Brocade tears

In August of the 23rd year of Wanli, the midsummer was coming to an end, but the mountains and forests in the Sichuan Basin were not too hot, fresh and cool.

On the mountain road, two young men were carrying firewood loads and walked slowly down the mountain along the Yangchang Mountain Road.The younger one in the back has a strong physique, quick hands and feet, and quick movements. Although he is dressed in men's clothing, he has a handsome and beautiful female face.She called to the young man in front with a mustache, and said:

"Brother, are you up to it? Why don't you give me some points?"

"Hey! Don't look down on your brother, I still have no problem with this firewood. In the past two years in the mountains, I have eaten delicious food and lived comfortably, and my health is getting better and better." The young man in front It is indeed brisk to walk, without the slightest effort.

The two were Meng Kuang and Mencius Xiu.After walking another distance, a large city village appeared at the foot of the mountain not far away, but for some reason, most of the cottages in the village were turned into coke.Seeing this situation, Meng Kuang narrowed his eyes slightly and said:

"Brother, you are really a prophet. We made a wise decision to move out of Shijie Walled City half a year ago."

Just half a month ago, there was a mutiny in the village. Because Ma Douhu, the chieftain of Shijie, was found out by the court for his mining losses, he was convicted and demoted to border guards, and his son Ma Qiancheng was also sent to prison for this.After the two left, the Shi Jie Xuanwei Department was temporarily taken over by Ma Douhu's wife Qin Shi.The orphaned daughter and widowed mother fueled the ambitions of Ma Douhu's brother Ma Bangpin and some people in the clan. They secretly planned to unite to overthrow the Qin family, seize the seal, and control the Shijie Xuanweisi.So a mutiny was launched, and more than 80 huts were burned down that night, and the entire Walled City was engulfed in wildfires.Fortunately, Qin Liangyu practiced martial arts since he was a child, and he and his brothers defeated these rebels and asked for help from the government not far away.After the fire was extinguished, these people were all imprisoned by the officers and soldiers who came later, and Ma Qiancheng was redeemed because of the ransom collected by the tribe, and inherited the seat of chieftain Shijie.

As early as half a year before the old chieftain Ma Douhu was convicted, Meng Zixiu had a premonition of something unpredictable, took his family and left the city, and went to live in a grass hut alone in the mountains more than ten miles away.Previously, Meng Zixiu, Meng Kuang and others had drank wine with Ma and his son many times. Maybe it was during the conversation that Meng Zixiu noticed something.It may also be that Mencius Xiuda was unwilling to associate closely with the local chieftains from the very beginning. After all, they came to live in seclusion and did not want to be involved in the struggle for power again.

On the night of the mutiny, Meng Kuang actually went down the mountain to help a little, mainly to help Qin Liangyu put down the rebellion, and also helped put out the fire.Her skill left a deep impression on Qin Liangyu.

Now, the Meng family lives in the mountains and forests more than ten miles south of the walled city.This mountain forest is actually under the jurisdiction of Chieftain Shijie. The Meng family used their savings over the years and the Qin family to buy a large forest on the mountain.Relying on their own hands, the hardworking family quickly cleared up a piece of land and built their residence first.They learned from the local people and built tall bamboo houses, supplemented by wood and grass roofs, and several other houses were built with mud tiles.They cleared up a few more acres of land and began to grow some vegetables.But the rice grains couldn't be grown for a while, so they had to go down the mountain to buy some household necessities together in the walled city.For a family that has lived in cities and towns for many years, it is really unfamiliar to do farm work for a while. Although it is hard work, it is full of interest.

Meng Kuang and Mencius repaired down the mountain, entered the city, exchanged half a load of firewood for something to eat and play, then walked up the mountain again, and returned to their cottage.After passing the fence, you can see Sui'er and Bai Yuyin who are busy in the vegetable garden. The two daughters are dressed in commoner clothes and Jingchai. Two years of living in seclusion in the mountains and forests has made them younger and more beautiful.Seeing Meng Kuang and Mencius Xiu coming back, a smile appeared on the beautiful face covered with sweat.

"I'm back." Bai Yuyin came forward to welcome her. Just a year ago, Bai Yuyin gave birth to her and Meng Zixiu's first child, a girl named Meng Bingxin. "Bingxin" comes from Wang Changling's "Send Xinjian at the Furong Tower". Mencius has always loved this poem. The name implies that this child can have a clear and pure Bingxin, with a heart of inaction and nature like a Taoist jade pot.

"I'm back, where is Xiao Ai? Didn't she ask for spicy food in the morning? We went down the mountain to exchange some peppers for her." Peppers are a rarity, and the Meng family only saw them at the market in the capital before. However, the taste is extremely spicy.Unexpectedly, this stuff is particularly popular in the Sichuan and Shu generations. People here seem to love this spicy stuff.

