Ma Xiaomi glanced at Ma Xiaodou with disdain, "Do you know that she likes you, so you're starting to like her a little bit too?"
"I didn't!" Ma Xiaodou straightened his back and retorted loudly.
"Okay, stop talking nonsense. You are so young, how can you be so stable?" Tian stopped them from talking about it. "Watch the little soldiers on the road, don't let them crawl around, or they might fall." After that, she lifted the curtain of the car and got out.
Ma Fuquan glanced at her, pulled the reins, slowed down the car, and said, "The car is going too fast and the wind is strong outside. What are you doing sitting out? Hurry up and get in. You'll suffer if you get a headache later."
"Isn't it that the wind has eyes when it blows? It only blows me, not you. If you're not afraid, why should I be afraid? I'll sit with you for a while. Once we're out of town and at the riverbank, we'll get on the boat. Do you think this little bit of wind can make me sick? Am I that delicate?"
"How can a woman like you compare to a man? I have thick skin and strong flesh, so I can withstand the wind."
"Sister Jian is also a girl. You used to take care of her like this, right?" Tian lowered her voice and moved closer to him.
"That's different. She has been trained, but it is certain that she will be taken care of by a female comrade. What, do you have any objections?" Ma Fuquan also lowered his voice and stretched out his right hand to pat her on the back of the head.
"Look at what you said. What do I have against my sister? I'm just chatting with you and asking you a question. What's the matter? I'm not proud of my man being an official over there? Only officials have the right to take care of the people below. I'm happy."
Ma Fuquan straightened his back and said, "It's not wrong to call him an official. He is an official no matter how big or small."
Tian glared at him, "What a moral!"
Ma Fuquan laughed and flicked the whip lightly, then sped up the carriage towards the city gate in front.
In the yamen, Yuechan was chopping hay behind the kitchen. Qinglian and Jian Ning finished cleaning up the guest room. Jian Ning went to Duan Xinyan's room to see Xiao Chuntian. She picked up the clothes that Da Niu and the other two had changed out of in a wooden basin, and then went to Dabao's room for a while.
Dabao's clothes were washed by Tian and Yue'e. She went in to get Dabao's changed clothes. Dabao didn't bother to be polite with her. She took the basin and held it against her waist and went to the kitchen.
She put down the basin and was about to draw water from the well when Yuechan came over and said, "I'll do it." He helped her draw two buckets of water and poured them into the basin, then went to chop hay without saying a word.
"Brother, I heard from Madam that you have a sister. Are you from the Ganao tribe?" Qinglian was scrubbing clothes with soap nuts. She was usually not a talkative person, but she asked because Yuechan had just helped her.
"When did Madam tell you that?" Yuechan's heart warmed when she heard Jian Ning mention him. She blurted out the question, but then felt it was inappropriate. She quickly said "hmm" and said, "Yes."
"I am a Shanbei."
The Ganao tribe is located within the territory of Yue Kingdom, and Shanbei Kingdom has now become a city of Yue Kingdom. The two are from the same place, so they feel a sense of intimacy with each other.
"I know Shanbei. I went there with my father when I was young."
"real?"
The two quiet people actually started chatting together, and the more they talked, the more interesting their conversation became. Jian Ning came to the kitchen to make steamed egg custard for Xiao Chuntian. She heard them talking in the back and came out to see, "Oh, why are you helping them wash clothes? Don't wash them for the second time. I'll do this myself."
"I'm free anyway, I'll clean it up."
"I'm not worried that you can't wash clean enough, so you don't have to look for work all day. You see, you haven't been idle since you came here, and it makes me feel bad."
Qinglian smiled, lowered her head and rubbed her clothes, and said no more.
Yuechan was also busy chopping grass and was silent.
Jane Ning was very curious about what they were talking about just now. It sounded like they were having a good chat. She went back to the kitchen and glanced outside again.
For the next two days, Jian Ning ran into the two of them talking together several times. What was going on? Could there be something going on between them?
"Does Brother Tong really care about Qinglian?" Jian Ning asked Ding Youtian at night.
"Why are you asking about this all of a sudden?" Ding Youtian looked away from his book, glanced at her, and said, "I'll ask Brother Tong tomorrow if you want to mediate between the two of them."
"I'm just worried I'll mess up the relationship." Jian Ning told him what she saw. "I think they get along pretty well. You can't force feelings. Ask Brother Tong tomorrow. If he doesn't have that kind of feelings for Qinglian, why not let Qinglian go to the capital with you? She doesn't seem comfortable here. She can keep Yue'e company in the capital, and maybe she'll be happier."
"Okay, I'll ask Brother Tong tomorrow."
The next day, Ding Youtian asked Tong Bajin, and he did not hide anything and told the truth. His son drowned in his own water tank, and his wife ran away with another man but they did not divorce, and he did not divorce her. Before he found his wife and divorced her, he had no intention of remarrying.
After listening to Ding Youtian's message about Tong Bajin, Jian Ning called Qinglian to her room. "Sister Tian told me the other day that she wanted you to go to the capital to help her brew wine. This work is tiring to do all day, and your arms will hurt if you're not used to it. I wonder if you're willing to go? If you are, go with Brother Yuechan and Bao'er Shu'er in a few days. If you don't want to go, just follow me. It's all up to you."
Seeing Qinglian's expression seemed a little sudden and unprepared, Jian Ning said again: "You don't have to rush to make a decision. There are still a few days left. Think it over carefully and tell me. If you are willing to follow me, I will find a good family for you to marry in the future. The same goes for going to the capital. Sister Tian will also help you arrange it."
Qinglian blushed when she heard her talking about getting married. Jian Ning knew what was going on when she saw her like this. How could a girl blush so easily unless she had someone she loved?
She smiled and said, "Men should get married when they are old enough, and women should get married when they are old enough. There is no need to be ashamed. You won't be asked to work for nothing in the capital. Sister Tian will pay you for your work. If you follow me, I won't pay you for your work. I will just wait for you to get married in the future and give you a dowry."
"Madam..." Qinglian lowered her eyes, her ears turning red with embarrassment.
Three days later, Jian Ning received a message from Ma Fuquan, asking Yuechan to send Dabao and Da Niu to Dingxian Village, as they were planning to return to Beijing.
Jian Ning asked Qinglian again, but she lowered her head and said in a voice as soft as a mosquito, "It's up to Madam to decide."
"It's not up to me to decide. You are not a maid in my house, and I have never treated you as a maid. Ask your own heart. If you are willing to go, nod your head. If you don't want to go, shake your head."
Qinglian turned her head and nodded slightly.
"Then you're willing to go." Jian Ning pulled her hand. "You've gotten acquainted with Sister Tian. She's very easy to get along with. The same goes for Sister Yue'e. You'll feel much more comfortable there. Get up early tomorrow, pack your things, have breakfast, and then we'll leave."
The first girl had been living in the same room with the second and third girls for a few days since she came back. Today she slept in the same bed with the second girl, and tomorrow she would sleep in the same bed with the third girl. The night before she left, she hugged Jian Ning and said, "Mom, can you sleep in the same room with us tonight? I'll sleep in one bed with you, and the second and third sisters will sleep in another, okay?"
"Okay, then Baoer will sleep in the same bed with your dad at night, is that okay?" Jian Ning turned around and asked Dabao with a smile.
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