After finally coaxing Old Mrs. Miao into submission, Gu Dongmei and her little girl began to apply medicine to the two of them.
"Should we go out and look for Erni? It's winter now and she doesn't have anything with her." Gu Dongmei asked tentatively, with a little caution.
"Hmph, what are you looking for? Isn't she the most capable? She even learned to talk back to me, saying that she would spend money to buy me back. She is so capable, what can go wrong?" Although Mrs. Miao was persuaded by her grandson to stop arranging a blind date for Jiang Erni, she was still unhappy about her granddaughter's talk back in front of outsiders.
"Okay, Sanni has gone with them, what can happen? She's old enough to be a mother, and you still treat her as a kid." The old lady looked at her son and daughter-in-law who were still a little hesitant, and added unhappily.
"Then, what if Erni comes back?" Jiang Dahai asked nervously, fearing that his mother would give Erni a good scolding.
"Hey, Jiang Dahai, you are deliberately trying to make me unhappy today."
The old lady felt behind her and found that all the pillows on the kang had been thrown away by her just now. She couldn't find anything suitable to hit her son with, so she could only glare at him and scold him a few more times.
"Those girls are your sweethearts, and I am the only bad person. You should get out of here as soon as possible and go live with those damn girls."
"Mom, that's not what I meant." Jiang Dahai saw that his words had angered the old lady again, and hurriedly wanted to explain. However, he was so clumsy that he couldn't think of anything to say. He could only look at his son in embarrassment, wanting Jiang Yilu to speak for her.
Jiang Yilu closed his eyes and waited for his fourth sister to apply medicine to him. He ignored the pitiful Jiang Dahai. Anyway, grandma only scolded him a few times. Now let grandma vent her anger. When the second sister comes back, the anger will subside. Just think of it as a father doing something good for his daughter.
Just when Jiang Dahai was getting extremely anxious, the person who had been talked about by them appeared and brought Jiang Dazhen with him to share the old lady's firepower.
"Mom, what a shame you are doing. How could you let Erni marry an old cripple? Erni is such a promising child. You must be creating trouble because your life is too comfortable."
Jiang Erni regretted running out. She didn't regret talking back to the old lady, but she regretted running out in such a hurry. She only took some clothes with her and didn't have any money on her. Even if she wanted to go to the capital to see Grandpa Bai, she didn't have money to buy a train ticket. Moreover, she had already said something harsh, and it would be so embarrassing to go back in disgrace now.
The same went for Sanni. Her money was hidden in a secret place in their room. She didn't carry it with her at all. Moreover, Sanni wanted to persuade her second sister to go back. Even if she had the money, she would not give it to her.
It’s New Year’s Day, where else would you go if not going home?
"Look at your good sister, who is in the same boat with you. Now she comes to ask a mother like you to blame me. I really owed you little bastards in my previous life. Yesterday, a good deed led to a lot of complaints." The old lady stood up, snatched the two pillows from her son's hands, put them on the kang, and lay down on the pillows. She pulled the quilt to cover herself tightly and ignored Jiang Dazhen who was shouting outside.
"mom--"
Jiang Dazhen opened the door and walked in, looking at the people gathered in the room in surprise. Especially when he saw the wound on Jiang Yilu's face that looked even more horrible and hideous due to the medicine on it, he became even more anxious.
"What's wrong with Xiaobao's face, brother and sister-in-law, what happened?" After hearing what her two nieces said, Jiang Dazhen hurried back with them. She only knew that her mother had found an unsuitable family for Erni, and had not heard about Xiaobao's injury.
Jiang Dahai and Gu Dongmei winked at their sister, asking her to look at the old lady wrapped in a quilt like a silkworm pupa on the kang.
"Mom..." Jiang Dazhen pointed at the columnar quilt that looked down on her and mouthed the word "Mom" to Jiang Dahai, who nodded.
"Mom, what happened at home?" Jiang Dazhen curiously pulled open the corner of the quilt that the old lady had pulled tightly. The old lady didn't want to see these annoying children, so she also held on to the quilt and refused to let go. The two of them seemed to be in a tug-of-war, neither of them giving in.
After all, Jiang Dazhen was younger and stronger, so she pulled away the quilt covering the old lady's body and face.
