Brocade tears

After about the beginning of the Mao Dynasty, Meng Yi hastily used the food and went out. He only wore coarse clothes, a bamboo hat, wrapped a scorpion knife and tied it to a pole. He picked up two baskets full of needlework and went out. Looks like a peddler.There are new shoes just received in the basket, and beautiful and unique embroidered bags, all made by Mrs. Zhao's skillful hands, and they would be sold on the street in the past to supplement the family.Before Meng Yi went out, he repeatedly told Kuang Qing and his siblings to stay behind closed doors, to protect the baby girl and take good care of their mother, and both brothers and sisters responded one by one.

After sending Meng Yi away, the brother and sister went back to the kitchen to have breakfast. At that time, the mother got up. Seeing that she was not refreshed and her eyes were blue, she probably hadn't slept last night.

Meng Qing fetched hot water for her mother to wash, then helped her sit down at the dining table, and served pancakes and porridge.Meng Kuang sat beside her, pushed the pickle dish towards her, and said:

"Mother, please eat as much as you want."

It was fine if he didn't say that, but when he said it, Mrs. Zhao silently shed tears.Meng Kuang and Meng Qing couldn't help but panic, Meng Qing hurriedly said:

"Mother, what's the matter, why are you crying?"

Mrs. Zhao didn't speak for a long time, but wept silently.Meng Kuang sighed and bowed his head. Meng Qing could only sit beside her mother and caress her back. After a while, Mrs. Zhao finally stopped her tears, took out a handkerchief and wiped the tears all over her face, and said in a hoarse voice:

"Kuang'er, Qing'er, you are old enough to understand things, mother will not hide it from you. Your father, this is putting our family in danger. He has always loved this family, but now he is like a ghost." I'm lost. Mother is scared. He seemed to be a different person last night. He didn't listen to what he said, and he didn't give any explanation when he brought someone back. But he clearly brought the girl back from the imperial prison. How could he do such a thing? It's really worrying..."

"Mother, don't worry, father said, he will send him away in a few days." Meng Kuang said.

"So what if you send it away? You've done everything, and you can find out as soon as you investigate. Why is there no excuse? How many people were involved in the Tai/Zushi Lanyu case in the past, and how many people are so innocent, let alone your father. People who commit crimes can't escape no matter what." Zhao Shi can read and write, and has read some classics and history, and often listens to her father and brother discussing some things in the court in private, and she has her own views.

Mrs. Zhao was right, and both brothers and sisters were silent.

Meng Qing thought for a while, took two biscuits, made two bowls of porridge, put them in food boxes, picked them up and went out.Mrs. Zhao called her to stop:

"Qing'er, what are you doing?"

"Give the court food to that girl and An'er." Meng Qing replied.

Mrs. Zhao frowned and said, "You child, did you listen to what mother just said?"

"Mother, since everything has happened, no matter how much you worry about it, it won't help. The girl has suffered a lot, and she is probably a few years younger than me. She has committed a heinous crime and will be in that purgatory place." Suffering? Since the father rescued her, there must be a reason. What we can do now is to live our lives well, take care of the girl, and trust the father. If nothing else, at least we have a clear conscience." Smiling, he carried the food box and headed towards the Westinghouse.

Zhao Shi was dumbfounded by Meng Qing's remarks, but Meng Kuang smiled and said:

"Mother, it's good that Qing'er is Le Tian. Don't worry too much. What Qing'er said is right. Trust father and take good care of that girl. At least we have a clear conscience."

Mrs. Zhao sighed, but thought in her heart, this child Meng Qing is too kind, if she gets married in the future, don't let her husband's family bully her.Thinking of this, I couldn't help but worry again.

……

Meng Qing carried the food box and the copper pot full of boiling water into the west room, and she saw that Wan'er was still wrapped in a quilt and laying in bed on the couch, but Sui'er had woken up at some point.She was sitting by the bed, staring out the window silently, with a desolate expression, completely different from the expression that a woman of her age would have.Seeing Meng Qing coming in, she immediately stood up, her delicate body was a little smaller than Meng Qing's, and Meng Qing's underwear didn't fit her well.She was still a little nervous, her eyes were locked on Meng Qing, her pale lips were tightly pressed.

Meng Qing smiled, walked over and put the food box on the table, poured the hot water from the copper pot into the copper basin, brought green salt toothbrush and mouthwash cup, and said:

"Now that you're up, let's wash up first."

