Liu Yongfu and Zhang Ju just pushed their son away.
When Liu Fa learned the news, it was three or four days later. The landlord of the house he rented from told him that his family had left the house and the house was vacant.
Liu Fa had no way of knowing the reason why the family of three suddenly left, and he had no intention of finding out. He went to the county to settle the account with the landlord. The man was generous and didn't care about the lease being expired. He also returned the extra money to recover a little loss.
About ten days after this, news came from the county government, saying that after an autopsy, Liu Xiang had indeed died in childbirth, and his family members were asked to come to the government office to pick up the body for burial.
The family ran away, so Liu Fa had no choice but to pull Liu Xiang's body back and bury it on a hilltop.
That night, he tossed and turned all night long without falling asleep. Before dawn, he got up and went to the crossroads to burn a pile of paper money before returning home and lying down again.
The next day we found a great dancer to drive away the evil spirits.
Since then, Lao Liu's family has never kept silent about this matter.
...
The ice and snow melt in March, and spring begins in the north.
Xiangyunfang hired a helper named Huani, who was introduced by Feng Laosan.
Hua Ni and her husband worked as bodyguards for caravans away from home all the year round. He would only come back once every ten days or several months at most. However, after a long journey, he would also spend a long time resting at home.
Because she was often at home alone and too lonely, Hua Ni wanted to do something to make a living, which could not only make money but also relieve her boredom.
Qingyan saw that she was good-looking, well-spoken and well-informed, so he made a written agreement with her and hired her to help look after the store.
In this way, Aunt Li can spend more time thinking about new gadgets, and Qingyan can also go out for a walk to look at the goods. She can also go to similar shops in the county to see what her peers are selling.
If something happens to Qiu's mother-in-law, she can go back and take care of her.
After the New Year, Sanyao had already quit his job as a wealthy man in the county.
Before the ground thawed, he walked around the village and rented dozens of acres of land.
Qiu Henian and Qingyan are both busy now, and the land at home is difficult to manage. Sanyao offered to help them manage it together. The extra thirty acres was nothing anyway, so he let his second brother and sister-in-law decide what to plant. Just come down and he will take care of everything from planting to harvesting.
Of course, his second brother and second sister-in-law would not let his help go in vain. They agreed to give half of whatever they received to his family. Sanyao and Qiuniang refused to take it, but Qing Yan persuaded them hard and reluctantly agreed to take one third.
Huani people are smart, sweet-tongued and quick at work.
Qiuniang took her with her for two or three days, and she got used to it. She had never sold anything before, so she found it new and interesting, and all the guests rushed to greet them.
This morning, not long after Xiangyunfang opened its doors, customers came to the door.
Hua Ni saw at a glance that the man was wearing silk clothes, holding a fan in his hand, and had a boy with him, so she knew that he was a young man from a wealthy family.
When her eyes moved upward, Hua Ni was stunned. She had never seen such a good-looking man.
The man entered the store, put away his fan with a brush, and noticed that when Hua Ni looked straight at him, the corners of her Buddha-like lips were slightly curved, and her red phoenix eyes looked around Hua Ni without leaving a trace.
The boy behind him raised his chin and said to Hua Ni: "I heard that the perfume and balm in your store is quite famous. Why don't you take it out quickly and show it to my young master?"
This man's attitude was quite arrogant. Hua Ni suddenly came back to her senses. She felt uncomfortable, but she still smiled and said, "Okay, guest, please wait a moment. I'll get it right away."
At this moment, the handsome young man hit the boy on the head with his fan and scolded: "I taught you how to be so rude to the girl!"
The boy quickly lowered his head and did not dare to speak.
Hua Ni looked at the handsome young man, and the man bowed his hands to her and said, "It's because I failed to teach him well, so I'm rude." After saying that, he raised his eyes and smiled at Hua Ni.
Hua Ni suddenly looked away, her cheeks suddenly turned red, she quickly bent her knees and returned the gift, then turned around and went to get the ointment with a little panic.
The handsome man looked at her back, his eyes resting on her waist for a while, then he opened his fan and showed a meaningful smile.
Qingyan is currently ordering goods in the warehouse on the second floor. As the weather gets warmer recently, the beaded flowers with bright colors and lighter materials are selling better. He estimates that when the clothes are light and thin in summer, the demand for such beaded flowers will be greater.
Feng Laosan is going to the capital in the next few days, and Qingyan plans to tell him to bring back more of these beads and flowers, and also choose some matching neck jewelry and earrings.
Qingyan went to the county to see it. This year, there were obviously more people wearing simple and exquisite neck accessories and earrings that matched their headdresses on the streets. It was estimated that they would become popular in the town soon, so he had to prepare them in advance.
After ordering the goods, Qingyan simply tidied up the warehouse, washed her hands, and then went out and went downstairs.
He was supposed to have a rest today, but Sanyao rented land and had to sign a contract with someone today. Qiuniang was worried, so she took turns with Qingyan for a long time and went back to watch.
