Ding Youtian loved listening to Liu the Blind's stories since he was a child. He didn't understand in the past that good is good and bad is bad. As he grew older, he gradually understood that it is not so simple to define whether a person is good or bad.
Once you are in officialdom, you have no choice.
Although he was a commoner, as his knowledge expanded, he also realized that many people had no choice but to follow the crowd. As long as they did not use any means to harm the interests of others, they could not be roughly defined as bad people.
So, even though he despised Lord Fang's behavior, he didn't want to gossip about him behind his back. So, he shook his head and said, "It's not that we're unhappy, it's just that we don't get along. Why don't you come back and teach Bao'er?"
Jian Ning was not used to dealing with officials, so she understood what he said. "It's good that you're back. Help me cook. After we eat, you can help Bao'er with his homework."
While cooking, Jian Ning asked what his plans were for Qin Yifan and Sanniang. He replied that as long as Dabao was feeling better, there would be nothing wrong with going there to celebrate the New Year and letting the children go out and see the world.
While they were cooking, the two happily finalized the deal. Since time was tight, they could only go by boat. After dinner, Jian Ning wanted to send Mr. Ding San to the town to ask in advance if the boat was operating normally.
If everyone is on holiday, it is better to spend a little more money in advance to book a boat.
Later, considering that it was rare for opera performances to come to the village, Tian, Chang, Cui Gu, and Ding Sanye and his son were all a little impatient. She changed her mind and decided it wouldn't be too late to ask tomorrow. After dinner, she announced a half-hour break so that everyone could go watch the opera, and she followed suit.
Not long after Jian Ning led them there, Lao Liu Ding came rushing over. He had taken leave specifically for Lao Wu Ding's benefit.
Huo Jincheng had already written a letter yesterday morning, having Huo Ye deliver it, regarding the suspected murder of Prince Zhao by Feng Qingzi. The Crown Prince would report this to the Emperor upon receiving it. We wouldn't make this news public until word arrived from the capital, but truth always spread, and overnight, the rumor had spread like wildfire.
Although the rumors were somewhat distorted, Feng Qingzi was said to be a man with three heads and six arms, but the portrait of him after he possessed Lao Wu was somehow spread out and was posted everywhere in the streets and alleys of Jin County, which also boosted the business of teahouses that told stories about Journey to the West.
After all, they were brothers who grew up together. As the youngest brother, Lao Liu was not given much care by Lao Wu, but he never gave him any trouble. When Lao Liu was young and was bullied, Lao Wu would fight back if he saw it!
"Fourth brother, something big has happened. Fifth brother..."
When Lao Liu came in, Ding Youtian was teaching Da Bao. He mentioned the matter right away. Ding Youtian quickly made a gesture to silence him, "Bao Er, take a break. Daddy has something to say to your uncle. We'll continue later."
"Why didn't Dabao go to school today?" Lao Liu just noticed that Dabao was lying in bed. "Is he sick? Is he serious?"
"Let's talk in that room." Ding Youtian led him to the main room and recounted what had happened. "In short, Lao Wu is gone. If he hadn't gone to my master to steal the black box, he wouldn't have lost his life in vain!"
Ding Youtian only heard about the black box last night when he brought food to Blind Liu. As for Old Five and Lu's bodies, they were likely thrown into Feng Qingzi's alchemy furnace and dissolved.
"They are both gone. They probably don't know about it yet. It's almost the New Year, so don't mention it for now. There will be news from the capital after the New Year. When this matter spreads, someone from the government will come to report it."
The sixth brother lowered his head, thinking about the fifth brother's children. What would they do in the future? Although they wouldn't starve to death, he knew the character of their parents. Those children were in dire straits.
…
Jian Ning and the others came back after watching the show for half an hour. Xiao Si also brought Qiao Feng and the others back. The kids were dressed brand new from head to toe.
"Mom! This was bought for us by Grandfather."
"Grandpa said that it's New Year's Eve, so we need to wear new clothes, including new clothes for our older brothers and sisters."
Erniu and Sanniu couldn't wait to report to Jian Ning.
"These materials aren't cheap, are they?" Tian looked at the new clothes on her three children and said with a tut, "You guys went out for a free meal and got new clothes back. You're really ignorant. How can you let others spend so much money for nothing?"
"Mine were given to me by my senior brother! Junior Sister Qiaofeng's were also given by me." Ma Xiaomai said, "Originally, my senior brother said that since the New Year was coming, he wanted to buy Junior Sister Qiaofeng and me new clothes as a token of his appreciation as the eldest senior brother. Then, Grandfather was also there, and he said that he couldn't let us call him Grandfather for nothing, as all the clothes we wore were bought with the money he gave us."
He pointed at his two younger brothers and Erniu and Sanniu, "And Dabao and Daniu's too."
Tian said, "Since these are gifts for you to wear during the New Year, take them off now. Don't let you ruin them before the New Year."
When Ma Xiaodou heard this, he was the first to run away.
As soon as he ran away, Ma Xiaomai and Ma Xiaomi ran away too. Ma Xiaomai just didn't want to help his mother pull the bellows to brew wine, so the three brothers ran to the ancestral hall to watch a play.
"Oh, these three enemies really make me angry!" Tian was very upset that she did not guard against them at the first time. She kept lamenting that it was a pity to waste those nice clothes. They would be turned into mud monkeys without waiting for Ma Fuquan to come back.
"Okay, how many kids don't like wearing new clothes?" Chang said, "They just put them on, if you ask them to take them off, they'll definitely run away."
"They don't deserve to wear nice clothes. They're barely worthy of wearing sacks. I'll see if their father will skin them alive when he gets back!"
"You peel the skin off and make a lantern?"
"screw you!"
Tian was amused by Chang's words. Chang smiled on the surface, but sighed inwardly. If Ding Pingshun hadn't been so ungrateful, their family would have been better off now, and the children would have been able to wear new clothes during the New Year.
Life was tough for now, but she could bear it. As long as one worked hard, debts would eventually be repaid. What worried her was Ding Pingshun, who had been devastated after the Sanniang incident. Boss Zhang in town no longer bought their vegetables, and he had no interest in tending his vegetable patch. When asked to carry sand from the river, he said he was too embarrassed to see anyone and refused to go no matter what.
Ding Pingshun became a real drunkard, staying at home all day with a bottle of wine, living a life of drunkenness and dreams, and even developed the habit of beating his children.
Chang felt ashamed and covered her face and refused to tell anyone. She had given up on him in her heart. This woman married the wrong man and would suffer hardships all her life.
She only blames herself for having a miserable life!
Tian Shi didn't miss the fleeting flash of sadness in her eyes. Her home wasn't far from Chang Shi's, so she occasionally heard gossip. She wanted to help Chang Shi. Her second brother had gone to the capital to escort wine for Huo Jincheng and should be home in the next two days.
After the New Year, Ma Fuquan invested money and planned to open a security company in partnership with Tian's second brother. Tian was thinking of letting Ding Pingshun work as a handyman in the security company, but she was a little worried that Ding Pingshun would be a bad apple and mess things up.
Maybe the one who offered a hand didn't, and she felt bad. After thinking it over, she decided to wait for Ma Fuquan to come back in the evening and discuss it with him before making a decision.
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