"If she wants to eat, you buy it for her? It's not like you don't know that this girl is greedy. What if something goes wrong?" Bai Yuyin complained, picking up the basket in Meng Zixiu's hand.As soon as he turned around, he saw Meng Yan with a big belly standing at the door, looking at them with a smile.

Not long after Bai Yuyin gave birth to Xiao Bingxin, it was Meng Yan's turn to conceive her and Zhan Yu's child.Meng Yan gave her own pulse, saying that she might be pregnant with twins, but Daoist Luo cut her pulse again after returning not long ago, but said it was twins.I don't know if this dragon and phoenix twin is a tradition of the Meng family, but it is really dumbfounding.

"Sister-in-law, just let me taste it, and I'll just taste a little, it's okay." Meng Yan begged.

"No, Daoist Luo said you can't eat spicy food. Zhan Yu went to the back mountain to hunt pheasants for you, and I'll be back in a while to make chicken soup for you." Bai Yuyin flatly refused. Bai Yuyin had the final say.

Meng Yan's pretty face suddenly collapsed, and it was chicken soup again, and she almost vomited.As a result, a little guy appeared beside him, solemnly tugging at Meng Yan's dress and saying:

"Auntie is obedient, you can't eat spicy food."

"Hey you little villain, you bully Auntie too?" Meng Yan teased the little guy on purpose, making the little guy giggle.Seeing this, Meng Kuang in the distance hurriedly shouted:

"Shunzhen, don't make trouble with Auntie, Auntie is heavy."

"Oh." The little guy was very wronged, but he still ran over with strides, rushed into Meng Kuang's arms, and murmured "Father".

"Hey, I bought you a small rattle." Meng Kuang picked up the child, and magically pulled out a rattle, swinging it in front of the child to play.

"Wow! Thank you, Father." Six-year-old Xiao Shunzhen grabbed the rattle excitedly.

"Are you wasting money again? How many times have you brought her toys this month?" Sui'er came over while wiping her sweat, reproaching her, but her eyes were as gentle as water.Meng Kuang raised his hand, wiped her sweat with his sleeve, and said, "It's okay, I don't have much money."

"We don't have a lot of savings. We will have to grow food until next year. Seeing that there will be two more people, we have to save some money." Sui'er has dirt on her body, and the child's clothes are clean, so she didn't hold the child. .

Meng Kuang didn't take it seriously, she had a lot of savings as a Jinyiwei, and Meng Ai actually brought out more wealth, which was the surplus of Lingji Hall over the years.In addition, Meng Zixiu and Bai Yuyin's savings are also quite considerable. In fact, their wealth can be regarded as a veritable rich man in Shijie.Sui'er is a hard-working child who has been in charge of the family early, so she always feels tight and not enough.

"Don't worry, Lao Guo and Luo Qianhu will come and live together in the next year. Then we won't be under so much pressure, and they will have more money on hand." Meng Kuang laughed.

"That's not a family after all, how can we use their money?" Sui'er retorted.

Meng Kuang smiled and didn't say anything else.Just at this time, a person striding forward from a distance, with joy and sweat on his face, was Zhan Yu.He carried two hares and two pheasants on his back, and he gained a lot.

The sun was setting, and it was time for dinner. Just outside the house, everyone set up a pergola, and placed tables and chairs under it.In the hot summer, they all eat outside while enjoying the cool.Today's meals are cooked by Meng Kuang and Mencius Xiu. Whoever cooks in the family is not fixed. Whoever is free will cook, and whoever has a heavy workload today will not cook.Today Meng Kuang and Mencius Xiu just cut firewood and walked down the mountain, so they rushed to cook.There is another principle, that is, pregnant women do not work.

During the meal, Mencius brought up the topic of Guo Dayou and Luo Xun again.

"I went to the town to hear the news a few days ago that the Japanese army has finally retreated, even Liu Ting's Sichuan army has withdrawn. The Jinyiwei must have withdrawn long ago. Is it true that Lao Guo and the others can almost retreat?"

Meng Kuang thought for a while and said, "It's not easy for them to step down. I feel that something should be done as an opportunity, but Lao Guo wrote me a letter two months ago, saying that he will come in the next year. reunited with us."

"I think Xuan, the reason why the Japanese army retreated this time is unclear. It was Shen Weijing who went to Nagoya to talk on the Japanese land. Toyotomi Hideyoshi didn't show up at all. It was a few Japanese generals who made the decisions there. I am very sorry I wonder if Shen Weijing is cheating again this time, and when Toyotomi Hideyoshi reacts, I'm afraid he will feel humiliated and attack again." Mencius shook his head and said.

Bai Yuyin who was holding Xiao Bingxin and feeding rice cereal hastily poked him on the head and said, "Oh, you can't say something good, it's all in the crow's mouth."

"Yuyin..." Meng Zixiu held his head in frustration.

"I think brother is right." Meng Yan chimed in, and then asked Meng Kuang, "Sister, what do you think? Didn't you leave an information hole in the town and go back regularly to ask about the situation?"

