At first, Chang Suining thought that shepherd's purse's return home in glory today had caused a slight sensation, so it was spread everywhere, but after listening carefully, he realized that they were discussing something else.
This story begins today when She Cai and Zeng Huan returned to the city.
After entering the city, the two first went to do the errand assigned by Chang Suining and went to Baiji Teahouse to deliver a letter.
After leaving the teahouse, She Cai asked Zeng Huan to go home to visit her relatives, and she also went home. Chang Suining asked them to stay at home for one night and leave Hezhou early the next morning.
But Zeng Huansi had not yet decided whether to return home. Last year, she ignored her family's suggestion to remarry and insisted on following Chang Suining to join the army, which almost broke up with her family. Her biological mother even said that she would just pretend that she had never given birth to such a shameful thing and that she would just be dead from now on, and asked her not to come back to avoid bringing shame to the family.
These words were said in private, and She Cai and Chang Suining didn't know about it, otherwise they wouldn't have suggested that Zeng Huan come back to visit his family.
Zeng Huan has always been a quiet person. She didn't want to mention the family's dirty laundry, nor did she want to reject her master's kindness. Besides... she still missed her family a little.
But she hasn't figured out how to get back, and she's not sure whether her family wants to see her.
After parting with Shepherd's Purse, Zeng Huan first found an inn to stay in, and after settling his horse, he went out into the street.
She was wearing men's robes and her hair was tied up with copper hairpins. Her long military life had made her taller and stronger than before, and her temperament had changed greatly. At this moment, she was walking on a familiar street, and no one could recognize her unless they looked closely.
Chang Suining gave her and She Cai some money for visiting relatives. The money was not cheap, enough for her to buy two rolls of fine cloth for her mother, who loved to wear fine clothes; a pair of jewelry for her sister-in-law, preferably with a few pearls on it; a few boxes of snacks for her nephews and nieces, the snacks from the Zhao family shop in the west of the city were very delicious; and finally, two pots of good wine for her brother, which he loved to drink...
Her family should be happy when she takes these things back, right?
Now that she is following the adults, she has made some progress. I heard that the family is proud of the ladies who came back last time... Will her mother and brother and sister-in-law change their views on her? Zeng Huan was walking on the street, her mood fluctuating, when she suddenly heard a familiar name.
"It's already noon, and Sister-in-law Zeng is only coming out to buy crabs at this time."
"you do not say!"
The reply was all too familiar. Zeng Huan, who hadn't figured out how to meet him yet, almost panicked and hid behind an oil umbrella stall nearby.
"Originally the food was ready, but my grandson insisted on eating crabs... I had no choice but to go out and buy some!" A woman in her forties was holding a few live crabs tied with straw ropes and smilingly answered the woman selling tiger-head shoes.
The two men were obviously familiar with each other. There were no customers in front of the shoe stall at the moment, so they started talking and laughing.
"It's the season for eating crabs, but my family can't afford to buy them, or maybe my sister-in-law's family is rich..."
"What are you talking about! There are only a few of them. If you ask me, they are not very tasty... But the little bully wanted to eat them, so I had to buy them even if I had to tighten my belt!"
"Sister-in-law, don't be so modest with me. Everyone on this street knows that you are lucky to have given birth to a capable daughter!"
When Zeng Huan heard this, he suddenly clenched his fingers and held his breath waiting for his mother's response.
She laughed when she heard the familiar voice: "What's so special about it... I'm just trying to make a living under the governor of Jiangdu!"
Although the tone was humble, there was also unconcealable pride.
Zeng Huan was stunned. So, did her mother approve of her?
Her mother seemed to be very happy that others brought up this topic. She smiled and continued to talk: "...At the beginning, I didn't expect Ah Huan to be so ambitious. At that time, she said she wanted to join the army and follow a little girl. I thought, isn't that nonsense? I was also worried that she would get into trouble...But who knew that the little girl surnamed Chang was so capable, she won battles all the way, became a great figure respected by everyone, and even went to Jiangdu and became a governor! Tell me, how could she be so lucky? I think it must be because the Chang family's ancestral tomb was well buried, and it only produced great generals!"
The shoe-selling woman smiled and said, "Your Ah Huan has also become successful. The soldiers who came back from the army last time all said that Governor Chang was a man of old times and treated them very well! I heard that Ji Heilian's shepherd's purse has become an official and has thousands of people under him... I think your Ah Huan is not much different!"
"How can my Ahuan compare to Ji Heilian's Ahuan? Ahuan is dumb and too honest. He doesn't know how to delve into business and curry favor with others..."
