Keep it small

Author: Naughty Gu Gu

The shopkeeper hurriedly bent down to respond, smiled and held out his hand to send them out.

The three of them walked together, and from time to time they met a vaudeville troupe along the way, and they were surrounded by people.

As they passed by, a half-sized man would pop out from inside and loudly call for his friends to come over and take a look.

Shen Qiqi also saw opera singers and jugglers. During the holidays, the old lady would invite opera troupes into the house.

Although the old lady didn't ask her to go, she went over to see her on such a happy day and didn't say anything.

The old lady was getting older, and the opera troupes she hired to sing were not what the younger generation liked to watch. Therefore, although she had seen many operas, she was never fully satisfied.

At this moment, she encountered a monkey charmer, and she could no longer move her legs. She stopped outside the stall, stood on tiptoes, and looked through the crowd.

As soon as she stopped, Gu Tingshu also stopped. Only Mu Chengze, who was chattering endlessly, didn't notice and kept walking forward.

When he realized that the two of them had not followed him, he had already walked more than ten meters away.

Looking back, he saw that the two of them had gathered at the theater stall to watch. Although he didn't think there was anything interesting to watch, he still walked over while fanning himself.

"I don't know where they hired so many opera troupes. The shopkeepers really spent a lot of money on marrying off their daughters this time."

"I heard before that shopkeepers love their daughters the most. I didn't believe it at first, but now that I have seen it, it is indeed true."

"It's just a three-day banquet with more than a dozen opera troupes. I don't know how much money it will cost. It was not as lively as when his son married his wife."

People nearby commented that their voices were loud, so even though there was a lot of noise on the street, Shen Qiqi heard them clearly.

In this world, children are valued over daughters, and she has rarely seen many people who value daughters more than sons.

Although she didn't show it on her face, she was immediately curious about the shopkeepers mentioned by passers-by.

The monkey on the stall climbed up from the high flagpole amidst the cheers, and then held the basin for applause.

The monkey came around in a circle. Shen Qiqi took a few copper plates from her purse and put them in the basin. Seeing the monkey grinning, she thought about it but still didn't dare to reach out and touch it.

"If my cousin likes them, I will catch a few for you when I get back and put them in the yard to make my cousin happy every day."

After walking a short distance, seeing her still looking back, Mu Chengze answered next to her.

Shen Qiqi was just curious and didn't want to tie them up, so she politely thanked him.

"I have so many cousins, but I have already seen them all, so there is no need to arrest them again."

Monkeys are fast and will not recognize people when they are crazy.

Mu Chengze touched his chin and thought for a while, this thing was indeed not suitable for her to keep.

"What kind of animal does my cousin like? I'll find whatever you like."

He said these words again and again, which was too suspicious.

Shen Qiqi stared at him carefully for a few times and whispered: "What are your intentions for me, or what are your orders?"

If there is nothing, then it is really strange for him to please again and again.

Mu Chengze didn't expect her to be so alert. She was already suspicious before he did anything.

It's just that she was suspicious, but she couldn't find out anything from him.

"What are you talking about, my cousin? We are all sharing weal and woe no matter what. Why am I being suspected when I look for some interesting things for you?"

"If Ashu wants to give you something, do you think so too?"

Shen Qiqi looked at Gu Tingshu, blinked, and shook her head, "No."

Before Mu Chengze could speak, she added: "But my cousin treats me well and doesn't want anything in return for you, but you may not."

"Seriously, we are not related by marriage. The better you treat me, the more I feel that you have something up your sleeve."

The words he wanted to say circled around his mouth several times, but he finally swallowed them back.

Looking at Shen Qiqi, whose face was full of innocence, Mu Chengze shook his head helplessly.

This silly girl, the person who has designs on her is not me. She is quite smart usually, so why is she acting stupid now?

Glancing at Gu Tingshu, who seemed not to care but was actually eavesdropping, he gritted his teeth.

This can't be blamed on my cousin's naivety, it can only be blamed on this person hiding it too deeply.

"You little girl, don't think so much. It doesn't matter whether I have any agenda or not. It won't do you any harm anyway."

He was very sure, but Shen Qiqi didn't believe it entirely. Seeing that he was still waiting for her answer, she nodded heavily.

"Got it."

Mu Chengze glared at her, "I don't think you know anything about it."

His tone was like a parent's hatred for their children. Shen Qiqi felt a smile in her heart, and the corners of her mouth unconsciously rose.

Mu Chengze caught a glimpse, curled his lips, and smiled. He smiled now, but you will cry when he is sold later.

He still had thousands of words to say, but he didn't have the chance to speak again.

When he arrived at the east side of the city, he looked at the hundreds of tables arranged on the flat and spacious ground, fanned himself and shook his head.

Hundreds of tables were kept running for three days, plus more than a dozen opera troupes sang for three days. It seemed that these families were indeed wealthy.

It's just that although this city is prosperous, it is only a small town. A mere food shop owner should not have such incredible wealth.

It seems that these shopkeepers are doing more than just buying and selling grain.

"Hey, are you guys from out of town? Come on, come on, come on, please take a seat."

"Xiao Liuzi, please bring some food quickly."

As soon as they stood still, a boy came to greet them.

Perhaps the host family had issued a message to treat people who came from out of town with courtesy. Their attitude was eager but not offensive.

Gu Tingshu took out a jade pendant from his arms and placed it on the reception table.

"Oh, officials, my master said, you can't accept gifts, you can just eat whatever you want."

"Take it. Marrying a daughter from various palaces is a blessing from us."

This was said so well that it was hard to find anything to refute, so the boy ran into the house with the jade pendant.

Gu Tingshu followed the boy's invitation and sat down. Seeing that Shen Qiqi was still watching, he reached out and gave him a hand.

Mu Chengze was fanning aside. Seeing sweat on Shen Qiqi's forehead, he increased his strength and fanned some cool air.

"When did Ashu buy a jade pendant?"

The jade pendant was of average quality, so he definitely didn't bring it out of the house. They were walking together along the way, so it's unclear when he did it.

If I had known that he had prepared a gift, I should have prepared one for myself, but now that people see it, they think that I have no manners.

"I just bought it by chance."

Gu Tingshu responded, took the fan from his hand very naturally, and fanned Shen Qiqi himself.

Mu Chengze glared at the man who had his fan taken away, but the other party did not follow his angry look and fanned him very naturally, not receiving his anger at all.

Whether he wanted to fan or not was not a big deal, but it was a big deal if he stretched out his hand too much when he took it away. To put it into perspective, he was his elder brother.
Chapter completed!