Time passed and a cup of tea was left.
The woman who stopped in the courtyard opened the door to a crack, and a clear beam of light slipped out from the crack and fell on Jun Bubai's shoes. The woman looked at Jun Bubai up and down through the crack in the door, with a hint of warning hidden in her eyes.
Jun Bubai stepped down the stone steps and stood where the woman could see his whole body clearly, so that she could disarm her. He bowed his hands respectfully, bent down and bowed deeply, and said in a low voice: "Sister-in-law of the Zheng family, here you are. Jun Bubai, the owner of Tianxialou, is here today to apologize. The eldest brother of the Zheng family lost a hand to save my Tianxialou people. There is no fear for his life. He has been sent elsewhere for treatment. It will be difficult to return to Suzhou for a while. , I came here to let you know."
The woman's eyes changed from keeping away from strangers to suddenly becoming panicked. She wanted to unlatch the door and come out to ask for details. She caught a glimpse of her childlike son behind her. She suppressed her panic, clenched the edge of the door tightly, and protected the door with her body. The backbone of the family is gone, so she has to support the family.
The woman pretended to be calm and asked in a deep voice, "Where is my man now?"
Jun Bubai raised his head slightly, caught a trace of wavering on the woman's face, and replied respectfully: "There are experts sitting in Guinong Villa in Yangzhou, and his severed hand may be reborn."
Hong Buding was scolded by the old man guarding the well, and he was unhappy. He took advantage of the opportunity of others to get water, escaped, and hunkered down in front of the courtyard gate, using his long, low-sleeved robe to block the woman's gaze.
Hong Buding came to the west of the city to beg for food and met the woman several times. Every time he left, the woman would kindly let him take away a bowl of braised sesame water.
Hong Buding's twist fell into the woman's eyes.
The woman raised her voice and asked, "Beggar, you are from Gui Nong Villa!"
The woman's identity was revealed in one word, and it was no longer easy to hide it. Hong Buding lowered his sleeves and robe, smiled awkwardly, and showed a row of yellow teeth, "Hong Buding at Gui Nong Villa, I'm going to give a gift to my sister-in-law."
Before the woman married Zheng Yidao, she made a living by blacksmithing at home. She had also been in contact with many people in the world, so she knew a lot about the world. Hong Bingping revealed his identity. The woman turned over her hand and hid the kitchen knife hidden behind her, "So. He said, my man is also from Guinong Villa."
Hong Buding's eyes dodge, and the woman became more confident in her guess. She boldly opened the door crack, stepped out of the yard, and looked down at the two of them, "I am not a woman who can handle the affairs of the world. Since he is at Guinong Villa, I can't do it either." Peace of mind, just stay here at home until he fully returns."
Jun Bubai wanted to say a few more words, but the woman had already walked back to the courtyard and closed the door. Her hands couldn't stop shaking. She saw her son playing in front of the hall and waved to come to her side.
The child was ignorant, so his mother waved, dropped the toys in her hands, and dove into her arms.
Outside the courtyard wall.
Hong Buding breathed a long sigh of relief, tightened his ill-fitting clothes, and asked, "What is the host's next plan?"
The woman was much calmer than Jun Bubai expected. She straightened up, glanced around the house, stood up with her sword, and thought about going back to the world and going downstairs to find some daily necessities and send them here.
Dressed in white, he walked away without even a word in reply.
Hong Buding complained, and saw the old man guarding the well from a distance getting down and walking towards the gate of Zheng's courtyard. Fearing that the old man would grab him and lecture him, he hid in a dark place and escaped along the eaves into the distance.
The old man guarding the well was old, walking slowly and out of breath. He stopped in front of the door of Zheng's courtyard, tapped the door knocker, and asked nicely: "Girl, is that boy Yi Dao getting into trouble outside?"
