Yue Nu smelled the fragrance, jumped out and circled around Xu Jiang's feet, almost stepping on it several times.
Xu Jiang picked some meat and put it into its bowl. Before it could take a bite, Uncle Jackal pushed the meat away with his nose, and then gave it a cat punch in anger.
After finally providing food for the cat and dog, Xu Jiang packed up her money, land deeds, and some important registers and documents, sealed them in boxes, and loaded them onto a carriage to take back to her house to prevent theft. She also selected a piece of wood, a set of carving knives, and Xu Yuan's portrait to take with her to pass the long night.
Before closing, several people carefully checked the door bolt, and asked Uncle Jackal, who was gnawing on a bone, to keep an eye on the yard. Then they locked the door, said goodbye to the shopkeeper Wang next door, and left together.
Clouds rose in a golden glow, illuminating the capital like a dream. Lou Yunchun and his companions, who had just passed Yunyang, were caught in a heavy rain and were stopped at the official post station.
Lou Yunchun stood under the eaves of the post station, staring at the white beads in the sky in a trance.
"Sir, are you still leaving?" The question from his subordinates brought him back to his senses.
"Let's rest here tonight and set off early tomorrow morning." Tomorrow they will be able to completely leave the capital and head to Binzhou.
Upon hearing this, the subordinates settled the horses and asked the post officer to arrange rooms.
After a day of running around, and it being the first day of travel, everyone was a little tired, so they asked the postman to prepare some food and went back to their rooms early to rest.
Lou Yunchun tried some of the soup and rice at the post station, but he always felt that they were not to his taste, so he ate a few of the brown sugar steamed buns and glutinous rice cakes prepared for him by Xu Jiang, but he did not dare to eat more, fearing that they would be gone after he ate them. In the end, he still forced himself to eat most of the soup and rice made by the post station.
After using it, he returned to his room, washed up simply, and lay down on the bed tiredly. He stared at the mosquito net for a long time, but couldn't fall asleep.
Finally, he took out a waist badge from his bosom, rubbed the two words "Zhan Chun" engraved on it for a long time, and then slowly closed his eyes.
Xu Jiang returned to the Lou residence and first moved all her things back to her room. After washing and changing her clothes, she was about to go and pay her respects to Madam Lou when she heard the maid from her yard come and tell her to go to have dinner together.
People in high-rise buildings usually have dinner at the hour of You, and it will be delayed half an hour in summer to avoid the evening heat.
Dinner was served in the side hall, just for Madam Lou and Xu Jiang. Lou Jing was entertaining guests today, so they weren't eating in the inner courtyard. It just so happened that Xu Jiang had bought some cakes in the West Market, so she packed them up and brought them over to eat with Madam Lou.
When they arrived at the side hall, Yin Yin lifted the curtain for her. The table was already set out, with two meat dishes and two vegetable dishes, a bowl of soup, and the cold bean powder and water chestnut cake brought back by Xu Jiang, which made up a small feast.
The meat dishes were Xu Jiang's favorite fried willow branches and roasted lamb, which surprised her a little.
Seeing her staring intently, Liu Mei smiled and said, "I heard that Madam Xu likes these two dishes, so Madam specially sent someone to buy them from Baishiyi in Taixianfang. I heard from the servant that these dishes were so popular that he almost didn't get them."
No matter who said it, they all knew it in their hearts. Xu Jiang felt soft-hearted, wondering why he still cared about such trivial matters.
Mrs. Lou pulled her to sit down and said, "Eat quickly. The fried food will lose its flavor if it gets soft."
"Okay." Xu Jiang leaned close to her affectionately, unconsciously revealing a look of attachment.
Mrs. Lou set the table and served her a piece of fish.
Xu Jiang handed her a piece of cold bean powder and said, "Try this too. It's light and won't spoil your appetite."
Mrs. Lou picked up the food with another pair of chopsticks and tasted it, "It's delicious." Since Lou Yunchun left, Mrs. Lou started fasting again and didn't touch meat.
Xu Jiang smiled with satisfaction, then picked up the fried willow branches and roasted lamb and started eating.
After the meal, Xu Jiang said to Madam Lou, "Aunt, you are fasting. You don't need to prepare any meat dishes for me. I will eat with you just to cleanse your internal organs."
Madam Lou touched her face and said softly, "You are too thin, and you work so hard every day. You should eat more meat."
Xu Jiang rubbed her palm, narrowed his eyes and smiled, "Don't worry, I ate a lot in the restaurant. I just ate a little less oil for tonight, and I slept soundly."
It’s hot in summer and it’s easy for the smell of oil to make people feel restless and irritable. It’s better to clear the mind with some vegetarian food.
Madam Lou traced the two pale blue spots under her eyes and asked, "Didn't you sleep well last night?"
Xu Jiang nodded. Firstly, she was not used to the new place, and secondly, she was worried about Lou Yunchun, so she couldn't sleep.
Seeing Madam Lou's face was somewhat gloomy, she knew she was not at peace. She was already frail, and Xu Jiang was worried that she would be hurt by worry, so she hurriedly advised, "Aunt, please don't worry too much, or you will hurt yourself."
Mrs. Lou nodded, then sighed, "I wonder where he is now."
Xu Jiang estimated and said, "If we continue to ride non-stop for a day and a night, we should reach Yunyang."
Mrs. Lou likes quietness and rarely leaves her house on weekdays, let alone travel to Beijing, so she doesn't know where Yunyang is.
"Tomorrow they should cross the Wei River, leave the capital, and head for Binzhou."
Seeing Madam Lou's bewildered face, Xu Jiang cleared the table, asked Liu Mei to fetch the four treasures of the study, and drew a map for Madam Lou. She marked the direction Lou Yunchun was going, the prefectures and territories he would pass through, and even drew Liangzhou.
This was a copy she made based on Mo Ming's map. The painting was simple and clear at a glance.
She handed the pen to Madam Lou and asked her to circle the word Yunyang. She said, "Wait until you circle Liangzhou. It won't be long before he can go back."
Mrs. Lou drew a circle with a pen, which calmed her scattered mind and most of the sadness between her brows disappeared.
"I have some notes on the Northern Road of Liangzhou in my shop. I'll bring you two tomorrow to entertain you."
"Okay." My daughter is so considerate.
After drawing the map, Mrs. Lou covered her mouth and yawned. As her heart relaxed, she began to feel tired.
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