the house, Zhou Youran came straight to greet him: "Brother, are you back? The food has just been prepared. Quickly wash up, dust yourself off, and get ready to eat!"
Zhou Dagu, who is a hero in front of others, can't help but feel a little guilty at this moment: "Of course, what happened today is..."
"It's okay. I gave the sachet to you. You can give it to anyone you want!"
Zhou Youran stopped what she was doing and quietly stepped forward, saying in a low voice: "Brother, Sister Bai's life experience is so miserable, you brought her back to help the weak. Dad used to teach us to be kind when we see the weak!"
"One more person to eat, it's just a bowl of rice, I won't be angry! Don't worry!"
"Oh, Sister Bai is so pitiful!" The little girl turned red and turned to the kitchen.
Bai Huahong came in from the door, and Zhou Dagu grabbed her arm: "What did you say to my sister?"
Bai Huahong raised her head, pursed her lips and sighed: "Hey! I just talked about my pitiful life experience, you won't understand!"
"I'm warning you, my sister has a good heart, you can't lie to her!"
Bai Huahong stared at him with complicated eyes: "In your eyes, do I only know how to lie?"
Zhou Dagu was short-tempered and wanted to argue.
She suddenly leaned forward and stared directly into his eyes: "Then what do you want me to lie to you about?"
Xu Dian came in with a clay pot of rice to break the deadlock.
"Brother Gu, let's have dinner!"
Zhou Dagu covered up his embarrassment and quickly took a bowl to dig rice from the pottery basin in front of Xu Dian.
Xu Dian awkwardly handed him the fist-sized spoon.
Zhou Youran came in with a slightly smaller wooden basin: "Brother, why are you serving rice from Brother Dian's rice bowl!"
Zhou Dagu took the spoon, looked at the basin, and then at the person: "You eat so much?!"
"Yes, I have no appetite tonight!" Xu Dian was honest and took the spoon.
Zhou Dagu began to regret being so generous in the ancestral hall. He looked at Xu Dian who had no appetite and felt that he should be the first person in Cai County to receive relief food.
Zhou Dagu shook his head, took out a jar of wine from under the table, blinked: "Drink some?"
Xu Dian's eyes shone: "I'll get the bowl!"
Zhou Dagu took out two small cups while he was leaving: "I'll pour it for you two first, and it will be gone when he comes back. You don't know, but Xu Dian's punishment of drinking wine can be severe!"
Two girls, smiling!
After meal.
Xu Dian was practicing martial arts under the influence of alcohol on the ground at the gate.
Zhou Youran took the clothes that her eldest brother had worn all day and sat by the river outside the door to wash clothes.
Zhou Dagu sat in front of the window, taking advantage of the moonlight and lighting a candle. He took out the book lent by Master Zhu and read it carefully to prepare for the county examination eight days later.
Bai Huahong was sitting in the yard, the moonlight shining on her face that was slightly red from the glass of wine. She was leaning on the lounge chair. Her heart, which had been wandering for nineteen years, was so quiet for the first time.
The ground was covered with dust. When the girl looked up, she saw the face of the Zhou family's husband.
She blushed when she lowered her head and blushed when she raised her head.
A woman's face does not need to be wiped with powder. The reddish shyness is already the best rouge.
Zhou Dagu's eyes shifted from the book. Looking at the near distance for a long time made his vision a little blurry. When he raised his head, the scenery in the distance gradually became clearer.
He saw a blurry face, then a pair of bright eyes.
"Zhou Dagu, you're staring at me, so rude!"
"Yeah! It's indeed beautiful!"
"A glib-tongued scholar!"
"A very cute girl!"
"What are you doing here? No more reading your books! No more preparing for your county exam!"
"No more exams!"
"No, it's not a waste if you study for so many years and don't take exams... Go and read!"
"To be honest, I have actually memorized the content in the book. It is a piece of cake for me to be admitted as a criminal case officer!"
"Just bragging!"
Zhou Dagu moved a recliner and leaned it next to her.
There is wind and noise at night, but also quiet!
There was the sound of horse hooves running from a distance. Zhou Dagu's back tensed up as the sound of horse hooves coming from a distance stopped.
"Girl, are you in Zhoujia Village?"
Zhou Youran's voice sounded: "It's Zhoujiacun!"
"Aren't you going back so late?"
"This is my home!"
"You're a very brave girl. You dare to answer our group's words when we talk to you!"
"Don't be afraid, we are also a military family!"
"Oh, it turns out you are one of our own. Have you seen any suspicious outsiders today?"
"No!"