The woman behind the door removed the latch, pushed her son out of the courtyard door, and greeted her with a smile: "What kind of trouble can he cause? He has been doing errands all over the world. If I go out for a few days, I can take a few days off." , I originally wanted to go to your house later, but now that you are here, I can save myself the trouble and let my waiter stay at your house for a few days before I go out. I want to take the time to go back to my parents' house. I haven't been back for many years. .”
The old man saw no flaws in the woman's face and never thought about it. He relaxed his frown and pulled the childish-looking boy from the Zheng family in front of him, rubbing his round head, "Don't worry, these days I will definitely raise this kid to be fat and white every day in my house."
The boy from the Zheng family was watched by the elders in the alley growing up since he was a child. He was very happy and circled around the old man.
The woman bent down, took down a few pairs of washed and dried sewers from the drying pole in the courtyard, and gave them to the old man in the hand well. The old man didn't want to take it, so he was forced into his arms by the woman.
"Yes, I've been blessed these past few days!"
The woman gave a few instructions, and the old man guarding the well led the boy from the Zheng family back to his house.
The woman watched the two of them go away, withdrew her gaze, closed the door, looked around the exquisitely maintained courtyard, her eyes became firm, she picked up the flower hoe in the corner, and ruthlessly smashed the flowers and plants that she had cared for for many years, leaving a mess. The woman hoeed through the intricate root system and dug out a square copper box.
The square copper box lay quietly in the soil, reminding the woman of some past memories. She froze in place for half an hour, not bending down to pick it up.
A pigeon flew over the eaves and shook off a stone from between the tiles. The stone was not reliable and rolled along the tiles. It rolled down the courtyard with a few grunts and hit the copper box with a muffled sound. The copper box shook silently. The surrounding soil revealed its original appearance.
The woman was pulled back by the stones, bent down to pick up the copper box. The copper box had been hidden in the soil for several years, but it was still not stained green or stained by mud. The woman bent down, picked up the copper box with both hands, blew away the loose soil, and carried it into the house. In the middle, I packed up a few more pieces of clothes, walked into the courtyard, took a nostalgic look at the courtyard where I had lived for many years, flicked my sleeves, and walked up the eaves.
To the east of Suzhou City, many merchants leave the city from here, with a mixed population and many shops of all kinds.
There is an inconspicuous blacksmith shop at the base of the city wall, where they repair horseshoes and renovate iron protective gear.
The shop is guarded by an elderly couple who are very skilled at craftsmanship. If iron tools that cannot be repaired elsewhere are brought here, they can be repaired as before without leaving any trace in half a day.
The old couple's physical strength is not as good as before, and they only open the shop for half a day every day. They have enough money to bring in every day, and they can live without worries about food and clothing.
The old woman would take care of the vegetable garden next to the shop when she had nothing to do.
When the old man has nothing to do, he will make a pot of tea and take a nap in the shade behind the house.
A gust of light wind blew past his head. The old man's half-closed eyes suddenly opened, and a tiny silver needle came out of his hand.
Zheng's sister-in-law landed in the shade and played with the tiny silver needle in her hand.
"Miss."
The old man stood up from his recliner and fell to his knees.
The old woman who was busy beside the field also noticed the arrival of Zheng's sister-in-law, and knelt down beside the old man gracefully.
The sister-in-law of the Zheng family leaned over to help the old couple. They had not seen each other for many years and they were much older. She felt soft and said: "I have told you many times that you are not allowed to kneel down. There is no reason in this world for a father and mother to kneel down to their daughter."
The old man broke away from Zheng's sister-in-law's hand and whispered: "You are the young lady of the public loser. We are just the slaves of the public loser. We are not your biological parents. This courtesy is still acceptable."
The sister-in-law of the Zheng family helped the two of them up and said, "The kindness of raising them is greater than God. I have changed my surname to Gongsun. You two are my parents. There is no need to abide by the etiquette of the public loser."
