It's still early, but the winter days are short. The sky outside the window had darkened and been replaced by lights. Xue Niangzi, who was dazed, said: "It's not early, the slave family has to go back to the shop, please leave." ”

Lord Hou, who was sitting opposite, said: "I won't keep Mrs. Xue either, let me send you back." ”

"Don't bother, Lord Hou." Xue Niangzi said busily.

Lord Hou smiled: "You are a woman, I don't give it away, it looks so ungraceful." ”

When Xue Niangzi heard this, she didn't want to continue to excuse herself, but just blurted out: "What about such exquisiteness?" ”

She got up first, and Lord Hou also stood up. The two went downstairs together, and the steward in the pear orchard was also delivered to the door. Outside the door, there was a two-wheeled carriage, and two men with horses stood on the side. A man opened the wooden door behind him, lifted the curtains, and bowed down to wait for the two to get into the car.

Xue Niangzi turned her head to look at the slave who opened the door for them, and she felt a little restrained. But maybe she drank a lot of wine, which made her mood a little floating. For a while, she felt that she had no troubles, as if she had become a respected woman with status, both glorious and generous. Although everything is illusory, it is true that I am in a good mood at the moment.

She stepped into the carriage and found it a little difficult to get off her feet. I saw that the floor was covered with white soft lamb's fur, and the wooden planks on both sides were covered with gently rolled gold threads, and there were wide chairs inside, and even a few books on them. From the outside, the carriage was just big and inconspicuous, but I didn't expect it to be so gorgeous on the inside.

"Sit down." Hou Daren.

Xue Niangzi carefully sat on the soft cushion on the wide chair. It was even colder outside after dark, and there was no fire in the carriage to keep warm, but Xue Niangzi had the illusion of warmth surrounded by fur mats and ayaluo.

"It's snowing, and it's even more chilly at night." Lord Hou's voice said. He spoke casually, with a gentle voice that was reassuring to hear.

Xue Niangzi lowered her eyes and responded softly: "Yes." ”

Master Hou turned his upper body and reached out to take something out. Xue Niangzi looked sideways and saw that it was a neatly folded blanket. Lord Hou put the blanket on Xue Niangzi's lap.

The carriage then started and slowly drove away. Xue Niangzi was speechless for a while, just touched the soft blanket with her hand, and sat silently in the carriage with Lord Hou. Lord Hou sometimes didn't talk much, and at this time, both of them suddenly fell silent.

Xue Niangzi occasionally sneaked a glance at the man sitting next to him, only to feel that he was a little less like a scholar. But listening to his words, there are also books on this car, and he should indeed be a reader. Moreover, when the government was looking for the Xue family before, there were both military attaches from the Beijing division and local magistrates, and Lord Hou was from the government, yes.

Xue Niangzi gently supported her chin with her hand, looking out of the car window in a slight daze.

Although it was dark, the streets were still bustling and brightly lit. In the noise of various sounds, there is a prosperous and gorgeous scene.

She looked at it for a while, then turned her head and said, "The slave family is the first time to Jingshi, Jingshi is really a good place, I think it's very good." ”

Lord Hou's voice said: "During the Han and Tang dynasties, there were two cities in the big city, east and west, and each city was isolated from each other and restricted trade locations. Later, it gradually became like this, and there was all kinds of business in the streets. The world is always changing, and business is only going to get more prosperous. ”

Xue Niangzi said softly: "Lord Hou is really knowledgeable. ”

Her cheeks flushed after drinking, and with a chuckle in her eyes, she continued to look at the street scene with great interest. She thought everything was beautiful, and there was a sound of lute coming from the pavilion by the roadside, and the shadow of the singer was beautiful in the lighted window. The lute plucks a dense string sound, forming a slow and undulating tone, which makes people feel lingering and sentimental, and with melancholy.

Xue Niangzi wanted to say something, but in the end she could only sigh lightly: "It's good." After a while, she added, "Tonight's Jingshi seems to be different from the previous two days, like something more, probably this pipa sound." ”

"It's just not very appropriate." Hou Daren.

Xue Niangzi looked back and said, "What? ”

"This lute song. The words of this song are not in the right place. Hou Dadao, he glanced at Xue Niangzi, and said slowly, "Affectionate parting since ancient times, even more so that it snubbed the Qingqiu Festival." Where do you wake up tonight? The willow shore dawns and the waning moon. ”

Xue Niangzi was stunned when she heard this, and she silently read it for a while, and then came back to her senses and showed a smile, "It's still a literati who are powerful, and they can say what everyone can't say, and they can say it so beautifully." ”

Lord Hou said calmly: "So our Ming Dynasty not only needs technology, but also culture. ”

Jingshi is really full of poetry and picturesqueness, but I don't know if it is this prosperous and wealthy place that creates the artistic conception, or whether people have that sense of separation in their hearts.

