On Chinese New Year's Eve, Mei Xiaoren had regained her red makeup, wearing a goose-yellow waist-length cloak, and stood under the eaves with her father to watch the fireworks. Her straight figure melts into the flying snow, like a cold plum cutting the snow proudly.

"Xiaomei, you've been gone for a year, and you haven't even heard from you"

Mei Xiaoren sighed lightly: "My boss asked me to study, what can I do." ”

"You can go to Xuanzhou, Dad is happy for you, but now it's far away, it's not easy for Dad to see you."

Mei Xiaoren had other plans, and took the opportunity to say: "Dad, your old man now has this financial resources, why don't we move back to Xuanzhou."

"It's not easy to talk about, our family doesn't even have a business there, how will we make a living in the future?"

"You don't have to worry about this, I always have a way to cure the arrogant businessman, Xuanzhou is so big, why let him finish the business" Mei Xiaoren said lightly, "What's more, he still owes us." ”

As soon as her grandfather left, the old lady couldn't wait to split up, but somehow, in the end, the ancestral house and shops all came under her uncle's name

"Xiaomei, when my father reaches this age, no one complains, your grandfather has two fathers and your uncle, and I can't be close relatives with your uncle and can't become enemies." Her father sighed, "What's more, the snipe and the clam compete for the fisherman's profit, let's fight, we are afraid that we will lose both sides and let others take advantage of the opportunity." ”

Mei Xiaoren was silent. Her father sighed again: "Xiaomei, don't hate them, when the old lady let the family separate, my father also nodded, and what happened later was just fate." ”

"But Xuanzhou is our hometown." Mei Xiaoren turned her eyes to look at her father and persuaded softly, "My daughter originally wanted to go to Xuanzhou to be an official, so that one day I could let my father go back in style, and I could also protect our family's business." ”

Her father shook his head, "Your brother is on the outskirts of the city, and his father wants to accompany him and not go anywhere." ”

Mei Xiaoren was helpless, and put on his father's arm and said lightly: "I didn't think about putting anyone to death, but my daughter said in front, they had better keep to themselves, and don't have the time to ask the government, otherwise I will lose the so-called family affection and morality, and I won't save me when I die." ”

Her father finally smiled and patted the back of her hand, "According to you, it is not easy for you to enter the state capital as an official, if they cause trouble, they are asking for their own hardship, we don't care." ”

She followed suit, "That's pretty much it. ”

The third day of the first month.

According to the custom of Xuanzhou, the graves of deceased relatives should be swept today. As in previous years, Mei Xiaoren went to the outskirts of the city with her father to see her brother.

Her younger brother Xiao Song was buried in Xuanzhou, and it was her father who moved Xiao Song's tomb to the outskirts of Yunxian County after his father established himself in Yun County.

Not far from it is the ancestral tomb of the Chu family, and her father's intention in doing this is obvious, to make friends with the Chu family for generations and be friends of life and death.

She and her father walked out of the woods after sweeping the tomb, and when they raised their eyes, they saw that the forest next to them was crowded, and it was the Chu family worshipping.

When her father saw this scene, he hurriedly asked, "Xiaomei, what about Zifeng's child, I thought he was with you." ”

"How can I take him with me, if nothing happens, I have to get in the way."

Her father frowned, a little anxious: "It's bad, let me tell you that Uncle Chu said that Zifeng went to Xuanzhou with you, Zifeng can't come back, how can I fulfill this statement"

"I let him go to the Xia Kingdom." Mei Xiaoren thought about it in silence again, then turned to look at her father and said, "Dad, I'll be honest with you, but whether you want to tell the Chu family or not, you can measure it yourself." ”

Her father looked at her, his expression becoming more and more eager, and waited for her to speak.

Chu Zifeng somehow got into trouble

The people of the imperial court, someone wants to kill him, so I asked him to go to the Xia Kingdom to take refuge, otherwise it will be a dead end for him to stay here. ”

She said it seriously, which really scared her father. A businessman like her father has always been reluctant to deal with the imperial court, because he is afraid of power and can kill and seize the power.

"Girl, who wants to attack Zifeng"

"I don't know, it's an adult I can't afford to mess with. It's been almost a year, and I don't know if people will let him go. Mei Xiaoren paused, and then said, "Dad, we have done our best to the Chu family, you old man don't have to feel ashamed of anyone, whether Chu Zifeng can come back depends on his creation." ”

"Alas" her father could only sigh in the face of such helpless things, and did not speak again.

Chu Zifeng can't come back, and his relatives can still sweep the tombs of his ancestors on his behalf, but there is one person, and no one in the Chu family is willing to replace him.

Mei Xiaoren stopped, called the servant to bring the incense candles, and then asked her father to go first.

There are still a few people from the Chu family in the forest, and the Chu family sells her face very much, and it is not difficult for her to inquire about the location of a tomb.

A year has passed, the stele is old, but there are no overgrown weeds around the tomb, as if someone takes care of it on weekdays.

But today, on a day when the city is full of mourning for the dead, this tombstone is empty, and no one has come.

Mei Xiaoren walked to the tombstone with a basket, squatted down, took out incense and lit it, and bowed to the tombstone.

She always felt that such a sacrifice was a bit abrupt, so she said while inserting incense: "Auntie, I am a friend of Chu Yu, I passed by the neighborhood today, and I stopped by to see you." ”

She burned yellow paper quietly in front of the tombstone, and her every move was already being seen.

The two guards who had been ordered to guard the tomb hid in the dense forest, and they had been guarding here for many years, and they had never seen anyone come to pay their respects to the old lady, and this veiled woman was the first.

In the evening, Mei Xiaoren returned to the mansion and cleared her jewelry. She is away all year round, and it's a pity that these things are idle, so it's better to pick a few and take them to Feihua to wear.

Feihua's little Nizi at that age is not suitable for wearing a golden hairpin or something, Hua Tian is fine. She picked some of them, took off the newly bought violet beads on her bun and wrapped them, and prepared to take them back to Xuanzhou.

She can only stay for a few days when she goes home this time, her father cherishes it very much, guards her all day long, and at this time he also sits aside to watch her pick up jewelry, and suddenly said: "Xiaomei, you have been away for a year, you are short of silver, and you have no hardships."

"Lack of silver" Mei Xiaoren couldn't help laughing, "Your daughter, I will be short of silver"

She didn't know why her father asked this inexplicably, until her father reached out and pointed to her wrist, and said with some disgust, "When have you ever worn a bracelet of this color?" ”

Mei Xiaoren looked down and explained helplessly: "This is given by my friend, and the shop on the street takes it at will." ”

"Which friend, why did he give you a bracelet, did he see through you?"

"No, I made an agreement with him, I have to have a token as proof, and I don't need to be too valuable, and I don't have to care about what it is."

"Promise, what agreement" Her father was a little worried, frowning and sighing, "Xiaomei, you have to be careful when you are out alone, don't sell yourself." ”

"I agreed to wait for me to enter Shangjing, just"

She paused, for before she could finish her sentence, her father had already stood up and walked towards the door with his hands behind his back, as if he did not want to hear her foolish dreams.

Mei Xiaoren knew that it was not appropriate to talk about any ambitions with her father, for her father, she was able to enter Xuanzhou by luck, and she was dreaming if she wanted to enter Shangjing. Moreover, it is better for her to be promoted to recruit a son-in-law for him to make him happy.