Bai Banban and Zhen were guarding Xiao Fuyuan in the house, unaware that the entire Shenshu Village was already boiling.
There is no need to do farm work in winter, and the whole village stays at home with nothing to do. The news that Bai Banban and Zhen had a daughter ignited the villagers' enthusiasm for gossip. They ran out of their homes and told each other excitedly——
"Lao Bai's family has got a baby girl."
"real?"
"Of course! This morning the village chief's grandson saw the strong father and mother holding a baby girl."
"Ouch! It's not easy, the iron tree finally bloomed."
"That's not true. A strong woman is called an old clam with pearls in her eyes."
…
Speaking of Lao Bai's family, they are very famous in Shenshu Village.
Because this family recruits sons too much.
Counting from Grandpa Bai Banpan, anyone who enters Lao Bai's house will be born a boy without exception.
This made other people in the village who could not give birth to a son go crazy with envy. Anyone in the village who marries a new daughter-in-law will pay their respects to Lao Bai's family, just to get pregnant.
Another one is that Lao Bai’s family is poor.
That's not ordinary poverty.
It can be said that the family is extremely poor.
It’s so poor that you only count the rice grains when you eat.
Mrs. Bai often lamented that the only people left in the poor family were a group of boys.
At this time, Bai Dazhuang, Bai Zhaomei and others were walking on the road with a fork bag, which immediately attracted the attention of the whole village. People followed them in groups, as if they were holding a press conference to ask questions.
"Dazhuang, did your mother really bring you a sister?" an aunt broke into the gossip.
"Is there still a lie?" Bai Dazhuang looked happy.
Keep walking forward.
"Dazhuang, your mother really gave birth to a daughter?"
"gave birth."
Walked for a while.
"Da Zhuang..."
"Village chief, please stop asking? My mother gave birth to a younger sister for me." Bai Zhaomei raised her fork and took the initiative to answer for her elder brother.
"You brat, I didn't call you Zhaomei for nothing. I'm going to have a little sister now." The village chief touched Baizhaomei's head.
Therefore, every time the Bai brothers took a few steps, they were stopped by villagers and asked the same question. They were always asked at the head of the village.
Under a thousand-year-old tree at the head of the village, a group of women sat basking in the warmth.
Seeing Bai Dazhuang and others passing by, they all waved, with gossip in their eyes.
Although they all knew that there was no doubt that the Bai family had given birth to a daughter, they still wanted to confirm it for the person involved.
"Bai Dazhuang, what are you doing with the boys?"
"Go fish in the river." Bai Dazhuang thought to himself, and finally stopped asking whether his mother was alive or not.
Before he could even take two steps——
"You really have a sister in your family?"
Yes, it’s the same problem again.
"I really want to add a sister." Bai Dazhuang stopped.
"Your mother is so amazing, she can still be a daughter at this age." Someone said.
"Uncle Bai is the most powerful. He is more effective than young people. That physical strength..." Someone covered his mouth and smiled with unknown meaning.
"That's right, even a strong man may not be as good as dad."
Bai Dazhuang's face seemed to be smeared with blush. These aunties are too rough, they talk carelessly, and their words are distorted.
Fortunately, the topic of this crooked building quickly changed.
"Dazhuang, is your family going to get rich?" an aunt asked mysteriously.
This question made Bai Dazhuang confused. His family was extremely poor and there was no sign of getting rich at all.
"Is this daughter of the Lao Bai family really so valuable?"
"Hard to say?"
"Oh, it's so precious. What kind of person can be so precious? In the script, it describes the princess and the queen."
"How can a princess and queen be born in this poor corner of our village? Just dream!"
"Don't believe it, I heard that the current Queen Mother was born as a peasant girl."
The main force of the melon-eating people in Shenshu Village started talking about it.
Bai Dazhuang didn't react at first, but when they talked more and more outrageously, starting from being too precious to talking about the princess and the queen mother, he started to think about it.
The big guy is obviously referring to what Taoist Pojiao said to his father under the big tree in this lesson.
Why would an unattainable girl come to his family? Why would this girl make Lao Bai's family rich?
"Auntie, you can't talk nonsense. My sister is just a country girl. Whether our family is rich or not has nothing to do with her, let alone the princess and queen." Bai Dazhuang said a little unhappy.
When my sister was born, it was passed down in the village like this.
The topic of princesses and empresses is too sensitive. If it spreads, the county magistrate will have to come and ask. They thought that their family insists on trying to interfere with the court, and then they will be charged with disrespect.
It's okay for them to suffer, but not for my sister.
After Bai Dazhuang finished speaking, he took Bai Zhaomei Dalang Erlang and left, leaving a group of women under the thousand-year-old tree to continue gossiping.