"Mom, why are there so many wounds on your face? Who beat you up? Tell me, I'll get Pingchuan and Xiangxue to help you vent your anger. Who dared to beat up our old lady? He must be really brave. He doesn't care about his life."
Jiang Dazhen was furious when she saw the wounds on her own mother and nephew's faces. She knew how much her old lady loved Xiaobao, and that Xiaobao was a filial child. The wounds were definitely not caused by a fight between them. Moreover, the old lady was the authority in the family. Who except outsiders would have the courage to hurt her?
"You are the most capable one. Didn't you just yell outside that you wanted to settle the score with me? Come on, punch your mother again for your precious niece. Come on."
The old lady felt jealous. Although she had good intentions but did something bad this time, there was no reason why everyone should not believe her and blame her.
"Mom, what did you say?" Jiang Dazhen was angry when she came, but when she saw the wound on her mother's face, she was speechless. "Xiaobao, what's going on?" Jiang Dazhen saw that her mother was angry and didn't want to pay attention to her, so she could only ask her nephew beside her.
"Aunt, the matchmaker deceived you into going on a blind date this time. She didn't want to introduce such a person to my second sister. The wounds on my face and yours were left by the fight with the mother and son just now. But the mother and son didn't fare any better, and their injuries were much more serious than ours." Jiang Yiliu pulled the corner of his mouth and accidentally touched the wound. The wound that had just stopped bleeding with great difficulty suddenly split again. Si Ni saw this and hurriedly asked him to calm down and applied ointment on him again.
"Come on, your little arms and legs didn't even leave a mark. You learned martial arts from your uncle for several years in vain. Look at the wound on your face. Isn't it like cutting out my own flesh and blood? If you encounter this kind of thing again in the future, don't be stupid and fight it yourself. Call your dad. Your dad is thick-skinned and he is not afraid of a few punches."
The old lady even forgot that she was still angry with her son and daughter. Looking at her grandson's face, she felt heartbroken. If he was left with a scar, she would never let that old woman go.
Jiang Yilu felt a little sympathy for his father, but when he saw that everyone around him was looking at him with approval, including the tough and thick-skinned Jiang Dahai in the old lady's words, he felt a little moved.
"I get it. I won't be so rash next time." Jiang Yilu could only say this to comfort them, thinking to himself, at worst he could just take action next time without letting them know.
"Grandma, Xiaobao." Jiang Erni was too embarrassed to come in, so she was listening at the door. Jiang Sanni was also outside the door. They heard the conversation in the room clearly. It turned out that the mother and son were not found by grandma. She was also deceived by the matchmaker. Grandma never thought of marrying herself to that arrogant old man. Then the heartless words she just said were too heartless.
Jiang Erni has always been a person who dares to love and hate, but at this time, she didn't know what to say.
"Hmph, you still remember to come back. Weren't you very principled when you left? Why are you back now? Aren't you afraid that I, an old witch, will sell you out?" Old Mrs. Miao turned her head and said sarcastically.
"Grandma, my second sister has misunderstood. She must know she is wrong now." Jiang Yilu moved closer to the old lady and winked at her second sister.
"Milk." Jiang Erni moved her mouth, but she didn't know what to say.
She could not forget what happened in her childhood. In her heart, the old lady always regarded her and her elder sisters as money-losing goods, so she had wrong thoughts when a man like that appeared in the family. She wanted to say that she was not wrong, but in fact she was indeed wrong. Moreover, she was much luckier than the girls in the same village in these years because she could go to school. All this was inseparable from the old lady's consent. If she had been determined not to let her go to school, she might have been the mother of several children by now, just like her grandmother said.
Moreover, if she apologized this time, wouldn't it mean that she accepted the blind date arranged by the old lady? Then, wouldn't more strange men be waiting for her?
"Grandma just said that she will no longer care about your affairs in the future. Just let grandma take a look at your partner when you find one." Jiang Yilu saw that his second sister was just standing there in a daze without saying anything, so he quickly added.
"Really!" Jiang Erni's eyes flashed with joy and she cheered excitedly.
Jiang Sanni also breathed a sigh of relief, lowered her head and revealed a bright smile, but now everyone's attention was on Erni, and no one noticed that something was wrong with her behavior.
"Grandma, I'm sorry. I was wrong." Jiang Erni felt relieved after receiving Jiang Yilu's affirmative response, and her apology was extremely sincere.
"Hmph!" The old lady turned her head away and still ignored her.
