There were two heavy snow this winter, and most of the rest were good weather. There were few days of cold rain. However, after the 19th day of the twelfth lunar month, the sun refused to show up again. The clouds were dark, and the cold rain was tighter and slower, and there was no sign of sunshine in the short term.

According to Zeng Yu's mother and Zeng Yu, they wanted to stay in Shangrao for a few more days and wait until the sky clears before going back. However, Zheng Shi couldn't wait. In two days, it would be the Little New Year, so he would rush home. He and Zeng Yu left Yingtanfang on the tenth day of the twelfth lunar month. The old mother and wife and daughter at home must have heard about the thieves in Yiyang and Qianshan area. They must be worried about his safety, so he can't delay any more.

At the end of the 21st day of the 12th lunar month, Zeng Yu and Wu Chunze sent Zheng Shi and several other scholars from Guixi to return home by boat. Zeng Yu asked Lai Fu to lead a sheep back. Yuan Laoke and Xia Chaofeng each gave him a sheep. His house had a small population and a sheep was enough for the New Year, so he gave one to Zheng Shi. Anyway, he took a boat and could go to Yingtanfang in the evening.

Sixi thought about the ten taels of silver that the young master had lost on Hengfeng Road, and said to Zeng Yu: "Young Master, let me go with Young Master Zheng and Brother Lai Fu. When I get to Hengfeng, I will go ashore to find the silver. If I find it, I will come back.

Zeng Yu laughed and asked, "What if I can't find it, I won't come back?"

Lai Fu said silly: "I will accompany Sixi to find it. I know that the silver is under a stinky toon tree."

Zeng Yu said: "Forget it, we are not familiar with that path. How can we remember which tree it is under? Don't waste any effort. Just treat it as losing money and eliminating disasters and spending the New Year with peace of mind."

Zheng Shi said: "Jiuli, I am not very proud of the composition of the subject examination this time. I am afraid I am not qualified for the provincial examination next year. If you want to go to Nanchang for the exam, you must first go to Yingtan to meet me."

Zeng Yu said: "No need to say this, you must come to visit your aunt and Qianqian when you pass by."

The cold rain spreads across the river, and the mountains on the other side are particularly bleak in the rain curtain. The wind is tight by the river, and the rain wets the feet and gets cold into the bone marrow. Other scholars are on the boat. Zheng Shi is about to get on the boat, but he turns back and asks: "Jiuli, you won't go to Fenyi next year?"

Zeng Yu hesitated and said, "It's hard to say, if Mr. Yan Er must ask me to go, maybe he will go, so he can't afford to offend him, right?"

Zheng Shi said: "If you want to go to Fenyi, then you should go to my place first to have a fight."

"Try a fight" is a common saying in Guangxin Mansion, which means rest.

After seeing off Zheng Shi and his students, Zeng Yu returned to the house outside the north gate with an umbrella. On this cold rainy day, two matchmakers were still waiting under the eaves of the house. When they saw Zeng Yu, they smiled so hard that their faces were wrinkled, but they complained that the chef Yu didn't know anything. Although there were no men in the house just now, they were all old wives, so what could they not open the door?

He didn't hit the smiley person, and the two mothers smiled and Zeng Yu couldn't say too much about face. He just said, "My Liu Erma, I don't like you two matchmaker daughters. You should save your worries. You should go back and rest in this cold weather. I'll worry about my marriage."

An old lady was still asking why Zeng Yu was not satisfied. Liu Erma was quick to turn her mind and asked: "Did Zeng Xianggong already have an affair? Or did she like a famous lady? Tell Lao Shen, Lao Shen, go and match you. This lady from the famous family in Shangrao urban and rural officials is not unfamiliar with Lao Shen. As long as Zeng Xianggong can tell who it is, Lao Shen can make Zeng Xianggong have a harmonious relationship."

