[Gone with the Wind] Back to the beginning

Ellen persuaded Scarlett, or she successfully helped Scarlett to sort out her thoughts.

Swinging between trust and disbelief since her rebirth, Scarlett, at the insistence of her mother, is determined to believe that those good qualities are not all useless—although she may no longer have the ability to possess them.Scarlett prefers to complete the desperate part by herself, and let Ellen or Meili practice the beautiful character.

Ellen was aware of her pessimism and marveled at how deep-rooted it was.She knew that she couldn't convince Scarlett for a while, but she was determined to show everything with actions.Therefore, instead of accusing Scarlett of being extreme, she silently became a part of Tara's reconstruction in the way of an ascetic.The mother and daughter are now truly reconciled, after all they love each other so deeply.But while Ellen is willing to accept such Scarlett, she still hopes to change her, which sometimes makes Scarlett feel bored.

All in all, things are still getting better.

That night, Scarlett took a kitchen knife and slashed at the shed. The shed fell down with a crash, and countless vines buried the land where the Yankees were buried.

The only surprise was that she had met Merry that night, who had come a step ahead of her and was about to bring down the shed.Scarlett immediately understood that Mei Li must have found out, and the two looked at each other for a while, and couldn't help but feel a sense of relief that they shared the same goals.

"God must let us fight side by side," thought Scarlett. "Let us be true sisters."

Melanie told her that she came back early enough to overhear Scarlett and Ellen's conversation.

"No offense, Scarlett," said Merry, "but I knew you were talking about something unusual before I said it, and I heard it all—I stood guard at the door for you. No one else would know about it." , I'm going to cover it up more thoroughly." Her usually delicate face showed unusual pride, "Honey, you are amazing!"

"It seems that we have thought of getting together." A deeper admiration and friendship emerged in their hearts, Scarlett said, "Mei Li, I know you want to protect me." She picked up the machete, "Let me Get it out of the way."

Melanie took a step back and silently watched Scarlett hacking and knocking down the shed, and then she and she supported each other back.On the way back, she said:

"There must be no one more person to know about this. If it is leaked to the Yankees, you will be very dangerous."

Scarlett nodded: "Mom was going to let Dad do this - but she was afraid that he would have a big tongue, so she still refused to tell him. Maybe Dad will be able to show it off one day after drinking too much."

Meili said solemnly: "There will never be a fourth person who will know about this matter."

The two held hands tightly, and their hearts were connected.They all understand that each other will be the best sisters in this life.

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Scarlett never mentioned the matter of rebuilding the shed, and the black slave who was already exhausted and screaming naturally pretended not to see it, so the matter was covered up calmly.

Ellen took good care of the property found in the pockets of the Yankees.At the same time, she took out a sum of money hidden in the secret compartment of the study—the dowry reserved for Su Ailun and Karin. Although it could not be cashed out quickly during the war, it still greatly boosted Tara's morale.As for the horse left behind by the Yankees, it was claimed to have run over by itself.Everyone was busy being happy because they had horses, and no one said anything was wrong.

The atmosphere in Tara continued to improve. Although the food issue hadn't made much progress due to Scarlett's carelessness, people did have better expectations for the future.Ellen patiently interacts with everyone and leads by example into production.Obviously doing the same thing as Scarlett in her previous life, but she got more support and trust because of the different way of expression.Ellen convinced the blacks.Unlike Scarlett's previous life, which was full of stern expressions due to lack of confidence, Ellen was always calm and unhurried. Even when she was working in the fields, she showed the true demeanor of a southern aristocrat.Scarlett admitted it, but she would never make her mother harder.

Now that I have a horse, there are finally some things that can be put on the agenda after hard work.Like visiting neighbors.Although Scarlett knew that the Fontaines, Tarletons, and Calverts would be safe and sound if everything went right, Tara would be encouraged to know that she was not alone, so she treated Ellen extravagantly. There were no objections to the shutdown day's plan to visit neighbors.

Tara has a car, and it's for delivery.When the Yankees attacked before, Scarlett asked people to put the family's belongings and food on it and push them away.So now the car was Tara's only remaining treasure.Now that we have a horse, we can finally travel together after a squeeze up and down.Compared with the previous bleakness, it can not but be said to be a huge improvement.

They decided to go to Fontaine's first to see what happened.

To everyone's surprise, the yellow mud house with faded whitewashed walls was still sitting in the mimosa bushes, safe and sound.The three women of Fontaine's family came out to greet them, they kissed and cheered, and were so excited that they wept.