"Lao Bai's family just added a girl, so why is it so expensive?" asked a young daughter-in-law who just married to Shenshu Village last year.
She didn't believe how valuable a little girl could be.
Since ancient times, I have never heard of anyone being so happy about giving birth to a daughter.
As poor as the Lao Bai family, even if the golden phoenix falls in, can they catch it?
"Then you don't understand." The village chief's wife slapped her thighs and lowered her voice, injecting a mysterious atmosphere into the gossip scene.
The melon-eating crowd stopped discussing and listened to her. The village chief's wife was very satisfied with everyone's performance. Most people only heard that she was the only one who was on the front line. When Pojiao Taoist said those words to Bai Banban, she was eating melon seeds at the side.
"Many years ago, a Pojiao Taoist came to our Shenshu Village. He told people's fortunes under this tree. The fortune-telling was always accurate..."
The village chief’s wife recalled the grand occasion.
She took the lead, mainly because she wanted to know if someone in her family could become a high official in the future. Taoist Pojiao said that the peak of their official career, the old Zhao family, was the village chief.
Just thinking about it gives her a heart attack.
"Speak quickly, Aunt Zhao."
Several young wives and girls stared eagerly at the village chief's wife, urging her.
The village chief's wife enjoys the satisfaction of being at the center of attention.
He waved his hand and continued: "Pojiao Taoist said that Lao Bai's family has not given birth to a girl for several generations. He is holding back the essence of heaven and earth. How can he give birth to it easily? Once he gives birth to a girl, he will be a precious girl. That girl will Bring wealth to the family, supreme wealth..."
The village chief's wife spoke with great joy, turning her extended thoughts into the words of Taoist Pojiao.
Tsk tsk, she decided to have a good relationship with the Lao Bai family in the future. If it was a golden phoenix, it would be easy to enjoy the shade under its wings. From a distance, I saw Xie Chuntao coming out of Mrs. Xia's house carrying a ladle of millet. She was so busy going home that she planned to send a bag of noodles to Lao Bai's house. By the way, she also had a piece of pork with her.
"Pojiao Taoist is talking nonsense." The young daughter-in-law still didn't believe it.
Her younger daughter-in-law echoed that she had only heard of men honoring their ancestors, but she had never seen any daughter honor her family. Even the woman who became the queen and concubine in the play did not rely on her mother's family and her husband.
Anyway, they don't want girls. Girls are losers. It's better to have a litter of boys like the old Bai family did.
…
Bai Dazhuang took Bai Zhaomei and others to the river.
"Brother, I have heard people in the village say that we will get rich if we have a younger sister. Is it true?" Bai Zhaomei, who was young, asked her elder brother.
He hoped that the rumors were true. If his family really got rich, he would have to eat five big steamed buns dipped in brown sugar. It would be delicious to think about it.
When Bai Dazhuang heard his brother ask this question, he thought for a moment and said seriously: "How can you believe this? Just say that the fortune teller An Xiucai from the village next to us said that he could pass the exam and be promoted and make a fortune. But as a result, he went crazy when the results were released, let alone an official. I didn’t get half a job, and now I’m still going crazy.”
Bai Zhaomei saw An Xiucai, his hair was disheveled, his body smelled dirty, and he muttered that he had been hit.
"All scholars are miserable, just like the second brother." Bai Zhaomei emanated from An Xiucai to her second brother.
"Your second brother is not crazy, he just failed to pass the exam." Bai Dazhuang corrected Bai Zhaomei.
"It's not that bad, marrying the second sister-in-law..." Bai Zhaomei quickly glanced at Bai Laoer's son Sanlang.
"Okay, is this what you should say?"
The second brother is an adult and a scholar. He knows more than any of his brothers. As the eldest brother, Bai Dazhuang's principle is not to get involved in the second brother's affairs.
"So, just listen to those fortune-telling words and don't take them seriously. My sister is my sister and the treasure of our family." Bai Dazhuang changed the subject and acted like an elder brother, "Whether it brings wealth to the family or not, we will You have to love her."
Bai Zhaomei nodded repeatedly, indicating that she listened to her elder brother.
Bai Dazhuang warned his son Dalang and nephew Sanlang with a straight face not to participate in discussing the rumors about his aunt. The two children raised their hands and promised not only not to participate but also to stop them if they heard about it.
The four men of the Bai family quickly came to the river.
The river bed was covered with thick ice, both sides of the river were covered with white snow, and the withered reeds were shaking in the cold wind.
Bai Dazhuang only felt that it was hasty to follow grandma's instructions.
On such a cold day and with such thick ice in the river, there would be no fish.
Another thing is that the Lao Bai family does not know whether it is bad luck or something else. Every family in the village has caught fish in the river, but the Lao Bai family always returns empty-handed.
