Chapter 394 Shen Zheng is drunk and lying among the crabapple blossoms
Beneath the crabapple tree, petals fell in profusion.
Petals fluttered down and landed on Shen Zheng, who was wearing a moon-white robe, which made the petals appear even more crimson.
The wine jug in his hand fell to the ground, indistinguishable from the fallen flowers. A petal gently landed on his face, tickling him. He reached out and brushed it away, then turned over and continued sleeping.
But this stone wasn't a bed after all; he rolled off with a turn of his head. He seemed not to feel any pain, found a comfortable position, and fell into a deep sleep.
"Oh, isn't this Young Master Shen?"
The maidservant exclaimed in surprise, took a closer look, and confirmed that it was indeed Shen Zheng.
The young lady frowned slightly: "It's springtime, and the air is still chilly. You might catch a cold. Xiaoyu, go and call Young Master Chen's page over."
The maid named Xiaoyu immediately obeyed and left.
The sound of footsteps reached Shen Zheng's ears, and he slightly opened his eyes a crack.
He looked over and saw a pale blue figure standing far away on the other side of the crabapple blossoms. The blurry figure was exactly the same as the one he saw in his dreams every time.
He had no memory of his biological mother. His grandmother told him that his mother liked to wear blue clothes, so whenever he dreamed, his mother was wearing a blue long dress with a gentle smile on her face.
I haven't dreamed of my mother in a long time.
Shen Zheng reached out his hand, his voice muffled: "Mother, I miss you so much... Zheng'er misses Mother so much..."
The young lady stood at a distance, partly to avoid suspicion, and partly because she was also looking for the whereabouts of the other young ladies.
Suddenly hearing Shen Zheng speak, she turned her head and saw Shen Zheng reaching out to her. To her shock, this young master Shen was actually shedding tears.
Tears streamed down her face, wetting the crabapple petals on the ground.
She didn't have time to think and hurried over, but still kept a few steps away: "Young Master Chen, are you feeling unwell? Just bear with it a little longer, your page will be here soon..."
"mother!"
Shen Zheng suddenly stretched out his arm, grabbed the girl's hand, placed it on his face, and gently stroked it.
The girl's expression changed drastically: "Young Master Shen, what are you doing! Please have some self-respect!"
She tried to pull her hand away.
But she was a girl, how could she compare to a man's strength, let alone a drunk man?
Her hand was gripped tightly, forcing it to touch the hot tears on Shen Zheng's face.
"I missed you so much, Mother... You came back to see me today, did you know I passed the imperial examination and became a scholar? Wasn't I amazing... Waaah, Mother, I really missed you, I wish you could stay by my side forever..."
The girl's struggling hands stopped.
"Mom, don't worry about me. I've recognized a godmother, and she'll love me just like you would a mother..." Shen Zheng cried and laughed at the same time. "But Mom, you can't stop coming back to see me just because I have a godmother. You're my mother, and you'll always be my mother. Please come to my dreams more often... This time it felt so real. I finally touched Mom's hand. I'm so happy..."
"Mother, don't go yet, stay with me a little longer..."
He closed his eyes, clenched that hand tightly, and fell asleep again.
Footsteps came from not far away. The girl quickly pulled her hand away, took several steps back, and retreated to the path at the entrance.
Xiaoyu and Afu hurried over.
Ah Fu quickly thanked her, "Thank you so much, Miss Lin, otherwise I wouldn't know where to look for her..."
Miss Lin said indifferently, "He's been asleep for a while. Quickly help him up, remember to give him hangover soup and ginger soup, and be careful he doesn't catch a cold."
Afu nodded, quickly went over, helped Shen Zheng up from the ground, and left.
"So Miss Fu is at the flower-viewing pavilion in the southwest corner," Xiaoyu said. "Miss, let's go this way."
Miss Lin glanced down at her palm: "I have crabapple blossoms at home, so I won't look at them here. I'm not feeling well. Prepare the car, let's go home."
The Shen family's banquet came to a lively end.
Shen Zheng slept until evening before waking up. He had drunk too much and his head was still dizzy.
"Young Master, are you feeling unwell anywhere?"
Afu quickly came over to offer his concern and care.
Shen Zheng scratched the back of his head, a scene flashing before his eyes. He pinched the bridge of his nose and said, "Wasn't I admiring flowers and composing poetry? How did I end up in bed?"
"Young Master, you're drunk. You didn't get to admire the flowers or compose a poem. Today's winner was Young Master Cheng, and Young Master Zheng came in second. He's so angry his face is ashen." Afu handed over a cup of tea. "Young Master, have some hangover soup."
Shen Zheng drank the hangover soup, but felt a sense of loss, as if he had forgotten something.
In the afternoon, Cheng Wanwan and the children returned to Dahe Village by horse-drawn carriage. News of what had happened in the city had already reached the village, and countless people were filled with envy.
They knew that Madam Dashan was remarkable, a seventh-rank lady, but in their subconscious, they always felt that the county magistrate was even more powerful.
Now, the Sui Ruren and the county magistrate's families have become one family, and things will only get more interesting in the future.
Cheng Wanwan stepped down from the carriage dressed in fine clothes, and the children behind her were also dressed in luxurious clothes. The little girl in her arms was playing with a green hairpin and a golden hair ornament. Seeing this scene, the villagers felt that the gap between them and the mountain woman was getting wider and wider.
"Hui Niang, this girl has been excited outside all day and hasn't slept. Quickly take her inside and put her to sleep." As soon as Cheng Wanwan got home, she started instructing the children, "Da Shan, go and turn over the rice seeds. Er Gou, you stay home today and help with the field preparations. We have too many fields; it's hard for your eldest brother to manage alone. San Niu, remember to chop the firewood in the yard. Si Dan, stop reading and teach San Mao how to feed the livestock in the backyard..."
The children went inside to change into coarse cloth clothes, and then came out to start working.
Cheng Wanwan also changed into light clothes, rolled up her sleeves, and dug soil in the corner of the yard. She was scattering flower seeds, feeling that there were still too few flowers in the yard.
In this way, the sense of distance between the villagers disappeared instantly.
Grandma Dashan is still Grandma Dashan. She rolls up her sleeves and gets to work, just like the rest of the people.
I was just getting busy when the spring rain started.
As the saying goes, spring rain is as precious as oil. Every drop of rain is hard-earned nourishment for crops and seedlings. After a rain, the prepared paddy fields are filled with water, and then it's time to transplant rice seedlings.
However, it's still early before transplanting rice seedlings. We need to wait for the rice seeds to germinate, then cultivate the seedlings until they grow to about 20 centimeters tall before planting them in the paddy fields.
With the help of ten farmhands, the family's paddy fields were quickly plowed.
Early that morning, someone came to the door. A luxurious carriage stopped at the door, and a flamboyant old woman got out.
Cheng Wanwan recognized the old woman; she was Wang, a famous matchmaker in Hekou County, and must have been hired by the Cao family.
According to the customs of that era, the matchmakers would first connect with each other, and then convey the other party's intentions to the host family.
After welcoming the matchmaker in, Cheng Wanwan asked Sidan to invite Zhao, the village matchmaker, to come and discuss the details of the marriage. She knew nothing about this, so she felt more at ease leaving everything to the matchmaker.
Although Zhao, the matchmaker, had always been a go-between for villagers, she also knew a bit about the wedding ceremonies of wealthy families, and the two chatted amiably.
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