However, after the first warm greeting, everyone filed into the dining room and sat down, feeling a burst of sadness welling up in their hearts.The Mimosa estate was too far from the main road for the Yankees to break in, so it was fairly well-stocked.But the whole manor was surprisingly quiet—the slaves ran away in fright when they heard that the Yankees were coming, and only four maids stayed behind.There are five sons in this big family, grandma Fontaine in her 70s, her daughter-in-law in her 50s, and granddaughter-in-law Sally who just turned 20, living with a little boy named Joe who just took off his diaper.It is impossible to know whether they are afraid in their hearts, but at least their faces are calm.Scarlett thought that maybe it had something to do with the persevering old granny, but the old granny just cast a glance at her, and Scarlett avoided it tremblingly.For some reason, she was always afraid of this experienced old man.

The three generations of women are not blood relatives, and their ages are far apart, but their spirit and similar experiences make them closely connected.Behind the smiles and politeness, there is a hidden pain that cannot be erased.Little Doctor Fontaine died of dysentery, and old Doctor Fontaine followed General Wheeler's cavalry to another place, and his life and death are unknown.Alex and Tony are far away in Virginia, and there is no news.No one knows where they are or if they will come back.

"I didn't expect you to stay at Tara all these days!" Sally looked very happy, but she was very sorry, "It's really rude not to visit. But the village is so busy with things that I really can't get away... ..."

"Don't mention that, Sally." Scarlett said nonchalantly. "Who cares about etiquette now? We're lucky to be alive."

The young mistress was very surprised when she heard this, and frowned at Scarlett, but she didn't notice it.

As soon as the old granny finished greeting Ellen, she turned her head and stared at Scarlett with burning eyes: "So, when your mother fell ill, you took care of the house? Did you go with your father to stop the Yankees?"

Scarlett didn't hear the meaning behind the words, but felt heartbroken: "Hey, don't mention it, the cotton is still burned..."

"It's good that the house is still alive if the cotton is burned." The old woman rested her chin on her cane. "I would like to ask, has the cotton been picked in your field?" She didn't say this to Ellen, but It was asking Scarlett, sharp-eyed.

Scarlett showed her calloused and blistered hands.

The old grandma said bitterly: "Oh, what a pair of white and tender hands!" But for the first time she gave Scarlett a look of approval, "You are just like me. When my father lost all his property, I also Go to the fields like this, and earn back the family property.”

Scarlett couldn't help being surprised. The grandmother always only liked Ellen, and only had eyes for Ellen, and she had never shown such a look to her.She regained her composure, and hurriedly continued to ask Sally: "Are the Tarleton family and the Calvert family still alive? Did their family go to Macon?" She had the impression that the two families should be safe and sound, and hoped that they are now in this way.

Sally said: "Tarleton's house is far from the main road, just like ours, the Yankees are not happy to go." She sighed, "It's a pity that the Calvert family suffered, all chickens and ducks were robbed by the Yankees and the Yankees got the niggers to go with them..."

The old grandma interrupted her daughter-in-law rudely: "Hmph! The Yankees even made wishes on those black women, and tricked those silly black girls..." When she found that the young grandma kept shaking her fingers to indicate that there were still girls here, the old grandma rolled her eyes. , "Don't make such a fuss! God testifies, we haven't seen mulatto dolls before!"

"Has the Calvert house been saved?" Ellen asked.

The old lady snorted with her long nose: "I kept it, but it's really shameful."

"What's going on?" Everyone asked with concern.

"Not Mrs. Calvert from the North and Hilton the Yankee overseer! They swore the whole family was Yankees, but Mr. Calvert died in the wilderness! Rayford died in Gettysburg! Kay Dee's still fighting in Virginia! Catherine was ashamed of what they said, and said she'd rather see the house burn down. . . . Look! That's how indecent it is for a man to ask a Yankee for his wife!"

"Poor Catherine!" Scarlett prayed silently in her heart, thinking of the tragic situation where the second most beautiful woman in the county before the war finally married Hilton, she couldn't help shivering.

Today, the old grandma's eyes are always following her. Scarlett can't tell what's wrong, but she thinks that the old man must have something to say to her.Sure enough, after a not-so-rich lunch that she had tried her best to entertain, Grandma Fontaine gave instructions to her daughter-in-law and grand-daughter-in-law:

"Take care of the guests, I have something to say to Scarlett—Scarlett, help me down the back steps."