mud buddha

"Sir, you, you," Charlie blushed and stammered, "isn't this door pushed inward?"

"Oh, it goes both ways." Henry stood behind Nibel, looking at him from top to bottom, with a hypocritical smirk that is common in all kinds of stores. "Haven't you seen it?"

The other party's natural attitude made Charlie lower his head, feeling that the fashion brought by his haircut disappeared, and he became a rustic country boy again. It seems that two-way sliding doors are the most common thing, and only bumpkins don't know it.

"Get in the car first." Nibel raised his hand, telling Charlie to prepare the horse quickly.

The roads in the city were smoother than Psyche's, and the carriage was less bumpy.

Charlie kept touching his hair, took out his pocket watch, and shone light on the reflective metal on the back.

"Cut your hair?" Nibel asked him.

"Cut it, just cut it, in the salon next door."

"salon?"

"Yes, a skinny little girl cut it for me, and her skills are not bad. The proprietress of that house is really fierce, with a strong back. But there is a little advantage, for example, she doesn't need to hire another security guard."

Nibel turned his head, squinted his eyes and looked at his hair carefully.Charlie's hair was very light, but it was cut short now, and it looked a little bald to him.

Charlie went on to say, as if he hadn't spoken in half his life, his lips opened and closed to sparks: "That little girl is very stupid, and she is a little malnourished. At first I looked at it and thought she should be only 15 years old, but it turned out that she was only [-] years old. Actually told me seventeen. In addition, as a hairdresser, her hair is messed up like a ball in the mother's womb, swallows can't help but want to make a home on it. But as the saying goes, a doctor If you don't self-medicate, the barber may not be able to cut your own hair. This is very strange, don't they have other barbers in their barber shop? Emily, that little girl, still wears a feather clip, saying yes A gift from a friend. When I asked, what kind of friend is she, she is a female cousin who takes advantage of her." He sighed: "Innocence is noble, but it will become a disaster if it falls on a stupid person."

"Feather clip?" Nibel frowned, "What does it look like?"

"White, big and long, with a little bit of blue at the end. Kind of tacky, to be honest, but it fit just right on her head, as if the nesting bird had just fluttered away from his head. "

Nibel asked because he had just seen such a clip.One spring, Winnie didn't know when she read a book and learned how to make clips, so she looked around for small things to wear on her head, and this feather clip was one of them.

"How did she get that clip?"

"Emily said it was left by a friend of hers before he slipped away. Look, that's not a good job to designate! That woman left a lot of stuff, I guess maybe it was left over to pay off debts or something, As a result, everything of value was divided up, and she ended up with a feather clip."

Nibel lifted the curtain of the carriage, glanced at the sky outside, and found that it was not too late.So he frowned and asked the coachman to go to the monastery.

It’s nearly February now, the wind that blows is a bit like a thin, narrow arrow shot by a child, floating from the sky towards the person, and when it falls on the shoulder, it loses its strength and only sighs.

Pushing through the gate of the monastery is a small courtyard, with some well-manicured flower beds around the corners, dressed up like ladies at a ballroom party.

Some children were leaning on the gate to look out, trying to poke their heads out between the bars; some children were sitting on the ground playing pinball, and the pinball hit the stone floor with a crisp sound; Children in moccasins grab each other's skirts and play chase.

"Okay, children." A nun clapped her hands and came out of the door: "It's time for dinner."

So the children on the fence retracted their heads, the children playing marbles picked up the noisy balls on the ground, and the chasing children stopped, huddled together, and smiled at each other.

The nun wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, and the light of the setting sun fell on her face, making it look like her wrinkles had been smoothed out, as if she had just come to the monastery when she was young.Although Nibel had never seen her before, and couldn't see her face clearly at this time, he felt a sense of familiarity in his heart.

Her hand was placed near the cross on her breast, covering the bottom of her kerchief, and the children crowded into the room in disarray.

When the children were all inside, she approached Nibel and asked who they were, what they were doing here, and if they wanted a meal.

Charlie looked at the nun and felt kind.This nanny had two deep smile lines, and he couldn't help but imagine that she was carrying the kind of straw basket that nuns used to go around to raise funds.

If he met such a kind woman who said "Sir, please" to him, he might not be able to resist paying.Thinking about it, he thought of his empty purse again, and sighed.

"I'm Nibel Roswell, and this is Charlie."

"Mr. Roswell?" Mammy looked at him carefully, sighed, and crossed herself on her chest.Although she is old, her movements are very flexible, her hands are softer than when she was crossed, and her posture is very standard. "Perhaps you didn't come to see me."

"I wanted to come to Winnie. But I don't know if she still has that name."

"Yes, sir." Mammy turned around and led the way for them: "Come in first."

