Chapter 18 Rock Sugar Gourd
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The two palace maids came back after a while, knelt down and said, "Back to Her Royal Highness the Princess, there is a naughty boy crying outside the gate, saying that he wants a rock sugar gourd." ”
Hede Pavilion is the closest to the gate of Yongning Palace among all the palaces of Yongning Palace, so Zuo Ying will hear the noise coming from outside the gate when he is inside. At this time, the cries of the children and the reprimands of the guards were still coming intermittently.
Oh, it's still a child in ancient times, in modern times, how can a child ask for a rock sugar gourd to go to Zhongnanhai?
Zuo Ying couldn't help but smile, she became more and more curious, and couldn't help but get up and walk out of Hede Pavilion and walk in the direction of the gate. The two palace maids who served closely had no choice but to follow closely.
"Where did the child come from? Come on! Come on! There are no rock sugar gourds here! ”
"Woooooooooo......oo The wind doesn't go! The wind doesn't go away......"
Zuo Ying walked along the main road, and before she could see the gate, she heard the voice of the guard driving away the child and the muffled voice of a child crying.
Zuo Ying came to the door, and the four guards who were watching there saw Zuo Ying and hurriedly dispersed to salute. At this time, Zuo Ying saw clearly that there was a little boy sitting under the steps in front of the door. Surprisingly, the little boy looked to be six or seven years old, but he looked like an ignorant child who was no more than a year or two old.
On his shaved head, with only a handful of hair in front of him, he wore a large orange shortcoat that only young children wear, and a small belly pocket of coral-red half at the deep neckline; The small white cloth pants worn under his body had just reached his knees, and he was already dirty from sitting on the ground; Only one of the small feet that kept kicking was still wearing tiger head shoes, and the other foot was groping the floor bare, and the shoe was gone.
His round eyes were full of tears, his watery lips were almost flattened, his face was flushed, his tears and snot were a mess, and every time he wiped his little hands, he would leave a few more black dirty marks on his face.
A guard knelt in front of Zuo Ying, who was observing the little boy, and said, "Report to the princess, this child doesn't know where he came from, and the villain has been driving him away but can't drive him away." The villain did not dare to leave his post without permission, and had already sent people to various palaces to ask if there was such a child who was lost. I really shouldn't disturb the princess's purity. ”
Zuo Ying raised her hand and motioned for the guard to return to his post, while she looked at the little boy strangely and walked down the steps.
When the little boy saw Zuo Ying walking towards him, he immediately crawled forward two steps forward with his hands and knees like a toddler under the age of one, and grabbed the corner of Zuo Ying's frosty skirt with a pair of dirty little hands and cried: "Sister! Rock sugar, gourd...... Rock sugar, gourd, ......"
The two palace maids hurriedly stepped forward and wanted to pull him away, but when they saw him with a handful of snot and tears, and a dirty appearance, they felt disgusted, and the outstretched hand invariably retracted in unison, but they reprimanded in their mouths: "I said that there is no rock sugar gourd here!" "If you don't go back, you'll kill your dead boy!"
When the little boy heard others scolding him, his mouth flattened, and he cried again with a "wow", "The wind won't go!" Don't go...... Sister! Rock sugar, gourd...... Rock sugar, gourd, ......"
Zuo Ying is far from being a person with overflowing maternal love, her good impression of children comes from the fact that children are much less dangerous than adults, and the probability of lying being caught is much higher.
She slowly crouched down and looked at the little boy. The way he spoke made her curiosity even stronger.
"Rock sugar gourd"? "Rock candy"? "Hulu"? This kid doesn't think he stutters when he says something else, why is it so strange when he says the word "rock sugar gourd"? The pause in the middle doesn't seem to be due to stuttering or choking, but deliberate; Or is it just two words?
"Rock sugar, gourd...... Rock candy, gourd, ......" The little boy seemed to lose his temper because no one could understand his words, grabbed the corner of Zuo Ying's skirt and held on, and the more he cried, the more he couldn't hold back.
"Princess, this urchin is so entangled, the slave maid will go to the dining room and ask the diner to make a string of rock sugar gourd-like things to send this urchin away. It's not a way to let him cry here all the time. A palace maid suggested.
"What rock sugar gourd for him? After teaching him a few lessons for his father and mother, this wild child naturally went back obediently. The other maid said impatiently.
The palace maid who spoke at the beginning frowned and said, "Don't mess around, maybe it's a relative of the master of the palace who is visiting relatives!" How can you do it casually? I'd better go and ask the dining room to prepare a 'rock sugar gourd'. ”
After the palace maid finished speaking, she turned around and walked in the direction of the gate.
"Wait!" Zuo Ying, who had been silent, suddenly stopped.
The palace maid had no choice but to stop and look back at Zuo Ying.
"I heard that rock candy stops crying," Zuo Ying smiled at the little boy, "go to the dining room and get a packet of rock candy." ”
The palace maid listened, glanced at the other palace maid and a few guards who also showed doubtful eyes, and then reluctantly agreed and walked to the dining room.
A moment later, a palm-sized packet of rock candy wrapped in oiled paper was handed to Zuo Ying. Zuo Ying handed the rock candy to the little boy, but when the little boy reached out to take it, he didn't let go.
"Child, where is your home? Who is Daddy? Zuo Ying asked softly.
"Don't follow the trend! Don't follow the trend! ......The little boy didn't answer, but cried and grabbed the other end of the paper bag with both hands. If others pass by and see it at this time, they think that Zuo Ying is following the child to grab candy to eat.
Zuo Ying saw that the little boy who called himself Feng'er looked crazy and couldn't communicate with people, and thought that maybe he was too sensitive, so he smiled and let go.
Feng'er picked up the paper bag and got up, immediately burst into tears and laughed, and shouted: "Rock candy!" Good! Good! Rock candy! Good! Good! Even those guards and palace maids couldn't help but be surprised: it turned out that rock candy can really stop crying!
At this time, a chamberlain led a middle-aged man dressed as a civilian and hurriedly walked from a distance. The middle-aged man was well-dressed, thin, generous, with an angular face, bright eyes, and a short beard with a collar that looked steady and capable.
When Feng'er saw the middle-aged man approaching, she immediately jumped up and down excitedly, giggling and shouting, "Grandpa! Look! Rock candy! My sister gave Feng'er rock candy! Rock candy! ”。
The middle-aged man touched Feng'er's head, led him to Zuo Ying, knelt on the ground and kowtowed, "Grass people Li Junan see Her Royal Highness the Princess." The grass people were ordered to enter the palace to present a letter to the queen, and they dared to take their grandson to meet the queen and ask the queen to give him a letter. Unexpectedly, the grandson ran away in ignorance, and accidentally broke into the princess's treasure to disturb the princess's purity, and asked the princess to give the grass people the crime of lax discipline. ”
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