19 Entering the Mansion Again
◎The surroundings are dominated by a cold air◎
Zhuang Xueling was sitting alone in the pavilion, saying she was enjoying the scenery, but her mind was actually elsewhere.
She placed her hand lightly on the dessert, not touching a single piece.
Therefore, when her eyes swept across the spring scenery by the pond and fell on Tian Nongxi, she was a little dazed.
But she soon calmed down.
She was a poor child from a poor husband's family. All the male members of the family were at the manor house. Even the fish in the pond could guess what she was here for.
Zhuang Xueling didn't have any opinion about this niece. In short, she ignored her, just like the Tian family did.
An ordinary little girl, the only thing that was slightly interesting about her was her face. Even pinching her in the hand to amuse her was boring.
Not to mention wasting time doing something else?
Zhuang Xueling casually picked up a piece of dessert and sipped it while watching the figure getting closer and closer.
It was not until Tian Nongxi stepped into the pavilion that she said "Hmm?" as if she was suddenly awakened.
"Sit down, Second Mother."
His mouth was curled up, but there was no deep smile in his eyes.
Tian Nongxi saw it, but he still sat down without hesitation.
There was a heavy weight pressing on her mind, and the strings were shaky.
On the way here, I was still trying to recall what kind of personality this second aunt had.
Unfortunately, Zhuang Xueling and the Tian family did not interact often, and Tian Erniang was extremely shy. When the whole family went to visit the Zhuang family, she would stay at home alone.
Therefore, Tian Erniang only saw Zhuang Xueling briefly a few times during the Chinese New Year.
My impression of her can be described in two words - indifferent.
My second aunt, who stayed out of everything that happened in the Tian family, probably never felt that she had any connection with this poor family.
Tian Erniang had never been envious, as no one taught her anything other than work.
Tian Nongxi greeted Zhuang Xueling with a smile. She was a very proud person and wore silk and green jade even at home.
The bright sunlight fell on her just right, making her look radiant.
Tian Nongxi, who had neither money nor love in either world, looked at the exquisite snacks on the table with his eyes lowered, and some indescribable emotions arose in his heart.
She poured herself a cup of tea, calmed down her emotions, and before Zhuang Xueling could ask, she said, "Second aunt, I'm here to see Xiaozu and Grandpa."
"Little Ancestor?" Zhuang Xueling smiled slightly. "There's no one in the Zhuang family with that name."
Tian Nongxi understood and asked, "Is he yelling now?"
"Jiaci." Zhuang Xueling said, "Zhuang Jiaci."
Tian Nong Le had read some books, but his mind was still not clear. He spent several days choosing a gift.
Jia is the generational title of the Zhuang family, and Ci is the gift from God.
There are no more new bankers. Borrowing the seeds from his Tian family is like replacing a cat with a prince. This is a blessing.
Zhuang Xueling remained silent.
She didn't understand the Zhuang family's anxiety, she just felt that neither Tian Yaozu nor Zhuang Jiaci were members of the Zhuang family.
Tian Nongxi nodded, she didn't care.
But just as he was about to speak, he suddenly changed the subject and somehow pulled the two of them out as shields.
Zhuang Xueling said, "He didn't want to, and his crying was annoying. Your second uncle sent him to the ancestral hall."
Tian Nongxi swallowed the laughter that was about to burst out of his throat, frowned, and looked disapproving.
She instinctively started acting, but then she remembered the reason why she came there. She didn't know what to do for a moment, and the smile she had just suppressed surfaced again.
Zhuang Xueling was a little wary of her expression, which was neither laughing nor crying. She looked her niece up and down and asked, "What happened?"
"Nothing, just..."
Zhuang Xueling didn't want to listen, so she interrupted, "The doctor at the mansion has prepared some good prescriptions and the medicine is ready. Please bring them to mother when you return."
Tian Nongxi had just sat down when he started talking about "going back", and his intention to drive the guests away was obvious in his words.
"Okay." Tian Nongxi was hesitating, and the ten-level gale in his heart kept blowing, and at this moment it blew towards him without saying anything.
Fu Lian was called out and took Tian Nongxi to get medicine.
She stood up obediently, but paused after leaving the pavilion.
"Miss Tian?" Fu Lian had no good feelings towards the Tian family, so naturally her tone was unpleasant. She said stiffly, "The road is this way."
The girl, who had been lost in thought, suddenly looked determined. She raised her eyes and smiled at her, then turned around and went back into the pavilion.
Zhuang Xueling frowned slightly and looked at this unfamiliar niece.
"There's something." Tian Nongxi was a little embarrassed to speak, not knowing where to begin, so he just said without thinking, "Second Uncle..."
…
/
A horse-drawn carriage was moving at a leisurely pace, so slow that passersby looked sideways.
It happened to be side by side with Tian Nongxi who was pushing the cart.
Tian Nongxi just kept walking with his head down, replaying Zhuang Xueling's every move in his mind.
The next second, the breeze spoke in a gentle voice.
The sound was very familiar. Almost at the same second, the body could not help but track the source of the sound.
——In the carriage.
Tian Nongxi suddenly looked up at the carriage without even reacting.
The wind slipped into the carriage, lifting a small piece of plain curtain.
From Tian Nongxi's perspective, he could only see a small part of the thin profile.
The pedestrians in front gave way to the two cars, and the driver whipped the horse to speed up.
The horse's hooves clattered, but not a speck of dust was raised.
When I left the street, the girl I had just walked side by side with had disappeared.
Tian Nongxi pushed the cart home, feeling that eating so much every day these days was not in vain.
I feel a little better now, so I'm not too tired pushing the heavy cart by myself.
