As the saying goes: Things are unpredictable. The next morning, just as Xiao Huineng was about to attend Li Xueru's private school, he saw a government servant in public uniform appearing at the entrance of Xialu Village from a distance.
In this remote mountain village, the Yamen had never been to the Yamen for many months, so the appearance of the Yamen naturally attracted the curious eyes of the villagers.
As soon as Mrs. Li saw this yamen servant, she recognized him at a glance. He was the same yamen servant a few years ago.
After Ms. Li recognized the yamen servant, her heart seemed to be suddenly grasped by an invisible big hand - three or four years ago, it was this yamen servant who sent a urging letter that took away her husband's life.
Unexpectedly, a few years later, the government servant stopped in front of the Lu family's thatched cottage again...
Li subconsciously hugged Xiao Huineng tightly.
Before the officer could speak, a flattering smile appeared on his face.
He clearly saw Li's mother and son in the courtyard, but he still knocked on the door politely and said, "Is Mr. Lu's wife here? Please receive a letter from the Guangzhou Yamen of Nanhai County."
Nanhai County governs Guangzhou? In that big city two hundred miles away, Mr. Li didn't even have a single relative eight generations away, let alone any connection with the government office.
Mrs. Li hesitated and walked slowly towards the door.
Xiao Huineng was quick and ran over and invited the government servant who delivered the letter in.
"Madam, please keep it. This is an autographed letter from Mr. Wen of Guangzhou Yamen."
Li took the big envelope. She was still confused and asked confusedly: "What Master Wen? Who is Master Wen?"
The yamen servant was also a little surprised: "Master Wen is Master Wen, the governor of Nanhai who has just taken office! Our Xinzhou County is under his jurisdiction. Master Wen said in a letter to the county master that he and your Mr. Lu are the same We are classmates in the same year, how could you not know Mr. Wen?"
Wen Fei, Wen Fei again! Wen Fei is already an important member of the party, but Lu Xingxin...
"Madam, I don't dare to neglect the errands assigned by the governor. The county master is still waiting for my reply."
Mrs. Li slowly opened the envelope and took out the letter to read.
Wen Fei, who was originally a Hanlin scholar in the imperial court, was sent to serve as the governor of Guangzhou, the governor of Nanhai County. More than a month ago, when he took office and came to Guangzhou, he naturally inquired about Lu Xingxin's situation from the Xinzhou County Magistrate who came to greet him. When he heard that his old friend had passed away and returned to the West three years ago, he felt very regretful. Especially when he learned that Lu's widow was struggling to survive alone with her son Huineng, he was even more sad. Therefore, he wrote a letter asking Mr. Li to take his son to Guangzhou and live with his family. He would take on the responsibility of raising future generations for his old friend who had never died in peace, so that Huineng could study, obtain honors in the future, and inherit the long-standing legacy of the Lu family. Traditional style.
This is pie in the sky, good things fall from the sky.
However, the respected elders in the village all unanimously opposed Huineng's mother and son going to Guangzhou to seek refuge with the superior governor.
Some said: "We are not close relatives and have never met each other. How dare we entrust our family and life to him?"
Some said, "That's right! You orphans and widowed mothers went to that big provincial city where you were unfamiliar with, and you didn't even know you were being sold!"
…
Li's eldest brother and Huineng's uncle strongly objected: "You are not starving to death, why do you want to go out and seek refuge with others?"
Li said: "Brother, look at what you said! Wen Fei is a good friend of Xing Xin's classmate. He said in the letter that he treats Huineng like his own son. He is responsible for providing food, clothing and food for both of us. .”
"You are a widow, but you have lived in other people's homes for a long time. What will people say? If you really can't handle it anymore and the family can't open the fire, then move back to Jiulang Village and live with your mother-in-law."
Li asked: "Brother, can you provide for Neng's son to go to school?"
"This..." The uncle choked a few times and couldn't answer for a while.
An elderly man in the village, Mr. Chen, said: "In a place like ours, Xinzhou County, there have been no Hanlin or Jinshi scholars for thousands of years. Aren't people living a pretty good life?"