At this moment, the carriage suddenly tilted and swayed violently. Xue Niangzi was not paying attention and exclaimed, and her body was also lifted by the wall of the carriage. Her uncontrolled body suddenly stabilized again, and she bumped into Lord Hou's body and was held by his big hand. In an instant, she also grabbed Lord Hou's arm, only to feel that his body was strong and stable, and there was a faint smell of good smell on his body. Xue Niangzi suddenly felt that she had become more weak, as if she couldn't use her strength.

There was a shouting and scolding from the entourage outside, followed by a scolding: "Get out of the way!" ”

A man clasped his fists outside the car window and said, "Childe, please forgive me, are you okay?" ”

Lord Hou said: "It's fine. ”

He then hurriedly took away the hand that was holding Xue Niangzi, it turned out that he pressed Xue Niangzi's back with one hand and pressed her chest with the other. Xue Niangzi's face was hot for a while, but fortunately, the light in the carriage was dim, and the only light was the light that shone in from the outside. Probably no one can see her demeanor at the moment, right?

Lord Hou's voice said: "Don't blame Xue Niangzi, I didn't mean it. ”

Xue Niangzi felt even more embarrassed, and said in her heart that it would be better if you didn't say anything. She didn't know how to answer, and there was an embarrassing silence in the car.

After a long time, Xue Niangzi's groggy heart came up with the appropriate words, and she said softly: "Thank you, Lord Hou, for your protection." ”

Lord Hou's voice let out a "hmm" without any fluctuations. But Xue Niangzi suddenly found that he was quietly grasping the hand, spreading it in front of his nose, and sniffing it gently. Xue Niangzi glared at him silently, and said in her heart, if it was normal, she would definitely curse. But at this moment, she didn't know what was going on, and her temperament became weak, and she pretended not to know and couldn't speak.

Xue Niangzi observed Lord Hou and saw that he had returned to his casual appearance, are all the civil officials of Xindao so dignified?

Or because of what happened just now

Afterwards, the two of them had fewer words. Until the carriage stopped, the entourage asked Lord Hou if he had arrived at the place. Xue Niangzi lifted the curtain and took a look, then said, "It's here." It's very close to the restaurant where we met. ”

Lord Hou smiled: "It's really not far, I've only walked half a city." ”

Xue Niangzi came back to her senses later, and her face turned red. She bowed her head and said, "I'm tired of Lord Hou, take my leave." ”

Lord Hou nodded and said, "We'll have a meeting later." ”

This shop of the Xue family has been closed, and it belongs to the main family's property. Xue Niangzi is the same clan of the main family, and she only borrowed to live here in Beijing this time. The front of the house is a shop, and the courtyard behind it is a living place, which is the case with many shops in the city.

Xue Niangzi walked into the backyard and soon heard the sound of "rustling" grinding from her room. She opened the door and entered, and immediately seemed to be a different person, and said angrily: "At night, aren't you afraid of arguing with others?" What about being your own home? ”

The "rustling" sound still did not stop, and it made people anxious to hear. A man's voice said, "You've been drinking." ”

Xue Niangzi entered the house and began to clean up the mess, she turned her head and glanced at the figure inside: "Talking about business, people toast you, can you not drink?" If you go, I won't have to drink. But if you are told to go, you will not go if you are killed! I just know how to grind the mirror. ”

The figure didn't move, and it didn't say anything more.

Xue Niangzi put down the things in her hand, looked for a while, turned her head and asked, "Have you boiled water?" ”

The voice inside said, "Where are you going to wash on a cold day?" ”

Xue Niangzi suddenly trembled with anger, grabbed an empty pot and threw it on the ground, "I'm looking for water to drink, what do you mean?" ”

"It doesn't mean much." The voice said.

Xue Niangzi said indignantly: "What kind of person am I, don't you know? ”

The person inside: "Your reputation in Huzhou is not good, as soon as I went out, I heard someone whispering about your Naiko, and he said it vividly." I can't hold my head up, I'm worse than a dog, and you still complain that I don't want to see people. ”

"Just listen? I won't tell them to go back and touch him! Xue Niangzi scolded, "Am I willing to go out and show my face?" Our mirror workshop has been borrowing money for 10 years, when will we be able to pay it off? ”

The voice said again: "You don't think about my face, you think about the two babies surnamed Xue." ”

"Say no more! I drank alcohol and my mouth was very dry. Xue Niangzi said coldly, "Let me tell you, I have a clear conscience, I haven't done the slightest unsightly thing, and I will never do it." ”

Xue Niangzi said, bent down to pick up the hollow iron kettle on the ground, turned around and walked out. In the kitchen in the corner of the yard, there was no spark on the stove, so she had to light the fire first, and then fetch water and put it on the stove to boil water.

It was dark and cold in the kitchen, and Xue Niangzi was frozen all over, so she hurriedly approached the stove and used the fire to keep warm. She looked at the fluttering flames, exhaled a long breath, and curled up there in a daze.

Somehow, she whispered: "Hurt parting, even more Nakan, snub the Qingqiu Festival." Where do you wake up tonight? Willow shore breeze waning moon ......"

Suddenly she woke up, she looked at the dark kitchen and remembered the dirty words she had just said in the yard, and suddenly smiled bitterly in the dark.