"If you don't report suspicious outsiders when you see them, you will be guilty of the same crime as them!"
"No, it means no, why are you scaring me?"
"Hahaha, you are such a shrewd girl. It's not safe at night. Go home quickly. There have been thieves from the Lotus Sect recently. We have been searching the villages for the past two days. If you see any strangers, come to the county government office as soon as possible. !”
"Got it!"
Zhou Dagu heard the distant sound of horse hooves and lay down on the chair with a long sigh of relief.
Bai Hua's red face looked sad, and when she turned around and saw Zhou Dagu's eyes, she smiled again: "Why do you always look at what I do?"
Zhou Dagu kept saying something in his heart, but did not say it out loud.
Today, the army came three times. If they haven't found the Lotus cultivators yet, they might search them door to door. How should they hide Bai Hua Hong?
Zhou Youran came in from the door holding the basin: "Brother Dian, close the door quickly! I'm scared to death!"
She put the basin on the ground and dried the clothes one by one: "Brother, I just saw a group of sergeants. They seem to be looking for people from the Lotus Sect!"
"They said that if someone harbors someone who is guilty of the same crime as the Lotus Sect, will they also be beheaded?"
"Should we get ready! Don't let the Lotus Sect's people escape to our village!"
Zhou Dagu shook his head: "It's okay, the Lotus Sect people are staying away from us! Besides, they are all humans, what do they have to be afraid of!"
Xu Dian's face was also a little solemn: "I heard about the actions of the Lotus Sect in prison. They deceived the people and committed crimes. I heard that the saints and saints of the Lotus Sect would even eat children who were just one month old!"
Zhou Youran looked frightened.
"Bang!" Bai Huahong slapped the chair heavily: "Where did these rumors come from? They are nonsense!"
Zhou Youran looked at her, a little nervous: "Sister Bai, why are you so angry?"
"I...I have met people from the Lotus Sect, and they have helped me. It is not what the government said. I am naturally angry when I hear such rumors!"
Bai Huahong is nestled on the recliner.
Zhou Youran finished drying her clothes and walked into the kitchen: "I'm going to boil water!"
Xu Dian picked up the bucket at the kitchen door: "I'll fetch water!"
The yard became quiet again.
Bai Huahong suddenly said: "Brother Gu, what kind of people do you believe in the Lotus Sect?"
"I don't know, I haven't dealt with them yet, but the forest is big and there are all kinds of birds. People will have different opinions when they see different believers!"
Zhou Dagu leaned on the recliner: "If so, the first Lotus Sect member I met was someone like you!"
He tilted his head: "I just think that they are all a bunch of cute guys!"
Bai Huahong's voice was shy: "What are you talking about! I...how could I be from the Lotus Sect!"
The moon is bright.
Insects chirp.
Bai Huahong said: "Brother Gu, I want... to leave tomorrow!"
"Why? If I don't stay for two more days, you give me ten taels of silver and stay just one night. It makes me look too dark!"
"This is very close to Cai County. It is easy for my family to find this place. I am afraid that I will cause trouble for you then!"
Zhou Dagu knew in his heart that it was a good thing for her to leave, but he said in confusion: "Then where are you going?"
"I don't know. If you can take me out of the city, I will naturally have a way to go to other places. I still have relatives in Qingxue Mansion. Maybe I will go to Qingxue Mansion for a while!"
"That's okay. I promised Chief Zhang that I will go to Qingxue Mansion to take the state exam. Maybe we can meet again then!"
"Have you not yet taken the county exam? Now you are thinking of taking the state exam?"
"Well, this is my agreement with them!"
"Although I don't study literature and follow the path of a Confucian scholar, I still have some cultivation. I have reached the same goal through different paths. I advise you not to rush forward. You are only a fourth-grade and third-level Confucian student now. You take two exams a year. You are afraid that you will not be able to pass the state exam. It’s stained your literary heart!”
"In life, there are many things you can't control. I know that. Thank you!"
"Hmph! Anyway, I said it, it's your business to listen or not!" Bai Huahong stood up from the chair.
This time, there was moonlight behind her.
Zhou Dagu looked at her, but he didn't smile.
"Why are you staring at me again?"
"With the moon hanging behind you, you look like a Bodhisattva in the temple!"
Bai Huahong had no respect for the Buddha and joked: "Then, am I as funny as you are today?"
"no!"
"What is that?" she asked.
"Just tell me not to dare look at Guanyin from now on!" He lowered his head.
"I...I'm going back!"
Yue'er hid in the clouds, and Zhou Dagu was the only one lying in the yard.
