In the blink of an eye.
More than half a month has passed.
In the early morning, before the mountain mists had completely dissipated, Qin Luo stood halfway up the mountain practicing his boxing. His sleeves billowed with wind and clouds, and the fallen leaves around him danced like dragons.
Huaying is collecting morning dew in the mountains with a bowl in her hand.
After finishing his morning exercise, Qin Luo picked up a bowl filled with morning dew. After he finished drinking the dew, a cicada landed in the empty bowl and began to suck up the remaining dew clinging to it.
Qin Luo paid no attention. As the sun rose, the cicada's wings shone with a golden luster in the sunlight.
Hua Ying picked up the empty bowl and flicked it gently. The cicada inside was flung far away and quickly flew back to Qin Luo's side, hiding silently behind him.
The sun was shining brightly.
Qin Luo and Hua Ying passed by a village deep in the mountains. Outside the village were terraced fields of varying heights and depths, with pale yellow rice flowers appearing among the green rice leaves.
Crucian carp and carp were swimming in the rice paddies. Qin Luo took a deep breath and smelled the faint fragrance of rice blossoms.
A small orange cat was lying on the path between the fields when it suddenly leaped up and pounced on a large carp in the rice paddy. Water splashed everywhere. The little orange cat couldn't hold onto the carp and was instead slapped twice. It could only slink away in disgrace.
Seeing Qin Luo and Hua Ying pass by, the little orange cat found a new prey and quietly followed behind Qin Luo.
Hua Ying walked ahead of Qin Luo, humming a song and holding a foxtail grass in her hand, swaying it as she went.
The little orange cat suddenly pounced on Qin Luo, trying to catch the golden cicada. The cicada reacted quickly, soaring into the air and disappearing in the blink of an eye.
Meow~
The little orange cat was furious
Many more footprints appeared behind Qin Luo.
Hearing the noise, Hua Ying looked at the little orange cat, her brows furrowing slightly. "You naughty cat!"
The little orange cat was so frightened by the flower shadows that it fled in panic.
I'm so sorry!
Near the terraced fields, there was a family living in a mud-brick house with tiled roofs. In the spacious courtyard stood an osmanthus tree. A middle-aged woman dressed simply stood in front of the house with an apologetic look on her face. "My cat is very naughty and has caused you trouble."
"It's alright."
Qin Luo smiled.
The middle-aged woman returned to the house. When Qin Luo passed through the yard, she came out with a gray cloth, intending to wipe the dirt off his back. However, his clothes were spotless, with no trace of the little orange cat's paw prints.
"It will take at least half a day to get to Qingyu Town ahead, and there's nowhere to rest along the way. If you don't mind, you can have a meal at my house before you continue your journey," the middle-aged woman said with a simple and honest smile.
Qin Luo looked at Hua Ying.
Hua Ying nodded and smiled slightly, "Thank you, elder sister."
"Please come inside first, I'll pour you some tea." The middle-aged woman led Qin Luo and Hua Ying into the mud-walled house.
The room was brightly lit, with a glazed tile roof through which most of the sunlight streamed in. A middle-aged woman brought out a kettle to make tea for them.
"May I ask how to address you, elder sister?"
“My name is Yang Xinghua. This place is Yangjiapo. Everyone around here is from the Yang family.”
"Sister Yang, my name is Qin Luo, and her name is Hua Ying."
"Alright, alright, come on, have some tea."
Qin Luo picked up the teacup, took a small sip, and the rich aroma lingered in his mouth. "Good tea. This should be this year's spring tea. We can make a lot of money selling it."
Yang Xinghua shook her head and sighed softly, "There are many tea growers nearby, but the price of spring tea is very low, making it difficult to sell for a good price. So we might as well keep it for our own consumption."
Hua Ying said softly, "Sister Yang, we are going to the north. You can sell us the tea."
Yang Xinghua stared wide-eyed at Qin Luo and Hua Ying, who didn't seem like wealthy people.
Hua Ying took out a bag of silver from her bosom. "Sister Yang, I'll buy as much tea as you have."
Yang Xinghua was agitated. She wanted to get the tea leaves, but quickly regained her composure. "I'll go cook for you first. We can talk about the tea leaves after we finish eating."
"Sister Yang, let me help you start the fire."
"Okay, okay."
Yang Xinghua nodded with a smile. When she saw Qin Luo and Hua Ying in front of the house, she felt that they looked very kind, and now she was even more certain that her feeling was correct.
The kitchen was relatively damp, and there wasn't much cured meat hanging in the house, but there were many jars in the corner.
Qin Luo and Hua Ying sat on small stools in front of the stove, one holding fire tongs and the other holding a fire shovel.
Seeing them sitting together by the fire, Yang Xinghua asked curiously, "What are you two doing in the north?"
Qin Luo was taken aback. Hua Ying smiled and said, "Sister Yang, we are going to the north to visit relatives."
Where are you from?
“We live in Flower Creek Village, south of Plain County.”
"Then you must have been to the capital."
"There's nothing good about the capital. There are too many rules and the prices are high. It's much freer outside the capital."
"When I get old, I want to visit the capital. I wonder if this wish will ever come true."
"It will happen."
Hua Ying nodded with a smile.
Qin Luo smiled and said softly, "Sister Yang, why are you home alone?"
Yang Xinghua replied with a smile, "There's not much work at home lately. My husband is doing odd jobs in Qingyu Town, my eldest daughter is married and lives in Yushu Village, my eldest son is doing business in Jiangnan City, and my youngest son is studying at the academy in Qingyu Town."
"When it's time to harvest the rice, they will all come back to help, and the house will be lively then."
......
Under the osmanthus tree.
Qin Luo and the others sat together, and on the table were stewed rice paddy fish with tofu, stir-fried potatoes, green peppers and eggs, and pickled radishes.
The dirty little orange cat returned to the yard. When it saw the flower shadow, it was so frightened that it stood still and dared not move.
Huaying picked up the fish by the tail and threw it to the little orange cat. Seeing this, the little orange cat cautiously approached the fish by the tail.
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