When Zeng Huan heard this, he pulled the corner of his mouth with mixed feelings. His mother always knew nothing, but pretended to know everything and thought she was well versed in the so-called ways of the world.
"Don't worry, your Ah Huan is calm and steady. It's only a matter of time before she becomes a general! But has Ah Huan ever sent a letter?"
"What letter? She can't read. There's no one in our family who can read. Besides, she's busy fighting the Japanese pirates. How can she have the time to write..." The woman holding the blue crab smiled and said, "But I've discussed it with her brother. After the Mid-Autumn Festival next month, we'll go to the army to see her!"
As the woman spoke, she leaned closer to the stall and said, "...Have you heard that there's a college being built in Jiangdu? Many people are trying their best to get in!"
The shoe-selling woman said, "Of course I've heard of it. The scholar from the Jiang family in the alley in front of us left for Jiangdu a few days ago just for that academy!"
"I have discussed this with Shitou's father. I will go back to the army to find Ahuan and ask her to talk to Governor Chang and ask him to send Shitou to study in that academy!" The woman could hardly conceal the boast in her eyes.
"This... is this possible?" The shoe-selling woman said, "I heard it's very difficult to get in. You have to take an exam!"
"Others will certainly take the exam, but Ah Huan works for Governor Chang... When Governor Chang took her away, there were only a few people around him. Governor Chang's current status is also due to Ah Huan's contribution!" The more the woman spoke, the more she could not hide her true nature. She no longer cared about being modest and said in a matter-of-fact tone: "It's just sending a child to school. I think they will agree to this small matter!"
Zeng Huan frowned.
The shoe-selling woman's eyes were full of envy: "It would be amazing if I could really get into that academy!"
"Entering a college is nothing..." The Zeng family's wife was even more excited: "When our Ah Huan becomes more successful, maybe she can help her brother get a job in the governor's mansion."
The shoe-selling woman then began to flatter: "...If my sister-in-law becomes a royal lady, she must not forget us neighbors!"
The woman from the Zeng family was laughing so hard that she couldn't stop, and she kept agreeing. Seeing that she had said too much, she hurriedly picked up the crabs and went home.
Zeng Huan stood there for a long time without moving.
Her mother had not said a single harsh word just now, on the contrary, she was full of pride in her. But for some reason, when she heard that, she felt infinite sadness and hopelessness rising in her heart.
The sadness comes from the fact that the mother never mentioned her difficulties from beginning to end, and when she did mention her, she only boasted without any concern at all.
Hopelessness is a kind of hopelessness where you can see the end of the days ahead at a glance.
Is this the change and recognition she wants? Does her mother care about her as a daughter, or the respect and benefits she can bring to the Zeng family? The answer is clearly in front of her, but she was limited to it before and never thought about it in detail.
The mother wanted Shitou to enter Wuer Academy, and also wanted her lazy brother to enter the governor's mansion... How ignorant and greedy she was.
A voice suddenly appeared in Zeng Huan's mind - this ignorant and greedy entanglement would destroy everything she had fought for her life.
She turned her head to look at the noisy surroundings, her mind in a mess.
There were constant shouting sounds on the street, and she saw a vendor selling candied haws passing by. The scene of herself as a child saying that she wanted to eat candied haws, but her mother turned a deaf ear to her flashed through her mind.
But when my brother said he wanted to eat, my mother suddenly could hear him.
Her voice always seemed to disappear in the wind, never to be heard by her mother.
It was her mother's choice to get married. Even though she was unwilling, she didn't say anything because she knew her mother "couldn't hear".
Even after her husband died, she was unwilling to remarry and wanted to leave with Madam Chang. This time her mother finally heard it, but because her voice was so loud, her mother not only heard it, but also became furious and threw all kinds of vicious words at her, telling her never to come back.
"etc!"
Zeng Huan quickly stepped forward and caught up with the vendor selling candied haws: "Give me a string of candied haws!"
"No, give me two skewers...or give me ten!" She said with tears in her eyes and a smile.
After buying the candied haws, she went to a nearby shop and bought two roast chickens. When she was young, she would drool every time she passed by this shop. Her mother would buy one chicken every month, but the two chicken legs always belonged to her brother. If she even looked at them for a second longer, her mother would stare at her and scold her for being a "gluttonous ghost".
Everything she wanted seemed always shameful, greedy, and not worthy of being shown on the stage.
But adults say that if you want something, you have to fight for it with your own ability. If you can get it, it is their ability, and it is not shameful but an honor!
