Chapter 178: Visiting the Farm
After Su Zhizhi got the new armor, she walked all over the mountain wearing it.
Practice martial arts in armor, practice calligraphy in armor, and eat in armor.
She also wanted to invite Gu Qingning, Liu Xiangxiang and others to come to the village to play, so that they could play the game of generals fighting.
Perhaps Gu Qingning and Su Zhizhi had a tacit understanding, and Gu Qingning's invitation was first delivered to Black Bandit Mountain.
Gu Qingning wrote a letter and sent it to someone from the farm, inviting Su Zhizhi and Xue Che to visit her farm.
When Su Zhizhi received the letter, she naturally agreed excitedly.
Xue Che had no interest and didn't want to go, but Su Zhizhi said:
"It's very hot now, and it's almost May. I wonder if the lychees from Qingning are ripe yet."
Su Zhizhi took a pen and drew a plump lychee on the copybook.
The painting is very realistic, as if sweet juice will overflow when peeled open.
Xue Che glanced at the lychee painting and then turned his gaze back to his calligraphy:
"Well... then I'll go with you to take a look."
The wealthy Gu family was very thoughtful and even sent a carriage to pick up Su Zhizhi and Xue Che.
Wu Yingniang asked Kong Wu to go with her.
Firstly, there is someone to take care of, and secondly, it allows the child's strong character to go and play with him.
Po flew in the air and followed the carriage out of the mountain.
Although the Gu family lives in the neighboring Qiancao County, the farm they are going to this time is at the junction of Qiancao County and Baiyun County, so it is not too far away.
The carriage trotted along the road for more than an hour and stopped outside a farm.
Lingnan is rich in mountains and rivers.
This village is backed by green mountains and faces green water.
The main gate is built of blue bricks, with upturned eaves and carved auspicious clouds.
The words "blessings for thousands of years" are engraved on the lintel.
There is a tall wall outside the village, and the top of the wall is covered with vines and wild flowers.
Outside the wall are farmlands and orchards. Looking from a distance, you can see sugarcane and lychee forests.
Su Zhizhi exclaimed: "Qingning's house is so big."
Xue Che: "She said in the letter that this is her family's farm, not her ancestral home."
Kong Wu looked a little surprised, but he didn't say "ah". It was his first time coming to Zhizhi's friend's house, and he was a little shy.
They were about to follow the Gu family servants inside when Gu Qingning was walking out, and they met head-on.
“Zhizhi!”
"Lime!"
The two little girls hadn't seen each other for a while. They hugged each other affectionately and walked in hand in hand.
Walking through the gate is an open courtyard with neatly paved bluestone slabs on the ground.
Gu Qingning has a lot of things to say to Su Zhizhi:
"I'll take you to meet my mother first, and then we'll go to the garden to barbecue, fish, and eat fruit."
They entered the central hall and saw a beautiful woman with a gentle temperament sitting inside. Her eyebrows and eyes were very similar to Gu Qingning:
"This is Zhizhi and Xue Che, right? I often hear Qingning mention you."
Su Zhizhi and Xue Che both said, "Hello, Aunt Gu."
Mrs. Gu had gone to the academy before because of Li Shaoer’s bullying. Although she didn’t see Su Zhizhi at that time, she did see Hao Ren and Wu Yingniang.
She remembered that the couple were both generous people, and the two children in front of her looked respectable.
Madam Gu liked it even more, and then her eyes fell on Kong Wu behind her:
"Who is this?"
"Ah, ah." Kong Wu scratched his head and smiled a little awkwardly.
Xue Che held Kong Wu's hand.
Su Zhizhi said: "This is Brother Kong Wu from our village, he plays with us."
Gu Qingning also said: "Yes, this is Brother Kong Wu. When I came to pick up Zhizhi once before, Brother Kong Wu helped me ride his horse."
Gu Qingning had met Kong Wu several times and was quite familiar with him. She knew that Kong Wu sometimes looked fierce, but was actually a very nice person.
Mrs. Gu saw that Kong Wu seemed unable to speak, but his thick eyebrows and big eyes, and his smile revealed an honest and simple air, and nodded:
"Okay, Kong Wu, right? You're the big brother, thank you for playing with your younger brothers and sisters."
"Ah." Kong Wu handed over the package he was holding in one hand.
Hao Ren said that you cannot visit someone's home empty-handed and you cannot go to someone's home and eat and drink for free.
So they brought their own Black Mountain ink and a bag of apricot blossom pastries.
Mrs. Gu smiled gently:
"Okay, thank you for your kindness. You and Qing Ning can have fun, don't be restrained. Your room has been tidied up for the night, and I'll send you back tomorrow."