Mrs. Li pulled Huineng over, pushed him in front of everyone, and said as if she was solemnly announcing something: "His surname is Lu, his name is Lu Huineng, and he is the son of Lu Xingxin. And the Lu family has been around for thousands of years. It has always been a scholarly family, and it has been a famous family in all dynasties. If the children and grandchildren of the Lu family are reduced to being unable to go to school, their ancestors will definitely be uneasy if they know about it. How can I have the face to see my ancestors in the future? Husband? I..."
Speaking of the end, Ms. Li was already crying.
Xiao Huineng originally wanted to tell the story about Li Xueru allowing him to attend the school, but seeing his mother burst into tears, he had to swallow the words that came to his lips.
When everyone saw this, it was hard to say anything.
However, relocating a family is not a matter of just moving.
Although Wen Fei said that he would provide all the food, clothing, housing and transportation for Huineng and his son in Nanhai. But Li still wanted to prepare some money for emergencies.
As for their family, the only thing that can be turned into money is the one-and-a-half acres of thin farmland.
In desperation, no suitable buyer could be found.
Besides, Mrs. Li also wanted to wait for the crops in the field to be harvested to exchange for some money.
Therefore, after procrastinating again and again, by the time the two of them were ready and really hit the road, it was already the end of summer, and more than half a year had passed since Wen Fei's letter.
From Xinzhou to Guangzhou, you can take a boat down the Xinxing River, pass through Zhaoqing, and enter the Pearl River. It is a smooth journey and is very convenient.
However, the cost of the boat ride was beyond what Huineng and his son could raise.
Besides, even if the money from selling the land was enough for the shipping fee, Li was reluctant to spend it.
Therefore, Li planned to walk to Guangzhou along the ancient Tea Horse Trail in Tianlu Mountain, via Gaoming and Foshan.
On the day Huineng and his son left for Guangzhou, almost all the folks in the village came to see them off.
After hearing the news, Li Xiaolan also came to see him off.
Naturally, Huineng's uncle also came. He brought his little nephew some rare wild lychees that he accidentally picked from the mountains. The fruits are large, thick and extremely sweet.
Hui Neng refused to enjoy it alone, so he gave it to everyone in twos and threes.
In the end, there was only one red lychee left in his hand.
People who have tasted wild lychees smacked their tongues intriguingly, saying that they had never tasted such a delicious fruit.
Huineng looked at the last lychee in his hand, thought for a moment, and decided to plant it in the yard instead of eating it.
But the uncle said: "Silly boy, lychees need layering to be planted. You can't grow them this way."
Huineng asked: "Uncle, have you ever planted lychees?"
"No. I always hear old people say that you can't sow lychees."
"You haven't tried it, how can you be sure that lychees can't bear fruit? Besides, since this kind of lychees is very special and delicious, it will definitely grow."
The uncle was stunned: This little nephew has very mysterious thoughts in his mind. He watched Huineng bury the lychee into the soil and said, "Huineng, even if this lychee can sprout, grow into a big tree, and bear fruit, you are about to leave and you won't be able to eat it."
Huineng smiled and said: "I can't eat it, but you all can taste it."
A year later, the lychees sown by Xiao Huineng really sprouted. From then on, people in Lingnan knew that in addition to layering and cutting, lychee propagation could also produce fruit. Sixty years later, Wu Zetian, the only empress in Chinese history, issued an edict to confer Huineng’s former residence as the "Guoen Temple". This lychee tree with deep roots and lush leaves provided a support for the villagers who built the temple. Green shade.
Today, more than 1,300 years later, the lychee tree planted by the Sixth Patriarch Huineng himself in his former residence is very magical. Miraculously, despite the drought, the tree is full of fruits and the lychees it produces are characterized by their large fruits and thick flesh. It is famous for its small core, sweetness and refreshing taste; the strange thing is that the red lychees hanging on the tree have a "Buddha" figure on them and are called "Buddha lychees" by the locals. ",Precious.
