Jian Ning came out of Sanniang's shop and saw Ding Pingshun peeking in front of the carriage she was driving to. She quietly walked over and suddenly asked from behind him, "Brother Pingshun, what are you looking at?"
Ding Pingshun seemed startled when he saw it. He turned around and said with a wry smile, "No, I didn't see anything. I was just startled."
Jian Ning half-jokingly said, "Oh, I'm sorry I scared you. But if you don't do anything wrong, you don't have to worry about ghosts knocking on your door in the middle of the night. Isn't that true?"
"Yes, that's right. Where are you from?" He said as he glanced at Sanniang's shop, his expression rather unnatural.
"I came to town to do some shopping and visited Sanniang. I'll go to Puren Hall for a quick stroll and then I'll be back. You can go about your business."
"Hey, there are quite a lot of customers in the bookstore today. I'll get busy now."
"Oh wait."
Jian Ning stopped him again, "Running a shop and doing business should be done in harmony. If you get along well with your neighbors, then you should interact more. If you don't, then you shouldn't interact at all. Don't confront people. You'll see them everywhere. It's not good to have a bad relationship. Distant relatives are not as good as close neighbors, don't you think?"
"Oh, yes." Ding Pingshun's face turned red and white, and he was very annoyed. He cooked for the kids every day and Jian Ning didn't pay him wages, but Jian Ning paid for the rice, diesel, soy sauce and vinegar.
He and his son also eat here.
In addition, he also received dividends from helping Blind Liu entertain customers in the bookstore, and occasionally received tips.
However, he didn't think Jian Ning had the right to scold him. After all, he was Ding Youtian's elder brother. He held his grudge against Lu Huaian and Sanniang.
He believed that it was Sanniang who said bad things about him in front of Jian Ning.
Jian Ning originally didn't want to tell him these things, but just now she thought of Sanniang who was too worried during her confinement, so she couldn't help but say a few words.
She didn't think what she said was excessive. She was doing it for the sake of Chang's face. Otherwise, it would only sound worse if she said it out loud.
"Master, how come you have time to come here today?"
When Jian Ning walked into Puren Hall, Yang Jinyu was talking to the shopkeeper in the lobby. She was very surprised to see Jian Ning and hurriedly invited her into the inner room, "It's so cold, come and sit by the brazier."
"I came to town to do some shopping and brought you some medicine." She gave him the eye drops and some regular medicines that she saved every day.
She packed all the regular medicines in a separate cloth bag, but the eye drops were difficult to change. However, she tore off all the labels and asked Ding Youtian to mark the medicine name, function, dosage, etc.
"Oh, that's great! Last time, Master gave Grandpa some eye drops, and he said they were great. I was thinking of asking Master for some when I go to study with him in a couple of days, but Master actually delivered them to me personally today. That's really great."
"I told my grandfather to go. He's in the backyard looking at the herbs. I'll be right there."
He turned around and was about to leave excitedly, but Jian Ning stopped him, "You go ahead and do your thing. I'm leaving now. I still have to go do some shopping. You can always come find me when you're free."
"Master, do you need to buy something? I'll go with you."
"No, it's for daily use at home. I'll go shopping by myself."
Jian Ning came out of Pu Ren Hall and went to "Yu Xiang Tang", a shop specializing in all kinds of jewelry pendants. She wanted to pair the doll she made with a jade pendant to make it into a pendant, and then give it to Ding Youtian in a beautiful box as a birthday gift for him.
She found a dark crescent-shaped piece of jade among a pile of jades in Yuxiangtang. The jade looked very inconspicuous among the dazzling jades, and she didn't know why she fell in love with it at first sight.
The shop owner saw that she had a good temperament and although her clothes were not fancy, the fabrics were of high quality. He thought she was a low-key big customer, but she picked the most inconspicuous jade. The shop owner's eyes dimmed.
"If you like this, I'll give it to you for fifty cents."
The tone was also light.
"Okay, punch a hole in it, add a tassel, and make a pendant for me with this doll."
The shop owner glanced at her casually and noticed that the doll's attire was a little strange. He picked it up and took a look. "Is this something from the Western Regions? It doesn't look very similar. It's a little weird."
"Maybe. I don't know. I bought it."
The shop owner looked at Jian Ning, then at the doll, "You know what, it looks quite like the young lady."
It was made according to her own photo, of course it looked like her. Jane Ning smiled and picked out a jewelry box. She paid fifty cents first, went to other shops and picked out a winter coat for Da Niu and the others. Then she came back to pick up the finished pendants. The more she looked at them, the more she liked them. The colors of the tassels matched well.
After paying the rest of the money, she put the pendant into the jewelry box, and then put it back into Baicaojian after she came out. On the way back, she couldn't help but take it out and look at it again. As she looked at it, a strange feeling arose in her heart, as if she had seen this jade many years ago. She didn't know whether this was her own feeling or that of the original Xiu Gu.
After traveling through time for a long time, the soul and the spirit have been in the body for a long time, and it seems that they have become one.
The next day, Ding Youtian got up in the morning and saw the jewelry box beside the bed. After opening it, the corners of his lips curled up slightly.
Ever since that night when Jian Ning promised him success in the imperial examination and their wedding night together, he had always refrained from asking her about the whereabouts of the doll, but he had never forgotten it in his heart for a single moment.
He had also secretly hoped that Jane Ning would surprise him on his birthday and give him this doll. Now that his wish had come true, he felt refreshed and the weather didn't seem so cold anymore.
Ding Youtian put on the clothes that Jian Ning had prepared for him, including new shoes and socks. He put on the doll pendant and the purse that Xiu Gu had made for him around his waist. When he opened the door and came out, he looked down again, and the smile in his eyes could not be concealed.
When he entered the dining hall, a surprise awaited him. A large cake sat on the table. Jane Ning had kneaded the flour before bed the previous night and left it to rise overnight by the stove. Because flour was ground on millstones in ancient times, the bran couldn't be removed, so the cake, while fluffy, was dark in color. Jane Ning had even beaten several eggs into it.
But the cake tasted good. Jane Ning had also learned to make various kinds of pastries, and she made them in a very realistic way. She also taught Dabao and Da Niu to sing the birthday song in advance. When Ding Youtian came in, Jane Ning nodded, and they clapped their hands and sang the birthday song loudly.
Ding Youtian was still laughing, and his eyes became moist as he laughed.
This was the first time in his life that he had a proper birthday. As far as he could remember, his first and only birthday was when he turned eight. That morning, he opened his eyes and saw Xiu Gu, one hand hidden behind her back, approaching his bedside. She stretched out her hand and spread it out before him. He leaned over to see a hard-boiled egg in its shell resting in her palm.
However, they were reported by Lao Wu that day, and both he and Xiu Gu were beaten up by Meng. The egg was picked up and hidden by Xiu Gu secretly in the chicken coop.
The eggs at home were saved to be sold for money. From then on, Xiu Gu never dared to hide eggs again, and he never celebrated his birthday again.
"Hurry up and blow out the candles and make a wish!" Jane Ning said with a smile.
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