At the beginning of spring, the clouds were clear and the grass was long and the orioles were flying.
It's at dusk when swallows fly together and flowers and butterflies fly back.
At the street entrance of Mingshui Town, a few old willow shoots and catkins were falling in the wind. At a Yangchun noodle shop, the owner's lazy hands were shaking the turbid noodles in the pot with a half-broken large soup spoon.
Three people, two horses, a donkey, an old fisherman, and two young men in commoner clothes with swords.
Xiao Yu helped Yu Liufei get off the horse, and the three of them sat at an old small square table in the thatched shed closest to the willow tree.
There were three square tables under the hut. Counting Xiao Yu and others, there were four people in total. There was only an old wooden table opposite with a sloppy old man eating noodles.
Xiaoyu took a look at the old man. At first glance, he looked disheveled, unkempt, with a shaggy beard, and he was dressed in old rags. He felt slovenly. But if he looked carefully, he saw the way the old man was eating noodles. He was twisting it lightly and slowly, but there was not a drop of oil or water. Even when it fell out of the bowl, not a single noodle got on my beard. Although the clothes were shabby, they were still
It looks very clean.
Looking at his right hand holding the chopsticks, the thumb and index finger are slightly tilted. It should be a person who often uses a sword. For example, he himself has this habit. If he is not a person who uses a sword all the year round, generally you will not see this clue.
Xiao Yu curled her lips and wondered, could this old man be a swordsman? Suddenly, she saw the old man glance at her vaguely. Perhaps the old man felt his gaze. Xiao Yu quickly came back to her senses and looked away, no longer observing the old white-haired man eating noodles.
The white-haired old man frowned, not paying much attention to Xiaoyu's curious eyes, and started eating noodles again.
Yu Liufei took out a few coins from his pocket, put them on the table, and said to the store owner: "Seller, three big bowls of Yangchun noodles."
The shopkeeper was not in a hurry to come over to collect the money. He just nodded and replied: "Wait a moment, everyone, we're going to cook it now." After saying that, the bald shopkeeper in his forties with a wrinkled face patted the skin on his waist. I walked around, shook my hands a few more times in the basin on one side, and washed my hands. I reached out and grabbed a few handfuls of freshly dried thick noodles and threw them away.
In the noodle pot.
Three rough sand bowls, spread with sesame oil seasoning, a few cabbage leaves, fill with white noodle soup, pick up the noodles with big chopsticks and throw them into the bowl, add chopped green onion and coriander, sprinkle with some sesame seeds, the store's sesame seeds He quietly carried two bowls to Xiaoyu's table.
The shopkeeper grabbed the money and turned around to serve the last bowl of noodles, muttering, "There is a vinegar plate and chili sauce on the table. Guests can help themselves."
The three of them took their chopsticks and began to enjoy the taste of the noodles.
The white-haired old man next to him finished eating the noodles, took a coarse cloth handkerchief from his arms and gently wiped the oil stains on the corners of his mouth, and shouted to the store: "Shop, do you have some wine?"
The shopkeeper nodded, "The shop sells both noodles and braised pork. Of course, it also sells wine. There are only two kinds of wine, one is Xinghua Zui and the other is Erguotou. I wonder which one the old man needs?"
The white-haired old man replied: "The drunken apricot blossom tastes bland and is too boring. Give me a pound of Erguotou and cut into half a pound of braised pig ears."
The store owner shouted: "Okay, sir, wait a moment."
After the shopkeeper finished speaking, he turned around and went into the house. Not long after, he walked out with a jar of Erguotou wine, and handed a large sand bowl to the white-haired old man's table.
The white-haired old man took out a few taels of silver from his arms and asked, "How much is the total?"
The shopkeeper said: "The wine costs six cents per catty, and the braised pig's ears cost eight cents per catty. I'll charge you one or two cents in total."
The white-haired old man counted the pieces of silver he found on his body, and gave him one or two taels of wine and food. He still had four taels of silver left and put it in his arms. The shopkeeper took the money and said with a smile: "Mr. Just wait a minute, I'm going to cut off the pig's ears for you."
The white-haired old man waved his hand, signaling him to hurry up.
But I saw the white-haired old man drinking wine and looking at the Mingshui River next to the old willow tree. He didn't know what he was thinking. He drank wine as if he was absent, a little casual.