Seeing that Liu Erma changed her strategy, another woman hurriedly said, "I am familiar with these ladies and ladies. My husband is either a man who boasts or a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is a man who is

This woman is so powerful, and she talks nonsense. Liu Erma is a little anxious. If she wants to suppress this woman, she can only marry Emperor Jiajing's daughter to Zeng Yu. However, the capital is too far away and the media is difficult to do. She rolls her eyes and says, "This is irrelevant. Zeng Hunter is a honest man. How can you do this perfunctory girl, Liu Mei, you?

Mrs. Liu swears: "Never be perfunctory, never be perfunctory. If Mr. Zeng really likes Prince Yi's princess, he will dare to go and talk to the matchmaker. It is not illegal to say that the old woman dare not go, Prince Yi must also treat me well with wine and food."

Zeng Yu couldn't help laughing and said, "Okay, okay, the two mothers-in-laws will sit first, drink a cup of hot tea to drive away the cold, and then go home. When I think about whom I want to marry, I will ask the two to play matchmakers, okay?"

Zeng Yu returned to the inner courtyard and replied to his mother. He read the book in the study for half an hour. When he came out, he finally saw that the hall was clean. However, he heard the horses and donkeys in the back garden screaming one after another. Sixi said, "I haven't fed Heibao and Hei beans yet, and they are all so hungry." He hurried to the kitchen and took the beans to feed them.

Heibao is the black donkey from Zeng Yu’s house. The black beans were given by Yan Shifan. The day before yesterday, Zeng Yu returned to the house and went to Sixi to clear a room in the low house in the back garden. The donkey and horse were in the same trough, so he was safe.

Heibao and Heidou chewed the forage and stopped calling. The whole house became quiet. There were only four of him and five of them in the house, which was a bit deserted.

The folk custom of Guangxin Mansion is to celebrate the New Year on the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, so on the afternoon of the 22nd, the chef Yu went to the inner courtyard to say goodbye to Zeng's mother Zhou, saying that he would come to the house to help the servants after the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first lunar month. Yu went to Zeng's house to help the servants on the fifth day of the ninth lunar month. At that time, he said that the wages were three cents a month, but only three and a half months today. Zeng's mother Zhou gave her one tael and two cents of silver based on four months, and rewarded her with a sarcastic cockerel to go home for the New Year. Yu was naturally grateful and left happily.

On the evening of that day, Zeng Yu went to Sanjiangkou Wharf and found the owner of the passenger ship hired by Zheng Shi and the others. The owner handed over a letter and a pack of beans to Zeng Yu. This was a promise between Zeng Yu and Zheng Shi. Zeng Yu received the letter and found that Zheng Shi's servant had arrived home safely. So Zeng Yu's mother liked to eat the beans, which were used to stew the meat very fragrant, and it was considered a special local product of the farmhouse in Guixi.

Just next to this passenger ship, a boat from the west had just been docked. Someone jumped ashore to inquire about Zeng Yu and Zeng Xiucai's residence. Zeng Yu left the dock after his feet, and almost passed by.

The winter solstice has passed long ago, and it is still short and the night is long. It is rainy and the sky is even darker. Zeng Yu went out at Shen Shimao, and it was nearly ten miles back and forth to the pier. The sky became dark on the way back and forth, and the raindrops gradually became denser, and the crackling sound was made on the umbrella.

Because it was a rainy day, Zeng Yu did not mention the lanterns to go out. At this time, he was walking in a very embarrassing manner. When he returned to the house, his boots and robe were all muddy. His mother and Niu Niu were waiting for him in the hall. At first glance, the two old and young people in the huge hall seemed deserted.

Because there were no foreign guests, Zeng's mother Zhou and Niu Niu were in the front hall with Zeng Yu, Sixi, and the dinner was also cooked by Zeng's mother Zhou. Yu's cook had already left, and all these housework had to be handled by Zeng's mother Zhou.

A large bowl of mutton vermicelli, with a small charcoal stove underneath, the mutton in the bowl was bubbling with small bubbles, the smell of mutton and the fragrance of mutton spread in the dizzy yellow light, making Zeng Yu's tongue produce saliva-

A bowl of steamed pork with rice noodles is what Niu Niu likes to eat.