The monastery here is not particularly luxurious, but it should have altars and the like.The ceiling is supported by two arches. The wooden vault is very high. There are two passages on the left and right of the nave. The windows face the courtyard. It is dim and solemn at this time.

On the altar there were some large candlesticks around a group of small columns, with flowers and shrines on the casserole.The statue of the Virgin pinched its fingers and looked at the hall, surrounded by faint cigarettes, as if covered with a layer of veil.

A few nuns came to the corridor, lit the glass cups hanging on the wall, and stood in the nave watching. After the lights inside were lit, they danced dimly.

"Winnie! Your guest." Mammy called to one of the nuns.Her voice was not loud, but it was loud enough in the quiet nave.

The nun turned her head this way and walked over quickly.She stuffed what was in her hand into the hand of the nun next to her.

Nibel recognized her before turning her back.Winnie didn't wear a nun's hat, but wore her hair and men's clothes, very capable.

"Master!" She walked up to Nibel, hesitated for a while, tried to open her mouth and then closed it again.Mammy went over, picked up the lamp and went on with her work.

"Long time no see." Nibel said.

"Indeed, it has been a long time!"

"You... have you had a good time?"

"pretty good."

"Stay here all this time?"

"Yes."

Nibel frowned: "Have you ever gone out?"

"Oh, I was sick once." Winnie was a little blunt at first, but quickly and naturally took Nibel's wheelchair and pushed him to the reception room on the other side. "Speaking of which, my lord, you don't know, the Mills have run away!"

"what?"

"When I went to see a doctor, I found that they had a new boss who was tearing up the posters on the glass windows. I had to go to a big hospital. It was really embarrassing to drag a sick body so far."

Winnie spoke slowly now, softly, carefully, and Charlie listened attentively, chewing every word of hers and secretly imitating.

"The Mill Clinic is gone now, it's become a pharmacy."

"Where did they go?"

The woman smiled slyly. If Nibel saw it, she would definitely feel kind: "I knew you would ask that. Dr. Mir had a craniotomy before, when he went to the suburbs to recuperate, do you remember?"

"Annie told me."

"It was the operation that killed him. Don't do porcelain work without diamonds. Why didn't he understand? The patient was really alive and kicking a few days after the operation, but soon his neck was crooked, and he stuck out his tongue every day. Drooling, turned into a big fool, and died after half a month of foolishness. When he died, he vomited blood all over the floor. When his wife cleaned up his body, he found that the place on the top of his head that had been operated on was not healed at all. It's been pus, and it's said that there are worms—" Winnie said that she was disgusted, frowned, and then said: "That woman is not easy to mess with. The doctor lost his life or his money. Soon the whole city knew that Dr. Mill had put a man to death."

"and then?"

"It is said that the woman approached them very early to ask for money, but the Mill family couldn't get the money together. After going to court, they don't know how they got the money, and they barely paid back the money. But after it is resolved, their reputation will be bad, and no one in the city is willing to go to him for medical treatment."

"When did they move out?"

"It's not long after you were taken away by Master Guy. It's complicated to say, but it happened as fast as lightning."

"I remember you made a feather barrette before, a long time ago, are you still making it?"

"It's long gone, just make something new when you make it."

"And what about the one you did before?"

"Why, you want to learn?" Winnie glanced at Nibel: "I don't know where to throw it, mine is past the age of wearing pink on my hair."

"Is there anyone else who can do it besides you?" Nibel was relieved when she heard her say pink, thinking that it shouldn't be the same clip.

"There are too many people who know it. I learned that method from a book. Anyone who has read this book will know it. That book is here. Do you want it?" Winnie walked out courteously, Nibel said she didn't need it and she didn't listen.

"Sir, are you interested in that clip? Just go back and ask Emily if it's okay." Charlie asked him in a low voice.

"No. I don't like going to that kind of salon."

"I see that many famous people have gone in, although I didn't look at them."

Nibel was noncommittal, put his hands on the armrest of the wheelchair, and closed his eyes as if in deep thought.

"It's so strange, I clearly remember it, why is it gone? Did someone else borrow it?" Winnie came back muttering.

"It's okay, I didn't need it that much."

"What are you doing here today?"

"Just to see you."

"Are you in good health?" Winnie hesitated for a long time, but still asked, and let out a sigh of relief.

"pretty good."

"Oh, that kid Basile is unreliable. Have a meal before leaving?"

"No," he half-opened his eyes, and the corners of his mouth curled up: "someone is waiting."

Winnie stared at him for a while: "Have you gone back to see it?"

"No." Nibel knew she was talking about her own house.

"Then there is no owner at home now! Annie hasn't contacted me for a long time. We would send letters occasionally, but she didn't return the last time I sent them. What about Basile? You have to punish him well." Winnie babbled.

Nibel paused for a moment: "Let's talk about it after I get better."

"Yes, yes." Winnie smiled embarrassingly: "Now is not the time."