Xu Sigen walked into the courtyard gate, and a young woman greeted him with tears in her eyes, holding a baby in her arms.

"Fourth uncle, you're here." She choked up.

"Big brother is still like that?" Xu Sigen asked.

The woman lifted up her hand to wipe away her tears.

Xu Sigen's gaze fell on the baby in the woman's arms.

"The seventh brother and sister can't get up while lying down, so I'll take the child first." The young woman said.

"She's from her mother's house?" Xu Sigen asked.

A look of shame flashed across the young woman's face.

"Help with the cooking." She whispered.

It is not certain whether it is to help cook or persuade to marry.

This kind of thing is not unusual, Xu Sigen looked out of his eyes.

"Fourth uncle, you have an idea." The young woman whispered, "It is said that the seventh brother and sister should be kept for three years..."

Hearing this, Xu Si's nose was sour.

When it is his turn to take the idea among the brothers, the seven brothers of them, it has always been Xu Maoxiu who takes the idea, Fan Jianglin nodded and greeted everyone, their brothers just need to follow along, eat together with hardships, bear difficulties together, and enjoy blessings together....

But now...

"Don't stay for three years, young and strong, why bother others." He took a deep breath and raised his head slightly and said, "She took the dowry, and the original bride price was gone, and she didn't want to keep her, and she won't suffer in the future, and the mallet must be happy......."

He couldn't go on here.

The young woman was already crying, and the baby in her arms was amused by her ignorance, and reached out to grab her arm.

The woman wept even more.

"This child has a sister-in-law." Xu Sigen said in a hoarse voice, "It's good to leave a root..."

But the others...

Xu Sigen couldn't say any more, raised his feet and walked towards the house.

The room smelled of medicine and a faint smell of rancidity. On the couch lay Fan Jianglin. Leaning sideways inward, I don't know if I'm asleep or awake. A bowl of decoction was placed aside, unmoved.

"Big brother, I feel ashamed when I call you big brother!"

Xu Sigen sat down and said in a choked voice.

"Do you look like a big brother?"

Fan Jianglin remained motionless.

"Have you had enough of lying down?" Xu Sigen said, "Should you get up and do what you have to do?" ”

"What I should do is die." Fan Jiang said in a wooden, "Die with them." ”

Xu Sigen grabbed the medicine bowl on the side of the couch and smashed it on the ground.

"You mean I'm going to die, don't you?" He shouted. "The seven of us have said that we will not be born on the same day and in the same month, but we will die on the same day and month in the same year, and now is the time for us to fulfill our promise and die together, right?"

"Fourth, you know that I don't mean that, why bother to abuse yourself to force me?" Fan Jianglin still said Mumu.

"Then who are you messing with?" Xu Sigen shouted, "Who are you going to let see?" They can't see it, you're going to let me see it? Let my sister-in-law see it? Let the world see? Let my sister see it? ”

Hearing him mention the word sister, Fan Jianglin's body moved, but then his face turned inward.

"Fourth uncle, fourth uncle." A woman's shout came from the courtyard. "Sister Jiangzhou Mansion sent someone."

As soon as these words came out, Xu Sigen immediately ignored Fan Jianglin and went out. Fan Jianglin, who was lying on the couch, also stood up, and heard the sound of talking outside.

“… Lang Jun mourns, and the little one sends a funeral on behalf of the lady..."

Looking out of the window, I saw the people in the courtyard carrying filial piety and performing servant salutes.

Fan Jianglin lay back with a sad expression and curled up his body.

What face, what face to meet...

The voice outside was inaudible, and after a long time, maybe it didn't take long, Xu Sigen came in again, sat down again, and read the gift sheet handed by Cheng Jianniang.

Fan Jianglin remained motionless.

Xu Sigen finished reading and put it down and looked at him.

"My sister has a letter." He said, "Just one sentence, I know my own answer, but I don't know yours." ”

Fan Jianglin still didn't move.

There was a moment of silence in the room.

"Do you regret it?" Xu Sigen said suddenly.

Fan Jianglin's body stiffened slightly.

"My sister's letter is just these three words, do you regret it?" Xu Sigen repeated it again.

Regret it?

"We are deserters, deserters are all killed, we are lucky to be killed, we have washed away our grievances, and we have escaped the crime of escape, so we are only soldiers, since we are soldiers, so we have to go back."

"No, I could have not gone back, I prepared three large portions for my brothers, and this is the first one."

"I didn't ask you, I made the decision for you privately, I don't know if it is in line with my brothers' wishes."

"You are accustomed to training your muscles and bones rain or shine, accustomed to holding swords and guns to prepare for war at any time, and accustomed to lying in a place where singing and dancing is leveling, and what you can listen to at any time is the gong and drum of the attack..."

"The tiger is a beast in the mountains and forests, the dragon hides the deep pool to get the spirit, and the bows and arrows of the brothers are worth a thousand gold only on the battlefield, only when they are shot into the enemy's chest."

“… The tiger would rather starve to death in the mountains and forests than be fed in an iron cage, so I want to give my brothers a gift, not to sit on the mountain of gold and be a lifelong peacekeeper, but to make contributions to wash away the shame. ”

"I gave this gift, I don't know if my brothers still like it?"

Now that you have lost your life for the deeds you did not build, do you regret it? Should I regret it?

