Ming Yu

In summer, the sky was high and the air was crisp. This day caught up with the rare ten-week holiday, and the atmosphere in the palace was very relaxed.

After breakfast, Hua Niansu asked Xinfang to take Ziyang back to the house to change a set of clothes, planning to leave the palace for a few days.

"Brother, where are we going?" Zi Yang raised his small face and looked at him excitedly. It was the first time he had been out of the palace in the past few days since he came to Yaoyu, so he was very excited.

Hua Niansu wore a water-blue robe today, the belt was not inlaid with jade, and there were no accessories, it was simple and clean, and it still made him look tall and elegant.

He held Ziyang's little hand, with a smile in his eyes: "Accompany brother to meet a very important person, okay?"

Zi Yang nodded cheerfully, and asked, "Where does that person live? Does he live in the City of Demons?"

Hua Niansu raised her head, her gaze passed through a row of neat vermilion palace walls, and drifted leisurely into the distance, with a gentle look on her brows and eyes: "No, that person is in the human world."

Ziyang exclaimed, almost jumped up with joy, his heart was full of yearning for his hometown.

In early August, on the eve of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the sun was shining brightly.

In a quaint town in the south of the Yangtze River, a two-entry courtyard facing the river is located at the end of a winding and deep alley. The high and low bluestone slabs in front of the door are covered with a thin layer of moss and mottled walls because they do not see sunlight all year round. There is a green ivy spreading on the ground.

The door of the outer courtyard was not closed, it was just concealed, Hua Niansu pushed the door lightly and walked in, Ziyang followed behind him, sticking out his small head and looking around with curiosity on his face.

The yard was not big, but it was tidy and tidy. Several peach trees were planted, and there was a flower garden. The pale pink petals fluttered in the wind, and there was a hint of sweetness in the air.

A woman was sitting in the courtyard, washing her clothes with her head bowed. There were two small wooden tables beside her. Five or six children were sitting around copying copybooks. One of the little girls just raised her head and saw two people standing there. Immediately cheered and threw down the pen, rushed into Hua Niansu's arms like a suckling swallow, shouting loudly: "Brother!"

Seeing this, the rest of the little radish heads jumped up from their chairs and surrounded the two of them, one hugged their arms and the other hugged their thighs, chattering endlessly.

"Brother, have you come back to see us?"

"You haven't come back for a long time, Frog Boy misses you."

"Did the elder brother bring us something delicious? Last time, the bag of jerky was snatched away by Xiaopang, and the peanut cake was also eaten by Xiaoqiang."

"Brother, tell us a story later, we really like listening to your stories."

"Big Brother..."

Hua Niansu bent down and rubbed their little heads one by one, with a gentle smile on the corner of her mouth: "When I'm not around, are you all good? Did Xiaopang and Peng'er fight? Do you usually listen to Master?" if?"

The children immediately answered in a hurry.

"Okay, okay, your elder brother just came back, and he didn't even drink his saliva, stop pestering him, and go to do his homework." The little radish heads were driven back to practice calligraphy, and the woman stood up, with her hands in her hands. Wiping the apron around her waist, she walked towards Hua Niansu with a smile on her face: "Su'er, it must have been hard work to sail for several months, why did you lose so much weight all of a sudden, Mama Song almost didn't recognize you. "

Hua Niansu held Ziyang in one hand, and hugged the little girl in the other, with a smile on her face: "I went through Jiayuguan with the caravan and went outside the pass. After returning from the Hexi Corridor, I walked along the Yellow River for a month. So it took quite a while. This is my foster brother, named Ziyang."

Ziyang let go of Hua Niansu's hand, took a step forward and bowed to her: "Ziyang has met Song Ma, these days when brother is not here, I have made you worry a lot."

Where has the peasant woman seen such a battle before, she rushed up to help, but Hua Niansu gently stopped her, and said with a smile: "Mother Song, you deserve this gift, I can't be with the master all the time, Thanks to you for taking care of me on weekdays."

"My old lady only knows how to do some rough work, so I can't help my husband too much. Besides, two years ago, my chubby ate poisonous fruit, and my stomach hurt for three days and three nights. If it wasn't for my husband, I would have died a long time ago. Now I can read Master has a lot to learn calligraphy. Now the children in the town come to study and practice calligraphy every day, and the husband has never received a penny. Everyone respects him very much. I can do something for him, feel at ease, and sleep well Sleep."

