The fourteenth round

Lilac Fort is surrounded by mountains on all sides, the depression in the middle is like a bowl, the terrain is flat, from Qi Tianling along the stream ditch seven bends and eight turns, to a turn to the mouth of the riverside fort. There is a tea pavilion on the riverside avenue, and there are tea pavilion stations at each intersection pass in the old days, which is dedicated to free tea drinking when passers-by rest, and the cost is subsidized by the local squire or clan.

Qiusheng stopped and shouted loudly to the river: "Grandma Feng, are you there, bother to make three bowls of tea!" At this time, Lilac looked in the direction of Qiusheng's call, and saw a water mill by the river, and an old woman was grinding rice in the water. The old woman looked up when she heard the sound and responded: "It was the eldest of the Gui family, so come, come!"

When the conversation was finished, the water mill bent over. Grandma Feng saw a few cloves, grinned and said with a missing front tooth: "Qiusheng, there is a guest, you sit and rest, it is a coincidence that the tea is gone today, but the water is boiling, just add a fire for a while."

Qiusheng was talking to the old woman when Lilac suddenly smelled a fragrance, and he looked left and right. It turned out that there was an unknown tree with lush white flowers on the small dirt slope above the pavilion, and the fragrance wafted from there. I saw that the tree was about ten meters high, the crown of the tree was spherical, and the branches and flowers occupied half of the land.

Lilac felt that this tree and this flower were very beautiful, so she turned her head and said to the two of them, "Big brother, Brother Qiu, you see, the tree grows so well, I'll take a look!" After saying that, he climbed up the dirt slope along the path, and Qiusheng saw it and followed. The eldest brother leaned against the pavilion pillar, and shouted at Qiusheng Lilac: "You are really in good spirits, you have to climb the earth slope after climbing Qitianling." I'm going to take a break. ”

Standing under the tree and smelling the fragrance of flowers, the lilacs circled the tree for a while, stopped and asked, "Brother Qiu, such a tree, it grows so well!" The flowers are still bunched one by one, you see, the trees are all round and round, could it be that they have been specially cut and cut? ”

"Sister Man, this tree has a origin, we call it a horse storm here. The eldest young master of the He family in the castle said that the lilac tree recorded in the book is called a lilac tree, and it seems that it can also be used as medicine. According to the memories of the elders, their grandfather's grandfather had such a big tree when he was a grandfather, and he became a sperm, I don't know how many hundred years old?! I don't believe you made a wish to this old tree god and wrapped your spirit! Qiusheng looked at the lilacs, and lined up the cloves as he spoke.

Lilac felt a little embarrassed by Qiusheng's staring at for a while, and closed her eyes. When Qiusheng saw it, he laughed, "You can't really believe it, do you?" What a wish! ”

"My grandmother said that all the gods and goddesses in the heavens and on the earth are all birds and beasts, fish, birds, grasses and insects who have become spirits in the world. This tree has lived for hundreds of years, and it will definitely become an immortal and a Buddha! After saying that, I closed my eyes, closed my hands, and made a vow sincerely. Qiusheng looked at Lilac with closed eyes, black hair like a mountain stream, and a handsome face, which was very good-looking, but he didn't dare to make a sound, startling her.

When Lilac opened her eyes after making a wish, Qiusheng asked jokingly: "Okay Manmei, tell me what wish you made just now, see if this tree god can promise you?" Lilac glared at her, and said angrily: "Brother Qiu, if you talk nonsense and ignore you, the gods really have it, don't offend!" After speaking, he put his hands together and made three gestures to the lilac tree, and said silently: "Grandpa Tree God, Brother Qiu is unintentional, you are not strange!" Qiusheng didn't feel right when he heard this, so he bowed to the lilac tree and said, "Grandpa Tree God, forgive me for my bad mouth!" You bless the full sister with all her wishes! ”

Seeing Qiusheng's appearance, Lilac couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh. When Qiusheng saw it, he hurriedly said to Lilac: "Look, Sister Man, I will ask you for the tree god, you have to tell me what wish you made?!" When Lilac heard this, her face turned even redder, and she hurriedly turned around and rushed down the dirt slope, turned back to Qiusheng and said, "I won't tell you!"