All this money was earned by her own ability! Instead of buying cloth for her mother, jewelry for her sister-in-law, snacks for her nephew, and wine for her brother to please those "family members" who will never be satisfied and grateful... maybe she should treat herself once.
The person she owes the most is not her mother, but herself.
What she needed most was her own recognition! Zeng Huan took the things she bought back to the inn, put them on the table, and ate while crying until she could no longer eat.
It was the first time for her to eat so much of her favorite food. It didn’t matter what it tasted like originally. What was important was that she satisfied her younger self and made up for the debt. Now she knew what to do in the future.
She had made up her mind that after she returned, she would ask the lord to report her death and take all her rewards as compensation to the Zeng family... and that would be the end of both.
She would never go back to that home. She didn't want to be entangled and destroyed by those people, nor did she want to bring trouble to the adults and the governor's mansion because of her cowardice.
Zeng Huan stood in front of the window of the guest room on the second floor. Seeing a few dogs looking for food in the alley outside, he threw the remaining food out of the window.
The dogs ate their meals contentedly and wagged their tails happily at her.
Zeng Huan burst into laughter and wiped away his tears.
She looked up and looked in the direction of Shepherd's Purse's home. Should Commander Shepherd's Purse be having a reunion dinner with his family? Shepherd's Purse's family was indeed having a reunion, but the table was empty.
But I'm full, if being full of anger can be considered full.
This time shepherd's purse went home by climbing over the wall.
When she came back, she found the gate was bolted from the inside. She knocked a few times but no one answered, so she climbed over the wall and jumped in.
When I entered the yard, I found that the door of the inner room was also bolted. I walked closer and listened, and I could faintly hear the sounds of men and women calling out.
At this point, if she didn't react, she would be a fool. She kicked the door open with two bangs, stepped on the door and strode in. When she saw the naked man and woman entangled on the bed in the room, she said "tsk" and understood, "I said no one answered the door, so you are busy with this matter!"
Men and women screamed, hid, pulled the quilts, and screamed. The chaotic noise was like a big cat entering a rat's nest and stepping on several mice to death.
Shepherd's Purse looked at the frightened man, glanced at his lower body, and made another "tsk" sound. He was having a great time, but after being frightened like this, he was afraid that he would be in trouble from now on.
"You... why did you come back suddenly!" The man pulled his robe to cover his body and finally found his voice.
Shepherd's Purse sneered.
The man nicknamed Ji Hei Lian is her husband.
Shepherd's Purse came back on horseback. When she was near her home, she had already attracted a lot of attention along the way. Her deeds of following Chang Suining in building great achievements had already spread in these streets. Now, when the neighbors heard that she was back to visit her relatives, they came to visit her in groups of three or four.
Unexpectedly, the gate of the courtyard was still closed from the inside, but panicked screams of men and women were heard coming out.
Everyone had different looks on their faces when the courtyard door was suddenly opened from the inside. Shepherd's Purse's enthusiastic face appeared and she greeted them, "You're all here. Don't stand outside. Come inside and talk!"
Everyone didn't know how to react, but no one wanted to refuse this kind of excitement.
Soon the small courtyard was crowded with people. Looking at the couple who hurriedly put on their clothes and stood awkwardly in the hall, an older woman sighed and whispered to Shepherd's Purse, who was sitting on a bench in the hall drinking tea, "...it's not a big deal anyway, and it's not your family that will suffer the loss...you've finally come back, and it's not worth it to get angry over this kind of thing."
Shepherd's Purse put down the empty tea bowl: "Sister-in-law is right."
Seeing her reaction, others also started to persuade her.
Ji Heimian had calmed down by now. He saw that his usually tough wife was much more tolerant than before. She didn't smash, make a scene, or scold him. He thought, maybe she has become more stable, has a higher status, and knows how to cherish her face? Maybe she also knows that she owes something to this family?
Thinking of this, and with so many young and old men staring at him, Ji Heimian said in a tone of 'I am also considering this family': "...I wanted to tell you this originally, but I just didn't find the opportunity. You are not at home all day, so why not let Fangniang be a concubine, so that she can help us take care of the family and the two children. In this way, you can take care of the outside world and she can take care of the inside world, and you can be at ease fighting outside. Isn't it the best of both worlds?"
Thank you all for your monthly tickets, rewards, and comments~ (Before the battle with the Japanese army, I finished writing the background of the two female portraits at home. She Cai and Zeng Huan will be important arms around Ning Ning in the future, but considering that the plot is not very related to the main line, the title will point it out. Good night (
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