Chapter 135 134. Said I was her little lover
I spent half the night strolling around and making noise for the other half last night.
Zhou Yi was a little worried about Lei Li's health. "How about you rest at home for the morning and go back in the afternoon when you feel better, or maybe you don't go to work today?"
"don't want."
Lei Li refused.
Although he only slept for two or three hours, he felt refreshed and in good health. He had taken a few months off before giving birth to his baby, and if he took any more time off, he would get sick.
It's sunny and warm today.
The streets were still filled with the bustle of yesterday's Lantern Festival. The red lanterns and decorative decorative lights on both sides of the street had not been removed, and men, women, young and old who went out were all wearing colorful ribbons.
Lei Li didn't hang up.
He doesn't like this kind of colorful things very much. He prefers more atmospheric colors, such as midnight purple, ultramarine, city blue, malachite green and cochineal red, which are generous and stylish when combined together.
Like the word Zhou Yi said——
large and luxurious.
You can tell at first glance that he is rich and wealthy.
Lei Li looked at himself in the full-length bronze mirror. Seeing that he was neatly dressed and looked handsome, he nodded with satisfaction, had breakfast with Zhou Yi, and went out to work.
Because of this, Lei Li missed a visit from an old friend and only met him when he got home from get off work.
"Miss Asi?"
Lei Li was a little surprised. "Didn't you go to the capital? When did you come back?"
"I returned before the New Year."
Miss Ah Si smiled lightly, glanced at Zhou Yi politely, and bowed slightly to him in a normal greeting, "Is this your husband?"
She held a fine pipa in her arms. Although she was smiling, her face was haggard and even her makeup could not hide it.
Her hair was tied up in a neat bun, but she only wore a silver hairpin and a peach wood hairpin, and there were no jade pendants or sachets or other decorations on her waist.
When she was still in Xiangyun Tower, her pipa skills were so superb that young talents competed to have her hair tied up with them. She had worn so many red silks for a song, and she had never been so simple and unpretentious.
Are you encountering difficulties?
Lei Li pondered, smiling as he introduced them, "Yes, this is my husband Zhou Yi, and this is Miss Asi, the one I told you about."
"Hello."
Zhou Yi spoke.
The handshake was not popular in Dayou Dynasty, and he was a man while Asi was a girl. Although she was her husband's friend, he just nodded politely.
Miss A Si bowed back to Zhou Yi. Seeing Lei Li's current appearance, she sighed with nostalgia, "It's been a few years since we last met. You already have a husband and children, and you've become a husband and the pillar of the family."
"yes."
Lei Li also sighed and nodded, "Time flies so fast, the days have already passed in the blink of an eye... I almost forgot what I was talking about. Come in and have a seat, and try my husband's cooking to see if it's any better than what's in the capital."
"Your Sichuan restaurant is very famous even in the capital. Mr. Zhou's cooking skills are definitely not comparable to those of ordinary chefs."
Seeing that Lei Li's attitude towards her remained the same as before, Miss Asi couldn't help but feel relieved. She hugged the pipa tightly in her arms, then took a half step back and followed Lei Li and Zhou Yi into the mansion.
In the courtyard.
Grandma, Liu Guo and Liu Ye'er were chatting while doing embroidery. Lei Dashan and his uncle couldn't stay idle at home, so they went out to play with Mr. Zhu. Grandma was just using toys to make the baby laugh.
Sister Huaer and the other children are not at home. They went to a private school with Xiaobao to learn to read. Lei Dashan and his uncle will pick them up later.
The child should have been picked up by now, but it is normal to be back a little late if you encounter some food or playmates on the way.
The little baby was the first to discover his father and wait for him to come back. He cried out "ahhhhh" and waved his little hands. When he saw his father coming to hug him, he giggled. Seeing this from afar, Miss Asi's heart softened.
"Brother Li, Zhou Yi, who is this?"
Liu Ye'er and the others saw the strange girl behind them. She was about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, and her face was a little haggard, but she was very polite and greeted people with a slight smile.
"This is Miss Asi."
Lei Li said, "When I went to the county town to sell mountain products and medicinal herbs, Miss A Si helped me a few times. This is my mother, my grandmother, my cousin's wife, and my grandfather."
He knew where his father and uncle had gone, and when he saw that Liu Qishu was not there either, he asked, "Where is my cousin?"
"Qishu said he went to buy some white wine and cold water, saying that Sister Hua'er and the others wanted some. Actually, he was just greedy and loved this icy sweet drink. He even used the children to make trouble."
Grandma smiled and joked. Seeing that Miss Ah Si was no longer embarrassed, she gently called her over and said, "It's just a coincidence. We have white wine and cold water and guests today. Why don't we buy some roast suckling pig and roast goose?"
"When I came back yesterday, Qishu and your uncle saw it. He was so sorry that he said he had eaten too much and was too full to eat the roast suckling pork."
"Okay."
Lei Li also wanted to eat roast suckling pig. The skin was roasted to a golden crisp, and the meat inside was tender and juicy. The sauce prepared by Zhou Yi was really delicious.
"Then I'll make two more dishes to go with it."
Zhou Yi brought the baby back to his grandfather and asked them while rolling up his sleeves, "Do you want anything else to eat? Mom wants some pickled cabbage and cold tofu... Do you want some squirrel fish and lemon duck? You said you wanted some yesterday."