Sui'er nodded, and walked cautiously to the sink stand to start washing.Meng Qing went to the bed and asked her sister to wake up. The little girl fell asleep, her energy was low, her hair was pulled up from the bed by her sister, and she yawned again and again.Then, at the urging of her sister, she ran to Sui'er, smirked at Sui'er twice, and began to wash up obediently.

Sui'er's expression softened a lot, and the restraint around her body also relaxed.After washing up in the silent communication, the big and small sat down and began to eat the morning food.The room is very quiet, no one speaks, only the sound of bowls and chopsticks when eating.Sui'er was probably hungry, so she ate very quickly, but her movements were graceful.Meng Qing observed her and felt that she should be very well-bred and act like a lady from a rich family.Although she was very hungry, she restrained herself, only ate a pancake and a bowl of porridge, and then stopped eating.Meng Qing didn't persuade her to eat more, after they finished eating, she packed up the dishes and went to the kitchen to wash them.

"I...let me help you..." She had just stepped out of the west room when Sui'er behind her stopped her.

Meng Qing nodded.

The two sat by the well, fetched water and washed the dishes.Meng Qing secretly looked at her, the morning sun had already risen, illuminating the small courtyard of Meng's house, and the golden light sprinkled on her pale face, making her dreamlike and dreamlike.Meng Qing felt a strange feeling in her heart for no reason, it was soft and dense, and there was an indescribable feeling in her heart.She finally couldn't bear it and said:

"Are you used to living at home?"

Spike nodded.

"My father said that he will send you away in two days. Do you have another place to go?"

A look of panic appeared on the girl's face, and Meng Qing suddenly realized that she seemed to have said something wrong.

"Have you nowhere to go?"

"Where is he taking me?"

They said at the same time, and then looked at each other.Sui'er immediately lowered her head, her cheeks flushed, her expression worried and fearful.Meng Qing was tongue-tied for a moment, then said clumsily:

"Don't worry, my father is a good man, he will not harm you."

When he said this, he didn't know whether he was comforting himself or Sui'er.Sui'er's expression became even more desolate, and Meng Qing was tormented in her heart, and finally bit the bullet and said:

"If you have nowhere to go, just stay at my house, there are only two chopsticks left and right."

After saying this, she really wanted to slap her own mouth. This is not just a matter of having more chopsticks, it is a matter of life and death for the whole family.Meng Qing is not ignorant, she understands that the sooner this girl leaves her home, the better.But looking at the girl's miserable expression, this sentence blurted out unconsciously.

That's all, it's not her who decides anyway.

"... If your father wants to send me away, I won't hold back, I... won't hurt you." Sui Er said hard, as if she was trying to repay something.Although she said this very reluctantly, it can be seen that she is very afraid of an uncontrollable future, and she should still have a certain degree of distrust of Meng people.

The two silently cleaned the dishes, and Meng Qing was going to start her daily homework next.During the day, she practiced kung fu. In the morning, she practiced her muscles and bones, and in the afternoon, she practiced the skills of Teng Dao and Dao Dao.Although there was a new visitor at home, she did not shy away from it, so she began to practice in front of Sui'er.In the courtyard of the house, there are some equipment left by the eldest brother for body training, such as stone locks, discus, horizontal bars, heavy chains, oil tanks for horse training, heavy bows and archery targets.Now these instruments have become exclusive to Meng Qing, and she will practice them every day.Just as she was getting ready to warm up, Meng Kuang came out of the kitchen, greeted Meng Qing, and entered the east room to start studying. He was about to start his daily homework.

Sui'er watched Meng Qing practicing and found it very novel.It was the first time she had seen a woman exercising her body like this.Moreover, Meng Qing's body is steady and strong, and her physique is strong. Those heavy stone-locked discus were swung vigorously in her hands, which obviously did not happen overnight.Seeing her sweating profusely in the yard exercising, Sui'er actually saw God, and for a moment forgot all her troubles, and gained a sense of peace that she had not seen for a long time.

Unknowingly, Meng Yan came to Sui'er and sat with her on a small square stool to watch her sister practice.For Meng Yan, this is all a matter of routine, but seeing Sui Er watching so engrossed, she couldn't help feeling proud and proud, saying:

"My sister is amazing."

"Mm, great." Sui'er nodded sincerely.