After Xiaoyu finished pulling Yang Chun's noodles, she asked the shopkeeper, "Shopkeeper, are there any inns or hospitals in this town?"
While cutting the pig's ears for the old man, the shopkeeper replied: "Are these customers on their way? Our town is not big, and you can see the whole town standing by the willow tree." The shopkeeper raised the kitchen knife in his hand and said to Pointing to the south, he continued: "After this alley, you will find the town, the inn and the medical center.
It's all there, convenient. "
Xiaoyu cupped her fists at the store and said thank you.
Uncle Liu chewed slowly, but before he finished the noodles, Yu Liufei and Xiaoyu ate quickly and sat on one side waiting.
Xiaoyu cared about Yu Liufei and asked, "Brother Yu, are your injuries okay?"
Yu Liufei waved his hand and replied, "The skin is rough and the flesh is thick, so this injury is nothing."
Xiaoyu replied: "After Uncle Liu has finished eating, we will take you to the medical center to get some medicine for your injuries. Then we will go to the inn to settle down and we will be on our way tomorrow."
The shopkeeper on one side was carrying the chopped braised pig ears and the money of the white-haired old man. After listening to the conversation between Xiao Yu and the two, he turned to them and said:
"You two, unfortunately, today is the first day of March. The medical clinic is not open. The old doctor went fishing by the stream. The doctors in our town have a rule. They don't see a doctor on the first or fifth day of the lunar month. If you want to see a doctor, just I’m afraid I’ll go tomorrow morning.”
Xiaoyu heard this and replied: "Thank you, the store, for letting me know."
The store owner replied: "It's not a problem, it's not a problem."
Uncle Liu smiled slightly on one side and said: "Then I don't have to worry about eating. The scenery of the river and mountains in the distance is just right. The sun is setting and the sun is setting. It's so beautiful. It's quite pleasant to chew slowly and enjoy the spring scenery. Wait until I finish eating. , I'll go sit by the river over there and fish for a while. You guys can stay at an inn first, and I'll be back later.
"
Yu Liufei smiled and said: "Then we are not in a hurry. We might as well drink two ounces of wine before talking about it. What do you think, Xiaoyu?"
Hearing this, Uncle Liu nodded and replied, "I want three taels of apricot blossoms to be drunk."
Xiaoyu didn't like drinking, so she waved her hand and replied, "You guys drink, I'll just have some braised pork."
When Yu Liufei heard this, he shouted to the shopkeeper over there: "Shopkeeper, three ounces of apricot blossoms, half a pound of Erguotou, and a pound of braised pork head!!"
"Okay, I'll get you some wine now!"
After a while, the food and wine were ready, and the three of them started eating and drinking.
Xiaoyu took a look at the mountains and rivers in the distance. This town is indeed an elegant place, and the scenery is beautiful.
Two rows of swallows flew low, returning to their nests in pairs and landing under the eaves. They both looked outside and felt a little disappointed. They thought of He Xiaofang who was far away in Hejia Village, Daguishan. At that time, we were in the woods together. Playing hide and seek, catching loaches by the stream, now that Xiaofang has really married that idiot, she
But he was still alone, and he couldn't help but feel a little regretful.
At the entrance of Hejia Village, the flowers he and Xiaofang buried together were still buried under the old locust tree.
Xiaoyu's memories gradually came back:
"Xiaoyu, let's bury this locust flower here. When you grow up, I will marry you. This buried locust flower will be my dowry. Are you willing?"
"Okay, Lagougou, Xiaofang, you have to marry me when you grow up."
...'
Xiaoyu looked at the wine bowl that Yu Liufei had prepared for him on the table, feeling a little melancholy. He poured a bowl himself, imitating Yu Liufei's heroic appearance, and drank a few sips, choked and coughed a few times.
Yu Liufei smiled and said: "Xiaoyu, this is how you should drink wine, it's refreshing!"
Xiao Yu smiled and nodded, taking another sip of wine.
His fate with Xiaofang ended in these few sips of wine.
"You said, 'When I grow up, I will marry you, and that will be the dowry.'"
It's a pity that later, when you grew up, your dowry turned into spring mud.
.......