Qiusheng was confused, and muttered as he walked: "This is the case..."

At this time, Xu Zong was drinking tea, and said to Lilac Qiusheng: "You look at the flowers, the tea is cold, hurry up and drink it and hurry."

After drinking tea, they hurried up again, chatting while walking. Xu Zong asked Qiusheng what the name of the tree they were looking at just now and what its origin was. Qiusheng told the situation of the tree and Lilac's wish, and finally said to Lilac with a smile: "Sister Man, I think the name in the book of this Ma Tyrant Tree is good, why don't you change your name to Lilac, it's quite flavorful, okay?!" Lilac listened, shook her head, and said, "You call one to listen to first, and I'll change it if it sounds good!" Qiu Sheng was happy, and shouted loudly with some exaggeration: "Lilac Sister!!"

Lilac stood, came back to her senses for a moment, and said to herself: "Don't say it, Lilac, Lilac, it's good!" The eldest brother was also happy when he heard this, and smiled at Lilac: "Okay, good, good, go back to Dad and tell me to change you to Lilac!"

The servants talked and laughed, and before they knew it, they arrived at Qiusheng's house. When Grandpa Qiusheng was alive, his family was rich, with more than 20 acres of paddy fields and several mountains and forests. Since the third uncle of Qiusheng lost a lot of money after the incident, in desperation, Uncle Qiusheng ruthlessly took the eldest brother as the master and sold more than ten acres of paddy fields to tide over the difficulties. Despite this, the house was built by Qiusheng's grandfather when he was in power, and it is a typical Huxiang walled courtyard-style building. On the front is a two-story building with five rows of fans, a kitchen on the right, and five fans on the left. In front of the first floor of the building is a warehouse, a utility room, a farm tool room, and a pigpen and cattle pen in the back. In front of the second floor is the guest room, which is led up by a railing in the main hallway, and there is a warehouse on top of the guest room where miscellaneous items are piled up. The back is used for stacking livestock forage, and there is a ladder from the side of the cattle pen to go up and down. The side of the building is a side eaves, and the eaves flying corners are very majestic and beautiful! There are also tiles at the eaves of the main roof, which is the same as the old house of the Lilac family.

There is a towering maple tree more than ten zhang high under the house, the green leaves have gradually grown all over the branches, and a wall of earth has been enclosed along the main house of the building from the maple tree, and it is covered with green tiles. The first of the house is the gate, a pair of stone drum doors are placed on the threshold of the gate, and a pair of wooden friezes are carved on the top of the door.

Qiusheng brought Xuzong Lilac into the house, and a woman in her fifties led a girl in her teens out. Qiusheng hurriedly introduced: "Mom, this is Brother Xu Zong, this is Brother Xu Zong, this is Sister Man."

Qiusheng's mother was petite, with a goose face, and a black headscarf embroidered on her head, and the girl behind her blinked and stared at the two Lilacs. The eldest brother handed over the gift and said, "It's a little meaning, don't dislike it." Qiusheng's mother took it and greeted with a smile: "Rare guest, rare guest!" Hey, look at your kind gifts! I have long heard Qiusheng say that your sisters are very sensible, sensible and capable, and today I saw that this is really the case! Go into the house and sip tea, sit, sit, there is nothing to entertain, don't be polite, just go back to your own house! You don't dislike it! ”

After greetings, she got busy with the girl, and after a while, she made a table of melon seeds and peanut candy like a trick. The fruit is abundant and the furnishings are very elegant. The carved seven-star disk, the teacup is a blue and white porcelain with a lid.

This is the best tea that Lilac has ever drunk, the best utensils she has ever used, and the best sugar melon seeds she has ever tasted.

Later, after marrying Qiusheng, once Lilac reminded the old story and said, the first time I went to your house, your mother was so enthusiastic and elaborate, like entertaining guests, in fact, I was coaxed by your mother and sister.

Qiusheng listened, and replied a little proudly, don't coax you, who will I go to if you coax someone else?

Taking advantage of Qiusheng's mother's time to make food, Lilac got acquainted with the girl, it turned out that she was Jinhua, the daughter of Qiusheng's third uncle, and now she is Qiusheng's father, so Qiusheng is called the second brother.

