Xiaochan's hometown, Nanting Village, is a mountain village near Jiangning and Runzhou. It may not be that far away after a thousand years, but at this time, the mountain road is difficult to travel. It takes about four or five days to go from Jiangning to the village.
It's an hour's journey, which is only eight to ten hours, which is one day.
Speaking of going to a funeral is a very serious matter, but in fact, all kinds of tacky questions are indispensable. Although Xiaochan was sad for her father's death, in fact, she was sold into the Su family when she was four years old.
When I went back once, I actually didn’t have a very clear idea of my father.
Part of it is sad because of sadness. Speaking of practical issues, I have to bring a lot of things back this time, visit this house and that house, have to meet all kinds of etiquette, pay attention to various expenses at the funeral, etc.
In addition, her uncle accompanied her home, which was the importance the Su family attached to her. In short, there were various issues that had to be taken into consideration, not just to go back and kneel down to worship and bury the person.
In a sense, this return can partly be regarded as a return to one’s hometown. Although it seems a little incompatible with a funeral. But for example, if an old man passes away, there is still a certain way to work in a wealthy family that no one in the city can reach.
When the daughter of a high status comes back, uncles from wealthy families also come to pay their respects, either Chang Guanjia or Su Tan'er. This is a thank you for Chan'er's work and a kind of face. When people talk about the deceased, they say that he has raised her.
What a good daughter, after all, she will be buried with great splendor. If the deceased was still alive, he would probably be pursuing this kind of thing. Of course, most of the time, we naturally don’t need to be so cynical and talk about things.
So naked.
It is human nature to be human and live a lifetime.
After breakfast, we left the Su family. A young man named Dongzhu was driving ahead. Geng Huyuan, who was accompanying him, was over forty years old this year, but he seemed calm and reliable. He wielded a nine-ring sword and was now the Su family's nurse.
One of the leaders. He followed Su Boyong since childhood. He grew up in the Su family and worked with Su Boyong. Later, it was the Su family who presided over his marriage. He married a maid with a high status in the Su family. Now he has two
My son is very loyal to the Su family.
At this time, Geng Nursing School also had a very respectful attitude towards Ning Yi, because his youngest son was also studying at Yushan Academy at this time, and Ning Yi was the child's husband. After getting on the bus, he said hello to Ning Yi and sat outside.
, it was Ning Yi who called him in, so he sat in and had a conversation, and then went out again, leaving the space to Ning Yi and Xiaochan inside.
Although she didn't sleep all night, Xiaochan was still very energetic at this time. Occasionally she lifted the curtain to look outside and talked to Ning Yi. Ning Yi asked her in detail about the situation at home, who her relatives were, and what her neighbors were.
Someone, some elder or something like that.
Xiaochan is a person who is used to doing things. How to deal with these interpersonal relationships, she had already planned it last night. In her mind, she probably just let her uncle sit beside her and finish it by herself without worrying too much. But Ning Yi naturally
He wasn't just a dazed young man. After chatting for an hour, he roughly drew an outline in his mind. In the past few days, he wanted to help Xiaochan thank someone, say something, give him a gift, etc. He knew what he was doing.
Come with me, after all, it's not just for show.
All the way away from Jiangning, you can see many pedestrians coming here on the official road. Most of them are in ragged clothes and have no food. They are similar to what Ning Yi saw when he went down the mountain to return to the city, but they are not too scary. The first batch was still considered
Okay, most of them have relatives to go to. It is said that they will be driven here by floods, epidemics, etc. in the future, which would be really scary. Xiaochan understood these things and whispered some things in this regard to Ning Yi.
After leaving the official road, the tracks of these victims gradually started to burn, and the road was bumpy and unstable. At noon, we stopped on the roadside for a while, mainly to let the horses rest. I took some snacks and food that I brought with me and ate them with a few people.
, Thousand-layer cakes and the like. The quality of this kind of food is good and can be stored for several days. Xiaochan carefully brought a lot of them, mainly because she was worried that Ning Yi would not be used to eating things in the countryside.
In the morning, Xiaochan and Ning Yi were sitting opposite each other. When they set off again, the carriage jolted and some gift boxes rolled down in the corner. The two of them packed them up for a while, and when they were seated, they were already sitting aside.
Went. Xiaochan sat next to Ning Yi with her head lowered and her hands on her knees together, a little quiet. In fact, she was thinking about whether to sit over there, but there was a box over there... Ning Yi didn't think about this
I didn't care, so I raised the car curtain and looked outside. I saw green mountains and green waters, a small village in the distance, and not many fields. Overall, it still looked desolate.
"Xiaochan, you didn't sleep well last night. There may be a lot of things to do in the evening. You should sleep in the car. It's just a bit too disturbing..."
Ning Yi said this, and Xiaochan nodded "Yes" there, closed her eyes and tried to sleep. After all, she was tired. She thought about it for a while. After a while, she turned her head and slowly rested it on her head.
On Ning Yi's arm.
The mountain road was difficult to navigate, and there were a few bumps and bumps. Ning Yi turned his body sideways, held her shoulders, let her fall asleep on his lap, and patted her gently.
Shoulder. In a place where Ning Yi could not see, Xiaochan's eyes opened, she blinked slightly, feeling Ning Yi's two pats, and then slowly closed them. She slept sideways on the carriage seat.