It was not yet completely dark when she pushed the cart home.
It was dinner time, and the alley was bustling with people, making the Tian family and the Qi family next door seem especially quiet.
The already dilapidated threshold of the house was chopped off by Tian Nongxi with a knife because she needed to push the cart. She easily pushed the cart into the yard.
The house was pitch black, with only the bright moonlight and swaying shadows of the trees.
Tian Nongxi moved all the things on the cart into the room, and the noise of bumps and bruises interrupted the silence.
Huang heard the noise and walked out of the main house, holding the door with one hand. The smell of medicine on her body drifted into Tian Nongxi's nose.
She pulled herself away from her things, looked up and called out "Grandma".
Grandma Tian walked over to help and happened to pick up the medicine given by Zhuang Xueling.
There were five large bags of medicine tied together with a rope.
"This is a gift from my second aunt." Seeing these medicines again, Tian Nongxi was a little annoyed and didn't want to say much.
Tian Nai immediately took it and asked, "Did you go to your second uncle's place?"
Tian Nongxi responded with a "hmm" and bent down to carry the newly bought gift into the room.
"Have you seen Xiaozu? Is your second aunt treating him well?"
"I see." Tian Nongxi clapped his hands and stood at the door looking at the last big thing. "It's pretty good."
He was only asked to kneel in the ancestral hall, but he was not made the one being kneeled in the hall.
Grandma Tian was still worried. Thinking of the rumors she heard in the village today, her wrinkled face wrinkled into a ball.
After a while, he murmured: "It's good to live well, it's good to live well, I'm old, and you can scold me for a handful of soil in the future, as long as the little ancestor is well."
She hadn't been back for a while, and only when she went out today did she find out that the matter had spread in the village. Those who used to know her looked at her differently.
Tian Nongxi did not comment. He used his half-rolled-up sleeves to exert some strength, preparing to lift the wooden box out of the kitchen by himself.
The wooden box is not big, but it contains dozens of wooden food boxes, so it naturally takes some effort.
If it was Tian Nongxi's own body, she would be confident that she could lift it up easily, and even carry it around in a circle to show off in front of her senior brothers and sisters.
Tian Nongxi clasped his hands tightly around the iron rings on both sides of the wooden box, trying to weigh it.
Almost at the same second, the surroundings were dominated by a cold air.
Tian Nongxi thought that Grandma Tian was helping her and didn't want to trouble the old woman, so she subconsciously used some strength to snatch the wooden box back, but stopped abruptly when her eyes met the person who came.
This wooden box is quite old, and the iron rings on both sides are extremely small, barely enough for one person to pull it.
Lin Luan lowered his head, and his fingertips accidentally brushed against Tian Nongxi's knuckles.
In just half a second, he took the wooden box.
He didn't ask and went straight to the kitchen.
Tian Nongxi wanted to follow but was interrupted by Tian Nai's words.
"When will your grandpa come back?"
"I don't know." Tian Nongxi didn't lie and told the truth, "I didn't see Grandpa."
Grandma Tian didn't say anything else and sighed.
Lin Luan had already come out, but Tian Nongxi walked into the kitchen on his own.
As expected, Grandma Tian was depressed and did not cook.
Tian Nongxi opened the wooden box in the moonlight, bent down and took out the food for tomorrow, counted the portions and kept one portion.
She had just put the chopping board away when Lin Luan came in carrying a candlestick.
The surroundings suddenly became bright, and Tian Nongxi subconsciously looked for the source of the light.
Seeing her looking over, Lin Luan said, "I bought it on the way back." The Tian family was poor and reluctant to part with the candlelight.
"How much? I'll give it to you."
“…I forgot.”
The candlestick was gently placed on the stove. One person was picking vegetables while the other was washing them, chatting idly.
Most of the time, Tian Nongxi was talking and Lin Luan was listening.
Due to her personality, she doesn't talk much and is more used to thinking in her heart than chatting with others.
Perhaps she had too many things on her mind today and there was no room left for Tian Nongxi in her mind. She didn't want to think about anything else and just said whatever she thought of.
Before Lin Luan could figure out the answer to the previous question, Tian Nongxi had already started the next topic.
As they talked, he finally realized that she just needed to listen and not respond.
"Can I boil some corn and steam an egg?"
"Okay." He came back in a hurry and did not pass by Linqing Pavilion.
"After eating, go and pound camphor, then wash up and go to bed."
"Okay." Wenxun was on the roof.
…
"I have a friend..." Tian Nongxi said, "Her friend's husband is having an affair. Shouldn't my friend meddle in other people's business?"
"good."
“…” Lin Luan knew where Tian Nongxi had gone, but he didn’t expect her to mention it on her own initiative.
The secret hidden in the night was easily revealed. For a moment, the only sound left in the already quiet kitchen was the dripping sound of water droplets sliding down the corn.
After a while, Lin Luan's Adam's apple rolled and he said, "You did nothing wrong."
"He's my friend."
"Your...friend did nothing wrong."
Tian Nongxi glanced at Lin Luan and put the beaten eggs into the pot.
The steam built a shivering barrier between the two of them, and the heat made Tian Nongxi unable to open his eyes.
She hurried out of the kitchen and informed her grandmother in the courtyard, "Dinner is ready."
"You guys eat." Grandma Tian was busy decocting medicine and didn't even raise her head.
Tian Nongxi didn't force it. He went back to the kitchen, got the dishes, and walked towards the stone table.
As soon as the two sat down, there were several unhurried knocks on the door.
"Dong-dong-dong-dong"
Tian Nongxi put down his chopsticks and asked, "Who?"
"Sister Erniang, it's me." A vague voice came through the door, "Heng'an."
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