In 1644 AD, Li Zicheng entered Beijing, Emperor Chongzhen hanged himself in the coal mountain, Wu Sangui led the Qing troops into the pass, and Dolgon entered the Central Plains.

The Ming Dynasty, which lasted for 276 years, fell apart, the Eight Banners swept north of the Yellow River, Li Zicheng's Dashun army was defeated and retreated, trapped in Shaanxi, but the Hongguang court of the Southern Ming Dynasty was still reluctant and peaceful, immersed in the fantasy of negotiating peace with the Manchu Qing Dynasty......

Hubei and Hunan were a province in this era, collectively known as Huguang, and most of the other areas were under the control of the Southern Ming Dynasty, except for Xiangyang and other places in the north that were occupied by Li Zicheng's Dashun army.

Because the mountains and rivers are blocked, the roads are far away, the changes in the northern provinces are not known to the people of Huguang for a long time, and the people in the township continue to live a plain life, with occasional weddings and funerals, red and white ceremonies, as if a peaceful scene.

Chongyang County, Wuchang Prefecture, Huguang, is located in the southernmost part of Hubei Province in the later generations, at the junction of Hunan, Hubei and Jiangxi provinces.

In the Ming Dynasty, the Wang family has always been cultivated and read to run the family, during the Zhengde period Wang Wensheng, Wang Zongyi's ancestors and grandsons have a total of four people in the same Jinshi, for a time it was rumored to be a good story, during the Wanli period, Wang Zongyi served as an important position in the Nanjing Ministry of Shangshu, "the position is among the eight, looking at the three dynasties", illustrious and abnormal.

In the troubled years at the end of the Ming Dynasty, the Wang family branched out and became a huge family, with the eldest and youngest houses all rich and wealthy, and the side branches were also talented, enjoying a good reputation among the Hunan and Chu gentry.

A few days ago, the Wang family just held a happy event, and the fourth young master Wang Kefan married a wife. Unexpectedly, on the wedding day, Wang Kefan was very sick and couldn't afford to be drunk, and he had fainted in bed for many days, making this wedding a joke.

I only heard that the bride was a beautiful lady from other places, a beautiful lady with a thousand charms, and the newlywed Yan'er stayed alone in the empty room, which attracted countless enthusiastic people to sigh with emotion.

………………………………

"Oh, oh, oh-"

Outside the window, there was a rooster crow, and a new morning was ushered in in the crossstone.

On a narrow bed in the hall, a thirteen or fourteen-year-old girl slept soundly, the noise of the chicken disturbed the good dream, the girl turned over with her eyes closed, and put the quilt on her head indiscriminately, and entered the black sweet country between breaths, but the two heavenly feet stretched out from under the corners, the pink trousers faded straight to the knees, revealing the white calves like a green belly, and the toenails were a few red and bright dankou, which were delicate.

In the sound of the little girl's snort, a figure got up and dressed in the dimness, deliberately slowed down when passing by her bedside, and went out of the house lightly, and the room was silent again.

I don't know how long it took to be in the fog, but a small sound of footsteps hurried in, pushed the door into the room and came to the bed, and patted it lightly on the head of the bed.

"Xiao Xicui, I'm still snoozing, the fourth young master has been out for a while!" It was a gentle woman's voice.

"Well——, let me sleep again, I just crowed all over the place, and it's still early......" In a half-dream, Xicui's body twisted twice, hummed indistinctly, suddenly startled, sat up with the quilt, and asked in surprise with wide eyes: "What?" The fourth young master is out?! ”

"Yes, it's so cold this morning, the fourth young master is recovering from a serious illness, in case he suffers from the cold......" The woman's official words had a thick Jiangxi accent, and the sweetness and freshness of the muttering were indescribable.

