Huang Tianba.

Although his eyes were shining with joy, I could see at a glance the sadness and exhaustion beneath the waves, which no amount of charm or beautiful smile could cover up.

Although he was standing outside the yard smiling with his hands behind his back, I frowned slightly unconsciously.

During the days when Liu Saner and I got married, he didn't come often, because even if I didn't ask anything, I knew that once he left home, it would prove that something happened in that home that made it difficult for him to stay.

He will come to see us, and I understand why he came.

In the final analysis, Mu Hua has not changed.

The one who changed was Huang Tianba.

I heard from Qian Wu that Huang Tianba doesn't leave home much now. Most of the time, even if Mu Hua has smashed everything in the house, he just quietly closes up in the yard.

He sat there and waited until Mu Hua was too tired to make any more noise, then stood up and tidied up calmly.

I don’t know why, but from the day I got married, when faced with the officials who came to collect the poll tax, Huang Tianba has been so strangely calm, until now.

I had a vague feeling that something was about to happen, but when I looked in his eyes, I couldn't find anything.

He came today because he asked someone to bring some wine from Yangzhou, but something happened at home, so he came to get it himself. Liu Saner was happy to accompany him, but I was pregnant, so of course I couldn't go out.

Before San'er left, he told him to cook two more dishes for dinner, hoping to keep him eating.

I smiled and nodded in agreement.

When the two men left the door, I was about to go to the kitchen, but I saw Queen Yin lying behind the door, her eyes carefully looking at Huang Tianba's back with a vigilant look.

Her madness has not improved much because the doctor can't see the root cause of the disease, but fortunately it has not worsened. Except for the time when the fire in the kitchen scared her, she is usually a somewhat dull woman and has nothing to do with people.

The only obstacle was that when Huang Tianba came, she would look at him cautiously in the corner.

It's not that she's afraid. If she were, she would call Liu San'er loudly, but this cautious, almost observational look always makes me feel a little uneasy.

I walked over with a smile: "Auntie, what are you looking at?"

She looked at me and whispered: "Where is my son going?"

"Oh, he went to get wine with Mr. Huang."

"Get a drink?"

She lowered her head and thought for a long time, then suddenly grabbed my hand: "He won't go very far and won't come back, right?"

Walking a long way...? I don’t know why, but this sentence made my heart sink. For a moment, I felt a little dazed and fell silent.

After a while, I came back to my senses and saw Queen Yin looking at me carefully, so she smiled slightly and said: "No, they just went to get wine and will be back in a while. You go in and rest while I eat."

Call you."

"Oh, oh oh."

She nodded numbly, then turned back.

For the next time, I was in a trance, and I almost poured salt into the rice while cooking. I finally finished the meal, and just as I put it on the table, I saw Liu Saner coming back from outside.

I went up to him and looked outside: "Where is Mr. Huang?"

"Went to the river."

"By the river?"

"He said he didn't want to eat and just wanted to drink, so he went for a walk by the river to relax."

Hearing this, I also understood in my heart. After all, he was sitting on the treetop, and his lonely silhouette left a deep impression on me. I sighed in my heart, said nothing more, and called Aunt Liu and the others to come out.

People had dinner.

Usually, Liu San'er is always the fastest one to eat, but today he seemed to be in a daze. Several times, half of the dishes he picked were dropped on the table. Otherwise, he would just keep picking up the rice without taking a single bite of the food. There was a little bit of confusion between his eyebrows.

Hidden worries.

He was still in a daze until Aunt Liu and the others had finished eating and left the table.

I picked up a piece of meat and put it in his bowl. Liu Saner suddenly woke up, looked up at me, and smiled sheepishly.

I asked: "What are you thinking about that makes you so obsessed?"

After saying this, there was an expression of joy on his face, and he leaned over and said, "Qingqing, I know where the problem is."

I frowned: "What?"

"I just told you why the emperor's orders are actually right, but the people always don't support him."

"..." I frowned even more tightly and stared at him without speaking.

But Liu Saner seemed completely unaware of how heavy my heart was at this time, and even said happily: "Take the poll tax for example. You see, there are four of us in our family, and only two of us are doing the work. Except for everyone,

You have to pay rent for one season and taxes for four people; look at Qishan Village again

That Wang Yuan's family has hundreds of acres of land, and the rent they collect from those people every quarter is a huge sum. However, their family only has ten people at most, so the head tax is not worth it to him.

Mention it, but for us, it’s completely different.”

"..."

"I've also heard that beyond Niangniang Mountain, there are nearly a thousand acres of land, all owned by a high-ranking official in the imperial court. How much do you think you can harvest from that thousand acres of land, and how many heads can one family have?

How much tax can be collected?"

"..."

"This is not fair at all."

My heart tightened more and more, and I couldn't say a word. I watched Liu San'er lower his head and said half in thought, half in awe: "So, it is not the emperor who is wrong, but the method of tax collection. If it can be changed-"<

/p>

"Liu San'er!"

Before he finished speaking, I interrupted him.

Liu San'er was frightened, and turned around to look at me in astonishment. Looking at him, I felt a little out of character, and tried to smile, but I could feel my eyes twitching.

It seems that the night outside the house has spread into the house and into my body.

Liu Saner looked at me blankly: "Qingqing, what's wrong with you?"

"..." I calmed down and made a forced smile: "I finished eating, my chest is a little tight, and I want to go out for a walk."

"Oh, then I'll go with you."

"No, you should eat it while it's hot and wash the dishes." I said and stood up, looked outside, and said, "Master Huang happens to be by the river. I'll go over and ask to see how he is doing."<

/p>

"Oh, okay."

He nodded, lowered his head and took a mouthful of rice, but still seemed a little uneasy and looked up at me.

I didn't say anything, turned around and walked out.

As night falls, everything is dark, and the fishing fires by the river are reflected on the sparkling water, blurring before our eyes, like old memories.

I stood on the edge of the river beach and immediately saw a pair of eyes in the waves, which were more charming than the waves.

It is still full of charm, and the gleaming light inside is like a living aura, shining with a kind of quiet wisdom. Although it is not sharp and eye-catching, it has an indescribable sense of charm.

Huang Tianba sat on a big rock by the river, holding a small wine jar in his hand, looking at the night in front of him.

As I got closer, I saw that several wine jars were already floating in the river, drifting swaying into the distance.

Hearing my footsteps, he turned back to look at me and smiled: "You're here."

"Master Huang."

His eyes moved to my belly and smiled: "Is the baby about to be born?"

"The month is almost here."

"Oh..."

He looked at my stomach again, but his eyes seemed slightly sad. He didn't say anything after all, and raised his head and took another sip of wine.

He was not far away, and could already smell the sweet fragrance of pear blossoms. He drank a lot, but he didn't seem to be drunk at all. His eyes seemed clearer under the smoke of alcohol, and he could see it with just one glance.

See through a lot.

He smiled and said: "You seem to have something to tell me?"

"..."

I thought for a while and finally raised my head and said to him: "Master Huang, can you - please don't tell Liu San'er that."

He originally raised his head to drink, but when he heard these words, he was slightly startled and looked down at me.

"You mean, the ones he asked me?"

"Yes."

Huang Tianba didn't seem surprised, he just smiled faintly: "You don't want him to know too much?"

I nodded.
To be continued...