Strange People and Things
In the 36 counties of Chu State, Nanjun was almost at the bottom. Under the jurisdiction of Nanjun, there were three cities: Xuchang City, Wan City and Qingcheng. Among these three cities, Qingcheng was the smallest. Around Qingcheng, there were three small county towns, all under the jurisdiction of Qingcheng, namely Xin Zhu County, Bai Shui County and Gao Di County.
Inside Hsinchu County, there are over a dozen small mountain villages. Among them, Luchu Village is one of the poorer ones. The villagers' lives have always been hovering between warmth and hunger. If it's a good year with favorable weather, they can pay their taxes on time and barely make ends meet with the leftover grain. However, if there's a disaster or famine, seeing starving people dying by the roadside isn't uncommon.
This year's wind and rain were out of tune, and the harvest in the entire Green Bamboo Village was poor, almost whitening the hair of old village chief Zuo Liang.
At this time, Zuo Liang was wearing a coarse linen garment that had been washed until it was white, and he was walking heavily on the rural path with a wooden crutch in his hand.
He walked on the road, from time to time looking at the fields by the side of the road, looking at the thin yield, his face was filled with uncontrollable helplessness and sighs. As he walked, he stopped in front of a rather dilapidated mud house.
The gate of the house was half-closed, just enough to see a few withered bamboos at the corner of the wall. At this time, a woman in green clothes was standing beside the bamboo. The woman's clothes were quite exquisite and seemed somewhat out of place with the dilapidated farmhouse.
Zuo Liang looked at the woman's back and furrowed his brow tightly. His usually just and kind eyes swept over a faint dislike.
Zuo Liang just stopped for a moment and then stepped away.
At the moment when Zuo Liang turned his head and left, the green-robed woman in the courtyard slowly turned her head around.
The woman's appearance was quite elegant, set off by a green dress as soft as clouds, which made her seem warm and gentle like a mountain stream. What caught people's attention most about the woman wasn't her looks, but rather her eyes.
Those quiet and gentle eyes seem to hold endless softness within them forever.
An Yan looked at the empty doorway with a warm expression on her face. After glancing at the doorway, she withdrew her gaze.
Suddenly, a low cry of a baby came from beside her ear, she turned around and entered the room on the east side.
Lifting the curtain at the door, An Yan saw a little kid on the kang, wearing only an undershirt, crying with his mouth wide open. His big eyes were filled with tears, and his small arms and legs were waving wildly in the air.
An saw this scene and gently stretched out her hand to hold the little one in her arms, softly coaxing him.
"Good boy, Qing Ge is good."
She had never taken care of a child before, but now holding this soft body, she surprisingly looked like a natural. Although she didn't know how to coax the child, she knew she needed to speak softly and move gently.
The little one who was crying loudly just a while ago, now opened her big, shiny eyes and curiously looked at the person holding her. Her small arms and legs were also kicking happily, and the gentle force of her kicks on her body felt like they were kicking her heart. As she looked into the little one's eyes, her gaze became increasingly warm, with a hint of unnoticeable warmth mixed in.
"What are you doing..."
An Yan Zheng was gently rocking the little guy back and forth when a sharp voice suddenly rang out beside her ear.
She turned her head in doubt and saw a young woman wearing coarse linen clothes. She was slightly stunned, then gently called out: "Second sister, you're here."
Her expression remains unchanged, still warm and gentle, as if always with a hint of smile. Her voice is soft and gentle, carrying a kind of tender power.
Xiū Niáng, however, did not notice these things and quickly walked to Táng Jǐn Xiù's side, suddenly snatching her own child. She tightly hugged the child in her arms, carefully checking them over, confirming that the child was unharmed, and only then could she put her mind at ease. But when she raised her eyes again, she was warily staring at Táng Jǐn Xiù across from her.
Xiū Niáng was originally taking care of the child inside the house. When the child fell asleep, Spring Aunt from next door asked her to come over and help with drawing a pattern. She looked at her son who was sleeping soundly and thought that since she was just next door, she went over. However, after half a cup of tea's time, when she came back, she saw Táng Jǐn Xiù holding her own son, and suddenly became extremely anxious.
Being stared at by those vigilant eyes, An Yan's expression didn't change in the slightest, still with that gentle and warm smile that held a hint of amusement.
"It was windy in the morning and blew down a yard of fallen leaves, I went to sweep them."
An's expression on her face didn't change at all due to Xiuniang's vigilance, she finished speaking in a gentle tone and slowly walked out of the room as if nothing had happened.
Watching her leave, Xiū Niáng's face was stunned, and she couldn't react for a moment.
Tang Jinxiu, when did you start speaking so gently? The just-right volume and tone were like a spring breeze on her face, making her feel inexplicably comfortable. Xiuniang was momentarily at a loss, staring out the window at some point, lost in thought.
Before long, she turned around and lowered her head to look at Qing Ge in her arms. The little child seemed very happy, moving around happily in her arms, with a big smile on his face, and saliva was flowing out of his mouth.
Seeing her own son like this, Xiū Niáng immediately put all her thoughts on him. A happy smile appeared on her face, and she quickly sat down on the kang, taking out a cotton handkerchief to gently wipe the saliva from the corner of the child's mouth.
In the courtyard, An Yan was holding a broom and slowly sweeping away the fallen leaves.
