Chapter 139

Xue Gouzi has been ill for several days, his face is thin and out of shape, and his eyes are getting bigger and bigger.

Zhao'er has always thought that the little man's eyes are the most beautiful eyes in the world, although these eyes are always disgusted and resistant when facing her.

In fact, Xue Gouzi is only beautiful with these eyes. He has been weak since he was a child, and the second wife and his wife managed to support him, and they are always spoiled. The boys of his age in the village were all dark-skinned and as strong as a calf, but he was pale and emaciated, silent and reticent.

But Zhao'er has always been domineering, and never allowed anyone to call him a little man, and she would be anxious with anyone who said that. Because of this incident, she had fought with many girls and boys in the village, although some people still said it behind their backs, no one dared to point fingers in front of others.

Zhao'er always felt that the little man's eyes were weird today, and he avoided them uncomfortably.

She knew that the little man must be angry again, and he didn't like her saying 'the dog is my man' the most. Every time he heard her say such words, he would ignore her for a few days. In fact, recruiting children is also shameful, but she is the child bride-in-law of the Xue family's second room. If she didn't claim to be like this, she would not be qualified to challenge the fourth aunt Sun.

"Are you hungry? Look what I brought back for you?"

Zhao'er turned her head and put all these troubles behind her mind, and took out a paper bag from her pocket. Opening the paper bag, there are two steamed buns inside. They are white and plump, and people like it when they look at them.

"Eat quickly, while it's still warm." She smiled and stuffed the paper bag into the little man's hand, while putting the pannier on her shoulders in the corner.

Xue Gouzi glanced at her.

The girl in front of her was in her twenties and eighth year, and her skin was the wheat color that is common among girls in the country, but Zhao'er's complexion was very different from others, it was smooth and radiant, as if she had been smeared with honey. He has a tall nose bridge, a pair of medium-sized eyes, and swarthy pupils. When he smiles, there is a flash of inspiration in him, and he looks lively.

Zhao'er's stature is taller than ordinary girls, and she is well-developed, front/convex/backward, full of youthful vigor.

It was so vivid, as vivid as in his dream.

He unconsciously took the steamed stuffed bun and gnawed on it. Seeing this trick, he smiled even more happily. He went to the kitchen and poured him a bowl of water, which he placed next to his hand. On the other hand, he bent down to tidy up the scattered quilts on the kang, thinking about what to cook for him at night to nourish his body.

Finally, the little man got better, so he had to continue to drink the medicine, and he had to drink a few more to strengthen it. From this, he naturally began to calculate the little money left in his hand, and think of a way to get some money, so as to solve the urgent need.

"Have you eaten yet?" Xue Gouzi asked.

This kind of behavior rarely happens to him, so Zhao'er can't help but look up at the little man sitting on the kang.

In fact, the little man has a handsome appearance, which is different from the fair skin of the countrymen. The corners of his eyes are slightly raised, and the curvature makes his face a little more delicate and handsome. It's just that the little man always hangs his head halfway on weekdays, with a gloomy and silent temperament, and is too thin, so he is not conspicuous in front of others.

Zhao'er's eyes warmed up, her smile widened, and she said cracklingly, "Eat, I ate it outside, this is for you."

After she finished speaking, she realized that she had slipped her mouth. She waited for the little man to show a disgusted expression, or to condemn her daughter's family for running around, but he didn't say anything, as if he had something on his mind. Head eating buns.

Zhao'er couldn't help heaving a sigh of relief, but at the same time felt a pain in his heart, and couldn't help but said: "Dog, don't worry too much. After all, you heard the words. Since you didn't say it face-to-face, you can't take it seriously. Even if it is true Don't be afraid, sister earns money for your education."

Xue Gouzi's head still hurts a little, and he was dizzy. Zhao'er thought he had something on his mind, but in fact he was just thinking about that dream. Hearing Zhao'er's words at this time, he suddenly remembered why he had this serious illness.

Seriously speaking, Xue Gouzi's serious illness came in a hurry due to stagnation of liver qi.

Speaking of this, I have to talk about the general situation of the Xue family.

Yuqing Village is a village located under Huyang Town, Xia County, Pingyang Prefecture. There are only more than 200 households in the village.