Before she finished her sentence, Xicui had already jumped out of bed with a plop, ran to the wardrobe with her bare feet and shoes, and ripped open the cabinet door and went in wildly: "I'm going to die!" I'm going to die! The fourth young master has only woken up for two days, and he doesn't know where to run? I have to send a thick dress quickly, and if the old lady knows, I will have to be scolded again! ”

The small wardrobe shook violently, the chickens and dogs jumped as if they were about to fall apart, the woman next to the bed was stunned, Xicui suddenly straightened up, pulled a collar shirt in her hand, and breathed a sigh of relief with a happy face: "Found it!" Now go find the Fourth Young Master! As soon as he turned around, he finally saw the woman beside the bed, and Xicui, who had completely woken up, couldn't help but be stunned there, and finally found a word to greet him: "Oh......, Fourth Young Grandma, why are you here early in the morning?" ”

The woman known as the fourth young grandmother is the bride of the Wang family who has been talked about by the seven aunts and eight aunts recently, Wang Kefan's new wife Fu Shihua. She often came to take care of her comatose husband these days, and she was quite familiar with the maid Xicui, but at this time, her eyes flashed to the side, and her face was slightly red.

"Just now...... I heard from others just now that the fourth young master was running on the street, his shirt was bare, his hair was messy, and he was panting, sweating like pulp, and he looked ......very strange" Fu Shihua has high sideburns and a high bun, and she has been dressed as a young woman, but she and Wang Kefan have not yet had a round house, and they haven't even spoken a word, and they are shy and short of breath for no reason in front of Xicui.

Xi Cui was grinning, with an incredible expression on his face, and he really couldn't imagine what the fourth young master was like at this time.

In her mind, the fourth young master is a talent in the county school, a genuine young scholar, how could he run on the street in a short shirt, even if he doesn't wear a hat, he doesn't even wear a headscarf, it's simply insulting to Sven and his identity! Besides, the fourth young grandmother said clearly, the fourth young master is already "out of breath and sweating like pulp", and he must have run very hard, what if he falls ill again?

The fourth young master weishenme wants to run?

"Oops!" Xi Cui was shocked again, and her childish little face was full of solemnity: "The fourth young master's illness has not yet recovered, and he ran out in a hurry early in the morning, something must have happened...... well, it must be a fatal matter!" ”

"What will happen?" Xicui was startled, which frightened Fu Shihua, but she was much more stable, frowned a pair of thin eyebrows and thought about it and said: "Yesterday afternoon, the housekeeper of the big house came to find the fourth young master, and the fourth young master was taking a nap at that time, I didn't let me see it, maybe ......, it has something to do with this matter?" ”

The head of the Wang family comes from a big house, and Wang Kefan's branch is only a side family, but Wang Kefan's father Wang Rui has been a second-class jinshi in Chongzhen for ten years, and his status in the family is different.

"Dafang is looking for the fourth young master?" Xi Cui's eyes rolled quickly, and he blurted out: "It must be that the master has news!" ”

Wang Rui served as a magistrate in Datong Mansion, Shanxi, and has lost contact in the past few months, if it weren't for Wang Kefan's family affairs had been agreed two years ago, he and Fu Shihua would not have been able to get married.

Afraid of the war in the north and his family, Wang Rui went to Datong alone to take office, leaving his old wife and two sons in his hometown in Chongyang. In the past, every month or so, a letter would be sent back from Datong, but after Li Chuang's troops entered Shanxi in the first month, he broke off the news with his family.

Fu Shihua shook his head: "No, if it's the news of the master, you should tell the wife first, how can you disturb the fourth young master's recuperation?" Besides, if the fourth young master knew the news of the master, he should also go to tell his wife first, there is no reason to run out by himself. ”

"Well...... that makes sense." Xicui is as good as a stream, and simply pushes the trouble of using her brain to Fu Shihua: "Then the fourth young grandmother will tell me, the fourth young master Weishenme wants to run?" ”

"Well, I can't guess." Fu Shihua pondered for a moment, shook his head and admitted defeat. She and Wang Kefan are husband and wife, but they are actually as strange as passers-by, and this matter is too weird, I really can't figure out the reason inside.

"No matter, when I get two more clothes, let's go to the fourth young master together, and ask him in person then!" Without waiting for Fu Shihua to agree, Xicui turned around and entered the inner room, the door curtain was still shaking back and forth, and her screams came from the house.

"Fourth young grandmother, come on, come and see!"

Fu Shihua thought that something was wrong, so she hurriedly lifted the curtain and entered the house, and came to the Luohan bed.

I've never seen a quilt folded like this, neat, boxy, and the corners are as sharp as knives and axes, as if it were a big tofu block!