The old man was a little stubborn and wanted to refute, but the old woman grabbed his sleeve to stop him. The old woman was as careful as dust. She swept away the clothes of Zheng's sister-in-law and lowered her voice solemnly: "But her identity was exposed. In the past few days, there are rumors in Suzhou City that Gongshuchi has reappeared."
The name of Gongshuchi is engraved in the heart of Zheng's sister-in-law, like a tiny needle in her hand, pricking her heart with holes.
Zheng's sister-in-law suppressed her worries, untied the package behind her, and took out the copper box, "No, I have to go to Guinong Villa in Yangzhou. Something happened to my man."
"Did he offend Nongshan Villa?" the old woman asked.
The sister-in-law of the Zheng family shook her head and handed the copper box to the old man, "He is from Guinong Villa. I heard that he lost his hand while saving others. I am going to Yangzhou to pick him up and take him home. I leave this thing with you. Help me beat it." The deputy arm comes out, if his hand really can't be connected, it's good to have a backup."
"Do you really want to give up the heirloom of the loser's family?" The old man burst into tears and knelt down on the ground holding the copper box. The copper box in his hand was not heavy, but the weight of it was too heavy for him to bear.
Zheng's sister-in-law wrote lightly: "The public loser no longer exists, and it is useless to have it. I am married and have children, and the hatred in the world has nothing to do with you and me anymore. "
The old man lowered his eyes with tears and remained silent for a long time.
Zheng's sister-in-law put down the tiny silver needle in her hand on the copper box, chuckled softly, and shouted to the old woman: "Mom, go get my Qianqiao Linglong, I want to enter the world again." once."
The old woman hesitated for a moment, then walked into the shop and took out an iron box. There were thousands of jewelry in the box, which were supported by soft silk and were exquisitely crafted.
Zheng's sister-in-law stretched out her hand to fiddle with the jewelry, and the subtle mechanical sounds filled her fingertips with joy. The top-ranked Qianqiao Linglong, made by the top craftsmen of Qianji Pavilion, will once again follow her into the world.
"Let's go." Zheng's sister-in-law put on her jewelry and disappeared into the distance like the wind.
The old woman took a few steps and watched her go away.
The old man walked into the shop holding the copper box, lit up a strong fire, and filled the bellows.
There is a short courtyard in Jinling City, in which three lacquered red coffins are parked.
The gray-haired Gongshuchi sat on the ground, holding an iron saw and polishing the crooked wood in his hand.
Suddenly, he stopped what he was doing, raised his head and smiled, and disappeared. In front of the mahogany coffin in the courtyard, the soul-calling flags fluttered, and sparrows were trapped in the courtyard who stole the tributes.
Yue Ling'er, dressed as a woman from southern Xinjiang, kicked open the courtyard door and shouted into the open space, "Old man Gongshu, are my things ready?"
No one in the courtyard responded, only a few sparrows chirped.
"It's strange, I clearly heard the sound." The girl looked confused.
No one was seen, and there were three coffins in the courtyard. She was not timid either. She released purple smoke with one hand, opened the lid of the coffin, untied the bell from her waist and shook it a few times. Three puppets jumped up from the coffin and stood in the courtyard.
The three of them look like Snake Bone, Toad Ru, and Xie Yue among the Five Poisons of Southern Xinjiang.
Yue Ling'er tilted her head to admire the appearance of the three of them, and praised: "Old Gongshu's puppetry skills are quite powerful. He made you three into masters so quickly."
It was better for Chanru to quarrel with her before she was alive, but now she would eat her several times without any reaction.
The girl's interest came and went as quickly as it came. After playing with it for a while, she sent the three of them back to the coffin. She looked up at the sky and found that Wu Shaoji, who bought the meat buns for her, had not returned yet.
“It’s so slow to buy a meat bun.”
The girl complained, jumped up to the eaves, and went to look for Wu Shaoji.
Gongshuchi, who had just disappeared, flashed back to the courtyard, sitting cross-legged, applying red paint to the polished wood. A touch of red fell between the sleeves, inconspicuously.