The yard is very large, with a clump of bamboo planted in the corner. On either side of the gate are several persimmon trees. Now that summer has just begun, both the bamboo and persimmon trees should be lush and green, but due to lack of care, they appear sparse and unhealthy, growing poorly. When the wind blows, many leaves fall off.
Anwen carefully swept the yard clean, then stood under the persimmon tree with a broom. She looked up at the persimmon tree above her head. A pair of elegant eyes sparkled with shallow interest, and her expression was quite focused.
The beautiful daughter-in-law had just finished feeding the milk to Qing Ge, and then she carried the child out of the house. Standing at the door, she saw a woman in green standing under the persimmon tree. The woman was quietly standing under the tree, intently looking up at the persimmon tree above her head.
The girl's face showed a puzzled expression. This cousin of the aunt's family had been different since she woke up three days ago. She seemed to have become quieter.
At the time of Xiuniang's confusion, An Yan looked up at the sky and then turned to face Xiuniang's direction, saying softly: "Second sister, can I borrow a ladder and a pair of scissors from you?"
When she speaks, her extremely elegant eyes will look at you seriously, making you feel very comfortable.
The young woman suddenly heard the scissors and changed her expression, but she said evasively, "I just remembered I still need to go to the fields to deliver water, let's talk about it when I get back."
After finishing speaking, Xiūniáng hastily returned to the house, as if afraid that Táng Jǐnxiù would closely pursue her.
Watching the figure of Xiū Niáng disappear, ān yán sù yǎ's eyes flashed lightly, as if the wind had blown over the lake, stirring up a faint ripple. She turned her head again, continuing to gaze at the pomegranate tree above her head, silently thinking in her heart whether there was a better way to make the pomegranate tree grow even better.
"Jin Zhuang, Second Sister is going out for a while, don't run around at home by yourself."
The girl's face looked somewhat unnatural when she mentioned the last two words, with a hint of worry in her eyes, looking very uneasy.
An Yan turned around, a pair of calm and gentle eyes like still water looked at Xiuniang seriously, and said softly: "Second sister can go busy, Jinxiu will take good care of mother."
Xiu Niang looked at Tang Jinxiu's expression and thought that since her aunt was in the house, Tang Jinxiu shouldn't do anything improper. So, she gazed at her again with a steady eye, then turned around and left with Qing Ge.
After Dai Xiuniang left, An Yan did not linger in the courtyard but turned and entered a room on the west side. Gently lifting the curtain, a strong medicinal scent immediately wafted out.
An Yan hastily pulled down the curtain and walked in quietly. Because all the windows were closed, the room was very dim, but An Yan still clearly saw a woman lying on the bed. She sat down at the bedside, stretched out her hand to gently pull up the woman's hand on the bed.
The hands were dry and thin, and when he looked down subconsciously, he saw that the hand in his grasp was extremely thin, almost without any flesh, with several blue veins visible on the surface, looking quite eerie.
"Cough...cough..."
As she looked at the hand grasping hers, the woman on the bed suddenly burst into violent coughing.
She looked at the woman who was coughing violently on the bed, hastily let go of her hand, got up and poured half a bowl of water from the table next to her. She sat back down on the edge of the kang, stretched out one hand to help the woman on the bed who had already woken up, and gently fed her some water.
Bai's eyes had just opened when she felt a warm hand helping her up, followed by water entering her throat, instantly moistening her parched throat. As a result, she felt much better and no longer coughed, staring at the blue-clothed woman in front of her with a pair of questioning eyes.
Brocade...
Bai was somewhat bewildered, feeling that the woman in front of him, with a hint of a smile and an extremely gentle gaze, was very unfamiliar.
"Mother, Jinxiu is here, mother, where are you uncomfortable?"
An softly put down the bowl of water, then freed up her hands to support Bai Shi as she leaned against the wall behind. After settling Bai Shi in place, she lifted her serene and elegant eyes, gazing at Bai Shi with concern and seriousness.
Bai's face was initially filled with confusion, and her heart was secretly joyful, but soon she seemed to think of something, and her complexion slowly turned pale. Her eyes were full of disappointment, and she looked at An Yan with a sigh of despair, saying: "Jin Xi, you're already married, you're someone's wife, don't do those shameful things again. If you continue to be so obstinate, Mother won't have the face to live in this world anymore. Cough...".
Bai had just said two sentences when he suddenly became violently agitated and started coughing severely.
Seeing this scene, An Yan hastily approached and gently helped Bai Shi to relieve his breath. However, Bai Shi suddenly swung her hand away with great force, then leaned back and started coughing violently.
Digression
Recommend a warm and gentle Tan Wen ~
Feng Piao Xiang [Rebirth of a Leisurely Life]
Yue Wei is a honest and down-to-earth farm girl.
Adhering to the Three Obediences and Four Virtues, strictly demanding of oneself
Been filial to elders at home since childhood, managing all household items in an orderly manner.
Unexpectedly, her sister-in-law was a careless person who spread rumors everywhere, and she was said to be lazy and idle, a broom star, so that everyone in Ping'an Town saw her and hid.
It's all set since childhood, and finally getting married.
Who would have thought that on their wedding night they were murdered by someone?
One dawn, Lin Weiwei became Ye Wei
Everyone in his wife's family is a tough nut to crack, each one more difficult than the last.
It's okay, I brought a welfare space with me when I crossed over, so I'm not afraid of those evil spirits and monsters. I can still live a carefree life.