"Grandma, I promise to find a grandson-in-law that you will be satisfied with in the future, and I will never lose points for you." Jiang Erni is also a shameless person. She said with a shameless face, holding the old lady's arm.
"I don't care if you're an old man with one leg halfway into the coffin. Anyway, as a grandmother, I have no good intentions. As long as your partner gives a high gift in the future, what opinion can I have?" Old Mrs. Miao didn't buy it and shook off Jiang Erni's hand.
"Everyone, go out. I need to rest. My bones are sore after the fight. Xiaobao, you should also lie down in your room for a while and wait for your sisters to cook dinner before coming out."
The old lady snatched the quilt from her daughter's hand, covered herself with it, and ignored them. It seemed that Jiang Erni still had a long way to go before she could appease the old lady.
The few people did not disturb Old Lady Miao anymore and retreated quietly.
"Since your grandma has said that she will not interfere in your marriage, you should just go along with her during the New Year. Anyway, you will not be here for many days before going back to school. Just be a little kid. If you make her happy, she will not be angry at all." Jiang Dazhen advised her niece, and Erni, Sanni and Sini nodded repeatedly.
As long as the old lady doesn't try to help them find a partner, it doesn't matter if they do all the housework.
Jiang Dazhen said a few more words before leaving in a hurry. It was New Year's Day and she had a lot of things to do at home.
In the next few days, Jiang Erni and her sisters tried to please the old lady, but the old lady seemed to be still angry. Apart from being nice to her precious grandson, everyone else, including old man Jiang, took advantage of the old lady.
Jiang Yilu thought that the man surnamed Li might not give up so easily. Seeing the harsh words they said when they left, Jiang Yilu also thought that the police might come to his house soon. However, he was not afraid. After all, the injuries he left on Li Jinbao would at most cause him some pain. Some simple examinations would never reveal the injuries on his body. If the police came, at most they would just give him some verbal education and criticism.
Besides, he was also injured, so no matter how big the incident was, the other party would not be able to gain any advantage. Jiang Yiliu knew this, but he did not expect that the mother and son seemed to be really scared by the beating and never appeared again, allowing them to spend a good year in peace.
Because of the money Jiang Yilu gave to the old lady and the TV that made the family proud, this New Year was particularly lively and joyful. Especially on the night of New Year's Eve, the overly lively atmosphere made Jiang Yilu want to hide in the space to get some peace and quiet, away from the group of villagers in the main room who were chatting and watching TV programs.
But he was the only one in the family who thought so. After all, the current TV programs were still very fresh in everyone's eyes. Even Erni, Sanni and Sini were sitting in the crowd, watching with great interest, and they didn't even feel bored with the villagers' jokes.
Jiang Yilu estimated that by the day they left, the villagers would probably not be annoyed with the TV, and it seemed that for the sake of his own ears, after visiting his relatives, he would have to hurry to the capital to have some peace and quiet.
******
Jiang Yilu and his siblings left on the third day of the Chinese New Year. After visiting all their close relatives, there was no need to see the rest, so they left Daqingshan as if they were fleeing. Even though Grandma Miao had given up the idea of finding a partner for her granddaughter, it did not mean that the people in the village would let go of these attractive men.
There is no need to mention Jiang Erni and the others. The mere fact that Jiang Yi stayed was enough to make the villagers jealous. Such a promising man who can make money would be a great candidate for son-in-law or grandson-in-law.
Old Mrs. Miao also noticed that the villagers were eyeing her precious grandson covetously. He would watch TV every day and would pull those little girls, who were about sixteen or seventeen years old and almost the same age as Xiaobao, with their eyes full of love and shyness. His wolfish intentions were obvious to everyone. Even if the old lady was reluctant, she could only watch her grandson leave home early to hide from the limelight.
They left too early, so Xiang Fang and the others definitely couldn't go to school with them this time. But although they lost a few friends, they gained their uncle Gu Xiashi.
"Uncle, what are you going to the capital for?" Jiang Erni asked Gu Xiashi curiously while sitting in the soft sleeper on the train.
"Well, kid, stop meddling in adult affairs." A trace of embarrassment flashed across Gu Xiashi's face and he glared at his niece.
"Tsk." Jiang Erni rolled her eyes disrespectfully, "I'm not a child anymore. But you, uncle, are almost 50 years old. You really don't plan to find an aunt for us."