"want."
Lei Li remembered that Miss Asi liked to eat yam, so he added, "See if there are any yam at home. If not, ask someone to buy a few, and also buy some good pork ribs, and make some yam and pork rib soup."
"Let's make some candied yam."
He used to come to the county town to sell mountain products. One time, he happened to meet Miss Asi. She liked these wild products from the mountains, especially yam. Seeing that he was young, she bought all his mountain products.
When they met again later, Miss Asi thought his products were good and affordable, so she asked Lei Li to come and sell mountain products again and send them to the back door of Xiangyun Tower. She took all of them and gave the extra ones to her handkerchief sisters to eat.
Zhou Yi didn't know all this, but since Lei Li said it, he naturally agreed.
Upon hearing this, Miss Asi's eyes became moist. She hid from others and quietly took the mist back. She only faced people after she had composed herself.
When Liu Qishu came back with the white wine and cold water, he happened to meet Lei Dashan and his uncle picking up the children. He was coaxed by his own daughter and then he bought two bamboo tubes of snow bean water and perilla drink.
The children like this cool and sweet water. They had never drunk it before coming to the county town, but after drinking it once, they immediately fell in love with it.
These things are cheap now too.
Although the weather has warmed up, it is the first month of the lunar year after all, and the well water is still quite cold at night. After the sugar water is made, put it at the bottom of the well, and it will be ice-cold and refreshing when you take it out the next day.
During the Chinese New Year when the weather is cold, there is more ice stored, which makes it convenient to make icy desserts and cold drinks. However, when autumn and summer come, there is less ice and it becomes expensive.
The servants went to buy roast suckling pig and roast goose. These two things take a long time to make, otherwise Zhou Yi could roast them, and he could also roast other things at the same time, such as roast chicken, roast potatoes and sweet potatoes.
Zhou Yi and Liu Ye'er and Liu Guo cooked some more dishes, including both meat and vegetables, hot and cold dishes. The yam stewed pork ribs were also ready. The soup was clear and fragrant with wolfberries and red dates. It smelled good and tasted even better.
After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, they left the table. Miss Asi found an opportunity and Lei Li learned about her current situation and the reason why she was looking for him.
There were brothels in Qingmi County.
Xiangyunlou is a relatively high-end brothel. Asi was sold to Xiangyunlou when she was young. She played the pipa well and studied hard with the musicians in the building for many years. Finally, she became the most skilled pipa player in the building.
Asi was good-looking, charming and talented, and soon became famous. She became one of the most popular ladies in Qingmi County at that time and was very popular.
The madam was interested in this cash cow and since she had the indenture contract in her hand, she felt that she could not escape, so she did not watch her closely and allowed Ah Si to go out for a stroll a few times a month.
That's how Asi met Lei Li at the vegetable market. Since she couldn't go out all the time, she asked Lei Li to come to Xiangyunlou to deliver mountain products to her.
"My pregnancy mole is not on my face behind my ears, but on my chest. I am tall, so I look like a little man. I am not afraid to go to Xiangyun Tower."
Lei Li smiled as he recalled that time. "That was the first time I knew there was such a beautiful place. Every piece of wood was carved with patterns, and everyone who entered had a bulging wallet. The girls and boys inside were all beautiful, with smiles as beautiful as flowers."
"Miss Asi's sisters heard that I was pretty and wanted to meet me, so she asked me if I wanted to go into the building and take a look, and I nodded."
"Miss Asi was only in her early twenties at the time. After she brought me in, her sisters teased me, saying I was her lover."
Then, he teased Zhou Yi in a frivolous way, "They say that Miss Asi and I are a good match. It's just right that we're poor. Miss Asi is rich, and the brothel owner won't mind if I keep a lover, and I can even get money out of her."
Zhou Yi didn't think anything of it.
Although it was a brothel, Lei Li was only sixteen or seventeen years old at that time. She was young and curious, so it was understandable that she wanted to go in and have a look. It was not like she was going to learn bad things and visit prostitutes. Asi and her friends were just joking.
Seeing that he wasn't jealous, Lei Li curled her lips and continued, "Miss Asi is so nice. She took me in to play, gave me snacks and tea, and even played the pipa for me. She played really well. Every time I listened to her, I thought, if I had money, I would also like to invite her to listen to my music every day."
"She was later redeemed by a wealthy merchant from the prefectural capital and taken as a concubine. She went with him to Xiling Prefecture, and I lost all contact with her."
"Last year, the merchant's family fell on hard times, and his wife sold off the disobedient concubines. Ah Si escaped without a fight, and the wife gave her some silver, returned her indenture, and sent her away."
"Miss Asi had nowhere to go, so she came back here. But she got robbed on the way and all her money was stolen. She was struggling financially and she heard I was doing well now, so she came to me for help."
"How do you want to help her?"
Zhou Yi thought about it and thought that since Miss Asi could read and play the pipa well, it would be a good idea to set up a private school to teach little girls and boys how to read and play the pipa, or to hire her as a tutor since there were many children in the house.
But Lei Li had other plans.
"Aren't we going to build a school in the village?"
Lei Li smiled slyly, "I'd like to invite Miss Asi to teach at the school. She can read and play the pipa, and she's been to the capital and seen the world. Isn't that perfect?"
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