There is also a plate of tofu and a plate of cabbage, which are all fresh and fresh, just out of the pot, making people feel very enjoyable.

Zeng Yu praised: "Mom is good at cooking, and her son can't wait to change his boots, so he has to eat first."

Zeng’s mother Zhou asked, “Are you so wet your shoes and socks?” He heard that he nodded and said, “Okay, let’s have rice first, Xiaoyu, drink a glass of glutinous rice wine to drive away the cold.”

Zeng Yu said: "I don't drink alcohol normally, and I'm not cold. I'll have to eat first. This stewed mutton is so fragrant. Yongfeng's goat meat is delicious."

Zeng’s mother, Zhou, ate little meat, but when she saw her son eating sweetly, she felt very happy and asked Si Xi to eat vegetables. Niu Niu is a vermicelli specializing in steamed pork and stewed mutton.

After the family had dinner, Zeng Yu asked his mother to rest. He came to clean up the dishes and said, "I'll come, I'll come."

Just then, I heard someone knocking on the door, which seemed a little abrupt in the cold rain. Zeng Yu said, "Who will come at this time?" He went to the door with Sixi.

The knocker asked, "Do you dare to ask Mr. Zeng at home?"

There seemed to be more than one water water flow outside the door. Sixi replied: "Who is it? Which husband you are looking for?" Heiye must be careful.

The knocker said, "Below is Kierang, the Chuanshi Village of Ehu, Qianshan, and the one he is looking for is his benefactor Zeng Hunter."

Sixi looked back at his young master and asked softly: "Does the young master recognize this person?"

Zeng Yu was quite surprised. At the Seven Stars Temple of Hengfeng, he saved the sister-in-law of the Ji family in Chushi Village, Ehu, mainly to protect the innocence of the sister-in-law. He asked Yu Xuan to pay the redemption silver for the sister-in-law. According to Yu Xuan, when he returned to the Hekou Wharf, the Ji family members arrived to return the redemption silver to Zhang Guangwei-

Sixi met Zeng Yu's gesture and opened the door. The three men came in with a cold water vapor. The man in his thirties was in his thirties, wearing a round hat, and empty hands. The two behind him were carrying loads and seeing that they were servants, so they put the load on the edge of the courtyard in the hall when they came in.

Zeng Yu stood on the stairs and asked, "Are you from the Ji family in Ehu? I am Zeng Yu."

The leader looked at Zeng Yu in a narrow glance, turned around and bowed, shouting: "Zeng's benefactor is above, villain Ji Erlang, Li, who was abducted by the thief last time, was my wife, and the other girl was my little sister. If it weren't for the benefactor's rescue, they would have lived a life worse than death."

Zeng Yu said: "Please get up, please get up, please go to the hall to speak."

Zeng’s mother, Zhou and Niu Niu, had already avoided the back hall. Zeng Yu led Ji Erlang into the hall to sit down. Sixi went to the kitchen and brewed two cups of tea. Zeng Yu suddenly said, “You three have not used dinner yet. Come, follow me to the restaurant next to the north gate for dinner. It should not be closed yet.”

Ji Erlang hurriedly said, "My benefactor, don't bother. My master and servant have eaten at the dock just now. The young man in the hotel led us to the city gate and pointed out that this place was the residence of my benefactor. Then he found it. It was dark and he was disturbed." After that, he asked the servant to carry two loads of loads, but they were the famous Shishi paper in Qianshan, two pieces of Yunsu silk, two pieces of Tangqi cotton silk, two pieces of woven flower velvet cloth, one piece of gold-inlaid jade crab lotus leaf jewelry, one piece of silver-inlaid jewelry inlaid gold, two pieces of treasure jewelry, two pieces of camellia oil, bacon, and desserts.

Ji Erlang said: "I beg you to accept it with some slight tribute."