Jiang Erni thought about the bombardment of urging marriage every Chinese New Year in recent years, and she admired her second uncle for having such strong willpower that he turned a deaf ear to the nagging of her grandmother and her mother and forgot about it as soon as he heard it.
"Eat your apple." Gu Xiashi stuffed the peeled apple into her mouth, blocking her mouth, and avoided talking about her topic.
Jiang Yilu was holding an economics book in his hand, but his mind was elsewhere, and he was thinking about his second uncle.
In his previous life, he always thought that it was his family affairs that dragged down his second uncle, causing him to never get married. Now it seems that his second uncle has something on his mind, so he has been dragging his feet and refusing to look for a partner. And the mysterious Jin Mansion at No. 329 Iris Road, what is there that his second uncle is thinking about?
Jiang Yilu glanced at his uncle who was sitting on the lower bunk and felt that he was becoming more and more mysterious.
******
"Here it is!"
Gu Xiashi was standing in front of a slightly shabby Western-style building. A few years ago, when he sent Xiaobao to study, he had come here before. But at that time, there were many people living in this Western-style building, and it seemed particularly lively and popular. Now, no one has lived here for the past two years, and the whole building looks gray and particularly old.
Because of his uncle's previous instructions, Jiang Yiliu never had anyone repair the building. He just reinstalled the iron door at the main entrance and locked it to prevent those who had moved out from sneaking back in. He also gave some guard fees to the neighbors nearby, and asked them to go to the school to find him if there was any movement.
"Uncle, have you been here before?" Jiang Yiliu asked tentatively. Could it be that when his second uncle went out to collect junk, something happened here, such as some romantic past, that made him so obsessed with this house? But Jiang Yiliu thought about the atmosphere at that time and it was unlikely.
"I've been here, but I just took a look from the outside and never went in." Gu Xiashi woke up from his memories, shook his head at Jiang Yilu, and asked him to open the iron gate.
Jiang Yilu took out the key and opened the lock of the iron gate and the padlock of the thick iron chain tied to the iron gate.
Gu Xiashi did not go into the western-style building, but went straight to the corner of the yard.
"Why is there a house here?" A piece of the place where the flower garden was supposed to be was dug up and razed to the ground, and a small house was built on top. However, Gu Xia was blocked from seeing it because of the high wall outside the house.
"And what about the ginkgo tree that was originally in this yard?" Gu Xia patted his head in annoyance as soon as he said the truth. How could Xiaobao know something that he didn't know. It was all his fault that he only thought about this house and ignored a problem. That is, he came here several times, and the ginkgo tree was so tall, how could he never see it from outside the wall once. But without the ginkgo tree, how could he find the things she left for him.
Fortunately, Jiang Yilu actually knew the whereabouts of the ginkgo tree.
"That ginkgo tree was cut down more than ten years ago. There was a rebel family living in the building at that time. The ginkgo tree just blocked the room of the daughter of that family, so they cut it down. Later, the family thought the pit left by the ginkgo tree was too ugly, so they built a small house to provide shade and enjoy the flowers in the summer."
This is what Jiang Yilu heard from the old neighbors when he came to inspect the house. In the past, when the house was still ownerless, the ginkgo nuts from the ginkgo tree were often picked by nearby villagers, the kernels were dried and stored, and used for making soup or tea. Since the ginkgo tree was cut down, they can only run to farther places to find ginkgo trees, and the nearby residents have complained about this for a long time.
"So the ginkgo tree was once under this yard!" Gu Xiashi turned around and asked Jiang Yilu in surprise. He originally thought that he would have to search the entire yard, but he didn't expect to find such a pleasant surprise. Moreover, this small house has a roof and walls. As long as he pulled some cloth to cover the windows, even if he dug through the ground, no one would be able to see it.
"Uncle, what are you looking for the ginkgo tree for?" Jiang Yiliu thought, the ginkgo tree disappeared more than ten years ago, could it be that his uncle knew about this yard at that time? Otherwise, there is no way to explain why he asked about the ginkgo tree.
"Okay, go and do your thing. I'll live here for the next few days, and you can leave the key. After I find my things, I won't come back here. You can repair the house and move in, or sell it, it's up to you." Gu Xiashi's mind and eyes were full of the things buried underground, and he did not answer Jiang Yilu's question.