Gu——
Abao flew down from the sky and landed next to the hall.
Mrs. Gu and the servants in the hall were startled when they saw a giant eagle suddenly appear.
"Abao, shh! You can't do this when you're a guest at someone's house." Su Zhizhi walked out and patted Abao on the head.
Gu——gu——
Abao called out a few words in a low voice and shrank his neck to admit his mistake.
Gu Qingning continued to explain to her mother:
"Mom, this is also a friend of Zhizhi and me, called Abao. I told you about this eagle, and you even embroidered it on your shoes."
Mrs. Gu nodded in surprise.
I did say that, but I didn’t say it was this big!
She began to understand why her daughter said that no one could bully Zhizhi at Mingde Academy.
In addition to Su Zhizhi and Xue Che, Gu Qingning also invited Wu Zhan and Liu Xiangxiang to join in the fun.
They sat in the main hall for a while, and Wu Zhan and Liu Xiangxiang also came.
After everyone arrived, Gu Qingning took everyone to play in the garden in the backyard.
The backyard is very large, with fresh water brought in from outside to flow through the yard. You can even see fish swimming in the water.
There is a fishing pavilion without railings by the water. There are a few small stools for fishing inside, and tea and snacks are set up next to it.
Two servants were roasting a chicken outside the pavilion.
"We can go fishing first, and then we can eat the chicken when it's roasted. We can also roast the fish we catch."
Gu Qingning asked everyone to drink tea first.
Kong Wujing couldn't sit still and took a bamboo pole to catch fish.
The stream water is clear and small fish swim nimbly between the rocks.
Su Zhizhi and the others sat by the water, fishing rods in hand. But how could they sit quietly? They all had so much to say that they couldn't hold it in.
Liu Xiangxiang chewed some pastries and said, "Qing Ning, your farm is so big. I only knew that your family lived in the countryside and was a local tycoon. I didn't know your family was so wealthy."
Wu Zhan: "I know. My father said that the Gu family is the largest landlord in Qiancao County. This is because they are not compared with the landlords in other counties. If they are really compared with the landlords in other counties, the Gu family is probably the largest landlord in Xunzhou."
Gu Qingning said shyly: "My family just has more fields. Zhizhi Village is really good and can make Black Mountain Ink and Black Mountain Cloth."
Su Zhizhi said: "Our village has now become Heishan Township. There are many more people, many houses, and the workshops are bigger. But our village doesn't have as many sugarcane and lychee forests as Qingning's."
Xue Che: "Yes, there aren't many lychee groves."
Speaking of lychees, Gu Qingning asked them to look up.
There is a small lychee forest next to me, with bunches of heavy fruits hanging among the branches and leaves.
Most of them are green in color, and only a few lychees are red.
Gu Qingning: "The people on my farm said that in ten days or so they will all be red and sweet."
Gu Qingning asked someone to find a few red lychees and pick them for the little guests to taste.
"yes."
One of the servants roasting chicken wiped the oil off his hands and swiftly picked a few big, red lychees.
Each child was given one.
Kong Wu was divided into two groups because of his big size and big mouth.
Xue Che peeled off the rough outer layer of the lychee skin, and the crystal clear and plump flesh appeared before his eyes after a year.
Xue Che put the lychee into his mouth and couldn't help but curl his eyes.
Su Zhizhi praised it highly: “It’s delicious!”
"Then take a bundle home and bury it in the rice jar at home. You can eat it in a few days."
Gu Qingning generously asked someone to pick a few more bundles of lychees the next morning and put them on the carriage for their return trip.
"Qingning, you are so nice!" Liu Xiangxiang also likes to eat lychees.
Gu Qingning: "I'm very happy that you guys are here to play. A few lychees are nothing. I study at the academy on weekdays. Although my life is okay, it doesn't feel as interesting without you guys."
After Gu Qingning completed her education at Mingde Academy, her family sent her to study at a larger academy in another place.
She recently had a few days off, so she had time to invite her friends over.
Liu Xiangxiang and Wu Zhan also talked about their recent situation.
Liu Xiangxiang said, "I've been helping my parents run the pork shop lately. My dad even taught me how to butcher pigs. I don't really like it. When they're being butchered, I stand by and the pigs' squeals make my scalp numb. I still prefer raising rabbits."
"Zhizhi, the rabbit you gave me is still here. I later bought another rabbit to pair up with. Now we have several litters of rabbits."
Su Zhizhi: "Then come to our village's breeding area next time, maybe you will like it."