"There is no news in the town. Everyone is happy if there is no war. After all, the common people suffer from paying food and salaries. But I think what my brother said makes sense. Shen Weijing seized the opportunity this time and must hide it from both sides in order to make a profit. So Luo Qianhu and the old man Guo is really a little dangerous. But no matter how you say it, even if there is another war, it is impossible for us to go to the battlefield again." Meng Kuang showed an attitude of staying out of the matter.

"Then is it possible for us to pay food tax?" Zhan Yu asked.

"It stands to reason that our land is under the management of the Shi Jie Xuanwei Division. If the imperial court does not want the Xuanwei Division to pay the grain, we will not be taxed. However, if the Shijie Xuanwei Division is taxed, it may not be collected from us, because Our heads are not under their control, we have bought out this land. Besides, Luo Qianhu has greeted Liu Zongbing of the Sichuan Army before, and we are related households in the army." Meng Kuang explained.

Everyone felt a little embarrassed when they said this, and they always felt that they had taken advantage of something they shouldn't have, but they were relieved anyway.Meng Ai sighed:

"You want to live in seclusion these days. It doesn't matter if you live in seclusion. Why do you live in a hut without cars and horses? Ask the king how can you be far away from yourself. Fake, when will the old farmer's life be better?" ? That was all made up by the sons of officials and relatives to deceive people."

"Hahahaha..." These words made everyone laugh out loud, but after laughing, there was a kind of powerless sigh.

At night, Meng Kuang and Sui Er washed up in their own room and prepared to go to bed.Both of them love to be clean, and they have to take a bath at least every other day.The bathing equipment at home is made according to that of Jingzhong Lingji Hall, so it is convenient to wash.The two washed Xiao Shunzhen first, and after serving the little ancestor, they sent her to the bed, and then they soaked in the bathtub together.Just when Meng Kuang was a little distracted, he put his hands on Sui'er's body, trying to do something quietly.Sui'er grabbed her hand and said:

"I'm telling you something serious. Today, Xiao Ai suddenly mentioned to me that she wanted to adopt the child in her stomach to us."

"Ah?" Meng Kuang was a little surprised.

"She is pregnant with twins and wants to adopt the boy to us." Sui'er explained.

"Why? We both have Xiao Shunzhen, her and Zhan Yu's child, why should we adopt it?" Meng Kuang was puzzled.

Sui'er said: "I asked the same question. She said, after all, the child Shunzhen was picked up on the Korean battlefield and has no blood relationship. The children of Xiao Yan and Zhan Yu are our nephews. We should kiss each other a little bit. From outsiders' point of view , we only have this one girl, and it's strange not to have a boy anymore. So adopting us is also a way to block the rumors outside. She and Zhan Yu can still have another life."

"Girl, what are you thinking? Why do you care what outsiders think? Are we living in seclusion?" Meng Kuang frowned.

"I also told her the same way. I said you should raise your children by yourself. Who is the parent and the child should be distinguished. We are not the emperor's family. There is no emperor who must have a son to succeed the throne. You and I have little Shunzhen That's enough. Although Xiao Shunzhen is not related to us by blood, this child is intelligent and kind-hearted by nature. He is a good child and cannot be talked about only by blood. But... I think Xiao Ai's worry is not unreasonable. I am mainly afraid of you Our identities will be exposed, but if we can raise another boy, then we can avoid some gossip and gossip, and it will also help us to live in seclusion. After all, we don’t want to go to the mountains to be savages, and we have to contact the outside world. It's not like you don't know that some enthusiastic people always run up the mountain and pass by our house." Sui'er said softly.

"I'm afraid Shunzhen will be unhappy." After a long silence, Meng Kuang acquiesced to Sui'er's statement, but asked another question.

"I'll ask Shunzhen tomorrow to see if she wants a younger brother."

"You have to make it clear to her that although this child is young, she knows everything. She knows that she picked it up and has always cared about it. I still remember the pitiful appearance of this child in North Korea to please us ... She finally didn't care about this matter. We suddenly added a younger brother to her, and she would think that we don't want her anymore, so we can't let her misunderstand. If Shunzhen feels uncomfortable, then we don't want a second child. Anyway, you must not hurt Shunzhen just to block other people's Youyou's mouth." Meng Kuang said.

"I can save it." Sui'er nodded seriously.

However, the result of the conversation on the second day was unexpected. Xiao Shunzhen was very happy to have a younger brother. Sui'er and Meng Kuang confirmed to her repeatedly that the little girl's expression did not seem to be fake at all, but was very happy.Perhaps it is the love of Meng Kuang and Sui Er that made the girl get rid of the threat of being abandoned. Now she just wants to have more playmates, whether it is a younger brother or a younger sister, she is very welcome.

At this time, Qin Liangyu from under the walled city came to visit, and she made a request, she wanted to ask Meng Kuang to be the coach of the army she formed.