"You really don't need my help?" Jiang Yilu's curiosity was almost hooked to his throat. This neither-good nor bad situation was too suspenseful.
"Okay, you can go now." Gu Xiashi took the key from Jiang Yilu's hand, half pushed and half urged him out of the wall, locked the iron gate, and returned to the yard, leaving Jiang Yilu alone outside the yard with his eyes wide open.
"Young man, you are here again. What's the matter? Are you planning to move in?" An old lady was holding a basket in her hand. She had obviously just come back from buying vegetables. When she saw Jiang Yilu standing at the door with a blank look in his eyes, she asked in surprise.
"Grandma Wang, it's you." Jiang Yilu had met this old lady several times when he came here to look at houses. She lived here when she was young and knew this area very well. Jiang Yilu's eyes flashed, maybe he could get something from Grandma Wang.
"I'm not moving here yet. I'm in college, and I'm still living in the school dormitory." Jiang Yilu lied a little, "By the way, Grandma Wang, last time you said that the owner of this house was a businessman named Jin. So besides that businessman, is there anyone else living here?"
"Why are you asking this?" Grandma Wang narrowed her eyes, a little alert.
"Hi." Jiang Yilu made a helpless expression, as if he had something to hide, and leaned close to the old lady's ear, "My old lady is a bit superstitious. She's worried that something bad has happened in this house, and she's afraid that I'll be haunted by something bad if I move in."
Now it is not like the time when the Four Olds were destroyed and people were terrified at the mention of ghosts. All the temples and monasteries destroyed during the Cultural Revolution have been rebuilt, so these topics are not something that cannot be discussed.
"So that's how it is." The old lady expressed her understanding. People of that age, whether they have been educated or not, all believe in those superstitious things.
"Don't worry, this house is fine. The rebel family in front has lived here for more than ten years and nothing happened. It's just that the previous owner of this house kept a mistress here." The old lady approached Jiang Yilu mysteriously and said. This was something Jiang Yilu had inquired about the last time he came here, and it was nothing surprising.
"But that businessman was also very loyal. His mistress was not young anymore, but she gave birth to a daughter for him. He always kept them in his heart, and would come to stay for a few days almost every once in a while. Every time he came, he would drive a rickshaw and bring a lot of goodies. I still remember that the girl from that family was very pretty. If she wasn't born in an unlucky family, I would have wanted her to be my daughter-in-law."
The old lady told me what she knew, but Jiang Yilu was worried.
"Little girl? How old is that little girl now?"
"She is in her early 40s now. Before the chaos, the businessman left in a hurry with her and her daughter. If she is still alive, she would be a grandmother now." The old lady nodded affirmatively, but no one knew whether they were still alive. "But I think their family is in danger."
The old lady hadn't finished her words yet, but the word "suspense" made Jiang Yilu couldn't help but feel a little worried.
"I'm telling you, don't tell anyone." The old lady seemed to be about to reveal some big secret of today. Jiang Yilu was very considerate and put his ear close to the old lady, making a gesture to shut up.
"I've only seen that businessman a few times. Although he didn't say it, judging from his appearance, he must be a descendant of the Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty. Isn't Jin the Han surname of the Qing Dynasty's royal family? I think he must be at least a Beile, otherwise how could he have so much money? If he really was this person, how could his family have been well off all those years?"
The old lady had a look of insight. When she saw Jiang Yiliu's thoughtful look, she patted his hand comfortingly and said, "But now that you have bought this house, it has nothing to do with them. The previous owner's affairs will not involve you. Just relax. After graduation, you can renovate the house and live here well."
The old lady said as she peeked inside through the iron gate. The house was so big, it would be a bit of a waste for such a young man to live in it: "Child, do you have a partner?" The old lady thought that her granddaughter was about the same age as him, so it seemed like they could give it a try.
"Grandma, I remember I have some things to do at school, so I'll leave first."
After finding out what he wanted to know, Jiang Yilu hurriedly retreated after seeing the wolf-like and tiger-like look in the old lady's eyes, which seemed to want to eat him alive. He had seen this kind of look many times when he was at home during the New Year holidays this year, and he didn't want to see it again.
"Hey, you haven't answered my question yet."
Old Mrs. Wang stamped her feet in anger as she watched Jiang Yilu running away faster than a rabbit.
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