"In the entire Beijing city, my elder sister is the most powerful female hero, a hero among female heroes." The little girl boasted to Sui'er who didn't know where she learned the word.

Hearing this, Sui'er couldn't help smiling at the little girl.This smile is beautiful and captivating.The smile happened to be seen by Mrs. Zhao who had just walked out of the kitchen and came to the yard. Mrs. Zhao watched quietly for a while, sighed, and turned silently back to the north room to rest.

It's not really a bad child, it's pathetic... She thought to herself.

On this day, Sui Er quietly followed behind the Meng family, living at their pace.After Meng Qing finished practicing, she simply went to the bathroom to wipe off her body, and then went to prepare lunch.On this day, his mother was not in good health, and Meng Kuang refused to come out when he was studying at a critical time. The family did not get together for lunch, so Meng Qing packed dishes and sent them to the house for her mother and Meng Kuang, while she and Meng Ai He and Sui'er had a simple lunch together.In the afternoon, Meng Ai ran out, and Meng Qing took a lunch break before continuing to practice.In the afternoon when she practiced the sword, the courtyard was filled with the sound of her waving the sword.Sui'er was overwhelmed by this special weapon and the way it was brandished, as if recalling some frightening memory, her complexion turned pale.She returned to the Westinghouse by herself and never came out again.In the evening, Meng Qing started to make dinner. Meng Ai ran back and brought back two sweet cakes from nowhere, wrapped in handkerchiefs.She and Sui'er had known each other for a day, and had formed a good friendship. She took Sui'er out of the house, sat side by side in the yard, and shared the pastries with her.Meng Kuang finished his daytime homework and came out to exercise his muscles.He seemed to be thinking about something, looking puzzled.So he entered the kitchen and said to Meng Qing who was making dinner:

"Qing'er, I just read a book, and I saw a sentence, 'The method of learning is not for lack of talent, it is difficult to learn from a teacher, verify the truth, and prove right and wrong.' Do you know where it came from?"

"What?" Meng Qing was crackling and cooking vegetables on the stove, but couldn't hear clearly.

Meng Kuang repeated it loudly again, saying: "The method of learning is not for lack of talent, it is difficult to learn from a teacher, to verify truth and truth, and to prove right and wrong. Where does this sentence come from? I seem to read it somewhere familiar. But I can’t remember it for a while.”

Meng Qing thought for a long time, but had no idea, so she had to shake her head.At this time behind Meng Kuang, a sweet female voice suddenly came from the kitchen door, and replied:

"This sentence comes from the "Lunheng" written by Wang Chong of the Eastern Han Dynasty. It should be a sentence in the "Questioning Confucius."

"Yes! It's "Lunheng"!" Suddenly, Meng Kuang was surprised and delighted. Looking behind him, he saw that it was the woman Sui'er.

"Have you ever read?" Meng Kuang asked.

"I've read some." Sui'er nodded and said, when she said this, she changed the melancholy and swaying look she showed in front of Meng Qing before, showing a bit of a haughty temperament, neither humble nor overbearing, with a faint smile on her face.Although she speaks standard Mandarin, her accent still inevitably reveals a bit of Wu Nong's soft accent.

Meng Kuang seemed to be trying to test her, and asked, "Have you read the Four Books?"

"I have read it."

"Can you recite the three No. 20 chapters of "The Doctrine of the Mean"?"

Sui'er smiled and recited: "Secondly, the song. The song can have sincerity. Sincerity can form. The form can be shaped. The written can be clear. The clear can move. The movement can change. The change can be transformed. Only the sincerity in the world can be transformed."

"Wonderful! Good memory." Meng Kuang praised.

Meng Qing was stunned by her appearance when she recited the scriptures. Those golden amber eyes exuded a frightening brilliance, and her whole temperament changed drastically, as if a gray duck had transformed into a white crane in an instant, raising its head and wings, and singing proudly.

Before Meng Kuang could ask her a few more questions, the door opened in the front yard of the house, and Mrs. Zhao greeted her from the north room. It was Meng Yi who had returned.He carried his burden and strode across the front hall to the backyard, where he saw his wife, children and newcomers gathered together.So he put down his burden, his face sank like water, his eyes swept over the confused Sui'er and his children, and then at his wife, saying:

"This girl has to stay at home for a while. Something went wrong outside, and we can't send her away for the time being."