The Xue family is one of them.

However, the Xue family is different from other ordinary farmers, and it can be regarded as having some origins.

The ancestor of the Xue family, that is, the grandfather of Mr. Xue, was a scholar. In a poor mountain depression like Yuqing Village, it is a great event for the ancestors to have a scholar.

Because of this talented gentleman, the generation of the Xue family produced the head of the Xue clan, and there were several village elders in the clan, and finally had some say in Yuqing Village. At the same time, it is also a blessing for the younger generation. Mr. Xue's father is hardworking and willing to work. With the help of the elders, he also slowly built up a family business.

By the time of Mr. Xue's generation, the Xue family already had more than 30 acres of fertile land, and several sons also had their own livelihoods. Their lives were enviably prosperous, and they could be regarded as a well-to-do family in the village.

Mr. Xue and his mother-in-law Zhao have four sons and two daughters. The eldest son Xue Qingshan married his wife Yang, and they have two sons and a daughter. The eldest son Xue Juncai is fifteen years old, the second son Xue Youcai is ten years old, and the eldest daughter Xue Maner is married.

The second child, Xue Qingsong, is a carpenter. He married his wife Qiu Shi and gave birth to a son, Xue Gouzi, who is fourteen years old. The third child, Xue Qingbai, is a farmer, married his wife Zhou, and gave birth to a son and a daughter. The eldest daughter, Xue Taoer, is thirteen years old this year, and the youngest son, Xue Shuanzi, is eight years old now. The fourth son, Xue Qinghuai, is a shopkeeper. He married his wife, Sun, and gave birth to a son named Xue Maodan, who is only four years old this year.

As for the two daughters, the eldest daughter, Xue Cuiping, is already married, and the youngest daughter, Xue Cuie, is fourteen this year and is still in her boudoir.

It is worth mentioning that nowadays there are parents who say that they do not separate their families. In addition, families in the countryside are ruled by clans, so Xue's family has no separation.

The Xue family has tasted the benefits of reading, so they have more vision than ordinary farmers. Xue Qingshan is smart since he was a child, and he is the eldest son. Mr. Xue has high hopes for him, and when he reaches the age of enlightenment, he spends money to send him to a private school.

Xue Qingshan also strives for success. At the age of twenty, he passed the Tongsheng examination. Although he is still a scholar, he can be counted as a scholar who can be counted in ten miles and eight villages.

Don't underestimate Tongsheng! As the saying goes, scholars, farmers, businessmen, and scholars are the highest class of people in the current society. If ordinary people want to turn ordinary people into scholars, there is only one way to take the imperial examination. As for the imperial examination, it is only a matter of going to the west to learn Buddhist scriptures, and you have to go through various checkpoints and go through hardships before you can get it.

If you want to embark on this path, you must first have the qualifications, and Tong Sheng is a person with this qualification. It is necessary to pass the county and government examinations to be called Tongsheng. As for the next step is to be a scholar, to become a scholar is to enter school, and it is also the first step to embark on the road of imperial examinations.

It can be seen from this that Tong Sheng is not an ordinary person, so Xue Qingshan's status in the Xue family can be imagined.

But as I said before, the Xue family's family background can only be regarded as a middle-level family in the countryside. If a family like this wants to support a scholar, it will almost exhaust all the human and financial resources of the family. Because the eldest son is the eldest son, who will set up a family in the future, and is talented and intelligent, the next few sons naturally have to give in.

As for why Xue Gouzi became seriously ill, it has to be related to another old matter of the Xue family.

Back then when Xue Qingshan was selected as a child student, he was considered a success at a young age. He was full of ambitions and wanted to pass the college examination in one fell swoop, and he could also be a scholar, but it was a pity that God did not follow his wishes.

It was only a close call, and no one would be reconciled to it. Xue Qingshan could only calm down, work hard, and hope to win next time.

After so many years of rushing away, the original smugness was completely devastated by the impact of reality. Xue Qingshan failed many exams, so he couldn't stay at home and eat free food all the time. In desperation, he set up a private school in the village, which specializes in taking children from the village and several nearby villages to read and write, and they can more or less earn a living.