Qiu Henai happened to be in the town to buy materials in the morning, so Qingyan made an agreement with him to come to the store to find him at noon. When Qiuniang came back, the two of them went home together.
Only halfway up the stairs, when he reached the corner, Qingyan's eyelids jumped. He saw a person who never expected to appear here.
Yang Huai stood in front of the counter in the store, looking at Hua Ni with a smile on his face. Hua Ni's cheeks were red, and her eyelids raised from time to time to glance at Yang Huai, then quickly lowered them, acting like a shy little daughter.
The boy behind Yang Huai was guarding the door of the store from a distance, with his back to this side.
Qingyan almost wanted to turn around and go back immediately.
Seeing Yang Huai, Qingyan remembered the nauseating stench and sweetness that night, Liu Xiang's bruised and swollen hands exposed outside the linen, and his bulging belly, as well as Qi Yinglan crying and telling him, Liu Xiang There was dirt in the mouth, nose, and fingernails.
That night was Qingyan's nightmare, and he had tried not to think about it.
Yang Huai's face frightened him even more when he saw it, especially when he was unprepared. Qingyan felt that his eyes were going dark, his chest was stuffy, and everything he had eaten in the morning was rising up. , he almost spit it out.
His face turned pale, but he still had to go downstairs step by step.
Hua Ni is still downstairs.
Hearing the movement on the stairs, the two people downstairs looked up. One looked interested, the other looked a little flustered, and quickly took two steps back.
Qingyan smiled at the two people and said, "Why is Mr. Yang free to visit our shop today?"
Yang Huai held the fan in his hand and quickly looked around him, then abandoned Hua Ni, walked over here, and said with a smile: "The balms and perfumes in your store are available in the county. If you are famous, then I have to come and take a look."
Qingyan asked: "I don't know who Mr. Yang is looking for, so I can give you some recommendations."
Yang Huai stood in front of him, staring directly at his face, and said: "We have a marriage at home. Isn't this just to please my future wife?"
Hearing this, Qingyan's eyes flashed, and he saw Hua Ni stiffening behind Yang Huai, and her expression became obviously gloomy.
He pursed his lips, smiled at Yang Huai and said, "Master, please come here. You can take a look at the peach blossom balm that our store has recently released."
Yang Huai stayed in the store for about a stick of incense. After he picked out the items, paid the money and went out, Qingyan realized that the back of his shirt was soaked with cold sweat.
He glanced at Hua Ni, who was staring blankly at the door, sighed secretly in his heart, and said, "The food is hot on the stove. You go and eat it first. I'll wait for Qiu Niang to come over."
Hua Ni came back to her senses, responded, and went to the back to eat.
Qingyan thought for a while, and while there was no one around, he went to the shop selling fresh fruits next door. When he came back, he had a bright yellow orange in his hand.
When Hua Ni came out after eating, Qingyan played with the orange in his hand and said while peeling it: "This orange looks good, with a smooth surface, bright color, and a refreshing smell." He peeled the orange peel cleanly, revealing the moldy and rotten flesh inside. The green juice almost dripped onto Qingyan's robe. He stood up and threw the fruit into the stove pit. He pursed his lips slightly and said, "Who can see this?" Come on, this place is completely rotten."
After saying that, Qingyan went to wash his hands. As for whether Hua Ni understood, and whether she would wake up after she understood, he couldn't say anything further.
After a while, Qiuniang came over to change her shift in a hurry.
After a while, Qiu Henian also entered the store.
Hua Ni had never seen him before and thought he was a guest. She was about to go up to greet him when Qiu Niang stopped her and said with a smile: "This is Qing Yan's husband. Just call him Brother Qiu."
Hua Ni then made a bow and called out.
Qiu Henian glanced at her, nodded in response, and then looked at his husband.
Hua Ni was good-looking and fair. No matter who saw her, they couldn't help but take a second look. This was the first time she saw someone being so indifferent to her.
Qingyan was packing up the things he wanted to take back behind the counter. Qiu Henian was waiting beside him. When he saw that he had packed up, he went over and put the baggage on his back.
The two said hello and left from the store door.
Hua Ni unconsciously took a few steps to catch up, and saw the two people walking to the street not far from the store entrance. A cart covered with tarpaulin was parked there, and the cart was very full.
Qiu Henian put the baggage on his back and fixed it.
Then he took out an oil paper package from under the tarpaulin and handed it to Qing Yan who was waiting next to him.
Qingyan took the oil paper bag, opened it, took a look, smiled happily, took out a bun and ate it.
Qiu Henian pushed the cart, and the two of them headed east along the roadside.
Qingyan would feed a bun to the man pushing the cart from time to time. When he was very far away, Huani could still see him wiping her husband's sweat with his sleeves.
Qiuniang came over, stood beside her, and looked in the direction the two left, as if she knew what she was thinking, and said with a smile: "Normally, when a couple is together, they just want to be down-to-earth. The two of them have the same heart, work hard together, and don't do all the bells and whistles, so their life will never be less than prosperous."