Song Mama couldn't stop nodding, took the little girl from Hua Niansu's arms, turned around to lead the two into the house, but Hua Niansu called out: "Is the master in the house?"

"Mr. went out early in the morning. Brother Cao came to see Mr. in the morning. His mare was about to give birth to a foal. There were signs of giving birth since last night, but she didn't give birth for a long time. I'm afraid it's going to be difficult, sir. After hearing that, I left with him without having breakfast."

Hua Niansu frowned slightly, looked up at the sky, the sun was slanting through the eaves and shining on the mottled wall, it had been three or four hours, he explained to Song Ma, and hurried away with Ziyang up.

Cao Sheng was in his forties, a blacksmith in the town, and lived in Dongtou, two streets away.

The wife of Cao's family opened the door, and seeing that it was Mr.'s senior apprentice who was looking for him, she quickly let them in and led them to the backyard.

The manger was covered with a thick layer of hay, and a mare waiting to give birth was lying on its side on the ground, blowing hot air from its nostrils.A man with his sleeves rolled up was squatting next to the mare to deliver the baby. A red fox was sitting beside him. Cao Sheng kept stroking the mare's neck to calm her down, with an anxious expression on his face.

After a quarter of an hour, the man who delivered the baby stretched out his hand and pressed several times on the horse's belly. Finally, the birth canal of the mare was opened, and the foal's two front legs were exposed. He followed the rhythm of the mare's strength, Gently tug on the foal's front legs to pull it out of the mare's belly.

The newborn foal was still wrapped in a layer of wet afterbirth. Since the mare was giving birth for the first time and did not know how to shave it dry, Cao Sheng quickly wiped the foal dry with a dry towel. A relieved smile appeared on his face.

After a while, the foal stood up tremblingly, and wobbled its head to find the mare's milk. Finally, the mother and baby were safe.

The gratitude in Cao Sheng's heart was beyond words, and he hurriedly asked his wife to bring water to wash his hands.

When the man stood up, his figure wobbled for a moment, and was immediately steadied by someone. He was slightly startled, and felt the palm of his hand being scratched twice, and a faint smile appeared on his face.

Hua Niansu helped her husband walk out of the stable step by step, followed by the fiery red little fox with snow-white claws, Ziyang stared at the little fox curiously for a long time, and then raised his head to look at the person in front of him.

Mr. is a tall and slender man. He is wearing a half-worn blue cotton robe pressed tightly against his body, outlining his thin figure. His pale silver hair is a little scattered and flutters in the wind.

There was sweat on his forehead, his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, his slightly open neckline revealed a section of his snow-white neck, and faint blue veins could still be seen.

The Cao family tried their best to keep a few people to eat at home, but they were declined by the husband, so they had to send them outside the door with gratitude.

Coming out of Cao's house, the gentleman's face changed slightly, and he staggered suddenly. It was obvious that he was trying hard to avoid being seen before, so he showed a weak state.

Pressing the hand that was supporting him, the husband shook his head, signaling to keep quiet, his brows were slightly furrowed, the weight of his whole body was on Hua Niansu's body, but he was still vain.

Hua Niansu's eyes were full of distress, but she couldn't bear to blame him for not caring for her body, so in the end she didn't say anything, just bent down to pick him up and walked home.

Due to years of disrepair, the road surface was bumpy and uneven, Hua Niansu carried her husband on her back and walked in the winding alleys, with a friendly accent in her ears from time to time.

Although the husband is tall, his weight is very light. Hua Niansu carried him without any effort, and she held him firmly on her back.Ziyang followed behind the two, spreading his small arms to protect Mr. from falling off.

The little fox following behind the three of them had fiery red fur and only four snow-white claws, as if walking on snow, with light and elegant steps.From time to time, it would look up at the person on the boy's back, its amber eyes were clear and bright, as beautiful as mercury flowing.

The afterglow of the setting sun shone on them, and several long overlapping shadows were drawn on the wall. The picture was gentle and harmonious, with a touching beauty.