On the bed, she rested her head on Ning Yi's right leg. After a while, her legs moved up. It was midsummer, and the girl wore a thin white dress and slept quietly like this. Her curves were soft, slender and pure.
She slept quietly all the way and woke up when she was approaching Nanting Village. Next to her, she was arranging her hair that was messed up due to her deep sleep with a red face. Ning Yi was rubbing her numb thighs. Xiaochan saw her.
, quietly lowered his head and leaned over, knelt down next to Ning Yi's legs and massaged him.
After a while, they arrived at the village, and a few people got out of the car, followed by many regular social interactions and greetings.
Regarding the funeral of Xiaochan's father, today has actually been held for the third day. After all, it is summer, and the burial cannot be delayed. Xiaochan is theoretically a woman who has been sold by her family. It is possible if the owner does not give her a leave.
I won't wait for her to come back before starting. As soon as I enter the village, I can see the shed set up next to the village hall in front, and several of Xiaochan's relatives and her brother and sister-in-law have already come to welcome her.
I had heard Xiaochan briefly introduce her family, her father and mother, but now her father has passed away, her brother married the most beautiful woman in the neighboring village as his wife, one of her brothers starved to death when she was a child, she was sold to the Su family, and so on.
Xiaochan's father's surname is Xu, but Xiaochan entered the Su family at the age of four and did not have a formal name. In fact, she did not bear the surname Xu at this time. Her brother can be called Xu Dalang.
Since Xiaochan works in the Su Mansion, the Xu family's family is currently in a good situation and is relatively well-off in the village, and the funeral is also considered a scene. They play, play and sing, the monks and Taoists have everything, and there are many people coming over. In rural areas, this is
It can be called respectable. Xiaochan is the source of this reputation. As soon as she came back, many people came to greet her, including seven aunts, eight aunts, villagers and neighbors.
It’s not that it’s snobbish. In the countryside, where the folk customs are simple, everyone is also very curious about Xiao Chan, who works for a wealthy family in the city. Xiao Chan also greeted these people and introduced Ning Yi, and then Ning Yi went over to get to know him.
Say some polite words to thank them for taking care of Xiaochan's family, or say that Xiaochan is in charge of many things in the house and is very important, etc. When they heard that he was the uncle of the Su family, everyone was surprised.
Or they may say that Xiaochan has met a good master, or that Xu's family has a good fortune, etc. These are probably the most common remarks. After all, as a wealthy family, it is very important to accompany a servant home for a funeral.
When she is old enough, some people say that Xiaochan becomes the maid of the inter-brother, equivalent to Ning Yi's concubine, and will be the fate of the young mistress in the future - in short, this is also part of a good destiny...
Xiaochan seems immature, but she has actually seen a lot of things in the world, and is quite good at controlling the scene, mediating the atmosphere, etc. At this time, she did not expect Ning Yi to do a series of greetings and greetings so well. Ning Yi
This time he came here without saying a word in a serious manner, and it was considered as a favor to his family. In these days, people in the countryside would only say that he was a rich or well-established person, and took it for granted. He responded appropriately at this time,
She said some nice things, and others were flattered, and they praised her for being with a good master.
After that, I met Xiaochan's mother, the funeral was held, and then the dinner was basically not frequent greetings and entertainment. In the evening, Xiaochan knelt with her mother in the mourning hall. Ning Yi actually did not ask to appear all the time.
, although there was also an opera troupe in the mourning hall, it was of little interest to him. Xiaochan’s brother and sister-in-law had already arranged a room for him. However, he still came out and met several village elders and prominent figures.
We talked about the conversation and helped Xiaochan with some social activities.
There is no entertainment in the countryside. Some people will stay up all night for performances and small talk in the mourning hall, but the necessary social activities are almost enough after a certain level. When the time comes (9 o'clock), Ning Yi goes back to the room and prepares for his hand.
He changed his dressing, washed himself and went to bed, but not long after he returned to his room, Xiao Chan came over with a washbasin and a handkerchief. The noise from the mourning hall came over, but the yard here seemed quiet, and Xiao Chan put on a full moon dress.
Bai Xiaoyi, whose hair was a little wet and had a slight fragrance, came over to change Ning Yi's dressing as if he were still in Jiangning.
"Wouldn't it be a problem to run out at this time?"
"It's okay. Mom, brother and sister-in-law are over there, and they don't really want to stay all night... Mom also asked me to come over..." She lowered her head and took off the bandage for Ning Yi skillfully, her voice gradually became a little softer,
But my hands kept moving.
“The folks in the village are quite nice.”
"They just said that my uncle is good..."
Talking softly and skillfully, Ning Yi changed the bandage, washed his face and hands, etc. as if he were in Jiangning... After going in and out a few times and finishing everything, he took the basin and went out. Xiao Chan fell down in the corridor outside.
The sound of water and laughter came from far away. Ning Yi walked to the window and opened it, feeling the cool night breeze blowing over. When he sat back on the bed, the door opened again.
Xiaochan came in with her head lowered, closed the door silently, glanced at Ning Yi, and slowly walked to the bedside. Under a moon-white dress, her chest heaved slightly, her fingers held the hem of the clothes, and she bit them repeatedly.
lips.
"Aunt, uncle, Xiaochan...Xiaochan sleeps here tonight, is it okay..."