When it was Wu Zhan's turn to speak, his eyes were clearly filled with eagerness and excitement:
"I followed my father's caravan to Laizhou. You know Laizhou? It has a shipping port. Many merchants actually sold their goods outside of Dayu to the people of Silla. We in Dayu sold tea, porcelain, and silk to Silla, and then brought back furs and medicinal herbs from Silla to sell in Dayu."
Gu Qingning: "Do you also want to go to Laizhou Port to sell things?"
Wu Zhan's cheeks were as red as lychees, and his eyes sparkled. "We in Lingnan are close to the sea, and we can have a seaport. I think, I think... if Lingnan's seaport could have a route to other countries, then Lingnan would also prosper."
Xue Che looked at Wu Zhan and said, "I've read in books that south of Lingnan, you can reach the countries of the South China Sea, and even further to the west, such as Tianzhu and Daqin."
When Wu Zhan heard Xue Che say this, his eyes lit up even more.
Su Zhizhi: "Are there many countries to the south of us?"
Xue Che: "Yes, the closest ones are Nanzhao and Mipo."
Gu Qingning said: "The one who helped us pick lychees just now is Mipo, we call him Awan."
Several people looked at the two people who were roasting chicken outside the pavilion.
They noticed that one of them was indeed darker and thinner.
Liu Xiangxiang: "Why is there a Mi Po woman on your farm?"
Gu Qingning: "I heard they came here to escape the war. My grandfather said that Mipo Country was poorer than this side, and there were always wars. Many people from Mipo Country fled to Lingnan to make a living. My grandfather would take in those who were honest and hardworking."
The two chickens were roasted and served with a fragrant aroma.
The children were hungry, so they washed their hands and ate the chicken.
Su Zhizhi took a bite of the chicken and found the meat very tender and had a very special aroma.
Several other people felt it too.
Gu Qingning explained: "Awan roasted it. It uses spices from their country of Mipo. The roasted flavor is a bit sweet and sour, not greasy at all."
Su Zhizhi looked at the dark and thin Awan.
She knew that Heifei Mountain recruited many farmhands from other places, but Gu Qingning's family even recruited foreign farmhands.
That night, several people stayed at the Gu family's farm.
Xue Che and Wu Zhan slept in one room, while Gu Qingning, Su Zhizhi and Liu Xiangxiang shared one room.
Children like to sleep in the same room with their peers and talk to them for a long time.
There was a large bunk bed in the room, and three little girls were rolling on it laughing.
The candle has been blown out.
A beam of light hung from the beam.
It was a pack of fireflies, glowing overhead.
"This was caught by Awan," Gu Qingning said. "When I was a kid, I came to the village to play. After the lights were turned off, I was afraid to sleep in the dark, so Awan caught a bag of fireflies and hung them in my room. Now, every time I come, Awan catches fireflies for me."
Su Zhizhi admired: "Awan is really amazing. He picked lychees so quickly, roasted the chicken deliciously, and even caught so many fireflies."
Liu Xiangxiang said: "It would be great if I had an Awan at home too."
It's late at night.
Two or three frog croaks were heard.
The faint light of fireflies hanging on the beams gradually dissipated.
The next day dawned.
The children were awakened by a series of rapid knocks on the door.
Boom boom boom!
Boom boom boom!
"Miss, Miss, something bad has happened!"
Guoer, the little girl who served Gu Qingning, knocked on the door a few times and pushed it open.
Gu Qingning, Su Zhizhi and Liu Xiangxiang were rubbing their sleepy eyes and had not yet sat up from the bed.
Gu Qingning turned over: "Guo'er, what's wrong?"
Guo'er was almost crying:
"They're attacking! The Mi Po people have invaded Lingnan!"
"Miss, let's go!"
The three people on the bed all shuddered and woke up immediately.
They quickly put on their clothes and went out in their shoes.
He ran into Xue Che and Wu Zhan who were also hurriedly called up.
Mrs. Gu was waiting in the front yard and had already arranged the carriage.
Mrs. Gu was timid, and now with red eyes she quickly asked them to get in the car:
"News just arrived this morning: the Mi Po people have invaded Lingnan. You should all go home and be with your parents."
"Qing Ning, let's go back home too."
Xue Che was incredulous: "I haven't heard of any news of Mi Po's attack before. Lingnan has border troops, so there shouldn't be any danger in the short term."
The old steward of the farm slapped his thigh and said:
"Swords and spears have no eyes, so how can we talk about right and wrong? Jiaozhou has already been lost, and the Mi people are about to attack Yongzhou. The border defense troops can't hold on!"
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