There are two sisters and one brother above Qiusheng, the eldest sister is called Honglian to marry a small landlord surnamed Chen in the neighboring village as a daughter-in-law, and the eldest brother-in-law is called Chen Zhiyuan, who has been weak since childhood, and has read foreign characters for a few years in his early years, and is very good to his eldest sister, and now he helps his father in the house to take care of some things. The second sister called Wanlian, according to Qiusheng, her mother had the eldest sister, and later gave birth to four daughters, all of whom died early before the age of three, and one of them was still in the month. When the second sister was born, Qiusheng's grandfather was still alive, and he gave him the name Wanlian, which means the last female baby, which means that it will be good to bring in the future, and the next child will be a male baby. Sure enough, Qiusheng's mother gave birth to a boy in the next womb, which is Qiusheng's brother.

Qiusheng's father and mother are nearly middle-aged and have children, and they are inevitably pampered on weekdays, and Qiusheng's brother will not read after reading for a few years. married a second daughter-in-law, the first one of his brothers suspected that mother-in-law Mu Na, and insisted on retiring, Qiusheng's parents were spoiled, so they had to rely on him. The second cousin is exquisite, and he will talk about it, and he will play cards with him all day long, and the two seem to be in love. Unexpectedly, there were many acquaintances at the two ends in three days, and a few days ago, I was taken by a friend at the card table, and secretly hooked up with a gang and ran away. was so angry that Qiusheng's father was sick in bed for a few days and couldn't get off the ground, and when he got better, he went out to earn money again, so as to make up for the hole that the eldest brother poked. His eldest brother has been bored for two months, and he was in a better mood yesterday and went out early in the morning for two days, and he hasn't come back yet.

That Jinhua's mother died early when she was a child, and her father abandoned her, and she was very well-behaved and sensible on weekdays, and she had the best relationship with Qiusheng among the sisters. It's strange to say, the first time Lilac met her, and they became intimate within half a day. Sister Jinhua's eldest sister had a short conversation that was very speculative, and later Lilac said that it might be related to the fact that they also had the same experience in their early years.

When the eldest brother and Lilac said goodbye and left, Jinhua also sent Lilac a long way, and finally broke up a little reluctantly, took Lilac's hand and said: "Sister Man, you have time to come often!"

During the planting season, it rained heavily, and the water in the ditch rose. The eldest brother and Qiusheng pushed the erected wooden rafts into the bay in the river, loaded them with the purchased tung oil, palm rope, and made melon scoops, and filled them with three rows, so they also hired three boatmen to support the rows. On the day he left, the lame father insisted on sending it to the river and wrapped red envelopes for the eldest brother and Qiusheng. Qiusheng was about to push, but the elderly boatman next to him stopped Qiusheng and said, "Boss Gui, this is a fortune, hurry up!!" When Qiusheng heard it, he hurriedly took it with both hands, and thanked him repeatedly: "Thank you Uncle Cao!!"

Dad abandoned his crutches at this time, grabbed the eldest brother with one hand and Qiusheng with the other, and said, "I hope you two brothers will care for each other on the road." There is a way that it is better to learn Taoyuan three righteousness, not to learn Wagang a furnace of incense, so that brothers can work together, and their righteousness will be golden! Well, I wish you all unimpeded, smooth sailing, and a good fortune! ”

When Qiusheng and his eldest brother were about to stand up, his father suddenly threw the long cigarette stick in his hand on the wooden raft and said to the eldest brother: "This is what your grandfather passed to me, and I gave it to you today!" At that time, the eldest brother had a cautious and serious face when he picked up the cigarette stick, and waved his hand at his father and Qiu Xiang. Qiusheng looked at the people on the shore and waved goodbye one by one, and when he saw Lilac, he shouted: "Sister Man, Lilac!"

At that time, Lilac heard it clearly, but she didn't react for a while, and she didn't understand what Qiusheng meant. Later, when I was discharged, I remembered that Qiusheng asked Lilac to change its name on the day I went to Lilac Castle.

That night, Lilac had insomnia and missed her big brother. It's more of an inexplicable reminder of Qiusheng!

End of the fourteenth round