This is not a tribute. The gold-inlaid jade crab lotus leaf jewelry alone is worth seven or eighty taels of silver. Zeng Yu said, "I can't accept this gift. Erlang, listen to me. My cousin Zheng Xiucai and I were also trapped in the thief cave that day. The bandit leader Wu Ping believed in my Feng Shui technique and treated me quite favorably. At that time, there were hundreds of hostages taken by the thieves, and they were both in distress. If there were opportunities to help each other, I would not be able to hold back. Helping Ling Zheng and Ling Mei was also a duty, and it was definitely not a matter of repaying grace."

Ji Erlang repeatedly said, "I know, no one of the hostages released the day before yesterday said that Zeng Hunter's kindness. Zeng Hunter is very wise and brave, even Lin Man Zun and General Qi respected it. Zeng Hunter redeemed my wife and sister, and saved her innocence. This is more important than saving their lives. My grandfather must express gratitude to Zeng Hunter's kindness. He said that our Ji family is so ungrateful and treats it as if they have received the great kindness of others. So the villain came. How can this little gift repay Zeng Hunter's kindness? Just express his feelings? Zeng Hunter must accept it, otherwise the villain will beat me with a crutch when he returns."

The people of Qianshan called their grandfather Taigong. It seems that the Taigong of the Ji family is very prestigious in the family.

Zeng Yu said: "Ling Zu's intention is to receive it, but the gifts are still not accepted. As soon as I receive the gifts, it will ruin my original intention to save people."

Ji Erlang said anxiously: "Tei Xianggong, Tse Hunter, listen to me, the villain still has something to ask for Tse Hunter—

Zeng Yu raised his eyebrows lightly: "Oh, please say."

Ji Erlang said: "My younger sister Ji Zhi is only seventeen years old and has been engaged to the son of the Wang family in Hekou Town. But this time my younger sister and my wife Li were abducted, but the Wang family refused to pay for redemption. That day I went to the Wang family to argue that my sister had lost her virginity and wanted to regret the marriage. I was so angry that I had a big quarrel with them. The villain told the truth that the Zeng Gong of Hekou Town had many misunderstandings in those days, mainly because Zeng Gong had become a thief military advisor, my younger sister, my younger sister--"

Zeng Yu signaled Ji Erlang not to say anything. He already understood what Ji Erlang meant, that is, there were rumors in the river mouth that the little sister of the Ji family had been defiled by him, the thief military advisor, so the Wang family wanted to regret the marriage. Zeng Yu asked: "So what do Erlang and your grandfather think?"

Ji Erlang hurriedly said, "Don't misunderstand my grandfather and the whole family are grateful for the kindness of Zeng Gong and are very angry at the shameless rumors. Since the bandits were defeated at Shangrao City, the rumors that Zeng Gong was the thief military advisor have been broken. The hostages returned to the river mouth the day before yesterday and praised Zeng Gong everywhere."

Zeng Yu nodded and asked again: "Since that's the case, what else can Erlang ask me for?"

Ji Erlang said: "This is what the younger sister means. She wants to worship her husband's mother as her adopted mother, but I don't know what Lingtang and Zeng Gong agreed to?"

Zeng Yu breathed a sigh of relief. He was afraid that the Ji family in Ehu would marry his daughter, so it would be okay to recognize him as his sister. He said, "I don't care, as long as my mother is willing."

Ji Erlang said happily: "Then please ask Mr. Zeng to come in and ask for instructions from the old lady. The villain got the reply and went back to Ehu overnight."

Zeng Yu went in and told his mother about this. Zeng's mother Zhou said, "It's really hateful that those people talk so randomly. Xiaoyu, go and tell Ji Erlang that Miss Ji is willing to recognize me as her adopted mother. I can't ask for it. If you have time, please come to Shangrao as a guest."

Zeng Yu knew that his mother would definitely agree. His mother arrived in Ishida at the age of four or five. She had no other relatives. She was extremely eager for family affection and was very enthusiastic about recognizing relatives. Last time, she recognized her sisters with Zheng Shi's mother, Lu, and now she would not refuse to recognize her adopted daughter.
Chapter completed!