With such convenient conditions, several children of Xue's family naturally followed suit. The next few children are still young, and among the grandchildren, Xue Juncai, the eldest son of the big house, and Xue Gouzi of the second house have studied the longest.

However, compared to his cousin Xue Juncai, Xue Gouzi is obviously not as good as he is because he is too weak. When he was young, he was always sick every day, which delayed a lot of homework.

The time was stretched back to five years ago, this year the academic officer held a college examination in Fucheng, Xue Qingshan naturally would not miss it, he stopped his private school classes early and went to Fucheng to take the exam.

It's not easy to go out at this time, and besides, Mr. Xue was worried about his eldest son going out alone, so he asked his second son Xue Qingsong to accompany him. He always took care of him when he was usually on a business trip.

That is to say, something happened on this trip, Xue Qingshan offended someone in Fucheng, Xue Qingsong was beaten all over his body in order to protect his eldest brother. In the end, the man was pulled back, but he died within a few days after he came back. Before he died, Xue Qingsong asked Xue Qingshan to promise himself that he would do everything in his power to confess Xue Gouzi.

In fact, after giving way for others all his life, how could Xue Qingsong have no complaints in his heart, but he has a simple and honest nature, and he knows that his talent is not as good as that of his elder brother, so he has been making contributions in obscurity.

But when it came to his own son, especially Xue Gouzi, who was weak since he was a child, he was not a farmer in any way, and he was dying, so Xue Qingsong took the opportunity to force his elder brother to make a promise.

Xue Qingsong would do this, but he wanted to break the status quo that the Xue family's resources had been leaning towards Dafang. The Xue family only had two scholars in the first room, and now there is a Xue Gouzi. The children in the third room were still young at that time, and the fourth child was not married yet. As long as Xue Qingshan agrees, others will naturally have nothing to say, and Xue Qingsong will do his best for his son Brown.

Xue Qingshan agreed to the matter on the spot, crying blood, saying that he would treat Xue Gouzi as his own son, Xue Qingsong closed his eyes.

Not long after that, Qiu Shi, who was already in poor health, became depressed and fell ill, and then passed away. Since then, Xue Gouzi has become a poor child without father and mother. Fortunately, there are grandparents and uncles, and Zhaoer, a child bride-in-law, so he doesn't have to worry about food and clothing.

In the following years, Xue Qingshan really treated Xue Gouzi like his own son. No one in the village would say that the boss of the Xue family raised his nephew as his own son. But as the saying goes, the human heart is the most fickle, and selfishness is the nature of human beings. As time passed, Da Fang gradually changed his attitude. Although he was in front of others, he was still the same as before, but only the person concerned would know what happened to him afterwards.

This year, seeing that he had nothing to teach his son, Xue Qingshan decided to send Xue Juncai to the town school to study for two years.

But it costs a lot of money to go to the school to study, not to mention the one-year study that costs two silver, the three festivals and six rituals of the husband, and the pen, ink, paper and inkstone used in daily life, all of which cost money. The Xue family has already been seriously injured because they confessed to Xue Qingshan, and how can they have money for the two children to go together.

You can only take out one piece of money, that is to say, Xue Juncai and Xue Gouzi can only go to one.

Xue Qingshan told the matter in front of the whole family, but Xue Gouzi didn't say what he couldn't say tactfully, but chose to remain silent.

During that time, the atmosphere in the Xue family was weird, the old man Xue was frowning, and the grandmother Zhao was eccentric all day long, but the eldest couple were still the same as before, and they didn't think it was a problem.

I will not mention this, it is also a coincidence that Xue Gouzi accidentally overheard his eldest aunt Yang and fourth aunt Sun talking in secret, saying that he would let his parents-in-law come forward and let Xue Gouzi take the initiative to give up his place to study in the town , Xue Gouzi became seriously ill in a fit of rage.

Thinking of this, Xue Gouzi felt uneasy for a while, and at the same time, many pictures appeared in his mind, which were just some of his previous dreams.

The Xue Tingxiang in the dream also faced the same situation in the fourteenth year, and the other party's temperament changed drastically after this incident, changing his previous disposition.

Could it be that he is Xue Tingxiang, and that Xue Tingxiang is him? But why would he dream of these things!