If they knew that the result was like this, would they prefer to sit on the golden mountain and be a lifelong peacekeeper, would they prefer to wear brocade clothes and drink wine in the bustling capital at this moment, and would they prefer that it is just a dream now.

Regret shouldn't have been... Is it?

"Fan Jianglin!" Xu Sigen raised his voice and shouted, "Do you regret it? ”

"I don't regret it!" Fan Jianglin shouted, sat up, and shouted hoarsely, "I don't regret it, they won't regret it, no one regrets it!" ”

Tigers would rather starve to death in the mountains and forests, and their bows and arrows are only considered bows and arrows on the battlefield, whether they are shot into the chest of the enemy or their own.

Xu Sigen looked at him. Fan Jianglin also looked at him.

"Since I don't regret it. Then get better quickly. Xu Sigen said word by word. To make meritorious deeds, to wash away shame, to take revenge. ”

"Ah Li, Ah Li!" Fan Jianglin shouted outside.

A young woman who had been waiting outside the door came in with her baby in her arms.

"Dalang." She choked up.

"Go and invite Doctor Wang to come," Fan Jianglin said.

The young woman wept and laughed, wiped away her tears, and turned and ran away.

"Fourth, go back, I am here, you go and get busy with yours. These days, there have been a lot of delays. Fan Jianglin said.

Xu Sigen responded.

"Big brother, the merit reward has been reported, this time it is a great merit, and it must be approved soon." He said.

"When the time comes, comfort their souls in heaven." Fan Jianglin said.

There was silence in the room.

"Seventh brother and sister, I think it's better for her to stay alone." Xu Sigen said, and said his own arrangement.

Fan Jianglin nodded.

"You're doing the right thing, just do as you say." He said.

Xu Sigen looked at him.

"Big brother." He shouted.

Fan Jianglin looked at him, waiting for him to ask, but Xu Sigen didn't ask and shouted again.

"How?" Fan Jianglin asked.

Xu Sigen smiled. It's just laughter with tears.

"Big brother, it's good that you're back." He said.

Fan Jianglin looked at him and snorted.

"You send a letter to my sister, reply." He said. "I can't write."

Xu Sigen nodded.

"Needless to say, before the third child died, leave her a word." Fan Jianglin said slowly, word by word.

Still left a word? When you didn't blink an eye, you left her a word?

Xu Sigen was a little surprised, but more sad.

Third brother....

"I said Mrs. Liu, don't send these vulgar fans to my third brother, my third brother can't look down on them..."

"What kind of does the third master like? I don't believe it, I can't find it..."

"You can't find a character like our sister...."

"Shut up..."

Xu Sigen endured his sour nose and blinked with hot eyes.

"Big brother, you say, I'll write it." He said.

At the end of May, the city gate of Jiangzhou Mansion was again in chaos by the galloping messengers.

"Here it is again... Or the Northwest Soldiers...."

"The Cheng family goes straight from here to the street entrance and goes right along the river..."

The guards at the gates did not wait for the immediate person to ask, and spoke out loud.

The messenger looked at him, and sure enough, he didn't open his mouth to ask, and he didn't stop for a moment.

"Da Lang-kun's letter."

Steward Cao hurried forward and said to Banqin.

Banqin was very happy, and hurriedly reached out to take it and went to the backyard.

Under the shade of the trees in the backyard, Cheng Jianniang held her arm rope and pulled the bowstring against the grass target thirty steps away.

The two little girls who were waiting immediately exclaimed in surprise.

"The lady is so powerful."

Hearing Banqin's words, Cheng Jianniang handed the bow in her hand to the little girl, and reached out to take it.

Banqin stood aside, and when she saw only one line on the letter from the back, she couldn't help but be a little puzzled.

It's sent from so far away and so urgently, just a word?

What are the words?

In a word, the lady has been watching it for so long....

The wind seemed to be stagnant in the backyard in midsummer, and the sun was mottled on the woman holding the letter, it seemed to be a commotion, Cheng Jianniang put away the letter in her hand, folded it and handed it to Banqin, hummed, and turned around and stretched out her hand.

Banqin took a step back and watched the little girl hand the bow and arrow to Cheng Jianniang again, but Cheng Jianniang held the bow and arrow but stopped.

"Go and ask Steward Cao to fetch a stone bow." She said.

Listening to the little girl's words, Steward Cao was a little surprised.

"A stone bow?" He said, "Can the lady pull it open?" ”

Although he had doubts, he immediately went to the treasury to fetch a handful, sent it over himself, and watched the lady take the bow and draw it.

Okay...

Steward Cao frowned slightly, looking at the woman's slender wrists and arms.

"Here's the force, come, pull the strings."

It seems that someone is holding her bow and arrow.

Cheng Jianniang exerted her strength, the silk and linen twisted strings bent tremblingly, the bowstring was pulled apart, and the feather arrows were firmly buckled.

With a buzz, the feather arrow left the string and hit the grass target steadily, although it missed the red heart, but it did not miss the target.

The little girls didn't know the difference between bows and arrows, and felt that it was better to be suitable if they didn't hit the bull's-eye, so Steward Cao blurted out hello on the side.

"Sister, take your time, it's good to be able to pull out five or six buckets of bows in the future."

Look, not to mention five or six buckets, I can now pull a stone bow.

Cheng Jianniang lowered the bow and arrow in her hand, looked at the bullseye in the distance for a moment, and turned around. (To be continued......)