Xue Gouzi felt a throbbing pain in his head, the bun in his hand fell on the kang, and the water bowl next to him was also knocked over. Zhao'er heard the movement, rushed up and hugged him in his arms.

"Dog, dog, don't scare me!"

The leftovers are for Heizi. Dogs in the country are like this. The owner eats dry food, and the dog drinks water. When the owner eats water, the dog usually goes hungry. Country dogs in the countryside are used to starvation, but Zhao'er usually pays little attention to sunspots, no matter good or bad, he always feeds him.

Occasionally there are additional meals, of course, these are invisible to the human face.

Anyway, Mrs. Zhao saw Zhao'er picking food out of her pig's mouth and feeding it to the dog!

She stepped out of the main room and saw this scene, her old face immediately pulled down, and she didn't see her scolding Zhao'er, so she stood in front of the door and shouted at the direction of the kitchen: "Let you feed the pigs!" It’s good for you, feed the food into the dog’s mouth, such a big person is useless, and eating for nothing is not enough.”

This clearly refers to Sang scolding Huai.

In the kitchen, Mrs. Zhou didn't speak. Tao'er, who was sweeping the yard, looked up at Grandma, endured it and continued to sweep the yard. Mrs. Zhao didn't mention her name, who knows who she was scolding, if she stepped forward to intervene, she would only change the target and be scolded bloody.

These are lessons learned.

As soon as Zhao'er walked to the gate of the courtyard, she heard such scolding. She didn't show any weakness, and turned her head to look at Zhao with a smile: "Grandma, are you scolding Third Aunt? If you scold Third Aunt, Third Aunt But it’s too unfair. If you want to scold you, you should scold me. I scooped up the leftovers and planned to give Heizi to eat. Didn’t I just think that Heizi would not be easy, so I would bring a rabbit to the house every now and then. You said we You can’t do something that wants the cows to work without giving them grass, don’t you think?”

Mrs. Zhao glared at Zhao'er angrily. She knew that this girl was not a cheap girl, so she scolded Mrs. Zhou, but she found her by herself. Just as he was about to say something, some of the women who passed by the gate of the courtyard smiled and said, "I saw Lian Xing's family so energetic early in the morning."

Someone next to him interjected: "Don't talk about it, Ren Zhao'er is right. How can there be a cow that works without giving it grass?"

"That's right, Lian Xing's family, it's almost enough. Everyone in the village doesn't like your big black dog. At this time when there is a rabbit shortage in the wild, it can fetch rabbits. What a smart beast. Usually In summer and autumn, voles, wild rabbits, and pheasants were often picked up at home, and they would be brought back if they didn’t eat them. If you don’t like Heizi, give it to our family, and your Uncle Shouxin has already taken a fancy to Heizi.”

This is a Lianxing family, Mr. Xue and his aunt, known as Aunt Shouxin. Although he is ten years younger than Mrs. Zhao, but he is of a higher seniority.

There are more than 200 households in Yuqing Village, with Xue and Zheng as the main surnames, and there are more than a dozen other households with mixed surnames. Since they all have the same surname, it is inevitable that every family is related, and some relationships can be pulled out of Wufu. But relatives are relatives, and when one is younger than others, one has to respect one another, so when this aunt Shouxin spoke, she sounded like an elder giving advice to younger generations.

Mrs. Zhao was terribly blocked by these words, even though she was scolding, she was really reluctant to let her give Heizi to others. Just like what these people said, Heizi did bring some wild animals to his house at ordinary times, regardless of size, fat or thin, he always eats meat, and it is not easy for country people to eat meat.

She kept a straight face and said nothing, but the trick in front of the door was on point: "Grandma Seven, this is not acceptable, Heizi is my lifeblood, you have made my lifeblood run away, I can't live anymore."

She smiled as soon as she said it, and said witty words in her mouth, and immediately made Aunt Shouxin laugh, pointing at her bit by bit, and said to others: "Look at this naughty girl, but she is not at all. You're welcome. Please, please, Seventh Grandma doesn't want you dog, so she won't take away my son's life."

After talking and joking, Zhao'er sent the women away with a smile, and then turned around to feed Heizi.

Mrs. Zhao glared at her, turned around and was about to enter the room, but just as she lifted her foot, she heard someone calling her from behind.